Summer Re-Creation

"And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him."    —Colossians 3:17

We’ve probably all heard the famous vacation line, “Been there, done that, got the T-shirt.” Well, I can certainly say that this year.  I received three new T-shirts so far this year from summer experiences: a Chik-fil-A Leadercast shirt, a Bain Lakehouse Reunion 2013 shirt, and an Elevation Church VIP shirt.

I attended a leadership simulcast broadcast by Chik-fil-A out of Atlanta and received a T-shirt as a door prize for traveling the greatest distance to eat at one of their franchises. This spring I ate at a Chik-fil-A in Seneca, SC near Clemson University.

I paid for the Bain Lakehouse Reunion shirt as part of our family’s reunion at my brother’s house on Lake Keowee last week. On the way home, we traveled through Charlotte and attended Elevation Church pastored by Steven Furtick. The shirt was a gift to first time attenders who turned in an information card.

Summer should be a time of recreation (spelled re-creation—being made new, rejuvenated). By breaking from our normal routines, we may be refreshed in many ways. My T-shirts represent three areas of life that could use some re-creation.

The Leadercast: we all need to be rejuvenated for our vocation and workplace. By attending a meaningful continuing education event, we can be inspired by new training and receive renewed energy for what we do for a living. Family Time: we are so busy that we often neglect those closest to us and our most important relationships. We should all spend some super quality and fun time with our family this summer.

The Spiritual: throughout the summer, we often see a drop in church attendance, and I fear an equal slippage in our spiritual walk with the Lord. I would encourage all of us to make our summer excursions opportunities for spiritual renewal. Try out some new worship experience on vacation. Send or take your kids on a Church Camping experience. Attend a seminar or special service as a break from your regular spiritual disciplines. Please, check out Oakland’s website, we are hosting Willow Creek’s Global Leadership Summit, August 8-9.

Paul writes, “Whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus” (Col. 3:17). Summer doesn’t have to be a time of boredom, lawn chores, and sweat. Make your summer a time for being made new by giving “whatever you do” unto the Lord as an act of worship. Allow the Lord to make you new, re-create you, as you enjoy a change of schedules.

By the way, I could and probably should have gotten four T-shirts this summer. Elevation Church offered Love-week shirts to everyone who stayed after the service and helped pack rice meal kits for hungry people around the world. Since I had to be home very early the next morning and had participated in that exact outreach at our Annual Conference a few weeks before, I decided sneak off without the fourth shirt. The problem with that decision is that I neglected to help someone else be re-created by my summer activities. Remember the Lord, your family, and your vocation, but don’t forget those in need. The greatest re-creation we often receive comes from helping another person. Have a great summer.

Our Wilderness Journey

"Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He then became hungry."    --Matthew 4:1-2

I was asked to preach at my fortieth class reunion (Redbank Valley High School Class of 1973). We will hold a community worship service at a local park to conclude our three-day reunion celebration. I have entitled the sermon, "40 Years is a Long, Long Time."

Over the years, I've had a few of those 'special' birthdays: 25, 30, 40, 50, and even 55, but none of them caused me to think twice. My 40th class reunion has caused me to pause and consider what a long time 40 years really is. My classmates and I are now grandparents. Some have already retired or become disabled. A few are just finishing additional schooling ready to start a new career. A lot can happen in forty years.

Forty is also one of God's special numbers. It rained forty days and nights on Noah and the ark. Moses spent forty years as a son of Pharaoh, forty as a shepherd, and forty as deliverer of the Israelites from Egypt. He also spent forty days on Mt. Sinai receiving the Ten Commandments. Joshua, Caleb, and ten spies spent forty days scoping out the Promised Land. After the ten brought back a bad report, the Jewish people wandered in the wilderness for forty years. Even Jesus, God's Son, fasted forty days and was tempted by the devil. Although ours may be more than forty days or less than forty years, we all go through our own wilderness journeys.

Each of the forty day or year journeys seem to have three things in common: they were times of God's judgment/testing, provision, and new beginnings. Looking at Jesus' temptation, we see that God led Jesus into the wilderness by The Holy Spirit for a time of testing and perfecting before He began His public earthly ministry.

During Jesus time of trial, God, through the Holy Spirit and the Word of God, provided Him with strength to overcome Satan's attacks. Notice that after the temptation, God sent angels to minister to Jesus (Matt. 4:11). As we go through wilderness journeys, we look to and rely on the Lord for strength, wisdom, and provision.

Jesus' temptation in the wilderness became a new beginning not only for Jesus, as He left the obscurity of His Nazareth home to proclaim the Good News, but also the entire world. "From that time, Jesus began to preach and say, 'Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand'" (Matt. 4:17).

One interesting fact about these wilderness times is that they are all three things at the same time. Looking at Noah, Moses, the Jews, or Jesus, the wilderness seasons were at the same time provision while they were testing/judgment and new beginnings. It seemed to depend upon their position in life and the direction of their walk with God.

Where are you in your wilderness journey? Have you experienced God's wonderful hand of provision? Are you leaning heavily on God's promises for sustenance and strength through a long and difficult time? I pray you have also experienced the joy of new life in Jesus Christ. Just remenber, God loves you. As you face the challenges of life, be certain that God does all things for your good. Nothing comes your way that has not been filtered through God's love.  Jesus' temptation began with the Spirit's leading and ended with God's ministering angels. God is present in the beginning and end of our jouney. He's there all the time. Trust Him.

Winning at Life

“He made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant.”    —Philippians 2:7

My grandson’s baseball league has already concluded, but my 3 almost 4 year-old granddaughter’s T-ball league is in full swing (pun intended). There are only two teams in the league so they play each other every game. Both teams use the same dugout so the fielding team must wait in the field for the batting team to exit before entering the bench area. Everyone bats. Each batter gets a single. At the end of each inning (they only play 2), all those on base run the whole way home. Everyone wins.

Robert Roberts (Taking the Word to Heart, 156) writes about a fourth grade class where a teacher introduced a game called “balloon stomp.” A balloon was tied to every child’s leg. The object of the game was to pop everyone else’s balloon while protecting your own. The last person with an intact balloon wins. There is only one winner; everyone else loses. Fourth graders can become very aggressive and soon learn that in order to complete their mission they must be pushy, rude, and offensive.

Another class was introduced to the same game, but this time it was a class of mentally challenged children. They were given the same instructions, but when the game began, it proceeded quite differently. The instructions were given too quickly for the children to grasp, but they did understand that the balloons were supposed to be popped. Instead of fighting each other, they began helping each other pop balloons. One little girl knelt down and held her balloon carefully in place, like a holder for a field goal kicker while a little boy stomped it flat. Then he knelt down and held his balloon for her. It went on like this for several minutes until all the balloons were vanquished, and everybody cheered. Everybody won.

Competitive sports can be fun to watch and play, but what we learn on the athletic field often carries over to the game of life. We push others down as we climb ladders to positions of success and victory. We keep score in a variety of ways: who has the biggest house, who has the longest title, or who makes the most money? We seldom keep score by asking: who has the most friends, who has helped the most people, or who has the most inner peace? I recently came across an interesting quote in a word puzzle, “It's incredibly easy to get caught up … climbing the ladder of success only to discover it's leaning against the wrong wall” (Steven Covey).

The problem with climbing up the ladder of success is that you will go right past Jesus, who is going down. Philippians 2:5-11 teaches that Jesus began at the very top, “being in the very nature God” (6).  Jesus gave up his right to the top spot and began a downward track taking on flesh and blood; He became human with human weaknesses and limitations. Jesus went lower, “he humbled himself” (8), and even lower, “became obedient to death” (9). Jesus’ ultimate task wasn't some glamorous achievement for He went to the very lowest rung, “even death on a cross” (9). For Jesus, the ultimate winner is the one who serves.

As you push and shove to the top of the ladder of success, remember Jesus started at the top and moved down to a position of humble service. Are you are seeking to win by destroying others or are you seeking to serve by helping others win. 

Godly Patriotism

“Some trust in chariots, and some in horses; But we will remember the name of the Lord our God.”       —Psalm 20:7

How will we spend our Independence Day celebration (4^th of July)? I might grill out with my kids or go fishing or swimming. I could catch an Altoona Curve game and fireworks display. If it rains, there is always watching old World War 2 movies. What would someone from another planet or country conclude about us by the way we celebrate our nation? Where would they think we put our trust? Do we worship bar-b-que grills, baseball, or water sports? They might conclude we trust in military might as we watch war movies and shoot off fireworks displays.

I am certain no one would conclude that we trust the One and only true God of heaven who created the universe. At the ball games, we have added, God Bless America to go along with the National Anthem and Take Me Out to the Ball Game, but I doubt that describes the faith of most baseball fans.

True patriotism of former generations included praying for nation, our President, and elected officials. True, godly patriotism includes times of thanksgiving for the freedoms and blessings God has bestowed upon America. As we sing God Bless America at baseball games, we should probably kneel and offer prayers with thanksgiving because God has truly blessed America.

The Psalmist describes the false hope of kings and kingdoms (that would be nations today) who trust in their military might instead of God. “Some trust in chariots, and some in horses; But we will remember the name of the Lord our God” (20:7). Chariots and horses were the superior military weapons of the day. Today it would be stealth bombs, drones, and patriot missiles. Psalm 33 goes on to describe how the latest weaponry alone can not deliver. “No king is saved by the multitude of an army … A horse is a vain hope for safety; Neither shall it deliver any by its great strength. Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him” (16-18a).

In the face of so many challenges in the world today, can our military keep us safe? Although we have the mightiest military in the world, I believe the best patriot is one who waves a flag and gets down on his/her knees and remembers the name of the Lord God. Godly patriots established holidays like Thanksgiving, Memorial Day, and the National Day of Prayer. I believe these and other national holidays like Veteran’s Day, Labor Day, Independence Day and so on, were intended to include prayer and thanksgiving.

Where are you putting your trust, today? Take notice how you celebrate your holidays. You might also review how you spend your money and time. We can easily say, “We love this country;” but do we pray for our leaders? Do we wave a flag then kneel to pray or do we wave a flag and criticize our elected officials? Do we wave the flag and turn our backs on the God who blessed America as the land of the free and home of the brave?

On this Independence Day, I urge you to pause, pray, and give thanks. America has lots of flaws and lots of work to be done, but we truly have been blessed by God to the nth degree. Let us remember the name of the Lord our God. Let’s be godly patriots.