Smarter Than Your Average Bear...

I hear people today often say that we're more knowledgeable today than in generations past. Our systems are better, our standard of living is better, we've just come so doggone far from the "bad old days"...

Let's take discrimination as an example. Christians should never discriminate on the basis of race. We can look at the not too distant past and see examples of racism in general populations of a nature that is baffling to us today. We look at many of those who held those beliefs with an unbelieving disdain that people could so ignorantly condemn and abuse others. We struggle to understand why they could not perceive the evil they were advocating.

We think of Proverbs 14:12

"There is a way that seems right to a man,
but in the end it leads to death."

And we "tsk-tsk" and shake our heads at such cruel ignorance and then come back to the enlightened present as the phone rings...

... and we casually agree that "there's really no way to stop kids from being kids and they're going to experiment no matter what we say or do" and we put our daughters on birth control and advocate condoms to our sons in a world rampant with sexually transmitted diseases even as the resulting sterility has become an epidemic in our nation...

...and we stand behind the multi-billion dollar abortion industry because "There's really no choice in cases of incest rape or when the mother's health is endangered" when 99% of the children being killed have nothing to do with rape, incest or the mother's health...

... and we advise our friendS that "although terrible, divorce probably is the only solution and to be brave because the kids will eventually get over it"...

...and bigotry is excused as "outrage"...

...and lies are accepted as "another's truth"...

...and Truth is labeled "intolerance"...

...and lust is welcomed as "healthy urges"...

...marriage is called abuse and serial adultery is called "monogamy"...

... and crime is called a "bad choice"...

...and raw filth has become "entertainment" as we continue to spiral lower to find ever more degrading perversions to shock and titillate a calloused generation...

Whew! But at least we stopped being mean to minorities! Yea!

"For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you."

- Romans 12:3

We marvel at the blindness of past generations while we blythely ignore our own crippling cruelty and foolishness. And as I sit and write of these things I am compelled to ask myself, "Where are you missing the boat, buddy?"

"Even after Jesus had done all these miraculous signs in their presence, they still would not believe in him. 38 This was to fulfill the word of Isaiah the prophet:
“Lord, who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?”

For this reason they could not believe, because, as Isaiah says elsewhere:

“He has blinded their eyes
and deadened their hearts,
so they can neither see with their eyes,
nor understand with their hearts,
nor turn—and I would heal them.”

Isaiah said this because he saw Jesus’ glory and spoke about him.

Yet at the same time many even among the leaders believed in him. But because of the Pharisees they would not confess their faith for fear they would be put out of the synagogue; for they loved praise from men more than praise from God."

- John 12:37-43

Today's post, below, is probably the 3rd, 4th or 5th time I've brought up that passage of 1 Corinthians 13, ("Love is patient, Love is kind...)

I just love that passage so much. I love to brag about God's amazing love. I just want everyone to know about it. I think everyone SHOULD know about it.

I just don't think you could, in your wildest imagination, dream up a Father, Lord Almighty better than the True One we have and I know of no better places that is shows than The Cross and 1 Corinthians 13.

I love that passage and I can't even put into words what it means to me...

Groic!

I just posted a quick comment at Amy's Today's Thought blog and had to fill in the ubiquitous "Type in the letters you see" verification. That site's verification usually uses a nonsense combination of letters.

Today's combination was "Groic".
I like that... groic!
"Groic" should be a word!

"May I borrow your groic?" "How many oranges are in a groic?" or maybe "I would love to go with you but my groic is acting up..."

While wew're at it, how about the word "Love" as in "God's Love". The Greek word is "agape" but Shakespeare had it right: "What's in a name? that which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet..."

Call it "God's Love", "Agape" or "Groic", it is just wonderful:

God's Love is patient.
God's Love is kind.
God's Love does not envy.
God's Love does not boast.
God's Love is not proud.
God's Love is not rude.
God's Love is not self-seeking.
God's Love is not easily angered.
God's Love keeps no record of wrongs.
God's Love does not delight in evil.
God's Love rejoices with the truth.
God's Love always protects.
God's Love always trusts.
God's Love always hopes.
God's Love always perseveres.

- Adapted (almost verbatim) from 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 NIV

I don't care what you call it, but that is the size and shape of the hole in my heart. And all we have to do is ask Him and He'll fill it.

And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end.

- Isaiah 9:6-7 NIV

Ya'll be groic!

The Sabbath

This morning I had a friend ask a question. It is a question I have recently wrestled with myself. I figured I'd post my answer here in hopes that others will also share their prayerful thoughts and beliefs.

For any who might not know, Saturday is the biblical "Sabbath". The Christian church generally observes Sunday as "The Lord's Day" in it's stead. We are commanded to observe the Sabbath. There is no biblical justification for substituting.

"As followers of Christ, what are we to do about God's
commands to observe the Sabbath?"

Here was my answer, for you to pick apart:

You are asking two distinct questions:

Q: "Are we condemned for changing something so important?"
No.

"Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man, in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit."
- Romans 8:1-4

Q: "The bible says and Pastor said we should never take anything out of the bible nor shall we add anything. So why did christians feel they have the right to change the Sabbath Day from Saturday to Sunday?"

I did a relatively in-depth study on this topic about a month ago. I can find no biblical basis, nor reasonable arguments, for using "The Lord's Day" rather than the Sabbath. In the early days of the Church the outside world viewed Christianity as being a sect within Judaism. Christians and Jews, however, viewed each other as being irreconcilably distinct. The Jews were persecuting the Christians and the Christian leaders were very intent on distinguishing themselves from Judaism.

I remember once reading the manipulations and calculations that the early church used in setting the date for the Easter holiday. They wanted to avoid having Easter coincide with Passover so that the celebrations would be distinct in peoples' minds. Although this process sometimes lapsed into anti-semitism, the real original intention was not to "punish those who killed Christ" but instead to reinforce the Gospel message and clarify and emphasize the difference from Judaism.

As the most ardent advocates of observing the Sabbath, I took a hard look athe Seventh Day Adventist doctrines due to their position on this issue and found a mixed bag. Like Walter Martin, I believe there is ample reason to consider the SDA doctrines "Christian", but, depending on the doctrinal stance of the individual congregation, there is a lot of screwy stuff within that church.

And, although I have been looking at the Sabbath versus Sunday issue, there is also an equal injunction not to forsake the gathering of the believers, so Sunday Church must also remain in the equation.

Richard [a Pastor friend] and I spoke on this topic and he pointed out Romans 14:5-8 which speaks to this topic:

"One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord. He who eats meat, eats to the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who abstains, does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. For none of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone. If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord."
Romans 14:5-8

I think that is pretty clear on the topic. I continue to consider observing a Sabbath, but I do so because I long to commune more closely with God. I currently see no reason to question the provision of Christ's blood to resolve any guilt that may result from erring on this issue.

Given Christ's emphasis that we NOT teach others error, I'm not confient in saying that I have this issue nailed down.

“And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me. 6 But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea."
- Matthew 18:5-6

“And if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a large millstone tied around his neck."
- Mark 9:42

"Jesus said to his disciples: “Things that cause people to sin are bound to come, but woe to that person through whom they come. It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin. So watch yourselves."
- Luke 17:1-3

I think He meant it, so please be wary of my conclusions on this issue.

My Hope...

"Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord, is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation."
- Isaiah 12:2
Amy over at Today's Thought had an excellent post on the topic of "hope". Her posting triggered the memory of the first time I encountered real hope in my life.

I was sitting in an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting back in 1986 and listening to people "share". I'd been in "the program" for a few months and was familiar with the 12 steps and the members and was sitting there listening.

I'd ended up in that meeting for very good cause. The data had been collected, the evidence had been weighed and there was no doubt about it: I was severely messed up. I had plenty of confirmation from independent sources and there was no getting around it.

Worse yet, as I sat in those meetings and listened to others and mentally compared the notes from my life with their lives, I came face to face with the knowledge that had always been awkwardly hidden in the back of my mind: I'd been messed up my entire life. All my life I'd seen how my reactions and beliefs had differed from others and I had always been deeply ashamed and worked hard to hide that fact. Without ever putting it into words I had unconsciously come to accept:

I was born messed up,
I was still messed up and
I would be messed up my entire life.

It was a crushing and demoralizing burden I'd struggled with my entire life. If anyone has walked up to me and told me this stuff, I would have beaten them to death for daring to say that to me. But my heart told me every day and I knew it was true.

In that meeting a man started talking about how messed up he had been and how, by working the 12 steps and turning his life over to God, he had grown and become a new man through following God. And as he talked something clicked and in a moment my beliefs changed. It suddenly became real to me!

It was true that I had been messed up.
There was no question I was messed up at that moment.
But for the first time in my life I realized:
I don't have to be messed up
for the rest of my life.

And in that moment I remember the word “Hope!” coming to mind and I sat and considered it in stunned silence. It had a whole new meaning to me. For the first time in my life I had genuine and tangible hope. It was a real, weighty and massive thing. And since then that hope has come true.

Through Jesus Christ I have been transformed.
I am being transformed even now.
Jesus will continue to transform me
until I am taken to Him.

Praise God Our Father Almighty!

“So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

- 1 Corinthians 5:16-21

Solving the "Feelings" Problem

I've often been questioned regarding my growing resistance to the massive inroads counseling and psychology have made into believers' thinking these days. So here is some food for thought regarding the domination of "Feelings", "Desires" and "Beliefs" in modern Christian practice:

On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

“What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?”

He answered: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”

“You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”

But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’

“Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”

The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”

Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”

- Luke 10:25-37

Remember! This passage is addressing the question:

"What must I do to inherit eternal life?"

Notice anything about this passage? It is being impressed upon me more and more how often Jesus talked about “doing” rather than “feeling”.
Jesus says:
“Do this and you will live.”
“Go and do likewise.”

Jesus tells how the Samaritan:
- Took pity on him, (not felt pity for him,)…
- Bandaged him…
- Put him on a donkey…
- Took care of him…
- Took him to an inn…
- Paid and guaranteed reimbursement.

Jews and Samaritans hated each other. Where’s the Lifetime made-for-TV discussion of the Samaritan’s disgust at helping a Jew? Where’s the discussion of the injustice and emotional wounds suffered at the hands of the Jews in his childhood? This is not an "Oprah Winfrey Story of the Month". This is:

"What must I do to inherit eternal life?"

Don’t we normally assume that the Jew was grateful and that his feelings softened toward the Samaritan? Don’t we also assume that the Samaritan was kindly, gentle and sweet? I believe these are figments of our modern morals, attitudes and imaginations. They’re not in the story.

The Samaritan could have rendered the aid because he would have done the same thing for a wounded dog and he may have felt like that is exactly what he was dealing with. The Jew could have been ashamed and mortified that he had to accept the aid of a filthy Samaritan and only longed for the day that he could get away and all the while prayed, “Please Lord, don’t let anyone see me this low and desperate!”

Jesus never offered information one way or the other, because that wasn’t what He wanted people to know. He wanted them to know it’s about what you do!

I believe God cares about our feelings. (I really, honestly do!)

“Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!

- Matthew 7:9-10

I also believe that God knows our motives (and that we can fool ourselves.) But we can never fool Him. He knows the difference between obedience and show.

“Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a fraction of a penny.

Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”

- Mark 12:41-44

I just believe this business of worrying about our feelings and our needs and our beliefs has become a deception. I see too many people wrestling with their feelings in the hope that they’ll get to the point where they want to do what God tells them to do.

Dadnabbit! Stop it! Serve others in His name because He told you to! If you’re doing it out of obedience He’ll change your feelings for you. Just ask Him to!

Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

- Psalm 51:10-12

Do we confuse a “Heart for God" with “Feelings for obeying God"? Notice how he described a good spirit right there? “Willing” not “Pleased”. My experience has been that when I get “willing” and “Go and do likewise” the “pleased” follows after.

People in our nation are dying and going to a sinner’s Hell every day and God’s people are staring in the mirror saying, “What’s wrong with me? I don't want to do these things! How can He use a sin-blob like me?” Then we turn to "christian" counseling in hopes of having our wants changed, (as if the right understanding or philosophy or attitude would make us Christ-like...)

We’re waiting for God’s calling when He’s already called us and our life’s mission is passing by.

“My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. Do you not say, ‘Four months more and then the harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. Even now the reaper draws his wages, even now he harvests the crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.”

- John 4:34-38

She Did Likewise…

On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

“What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?”

He answered: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”

“You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”

But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’

“Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”

The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”

Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”

- Luke 10:25-37 NIV

This morning I received the following email message from someone very dear. This message is worth sharing:

A 98 year-old lady named Irena passed away recently. During WWII Irena, a Polish Catholic, received permission to work in the Warsaw Ghetto.

She had an 'ulterior motive' ... She KNEW what the Nazi's plans were for the Jews.

Irena smuggled infants out in the bottom of the tool box she carried and she carried in the back of her truck a burlap sack, (for larger kids,) She also had a dog in the back that she trained to bark when the Nazi soldiers let her in and out of the ghetto. The soldiers of course wanted nothing to do with the dog and the barking covered the kids/infants noises.

During her time of doing this, she managed to smuggle out and save 2500 kids/infants. She was caught, and the Nazi's broke both her legs, arms and beat her severely. She was saved from execution only through bribery of a German guard.

Irena kept a record of the names of all the kids she smuggled out and kept them in a glass jar, buried under a tree in her back yard. After the war, she tried to locate any parents that may have survived it and reunited the family. Most of the parents had been murdered at the Treblinka concentration camp. Irena helped the children who were orphaned find adoption into Polish homes or helped the children go to Israel.

“Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”

The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”

Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”

- Luke 10:36-37 NIV

To learn more about Irena Sendler:
Snopes.com verification of this email message
Irena Sendler at Wikipedia
www.IrenaSendler.org

To learn more about Jesus:
Pray and talk to Him right now. He’s listening...

Today's Spurgeon...

Here's a thinker from Charles Spurgeon's Morning and Evening. (I threw in line and paragraph breaks to make it easier to read on a computer screen and added the entire passage from Luke rather than just verse four.)

For your prayerful consideration:

One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret,a with the people crowding around him and listening to the word of God, he saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.

When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.”

Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.”

When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.

When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners.

Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will catch men.” So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.

- Luke 5:1-11 NIV

We learn from this narrative, the necessity of human agency. The draught of fishes was miraculous, yet neither the fisherman nor his boat, nor his fishing tackle were ignored; but all were used to take the fishes. So in the saving of souls, God worketh by means; and while the present economy of grace shall stand, God will be pleased by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.

When God worketh without instruments, doubtless he is glorified; but he hath himself selected the plan of instrumentality as being that by which he is most magnified in the earth. Means of themselves are utterly unavailing. “Master, we have toiled all the night and have taken nothing.” What was the reason of this?

Were they not fishermen plying their special calling? Verily, they were no raw hands; they understood the work.
Had they gone about the toil unskillfully? No.
Had they lacked industry? No, they had toiled.
Had they lacked perseverance? No, they had toiled all the night.
Was there a deficiency of fish in the sea? Certainly not, for as soon as the Master came, they swam to the net in shoals.

What, then, is the reason?

Is it because there is no power in the means of themselves apart from the presence of Jesus? “Without him we can do nothing.” But with Christ we can do all things. Christ’s presence confers success. Jesus sat in Peter’s boat, and his will, by a mysterious influence, drew the fish to the net. When Jesus is lifted up in his Church, his presence is the Church’s power—the shout of a king is in the midst of her. “I, if I be lifted up, will draw all men unto me.” Let us go out this morning on our work of soul fishing, looking up in faith, and around us in solemn anxiety. Let us toil till night comes, and we shall not labour in vain, for he who bids us let down the net, will fill it with fishes.

_{Spurgeon, Charles H.: Morning and Evening : Daily Readings. Complete and unabridged; New modern edition. Peabody, MA : Hendrickson Publishers, 2006, S. October 8 AM}

Much Love.

Me - as a Product...

This morning I came in the office and opened my email to find the following email solicitation:

"I enclose details of our guide for CFOs on how to create personal brands.

In "How to Create a Personal Brand as a Chief Financial Officer", we examine specific ways to use speaking engagements, published articles and social media web sites as a way to establish yourself as a thought leader. Take the 60 minutes to view this webinar... ...to understand how to go about sharing your thought leadership in each of these areas and the best ways to establish yourself as a personal brand (apart from/in addition to that of your company)."

I've worked with several professionals in my career who were "thought leaders" and "go to" professionals within their field of expertise. I've seen the process you use to assume that position and the benefits that come to people who hold that position. I've also seen the cost which that pursuit imposes.

Now you may suspect that this is where I'll start looking down my nose saying, "If they'd spent their time on their homes, their families, etc., etc. the grass wouldn't be so green over their septic tank (or whatever.)"

The truth is, I once had a very dear (and very successful) friend who taught me this important lesson:

"You can do anything you want,
as long as you're willing to pay the price."

- Virginia "Sis" Becker

I first heard this in the early 1990's. Then I primarily heard "You can do anything you want...". Today I look a lot more carefully at "...the price" part of the saying. The big difference between then and today is within me.

Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said:

“If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple. And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.

“Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him, saying, ‘This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.’

“Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Will he not first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace. In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.

“Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; it is thrown out.

“He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

- Luke 14:25-35

I know that, through God's Grace, I have the tools necessary to make myself into a widely quoted CFO. I know I could also reach up and grasp the next rung in the corporate ladder. I could create beautiful craftsmanship in my spare time doing woodworking. All any of these would take is time, patience, hard work, my undivided attention and a maximum effort...

Oh!

...and I'd have to let Jesus have the leftovers... my leftover time, leftover attention and leftover effort and energy.

“He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

"We've Found a Better Way..."

A couple of years ago I came across the results of a study that had recently been performed concerning the relationship between divorce and happiness. I can't find my copy of the study to give you the exact numbers but its' findings were something like this:

People were asked to rate their marriage from "one" (Total disaster) to "five" (Heaven on Earth). Measurements were taken of the participants' overall "happiness" and peace of mind. It was noted, as expected, that the "ones" (unhappy marriages) also scored very low in terms of happiness and peace of mind. Those who rated their marriage "one" in the original study were studied again 3 years later and the same measurements taken, again.

The findings were a surprise to those who advocate for our current norm of divorce and remarriage:

Of those who divorced, their happiness was generally at, or about at, the same level of their earlier reading of “unhappy”.

Of those who did not divorce, about 80% rated their marriage a "five" and their general state of mind was much, much happier.

“Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen."

- I Peter 5:6-11

Every message in our media and entertainment says that happiness is found by dumping that rascal/witch and "moving on" to the next person who will solve all of our problems, be a better "fit" and make those nasty relationship problems go away. Our culture says that all of that talk about "divorce and remarriage is adultery" is old-fashioned and counter-productive and a barrier to true happiness.

The evidence is unequivocal that happiness is found by avoiding adultery and working to improve what you already have.

Amazing... God knew what He was talking about. Hmmm... if the news and entertainment media really cares about people's happiness, I wonder why this study never made the news?

"As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful naturea and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God — not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

- Ephesians 2:1-10

A Day in the Life of a Moral Giant...

The other day I wore a Polo shirt. I usually only wear button-down pinpoint oxford shirts. My daughter Reagan commented on it and complimented me that she liked the shirt as we walked to the car from lunch.

I told her, “I like Polo shirts, but I don’t like to wear them when I’m this fat. They make my belly look even fatter.”

(They do! It's embarrassing!)

As we’re pulling out of the parking lot Reagan started giving me a stern lecture, “Dad, I don’t say “fat” anymore because it’s kind of mean and it hurts people’s feelings. I just don’t like using that word... ..ya’know, words can hurt…”

She was very earnest and very concerned. Just then we pulled around the back of the restaurant where an overweight staff member was changing his shirt by the back door.

Reagan saw him and squealed at the top of her lungs, “Oooooooh Dad! Look at that fat guy taking his clothes off! Even his boobies have boobies!”

I laughed so hard I almost wrecked the car.

The apples just don't fall far from the tree, do they? It was "my righteousness" in a snapshot...

"How then can we be saved?
All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away. No one calls on your name or strives to lay hold of you; for you have hidden your face from us and made us waste away because of our sins.

Yet, O Lord, you are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter;
we are all the work of your hand. Do not be angry beyond measure, O Lord;
do not remember our sins forever. Oh, look upon us, we pray, for we are all your people."

- Isaiah 64:5-9

The Top of the World!

One night, after the Cass Lake High School football season of 1978, I laid in my bed and I prayed ferverently, “God, please let me play on a State Championship football team.”

We'd just finished a lack luster season, about par for a perrenial loser. The Cass Lake High team from two years prior had made it into the State Tournament. It had been so rare and exciting that I wanted our team to do it again, only better. I remember begging God to be part of a successful football program.

I guess there was a joke on me. I didn’t realize that God was gonna move my family to Arizona to make it happen.

In the Fall of 1980 our team in Arizona was completing a second straight undefeated season my senior year. I remember walking off the field from the last play of winning the State Championship game and looking at the cheering crowd and looking up at the lights over the football field and thinking, “This is it? That’s all there is?”

I remember that I’d been expected to be transported to a higher level of grace and confidence and existence and now, “Crap!” it was still just me, walking off the field from another game. We walked into the locker room and our coach gave us one of the best locker room speeches I’ve ever heard. He said (as best I remember):

“People are telling you that you’re champions. I say we still don’t know if you’re champions. In 10 years we’ll know whether you’re champions by whether you’re a good husband and father. We’ll see if you’re taking a role in your community and whether you’re helping others. We’ll see if you’re serving God and following Him.”

“Tonight you won a football game. In 10 years we’ll know whether you’re champions.”

That really hit home for me.

Satan wants us to think his way will lead to that elevated level of existence. The right spouse... the right relationship... the right job... the right car... enough money... If we build our lives on the world in just the right way, happiness and peace will follow...

...and that is a lie.

The Bible tell us that our walk is supposed to hurt sometimes and that we will face defeat and failure. Remember, even "the house built on the rock" had to face the flood! God has promised that Her will use our trials to build us and change us and make us grow! This has become a favorite passage to me:

“Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen."

- I Peter 5:6-11

Here's to "...strong, firm and steadfast!" May we take our eyes off of ourselves long enough to hope for that.