Look to the Book

The Importance of Shechem

2012-01-31T11:31:00.001-08:00

After teachingthree or four lessons per week for almost 22 years, there are not many thingsin the Bible that I have not seen. Imaginemy surprise, then, when last week I came across a story that I had never heardbefore (and I am guessing you have not either).

Joshua andthe people of God have just crossed into the Promised Land and havesuccessfully conquered the first two towns; Jericho and Ai. Momentum is on their side. If I was Joshua, I would continue toattack. Instead, Joshua marches hispeople to the centre of the land, to a place called Shechem.

Shechemsits in a valley between two mountains that are about a mile apart. When Joshua arrives, he takes half of the peopleand puts them on one mountain (Mount Gerizim) and he takes the other half andput them on the other mountain (Mount Ebal). Then, “Joshua read all the words of the law—the blessings and thecurses—just as it is written in the Book of the Law” (Joshua 8:34). Heread the “curses” (the “If you do not follow God, here is the punishment thatyou will face” part) to the people standing on Mount Ebal and he read the “Blessings”(the “Here is how God will care for you if you follow him” portion) to thepeople on Mount Gerizim. After eachline, he had them agree to the terms by saying “Amen” which means “So be it”(See Deuteronomy 27-29). After renewing theircommitment to God, the people go back to conquering the land.

Now, maybe you are thinking, “Ok…so what?” Well, this was not the firsttime that God’s people renewed their commitment at Shechem. In fact, years earlier, God met Abraham atShechem and assured him of the blessing he had received (Genesis 12:6-7). Years later, at the end of his life, whenJoshua wants to make sure that the people of God are still committed to theirfaith, he brings them back to Shechem (Joshua 24:1) and challenges them withthese words, “Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve… But as for meand my household, we will serve the Lord” (Verse 15).

My point: Times of reassessment and recommitment areimportant. Once in a while, we all needto remember and restate what we believe, to whom we belong and where our hopeis found.

In our faith, as with riding abicycle, if we coast too long, we will eventually stop.

Have you been to Shechem lately?

Just Keep Running

2012-01-24T08:46:00.001-08:00

When61-year-old potato farmer, Cliff Young, arrived at the starting line wearingoveralls and work boots, people wondered if he was lost. After all, he was standing among a group ofelite, young athletes who were about to run the 875 kilometers (544 miles) fromSydney to Melbourne, Australia. Youngwas not lost, though. In fact, he wasabout to do something incredible.

Almost assoon as the gun sounded, Young was behind. He ran with a very slow, loping pace that made observers think that hecould not last for more than an hour. Mile after mile, though, he just kept running. Near the end of the first day, when the othercompetitors stopped for the night, Young kept running. The next day, he foundhimself with the leaders again and, by the end of day two, after running mostof the night again, he was in the lead.

In the end, only 6 runnerscompleted the entire distance, with Young ahead of them all. Incredibly, his time of five days, fifteen hoursand four minutes beat the previous best time by almost two full days!

After therace, Young told reporters that he often rounded up his sheep by chasing themaround the field. In fact, he claimedthat he would sometimes run for two or three days straight before he got them allwhere he wanted them. He did not have to“train” for the run, because running was “part of his nature”.

When I readthat story, I immediately thought of Hebrews 12 which says, “Let us throw off everythingthat hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run withperseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, theauthor and perfecter of our faith… so that you will not grow weary and loseheart” (verses 1-3).

Jesus’ death on the cross tookcare of our sin. He paid the debt thatwe simply could not pay (see Titus 3:3-8).

Our job isto accept that gift and then “run with perseverance”. We need to confess our sins and “throw themoff”, so that we are not slowed down and hindered. We need to keep our eyes on Jesus and on ourgoal of heaven so that we do not “grow weary and lose heart”.

As CliffYoung showed, you do not have to be the youngest, the best or even thequickest. Sometimes victory comes tothose who get in the race and simply keep running.

“Run in sucha way as to get the prize” (1 Corinthians 9:23).

Stop Pushing!

2012-01-17T07:27:00.001-08:00

“Now Jericho was tightly shut upbecause of the Israelites. No one went out and no one came in. Then the Lordsaid to Joshua, ‘See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with itsking and its fighting men. March around the city once with all the armed men.Do this for six days. Have seven priests carry trumpets of rams’ horns in frontof the ark. On the seventh day, march around the city seven times, with thepriests blowing the trumpets. When you hear them sound a long blast on thetrumpets, have all the people give a loud shout; then the wall of the city willcollapse and the people will go up, every man straight in’” (Joshua 6:1-5).

On paper, that does not sound toobad, but I think the reality of it must have been different. I can see the Israelites walking around thewall the first day saying, “Hmm, we must be scouting the place today. That is good! Maybe we will find a weak spot where can attack.” I can also see the residents of Jericholooking over their walls in fear. Theyhad heard about what God had done through the Israelites and now there theywere marching around their city. However, there was no attack at the end of day one. The Israelites simply went back to their camp(verse 11).

Day two starts and ends the sameway; march, look, go home.

By days three, four and five Iwould think that “the march” would be getting old to the Israelites and reallyfunny to the people of Jericho.

On day six I think I would havebeen ready to pull my sword and charge the wall by myself.

Have you ever felt like that? You have been dealing with some problemforever and you finally just get to the point where you can’t take it anymoreand, right or wrong, you are going to do something.

Fortunately, Joshua had adifferent mind-set. He waited andlearned two big lessons:

a.In his kingdom, God does the work (See 2 Corinthians 4:5-7)

b.God’s work comes with God’s timing..

I do not know what problems youare facing, or what your “Jericho” is, but I know this: On the seventh day the walls fell and God’speople received an answer that they never expected or could have orchestratedon their own.

I wonder what could be in storefor us if we would just learn to “wait upon the Lord” (Isaiah 40:31).

Looking back to Go Forward

2012-01-10T08:48:00.001-08:00

When the whole nation hadfinished crossing the Jordan, the Lord said to Joshua, “Choose twelve men fromamong the people, one from each tribe, and tell them to take up twelve stonesfrom the middle of the Jordan, from right where the priests are standing, andcarry them over with you and put them down at the place where you staytonight…In the future, when your children ask you, ‘What do these stones mean?’tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of thecovenant of the Lord. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan werecut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever”...And they are there to this day (Selected portions of Joshua 4:1-9).

God knowsthat we are a forgetful bunch. A crisiscomes and so we pray and ask for help. The help comes, the crisis passes and then we sort of forget aboutit. Then the next crisis comes and weact as if we have never seen God act before. We worry and fret that he cannot help us through this huge problem, buthe does… and then we sort of forget about it again.

That is whywe need some monuments in our lives that jog our memories. We need some things that we can look back onand say, “God was at work there”. Thatwas the purpose of the rock monument that God had Joshua build. They needed a reason to retell the story. He essentially tells them, “When yourchildren ask about that pile of rocks, tell them the story of how God took careof you”.

I hope thatyou have stored up some monuments in your life that remind you that God is good. They could be certain people (parents,grandparents, friends, ministers), experiences (mission trips, Bible schools,times at camp), places (a specific church building or a neighbourhood) or evenpassages of scripture that inspire you. Whateverthose things are, it is important to re-visit those monuments and re-tell theirstories often.

I hope,too, that when 2012 ends, you will have added a few new monuments. You see, God’s work did not end “backthere”. He is still active, near andwatching over his people. If we keep oureyes open, if we trust and are led by him, this year could be filled with new storiesto tell and great things to remember.

Rememberingthat “He was there” assures us that “He will be there”.

Peacemakers

2011-12-13T09:16:00.000-08:00

Sometimes ashort verse says a lot. A good exampleof that is James 3:18 which says, “Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvestof righteousness”. Those ten littlewords have a lot to say.

Forinstance, consider the words “peacemakers” and “sow”. Both of these words are active. We are not just to be “peacekeepers” (one whopreserves something that already exists), but “peacemakers” (one who createsconditions where peaceful relationships flourish). Now these words are important because of thedifficulty of the action. It is easierto just think about yourself and what you want, but we are called to do morethan that. We are to be people whoinvest in others.

With that in mind, now considerthe words “raise” and “harvest”. Bothof these words imply something that is long term and somewhat uncertain. Raising something takes time and there certainlyare no guarantees. The crop may gethailed on. You may experience floodingor drought. The harvest is uncertainuntil it is in the barn. The onlyguarantee is that, if you keep doing it long enough, you will get a resultsometime.

This one little verse goesagainst much of what we live with each day (Hurry, worry, self-centredness,greed, consumerism) and it causes us to think upon completely different lines. If we listen to it, then we will become “peacemakers”not troublemakers. We will sow and work ratherthan just sit and watch.

The result of this sort of work,according to our verse, is righteousness – both in us and in others. When we commit to being peacemakers, whenrelationships become the big thing, when we do what is right and not just whatwe want, when we are there with people through thick and thin and when we knowand live by God’s wisdom, then we will see righteousness springing up in us andaround us.

God needs people who can helpbuild bridges between man and man and God and man. You can be that type of person. You can make a difference.

Be a peacemaker who sows in peaceand you will raise a harvest of righteousness.

I am with you Always

2011-12-06T07:52:00.001-08:00

In order tobe successful in most areas of life, whether playing a game, paying your taxes,driving down the street or baking a cake, it is necessary know the rules andhow things work.

Thatprinciple is on display at the start of the Exodus. As Godbegins to lead his people, he makes sure that they have the “baselineknowledge” that they need. In fact, hecommunicates it to them in two ways: First he shows them and then he tells them.

The showingpart is one of my favourite stories. “The Amalekites came and attacked theIsraelites… Moses said to Joshua, ‘Choose some of our men and go out to fightthe Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill with the staff of Godin my hands. So Joshua fought the Amalekitesas Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. Aslong as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever helowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. When Moses’ hands grew tired,they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held hishands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steadytill sunset. So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword” (Exodus 17:8-13).

I like thisstory because there is no ambiguity, or doubt as to why the Israelites won thisbattle. Was it because they werestronger? No! Were they better strategists? No! Did they have better weapons? No! Why did they win? They won because they trusted God and he gavethem the victory. Every time Mosesstopped praying, they began to lose. When he continues to pray, they win. It is as simple as that.

Then, justin case they did not make the connection, God says to them: “You yourselves have seen what I did toEgypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings” (Exodus 19:4). He wanted them to remember that all thesegood things happened simply because God himself had “carried them” and lookedafter them.

So thequestion becomes: Do you believe in aGod like that? Do you believe that Godknows you and is actively working in your life?

You see, itis easy to believe in “some God somewhere”. It is another thing to say, “God is with me”.

Everythingin the Spiritual realm works on that understanding.

“If God isfor us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31)

When Life is Hard

2011-11-29T11:15:00.001-08:00

Some weeksin your life live on forever in your memory, either because they were so greator so bad. Without going into detail,let me just say that I will remember last week for a long time, but not becauseit was good.

That, then, brings up aninteresting question for people of faith: “What do you do when life is hard?”

Some peoplethrow in the towel. Their thinking seemsto be, “I have been faithful and God has not protected me. Therefore, either God is not there at all, orif he is there he is mean and uncaring”. That thinking, though, rests on an assumption that God’s only purpose isto cater to our wants and desires as if he is somehow our “Holy Butler”. What if that is wrong? Maybe (as we see with our own kids) being “overprotective”is the worst thing God could do for us. Certainly, some of the most people in the Bible faced “ups” and “downs”in life. Even Jesus faced times ofsadness and struggle, so if God’s own son was not immune from it, what wouldmake us think that we should be?

That, then,brings us back to the question: “What doyou do when life is hard?” Part of theanswer, at least, can be found in the Old Testament book of “Psalms”.

Psalms isthe “hymn book” of ancient Israel and there is one type of Psalm thatoutnumbers all the others: “Laments”. To“lament” means to “to mourn aloud, to wail” or “to express sorrow”. More than 50% of the Psalms say things like: Howlong must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart? (Psalm13:2); I have suffered much (Psalm 119:107); Be merciful to me, O Lord, for I am in distress; my eyes grow weak withsorrow, my soul and my body with grief (Psalm 31:9): In my distress I called tothe Lord; I cried to my God for help. From his temple he heard my voice; my crycame before him, into his ears (Psalm 18:6).

The thingto note is that the writers have not stopped talking to God. In spite of their problems, they continue tobelieve that God will see, hear and act.

When the stormsof life come (and they will), letting go of God and his promises only compoundsyour trouble. The thing to do is to holdon even more tightly until the storm passes.

Fortunately,God is a master at working in the storm.

Remember, every miracle everperformed started with someone who had a problem.

The Deep End

2011-11-22T09:14:00.001-08:00

I saw acartoon last which in which a couple is talking to a preacher and the wife says,“If you promise that he won’t have to say anything, sing anything or giveanything, Harvey is ready to become a member of the church”. That might be funny if it was not so true. Many people, it seems, think that their spirituallife consists of showing up, sitting through a service and then going home. Put in your hour per week and you have beenfaithful. Unfortunately, that simplydoes not work.

Some thingsin life are only learned by doing. Youcan read all kinds of books about driving a car, but you will not be able tohandle stopping on an icy road until you get behind the wheel and do it a fewtimes. You can read all the romancenovels you want, but you will not know what dating is really like until you goon a date. Your first day at work will remaina mystery until you fill out the application, get a job and go in for yourfirst day. Faith works the sameway. While salvation is a free gift ofGod’s grace, until you do something about it, until you try to live your faith,it is all just theory and good ideas.

That is thepoint of Romans chapter twelve. Itbegins, “Therefore, I urge you brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer yourbodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritualact of worship” (verse 1). The chapterthen goes on to list more than fifty different ways that they could put their“worship” in action. The list includesthings like: serve, encourage, give, show mercy, be cheerful, be generous,cling to what is good, be joyful, be hopeful, be patient, practice hospitality,living in harmony with others, feed your enemies and (the last line of thechapter that sums it all up) “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evilwith good” (for a full list see Romans 12:2-21). Obviously, faith is meant to be an active,not passive.

When I wasyoung, my mom used to take me to a paddle pool at a park near our house. I would splash around in there and think thatI was swimming. In reality, I was not“swimming” so much as I was “crawling” on the bottom of the pool.

Thepoint: You cannot learn to swim in thepaddling pool. If you want to reallyswim, you have to go to the deep end.

Similarly,faith will never mature if we only play around in the shallow end. For faith to deepen it must be active andalive.

The deep end awaits.

Knocked Down but not Out

2011-11-15T08:55:00.001-08:00

The book ofMark is the shortest and possibly the oldest of the gospel records. In fact, most of what Mark records can befound in Matthew, Luke or John. However,Mark does include a few unique details and phrases. One of the most beautiful of which can befound in his account of the resurrection.

On thatSunday morning, when the women reached Jesus’ empty tomb, they met a young mandressed in a white robe (presumably an angel) and he said, “Don’t bealarmed. You are looking for Jesus theNazarene, who was crucified. He hasrisen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him”.

Then comes one of the nicest, twoword phrases in all of scripture: “But go, tell his disciples AND PETER” (Mark16:6-7).

You mayremember that Peter’s failure had been the most obvious and the most blatant.Sure, everyone else deserted Jesus at the cross, but it was Peter who deniedeven knowing him – three times! Worsethan that, Jesus told Peter ahead of time that this was going to happen towhich Peter vowed, “Even if all fall away, I will not” (Mark 14:29)… but hedid.

Maybe thatis why God’s messenger makes it clear that Peter is to be told the good news ofthe resurrection personally. Maybe Godwanted to make sure that Peter knew that his failure had not disqualified him fromthe kingdom.

I like thatlittle phrase, “and Peter”, because it reminds me that I serve a gracious andcompassionate God. God certainly demandsthat I live a life worthy of the calling I have received (Ephesians 4:1),but he also provides his grace for the times that I don’t.

From thispoint on, Peter is a different man. Hegoes from fearful to bold and from denying to proclaiming. He preaches the first gospel sermon (Acts 2)and he is the leader in the early church.

Now, I donot know what you have been through in your life, or what you think you havefailed at or could have done better. Ido know this though; you have not disqualified yourself from the kingdom of Godor from God’s love. Like the ProdigalSon we can all come back. We can turnaround. We can repent and start again.

Who knows? Maybe God has great plans for you too.

Perfect Posture

2011-11-08T11:41:00.000-08:00

Jesus is inthe temple courts when the religious leaders bring a woman to him and say, “Teacher,this woman was caught in the act of adultery. In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?” (John 8:5). They do this because they think that they cantrap Jesus. If he says, “She should bekilled” then, not only would some of his followers be outraged, but so wouldthe Romans who ruled the land. They werethe only ones who had the power to execute anyone. However, if Jesus says, “Let her go”, thenthe Jewish people would accuse him of not following the law of God. Jesus, though, avoids the trap by doingsomething completely unexpected.

“Jesus bent down and started towrite on the ground with his finger” (Verse 6). People often ask, “What did he write on the ground?”, but I think thatis wrong question (As an aside, we are never told what he wrote). To me, the real question is, “Why did hechoose to bend down in the first place?” I mean, he is in the middle of an angry mob! You would think that, if anything, Jesuswould “stand up” against these people. Why does he bend low to the ground?

The answer: because that is likely where the woman was!

Think about it. She has been “caught in the act”, draggedout, humiliated in the most sacred and public place in town and now the peopleare gathering stones with which to kill her. Where is the woman in this picture? Though scripture says that she is “standing” before Jesus, you can wellimagine that she is cowering near the ground; and that is where Jesus meetsher. He assumes a physical position thatcommunicates his figurative position. One that says, “It is ok! I amwith you. I am on your side”.

Jesus’ posture speaks volumes andI think it is a lesson for us. If we areever going to share the message of God with others, we have to assume a posturethat gives us a hearing. We must lookmore like the crouching Jesus than the angry mob. As one author says, “If your posture (orapproach) is wrong, you will always be perceived as an enemy or a judge” and ifthat happens, the message is likely finished before it starts.

The story ends with Jesus tellingthe woman to, “Go now and leave your life of sin”. He does not shy away from telling her thatshe needs to change, but he does it in a way that she wants to hear it. He says it as a friend, not as a foe.

Posture is important!

We Need This

2011-11-01T12:50:00.000-07:00

Moses was in a toughposition. In one ear, he had the voiceof God telling him to lead the Israelites. In the other, he could hear the whining, complaining and grumbling of agroup of people who were not exactly ideal followers. Moses was tired of being in the middle and heneeded some help.

Have youever felt like that? Have you ever cometo a place in your faith where you thought, “I can’t do this anymore”? If so, keep reading, because Moses has asolution.

Now, if I amMoses, I know what I would do. I would askfor some assurance that things are going to be ok. I would ask to see God’s road map for myjourney, or maybe I would want to look over his plan (in full detail). At the very least, I would want to know,before I took one more step, how it was all going to end.

Moses, interestingly, asks forsomething quite different.

Moses comesto God and simply says, “Show me your glory” (Exodus 33:18). In the midst of his trouble, Moses asks tosee God.

What? Why would he do that? Well, because it is exactly what he needed! Moses knew that if he saw God, if he got thatpicture planted firmly in his mind, nothing would stop him. Surprisingly, that has always been thekey. Think about people like Noah,Abraham, Ezekiel, Isaiah and Paul. Theywere unstoppable in their faith after they had a vision of God or of hisSon.

That vision was big enough tochange them and it can do the same for us. In fact, if you are struggling with your faith, I would almost guaranteethat the problem has nothing to do with your knowledge (most of us know morethan we do already). The bigger issue islikely that you do not have a compelling enough picture of God.

Hebrews 12 says, “Let us throw off everythingthat hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run withperseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, theauthor and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured thecross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will notgrow weary and lose heart” (verses 1-3).

When we get the right picture, thenwe will be able to run.

The “Tent of Meeting”

2011-10-26T09:32:00.001-07:00

God’speople were in big trouble. Shortlyafter being told that they were to “Have no other gods” and that they were notto make “an idol” (Exodus 20), they, inexplicably, create a Golden Calf andworship it (Exodus 32). God’s reactionto this incident is to withdraw his presence from the people. “I will send an angel before you… but I willnot go with you” (Exodus 33:2-3).

Moses knew thathe has to find a way to re-connect the people to God, so he came up with aplan. “Now Moses used to take a tent andpitch it outside the camp some distance away, calling it the ‘tent of meeting’.Anyone inquiring of the Lord would go to the tent of meeting outside the camp. Andwhenever Moses went out to the tent, all the people rose and stood at theentrances to their tents, watching Moses until he entered the tent. As Moseswent into the tent, the pillar of cloud would come down and stay at theentrance, while the Lord spoke with Moses. Whenever the people saw the pillarof cloud standing at the entrance to the tent, they all stood and worshippedeach at the entrance to their tent” (Exodus 33:7-10).

Moses’“tent of meeting” had two significant functions. First, it gave the people a place to worshipGod together. That is important because,when people come together to worship, they connect to God in a way that theycannot otherwise. In fact, in Matthew18:20, Jesus states, “For where two or three gather in my name, there am I withthem”. There is a special blessing to befound when believers come together.

Secondly,the “Tent of meeting” gave people an opportunity for times of private worshipand reflection. Those who wanted to“inquire of the Lord” would go out to the tent and meet him there. Worshipping in a group is great, but for ourfaith to be real and alive we each need some time of private reflection. We need to set aside time to think and topray. The “tent of meeting” provided thisopportunity and helped reconstruct the link between God and his people.

Interestingly,things have not changed that much. Thosetimes public of worship and private reflection are still absolutely vital toour faith.

So it isworth asking: “Do you have a ‘tent ofmeeting’ in your life?”

(Ps. Please know that you would be welcome toworship with us any Sunday. As well, Ihave some hints that may help you start a “quiet time” with God. If you are interested, please contact me atthe church office)

Unintended Consequences

2011-10-18T12:18:00.001-07:00

A newsheadline this past week read, “Cellphone call limits suggested by HealthCanada”. The story went on to say that,though more study is needed, parents should encourage children to limit thetime that they spend talking on their cellphones. The concern comes from the radiation thatcellphones emit and the thinking that it may harm children whose brains, skullsand immune systems are still developing.

In churchon Sunday, I asked, “Have any of you done anything differently in light of thiswarning?” Interestingly, though mostpeople had seen the story (or others like it), not one person said that theyhad changed their actions. Why?

I think ithas to do with the fact that the consequences are not immediate. The issue, if there is one, is going to surface,not now, but 30 years from now, so we just keep doing what we do. If the consequence was immediate, if youburned your ear every time you used your phone, you would likely change youractions immediately.

I think weoften apply the same thinking to sin. Infact, we have come up with lists of what we think are “big sins” (such as murderand adultery) and “little sins” (such as gossip and “little white lies”) based,mostly, on the immediacy and severity of the consequence. If I cheat on my wife, for example, I lose myfamily, my house, my money and maybe my job (that is a big deal). If, on the other hand, I gossip aboutsomeone, generally speaking nothing really visible happens (so I am lessconcerned about it).

But whatif, ultimately, all sin is rightly understood as a rebellion against God and,therefore, has the same consequence? Sin,“big” or “small”, puts distance between God and me.

“This isthe message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in himthere is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walkin the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. But if we walk in thelight, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and theblood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin” (1 John 1:5-7)

While Iwill never be perfect, my thoughts and actions are important, not only becauseof what happens now, but because they are ultimately forming my character and,therefore, affecting my relationship with God. That is worth some thought.

“Just as he who called you isholy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: ‘Be holy, because I am holy’”(1 Peter 1:15-16)

Of First Importance

2011-10-11T12:35:00.001-07:00

“For what Ireceived I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for oursins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on thethird day according to the Scriptures and that he appeared to Peter, and thento the Twelve” (I Corinthians 15:3-5).

Sometimeswe are very selective in our reading and teaching of the word of God. I do not think that we do it intentionally,but it happens. For instance, think abouthow we teach the story of the New Testament. We like both the birth and baptism of Jesus, so they get a lot ofattention. We dissect and dig into the“Sermon on the Mount” (Matthew 5-7). Welove the parables and the miracles of Christ. We dwell on the cross and its meaning.

Then, something odd happens. Often (in my experience anyway) in our rushto get to “The Day of Pentecost” and the starting of the church in the book ofActs, we skip over the most important part. “At dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Marywent to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of theLord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone andsat on it… The angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that youare looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen’”(Matthew 28:1-6).

“He has risen!” Those are the words that changed everything. In a split second everything went from bad togood and from disaster to glory. Suddenly the hopeless had hope, the joyless were rejoicing and thosewhose dreams had been crushed had something to live for again. That one message changed the disciples and thenit changed the world

The resurrection is about “newbeginnings”. It is about “second chances”. It is about God being able to do something thatno one dreamed could happen.

In a world that grinds us downand wears us out, the memory of the empty tomb can re-adjust our focus and giveus hope. It is a reminder that no matterhow bad things look, God can redeem them and make them useful.

“Behold I make all things new” (Revelation21:5).

Waiting on the Lord

2011-10-04T12:54:00.000-07:00

HaroldHackett, a 58 year old man from Prince Edward Island, has an interestinghobby. Over the past fifteen years, hehas tossed more than 5 000 “messages-in-a-bottle” into the Gulf of the St.Lawrence with hopes that they will make their way to the Atlantic Ocean. He has since received about 3100 responsesfrom people in places like Iceland, the U.K., the Netherlands, France, Germany,and as far away as Africa and South America. One bottle even made it to the Pacific Ocean, somehow landing in SanFrancisco. Recently, he received a replyfrom one of the first bottles that he threw overboard. It took fifteen years for the bottle to washashore, to be found and then responded to and that is what makes it interestingto him. You never know how long it willtake or from where you will receive your response.

Uponhearing that story, someone pointed out to me that tossing bottles in the oceanis somewhat similar to what we experience when we pray. Our prayers, like Harold’s bottles, havespecific ideas and messages in them. Once the prayer is “thrown overboard” we wait. We have no control over where the reply willcome from or how long it will take to be received. Sometimes it may take years for us to receivethe answer or to see the blessings of the circumstance.

That,thankfully, is where the similarity ends, though. You see, our prayers take a much more directpath than do Harold’s messages. Whilethe bottles aimlessly float around the ocean until they happen to be found, weare assured that our prayers are not only heard, but are acted upon.

Aboutprayer, Jesus says, “Ask and it shall be given to you; seek and you will find;knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives; he who seeks finds; and to him whoknocks, the door will be opened” (Luke 11:9-10).

Even moreimportantly, our prayers are not only directed to God, but they are supplementedby Christ and the Holy Spirit. “In thesame way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought topray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that wordscannot express (Romans 8:26). To“intercede” means to “to plead on another’s behalf” and that is what the HolySpirit and Jesus do for us. “ChristJesus… is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us” (Romans8:34).

It may take a while and we maynot always get the answer that we want, but be assured that prayer is worth theeffort.

God always hears and alwaysresponds.

Grocery store or Fair rides?

2011-09-27T12:28:00.001-07:00

With all due respect, there is a huge difference between standing in line at the grocery store and standing in line for a ride at the fair.

At the grocery store, the wait is boring. At the fair, you stare at the ride and anticipate what it is going to be like when you get to go on. At the store, the goal is to get through the line as quickly as possible, so you choose your line based on the number of people in it and how many items they are purchasing. At the fair, the length of the line is often irrelevant, because you choose your line based what is at the end (the ride).

When you finally do get to the head of the line at the grocery store, there is no fanfare and it is not that interesting. You pay for your stuff and move on. At the fair, the head of the line means all kinds of things such as: excitement, fear, ups and downs, laugher, screams, having your stomach in your throat and "hanging on for the ride".

Unfortunately, for too many people, faith is more like the grocery store than the fair. It is more hum-drum than exciting. However, as I read the about the early church, their experience was anything but boring. Think, for example, about the women who went to Christ’s tomb that first resurrection Sunday. Getting up at dawn, they did not expect anything miraculous to happen that day. They were simply going to pay their last respects to someone they loved. Soon, though, they found an unguarded tomb, an open entrance and an angel who said, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen” (Matthew 28:5-6). That event, that message, changed everything. Suddenly, they were no longer simply dragging themselves to the tomb to do their duty. Instead, they found themselves “hanging on for the ride” that God had planned from the beginning of time.

Those involved with the resurrection and the early church were not “asleep in the pew”. They were excited, anticipating and engaged in what God was doing in, through and around them.

Maybe it is time to rethink our faith. Maybe we need to read the “old story” with new eyes. Maybe then we would catch some of the same joy and enthusiasm that those earlier followers experienced. Maybe we would even find something worth sharing with others.

Faith is too important for it to be boring.

Brave Enough to Try

2011-09-20T12:39:00.000-07:00

“For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline” (2 Timothy 1:7).

I have always heard that verse applied to either “evangelism”, or “preaching” with the emphasis being placed on the need for “boldness” in both. The idea being that we are not to be scared to share what we believe. That is not a bad lesson to take from this verse, but I do not think it is the only one, or even the most accurate one.

What if Paul’s real concern is that Timothy is too timid for his own good? Maybe Timothy is missing out on God’s blessings by being too cautious and not trusting God enough. If that is the case, then this verse takes on a completely new meaning.

Consider the context: Paul writes, “I have been reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also” (verse 5). Paul sees in Timothy that same spark, that same faith, that he saw in the rest of his family. At least he is “persuaded” it is there. Maybe it is not quite what it should be yet. Maybe Timothy is holding himself back and is not living up to his full potential.

This thought becomes more plausible as we read on. “For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God” (verses 6). Each of us has been around a campfire or a fireplace that had the beginnings of a fire in it. You can imagine the crumbled paper and the smoldering sticks. What do you do to get a fire like that going? You blow on it or you “fan it into flame”. Timothy needs to be “on fire” and, apparently, at the moment, he is not.

That, then, is why Paul reminds Timothy that, “We do not have a spirit of timidity” (verse 7). We are not meant to “hold back” in our faith. We are not meant to be scared. Every time we hesitate and do not do the good we know we should, we miss out on an opportunity and the blessing we would have received.

To state it positively, Timothy needs to throw himself into his faith, into loving and caring for people and into his own self-training and discipline. Only when he does that, will he see faith grow in himself and in others.

God still works with those who are brave enough to try.

The Rush

2011-09-13T08:13:00.000-07:00

If you had a “Top Fuel Dragster” (one of those really long drag racing cars with the big wing on the back), you could get through our town in a heartbeat. Top fuel dragsters can reach speeds of 333 mph (536 km/h) and finish quarter mile runs in less than 4.5 seconds. Their acceleration is so amazing that they can go from a standstill to 100 mph (160 km/h) in as little as 0.7 seconds. They are absolutely bizarre to watch.

As fast as they are, though, you could not drive one to Vancouver. In fact, if you lined one up on 4th street it would not make it to the weigh scales before blowing itself up. An article in “Popular Mechanics”, talking about the forces that these engines withstand, stated that by the time a Top Fuel dragster gets to the end of the quarter mile run, the valves in the engine are literally melting from the heat (if you ever go to a big drag racing event you will see the crews rebuilding the engines after every run). Those engines are designed to run as hard as possible for about 5 seconds and then they are done. They can go faster than any other car on the planet, but they tear themselves apart to do it.

The point: You can either go super-fast for a short period of time, or you can go a long distance over a long period of time (like your passenger car does), but you cannot do both.

The same is true of humans. Way back in the Bible, Moses learned this lesson. As the leader of God’s people, he was trying to do everything. He was even spending entire days listening to all the problems that the people were having with one another. When his father-in-law, Jethro, saw this he said, “What you are doing is not good. You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone” (Exodus 18:17-18). Moses listened and appointed other leaders to help him.

In a world that is likely demanding that you “do more”, “be more” and “take more responsibility”, it is up to you to set some boundaries. You need to make sure that you are spending your time on the things that really matter to you and not just the “urgent” things. Time spent in rest and reflection is not wasted.

The fact is that you can run hard for a while, but not for long.

Ready

2011-09-06T10:08:00.001-07:00

When we were on vacation in Oregon this summer, we visited several lighthouses. At one, a man, dressed as the “keeper” of the lighthouse, explained how the lighthouse operated and what life was like in the 1870s.

One of the most interesting things that he told us had to do with the expectations that came with being the lighthouse keeper. Not only was the light to be kept lit from an hour before sundown until an hour after sunrise, but the log book had to be up to date, the house had to be kept clean and, most interestingly (to me), the Keeper, as a member of the military, had to wear his uniform at all times while on the job.

Now this was interesting for a couple of reasons. First, the uniform looked very uncomfortable (Google it and you will see). The three quarter length jacket looked very heavy and hot. The shirt, tie, wool pants and boots did not look like they were built for relaxing in and, to top it off, he had to wear his hat at all times. Trust me when I say that the guy dressed as the Keeper was the most overdressed person in the entire State Park that day.

The other reason the “uniform rule” was interesting to me was the simple fact that, back in the 1800’s, there may not have been anyone within 50 miles of the lighthouse on any given day. Lighthouses were out in the middle of nowhere. That did not matter, though. Whether the Keeper had visitors every day, or no one had stopped by for months, he wore the uniform. Why? One reason: the lighthouse inspector.

The inspector never announced his coming. He would just show up. It may be months between visits. It may be days. However, when he showed up, the light had to be operational, the books had to be in order, the guest room had to be ready and the Keeper had to be in uniform. If any of those things were out of order, the Keeper could be fired on the spot.

Jesus said, “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father… Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come” (Matthew 24:36 and 42).

As Jesus would say, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear”.

Fear or Trust?

2011-08-30T08:22:00.000-07:00

“The whole Israelite community… grumbled against Moses and Aaron… ‘He (the Lord) has heard your grumbling against him. Who are we, that you should grumble against us? You are not grumbling against us, but against the Lord’… ‘Come before the Lord, for he has heard your grumbling’…The Lord said to Moses, ’I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites’” (Selected portions of Exodus 16:1-12).

When I read that passage for the first time this past week, I knew I had an easy sermon to preach. All I had to do was focus on two facts: First, these people were being led and blessed by God. Second, in spite of their blessings, they still found reasons to complain. Compare them to us, we live in one of the most prosperous countries in the world and yet the coffee shops are full of gripers, and this sermon was going to write itself.

There was just one problem. The more I read the passage, the clearer it became that “grumbling” was not their real problem. They did not have an “attitude” problem. Rather, they had a “trust” problem. They were not just grouchy, they were scared.

How do I know this? Well, look back one chapter. Exodus 15 contains one of the greatest hymns of praise in the Old Testament. The people are rejoicing, singing and acknowledging God’s goodness. They knew how to be thankful when God was good to them. Unfortunately, they just were not convinced that God was always going to be good to them.

Therefore, throughout this passage (and the rest of the Bible, for that matter), God tries to show his people what he is like and how he will treat them. He wants them to know that he is more powerful than any of their problems. Notice, for example, that when God promises to solve their specific problem by sending them food to eat, he adds this line, “Then you will know that I am the Lord your God” (Exodus 16:12).

Do we know that? Have we learned that lesson? Do we know that God is in charge, that he cares, that he is powerful, that he is near and that he has a plan, or are we still “grumbling” and “complaining” and “fearful” every time something goes wrong?

Spiritual maturity has begun, and God’s peace will be found, when we stop complaining and start trusting.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:5-6)

Led By God

2011-08-23T08:51:00.000-07:00

If a picture is worth a thousand words, maybe sixty-two words that give you a picture are worth something too.

When God rescued his people from Egypt, we read, “By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night. Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people” (Exodus 13:21-22).

I like the picture of God always being in front of them. They were not alone. Night and day, God was guiding their path and protecting them along the way. There was no guessing. They simply followed and went where God wanted them to go.

What if that were said of us? What would our lives look like if we could truly say that we were being “led by God”? I have a hunch that we would end up looking a lot like Jesus. Think about the way he lived. What was his agenda? What would his appointment book or his “to do list” for any given day look like? I am just guessing here, but I think it would be blank. It seems that Jesus lived his life simply responding to God and to the people around him. He healed the sick. He gave sight to a blind man who asked for help. He talked to an outcast woman that he met at a well. He raised a young man to life after meeting his heartbroken mother. It seems that Jesus’ only plan was to be “led by God” and to take advantage of the opportunities that he was given each and every day. In fact, he underlined this attitude several times when he said things like, “I do nothing on my own but speak just what the Father has taught me” (John 8:28).

“So God led the people” (Exodus 13:18). That is not just a comment about the past, but a promise for the future. The pillar of cloud and fire may be gone, but the God who guides and protects his people is still here. We simply have to listen and trust him and he will lead us home.

“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me” (John 10:27).

Liar, Liar

2011-08-16T10:06:00.000-07:00

In Isaiah 36, enemies of God’s people send them a series of messages designed to discourage them. Read over this list and see if you have ever heard Satan whispering these things in your ear.

Lie #1: You are weak and helpless (Isaiah 36:4-6). That is good one. If Satan can make us believe this, if he can take away our hope, then we will quit before we even start. Why try if nothing will get better, right?

Lie #2: God will not or cannot help you (verse 7). The two pronged approach here is to question God’s ability (“Sure he did all that stuff in the Bible, but this is ‘real life’”) and his disposition (“God is not going to help you after what you have done”). If Satan can make us think that God is either ineffective or that he is mad at us, we lose the very strength that we need.

Lie #3: It is good to compromise (Verses 8-10). This works well for Satan because if we modify our beliefs enough, it is as good as giving them up completely. We feel faithful and yet we are ineffective.

Lie #4: It is better that no one knows what is happening (Verses 11-12). Sin lives in silence. That is why the Bible talks so much about “confessing our sins”. We can deal with things when they are “on the table”. Silence just makes things worse.

Lie #5: You need to be scared (Verses 13-20). Fear prevents us from dealing with things positively. It makes us withdraw and become inactive (“Better to leave well enough alone, right?”). Interestingly, the command that Christ gave more than any was “Do not be afraid!”

Fortunately, God’s people did not listen to these lies. Instead, they continued to trust and pray and God saved them (See Isaiah 37 for the rest of the story) and he will do the same for us. Do not believe the lies. God is powerful. He is active. He is working in your life and he is just waiting for you to seek and acknowledge him.

Everything hinges on which information we choose to believe.

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (Romans 15:13).

This Little Light of Mine

2011-08-09T12:33:00.000-07:00

Just off the bay in Newport, Oregon stands the “Yaquina Bay Lighthouse”. Believed to be the oldest building in town, it is certainly one of the prettiest (Google it if you are interested). It is also happens to be the only lighthouse on the Oregon coast that has the light attached to the Keeper’s house.

One other thing about the “Yaquina Bay Lighthouse” that makes it interesting is that it was shut down after only three years of service. It was built in 1871 and it was decommissioned in 1873. Why? Did they have a fire? No. Did a storm damage the lighthouse? No. Did they decide that they did not need a lighthouse? No.

In fact, it was shut down because the light could not be seen. More accurately, the light could not be seen by ships that were travelling south down the coast. The headlands just north of the bay stuck out into the ocean in such a way that they blocked the sightlines and made the lighthouse ineffective. To remedy the situation, the original lighthouse was closed and a new one was built out on the headlands (it is called the “Yaquina Head Lighthouse” and it is still being used). The “Yaquina Bay Lighthouse” is now a very nice tourist attraction in a very nice State park, but it does not give light or help guide those who need it.

In Matthew 5, Jesus says, “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your father in heaven” (verses 14-16).

The simple lesson: A lighthouse has only one job and that is to shine a light in a way that is can be seen and recognized. If it does not do that, then it is not a useful lighthouse. You can paint it and maintain it and make it look pretty, but it has to shine. Similarly, Christians can study and know a lot, but unless we are living our faith and the light of Christ is shining in us and through us, then our effort is useless.

However, when lighthouses (and Christians) shine, they can be surprisingly helpful and effective.

“You are the light of the world”.

Monuments and Memories

2011-07-05T13:11:00.001-07:00

This past weekend, “Clearview Christian Camp” at Kenosee Lake celebrated its 50th Anniversary. Clearview is sort of a “sacred place” for me. Just being there brings back good memories of laughing around the campfire, work days building cabins and of people who lived their faith and were an example to me. Just being at that camp always connects me to good things from the past.

Why am I telling you this? Well, lately I have been thinking more about the importance of memories. When a person loses their memory, either because of injury or age, they lose something very significant. Somehow, our ability to live well now is tied to our ability to remember what has gone on before.

That is the principle that is on display in Joshua chapter four. After God miraculously stopped the flow of the Jordan River so the Israelites could cross into the promised land, he gave this command: “Choose twelve men from among the people, one from each tribe, and tell them to take up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan from right where the priests stood and to carry them over with you and put them down at the place where you stay tonight” (Verses 2 and 3). Then he added, “In the future, when your children ask you, ‘What do these stones mean?’ tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever… and they are there to this day” (Verses 6-7 and 9).

The Israelites needed that pile of stones and that “sacred place” as a reminder. They needed that spot so that they would have the chance to tell their story. It was of utmost importance that they remember how God had taken care of them in the past, so God gave them a place to do it.

So it is worth asking: When the next generation looks at the “monuments” that you are leaving behind, what stories will they tell?

We are building tomorrow’s memories today, so we better build well.

Beyond the Junk

2011-06-28T13:36:00.000-07:00

This past week, the Canadian Space Agency hosted the first ever “Orbital Debris Workshop”. The purpose of the conference was to talk about “space junk” and what to do about it. Apparently, there are more than 16 000 pieces of debris, such as defunct satellites and spent rockets, which are being tracked and monitored. Beyond that, there are another 6 000 pieces that scientists are aware of but have not catalogued. There are also believed to be more than 100 000 pieces of space junk smaller than 5 centimetres in diameter that are currently orbiting their way around the earth.

All this junk is a big problem for those who operate satellites or send people into space. For example, in 1983 the Space Shuttle Challenger came back to earth with a huge crack in one of its windows after it was struck by a paint chip that was floating around. The “International Space Station” has had to change course and the astronauts have been on “evacuation alert” several times because of incoming hazards. To paraphrase one scientist: “If we could get rid of all the junk, we could get back to launching rockets and doing science. As it is, we end up wasting a lot of time on things that are not directly related to our real mission”.

Sadly, I can relate to that. I spend a lot of time worrying about “junk”, rather than focusing on what I am actually here to do. Often my real purpose gets pushed to the side.

This is not new. In fact, the apostle Paul struggled hard to remain on task and encouraged his readers to do the same. “Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15:1-4).

The simple message of the death, burial and resurrection of Christ was of “first importance” to Paul and it ought to be to us as well.

It is easy to get distracted by the junk. Maybe it is time to back to the real mission.

The Best

2011-06-21T14:25:00.001-07:00

Genesis chapter one tells us that man was created in the image of God (verse 26) and that he was created to be in relationship with God. Unfortunately, sin entered the picture and that damaged not only man’s relationship with God (Genesis 3), but also man’s relationship with his fellow man (Genesis 4). As a result, though we should be worshipping God and serving one another, we end up serving ourselves and worshipping anything but God. When that happens, we have trouble, as Psalm 115 points out.

“Not to us, O LORD, not to us, but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness. Why do the nations say, ‘Where is their God?’ Our God is in heaven; he does whatever pleases him. But their idols are silver and gold, made by the hands of men. They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but they cannot see; they have ears, but cannot hear, noses, but they cannot smell; they have hands, but cannot feel, feet, but they cannot walk; nor can they utter a sound with their throats. Those who make them will be like them and so will all who trust in them” (Verses 1-8)

Note the last line: We will become like the thing we worship. In other words, our life will be shaped by whatever we value the most.

We are created to live this life with God in the centre, as the most important thing, so that we can learn from him and be shaped by him for eternity. The principle still stands that “Those who live with Christ now, will live with him in eternity”.

So it is worth thinking about, “What is the most important – the best – thing in your life?”

As popular speaker Louis Giglio notes, “If you are not becoming like God then maybe you are not worshipping the right thing”.

“May you be blessed by the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth… Praise the LORD” (Psalm 115:15 and 18)

The Third Voice

2011-06-13T14:34:00.000-07:00

In Exodus 4, we find an interesting conversation. God has a job for Moses to do and Moses has a bunch of excuses for why he cannot do it. On the surface, this looks like a very straightforward passage, but I want to suggest to you that there is more going on than what we first see. In fact, I think that there is a third voice in this conversation; the voice of Satan. Granted, none of Satan’s words are directly recorded, but I believe his presence is easily recognized by his influence and action.

In this passage, we see one of Satan’s best and most effective tools: “Doubt”. We also hear one of his best and most useful questions: “Really?” Put those two things together and you see the effect on Moses.

“Do you really think anyone will listen to you Moses? Do you really think that this plan will work? Do you really think that you can just walk up to Pharaoh, the most powerful man in the world, and demand the release of the Israelites? Do you really think your ‘miraculous signs’ are going to impress anyone? Do you really think you can be a leader? You???? Really?????”

The key to this strategy is that Satan does not have to directly dispute any of God’s promises. All he has to do is get Moses to start doubting and everything else is irrelevant. The truth, of course, is that God can make Moses successful, but if Moses does not believe that, then nothing happens.

How many times I have missed out on God’s blessings simply because I did not take his promises at face value? How many good things could have been done in me, around me and through me that did not come about because I was listening more to the voice of doubt than to the voice of faith?

Doubt will sink us every time. Faith, on the other hand, allows us to work with the power of God.

Everything in our Spiritual life hinges on listening to the right voice.

“If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.” (James 1:5-8).

One Another

2011-06-07T12:45:00.000-07:00

One of the blessings over the past half century or so has been the emphasis on “a personal relationship with God” that has taught that faith requires more than just being part of a group. For faith to be effective, I need to learn to pray, trust, follow and apply the teachings of the Lord to my own life. Ultimately, on the “Judgment Day” I will not stand with “my group”. My eternity will be determined by what I did about Jesus and his offer of forgiveness on the cross.

However, like most things in life, balance is necessary and in this case maybe we have overcompensated the other way. If, at one time, the prevailing thought was, “Just sit in this building as part of this group and you will be ok”, we may have swung too far the other way so that now we say, “My faith is about me and God and I do not need anyone else”.

Interestingly, though, the Bible seems to suggest that we do need one another. One of the places where this becomes evident is the “one another” passages in the New Testament which, in part, say things like: “Love one another… Be devoted to one another… Honour one another above yourselves… Live in harmony with one another… Stop passing judgment on one another… Accept one another… Instruct one another… Greet one another… Agree with one another… Serve one another… Bear with one another… Be kind and compassionate to one another… Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs… Submit to one another… Teach and admonish one another… Encourage one another and build each other up… Spur one another on toward love and good deeds… Live in harmony with one another… Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.”

In Genesis 4:9, Cain asks the famous question, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” The answer to that question (as strange as it may sound these days) seems to be, “Yes! Yes you are!” I am responsible for my own faith, but somehow, too, I have a responsibility to help you along as well.

Maybe my “personal faith” needs fellowship with others, not in order to valid it, but to practice and grow in it.

If you are looking for a place to practice some of those “one another” things, please know that you would be welcome to join us at any time.

Holy Ground

2011-05-31T12:39:00.000-07:00

“God called to him from within the bush, ‘Moses! Moses!’ And Moses said, ‘Here I am.’ ‘Do not come any closer,’ God said. ‘Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground’” (Exodus 3:4b-5).

When I was growing up in church, I was taught that there were no “Holy Places”. There was nothing sacred about our church building. It was just a building. What made it sacred were the people that gathered there. There was no holy alter or sacred pulpit. Everything was ordinary and nothing was special in and of itself.
Yet, in Exodus 3, Moses, who is literally out in the middle of nowhere in the desert of Midian, stumbles upon “Holy Ground”. He is warned not to take this lightly, because he is in the presence of the living God.

What? How did that happen? How did Moses find the one spot, in the entire world, that was “Holy Ground”? Furthermore, why is it located in such a remote spot? Something is wrong here.

Well, what if my early instruction was wrong? I mean, I get the point that people were trying to make and I still believe it. Buildings are not special. You can gather with others to worship under a tree as easily as in a church building (maybe it is even a better place to worship). There is no special “holy place”.

But what if the opposite is also true? What if “Everywhere” is “Holy Ground” because God is already there?

Would that thought change the way you go about your days? Would it change your conversations in the coffee shops, at work or over the neighbour’s fence if you thought, “This is a place to see God at work”?

The challenge is to see the “extraordinary” in the “every day”. Think about this: When visitors come to Estevan and I take them to see the draglines, they are impressed (as I was the first time I saw them). After living here for 21 years, though, I drive right by them and hardly give them a second glance. If I slow down and actually look at them, though, they become impressive to me again because I am actually “seeing” them. That makes me wonder how much “Holy Ground” and how many “Kingdom opportunities” I pass by every day without even seeing them. Maybe if I was looking for God more often, I would find him in more places.

The ground that Moses stumbled across was Holy simply because God was there.

Everything starts with encountering God wherever you are.

By Faith

2011-05-24T12:42:00.000-07:00

Conventional wisdom says, “Small town churches cannot grow”.

Apparently, the people in Gravelbourg, Saskatchewan have not received that memo yet.

This past weekend, our family was “traded” to Gravelbourg in a “preacher swap” (I went there for the morning and their minister came here) and it was great! We have some good friends there, so that would have made the trip worthwhile in itself, but I was also encouraged by what I saw there. Not only is the congregation “holding its own” but it is also expanding numerically (several new families) and physically (a large, beautiful addition to their building).

Ultimately, all growth comes from the action of God. That was Paul’s point when he talked about the growth of the church in Corinth: “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow” (1 Corinthians 3:6) and I am certain that the Christians in Gravelbourg would say something similar about their growth.

However, I as I looked out over the crowd on Sunday morning, I thought, “There are some new people, but there are also a lot of familiar faces”. In the early 1990s, I used to go to Gravelbourg every summer to help with their “Vacation Bible School” and many of the faithful workers from those days are still the faithful workers in these days. They may be a little older, but they have not quit. They are continuing to live what they believe and are still making a difference in their community.

Their example made me think about Hebrews 11. That chapter recounts some of the greatest things that ever happened in the history of God’s people and each account starts with the phrase “By faith”. In part, it says that “By faith”… Noah built an ark… Abraham left his home to follow God… Moses’ parents hid him to save his life… Moses led the people out of Egypt and through the Red Sea… The walls of Jericho fell. The chapter ends with these words, “These were all commended for their faith” (verse 39). Their faithfulness allowed God a place to work in them and through them.

Several years ago, Eugene Peterson wrote a book entitled, “A Long Obedience in the Same Direction”. I like that title because that is what is required of us. We do not need to do spectacular things. We just need to continue to be led by God and his Spirit. If we are faithful, God can do amazing things.

If you don’t believe me, take a trip to Gravelbourg.

Send me!

2011-05-17T09:31:00.000-07:00

The city of Jerusalem had a problem. Though it had been in ruins for many years, the people had rebuilt the temple and most of the houses. What was still lacking, though, was a wall. And in 446 BC, if you did not have a wall around your city, you were in big trouble.

Eight hundred miles away, in the city of Suza, lived a man named Nehemiah. He was a cup bearer to King Artaxerxes, one of the most powerful men in the world. When Nehemiah heard the news about the city of Jerusalem, it saddened him, because that was his ancestral home.

Eventually the king notices that Nehemiah is not quite himself and asks, “Why does your face look so sad when you are not ill?” (Nehemiah 2:2). When Nehemiah tells him, the king asks, “What is it that you want?” and that is where this story becomes important to us.

Nehemiah’s said, “If it please the king, and if the king thinks well of me, send me to Judah, to the city where my family is buried, so that I can rebuild it” (verse 5).

The most important part of this is that Nehemiah says “Send ME”. Most people in that situation would have said, “Send some royal carpenters” or maybe, “some slaves” or “some money”, but Nehemiah says, “Send me”.

Now, we have no indication that Nehemiah knew how to build a wall. He certainly did not go because he had experience. The people did not seem that concerned about the wall, so he was not going because he had an eager work force. Note too that he was eight hundred miles away. That was virtually the other side of the world in those days. This is not really Nehemiah’s problem. He could have lived his whole life with or without a wall around Jerusalem and it would not have affected his life one bit.

So, why did Nehemiah ask to go?

The short answer: It was the right thing to do.

Nehemiah knew that the people needed help. He knew that God’s city should have a wall. He thought that God’s temple ought to be protected and he decided that if someone needs to go, why not me?

This, by the way, is a rare attitude. Many people can point out the problems. Anyone can be a critic. It does not take much time or effort to see how things “ought to be better”.

It takes a different sort of heart and a different way of thinking to say, “I know what needs to be done and I will do it”.

Incidentally, after lots of prayer, planning and some old fashioned hard work, Nehemiah and the people of Jerusalem successfully rebuilt their wall.

Just one of many examples of what can happen when Godly people have the courage to stand up and say, “Here I am. Send me!” (Isaiah 6:8)

A Different Way To Measure Success

2011-05-10T09:29:00.001-07:00

Buried deep in the Old Testament, in the middle of an obscure book, in an odd chapter, you will find a comment about an otherwise unknown man. The comment is worth digging for because it contains one of the most impressive compliments that anyone in the word of God ever received.

The quote comes from the book of Nehemiah. For fifty-two days, the people of Jerusalem had been focused on rebuilding the wall that protected the city. When that job was complete, Nehemiah appoints two men to govern the city and to watch over its growth. About one of the men he says, “I put in charge… Hananiah… because he was a man of integrity and feared God more than most men do” (Nehemiah 7:2). I think that is impressive for several reasons.

The first thing to notice is that, in God’s kingdom, character trumps competence. Nehemiah does not say, “I appointed Hananiah because is the best book-keeper that I know”. Instead he says, “I appointed Hananiah because he is a good and Godly man”. Now I am sure that he brought some skills to the job (don’t hear me saying that incompetence is a Holy quality), but Nehemiah’s confidence in him was based on who he was rather than what he could do.

Note, too, that he was a man of “integrity”. In other words, he acted consistently. He was not Godly at the temple and otherwise in the workplace. His faith had an effect on everything that he did. Integrity is a much needed quality in the religious world today. Too often people think that Christians are “two faced”, or (to use one of Jesus’ favourite words for the religious people of his day) that they are “hypocrites”. Apparently, that was not true of Hananiah. He lived what he believed.

Lastly, think about the phrase, “He feared God more than most men”. Fear in this case carries the idea of “respect” or “honour”. Hananiah cared about what God thought and what God wanted and that was a good thing.

In a world that measures success in money, status, accomplishments and stuff, maybe this is a better measuring stick. Maybe “success” has much more to do with who you are and how you live, rather than what you do for a living or how much stuff you have.

If we get to the end and people say, “He/she was a person of integrity who feared God more than most”, I think that would be a pretty successful life.

It got Nehemiah’s attention.

Recycled by God

2011-05-03T09:36:00.000-07:00

When you take your old coke bottles to Sarcan, do you know what they become? According to their web site, those bottles can be turned into polyester carpet, fibre fill for winter coats and sleeping bags, green house trays, the plastic scoop that is provided with your laundry detergent, even polyester fleece and t-shirts.

A shirt made from a pop bottle sounds sort of far-fetched, but when things are recycled they can be remade into just about whatever the creator wants.

Did you know that one of the great promises of the word is that God can and will re-create us? He can change us and make us into what he needs us to be.

For example, think about these words that Jesus spoke as he called his first followers: “Come, follow me and I will make you fishers of men” (Matthew 4:19). Notice the “I will make you” part. Notice, too, the new mission that they were given. Those men were fishermen. They had no training or instruction on how to lead, reach or teach others, but that did not matter. Jesus was going to make them into what he wanted and he continues to do that. He makes us useful in his kingdom and changes us into something we never could have become on our own.

In fact, it gets even better than that. Not only does Jesus recycle and redesign us, but he also puts us in the place where we can do our best work. “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:10). God forms us but then he can reform us (in Christ) to do certain things (good works) which he has already prepared ahead of time for us to be involved in.

If we let him, God can move us from where we are into something that is more than we can dream of. We just have to be willing to let him work.

What We Are Here For

2011-04-19T08:38:00.000-07:00

Last week, as part of an art project, a Saskatoon man took people’s pictures with a Polaroid camera and then had them write a “life goal” on their photo. The results were interesting. Some stated that they wanted to travel the world. Several people wanted to write a book. One gentleman wanted to “Run with the bulls” (maybe they should have had a “before” and an “after” picture of him). Maybe the nicest picture was of an older couple, sitting with their arms around each other. Regarding their life goal, one of them had simply written on their photo, “Already accomplished”.

So that got me thinking: What would I write? How about you? What would you write on your photo?

With your answer in mind, think about this: “Our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Saviour from there, the Lord Jesus Christ” (Philippians 3:20).

Does that change your answer in any way? If you are like me, it probably did.

You see, my first reaction to any “life goal” sort of question is to think about “here” and “now”. I may have written something like, “I want to ride a motorcycle across Canada”, but Philippians 3:20 changes my thinking just a little bit.

If it is true that my “citizenship is in heaven”, then it probably makes sense that I focus on the Spiritual part of my life more than I do at times.

Is “eagerly awaiting” a good way to describe my attitude toward eternity and heaven, or are they things that I just sort of think about once in while (mostly on Sunday)?

Do I really understand what it means for Jesus to be my “Saviour”? I must have been saved “from” something and “for” something (See Ephesians 2 for more on this).

My point: there is nothing wrong with enjoying life, it is just that I need a bigger perspective than just “What would I like right now?”

If I have an eternal soul that will live on beyond the grave, maybe part of my “Life goal” should be to look after, not only this life, but the one to come as well.

After all, in the end, it will not just be Jesus’ grave that is found empty. Ours will be as well (1 Corinthians 15).

Seeing God

2011-04-13T14:53:00.000-07:00

“See, the Sovereign Lord comes with power, He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart.
“Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens? Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket, or weighed the mountains on the scales… Who has understood the mind of the Lord, or instructed him as his counsellor? Whom did the Lord consult to enlighten him and who taught him the right way?

“To whom, then, will you compare God? What image will you compare him to? Do you not know? Have you not heard? He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth… He stretches out the heavens like a canopy and spreads them out like a tent to live in. Lift your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls them each by name. Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.

“Why do you say…’My way is hidden from the Lord; my cause is disregarded by my God’? Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint” (selected verses from Isaiah 40).

Spiritual strength comes from knowing God, not from knowing about God. It is good to know some facts and it is great to memorize verses, but what we really need is what Isaiah gave his readers; a picture of a great, big, powerful, in charge God who is looking after everything.

We serve a God who knows us, loves us and is big enough to care for us.

If we get that picture, it will change everything, because we will be living by his strength and not ours.

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7).

Potentially Great

2011-04-05T12:24:00.001-07:00

Samuel had their attention. In fact, the Bible says that the people of Bethlehem “trembled” when they came out to meet him. After all, it is not every day that God’s most powerful prophet just wanders into town.

Previously, God had said to Samuel, “I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king”. When Samuel saw the oldest son, Eliab, he thought, “Surely the Lord’s anointed stands here”, but God said, “Do not consider his appearance of his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

Abinadab was the next in line, but Samuel said, “The Lord has not chosen this one either”. This pattern continued with the next son, Shammah, and every other boy until all seven had unsuccessfully passed before Samuel.

Samuel then asked, “Are these all the sons you have?”

“There is the youngest”, Jesse replied, “but he is tending the sheep.”

Samuel said, “Send for him” and when he arrived the Lord said, “Arise and anoint him; he is the one” (1 Samuel 16:1-13).

When they started looking for the new king amongst Jesse’s boys, no one even thought to call David. Yet, David became one of the greatest leaders in the history of God’s people, not because he was the obvious choice, but because he allowed God to work on him. In fact, one of the most common compliments paid to David was that he was, “a man after God’s own heart” (1 Samuel 13:14 and Acts 13:22). In other words, he was willing to be trained, shaped and made into what God wanted him to be and because of that he experienced God’s blessing and was a blessing to the entire nation.

Apparently God sees things in us that no one else can see (maybe even things that we cannot see right now).

So, what challenges are ahead of you? What sorts of things are you facing? What are you looking at and thinking, “I can’t do that!” or “If only I was more talented” (or more “outgoing” or “bold” or ….. you fill in the blank).

Maybe you are just the person for the job. Maybe God has something planned for you that neither you nor anyone else would guess.

Maybe you just have to start to see yourself as God sees you.

Out of the Box

2011-03-29T12:24:00.000-07:00

You may have heard on the news last week that, in terms of “numbers of stores”, “Subway” is now the largest fast food chain in the world. How did that happen? Of course, they benefitted from the trend toward more healthy diets and away from more traditional “fast foods”. That alone, though, cannot be the secret to Subway’s success, because every fast food chain is offering “healthy” choices on their menus, so what makes Subway unique?

One article stated that they grew because they were willing to be creative. They were not locked into just one way of running a restaurant. Therefore, you can find a Subway restaurant in a Brazilian appliance store, a German Riverboat, a Detroit high school, a church foyer and not a few Saskatchewan gas stations. It is the same food just in a non-traditional outlet. Instead of making the customer come to them, they have decided to set up shop wherever their customers happen to be and it has worked.

As I read that story, I thought about church and wondered, “Have we learned this lesson?” Are we taking our message of hope out to where the people are, or are we sitting back in our “Christian stores” and saying, “If you want what we have, come and find us?”

In Matthew chapter twenty-eight, Jesus says, ““All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (verses 18-20).

You may know that some say that “Therefore go and make disciples” would be better translated “As you are going, make disciples”. One modern English version says, “Go out and train everyone you meet, far and near” (The Message). The idea from the start was that God’s people would be a blessing wherever they went. “As they went” they would help, teach and live their faith and by doing so others would want to become Christians too.

Subway has become ultra-successful because they are committed to serving people wherever they meet them.

The church (and Christians in general) will only be successful, effective and “Biblically correct” when we learn the same lesson.

Hurry Hard!!!???

2011-03-22T09:57:00.001-07:00

Sitting in my Bible College cafeteria, after just finishing three platefuls of spaghetti (I was starving), I looked at the clock and thought, “Hmm, six o’clock… what am I supposed to be doing right now?” My next thought was, “Oh no!”

The college had a guest lecturer in town for the week and one of the teachers had invited him and me over for supper that night at six o’clock. Now, this teacher’s wife was a trained chef, so being invited to her house was a rare treat. Unless, of course, you have just finished eating a year’s supply of spaghetti in one sitting.

Backing out was not an option, so I ran over to the dorm, showered, changed and hurried to Mr. Walker’s residence. Without ever mentioning my first supper, I went in and ate every hors d'oeuvre and every course of the meal placed in front of me. In fact, I even crammed desert in there… seconds too if I remember properly (I couldn’t be rude). I went home that night thinking, “I am never going to eat another thing again”.

The problem, of course was not the amount of food itself. There have been many days since where I have eaten that much food and more with no trouble at all. The problem was the fact that the meals were too close together. If you do not take time to digest anything, even the best French cooking is quite unenjoyable.

My point: Many people live their lives like my “Double supper” day. They jam one activity in on top of the next and run from one event to another. Days are filled with running here and there to the point that we hardly enjoy any of it. Just watch the status lines on Facebook and you will see things like this (Written by a friend of ours who is a young mother): “______ is a little tired of this pressure cooker life I have. Feeling high stress and low hope. Need to swap those around real quick”. Our lives are full, but they are not always fun.

“What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes” (James 4:14).

Some read that and think, “I am only here for a little while, so I better cram as much as I can into my life. I need to have experiences!”

Maybe another way to see it is to say, “I am only here for a little while, so I better slow down and see the important things before they are gone”.

“Be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10).

Follow the Leader

2011-03-15T10:02:00.001-07:00

Recently, I read quote that said, “We have been taught a watered down version of following Jesus for so long that people think it is Christianity, but it is not Biblical”.

I do not know if you agree with that statement or not (depends on your experience and what you have been taught, I guess), but it probably would not hurt us to think about what it means to really follow Jesus. What might that look like and what might it entail?

In Matthew chapter four, we read that Peter, Andrew, James and John were mending their nets by the Sea of Galilee when they heard these words; “Come, follow me and I will make you fishers of men” (verse 19). Maybe those simple words can give us some insight into what following Jesus is all about.

First notice that they were called to, “Come, follow me”. To be a true disciple means that we are going to follow Jesus’ desires in every aspect of our lives. We are no longer living only for what we want, or what we think is best. We are taking our direction and values from him.

Secondly, notice that Jesus did not hand them an instruction manual, or a set of rules. Instead, he invited them into a relationship. He asked them to come and learn from him as they went along. The friendship that they shared was the soil in which their faith grew. Close relationships, with God, his Son, his Spirit and with others are key in any Spiritual growth that we will experience.

Thirdly, he said, “I will make you”. Jesus had a plan for these men. He was going to shape them to do great things in his kingdom. I believe God still shapes us as we pray, read his word and walk with him.

Lastly, he said, “I will make you fishers of men”. Jesus came to “seek and save the lost” (Luke 19:10) and his people need to be about the same work. If we believe in eternity, in heaven and hell, then we need to make sure that we are ready for that time and to help others get ready as well.

After they heard this invitation, the Bible says, “Immediately they left their nets and followed Him” (verse 20). They did not know all that they had signed up for, but they knew it was important that they go and learn from Jesus.

These men became effective in the Kingdom because they chose to follow Jesus in action and not just in name alone.

Who knows how God would use us if we made the same choice?

The Passenger’s Seat

2011-03-08T11:35:00.000-08:00

My oldest daughter turned fifteen this past weekend. She also got her “learner’s licence” and was anxious to give driving a try, so Sunday afternoon found us both in places that were a little uncomfortable – her in the driver’s seat and me in the passenger’s seat.

Now, she did a great job! She was cautious and careful. She was observant. She asked the appropriate questions and she took advice well. In fact, over the course of the two hour session, I was only really concerned two times and both of those had more to do with the snowy road conditions than anything she had done. Still, it was a bit unnerving.

You see, I like the driver’s seat. I like to be in control. Even when I my wife is driving, I think I know how fast we should be going, when we should be slowing down and when she needs to shoulder check more (Truth be told, she is likely a safer driver than I am, but I am not going to admit that). It is just an odd feeling, no matter who the driver is, to be in the passenger’s seat. Your life is in their hands and there is really nothing you can do about it but go along for the ride.

Thinking about it, though, isn’t that true of every aspect of our life? We like to think that we are in control, that we run the show in our own lives, but that is really just an illusion. All it takes is a little bit of tragedy to remind us that we really are just along for the ride. When someone you love gets sick, is in an accident or even dies it does not take long to remember that we control very little.

Fortunately, when my life feels a little out of control, I am can take comfort in the fact that an expert driver is behind the wheel. In fact, he can drive me through things that I would have no idea how to navigate. As the book of Romans states it, “We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28).

I may not understand where things are going all the time, but that is ok.
As time goes by, I am becoming a little more comfortable in the passenger’s seat.

“’For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future’” (Jeremiah 29:11).

Remember that Look

2011-03-01T07:40:00.001-08:00

Off key piano recitals. Hockey games where little kids trip over each other and fall into a big pile and yet the puck does not move. School plays where no one can hear a word that the actors are saying because they are speaking so quickly and so softly. Based solely on execution, these things are disasters. To an outsider, they are likely a complete waste of time.

However, turn your eyes away from the performance and look at the faces of the parents, grand-parents and friends who are sitting in the crowd. Here you find smiles, not frowns. You sense anticipation instead of dread. Rather than “booing”, you hear thunderous applause and (at least at the hockey game) shouts of encouragement.

You see, when parents watch their children, the pride is in the attempt. You cheer the effort if not always the result. Parents and grand-parents see things differently, because they love the performer.

So let me ask you this: How do you think God sees you?

Hopefully, from the drift of this article (or even better, from your own
experience with him), you know the answer to that question, but let me spell it out just in case: God does not need you to be perfect; rather he wants you to try. God does not celebrate our skill as much as our effort. We do not have to “prove ourselves” because he loves us in the first place.

So forget waiting until you are “perfect” before you decide to do what God has asked of you. Take a risk. Try to make a difference. Commit yourself to God and then live your life as a reflection of his love and grace. You never know what God might do with your effort.

If nothing else, watching you try will make God smile.

“Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!” (Matthew 25:21)

The Same: Yesterday, Today and Forever

2011-02-22T11:52:00.000-08:00

“Lord, the God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments, let your ear be attentive and your eyes open to hear the prayer your servant is praying” (Nehemiah 1:5-6).

That is the start of a prayer by a man named Nehemiah. At the time, he was facing a daunting task. Success looked remote at best and so he prayed.

The important thing to notice here is not just the fact that he prayed, but to whom he prayed. Look at his description of God. It will not only give you a good picture of God, but an idea as to why he prayed in the first place.

The first word to notice is “Lord” which means, “One who owns or controls as a master… the one in full control”. Nehemiah knows that he is not in charge and that there is a bigger plan to be lived by than his own. That is a hard lesson to learn, but it is the starting point of all spiritual growth.

Next he refers to God as “the God of Heaven”. This may be a simple reference to location, but more likely it is a nod to God’s power and perspective. Presently, Nehemiah is going to have to deal with the most powerful king in the world, but that is ok because he has the “God of Heaven” on his side and no one is more powerful than him.

Then we read two words that we know well: “Great” and “Awesome”. Those words speak for themselves.

Nehemiah remembers too that God is the “keeper of the covenant”. In other words, the agreement that God has made with his people will not be broken. God he is faithful. His word can be trusted. It is worth noting to that is agreement is defined by “Love” (Not of threats, warnings, violence, pain, suffering, fear… as some covenants were… but of love)

Lastly, he believes that God has “Attentive, hearing ears and eyes that are open”. He does not believe that God is far away. He worships a God who sees, hears and gets involved. God is not a spectator. He is active in the lives of his people.

If you ever wonder what God is like, whether he wants to help you or even cares about your life, remember Nehemiah’s description of a God. He found strength there and so can you, because God has not changed.

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows” (James 1:17).

Defending Valentine’s Day

2011-02-15T13:49:00.000-08:00

It may just be the “Cinnamon hearts” talking (I am eating a handful as I type this), but I have to say that I like Valentine’s Day!

Now, before you flood my inbox with emails stating how Valentine’s Day is just a fake holiday made up by the card companies to force us to spend money needlessly on a bunch of junk that we did not want or need, let me assure you: I get that part. If you want to point out that one should cherish their loved ones every day of the year and not just when some day in February tells them to, “check!” Some will say that Valentine’s Day is nothing more than commercialism to the extreme where the only valid way to express your love for someone is to buy them something. If you think it is bad for that reason, I am with you there.

However, I still think that Valentine’s Day is valuable simply because it reminds us to do what we know should be doing.

It is a fact of life that many good things are taken for granted simply because they are around us all the time. I often think about how much I love my family, how proud I am of my girls, or how thankful I am for all that my wife does to make life better for us. The fact is, though, as much as I may think those things, I rarely share them. Valentine’s Day is one of the days in the year when I am reminded that I have something important to say and some very important people to say it to. I appreciate the “push” that this time of year gives me.

I hope that Valentine’s Day is not the only day that you show people that you love them, but it (like any other day) is a good time to start.

“Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth” (1 John 3:18).

A Surprising Answer

2011-02-01T08:34:00.001-08:00

Last Sunday I spent part of the afternoon watching the “58th National Hockey League All-Star Game” from Raleigh, North Carolina. Normally this is a boring game with no hitting and a lot of highly talented players skating around at about half speed. One interview, though, made it worth my time.

During the third period, the CBC’s Scott Oake interviewed Daniel Briere from the Philadelphia Flyers. Following that, Oake turned to Briere’s thirteen year old son, Caelan, who was standing on the player’s bench behind his dad and asked, “What has been the best part of the All Star weekend for you?”

Did Caelan talk about meeting all the players? Did he mention getting to watch the All Star game from the player’s bench? Did he talk about the big hotel room that the NHL made available to his family? Did he mention all the stuff that the game sponsors gave them? Did he say that he liked all the good food in the fancy restaurants?

If you saw it, you know that he did not mention any of those things. His answer: “The best part of this weekend has been hanging out with my dad”.

Now the cynics out there will say, “Oh sure, he was coached to say that”, but I don’t think that is true. It was an interview done off the cuff in the middle of the game and I think that was his real answer.

These days, it is easy to think that we need to provide all kinds of expensive and lavish things for our children (and if you can do that, great!). However, our kids need our time, love and attention much more than they need more “stuff”. They will remember your relationship with them long after the “stuff” is gone.

Caelan Briere is a good example of that.

“Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it” (Proverbs 22:6).

Indirect Joy

2011-01-25T11:48:00.000-08:00

At a news conference in December, the Nobel Prize winners gave away their secret strategies for winning the prestigious, $1.5 million award: Don’t try!

One man, who shared the Physics award, said that winning “requires creativity, humour and patience, with little aspiration to actually win”. The other man added, “It’s definitely extremely detrimental to think that you can win the Nobel Prize; then it basically occupies your mind… if you think and deliberately try to win the Nobel Prize there is something wrong”.

The winner of the Chemistry award agreed saying, “I did not plan it, or try to do it, it just came by itself”.

The winner of the Economics prize summed up his approach by saying, “Anyone who’s engaged in creative life – whether they’re a scientist, economist, writer or artist – has many ‘aha’ moments, many moments to discovery, otherwise they would not be doing it… they do not do it with some golden prize at the end”.

Their philosophy may be summed up by saying, “Focus on the important stuff and success will come.”

I think that is good advice for life in general. You cannot aim at “Happiness” or at “A good life”. Those things are not goals. Rather they are by-products of a life that is lived with “the important stuff” at the center.

When people do make “my own happiness” the goal, the results are often disastrous. How many lives have you seen derailed because people are living only for themselves? How many marriages are “blown up” each year simply because someone decided to “search for happiness” elsewhere? It seems that much of our trouble is caused by our own inability to get out of our own way.

Jesus, though, in many contexts and with many applications, taught us to think differently.

“If you grasp and cling to life on your terms, you'll lose it, but if you let that life go, you'll get life on God's terms” (Luke 17:33, The Message).

“If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last and the servant of all” (Mark 9:35).

What if the key is to get the focus off of me? What if the things I truly need (such as peace, joy, love and forgiveness) cannot be aimed at but, rather, come as by-product of a life lived for God and for others?

That could be the greatest discovery of all. It is certainly worth a try.

“I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows)” – Jesus’ words from John 10:9 (The Amplified Bible).

Could Less be More?

2011-01-18T11:19:00.000-08:00

The other day, as my daughter and I watched “SpongeBob SquarePants” (I think he is funny), I started thinking about the commercials that we were seeing.

First there was the “yogurt in a tube” that exploded and sprayed yogurt all over because it had “too much flavour to be contained”. Next a swashbuckling sea captain was in a sword fight with… well, someone who was trying to steal his cereal (Because that happens all the time). Then a remote control truck was climbing over rocks, smashing through brick wall and speeding down the sidewalk. Now, I am all for remote control trucks, but the kids in that commercial looked like they were having way more fun than that truck could provide. Most of the commercials were for unhealthy snacks and the premise of the commercial had little or nothing to do with the product. It was all hype.

When marketing is aimed at children, it is easy for me to see how silly it is, but then I started to wonder “Am I as good at seeing it when it is aimed at me?” so I started paying attention.

Here is an ad for a new car that will not only give me a luxurious ride, but it will also “make people look twice”. If I buy this shampoo, my hair will be vibrant and bouncy (I should do that soon before I lose any more of it). This bank will help me save more money so I can buy more stuff. The message was clear: “Buy this” or “Do that” and your life will be better.

Not everyone is listening, though. About a year ago, I read an article about a group of people called “minimalists”. They have intentionally chosen to work less, live on less and own less simply because they think it may be better for them. Apparently, they have found that they have more time for family and friends and the compromises that they have made do not seem so bad.

Could it be that “more stuff” does not always mean “more happiness”?

Maybe we need a different definition of “success”.

“Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever” (1 John 2:14-17).

Two words for 2011

2011-01-11T13:00:00.000-08:00

“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:4-7).

As I thought about my “New Year’s Sermon”, I could not get Philippians 4 out of my mind and so I have decided to make it the theme for our congregation this year. Throughout the year, we will come back and look at a little more of the passage, but this week I want to focus on just two words.

The first word is “rejoice”. It has become fashionable in our society to be critical. You don’t have to sit very long in a coffee shop before the conversation turns to complaining about something. Maybe that is not unique to us as North Americans. Maybe it is human nature to look at life from the “half empty glass” perspective.

The reality is, though, that while there are times when we face serious problems and concerns, for most of us most of the time most things are mostly good. There are places in the world where just making it through the day is much more of a struggle than we can ever imagine. We have much to rejoice in.

Interestingly, Paul wrote this passage from prison. At the time, he thought he was about to be executed. Apparently, with the right perspective, even difficult times contain blessings if we look for them.

The second word is “gentleness”. Most people already know where they have failed and they likely do not need someone to point it out to them. What they may need, though, is some encouragement, some assistance, some hope or some gentleness. It is easier for me (personally) to be critical, but I know that it is better for everyone (including me) if I can learn to handle things gently. What a great blessing we would be to others if we could consistently handle them with “gentleness”.

One word (Rejoice) reminds us how we ought to think and the other (Gentleness) reminds us how to treat one another. Put them together and I think you have a good start on a year that not only honours God but draws others to him as well.

Keeping your Balance

2010-12-21T08:27:00.002-08:00

Kids like to test their balance. Whether it is walking on a fence, a sidewalk curb or a “Balance beam” in a gym, there is something about the challenge of seeing how far we can go without falling off.

“Balance” is a key idea when we are grown too. He are some ideas about how to “keep your balance” in the New Year.

First, we need to look back. Past successes and failures have a lot to teach us if we would just take the time to remember and think about them. God’s people, Israel, were very concerned about where they had come from and what they had learned.

For example, when God stopped the water so that his people could cross the Jordan River, they were commanded to take twelve stones from the river and pile them up on the other shore. The Bible then says, “In the future, when your children ask, ‘What do these stones mean?’ tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord” (Joshua 4:6-7). God did not want them to forget how he had taken care of them in the past.

We also need to keep our eyes focused on the future. It is important to know where you are going and the Bible says that we are headed for eternity. This world is not our home. This life is not all that there is. “Listen, I will tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed – in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed” (1 Corinthians 15:51-52). Jesus said that he has gone to prepare a place for us and that he is coming back to get us (John 14:1-4). If this life is not the end, then I need to be preparing for my future home.

Thirdly, of course, you need to live today. Many people lose the joy of today because they are lost in past mistakes or worries about future possibilities. In the words of Jesus, “Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own” (Matthew 6:34). God knows us and is looking after us (verse 32). Can you see the blessings that you have right now? Can you be thankful for, and live in, the good things of today?

Remembering the past and the thinking about the future will help us live a better, more balanced, more “God honouring” life today.

A Message We Need to Hear

2010-12-21T08:27:00.001-08:00

Words can lose their meaning over time. This can happen because of neglect (we simply do not use the word enough to recall what it means), through misuse (connecting an incorrect meaning to the word) or by reduction (taking a word that means a very broad range of things and reducing it to one meaning). I believe that “repent” is one of those “reduced” words.

Most of us know that to repent means to “turn around”, or (more fully) to make “a complete alteration of the basic motivation and direction of one’s life”. Unfortunately, though, these days “repent” has come to be a threat. It is a word that is most often (and, sometimes, is only) heard in the messages of the so called “hellfire and brimstone” preachers. It is a word that has become tied to other words like “hell”, “damnation” and “judgment”.

What if we heard it differently though? What if it was not a threat but rather an invitation? That would make a lot more sense in verses like Acts 3:19 which says, “Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord”. Repentance, in this verse and many others, is connected with blessing not judgment and that is the part that we have forgotten.

Mark Buchanan writes, “Jesus’ message is not ‘Repent, because hell looms close’. His message is, ‘Repent, because the kingdom is near’. There is a world of difference between the two. In Jesus’ hands, repentance is a... promise not a curse. It is good news, not bad” (Leadership, Spring 2010, page 98).

At this time of year when you stop to consider the birth of Jesus, please think about the reason that he came. That little baby came with a message and an offer. He came to call us away from ourselves and to God. He came to tell us about the real King and an everlasting kingdom. He came to say, “You can turn around. No matter where you have been or what you have done, you can start again”.

Or, in his exact words, “Repent, for the kingdom of God is near” (Matthew 4:17)

When the Storms Come

2010-12-14T09:38:00.001-08:00

For forty days and forty nights the rain just kept coming. The water kept rising until there was nothing but water to be seen. According to Genesis, Noah and his family were on the ark for over a year (Genesis 7:11 and 8:13-14).

Now, we know how this story ends even before we start reading it, but what would it be like to be Noah? He had no idea what was going to happen next. All he knew was that the rain kept coming.

Have you ever felt like that? Like “the rain just keeps coming” and there is no end in sight. Worse than that though, is the knowledge that, even when it does end, everything will be different. The uncertainty that comes with not knowing how things will end is sometimes worse than the storm itself.

I do not know what things are like in your life right now. I hope that the skies are blue, that the sun is shining and that everything is great. For many people though, the dark rain clouds are just beginning to appear on the horizon. For others, the storm is in full force and the rain is beating down on them. One thing that I do know, if you are not in one right now, a storm will be here soon enough. So what can you do? Where can you turn?

After the flood waters covered the earth for one hundred and fifty days, Genesis chapter eight opens with these great words, “But God remembered Noah” (verse 1). The Hebrew word translated “remembered” does not imply that God forgotten, but that he was waiting for the right moment to act. He did not just “recall” that Noah was there, but that he was ready to act with loving care for him.

In the middle of the storm, Noah may have wondered, “Where is God?”, but God had not forgotten about Noah. In fact, he was nearby all the time.

God has not forgotten you either. He is nearby.

At times, the storms of life may hide him from us, but they never hide us from him.

A Tribute to my Grandma

2010-12-07T09:13:00.001-08:00

It seems like she was always there. My Grandma, Annie Hannan, has been part of my life as long as I can remember. When we were going up, Grandma and Grandpa lived only a few short blocks away from us and so we saw them almost every day. We had sleepovers. We went for walks. We went out for supper together. Every summer, we would go camping with them, mostly at Buffalo Pound Provincial Park. Growing up Grandma was always a part of my life. Then, when I got married and had kids, she became part of their lives too. Visits to see Grandma often meant “Orange floats” and games of Crokinole. In later years, we often talked on the phone and she always wanted to know how Sara and the girls were doing.

She had been in and out of the hospital frequently over the past few months, so, considering that she was ninety-one years old, it was not hard to guess that the end may be near. Still it was a shock when my mom called last Thursday to say that “Granny” (as her great-grandchildren called her) was gone. She had passed away in her sleep earlier that morning.

When that phone call came, I was in the middle of writing my sermon for the week. The text was Romans 2:6-8 which says, “God ‘will repay each person according to what they have done.’ To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honour and immortality, he will give eternal life. But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger.”

Someone commenting on this passage said, “Godly ambition pursues God: Selfish ambition pursues favourable comparisons with other people” and I thought again of my Grandma.

She and Grandpa were baptized in a creek near Willmar, Saskatchewan in the summer of 1944. Some of my earliest memories are of going to church with my mom and my Grandparents. They did not have many worldly possessions. They lived in a small house. They owned only one brand new vehicle. If they were seeking “favourable comparisons with other people” they would have lost. However, that was not their goal. Instead, they were concerned about “persistence in doing good”. They were concerned about Godly things and they passed that faith on to my mother and, ultimately, to me and my siblings.

Sadly, my Grandma is gone, but her influence on us will never be forgotten.

She invested in her family. She invested in her faith. She invested with love.

In the end, she gave us a blessing is far better than any monetary inheritance.

What she gave us is eternal.

Anticipation

2010-11-30T08:56:00.000-08:00

“Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains” (Colossians 4:2-3).

On the surface, those two verses likely do not look all that interesting or important. Sure there is a good lesson in there about the nature and attitude of prayer (words like “devoted… watchful and thankful” give some good instruction in that regard), but it is the last portion of the quote that should inspire us.

Paul most likely wrote this letter while he was under house arrest in the city of Rome (Acts 28:16-31). His future was uncertain and his life was in the balance. He may have been chained to his prison guard twenty four hours per day. If not, he certainly had someone watching over him constantly. His outlook was bleak and there seemed no reason to be optimistic or to look for a good outcome.

In the midst of these circumstances, Paul asks his brothers and sisters to pray. However, he does not ask them to pray for his freedom or for an open prison door. Instead, he asks them to pray for an “open door” for the message.

The incredible part of this passage is that Paul is still expecting God to do something. He is still living with his eyes wide open to the possibilities to teach and encourage. He still believes that, in spite of his own circumstances, God can, and will, provide a way for him to be useful in the kingdom. He is not concerned about himself. Rather, he is looking forward to how God will use his imprisonment to provide a way for him to talk about Jesus (the very reason for which he was in prison in the first place).

Paul is expecting God to work. Paul is convinced that prayer changes things. Paul has his eyes, not on his bad circumstances, but on his good God. Paul is convinced that God can work anywhere and anytime.

I love that Paul was living in anticipation of what God was going to do next.

I have a feeling that my life would be more productive if I lived with that same anticipation and awareness.

What about you?

God: In His Own Words

2010-11-23T08:41:00.000-08:00

Last week, I read an article about how courts are going away from eyewitness testimony because it is so inaccurate. In fact, the article claimed that most eyewitness testimony is based on what people think they saw rather than on what really happened and that, when studied, the details are very often fabricated.

To test this theory, I asked the congregation to look at a picture of a group of men. I left the PowerPoint slide up for approximately five seconds and then asked a series of questions like, “How many people in that picture were wearing red shirts?” “How many people were wearing glasses?” Not surprisingly, I heard all kinds of answers. Some people were right about certain details but not about others. Some were certain that they were right only to find out that they were wrong. Others simply guessed (One man kept saying “Fourteen” no matter what the question was). The information that I received was certainly inaccurate.

That leads to a scary thought: If second hand information is almost always inaccurate, what does that say about our knowledge of God? If I am relying on others to tell me what God is like, how do I know that they are telling me the truth? How do I know that the picture that I have been given of God is the right one? Wouldn’t it be great if, at some point, God described himself in his own words? Fortunately, he did.

When Moses was receiving the second stone tablets containing the Ten Commandments, it says that God proclaimed his name to him and said, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness’” (Exodus 34:6). That is God’s description of himself. (In fact, that exact description is used six more times in the Old Testament).

We have a God who loves us more than we can imagine. We have a God who gives us more than we deserve. We have a God who is simply waiting for us to come home. We have a God who is ready to remove our sins “as far as the east is from the west” (Psalm 103:12).

When Moses heard God’s description of himself, he responded by saying, “Let my Lord, I pray thee, go among us” (Exodus 34:9). He wanted to be near that God. I imagine that people today would respond in a similar manner if they were given a similar picture of God.

We have a compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, loving and faithful God who is on our side.

Any other picture is misinformation.

Prepared

2010-11-16T13:50:00.000-08:00

I would not have wanted to be Ananias. In Acts 9, the Lord tells him to go to Damascus and find a man named Saul. Ananias protests and says, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your saints” (verse 13). However, Ananias is told that Saul has been prepared for his arrival. On the way to Damascus, Saul had seen a blinding light, he heard the voice of Jesus and now he was waiting for God’s messenger to come to him. With that knowledge, Ananias goes. He teaches Saul and baptizes him and one of the worst enemies of the faith becomes its biggest promoter (You likely know “Saul” better by his Gentile name, “Paul”).

One chapter earlier, Philip is told to go and meet a man from Ethiopia. This man is riding in a chariot and is reading from the Old Testament prophet Isaiah. When Philip approaches he asks, “Do you understand what you are reading?” (Acts 8:30). When the man says that he does not, Philip explains the passage and tells the man “the good news about Jesus” (verse 35). Eventually, they come to some water and the man asks Philip to baptize him. The man, then, “went on his way, rejoicing” (verse 39).

Now, here is the question: What ties these two stories together?

The answer: God was working on both of these men long before his messengers got there.

In Saul’s case, he was trained in the Old Testament scriptures. He had the benefit of his Jewish heritage. He knew about God and wanted to serve him. He met Jesus on the road to Damascus. The man from Ethiopia was on his way home from worshipping at the temple in Jerusalem. He was reading the word of God. Neither of these men responded to the message about Jesus “cold turkey”. They had been prepared to hear what the messengers presented.

So, let me ask you this: Do you think that God is still working with people, preparing them to hear his message? Do you believe that God is active and is still trying to get people’s attention? If you read Luke chapter 15 (the parable about the “Lost coin”, the “Lost sheep” and the “Lost son”) you certainly get the picture that God is not passively sitting around waiting. Rather, he is searching, working and calling to people all the time.

Our job, as His messengers, then is to simply to do our little part when we have the opportunity.

You may be surprised at who has been prepared to listen.

Check it out

2010-11-16T13:49:00.001-08:00

“Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up. When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush…” (Exodus 3:1-4).

God’s people had been slaves in Egypt for more than 400 years. He had heard their cries and had decided to do something (Exodus 3:7-10). In fact, he had a plan. Moses was going to lead them to their new home.

While you probably know those details, let me share one fact that I had not seen until last week. The word says that Moses saw the burning bush and said to himself, “I will go over and see this strange sight” and that is when God calls him.

Now, what happens if Moses sees the burning bush and says, “Huh!” and then looks at his sundial and decides it is time to go home for supper? What if he does not go over there? The scripture seems to indicate that had he not investigated that strange sight, he would have missed out on God’s plan for him. He only hears the voice of God after he goes over to see the burning bush, not before.

So, that makes me wonder: What is God calling you and me to investigate? What is being placed in front of us that is making us say, “Hmm – I wonder what that is about”? Even more importantly: Are responding to those things?

Moses becomes “Moses” not because he planned it, but because he decided to look and listen.

Maybe we would find unimaginable opportunities from God if we did the same thing.

“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen” (Ephesians 3:20-21).

Posting our Blessings

2010-11-02T09:30:00.000-07:00

If you were come to our church building right now, you would see that the windows are covered with hundreds of fluorescent orange, green and pink “post-it notes”. Each note contains a word or two that describes something for which someone in the congregation is thankful. This began as an exercise for the teen class, but adults got in on it too. While the notes have only been up for a day, they are having an impact. In fact, every time that I have walked by them today, I have smiled. They are bright, colourful reminders that we have been blessed in many ways, both large and small.

Maybe it is just human nature, but it seems that we constantly need to be reminded to focus on the “good” and not just on the things that are wrong or need improvement. It seems that many people (including me) are like toy boats that a child has filled with water. The boat does not sink to the bottom of the lake, but neither does it float. Instead, it sort of wallows just below the surface. When our lives start to “take on water” in the forms of trouble, worry and fretting, it is easy to wallow. It is easy to get stuck. What we need is a way to get back to “floating”.

“So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness” (Colossians 2:6).

“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:4-7).

“Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).

I have been through enough trouble in my life to know that writing your blessings on a piece of paper and sticking it to your wall will not fix things. However, I also know that focusing on your blessings can help to change your perspective. The note covered windows in our foyer have reminded me that, in spite of our troubles, we have many reasons to rejoice.

I imagine that you do too.

“Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers and sisters. Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights” (James 1:16-17).

Good and Faithful Servants

2010-10-25T15:33:00.000-07:00

In Matthew 25, Jesus tells the story of a man who was going on a journey. Before he left, he called his servants together and gave them some money to look after until his return. “To one he gave five talents of money, to another two talents, and to another one talent, each according to his ability.

"After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. The man who had received the five talents … said, 'you entrusted me with five talents. See, I have gained five more.' His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!'

"The man with the two talents also came.’Master,' he said, 'you entrusted me with two talents; see, I have gained two more.'… His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant!

"Then the man who had received the one talent came… I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.' "His master replied, 'You wicked, lazy servant… you should have [at least] put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest” (selected verses from 14-30).

Why do we always focus on the “one talent man” and his failure in this story? Are there not actually three servants? Certainly, the one talent man failed and his lack of effort is the primary warning for us. However, two thirds of the people in this parable were successful and praised for what they did. Seen from the perspective of the five and two talent men, this story is not about “failure” but about “opportunity”. It is about hope. It is about the promise of God that says, “If you try, something good will happen”.

The fact is that, when it comes to “talents” and giftedness, every one of us has something to share and something to offer. The question is not “What can you do?” but rather, “Will you do it?”

Focus on the success of the two servants who used what they had been given. Think about how, down through time, God has used ordinary people to do extraordinary things (if they just let him). Think about what could happen if we just trusted God enough to try.

In the end, maybe we too will hear God say, “Well done, good and faithful servant!”

The Joy of Second Chances

2010-10-20T08:49:00.001-07:00

This past week, the world watched as workers brought thirty three Chilean miners back to the surface after they had spent seventy days underground. The scene at the mine was nothing short of impressive. Wives hugged husbands. Children and mothers cried as they awaited the arrival of the next miner. People celebrated and church bells rang.

More impressive, maybe, were the words spoken by the men. For example, Mario Sepulveda Espina said, “Life is short. In one minute you can lose it. In one minute it can all be gone. Don’t worry so much about money. Live your life. Live every second of it.” Suddenly, little things were important. Hugging their families, or seeing their sons became a big deal. In fact, just having another day to live was worth celebrating. Things change when you get a second chance to live your life.

In Acts chapter 8, a follower of Jesus, named Philip, meets a man from Ethiopia. This man was reading from the book of Isaiah and he was confused, so it says, “Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus” (verse 35). Then they came to some water and the man said, “’Look, here is water. Why shouldn't I be baptized?’ And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptized him” (verses 36-38). The best part, though, is verse 39 where it says that the man “Went on his way rejoicing”.

At its heart, faith is not about rules, laws, books or actions. Rather, it is about the chance to start your life over again. It is about forgiveness, wiping the slate clean and seeing things differently so that we can live differently. It is about “going on your way rejoicing”.

As the Chilean miners reminded us, second chances and “rebirth” are worth celebrating.

He Goes Ahead of Us

2010-10-05T10:50:00.001-07:00

On Wednesday nights, I help with an “English as an additional language” course that our church offers. This past week my friend Juwon and I were reading from Acts chapter 2 where it says that the “believers shared everything with each other” (verse 42). We were struggling with this paragraph because I was having trouble explaining the meaning of the word “shared”. Suddenly, though, he understood and once he had that one word, the rest of the paragraph made sense. Sometimes, one word or one phrase makes all the difference.

This past week I have been thinking about a phrase from the Gospel of Mark. The angel at Jesus’ tomb says these words, “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go and tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him as he told you’” (Mark 16:6-7).

The phrase that I have been thinking about is, “He is going ahead of you”. I know that it is completely out of context, but that is a comforting thought, isn’t it? What would it be like to know that no matter what comes, God, his Son and his Spirit have “gone ahead of us”? That not only do they walk with us now, but are leading the way into the future.

I could give you a long list of examples where God’s people find out, much to their surprise, that they are not alone and that God has “gone ahead of them”. Some of the bleakest stories come to some of the happiest endings, not because the people involved did anything, but because God was involved and working long before anyone realized it.

Sometimes it is hard to believe, but if we can become convinced that God “goes ahead of us” then we can face the future with a different attitude. Nothing catches God by surprise.

Maybe then we too can say, “Surely God was in this place and I was not aware of it” (Genesis 28:13).

You Asked for It

2010-09-20T14:42:00.000-07:00

“During the fourth watch of the night (around 3 am) Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. ‘It's a ghost,’ they said, and cried out in fear. But Jesus immediately said to them: ‘Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid.’ ‘Lord, if it's you,’ Peter replied, ‘tell me to come to you on the water.’ ‘Come,’ he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’ Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. ‘You of little faith,’ he said, ‘why did you doubt?’” (Matthew 14:22-31)

Poor Peter! He is often remembered for his failures. He is the one who denied Jesus three times. He is the one who speaks before he thinks. He is the one who, when walking on the water, sank like a rock.

Let me ask you this question though: Why was it Peter who got to walk on the water in the first place? Was Peter special in some way? Was he Jesus’ favourite disciple? Did his years of service merit this opportunity? Did he have some special ability that the others did not possess?

Why did Peter get to walk on the water?

He asked!

That is it! That is the entire answer. Peter asked if he could and Jesus said, “Sure! Why not?”

That makes me wonder, what gifts, blessings, opportunities and successes are we missing out on experiencing simply because we do not ask?

Jesus said, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened” (Matthew 7:7-8).

The book of James says, “You want something but don't get it… You do not have, because you do not ask God” (4:2).

Is it possible that God is just waiting to bless us? Is it possible that we are struggling, not because things are impossible, but because we are trying to do things by our power and not God’s? Who knows what may happen if we ask?

Maybe it is time to step out of the boat.

What We were Born to Do

2010-09-14T09:51:00.000-07:00

Thirty seven years after their songs “Takin’ Care of Business” and “You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet” first hit the airwaves, Randy Bachman and Fred Turner (the guys from “Bachman-Turner Overdrive”) are making music together again. During an interview this past week, Bachman was asked if he thought that the band could still be successful and write hits after so many years. His answer is worth noting. He said, “Do we think that we will get any airplay? I don’t know. It really does not matter. We are doing what we were born to do”.

I like that quote for two reasons. First, he has found what he was “born to do”. That is not always easy in life. Some people jump from one job to the next, move from one city to another, change companies a dozen times before they find something that really fulfils them. It can be tough.

Spiritually, speaking though, it is much easier. In fact, there are only two choices: follow God or follow yourself. The Bible makes it very clear which one we were born to do. “For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:10).

The second reason I like this quote is the fact that Bachman is not worried about being a success. He is just doing what he thinks he needs to be doing. That was Paul’s attitude too. He did not take opinion polls or base his actions on what others thought. In fact, he told the Corinthian church, “I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court ... It is the Lord who judges me” (1 Corinthians 4:3-4). He knew what he was made to do and nothing was going stop him from doing it.

Following God brings meaning and purpose to everything else that we do.

After all, we were born to worship and serve the Lord.

It makes all the Difference

2010-09-08T08:57:00.000-07:00

On Sunday, I invited a couple of the kids to the front and said, “Can you take this nut off of this bolt and give it back to me? I need it for my sermon.” After about thirty seconds, they said, “We can’t get it apart. It is too tight.” I then said, “Oh! I forgot to give you the tool to use”, so I reached around the podium and handed them a rubber mallet. They were not impressed! In fact, they would not even take the mallet from me, because they knew that it would not help. What they needed was not just “any tool” but the “right tool”.

To me, that simple little illustration points out one of the problems that many churches (and individuals) face. They, like the kids in my illustration, are ready to help. They put a lot of time and effort into their faith and service. Unfortunately, like the kids, they do not see positive results because they are going about their work in the wrong way. They do not have the proper tools. What is missing? Well, let’s look at some examples from the Bible and see if we can tell what made their work successful.

Let’s start with Moses. He sees the burning bush and hears a voice that tells him to become the leader of God’s people. Moses’ response is, “Who am I that I should go?” (Exodus 3:11). God’s response was simple, but important. He said, “I will be with you” (verse 12). Moses then went and successfully completed the job that God had asked him to do.

Later, God’s people are in trouble. The Egyptian army is chasing them from one side and the Red Sea is blocking their path on the other. The people are scared, but Moses says, “Do not be afraid… the Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still” (Exodus 14:13-14). You likely know what happened next.

What about David and Goliath? A little boy armed with nothing but a slingshot and some stones kills a giant warrior. Before he went out on the battlefield he told the king, “The Lord… will deliver me from the hands of this Philistine” (1 Samuel 17:37) and he did.

In each of those examples (and I could list hundreds more), the person fails miserably if left to his own devises and strength. They cannot succeed, because they simply do not have the tools necessary to get the job done. However, when God is involved, everything changes.

We need to find and work within the power of God. When we do, anything can happen.

“Is anything too hard for the Lord?” (Genesis 18:14).

Keep Digging

2010-08-31T12:37:00.000-07:00

By now, I am sure that you have heard about the thirty-three miners that were stuck in a collapsed mine in Chile. Against all odds, after seventeen days of drilling, the rescuers were finally able to confirm that all of the men had survived the collapse and that they were alive. For the families, it was nothing short of a miracle.

Not only is this a news story that has a happy ending (which is rare in itself), but I was thinking that this story is a good parallel to the gospel story.

You see, spiritually speaking, we were like those miners. We were trapped in a bad place. The apostle Paul puts it this way, “At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another” (Titus 3:3).

Fortunately, as in the case of those miners, unbeknownst to us, someone was “digging us out”. “But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life” (verses 4-7). Those miners were saved because of the efforts of others who loved them and cared about them too much to leave them to die. The same is true of us. We are “dug out” of our sins, not because of our actions, but because of God’s love. As Romans 5:8 says, “God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

Here is the point: If we have been “dug out” then should help “dig others out”. If we remember what we have been saved from, how can we not go and help save others? There really is no other option.

One of the drillers at the mine site was quoted as saying, “Its been like a heart that has been breaking, but we are thankful they’re all alive. We did everything we could to save them, and in the end we succeeded”.

One of the family members said, “We are not going to abandon this camp until we go out with the last miner left. There are 33 of them, and one is my brother.”

Can God’s people say, “We did everything we could to save them”? Can we say, “We are not leaving until everyone is safe?” Do we remember that someone dug us out?

When we really love God and really love those around us, we will happily keep digging until the end.

Coming Soon

2010-08-23T13:52:00.001-07:00

The purpose of a “movie trailer” is to give you enough of the storyline to get you interested. The hope, of course, is that after you have seen a little bit of the movie that you will want to see all of it.

If I were trying to find a section of scripture to use as a “movie trailer” for the word of God, I would pick Psalm 103. In this Psalm, David describes God’s nature, our relationship to him and our hope. Here is a sampling.

“Praise the Lord… who forgives all your sins” (verses 1 and 3).

“Who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's” (verses 4-5).

“The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love” (verse 8).

“For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him” (verses 11-13).

“From everlasting to everlasting the Lord's love is with those who fear (respect) him” (verse 17).

“Praise the Lord” (verses 20, 21 and 22).

And that is just the “trailer”!

The rest of the Bible goes on to say things like, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). There is talk about a new birth (John 3 and 1 Peter 1:23) and a new life (Romans 6:1-4). The message of the Bible is one of hope and joy. As Jesus said, it is “good news” that should be heard and shared (Mark 16:15).

Sometimes once you have seen a movie trailer, you have seen all the best parts. The rest of the movie does not live up to the advertisement.

In this case, we have not even scratched the surface. The promises listed above are great, but they are only a fraction of the good things that God offers.

Best of all, for those who follow God, this story ends “happily ever after”.

When life is Messy

2010-06-21T14:55:00.000-07:00

“Churches are not Victorian parlors where everything is always picked up and ready for guests. They are messy family rooms… Things are out of order, to be sure, but that is what happens to churches that are lived in. They are not show rooms. They are living rooms, and if the persons living in them are sinners, there are going to be clothes scattered about, handprints on the woodwork and mud on the carpets” (Eugene Peterson, “Reversed Thunder”, page 54).

What Peterson says about churches is true of life in general. Unfortunately, life can be messy. It would be nice if everything was simple, easy and straightforward, but it rarely works that way. If seen in picture form, most people’s lives would look more like a river winding its way across a valley, rather than a man made canal that makes a straight line from “point A” to “point B”. We sort of expect things to go smoothly, but experience tells us that is rarely the case.

Even a cursory glance at the word of God should be enough to remind us that even some of God’s greatest servants were not immune to the “mess” of living. For example, the apostle Peter, the man who preached the first gospel sermon in Acts chapter two is the same Peter that denied knowing Jesus at all (and he did that three times – Matthew 26:69-75). The apostle Paul, started off his life as “Saul” – a persecutor of the church and God’s people (see Acts 9). Many early disciples, such as Stephen, died for their belief in Christ (Acts 7). In the Old Testament, we see faithful people like Job going through some terrible circumstances. Almost every New Testament letter that we possess was written to sort out some issue or problem (sometimes many) that the Christians were having.

The bottom line: Heaven is the only place where we are guaranteed no tears, no death, no crying and no pain (Revelation 20:4). Until then, we will likely have to face some situations that are not “as they should be” and some things that we wish were different.

That being the case, we need to know that we have help. As Psalm 46:1 reminds us, “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble”. If you find yourself in a storm right now, if things are a little messy, please remember that God can work in “the mess” and even “in spite of” it.

In fact, he is a “clean-up” expert.

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” - Romans 8:28

Knowing or Guessing?

2010-06-15T13:24:00.000-07:00

Do you remember those plastic adapters that you used to put in “45 records” so that you could play them on a standard record player? On Sunday morning, I held one of those things up and asked a bunch of kids, “What is this?” They had no idea. Then I turned and asked the adults. There was no uncertainty or hesitation from the “Fifty and over crowd” because they knew the answer (I then asked, “Who knows how to download music from the internet?” – you can guess which group knew the answer this time). There is a difference between knowing and guessing.

That difference becomes very clear when we begin to talk about spiritual things. Are you certain about what you believe or are you just hoping that it may be true? Are you convinced or are you “on the fence”? As John closes his first letter, he gives his readers three big ideas to “know” and be certain about.

First, if you are a Christian, you are safe. “We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the one who was born of God keeps him safe, and the evil one cannot harm him” (1 John 5:18). Too many Christians live in guilt or fear, wringing their hands and wondering if they have really been forgiven. John says that if we have been “born of God” we have changed positions. We are no longer under sin and Satan’s control. Instead, if we have put on Christ (Galatians 3:26-27), our sins are washed away and Jesus himself protects us. We can know that!

Secondly, “We know that we are children of God” (verse 19). “Children of God” is more than a title. It is a description of reality. Think about a child with their parent. How does that child act? Most children trust their parents to look after them. They are simply along for the ride, receiving the good things that come. As we age, we begin to think that we are in charge and that we have to control and worry about everything. Maybe we would live differently if we “knew” that our father is still with us, watching over us and giving us good things (See Psalm 118).

Thirdly, “We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true—even in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life” (verse 20). Jesus came tell us about a gracious, loving and merciful God who made a way home for us that is based on his love and goodness, not on our own.

You are safe if you are God’s child, because the offer is based on God’s goodness and not your own.

That is something worth knowing!

Some Questions Need an Answer

2010-06-07T10:42:00.001-07:00

The interrogation from the “Israeli Airlines” attendant was not unexpected. I had been warned that they had the strictest screening policy in the airline business (even before 9/11).

After taking me aside, asking a bunch of questions and leaving me standing all alone in the middle of “Pearson International Airport”, there was no question who was in charge in this situation. If I wanted to go anywhere, I needed to recognize this man’s authority, answer his questions and do whatever he asked me to do. Fifteen minutes later, he came back, gave me my passport and wished me a good trip.

Authority is not to be fooled with.

“By what authority are you doing these things… who gave you this authority” (Luke 20:2). Over the course of his earthly ministry, Jesus heard those questions many times.

Jesus’ reply is summed up in these words, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me” (Matthew 28:18).

The “Authority of Christ” is not just a subject for theological discussion. In fact, Christ’s authority has some very real and practical applications.

If Jesus really “in charge”, then that means that everything that I do should be filtered through my relationship with him. Christ’s authority should effect how I spend my time, how I spend my money, where I go, what I do and even how I think. Everything I do is important because everything is a reflection of my relationship with him.

However, there is more to it than that. Christ’s authority is also the thing that allows me to share in his blessings. You see, even at my best I am not good enough, smart enough and right enough to be acceptable before a Holy God. The only hope I have is that heaven is opened, not based on my goodness, but on Christ’s. It is on his authority that I am admitted and that is the good news of the gospel message.

Back to my Israeli airlines story for a minute: I could have refused to answer their questions, but that would have been a huge mistake. In that situation, refusing to acknowledge that man’s authority would have only hurt me.

Similarly, we can refuse to acknowledge Christ’s authority. We can live as though we are in charge, but that will not be good for us.

Who has the authority in your life?

The answer to that question is worth some thought, because, I believe, it will make all the difference (both now and in eternity).

The Power of Relationships

2010-06-01T10:32:00.001-07:00

I believe that we all need a “Barnabas” and a “Timothy”.

Barnabas was a respected leader in the early church and his name is found all over the book of Acts. His greatest trait, though, seemed to be the fact that he was an encourager. (His real name is “Joseph” but apostles nicknamed him “Barnabas” which means “Son of Encouragement”). Barnabas did many great things, but maybe none more influential to the course of Christian history than what he did in Acts 9.

At the start of that chapter, we read about the conversion of Paul. Formerly known as Saul, he opposed the teaching about Christ and even actively sought out believers so that he could have them arrested and brought back to Jerusalem for trial. One day, as he traveled to Damascus, Saul saw a bright light, heard the voice of Jesus and within days he was he was baptized and became a believer.

The conversion of Saul could not have been more surprising, so it is understandable that the Christians were a little wary of him. Acts 9:26 says, “When he [Paul] came to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple”. Notice what happens next: “But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. He told them how Saul on his journey had seen the Lord and that the Lord had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus” (Acts 9:27).

When no one else trusted Paul, Barnabas gave him a chance. When no one else would let him in, Barnabas opened the door and encouraged him. When it comes time to spread the message about Jesus, Paul and Barnabas are given the job and the rest, as they say, is history. Paul preached the message all over the known world, but it would not have happened if he had not had a “Barnabas” to encourage him, direct him and help him along.

On one of those missionary journeys, Paul and Barnabas meet a young man named Timothy. He was full of faith and “the brothers in Lystra and Iconium spoke well of him” (Acts 16:2), so what does Paul do? He invites this young man to join him on his journey. He teaches and mentors Timothy and, eventually, leaves him in a town named “Ephesus” so that he can help organize and teach the believers that lived there.

In other words, Paul did for Timothy what Barnabas did for Paul.

Faith is not passed on automatically. It is not passed on by osmosis. Faith is passed on best when we have an example to follow (a “Barnabas”) and someone to help (a “Timothy”).

Strong spiritual relationships can make a difference both now and in eternity.

First Impressions can be Wrong

2010-05-25T12:42:00.000-07:00

When I was in Bible College, I met a guy that I did not really like that much. He did not particularly like me either. We were completely different. We never fought or had any huge disagreements, but we did not go out of our way to spend any time together either.

Then I moved to Estevan and guess who was living here. The guy I avoided in college was the only other single college age guy in the congregation, so we were sort of stuck hanging out together. As it turned out, we found out that we were more alike than we first assumed. Twenty years later, he is still one of my best friends.

Sometimes we just sort of “get off on the wrong foot” with people. We assume that we know who they are because we have heard certain things about them. We put people in categories only to find out later that we were completely wrong in our assessment of them.

Could it be that people do the same thing with God? I mean, we all have an impression of what he is like, but have we really spent the time to get to know him? Do we really know what he is like, or are we just going on what we have heard, or think about him?

Sometimes, it is good to take a second look. In an effort to help us do that, listen to how David describes God in Psalm 103.

“The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust. As for man, his days are like grass, he flourishes like a flower of the field; the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more. But from everlasting to everlasting the Lord's love is with those who fear him (verses 8-17).

Some would not describe God the way David does.

Maybe we have had the wrong impression all along.

What are you Looking at?

2010-05-17T12:49:00.000-07:00

On January 12, 2007, in a Washington DC metro station, a young man took out his violin and began to play. Over the next 45 minutes, he played six Bach pieces as approximately 1100 people walked past him.

After three minutes, a middle-aged man slowed down, listened for a few seconds, and then hurried to meet his schedule.

At the four minute mark, the violinist received his first dollar. A woman threw the money in the hat and, without stopping, continued to walk.

He had been playing for six minutes when a young man leaned against the wall, listened, then looked at his watch and started to walk again.

After ten minutes, a 3-year old boy stopped but his mother tugged him along hurriedly. Several other children tired to stop and every parent, without exception, forced his or her child to move on quickly.

Overall, a total of seven people stopped to listen for a short while. Twenty seven people threw some money in the hat and the man collected a total of $32 (One man contributed $20 of the $32). When he finished playing, no one applauded or even seemed to notice. He just packed up and left.

What people did not know was that the young violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the greatest musicians in the world. He was playing one of the most intricate pieces ever written and he was playing a violin that was worth $3.5 million dollars. Two days earlier, Joshua Bell had sold out a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100. His appearance in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception and expectations.

The people that day did not expect a world renowned violinist to be playing in a metro station at rush hour and their expectations (or lack thereof) made them miss a unique experience. They did not see what was right in front of them, because they were not looking for anything special that morning.

How often do we miss seeing good things because we simply are not looking for them? How many times do we miss the blessings that are all around us because we are in such a rush to get to the next thing? We do not expect anything special and so we do not get anything special.

The apostle Paul once prayed, “I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened” (Ephesians 1:18). He wanted his readers to slow down, open their “spiritual eyes” and see their blessings.

Maybe that would be a good prayer for us too.

The Power of Love

2010-05-10T12:38:00.001-07:00

Imagine a little girl, about a year old, being passed around in a group of people. Her eyes begin to tear up, her lip quivers and she begins bawling! No one can calm her, so she is passed back to her mom. Immediately, the tears stop and everything is ok.

A little boy starts playing hockey and he is terrible! He cannot skate. He cannot shoot. He is always going the wrong way and he never seems to know what to do. Up in the stands, though, he sees his mom. She has a big smile on her face. She cheers for her little boy as if he is next Wayne Gretzky and he knows that she is proud of him.

A girl comes home crying. Grade five can be difficult. Some of the other girls were being mean and making fun of her. She feels like she does not have a friend in the world. Her mom sits her down and listens to her. She tells her little girl that she is the most beautiful, most wonderful and most loved little girl in the world. The girl wipes her tears and goes on knowing that, no matter what happens, her mom is on her side.

A teenager goes to university. It is his first time away from home. The campus is big and, though he is trying to hide it, he is a little scared. His mom helps him settle into his dorm room. She calls him every other day for the first couple of weeks. She sends him “care packages” filled with some of his favorite foods and a couple of new shirts. He counts the days until the weekend when he gets to go home.

This past weekend was “Mother’s Day”. We honour mothers not because they are perfect, but because they love! In fact, a mother’s love can make all the difference in a child’s life. It can change everything!

Now hold that thought and read this: “Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us” (1 John 4:7-12).

God’s love can change everything for us. His love can fill us and can flow through us so that it changes the lives of those around us.

That is the power of Love!