Posted on October 13, 2008 at 6:59am.
I have some more thoughts out of this past weekend’s message…
Someone came up to me after one of the services and ask if it was possible that the harsh letter Winston Churchill’s father wrote him wasn’t the very thing that motivated him to greatness. My answer is - I guess that is possible. Having said that I would also add that there is no way that those words didn’t do damage to his soul. I believe that parents wrestle with how to use words in raising kids unlike no one else. We face issues of motivation, discipline and correction. We face the difficult concept of “tough love.” So what is right and what crosses over a line? I do know this carrying out my role as parent is never to be an excuse to use words that would violate my responsibility as a Christ follower. I need to not only prayerfully consider not only my words but the motivation in my heart for why I would use those words. I know personally I had to apologize to each of our girls for poor choices in the words I used with them. I am so grateful that God forgives and so did my kids.
Posted on October 11, 2008 at 5:32am.
“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life…” those sound like harsh words given our present economic crisis. They aren’t my words but rather they come from the most famous sermon ever given - the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus said those words to all who sat there that day. He wasn’t minimizing the hurt or hardness that life can sometimes present but rather drawing a contrast to our need to trust him more than our circumstances, to believe that he knows our needs (different than our wants) and is able to meet them. I will confess to you I am a worrier. I come from a long line of worriers, I just do a better job of covering it up. So I take these words very seriously and make them the prayer of my heart.
Oh, by the way, we are also to seek to meet the needs of others. That is something else Jesus taught but that will be a topic for another day.
Posted on October 10, 2008 at 7:04am.
Our study in James this weekend will sound like a repeat performance - a look at the power of the tongue. James doesn’t repeat a subject he has already talked about because he has run out of things to say rather because it is so critically important. The power of words spoken or written is huge. Words can build up and they can destroy and destructive words in particular are difficult to forget. The other fascinating thing about words are they reveal my heart, expose what is truly going on inside of me. I hope you will join us on either Saturday or Sunday as together we take a hard look at our words.
Posted on October 9, 2008 at 5:53am.
I was thinking about the prayer I was taught as a child - “God is great, God is good and we thank him for this food. By his hands we all are fed, give us Lord our daily bread.” I can’t tell you how many times I would rush through that prayer just so I could start to eat, never thinking about the meaning of the words. It really does some up some powerful things I hope I believe. First that God is both great and good. He is great, bigger than any situation I face in my life. He is good, all the time, even when it may not seem like it to me (my definition of good is only that which makes life easy for me). Also he is my provider of all the needs of my life. Truth about God expressed in simple terms that a child can remember but that also carry profound understanding that I trust I am willing to live by.
Posted on October 8, 2008 at 8:28am.
One of the memories that stands out from our recent trip was a worship experience Suzi and I had with a group of pastors. We were near the end of two days of teaching and the group was going to spend sometime singing. They called on a man who sat near the back of the room and who appeared older than many of the others. As he got up to lead it quickly became apparent why he was leading. It wasn’t so much his voice but the expression on his face that grabbed my attention. He beamed a joy that caused me to be drawn into worship and I couldn’t understand a word of what he was saying - but the truth was I didn’t need to. I wanted some of whatever he had. I wonder if the average person who who comes in contact with us would say the same thing? I want my very countenance to reflect the reality of my heart.
