June 3, 2018

Who Are You Today?

For by the grace given to me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. – Romans 12:3

I was momentarily speechless, a rare occurrence for me. I looked at her face. She was genuinely concerned about something that had happened back in high school. Really? That was more than 40 years ago.

She was a woman facing an identity crisis. Anyone could see that. She’d married young, birthed her children and now spoiled grandchildren whenever she could. She was also unemployed. She had way too much time on her hands. She had time to consider high school, her “glory” days.

She wanted to know if she’d hurt me and others we’d grown up with. Why? Because she’d become a cheerleader – basketball for one year – and hung out with the popular students. Really? Her arrogance amazed me. She didn’t hurt me all those years ago but she certainly pushed my button on this day.

Everyone has different gifts. Everyone accomplishes different things. We are all unique and called to work together to bring glory to God. All those friends she believed she’d “left behind” were people who accomplished many things in their areas of giftedness. She was oblivious to anyone but herself.

We like to toot our own horns, don’t we? I love that cliché because it’s just so on target to what actually happens. We’ve been taught to brag on ourselves because, after all, who else will do it? It’s that struggle between healthy self-esteem and wallowing in our own pride.

I am proud of my accomplishments. I also recognize that I can do nothing, be nothing, without God’s help and guidance. All good things come from Him. I want so much to live a life that brings glory to God Almighty. Sometimes I get that right. More often, I get it wrong.

 I remember the past but I don’t dwell there. The journey has molded me into the person I am today. The hardships, the heartbreak, the joys and accomplishments all combine together to make me the person I am. The journey through the valley has led me to appreciate all the blessings God has given to me that much more.

This woman was trying desperately to cling to a past that she believed gave her value. She “remembered” things that never happened or just weren’t accurate. (I have never had red hair. Sorry.) And she tried to argue when I attempted to gently point out that her facts were wrong.

It was sad really. She has so many blessings in her life. She has so many ways that God can use her in the present and in the future. But first she has to let go of the past. First, she has to stop getting her value from what she sees is her lofty position from long ago.

Our value comes from who we are in Christ. Our worth is measured in how we live in His light. Our glory days are yet to come when we finally make it home. Don’t get hung up in the past. Remember who you are today and live your life in humility, seasoned with grace, and focused on the One from whom all blessings flow.

May 26, 2018

Go Boldly Forward

Some, however, made fun of them and said, “They have had too much wine.”

– Acts 2:13

Acts 2 is the story of a group of outcasts who finally find their voice. That’s how our pastor summed up Pentecost and the boldness the Holy Spirit brought to the men and women who were staying in a locked, upper room, praying even as they waited for something they didn’t fully understand.

Your life belongs to God, he told the high school graduates. Put your seatbelt on and get ready. They, of course, have no idea what awaits them. Thursday night they celebrated with family and friends, beginning a new chapter of their lives that is full of possibility and hope.

Some of them will go boldly into their dreams. Others will hold back, uncertain of what God’s calling on their lives really is. Others will seek the approval of those around them, unwilling to venture out into the unknown.

I’ve been reading an autobiography by MercyMe lead singer Bart Millard. He suffered horrific abuse as a child, only to see his Dad come to Christ and change dramatically. That’s the story line, the movie version, of it all.

The rest of the story involves a youth group that welcomed a young man who needed a safe place and a “family” to spend time with him. And it involved people who believed in his voice and, at times, forced him to use his talent. I wonder where he would have ended up without the encouragement and belief of those people.

Even then, Millard thought his journey would be worship leader and youth minister. He saw seminary and a traditional path. God had another plan, intervening in such a way that lead Millard into his destiny.

Was it an easy path? Absolutely not. There was no overnight success story. There was no immediate wealth and fame. There was struggle and perseverance and finetuning God’s gift. There were people to form relationships with and a journey to take.

We are quick most of the time to support someone who is taking a traditional path in life. And there certainly is nothing wrong with that path if it’s what God has called you to. But trying to stuff a square into a circle has never been what God intended. We are each unique. We each have a special calling.

Every moment we waste doing something we weren’t ever intended to do is a moment we can’t get back. Every step we take on a journey the world has called us to is a step away from God’s better plan for our lives. It’s not that He can’t and won’t use us wherever we land. It’s just that God’s plan is perfect and it’s what is best for our lives.

The disciples didn’t understand what awaited them. They only knew they were waiting for God to show them the way and then, with the Holy Spirit filling them up, they stepped boldly forward to proclaim the gospel of Christ. Peter, who had denied Jesus three times and who was only ever trained as a fisherman, became a preacher who led 3,000 to know Jesus. He never again faltered, instead becoming the rock Jesus had called him to be.

What is God’s calling on your life? Go boldly toward it. Don’t let anyone tell you to hold back, to do what is practical, to be someone you aren’t. Your future lies before you. It is filled with promise and hope. Grasp hold of Jesus and take that first step toward God’s plan for your life.

May 20, 2018

Possibilities

When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. – Acts 2:1-4

Today was Pentecost and Senior Day at church.  It was fitting really. There’s nothing quite like moving from high school into the adult world, leaving so many of the rules behind and going forward into a brand-new life. That’s much like Pentecost was for those who gathered behind closed doors to wait for the Spirit Jesus had promised.

There’s just so much possibility. Each of the students plans to head on to college but that’s where the similarities ended. Some are headed into the medical field, others education or even agriculture. The students are so diverse, just like their dreams.

How many will end up where they plan to go? It will be fun to watch that unfold. What we can guarantee, as our pastor noted, is that plans have a way of getting derailed when we least expect it. One thing we all learn is that God is in control, not us.

Can you imagine what the Apostles and others felt as they waited for Pentecost? The man they’d followed for three years had died a brutal death on a cross. They’d seen Him resurrected. They knew He was the Messiah. They’d spent time with Him and then He’d left again, promising the Holy Spirit.

They had to have been afraid. There were those who wanted to see them dead. So they did what all of us do when we have reached the end of ourselves. They prayed. Constantly. They prayed. Did they even know what they were praying for? Protection? Jesus’ promised gift? Strength and courage to face whatever came?

Life rarely turns out the way we planned. An illness shatters our normal. A job loss turns us in another direction. Marriage and children, or their lack, turns us around yet again. What we thought we’d enjoy turns out to be something that fills us with daily dread. The life we’d imagined isn’t at all what we’d planned.

The Apostles didn’t plan on Jesus dying. That was not something they could envision, no matter how many times Jesus tried to prepare them. Some things we just can’t understand until we’ve experienced it. Some things seem destined to destroy us until we get to the other side and realize that God truly did have a purpose for it all.

What happened on Pentecost? Everyone spoke in different languages and understood one another. Peter – the same Peter who denied Jesus three times – preached boldly. About three thousand heard the message and believed.

Everything changed that day. Their lives would never be the same. They were filled with a boldness – the Holy Spirit – and fear would no longer hold them captive. They finally got it. They finally understood that this was not the end, that Jesus was waiting for them in heaven, that they were placed on this earth to serve.

I looked over at the graduates and wondered if they truly understood what awaits them. I doubt it. Understanding comes from life experiences. Wisdom comes from failure probably more than success. They are filled with hope and dreams and that’s how it should be.

I pray they go boldly into their futures, refusing to let fear or doubters hold them back. I hope they cling tightly to the Holy Spirit, seeking guidance from the only One who truly knows the way. I pray they always remember this day filled with possibilities and live their lives boldly as they reach toward the dreams God has planted in their hearts.