What Do You See?

Have you ever noticed how selective we can be with what we see?

For example, you are reading this blog on a computer screen or a phone.  You are reading these words right now. 

But try this. 

Stop reading, but keep you eyes looking at the page.  Then just become aware of everything else that is around these printed words.  The edge of your phone or computer screen, your hand, everything in your field of vision.

Now take a moment to listen, what noises were there the whole time?  Cars going by, humming from a refrigerator, radio in the back ground...

All these things were there, but your brain can only take in so much stimulus.  So we focus only on what we want or need to see at the moment.  Everything else gets ignored or filtered out by our brain.

Reading Matthew 14:25 -31 (NIV) today

"Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake.  When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. "It's a ghost," they said, and cried out in fear.

But Jesus immediately said to them: "Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid."

 "Lord, if it's you," Peter replied, "tell me to come to you on the water."

 "Come," he said.

Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus.  But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, "Lord, save me!"

Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. "You of little faith," he said, "why did you doubt?"

So let me ask you a few questions.  According to the scripture,

1. Where was Peter looking when he walked on water?

2. Where was Peter looking when he started to sink?

3. Where are you looking when you feel confident in the Lord?

4. Where are you looking when you feel alone and confused?

So what did Jesus ask Peter?

Is he asking you and I the same question?

Flexible?

Recently I was at my Taekwondo school, waiting for my class to begin.

While I was watching the class in progress, a little boy came up to me and showed me how he could do a full split.  He smiled at his accomplishment, being five years old or so this pretty much came natural to him.

Then he asked me if I could do a split like that.

I laughed and said that I could not go down as far as he could, I lacked the flexibility.  He didn't seem to understand this concept.  He simply said, "I'll show you how" and then proceeded to effortlessly do the split again.

I told him that I was working, a little each day, to become more flexible and at this point he kinda shrugged his shoulders and went on to another topic.

When we are young, our bodies are incredibly flexible.  It isn't until we get older that we begin to lose this.  Practicing a martial art at my age only shows me just how much flexibility I have lost over the years.

But children are more than just physically flexible, they are also willing to learn and accept things without any preconceived notions. 

"He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them.  And he said: "Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.  Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven." Matthew 18:2-4 (NIV)

How flexible are you?

Unity

If you were getting together with the people you loved, and you knew that it would be the last time you saw them, what you said and did would be well thought out and significant.

Jesus, during his last night on earth, had a lot to say to his disciples.  But he also prayed for you and I.

 "My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message,  that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.  I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one—  I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me." John 17:20-23

It is possible the Lord looked toward the times we have today and saw how much division there is in the body of Christ. 

Do our actions and attitudes work with or against this prayer?  Are we one as he and our Father were one?

One Church

Years ago, I worked at a furniture store that sold, among other things, reclining chairs.

Since my job back then was to move these chairs around the showroom floor, I got very familiar with just how many there were.  The choices were endless, and that was intentional.  A customer could go in and find just the right chair, with just the right features.  They could even special order the fabric if they didn't like what they saw on the floor.

Churches can be the same way.  Don't like the music or building at one church, go down the street until you find just the right one for you.

Unfortunately, in doing so we have created so many churches that it's easy to forget there is really only one.

"There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called;  one Lord, one faith, one baptism;  one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all." Ephesians 4:4-6N (NIV)

By all means, go where you feel comfortable, but let's never forget we are all members of one church, the Body of Christ.

Neglect

Today while riding our motorcycles, my wife and I passed by an abandon home on the side of the road.  One of many we see as we explore the back roads of North Carolina.

A good thirty percent or more of the home was covered with nature  reclaiming the lot.   Grass and bushes grew unchecked while vines covered the sides.

I always wonder what happened when I see these places.  Someone had to have lived there once.  Someone called this home.  Then one day the last family or person left and the house fell to neglect.

Or perhaps it fell to neglect long before it was abandoned?  That can happen as well.

The same can be said for our spiritual lives.  What we focus our minds and attention on can have a lot to do with the state of our "house" over the years.

Our spiritual life must be fed and nurtured with spiritual things, it can survive on nothing else.  And the harmful weeds need to be kept in check...

"Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation,  now that you have tasted that the Lord is good." 1 Peter 2:2-3(NIV)

Changing Times

I went to the post office the other day to mail a package.

The young lady at the counter asked me the usual questions, and then I told her I was mailing a "LP" and wanted to know if it qualified for the media rate.

"LP? What's that?" she asked with a straight face. 

"A record"

"I don't know what that is," she said.

I then I realized I needed to use the new hip term, "A vinyl," I said, while motioning with my finger a record spinning and imitating one of those old phonographs in my best Beatles, "we're so sorry, uncle Albert" imitation.

"Oh, " she said.  I think at last she understood and I got the media rate.

I thanked her with a smile, for making  me feel old.

Times change, I realized, every day objects from my past disappear from the vocabulary of the current generation.

But one thing that never changes is the truth of God's word.  Even a quick walk through the book of Proverbs will seem as relevant today as it did thousands of years ago when it was written.

And for that, I'm thankful! 

"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever." Hebrews 13:8 (NIV)

Proverbs

There are two proverbs I feel go hand in hand.  Normally I'm not that great at remembering exact verse numbers, but these two I do. 

Proverbs 15:14 and Proverbs 14:!5

"A wise person is hungry for knowledge,

    while the fool feeds on trash."  Proverbs 15:14 (NLT)

and 

"Only simpletons believe everything they're told!

    The prudent carefully consider their steps."  Proverbs 14:15 (NLT)

We live in a time when we are constantly exposed to both truth and lies.  Combine this with our fast food, quick results hungry culture and we end up with a society that does not take the time to  seek knowledge or give thoughts to what we do.

We don't want to do the work it takes to arrive at the truth, to really learn.

Yet the book of Proverbs spells the problem and the solution out so simply.  If you want to be wise, be hungry for knowledge and consider your steps.  Only a fool feeds on trash and believes everything they are told.

How will you choose to live?

Bad Weather?

These last few days have brought some relief from the almost unbearably hot weather we've had. 

But with it has come some rain.  Actually, a lot of rain.

A few days now of rain.

I thought about how the rain affects my mood and makes me more tired.  I miss out on things like taking a walk at lunch time.

And, of course, if this continues, what will the weather look like for riding this weekend?

Now let's say that the Lord answered every prayer with a resounding "Yes."  By thinking only of myself, my desires and needs, I would be asking for sunny skies, and no rain.

Every day.

But what would that look like?  What would that do for crops?  What would that do for farmers who rely on the rain?

During a ride we may pray for God to hold off the rain as the black clouds get closer, and sometimes the answer is "yes" and we get home dry.  

But sometimes we get soaked... and we may never know why.

Because only the Lord can truly know what is good for not just us, but for everyone.

That can be harder to see with prayers that go unanswered and affect us far more than the weather.

But what we do have is his promise, that he withholds no good thing.

"For the Lord God is a sun and shield;

    the Lord bestows favor and honor;

no good thing does he withhold

    from those whose walk is blameless." Psalm 84:11(NIV)

Informed Decisions

It's amazing how often we can make a judgement based on our perception rather than the truth.

Ever since school has come back into session, at my morning commute traffic has picked up at a particular light.

I put some thought into alternating my route to avoid this traffic, after all, it felt like it was adding 10 or 15 minutes.

I thought about this, even acted on it and yesterday I altered my route.  However, today I decided to simply time how long the back up was at that light.

It was 4 minutes.

Four minutes is not worth changing my route for, in fact the new route probably added more than that amount of time.  But it felt like I was waiting longer so I I felt like I had to change something.

It's better to make an informed decision.

In Matthew 22:23-32 we read,

"That same day the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him with a question.  "Teacher," they said, "Moses told us that if a man dies without having children, his brother must marry the widow and raise up offspring for him.  Now there were seven brothers among us. The first one married and died, and since he had no children, he left his wife to his brother.  The same thing happened to the second and third brother, right on down to the seventh.  Finally, the woman died.  Now then, at the resurrection, whose wife will she be of the seven, since all of them were married to her?"

The Sadducees were not interested in the answer to that question as much as their argument proving (in their eyes) that there could not be a resurrection. Let's continue reading to see how Jesus responds.

Jesus replied, "You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God.  At the resurrection people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven. But about the resurrection of the dead—have you not read what God said to you,  'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'? He is not the God of the dead but of the living."

Before we come to a conclusion, it's best to know the facts, and it's also best not to limit the power of God.

Why We Believe

There was a documentary that came out a few years ago called, "Why We Ride," and it sparked a lot of conversations with different motorcyclists to explain the reasons they ride.

A sense of freedom, embracing risk, stress relief, just plain fun...  The reasons were as different as the bikers themselves.

But more important than explaining why you have a passion for something, be it motorcycles or something else, is to be able to articulate why you believe in Jesus Christ.

It seems the longer we have known him, the fuzzier that reason can become.  Because we have moved past why we should believe, to simply believing.  We no longer question it for ourselves, we simply do.

Yet Peter tells us, 

" But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect," 1 Peter 3:15 (NIV)

Are you ready to give that answer?

Group rides

Riding a motorcycle alone is a very different experience from riding in a group. 

Alone, I can turn when I like, stop when I like, it's pretty much all about me and my ride.

But if I'm riding in a group, I have to keep an eye not only on where we are going, but also on who is behind me.  I need to be aware of not just my own interest, but also that of others on the ride.

As we head toward a light, it's not enough to know that I made the light and can keep up with the group, I need to focus on the person behind me.  Did they make the light too?

Or if there is a turn on the route, are they seeing us turn?

My ride becomes about the group, not just myself.

Our walks with God are like group rides.  We are not isolated from one another.  We need to keep an eye on where we are going, and be mindful of those who are following our example.

"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others." Phil 2:1-4 (NIV)

Today, let's pray and ask the Lord to show us how we can think more of others.

Consequences

When I take my walk at lunch, I often approach a pretty busy intersection.  Cars and trucks are flying by at the posted 45 mph, or often faster, to beat the light.

So naturally when I want to cross, I push the button and wait for the flashing "walking man" sign to tell me it's safe. 

I always walk in between the lines, and when it's ok to do so. 

But what if I decided once to just walk when I wanted to walk?  Regardless of the traffic.  What if I decided that the traffic laws should change for me?

What would the result be?

I'd probably be crushed with no one to blame but myself.

The same can be said for how we walk with Jesus.  We don't get to walk outside his guidelines and expect not  to be crushed.

 "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it." - Matthew 7:13-14(NIV)

Showing Our Faith by Our Deeds

The other day I went to Starbucks.  It seemed everyone had the same idea I did that morning.  Cars snaked around the building and the inside was full.

But I really don't mind.  I parked and went in, and after ordering did what I like to do sometimes, I observed the people around me.

I find it interesting to see what I can learn about people simply by watching them.  I look at posture, how people hold themselves, or clothing, how do they present themselves?  Things like t-shirts, what's important to them.

But also, how do they act toward, let's say the person making there latte?  Are they polite, rude, indifferent?

But it also makes me wonder, what can people learn about me by simply observing me?

Reading James 2 today,

"What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them?  Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food.  If one of you says to them, "Go in peace; keep warm and well fed," but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it?  In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

But someone will say, "You have faith; I have deeds."

Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds.  You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder. James 2:14-19 (NIV)

Do our deeds show our faith?

The Real Thing

Recently I watched a documentary on the Seattle Grunge music scene in the 90s.

One of the things that stood out to me was the flannel shirts.

Now Seattle is known for rainy weather.  I know this firsthand as I lived there for a year.

A year was as much as I could take of that!

So these musicians were wearing flannel shirts, not as any kind of statement, but just because that is what they wore.  It's warm!

After the music took off and became more mainstream, the "Seattle look" was also being marketed. along with the music.  One musician, interviewed for the documentary, thought it was very amusing that people were paying $80 for a shirt to look like people who paid $5 for theirs.

Basically people are willing to pay a high price just to look the part.

Being the real thing cannot be bought or manufactured by just wearing certain clothes.  Either you play music or you don't.  In fact, the music had little if anything, to do with the clothing.

The same could be said for our walk with the Lord.  It's easy to go to church, buy Christian T-shirts and bumper stickers, or even post Christian slogans on our Facebook pages.

It's something else entirely for our life to reflect the reality of who we are.

"Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.  Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.

Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless.  Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." James 1: 22-27 NIV

Subjective Truth

This morning when driving to work on the expressway, I saw a sign that read, "Construction, maintain safe speed"

I could not help but think how pointless this sign really was.  Not in that it pointed out the construction, or the need to watch my speed, but that it allowed each driver to decide what a safe speed would be.

My conviction was enforced as I watched cars zooming around, choosing their safe speed to be faster or slower than my own.  Everyone's interpretation of what a safe speed was, for that particular stretch of road, was different.

And they might not all be correct.

It's like music.  I can tune my guitar so that it is in tune with itself and sounds fine, but it can be off when compared to other guitars that are tuned to the standard tuning.  If I play alone, it sounds great, as soon as I play with others, the difference is blatantly obvious.

Now with some things, life can move along just fine with what is called subjective truth.  But for salvation, there is only one clear answer. 

Speaking of Jesus, Peter said."Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved." Acts 4:12 (NIV)

Words of Life

There are days even when we are walking with the Lord, that everything is not clear.  Days when we drive to work and the chipper voices on Christian radio are not encouraging.

Days that St John of the cross called "The Dark Night of the Soul."

During these days, we are tested.  How will we respond?

Jesus once said to Peter,  "Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you as wheat.  But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers." Luke 22:31 (NIV)

During those times, when everyone else's prayers seem to be answered but yours, at those times when the Lord seems distant, and we are left with more questions than answers.

At those times when Jesus' teaching is simply hard to understand.

How will we respond in our own Dark Night of the soul?

Reading in John's Gospel

"On hearing it, many of his disciples said, "This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?"

Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, "Does this offend you? Then what if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before!  The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life.  Yet there are some of you who do not believe." For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray him. He went on to say, "This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled them."

From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.

"You do not want to leave too, do you?" Jesus asked the Twelve.

Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God." John 6:60-69 (NIV)

Will we walk away, or will we realized that Jesus alone has the Words of eternal life?

Praying When You Don't Know What To Say

One of the reasons we have the psalms is for those times when we know we should pray, but we don't know how.

During these times, it can help to simply read a scripture out loud.  Psalm 119 is an excellent place to find those words when we don't have any for ourselves.

I have it below in both the NIV and then the Amplified versions.

"May my cry come before you, Lord;

    give me understanding according to your word.

May my supplication come before you;

    deliver me according to your promise.

May my lips overflow with praise,

    for you teach me your decrees.

May my tongue sing of your word,

    for all your commands are righteous.

May your hand be ready to help me,

    for I have chosen your precepts.

I long for your salvation, Lord,

    and your law gives me delight.

Let me live that I may praise you,

    and may your laws sustain me." Psalm 119:169-175 (NIV) 

Amplified.

Let my [mournful] cry come before You, O Lord;

Give me understanding [the ability to learn and a teachable heart] according to Your word [of promise].

Let my supplication come before You;

Deliver me according to Your word.

Let my lips speak praise [with thanksgiving],

For You teach me Your statutes.

 

Let my tongue sing [praise for the fulfillment] of Your word,

For all Your commandments are righteous.

Let Your hand be ready to help me,

For I have chosen Your precepts.

I long for Your salvation, O Lord,

And Your law is my delight.

Let my soul live that it may praise You,

And let Your ordinances help me."

Different Versions

This past weekend I had the pleasure of jammin' with my older brother Michael, who years ago taught me to play guitar. 

While we were exchanging songs, he started playing a song that had lyrics that were really beautiful. I played along, but it wasn't until the end of the song that I realized I knew that song very well.

It was, "She Loves You" by The Beatles; a song may of us are familiar with.

But he played it slower and with a slightly different rhythm.  Those changes allowed me to hear the song as if for the first time and I was struck by the meaningful lyrics.

The same could be said about reading the Bible.  It's good to pick up a different version sometimes just to jar our understanding.  Often we see things in a different way.

For example. John 3:16 in the New International Version (NIV) sounds very familiar. 

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."

But consider that same verse in the Amplified Bible (AMP)

"For God so [greatly] loved and dearly prized the world, that He [even] gave His [One and] only begotten Son, so that whoever believes and trusts in Him [as Savior] shall not perish, but have eternal life."

Keep in mind, the Bible was not originally written in English, and often the deeper meaning of the words are lost in one translation,  this can be a great exercise to see the Word of God in new ways.

Talents

I was thinking today about Matthew 25:14-30 NIV,) the parable of bags of gold,or talents.

 "Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his wealth to them.  To one he gave five bags of gold, to another two bags, and to another one bag, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey.  The man who had received five bags of gold went at once and put his money to work and gained five bags more.  So also, the one with two bags of gold gained two more. But the man who had received one bag went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master's money.

 "After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them.  The man who had received five bags of gold brought the other five. 'Master,' he said, 'you entrusted me with five bags of gold. See, I have gained five more.'

 "His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!'

 "The man with two bags of gold also came. 'Master,' he said, 'you entrusted me with two bags of gold; see, I have gained two more.'

 "His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!'

 "Then the man who had received one bag of gold came. 'Master,' he said, 'I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed.  So I was afraid and went out and hid your gold in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.'"

How many of us are like that third man?  We are given abilities by God, to be used for him to bless others, but instead of taking any risks and using them, we hide them.

We can run through a list of reasons and excuses as to why, but that doesn't give us a pass in the eyes of the Lord. 

What talents and gifts have you hidden in your life?  Perhaps it's time to take them out?

What Do You Focus On?

For the Labor Day weekend, we drove 900 miles from North Carolina to New Hampshire, and 900 miles back.

1800 miles.

When you are looking at a trip like that, you have to put your mind into a special place.  I see the odometer read 1 mile, then 2, then 10, etc.  At first those 900 miles seem like they will take forever. 

But if I focused my mind only on that, I would miss the whole point we drove rather than flew.  The amazing countryside, the rolling hills and impressive landscapes. 

It's easy to become weary on a trip like that, if you focus only on the miles left to go.  But if you stay present, and enjoy the little things along the way, it makes all the difference.

The same can be said for our lives here on earth.  Eternity may seem far away, but with each passing moment it is getting closer.  So let's spend our time as best we can while we are here.

 "Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers." Gal 6:9- 10 (NIV)

Ambassadors

It's interesting to drive 1,800 miles in a couple of days.  Something rather basic stood out to me.

The further north we got, the less we saw North Carolina license plates.  In fact, by the time we hit New Hampshire, we were the only ones on the road.

Then, when the trip south began, we were surrounded by each state's plates with others slowly mixing in.  Eventually we were, once again, in North Carolina, and our plate no longer stood out.

I thought about how, when we were the only NC plate in sight (and people knew nothing about NC) people would judge our entire state by how I drove.  If I cut someone off, they would think our state is rude, if I stopped to let a car into traffic they would think our state is polite.

We were ambassadors for North Carolina!

The same could be said for us as  Christians.  It's easy to get away with things when we are surrounded by brothers and sisters in the Lord who know us and love us.  It is another thing to have our faith judged by our conduct when we are the only Christians that people may know, personally.

...And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.  We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. " 2 Cor 5:19b-20 (NIV)

Think about this past week so far, how have you represented the Lord?

Language

The other day I was riding on the highway when I saw a man with his arm hanging outside his car window as he drove.

Occasionally he would point with it, or tap the roof of his car.

 I found this very distracting.  At first I was trying to figure him out, was he signaling a turn?  Was he trying to cross over into my lane? 

I'm sure he wasn't aware of the way his arm motions looked outside of his car, but it could cause problems as his movements unintentionally crossed into what looked like standard hand signals.  He confused me enough that I finally blew past him.

As Christians we need to be aware of how our actions look in the context of the people around us.  Often we can do something very innocent in our own eyes, but confusing people so much that they walk away, not understanding our lives in Christ.

Often, in fact, they blow right by us. 

Paul was so aware of the people he was around, that he often altered his behavior to be more like them.

He said, "To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law.  To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God's law but am under Christ's law), so as to win those not having the law.  To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some." 1 Corinthians 9:20-22(NIV)

Let's keep Paul's example in mind and and watch how our words and actions are interpreted by those around us.

Seeing Clearly

Have you ever noticed, when you are riding in a group, at the same speed as other motorcycles, you have the perspective that none of you are really moving?  According to the theory of relativity, when two objects move at a steady velocity in relation to each other, it is impossible to tell which objects are and aren't moving.

But once you take your eyes off the other and onto a stationary object, you can see at once that you are moving.

In life, I think we like to compare ourselves to each other.  But the problem with that is, when we compare ourselves to another imperfect person we cannot see our own sin.  Only when we examine our life in comparison to the one who knew no sin do we have an accurate and true picture.

If you want to see an accurate picture of yourself, look to the Jesus, the Word of God, not to each other.

"But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it--not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it--they will be blessed in what they do." James 1:25 (NIV)

Being Prepared

The other day, driving to work I noticed a woman riding her motorcycle on 540, where the traffic runs from 70 to 80mph.

Commuter traffic.

What stood out to me was her shoes.  She was wearing high heel open toed shoes.

Now, I'm not one to judge anyone for what they wear when riding.  We all have our different convictions on that.

But there is no doubt that those shoes were not a great idea, no matter how you ride.  Sure, if she didn't need to stop short, if it didn't rain, if there wasn't road debris, if she didn't wreck... the list goes on.  If the ride was perfectly smooth then I'm sure she'd be ok.

Do that once, you take a chance, do that as a habit, chances are, eventually things will go bad.  It's simply better to be prepared.

The same could be said for understanding our faith.  You can know in your heart that Jesus is Lord, and you could live under that Lordship.  However, the first time someone asks you for reasons why you believe that, if you don't have another answer than "because I do" you will be coming up very short indeed.

Reading 1 Peter 3:15(NIV)

"But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect"

The answers are there to give, just like the boots, I'm sure, were there for that young lady to wear.  We have to take the time to ready ourselves, we need to be prepared.

What Do You Want?

Years ago, I remember watching the movie Scarface with Al Pacino.

I saw it in the movie theater... yeah that's how old I am!

Anyway, there was this line in it, where his friend asks Scarface, "what do you want?" to which he replies, "I want the world... and everything in it."

It seems like a such an absurd ambition doesn't it?  Especially in light of Psalm 95

" Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord;

    let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.

Let us come before him with thanksgiving

    and extol him with music and song.

For the Lord is the great God,

    the great King above all gods.

In his hand are the depths of the earth,

    and the mountain peaks belong to him.

The sea is his, for he made it,

    and his hands formed the dry land.

Come, let us bow down in worship,

    let us kneel before the Lord our Maker;

for he is our God

    and we are the people of his pasture,

    the flock under his care."  Ps 95:1-7 (NIV)

We can scoff at Scarface, realizing how over-the-top his desire is, to actually want everything.

But although we may not want the world, often times we do want the small part we inhabit, the part we call, "my life."

But if it all belongs to the Lord, then truly to demand even a fraction of it, is to demand what does not belong to us.

"Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. " 1 Corinthians 6:19-20(NIV)