Clay in the Hands

I have been thinking about what it means to live a resurrected life.  Over the past two weeks, that has been the subject on Sunday mornings.  We have talked about living with hope – and hope is a confident expectation that Jesus is who he says and will do what he promises.  We serve a risen savior who has conquered sin and death.  There is nothing we face that Jesus has not already faced and overcome.  So we find hope in knowing that these light and momentary troubles are just temporary (2 Corinthians 4).

We have also talked about the fact that living resurrected lives should mean living with peace.  This hope we find in Jesus gives us the opportunity of peace.  We don’t have to worry about tomorrow because we have a confident expectation that Jesus will take care of it.

When we live with hope and peace, then we are freed to live for God fully and when we do that we live for others as well.  This will be our topic this Sunday – Living for Others.  As I have been thinking and praying through this series, I ran across a quote that illustrates the idea of living for others.  If you have read my ramblings for any length of time, then you have noticed that Thomas Merton is a favorite of mine.  He said this:

To go out of ourselves is to act at the very summit of our being, not moved by our own nature but moved by God Who is at once infinitely above us and Who yet dwells in the depths of our being. . . . A perfect act of faith should, at the same time, be a perfect act of humility.  (Thoughts In Solitude)

When we live resurrected lives – as the new creations we are becoming – then we live outside ourselves.  Our focus has shifted to the desire to please God and make a difference in the lives of others.

Go and make a difference today!

Live resurrected!

Today, I have the privilege of speaking at the funeral of a man who has been larger than life here in Corpus Christi – a successful business man and entrepreneur – a philanthropist and generous supporter of the community.

I had the opportunity to meet Dusty Durrill a couple of months ago.  He knew his days were becoming limited and he wanted to find peace with God.  He admitted to me that he had never doubted the existence of God, but he had not followed him with his life.  In fact, he had never had much use for religion and the church.

I appreciated his honesty and authenticity.  But through our conversation, after he had grilled me as to my intentions, he found his peace with God and that is a morning  I will never forget.

But as I have reflected on his life and his story – I have become more and more convicted and concerned.  How many other people have that story and that perception of the church?  I wish I could say the perception of the church being filled with hypocrites is a false perception.  But sadly, just being honest, it is not.

Now before you stop reading, let me say, there is not a place on earth that is not filled with hypocrites.  If there are people – there are hypocrites.  So to shun the church because she is filled with hypocrites is just an excuse.

But my conviction is this – shouldn’t we strive to be authentic and real?  Shouldn’t people find a place where they can be themselves when they come to church?

God loves us just as we are but he also loves us too much to let us stay that way.

So today, be REAL.  Let others know you are human but that you are striving to live like Jesus.  The world needs real believers being real.

Be real today!