The Little Things

"It's the little things that get you!"  One of my football coaches would say this.  A missed block would destroy a good play.  A lazy cut on a pass route would cause the pass to be incomplete.  A missed assignment in the secondary meant a touchdown for the other team.  In fact, this year's national championship game ended with a player losing concentration for just a tiny moment, and that was all it took.  Game over!

In the story of David and Goliath we most often talk about how the little guy sometimes wins ... how good overcomes evil ... how the underdog sometimes has his day.  But I want us to think of this story from Goliath's perspective.  Goliath had swagger ... but swagger is of little value when the battle begins.  Goliath had size, might and training so he assumed he would win ... but those things don't matter when your opponent is focused and determined.  Goliath had himself (it was all he needed in his battles to this point) ... but Goliath didn't know the spiritual side of the battle ... he didn't know that David was empowered by God.

I know this is a familiar children's story and we adults sometimes place this little tale in that happy, childhood, nostalgic place in our mind.  But there is another place for this story.  For men, and some women, Goliath's folly is how we live our daily life.  We are hurting, depressed, overwhelmed, confused and in turmoil, yet we respond in the way Goliath responded.  We want to look like nothing is wrong ... so we play the swagger card and nobody sees our hurt.  We say, "It's all good," but we know it isn't all good ... we mask our fears by our cliche' responses.  We (be honest guys!) say we can handle this without God's help or the help of others ... and we stay in that place of hovering, never facing or moving past our problems.

In the Bible story, David won because he did some very healthy things. He faced the problem with no personal swagger (he was impossibly outmatched ... so he knew his lack of resources).  He used his mind and his focus to understand he was in the fight of his life and he used every resource (agility, quickness, skill, training, knowledge) he had.  And David allowed God in to the battle.  Enter the battle without pride.  Look for every tool and resource so that you can face your enemy and give the battle all you got!  And never enter the battle without God being over you, around you, beside you and before you.  Randy

The Inward Battle

I wonder if our most dangerous and important battles are those inside our heart?  There is the battle for control ... do we control or does God?  There is the battle for truth ... do we create our own truth or do we rely on God's truth?  There is the battle to define success ... do we follow the world or do we follow God's definition of success?  Hard questions, and the answers are equally hard.

One of the sports-related stories that has surfaced recently is the story of the Russian curler who has tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs (PED).  When I think of PED use I can't think of a sport less likely to need an "edge" than curling.  It is like taking steroids to become a better bowler (but what do I know?).  Anyway, as I read this story I thought about the three questions above.  What does a curler have to tell himself that will justify PED use, risking the possible penalty of loosing an earned bronze Olympic medal?

He must become very self-centered in taking control of things. "My ends justify the means to that end!"  "Self-exaltation is my standard and the standards of the sport are not adequate!"  "Life is all about what I need!"  Before you accuse the Russian ask yourself a question.  Have you ever prayed, "God, tell me Your plan for my life!"  Sounds good till you take that sentence apart.  First, is your plan the point or is God's plan the point?  Do you expect that you will be comfortable, fulfilled and "peachy" doing what is in God's plan, or will your joining God's plan be clunky, hard, uncomfortable and inconvenient?  Is it "my" life or is life a gift from God that has been given to me as a sacred trust?  Is life about me and my control or does God take precedence?  It is a battle!

He must rationalize truth.  Pilate asked Jesus "Quid est veritas" ... "What is truth?"  It is a human quest which can be noble but, I fear, is most often our attempt to shape the truth to meet our needs.  For the Russian curler the truth is whatever I can get away with.  For the alcoholic the truth is "I will be fine with just one drink."  For many of us the truth is whatever we can rationalize.  I hate that rationalization is one of my spiritual gifts (not given by the Holy Spirit I must say).  In a world of lies, a media-culture filled with misinformation (from every side) and even lies about God from prominent leaders, you can begin to understand why Pilate asks this question.  For one Russian curler, being decisively-evasive was his truth.  It is a battle!

He must define success in a very self-focused way.  I know a pastor at a prominent church in the Destin area that has told associate pastors they need a better car because they are "not portraying the image of our congregation."  I know many who value leadership by who makes the most money.  I know church leaders who value election to high offices and public accolades as measures of success.  Then I read the most prominent Biblical writer (by number of books, by volume of content) saying, “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners”—and I am the worst of them all" (1 Timothy 1:15, NLT).  Want truth?  That is the truth.  The inner battle rages between what we want to feel, what we want to think and what we have been given in the blessing of Scripture.  These 'truths' are different.  Which will we follow?  It is a battle!

These are the reasons Jeremiah (17:9) said, "The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is!"  And these are the reasons that cliche' answers like "Follow your heart" should be removed from our pool of standard advice.  Follow (Worship) God, and Him only!  Randy

Maintenance

Over the winter it is easy to get complacent and  lethargic.  It has been cold and now it is rainy.  My fishing gear, lawn care items and other spring/summer equipment has been in storage-mode.  I could just forget about all of it and wait till warmer weather.  But what I have learned is that those times of quiet, reflection and stillness are also times to do the maintenance and care I can't do during busier summer months.  So I oil my reels and check the strength of my line.  I clean up that lawn equipment and make sure I have everything necessary for using it during the coming months.  That mindset is very much an allegory for Lent.

Lent is a time when we consider our mortality, our sinful nature, our spiritual health and our need for God's forgiveness and God's care.  We take time, effort and energy to keep our faith in working order.  We check for the strong and weak places.  We allow God to come in an do that good work only He can do.  It is a great time of the year and it is a necessary part of our Christian journey.

We do this care and maintenance because 1 Peter 5:8 reminds us that our enemy is persistent.  Peter says, "Stay alert!"  Our enemy is prowling around and he never relents from his pursuit of those he can devour.  During Lent we take inventory of ourselves.  We ask the hard questions ... "How are things with my soul?"  ... "How can I become more open to God so that God will be able to teach, mold and use me?"  ... "What spiritual disciplines (praying, fasting, journaling, studying, worshiping, reading, serving, giving) can I employ so that God has total access to me?"  ... "What are my weaknesses?" ... "What do I need to give to God so that God will be able to grow me?  While most of us think of Lent as passive and reflective, it should be that good kind of work that brings you the tiredness of completion and fulfillment.

We also do this "soul-care" because we are called to (Acts 2:42-47) "continue" in the faith.  Luke, the writer of Acts, says or implies this attribute of the Christian walk in the words of Acts.  Luke understood that our faith, our life as a Christian and our journey with Jesus is not a passive endeavor.  The enemy is persistent so we must also be persistent.  The enemy is at war with us and for us to live in an attitude of peace, we must be vigilant, constant and focused.  Jesus said to be watchful for we never know when we will be challenged and we never know when Jesus will return.

May your Lenten season be filled with growth and productive maintenance of something of great value ... your soul!  Randy

The Lord's

I hear it a lot.  "That's not in my skill set."  "I can't do that because it is out of my comfort zone."  "That makes me anxious so I can't do it."  These are some very American excuses for not doing things.  In a society that is driven by feelings this is what results.  Everyone is their own CEO, Commander and Chief and Field General.  How does this track with Scripture?  I have to say ... not so good!

There is a wonderful story in 2 Chronicles 20.  In the story the Amorites and the Moabites have come up against Israel and things don't look good.  The army, in Scripture, was called "a great multitude."  King Jehoshaphat was shaken and fearful but he did what we should do when we are fearful and shaken ... he sought the Lord.  He prays ... "we have no might against this great company and we don't know what to do!"  I think this was a good prayer for God sent them into the battle saying, "you shall not have to fight this battle for the Lord will be with you.  The battle is not yours but God's."  The next day Jehoshaphat does something very strange.  He sends out the praise band to sing about God's glory and His mercy that "endureth forever."  It was a great move of faith and a great risk, but it was God's will.

I thought of three things when I re-read this wonderful story.  First, when we are fearful and have no clue what to do, going to God is a good and rational thing.  God has overcome the unknowns of this world and God knows a path that will lead us to whatever victory is appropriate for our situation.  Second, we need to remember the power of things given over to God.  Jehoshaphat totally gave over an impossible situation to God.  He let is go completely.  He did not cling to the problem, his rational understanding of the overwhelming odds or his own plans to solve the problem.  The problem was given entirely to God.  Finally, let's carefully look at this story and understand that God's solution (and the action required by God's people) was totally irrational from our human mindset. "Lord ... you must be crazy!  Send out the singers?  Prepare for the 'fight' by singing praise songs?"  God's will is often beyond our understanding but to follow we must trust He knows what He is doing!

Go to God with your problems.  Don't do a halfway job of giving them to Him.  Be ready to follow the uncomfortable, irrational and even mystical instructions of God.  For the battle is the Lord's if you give it all over to Him!  Randy

Alive!

Over the last two weeks I am hoping you are realizing we are in a battle for the hearts and souls of people.  I wonder if all of the zombie and distopia movies and TV shows express societal realization that something just isn't right.  There is a war going on out there!  We are all in a battle that goes deeper than what we see with our eyes!

Ezekiel, in Chapter 37, is taken by the Spirit to a valley.  It is filled with dry bones.  In Ezekiel's vision the bones represent the nation of Israel that had lost hope in exile.  They have been a battle but have given up and given in to their situation of exile.  They think they are lost and forgotten.

Again, I wonder if we feel lost and forgotten?  We, the Church, are God's people, yet we are oppressed on every side.  And we have contributed to our oppression by adopting unhealthy attitudes like self-preservation, apathy and acquiescence to societal virtues (vs Biblical virtues).  I think today those dry bones represent the Church, dormant and powerless.

In Ezekiel's vision the bones in the valley come alive in stages. First they are just a mass of bones lying on the ground.  Then, as he begins to speak God's word to them, they stand up.  Skin covers the bones, but they are not alive.  They appear alive.  They stand up and move.  But they do not yet have the breath (the Spirit) of God.  They are like the zombies we hear and read about.

Ezekiel continues his work and prophesies to the bones.  God's Spirit, the breath of life, enters them.  The become a massive and powerful army, ready to go out into the battle.

I hope that happens to our people and our Church of today.  I pray that we do not have the form of something living without the life-force (God's Spirit) that gives us power, purpose and prosperity.  I pray that we listen to God's word and become alive with a passion that will astonish our world and our community!  Let's come alive and become the resurrection army that fights the good fight.  Randy

Beautiful Messes

This is a reprint of a Facebook post from earlier in the week. I hope it leads us to remember to keep the main thing the main thing in the midst of created and real distractions ...   Randy
 
Last weekend at the 30a Songwriter Festival I reheard a Ben Glover song called Beautiful Messes. It is a song recorded by Hillary Scott and it reminds us of who we are and that God wants us to be used by Him in spite of our brokenness and infirmities. After seeing neighbors and friends who are dealing with some pretty difficult life issues I wanted to share a few Biblical looks at how we deal with the fears, uncertainties and past mistakes we tend to hang onto. Here goes ...
1) DON'T - Hate to start with a negative but we, as a society, should remember past mistakes and not repeat them. But we should realize that people and bad choices from the past should be left there. In Jesus we have become a new creation and that old life is dead. In Luke 24 Jesus says, "why are do you seek the living among the dead?" So why do we seek life and life-answers among dead things. Remember and leave ... and don't let anyone or anything take you back there!
2) SEEK - Seek what Jesus, in His last prayer, said was an individual and corporate virtue ... unity (John 17). I am honored to live in a community where we share hurts at places like Celebrate Recovery, hear amazing prayers from leaders like Rev. Eddie Thomas at our community Christmas Tree Lighting and share the responsibility of raising up our children "In the way they should go (Proverbs 22:6)" by working with Neandra Green at the Boys and Girls Club! If we seek unity we rise above our messiness to be a better community.
3) DO - Let's all acknowledge that we, as a society, have some pretty messy things happening. So ... stop carping and do something. Be part of the solution! James 1:22 reminds us to take God's word into action by placing what God teaches into action. If you say you are a follower of Jesus, I, like James, will play the "Missouri-card" and say, OK ... show me.
4) GO - Rev. Tony Evans tells us that we are powerless over the issues that plague our communities because we go into daily life under our own powers and authority. We battle spiritual issues with non-spiritual solutions. That clearly is not working. Look back at Martin Luther King's life and ministry. See (it is clear) that Dr. King's greatness was from those times when he heard God's call, expressed God's word, applied God's solutions and followed God even to danger, pain and death. Dr. King changed our world and is still changing it.
5) THANK - Thank God for the people in this community (I have mentioned only a few of them) who work in the trenches. Our leaders who humbled themselves at Christmas to pray, read Scripture and join hands as one people. Our pastors who are living stones that commemorate that God is doing something good here. And thank our Lord that He has raised us (His beautiful messes) out of our self-imposed mirey pit of history/stubbornness/prejudice/hate and set our feet on solid ground ... steadied us as we walked ... called us to witness to all His goodness by placing a new song in our mouths. So ... sing joyfully! Ben Glover was right ... "We're all Davids, we're all Marys, we've been liars, thieves and everything between. But don't forget God used the misfits just like us to do the most amazing things. So bring your faults, your flaws, your secrets and watch Him use those broken pieces." In Christ ... Randy

Reporting

I remember the scene in the movie Major Payne where Major Payne's ROTC crew reports for duty.  They drag in without urgency, without and semblance of duty and without any passion for their ROTC class.  Teachers reading this may say, AMEN!

If we are the "resurrection army" called forth by God's Spirit in Ezekiel, indwelled by the Holy Spirit on Pentecost, sent out as God's witnesses in Acts, how do we report for duty?  In Luke 9 Jesus gives us some pointers.

First and most important, they were equipped and sent by their Commander and Chief, Jesus.  He called them together (their was unity), He gave them authority (His power was their only power that could cast out demons and heal), He sent them out to 'tell everyone about the Kingdom of God.'  All of this was delegated authority from Jesus Himself.  All of this reminds us that we report ready to receive what Jesus gives us.

Second, we report ready for our orders.  We come ready to listen to our commander and follow the orders we are given.

Finally, we must be ready for the positives and the negatives of ministry.  If I were send out on a mission for our military in Iraq, I would be ready for and expect opposition.  It is interesting that the expectation and surety of opposition is part of Jesus' message to His disciples.

Too often our modern day Church fails to follow the pattern Jesus sets forth in Luke 9.  We go in our own authority, trusting our own feelings and relying on our own understanding.  We hear the orders of the one we call master and then do it our way.  We are opposed and we run away, cowering because we have found the battle hard or unpleasant.

Jesus is clear here.  We are called, we are equipped, we are given instruction and we WILL be opposed.  It is what we should expect as we fight in the greatest and most relevant battle ever ... the battle for the hearts and souls of people.  I think this is why Jesus says, in John 15:4, "abide in Me ... and I will remain in you.  For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine."  Nuff said!  Randy