The Plumbline

Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. (Romans 12:2) Ever made a really dumb decision? I know I can list a few, perhaps even more than a few. We all make mistakes sometimes, some 'dumber' than others, with some standing out as the 'dumbest' of the 'dumb'. These probably have led to some pretty deep hurts - hurts that seem to hang around long after the decision was made and done. What do we do with the deep hurts that are part of our past mistakes? We can repent, 'turn a new leaf', and move on, or we can harbor those hurts, rehashing the guilt of those decisions over and over again.  When the hurts of the past aren't in the past, we find the rehearsal of those hurts to sometimes be worse than the original 'misstep' was in the first place. God wants to do a work within us...

The old life is gone; a new life emerges! Look at it! All this comes from the God who settled the relationship between us and him, and then called us to settle our relationships with each other. God put the world square with himself through the Messiah, giving the world a fresh start by offering forgiveness of sins. God has given us the task of telling everyone what he is doing. We’re Christ’s representatives. God uses us to persuade men and women to drop their differences and enter into God’s work of making things right between them. We’re speaking for Christ himself now: Become friends with God; he’s already a friend with you. (2 Corinthians 5:19-20) Have you ever purchased some piece of clothing, only to have it sit unworn in your closet? You thought you did a great job of finding a bargain, getting a style that is totally 'in' at the moment, but when you tried it on at home, it just didn't fit you right or you didn't have the right shirt to go with the trousers. Go...

I frequently shake my head over something silly I have done or notice around me. It as though I am standing there in just a bit of amazement over the 'stupidity' of my actions or someone else's, wondering just how I ever thought 'that' would work out well for my situation or theirs. I don't know what your 'that' may be, but I do know I don't stand there shaking my head alone as I have observed others shaking theirs, too! It is as though all 'good sense' exited the building and now we are left to deal with whatever the 'lack of good sense' left behind.  You made me; you created me. Now give me the sense to follow your commands. (Psalm 119:73) Marcus Aurelius said, "Reject your sense of injury and the injury itself disappears." We can get all upset over injuries others cause us, but we can really get ourselves in a tizzy over the ones we inflict upon ourselves because of our lack of 'good sense'. They say poverty i...

When Jesus returned to Capernaum several days later, the news spread quickly that he was back home. Soon the house where he was staying was so packed with visitors that there was no more room, even outside the door. While he was preaching God’s word to them, four men arrived carrying a paralyzed man on a mat. They couldn’t bring him to Jesus because of the crowd, so they dug a hole through the roof above his head. Then they lowered the man on his mat, right down in front of Jesus. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralyzed man, “My child, your sins are forgiven.” (Mark 2:1-5) Stop for a moment to consider the faith of these friends. There is no indication the man had enough faith to do such a thing - although he certainly had the need. These words struck me this morning - "Seeing THEIR faith". It is important to know that THEIR faith got the man where he needed to be in order to receive his healing. Sometimes it isn't our faith that gets us to that place where our n...

Later Jesus and his disciples were at home having supper with a collection of disreputable guests. Unlikely as it seems, more than a few of them had become followers. The religion scholars and Pharisees saw him keeping this kind of company and lit into his disciples: “What kind of example is this, acting cozy with the misfits?” Jesus, overhearing, shot back, “Who needs a doctor: the healthy or the sick? I’m here inviting the sin-sick, not the spiritually-fit.” (Mark 2:15-17) Unlikely as it seems - that statement really says way more than we might initially think. We have a tendency to 'gloss over' some words that really 'set the stage' for what is about to be revealed. We cannot ever forget the 'company' Jesus kept, because not only was it a 'sticking point' for the religious leaders of the day, but it was a revelation of what was about to come - liberty, healing, hope, and restoration. Unlikely candidates for grace are oftentimes the most grateful for ...

The world breaks everyone, and afterward, some are strong at the broken places. (Ernest Hemingway) What are some of your worst 'broken places'? Maybe you have been 'broken' in the place we call the 'heart' - someone disappointing you so badly that you just have never fully healed. Perhaps it is in the place we call the 'spirit of man' - something occurring that just shredded your confidence and left you not wanting to ever try again. You and I both have broken places, but they don't have to be places where brokenness remains. There is hope for restoration beyond what we imagine possible when Jesus touches those places. The Lord hears his people when they call to him for help. He rescues them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed. The righteous person faces many troubles, but the Lord comes to the rescue each time. For the Lord protects the bones of the righteous; not one of them i...

What a God we have! And how fortunate we are to have him, this Father of our Master Jesus! Because Jesus was raised from the dead, we’ve been given a brand-new life and have everything to live for, including a future in heaven—and the future starts now! God is keeping careful watch over us and the future. The Day is coming when you’ll have it all—life healed and whole. (I Peter 1:3) This was one of those verses I'd remind mom of anytime she'd worry over her many aches and tremendously haunting neuropathic pain. We'd just sit for a bit and imagine her walking upright, without pain, able to see perfectly once again. She had a hard time imagining it, but she held onto that promise time and time again - life healed and whole. Sometimes all we have is the hope - we cannot let go of it no matter how long the answer may be delayed - because the day is surely coming! I don't know what you delay may be, but trust me on this one, the day is coming! Too many times we think the ...

God is solid backing to a well-lived life, but he calls into question a shabby performance. (Proverbs 10:29) Just met with the financial advisor and one of the questions I keep asking is how 'solid' the backing of every investment is right now. As I near retirement, I want to be sure my investments will be solidly backed. Backing sometimes comes in the form of a 'thing', but it can also be a 'place' and a 'person', right? Be in the right place and have the right person 'backing' you there and you are likely going to do okay in the end. A sanctuary is kind of like having that 'well-backed' place and it is usually a place provided by some pretty 'phenomenal', as well. There is something special about having a place of sanctuary, isn't there? When we have a place of retreat, we somehow feel a little better knowing we can go there to recover from the things of our day that beat us down and made us more than a little weary. Anoth...

But now that you’ve found you don’t have to listen to sin tell you what to do, and have discovered the delight of listening to God telling you, what a surprise! A whole, healed, put-together life right now, with more and more of life on the way! Work hard for sin your whole life and your pension is death. But God’s gift is real life, eternal life, delivered by Jesus, our Master. (Romans 6:23) Who tells you what to do? We probably all have persons in authority within our lives that give us tasks to complete and we go off in the direction of 'doing' whatever it is we are asked to do. Bosses are probably at the top of the list - they by nature of their position are guiding the work that gets done each day. If you are a child, parents are those individuals who remind the child of the bed needing to be made, teeth requiring a little scrubbing, and toilet paper that needs replacing when they use it all up. Traffic cops expect we will observe what they tell us to do, diverting this w...

Construction projects come in all forms. What is built is really determined by a few things such as how much someone is willing to invest, the place where the constructed item will rest, and what the purpose of the construction holds. We might not all see the constructed thing the same way, as some may look at an old barn and see a venue for weddings, or an old grain silo and see a new home for their family. The thing constructed can be 're-purposed' if it has the right attention and the right hands doing the work! All of us are capable of having 'constructed' many things in this lifetime, but none of what we construct measures up to what God can 're-construct' from our lives when they are firmly placed in his hands. What the wicked construct finally falls into ruin, while the roots of the righteous give life, and more life. (Proverbs 12:12 MSG) As I have pointed out before, that which is constructed sometimes needs to be deconstructed before it can be re...