July 27, 2018

Where Is Your Home?

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?” – John 11:25-26

What does home look like to you? Maybe it’s a house in the suburbs. Maybe it’s a condo or apartment in the city. Maybe it’s a house in the country, surrounded by acres and acres of farm land. Or maybe it’s somewhere else entirely.

Do you believe in Jesus Christ? Do you believe He’s the Son of God? Do you believe He came, lived a perfect life, was crucified for our sins, and rose three days later? Do you believe He sits at God’s right hand and intercedes for us? Do you believe you’ll meet Him face to face one day?

Then no matter where you lay your head at night, you aren’t home.

Jesus spoke these words before He called Lazarus out of the tomb. Mary and Martha were beyond distraught. Their brother got sick and died. And Jesus, their teacher and a miraculous healer, delayed coming to save him. They were upset with Him. We get upset with Him sometimes too.

Everything Jesus does focuses us on eternity. It’s not so much about the here and now as it is about leading us to be more like Him, gathering the lost, and ministering to the hurting. He understands as we rarely do that this isn’t our home.

We cling to this world. We fight death like it’s the enemy when, in reality, death is only the beginning. For it is in death that we truly go home to beauty and eternal service to God Almighty.

We are only here for a short while. Our days are numbered, be that number large or small. There is a special purpose for each of us. Finding that purpose, that calling, should be a lifetime pursuit.

As believers, we know that. The trouble comes when we look for grandeur when Jesus says to love your neighbor well. The challenge comes when we don’t like our calling, when it’s scary or when it involves reaching out to people we don’t like.

We are creatures of comfort. We like our earthly dwellings. We want to have fun. We want this life to be easy and without great sorrow or distress. We want to live long and die painlessly, waking into heaven without ever having to get dirty with the service God has called us to.

How would life be different if we focused our attention on Jesus? How would we view our possessions if we understood all that we have is only temporary? How would we change if we truly realized that home is where Jesus is, no matter what our address says today?

Jesus came that we might be free to serve Him. He came to save us from our sins and grant us a passport to an eternal destination of beauty and worship. Don’t lose sight of that. When life threatens to overwhelm you, when your days are filled with stress over earthly things, remember that you’re just passing through.

April 26, 2016

Life Detours Plans

In their hearts humans plan their course,
but the Lord establishes their steps

 -- Proverbs 16:9

It was going to be a busy day at the start of a really busy week. I wasn’t sure how I could possibly fit everything in but I had a plan.

Well, you know how it is with plans.

The doctors appointment ran late, then there was lunch and a surprise stop. But another doctors appointment never materialized. That freed up time for work. Which I was doing. Until I heard it.

You know what I’m talking about. In my case, it was the dogs barking ferociously. This wasn’t one of those chasing a squirrel barks. This was much bigger and I knew something was dreadfully wrong.

I threw down my wire cutters and ran. Sammy had killed the copperhead snake before I arrived. I cut the snake’s head off to be sure. After a quick check, I raced to the vet with Sammy. And there went my afternoon.

I am not complaining. It could have been much, much worse. He’s going to be fine. I am thankful.

But here’s the thing: We all make plans for our days. We do. Even if it’s as simple as get up, have a cup of coffee and head to the beach. We make plans as though somehow we know what’s going to happen. We don’t.

I’m a big planner. I always have been. And I get frustrated when those plans get derailed. But this is life and life isn’t about plans. It’s about living our moments to the fullest and following God with all our hearts.

Sometimes we get so caught up in our “to do” list that we forget to enjoy the process. Did you notice the sunset yesterday? Did you see the beautiful flowers blooming this spring? Did you throw a ball with your dog? Did you read a book to your child?

When did we get so busy that we can’t enjoy our moments? When did we fill our days with so many tasks that we forget to enjoy the journey? When did we stop realizing it’s about loving God and loving people?

Sometimes life takes us on a detour to remind us of what’s important. Pay attention to the lesson.

April 6, 2016

Enjoy This Season

4 This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: 5 “Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. 6 Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there; do not decrease. 7 Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.” -- Jeremiah 29:4-9

Where did the day go? I had plans and, once again, what I planned didn’t come to pass because of the many things I didn’t plan that came up along the way. Do you ever travel that road? It can be so frustrating!

But God always gives us what we need and I needed these verses from Jeremiah. I’ve read them before, of course, but this time the writer pointed out that this is what God told His people BEFORE He told them about the good plans He had for them.

Why is that so significant? Because God was telling His people to plant gardens where they were going to be in exile for 70 years. THEN came the good plans.

I am not good at waiting. I’ve said that many times before. Yet sometimes we don’t have a choice. God puts us where He wants us and tells us to stay until it’s time to move on.

At that point, we can choose how we handle where He’s placed us. Do we let our hearts fill with bitterness and impatience or do we open ourselves up to serve and be His hands and feet where we are? The choice belongs to us.

Waiting isn’t passive. It’s active and full of things to do. I think that’s where we sometimes get off track. We think that waiting means we allow our lives to become stagnant and that’s not what it means at all.

We all have seasons in our lives. There are seasons for being children, for advanced learning, for marriage and children and working day after day. I am in the season of caregiving. I cherish this time, yet it is stressful and emotional.

What season are you in? Did you plan it or did life intervene? And are you okay with it? That’s a big one. Learning to be okay where you are, planting a garden and watching it grow and bloom, makes the seasons seem worthwhile.

God has good plans for us. It just may take a while to see them come to fruition. Enjoy the journey.

March 20, 2017

Faith Is A Lifetime Journey

24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. 25 Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. 26 Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. 27 No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize. -- 1 Corinthians 9:24-27

Are you one of those people who gave up something for Lent? Some people choose to give up something -- such as chocolate or soda -- so that by depriving themselves they enjoy they might “suffer” a bit and feel closer to Jesus. Of course, this is nothing like Jesus went through for us.

The practice is good for what it is. But I have a question for you: If you’re going to make a change for Jesus, shouldn’t it be a permanent change?

We act like we’ll do this wonderful thing for 40 days -- Sundays don’t count -- and somehow we’re honoring our Savior for what He did for us. But I’m not sure how giving up chocolate really honors Jesus. Don’t get me wrong. It’s good for our health. But does it further God’s kingdom? Does it help anyone know Jesus? Does it draw us closer to Him?

Our faith journey isn’t meant to be a short excursion with a finish date set by us. It is rather a life-long journey that only ends when God calls us home. We should constantly be moving toward Jesus, toward being more like Him, toward learning more about Him, toward living more like Him.

So what could you give up for Jesus? Maybe you could give up anger. Maybe you could give up jealousy. Maybe you could move past greed. Maybe you could give up that focus on things of the world.

What could you do for Jesus? A popular thing is to pay for the order behind you in the drive thru line. You could take a meal to a family going through a tough time. You could visit with an elderly person. You could drive a sick friend to the doctor. There are many, many ways to be Jesus in a hurting world.

Giving up something for Lent is fine. Nothing wrong with it at all, especially if it makes you feel closer to Jesus. But remember that our faith journey isn’t a short 40-day sprint. It’s a long journey with our eye on a eternal crown of life.

Monday, February 7, 2011

Crisis Changes You Forever

"For I am being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure."

-- 2 Timothy 4:6

Paul was near the end of his life. He looked forward to a race finished and a heavenly crown as he entered the presence of Jesus. We focus on that rather than the words "drink offering." We'd rather not remember that Paul suffered for his faith. Truly suffered.

Somehow we've come to believe that following Jesus should be easy. We'll do our bit -- got to church, give a little money, volunteer a time or two -- and life will go by orderly and without great disaster. Then when we are poured into the fire of crisis, to a place when no other can offer help and hope, we feel abandoned and broken. It is at that point where we find God waiting.

Oswald Chambers wrote that after the crisis, life changes forever. "When the crises arises, you realize that things cannot touch you as they used to," he writes. Truth that can only be realized on the other side of the crisis. Priorities change. Things that were once so important, no longer matter. They are put into the context of eternity. And, really, who cares about all the little aggravations of life?

We do, of course, or we wouldn't call them aggravating. We focus on the daily struggles, high points and low points, of our lives. We get bogged down and lose sight of the distant destination that will come at the end. Yet, when is the end? As Pastor Meghan said, none of us have any guarantee of even the next breath. That kind of puts it all in perspective.

The fire isn't an easy place to be. Been there, done that, don't ever want to go back. I've got enough souvenirs, thank you very much. But I also know I wouldn't be where I am on this journey without ever having gone through the fire. It drew me closer to my God. It made me lay down at Jesus' feet in a way I'd never even contemplated. It filled with me the Holy Spirit and gave new meaning to a life destroyed by circumstances beyond my control.

Are you ready for the fire? Are you willing to walk the difficult path that draws you closer to God? Are you willing to suffer as Paul did so that in the end you will know that you fought the good fight for Christ? The journey isn't easy but it is worth the price.