23 Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.  Luke 9:23

When I was 11 years old I attended a church summer camp for a week in the San Bernardino mountains of Southern California. I remember daily various outdoor games we played and being divided up into teams that competed throughout the week. Specifically I remember the tug of war that took place between the combined cabins representing one region and the other side represented by the rival group of cabins. It was a fierce competition, neither side wanting to give up ground to the opposing force. But with time our side began to give way just a little. I had the brilliant idea of tying my leg to the end of the rope in a last ditch effort to hold our ground, but alas, the other team was superior in their pulling power and I began to be dragged across the concrete staging area. Will and stubbornness caused me to foolishly ignore the pleas of my friends to let go and surrender to the other side, but I would not have any of it. The humiliation of defeat and the prospect of surrendering bragging rights just kept me tied to something that was just dragging me down. I ended up with a pretty significant road rash from the ordeal and ultimately had to admit defeat. I hated to lose and surrender to the forces dragging me along and the longer I resisted the more damage my body incurred; all for the sake of something that was so temporal and fleeting. 

There is something about surrender that I find difficult. Surrender never seems to come easy to me. But it often represents the counter-intuitive way of God, though not always the most welcome message or way. In the story of Jeremiah one of the primary themes Jeremiah spoke in the name of the Lord was about surrender. As the forces of the Babylonian empire were invading the land of Judah, his message to the king of Judah, the officials and the people was surrender and you will live. Jeremiah was a contrary voice in the midst of the many voices assuring the people of the time that all would be okay if they just held on, continued to resist and stand their ground. The truth of God’s word was traded for the comfortable, yet misleading messages of the false prophets of the time. 

It was not easy to speak a word that was the exact opposite of what everyone else was saying and everyone else wanted to hear. The king, the officials, the religious leaders and the people all wanted to believe that they would be victorious over the Babylonians. Surrender meant humiliation. Surrender meant a loss of territory. Surrender meant subjugation to someone else’s control and agenda. Though the word of the Lord was to surrender, they chose to not listen to that word but instead take the counsel of false prophets. It did not end well for the king of Judah, his officials, the people or the city of Jerusalem. 

When Jesus was proclaiming the kingdom of God, those listening expected something quite different than the message He spoke. While they expected a message of resistance and overthrow of the Roman occupation, Jesus described His purpose as surrendering His life, suffering death and then rising on the third day. The Messiah was not expected to surrender His life, but to overcome, if needs be by force, the occupying enemy. This message of surrender did not sit well with the religious elite and eventually it cost Jesus His life. But it was His life that He willingly surrendered for the sake of love, forgiveness and redemption. As N.T. Wright explained Jesus, in obedience to His Father, embraced the pain of the cross to then receive the glory of the crown. The way of the king has proven different than we might imagine.

He has now called those who would follow in His way to surrender daily their lives and follow Him. It seems that to truly experience the new life of the kingdom over which Jesus reigns one cannot escape surrender. It is the very thing we are reminded to practice in the Lenten season. It is still a hard message to receive and fortunately we are aided in our efforts to surrender by the promise and presence of the Spirit of Christ. 

I still struggle with the practice and possibly the stigma of surrendering. I still want to win the game and not face the humiliation of losing. But possibly the way to truly win is to let go and surrender to the One who loves me enough to surrender and give His life for me and lead the way to His eternal kingdom. I am learning this lesson daily and seeking to listen more closely to His voice as He points out every opportunity to surrender to His way. 

As you continue in this Lenten season, may you hear the message of surrender that invites you to let go of those false gods and hopes to which you have tied yourself. These false gods and false hopes will ultimately drag you down.  Instead embrace the opportunity to surrender to the love and grace of Jesus and His way that leads to the glorious outcomes God intends for you. 

When I was a young boy I was fascinated by the idea of an echo. When we would take family vacations in the mountains I would typically stand on an overlook and yell out my name as loud as I could hoping to hear the mountains call back to me. It wasn’t until later in life during time spent in a recording studio that I experienced the repeating of sound known as an echo (though artificially produced). The effect of echo reflected and duplicated the original sound giving it a more expansive feeling. Used judiciously it was a means of enhancing the sound and carrying it further. 

It is December 26, the day after Christmas, and the proclamation and celebration of Jesus Christ’s birth has taken place. There are various feelings and responses that show up the next day. For some there is a sense of let down because the day didn’t fulfill their expectations. For some the event itself was barely a blip on the radar screen of life and they have moved on to the next day, the next pressing agenda item, the next task or the next event. For some there is a new sense of peace and a renewed sense of hope. I’m sure there are many other feelings and responses as well. Though on the calendar the event has passed, the ramifications of the day continue to unfold. There is an echo that continues to reverberate through the coming days. 

The Christmas story was set in a small town and introduced to obscure shepherds. It was a proclamation of good news for all the world, for all humanity. It was a message revealed by angels in the heavens and it promised that in the birth of Jesus, God’s grace, peace and salvation was available for all to experience. 

The message the angels proclaimed in the heavens the shepherds echoed as they found the Christ child in a manger and told all of what they had experienced and heard. And the echoes of that message continue to be expressed throughout all time. As the day has passed we too can reflect the echo of that good news as we share God’s grace, love and peace with the world around us, as we proclaim that salvation, transformation and new life have come in Jesus. The song of the angels is meant to bounce and reflect off the surface of the ordinary lives of people like you and me. The telling of the story, the proclamation of good news continues as we face the incarnate Word and reflect His words of love and grace into this broken, hurting and desperate world. Our very lives can be and should be an echo of His sacrificial life and love. 

As you find yourself moving through the days of this week, into the new year ahead, in what ways might you better reflect and echo the message of good news through all your life? It is the opportunity we have as the day has passed to further express the life-changing story into the future before us. We continue to celebrate and echo the message because the good news for us is present in Jesus every day and for all eternity. May you find in these days following His birth the message of good news reverberating off the walls of your soul and beyond into the world that God so faithfully loves. May you be a living echo of Jesus and His love. Here is a song of this season on which to reflect.

“Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.” Psalm 34:8

On one of our trips to Kenya, my wife and I thought it would enhance the trip and be an encouragement to the people we were with if we brought my father along with us. At the time he was seventy-eight years old and had an artificial hip joint and a touch of glaucoma. I think my mother thought we were nuts, considering the distance, the conditions and the overall stress of an out of country experience. We were gone for roughly two weeks and the whole endeavor went great, though it took some adjusting along the way.

I remember one of the meals we had with a distinguished group of Kenyan pastors and church leaders. We sat at a long banquet table and were served a very nice meal. My dad loved to eat and so he was more than interested in the cuisine and the variety of foods presented. One of the foods brought out that my dad immediately put on his plate was what he thought was a banana, but was actually a plantain (a cooking banana). I remember his look of delight as he took his first bite and how quickly his disappointment became evident. He turned to me and said very quietly, “This is not a banana.” He then proceeded to eat the rest to be polite, but he didn’t indulge further. He told me later that the plantain reminded him more like a very bland and tasteless potato. He had expected the sweetness and flavor of a banana, but found the plantain a poor substitute. Though it may have been integral to the Kenyan diet, my dad preferred to let the plate pass the second time around.

It is my understanding that God created life to be far from tasteless. The life of God manifested in creation was meant to be full and flavorful. But too often I find myself dissatisfied with my experience of life and keep trying to discover those things that will somehow satiate my longings. When I find myself in times of desolation I am noticing the effects on my taste for life. I long to find the flavors of meaning and purpose. I long to find those experiences that make me feel alive and connected. But so much of those things I counted on before can become bland and tasteless. When food seems bland the typical answer is to add a bit more salt. In life, it is often the answer to just increase the intensity of the experience by doing more, adding more, or taking an experience to the extreme. Our taste buds for life are calloused or dead from the constant over-stimulation so we need more seasoning just to feel normal. It feels or looks a lot like addiction to me.

Possibly one issue is that I have expected the various experiences found in this world to be enough. But as good as this life is, maybe the point of God’s message to humanity is that we have settled for something less than the best experience of life we were intended to enjoy. When the Psalmist says, “Taste and see that the Lord is good…” He is not inviting us to taste all the other options, but to indulge in the one option that is truly good, which is God Himself. My tendency has been to rely on God to provide the diet I like from the gifts of this world rather than trust God to give me the diet I need, which is Himself. All the other things God allows me to experience in His goodness were never meant to be a substitute for the enjoyment and nourishment that comes from knowing and being with Him. When I find myself less and less satisfied with the diet of this world I may need to consider the diet that Jesus intended when He said, “I am the bread of life.” His very person is the food meant to sustain and satisfy me. Anything less will leave me wanting. The richness of life is best experienced when I taste continually of the One who is eternally good.

If you are experiencing life as bland, tasteless, or mundane it may be time to consider a different table to eat from and a different diet to enjoy. It may be time to set aside all the various good gifts of God from this world and focus on the goodness of God Himself revealed in His own Son, the bread of life. May you begin to experience this day the richness of the cuisine God has provided and allow Him to nourish and satisfy you with His own goodness and love. Just remember, the plantain will always taste bland compared with the sweetness of the normal banana. Don’t settle for a life that has lost its taste. God intends much more than that for you and me.

I remember visiting my friend and mentor Chuck, just days before his passing. I knew that he was in a transitional phase, and I realized as well, so was I. Things were changing and, as much as I wanted to halt or slow down the change, I couldn’t. Life does that. It changes, sometimes slowly and sometimes quickly, without warning. Embracing those changes, finding them worthwhile and remaining attentive is not something I can’t do alone. I need, and have needed, help to discover the value of those moments of change.

As I watched and listened to my friend I was struck with the joy he was experiencing in his final days. He was looking forward to his transition from this temporal experience of life into the eternal experience of life realized in the presence of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Chuck’s arms were lifted, even with diminished strength, in praise to his loving Father in heaven. His word in that moment was “Glory!” I watched the excitement of my friend to enter the presence of His King, Jesus Christ.

As I read the final chapter of Ecclesiates, I realized that what I had experienced with my friend Chuck was not just a random experience, but the result of the cultivation of a long, deep and loving relationship with Jesus. From His youth and on into adulthood Chuck had remembered His Creator and cultivated intimacy with Him. As death approached it was not feared as a terminal experience, but welcomed as a transition into the presence of God. Each day Chuck had spent time enjoying the presence of Christ whether the circumstances of life were pleasant or unpleasant. Like the apostle Paul, Chuck had learned to be content with the present circumstances because he enjoyed those circumstances in the loving presence and infinite strength of Jesus.

There is a reason for establishing a relationship with the Creator that transcends this present temporal existence. There is an opportunity to cultivate an intimacy with God that is filled with joy and a sense of well being not dependent upon the pleasures of this world. Instead, when this relationship with our Creator is nurtured and appreciated we discover things of value, a life of value, beyond the few years we have on this earth. Though the ability to appreciate the pleasures of this world may fade with age, there is the possibility of something far more pleasurable in the presence of God, which we can begin to discover and experience now.

Everyday we awaken to the possibility of something more than life in this world can offer. Everyday we have the possibility of engaging in this life while remembering our Creator and the presence, power and love He offers us on this journey. So today “Remember your Creator” and be nourished by time in His gracious and loving presence. Be still and know that He is God. Allow His life to fill you and prepare you to experience the life to come.

My friend Chuck is enjoying a life that is far beyond what I can imagine here. He is forever enjoying the presence of the One who continues to care for and love him perfectly. He is in the presence and basking in the glory of His kind and joyful Creator. He is fully illuminated and warmed by that light and love. It is the fulfillment for which he, as well as each one of us, was created. May you discover again this day your Creator and the life of love and joy found in His presence.

There are often times in my life when I am overwhelmed by the circumstances in which I find myself. These circumstances tend to reveal my limitations, my lack of skills or inadequate resources. The feelings that accompany these moments are often fear, frustration, discouragement and anger. In these times I often walk away with a headache. One of the chief circumstantial causes of these feelings is change. Change disrupts whatever the status quo has been. Change introduces different and potentially new variables into my life. Change of circumstances requires an adjustment on my part and it may be an adjustment I don’t really want to make.

My tendency is to do my best to avoid those kinds of overwhelming circumstances as best I can. This mostly proves to be a fruitless endeavor. Though I may escape for a time what is overwhelming, eventually it seems to catch up to me. In those moments I often choose to focus on what I don’t have available rather than what is available. It pulls me into the “glass half empty” mentality. My frustration with being overwhelmed by circumstances will often influence and shape my responses to others. I easily become moody, impatient, harsh or blaming in my interpersonal relationships. It is not pretty, nor is it the way I would want to be identified by others.

Having read the story of Jesus feeding four thousand people, I am amazed by the response He has in what I would characterize as overwhelming circumstances. He sees the large crowd of people not as an inconvenience or intrusion, but as people for whom He has compassion. He sees their need after three days for food and doesn’t want to send them away hungry. He is not so concerned about Himself as He is for others. He sees and feels differently than I do faced with what might be considered an overwhelming circumstance.

I identify much more with the disciples who find the task of feeding a large hungry crowd immediately impossible and recognize the limitations of their resources. They are faced with a challenge larger than themselves or what they possess. In that moment, out in the remote place, they see how access to food for so many will be a problem they cannot solve based on what they have. For them it might be better to have less compassion and more pragmatism.

Instead of lamenting what is not available Jesus asks and gives thanks for what is available, as limited as it might be. He does not complain about the seven loaves and the few very small fish, but He takes it and begins by giving thanks. The disciples were witnesses of gratefulness to God for what was available. Too much of my time is spent frustrated that I don’t have enough of whatever to meet the demands of what is.

Jesus gave thanks for the resources available and He proved to the disciples again that ultimately their best resource in every kind of circumstance is Jesus. The gifts of bread and fish they had received and relied upon were nothing compared with the gift that Jesus had been, was and would be in their lives. When they were overwhelmed by the storm the gift and resource was Jesus. When the crowds brought out all the broken and sick to the mountainside, the gift and resource was Jesus. When humanity was lost, suffering and in bondage to sin, the gift and resource was Jesus. And it is still the same now. When I become enamored with the things and resources of this world I may miss the primary gift that is Jesus. When I am overwhelmed it is Jesus who possesses all the wisdom and power and provision I need to meet the challenge. His presence with me and for me is something for which I can be constantly grateful.

As Easter approaches the Passover meal will be shared before His final suffering and death on the cross. In that meal the bread will be broken and the cup poured out as symbols of the life Jesus gives for the sake of humanity and their redemption and salvation. But Jesus gives the life He has with gratefulness. He does not complain to His Father about the limited resources available, but gratefully and humbly places all He is and all He has in the hands of the Father to be broken and shared with all humanity for their salvation.

Everyday, in the midst of overwhelming circumstances, I can take heart and be grateful for God’s greatest gift and resource, Jesus, accompanies me, broken and poured out for me. It is the meal of heaven provided by Jesus to first be experienced and then shared with everyone. It is the resource that expands my capacity to have compassion like Jesus in overwhelming circumstances. It is His very presence offered in relationship that enables and empowers a different response to the tumult of overwhelming change experienced in my circumstances. It is His presence with me that inspires compassion rather than frustration, patience rather than impatience, kindness rather than anger and sacrifice rather than selfishness. As I watch Jesus, listen to Jesus and follow Jesus, I witness His compassion and thankfulness in the midst of all the various places of my journey. He provides for me not only the right example but, the abundant power to be transformed in all my responses and all my being to be more like Him.

Today I encourage you to respond to the presence and capacity of Jesus to meet every circumstance with grace, mercy and love. Our trust reliance and security is that He will provide not just enough, but more than enough to satisfy all the world needs. He is out greatest gift and resource and with Him everyday has more than enough reason to be grateful.

“But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him. 1 Corinthians 1:27-29

My dad was a doctor, a surgeon who followed Jesus. In the early 1950’s he had the opportunity to sit with a young native Peruvian girl who had come from the jungles of the Amazon to the United States with a missionary named Rachel Saint. Rachel Saint was to speak at a missionary banquet that my father was invited to attend. The young girl had accompanied her to the evening event. At the hotel where they were staying and the event was being held this young Peruvian girl had come down with some sort of infection and was suffering from a very sore throat.

My father was approached to see if he might help this young girl. He did not have any medical equipment with him but, nonetheless, he agreed to take a look at her. He was led to her room where she was lying down with a fever and a sore throat. In that moment, knowing that he didn’t have available a vast array of options, he prayed that the Lord would help this girl and that he would have wisdom as to how to proceed. He inadvertently reached in his suit coat pocket and felt one small aspirin pill, which he didn’t know he had. He gave it to the girl and told her just to let it dissolve in her mouth. In a short time, her pain was relieved and her fever began to go down.

At that moment my father saw an opportunity to hear her Christian testimony and pray with her as a confirmation of her conversion experience. That evening my father witnessed a young girl from an unreached people group testify to her desire to follow Jesus Christ. My dad became a channel for the care and compassion of Jesus to touch this young believer. And then the evening event resumed. It was a momentary encounter resulting in the experience of healing love and kingdom welcome found in Jesus.

I am always amazed by that story and how God was able to bring about so much with so little human resources. When my dad related this story to me, he would often point out the miracle manifested in the incidental, small and ever so brief encounter of that moment. God had provided, and my father was an eager and available witness to the encounter Jesus had with this young girl in that seemingly insignificant and incidental time.

I tend to imagine that God is more often working in the spectacular moments of life than in the less conspicuous times. Yet, it seems that the overlooked and incidental moments are often the venue God chooses to display His works. If I’m only attuned to things that are spectacular I may have a tendency to miss the presence of Jesus in the mundane and ordinary encounters.

When Jesus landed in the region of Gennesaret, the people recognized Him and sent word to the surrounding area of His arrival. As a result they brought to Him all their sick and begged for the opportunity just to touch the fringe of His cloak. Their faith was large enough to appreciate even limited contact with Jesus, and all who touched His cloak were healed. They recognized, came to, and believed in Jesus to heal. Whatever contact, as incidental as it might seem, would be enough.

My father, when asked to see the Peruvian girl did not decline because of his limited resources. He trusted that the Lord in that moment would provide. A chance encounter, an overlooked aspirin pill, an invitation all bathed in prayer provided a context to witness Jesus at work in the incidental moment.
I am realizing how much there is to witness of Jesus, His care, provision and healing, in the incidental and often unexpected circumstances of life. They are the places where the opportunity of contact with even something as mundane and dusty as His cloak can be transformational.

Today in my life and times Jesus comes cloaked in various ways, most often in the lives of those He inhabits as their Lord. If I pay attention I can encounter Him and experience His care manifested through their lives. My father was just one more manifestation of the cloak of Jesus made available in the moment for someone to reach out and touch. He was not aware of what that evening encounter would bring about, but my father made himself available to extend the love and grace of Jesus through his life. His role was to be just the cloak and allow Jesus to work through him.

I pray that in my life I would not necessarily look at what I consider to be small, insignificant and incidental moments as less important. Instead, my desire is to remain attuned to the presence of Jesus and His desire to work in and through me in those moments, even as He would His cloak. My hope is that each follower of Jesus would know what it means to be clothed with His cloak and extend into this world His love, grace and salvation to all we encounter. It is enough to know that with Jesus, any kind of contact is significant.

“It’s only common sense that God guards all who have made love their business and who have, as a result, stopped worrying about themselves, having lost that desire.” The Book Of Privy Counsel, pg. 195

When I learned to drive an automobile I was taught to see in a particular way. It was called “defensive driving” where every other car on the road was a potential threat to and danger to my safe arrival at my destination, and ultimately to my life. I was challenged to pause and look both ways to avoid oncoming traffic. I was frequently encouraged to check my review mirror as I backed up to avoid pedestrians and parked cars. I was admonished to check my side mirrors and look over my shoulder as I attempted to change lanes. I was told to keep my eyes on the road and not let other things distract me from the destination and the danger. This was the way I was taught to drive my car.

My car was a small red Austin America that looked sort of cool, but proved to be less than adequate in upkeep or performance. I at times referred to it as a “tin can on wheels”. Being small and lacking in great power, I often felt a little less secure when driving next to a moving van, an eighteen wheeler or a city bus. They, in comparison to my car, were enormous. It was a true David and Goliath scenario, yet with the absence of slingshot and stones with which to fight back. It tended to reinforce the theme of “defensive driving”.

I have realized that I can at times go through life relationally with the same “defensive driving” attitude and perspective. I see people, yet they are characterized as objects to be avoided, obstacles impeding my swift arrival at my destination, and generally a threat to the successful and timely accomplishment of my agenda. They may also at times just be seen as fuel cells to use up and discard along the way. It sounds pretty callous and horrifying even as I write it.

I was reading in the gospel of Matthew today and began reflecting on the way Jesus paused to see people. In one instance it said that while traveling to all the towns and villages teaching and healing He saw the crowd. But the difference in His pause to see the crowd was His reaction to them. Rather than becoming anxious and defensive, Jesus had compassion. Rather than seeing a threat to Himself or His mission He saw them as they truly were, “harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd”. Jesus paused to see them and recognized their condition. He paused to recognize their need. He was neither self absorbed, distracted, or consumed by some agenda. He saw a crowd made up of individuals and had compassion on them. People, their lives and welfare, were the mission of Jesus. Therefore they never seemed to pose a threat, but instead offered an opportunity to pause, to see, to diagnose and respond appropriately to their condition.

I find in my life that in encountering other human beings I can easily either be looking down at my own feet or looking past them to the next place I’m supposed to be. Even in the moments I physically stop to interact with others I may not be pausing the inner striving toward my agenda. It’s that inner work of pause I need so that I might be fully attentive outwardly to the people I encounter along the way. Only as my life is receptive and available to the transforming power of Jesus will I see with His eyes the real condition of the people along the way. Only as I see with His eyes will I notice the true condition of their lives. Only as His love and grace fill me will I have the kind of deep compassion Jesus has for others. But for Jesus it began with the pause to see people, rather than avoid, look beyond or marginalize any human being. It called for a pause to see people and treat people with compassion.

I believe defensive driving in an automobile is a good thing. But I’m not sure it is helpful in the same way when we journey in this world with Jesus. We need to trust Jesus and pray for the vision to see humanity as He sees them, harassed and helpless in need of a good shepherd. Don’t let your defensive driving skills define your following of Jesus and your relational efforts. May you have the grace to pause and truly see as Jesus sees this day!

Matthew 4:1
“Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.”

It is the last week of December and the day celebrating the birth of Jesus has past, though the influence and impact of His birth continue to reverberate through the world. Like a pebble breaking the surface of a reflective pool the ripples are moving out from the center to the outer most boundaries of the shoreline.

I find that the days after Christmas, considering all the anticipation and work preparing for the birth of Christ, leave me somewhat deflated. It may be as simple as lack of sleep or just being emotionally spent, but I tend to see more of the darkness ahead than the light behind. This seems odd to me since the light of the world has come, yet it is strangely how I feel at times.

As I consider this one of the things that strikes me about the Christmas story and in general the life of Jesus is that there is always a wilderness ahead to be traversed. It begins when Joseph, Mary and the child Jesus must escape by night from the danger of Herod seeking to eliminate any threat to His throne. They are directed to Egypt to wait until the danger passes and then eventually to Nazareth to avoid Herod’s descendants. The holy family is called to begin a wilderness journey to the land of Egypt, back to Judea and finally to Galilee. But for Jesus the journey that often begins with such inspirational moments, like the heavens opening up at His baptism, includes more wilderness experiences. It is not necessarily always the physical wilderness of the Judean desert, but the spiritual wilderness of a dark world. He comes to bring light and life into that dark and dangerous world, into my own dark and dangerous world.

I need not fear the dark or the danger when I walk in His light. But it does not necessarily mean there are not desolate places to be traversed, in the same way Jesus traverses the desolate places of the wilderness and transforms them into places of prayer, nourishment and fruitfulness. The ministry of Jesus reaches into the very darkest places of my life to bring light that exposes, guides and ultimately heals. Rather than avoiding these wilderness places I am beckoned to enter and journey through them in the presence of and with the guidance of Jesus. The wilderness is a transformative place that takes the clay of my life and reshapes it by the power of the Holy Spirit into the pleasing vessel God intends. It is not necessarily an easy or comfortable place, and God knows that is what I’d prefer. But on this journey I must trust that He knows the best way to the destination and also the best way to help me arrive in the condition He intends.

The Christmas story is part of the ongoing story God has written for humanity. It is the fulfillment of the prophetic word spoken in ages past. But, though the birth of Christ has accomplished fulfillment of much of the prophetic record, God’s story for humanity will not be fully realized until all creation is made complete and whole in Him and through Him. His birth at Christmas just reminds me that there is a new birth awaiting us all in Jesus. The uncomfortable wilderness experiences are, as Jesus often described, the labor pains that accompany new birth into the new life of His kingdom. He has scattered seed in this wilderness, cultivated ground in this wilderness and is bringing to fruition in this wilderness a harvest of new life in Him. It seems my role is always to surrender to the work He is accomplishing in and through me so that I might experience the new life He intends.

As we move into a new year there most likely will be moments of darkness and areas of wilderness ahead, but the good news of Christmas is that Jesus, the light of the world has been born and Emmanuel, God with us, accompanies us each step along the way. Our transformation and arrival are in good hands. May you take hold of the one who has graciously extended His hand, His heart and His whole life to you to take hold of on this journey. Blessings and happy New Year!

My wife and I just spent a few days at a retreat with an eclectic group of leaders. I had been invited to share some thoughts on worship in relation to solitude and silence. As a part of the presentation I asked my wife if there was something she might provide by way of an experience that would help further advance the theme of the time. As a result we did an “arts and crafts” project during the session that involved coloring on a piece of white paper with various colors of crayon, creating a somewhat random piece of art. She then had them take their precious piece of art and cut it up into twenty squares of equal size. Many in the room were a bit uncomfortable with this destruction of their creation, but they did as they were asked. Then she had them randomly select nine squares and glue them to a black piece of paper. Beneath each square she had them right a meaningful word, phrase or feeling they had encountered after having read Psalm 150 from the Old Testament. In the sharing that followed they all discovered a different beautiful picture created from the random pieces, much like a mosaic created from broken pieces of tile or glass.

I have been reflecting upon the stories in the Old Testament book of Judges of late. One thing I have noticed is the repetitive disconnection from God that Israel exhibits throughout the various stories. This disconnection from God leads to all sorts of difficulty and ultimately results in a deep brokenness that affects not only individuals, but all the twelve tribes. In the final chapters of the book of Judges this brokenness manifests itself internally as one tribe, Benjamin, sets itself against the other eleven tribes of Israel. Having been abused by Benjamin, their brother Israelite, the eleven tribes seek justice for the abuse and war breaks out with lives being lost on both sides. In my reflections it seems that the results of turning away from God ultimately lead to not only personal heartache, but also heartache in the community. The meaningful whole that was Israel was fragmented and broken. Yet in the last chapter an offering of forgiveness and peace is offered to the tribe of Benjamin, who have been defeated and are now in a place of desolation far removed from their homeland. The eleven tribes grieved over their broken relationship and sought to be whole again. In the mercy, indicative of having been in the presence of the Lord, they reached out to offer healing. The fragmented and broken pieces were made whole and beautiful in a way consistent with connection to the Lord of grace and mercy.

Thinking back to the “arts and crafts” project, I am amazed at the beauty that can be achieved with what is broken and fragmented. It is the very thing that the love of God does in our broken and fragmented lives. As I encounter the places of fragmentation in my life and relationships I see a mess, while God, in His love and mercy, sees the pieces of a beautiful mosaic, which in His powerful and skillful hands can be restored to the beauty and purpose He intends. It often takes the hiddenness of solitude and silence to hear the voice of the one who speaks the loving and integrating word of life to us, which is then reflected in a heart of worship. Too often we remain outside and disconnected from that place of hiddenness. There we are, outside in the hurried and busy world that easily can be more disintegrating than integrating to our souls.

As you consider your own life this day you may notice places where you are defined by disconnection and fragmentation. God longs for you, as He does for me, to turn to Him, enter the hidden place and allow Him to take the broken and disconnected pieces of your life and create something truly amazing, beautiful and purposeful. May you discover this day His offer and word of peace, wholeness and restoration. And may you come to see your brokenness, not as something to be hidden, but something to be laid out before the Lord of life who can bring beauty and integration out of the rubble, who creates the artisan mosaic out of random pieces.

My son has always enjoyed rollercoasters. When he was growing up he had a notebook filled with pictures of rollercoaster ideas and designs. At one point in his life he imagined himself building rollercoasters and realizing some of his designs. Though that was not ultimately the path he took, he still loves a good roller coaster ride. When he was eleven ears old, as a member of “American Coaster Enthusiasts”, he was aware of their annual rollercoaster convention (yes, there is such a convention…). He spoke to his mother about attending and she immediately brought the proposal to me. It ended up that my son and I attended the 1991 American Coasters Enthusiasts annual convention, which thankfully happened to be in the state of California that year.

The schedule of the convention was fairly straight forward. Our convention fees gave us access to several amusement parks that specialized in thrill rides, namely rollercoasters. As convention participants we were invited to enter each park early before the general public and for two hours ride the latest and greatest rollercoasters available. Some of these rollercoasters had enormous hills, some included loops and spirals and some were just old-fashioned wooden coasters that seemed at any moment might leave the designated track. I remember riding some of these thrill rides seven or eight times in a row. On one coaster, after being looped, spiraled and thrown over the edge of a nearly vertical incline, I felt like my eyeballs were continuing to spin around in my head. Needless to say it was wise for me to take a short break after the eighth ride while my son rode another seven times. Oh the joys of youth.

People who truly love rollercoasters don’t seem to mind the intensity and the sense of danger that accompanies the experience. Often they are the ones with there arms wildly flaying in the air. I tend to be a bit more reserved and find some security in holding on to the bar in front of me. It is a “hold on tight” moment and probably is where the term “white knuckler” originated. It gives me the illusion of some control over my fate in the face of danger. Because of my fear I’m developing a pretty strong grip on that little metal bar.

Fear tends to cause me to tighten rather than loosen my grip. When I am afraid I attempt to hold on and retain control by latching on to what I perceive is secure. Often this holding on is focused on the ways and means I have grown comfortable with in this life. They are the things I’ve used to define my life, or the things I’ve relied upon to make me feel secure, good and important. But it is my fear of somehow losing out, seeing my life dissipate that causes me to hold on ever tighter to what I have or think I have presently. I am attempting to preserve something that was always in a state of perpetual decay.

Often, that which I am attempting to hold on to is the illusion I have about myself, my own grandiose self-perception. I want to be seen as important, essential, significant to the present and future conversation. To think that I may not be significant surfaces all sorts of management and control issues. Fear motivates me to hold on, but I may be holding on to a false security, something that cannot be sustained over time. The tight grip that manifests my fear always impedes my freedom to enjoy life.

It is similar to watching people ride a roller coaster. Those who let their fear become primary are characterized by the white knuckles of an intense grip, while those motivated by freedom are characterized by arms held high in the air screaming with delight on every hill. They let go and enjoy the ride and receive it as a mystery to not be controlled or managed. The Scriptures refer to fear and worry often as responses to be overcome by faith in God’s extraordinary love and care. Jesus says to the crowd in the Sermon on the Mount that we need not worry about our needs because God knows each of our needs and is fully capable of meeting those needs beyond our expectations.

“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith?” Matthew 6:28-30

The counter-active agent to fear is faith in God’s loving provision for all He has created, humanity being the pinnacle of that creation. When we exercise faith we can live the freedom of those assured of His care and provision for all they need. But when we choose to allow our fears to best us we find that life becomes small and restricted by our attempts to control and manage our world. Life is like a rollercoaster with all its twists, turns, ups and downs. We can either tighten our grip in a futile attempt to control our circumstances or we can open our hands, let go and trust that out lives are in God’s strong and secure hands. We can live the wild freedom of those who have loosened their grip and trusted in the strong grip of God. My suggestion to you this day is that you practice loosening your grip and opening your hand, trusting God’s care and seeking His kingdom. May you discover the immensity of His love and gracious care as you trust in His grip this day. Here is a song to encourage your trust in the ultimate and unwavering care of Jesus in the midst of this tumultuous ride. Blessings.