Balloons

Life is filled with various types of moments, isn't it? We face pivotal moments when our lives are drastically changed forever, and we face moments that pass without a second thought into history. We face moments of joy, hope, regret, shock, peace, fear, etc. But sometimes we face moments that just make us stop and think. These are simple, uneventful moments that derail the progress of a typical day, cause us to hit the pause button, stop whatever it is we are doing, and just kind of zone out. Nothing major. Just a subtle blip on the screen of life. Well, I had one of those moments today. And I was blowing up balloons.

Midway through my day, I found myself sitting in a hot closet of my church where we store a helium tank. I was blowing up balloons for our Wednesday night kids bible club. No big deal, right? Just blowing up balloons. Red. Blue. Pink. Yellow. Green. I blew them up, tied the ends into a knot and tied a colorful ribbon to the end. I planned on blowing up about 20 balloons, but around number 18, it hit me. I've just spent 30 minutes of my day making balloons. From the time it took me to gather my supplies, walk over to the storage room and make 18 balloons, 30 minuets have vanished. And they were spent making balloons! What could that possibly have to do with God, ministry or anything else for that matter. Balloons!

My mind began to wander. I began to feel that sinking feeling, and I'll admit, I started to get a little depressed. Is this what I expected I would be doing as I worked my way through seminary? Is this what I thought being called into ministry would entail? Is this activity that has taken so much of my time, helping to build God's Kingdom? Did I make too many red ones?

OK, is this all about balloons? No. Is this about effect time management? Maybe a little. I did just buy a nice new day planner. With a calculator! But I think this moment of pause in my day was for a reason bigger than helium and ribbon. I think this was a subtle way of God communicating a much deeper issue. This was just the bump in the road that snapped me out of highway hypnosis.

Scripture is full of verses on serving God. Paul says in his letter to the Colossian Church, "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men...It is the Lord Christ you are serving." What Paul is saying here is that it's not so much the action, but the motives behind the action. Are we serving God with the very essence of our souls, or are we just going through the motions. It's not about blowing up balloons. It's not about teaching a Sunday School class, preaching a sermon, cleaning toilets or writing blogs. It's about our hearts and who we are serving. Our service to God should not primarily come through and abundance of energy, time or strength, but from the overwhelming conviction that we are serving the God of creation! Sometimes, we are just blowing up balloons, and that's OK! Maybe it's in these simple moments that He teaches more about serving with Him, rather than just doing stuff for Him.

The Answer, My friend, is Blowin' in the Wind.....or after?

I live on the west side of Galveston Bay. Over the last couple of weeks, I haven't been able to write anything because of the lack of power in this area. When the lights finally came on, I was faced with the inevitable question, "Do I need to write a blog about Hurricane Ike?" My answer? I guess I don't have any choice. But what to write? How does this storm, that effected my area so drastically, fit into the realm of theology? How does not having power for a week inspire me to write something worthy of adding to my blog? What kind of deep philosophical perspective can I put on the natural phenomenon of hurricanes and how they tie into life, faith and spirituality? Well, I'm still thinking.

But, as with all storms, the wind stopped. The waters receded. And the power remained off. So as I sat in the calm quiet of darkness, the one thing that became very clear to me is this: God is very powerful. Too simplistic? Maybe. Too obvious? Maybe not. You see, I think that in our high-tech and complex world, we sometimes forget this very simple fact. God is very powerful. And as I pondered over this, I thought of the story of Jesus calming the storm in Matthew 8. Most of us have read, or heard, this story many times, and our first inclination is to interpret this passage as a comforting illustration that Christ "calms" the "storms" of life. But is this really what God is trying to say to us? Don't get me wrong, Jesus does calm the storms of our lives and this is a perfectly good passage of scripture to use in getting this point across. But is this what Matthew was really intending as he wrote these words? I don't think so.

Look at it from this perspective. What is the disciple's first reaction to Jesus calming the storm? They were amazed and asked, "What kind of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?" Think about it. They didn't cheer in excitement that the storm had stopped. They didn't release a concerted sigh of relief, realizing that their lives were sparred. They didn't fall to the floor of the boat, praising God that they would live another day. They were no longer focused on themselves and the storm. They were focused on Christ.

You see, the disciples attention turned from the power of the storm to the power of this man that just told the wind and waves to shut up! Their attention was diverted and that is what I think God is trying to get across to us in this story. Sure, God calms the storms of our lives, but more importantly, He is more powerful than the storms we face. He is above and beyond any storm we find ourselves in; figurative or literal. As Jesus spent more time with these twelve men, He revealed more about who He was. As He chopped away at their preconceptions, he opened their eyes to reality in it's fullest. God is very powerful. Sometimes it takes a storm for us to realize this. And sometimes it takes the calm.

Getting to Know You

A few weeks ago, like many people in the Houston area, I heard about a tragic bus crash that killed at least 15 people around Sherman Texas. A group of 55 Vietnamese Christians were on their way to a Catholic religious festival in Missouri when the bus blew a tire that sent it smashing into a guard rail and flipping it onto it's side. It was 12:45 a.m. and people were just dozing off to sleep. I began to think about this. I imagined a carefree atmosphere as these folks were on their way to a much anticipated time of worship. I imagined many of them asleep. Many of them talking quietly, maybe discussing faith. I'm sure that many of them had been waiting for this trip with great anticipation. I imagined that many could not sleep as they meditated on their adventure.

Then I imagined many of them awakened to the sound of the tire blowing out, the sound of twisting steel and the crash of the bus on the side of the road. I imagined the terror that these people must have felt. I imagined the fear that suddenly rushed through their bodies as the adrenaline suddenly surged. I imagined the screams. The cries for help. The helpless feelings as they felt themselves becoming airborne throughout the bus. The dark wave that came upon the survivors as they realized that many of their friends had died.

A week after the accident, I discovered that one of the people on board the bus was my tailor of some 10 years. Unfortunately, she was one of the people who lost their lives. As I read the local newspaper article, I was somewhat shocked. I just saw this woman a few weeks ago. I can see her face very clearly. I know who this person is. How am I supposed to react to this? I found myself wondering and asking myself something very strange. Should I be crying? I know that sounds odd, but I found myself in the middle of the road and wondering if my acquaintance with this woman warranted my tears. And I asked myself why? I've know this person for over 10 years, and I'm asking myself why a tear is not welling up in my eyes? Come on!

But then it hit me. I knew this person, but I didn't really know her. Yes, I knew her name and she knew mine. We recognized each other and probably would if we ran into each other in a restaurant or at the mall. We knew of each other, but did not know each other. Don't get me wrong. I was, and still am very saddened by this woman's death. As I dropped off a card for her husband at the alteration shop, I felt a coldness from not seeing her behind the counter. The shop felt empty, like part of it was missing. But to be honest, I moved on with my day. I went about life without much of a hitch. My question is this; "Should this have affected me more? Had I taken only a few minutes on any given day and talked with her, really talked with her, would I have found a tear in my eye? Would I have wept. Is that all that separated me from knowing her? Just one more conversation.

I don't know. I don't know if a few more words would have made any difference. The point is that there were over 10 years of opportunities to build more of a relationship and they were never taken. There were over 10 years to really know this woman, and they were wasted. It makes me think about the people we run into during the course of our days. We pass them at the store. We wave. We might say "Hi", and then ask ourselves, "What was her name? Don't I know that guy?"

John 11:23 records the shortest verse in the New Testament: "Jesus wept". As Jesus realized that His friend Lazarus has died, he is overwhelmed with grief and weeps. Someone that He knew had died. We know nothing of the relationship between Jesus and Lazarus. All we know is that Jesus wept. Maybe Jesus and Lazarus had spent many hours together talking. Perhaps they walked along the banks of the Jordan or the Seas of Galilee, Lazarus intently listening as Jesus went on about the kingdom of Heaven. Maybe they just sat together, shared a meal and joked about the Pharisees. Whatever it was, they knew each other and the loss of his friend brought Jesus to that point where the lip quivers, the throat tightens, the eyes well up and we can control it no longer. Jesus knew this man, and now he was gone. Jesus, the man, had a very close friend that died and He felt the loss deeply. He shed tears, as He would later shed blood. He was a man. He felt. He grieved. Lazarus had really died. Jesus really hurt. Jesus really wept. Jesus and Lazarus really knew each other.

Buffet Style Christianity

We all like buffets, right? Especially when your hunger is at its peak! You look over the various choices before you and wonder where you should start! And not wanting to offend any one particular food group, we usually take a little of everything. After our stomachs reach the “Full” line, we back away from the table, loosen our belts and realize that our eyes were much bigger than our stomach! But isn’t that the way life is these days? Don’t we wish that all of our choices were as simple as buffets? Think about it. Even with our faith, we have brought the same consumer mentality into the Church. “I’ll have a little of this, a little of that, but not too much of THAT.” We customize our worship services to resemble a lunch at Luby’s rather than worship of God. And after we’re done, what do we do? We loosen our belts and realize that we took too much of what we didn’t really need and not enough of what we did.

Well, the Greeks had this concept down even better than we do, but they were even more specific. They developed a buffet line for their “gods”. These guys had gods for everything! You name it and you could worship it. They were so afraid of accidentally overlooking and offending a particular god, that they had an alter marker, “TO AN UNKNOWN GOD”. Now that’s covering your bases!

The Apostle Paul is called to preach among the non-Jews of the time, and that inevitably brought him to Athens: the Mecca of Greek philosophy and pagan thought. In Acts17, Paul happens upon a place called The Aeropagus (Mars Hill), which was somewhat of the forum and center of philosophical discussions at the time. He encounters the two most common types of philosophers: the Epicureans and the Stoics. Not only were their beliefs radically different from each other, they held to beliefs in complete opposition form Christianity. The Epicureans thought that since man cannot connect with god at all, there was no reason to seek a moral stance on anything in life. The highest value in life was “pleasure” and the only reason that man exists. The Stoics, on the other hand, were much like the Vulcans from Star Trek. These guys taught that all emotions were to be denied and would only cause conflict with seeking moral discipline and morality. They believed that logic and reason were the greatest good and god was the sum of all that is good: namely logic and reason.

Now, Paul could have easily thumped these guys with the proverbial Bible and slammed them for their pagan beliefs, but this is not what he does. Instead, Paul connects with them on the same philosophical mindset that they had been conditioned to live by. He basically tells these deep thinkers, “Hey, I know you guys are smart and love discussion! I love discussion too! Let’s talk about this incredible concept that I have been radically transformed by! I noticed that you guys are seeking god! That’s awesome! You even have an alter “TO AN UNKNOWN GOD”. Perfect! Because I know who He is! Can I tell you about Him?” Now, some of these philosophers walked away, but the Bible says that many wanted to talk more about Christ. Why? Because Paul grabbed their attention. He met them where they were. He met them where they lived and thought like they thought. He went through their buffet line and showed them where the real nourishment was.

So, when was the last time we took the time to connect with non-believers on their level? Where they are and where they live? After all, we are all seeking “truth” on this journey of life. Some have just gotten off the path a bit. God is still God and wants to connect with everyone on their own specific and customized level.

The World According To Norman

Some people say that they see God in art. Well, in many ways, they are right. Most of us have seen the paintings by Norman Rockwell. If not, you’re missing out on a wonderful porthole to Americana. The images depict white picket fences, children eating ice cream cones, the innocence of a child and his first puppy, and a seemingly simple view of life in America. Through these images we see a world that seems to be almost fantasy and a life that seems distant and unrealistic. Some will even say that this view of life is just make believe and unobtainable. Whether you believe that these paintings represent real life or not, one cannot help but sense a desire to possess just a little piece of life as seen through Rockwell’s eyes.

Although our culture may have drifted far from the Norman Rockwell’s vision of life, I believe that it may not be as unrealistic as we might think. In fact, I would go so far as to say that this might be closer to the lives that God has intended for us, and I believe that the key lies within “simplicity”. Let’s face it: our lives have become more cluttered, hectic and fast-paced. Whether in the work place or home, we find ourselves literal slaves to the “to do lists”. The list gets longer and longer, and we feel as if we never seem to accomplish much of anything. We work for bigger homes and have smaller families and yet never seem to feel at home as much as we would like to. Proverbs 23:4 says, “Do not wear yourself out to get rich.” We are not told to avoid becoming rich. On the contrary, God wants us to be prosperous; sometimes that means monetary wealth, and other times not. The point He is trying to make is that we should avoid focusing our lives on the idea that we must be rich to be happy and to find spiritual peace. The key to peace within your circumstances lies in the focus of your life.

We celebrated Christ’s death a couple of months ago, so we have been able to look very closely at our savior’s life and the way in which He lived. If there were any lifestyle that we should base ours on, the life of Jesus would be the quintessential example. In the book of Matthew 8: 20, Jesus talks about the cost of following Him. “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.” Notice that He does not compare himself to the lifestyle of man. He compares Himself to the life of animals that have the simplest lives of all living creatures. Matthew himself was a tax collector and very wealthy, yet he gave up all he had for a life of following Christ. Now, do we need to sell all that we have in order to have a fulfilling life in Christ? Not at all. In fact, I feel that His intention is for us to have life abundantly. These extreme examples of life with Christ show clearly that our focus can only be on one thing. “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.” Matthew 6:24.

To sum it up, as children of God, we should “be content in whatever the circumstances”. Phillippians 4:11. The apostle Paul lived a life of pure contentment. Even while in prison, where he wrote some of his most important works of his ministry, he knew the meaning of being content. He teaches us that we can be content in any circumstance if our lives are built with Christ as the center. “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Luke 12:34.

These illustrations only touch the surface of the Bible’s teachings on contentment, money and focusing solely on God, but I think it gives us a very clear direction. The simple images of life seen in Norman Rockwell’s paintings are obtainable and real. They are not make-believe but they represent you and me and that simplicity is the key that leads to contentment.