Moonlight Chasing

I find myself sitting in a large parking-lot at almost 11pm at night. Nothing weird going on, just compelled to stay out a little longer. The moon is hanging in an awesome spot where it is visible from just the right spots at the right altitudes.

I remember when I was in High School, I would go “Moonlight Chasing” where I would drive thru different neighborhoods trying to find where the best view of the moon was. Just a silly game, but it was fun to do when I had the time.

Funny thing about the moon, which I remember from school…the moon emits no light on its own. On nights like tonight when it is all bright and awesome to look at, it isn’t that the moon has any light of its own, it is coming from another source, from the sun. Somehow the light from the sun is bouncing off the moon and reflecting to us in the middle of the night. Pretty cool.

It is more than just a cool thought when you realize that some of us are sitting in the middle of a dark night, waiting for daylight. Sometimes it seems like it is almost pitch black, and you wonder if this is the night that will never end. In those dark moments of the soul, there is a beacon of hope. There is a moon that sits on high and reminds me of a promise. It reminds me that while night comes…it can only stay for a while, because it will eventually have to submit and give way to daylight.

The moon, and the light that it shares, is in effect a reminder of God’s faithfulness. Darkness does not reign, despair is not an end. There is a moon up above that reflects light and reminds us, “the light is coming.”

So tonight, I find myself Moonlight Chasing, trusting in a promise.

Storehouses of Snow

Has your life ever come so close to crumbling, that you wonder what else could go wrong? You sit and watch as one thing after another falls apart, and it is like watching a predictable movie. For those who have no foundation in life, I don't know how the winds of turmoil don't knock them out completely. I view life from the perspective of Christ's love, cause that is the foundation I am on. Even standing on that foundation, I can be shaken to the core by the "rocking of the boat." For those of us who stand in Christ, a blow to our physical health can be hard, but necessarily life shattering...family crisis can bring pain...but it can be bearable. Our perspective in Christ allows us to look into this world that is falling apart and know things will happen to shake us. Sometimes though, a compilation of things, a series of events can occur that will shake even a follower of God to the core and knock them on their back.

I have been reading through the book of Job. If my life were not confirmation of everything said above, then the story of Job basically confirms it. He follows God, seeks to honor Him as best he can. He acts rightly on this earth and respects those around him. Yet at the beginning of this long book (LONG BOOK) he looses everything within a short amount of time. He stands strong and then one blow comes at him, but before he can physically and emotionally and spiritually recover and process, another ones comes, and then another.

In my head I picture a prize fighter who has an unbelievable record, and this guy is getting assaulted with combo's and punches and it is happening so quick he can't block or stop it.

Now Job, knocked down for the count, goes through what (to the reader) feels like an eternity just sitting and not knowing how to go on. Now from our perspective, especially if you have read this story before, you know that in the end God comes and brings reconciliation to the relationship and restores Job and blesses him with more than he ever had before. It is a happy ending.

Have you ever found yourself in the middle of Job's story? You look around and wonder, "what else could go wrong?" Your life is shattered. Sometimes the "happy end to the story" isn't going to carry you. Most of the time, "it will be alright" is just an annoying phrase that is not helpful. I have read this story a few times, I can give you the outline, yet when I physically sit in the middle of the storm, I find it hard to care as much about the happy ending. When your physical body, your emotions, your spirit and all that is within you is shaken and battered, vision and hope seem like cruel words.

Then, somehow, like the first leaves of Spring, something changes. God delivers something of hope that is actually tangible, something your spirit can hang on to! In His own way, He reminds you of His intentionality, and love, and care for you. In God's response to Job and his friends, he goes on for chapters ranting about who He is and how He is in control. He brings a picture that captures it all:

"Have you entered the storehouses of the snow or seen the storehouses of the hail, which I reserve for times of trouble..." (Job 38:22-23)

Like God cares so much about His creation, and He is so in control that he actually has storehouses of snow. Storehouses of Snow!! Do you understand what that is, do you catch what is symbolized there? In the midst of pain and angst, God makes clear, "I am still in control, I have good for you in this" and oh ya..."I have storehouses of blessings...of joy....of laughter...of peace that I can deliver whenever I want."

Oh how He loves us. He really does. In the middle of our trails and our pains, He wants us to remain confident in Him, knowing that He is at work and will turn our pain into joy. He makes all things new.

If He has a whole storehouse just for snow, can you imagine or get your mind around the good things He has waiting for you at the other end of a rough season? Do you understand He is so on top of it all that He isn't making it up as He goes. In the middle of your hard times, He isn't looking around going, "hmmm what can I do to fix this, how can I help out." He is one who has thought through the details of human life to such an extent that He saw it fit to create a storehouse just for snow! And another one for hail! (I mean I don't know why hail, but I am not God).

Who knows what else He has stored up for those who love Him.

No Sacrifice in Love

I am a child of the 80’s and 90’s. There is no separating that from me. I will always have references for movies and bands that go back to this time period. I am marked by the influx of knowledge and insight gained from wonderful pieces of art. The magic of the Jurassic Park soundtrack will resound in my heart until the day I die…I can still get lost in the wonder of E.T. As cheesy as the old Batman movies are, I grew up enthralled by them.

You know what I really love about movies, especially from that time period? I have always appreciated the love stories. There is something that so connects with me in the triumph of love over all other odds. The depiction of a man giving up things he so cherishes to win over the girl he wants to cherish even more…that makes movie magic! What person with even the smallest romantic bone in their body doesn’t long to be in that story?

It is a story whose theme was written onto our hearts before we ever had a chance to deny it.

I think about this story a lot, because I look forward to entering into the details of the story I am in. As I think about it, a simple thought:

There is no sacrifice in Love.

Do people give up things for the sake of love? Yes. Do they accept hardship for the chance at love? Yes. Are most lives only made harder by the implications of pursuing love? YES! And despite all that, I will tell you there is no sacrifice in love. The reason I say this is because the reward of “sacrifice” has no value in light of Love. To be able to claim you have sacrificed is to claim some pride of your efforts and energy to attain something. While usually noble, the act of sacrifice gains you a level of respect; that is your reward.

In Love, everything is different. For true love…love itself is the reward. Sacrifice only happens when the benefits of sacrifice are in play…and while not specifically self-serving…there is tremendous personal gain in sacrifice. While the fires of sacrifice run red-hot…the passion and zeal that come from the fire of love burns white hot…and smokes away all pride and personal gain…and leaves you with only one true treasure…Love itself.

A person can give all they have, all the wealth of the world if needed, for the sake of gaining love. In this very act, any outsider would look upon the situation and call it great sacrifice. The one who gains love, however, would look upon their situation and claim all that was “sacrificed” was done so in light of love, and nothing of any real value was lost…in light of love.

True love, the big “L” type of love, is a reward so big; it is unable to be paired with any other. No man could claim he gained love “and.” To have any other prize is to highlight an inability to appreciate the true Prize at its truest value.

Embracing your call

Well a lot of you seemed to be impacted by the last post, I have loved your comments and thoughts, so please drop in updates of how processing your weight is going.

This morning my thoughts are more towards the future, towards vision and direction. Have you ever felt the call of God for something? It doesn't have to be towards a career or being a missionary or something like that...God can call us to the most simple or most grand of tasks. There is no doubt that God has calls for you. He might call you to step out in faith in terms of the school you should attend. His call might have to do with a job you will take, or not take. Perhaps His call to you might have to do with a relationship in your life. Whatever the specific call that God has for you in the next season, what I am sure of is that He has a call for you. He is always at work around us and is continually inviting us towards deeper faith in Him, usually by calling us towards something.

The question is what you do with the call. What do you do with the invitation of God into something new? Are you reserved...keeping one foot on tested ground and letting the other test the waters of something new? Do you jump in without any inhabitions? For most of us, I would bet that we hold back our heart from our new adventure. God calls us to something new (whether it is stepping into something new or stepping away from something old), and for many of us, we embrace the call in a half-hearted way. God invites us to the adventure of a school that is different from our plans, and we move some of our actions in that direction...while still emotionally holding on to the plans of the school we had planned on. He invites us into a new adventure in relationships, and we hold our hearts a couple miles away to test the waters and make sure new relationships are a safe bet. He calls us with a career direction change, and we dabble in many different opportunities so that no doors close on us...in case He was wrong.

My most clear memory of this sort of thing has to do with the first college I attended, Georgia State University. The summer before I started college, God called me into ministry. The details around the call are still vivid to me, and I can say without a doubt that God had a direction call for me and wanted me to move in that direction. He didn't ask me to change colleges or anything, but He did want my heart fully invested in His plan. As I started school and progressed throughout the first year, what became clear was that I was investing in my classes and studies with a divided heart. I wanted what God had for me in ministry, but I wanted a good degree also, probably something in business...just in case God's call didn't work out, I wanted something to fall back on. (Now before you start saying "For Shame!" check your own story for things like this). The story goes on, and I don't need to take up your time with what all transpired from there, but I will tell you that God is a jealous lover and will do whatever it takes to get our heart wholly and undivided.

There is a sweet picture in the old testament of this whole-hearted embrace of a call. In 1 Kings 19 we see the call of Elisha, who is called to be a prophet of the Lord. When he is called by God, he is in the middle of plowing. Now I am kind of a city guy, so I really have no clue what plowing is, but I imagine it is something you do with John Deer equipment. Seeing as Elisha probably didn't have any John Deer equipment, I imagine this plowing thing was probably harder than we know. Anyway, Elisha is called by God to be a prophet, and what he does next is an awesome picture for us of embracing the call of God.

The Bible says that Elisha took his yoke of oxen (that he was using to help plow) and slaughtered them (no half-hearted there...those oxen really wont be able to help with the plowing anymore). Then, as if that wasn't enough, he took all the plowing equipment and burned it! And he used the burning pile of equipment to cook the slaughtered oxen as a meal! Then, after all that is done, he goes and starts to embrace the call of God on his life. Honestly, when I read this today, I laughed out loud. Tell me that isn't kind of funny? Home-boy Elisha doesn't just go and embrace his new direction, but he first takes the tools and resources of his old direction and uses them the make some food!

Funny picture, yet inspiring all the same. Elisha went that day with an undivided heart. He didn't create back-up plans in case God didn't work out. He jumped fully into the call.

I don't know that anyone reading this has any actually oxen to slaughter or equipment to burn, but I am interested to hear your thoughts on the ways you personally are working to be undivided towards God's call.

Running with Weight

I am out of shape. I know, I know…this is a shocker that you didn’t want to believe…but believe me, it is sad but true. I bring this confession for 2 reasons.

1) It is basically Spring and I am thinking about everything I want to do outside, and how I better start getting in shape so I can enjoy the weather out there! Nothing like temps in the upper 60’s to remind me that all those fast food meals are the gifts that keep on giving…

2) I was made to run. I don’t mean I am meant to be a marathon type of person, or a “hey I run 10 miles a day” sort of person. I mean I was made to experience something of fullness and joy in life as I push forward with intense momentum. I was born to run. Walking would get me there, but walking is not the right mode for me. Now I am not talking about impatience within me. This is not like a microwave it…hurry it up…I want it all and I want it now sort of mentality. We all have that within us, but that is not what I am talking about here. I mean there is something for me (perhaps for us) in the intense momentum of running - something of fresh purpose and renewed desire.

This is true physically. When you run, you release endorphins, you can get a “runners high,” and when the weather is just right…the setting is just right…you can feel as if all the joy in this life is just one stride away…and you want it NOW!

This is also true mentally, emotionally and spiritually. I (and perhaps you) was born to run. God created me to stride boldly and take big leap after big leap in pursuing Him and all He has for me. When pushing myself forward with intense momentum, I seem to find this sense of growing desire and purpose. Hopefully all of us have at least a few times in life been to a place where we can look inward and honestly say, “I was made for this!”

Lately, I have been thinking about the idea of running with weights. When I was in middle school, I found a pair of ankle weights and started to train with them. I now know they are horrible for your knees, but then all I knew was if I could run and train with a couple of extra pounds on each leg, then when I ran without the weights I would be able to run longer and with more energy and endurance. While that was true, when I ran with the weights on, it was depressing, because I was going nowhere near as far or as fast as I could.

I have been thinking about this lately because it translates mentally, emotionally and spiritually. When you are born to run, to soar, God has to put you in training. There are seasons of training that must occur. There are weights that will be added to your load, to help you train and learn how to carry more. There is financial weight that comes with life, when you don’t have enough funds, you can literally feel the 5 pound weights being attached to your legs. When you are in your 20’s and 30’s you have to ask questions of yourself having to do with purpose and calling…and when you are not in your sweet spot, there can be a weight to that, like a 5 pound wrist weights on your arms. Don’t forget relationships! When you have relationships (friendships, work peers, romantic, whatever!) that aren’t working right, it is like a 10 pound vest just thrown over your shoulders. There are so many other things that can weigh you down, these are just a few.

When you have all these weights on you, how are you supposed to run? It is impossible! Simply moving forward, even with a slow walk is impressive. You were made to run, and it becomes more and more impossible with every weight that attaches itself to you.

All of this would be too much, overly depressing and conquering, if it were not for the reality of training. These weights are not here to stop you or slow you down, but in our short-term perspective it feels like they are fighting against our goal…to run! The weights are given, in appropriate time and right seasons, to help us to train. They are here to build our emotional, relational, mental and spiritual muscles, so that we can soar with new found energy and endurance in the coming years.

Is this story true?

There is this girl that I read about the other day, I have heard the story before, but it struck me differently this time. She wasn't really anyone too special, didn't necessarily stand out in a crowd. Anyway, she gets to a certain age and takes the next logical step of progression in her culture, she gets married. She marries into a good family, but says goodbye to her old family. Not sure how often she gets to see her old family, but I know she really kind of left them to cleave to this new one. Well within the course of 10 years, her father-in-law dies, her brother-in-law dies, and her own husband dies. I wish I knew the details of what happened to them, but unfortunately I do not.

Well with all of these tragedies in the family, along with some other circumstances, the mother-in-law decides she is going to move back to a place she once lived, a place that once was a symbol of comfort and joy to her. No doubt when she thinks about this land, she can picture times of enjoying her husband and her 2 boys. She encourages her now widowed daughter-in-law to go back to her old family, try to make a life for herself, maybe even find another husband. She won’t do it. She hugs her mother-in-law tightly, as if they were truly mother and daughter, and says "I will go where you go." So together, they go back to a place once filled with joy for this mother, and a place completely unknown for this girl.

Once settled into their new home, the girl decides to try and go get a job and find some way to help provide for her and her mother-in-law. While doing this, a man of good standing notices her, and shows a desire to help her and serve her. He tells her he actually has heard about her, and the care she has shown for her mother-in-law. He tells her,

"May you be richly rewarded by the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge." (Ruth 2:12)

The story is from the small book of Ruth in the Old Testament. I share it with you because if you are someone I do ministry with, this is an encouragement and challenge to us all. Go and read the story for yourself, the whole book is only 4 chapters, so it goes quick. Here is what I can tell you and what I think God wants to show us:

In our post, in the ministry that we serve in, as we reach out and invite in new people, we are Boaz (the man in the story who is of good standing).

Every new person we meet in our ministry starts out a Ruth (the girl in the story).

When you read the story, please understand I am not talking about marriage, this is not a literal meaning from the story. What we see is a man from the "home crowd" reaching out and working for the comfort of Ruth, the "new person."

Whether you realize it or not, every person comes into our doors with hurts and fears and questions about God and His people...they literally are stepping under the wings of the Lord to take refuge. Our "church" home offers a place of refuge for Ruth. And we have the privilege of serving each person, and showing Gods love.

May this short story be a source of encouragement to you as we serve together in the months ahead; as I know it will be for me. Every time we meet a new person, I am praying these words are going through our head, "May you be richly rewarded by the Lord, under whose wings you have come to take refuge."

Jesus wept

In our search in life to know and be known, we keep striving after connections. We want to be known...it is a soul level craving. We share movies with people, games, observations and more because when we share experience together...we become connected and a little more known.

I was reading this morning and something occured to me. There is only 1 time recorded in scripture where Jesus actually was moved to tears. He didn't seem to get emotional over:

-The crowds leaving because his words were hard to swallow
-His brothers mocking him
-The disciples fleeing and leaving
-His own crucifiction

All of these deeply intense times in his life, we see no record of emotion...but there is ONE instance of his spirit being moved through his emotions, resulting in him being moved to tears. What was it that brought him to the point of weeping? It wasn't Lazarus's death...He knew He was about to raise him from the dead. In fact, Jesus knew all...so there was no uncertainty or lack of control that he could cry over. What made him weep?

My God cares for me so, He is so in tune with my spirit. He cares for us so much, and is so heavily invested in our lives that He was even able to become emotionally overwhelmed by seeing our pain. Our hurt moves him to action. He is that involved in our lives. It says that He was "deeply moved and troubled." He moved from teaching Jesus that has words of wisdom and guidance to action..."Where have you laid him?" He saw the pain and tears of those gathered, and was moved to instant action.

He doesn't just know us better than we know ourselves, He cares for us more than we care for ourselves.

Secret Words for the soul

Just a simple thought today about how we are wired/connected to God. The language I would use to describe my relationship with Christ is that I am a follower of Jesus. That he leads me, I follow, and that is how I am generally found in Him.

I was reading this morning in Exodus and came across this: "Moses said to the people, 'Do not be afraid. God has come to test you, so that the fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning.'" Basically a whole massive group of people just left a land where they were in slavery and forced to live one way...and now they are living in another land and figuring out just how to live. God came and tested them so that they would feel fear in relation to knowing God. The goal was that this fear would keep them from sinning.

I don't know what scares you, you don't really know what scares me. Fear is an internal reality most of the time. So while God wanted the massive group of people to feel fear, He knew it would reflect differently in each person...to work towards the end goal. Perhaps the fear for one person was death...and yet for another it was to be cast away from everyone else...and for another the fear of never living up to their potential. Either way, this big event had 1 purpose: that the fear of God would individually manifest itself in each person so they would be directed in how they live.

Jump to another time in history, and God comes down in flesh as Jesus so that "we may have life, and have it to the full." He spends some time with a small group of people, but then he sends "the counselor" who will help direct us and show us how to live and follow Him. The method of delivery is so different from earlier in history, but I am struck how they both lead to the same conclusion.

In the days of Moses, God put the fear of God in people to help them follow Him. The goal was that they would have the best this life has to offer.

In the days of Jesus (which we are still in), God woo's us to live a certain way and follow Him, but the pathway for this is love...so that we would find the best that this life has to offer.

I think it is cool how this works, because these seem to be such contrasting plans, yet our God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. So what is the commonality through all this?

I believe God wants to reveal deep, personal and intimate things about Himself to us individually so we would desire to follow in His ways. This has always been true. In the days of old, He did this by inviting His people to see and understand His power and authority so that they would have a healthy fear...which could also be called reverence. Today, He does this by first inviting people to see another side of His character: His love, grace, acceptance and forgiveness.

These qualities have always been true of Him. AND, it seems that He chooses to reveal different pieces of His character to each of us, depending on what is going on within us. He has secret words for our soul, so that we would know without a shadow of a doubt that He is who we think He is. He speaks in such deep and personal ways that we can't always articulate it, but simply recognize He is true, He is good, He is trustworthy.