Is this for real?

Whoever said we could walk through this life without worries, difficulties, or unresolved issues was probably not a well person! Choosing to serve Christ does not elevate an individual above the ebbs and flows of life. In fact, it almost guarantees a few more hurdles! If we really are living for Christ, we will face challenging people, circumstances, and moments of potential compromise which we may not have encountered otherwise. Worries are still going to come, simply because we all have a tendency to want to 'hold everything together' ourselves. We just don't get used to turning things over to God quickly, bearing much more weight upon our shoulders than we really need to bear.

You paid careful attention to the way we lived among you, and determined to live that way yourselves. In imitating us, you imitated the Master. Although great trouble accompanied the Word, you were able to take great joy from the Holy Spirit!—taking the trouble with the joy, the joy with the trouble. (I Thessalonians 1:5-6)

As we all know, increased troubles can easily come as we enter into relationship with Christ. Sorry, but you may balk a little at this revelation, but the important thing to see is with our great trouble comes the revelation we are being accompanied by the one who would walk us through it unscathed! WE sometimes forget this, but GOD doesn't! He gives us gentle (and sometimes not so gentle) nudges to remind us we are not walking alone. He wants us to lean into him, handing him the trouble to 'manage' and the obstacles to 'remove'. Look at the progression we see in this passage - they paid careful attention to their examples in the faith. In other words, they kept their eye on the actions and attitudes of those who had been walking with Christ longer than they had. In so doing, they became imitators of what they saw. Let me caution each of us here - not every example is worth imitating. Just because something bears the label 'Christian' doesn't ensure it is the true product!

Whenever we are imitating what we see, we are "molding" to a "model" we have before us. This makes it doubly important for us to have accurate "models" so what is "molded" within us is solid, reliable, and free of compromise! I have personally followed some pretty bad "models" in my years on this earth - both before and after choosing to follow Christ. The things produced were definitely different depending on the "model" being followed. If you have ever followed "bad directions", you know what I am referring to here. Just because you invite Christ into your lives doesn't mean you won't be tempted to follow wrong paths - in fact, those paths still present themselves repeatedly. We have to choose not to take them!

There are all kinds of "knock-off" jeans, but only one Levis brand! There all kinds of Coach purse knock-offs, but a genuine Coach purse bears the evidence of genuineness in many ways I wasn't even aware of at first. Noticeably enough, the thing which sets both of these "real things" off as originals is their cost! The "knock-off" brand gains its popularity simply because it LOOKS LIKE the original without the COST! We need to be aware many 'knock-offs' in life look good, but there is a significant difference in the cost to us. The reason we have "knock-offs" is simply because somebody sees something worth imitating! Yet, the knock-off will never measure up to the quality of the original! This is why it is so important we have good examples! We don't want to imitate a "knock-off" - we want to imitate the original! This is why it is important to evaluate the ones we hold up an examples, or models, in our lives once in a while - comparing them to the Word of God and the telling truth revealed by the Holy Spirit.

These believers learned to take the troubles with joy, and the joys with the trouble. How? Simply by having an example to keep their eyes on through the troubles - the Holy Spirit guiding them step-by-step. They became imitators of Christ - allowing the Holy Spirit to create within them the "staying power" and the appreciation of the supreme blessing of the trouble, not just the good! They learned each ebb had a purpose to expose something otherwise hidden from their view - each flow had a driving force to propel them forward. In each, they found joy - not because of the circumstance, but IN it. My hope is for us to become imitators of the original - solidly molding our lives to the pattern laid out for us in Christ Jesus. My goal is for us to never become cheap "knock-offs" - wanting the original, but not being willing to pay the price! Just sayin!

Have we become blind?

"The precision of naming takes away from the uniqueness of seeing."

 (Pierre Bonnard)

If you haven't noticed, we spend a great deal of our lives putting "names" or "labels" on things. In school, you get a red mark in the form of either a letter or numeric "grade" - labeling the work you have performed as either "passing" or "failing". In the sixties, those with long hair, loose fitting clothing, and wearing sandals were labeled "hippies". Folks who are comfortable taking up signs of protest of the lawn of our capital buildings are labeled "radicals". Still others who are slow to learn, unable to integrate into society, or below a certain "intelligence quotient" are labeled as "backward", "disabled", or even something worse. Names and labels do a great deal to take away from us seeing the uniqueness in each individual and I don't believe God get much glory when we use them!

A good reputation is more valuable than costly perfume.  (Ecclesiastes 7:1 NLT)

There are some names or labels we might want to carry in this lifetime - like that of a good parent, excellent student, positive contributor, law-abiding citizen, etc. While these are what we have come to appreciate as "good labels", it doesn't negate the fact that there is an "opposite" state suggested in the use of these "good labels". In other words, there are bad or poor parents, underachiever students, those who take more than they give, etc. So, not all the "good labels" have a "value" to them. In fact, it matters not what you think of me, or what I think of you - it matters only how God sees us!

In God's eyes, he sees Jesus when he sees us. He sees the finished work of the cross - not so much the "work in progress" our lives seem to be. He doesn't "label" us as good or bad - he sees us as his creation and something he desires above all other living things. It was that desire that drove Christ to the cross. It was that desire that culminated in him rising from the grave three days later. It was that desire that seated him in heavenly places, preparing a place for each of us to dwell right there alongside him, ruling and reigning as he intended from the very beginning of time.

God sees sin in our lives, but he doesn't label us as "sinner". In fact, he made a way for sin to no longer have a place in us, so that we could live out from under the weight of that sin. He sees the outcome or end result of sin's effect - he doesn't place that weight there! We might judge others by the things we think make them worthy or valued in society. God "judges" us by what he sees in each of us as we are formed in the womb, tenderly knit together, and created in the image of our Creator. He sees us in all our uniqueness and loves us in spite of how others see us (or even how we see ourselves).

As Bonnard said, to label is to limit our seeing - we stop seeing the moment we put a label on something or someone. We no longer look for any other evidence. We believe the label! The outcome of that practice is that we soon begin to stop living to our full potential in Christ and we stop looking for that same potential in others. Rather than placing that label upon someone maybe we need to remember all God sees is Christ in us - the hope of glory! Just sayin!

Don't name before you truly see

"The precision of naming takes away from the uniqueness of seeing."  (Pierre Bonnard)  I realize this quote comes from an artist who painted mostly from memory, photos, and sketches, but these words speak volumes about how we view things in life.  If we are so caught up in putting a "name" to everything and everyone we see, we often miss the unique beauty in the object or person.  The other problem with "naming" people is that we soon learn to think of them by that "title" we place over their lives and forget all the other characteristics they possess in their lives which actually are way more important than the one we seem to zero in on! If the title is "precious" or "beautiful", someone may not resist the "impression" that title conjures up in a person's mind.  If the title is "loser" or "nerd", that one may be a little harder to stomach!

Now since we have chosen to walk with the Spirit, let’s keep each step in perfect sync with God’s Spirit.  This will happen when we set aside our self-interests and work together to create true community instead of a culture consumed by provocation, pride, and envy.  (Galatians 5:25-26 VOICE)

We spend a whole lot of time and energy "putting names" to the behaviors we see exhibited in people's lives and a whole lot less time investing what it takes to help them overcome some of those "less desirable" behaviors they may be exhibiting.  There is no greater "limiting force" in life than to have a "title" hung over our heads which we simply cannot break free of because the stigma of that title stays with us forever.  In the simplest terms, a stigma is something which indicates our disgrace because of the title put on some behavior observed which "won" us that title in somebody's eyes.  If we place a "title" or stigma on someone's life, we are "marking" them for life - a mark which may not be all that flattering, uplifting, or kind.

As Bonnard implied, we lose the quality of truly "seeing" another for the beautiful creation they are.  Even the worst of individuals was created as a beautiful object of God's love.  It was the choices of the individual which allowed their character to be formed in such a way we might "find fault" with today, but even bad character in the hands of a merciful and loving God can be transformed.  As an example, a person may bumble along in life, doing a half-perfect job at whatever they are trying to do, but it doesn't define them as "incompetent" or "unknowing".  If we look at that individual from the eyes of criticism and mockery, we will only see the "bumbling ways" they exhibit - we miss the good in their lives.  Notice that I said they did a "half-perfect" job - meaning half of what they were able to do was really pretty good, while the other half just didn't measure up to some standard we hold in our eyes.  Does it make the individual any less valued because they didn't "measure up" to whatever standard we hold?  Nope!  It just might mean the standard was a little high for their present ability to perform!

To place a label of any type on another without truly understanding the places they have been, the things they have experienced, or the qualities / attributes truly buried deep in their hearts is to be narrow-minded and sometimes even cruel.  We would not want another to do the same "labeling" of our lives, or to gossip about what they have determined to be our inadequacies.  What we need more than anything is to "take in" the beauty buried just beneath the surface - the beauty God sees in each of us - as we were created, not as we have "become" through our actions and missteps.  In turn, we might just find ourselves "seeing" the individual through eyes of love, mercy, and grace.  When more of us begin to see through those remarkable lenses of love, mercy, and grace, the "bumblings" of another's life don't matter so much and the unity God desires begins to matter more.  Just sayin!

Oh, Stately Billy Goat!

I had to chuckle when I read a passage this morning.  Did you ever think God a little comical in what he records in scripture?  Sometimes you come across something you know is really not "comical", but when you see it, you cannot help yourself - you laugh!  Yep....that's what happened when I came across the portion of scripture which described a billy goat as a "solemn dignitary"!


^29-31 There are three solemn dignitaries, four that are impressive in their bearing—a lion, king of the beasts, deferring to none; a rooster, proud and strutting; a billy goat; a head of state in stately procession.  
(Proverbs 30:29-31)


Okay...now come on...did you ever consider a billy goat as a "solemn dignitary" of the barnyard?  I got the whole king of beasts lion thing and even the rooster strutting his stuff - but the billy goat???


As is often the case, I laugh first, then consider what I laughed at!  Think about the goat.  First, he is pretty sure on his feet.  I have tried to move one or two in my time...if they don't wanna move, there is a whole lot effort to get them moved!  What God may have been trying to show me in this passage is to be "solid" in my footing - grounded well.


Second, the billy goat is pretty "unaffected" by the goings on around them.  We have a petting zoo in our city zoo.  Whenever I observe these animals, I see lots of little kids, some pulling at the horns of the goats, others trying to convince them to let them touch their noses.  There they stand...seemingly unaffected by the noise, the hub-bub of the moment.  Maybe this is what God intended when he presents the billy goat as an impressive creature - the ability to not be swayed by the chaos.  I think God may be talking to all of us here!


Next, the goat is pretty resourceful in its finding of food!  I have observed the goats going quickly to the ones whose parents were kind enough to purchase the 25 cent feed from the machine.  They seem to make a beeline to the ones with the food so tightly grasped in their wee hands.  Amazingly - they know where to look!  My hands are always empty - I just want to pet them.  When they are hungry - they want more than a pat on the back!  They have a way of tapping the resources available to them!  Perhaps this is what God had in mind when he called the billy goat an dignitary!  


The next time we want to laugh at something God "labels" as worthy of the status of "dignitary", perhaps we'd do well to consider what God might have to show us when we take time to really observe the one he "labels"!  I bear many labels - "mom", "daughter", "employee", "friend".  The most important label I hope to wear is "faithful one".  Solid in my footing, unaffected by the hub-bub of the hour, and resourceful in finding my sustenance!  How about you?

Labels Aren't Reliable

Don't judge wine by its label,
   or its bouquet, or its full-bodied flavor.
Judge it rather by the hangover it leaves you with—
   the splitting headache, the queasy stomach.

(Proverbs 23:31-32)

I am not a connoisseur of wine, so I know very little about what makes a good bottle of wine.  You could show me one bottle right after another, and I would probably do what anyone who knows wine would cringe at - I'd pick it by the pretty label or the nice bottle!  The one who consumes the product in the bottle is the one who knows it best!  

This passage speaks a lot more to me, though.  I think we do a whole lot of "label" reading, even a little look inside, then come to the conclusion that whatever we are examining looks good.  It isn't until we have consumed it fully (or it has consumed us) that we understand just how lousy the thing was!  We are left with a really bad taste from the experience of "consuming" what it was we were judging by nothing more than a label or pretty facade!

I am a "label reader" - I confess it!  I look at the outside of the box of cereal, the outside of the can of tomatoes, the outside of the non-dairy creamer.  Sometimes, okay, quite often, I have been very disappointed by what "appeared" to look good on the outside, but once I got into it, I was faced with something entirely different from what it appeared to be on the label.

I think that is the meaning of our passage today - we often think it is okay to entertain certain ideas, simply because they were labeled "Christian".  For example, we might believe that old adage, "God only helps those who help themselves."  In truth, if you were to look at the origin of that saying, you would find it comes from one of Aesop's Fables!  It actually reads, "The gods help them that help themselves."  Did you catch that?  The "gods" - not God!  The phrase was coined by Benjamin Franklin later in his writings "Poor Richards Almanac".  What most don't know about Mr. Franklin was that he was a firm believer in the idea that if man could not help himself, then man was hopeless.

Here's what the Bible says about helping ourselves:

Those who trust in themselves are fools, but those who walk in wisdom are kept safe. (Proverbs 28:26)

Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who draws strength from mere flesh
   and whose heart turns away from the LORD.  That person will be like a bush in the wastelands; they will not see prosperity when it comes. They will dwell in the parched places of the desert, in a salt land where no one lives.

(Jeremiah 17:5-6)

So, the adage doesn't hold up under investigation!  Those that actually find that they spend their efforts on what they can accomplish find themselves labeled a completely different way than they might have imagined - fools!  To draw our strength from what we can accomplish is a foolish thing.  We are not able to do all things!  Only God is able to do that!

We need to be wise about the "labels" we believe.  We cannot simply accept them as "fact" because someone we admire wears the label.  We must become wise to the "influence" that the "label" makes in our lives.  Just as wine may produce a "buzz" and leave us feeling pretty poorly the next day, believing a wrong belief can mess us up!  Don't become consumers until you become wise to what the Word of God teaches about what the "label" really affords!