Charisa Stories

Category: Monday Musings

Monday Musings: Thanksgiving Thoughts

I love watching the giant balloons of the Macy’s Thanksgiving parade floating through New York as wide-eyed children watch. I love the traditional football games. The official start of the Christmas season. The post feast nap. I love Thanksgiving Day.

Thanksgiving Song by Mary Chapin Carpenter captures the intimacy of this wonderful holiday.

Grateful for each hand we hold
Gathered round this table.
From far and near we travel home,
Blessed that we are able.

I have so much to be grateful for this Thanksgiving. I am grateful for another year with my best friend and bride Joni. I am grateful for three wonderful sons, two amazing daughter-in-laws, and three heart stealing grandchildren. I am blessed that our family will be able to be together this Thanksgiving. I am grateful for good friends. I am grateful for the abundant blessings of this country.

Grateful for this sheltered place
With light in every window,
Saying “welcome, welcome, share this feast
Come in away from sorrow.”

Every year brings sorrow. Friends and family have suffered illness this year. Some have gone through deep trials. Some have passed away. Sorrow is a part of this journey. But there is something healing about counting blessings and feeling gratitude. Taking that time provides a sheltered place from sorrow. For me the light in the window of my soul is my trust in a God that is faithful, loving and good in blessings and in sorrow.

Grateful for what’s understood,
And all that is forgiven;

Jesus is the light that said welcome when I felt anything but welcome. He invited me to the feast that I did not deserve to attend because of His grace. Jesus said I was forgiven. How can I be anything but grateful if I understand the magnitude of that undeserved love?

We try so hard to be good,
To lead a life worth living.

I might add a little personal clarification to Carpenter’s lyric. I understand the desire to live a life of significance. I get trying to be good. I believe we have a reason for being here. But my experience with the grace of the Lord Jesus has taught me that it is not trying so hard to lead a life worth living that brings peace and joy. It is following Jesus each day. It is allowing God to love me and asking Him to help me give away that love to others. It is trusting God to provide opportunities to serve. It is believing that God is faithful even through sorrow. It is trusting that what God says about me is true. That I have been changed and I have a new identity in Christ. I am deeply loved and cherished by God. I am declared righteous because of Jesus and that righteousness has nothing to do with how hard I work to be “good”. It is because of Christ. I am so grateful for grace. So very grateful.

Paul’s words to the Colossian Church make a fitting devotional thought for this holiday.

Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.

Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father. (Colossians 3:12-17, NLT)

I hope you have a blessed Thanksgiving.

November 24, 2014
Monday Musing – Live Like You Are Loved

Regular readers of the humble ramblings (you both know who you are) know that I often confess how my brain was not wired to factory specs. There is no other explanation for the dizzying turns my mind makes. For example, this weekend I heard a song from my ’70’s disc jockey days. The song was Tin Man from America and the normal brain would have heard the song, registered a like it or don’t like it vote and moved on. Not my brain. I fixated on a piece of the lyric and spent time linking it to a spiritual epiphany in my life.

You may recognize the lyric that started this Monday Musing.

But Oz never did give nothing to the Tin Man
That he didn’t, didn’t already have

The lyricist double negatived his way to an important truth. The Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz went on a long journey to try and find a real heart. But all the Wizard did was affirm what he already possessed. Sadly that confused search is what so many of us imitate as followers of Jesus. We go on a journey thinking if we can only find the right training or Bible study or church or friends or pastor that we will become more righteous and effective for God.

But if we could have followed the yellow stone road to meet Paul he would have told us we were wasting our time trying to find the perfect things to change our walk with Jesus. Paul would have (and did) simply affirm who we already are.

This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! (2^nd Corinthians, 5:17, NLT)

Because of Christ you have a new identity. You are righteous because of Him and not because of trying to do more right “stuff”. You are a saint and there is no condemnation in Christ Jesus. It is a liberating and joyous message. But there is a problem. Satan hates that message of hope and change. And so he goes about trying to “steal’ our identity in Christ. I am afraid we make it all too easy because we find it difficult to really trust that we are changed.

You are righteous because of Christ. Period. When you trust that and believe that all of the guilt and shame and sin that used to define you is no longer true. That old life is gone. New life has begun. All of those accusations that Satan (and others who are quite happy to help) hurl your way are no longer true about you.

My life was changed forty-five years ago (ouch) when I decided to trust Jesus as my Lord and Savior. It has just been in the past few years that I have begun to fully understand who I am in Christ and that I live my life daily desperately dependent on grace. I have often quoted from my friends at Truefaced. This statement rocked my world.

If you are a Christian God is not interested in changing you. That has already happened. You were changed when you trusted Christ. You were imputed with His righteousness. Your very spiritual DNA was rewritten and you became a new person. So the change happened right away. God is now interested in maturing you into what is already true about you.

We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are. For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God freely and graciously declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. (Romans 3:22-23, NLT)

Remind yourself daily who you are. That you are a new person. Righteous because of Christ. A new life has begun. Live it joyfully and without condemnation. I am deeply loved by God today. I pray I will live like it.

November 17, 2014
Monday Musings : Reminder. It is just a game. It is just a game.

I have been known to be a bad sports fan in addition to being a bad Christian. I suspect those confessions could be related. I grew up a rabid Cleveland Brown’s fan and that is, unfortunately, a lifetime condition. You try and manage your Brown’s addiction while hoping to lead a somewhat productive life. I completely related to a story about a Brown’s fan who passed away last year. Scott Entsminger placed this request in the Columbus Dispatch obituary.

He respectfully requests six Cleveland Browns pall bearers so the Browns can let him down one last time.

I became a Baylor Bears fan (thanks to my boys) much later in life. Incredibly, the Brazos Baptists have become a national football power. So I geared up for a big game last Saturday against forever power Oklahoma. During the game I agonized over missed opportunities. Fumed over momentum changing penalties. Expressed frustration when a defender missed a tackle. Baylor overcame a tough first quarter and played well to gain a big win.

But a fourth quarter incident reminded both my bad sports fan and bad Christian sides that this is just a game played by non-professional young men. Outstanding Oklahoma quarterback Trevor Knight was sacked and hit hard. He did not get up. Concerned medical personal gathered around as a medical cart pulled up. And then the TV cameras caught a scene that has stayed in my mind since Saturday afternoon.

Knight’s twin brother and fellow Sooner player Connor Knight watched his brother with obvious concern. Baylor star QB Bryce Petty and linemen Spencer Drango and Tyler Edwards approached Connor Knight. A few words were exchanged and then the Baylor players and their Oklahoma foe knelt together to pray for Trevor Knight. Moments earlier the two teams had competed ferociously. In a moment of crisis they put that aside to join in prayer for an injured brother.

It was a sobering reminder that sports is a good thing but far from an ultimate thing. Four young men forgot that they were competitors and remembered they were first and foremost followers of Christ.

Thankfully, Trevor Knight gave a thumbs up and pointed heavenward as he was carted off the field. After the game he was walking around and Sunday received a favorable MRI result. Knight posted this on Twitter.

“Thank you from the bottom of my heart to everyone who prayed for me! Thankful for good results and a God who is completely in control!,” Knight posted.

A couple of thoughts from Paul’s letter to the Ephesian church fit in here.

Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace. For there is one body and one Spirit, just as you have been called to one glorious hope for the future. (Ephesians 4:2-4, NLT)

And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you. (Ephesians 4:30-32, NLT)

This morning I am humbled by twenty-something (or younger) athletes that put aside differences to pray together. And I am challenged by an athlete who believes his God is in control even during a trial. Good reminders for those of us who may be more experienced in our faith but perhaps not always as mature.

November 10, 2014
Monday Musings – Looks Can Be Deceiving

We had the privilege of hosting our dear friend Deb Johnson this weekend. Since she and hubby Brad moved to Nebraska those opportunities are too few. She told us that they dodged disaster when a massive tree limb crashed into their back yard and somehow managed to miss everything. Thankfully no one or no thing was damaged. Pictures showed the enormity of the fallen limb.

An arborist estimated this magnificent Oak was a century old. Deb told us his observation about that towering tree. “No one could have known this tree was sick or weakened just by looking at it”. The arborist pointed out evidence of diseased wood on the fallen branch. Even though the tree itself still looked healthy and vibrant it was dying from the inside out. The bark and leaves looked fine but the core was dying. Soon another great branch would be weakened enough to crash down.

Deb told me how that tree seemed to parallel our spiritual lives. “We can look great on the outside and be dying inside,” she noted. “Do you think that is a good spiritual analogy?”

No Deb, I don’t. I think that is a great spiritual analogy! That is exactly what Jesus was talking about when He excoriated the Pharisees. They looked fantastic. They dressed in beautiful garments. They had the best education and they could articulate the Scriptures. They could embarrass the average person with their extraordinary knowledge about details of the law and what it took to be holy. They were the cultural creme de la creme when it came to righteousness.

That is until Jesus came along. Can you imagine the looks on their smug faces when Jesus looked deep into their hearts and saw the disease of sin growing under the prayer boxes and tassled robes.

“What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are filthy—full of greed and self-indulgence! You blind Pharisee! First wash the inside of the cup and the dish, and then the outside will become clean, too.

“What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs—beautiful on the outside but filled on the inside with dead people’s bones and all sorts of impurity. Outwardly you look like righteous people, but inwardly your hearts are filled with hypocrisy and lawlessness. (Matthew 23:25-28, NLT)

We are no different. We like to look good to other people. We like to act like all is well and we are doing fine. We don’t want to admit that we are failing or that we need help. But inside we are slowly dying. No one can see it but sin is rotting away our strength. How many times has a respected person crashed into significant sin as unexpectedly as that giant branch crashed into our friend’s yard. The response is usually the same. “I had no idea they could ever do that. I never saw that coming.”

That is how sin works when we try to manage it or cover it with activity and self-striving. I know me. I know that I must seek the illuminating light of the Holy Spirit to help me see the filth and greed and self-indulgence that lies within or I could fall with a sickening thud as well. There have been times when I read those verses and felt smugly superior to those uptight spiritual leaders. Forgive me for my arrogance. As I get older I have learned a sad truth. I am just like the Pharisees.

I need to lean daily on grace and my identity in Jesus. Knowing who I am in Christ gives me the freedom to look into my heart without risk of condemnation. And that identity also gives me the freedom to let trusted others know that I am not always healthy and clean and vibrant. I am often dry and wounded and filthy. I need Jesus and I need you. But I have to be honest with both Jesus and my community to stay healthy. And the crazy thing is that when I am honest with others about my desperate need for grace the power of the Gospel becomes real. It truly is Good News!

But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. (John 1:12, NLT)

I hope your week is full of blessings and grace.

November 3, 2014
Monday Musings – Forbidden Topics

Nothing like starting out the week by discussing two of the three forbidden topics: politics and Jesus. I used to be a rabid political guy. I once believed that with the right political leaders we could change the culture. I was right about the dream but wrong about the method. Getting certain political leaders in place might help with some issues that matter to me. But even if I get my “dream team” elected we will still have a problem in our culture.

Sin.

Politics and law don’t change that inconvenient truth (apologies to Al Gore) that we have an inherent human problem that I believe can only be addressed by one solution.

The Gospel.

Jesus gave us a perfect example of what it looks like to be a good citizen while recognizing what really changes the heart of man. The religious legalists (the Pharisees) were trying to trick Jesus and get Him in trouble with the Roman government. Nice try.

“Teacher,” they said, “we know how honest you are. You are impartial and don’t play favorites. You teach the way of God truthfully. Now tell us—is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not? Should we pay them, or shouldn’t we?”

Jesus saw through their hypocrisy and said, “Why are you trying to trap me? Show me a Roman coin,^[c] and I’ll tell you.” When they handed it to him, he asked, “Whose picture and title are stamped on it?”

“Caesar’s,” they replied.

“Well, then,” Jesus said, “give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.”

His reply completely amazed them.

So I am no longer rabid political guy. I am a concerned citizen who studies issues and candidates and always votes. I love this country and believe in this country but revival will not come from Washington D.C. It will come from heart changes in every nook and cranny of this land from people who understand their deep need for grace, forgiveness and redemption.

Christians should certainly understand that lawmakers can only restrain a culture at best. Only “Grace-makers” can change a culture.

Tim Keller brilliantly identifies what happens when we make politics an ultimate thing.

If you center your life and identity on a “noble cause,” you will divide the world into “good” and “bad” and demonize your opponents. Ironically, you will be controlled by your enemies. Without them, you have no purpose.

Both sides of the aisle believe they have a noble cause. And we have seen the devastation to our political system when we demonize our opponents. We must not fall into that trap as representatives of Jesus.

I will believe what Paul wrote to a church in Rome that certainly had to deal with some political issues

Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God. (Romans 13:1, NLT)

That is a hard one for believers on both sides of the aisle to stomach but I didn’t write those words in Scripture. The real power to change our broken world comes from the finished work of Jesus and the transformational power of the Gospel.

October 27, 2014
Monday Musing: Second Chances

Joni and I took a field trip this weekend with our grandson to the Gentle Zoo in Forney, Texas. It is a fun and kid friendly place where you can feed animals by hand. Our grandson’s favorite animals to feed were the goats. They were sweet and gentle as they took the food out of your hand. Not so nice was an overbearing Llama that forced his way into every feeding opportunity. We were warned that this critter would spit in your face if you made eye contact with him. That sounded too much like a couple of people I have encountered recently so we avoided him.

What caught my eye was a sign posted around the grounds.

That made the trip more special to know that many of the animals had been rescued from abusive or neglectful situations. It even allowed me to give a bit of grace to the spittin’ Llama (but I still kept a wary distance).

I related to the second paragraph. “Many of our critters have been disabled or injured prior to arriving at the Gentle Zoo. With a little love and care they can thrive despite their disabilities.”

That pretty much describes the resume I brought to Jesus when I recognized my need for something or someone bigger than myself. I was disabled by sin and injured by life. Jesus gave me not a little but a LOT of love along with a bonus helping of forgiveness and grace.

And ever so slowly I am learning to thrive in His love and acceptance. The amazing thing about God’s grace is that He is not a God of a “Second Chance”. He is a God of chance after chance after chance in this lifetime. We are never outside of God’s redeeming grace no matter how much we blow it or how often we blow it.

How is that even possible? We write off people after one or two offenses. How can God keep forgiving after dozens or hundreds of offenses? It doesn’t make sense.

That is because grace does not make sense to our system of accounting. I bring nothing but my sin to the table. Jesus brings His complete sacrifice on my behalf. I get forgiveness for doing nothing except acknowledging and believing what Christ has done.

God’s forgiveness has NOTHING to do with our good works or good intentions. Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.

So no matter what “chance” you are on God will run to meet and forgive you like the Father to the lost prodigal son when you turn back to Him. Not only are we given forgiveness. We also have value and a purpose as Paul points out as he continues in Ephesians.

“For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”

That is a pretty good thought to begin a new week.

October 20, 2014