A Life Lesson From Driver’s Ed. (A Pondering On This Faith Journey)

(The Preamble)
I had almost forgotten I still had a blog.
This road seems quite dusty and untraveled as of late. Far too many of life’s challenges have taken its place and shuffled my priorities past what I can even recognize as “normal” anymore. Still, there is this itch that I cannot shake. No, I don’t need some sort of itch cream, it’s a mental itch rooting around in my brain, struggling to grasp just one spark of life so that the rest of those creative neurons will fire once more. It’s the itch to put to proverbial pen and paper what’s been brimming inside my brain threatening to spill over. It’s the itch that will not subside until I have committed to it once more. So…here I am. Scratching.

Can I tell you a story?
ok. here goes.

My 15-year-old twins, on their birthday, were adamant about getting their driver’s permits. So, off we went and, sure enough, they took the test and passed. Then, both of them, with smiles from ear to ear took a photo of their proud achievement. I realized at that moment that I had driven them to that location begrudgingly because they are my babies and I still can’t believe they are old enough to drive. Still, with my heart solidly lodged in my throat, I allowed them to drive me home. They don’t know this, but I still see them as the babies they once were: all diapered up, running around in opposite directions and causing all sorts of chaos and mayhem in our little home. That’s the twins I still see when I look at them, but they’re growing up and, perhaps a small part of me (or maybe a large part of me) doesn’t want them to age. In fact, I wished I could reverse time and keep things the way they were.

I am in this chapter of my life where I am once again sitting in the co-pilot seat and sometimes, if Shanais (their Mom) is in the car with us, I am relegated to the backseat where I become the most epic backseat driver that has ever lived. These co-pilot trips are nerve-wracking. Far too many times than I can count I have slammed on my imaginary brake pedal as my son or daughter has taken a curve too fast or has decided to brake too late as the cars in front are at a standstill. I have experienced heart palpitations and, sometimes it has even skipped a beat, as my trust in these rookie drivers has waned and I secretly think to myself “This state really needs to revamp its driver’s training tests” as I white-knuckle the handle just above the passenger door.

I need to confess something: I have trust issues.
I sometimes have doubts that my babies should be driving, and I’m embarrassed to say that I am often surprised when they surpass my road-test “I am worthy” expectations. Sure, they still make mistakes while behind the wheel, but ever-so-slowly they are improving and becoming the driving experts that I know they can become.

The last time I was riding shotgun as one of my “babies” drove, I had an epiphany right there in the passenger seat, white-knuckling the door handle. This must be how our Heavenly Father feels when we still have so much to learn while on this road of life. It sounds kinda cheesy, but I think it’s sort of true. He knows what we are capable of, and yet there are many times that I’m sure he has white-knuckled that passenger door handle as He’s journeyed along with me (and perhaps you). I know that I have trust issues, but I doubt God does. He knows you and me. He knows that we get nervous, or fear failure, or dread having “that meeting” at work, or__________(insert your fear here).

Psalm 139 says that before we were even born God knew us. Perhaps He still longs for that baby stage too, but He journeys with us wherever we go, even when we make mistakes and belatedly hit the brakes with regret.

I am reminded, through these co-pilot scenes in the car with my kids that despite my best efforts, I have to trust that God holds these precious babies in His hands and I can’t always protect them from all of life’s lessons, no matter how hard I try.

I am also reminded of how many times I have failed in this life, and despite my failings, God still loves me and desires for me to get back up, buckle up, adjust the rearview mirror, learn from my mistakes, and mature in my faith as I journey along with Him. It was never a high-speed race to the finish line, but rather a marathon in which we often get banged up and bruised along the way.

So how’s your driver’s education going?
Are you still making mistakes?
Have you thrown your hands up in defeat recently?
Do you fear failure?
Are you defeated right at this very moment?
God is near.
He knows you.
He loves you, and you have never been alone…He might have held onto that door handle a bit harder at some points in your journey, but He’s right there with you.

This is just me, pondering on…for what it’s worth.

Blessings my friends!

June 7, 2023 3

A Used Book (A Poem).

I prefer used books
pages yellowed with age
stains of coffee
smelling of baked bread
crumbs embedded
into the glue
of bindings

On this page
tears fell
hearts were broken
a reader’s trust
woven in two.
Another page
dog-eared and highlighted
wisdom shared
and eaten
and brought to life
with flesh and bone
tendon and sinew

These pages smell
like home
ancient in the way
that parchment can be
the only fragrance that
draws a soul
outward and pulls it
longingly into the past
where school desks
and raising hands
come back into
focus.

I prefer these pages
to be lived in
rather than hospital
clean and crisp
untethered and
void of hands
clasped to words
that penetrate the
wounded heart
and opens
gray matter to
create new groove
of thought.

They are the
well-worn paths
the fields of
ripened grains
of dreams bared
and dreams
yet to be imagined

Give to me
that used
copy
that treasure
trove
of human
thought
and I will
give in return
this battered
heart
this
dream that
dances on the tips
of anxious fingers
caressing brittle
pages
and dancing
to the song
of ancient
bards.

O, let the
sun
arise.

-S.Strissel
5/7/21s

May 7, 2021 0

The Death Of The Sacred

I have a confession to make.
Well, it’s really not much of a confession, more of a revealing of my nature.
Here goes, I love technology.
I love how it makes things convenient for me. My schedules are synced to my computer and my phone, I can create presentations from most of my mobile devices (of which I have multiple devices), and I can take striking photos and create beautiful banners that look like art…all because of technology.

The Dangers
Despite the fact that I love technology, I have become more and more aware that I can become too dependent upon it for everything. My car even tells me where to go these days, so rarely do I acknowledge or recognize the direction in which I am going – my mobile GPS does it all…well, except drive (but I can’t wait until it can!…Okay, I digress).

Despite all of these technological advances in our age, I truly feel like we run the risk of losing the ancient and the sacred. What do I mean by this?
Our attention spans have grown shorter since the introduction of cellular devices. You don’t believe me? Can you go an entire hour without looking at your phone, either to check for new status updates on social media or to see if that special someone has texted you? It is becoming increasingly difficult even for me to divorce myself from the tech all around me and I fear I am losing the sacred even in my own life.

How about you?

Can you put your phone down?
Can you close your laptop, tablet, other devices without feeling the ‘itch” to check it again?

What do I mean by ‘Sacred’?
If you were to study the spiritual disciplines, these things that I consider ‘sacred’ would be:
Meditation
Prayer
Fasting

Image result for Holy — Solitude and Practicing Presence

Study
Simplicity
Solitude
Submission
Service
Confession
Worship
Guidance
Celebration (In God’s Presence)
(Source: Renovare )

It is very difficult to do any of these sacred things when our attention spans have grown short and shorter. For some of you reading this right now, you might even get hung up on the word ‘sacred’, because some of you perhaps have an issue with the practice of anything liturgical or what some might consider “high Church”…needless to say we can become so distracted that the sacred has died in our age, or is in its death throws as we speak.

Perhaps the next question should be:
“How do we revive the sacred in our lives“?
Here are my suggestions to help you with this process, but as a caveat to this, each person is different, and if you find that something works better than something else, do what helps you to revive the sacred in your life.

1) Make a list
Make a list of all the distractions in your life.
This will help you recognize the things that prevent you from entering into those sacred moments. Remember, that the elements are not the desired goal, but rather the fellowship with our Father in Heaven should be our desire. It is in the moments of the sacred that we encounter the Divine.

2) De-clutter a space.
After you have acknowledge and listed the things that distract, find a specific space to de-clutter and prepare. No space is holy, it is our attitudes and focus that allows us to tune into the presence of God. So, if a closet is the space you choose, the so be it. God’s presence isn’t fixed in specific locations, because the Holy Spirit resides in His people. The space we de-clutter is for us, that we might focus and prepared to receive and listen.

3) Sit in Silence (Try not to fall asleep)
I saw this partly in jest, because I have, at times, placed myself in silence and have struggled with slumber. Other times, your body is telling you to get more sleep, and perhaps we need to listen to that. A time of silence can help us enter into the sacred, although I openly acknowledge (as an extrovert) that this practice is much hard for me. Perhaps you will find it easier…if you do, please enlighten me by commenting below.

4) Converse with God.
You don’t need special words, or a litany of things to bring Him…have an honest conversation. After all, He knows you better than you know yourself – He made you, so He understands your intricacies and nuances. He is aware of your situations and the things you struggle with. Be honest, because you can’t fool God – He already knows. What this conversation does is opens our lives before Him as we acknowledge elements of it verbally.

5) Begin with one of the above mentioned disciplines…study, read and apply:
The last one will take patience.
This isn’t an instant gratification, fast food type of habit.
You must acclimate yourself.
This will take discipline and acknowledgment that it will not occur over night, but rather gradually as you apply yourself to this task.

The sacred is not dead…yet.
Don’t let it perish because of our distractions – at least in this generation.
Perhaps we have to eliminate the distractions in order for us to return to the sacred. Perhaps it is within our own busy minds that this war needs to be waged. Where ever the distractions lay, confront them and carve out those intentional moments in which we might encounter the Divine.

Something more to ponder today.

April 11, 2019 0

The Dreams of Our Childhood…

What is it that drives you, motivates you, wakes you up in the morning?
Fear?
Coffee?
Money?
Children?
Your Spouse?

What are your passions and goals in life?
To be successful?
To find happiness?
To be content?
To travel the world?
To make the world a better place?

What if within that pursuit you discover that happiness you’ve been searching for has been with you the whole time?

What if you got it all wrong, and had to start over?
Would you?
Could you?
Or would you simply settle?

I fear many people have given up on dreaming.
I fear many have simply settled for what they have, and bought the lie that the dream was too large, or too unrealistic.

What would it take for us to begin dreaming again?
I mean dreaming reality big…like when we were kids.
When there was no such thing as impossible.
When, if we dreamed it, it could truly happen.
No walls of “can’t” exist.
No prison bars of “You just don’t have the time or education” to hold you.

Could we begin to believe again?
Would we even know how?

Yes, Adulting is hard…but as we grow older the imagination of our youth becomes even harder to hold onto.

We need to redefine the impossible.
We must recapture the dream.
We should never just settle…

-Something more to ponder today.

October 26, 2018 1

Lenten Perspectives Day 5b – Featuring Cadet Justin Steckbauer

Where did the human race come from? Did we evolve out of space dust and starlight? Or were we designed for a specific purpose? That is the ultimate question. But even if we were to say evolution is true, which is a stretch, where did the material for the universe come from? A big bang can’t explode from nothing. That doesn’t make sense. So it’s logical to believe then, that the best explanation for our universe, our planet, and ourselves, is that an intelligent creative eternal being made the universe, and made us.

Therefore, God does exist. But who is God? I believe God has revealed himself through something we call, “The Bible.” The Bible has been criticized a great deal, many say it’s just a book full of stories, it’s just myths, it has contradictions, all of these attacks are levied, and Christians are criticized, and are said to be bigoted and hypocritical.

But is this really true? I believe that we can trust the Bible. In fact the biblical documents we have today have been trusted by billions of people through history that believed God really came to Earth, as the person of Jesus Christ. Thousands of archaeological discoveries have been made by using the Bible. And the Bible matches with history, we see countries like Syria, Babylon, and the Roman empire, real civilizations interacting with biblical history. The truth is we can trust the Bible.

And if we’ve been hurt by Christians who have not lived up to the standard of Christ, we should remember, that we are not called to follow other Christians, we’re called to follow Jesus Christ alone. I’d encourage you today, as you eat your meal, think about these things. Think about how everything in the universe fits together so well, that the food on your plates is designed just right to nourish your body. And remember that the hands that serve this food say without a doubt that they do so because Jesus has saved them, and they feel called to serve others.

Jesus Christ, the God-man come to Earth, came on a rescue mission to save all of us from sin. Sin are those things in our lives that separate us from God: things that cause us pain, that hurt our relationships, things we’ve done wrong, things like selfishness, self-seeking, and pride. Jesus came to save us from all of that.

And he saved me from all of that. At one point in my life I had lost all hope. I was addicted to drugs for years, and my family had given up on me. My soul had turned grey, and everything seemed dark, and hopeless in my life. I had given up on ever having a better life, on ever being ok again. Can you relate? But then someone told me about one name, the name, Jesus Christ. There is power in that name. And I went on my knees and cried out, “Jesus help me, Jesus save me.” And He swept into my life, changed me internally into a new person, and put me to work for his kingdom.

Seek Him in your life. Fall on your knees and cry out to Him. Now is the time of salvation. Keep this in your mind: When you are at the bottom, cry out to Jesus: Cry out Jesus save me! Jesus help me! He will answer. Trust in Him. Reaffirm your trust in Him. Make certain He is the center of your life. He is our real, living Savior.

-Justin Steckbauer is a first year Cadet in the Central Territory USA.

March 16, 2018 0

Lenten Perspectives Day 3 – Featuring Bob Hostetler

Where Jesus Died

READ: I Corinthians 15:1-5

“Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures” (I Cor. 15:3b, NIV)

In family devotions with our two young children, my wife and I often repeated the story of Calvary and Jesus’ death on a cross. We were not sure of the story’s impact on our son’s and daughter’s minds until one day when we were driving cross-country on a car trip.

As the miles rolled by under our car, we suddenly spied in the distance a hill with three crosses outlined clearly on the summit. My children watched silently until we began to pass the hilltop arrangement. Finally, in a voice of awe, my four-year-old son whispered, “Daddy, is that where Jesus died?”

I tried tenderly to explain that, no, the place where Jesus died was far from that hillside.

I’ve since come to regard my answer as a little hasty. Of course, Jesus did die at a specific spot on the surface of the earth. But in another sense, maybe He did die on that hillside, if that is where one of His children came to faith in Him. For me, He “died” at a scratched and pitted wooden campground altar. For one of my friends, it was literally a ditch beside a country road. For others, the place was a storefront church or a kitchen table. Perhaps that’s what hymnwriter (and Salvation Army general) Albert Orsborn meant when he wrote, “On every hill our Saviour dies, and not on Calvary’s height alone,” for wherever I accept His love and sacrifice, that place becomes a Calvary.

On every hill our Saviour dies,

And not on Calvary’s height alone;

His sorrows darken all our skies,

His griefs for all our wrongs atone.

Present he is in all our woes,

Upon a world-wide cross is hung;

And with exceeding bitter throes

His world-embracing heart is wrung.

Chorus

Go! Cry the news from every hill;

Go! Ring the earth with sacred flame;

To pardon is the Father’s will,

And Jesus is the Saviour’s name.

PRAYER: Jesus, keep me near the cross where, as a trembling soul, love and mercy found me.

THOUGHT: The cross of Christ spans the ages and the miles to meet the needy soul. . . anywhere.

Bob Hostetler is an award winning and best-selling author whose work is prolific. He is also a gifted speaker and pastor.

http://www.bobhostetler.com

March 14, 2018 1

What Are YOU Waiting For?

“Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.” Acts 9:8-9

We probably know the story.
Saul was a Pharisee, who lived out his religious convictions by punishing members of “The Way”. He was a devout Jew, and was very popular amongst his peers. He did what he thought was right…he did what he perceived to be God’s will. But he was wrong. On his to Damascus, God intervened. His truth was the light that blinded Saul but it also seared his heart. A divine course correction took place, and the person known as Saul died on that road. No, he didn’t die physically, but the road marked out the conclusion of that identity, that mission, that chapter. To many of his devout followers, he would be dead in their eyes for he was set on a new path by God, that of which they could neither follow or believe in.

Those with whom Saul traveled with led this now blind man into the city of Damascus where we waited, and waited, and waited some more. Whole sermons and sermon series’ have been preached on with this story – mostly focused on that road and God’s intervention and even Ananias when he arrives…but what about the waiting period between the two chapters? What happened within the span of those three days? I believe the soul searching that took place with this blind man once named Saul is just as important and has a lot to teach us. This is not necessarily reading between the lines of the text, this is merely speculating, extrapolating and mulling over this human metamorphosis. A blind man named Saul – Christian persecutor and sometimes executor went into Damascus, a transformed man on a mission named Paul exited that city with divine purpose, intent and a new found passion in life.

BUT…
What happened in those 3 days between blindness and commission?
What changes transpired there?
Is there something teachable in this narrative for you and for me?
I believe there is, so please allow me to share this with you now.

“METAMORPHOSIS”
3 Lessons from 3 Days of Blindness

1st Lesson: Sometimes Spiritual Correction Hurts and We Must Do Some Deep Soul Searching
Saul thought he was doing what God wanted him to do.
He was fighting for and defending his faith…but he was, in fact, persecuting Christ. He had passionately taken up his cause with vim and vigor and knew he was in the right…then God turned his whole world upside down. He was confronted with his own failures…he was confronted with his own mistakes, and it must have hurt. Saul spends three days of blindness not eating and drinking. It is a sobering response to the Theophany he had just experienced. Within the words of Jesus, there was a course correction and for three days Saul had to have replayed that scene over and over in his head. He must have prayed and fasted. He must have explored every action that had led him to this place, like a movie playing in his head for three long days.

I find it interesting that 3 days pass.
3 Days that seem like a real death and a real resurrection.
3 days of emotional and philosophical death until God’s messenger arrives to offer new life again. In a very real sense, Saul is in his chrysalis transforming and arriving at a new physical place.

Do we have chapters like this in our lives?
Has there ever been spiritual correction in your life that has hurt?
God doesn’t enjoy hurting us, it is more for our benefit and growth that these corrections take place. There’s an old phrase – “no pain, no gain” and I think it applies here. If we don’t experience some discomfort in life from time to time we might remain stagnant and planted in incorrect spiritual patterns. God doesn’t want us to remain there, He sees in us the potential for something better, greater and far more substantive that what we have settled for now. He wishes to adjust our paths, and help us grow into maturity within our faith. But we have to be willing to accept these corrections which, hurt, but are meant to help us grow…and sometimes set us on a new, more holy path than what we have settled on.

2nd Lesson: There is Growth that Takes Place that Only Happens in Our Waiting on The Lord
Abraham was an old man before God’s promise of being the father to many nations was actually fulfilled, and certainly Abraham tried to speed up the process with his wife’s handmaiden Hagar. But the waiting was necessary.

David was anointed as king and successor to king Saul, but he did not become king right away, he had to endure hurts, the loss of his best friend when he had ran for his life. But he did not stop being faithful to God – he persisted and eventually the waiting produced the crown in God’s appointed time.

Waiting on the Lord can be tiring and frustrating, and we may sometimes question if God will really show up in our lives and our situations, but in those moments of waiting we grow. These times of waiting produces in us perseverance, endurance and fortitude. You might not believe that you can wait on the Lord. You may question your own strength, but rest assured you are not alone – the Holy Spirit is with you giving you the strength that you need. When we wait, we must recognize our finite while we wait for the Infinite to enter our stories. Saul waited for the appointed time. He wasn’t told how long it would be. He wasn’t told who would show up as God’s ambassador…he just simply waited.

Are you waiting right now for God to show up?
Are you growing frustrated with the “waiting game”?
Maybe we will someday declare as David did in Psalm 40:
“I waited patiently for the Lord;
    he turned to me and heard my cry.
²He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
    out of the mud and mire;
he set my feet on a rock
    and gave me a firm place to stand.
³He put a new song in my mouth,
    a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear the Lord
    and put their trust in him…”

Maybe we can declare this today!

3rd Lesson: There is a New Chapter in the Future to Embrace, but First We must Embrace the Present.
Have you ever visited a doctor’s office?
I am sure that you have.
Most of the time there are two places that you find yourself waiting. First, you have to wait to be seen by the nurse on duty at the front desk as they take your insurance card and all of your vital information. Sometimes they even take your blood pressure. Then they call your name and the nurse takes you through the waiting room door into a hallway which leads to another, more intimate waiting room. Sometimes the nurse asks you to take off your clothes and put on a gown…and then wait. This is sometimes the longest wait that you may have at the doctor’s office. That uncomfortable time dressed only in a thin paper gown, sitting on an examination table while some elevator music is droning on and on in the background. But we cannot speed up that time. We have to simply wait, even when it’s not comfortable or the most desirable thing to do – we still wait. Finally the doctor in a white coat comes in and then we get down to business and the present can then be moved into the future.

If we believe that God sent Jesus to die for us, that Jesus resurrected and went to prepare a place for us, then we already understand what it means to wait. We aren’t in some doctor’s waiting room or anything but we must acknowledge that Jesus promised to return one day – and so His people anxiously wait for his return

But what about the little things of life?
What about the prayers we utter in the hope that God will answer them?
What happens in the in between time of God encounter and fulfillment?
We wait.
Sometimes we wait and wait.
Saul didn’t eat or drink for 3 days.
This parched, blind man waited for God’s fulfillment.
He didn’t know when it would happen, but it WAS going to happen.
He didn’t know WHO God was sending, but in the present moment he waited.

Many times we might feel stuck in the present while we wait for God.
We might grow frustrated and even weary in our waiting, but let me encourage you today: The present waiting room of your life IS where God meets us.
We might not yet know it yet, but He is already present and with you right here and now. We do not need to pine for the future in a “some day” mindset when we understand that God is sitting with us in our present waiting rooms.

Saul met God, then we he had to wait, then when God’s appointed ambassador arrived the commission was given and a much transformed Paul emerged to do the will of God.

Are you waiting right now for God?
Remember this while you wait:
-Sometimes Spiritual Correction Hurts and We Must Do Some Deep Soul Searching.
-There is Growth that Takes Place that Only Happens in Our Waiting on The Lord.
-There is a New Chapter in the Future to Embrace, but First We must Embrace the Present.

Something more to ponder today.
God Bless you!

October 26, 2017 0

Walking at Midnight on the path of restlessness.

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Romans 15:13

I have another confession to make – I am restless…like pit of my stomach-aching restlessness. Some days I can put my finger on it, while other days it is as elusive as an honest thief. I am usually successful at pushing it back down, repacking that box that it lives in and stowing it away in that shadowy corner that I seldom travel to. Still, I know it’s there…and it weighs on me as if an elephant had decided to perch its rotund bottom on my chest.

I wonder if you feel this way sometimes?
Do you have to push it back down as well?
Do you have to re-tape that worn-out box and pretend that dark corner doesn’t even exist? Does it keep you up at night – blinking at the ceiling fan, counting the rotation of its blades as shadows dance off reflections of streetlights lit only for 3rd shift workers and insomniacs out for a stroll? I repress the urge to join them, to open the front door and walk barefooted down the now cooled, uneven sidewalks as I imagine myself trying to avoid the spiny round pods that fall haphazardly from the large gum tree in our front yard. I have stepped on these awful spiky seeds a time or two while walking barefoot down our path and even in the cool darkness of the night thoughts of the surprise pain causes me to recoil my feet from the lower spaces of my bed.

I wonder if David ever felt this way? The pre-murder and adulterous David…the one that tended sheep and slew predators to the flock. I wonder if he ever felt restless in his heart? I am sure he did when, later he was being pursued by jealous King Saul and his men. As David hid from cave to cave and village to village, I imagine him laying down on an uncomfortable uneven floor hoping to rest his weary head. I can picture his deep sadness as he yearned for his best friend Jonathan. Yet David trusted in God…but I would venture a guess that there were moments in which he was restless and he too had to push it back down and re-tape his box.

It is said that there is a season for everything…and yet Jesus told the people of his day not to worry about anything, yet I can’t help but find myself in the season of worry from time to time. Doe that mean that I am not heeding His words? That, despite my best efforts, I am not trusting in Him? Perhaps you have thought this also> I worry, but Jesus said not to, and here I am still worrying.< What do we do with these seasons? How do we find the glimmers and glints of hope in the mess of our minds? Sometimes we do believe the lie. What lie you ask? The lie that Jesus wasn’t really talking to us when He said those things, that it was just for the disciples and people around Him right then and there… The lie that we are broken people beyond fixing, and that the restlessness that we feel in the pits of our stomachs and the weight of our hearts is what we deserve for being fallen, sinful people.

Don’t live there.
Don’t wallow in that muck and believe that damning lie.
The son who turned his back on his father and spent his entire inheritance on partying, prostitutes and comfort found himself feeding muddy, fetid pigs. Day in and day out he was covered in mud and pig excrement. He definitely smelled as bad as they did. He had lost everything – squandered a small fortune on foolish, regrettable things, and the stink of his life went much deeper than clothes and skin. He lived there. He wallowed there. That pen of stench became his home for a period of time, until he came to senses. As Jesus told this story of prodigal son, I imagine some who were listening felt that he was telling their story. The prodigal son came to his senses, got up and devised a plan to return to his father. He formulated a plan in his mind, he believed he would be unwelcome to return as a son, but maybe, just maybe his father would let him return as a servant. Can you imagine that restless journey home; The endless loop of things he would finally say to his father in order to stave off the reprisals and chastisements? As each dusty step led him closer and closer to the home he once knew, thoughts of doubt and fear must have crept in. “Master, just let me work for you.” (For surely he would never be worthy to call him father after what he did).

And when this beaten-by-life man, who had squandered everything and had hit absolute rock-bottom crested that last hill, and his home was in view…he saw someone running towards him. Perhaps it was a servant instructed to chase him off. Perhaps it was a warning not to come any closer…he would have deserved such a welcome. Instead, it wasn’t any of those things…it was his father that he had wished were dead, running to embrace the son he thought he had lost.

Don’t live in the home of restlessness.
Don’t believe the lie of shame and guilt.
Be forgiven, let your Father embrace you and welcome you home…and when you are finally hope, re-tape that box and then throw it away.

The prodigal son is me.
The prodigal son is you.
But once we have been embraced,
once we have witness our Father running to us,
Once we have been forgiven and returned to our home (where we belong)
don’t even entertain the lie or the box any longer.

But sometimes…we still walk at midnight, say hello, I’ll be waving.

Something more to ponder today.

September 29, 2017 0

Dear Salvation Army, Why We Should Get Rid of “Church”…

The primary purpose for our founders in creating The Salvation Army was to be a Lighthouse, a beacon to the lost. We were founded to help the lost, the drowning the marginalized in society…those who were not welcome in Church. We are a holiness movement, and our origin story is all about gap ministry. We go to places that the Church has forgotten or, in some cases, refused to go.

Why then do we make it such a focus to emulate or replicate the Church?
I do not wish to disparage any church but as a practice, many times Church (big C) gets it wrong. The Salvation Army was created to be a “door-opener” – a ministry in which people felt comfortable with, where lives were being touched because the physical needs were met first. But over time, I feel that we started looking around at the explosive growth of churches and mega churches and longed to be like them…when our mission and vision is nothing like them. It’s like this: We are all a member of the Body of Christ, some are the hands, some are the feet…but what happens when the hands look over and see the feet and they begin to try and act like feet? What happens is we have a polarizing body that is not functioning as it was intended to function. This is what I believe has become our downfall as an Army. We were called to be the hands of Christ to the unchurched, to the depraved, to the marginalized of society…but we are trying to act and look like another ministry.

Getting Rid of “Church”…
1. Stop labeling “Worship” only what we do with music…
We need to rid ourselves of the Church of the worship of music!
Worship is so much more than music on Sunday mornings. Worship is not just your praise band or your brass band and special music. Worship IS holistic and it encompasses every aspect of who we are as Soldiers of this Army, just as Holiness is our aim in every facet of life! Worship is the response to God’s wondrous love for us. We worship in the van as we pick up people for Holiness meeting. We worship as we go to midweek bible study or other such programs. We worship as we clean the corps bathrooms (this might sound funny, but we once had a blind janitor who could be heard singing hymns of praise while he clean the toilets and washed walls – he taught me a lot about worship).

2. Stop thinking Church as only what we do on Sunday…
This notion of “Church” really should be eliminated so that we can get on with going for souls and going for the worst! Church is NOT what we do on Sundays! We worship the Lord on our Sunday Sabbath day. We collectively get together on this day and sing, pray, encourage one another and hear a message…but Church is not only a Sunday thing. We we have this mindset that Sunday is separate from the rest of the week, and that “Church” should only occur on Sunday then we have lost our mission as an Army. Getting rid of this notion of “Church” will open up the possibilities that our Soup Kitchen days, and our Food Pantry days, and our youth program days…IS ALL MINISTRY!! Every facet of these vital “soup, soap, salvation” elements is another opportunity to share Christ, disciple lives and encourage the downtrodden. This is what Church should’ve been…and what we ought to strive to BE. Your congregation is NOT Sunday, but everyday – everyone who comes to your corps, who receives services, who asks for help, They are your congregation!

3. Create Community Not Programs!
We as an Army are so good at creating programs.
We have programs for everything – we even have programs for programs.
It is not the Army’s mission to create more programs, it is our mission to create community and save souls in Jesus’ name! When we aren’t engaging our community with the elements we are using, perhaps it’s time to rid ourselves of the Church of Programs!!
Programs can become our Church and we are so caught up in our program bubbles that we cannot see what families and individuals are truly in need of. We think, we’ll just start a new program to reach them, when in reality what every person craves is a place to belong and to find encouragement and feel that they are a member of the community.

4. Create an Environment of Ownership!
Lieutenants, Captains, Majors & perhaps a few Colonels & Commissioners – We must stop trying to run everything ourselves. Stop micromanaging. The Army, at times, worships at the Church of the Micromanagers and we must rid ourselves of this Church!! What we do by micromanaging is create a corps of dependency. By this I mean is the attitude or belief becomes “since the Officer runs everything, we can sit back and watch since they don’t need me anyway.” If you have doers in your corps, they will quickly become frustrated and perhaps seek somewhere else that they will be used. Stop micromanaging and start delegating leadership and other duties to others in your corps! Begin to create the environment of ownership.

Do you remember what Jesus did when they were facing a mass feeding problem of about 5,000+ people? He didn’t immediately take charge, instead he went to his disciples and said, “feed these people”. Of course the disciples were in shock and did not know how to proceed, the cost was too high and they only had five loaves and two fish. But do you remember what Jesus did with their effort? He multiplied it.

In a very real sense, the Holy Spirit will do that in our corps too when there is an investment and ownership by others. We as officers and leaders have to relinquish our drive for perfection and our grip on authority and allow others to be discipled and in turn they will own their shared portions of responsibility.

I know there is much more to cover on this topic.
What other Churches do we worship at that we should rid ourselves of?
We are a gap ministry, a safe harbor for hurting people to come and find a home.
The Salvation Army needs to rid itself of Church so that it can fully embrace its Holiness as a Movement of Christ.

Something more for our Army world to ponder today.
What do you think? Tell us by commenting, offering your thoughts and opinions.

*Disclaimer: The thoughts and opinions expressed here are the thoughts and opinions of the writer and do not necessarily reflect that of The Salvation Army. Reader discretion is advised.*

April 28, 2017 32

Drowning In The Waters?

I have this memory.
Do you know the kind? It’s the kind that embeds those moments in your life, those moments of great fear or panic, and they etch themselves so deeply into the recesses of your brain that you will never forget?

Do you have memories like this?
I’m sure you do.

My memory?
I am a small boy, in a swimming pool at Gene Epply camp.
I don’t remember hardly anything from that time…but I remember that pool.
I remember how I stepped off of the edge and into reflective waters. Perhaps it was a hot day, I do not recall, but I do recall my little legs straining to touch the bottom and just finding more water. Panic set in. The sounds of the laughing and playing children around me faded in and out as I struggled to stay afloat while my vision and my ears were precariously between the two plains – Water and air.

I can only imagine what my face looked like in those brief but terrifying moments. Others might have seen a small toe-headed boy with wild panicked eyes flailing around in aqua blue waters. I knew, without help, I would drown. I hadn’t learned to swim yet, and I was going under.

All of this probably lasted only mere seconds, but to a drowning boy who was taking water into his lungs like it was air, this moment seemed to take an eternity! Finally, large hands grabbed me with great strength, and I was hoisted out of the depths of those waters and into safety once again.

It’s funny what you remember when you are young. Those odd things that stand the test of time and come calling into our recollection from time to time. Memories are a funny thing. They flutter about, and come to life when certain scents waft in the air, or through certain songs…or in this instance, when I visit a swimming pool.

That moment still lingers in me even after all of these years.
I believe it was my father that pulled me out of those waters – me, a little terrified boy who had yet to learn to swim.

I think there is a very real spiritual parallel here to grasp.
Many people in our communities are struggling to stay afloat in life.
Some have waded out too far from the safety of the shores.
Some have terrified looks in their eyes as they suddenly realize their predicaments.
Others have simply given up trying to stay afloat and are about to go under for the last time.

My son became a lifeguard last summer.
His time as a lifeguard taught him to remain vigilant during his shift at the waters edge.
Every now and then he and the rest of the lifeguards had to come to someone’s rescue and pull them back to safety. The job of a lifeguard seems glamorous with awesome opportunities for tanning, but in reality it is a job of ever watchfulness.

In the same way, a follower of Christ ought to be a lifeguard who is deeply committed to watchfulness. The water’s edge, the place of safety is the Church…where firm ground and restored hope surrounds all that are rescued. The problem I see in the Church today is that there are far too few lifeguards willing to risk it all and venture into the depths of the waters when they see hapless people drowning in its depths. There are far too many comfortable lifeguards who are more preoccupied with casting judgments like “it serves them right” or “they are just getting what they deserve!”

I am glad Jesus didn’t say that about us!
We all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God…it doesn’t say all (except for ________(insert our names here), no ALL…everyone of us have fallen short. (Romans 3:23) Instead it says, “for while we were sinners (while we were drowning in the depths…while we were going under for the last time) Jesus died for us. (Romans 5:8)

I still have that memory forever etched in my mind.
The day I almost drowned, was also the day I was rescued.

Perhaps, dear Church, we should get back to lifeguarding, because there are still so many falling below those dangerous waters…and who will help them? Who will come to their rescue? We are called out

April 6, 2017 0

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