Christmas in July...er...September!

I enjoy this time of year…the temperature is slowly dropping; the leaves begin to change their color; I can open the windows for fresh air in the house; and I start to look toward the Advent season. There is something about the anticipation of the Savior that quickens the mind and renews our hope. It’s not that we ever lose hope, but lets face it, with the economic news of lately, the propaganda of the election year, gasoline prices, the ongoing wars, and add to those any personal tragedies we are forced to endure, we are at the very least distracted from the hope we have in Christ Jesus. Even the most devout fight these distractions! For that reason I welcome Advent, in fact, this may have been a good year to celebrate “Christmas in July” (wish I had thought of it)! As believers in Christ Jesus, we have a hope that can endure any situation…and we need to remember that! Regardless of the turmoil we face, as an individual or as a member of the human race, God still sits on the throne and not once has he uttered the words, “How did that happen?”

Obligation & Opportunity

I have struggled recently with trying to find that fine line between holding someone accountable and extending grace to them. Let’s face it; there are times when we draw the line only to find out we should not have. Holding someone accountable in love is not always easy, especially when they are under-churched or a non-believer. It is often difficult for them to understand the concept of grace as they’ve never truly experienced it. Most will say grace is a blank check to do as they will, or at least that’s what they want it to be. It’s quite the opposite! While the Law will tell us we must do something we do not want to do (obligation), grace will cause us to want to do that very same thing with joy and purpose (opportunity)! Grace causes us to live our lives not how we want, but how God wants. Grace causes us to turn the other cheek when we’ve been slapped, and to feed the hungry even though our cupboards are nearly bare. Grace is also a mandate to accountability…for all. Oh, and by the way, God is faithful and my prayers have been answered; my struggle responded positively when I felt it was time to hold them accountable. Pray for them, that they might come to truly experience the saving grace of our Lord, Jesus Christ.

The Solution!

I’m back! Most of you know this has been a hectic week for me with Jill in Texas until Saturday, leaving me in charge of the girls…so to speak. We have done well thanks to the efforts of several people who, I suppose, are afraid I will scar the girls for life! Whatever their motivation, I am grateful and hope to catch up on a couple of things that was cast to the wayside for a day or so. So, what do you think of the financial mess our world is in? Yea, it’s more than something we must deal with here in the U.S., although we may have initiated the chaos. Stock markets and economies all around the world are feeling the pain and panic we are feeling. I am not a politician, and I do not offer political advice…BUT, I do agree with John McCain, that the candidates need to stop their campaigning until this crisis is resolved, otherwise they may not have a country to lead! I have no doubts that some of his motives are geared toward political gain, but this leads me to my point. This problem we face is greater than any one man or plan. It is greater than 700 billion dollars, or any dollar amount we can throw at it. This is a problem that needs an Almighty solution, and until we seriously strive to follow our Lord, we will repeatedly face these problems. We have seen them before: crimes against humanity, financial crisis, war. So what’s the answer? “He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8.

Rich Mullins

It’s funny; the things that spark our memories. Someone had asked me to get the lyrics to a song by Rich Mullins for them. At the request, my mind immediately went to his untimely death in an automobile accident in the fall of 1997 in northern Illinois on I-39 just north of Peoria; he was on his way to perform at a concert in Wichita, KS. That particular morning I was working the early shift at WJLY when a newscast shared the tragic news. You may not recognize the name Rich Mullins, and had he lived, he would have wanted it that way, but you know his music. Probably best know for the worship song “Awesome God” (Our God is an awesome God…) he also wrote and performed many, many other songs in his short career of 12 or so years, and several have become standards in the realm of contemporary Christian music. Rich was a gifted pianist and song writer and had chosen to teach music to Navajo children in New Mexico. He received the average salary for a worker in the United States each year and donated the rest of his earnings to Compassion International and Compassion USA. He was truly a gift to the world from God, and as I continue to listen to his timeless words, I imagine he now leads the heavenly choir with new arrangements praising his King.

Running Scared

If you listen to much talk radio (or television I suppose) you’ve noticed this past week or so that some people are running scared. The economic crisis our country faces is much like the crisis some face when they suffer a heart attack or hears the dreaded c-word: cancer (or when their wife leaves them with the children for a week!). There are those who panic and immediately start grasping at any promise of relief…now they intend to make amends and change their lifestyle, even though it may very well be too late. Then there are others who, when faced with any crisis, turn to God for comfort, direction, and strength. Scripture tells us of God’s love for us and that nothing is able to separate us from that love. Paul tells us that God works for the good of everyone who loves him, so why is it so many people do not run to God? I realize there are about as many reasons why as there are persons, but what I really want to know is what are you doing about it? It seems to me in the days and months ahead there will be more and more people running scared and we, as the Body of Christ, must reach out to them with the truth and love of God, showing them our trust in God and sharing the fact that they too can have a God who can be trusted.

God of Wonder!

I have had a rather chaotic week…not as much hard as hectic. It is weeks like this that cause me wonder of the character of our God. Everything I see in the creation stories, in all of Scripture, and in all of nature indicates to me that we serve a God of order: a God who methodically and logically works in and thru his creation to accomplish great things. I believe that, but is that our total picture of God? If so, what about the God who works out of chaos? What about the God who doesn’t want us to become complacent? What about the God of surprises? Fact is, whatever your picture of God is, it’s incomplete. Our view of God is just a fraction of the total picture. Psalm 47 proclaims, “How awesome is the Lord Most High, the great King over all the earth!” Do you really think we are able to comprehend all that God is? (If we did completely understand God, do you think we would worry or fuss about anything?) I do not and I will confess I struggle with folks who do. It’s not that they disagree (or for that matter agree) with my beliefs; it’s that they think they have God all figured out! I believe our God is much more majestic, multifaceted, and powerful than any human can ever comprehend.

My God is a Great Big God!

We gather routinely to worship God, and even attempt to live lives of worship, but exactly what is worship? Singing? Praise? Adoration? Prayer? King David defined worship in Psalm 34:3, “Oh magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together.” Worship is the act of magnifying God. Drawing near to God and enlarging our vision of him. It is like first viewing the Lincoln Memorial from a mile away and then viewing it from the base of the monument. Lincoln’s statue seems much, much larger to us when we are close to it. Of course God’s size doesn’t change (nor does the monument) but our perception of him does. As we draw nearer, God seems larger, and isn’t that exactly what we need? A big view of God? Don’t we have big problems, big questions, and big worries? Don’t they seem larger than life? Of course they do, and we desperately need a big view of God to conquer them. Worship offers us that. How can we sing, “Praise You in the Storm” or “How Great Thou Art” and not have our vision expanded?