Where are you?

I want to speak to the little boy or little girl inside each of us. I want to peel back the thick, cumbersome layers of adulthood that we pile on to mask our thoughts, feelings and emotions. I want to speak to the child in you – the innocent child that Jesus refers to when He says, in Matthew 19:14, “Let the little children come to me.” The little child who is afraid of the dark, afraid of thunderstorms, hates it when his parents fight, and does not understand why people don’t want to be her friend. Inside all of us, beneath the life-worn exterior of machismo and pride that child still lives within us. And, Jesus still speaks to that child: "Come."

In helping us understand God and the heavens, well-meaning adults pointed to the blue skies and white clouds and said, heaven is there and God lives in heaven. Even the Bible, in Isaiah 40:22, says God stretches out the heavens. We grew up with this idea that God is "up there" somewhere - somewhere far away. People stand in worship, face and arms lifted high, and for some they seem to be reaching upward to . . . somewhere. And, if we dig a hole deep enough, we'll come to a place called hell and the devil lives "down there." Good is up; bad is down. You've probably seen the old cartoons that reinforce this with an elevator. God is up there - far away - looking down on our lives and waiting on a few of us to join Him in the clouds when we die.

As a 12-year-old boy, I was hurting in 1971. I had a good life, lots of baseball, big farm to play on, parents who loved me, grandparents living just next door and they loved me, and all was well. When my grandmother died in 1971, as death often does to survivors, life got reshuffled. Nothing was the same. And, I was hurting. I've told the story many times: To ease the hurting, I used $10 of my birthday money to purchase a Bible, had my name stamped on it, and began reading it. Not long after, our pastor, Roger Williams, came to our Sunday evening Bible Study. He asked each of us (students) to be prepared to stand and read a favorite Bible verse in that evening's worship service. 

I didn't have a verse. I wanted to shout out, "My life is upside down right now. God is far away in those clouds up there. I don't even want to be here tonight. Leave me alone!"

As I sat in worship, between my parents, Roger asked we young people to stand and read our verses. I didn't have a verse. As other children stood and read, I stared at my Bible. It might as well have been a rock - literally. Then, I opened it and the words of Joshua 1:9 jumped off that page at me, "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." It was like a wave of peace flooded through me and over me. I stood and read that verse. Then, I sat down, buried my head in my mama's shoulder, and began to cry. God was not far away; God was right there. And, I knew it. 

As a follower of Jesus, God had spoke that verse into my broken heart, reminding me that He is not an absentee God, far away in story-book clouds. For those who love Him through Jesus, broken under the strain of life, He reaches out through the Holy Spirit in a supernatural way, and says, “Anchor your life in me. I will always be with you. Always. I will be with you wherever life takes you. Even in the darkest, loneliest, most confusing places – I am there.”

Most of us know that God is right here with us. But, that hopeful message slips away. We forget it. We ignore it. We wander away. I have lived a life full of valleys, some very deep, and in each of them, I still look toward the heavens and think, “Where is God in all this? Why does He seem so far away from me.” I completely forget Joshua 1:9 and all the other reminders in Scripture: God is right here. And, while I am saying, “Where are you, God?” God is saying, Matthew 11:28, "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest." Come to me. 

While I am busy asking, "Where are you, God?" God is responding with, "Scott, I am here. Where are you? Come to me. I will give you rest." God is waiting on me and you to come to Him.

What’s wrong with me – what’s wrong with you – what’s wrong with us – that we can’t hold onto that truth? What’s wrong with our faith that we are tossed around like a rag doll in the wind? What's wrong?

God isn't fun.
I am reminded of the family that learns their child will suffer with a disease for his entire life. The child will never know the same life experienced by the neighborhood children. And, how does the family respond? Do they run to God? No, they post Facebook photographs, showing drunken parties. They say, without saying, "God, I just want to be normal and have fun. You aren't fun, God. I don't want to deal with anything 'heavy' like religion. I just want to escape the pain." And, their hearts grow cold toward the only one who can bring them peace.

God isn't convenient

I am reminded of the man who was invited to join other men on a mission trip to North Dakota. He stared back across the table and said, "Well, that ain't happening. Hell will freeze over before I do that." He failed to realize that this wasn't a friend who was inviting him to be on mission - it was Holy God extending that invitation through another believer. Each and every day, God is inviting us to join Him in a work to improve the lives of other people. But, we say, "God, you are so inconvenient. I have plans. I have goals. I have vacation time reserved for me. My children need me at every single ballgame for the rest of their lives. My life can't function without ME. Don't get in my way, God. You are an inconvenience." And, their hearts grow cold toward the only one who can bring them joy.

God isn't forgiving

I am reminded of the woman whose past came rushing up to meet her one day. Poor mistakes as a young woman were being lived out through her children. She said, "God, I know you are punishing me. I am not worthy to walk with you. I want to get things 'right' with you, but I am so unworthy. My chance is over." Feeling blighted, scarred and beyond repair, she had come to a place where she felt God no longer cared for her. And, her heart grew cold toward the only one who could bring her hope.

These are just three examples. I could write 100 more and many would apply directly to me. We turn and run from God, and then we ask, "Where is God?" And, God asks, "Scott, where are you? Where have you gone?"

For Jesus followers, God is right here - beside you, over you, under you, inside you - all the time. And He is constantly speaking, constantly calling you to serve, constantly calling you toward change, constantly reminding you that Jesus came to save and not condemn (John 3:17). But, our hearts have been hardened by the valleys; our hearts have grown cold toward love, peace, joy and hope. We can't hear God. We have listened to bank accounts, the counsel of unbelievers, family calendars, and the false belief that we are responsible for the happiness of our children. We wander, lost, hurting, confused . . . like little children afraid of the dark, but paralyzed to get out of the bed and turn on the light.

And, some of you can't hear from God because you don't know His son as your Savior. Only through Jesus, can you hear God's call to peace, love and hope. Jesus says, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6). Have you made that commitment? Have you said, “I can’t do it anymore all by myself; I’m tired of it. I need Jesus.” If so, have you told others? Because you can’t keep the light under a bushel – it’s impossible. Have you been baptized in front of family and friends – maybe not in a big church service, but have you made that public statement of faith? Do people know that you know Jesus? Only you can answer that, but I promise you that you will never, never know the peace that comes through God until you acknowledge Jesus, surrender to Him, confess Him to others publicly, and allow your heart to be massaged by Jesus' comforting words: "But those who drink the water that I give will never be thirsty again." (John 4:14). 

Where is God? Where is God in the restlessness of our lives? 

Where are you? God is here. Where are you?

Make a decision today. Make a decision to surrender your life completely to Jesus, and if you have already done so, make the decision to step from life’s confusion and uncertainty, and hear from God: Do not be afraid, I am here. I am sovereign. I am God.

Beware of thieves

By James Berry
My Mamaw Calla (my mother’s mom), was a very special woman.  She endured many struggles and hardships in her life.  The “crossroads” crisis that still impacts our family to this day happened when her youngest daughter, Kathy, was killed by a school bus in front of their Sumter, SC home at the age of 10.  

I’ve heard the story many times of how Mamaw rode in the backseat of the car with Kathy’s head in her lap all the way to the hospital. My mom still speaks of the blood stain in the road that was a constant reminder for many years. My grandparents took two different paths to dealing with this loss. My grandfather put all of his energy into his work as a farmer and insurance agent.  He basically pretended that it never happened and did not grieve at all.  Mamaw grieved for her daughter, and struggled with depression and emotional problems to the point that she eventually needed to be hospitalized for a period of time. While my grandmother was hospitalized, my Grandfather developed a relationship with another woman and my grandparents were eventually divorced.  My grandfather basically took everything and left Mamaw with nothing.

Mamaw moved back to Kentucky and lived with family there until she fell in love with a man named Bob and remarried.  Mamaw and Bob were so happy together and I remember sitting in their apartment listening to Cincinnati Reds games with “Papa Bob” during visits there.  During this time, she witnessed the death of her oldest daughter to cancer at the young age of 33.  Bob was so supportive through this difficult time. He was a great guy and they were so happy together until Bob’s teenage son and a few friends who were high on heroin broke into the house one night. They beat my grandmother with a baseball bat and shot Bob in the head multiple times.  Bob survived and recovered physically, but was never the same emotionally.  He became paranoid and violent. Mamaw stayed with him as long as she could but eventually Mamaw had to leave as she feared for her safety.

Mamaw spent many years living with her parents and taking care of them until they passed.  After their death, she came to live with my family in Columbia.  She and I shared the upstairs of my parents’ home, so I obviously spent a lot of time with her.  We were later able to get her a small one bedroom apartment where she lived for her last 10 years on this earth.

Despite the many struggles in her life, I would say that my Mamaw was one of the most positive and giving people I ever knew.  She volunteered by reading to local elementary children and served food to the homeless at local soup kitchens.  I particularly remember grade school care packages that were filled with baseball cards and baseball t-shirts (items she clearly couldn’t afford to buy and mail), but she knew how excited I would be to receive them). She had very little monetarily, yet she made a point of hosting a small Christmas celebration for our entire family at Christmas. She did her very best to make it as fancy and entertaining as possible and she was always excited as she gave the grandchildren some quite unique presents at Christmas. She had JOY, despite all of the trials she had faced.

I am convinced now more than ever that we are engaged in a spiritual war every day and for whatever reason we are afraid to admit it.  I have heard many sermons based on the statement “God has a plan for your life” (Jeremiah 29:11), but I rarely hear anyone mention that Satan has a plan for us as well.  I believe one of Satan’s main ways of attacking us is through worry, stress, and regret. I also believe that he attacks followers of Christ in an attempt to lessen our witness in hopes that he can keep nonbelievers from becoming believers. 

John 10:10 says, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." The “thief” discussed here clearly is Satan.  I believe that one of the main ways that Satan attacks believers is by trying to steal our joy.  We get so wrapped up in troubles and stresses in our life that we miss seeing where God is at work.  We focus too much on the problems at hand and trying to fix them ourselves that we forget that our Savior wants us to give these burdens to Him.

When Jesus was explaining the parable of the sower in Mark 4:19 he said, “but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful”.  I don’t know about you, but I want to be fruitful.  I want to produce each of the fruits of the spirit, especially joy.  But a lot of the time, I let the “stuff” of everyday life steal that away from me.

Another area where Satan attacks us is our past.  I know that in my life there are times in my past where I know I failed both God and my family miserably. I have confessed my sin, asked for forgiveness, and know that God has forgiven me. Yet, I still find myself reflecting back on those times and experiencing feelings of guilt and regret for those actions.  God has forgiven me, but I can’t seem to shed the feeling of guilt associated with some of my sins of the past. 

I heard a great analogy recently at a PowerUp Lunch here in Lexington.  Mike Crapps of First Community Bank shared this quote from a sermon at his church that he said has really changed his outlook on life.  He talked about how Jesus was crucified on the cross for our sins and that he was hung between two thieves.   Then, he said, “Most Christians are being crucified on a cross between two thieves; Yesterday’s regrets and tomorrow’s worries."

Don’t let Satan steal your joy by keeping you focused on worry and regret! Remember that Jesus wants you to turn all of that “stuff” over to him so that you can have life to the full.

 

Behind and Beyond The Manger

For me, there's a problem surrounding our picturesque Nativity scene.
Coming to us each December, framed with warm and gentle hymns, and quiet lights, we are lulled peacefully by the image of the stable with lots of warm hay, and a family huddle there as the baby Jesus is born. Animals kneel in reverence, we want to believe. Shepherds and wise men approach in order from poor to rich (the least shall be first). Some, honestly, believe there was even a drummer boy, i.e. the Rankin-Bass cartoon. The brilliant star shines on it all. Silent Night, peaceful night, Holy Night.

This Christmas-card scene leads us to quiet, candlelit Christmas Eve services, where we turn down the lights and turn up the candlelight. Peace on Earth, goodwill to men.

I'm pretty sure the birth of Jesus wasn't very peaceful or silent. It was real life. It was messy. Jesus was born into chaos. The birth of Jesus was also unlike any event before or since or ever to be again. And, there is an incredible back-story that we ought to understand in order to fully understand Christmas.

Vicki’s daddy was a brilliant man – an engineer – who ridiculously loved problem-solving, mechanics, and math and science. One weekend, as I visited, I found him on a Sunday morning, removing the engine from the family car. That entire day, he spent removing the engine, cleaning it, eye-balling it, and then replacing it in time for everyone to go to dinner. It was a hobby. I would shake my head and he would say, “You look at it, you think it’s just a car. You open the hood and explore, and you find it’s so much more than that. It’s a machine.”

Let's go under the hood of a conversation within the Christmas story - before the manager scene.

First, a disclaimer. Most Americans are illiterate when it comes to Scripture. We revere the Bible, but we don't read it. We don't study it. Only about 50 percent of Americans can name the four gospel writers; more than 60 percent can't name the Ten Commandments. It's pretty tough to follow God's law when we don't know it. Within the Bible, there's so much teaching that can bring peace, hope, joy and love to our lives and  yet we don't seem to care. Within the Bible, there's so much teaching about what we should be doing, how we should be living, and what we should not be doing. Yet, we would rather plead ignorant, as in, "I can't be held accountable for what I don't know." Unfortunately, that's not true. We will be held accountable according to all that's in Scripture.

I should study the Bible more - every time I do, I am blessed and convicted, encouraged and corrected. Even the correction somehow feels good - like having my hamstrings stretched. It's painful, but feels great. I believe the Bible. I believe every word of it is true. Certainly, I believe it's written by men, but I believe those men were divinely set apart and were writing as inspired by God. I believe that it's dangerous to pick and choose what we want to believe and not believe within the Bible. When that pick and choose subjectivity happens, Scripture begins to unravel, faith can be compromised, and fellowship with God jeopardized. So, for me, it's all or nothing with Scripture, and I choose to believe it all.

And, believing it all requires a lot of faith because there's so much in the Bible that is supernatural and beyond my feeble ability to comprehend: The virgin birth, the Resurrection, David and Goliath, the flood, Lazarus brought back from the dead, the temptation in the wilderness, the strength of Samson, the hand-writing on the wall . . . it goes on and on. Supernatural stuff. I choose to believe all of it for fear that hedging on even a little is dangerous territory for those who love Jesus.

And, that brings us to angels.

Scripture does not tell us much about angels. But, the angel - coming to Mary in full person - is a significant part of the Christmas story. Inexplicable as it is, it happened. A living, breathing angel showed up on planet Earth and this young girl saw him. It happened. Truth.

Humans and angels are the only two-self conscious beings in the universe. The Bible tells us that humans and angels can both have intelligent conversations with God. Humans never become angels - there's no Scriptural  basis for that. It's a cartoon myth.

On the first day of creation, Genesis 1:1 says, "God created the heavens and the earth." Some argue that on the first day, God created both humans and angels. "The earth was empty, a formless mass covered in darkness," Scripture tells us. Humans were created to procreate. Hebrews 12:22 refers to "thousands of angels" without reference to that number being the total of angels. There could be millions. We don't know. But, on that first day of creation, they were probably created first, as part of the heavens, and then watched as the Earth was created. Job 38:4-7 reads, "Where were you (Job) when I laid the foundations of the earth? What supports its foundations, and who laid its cornerstone, as the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy?"

It must have been, in simplistic terms, like hitting a walk-off grand slam to win the seventh game of the World Series. Heaven erupted at the creation of Earth. Genesis 1:31 reads, "Then God looked over all He had made, and He saw that it was excellent in every way. This all happened on the sixth day." Sin - the love of anything over God; the love of self over God - was not present.

In Genesis 2, Adam and Eve first populated the world, and were tempted, in Genesis 3, by Satan. So, between heaven erupting over a perfect Earth, and Satan tempting Adam and Eve, something happened. Something supernatural happened beyond the realm of human understanding.

Some of the angels sinned, challenging God. They were led by what Isaiah infers was the wisest and most beautiful of the angels, Satan, who challenged God in heaven. 2 Peter 2:4 reads, "For God did not spare even the angels when they sinned; He threw them into hell, in gloomy caves and darkness until the judgement day." (There's a message here, friend: Challenge and mock God with unrepentant behavior will not end well.)

Satan was cast to Earth and many followed him and became demons. A spiritual war began between Satan's armies of darkness and God's angelic armies of light. Satan went after what God loved (John 3:16) - me and you. That's why he tempted Adam and Eve, and introduced sin into the world. Satan went on to tempt Jesus, and in Revelation we know that Jesus leads a powerful army at Armageddon - the final battle - and destroys Satan once and for all. Satan is then cast into the lake of fire. Until then, however, the supernatural war between good and evil, right and wrong, holy and unholy rages all around us. It rages today.

Satan is one of three angels introduced to us, by God, through Scripture. The other two angels are Michael and Gabriel. It's very dangerous to go looking for other angels and studying too deeply about angels. A casual study beyond Scripture can quickly lead us away from the 66 books of our Bible into resources that feel and look like Scripture, but are not. It's easy, especially with web searches, to end up in seemingly fun websites with direct ties to the occult. Remember, Satan is a demon - a dark angel - and you can't study angels without bumping into him. It's also easy to begin worshiping angels. Angels exist, and God certainly uses them to intersect with us. We know that from Scripture. But, there is no Scriptural need for a personal, guardian angel. We have Jesus. I know people - you do, too - who talk more about their guardian angels than they do about their Savior. That's dangerous theology. My opinion.

We know that there is a hierarchy among angels. Jude 1:9 refers to Michael as one of the mightiest of angels - an archangel. Daniel 10:13 refers to Daniel's help coming from Michael, one of the chief princes.

Revelation 12:7-8 reads, "Now, war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon (Satan), and the dragon and his angels fought but were defeated." Clear evidence of Michael, an angel, leading spiritual warfare against the forces of darkness, led by Satan.

And, now we come to Gabriel.
In Daniel 8:15, the prophet writes about Gabriel - "the man" - coming to him. Angels, apparently do or can look like us. There's no mention of wings though lesser angels - seraphs and cherubs - inexplicably have wings. In verse 17, Daniel writes, "As he came near the place where I was standing, I was terrified and fell prostrate." While Daniel fell into a deep sleep, Gabriel brought a message from God about "the time of the end." It all left Daniel exhausted and ill for several days (v.27).

Here's the man who survived the lion's den and who saw God's hand write on the wall, and yet this "man" appearing to Gabriel was terrifying. Clearly, Daniel was in the presence of something unworldly; something crystal clear from God himself; something with a message directly from God.

This is the same Gabriel, sent directly from God, during a heavenly war with Satan's forces, to Mary (Luke 1:26). This ancient messenger of God, who scared the pee out of Daniel 600 years earlier, comes to Mary and says, "You are highly favored! the Lord is with you."

Scripture says that Mary was troubled "at his words" (not his presence). Gabriel comforts her and says (v.31), "You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name of Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will given him the throne of his father, David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end."

Mary doesn't question the assignment, but she's concerned - how can a virgin have a baby?

Gabriel says (Luke 1:35-37), "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was to be barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God."

This may be one of the most hopeful testimonials in all of Scripture. Here's an ancient being, Gabriel, who is in the presence of God all the time. Gabriel is at the top of the angelic heirarchy, presumably with Michael (Daniel 10) and at one time Satan. Gabriel has directly heard the voice of God. He is a messenger of God. God pulls him from battle with Satan to go to Mary with news that God loves the world so much that He is coming - as Jesus - to deliver those who believe from sin and Satan. Gabriel has heard and seen things in the supernatural - things foreign and strange to us as humans. And, I can almost imagine him grinning to himself as he encourages Mary by saying, 'Trust me, Mary. I know, I KNOW,' that "nothing is impossible with God." Gabriel saw the Earth breathed into existence. He knows that nothing is impossible with God.

The Christmas story is not warm and cuddly. It is a wartime event that comes quietly to us, but is actually an eternal event. How I wish I could see Christmas from God's perspective . . . of even Gabriel's. I'm not sure we can fully wrap our minds around it. That's why we anchor ourselves with faith in Scripture.

Christmas is the turning point in the great battle for the soul of men and women, and boys and girls.
John 3:16, "For God so loved (insert your name) the world that He gave his only son so that whoever believes (trusts) in Him can have eternal life." That includes a peace-filled, joy-filled, hope-filled, love-filled life today, too. Those who believe this join God's family; those who do not will be on the losing end for all eternity.

I believe that one of Satan's deceptions is to lull believers into lethargy and complacency. Many point and complain about commercialism at Christmas or the media's sensationalism at Christmas, but the problem is not "them" as we like to say; the problem is with us - believers who have dumbed-down Christmas into a Christmas card cliche that makes Christmas easy to swallow. We've heard the Christmas story so much that we gloss over it each year and move on to our worldly agendas, which come back to self-gratification. I know believers - you do, too - who give to charity at Christmas to ease the guilt of spending more extravagantly on themselves throughout the year. Gee whiz.

Being reminded of Gabriel at Christmas, reminds me people all around us are living and dying without hope or an eternal future, and most all of us - as believers - seem lethargic about it. We rarely talk about the unsaved. We rarely lift prayer requests for them. (Most of our prayer requests are for self). We don't explore opportunities to share faith. We don't invite people to churches. We don't give Bibles, with notes inside, as Christmas gifts. We don't have luncheons with single-agendas - "may I tell you why I love and follow Jesus?" At some point, we must get serious about what we believe because what we say we believe at Christmas is serious business.

Most believers approach faith with the same casual attitude as going to the grocery store. When that happens, Satan wins and the brilliance of the Christmas story is dulled.

As believers, we are Christian soldiers - much like Mary - and we have a responsibility, as commanded by Jesus (the one born in that manger) to make disciples and teach Scripture. Look what Mary said when Gabriel gave God's orders to her: She said, "I am the Lord's servant. May everything you have said about me come true." (Luke 1:38). Jesus commands us to go make disciples. Do we respond with, "I am your servant. May it come true"? This Christmas, I pray we are each convicted - and encouraged - about how we will approach 2013 toward helping people discover Jesus as Savior through our words, actions and lives.

Birth Announcements

Job is coming out of a dark and deep valley, and he says to God, humbly and exhausted and broken, "I know that you can do anything, and no one can stop you."

When searching for something to fully describe the power of Almighty God, Job's words just stop me in my tracks: God, I know that you can do anything, and no one can stop you. No one can stop you. Not all the armies and all the kingdoms and all the rulers together can stop you. The forces of evil and darkness can't stop you. You can do anything, God. And, by contrast and comparison, we can do nothing.

And, yet, this powerful, Almighty, sovereign God chooses to love each one of us. For those who love Him, through faith in Jesus, He says that He will keep us from harm, watch over our days, and all things in our lives will work to bring Him glory. He says that He has plans for us, and had those plans before we were even born.

God is all powerful and all loving.

This season of Christmas, we celebrate birth. We celebrate God coming to Earth as Jesus to provide a way for restoration with God. This past week, I've been a spectator of two powerful examples of birth and rebirth. I've been a spectator of what Job says when he says, "I know that you can do anything."

Jeff

Jeff and my oldest son, Andrew, were on the University of South Carolina track team together for three years. They became friends. For the past five years, we have prayed for Jeff - not in pitiful ways, but in expectant ways that God would make Himself known to Jeff, and through Jesus, launch a new chapter in Jeff's life.

For the past few Easters, we have opened our home for the boys to invite their college friends to our church, and then to our home for Easter lunch and an egg hunt. This year, Andrew called to say that Jeff was coming with him. We had a great time, and enjoyed getting to know Jeff. Afterwards, we didn't think much more of it. Yet, prayers continued. (Pictured is this year's group of egg-hunters; Jeff is in the top row, left; Andrew is in the center (blue shirt).

At Thanksgiving, I asked Andrew if Jeff ever attended church with him near campus, and Andrew said that Jeff did not and probably would not attend church with him. And, we just sort of dropped the conversation. Yet, prayers continued.

Last Monday, Dec. 3, at 9:46 p.m., I received this text from my oldest son, "Jeff gave his life to Christ tonight."

And, putting on my "Reverend" hat, I responded in the most call-worthy way I could at the moment: "Holy Crap!!" I texted. And, here's the ensuing text conversation.

Me: I need details.

Andrew: We went to get wings. And, then Jeff asked me to get ice cream. He said he's been thinking about Jesus a lot and what that means. He talked to me about coming to church with me over Easter, and then he just asked questions. I shared the gospel with him as best I could and then asked him, "Why not (give your life to Jesus) right now." And, Jeff said, "Yeah, I want to." So, he asked me what to pray and I told him. It was huge.

Me: Did he pray?

Andrew: Out loud (in the Sandy's parking lot).

Me: Wow, son, you watched someone be born again!

Andrew: I can't stop laughing when I think about it. God can do anything. It is so exciting. God is going to do great things with Jeff.
Since that conversation, I've had opportunity to meet with Jeff and begin discussions about believer's baptism, joining with a fellowship of believers, Bible Study and prayer. I've reminded Jeff that this is not the end of a story or a mile-marker, but the beginning of a new life - a new story in Jesus and following Jesus. In his own genuine way, he's all over it, and I'm confident Andrew will continue to mentor his friend. I will pray for both of them.

Born again. This story has some messages for me and you:

• Never give up praying for people.
• Never doubt that God can do anything, and that His timing often does match our timing.
• Simple hospitality with no agenda can make a difference to people.
• Be ready to share the gospel "as best you can" when you have the opportunity to do it. Don't walk away from the chance to introduce someone to Jesus.

Kelly & Leigh Ann
Kelly and Leigh Ann Roberts are near and dear to my heart. Leigh Ann is my baby sister. I was months shy of 15 when she was born in 1974. She and Kelly have been married 15 years, and have been unable to have children of their own. A few years ago, at Christmas, Kelly and Leigh Ann gave out gift cards to my family and to the families of my brothers. This was unusual because we siblings don't exchange Christmas gifts. When I acted surprised at their kind gesture, my sister said, "Well, we don't have anyone to buy gifts for and this is something we want to do."

In my heart of hearts, I ached for her. It was as if that Christmas gift was her way of saying, "We give up, and surrender the desires of our heart to Almighty God."

My former sister-in-law, Cindy, is a labor and delivery nurse at a south Georgia hospital. Because Cindy will always be the mother of "cousin Paul," we've kept the doors of communication open with her and still love her. Off the family radar - and a few hundred miles away - Cindy has always been on the lookout for a baby in need of adoption.

Last Friday morning, I was visiting my parents in Atlanta. When I came downstairs, about 8 a.m., my mama said, "Cindy has found a baby for Kelly and Leigh Ann." I was two cups short of coffee, but was still able to grasp the reality. A baby had been born in the pre-dawn hours of that Friday, and its parents wanted to place it for adoption. Cindy called my mother, who found my sister. Leigh Ann, a nurse, called Kelly, a school teacher, and told him the news by telephone. It went sort of like this:

God has provided us with a baby. We need to make a decision right now.
The decision was easy.

As long as I live, I will never forget my sister's words when she called me about mid-morning.

"You have no idea how long we have prayed for this, and I know this is a gift from God," she said. "This is how God works in my life - He comes quickly and in big ways."

On Saturday morning, without nine months to plan and prepare a nursey, these two took off for south Georgia, where they adopted this little girl and named her - Emilee Joy Roberts. (Pictured, right, with her mommy) Her middle name is so very appropriate for this Christmas gift from God. How blessed we are that the birth parents chose to have the baby and not pursue abortion; how blessed we are that they loved this girl enough to ensure she has a home dedicated to loving and serving a Holy God; and how blessed we are that God preserved our relationship with Cindy for all these years.

A life born to one day be born again. This story, too, has messages for me and you:

• Never give up pouring out the desires of your heart. God hears them; He absolutely hears them. And, in His time - not ours - He will answer those prayers even if it's not how we might expect them to be answered.
• Never doubt that God can do anything.
• Preserve the relationships that come in and through your life. Finish well this life with no ill will toward anyone. You never know how that person might be used, by God, to love and serve the ones you love down the road.

This Christmas, be reminded. Please be reminded, "Oh God, I know you can do anything, and no one can stop you." Amen.

Joy at Christmas

I begin this Christmas season by proclaiming, "Joy To The World" as in Jesus, our Savior, has come to the world. Believing in Jesus as the only true and pure Joy, and knowing the Holy Spirit resides in each believer, it is inexcusable for a believer to whine, "I can't catch the Christmas spirit." 

Here's how to find the Joy at Christmas; here's how the believer can catch the Christmas Spirit today and every single day.

I was so happy on that Christmas morning when I received the green bicycle. It had high handle bars and a banana seat. It was dark green with a black center bar. I was happy because it meant freedom on a lot of levels. I now had wheels. I could get to my grandparents’ house, Herschel Harrison’s country store, and the pond in half the time. I could also explore. We could load the bike in our station wagon, and now I could ride it to see all of my friends when I went to town, where my mother worked.

If I made a list of the top five Christmas presents presented on the top five Christmases of my past – the green bicycle would be at the top of all lists. That bike made me so happy I’m not even sure I could list a No. 2 all-time without a space between it and bicycle.

And, yet, that bicycle was in the trash heap in about five years – replaced with a larger 10-speed that I never quite loved as much. The treasures of today will surely be the dust of tomorrow. That bike was incapable of bring me Joy; it could only bring me temporary happiness.

You have no idea how much my mama wanted a daughter. She and my dad had three boys, 15, 13 and 10. A run at adoption of a little girl had failed. Attempting a fourth pregnancy had ended in miscarriage. All of my mama’s best friends had a daughter. My grandmother, my mom’s mama, had six grandsons and no granddaughters.

And, in late 1973, my mama found out she was pregnant. We all began praying for a healthy baby, but one that would also be female. Everyone was watching this pregnancy – boy or girl? Would my mama be able to contain her disappointment? It would surely be yet another Vaughan boy.

On March 7, 1974, my dad came by the high school and got me out. He went around to the other schools and got all my brothers. He called my grandmother and told her – it’s time – the baby is coming.

At the hospital, there were about 30 people in the waiting room. Boy or girl? Boy or girl? Probably a boy. The doctor came out and said, “It’s a girl.” It was like winning the lottery – people cheering and nurses crying. It was a community event. I worked at a local pizza restaurant and that night at work - the manager gave me a free dessert by way of celebration. When my grandmother came into the hospital, I shouted down the hallway, “Mema! It’s a girl.” And, she passed out.

People described it as a joyous day, but for those without a faith in Jesus, that was not true. For those, it was only heightened happiness and Earthly celebration. For those of us who were believers, having prayed and heard those prayers answered, it was a Joyful day. Joy only exists when Jesus exists. Joy, for me, and in my opinion, is that sweet spot of worship when my life and its events are in concert with Almighty God, through faith in Jesus.

Read the words of Psalm 98 and reflect on the Joy mentioned in it.

• Joy is a reflection of a deep and personal relationship with God through Jesus. It is impossible for people to now Joy apart from a faith in Jesus. What the unsaved will know is a heightened measure of happiness. The reason we sing “Joy To The World” each Christmas is because apart from the gift of Jesus, there is no joy.
•  Joy is found in authentic worship, pouring out the pain and sorrow of life to an Almighty God – praising and thanking God for all his blessings even in the midst of pain.
• And, while Joy is provided by God, we must pursue Joy, too. It’s an inward disposition. You can be a believer and not be joyful, and that’s a sad and pitiful way to live. It’s like being given a wonderful gift and never opening it.

How can we experience Joy? How can we experience the fullness of faith in Jesus? And, in experiencing that sweet spot with God, how can we fully celebrate His son's birth each December? How, then, can we capture the Christmas Spirit?

First, and foremost, the individual must be a confessing follower of Jesus Christ - not with head, but with heart; not with the right words or the right cadence before each meal, but with disposition and attitude and decorum. And, then, these considerations:

• Make God’s words personal – Jeremiah 15:16 – "Your words are what sustain me. They bring me great joy and are my heart’s delight. For I hear your name, O Lord God Almighty." Would you believe that an estimated 80 percent of all believers are Biblically illiterate; more than 60 percent of believers never even read the Bible. What does that say about the state of Joy in today's believers and then collectively within the church? Go to Scripture.
•  Whole-hearted service – 1 Chronicles 29:9 – "Then the people rejoiced for that they offered willingly because with perfect heart they offered willingly to the Lord." Service without disclaimer; service without expectation – not even with the expectation of a thank you. Understand that your money is not yours; your time is borrowed – give it all away to bless the lives of others.
• Faithful service – Matthew 25:23 – Recognizing the source of all things in our lives, and plowing those things into service. It's not just about time and money. It's about the greatest gift many of us have - our children. 3 John 1:4 reads, "I have no greater joy than to hear my children walk in truth." I look at the trophy shelves containing all the trophies and awards that my boys have gathered, and yet Joy comes to me when I know Andrew is driving college students to worship services on Sunday mornings. See the difference between the Earthly and the Eternal? Happiness is in the Earthly; Joy is in the Eternal.
•  Knowing your heart is right with God – Psalm 3:22 – "Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice all who are upright in heart." My heart is not always right with God. I get frustrated, I lose my temper, I slink into negativity and cynicism, I say and do things that I regret, and I then I feel ashamed in front of Almighty God. But, what Joy comes when I recognize the sinfulness of my heart, cry out to the Lord, and feel Him wash through me. There is no Joy like the sweet spot of being right with God.
• Winning souls – Psalm 126:5 – "Those who plant in tears will harvest with shouts of joy." Have you ever watched as someone came to know Jesus – broken and then redeemed? Can you remember that feeling in yourself? Only in the last five years have I introduced anyone to Jesus, and I can tell you that there’s nothing like it. Once you have experienced the joy of seeing someone come to Jesus, you will want to live the rest of your days – you will cry out for those days – for that pure joy found in soul-winning.
• Answered prayers – John 16:24 – Jesus says, “Ask, in my name, and you will receive and you will have abundant joy.” Are you praying? Are you thinking about prayer? Have you experienced the abundant joy of answered prayers. There is Joy in the knowledge and affirmation of a loving, Almighty God through answered prayer.

Joy, to the world!

When Jesus was born, Joy entered our bleak and empty world. When the Holy Spirit comes alive in each believer, the opportunity for Joy enters that human life. Christmas should be a season of worship; Christmas should be a season of the focused pursuit of Joy. Don’t let it slip away from you – Serve, Pray, Dive into Scripture, Confess Sinful Attitudes, and look for the opportunity to hit your sweet spot with Almighty God.

Chasing Jesus is life-changing

Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me." - Matthew 16:24.

What does it mean to be a follower of Jesus?

Followers of Jesus choose to pursue Him. Followers of Jesus can look at today, compare it to the same day last year, and say, “Yes, I am closer to Jesus and I am more like Jesus today than I was on this day last year.” There is an assurance of that.

You see, the word following implies forward movement; it implies a pursuit or chasing after Jesus. And, so it stands to reason that if I am following Jesus, I will be on a forward-moving journey with Him, and in that journey I will become more like Him, and my today will not be the same as my yesterday.

I’ll go so far as to say those who today are no closer to Jesus than last year, well, they aren’t really following Jesus at all. More than likely, these good people are simply church Christians who believe church attendance, church busyness and participation in church stuff is synonymous with following Jesus. Churchyness (my word) can contribute to the spiritual journey of following Jesus, but for many it does not. Churchyness is largely a clinical exercise to meet cultural expectation: I want people to know I am associated with a church so they will believe that I am a good person. If I were Satan, I would love, love, love people to buy into that theology.

Look at what the prophet Isaiah writes in Isaiah 51:1: “Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness and who seek the Lord: Look to the rock from which you were cut and to the quarry from which you were hewn.” We are called to “pursue” and to “seek” Jesus; we are called to be moving forward in our faith journey. We are called to be followers.

In Philippians 3:12-16, Paul writes, “but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me” and “But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” Paul says we are to be moving forward, following Jesus, “pressing on” and “straining toward.” Am I? Are you? Is your today significantly more close to Jesus than your yesterday? Ask your spouse. Ask your parents. Ask your friends.

It’s all easier said than done, frankly, because we live in a broken and sinful world, and because we are broken and sinful people. But, that does not excuse us from being on the journey. In fact, we are guaranteed the journey will be hard and also that few will actually choose to take this narrow way. Jesus says in Matthew 7:13-14, "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it."

At this writing, Vicki has me on a diet. To be on that diet requires life changes on my part and a diligent moving forward. I am on a journey. At the end, I will be different than I am today. But, along the way, I will face temptation and may even slip backward. In fact, unless I am diligent and focused, I will choose to fail. And, then I will no longer be able to say that I am on a diet at all. I can “watch what I eat” and lie about being on a diet, but I know that I won’t really be on a diet at all. On the other hand, I might stumble on the diet, regroup and begin the journey again. Even though I have slipped, I can still claim to be on the diet because I am continuing to move forward.

So often, the faith journey - following Jesus - is a two steps forward and one step backward journey, but it is still about making that one step of progress. It's always about moving forward and being more like Jesus.

Life is constantly calling us backward to the easy, to the comfortable, to the “be like everyone else” and if you and I succumb to that, we will never be able to follow Jesus. Nothing about that cross is easy or comfortable or like “everyone else."

In summary:

Following Jesus is about saying:

1. My life is better, more peaceful, more joyful and more hopeful when I set my eyes on Jesus and decide to follow Him.
2. By following Jesus, what I really mean is that I will respect Him as my leader, and pursue Him. He is in front of me, and I will chase Him and pursue Him toward a goal of being more like Him. What does that mean? I will intentionally choose to (a) completely love people – all people – not just in words, but in deeds; (b) extend undeserved forgiveness to people; (c) see beyond the surface attitudes of people to understand the motivations, and then minister to them; and (d) I will build relationships with all people – all people – and help them discover joy, peace and hope that’s only found in Jesus Christ. I will call others to pursue Jesus and pray to see them baptized according to Matthew 28:19.

And, I know that I as I draw close to Jesus, and as I follow Him, it will be very difficult to maintain the pursuit.

1. People won’t understand. They will raise an eyebrow, and I can expect following Jesus to reshuffle the deck of my relationships. I will gain new friends; I will lose old friends. It will be joyful and painful all at the same time. In the end, though, it will be peaceful.
2. I can expect following Jesus to cost me something. It might cost me a job. It might cost me position. It might cost me time and money. Jesus' sacrifice on that cross was costly to Him; following Him and becoming like Him will absolutely cost me. There is no cheap grace; only a costly, expensive grace. That's why it's the narrow way and few really choose it.
3. As the white hot light of the cross burns my sinful nature, the pressure of it all will cause me to retreat into the darkness of my sinful nature. And, I will find myself in a sorrowful place because my retreat will grieve the Holy Spirit within me. And, I can expect Jesus to find me and ask, “Scott, what are you doing? Are you a believer or not? In or out? Let’s get back on the journey.” And, I will decide to follow or not.

What I have learned about following my Jesus:

1. I must be intentional about it. The world is calling me away from Jesus; following Him requires my absolute focus and best effort.
2. I must allow the Holy Spirit to place me around people – even people that make me feel uncomfortable - for encouragement and correction; love and service. 
3. I must look beyond what I want and see what others need. And, then I must respond the best that I can. And, where I can't respond, I will mobilize others to respond.
4. The call on my life is not to be perfect; the call of my life is to simply focus my life on being more Christ-like and allowing the Holy Spirit to guide my thoughts, actions and my attitudes.
5. I must anchor my life in Scripture and prayer.
6. The world will notice, my family will notice, my friends will notice, and following Jesus will tighten some of my relations and loosen others. Following Jesus comes with a cost, but it is a cost worth paying.
7. I only understand a fraction of all this, but I understand all that I need to know. I need Jesus, others need Jesus, and it is my responsibility to follow Jesus – to work to be more like him – each and every day of my life so that others can see and know Jesus because of His reflection on me.
8. If my today is not closer to Jesus that my yesterday, I am not following Jesus at all.

Being attractive

There is one thing of which I am certain:

No one wants to be around someone who is unattractive, thereby leaving the unattractive all alone a great deal of the time. Someone who is perpetually alone isn’t building healthy relationships with others, and therefore is failing to introduce people to Jesus. And, each of us is commanded to help people discover Jesus as Savior. (Matthew 28:19).

Are you attractive or unattractive? That’s the question.

And, it has little to do with beauty though Satan would have us believe that beauty and attractiveness are synonymous. Satan would also have us think this is all a women's issue, but it is not.

Beauty is only skin deep.
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
And, I like this one: Beauty doesn’t matter after 50 because you will either be overweight in some degree or thin and wrinkled – choose one and be happy with it. (Personally, the overweight seem more healthy and fun to me, but then again I am one of them. J)

Beauty is a characteristic that is based on a perceptual experience. That’s why we all see beauty differently. It’s why someone decorates their home and says, “Wow, this is beautiful” and then someone like me comes in and says, “Wow, what were they thinking?” Beauty is subjective.

Unfortunately, we assign beauty to being Godly, and it’s not. Beauty is of this world. When 81 percent of 10 year old boys and girls say they are afraid of being fat because it makes them ugly – that’s a problem. That statistic alone speaks to a world more focused on being superficially beautiful than being inwardly attractive to others.Being attractive is so much deeper than beauty. Attractiveness is a quality that stirs an interest in someone else.

I know a lot of people who are attractive, but the world doesn’t necessarily see them as beautiful.
I know a lot of people who the world calls beautiful, but those people aren’t very attractive.
I know a lot of people who bloom beautiful *because* they are first very attractive.
I know a lot of people who are so very unattractive that their beauty has faded into ugliness.

Beauty is fading, fleeting and a distraction to what is really important. We need to focus on being attractive to others and let beauty, on occasion, bloom from that if it will. People will migrate toward people who are attractive; people will be repelled by those who are unattractive. People want to be around the kind, the encouraging, the serving, the loving, and the positive-thinking. People don’t want to be around the self-focused, the bitter, the negative, the superficial, and the lazy. Lonely and without friends? How attractive are your attitudes?

And, I know, we all have moments of being unattractive. We all do; none of us is spared. I know that. But, we have to be working toward an attractive attitude.

So, how do we cultivate and sustain this attractiveness – what I’m calling an attractive spirit. And, why is it important for followers of Jesus? Here’s why – you and I are commanded – not encouraged or invited or asked – but commanded to make disciples, to see people baptized, and to be expressive about Jesus. Well, who has the more authentic opportunity to reflect Jesus? The attractive or the unattractive? If my life is so self-absorbed that I am no longer attractive, what effect does that have on my ability to build relationships with people and tell them about Jesus? It has a huge effect. The more I’m focused on me, the more addicted I am on me, the more unattractive that is to others, and the less chance I have to tell others about Jesus.

A rotten spirit of attractiveness destroys our opportunity to help others find Jesus.

So, here are some things that I found in Scripture this week to help us focus on being more attractive for the purpose of building relationship and sharing Jesus. And, while Scripture sometimes puts these in the context of women, I think we men must pay attention to them, too. You will see what I mean.

1. We must be a follower of Jesus. And, look what happens in 1 Peter 3:1-4 – “. . . your Godly lives will speak to them without any words. They will be won over by observing your pure and reverent lives. Don’t be concerned about the outward beauty of fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry or beautiful clothes. You should clothe yourselves instead with the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God.” Your Godly lives – that implies that we must be in fellowship with God through faith in Jesus. People are attracted to those who have an inner peace about their lives and where they are in life.
2. This 1 Peter Scripture passage also points to being “gentle and having a quiet spirit.” My daddy has that gentle spirit – and I try to be like him in this regard. A few years ago, we were at the movies, and I turned around and he wasn’t there. Then, I saw him. He was on the sidewalk, helping a little boy who had spilled his M&Ms, and I heard him say, “If dirt would kill us, we’d all be dead.” He is quietly gentle toward others, and possesses a quiet and loving touch on someone’s life. People are attracted to the kind of person who lives unassuming.
3. Psalm 29:2: “Honor the Lord for the glory of His name. Worship the Lord in the splendor of His holiness.” Being holy is attractive. What is holy? It’s about being “set apart” – if the world is busy, busy and materialistic and flashy, then holiness – set apart – is the antithesis of that. People in this culture are attracted to those who live a simple, uncomplicated, authentic and down-to-Earth life because it gives people hope that they can live that way too and in so doing everything will be just fine.
4. Ephesians 5:21: Paul writes about the relationship of husbands and wives and says, “Further, submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” Marriages are attractive when husbands and wives submit to one another. I know that when I submit to Vicki it becomes learned behavior that allows me to submit to the best for others, too. I love my Vicki so much that there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for her. If she says, “Scott, go with me to counseling,” I’m going. If she says, “Scott, it sure helps if you will do the laundry” then, I’m doing the laundry.” If she says, “Scott, you need to lose some weight” then I’ll make a run at it. Why? I submit to her because I love her more than I love myself. But, I also have confidence that she’s only going to ask of me those things that will either make me a better person or make our marriage better. Neither of us is going to ask the other to do something through selfish motivation.Those kinds of marriages are attractive to others, give hope to others, and create environments through which faith can be shared.
5. Matthew 5:14-6: Jesus says that, “You are the light of the world . . . shine for the world to see. Let your good deeds shine out for all to see so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.” An attractive spirit does good work for others, and does it out there so people can see us get our hands dirty. It’s not about advertising it; it’s about getting out there among people and doing it. People will notice when you donate time to the good of the community and the good of others. And, it inspires others to do that, too. It inspires conversation that you can use to talk about Jesus. Every believer should be involved in the community in some way – hands and feet to real service. What does it say when only 15 percent of believers are actually involved in hands-on ministry or service? It says we don’t really believe what we claim to believe – and that’s not very attractive.
6. Last, Isaiah 3:16-26: The great prophet presents a metaphorical warning for those who subscribe to a superficial obsession with beauty. And, what we take from this is that it’s far better to live a life that is meek and humble, simple and encouraging, and gentle and quiet, focused on pursuing attractiveness for the sake of the Gospel – a life focused not so much on the mirror, but the window of opportunity to build relationship and share faith.

Lord, let me be attractive today. Let others fall in love with you because they see you reflected in everything that I do, say, and think today.

Confidence in God's power

I was born in that era when doctors gave injections to children rather than worrying over pills that might or might not be taken. And, I've had this lifelong bronchial - sinus thing that caused me to see a doctor a lot when I was a boy. And, the resulting injection of antibiotics was always administered in my butt cheek.

It was humiliating, especially when I got to the age of 7 or 8. It wasn't cool to drop your pants in front of a nurse you might see at church on Sunday. Forced to take a painful injection in the butt added insult to injury.

In the timeline of my life, one particular visit was in 1967. I was almost 8 years old. For months, I had protested receiving the injection in my rear-end, and my mama had assured me that 7 was the magic year in which I could switch from an injection in my hip to an injection in my arm. Thank the Lord.

So, on this particular visit in 1967, at almost 8 years old, I was confident that I would graduate from embarrassment to victory, and receive my injection of penicillin in the arm.

When we arrived at the doctor’s office, I was pleasantly surprised to see – in the waiting room – my Papa Paul – my mama’s daddy. He was there in his trademark white shirt and dark tie – a tall man who walked confidently and spoke authoritatively. To this day, I’m not sure why Papa Paul was at the doctor’s office that day.

But, on this day, I was so glad to see Papa Paul, and he was glad to see me. It gave me strength knowing he was there at the doctor's office, too. My mama began telling him about my ailment, and she continued telling him that I was anxious about getting a shot and mostly about pulling my pants down to receive the shot in the butt.They called him back to see the doctor ahead of me.

He was still back with the doctor when they called me, and mama and I began the slow walk back along the green and white tiled, sterile hallway to a room that smelled of antiseptic and cold metal. Dr. Jim made a quick assessment, told me I was going to get a shot, gave me a cherry Charms pop, and left the room. Soon, the nurse came into the room bearing the instrument of my humiliation. Okay, she said, pull your pants down.

I looked at my mama, and in slow motion, waited on her to rush to my defense. Finally, she half-heartedly said, “He would prefer to have the shot in his arm.” I was so disappointed; I expected my mama to be more forceful than that. And, the nurse dismissed her and said, “It will be better in his hip; pull your pants down son.” I took in a big breath of air, on the verge of tears, and then looked up.

My Papa Paul was standing in the door, and he said, “If that boy wants the shot in his arm, give him the shot in his arm.” For just a minute I thought my mama would protest, but the look the great man gave her reduced her to silence.The nurse looked at my Papa Paul. Tension hung in the air. I quickly buckled my pants and jerked my shirt over my head, thrusting my arm at her and looking away.

The nurse wanted to protest, but my Papa Paul just said, “Hurry up, I have other places to be.” I got my shot in the arm. I didn’t know my Papa Paul very well. He died within months of that experience, and it’s one of only a handful of memories that I can remember. But, I will never forget the swell of confidence that rushed through me, knowing that someone bigger, someone more powerful, someone with authority had stood in the door for me. For the first time in my life, I knew what it was like to know the confident power that comes from a support system.

That support system begins and ends with Almighty God, who is front of us and in our tomorrow, beside us and in our today, and behind us shielding us from the pain of yesterday.

"Jesus looked at them intently and said, "Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But, with God everything is possible." - Matthew 19:26.

God is not a human being. I once heard someone refer to a quarter moon as the "thumb nail of God." I've stared up at a quarter moon, imagining God's thumb nail as the moon and then grasping how God would literally fill the sky if that were true. And, then I remember that God is even larger and mightier and more sovereign than that.

God is heavy - not in a suffocating way - but in a thick and ever-present way. He doesn't sleep. He doesn't nap. He doesn't take a lunch break. He is everywhere in His fullness and all at the same time. He is all-knowing; he is even in the thoughts occurring in the deepest and darkness places of our minds. 

God is with us in our best and brightest moments. He is with us when we stumble and fall. And, He is with us when we are scared, lonely and worried over the future coming at us. God is powerful beyond our ability to comprehend it. Isaiah 40:22: "He sits enthroned above the circle of the Earth, and its people are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a canopy, and spreads them out like a tent to live in."

Like a little boy, scared at the doctor's office over an injection and seeing his granddaddy there as powerful support, so is God there with us in everything. And, with God, everything is possible. Nothing that we face - as confident confessors of Jesus Christ - nothing that we face do we face alone. God is already in it, He is already with us, and He is already behind us. God's love, strength and power covers it.

Sure, I was still a sick little boy. I still had to go to the doctor's office. I still had to get a shot, but what an unbelievable feeling of confidence and peace to know someone big and forceful was in my corner. Over and over again, in Joshua 1, God says, "Be strong and courageous because I am with you!" And, in Isaiah 26:3-4, the prophet writes, "You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you! Trust in the Lord always, for the Lord God is the eternal Rock."

Still don't get it? Read Psalm 136. In 26 verses, the Psalmist writes over and over, "God's faithful love endures forever." In those words, I see and feel the God who resurrected his son, Jesus, who had died for all of our sinfulness. In those words, I sense the hammer of God's power, the stomping of His feet as he rushes to our aid, and the jerking away of Satan's confusion that surround us. God never fails us. He never will.

But, as I bump into the pain of life – my own, my family's, and so many others, the thing that people are often missing is the confidence that God is with them. They will ask, "Where is God? Why isn’t God here? Why can’t I feel Him? Why can’t I have that confidence that He is in this storm with me?"

God is there. God is asking a question, too. As you and I ask, "Where is God?" God is asking, "Scott, where are you?" God is asking, "Scott, why can't you plow your life into Scripture and know me better? Why are you so easily blown about by the storms of life? Why can’t you take more seriously your prayer life – and if you don’t understand prayer, get around people who can teach you? Why are on the fringe of faith with others? Why are you so easily led by people who don't confess Jesus?

"Where am I? I am everywhere. Where are you, Scott, in pursuing me?" God will not make us choose Him. We make the choice.

If you are in a measure of pain or you are ministering to someone in pain, I want to encourage you to pursue God. Study your Bible. From one who studies the Bible every week for Sunday School, I can tell you that the more time you spend in Scripture, the more you will lean your life on Scripture. And, the more you lean on Scripture, the more the power of prayer will be revealed to you. God will send other believers into your life for the good times and the hard times. Scripture helps me recognize when God is sending people on His behalf. But, the choice is up to each of us - pursue God or not. Trust God or not. Walk confidently with God or not.

The closer I draw to God, the more I will confidently feel His awesome power and His peace in life's storm.

Confusing Joy and Happiness?

Joy is one of those words that has a different meaning for those who follow Jesus.
In the context of the dictionary, Joy is synonymous with happy, or even “happy-plus.”

But, happiness is short-term, happiness is dependent on circumstance, and happiness is rooted in temporary things of Earth. World Class Chocolate ice cream from Baskin Robbins makes me happy, but then the ice cream is gone. Happiness is gone with it. At Christmas, how many times have parents worked to find just the right gifts for their children, making them happy for a few hours on Christmas morning, and then watching as toys are never touched again? I know lots of people who are happy because it’s Friday, but then slip into dread as Monday approaches. Happiness is temporary.

When we sing of “Joy To The World” at Christmas, we aren’t singing about temporary happiness.
We are singing about an eternal Joy that comes from knowing Jesus as personal Savior. Romans 8:9 – and many other places in Scripture – reminds us that when we accept Jesus as Savior, we are “controlled by the Holy Spirit if you have the Spirit living in you (as believers do).” One of the fruits of the Holy Spirit, as defined in Galatians 5:22-23, is Joy. So, for believers, Joy is not some fleeting emotion like happiness. No, Joy is a permanent seed of our new character brought about by a relationship with Jesus.

Just like fruit on the vine or the tree, the Joy within us must grow and flourish. How do we let the Joy in our hearts grow so that we experience it more and more and with greater consistency? We do what God wants us to do. The Holy Spirit is constantly whispering “do this, go there, say this, press forward, fall back, say nothing, encourage, love, be kind” and many of us ignore it or we are just too busy – too self-absorbed – to hear it. But, if we would hear God speaking to us, telling us to act in love and service toward others, the byproduct is that we are blessed and experience a growing Joy as we become more Christ-like. Joy comes from drawing closer to Jesus by putting feet to our prayers and action to our words, sacrificing self for others.

Yesterday, I had opportunity to visit someone in the hospital. I love my friends, but I found myself stalling. “Wait on the end of the Panthers game.” And then, “People don’t want to be bothered in the hospital.” And, then, “I’ll check in with them tomorrow when I’m near that part of town.” But, within my core, I knew. I heard. “Go.” And, so I went, and I was so very glad that I did. In fact, I was blessed by going because I did what God wanted me to do. I experienced Joy by going, and then I experienced happiness by getting World Class Chocolate ice cream afterwards.

This Christmas, experience Joy by listening to the Holy Spirit’s call to love and serve sacrificially as God sacrificed His son for us.
What is the Holy Spirit calling you to give away or give up this Christmas for the sake of serving others? Will you experience Joy this Christmas or just fleeting happiness?
When Christmas is over, will  you be sad that it’s over or will you be filled with a growing Joy that takes you into 2012 and beyond?
Will I really sing, “Joy To The World” as an expectant anthem that because of Jesus’ birth every man, woman and child can have the ability to experience Joy?

Spiritual Vision

John Newton wrote these four lines of the powerful hymn, Amazing Grace:
“Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,

That saved a wretch like me . . .

I once was lost, but now am found,

Was blind, but now, I see.”

Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross was amazing. It was grace (undeserved forgiveness) extended to every man, woman and child who would ever live. It was grace that when believed (mind, body, soul, heart), restores us to a relationship with God.  It was a grace that when believed, physically and supernaturally converted each of us from sinner bound to hell for eternity into a sinner bound to heaven for eternity. And, as we were converted – seriously, it was a supernatural conversion and not just words on paper – we went from being blind to gaining a spiritual “eyesight.”

As a baby must gain control of its vision, believers must gain control of this new vision that comes, spiritually, from being “born again.” Sometimes, as in my case, this new vision can take 25 years to come into focus. But, when we gain that spiritual eyesight – going from blind to “now, I see” – the world and our perspectives of it begin to change. All of the temporary stuff of this world – everything but human beings – just doesn’t matter like it once did. And, we begin to shake loose from the shackles of it. There is such a freedom and such a peace that comes from saying, “All I need is Jesus, and beyond that, all I need is the love and support of my family and my friends. Nothing temporary matters *unless* and *until* I can use it as a tool to reach people for Jesus and help people grow deeper spiritually.

•  The workplace becomes a mission field;
•  The newly renovated family room becomes a place for small group Bible study;
•  The vacation becomes a mission trip;
• The Christmas party becomes a place of Christian encouragement;
• The promotion becomes an opportunity to influence people for Jesus;
• The sports team becomes a mission field – a place to lead by example, take a stand for integrity, and connect with people.
• Church becomes a place to recharge – a place to encourage and to be encouraged among fellow believers.

You see – on the lost side of the cross, we have workplaces, homes, parties, vacations, influence, recreation and church, but on the *saved* side of the cross these things are now seen with our spiritual eyesight – provided by that Amazing Grace.

The best I can offer you is this: *Do not* wait 25 years to get all of this in focus. Do it now. I can’t put into words the freedom, the peace, the joy, the love, and the patience that comes from seeing the world as a temporary place, but yet a fantastic opportunity to point people “this way, this way, this way” to the cross. My marriage is better. My family life is better. My friendships go deeper. The bumps in the relational roads are just bumps rather than pot holes. Worry, frustration, depression, anxiety, and temper melt away at the cross.

Genuine Love

In Romans 12:9, Paul begins writing about love. “Let love be genuine.”

As the Holy Spirit comes to live within each believer, we are transformed to love as God loves. We should feel this push, this urge, this motivation to love both sacrificially and unconditionally. And, Paul doesn’t put parameters on this love – he says we should be “devoted” to one another. That means we are to work toward a sacrificial and unconditional love toward everyone, including total strangers.

You see it’s generally easy to love our spouses and children, parents, and siblings sacrificially and unconditionally. Almost all of us have sacrificed for someone in this network, and we generally forgive when wronged.

But, what about extended family, like cousins? I can’t recall sacrificing very much to love and serve one of my cousins.

What about friends? Well, I’ve given of time and money to my friends, but I’ve not sacrificed very much for them. I’ve not eaten Pork n Beans to send my friends to Outback.

What about strangers? Sure, we give to charities and maybe to the Salvation Army, and we help when it’s convenient. It’s not part of my nature, however, to sacrifice, unconditionally, my time, abilities or finances to strangers.

Several years ago, I was going to lunch with a group of Columbia pastors. We pulled up to an intersection and a man was there with a cardboard sign around his neck. The pastor who was driving the car rolled down his window and spoke to the man. The pastor then removed his wallet, and gave him *all* of his cash. When we got to the restaurant, the pastor ordered a cup of soup for lunch. Another said, “You aren’t hungry?” The pastor said, “I gave all my cash to the guy at the intersection.” Someone joked that he could put his lunch on the church credit card, but it really wasn’t a “business lunch.” Of course, we all offered to buy his lunch, but he refused that. I wondered why he didn’t use a debit card or another credit card, but it wasn’t any of our business. Looking back, and knowing this good man, I think he wanted to enjoy the blessing of the sacrifice. That we were spectators was more uncomfortable for us than it was for him. Finally, I said, “You know he probably took your money and went to the liquor store.” And, the pastor looked at me and said, “Our Lord told me to help him; not to judge what he would do with the help.” I felt about 2-inches tall; it was like Jesus was speaking through this pastor. I could feel Jesus saying, “Shut up, Scott.”

It doesn’t make sense does it? But, nothing about following Jesus; nothing about faith is logical. More often than not, we aren’t asked to understand or figure it out or know how the story ends – we’re just told to love and serve others sacrificially and unconditionally. That’s it. Believers aspire toward the goal to make this kind of love a part of the daily Christian lifestyle.

Seriously, I’ve been given this day. It will never come to me again. Whose life will be better because I lived today? How much of my life can I give away today to improve the life of someone else? Did I live this day following Jesus or serving myself?

An S On A Baseball Cap

Back in 1984, I coached a recreation baseball team in Statesboro, GA. Our sponsor was the Statesboro Lions Club, and our hats were royal blue with a block-style S in white, on the front of the cap. It was and is one of my favorites team ever, and I’ve kept up with many of those boys, who are now men with their own children involved in high school sports. I also liked that hat – royal blue is one of my favorite colors and well, the S reminds me . . . of me! J The hat also reminds me of that team and some of the great stories from that season: Sean Sanders’ home run when he tearfully jumped into my arms; Chris “The Weapon” Boyd, whose fastball no one could hit; Jonathan Stapleton, who had never played ball before and led our team in hitting; and Jeff Yawn, whose granddaddy “Snooky” was whom my youngest is nicknamed after. It was just a great, great season, great boys, and great families behind them.

I wear my royal blue hat with the white S pretty regularly, especially in the mornings around town. It’s not the same hat worn in 1984, but it’s a close replica.

Last Friday, I wore it to Lizard’s Thicket for breakfast. As I was leaving the restaurant, I passed an elderly couple sitting in a booth. I had never seen them before. The older man startled me when he reached out and touched my arm. He said, “That’s a nice hat.” And, I smiled as he held up his own hat. It, too, was royal blue with a white S on the front of it. I said, “That’s a great hat!” And, he said, “What does the S stand for?” And, I said, jokingly, “Scott.” And, he laughed, and said, “I bet it also stands for Saved.” And, I said, “Yep, it sure does.” And, he said, “Mine does, too; God bless you, brother.”

There are no coincidences. I was having a tough week, coming off the road and battling a bronchial infection while eye-balling my annual work in the church’s Halloween Hoedown this weekend. I was stressed.

But, I left the restaurant so very encouraged, and so very affirmed. We are surrounded by believers – just like us. We are called to encourage and lift one another. I want to be that kind of believer!

That little exchange stayed me with the rest of the weekend:

1.      Saved. It is the relationship above all relationships that binds you and I together for all eternity. We will forever know one another . . . eternally.

2.      Saved. It is an identity above all identities. It is an identity that trumps our names, our cultures, our heritages and our family trees.

3.      Saved. The Holy Spirit, when we listen, can discern when we are in the presence of others who are Saved. The same Spirit can discern when we are in the presence of lostness so that we can introduce people to Jesus.

All of a sudden, that royal blue cap is much more important to me than I thought it was.