Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus…                                        Philippians 2:5

My cousin recently sent me a short video from Rabbi Shais Taub. Taub does work in addiction recovery and has a following in both Jewish and Christian communities. Rabbi Taub explains in this short video that there are two types of people- thermometer people and thermostat people.

He goes on to explain that thermometers measure the temperature in the room. They merely reflect what the present environment is. Thermostats, on the other hand set the temperature of the room. They influence their environment, and are not merely recipients of the atmosphere- they set it.

So it is with attitude. We can be thermostats and be responsible for setting the attitude we want, or we can feel subject to reflecting the present attitudes around us. Given the current unrest and irritability of the culture at this time, we have a choice as to how we want to respond. Do we want to set a tone of love and acceptance, or will we be overrun by the anger and mistrust we often find around us?

Prayer: Lord, help us to set a tone of peace and love wherever we go, Amen

“But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us…”  “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”                                                                                                           II Corinthians 4:7-18

I was particularly struck by the first and last verses of this reading from II Corinthians. We have this treasure- that is, spiritual eternal life- in clay vessels. The most precious gift one can imagine comes packaged in a very breakable, fragile clay pot. Yet, more often than not we honor the package more than the prize inside because the package is clearly visible, maybe even attractive. Maybe this is like the child who opens a present then quickly disregards the present for the fun of playing with the box it came in. We can laugh at the irony of that, yet in a sense, we may do that quite often ourselves.

We are essentially spiritual beings housed in a very fragile body. That body is prone to illness, pain, addiction, and aging, yet that is what gets the majority of our attention rather than the eternal life unseen inside. Verse 18 tells us that we are to see with spiritual eyes, not focusing on the “seen” but the “unseen”, because the unseen is eternal. Once again, we see the paradox of the spiritual life. Our soul is eternal, and it lasts forever. Our body, the clay vessel, will, in time, become broken and ultimately will no longer be able to hold the soul. The soul will seek after its Creator if we follow life as we were created to do- to seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.(Mt. 6:33)

Finally, let’s consider verse 16, ^“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.” While we recognize that our bodies are literally wasting away day by day (a thought we mercifully relegate to denial land), our spirits are being renewed, because the resources for that are eternal and unseen. God is at work in us through His renewal agent, the Holy Spirit. So, we need not worry about where our strength comes from, we know it comes from our relationship with God and His unseen, but constant work in us.

Prayer: Father, thank you for your constant renewal of us. These clay vessels to which we have become so attached are not forever, but our relationship with you is, Amen

Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.                    Psalm 34:8

I was speaking recently with a client about energy inputs. Just like the physics of motion, we need to have an input of energy to move a system away from its current inertia. Systems at rest tend to stay at rest, unless they are moved upon with some type of energy. In the classic case of breaking a set of billiard balls on a table, one must input energy (a vigorous plunge of the cue stick on the cue ball) and that energy will get transmitted to the racked balls, causing them to (hopefully) scatter around the table.

The same is true with our behavior. We must have some input of energy into a behavior in order to get a desired result. The idea is that the energy we expend should result in positive outcomes for us. We trust that the energy we spent will be worthwhile.

The hard part, especially if one is depressed, is to muster that energy toward a goal of some kind. I believe it is true that whatever energy we can muster toward a positive goal is energy well spent. Even though we do not yet see the positive outputs, we need to trust that our efforts will be worth it.

To that I say, taste and see. Just try the behavior and see if the results are not worth the effort. Typically, after making an effort at a perceived difficult behavior (getting out of bed a little early, exercising, making that hard phone call, etc.) people usually find that the effort paid more in outputs than the inputs of energy it took.

Prayer: Lord, give us the strength to take on those hard tasks, Amen

My wife and I visited Springfield, Illinois several years ago as we meandered down old Route 66 on vacation. We visited a lot of the Lincoln spots in Springfield- the Lincoln museum, the Lincoln Library, his old residence, and his burial memorial site. We were moved by these visits. Abraham Lincoln was a study in moral leadership, statesmanship, courage, and a forgiving spirit.

Indeed, I have always been touched by his second inaugural address, delivered just weeks before he was assassinated. In that marvel of a speech, Lincoln stated that the nation needed to begin “binding the wounds” that four years of Civil War had wrought on the nation.

“With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation’s wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.”

Lincoln’s rhetoric here was a classic example of moral leadership. This speech was delivered on March 21, 1865, nineteen days before the surrender at Appomattox Court House which effectively ended the Civil War. The nation was still at war, in the most bitter confrontation this country has experienced. People on both sides were NOT in a mood of reconciliation and forgiveness. Lincoln’s bold proclamation may have even shortened his life since one of the attendees of that speech was John Wilkes Booth. This may have solidified for Booth that Lincoln must die for his belief about binding wounds and finding a way to move ahead with “charity, not malice”.

I was saddened again in visiting this great man’s grave, wondering how things may have been different had he lived to oversee a reconstruction that looked very different than what later happened under Andrew Johnson.

I also pondered the power of moral leadership and how it helps to shape a national psyche.

Paul stood up in the middle of the council on Mars Hill and said, “People of Athens, I see that you are very religious in every way.  As I was walking through town and carefully observing your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: ‘To an unknown God.’ What you worship as unknown, I now proclaim to you.  God, who made the world and everything in it, is Lord of heaven and earth. He doesn’t live in temples made with human hands.                                                          Acts 17:16-17

 

In this present era, we experience a type of communication where people are talking across one another instead of to one another. We see Paul as an example of one who knew how to engage people. Paul had a message of good news which he desperately wanted to share with people, because he believed that spiritual life and death were at stake. Instead of demeaning and mocking the primitive beliefs of the idol worshipers at Athens, Paul showed respect for them in their search for truth. He acknowledged their sincere search for truth, and he showed his interest in their culture. He walked around the city and observed what was important to them. He did not judge them, but pointed out and affirmed their own desire to know the “unknown god”. The Athenians were open to the idea of a god that they did not yet know, and they had made idols to various gods. However, in the interest of not leaving any out lest they anger one of those deities, they made an idol to the “unknown god.”

Paul was able to use their own language and concepts to help introduce them to the God that could offer them peace and salvation. He did not mock their feeble attempts to placate the unknown god, he introduced them to the God of their need, the God that they sought and did not yet know.

Paul’s approach is needed today. We need to listen, and understand the language of people with whom we disagree. We need not, and should not, shame and dishonor those with whom we disagree. We need to love them enough to hear their world view. It may be very different from ours, yet people come to a particular world view for a reason. It is arrived at due to a journey different than ours oftentimes.

As we enter the heated environment of political rhetoric which is so visible these days, let us pause to understand that with which we disagree. You will read, if you complete the 17^th chapter of Acts, that Paul gained a hearing from the people of Athens because he cared enough to hear their story and their world view, different as it was from his. Let us be intentional in respectfully hearing views with which we disagree.

It is good for our soul, and the souls of those whom we love, and yet do not agree with.

Prayer: Lord, grant us the patience to hear what we do not agree with, and the grace to patiently share your love, Amen.

 

Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.                                                                                                                                           Matthew 19:14

That is the answer to the question, “what was your favorite summer as a kid?”

It was the summer of 1961. I was 11 years old, carefree, and we had the run of the neighborhood. There were four of us who ran around together- my best friend Ray from across the street and his younger sister, Mary Jo; Betty from up the street, and me. We had a club that met in a treehouse which was very cool, and probably by today’s standards, wildly dangerous. Of course, we did not know better, and no one was hospitalized that year. Yes, Mary Jo put her hand through a glass door and was stitched up, but that was pretty much it for serious injuries.

The club was, as society was in 1961, a sexist place. The boys, Ray and I, were President and Vice-President of the club, Mary Jo and Betty were Secretary and Treasurer. That is just the way things were.

That summer was amazing too because the Cincinnati Reds were in the thick of a pennant race for the first time since 1940. Yes, they did come close in 1956. I remember that because dad was very excited that summer, only to be heartbroken once again in September. However, 1961 was the Reds year, and indeed, they did win the pennant. Just WOW for a kid in his first real pennant race!

I think back to that summer as we encounter some beautiful summer days right now. I also reflect back on this because many children don’t get summers like that. I just recently had a client tell me that, because of childhood abuse, she missed a great deal of joyful childhood memories, forced out of innocent childhood experiences by sexual abuse. She said, “I just wanted to be a little girl a little while longer.

Many children, too many, are deprived of those wonderful carefree memories which I am privileged to have. Many children around the world are in poverty, sexual slavery, or other abusive situations that preclude an innocent, carefree childhood.

There are things we can do to improve the lives of children who are suffering. Fostering children, adopting kids through Compassion International, mentoring kids through church programs- these are just a few ways to help children who need us. I encourage my readers to check out what volunteer program might be calling you to help.

I don’t want to leave on a sad note, but a hopeful one. Think about your best summer memories and celebrate them. Share them with your grandkids or kids who will not believe that back in the Dark Ages, we played in treehouses and had no concept of what an electronic gadget might look like.

Kids love those stories right!

Prayer: Thank you Father for the gift of childhood and wonderful times in the summer. We lift up those children whose summers are not as wonderful, Amen.

 They will receive blessing from the Lord and vindication from God their Savior.                                                                                                                                             Psalm 24:5

Psalm 24 starts by reminding the reader of the truth of who owns the creation-the earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it.
The world and all its people belong to him. It was God’s plan and handiwork which brought about life, and all life is his. People argue about the mechanics of how the universe began, and it is a distraction from the miracle of creation. God has chosen to bless his creation, and the largest blessing is the fact that he has redeemed us from sin. Verse 5, stated above, tells us this very thing. God is identified as our Savior in this verse. Is there any more amazing revelation than that the creator of the universe is also its redeemer? This must change the way we see the character and nature of God.

Were he just the distant creator who simply wanted to be fascinated with his work, he would not be involved in our well-being. Were he simply a curious being who created this amazing universe to see how his creation would respond to it, he would also be distant and removed, like a scientist with an experiment.

But God created this universe as a loving being who wants us to ultimately spend eternity with him. Therefore, he has total and loving involvement, even to the point of providing the remedy for our sins. That is the miracle of creation.

 

Prayer: Father, thank you for loving us, and creating the worlds, not for your pleasure, but for our good. That is a love we cannot fathom, Amen

A little Jesus story…

“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven                                                                                                                                    Matthew 5:14-16

 

Almost everyone loves hearing a story. Stories engage us because we are people. There is an innate draw of attention when some point is personalized with a story by a speaker. A character is introduced, maybe one that we do not even know. We become interested in that character, and we want to know, how the story ends. What happens to the character?

When we were children, we always wanted our parents to tell us a story, often at bedtime. Something about that was comforting, reassuring, grounding.

Jesus told stories all the time to illustrate lessons of wisdom to his hearers. His stories, his parables, have been retold and discussed for centuries. He told powerful stories of redemption, hope, and forgiveness, like the Prodigal Son; the story of the Ten Coins which teaches us about investing ourselves and using what has been given to us; the Lost Sheep, the Laborers in the Vineyard- on and on Jesus told great engaging, instructive stories.

I like to use stories, analogies really, with my clients to help them to visualize some mental health concepts. Sometimes, when a client is just struggling with trying to do everything and feeling overwhelmed, I use the analogy of the swimmer who is drowning. By virtue of their flailing around and aimless, frenzied attempts to save themselves, the swimmer expends the precious energy they have, and they start to sink. When a lifeguard gets to the stranded swimmer, what does he or she say to the swimmer? “Stop swimming! Your swimming is getting in the way of rescue. Hold on to me, I will get you to safety!”

The point of the story is that our continued overwork and striving might just be the thing getting in the way of our health. The paradox of that truth can often be better understood by such a lifeguard story.

Think of a story that has impacted you. Telling it to someone else is good for both of you.

Prayer: Jesus, thank you for your great stories which have given such wonderful life lessons, Amen.

No one puts a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; for the patch pulls away from the garment, and the tear is made worse.  Nor do they put new wine into old wineskins, or else the wineskins break, the wine is spilled, and the wineskins are ruined. But they put new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved.”                                                                                                                                                                              Matthew 9:16-17

Jesus used parables to teach principles to his disciples. He used common, everyday materials in the world as examples- like sowing seeds; the lilies of the field; the birds of the air; sheep; houses built upon sand and those built upon rock; and wine and wineskins. He was a practical and effective teacher. He was, and is, a man of the people. As Isaiah had written long before, he was a man “acquainted with grief”. He knew suffering, and he knew joy. He knew us.

Jesus used a parable about new wine and old wineskins to teach about our receptiveness and our ability to take in change. He said that if you pour new wine into old wineskins, since those skins have already been stretched to the limit, the old skins may burst as the “new wine” ferments and expands.

I was having a discussion the other day with some dear friends who are about my age. We have a lot of experience in the service we do, but we agreed that there comes a time when the next generation must be handed the torch. We can change to accommodate new ideas, and we do, but there comes a time for new wineskins.

This does not mean that we just give up and retire. We still have a lot to offer. Our challenge is to recognize when and how to hand over that torch of leadership, yet also to stay as fresh and relevant as we can.

Prayer: Lord, help keep us fresh and receptive as we pass the torch of leadership, Amen

Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are-yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need

Hebrews 4:14-16 and Matthew 4:1-11

 

Today’s reflection is about temptation and how Jesus dealt with it. It always struck me as odd that Jesus would even entertain a discussion with the evil one. Jesus knew him, yet he engaged Satan, and allowed the tempter to talk with him.

I have come to conclude that Jesus did this solely for our benefit, so that we could see how he was tempted- that he was not above it, because he had allowed himself to come into the world as a man. He allowed it to be an example to us of how to deal with temptation when it comes. Jesus sent the tempter away with the words of God handed to us in Scripture. Jesus was confident that his Father would take care of him in times of trouble. Finally, when Jesus was finished with Satan, he summarily dismissed him. Jesus had been able to use the experience for our instruction, so he then sent Satan away in no uncertain terms.

Temptation comes in many forms, and it comes every day. I am not one who credits Satan for all the temptations or situations that can cause us trouble. We have a natural tendency to be self-serving and self-indulgent, so we can get ourselves in plenty of trouble without the presence of an evil being. However, we need to know the remedy of how to approach those critical situations we encounter with confidence- that “God has got this”.

Jesus approached the situation with confidence- not pride, confidence. Confidence is the assurance that God has our best interest at stake, that he will never leave us nor forsake us. Therefore, we can take on any situation, knowing that God is FOR us, not against us. We also need to have confidence that God is “faithful and just to forgive our sins” (I John 1:9) when we do falter. That too is confidence.

Jesus showed us how to combat Satan, and he used the very word of God to thwart Satan’s attacks. We can do no less than that in our own struggles with temptation.

 

Prayer: Father, thank you that we can approach your throne for help in time of need, and that we can have confidence in you- we do not need to rely on our own strength! Amen