The road ahead

One of the things that floats to the surface in almost any discussion about life choices is the desire to know God's will and way. It's a question we all have...how do I know God's will and way for my life? For my career? For my marriage? Which way should I go?

I just finished reading the book of Ruth and thought about these questions as I read the story of Ruth and Naomi. I imagine, from reading Naomi's words, that she thought she had failed...that her life was over and ruined. BUT GOD.....those words show up often in the Bible. I didn't see them in the text of Ruth, but those two words scream at me as I read the short four chapters of this book. But God was working, God was directing, God was leading in the life of Ruth, Naomi, Boaz and others. When I feel that my life has gone wrong, I've lost my way, I will never be of use to God I remember these wonderful words... BUT GOD.

In the midst of my journey I often think about the road ahead...about being used by God...about doing the right things, going the right ways. Stories like Naomi's encourage me. In the middle of giving up she discovers that God has a wonderful plan that brings her good and him glory. Even when we think we have taken a wrong turn he turns it all out for good. BUT GOD....how wonderful to know he's working in the middle of our messy lives.

Quote of the day

A friend posted this on Facebook this morning. It's such a great quote I had to share it with you (with her permission of course),

"Driving home from church discussing heaven...

Me: 'Do you want to know what heaven looks like?'

Granddaughter: 'Please don't kill me.'"

This sweet little girl expresses what we all feel.....heaven will be great someday, just not yet.

Signs of the times

You know.....just for fun. Enjoy.

The Lion is on the move....

My old friend and teacher, William Burnside, sent me a wonderful e-mail this morning. It's much too long to share here, but his opening thoughts highlight a wonderful reality of our days as he writes,

...

"I read two more chapters today to Isabelle and Ethan from The Horse and His Boy by C.S. Lewis so of course I'm thinking about Narnia and Aslan and that "the Lion is on the move. . ." Well, Christ really is "on the move"--always working and in His own way. Jesus said so, you know: "my Father works and so do I." And so does the Holy Spirit who "convicts the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment to come." And what is He doing? He is "calling out a people for His Name" and "gathering in His sheep into His fold."

...

His words made me think of the book of Revelation. Most read it as a book of prophecy, but I see it as the great evangelistic book of the Bible. In this last great book of the Bible God is wrapping up history with a series of last calls to humanity to come to faith in Christ. God is, after all, the great evangelist on a quest for the hearts and souls of the men and women he created. He wants everyone to be saved! (2 Peter 3:9) So, as we near the end of time, the end of human history, God is accelerating the pace, increasing the pressure, turning up the volume to draw every man and woman who will respond to faith in Christ as savior. He's seeking after the man he has made. The Lion of Judah is indeed on the move. He will soon return, but in these final seconds of time it's wonderful to see the hearts and lives of Christians who are looking for the Lion and preparing for that day. Every book I read, every message I hear is reflecting the heart of the Holy Spirit through his saints...the message is becoming louder...the Lion is on the move....He's coming soon....are you ready?

The slide to despair

It happens quickly.

It happens easily.

At least it does with me.

Discouragement....

Disappointment....

Dejection....

Despondency...

Depression and then despair.

It's a quick slide from the first thoughts of discouragement to the pit of despair. It happens so quickly that it's often a surprise to find we have come to utter despair and hopelessness. David battled this just as many of us do. He wrote about it in Psalm 40.

1 I waited patiently for the LORD;

he turned to me and heard my cry.
2 He lifted me out of the slimy pit,

out of the mud and mire;

he set my feet on a rock

and gave me a firm place to stand.
3 He put a new song in my mouth,

a hymn of praise to our God.

Many will see and fear

and put their trust in the LORD.
4 Blessed is the man

who makes the LORD his trust,

...

David described it well. The slide to despair feels like a slide on mud or wet clay. You can't get your footing. Then suddenly you are in the pit of despair. Hopeless. Helpless. Alone....or so it seems. Although nothing may have changed in the real world you feel that your world has crumbled into ashes. It's a difficult place to be. It's a difficult place to get out of. Unless the Lord helps us we would most likely remain in the pit of despair. Some never get out. But God does help. He does give us the hand we need, the help we need. He does change our song from a dirge to a praise. He does lift us up. If you're like me these slides to despair happen without warning....for no reason at all...and then you have to deal with the clouds of doom that fog your thoughts. The Psalms were David's journals as he dealt with his own frequent descents into despair. Here are his directions for those of us in the pit today-

...

1 I will bless the LORD at all times;

His praise shall continually be in my mouth.

2 My soul will make its boast in the LORD;

The humble will hear it and rejoice.

3 O magnify the LORD with me,

And let us exalt His name together.

4 I sought the LORD, and He answered me,

And delivered me from all my fears.

5 They looked to Him and were radiant,

And their faces will never be ashamed.

6 This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him

And saved him out of all his troubles.

...

If you find yourself in the pit of despair look to the Lord. He will lift you out of the hopelessness. When it seems there's no way out he will come to your rescue. The slide to despair is an easy one. The climb out is God's work as we trust him. As one who frequently visits the pit I'm glad for a wonderful God who gives me hope and help when I need it most.

(Thank you, James, for your help this morning.)

Living for the right things

The following article is an interview with Pastor Rick Warren. It's been reprinted by others, but I thought his comments were profound and worth one more venue. Here are his thoughts-

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People ask me, What is the purpose of life? And I respond, In a nutshell, life is preparation for eternity. We were made to last forever, and God wants us to be with Him in Heaven. One day my heart is going to stop, and that will be the end of my body - but not the end of me. I may live 60 to 100 years on earth, but I am going to spend trillion of years in eternity. This is the warm-up act, the dress rehearsal. God wants us to practice on earth what we will do forever in eternity. We were made by God and for God, and until you figure that out, life isn't going to make sense. Life is a series of problems: Either you are in one now, you're just coming out of one or you're getting ready to go into another one. The reason for this is that God is more interested in your character than your comfort. God is more interested in making your life holy than He is in making your life happy. We can be reasonably happy here on earth, but that's not the goal of life: The goal is to grow in character, In Christ-likeness. This past year has been the greatest year of my life but also the toughest, with my wife, Kay, getting cancer. I used to think that life was hills and valleys - you go through a dark time, then you got to the mountaintop, back and forth. I don't believe that anymore. Rather than life being hills and valleys, I believe that it's kind of like two rails on a railroad track, and at all times you have something good and something bad in your life. No matter how good things are in your life, there is always something bad that needs to be worked on. And no matter how bad things are in your life, there is always something good you can thank God for. You can focus on your purposes, or you can focus on your problems. If you focus on your problems, you're going into self-centeredness, "which is my problem, my issues, my pain." But one of the easiest ways to get rid of pain is to get your focus off yourself and onto God and others. We discovered quickly that in spite of the prayers of hundreds of thousands of people, God was not going to heal Kay or make it easy for her. It has been very difficult for her, and yet God has strengthened her character, given her a ministry of helping other people, given her a testimony, drawn her closer to Him and to people... You have to learn to deal with both the good and the bad of life. Actually, sometimes learning to deal with the good is harder. For instance, this past year, all of a sudden, when the book sold 15 million copies, it made me instanfly very wealthy. It also brought a lot of notoriety that I had never had to deal with before.I don't think God gives you money or notoriety for you to own ego or for you to live a life of ease. So I began to ask God what He wanted me to do with this money, notoriety and influence. He gave me two different passages that helped me decide what to do, Corinthians 9 and Psalm 72.
First, in spite of all the money coming in, we would not change our lifestyle one bit. We made no major purchases.
Second, about midway through last year, I stopped taking a salary from the church.
Third, we set up foundations to fund an initiative we call The Peace Plan - to plant churches, equip leaders, assist the poor, care for the sick, and educate the next generation.
Fourth, I added up all that the church had paid me in the 24 years since I started the church, and I gave it all back. It was liberating to be able to serve God for free.
We need to ask ourselves: Am I going to live for possessions? Popularity? Am I going to be driven by pressures? Guilt? Bitterness? Materialism? Or am I going to be driven by God's purposes (for my life)? When I get up in the morning, I sit on the side of my bed and say, God, if I don't get anything else done today, I want to know You more and love You better...God didn't put me on earth just to fulfil a to-do list. He's more interested in what I am than what I do. That's why we're called human beings, not human doings.
...

Good morning

Welcome to a new week. School starts in our part of the world this week. I hope you have a wonderful week. Smile a lot, say "hello" to everyone you see, enjoy life, celebrate people, eat your meals with glee, pet an animal, be curious about something, read a book, do something you haven't done before. Today is the beginning of a new adventure. Celebrate every moment.

Becoming narrow

Life is amazing. Each day is a new adventure. Each experience impacts us and molds or directs us. I'm rereading a C.S. Lewis book that I love, The Great Divorce, and as I read it I'm struck with how narrow we become over the course of our lives. It doesn't matter what you believe or don't believe. We become narrow because of the paths we choose. We narrow our choice of friends to those who make us comfortable. We narrow our beliefs. We narrow the ideas we will accept. We narrow to the point that a change in course is very difficult. I see it with the elderly all the time. They are either really sweet or horribly grumpy. There is no middle ground. Somewhere in their pasts they began to make choices that narrowed them and now they are so rigid in who they are, either good or bad, that change is impossible. That's why I mentioned C.S. Lewis' book a moment ago. It's a wonderful fiction about a bus ride from hell to heaven and the interaction between those on a day trip to heaven and the residents of heaven they encounter. As I read C.S. Lewis' amazing words and wit it strikes me....they have become so narrow in every area of their lives that they cannot change! They have chosen their course, decided who they are, become rigid in their thinking and can't change! I see this in the religious, the atheist and the wicked. Each of us make choices that narrow us to the point we can't, won't and wouldn't change...even when we hear the truth. As one who is becoming narrow myself I am aware of how hard it is to once more consider new thoughts and directions. I think that's why the debate between atheist and Christian is often just for entertainment value. Neither will win the day or change the other...they both have become so narrow they can't change....but what a show it provides for us. So, where does this all bring me? Key to these thoughts is the truth that choices matter. Each choice, each belief is narrowing us down into who we will be till the day we die. It's vital that those little choices, those little decisions be the right ones because they are carving our eternity for us. Becoming narrow is a reality for each of us. Choose well. Choices are hard to repent of once you get down the road a few miles. Jesus described it this way, "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and road is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it."

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Redemption stories

There are so many wonderful redemption stories that reflect what God has done for us. Here is another one that shows the heart of the father for his child-

Father saves three-year-old from bear in German zoo

A father has saved his three-year-old daughter from an Asian black bear after the girl climbed into the animal's enclosure in a German zoo, police say.
Both father and child were injured after the girl climbed over a fence in a private zoo in Luenebach, western Germany.
The bear hit the girl on the forehead before her father was able to snatch her away, police said.
The 34-year-old Dutch man was also attacked and his leg injured.
The girl had climbed the 1m (3ft) high fence while her parents were not watching and fell into a moat in the enclosure, a police spokeswoman said.
Her father then climbed after her.
Other visitors called an ambulance and the girl was flown to hospital by helicopter. Her father was also hospitalised.....

...

Here's the big question- If a father is willing to risk his all to rescue his daughter wouldn't God do the same for the children he loves? The answer is a resounding "YES!" Even if the redemption is rejected by the child God has provided it for us. Even if we choose the claws of the bear rather than the hands of father, the father has provided redemption and salvation for us. It's sad that so many prefer death rather than redemption. There is no good outcome with the bear, but wonderful love with the father. Why do we so foolishly choose death rather than life?

Thinking like a Bedouin

There is a "tribe" of people who live, and live well, in the deserts of the middle east. They live in places no one else would want to live. They live day to day. They have learned to be content with little. Their lives are nomadic and meager. They don't have deep roots, but lives in tents roaming the desert.

I wish I thought more like a Bedouin. I wish I was more content with little rather than complaining about lack. I wish I enjoyed solitude more. I wish I could be happy with mobility instead of wanting to "put down deep roots." I wish I thought more like a Bedouin.

The reason I'm working on this is that we are in fact Bedouins in this world. We are on a journey to our final home and should be thinking like, living like this is simply a tent existence for a moment of time, but we want so badly to have money in the bank, have the house paid for, good jobs, STABILITY! In other words we have no desire to be Bedouins in our thinking or in our living. So we hold onto the stuff of this world, the things of now, the security of money and miss the great joys of depending on God to meet our needs day by day. I'm still working on this. I think it's an important mindset for me. I want to loosen my grip on this world and trust the Lord for today.....because I'm just passing through.

Fingerprints of God

I don't know about you, but we are fans of the CSI series. It's great fun to see how these "Sherlock Holmes" of our day figure out "who done it." Finding clues, fingerprints and evidence draws them to a conclusion...the conclusion points them to who committed the crime. You would think evidence would always do that...draw you to conclusions about who did it. The universe is like that. It has fingerprints all over the place that say, "God made this!" and yet the scientific community continues to claim this can't be so. I wonder if they need a little help from CSI...

Back from Paris...

I just got back from a great weekend in Paris....Paris, Texas to be specific. A good friend asked me to help him the Sunday after their pastor of 30 years had resigned from the church. So, yesterday I spoke to their church family, morning and evening, to help them with what to do "after the earthquake." They have a wonderful church family and were all looking for hope and encouragement. God used me to give them just what they needed (at least that's what they told me). It was a great blessing to them and to me as well. I always wonder, as I speak to people I don't know, what God is doing in their lives. I wonder what my ministry to them accomplished for eternity. It's such an honor to be used by God. I look forward to the Bema when we will see what he did with our availability.

Radical

Who will God use? How does he work? How has the "American dream" corrupted the message of the gospel? That's the message of a new book titled "Radical." I'm halfway through it now and loving it! David is pastor of a large successful church, but writes about the horrible curse we have brought on the church as we look for the best speaker as a pastor, the hip new worship leaders and the amazing building. As I read this book I am amazed at how easily we have become cultural Christians and not biblical Christians. It happens so easily. The church in America has become a consumer driven machine to get the crowds, the money and the acclaim. As I read David's book I'm once more drawn to simply teaching God's word without all the gizmos and gadgets and watching God work in a faith community. It's far too early for a book review on this work but I am really enjoying "Radical."

Saturday's cartoon

You write the caption...

Well, it's time for some fun. I find it's easy to take myself too seriously, so here's something fun. Here are the simple rules- Below is a photo. Your job? Write a title for the photo OR a short story about the photo. Have fun!