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Archive for the ‘Grace’ Category

Turn To God’s Light

Posted in Formation, Grace, Hope on June 12, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Have you ever struggled with sin?  If you answered no to that question, then . . . you need to quit reading and do some soul searching.  All of us struggle with sin – with wanting our own way – choosing certain things that go against what we know would please God.

That is part of living in a sinful world and being human.  But what about those sins you keep going back to regardless of how many times you ask God for forgiveness and say, “I’ll never do that again.”

I ran across this thought today from Thomas Merton and found it meaningful, I hope you will as well.

Shall I drive evil out of my soul by wrestling with my own darkness?  This is not what God has planned for me.  It is sufficient to turn away from my darkness to his light.  I do not have to run away from myself; it is sufficient that I find myself, not as I have made myself, by my own stupidity, but as he has made me in his wisdom and remade me in his infinite mercy.  For it is his will that my body and soul should be the temple of hisHoly Spirit, that my life should reflect the radiance of his love and my whole being repose in his peace.  Then I will truly know him, since I am in him and he is truly in me.

Let that sink in for a minute.  “It is sufficient to turn away from my darkness to his light.”  I don’t know about you, but I wrestle a lot with my own selfish desires.  I feel guilty for not being the person God wants me to be each day.  Reading this thought from Thomas Merton this morning gave me a breath of peace – even release – to remember that God simply asks that we focus on what is ultimately important and turn from our own desires.

It is a constant struggle, but the picture of simply turning away from the darkness of my sin and turning to God’s glorious light is a picture of mercy I needed to remember today.  Maybe you do too!

Be blessed today!

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More Light – Less Heat

Posted in Community, Formation, Grace, Hope on June 7, 2012| Leave a Comment »

We are starting a new Bible study class this Sunday and I am excited to see what God is going to do.  We have been busy this week preparing the room that will house the new class.  We have painted and cleaned and moved furniture.

One of the downsides to having a church that will celebrate 100 years in a little over a year is that the building is not new.  The lighting in the new class room was original to the building and gave the ambiance of a remote cave at Carlsbad Caverns.

So part of the room renovation involved taking down the old, single bulb light fixtures and putting up new florescent lighting.  On Tuesday, my oldest son and I tackled that project.  But the first thing we learned is that those old 200 watt bulbs put off some heat.  We turned the lights off and then turned the breaker off to the room and got ready to take the old fixtures down.  The fixtures were so hot, we could not touch them.  We had to wait 20 minutes to begin the process.  Once they cooled down, we were able to remove the old fixtures, install the new ones and increase the amount of light in the room by at least 150%.

Yesterday, I ran across this quote from Woodrow Wilson that went along with our experience with the lights.  He said,  “One cool judgment is worth a thousand hasty councils. The thing to do is to supply light and not heat.”  What a great thought!

So often, we try to offer our guidance or wisdom to a person in need and in the process of shedding light on the subject, we also apply heat.  It is all in the way we go about it and our attitude toward the situation.

Think of it in relation to how Jesus followers are often perceived by the world.  The media does not find stories of Mother Teresa’s self-sacrificial, illuminating work nearly as news worthy as a fundamentalist group burning the Korán or torching an abortion clinic.

Don’t get me wrong, physics would tell us that a by-product of producing light is nearly always heat.  But I can tell you that the new florescent lights put off a lot more light than the old ones and half the heat.

We need to focus on being light for a dark world without driving people away because they can’t stand the heat.

Go be light today!

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Never Alone

Posted in Formation, Grace, Hope on June 4, 2012| Leave a Comment »

“I will never leave you nor forsake you.”  That is God’s promise to us found in Hebrews 13 verse 5.  Let that sink in.  Never.  Never alone.  Never facing life by yourself.  God will never turn away – God will never walk away – God will never give up on you.

That is not to say we cannot turn away from God.  In fact, when we do turn away from God and choose our own way we find it is most often the starting point of our pain and troubles.  We have it in our nature to try and do it on our own.  It is inherent.  Think about small children as they learn to do things.  I can remember each of my boys saying, “Me do it.”  It is a part of our makeup to want to do things for ourselves – to be independent.

God created us with a desire for independence so there is nothing wrong with that but it causes problems when we begin to think we don’t need God.  The farther we allow our hearts to get from God, the more often we choose paths that lead no where.

But, the good news is that God will never leave us and God never gives up on us.

So regardless of how far you have run or how long you have been away, God is still right there with you.  Peace and grace is only a prayer away.

Be blessed today!

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One of Those Weeks

Posted in Formation, Grace, Hope on June 1, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Have you ever had one of those weeks?  A week full of “one of those days?”  I’m not trying to complain, but that is my story today.  It has been one of those weeks.  I don’t think there has been a day this week in which I even started the things I had planned for the day before 2 PM.  Don’t get me wrong, nothing has blown up in my face, it has just been a constant stream of unexpected events and issues.

But, that is life.  It is something we all experience from time to time.  We stick with it and we do the best we can.

I was reminded of that strategy by a friend from San Antonio yesterday.  We just have to do our best.  We have to be faithful.  As hard as I try to strategically plan out my day so that I accomplish the most possible, life happens and my plan goes out the window.  I look up at the end of the day and it seems I have accomplished nothing.  That sermon that is coming on Sunday hasn’t been touched.  That conversation with the insurance company about the roof replacement has not taken place.  So many things on my To Do list haven’t been done.

But God didn’t create that To Do list, I did.  So the pressure I feel may be more self-inflicted than spirit directed.

God simply asks us to be faithful – to do our best.  It really is that simple.

Now, I don’t believe that is a “Get Out of Jail Free” card.  We still have to truly do our best.  But if we do our best – if we live in the moment and follow the leadership of the spirit as opportunities present themselves, then God takes care of the rest.

So today, if you are feeling a bit overwhelmed – if there is more on your plate for this week than you have week left to complete it – take heart.

Do your best.  And live into the freedom of knowing that God is pleased with you!

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God Loves You!

Posted in Formation, Grace, Hope on May 7, 2012| Leave a Comment »

How long has it been since you stopped and just thought about how much God loves you?  We get so busy and I guess we know deep down inside that God loves us.  But the pressures of the fast-paced rat race that is your life causes the realization that you are loved to slowly fade.  It begins with moving from a deep understanding of God’s unconditional love for you to a good feeling that God might just actually care about you.  From there it creeps into a general acknowledgement that God loves everyone.

Before long, the pressures of life weigh us down to the point that self-pity permeates all that we are and we forget that God truly loves us.  We take on the attitude of, “If God really loved me, I wouldn’t be going through . . .”  And so we no longer feel God’s love not because it is no longer there but because we have allowed our focus to shift.

Take some time today to remember that God loves you.  Regardless of what you may be experiencing in the moment you are reading this – God loves you – you are valuable and worthy.  God loves you enough to know and care about you personally – to the point that Jesus came to show you just how deep and lasting God’s love is for you.

God loves you – you are truly blessed!

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Let Go of What You Can’t Hold

Posted in Formation, Grace, Hope on April 23, 2012| Leave a Comment »

I was introduced to a new artist last week and I have listened to his latest album no less than 8 times since Thursday.  His sound is unique and his lyrics will make you stop what you are doing and just listen (which makes driving and listening a bit sketchy).  Josh Garrels is his name and he hails from Oregon.

On his latest album, Love and War and the Sea Between, he has a song titled Beyond the Blue.  As I drove to work this morning, this song was playing.  The chorus of the song says, “let go of all we cannot hold on to for the hope beyond the blue.”  The last time he sings the chorus he changes it just a bit and instead of singing “the hope beyond the blue,” he says “the hope I have in you.”

As I drove, I asked myself, “what should I let go of that I really can’t hold on to anyway?”  It is a great question.  So often we find ourselves stressing over things we can’t even control.  The whole time, God is standing by saying, “I am here offering liberation – real life – if you will just relax and let go of things you can’t even control.”

So today, I ask you the question, “What do you need to turn loose of that you can’t hold on to?”

Let go of it today and rest in the arms of hope!

Be blessed today!

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The Reality of the Cross

Posted in Formation, Grace, Hope on April 6, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Today is Friday of Holy Week – Good Friday.  This is the day we remember the cross.  It began with a mock trial that ended with an angry mob yelling, “Crucify.”  It then moved to beating and humiliation and then ultimately to the cross where Jesus was brutally murdered.  All of this for my sin and for yours.

Walk carefully through this day.  Think about the sacrifice.  Follow Jesus up the Via De La Rosa to the hill of the skull.  Listen as the hammer bounces off the spikes.  Watch as Jesus is hoisted up into the air and left there to die.

This is what he endured for you and for me.

Stand at the foot of that cross today and let the sights and sounds wash over you.  Don’t turn away – face the reality.

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Quiet Wednesday and Betrayal

Posted in Community, Formation, Grace on April 4, 2012| Leave a Comment »

It is Wednesday of Holy Week as we remember that fateful week in Jesus’ life.  The Feast of Unleavened Bread would start tomorrow and the excitement was building in and around the city.  The disciples were beginning to think about planning the supper – thinking about a place to eat together and all the preparations that would need to be made to make sure the Passover Meal was just right.

But one of the disciples was distracted by other thoughts.  At some point, Judas met with the religious leaders in Jerusalem and agreed to look for an opportunity to turn Jesus over to them.  His take in the plan?  30 pieces of silver.

Was he evil or was this part of his plan to force Jesus’ hand to step up and lead a revolt?  Any answer to that question is speculation but what we do know is that the trial and crucifixion were direct results of his betrayal and afterwards, he felt guilty enough to end his own life.

So in the midst of the celebration and festive environment, one of the disciples was at work plotting against Jesus.  For whatever reason, Judas had come to a place of realization that who he expected Jesus to be and who Jesus truly is were not the same.

It is easy, 2000 years after the fact, to condemn Judas and look on him with hatred.  But before we pick up the first stone to throw his way, ask yourself a question, “Am I any different?

Has your perception of God ever conflicted with the reality of God?  Let me ask it another way.  Have you ever made up your mind that God wanted something for you?  Maybe a job.  You prayed and read scripture and truly sought God’s guidance and felt that God must want you to have this particular job.  It was going to be great – you were made for this job and God wanted you to have it.  But then, for some unforeseen reason, you didn’t get the job.  Now what?  Did God mess up?  Did God drop the ball?

You probably felt betrayed or mislead.  For a time you might have even felt angry at God.  You might have even turned from God for a time with an attitude of “I’ll show you!”

But the reality of that situation is that God has a bigger plan.  God is still God and the plan is for us to grow into the people were created to be – through good experiences and bad.

So before we demonize Judas too badly, maybe we need to look at our own betrayal.

Jesus is about to be betrayed by one of the ones closest to him.  Will you walk the rest of the way to the cross with him or will you turn and run away and come back around on Sunday?

Stay close – Holy Week is about to get dark!

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How Will You Honor Jesus?

Posted in Community, Formation, Grace on April 3, 2012| Leave a Comment »

As we walk together through Holy Week, we are at Tuesday.  Mark records that two days before the Passover, Jesus was in the house of Simon the Leper having a meal with his followers.  While there, a woman came and brought a container of extremely expensive perfume and used it all to anoint Jesus’ head.

This sparked some debate among the group because of the extravagant nature of the act.  This perfume, we are told, was worth a year’s wages.  In today’s terms, according to the national average income for 2011 in the US, that would have equated to roughly $43,000.

For one, I don’t have $43,000 to spend on perfume but even if I did, I am not sure I would have been willing to sacrifice it all to put it on Jesus’ head as an act of submission, honor and worship.  But that is what this lady did.

Those present rebuked her for “wasting” so much money when that money could have been put to much better use.  But Jesus stopped them and explained that she was following her heart and not holding anything back, but rather, was willing to serve him and honor him in what would be a preparation for his burial.

As I think about this event, I have to ask myself: how do I honor Jesus?  Am I willing to worship him and serve him extravagantly?  Or am I only willing to worship and serve him with my left overs?

What about you?

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Who Put Jesus on the Cross?

Posted in Community, Grace, Hope on March 29, 2012| Leave a Comment »

I love music – all kinds of music (not particularly fond of the red neck stuff – but even that I can take in doses).  I love to sing too.  Unfortunately, I am not all that good at it.  It’s kind of like when people ask me if   I am a golfer; my common response is that I love to golf but I would not call myself a golfer.

The reason I bore with you with these little tidbits of information about me is this: I have agreed to sing a song during our Tenebrae service next Friday as part of our Holy Week activities.  Yikes!

The song that has been on my mind for months is a song by Todd Agnew entitled Blood On My Hands.  It speaks to the fact that Jesus died for me and for you.  The first line of the song says, “Each crack of that whip was for my mistakes – his blood is on my hands.”

We are entering into Holy Week.  This is a time we set aside each year to stop and think not only about the cross and the sacrifice – but why it was necessary.  Richard Niebhur said there would be no Christianity without the cross.  I think he was right.  It was for us Jesus died.  We need to live with that fact this week.

So who put Jesus on the cross?

I did . . . and so did you!

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