Month: March 2011

Friday is opening day for the American League Champion Texas Rangers. It only took me twenty-nine years as television director for the Rangers to be able to type that wonderful line. Hopefully it won’t take nearly that long for the next chance to say that.

In my mind there is no more special day in sports than opening day in baseball. The smell of freshly cut emerald green grass delights the senses. The base lines are painstakingly and perfectly defined by a grounds crew that is committed to perfection on this day. Red, white, and blue bunting give the ball park a festive world series look. The players today act like little boys. This is the one day that these privileged athletes seem to forget they are millionaires and actually appear grateful that they are paid to play a kid’s game. Children skip school and parents do not care because memories are being made for both of them. The hot dogs taste like gourmet food. Tacky souvenirs are treasures to be kept. Giant foam fingers become family treasures. The atmosphere is magic. It is opening day and every team has hope. Each fan has dreams and they are hopefully, or perhaps hopelessly, optimistic. Last year’s disappointments are gone and the hope of a new season dawns for fifty thousand fans in the park and thousands more across the city. The mood is upbeat and the expectations high. This is a new day and a new season. Old mistakes are forgotten. Past errors are no longer important. Today is the annual renewal of the incredible marathon that is big league baseball. It is a clean slate. The team has a new identity.

I longed for such a defining moment in my walk with Jesus. And recently I have been understanding that God’s Word tells us that every day can be like opening day (Dave’s paraphrase). I do have a clean slate because of Christ. There is hope. Yesterday’s sins are forgotten if you have accepted the gift of Jesus on the cross. Every morning that I awake and see the magic of a new sunrise I can believe that I have been renewed and optimistically face the day. I don’t have to wait a year to have a chance for renewal. Paul writes that every day has the potential for the spiritual magic of renewal and victory in Christ.

And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice–the kind he will accept. When you think of what he has done for you, is this too much to ask? Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will know what God wants you to do, and you will know how good and pleasing and perfect his will really is.

As God’s messenger, I give each of you this warning: Be honest in your estimate of yourselves, measuring your value by how much faith God has given you. Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, 5so it is with Christ’s body. We are all parts of his one body, and each of us has different work to do. And since we are all one body in Christ, we belong to each other, and each of us needs all the others.

God has given each of us the ability to do certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out when you have faith that God is speaking through you. If your gift is that of serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, do a good job of teaching. If your gift is to encourage others, do it! If you have money, share it generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.

Don’t just pretend that you love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Stand on the side of the good. Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. Never be lazy in your work, but serve the Lord enthusiastically.

Be glad for all God is planning for you. Be patient in trouble, and always be prayerful. When God’s children are in need, be the one to help them out. And get into the habit of inviting guests home for dinner or, if they need lodging, for the night.

If people persecute you because you are a Christian, don’t curse them; pray that God will bless them. When others are happy, be happy with them. If they are sad, share their sorrow. Live in harmony with each other. Don’t try to act important, but enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don’t think you know it all!

Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. Do your part to live in peace with everyone, as much as possible. (Romans 12, NLT)

I am grateful that in my spiritual journey God that has given me a chance for “opening day” renewal every day. I have had some bad seasons during my career as a follower of Jesus. But I am learning that everyday is a gift.  That was harshly reinforced when a member of our television family, Greg Gambill, passed away this week. He was a good and talented man. He will be greatly missed.

The fragile nature of our lives makes the bigger questions so much more important even as I enjoy the hope of opening day.  I realize that every day with Jesus can be like this special day in baseball. I can be transformed and new. Past losses (sins) are redeemed and forgiven. There can be freshness in the journey and joy. I can realize that I am a child of God and I can be grateful that I call Him Father. I can believe that hope for the future is real. I can understand that I must be a better teammate to others that I encounter and not expect my team to be perfect. The magic of a fresh start happens once a year in baseball. It can happen any day and every day for a follower of Jesus.

I was in Ohio when the news broke about Ohio State Coach Jim Tressel. For a day or two the economy and world unrest took a back seat in the Buckeye state. Conversations centered on reactions to Tressel’s very late admission to having knowledge of two player’s potential rule violations. The reaction in the Buckeye state was primarily surprise. Jim Tressel is a revered figure in Ohio and not just because his teams have beaten Michigan. Buckeye Nations’s surprise seemed to be followed mainly by disappointment. Comments like these were overheard often.

“I had hoped he was different.”
“He is just like all the rest.”

Buckeye fans (and many others) want to believe that what Coach Tressel espouses is true. They want to think that their coach is really molding young men and preparing them for life. They also want to win. That is the tough line Jim Tressel walks.

I chose not to write about Jim Tressel for a few days until I had time to reflect as both a Buckeye fan and a fellow believer in Jesus Christ. I can’t win on this one. If I defend Coach Tressel I will get emails about how I am drinking the scarlet and gray Kool-Ade and compromising my beliefs. If I condemn him I will get emails about being judgmental. So I will try something weird. I will just be honest.

First of all, I thought the press conference was just short of a disaster. That should have been a time for contrition, repentance and assurances for how the situation was being handled. Instead the Ohio State position seemed to be concentrating on what a great guy Coach Tressel is. I agree that everyone should be evaluated with a full body of work and not on just one incident. But that was a conversation to have later. I also wish Coach Tressel had been a bit more forthcoming in his apologies for his bad decisions.  

The irony is that the news first broke while Tressel was autographing his new book, “Life Promises for Success: Promises from God on Achieving Your Best”. It was no surprise that the critics had a field day with that fact. Hypocrite was one of the kinder adjectives hurled at Tressel and at the leadership of Ohio State. On that charge I have great sympathy. One of my fears when my book “When Bad Christians Happen to Good People” was first published was how much I had put my life and testimony in the spotlight for others to dissect and criticize. It was a pretty regular occurrence after the book’s publication for a co-worker to give me a little dig after I said or did something that they deemed inconsistent.

“So is THAT in your book?”, they would ask. I usually responded by saying, “Yeah, it’s actually in the title.”  But my influence is small and my mistakes don’t make Sportscenter.

Here are my thoughts on Jim Tressel and any other celebrity who represents Jesus and stumbles or falls. As I learn to look more and more through the lens of grace I find that the struggles of others shines light on my own dependence on God.

1. Jim Tressel made an enormous mistake. His cover-up and lack of transparency to his bosses have damaged him and the university. I used to get really self-righteous at moments like this and proclaim that “I wouldn’t have done that”. Really? I thought back on various moral dilemmas in my life. The ones I want you to know about were the ones where I reacted with integrity and honesty. But there are sad incidents in my life where I chose hiddenness and deceit. Some came back to hurt me in relationships and reputation. Some stayed hidden and no one ever found out. At least that is how I fool myself. But I was still wounded by that hiddenness in ways that I probably haven’t fully realized. Jim Tressel made a series of bad decisions that he says started out with a desire to protect two young men. I will take him at his word on his first response. Those who know him well say that rings true to his track record. But I suspect he realized at some point that he was in a mess that would not end well. Should he have come forward right then? Of course he should have. But have you ever delayed facing a tough moral decision until you are so deep that it seems better to hope it stays hidden? I have. That does not excuse Jim Tressel. There are consequences to sin. Jim Tressel has suffered those consequences in damaged reputation, relationships and influence. Extending grace to Jim Tressel does not change the focus on how ugly sin is and how painful the harvest of those choices can be. It does change how I respond to the brother or sister who sins. Paul wrote about how we should respond when a believer sins. “Live creatively, friends. If someone falls into sin, forgivingly restore him, saving your critical comments for yourself. You might be needing forgiveness before the day’s out.” (Galatians 6:1, The Message).
   
2. There is a percentage of the population that takes great delight when a visible Christian leader stumbles. They somehow feel that the failure of a vocal believer invalidates the faith. Christianity teaches just the opposite. Paul wrote in Romans how our inability to manage sin by strict moralism demonstrates our need for a Savior and for grace. Our hope is not in a great Christian leader or prophet. Our hope is in Jesus Christ.

   For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, for he was looking ahead and including them in what he would do in this present time. God did this to demonstrate his righteousness, for he himself is fair and just, and he declares sinners to be right in his sight when they believe in Jesus. Can we boast, then, that we have done anything to be accepted by God? No, because our acquittal is not based on obeying the law. It is based on faith. So we are made right with God through faith and not by obeying the law. 

   The church has too often communicated through our moralism that righteousness is because of our self-righteous behavior. No drinking. No cursing. No gambling. And so on. But the truth is that righteousness comes because of Jesus. Believers are saints by position and not by personal merit. When we sin we are still righteous even as we may suffer the consequences of those actions. We have been “declared” right in God’s sight because of Jesus. It is that unfathomable grace that is the distinctive of Christianity. If I fail miserably today it does not change the truth of the Gospel. All of us, celebrity and not, should point to Christ and not to our own works. We fail. God does not.

3. Bill Thrall of Truefaced.com hit me with a paradigm shifter when he said this. “Most Christians don’t know that God has made us saints, who still sin, not sinners striving to become saints. This changes everything! If people knew about this treasure, churches everywhere would become safe places. Not soft places, but safe places, where we could be real, we could try out our faith, where we could fail and yet be loved.” Bill’s point is that we are all the same when God looks at us. God sees the redeeming work of Christ. We have been clothed in righteousness because of Jesus. A great example is how Paul described the church at Corinth. This was a body of believers with issues. Yet Paul addresses them as saints. “To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, saints by calling, with all who in every place call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ…”  When I view you as a sinner striving to be a saint I give myself permission to judge you and distance from you until you work out your sin issues. Grace says that I move toward you to walk with you through the trial because I may need that grace next.
4. Real growth comes through adversity. I believe Jim Tressel will grow in his faith from this difficult, self-inflicted trial. I will stand with him as I hope other believers would stand with me through struggles. I have never learned the heard lessons of dependence and surrender when times were good. Only in the storm do I learn where my trust resides.

I have friends that are close to Coach Tressel. I believe he is a genuine man who made a mistake. Pray that he will trust God for the lessons he needs to learn. As for me, I take no joy when a fellow believer stumbles. I want to use those moments as a reminder to open the doors of my heart to the cleansing light of the Spirit.

(The weekly iPod Devotional from theFish.com)

Part of the fun of writing these weekly thoughts is to try and find artists that are new to me. This was a great week of personal discovery when I downloaded a recent album from the band Red. The new CD is titled Until We Have Faces but the song that inspired today’s iPod Devotional is called “Not Alone”.

The lyric begins with a haunting psalm-like lament.

Slowly fading away
You’re lost and so afraid
Where is the hope In a world so cold?

Looking for a distant light
Someone who can save a life
Living in fear that no one will hear your cries

(Come and save me now)

Then the tone changes and the song becomes an anthem of hope. Why? Because God has promised we are not alone.

I am with you
I will carry you through it all
I won’t leave you
I will catch you

When you feel like letting go
‘Cause you’re not
You’re not alone

I have to be honest and admit I have been pretty mediocre really trusting that God would carry me through great trials. I believed it intellectually. I said the words. But I did not want to surrender control so that God could catch me, carry, and comfort me. Or I was afraid I would be judged if I confessed that I wasn’t spiritually feelin’ it when the storm hit.

I was led to believe there was something wrong with me when I was hurting. If I am struggling I must be doing something wrong spiritually. Shouldn’t God meet this need? What is wrong with me? The answer is quite possible that there is nothing wrong with me. I may simply be in a place where I must trust Him and wait. But that is NOT what I want to hear. Do nothing? Just pray and trust and have faith? I want to DO something. But God’s Word says that if I trust Him and have faith I will please Him.

And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him. (Hebrews 11:6, NLT)

I acknowledge that can be easier written than done. I can give you a promise that is a good place to start building that foundation of trust upon.

“And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28, NLT)

Not a hint of ambiguity there. Jesus does not say if you pray all the time or read the Bible every morning or go to church three times a week He will be with you. He does not say He may or may not be with you. He does not say you just might disgust Him enough that He may leave you. Jesus says “be SURE of this: I am WITH YOU”.

I believe that Jesus aches to come along side me (and you) and help us deal with the junk in our lives. His agenda is for me to stop trying to a hero going it alone and trust Him for my sin and growth. And Jesus has promised to be with me each stumbling step of the way. When a dad is teaching his toddler to walk he is patient and encouraging. When the tyke wobbles and falls a loving father doesn’t start screaming at his child.

“There you go again! You can’t walk three bleepin’ steps before you tumble over again. You are hopeless. You will never get this walking thing down. Why am I wasting my time?”

Hardly. The Dad encourages and applauds the effort. He lifts the child back up and exhorts him to try again. He is beaming with each step and not at all angry when the child falls. That is how I view Jesus with my spiritual walk when I understand His grace. He is thrilled with each spiritual step and is encouraging and lifting me up without condemnation when I stumble. How quickly we forget Paul’s words to the Church at Rome.

So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. (Romans 8, NLT)

And I will be your hope
When you feel like it’s over
And I will pick you up
When your whole world shatters
When you’re finally in my arms
Look up and see love as a face

Can we trust Jesus enough to quit scuffling in self-effort? Can we trust Him enough to finally surrender and look into His face? Can we trust Him enough to be authentic knowing that in His grace there is no condemnation? A good step toward that kind of faith is to believe and really trust that we are not alone. He promised we are not.