love

Conflicted But in a Good Way . . .

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I’m feeling a bit conflicted at the moment, but in the best way possible. Right now, you’re probably feeling confused, so let me explain.

I’m very sad that a friend of mine is leaving for overseas missions tomorrow and I won’t get to see her for a while, but I’m filled with joy that she is fulfilling God’s call on her life and going to a place where her deep gladness will meet the world’s deep need and lives will be transformed and changed and a country will never be the same because of her (and I “borrowed” part of that from Frederick Buechner, for the record).

I’m unsure of my next step, but confident that the God I serve is more than able to get me there. Since I lost my job, I’ve felt as if I’m free-floating without an anchor to hold on to or to keep me centered, yet I’ve never had more peace that God really is in control and guiding me toward exactly where He wants me to be.

I’ve never been in a place where I’m more keenly aware of my deep need for God at every waking moment, but I’ve never been more sure of God’s goodness or power. I’ve never been as able and willing to boast in my weaknesses to find that the power of Christ really is made perfect in my imperfections.

Ultimately, I am filled with a longing that nothing in this world can satisfy, yet at the very same time,  I am completely satisfied in Christ and content with where He has me.

What about you?

Being the Best You Possible

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If you’ve always been comfortable in your own skin and never had any doubts as to your identity, then this blog’s probably not for you. If you’ve always liked yourself and always been supremely confident in God’s design of you then you can skip the rest of this.

For the rest of us, we know what it’s like to feel like God made a mistake when He made us. We know what it’s like to wish with all our might that we could be someone else, if only for 24 hours.

We’ve tried to be what we thought everyone else wanted us to be. We tried to be popular and witty and sarcastic and occassionally mean if we thought certain people would like us more.

Here’s my word for you tonight: God not only loves you but He likes you.

He knew exactly what He was doing when He made you and He knew that the world needed you exactly as you are. He knows that when you finally come alive to who God made you to be, people will notice and be drawn to your Creator.

Maybe you wished with everything in you that you could just be normal for once, like everybody else. God didn’t make you to be normal or average or status quo. He made you to be extraordinary and to shine like only you can.

So be happy with you. Be thankful for all the gifts and talents you have. Even boast in your weaknesses, as the apostle Paul said, for in those very weaknesses Christ’s power is perfected in you.

Someone out there right now needs to see you being you. Someone out there needs to know that you are learning to be comfortable in the skin God gave you. Someone will find healing when they see the healing in you that only God could have done.

So go out there and be the best you that you can be.

What If?

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I got to thinking today about being radical. I know it gets painted with a bad brush because of how many are radical in wrong and harmful ways, but what if we were known as radical Christ-followers?

What if we really did love each other deeply and compassionately just as Christ loved us, not just in words and promises, but in actions and random acts of kindness and blessing toward each other daily?

What if we decided that a tithe wasn’t enough and gave everything– not just our money and possessions, but our futures, our dreams, our goals, our lives, and even our bodies– to Jesus for Him to use in whatever way He saw fit?

What if we put down the picket signs and walked across the line to love those people we don’t agree with and show them the real Jesus who ate and drank and hung out with tax-collectors, outcasts, and whores and show them His radical love for them?

What if we stopped trying to take back a country and started trying to advance a Kingdom and to tell the world that the rightful King is coming to make every wrong right again?

What if instead of expecting sinners to confess to us, we confessed to them that we haven’t always preached and taught and lived the grace that can save them and we’ve missed it when it comes to being what Jesus was about– loving the least of these that no one else will love and being Jesus to them?

What if we actually lived out the Bible– all of it, and not just the parts that we like and make us feel comfortable and superior and holier-than-thou– and were doers and not only hearers of God’s Word?

What if we made today Day 1 of Year 1 of the new beginning of a new kind of follower of Jesus who knows he’s broken but knows that He’s been shown incredible grace and lives out the Love that overcomes hate, fear, sin, death, and the grave?

 

For All The George Baileys Out There

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I know that George Bailey is normally associated with Christmas, but bear with me on this one. How many of you have felt like George Bailey at times?

Have you ever invested in a friendship only to feel like the other friend wasn’t investing nearly as much?

Have you ever felt like you were always the one giving the encouragement and blessing and never the one to receive it?

Have you ever made someone a high priority in your life and then felt like that you weren’t even a priority in theirs and it seemed like you didn’t matter to them and that they could take or leave you with no difference at all?

Have you ever felt like that if you were suddenly gone, you wouldn’t be missed all that much?

Then you know what it feels like to be a George Bailey.

But let me let you in on a little secret.

You may not think what you do matters or makes a difference or touches anybody’s lives, but it does.

Not everybody you encourage is in a place where they can reciprocate it. They could just be overwhelmed by life and stress. But that doesn’t mean they don’t appreciate and savor all the encouragement you give and your friendship.

True love in any form is never about giving as much as you get back. It’s always about giving and never expecting return, because God showed us that kind of love even when He knew we would never ever in a million years even begin to pay Him back for all He’s done.

I truly believe that the world will be turned upside down (or right-side up again) by small acts of kindness done with great love that never make the front page or get turned into movies or even get any recognition.

Jesus will say “Well done” to those who gave to the least of these who never could repay or at times even say, “Thank you.” For what you did for these, you did for Jesus Himself.

So take heart. Your labor is never in vain if it is done out of a compassionate heart filled with God’s love. It’s never for nothing.

Addictions: Lessons from Tonight’s Kairos

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When you think of the word addiction, you probably think of the junkie with the needle in his arm or the guy staggering from a bar at 2 am, too drunk to even be able to walk in a straight line.

But maybe addiction looks like the man who works 80 hours a week every week or uses food as comfort to ease the pain he can’t handle. Maybe you’re like me and your addiction is the approval of others. Whatever it is, you’re not alone and there’s hope.

The story of recovery from addiction is the story of moving from slavery to freedom. The Bible says that you are a slave to whatever you choose to obey, whether that be God or a controlled substance or a relationship or a hobby or a career.

Whatever it is, it’s a form of idolatry. You are giving power to something or someone other than God to hold your life together. The thing is that nothing else has the power, the weight, to keep your life together and keep you from spinning out of control.

I loved what Mike Glenn said. He says that Jesus doesn’t stop by your unraveling life to inform you that you’re going to hell. He comes to you in your moment of greatest weakness and says, “You are Mine. You belong to Me. And you don’t have to stay here in slavery.”

You will never overcome addiction alone. You need someone else, whether that be an accountability partner or a 12-step group. It takes time and work.

Jesus died so you wouldn’t have to be beholden to anything ever again. He died to provide you a way out.

The hard part is that often Jesus will take you and walk you through the painful event or memory that you’ve been trying so hard to anesthesize or drown out or numb or run away from. He will take you through it rather than throwing you over it, and you face it and overcome it and never have to be afraid of it ever again.

If God is for you, who can ever be against you? No one. Nothing. And if God said it, that settles it, whether you believe it or not.

I have never been a drug addict or an alcoholic, but as a recovering approval-addict, I know that there is freedom and victory in the name of Jesus. I know what it is through His mighty name to overcome and triumph.

I am learning not to rush the healing process, but to believe that the healing is happening. There is joy in seeing the shackles and chains of addiction and strongholds fall away and you find that you are walking in freedom for the first time.

That’s what I pray for each of you– freedom.

Judging

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Have you ever felt like someone passed sentence on you and wrote you off based on something you said or did? Have you ever felt condemned by another because you messed up once too many times?

Then you know not to judge another in the same way.

You never know what a person’s been through. You never know the whole story of the journey that person has been through and all that God has called them to walk through. If you did, you would probably celebrate how far they’ve come instead of passing judgment.

I’ve been guilty far too often of judging. I’ve thought, “This person really needs to read this or hear this” or “I sure wish God would convict them of this particular issue.” Would I want someone else thinking the same about me?

I know I’ve done and said and texted and posted enough to get me booted off people’s Christmas card lists. I certainly have done enough to warrent being voted off the island and having people write me off and give up on me. That’s why I never write anybody else off or give up on them.

Mike Glenn spoke at Brentwood Baptist Church this morning about how everybody’s got a list of people the world would be better off without. Before you make your list, remember that you are most likely on someone else’s list.

I love what Max Lucado said: “I choose gentleness… Nothing is won by force. I choose to be gentle. If I raise my voice may it be only in praise. If I clench my fist, may it be only in prayer. If I make a demand, may it be only of myself.”

Who knows? Remember you may not have done as well in someone else’s shoes. You might not have survived. And you may still yet be facing someday what that person has already faced and overcome.

So, I choose gentleness and grace and understanding over judgment and condemnation. I choose to bless rather than curse, to encourage rather than to criticize, and to be a blessing to somone instead of seeking blessings from that person.

What will you choose?

Choices

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I have been thinking a lot lately. Probably too much. I do tend to overthink and overanalyze every little thing.

I’ve decided that living your life based on feelings is a poor way to live. Feelings are so fickle and shallow and affected by every little thing. If you rely solely on feelings, you will be scattered and tossed about by every wind and wave. If you let them, feelings will control you, not the other way around.

Instead I am living by choice.

I choose to believe the best about my friends at all times, especially when circumstances and feelings tell me not to, because circumstances and feelings are very often misleading.

I choose not base relationships on responses (or lack thereof) to posts and texts and messages. That’s just plain silly. It doesn’t indicate anything other than the other person actually has a life and doesn’t spend it all on facebook.

I choose to never ever ever ever give up on anyone in my life because I know that God never gave up on me and I have had people in my life who chose to not give up on me when they had every right to.

I choose to live by faith, not by sight or feelings or perceptions. ‘Nuff said.

I choose to give God the same room and space and time to work in the lives of my friends and family as He took in my own life. It took me a while to get where I am (and I’m not done yet) so I realize that others are also broken people in the process of being made whole.

I choose to keep doing what I’m doing. I’ll keep texting and posting encouragement even if no one responds or likes or comments on it. I’ll keep blogging even if no one reads them. I’ll keep praying even if I don’t get any visible answers. I’ll keep believing even when it feels stupid and fake. I’ll keep trusting God to work in and through my life even in those moments when it all seems pointless.

That’s what I choose today. I choose to serve the Lord.

Taking Every Thought Captive

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“But the voice of truth tells me a different story
The voice of truth says, “Do not be afraid!”
And the voice of truth says, “This is for My glory”
Out of all the voices calling out to me
I would choose to listen and believe the voice of truth” (Casting Crowns)
Lately, I’ve been really convicted about my sin in not taking every thought captive and submitting it to the Lordship of Christ. Here I am committing to doing just that, with you as my witnesses to hold me accountable.

 I am naming these thoughts for what they are so that they will not only be taken captive, but lose their power over me once and for all:

1)     “My friends can make time for everyone else, but they don’t have time for me.” I renounce that as a lie from the father of lies, because I choose to believe the best about my friends and the God we both serve.

2)     “I’ve blown a friendship and my friend will never again want to hang out with me or see me again.” Nothing is ever as bad as my fears make me think and God is not only able to save me, but take care of me and sustain my friendships.

3)     “I am too weird and messed up to expect my friends to stick around.” I may not be normal (and I’ve never claimed to be), but in my God’s eyes I am exactly who He made me to be and He sees the perfection of Jesus in me.

4)     “Maybe if I try hard enough, people will like me more, and the harder I try, the more they will like me.” It’s not about trying harder or pleasing people, but about being the best me possible and pleasing God. If I seek Him and His reign in my life, everything else will be taken care of.

5)      “My  friend used to comment on my posts on facebook and text me more. Then it got less and less and now they never comment or like or text me anything. That must mean they don’t like me anymore.” It just means that maybe that person is going through a period of extreme busyness or a season of dealing with their own issues. Not everything is about me (thank God for that!)

Maybe you are believing different lies, or maybe you’ve believed the same lies I have. Don’t for one more second let these thoughts have dominion over you. Renounce them and name them as lies and rebuke their author in the name and the blood of Jesus.

I choose to listen to and believe the Voice of Truth. Will you?

Farewell to Mayberry

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I saw recently where Andy Griffith passed away. For me, it’s truly the end of an era of innocence and simplicity. Sure, I know that the old Andy Griffith Show wasn’t the most realistic TV show ever, but even if it was only a dream, it was a good dream.

Thank you, Andy.

You showed the world that a true man doesn’t need swagger or bravado to be a man. A true man doesn’t need to yell or hit people to prove his masculinity.

You showed that being a real man means being a good nephew, a good father, and a good citizen. You showed that masculinity means leading by example and not just with words.

You showed me it’s okay to admit when you’re wrong and ask forgiveness. You weren’t perfect by any means, but you never quit being the gentleman or took the day off from doing the right thing.

Thank you for your humble attitude, your love for your son, your love of God, and your quiet determination.

I and every other man look at you as a hero and hope to be the kind of man you were someday.

 

Cutting Hearts

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I spent my evening doing something that I honestly never thought I would ever do again in this lifetime. Something I hadn’t done in a very long time.

I spent it cutting out paper hearts. It was part of preparation for Vacation Bible School we’re doing down at Set Free Church, a ministry that helps homeless men find their way back and helps heal families.

Then I got to thinking. Isn’t that sort of what God is doing with my own heart?

I don’t mean that God is using literal scissors, although at times that’s what it feels like.

I mean that God is in the process of reshaping and remolding my heart into one that can He can use to reach out to the people around me.

Sometimes, that means my heart gets broken. I’ve had countless times where my love for another went unreturned. I’ve had times when a dream I cherished got dashed to pieces.

More often than not, it means a snip here and there. I lose a bit of my selfishness and make room for doing for others without expecting anything in return. I lose the need to always be acknowledged and loved and learn to love and serve those who may never be able to repay me.

Ultimately, it’s about my heart looking like God’s own heart. It’s about my heart beating with His heartbeat and feeling His feelings and loving those He loves with His own perfect love.

It’s a lifelong process that involves Him chiseling away at my hard heart while softening it at the same time.

That’s my prayer for you, too. That you would have God’s own heart beating within you to love the unloveable and reach out to the hopeless and helpless and show the world that no one is beyond the reach of God’s power to heal and change and transform.

I know, because I was one of those hopeless ones at one point. So were you.