The Plumbline

"Belonging" is something kids start to 'pursue' at a very early age. They want to belong to a neighborhood group of friends or a best friend. The wish to belong to a group of kids at school with similar interests and who actually help them stay 'insulated' against those who would seek to do them harm by bullying or targeting them for some 'flaw' they have in their size, shape, or ability. In school I found there were various groups of people - some were pretty popular, others not so much. In the moment, almost all of us wanted to be part of the popular group. It was not so much the desire to "do" what they did, but to be considered to be "part of" their group. In fact, if I had considered some of the stuff they "did", I might have reconsidered my all-fired desire to "fit into" their group! Isn't it funny how we view others from the limited perspective of how being "part" of their "circle...

Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter - all are celebratory times in the Christian faith. In a world as diverse as ours, we see all kinds of "customs" and "ways" of doing or celebrating things or seasons that are somewhat different from those we may have been raised to observe ourselves. The passage of time even affects the customs and ways of various people's celebrations. Just look at the tendency to all eat dinner as a family in the 50's being replaced with the "catch as catch can" type of family gatherings we see today. Or consider the 'old way' of setting up a room so it was good for conversation vs. today's custom of setting it up so it is good for TV viewing or playing games on the game system! Yet, when a people holds to a custom, there are always going to be others who will find some fault with it. Haman then spoke with King Xerxes: "There is an odd set of people scattered through the provinces of your kingdom who don't...

Many people live by some unwritten code that implies rules are for breaking, not for keeping - do you know any of them? There is just some inward "pull" to break a few rules once in a while, or perhaps all of the time. While I am not a 'rule-breaker' all of the time, I definitely do my share of pushing the limits of the rules and/or breaking them all of the time. Yesterday we began to look at the sensibility of "following the rules" God sets out for us. His first "rule" was very clearly stated: No other god but me. His second is almost along the same line, but with a little different "twist": “You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea." (Exodus 20:4) No other god but me focused on any affection or attention we directed toward another person or pursuit which clearly took our affection and attention off God himself. Today's "rule" deals ...

You can build a house, or you can build a home. There is a vast difference, for one is just built and the builder moves on. The other is custom built for the one who intends to inhabit it. When a home is created, the one creating it is intent on bringing together all the right materials for what he envisions. The home will have all the 'finishing touches' of the creator.  It is a joyful thing to finally come to a place where we feel like we "fit".  We often spend the majority of our lives looking for that "perfect fit" in life.  We experience disappointment when c areer, schooling, family, friends, spouse, etc., all somehow don't "fit" in quite the same way as we imagined.  The good news is that there is a "fit" in life that will never disappoint! That's plain enough, isn't it? You're no longer wandering exiles. This kingdom of faith is now your home country. You're no longer strangers or outsiders. You belong he...

19-22 That's plain enough, isn't it? You're no longer wandering exiles. This kingdom of faith is now your home country. You're no longer strangers or outsiders. You belong here, with as much right to the name Christian as anyone. God is building a home. He's using us all—irrespective of how we got here—in what he is building. He used the apostles and prophets for the foundation. Now he's using you, fitting you in brick by brick, stone by stone, with Christ Jesus as the cornerstone that holds all the parts together. We see it taking shape day after day—a holy temple built by God, all of us built into it, a temple in which God is quite at home. (Ephesians 2:19-22) It is a joyful thing to finally come to a place where we feel like we "fit".  We often spend the majority of our lives looking for that "perfect fit" in life.  We experience disappointment when c areer, schooling, family, friends, spouse, etc., all somehow don't "fit" i...