Losing an I

One of my favorite phrases from childhood is, "Someone is going to lose an eye." My husband is the perfect example of this phrase. Once, while playing soldiers with his brother, with the requisite long pointy sticks for guns, he was charging forward while Dave was turning to retreat, and Garth got poked in the eye. It is all fun and games until someone loses an eye. While we shout that reminder to our kids, sometimes in truth and sometimes in jest, in the Christian walk we are not supposed to stop until someone does lose an 'I". Do you put others first or do you need to stop and lose an "I"?

I confess that often I am selfish. I frequently choose to consider myself before others. Sometimes I am tired of doing good. Sometimes I want to think about me. Sometimes I get tired of being responsible. When is it going to be my turn to stay home and huddle under the covers instead of being the one to keep things going?

The world tells us many things about ourselves, most of them having to do with putting ourselves first: "I'm worth it", "Care begins with me", "You deserve a break today" are just a few.

Philippians 2:3 tell us, "Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves".

The truth is, I think about myself plenty. But as a Christian I am called to "lose an I." It's just that the "I" is me, or my absorption with self. When I strive to put others before myself there is a subtle shift in the way I look at the world. I begin to see the whole person standing in front of me, not just their exterior. I begin to see their needs and their gifts. I begin to see that they are God's beloved child, just as I am. I begin to see their worth through my Fathers eyes, and hopefully, the way I view myself has changed as well. 

Clown Car

Lately my life feels like a giant clown car. I have the usual clowns who ride around with me: the mom & ministry clowns, the clown of personal responsibility, the wifey clown, friend, sister, etc…. So my car is pretty full on a daily basis. But lately more clowns have been climbing in to join the journey: the clown of High School graduation, who seems to have brought along quite a few friends, the GCU clown who has brought an oversized bouquet of flowers, each one representing money, time and things to do, and then last, the one who wants us to move households by the end of June; not to mention the ministry clown who tends to be a little more needy this time of year. As one climbs out, another seems to pile in and I can picture myself driving down the road with an over-stuffed car with crazy hair waving out the sunroof and giant feet sticking out the window!

You have probably felt the same way a time or two, and the reality is, sometimes life is like a clown: ridiculous, busy, loud, demanding, fun and often a little scary!

The clown car in my mind reminds me yet again that my life must be anchored and rooted in something of substance. My foundation has to be unshakeable because the circumstances of my life will probably shake and spin from time to time and a new clown will jump in the car to distract me. The usual clowns, family and friends, provide the love and support I need to go along with the random chaos, and this too is part of God’s provision and care for me.

I hope this week you will embrace the clowns in your car. Accept their presence and thank God that your car runneth over and that the God of the universe is bigger than you car and bigger than your pile of clowns.

 

Psalm 121:1” I lift my eyes toward the heavens. Where will my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth.”

Gobsmacked

[gobsmacked]

                                            »utterly astonished, astounded

I was sitting in a room with 800 other Children’s Pastors last week and the speaker asked, “When was the last time you were gobsmacked by God’s word?” The word gobsmacked, which is an informal British word, originated from the combining of the two words gob and smacked and literally means to clap ones hand to the mouth in amazement.

Are you gobsmacked by God’s word? Sometimes I am, but more often I am not. I often read my Bible with the comfortable feeling of familiarity. I greet my Bible like an old friend. This isn’t necessarily bad, but it is an attitude that usually does not lead to wonder and amazement at God’s power.

 The question, are you gobsmacked, immediately brought to mind a kid named Sammy. We were in the middle of our Wednesday night club at church and the teacher was up front telling the Bible story to the large group of kids in the room. The teacher was telling the story in a way that had completely captivated his audience. It was a story you and I have heard a million times, and I don’t even remember which one it was.  I don’t think that I was even paying much attention until Sammy shouted out in the middle of the lesson: “That’s Awesome!” Sammy was gobsmacked: open mouthed, no-that-did-not-just-happen amazement at God’s Word.

Jesus said we should have the faith of little children.  Children enter into the telling of the story. Children believe without a lot of background information.  Children are willing to take God at His word. Sammy wasn’t trying to figure out the way physical laws had been broken, or trying to expose the lie of the illusion, and he wasn’t questioning the veracity of the text. He was gobsmacked by God’s Word! Absolute wonder! “Did He really? Yes, He totally did! Awesome.”

Did Jesus really heal the sick, walk on water, live a perfect life, die and rise from the dead? My response should be an awestruck and emphatic “Oh yes He did!”

The people brought children to Jesus, hoping he might touch them. The disciples shooed them off. But Jesus was irate and let them know it: “Don’t push these children away. Don’t ever get between them and me. These children are at the very center of life in the kingdom. Mark this: Unless you accept God’s kingdom in the simplicity of a child, you’ll never get in.” Then, gathering the children up in his arms, he laid his hands of blessing on them. (Mark 10:13-15, The Message)

The Best Cup of the Day

The love affair began when I was in college. It started innocently enough…and as obsessions go, it grew with each passing day. What was once something I huddled up  to for warmth became something more.  A little here and a little there, and pretty soon I was hooked. Something that started out strong and bitter grew into something sweet and comforting. Coffee: the elixir of the gods, the bringer of life, the good in good morning.

I consider the first cup of coffee to be the best cup of the day.  According to Statistic Brain, more than half of all adult Americans agree with me. “54% of Americans over the age of 18 drink coffee every day, and 60% of the people who drink coffee claim that they need coffee to start their day.”  I start each day sitting on the couch, golden retriever at my feet, coffee cup in hand. Somehow I never miss my first cup of coffee in the morning. It has become a habit.  The worst morning of the week is the one in which I am greeted with the words, “we are out of coffee”. How can I function without the blessed brew? 

Yet often I choose to function without a blessed brew of a different sort. There it is within my grasp each moment of every day-the blessing of time with my heavenly Father. And sometimes, many times, I see that blessed brew waiting for me in the form of prayer, Bible study or reflection and I turn away.

I recently asked some friends to fill in the blank: “I just can’t get through the day without ___”. How would you complete that sentence? The first thing that comes to my mind is my morning coffee. How did I put it? “Coffee:  The elixir of the gods, the bringer of life, the good in good morning.” It could be that I have my priorities a little out of sorts. Quite possibly, my Savior is the bringer of life and He is the good in good morning. Motivational speaker Rob Liano said it like this: “God will overflow your cup, so grab the biggest one you can find.” John 1:16 says it like this: “From his abundance we have all received one gracious blessing after another.” I hope that today your cup overflows!