The Wildly Imperfect

1 Corinthians 1:26-29

“Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth.  But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.  God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him.”
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There is one type of craftsman in the world who chooses the finest wood when beginning a project.  He finds pristine, unblemished lengths of beautifully smooth material. He is the Perfectionist.

There is another type who selects the rough-hewn planks with knots and burls throughout.  He seeks out the pieces which other artisans would cast aside.  He is the Recycler.

I am so glad God is like the Recycler.  He sees value in what others disdain.  In Him, we see how the imperfections in each of us allow His glory to shine through.  When Christ walked the earth, did he choose His disciples from the ranks of the influential, the well-off or the seemingly perfect followers of the Law?  No; he grabbed a bunch of smelly fisherman.  He broke bread with tax collectors, prostitutes and other members of the Deeply Flawed Club.

By using imperfect people to accomplish His perfect plan, God makes sure that everyone has a place at His table.  All of us can play a role, our imperfections  smoothed, polished and turned into a beautiful work of art.

Father God, 

Thank you for accepting us as we are.  We are so blessed that You would chose us to be a part of Your magnificent plan even though we are broken, imperfect and flawed. 

As we walk in our daily lives, Lord, help us to remember the examples of You making miraculous works of those who were cast aside or who fell short of Your glory in so many ways.  Let us look upon those around us with Your eyes, seeing the value which is in every person.   

No one is beyond Your redemption and love.  When we reach out and create intentional relationships with those whom others would see as worthless, we are doing this for You.  Keep this always in our minds as You bring people into our lives. 

Thank you God for the gift of Jesus Christ, in whose name we pray, 

Amen.

What Can We Do?

Titus 3:4-7

“But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared,  he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior,  so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.”
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One of the most wonderful things about God’s gift to us in His Son is the fact that we did nothing nor can we every do anything to “earn” His grace and His mercy.  God loves us because we are His; not because of anything we do.

We can become so focused on trying to be good enough that we miss the point.  There is only one way gain the promise of our inheritance; accept the gift of Christ’s sacrifice.

Most importantly, we have to be careful about how we try to make others good enough too.  We can become judgmental and unforgiving in our quest to change others.  It’s OK, God can handle that too.

Dear God 

We are so thankful for the gift of Your Son Jesus Christ.  Help us to always remember that it is this gift which allows us to have a relationship with You.  

Be with us, Lord, when we become focused on the things we think we can do to earn Your mercy and grace.  These things pale in comparison to how magnificent You are. 

Send Your Holy Spirit to guard our hearts when we judge others; change our spirits to model Jesus’ example of love, forgiveness and reconciliation. 

We ask these things in the name of Jesus Christ,  

Amen

The Master

Romans 8:28

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
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I heard a story today about a man, Philip Yancey, who was a great chess player in high school.  Over the years, he let his game slip.

Much later in life, he had the opportunity to play with a master whose skills had been perfected.  No matter what moves Philip made, the master was able to counter.  Although Philip was free to make any move he liked, he soon realized that the superior skill of the master guaranteed that Philip’s moves, no matter how bold, unorthodox or risky, were able to be incorporated into the master’s winning strategy.

We have the ability to make choices every day.  Some of them are good for us; some are not.  Things happen in the world every day…tragic things…but God is able to use every one of them as a part of His perfect plan.

Heavenly Father 

So many times , we cannot see how You can take something which seems terrible…a tragedy…and make something good of it. 

We see pain, suffering, heartache and sadness.  We do not understand why they happen.  It brings us to our knees when we see someone we love hurting themselves or others close to them.  We ask, “Why Lord?” 

But you, O God, are sovereign.  No matter what the world throws at You, what the enemy throws at You, what we throw at You,  these things are taken by you and folded into Your plan. 

We pray for you to clear our minds so that we can see the majesty of your grace, mercy and love in our lives every day.  Give us faith to know that You make all things work together for our good. 

In Jesus’ name we pray, 

Amen

Feb 15 - It's Not About Me

John 1:29-30

“The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, ‘Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is the one I meant when I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’ “

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I find it to be the oddest thing that even when we are serving God with the purest of intentions, the sin of pride can creep into our hearts.  It’s not too far from the well-meaning freshman congressman with a passion for public service who goes to Washington D.C. Over time, he is corrupted by the sycophantic legion who continually feed his ego until it overtakes and destroys the good intent of his service. 

What I love about John in this part of the Gospel is that even though he has a huge group of followers at this point in his ministry, as soon as Jesus enters the scene, it all becomes about Him.  John does not hesitate for a moment to turn the focus where it should be; on Christ.  

Dearest Lord 

When You call us into action to further Your Kingdom, it is so easy for us to make ourselves the focus.   

When we seek our own glory and move the attention away from You, we limit the blessings others can have by fully experiencing a relationship with You. We can become filled with our own spirit instead of the Holy Spirit. 

We ask you to guide our hearts and our minds away from ourselves.  Help us to turn the focus from us and turn it to You.   Give us a humble strength to push aside the false and empty praises of this world.  

The glory is not ours Lord, it is Yours.  Thank you for Your loving call to us.  Make us an instrument of the Holy Spirit, worthy of the work to which you have called us. 

In Christ’s name we pray, 

Amen

Feb 14 - The Battle

Ephesians 6:12

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”
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There are times in your life when you feel beset on all sides by attacks, challenges and roadblocks.  When these times occur, you may often think, “what am I doing wrong?!?”  Maybe that’s not the best way to look at it.

When you are on a good path, walking with joy within the plan God has for you, the enemy does not like it.  The Prince of Lies will throw obstacles in your way to try and knock you off the path.  The battle is not with the people of this world who are getting in your way or causing issues; the battle is a spiritual one.

So, when it seems like things are not going your way, maybe the better question is, “what am I doing right!?!”

Father God 

We know in our hearts, we can feel it in our souls, when we are walking in the way of Truth, moving forward within the plan You have for us.

When we are struggling, with the world pushing against us, bring upon us a spirit of peace and faith in You.

The Battle is Yours, Lord.  Help us to stand firm in the faith that this is a fight You have already won.  Give us the ability to find our rest in You.

We offer this to You, in the name of Your Son, Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns in perfect unity with You and the Holy Spirit as One God, now and forever, 

Amen.

Feb 13 - Preparation

Psalm 32: 1-5

"Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.

Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord does not count against them and in whose spirit is no deceit.

When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long.

For day and night your hand was heavy on me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer.

Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, 'I will confess my transgressions to the Lord.' And you forgave the guilt of my sin."
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Lent is a time to prepare our hearts, minds and souls for the gift of Christ’s sacrifice.  This time from now to Easter is about removing the things from our lives which may block relationships from realizing their full potential.

Sin is like a wall between ourselves and others; between our soul and God.  By owning, confessing and having a genuine heart of repentance for our sin, we remove the wall.  When this obstacle is removed, we have the ability to receive the gift of forgiveness, whether from a friend we have wronged or from God.

Heavenly Father 

As we prepare ourselves during this time for the passion of your crucifixion, death and glorious resurrection, help us to know that by taking action and letting the sin we hold in our hearts leave us through owning up to our thoughts, words and deeds, we make ourselves ready to receive You. 

God, we pray for the awareness that in You, through the gift of Your Son, we can find peace, grace and mercy for whatever we have done or for whatever we have left undone. 

You are glorious God!  We thank you for the ways which You change us, grow us and improve us in order that we might  serve you with joy and humility. 

We ask and offer these things in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. 

Amen

Lent 2013 - Prayer

Greetings Friends and Family -

Here we are again, together, at the beginning of the Holy Season of Lent.  This will be the 5th year of me spending time each day from Ash Wednesday until Easter Sunday, giving you a bit of the thoughts which ramble around in my head.

As a brief reminder, this whole thing started as a way to honor the tradition of "giving something up" for Lent.  I had decided to change that a bit to "giving something out" instead.

Since we last met here, lots has changed in my life.  I made the decision, after much prayer and discernment, to leave my job of almost 9 years and strike out for something new.  The calling I had been feeling to become a local employer and business owner, finding a way to combine my work life and my service life, resulted in a new adventure.  Starting this past December, I became part owner of a local IT services firm which provides a variety of technology solutions to faith-based institutions, non-profits and associations.  (for more info on my work life, you can view my LinkedIn profile at http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=3003203&trk=tab_pro)

As a part of all of this, I think I have spent more time in prayer during the past year than at any other point in my life.  So, the theme for Lent this year is Prayer.  A key question I'd ask each of you to consider during the next 40+ days is this: does Prayer change God or change the one who prays?

I look forward to this journey with each of you and pray that, as we spend time together in prayer, we are able to see changes...in the world around us, in those for whom we pray and in each of us.

Peace.