Month: September 2018

Every so often someone asks a question that flips the world upside down. Nearly, 19 years ago, the Baha men accomplished that feat with this simple question: Who let the dogs out? Who? Who? Who? The question probably isn’t significant nor is the song really that good, but it is catchy. Songs are like that. 

We can go years without hearing a song, but in a moment those words come rushing back to our mind and hold on tight, not wanting to leave. It could be a pop song, a Youtube sensation, a TV theme song, or even a commercial jingle. Some music we just can’t get out of our mind.

The same could be said of offenses. When people insult or hurt us, it stings and we remember. We hold on. We don’t forget. And, then there’s Jesus.

Jesus didn’t hold on to our offenses. He took them to the cross, paid the penalty, and offers us forgiveness, over and over.

I could stand to be more like Jesus. I could stand to extend mercy.

But, mercy isn’t simply about forgiving those who have caused you suffering. Mercy is seeing and serving those who are suffering around you.

Throughout Jesus’ ministry we see Him reaching out to the rejected, the sick, the outcast, the broken. 

While certain thoughts and words hang around in our head, we are able to dismiss others fairly quickly. That’s often how we view the suffering of others. Out of sight, out of mind. 

God calls us to more. We must learn to forgive those who have caused us to suffer. And we must learn to serve the suffering. 

I love what Mother Theresa had to say:

I never look at the masses as my responsibility; I look at the individual. I can only love one person at a time – just one, one, one. So you begin. I began – I picked up one person. Maybe if I didn’t pick up that one person, I wouldn’t have picked up forty-two thousand….The same thing goes for you, the same thing in your family, the same thing in your church, your community. Just begin – one, one, one. 

My Prayer: Father God, may your story of mercy be continually playing in my mind. Help me to see the needs around me and faithfully step in to serve those suffering.

The Tchoupitoulas Challenge. It’s impossible to pronounce but worth the effort. This ice cream creation is a product of the Creole Creamery in New Orleans, and it’s the only food challenge I’ve ever seriously considered. I have little interest in the worlds spiciest wings or the nations meatiest burger. But, something seemed magical about eight scoops of ice cream, eight toppings, whipped cream, sprinkles, cherries and wafers.  

I never attempted the feat, partially for the fact that it cost $30 but also out of fear I may come to hate ice cream, which would be an unparalleled tragedy. The truth is no one wins these food challenges. It may start off fun, but they always end in stomach aches.

I’ve never craved kale and quinoa. I know I should. I know I need to fuel my body well. But, what I crave is pizza, cheese covered anything, and an Outback Bloomin’ Onion.

In much the same way, I’m not naturally inclined to hunger for righteousness. I hunger for what umps up my pride, provides pleasure, and allows my mind to momentarily check out. I know I should pursue righteousness, but there are so many other tantalizing options. How do we change? How do we transform our spiritual tastebuds?

The Fit Friend:

The more I’m around my carrot eating Cross-fit friends, the more I care about the food I consume. The more I’m around prayerful, mission minded, heart-for-Jesus people, the more I hunger to live like them.

The Registered Race:

If I’ve signed up for a race, I’ll eat well. Jogging isn’t enjoyable on a stomach full of junk. When I’ve signed up to serve, I depend on Jesus, and I seek His righteousness.

The Definite Difference

When I see a change in what the scale says or how my clothes fit, I’m more likely to keep my good eating habits. When I notice a change in my heart, words, actions, it reminds me that Jesus is working in my life. And, I’m satisfied.

Do any of those jumpstart a hunger for righteousness in your life? What would you add to the list?

Praying that we would hunger after what really matters!

While they’ve faded as fast as the fad arrived, fidget spinners were all the rage for a few short months. You couldn’t go anywhere without the seeing a child spinning the trinket between their fingers. Although the fidget spinner was absent from my childhood, I had something far better: the rubber band.

There was no end to the possibilities. You could wear it, stretch it, connect it, or shoot it.. But, in elementary school, our game of choice was sending little paper projectiles flying across the classroom. We called them wasps, and for good reason. If one connected on bare skin, it was sure to leave a mark.

Most of our games were anything but gentle. There had to be some degree of violence. Slapping, thumping or pencil breaking. As an adult, I’ve left those games behind. But, sadly, I can be pretty quick to snap at others with similar force. James pretty much has me pegged.

from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing—James 3:10

Let someone mess up my order, cut me off in traffic, or simply be rude, and I’m snapping back. The smallest outward inconvenience turns into an intense inner situation. And, then I think of Jesus.

He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He did not open His mouth—Isaiah 53:7

In the midst of undeserved and ultimate insult and humiliation, Jesus kept silent, living out His teaching from the Beatitudes.

When most of us hear gentle or meek, we think weak. We think getting run over. We think spineless. But, do any of those words describe Jesus? Jesus was gentle, but no one would call Him weak. Nails did not hold Jesus to the cross. He chose in his strength to stay and suffer.

Instead of weakness, gentleness is simply surrendered strength. Gentleness is choosing to submit your strength to the Savior. Strength isn’t for your benefit. It’s to serve others.

No doubt you will face insult and inconvenience today. Be the rubber band. Stretch, don’t snap. Surrender your strength. Love your neighbor as yourself. Follow the footsteps of Jesus.

Jim, Pam, Dwight, Angela, Kevin and Creed. If you’re anything like me, you love them more than Dwight loves beets, bears and Battlestar Galactica. If you don’t recognize the names, they are characters from my all-time favorite show, The Office. 

While these people may not be your crew, you’ve probably found a similar affection for other TV characters from Friends to Cheers, Happy Days to the Andy Griffith Show. When we watch characters for years on end, they become a part of our lives.

I’ve got a confession. I’ve watched The Office two complete times, and I’m currently on my third trip through. That’s probably not too unusual, we all have shows we continue to watch. But, here’s what may be unique to me. I skip certain episodes. I skip the one where Michael, the show’s main character, leaves. And, I also skip the last two episodes.

They are excellent but sad. I don’t like to be sad, so I avoid them. I don’t believe in being unnecessarily sad. Life can be sad enough, I’d rather not pay for a movie that makes me cry. Nobody enjoys sorrow. And, in the midst of that mindset, Jesus’ words seem strange.

I believe it’s a wise choice to move away from unnecessary sadness. But, to be completely transparent, sometimes I avoid sadness that is needed and necessary. There are certain situations worth mourning. 

We have a perfect heavenly Father, and a Savior whose love led Him to the cross. Yet, we still choose sin over our Savior. That’s worth mourning.

The world is a broken place. People suffer abandonment, hunger, hatred, sickness and slavery. That’s worth mourning.

We interact with individuals on a daily basis who are headed into an eternity of loneliness and suffering.  That’s worth mourning.

Mourning is necessary. It moves us from sin to repentance, from apathy to acts of love, from silence to sharing. 

Don’t miss out on mourning, for it may be through the sorrow that God begins to grow and use you. And when we mourn, we have this promise: We will be comforted!