The Plumbline

There are a whole lot of character traits I could choose for my "H" List - things like humility, honor, honesty, hopefulness, and holiness.  Yet, I choose to focus on one character trait today:  Hunger.  You see, if hunger is one of your character traits, humility will follow, honor will be your adornment, honesty will be your way of doing business, hopefulness will spring from your heart, and holiness will be evident in your words and actions.  So, hunger really is an all-encompassing character trait for our "H" List today! You’re blessed when you’ve worked up a good appetite for God. He’s food and drink in the best meal you’ll ever eat.  (Matthew 5:6 MSG) This passage is taken from the Sermon on the Mount.  I'd like to back up a little to get some perspective though.  First, we find Jesus climbing a small mountain or up onto a hillside.  Why?  The crowds were gathering and this gave him position to speak to the vast crowd - his voice wo...

Breathing Room:  The "space" we create whenever we don't fully occupy every iota of "space" in our lives with stuff!  This is as close to the definition as I could come to - something which I heard my pastor preach this last weekend. As I have returned from vacation, one thing really means a lot to me whenever I can enjoy these times away - they create some "breathing room" in my life.  As I have already shared in past blogs, the time away is really to refresh, renew, and regain what the tough schedule of work and family can take out of me.  In returning home though, I was met with a couple of tragic events right here in my immediate neighborhood.  I learned of the tragic taking of the life of my neighbor's 23-year old son and the sudden death of my other neighbor across the way.  As I heard of these events, the tragedy of a young man taking his own life and the tragic end of a "closet alcoholic's" life, it made me think about the imp...

I came across a quote the other day which kind of made me take a moment to contemplate what the author must have meant when the words were penned. The origin of the quote is unknown, but it states, "Life is like a flute.  It may have many holes and emptiness, but if you work on it carefully, it can play magical melodies."  I would like to point out it is not the work "I" do on my life which produces the melodies which are pleasing to the hearer, but the works "GOD" does in my life!  He is the only one capable of bringing melodies out of our empty places, not by "plugging the holes", but by covering them with his grace and love.   I will always show you where to go.    I’ll give you a full life in the emptiest of places— firm muscles, strong bones. (Isaiah 58:11 MSG) To be fair, I cannot pick this passage out of Isaiah to stand all by itself without giving you the preceding couple of verses.  They outline some "conditions" God outlin...

The story begins this morning with a widow woman facing a debt she cannot repay.  She is worried that she will lose her two sons - simply because they would become the "means" of repaying her debt as they would become the slaves to the debtor if she could not repay the debt.  Her husband has been a prophet - a godly man.  I imagine she wonders why this catastrophe is upon her since she likely has lived pretty close to this guild of prophets and their "set apart" lifestyle for a good many years.  She comes to Elisha - one of the major prophets of the Old Testament - seeking his help.  She implores him to consider her plight.  In response, he begins to wonder what he might be able to do to assist.  In those days, prophets were rarely wealthy men or women - they lived by the standards of the day, occupying their time with the normal pursuits of the day such as farming, tending the animals, working with clay or wood, etc.  But...today, I want us to ...

Did you ever stop to consider why some things are created "hollow"?  Indulge me for a moment, please.  When something is hollow, it could be said to be empty, right?  It has capacity inside which is just not filled up yet?  Something extremely hollow, such as a deep hole in the ground, lacks resonance - we can throw a stone in it, but we may never hear it hit bottom - there is no "return" of sound to confirm the vastness of the hollowness.  Some things are purposefully created hollow - such as a water pitcher, or the kitchen sink.  They have a purpose in the way they were created, right?  Guess what? So do we! Remember, our Message is not about ourselves; we’re proclaiming Jesus Christ, the Master. All we are is messengers, errand runners from Jesus for you. It started when God said, “Light up the darkness!” and our lives filled up with light as we saw and understood God in the face of Christ, all bright and beautiful.  (2 Corinthians 4:5 MSG) ...

I call out at the top of my lungs,  " God ! Answer! I'll do whatever you say."     I called to you, "Save me  so I can carry out all your instructions."     I was up before sunrise,  crying for help, hoping for a word from you.     I stayed awake all night,  prayerfully pondering your promise.     In your love, listen to me;  in your justice,  God , keep me alive.  (Psalm 119:145-149 The Message) Desperation is condition in which hope has faded - - there is a sense of hopelessness, a sense of just wanting to give up.  These are the times when we are often heard just crying out to God, "Hey, are you listening here???"  It is our "God! Answer!"  There are times I think God has allowed me to get to the place of "God! Answer! I am pretty desperate here!"  Yep, you read that right - - he allowed it!  He put me in a place where I came sma...