Growing 4 Life

As a Lab longeth for its food, so my soul…

Leave a Comment / February 2, 2012 February 2, 2012

My chocolate Lab, Macy, is consumed by the thought of food. As soon as I get up, she hops up from beside my bed and wags her tail expectantly. She knows that she needs to go do her “business” outside before I will feed her, so sometimes she will do nothing but make a token circle around the patio, and then beg to be let back in. As soon as she is inside, she bounces around my feet and keeps trying to move me in the direction of the room where we feed her. Once fed, she lays contentedly at my feet, sated and ready for another day.

The interesting thing is– she know who feeds her. Anyone else can get up in my house before I do, and she will just lay there. She knows that I am the one who feeds her and she will normally wait for me. And, so, as irritating as it can be sometimes, I have somehow ended up as her “master” and I am the one that not only feeds her, but the one she follows everywhere. Literally. Whatever room I am in, I can be sure she is laying somewhere close by.

Her attachment to food and to the one who feeds her is pretty amazing. Her loyalty is not divided. Oh, she loves the others in this house very much and will play with them and even climb on their beds for an occasional night’s sleep (probably because she is not allowed to be on the bed in my room). But I am the one she follows. I am the one she trusts.

As I thought of all of this just this morning, it made me think of how hungry I should be for God’s Word. And how attached I should be to the God who provided it for me. Do I long to feed on God’s Word every morning –so much so that I can’t settle into my day before I have fed myself? Do I trust and follow, without hesitation, the God who provided that food for me?

Sadly, I know that it isn’t so. Oftentimes, I get started on my day and realize at the end of the day that I have never spent time in the Word. Or perhaps it was a day when I sat down with good intentions and then got interrupted. But, you know, Macy would never allow herself to be interrupted while eating. I have tried it. Even if I offer to pet her (her second favorite thing in the world), she will give a cursory glance at me and then turn her head back towards her food bowl.

Perhaps she knows what is important. Perhaps she knows that she needs to eat and have her tummy filled before she can even enjoy being petted. Who knows? But, we should know that as humans, shouldn’t we? We should know that we need to be filled with God’s Word before we can go on to live our day fully to the praise and glory of God. Otherwise, we are stumbling on in our own power, relying on our own strength.

If you happen to have a Lab, then you probably can relate to this post. If you have a different type of dog, then probably not. Our other dog, Belle, a small, white Cavachon, likes to eat, but not with any kind of passion. She will only get passionate about her food when she is really hungry.

I want to be like my Lab in my single-mindedness to fill my mind with God’s Word. I want to have an insatiable appetite and a one track mind each morning. And I want to lay at my Master’s feet the rest of the day, trusting in him implicitly to lead me through each moment.

Job 23:12 I have not departed from the commandment of His lips; I have treasured the words of His mouth More than my necessary food.

Psalm 42:1 As the deer pants for the water brooks, So pants my soul for You, O God.

Be a Blessing not a Burden

Leave a Comment / January 30, 2012 April 19, 2016

From the time my kids were small I sent them off with these words: “Be a Blessing; not a Burden.” I am not sure where I came up with it. I think I just made it up. But whether they were headed to Grandma’s, a friend’s house, or a soccer game, those were often my last words to them. Did they always listen to me? I highly doubt it. But, hopefully, it got them thinking about others.

I still say it every once in awhile. And it is actually good to say to myself, as well. Because if we are concentrating on being a blessing to others and making an effort at not being a burden to them, it changes how we interact with others completely.

For instance, if I want to be a blessing, I will be looking for ways to encourage those around me. When conversing with them, I will want to find out how they are, I will ask questions, and I will genuinely care. If I want to be a burden, I will only talk about myself – my opinions, my problems, my issues– and not let the other person get a word in edgewise.

If I want to be a blessing, when I see the other person rushing to be first in line, I will slow my gait instead of speeding up to beat them to the line. Or if someone is holding one item to check out and I have a cart full of groceries, it means allowing them to go ahead of me.

Sometimes being a blessing means just not saying something that might be true. Many of us do this frequently. Whether it be directly to someone or it be about them, we say lots of words that just don’t need to be said. Who cares how her hair looks? Or what shirt she is wearing? Why not pray for their obvious budget or job problems instead of talk about them in a negative way? And sometimes it is not so much that we talk about it (how can we work together to help them financially at this time?) but how we talk about it (isn’t that the third time she’s worn that blouse this week? Can’t they afford anything else?)

Being a burden happens when I think only of myself. If I just scurry around in my day thinking only about me, then I won’t stop to ask someone how their weekend was, care about what they think about my “great” idea, or if they have any thoughts on the new plan I am putting in place. I won’t care if my kids believe they are the center of the universe and act like it on the soccer field. I will stand for my personal rights at all times and never back down. I will buy what I want, wear what I want, go where I want, eat what I want. “No one can tell me what to do,” will be my mantra.

In contrast, being a blessing is thinking about others. It includes things like: Asking those who will be affected how they feel about my new plan before just putting it into place; offering a drink to someone working hard in or outside my home; making my home a haven for anyone who visits; realizing my kids have faults, admitting it, and dealing with it; talking it over with my spouse before buying a large item; saying please and thank you – instead of acting like I am entitled; giving in on the things that truly do not matter in the scope of life. The list could go on and on.

As I write this, my husband is blessing me by taking my girls to the school bus. This is the time of year he gets to sleep in- he works really hard and is up by 5 am most of the year- but he blesses me oftentimes in the winter by getting up early enough to take them, so I don’t have to go out into the cold, icy air. It is a great start to my day and I am always so very thankful for his kindness.

And I wonder how I can be a blessing to someone today? How about you? Who can you bless today?

Philippians 2:3-4 Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.

Practice Makes Perfect

Leave a Comment / January 26, 2012 January 26, 2012

My adorable piano student stood before me, unzipping the bag that held her piano books and hesitantly informing me that there were two songs she didn’t know very well. When asked why, she said they were too hard. When she sat at the piano, I asked her to play the first of those two songs. As she faltered and stumbled through the first one, I realized what was going on. She hadn’t even practiced the song because she didn’t like the song. It certainly wasn’t too hard. It was filled with basic notes and timing–both of which had been familiar to her for awhile now.

When questioned if she liked the song, this little girl, a bit embarrassed, was truthful with me. As I assigned the song again and told her that sometimes we have to do things we don’t like in order to really be successful, I thought of how much that is true in all of life.

Why do we have this idea that we can be good at something without practicing it? And why do we think it happens without struggle and working above feelings? Only through practicing – through songs we don’t like, through rhythms and measures that seem impossible, through working up the courage to play for an audience–do we become successful at playing an instrument. The same would hold true of most anything in life.

And if that is true then the following two things are probably also true:

1. If practice makes perfect, then older people probably have a lot of practice at living and perhaps we should listen to them a little bit more often. In the rebellion and casting off of traditions we have seen in the last 25 years or so, I have seen a very disturbing trend in this country. We treat our elderly like they are liabilities, instead of as precious assets who could teach us so much. Let’s face it, the basics of life haven’t changed that much. It is always amazing to me when I sit down and talk with someone who has lived a lot of life not only what I can learn, but how they have struggled through many of the same situations I struggle through…making a marriage work, raising children, trusting in God’s sovereignty, standing for Truth.

Yes, they should be precious to us and we cast them aside in our quest for something new and exciting and different. In my opinion, this is a great tragedy.

2. If we need to spend time at something in order to be successful at it, wouldn’t that mean the same for studying God’s Word? Can we really know it if we aren’t studying? And how can we live a holy life for God if we don’t know what that is? I would submit to you that the only way to know what pleases our heavenly Father is to spend time in His Word, using reliable resources to help us to interpret it.

We only have one life to live. And for many of us, we are looking at the word “elderly” and realizing that in just a few short years it will describe us. May all of us – no matter what age we are — be reading God’s Word and practicing life in such a way that is glorifying our heavenly Father. If we are reading God’s Word and applying it to our lives, young people will notice. And if you are reading this as a young person, then remember –there is always someone younger than you watching you.

May we all strive to be godly examples for a generation that seems to have lost its way. May we be “practicing” life in a manner that shows we are standing on the Solid Rock in the ocean of wishy-washy values and standards we find ourselves in.

What does Facebook say about you?

1 Comment / January 23, 2012 May 18, 2016

I wonder if most of us realize what Facebook tells the world about us? When I was in that wonderful stage of dating (do you hear the sarcasm??), my parents had no idea what my date’s favorite bands were, what he liked to watch on television, or if he went to R-rated movies. They didn’t know if he was a whiner or a busy-body or used bad language.

Aah- how life has changed. As a parent, I love the tool of Facebook. I can tell immediately where someone’s heart is by looking at their info page. I can judge pretty quickly if the young person would be a friend that builds up or a friend that tears down. Because, like it or not, Facebook often shows our true character. It shows what we love, what we believe is important, and with what we fill our minds.

But it isn’t only our info pages that tells the world about us. Have you ever stopped to think what Facebook statuses and comments say about you? If we aren’t careful, we can fall into bad habits of complaining or bragging on this modern town square bulletin board.

When I first got my Facebook account, I tended to do some of this. It is easy to complain and now I had a chance to complain to the “whole world”! There is also a great temptation to share only the good stuff to make yourself look like your life is totally together. But, after awhile, I realized that neither of these tactics was uplifting or benefiting anyone, including me.

Now there is certainly not anything wrong with sharing exciting news or family photos. It is fun to share our lives and reconnect with far-flung family and long-lost friends. And there is certainly nothing wrong with asking for prayer about a difficult situation or sharing with the world something that we are really struggling with (if we are truly okay that the whole world knows it!) Facebook can be a great networking tool for people without jobs or in a situation where we need encouragement. But when we find ourselves in a pattern of only writing the negative, it says something about us. It says we are a complainer. And we all know what God says about complaining: Do all things without complaining and disputing (Philippians 2:14) In fact, in the Old Testament, God hated complaining so much that he swallowed some of the Israelites up with fire!

Numbers 11:1 Now when the people complained, it displeased the LORD; for the LORD heard it, and His anger was aroused. So the fire of the LORD burned among them, and consumed some in the outskirts of the camp.”

The other thing we can tend to do on Facebook, if we are not careful, is to make underhanded comments or statuses meant to hurt or embarrass others. Have you seen these statuses? They will be stated in such a way that they are not quite accusatory and they certainly do not mention names, but everyone makes their own deductions about who these statements are directed towards, while the intended party of the accusation or embarrassing statement is left to figure out how best to deal with the slight. This isn’t a healthy way to use Facebook and certainly not a good way to communicate with others.

And, finally, I have noticed another trend recently. It is the trend for people to only care about their own statuses. They share all of the interesting news in their own lives but never show any interest in anyone else’s. But, then, I guess that is the case in much of life in the real world, too, isn’t it? I think it is so important to show we care about others and what is happening in their lives, both virtually (if you are part of that world) and in the real world (Philippians 2:3).

Facebook can be a great tool for connecting with others. It can be a great way to stand for the Truth in this very dark world. May we use it in a way that glorifies God. Colossians 3:17 says: And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him. Believe it or not, “Whatever” includes Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Disclaimer: All characters appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. ;)

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Parenting with Purpose

5 Comments / January 19, 2012 January 19, 2012

My four kids in 2003-- where does the time go?

This morning I am speaking at a local MOPS group on the subject of parenting. As I thought about my life as a mom, I realized how many mistakes I have made and how much I have learned. And I thought of the moments we have as parents that are so proud…and the moments that are so devastating. It is only by the grace of God that we raise kids who love the Lord. Below I have included a condensed version of what I am saying this morning, including some resources I recommend.

1. PERSPECTIVE We need to keep perspective on what is truly important. If we are believers, then we only have 18 short years to mold kids who love the Lord with all of their hearts, souls, minds, and strength and love their neighbors as themselves (Mark 12:30). How do we keep proper perspective? I would like to make three suggestions: 1) We need to pray humbly and often. 2) We need to always think about what’s best for our children, rather than get caught up in our own insecurities and feelings. 3) We need to be very careful where we get our information. Look for biblical resources as you face issues with your children. God’s Word must reign supreme. Godly advice has rarely been found in secular books and magazines.

These three things will help us to remember what is truly important as we go about the job of raising kids.

2. PLAN We need to stop parenting out of convenience and reaction. We need to carefully plan each of the following:

–Conversations: use conversation starters like, “What’s your favorite song?” , “Why do you think that person did that bad thing?” or “What scares you the most and why?”

–Activities: When I over-scheduled myself and my children, I would end up short-tempered, with irritable kids, a messy house, and an unhappy husband. I eventually learned that the strife wasn’t worth it. We need to carefully plan our activities and only do the things that are truly important.

–Entertainment: This encompasses so much of our lives. It includes TV shows, movies, music, and video games. We should give great care and thought to, not only on what we allow them to watch and play, but also how often. We should be encouraging our children to be producers (creating, imagining, and building) rather than consumers (watching).

–Chores: We should be actively involving our children in the work around the house, so that they are learning self-discipline and the sense of accomplishment that comes along with hard work. We want to raise adults who are willing to serve others. This starts at home with chores.

3. PRAISE and PUNISHMENT It is important to establish parental authority in our homes when our children are young. It will not get easier as they get older. While listening to our children’s thoughts and feelings on matters is important and even, on occasion, may lead us to change our minds on an issue, we need to be the authority in our homes, as God designed.

We need to be very careful in our use of praise and punishment. Neither should be overdone. Punishment should only be for defiance and not for accidents. It should be thought out and never be born out of our split-second angry reaction. Ha! I write this and I know that I still struggle with this. Angry reactions are what comes natural to me. “Give me your ipod! I am keeping it for a year!” Thankfully, my husband usually helps me see reason and we develop a more reasonable punishment.

And, on a side note, I have never seen a child’s psyche damaged because they can’t wear or eat what they want. However, I have seen great damage occur when a child always gets their own way and believes themselves to be the center of the universe.

4. PROPER PRIORITIES Our priorities should look like this: 1. God 2. Marriage Relationship 3. Children. In many homes, it appears that the children take the number one spot. In fact, I heard Tim Keller talk about this the other day on a podcast. He talked about how the child-centered family of today, instead of being a healthy Christian model, is nothing like a Christian family should look like. Many of us have made our children idols and the troublesome thing is – in most Christian circles we believe this is the right thing to do.

5. PRIVILEGE We need to remember what an incredible privilege it is to raise children who love the Lord! Many are those who only wish they could do it once or do it over. We need to remember how blessed we are and continue on doing our very best even when the road grows difficult and we grow tired.

There is a war going on for the souls of our children. We need to fight for them! God has entrusted many of us with one or more of these souls. May we approach this opportunity with purpose and whole-hearted devotion.

Some resources I recommend:

Shepherding a Child’s Heart by Tedd Tripp

What the Bible Says About Parenting by John MacArthur

Dare to Discipline by James Dobson

Creative Correction by Lisa Welchel

The Cross Does Interfere

Leave a Comment / January 16, 2012 April 3, 2015

Things have come to a pretty pass,” said a famous Englishman testily, “when religion is permitted to interfere with our private lives.”

To which we may reply that things have come to a worse pass when an intelligent man living in a Protestant country could make such a remark. Had this man never read the New Testament? Had he never heard of Stephen? or Paul? or Peter? Had he never thought about the millions who followed Christ cheerfully to violent death, sudden or lingering, because they did allow their religion to interfere with their private lives?

But we must leave this man to his conscience and his Judge and look into our own hearts. Maybe he but expressed openly what some of us feel secretly. Just how radically has our religion interfered with the neat pattern of our own lives? Perhaps we had better answer that question first.

I have long believed that a man who spurns the Christian faith outright is more respected before God and the heavenly powers than the man who pretends to religion but refuses to come under its total domination. The first is an overt enemy, the second a false friend. It is the latter who will be spewed out of the mouth of Christ; and the reason is not hard to understand.

One picture of a Christian is a man carrying a cross. “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me” (Luke 9:23). The man with a cross no longer controls his destiny; he lost control when he picked up his cross. That cross immediately became to him an all-absorbing interest, an overwhelming interference. No matter what he may desire to do, there is but one thing he can do; that is, move on toward the place of crucifixion.

The man who will not tolerate interference is under no compulsion to follow Christ. “If anyone would,” said our Lord, and thus freed every man and placed the Christian life in the realm of voluntary choice.

Yet no man can escape interference. Law, duty, hunger, accident, natural disasters, illness, death, all intrude into his plans, and in the long run there is nothing he can do about it. Long experience with the rude necessities of life has taught men that these interferences will be thrust upon them sooner or later, so they learn to make what terms they can with the inevitable. They learn how to stay within the narrow circular rabbit path where the least interference is to be found. The bolder ones may challenge the world, enlarge the circle somewhat and so increase the number of their problems, but no one invites trouble deliberately. Human nature is not built that way.

Truth is a glorious but hard mistress. She never consults, bargains or compromises. She cries from the top of the high places: “Choose my instruction instead of silver, / knowledge rather than choice gold” (Proverbs 8:10). After that, every man is on his own. He may accept or refuse, receive or set at naught as he pleases; and there will be no attempt at coercion, though the man’s whole destiny is at stake.

Let a man become enamored of eternal wisdom and set his heart to win her and he takes on himself a full-time, all-engaging pursuit. Thereafter he will have room for little else. Thereafter his whole life will be filled with seekings and findings, self-repudiations, tough disciplines and daily dyings as he is being crucified unto the world and the world unto him.

Were this an unfallen world the path of truth would be a smooth and easy one. Had the nature of man not suffered a huge moral dislocation there would be no discord between the way of God and the way of man. I assume that in heaven the angels live through a thousand serene millenniums without feeling the slightest discord between their desires and the will of God. But not so among men on earth. Here the natural man receives not the things of the Spirit of God; the flesh lusts against the Spirit and the Spirit against the flesh, and these are contrary one to the other. In that contest there can be only one outcome. We must surrender and God must have His way. His glory and our eternal welfare require that it be so.

Another reason that our religion must interfere with our private lives is that we live in the world, the Bible name for human society. The regenerated man has been inwardly separated from society as Israel was separated from Egypt at the crossing of the Red Sea. The Christian is a man of heaven temporarily living on earth. Though in spirit divided from the race of fallen men he must yet in the flesh live among them. In many things he is like them, but in others he differs so radically from them that they cannot but see and resent it. From the days of Cain and Abel the man of earth has punished the man of heaven for being different. The long history of persecution and martyrdom confirms this.

But we must not get the impression that the Christian life is one continuous conflict, one unbroken irritating struggle against the world, the flesh and the devil. A thousand times no. The heart that learns to die with Christ soon knows the blessed experience of rising with Him, and all the world’s persecutions cannot still the high note of holy joy that springs up in the soul that has become the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit.

—From The Radical Cross by A.W. Tozer

As many of you already know, AW Tozer is one of my favorite authors. I hope that you have enjoyed this excerpt.

Speaking God’s Language

Leave a Comment / January 12, 2012 January 12, 2012

My worried mom decided to take my brother to the doctor. He was three years old and he wasn’t talking. At all. His communication consisted of making weird, throaty noises that sounded like “gunk! gunk!” and pointing. At the time, I was four years old (we are only 17 months apart) and quite talkative. In fact, I embarrassed my mom at times with my blunt observations of things going on around me.

An appointment was set and off we went to the doctor. After talking a bit with my mom and observing my brother and me, the doctor pointed to me and said, “She’s your problem.”

The doctor had correctly diagnosed that I was talking for my brother, making it quite unnecessary for him to speak a word. I understood his primitive “gunk” language and functioned as his interpreter. When my mom and dad started keeping a closer eye on me, my brother started talking in full sentences almost immediately. My brother already knew how to talk. He just didn’t have to.

As parents, there comes for each of us the day when our teens will start talking in full “spiritual” sentences. Oh, the process may be delayed if we keep interpreting for them, as I did for my brother. We can be tempted to make assumptions about whether or not our child is saved. We often make excuses for our child’s behavior and motives. But when we finally step back and our child starts speaking with his choices and actions about the things that matter, will he be speaking God’s language?

Many of us think our 3 year olds are too young to understand life. We think our 8 year olds care nothing for anything except playing with legos or dolls. But we have found in our home that children do care.

We have discussed a lot of topics in our home. We talked about heaven and hell. We talked about trials and hard decisions we were facing. We talked about God’s Sovereignty and we talked about the debate of election vs. free will. We talked about respect for authority, holiness, godly leadership and consequences of bad choices. We have always used God’s Word as our resource. If it isn’t in there, we can’t stand on it. We have even had discussions of traditions we, as parents, held dear to our hearts, but after discussing it with our family, realized were just that: traditions. They weren’t biblical and we admitted that. And, through it all, our kids listened to these discussions. And, as they got a little older, they participated. Oftentimes, they began some of these discussions with their own questions or thoughts. These discussions continue in our home even now on a very regular basis.

We have seen in the lives of our children the fruit of these discussions. Oh, they aren’t perfect, as many of you can attest to. But as we have let them “talk” on their own, we have seen that they were listening all along.

Raising kids is so difficult. But we can do ourselves a great favor by not underestimating our children’s ability to understand adult topics. Sure, there are some things they do not need to know. But don’t protect them from life’s hard decisions and discussions. If you show an example of relying on biblical Truth, they will see that. Then when we step back to let them start talking with their lives, they will use the Bible as their guide, as well. Are there some kids who are exceptions to this pattern? Yes. I acknowledge that there are.

We have a great responsibility as parents to teach our children God’s Truth. This can’t be done if the only things we are discussing at the dinner table is sports, the neighbor’s dog, and how the party went last night. Let’s discuss the important stuff, so that when our kids start talking in spiritual sentences, they are speaking God’s language.

Rook and the Christian Life

1 Comment / January 9, 2012 October 29, 2014

Have you ever heard of the game “Rook”? Over the holidays we had the opportunity of spending an evening playing Rook with a large group of friends. It was set up so that you rotate tables and each hand is played just a little differently. It was a little confusing trying to remember which color was trump or if we were going to double our score at the end, but it was a lot of fun! And then came the hand where the instructions were to lose. The winners would take the losers’ score and the losers would take the winners’ score. Now that was a mind stretcher, at least for me. It was hard to play to lose when you have been playing to win. Everything changed. Instead of laying down the highest card, I needed to lay the lowest. Instead of strategizing with my partner and trying to help him win, I needed to make sure we both lost. It was a complete change of direction and every decision made in that game relied on me remembering that change of direction.

It reminded me of the Christian Life and the change of direction that is required and the struggle that often comes with that change. The only difference is that in life we have been playing to lose. We have been playing for our own glory, our own gain, our own selfish pursuits. We have been causing havoc by demanding our own way, by not caring who we hurt, by using our material wealth for ourselves instead of helping others. And then God saves us. Suddenly, all of the rules have changed. Now we are supposed to be playing for God – His glory, His gain. We are supposed to be denying ourselves and thinking of others. It is a complete change of mind and direction. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says it perfectly: Therefore, if anyone is in Christ,he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

For most of us, this change in direction presents quite a few challenges. If we are trying to live for God’s glory and not our own selfish desires, it changes everything. Self-denial comes hard– whether we are talking about what entertainment I fill my head with, what kind of steward I am with God’s money, or how I treat my friends.

The other day I sat down to watch a sitcom that my husband and I used to find quite entertaining. Reruns have come back on TV and as I had loved that show, I thought it would be fun to record them for a fun half hour break from life. The disappointing thing was when I watched, my conscience was pricked to the point that I didn’t even enjoy the show. I knew that filling my mind with this show was dishonoring my heavenly Father. The main character was a pathetic human being, bent on getting his own way no matter who he hurt in the process (and this was glorified and turned into comedy) and the dialogue was suggestive and impure.

I was excited to realize that I am growing spiritually! What I used to watch no longer even appealed to me. This is a sign that the change of direction is taking place.

Unfortunately, while this may be a positive change in my spiritual life, the more mature I grow in Christ, the more aware I am of the overwhelming sin in my life. And so, while I am thankful for that small bit of growth, I realize just how miniscule it is when compared to the spiritual growth that still needs to occur in my life.

In the card game, we returned to our original direction of playing to win in the next hand. But once we are a Christian, we should always be playing to win! Let’s not wallow in our losing, selfish state, as we are so apt to do. If you enjoy the same entertainment you did ten years ago, what does that say about your spiritual growth? If you are using your resources– time, money, and energy– the same way you did ten years ago, what does that say about your spiritual growth?

Let’s always play to win! And by so doing, we may stand out among the world as losers (John 15:18-19) but we can rest assured knowing we are heading in the right direction for eternity!

Your House is on Fire!

Leave a Comment / January 5, 2012 January 5, 2012

It was early morning, as I stepped out into the crisp fall air. My nose wrinkled as the smell of burning leaves assailed it. Assuming that the neighbor was burning leaves, I glanced towards their house. But instead of burning leaves, I saw a burning house! Could it be? Yes! The house was definitely on fire. What to do? “Call the fire company!” I shrieked to someone standing nearby, as I ran towards the burning house.

“Mr. Brown! Mr. Brown! Your house is on fire!” I screamed. The front door was unlocked, so I pushed my way through. The fire seemed to be at the very back of the house, so we were safe for now.

I found Mr. Brown lying on the couch, fast asleep.

“Mr. Brown! Your house is on fire!”

Mr. Brown raised his head and stared at me. “Okay. Thanks for telling me, ” he said, as he put his head back down on the maroon-colored pillow.

I stood for a few seconds in amazed disbelief and then tried again.

“Mr. Brown, do you understand what I am saying? Your house! It’s on fire!” I shouted.

Mr. Brown, looking half-annoyed this time, said, “Yes! I heard you the first time! I believe you. There is no need to tell me again.” and closed his eyes again.

Thinking he may be half-asleep and not quite with it, I decided to make one last ditch effort at warning him.

“Mr. Brown! If you don’t get out of here, you may lose your life! We need to get out now!”

This time Mr. Brown sat up and looked me in the eye. “Look, I hear what you are saying. Will you just leave me alone? Please? I will get out after awhile. I only smell a bit of smoke. You go on ahead.”

I stared at him. Was he losing his mind? I didn’t know what else to do, so I turned and left him laying there on his sofa in his burning house. As I stumbled through the rocky soil to my house, I couldn’t believe what had just happened. Could it be that this man, who seemed to be pretty intelligent, was just laying there as his house burned down around him? The morning had grown quite foggy and smoky and I couldn’t see…where was I going? I stumbled and fell. I hit my head…

And then, suddenly, I found myself in my bed. It was a dream. And, yet, something about it was very real.

If Mr. Brown believed that his house was on fire, like he said he did, why didn’t he get up? Why didn’t he do something about it? Why did he just continue to lay there on that old sofa like it was any old morning?

If Mr. Brown truly believed, he would get off of that sofa and out of the house. His mouth spoke the words that he believed what I was saying, but his actions showed that he really didn’t believe.

As the details of that dream continued twisting and turning in my head, I thought of all of the people who say that they believe in Jesus. They say they are Christians. And yet that belief hasn’t yielded any change at all in their lives. They still continue in their worldly habits. Most of their time is consumed with selfish pursuits. They do not thirst for Truth. They may or may not go to church. There is no evidence of spiritual growth and a deepening understanding of God and His Word.

While I knew it wasn’t my place to judge their eternal destinies, I knew that I had to change my thinking from this day forth. I couldn’t believe someone was saved just because they said they believed in Jesus. If their life didn’t match the words, I had to consider that they might not be saved. This was not about judging their outward behavior. This was about loving them enough to care about their eternal destiny.

You see, true belief requires action, whether we are referring to a burning house or our eternal destiny.

May we all be more careful about placing that “saved” stamp on those who say with their mouths they believe but have no fruits to go along with that statement. And may we continue, as always, in growing in our knowledge of God and His Word and in examining our own hearts and minds for sin.

I John 2: 3-5 Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. ⁴ He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. ⁵ But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him.

Matthew 7: 17-19 Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. ¹⁸ A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. ¹⁹ Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. ²⁰ Therefore by their fruits you will know them.

James 2: 17-24 Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. ¹⁸ But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. ¹⁹ You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! ²⁰ But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? ²¹ Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? ²² Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect? ²³ And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” And he was called the friend of God. ²⁴ You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only.

Just do it.

1 Comment / January 2, 2012 January 2, 2012

For many of us, January 2 brings the opportunity for a fresh start. Some of us have specifically set New Year’s resolutions. But, if you are like me, those resolutions usually last about a month…if that. So what truly brings about lasting change? Why can even people who do not know the Lord change for the better?

Could it be that they just do it? They just make up their mind to behave a certain way and then follow through on that decision? When Nike came out with their logo of “Just do it” I wasn’t sure what to think. But recently, I realized the wisdom of that phrase.

Our language is so peppered with words like “try” and “maybe” and “perhaps” because we are so afraid to commit to change. And maybe that is because we are so afraid to fail. When we make the statement, “I will lose weight,” or “I will stay on a budget,” it sets us up for failure. It is much easier to say “I will try to lose weight,” or “perhaps this is the year we will work on the budget,”. Now, we have a way out. A bit of a loophole that we can crawl through if it doesn’t work.

As I was thinking about this, I realized that the Bible never tells us to try to trust the Lord. There is never a verse that says perhaps we should love the Lord with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength. Instead, the Bible is filled with verses of commands we are to obey. There is no loop hole there. Below, I have placed a few verses that I looked up as I was writing this. I didn’t find one verse that gave me a way out of obedience.

So, how does that affect our resolutions? I think it is because many of the resolutions we set have to do with sin issues in our lives. Perhaps we are overweight (gluttony) or we are in debt (money is our idol) or we are wrapped up in an evil habit (spoken against in God’s Word). So we know that these are areas that God wants us to have victory. What are some steps we can take to assure that we succeed this year?

First: We need to set attainable goals. I am in the process of trying to figure out what are realistic goals for me. If we make a resolution to run an hour a day and we are having a hard time even finding 15 minutes of extra time for exercise, we are setting ourselves up for failure. In his book, Total Money Makeover, Dave Ramsey recommends paying off the smallest debt first, so that there will be some reward early on. I think the same is true for setting goals. Set one that you can actually reach. And when that one becomes a habit, then stretch yourself a bit further. It doesn’t have to be New Year’s Day in order to set a goal.

Second: We need to pray and ask the Lord for His guidance as we set goals. It is important that we make sure the goals we set are in accordance with His Word and His will for our lives. Let’s ask Him to give us strength. We need His help.

And third: Once we have determined realistic and attainable goals and we have asked the Lord for guidance and strength, let’s commit each morning to doing them for just that day. Let’s actually follow through. We make it seem so hard. But it’s not hard. It just takes commitment. We just need to do it.

Here’s to 2012 and attainable goals!

Proverbs 3: 5-6 Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; ⁶ In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct^[a] your paths.

Mark 12:30 And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment.

Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there isany virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.

Colossians 3: 12-13 Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; ¹³ bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do.

James 1: 2-3 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, ³ knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.

James 4: 7-8 Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. ⁸ Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.