love in troubled times...

"Because of this decision we don’t evaluate people by what they have or how they look.

We looked at the Messiah that way once and got it all wrong, as you know.

We certainly don’t look at him that way anymore.

Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new.

The old life is gone; a new life burgeons! Look at it!

All this comes from the God who settled the relationship between us and him, and then called us to settle our relationships with each other.

God put the world square with himself through the Messiah, giving the world a fresh start by offering forgiveness of sins.

God has given us the task of telling everyone what he is doing.

We’re Christ’s representatives. God uses us to persuade men and women to drop their differences and enter into God’s work of making things right between them.

We’re speaking for Christ himself now: Become friends with God; he’s already a friend with you."

 -2 Corinthians 5:18 (the Message)

This morning my Hubs gave a powerful message on unity... & the ministry we are called to as Believers to take on the mission of reconciliation.

Here are some of his thoughts...

"In wake of the numerous tragedies from Ferguson, Missouri to Chicago, Illinois to Brooklyn, New York, and all other places in between, I want to address all my brothers and sisters in Christ.

Let me state that ALL lives matter. As followers of Christ, we acknowledge that God created all of humanity in His image. Therefore, life is valuable and worth protecting regardless of skin color, age or cultural identity.

For those of you who are seeking to stir the pot of division among people based on such areas, you are forgetting that Christ said that as followers of His, we are one (Col 3:11-14). That we must live in such a way to promote unity. That our mission on earth is to seek reconciliation between man and God as well as between people (2 Cor. 5:18). As followers of Christ, we have become something bigger than our race, our cultural identity, our denomination....we have become united as one.

 Some who claim to know Jesus, have sought media attention and notoriety rather than true reconciliation. Tactics designed to segregate people (especially followers of Jesus) into sides is not reconciliation. It is deception. A smoke screen for an agenda other than true reconciliation. My prayer is that these people will allow the Spirit of God to move them back into alignment with God's way of seeking peace; "to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace" (Eph. 4:1-3). All followers of Jesus must live this way.

The Church of Jesus has an opportunity to be leaders in light of these tragedies. Yes, life is valuable. Yes, bad cops need to be held accountable. Yes, people need to obey the law. But instead of rallying around a particular context of opinion, we must rise above that and respond as Jesus would.

With that being said, please prayerfully consider your response to all that has been going on. Is it truly a righteous response or have you gotten caught up in the tricks of Satan to divide and destroy all things good?"

As he spoke, I found myself transfixed... my heart in my throat & on the verge of tears. It takes a lot of courage to ask people not to take sides... to set aside their feelings & look for the way to compassion, love & reconciliation... the way of Jesus. I'm not gonna lie, in the beginning I wondered how many angry phone calls he might get this week... in the end I found myself searching my heart for any bias in me & found myself conflicted.

Here's the real deal, I am fiercely loyal. To a fault. This is how God has made me. Since my Hubs became a police chaplain, I have developed a deep tie to our law enforcement community. I count our chief of police's wife as one of my dearest friends & the men & women who serve here in our little community are good people. Honorable people. When the news came in of the shootings in NY, I will never forget the baffled look on my favorite officer's face or the fear behind his young wife's eyes. Because I know them & love them, it is easy for me to choose the side that will keep them safe.

& yet... there were so many thoughts & emotions swirling around inside me... so much so that this afternoon when my Hubs lay down to take a nap, I bundled up & took a nice long run to clear my head & to talk to God.

Running is good for the soul & as I ran my mind began to unravel & the real question became clear.

How can I... in the place God has put me... be an agent of reconciliation?

I can choose to show compassion instead of indifference.
I can choose to bestow grace instead of judgment.
I can choose forgiveness instead of fear.
I can choose love instead of hate.

This kind of love is not exclusive. It sets aside my preconceived ideas about those I don't understand. It transcends all racial, cultural & religious differences. It is the healing thing that can bring us all... African American, Caucasian, Hispanic, Asian... poor, rich, educated, uneducated, white collar, blue collar, no collar... together as one. The way our God intended it.

I'm not being disloyal to my friends by showing this love to everyone... if anything, I'm deepening it. When we learn to love without conditions... without barriers... we love better. We love as our Savior loves us.

"But when the world can turn around and see a group of God's people exhibiting substantial healing in the area of human relationships in their present life, then the world will take notice."
— Francis A. Schaeffer (The God Who Is There)

a Thanksgiving run...

'Write these commandments that I’ve given you today on your hearts.

Get them inside of you and then get them inside your children.

Talk about them wherever you are, sitting at home or walking in the street; talk about them from the time you get up in the morning to when you fall into bed at night.

Tie them on your hands and foreheads as a reminder; inscribe them on the doorposts of your homes and on your city gates.'

-Deuteronomy 6:6-9 (the Message)

This past Thanksgiving holiday Hubs & I took our daughter on a road trip to meet up with our son & his wife & to visit with our families. This is a new 'tradition' for us as we have mostly spent our Thanksgivings at home, taking in a movie at the theatre & grabbing a pizza after. Yes I know this appears to be some kind of thanksgiving sacrilege but this is who we are... non-traditional... 'don't tell us how to celebrate' kind of people.

Anyhoo, we first leg of our trip took us to my parents house where after the long rainy thirteen hour drive, we decided to spend our first day just resting.

As most of you know, I've been training to run a half-marathon with my dad in January so it only made sense for us to take a short run together. His 'short' three mile run turned out to be more like six. We had a good laugh about it. My dad doesn't do technology. No computer, no cell phone, no GPS, no IPod. So his approach to running is much different than mine... it's not so much about getting in his miles as it is about spending time with God in prayer & getting his spirit ready to tackle the day.

As we ran along his route he began to share these things with me & I was stuck by something very profound. My dad was in his own way, passing to me what is most important.

Here's what I mean...

When we think about what is most important in life, what makes a life successful we find that success is measured by a lot of different things... sometimes we measure success by our careers & our bank accounts... sometimes is our homes, cars & vacations... sometimes it's our health & physical goals... sometimes its the 'successes' of our family... our parents, siblings & our children... sometimes its our charitable work or benevolence.  Don't get me wrong, these are all good, rewarding things life has to offer us but are they what truly matters?

As I listened to my dad as we ran, I began to think about him & his life. I wondered... is this how he thought his life would turn out?

My dad is a pretty big deal. In high school he was a four sport athlete (he was inducted into his high schools hall of fame for this accomplishment in 2009). He had a promising major league baseball career in front of him out of high school... while these things are amazing accomplishments, this is NOT why my dad is a big deal. He's a big deal because thru some twisty turns in life my dad met Jesus & his whole life got wrecked... for the good. That hot shot jock went off to Bible college & became a pastor. 

Here IS the big deal.

My dad's compassion & love & care for people knows no bounds. As a pastor my dad shepherds the flock God has given him so well. He's all in... visiting in homes & hospital rooms & nursing homes, praying over & with those who are hurting & celebrating life's precious victories with them. He has the most amazing servant heart. Whether its painting the ceiling in the sanctuary or shoveling the walk for a neighbor, washing dishes or scrubbing toilets, or making my mom cappuccino every morning, he's the first one to roll up his sleeves & get to work. He's the best encourager & counsellor, encouraging people to do better, to be better because they are precious to God. He's a champion for the 'least of these' & for what's right... even if it's not popular or doesn't give you the warm fuzzies. I know that my dad isn't perfect... he's pretty open about that... but it is with a full heart & eyes full of tears that I type this truth... my dad is living his life well. I'm super proud of the man he is & honored that I get to be his kid.

As we rounded that last corner towards home I realized that while I have been training for this half-marathon to honor my dad in a physical sense... the best way I can honor both my dad & my mom is by living my own life well. Not having an inward focus but by having an outward one... not by trifling with things that will not last but by investing in the things that are eternal.

I get it.

As a mom of my own grown up kids, I don't care what they do for a living, what they wear, where they live, what they drive... I don't expect them to be perfect at life or even in their faith walk...  I do so care about their hearts. That they love without thought for themselves. That they be humble & compassionate & caring & thoughtful. That they seek justice. & above all else they follow Jesus with all their whole hearts.

Jesus.

HE changes everything.

 "Everybody has a vocation to some form of life-work. However, behind that call (and deeper than any call), everybody has a vocation to be a person to be fully and deeply human in Christ Jesus.” -Brennan Manning, The Wisdom of Tenderness: What Happens When God's Fierce Mercy Transforms Our Lives