Have you spent much time thinking about what God wants from you? The foundation of faith is found in the fact that God knows you and loves you. You were created for a relationship with Him. If you have ever contemplated the meaning of life, that’s it. The meaning and purpose of your life is to have a relationship with the creator. Now you know – – you are welcome!
It really is that simple. But we don’t stop with just knowing God – we should grow in that understanding and how it impacts who we become and how we live each day. God created you on purpose, for a purpose.
Paul reminds us in Ephesians 2:8-10, that it is by grace we are made right with God – not by any thing we do to earn His love. But then he goes on to explain that we were created by Jesus as His masterpiece to “do good works.” As Dallas Willard said, “Grace is not opposed to effort but it is opposed to earning.”
So where do we start in trying to live this out? Paul, again in Ephesians, gives us guidance. Ephesians 5:1-2 says, “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children, and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”
We are to follow Jesus’ example and walk in the way of love. Specifically, we are to walk in the Way of Jesus – the way of love, the way of truth and the way of life. We do this by following Him – imitating Him.
Ephesians 4:32 is the verse just before this instruction and it says, “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Perhaps we start there.
May we be found faithful in walking our daily lives in the Way of love being imitators of Jesus.
Often, there are multiple reasons we have a hard time connecting to God. In the last post, I mentioned the issue of FOMO. We can become so consumed with not missing out on things that we add and add to our lives to the point that we live a hurried and worried existence. Hurry can also become our norm when our focus is efficiency and productivity. Slowing down to focus on Jesus is hard to do when our lives are lived at mach speed.
But today I am thinking about another reason we lose focus on our relationship with Jesus. Sometimes, it is the burdens we carry that distract us. One of the many powerful experiences I had on the Camino de Santiago was a practice that many along the way added to their journey. Many would pick up rocks along the way to symbolize burdens they were carrying.
One day, early in the walk, I did that. I found a rock to carry and pray over. The rock had a name – the name of what I was carrying in my heart. For a couple of days, I carried that rock in my pocket and every time I noticed its presence, I prayed for God to work in the situation – to bring about healing and restoration. Then about day 3 of carrying that rock, I laid it down at one of the direction markers along the trail. As I laid it down, my prayer was one of surrender. I gave that burden, as best I could, to God and asked Him to take care of it. As I walked away, I felt His answer. What He told me was that I needed to continue to pray for the situation and show love as best I can, and leave the rest to Him.
I would like to be able to report that I have done a great job of not picking up that burden again, but I can say there has been a new sense of peace and hope.
There are so many things we carry – concerns for family, for careers, for community, for our world. But we were not designed to carry the world on our shoulders – that is God’s job. Whatever we carry can become a distraction that prevents us from truly connecting to the One who can take the weight from us.
What do you need to lay down today? Jesus is ready to take it but you have to offer it.
Several years ago, an acronym became popular – FOMO – Fear of Missing Out. With the rise of social media, it has become easy to fall into the trap of seeing the lives of others lived out in front of our eyes through their posts of all the amazing things that make up their existence. The problem is, these images are snapshots in time and not the reality of their lives. But we see these images and think, “My life is not like that,” or “I want a life like that.” We fall into the hole of thinking we are missing out.
So we strive to do more, to see more, to taste more, to experience more. The irony of chasing this false reality is that by doing more we rush past what is really important and truly real. God created each of us for the best life we could ever imagine. The life God created us to live can only be found in slowing down and focusing less on the world around us and more on knowing Him. His reminder is just as important today as the day this verse was written: Be still and know that I am God. (Psalm 46:10) The literal translation of “Be still” is “Relax and let go.”
If you don’t want to miss out, then slow down, relax, let go and get to know God.
I don’t want to miss out on a minute of what God has for me.
Over the past several months I have given much thought to living the life in The Way – daily following Jesus. I have thought about my effectiveness to this point – and often times the lack of effectiveness. But more recently, I have been thinking about my effectiveness as a believer moving forward. There are now many more days on this planet behind me than there are in front of me. So how do I make sure the days I have left are spent pleasing Jesus?
In my devotional life, I am reading through the Sermon on the Mount – the greatest sermon ever preached – offered by Jesus Himself to His followers on the northern side of the lake in Galilee. At the beginning of the sermon, Jesus gave us a list of characteristics we should try to exhibit each day – what we have come to call the Beatitudes. Immediately after the list, He said this, “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.” (Matthew 5:13)
Salt brings out flavors in food; in moderation, it is a good thing. It also can be used as a preservative. Our lives are to bring enhancement to those around us – to add flavor to life. Our lives can bring preservation when our lives point others to the One who rescues. I don’t know about you, but if I am to be salt in a tasteless world, I don’t want to lose my saltiness.
What I have found is the only way to stay salty is to stay close to the source. When we move further away from the source, and allow ourselves to be diluted by the world, we lose saltiness. Jesus reminded us, in the Gospel of John, that we must remain or abide in Him – like a branch connected to a vine. Our effectiveness – or saltiness – is dependent on our staying close to Him.
How will you stay close and stay connected to Him today to ensure you don’t become diluted by the world around you?
One of the best questions I have been asked since my return from Spain, and the experience of the Camino de Santiago Primitivo, has been, “What were the greatest take-aways from your adventure?” I have continued to put much thought into that question and have a list I am still working on in response.
A second excellent question has been, “How will you share your experience with others?” The answer to this question has proven to be a bit more challenging. I have used some illustrations from the way in my sermons since returning. I do still plan to continue sharing about it here on this platform – Clay In the Hands. But I am also going to attempt to share my experiences and lessons learned in a more formal setting – a Wednesday night study I am calling, Join Me On the Camino.
Over the course of six weeks, I plan to describe the journey but also bring some of the lessons I have learned along the way to life for those who are interested. The lessons I will share have application to our everyday journey in The Way. Following Jesus on a daily basis and experiencing the Camino go hand in hand. In fact, I have come to see the Camino experience as a living metaphor of our daily walk with Jesus.
So, if you are around Corpus Christi, Texas, on Wednesday nights starting October 1, and would like to hear about the journey, stop by at 6:30 and Join Me On the Camino! It is going to be fun – without all the sweat and exertion!
And if you are not in the area but would like to follow along, the sessions will be recorded and uploaded to the First Corpus Youtube channel as well.
Much has happened since day 10 of my journey on the Camino (my last post here). I did complete the walk on day 13 and walked into the city of Santiago de Compostela, out onto the plaza of the Cathedral and took in the sights. The experience of joining the multitude of pilgrims who have made this journey before me was part of what overwhelmed me. It has been much to process (and will continue to be). The last three days of the journey were a mixture of gratitude, pain, tears, prayer and effort. So at the end of each day, there was just too much to put into words.
In the coming days, I will share from those days as I have continued to think through all God did there and continues to do in me.
One of the fears I have had in the return to “regular life,” is that things would return to “normal.” Some may think, but don’t we want normal? For me, God has worked in me over the past several weeks – particularly through the experience of the Camino – and shown me that there are some changes I need to implement in my life. Thus, my anxiety on returning to “regular life,” and not following through with the needed changes.
I journaled each day of my walk and have continued that discipline regularly. At the beginning of my sabbatic leave, I ran across a journaling activity that helped me re-launch into this practice. A question was given to meditate on and I did my best to do so. The question was this: If the last three months of your life were a headline, what would that headline be?
As I thought about that question and my life leading up to my time away, my headline emerged: Something’s Got To Give. That was the headline for the three months leading up to my sabbatical. I was tired, burned out and desperately looking for renewal. I am happy to say, God is in the process of that renewal even now. My new headline has become: Slow Down and Simplify.
So moving forward, my prayer is that I can live out this new headline. Being a very task oriented person, it is easy for me to push myself to be overly busy, leaving little time for margin. I have known for years that where there is no margin, there cannot be creativity. But knowing that has not helped me actually create margin to this point. But my prayer is that God will grant me the grace and courage to slow down and simplify.
How about you? Do you push yourself to do more and more in hopes of being productive or successful? An amazing truth we all need to remember is that God is more concerned about who you become than what you do. He wants your heart more than your activity.
It is hard to believe that I have been on this Camino de Santiago Primitivo journey for 10 days. If I stay on track, I will have 3 more days of walking to get to Santiago de Compostela. As I said early on, it will take months to process all that has been experienced along the way.
But each morning, I begin the day’s journey in prayer, asking Jesus to speak to me. I felt drawn to this walk to experience a renewed closeness to Him and for clarity of His calling moving forward in ministry.
Many of you know me and know that I can have great expectations – something like signs from heaven and handwriting on the wall kind of expectations.
But as I was praying for Jesus to speak to me this morning, I felt Him answer, “You are my child – I love you. Rest in that and let that be enough for now.”
At first, I struggled. Is that it? Seems pretty basic. But as I have wrestled with my thoughts today, I have been reminded that so often, I am about “doing.”
“God, tell me what you want me to do,” is a common cry of mine. But Jesus reminded me that He cares more about who I am than what I do – we are, after all, human beings not human doings.
So for today, that has been enough.
I wonder about you? Is that enough? No matter what you are going through or facing right now, all that really matters is that you are His child and that you know you are loved by the God of the universe.
Trying to keep up with posting daily has proven to be a challenge. The days have been long and by the time I get to my albergue, shower, do laundry and then try to find something to eat, there is not a lot of mental capacity to offer much here.
I am sitting in an albergue in Lugo at the end of day 9. I am now within 100 kilometers of Santiago de Compostela.
So much has been stirring in me over the last couple of days. I have had some really interesting conversations with several people – many involving faith. It has been interesting when I sit down at a table with a couple of people I have seen but not talked to and the first thing they ask is, “you’re a pastor, right?” I guess the word has gotten out.
One of the amazing people I have met and had great conversations with is Katy. She has walked different Camino routes in the past, as well as 12 marathons around the world last year! I met her on day 4 and our paths have continued to cross over the last week. Today, she made a shorter walk and so yesterday was “good-bye,” as she will enter Santiago a day or two after me now.
But in our first conversation, we shared why we are doing the Camino. She has experienced significant loss over the past few years and just needed space to grieve and heal.
The reason I mention Katy is that she did something for me that brought tears to my eyes – and still does, days later as I write this.
In our first conversation, I asked her about the shell on her backpack. I knew about the shell as a symbol of the Camino and had planned to buy one as soon as I could, once arriving in Spain. But I still have not seen a place to buy them.
Casey explained that they are available in different places, but mainly in Santiago de Compostela at the Cathedral at the end of the walk. Then she went on to explain that hers was a gift and that very often, the pilgrim receives a shell as a gift from a fellow pilgrim who has made the pilgrimage before.
I decided that evening I would buy several when I get to Santiago – one for myself and others to give to people as encouragement to make a walk at some point in their lives.
The next day, was a hard day. I flopped down in front of a chapel in the middle of the day to eat a snack and rest. Katy was there but was getting ready to leave and head on. As she bent over her backpack, before putting it on, I assumed she was adjusting it.
But the next thing I knew, she was handing me her shell! I stood up to give her a hug and began to tear up. She said, “I should have given this to you last night. This is a gift.”
And what a gift! Part of the Camino is helping out other people along the Way. Often that comes as advice and help that from those further down the Way.
Katy has walked the Way several times and this was her way of encouraging me and pulling me along. What a beautiful, cherished gesture – one I will never forget.
This is an illustration of our walk in the Way with Jesus. As you have heard me say, time and time again, the Way is how people described following Jesus in the beginning. Jesus is The Way. So as a follower in the Way, who do you need to encourage today?
Each of us are on this journey to become more like Jesus but each of us are at different stages. We all need help and encouragement from those farther down the path. But we also must turn and offer help and encouragement to those not quite as far along as we are.
The journey continues as day 7 comes to an end. The last two days have taken their toll on me and thus, no post yesterday. Between fatigue and pain, the walks are long – but so rewarding.
The rhythm has set in and it is somewhat comforting – sleep, get up, walk, eat if you can find anything, arrive at the next destination, shower, eat if you can find anything, visit with other pilgrims, rest, go to bed – repeat.
Over the past few days, I have been overwhelmed with the significance of the history of the Camino de Santiago Primitivo and of this country. Being from America, we look at the last 250 years as history – and it is in our own way. But daily, I am walking by little chapels that have been standing since the 11th and 12th centuries.
The thought I am left with is that in the sense of generations of faithful people, I am very small.
Our church will celebrate 150 years of being a church in Corpus Christi in just a couple of years. While that is significant, I was blessed to be in a church last night for a Peregrino (pilgrim) concert. The church has been standing since the 1300’s and is still used every day.
Iglesia de Santa María de Berducedo
I often have a habit of forgetting that God has been at work in our world for thousands of years – and He will continue to work in our world until Jesus returns – how ever long that will be.
My being here in His service, is just a vapor – a blip on the radar. While God values and loves each and every soul on earth, my significance is very small within eternity.
This is a sobering and humbling thought. All the things that I get so worked up about will amount to very little when it’s all said and done.
Again, each and every person that has lived, is living and will ever live on this earth is loved and valued by God. But sometimes it helps to be reminded that maybe, just maybe, not one person is really “all that.” Apart from our connection to Jesus, we can do nothing.
Thanks be to God that He knows us and loves us anyway, and that He sees fit to give us life and life to the full.
Today has been a tough day of hiking. While the distance was not quite as far, the up and down of the trail was grueling. Add to that 40 mile per hour winds and cool temperatures and it made for a long day.
But day 5 has also proven to be one of the best. When the fog began to break, the views became evident. Today’s hike was to the highest points on the Camino de Santiago Primitivo. We reached the height of over 4000 feet.
As I tried to soak it all in (without tripping and falling), God reminded me that the most beautiful experiences in life, more times than not, come with sacrifice. It was work to climb to that height but it was worth it. So remember, if you want to experience all God has for you, it takes work on your part – starting with surrender.
The other lesson God reminded me of, is that even though it takes work, He provides the strength. Our part is to provide the will and desire. His strength comes through when we think we can’t go on.
So whatever you are facing right now, just remember that God wants His best for you, but you have to choose it and do your part. When you do, He is there to provide what you need.
Just my musings about life as a Christ follower honestly and humbly seeking to be molded into what Christ wants me to be as a husband, father, minister and person.
Clay in the Hands 