My new friend

I have a new friend. I obsess over her. She’s the first thing I think about in the morning. She’s the last thing I think about before I go to sleep. I constantly think of her good qualities. I crave communication with her. Everything fun I think about, I think “would she enjoy doing that with me?” She inspires me to be better in everything I do.

I felt like that about someone else once. When my relationship with Jesus was new, I obsessed over him. He was the first thing I thought about in the morning. He was the last thing I thought about before going to sleep. I constantly thought of His good qualities. I couldn’t get enough conversation with him. Everything fun I thought about, I thought “would he enjoy doing that with me?” He inspired me to be better in everything I did.

What happened? Did He change? Did He become less amazing? … less inspiring? … less fun? No, and it took a new interest to show me that.

I’ve rekindled by relationship with my Savior. He’s usually occupied the number one position in my life, but now our relationship has grown and is experiencing a new fervor that it was missing before. My new friend is amazing, but the best thing about her is that without even trying, she brought me back to a better relationship with my friend that sticks closer than a brother, Jesus Christ.

Unique Situation?

Ecclesiastes 1:9-10 (NLT)
History merely repeats itself. It has all been done before. Nothing under the sun is truly new. 10 Sometimes people say, "Here is something new!" But actually it is old; nothing is ever truly new. 11 We don't remember what happened in the past, and in future generations, no one will remember what we are doing now.

When we are in a bad spot, it's not uncommon for us to think that our situation is unique. We feel that no one has ever been through anything this bad before, that we are being exclusively persecuted.

Solomon said that there is nothing new. I'm sure he wrestled with a flaky cell phone battery when he was on the side of the road with a flat, right? Probably not. But the notion of being stranded without communication was certainly not new. Even though every situation has not been exactly duplicated, the concepts are not new. Relationships, difficulty with taskmasters (bosses), a lack of resources when they are needed are all models on which there are millions of variations.

The Bible's ability to deal with these concepts makes it a timeless book. When you go through a tough situation, the Bible has a solution to the concept of the problem that can be extended to your specific situation. Search for it!

What a Mess!

Rom 8:28-29 (NIV)
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

Is your life a mess? Are things not lining up for you the way you planned? Everything is going wrong. Nothing is going right. Plans have fallen flat. In your life, chaos and destruction reign. The worst part is that no one seems to care.

Does this sound familiar? You aren’t the first to feel like this. What’s the solution? The answer can be found in a tapestry. A what? A tapestry. A tapestry is a heavy woven cloth with a rich design. Many are absolutely beautiful. They are like intricate paintings in vibrant varicolored thread. Some have delicate designs that are evidence of true artistry. Some are like portraits. Others have bold panoramic views depicting heroes defeating their foes. Their designs are as varied as the artisans who created them and the materials they used. As diverse as these magnificent works are, they all have one thing in common. From the back, they look like a mess.

That’s right. From the back a tapestry is a mangled chaotic muddle of thread. There are knots and frays and loose ends. The color combinations can be nauseating and seem to have absolutely no coordination. It looks unorganized, unplanned, and unappealing. From the back, a tapestry looks like a rainbow threw up in a cement mixer. If advertised from the back, no one would buy a tapestry.

But that’s not how tapestries are made to be viewed.

Your life is a work of art like a tapestry. Right now it may look like a terrible, unplanned, disorganized mess, but there is a plan. You’re life is being woven together with artistry by a master artisan. He sees your problems. He knows your concerns. Best of all, He cares for you and loves you deeply. He is making sure that every thread of your life is placed exactly right, so your life will be a magnificent work of art, unique and unmatched in value.

Murphy's Law

Jeremiah 29:11 (NLT)

For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord. "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.

Sometimes life stinks. Things don’t go our way. Murphy ’s Law engages and it seems that anything that can go wrong does. Why does God allow such things? If He is such a benevolent God, why does anything have to go wrong?

First, let’s get some perspective. We must admit that in order for things to make a turn for the worst, things must not have been as bad before the turn. In order to get the perspective that something is “going wrong” it must have been “going right” for a while. What do you know? Things haven’t always been bad.

Second, let’s look at a caterpillar. It lives its life in relative comfort munching on leaves and other caterpillar delicacies, then one day spins a cocoon and takes a super-long cat(erpillar)-nap. Then one day it awakes. It feels trapped and needs out. It feels abandoned by God. It struggles and struggles. It goes through the worst situation it has ever faced in its entire life. Then it finally breaks free – as a beautiful butterfly. It is no longer confined to munching on the plant it was munching on before, but now has freedom to go anywhere. It has the power of flight. It is much more beautiful. In short, its life is vastly improved.

Do you know what happens if someone helps the butterfly by cutting it out of the cocoon – even at the right time, when it is breaking free? It dies. The struggle is an essential part of the process. It is required for the butterfly to have the ability to survive as a butterfly.

Your life is the same. Look back on some of the hard times in your life. Now look at character values those situations gave you: patience, strength, endurance, etc. The hard times in life are the times we grow the most. Although you may not know the purpose, God has a plan behind it. Trust Him.

When life sucks raw eggs and everything seems down, remember these three things: 1) It hasn’t always been bad, 2) hard times produce the most growth and are necessary to build you into the person you need to be and 3) God is working out a plan for you that gives you hope and a future.

God forgets; People don't

Jeremiah 31:34 (NIV)
No longer will a man teach his neighbor,
or a man his brother, saying, 'Know the Lord,'
because they will all know me,
from the least of them to the greatest,"
declares the Lord.
"For I will forgive their wickedness
and will remember their sins no more."

God's forgiveness is complete. He not only forgives us for the wrong we've done, but He chooses to not even remember them. In His eyes, you are perfectly clean, just like His son.

Our memories, however, stay in tact when we've been hurt. Even if forgiveness has been given you still remember the offense. This is by design.

Since God is omnipotent (all powerful), we really have no power to bring any harm to Him. We can disappoint Him and grieve Him, but we can't hurt him. However, humans do a great job of hurting each other. Even after you forgive someone, they can hurt you again and again. For this reason, God allows us to remember the offense. We have been given this gift so that we don't continually put ourselves in compromising situations that will allow us to repeatedly get hurt from the same injuries. In short, this is a gift of learning.

By learning from our mistakes and knowing who we can trust, it minimizes the chance that we will allow the same person to hurt us in the same way again. Unfortunately, there is a down side to this remembering. It also makes trust a commodity that is difficult to regain. If you are hurt, you are more likely to be cautious to guard yourself from being hurt again. Forgiveness is irrelevant at this point. Self-preservation requires that some trust be withdrawn and reliability be proven before it is restored.

When someone doesn't trust you because of something you've done in the past, remember that you need to show yourself reliable and trustworthy in order to regain their faith in you. New memories must be built to override the old memories. Trust must be built...slowly...and steadily...with care to be trustworthy in the smallest of details.

I hope this encourages you.
I love you for free!

Sold Out

Rom 12:1 (NIV)
Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God — this is your spiritual act of worship.

What does God want? If He already has everything what does He want? He wants you.

In order for Him to have you voluntarily, He first had to save you from destruction. He did this by Jesus’ sacrifice. If that hasn’t happened yet, that is the first step. Here's a quick breakdown: Like everyone else, you've screwed up. (Romans 3:23) The penalty for being imperfect is permanent separation from God - the source of life and everything good. Separation from life is death, so we're talking about a permanent, spiritual death. (Romans 6:23) God loved you enough that He sent His son, Jesus to die in your place and take that penalty. (Romans 5:8) He offers this substitution as a completely free gift. (Ephesians 2:8-9)

Secondly, He wants you to voluntarily sacrifice yourself. There’s that word again – sacrifice. Jesus set the example. You follow. He wants you – all of you - all your hopes, all your dreams, all your focus, energy, strength, thoughts, intentions. Romans 12:1 says to offer yourself – your entire being – as a living sacrifice. Often we hold something back. It’s time to sell out. You need to have nothing left. You need to go all in. You need to give Him a blank check. You need to give Him all of it. Use whatever analogy you want. You need to give it all. Even giving Him everything, you can’t outgive what He’s given you.

That sounds risky doesn’t it? Romans 8:32-33 says that He has our best interest in mind. He doesn’t treat you as a throw-away. He holds you as valuable. He treasures you. You can trust Him. He’s already sacrificed his Son. He doesn’t want that to be a waste.

Rom 8:32-33 (NIV)
He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all — how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?

According to Barna polls only 1 in 10 Christians live a fulfilled life. That’s because 90% stop after receiving salvation. They’ve never offered themselves. They made God savior, but never made Him Lord. They never put Him in charge. Until that happens, fulfillment is automatically limited. They try to follow Christ, but hold on to something else. Living with two masters can’t please either and makes the servant miserable. You will serve someone. Choosing a single, benevolent master with your best interest at heart just makes sense. Some translations say that this is your “reasonable” act of service.

Sell Out!

Secular Worship

John 4:23-24 (NIV)
Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth."

Worship has many forms. Some like to worship quietly and reverently. Some like to worship boistrously and with reckless abandon. Which is correct? Scripture shows both as honoring to God. Styles of worship vary widely. This is probably why there are half a dozen churches within walking distance of mine ... and when I say walking distance, I'm talking about Winter walking through snow walking, not "it's a great day, let's go for a walk" walking.

Music styles are pretty diverse, too. Some churches play strictly hymns. Some play only choruses. Some like repetition. Some can't stand it. Some sing acapella, some use a piano and organ, and some have a full orchestra. I was on The Voyage Blog recently (http://voyageministries.blogspot.com/index.html) and I mentioned that some secular songs cause me to worship God. Why not? After all, true worship isn't the product of music and message. True worship is a by-product of a condition of the heart. True worship is an overflow of adoration. Does the following sound like it limits worship?

Psalms 150:3-6 (NIV)
Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet,praise him with the harp and lyre, praise him with tambourine and dancing,praise him with the strings and flute, praise him with the clash of cymbals,praise him with resounding cymbals. Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise the LORD.

I'll blog more on true worship later. Today, I want to see comments on secular music that inspires you to worship. What makes you worship?

Burn Your Bridges

James 1:21
So throw all spoiled virtue and cancerous evil in the garbage. In simple humility, let our gardener, God, landscape you with the Word, making a salvation-garden of your life.
(from THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language © 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved.)

I ran across this passage today. It reminded me of a concept that I teach my students: Burn your bridges. Often when we decide to break a bad habit we leave a way back to it. Whether consciously or unconsciously, we leave a way to make it easier to return to it. I say burn the bridge. For instance, if you want to stop smoking, you need to clean tobacco out of every nook and cranny in your house. Don't go to places where people smoke. Avoid going to place tobacco is sold. If you decide to stop smoking, but leave a pack of cigarettes "just in case," you aren't ready to quit. Burn your bridge. Make it impossible (or at least as difficult as possible) to return to that habit.

This concept translates to any sin or habit in your life. We've got to stop making it easy to sin. In the passage above, the word translated "throw ... in the garbage" literally means to "lay it down and push it beyond reach". In Sparkling Gems from the Greek, Rick Renner says that it is the word used in the first century to describe someone removing filthy work clothes and putting them beyond where they can influence sleep in preparation to get into a clean bed. How silly would it be to put muddy, sweaty, stinky, filthy clothes back on and climb between clean sheets!

What bridge do you need to burn? You may need to delete an Internet link. You may need to block a channel on your TV. You may need to throw something out (all the way to the outside garbage can). You may need to delete a phone number from your phone's memory. It's individual to you. Burn your bridge right now.

Romans 13:14
Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. And don't let yourself think about ways to indulge your evil desires.
Holy Bible, New Living Translation ®, copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.

Friend of God

“What would you do if you really met God?” – Alan Shore
“Probably take Him fishing.” – Denny Crane

I caught this conversation on a commercial for Boston Legal. It jumped out at me as a fantastic answer. What could be greater than taking God with you to do what you love?

God demands our respect and awe. He wants to be our friend. Too often, our devotion to him is compartmentalized and reserved for auditoriums, churches, and “worship centers.” That’s good. Worship him at home, at work, in your favorite restaurant, and while you’re engaged in your favorite hobby by honoring Him by doing your best without reservation. That’s better.

John 15:13-14 says “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command.”

Jesus laid down His life for us. We usually consider that to be a reference to His crucifixion. I think it’s more. He laid down His life for us when he became human. He laid His life down for us when He put His life on exhibition. Everything He did was an example of laying His life down.

Do you want to truly love? Start laying your life down in everything you do. It may not require your death, but it will require you to die to yourself.

Your ToBe List

I’m terrible at ToDo lists. I usually start the day with dozens of things on the list and by the end of the day I’ve managed to check off a few, but the next day I have the remainders of yesterday’s list plus enough new ones leave me losing ground.
Sticking to a ToDo list makes me cranky. I feel like I’m spinning my wheels. I may get some stuff done, but the benefit isn’t easily seen. It is very task based. Instead, I’m turning to a ToBe list. Instead of listing things I want to do, I list things I want to be. Today I want to be a good writer. With that goal in mind and the clear benefit in my mind, the tasks necessary to be a good writer (writing) come naturally.
I know that Sunday morning I will want to be a good teacher. Instead of focusing on doing (such as I want to teach a good lesson), focusing on being a good teacher makes me want to study and be better. Teaching a good lesson will then come naturally.
This year you probably started with resolutions. It’s been a few days, so chances are you’ve already broken them. I know I did. Focus this year, on being who you were designed to be. You might want to be a better parent. You might need to be a better son or daughter. You might want to be a better {fill in your occupation here}. We all need to be better role models. Maybe you want to be a better example of Christ. Make a list of the things you want to be and focus on those instead of what you want to do. This year, be all you can be.

Inspired by Chip Ingram.

God Is Into New

Have you ever wondered why God created seasons? What about procreation? Flowers? Our God is into new.
I’ve been working with youth for a long time … a couple of decades now. When the grunge music came on the scene, so did an interesting fashion trend. My youth, even the trendiest and most wealthy – actually especially the trendiest and most wealthy – were intentionally going to thrift stores to buy their clothes. Shortly after, several jeans companies started selling new jeans that were specifically “distressed” to look like old jeans. My affluent teens didn’t think twice about spending a few hundred dollars (no exaggeration) of their hard earned money (actually I mean their parents’ hard earned money) on a single pair of jeans that looked like they had been used as a rag for changing oil in the car, washed in old coffee grounds, splattered with bleach, then dragged behind the car for a few miles. They had holes and stains. The hems were frayed and the buttons and rivets scratched. I witnessed them buy new baseball caps and bend the brim severely and scrape it along the ground to ruin the newness.
I didn’t get it. I like bright, new shiny things. I like opening the new impossible-to-open plastic sealed clamshell packages because I know that the contents have never been used by anyone else. When first cracking one open, I like the smell of the new useless plastic trinkets. That euphoric sensation that almost makes you woozy because it’s the first time the molded plastic has breathed. I like the shine of new metal, smooth with no flaws in its surface. I like the burned ozone smell of brand new electronics when you turn them on for the very first time. It excites me to get something new. It’s embarrassing, but I’ve purchased things that I know I already have enough of, just because I want a new one.
Things with no scratches and that new smell have always held much more attraction for me … unless it’s something I really love. When it’s something I really love, I want it repaired. I want it re-made, recreated into something useful again. When I love something, I don’t want to let it go.
Our God spent only seven days creating a good universe with very good people in it (Genesis 1-2). He said he was finished creating. Then Adam and Eve screwed it up. For the first time, it was broken. He’s been recreating ever since. Flowers bloom, attract insects to spread pollen, then die. Next Spring, they bloom again. Man dies, but his progeny lives on through procreation. Even in the end, when the Earth is destroyed, there is recreation into a new Heaven and a new Earth.
I tell my youth all the time that they are lucky I’m not God. (They are quick to agree.) The day the forbidden fruit was eaten in Eden, I would have destroyed it all and started over from scratch. No witnesses, no foul. He didn’t. He loved man too much. His justice required the penalty he had ascribed for rebellion, but his grace provided the sacrifice in man’s stead. Atheists ask me all the time “how could a loving God callously send people to hell?” My response has always been. “He couldn’t. I believe a loving God would probably try to keep people out of hell. In fact, He would probably do everything He could to keep people out of a place like that. I believe a loving God would make personal sacrifice to help people avoid that. I believe He would even sacrifice His own son to keep people out of hell. That’s what a loving God would do. That’s what a loving God did.”
As our calendar arbitrarily changes to a new year, remember that God has provided newness for you and wants to continually renew you. This is a chance to start new and fresh. It is an opportunity to let Him recreate you a little closer to His image. You may need allow Him to recreate you by eliminating bad habits that just won’t die. You may need to allow him recreate in you good habits that just won’t stay alive. You may need to allow Him to recreate strained relationships to strong ones. You may need to let Him recreate romantic relationships into friendships. Allow God to recreate you this year. He’s into new.