Lame Duck Faith

In the light of a political climate like ours, there is a phrase that becomes increasingly popular and relevant. I haven't done any research on the term "lame duck" and where it comes from or how long it has been around, but it most often used in describing a politician who is on their last term and because of term limits they can not run again for the same office. It refers to the tendency of this individual who, in seeing the final days nearing, begins to give up the passion that once put them in office. I think many of us do this even on smaller scales when we see the end coming in a job or school change. It is easy to do really. The thought is, "What's the point? We are leaving soon anyway. No one is listening."

I began reading Paul's letters to the church in Thessalonica recently, and I noted one theme in chapter one of the first letter that followers of Christ of today would do well to implement. "We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ." (vs. 3) As I unpacked this verse, the rest of the chapter developed what I was seeing. Any time I see a list in scripture, it makes me stop. Paul commends the church on three things: their work produced by faith, their labor prompted by love, and their endurance inspired by hope.

The work produced by their faith refers to the repentance that resulted. They were not just saying that they believed in Jesus, but they were turning form the idol worship they were so heavily entrenched in their old lives. True faith, as James discusses in his letter, produces good works and repentance.

Then Paul talks about their labor of love. At first, I thought he was just repeating himself, but I don't think so, because he uses two different Greek words here and this one refers more to a work done with intensity and sorrow. This church, as we see described later in the letters, is experiencing persecution. They were buckling down when it was getting hard, and possibly getting toward their end, and their love for Christ was the motivating force. Paul himself describes this in his 2nd letter to the Corinthians when he said that Christ's love compelled them.

Finally, he mentions steadfastness or endurance that results from having a source of true hope. This is no milk-toast hope. It is rooted in a deep-hearted trust in a returning Savior King based on the powerful work that has already been done in their midst. They were facing persecution, and folks they knew were being killed for their faith in Christ, and yet Paul commended them for not giving up and finishing the race.

In these final days, we are living in what my friend refers in his blog as shadow days. We cannot become lame ducks in our faith. We must buckle down, turn our heads toward the wind and keep marching. As long as we remain, God is not done with us. Unfortunately, many in the church today have given up. Their mindset is the same as a lame duck politician. "What's the point? We are leaving soon anyway. No one is listening." We must press on. We must encourage one another. We must not grow weary. For He is faithful, and we will be united with Him soon.

Does our faith produce real life change? Does our love for Christ compels us to do good deeds? Does our hope in Christ keep us moving forward? Or have we become lame duck in our faith? I hope you are challenged as much as I have been.

In Our Shoes

Selah is in copy cat mode. Everything we do; she mirrors... and I mean everything. Big sister is finding out the hard way that that doesn't always have the most pleasant outcomes. There have been a few times that Selah will say or do something that she has heard or seen big sissy do or say that wasn't a wise choice, and guess who gets in trouble for it! Well, one of Selah's more benign parrotings is she loves putting our shoes on. Here, she has Daddy's sandals on and trying to lift the "12 pounders" with each belabored step. As she was posing, I was immediately reminded of a verse that tells us that Christ, God himself, knows all about our troubles we face because He's been in our shoes.

In theological circles, this is called the hypo-static union. The fact that Christ was both fully God and fully man. Listen to how the writer of Hebrews describes this concept, "Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." (4:14-16)

The context of this passage is finding God's true Sabbath rest. We can find tremendous rest for our weary souls if only we trust in the One who can sympathize with our weaknesses.

Looking for Answers

I have been alive and in the ministry long enough to know that death is one of the things in life that is certain. Death comes as a natural result of our bodies breaking down over time, or it happens when we are shoved into the reality that we are fragile and held on to by naught but a thread. Though I have participated in and witnessed many funerals, they always have a significant impact on me and I find myself very reflective for days afterward. Sometimes, I think about my own mortality and am reminded not to waste a day. Sometimes, I am challenged to keep pressing on so that I may join the ranks of the few that can say that they finished well.

This week was not the norm. While death is never easy to contend with, it is always difficult to swallow when the life of a child ends suddenly. Many are crushed, all involved are changed forever. There are some things that are just accepted as the norm-- expectations that we all share, whether they are really true or not. One is that parents are not supposed to bury their children especially young children. Unfortunately, experience teaches us all that this is not always true. Parents do bury their kids. Kids are killed in tragic accidents. Kids get horrible disease and die.

In the wake of death's "premature" arrival, many look for answers to the same hard question - "why?" Often, some with the feeling of helplessness, rush to try to answer that question. Most have foolish answers and cause unintentional harm. I have experienced loss at the hand of crime, disease, and accidental death of both family and friends, both young and old. I have witnessed the devastation on a few occasions that this loss brings first hand, and I have tasted of the bitter fruit of losing a child through miscarriage. I have found myself looking for answers to questions like: What color eyes did they have? Was it a boy or a girl? What games would we have played together? There are questions like those that will never be answered. I know it is not the same as seeing a bed that will no longer slept in or toys that will not again be played with. I love both of my girls and will cherish them as long as God's grace allows me to.

Our community lost a preteen boy to an accidental drowning. Ministers were called in to go to the elementary school to talk with those children that needed to talk. I visited with four different kids. All of them sought answers, few left with any. I spent my time grieving with them and assuring them that God was good and that He loved them and the child that died. I heard stories of things they had done with the boy and memories that they will have. Some expressed fear of the same happening to them. This same school had lost a child the year before to sudden sickness. So, this loss was especially stinging.

I have learned that sometimes the only answer to those questions are that God wants us to embrace life and each other because life is always shorter than you realize. Sometimes the best things you can say to those grieving is, "I am so sorry, and I love you." Period. Don't rush to say anything more. Don't try to make sense of it and talk of the "good that will come out of this tragedy."Just pray for them, love them, embrace them and weep with them. Usually, there are no answers even years later. The main truth that I have learned is that God is good regardless of tragedy and that He loves us.

"Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. " - Romans 12:15

Lips Smacking Good

I received this story on one of my email subscriptions... enjoy the smile for today!

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So, we had this great 10 year old cat named Jack who just recently died. Jack was a great cat and the kids would carry him around and sit on him and nothing ever bothered him. He used to hang out and nap all day long on this mat in our bathroom.

Well we have 3 kids and at the time of this story they were 4 years old, 3 years old and 1 year old. The middle one is Eli. Eli really loves chapstick. LOVES it. He kept asking to use my chapstick and then losing it. So finally one day I showed him where in the bathroom I keep my chapstick and how he could use it whenever he wanted to but he needed to put it right back in the drawer when he was done.

Last year on Mother's Day, we were having the typical rush around and try to get ready for Church with everyone crying and carrying on. My two boys are fighting over the toy in the cereal box. I am trying to nurse my little one at the same time I am putting on my make-up. Everything is a mess and everyone has long forgotten that this is a wonderful day to honor me and the amazing job that is motherhood.

We finally have the older one and the baby loaded in the car and I am looking for Eli. I have searched everywhere and I finally round the corner to go into the bathroom. And there sits Eli. Applying my chapstick very carefully to Jack's...rear end. Eli looks right into my eyes and says "chapped."

Now if you have a cat, you know that he is right--their little rear ends do look pretty chapped. And, frankly, Jack didn't seem to mind. And the only question to really ask at that point was whether it was the FIRST time Eli had done that to the cat's behind or the hundredth.

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ewww!

Happy Birthday Boo!

God is awesome, He has given us two years of life with my youngest girl. Selah Joy is growing up so much and has been a real joy. I love you Boo!

Hail Caesar!

Does the name Caesar Cardini ring a bell? No? Well, I will give you a hint, he wasn't a Roman ruler nor a Mafia Don. His name may not be familiar, but I would venture to guess that most of you are familiar with what he is famous for... the Caesar Salad! Wow. Woohoo. Who cares? So, you are one question smarter in the game of Trivial Pursuit. But as I was enjoying a Caesar salad with my family and friends, I was reminded of a truth that God has been teaching me in my daily readings through the book of Kings and even in my studies in Romans.

Repeatedly, throughout both books of Kings, one of two phrases comes up in these chronicles of the lives of the kings of Israel and Judah. The beginning of the account of their life either reads, "He did evil in the eyes of the LORD..." or "did what was right in the eyes of the LORD...". Some of these life records are short, even as short as a few days, some of them are long lives filled with evil or good deeds. Later in Romans 1, in the middle of Paul's salutation, verse 8 heralds the same truth that challenges me at the core of my being. "First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, because your faith is being proclaimed throughout the whole world." The faith of the church in Rome, was being talked about in places all over the known world. That is a real wow!! Anytime I begin thinking that I am all that, I read something like this that really humbles me. I am not sure that people in my community have heard about my faith let alone folks all across the world. And yet, that is what we are called to be- light and salt in the world.

Is the way I love my wife and kids talked about elsewhere? Is the way that I spend God's money in a godly, responsible way part of my legacy? Do people hear about how my work is glorifying to God? Peter instructs the church to live such good lives that people around us take notice and glorify God and give ear to our witness of God's work in our lives.

I may not create the latest greatest salad, but I want to live my life in such a way that people glorify God in years to come. What will you be known for?