“But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord,
    whose confidence is in him.
 They will be like a tree planted by the water
    that sends out its roots by the stream.
It does not fear when heat comes;
    its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought
    and never fails to bear fruit.”

 The heart is deceitful above all things
    and beyond cure.
    Who can understand it?

Jeremiah 17:7-9

The last line of this passage is one that always struck me as an indictment of our state of sin- that is, separation from God in some way. I saw it as our foolish mind, always trying to get our own way.   

In recent reading however, I wonder if it is not an expression of our own anxiety and the irrational thoughts that come from it. I have discussed anxiety as that self-defeating part of us that is always around, trying to defeat us. Isn’t this passage a description of that?

The writer is saying, with the context just before the statement about a deceitful heart, that those who have confidence in the Lord are like a tree planted near a stream. The tree does not need to worry about drought because it has a deep source of refreshing water.

Our deceitful heart (anxiety), tries to make us forget about that source of water that runs deep beside us. Anxiety always reminds us that we are inadequate, ready to fall apart, and hopeless. That is what anxiety does.

I very clearly know that anxiety is a deceiver, and that just because one has anxiety, it is by no means a statement that they lack faith! Rather, I suggest that anxiety can temporarily blind us about what true resources are available to us. It overstates the danger and minimizes the rescue.

So, when you are beset by your anxious heart, as we all are at times, remember the deep refreshment that runs close by.

Prayer: Lord, help us to remember in times of stress and worry that you have provided water, even in the desert, Amen

Late in the afternoon his disciples came to him and said, “Tell the people to go away to the nearby villages and farms and buy themselves some food, for there is nothing to eat here in this desolate spot, and it is getting late.”

 But Jesus said, “You feed them.”                                                                            Mark 6:35-37

I always liked this passage about Jesus feeding the 5000. There are a lot of elements to it, and of course the one we resonate to is the miracle of stretching five loaves of bread and two fish to feed that crowd until they were full. Yes, that was pretty major!

However, there are other themes here too. The one I am thinking about today is that Jesus told the disciples to feed the people. This is just after the disciples had, understandably, tried to get a manageable plan so that these hungry people could eat. They proposed that the people be sent away to purchase their own food.

 But Jesus had a lesson in mind for them. He wanted the disciples to begin to understand their responsibility toward those who would follow the message of Jesus. They were to serve those people, not send them off to forage for themselves. Jesus also did this to have an opportunity to let them know of the power that they had, even miraculous power, if they simply trusted the Master, and also used what was on hand to perform that miracle.

Jesus calls us to serve with what we have in our hand- our talents, strengths and abilities, employed for his service. As the old saying goes, “He doesn’t call the equipped, He equips the called”.

So, we are to employ whatever gifts or resources that we have to serve the Kingdom, and God will provide what we need as we move ahead in faith

Prayer: Lord, thank you for the plan that we are called to serve, and that you will provide, Amen

“People don’t fake depression, they fake being okay. Remember that. Be Kind.”

Robin Williams

Will the Lord walk off and leave us for good?
    Will he never smile again?
Is his love worn threadbare?
    Has his salvation promise burned out?
Has God forgotten his manners?
    Has he angrily stomped off and left us?
“Just my luck,” I said. “The High God retires
    just the moment I need him.”                                                                                                                                   Psalm 77:7-10

Words of wisdom from an American genius, Robin Williams. As many great comedic giants, Robin Williams apparently struggled mightily with depression. Interesting how many of the great comedy talents seemed to cover their darkness with comedy. That is how they cope.  

What better way to keep people away from the reality that they experienced- a reality that others did not sense and a reality that they wanted hidden. Make others laugh to accept them. How many people with depression want others on the outside of it?

After all, depression is a deeply personal experience. It is harder to explain than many want to venture to others. Further, for come cultural reasons, people would rather not share it because they may feel shame in doing so. Such is the pity of the lonely experience of deep depression.

I am heartened by the cultural shift toward more acceptance of mental illness. Yet, many who experience deep depression feel isolated, lonely, and completely misunderstood.

So, remember the words of Robin Williams. There are many people who deal with a dark monster called depression. Be kind.

Prayer: Lord, help us to be sensitive to those who are struggling with silent giants, Amen

“As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts”                                                                                                                                                  Isaiah 55:9

Funny how we try to bargain with God sometimes. I am guessing that we all do it, and I know I do. When I really consider it though, I don’t really think that is how God works. That is how WE work.

There are a lot of variations on this, I’m sure, but basically, when we want or need something, or when we are scared, or when we think that someone we love is in trouble, we might try to make a bargain with God.

“God, if you can just do this one thing for me, I promise I will be more faithful”; or “I will never engage in that behavior again if you can just take care of me this time”, and etc. The famous “foxhole promises” are examples of this. Heaven knows, the soldiers who were in terrible danger in war would have every reason to make such requests. I certainly do not blame them one bit.

Yet I believe that God does not make bargains like that. God always wants the best for us, but his sovereign ways are often not known to us. The bargains we try to make with God are the ways that we can lower our anxiety by exerting some control in a situation that we really cannot control. It makes us feel better to make that deal with God, feeling that He will now take care of what we need.

Please do not misunderstand, I definitely believe in prayer. I have written in past blogs about the value of prayer. But let’s be clear, that we do not pray to change God’s mind. Prayer is to change our mind about the situation.

Can God do miracles? Yes, indeed. He does miracles every day, both seen and unseen. My point here is that our relationship to God is not one of bargains and deals. It is about knowing his love for us and his provision, even if it does not look like the deal we proposed to him.

Prayer: Lord, we trust your provision for us, even when we do not see it.

Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect                                     Matthew 5:48

I think there is a tendency in all of us to be “either or”- that is, to see life as black or white, right or wrong etc. I think like all things in life, we are on a sort of continuum. We are on a path. We aren’t there yet, that is, we are not yet where we want to be in our goals, but we are on the path.  Jesus said “Be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect”. What could he mean by that? None of us are remotely close to perfect.

What I believe that he meant is that we are to be on the “perfect path”. We are to follow him. We are on the path of going from selfish to selfless. Are we there yet? Nope. Not until we are perfected in heaven. Yet we are called to be on that path.

I tell my clients that the path to redemption is being on the road from selfish to selfless. To the extent that we do more acts that are more selfless than selfish, we are healthier and happier. People in recovery are well aware that working the 12^th Step, the “service step” is the way to maintain sober living. We all need to be working the “serving others” step over the “serving self” lifestyle.

We are in the process of redemption. We are not completed projects, but we are a work in progress. Jesus wants us to be on the path of redemption, not yet perfect, but on the right road. 

Prayer: Thank you Lord for the plan to perfection, which is following Jesus, Amen

May we be refreshed as by streams in the desert                                                             Psalm 126:4 (Living Bible)

Yes, that is a weird heading for a blog – “The Tireds”. In fact, I’m pretty sure that “tireds” isn’t even a word. But for my purposes, it works, because today I want to talk about three kinds of tired. Since we are physical, spiritual, and mental/emotional beings, I contend that we can get tired in each of those dimensions. We are typically used to thinking of being tired as a physical phenomenon, and indeed, that happens to all of us.

Yet, we can be emotionally or spiritually tired, and we often pass it off to what we know experientially- being physically tired. As we know, the remedy for being physically tired is sleep. We take a nap (or we drift off during that favorite show in the evening- OK, I do), or we go to bed for the night and sleep in order to get refreshed. That, of course, is how it is supposed to be. Sleep is the remedy for physical tiredness.

But how about the remedy for emotional or even spiritual tiredness? Is sleep the remedy for those? I would say no, it is not. The remedy for emotional or mental fatigue is often exercise, or a physical activity that gets our heart rate up. Sleep can be merely an avoidance when mentally or emotionally fatigued, not a remedy. I suggest often to my clients that if they recognize mental or emotional fatigue- “exercise until you are physically tired”. With that, they have energized their mind and often helped clear it of thoughts which are dragging them down.

So, physical exercise is a possible remedy for mental/emotional fatigue, and sleep is a remedy for physical fatigue. What might be the remedy for spiritual tiredness?

Well, much of that depends upon your spiritual orientation, as well as your experiences with God. However, I would suspect that a universal refresher for spiritual tiredness is gratitude. Take a few minutes every day to simply be grateful for what you have been given in this life, and acknowledge the giver. That always gives perspective, and it reminds us that no matter what our current circumstances, we have been richly blessed.

Prayer: Lord, you give us ways to refresh our bodies and spirits. Give us the discernment to know how to refresh, Amen

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.                                 Matthew 7:1-2

I was talking with a client recently about how to approach his wife on a certain situation, and the idea of giving others the benefit of the doubt came up.  I suggested that, based on the Jewish Talmud, scholars went to great lengths to instruct others how to “judge favorably”. They would come up with possible scenarios for why a person, who seemed to act in bad faith on the surface, may have other issues going on which caused his negative behaviors toward them. The exercise itself simply made them stop and think about how they were supposed to treat their Jewish brethren.

I shared with my client that he may need to consider ascribing good motives to his wife’s behavior rather than assuming her worst motives toward him. He paused and said, “you know, I have always prided myself with giving other people the benefit of the doubt, but I have not done that with my wife”.

The ability to assume good motives in loving relationships is a significant factor in determining how well that relationship will flourish and stay intact. We are called, as the Talmud said to “judge favorably”.

When Jesus said in the sermon on the mount that we are to consider how we judge others, I think this is what he meant.

Prayer: Lord we are quick to judge and slow to understand at times. Help us on the journey to understanding, Amen

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good testimony. By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible. …                  Hebrews 11

Do you remember the movies of Indiana Jones? Raiders of the Lost Ark; Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom; Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade? Of course you do! There are a number of culturally iconic movies and movie genres that we all (or almost all of us) can relate to because they made an impact on popular culture.

I have used a scene from this movie genre at various times with clients to discuss the idea of a leap of faith. The scene is when Indiana Jones, in The Last Crusade is nearing the place of a steep canyon divide. He is on the cliff, and he must get to the other side to rescue his dying father. The bridge would not be visible until one actually took a step of faith onto the bridge that they could not see. Only then would it become visible.

With great fear and trepidation, Indy took that step in order to save his father. The bridge appeared when he stepped into the abyss.

Sometimes, my clients are facing what appears to be an impossible abyss. We talk through the situation, the decisions, the options, then I may add the above analogy. Sometimes, the answer does not appear until we take the first step of faith. Yes, it is scary, even terrifying. But having taken the step, what wonders may appear!

It is so hard to step into the unknown. We certainly need to have information and wisdom before taking the step, but at some point, we just have to take the step.

Do you have a difficult decision about a step that you are considering?

Prayer: Lord, give us wisdom and courage as we take steps into the unknown, Amen.

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you,

I Peter 1:3-4

(Courtesy Wikipedia)

This inspiring monument was designed by the father of Matthew Stanford Robison. Matthew’s life was cut short by significant trauma which deprived him of oxygen at birth. He was not expected to live, but though blind and partially paralyzed, he lived to age 11.

I was so moved at seeing this beautiful tribute, that I knew I wanted to share it. It has some level of fame, as it has become a tourist attraction in its home in Salt Lake City, Utah. I, however, had not become aware of it until recently.

I was struck by the statement of hope that the father expressed for his son. That son, crippled at birth, is now experiencing freedom that he never knew on earth. This boy, reaching toward heaven, sees that as his true home- the place where he will be forever free.

Think of the faith and hope of that family. Where there is great pain, there is also the possibility of redeeming that pain. This statue sums that up for me in a beautiful way.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for the plans for eternal hope and full freedom, Amen

 Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life

Philippians 4:6-7

            This passage is one of my very favorite ones in scripture. Paul, writing from a Roman jail, is telling people how to be content, and is thanking people for their support and generosity. He is telling people to earnestly rejoice, even while he is in the midst of trouble.

            There is a formula here for contentment. If we rejoice, recognizing that God is near, we will be better able to turn to Him in prayer, especially at those very rattled times. We are to give our petitions to God with thanksgiving. That is, recognizing that we have done what we are supposed to do, and having put it into God’s hands, we are to be thankful that He will then take care of things. How will He take care of things? Well, that is not our problem- that is His concern. Since He loves us, we are to be assured that He will deal with it in our ultimate best interest. Paul then says that the peace of God will then guard our hearts.

            In order to maintain this peace, we then need to think on good, pure and lovely things, uplifting things. Paul is outlining here the most basic of psychological principles- what we dwell on, we become. The part of our spirit that is fed is the part that grows. So, we are to feed the positive, uplifting ideas and surroundings, not the negative, deadly things the world has to offer.

            Paul concludes, if we put these things into practice, the God of peace will be with us. If we let the peace of God guard our hearts, the God of peace will dwell there!

Prayer: Father, thanks for your plan of taking care of us in the times of trouble. Help us to remember that you love us more than we understand, and that you desire us to have you, the God of peace, dwell with us, Amen.