Higher Ground

It was early Saturday morning and the streets were dark and deserted, lined with trash from Friday night partying.  We emerged from our hotel in downtown Austin.  While waiting for the sleepy valet to bring our vehicle, I looked around.  There was a guy on a bench in front of my hotel, sleeping.  He was wearing dingy clothing, had kicked off one ill-fitting shoe and was hunched over.  As I looked at him it hit me that he was someone's son.  He could have been my son. That is when I felt it.  Tears welled up in my eyes.  This was someone who was alone, who felt unloved and unworthy and in reality could have been chemically dependent.

I have seen homeless people before and have been with my church when we were hosting a meal for them. I have no personal experience in their shoes.  I have no idea of their life.  But this one touched my heart.  I said a prayer for him as I got in the pickup.  Tears were still falling and I didn't know why.  You see, I am not usually a bleeding heart. On a scale of 'bleeding heart to cold heart', cold heart would come closer to describing me.  I believe in the saying, "Give a man a fish, he will eat for a day. Teach him to fish, he will eat for a lifetime".  I believe giving people money only makes them dependent when the goal is to make them independent.  So how do we fix this huge problem of homelessness?

When a problem is massive and shows no sign of slowing, it takes large groups of people to fix it.  Not one-on-one, but groups of people to pull up one person.  I can remember in Hurricane Harvey how people across our state and the entire United States came to help those who were flooded out.  The effort was massive.  It brought people together across the U.S.A. to solve this problem.  It even cut into political network news time!  But homelessness is so much more complex.  It is not as simple as putting people on higher ground.

So if we were to get groups of people together to overcome homelessness, how do we get them to higher ground?  Their higher ground would be a place out of the chains of dependence.  And when it comes to breaking chains, I know of no other way but through Jesus Christ.  Only the power of God can break chains.  So when homelessness is exponentially rising, how do we address it?  Do we ignore it?  Do we continue to give clothing, food and money to them to soothe our conscience?  Do we preach at them?  How do we even begin to make a dent in this issue?

Here are a few ideas that I have.

1. When organizations like World Vision and Compassion International address poverty in foreign countries, they address individuals.  We adopt them.  One. At. A. Time.  Maybe we need to address homelessness not in mass but one individual at a time.  

2. It takes a large organized group to pull just one person out of poverty.  I think it will take large efficient organizations to do this for our homeless.  These organizations will need prayer teams, money donations, professionals to teach them survival skills to climb to higher ground and field workers to bring them in.  It will take people to follow up and make sure the formerly homeless are maintaining a home independently.  They will need office personal to organize and overseers to keep it non-profit.  One amazing organization I know is Zoe Ministry.  They empower children in areas with abject poverty to move beyond charity by teaching them survival skills. Then they use those children to teach survival skills to others to perpetuate this ministry.  It is kind of an exponential chain reaction.  This same management plan could be applied to our homeless.

3.  Whenever I feel called to address an issue, it is best not to invent the wheel but to join someone who is already doing this and needs my help.

4. It will need to be faith based.  The only power to break the chains of homelessness is through the power of Christ.

This to me sounds like the work of a church, a large church, a mega-church, a bunch of mega-churches.  If only...

Best Intentions

When meeting with my posse this week, (my posse is a group of ladies who love to get into God’s word), we talked about how difficult it is to start the habit of meeting with God first thing every morning.  We discussed how intentional you have to be to make this decision and stick with it.  We talked about our failures and successes.  But mostly we talked about the difference it made in our lives. 

Change is intentional.  It is a choice. I made that choice about five or six years ago and it is the best decision I have ever made.  I decided to give the first of my day to God and trust him for the rest.  Most of my life I spent time in prayer at the end of a long day.  It was good, but spending time in the morning is unsurpassed.  Why is morning better?  And isn’t that a little legalistic?  I’m glad you asked.  My pastor explained it this way.  Time is valuable.  We fight for it everyday and run out everyday.  24 hours is never enough.  Giving God the first minutes of your day and trusting him with the rest is a huge shift in thinking.  It is prioritizing and placing first things first. It is saying everyday, “God, you are the most important thing in my life.”  Getting up early is a big sacrifice to a night owl like me. However, it shifts the order of my universe when I shove aside everything else and give the first place in my day to God.  

A sweet friend from my posse, Carla Cochrane, started this practice two or three years ago and never looked back. She would tell you what a change it has made in her life too.  We discussed what we could share to help others get started in this radically life-changing process.  In this blog I am going to share with you some of the steps we took to get started meeting God every morning.  Here are our ideas in no certain order.  

Get some Inspiration.   

Watch the movie War Room if you need inspiration to make this big change.  It.Will. Pump.You.Up! For that matter, watch any YouTube clip from Priscilla Shirer.  That will get you going.

Plan your Place.

Pick a comfortable spot that gives you privacy.  Mine is my favorite chair with my coffee.  It could be inside or outside, in a closet or a location in a big room.  Just pick a special spot and set it up.  Do a little nesting there to make it yours and yours alone.  

Choose your Sword.

This time isn’t just output to God.  It is input from God.  It is a conversation between friends that is food for your soul.  Listening to what God has for you is the most important part of this process, and a Bible is the word of God. It is a weapon of offense to help you take on the issues in your day.  You may want to buy a new Bible just for this time with God.  If so, research and go shopping.  His input is so important and there are so many choices of Bibles.  I chose a digital Bible that allows me to see two versions side by side, is lightweight, and is on every device so it is always with me.  There are so many cool Bibles now.  Go to a book store and spend some time shopping.

Choose a Daily Devotional Book.

A great way to start is to find a daily devotional that you like.  There are many phenomenal ones out there.  If one does not work for you, try again.  

Find your Focus.

I can’t focus well if there is any distraction. And sometimes my mind bops around like a pinball in an arcade game.  That is me.  When this happens I stop and write down that thought, then go back to my quiet time.  Some days I fight for focus the entire time, and some days the conversation flows.  I have heard of people who keep sticky notes by their Bible so they can jot down that random thought then get back to their quiet time.  

Journal your prayers.

Try writing down your prayers. You will be amazed how they are answered.  I got this idea originally from reading The Help. You may look back ten years later or a day later and remind yourself how God answered your prayers.  Also, writing them down makes your prayers more thoughtful and intentional.  I often realized how selfish I sounded when I saw it in black and white and writing it down provided a window to see myself without the rose colored glasses.  A little honesty goes a long way when having a conversation with a friend.  I chose to journal in my iPad notes because it is free, is in the cloud and even has a lock feature.  (There are also apps for this but be careful.  I lost over half of my 2016 journal to a bad app.)  If you are not into the digital side, go to a book store where you will find a wide selection of journals in every shape, size and color.

Set your Alarm.

Set your alarm clock 15 minutes early to get started.  It needs to be a time when the house is quiet before the rest of your family takes over your life.  Start small and don't feel guilty about it.  As you get into the habit, this time will grow from God-given passion inside you. 

Give yourself Grace.

If you have an off day, week, or even month, forgive yourself, and take up where you left off.  But start again.  I have a hard time making anything a habit. (Sometimes I still go to bed and have to get up again because I forgot to brush my teeth.)  It takes many failures to get into any habit.  

If you chose to do this, be excited about this decision.  Your life is about to change. I have witnessed the metamorphosis in others and I have seen a transformation in myself.  

With prayers for you all,
Susan

Thrown Under the Bus

Remember “Blame it on Bush”? If you have ever been in charge of anything, from Little League concession stand to President of the United States, you have been blamed for something that was not your fault.  And worse yet, you may have known whose fault it was and had to hold your tongue while the tires rolled down your back.  The description is one of feeling eviscerated.  It makes you feel vulnerable and angry.  And it is a trick as old as time.  

Genesis 3:12-13 NIV

[12] The man said, “The woman you put here with me---she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.” [13] Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”

Who among us has not thrown someone under the bus for some poor decision that we made?  Crickets....  At times in my life when things were going badly, I have blamed God.  I have thrown him under the bus whether verbally or in my mind. I cannot imagine how that makes him feel when his own children turn on him.  I am convicted.  

In Matthew 25, I think the Parable of the Talents addresses throwing the Master under the bus. Jesus tells this story to his followers not long before his death and resurrection so it is believed that he was referring to what they were to do after he left this earth.

Matthew 25:14 NIV

[14] “Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his wealth to them.

Parallel Christ leaving earth, leaving his servants in charge. He entrusts his mission on earth to them, and he equips them with wealth. Check it out. When he is confronted, that servant basically throws his master under the bus.

Matthew 25:24-26 NIV

[24] “Then the man who had received one bag of gold came. 'Master,' he said, 'I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. [25] So I was afraid and went out and hid your gold in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.' [26] “His master replied, 'You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed?

I see our 'gold' as the Holy Spirit. In the end of the parable, one of the servants was afraid and did nothing but dig a hole and throw his entrusted gold in it. I'm no bible scholar, but in my mind this last question was the master’s anger over the servant’s response. The servant was caught making excuses.  We do this out of fear.  All the master wanted was for the servant to be faithful and carry out his business in his absence.  All God wants of me is the same. 

Job is a guy who chose not to throw God under the bus when he had every reason to.  He suffered horrible pain and loss, both emotional and physical. And this was his response.

Job 1:20-22 NIV

[20] At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship [21] and said: “Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.” [22] In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing.

As a Christian, do I have enough trust in a gracious loving Father not to question him but rather to ask him questions? There is a difference in asking God questions and questioning God. The first is reliance on God, the second is a sin.  The difference is attitude and relationship. God knows my heart.  And he knows the difference.  Asking God questions while tears are running down my face is very different from defiantly demanding why He did or didn't do something.  Yes, we get angry at God out of our hurt.  God understands and God forgives. However, my questions can and should be asked but only within the constraints of my relationship with God.  My heart must be examined and my intentions pure.  

This year my little community has watched while a small child suffered with cancer and it’s painful treatments. Our community pulled together in prayer for this child and his family. This week this little boy passed away.  If this isn’t throw-God-under-the-bus material, nothing is.  In situations like this many Christians do throw God under the bus.  But I believe as Christians we must walk the fine line of mourning the loss and pain and at the same time never cast blame on God. If you read Job, you will see just how hard this is to do.  Job’s friends failed this test.  And we too cannot pass this test, not without listening to the Holy Spirit in our hearts. So when we are confronted with situations like loss to cancer, school shootings, natural disasters, and child abuse we must quiet ourselves and rely on the Holy Spirit that God placed in our hearts to deal with adversity.  

But wait, there is more! We are told to take action.  We are told not to bury our gold but to invest it. How do we carry on the business of the Father in our world?

“Lord, why are there so many starving children in the world”? Jesus said, “Feed my sheep”.  “Why is there so much drug abuse and violence”? And Jesus said “Feed my sheep”.  “Lord, why are there school shootings?” “Feed my sheep”, he says. I watch the evening news and instead of being motivated to address the need, I shake my head in fear and despair and say the end is near.  On social media you don’t have to scroll far to see good Christian people posting this defeated, fearful, hopeless attitude.

I also see people everyday that are investing their God-given gold by feeding the hungry, educating the masses, taking measures to protect our school children from shooters, caring for abused children, donating money to organizations that teach children to survive when parents are gone, donating money to victims of natural disasters, educating people how to care for their health, visiting those in prison, and carefully voting only for those legislators who support the people who work in a position to act as His hands and feet in our world. 

There are so many ways we can battle against the evil and pain in our world! It is up to our imagination and dedication to address these issues in our world.  There is so much we can do! Slinging mud and throwing God under the bus is what happens when you bury your gold.  We are not left to the wolves. We have been given a treasure of gold.  It is the very assignment given by our Savior and God to his followers.

Wile E. Coyote

Walls.  We all build them.  They are built with the purpose of protection.  We form them out of fear and we form them when we are hurt.  And occasionally, when we understand that we can't handle certain situations correctly, we build them out of wisdom.  The problem is not so much the wall, it is in the intent of the builder.  

Often in today's world, we build them in response to manipulative language.  Manipulative language is often based on a trigger word.  Trigger words instantly make gall rise up in my throat and cause me to put another brick in that wall between me and a person or group of people.  Trigger words can be nouns, verbs or names of infamous people or places.  They always invoke a gut response that shuts down the rational thought and sends my mind to the place the author or speaker wants it to go.  Trigger words change with the times and can develop faster than a West Texas storm in spring.  

At this point I would love to give examples of trigger words we see everyday.  However, that would cause a physiological response to happen that would negate the rest of my words.  I can only tell you that these words are used by wily manipulative organizations to sway you. They are used by politicians, advertisers and groups that are soliciting donations.  And by choosing the word “wily” I mean to give you a visual of the infamous Wile E. Coyote.  He had plans, lots of plans, elaborate plans!  It took him hours to set them up.  Luckily for the Road Runner, the plans were always foiled in a surprising and hilarious way.  The dictionary defines wily it as "attaining or seeking to attain one's ends by guileful or devious means". See the link for a visual--> Wile E. Coyote gif

In a famous bible story, a guy built a virtual wall between a city and himself.  He would NOT go to that city no matter what God told him.  In his mind, those people were depraved and everyone knew it.  Stories were probably told around the campfire about evil Nineveh. It was a hotbed of sin.  Nineveh may have been a “trigger word” for depravity back in the day.  Or maybe it was more personal.  Maybe someone in Nineveh insulted Jonah's mom.  It may have been said that they deserved what is coming to them.  Jonah ran from God and hid rather than to go to Nineveh and preach. Jonah didn't think those people deserved a chance to repent. As you may know, that didn't turn out well for Jonah.  He ended up surrounded by a wall of the digestive system of a big fish until he saw things differently.  

So was Nineveh really that bad?  Well, God was not happy with them so I would say yes.  Was Nineveh deserving of a second chance?  Probably not, but God thought so.  Was Jonah deserving of a second chance?  Probably not, but God thought so.  What is the point?  God sees us all as deserving that second chance.  Who am I to build a wall? 

There are people and organizations that are as manipulative as Wile E. Coyote.  Their purposes may be genuine or not.  Their words are meant to give them fame or profit but unfortunately it ends in building walls between myself and groups of people and I begin to view those groups as "them" and not us.  I begin to see them as not deserving a second chance.

In Matthew 10:16 NIV Jesus told his disciples:

[16] “I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.

That is very timely advice for our 'social network driven' society.  We need to learn to see the traps set by manipulators and wolves out there.  Our job as disciples is not to build walls but to break down walls.  And we may need to be shrewd enough to identify 'Wile E. Coyote' techniques to break down the walls.

Beloved

Beloved

I have a vivid memory of him standing at the pulpit, sweat dripping down, jowls swinging in emphasis as he addressed the listeners in the pews as “Beloved”.  That was my dad.  I often wondered why he chose this name for his congregation.  So I did a little research.  It means dearly loved or a much loved person.  The English Standard Version of the Bible has 104 verses with the term beloved.  The more popular New International Version changed the term to ‘dear friends’ and ‘one whom I love’.  Each time the term is used, it is a term of endearment like our ‘honey’, ‘sugar’, or in my husband’s family, ‘sweet thang’.  When you are called beloved, you are singled out as special.  

To truly understand a term, sometimes you have to look at it’s antonyms.  So here it is. Have you ever been trapped in a situation where you believed the person or people around you did not like you or even loathed you for some reason?  How did you feel?  How did you behave?  Was your behavior affected in any way?  Where did your thoughts go?  Did you become sullen and quiet or did you become rebellious, no longer caring?  Did your perspective shift to darkness?  Did you read something negative into every word your detractors uttered?  Did this belief shade your world for that period of time?  If you have never been in this situation, you are very fortunate.  Or maybe not.  This situation gives you an understanding that you could not have without it. 

Too often as a teacher, I saw students who lived their life in this way.  They acted as if they were despised by everyone.  They trusted no one and read evil into even the most benign statements.  Some were sullen and silent hoping to go unnoticed.  Many would act out and violate all rules. I cannot imagine the life of a child who lives feeling unloved or despised by everyone around them.  This is a sad existence.  

In Genesis 16 a story is told of a woman by the name of Hagar.  She lived her life as a slave, then bad went to worse when she was used in a plan devised by her owner, and in turn was mistreated.  So she ran away.  But God sent an angel to this woman to show her he loved her.  Her response is as follows.

Genesis 16:13 NIV

[13] She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me, ” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.”

She now had what she needed to return and stand tall in the face of her abusers. When she saw the love of her creator who cared enough to send an angel, she could live her life, however difficult, as one seen by God.  

What if we lived each day as a beloved child of God regardless of circumstances?  Is this even possible? Is this attitude sustainable in a life of ups and downs?  Ask yourself how God shows you that he loves you.  What if you kept your eyes on these love gifts.  God shows me his love in everything from soft p.j.’s to the color blue.  And it is most important that I stop to consider his love daily so that I operate from a stance of being loved.  

How do you act differently when you are around those who accept you and hold you in high esteem?  I stand a little taller and laugh a little louder.  I express myself and show my love toward others more freely. Make it your goal to uncover the ways God shows his love for you everyday.  Beloved, practice living from a stance of being dearly loved.