god

Psalm 23

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”

The Eternal is my shepherd, He cares for me always.
He provides me rest in rich, green fields
    beside streams of refreshing water.
    He soothes my fears;
He makes me whole again,
    steering me off worn, hard paths
    to roads where truth and righteousness echo His name.

Even in the unending shadows of death’s darkness,
    I am not overcome by fear.
Because You are with me in those dark moments,
    near with Your protection and guidance,
    I am comforted.

You spread out a table before me,
    provisions in the midst of attack from my enemies;
You care for all my needs, anointing my head with soothing, fragrant oil,
    filling my cup again and again with Your grace.
Certainly Your faithful protection and loving provision will pursue me
    where I go, always, everywhere.
I will always be with the Eternal,
    in Your house forever” (Psalm 23, The Voice).

There’s a reason that Psalm 23 is the most recognized and beloved of all the Psalms in the Bible. Just think of how many times you’ve heard it recited– in church services and at funerals. These are some of the most familiar words in all of the Bible.

But have you ever taken a moment to really let this Psalm sink in? Have you ever seeped yourself in the deep well of these words?

How many of us are soul-weary and in need of restoration? How many of us are in the midst of walking through the deepest, darkest valley?

Thankfully, God’s story never ends in darkness. It never ends with heartache and tears. Joy will have the last word. Always.

This Psalm reminds us that God’s faithful love is never passive. It pursues each of us all through the days of our lives, through all the detours and dark alleys of our weakest moments.

God never rests or slumbers in offering rest to those of us who are overburdened and bone-weary.  All along the way, goodness and mercy are never far behind and God’s dwelling is always before us.

The promise of God’s faithfulness isn’t for a season or even for a lifetime. It’s forever.

My Plan for 2016 — The Saga Concludes (Or Does it?)

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As you probably know by now, I made it a goal of mine to visit all the regional campuses of Brentwood Baptist Church in 2016.

As of today, that mission is accomplished. That is, until the next regional campus springs up into existence.

I really liked everything about The Church at West Franklin. The music was great, the people were warm and friendly, and Matt Pearson is a fantastic communicator of God’s Word.

I’m thankful that I was able to see each of the campus pastors when I visited their respective campuses. I’m even more thankful that Brentwood Baptist Church is able to reach such a diverse group of people with these campuses that share the same message of hope but convey it in different ways.

In Nashville where 95% of churches are in decline, it does my heart good to see that all these campuses are growing and thriving and each making inroads in their communities.

I can’t wait to see what God does through the next regional campus (possibly in East Nashville). I have my GPS and I’m ready to travel, especially if the new campus is close to The Pharmacy (one of my favorite burger places in the world).

Speaking of good places to eat, I managed to end up at the Henpeck Village Market after church services for some quality brunch buffet. It was every bit as good as I had been dreaming it would be.

I still love that every new day can be a new start. You may not be able to make a new beginning, but you can always start toward a new ending and change the current chapter you’re in. God is always willing to work in the life of the man or woman who can offer even the most hesitant of surrenders and gives Him even the tiniest of places to start.

So, this concludes my updates on visiting all the regional campuses of BBC. For now.

 

2016 Elections and Other Such Nonsense

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Apparently, we in America have two choices when it comes to electing a President. Only two choices. It’s either Donald “The Donald” Trump or Hilary Clinton.

Before you argue about third party candidates, let me say this. Yes, we do have lots of people running outside the two major parties, but I have yet to know their names, much less anything else about them. None of them have even a remotely realistic chance of winning.

It’s easy to get discouraged when none of the options seem appealing. I’m not optimistic about the next four to eight years.

It’s also important to remember that we are electing a President, not a Savior. That position has already been filled.

Bear this in mind if you’re feeling pessimistic about the country’s future. Whether we get Trump or Clinton (or even one of those others) as President, Jesus will be King. In four years when it’s time to go through the whole process again, Jesus will still be King. In fact, going back way before George Washington and even after the last President has come and gone, after the United States is no more, Jesus will still be on the throne.

In the end, it’s not Republicans or Democrats who ultimately win. Jesus wins. He’s the One who wipes away every tear and sets every wrong right. He’s the One who releases creation from its bondage and sets every captive free. He’s the One whose reign will never end and whose love will never fail or run out.

This Jesus is the One who intercedes for you at this very moment.

Keep that in mind when you head to the polls this November (or possibly earlier if you are one of those who actually remembers to vote early and avoid the lines).

Whoever wins won’t bring about the end of the world. Whoever wins won’t save it either. Only Jesus can do that.

 

TGIF

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If you’re reading this, you’ve made it through another week. Congrats! Your reward is getting to read this post.

Maybe you felt a little beat up after a long week where you started off two steps behind and were struggling to catch up for the next five days.

Maybe you felt a little overwhelmed at times by the task list that never seems to grow any smaller and that mound of papers that only seems to multiply.

Maybe you had anther one of those existential moments where you wonder if you’ve completely wasted your life and if there’s any chance that things will get better.

Here’s something to remember: God is still on His throne. God still sees you. He has not forgotten. He has not ceased watching over you with ceaseless vigilance. He is still in the business of working all things together for your good and His glory.

And tomorrow’s Saturday. You get to sleep in. Hopefully.

It also helps to keep the big picture in mind. Where you are right now is not the end of the story. As Frederick Buechner famously said, the resurrection means that the worst thing is never the last thing.

It also helps to bear in mind that God’s redemption story is way bigger than you or me. It’s about redeeming and restoring a fallen creation and setting the universe right.

I recommend during this weekend that you find a moment or two where you can be alone with your thoughts and God. Find a quiet place where you won’t be interrupted and take fifteen minutes to sit in God’s presence, not to make requests but simply to bask. Adore. Gaze. And listen.

I plan on doing that tomorrow in Franklin when I visit my favorite church building. I also plan on visiting my favorite street. But that’s beside the point.

Who you are is not your to-do list or your schedule. Who you are is not your job performance or your salary. Who you are is who God says you are– Beloved. Above all, remember that.

 

2,115 Posts? Really?

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“One of the most satisfying aspects of writing is that it can open in us deep wells of hidden treasures that are beautiful for us as well as others to see” (Henri Nouwen, Bread for the Journey).

This July will mark six years since I started writing these blogs. For me, that’s a long time. There have been very few things that I have done consistently for that long, outside of eating and breathing and such.

Part of me still hopes that one day my posts will blow up and my readership will escalate into the millions and I will be able to retire from my job and write blogs exclusively. Part of me still hopes that chocolate is low-calorie and fat-free. You can’t have everything you want.

Even if this never becomes anything more than a hobby and a release, that’s just fine with me. These have been extremely therapeutic for me and helpful for many of you. That’s enough for me.

I said it before quite a few times and I say it again– I’d write these blogs even if I were the only one reading them. I really really would.

I have enjoyed writing them much more since I finally got my Mac Book Pro. I do feel a bit more hipster-y and cool, though I am still a goober at heart (in case you were beginning to get worried).

Faith will always inform everything I write on here, whether it’s overtly faith-based or not. That’s who I am. That will always be who I am.

2,115 posts. It does boggle the mind. Well, it boggles MY mind. At an average of 300 words per blog, that comes to over 634,000 words. That’s more than the word count in the novel War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy. I should know. I just looked it up on google to be sure.

My next goal is one million words. But as always, my main goal is to be authentic and encouraging and (sometimes) challenging. Maybe one day I’ll finally break down and write that novel. Maybe.

 

Remembering May Day Six Years Later

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“When you go through deep waters,
    I will be with you.
When you go through rivers of difficulty,
    you will not drown.
When you walk through the fire of oppression,
    you will not be burned up;
    the flames will not consume you” (Isaiah 43:2, New Living Translation).

It’s hard to believe that it was six years ago that the historic 1000-year floods hit Nashville. I remember sitting in front of the television seeing news broadcasts featuring images that looked like they could have come from the latest disaster movie. It all seemed too surreal to be real.

I also recall not being able to go into work that day because of the flood waters that made the street out of my subdivision impassible.

Most of all, I remember that even though there was much property damage and even a few lives lost, we survived. In many ways, Nashville is better and stronger than it was six years ago.

For me, it continues to be a reminder that my real treasure isn’t here on Earth where thieves break in, where rust corrodes, and where flood waters destroy. My real treasure isn’t things. It’s people.

My most treasured possession is Jesus because I know that I am His. I am overwhelmed in a flood of a great affection that is stronger than my fear and doubt and shows no sign of abating. That’s still the love that keeps me going.

There is no famine or flood or fire that can separate me from God’s love in Jesus. There’s nothing at all that will keep Jesus from getting to where I am and meeting my deepest need at that moment.

The best news of all is that this love of God is still available to anyone who asks. This Jesus is still willing to come into the heart of anyone who seeks Him by faith. Remember that when those proverbial flood waters overwhelm you.

 

God Makes Miracles out of Messes

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“Now to the God who can do so many awe-inspiring things, immeasurable things, things greater than we ever could ask or imagine through the power at work in us” (Ephesians 3:20, The Voice).

“God makes miracles out of messes.”

That was on a church sign that I passed on my way home.

How many of us have felt like we’ve made a mess of everything– careers, finances, relationships?

How many times have so many of us reached a certain point in life and looked back and wondered if we’d done anything of significance that might leave a lasting influence?

God makes miracles out of messes. God takes chaos and brings out of it a new creation.

There is nothing and no one too far gone, too messed up, too broken beyond repair for God to use for His glory.

There is no such thing as too late for God to begin His transformative work.

Maybe that gives you renewed hope.

Maybe that’s a lifeline for you to cling to in a sea of voices that are telling you that you’ve wasted your life.

God makes miracles out of messes.

Let that be your mantra as you fall asleep tonight, knowing that God never ceases watching over you and working in you for your good.

 

Mr. Irrelevant Strikes Back

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They’re baaaaaack.

That’s right. The NFL Draft has returned, and all those wonderful commentators have come back to give their pick-by-pick analysis all the way from the very first player selected in the first round to the very last player selected in the final round (ignominiously known as Mr. Irrelevant).

There have been some great picks (like Denver selecting Paxton Lynch in the first round) and some head-scratchers (a kicker in the second round?)

If you’re actually paying attention to all this, you know that we still have rounds 4-7 left tomorrow. Then last but not least is Mr. Irrelevant himself.

I love that in the kingdom of God there’s no such thing as Mr. Irrelevant. Every person is important because every person matters to God.

Many of you probably know what it’s like to feel irrelevant. You can be in the middle of a group and feel totally left out of a conversation. Or you could be the only one not invited to a get-together where later everyone who was there shares photos through all the social media outlets.

I love the fact that when God chose you, it wasn’t because you were the only one left. It wasn’t like He got you because He was stuck with you, like the team captain with the last pick in kickball.

God was intentional and purposeful when He made you. He was just as deliberate in choosing you. God wants and desires a relationship with you that will bring out your very best self.

There is never a moment that goes by when you are not on God’s mind and in God’s heart. Never. Remember that when you feel forgotten and abandoned by everyone else in your life.

As for Mr. Irrelevant, some actually ended up making an NFL team. A few even ended up in the Super Bowl. Not bad for the last man chosen.

 

Yet Still More Randomness on Hump Day

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Every now and then, I come to write these blogs and I really don’t have a theme. I have lots of ideas in my head that are all disconnected (and 95% of them are song lyrics or movie quotes).

The one theme that keeps reemerging like the chorus of a song is grace.

There are days when I feel confident and suave. I feel like my life’s going well. I’m able to truly appreciate how very blessed I am and I have all the confidence in the world that God is truly in control and that He’s got my future in good hands. Those days are grace.

Then there are days when my latent dorkiness comes to the surface. Just about every conversation feels awkward. All those old fears about people not wanting to be around me once they really get to know me come back. Those days are also grace.

Every day I wake up is grace. Every day I wake up I need God’s grace, both the good and bad days. There aren’t days when I can get by with a little less. I always need as much as I can handle (and then some).

Grace means that it’s okay that you’re not always okay. Grace means that you can celebrate brokenness because you know that’s where the light gets in (and where God’s light gets out).

So maybe I did have a theme after all. Who knew? I didn’t until I started typing.

Grace has certainly been the theme of my life. As much as I need it, I’m not always good at extending it to those who disappoint me. Maybe I even need grace to be able to give grace.

God never tires of being gracious with me. He loves me with a holy love that meets me where I am in my mess yet refuses to leave me where He found me.

I’m also thankful for that on a Wednesday night at 10:40 pm.

 

You Matter

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If you haven’t heard it from anyone else all day, hear it from me: you matter.

Even when you feel alone and neglected in the middle of a crowd, you matter.

Even when it seems no one wants to bother to get to know you or your story, you matter.

Even when you don’t feel like you have anything to contribute, you matter.

Hear it again– you matter.

God made you with a unique blend of talents and passions and designed you to play a part that no one else but you can play.

You have a story to tell that at least one somebody out there needs to hear– even if some days that one somebody is you.

Even in the midst of your worst pain, God sees you. He has not forgotten you. He has not abandoned you.

Even when it seems no one notices or cares about you, the right people will. There will always be someone who will encourage you and support you (and even sometimes rebuke you in love if needed).

Maybe your job is to look up and look around. Look for the ones on the periphery who look out of place. Look for the ones on the outside who don’t feel like they have anybody on their side or anyone who even knows they’re alive.

Perhaps all it will take is a smile and a kind word. It could be that simply sitting and listening is all it will take.

Remember that as the body of Christ, we’re all in this together. If I don’t work right or you don’t work right, we don’t work right. It’s that simple.

So to be obnoxious and repeat what I’ve already said, let me say it again– you still matter. I will keep repeating it and restating it until you finally start to believe it about yourself and those around you.

You matter.