Tag: Joy

YOLO?

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It’s been around for a while, but I think the significance of this four letter acronym should be explored.  “You only live once” is what it tells us.  What does it mean?  People have used it as a hashtag signifying & justifying poor judgement and bad decisions with this excuse “you only live once”.   There is even a ‘YOLO’ clothing line that has been started.  We’ve gone from ‘Just Do It’ and ‘No Fear’ to ‘YOLO’.  Hmm…it seems to me that what culture is telling us is that it’s okay to do what you want, when you want, where you want because you only live once.

I recognize that everyone makes mistakes in this life but if we don’t learn from them and acknowledge that we’ve made them we run the risk of never growing and maturing.  As a Christian I don’t believe that I am going to live just once and then nothing, I believe that there is an eternity and that this life we live leads us to the next, and what we do here and now counts…it matters!  So if I adopted  ‘YOLO’ as my philosophy , what I’m saying essentially is that the only thing that matters in life is the ‘here and now’.  The problem with that is that it doesn’t account for the consequences.  For example if someone sleeps around aren’t they more likely to contract an STD than someone who waits until marriage?  If someone starts smoking and burns through at least a pack a day aren’t they opening themselves up to a slew of medical problems down the road the worst being cancer and death?   I could add so many more examples of choice = consequence here but these are just two examples.

YOLO isn’t really a new phrase, it’s just wrapped in new packaging.  Some have taken scripture out of context as well when they quote passages like “Let us eat and drink,” you say, “for tomorrow we die!” Isaiah 22:13 (NIV)  The meaning behind it has been eliminated and taken to mean ‘well what the heck, we can do what we want because we know we’re all going to die someday’.  

I’m not too keen on living that way because I recognize that one day each person is going to have to account for the life that we’ve lived before the Father in heaven.  That doesn’t mean that we can’t enjoy life, on the contrary God has given us this life for enjoyment and pleasure but we ought to recognize that He also wants us to include Him in our lives.  When we forget consequences and forget about the future, we lose focus on what is at stake.

One of my favorite bible verses is a good guide for each of us in how we ought to live.
“He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8 (NIV)  If we are walking humbly with our God we will enjoy this life so much more than the emptiness of comes knocking on our doors after we have lived it up and gone down roads that we now regret.  

On the plus side, perhaps there is merit to ‘YOLO’…perhaps you can take this phrase to mean ‘hey you only live once in flesh and bone so make it count, do what you can to live a godly life and glorify the Lord in your living’!  I think if I were to embrace YOLO that is what I would take it to mean.  Will I make it count?  Can I live a God pleasing life?  Can I help lead others to Him along the way?  ‘YOLO’!

-Just a thought for today!

Here’s some humor for your Monday:

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An Angelic Prison Break

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Jesus had told him that he would go where he didn’t want to go and be led to places he never wished to be…but Peter wasn’t quite prepared for the violent onslaught the seemed to never end for his fellow apostles.  Stephen had seen a horrific end, though many had believed.  Now, sitting in prison in chains, surrounded by guards Peter considered that this might be the end of his journey too.  After all, just hours ago Herod had executed James the brother of John by the sword and Peter though full of faith, wept for his family.  In a very small corner of his mind he ponders just for a brief second what may have taken place had he left Jesus when he had had the chance.   Yet, Peter quickly pushes that thought aside as an overwhelming warmth of love fills his body when we remembers the master’s face.  He remembers what forgiveness felt like on that beach after he had denied Him three times.  His love poured out undeservedly upon Peter.  “No I would not change a thing”, Peter says to himself.  No second guessing, no self-pity, no turning back!

The chains jingle as Peter, a little bruised and tender, shifts position in the dingy rank cellar of a prison.  The guards are positioned all around him, as if Peter were some sort of Samson-strong man who could take down a regiment of soldiers with just a jaw bone of a donkey.   The guards eye him carefully as he shifts in his chains, King Herod had been explicitly clear that this man had to be watched and that if anything happened to him they would pay the price with their lives.  King Herod was a vicious man not to be trifled with or taken lightly.

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Minutes pass that seem like hours, as the torches on the walls flicker casting shadows on the molding green stones of the cell.  Peter, slumped and weary, closes his eyes intent on praying but too emotionally drained falls quickly into a fitful sleep.   It seems like a second passes when someone strikes him on the side to awaken him.  At first Peter thinks it’s one of the guards and he wonders to himself, “is it time?”  Looking up he finds not a solider dressed in military garb, but rather an Angel luminescent and powerful to behold.   As Peter looks at the angel, sleep blurred and groggy, the angel looks fiercely back at him and says, “Quick, get up!”  Thinking it a vision, Peter doesn’t hesitate or ask any questions and as he moves to pick himself up off of the damp floor, the chains fall off of him as if they had never been clasped tightly around him at all.  Bewildered and yet unsure of what this was real or a vision, Peter stands before the Angel.

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“Put on your clothes and your sandals Peter!”   The angel continues his instructions to Peter, “wrap yourself in your cloak as well!”  Peter doesn’t waste any time in protesting, he’s learned long ago not to question but to obey.  After dressing and putting on his cloak, the angel instructs him, “Follow me.”  Again Peter, thinking this to be a vision, does what the angel says and puts one foot in the front of the other and walks right out of the prison.  He walks right past the guards who had been keeping a careful watch over him and they do not even respond to his passing.  He follows the angel through the metal doors and past the outer door that leads into the city.  The door even opens by itself.  After Peter has walked with the angel for about two city blocks, suddenly two things dramatically occur: The angel disappears, vanishes completely from sight.  The second thing that amazes Peter is that this isn’t a vision at all.  This is very real…and he is now free!  What started out as a death row vigil has become a divine prison break!

Full of joy and renewed mission, Peter makes his way to the house of Mary, mother of John Mark.  His fellow brothers and sisters in Christ were gathered there earnestly praying.  And as Peter knocks on the front door, a servant girl answers and is shocked to see Peter there in front of her.  She is so shocked by his appearance there that she shuts the door on him and runs off to announce his arrival.  A fugitive, by the name of Peter, is standing outside in the open air while the small house church is made aware of his escape and arrival!  At first they don’t believe the servant girl, “how could this be?”  One apostle asks.  “She’s just making up stories!” Another voice calls out from the back of the room.   Then another Christ-follower offers another conclusion of who it might be; “It could be an angel” He says.  Now curious what or who has caused this commotion, they all rush to the front door and find out for themselves that it is in fact Peter who is still knocking at the door.  Peter is standing there and he is free!  They are amazed at this miracle!   For hours they had been gathered in a small room made sacred by their continued prayers.  Their faith, love and intercessory prayers had been answered!

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Peter, though prison weary, recounts the miracle and the angel and all who hear rejoice and are amazed!  Knowing he is now a wanted man who is an escapee from prison, Peter leaves their company quickly and without delay before the sun even has a chance to crest over the city walls.

Does God answer prayer?  In the midst of our deepest struggles and in the midst of our trouble lives the answer is a resounding ‘YES’!  Though there will be times that He doesn’t answer the way that we think He should, what we are called to be is faithful!  Will the dangers be lifted from us?  Not always.  We may still have to endure the valley of the shadow of death a time or two…but know that we never walk these paths alone!  God really means it when He says that He is our shepherd and we are under His care!  Believe it and received it today!

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To my loving wife (A Poem)

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In the breaking of the morning light

when the sun shakes the cobwebs of the dew

in the faceted mornings bright

that’s where I fell in love with you.

Flaxen hair golden in the sun

treasured heart of my heart

and hand intertwined with mine

on a sandy beach we promised forever.

and in the waning hours of the sun set

with ring in hand and promises of tomorrows

on knee I bent and ask you there

with passion of this love inside.

And still, though many a sun has come and gone

since then, and time has carried on its way

this love of mine, oh heart of my heart

still beats in time to the promised forevers.

I’m not just content to grow old with you

but rather in wisdom of age and heart

to speak the languages of your love

and cherish each day as a preview of eternity.

I love you.

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“Anything to Declare?”

“You just have to get rid of so much baggage to be light enough to dance, to sing, to play. You don’t have time to carry grudges; you don’t have time to cling to the need to be right.”  – Anne Lamott

 “There’s a luggage limit to every passenger on a flight. The same rules apply to your life. You must eliminate some baggage before you can fly.”  – Rosalind Johnson  

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“Do you have anything to declare?”  This is commonly heard at international airports as a traveler, sometimes weary, enters their destination.  It’s a question that must be asked for safety and security purposes that I think begs answering in our lives as well.  I’ve never received a degree in counseling or psychology, but I’ve been around long enough to know that sometimes when we enter the present moment which is the doorway to the future we often are still carrying baggage from the past that prohibits us from entering and from moving on.  Baggage, which is anger, regret, hurts, fears, scars (emotional & physical) can seriously limit us and that of the potential for personal and spiritual growth if we continue to carry them with us. 

 

Jesus even alluded to these types of burdens when he said, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30 NIV)

What is Jesus saying here?  He is telling us to let go of our baggage!  He is saying if you learn from me you will understand that you don’t have to carry this heavy burden any longer, my way is lighter and it will free you of your past, your baggage, your worries and fears.  Jesus says to us in this passage that we ought to let go of it all…it doesn’t matter anymore…we can be free!  Wouldn’t you like to forget some things about your past?  Wouldn’t you like to let go of burdens that you’ve carried around with you for far too long?   We were never meant to heap these worries, regrets and scars around with us for the rest of our lives!  That was not God’s plan for us.  Sure from time to time we have screwed up.  Sure from time to time others have hurt us so very deeply.  Sure from time to time we find it difficult to forgive that one person who broke our heart or betrayed us…yet that’s precisely what Jesus is asking us to do.  He wants us to leave our past behind.  He wants us to lay it down at His feet and for us to allow Him to help us. 

I don’t presume to understand how God’s grace works, but I do know that it does.  By faith, daily I must once again surrender my past to Him.  I know that from time to time that even Satan will try and remind me of those things from my past.  He will try to discourage me and persuade me that I really haven’t changed…and yet when I seek the Lord, when I read His word God shows me just how far I’ve come.  The same is true for you as well.  You can let go.  You will be free.  The answers to healing your past and restoring your future lies with the One that made you, not the ones that have hurt you, or the situations that you fiercely regret.   

The Lord is asking us today; “Do you have anything to declare?”  If we are wise we will declare everything to Him, and allow Him to restore our present and future by letting go of the baggage that weighs us down and holds us back.  Don’t let your past dictate where you go today or tomorrow!  You and I can be free…but first we must confront and let go of the baggage. 

There’s an old prayer chorus our church used to sing and it goes like this:

“Burdens are lifted at Calvary, Calvary, Calvary, Burdens are lifted at Calvary…Jesus is very near!”       Jesus wants to be near to you today, He wants to lift your burdens, your baggage from you…will you let Him?

Prayer:

Lord I have been carrying around this baggage from my past for far too long and it is weighing me down.  This baggage is holding me back from growing in your grace.  Help me to surrender it all to you today!  I know that it may not happen all at once, but grant me your strength to surrender it all to you!  I want to learn from you, I want that freedom that only you can offer.  Thank you Lord for guiding me and for being here with me each step of the way.  –Amen.

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At the Construction Site:

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Matthew 7:24-27 (NIV)
24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.
26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

 

When I was a child I used to enjoy watching construction workers build things.  I could sit for hours watching them work away at mixing concrete, hoisting support beams, laying rebar…it all fascinated me.  I longed to see the finished product, a completed project that took hours, even days to complete.  I would go by the construction site day after day on my way to school just to see how much progress they had made in the hours that I had been away.  I was invested in witnessing the completed project, though it wasn’t my house, I still wanted, I longed to see it finished.  

 

By the time the construction of the remodeled home was completed, the workers there knew me by name.  Why?  Because I wasn’t content in just watching, I wanted to know why and how they were doing any and every task.  I was insanely curious…and so I asked a lot of questions.  Luckily, the foreman (who must have had children of his own) was a patient man who didn’t mind giving me an answer from time to time.  He was competent and considerate of my age and so explained it as a parent would to a child; in simple terms.   He explained why they put wire mesh in with the concrete or why rebar was there at all…it would make the structure stronger and would last longer.  He also explained why the bubble on the level had to be in the middle so that the work they did would stand and not fall down because it was uneven.  I asked many questions and thankfully that foreman answered most of them with the patience of a saint. 

 

Why talk about this experience?  Why mention it? Am I just trying to relive my childhood?  Perhaps…but it’s more than that.  It makes me think of what kind of foundation I am laying in my own spiritual with God.  Many times in my life I have thought about those conversations with that foreman in the context of my spiritual journey with Christ.  Am I living a balanced life?  Have I continued to be firmly rooted in His word?  Is the foundation of my life what it should be?  Introspectively I have asked myself these questions many, many times.  I don’t say this in boasting, by any means, but a right relationship with God is that important to me.  Is it to you? 

 

Years later I tried my hand at building stuff…turns out I’m just not that gifted at construction with my hands.  But I will never forget those lessons that I learned as a child by simply passing by a construction site day after day on my way to and from school. 

 

How is your foundation?   Has it been reinforced with the rebar of fellowship with other Christians?  Are there cracks forming along the walls of your faith because of wear and tear and pressures of life?   At our conversion we align ourselves with Christ.  We accept His sacrifice on the cross for our sins and we essentially say God rebuild me.  Tear down the old, remove the dirty and broken, and start again.  In that process we gain new life, a new construction takes place and there is life on our spiritual property.  But here’s a big issue:  Many remain at the altars of their lives professing Christ and declaring “I’m a Christian”, but they never grow from there.  God expects us to mature in our faith.  He has provided us the best foundation in His son Jesus Christ, but we have to allow the Holy Spirit to begin the transformation within us.  We can’t remain baby Christians…or essentially just a foundation without a structure built on top.  God’s presence within us, which is the Holy Spirit, wants to develop in us a deeper, stable structure of maturity and faith. 

 

If your life needs some renovation, some rebuilding…will you allow God to begin that in you today?  He’s the best foreman for the job and He can be trusted to finish that construction of holiness in you!  The foundation is already firmly laid.  But without a strong, stable structure on top, which is holiness and spiritual maturity, we are still vulnerable and unstable in the temptations and elements of our old lives. 

 

Prayer:

Father in Heaven, thank you for your Son who made it possible for me to be redeemed, I ask now that you would continue in me Your work.  Transform me through the work of Your Holy Spirit, grant me the strength to address issues that still exist within my life that are yet remnants of my old ways.  Allow me wisdom and discernment to study your word and to apply it in my living day by day.   I want to be the creation you have intended for me.   Deliver me from sin and from temptation, as I know I must avoid their trappings in order to mature and to grow in Your grace.  May it be so in my life today.  Amen. 

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Uniquely Created, One of a Kind!

I remember thousands of twinkling Christmas lights setting fire to the room with its ambient glows of reds, greens, and oranges. For every Christmas light, tinsel was draped precariously in every nook and cranny in the small room. Where ever the tinsel fell is where light spill out in all directions as the semi metallic coating reflected Christmas in every corner and in every crack in the wall as well.

This is my first real, tangible memory of Christmas. It was on the Island of St. Helena, I know there was Christmas’ before this one, but at four years old who can remember the years leading up to my first memory? Father Christmas had not arrived yet on that volcanic rock of an Island. The weather was most definitely not frightful outside either; I guess living near the equator does have its drawbacks if one is expecting a white Christmas. I don’t remember whose house I was in, or why I was there, but the gaudy tinsel and the Christmas lights are forever etched in my mind, like a chiseled marble statue of a Greek god in Greece, this memory is the quintessential celebration of the Christ-mas on the island of St. Helena for me. To this day there is that warm feeling I get when I draw back the now older and dusty curtains of my mind and think of that time long ago…in a faraway place. It is this fond thought there in my childhood, that I, with child-like eyes, drew joy, love and peace in but a moment in time. That memory is still something that I cling to even now as an adult when other memories are not as resplendent or warm and fuzzy.

Isn’t it funny how specific moments in time are captured so vividly in the recesses of our mind, and if we think on them from time to time it is like watching a re-run of your favorite movie. I would never want to trade such memories for anything in the world! These memories are unique to me, to who I am as a person and who I was then as a child. No one else shares these specific memories with me; and my perspective as a four year old in a big world would also make each captured still frame in my mind one of a kind in this world.

Isn’t it interesting to think that each of us carries these types of memories that are one of a kind, and are specifically unique to our brain’s hard drive? For example, no one else in this world shares your memories and perspectives of the first time you actually rode a bike. Perhaps you had a parent there keeping you balanced, but even their memory of that occasion varies from your account. Perhaps it wouldn’t vary all that much, but your parent wasn’t seated on the bicycle they were next to you as you pushed and pumped those foot pedals in order to obtain one of your first moments of childhood liberation. Our memories, our recollections make each and every one of us unique and different from the next. Just as our fingerprints are never duplicated; so too our memories are our own to keep and to treasure.

The same can be said for our conversion experiences as well. All of our salvation stories are unique and one of a kind. God speaks to each of us in our own unique and special ways. No two conversion stories will ever be the same, because God has crafted us from different canvases. We all share His image in some way shape or form because we have been made in His image. Let’s take that thought a step further however, if we are all made in the image of God and each of us are cut from different canvases then we can begin to grasp just a fragment of the scope and scale in which this creator God has created us and the world around us, but also bits and pieces of His character as well. Because if we are created in His image, and no two people in this world are alike (minus identical twins) then we are to understand our Creator is unique, vast in identity and mighty in His creations. My memories are mine, shared only in snap shots that I can describe and with my God who sees all and lives these experiences with me. Sometimes we feel alone, sometimes we wonder if anyone will ever understand what we’ve been through or who we truly are…God knows you, and God understands you!

You are unique and special to Him! You are one of a kind in this universe; it is by design that you are created so. You also look like the Creator, perhaps sin has marred that image, but you are His! Take a moment today and consider this thought today! Accept it, embrace it, and then live it.

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