TRUSTING GOD

As I am two days away from the move to Costa Rica, I am trusting God more and expecting Him to give me more purpose in life than I have felt in my simple volunteering in church and other places here in Nashville. And the fact that I don't know everything that will happen is part of the adventure and excitement of the move. I am abandoning a lot of supposed security here in the states, though financially I know it will just get more difficult here. In the process of this thinking I was reminded of the poem/prayer by Thomas Merton which I may have shared here earlier. I discovered it in 2012:

Prayer of Abandonment

Thomas Merton

My Lord God,
I have no idea where I am going.
I do not see the road ahead of me.
I cannot know for certain
where it will end.

Nor do I really know myself,
and that I think I am following your will
does not mean I am actually doing so.

But I believe
the desire to please you
does in fact please you.
And I hope I have that desire
in all I am doing.

I hope
I will never do anything
apart from that desire.
And I know if I do this
you will lead me by the right road
though I may know nothing about it.

I will trust you always
though I may seem to be lost
and in the shadow of death.

I will not fear,
for you will never leave me
to face my perils alone.

Avoid Stress? I'm choosing to Simplify Life!

Today's "Message of the Week" in The Tennessean by Ray Waddle uses the lives and focuses of the various Saints honored today on All Saints Day and sums it up by saying they all depend on confidence in something bigger and more enduring than our ever-demanding inbox! For me stress is avoided mostly by putting my dependence on God, my higher power; and also by trying to keep life simple.

My move to Costa Rica is partly for this reason and I pray I will keep it simple there (one can overload/overstress anywhere). Today's post in my Moving to Costa Rica Blog talks about this briefly as I mention re-discovering Richard Foster's book Freedom of Simplicity which I just loaded on my Kindle Fire. The current act of getting rid of all the many years of accumulated stuff is freeing and adding simplicity before I even move! Then when I get there, I am not going to get a car, choosing rather to walk, ride a bike, and use public transportation. I can hardly wait! I feel stress leaving my body already. Life will turn to relating to a new community and focusing on nature with my cameras, which is summed up in "loving God and loving people" all around me. That is life! Pura Vida!

Give Away Your Life

Two mornings ago in my breakfast readings, I read Luke 6:24-42 in The Message, my favorite translation now and what I read from each morning. It impacted me so much, that I re-read it this morning and decided I wanted to share it with others as another powerful description of "The Kingdom of God."

Luke 6:24-42The Message (MSG)

Give Away Your Life

24 But it’s trouble ahead if you think you have it made.
    What you have is all you’ll ever get.

25 And it’s trouble ahead if you’re satisfied with yourself.
    Your self will not satisfy you for long.
And it’s trouble ahead if you think life’s all fun and games.
    There’s suffering to be met, and you’re going to meet it.

26 “There’s trouble ahead when you live only for the approval of others, saying what flatters them, doing what indulges them. Popularity contests are not truth contests—look how many scoundrel preachers were approved by your ancestors! Your task is to be true, not popular.

27-30 “To you who are ready for the truth, I say this: Love your enemies. Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst. When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer for that person. If someone slaps you in the face, stand there and take it. If someone grabs your shirt, giftwrap your best coat and make a present of it. If someone takes unfair advantage of you, use the occasion to practice the servant life. No more tit-for-tat stuff. Live generously.

31-34 “Here is a simple rule of thumb for behavior: Ask yourself what you want people to do for you; then grab the initiative and do it for them! If you only love the lovable, do you expect a pat on the back? Run-of-the-mill sinners do that. If you only help those who help you, do you expect a medal? Garden-variety sinners do that. If you only give for what you hope to get out of it, do you think that’s charity? The stingiest of pawnbrokers does that.

35-36 “I tell you, love your enemies. Help and give without expecting a return. You’ll never—I promise—regret it. Live out this God-created identity the way our Father lives toward us, generously and graciously, even when we’re at our worst. Our Father is kind; you be kind.

37-38 “Don’t pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults—unless, of course, you want the same treatment. Don’t condemn those who are down; that hardness can boomerang. Be easy on people; you’ll find life a lot easier. Give away your life; you’ll find life given back, but not merely given back—given back with bonus and blessing. Giving, not getting, is the way. Generosity begets generosity.”

39-40 He quoted a proverb: “‘Can a blind man guide a blind man?’ Wouldn’t they both end up in the ditch? An apprentice doesn’t lecture the master. The point is to be careful who you follow as your teacher.

41-42 “It’s easy to see a smudge on your neighbor’s face and be oblivious to the ugly sneer on your own. Do you have the nerve to say, ‘Let me wash your face for you,’ when your own face is distorted by contempt? It’s this I-know-better-than-you mentality again, playing a holier-than-thou part instead of just living your own part. Wipe that ugly sneer off your own face and you might be fit to offer a washcloth to your neighbor.

On Being Cheerful

"The best way to cheer yourself up is to try to cheer somebody else up." (Mark Twain)

"Good News for Bad Times"

Junior Hill was the guest preacher this morning with an old-time traditional sermon of three points out of Psalm 37:1-4 he titled "Good News for Bad Times" and are instructions for living the Christian life: 

1. Refrain from Fretting: Fretting and worry corrupts your spirit making life miserable for yourself and all around you. Our spirit is contagious to saints and confusing to sinners (non-believers). 
2. Rely on His Provision: He supplies what we need, sustains what we already have, and satisfies what we don't have.
3. Rejoice in His Fellowship: "If you ever get your desire before your delight, then there won't be any delight in your desire." Delight in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart! 

1 Do not be agitated by evildoers;
do not envy those who do wrong.
2 For they wither quickly like grass
and wilt like tender green plants.

3 Trust in the Lord and do what is good;
dwell in the land and live securely.
4 Take delight in the Lord,
and He will give you your heart’s desires.

Psalm 37:1-4, HCSB

Thy Will Be Done

Last Monday I mentioned last Sunday's sermon installment on The Lord's Prayer about Matthew 6:10

Thy Kingdom Come, Thy Will Be Done

Monday I wrote more about His Kingdom and then today it registered that last night's post was influenced by the "Thy Will Be Done" portion of the prayer. The God's Will portion of that sermon listed these descriptions:

1. It is for all people everywhere
2. It is to be obeyed (or done by us)
3. When we do it, it is His Kingdom in action
4. It is to be done constantly, consistently, pursued as if all depends on it
5. Done cheerfully. If we do not willingly do His Will, His Kingdom and thus His Will will not come. 

So me "doing God's will" is not as much about "a call" as I used to think but more about obedience, following Jesus, being Christ-like.

Then in Sunday school today I was reminded that throughout the Bible God/Jesus tells me how to behave, relate to others, live my life wherever I am and whatever I'm doing. I need to be doing God's will (obey Him) in the particular life I live today in Nashville, Tennessee and then when I move to Costa Rica I am to continue to do God's will (obey Him), though related to different people, different culture, and different activities. I see new and exciting possibilities for an incarnational ministry in Cost Rica as I had in The Gambia, while continuing my love of nature and conservation education as part of His Will. Neighbors, friends and acquaintances will know I am a Christian by my love while becoming part of some local Christian fellowship will help me follow Christ and hopefully I will eventually contribute to their relationship to God as I found with Glory Baptist in The Gambia. The unknown there is an exciting part of the spiritual adventure and again where I trust God to lead the way and provide those providential encounters He always has in my life. Wow! I can hardly wait to get there and see what He has waiting for me! 

Weak and Wise

The devotionals I've read for the last two nights bring up an interesting contrast that appears to be a contradiction, yet in such confusion God seems to work and that is what I'm expecting from Him right now. Thursday night the Scripture verse was 2 Corinthians 12:9, HCSB,

But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Therefore, I will most gladly boast all the more about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may reside in me.

This is a promise I have claimed many times in my weaknesses and sometimes foolishness. It means I trust Him more than myself and in so doing things tend to go much better! In other words, I seek his will and try to follow it. Then the next night I get this verse, Ephesians 5:17, HCSB, 

 So don’t be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.

Wow! They do go together, even though some translations talk about wisdom in the second passage and that is not how I feel when I feel weak. Telling me to understand what the Lord's will is seems lacking when that is what I want, but not always sure what His will is. So I just trust Him and wait to see what happens as I try to be like Jesus in all my relationships and praise God in nature and adventure. As Henry David Thoreau said, "My profession is to always find God in nature." And that will be one of my purposes in Costa Rica!

Even though I continue to make lists and try to plan out all the details for the move to Costa Rica, as I did with the pros and cons of the decision, I still feel weak at times and pray that I am doing His will and he will renew my desire to serve him in a new land with new people. opportunities and challenges. And that is what I'm expecting as I let Him turn my weakness to wisdom, because I depend on Him more than all my planning and preparation. Wow! It's about to happen! I'm excited and enthusiasm is from God! 

With Ray Waddle Today & Glimmers of Hope Yesterday

Ray Waddle, freelance writer and former Religion Writer for The Tennessean newspaper has always been a favorite short article writer. That is probably because he seems to think like me a lot!  :-)  He spoke at a senior adult luncheon at First Baptist today and kind of rambled, mostly about his new book, Undistorted God, from Abingdon Press. I bought one and had him autograph it and look forward to reading it. Not tonight though. It is time for The Roosevelts by Ken Burns!



Yesterday the Sunday school class discussion kind of confirmed my belief that we need to depend on God and trust Him to provide for us in every situation which is what I'm doing on this overseas move thing. Then in worship Pastor Frank continued his series on the Lord's Prayer,

Your kingdom come.Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Matthew 6:10 HCSB  -  Which again confirmed my strong feelings that "His Kingdom" is really in us or happening by us as we are incarnate with Jesus acting through us in our daily lives. It is to me more about how we live our lives following Jesus than some future earthly kingdom or heaven. And this is what I want to happen with my life in a new country, regardless of which fellowship of believers I find to relate to. "God help me to be your kingdom that your will may be done in me on earth.  Amen"

Where Am I Spiritually?

Sometimes I don't know. Going to church now-a-days I often feel like a third thumb, not really a part of things beyond being a greeter and usher which younger people are generally not interested in. This empty-nest mid-life church crises for older people is very well described in this online Christianity Today article:

http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2014/september/midlife-church-crisis.html?utm_source=ctweekly-html&utm_medium=Newsletter&utm_term=12017377&utm_content=299016903&utm_campaign=2013

All of the above makes me so much more open to a totally new spiritual adventure if I move to Costa Rica. Who knows what kind of church or fellowship or channels of service? And my love of nature and how it puts me right beside God in so many ways was partially spoken to by my favorite newspaper religion writer, Ray Waddle, in today's Tennessean:


Earth saves room for human delights

For The Tennessean

Last week in Montana, my wife and friends and I encountered three grizzly bears walking across our narrow trail, hardly 40 feet away. My group was naturally thrilled. I naturally worried: We could be killed. It was a mother grizz and two cubs. The scene would turn bad if mama bear felt threatened.

Human domination of nature suddenly meant nothing. We were at the bear’s mercy. But she had other things on her mind — raising a family, getting home. We weren’t worth a second thought. She disappeared with her cubs into the brush without a trace, ignoring our cameras and good intentions.

Immersion in a mountainous wilderness (in this case, Glacier National Park) reveals the silent prehistoric earth as it was before human commentary, sacred texts or gasoline. Out there, it’s hard to see how we fit in, except as disrupters.

Scripture says we were made to rule over Earth’s creatures. So we assume we came along early enough to name everything and organize the place, and it’s been our plantation ever since.

Yet science (for the moment) says the Earth is 4.5 billion years old, and homo sapiens are maybe 200,000 years old, and we got civilized (started writing) about 5,000 years ago. Which means we arrived late to the banquet. How did God get along without us for 4 billion years? Did God put us on the map only recently because there’s no way we could inhabit the planet for billions of years without destroying it? That’s my guess.

The secret complaint against evolutionary science, I suspect, is not the science but the insult to human ego that a Creator could manage for so long without our companionship. Seen from geologic time, God’s intentions are a bottomless enigma. Yet a miracle abides: our capacity for the poetry of belief, words knitted together against time and chaos in order to bring us closer to the divine spirit. This gift is laid at our doorstep every morning in the golden sunrise.

On this trip I read poet William Stafford, whose verse suggests nature is always watching and waiting, ready to reveal its mind, its balanced economy, its implacable will, its majestic creatures. “The slow current of the life below tugs at me all day,” he once wrote. “When I dream at night, they save a place for me.”

Fierce and patient Earth saves room for human delights — a Tennessee stream, a Kansas plain, a Connecticut autumn, a Montana bear and her cubs, watched from a safe distance.

Columnist Ray Waddle is a former Tennessean religion editor and author of a new book, “ Undistorted God” (Abingdon Press). Reach him at ray@raywaddle.com.

We Need to Find God

I just posted the following quote on my website after finding it in Nature Photographer magazine! Though the moon photo is mine.

We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature - trees, flowers, grass- grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence... We need silence to be able to touch souls.

Mother Teresa

His Spirit Site

I just posted a new paragraph on the introduction page of the His Spirit section of my website and since I haven't mentioned it here in a while, I thought it is time to share the link (highlighted above) and say that this is where more historical and biographical testimonies, stories, etc. are recorded for posterity I hope!  :-)

I'm still working on it (and the whole site), especially the Gambia missionary section where there is so much more to share. So check it out occasionally! I love the creative experience of maintaining a site and writing these blogs, four of them right now! See links to the other three at right under "My Pages." 

A Grand Exit or Powerful New Start?

Our guest preacher was Bill Owens, father of Brandon Owens, our young adult minister. The text was 2 Kings 2:1-12, Elijah going to heaven in the fiery chariot and Elisha starting over without his mentor, tearing his old clothes off, taking on Elijah's robe and a double portion of his spirit to a new beginning.

Dr. Owen tried to apply it to our church putting off old ways and taking on new ministries in a new and different neighborhood. Change is always a risk, but God has given us His Spirit to move forward. A strong message I hope our people understood as I did.

But of course I was also thinking about my possible exit and daring move forward which is another risk-filled change, but like the church and Elisha I risk staying in my mundane rut without change. My change will also mean giving up most of my "things" (like Elisha ripping his robes off) and moving forward with God's Spirit. Well, I'm neither Elisha or a church that is moving into a new ministry nor an Elijah carting off to heaven in a chariot, but I am going to keep God central in this decision and do believe God will surprise me, whatever the decision! But I think I am ready for a change! (Or wanting it!)

Is God Laughing at Me?

Yesterday I wrote in my Costa Rica Decision Blog about a quote I liked from one of the many books I'm reading on the country: "If you want to hear God laugh, tell Him your plans."  said Iyanla Vanzant. The expat, Bob Normand, who quoted that had seen most of his plans fail or turn out differently than he planned. That is certainly possible for me too, though I am doing more research than that guy did before actually moving.

I'm doing my "due diligence" (as another expat proclaims) or serious research on Costa Rica as a retirement place before the August 23 trip to be truly prepared for making a decision sometime after the trip. I believe this is the wise way to go about it, even if a crazy idea! Then the above quote sort of slaps me in the face and I wonder, "What am I doing? Is God already laughing at my plans?" Well, first, I have no definite plans yet. Though I'm sure He is at least smiling, and also believe He loves to see me enthusiastic about anything whether it works out or not. I think that was the case when I worked so hard and enthusiastically to get First Baptist involved in ongoing volunteer mission work in The Gambia and the church just didn't respond. I moved on with life and got over the disappointment.

As written in both blogs, I've already asked God for His direction in this path (Prov. 3:5-6). And I consider "His will" most important for me and my life, though it's not exactly like considering that call to missions in The Gambia. As a follower of Christ I try to "acknowledge him in all my ways," which really does not change if I live somewhere else. In essence I can be in "God's will" anywhere I live and in anything I choose to do with my life. I live by faith here in Tennessee and would if  in Costa Rica.

This decision is about how I spend the last chapter of my life. It could end up being something I haven't even imagined yet. Where I'm seeing adventure, God may be seeing ministry. Where I see myself photographing the beautiful tropics and its wildlife, God may be seeing me as a special helper in a little church or some other ministry I don't know about yet. God loves to surprise! (See Ephesians 3:20-21, The Message)

So, I'm admitting that God may not give me clear directions to "Go to Costa Rica" or "Stay in Tennessee." I think I'm going to have to make this decision day by day while living in "His Spirit" as this blog proclaims. That reminds me of Jesus' words in Matthew 6:34,

So don’t be anxious about tomorrow. God will take care of your tomorrow too. Live one day at a time.

Is seeking adventure (a big part of my Costa Rica thing) selfish and foolish? I don't think so, but I'm also not sure. No decision until after the trip and even then it will still be a day by day following of Jesus. Your prayers for me are appreciated! 

Learning from a Prophet

I just perused my notes from last Sunday's sermon title "A Lesson from Someone Else's Mistakes" based on 1 Kings 20:1-43. Here are the three points I wrote down to remember:
1. God knows our problems
2. Be careful what you boast of (don't count your chickens before they hatch)
3. God's in control of both your hills and your valleys
4. Success or failure are not indications of right or wrong
5. God brings glory to Himself, not me or us
6. God's in charge
7. There is always a consequence to disobedience; the more you disobey the worse things get

This was NOT Pastor Frank's outline, but seven things I wrote down for my own life and especially as I am now considering a really big decision to move to Costa Rica. It has been tempting to boast about the advantages of living there even before I go in the "Live In Costa Rica Tour," and certainly before I have received peace that this is what God wants me to do. Pray that I find God's will and not make a mistake. I'm regularly discussing it in my Costa Rica Decision Process Blog.  "God, help me to learn from Ahab's mistakes!"

Joe Dies

For some reason I posted this first on my Retirement Adventures Blog with a poem titled Remembering Joe I wrote for his widow, Nancy. Hope you read it. 

Tough Conversations About Death

Tonight I sat in the hospital watching my friend Joe, barely alive, on oxygen, a frail, thinning body just laying there. At the same time I talked with his wife Nancy, grieving, hurting, and wanting to talk about all the decisions that must be made,  - just tomorrow! The hospital is giving her one more day to find a nursing home or other palliative care place to move him or does she dare try to take him home with home care nurses? What appear to be broken promises of what care can be provided and dealing with family members that won't be here to take care of the details but of course with opinions. It is hard work! Glad I had the easier job of being a listening friend. That's one thing friends can do. That is one way to show HIS SPIRIT. And of course I will pray for her! God help Nancy!

Called to Be Uncool

I just read this editorial "Called to be Uncool" in the June issue of Christianity Today paper edition and loved it! How like my image of a Christian (A follower of Christ) it is to follow the Biblical non-conformists like Jesus, Paul, John the Baptist, Ezekiel, Elijah, Hosea and more. And that means not always bending over backwards to appease the behavior religious friends think I should have. I have an obligation to be honest and Biblical in my words and behavior without being unkind or ugly to those I disagree with.

My Prayer
God, help me to be like you and not the crowd that sometimes surrounds me or even the persons I admire. And help me to accept the shame that may come with it as did your prophets recorded in Scripture. May other see only Jesus in me.

This Is the Way; Walk In It.

The Vacation Bible School theme for next year was announced with the memory verse and although the HCSB will be used and almost the same, I decided I like the NIV a little better and may be using it as a personal motto for awhile as I go through a potentially life-changing decision to move to Costa Rica or not: 

Isaiah 30:21

New International Version (NIV)

Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.”

I wrote it down at the end of this year's VBS but didn't look at it until just now, the afternoon after a worship service at First Baptist Nashville that also spoke to me about my decision-making process. Pastor Frank looked at how God cared for Elijah in his depression in I Kings 19:1-10. God told him to rest and eat and He would lead Elijah in what to do next. That is what I am trying to do with an idea that will seem crazy or impractical to some, but is following my heart. So,

God, I'm resting and eating and waiting for some indication about what you want me to do with such a life-altering decision. So tell me God if "This is the way; walk in it." 

Follow my decision-making process on another blog Costa Rica Decision Process 

Now the surprise for me in worship this morning was the congregational singing of a hymn I had never heard before (Thanks to Mark Edwards!) titled "Sometimes A Light Surprises" by William Cowper in the 1700's and it too spoke to me in my new time of big decision-making. The lyrics: 

Sometimes a light surprises, The Christian while he sings 

It is the Lord who rises, with healing in His wings

When comforts are declining, He grants the soul again

A season of clear shining, to cheer is after rain

In holy contemplation, we sweetly then pursue

The theme of God’s salvation, and find it ever new

Set free from present sorrow, we cheerfully can say

Let the unknown tomorrow, Bring with it what it may

Tomorrow can bring us nothing, But He will bear us through

Who gives the lilies clothing, Will clothe His people too

Beneath the spreading heavens, No creature but is fed

And He who feeds the ravens, Will give His children bread

Though vine nor fig-tree neither,

Their wonted fruit should bear

Though all the fields should wither,

Nor flocks or herds be there

Yet God the same abiding, His praise shall tune my voice

For while in Him confiding, I cannot but rejoice!

For while in Him confiding, I cannot but rejoice!

Read more at http://www.songlyrics.com/caedmon-s-call/sometimes-a-light-surprises-lyrics/#kWZO0XkztRrpxjSQ.99

VBS Was Great!

We had a terrific group of 3rd Graders last week and I enjoyed working with them very much!

Vacation Bible School Preparation

Our Third Grade Department teachers met last night for the second time and I'm taking on the arrival and departing activities, letting the women do the teaching this year. I have mixed feelings about the themes LifeWay comes up with each year and do again this year. It is "Agency D3" or a detective/spy theme which they have adapted pretty well to detective work of proving who Jesus is. (See video at the above link.) I'll report during or after our First Baptist Nashville week, June 9-13, with my opinion of how it goes. As always, it will be fun to work with third graders.

Two Recent Views of Heaven

Yesterday I saw the movie Heaven is for Real even though I had earlier said I would not see it because I don't believe people with near-death experiences actually see Heaven. But because of the Christianity Today review and another more in depth discussion for subscribers of the online magazine, I began to realize that anyone's "experience" with God (even visions) is worth listening to and helps me better understand both God and people. Who am I to judge? See a quote from the article in my comment to this post.

This movie is very well done and enjoyable to watch with lots of truths shared, but mostly a movie about love and relationships which after all is mostly what God is about. Since I have not read the book, I cannot compare the two, but it is supposedly based on a true story about 4 year old Colton who nearly dies and tells about heaven afterwards. Not good theology, but an enjoyable movie to watch with some fresh takes on Heaven, even though I still doubt that it actually happened as presented.


It is not exactly a contrast to the Broadway Play The Great Divorce I saw a couple of weeks ago, but it is certainly a different view of Heaven! I liked them both, but having already read the book The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis, I still see it as more like my vision of Heaven than little Colton's. But they are both worthy of seeing and discussing from two totally different perspectives.

Either way, I still look forward to being there!

Living Healthy Like Daniel

Pastor Frank started a 3-sermon series on living healthy today with a message about Daniel whom The Daniel Plan is named after. I completed that study in March and it is a great way to focus on a healthy lifestyle. I lost 15 pounds, eating better and I'm more active with daily exercise routines. New classes are starting next Sunday.

You can see the video of the sermon online at http://firstbaptistnashville.org/media/streaming-services-and-events and while there check out our wonderful Easter Service with the best music of just about any church anywhere!

But mostly I'm glad this is "The Year of Health" at our church and believe that we as followers of Christ should be leading the way on healthy living in the most unhealthy and obese country in the world. Healthy living is definitely one of my focuses this year!

Noah

This new epic movie about Noah and the flood is great in my opinion! Yes, it is not the typical Bible movie and that makes it an even more powerful witness to God. It is true to the Bible. He just fills in between the lines in ways that are not traditional and that makes it a fresh story. And no, the stone angels don't bother me. What makes us think all angels have to wear white and have cute little wings? It is probably the most realistic presentation of the story of Noah's Ark ever made, especially the Ark itself and how the people of the world behaved at that time. I do recommend seeing it!

Son of God

Well, forgot to post anything about the latest movie about Jesus which I saw earlier this week. I like any telling of the story of Jesus and that is what Son of God is, though not necessarily the best. It was a good movie but not a great movie. The simpler Jesus Film is as good or better and I've shown in on a bed sheet hanging from a tree in West Africa. And you can watch it online at Jesus Film Media in most languages.

But Son of God is worth seeing and targeted more to Americans.

The Great Divorce

Today I saw the superbly done stage drama of C.S. Lewis' little book The Great Divorce by the Fellowship for the Performing Arts in New York.  I first read this book while living in The Gambia after purchasing it and other Lewis books on a trip to London. It gave me the first image of Heaven that I could relate to and possibly the best image of Hell I had ever read. It is a creative or arty interpretation of Heaven and Hell with a tinge of purgatory which I was taught not to believe in - but it all makes since in this story! The traveling troupe was only here in Nashville for two days and three performances. Glad they came and glad I went with my friends the Hunters and her father Robert.

Simple & Honest!

I love it when I come across a powerful "one-liner" in the Bible, something that seems to summarize life or how I'm thinking about it at the time. This morning's reading had one of those in Zechariah 8:17 or the clincher statement concluding the 14-17 paragraph:

" . . . Keep your lives simple and honest.” Decree of God.

Grace - The Story of My Life

Titus 3:7
The Message (MSG)
3-8 It wasn’t so long ago that we ourselves were stupid and stubborn, dupes of sin, ordered every which way by our glands, going around with a chip on our shoulder, hated and hating back. But when God, our kind and loving Savior God, stepped in, he saved us from all that. It was all his doing; we had nothing to do with it. He gave us a good bath, and we came out of it new people, washed inside and out by the Holy Spirit. Our Savior Jesus poured out new life so generously. God’s gift has restored our relationship with him and given us back our lives. And there’s more life to come—an eternity of life! You can count on this.

Wow! No other translation says it quite like that! Yet it is what God's grace is. I'm working on the Volume 3 of my Scrapbook Biography and thinking of titling it "Grace" or something about grace. Volume 1, the first thirty years was really about growing up with exciting adventures, learning, becoming a self-centered young adult, loosing a lot of my innocence and naivete. Volume 2 tells the story of both grand adventures and failures in marriage and child-rearing, surviving it all through God's grace, though wounded and hurting in my second thirty years. Volume 3 is the happiest of the three stories as I find great joy and fulfillment in retirement, another example of God's grace, undeserved happiness that I credit to His Spirit! The story of my life.

This was one of the focus verses of today's sermon on grace by Frank Lewis. 

Some things only come through God's Spirit

“This is God’s Message to Zerubbabel: ‘You can’t force these things. They only come about through my Spirit,’ says God-of-the-Angel-Armies.

Zechariah 4:6 THE MESSAGE

I’m sticking around to see what God will do.

Micah 7:7

The Message (MSG)

7 But me, I’m not giving up.
    I’m sticking around to see what God will do.
I’m waiting for God to make things right.
    I’m counting on God to listen to me.

Every person I meet has to do with God.

I just started reading Zephaniah in my morning reads through THE MESSAGE translation by Eugene Peterson and as in most of his book introductions, he has a powerful message or book summary. Read this exert from his brilliant introduction to Zephaniah that I know I need to be reminded of daily: 

 Because the root of the solid spiritual life is embedded in a relationship between people and God, it is easy to develop the misunderstanding that my spiritual life is something personal between God and me – a private thing to be nurtured by prayers and singing, spiritual readings that comfort and inspire, and worship with like-minded friends. If we think this way for very long, we will assume that the way we treat people we don’t like or who don’t like us has nothing to do with God.

That’s when the prophets step in and interrupt us, insisting, “Everything you do or think or feel has to do with God. Every person you meet has to do with God.” We live in a vast world of interconnectedness, and the consequences have consequences, either in things or in people – and all the consequences come together in God. The biblical phrase for the coming together of the consequences is Judgment Day.

We can’t be reminded too often or too forcefully of this reckoning. Zephaniah’s voice in the choir of prophets sustains the intensity, the urgency.

After loving God, Jesus says the most important thing we do is love people. God help me to see you in everyone I meet today, even people who are not kind to me or whom I don't like.

What is God looking for in us?

Again the Scripture translation in The Message struck me with its clarity in an old familiar verse, Micah 6:8

But he’s already made it plain how to live, what to do,    what God is looking for in men and women. It’s quite simple: Do what is fair and just to your neighbor,  be compassionate and loyal in your love, And don’t take yourself too seriously —   take God seriously.

The Joy of Missing Out

I loved the article in today's Tennessean by Andy Bailey titled "It's time to discover the Joy of Missing Out"
he calls JOMO as opposed to FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) which people who live on their smart phones and other devices seem to have. I refused to be tethered to my cell phone or even this computer and prefer to live the life God gave me in relationship to real people each day in a way that Jesus called being salt or light (today's sermon).

In addition I started leading a fun new 6-week study/process during Sunday school this morning called The
Daniel Plan that will help our little group of 8 to have healthier lifestyles with Faith, Food, Fitness, Focus and Friends. Wow! Life is fun! Life is Good.

Are Lofty Goals a Thing of the Past?

A short essay to fulfill the assignment for our Writer's Guild meeting today: 

In 1985 half of Americans made New Year’s Resolutions, while for this year less than one-third made resolutions. And based on past research, only 8% of those will keep the resolution by year’s end. By far the majority of both broken and kept resolutions have to do with health, such as eating, drinking, smoking, weight-loss and exercise.

Those who “tell the world” their resolution on Facebook or Google+ or other channel are less likely to keep it than those who privately work resolutely or better yet become part of an accountability group like Weight Watchers. Also very specific and simple resolutions are more likely to be kept than general ones, such as “limit myself to two desserts a week and walk two miles a day” versus “eat better and exercise more.”

Those who failed to keep their resolutions all have perfectly logical reasons of course! 77% say it was a lack of personal control, 68% excessive stress, 67% negative emotions, 56% social pressure, 51% interpersonal conflict, and 47% a lack of positive emotion. But psychologists say the biggest reason is ambition or setting too difficult a goal that sets one up for failure. And the other is fear, a fear of failure, success or just change – fear of stepping outside the comfort zone.

And so how do we succeed? All the psychiatrists say about the same. Shoot for extremely small and very specific changes, such as cutting back to 1 Coke a day and walk a mile three days a week or lose 1 pound a month by year’s end. Such achievable goals lead to bigger and better improvements in the future.

And if you make your resolution to God, heed these words from the Bible:

“When you tell God you’ll do something, do it—now. God takes no pleasure in foolish gabble. Vow it, then do it. Far better not to vow in the first place than to vow and not pay up.”  Ecclesiastes 5:4-5 THE MESSAGE

So here's to taking some small steps this year! Happy New Year! 

Embera Indian in Canoe, Chagres River, Panama

A fun way to get some exercise?