The Simple Truth

Who Are You?

Yesterday I was saddened to hear of the suicidal death of Junior Seau, the former great San Diego Chargers linebacker. As a KC Chiefs fan I witnessed first hand the destructive force that was Junior Seau. He was truly one of the all time great linebackers in football history. 

I obviously don't know Junior Seau and I am not familiar with the events surrounding his apparent suicide but as I have listened to the pundits over the last twenty-four hours discussing him and his situation and there seems to be one very sad common theme.  Those who knew Junior well have said that he had a very difficult time adjusting to life after professional football.  It's not unreasonable to assume that after nearly 20 years in the NFL life filled with fame, fortune, competition, accolades, and accomplishments, his very existence had become defined by football.  When father time took football away from him he lost his identity and ultimately took his life.  

Linking our identity to something or someone happens all too frequently. The situation with Junior Seau may be intensified and magnified because it involves a soon to be Hall of Fame football player, but this is a common occurence. The problem with finding your identity in your profession, a possession, or in another person comes when we no longer have that, or them, as part of our life.  If I'm defined by my job, and subsequently lose my job, what happens to my identity. If I'm defined by what I possess and they are lost, who am I? If my identity is defined by a particular relationship, what happens they are no longer around?  All of this begs the questions, where do I find my identity? Who am I?

You are more than what you do for a living. You are more than a particular item you own. You are even more than your earthly relationships.  As followers of Jesus, we find our identity in Him.  We are ambassadors for him on earth regardless of what we do for a living. We are joint heirs with Christ even if we live paycheck to paycheck. Because of Jesus we have been adopted into the family of God and are now a child of the King.  These are the things that define who we are, our identity.  They can never be taken away from you no matter what life throws your way.

It saddens me to see people struggling to discover their identity.  I have great sympathy for those who are trying to find a place to fit in - remember those teen years?! Let me finish with a loud and clear statement to those struggling to answer the question, "Who am I?" and to those basing their identity upon temporal things - In Christ, you are amazing, you are valuable, you are important, you are victorious, you are loved! Don't allow the world to tell you otherwise. Find yourself and define yourself on the basis of what you have in Christ, not on the basis of what you do and what you own.  The temporal will always disappoint, but your eternal identity in Christ will never let you down. 

Lessons from Irene

Last Saturday/Sunday New Jersey endured a major Hurricane - IRENE! It was quite an experience
filled with many observations and lessons (some practical, some spiritual).  Here are a few...

• People truly freak out when they hear bad weather is coming. Stores where stripped bare of food, water, and batteries.  Obviously, it's great to be prepared but generally people need to SETTLE DOWN. I guess its the fearfulness in mankind's heart that causes this panic.
• I enjoy modern conveniences (A/C, running hot water, lights, showers, etc.) but I wonder if I've become a bit spoiled when it comes to the creature comforts the Western world offers.
• I am in dire need of a sump pump. We had water in our basement (2nd time in the 2+ years we've lived here). Once things settle down from the storm I'll have someone out to give me a quote.
• Crisis draws people closer together. I've had a number of people comment to me about how they were able to connect with previously unknown neighbors as a result of this storm.  We tend to do all we can to avoid suffering or any type of inconvenience but in these trials we find a fellowship that had alluded us heretofore.  This is what the Bible calls the "fellowship of suffering".
• Many hands really do make light work.  Kerrie and I were up at 4:30am sucking up water with the dry-vac and carting buckets of water upstairs to pour down the kitchen sink.  It was exhausting. Once our kids woke up (I woke them up) and started to help, the whole process was a lot less daunting.
• We often pass by little blessings in life.  Here's one I just rec'd...Thousands of people in our area lost power during and after the storm. In our neighborhood (over 400 homes) one side of the neighborhood is still without power while the other half didn't have so much as a blip of the lights. My backyard neighbors (literally 50 feet from my house) are without power while we are not. I count myself very fortunate and am extremely thankful that we did not lose power.  No power = no wet/dry vac = flooded basement.  I don't know why my power stayed on and others didn't. I'm certainly not more worthy of power than they are but for whatever reason, God has given me this blessing...
• Because God has blessed me with electricity I see it as my responsibility to minister to those without. We've baked cookies for our powerless neighbors, offered the use of electricity, hot showers, and outlets for the charging of cell phones.  We are blessed so that we can be a blessing.
• Here is my number 1 take away from Irene - Early last week my family and I happened to be on the Outerbanks of NC on vacation. We watched the track of the storm with great intensity. On Thursday the area where we were vacationing issued a mandatory evacuation and so we packed up all our "stuff" and headed back to NJ at 3am on Friday morning.  Needless to say this was a real pain in the neck as our family vacation was cut short.  However, had we not been made to leave NC and return home we would not have been here to pump off the water as it rose in our basement.  We would have returned home to a flooded basement and many ruined possessions.  God used a truly minor inconvenience to move us to the point where he could help us avoid a much larger problem. Bottom line - our perspective on life is so limited. Trust that your heavenly Father has your best interest at heart.

Thanks Irene for all the little life lessons you've taught me over the past couple of days. I'm better for it!

More Random Friday Thoughts

Here are some more of my not so insightful random Friday afternoon thoughts. Read at your own risk...

• The weather in NJ has been beautiful the last few days. The key - low humidity.
• Went to the eye doctor yesterday. Time for progressive lenses in my glasses. I'm officially old - I wear bi-focals, drive a mini-van, make noises when I get up and sit down. What's next? Wearing white socks with dress shoes and dark socks with running shoes, and eating dinner at 4pm.
• I don't drink enough water. (I told you these were random)
• I'm excited to watch the first preseason game for the Chiefs tonight.
• Busy weekend ahead filled with birthday parties, baby showers, church, Plainsboro bulk waste day, and much more.
• Saw pictures from my 25th High School class reunion. How come everyone else looks so much older but I still look the same? :)
• What a week for the Dow! I'm sure glad I don't have any money.
• Played hackey sack with Abby yesterday - really sore today. More proof I'm old.
• Finding more and more that naps don't help. I'm still tired when I awake and really grouchy. Answer - more coffee!
• Still really fired up about what God is doing in people's hearts to help raise funds for Snehashrya Woman's Shelter in India.  
• Working on some ideas for a new writing project - excited! Lord give me the discipline to do this.
• Saw Soul Surfer this week - really liked this flick!

Random Friday Thoughts

It's a Friday afternoon in August and I have number of random thoughts bouncing around in my head.  Read at your own risk...

• Why are we more tired when we return from vacation than before we go?
• I'm looking for a fresh supply of worship tunes. Who are you guys listening to?
• Do 13 year old boys PMS?
• I'm still totally jacked about what God is doing in the folks at PBC to raise money for Snehashrya.
• Blown away every time I pray the new PBC prayer of commitment - Where ever you want us to go, whatever you want us to do, however you want us to live; we give our lives to You to spend in making your gospel and your glory known to the ends of the earth.
• Had a blast at the GBC / DPBC high school camp this year. God did some really cool things! So awesome to reconnect with dear friends.
• Man it was hot in MO this year - surface of the sun hot.
• The financial state of the federal gov't is SCARY. I appreciate that there is no easy answer but come on fellas how about putting some sound economic practices in place before the house of cards comes tumbling down.
• Some people take themselves way too seriously!
• Every human being that has every graced this planet is a walking worship machine.
• My 25th high school reunion is this weekend. Wish I could be there to see everyone. I'm sure they'll have a wonderful time. Can't wait to see pictures of Facebook.
• I want to write more. What format would be the most useful to the most people? I don't want to add to the noise of written Christian materials.
• So glad the NFL resolved its labor issues. Excited to see what the Chiefs will do this year - continue to build upon last year or come back to reality. I say 9-7 with a really tough schedule.
• I count myself to be abundantly blessed. God is so good to me!

Jesus' Return

No doubt you heard about Harold Camping's recent prediction that the rapture would occur last Saturday (5/21/2011) - he has since adjusted his time line by five months to October 21, 2011.  Last Friday (5/20) as I drove around listening to various talk show programs and everyone was talking about judgment day May 21.  Most were making fun of Camping's prediction.  As I listened I experienced a myriad of emotions - sadness, anger, embarrassment, hopefulness.  Needless to say Dr. Camping was wrong again (he tried this once before in 1994) and we're still here and so I felt compelled to write a blog post sharing some thoughts about these recent events....

• It's folly to try and predict the exact moment of Jesus' return. God tells us in his word that no one knows (Matthew 25:13). 
• People who wrongly speculate about the date of Jesus' return give ammunition to those who scoff at the notion of a rapture or 2nd coming.  We do damage to the cause of Christ when we wrongly interpret scripture and make claims even Jesus wouldn't make. However, the scoffers have been around since the days of the early disciples.  In fact this is one of the signs that his return is near (2 Peter 3:4). 
• Part of me was really sad that Harold Camping was wrong.  I'd love to see him return today. There is a crown of righteousness that awaits those who love his appearing (2 Timothy 4:8).  If Jesus' return makes you nervous or you don't want to see it happen, you might want to do a heart check.
• As fantastical as it may seem the Bible clearly speaks about a day when Jesus will return. We may not know the day, or hour, but it will happen (I Thes. 4:16-17; I Cor. 15:50-52; Rev 19)
• While we cannot know the exact date or time of Jesus' return we can observe certain occurrences in history and culture that show us the time may be drawing near.  When is Jesus coming back? Study what it was like in the times of Noah (Matt. 24:37). Study what it was like in the days of Lot (Luke 17:28). Watch the Nation of Israel (parable of fig tree - Mt. 24:32-33).  Look at the characteristics of the "last days" (2 Tim. 3:1-4)

While we didn't hear the trumpet sound last Saturday we know that one day it will. As believers we should live in light of that day. Don't let it overtake you as a thief in the night. Diligently serve Him with your life so that you are not ashamed at His appearing.  As I said earlier, I'm a little sad that Harold Camping wasn't right. The older I get, and the longer I walk with the Lord, the more my attitude becomes like that of John in Revelation 22:20 "...Even so, come, Lord Jesus"

Charlie Sheen's Doing It Right

I'm sure you are all aware of the actor Charlie Sheen's recent struggles - they've been tabloid fodder for the past few months.  We stand back and shake our heads in disapproval, but I would submit to you that Charlie Sheen is doing life right.  Of course that statement is made with a HUGE presumption - a big fat "IF".

Charlie Sheen is doing life right IF this life is all you've got and there is no accountability for actions beyond the natural realm.  His actions make perfect, logical sense if there is no God, this life ends with the grave, and there are no eternal consequences for our earthly actions.  Here is a link to a recent interview with Sheen which shows he is taking this approach to life.  If this life is all there is it is perfectly understandable how a person could become incredibly self-indulgent, narcissistic, hedonistic, and materialistic, to the point of being destructive.

Of course, I don't really believe Charlie Sheen is doing life right. I believe there is a God in heaven to whom we are accountable.  I believe this life is only the beginning to an eternal existence. I believe there are eternal ramifications for our earthly actions. We live within certain moral parameters because there is more at stake than possible civil punishment.

I don't agree with the lifestyle Mr. Sheen has chosen to live, but I certainly understand the mindset and where it comes from. 

Celebrating Mediocrity

At the risk of sounding somewhat old school let me throw this out there...  

When I was growing up - or so long ago - you celebrated graduations from High School and College.  When I was growing up the first place team received a trophy and if you were lucky the runner up got a ribbon.  Nowadays we celebrate graduations from Pre-school, Kindergarten, elementary school, middle school, high school, and college.  There are no more trophies for first place - everyone gets a participation trophy/ribbon. We make a big deal of people doing what is expected of them.  We have become a nation that celebrates the expected and the mediocre. We reward people for doing what they should be doing in the first place.  As a result I believe we have created a sense of entitlement in the younger generation. Few want to pay their dues anymore.  Most want the CEO job right out of college.

Check out what Jesus says in Luke 17:7-10 "But which of you, having a servant plowing or feeding cattle, will say unto him by and by, when he is come from the field, Go and sit down to meat? And will not rather say unto him, Make ready wherewith I may sup, and gird thyself, and serve me, till I have eaten and drunken; and afterward thou shalt eat and drink? Doth he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I trow not. So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do."

I love the way that passage ends (v.10) - "We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do."  I want that to be my Christian attitude.  I don't want to have an attitude of entitlement in my walk with Jesus.  I don't want to think, "I go to church, I give, I read my Bible, I pray, I witness - come on God bless me!" These are the things I'm supposed to be doing.  I'm not doing anything special.  I'm not going above and beyond.  

I pray we wouldn't settle for a mediocre version of faith in Jesus. I pray we wouldn't do the bare minimum and expect God to shower praise upon us.  May we always strive to go above and beyond what is expected.  May we always give our very best - our Savior deserves no less.

Christmas Rush

This time of year we all start to feel the pressure of the Christmas rush. So much to do and so little time to get it done.  For most of us this isn't a feeling exclusive to the month of December.  Our life is defined by hurry.  This is more dangerous than we can possible know.  Hurry impacts our health through stress and fatigue.  Hurry causes us to live a superficial life - we don't have time for depth.  Most importantly, hurry is a relationship killer.  We don't have time to receive or give love. This is the most damaging aspect of hurry.

What are we to do?  How can we restore margin to our life and stop hurrying so much?  Here are a few things to consider...

1. Ruthlessly eliminate hurry from your life.  We need to learn a new two letter word - "NO".  We can't do it all and we need to stop trying. We don't say no in order to be selfish or because we are lacking in compassion. We say no to certain things so we can make sure we are pursuing the proper priorities of life.
2. Regularly unplug.  Its funny to me that the countries of the world with the most time saving technological devices have the most stress.  Most people would gain 20-30 hours a week by simply turning off the TV.  Create time in your life when you periodically unplug from the matrix.
3. Enjoy the Moment.  If you are like most driven people, you are always thinking about the next thing.  Work at staying in the moment.  Be there and engaged, and not just present.  
4. Practice slowing down.  Put yourself in situations where you have to wait.  Drive in the slow lane, pick the longest line at the store, eat slowly, let someone merge into traffic, or go thru the day and don't wear a watch.  Practice makes perfect, and we need a lot of practice at slowing down.
5. Practice times of solitude.  Jesus frequently withdrew from everyone and everything.  He counseled his followers to do the same - Mark 6:30-31.  Jesus was busy but he never hurried.  He never lost the life giving connection with his Father.  Don't be in such a hurry that you lose your life giving connection.  Schedule times of solitude in your life where your only objective is to be still and connect with God.

Best of luck as you battle the hurry sickness that plagues us all.

Thanks!

Time for the annual Thanksgiving day blog post about being thankful.  It's great that each year we set aside a day to focus on being thankful, but as a follower of Jesus we should make thankfulness a part of our everyday life.  It is God's will for us to be thankful - I Thessalonians 5:18.  Here are a few things I'm thankful for this year...

• My wonderful wife.
• My beautiful children.
• Good friends.
• A home - what a blessing.
• Running water and food on the table.
• Good health.
• The chance to serve with the people of PBC.
• The blessing of music.
• Books.
• Most of all - my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

What about you? What are you thankful for this Thanksgiving Day?

Culture vs. Christ

I've learned a great principle about culture vs. Christ by watching the way OPEC handles fuel prices. A number of months ago fuel prices really started to climb - for discussion purposes let's say they went from $2.00 per gallon to $2.50 per gallon.  People went nuts!  Everyone started talking about how unfair it was, how are we going to be able to afford such high prices, talks of alternative sources of energy heated up, offshore drilling was back on the table.  People were not going to stand for this outrage.  So the price was reduced but not back down to the original price but to $2.25 per gallon.  People eased up and thought well $2.25 isn't bad.  At least it's not $2.50.  A little later prices again rose from $2.25 to $2.75 per gallon.  Once again, people were outraged and demanded reductions.  Once again the price fell from $2.75 down to $2.50.  People relaxed and got comfortable with the new price.  Then prices jumped up again - from $2.50 to $3.00 per gallon.  Outrage! The price reduced from $3.00 to $2.75 and people thought, we'll at least it's not $3.00 per gallon.  They got comfortable with $2.75.  Whereas at one point people were outraged with $2.50 per gallon, now they are comfortable with $2.75 per gallon.  Amazing and insightful!  OPEC pushed the limit, felt pressure to pull back and so they did, but not all the way back to the starting point.  Then they pushed a little further, felt pressure and pulled back, but not all the way back.  Before you know it people are ok with paying a price they once thought was outrageous.

This is exactly what culture does.  It pushes the moral limits.  It test the waters to see what it can get away with.  When we object they pull back, but not all the way back.  Then they push out again and test the limits, we object and so they pull back, but not all the way back.  Over time we get comfortable with the things we once objected to.

We see this pattern mentioned in Psalm 1:1.  There is a natural downward progression as people grow increasingly comfortable with morally questionable things.  Notice the downward slope in Psalm 1:1 - walking, standing, and then sitting.   What happens is we get comfortable to morally questionable things, then we grow numb to it, and before we know it we are accepting it as normal.  We start by walking in the counsel of ungodliness.  Then before we know it we are standing in the way of sinners.  After time we are so comfortable we sit down and join them.   

How contrary to what we called to do as followers of Jesus.  As a follower of Jesus we are to walk with him in the light of His truth.  We are to stand with Him against the powers of darkness.  We are to never forget that we are seated with Him in heavenly places.