The Plumbline

Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord. So you see how it is: In my mind I really want to obey God’s law, but because of my sinful nature I am a slave to sin. (Romans 7:24-25) It is hard to choose what we want most over what we want now, isn't it? The answer is in Jesus Christ - he has set us free. All determination or discipline in life begins with choosing how it is we 'identify'. If we identify as listening to our 'fleshly desires' just a bit too often, we are not likely to identify with our new nature in Christ Jesus as often as we should. Life isn't about behavior modification - it is about identity transformation. The power that is greater than our fleshly desires is resident within - we just need to begin to 'identify' with it more often! We are not what we did. We are not the voice of discouragement that consistently condemns us, bring...

Do you regularly carry some form of identification with you, especially when you leave the house? Most of us have a driver's license, passport, or identification card of some kind. Some have that information in their smartphone, while others carry a wallet full of identifying information. Is it that tiny card you carry that really identifies who you are? Is it possible to carry a bit of 'false identification' with us? Yes, there are many people who produce such 'false IDs' because there is both a demand for them and a profit to be made. It is possible we may be carrying some sort of 'false identification' with us apart from those cards that could be carried in our wallets. That 'false ID' is the one we carry along with us because we feel shame for our past - identifying with our failures and not the hope we are given in Christ Jesus. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ag...

It’s in Christ that we find out who we are and what we are living for. Long before we first heard of Christ and got our hopes up, he had his eye on us , had designs on us for glorious living, part of the overall purpose he is working out in everything and everyone. (Ephesians 1:11-12) As we ponder Christmas this morning, I'd like us to answer two questions: Who are you?  What are you living for? Most of us will answer the first questions with our name, or even add a little about ourselves such as our occupation or position in life. We might even feel we have really answered this question with these "facts", but I wonder if we really realize exactly who we are? In fact, most of us really don't tell others who we are; they observe it by how we behave - how we respond to life. Our actions reveal a great deal more about our true identity than any names, titles, or declared interests ever will! The second question really gets at the root of this thought - what (or wh...

I need explanations - how about you? When something goes awry, I want to understand why, not just that everything will be all right. I think it is because I am a 'process' person - I see the steps it takes and when a step is broken, I need to understand how the break occurred and then implement the 'fix' that will keep the step from breaking down again. There have been lots and lots of times in my life when I thought I knew what 'broke down' in the process - either in my own failure of taking the right steps, or in some other process I was involved in. I actually come to a conclusion as to the 'why' or 'how' way before I understand what was even broken! I think we might all be a little guilty of jumping to conclusions at times. We just don't possess all the facts, but somehow we think we have the whole thing figured out in our minds. We form some type of "story" in our minds we latch onto. In plain language, anytime we don't ...

I don't know about you all, but I have projects that were begun with the best of intentions, but just never really came to the place of really being 'finished' in the timeframe I expected. It took longer than I thought, was more involved than I imagined, or just cost a little bit more than I may have realized when I began the work. Sometimes I get creative and take on the design of something - like a new raised bed or the huge project of garage organization. No real pattern to follow - I just set out with a vision in mind. The problem with these types of projects is that we seldom understand the cost, intensity, or true outcome of the project. It is actually very freeing to have an example to follow - acting as a guide by which we formulate our work and direct our effort. Even in how we choose to live our lives, we want examples - at least one. When we no longer have to "figure out" what it is that we are expected to be, how we are to live our lives, or what our...

The same road - the same direction - but do we see things differently along that road as we travel in the same direction? You betcha! This lesson was illustrated the other day as we were commuting home. Every other week, my BFF and I take turns driving. Some days mom is in the carpool with us as she heads off to her day club for a little socialization. When that happens, one of us sits in the back seat, allowing us to have both a higher view of the surroundings and a little less distracted view. I have observed just how many text while driving, reading emails and social media feeds, not just at the stoplight, but as they drive! My BFF observed the local nursery got a face-lift of sorts, complete with new parking lot and entrance. I mentioned to her that had been completed months ago and she looked surprised. Why? Although we had traveled the road multiple times in that same direction, that one observation had escaped her view. It is not uncommon that we travel at the same pace, in the...

Have you ever been guilty of identity theft?  Now, don't all rush to admit it, but at one time or another in your life, I think you probably were!  You see, anytime you compare yourself to another and then evaluate whether you can "conform" to the image you see of the other is really a form of trying to commit identity theft!  If you actually pull it off, conforming to the image of another, you have done the deed.  Problem is . . . we often compare ourselves to a flawed image - making what we conform to only able to reproduce another flawed image! God spoke: “Let us make human beings in our image, make them   reflecting our nature s o they can be responsible for the fish in the sea, t he birds in the air, the cattle, a nd, yes, Earth itself,  and every animal that moves on the face of Earth.”   God created human beings;  he created them godlike, r eflecting God’s nature.   He created them male and female.  (Genesis 1:26-28 MSG) Anyti...

Who are you?  What are you living for?  The first question may not seem all that tough to most of us.  We'd likely answer with our names, or even add a little about ourselves such as our occupation or position in life.  We might even feel we have really answered this question with these "facts", but I wonder if we really realize exactly who we are?  In fact, most of us really don't tell others who we are - they observe it by how we behave - how we respond to life.  Our actions reveal a great deal more about our true identity than any names, titles, or declared interests ever will!   The second question really gets at the root of this thought - what (or who) are we actually living for?  This question may take us a little longer to answer because it requires some revelation of intention - we have to declare the "intent" behind our actions.  When our actions don't match up with our intent, we might just realize some conflict between the two. I...

Preconceived:  To form a perception of beforehand as a result of previously held or known information.  Some of us have a tendency to gravitate toward what we "know" about a person, forming an opinion of that person based on the small amount of facts we have.  The problem with this is the limitation in what it is we know about that individual.  We likely have some facts, but we really don't get beyond those "facts" to consider the "rest of the story" as Paul Harvey would say.   He left there and returned to his hometown. His disciples came along. On the Sabbath, he gave a lecture in the meeting place. He made a real hit, impressing everyone. “We had no idea he was this good!” they said. “How did he get so wise all of a sudden, get such ability?”   But in the next breath they were cutting him down: “He’s just a carpenter—Mary’s boy. We’ve known him since he was a kid. We know his brothers, James, Justus, Jude, and Simon, and his sisters. Who does he...

There are times when an honest assessment of who we are and what we are doing is something we'd rather avoid.  Facing the fact we might not be moving in the best direction at the moment is sort of intimidating, if not downright humbling!  Yet, the beginning of any real change in our lives begins with the first step - the step we take to the mirror of God's Word! 4-5 Make a careful exploration of who you are and the work you have been given, and then sink yourself into that. Don't be impressed with yourself. Don't compare yourself with others. Each of you must take responsibility for doing the creative best you can with your own life. (Galations 6:4-5 The Message) As we examine the passage above, there is a natural progression from examining our "true identity", seeing clearly how we "fit" into the placement we have in this life, and how "committed" we are to fulfilling the mission to which we are called.   Until we begin to un...