sick

A Good Advent Prayer

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“Dear God,
Speak gently in my silence.
When the loud outer noises of my surroundings
and the loud inner noises of my fears
keep pulling me away from you,
help me to trust that you are still there
even when I am unable to hear you.
Give me ears to listen to your small, soft voice saying:
“Come to me, you who are overburdened,
and I will give you rest…
for I am gentle and humble of heart.”
Let that loving voice be my guide.
Amen.” (Henri Nouwen)

Those loud outer noises really crank up around this time. Buy this, buy that. max out your credit card to show your family and friend how much you love them. The more you spend, the better the gift.

The loud inner noises have a way of showing up at this time as well. You’ve got to make this season perfect or you’re not really celebrating the season right. You’re probably already screwing it up and it’s not even Christmas yet.

But that still, soft voice still speaks. If you lean close to the manger, you can hear the voice that arrived in the form of an infant saying, “For you, I came. For those just like you, I gave up a throne for a manger, a crown for a cross, royalty for servanthood. I did it all for you.”

Jesus didn’t come to affirm those who are well. He came for the sick to make them well. He came to seek and to save the lost, leaving the 99 to find the one. That’s you. That’s me.

That’s the same voice that says, “Come to me, all who are weary and overburdened, and I will give you rest.”

That’s the voice that says, “My yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

That’s the voice of Him who will come again in triumph over all those loud voices that try to lead you astray. One day, those voices will all be silenced forever, but the still, small voice will be the voice that says, “Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades” (Revelation 1:17-18, ESV).

A New(er) Car

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One of my favorite parts of being sick and staying home from school (not that there were many) was getting to watch Bob Barker and The Price is Right. I’m telling my age when I say Bob Barker and not Drew Carey.

The absolute best part of any episode was when they were revealing the prize the contestants would be bidding on and the announcer proclaimed, “It’s a NEW CAR!” Then everyone in the crowd went absolutely bananas.

I finally broke down and bought a new car. Well, technically a newer car since it’s a 2018, not a 2024. But fear not, loyal fans, it’s still a Jeep.

I drove home in a 2018 Jeep Wrangler. I instantly felt 33% cooler. Then later on I accidentally turned on my emergency flashers and had to consult the manual for how to turn them off and lost all my cool points. But I love it.

In a way, it’s like learning to drive all over again. So many functions are in different places that I have to think about how to roll down the windows or turn up the airflow through the car. I have to remember to use the running board because the new car is higher off the ground than the old one. But I’m thankful.

I have a car with a working speedometer where all the windows roll down every time. I have a car where I can push a button and it starts (as long as I have the key on my person or in the car). It’s blowing my late 1900s brain.

Now comes the part where I sell the trusty old Jeep. There will be some sadness (and possibly tears) when I say goodbye to the loyal Red Sled that has served me well for 11 years and been a faithful every day vehicle for 27 years. No car will ever be as good to me as that one has been.

But I’m thankful that I will have photographs and memories to look back on. I can remember all the people who rode in that car who are no longer present in this world but more alive than ever on those streets of gold in heaven.

But now I have to go study up on the manual to figure out how to work this new Jeep.

The Return of The Crud

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“A cold in the head in June [or October] is an immoral thing…” (Anne of Green Gables, L. M. Montgomery).

I’m sick, but I’m not sick. I don’t feel bad, but I don’t especially feet good at the moment. In other words, I have The Crud again.

I’m not sure how to define it other than a wonderfully delightful mixture of sinuses and allergies and possibly a few germs thrown in for good measure. The result is the occasional headaches, coughing, sore throat, and (my favorite) that ol’ run-down feeling. At this point, I feel like I could sleep for days.

The good news? All of the above means that I’m still alive and kicking. No toe tags for me today. I’ve been able to go to work and stay up on all my other weekly shenanigans.

Tuesday night, I had some chicken noodle soup at Chick-fil-A. I don’t know if that particular batch was pre-blessed or if my body was craving it, but it was possibly the best chicken noodle soup I’ve ever had in my life. Maybe even in the top five greatest chicken noodle soups in all of history.

I’m also loving me some hot tea. It tends to be more beneficial than coffee and the hot water feels good on the ol’ sore throat.

The diagnosis is that I’m alive today, and, God willing, I will wake up tomorrow. And look, ma. No fever.

While I won’t be running in any 5K races any time soon, the chances are good that I’ll be fine in a day or two. Thanks for all the prayers sent my way.

Keep Calm and Drink Coffee

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image

Well, it’s Friday. I’m currently house- and dog-sitting for a very well-behaved and gentle dog named Millie.

I’m also reading a very interesting book written by a lady with autism. It’s fascinating to see her thought processes and hear how she sees the world differently than I. It’s also amazing to see how she has basically taught herself how to overcome most of her autistic tendencies.

I still think that ALL of us at some level are fundamentally broken. We all have some kind of phobias or issues that keep us from always acting normal. Some are better at hiding it than others, but it doesn’t change the fact that they are just as broken as the rest of us.

I’m so very glad Jesus didn’t come for the healthy. He came for the sick. The destitute. The abused. The abuser. The lonely. The broken. Us.

In those moments when you feel like you will never be normal and accepted, remember that Jesus doesn’t think you’re normal. He thinks you’re extraordinary.

Old Movies and Theology

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boys_town_tracy_1

I just watched an old movie. Surprise.

I saw Boys Town, a 1938 movie starring Spencer Tracy and Mickey Rooney. It was definitely a feel-good movie, though it didn’t start out that way. I believe it was based on the true story of the founding of Boys Town.

The point of the movie is that Father Flanagan was trying to help boys who didn’t have mothers or fathers to look after them, who would otherwise end up on the streets and involved in crime. He wanted them to learn how to live as decent citizens and decent human beings.

I think we sometimes are quick to judge those who act differently than we do. Or maybe whose sins are different than ours. It’s very easy to condemn someone who struggles with an addiction or issue that we don’t struggle with.

But maybe what people need isn’t to hear how they’ve messed up and are headed down the wrong path. They probably figured that one out already. Maybe what people need is to know that someone out there knows and cares about them. That maybe, just maybe, they can change.

That’s what the Gospel really is. We like to harp on the sin part sometimes and maybe get a little too much satisfaction from telling people how bad they are, how they’re sinners headed straight to hell. Maybe we need to emphasize that it doesn’t have to be that way. Maybe we need to point out that God loved the world so much that He gave Jesus so that it wouldn’t have to be  that way.

Jesus didn’t come to tell good people how good they were. He didn’t come to make healthy people feel good about their health. He came for the bad, the messed up, the sick, the broken. Which by the way means all of us.

Before you write off someone else, remember who you used to be. Who you might still have been but for the grace of God. That just might make all the difference in the world. In that person’s world.

 

Things I Love 8: Greg’s Sanity Has Left the Building

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island hammock

FYI: these blogs will continue until I get to 1,000 things I love. It’s from the book, One Thousand Gifts, so I’m trying to list out– wait for it– 1,000 little things that I believe are God’s gifts to me and daily reminders that stir me to gratitude and thanksgiving as a lifestyle. Plus, I don’t have to worry about what I will be blogging on until at least July of 2014. Just kidding. Sort of.

Ok. Here goes the list, starting at #168. Drum roll, please.

168) Looking through old photo albums and reliving those old memories and remembering people who’ve been gone from my life for a while (and thinking they’re looking down from heaven and smiling at those photos, too).

169) My extremely loud Hawaiian shirt, which one random teenager called “sick.” I guess that’s a compliment. I’m not really sure.

170) Everything related to either Narnia and Wardrobes or Middle Earth and Hobbits.

171) Surprise birthday parties (hint, hint, subtle subliminal suggestion. . . cough).

172) Celebrating Easter and remembering that the Resurrection changed EVERYTHING. Including me.

173) That Jesus would have chosen the nails and the cross and the agony if only for me alone.

174) By Jesus loving me unconditionally and prodigally, he made me loveable.

175) Silent movies.

176) Box hockey (and the fact that I know what box hockey is).

177) All my high school reunions where I see old friends and get to catch up after 10 (or 20) years apart.

178) That I get to be a small part of Kairos, a worship gathering for young adults, every week and I see God at work there every single week.

179) Being content in my relationships and not obsessively wondering where they might or might not be headed,

180) Knowing that if the absolute worst case scenario should happen, I would still be loved by Jesus and God would still work even that out for my good and his glory.

181) How randomly my brain works these days.

182) The vast array of autumn colors from the leaves changing and falling.

183) Doing small random acts of kindness for people when they least expect it.

184) Any positive news stories (because they are sadly the exception and not the rule).

185) That I’m down to 715 more things to be thankful for.

186) Now it’s only 714.

187) That I’m not what everyone else thinks I am or even what I think of myself, but only what Jesus says I am– Chosen, Redeemed, Beloved, Child of God, Forgiven, Free, etc.

188) That Jesus won’t ever stop reminding me of my true identity and sending friends who will help me remember the song in my heart when I forget the words.

189) Lightning bugs at night in an open field.

190) Cheese grits made just right.

191) That I probably have at least 32 more of these blogs a-comin’ your way. But not in a row.

Thag You Very Buch

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bilbobaggins

“Then, as he said, the dwarves’ good feeling towards the little hobbit grew stronger every day. There were no more groans or grumbles. They drank to his health, and they patted him on the back, and they made a great fuss of him; which was just as well, for he was not feeling particularly cheerful. He had not forgotten the look of the Mountain, nor the thought of the dragon, and he had beside a shocking cold. For three days he sneezed and coughed, and he could not go out, and even after that his speeches at banquets were limited to “Thag you very buch.” (from The Hobbit)

That’s all I have to say tonight.

I have a cold, so don’t expect too much. My head feels like it’s stuffed with cotton and I can’t breathe through my nose. I think a good night’s rest will be just what the doctor ordered.

Also, “thag you very buch” for reading these little posts. At least that’s how it would come out if I said it aloud right now. I do appreciate every single person who reads these things when there are probably a thousand other blogs to read and a thousand other things to do, see, watch, hear and go to.

Hopefully in a a day or two I will be back to where I was before the cold. I won’t say normal, because I’ve never been that. So until then, take care and take lots and lots of Vitamin Cs.