faith

No More Panicked Worriers

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“Hey Soul? No matter what?
God’s leaning over, taking your hand, & handing you just 3 words for today: DO. NOT. WORRY.
‘Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now —
Don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen…
God will help you deal with WHATEVER hard things come up when the time comes.’
Matthew 6:34, MSG.
God’s so got you & This Thing covered —
This Thing is so not going to take you down.
Just for today, just end this week real strong:
Be a prayer warrior–not a panicked worrier (Ann Voskamp).”

I confess that I am too much of a panicked worrier and not a prayer warrior. I think a whole lot of us are.

I read recently that worry says that everything that you want and that is important to you has to happen right now or it won’t happen at all.

God’s timetables are rarely in sync with ours, but as I’m still learning, his timing is always much, much better than mine.

Worry is a lie with just enough of the truth thrown in to make it more convincing.

God is 100% truthful in everything and His promises are always guaranteed.

Worry shows you an outcome without God in it.

God shows you an outcome without worry in it.

Even in the face of all this, why is worry such an automatic response? What makes it almost like the default setting that I revert back to when my world gets shaken even the tiniest little bit?

I think it’s because I’m still a work in progress. You and I are in the process of becoming who God has already declared us to be in Christ, and God is the one doing the molding and shaping.

So don’t fret if worry creeps in. Just repent and refocus and remember that God is faithful even in the midst of our most anxious moments. God’s promises will always outlast whatever it is we’re worried about.

The end.

 

 

A Pre-Lent Lenten Prayer

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“A lenten prayer to avoid entitlement from Richard Rohr:

‘Maybe we all should begin our days with a litany of satisfaction, abundance, and enoughness. God, you have given me another day of totally gratuitous life: my health, my eyes, my ears, my mind, my taste, my family, my freedom, my education, clean water, more than enough food, a roof over my head, a warm bed and blanket, friends, sunshine, a beating heart, and your eternal love and guidance.

To any one of these we must say, “And this is more than enough!'”

Ok, I know we’re not quite to Lent season just yet. I realize that Mardi Gras and Ash Wednesday are two weeks away (and Mardi Gras just happens to fall on my birthday this year, which is neat).

Still, this applies to any season of the year or of life. Gratitude is the gift that never goes  out of style and never becomes obsolete. Joy is as much of an art and a discipline as it is a gift because while it’s free, it takes effort and stamina to fully realize and appreciate it.

I should probably at some point tape these words from Richard Rohr to my bathroom mirror so that they are the first thing I see when I wake up. Or maybe I should post them somewhere I will see them AFTER I’ve had that all-important first cup of coffee.

I need reminding often of how blessed  I truly am. It’s easy in a culture that promotes dissatisfaction and envy to look at all that’s missing from my life and all that I don’t have. That can lead to despair.

Joy starts with being content with such things that I have already. Gratitude is the way we see God’s provident hand everywhere working in everything. Even on Mondays.

 

 

More Declarations of Dependence

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“God helps those who cannot help themselves” (Charles H. Spurgeon).

The old saying that got passed around as Bible truth went something along the lines of “God helps those who help themselves.”

It’s often quoted as a verse out of the Bible when it actually is a quote by Benjamin Franklin, who was a deist and didn’t believe in a personal God who was actively involved in the affairs of humans and the world.

I’ve always wondered about the flaw in that statement. If we can help ourselves, what in the world do we need God for? It seems to me that if we’re truly self-sufficient, then we’re our own god.

The truth of the matter that I find out everyday is that I can’t help myself. In every sense of the word. I start out every morning with the best of intentions and end up looking back on a long list of messes and mistakes that litter my day.

God helps those who cannot help themselves, me included. You included.

God hears the cries of and delivers those who know their desperate need for God and proclaim it loudly every day. God is seeking out those who will make a declaration of dependence and throw their whole weight in faith on Him at every possible moment.

God is after blind beggars who cry out persistently for the mercy they don’t deserve but who never give up in seeking it even though everyone around them tells them to shut up and go home.

God is after the soldiers who count themselves unworthy for Jesus to even enter the door of their homes but who know His power isn’t limited by geography.

God is after those of us who never stop clinging to that old rugged cross and never stop holding on to faith in spite of our circumstances and who never quit believing that God is good all the time.

God helps those who cannot help themselves.

The end.

 

John 3:16

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“For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16, NLT).

Anybody remember that guy with the rainbow colored afro who used to hold up the John 3:16 signs at sporting events? I do.

Some of you reading this may not be old enough to remember him, but you’re at least familiar with the verse. Perhaps too familiar. Maybe you’re like me and you’ve heard these words so many times that you’ve almost stopped listening to them.

I think I heard them in a fresh new way today at Room in the Inn when the guest speaker chose that as the theme of his message to the homeless men.

“For God . . .” Every great story begins with God. Every story of hope and redemption, every story where good overcomes evil, begins with God.

“For God loved . . .” If your God is known more for what He hates and what He is against rather than what He loves and what He is for, perhaps you’re serving a god instead of God. The defining verse about the God of the bible starts out with “For God so loved . . .”

“For God loved the world . . .” God doesn’t just love white Republicans. God doesn’t just love Americans. God doesn’t just love religious people. God doesn’t just love “successful” people with the perfect resumes and perfect lives.

“For God loved the world  so much that He gave . . .” True love always involves sacrifice. The epitome and the ultimate example of sacrificial love is God giving us Jesus both to live and to die for us.

“For God loved the world so much that He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone . . .” Salvation is for everyone. Not just a select few. Not just for some. Not for those who deserve it (because none of us do). It’s for anyone who asks for it. It’s for you and me.

“For God loved the world so much that He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes . . .” Sometimes, faith gets overcomplicated. Sometimes faith gets reduced to pithy bumper sticker slogans. Faith is simple yet profound. It costs nothing yet it is priceless. Faith means believing not just with your heart or your mind but with your whole life.

“For God loved the world so much that He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.”

That’s it. You don’t have to perish. You have the choice of eternal life. Not just a future pie in the sky by and by kind of life, but real and robust life to the full right here and now. God will always respect the decision you make, whether for Him or not.

The choice is yours. What will you do with it?

 

Advent Wisdom

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“Can you forgive a pig-headed old fool with no eyes to see with and no ears to hear with all these years?” (Ebenezer Scrooge, A Christmas Carol).

I love this line from the 1951 Alastair Sims adaptation of A Christmas Carol. I very much doubt it’s from the Charles Dicken’s novel, but I think it echoes the sentiment of his original work.

It also echoes the sentiment that many of us have felt when we discover wisdom in our later years.

I’ve found lately that wisdom is found in appreciating what you have and not taking the people in your life for granted. At this time of year, it’s easy to look back at people — especially relatives– who are no longer living– and see how many missed opportunities you had to spend time with them.

Wisdom is knowing that while you may have learned a lot over your lifetime, there is still so much yet to discover and experience, so much out there that you don’t know, that your knowledge compared to the total sum of knowledge and wisdom is a drop in the ocean.

For me this year, wisdom has been learning to slow down and savor the Advent season and not be in such a hurry to get to Christmas. It’s been seeing the holiday as more than just what’s underneath all the shiny wrapping papered boxes under the tree.

Advent and Christmas celebrate that God saw that we could never hope to comprehend Him where He was, so He came to where we were and became one of us so that we might truly know Wisdom Incarnate.God became a man so that man could know God and see that He is infinitely loving and trustworthy.

So far, so good. I’ve made a small dent in my required holiday movie watching. I’m also learning to wait well in this Advent season. So it’s all good.

 

 

 

What If

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I’ve had some random “what if” questions running through my mind lately and thought I’d share some with you:

-What if instead of shaming people for voting and thinking differently than you, you actually took the time to listen to why they vote and think the way they do?

-What if enough people decided that the two-party politics-as-usual system doesn’t really work anymore (and when has it ever?) and finally were brave enough to vote for a third party candidate?

-What if people who profess faith in Jesus spent less time boycotting and belittling and more time loving their neighbors and living out the Gospel wherever they live, work, and play?

-What if there really is a Tardis floating out there in the universe and you could possibly be invited to go on adventures in it with the Doctor?

-What if more people decided to stop following the mass media like sheep and starting thinking for themselves?

-What if I went to bed at a decent hour for once instead of typing up these blog posts at the very last minute?

-What if Christianity meant less of a political platform or a morality code and more of a transformed lifestyle that looks like Jesus?

-What if we were grateful for every little thing and took time to express our gratitude to those around us in tangible ways?

-What if cats are really aliens who are studying us and are really reporting back to the mothership when they randomly disappear?

-What if I took seriously Paul’s admonition to do everything to the glory of God and offer all of my life as a spiritual act of worship?

-What if we really listened to the people who are confiding in us instead of waiting for a chance to respond?

-What if you could discipline yourself to be joyful in every circumstance, no matter what?

 

Still the Same

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“You yourselves are a case study of what he does. At one time you all had your backs turned to God, thinking rebellious thoughts of him, giving him trouble every chance you got. But now, by giving himself completely at the Cross, actually dying for you, Christ brought you over to God’s side and put your lives together, whole and holy in his presence. You don’t walk away from a gift like that! You stay grounded and steady in that bond of trust, constantly tuned in to the Message, careful not to be distracted or diverted. There is no other Message—just this one. Every creature under heaven gets this same Message. I, Paul, am a messenger of this Message” (Colossians 1:21-23, The Message).

It’s the same Gospel message that still saves anyone who comes to God in faith.

It’s the same Gospel message that saved a wretch like me.

It’s the same Gospel message that has the power to transform and liberate.

It’s still the same.

A Good Sunday

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It was a good Sunday for several reasons. I thought I’d share a few of them with you:

  1. I woke up this morning, so that automatically makes it a good day.
  2. I managed to get through both services without messing up the worship lyrics or the video of the baptisms. It can be a bit stressful at times, but it is worth it to experience worship in a whole new way.
  3. I had a fantastic Greek omelet at Athens Family Restaurant.
  4. I picked up a classic Lucinda Williams album at Grimeys Too.
  5. While it wasn’t the ideal fall weather that I love, it wasn’t 95 degrees with 95% humidity. Gotta take what you can get here in the great state of Tennessee.
  6. I’m still breathing and my heart is still beating as I’m typing these words.
  7. I experienced more foodie goodness at Local Taco.
  8. Obviously, I didn’t go hungry today.
  9. I’m still saved by grace, and that’s nothing I can brag about. God did it all.
  10. I have one sleeping geriatric teenage feline on the pillow next to mine right now and that makes just about any situation better.
  11. I have a good job to wake up early and go to in the morning that pays the bills and challenges me and allows me to help people (even if it’s in a more indirect way).
  12. I have a comfy bed to sleep in and a solid roof over my head tonight.
  13. See #9 again if you still doubt the goodness of this Sunday.

That hardly begins to cover why this was a good day for me. If I took the time to write all the reasons down, I’d most likely be up all night, and that would likely make Monday not such a good day.

So, lucky 13 will have to do for now. See you all tomorrow evening with something (hopefully) fresh and inspired.

 

Living in View of Eternity

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The guest speaker at Kairos made an astute observation: he said that most of us live like practical Sadducees.

Sadducees were a sect of Jewish religious leaders who denied the resurrection. For them, life ended at the grave.

A lot of us pay lip service to heaven and that sweet by and by, but live as though the here and now is all there is.

The result? We live with a kind of frenetic desperation. We determine our worth by our stuff. We settle in relationships because we think nothing better will come along. We’re always falling victim to FOMO – Fear Of Missing Out.

When Jesus came to give life and give it to the fullest, He did mean here an now, but I believe that life will find its truest and fullest expression in the life to come.

In C. S. Lewis’ book, The Great Divorce, he describes heaven not as a shadowy phantom-land but as place where every blade of grass is so real that it almost hurts to walk on it. A place that’s too much for some because it’s so very real and present.

We are to live in the now, but we should also live under the shadow of eternity, knowing that a whole human life is only a heartbeat in heaven (stolen from a Robin Williams movie).

Because of eternity, failure is not final and death will not have the last word. Defeat is temporary and suffering gives way to joy. Love wins and hope survives.

I still love the imagery of heaven in The Last Battle as the real and true Narnia while the present world is only a shadow and a copy. It’s the real beginning of the story that only gets better with each new chapter, the best story ever written.

 

The Beauty of Scars

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I saw a girl who had scars on her face today outside of Starbucks. What struck me most weren’t the scars themselves but how beautiful she was, not in spite of her scars but because of them. I wonder if she’s ashamed of her scars as most people are or if she sees them in a different way.

Most of us have a scar or two. I have one on my left hand from an automobile accident from several years ago. Some of the most painful scars are the ones no one can see, the ones we bear inside our bodies rather than outside.

Still, from the right perspective, scars are beautiful. Every scar tells a story and reveals a history of God’s ability to rescue and heal. Scars mean that you are still here, that you endured whatever ordeal and came out stronger on the other side. Scars mean that you survived.

Jesus Himself still bears His scars from Calvary. The wounds in His wrists and side are still there, reminding us that scars are not shameful wounds to be kept hidden but tattoo of overcoming.

No one gets through this life unscathed. Well, perhaps if you hide under your bed and play it safe for 80 years you might make it without scars. If you hide your heart away in a lock box and never let it out, you can avoid having it get broken (but you also avoid feeling anything deeply).

Perhaps I should rephrase. No one who really lives goes through life unscathed and unscarred. It’s impossible. People and circumstances will wound you, sometimes deeply, but there is no wound that God cannot heal and no circumstance God cannot work for your good and His glory.

Trust me. Scars are good. Wear them proudly to remind yourself and others that scars mean that you’re still here and not going anywhere anytime soon.

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