“Be a continuous learner, don’t stop short, and the truth will open to you on the right hand and on the left until you find there is no problem in human life with which the Bible does not deal. But remember that there are certain points of truth Our Lord cannot reveal to us until our character is in a fit state to bear it. The discernment of God’s truth and the development of character go together” (Oswald Chambers, Approved Unto God).

In terms of maturity in the faith, you never come to a point where you’ve arrived. There’s always something new to learn and something to change.

The problem with American Christianity (and in my own life as well) is that most of the time I view learning in terms of knowledge, while the Bible talks about learning in view of transformation.

One stays and stagnates in my intellect and does me no good, while the other changes how I think AND how I live.

I think I know which one I prefer. May we be not just hearers of God’s Word but doers also.

If I seem to be a little excited about the whole prospect of fall, it’s because I am.

I’m officially over and done with the 90+ degree temperatures with the one bazillion percent humidity. It’s like stepping out into Satan’s sweaty sauna every time I go outside.

There are probably some of you who love and cherish summer and hate to see it end. You dread any season with weather under 85 degrees. Well, bless your heart.

I’m ready for flannel weather myself. I want weather where it doesn’t feel wrong to drink hot beverages in the middle of the day.

But until then I won’t waste my life by wishing the current season away. I will continue to look for and seek out the daily miracles and small blessings available for those with eyes to see them.

I’ll continue to pray to be in the moment as often as possible and to be fully awake to the here and now instead of daydreaming about future possibilities.

I will give thanks early and often, because I still think that thanksgiving opens my eyes to see God in the world around me.

And I will enjoy my wonderful almond milk pumpkin spice creamer with my coffee in my Star Wars Death Star mug for as long as possible.

The quest continues. I’ve made it through the first five doctors in the classic series and am now finally up to the sixth doctor, Colin Baker. Though I was sad to see Peter Davison depart, change and regeneration is what Doctor Who is all about.

I confess this one took a bit of warming up to. He’s a bit like a hybrid of the first and second doctors, William Hartnell and Patrick Troughton, in that it takes a while to get used to his eccentric, sometimes arrogant, always alien ways. Thankfully, he has the ever lovely Perpugilliam Brown, better known as Peri, to keep him grounded.

For a change of pace, they decided to make this companion American, although sometimes a little Britishness slips through.

I’m almost a little sad that I’m over half way through all the Classic Doctor Who episodes. Again, they don’t always have the most top notch special effects and budget, but there’s something to be said for escapism with bits of morality and social commentary thrown in.

It may be a bit of a spoiler to know that the doctor will survive, but it can be just as suspenseful trying to figure out how.

There will be more to come later. Stay tuned.

 

 

“For the Lord’s sake, submit to all human authority—whether the king as head of state, or the officials he has appointed. For the king has sent them to punish those who do wrong and to honor those who do right.

 It is God’s will that your honorable lives should silence those ignorant people who make foolish accusations against you. For you are free, yet you are God’s slaves, so don’t use your freedom as an excuse to do evil. Respect everyone, and love the family of believers. Fear God, and respect the king” (1 Peter 2:13-17, New Living Translation).

Honor the king. Another translation puts it as “Honor the emperor.”

As believers in Jesus, we’re called to a higher standard. That includes honoring those in authority, including the President. Note that it does not say to honor only those in charge whose policies and beliefs match yours. Remember that Peter was writing to believers living under the rule of Nero, who was certifiably insane and whose atrocities are well-documented (and way worse than any President we’ve ever had).

For me, that means I need to remember that even politicians are made in the image of God and are included in the people that Jesus died for. Even the Obamas and Trumps of the world. To denigrate and demean someone made in the image of God is to insult their Creator.

It’s still every believer’s duty to speak out against injustice and wrong, but we’re also called to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. We’re still called to honor our leaders, whether we agree with them or not.

Ultimately, we need to realize that what’s wrong with the world won’t change by replacing one ruling political party with another. You can’t solve spiritual problems by political means. You can seek to make a difference in a thousand daily small ways in your home and in your community.

My hope isn’t in a President or a political party or any kind of policies or platforms. My hope is in Jesus. May we be as willing to extend grace and mercy to others as He was to extend it to us.

 

Peanut has the right idea when it comes to Saturdays, better known in her world as Caturdays.

She’s not the World Champion Cat Napper that Lucy was. Yet.

As you can tell, she’s making strides toward learning how to nap at anytime, anywhere, for any reason at all. Or for no good reason at all.

I do think she’s on to something.

There’s a reason God instituted the Sabbath. Every one of us needs a day off and 24 hours to rest and recharge.

No one was ever designed to go 24/7 for long. Eventually, you burn out and your health gives out.

So I think Caturdays and cat naps are something I might incorporate into my own life more often.

Even at 18 months old, Peanut is teaching me stuff.

Honestly, I do think this would be a stellar way to spend the weekend, accompanied by much binging of cookies and Netflix.

I just might have to take on this challenge, and sooner rather than later.

Hopefully, it will inspire your wild and crazy Friday nights.

You’re welcome.

As I type these words, I can rest in the knowledge that I finally have a place for Spongebob to reside in my car. As of this afternoon (after five failed attempts), I now have a rear view mirror that is actually attached to my windshield.

I took the Red Sled to Safelite Repair on Cowan Road in Nashville where the nice bearded man was able to get my mirror  back on in way less time than it took me in any of my previous five attempts. Apparently, reattaching rear view mirrors is not my spiritual gift. But in this case, the sixth time was the charm.

I don’t know why this particular mirror was so difficult to reattach. All my other cars haven’t given me this much trouble. And yes, I’ve had the distinct pleasure of having my rear view mirror fall off the windshield of every car I’ve ever owned thus far.

It’s a task I don’t wish on anybody. Hopefully, I won’t have to experience it again at least  until my next vehicle. You don’t appreciate something like a rear view mirror until you’ve been without one for a bit. Now I think whoever invented it should get his or her own holiday, complete with no work and lots of chocolate.

 

It’s Wednesday, September 12, 2018, and it feels like my brain has been pureed into mush. I’ve been wracking my brains to come up with something witty or creative, and I got nothing.

It was just another day. Another day in which I was blessed to wake up, drive to a job, have more than enough food to eat, and feel contentment at the end of another productive day.

It’s nothing that I should take for granted, but I still do sometimes.

Not today.

Maybe instead of TGIF and living from weekend to weekend, I’ll start using TGFED (Thank God For Every Day) and try to treasure each day for the gift it really is.

Not bad for Hump Day.

 

I often do my best thinking while I’m walking. Tonight, it was me getting in a few extra steps after a fine dinner at Chick-fil-A.

I started thinking about Colin Kaepernick and him kneeling for the national anthem before football games. I thought about Nike starting an ad campaign featuring him, and how people are now burning their Nike apparel (which in my opinion accomplishes nothing).

I admit that it bothered me quite a bit. I was offended. I had to ask myself what it was that brought out such a response in me.

I don’t pretend to know everything about this dilemma, but here’s what I’m learning so far. I speak not from a position of authority but from someone who’s trying to understand.

I still am not a fan of kneeling for the anthem, but I also believe that standing for the flag is more than just something you do at football games when the Star Spangled Banner is sung or played.

The truest way you can show respect for the flag is to respect what the flag stands for. In the Pledge of Allegiance, it says that the flag stands for “one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice FOR ALL.”

Perhaps, a greater offense than kneeling for the anthem is to remain seated and to stay silent in the face of any kind of oppression or injustice.

The pledge reminds us that liberty and justice aren’t just for a select few. They’re not for a certain race or ethnicity or socioeconomic status. They are for all, and any kind of oppression or justice anywhere in this land is a threat to liberty and justice everywhere.

When faced with these issues, the best thing I can do isn’t to point a finger of blame, but to look in the mirror and realize that the start of any change begins in me. If I’m to cast any blame, it must be into that mirror, but better still is to begin to do what I can to be a source of light instead of criticizing the darkness.

Jesus promised that one day everything wrong will be made right. One day, oppression and injustice will cease to exist, and true liberty and justice will prevail. Until then, He calls us to be salt and light to help people see a little what the Kingdom of God looks like.