Just do it

So if you’re serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. Don’t shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ—that’s where the action is. See things from his perspective. (Colossians 3:1-2)

Are you serious about following Jesus this year? The past three weeks should have cemented your determination to follow wholeheartedly, or maybe you have chosen to remain in control of your life and be a little too stubborn for your own good. Christ's call to us today is to 'get serious about living for him - stop waffling, buckle down, and 'get er done'. 

Pursue the things over which Christ presides - stop shuffling along. A 'shuffler' walks that way because they are dragging their feet - they lack determination, are a little too resistant to the forward progress, or are so weighed down with life's cares they just have no 'pep in their step'. Christ calls us to look up. Stop focusing on all the things that bring us down and keep our focus on the things of this world. Instead, look fully into his face and begin to walk strong.

Be alert - not just awake, but alert. I have gone through times when I am quite 'awake', but I was not 'alert' to what was going on right in front of me. The more we get consumed by the cares of this world, the less we will look upward and see what he is doing all around us. When we begin to change our focal point, the view gets much better! The burdens we insisted on carrying ourselves aren't so important for us to carry any longer. 

If you are realizing today that you 'began great' with this new year, fully 'committed' to a new way of living, spending time with Christ each day, but now you realize you aren't 'doing very well' with that commitment, begin again. Sometimes all we need to do is allow Christ to change our perspective. We do that by changing what we focus upon. We may not be perfect in this commitment yet, but we are on the right path, so keep it up! Prepare to let go, then do it. Things change when we just do it. Just sayin!

But...it is undone!

Oswald Chambers reminded us, "The whole point of getting things done is knowing what to leave undone." Perhaps a good start to our new year would be to look at the things we have labeled as 'important' in our lives but are really not all that important after all. When we begin to look at some of the stuff that has consumed our time, talent, energies, and finances, we might just conclude these have been a bit too focused on one thing at the exclusion of perhaps a myriad of other things. The most beneficial thing we can do at times is to evaluate where our priorities have 'drifted'. I use the term 'drifted' because we usually don't even realize we have been investing so much into something that isn't really all that good for our lives in the first place.

...let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. (Hebrews 12:1-2)

What is it you and I need to leave behind this year? When we become honest with ourselves, we might just realize we have been engaging in things that have been timewasters, spending in ways that aren't really all that wise, or even pursuing a relationship or two that we have no real business pursuing. The whole point of making a 'new year's resolution' is so that we will look at what needs to be 'different' in our lives, isn't it? I am not encouraging us to make any such resolutions today, but I do think an 'introspective inspection' might just expose something that has robbed us of our Christ-centered focus. We might not even realize it, but when we ask for his help to identify what might have done it, he doesn't hesitate to show us!

The whole point of getting things done is to keep Christ first in our lives - everything else falls into place when this is the case. If we have been struggling, motivation lacking in some area, or just plain been too wrapped up in things that we know have distracted us from our relationship with Jesus, it is high time we get his help to get back on course. It could be time to 'leave undone' some of those things we thought were so important and take up those things we have neglected for way too long. Just sayin!

Today's focus determines tomorrow's destination

...the Lord God knows how to save those who are devoted to him. He will save them when troubles come. (2 Peter 2:9)

We may not realize just how much God has his watchful eye upon us, or that he is hard at work protecting us from evil all around us, but he is right there, and he is 'at work'! God knows how to save us from ourselves, and he knows how to save us from all manner of evil that comes into our lives! When troubles come, look up. When anxiety reaches deep within your soul, praise God. When heartache seems to overwhelm every emotion, fall on your knees and pour your heart out to him. He is your Savior!

Several examples are given to us in the previous verses - examples of good men who served the Lord in very difficult circumstances. Noah served God with an unwavering heart, even in the face of evil people all around him. He lived a lifestyle that "told people about living right." Lot lived among vile and unholy people, who engaged in terrible acts of evil, all the while he "was greatly troubled by the morally bad lives of those evil people. This good man lived with those evil people every day, and his good heart was hurt by the evil things he saw and heard." In spite of it all, they served God and looked to him for their deliverance.

Everywhere we look, stressors abound. Everywhere we turn, evil is attempting to make an inroad. What can we do in the midst of such chaos? Live right, even when the crowds aren't. Live strong, even when the pressures seem to mount. Live with integrity, even when others are questioning why we live the way we do. In so doing, we welcome the presence of God into the 'chaos' of this evil world, and we become beacons of his grace and love to it. We may not see God at work, but we can trust that he is. We may not 'feel' God in our midst, but that doesn't mean he isn't there. 

God knows how to save those who are DEVOTED to him. The key to living in the midst of evil - live devoted to him. Zealous in our beliefs, loyal in our commitment to have no other god before him, and with affection that is genuine. Devoted individuals are constant in their focus - today's focus determines tomorrow's destination, so don't let your focus drift! Just sayin!

Tripping 101

If I keep my eyes on God, I won’t trip over my own feet. (Psalm 24:15)

I don't know about you, but my 'feet' get in the way a lot! I seem to 'trip up' over some things others see coming a mile away. Sin is just like that for most of us - others can see it coming, while we are standing there totally oblivious to its soon coming attack! Why do we get our eyes off of God so easily and find ourselves looking in places for our help? I think it is because we have so many 'influential voices' in our world today - we just lose focus and don't even know we are allowing it to happen. It is as though our society has created the perfect environment for 'passivity'. God never wanted 'passive followers' - he wants followers who will keep paying attention, regardless of the circumstances.

If I keep my eyes on God... That pretty much says it all right there. We must maintain our focus - God doesn't do that for us. We must train our eyes to 'retain focus', not just stare blindly in any old direction. As I was training in the military, we'd go out to the shooting range. On this range, the targets started out 'stationary' so we could learn to 'zero in' our rifles and get used to firing them. In rather short order, we were placed on ranges with 'moving targets', popping up here and there all over the range, making it necessary to focus on the entire range, not just a stationary piece of paper a few hundred feet away. Those targets would pop up, requiring us to direct our focus, aim, and fire. Your overall score was based on how well you recognized the target. We didn't have to always hit the center of it, but we did need to hit it!

God might just be interested in training us to recognize him wherever he is and in whatever he is doing. We want a 'stationary target' in life, but God's actions in and around us are seldom 'stationary'. He is a creative God, even a 'recreative' God. As he goes about his work in us, he expects us to maintain focus. We may not always hit the target dead center, but when our focus is attentive, we see the target and our aim is adjusted so we hit it! God knows there will be lots of distractions in the 'range', but he wants us to recognize the target and aim for it. Aim requires attentiveness. Perhaps we trip up so often because we aren't as attentive as we need to be to his voice, his prompts, and his Word. Just sayin!

Hmmm...seeing things differently now?

Create in me a clean heart, O God; restore within me a sense of being brand new. (Psalm 51:10)

Einstein said, "We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them."  He was so true in this perception!  The problems we create will never be overcome or changed until we change the way we have been thinking about them!  To change our thought process we often need to change what we are focusing on so often or intensely. If we always see the problem, we will never see the solution standing just beyond it! If all we see is the river in front of us, raging out of control and making it hard to pass over to the other side, we will likely not see the bridge being lowered from the other side!

Restoration is a process of not only being "clean" of the sin in our lives, but of being able to look beyond the sin.  We can ask for forgiveness when we have done something we are not happy we have done, but if all we keep thinking about is that thing we asked forgiveness for, will we never move beyond that thing? It will still be the thing we focus on - anchoring us to the same place we have always been! We want to move beyond it, but we didn't take our eyes off it long enough to see our way beyond it! The drawbridge was being lowered, but we missed it because all we saw was the raging waters of our sin!

Our psalmist reminds us we need a sense of being brand new in order to see what moves us from where we always have been into the place we want to be. I don't know how you "sense" things in your life, but I have to "picture" myself or the object I am trying to move toward in a certain way. If I want to see flowerbeds take shape in my backyard, I have to first walk the space to see how far I want them to extend into the yard, looking carefully at where the sprinkler system could be tied in so I can get water to the beds. In my mind's eye, a picture is being created. I am seeing something which is not yet there, but which I am envisioning will take shape. I am sensing what it will be like to realize the beauty of the bed in that place.

The same is true when we want to move beyond those "problematic" areas in our lives which might plainly be called "sinful areas". If we want to move beyond them, we have to picture something different than what we have been doing, saying, or thinking! We have to allow a new focus to take form within our mind's eye! I don't think we do this in a vacuum, though. It isn't something WE create, but rather it is something which is created within us - in seed form. It is part of being "cleansed" of our sin.  We receive that seed form of what change will look like, but for full restoration to take place, we have to cultivate the seed! We have to believe growth is possible. We must do what we know to do and leave the rest up to God to help with the growth process. We don't "bring forth" the growth - he does!

What we can do is begin to change ou focus. When you focus is on the problem exclusively, all we see is the lack of growth. Restoration begins when we have a new "vision" in our minds of how something will be different. All change begins by seeing things differently than we have always seen them. We don't always control the means by which change will be accomplished, but we can control what we focus on while the change is taking place!  Just sayin!

God's sense needed

Cynics look high and low for wisdom—and never find it; the open-minded find it right on their doorstep! (Proverbs 14:6)

There are people in this world who believe that selfishness motivates people to do things. There are probably more than a few individuals like this, but once someone invites Christ into their lives, it is almost impossible to live that way any longer. A cynic has to believe every action has some underlying "ulterior motive". As we come INTO Christ, the "motivations" of our life begin to change - moving from being a little too self-centered to being "other-centered". The result of becoming more Christ-centered is that we also become more and more "other-centered". This is a good thing since our ego gets us into more scrapes than we might like to deal with in this life! Wisdom is only truly found when we are able to embrace it and as long as we are embracing everything that focuses on and pleases self, we will not be able to open our arms to embrace wisdom.

Egocentric individuals have little regard for the beliefs or interests of others, appearing quite self-absorbed. The "self-absorbed" have little to no room to absorb anything else! It is like being a saturated sponge - you can try to make the sponge hold more water, but it just has no more capacity! Perhaps this is why when some seek wisdom, they have such a hard time holding onto it! It may not be that they don't encounter wise principles and practices in this lifetime, but they just don't 'absorb' them. All of us have a tendency to be a little too self-absorbed on occasion. As Christ begins to take our eyes off of ourselves, turning them fully toward him, we begin to see there is a world outside of ourselves. At first, Christ needs to help us maintain our focus because we don't realize how much our focus determines the direction we will take in this life. As we grow in our relationship with him, it becomes easier for us to recognize when that focus is turned a little off "center".

No man or woman who fully beholds the magnificence of his majesty can ever walk away unchanged. Wisdom takes the form of exchanged priorities, deeper expressions of love and caring toward others, and a little less need to have the world rotate around us. Wisdom is not only the knowledge of what is true and right, but the judgment to act upon it. The cynic's judgment is self-based. They have no "center" outside of themselves, so every action they take is based on how they will appear, what will benefit them from the experience, or 'what's in this for me' kind of focus. The wise embrace the fact that God's work is best revealed when the transformation occurring within is expressed outwardly in the way we treat others, the opportunities we find to elevate another, or 'how can I be a blessing to another' kind of focus.

The cynic may act upon "common sense" in much of what he or she does. The wise act upon "God's sense". It is the enlightenment God brings which helps us to make solid decisions and to take steps forward when it seems like we don't have all the answers up front. The cynic will weigh things out to see if the cost is too great for them. The wise will realize that all "God things" come with a cost - a little less of our self in the mix means we get the best out of the circumstance! Just sayin!

What? Who? Where?

Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. (Romans 8:35, 37)

There are lots of things and people working overtime to separate us from the pursuit of our first love - Christ. What? You say he isn't your 'first love'? Well, if he isn't, he needs to be! We will never experience any love so loyal, any grace so deep, or any peace so settling as what we enjoy in putting him first in our lives. Could it be we are so easily overcome or overwhelmed by life's hard things because we haven't given him 'first place' in our lives? 

And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. (v. 38-39) 

Our fears for today and our worries about tomorrow go a long way in distracting us from putting Christ first in our lives, don't they? We get so hyper-focused on those things that we actually stop taking time for our most important relationship. Nothing should separate us from his love - yet our inattention to the relationship might just cause us to drift apart a bit more than we'd actually like to admit. Does that mean we are 'separated from Christ'? No, it means we have allowed other things to become distractions!

Learning to recognize and control life's distractions is the first order of business, but we don't even have to do that alone! If we put Christ back in the right place in our lives, asking him to help us both recognize AND control those distractions, he will. We get pulled away from Christ at center because we don't recognize other relationships or things we are accumulating as distractions. When we attempt to 'control' the distractions all on our own, we probably don't do a very good job for more than a little while. We get pulled away again and then we wonder where that 'closeness' with Jesus went.

One thing I have learned is to regularly examine my choices. What am I choosing to spend my time on FIRST? Who am I choosing to spend my time with FIRST? Where is my attention focused most of the time? When I begin to answer anything other than Jesus to the first two questions, it is likely that the answer to the third one will reveal Jesus really isn't with me in whatever it is I am focusing so much time and attention on. Just sayin!

A Lesson From Forrest

 In light of all this, here’s what I want you to do. While I’m locked up here, a prisoner for the Master, I want you to get out there and walk—better yet, run!—on the road God called you to travel. I don’t want any of you sitting around on your hands. I don’t want anyone strolling off, down some path that goes nowhere. And mark that you do this with humility and discipline—not in fits and starts, but steadily, pouring yourselves out for each other in acts of love, alert at noticing differences and quick at mending fences. (Ephesians 4:2)

Have you seen the movie, "Forrest Gump"? One line from that movie, "Run, Forrest, run", really depicts a heart of 'steadfast commitment'. One of the most amazing things he says is, "You have to do the best with what God gave you". God tells us to 'run', not walk, because idle hands make for way too much opportunity for compromise. Our 'walk' is to be steady - consistent and disciplined. We can barely crawl, stroll, or outright run this race - it is up to us to not have a whole bunch of 'false starts', though.

We are all probably a little guilty of making a whole bunch of 'false starts' in life. When I ran track and field in school, one of the things we were taught is how to use a 'starting block' to get ourselves in 'equal position' to begin the race. We put our feet squarely on the two blocks, fingers squarely positioned just even with the inside of the starting line, and our posture such that we were to spring forth onto the track. If you were a bit anxious to start, like I was, you might 'over-anticipate' the sound of the starter's gun. You'd jump forward and cross the line, but there was no real direction to start the race yet. That's a false start. God doesn't want us 'jumping the gun', he wants us in sync with his movements, but at the ready at all times to go where he leads.

Forrest reminds us, "You got to put the past behind you before you can move on." Some of our false starts are related to holding onto things in the past that get our focus off the present. Let go and focus - then you will be able to clearly hear God's direction. Some are related to us thinking 'ahead' of God, like when I jumped the starter's gun. We honestly have great intentions, but poorly executed plans. God has a 'grand plan' for each of us, complete with a whole bunch of 'mini plans' that we have to work through before we ever see the bigger plan coming together. We can get all caught up in how things aren't moving fast enough for us and jump the gun, too. Either way, we aren't running well - we are running, but just not as well as we are supposed to run. 

God may be asking us to put the past behind - so do it once and for all - holding onto it is just going to mess up our present and keep us from our future. God may be asking us to 'hold on' a bit until he gives us the direction to move - but when he does, we better be ready to go. God may be reminding us that he gave us all we need for the 'run' that is ahead - so trust him with the 'race' because he has already equipped you thoroughly! Just sayin!

Inward or Upward?

Quiet minds cannot be perplexed or frightened but go on in fortune or misfortune at their own private pace, like a clock during a thunderstorm. (Robert Louis Stevenson)

I want you woven into a tapestry of love, in touch with everything there is to know of God. Then you will have minds confident and at rest, focused on Christ, God’s great mystery. All the richest treasures of wisdom and knowledge are embedded in that mystery and nowhere else. And we’ve been shown the mystery! (Colossians 2:2-4)

Woven into a tapestry of love - not through human effort, but because God binds us together as 'interwoven members'. This should give us a sense of 'belonging' even when we don't feel like we 'belong' anywhere else. This should also give us a sense of being created for a purpose, not just to sit idly by as life passes us by. We are called to work together - not just the physical work some might think of, but that 'spiritual' and 'emotional' work of being united in Christ. Yes, it does require work to live in unity because we have to put aside our differences and come together on the common 'plane' of Christ's love and grace. 

Minds confident and at rest. Yesterday we explored how a mindset can actually drive us forward, or it can keep us locked into a pattern we have allowed to hold us in one position. A confident mind doesn't just 'happen'. Confidence is 'built' - on the power of one bigger than our problem; on the trustworthiness of one stronger than our problem; and on the reliability of one who remains when all else fails. We might not always be 'at rest' in our minds, but that unrest may actually bring us to a place where we encounter whatever it is that is keeping us from knowing God's perfect peace. I was once told that God only disturbs our present so he can improve our future. Rest disturbed today? Maybe God is working on something great in your future!

When our minds are focused - not on something fleeting and uncertain - but on the power and ability of Christ, we are strong. When our minds wander into the territory of our own self-effort and abilities, we can know a bit more than just 'unrest'. We can face fears, a lack of hope, and even a little bit of 'wobbliness' in our stand with Christ. Why? Self-help or self-effort are not enough to bring our minds peace and safety. We need the wisdom of Christ to know full confidence and rest. We don't find that when our focus is inward - we only find it when our focus is upward. Just sayin!

Life Hack #30: Take Focused Steps, Not Calculated Ones

Life Hack #30:

Do you know where your future lies? Our decisions TODAY impact out outcomes tomorrow, but we don't control ALL the possibilities of either day. We can "manage" as much as possible, but there are just "unknowns" we cannot really plan for. Knowing our future is important - especially in terms of where we are headed spiritually. If we haven't really made an "about-face" from doing things our own way, under our own terms, and for our own benefit, we might just be "play-acting" at this "Christianity" thing. Our future is as secure as our focus - that which we set our eyes on the most becomes the direction we take, and it also becomes what fills our "head".

Don’t bother your head with braggarts or wish you could succeed like the wicked. Those people have no future at all; they’re headed down a dead-end street. (Proverbs 24:19-20)

We might allow things we see or hear to fill our heads with ideas and images which really don't do a lot to help us move forward. Focus on what gives you the greatest worries or problems in this life and that is what you will be constantly moving toward. If we want to move beyond those worries or problems, we have to change our focus - do an about-face. Unless we truly have eyes in the back of our head, that about-face maneuver will bring things into a new light simply because we cannot look forward and still be looking back. Focusing on our worries and problems leaves us with a pretty miserable future.

We get "bothered" a lot of times by the things which really don't amount to much. The braggart boasts about what he thinks makes him look important - things he uses to puff up his pride and show off. The wicked get along pretty well, seeming to avoid all the pitfalls which should await them because of their dishonest ways. All the while we get a notion in our mind that life isn't fair, and somehow, WE were overlooked for the blessings or the goodies. We see the one with the goodies and we begin to wonder why it isn't possible for us. We see the one with all the success and realize the "littleness" of our present position. Focus on them long enough and we will learn to live a pretty dissatisfied and ungrateful life.

It is time to keep our focus on the things and the ONE who really matter in the long run. Once we realize how important focus is in determining our ultimate future state, we begin to consider making change in our posture. Have you ever found yourself just looking down at your steps? The problem with looking down at is that we miss the obstacles in our path! We don't get a clear picture of where we're heading, just of every step we're taking. We don't need to make a continual effort of focusing on each step if we are focusing on the principles God teaches us to live by as we 'step along'.

We can focus so intently on each "step" in our journey, but in so doing, we often fall head-over-heels into the obstacles in our path. We need a broader perspective which only comes by looking at the objective out in front of us. Today's objectives will differ from last week's because we are taking steps forward. If you are trying to develop in your intimacy with Christ, you don't need to focus so intently on the "steps" such as Bible reading, prayer, and the like - you have to focus on him - he helps you take the steps without even realizing you have taken them. Maybe some of our closest experiences with Christ would come if we just kept our eyes intently on him and not so consumed with whether we read two chapters a day, prayed fifteen minutes, or memorized twelve verses this month. Just sayin!

Life Hack #26: Get Up, Pay Attention

Life Hack #26:

Rescue the perishing; don’t hesitate to step in and help. If you say, “Hey, that’s none of my business,” will that get you off the hook? Someone is watching you closely, you know—someone not impressed with weak excuses. (Proverbs 24:11-12)

None of us do things in a vacuum. Every action or inaction on our part not only affects another, it is observed by many, but especially one person - God himself. The times of 'disengagement' or inaction are just as significant as when we engage or take action. Why? We have been commanded to be "active" on behalf of those who need us to step in and help - inaction on our part is actually disobedience. What we do with the opportunities we miss are maybe more important than those we actually embrace! God knows and understands our hearts - he sees into the very core of our being, knows our thoughts, interprets our intent, and is comfortable exploring the recesses of our reasoning. He doesn't have a whole lot of patience with excuses, though. Since he knows our hearts, any excuse we could render really falls short of the truth anyway!

God asks us to pay special attention to those on the verge of being destroyed through neglect, violence, or any other force working to leave a life in ruin. Have you ever stopped to just reach out to a small child with nothing more than a smile and a little wave? You catch their eye, don't you? Why? They crave attention. Kids are built that way - they want the attention of adults around them. Who knows if that tiny moment of attention could make a world of difference to the child who hasn't received any positive attention from those in their life today? When we step in and help, our intentions become actions. Actionable intentions are the only ones that count! The willingness to step in and help goes way beyond the platitudes of "let me know if there is anything you need", as we all know human tendency is to offer assist as a matter of courtesy, hoping silently that no one will really take them up on their offer! 

God has a different set of "marching orders" for us, including us actually putting "feet" to our words. We can all recognize a need, but not all of us will find a way to meet it. We may not have the means to meet it ourselves, but we can always stand with the one who has the need - such as when someone is going through chemo in a battle with cancer. We cannot beat the cancer for them, but we can drive them to chemo, clean up their yard when they are too tired to lift a trowel, or just bring a bag of groceries on our way home from our errands at the local grocer. 

Our "business" is to be ambassadors of Christ's love on this earth. We cannot turn a blind eye or deaf ear to the cries of those in places of despair and desperation. We hold the very thing they need - the connection to God's grace, love, and provision. Our business is HIS business and as such, we are not to neglect it - EVER. What we do matters to not only the one we are reaching out to, but to the one who is silently taking it all in. Your example may be the very thing someone else needs to actually connect to the love of Jesus - seeing Jesus in your actions may be the very evidence that helps them to see their own need for him. We can limit our 'earthly' effectiveness through our stubbornness or neglect, but we can magnify his grace with every action done in his name. Just sayin!

Kept in flight

So let God work his will in you. Yell a loud no to the Devil and watch him scamper. Say a quiet yes to God and he’ll be there in no time. Quit dabbling in sin. Purify your inner life. Quit playing the field. Hit bottom, and cry your eyes out. The fun and games are over. Get serious, really serious. Get down on your knees before the Master; it’s the only way you’ll get on your feet. (James 4:7-10)

Does this sound close to what we are seeing today in our world: Wars, quarrels, wanting our own way, lusting for what we don't have, but probably also don't need? If you said "yes", you are probably observing some of the same things I am. The problem begins with the "war within" each of us - wanting things we really don't need or things which will eventually be our undoing. Life deals us all kinds of options - learning how to sort through those options is imperative to living well. 

Getting so close to the things this world has to offer can actually lead to us straying dangerously close to the line of compromise all the time. As Christians, we are to be controlling the temperature of the culture around us, not being thermometers who just "adjust" to the temperature the culture affords. Are we bringing society into alignment with the principles God desires, or are we adjusting our beliefs, principles, and morals to what society declares to be the "norm" of the day? If we are just adjusting all the time, we end up flirting with the things of this world every chance we get, and this will ultimately end in us being enemies of God. Something I don't think any of us really desires!

How do we accomplish this "living in the world" without becoming just "like the world"? We let God work his will in us. We don't just "give God permission" to work his will in us - we LET him actually do it. We do a lot of giving God permission - as when we pray "change me", "create this or that anew in me", but we also do a whole lot less of the "letting" God do what it is he wants to do in us.

Letting God do his will in our lives is something akin to stepping back, yielding control of the reins, and then allowing the direction of our lives by the expert. As a teen, a friend of the family would take me up in his small plane and as soon as we were airborne, he'd turn to me and say, "take the controls". To say the least, I never learned how to fly that plane - I just learned how to keep the nose of the plane headed in the right direction! I know the truth - he still was operating everything from the pilot's seat. He remained the expert pilot - I was only "playing" at being in control. At best, we all play at being in control of our lives - I think we might just want to consider how fortunate we are to actually have someone still truthfully in control!

When we turn our back on the sin and focus instead on the one who desires to take control (Jesus), we no longer see the sin in front of us. We see the Lord - and when we see him - we don't have room for the sin in our view! God tells us to determine our focus - HIM. Then choose to remain consistent in that focus - not dabbling in the things of this world one day, and then the heavenly the next. Whenever we dabble, we don't have a determined focus.

In the world, but not of it? In the world, and having a hard time leaving it behind? Get your focus redirected. Our eyes fixed on Jesus yields someone in control who actually knows how the controls work together to keep us in flight! Just sayin!

How do we get there from here?

Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace. For there is one body and one Spirit, just as you have been called to one glorious hope for the future. (Ephesians 4:2-4)

A moment of confession here - I am not always humble - my pride gets in the way a lot of times. I am not always gentle - my desire to be first, be right, be whatever brings out some of the harshness of my human nature. Am I always patient? Nope, I don't have that one down either! Do I see your faults and just want to roll my eyes? Sometimes - until I look in the mirror and see my own! Then I just hush-up and hope you haven't noticed I have the same faults. 

Living together in peace is the goal - but all this 'human' stuff gets in the way at times, doesn't it? We waste a whole lot of time arguing over things that won't matter a few years from now. We let pride carry us away down some path that says we have the 'right' to be mad, sad, or feeling like we are all alone in the circumstances. Unity isn't capable apart from Christ - we need his Spirit within us to unite us in his love and grace. As long as we attempt to live apart from his Spirit's direction in our lives, we will do a pretty lame job at keeping peace among the brethren.

Marcus Aurelius reminded us that "the soul becomes dyed with the color of its thoughts". Does that possibly mean we might be able to live in unity with each other if we allowed a little bit more of Christ's thoughts to be ours? I think it does. As long as we are thinking about ourselves, we don't see each other. As long as we are considering the outcome as it will affect us, we don't see the impact on our brothers and sisters around us. One of the most powerful things the Spirit of God can do within us is help us change our way of thinking - and in so doing, change our way of acting toward one another.

There is no room for self-made individuals in God's family - we are all God-made and in need of his careful attention in our lives, as a result. The transition from "me - me" to "we - we" begins at the moment we lay down our desire to be in control. Will unity come overnight? No, but the more we turn our eyes toward Christ, the more we will reflect his actions. The more we allow the Word of God to affect our thinking, the more we will begin to see others first. Kindness, unity, and patience are not outflows of a self-made man - they are the outflow of a Christ-centered heart and mind. Just sayin!

Adjustment needed?

We cannot change our past. We cannot change the fact that people act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude. (Charles R. Swindoll)

Who is like the wise man? And who understands the meaning of anything? A man’s wisdom makes his face shine. The hard look on his face is changed. (Ecclesiastes 8:1)

What are we truly able to change? Many times, we think we can change others, but that probably hasn't worked so well for any of us. We have a hard enough time trying to change ourselves, much less another! We might think we can change the circumstances upon us, but most of the time we can just 'adjust our attitude' toward them. We sometimes believe we could have changed the world, but the world likely didn't want to be changed as we wanted it changed! Change is inevitable, but our attitude toward it is not. We choose the attitude by which we will face change as it comes. We don't change the past - it is already set. We don't change the future - it isn't in our control. We can impact the present - all by having the right attitude toward past, present, AND future.

Wisdom is what most of us actually need, but we seek other answers. We search for some 'truth' that really isn't there, all the while missing the truth that God wants us to see in that moment. We rally around events, people, and ideals we cannot possibly fully understand, but neglect to bring God into the plans around each of these. In the end, we wonder why things went so miserably wrong and why we feel so terrible over the matter or relationship. We left God out - we didn't make room for his wisdom in OUR plans. The fool trudges ahead, regardless of what God reveals, thinking he is wise in his own reasoning. The godly know they are foolish, regarding God's wisdom over their own in order to remain in the place of safety and godly protection.

Attitude is a choice. We can grumble against the plan of God - the place where we might find ourselves heading right now - but we all probably know that won't end as well as hoped. We can embrace it - thinking there has got to be a better way than the way God is choosing, but we know half-hearted commitment to God's plans isn't really what he is after. We can admit we are struggling with where God has us headed - honestly acknowledging our internal struggles with his plan - facing the circumstances with a commitment to see them through God's way, not our own. Which one do you think will bring us closer to God's desire for our lives? If you said the latter, you are probably right. 

God's ways may be hard to accept at times, but when we allow our attitude to be one of 'not my will, but thine', then we are likely to do more than 'endure' them. We are more likely to invest ourselves in his plan when we release our stubborn will and allow him to lead us. Attitude always determines altitude. Where we focus the most, and the 'attitude' we have within our hearts - that is what determines how well we will come through it all. Wisdom isn't always the same thing as understanding - we don't always need to understand God's plans to wisely walk within them. Just sayin!

Best, Good Enough, and Just Enough

The desires of good people lead straight to the best, but wicked ambition ends in angry frustration. (Proverbs 11:23)

Desires go a long way in determining the end results. Integrity - lives lived out according to God's plan and purpose, with honesty and humility. Anytime we have "twisted desires", it leads to "twisted hearts" and the outcome will be less than good. I think twisted ambition is what gets us so frustrated most of the time. We get our undies in a wad - either at another individual, over something we cannot control, or totally because we are mad at ourselves - all because of some "twisted" desire or ambition. When we learn to "untangle" our lives a little bit, it is amazing how much differently things actually appear! Life is filled with all kinds of choices. There are "good" or "best" choices, aren't there? Sometimes the difference between the two is a very fine line. I have been guilty of making a whole lot of "good" choices in life, but I really have to wonder if I have always made the "best" choices. If I were to perfectly honest, not every "good" choice has been the "best" - but the outcomes were pretty amazing anyway. I can honestly say some of my "worst" choices yielded some pretty awesome things in my life - not because bad choices produce good results, but because God is able to redeem even the worst to create something good out of it.

Ambition is kind of a fickle thing - it is okay to have desires, but when they drive us into actions without any forethought, they become detrimental to our well-being. Think of ambition as a "driving" force. Imagine desire as the feeling behind ambition - it creates the sense of "need", while ambition sets our feet into motion to see the need fulfilled. This is probably why our studies have focused so much on controlling our feelings! The way we "feel" about a certain thing makes all the difference in determining if we will pursue it or not. Sometimes I don't "feel good" about some particular option available to me - if I ignore those "intuitions" I might just come to an end result which I would have liked to have avoided. You may have realized this in your own experience, as well. God's plan is for us to learn to align our desires with his purposes - this is what truly brings safety into our lives.

The one who blesses others is abundantly blessed; those who help others are helped. (Proverbs 11:25) Work hard - get a paycheck. Have a paycheck - pay your bills. Help others - you are helped yourself. You see, hard work is a good thing - having money in your account is awesome! Getting a paycheck is tremendously satisfying - living debt-free is overwhelmingly liberating. Reaching out to others in need is rewarding - seeing a return on your investment in the blessing another receives is priceless. Search for good - find favor.
Search for evil - you will find it. Desire for what is right and good leads to finding favor with God and our fellowman. Ambition misdirected toward evil just ends in evil. The reward of right choices is something we experience here and now on this earth - contentment. Favor is experienced in both the mind and in our actions - we get our minds set straight and our steps ordered. When these two things occur, contentment is certainly not far behind. All forms of discontent are really linked to either not having our minds at peace, or in engaging in some missteps along the way.

Sometimes we fail to recognize the value of what we have been given. We have been given all kinds of "good" in life - but what awaits us is really something pretty "great" - the "best" is our target. If you look at a target, there are concentric rings which come to focus on some really small circle in the middle. All the outer rings have "hallow space" in between them. Getting anything inside one of those spaces is good, is it not? Yet, the "solid" circle in the middle of the target - the small circle - is the best, isn't it? The "best" is not the biggest, nor the easiest to hit - the smallest is. Did you ever stop to ask why it is a solid circle in the middle? I think it might just be to help us focus on it! All the other "hallow space" just leads us to looking directly at "dead center" on the target! Best is always going to be "dead center" in our lives. Whatever, or whoever, controls "dead center" determines the "score" in our lives. Just sayin!

Committed to one focus

Lord, who shall dwell [temporarily] in Your tabernacle? Who shall dwell [permanently] on Your holy hill? He who walks and lives uprightly and blamelessly, who works rightness and justice and speaks and thinks the truth in his heart... (Psalm 15:1-2)

Men and women of understanding know there is a time and place for everything. The events of today prepare us for those of tomorrow. We may not always see clearly today what tomorrow holds, but we do know if we conduct our affairs to the best of our ability today, listening intently to the voice of God as we do, we will be in a better position for what tomorrow brings. Most of us think of living 'uprightly' as being in line with what is right, but it also means being directed vertically. In a spiritual sense, we are to conduct our "business" of today - directed vertically, upward in our focus. The opening statement of this psalm causes us to consider two aspects of our walk - the here and now, and the future state of our existence. The here and now is temporary - the future is permanent. The question - who gets to commune with the Holy God? The answer - those who walk blamelessly (upright). 

There is evidence in the life of the one who actually walks in an upright manner - things like being just, speaking and thinking truth in his/her heart. Walk above the defilement of this present day. This may seem difficult to some, but I believe it is possible when we keep our focus "vertical". If we stop viewing things from the "horizontal" perspective, we begin to see them differently. When we are "horizontal" in our focus, we see others, often comparing our actions to theirs. We get wrapped up in the "littleness" of today's demands and forget to maintain the perspective of one who is on mission for Jesus. "Vertical" focus provides a framework for living in this world without being overcome by its pulls.

Stand up where you are right now. Look around the room or place you are standing while maintaining a focus which is at eye level (don't raise or lower your head). What do you see? I am in my den, so I see computer, computer desk, bookshelf, a small table, and the window looking outside. Now, look up. What do you see now? How much of what you saw when you were just focusing on a "horizontal" level do you still have in your view? Some of it, right? Yet, it is less than you had before. On a "horizontal" level, we tend to look as far as our eye can see from the ground up to about a foot over our eye level. Turn your eyes upward and the possibilities of focus are vastly different. If you are able, climb up on a step stool for a moment in your same room. Now, look horizontally again - what changed? Your perspective is affected by where you are standing, is it not? The same is true in a spiritual sense. Where we are "standing" at the moment creates a vantage point for a variety of different perspectives.

From the step stool vantage point, you might see some spots you haven't dusted in a while, or perhaps a little cobweb gathering in the corner of the ceiling. Maybe you look down and see just how cluttered your "space" really is. Vantage point is important, isn't it? This is why God doesn't want his kids just living continually on the horizontal level. He knows we see a whole lot of obstacles and impossibilities on that level! When we take our eyes off the obstacles and begin to anchor them vertically on him, the obstacles are no longer in our view. The "clutter" doesn't get us all muddled up and unable to see beyond the mess we are in. Instead, we can sort out some things and see them in an entirely new perspective.  Perspective helps us "right size" our life's challenges. Maintaining an upright focus is key to getting right perspective. Uprightness is merely determining where our focus will be and maintaining it regardless of the pull to do otherwise. Just sayin!

Squander less....embrace more

What difference does a day make? To some, a day is an eternity because they are never really confident they will see another. To others, a day seems like an eternity because they are waiting with a degree of impatience for something big to happen they have been dreaming about for quite some time. To God, a day is something like a fraction of a second to us - hard for us to imagine, beyond our comprehending. Every moment matters. Today's seconds may slip away from us unnoticed if we are not careful, but with God, not one of those miliseconds are ever missed.

“So, my dear friends, listen carefully; those who embrace these my ways are most blessed. Mark a life of discipline and live wisely; don’t squander your precious life. Blessed the man, blessed the woman, who listens to me, awake and ready for me each morning, alert and responsive as I start my day’s work. When you find me, you find life, real life, to say nothing of God’s good pleasure. But if you wrong me, you damage your very soul; when you reject me, you’re flirting with death.” Proverbs 8:32-36

Mark a life of discipline and live wisely. This says it all - make right choices, stay focused on the right stuff, and be attentive to the right things. There is much to be said about focus, but attention is what I'd like us to consider for just a moment or two. You see, attention is waning at best. We might say we have dedicated our attention to some pursuit or passion, but even the most dedicated and committed of individuals will waver in their commitment to the object of their attention.

Why do we want to be aware of where our attention is 'weak' or 'wandering'? It is because we will end up squandering the moments. Moments that will all add up in the end as more than we ever imagined. Don't believe me? Your moments right now are directed toward reading this blog, but in just a few more moments, where will your attention be directed? I just caused you to focus your attention on something else just a little bit further down the road, didn't I? See how easily our attention is distracted, or redirected? No wonder God reminds us not to squander our moments with him. 

When we want to make the most of our days, we start them well. In other words, we start them with our attention directed toward God, what he wants to do in and through us today, and what he wants us to understand or see. The truth of the matter -  it is much easier to end well when we begin well! Our focus is not going to remain consistent throughout the day, but we can begin it well and allow those moments of redirection to occur as God would call upon us to refocus throughout the day. In the end, we will squander less and be rewarded with even more than we counted on receiving! Just sayin!

Tripped up by my own feet

 God-friendship is for God-worshipers; They are the ones he confides in. If I keep my eyes on God, I won’t trip over my own feet. (Psalm 25:14-15)

To stumble while walking without having tripped over any obstacle in your path - how foolish is that? I have done it! It seems like I tripped over air. Down I went, stumbling like a rag doll until the ground met my body's impact. Looking back on those 'trips' I wonder how many times I trip over the things I don't see in life? Things in the spiritual world, in my subconscious, and even in my intellect. We can have many 'tripping points' in life, but there are probably none as problematic to us as those we cause ourselves.

Most of the times I have tripped over 'air' have been due to what I would label as 'distraction'. I was looking somewhere else, listening to someone else, or just caught up in daydreaming. Before I knew it, I was headed into the 'tripping moment'. Did I fall each time I stumbled? Nope, but I have fallen more times than I would like to admit! Do you know what a distraction really is? It is anything that brings a complication into your life. The main purpose of the distraction is to disturb us just enough that we get a little confusion about what it is about to happen.

No wonder God reminds us we need to keep our eyes squarely on him! He doesn't want anything to disturb our lives so much that it causes us to stumble around in confusion until we fail to remain upright in our choices. Distractions are meant to interfere with our lives - to interrupt the goodness and greatness of God in our lives for just a bit. IF we keep our eyes on Jesus - we won't get engrossed in the wrong stuff. IF we keep our eyes on Jesus - we won't get caught up in the things that agitate us in an unhealthy way. IF we keep our eyes on Jesus - we won't become preoccupied with things that offer empty reward. No other thing keeps us safer than 'focus' - when it is intently on God, his grace, and his purpose. Just sayin!

What do you love the most?

Name some of the things you love. Go ahead - say them out loud right now. Some of us immediately went to individuals we hold close, like our spouse, kids, or grandkids. Others of us went right to the newest toy we have in our arsenal of toys, like that new big screen TV, the latest tool in our shop, or that shiny new car in the driveway. Many of us went to the things like chocolate, coffee, or fresh baked bread slathered in melting butter. We all had different 'places' we went when we described the things we love, didn't we? Why is that? I think it is simply because we are each individuals and as such, we have different likes and dislikes, impacting the things we'd say we 'love'. I don't know about you, but on occasion I like to do a little inventory of what I am spending more time thinking about, engaging in, or just plain talking about the most. I am sometimes quite surprised to find I am spending the majority of my time and my attention is most consistently directed toward things that maybe aren't the best for me.

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If you love the world, the love of the Father is not in you. These are the ways of the world: wanting to please our sinful selves, wanting the sinful things we see, and being too proud of what we have. None of these come from the Father, but all of them come from the world. The world and everything that people want in it are passing away, but the person who does what God wants lives forever. (I John 2:15-17)

There is a desire deep within us to please ourselves. It is inherent in each one of us - manifesting right at the point of birth and giving us more than a few headaches along the path we call life. The desires of the 'flesh' as some may call them are not unique to an individual - we all have those desires. The desire to feel loved isn't unique to anyone - how we experience and 'feel loved' may be based on what some have called our 'love language', but we all desire love. How we choose to meet our desires may be our greatest hang up in life, though. There are right ways and clearly wrong ways to meet each of these desires we have, but some of them just give us a little bit of a harder time keeping under control than others. Three things we should keep in mind as we go about seeking to have our desires met:

1. If the desire is simply something that will please our sinful nature, we aren't to pursue it. Wanting to please our sinful selves might just be observed in how we make our choices, but it can also be observed in the attitude we exhibit behind seeing that our needs are met. If we demand to be first in all things, we aren't exhibiting the right attitude. Self likes to rule the roost. It wants to primary place in life and if something elevates self, our sinful nature is likely to want to pursue it. We need God's help to keep this in check, though. We want to keep him at the center of our lives - so self isn't the one ruling the roost.

2. If the desire is fed by the things we are constantly focusing on, but those things aren't building us up in a spiritually sound manner, we aren't looking upon the right stuff. We are likely drawn to what we see because it feeds some inner craving or desire that is feeding the self-nature. For example, if I am constantly wanting to watch TV shows that exhibit all kinds of violence and then I wonder why I am angry easily and having outbursts that border on tantrums, I might consider what I have been watching that feeds these thoughts and feelings. 

3. If the desire is feeding our pride, something that is usually pretty well-fed in our lives anyway, we might want to consider if that desire is really God-given. We don't need to feed pride - it already finds ways to leech life from us! We want to find ways to keep pride out of the mix in life and the things we might pursue in life that only build up that ugly sense of pride in our lives will eventually also feed the ugly things like jealousy, frustration, bitterness, and lust. We certainly don't want to feed any of these things in our lives, so looking closely at the things we 'love' in this life can help us to stop feeding the things that really just get in the way of Jesus being the one in control. Just sayin!

So it comes down to this...

So it comes down to this...

Have you ever stopped to consider what life has to come to for you in order for God to fully get your attention and hold it longer than two minutes? Some would recount a terrible occurrence in their lives, like that last drink that found them turned upside down, wheels spinning in the air, barely missing death's blow by seconds. Others would tell of the horrible diagnosis of some life-altering disease that made them take notice of what had been neglected in their lives to such a degree that life's little things finally mattered so little. There will be countless others who will say they had no idea a pandemic could bring life to a halt, crumble the economy, change the way we shop, or reveal such a lack of peace in their lives. What will it come down to in our lives to allow us to see that life slips right on by if we don't stop and take notice? What will help us to see there is no other thing that belongs at the center of our lives other than Christ himself? 

So it comes down to this: since you have been raised with the Anointed One, the Liberating King, set your mind on heaven above. The Anointed is there, seated at God’s right hand. Stay focused on what’s above, not on earthly things, because your old life is dead and gone. Your new life is now hidden, enmeshed with the Anointed who is in God. (Colossians 3:1-3)

Since you have - now you need to...

These are words of instruction, not of advice. We have already received so very much in Christ Jesus, but we may not be putting those things into full action within our lives. It seems there is a little bit of a disconnect between receiving and using. We like the things we'd label as 'blessings' in our lives, but when those 'blessings' get interrupted by the 'not so blessed' stuff, how many of us find ourselves complaining that the blessing seems to be gone? If our focus is on the blessing and not on the one who gives the blessing, we will soon find we grow discontent with the blessing, or complain bitterly when their is any interruption in it! Keeping our focus on the one who is the giver of all blessings ensures we have the right perception of all things.

Focus on what's above, not below...

I could focus on the condition of my retirement savings right now, but it would make me rather depressed to look at the losses in the market. I could focus on the continuous news reports of doom and gloom, but what would that do to my frame of mind? Rather than focusing on all that is wrong, I will choose to do as the words of the song say, "The weapon may be formed, but it won't prosper...", by Elevation Worship (Song: See A Victory). There is power in changing our focus - but it is an active choice to no longer be so consumed or intimidated by what we see around us. We must choose to look beyond what we see in the 'natural' sense and trust what we don't see in the 'spiritual realms'. 

The old is dead and gone...

What is dead and gone is usually no longer part of our lives - we discard or put it away, right? The flowers that wilt and die in the vase, they have served their purpose and we discard them. The carcass from the chicken is left after we have picked the meat away, and we may boil it to get whatever broth might be garnered, but when that is done we discard the bones. The dryer sheet goes around a couple of times in loads of laundry, but eventually there is nothing of value in the sheet, so we discard it and start afresh. The dead serves to clutter, complicate, and challenge our lives. We have to let go of what is dead and gone - finding new life as soon as we do! This is the amazing thing about having our focus on Christ - there is always something 'fresh' in him. Just sayin!