The Process

Jesus told his disciples to get into the boat so they could all go to the other side of the Lake. [Mk.4:35]Traditional thinking would have us think that the whole goal here was to get into the boat to get to the other side of the lake. But a storm interrupted their little row or sail across the lake. In life we have turbulence. We are irritated by these moments in life that hinder us from getting to the other side or accomplishing our goal. ---The teaching moment for the disciples came when the storm brew up. The opportunity for them to show trust and faith showed up during the storm. Trust and obedience to Jesus Christ are the goal, not getting to the other side. We tend to despise the process, but it is the process that is the daily moments (the journey) of getting to the other side. Quit looking over there so much. Live, trust, obey in the moment.

Below average is good?

Approaching the end of the series dealing with "love one another", I have some thoughts to share. In baseball if a player gets a hit 3 out of 10 times at bat, he is considered doing well. Yet, he failed 7 times out of 10. If you are a good friend 3 out of 10 times, you are probably in danger of losing friends. Yet, none of us are perfect so there is a lot of leeway there...a lot of work that needs to be done in the relationship area of life. Do the work---be patient, kind, forgiving, etc. so that the world is a better place. Don't settle. Excel!

Giant Jellyfish

I was reading this article where these giant 6 feet long jelly fish are wrecking havoc off the coast of Japan. I thought what kind of havoc can a jellyfish cause? Evidently they get into the nets of fishermen and ruin the nets allowing the catch of fish to escape. That doesn't sound like too big a deal to us far away from the scene. But when your next meal and the village that you live in depends on this as a source for food---it's a huge deal. It turns out that these nets are owned by the whole community. These communities invest together so they can live. ---Ah! These people that have probably read few books on leadership, and are totally disconnected with the latest technology have learned that it takes togetherness for a community to survive and thrive. Doing one's part is not optional in their world...nor ours if we are to live out the life God intended.

BFF

There are many layers of friendship. Look at Jesus' example. There were the seventy, the twelve, the three, the one---each type of friendship had its own dynamic. We have those people that are in our top 70, top ten, top 3, BFF. Everyone can't be your BFF, so don't get mad when they aren't, because it's impossible. Don't go Middle School on your friends. There are some people that are friends from a distance, and some that are up close and personal. That's okay. It is the way we are made. ---Who was Jesus' best friend? Oh, I think he had one, but I'll tell you what I think next week.

Disconcern for the Environment

Typically when discussing the environment saving the tree frog or global warming or saving the rain forest are hot topics. But what about saving the babies? I never understood this: the ones looking to save the whale or some nearly extinct spider don’t fight for the life of the unborn human. Why does this rattle the cage of those immersed in greenery? Likewise, those that are concerned for the unborn should be concerned about the planet in which these children would be left to manage. You did know that ‘s why were put here, don’t you? ---to manage and replenish the earth.

Home Training

A guy told me a story of how he watched a young man at his church follow an attractive young woman in the hall way to "check her out". He said that it ticked him off that this guy was treating church as a pick-up spot.---Well, I haven't heard of that one at our church, but I've heard of other things that should be highlighted. Since there isn't a guidebook we need to have an avenue to give a little "home training", so I will try it right here for the few readers we have.

Scoot over- when someone looks like that need a place to sit...scoot over.

Be quiet- when the pastor or someone is speaking...be quiet. Show respect. It amazes me how loud people talk when they think they are whispering. You don't know how many times people behind you are disturbed and can't listen because of your noisy antics. Your disturbance might stand between a person and where they spend eternity. (I would say especially during the Invitation, but then again that would make it sound like it was okay at other times.)

Lastly, Don't get up during the service---it doesn't bother me, but I hear people quite often lose touch because somebody got up and walked out during the service. (I'm not talking about someone being sick or serious issues. We're not Legalist.) For goodness' sake lay off the coffee if you can't handle it. For those that have back pain and fear you'll have to get up; you can certainly sit in the back. ---Seriously, this stuff doesn't phase me in the least, but it does phase other people in the congregation...because they tell me about it. ---So, just consider this a little home training.

Clothes Don't Make the Man

Clothes don't make the man. Clothes just help us hide who we really are. On the way to church, I saw folks walking into their church all dressed up. That's fine. But it spurred a thought in my head. How easy is it for man to play dress up? We can cover up and make ourselves look good, when we aren't all together on the inside. (*this doesn't mean you can't dress up for church) When we come before God and our fellow man in truth and honesty, then can real things happen in our lives. Otherwise, we can pretend for our whole lives. We need life transformation, not wardrobe transformation. ---Keepin it real.