It doesn't stay cold for too long in North Texas. During January and February, we have our pockets of 20- or 30-degree temps, but they usually only last a few days. We are able to throw a few logs in the fireplace for maybe seven or eight days out of the year; most of the time it feels like you are slowly being cooked alive in the Texas heat.
Today was a nice treat. After a week or so of cold temperatures and rain, we hit the upper 60s. It felt like spring for a few moments this afternoon. I could almost imagine kids taking to baseball fields and the grass returning to life on my front lawn. We are not out of the woods yet with "winter," but spring will be here before we know it.
The kingdom of God is a lot like spring. We catch glimpses of it from time-to-time, enough to keep us putting one foot in front of the other during the gray days of winter.
A powerful sermon grabs us. A friend makes us laugh or smile. A song stirs our spirit. It can happen in so many ways, but when it happens, it is like walking outside on a warm January day in North Texas.
I am grateful for the ways that God smiles on me and lets me know He is there, active in my life and active in the world. The forecast calls for a return to the 20s starting this Sunday and I am OK with that. I am grateful for at least a glimpse of spring.
Friday, January 11, 2013
Wednesday, January 9, 2013
Prayer is Poetry
We have some genuine "prayer warriors," as they say, in our congregation. These individuals do not merely say, "I'll pray for you." These folks write down prayer requests as they receive them. They meet weekly to pray over a large list of prayer requests in our congregation and track how God is answering. And most importantly, they follow up with prayer requests. If you submit a prayer request, they will ask you a week or several weeks later, "So, how are things going?"
They are a very encouraging group of people, and I am glad that they are in my corner!
They are also fun to pray with. When I enter into a time of prayer with them, it is not perfunctory prayer. These folks allow the Spirit of God to inspire their words, and they speak the most beautiful and poetic words, drawing upon biblical imagery and the Spirit-infused imagination. They are dialed-in to the usual biblical language of spiritual warfare (phrases like, "arrows in the quiver," "armor of God," etc...). But they also carry prophetic words from God. They sense when God is leading us into a "season of renewal" and are able to name it in prayer, and they have spiritual discernment that pierces through the generalities of life.
Prayer is not about the abundance of words or flowery language. God hears the simplest of our cries from the heart, and He is not impressed by our experience or maturity in prayer (or disappointed by our lack thereof). On the other hand, there is nothing wrong with allowing our prayer to be poetic and allow ourselves, like the psalmists, to glorify God in our language (both spoken and written). There is something very edifying about practicing prayer as poetry.
So long as we do not engage in prayer that seeks to impress other, prayer-as-poetry is an effective tool that aids our understanding of prayer (and God's will for our lives and situations) and our level of faith and trust.
They are a very encouraging group of people, and I am glad that they are in my corner!
They are also fun to pray with. When I enter into a time of prayer with them, it is not perfunctory prayer. These folks allow the Spirit of God to inspire their words, and they speak the most beautiful and poetic words, drawing upon biblical imagery and the Spirit-infused imagination. They are dialed-in to the usual biblical language of spiritual warfare (phrases like, "arrows in the quiver," "armor of God," etc...). But they also carry prophetic words from God. They sense when God is leading us into a "season of renewal" and are able to name it in prayer, and they have spiritual discernment that pierces through the generalities of life.
Prayer is not about the abundance of words or flowery language. God hears the simplest of our cries from the heart, and He is not impressed by our experience or maturity in prayer (or disappointed by our lack thereof). On the other hand, there is nothing wrong with allowing our prayer to be poetic and allow ourselves, like the psalmists, to glorify God in our language (both spoken and written). There is something very edifying about practicing prayer as poetry.
So long as we do not engage in prayer that seeks to impress other, prayer-as-poetry is an effective tool that aids our understanding of prayer (and God's will for our lives and situations) and our level of faith and trust.
Monday, January 7, 2013
Small Beginnings
I have felt physically ill for the past three weeks. It started with a bad cold but then the lingering effects were felt for many more days. I still am not 100 percent.
When I feel like this physically for an extended period of time, my mind starts to play tricks on me. Do I have a stomach bug? Is it something worse? Am I having a nervous breakdown?
As you can tell, I come to all types of ridiculous conclusions. (Pray for my wife on this, by the way, as she manages life with a hopeless hypochondriac.)
My ill feelings have coincided with the holiday season and day-after-day of eating nothing but rich foods. Thanksgiving through New Year's Day was a marathon of banquet-style eating and lounging around on the couch.
Today it finally hit me why I feel so crummy. My body needs exercise!
This morning, I finally made it to the fitness center for a brief workout. I swam only 500 yards in the pool, but man it felt great! I can hear my body saying, "Thanks, man! I needed that!"
Our bodies are wonderful gifts from God, and they are meant to be exercised regularly! I cannot stand in the pulpit and preach to anybody about this or pretend that I have already achieved a regular discipline of physical exercise, but I have at least identified the problem.
I refuse to get overly excited or make any impressive New Year's resolutions that I will not keep. Instead, I will simply own the simple truth that it feels good to exercise my body, and the more I do it in 2013, the better I will feel.
It's a small beginning, but I have to start somewhere.
When I feel like this physically for an extended period of time, my mind starts to play tricks on me. Do I have a stomach bug? Is it something worse? Am I having a nervous breakdown?
As you can tell, I come to all types of ridiculous conclusions. (Pray for my wife on this, by the way, as she manages life with a hopeless hypochondriac.)
My ill feelings have coincided with the holiday season and day-after-day of eating nothing but rich foods. Thanksgiving through New Year's Day was a marathon of banquet-style eating and lounging around on the couch.
Today it finally hit me why I feel so crummy. My body needs exercise!
This morning, I finally made it to the fitness center for a brief workout. I swam only 500 yards in the pool, but man it felt great! I can hear my body saying, "Thanks, man! I needed that!"
Our bodies are wonderful gifts from God, and they are meant to be exercised regularly! I cannot stand in the pulpit and preach to anybody about this or pretend that I have already achieved a regular discipline of physical exercise, but I have at least identified the problem.
I refuse to get overly excited or make any impressive New Year's resolutions that I will not keep. Instead, I will simply own the simple truth that it feels good to exercise my body, and the more I do it in 2013, the better I will feel.
It's a small beginning, but I have to start somewhere.
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Two Weeks After Shootings, We Are Back to Old Habits
It took two weeks for us Americans to get back to old habits.
In the days following the Connecticut school shootings, I remember a compelling article by Mike Lopresti in USA Today titled, "Have We Had Enough Yet?" In the article, he critiqued a culture of violence in the United States that is no doubt a primary contributor to tragedies like the Connecticut and Aurora, Colo., school shootings. He commented how Hollywood, out of "sensitivity" to the victims' families, was delaying the release of movies like Django Unchained, Jack Reacher, and other blood-soaked flicks scheduled for release in December and January.
For at least a week or so, it seemed as if Americans may have had enough. In my little fantasy world, I envisioned parents removing violent video games from their homes. I envisioned our social consciousness being sufficiently pricked, so that we would refuse to pay our money to support blood-soaked movies. I imagined Hollywood producers and actors accepting responsibility for their part in the cultural and moral epidemic.
These sentimental dreams came crashing back to earth this afternoon as I read an article in the Lifestyle section of USA Today. It turns out that Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Django Unchained are raking in tens of millions of dollars as the No. 1 and No. 2 movies at the box office this past weekend.
Our disdain for violence, I now see, was only a temporary fast. We have pulled a chair back up to the table of blood-soaked movies. Sorry, Mike Lopresti, but unfortunately it seems we have not had enough.
In the days following the Connecticut school shootings, I remember a compelling article by Mike Lopresti in USA Today titled, "Have We Had Enough Yet?" In the article, he critiqued a culture of violence in the United States that is no doubt a primary contributor to tragedies like the Connecticut and Aurora, Colo., school shootings. He commented how Hollywood, out of "sensitivity" to the victims' families, was delaying the release of movies like Django Unchained, Jack Reacher, and other blood-soaked flicks scheduled for release in December and January.
For at least a week or so, it seemed as if Americans may have had enough. In my little fantasy world, I envisioned parents removing violent video games from their homes. I envisioned our social consciousness being sufficiently pricked, so that we would refuse to pay our money to support blood-soaked movies. I imagined Hollywood producers and actors accepting responsibility for their part in the cultural and moral epidemic.
These sentimental dreams came crashing back to earth this afternoon as I read an article in the Lifestyle section of USA Today. It turns out that Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Django Unchained are raking in tens of millions of dollars as the No. 1 and No. 2 movies at the box office this past weekend.
Our disdain for violence, I now see, was only a temporary fast. We have pulled a chair back up to the table of blood-soaked movies. Sorry, Mike Lopresti, but unfortunately it seems we have not had enough.
Saturday, January 5, 2013
The Price of Dedication
I stand in awe of the swimmers on my son's club swimming team. They basically swim two practices a day and they do this year-round. Many of them have aspirations of a college scholarship and even the Olympics. And when I say, "Olympic aspirations," it is not a far-fetched dream; some of them are good enough to attend Olympic qualifying meets.
My son, God bless him, is hard-working. I am very proud of his efforts to be the best swimmer he can be, but in order to get to "the next level," it would require him swimming "two-a-day" practices year-round. It would be an incredible commitment of time and energy.
Is it worth it? What would he have to sacrifice in order to reach this goal?
Well, for starters, it would mean sacrificing a social life outside of swimming. And as much as we might knock "having a social life," it is important. We are not machines and we need friends and down-time.
It would also mean giving up commitments to participating in church-related activities. These club teams are not afraid to compete (and even practice) on Sunday mornings! Nothing is sacred in youth sports these days, whether we are talking swimming, soccer, or whatever. Sundays are just as viable an option for games, practices, and tournaments, and there does not appear to be a concept of Sabbath worship in youth sports today.
It would mean the abandonment of other goals and aspirations, such as music. My son is a gifted drummer, and it is exceedingly difficult for a young man to excel in more than one thing these days. It almost comes down to swimming OR music.
There are blessings in pursuing goals in swimming (and other sports for that matter) with a single-minded devotion. It teaches hard work and commitment. It teaches the importance of good physical health. It brings self-confidence. But I can't help but wonder if "getting to the next level" is too big of a sacrifice to make.
Athletics is one of the common forms of idol worship in our culture today. Idols, it is helpful to remember, are not merely the funny statues that people keep on their mantles in far-away lands. Idols are any created things that we allow to replace God in our lives.
My son, God bless him, is hard-working. I am very proud of his efforts to be the best swimmer he can be, but in order to get to "the next level," it would require him swimming "two-a-day" practices year-round. It would be an incredible commitment of time and energy.
Is it worth it? What would he have to sacrifice in order to reach this goal?
Well, for starters, it would mean sacrificing a social life outside of swimming. And as much as we might knock "having a social life," it is important. We are not machines and we need friends and down-time.
It would also mean giving up commitments to participating in church-related activities. These club teams are not afraid to compete (and even practice) on Sunday mornings! Nothing is sacred in youth sports these days, whether we are talking swimming, soccer, or whatever. Sundays are just as viable an option for games, practices, and tournaments, and there does not appear to be a concept of Sabbath worship in youth sports today.
It would mean the abandonment of other goals and aspirations, such as music. My son is a gifted drummer, and it is exceedingly difficult for a young man to excel in more than one thing these days. It almost comes down to swimming OR music.
There are blessings in pursuing goals in swimming (and other sports for that matter) with a single-minded devotion. It teaches hard work and commitment. It teaches the importance of good physical health. It brings self-confidence. But I can't help but wonder if "getting to the next level" is too big of a sacrifice to make.
Athletics is one of the common forms of idol worship in our culture today. Idols, it is helpful to remember, are not merely the funny statues that people keep on their mantles in far-away lands. Idols are any created things that we allow to replace God in our lives.
Thursday, January 3, 2013
Two Old Friends
It is time for a dose of good ole' John the Baptist and the "R" word this Sunday, as I preach on repentance from Matthew 3:1-12.
Repentance and John the Baptist have a lot in common. They both stand out as "freaks" to the culture at large. John ate locusts with wild honey, wore garments made from camel hair, and probably looked like a wild cave man. Repentance tells us that we are sinners who need to change our behavior. Repentance tells the world that some things it calls "good" are no good at all.
The world today might actually embrace a character like John the Baptist, or at least his outward appearance would be accepted. Repentance, though, I don't think will ever be able to make a home in this world. It is up to the Church to give it a home, along with grace to match.
Anyhow, I give thanks for the chance to preach on repentance this Sunday. It's the start of a new year. It's an opportunity to abandon actions, attitudes, and in-actions in our lives that are flat-out not helpful to us and others.
It is a time to discover a plan that God has in store for our lives. It's a plan we may have been missing out on for too long.
Repentance and John the Baptist have a lot in common. They both stand out as "freaks" to the culture at large. John ate locusts with wild honey, wore garments made from camel hair, and probably looked like a wild cave man. Repentance tells us that we are sinners who need to change our behavior. Repentance tells the world that some things it calls "good" are no good at all.
The world today might actually embrace a character like John the Baptist, or at least his outward appearance would be accepted. Repentance, though, I don't think will ever be able to make a home in this world. It is up to the Church to give it a home, along with grace to match.
Anyhow, I give thanks for the chance to preach on repentance this Sunday. It's the start of a new year. It's an opportunity to abandon actions, attitudes, and in-actions in our lives that are flat-out not helpful to us and others.
It is a time to discover a plan that God has in store for our lives. It's a plan we may have been missing out on for too long.
Wednesday, January 2, 2013
A True Blessing for the New Year
This is the second day into the new year and we need a blessing to kick things off the right way. I borrow from the words of (or rather, the words attributed to) St. Francis of Assissi: "Where there is hatred and anger in our lives, may God sow seeds of love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy."
If you didn't notice, I have "Reformed" the original words to make it more of an actual benediction. When we give or receive a blessing, God needs to be the primary actor. What kind of blessing is it to say, "may we sow seeds of of love ..."? A blessing, properly understood, is a prayer that asks God to do something in our lives. It acknowledges that we need the Bless-er to do things in our lives that we cannot do alone.
I am capable of sowing seeds of love, pardon, faith, et. al., in small and insignificant ways. It remains my responsibility to be active in these pursuits in 2013. But what I need most is for God to do for me what I cannot adequately do for myself (or others). In other words, may God make me more loving, more forgiving, for faith-filled, more hope-ful, more illumined, and more joy-ful this year. And may God do the same thing in your life!
I don't know about you, but I need more of God's actions in my life this year. If we can do anything of value, it is to be more open for the works that God is trying to do in and through us. The seeds that we sow are important only in as much as God is saturating those same seeds with his grace. In the words of Paul, "I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth." (I Cor. 3:6)
If you didn't notice, I have "Reformed" the original words to make it more of an actual benediction. When we give or receive a blessing, God needs to be the primary actor. What kind of blessing is it to say, "may we sow seeds of of love ..."? A blessing, properly understood, is a prayer that asks God to do something in our lives. It acknowledges that we need the Bless-er to do things in our lives that we cannot do alone.
I am capable of sowing seeds of love, pardon, faith, et. al., in small and insignificant ways. It remains my responsibility to be active in these pursuits in 2013. But what I need most is for God to do for me what I cannot adequately do for myself (or others). In other words, may God make me more loving, more forgiving, for faith-filled, more hope-ful, more illumined, and more joy-ful this year. And may God do the same thing in your life!
I don't know about you, but I need more of God's actions in my life this year. If we can do anything of value, it is to be more open for the works that God is trying to do in and through us. The seeds that we sow are important only in as much as God is saturating those same seeds with his grace. In the words of Paul, "I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth." (I Cor. 3:6)
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