Grace
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Thursday, September 5th, 2024
I couldn’t get to sleep last night so I got up and had my devotions. The following is what I wrote:
Christianity is based on fact. On truth. On the character of God. It’s not speculative. It is not based on a lie. It is not based on a God who changes like the shifting shadows. A shadow is a distortion of the real image. Watch your shadow next time you walk with the sun behind you. Skinnier and taller than the original. (Maybe that is good?) 🙂
Jesus sacrificed His perfect life to secure our eternal life (in spite of our imperfection). Jesus’ love is eternal, unceasing, unchanging, rock-solid, and compassionate. Meanwhile, our love is temporary, limited, wishy-washy, mercurial, and selfish. Furthermore, God’s love has nothing to do with our own performance, our own good works, our own pretended holiness, or our own achievements (no matter how important we think they are). Our eternal life has EVERYTHING to do with His great love, His patient and forgiving love, a love that never quits. His love never changes, was laid down on our behalf, totally unmerited and unearned.
Does it get any better than that? I think not. Then why do I fight so hard to be accepted by Him and why do people fight so hard to push Him away?
An enigma for sure. But there is no puzzle with these words: “Save me and rescue me, for you do what is right. Turn your ear to listen to me, and set me free. Be my rock of safety where I can always hide. Give the order to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress…Your righteousness, O God, reaches to the highest heavens. You have done such wonderful things. Who can compare with you, O God?” (Psalm 71:2-3, 19 NLT)
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Tags: Choices, God, Grace, Jesus, Love, Opinion, Reflection, Scripture look, Story, Worship
Tuesday, August 20th, 2024
One of the essential beliefs of a life of grace and truth is the overwhelming truth that grace can’t be earned. Whether one is talking about God’s grace for us or one person’s grace toward another, it cannot be earned.
The Bible consistently speaks of God’s grace toward us. One of the greatest is found in Ephesians 2, perhaps one of the most familiar and impactful: “God saved you by His grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.” (Ephesians 2:8-9 NLT)
God’s grace cannot be earned, brought, or bargained for. Those verses are clear: grace is freely given.
Grace also comes into play in our relationships with others. There are some who work hard to impress, to “earn” the approval of another. There are also those who, sadly, keep score. It’s almost like they have a tablet in their hand keeping tabs on every good and bad thing that has been done. It’s almost like the “Love me, Loves me not” scenario. Too many bad check marks and that other person is cast out of our acceptance circle. Check marks to the good bring acceptance and even “love.” It’s interesting that one of the characteristics of love given in I Cor. 13 is “Love doesn’t keep score.” Another translation says, “Love keeps no record of wrongs.”
People filled with grace and love stop collecting tickets. They stop asking if they have collected enough and they stop asking if someone else has collected enough. Let’s stop keeping score-of ourselves and of someone else.
Grace and love are freely given. It is not earned. And it certainly isn’t a result of or offered as a reward from coming out on the “win” side of the score card.
Posted in InTheShadow | 10 Responses »
Tags: Christian Living, Faith/Feelings, God's Plan, Grace, Jesus, Love, Ministry, Opinion, Reflection, Score keeping, Scripture look, Story
Monday, August 19th, 2024
A nationwide network of a haven for at risk kids is called Safe Place. There is a sign we are asked to display that if a young person is ever in trouble, needs shelter from a “pesky” adult or predator or simply needs a place to “get their head together” that sign says, “Here is a place for you to find refuge. A safe place.” The church I pastor has been a part of that network for years. We have never had a young person show up and yet, if one did and was given a safe place, it is well worth it.
A church should be a safe place. I like to call it a PLACE OF GRACE. Someone has said, “The church is to be a hospital for sinners, not a rest home for saints.” I wonder if that is what Bob Goff had in mind when he wrote these words:
We actually build castles all the time, out of our jobs and our families and the things we’ve purchased. Sometimes we even make them out of each other…You see, castles have moats to keep creepy people out, but kingdoms have bridges to let everyone in. Castles have dungeons for people who have messed up, but kingdoms have grace. There’s one last thing castles have-trolls. You’ve probably met a couple.” (Everybody, Always-p.41)
Church should be a place where people can go to find safety. I was visiting with someone yesterday who has one year of sobriety under his belt. Yeah for him! Even though coming to church has not been on his radar that often, he knows he needs to be there and he knows he is welcome and accepted there. He has a friend who stopped going to church (he was going even though he tends to be an agnostic) because supposedly where he was going the pastor said something against the lifestyle of his daughter. Whether it is true or not, I don’t know. Neither did the man I was talking to. But I was pleased when he said, “But they are welcome at OVCF! You have always said that.” True on both counts. I reiterated that I may not agree with a person’s lifestyle and if asked would be honest, but would never ask that person to not come or to leave.
Why? Because church is a place for sinners…like me. It is a place of grace. It is a safe place where people can come to find help and love, a kingdom not a castle. There is much more to say on this topic but that is for another time. Until then, be a safe place for a person seeking solace and answers or simply needs to come in from out of the cold.
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Tags: Christian Living, Church, Grace, Love, Mercy, Ministry, Opinion, Reflection
Wednesday, August 14th, 2024
The gift of forgiveness is one of, if not the greatest gift we can give someone…AND OURSELVES.
Many years ago I was meeting with a group of elders in a public restaurant. Another man had asked if he could join us and one of the men said Yes. After a chatty and lighthearted lunch, this man man launched into a vindictive and accusatory castigation of me and my ministry. He asked accusatory questions (not moral ones) about my time and what I did with it. (I did not answer him since it was none of his business). More questions. And then his coup de grace was telling me I should resign and move back to Ohio. Then, as was his modus operandi after a making a scene, he got up and left. I was not the only one who sat in stunned silence. I broke the ice and simple asked one question, a question that would seal what I would decide to do. I asked them if they agreed with him and did they want me to resign. “If you do,” I said, “You have my resignation today. I will not work with men who do not support me. I will not put up with such groundless accusations.” To a man they said, “No.” They all felt he was way off base and the man who approved him coming apologized never expecting that. They proved it the next meeting when he showed up (thanks to the yes from the same man who thought he was going to apologize). Instead, he came loaded for bear and made the same proposition: “Move back to Ohio where you belong.” They said after he left (again the same way), “Absolutely not.”
Several factors came into play. First, he was ticked off that his proposed building project that would have cost in the $5-600k range was rejected by the leadership. (Good thing too since factors soon took place that changed the trajectory of our direction).
Second, and more importantly, what was I going to do? You may find this hard to believe but I chose the path of forgiveness. I have seen enough lives ruined by refusing to forgive than I care to talk about. Marriages have crumbled; friendships have fallen apart never to be repaired; churches split; physical infirmities as a result of holding a grudge; all as a result of refusing to forgive.
I chose to forgive. I greeted him with outstretched hand and a smile. I asked him to help out with things (but was turned down). Why? Not because I’m a super saint. Far from it. My natural instinct was to defend myself. Instead, I tried to practice Colossians 3:12-13- “Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.” Was I perfect in it? Nope. There were times I struggled with my anger and emotions. There were times I wanted to tell others and have them defend me, i.e. boost my ego. I also knew this: the failure to forgive makes us that person’s slave. They own us. We hurt no one but ourselves when we refuse to forgive.
I have no idea how he feels, even to this day. But I know how I feel. Not vindicated. Not holier-than-thou. I do feel peace. I am not suffering from poor health from holding a grudge. And I do know Jesus stands even taller in my eyes when I read that He said, “Father, forgive them, they don’t know what they are doing.” He had it much rougher than me, that’s for sure.
What about you? Are you carrying a grudge you need to dump? Are you seeking to get even? Dump it. Excuse my French: IT. AIN’T. WORTH. IT!
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Tags: Choices, Christian Living, Forgiveness, God's Plan, God's Word, Grace, Humility, Jesus, Love, Ministry, Opinion, Reflection, Scripture look, Story
Tuesday, July 23rd, 2024
Taking grace for granted can be expressed in one word: ingratitude. Let me show you what I mean:
Most people know the story of Jonah. Told to go to Ninevah (a people he hated) to preach repentance, God was going to wipe out the population if they didn’t. But Jonah knew God to be a loving God and one of grace so he ran the other way. After his encounter with the big fish, he went to Ninevah (grudgingly) and hated every minute of it. God did exactly what Jonah feared: He forgave them when they repented in sackcloth and ashes. “Don’t save them! Wipe them out!” would be Jonah’s motto. In fact, if you read Jonah 4 you find him pouting because God was merciful.
Jonah forgot God’s grace toward him. He was ungrateful.
Let’s do another scenario: A man owed a king a huge amount of money (an unpayable amount). He begs to be forgiven and the king does just that. Then this same man finds another servant who owes him a small amount and slaps the dude in jail until her can pay it off. {Side note: how is that possible if he is in jail? But I digress} The king hears about it and rescinds his gracious act of forgiveness and slaps that dude in jail. (You can find the complete story in Matthew 18:21-35)
He forgot the king’s grace toward him. He was ungrateful.
Imagine the prodigal son being received by his father, gifted with a robe, a ring, sandals, and a feast only to leave there and demand homage from another. We would probably be appalled at the callousness of that son.
Thankfully, the latter example never happened. The first two did. One in real life; the other in a parable taught by Jesus. But let’s turn it to ourselves. What if the story of our life is written? Would it be filled with stories of forgiveness followed up by forgiveness extended to others or would it have stories of God’s grace shown and then disregarded by our own ingratitude?
What say you?
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Tags: Christian Living, Forgiveness, God, Grace, Ingratitude, Jesus, Love, Mercy, Opinion, Reflection, Story
Wednesday, July 17th, 2024
Sometimes we simply make things too complicated (note play on words). 🙂 That is especially true when we talk to people about Jesus.
I was reading this morning in Matthew 11. It starts with John’s question to Jesus. John is in a dungeon (and will soon be beheaded) and while languishing in that dungeon his despair got the best of him. He sent his disciples to ask Jesus if He was the One (the Messiah) they were expecting or should they keep on looking? While it would be easy to “get all over” John for his seeming lack of faith, Jesus does no such thing. Instead, He says, “‘Go back and tell him what you have heard and seen-the blind see, the lame walk, those with leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is being preached to the poor.’ And He added, ‘God blesses those who do not fall away because of me.'” (verses 4-6) In other words, the proof is in the pudding. Jesus was indeed here and the works just described are proof.
I’d like to “spiritualize” for a moment because I’m not sure this is a viable use of Scripture. As I said at the beginning, sometimes we make things way too complicated when talking to others about Jesus. Instead of laying out all the historical facts about Jesus; the cruel death on the cross proven by Roman historians; the historical truth of His resurrection; and proof He is the Messiah; and other subjects, unless they ask for all the above, the best proof we have is the proof of a changed life. Mine. Yours. Someone you know. “Once I was blind but now I see. Once I was lost but now I am found.” There is something beautiful about those simple words.
Don’t be too complicated when talking about Jesus. Share the simple story of a life changed by the marvelous grace of Jesus. People may be belligerent, and ready to argue even with the facts presented, but they can’t argue with a changed life. Not when it is staring right at them. That is the Good News people need to hear!
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Tags: Christian Living, God's Plan, God's Word, Grace, Jesus, Ministry, Opinion, Reflection, Scripture look, Story, Testimony
Tuesday, July 16th, 2024
One last devotion…(I think). 🙂
The past week or so of devotions here at “Shadow” I have been writing and telling you about a book that had a profound impact on me-Out of the Blue by Greg Murtha. (Those dates are July 9, 10, 11, and 15). At the age of 46, Greg, a healthy runner and athlete, go-to leader, husband and father, was stricken with Agressive Stage III Colon Cancer. He endured 95 chemo treatments over 5 years, but on June 22, 2017 he “moved to the front of the line” to use his words. He completed his book on June 15th in room 8637 of Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s CCU.
As I finished reading his book for the second time (the first I barely remember), I was overwhelmed with emotion. I shed some tears for a life well-lived, but also because it struck close to home. Not me. I just lost a friend to cancer and another has brain cancer. This book chronicling his thoughts and actions of the last 5 years of his life deeply and profoundly impacted me and caused me to stop and evaluate my own life.
I once read that Joni, the well-known Christ-follower who has been a quadriplegic for over 50 years, was once asked if she would change anything. She said, “No. I thank God for the accident and my wheelchair.” (edited by me). Several times Greg said virtually the same thing, i.e. he was thankful for the cancer that totally changed his life. It slowed him down. It woke him to the needs of others. It brought him to the point of listening to God. He would go for treatment, into a store, into a room and notice people most would miss-people who needed a hug, or who were hurting, had tears in their eyes, or simply needed a word of encouragement, or a prayer. And he was not ashamed to offer that.
He wrote the following:
“I’m learning that being present in the moment is what is important. Being the church wherever I am-that’s what matters. Listening to the prompting of the Holy Spirit is paramount to living a life of adventure.” (p. 160)
I’ll close by simply saying that I want that. Healthy or not I want to be present in the moment. I want to be the church, a representative of Christ, where I am and to whomever I come across. Will you join me?
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Tags: Choices, Christian Living, Death, God's Plan, Grace, Humility, Kindness, Life, Lifestyle, Love, Mercy, Ministry, Opinion, Reflection, Story, Suffering, Surrender
Thursday, July 11th, 2024
Jo and I are in Ohio today watching our grandson play the last two games of baseball we will get to watch this summer. We came yesterday to spend the night and some time with him and Janna (our daughter), watch two ball games today and then head home. The next trip to Ohio will be Labor Day weekend to watch him play high school football and take the weekend off (my first one since February).
I am continuing to read Out of the Blue by Greg Murtha. I blogged about it the past two days. Here is something to consider that I read: Greg, by his own admission, was good at wearing masks. Cancer ripped the mask off. Sitting in a chair with others getting the same type of cancer treatment/infusion/torture left him with a vulnerability he was not used to. He wrote: “When we admit that we’re fractured in one way or another, others will risk vulnerability too.” (p.49)
Everyone of us is broken-just in different ways and in different areas. Alcohol. Drugs. Porn. Sex. Mental issues. Selfishness. Volatile reactions, i.e. anger. They are many and varied. And we try to mask them. Cancer, Greg says, breaks down walls and builds bridges. You see suffering as an upside. It draws us to each other-and to God.
Someone somewhere must admit brokenness. When that takes place, vulnerability happens. There is nothing wrong with lowering the mask and admitting, “I’m struggling.” “I’m hurting.” I think His lack of judgmentalism is one of the qualities that drew people to Jesus. They found in Him a “safe” person. So can we. The psalmist speaks often of God being our refuge, our Mount Zion. We find that in our vulnerability with Him and ultimately with our fellow strugglers.
Let’s be real. Let’s rip off the masks. Let’s start a Realness Revolution!!
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Tags: Choices, Christian Living, Friendship, God's Plan, Grace, Humility, Jesus, Masks, Mercy, Ministry, Opinion, Perseverance, Reflection, Story, Suffering
Tuesday, July 9th, 2024
“You have Aggressive Stage III cancer.”
So you are told. It soon develops into Stage IV. No, that is not me. Sorry if you panicked as you read that. Well over 3 years ago-I’m thinking pre-pandemic- I read a book called Out of the Blue by Greg Murtha. Greg was a 46 year old man in the peak of physical condition (so he thought) when after an 11 mile run through Crocket Hills Trail in Middle Tennessee his life changed. Afterward, sweating but pumped he headed for the bathroom at the YMCA. That’s when his life changed. It appeared as if someone had poured a container of bright-rid blood into the toilet. He realized instantly, This is not good. And it wasn’t. The diagnosis was a gut punch to use his words.
I have begun to reread the book. Not because I have cancer (at least not that I’m aware of) but because some people who are close to me do. A friend. Friends of friends. People connected to the church. I needed, no wanted, some perspective. I remembered Greg’s book was uplifting and brought a whole new perspective to the cancer battle so as I was scanning through books for a future sermons series my eyes locked onto his book. After reading the Introduction and first 21 pages I have already been reminded why reading it is a good idea. To quote Greg: “Don’t feel sorry for me. Strange as it sounds, I view cancer as a gift. I thank God for it because it means I’m not the man I used to be. Sure, this interruption to my well-planned life was jarring. And chemo is hell. But I’m thankful for cancer because it has given me the ability to focus on what matters.” (p.7)
That struck me. Being a typical male, I am sort of locked onto that “success syndrome” so many get attached to. It is not as bad as it used to be. At 71, while I want to continue being a part of advancing God’s kingdom, I also know my best days are probably behind me due to stamina and strength. But, to be honest, my heart burns more for Jesus than it did in my younger years. Maybe it is because of my age. I don’t know. But a Bob Goff quote fits here: “God’s more interested in our hearts than our plans.” (p.7-8). My dreams, goals and aspirations have never been realized, at least not to the scale I wanted them to. That is a good thing. But I wouldn’t trade my life for any amount of money or earthly applause. I realize now what is most important. (Took me long enough!) 🙂
I hope I don’t get cancer or any other life-threatening disease. Cancer runs in my family (mother and grandmother died of it. Two brothers have and had it). But if I do, I hope I can run that race with grace. I’ll write more tomorrow but let me leave you with this quote from Greg’s book:
Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well-preserved body, but rather to skid broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming, ‘WOW!’ (Hunter S. Thompson quoted on page xviii)
‘Nuff said. Oh…As always, I welcome your comments.
Posted in InTheShadow | 5 Responses »
Tags: Cancer, Choices, Christian Living, God's Plan, Grace, Lifestyle, Ministry, Opinion, Perseverance, Reflection, Story, Suffering, Surrender
Thursday, May 16th, 2024
There are a lot of ways to destroy a church, a business, or even a friendship. Since my job is the pastor of a church, let me focus on that.
First, it is really important to clarify a term. By church I am NOT referring to any physical structures. A physical structure can be destroyed any number of ways (like many around the world are today), but the church can go on…and does. A natural disaster. A mob bent on destruction. A vengeful act. An act of hatred. Houses of worship can be leveled.
But a more insidious type of destruction is one from within. A wolf in sheep’s clothing can sneak in and spread false teaching. A leader can “ride herd” on a church and bring it to its knees (check out 3 John 9-10 and the story of Diotrephes). There is one type I think that brings more churches to its knees (not in a good way) than just about any other. This verse from Proverbs 16:28 says all that needs said: “A troublemaker plants seeds of strife; gossip separates the best of friends.” (NLT)
It’s easy to see. You want to destroy a church? You want to destroy a company? You want to destroy a friendship? Gossip. Be a troublemaker. Or let them go unchecked. Let it go unchecked and watch the dominoes fall. Little by little. Piece by piece. All that will be left is a pile of ashes or rubble. If the enemy can get the people inside bickering, talking smack, spreading poison or something as ugly, he will have found the way to bring the church down. It is the most effective way and he didn’t need a bulldozer to accomplish his feat.
Don’t be part of the problem; be part of the solution. Stop the gossip and the gossiper.
Posted in InTheShadow | 6 Responses »
Tags: Christian Living, Church, Gossip, Grace, Humility, Leadership, Ministry, Opinion, Reflection, Scripture look, Speech, Troublemaker
