(Since it’s Christmas season right now, it’s Christmas movie time. For the first time my wife and I recently showed our kids a classic from our childhood, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, which helped give me the idea for this post.)
Both of my parents grew
up in New York City, and when I was a kid we’d go into the city to visit
family. Every now and then we’d branch off from family and take a trip into
Manhattan to go do some sight-seeing.
On one particular trip
into NYC, it wasn’t long after I first saw the second Home Alone movie. For
those of you that haven’t seen it, it’s about a 10-year-old kid that somehow
ends up flying to New York City by himself around Christmastime. While he
enjoys being a tourist at first, it doesn’t take long before things start
unraveling for him and he really wants to get back to his family.
As we walked around
NYC, the Plaza Hotel, the famous hotel featured in the movie, was on our list
of things to check out. Central Park is nearby, along with Rockefeller Center,
Radio City Music Hall, and a bunch of other famous sites.
We walked into the
hotel and it was really cool, because it looked almost exactly like scenes out
of the movie. (It’s funny how movies make places look bigger and brighter,
though.)
My amateur photography
Kevin in Home Alone 2
Just off the Plaza Hotel’s main lobby
I thought it was pretty
cool being there at a place where they filmed a movie I enjoyed. Everyone else in
the lobby was doing normal hotel stuff. There was a long line of people waiting
to check in, and as near as I could tell, none of them were even thinking about
the movie. I decided I’d snap a picture to remember this by. I walked over to a
spot where I could capture the check-in desk, raised my camera, and took a
picture.
The Check-in Desk at the Plaza Hotel in the early 1990s
I didn’t really
anticipate it as a kid, but now I understand why the hotel would want to make
its guests feel like their privacy was protected. Right after the flash went
off, a very large, well-dressed man strode across the lobby toward us, walked
around us, and stood directly behind me. He didn’t say a word, nor did he act
in a rude manner, but it was perfectly obvious my behavior was not welcome. We
took the hint and moved along.
Although it’s sort of a
strange tie-in, Christians can be a lot like that guy from the lobby. People
who know they’re not living right are uncomfortable when they’re around people
that are. If you’re a Christian it’s not necessarily your job to make people
feel uncomfortable, but sometimes God uses you as a reminder to others in a way
that pricks their conscience.
We’re coming up on the time of year where we spend time with loved ones that we may not see that often. That’s easy for some, not so easy for others. If you have a difficult time at Christmas because you’re around people you love, but don’t always get along with due to religious/lifestyle differences, just keep loving on them. Like the guy in the hotel, you don’t need to be rude or belligerent, you just need to be there. Don’t for a second feel bad for living the way God wants you to. God could be chipping away at their heart, and using you as a way of making them uncomfortable with the way they live when they know they’re not living the right way.
By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another. –John 13:35
When I was a kid I used
to love watching cartoons. I don’t know what happened since then, but I guess
somewhere along the line they decided they were going to stop making good
cartoons.
One of my favorite
cartoons to watch was “Duck Tales.” It featured Scrooge McDuck (of “Christmas
Carol” fame), the three young duckling triplets Huey, Dewey, and Louie, and the
lovable (but terrible) pilot, Launchpad McQuack.
Scrooge McDuck was a
greedy guy, there’s no doubt about it. Part of the draw for a younger me was
that he was always mounting expeditions to go in search of lost treasures. Off
to faraway jungles, canyons, deserts, mountains, the ocean floor…no matter the
danger, Scrooge McDuck’s greed drove him to adventure.
One such adventure
involved catching a leprechaun. The main characters caught a leprechaun and
demanded that he show them to the massive underground treasure caverns (because
a pot o’ gold at the end of the rainbow just ain’t enough sometimes). The
leprechaun showed them to the hidden entrance, which was under a young tree. I
don’t remember why they couldn’t go exploring down the tunnel right then and
there, but for some reason they had to temporarily abandon their quest. Knowing
that it would be extremely difficult to identify this one tree in the middle of
the forest, McDuck took out a handkerchief and tied it to one of the branches
of the tree. After binding the leprechaun by making him promise not to mess
with the hanky or the tree, the adventurers departed.
I think it was the next day when the treasure hunters returned. The hanky and the tree were indeed untouched, but now the forest was littered with hundreds of white hankies. The leprechaun had kept his promise, but still managed to obscure the value of the makeshift marker.
Let’s switch gears for
a minute. Take the perspective of Satan and the other fallen angels. You’ve had
definite limits imposed on you, but you’re free to meddle with humanity in
other ways. How can you divert people from the true way to God and eternal
life, which is a relationship with Jesus Christ? You can’t touch that one true
hanky, but you can sure hang up a lot of other ones that look enough like the
original to make the real one hard to spot.
Aside from
Christianity, there are a handful of major world religions on the scene, but
there are an untold number of minor ones, splinter groups, minor sects, and
other less popular religions. All of them are fake hankies.
In addition to using other
religions, the adversary attempts to muddy the waters for actual Bible-based
events. The focus of Christmas and Easter used to be Jesus’ birth and Jesus’
triumph over sin, respectively. Now it’s Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny. Being
a Santa fan doesn’t make you a bad person, but consider this: this Christmas,
are you and yours giving at least as much emphasis on the story of Jesus’ birth
as you are to Santa?
There’s a lot of
distraction out there, but remember the true reason for the season and the fact
that the adversary has to ask permission to launch certain attacks on
Christ-followers.
“Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission
to sift you like wheat…” Luke 22:31
8Then the LORD said to Satan, “Have you
considered My servant Job? For there is no one on earth like him, a man who is
blameless and upright, who fears God and shuns evil.”
9Satan answered the LORD, “Does Job fear God
for nothing? 10Have You not
placed a hedge on every side around him and his household and all that he owns?
You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in
the land. 11But stretch out
Your hand and strike all that he has, and he will surely curse You to Your
face.”
12“Very well,” said the LORD to Satan.
“Everything he has is in your hands, but you must not lay a hand on the man
himself.”
Then Satan went out from the
presence of the LORD. Job 1:8-12
My wife is a wonderful woman. Not only does she take care of our kiddos and I, she also pours into the lives of many of the women she knows.
At any given time she
has at least one friend that’s going through heartbreaking circumstances or
challenges, and she tries to help them in various ways. One weekday at church
she was the lead for her class’s Bible study, which was a source of stress for
her in terms of preparation and delivering the material. Though the class
itself went well, another woman she knew sought her out afterward, and it
resulted in a conversation that required a lot of mental energy and focus. It
wasn’t a bad encounter, but it added to the stress of a particularly draining
day. By the time she left church with our preschool-aged daughter, she just
wanted to get home and do something that didn’t require any thought or energy,
but she knew our little girl would want to read some books or play pretend with
some of her toys.
Mentally exhausted and physically worn out, she arrived home to see that I had come home early for a dental appointment, and was just about to leave. Instead of driving right from work to the dentist, I came home first because I wanted to change clothes so I could run an errand after the dentist. My daughter got excited and wanted to go with me because the last time she went with me to the dentist, one of the assistants had allowed her to pick a toy out of the little treasure chest, just for tagging along. Well, that sounded good to everyone, so my little sidekick and I drove off.
My wife came inside to
a quiet house and collapsed on the couch. Before long she thought of something
she needed to do online. She picked up our laptop and went to turn it on, but
the battery was dead. Taking this as a sign, she put it back down and closed
her eyes for just a few moments. She ended up getting a half hour of
much-needed quiet…an opportunity that would not have happened if our daughter
stayed home and if the laptop’s battery had any life in it.
People often forget
this, but the God of the
big things is God of the little things, too. Foreseeing this need, God
laid the groundwork for that day. There were at least three separate things
that needed to happen in order for these conditions to exist for my wife. I
don’t remember what errand I intended to run after the dentist, but God worked
it out that instead of going right from work to the dentist, I first came home
to change clothes. In addition to that, I don’t know how long before that day
my daughter came with me to the dentist, but somehow God set up the
circumstances for that previous visit so that I was home and took my little
girl with me and she got a toy, conditioning her to want to go again the next
time. Similarly, however we used the laptop the day before (or the morning of)
the Bible study resulted in a dead battery by the time my wife arrived home.
It’s as if God says “if you follow me and work for me, you’re
going to have hard times, but I’m going to take care of you.” Never forget that God is sovereign; there is
nothing He can’t control. When you’re living in His will, He goes before you
and “plows the road” ahead of you to get you where He wants you to be. On the
flip side, if you’re not living in His will, there will probably be times when
it seems like there hasn’t been one particularly difficult challenge, but you
feel like you’re expending a lot of energy just to accomplish something minor.
So, especially during
this busy season, remember: the God of the big things is God of the little
things, too.
(Programming note: In observance of the Thanksgiving
holiday, I’m switching up this week’s posting schedule. Next week will be back
to Thursday.)
When my kids were very
young, like a lot of kids, they were pretty self-centered. This wasn’t a
surprise; when any child’s world is still very small, they naturally think of
themselves as the center of the universe.
My wife and I found a
way to start breaking them out of that thought process. Every night at bedtime,
we started doing what we call “Thankful Hearts.” We’d each say a few things for
which we were thankful. My wife and I started out with some examples. We might
say something like “I’m thankful we had enough food to eat today, I’m thankful you
didn’t get hurt worse when you fell down today, and I’m thankful our house is
keeping us warm and dry while it’s rainy and cold outside.”
It took a little
adjustment for them, but over time our kids began focusing less on their “I wants”
and more on their “I already haves.” This roundabout way of counting their
blessings helped our kids understand that it’s a special thing to have enough
when others don’t. That type of security allows people to turn their focus
outward; instead of our kids’ prayer requests sounding like a Christmas list
for items they wanted for themselves, they soon began bringing their requests
to God on behalf of the needs of others.
In a world where every
commercial or advertisement you watch, read, or hear tries to convince you that
what you already have is inadequate, it’s easy to become dissatisfied. That’s
the goal of advertising. It’s also easy to get caught in the whole “keep up
with the Joneses” mentality. Don’t forget though, especially as we head into
Christmas season, to be thankful for the areas of your life where you already
have “enough,” especially if you’re assured of your salvation through the
sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Thankfulness of that eternal assurance allows you to
be confident and enables you to turn your focus outward and share the good news
with those who, in that sense, aren’t as blessed as you are.
I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart;
I will tell of all your wonderful deeds. I will be glad and rejoice in you; I
will sing the praises of your name, O Most High. Psalm 9:1-2
The November after I
graduated college, I took an adventure trip to Australia. One of the parts of
the trip I was most excited about was the trip out to the Great Barrier Reef. I
had never been scuba diving before, and the Great Barrier Reef was like, legendary
from everything I’d heard. During this portion of the trip we all got on a boat
that took us miles from shore, and we stayed out there for two overnights.
The crew operating the
dive tour took us to several different locations known to be good diving spots.
Once they securely anchored the boat at a given dive site, we waited for a
designated time window before we could go in the water. Safety observers needed
to be in position, and we needed to receive a dive brief where we learned about
the features of the area, where to avoid, can’t-miss sites, and what depth
limits we should not break. During this leg of my Australian trip, I had the
opportunity to do about a dozen trips into the water, either snorkeling or
scuba diving.
For those of us that
were not scuba certified on this trip, we could pay a bit extra on some of the
outings and a staff member would teach us enough to get by, and would be our
dive buddy and personal guide during that particular dive. I wasn’t going to
come all the way to Australia and NOT go scuba diving on the Great Barrier
Reef. Since it wasn’t cheap though, I got a good mix of scuba dives and regular
snorkeling.
The reef was an amazing
thing to see, especially the amount and variety of life that lived there. The
reef itself sounded like it was fizzing and popping. When snorkeling, I would
hold my breath and dive down to get a closer look at some of the gorgeous
sites. While snorkeling, there was so much to see, even if you only dove down a
few feet. I started diving down more than a few feet, though. Equipped with flippers,
I was able to swim deep a little easier than normal. The more you do it, the
more your body gets used to it. A few times I dove down deep enough to be on
the same level as some of the divers.
On our last day at sea,
our last dive was coming up, and I was going to spend this dive snorkeling. We
all got into the water and started going our separate ways. I was kind of
swimming around aimlessly when I noticed a very large concrete block down on
the sea floor. It was one of the weights our boat anchored to. It was pretty
far down there. I decided I was going to try to get all the way down to it.
The first time I tried,
I started swimming straight down just to see how far I could comfortably go. I
wore a wetsuit that provided some buoyancy, and lungs full of air also helped
keep me afloat. The deeper I went though, the more the water pressure
compressed everything, so the buoyancy of my lungs and suit had less effect. I
gave it a half-hearted shot, but got nowhere near my goal before I turned
around and swam back to the surface.
I recovered on the
surface for awhile, but wanted to try again. I took a few quick, deep breaths,
and then surged straight down again. I kicked hard, driving deeper. I got much
closer to the block on the floor, but started getting concerned about not
having enough air to make it back, so again I turned around early and headed
up. Coming up from the depths has the opposite effect of going deep; your
buoyancy increases as you get closer to the surface. As I got shallower, I
could feel myself rising through the water more quickly, even if I slowed my
kicking.
I spent some more time
resting and letting my breathing return to normal before making another shot
without holding anything back. I did the quick breathing thing again and dove
hard with the most air I could possibly fit into my lungs. Again, I swam hard
straight down, pushing back more firmly against the nerves and survival
instinct the deeper I went. The block on the ocean floor became larger and
larger, and as I drew nearer I became more determined to reach it. It was
almost within my reach!
Finally, after a swim
straight down and what seemed like forever, I reached the block on the ocean
floor. With a major sense of accomplishment, I flipped over and placed my feet
on the block. I took a moment to look down at my feet on the concrete, then to
look around at this place I had fought so hard to get to.
Then I looked up. If we
could go back and see what I looked like, we’d probably see the color drain
from my face. On a free dive, being the deepest you’ve ever been also means
that you are physically the furthest away from oxygen that you’ve ever been.
Never, either before or since, have I seen such a large aquatic distance that I
had to cover so quickly. I became so focused on reaching my goal that I lost
sight of the fact that the trip to the block was only half of the swim.
I shot off the block
and began kicking furiously. I wasn’t far off the block before my lungs started
burning. I kicked as hard as I could, and tried a few strokes with my arms, but
that almost felt like it slowed me down. Have you ever held your breath so long
that your diaphragm starts going into convulsions? It’s your body’s natural
reflex, as though it’s trying to force you to take a breath. More than halfway
up, my diaphragm started convulsing. It’s one thing if you’re sitting on the
couch seeing how long you can hold your breath, but it’s different when the
muscle controlling your lungs starts having spasms underwater, and I got
worried that I wasn’t going to make the surface without inhaling a lungful of
seawater.
As I tried to keep my
body from betraying me, I noticed that I was rushing through the water. The air
in my lungs and wetsuit had expanded enough that it was again making me
buoyant, and my buoyancy was increasing as I moved toward the surface. The
water at this point was rushing past my face, and I could feel its flow
anywhere my skin was exposed to the water. Compared to being at depth, my lungs
were now so full they felt like they were about to explode, yet the air within
them was all but used up.
I needed air so badly
that I didn’t even want to waste time exhaling after breaking the surface. With
nothing left to spare, I blew out halfway just before breaking the surface and
took the most grateful gasp of fresh air I’ve ever taken in my life. Looking
back at my notes from the trip, I estimated at the time that the concrete block
on the ocean floor was about 10-12 meters, or about 35 feet, below the surface.
My muscles were spent
from the furious swim and the lack of oxygen, and I floated there panting as my
wetsuit kept me from sinking. After resting awhile, I was able to swim back to
the boat and make it safely aboard.
Have you ever thought about how, when you feel you’re
doing everything you possibly can, and it’s still not enough, the Holy Spirit
can cover the gap? The way the wetsuit
worked is sort of the same way the Holy Spirit does; it’s there, wrapped around
you and pushing you toward where you need to go. I’ve met amazing people that
have endured unbelievable hardships that have drained them of any strength they
held in reserve. When you ask them how they got through it, their answer
usually has something to do God’s grace. It might be “peace that passes
understanding.” Hearing their story and knowing that they withstood things that
would make the average person buckle or tap out reminds me that the Holy Spirit
empowers Christ-followers with the things they need for the task at hand, even
if that task is nothing more ordinary than to make it through the day.
This isn’t just for
people with extraordinary stories, like Samson or King David; it’s for you and
I, too. When we’re in the midst of excruciating trials or facing an
insurmountable obstacle, God gives us what we need to “make it back to the
surface.” Then, when it’s all over and we’re completely spent, He’s there
keeping us afloat while we catch our breath, sustaining us long enough for us
to make it back to safety.
“Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses.
For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself
makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. Now He who
searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes
intercession for the saints according to the will of God.” Romans 8:26-27
“And when they had prayed, the place where they were
assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit,
and they spoke the word of God with boldness.”Acts 4:31
When Americans think of
Australia, one of the things they think about is the wildlife. Some of the
things that might come to mind are kangaroos, crocodiles, koala bears, etc. The
tour company I traveled with recognized that, so one of the things they built
into the itinerary of our Australian trip was a stop at a zoo that had a lot of
these animals.
I’ve been to some zoos here in the states. Things are usually set up so that you can’t get too close, but you usually have an unobstructed view of whatever animal is present. Not this place. It was kind of a cross between a petting zoo and a crocodile kennel. You could hand-feed the kangaroos (maybe they were wallabies), handle snakes, and get close to the emu.
I think the main
attraction was probably the crocodiles. The owner was a colorful character.
Think of him as an older version of Crocodile Dundee that put on a bit of
weight and wasn’t quite so light on his feet anymore. He was fun to be around
and took us on a tour of the sights.
I’d guess that this guy
had anywhere from six to 12 crocodiles in various chain-link pens throughout
the zoo. He brought us around to the various pens, sometimes teaching us about
crocs from outside the pen, other times going inside and feeding the crocs a
chicken or two.
I was a little
surprised by this guy’s willingness to go right into the various pens, and even
more surprised at how close he was willing to get to the various animals. He
would be within a few feet of the gaping jaws of these enormous monsters, and
he’d toss meat into their mouths. He was actually missing a few fingers because
he had gotten too close in the past and eager crocs had snapped down quicker
than expected.
He seemed so laid back
about being in such close proximity to reptiles that could kill him. The only
thing he kept nearby was a rake. He used it to scratch the back of some of the
crocs to help them relax, but he kept it with him for another purpose. When a
croc is getting a little too aggressive and you need to move him back, you can
flip the rake around and push on a sensitive spot on their head, and it will
back up. We got to see this first-hand when one of the crocs started coming out
of its pen. Farmer Dundee here flipped the rake around and pushed the croc back
far enough to close the door.
One of the things that
struck me the most about this guy was how confident he was in knowing when it
was safe and when it was not safe to approach one of the beasts. Again, he was
so casual about being in extreme close proximity to crocs that I didn’t know
what to think. He actually sat on one of them when he was tired and wanted to
take a break.
This guy’s behavior is
an example of how we can become so comfortable around danger that we let our
guard down and get careless. By the time I met him, this guy had been around
crocs for years, but for all I know, he could have been attacked and killed by
one of them the next week. You can go for years flirting with danger or
something you shouldn’t be around and everything turns out fine; until it doesn’t.
You won’t always see it coming, either. That’s why it’s best to simply avoid
such situations if at all possible. A few examples might help. If you’re a
recovering alcoholic, don’t go meet friends at a bar. Avoid situations where
you’re alone with that attractive co-worker. Each of us is more susceptible to
certain mistakes than others, but we’re better than we might think when it
comes to predicting where things can go south. Let’s assume you’ve got a good
head on your shoulders; just because you’re not looking at a guy sitting on a
crocodile doesn’t mean you can’t recognize a situation that’s a bad idea.
I don’t blame my
crocodile farmer friend for doing what he does, but he has to constantly be on high
alert for trouble. Even though he’s had a lot of successful crocodile feedings,
he’s still missing some fingers. The lesson here: if you’re perfectly aware of the danger but you
intentionally stay near it anyway, don’t expect to come out of it unscathed.
Are there any
unnecessary risks in your life you need to stop accepting?
Upon graduation from
college and unsure of a career path to pursue, I moved back in with Mom and
Dad. I worked construction during that time, and since I had low overhead, I
was able to make tons of progress paying off my college loans. Free of any
major responsibilities and feeling adventurous at this point, I decided to
start making headway on my lofty goal of visiting every continent.
My folks had taken me
to Europe previously, so I could cross that one off the list. I knew that at
some point in the future I was more likely to have additional responsibilities
(and might have to pay for additional tickets if I were to go traveling), so I determined
it would be good to look at the continents that were the most difficult to get
to. I really wanted to visit Antarctica, but I figured it would probably be
best to get some general travel experience before venturing anywhere near the
South Pole. Deciding that it would be nice to go to an English-speaking
country, I settled on Australia.
I found an adventure
company that did tours all over the world, and they had a few Australian trips coming
up. On the agenda for this particular trip was whitewater rafting, hiking and
mountain biking in a rainforest, a few days on the Great Barrier Reef, and
ocean kayaking out to, then spending a few nights camping on, an island off the
Australian coast. I got signed up for a November trip.
While trees are losing
leaves and the weather’s getting chilly in North America in November, it’s
springtime in the southern hemisphere. Add to that the fact that the area where
most of this trip took place was closer to the equator than Jamaica is, and it
looked like I was going to have a tan at Thanksgiving.
That figure is for a direct flight; it doesn’t count connecting flights!
The trip ended up being
a lot of fun, and I had some neat experiences. I’ll cover a few of them in the
next couple of posts, but for now it’s important to remember that even if you
ride in a plane to the other side of the world almost 10,000 miles away, God’s
still the same God He was before you left.
Whether you’re having a
“Jonah” moment and are trying to run away, or are homesick, afraid, and want to
see something familiar, God’s
still God no matter where you go.
7Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence?
8If I ascend to heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there.
9If I take the wings of the dawn, If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea,
10Even there Your hand will lead me, And Your right hand will lay hold of me.
11If I say, “Surely the darkness will overwhelm me, And the light around me will be night,”
12Even the darkness is not dark to You, And the night is as bright as the day. Darkness and light are alike to You.
Your
decisions have consequences, but don’t let those consequences put limits on
you.
In college I majored in
Biology, but I went the first three semesters without identifying what I wanted
to focus my studies on.
You can get through your
college experience that way, but I wouldn’t advise it. The best part about this
route was the blissful ignorance of those first three semesters. I attended a Christian
liberal arts college, where as a part of the degree requirements, each student
had to complete courses from a wide array of educational topics to round out
his or her knowledge base. In those early semesters in college I took courses
in anything from Biblical Literature to Psychology to Math to Spanish to Ethics
to Macroeconomics to Tennis.
I’m not sure why it
took me so long to realize it, but after awhile I figured out that I was
running out of these “Gen Eds” to take. I needed to figure out how to fill the
remaining five semesters. In an epiphany, I began to understand that I needed
to figure out what I wanted to declare for my major. I ended up selecting
Biology with an Environmental Emphasis.
As you can imagine, if
you want to major in a science, it means you’ll need to take lots of science courses.
That’s not a bad thing as long as you start on them right away, but if you wait
to get started on them, like I did, it means you’re living, eating, and
breathing science classes later on.
After my realization I
worked with my faculty adviser to figure out how to make it work. I was a Bio
major, but didn’t get signed up for the most basic of biology classes until
halfway through my second year. Then I signed up for a four-week summer Bio
course with class all morning and lab work all afternoon, Monday through
Friday. (My brain nearly melted during that class. I was an average student
that just finished my Sophomore year, and most of the other students in the
course were Freshmen honors students that had spent a semester abroad and now just
needed to catch up.)
Junior year was also
packed with science classes, but I still managed to “kick the can down the
road” with one of the key requirements for a Biology major: two semesters’
worth of Chemistry. By the time I began Senior year and started getting into
Chemistry, I realized that I was in over my head. I couldn’t stand Chemistry.
The professors were great, but I had a terrible time grasping a lot of the
material. I had waited until my last two semesters to take two semesters of
Chemistry. There would be no withdrawing from the class to arrange a more
convenient courseload.
It was already a busy
year…I had a Senior Seminar to deliver, I was the Vice President of the Paddle
Sports club, I had a few work/study jobs, a buddy and I were getting ready to
drive out to the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, I had a weekly workout
routine at the gym, and there was general fun to be had (after all, it was
Senior year!).
Even with all I had
going on, my whole senior year began to revolve around how I could pass
Chemistry. I skipped out on some pranks or outings that would have been fun to
be a part of. There was a study group that I started attending each time it
met. I linked up with one of the Chemistry Majors, who never seemed to sleep,
for help on my homework when I was frustrated and at the end of my rope. With
plenty of patience he walked me through each problem. Joel, if you’re out
there, thanks for all your help! You saved my bacon!
After all of the
craziness and mental anguish, I finally passed both semesters of Chemistry.
Never was I so happy to complete two classes.
I whine about it, but this
was a crisis of my own making. Because of the choices I made, I backed myself
into a corner and made my path to success much more difficult. Here’s the
tie-in: even when you become a Christian, your problems don’t go away. God
loves you and forgives you if you’re truly sorry, but you must still live with
the consequences of your past actions.
Becoming a Christian
does not remove all the pain and agony you face. In some ways it makes things
more difficult. The good news is that a relationship with Christ gives you hope
and strength to face each day, even when each day has repercussions of your
previous actions.
As one of God’s chosen,
He provides what you need to overcome each obstacle. You may have made your
circumstances more complex, but He’s the one that is able to supply for all of
your needs. Christianity
is not an escape from your problems; it is an opportunity to have hope when
facing them. Consider that as you work toward becoming the person He
wants you to be.
Last week I posted about how we’re in a war. It can be difficult to see the best way to gird up and fight back, though. How can we be part of God’s plan to overcome the world? Well, I’ll tell you.
When it first came out, I really enjoyed the movie
“The Bourne Identity.” For those of you that haven’t seen it, it’s about an
American that gets recovered while floating unconscious off the coast of France;
he has no memory of who he is, how he ended up in the water, or why he has a pair
of gunshot wounds in his back.
As the story unfolds we try to solve the mystery
alongside him, but what’s very interesting is that even though he can’t
remember who he is, certain skills come very naturally to him. He speaks at
least three different languages, he ties complicated knots without knowing why
he knows how to do it. He excels at hand-to-hand fighting, combat driving, and
use of various weapons. He’s got serious skills, but doesn’t have a clue about
the purpose behind applying them.
Obviously he fits into a larger story, but when we
meet him, he’s just a guy with skills trying to figure out his place in the
world. He’s a highly skilled, but uncertain fellow without a purpose.
Does that sound like you?
We all come pre-loaded with different talents,
skills, and gifts. Some have obvious application (leadership or teaching, for
example), while others seem like little more than amusing party tricks. We can
use them for our own benefit in some cases, but it’s important to remember that
we were given specific skills for a specific reason.
What’s the definition of a gift? An excerpt from the
video below says that it’s “the thing you do the absolute best with the least
amount of effort.” It’s something that comes naturally to you; something you
can do without even trying. It doesn’t have to be something spiritual or
church-y. Running focus groups; skateboarding; comforting hurting people;
competing in triathlons; interior decorating; creating various forms of art;
plumbing. It doesn’t have to make sense to you, but by pursuing your gift or
using your talent right now, God will position you in a place He wants you to
be at just the right time in the future. Many people turn or run from their
gift because it’s something they don’t want to be gifted in, and they pursue
something that “makes more sense” but doesn’t fit who they are. If that’s you, I
urge you to stop chasing something you’re not meant to be and embrace the tools
you already possess. You have them for a reason.
Our mystery American from the movie eventually
discovers what he is, and having that context makes him more comfortable in his
own skin; learning more about the background of his skills gives him purpose
and structure to help him apply his skills. Christians have the same thing. After you’ve accepted Christ as
your Savior, your purpose is no longer to find God, it is to glorify Him. You want
to know how to be a part of that? Do what you were made to do: use your
God-given talents to live your life in honor of Him.
Think of a tool that goes unused: a hammer that
doesn’t strike; scissors that don’t cut. These are tools with unmet potential.
It’s not up to the tools to be used in the right way or envision the details of
what they’re used for; that’s the craftsman’s job. As “Christian tools,” we don’t
need to be overwhelmed by trying to discover what the plan is; we only need to
place ourselves in the hands of the Master and be used the way He sees best.
I’m including a link to a motivational YouTube video. It’s a little lengthy (about half an hour), but since it’s audio only, you don’t need to watch it as it plays. It’s a good listen while folding laundry, working in the garage, cooking dinner, working out, or driving. It can give you a better idea about how to honor God by employing your gift(s).
Know someone that would like to read this? Pass it along to them! New content posted every Thursday.
In the military, especially in units that operate fighter aircraft, there’s something called a “show of force.” This is a tactic that was used a lot in Iraq and Afghanistan early in our military’s operations in those countries. A show of force is when a very maneuverable plane gets low to the ground, goes full throttle, and flies as close as possible past the enemy on the ground.
If you’re on the
receiving end, this tactic is not something that will physically affect you;
there are no shots fired and there’s typically no ordnance dropped. If you’re
unaccustomed to sudden loud noises, though, it’s something that will make you
wet your pants. The idea behind a show of forces is simply to make you cower in
fear and, at least for a little while, make you stop doing what you were doing
while you question your life decisions.
A few years back I
experienced a spiritual show of force. I had been working for a few weeks to
prepare a talk for a group at church. To use another military analogy, to “red-team”
something means to examine your own capabilities/facilities from the
perspective of the enemy, taking the opportunity to uncover weaknesses and
vulnerabilities. For the talk I had been preparing, I focused on “red-teaming
humanity” from the perspective of Satan and his fallen angels. If you’re
familiar with C.S. Lewis’s The Screwtape
Letters, it was kind of like that, but delivered in the form of a
brief/presentation.
At first I thought it
was a cool idea. It was neat to gauge Humanity’s collective spiritual weaknesses.
The problem was that to do it effectively, you have to think like you’re a
member of the bad guys’ team, and that becomes uncomfortable and even troubling
to do for an extended period of time when you have Christ living in you. As the
time drew near for me to present the project, I was excited to share what I had
prepared, but I was very eager to be done with it.
I know I’m jumping all
over the place and mixing metaphors, but I need to throw another one at you.
Imagine you’re on a professional football team, and somehow your team gets hold
of your opponent’s playbook. You’d be ecstatic, but if the other team found
out, they’d do just about anything to keep you from exploiting it. I had put
together a brief that was going to show some of the basic strategies from the
Devil’s playbook. I even thought “you know, leading up to this brief, it wouldn’t
be surprising if I had some sort of experience that was a little outside the
norm.”
I had no idea at the
time, but I was spot on. Less than a week before I was to give the talk, I
experienced the show of force.
I was at a gas station,
getting my car inspected. There was a spot inside the gas station where people
could hang out while their cars were in the garage. I was sitting there, doing
stuff on my phone, when the door opened and someone walked in. I didn’t look
up, but I heard a woman start speaking strangely. I assumed two people had
walked in, or that she was speaking to someone nearby. There are a lot of
weirdos around, so I didn’t look up; I assumed she was speaking to someone she
knew. Still looking at my phone, I was surprised when she reached down and
touched my arm. I was startled to look up and see her staring down at me with a
pretty intense look.
She seemed a little bit
like she wasn’t playing with a full deck, if you know what I mean. I don’t even
remember what she said next, but I totally blew her off. She walked past me and
sat down on a chair behind me.
I wasn’t sure what to
make of the whole situation, but as I refocused on whatever I was doing on my
phone, I started thinking about some of our pastor’s main themes of his
then-current series: don’t stay silent; engage.
I kind of worked my way up to it, then turned to face this woman. I was caught off guard to see that she wasn’t sitting like a normal person. She was sort of sliding off the chair, rigid, with both arms stretched behind her unnaturally and her head tilted far back.
I plowed ahead anyway.
I asked her about one of the strange words I remembered her saying. Thus began
a bizarre encounter that I don’t even remember very much of. I do remember that
without me giving any indication of my spiritual beliefs, she started ripping
on Jesus Christ pretty hard. She behaved very unnaturally and aggressively
tried to persuade me that Christianity was false and misleading.
This went on for a few
minutes, and I can’t even tell you how glad I was when the guy told me that my
car was ready. I didn’t even care whether it passed or failed; I popped up out
of my seat and started walking his way. The woman suddenly became very adamant
about touching my hand. “Let me shake your hand.” I declined, and she extended
her hand quite urgently, saying “I need to touch you.” I later recounted these
events to my pastor, and when I asked him what that part was all about, he
explained that some people believe they can transfer spirits from one person to
another by touching. Now, because God only allows demonic forces to go so far,
I don’t think that would have been a concern, but let me tell you…I had
absolutely no problem skipping out of there without saying a cordial goodbye.
Friends, I don’t know
if this has occurred to you, but we’re in a war. There’s a whole lot out there
that our senses cannot perceive. Looking at the last 10, 20, or 30 years, it
seems like the dark forces are the ones making all the moves and all the noise
(has our country moved toward or away from Christianity during that time?). To
use another metaphor, imagine there’s a fire that needs to be put out, and that
God’s Holy Spirit takes the form of a nearby lake. The water to extinguish that
fire is present, but without something the Holy Spirit can fill, a vessel of
some sort (Christians), the water does nothing to fight the fire. Please don’t
misunderstand me; I’m not
saying that God is powerless without us, but I am saying that He chooses to
work through us. When we allow
God to work through us, we become that cup, that jug, that bucket, or that fire
hose that gets filled with the Holy Spirit and gets to have a front-row seat
when God fights the fire. Are you going to be a part of something big when God
invites you along to strike at the powers of darkness, or are you going to put
your feet up and watch TV?
Here’s part of one of
my favorite Bible stories from the Old Testament. When an enemy king and his
army tried to attack Israel, God spoke through the prophet Elisha to warn the
Israelite king, who was then able to effectively counter the enemy’s moves multiple
times. Naturally, this frustrated the enemy king, and he wanted to capture
Elisha to increase his chances of success. The most exciting part of the story is
the perspective of Elisha’s servant:
One
of his servants said, “No, my lord, O king; but Elisha, the prophet who is in
Israel, tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedroom.” So
he said, “Go and see where he is, that I may send and take him.” And it was
told him, saying, “Behold, he is in Dothan.” He sent horses and chariots and a
great army there, and they came by night and surrounded the city.
Now when the attendant of the man of God had risen early and
gone out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was circling the city. And
his servant said to him, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” So he answered,
“Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”
Then Elisha prayed and said, “O LORD, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” And the LORD opened
the servant’s eyes and he saw; and behold, the mountain was full of horses and
chariots of fire all around Elisha.
-2 Kings 6:12-17
There’s more going on
than what you can see. You’re smack dab in the middle of a war. While it’s very
important to have a sober respect for the enemy’s power, don’t be put off by a
show of force. Ask that God “fill this vessel,” and that you have the boldness
to live out your faith and your calling. When you do, there’s no telling how
God will use you to fight the enemy’s fire.
You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. -1 John 4:4
