The Long Game of Becoming

 

Have you ever tried to potty train a child or train a stubborn dog? One day, long after you want to throw in the towel, they get it. What about breaking a wild stallion? If you have ever watched someone train an animal, it involves redirecting their inner desires into useful habits. It is a slow, daily process. It is all patience and repetition knowing that at some point the animal will get it.

Believe it or not, there are people who train little human beings for a living! Growing little people into responsible adults is not a job for the weak-hearted. It takes so much time. It takes day after day of intentionality from parents and teachers. Even when there is a bad season, the teacher and parent must continue in the pursuit of a child’s maturity. Why does this process of becoming take so much time? It seems like most of the job is waiting. But why? 

What Waiting Teaches

Let’s look at this from the learner’s perspective:

• Waiting allows time to notice others and look outward.
• Waiting redirects our path, pointing us to new directions.
• Waiting teaches us to calm our hearts when they want to run.
• Waiting changes fight-or-flight into quiet contemplation.
• Waiting gives us time to think, heal, grow, and try again.
• Waiting builds patience, self-control, wisdom, and relationships
• Waiting develops and perfects us.

Waiting is a tool God uses to accomplish what nothing else can. Think of the life of Moses. He lived 40 years in Egypt only to mess up and spend forty years herding sheep. Then when he finally gets to lead the Israelites out of Egypt, they wander in the desert for 40 years before they make it to the promised land. Perhaps it took 40 desert years to change the slave mindset of the Israelites into dependence on God. What else but time can teach us dependence on God? What else but time can prove to us that we are not the ones in control? 

A Life Measured in Waiting

According to Google, our average life expectancy is about 73 years.
That’s:

• 73 Christmases
• 73 Easters
• 73 seasons of warm summer sun
• About 876 full moons
• Roughly 37,393 mornings, lunches, evenings, and nights
• 639,918 hours
• 38,395,080 minutes!

(Okay, we do sleep about 12 million of those minutes — but we’re still left with about 26 million waking minutes.)

And that, my friend, is a whole lot of waiting.
No wonder adults just want a nap!

Life is a long, steady journey, and we fight that process nearly every one of those waking 26 million minutes. We want more, and we want it faster. But the secret is hidden in the waiting. Waiting builds anticipation so the reward is sweeter. It deepens our joy, strengthens our endurance, and shapes our character. Maybe it’s time to stop yelling at the microwave to hurry up. We’re playing the long game. Like a marathon runner, we have to pace ourselves — if we don’t slow down, we’ll burn out. Waiting isn’t wasted time; it’s where the real work of growth happens.

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“Where in your life is God using waiting to grow you today?”

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Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,
    for his compassions never fail.
They are new every morning;
    great is your faithfulness.
I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion;
    therefore I will wait for him.”

The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him,
    to the one who seeks him;
it is good to wait quietly
    for the salvation of the Lord.

Lamentations 3:22-26 NIV

 There are so many life lessons we can learn from sports. The applications are limitless and I don’t think that is a coincidence. While playing a game of keep away, have you ever seen someone engage eye contact with the opponent while quickly tossing the ball to a teammate? And because the opponent’s focus was on the wrong target they were fooled. However, that move never fooled this dog when his eye was on food. He was focused!

This guy always had his eye on the “ball”.

This reminds me of how I lose my focus on Christ when daily issues arise or adversity comes around. I pray for healing, for safety, for comfort and God often answers these prayers, but that is not the point. I have taken my eyes off of the ball and placed it on the issue in front of me. 

Time and time again Jesus addressed this issue to his followers. He tried to redirect the focus of people on what matters. He wanted them to keep their eye on the ball. In John 4:10 to the woman at the well who was focused on getting water to drink, He said, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” In verse 32 of the same chapter, Jesus’ said to his disciples who were focused on getting Jesus to eat, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.” 

Keep your eye on the ball. 

In John 6:26-27 to the people following him to the hillside by Galilee because they were healed and fed he said, “Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.” Then in verse 40 Jesus again tells this crowd to change their focus and look to God the Father and his Son. “For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.”

Keep your eye on the ball. 

I believe that there is a game being played that we know nothing about. It is a game to steal our focus from what really matters. I believe it is played out every second of our life on earth and even shutting ourselves off in an empty room will not help us win this tug of war for our attention because much of the battle happens within us. But this all sounds rather hopeless and depressing. If only we had some power or equipment to help us win this daily struggle! 

But wait! There’s more! In verse 63 Jesus says his Spirit and his words are full of power. “The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life.” So we are better equipped than the enemy. And furthermore when Jesus is offering his final comforting words to his disciples in John 14:16-17 he says, “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. 

And we are reminded that our team has the best uniforms, pads, cleats, helmets and bats. In Ephesians, Paul tells us that we are equipped to win the game. 

Ephesians 6:12-18 NIV

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.

And last but definitely not least, light always wins over darkness. Its power is undeniable. We will win because we rely on God. He has the ultimate victory over the enemy. We see this in the first chapter of John’s gospel when he introduces us to God and his Son. In John 1:4-5, John says, “In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”

So we must remind ourselves day by day, minute by minute that we are on the winning team with the power and authority of God the Father, Christ his Son and the Holy Spirit. We know how it ends. Just take a glimpse at Revelation chapter 22. We are on the winning team and on that we can place all our confidence and remember to…

Keep our eyes on the ball.

Christian Educators, Pray!

 If the Rapture were to be tonight, I believe tomorrow there would be scarcely a handful of teachers left in public schools. Yet, daily we are labeled as subversive and hear accusations of indoctrination and worse. They say we are teaching our students heinous things when in reality, we protect them, love them and make every effort to teach them to read, write, think and cope in this world. Public educators are being discredited, and slowly, slyly, gradually de-funded. And the worst is probably the looks of distrust we get when we admit our profession.

As a group we are the majority. We are also kind, trusting and compassionate and easily pushed around. This has left us vulnerable to political attacks and use as political pawns. As educators we can’t wrap our heads around why people would knowingly do this. That is because we are not running the same race as them and certainly are not motivated by the same things. If we were, we wouldn’t be educators.

So what can we do? Two things will help, the third is the real answer.

First, we must educate ourselves as to how the enemy works and who the enemy is and what is his motivation. Ignorance of the enemy is not acceptable. Read and enroll in online educator political discussions. This is non-negotiable.

Second, we must vote and vote only for those we know and trust. No straight ticket votes and no assumptions due to a D or an R or any rhetoric or promises. Vote based on actions, not words. And if you don’t know about a candidate, do not guess and vote. Just skip voting for that particular office. The ballot is not a STAAR test. You can leave some blanks.

Third, and this is the most important thing: pray. Pray daily and pray big and pray again. Pray for every child and every parent. Pray for our state leadership. Even if it is only five minutes, make time in the morning to bring it all to the Father. He is why we do what we do. He is all-powerful and you are His child who serves His precious children.

This is the Great Adventure

 I never got poetry. Lord knows my English teachers tried. But when you throw in a melody, some harmony, and maybe even an orchestra, I am hooked. Music is the greatest gift! Music soothes and it heals. It changes a dull day to something joyful. And you don’t have to be talented to enjoy it. In my case, it is a tool God has used to comfort and inspire me time and time again.

One of the all time great songs in my life is Stephen Curtis Chapman’s Great Adventure with the Prologue on the album. Step back into 1992 and read a portion of what this song has to say.

We'll travel long, over mountains so high
We'll go through valleys so low
Still through it all we'll find that
This is the greatest journey that the human heart will ever see
The love of God will take us far beyond our wildest dreams

Saddle up your horses, we've got a trail to blaze
Through the wild blue yonder of God's amazing grace
Let's follow our leader into the glorious unknown
This is a life like no other, whoa whoa this is the great adventure

And here is a link to the song. Enjoy!

I love a good adventure story: Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, that sort of story. The elements of an adventure are the following: they have a hero, a quest, a villain, an unknown dangerous environment, a big risk and a transformation. This also perfectly describes a well-lived life of a Christian. Christ-following is not a boring life. It is a life lived to the fullest.

Stephen Curtis Chapman, who wrote the aforementioned song suffered an incredible tragedy years after writing it. The highs come with lows. Many of my friends are blessed with amazing marriages that some people look for their entire life and never find. Some of those same people are now living in the reality of widowhood, struggling everyday to try to pick up one foot and put it in front of the other. And I have seen those who have been given the strongest bodies struggling to survive another day of cancer. It seems the higher our highs or the bigger the blessings, the more pronounced the lows. I cannot explain it. I can’t understand it.

Life IS a great adventure full of majestic peaks and low dark valleys, boring endless deserts and beautiful boundless springs of joy. So what can we do about it? Hang on for the ride of your life and follow your Leader into the great unknown. Celebrate the highs, mourn the lows and realize that you are not in control. Adopt an attitude of joy in the big adventure because we know how the story ends.

When I Can't Feel a Thing

 I listened to You Say by Lauren Daigle today and I relate to the line that says “You say I am loved when I can’t feel a thing.” Repeatedly in the Bible, God tells me he loves me. Repeatedly, He shows me he loves me daily by showering me with protection, bounty and beauty. Repeatedly, I remind myself of this fact.

1 John 4:9-10 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

Image by Sarah Richter from Pixabay

Today I can’t feel a thing. Today I struggle. Yet the beautiful thing is that the fact remains, and I believe that God still loves me. That is what keeps me going through the days when I feel nothing. Being a bit of an up and down kind of personality, my belief is so important. Mindfully cultivating that belief is vital. Consistency in the face of emotional fluctuations is purely His Spirit in me. In 1 John 5:13-15 of The Message translation of the Bible, I am reminded of what my faith entails.

My purpose in writing is simply this: that you who believe in God's Son will know beyond the shadow of a doubt that you have eternal life, the reality and not the illusion. And how bold and free we then become in his presence, freely asking according to his will, sure that he's listening. And if we're confident that he's listening, we know that what we've asked for is as good as ours.

It is possible to be confident when I can’t feel a thing because my faith is in God and not my own roller coaster emotions.

One Right Decision

I have been rescued. And I am rescued on a daily basis. No, I was not a drug addict. No, I didn’t suffer from alcoholism. My demons are covert, they are many and I am under the delusion that I hide them well. They vary and come at me from every angle. They resemble self-pity, anger, bitterness, selfishness, self-righteousness and a plethora of other chains all of which stem from pride. Any one thing on this list can destroy faster than a heroin addiction and I am inflicted with these demons on a daily basis. But God…

Yes, I have been rescued today. And I was rescued yesterday and I will be rescued tomorrow if I choose. All I have to do is make one right decision. I have to let go and give it to God. It is a choice. It is the one right decision. To let Jesus take the wheel even though I grab at that wheel during the stressful moments of a day. But making this choice consistently and daily over the last seven years has brought me peace and joy that has rooted and grown. Most of my days I am not aware of this change since it isn’t one of those bolt-of-lightning type changes. But sometimes I am given a glimpse of someone who is like me who hasn’t made that decision and my eyes see the miracle that God has produced in me and I want this so badly for them too. He is cutting my chains off one by one, replacing each with his peace, love and understanding and I am so grateful. 

I am beginning to understand this verse from the Apostle Paul. 

2 Corinthians 12:9 NIV

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. ” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.

Flashlight Holders Unite!

Like the meme implies, if you have ever been a flashlight holder, it is not a job for the faint of heart. Nothing in this life teaches you more than holding a flashlight while someone else does the job at hand. And those lessons are usually quite harsh.

Flashlight holders are not always holding a flashlight for their dad while he is fixing the car. If you have ever been an assistant anything, you have held a flashlight and you know it is not as easy as it sounds. Some of us spend a lifetime being in the position of helper. Not only do you have to support the doer, but you have to be in the right place at the right time. You have to listen and clench your mouth shut when you want to offer unnecessary advice. You have to know when to open your mouth and how to do it without offending the director of operations. You need to have done your homework and be knowledgeable enough to anticipate the next move of the doer and sometimes you need to offer supportive comments while dodging all the accusation and blame that may be thrown at you. And if you are like me, you have to calm your itchy fingers that want to take over.

Chances are, your job is in the business of support and not leadership. It takes a village to support but only one to actively lead. There is only one surgeon and multiple helpers in the operating room and even though there are many behind the scenes, being one of them is quite challenging. When the job is well done, you are never the one who accepts the accolades and at best, you may only have a word or two of thanks thrown your way.

So who are some famous flashlight holders in history? No one knows. Do you know the name of Thomas Edison’s helper? Do you know if he had one or a whole staff of helpers? What is the name of the influencers of Isaac Newton? How about the people behind the inventions of the assembly line or the airplane? There is no glory in being the support staff but we all know that nothing would get done without them.

Where should we look to learn how to be a top-notch helper? It is not a popular topic but if you look carefully, the Bible is full of flashlight holders. Queen Esther’s cousin Mordecai, King David’s friend Jonathan and Pontius Pilate’s wife(he didn’t listened to her) come to mind. However, my favorite biblical flashlight holder is Mary Magdalene. She shined her flashlight into that tomb and saw that it was empty. Without her and other women, Jesus would have had to ‘Gibbs slap’ the other disciples before they figured it out.

So next time you have to work in the shadows of a leader, remember that progress stops without knowledgeable, calm, and supportive flashlight holders.

Feeling the Agony of Defeat?

 

My husband and I have a passion for protecting Texas public schools. We did not plan this, it came about organically due to working in public education for 37 years in various positions from teacher to superintendent, all over the state of Texas. Together, we have a perspective into public education that very few Texans are privileged to see. We have seen the amazing work that public school employees do daily, against all odds and we know it is God’s work. We have repeatedly seen educators take on the role of not only educator, but protector and mentor for the children in this state and we are passionate about public education for that reason.

"Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me" (Matthew 25:40, 45, NIV)

We have also seen first-hand, the well-planned relentless attacks and lies about public schools and their educators by those in state office who want to use public school funding for their own purposes. Many Texans are buying into their deception and we are heartbroken. In our own county, we have seen a qualified experienced public school supporter defeated at the polls by an unqualified candidate who supports the defunding of public education. We are discouraged to say the least. But the following story helps me take heart in the face of this defeat.

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In Acts 20, the situation was that the Apostle Paul had been spreading the good news about a risen Christ to people all over, establishing thriving churches full of followers of Christ. However, Paul is told repeatedly that he would go to jail and suffer for this work. And he knew this to be true.

 "And now I am bound by the Spirit to go to Jerusalem. I don't know what awaits me, except that the Holy Spirit tells me in city after city that jail and suffering lie ahead. But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus-the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God. (Acts 20:22-24 NLT)

We know that Paul continued in his work and was imprisoned and he did suffer. He must have had moments where he succumbed to thoughts of defeat. In his lifetime he only saw a tiny portion of the success of his mission. But we also know, looking back two thousand years later, that Paul’s efforts were not in vain. God used his work in spreading the gospel to the world and today we read his words in the millions of Bibles that are currently published.

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You see, the lesson is that yes, we may not see success of our mission in this lifetime. But God is in charge and he will make beauty come from the ashes. And our part we play is to listen to his voice and follow the God-given passion in our hearts. So know that if God has ordained it, you must continue even in the face of eminent defeat. We have seen that God takes small efforts and assignments and exponentially multiplies the outcome.

Guns and Roses

 

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“Once you become a Christian you will always be kind and no longer be selfish and petty”.

what we thought…

Like this statement, so often the Christian life is portrayed as all butterflies and rainbows. While life with Christ is sweet, it is not easy. Non-Christians hold Christians to a higher standard and Christians themselves often believe they should no longer be tempted by desires that are unhealthy. So often we feel defeated by the temptation to make that nasty post even if we don’t do it. You may be surprised to know that even the Apostle Paul struggled with sin. To me, one of the most comforting passages of scripture is Paul’s letter to the Romans expressing his frustration with sin even after his conversion. 

Romans 7:15-25 NIV  I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.  And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good.  As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do---this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it. So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God's law;  but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in my sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.

And this was written by a guy that sacrificed his life to spread the truth of Christ! I have found my Christian walk to be more like guns and roses rather than butterflies and rainbows. All weapons and beauty with thorns. It seems like the closer I walk with God, the more I see my penchant for selfishness and pride. So what are these weapons? Is there no relief from my broken, rebellious nature? Where are those roses when all I see are the thorns? Well, the Apostle Paul not only sinned but he seems to be an expert in thorns too.

The truth that we must remember is that Jesus loves us while we are broken. He gave his life for us while we were in this condition. What makes me think that he no longer expects me to sin now that I am a follower? This is not said as an excuse, but as a difficult struggle. The difference belief makes is that the desire of my heart has changed. This is what creates the tension I feel. And if I did not have this tension, I would have to question my faith. I believe God knows my heart and knows my struggle. While He does not remove the thorns, he considers me His own child and loves and forgives me.

Do I have any help living to this higher standard while struggling in this twisted world? Did God give me any weapons against my sinful nature, or am I left to fend for myself? Paul included this answer in his writings. 

Ephesians 6:10-18 NIV  Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord's people.

And so it goes to reason that God wouldn’t give us these weapons from the Spirit if the Christian life was supposed to be easy. We are still haunted by our sinful nature but what we have been given from God is desire and weapons. Yes, weapons! And with the gifts of the belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness, shield of faith, helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit we are more than conquerers through Him who loves us. Bring on the guns and roses!

Are You Experiencing the Human Condition?

 

When those we love are torn from us. When we suffer without relief in sight. When we are attacked from every side. When we are unfairly accused. When you doubt if God cares or exists. When God seems only to be a lofty thought or an uncaring provider. This. This is the human condition. And at some point we all experience this.

Even Jesus cried out on the cross, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me”? And these very words were written by King David, known as a man after God’s own heart. The commonality of pain is living in a human body. Our birth on this earth brought us the skin and bones that makes this condition inevitable. No one goes through life without dealing with the feeling of being forgotten by our own Creator. But the key to surviving all this angst is the word temporary. It is not here to stay. All this pain, all this doubt and all this suffering is a momentary condition compared to what is ahead. 

But how do we survive these feelings of neglect? God has given us two gifts that help pull us through the dark: remembrance and hope. First, we must dig deep and force ourselves to remember the moments that we felt God’s presence, protection and guidance; those times in our life where we felt his love and Divine direction. So we must shake off that spiritual amnesia and make a practice of remembering everyday.

The second gift is hope. It is ranked with love and faith yet we don’t address it often enough. Without hope we can’t go on.

Romans 8:24-25 NIV For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have?  But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.

Yep, it said wait PATIENTLY. Oh my, patiently! Now that is one tough word. It requires time when we want instant relief. It reminds me of the word ‘grit’ or ‘persevere’ which also require time.

So how do we spark hope when we feel hopeless? It may help to visualize what it means to have hope and persevere with grit and determination. For me it helps to read books or watch movies with the theme of perseverance. Whether they are labeled “Christian” or not, we can find hope in surprising places. There are so many movies with a theme of hope and perseverance out there. I googled it. I found everything from Rocky to Lord of the Rings. Fill your empty heart with some stories of hope while you are waiting.

Slowly but surely you will hear God’s voice again. From David, the one who penned, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, so far from my cries of anguish”? He also wrote these words:

Psalm 30:5-12 NIV  … weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning. When I felt secure, I said, “I will never be shaken.” Lord, when you favored me, you made my royal mountain stand firm; but when you hid your face, I was dismayed. To you, Lord, I called; to the Lord I cried for mercy: “What is gained if I am silenced, if I go down to the pit? Will the dust praise you? Will it proclaim your faithfulness? Hear, Lord, and be merciful to me; Lord, be my help. ” You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing your praises and not be silent. LORD my God, I will praise you forever.