You Can't Outrun Trouble

“The last great battle of the Civil War took place near the McLean Farm in Appomattox, Virginia. The McLean house was chosen to be the spot where Gen. Robert E. Lee would surrender to Gen. Ulysses S. Grant. The McLeans were new to the area. They previously lived near a place called Bull Run, site of the first major battle of the Civil War. Later there was a second battle of Bull Run, and the McLeans finally gave up, not wanting to see any more war. That is why they moved. McLean used to say, “The war started in my front yard and ended in my parlor.” It just goes to show you, you can’t outrun trouble.”*

            The prophet Jonah thought that he could outrun his troubles.  You know the story -- God instructs Jonah to do something difficult and the first thing he does is attempt to run away.  He books passage on a ship headed to Tarshish instead of obediently heading for Nineveh.  But God isn’t so easily dissuaded.  Following an encounter with a divinely-appointed storm and great fish, Jonah rethinks his decision to try and outrun God.  I suppose being regurgitated alive from the belly of a fish would tend to cause anyone to reflect on their life choices.

            Jonah goes on to preach to the Ninevites, but he is still harboring some rebellion in his heart.  This is seen in his angry response to the repentance of the Ninevites.  There is a sense that, even though he was physically present, Jonah was still on the run.  But God still pursues him.  He confronts the petulant prophet’s “I told you so’s” with an up-close-and-personal lesson on compassion.

            It’s true.  We can’t out-run trouble.  But for the child of God, that can be a source of comfort.  Like Jonah, God loves us too much to let us keep running without attempting to turn us around.  The storm and big fishes of life just might be what’s needed to get us to consider the paths we have chosen.

God loves you!

Mike

*https://www.preaching.com/sermon-illustrations/illustration-trouble-will-find-you/

What Was He Thinking?

I suspect most of you have seen the video of the man taunting the buffalo in Yellowstone Park a couple of weeks ago.  As happens often in the park, traffic had come to a stop due to some animal near the roadway.  Smart people stay in their vehicles during these times due to the unpredictability of these wild animals. But occasionally a “less than smart” (is that a kind way to put it?) individual decides to interact with nature in a more personal but definitely more dangerous way.  That happened on this particular occasion.  Raymond Reinke, age 55, was caught on video approaching the bull buffalo.  He then proceeded to wave his arms and yell at the animal.  Not surprisingly, the buffalo turned and ran with his horns lowered at Reinke.  Only at the last moment did the buffalo stop the charge, perhaps the only reason why this foolhardy tourist escaped serious injury or even death.  What in the world was Reinke thinking?  I suspect he wasn’t.  He had been stopped by authorities twice in the previous days and alcohol was a factor in both of those encounters.  So chances are pretty good that he was under the influence of “liquid courage” as he involved himself in this idiotic escapade as well.  But whatever motivated him to do what he did, it is a wonder that Reinke survived his foolishness.

While we shake our heads at this, I wonder if we end up doing the same thing in our lives spiritually.  We are warned very clearly in Scripture about the danger that our adversary, the devil, presents (1 Peter 5:8).  And thankfully, by the power of God, we do not have to cower before him.  We are instructed to resist him (James 4:7; 1 Peter 5:9) but never should we underestimate him or, worse yet, taunt him.  Such foolishness just invites spiritual harm and gives an unnecessary opportunity to the one who seeks to destroy us (Ephesians 4:27).  Don’t taunt buffalos or Satan!

God loves you!

Mike

Analysis Paralysis

            Steven Brice wrote recently of all the emotions he and his family are experiencing as they reach the culmination of decade’s worth of planning and training to launch a new ministry in Philadelphia.  During this time, the story of God’s calling of Abram to leave all that was familiar to him and go to a place that was unknown to him (Genesis 12) became more meaningful to Brice.  As he reflects on this part of Abram’s story and draws some parallels to his own move, he shares the following paragraph:

            “The point is that God calls Abram to leave everything to go to a place without any direction. In this hyper informative age, it would sound ludicrous for me to inform my family and friends that God told me to go to “adsfjsadhflds,” let alone go to Philadelphia. This reflection has birthed a question in my heart: has the information age drowned our ability to hear God call us to go to places and do things that would leave us clueless like Abram? Have we become so educated and business savvy that we need to be sure that every “i” is dotted and every “t” is crossed before we take our first step? Are we still hearing from God? Is God writing new stories of faith using us as participants in his mission, or have we been paralyzed with contentment and fascination by reading what God has done in the past through the lives of biblical characters?”*

            Can you relate to what Steven Brice says here?  I surely can.  I’m of the personality type that likes to have all the “i’s” dotted and “t’s” crossed before launching out on a project.  And while a certain amount of caution is probably good (see, I’m already justifying myself), when it comes to God’s call in my life, perhaps more faith and less analysis and information-gathering is best.  Maybe Abram had his questions too but, as far as we know, he didn’t voice them.  He just packed his bags.  What amazing faith!

God loves you!

Mike

*http://char.is/blog/2018/06/28/where-are-you-going-abram/

True Love

“Far too many of us think about dating and marriage as being all about “the spark.” A man looks into a woman’s eyes and he feels something. A woman glances at a man in a restaurant and her heart races. Some believe that this is how you find your spouse. You have to feel the chemistry first, or you are looking at the wrong person. Such a shallow and superficial view of dating (and ultimately marriage) is a dead end street.

“Followers of Jesus who date and ultimately marry understand that marriage is a covenant and a serious commitment. Yes, loving one another is very important. However, solid joyful marriages are built on character and promise keeping. If you have not yet married, ask yourself, “Is this person intentional about growing in godly virtues? What about truth-telling, patience, fidelity, and a commitment to trust and obey the Lord Jesus?”

“I heard not long ago about a husband who walked out on his wife when he learned that she had aggressive cancer. He said to his wife, “I didn’t sign up for this.” Meanwhile, I can tell you of a number of husbands and wives who love and adore one another and who have shared tough times together. Their marriages are not based on a “spark” or special chemistry. Rather, they have dared to travel together choosing what is deep and lasting rather than settling for how the world might define a marriage.”*

Our culture, through things like entertainment and social media, has sold us the lie that chemistry is the first step toward true love.  But many men and women who have experienced the breakup of their relationships can testify to the fact that the sparks that made the beginning so exciting don’t always lead to commitment for the long term.  Biblical love starts with the commitment that seeks the best for another through thick and thin.  And the serendipity is that such a commitment often leads to a chemistry that surpasses the sparks at the start.

God loves you!

Mike

*http://www.godhungry.org/marriage-when-you-refuse-to-settle-for-the-shallow/

Dealing With Critics

Greg Boyd was asked one time whether he had experienced any pushback over his beliefs and how he responded to it.  Here is part of his answer:

“My first encounter with the “backlash” you mentioned took place in the mid-90’s when John Piper launched a public crusade to get me fired from Bethel University and to have my church kicked out of the Baptist General Conference  on the grounds that I was a “heretic.”  There were also attempts by some to force publishers to stop publishing my books and for Christians to boycott bookstores that sold them. Hundreds of pastors signed a petition to get me fired, with only one of them taking the time to ask me what I actually believed and why I believed it.

“Being the sinner that I am, my initial response was anger mixed with a little fear. But it wasn’t too long before the Lord got my attention and helped me realize that this response was neither Christ-like nor healthy for me. I strongly sensed that the Lord gave me an assignment I was to carry out for a year to help me through this period: Every single day, I was to pray for the well-being of those who were leading this crusade! Initially, this was really hard, but I soon found that this exercise freed me from the cancer of bitterness and even empowered me to genuinely love my “enemy.” This deepened my conviction about the importance of obeying Jesus’ command to love, serve and pray for those who persecute us (Mt 5:44-45; Lk 6:27-35). I encourage anyone who is harboring anger toward someone to engage in this daily exercise.”*

What a great example of dealing with ugliness in a Christ-like way! It’s so tempting to get down into the mire and sling mud back against your critics, but I encourage you to resist temptation.  May I share an indelicate but accurate reminder I read somewhere?  “You will never win a puking contest with a buzzard.”  Think about that the next time you want to get even.

God loves you!

Mike

*https://rachelheldevans.com/blog/ask-open-theist-greg-boyd-response

Sharpen Your Tools

“A young man approached the foreman of a logging crew and asked for a job. “That depends,” replied the foreman. “Let’s see you fell this tree.” The young man stepped forward, and skilfully felled a great tree. Impressed, the foreman exclaimed, “You can start Monday.” Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday rolled by — and Thursday afternoon the foreman approached the young man and said, “You can pick up your paycheck on the way out today.” Startled, the young man replied, “I thought you paid on Friday.” “Normally we do,” said the foreman. “But we’re letting you go today because you’ve fallen behind. Our daily felling charts show that you’ve dropped from first place on Monday to last place today.” “But I’m a hard worker,” the young man objected. “I arrive first, leave last, and even have worked through my coffee breaks!” The foreman, sensing the young man’s integrity, thought for a minute and then asked, “Have you been sharpening your axe?” The young man replied, “No sir, I’ve been working too hard to take time for that!””*

Have you sharpened the tools in your spiritual growth toolbox lately?  We are called to grow as children of God (Ephesians 4:15; 2 Peter 3:18) but it is so easy to get complacent, especially as the tools we used previously to grow become dull.  Perhaps it was time spent in God’s Word that proved to be so effective in fueling growth in your early years as a disciple of Jesus. But for one reason or another (i.e. neglect or indifference) that particular tool has lost its edge.  Or maybe it was being with brothers and sisters in Christ in times of Bible study, worship, and fellowship that prompted the greatest movement toward maturity for you.  But, over time, being with your spiritual family became less of a priority, effectively blunting whatever benefit you once enjoyed.

Maybe it’s time to sharpen the tools we use to grow spiritually.  Spiritual growth is a never-ending task. Sharp tools make the job easier.

God loves you!

Mike

*http://storiesforpreaching.com/category/sermonillustrations/training

In Memorium

“Our church was saddened to learn this week of the death of one of our most valued members, Someone Else.  Someone’s passing creates a vacancy that will be difficult to fill. Else has been with us for many years and for every one of those years, Someone did far more than a normal person’s share of work. Whenever there was a job to do, a class to teach, or meeting to attend, one name was on everyone’s list, “Let Someone Else do it.” Whenever leadership was mentioned, this wonderful person was looked to for inspiration as well as results, “Someone Else can work with that group.”  It was common knowledge that Someone Else was among the most liberal givers in the church. Whenever there was a financial need, everyone just assumed Someone Else would make up the difference.  Someone Else was a wonderful person, sometimes appearing superhuman. Were the truth to be known, everybody expected too much of Someone Else. Now Someone Else is gone! We wonder what we are going to do.  Someone Else left a wonderful example to follow, but who is going to follow it? Who is going to do the things Someone Else did?  When you are asked to help this year, remember—we can’t depend on Someone Else anymore.”*

It’s so easy to see something that needs to be done and always expect someone else to do it.  It's so easy to complain about some problem and always expect someone else to fix it.  It’s so easy to dream big and always expect someone else to make it happen.  How do we begin to take the tremendous load off of someone else?  It starts by taking on our own share of personal responsibility.  When I see a need, I start by asking what I can do.   When I see a problem, I start by asking how I can address it.  When I have a grand plan, I start by being invested myself.  Instead of working Someone Else to death, why not try being Someone Else?

God loves you!

Mike

*http://www.pastoralcareinc.com