When No One is Watching

Some of you may know that we homeschool our kids. As their teacher, I am therefore keenly aware of their academic (and behavioral) performance on a daily basis. Once a week, however, they have an opportunity to be taught by someone else! We participate in a national academic program called Classical Conversations. One of their weekly requirements is to prepare and then deliver a presentation in front of their class.

This week's assignment was to narrate a Bible story, using props, visuals, etc. My 9 year old son chose the classic tale of David and Goliath. For his visual aid, after much encouragement from me to think it through and be creative, he hastily drew a crude cartoon on a small white board depicting 2 hills, a stick figure "Goliath" that resembled a stereotypical jungle head hunter, and "Philistines" fleeing a tumbling boulder down one side of the hill (I must have missed that in the original account!). I sighed. "OK, Matt" I said, "Are you ready to practice your presentation in front of me?" To say that his performance was less than well planned or orchestrated would be an understatement! After his disjointed story account, multiple verbal pauses ("Ummm.."), and haphazard visual aid references, I encouraged him to think it through more in his head, giving him pointers about how he might improve his story. I went to bed discouraged and thinking that his performance may be an awkward moment for all!

At Classical Conversations, I chose to spend the day in our daughter's classroom since I had been in our son's the prior week. I sent him off to his class and wished him luck! At the end of the day, I saw his tutor in the hallway and asked how his presentation had gone, sheepishly apologizing for Matt's lack of preparation. The tutor gave me a perplexed look and said, "What are you talking about? He did great!" I then learned that his story account was accurate (with events in the right order!), his use of the picture was amusing and well done, and his delivery was smooth and engaging! After I picked my jaw up off the floor, I thanked the tutor and walked away with a semi-dazed look on my face, but so thankful that my son's performance away from me had actually been better that his in-person attempt!

If you are a parent, you understand the pride which comes when you hear that your child has behaved (or in this case, performed) well when you were not watching! When another parent commends my child's behavior to me when I was not present, I feel so happy! It's easy to behave well when the rule-maker is watching, but how do we act, think, perform, when he or she is not? Christians can fall into the same trap -- behaving "well" when we are around other Christians, our spouse, etc. but then falling into "secret" sins behind closed doors, or when we are around non-believers. When thoughts and actions are godly when no one is looking, or when around others who would give us the liberty to abandon our faith, then we have made our heavenly Father smile indeed!

But isn't that what young David did when he fought Goliath? David was away from home, surrounded by non-believers -- Philistines on one side, and cowardly Israelites on the other! No one would have scoffed or thought twice if David had recoiled in fear from the giant as they had, abandoning their faith in adversity. Yet the instruction of his father, Jesse, did not leave David! His faith demonstrated away from his eartly father showed us all that he believed and adopted as his own, the faith taught by his father!

Keep Climbing!

My family and I were recently in the lovely mountains of North Carolina for Synod, our denomination's annual pastor's meeting which lasts 3 days. For the pastors and elders in attendance, those days are filled with meetings, committee updates, networking and assemblies. But for the spouses and kids, Synod is three days of fun! We wives get to reconnect with old friends around the pool, listen to inspirational speakers, play with our kids at the nearby lake, or drive into the lovely town of Hendersonville to stroll.

Now that my kids are past the age of 8, they also have the opportunity to attend a kids camp! "Campers" get to participate in crafts, nature walks, swimming, paddle boating, climbing wall, evening camp fires with s'mores, and the most coveted of all events -- the 40 ft. high zip line! Brave participants gear up with harnesses and helmets and ascend to a tiny platform for the big leap which sends them soaring nearly 200 feet! The climb up the pole begins easily, like any standard ladder, but about 2/3 of the way up, they must abandon the familiar rungs, twist slightly around the pole and ascend the remaining height via large metal "staples" not unlike those a utility worker might use. It is at this transition point that some kids decide the climb is not worth it, abandon their visions of Peter Pan, and climb down, sometimes in tears.

This year was no exception. One little boy, in particular (I'll call him "Johnny"), remained "stuck" at the transition point for nearly 20 minutes while patient instructors attempted to encourge him to either let go and be lowered down, or go for it, and keep climbing! Besides the promise of an amazing ride, he was reminded that the harness and belay held him firmly, and the instructor would not let him fall! After many tears and several failed attempts to go either up or down, Johnny finally determined to press on! Mustering all of his 8 year old courage, he listened carefully to the instructor's directions about exactly where to place his feet, when and where to reach, etc, and in a few short moments, he was at the platform and ready to zip at last! After another agonizing 10 minutes of encouragement from the platform instructor, he finally let go and slid from the platform for his epic flight over the heads of the much relieved bystanders and waiting kids below! Once on terra firma again, Johnny practically danced back to the pole, beaming with delight, shouting, "This is the best day of my life!!" High fives were exchanged, cheers and whoops were shared, and Johnny glowed with pride (and relief)!

I thought about little Johnny today and about my walk with Christ. I often feel like he did, at a transition point where the familiar and safe path gives way to the unfamiliar and risky. How tempting it is sometimes to just say, "I can't do it!" and abandon the journey. But then, what soaring experiences would I miss? And besides, like Johnny, I'm harnessed! God will not let me go! He is in total control, but wants me to keep climbing! Next time I'm at one of those places in my life, I'm going to remember that zip line and hope that I too can muster the courage to press on!

Shaky Ground

Jesus affirmed that we would have troubles in this life, but He very simply countered that reality with the overwhelmingly powerful truth that He has overcome the world! How strange it must have been for the disciples to hear such a statement from a man! Jesus, this humble teacher? Yes, they had seen Him perform miracles, but "overcome the world?!" Really? When the tsunamis of life hit our shores personally, such talk almost seems laughable! When our world has been turned upside down from loss, divorce, betrayal, illness, crime. . . can this simple statement from our Savior really give us what we long for -- peace, comfort, healing, victory?!

It is easy to say, "yes" when we are standing on calm ground. It was easy for Peter to declare boldly that he would never betray Jesus! But how quickly his confidence and bravery fled in the face of the slightest persecution! We have a huge advantage over Peter, who did not yet understand the cross! We know that Christ has conquered sin and death, and that He loves us eternally! That is our joy and our hope! But how fast that joy and hope seem to flee in the face of great turmoil, as if stolen from us along with our steady ground, and we feel naked and afraid, like Peter!

But Peter did eventually understand when he came face to face with the risen Lord, and he became a fiercely passionate voice for the gospel, even to the point of his own death! Receiving the Holy Spirit allowed Peter to see the resurrected Christ rightly, and enabled him to understand Jesus' compassion and love for him despite his dismal failure. This gave Peter an entirely new perspective and drive, and the shaky ground he would often come to stand on no longer compared to the hope set before him! Peter, perhaps, finally understood Jesus' words about having overcome the world! Here was the God Man, who prevailed against the grave, AND who is Love itself towards us, despite our weaknesses! Who would not want to align themselves with such a hope, such a strong tower, such a powerful love?! The hope set before us is infinitely greater than our trials, and He makes us bolder witnesses for the gospel when we consider Him our most precious treasure! This does not diminish the hardships we face! But we are not left feeling naked and alone! The Holy Spirit is in us!

He is no fool who takes refuge in the LORD, for no earthly stronghold, no matter how impenetrable, and no philosophical idea, no matter how lofty, can protect the soul like the One who has prevailed against the walls of hell itself, and renders all other ideas infinitely beneath His smallest thought of love towards us!

One Man's Trash...

Recently, a new Goodwill store opened in our community. I went there a few weeks ago looking for a porcelain lamp for my sun porch. And there I saw one that was just what I was looking for! But it had one major issue. The lamp shade was covered with tiny rust spots on its delicate fabric pleats. The previous owner had obviously negleced this lamp and now deemed it usesless. But not I! I snatched it up at the whopping price of $6 and took it proudly home! Once there, I applied white vinegar to the spots with a Q-tip, and the rust stains began to fade! It now sits on my sun porch adding light and beauty to the room! One man's trash, as they say, is another man's treasure!

It's good that we have the opportunity to make seeminly useless things "new" again. It is a sweet reminder of how Christ took one man's (Adam's) trash (us!), and made it His treasure! Once beyond repair, ugly, stained and useless, Christ purchased us from the spiritual rummage sale and made us new again through His sacrice!

Happy Easter, friends!

An Unimpressive God

If you know me well, you know that I am a huge fan of really bad comedy! I love slapstick humor, lame puns, British comedy and punch lines that make most people just groan and change the channel! The cult-classic mockumentary, This is Spinal Tap, combines all of these elements, so of course, I love it! In it, the viewer follows the heavy metal band, Spinal Tap, as they go on tour and it mocks the inner workings of the rock and roll industry, the laughable self aggrandizement of celebrity, and the soap-opera-worthy story lines that take place behind the scenes of an industry that takes itself waaaaay too seriously!

One of my favorite parts comes when the band is brainstorming ideas for the stage design of their upcoming "Stonehenge" tour! Sitting at a restaurant and classically doodling ideas on a napkin, they devise an elaborate and impressive idea! An 18-foot tall replica of the enormous pillars of Stonehenge, gently lowered from the sky amid smoke, lights, screaming guitars, and dancing Druid dwarfs! It would be monumental! It would be impressive! It would be awe-inspiring!

Unfortunately, they made one tiny mistake. On their drawing, they jotted 18" rather than 18'. The addition of that one, minuscule tic mark, in the hands of the set designer, transformed their massive 18 foot high pillars into a Barbie-sized version of only 18 inches! The effect, as you can imagine, is a ridiculous, underwhelming, laughing-stock! As the lead singer prepares the audience to be mystified and awed, and as the smoke rises and the tension builds with rumbling cymbals....down drops the tiny monolith to the horror of the band members who are forced to continue playing as if nothing were unusual. The scene reaches it side-splitting climax as the elfin-clad dwarfs emerge and dance around the tiny prop! The juxtaposition between the elaborate concert with it's promise of an unforgettable climax, and the miniature reality is hysterical and ironic!

After the concert, the band is debriefing with their manager, analyzing why the band seemed to be "down" that night. Among the various critiques, Nigel (lead singer) sarcastically pipes in, "I, for one, do not think that the problem was that the 'band was down!' I think that the problem may have been that there was a Stonehenge monument on the stage that was in danger of being crushed by a dwarf! Alright? That tended to understate the hugeness of the object!"

So. . . how do we apply Nigel's "wisdom" to ourselves? Unfortunately, we sometimes pull a mini-Stonehenge with our faith! We add to or take away a little something from the Truth and end up with a weak, watered-down God. For example, we can...

1. Focus solely on the grace, love and forgiveness of God while conveniently ignoring the justice and wrath of God towards sin. This is dangerous, because we then fail to seriously address the sin in our lives because, "God is love and we are all sinners who are forgiven." Christ's sacrifice is diminished if we separate His justice from His grace. Yes, as believers, we are forgiven through the blood of Christ, but the result should be a changed life! Not a perfect life, but certainly changed!
   
   
2. Look at God as a "Divine Watchmaker" who wound up the world and now just lets it run on its own without His intervention until He returns. This is a classic heresy in the church. This makes God small by denying his sovereignty in all things past, present and future! The Bible is clear that God is intimately involved in EVERYTHING, no matter how minute, and has a plan for everything we experience, even those things which are very difficult to understand.
   
   
3. We can focus so heavily on God's wrath and judgement that we forget grace. The flip-side of #1, people who constantly wring their hands wondering if indeed they are saved, worrying whether or not they have been "good" enough to earn God's favor, make God small by saying, in essence, "The sacrifice of Jesus was not enough to atone for my sins!"
   
   
4. We can focus on the blessings of God and not the God of blessing. When the primary reason for our faith becomes our desire to have our needs met (physical healing, release from some circumstance, deliverance from some oppression or injustice, inner peace, prosperity, etc.) then we have made God small indeed, reducing Him to a cosmic Santa Claus who exists, not for His own glory, but for bestowing gifts upon his good little children. In that case, God ends up serving His creation, not the other way around. We have placed ourselves on the throne. Yes, God loves to give good things to His children! But His ultimate purpose for everything He does is His own glory and to make us more like Christ!
   
   

These are just a few examples of ways in which we commonly err in our beliefs about God. God can not be made limited, ineffective, forgetful, indecicive, or weak. If we have relegated Him to any of these characteristics, it is we who have made a mistake, not God, and we must go back to Scripture for a clearer understanding! Otherwise, we have "understated the hugeness" of God and may find ourselves dancing and worshiping around a tiny, ridiculous fake!

(If you want to see the Stonehenge fiasco clip from the movie, here's the link! Be forewarned, however, that the "f" bomb is dropped at the beginning, but that's the only offensive portion. ) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMVMHNG68m8&feature=fvsr

Naughty March!

Oh, March, you foxy, fickle month!

Why do you tease me so?

Sending balmy sunshine one day,

And on another, snow!

The breeze that whispered thoughts of spring

the day before are gone!

Replaced by frozen winds that sing

A very different song!

The tulips in their beds arose

Confused by winter air!

For you had coaxed them from their sleep,

Then laughed at their despair!

I think you need a harsh rebuke

From April, May and June!

For you give spring a bad name, March,

With your tricksy siren's tune!

Just eat it!

All of us at one time or another have placed an unripe piece of fruit on the counter or window sill in order to ripen. Presently, I am staring at a bartlette pear that, just days ago, was hard as a rock! Today, it's soft and juicy! At this point, I have two options. I can eat the pear or continue to let it sit. If I eat the pear now, it will be sweet and delicious and bring nourishment to my body! But if I let it sit much more, it will begin to rot and eventually be thrown out like the majority of the bananas I seem to buy! Such a waste.

The Word of God is not unlike our fruit situation. I am told to meditate, or allow the Word to "sit" for a while as I turn it over in my mind and allow it to penetrate my heart. But until I apply the Word in my life, it will do me no ultimate good, and my faith will become stale and powerless. The Word must become part and parcel of who I am! It must be eaten, not just examined! Swallowed! Not simply chewed! Applied! Not just read.

I'm going to eat my delicious pear (and make some banana bread)!

"Thy words were found and I ate them,

and Thy Word became for me a joy and the delight of my heart;

for I have been called by Thy name,

O Lord God of hosts."

(Jeremiah 15:16)