With My Own Eyes

How’s that for a legacy?

I don’t know about your elementary school, but at mine, everything was done by getting in a line–get in line to go to the bathroom, get in line to go to lunch, get in line to go to recess, get in line to get on the bus.  And oh the joy of being first in line!  Looking back, I’m not sure that being first really accomplished a whole lot, but it was still the position coveted by all.

As an adult, I’m not much different.  Josh and I like to go to a college basketball tournament in Anaheim over Thanksgiving.  And we typically make a great effort to be first in line for when the doors open so we can be first to get the seats we want.  Do we really see the game that much better by being first?  Probably not.  But there is something within me that wants to be first.

In Genesis 13:9, Abraham does the opposite.  He is about to part ways with his nephew Lot, but rather than play the “uncle card” and insist on going first, Abraham says,

“Is not the whole land before you? Separate yourself from me. If you take the left hand, then I will go to the right, or if you take the right hand, then I will go to the left.” (Genesis 13:9, ESV)

“Lot, you choose first.  I’ll choose second.”

Here’s the point:  Abraham trusted in God’s ability to give more than in his own ability to grab.  When we insist on being first it is often because we don’t trust God to be good.  So, we feel we have to take matters into our own hands. But in this instance Abraham demonstrated amazing trust.  Lot could go first, and God would be good.  As Jesus promises in Matthew 20:16,  “So the last will be first, and the first last.”

Question for today:  Where do you need to trust in God’s ability to give more than in your own ability to grab?

“In the morning, LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly (Psalm 5:3, NIV).”

Mornings are a battle for me.  I shared a couple of days ago the conviction to be victorious in this battle.  Why is this so important?

1. The morning sets the tone for the day.  I find that as my morning goes, so goes my day.  Flesh or Spirit?  Self-centered or Christ-centered?  Hurried or unhurried?
2. The morning is quiet.  In a world of noise, the morning provides an opportunity to hear God’s still small voice.
3. The morning is fresh. Every 24 hours we are given the gift of a new beginning.  The morning provides the opportunity to revel in this gift.  “Morning by morning new mercies I see.”
4. The morning is a birthplace for faith–an expectation for what God will do in the day to come.  (See Psalm 5:3 above).

I believe that we can and should meet with God any time of the day.  But there is just something different about the morning.

My experience has been that victory in the morning doesn’t just happen.  It takes planning. Here are some practical ideas that might help:

1. Go to bed 30 minutes earlier.
2. Set your alarm and put it on the other side of the room. (No snooze!)
3. Have an intentional place for study and prayer.  Lay out your resources in this place the night before.
4. Have an intentional plan for study and prayer.  Let me know if you need help making a plan.

Feel free to check to see how my battle is going.  If you too have been thinking about this, I would love to hear from you.

“Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed (Mark 1:35, NIV).”

The word “nice” is defined as “pleasant; agreeable; satisfactory.”  Pretty exciting, huh? This is not exactly the recipe for changing the world.  I’ve lived most of my life striving to be nice and have to some degree been successful (though others may disagree).  While many may view this to be a strength, I am seeing it more and more as a weakness.  Here’s why:

1. Being nice can be motivated by the desire to be liked.
2. Being nice can be motivated by the desire to avoid confrontation.
3. Being nice can be motivated by the desire to avoid hard truth.
4. Being nice can be motivated by the desire to preserve the status quo.

Have you ever considered the fact that you can be nice, and not loving?

Of all of the words used to describe Jesus, I am not aware of Him ever being referred to as “nice.”  In fact, there are some snapshots in the Gospels of Jesus being anything but nice (ex. cleansing the Temple, confronting sin, proclaiming absolute Truth).  Rather than be nice, Jesus was full of love and Truth-regardless of the consequences.  It is no surprise then that being “nice” is not a fruit of the Spirit.

It is my belief that, much like me, the evangelical church has greatly valued being nice (for the very same reasons listed above).  I am advocating for myself and for the church that we repent of being nice and embrace the character of Jesus instead.  This is not a call to be mean.  It is rather the opposite.  This is a call to be full of love and Truth regardless of the consequences. And that just might be the recipe for changing the world.

The righteous are bold as a lion. (Proverbs 28:1, ESV) 

P.S. Please don’t use this post to justify being a jerk.  If you do, you have missed the point.

I’ve always liked the story of the tortoise and the hare, probably because I’ve never been a very fast runner.  I was (past tense due to worn out knees) a plodder–just like the tortoise.  So, I find great satisfaction that it is the tortoise and not the hare who is victorious in the fable.  Plodders unite!

The tortoise has a lot to teach us about spiritual formation.  Specifically, that lasting spiritual growth is a sloooow, methodical, continuous process.  It is telling that in Genesis it says of two heroes of the faith:

Enoch walked with God (Genesis 5:22, ESV)

Noah walked with God (Genesis 6:9, ESV)

Walking involves slow, methodical, continuous progress.  And when you walk with someone it tends to be more about the companionship than it is about the destination.  Walking is God’s way.

So, if you are discouraged at the beginning of 2017 that you are not a spiritual hare, take heart that it is the tortoise who wins the race.  Keep walking.  And most of all, enjoy the company of the God with whom you are walking.

But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?” (Genesis 3:9, ESV)

What a great question to begin the year.  Before you can find your way to a desired destination, you first have to know where you are.  Sometimes, as it was in Adam’s case, the answer to that question can be quite sobering–but also necessary.  The reality of where you are can help determine where you need to be.

So, where am I on January 2nd, 2017? (Let me preface the following by saying I am beyond blessed where I am today.  But, here are some key indicators for needed growth):

1. Over-weight – Today is weigh-in day.  My guess is 230ish.  I already exercise.  That only leaves addressing what I eat.  I would rather exercise.  Changes coming.
2. Under-prayed – I have spiritual ADD, especially as the day progresses.  So, in order to have unhurried time with God I must be victorious over the early morning.  Changes coming.
3. Over-soft – I fear I have let some of my health challenges let me retreat into regularly taking the path of least resistance.  I have become averse to hard things (ex. travel).  Changes coming.
4. Under-fasted –  When Jesus taught on fasting He said, “when” you fast and not “if” you fast.  It has been a long while since I have incorporated fasting into my spiritual disciplines (see #3).  Changes coming.

Those are just a few of the markers shedding light on where I am today.  I look forward to them being catalysts which spring me forward to an even better place.

By the way, where are you?

That’s me wearing the #11 Danny White Cowboys jersey.  I think they kept so many guys on the team just so they wouldn’t have to cut me.

Photo credit: Karl Becker

I recently re-read David Platt’s book Radical:  Taking Back Your Faith From the American Dream with a group of guys.  It was a timely read as we approach a new year.  Platt listed five potential action steps at the end of the book:

1. Pray for the entire world
2. Read through the entire Word
3. Sacrifice your money for a specific purpose
4. Spend your time in another context
5. Commit your life to a multiplying community

I think for me personally #4 will be a point of emphasis moving forward.  I can be quite content to be a hermit, enjoying my family and time alone.  But I really do need to be stretched beyond my comfort through travel and experiencing other contexts.  I have wanted to make a trip to the Holy Land for some time.  This might be a step.  I also need to spend to on foreign mission fields.

Which of the five might you make as a point of emphasis for a more radical 2017?