"Deserve has got nothing to do with it..."

When Clint Eastwood delivers that line to Gene Hackman at the end of Unforgiven, there is a sense that Clint's character understands what most of us seem to miss.  I am not speaking to those who have not found Jesus as their Savior, but rather those who have...


As we move into a new year, new beginning and so on, I challenge you to catch yourself each time you mention to God you deserve something.  It's a tricky game to play, but I have some pointers for being good at the challenge:


When you find you are caught in traffic, on the way to do charity work, Bible study, church, or any other service opportunity for God.  What do you do when you are cut-off, stuck behind an accident or just delayed?  Yes, we all get frustrated, but isn't there a sense that we should have an "open lane" to do God's work?  Why would he slow down your progress on doing His work?  It's obviously satan trying to test me, because I don't deserve this!


At work, we all have that person we cannot understand.  You know the one, they talk about inappropriate things, cuss, annoy, don't fit in, or fit in too much.  Why would God put this person in my life?  It's obviously satan trying to test me, because I don't deserve this!


My family lost a dear member and in the process left us with an additional household to maintain in his absence.  Believe me, I thought he was a saint when he was alive, but now I know after the numerous maintenance issues that he took care of on a regular basis while keeping his business going and taking care of his wife who needed special care.  I made a promise to take care of things shortly before he passed and I will keep that promise.  Why are there so many issues?  It's obviously satan trying to test me, because I don't deserve this!


Before I get into the game, please understand I know no one is perfect and each of us can fall into one of these common pitfalls.  The point of this note, is how do we respond to these situations?  I read somewhere that we either react or respond to situations.  Reaction is emotional and usually attached to inexperience with situations.  Response is a calculated action based upon experience. (super over-simplified, but hey, it's me, not Dr. Phil)


When things don't go our way, we usually react versus respond...see items above.  In each case, when we react we realize what we are really saying when complaining about the situation; "God, you messed up here!".  Then, once we have realized how that sounds, we start our "spin control" by blaming it on satan, or the world, you know the routine.  This reaction we have is the "I deserve" reaction.  Why would God do this to me?  I am doing so much for Him and look at what's happening to me.


Here's the deal, God does not give you more than you can handle and He certainly is not giving us what we deserve.  Let's compare:


Wages of sin is death...God gives us His only Son...who got the better of that deal?


So let's put it in perspective:


Traffic or Eternal separation from God?


Tough person to get along with or Eternal separation from God?


Keeping a difficult promise or Eternal separation from God?


When we put it in those terms it's a no-brainer.  Super easy to say and read, but it's not going to be that easy.  For example, if you are actually trying to read this and your computer crashes, there is a better-than-zero chance you will look up and say "Why!".  That is where we get back to response versus react.  The more you prepare for the unknown, the more likely you will be to respond rather than react to what God has put before you.  Yes, God put before you.  Let's look at our scenarios again and respond:


Traffic Jam:  Lord, I hope everyone is all right if there is an accident.  Maybe I am rushing around too much and God wants me to slow down if I will not do it myself.  I was minutes behind that accident, thank you Lord for protecting me.


Person at work:  Instead of "God, why did you put this person in my life?", ask, "God, why did you put me in this person's life?"  


Tough Promises:  Lord, thank you for the time I did have with him to learn how to handle issues without complaining.  Never did he complain, or ask for a way out of doing what needed to be done.  His example for me and my boys was a blessing.  Give me the strength to take care of my family just like he did.


None of this is easy and frankly I get a little nervous when I ask God for strength, because anyone who has worked out to get stronger understands that means more weight on the bar.  This note is simply a reminder to keep things in perspective.  God sacrificed His only Son that we might not have to get what we truly deserve.  


Romans 6:23
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is     eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. 


Happy New Year!

Be Strong and Courageous!

Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it.

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

How incredible is the mind?  While I am not an expert on Goethe, this quote applies to all of us.  Look at all of the people we consider successful and how people look to them for guidance after they have seemingly solved the riddles we never knew existed.  Donald Trump knows how to get money from other people and in the process, go broke then come out with more money than he started with...pure genius.  Is he a good man, I don't know.  Does he care for others, I don't know.  But since he has effectively placed himself in the limelight, he must be awesome!

I believe what is awesome about "The Trump" is more his ability to present himself consistently as successful and always correct.  It would not surprise me if he spent 20-30 minutes every day reminding himself that he is right and no one can change his mind.  The constant narrative running in his head throughout the day that the world is his oyster.  What confidence!

Trust me, I am not a huge fan of Donald Trump, but I am a fan of anyone who can stand alone (and never underestimate just how alone Donald Trump really is) but still make their way and be successful despite their circumstance.  Our children could learn quite a bit from a person who does not appear to bow to peer pressure.  Is he smug?  Yes.  Can he be an ass? Yes.  Is he disliked in many circles?  Absolutely!  These are all perceptions from a distant public.  Who knows what he is really like, in those silent moments alone?  The learning point is this...follow your dream.  Be relentless in your pursuit of your dreams!  Never sell yourself short regarding the abilities you have and the goals you set for yourself.  Be strong and courageous! 

Read through the book of Deuteronomy some time and you will see that phrase a number of times.  God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of strength and power.  Is Donald Trump a believer in the power of Christ in our lives?  I have no idea.  That is not my responsibility, but rather his.  Those of us who do believe in Christ's ultimate sacrifice for our salvation, must consider how awesome our support base is when it comes to being bold.  We can do all things through Christ who strengthens us!  How powerful!  How much genius, power and magic must be in the boldness we have through our Lord?  We pray for strength and direction and the opportunity to worship through our actions.  Be strong and courageous in those actions.

A quick note...these bold actions do not have to be cliff diving, alligator wrestling, etc.  They say people are incredibly fearful of public speaking.  We all know the joke about how death is second to public speaking for people when it comes to fear.  That means the person giving the eulogy would rather be in the coffin!  Speaking your mind, defending a point, friend, belief are all bold actions.  Living a life that gives as much as it gets is bold.  Taking care of family, supporting those that have little, is bold.  Being respectful and taking people where they are, is bold.  Living life as the gift it is can be the most bold action you ever take.  

As I mentioned, my thought is "The Donald" spends some time each day reinforcing his beliefs.  We should too.  Get up in the morning and ask for the guidance to do the best you can with the best attitude you can.  Ask for the courage to follow those dreams set before you and the strength to be prepared for whatever those dreams and goals may bring.  It will not always be easy, but easy is not always the best way.  

Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you.

Deuteronomy  31:6

Pretty Awesome! :)

Faith Takes Practice...

When everything seems to be going against you, remember that the airplane takes off against the wind, not with it.

Henry Ford 

Great quote!  Most of the time, we feel the force of the "wind" and want to move with it because the struggle seems too great.  When we do let the wind push us, we find ourselves struggling to get back to where we started, fatigued and frustrated.  How incredible is the faith that sees this as the opportunity to rise above the challenge and go farther than imagined!  

Why is this an act of faith?  Look at the position you would be in when spreading your wings...arms spread out, absolutely no protection and leaning into the on-coming gust of wind.  We are at our most vulnerable, giving up our control of the situation and trusting God to use the storm to lift us up.  Lifting us "on the wings of eagles...", (really cool verse!)  

So how do we know when to "let go" and let God lift us?  My belief is that while we think in terms of our current physical state...6'3" 250 pounds (somewhat challenging to lift for anything less than a hurricane-like issue) our faith can make us like a feather when it comes to God's loving support and guidance.  How many times do we say, "I've got this, I will save my prayers for the "big" stuff", or "I am not going to bother God with a prayer for direction on what carpet to buy, that's not what prayer is for."  My challenge to whoever reads this, is that we need to get better with practice.  

Pilots fly thousands of hours to improve take-off and landings, adjusting for storms and technical challenges, experiencing the wonder of being thousands of feet above the earth.  None of that happens without first facing the on-coming wind and accelerating into it.  For the person who is not a pilot, what an incredibly frightening experience to be in the cockpit during take-off!  For the pilot that lives it every day, reviewing their checklists and preparing for the task, it is just natural.  We take off into the wind every day...are we prepared?  Believe me, every day has its own storm front; traffic, laundry, homework or just trying to figure out how we fit into the big scheme of things.  Each of these opportunities to log flight time in faith will strengthen you for the upcoming challenges that may include a little more fear or second-guessing. Practice is paramount!  Reviewing your checklist is a must! (that's the Bible for those of you that cannot keep up with my over-obvious writing :) )  But each day we must, above all else, lean into the wind in order to take off.

C.S. Lewis had a great analogy about the debate over predestination versus free will that I will very loosely attach to my point.  His thought was that in life we are marching in a parade, through a large city where we can only see a short distance ahead as we try to stay on the parade route.  We have the ability to choose where we turn down side streets, or stay with the group, change groups or simply stand still.  Meanwhile, God is represented as the helicopter following the parade from high above.  He can see all of the options you have while on your journey, knowing the outcome of each choice while letting you make decisions along the way.  The point was that as participants in the parade, we should take time to look up and see where the helicopter was so we could align ourselves with what the parade route should truly be.

Now for the very loose attachment and an apology for C.S. Lewis having to roll over in his grave for being attached to my blog...

If we allow ourselves to be lifted by faith and aligned with God through our release of control over our lives, wouldn't we then have a better view of where God is leading us?  As we grow closer to God, don't we become more like Him?  I have been married for over twenty years and what they say is true...you do pick up mannerisms and traits along the way.  Certainly the word "Sweetie" was not predominant in my vocabulary before I met my wife, but now I use it all the time, and do not whisper it around my friends.  How cool are the attributes of God that we can pick up as we grow closer to Him!  How cool to demonstrate how great God is in more than just a whisper!  People are still amazed at the ability of a plane to get airborne.  How much more to see a person lifted above adversity by their faith! :)