One of my favorite Olympic 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 1992 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)
There is one huge difference in this story and our journey with God. Derek’s father had to join him on the track. Our Father God is with us every step of the way. We don’t always feel that or believe that to be true.
It is true.
I can make it to life’s finish line no matter how that final lap looks. 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. And I can joyfully receive the amazing heavenly prize granted through the finished work of Jesus.
This past week I taught a lesson at my church on the minor prophet Habakkuk. He lived in Judah just before the Babylonian destruction of that country around 605 B.C. The role of Habakkuk as a prophet was completely unique because it appears he did not speak to the people. Instead he spoke directly to God with some honest and uncomfortable questions. Two-thirds of the book outlines that back and forth dialogue. Habakkuk has been described by some as the “man who scolded God”. Not sure I would want that to be my ministry distinctive but his interaction is transparent and instructive for believers today.
The book of Habakkuk has been very helpful to me in processing how to deal with the evil that is happening in our world. Habakkuk saw violence and injustice happening all around him and He was asking God why He was allowing this to happen. God didn’t shoot him down for asking those questions. God didn’t respond in anger. He didn’t tell Habakkuk to be quiet. He didn’t discipline his prophet for his amazingly direct questioning.
God answered him with a simple response.
He had a plan.
Habakkuk’s first interaction with God was titled Habakkuk’s complaint. His questions were courageous and unsettling for me to read.
How long, O Lord, must I call for help? But you do not listen! “Violence is everywhere!” I cry, but you do not come to save. 3 Must I forever see these evil deeds? Why must I watch all this misery? Wherever I look, I see destruction and violence. I am surrounded by people who love to argue and fight.(Habakkuk 1:2-4)
We often question what God is doing. Why does He seem to ignore the evil in the world? Yet God’s interaction with Habakkuk demonstrated that He is always present. God is Sovereign. He knows what the future holds. I have witnessed how the Holy Spirit can use challenging events of life in positive ways. God allows us to go through storms to make us stronger. Hard times cause us to wake up to our spiritual need and turn to Him. We don’t know why things happen. The one thing we do know throughout these challenging seasons is that He loves us. Jesus died and paid for our sins on the Cross. Why would the Father allow such a sacrifice and then simply turn away? I believe that God has a plan that gives us hope in Him. A lack of trust and patience can lead to anxiety instead of peace.
The answer that Habakkuk received was not what he had hoped to hear. Yes, God was judging the leaders of Judah for their sin and corruption. But He was allowing the evil Babylonians to invade, conquer, and punish His unfaithful followers. God sometimes uses ungodly people for godly purposes. Habakkuk absorbed God’s response and offered a second complaint but with more acknowledgement of who He believed his God to be.
2 O Lord my God, my Holy One, you who are eternal— surely you do not plan to wipe us out? O Lord, our Rock, you have sent these Babylonians to correct us, to punish us for our many sins. 13 But you are pure and cannot stand the sight of evil. Will you wink at their treachery? (Habakkuk 1:12-13)
At the end of his second round of questioning Habakkuk had an interesting response.
2 I will climb up to my watchtower and stand at my guardpost. There I will wait to see what the Lord says and how he will answer my complaint. (Habakkuk 2:1)
Habakkuk realized he needed to focus on God and patiently wait for His response. We often question God but patiently waiting for His timing and response is hard. How often do we willingly accept the answers we receive? Our way is often not the best way and our short term desires can lead to a bad outcome.
This is the verse in God’s response that was a game-changer for Habakkuk and still is for us today. You can make a solid argument that Habakkuk 2:4 changed the world!
“Look at the proud! They trust in themselves, and their lives are crooked. But the righteous will live by their faithfulness to God.
This thought is quoted in Galatians 3:11, Hebrews 10:38, and Romans 1:17,
Martin Luther was struggling with his faith a mere 510 years ago. He was overwhelmed by the weight of his sin. He spent years trying to find out what he needed to do for God to grant him righteousness. In 1515 Martin Luther read Romans 1:17. A phrase in the verse struck his heart in a way he had never experienced before.
“For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith, as it is written, ‘The righteous shall live by faith.’” (Romans 1:17)
This was the moment of awakening for Luther. He wrote this.
“Paul is not talking about the righteousness by which God Himself is righteous, but a righteousness that God gives freely by His grace to people who don’t have righteousness of their own.” Luther now understood that righteousness didn’t come from what he could do. It came as a undeserved gift of love and grace.
Martin Luther said, “When I discovered that, I was born again of the Holy Ghost. And the doors of paradise swung open, and I walked through.”
The impact of this prophet is profound. He believed that God had a plan. He believed that God was his hope. And this praise in Chapter 3 shows that no matter what circumstances he would face his hope, joy, and strength was in the God of his salvation.
17 Even though the fig trees have no blossoms, and there are no grapes on the vines; even though the olive crop fails, and the fields lie empty and barren; even though the flocks die in the fields, and the cattle barns are empty, 18 yet I will rejoice in the Lord! I will be joyful in the God of my salvation! 19 The Sovereign Lord is my strength! He makes me as surefooted as a deer, able to tread upon the heights.
Here are a few takeaways from this amazing book.
It is okay to ask questions of God. He knows your heart.
God’s ways are not our ways. Trust in His ways.
The world may feel chaotic and frightening but remember that God is sovereign and in control.
My job is not understanding how God’s plan will work. My job is to trust Him.
Our hope and peace are not tied to our circumstances. Those come from God.
God’s timing is perfect. Be patient.
This quote from Henri Nouwen beautifully sums up the need to live out of faith no matter our circumstances.
“Our life is full of brokenness – broken relationships, broken promises, broken expectations. How can we live with that brokenness without becoming bitter and resentful except by returning again and again to God’s faithful presence in our lives.”
I grew up in legalism. We were taught accurately that you are saved by grace. And then it went doctrinally South. We were taught that sanctification came through grit and not grace. You had to work extra hard to stay in good standing with God. And if you sinned and didn’t immediately repent your salvation might (probably would) be compromised. So I served God out of anxiety instead of confidence and trust.
I was wrongly convinced that to grow in my faith I had to do more. Try harder. Pray more. Read the Bible more. Have more devotional time. All of those things are good when properly utilized. But there is a problem if self-effort is your sanctification strategy. Our self-righteous busyness does not please God. It is our faith that pleases and glorifies Him.
We are saved by grace and we grow more like Jesus by abiding in His grace.
The lyrics of this song penetrated my heart as I remembered my years of unproductive self-effort.
There’s peace that outlasts darkness Hope that’s in the blood There’s future grace that’s mine today That Jesus Christ has won So I can face tomorrow For tomorrow’s in Your hands All I need You will provide Just like You always have
If I believe that Jesus is Lord then today, tomorrow, and the rest of my days are covered by God’s plan and infinite love. God is sovereign. The one thing I can control is trusting Him.
But here is the game-changer I finally understood in my faith journey. Everything was given to me at the moment I put my trust in Jesus as my Savior and Lord. Everything.
I felt that spiritual growth and change can only happen when you work hard for God.
The truth is that a dramatic change already happened at the moment you make your faith commitment to follow Jesus. Let’s just hit the highlights. Your sins (past, present, and future) are forgiven. You have a new identity in Christ Jesus. You are literally a new creation with rewritten spiritual DNA. You have the imputed righteousness of Christ. God sees you as righteous because of your relationship with Jesus. That’s it. Nothing you have done or ever will do earns that righteousness. You are adopted as a child of God. You have the constant presence and power of the Holy Spirit indwelling in you. There is no condemnation in Christ. His unconditional love is not based on your behavior. You have guaranteed eternal security when you genuinely put your trust in Jesus. All of these incredible gifts of grace were granted at the moment you decided to follow Jesus.
Peter described the magnitude of that salvation moment in 2 Peter, chapter 1.
“May God give you more and more grace and peace as you grow in your knowledge of God and Jesus our Lord. By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises…”
You have everything you need to grow in Christ at the moment you put your faith in Him. You don’t achieve bonus spiritual gifts by personal achievements. I spent so long looking for the keys to growing my faith until I finally realized I had the keys in my pocket from day one. This chorus from “You’ve Already Won”overwhelmed me.
I’m fighting a battle You’ve already won No matter what comes my way I will overcome I don’t know what You’re doing But I know what You’ve done I’m fighting a battle You’ve already won
For years and years and years I fought a battle that had already been won with the sacrificial death and resurrection of Jesus. I was changed completely when I trusted Christ. Instead of feeling shame when I fall short I now see a different picture.
I see Jesus putting His arm around me and explaining that I have been changed. That I don’t have to grit my teeth and try harder to win favor and please Him.
I think that is why Jesus can say this in the Gospel of Matthew.
“Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30, NLT)
That is my prayer for today. To let Jesus teach me with gentleness. To learn from His humility. And to find rest in Him.
Serving God is no longer out of anxiety but out of gratitude for the gift of grace. I don’t have to work my way into His favor like I used to believe. I am already there because of Jesus.
Did I mention that the battle is already won? Thank you Lord!
I turn the volume way up every time Lauren Daigle’s song “You Say” plays. The lyrics perfectly describe the battle that most of us fight to believe that what God says about us is true. Here is a sample of her powerful lyrics.
I keep fighting voices in my mind that say I’m not enough Every single lie that tells me I will never measure up Am I more than just the sum of every high and every low? Remind me once again just who I am, because I need to know…
I am drawn to wounded and dysfunctional people like a moth to light. When I hear their stories, I see a familiar pattern. They tend to believe that all the old junk in their lives is still true about them in God’s eyes. Too many followers of Jesus cannot believe they are a new and holy creation.
Recently I saw a T-shirt with this message: “Even if the voices in my head aren’t real they do have some good ideas”.
I got an initial chuckle out of that one. But then I thought, Wait! The voices in my head rarely have good ideas.
I suspect that is true for some of you as well. Sadly, the voices in our heads are real, formidable foes, voices that were programmed from childhood. Negative comments from parents, teachers, coaches, siblings, friends, fellow Christians, and assorted others have laid down deeply grooved tracks in my self-image soundtrack mix. Favorite cuts like these are always cued and ready to be played.
“You will never change.” “What were you thinking?” “I can’t believe you did that again.” “What is wrong with you?” “I am so disappointed in you.”
And the number one accusation on my personal Top 10 countdown . . .
“How could you be so stupid?”
When you mess up, the voices begin. And then your own voice joins the chorus. “It is true. I am not worthy. I am not enough. I am stupid. I don’t deserve to be loved.”
When you face disappointment, rejection, failure, loss, and trials, self-incriminating remarks flood your mind.
Why wasn’t I a better (pick one) spouse/friend/brother/sister/relative?” “If I had done (insert action), this would not have happened.” “Why didn’t I (insert missed opportunity) when I had the chance?” “Why did I (pick one or more) work too much/travel too much/whatever too much when I should have been there?”
If I may lean on my sports background here, Satan calls the all-out blitz when people of faith go through seasons of trial and doubt. He delights in accusing and trying to rock the very foundation of your faith. Satan is, always has been, and always will be a liar. You have learned to never trust a liar at work or in other relationships. How much more should we pray to recognize and reject the lies that Satan attacks us with during adversity?
There is another voice. It is much softer and requires more effort to hear. It is not a voice of shame. It is a voice of hope, love, acceptance, forgiveness, and grace. You have to slow way down and be quiet to hear this voice. That is the loving voice of God and His word.
Lauren Daigle’s lyrics describe this voice poetically.
You say I am loved when I can’t feel a thing You say I am strong when I think I am weak You say I am held when I am falling short When I don’t belong, oh You say that I am Yours And I believe, oh I believe What You say of me I believe
All of us hear those voices from the enemy. The voices from bad experiences in our past may require counseling to help erase them. But for the everyday challenges of the journey, I have learned that the voice we tend to hear first in the spiritual battle is the loud one. Step back, be still, and listen for the quiet voice of the Holy Spirit.
Our God is a God of forgiveness. We need to fix our eyes on Jesus. Don’t lose heart. Don’t allow the enemy to keep you from leaning on God for comfort because of your shame. That is not from the Lord.
In John we read this amazing promise.
But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God.(John 1:12, NLT)
Don’t believe the lies. You are a child of God. Beloved. As Lauren Daigle sings this truth I pray that we will believe it today.
The only thing that matters now is everything You think of me In You I find my worth, in You I find my identity,
So, what’s gonna be said of me When it’s all said and done? Will I stand for my beliefs Or will I turn around and run?
Part of the challenge of being a follower of Jesus is withstanding the criticisms from many around you. I worked in a secular industry with many who doubted the reality or need for faith in God. Some felt you were weak if you needed Jesus. Some thought you were brainwashed or, even worse, braindead if you believed in God. They delivered accusations to defend their narrative and my response was always honest.
Accuser: A lot of Christians fall way short of who they should be. They don’t act at all like this Jesus they talk about.
Me: Agreed. Actually all followers of Jesus fall short of living like him. Part of the love and grace of Jesus is to patiently help sincere followers grow in our journey to be more like him. His love and forgiveness are the same on our best and worst days.
Accuser: I know so many hypocrites.
Me: Yep. Me too. Hypocrites also exist on the non-faith side. My message for 40 plus years is don’t reject Christ because of Christians. Your faith decision should never be based on whether Dave or churchgoers you watch prove to you that Jesus is real.
Your decision is to personally and genuinely explore if Jesus Christ is who he said he is. The Son of God. Our Savior. The way to eternal life. Those are your questions to answer.
I struggled with judgmental churchgoers. I understand the frustration that brings. I wasn’t raised as a Christian and I wasn’t sure I wanted to commit my life to something that didn’t seem consistent.
Thank God I decided to honestly and intellectually seek the reality of God’s love and forgiveness. Jesus answered that request and radically changed my life in ways I never expected.
And now I agree completely with this bold statement of Matthew West.
“Well, let the whole world hear me say….”
Say what? Here it is!
I’m unashamed Of the gospel of Jesus Christ And the truth that changed my life For the name above all names I’m unashamed And I will live my faith out loud Take a stand and stand my ground For the One who took my shame I’m unashamed
I agree with all of my heart! I’m unashamed. I can tell you with complete assurance that my life would have gone off the rails without my relationship with Jesus. His love both restrained and sustained me. I believe my insecure and selfish heart would have taken me down a different path without my faith in God. Any quality that you find positive in my life has been given or enhanced through my relationship with Jesus. Recently I looked at many of the crossroad moments in my life. God’s grace and mercy allowed me to fail and still find redemption. Anytime I have disappointed others or did not show love it was because I took my eyes off of Him.
Paul writes these words in Philippians.
8 And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. 9 Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you. (Philippians 4, NLT)
I would like to paraphrase Paul’s words for my message to those who don’t think my journey with Jesus is legitimate.
“And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. I hope you saw in my life some things that were true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Whatever you might have received from me grew out of the sustaining love, grace, and peace of God.”
I know my heart. I review the crossroads moments I came to in different seasons of my life. I reflect on how God gracefully and lovingly rescued me over and over and over. That grace, love, forgiveness, and direction happened because of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Singer Dan Fogelberg was one of my favorite singer/songwriters. Every Father’s Day I cue up a song written about his dad called “Leader of the Band”. Fogelberg’s father was a musician and he passed that talent down to Dan. Parts of the lyric made me think of my Dad in his final years..
The leader of the band is tired and his eyes are growing old But his blood runs through my instrument and his song is in my soul
I thank you for the music and your stories of the road I thank you for the freedom when it came my time to go I thank you for the kindness and the times when you got tough And, papa, I don’t think I said ‘I love you’ near enough
My Dad knew how much I loved him. Still I wish I had told him more often. But this is the portion of the song that continues to impact me as a son.
My life has been a poor attempt to imitate the man I’m just a living legacy to the leader of the band
My Dad was a wonderful, kind, loving, and sometimes flawed man. He was not perfect but his overall story was powerful. I hope I am following his legacy of joy, kindness, and love that he modeled so well. I realize with each passing year how much the leader of the pack impacted me. Every dad impacts the lives of their children. The question is how. Children listen only sometimesbut they are always watching. My Dad probably never realized how closely I was watching.
The last time I saw my father he left me with a memory that will stay with me till I join him in Heaven. His condition had worsened considerably after a stroke. When I walked into the hospital room Dad’s eyes came alive and he grabbed my hand with an intensity that clearly communicated that he knew me.
Our family had encountered one difficult employee at the hospital. This person had done nothing helpful and everything with a bad attitude. I looked at my sister Sherry as I held my Father’s hand and said, “We don’t have to take that crap!” To my surprise out of that shell that was my Dad came a very clear and loud response…”I taught you that!”
Those were the final words that he spoke to me! And yes…you did teach me that Dad. And you taught me a whole lot more. You taught me that all of God’s children are to be valued unrelated to color or position. That everyone is important and deserves to be treated with dignity.
You taught me the concept of grace. When I was in junior high I somehow manage to establish “credit” at a hobby store. I ran up a debt that was monumental in those days. When you found out I was terrified at the consequences of my actions. But you taught me that grace means unmerited forgiveness for obvious guilt. You taught me there is a difference between mistakes of ignorance and willful wrongdoing. You taught me what forgiveness looks like and what it means for someone to pay for your mistakes out of unconditional love with no strings attached. I got a little foretaste of how Jesus would pay a debt for me that I could not pay later on in my life.
You taught me that humor is a gift from God. That laughing at life and especially at your self makes it a whole lot easier to deal with daily frustrations.
You taught me a lot Dad. And I will be forever grateful. Perhaps most importantly, you taught me what it looks like to be ready to die. You taught me how to put your family at ease by clearly and consistently letting us know that you were ready to meet Jesus.
God’s Word consistently paints an image of God as our Father. Many people struggle with that picture because they can only relate to an angry, dominating, or selfish father. I am so grateful that I had a dad that helped me to understand the real love of a father and what that means when God says I am His child. But I pray that you will believe the love from our Father in Heaven even if the earthly role model was not ideal.
How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! (1 John 3:1)
That is what we are! A child of God our loving Father. That is a pretty good thing to meditate on for Father’s Day.
My head explodes when I allow myself to wade into the political discourse between followers of Jesus Christ on Facebook, X, and other social media. There are important cultural issues that Christians need to prayerfully and gracefully seek God’s wisdom to address. What I read is rarely graceful and that makes me wonder how prayerful the messengers have been before hitting the send button. What gives you the right to judge the faith status of another believer because you disagree with them? I was wrong about many political things in my life but I did believe in Jesus (in spite of what some critics thought) and God patiently changed my heart.
Because of the nature of social media a topic that should be thoughtfully debated instead becomes an us versus them. I can assure you that no one’s mind is changed by a name calling rant. If fact, that person is more likely to dig in even deeper to what may be incorrect opinions because of your unkind comments.
These judgements of motives and personal attacks are so damaging to the message of grace that I hold so dear. Sometimes I try to imagine myself as a skeptical seeker looking to explore this Christianity thing. I am pretty sure if I stumbled on some of these mean-spirited threads I would run straight for the secular hills.
The irony of this need to “win” the argument at the expense of Christian charity and love may be one more profoundly effective tactic of the enemy. The moment the Church is divided by culture instead of united in Christ is the moment our light for the message of the Gospel dims. Paul noted that God’s sovereignty can take any proclamation of the Gospel and use it for His glory.
“It’s true that some are preaching out of jealousy and rivalry. But others preach about Christ with pure motives. 16 They preach because they love me, for they know I have been appointed to defend the Good News. 17 Those others do not have pure motives as they preach about Christ. They preach with selfish ambition, not sincerely, intending to make my chains more painful to me. 18 But that doesn’t matter. Whether their motives are false or genuine, the message about Christ is being preached either way, so I rejoice. And I will continue to rejoice.” (Phillipians 1:15-18)
I hope that most followers of Jesus wish to communicate the incredibly liberating forgiveness of the Gospel. I hope that most of us wish to be accurate in that communication. But I also hope that most of us wish to be gracious, kind, loving, and thoughtful toward all in the body who desire to celebrate Jesus.
When asked what the most important commandment was Jesus replied without hesitation.
“And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.”
And he added a second part…”Be accurate and angrily make sure others are accurate at all costs.”
Hardly.
His convicting command is well known.
“The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself. No other commandment is greater than these.”
Don’t hijack my point. Accuracy is important but you cannot love your neighbor as yourself by condescension, assigning of bad motives, and smug righteousness.
I wish followers of Jesus would proclaim what we are FOR more passionately than what we are against. What if we decided to spend all of our energy proclaiming that the Son of God came to earth as a human, lived a sinless life, was crucified as a sacrifice for my sin and yours and then was resurrected to show the ultimate victory over sin and death?
What if we decided to be a little kinder, give a little more, serve a little more often, and commit to unity in our ranks?
My concern is that the lack of unity is the single biggest problem in the universal church and, of course, in our individual fellowships. There is no more powerful community than a group of believers who live in unity. Nothing levels the playing field like genuinely following Jesus.
Famous preacher D.L. Moody had this warning. “I have never yet known the Spirit of God to work where the Lord’s people were divided.”
The One that unites us is so much more important than the things that divide us. Can we commit to encountering others in grace based on our unity in Jesus Christ? The choice is ours.
