The Waiting

Have you ever been waiting on an important phone call or an email? Anytime the phone rings or you get an alert your hopes go up a little thinking, “THIS IS IT! THIS IS THE ONE!” And when it’s not you get frustrated and want to tell everyone to keep the line clear, even though that isn’t really a thing anymore.

In our current circumstances we are impatient for the news that everything is fine again. We want someone, whose authority we trust, to say this is all over and society can work together to claw our way back to a world we recognize. Unfortunately, that news isn’t ready to break yet, and we are being asked to wait, to have patience.

Anytime we are asked to wait, even for something of far less importance, there is a small part of us that turns into a toddler. We want to throw our arms down at our sides and do that weird, pouty sway, and whine, “I dooonnn’t waaaaannnnna.” It can make us feel weak, especially when there is no way to influence how long we are required to wait. Some things just take as long as they take.

Thankfully we can be encouraged by these words from the Isaiah 40:29-31,
29 He gives power to the faint,
    and to him who has no might he increases strength.
30 Even youths shall faint and be weary,
    and young men shall fall exhausted;
31 but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength;
    they shall mount up with wings like eagles;
they shall run and not be weary;
    they shall walk and not faint.

We know that we are going to face hard days from time to time—sometimes hard months or even hard years. It is in these times, when we are just waiting for it to be over, that we must lean in and let the Lord be our strength. It can take effort to recognize that we can’t do things all on our own. No one ever called you to white-knuckle your way through life.

You have a Heavenly Father that loves you. And when you reach those times when you can’t do the hard things by yourself anymore, have patience and wait upon the Lord. He wants to renew your strength. Even when it feels like it’s taking forever it’s only a matter of time before He will help you run again.

Strength will rise as we wait upon the lord.

Sailing on

Matthew 5:44-47 - 44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be children of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46 Indeed if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Even tax collectors do that, don’t they? 47 If you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even the unbelievers do that?

An analogy that gained popularity over the last year says, “we’re all in the same storm, but we have different boats.” It’s describing how there are things in our world that don’t care who you are or what you have they will affect you. Things like the weather—rich or poor, black or white, man or woman—a rainy day is a rainy day. The differences arise when we start talking about how prepared “the boat” you live your life within is prepared for these times.

When you can afford a decent place to live a rainy day is at worst an annoyance, you are safe and dry within your four sturdy walls. However, if you don’t have those four walls a rainy day can be a time for panic and a fight for survival. It is this difference in boats that we all must learn to recognize and empathize with.

One of the biggest problems we have as a society, and the church, is not recognizing how important something is until we need it. I know someone who hated the idea of people being paid unemployment. He thought they were lazy mooches that should just go out and get a job. That was until he fell on very hard times, realized that he needed it, and saw how it helped his family.

If even just the people of the church could make compassion their knee-jerk reaction, there would be a revival that could not be stopped. In these words of Jesus, He tells us rainy days and Mondays are going to happen: no matter what boat you’re living in, no matter where you put your faith. What does matter is how you face those storms and help people along the way.

We see a lot of division these days. There are “us” groups and there are “them” groups, and if we see all members of “them” groups as irredeemable then we will never live up to our calling of sharing the gospel with all people. Don’t lose hope for people that you see as totally lost. We’ve all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Thankfully we have savior that came to do the hard work to save us.

Who should you be praying for?

New Year, Who Dis?

Titus 2:7-8 - Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, dignity, and sound speech that cannot be condemned, so that an opponent may be put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us.

This is the week that millions of people around the world look at the calendar and decide that this is the year that I am finally going to [FILL IN THE BLANK]. This is also the month when millions of people realize that doing that is hard and give up. When we set goals, or make resolutions, we need to be sure that they are actually helpful, and just things that will make us feel bad about ourselves down the road.

And it can come down to something as small as the phrasing. Think of the difference between these phrases: “I want to lose ten pounds,” and “I want to be healthier;” “I want to read one book a month,” and “I want to read more;” “I want to quit smoking,” and “I want to smoke less.” The first side has a pass/fail conclusion, you either did it or you didn’t, while the second side has degrees of success!

When we make resolutions, we set ourselves up to fail by making our goals too specific. Too often, the opponent mentioned in Titus lives in our own heads and has plenty of evil to say about us. 

We beat ourselves up over mistakes that we might be the only ones who still remember. And this is why we strive to have our lives known for the good we do. It won’t erase the mistakes, but hopefully we are able to move past them and endeavor to not make the same ones in the future.

As we move into a new year, take away some of the stones your own self-doubt has to throw by working on an overarching theme to your year rather than a black and white objective. How will you set your goals broadly so success can be a path rather than a destination?

Maybe The Time is Right

Philippians 3:12-16 - 12 Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me His own.13 Brothers and Sisters, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead,14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. 15 Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you. 16 Only let us hold true to what we have attained.

The year 2020 is down to mere hours. In the blink of an eye the calendar will flip over and instead of looking back at the year that was we will be looking forward at a year that will be. While many a buzzkill like to point out that the switch from one year to the next is placed without rhyme or reason, we can still look to it as a symbol of hope. New Year new you, New Year’s Resolutions, and any number of slogans that encourage us to enter this changed calendar with hope and vigor.

After the year we’ve had in 2020, it feels like we are putting a lot of pressure on 2021 to be the best year ever. We all know people that have their bucket lists ready for when quarantine and restrictions finally end. Oh, the places we’ll go, the people we’ll see, the things we will do! However, as you plan all these things do not neglect the person you will be.

Paul in his letter to the Philippians has just finished giving his resume. In the previous section, he tells them all the things that make him a “Hebrew of Hebrews.” He checks all the boxes of worldly righteousness. Rather than encouraging people to try and do the same, he tells them that it’s not enough. Rather than rest on his past accomplishments, Paul takes the humble position and says, forget all that because we all have a greater goal ahead that we can reach towards!

This new year, I hope your resolutions are more about the person you are striving to be instead black and white tasks you want to accomplish. I pray that you, “press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

Happy New Year!

The Year of Hope

Most of the world has not had a great year. Since we care about our neighbors many of us have surrendered traditions that, any other year, were been guaranteed: trips, holidays, or any number of things we do without questioning because “we always do that.” This year however we have been required to wait and put our hope in a future where the world could get back to something that resembles normal.

This year Christmas feels different. Time has seemed to pass in random fits and spurts. Weren’t we just complaining about summer heat yesterday, and now it’s Christmas! How did that happen? The days are long, but the months feel short. Be that as it may, in just a few days we celebrate the birth of Christ, the savior of the world.

As Christians we have been looking towards a future hope for a long time. We look forward to a time when God will strive to put right what once went wrong. Sadly, that time isn’t here yet, but at Christmas we celebrate the start, the time when God so loved us that He sent His only son to take on flesh and save us all from ourselves.

Until that time comes when all is put right we must do our best to hold fast to hope and live up to what Paul describes as the marks of a true Christian in Romans 12:10-13:

10 Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.11 Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. 12 Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. 13 Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.

This year that has been 2020 has not been easy or fun for most of us. However, there are people that will mark this year as the best they have ever had. Whatever your year has looked like we can all join together in celebrating our future hope.

Merry Christmas!

Couldn’t Miss This One This Year

“'Bah, humbug" no, that's too strong
Cause it is my favorite holiday
But all this year's been a busy blur
Don't think I have the energy
To add to my already mad rush
Just cause it's 'tis the season

This is the opening of “Christmas Wrapping” by The Waitresses, the only (famous) new wave Christmas song. And though it was written almost 40 years ago I think these lines might be more relatable than ever in the year that has been 2020. There has been a weird sense this year that the days are long, but the months are fast. Back in March we thought we’d hunker down for a little while, then we blinked, and now it’s Christmas time. Without hitting the normal rhythms or milestones of the year it can be hard to just switch on our festive face and get ready to celebrate.

It’s easy for Christmas to become a checklist of things to do. Put up a tree? Check. Hang lights? Check. Buy presents? Check. Recognize that born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord; a Savior who will save his people from their sins. Maybe check?

One of those seems a little more important that the others. This year, this 2020, though it has been awful for many valid reasons, the year when all we want is to rest from the stress and anxiety and chaos we have been feeling, ends with a reminder of hope to come. Hope born in a manger and wrapped in rags. I pray that you can look to that hope and find the strength to celebrate the true meaning of this season.

Paul prays for us in Ephesians 3:14-21,

“14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, 16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

20 Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, 21 to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”

Pa Rum Pum Pum Pum

Generally speaking, I’m a bit of a Christmas music Scrooge. If it wasn’t for Halloween and the Monster Mash holding back the tide, I fear we would be inundated with the same five Christmas carols from Labor Day through New Year’s. Don’t get me wrong I love celebrating the birth of Christ. Unfortunately, everywhere you go you hear slightly different versions of those same 30 songs they wrote in the 1950s about Santa and chestnuts.

One song that was the focus of my ire until recently was “Little Drummer Boy.” I admit I didn’t like it because I misunderstood it. My assessment was of a kid that showing up to the manger and thinking, “what do babies like? Drum solos!” and then he wails away. However, if I had bothered to read the lyrics, I would have seen a much deeper and relatable story.

The Drummer Boy arrives at the same time as the Wise Men and saw the lavish gifts they offered. They brought luxurious things like frankincense and myrrh and actual gold. The Drummer Boy felt low because he didn’t have anything fancy like that, nothing fit to give a king. But he had his time and his talents, so he gave our newborn king the most important gift of all: his best.

As followers of Christ this is all we are called to give. There will be people who have more, more time, more money, more talents, but our focus need only be on what we have and how we use it. As we cheerfully give of our time and talents, however vast or meager they maybe, we become a beacon to the world shining a light and directing glory towards God.

In Matthew 5:14-16 Jesus tells us, 14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

People will notice how we use what we have. Even if all you have is a drum solo the king will smile at you because he knows you have given your best.

Crash

I heard a story the other day about a couple, sleeping soundly in their bed, who were awakened by the terrifying crash of their neighbor’s tree tearing through the roof of their bedroom. Through no fault of their own, their night and their house were ruined. If this isn’t a metaphor for 2020, I don’t know what is. In January/February we heard about this nasty bug that was going around in Italy, and by March were all in lockdown. 

Out of nowhere this thing came along and ruined our year. Thankfully we are the people of hope and we have someone to turn in these times of trouble. Psalm 147 says,

1 Praise the Lord. 

How good it is to sing praises to our God,
    how pleasant and fitting to praise him!

2 The Lord builds up Jerusalem;
    he gathers the exiles of Israel.
3 He heals the brokenhearted
    and binds up their wounds.
4 He determines the number of the stars
    and calls them each by name.
5 Great is our Lord and mighty in power;
    his understanding has no limit.

Though we are scattered, exiled if you will, we know and can find comfort that the Lord will gather us together in the future. Though our heart breaks from cancelled plans and opportunities that feel lost, we know that our wounds can be healed. We worship a God who has counted the uncountable, and if God can know them so well how much more does God know us?

When this current trouble passes (and it will). You are not required to look back at this time fondly. The year 2020 doesn’t need to be celebrated as a time we all hunkered down to watch too many hours of television and assemble more puzzles than we have done in the previous decade. We can grieve it and grieve it together. However, in that grief we know that there is a God that will gather us from this in-home exile to be together once again.

How good it is to sing praises to our God!

I Rejoice and Complain

For a lot of people, tomorrow is going to stink! Out of compassion, many of us have made the hard choice to cancel plans, visits, get-togethers, and parties. We want to travel and gather with those most precious to us and share a feast celebrating the good times we’ve had this year. There might not be anything more 2020 than making us rethink our yearly celebration of gratitude. Thankfully, we serve a God who wants to be with us in the hard times and the good.

Through the gamut of emotions we experience, we can call out to God and he responds with love and understanding. As I was listening to a singer the other day, she wrote in her song about the loss of her friend, “I know there's a God and He hears either way / And I rejoice, and complain / Lift my voice, that I was made / Somebody's listening at night.” 

Jesus says in Matthew 11, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” He doesn’t call us to get dressed up or perfected. He calls us when we are dirty and worn out, stressed and frazzled, weary and over-burdened. As we collectively limp through the last few weeks of 2020, I hope we can find our rest in the savior who is ready to listen when you rejoice and listen when you complain.

1 Peter 5:6-7 says, “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on Him, because he cares for you.” 

As you go around your Thanksgiving Zoom call, racking your brain for something to be thankful for in this no good, very bad, awful, dumpster-fire of a year, I hope at the very least you have found a way to cast your anxieties on the Lord. While it may not remove them, I pray that you know that you don’t need to face them alone.

Happy Thanksgiving. I am thankful for you!

Afflicted

There is an affliction that can happen at any time, but really starts hitting people hard this time of year: comfy bed syndrome. This occurs when you wake up in the morning already knowing it’s going to be cold outside. You curl into the blankets a little tighter, and start thinking, “5 more minutes” like back in high school. The stresses of your daily life haven’t reached out to grab you just yet. The bed is warm and soft and safe. There is no cure for comfy bed syndrome because we use it as the remedy for so many other things.

I hope you have a comfy bed. I hope there are times that you can find good rest. However, most mornings, you know that you must leave that comfort and start your day, the world needs you. You can get a small reprieve from actually starting, but comfy shower syndrome is a discussion for another time. I don’t want this to sound like a trivial decision. Leaving the warmth of your blankets, while a small one, is still a sacrifice. A sacrifice we are willing to make because of the greater things it will lead to.

In 2020 we have been asked to sacrifice a lot: vacations, going to restaurants, time with family, work opportunities, normal church services, and the list goes on and on. And we do this for the greater good because we have been called to love. In John 15:12-13 Jesus says, “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down their life for their friends.”

As the people of hope we have an eternal view. Following the calls for safety and having a church service / birthday / wedding / Thanksgiving that is a far cry from the one we want or envision is okay because we lay down our desire for our friends out of love. We can be uncomfortable because we know it is only temporary.

I hate wearing a mask. I have a giant head, beard, and glasses—three strikes! It is a discomfort that most of us never knew before this summer, but we can make the small sacrifices today because we see the large gains that will happen for the brothers and sisters around us tomorrow.

They will know we are Christians by our love.

Love Simple

You ever use the internet? It’s pretty wild you can find information and entertainment and someone willing to argue with you about literally anything. It is also an amazing distraction machine. You think you have one quick thing to look up and in the blink of an eye you’re 12 pages deep on some clickbait article and they still haven’t told you why you never see “former celebrity” anymore. And social media has the desire for “one more swipe” down to a science.

How much more productive could we be if we could ignore all the distractions? This happens in our lives as Christians too. We have been given fairly simple instructions on how we should live as followers of Christ. Jesus put it plainly in Matthew 22,

35 And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. 36 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?”37 And he [Jesus] said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

That’s it. That is what we are called to do: love God, love others. The people who know that their sins are forgiven, the people who understand the sacrifice made on their behalf should be the people who are excited to bring others into that kind of peace. But we get distracted.

We fall into the temptation of being the go-betweens of grace, “Don’t worry creator of the universe I can decide who really deserves your love.” Unfortunately for us, the scripture never told you to love the “right” neighbors. It just says you need to love your neighbor. Full stop, no loopholes, no exceptions.

When we allow distractions like who they voted for, what they look like, or how much money they have determine how much we can love them, we have already failed. Loving people, while stated simply, is hard. We need to put away all the stuff that, eternally, doesn’t matter. 

Love God, love people. It really is that easy.

High Road

Philippians 4
4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 9 What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.

Paul wrote these words to the church at Philippi as a reminder that we are all in this together. There was some minor disagreement between a couple people about the best/correct way to move forward on an issue. This probably wasn’t some life or death decision that would determine the future of the church. Unfortunately, many people who have grown up in the church can think of times where these types of issues have caused a major rift.

And it is in conflicted times like this that we must remember that we are called to take the higher road—called to lay down our preferences for the sake of gospel unity. We all have ideas on how we think things should be, and we have to choose how we express those opinions. Do you do in such a way that that makes the body of Christ stronger? Or do you resort to demands, or temper-tantrums, or just being a general discouragement? 

Being a Christian in our modern world is hard. We are surrounded by distractions, and obstacles, and people who don’t understand our faith. There is enough of that in the world, we don’t need more of the same in the church.

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. And as you think on these things share them with your fellow Christian.

We are all in this together!

One Way or the Other

Romans 15:13 - May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.

Next week a lot of people are going to be mad. As we make our way to the mailbox or polling station, we cast our ballots for the person we want to be president for the next four years. This election, like every other election I can remember, is being called the most important election in history. And while it is important for the country that we make the better choice, we also shouldn’t be putting all our hope in a sinful human to fix the world.

You’ve heard all the metaphors that we use to describe opinions, and most of them are correct: they stink. Thankfully, our opinions don’t have any effect on what is true. You are loved by God and He wants the two of you to grow ever closer together. God loves your neighbor too, and that means that He might want to use you to show that love through the kindness of His children.

It doesn’t matter who we vote for if we know and trust that God is in control. Our hope is not in an elected official. In the last six weeks have you spent as much time extolling the love of Christ as you have the merit of your favorite candidate? We can abound in hope that our life on Earth is temporary and these people we put in power have no influence on eternity.

As you think on the elections, ask yourself what is most important to you. Whether your favorite person wins or loses, you can still be gracious and kind. The Bible never called us to be good Americans, we are called to be citizens of Heaven and heralds of the most high. If the sign in your yard causes you to sin pluck it out.

No matter who is elected, please be generous, thoughtful, compassionate, benevolent, humane, charitable, and kind.

Promised

John 16:32-33 – Behold, the hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home… 33 I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”

I have a feeling this verse resonates a little more these days than it has in the past. Due to our current circumstances we can feel scattered. Things we used to do or want to do are more difficult if they are not just cancelled all together. Many people who have resisted change had to learn flexibility for the first time. How we did our jobs transformed from things we knew into things we had to learn. There is this collective cloud of lingering strain that pushes our daily stress up a notch or two.

Throughout it all we can take heart because we know that this world is in God’s hands. We can find peace in this tribulation because Christ has overcome the world. In the life and teachings of Jesus, it is interesting to note that we are offered peace, but we are promised tribulations. Jesus knows the heart of humanity—selfishness, greed, complaining, focusing on getting our own way, etc.—and offers us a way out. 

Being a Christian doesn’t eliminate our problems, sadly, we’re still going to run into them from time to time. However, it does give us a framework through which we can view them. We can be flexible when we don’t get our own way because we can trust God to work through the new way. We can put other people before ourselves or be generous because we trust God to provide for what we really need.

When Jesus said this, He knew what was coming for Him. He was about to be arrested, tortured, and killed, but he knew the end of the story. The tribulations we face are all temporary, they will end one way or the other, but it is while we are in the midst of them that we must cling to our faith and take heart, Jesus has overcome the world.

Friends with Trucks

2 Corinthians 9:7 - Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

I did two things this week that I don’t usually do. The first thing was exciting. I got a screaming deal on a (way too) big TV. I loaded it into my car with not an inch to spare. I nervously drove home and muscled it up the stairs into my house. I carefully attached the feet, put it in place, and powered it on. And, as I removed the protective cover, I am greeted by the colorful glow of a completely smashed in screen.

To say I was disappointed was an understatement. Not only was the broken TV huge let down, it also meant that I had been given a new chore. I had to figure out how to get the dumb thing back to the store!

This leads to the second thing which, for me, is nerve-racking. I had to ask someone for help; I hate asking for help. My natural inclination is to be fiercely independent and self-reliant. Thankfully, I had a friend who just recently bought a truck and was more than willing to jump in and help even when he only had a limited window. He came by, helped me load it up, carried it back to the store (where just took the refund), and brought me home again. All in, it took about 45 minutes, but it meant a lot to me that it was such an easy “yes.”

As you go through your daily life how easy is your “yes?” Can you give your time or resources easily or does it take some convincing? It is so easy for us to point to busyness, we’re always so busy. However, God has called us to prioritize people over projects. We can show love to our friends and neighbors by letting them interrupt our day.

We easily and quickly agree to the merits of mission’s work. We love to support people who go out and do the hard work of taking the Gospel to people. It gets a little hard when we are asked to do the work ourselves. Doing good deeds won’t impress God, however they make a big impression on the people around you. Theologian Martin Luther said, “God doesn’t need your good works, but your neighbor does.”

How can you be a cheerful giver this week?

Remember

Isaiah 44:21-22

Remember these things, O Jacob,
    and Israel, for you are my servant;
I formed you; you are my servant;
    O Israel, you will not be forgotten by me.

I have blotted out your transgressions like a cloud
    and your sins like mist;
return to me, for I have redeemed you.

Do you ever have those thoughts from your past that you spend a little too much time dwelling on? Or, in a quiet moment, you are reminded of it out of nowhere? Like somehow your brain decided that your day was going a little too well, so it reminds you of that embarrassing moment from you past or that time you screwed up big time.

Sometimes these thoughts lead to conviction and then ultimately cause change for the better; while not always a pleasant process it is still useful for the betterment of our lives. However, these thoughts can also cause feelings of guilt or inadequacy, and it is these thoughts that we must, as Paul puts it in 2 Corinthians 10, take captive.

Through Christ’s sacrifice on the cross all our sins and transgressions have been blotted out. God has forgiven us; we don’t need to constantly feel sorry for the things we’ve done in the past. We were formed by His mighty hand. This means that we will never be forgotten or left behind because of something we did.

As believers we have been given the promise of salvation, there is nothing that can separate you from the love God has for you. Sin can bring about tension or break human relationships, and whenever we are the ones that have caused this tension, we should be the ones that seek to repair it. But when the problem is from years ago, or you are holding on to a grudge towards someone that is no longer in your life, you need to do the challenging work of releasing that to God.

When we are feeling low, God reminds us to simply return to Him because He has redeemed us.

Hungry

Psalm 107:4-9
4 Some wandered in desert wastes,
    finding no way to a city to dwell in;
5 hungry and thirsty,
    their soul fainted within them.
6 Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
    and he delivered them from their distress.
7 He led them by a straight way
    till they reached a city to dwell in.
8 Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,
    for his wondrous works to the children of man!
9 For he satisfies the longing soul,
    and the hungry soul he fills with good things.
 
In the world as it is right now, we can surely identify with the feeling of being lost in a desert wasteland. The future is unsure, we don’t know where the world will really go from here. Pessimists point to problems and use them as examples of how we are all doomed and it’s only going to get worse; while optimists always tell you that we are just about to turn a corner and then it’s all sunshine and rainbows. When the truth is, we usually won’t know what is going to happen until it arrives. 
 
What this means is that we all need to do our best to balance out the way we think—neither side has a track record of always being right. We have all had this feeling of being lost in the desert, and when you feel this way, I hope you also feel pulled to cry out to the Lord. When we face distress, it is so easy think, “that’s it, God has abandoned me.” 

I hope it is held in your heart that God will never leave you nor forsake you. Like the people lost in the desert he wants to lead you to a better place than where you are when you face your troubles. Verse 7 says He led them by a straight way. As a frail and meager human, I really wish it said, “He led them by the easy way.” The path we end up on as we follow God doesn’t always go the way we want. However, we can trust Him to lead us to a place where the longing of our souls is satisfied.

Sublime

How many times have you listened to your favorite song? Whether it is a golden oldie, something from your youth, or music composed for an orchestra 400 years ago I would guess the answer is somewhere in the triple digits­. There is some secret quality about these songs that can’t be explained that touches us on a level that is deeper than just catchy lyrics or melody. We don’t just like the song we are moved by it; no matter how many times we hear it we still feel impacted by it.

This attachment to a song is not something that is easily transferrable. I don’t know how many times I’ve tried to share music with people, and they just tell me that they think it’s weird (to be fair I’ve listened to some weird music). However, what other people think could never change your connection to your song.

This connection, this love, should be the way we view our relationship with God. If you’ve been a Christian for more than 20 minutes you’ve probably heard or read John 3:16-17, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.”

It’s easy to rattle these verses off. We’ve heard them so many times. We’ve said them so many times. But just like our favorite songs, this message, this summation of the gospel should bring tears to our eyes and motion to our feet. God loved you so much that He wanted to be connected with you for all eternity, even if it meant giving His only son in your place.

I pray that hearing the phrase “God loves you,” stirs something in your heart. Regardless of troubles we may face, God will never leave you behind. And more than just nice words, I hope this faith has found its way into your heart and mind so deeply that you can’t help but share it with the people around you. Even if they think it’s a little weird.

What Are We Doing Today?

Over the course of quarantine, I’m sure this question has taken on new meaning. Until very recently the answer was almost always, “the same thing we did yesterday: stay home to stay healthy.” In the before time however, we filled our days with activities to the point that saying you were super busy became cliché. As we look forward to a future beyond quarantine, we need to make a choice of what habits we hang on to and what we need to leave behind.

Millions of people realized the benefits of working remotely. That meeting that should have been an email was finally just an email! Let’s keep that. That long arduous commute twice a day, let’s leave that behind. I’m sure there are any number of habits we have picked up over the last six months, and now is the time to start examining which of them we want to keep. A general all-day graze instead of meals, probably not the best choice. Never dressing above your favorite athleisure wear might be a problem unless your workplace is cool.

Now these are funny examples, but as Christians we are called to one thing in the way we live our lives. Will what I am doing benefit the cause of Christ? Does the way I live tell the people around me that I am living for something greater. 

In Acts 20:35 Paul says, “In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” If you are a mature Christian, I pray that you took the extra time during quarantine to dive into God’s word, to encourage your brother or sister who might be younger in the faith, and have prayed for those that must make very hard decisions.

If not, there is no better time to start than right now. The wheels are starting to spin again, and when they get going it will be easy to just fall into that old routine of being “busy” all the time. Let’s make the world we return to better than the one we left.

Grist for the Malady Mill

Matthew 5:44-45 “…I say to you, ‘Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45so that you may be sons and daughters of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.’”

This is a passage of scripture that is a lot easier to quote than it is to apply to our own lives. If you are a mature Christian it is easy to see this written with red letters in your Bible, meaning that Jesus said it, and implicitly agree. When coming into contact with the words of Jesus it is difficult to build a strong case for going against what was said. The issue comes up when we recognize that Jesus doesn’t just want implicit agreement. Jesus wants us to live this out with our lives.

As far as “things Jesus asked of Christians” goes, this one is pretty high up on the difficulty scale. There is a reason we consider another person our enemy (in our increasingly divided world I hope your reasons for seeing someone as an enemy at least go deeper than their political affiliation). An enemy is someone that has personally wronged you in some way, and in feeling that hurt from being wronged Jesus asks us to do the hardest thing. Love that person in spite of what they have done.

Jesus gives us this command because he knows that being human is a struggle. I think that’s why he points out the rain and the sun, the best people and the worst people are still subject to things that are outside of their control. This pandemic is a great example, no one got to skip the disruption of quarantine because they were more just than someone else.

Knowing that we are all going to get rained on from time to time should help us pause when we want to trash “an enemy.” Part of the human condition is bad times, times we wish we could skip, but those bad times help us to more fully appreciate the good times. We can all think of someone we have considered an enemy. 

Right now, take a moment, say a prayer for your heart or theirs, and at the very least wish you wished them well.