Harmony

Let God shine your shoes!

As a little kid I recall a Saturday night family tradition...shining the Sunday dress shoes.  Dad would lay out the old newspaper, take out the polish, rag and brush and begin the process.  My brother and I would sit down and watch and at some point we were allowed to shine our own shoes.  What fun to smell the shoe polish and watch dads big hand go down inside the shoe to brace for the next action. 

He would pick up the can of polish and spit into the can to moisten the hardened polish.  With the other hand he took the rag, dipped it into the polish and get the rag coated with the dark goo!  He'd rub it on the leather and then take another rag and wipe off the excess polish.  Then the magic brushing effect took place.  That part was the most fun for me...making the shoes shine and glisten.

The process was about looking your best.  You covered over the scuff marks, the damaged leather.  You made the old look new.

That is what God did for us in Jesus.  He made the old look new.  We still notice the scuff marks but God only sees shiny and glistening lives.  He took the ragged, torn and tattered lives of his children and with Jesus made us new, whole, complete.  Perfect.  For Jesus, it was not his spit but his blood.

Praise God for doing what we could not do.  Give him your life and let him work his transformational process.  His shine lasts forever!

What does it mean to thirst for God?

I sing songs of thirsting for God.  I read passages of hungering and thirsting for God.  Intellectually I understand what that means, but in my soul...not so sure it is a craving.  Or perhaps it is not the same craving like the Psalmist.  There seems to be in the heart, mind and soul a deep longing for God where a powerful relationship exists.  That longing changes prayer for when I pray, I'm not simply praying to get something, I'm praying to be WITH someone.

Jerry Sittser reveals his personal story in his book When God Doesn't Answer Your Prayer.  In one day, his life changed forever.  A drunk driver crossed the center line striking the van his wife was driving, killing her, their 4 year old daughter and Jerry's mother.  Her writes, "After the accident I missed Lynda for many reasons...At first I wished she were still alive to help keep my life going at home.  I needed her, at least in part, to do chores...to drive the kids to their activities.  But I have long since mastered those responsibilities.  Yet the ache remains because I miss her, not for what she could do but for who she is.  I don't miss a wife in the abstract; I miss the person I was married to.  I still see her face.  I still miss our late-night conversations.  I even miss our fights.  I have come to learn that the real pain of widowhood is the loss of the relationship with the one person I had given my heart to."

In the same way he missed his wife, Jerry understood that he had an even deeper longing for God.  He wanted to see God's face, like Moses.  He desired to meet God for "late-night conversations."  That kind of longing, thirsting, craving, hungering does not come easily.  It comes by seeing how great God is, his deep love and concern for me, and placing myself in his will for guidance when I don't understand the direction in which he is taking me.

Thirsting for God.  I have to be willing to realize the dryness, parchness of life without him.  Then I will crave him more than life.

God's ultimate concern is God...his glory! Video Message from John Piper

Understanding God and our relationship with him is so vitally important. We often tend to view God from our own self-centered needs and wants. I recently tried to convey the idea that God's ultimate concern is God...his glory. He does care for me, but I am not his goal or object. His goal and object is receiving glory and so all decisions God makes are towards that purpose. John Piper presents that very message in this 66 minute video. I encourage you to take the time to watch this. It will change your viewpoint of God.

Burden lifter or burden burdener?

Interaction among people happens all day long.  You encounter strangers and friends, co-workers and bosses, family and neighbors.  In each of those encounters how do you respond to others?  In some instances a blank stare, no smiles is the greeting.  In others a full smile and hello occurs.  Where relationships are more deeply rooted, a warm smile, wink of the eye, touch on the shoulder, or handshake fits the environment.

When the relationships are more well connected are you a burden lifter or burden burdener?  In other words do you lay heavy loads on others or lift them from them?  Are you aware of the circumstances others are going through as you engage in conversations or are you only thinking of yourself and your own agenda?  If you're thinking of others then words of encouragement and gestures of appreciation will be shared.  If you're only thinking of yourself then you'll press your point regardless of the situation.  One lifts burdens.  One burdens the already burdened.

It may seem like an easy situation to resolve, but like all relationship issues...it is not.  Love for the other person and perspective on what is vital to communicate is the key.  When helping lift burdens, a gentle spirit is important to the healing process.  It would be easy to point out the other persons faults and ask them why they are in the position in which they find themselves.  But that is not helpful.  It burdens the already burdened.

Giving encouraging words is part of the fruit of a Godly life.  Withholding kind and loving thoughts is a way for a person to attempt to control someone else...with their non-response and flat facial affect.  As God's Spirit grows in its influence in our hearts one of the evidences is burden bearing and lifting.

So evaluate your relationships...your closest relationships.  Would they see you as a burden lifter or burdening them with more burdens?  Are you aware of what they are going through as you encounter them?

Sunday, we'll be studying Paul's letter to the church in Galatia and diving into the beginning section of chapter 6.  Take a look at these words and examine your relationships.

"Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself. But let each one test his own work, and then his reason to boast will be in himself alone and not in his neighbor. For each will have to bear his own load."

Questions for which I'd like answers!

1.  Where does the running nose stuff come from?  Right now I have a cold, and I can't figure out how my head keeps producing the "stuff" that keeps me blowing my nose.

2.  Why do all people at some point in their day treat others badly?

3.  How do words get so mixed up in the mind of the listener so that they think you said just the opposite of what you meant to say?  It couldn't be the speakers fault!

4.  Why does the government want to tax successful businesses to cover the losses of smaller enterprises?

5.  Why do people ask questions?

6.  Why can children sleep through almost anything at some times and then at others wake up at every little cabinet squeak?

7.  Why do people like to talk about each other?

8.  Why is it so hard to do what I want to do?  And why is it so hard to not do what I don't want to do?

9.  Why are so patient with a persons illness but not their sin?

These are just some of mine this Monday morning.  What questions do you have?

The Blessings of Birthdays!

This past week I've been able to celebrate the birthdays of my oldest son and my wife.  In the past few weeks I've celebrated the birthdays of friends and my son-in-law.  In a few days, a good friend will bring their third child into the world.  As I go through those moments I am reminded of the blessed event in celebrating a birthday.

That special day is unique because of the blessing to the world that person has been, is, and will be until death takes them home.  As I think about my wife's birthday today, I am reminded of how she has blessed the lives of all those who have met her.  My life is so much more full by having her in it.  There is a joy, peace, and motivation she brings everyday.  God blessed me with her.

She also is a blessing to many other people.  Everyday she is seeing clients or talking on the phone to people who need her God given skill and expertise to probe and resolve issues of life.  She is such a blessing.

Each person is brought into the world bearing the image of God and has the potential to bless the world, giving glory to God by their life.  We have the opportunity everyday to bless others with the love of God, the joy of God, the peace of God, the purpose of God.  So as you interact with others today, open your eyes and see more than the problems, challenges that person may bring...see them as a child of the King and treat them as such.  Encourage them.  Lift them up.  Motivate them to reach their potential the King of Kings has placed in them.

So today...I am so glad God brought my Linda into the world.  I cannot imagine my life without her.  Praise be to God!

10 Things You Should Stop Complaining About at Work

Complaining is a nasty virus that can overtake the mind and ruin the mood of others in the room.  Complaining usually leads no where and often creates a feeling of "loser" towards the one doing the complaining.  It is not that you cannot stand up for yourself when work environments are intolerable, but really...in the United States!  Intolerable would take on a completely new definition if we lived in Haiti right now.

So let's establish perspective.  According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the nation’s unemployment rate is hovering around 10%. Even more troubling, The New York Times reports that unemployed people are spending longer periods between jobs. In December of 2008, only 22.9% of people were unemployed for 27 weeks or longer. A year later, in December of 2009, a whopping 37.8% of people were unemployed for 27 weeks or more. That means that nearly 40% of our nation’s unemployed are going without jobs for nearly seven months.

I found this list on the internet this morning.  I also am in a smart-alecky mood so don't take my statements too seriously.  Here are the 10 areas in which to stop complaining:

1.  Your salary.  Be appreciative you have a job and any kind of steady income. 

2.  Disappearing perks.  Companies have been forced to eliminate unnecessary expenses so they can stay afloat.  Perks cost a company money. 

3.  Your personal life.  Most people really don't want to spend great deals of time listening to your family troubles.  Find an appropriate time and place to share and pray with others. 

4.  Your workload.  Guess what.  Most everyone works hard and has stress.

5.  Lack of nearby food options.  That's what hot pockets are for!

6.  Your cube or office.  Space is costly to companies and so they attempt to maximize every sq. foot to get the most work done to generate revenue.

7.  Your temperature.  It is so difficult to have everyone happy on this one.  That's what clothing is for...bring an extra sweater or snuggy.

8.  Your boss/manager.  Most everyone struggles with the "one in charge".  If you were the boss, some people might even struggle with you!

9.  Your elusive promotion or raise.  Everyone would like to receive a step up in the company...more authority.  In this environment remember...it is good just to have a job.

10.  Your commute.  It is pointless to complain about the driving patterns of other people.  You cannot only control yourself.

Sacramental Prayer

Growing up in my particular religious community, sacrament was an underused phrase.  Sacrament is defined as a rite or object in which God is active.  Augustine of Hippo (I would have wanted to have that name changed) defines sacrament as "a visible sign of an invisible reality."  Christian tradition tends to look at sacraments as events done in a "church service" such as communion or baptism.  But a sacrament is much more than that.

God created sacraments all around to remind us of him.  His love and care.  His provision.  His protection.  Praying a sacramental prayer is opening our senses to all God has made for us to enjoy...the beauty of his creation.  The food he has provided.  The promise from the rainbow.  The memory of our baptism in a special place.

Psalm 96:12-13 reads "let the field exult, and everything in it!
Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy
 before the LORD, for he comes,
   for he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness,
   and the peoples in his faithfulness."

Sometimes we think prayer is disconnecting from our world, and at times we may wish to do so for our own sanity.  However, God would like for us to see him in the cry of a child, the wrinkled face of maturity in an older person, the teen struggling to find God, the blowing of the wind, the flake of snow as it falls to the earth.  The sacraments of God to remind us of him.

C.S. Lewis wrote "there is no good trying to be more spiritual than God.  God never meant me to be a purely spiritual creature.  That is why he uses material things like bread and wine to put the new life into us.  We may think this rather crude and unspiritual.  God does not:  he invented eating.  He likes matter.  He invented it."

When God wanted to show Abraham his promise he took him outside and told him to look into the dark night and attempt to count the stars.  Abraham planted a tamarisk tree and called upon the Lord.  The tree was a reminder to Abraham of the call to God every time he laid eyes on it.  Sacraments.  Open your prayer life to a new realm of enjoyment and possibility...pray the sacraments of his creation.  Enjoy all of life that God has made for you.

A Groaning Prayer

There are seasons of life.  There are times when all is well and times when we are face down in the dirt.  And there are many variations between those two extremes.  The conversations on the streets in our community in North San Diego county have been about the tragic deaths of two teenage girls, Amber Dubois and Chelsea King.  Amber disappeared on Feb. 9, 2009 while on her way to school and her body was found last Saturday.  Chelsea was running around a local lake and disappeared to be found dead a few days later.

Parents, teens and many adults are groaning inwardly and outwardly.  For some it is a thick cloud that covers their movements.  For others, it is a heavy heart for the families and for our children.  For some questions arise to the heavens seeking answers to life's greatest dilemmas.  Since the early days of scripture the groaning has existed.  Adam and Eve had to ask themselves "why" when one son killed another.

Scripture teaches us that we live in a bent, fallen, maimed world.  When sin entered the picture of life by the choices of Adam and Eve, the perfect world God created turned on its head.  "The whole creation groans."  The promise of God is that one day he will straighten out the misshapen situation.  The promise of God is that we also have Jesus who is alive and active in our world - he has not finished his healing work.

Praying is all we can do.  Not for answers but groaning to God to communicate the pain and anguish.  Matt Woodley in his book The Folly of Prayer writes "prayer doesn't resolve the tension of living in a fallen world; it intensifies the ache.  Prayer makes us groan louder, not softer.  Groaning gets us in touch with the pain and the hope, the ache and the glory, the deep sadness and the nearly unbearable joy of life in a Christ-redeemed world."

So while the answers may not be clear, keep praying.  Keep groaning to God.  He hears.  He sees and he groans as well.  Keep asking what to do with the pain?  What to learn?  How to protect those you love?

Love does crazy things to us!

Falling in love.  Do you remember your first crush or love interest?  The secret notes being passed.  The phone calls and then hanging up. My oldest grandson had his first crush last summer.  He came to visit for a week and was head over hills gone over this young lady.  He was 13 almost 14 at the time.  His comment the other day in the car was "yeah...I thought I was in love."

Love does crazy things to us.  It changes our view of life.  It changes moods.  It alters direction.  It affects our mind.  Love changes us.

What is the driving force of your relationship with God?  Is it love, fear, responsibility?  What is the driving force of your relationship with God?  What does God want to be your reason to respond to him?  Does he want you to be afraid?  Does he want you to feel obligated because he's done so much?  Does he want you to respond out of love and gratitude?

The Apostle Paul seems to believe it is love and gratitude.  As he writes to the church in Galatia, he pens these words "the only thing that counts is faith expressing itself in love."  No one would have classified Paul as a dripping, sappy love sick person when it came to relationships.  His natural self was to be tough and demanding.  But when Jesus got hold of him, he fell in love with the Son of God for saving him from his sins and for setting him free from the bondage of rules, human standards, and regulations.  Jesus gave him a purpose for his life and he spent the remainder of his days living, breathing and telling others about his Savior.

God's love pursues us...everyday for all of our existence.  His love does not go away, fade or become disturbed by our behavior. He even loves me enough to let me go if I want.  He still will pursue through discipline, but he will allow me to make my own choices.

There is no greater cause of life.  There is no greater lover of my life and soul.  The daily dilemma of all mankind is to keep seeing God and his Son.  To open our eyes to his love, beauty, glory and magnificence.  That love will cast our fear.  That love will drive us towards him.  That love will give us peace and joy.

Take a look at God.  See who he is.  See what he has done.  See what he is doing.  Notice his love.  Fall in love with him again and again and again.