Lefty, Meet Righty

This coming Saturday, April 25, over 400 people from our church will gather at the church and then disperse into our community to touch the lives of people in need. Projects range from landscaping to light construction, from conducting food drives to stocking pantries, from washing cars to washing clothes, from conducting clinics for children and youth to delivering donations to local charities. It's going to be a great day as we single-handedly make the community a better place for all people and as we single-handedly display the love of God in action!

I know, it sounds a little boastful to say that we will make such an impact single-handedly, but that's exactly what we should say because that is exactly what we should do. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus told his followers to do charitable things single-handedly. Matthew 6:1-4 says,

1"Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. 2"So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 3But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

Did you catch verse 3? Jesus said to give to the needy in such an unpretentious manner that your own left hand is clueless about the good deed that your own right hand is doing. Is that possible? How good are you at keeping secrets? Can you keep a secret with your right hand that you promise never to share with your left hand?

I think Jesus is intentionally using exaggeration as a figure of speech to drive home the point that the wonderful act of giving to the needy is never about the one who gives. Instead it is all about bringing glory to God and goodness to others.

As a youngster, I would try to impress my friends and enemies by boasting about my superior skills and talent at just about everything. I used to tell them that I could beat them at whatever with one hand tied behind my back. Of course there was never any rope around at the time I would say that so I never got to prove it. I guess it would have been impressive if I was able to do that.

I know for sure it impresses God when I give to the needy with "one hand tied behind my back." I know it impresses God when I am genuinely more concerned about helping the one in need and about bringing glory to Him than I am about tooting my horn to gain the admiration of others. It impresses Him when I keep secrets about acts of kindness with my right hand that I don't even share with my left.

Imagine a world where we Christians "single-handedly" helped the needy because we are genuinely more concerned about helping the ones in need and about bringing glory to God than we are about our own needs and about impressing others. What kind of world would that be? It would be a "right" handed world, a right kind of world, and the secrets that are kept from the left hand will be safeguarded in the watchful eye of a pleased God until the day this world is over.

Then, imagine a heaven where God the Father receives His children home. Imagine His children arriving through the gates of glory with their left hands tied behind their backs. Imagine the Father saying, "Well done, good and faithful servant," as the Lord Jesus loosens the rope and liberates each child's left hand. Then all secrets are revealed and celebrated as lefty meets righty for the first time, lifted together to receive their reward.

Are you "single-handedly" making an impact on our world? Are you helping the needy "with one hand tied behind your back?" We all should be. If you are, then only you and God know it is so, and God is pleased with that!

How Do You View The Rain?

A few nights ago, we experienced a heavy thunderstorm in our area which made it a little more difficult than usual to get a five-year-old and a three-year-old to go to sleep. As difficult as it may have been to get the children to sleep I didn't mind it that much. Thunderstorms can create some great conversational moments with preschoolers. Such was the case for me and my five-year-old that night.

"Daddy, the thunder means that God is strong."

"That's right," I replied.

"And the lightning means that God is fast."

"I guess you are right," said I, startled at how a five-year-old came up with that one and a little embarrassed that I had never noticed that before. After a somewhat lengthy pause to allow for my brain to grasp hold of this sudden burst of genius from my five-year-old, I realized we had not yet discussed the rain.

"What about the rain?" I asked.

After giving it some thought, the question was returned to me, "I don't know. What does the rain mean?"

My reply went something like this: "The rain means God is good and kind. We need the rain for the plants and flowers to grow. The rain shows us that God loves us."

That concluded our conversation, but I have since given it more thought. I have wondered what adults in general would think about this "thunderstorm to God" comparison. I believe most would accept the idea that the thunder means that God is strong. After all, there is a word used in church that is attributed to God that says God is all-powerful. That word is "omnipotent." I also believe most would accept the comparison that the lightning means that God is fast. In fact, God is so fast that He is everywhere. The church word for that is "omnipresent." But the "thunderstorm to God" comparison may begin to differ among adults when it comes to the rain. What does the rain mean?

As you recall, I told my five-year-old that the rain means that God is good and kind and that the rain shows us that God loves us. Admittedly however, I haven't always felt that way about the rain. There have been times when I thought the rain was unfair. As I look back to when I was a child at an age not much older than my five-year-old, I remember my baseball games being canceled because of rain. I couldn't go outside to play when it rained. There were times that I hated the rain. So, sometimes I have seen the rain as a blessing and sometimes I have seen it as a curse.

Jesus once said, "For he (God) gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and on the unjust, too (Matthew 5:45b, NLT)." I think this verse means that good and bad people experience good and bad times. None of us are immune to difficult circumstances in life; neither are we entitled to only good circumstances. Whether we see our current state of affairs as showers of blessings or a deluge of cursing all depends on how we view the rain.

Jesus tells the story of two individuals, one wise and one foolish (Matthew 7:24-27). I believe they both had the goal of living a successful and a happy life. However, they differed in their approach to achieve the same goal. The first man was a wise man. This man built his house on the firm foundation of solid rock. When the rains came, the floods rose, and the wind beat against the house, the house survived because of its foundation. The second man was a foolish man. This man was not concerned with the foundation as evidenced by the house he built on the sand. When the rains came, the floods rose, and the winds beat against the house, the house was demolished because of its foundation.

The foundation -- that is your vantage point! My foundation is my vantage point from which to view the rain. Like a house, the foundation is the part of you that is unseen. It is the core of who you are. Take away the bricks, the mortar, the decorations, the wood, and there underneath it all is the foundation. There is your vantage point. There is where you find out if you have what it takes to withstand the storms. From there you look out at the rain, the floods, the wind, and the lightning. There is where you hear the thunder, and there is where you either see the rains as showers of blessings or a deluge of cursing.

What is your foundation? What is your vantage point? Jesus said that we are like that wise man if we live according to what we hear from Him. On the other hand, we are like the foolish man when we hear from Him, yet we don't do what he says. We can all hear the words of Jesus, but our survival in the storm depends on whether or not we live what we have heard.

The rain will come, if it hasn't already. It is bound to happen. When it does, look deep within before you look out. Get down to your core. Get down to your foundation. That's the vantage point from which to view the storm. If you have not been putting into practice what you have heard Jesus say, then you will view the rain as unfair, even though we are neither immune to difficult days nor entitled to only good days. If that remains your view, you run the risk of developing an increasing anger toward God and the crumbling of relationships all around you. On the other hand, if you have been putting into practice what you have heard Jesus say, then when you look outward toward the storms you will see that indeed God is good and kind and that he loves you. You will see showers of blessing in spite of the storm!

You know, that thunderstorm the other night was a shower of blessing because of the things my five-year-old taught me.

"The thunder means that God is strong." That's right!

"The lightning means that God is fast." You are right!

"The rain means....." Well now that depends. How do you view the rain?

'Nuff Said

For God so loved the world...
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.

And the LORD God commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die."

When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.

Therefore, sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned. "There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one. There is no fear of God before their eyes." For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.

God is love. He first loved us.

That He Gave His One and Only Son...
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.

The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."

The time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord."

He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.

Pilate had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified. Then they led him out to crucify him. They brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means The Place of the Skull), and they crucified him.

Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Jesus said, "It is finished." Jesus called out with a loud voice, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit." When he had said this, he breathed his last.

This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us.

That Whoever Believes in Him Shall Not Perish...
Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again." To all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God -- children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God.

If you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God. Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God

How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! We know that we live in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit.

For everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. "Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?" The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

But Have Eternal Life...
Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die." If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men. But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. By this gospel you are saved that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.

And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.

I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day.

'Nuff Said!

This entry is a compilation of various scripture passages throughout the Bible from the NIV translation. The only words that are mine are "'Nuff Said!" What more needs to be said? God bless you this Holy Week!

Oh Danny Boy

We all are like Danny. Danny is a rooster. At least “Danny” is the name I gave to the rooster that recently took up residence in my cul-de-sac. I live in a planned neighborhood where houses are built on less than an acre and next door neighbors might as well be in the next room. Farm animals are the last thing one might expect to find in that kind of community. So you can imagine my surprise, when one day last week, I awoke, walked out to my car, and there in my front yard was a rooster.

Danny let me know rather quickly upon our meeting one another that morning that he had no intentions of being a neighbor of the friendly sort. He cocked his head back, ruffled his feathers, and strutted with a swagger that the old John Wayne would have been proud of. I minded my own business and left him to mind his.

None in the neighborhood seemed to know if he might actually belong to someone, so no one knew what to do with him other than just accept him into our cul-de-sac community. For a few days, Danny roamed from yard to yard strutting his stuff, and every morning at sunrise he proudly announced his presence in the neighborhood.

That’s when it dawned on me (pun intended - “dawn” = sunrise). We all are like Danny! There are times when we strut our stuff. We cock our heads back, ruffle our feathers, and swagger. Peter, the disciple, had such a moment.

Near the end of His ministry, Jesus told his disciples that He would soon leave them. His destination was not a place that they would go to immediately. They would have to wait awhile. Jesus was informing them that he would die soon. Upon hearing this announcement, Peter, the old rooster, cocked his head back, ruffled his feathers, and strutted his stuff as he boldly crowed, “I will lay down my life for your sake!” Peter boldly professed his absolute and undeniable loyalty to Jesus. What a rooster kind of move!

Jesus heard Peter’s bold proclamation, but He knew better. Jesus knew that Peter really would have to lay it on the line. Peter would have to choose between loyalty to Jesus and saving his own life. Moreover, Jesus knew the choice the Old Rooster would make. So, Jesus' response to Peter revealed what He knew. Peter’s apparent boldness would soon manifest itself as the unimpressive cockiness it really was. “Before the rooster crows” in the morning, Jesus said, “You will deny me three times.”

Intended boldness is reduced to unimpressive cockiness when at the defining moment cowardice sets in and takes over. Rooster moves become chicken dances. Sure enough, Peter’s defining moment came in the wee hours of that Friday morning while Jesus faced the trial of his life. Jesus was undergoing his trial in the courtroom, while Peter was dealing with his own trial in the courtyard. Three times someone asked Peter if he was a follower of Jesus, and each time the Old Rooster chickened out. His rooster move had become a chicken dance and just in time to hear the barnyard rooster signal the dawning of a new day and the disappointment of an old friend.

The other day, I walked toward Danny, and Danny ran! I was reminded that Danny is as much a chicken as he is a rooster. Peter once was too. You and I are also. There are times when we strut our stuff -- we cock our heads back, ruffle our feathers, and swagger. Then there are times when we dance the chicken dance. Most assuredly, we all are Danny-like.

I haven’t seen Danny in the cul-de-sac lately. I guess he has flown the coup! How can we rid our ‘hood of the Danny-like tendencies within us? How can we move from unimpressive cockiness to genuine boldness and do great things for God? How did Peter make the move?

Here’s how. Peter got re-instated. After His resurrection, Jesus sought out Peter and intentionally asked him three times if Peter loved Him, once for each time that Peter had denied Him. The number three is significant in the Bible because it represents completeness. By stating three times that he was not a follower of Jesus, Peter had completely and totally turned his back on Jesus. By asking Peter three times if he loved Him, Jesus completely and totally re-instated Peter.

Like Peter, we move from unimpressive cockiness to genuine boldness when we receive the grace God offers to re-instate us when we fail. We receive that grace when we confess our chicken dances and submit our lives to the Lord of the dance. His Holy Spirit then emboldens us and empowers us to do and to be what we might have thought impossible. Godly boldness is not something that we can manufacture or fake. Godly boldness that enables us to do great things for God begins with the humble awareness that were it not for God, oh Danny Boy, a cocky coward is all we would be.

The story of Peter as summarized in this blog can be found in The Gospel of John, chapters 13, 18, and 21.