“Listen carefully: Unless a grain of wheat is buried in the ground, dead to the world, it is never any more than a grain of wheat. But if it is buried, it sprouts and reproduces itself many times over. In the same way, anyone who holds on to life just as it is destroys that life. But if you let it go, reckless in your love, you’ll have it forever, real and eternal” (John 12:24-25, The Message).

Sometimes to the untrained eye, growth looks like anything and everything but growth. It looks like chaos and disorder and destruction, not life.

But look at the seed. It first has to die before it can sprout and multiply. But you can’t keep digging up the seed to see if it’s growing yet. You have to leave it in the ground and trust that it is working.

Maybe that’s how the life of faith works — let God have His way in the secret and trust that He knows what He’s doing. Even in the midst of a pandemic. Even in 2020.

“If we only had eyes to see and ears to hear and wits to understand, we would know that the Kingdom of God in the sense of holiness, goodness, beauty is as close as breathing and is crying out to born both within ourselves and within the world; we would know that the Kingdom of God is what we all of us hunger for above all other things even when we don’t know its name or realize that it’s what we’re starving to death for. The Kingdom of God is where our best dreams come from and our truest prayers. We glimpse it at those moments when we find ourselves being better than we are and wiser than we know. We catch sight of it when at some moment of crisis a strength seems to come to us that is greater than our own strength. The Kingdom of God is where we belong. It is home, and whether we realize it or not, I think we are all of us homesick for it” (Frederick Buechner).

“Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met” (Matthew 6:33, The Message).

“So don’t worry and don’t keep saying, ‘What shall we eat, what shall we drink or what shall we wear?! That is what pagans are always looking for; your Heavenly Father knows that you need them all. Set your heart on the kingdom and his goodness, and all these things will come to you as a matter of course” (Matthew 6:33, J. B. Phillips).

The quest continues. It’s been a while since my last update, but I’m now up to Doctor #12 (Peter Capaldi) with the latest companion, Bill Potts, played expertly by Pearl Mackie.

I can’t believe that I’m almost to the end. If my memory serves me right, I have just about 2 1/2 seasons left. That will complete my second go-round through the entire Doctor Who story.

I am such a nerd.

But I’m proud to be a nerd and I don’t care who knows. It’s kinda fun every now and then to do what you like and not care what others think. It’s freeing to break away from the “norm” from time to time and to be a little weird occasionally.

I imagine there won’t be too many more updates before I’m done, but I will hopefully get one to you sooner than later.

I sometimes wonder if we’ve got it all backwards. We’re all about planning worship services down to the last second. We get the most gifted and talented people (which are plentiful here in Middle Tennessee) both on the stage and behind the scenes.

I wonder if it has become more about production value than the presence of God. I wonder if in all our programmed and strategized-down-to-the-last- detail services we haven’t gone and left out the Holy Spirit.

I’ve been in worship services where the music was very amateur, the vocals were off-key, and the songs were old, but I remember God moving in that place. I don’t remember any of the songs or the sermon, but I know God was there.

Churches lately feel more like well-organized Fortune 500 businesses run by CEOs than the first-century fellowship of believers who weren’t co-workers but family. They turned the world upside down because they dreamed God-sized dreams way beyond their reach.

Maybe we need to quit planning so much and start praying more. Perhaps if we went into every service with the expectation of God now only showing up but filling up every square inch of the sanctuary and moving mightily in power, we might see the impossible becoming possible. We might just see revival.

One day, I’m going to write a post and call it “Don’t Be a Face Mask Pharisee.” Basically, I see people judging the character of other people who can’t or won’t wear masks. When Jesus said, “Don’t judge, lest you be judged,” He was talking about making an assessment of someone else’s character or eternal destination without knowing their story or getting to know the person.

But I think this applies to so much more. I think that when you are alone, your thoughts can be scary. They can tell you things about your family, your friends, and yourself. If you let them, they will have you thinking that everyone else is out to get you. But feelings can be deceiving, especially when you’re tired or hungry or lonely or otherwise emotionally prone.

Also, it’s wise to be careful of your words around others. That means when you are actually with others physically or when you are interacting through social media. You never know someone else’s struggles or hardships. You never know how far they’ve come to this point.

Be kind to yourself when you’re alone and be kind to others when you’re around them. Remember that God’s truth trumps your feelings. Remember that other people bear the image of God and are loved by God just as much as you.

Don’t ever forget that if you’re going to compare sinners as to which one is the worst, you could very well look in the mirror because you know much more about your own sins than those of others. It took as much or more grace to save you as it takes to save anyone else.

That’s not to beat yourself up. That’s to remind you that the grace of God that you received is the same grace you need to give, even when it’s undeserved.

Oh, and be kind. That’s all.

Rainbow Bridge Remembrance Day is when we remember and honor all the pets we’ve loved and lost throughout our lives. Each one was special, each one was loved, and each one took a little piece of our hearts when they left.

My Lucy was no exception. While I still miss her, the memories I have of her now are happy. The sadness has faded and the feeling I remember most is one of her unconditional love and loyalty for over 17 years.

I believe it is right and good to grieve the loss of a pet. It may seem silly or undignified to some, but to me it’s like losing family. Your pet was your constant companion and trusting friend who was loyal and faithful. My Lucy was a quiet presence who was with me at the end of the day. That’s what pets do best– they may not be your whole world, but you are theirs.

I hope you celebrate this day (or the day after if you read this later) by donating time and money at an animal shelter. I hope you will choose to rescue rather than adopt. I hope you will cherish the memory of your beloved pet by finding another not to take its place but to be an outlet for all the love you still have for your pet that has no where to go.

Most of all, I hope you choose to remember the joy more than the sadness, the good days more than the sad ones, especially that last sad one. I hope you know that you were blessed to know the love of an animal.

Yep. That’s it.

A while back, several people I know on social media got invited to post the ten albums that influenced them the most. Each one posted one album a day for the next ten days, although some couldn’t limit their lists to just ten.

For some reason or another, I never got my invite. Maybe it’s because I’m not into vinyl. I appreciate that it’s making a comeback, but I really don’t want to buy my collection all over again.

So I am sharing my own list of albums that have changed and broadened my musical horizons. Of course, I have way more than 10. If you’re not all that into music, you might want to skip ahead to the next post. But if you are, buckle your seatbelt ’cause you’re in for a bumpy ride. Here they are (in no particular order):

1. Boston – Boston
2. Ella & Louis – Porgy and Bess
3. Miles Davis – A Kind of Blue
4. The Who – Who’s Next
5. Rush – Permanent Waves / Moving Pictures
6. Russ Taff – Under Their Influence Vol 1
7. King’s X – Dogman
8. Tom Petty – Full Moon Fever
9. U2 – The Joshua Tree
10. Don McLean – American Pie
11. Allman Brothers – Eat a Peach
12. Dan Fogelberg – Souvenirs
13. Van Morrison – Moondance
14. Carole King – Tapestry
15. Jimi Hendrix – Are You Experienced?
16. Brand X – Xtrax
17. Chicago – IX Greatest Hits
18. Phil Collins – No Jacket Required
19. Yes – Fragile
20. Cream – Disraeli Gears
21. Kansas – Leftoverture
22. Jethro Tull – Songs from The Wood
23. Journey – Departure
24. Steve Vai – Passion and Warfare
25. SRV and Double Trouble – In Step
26. The Beatles – Rubber Soul
27. The Band – The Last Waltz
28. The Dukes of Straosphear – Psonic Psunspot
29. Elvis Presley – The Complete Sun Sessions
30. The Thorns – The Thorns

“O God, I thank You for this day of life
for eyes to see the sky
for ears to hear the birds
for feet to walk amidst the trees
for hands to pick the flowers from the earth
for a sense of smell to breathe in the sweet
perfumes of nature
for a mind to think about and appreciate
the magic of everyday miracles
for a spirit to swell in joy at Your mighty presence
everywhere” (Marian Wright Edelman)

I think I read somewhere that if the only prayer I ever prayed was “Thank you,” that would be sufficient.

I don’t necessarily think that it is completely sufficient by itself, but it goes a long way toward how I view God, the world, and myself.

It’s hard to be envious with thanksgiving. It’s difficult to hold grudges and give thanks. It’s nearly impossible to by cynical and grateful at the same time.

Thanksgiving is the lens through which we can see God more clearly in the world around us and in the world within us.

Maybe the way to overcome 2020 is to give thanks.