Why be thankful?

In a few days I will hit the half century mark. There are at least a couple of ways to approach such a birthday. (1) The "I can't believe I'm this old" Approach. This approach doesn't work well for me. It's a hard sell for me to say, "I can't believe I'm 50" while my joints ache, my bifocals are resting on my nose and my bald head is shining. So I go with Approach #2. It's the " I can't believe I'm 50" approach. Sounds the same as #1, but you miss the tone of my statement with this e-communication. It is a statement of amazement rather than questioning. I am amazed that God has given me life. Not only has God given me life, but He has chosen to bless me with 50 years of life. From my earliest memory, I have known Him. From my earliest memory, I have heard about His love. From my childhood, He has given me a love of His Truth and a desire to serve Him. Why? The God of the universe loves me? Yes, when I consider God's gift of life, there is no question. God loves me. My "Thanksgiving" begins here. But, it doesn't end here. It cannot end here. If I am truly grateful, then my gratitude must spill over into all my days and ways. Thanksgiving is powerful. Gratitude is a catalyst for love. It is a precursor for giving. It is a vaccination against selfishness. It destroys pride. It transforms us into a living story where God is the main character. It will illuminate every valley and dark place without fail because when we are giving thanks to God we are speaking to God and when we are speaking to God we are reminded that God is with us. Thank you God. 

Grace before Thanksgiving

 For all things are for your sakes, that grace, having spread through the many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God.

2 Corinthians 4:15

No doubt, thoughts about thanksgiving will abound this week. But, will thanksgiving “abound to the glory of God”? In large part, I think it depends on whether I choose to acknowledge God’s grace. This particular verse, in Paul’s letter to the Corinthians serves as a good reminder to dwell upon the grace of God this week. Thanksgiving springs from God’s grace and finds purpose in glorifying God. It’s not surprising that the true source and goal of thanksgiving can become so easily crowded out of our lives. Preserving the sacred purpose of thanksgiving involves more than perspective. It requires discipline.

If God’s grace is the precursor for thanksgiving, then pride is the primary hindrance. Any hope of preserving a proper perspective on thanksgiving rests upon a conscious effort to turn toward the One who is full of grace. John Owen directs, “See to it that all thoughts concerning Christ and His glory are accompanied with admiration, adoration and thanksgiving.” In the midst of a flood of distractions this week, choose to look toward Christ. Experience and appreciate the grace of God and let His grace feed your heart. Let is produce abundant thanksgiving to the glory of God.

True Love

Let all that you do be done with love.

1 Corinthians 16:14

After spending some time reading and studying the thirteenth chapter of 1 Corinthians this week, I have a fresh appreciation for its importance. Often this beautiful passage is referred to as the “love chapter” because of the repeated emphasis on what love “is” and what love “does” and “does not do”. I’ve read it at weddings and sermonized on these powerful words for years. My study this week brought an unexpected awareness of the depth of these words.

A quick reading of 1 Corinthians 13 reveals that there is no explicit mention of God. Yet, I am drawn to God from the beginning. Perhaps it is because I recognize the character of Christ in the description of love. Maybe it’s because I acknowledge that I do not have the capacity to love apart from God’s help. Nonetheless, the chapter is about God.

It doesn’t require theological genius to look around and discern how easily love can become distorted in our culture today. We cheapen love. We water it down. We make it into something selfish and manufactured. But, it’s not true love. Max Lucado writes, “God offers authentic love. His devotion is the real deal. But he won’t give you the genuine until you surrender the imitations.” When Paul closes out 1 Corinthians with some pastoral directives, he includes the words, “Let all you do be done with love.” If that sounds impossible, it is – apart from God’s help. Real love is possible when we let God’s love permeate our lives.

Veterans Day: The Message of the Cross

For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

1 Corinthians 1:18

It sounds ridiculous. But, sometimes I believe it’s easy to confuse wisdom and foolishness. What appears to be wise is sometimes foolish. What appears to be foolish is sometimes wise. To make matters worse, I (along with a vast amount of humanity past, present and future) am tempted to underestimate the gap between my understanding and God’s infinite wisdom.

Consider the cross of Christ. By definition, a “paradox” is a statement that, despite sound reasoning may seem senseless or logically unacceptable. Jesus took paradox to a new level. To live, I must die. The first shall be last. If I desire to be great, I must become a servant. The cross is the greatest paradox of all. The Son of God went to the cross. The Messiah died a sacrificial death. The Lord took on my shame and guilt and died for me. How is that wisdom? When Paul the Apostle wrote a letter to the Corinthians, he highlighted the struggle with the cross. Some in the first century found it difficult to embrace the power of the Gospel because it seemed foolish to them. Paul provided great clarity. The message of the sacrificial death of Jesus on the cross is the power of God to salvation. Three hundred years later St. Ambrose echoed the message of Paul, “The Lord’s Cross, then, is my wisdom; the Lord’s Death my redemption; for we are redeemed with His precious blood”.

As I grow older I learn more and more that Jesus desires to change everything. He changes my heart. He changes my perspective. He changes my attitude. Thankfully, I am a work in progress. Today is Veterans Day. It’s a great day to reflect on the words of Jesus and the example of Jesus as we remember men and women who have devoted their lives for the benefit of others. According to Jesus, discipleship is defined by self-denial, self-sacrifice and humbly following Him. Meditate on His words today: “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” (John 15:13).

The heat is on

Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, and whose hope is the Lord. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river, and will not fear when heat comes

Jeremiah 17:7-8

Lately, in preschool chapel, I have been teaching the children about the fruit of the Spirit. In order to help them understand what it means to “bear fruit” I usually have them stretch their little arms up in the air and pretend they are growing up to be big trees for God. Jeremiah 17 provides a great word picture of the kind of tree that I want to be. Here’s what I’m thinking this morning.

First, the tree in Jeremiah is planted by the waters. I want my life to be planted by God where He wants me and always in close proximity to His provision. Second, I want to be a tree that spreads out its roots. Roots seek the things that lead to health and growth. I desire to be a lifelong learner. Finally, it matters to me how I respond when the “heat comes”. Summer brings heat every year. But, that’s not the kind of heat that Jeremiah is talking about. The trials of life are not always as predictable as summer. All of us can expect to endure some heat in life. It’s not a matter of “if” it’s a matter of “when”. If you continue reading in Jeremiah 17, you will discover that the tree does not merely survive the heat, but it continues to thrive. I want to continue to have “green leaves” in spite of the heat that comes my way.

Jeremiah makes it clear that such a life is built on “trust” in the Lord and “hope” in the Lord. It is a “blessed” life. Notice that the “blessings” of God do not guarantee that I will not endure heat. Rather, this healthy tree is able to combat the fear that so often comes when the heat is on. It’s probably worth the journey back into Jeremiah 17 to note the contrast in the previous verses between the blessed “tree” and the cursed “shrub”. The “shrub” in the desert is the one who trusts in self rather than God. Now, what do I want to be today… a shrub in the desert or a tree by the river?