I was particularly struck one morning, back before Christmas, by a paragraph I was reading at the end of James chapter 4. It says that we shouldn't go around talking about our plans, but rather that we should talk about things "if the Lord wills them." It goes on to say that we need to stop boasting in our arrogance. I realized in that moment that setting ourselves up as independent is pure arrogance. We are boasting, though not with our words...we are boasting with our actions. I am very guilty of this. I make lots of plans, and rely on my own wisdom and skill to carry me through. Things seem immediately apparent to me, and I move forward. Rarely do I stop to say "I will do that if it is the Lord's will."
Lord, please help me to stop boasting! I am not independent, but rather completely dependent on You...I can do nothing apart from You, and had better not even try!
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Monday, December 27, 2010
How big is the problem?
A friend's family has a saying that I fully intend to adopt into my family when I have one. They say "Any problem that can be solved with money is not a big problem." I love it. It helps to keep things in perspective for me. Maybe I'm annoyed because I pull a shirt out of the closet and it's ruined with a stain that I didn't notice when I put it away. Or maybe my car breaks down and needs an expensive repair. These problems are not big problems, according to my friend's proverb.
A few days ago a good friend called to tell me that a 16-year old in his youth group had been hit and killed by an 18-wheeler just two days before Christmas. The youth group had just been all together at a retreat. The boy was a believer and had recently shared his testimony, but the pain that his family is now feeling at Christmas is unimaginable to me.
When I think this Christmas about the things that are most important to me, I immediately think of people: friends, family, loved ones. I think of causes: opportunities to help people, opportunities to change the world one person at a time, injustices and pain around the world. I think of virtues and character: faith, hope, love, joy, kindness. I don't think about possessions, or money, or work. Somehow, in the right perspective, those things just seem to fade. This Christmas, I need to be reminded what are big problems and what problems can simply be solved with money. From that perspective, I can see what is really important.
A few days ago a good friend called to tell me that a 16-year old in his youth group had been hit and killed by an 18-wheeler just two days before Christmas. The youth group had just been all together at a retreat. The boy was a believer and had recently shared his testimony, but the pain that his family is now feeling at Christmas is unimaginable to me.
When I think this Christmas about the things that are most important to me, I immediately think of people: friends, family, loved ones. I think of causes: opportunities to help people, opportunities to change the world one person at a time, injustices and pain around the world. I think of virtues and character: faith, hope, love, joy, kindness. I don't think about possessions, or money, or work. Somehow, in the right perspective, those things just seem to fade. This Christmas, I need to be reminded what are big problems and what problems can simply be solved with money. From that perspective, I can see what is really important.
Friday, December 24, 2010
Christmas stays if we don't forget its meaning....
Driving home early this afternoon I was listening to an old Christmas classic. Or, at least, it's a Christmas classic to me. "Old City Bar" by Trans-Siberian Orchestra is one of my favorite Christmas songs, and if you know me this time of year I say that about a lot of songs. But this one is different to me...while I never tire of singing the spirituals loudly and proudly, and can't stop smiling when I sing about chestnuts roasting on an open fire, some of the songs that most tell me it's Christmastime are like this one. "Old City Bar" tells a story of a child who is trapped outside in the snow and can't get home. Across the street, a bartender cleans his register to get her a taxi and a plane ticket. The song culminates in a resounding chorus:
If you want to arrange it
This world you can change it
If we could somehow make this
Christmas thing last
By helping a neighbor
Or even a stranger
And to know who needs help
You need only just ask
As I was driving home, I was contemplating how meaningful this all was to me, as well as the larger context of the album-length stories that Trans-Siberian Orchestra tells, when I dawned on me that I was singing empty lyrics: I hadn't helped any neighbors this season, and especially not any strangers! In fact, sometimes I find my focus to be so strongly on my ministries, my relationships, and myself, that I realize that I don't even know the types of people that "Old City Bar" talks about.
Almost as if on cue, while sitting at a stop light, a young man ran through the cold rain across the street, clutching a bright red gasoline can. He was seeking refuge from the elements under the cover of the gas station at the opposite corner. When the light jumped to green, I quickly cut off the driver next to me and pulled slowly into the gas station. Spying him going inside the store, I rolled down my window to ask him if he needed a ride. Sure enough, his car had run out of gas a half-mile away. He was trying to use his day off and the paycheck he had gotten yesterday to buy Christmas presents. Sam and I had a nice chat on the way back to his run-down truck and he thanked me for the blessing that he had received. I left knowing that God had blessed me as much as He had blessed Sam.
If our kindness
This day is just pretending
If we pretend long enough
Never giving up
It just might be who we are
If you want to arrange it
This world you can change it
If we could somehow make this
Christmas thing last
By helping a neighbor
Or even a stranger
And to know who needs help
You need only just ask
As I was driving home, I was contemplating how meaningful this all was to me, as well as the larger context of the album-length stories that Trans-Siberian Orchestra tells, when I dawned on me that I was singing empty lyrics: I hadn't helped any neighbors this season, and especially not any strangers! In fact, sometimes I find my focus to be so strongly on my ministries, my relationships, and myself, that I realize that I don't even know the types of people that "Old City Bar" talks about.
Almost as if on cue, while sitting at a stop light, a young man ran through the cold rain across the street, clutching a bright red gasoline can. He was seeking refuge from the elements under the cover of the gas station at the opposite corner. When the light jumped to green, I quickly cut off the driver next to me and pulled slowly into the gas station. Spying him going inside the store, I rolled down my window to ask him if he needed a ride. Sure enough, his car had run out of gas a half-mile away. He was trying to use his day off and the paycheck he had gotten yesterday to buy Christmas presents. Sam and I had a nice chat on the way back to his run-down truck and he thanked me for the blessing that he had received. I left knowing that God had blessed me as much as He had blessed Sam.
If our kindness
This day is just pretending
If we pretend long enough
Never giving up
It just might be who we are
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