The Simple Truth

Spiritual Muscle

A week ago today I had arthroscopic knee surgery to repair some torn meniscus and arthritis in my left knee. The knee originally started bothering me back in January while I was in India when it blew up like a balloon while I was helping with a basketball clinic in Chennai. From January until now my exercise routine with my legs has been little to non-existent. As a result the muscles in my left thigh had atrophied at an alarming rate. Prior to the injury I was incredibly diligent in my workouts and was in pretty good shape for a guy my age (no comments please).

On Wednesday while in physical therapy for my knee I commented to the therapist (who I affectionately refer to as my physical terrorist) how quickly my muscle (what I have of it) had atrophied. Her reply was telling. She said, "They go away so quickly, and take a long time to come back."  Her statement has profound spiritual implications.  Our faith, our godliness, and our walk with Jesus are like a muscle that must be exercised in order to be maintained. If we don't use it, it goes away very quickly. If it's lost, it takes a lot of diligent work to get back.  Paul tells us in First Timothy 4:7-8 that we are to exercise ourselves unto godliness.  Living a godly life requires diligent exertion; it doesn't just happen.  Exercise yourself through reading God's word, through fervent prayer, through meditating on the things of God, and through serving others. Become a spiritual body builder. 

In therapy they are actually having to teach my muscle how to work again. They are trying to get me to a point where muscle memory is regained and my muscle can perform in the way they were intended. Living a godly life is achieved much the same way. Godly living doesn't come natural at first but over time, as you respond in a proper manner again and again, the godly response becomes the natural response.

The bottom line for our spiritual life is this - don't ever go into coast mode. The moment you stop diligently pursuing godliness and exercising your spiritual muscles, you start to lose strength. The longer you let it go, the harder it is to get back.  Stay diligent in your spiritual exercises so that a godly response becomes second nature to you.

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. 

My Story

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, everyone has a story - including me.  Those of you that have only recently come to know me may think I was born as "Pastor Brad" with a baby rattle in one hand and a Bible in the other. Nothing could be further from the truth.  Let me take a few moments and share my story of coming to know Jesus as Savior.

From the outside looking in my life was a tremendous success. Though I was still relatively young (20 years old) I was well on my way to having all the things the world tells us are important. I had a full ride scholarship to great school; I was on the Dean's Honor Roll every semester; I had a beautiful girlfriend; I was popular (and a little arrogant) and ran in the BMOC groups at school. What more could a guy want? Lots! For all my success I found myself unfulfilled and longing for more. As a result, I started to experiment regularly with drugs and alcohol. I knew chemical stimulants weren't the answer and repeatedly vowed the morning after to never do that again. However, I still found myself continually giving in to temptation in order to cover the ache deep in my soul.

During the summer of 1988 I underwent my third shoulder surgery and was unable to do much except sit around the house. Out of boredom I decided to read a book about one of my favorite basketball players, Pistol Pete Marovich, called "Heir to a Dream".  As I read the story of Pete Marovich I continually saw my life in his.  Unfulfilled and unsatisfied in the midst of unparalleled worldly success Pistol Pete received Jesus as Savior and became a Christian.  God used this book to start peeling back the spiritual blinders in my life.  I began going to church with my mom who had started attending a Baptist Church in Kansas City. The lights were starting to come on for me.

On a hot Sunday in August of 1988 I went to church with my mom and girlfriend. I recall very little about the content of the message that day, but the title has stuck with me all these years - "I Gave My Life to Jesus and I Meant It!" For the first time I realized that I was a sinner and Jesus had personally died for me.  The story of Jesus went from general and abstract, to personal and concrete.  As the invitation was given that Sunday morning I bowed my head and accepted Jesus as my Savior.

The change in my life was immediate. I remember driving home that day filled with excitement. I finally understood what life was all about. I no longer had the emptiness haunting me. I was complete. I was happy. I was forgiven. I had been given a purpose for living.  From that point forward my life was different.  Many things changed immediately - most notably, no more partying and no more foul language (that's right Pastor Brad had a potty mouth).  I still had struggles and missteps in my life, but for the most part my focus was now on getting to know my Savior and living my life for him.  I was no longer living for myself, but for the One who had saved me.

I look back on my life and I am amazed at how far God has brought me. Without him there is no telling where I would be right now. It is only by His grace and mercy that I am what I am.  

Need a Little Motivation? Check this out!

I saw this video today and was brought to tears. If you are  in need of some motivation to keep going then you need to check this out.  Just when you think you've got it rough!

OTL: NO Excuses!

All He Does Is Win...

I thought this was hilarious...

 

Tebowmania

Last night Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos defeated the NY Jets in dramatic fashion. While I personally can't stand the Broncos (that's a prerequisite for being a Chiefs fan), I do love Tim Tebow and his boldness for Christ. Here's a link to his post game interview - notice the very first thing out of his mouth!  Keep it up Tim!

You Are What You Worship

Every person who has ever walked the earth is a worshipper. God built us to worship. The problem is that often times our worship becomes horizontal rather than vertical. We begin to worship things/people rather than worshipping the one and only God.  Even the most sophisticated of society engage in idol worship. We may not bow before a golden image of our own creation but we have idols nonetheless.  Here are a few of the more common idols in western culture...

• Almighty $$$$. We bow before the god of Benjamin (as in Franklin).
• Automobiles.  Our god is sometimes parked in our driveway or garage.
• god of the Flat screen. We spend hours each day staring blankly into our god.
• Our job - we sacrific so much on the altar of our career.
• Good time - we pursue happiness and a good time and eliminate anything that hampers our ability to have fun.
• Food - we love to eat our god in huge portions.
• Children - our life revolves around our kids and their schedules.
• Sports teams - every Sunday afternoon in the Fall hundreds of thousands of people meet for church in their local stadium.
• Self - this is our A #1 god. 

The above things are not necessarily evil things but none of them deserve the #1 place in our life. None of them are worthy of worship.

What's the big deal with misguided worship? The answer is found in Psalm 115:8.  This verse tells us that we become like the gods we worship. If we worship $ we become greedy. If we worship material things we become materialistic.  If we worship self we become ego-centric, and selfish. As followers of Jesus our priority is to be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ.  This transformation takes place over time as we continually give ourselves to worshipping Him. If we desire to be like Him then we have to make him the center of our worship and guard our heart against other things that would steal our worship.  

He alone is worthy of our worship.

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!

Talent vs. Effort

I have the pleasure of being the assistant coach for my 5th grade daughter's basketball team. Nothing builds patience like coaching a group of 10 year old girls! As I look at the team it is very apparent that some of the girls are extremely athletic and others - not so much.  My focus as a coach is not on talent level but on EFFORT.  Of course talent is important, but in my book effort exceeds all else.  I've known countless people who were extremely talented and yet never lived up to their potential because they weren't willing to put forth the required effort.  On the other hand, I've also know numerous people who overachieved because they took what talent they had and then worked their tail off to excel.

Jesus' parable in Matthew 25:14-30 tells the story of three servants who are given talents.  In this story Jesus makes it clear the talents where distributed based on ability.  However, with Jesus the issue is never what you start with but what you do with what you've been given.  It's about effort!  Talent is nice, but it is talent combined with effort that makes people great!  In God's kingdom it doesn't matter if you are a five talent person or a one talent person - it's about what you do with what you've been given.  

Take the talents God has graciously given you and give your best effort to become great in his kingdom.  You have the potential - God has given it to you.  Now the ball is in your court - what will you do with what you've been given?