My Jesus: Jesus Is For Everyone

Please read Luke 19:1-10

Zaccheus was one of the hated tax collectors.
During the days of Jesus, certain Jewish men worked for the Roman government as tax collectors. With the full strength of The Empire behind them, these men collected Roman taxes from the Jews. These men were also permitted to collect "extra" and keep it for themselves. These tax collectors got rich off the backs of their fellow Jews.
It's easy to see why Jews hated the tax collectors.

Imagine you and I are great friends and neighbors. There's a third neighbor who begins taking advantage of you, legally, and even oppresses you at times. This oppressor then hires me to keep an eye on you, and you know it. What does all of this do to the relationship between you and me? I'll tell you what it does - it destroys the relationship. You see me as a traitor. Even though we are neighbors, you see me as "on the other team" and a part of the oppression.

It wasn't that the Jews were angry at the tax collectors. No. They hated the tax collectors.

And, like every good pyramid scheme, the tax collectors had a supervisor: The Chief Tax Collector. This individual, another Jew, taxed the Jews directly, but also took from the other tax collectors, forcing them to collect more from the Jews. The disciple Matthew, before he was called to follow Jesus, was a rich tax collector. Zaccheus, the subject of our story today, was a chief tax collector. Zaccheus was filthy rich.

In Luke 18, we read that Jesus, just outside the city of Jericho, had healed a blind beggar. This stirred up the people and everyone came running to see Jesus and to know more about what had happened. Zaccheus, like others, was curious. But, Zaccheus had a physical problem. He was short. Historians tell us that the average Roman male was about 5-5, and that Jews were a little shorter than the Gentiles. So, let's say the average Jew of that day was 5-3. Zaccheus was perhaps shorter than even that. So, he couldn't see above everyone in the crowd. Thinking stratetigcally, he ran ahead and climbed a Sycamore tree. The Sycamore was a lot like an Oak, but with branches low to the ground and more vertical for climbing and roosting.

When Jesus approaches the tree, he see Zaccheus and calls him by name, and then says, "Come down, I must be your guest tonight." Scripture says Zaccheus enthusiastically responded.

Do you see subtle messages here? Jesus came for both the blind beggar (Luke 18) and the rich tax collector (Luke 19). He came from everyone. Jesus knew Zaccheus name before they were ever introduced. You and I can never escape the fact that Jesus knows us - He knows our thinking and the motivations behind what we do. And, He is calling us to join Him.

Do you stay in the tree or do you get out of the tree? Many, I'm afraid, stay in the tree.

Imagine the crowd's reaction to Jesus' calling Zaccheus to fellowship. The crowd goes crazy. They aren't just mad; they are angry.

Zaccheus realizes the supernatural Holiness here. How did Jesus know his name? He can't explain what's happening deep within his spirit. What caused him to run and climb the tree? He is overcome and cries out, "Lord, Lord!" as he recognized Jesus as His Lord.

Is Jesus your Lord? We talk about Jesus as our Savior from God's wrath upon sin, but is Jesus your Lord and Savior? Are you a slave to Jesus? Is your purpose for living to serve Jesus? Does everything you do turn back to Jesus? Is every decision you make squared with Jesus' call on your life? Believers claim Jesus as their Savior from sin, and THEN live as if Jesus is their Lord and Master. That's what Zaccheus supernaturally affirms.

Unlike the story of The Rich Young Ruler, who could not claim Jesus as his Lord and Savior, and could not give up the things of Earth, Zaccheus gushes, "I will give half of my possessions to the poor and if I have cheated anyone, I will repay them 4 times.” In his response, Zaccheus repented – He turned from what the world called important. He turned from the stumbling block keeping Him for fully engaging Jesus and faith. He walked away from the world's call on his life. He slipped free of the chains of this world – of sin and selfishness.

Jesus says, because of Zaccheus response, “Salvation, today, has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.” Jesus acknowledges that because of Zaccheus heart-felt turn from self, He is indeed saved from the wrath upon sinfulness.

• Salvation did not come to Zaccheus because He was Jewish and did all the correct religious stuff, like attend temple gatherings (church).
• Salvation did not come to Zaccheus because he did good things. All the good things you do, don’t mean anything. A lot of great community clubs do great things. You and I are called to do these great philanthropic things toward a goal: To build relationship with others for the chance to share Jesus.
• Salvation came because Zaccheus sought Jesus, Jesus called Him, He responded, He repented – He removed from his life what would keep him from following Jesus. He claimed Jesus and not money, prestige, influence as “His Lord.”

We don’t know what became of Zaccheus after this. John The Baptist, baptizing tax collectors, had charged them with collecting only what was required and no more. We can assume that if Zaccheus remained as a tax collector - he was a changed man in that role.

Questions before us:

• Is Jesus your Savior? If I said, "Give me the names of 100 people who know you well." And, then I gathered those 100 people together. I give each of them a piece of paper and say, "Tell me about my friend." How would those 100 describe you? How many would write, "follower of Jesus"? How many would write "follower of Jesus" as the first thing on that paper? I think people would know me as the father of four boys, a good person, or someone who should be in chains. I'm not completely confident how many people would say, "Scott is a follower of Jesus." That's convicting. Our goal should be for someone to hear our name and think, "Jesus" because they see Him reflected in us. They hear us talk about our faith; they hear us say the name of "Jesus." I think it's the true measure of a person's salvation: Not what I say that I am, but what others see in me.
• Who do you know that is climbing the tree to see Jesus? We live in an affluent community. Everyone of us knows someone who wants to climb that tree and see Jesus. Who can I help? Who I can I talk to about Jesus? Who needs me as a friend in faith? Who can I invite to join me at church? 
• Can I seize the moment to introduce someone to Jesus? Can I share my faith story with them, knowing that I don’t know all the answers? Can I walk with them to talk to someone who might fill in the blanks for me?
• What does having Jesus as my Lord do to my life? How will I respond when people shun me, whisper about me, and become angry with me? Am I prepared for the lonely walk with Jesus? Jesus calls me to it as my Lord and Master. Will I follow or I will hang my head and turn from Him?

New Year's Resolutions

Successful New Year's Resolutions always involve two things: Passion and Accountability. You have to want to do something, and you have to have someone or something that wags a finger in your direction when you lose sight of your goal. It also helps if you can brag a little through social media . . . “Hey, look at me, I accomplished this . . .” Of course, there’s risk with going public . . .especially if you backslide. The person whose says, “Hey, I lost 30 pounds” on social media looks foolish when they gain back 50.

My mother’s mom was a Middle School teacher for 36 years. To keep her mind sharp, she resolved to do two things: She kept a daily journal of the day’s weather and important sports’ scores – like the daily Braves' score. She also worked a daily crossword puzzle. She also quit smoking. She lived to be 92. She left us with more than 500 small wire bound, steno notebooks. In early August 1998, at 87, she wrote of one day, “Hot.” The next day, she wrote, “Still very hot.” The next day, she wrote, “Hot as hell.”

While I respected and respect in memorial my grandmother's resolutions, her approach was short-sighted and not a Biblical approach to life management or what I call "life stewardship." You see, the best resolutions for us - as believers - are those that help us live longer and live better, maximizing our opportunities for sharing the gospel and making disciples. If I lose weight just for me, well, that's sinful. But, if I lose weight as part of a strategy to improve my quality of life to better serve others, well, that's using Resolutions as part of spiritual growth.

The Bible does not promote or denounce our little habit of New Year’s Resolutions. To the Lord, there’s no difference in Dec. 31 or Jan. 1. But, Scripture does promote taking care of ourselves while we are on this Earth. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 : Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to  yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body."

The No. 1 resolution every year is to lose weight or get in physical shape. The reason most people is because they do it for themselves rather than as preparation of themselves to serve others. Also, people want quick results with minimal effort. That never happens.

Since the 8th grade, when I was a chubby-cheeked teenager, I've battled a weight problem. I love to cook, I love to eat my cooking. I also love ice cream. In 2011, I went to the doctor for a routine office visit and my blood pressure was surprisingly high. So high, in fact, that my doctor put me on blood pressure medicine - a pretty high dosage. My youngest brother, whose is also overweight, has been diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. In December 2013, weighing the most I've ever weighed and eye-balling another increased waist size, I bemoaned my physical condition. My oldest son said, "Dad, if you don't do anything to change, you are just going to get heavier and probably die sooner. You think that's what God wants from you?"

As a believer, I'm not afraid of death, but I am afraid of not finishing well. I want to finish this life well. So, in January 2013, I resolved to eat better and exercise daily, starting with just a 20-minute daily walk around the neighborhood. Quickly, it became something I wanted to do. I joined a gym with an accountability partner. I bought a $5 annual membership to the church gym for the days I didn't go to the more formal gym. On my walks, I learned that I could worship while walking. I listened to faith music, listened to sermons and prayed as I walked 20, 30, 40, and then 60 minutes a day.

In July, I went for my annual physical. I was a little bummed at the scale weight - I had expected to lose more weight. But, my doctor showed me the more important numbers like cholesterol and blood sugar and heart rate. All of those were the best they had been in 22 years. No kidding. My cholesterol fell through the floor. He told me what my gym partner had been telling me - don't be consumed by the scale. Be consumed by new energy and better blood / sugar numbers.

In the past two years, Vicki and I have been faced with dementia. We have walked this journey with Vicki's mama. In 2012, I was convicted about spending far too much time in front of the television and computer screens, and not enough time reading and learning. The best way to keep your body in shape is to exercise it; the best way to keep your mind in shape is to exercise. And, so, I resolved to read 25 books per year and 200 by 2019 - when I turn 60. I read at bedtime and have found no problem in reading 25 books per year.

I go to bed at 10 p.m. and I read at least one chapter or up to 30 minutes. Going to bed earlier, I've found I get up earlier - usually wake up without an alarm clock by 5:30 or 6. There's something to that "early to bed and early to rise" maxim because I do feel better all the way around. As for accountability, well, Vicki's an avid reader and we talk about the books we read.

Again, and I stress this, taking care of yourself is about being in "shape" for ministry - not to brag on Facebook, impress people at the beach, or impress the person in the mirror. In fact, Paul writes in 1 Timothy 4:8, “For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.” Godliness is the end goal of all resolutions to improve self. Anything else is likely to fail.

Closing thoughts:

• Make sure your motivation to improve self is for Kingdom service.
• Read Scripture and Pray about how God can use you.
• Don't be discouraged if you slip while on the road to improving your self. Don't use slipping as an excuse, but as motivation to get back on track.
• Expect God to use you. He will. He can. God can use you where you aren't capable of serving alone. In that, life becomes a real adventure!

Life In A Hole

Life in a hole.

From Facebook: Facebook friends and family, I need a prayer tonight. Tomorrow, I will be at the hospital and it's going to be a very hard day. This is really heavy on my heart.

Life in a hole.

Also from Facebook: I'm so very nervous and anxious. I just need to breathe! I would take an Ambien but it is almost daylight.

Life in a hole.

In an e-mail: Quite honestly, Scott, my wife does not love me anymore and we both know it.

Life in a hole.

From The Carpenters: Rainy days and Mondays always get me down.

Life in a hole.

From a conversation at the ballpark: I have failed my children. All of their friends have so many opportunities, and mine look at me and wonder, “Why not me?”

Life in a hole.

In an e-mail: My child is an alcoholic. 

Life in a hole. 

From a conversation over lunch: I close my eyes at night and see myself walking up the steps of a gallows. I have failed at life.

Life in a hole.

I've been in a lot of holes and you have, too. Some are just a temporary bad mood, others are a day-long funk (like, for me, last Thursday), others linger for a while, some show up to haunt us from our childhood, and some are deep and wide. We can see some of the holes coming from a distance, but others surprise us and we fall in before we can help it. Some holes are in our head, created by a wild imagination and too little rest. Some are knee-buckling and all too real.

We live our lives in and out of holes.

The purpose of this lesson is to give four reminders about life in the hole.

Jesus is there in the hole.

The Bible is one giant book about men and women who find themselves in holes and are touched by the hand of God. I would tell every hurting person - unemployed, separated or divorced, and sick over an uncertain future - to read the Bible and draw hope from God's redemption of people who found themselves in holes.

Most all of us are, to a degree, Sunday morning Christians. We want a nice, clean and easy faith life. When things are going great, we say, "Well, thank you, God, for all these blessings, and for making my life so great." We walk tall and proud when we are out of the holes. And, then we step in a hole and we panic. We forget all about God. The true color of our faith is exposed.

But, listen, God is in the hole. God is everywhere, and He is everywhere all the time. And, His son, Jesus, is calling us to faith in Him and a restored relationship with God, who can bring peace to us in the hole.

One of my favorite Bible stories is from Daniel 3:19-28. It's the story of the three boys, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. King Nebuchadnezzar ordered everyone to bow down to his golden statue. These boys refused, and the king had them throw into a furnace so hot it killed the guards who threw the boys inside. As the king looked inside, he saw a fourth figure with the boys, and he saw the boys were no longer bound. Ultimately, the three boys emerged from the furnace unharmed.

Many presume that fourth figure in the furnace was an angel. It could have been, but I believe it was Jesus - years before He was ever born in the manger. The reason I believe the figure was Jesus is because the king was converted to a faith in our holy God because of the experience.

I won't unpack this whole story for you, but look closely: These boys were consistent in their love of the Lord, and they stood for the things of the Lord. Their faith was not altered by the hole because they knew the Lord was in the hole with them. The hole was not prevented, but the Lord was in the hole with them.

In the first chapter of Joshua, over and over, God says to the people, "Don't be afraid. I am with you, always." The next time you feel a panic coming, open Joshua 1 and read it. Don't be afraid. Jesus' last words to His disciples, knowing they would all be martyred (John survived poisoning and was exiled), Jesus said, (I know you are going to find yourselves in holes as you carry the gospel), but I am with you until the end of the age (forever)." That message is for us today, too.

At one point in my life, I was unemployed. I was in a hole. The Lord called me to spend my idle time - waiting on interview callbacks - visiting people in the hospital. And, so I went to the church, got the hospital list, and went to visit those who were sick. I didn't know the right words to say, but I quickly found my "being there" was welcome ministry. Ministry is a great way to get out of a hole. During those visits, I had opportunity to sit - day by day - with a man whose daughter was dying with cancer. She was in the final stages. This was a strong family of faith, and she was a believer. I sat with this daddy every day until she died. I will never, ever forget the peace of that hospital room, and the peace this man enjoyed. He knew that Jesus was in that room. He knew the presence of the Holy Spirit was calming and I dare say glorious even in the face of a dying girl's groans. I will never get over that "knowing" that Jesus is in the hole with us, and that Jesus trumps death. I understood - in my own unemployment - that Jesus was in the hole with me, too.

Two more things: Jesus understands that we are afraid. It's okay. Just remember this from 1 John 4:18, "My perfect love will banish fear from your heart." Turn to Jesus in the hole. Pray.And, Jesus hears our prayers. 1 John 5:14: "And, we can be confident that He will listen to us.” For those who know Jesus, God is listening when we speak to Him, asking Him to make our lives right according to His will for us. 

I believe that most people, even most Jesus followers, never pray. My own prayer life isn't what it should be. Most people don't know how to pray. Most people are embarrassed to pray, believing it is a sign of weakness. Heck, I've even had people tell me not to pray for them because they saw it as a sign of charity. Pray, people. Pray. My most peaceful time with God comes when I say nothing out loud. I just kneel in front of the sofa, put my head in my hands on the sofa, and just focus on the Lord. As people come to my mind, I pray for them. I thank God for sending His son to die for me. I thank God for crossing my life with people who help me grow in faith. Sometimes, I cry out for God to help me out of a hole. There are no perfect prayers, and it's ridiculous to believe that we must seek out a "professional prayer warrior" to pray for us. I get nervous when I hear people, in the context of prayer, talking more about human intercessors than they do about Jesus. Brennan Manning wrote The Ragamuffin Gospel. I am reading it; you should read it, too. In it, Manning writes that God sees our prayers like a parent sees a toddler's coloring book. The toddler doesn't understand the colors.The toddler can't color within the lines. The result is a sloppy scribbling on a piece of paper. But, every parent looks at it and sees it as a Picasso. It's beautiful and it goes on the refrigerator. That's how the Lord sees our prayers. No matter how sloppy they are, God delights in the fact that we are praying. So, pray from the hole.

The size of the hole doesn't matter.

A friend of mine sent me a recent e-mail from within a hole.

I was so thankful that he took time to send it, honoring me with the opportunity to encourage him.

But, like so many of these cries from the hole, he wrote, "I know people are struggling with things that are a  lot worse than this." I told him, the power of God to be all to all and at all times is beyond our feeble attempt to even understand the word "power." God sees a person He loves, and He sees that person crying out from a hole. He focuses on the person; not the hole.

In Psalm 5:22, we read:  “Give your burdens to the LORD, and he will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall.” There is not a heavenly pecking order when it comes to holes. Psalm 139:12: "Even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.”

If you believe that God doesn't care when your car won't start and you don't have the money to fix it, you are not in worship of a God who can hang each star and call it by name. If you believe that God doesn't care when you are sad because the children are growing up and moving on, then I call that blasphemy. It's an insult to God. If you have a faith in Jesus as the Lord and Savior of your life, your burdens - great and small and even tiny - burden the God who loves you enough to send His son to die for you.

The size of the hole does not matter to God.

Tell others when you are in a hole.

We hate charity, don't we? Why? Because in our "stand on your on two feet" culture of personal supremacy, we have relegated charity to be synonymous with government welfare. Charity is a spirit of generosity and helpfulness. Believers have an obligation to be involved in charity as providers and as grateful recipients. I believe a person demonstrates their faith in Jesus by their approach to charity - coming and going. Jesus' death and resurrection was charity. How can we follow Jesus, and not be deep in charitable lifestyle - receiving and providing?

In 1 Peter 5:9, we read, “Stand firm in faith, because you know the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of suffering.” As believers, you and I join a universal family of faith, regardless of the sign outside the church building. We are part of a local church family, and many of us are a part of small groups of faith friends.

At the depth of one of my darkest holes, God sent a voice - spoken through the mouth of a family friend - who said, "Scott, your biggest mistake in this hole was not turning to your family and friends, who love you. As soon as you feel the ground shifting, reach out to those who love you.” Those words were a mile-marker in my faith life.

But, wait a minute. If I start telling people about my hole, they will start whispering about me. They might start raising money, and that will be embarrass me. They might start bringing chicken casseroles. They will take my pain and make it public knowledge. Some will try to fix my life. Some might say I deserve what I get. If you start feeling or thinking this way, well, you are hearing the voice of Satan, who wants you to stay in that hole with all its darkness and all its fear. You and I were not meant, as Jesus followers, to live private lives of pain. We have an army of fellow hole-dwellers standing with us. God says turn to the army of faith.

I was visiting a church recently, and sat on the periphery of a staff meeting. The pastor announced that one of the staff members was resigning. Her life had been in a hole for a long time, and she made the decision to leave the staff. There was obvious pain in the room, and there was no turning back from her decision. Clearly, around the room, there was concern for the hurting person. But, there was also pain at being robbed of the opportunity to love and serve this person before her climactic decision to leave.

It is sinful to be in a hole and selfishly rob others of the opportunity to exercise their faith - their charity - and to see how God will work in it. You can hide behind all the veils of privacy that you want, and initially some privacy with the Lord may be needed, but ultimately, I believe the Lord is going to say, "turn to your family of faith with this." Hole-dwelling can be very selfish and sinful. Don't be that way.

When you are not in a hole, help provide a ladder for those in the holes.

In those times when we are not in a hole, the last thing we want to do is think about the holes. Right? We stand on good ground, we breathe deep and we try to stay away from holes. We don't visit hospitals, prisons and nursing homes because they remind us of the dark places - the holes. And, we don't want to think about them. We don't want someone else's life to rub off on us. What if they pull us into the hole with them? We just want to rest and enjoy life outside the hole rather than looking down in holes.

Well, it's this selfish and sinful attitude that causes those in the hole to distrust us. Our inability to help people out of holes is why so many people get comfortable in holes and don't tell anyone. They don't want to be failed by those who claim to love Jesus. Is there a more sad statement than that? Not for me.

In 1 John 4:7, we read, "Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God.” We have to love one another. Believers must always carry ladders with them so we can help people out of holes.

I was able to exercise my faith last week, and received such a blessing from it. A friend of mine from high school was recently transferred to Texas. In this economy, it was one of those "move or lose it" corporate decisions, and so she moved. This separates her from beloved family. She's in a hole. I noticed her painful cry through Facebook. She wrote, "I'm having a difficult time adjusting to (Texas) and being without my husband and best friend, and my family. Keep me in your prayers that I will settle (calm) down and I will find a good church here for my Sundays away from my home church."

The Holy Spirit nudged me to contact a ministry counterpart (a wife, mom and grandmother much like my Georgia friend) in Texas, and my Texas friend reached out to my Georgia friend. They made a connection. Who wins in that? We all do. My Georgia friend, a believer, cried out, "I'm in a hole!" The Spirit moved me to bring a ladder. My Texas friend jumped in to help with the ladder. All of us were blessed with the reminder that God is larger than all the holes we face. 

Are you in a hole today?

Do you feel all alone in the hole?

Does God seem a long ways away? Do you know He cares? 

Do you know Jesus as your Savior from sin, and as the comfort – the cool water – while in the hole?

Do you feel Jesus there with you in the hole?

Do you have other believers around you, loving you? Are you confiding in them?

Are you experiencing the undefinable joy of blessing someone else’s life?

Are you walking in tandem with our Savior?

Love The Unlovable

As I prepared this week, I heard the Holy Spirit speak to me and to all of us:
“You know the attitudes and sinful actions that hold you back from completely following me. I want to do greater things with you, but I can’t until you make some changes that free you to follow me more closely.” 
I don’t know what those changes are for you, but I’m pretty sure that you know what they are.
I know what they are for me.
One place of change for all of us is in loving the unlovable, and working to be more lovable ourselves.

• Are there people in your life who get on your nerves? If you see them in the grocery store you intentionally dodge them? 
• Are there family members or loved ones who have hurt you deeply?
• Have you been cheated by business partners or neighbors? Swindled?
• Deep down, do you loathe people because of their attitudes, their socio-economic position, the color of their skin, the worship of their God?
• Do you get tired of hearing about how wonderful life is for your neighbor?
• Do you get frustrated when people you love keep making the same dumb mistakes over and over and over again?
• Is there a supervisor or co-worker who just has your number? Oppressive?
• Betrayed? Lied to? Belittled? Ridiculed? Humiliated? Physically or emotionally beaten?
• Maybe it’s just people who walk around like “Eeyore” – woe is me all the time? Maybe it’s people who never smile. Maybe it’s people who are so manic and bi-polar you never know who’s coming at you? Jekyll or Hyde? Unpredictable personalities can just suck the life out of you.
• What about those who whine, complain and live in the drama of “you love them more than you love me.”

It goes on and on. People are unlovable. We are all unlovable.

But, as followers of Jesus we have a problem.
Two of the non-negotiable truths of our faith are these: We must love everyone, and we must forgive everyone. Everyone. No exceptions. Love and forgive everyone. Why? Because Jesus loves and forgives us beyond our transgressions toward Him, and as followers we must reciprocate that toward everyone else.

Mark 12:31 reads, "Love your neighbor as yourself." The New American Standard says it this way, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” The International Standard says, “You must love your neighbor.” All translations identify this as a “command” from Jesus, and there’s no wiggle room in a command. Read Luke 10:25-37, the parable of the Good Samaritan. When hearing "love your neighbor," people began looking for wiggle room. Someone asked Jesus, "Who is my neighbor?" In the Good Samaritan story, Jesus tells of the Jew who stopped to help his cultural enemy, the Samaritan. In this, Jesus said, "Everyone is your neighbor. Love everyone."

In Mark 5:43-48, we read, "Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you." This is Jesus speaking.

In Ephesians 4:31-32, Paul writes, “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in  Christ forgave you.” That’s why we have to love and forgive one another. If we are going to follow Jesus, we must draw closer to Him and be more like Him.

Okay, I can forgive the person who pulls out in front of me in traffic. Or, the person who is having a bad day and vents on me. I can even forgive the Sunday School teacher who forgot to call me when I was sick. But, what about those in my life who screwed me over, scarred me emotionally and sent me into therapy? Yep, love and forgive . . . everyone. No exceptions.

This must have bothered Peter, because in Matthew 18:22 the famed disciple came to Jesus and asked,
“How often should I forgive someone?” Rabbis were teaching you only had to forgive someone three times. Peter suggested, to Jesus, that His followers do the right thing and increase the number of cheek-turning  times from three to seven. I can imagine Jesus laughing at the idiocy of this request when he exclaimed, "No! Seventy times seven." Jesus chose 490 times, showing that such a large number would equate for us to infinity. You are commanded to love and forgive . . . everyone. No exceptions.

Jesus goes on to tell the story of the unforgiving debtor, in Matthew 18:23-35. A king was approached by someone in his debt. The debtor begged for mercy and the king extended the mercy. Then, the debtor turned around and confronted someone who owed him. When the debtor's debtor begged for mercy, the debtor had his debtor arrested. The king found out about it. The angry kind then had his debtor sent to prison to be tortured until he had paid his debts.

Do you get it? God is the king. We approach God needing mercy for our debts, and He provided Jesus. He extended grace beyond our understanding and grace beyond our deserving. He loved the unlovable. So, then we turn to see the unlovable in our own lives. When we don't reciprocate God's love for us, we put ourselves in front of God's law. In my own life, I know what's it like to be tortured by the Holy Spirit - to be out of fellowship with God - until my attitudes toward my debtors changed.

Remember the Lord's Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13). "And forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors. (v. 12). We chant The Lord's Prayer so much that we gloss over it, don't we?

When I talk about love and forgiveness toward everyone, I always have people who want to argue in order to justify hating someone. "Well, what if so and so isn't a believer? Doesn't all this apply only to believers? What if the person isn't sorry or repentant?" Jesus says "everyone." And, I choose to err on the safe side: I just love and forgive and move on. The alternative is to fester on negative attitudes that allow Satan to whisper in my ear.

Above, you read that Jesus says, "pray for those who persecute you." So, in loving and forgiving, we need to pray for the unlovable. But, there's more. At the Last Supper, Jesus is surrounded by men who said they loved Him deeply, but treated Him poorly. Thomas would doubt His resurrection; James and John had fought over who He loved more; Peter aggravated Him and would deny Him; and Judas would betray Him. And, the others, you bet they aggravated Him, too, never quite understanding who He was or what He was, and stumbling all over themselves.

And, yet, look at what Jesus did. They gather for the Last Supper – Jesus and this rag tag bunch – and in John 13:4 we read, “So Jesus got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist, and poured water into a basin. Then he began to wash his disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel he had around him.” Jesus loved the unlovable by serving them.

Love the unlovable? As followers of Jesus, we have no choice. We must love them and forgive them, completely. And, we must pray for them, and we must serve them. Why? Because we follow a risen Savior who has done and does the same for us. Followers of Jesus have no choice.

But, I have to add something, here, too. Each of us is a problem-child for someone else. Each of us, even if we don’t really know it, is one of the unlovable to someone else. It might not be anything you have done; might just be an attitude. It might just be unfriendliness or even the perception of unfriendliness. It might be aggravation. Perhaps you slip into melancholy and can't help but advertising to the world.

It’s tough to wander through this life and not be someone’s unlovable. I believe every single one of us is someone's unlovable, and perhaps we are unlovable to more than one. I know that there are some who don't love me because my actions and attitudes are unlovable. I know there are some who don't like me either.

And, so, in closing, I want to offer some things that I try to practice (with varying degrees of success) toward being more lovable. You can look at Jesus' teaching in Matthew 5:3-10 for some of these: Practice humility, be merciful, be a champion for peace, do the right thing, and love and serve people. Here are some others from my own playbook:

• Point conversations to other people and their lives. What is your story? How is your family?
• Avoid complaining to those with whom you don't have relational credibility. Certainly, friends should go to friends with all kinds of concerns and problems, but chronic complaining to casual acquaintances and strangers does no one any good.
• Be genuine. Be the same at home as you are in public. If you can't do that, what should you be changing at home? Read Galatians 5 - the fruits of the spirit - what are yours? Be that person.
• Don't be the person who has ideas for others to implement. No one likes to be around the person who says, "I have an idea for you to do." Don't start something you can't finish.
• Be quietly kind. Ask yourself, "Do I love these people as Jesus loves me?"
• Practice hospitality. It doesn't matter where you live or even how clean it is. Opening your home to others is a genuine sign of loving people.

And, just remember, all of this love and service is toward one goal: Building relationship through which we can ultimately talk about our love for Jesus.

The Change Up

God gave me a lesson to teach this week, but then He hijacked that lesson and replaced it with another.

Reading this week from the book of Romans - written by Paul - I came across the familiar verse of Romans 12:2-3: "Don't copy the behavior and customs of the world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then, you will know God's will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect." I understand the larger context of that verse, but it spoke to me differently this time: "Change the way you think, Scott, change up the way you are living. Let God use that to transform you."

I came away from Christmas this year somewhat sick at my stomach.

Every year, we go to bed late on Christmas Eve and get up early on Christmas morning. Then, we rush through our family time so that we can pack up and get on the road to Atlanta. We must be at my parents’ house by 4:30 or 5 because at 5:30 we sit down to a meal of prime rib, Aunt Lou’s rice, green beans cooked in fat back, some kind of strawberry salad, Sister Shubert’s frozen dinner rolls, and chocolate layer cake for dessert. Then, we descend into the great room – all 21 of us – for a marathon of opening gifts most of which everyone knows will be exchanged so receipts are included inside the gift. Then, we watch a little television and go to bed. The next day, Christmas is over, and we all begin to drift back to our homes, and my parents are generally glad to see us leave, taking the chaos of the Christmas celebration with us. Each year, it is a mind-numbing exercise in routine. Over and over, year after year, it is the same scene in the same drama of our lives. And, because it’s monotonous, going-through-motions, the same old same old, we begin to get lethargic with Christmas and with family. Our celebration, unintentionally, becomes stagnant. Christmas becomes more about the “doing just to get it over with” rather than “celebrating family through Christmas.” It's time for a change up.

And, stagnation in one area of our life begins to infect every corner of our lives. Our days, our months, our years all begin to look like one another. Did you celebrate Valentine’s Day the same old way as last year? Flowers, card, candy, dinner out, sex? Maybe all the pieces were there, but how different would it be say if you had sex first? Then, you ate the candy together in bed. At least it would be different. What? Not without alcohol? Well, maybe a little champagne breakfast is just what you and yours need on a Valentine’s Day. And, this year, on a Thursday! Now, that's changing it up!

Stagnation and lethargy are suffocating the human experience. Vicki and I were in Washington DC this past weekend. I was the speaker at a church communication clinic,and we decided to turn the trip into a Valentine's getaway. On Friday, she wanted to visit the national Holocaust Museum. I had been there before, and so I let Vicki tour at her own pace. I went to the various “reflection” areas just to think and pray and listen to the testimonies of the Holocaust survivors. A message kept coming through to me, “count every single day as precious – count every single day as an opportunity to really live it. Don’t let your life become complacent. Don’t let your life become lethargic and stagnant.”

Change things up. Keep your life fresh. Value your relationships.

• Every day with your spouse should be like your first date with your spouse. 
• Every day with your children should be like the first day you held them.
• Every day with your Savior should be like the day you first confessed Jesus as your Savior.

The problem is that life calls us to conformity. It's easy (lazy, I say) to just get into routines and schedules and habits, walking like zombies through life and leaving a wake of complacency, lethargy and stagnation. We do the same things the same way - year after year after year - and then we moan from our death beds, "Where did my life go?" I will tell  you this, more and more I am an advocate of "change for the sake of change." Let's just do things differently. And, see if we can't experience a revival of God in our lives because of it.

Perhaps the most sad thing of all is when we let our faith – our precious faith – slip into stagnation. It is so easy for our faith lives and our practice of faith to be no different in 2013 than it was in 2012, 2011, 2010, and 2009. And, I laugh when I hear people say, “I will be a better believer when my children are grown because I will have more time for church and faith.” Great for you - not so good for your children. And, the most unchurched group of people in America? Empty-nesters, who no longer feel the pressure to have their children at church. Stagnation today will be even greater tomorrow. It's a cancer.

You and I need a new enthusiasm.
We need a new enthusiasm over our faith. We need a new enthusiasm over time with Scripture, prayer, the gathering of believers, and the service toward others.
We need a new enthusiasm over our spouses.
We need a new enthusiasm over our children, parents and siblings.
We need a new enthusiasm over the family calendar.
We need a new enthusiasm over our friends, and the finding of new friends in faith.
We need a new enthusiasm over evangelism and telling others about Jesus.
We need a new enthusiasm over this precious life we have been given.

I pray every day that you and I can be part of a revival in Lexington, SC. Not that we necessarily lead it, but that we just have opportunity to be a part  of it. I want to see men and women, husbands and wives, say, I’m going to love Jesus deeply and my life – my priorities, my calendar and even my bank account – will show it. I'm going to change things up.

I’m going to open the Bible every day. I’m going to pray every day – even if I just close my eyes and sit quietly. I’m going to stun my wife by sitting beside her on the sofa and holding her hand – not toward the goal of seeing her naked, but just because I love her. I’m going to go on walks with my children – individually – so I can hear their voices, and I’m not going to be a dream-killer when they share the dreams of their hearts. For no reason whatsoever, I am going to call my parents and siblings and just say, "I love you and I appreciate you."

I decided in December that I would change things up by adding weekly exercise to my calendar. My med-school son pushed me further. "You can't work out 2-3 days a week, dad, and then go eat Rush's chili cheeseburgers. Count your calories, watch  your salt and what your fat. But, mostly, dad, do something every day - walk 20 minutes every day. Do something to get your heart rate going."

I've gotten to where I look forward to the daily walk of 60 minutes or more. I use the time to pray or to listen to Scripture on my iPod, or just listen to a good book - usually fiction or a biography - on tape. I feel better because of the walk. I've met some good people who have encouraged me and whom I have encouraged. I sleep better because of the exercise, and because I sleep better my days are more rested and focused. I'm getting more work done in less time. I'm more patient and sympathetic because I'm more rested and feel better. One hour of walking every day has changed a lot of different places of my life. That one hour has shaken me out of a lethargy that beset me in the final quarter of 2012.

Change something. Let God shake open your life like shaking out a bed sheet on a nice Spring morning. What can God do with me and you if we just change some things to live today differently from this day last year and from yesterday? Revival begins with me and you. We need to change things up.

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.

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.

When Jesus says, "Go" - it's not optional

In the last words of Matthew, the apostle writes that the 11 remaining disciples (Judas is dead) left for Galilee and went to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they arrived, they saw Jesus, who was preparing to take His eternal place at the right hand of God. Seeing Jesus, the disciples worshipped Him, but some still doubted. Jesus (Matthew 28:18-20) told them, “I have been given complete authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

The Bible is full of rich Scripture passages, but for me this is one of the richest of them all. Ben and Jerry’s makes an ice cream flavor called Chocolate Therapy. It contains chocolate ice cream, chocolate cookies, and swirls of chocolate pudding. It’s loaded. That’s how I see Matthew 28:18-20: Loaded.

Jesus proclaims Himself as King Of Everything – heaven and earth. You and I must bite down on that one. When I was a little boy, my daddy had complete authority over me. I did exactly what he said, and if I refused there were consequences. If there was wiggle room it was because he gave it to me and not because I demanded it. He was the boss of me. Well, Jesus trumps that father-son and every other relationship that I have. Jesus has authority over me and everything about me, and that authority extends to everything, everywhere, natural and supernatural. So, when Jesus says “Scott, go do xyz” I have two responses – submit and do it, or reject Him. If I reject Him, I am disloyal. Whew. Reject Jesus? Whew, again.

Because Jesus is King of Everything, when He says, “Go! Make disciples . . .” I have no choice but to do it. Neither do you. None of us have a choice if indeed Jesus is our Savior and our Lord. In the context of today, I believe Jesus is saying, “You have slipped into believing faith is sitting in a seat, serving on a church committee, throwing your coins in an offering plate, and calling yourself a ‘Good Christian.’” That’s not good enough. That’s not “going.” Jesus is saying, “Do Something – and not just roll back poverty at Christmas.” No. Jesus is saying, “The end result is not the going and doing – the end result is making disciples, seeing people baptized, and teaching the gospel to people who haven’t heard it.”

And, Jesus reminds us that as we step out of comfort zones and "Go," we don't have to worry about anything. Because He is "always with us - until the end of time as we know it" and - He is King over everything, including both our comfort zones and where we are being called to go.

When my dad told me, “Scott, go cut the grass,” I went and cut the grass. When my dad said, “Scott, I need you to help me after school today,” I helped my dad after school that day. As my authority, He commanded and I submitted.

Jesus expects that, too. Business commitments? Family commitments? Physical restraints? He understands all that because all of that is under His authority, too. Still, He says, “Go, and as you go, be prepared to share your faith story.”

If Jesus knocked on your front door and said, “Come with me. I’ve got something for you to do.” What would you do? What are you doing? He is knocking all the time. His call to “Go” is constant.

Our class response to this Scripture mandate is to a be a missional Sunday School class. That’s why we are involved in partnerships with Lexington Interfaith Community Services (LICS), our Behind The Badge work with local law enforcement agencies, our annual walk with Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, our trip to North Dakota, and our response to Lexington Baptist Church missions and ministries. It’s why I want to see us be intentional about providing devotions at Sunday morning youth sports events. It’s why we have adopted a parking lot to greet people on Sunday mornings. It’s why we engage local benefit projects. God may be calling you to lead us in a new partnership. Because as we get our hands and feet involved in faith, we build partnerships and relationships, and through those the Holy Spirit will help us share Jesus with others. The end game is not the charitable work. The end game is making disciples and seeing people come to know Jesus as Savior . . . and King of Everything natural and supernatural.

Love One Another?

Recently, driving from Columbia to Harrisburg, PA, I listened to Francis Chan’s book, “Crazy Love – Overwhelmed by a relentless God.” Our class MOVERS group is reading this together. I am not a book reviewer, but this one drives home several reminders for those of us who are believers:

•  That God is God, and we are not Him. Chan reminds readers of the Throne of God that John writes about in Revelation. Too often we try to humanize God to better understand Him, and then we end up trivializing God in the process.
• That many of us are less in love with God and more in love with the idea of His blessing our lives.
•  That when we draw near to God, God draws near to us.
•  God is not a duplicator; God is a creator. You and I are individually and wonderfully made.
•  If we recognize that everything belongs to God, we will eagerly sell our possessions and give to those in need.
• And, then, that we begin to see every person – regardless of prejudice or opinions or politics – as if that person is Jesus to be loved and served.

It was an intense book, and more than once I had to pull over at a rest area and just take a break from it. It was that last point that really got my attention. What would life look like – what would my life look like – if I saw every person as Jesus? As a believer, it would be impossible to ignore them. It would be impossible to pass on serving them. It would be impossible to stand on the sidelines and watch people suffer if I saw them as Jesus.

I was convicted by Chan’s last thought because I am an inconsistent follower of Jesus.
All of us are inconsistent followers of Jesus.

I am reminded of the person who woefully or arrogantly says (or thinks!), “I do this for people” and “I do that for people” and “I’m the only one doing anything” and “I do anything I’m ever asked to do for people.” This person is guilty of sinful pride. Sin always throws up a mirror and causes us to see ourselves, how we’ve been offended, how we’ve done more while others did less, and how life isn’t fair.
Serving others and then drawing unhealthy attention to it, well, that’s an inconsistent approach to following Jesus. I stand guilty; so do you. We must do better.

In New Mexico a few weeks ago, my Vicki and I heard Andy Root, professor of youth and family ministry at Luther Seminary in St. Paul, MN, speak on taking the gospel to new generations of Americans. You and I can’t afford to become old people and slink off into the spiritual sunset. We’ve got to stay fresh in our approach to culture, and be ready to help people discover the Lord by whatever means possible.

But, Andy got my attention when he closed with this: If you had five minutes to live, what would you tell a dying and lost word? What would you tell other believers? If you were a preacher, what would your last sermon be about?

And, for me, fresh off Chan’s mind-blowing book, I just thought, “Love One Another” from John 13:34-35, “So, now I am giving you (believers) a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my follower.”

•  John is really speaking to believers loving other believers, strengthening the fellowship and being an example to the world. But, that certainly doesn’t let us off the hook to love and serve everyone around us. We should love anyone and everyone toward a goal of introducing people to Jesus as their Savior, and helping them grow as disciples.
• We should love one another in the same ways that Jesus loves us: Service beyond convenience, sacrificially and unconditionally, and without prejudice.
•  If we each focused on loving one another as a priority today, people – especially unsaved people – would notice a supernatural power at work and begin to ask about it.

I won’t be so forward as to say you should exercise your love for one another in specific ways. I won’t be so condescending as to say you should feel guilty if you don’t love people this way or that way. I won’t be so self-righteous as to say you are failing if you don’t love people through the same ministries God has called me to serve. Somewhere in all of that would be sin – me trying to set the guidelines for you. Lean on Scripture and the Lord’s whisper in all that you do. He will guide you exactly where He needs you to be in loving and serving others.

The lesson here is to love one another, personally and privately in everyday life. I do believe that God calls each of us to be the “hands and feet” of the church, and I believe He desires for each of us to be involved in ministry to others through the church. That may manifest itself through children’s ministry, student ministry, missions ministry (local, state, national or international), prison ministry, ministry to those who are in poverty, hospitality ministry, usher ministry, prayer ministry, music and worship ministry, small group ministry, Sunday School ministry, and the list goes on and on and on. You don’t have to be involved in each of these – seek the Lord’s place for you within the church (and within our class), and listen to His calling on where and how you should serve. (1 Corinthians reminds us that all the parts of the body are needed and that each has its own function and contribution). Then, passionately get involved around your spiritual giftedness and personal calling.

If you are a leader in ministry or desire to lead out in ministry, I’d love to hear how the class might support you as you might lead us. Class ministry involvement most often does not begin or end with me – it begins with you. In fact, I can tell you that I may not be involved in every class ministry, but I will support all of them.

As you and I do better at “love one another,” we will fulfill Matthew 25:35-36 when Jesus said, “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.” This is not an exhaustive list, but a starting place of ways you and I can show mercy to people each day.

Today, as you walk through your day, quietly love those around you as if they are Jesus. And, begin praying for how God can use you through one of our class and / or church ministries to bring Jesus to others. 

Companionship

A key leader at Lexington Baptist Church, Jerry Tarlton, died this past week. All of those who knew Jerry have a blessed assurance that he is with Jesus today.

The visitation was this past Friday night, advertised from 6-8 p.m., at Caughman-Harman Funeral Home in Lexington.

I wanted badly to be at the visitation, to speak to Jerry’s wife Pat, and to meet his family. I also wanted to be around my “faith family” that I knew would be assembling there. I wanted to pay my respects to Jerry’s memory, too. But, my Pony League baseball team had a game on Friday night. Knowing how much Jerry loved baseball and our local Dixie program, I knew he would want me to be at the game rather than the visitation.

The game wrapped up about 8:30. Vicki and I met at home about 9, and decided to grab some dinner. Since I can remember, I have celebrated baseball victory with Kentucky Fried Chicken. So, off we went to KFC, passing Caughman-Harman Funeral Home on the way. There were still cars in the parking lot – an hour after the visitation was supposed to have ended. So, we made a last minute decision to step inside the visitation.

At 10:10 p.m., Vicki and I got home from the visitation (with our chicken). The visitation for this good man lasted almost four hours – far beyond the advertised time.

Standing at the end of the receiving line, I overheard someone say, “I knew that Jerry knew lots of people, but I had no idea that he touched so many people's lives.” Do you see the powerful difference in knowing and serving?

Through Lexington Baptist Church involvement, our local Dixie baseball league, his work with Farm Bureau Insurance and living within our community, Jerry Tarlton had plowed his life into a lot of people and allowed a lot of people to plow into his life as well. I was deeply reminded of why we live this life we are given: We live it to link arm-in-arm with other believers to love and serve the Lord, to love and serve others, and to open ourselves to be loved and to be served. (Yep, it’s important for us to allow others to exercise faith in our direction – to fail at that is sinful.)

In Ecclesiastes 4:9-12, the great King Solomon writes: “Two people can accomplish more than twice as much as one; they get a better return for their labor. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But people who are alone when they fall are in real trouble. And on a cold night, two under the same blanket can gain warmth from each other. But, how can one be warm alone? A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken.”

These verses are about companionship, especially among like-minded followers of Jesus. Where are you? Are you linked arm-in-arm with other believers? Have you pulled a seat up to the camp fire? Are you in the game? Or, are you trying to navigate this life all by yourself? Are you on the fringe of fire’s warmth – freezing and in the dark? Are you sitting in the stands, watching the game you should be playing?

And, a warning. Satan is real. He is wanting to destroy you and all that you love.

He wants you and me to be isolated from the fellowship of other believers. He wants us turning to non-believers for good advice on faith, marriage, parenting and relationships. He wants us to be lonely, self-indulged, and looking in the mirror. Because he knows that if we are isolated, well, we will remain in sinful, stale and unfulfilling lives, unchallenged, unchecked, and mediocre at best. No one will come to Jesus because of us.

Companionship.
We were not created to be isolated from one another. We were made to enjoy one another, to lift each other up, and to reflect the Savior who loves us.

Finishing Well - The Days Of Our Lives

Since the early 1950s, daytime serials or “soap operas” have been a significant component of American television and American culture.
These 30-60 minute programs started on radio and transitioned to Monday-Friday afternoon television, targeting American housewives in post World War II suburban America. They were sponsored and produced by American soap manufacturers (Proctor & Gamble, for example). The plot lines ran concurrently, never-ending, and kept viewers coming back for the continuation of the story the next day. These programs became such a part of our culture that we still describe “over-dramatic” relationships as “a soap opera.”
By 1976, Time magazine called the daytime soap market “America’s richest television market” but that was also the beginning of the eulogy. In the late 70s, as most American women flooded the workforce, daytime soaps lost their footing. No new daytime soap has been created since 1999, and many of the 1950 veterans have been cancelled. Television producers made a shift in the late 70s, pushing programming to the evenings and launching programs like Dallas, Dynasty and Falcon Crest. Today, arguably, we still have soap operas in the form of reality television like The Bachelor – programs that at their core “spy” on the relational drama of others – real or fictional.
One of my mama’s favorite soaps was “Days Of Our Lives,” which – oddly – remains on television today and has been extended through 2013. “Days Of Our Lives” continues to open as it always has, with a creepy hourglass through which sand is sifting. There’s the “tick tock”  opening music, reminding us that our lives are on a clock that never ends. The late MacDonald Carey, who starred on the show, still narrates this opening with these words, “Like sands through the hourglass, so are the days of our lives.”
One summer, when I was 10 or 11, my mom was working and paid me to watch her “soaps,” and record the highlights of the various storylines. I joke that this was my first paid reporting job, which led to 20 years of newspaper work. The opening of “Days Of Our Lives” is still haunting, a reminder that our days are numbered. It’s a reminder that our days, like grains of sand, are slipping through our fingers and can never be recaptured.

About 3,000 years ago, King Solomon was the man who “had it all” – tremendous intellect, power and unbelievable wealth. Kings from other nations came to him for advice. He was the son of King David, and built the first temple in Jerusalem. His economic system made money on top of money, and with money came undeniable power throughout the world. And, yet, he was a man adrift from God. He fell into worldly lust, worshipped idols and took multiple wives who introduced pagan rituals and idol worship into his home. He knew God and his advice to others was to follow God, but he lived the majority of his life apart from God.
At the end of his life, presumably, and now a very old man, Solomon writes the simple Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes. He writes it all of us who are young and those of us who remain active, and he provides a cautionary and sobering reminder that our days are numbered. He tells us to understand the fragile nature of life and to live extraordinarily the days of our lives.

The Days Of Our Lives count for something. They are numbered. We will never have a chance to live today again, or make right the decisions we make. Life is a chess game; and, you can’t take back a move.
In my own life, I think about the time wasted, rushing after career and money and influence. I picture Jesus sitting at my kitchen table, watching me chase all the unimportant drama in my life. Each time I rush pass the table, I can see Him calmly reach for me and say, “Scott, slow down. Slow down and follow me.” And, of course, I was too busy to listen. How much more peaceful my life would have been had I listened.

I picture Solomon as a very old man, living his last days in a nursing home, desperately wanting to throw back a warning to everyone headed toward this same fate . . . or worse.
He writes in Ecclesiastes 11:7-10: “Light (life) is sweet; how pleasant to see a new day dawning. When people live to be very old, let them rejoice in every day of life. But let them also remember there will be many dark days (death). Everything still to come is meaningless (compared to our eternity). Young man, it’s wonderful to be young! Enjoy every minute of it. Do everything you want to do; take it all in. But remember that you must give an account to God for everything you do. So refuse to worry, and keep your body healthy. But remember that youth, with a whole life before you, is meaningless.”
And, Solomon concludes in 12:13-14:
“Here now is my final conclusion: Fear (honor and respect) God and obey His commands, for this is everyone’s duty. God will judge us for everything we do, including every secret thing, whether good or bad.” (The words “everyone” and “everything” always get my attention.)

Here are my personal take-aways from this:

1. Remember Our Mortality. Solomon reminds us that we will spend more of our days in death than in life. We are going to die. Within all our networks – Sunday School, high school classes, family - there will be a “last one standing” – many of us will bury one another, will cling to one another in death, and will walk through the valley of death with one another. It’s coming. That’s why Solomon says don’t waste the adventure of life – one day my life will be over. Make your lives extraordinary – even today. If today is my last to breath, how will I mark it – how will I sign my name to it as one that was extraordinary? Oh, please don’t let this day be ordinary. One day, I will bury Vicki or she will bury me, and that provides an urgency for my loving her extraordinarily today. One day, I will bury my parents – is that worth a telephone call today, reminding them that I love them? There are no guarantees – we must live each day beyond ordinary. One day . . . soon . . . one day . . . each of this will be no more. We will have no more time to invest in the lives of others. More importantly, we will have no more opportunity to come to faith and to introduce others to Jesus.
2. There is the threat of Meaninglessness. If you should die before me, I want to stand among your friends and family – even casually – and say, “I know He knew Jesus. I know She is with our Savior in paradise.” Any life not lived in the fullness of salvation will end full of meaninglessness. What separates us from despair is not our bank accounts, or our address books, or the resumes we put together – no, it’s the light of our Savior flowing through us to improve the lives of other people and help them discover Jesus. Please don’t be that pitiful and pathetic person whose life is marked by the funeral parlor cliché - “He was a good man; she was a good woman.” No, be the person remembered this way: “He poured his life into others because He knew Jesus as His Savior; She never celebrated anything but the great things God did through the lives of those she knew.” A life without Jesus produces regret, bitterness, loneliness, and hopelessness. A life centered in Jesus is fulfilling and can be richer and more bearable. Solomon reminds us that squaring our lives with God points us to an end with no regrets. When Solomon says, follow God’s commands, we skip to the New Testament and know those are to (a) love God; (b) love others; (c) and, make disciples. That’s the only way to avoid a meaningless life.
3. Remember Divine Judgment. No person will escape the judgment of God upon his or her life. After telling us to follow our dreams and live extraordinarily, Solomon reminds us that everything – all things – even the secret – what we say, what we do, and what we think – are seen by God and known by God, including the motives. Not even the inclinations of our heart or the desires of our eyes escape His knowing. We are called to live extraordinary lives, but we are commanded to live “right” lives. The Holy Spirit, within us, reminds us of what is right. We don’t have to worry over changing ourselves; the Holy Spirit will change us according to God’s plan for us. Thank goodness we have Jesus – not to escape judgment – but to be pardoned because of our faith in the One who died for our sins.

These sobering Old Testament reminders remind us of the width and depth of Jesus’ sacrifice for each of us.
C.S. Lewis said that all people must make a decision about Jesus. Each individual will call Jesus, “Lord, Liar or Lunatic.” Those who call Him Lord, cannot be ashamed of Him, and must live lives that are numbered for Him, speaking His name, loving His church, serving His people, and reflecting His sacrificial love for others. Those who don’t do this, mock Jesus, and He says in Matthew 10:33, “If anyone acknowledges me here on Earth, I will openly acknowledge that person before God, but, if anyone denies me here on Earth (and fails to recognize me before men), I will deny that person before my Father in heaven.” And, in Matthew 7:22, Jesus says, “Many will tell me, ‘Lord, Lord . . . but I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Go away.’”

These Are The Days Of Our Lives. Gone before we know it. While we are able:

1. Profess Jesus as Savior, ensuring our relationship with God for all eternity.
2. Communicate with God through prayer, Bible Study, and being in fellowship with other believers. Know God.
3. Love One Another. No conditions. Put others ahead of self. Let the Holy Spirit work through it. Live extraordinary lives of love and service.
4. Make Disciples. Be blessed along your own journey by helping someone on their journey. Point people to Jesus.

Those who live this way, will finish this life well.