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This quote grabbed my attention recently.

“What a wonderful life I’ve had – I only wish I had realized it sooner.”  Collette

That is true for most of us. But for some reason we tend to dwell on the disappointments, failures and hurts instead of the blessings most of us have in abundance.

I love this passage written to the church at Colossae.

Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us. 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…   (Colossians 3,  NLT)

Ouch. And amen. Here is a very uncomfortable pop quiz based on this passage.

1. Do I live like Christ is all that matters?
2. Do I put on mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience each day?
3. Do I make allowance for other’s faults?
4. Do I forgive those who offend me?
5. Do I understand how much I have been forgiven?
6. Do I let the peace of Christ rule my heart?
7. Am I always thankful?
8. Do I let the message of Christ fill my life?
9. Do I teach and counsel His wisdom to others consistently?
10. So I sing to God with a thankful heart?
11. Is everything I do or say predicated on being a representative of the Lord Jesus.
12. Does Jesus still love me?

My answers. 1. Not always, 2. Not consistently, 3. Sometimes, 4. Usually, 5. Yes, 6. Most of the time, 7. No,
8. Not always, 9. Not consistently enough, 10. Usually, 11. Nope, 12. ABSOLUTELY!

The answer to number 12 is the mystery of grace and Christ’s work on the Cross. If God graded me on the honest answers to those questions I would be in deep trouble. What grace demonstrates to me is that God loves me and calls me His child in spite of my mediocre results to the quiz.

Life is difficult. Relationships are often hard. The Holy Spirit is prompting us to see through a new lens. It is only possible when we focus on how much we were forgiven when we were unforgivable and how we were accepted when we were unacceptable.

There is a huge risk when we allow ourselves to be vulnerable in Christ. It is especially tough when we have been once or twice burned by life or by others. But it is a risk not only worth taking but I believe necessary to grow more like Christ. There is a song from  Martina McBride that talks about the risks of life. Here is a sampling of the lyrics from Anyway…

You can spend your whole life building something from nothing
One storm can come and blow it all away
Build it anyway
You can chase a dream that seems so out of reach and you know it might not ever come your way
Dream it anyway

Chorus:
God is great, but sometimes life ain’t good
And when I pray it doesn’t always turn out like I think it should
But I do it anyway, I do it anyway

This world’s gone crazy and it’s hard to believe that tomorrow will be better than today
Believe it anyway
You can love someone with all your heart, for all the right reasons, and in a moment they can choose to walk away
Love’em anyway

And that is my desire as I follow Jesus. Sometimes life ain’t so good. I believe it is a dangerous teaching that Jesus will make your life all green lights and blue skies with good health always and riches untold. Jesus gives you purpose and significance. Eternal hope. Peace. Security. But there are no guarantees that life with Jesus will be trouble free. Au contraire. Difficulties refine us in our faith and reveal our spiritual status with Christ. “Consider it all joy”, James says, “when you encounter various trials.”

Choose to dwell on the blessings. Choose to build it anyway. Dream it anyway. Believe it anyway. Forgive them anyway. Love them anyway. My reason for making those choices is very simple. God chose to love me anyway when I did not deserve such love. My prayer for every follower of Jesus is that they never have this realization late in life.

“I have had a wonderful life with Jesus – I only wish I had realized it sooner.”

Learn more ways to become more connected with God, one another and yourself. Would you join me on that journey in 2018? Click here to check it out.

One of my peers recently noted that “getting old is not for sissies”. Indeed. Even if you escape personal difficulties you undoubtedly have family and friends who are going through physical, emotional and spiritual trials. One of the songs that I default to when I am walking through valleys with others is from singer/composer Rich Mullins. The song is from his CD called Songs and it is simply titled “Hold Me Jesus”.

Well, sometimes my life
Just don’t make sense at all
When the mountains look so big
And my faith just seems so small

Right now I am in a pretty good place in my life and journey with Jesus. But then I started thinking about the many friends and loved ones who could relate completely to those lyrics in their current situation. And I can certainly remember seasons of my life when those words accurately reflected the condition of my soul.

And I wake up in the night and feel the dark
It’s so hot inside my soul
I swear there must be blisters on my heart

And I remember how I used to respond. I would deduce it must be my fault and I would decide that I had to do something to bolster my faith. I had to read more verses or do a study or pray more or believe more. But the answer was far more simple and the chorus by Rich Mullins nails it.

So hold me Jesus, ’cause I’m shaking like a leaf
You have been King of my glory
Won’t You be my Prince of Peace

I need to quit flailing and trying so darn hard to be righteous. Hold me Jesus. Won’t you be my Prince of Peace? I have started praying a prayer that is simple and profound.

“God…would you love me today?”

And He does. But I remember how I used to think that I had to “do stuff” for God to earn His favor and receive His love and peace. For those of us “doers” who absolutely must do something here is your assignment.

1. Trust who God says He is.
2. Believe who God says you are.
3. Allow God to love you.

That’s it. I made it so stinkin’ complicated and religious for so many years. When I do those 3 things I find myself humbled. I worship. Those actions cause me to submit, sin less and want to obey from my heart. Commitment comes out of gratitude and not teeth gritting compliance.

Why did I fight this amazing grace and His unconditional love. Rich Mullins nails that too.

Surrender don’t come natural to me
I’d rather fight You for something
I don’t really want
Than to take what You give that I need
And I’ve beat my head against so many walls
Now I’m falling down, I’m falling on my knees

That was me. Hanging on to the familiar malaise of self-effort instead of surrendering and accepting grace and freedom. Rich Mullins is now with the King of glory and the Prince of Peace but his ministry continues around the world. Next time you are flailing and striving to please God why not try that little prayer.

“God…would you love me today?”

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”  (Matthew 11, The Message)

Learn more ways to become more connected with God, one another and yourself. Would you join me on that journey in 2018? Click here to check it out.

Another week of tragic losses has sobered all of us. The school shooting in Broward County, Florida is heartbreaking. More police officers killed in the line of duty. Deadly accidents. Sadly, I could go on and on.

In church this week we looked at Psalm 90. In that text Moses wrote words that directly apply to the sad news we encounter everyday.

Teach us to realize the brevity of life,
    so that we may grow in wisdom.  (Psalms 90:12, NLT)

What would that look like if we lived that truth?That is one of the primary reasons I wrote Waking Up Slowly. 

Here is an excerpt from the book…

Just this week I sent a consoling message to a friend. Her apparently healthy and robust father died without a moment of warning. Not to be maudlin, but that is the reality of this earthly existence. We don’t know if we have tomorrow or even the rest of today.

Certainly we must be wise to plan and prepare for a long future. But we must also invest in now, in case that is what we are given. I was joking with some friends recently that I wished life were like a soccer match. At the end of my life, a referee would announce how much “extra” time I had before I actually died. One ornery friend looked at me and deadpanned, “What if you are currently on your extra time?” I may well be, and that gives me all the more motivation to live fully in the moment.

Maybe the message that resonates the most for me is that we cannot receive postdated grace. We cannot order grace for the future. We receive grace in the now. Grace is God’s greatest gift of my being present with Him. When we are disconnected or distracted, we miss that blessing of real-time grace.

If I had to write a one-sentence summary of what I learned on this odyssey, it would be very simple. Spend focused time with those you love and with your God.

Speaker-writer Zig Ziglar wrote about spending time with loved ones. “One of these days you will say either, ‘I wish I had,’ or ‘I’m glad I did.’” How heartbreaking would it be to find yourself at the end of this pilgrimage with the regret of “I wish I had” roiling in your soul? My heart’s desire is that I will gratefully say, “I’m glad I did.”

If you want to give the very best present to your spouse, kids, friends, and God, the grace challenge is simple. Be present. When you are with your spouse, put the phone away. While you are with the kids or grandkids, forget whatever is pressing at work. I have never forgotten what entrepreneur Mary Crowley said to me when we were discussing the challenge of parenting. Mary said she had one regret. “I wish I had answered at the first tug.” That is simply being present.

If a friend is suffering, you can show no greater love than to simply be there for him or her. Not offering great theological insight or stories of your own or others’ suffering. Just to be present. When you talk to a friend, be present.

We all can do something. An anonymous writer summed it up perfectly:

People who have a lot of money and no time we call “rich.” People who have time but no money we call “poor.” Yet the most precious gifts—love, friendship, time with loved ones— grow only in the sweet soil of unproductive time.

The world might call quiet moments of presence with God and others unproductive time. I am learning that there is no more productive way we can spend our time. Everything that truly matters springs from that presence-enriched soil. My heavenly Father is always present. I just need to show up for Him. That is the essence of spiritual growth for me.

Just showing up in humility every day, seeking His presence.

I will stumble in this journey to be present. I probably will need a refresher course often. But I am confident beyond confident of one truth that Paul wrote to the church at Philippi, which is true for you and me today:

I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. (Philippians 1:6)

I am waking up slowly in this life. But one day, fairly soon, I will wake up glorified. I believe the epitaph written on Ruth Graham’s tombstone will also describe my journey:

“End of construction—
thank you for your patience.”

 

(more…)

One of my favorite sports memories involves a runner who was the last to cross the finish line. Derek Redmond was an elite athlete who had a chance to bring home a medal in the 1992 Olympics as Great Britain’s 400-meter representative. After an injury-plagued career, Redmond seemed ready to leave a lasting legacy at the Barcelona Games. He had recorded the fastest time in the first heat and won his quarter-final race.

Redmond started well in the semifinal, but about 150 meters into the race his hamstring snapped, and he collapsed in agony.

Medical personnel rushed to his aid, but Redmond waved them off. He struggled to his feet and began to hobble around the track. He was going to finish the race.

Cheers rang out for the actual winner of the race, but then the crowd of sixty-five thousand in the stadium began to comprehend the drama unfolding of a solitary figure limping in agony toward the finish.

The spectators rose as one to encourage the courageous athlete. Another official offered
help and was brushed away. Suddenly, a man broke through security and ran onto the track.
It was Derek Redmond’s father. Derek heard a familiar voice and recognized this helper. He buried his face in his father’s chest and sobbed. Jim Redmond told his son that he was loved and didn’t have to do this. But Derek set his eyes toward the finish and simply said, “Yes, I do.”

His father replied, “Then we will finish this together.”

Leaning on his father’s shoulder, Derek Redmond limped to the finish line. Near the end Jim let his son go so he could cross the finish line on his own. A standing ovation greeted Redmond.

The Olympic records state that Derek Redmond did not finish, because he received help. I would argue that no Olympian has ever finished better than Derek Redmond. He refused to let adversity keep him from the prize of finishing the race. Not winning. Finishing. That is such a beautiful image of how our earthly race often looks. I suspect that many who achieve heavenly standing
ovations will finish with a limp and with eyes focused solely on Jesus.

That is how I see my race that Paul describes so beautifully.

“Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus,is calling us.”   (Philippians 3:13-14, NLT)

When I fall or am hurt again, I know that I can bury my face in the comforting chest of Abba Father and we will finish together.

 

Reprinted from Waking Up Slowly.

Waking Up Slowly, can be used as a 21 Day Journey to become more connected with God, one another and yourself.

Would you join me on that journey in 2018? Click here to check it out.

Every year they rudely awaken Punxsutawney Phil long enough for the prognosticating rodent to let us know whether six more weeks of winter awaits. Phil always looks about as happy as I do when when I am disturbed in the morning. Twenty-five years ago a funny and underappreciated movie came on the scene. Groundhog Day told the story of a self-absorbed news reporter (redundancy alert?) that finds himself stuck in an endless repeat of the same day. Bill Murray is perfect in the role of reporter Phil Connors. Reporter Phil is less than thrilled that he has been assigned to cover Punxsutawney Phil’s annual peek outside to predict winter’s duration. He feels he is “above” such an inane assignment. Connor’s looks into the camera and cynically reports:

“This is one time where television really fails to capture the true excitement of a large squirrel predicting the weather.”

The premise of the movie is that Phil Connors realizes he is doomed to live the same day over and over and over. For Connors, Groundhog Day begins each morning at 6:00 A.M when Sonny & Cher’s “I Got You Babe” blares out from his alarm clock radio. The twist is that his (and only his) memories of the “previous” day remain intact, trapped in a seemingly endless “time loop” to repeat the same day in the same small town.

Connor has this exchange in the film.

Phil: What would you do if you were stuck in one place and every day was exactly the same, and nothing that you did mattered?
Ralph: That about sums it up for me.

And that brought to mind another famous Bill Murray quote…this time from Stripes.

And then depression set in.

So what is the point of these ramblings? Is it to impress you with my cerebral movie tastes? The point is that too many followers of Jesus are stuck in a Groundhog Day life of their own. They wake up every day and feel trapped in a repeating pattern of frustrating behavior. And then, depression sets in. Why is that? I lived a Groundhog Day kind of faith for years. The Apostle Paul wrote about this very thing (not the giant rodent part…the repeating behavior part) in his letter to the Romans.

I decide to do good, but I don’t really do it; I decide not to do bad, but then I do it anyway. My decisions, such as they are, don’t result in actions. Something has gone wrong deep within me and gets the better of me every time. (Romans 7, The Message)

Wow…can I relate to that. A bit later Paul writes…I’ve tried everything and nothing helps. I’m at the end of my rope. Is there no one who can do anything for me? Isn’t that the real question?

That is the real question. And there is a real answer offered by Paul.

The answer, thank God, is that Jesus Christ can and does. He acted to set things right in this life of contradictions where I want to serve God with all my heart and mind, but am pulled by the influence of sin to do something totally different.

So what can you do to get out of this sin spiral?

Nothing.

Wait!  Don’t let depression set in. This is good news! You and I can’t do it. I am incapable in my own efficacy (5 Reader’s Digest points) to escape my spiritual Groundhog Day. Only Jesus can enable me to escape this endless loop of frustration. Further advice from Paul follows in Chapter 8 of his amazing letter to the Romans.

But if God himself has taken up residence in your life, you can hardly be thinking more of yourself than of him.

Allow the truth of that verse to soak in.

Want to get out of your Groundhog Day existence? Most readers of these humble ramblings realize they couldn’t deal with their sin separation from God on their own. We needed Jesus. So why do we think we can deal with our ongoing sin issues on our own? When the Father looks at me on my very worst day this is what He sees.

Jesus.

That is step one. I don’t have to clean up the sin to please God. He loves me already because of Jesus. Step Two. I am learning daily to recognize that the Spirit of God has taken up residence in my life. I am learning that I am the one who limits His power by restricting access and not trusting Him with my thoughts and actions. I am learning that I don’t need to wake up to the frustrating effects of repeated self-effort. I can wake up trusting God, trusting that Jesus has my sin covered and trusting that the Spirit of God will allow me to resolve that sin. Trusting God and what His Word says to be true allows me to escape the Groundhog Day syndrome.

The moral of the movie Groundhog Day was that Phil Connor needed to learn that he was self-absorbed and dependent on his selfish efforts to get ahead. The moral of the spiritual groundhog day is to learn that we cannot depend on our self efforts to live a joyful and free Christian life. I come to Jesus by grace and total dependence. I live for Jesus by grace and total dependence. While the other groundhog is busy predicting weather I would suggest you try this for the next six weeks. When the alarm jars you awake remember this truth. Instead of the Sonny and Cher song you can sing “I Got You Lord”. The two of you can end this “Groundhog Day” of frustration. I can’t help you with the weather.

My latest book, Waking Up Slowly, can be used as a 21 Day Journey to become more connected with God, one another and yourself.

No resolutions…just grace suggestions based on God’s Word. Would you join me on that journey in 2018? Click here to check it out.

It is hard to believe it has been seven years since I posted this article. Our first foray into the amazing world of grand parenting came with the birth of Ethan Paul Burchett in Waco, Texas.

Since Ethan was a bit early the doctors were cautious about some fluid building up in his lungs. To be sure that all was well they scheduled an x-ray on his second day. New dad Matt went along with Ethan for the procedure. Unswaddling made the little guy unhappy and scared. As he grew more anxious his dad did what every loving father does for their child. He touched him to let Ethan know he was there..

Our friend Jana happened to be at the nursery and captured the candid moment.

I keep thinking about that moment. How Matt instinctively knew that Ethan needed that touch and how Ethan wrapped his little fingers around dad’s big finger. Instinctively, Ethan calmed down when he felt the touch of his father. Happily, all was okay with his lungs.

There is another Good Father who is anxious to touch our hearts when we are frightened. Today I prayed that more followers of Christ would seek the touch of the Heavenly Father when they are anxious, scared and uncertain. I love the story of Jesus healing the leper. The Apostle Matthew tells the story in the first Gospel book.

Large crowds followed Jesus as he came down the mountainside. Suddenly, a man with leprosy approached him and knelt before him. “Lord,” the man said, “if you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean.”

Imagine this scene. Lepers had to wear torn clothes and shout “unclean” so that people would stay away from them. Jesus could have said the word and he would have been healed. That is how he healed the paralyzed man. Christ raised a young girl from the dead while she was miles away from Him. But look at how He chose to heal this man.

Jesus reached out and touched him.

Can you imagine the emotion that must have run through this man who had likely not been touched in years? Jesus answered the man’s plea.

“I am willing,” he said. “Be healed!” And instantly the leprosy disappeared. (Matthew 8, NLT)

We worship a Heavenly Father that is willing to touch and love us whenever we call out. No matter how needy. No matter how “unclean”. He is always willing to touch us and heal us spiritually. God never promised that our journey would be without struggle or pain. Physical healing does not always happen. But He did promise to always be with us. We are His precious children and Paul describes that tender heart of God the Father in this passage to the church in Rome.

For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.” For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children. (Romans 8:14–16, NLT)

Abba is an endearing and intimate title for God the Father that could be translated, “Father, my  own dear Father.” It is the title a child uses to relate to a father when the child knows that he or she is dear to Him, the one He delights in. I remember my friend Ed Underwood sharing how he desperately sought the touch of the Father while battling a deadly cancer.

“So, last night was so much more than a night of malaise, it was a night I spent on my Father’s lap, talking with Him about my fears, feelings, and hurts. It is the upside of suffering for the child of God–deepening intimacy with Abba Father.”

What an amazing thought and insight. The upside of suffering is deepening intimacy with Abba Father. Seven years ago precious Ethan showed the power of an earthly father’s touch. How much more powerful is the touch of my Abba Father.

My latest book, Waking Up Slowly, can be used as a 21 Day Journey to become more connected with God, one another and yourself.

No resolutions…just grace suggestions based on God’s Word. Would you join me on that journey in 2018? Click here to check it out.