Stocking The Pantry

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he sound of the doorbell let me know mom was back.  She had been gone for a little over an hour and now she needed our help.  The routine was always the same whenever she returned from the grocery store.  She would haul the bags to the porch and we would carry them into the kitchen or set them in front of the pantry door.  When all the bags were in the house, we put the groceries away, emptying the bags and filling the pantry.

This activity hasn’t stopped.  On Saturday mornings I make my weekly pilgrimage to the grocery store, buy my groceries, put them in the car, carry them in the house, and put them away.  Every week, my pantry gets restocked with vegetables, bread, cereal, rice, sugar etc.  Although I don’t really enjoy the hour I spend in the grocery store every week, I am glad I have a place to store my provisions. When the need strikes, I can simply grab something from the pantry and fix myself something to eat.  The lesson my mom taught me several years ago still rings true today.  If you take the time to stock the pantry, you will always have something to eat.

This lesson, however, did not originate with my mother.  For years, people have lived by this rule. Did you know we can go all the way back to Old Testament times to see this idea in action?  The story is a familiar one but the truth it contains has several applications to our lives today.

Hard times were coming to the land of Egypt.  Pharaoh’s dreams warned of an unprecedented famine in Egypt and the surrounding countries that would take place seven years in the future.  God revealed the meaning of the dreams to Joseph and he gave Pharaoh the interpretation. Joseph also provided a solution to the problem and Pharaoh set him in charge of the land of Egypt.

Joseph’s solution was simple: Stock the pantry!  Joseph’s plan was to put 20% of Egypt’s crops into storage for seven years so that they would have plenty in the years of famine. In Genesis 41:36 Joseph explains his plan “This food should be held in reserve for the country to be used during the seven years of famine that will come upon Egypt, so that the country may not be ruined by the famine.”

Joseph knew there were hard times ahead and he knew that if Egypt stored her grain, there would be food in times of trouble.  This principle is the same for us in our daily walk with God.  His word is full of promises and blessings that we experience each and every day if we spend time with him.  Spending time in God’s word is the same as stocking our spiritual pantries.  We take from his abundance and keep it in our spiritual storehouses.  In times of great difficulty or trial, we can then go to the pantry and feed on the truths we have stored there.  But if we fail to store his word, if we fail to spend time with him on a regular basis, we will have nothing from which to draw in times of hardship and spiritual famine.

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he lesson of the pantry is a good one.  Sometime today, you will venture into your pantry or cabinets for something to eat or drink.  When you open that door, stop for a minute and ask yourself these questions, “How well have I stocked my spiritual pantry?  Is there food enough for the lean times ahead?”   

Stay Where I Can See You

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ummer was always a wonderful time for me as a kid.  There was no school, I could go barefoot all day, I didn’t have to worry about doing homework, and I could see my friends anytime I wished.  In addition, summer was a time for vacations and that sometimes meant a trip to the beach! 

North Carolina has some of the most beautiful and tranquil beaches I’ve ever visited.  The sand is white, there is plenty of room to stretch out, and the beach goes on and on forever.  When I visit the beach now, I love to sit and watch the waves and listen to them thunder as the crash onto the shore.  I find this to be so relaxing and all the cares of this life just melt away and time stands still.

But as a little boy, the last thing I wanted to do was to sit on the beach.  I wanted to get into the water and play. My brother and I would play in the sand, dig holes, make tunnels, build castles, and fill our pails with seashells.  When we asked permission to take our rafts into the surf, my mom would give us permission, followed by a stern command, “Stay where I can see you!”

We would take our rafts into the surf and ride waves up on the shore.  Each time I landed on the sand, I would look up to make sure mom could see me and that I could see her.  The current would carry us down the beach so every once in a while we would look up, find mom and dad, walk back up the beach, and continue riding waves.  But we always stayed where mom could see us and where we could see her.  Losing sight of her meant we would be lost and then anything could happen.

There is a similar story in the book of Exodus.  The children of Israel were also surrounded by sand.  However, this was the sand of the desert with no water and no ocean in sight.  They weren’t building sandcastles either!  Instead, they were following God as He led them toward the Promised Land.  They carried with them the tabernacle, a portable temple used to worship God.  When they stopped to rest, they would set up the tabernacle and the pillar of cloud stationed itself over the tent.  God’s glory filled the tabernacle and as long as the cloud remained there, the people rested.

Moses records this for us in the very last verses of Exodus. There is a wonderful lesson of hope and encouragement neatly nestled in this passage of scripture. “So the cloud of the Lord was over the tabernacle by day, and fire was in the cloud by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel during all their travels” (Exodus 40:38). Two great truths jump out at us from this one small verse.  First, the cloud of the Lord remained over the tabernacle by day and there was fire in the cloud at night.  God’s presence was always visible and it never left the people. God meant for His people to know that He was with them, day and night, constantly leading, guiding, and watching over them. 

Second, God’s presence remained in sight during all their travels.  God did not appear every other day and twice on Sunday.  He didn’t pop in for a visit every once in a while.  No!  God went everywhere His people went and He remained in full view of them all.  The people never wondered where God was or if He had forgotten them or abandoned them.  All they had to do was lift their eyes toward the tabernacle and see His presence.  He wanted to dwell with His people, to commune with them, to lead, to guide, and to protect them.

This is also true today.  True, God no longer appears in a pillar of cloud by day or a pillar of fire by night but His presence is always with us.  No matter where we go, no matter what we do, no matter how desperate or foreboding our situation may be, God is there.  His presence speaks to our hearts, we see Him working in our lives, and we know that He still leads us just as He led Moses and the people all those years ago. 

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f you are going through a lonely place, if you feel that you have been deserted, if your life feels more like a desert than a beach, take courage!  God led His people in the desert and when they set up a place of worship, His glory filled it and His presence was there, all the time and in full view.  The same is true today.  No matter our circumstances we must follow my mom’s advice.  We must hear God say to us from the desert floor of life, “Stay where I can see you!”   Can you see God today? 

Stay On Course!

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ne of the joys and privileges of owning a car is maintenance!  Every time I turn around it seems something needs to be done to my car.  I have the oil changed regularly, I have the engine tuned, I have all the belts and hoses checked, and I make sure the tires get rotated every 5,000 miles.  With all these things to maintain, it’s no wonder the thrill of driving sometimes loses its appeal.

One Saturday morning, I took my car in for a regular oil change.  While I was there, I also decided to purchase a new set of tires since the ones on my car were beginning to show the wear and tear of the road.  The salesman was very knowledgeable and extremely polite and helped me pick out the best tire for the car within my budget.  We went to the counter to complete the order and he suggested I have my car aligned.  This made perfect sense!  The new tires would soon wear out completely if the car’s wheels were not aligned to drive in a straight line.

They took my car, put it up on the rack, installed the new tires, changed the oil, and finally aligned the wheels.  I watched this entire process through a large window and drank some coffee while I waited for my car.  They put a set of instruments on the wheels of my car that were designed to demonstrate the degree to which the car was pulling and veering away from a straight line.  According to what those instruments showed, the mechanic knew in which direction to adjust my tires so they would all work in perfect unity.  This ensured that no one tire would carry more weight than any other and that all of the treads would wear evenly as I drove.

Throughout this entire process, I was most impressed with the instruments used to test the alignment of my car.  They were designed to show the variance between my car’s idea of a straight line and one that was truly straight.  The instruments are always right and serve as the standard against which my car is measured.  Any variance from that standard spells difficulty for my car and added cost for me somewhere down the road.

The Apostle Paul also understood the necessity for alignment.  Paul, however, wasn’t thinking about aligning the wheels of a chariot, a cart, and certainly not a car.  What he had in mind was the alignment of the heart and soul.  He knew that unless we get properly aligned in our relationship with God, we will have great difficulty down the road and it will be impossible for us to stay on course.

In his letter to the Romans, Paul pens a very familiar passage, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23).  Although short, this verse carries a heavy punch!  Let’s look at what it tells us today.  First, all of us have sinned.  No one can claim that he or she is living a perfect life.  There was only one person who lived perfectly and that was Jesus.  He was and is the glory of God revealed in the flesh.  Jesus is, therefore, the standard against which our lives are measured to see just how far from the “straight and narrow” we are.  Guess what?  All of us fall woefully short of that standard.

If we ended here, we could well become dejected, depressed, and downcast.  But Jesus came in order to offer us the opportunity to realign our lives.  Without him, we drive down the broad road of life, headed for a breakdown, a blowout, or worse, a fatal accident.  If our hearts and souls are not aligned with his, we are driving with defective equipment that will surely lead to our ruin.  But when we accept him as our savior, when we let him put us up on the rack and examine our hearts, when we allow him to push and pull them into proper alignment, our lives get on the right track and we stay on course, following him in a straight path.

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hen was the last time you had you spiritual alignment checked?  Isn’t if funny how we will make sure that our cars are running properly, following a straight line but neglect to check in with our chief mechanic to maintain proper alignment?  Are you traveling in a straight line today?  Are you staying on course?

Spiritual EKG

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ecently, I went for an appointment with my cardiologist for a routine check up.  I have been a heart patient all my life and I visit the doctor routinely just to have a look under the hood and to make sure everything is working as it should.  The procedure is always the same when I visit the office.  They weigh me, take my blood pressure and my pulse, they do an electrocardiogram (EKG), and then hook me up to a monitor so the doctor can get a first-hand look at my heart’s performance.

The EKG has always fascinated me.  It is impossible to see someone’s heart, but when those little electrodes are place on my chest, everyone can see exactly what my heart is doing.  However, it takes a skilled eye and a vast knowledge of the heart and its mechanisms to know if it is functioning properly.  Any variation, no matter how slight, could signal the development of a serious problem now or in the future. Only the skilled eyes of the cardiologist can make that determination and prescribe treatment to address any difficulties.

It is amazing how much attention we devote to our health, especially when we are wired to a machine and the doctor gives us a thorough examination.  We hang on every word, making sure we understand what is expected of us in order to keep our hearts in excellent condition.  However, when it comes to the spiritual condition of our hearts, we tend to neglect what God’s word says about keeping in proper spiritual shape.

The Bible has much to say about the heart.  We are told to keep our hearts with all diligence in Proverbs.  Jeremiah reminds us that the heart is wicked above everything.  Jesus says that out of our hearts proceed all types of sin and immoral thoughts and behaviors.  It sounds as if we need to check in with our spiritual cardiologist very often doesn’t it?  There are so many things plaguing the heart of man that without God’s help there is no way we can ever hope to have a heart that pleases him.

Jeremiah 17:10 speaks to the importance God places on the heart.  "I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve."  There are two great truths embedded in this passage of scripture.  First, God searches our hearts. He alone knows how to read our hearts condition.  He alone understands the mechanisms of the heart and knows its most intimate secrets.  God will not leave sin undetected to damage our hearts but He will bring it to our attention by convicting us and calling us to repentance.  If we obey his command and repent, he cleanses and heals our hearts from all sin.

The second truth is equally important and sobering.  God will reward us according to our deeds: our actions, our thoughts, and our motives.  All these stem from our hearts.  Who we are will be revealed in what we do and in what we say.  If, therefore, God rewards us according to the condition of our hearts, what kinds of reward will we receive?  Unless we heed His commands and follow his instructions, we are doomed for spiritual heart failure.

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hat is the condition of your spiritual heart today?  Have you had your daily appointment with the Great Physician?  Only He can fix the heart of man and restore it to a perfect relationship with Himself.  Won’t you take time today to make an appointment with Him?  Won’t you let Him check your heart and prescribe the healing power of His love for you?  Won’t you let God perform a spiritual EKG to see how well your heart is operating?  He is waiting for you to do that today!

Spell Check

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t happens every time I sit down to write on the computer.  I’ll be typing along; minding my own business, and suddenly little red lines will appear underneath several words, indicating they have been misspelled.  This drives me bonkers and the more I try to avoid misspelled words, the more of them I type.  Although my intentions are good, I simply cannot avoid the fact that before I complete this Tidbit, I will have stopped several times to correct my typographical errors.

Of course there are also the times when I spell a word correctly but the word itself is completely wrong.  All of you are very kind to overlook my errors but I do appreciate it when you bring them to my attention.  Many times I have emailed a Tidbit only to discover a misspelled word or a misused one.  When I come across them or when they are pointed out to me, a deep groan wells up within me and I thoroughly regret having committed such a blunder.

There is, however, a positive side to the spellchecker on my word processor.  It constantly brings my shortcomings to the fore and makes me aware of the numerous mistakes I make when I write.  Were it not for this feature, I would make many more errors and my writing would be completely riveted with all types of blunders.  The role of the spellchecker is to locate my mistakes, no matter how small, and to bring them to my attention so I can correct them.

It shouldn’t surprise us to learn that the idea of the spellchecker goes all the way back to the time of Christ.  Jesus often spoke of our mistakes and how God’s love is so complete and so pure that he will not allow any flaw or any sin to blemish our character.  God means to bring into the open anything that prevents us from conforming perfectly to the image of Jesus so that we will bring glory and honor to Him.

Luke 12:2 demonstrates this great truth, “But there is nothing covered up that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be known.”  There are two distinct sides to this passage of scripture.  We can find both a word of warning and a word of encouragement in these words from our Lord.  As a warning, Jesus states categorically that everything we do will one day be brought to light.  That is, all our actions, our motives, our feelings, and our intentions will all be revealed.  God is not as interested in what we do as He is in the spirit in which we do it.  Performing noble and worthwhile deeds is meaningless if the motives of our heart are anything less than pure.

However, this passage also serves as a great encouragement to the Christian.  Seen in its positive light, this passage tells us that God is constantly watching over us, supervising our actions, motives, thoughts, and deeds to point out the areas where we make mistakes.  Spending time in His word reveals the areas in our lives which need attention.  These areas are the ones constantly underlined and highlighted as we write the story of our daily lives. As soon as we do something wrong, God’s word brings it to our attention so we can correct it.

As with the spell check feature on a word processor, we do have a choice.  We can both acknowledge the error and correct it or we can choose to ignore it with the intent of “fixing” it later.   Unfortunately, once we choose to ignore the warning, seldom, if ever, do we actually go back and change our mistake. The result is a document full of typos and misspelled words and those errors cause distractions for those reading our writing.

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re you heeding or ignoring God’s spell check of your life today?  Do you see the areas that are underlined, indicating things you need to correct and work on?  Are you taking the time to address these areas of difficulty or are you ignoring the warning, thinking of attending to them later?  Remember, God brings the areas of our lives into light so we can become more like His son.  Won’t you let God run your life through His spell checker today?  

Something Is Missing

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ave you ever felt that something was missing from your life?  I mean, you have all the pieces, or so you think, but they just don't all seem to fit together; something is missing.  When I was younger, my brother and I began collecting jigsaw puzzles.  Every week we would get our allowance and we would go to the local variety store and purchase puzzles.  Although there were several varieties and difficulty levels from which to choose, we decided to collect puzzles with only 100 pieces.  We would buy the puzzles, get on our bikes, dash home, and immediately begin putting them together.  Our mom, who loves puzzles, would sometimes help us, especially when we got into a confusing area of a puzzle.  She taught us to separate the border pieces and to assemble them first and from there, to construct the body of the puzzle.

We had hours of fun and gained a real sense of accomplishment from working those pieces until a completed puzzle emerged.  Once completed, we would start working other puzzles from our collection.  I remember one day, I was assembling one of the puzzles when I noticed one piece was missing.  I looked under the table, around on the floor, and under the furniture.  Nowhere was that piece to be found.  I searched in the other puzzles as well with the same result, no missing piece to be found.  The puzzle was 99% complete, but that one space troubled me.  I wanted to finish it, to complete the puzzle, to make it what it was supposed to be.  Instead, all I could see was the space left by the missing piece.  The entire puzzle suffered because one piece was missing.  It was no use trying to pretend the puzzle was complete without it, the evidence of that one missing piece was blatantly obvious.

Jesus must have enjoyed puzzles because today's scripture lesson addresses the idea of the missing piece.  The story of the Rich Young Ruler provides a wonderful example of what God wants to do in each of our lives.  This young man had come to Jesus desiring to know what he had to do to have eternal life.  Jesus told him to keep the law and the young man stated he had kept it since his youth.  Jesus did not dispute his claim but answered him in the following manner.  In Mark 10:21 we find these words, "Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “One thing you lack: Go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow Me.”

Jesus concentrated on that one missing piece in this young man's life.  He wasn't interested in the rest of the puzzle.  He didn't concentrate on what this young man owned or on his accomplishments.  He wasn't concerned with his knowledge, his status, or his ambitions.  The only thing Jesus focused on was the one area lacking in this man's life.  Jesus saw this young man from a different perspective.  He noticed the part of him that was missing; the part that kept him from being what he was meant to be.  In love, Jesus addressed the one thing that would satisfy this man's longing to be whole, complete, and satisfied.  Unfortunately, since he was very wealthy, this young man refused to follow Jesus' advice.

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oday, Jesus still works like this!  He looks at your life and sees the one thing you lack.  Perhaps your faith is not what it should be.  Perhaps you are struggling with trusting God completely, or you might be wrestling with what the future holds for you.  All of these issues leave a void in your life, a missing piece.  You, like the Rich Young Ruler, search and search, but you can never find the piece that fits.  Then Jesus comes, looks at you in love, and says "One thing you lack!" The hard part is acknowledging he is right.  The exciting part is that if Jesus locates the missing piece, he, and only he, knows how to fill it.  So, what piece of the puzzle are you missing today?

Selah

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here are times in the Christian life when it is impossible to see the road ahead.  Clouds darken the sky, the road is rocky and steep, the winds of adversity blow, the rains of fear chill our very souls, and claps of dreadful thunder echo all around the lonely valley through which we are traveling.

We are hemmed in on every side by doubt, worry, frustration, and it seems that no help is present, no relief is in sight, and the road has no end.  What we need at such a time is assurance. Not a pat on the back, not a series of compliments, not a pep talk, and not another plaque to hang on our wall telling us how wonderful we are.

 No!  What we need is a strong steady hand to squeeze ours, to let us know everything is all right.  What we need is something to hold to that will not be swayed, shaken, changed, or affected by the circumstances surrounding us.  What we need is an encouraging word from God himself.

Although the Bible is filled with such passages, there is one I have found to be a source of great strength, encouragement, and an immoveable anchor in times of storm.  That passage is Psalm 46 and I offer the entire passage to you today.  The word Selah, means stop and think about what has just been said. 

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t is my prayer for you that wherever your walk takes you today, that you will apply the words of this psalm to your life, that you will take hold of God’s hand and squeeze more firmly, and that you will let him be your anchor in the midst of

life’s storms. It is always best to listen to God’s voice and to let him speak for himself!

Psalm 46

God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
² Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
³ though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake with their surging.
Selah

⁴ There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy place where the Most High dwells.
⁵ God is within her, she will not fall;
God will help her at break of day.
⁶ Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall;
he lifts his voice, the earth melts.

⁷ The Lord Almighty is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.
Selah

⁸ Come and see the works of the Lord ,
the desolations he has brought on the earth.
⁹ He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth;
he breaks the bow and shatters the spear,
he burns the shields with fire.
¹⁰ "Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth."

¹¹ The Lord Almighty is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.
Selah

Restored

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he table belonged to my grandmother.  As we made plans to complete the restoration on our house, grandmother was making plans for that old table.  Her father built it for his family and she had kept it all these years.

Although it had been in the family for three generations, the table was in very good shape.  It was well-built, solid, and it had no major blemishes or damage.  However, the table was in need of restoration. The old varnish needed to be removed and a new finish put in its place.  This was a job that grandmother wanted to participate in and supervise herself.

The first step in this long process involved removing years of old varnish in order to restore the wood to a lighter color suited to our dining room.  This first step took a long time and involved the most elbow grease.  Grandmother, along with my dad, used steel wool and harsh chemicals to dissolve and remove the old stain.  Every nook and cranny of the table received the same treatment until all the old covering had been removed.

Now the process of restoration could begin.  The wood was sanded, neutralized, and prepared to receive a new look.  Hours of work, lots of wiping, rubbing, sanding, and buffing transformed that table into a beautiful piece of furniture.  Along the way, there were stories about the table, jokes were told, and wonderful plans were made for its future.  Throughout the entire process, that table remained the center of attention until all the work was completed.  When finished, it became the center piece of our home.

God is in the restoration business.  He carefully, methodically, and constantly works with us, removing years of wear and tear in our lives.  He knows that underneath, down deep, we have infinite value.  God is also aware that we grow tired, frustrated, that we get banged up and scratched.  Instead of throwing us out, however, instead of assigning us to the trash dump, God lovingly undertakes the long process of restoring us so he can use us.

He strips away anything and everything that has discolored our lives.  This process may take a long time as God rubs, sands, buffs, and strips away layers of self-doubt, deceit, low self-esteem, fear, anxiety, and mistrust.  Lovingly, he stays at his task until the last remnants of these blemishes are completely wiped out of our lives.

Then he undertakes our restoration.  He applies ample layers of his love, grace, and mercy.  He stains us to conform to the exact image of his son, Jesus, so that we can be used in his service.  Along the way, there are stories of love, there is laughter, and great plans are made for our future.  God does all the work; we just have to be still.

The final and most important step was sealing the table’s surface.  After all that work, a coat of sealant protected the table from spills, nicks, and scratches.  God seals us as well with the Holy Spirit so that we will always look and be our best for him.  The sealant insures that all the work done before remains unchanged, perfect, and evident for all time.

Psalm 23:3a is a short statement but one of great importance.  It simply reads, “he restores my soul.”  This is one of the great things about our God.  His house is filled with restored furniture.  He alone sees the value when others don’t.  He knows that we need to be restored in order to serve his purposes.  God wants to restore us, to make our lives into centerpieces that reflect and testify to his glory.

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re you in the restoration process?  Just hang on because the finished product will be a wonder to behold!

            

Residence Visa

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ince the advent of 9/11 and the terrorist attacks on the United States, greater scrutiny has been given to all those traveling both domestically and internationally.  People coming to the United States from abroad find it more challenging to enter the country and the process of acquiring a visa has become more taxing.

I understand a little bit of this process.  In 1983, as I prepared to leave for a year-long sojourn in France, there were several things I had to do.  The most important of these was obtaining a passport and then applying for a student visa.  I obtained the passport from the American government.  However, in order to legally reside in France for a year, I had to apply for a visa from the French embassy in Washington.  Without that visa, I would be unable to stay in France legally.

When my passport arrived, I called the French embassy and obtained the necessary forms to apply for a visa. I sent my passport to the French embassy in Washington and in a few short weeks, it was returned with an official seal attached to it.  That seal gave me the legal right to stay in the country for a year.

Sound familiar?  This process of obtaining a visa has wonderful applications to our spiritual lives as well.  All around us we hear people speaking about God and in light of recent world events religion has suddenly become very popular and very “politically correct.”  However, we must have a right understanding of what it means to follow Jesus.  We have to receive him as our savior and no other.  We must carry his seal and seek permanent residence in his kingdom.  That means receiving a residence visa from God giving us the right to live in his kingdom forever.  The seal on that visa is the precious blood of Jesus Christ.  Without that seal, we have no legal right to call ourselves God’s children.

In one of his most revealing statements about God’s kingdom, Jesus addressed this very idea of legal residence.  Matthew 7:21 records a very sobering statement by our Lord and one we need to read and understand. “Not every one who says to me ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” 

In other words, Jesus was saying that the mere outward appearance of being a Christian is not enough.  All the good deeds we do, all the church services we attend, all the good intentions we have, all the nice cards and flowers we send, and all the visits we make do not make us followers of Jesus Christ.  We must have his seal of salvation upon our hearts and accept him as Lord of our lives.  This is the only way to become a child of God.

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hen I was in France, the outside of my passport gave the impression I was there legally.  However, the inside of the passport bore the official document and seal granting me the legal right to remain in the country, to study there, and to live there.  We must ask ourselves what we look like on the inside.  Do we bear seal of Jesus Christ on our hearts?  Do we have the legal right to live in his kingdom for all eternity?  Are we doing the will of God, serving him faithfully from our hearts?  Have we obtained our visas for permanent residence in God’s kingdom?

Redistribute The Weight!

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y all indications, it was going to be a particularly hot day at Philmont Scout Ranch in northern New Mexico.  The weather forecaster had promised the high would be in the upper 90’s and it looked as if he would keep his word.  I had awakened around six o’clock, and had already showered, made my bed, and gotten dressed for the day.  I joined the other early risers and made my way to Philmont’s dining hall, prepared to eat a good breakfast before starting the day.

After breakfast, I made my routine morning visit to the logistics department to see how many crews would be arriving.  Already in the welcome center, groups were meeting their guides, getting their maps and agendas prepared, and weighing their packs.  The pack’s weight was a very important factor because an individual would carry this pack at least 50 to 75 miles in the coming ten days.  It was the job of the crew chief to ensure that all the necessary items were evenly distributed among the crew and that no none person carried an undue share of the burden. 

Later that afternoon, I was called out to one of the camps for a routine supply run. I enjoyed getting out of base camp and admiring the beautiful scenery of the New Mexico landscape.  After delivering my supplies and the all-important mail, I headed back toward base camp, hoping to arrive in time for lunch.  As I rounded the bend, I met a rather large crew stopped along the side of the road.  I took to opportunity to stop for a few minutes to see how their trek was going.  All the crew members had opened their packs and were busily unpacking and repacking their gear.  This struck me as curious but not odd since this type of thing happened all the time.

After a few moments of friendly chit chat, the crew chief informed me that one of his crew members was having a particularly hard day on the trail.  His fellow crew members wanted to help him out so they had decided to lighten his load by redistributing the weight among themselves.  This meant that this particular crew member could continue with a lighter load and that his teammates would carry his portion for the day.  The next day, someone else might be in the same situation and again the weight would be redistributed with the entire crew sharing the burden.

I watched this crew with great admiration and respect.  Instead of counting one of their number out, they chose to pitch in and help him, to make it possible for him to continue walking the path.  As I drove away from them, I couldn’t get the picture of that crew out of my mind.  It made me think of another picture, one painted by Jesus himself as he addressed all those who travel the Christian road, who get bogged down and become weary under the heavy burden of life.

In Matthew 11:28, Jesus extends an invitation to redistribute the weight we carry on our backs.  “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.”  There is so much truth and so much love in this short command form our Lord.  First, notice that Jesus bids us come to him with our burdens.  He knows that we grow weary. He understands that the road is long and that we are weak.  Jesus is fully aware of all the difficult road blocks that life puts across our path and he is aware that our backs grow tired and weak under the heavy burdens we carry.  What Jesus says to us is this: “Let’s stop beside the road for just a minute.  Let’s open up the packs and redistribute the weight.  I will carry the heavy stuff so that you can rest and together we will continue on the way.”

This is true love.  Jesus wants us to complete the journey we started and he wants to complete it with us.  He offers us rest, not the sit-down-and-do-nothing kind of rest but rest for the soul.  It is the type of rest that is constant no matter what we are facing in life.  Jesus asks us to roll the heavy stuff on to him and to let him carry our burdens for us.  In exchange, he gives us his burden which is light and he promises that our souls will find rest in him.

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re you carrying a heavy pack today?  Is it full of care, worry, frustration, and confusion?  Are you weighted down with all the cares of this life, wondering how you will ever continue with the burden on your back?  Listen very carefully and you will hear the voice of Jesus.  He is whispering very softly, asking you to give him all your cares.  Don’t you want to let him handle the heavy stuff?  Don’t you think it’s time you redistributed the weight?

Precise Measurements

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 ¼ cups of rice, 1 can of chicken broth, 1 package of soup; all the ingredients were carefully measured and were sitting on my counter. I rechecked the measurements with the recipe just to make sure I had read it correctly and then I combined everything.  As I mixed all these together, I couldn’t help but be amazed at the cooking process.  Here I was reading a recipe from someone I had never met, living in a distant place I had never heard of, whose name I didn’t even know.  Yet this person was giving me precise measurements for the ingredients in a casserole dish I was preparing.

As I continued to think about those instructions, an interesting thought came to mind.  Was my 1 ¼ cups of rice the same as the author’s measurement?  How could I be sure that we both were using the same standard of measure?  I mean was 1 ¼ cups in Texas the same as 1 ¼ cups somewhere else?  It had to be.  Somewhere along the line someone set the standard of measure for the measuring cup and every measurement of every recipe has referred to this precise quantity ever since.

This led to another question for me.  What standard am I using in my spiritual life?  How does my standard of measure for obeying God compare with God’s standard of measure? If I do not measure things according to God’s standard, then I will always miss the mark and my work will continually be underdone or lacking in some area.  One thing is for sure, it will never be right because I am not following God’s recipe and using his standard of measure.

A man named Achan serves as our example of not applying God’s measurement to our lives.  When the Children of Israel entered the Promised Land, the first city they destroyed was Jericho.  God’s instructions were clear.  They were to walk around the city one time for six days.  On the seventh day they were to march around seven times and with a loud shout they were to take the city as its walls collapsed.  Everything in the city was to be destroyed because it had been devoted to the Lord.  Joshua gives these instructions in regards to the gold and silver, “All the silver and gold and the articles of bronze and iron are sacred to the Lord and must go into his treasury” (Joshua 3:19).

God’s measurement here was “all.”  All the precious metals were to be set aside to the Lord.  Achan however, coveted 5 pounds (200 shekels) of silver, 1 ¼ pounds (50 shekels) of gold, and a robe.  He took these for his own and buried them in his tent.  Because of his actions, Israel was not successful in her attempt to capture the second city, Ai. When it was discovered that Achan had withheld some of the plunder, he paid with his life. Look at all the suffering that occurred because one man withheld a robe and a mere 6 pounds of metal!  When God says “all,” he means “all,” period!

The lesson from Achan’s story is clear for us today.  God wants our all, everything we have and the best of our efforts.  He is neither satisfied nor interested in anything less than our complete devotion to his will.  When we withhold from him in any aspect of our lives, we lose our ability to be effective witnesses for him.  We also fall into disobedience and our spiritual walk suffers for it.  Our disobedience also affects our relationships with those around us. We are incapable of being the blessing God intends for us to be in the lives of others.

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o, how do our lives measure up today? Are we following God’s instructions to the letter?  Are our standards of measure based on his word and his commands?  Does our idea of “total obedience” square with God’s idea? He has given us precise measurements for our relationship with him! So, are our lives overdone, lacking something or right on target?  Are we being "weighed in the balance and found wanting?” Think about it today!

Pack It And Come Home

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y first year of college finally came to an end.  It had been a rough year, filled with many challenges, both academic and other wise.  Academically, my performance had been less than stellar.  Math, my weakest subject, had taken its toll, I learned that my writing skills were less than desirable, and the only thing that kept me from completely drowning was French. 

Socially, the year had been equally difficult.  I came from a small town where everyone knew everyone else and stopping to speak wasn’t a chore, it was a joy.  But at college, there were people from all over the country and the world who had different ideas, different attitudes, and very different points of view.

So, I rapidly threw my things together and headed home. I called my mom the day before I left school.  I was hastily packing my laundry, all of which was dirty, and I told her that I’d be home the next day.  The dirty laundry really bothered me because I felt it was my responsibility, and not my parents’, to take care of me.  But my mom told me to forget about the laundry, to pack it and to come home!  When I got home, she spent the next day doing my laundry but she never complained or chided me. She was just glad to have me home!

I learned a wonderful lesson about God’s grace from this experience.  I was concerned that my mom and dad would think less of me if I came home with dirty laundry.  I feared they would be disappointed in me and feel as if I had let them down.  What I failed to see was that the laundry didn’t matter to them at all.  I was what mattered to them and dirty or clean, I was their son—period!

In Luke’s gospel we read the story of another son who was ashamed, embarrassed, and fearful that his father would no longer love him.  He had gone far away and squandered all he had.  Finally, when there was no one else to help, he decided to go home, dirty laundry and all.  The son, however had convinced himself his father would no longer accept him so he decided to work as a hired servant.  But this man completely underestimated his father’s love for him.

Luke 15:20 demonstrates this father’s love for his son, “But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.” The father saw his son, not a servant. He saw his son, not his dirty laundry.  He saw his son, not a failure.  He saw his son, not a rebel.  He saw his son, the one he loved, not someone who had rejected him.

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his is the way God sees us.  He isn’t concerned with our outward appearance.  He doesn’t care about our dirty laundry.  He doesn’t think about rejecting us or turning us away.  Instead, he runs to us, hugs us, kisses us, and welcomes us home.  When we come to our senses and understand that God loves us, that he offers us salvation through his son Jesus Christ, and that he welcomes home all who come to him in repentance then we begin to understand just how truly wonderful God is.  Are you far away from home today?  Are you concerned that your laundry is just to dirty for God to clean?  Follow my mom’s advice—just pack it and come home!

Out Of Sight; Not Out Of Mind

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ut of sight, out of mind is an old cliché I have heard all my life and one that I practiced regularly as a kid.  I used the space underneath my bed as storage for all my “important stuff.”  Whenever I needed to store something or get rid of something, under the bed it went.  When all that space was taken, I began using the available space in my closet. 

When my mom could no longer tolerate my clutter, she would simply announce it was time to clean out from under the bed.  I had to get down on my hands and knees, drag out all that “important stuff” and then throw it away.  I found things long forgotten, things I intended to use again but never did.  It took my hours sometimes to clean it all out and I wondered what had ever possessed me to stuff things under my bed in the first place.

Sometimes we feel that God has just stuffed us under the bed and forgotten all about us.  We keep praying, we keep reading the Bible, we keep on believing his promises but it feels like he has totally forgotten us.  Our lives seem so cluttered and filled with all kinds of challenges and difficulties and God is nowhere to be found.

This is exactly the way Mary and Martha must have felt when they sent word to Jesus that Lazarus was sick.  They expected him to come right away, to perform a miracle, and to restore Lazarus to perfect health.  However, things didn’t turn out exactly the way they planned. 

John 11:6  gives us Jesus’ initial reaction to the news of Lazarus’ illness, “Yet when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days.”  Unbelievable!  One of Jesus closest and dearest friends is sick and when he learns about it he does nothing.  He stays two more days where he is.

This does seem like Jesus has placed them underneath the bed, stored them away, forgotten all about them.  Both Martha and Mary express this to Jesus when he arrives, telling him that Lazarus would not have died if he had come on time.  In other words, Mary and Martha are saying, “If you hadn’t forgotten our request, if you hadn’t put us out of mind, Lazarus would still be alive.”

All of us have shared Martha and Mary’s feelings.  All of us have had moments when we felt God had left us alone to fend for ourselves.  But the truth is, we are never out of his sight and we are never out of his mind.  His thoughts are always toward us and he always knows where we are.  We cannot hide from him, we cannot be separated from him, if he knows when sparrows fall, he knows everything that concerns you and me today.

When confronted with Mary and Martha’s concerns, Jesus simply told them to believe and all would be well.  He raised Lazarus that day and restored him to his friends and family.  Mary and Martha felt as if Jesus had forgotten them.  They felt alone and helpless and wondered why he didn’t come when they called.  But Jesus had something far greater in mind and in store for theses sisters, something they could never imagine or hope would happen.

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oday, whatever your situation, rest assured God has not forgotten you. He is not in the business of sweeping you under the rug or storing you underneath the bed.  He knows all about you and he is aware of everything that touches your life.  He is constantly working on your behalf and his timing is always perfect.  At times God may be out of your sight, but you are never out of his mind!  

On-The-Job Training

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hen I was sixteen years old, my dad agreed to let me hold a job.  There were certain parameters I had to observe and as long as I remained within them, I could hold the job.  Daddy wanted to make sure I made school work a priority so I could only work on the weekends.  However, in the summer months, he said I could work as much as I wanted.  The trick was finding a place that matched my dad’s requirements for a job.

One of the local hospitals was advertising for a weekend receptionist/data entry clerk in the x-ray department.  I went for an interview and the supervisor offered me the job.  My main responsibilities were locating patient records and updating them whenever an examination was performed.  The job put my typing skills to good use.  In fact, that job greatly improved my typing and enhanced my computer skills as well.  I had acquired both of these in high school but instead of using them for a grade, I was using them to help people get well.  It was very rewarding to know my typing and computer skills were actually being used for a much higher purpose.

Before I was ready to run the front desk on my own, I had to undergo training.  All the training was done on the job because that was the best way to learn.  By working with patient records, I soon learned how to locate any file in the department quickly and efficiently.  The computer soon became a joy to use instead of something to be feared and the filing procedure became second nature to me.  Everything I learned in school helped me in my job but I never dreamed I would use these skills to potentially cure someone or save his life.

Jesus knew the value of on-the-job training for his disciples.  In fact, when he calls Peter and Andrew away from their life’s work, on-the-job training is exactly what he had in mind.  Look at Jesus’ words in Matthew 4:19, “Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men."  This one statement speaks volumes to us and it should encourage us in our daily walk with the Lord.

First, this statement tells us that Peter and Andrew were both fishermen by trade.  In fact, the Scriptures teach us just prior to this verse that these two brothers were indeed fishermen.  They know how to catch fish, how to choose the appropriate bait, where to find the best spots to fish, and they knew how to care for and repair their nets.  Yet when Jesus finds them, he begins teaching them where they are.  He uses the abilities they have but he applies them in a completely different way.  Notice that Jesus promises to make Peter and Andrew fishers of men.  The Greek text reads very interestingly here.  It says that Jesus will teach them to become fishers of men.

Although they knew a lot about catching fish, Andrew and Peter knew precious little about catching and winning souls for Jesus.  Nevertheless, Jesus took what they knew, and through careful teaching and hands-on instruction, he taught these two brothers to catch the souls of men.  Everything Peter and Andrew had learned through fishing was of use to them.  Now, however, they were to apply their knowledge of fishing to harvesting souls for the kingdom of God.

This is one of the most encouraging passages of Scripture I know.  No matter what my background, no matter what I have learned, God can use it for the furtherance of his kingdom.  Even when my attempts seem so feeble and so ineffective, God uses them to achieve his purposes.  God gives me on-the-job training every day because every day is different.

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o, wherever you are today and whatever your assigned task, know that God is working with you and through you, teaching you how to win the souls of those around you.  Not all of us are called to the pulpit, or the mission field, or the Sunday school classroom.  But all of us are called to share our faith with those around us and to live a life that indicates the presence of Christ.  

Remember, God called Andrew and Peter to on-the-job training and he taught them how to accomplish the goal he had in mind for them.  The same is true of you today.  God knows what he wants to do with you and your life.  All he needs is for you to trust him, to be willing to learn how to be an effective witness to all those around you today.  So, what are you waiting for?  Throw out those nets.  The fish are waiting!

No Parking!

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owntown Fort Worth is a wonderful place to visit.  There are all types of shops, numerous restaurants, wonderful bookstores, great places to get a cup of coffee, a superb performance hall, and good movie theaters where you can catch the latest flick.  Yes, it is a wonderful place, provided you can find a parking space!  This is especially true in the evenings and on the weekends when the entire population, it seems, pours into the downtown area to enjoy all it has to offer.

  

On more than one occasion I have ventured downtown and found myself in a battle to find an empty space to park my car.  The lots are either full or I find myself confronted with ever-present and all-to-familiar information sign, “No Parking!”  One Saturday afternoon, I decided to spend some time looking through the various shops downtown.  I got in my car and took the fifteen-minute drive into the city.  But there was no where to park!  All the lots were full, all the spaces were taken, and there literally was no available space to be seen.

After several minutes of circling the city, after putting several miles on my car, and after wearing down the tread on my tires, I gave up in desperation and decided to return home to bandage my wounds.  I was frustrated and angry.  Everywhere I looked I saw a “No Parking” sign so I just kept driving until I returned home!  Have you ever been there?  Have you ever been frustrated by a traffic sign?  To top it all off, someone had written me a nice letter requesting that I pay my phone bill!  What a day!  All I wanted was a parking space, not a headache!

But after I returned home and cooled down a little bit, I realized there was actually a blessing in my little afternoon adventure.  Had I found a parking space downtown, I would have been tempted to stroll into the shops, get some coffee, buy a book, or see movie and spend more money than I had anticipated.  Then I would have been hard-pressed to pay the phone bill which was more of a priority than a cup of coffee.  Now, please don’t get me wrong. I can afford a cup of coffee and my phone bill, the question here is one of priority.

The Apostle Paul understood the idea of not parking in the Christian life.  He knew that following hard after Jesus and walking with God is the single most important priority of life.  Parking spaces, Paul knew, sometimes lead to trouble.  They get us off the road; they stop our forward progress for a while, and allow our minds to wonder through all the shops life has to offer.  When we are in the shops, it is easy for us to get our priorities skewed and out of balance.

In his letter to the Philippians, Paul writes, “forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:13b-14). This is the great secret of the Christian life—forward motion!  Notice that Paul admonishes his readers to keep pressing on toward the goal.  The one focus, the one goal, the one aim of our lives must be Jesus Christ who alone can supply all our needs and satisfy our souls.

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ut in modern terms, Paul would be telling his readers to take notice of the “No Parking” signs and to keep moving forward.  The world offers many things but these things can never fulfill us in the way God does.  Browsing among the world’s shops, drinking from its fountains, and walking idly along can lead us to confuse our priorities and to get our eyes off of Christ!  However, if we keep our eyes on him, if we keep moving forward, we will find that our priorities are in the right place, that our needs are met, and our souls will be satisfied.  Are you looking for a parking place today?  Pay attention to those “No Parking” signs!  They just might be blessings in disguise!

Marked For Life!

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he expression, “He’s a marked man!” took on new meaning for me as I made my way from the classroom building to the parking lot.  As I made my way through the throng of students eagerly heading away from class, I couldn’t help but notice one student in particular.  He was a good distance away from me but I had no difficulty picking him out from among his peers.  It wasn’t that he was taller than they, he wasn’t.  It had nothing to do with his clothes; they were pretty much standard fare for a college student.  His hair was neatly trimmed, and he was clean shaven.  What caught my eye, however, was the fact that both of his arms were colorfully decorated by several tattoos. 

Now, seeing a tattoo is nothing new and it doesn’t carry the shock value in our society that it once did.  After living two years in Europe, not much shocks me anymore, especially in the way of body décor.  Anyway, as this young man continued walking towards me, it became obvious that the girl walking next to him had staked her claim.  Her name took up most of his right arm and some other pictures and slogans decorated his left.  With one glance, it became very apparent as to where this young man’s loyalties lay.

As I continued towards my car, I couldn’t stop reflecting on what I had just seen.  All during my drive from Arlington to Fort Worth, I kept replaying the vision of that young man and the tattoos he had emblazoned on his skin.  I didn’t remember the exact pictures or slogans on his left arm, but the name of his girlfriend sticks out in my mind.  She was a permanent part of his life and everywhere he went, whether she was with him or not, he bore testimony to his feelings for her.

I began looking over my own arms.  They are free from marks of any kind and bear no evidence that I’ve been anywhere remotely near a tattoo parlor.  Yet, my life bears marks just the same and ones that speak more loudly than anything affixed to my body.  I claim to be a Christian, but do my actions show it?  Do my words give evidence of my relationship with Jesus Christ?  Do my actions tell of my loyalty to him?  Does my attitude tell others far away that I belong to Christ?  If someone were to follow me would I go anywhere that I shouldn’t and do anything that would betray my claim to be a follower of Jesus?

Like it or not, we are all marked.  The question is, “Whose mark are we displaying?”  There are really only two choices we can make.  We either bear the mark of Christ, or we bear the mark of the world.  We cannot bear both!  The marks that distinguish a Christian stem from spending time with God, reading his word, obeying his commands, and living a life that is holy and pleasing to him.  This puts us at odds with the rest of the world and should cause us to stick out in the crowd, much like the young man with tattoos all over his arms.

The Apostle Paul described such a mark in his letter to the church at Ephesus.  In Ephesians 1:13, he writes, “And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit”  So, according to Paul, from the moment we heard the truth and accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, we all became marked men and women. 

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oday, is there outward evidence of Christ’s inward presence in our lives?  When people see us, do they see Jesus?  Can they distinguish us from among our peers because we wear his name proudly and boldly for the entire world to see?  Are we living as marked people today?   

Lemon, Salt, and Ice

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ou can learn a lot by working in a restaurant.  In addition to learning a great deal about food, you also gain a pretty good knowledge of how to clean up spills, how to remove stains, and the various tricks and trades of making food taste better and keeping it fresh longer.  One of the most valuable lessons I learned was how to remove stubborn stains from a coffee pot!

At first glance, this may not seem to be an earth-shattering-discovery.  However, if you’ve ever had a coffee pot to burn, or if you’ve experienced the difficulties of removing the dark stains left by coffee or tea, then this little morsel is for you.  When I worked in one of the local restaurants here in Fort Worth, I occasionally had the job of making sure the coffee pots were cleaned and ready for the morning shift.  I remember the first time I cleaned the coffee pots.  I ran cold water into them and swirled it around and around.  The more I swirled, however, the more the stain in the bottom of the pot persisted.  Finally, when I reached the point of frustration and utter impatience, I asked one of the seasoned waitresses to help me.

She politely smiled, walked over to the counter, and came back with lemon slices, salt, and ice.  Understandably, my curiosity was peaked so I watched and learned.  She placed the lemon slices and the salt into the container and then she placed ice on top.  She started swirling the pots around and in no time, the stubborn coffee stain was transferred from the pot to the lemons.  The acid from the lemons, coupled with the abrasiveness of the salt scrubbed the glass surface of the pot.  The ice provided the water that washed the pot clean and in just a few minutes, the stain was gone.  My method of cleaning required more effort and never fully removed the stain.

Do you see the application of this illustration to the Christian life?  Like the coffee pot, our lives are stained with sin.  The stain is stubborn, set in, not wanting to come out.  The more we try to remove the stain using our own strength and resources, the more persistent it becomes.  Our efforts never produce the desired result because we don’t have the ability to remove sin from our lives.  Saying we are a Christian, filling our lives with good actions, giving money and time to worthwhile causes, and visiting people when they are sick or lonely are all noble acts.  However, when it comes to removing the sin from our lives, these are no more effective than the water in the coffee pot.  We end up with tired arms and the stain remains.

However, there is a solution.  The stain of sin can be removed from our hearts as long as we ask Jesus for help and allow him to remove the sin for us.  1John 1:7 tells us how we can accomplish this, “but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.  When we allow Jesus to come into our hearts, he applies the cleansing power of his blood and removes the sin from us.  We are then clean, pure, and ready to be used for God’s purpose.  Continuing our fellowship with Christ, walking with him daily, and following and obeying his commands, ensure that we remain clean and free from sin’s stain.

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 have thought many times about the lesson I learned from the lemon, the salt, and the ice!  They serve as reminders of the stains God continues to remove from my life when I disobey and sin against him.  So many times I must go to God and ask him to apply the cleansing power of Christ’s blood and to restore me to a clean vessel that can be used for his glory.  Is there enough lemon, salt, and ice in your life today?