Quote of the day

"Relying on God has to begin all over again every day as if nothing had yet been done..."

- C. S. Lewis from a letter "To Mrs. L." (50)

Saturday's cartoon

I love the title of this cartoon so I thought I would make it the 'toon of the day. It's a great theme for a Saturday. Have a great day and drink some good coffee!

A Victim Treats His Mugger Right

Here's a great story. It is exactly the way we should respond in a situation like this. The article doesn't tell anything about Julio's faith, but I really like this guy and would love to meet him. -Mike

NPR Morning Edition, March 28, 2008 · Julio Diaz has a daily routine. Every night, the 31-year-old social worker ends his hour-long subway commute to the Bronx one stop early, just so he can eat at his favorite diner.

But one night last month, as Diaz stepped off the No. 6 train and onto a nearly empty platform, his evening took an unexpected turn.

He was walking toward the stairs when a teenage boy approached and pulled out a knife.

"He wants my money, so I just gave him my wallet and told him, 'Here you go,'" Diaz says.

As the teen began to walk away, Diaz told him, "Hey, wait a minute. You forgot something. If you're going to be robbing people for the rest of the night, you might as well take my coat to keep you warm."

The would-be robber looked at his would-be victim, "like what's going on here?" Diaz says. "He asked me, 'Why are you doing this?'"

Diaz replied: "If you're willing to risk your freedom for a few dollars, then I guess you must really need the money. I mean, all I wanted to do was get dinner and if you really want to join me ... hey, you're more than welcome.

"You know, I just felt maybe he really needs help," Diaz says.

Diaz says he and the teen went into the diner and sat in a booth.

"The manager comes by, the dishwashers come by, the waiters come by to say hi," Diaz says. "The kid was like, 'You know everybody here. Do you own this place?'"

"No, I just eat here a lot," Diaz says he told the teen. "He says, 'But you're even nice to the dishwasher.'"

Diaz replied, "Well, haven't you been taught you should be nice to everybody?"

"Yea, but I didn't think people actually behaved that way," the teen said.

Diaz asked him what he wanted out of life. "He just had almost a sad face," Diaz says.

The teen couldn't answer Diaz — or he didn't want to.

When the bill arrived, Diaz told the teen, "Look, I guess you're going to have to pay for this bill 'cause you have my money and I can't pay for this. So if you give me my wallet back, I'll gladly treat you."

The teen "didn't even think about it" and returned the wallet, Diaz says. "I gave him $20 ... I figure maybe it'll help him. I don't know."

Diaz says he asked for something in return — the teen's knife — "and he gave it to me."

Afterward, when Diaz told his mother what happened, she said, "You're the type of kid that if someone asked you for the time, you gave them your watch."

"I figure, you know, if you treat people right, you can only hope that they treat you right. It's as simple as it gets in this complicated world."

Produced for Morning Edition by Michael Garofalo.

Monkey taunts tigers

Ok, I know I've been far too serious lately. Time for some fun. Here's something to make you smile. Have a great weekend.

The purpose of storms

In my reading today I came to a chapter that always fascinates me. It's one of those chapters that you could skip over easily if you didn't intentionally slow down and look at what is happening in the story. It's Acts 27. In this chapter the whole story deals with a boat ride. It's the story of Paul's trip to Rome. I almost always ask myself, when I come to this chapter, why is this in the bible. What purpose does it have? What can I get out of it? And every time I come away with more insight into the way that God often works in our lives. At the beginning of the chapter they set sail with a boat full of cargo, supplies, passengers, and all that is needed for a trip across the Mediterranean sea to Rome. By the end of the chapter they have thrown everything overboard and come to shore with nothing but the wet clothes on their backs.

It's a wonderful picture of the odyssey we take in our lives from all we trust in to the abandonment of it all to a trust in Christ alone. The chapter unfolds in a fascinating way- a storm comes and they are driven by the storm. As days pass they gradually throw overboard more and more of what they brought with them- the tackle, the grain, the anchors, etc. Soon, the story says "they lost all hope of surviving." It's funny when we, in our own lives, lose all hope of doing things our way that's when the Lord can provide an island. For us that island is Christ. For them it was an island that saved them literally! What always humors me is their attempts to hold onto something, but ultimately they came to shore with nothing. That's the way it is with our faith in Christ. We bring nothing with us. We offer him nothing but ourselves, but when we do come to him empty and simply offer him our lives we find safety, salvation, and rescue from death.

It's funny what you can see in the bible if you are looking. The whole story of the bible is a story of redemption and each time you see God's redemptive hand in the lives of people it's always a wonderful picture of our lives as well. When you have time read through Acts 27 and watch as those on the boat gradually abandon everything and come to salvation wet and empty handed. The stories that sometimes make us wonder why they are in the bible are often the ones most vivid with imagery of God's redemptive work in our lives.

Back to basics

Psalm 100:5 For the LORD is good; His lovingkindness is everlasting.

It's good for me to revisit the basics often. It helps me keep balance. With one leg in a cast balance is important to me right now. The balance I'm talking about is a focus on who God is and what he is like. He must be the primary focus of my life so that I can deal with everything else. If I lose sight of who he is and what he's doing then the events of life will soon confuse and crush me.

Today I just want to mention one that is always foundational for me....it's this- God is good. This is a simple truth, but it works out in amazing ways.....the acting out of this, the wheel that make this work in the real world is his lovingkindness. In other words God is good and the way we see it in our lives is his lovingkindness demonstrated in our days and our lives.

The bible is rich with lovingkindness verses....the ways God demonstrates his goodness. If you have time today read through Psalm 136. You will get the idea quickly about what the author is focused on. Today rest in the truth that whatever happens in your life God is good and his lovingkindness is everlasting, working in your life for his glory and your good.

Now, repeat after me, "God is good and his lovingkindness is EVERLASTING!"

Dealing with downdrafts

Every pilot knows that one of the things they have to watch for is a downdraft. I'm not a pilot, but know from experience that a downdraft can be unnerving. You can't see them coming, you can't anticipate them, but they will hit us all at times. It's a time when the lift suddenly disappears from beneath your wings and the plane begins to fall. Your stomach is in your throat and you wonder if you will literally fall from the sky.

In the last day or so I came upon a downdraft and suddenly began to fall. It's always a surprise when this happens. You don't have to do anything wrong for them to happen to you, but they will. Suddenly, without warning, you are sinking....all lift has gone. Despair follows.

David experienced this in his own life when he wrote, Psalm 42:5 Why are you in despair, O my soul? And why have you become disturbed within me? Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him For the help of His presence. For several chapters David repeats this refrain and works his way through his own downdraft.

What we need most at downdraft time is lift! We need air under our wings. Then it comes....just as suddenly as the downdraft, lift is back and we are flying again. I know that we take the "lift" for granted, but I will tell you what I think it is. I think the lift we need comes from an intimate relationship with God- time in his word and time with him in prayer. We will also find lift from our relationships with other believers and their encouragement when all the lift has been taken from us.

Last night, as I was in the middle of my own downdraft, my wife came home from a meeting at the church with a prayer quilt that the ladies of the church had made for ME. They made the quilt and tied prayer knots in the quilt. Each knot indicates the prayers of the one who tied it. Prayers for me.....I begin to feel the lift under that wing....hope is returning, despair is quieting.

Then, this morning, as I am reading the word, I realize that it's the word and my time in it that has kept me in the air. It's God's word that keeps me up, and without it I would sink into utter despair. I'm so grateful for the lift both the body of Christ and the Lord provide through the fellowship we share.

We all need one another when the downdrafts come. When you have downdrafts happen in your life don't go hide, get in the middle of the body of Christ, get in the word and you will feel the wind under your wings begin to lift you up again.

Monday's cartoon

Everything has changed!

It's funny that on this Monday after Easter I come to 1 Corinthians 15 in my reading. This is a wonderful chapter about what we celebrated yesterday, the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. As I read it I thought about the impact of that first Easter morning. When Christ rose from the dead that morning he changed everything!

With his resurrection he defeated death once and for all. Now there is hope, now there is new life, now there is promise, now there is salvation. We often miss the impact of this day...all that happened when Christ rose, but in this chapter Paul writes a little about what happened on that amazing day....

1Co 15:19-28- If all we get out of Christ is a little inspiration for a few short years, we're a pretty sorry lot. But the truth is that Christ has been raised up, the first in a long legacy of those who are going to leave the cemeteries. There is a nice symmetry in this: Death initially came by a man, and resurrection from death came by a man. Everybody dies in Adam; everybody comes alive in Christ. But we have to wait our turn: Christ is first, then those with him at his Coming, the grand consummation when, after crushing the opposition, he hands over his kingdom to God the Father. He won't let up until the last enemy is down-- and the very last enemy is death! As the psalmist said, "He laid them low, one and all; he walked all over them." When Scripture says that "he walked all over them," it's obvious that he couldn't at the same time be walked on. When everything and everyone is finally under God's rule, the Son will step down, taking his place with everyone else, showing that God's rule is absolutely comprehensive--a perfect ending!
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A perfect ending indeed! On that first Easter, as the son rose, everything changed for us.....now the bright light of eternity ahead brings us hope and joy instead of fear and dread. A perfect ending indeed.....or should I say what a wonderful beginning to eternity....

It's Easter!

Isa 53 Who believes what we've heard and seen? Who would have thought GOD's saving power would look like this? The servant grew up before God--a scrawny seedling, a scrubby plant in a parched field. There was nothing attractive about him, nothing to cause us to take a second look. He was looked down on and passed over, a man who suffered, who knew pain firsthand. One look at him and people turned away. We looked down on him, thought he was scum. But the fact is, it was our pains he carried-- our disfigurements, all the things wrong with us. We thought he brought it on himself, that God was punishing him for his own failures. But it was our sins that did that to him, that ripped and tore and crushed him--our sins! He took the punishment, and that made us whole. Through his bruises we get healed. We're all like sheep who've wandered off and gotten lost. We've all done our own thing, gone our own way. And GOD has piled all our sins, everything we've done wrong, on him, on him. He was beaten, he was tortured, but he didn't say a word. Like a lamb taken to be slaughtered and like a sheep being sheared, he took it all in silence. Justice miscarried, and he was led off-- and did anyone really know what was happening? He died without a thought for his own welfare, beaten bloody for the sins of my people. They buried him with the wicked, threw him in a grave with a rich man, Even though he'd never hurt a soul or said one word that wasn't true. Still, it's what GOD had in mind all along, to crush him with pain. The plan was that he give himself as an offering for sin so that he'd see life come from it--life, life, and more life.

Defeated

I was just thinking of that first Saturday after the Crucifixion. I wonder what the disciples thought as they woke from this horrible nightmare....

This can't be real.

We really thought he was the Messiah.

He failed.

What do we do now?

The cross and its results spelled defeat to everyone. It was clear that Jesus was not the Messiah because he was dead. Now what do they do? Where do they go? Who can they trust? Should they hide?

This day began with great clarity- DEFEATED! I was thinking about these 11 men who had given their lives to follow Jesus for those 3 years. They saw him raise the dead, feed thousands, do miracles...they believed in him. But now he's dead....how could they have been so wrong? Who can they trust now? What do they do? They gave their lives to this man and his message....all hope is crushed.

How often in our own lives will we wake up to a day like this that introduces itself with great clarity- DEFEATED! Everything has gone wrong. It seems that God has failed us. All hope is gone. Where do we go now? What do we do now that failure has clearly declared its victory?

I can't imagine the disciples thoughts, their confusion, their utter hopelessness....everything had turned sour, all hope was gone. It was over. Now what do they do?

What they don't know yet is that God isn't finished. This is all part of the plan. He meant for this to happen. Just wait....just wait until morning. Tomorrow you will see. Tomorrow your hope will find new fuel to ignite it. Tomorrow will change everything. Wait until tomorrow. Just wait....you won't believe what God will do.

Your day of greatest defeat will find its greatest victory in what God will do in the morning...just wait. God isn't done yet. Just wait......

Being served

I have talked about lawn mowing several times on my blog. The lawn mower war of last summer was a funny series with my neighbor and I competing to mow each others lawn. It got very comical, but I lost the war to their persistent mowing and my busy schedule.

Today I sit in my living room with my broken heel, a cast on my foot, listening to friends from the church rake and mow my lawn. I am humbled, blessed and not sure what to do......to let someone else serve ME is really hard. Serving has always been my job, but today, unable to do anything about it, I am forced to let them "wash my feet" by caring for my lawn.

I am blessed, and very humbled. These are all dear friends who love us, and are glad to be here helping us. There is nothing I can do but receive from them. Often that is the case in our lives. We need someone to help us. We must allow others to serve us and share their love for us by their deeds. It's such a blessing. It's the Christian community lived out. It's the church as it was meant to be. Thank you, Lord, for these dear wonderful friends. Thank you for the church living out the Christian life together.

Prophesies fulfilled

Good Friday?

We call today "Good Friday" but the first Good Friday wasn't good at all. It was a horrible day of death for the Messiah of Israel, Jesus Christ. The whole story started before creation ever happened (1 Peter 1:20). Before God made anything he crafted this amazing way to redeem the human race. At just the right time in history (Galatians 4:4) Jesus was born and came to this Friday by the divine plan of God. This day was planned. This plan was a divine one...a plan intended to show God as not only just but the justifier of man (Romans 3:26). The perfect man, the sinless one, the God man died for us to forgive our sin and give us his life.

It's the story that has changed history and the human race. Some say it never happened, but there is more historical proof for the life, death and resurrection of Jesus than most historical events we do accept. The reason many discount this event of history is because of its implications. If Jesus really was God who became man to die for our sins then we have to make a decision about Jesus in our own lives. It's an eternal decision.

In my own life this decision came at the age of 14. The evening of December 8, 1964 my mom took us to a church service. The purpose of these services was to present this wonderful gospel message and invite those attending to respond. On that evening, when the invitation was given, my mom pushed me into the isle...too embarrassed to retreat I went forward. (Her version of the story is a little different, but this is what I remember.) That night a wonderful elderly pastor, Reverend Bach, shared the story of Jesus with me and I trusted Christ to be my savior, forgive my sins and give me his life. More happened in that moment than I knew at the time, but my eternity was changed as was my life.

The most important decision any of us will ever make is what we believe about Jesus Christ. The bible is clear that he was God, came to become man, die for our sins, rise from the dead and give us new life. He is risen and seated at the right hand of God and will come again to get his children and judge the world. My hearts desire for you is that you will trust Jesus as your savior, that you will believe in him for salvation. It's a decision that will change your eternity. It's the most important decision you will ever make.

If you would like to know more I invite you to read about this GOOD NEWS.

His last hours

Today is the day before good Friday. It's the time we remember what Jesus Christ did for us when he died in our place and paid our sin debt. For the human race it's one of the most important days in history.

On this day, Thursday, he ate the passover meal with his disciples. We have a detailed account of this meal in John 13-17. It's an amazing passage that should be studied by every believer. Some of the final teachings of Jesus at that supper are foundational instructions for us today- his example as the ultimate servant when he washed the feet of the disciples, his instructions about loving one another, his teaching about the future home he is going to prepare, his promise to return, the keys to living the Christian life in John 15, details about the Holy Spirit revealed at this dinner that we didn't know before, his prayer for the disciples and for US.

It's amazing to me that the creator of the universe became a man, lived a sinless life, loved the world with such a love that he went to the cross to pay our sin debt, then rose again to give us new life. It's the most amazing event of all time, and has literally changed the world and the lives of millions who have put their faith in him as savior.

A friend of mine, David Shibley, wrote these words in a newsletter he sent to me today and I thought I would close with his thoughts on this day....

"When we place our faith in Christ’s atoning work for us, we begin an eternity with God – we “have eternal life.” Not only does this mean we will live with God forever. It also means we have the very life of God; what the original Greek language calls zoe life. Jesus said, “I am come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly” (John 10:10).

So, in this Holy Week, remember, rejoice, and worship the conquering Christ."

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I'm blessed that his life, death and resurrection has changed my eternity! -Mike