Are We There Yet?

Are we there yet? If you're a parent you've heard it plenty of times and growing up I'm sure you said it a few times as well. It comes from the back seat when you are nowhere close to your destination. This past Christmas/New Years holiday we took a trip to Colorado. A trip in which we logged in over 2100 miles total. About an hour into our trip, I heard it for the first time and by the time we had finished our marathon journey, I heard it more times than I care to count. Truth is, no matter how much we love to travel, we all like to get where we are going don't we? Sure, as you drive, its great to take in all the scenery, but it sure feels good when you finally get there.

I don't recall how many hours it took to get there, but I remember seeing the mountains for the first time thinking we are almost there. Then 2 1/2 hours later, we were finally there. You know how it is, you see the mountains in the distance and think it can't be more than another 30 minutes or so. After 30 minutes, you think, ok, it can't be more than another 30 minutes or so. They seem like they are right there when in reality, they are miles and miles and miles away.

As I think about our Christian journey, it's really not all that different. Perhaps you set out on your journey decades ago, or maybe its just been recently. Whatever the case, none of us have arrived yet. It's a journey that takes a lifetime. Sure, we like the journey, but getting where we are going sure would be nice. Sometimes we feel like that little kid in the back seat wondering if we are there yet. Wondering if we are even close. Of course, the answer to that is a resounding, "No!" It's a journey with that destination in the distance that regardless of how close it looks, is still quite far away.

If I can paraphrase the apostle Paul, he said, "I'm not there yet but I'm on my way. I'm forgetting the past and I'm pressing forward. I'm headed for my destination." That's where we all should be, moving forward on our journey. Not standing still, not moving backwards, but moving forward. It doesn't really matter what mile marker we are at, just that we are moving toward the next one. We are all a work in progress, and the key is always to remember that. Like Paul, we haven't arrived yet.

I know when traveling, I can get a bit impatient. When I get on the road, I want to get there. If Google says it takes 9 hours, I want to prove I can do it in 7 1/2. If I'm not careful, I'll get so focused on my destination that I'll miss the whole journey. We can do that in our Christian journey as well. We can get so focused on where we are headed that we miss all the great stuff along the way. God put us on this planet and believe it or not, He longs for us to enjoy our time here. It's a really long journey and it's ok, if you determine to take your time and take it all in. So, let's press forward and move on. But, in all the pressing and in all the moving, let's take time to enjoy the journey.

Lessons From Whoville

We can learn a lot from all the Whos in Whoville
Yes, we are much older, but there's more to learn still
When Christmas Eve came on that night the story goes
All the Whos were tucked in from their heads to their toes
And while they all slept, something tragic went on
The Grinch came to town, not planning to stay long
Just long enough, to steal Christmas was his plan
To ruin that special day, for the Whos would be grand
Christmas Eve came and went, then Christmas morning did come
And the Grinch prepared himself for what he thought would be fun
But, the Whos surprised him, yes they blew him away
They foiled his great plan, and ruined his day
For somehow and someway, though no presents they found
The Whos started singing, it was such a beautiful sound
The Grinch realized then, something he didn't know before
Christmas isn't in boxes, and can't be bought in a store
Herein is our lesson, but closely we must look
To find this powerful truth in this little children's book
Christmas isn't about all the decorations and trees
Nor is it about all the presents, we give or receive
It's not about how much money you can spend
And it's not about how many Christmas cards you send
These things are great and we all love them a lot
But Christmas still comes, with these things or not
Yes, Christmas is more, as the Grinch figured out
More than all this, he now knew without a doubt
It's about family and friends, and loving the life that we're livin'
It's about peace on earth, and all the goodness God's given
When you figure that out, Christmas somehow comes alive
And you can enjoy it, even if you get a bunch of ugly ties
Or, an ugly sweater you would never dare wear
Or, a fruit cake made sometime last year
Whatever you get, or if you get nothing indeed,
Christmas is still great, when you know what it means

A Fat Man In A Red Suit, Flying Around The World In A Sleigh. Hmmmm?

A fat man, in a red suit, flying around the world in a sleigh pulled by reindeer. What a story? Isn't it amazing how creative we can be? Throw in a story of a reindeer whose nose glows, tiny elves who work feverishly to get all the toys done in time, and a list of all the good and bad kiddos in the world and we've got an epic story. Its been told for years and gets tweaked a bit with every generation or so, but never seems to lose much steam.

Every year, this fat man in his red suit, shows up everywhere. He's at the mall, he's on the TV, he's on Christmas cards, he's even on Coca-Cola cans. Everywhere you look, there he is. Just think, wouldn't it have been nice to come up with the idea of this guy and sell the world on it? I'm thinking somehow, someway you could have made some pretty serious bank if you had.

Several years ago, I heard a Christian radio station trying hard to sell the whole idea of Santa as a God thing. Now, I don't have any problem with Santa, but a God idea? I think that's just a bit of a stretch. Sure, he's a nice guy and all and he goes around giving stuff away, still I struggle with the idea of Santa being God inspired.

Let's face it, God needs no help from our imagination to come up with a great story. Let me rephrase that, a miraculous story. While we're conjuring up stories of a fat man in a red suit, he pulls off something that reaffirms the fact that His thoughts are light-years beyond ours. One night in a little town called Bethlehem, God wraps Himself in human flesh in order to rescue mankind. If you know the story, think about it. God, the Creator of the universe, humbles himself, and becomes one of us. He steps out of eternity and steps into time, submits himself to a brutal death at the hands of men He could thump off the planet in a heartbeat. He does all that in order to restore mankind's relationship with Him.

A baby was born that night who would take away the sins of the world. A King was born who would never see an end to his kingdom. A Deliverer was born who would set men free. A Healer was born who would heal the sick. A Savior was born who would save mankind. A Prince was born who would set this world at peace.

Of course, many never truly recognized Him. As a matter of fact, when He showed up that night in Bethlehem, they couldn't even make room for Him. They couldn't make room for God! They were so busy going about doing all the things people do, that when God, Himself showed up, they didn't recognize him, notice him, or even offer him a room to stay in. That night in Bethlehem was all about Him, and yet He went largely unnoticed. As a matter of fact, other than a few shepherds and angels and some wise men studying the stars, nobody even new what happened that night.

We aren't all that different are we? We've got this ongoing ridiculous debate on whether we should say "Happy Holidays," or "Merry Christmas." We've casually become a culture that no longer recognizes what this time of year is all about. We strive to be politically correct while all the while missing the point entirely. We go about doing Christmas in such a way as to forget why we do it in the first place. We love the paid holiday time, retailers love the money, and oil companies love the travel. We love Santa, and Rudolph, and Frosty the Snowman. We love the decorations, the lights, the trees, and everything else that comes with this time of the year. But, if we are not careful, just like Bethlehem that night, we'll miss Him. The One it's all about.

Don't get me wrong, Santa's a great story and all, but it just doesn't measure up to God's true story. I know it may not be politically correct to say, "Merry Christmas," but to be honest, I really don't care about being politically correct. If someone chooses to be offended by that statement, they just don't understand what happened that night in Bethlehem many years ago. Jesus truly is the reason for the season. No amount of commercialization, political debating, or differing religious ideologies can change that fact.

Bethlehem was the birth place of the greatest King ever to be born and that night hardly anyone even knew it. Isn't it ironic. Christmas is about the birth of the greatest King to ever be born, and it appears that there is an ever growing number of people who don't even know it.

Three Wise Men

In the aftermath of Ike, as you drive around our community it’s not hard to spot broken tree branches dangling high up in numerous trees. They are everywhere. Some are just little branches while others are massive branches that would cause damage to roofs, cars, or people should they fall on them. My father-in-law has at least three on his property. Each of them big enough to do some pretty serious damage.

A couple weeks ago, my wife and I pulled up just in time to catch my father-in-law and 2 of his neighbors plotting how to best take care of one of those limbs that was dangling a good 30-40 feet up in a pine tree hanging over the driveway. As I walked up to the scene, I thought to myself this is going to be good. No, not funny, but good. There is something awesome that takes place when a few gray haired men put their heads together in an effort to fix something, or accomplish something. I was convinced this would be no different. By the time I arrived, they had pretty much figured out how they were going to go about doing it and were just gearing up for the implementation of their well thought out plan. I would just be a spectator. Having already lassoed the dead limb, and having determined that mere mortal muscle couldn't pull it down, one of the neighbors set out to retrieve his golf cart. They then, attached the rope to the back of the golf cart and moments later down the limb came. A limb, big enough to cause major damage to a car or, worse yet, kill one of my boys had it fallen on them. A brilliantly laid out plan, successfully carried out, and now once again it was safe to park in the driveway.

I knew when I drove up that day, that as these three gray-haired men, threw some ideas around it wouldn’t be long before the job would be done. After all, they pooled together somewhere in the neighborhood of 200 combined years of life experience. Trust me when I say, there was a wealth of wisdom standing in the driveway that day. Mix that wisdom with the determination of 3 men and there aren’t many jobs that won’t get done. I’m pretty sure if you replaced our politicians in Washington with a handful of these guys, they’d have a lot of problems solved in no time.

What’s so sad is that many times those of us who are younger, don’t recognize the value in men like these. We fly through life as if we know everything, and are pretty certain that those who are a bit more seasoned than us, are incapable of teaching us much. While the truth is, if we’ll open our eyes and ears, we’ll find a wealth in men and women like this. If we’ll simply be teachable, we can learn in one moment what it has taken them a lifetime to learn.

I remember as a teenager, I wasn’t real good at tuning in to all the times my Dad tried to teach me. Even as a young man in my twenties, there were still times I wasn’t listening. But the older I got, the more wealth I began to see in both his words, and the way he lived life. Now, in my forties, my eyes and ears are opened and I’m more teachable than at any other point in my life. This past year, I got the opportunity to work side by side with my father-in-law on a couple of jobs, and there wasn’t a day that went by that I didn’t learn something.

I’m pretty sure, had I saw those three men out there when I was 15 or 16, I wouldn’t have taken out my note pad and pencil so to speak. And, naturally I would have missed a great opportunity to learn something. Sure, it was just a tree limb. And, that’s really the point. There is so much in life that you can never learn in a book, in a classroom, or even with your own life’s experience. There is an immeasurable amount of wisdom and knowledge that can only be found lingering around someone whose life experience has purchased them an encyclopedia worth of wisdom. Take my advice, next time you see three gray-haired men outside up to something, pull up a chair, and watch the show. Trust me, you’ll learn a lot from those wise men.

I Love The Rain

I love the rain. Sure, it can make life a bit of a hassle. Especially, on those days when you get caught out in it unprepared without an umbrella. Or, when traffic moves at caterpillar speed on your way to and from work. But, still I love the rain.

Sure, I like listening to it fall outside. For some reason, it just has a calming effect. Then, there are times I like to just stare out the window and watch it fall. I even like playing in it. Yes, even as an adult. But, all of that pales in comparison to the real reason I love the rain.

Every time it rains, I am reminded of a story I heard a few years ago. It seems that in 1937, a young lady who already had several children discovered she was pregnant with yet another. She had no desire for another child and had found someone who would be willing to help her abort the pregnancy. She somehow convinced her husband to pay for the procedure and one morning she woke up to find the cash for the procedure laying on the kitchen table. However, it was pouring down rain that morning and she didn't want to get out in all that mess. The story goes on, I've been told, that after that day, she just decided to have the baby.

To think that a little rain saved a little baby's life is a pretty powerful story, but that story carries a lot more weight when it touches your life on a more personal note. That young lady was my grandmother and the baby was my Dad. To think of what might have been, had it not been raining that day. I stagger to think that myself, my 2 bothers, my 2 sisters, my 2 sons, my 4 nephews, and my 3 nieces, all could have been aborted on that raining day in 1937. I just thank God that on that morning in that little town in West Virginia, the heavens opened up and poured down rain.

As you can imagine, its hard for me not to be reminded of that story, when it rains. Sure, I get upset from time to time when I'm inconvenienced by wet weather, but somehow, someway God always reminds me that it was a day like this in 1937, that my life as well as the lives of those I love dearest were spared. So, is it any wonder why I love the rain?

Lessons From The Land Of Uz

A few thousand years ago in the land of Uz, there lived a man whose life gives us some pretty powerful lessons. While reading his story this past week, I was hit with a pretty big reality check. The story begins by telling us of this man named Job who seemed to have the perfect life. He had a great family, big house, and lots of stuff. Then we are given access to a conversation between God and satan concerning Job. God brings up Job and actually brags a little bit about him to which satan replies by saying that Job only loves and serves God because his life is so great. Satan tells God that given some calamity in life, Job is certain to view God quite differently.

As I read this, I began to think about myself. I pondered for a moment how often I truly fail this very test. I started to think how quick I am to get a little miffed at God when things don't go my way. When prayers seemingly go unanswered or when I'm not seemingly under a "blessing cloud." Perhaps, you're like me. You find that praising and thanking God for all He's done comes really easy when life is good, but it becomes quite difficult when life stinks.

If we are honest with ourselves we'll admit that in those moments we are doing little more than throwing a fit. Ok, perhaps we don't lay on the floor and kick and scream like we did when we were little, but our heart attitude is not all that different. We want something and we don't get it, so we pout, get an attitude, and want God and the rest of the world to know it. Sounds like a fit to me. Crazy isn't it. The very thing we discipline our kids for, we somehow justify when we ourselves do the same thing.

God is good. He is always good. He can't act outside of good, because that's who and what He is. That being said, bad stuff still hits our lives. We live in a world that is broken. We live in a world at war. A war that is constantly raging between good and evil. Between the forces of darkness and the forces of God. Those who sit around with the idea that they are immune from bad stuff happening to them have a "Disney" outlook on life. It isn't real. Its a fantasy world that is destined to come crashing down one day.

Job's life was great, but calamity and tragedy hit hard. Like Job, it is in those moments that we truly find out about our heart. It's here we find out a lot about ourselves. In those moments, we find out if we are little more than an adult who still has the same heart as a spoiled child, or if we have outgrown the mindset that the world should cater to our every desire. Finding the ability to look beyond the garbage in life and maintain a heart of thanksgiving toward a God, who remains good through it all, shows growth and maturity along our journey. On the other hand getting ticked off at God, angry with everyone else, and mad at the world shows that we have many more mile markers to go on our spiritual journey to maturity.

Count on it, bad stuff will hit your life. Friends will wound you, relatives will upset you, and this world will hammer you. Its how you react when it hits that makes all the difference in the world. Job's life in the end was better than it was in the beginning. I truly believe that is largely a result of how he handled the calamity that hit his life. Just remember in the middle of it all, God still remains God. In the midst of life's hardest struggles, His goodness, grace, mercy, and love can still be found. If you can find nothing else for which to be thankful, those alone are fuel enough to bombard the heavens with your gratitude.

My Life Is Good. It's Real Good!

How often do we go through life taking for granted all the good in our life? So often, with me anyway, I can easily focus on the few things that are not meeting my expectations. The things that are gnawing at me, and frustrating me to no end. Those things that don't go the way I want, end up the way I had hoped, or cause me some kind of inconvenience. For whatever reason, there they are constantly bombarding my mind and clouding my outlook.

Yet, at the same time, I am surrounded by blessings everywhere. I've come to learn that it is no accident that our eyes gravitate toward the negative. It is the strategy of our enemy, to distract us from all the good in our life, by magnifying the bad that we encounter. We only need to understand that strategy and make a decision to not allow ourselves to dwell on everything that is wrong.

It is true that my life is surrounded by negative things. Things that don't go my way. But, when I take a moment to focus on all the good, I quickly realize that my life is good. It's real good! I've got a wife that is the greatest. Two boys that I consider second to none. Brothers, sisters, Mom, in-laws, nieces, nephews, that all rock. Yep, nobody at odds with one another and everyone walking in healthy relationship with one another. Now, is that awesome or what?

Then there's the beautiful VW that is paid for. Debt that will soon be paid off, a place to lay my head at night, clothes to wear, and food to eat. I feel as though I have more quality friends than I have had at any point in my life. My wife and I are leading a new church that is touching people's lives. Every time I breathe I breathe in freedom because of the country I was born in. I have running water, hot water, A/C, and electricity. I'm telling you my life is good. It's real good!

But beyond that, God has blessed me abundantly in other ways. As bad as I get, I'm always loved by Him. His mercy covered me and protected me from the judgment of a just judge. His grace restored me to a position I don't deserve and could never have earned. When I fail, I find that same grace working in me and for me. His blood washed my sins away forever, and He chooses to not bring them up ever again. He rescued me from a life that was destined for hell. He empowers me to live the type of life I could never live apart from Him. He showers me with blessings I don't even have to ask for. His goodness is evident all around me. I'm telling you my life is good. It's real good!

Perhaps, you find yourself like me sometimes focusing on those things that are negative. If so, take a few moments out and begin to focus on all the things in your life that are good. You'll begin to see that even though bad stuff is hammering away at you, there is so much more that is good. Trust me, it'll change the atmosphere around you.

There is so much more good in God than there could ever be bad in satan or this planet we live on. God's goodness can never take a back seat to anything or anyone. God is good and His goodness is evident in your life if you'll take time to look for it. Truth is that wherever you find yourself today, your life is good. It's real good!