Perspective on Anxiety.

I know you’ve been worried about things in your past. Worried if the girl would say “yes”, worried if the job was yours, worried if you passed the test. We are all a little worried right now. We are concerned about staying safe from this virus and pandemic, we are anxious about our jobs and incomes, we are worried about finding toilet paper on the shelf at the store.

Worry reveals a couple of things for each of us. Worry reveals some priorities in our lives and where we place our faith. See, whatever you worry about most reveals what you value most. Equally, whatever you worry about most reveals where you trust God the least. Worry is the sin of distrusting the promises and power of God.

Paul addresses this very idea to those who follow the Rabbi from Nazareth. Paul is writing the Philippian Church about 62 AD. He’s writing from prison. Paul’s been arrested for following Jesus. He’s been placed under house arrest and is chained to a Roman guard. But even here, Paul sees the faithfulness of God.

He’s seen God’s faithfulness when he was stoned and left for dead, when he was shipwrecked on the open sea, when he was hungry, and the numerous times he was in prison for the cause of Christ. Oh, he knows the blessing he has in Jesus Christ.

As Paul winds down his letter to the Philippians, he says in Philippians 4:6-7, “Don’t worry about anything but pray to God about everything…then, you’ll have the peace of God in your life.” Paul reminds us some 2000 years later to lean into Jesus and not worry about what the world is throwing at you right now.

Oh course, you and I are going to do everything we can to stay safe. We are going to shelter in place, order most things through the web to be delivered. We are going to love on our kids and our spouse. We are going to be a good neighbor. We are going to do everything we can and give the rest of it to God. How many of us can add one hour to our life by worry? None of us. So, we’ll do what we can do but leave the rest to God.

Paul goes on in that chapter to say, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” And a greater truth was never spoken. In Jesus, we can conquer anything. Through his powerful Spirit, we can and will overcome what we are currently experiencing and whatever else is to come.

Paul says I rejoice in the Lord whether everything is going my way or I’m chained to a Roman guard. Jesus will meet all your needs. It’s so very true. God has given so many promises to take care of his people. We should relish each one. We are called to “trust in the Lord” (Psalms 11:1; Proverbs 3:5-6). We are called to “delight in the Lord” (Psalms 37:4). We are called to “take refuge in the Lord” (Psalms 118:8).

So today, what are you carrying? What are you concerned with? What are you worried about? Trust in the Lord and then you will have His peace! This crisis will pass. Continue to be the light with your family, your co-workers, your neighbors, and your church family. Practice the spiritual disciplines of reading God’s Word daily, being in prayer together, be a good neighbor and live in his peace.

May you be safe and sheltered. Blessings on your journey.

Serve's Up!

Do you know what 54% of teens want in life? To be a celebrity. Now, we all would like a little bit of celebrity life. Just in the spotlight for a moment. It’s ingrained in us as Americans. We don’t mind being the life of the party, at least most of us. We would like to be the GOAT (Greatest of All Time) in our particular field.

But Jesus’ kingdom is upside-down. Jesus says in Matthew 23:11, “If you want to be the greatest (in my kingdom) you must be servant of all.”. Now that’s a total opposite of what the world says.

I mean, how do you want to be remembered? In Acts 9, there’s a woman who passes away. Everyone in her community was weeping. She was so kind, compassionate, and giving of herself. She made clothes for everyone and gave them away. She was such a servant hearted person.

So, during this current crisis, we, as people who claim to follow Jesus Christ, must deny ourselves and be like Jesus. Most of the time, being the greatest in the kingdom means working behind the scenes, doing things that seem invisible, and never self-promoting.

Like David in 1 Samuel 17. This is the chapter when he kills Goliath and becomes a household name in Israel. But before he does that, he is simply serving behind the scenes. Jesse, David’s dad, knows his other sons are serving in the army of Israel and they are out on a campaign. So, he sends David with food to his brothers. Here is the future, greatest king of Israel, serving meals behind the scenes.

Or the story of Jesus entering Jerusalem in Luke 19. He tells the disciples to go into town and bring him a donkey to ride into town. This will fulfill a prophecy made by Zechariah some 550 years before the event. So they go and find the donkey, untether it and the owner asks, “What are you doing with my donkey?” The disciples explain that the Lord, the Messiah, needs it. So, the owner tells them to take it and use it. We don’t know his name even but he wants to be a part of the story with no fanfare. He’s quietly sharing what he has.

Then there’s Jesus on the Thursday night of his betrayal in John 13. He’s in the upper room with disciples eating the Passover meal. The disciples are at the table arguing over who is the GOAT, who will be the greatest in Jesus kingdom. Jesus hears the discussion, looks around the table, sees proud hearts, and gets up to serve. He begins to wash the disciples feet. The Creator of the Universe and King of all kings is down on his knees humbly serving.

As we follow Jesus, we look at these stories and realize we too are called to humbly serve. We are not looking to be the greatest but simply to be Jesus. So, during this current crisis in our community and certainly after this is all over, find ways to bring a lunch, offer a ride, or carry a towel. There are so many ways you can be an encouragement over social media. Rather than becoming part of the anxious noise, be a calming voice of hope and peace. Find ways to serve those who are 65 years and older. Do they need food, meds, a hand? Give those you know in this category a call and offer help. When you find yourself out in town, be kind and compassionate.

Church, it’s our time to shine. Our time to practice what we preach. Our moment to show the world what they are missing in Jesus who is the Prince of Peace. May you find ways to be Jesus in this chaos. Find ways to help calm the storm. Discover who you can serve and lift up. Blessings on the journey.

Can I Get a Witness?

I am not sure what you have ever been afraid of. Maybe asking that good looking girl on a date. Or staying out too late and you knew your dad was waiting up. Or maybe that spider you saw in your summer camp cabin. I’ve been scared many times but one moment was in 1989 when I got off the bus at Air Force Basic Training. The drill instructor was yelling in my ear and he didn’t stop for about 8 weeks!

I’m not sure I’ve know fear though like the disciples, though. They had been with Jesus for 3 years and had seen him multiply some kids lunch, heal the sick, walk on water, and raise the dead. They knew Jesus was the Messiah. But then he was arrested and killed.

In John 20:19, it says the disciples were hiding behind locked doors. They were afraid, scared, anxious, and worried. That sounds a lot like us today with the COVID-19 scare. We too are finding ourselves hiding behind locked doors wondering if we are next.

But only five chapters later in Acts 4, those same disciples are boldly telling the story of Jesus at the Temple in Jerusalem. They are also doing miracles which gets them arrested. While they are interrogated, they tell the authorities all about Jesus, the Name above all names.

Those authorities recognize a couple of things about the disciples in Acts 4. One is that they spent time with Jesus.

I want to encourage you to spend more time with Jesus and less time watching the news or scrolling social media. When we read about how incredible Jesus was and is through his Gospel, we become challenged and encouraged to be different than the world around us. Indeed, we become more emboldened to look and act and speak like Jesus. So, find time to be in God’s Word and take on Jesus’ personality.

After I get ready in the mornings, I jump into Jesus’ story. I start my day that way. It’s some assurance that no matter what I face when I walk out that door, Jesus is with me and I know what my responses are going to be. Are we going to take precautions? Of course. But we are going to imitate Jesus as closely as we can. As a disciple, that is the promise you made in those waters of baptism.

Secondly in Acts 4, we see those disciples asked God for boldness. So we want to be in prayer. Use that social media account to flood the internet with prayer for the sick, prayer for our medical teams, prayer for hospital staff, prayer for church ministers, prayer for children, prayer for quick healing, prayer for peace and a non-anxious spirit. We need to pray for boldness to find ways to serve other people.

As we all get unplanned time at home, it’s a great opportunity to find others you can serve. Check on those older members of your neighborhood or church or workplace. See if they need anything you can drop by their home. There are lots of ways to serve those around us.

Paul reminds us in Philippians 4:6-7, “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he’s done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”

Blessings on your journey.

Cannonball!

Summer is coming. And with that, swimming pool time. I know if you’re like me, you love to do a cannonball. That’s when you leave the edge of the pool running full sprint, leap in the air, tuck your legs under you and plunge into the water. You are going under and there is going to be a major splash.

That’s how God has called us to love people. You see, Jesus put no qualifiers on his statement in Mark 12. He simply said, “Love God. Love people.” He called us to love all people. Yes. those who have a different hair style or skin color or accent or worship style or have no eduction or more education…well you get the idea.

Jesus says that the love he offers is for everyone. Paul says in Romans 1:16, “I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes.”

Think about what Peter said, the disciple handpicked by Jesus and who led the church in Jerusalem. In his great sermon on Pentecost, Peter told everyone that Jesus was for, well, everyone. Toward the end of the sermon, Peter reminded all those who were listening, “This promise [of salvation] is to you, to your children, and to those far away—all who have been called…”

As one reads through the letters of Paul, it is undeniable that Paul is hoping to get all his readers to see that God’s bubble is huge. God doesn’t want to lose anyone. God wants his entire creation in relationship with him. Paul wants all of us to see what it looks like when we choose to pop our bubbles and enter into the inclusive story God is creating in the world.

You can almost feel the emotional urgency Paul uses as he writes these words for us to live by in his letter to the Romans:

“Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically. Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying. When God’s people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager to practice hospitality. Bless those who persecute you. Don’t curse them; pray that God will bless them. Be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with each other. Don’t be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don’t think you know it all!

Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.” (Romans 12:9-17).

So, today, live in such a way that those around you will say you follow Jesus. Love and be active in that love. Create a cannonball of love that will splash on everyone around you. Choose your words. Choose your actions. Choose a life that screams you’re in love with Jesus and with his creation. Blessings on the journey.

Turn on the Flashlight.

Did you ever follow anyone into a place with which you were unfamiliar? There has been more than one time when I was so glad someone was with me who knew where they were going…they had been there before and It saved me a lot of heartache and disappointment.

Life can be that way too. We all must grow, mature, learn, travel, experience and learn. If we don’t, we die. Now, you’ve had people in your life who have showed you a few things. When my boys were in junior high, I taught them how to pump gas, change a flat tire, remove and change out a car battery, and check the oil. These are basic things one needs to know to operate a vehicle. They could have learned on their own but because I was invested in them, had a relationship with them, wanted them to succeed in life, I showed them these things without them asking.

There are other, more important things we should be teaching as well. But in order for the teaching to be received well, we need a relationship or built rapport with that person. We create credibility with people through shared life experience and developing trust along the way. We typically see this most often with our spouse and children, but it can extend to friend-circles and coworkers.

I mean, how do you know someone is compassionate or honest or thoughtful or tender or real or grounded? It happens when we have a relationship with them and the deeper the relational tie, the more we see these things. This happens when we choose to be with others and travel with them.

Jesus showed us what that really looks like. Matthew 9 tells us Jesus had compassion on the crowds. His actions in his life tell us how compassionate a person he truly lived out. Matthew 20 is an example of him physically touching someone to heal them. We all need human interaction, especially touch, to be reminded someone cares for us. We learn how to comfort and be compassionate by looking at Jesus’ life and in turn we discover how that looks as we interact with others.

So, take time to build relationship. Go slow and see whose path you can light. Others around you are looking for a caring, compassionate person to help light their way. Pick one person and change how you interact with them. Choose three people over the course of a year to walk with. Take time to give hugs and handshakes. Affirm those around you with positive, encouraging words. You’ll find that as you take the time to imitate Jesus and lift others, you will be lifted as well. Blessings on the journey.

You have MUCH power here.

Some of us like down time. You know, when it’s quiet and you can collect your thoughts. However, we can’t stay there very long. We were created to be in community. Think about the last time you laughed with a friend so hard you stomach hurt. What about the late night shenanigans moment when you toilet papered someone’s yard…What about the moment you told something that was very private to a close friend and they hugged you up in affirmation?

Yes! We’ve all got moments that we remember when we lived heartily in community. We were made for community…to be together. Now, there are no promises it will always be light and airy with the people we chose to live out life with but tough or easy, we were made to journey together.

God have us family, both physical and spiritual. And in those families we learn what it means to live out loud. There are people in your life that you can name right now that helped you be the person you are today. Go ahead. Say 4 names out loud that poured into you, affirmed you, walked with you, held you up, and cheered for you. Do you remember how you felt? Like someone cared and knew you. But living in community isn’t always about receiving. It’s also about giving.

So now, it’s your turn to pour. Who are the 3-4 people right now that you are walking with? Who are the people in your life that you are affirming and cheering for? You do you pour into?

As people who have been gifted by God, we are equally called to share that giftedness with others. Now, it stands to reason that of course you’d cheer for your kids or grandkids. You no doubt are affirming your spouse. Those are given. I mean if you aren’t pouring into them, who will. So beyond those people, who this year have you chosen to walk with.

You know, Paul in Ephesians 4:11 reminds us that we have gifts and it’s our responsibility to equip God’s people to do his work and build up other Jesus followers. If you find yourself creating excuses of why you are not doing that, I feel you. We all could create multiple reasons why we can’t cheer for, affirm or pour into anyone. But then, I’d look like every other person in the world but we’re called to be different.

No matter where you are, decide today, right now, in this moment, you’re going to be different…that you’re going to pay it forward. Someone lifted you. Now, it’s your turn. May God grant you the vision to see who you can walk with. May God allow room and margin on your calendar to find someone to affirm and cheer. We were made for community. The call as a follower of Jesus is to live that way. Blessings on your journey.

Light it up!

You know, no one ever wakes up and says, “Today is the day I ruin my spouse’s life.” It just doesn’t happen like that. If there is disappointment, it is usually slow and subtle. But every decision we make today, for good or bad, will have ripple effects that will effect our spouse, our kids, our friends and those we hold dearest.

It’s like the garden scene in Genesis 2-3. Adam and Eve are in the Garden of Eden and told by God they could do anything except eat from The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. We don’t know how long they were in the garden but eventually, Satan entered, he tempted them both, they ate of the tree and sin entered the world along with shame and guilt.

Have you have felt ashamed of choices you made? Have you ever been guilty of something? Well, yes. We all have felt both of those things in our lives. Because of sin, we feel shame and guilt. But there is a remedy.

We discover in Ephesians 5:8-11 that before we met Jesus and accepted him as Lord, we lived in darkness. We were dark-living people. What is so true is that shame grows in darkness and healing only happens in the light. See, Satan, wants to keep us in the dark. He wants to isolate us. He wants to convince us that we can journey alone and we don’t need community. And the shame and guilt we feel when we make poor choices, Satan would say it’s part of our identity. It’s who we are. When we are alone, in darkness, we begin to believe his voice.

I’m reminded though God has already told me who I am. He says I’m made in his image. I’m his child. I’m part of his family. God is light. Jesus is light. We are called to be people of light…to live in the light. Satan wants us to live in secrecy but we discover that secrecy is the enemy of intimacy in all our relationships.

So, if you are struggling in your life, use truth with your spouse and with God to come into the light. Healing only happens in the light. See, we confess our sin to God for forgiveness and we confess our sin to people for healing.

Gather our accountability group. Get into and read God’s Word. Become part of a faith group. Begin speaking to God through prayer. Secrecy is the enemy of intimacy. If you want the burden you’ve been carrying to be removed, Jesus says, “Come to me all you who are weary and heavily burdened and I will give you rest.” What are you waiting for? Press through the pain of truth to get to the peace of healing. I know you are ready. It’s time to live as people of light. Blessings on your journey.

We go together like...

When you’re dating it seems many times, opposite attract. However after years of being together in marriage, those same qualities can attack. Maybe you started out by talking about how laid back they were but now, they are lazy. Or how put together they are and organized but now they are so controlling. The same characteristics that seem to attract now attack.

God uses our differences to enhance our marriage but Satan can use those differences to tear us apart, especially if we are not intentional about some priorities we’ve set for our marriage.

First, we must make God our ONE and our spouse our TWO. If we set this as the priority in our life, everything else will follow. Now, we are still going to disagree and have conflict. We are not going to see eye to eye on every issue. There may be days that you just need some distance to reset but if we make God our priority, we’ll always come at our partnership selflessly.

We also have to pursue our two and state daily in words and action that marriage is about “we”, not “me”.

What we must realize is our marriage is a covenant, not a contract. Here’s the difference. A contract is based on mutual distrust. It’s the idea that I’m in this as far as you are in. I don’t trust you enough so I want you to sign a piece of paper to promise me you’ll do what you say you’ll do.

A covenant is based on mutual commitment. Go to Genesis 15 when God cuts a covenant with Abram. He doesn’t have any kids yet but God says he’ll have more kids than the stars in the sky and the world will be blessed through his lineage (a foreshadowing of Jesus). God makes a promise, more than a contract, to Abram. It’s serious stuff.

So in our marriages we say “for better or worse…until death do us part”. However, many times at the first difficult season, we part ways and say good bye. If we are truly making our life based on our love for Jesus and following his character, then we’ll follow biblical examples of healthy marriage.

Paul tells us in Ephesians 5:21-33 what a healthy marriage looks like. He reminds us a covenant partnership is Godly leadership and mutual submission. Now that doesn’t mean ordering someone around and demeaning a spouse. Paul calls us to mutual submission and to husbands to love our wives like Jesus loves the church…to the extent we’d give our lives selflessly for her.

Paul reminds us of the key in Ephesians 5:33, “the husband loves his wife and the wife respects her husband.” The more I truly love my wife, the more she will respect my position as the spiritual lead in the family. The more she respects me as a man of God, the more I am compelled to love her in multiple ways. It’s a beautiful cycle once you get it moving in the right direction.

So, who begins? The one that’s more mature. Your marriage will be as good as both of you decide it will be. You can only change you so why not begin today? Loving your spouse; being committed to your promise; deciding to change for the better…these are all choices you must make daily. Every morning I put my feet on the floor I make a choice: “Today, I’m going to honor my wife. Today, I’m going to live for Jesus.”

The marriage journey is a fantastic one to take. There are ups and downs. But nothing is more rewarding than pouring into your TWO and having a life-partner you can fully depend on and love. Enjoy the journey. My hope and prayer is God will bless you in so many ways.

Run, Forrest, Run!

Have you ever done something crazy for love? Just admit it…you have. I once had a date with my wife where we went to the lake at sunset and painted watercolor on canvas. We are not really artist but it was fun. You and I have done some interesting things for love. But isn’t it worth it?

We do tend to pursue what we don’t have. Whether it’s a physically fit body, more money, a bigger house, a better job, the perfect marriage…we run after what we don’t have. If you ever end up asking “where has the romance gone?” or “ Why don’t I feel in love any more?”, you probably have your priorities out of line. It should read like this, God is you ONE and your spouse is your TWO. If you find your priorities don’t read like this, I’ve got some suggestions to help reset priorities with your two.

When you think something good, say it. Don’t ever deprive your spouse of positive reinforcement. Hebrews 3:13 reminds us that simply saying great and positive things can help keep sin out of a marriage. Guys, pursue the woman in your life with words of affection…non-sexual affection. Physical touch is important but not for our point here. Tell her you love her BECAUSE _______________. It would mean so much to her to know why you love her. “I love you because you are a wonderful mother..because you are a great woman of God…because you brownies are to die for.” You know why you love her so tell her.

And ladies, pursue your man with words of affirmation. Let him know the positive ways you appreciate him. If he is, tell him he’s a great dad, or wonderful husband, or strong spiritual leader, or has great work ethic but don’t hold back. It will make all the difference to him.

She wants to know, “Do you love me today?” and he wants to know, “Do you believe in my today?”

Secondly, when you think something special, do it. Take off work early to get home and go on a walk together. Go to the park and talk about where you want to be next year or in 3 years. Enjoy time in nature together. Pick her car up from work early, get it cleaned and get it back before she gets off work. Send her flowers for no apparent reason. Bring her/him their favorite drink to work. Pick up tickets to see his favorite team play. Take interest in each other’s hobbies. There is so much you can do to remind your spouse how much you care about them and that you are thinking of them often.

Finally, when you want something different, be it. Sometimes, we end up pointing fingers at each other and playing the blame game. But no one ever criticized each other into a better marriage. You ultimately cannot control other people but you can control yourself. You be the person God has created you to be. You be you.

Remember, to get what you have never had, you’re going to have to do some things you’ve never done. Pursue your two with everything you have. Run after what you want for your marriage. Make God your one and you’ll find everything else will fall into place. Blessings on the journey.

Who's your two?

We’ve all had dreams from an early age of what marriage might be like. For the girls, their guy would be dashing, Prince Charming, sweep you off your feet, a solid job, lots of travel. The dream of a husband would be robust and full. For guys, it would be get married and be intimate with your wife twice a day. And how many of us on both sides are still dreaming?

I’ve counseled many before marriage and couples that have been in crisis and what I’ve found more times than not is their priorities are out of sync. We believe we must find the one who will be everything we are not and fulfill all my life hopes. The trouble is, there is no one in all creation who can or will do that for you. The only one who can do that is God and I don’t know anyone human by that name. So, creating the reality of how things should be in our marriages is…

God is your ONE and your spouse is your TWO. That’s what Jesus says in Mark 12:30-31. “Love God and love people.” As a Christ-follower, we say “I’ll seek the one while preparing for my two.”

In Genesis 2:24, we are reminded we grow up clinging to our parents. But once you’ve discovered your two, you leave your parents and start building a life with the person you’ve chosen to serve God with your whole life. Once you get the priorities in position you’ll discover life is so much easier. Now it’s not to say there aren’t hiccups along the way. Life does happen as they say and there are adjustments to living. But when you have God as your ONE then everything becomes so much clearer.

A second thing we must remember is to protect those priorities. If you’re having difficulty in your marriage right now, it’s more than likely you have your priorities out of whack. One way my wife, Robin, and I have discovered to make sure we keep priorities is to serve God together.

We were in youth ministry together for 20 years and she brought so much to the table helping me with those teens and parents. We have been on many short term mission trips together. It makes me so proud to know I’m married to a woman who wants to put God first.

If your married with kids, remember kids are a temporary assignment. Sure, you’ll be parents your whole life but you’ve really got them for 18-19 years before they graduate and move out. You launch them to go serve God and find their two. But marriage is until death do you part. Don’t ever put your kids as a priority above your marriage. If you do, once the kids leave home, you’ll be sitting at a dining room table wondering who the person is that is sitting across from you.

Can I speak to the men for a moment? You are called to lead in your home. Not be a dictator. Not use power to lord your decision making. You join with your wife and love her like Jesus loved the church (Eph. 5:25). But you as father and husband who is a believer in Jesus Christ, you decide you’re going to be a family who is plugged in at church, who is serving together, who creates the date night for you and your wife, who show your kids what it looks like to be affectionate toward your wife, to join in community and get involved in a connect or small group. You give yourself to Jesus then give yourself to your family.

Make sure God is your ONE and your spouse is your TWO. You’ll find life and the journey that much sweeter and easier. Blessings on that journey.