THE MONUMENT OF YOUR LIFE

Yet, O LORD, you are our Father. We are the clay,

you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.

Isaiah 64:8

Early in the 20^th century, sculptor Gutzon Borglum looked upon the cliffs of South Dakota's Black Hills – and saw something no one else could see. As a great artist his vision was not limited to the sharp granite cliffs of the mountain that stood before him. In that mighty rock he saw a statement of freedom and liberty that would last thousands of years. He envisioned a legacy that would inspire countless generations.

So he began one of the greatest projects of the modern era: sculpting the faces of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt into Mount Rushmore.

How in the world did Borglum foresee such a work of art by looking at a cliff? How did he have the extraordinary patience to oversee the 14 year project through to its completion. Simple. He had the vision to see what those Black Hills could become.

And that is exactly what the Great Artist, God Himself, is seeing in you right now.

At this very moment, God is envisioning what you can become in Him. He wants to chip away at your rough edges and make you into a beautiful work of art that will inspire countless generations. He sees a magnificent legacy in you and in the monument of your life. In you He will make a powerful statement of faith, hope and love for all to see.

Yes, the Lord Jesus wants to sculpt your life into a tremendous work of art so that anyone who looks upon you will see His Great Work.

But, you have a role to play. Unlike that old rock that became Mount Rushmore, you have a choice to make. Will you allow the Lord to mold you into something spectacular? In order for the Him to make a beautiful monument of your life, you must allow yourself to be sculpted. You must trust Him to remove the unwanted pieces in order to reveal the beauty beneath.

This week, open yourself up to The Great Artist. Let the Master create a wonderful work of art in you.

This Week’s Prayer

Dear Lord, I know you can make my life into something which brings honor and glory to you; hope and healing to your children; and peace into my family. I am your clay. Make of me what You will. Take away all that is unwanted and unnecessary. Create in me a life and legacy through which all others will see your loving Hand. Amen.

FORGET THE PAST

“Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on  toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”

Phillipians 3:13-14

Some years ago the well known author and speaker, Dr. Kenneth McFarland was a Superintendent of Schools in Kansas. One of the schools under his supervision was the Coffeyville Jr. College. One year, on the day before the annual commencement ceremonies, a student came into his office. He recognized her immediately as an honor student. She was a very bright and attractive girl named Nancy. And she had a story to tell Dr. McFarland.

You see, Nancy’s father had been killed when she was small child, so her mother worked in factory to support her three children, Nancy and two brothers. The only other living relative this struggling family had was, Uncle Ben. And Uncle Ben had a drinking problem.

Then one night, while the children were still very young, their mother died very unexpectedly. Uncle Ben came to the house. "Uncle Ben," the children asked, "What are we going to do now?" Uncle Ben answered, "I love you kids. I'll go down to court and get you assigned to me. Then, I'll get down on my knees every night and ask God to raise you right."

"And he did!" Nancy told Superintendent McFarland. “He hasn't had a drink since. He hasn't missed a day of work since. Jim graduated from Medical School. Tommy's graduating from MIT this Spring. I'm going to teacher's college. Tomorrow night will be the sixth commencement Uncle Ben has attended.”

"There's only one problem,” Nancy continued. “He won't sit in the parents' section. He feels it would show disrespect for Mom.” Knowing that Dr. McFarland would be giving the commencement speech, Nancy asked, “Could you mention something about Uncle Ben at the Commencement?" Ken McFarland said he would.

The next night at graduation, it was a beautiful, cool evening. The graduating students came in and took their places. Behind the students was the parents' section, and behind them was the section for relatives and friends. Nancy Hollingsworth was in the front row. When Dr. McFarland stood up to deliver his address he first had all the parents stand up to honor them and thank them for their dedication to their children.

After a kind applause, the parents sat once again. Then he looked down to the front row and saw Nancy Hollingsworth. Her head hung low. She thought that he'd forgotten Uncle Ben.

But, Dr. McFarland continued by saying, "Now, I'd like to have all those Uncle Bens who have graduates in this class, please stand." It was very quiet. Everyone looked around, and there was just a murmur going through the entire gathering of people.

Absolutely, nothing happened. So he said, "I'm not going to go on with my talk until the Uncle Ben who has a graduate in this class stands." Way back behind the students, the graduates, the parents, way back in the friends and relatives' section, a very tall, lean man slowly made his way to his feet. And there he stood. Suddenly, an ovation started across one part of the stadium and roared through to the other end. It lasted for several minutes as he remained standing with his head bowed, somewhat embarrassed at all this attention.

After the ceremony, McFarland asked Uncle Ben, "When you went down to court that day, what did you say? You didn't have a very good case as I understand it." Uncle Ben said, "You're right. I was scared to death. And when the judge asked me why I thought the children should come and live with me, I said `The Master said, A man can be born again. He can change. He can change completely. And he can stay changed. I believe the Master meant any man. Even a drunken ne'er-do-well. I believe that when the Master said, 'whosoever will,' I believe he included me."

The judge had looked at him a long time and said, "I believe that deal includes you, too. I'm going to let you take the children for 30 days. We'll come check. If everything's going all right, you can keep them permanently." Then Uncle Bill said, "The three kids and I got home, and we got down on our knees, and I promised God that if he'd hold onto me, I would hold on to the kids, and the five of us have been going along together all these years."

Yes, some of us are crippled by the mistakes of the past. We lie awake at night reliving past humiliations, anticipating the consequences of past misdeeds, regretting the tragedy of missed opportunities.

But, with Christ, you have a new beginning and a new future. The past is gone. The Bible is very clear on this. In fact, Paul advises us to "forget those things that are past." This is exceptionally powerful advice.

Remember, you can't do anything about yesterday, but you can do something about today. With Christ by your side, supporting you, you can be released from all the strongholds of your past life.

Your life with Christ isn’t about yesterday, it is about an eternity of joyous tomorrows. That is how it works. But, there is a battle going on within each of us. A battle between who we were alone and who we are in Christ. You can’t fight this battle alone. You can only do it with the help of Jesus Christ.

This week, let go of the past and take hold of your future in our Lord Jesus Christ.

This week’s prayer

Dear Lord, please do not allow me to be a prisoner to my past. Remind me that my past life does not determine what my future will be like. Remain with me all the days of my life. Guide me, strengthen me and be my companion. I do not want to go on the journey of life without You. Please go with me into tomorrow as we turn our backs on the mistakes and sins of days gone by. Amen.

KEEP IT SIMPLE

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'  This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.  All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." 

Matthew 22:35-40

The late Bruce Larson, often referred to as the Father of Relational Theology, once told me that the Bible can be summarized in six words, “God loves you. Don’t be stupid.” Perfectly and simply put.

Yet, isn’t it interesting how people try to complicate things? Just look how complicated God has become? He didn’t make it that way. We did.

The worldwide Christian family has become splintered into thousands of traditions, cultures and denominations, each based on different interpretations and beliefs. Every year thousands of Christian books are published, all attempting to explain the Bible down to the smallest, most confusing, most complicated detail.

Down through the centuries, people have created a lot of things that get in the way of our Lord’s simple message. That’s why it’s important to remember that we need to focus on the key points and not get lost in the world’s details. Otherwise we overlook our true faith, while religion becomes a source of confusion and conflict.

Jesus explained it through just two basic principles. When the religious leaders of His day, experts in religious law, tried to test Jesus they asked Him which of the commandments was the most important. He told them, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.’" 

Here, through the Words of Jesus Himself, we find the foundation and summation of everything in the Bible. Our Lord simply asks that we love Him and love others enough to treat them as we would like to be treated. Is that so hard to understand?

Maybe if people would actually read the Bible they'd realize there's nothing further to explain. This week, reflect upon these two simple statements of Christ: Love God. Love people.

This Week’s Prayer

Lord, your message is simple and powerful. I fully understand and accept your command to love you and love others. Sometimes I look for ways to complicate these two commands so that I don’t have to get right down to it and follow them. Please allow me the strength and courage to follow the simplicity of Your Word no matter what. In every situation let me see your will and give me the discipline to follow it. Amen.

I AM WHO I AM

To the weak I became weak, to win the weak.

I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some.

1 Corinthians 9:22

It usually happens a few times each summer. Maybe you’ll be taking a walk and see them on them on the sidewalk. Or you might be doing yard work and find them on the patio. Wherever you might stumble upon them, ant colonies are fascinating. Why? Because while we may stop to observe their hard labor, organization and tenacity they have no idea who we are or that we even exist.

They have no idea that you have the power to sweep them away or just turn the hose on them and be done with them once and for all. After all, they’re messing up your patio and should build their colony somewhere else. Yes, you have total power of life and death over them, but now how could you possibly communicate that to a bunch of simple ants? 

If you picked them up and moved the ants they would only scatter in confusion and terror. Of course, they wouldn’t learn a thing about the proper place to build and would simply continue messing things up once you left them alone. So, how could you talk to them? How could you save them once and for all?

The only way to help them, to save them, would be to approach them as an ant yourself, a simple member of their own colony. Only then would they recognize you and understand what you were saying. And only as an ant yourself could you describe the problems they faced in terms that would make sense to them. Of course, as an ant, you would not have all your human capabilities, but your insight and superior wisdom into ant life would amaze them.  Some would listen to your warning and seek a new life off the big patio, away from the heat of the barbecue grill. Some would mock you for the dangers you were telling them about; people, cars, pets, and roadways.  While the decision to listen to you is there’s alone, you did the best you could to save.

Our Lord had a similar dilemma in communicating with people, with us. He knew that if He came to us in His true form and glory, we would respond in absolute terror. So how did He solve this problem? He arrived as one of us, God in human form, as Jesus Christ.  It was the only way He could give us a higher wisdom, a message about the right way to live and on the dangers of destruction of the wrong ways.

He didn’t have to do it this way. In fact, He turned the hose on us once before, flooding out all of us “ants” except one small colony! This time, out of love, He chose to humble and reduce Himself to our level just to teach and save us. Now, He leaves the choice to us and remains as a still quiet voice of counsel to our souls. We only need to listen and believe. This is how the Lord reveals

When you read the Bible or spend time in prayer, do you recognize that it is God who is speaking to you? The Lord’s desire to speak to you is strong. And if you give him just a bit of your time and energy, he will break through the silence and open your ears. Right now, ask the Holy Spirit to help you become more open to the One who will always be here to guide you home.

This Week’s Prayer

Thank you, Lord, for revealing yourself to me through your Son. Teach me to recognize your presence and welcome your Spirit at work in my life. With your awesome wisdom and tender love, guide me to the right places and away from the wrong ones. Allow me to see that you have me in the palm of your hand and will always place me where I need to be. Amen. 

THE ROSE OF SHARON

“I am a rose of Sharon, a lily of the valleys.”

Song of Songs 2:1

Though it’s usually read to children, The 'Little Rose of Sharon' is a poignant story with a magnificent lesson for all of us. It tells of a beautiful red rose that grew in a field of other flowers and trees near the town of Sharon long ago. Just above the sweet rose was a fig tree where a family of white doves had built a nest for their new eggs.

Looking all around, the rose was overjoyed at the beauty God had given her and hoped He was pleased with her lovely red petals and sweet fragrance. Indeed, God loved and little flower and smiled upon her every day.

One night a terrible storm came. The little rose swayed in the wind, bending and twisting, trying to hold on. When the storm finally came to an end she had survived with all her pedals and beauty intact.

But the little dove eggs that were in the fig tree above had fallen to the ground just underneath the rose. Tired from the storm, the mother and father doves could not lift the eggs back to the nest. Night came again and it was very cold. The rose knew that if the baby doves were not protected they would die.

With a smile, the lovely rose shed her beautiful red petals over the baby dove eggs to keep them warm and safe from the cold night.

Not knowing what the rose had one the parents of the baby doves had lost all hope. But, in the morning they saw a tiny movement underneath the red petals. They flew down to this warm red blanket shouted with joy as their newborn doves popped out. 

The rose was happy that she had made this sacrifice, but was afraid that God would no longer find her beautiful. When the Lord came to visit the rose, He was more pleased than ever before. He told her, “My Son will one day do the same for all mankind. He will give of Himself and sacrifice His love just as you have done.”

Like the Rose of Sharon and Christ Himself, we are sometimes called to sacrifice ourselves. And so it has been through the history of the world and of our nation.

236 years ago, fifty-six men gathered in Philadelphia to sign the Declaration of Independence. Their devotion to this new republic resulted in untold sufferings for themselves and their families. Of the 56 men, five were captured by the British and tortured before they died. Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned. Two lost their sons in the Revolutionary Army. Another had two sons captured. Nine of the fifty-six fought and died from wounds or hardships of the war. Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships sunk by the British navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts and died in poverty.

At the battle of Yorktown, the British General Cornwallis had taken over Thomas Nelson's home for his headquarters. Nelson quietly ordered General George Washington to open fire on the Nelson home. The home was destroyed and Nelson died bankrupt.

There may be no reward here on earth for the sacrifices we make to serve the Lord, those we love or a life-saving cause. But, rest assured, the Lord God looks after you now and for eternity. Like the little rose who dropped its beautiful pedals to save the baby doves, you are called to be like Christ, a living sacrifice, in whom He is well pleased.

This week’s prayer

Dear Jesus, You have called me to be a living sacrifice. Open my eyes to the everyday opportunities to sacrifice myself so that others will see You in what I do. To Christ be all the honor and Glory. Amen.

THE CALL IS FOR YOU

And he went up on the mountain, and called to him those whom he desired; and they came to him. And he appointed twelve, to be with him, and to be sent out to preach and have authority to cast out demons.

                                                                                        Mark 3:13-15

If I had been Jesus’ Human Resources manager, I would have chosen an entirely different group of apostles for Him. The people Jesus chose are a strange group of men, especially when you consider that He was just beginning His ministry. Remember, they would eventually deny him, doubt him, betray him, misunderstand him, and argue over who was the most important in his ministry. Why then did He choose them?

The reason why Jesus decided to call them and not some others was not immediately clear to the disciples either. But very quickly, Jesus instructed them, guided them, and served as a model for them during his earthly ministry. Yet, they would not fully understand until, on Pentecost, they received the Holy Spirit.

Gloriously, what was true for these twelve is just as true for each of us! His call is not to a select few but to everyone. Yes, Jesus summons each of us – You! - to be with Him. He is also calling you to go forth just as He sent those first twelve!

Now, you might feel reluctant to join Him because you don’t understand His call or don’t feel adequate to serve Him. So, I’ll remind you again. Neither did the apostles. It took a lot of time, work, and grace, but with only one exception, they stuck with Him to the end and became the greatest ministry team of all time.

The Lord does not want you to be discouraged or to put yourself down for any weaknesses you may see in yourself. You are a pilgrim on a journey, a work in process. This means that if you are obedient, The Father will provide for you just as He did for disciples.

Jesus doesn’t call you just to be a spectator of His ministry. He is calling upon you to play a vital and influential role in it. Of course, it is important to be with Jesus in prayer and worship, but it is just as important that you go out and actively build His kingdom. Right now, you have an eternal opportunity: you can take up the call to follow Jesus. You can allow His grace to transform you to be the blessing for others that The Lord is calling you to be.

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man  who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best, knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly so that his place shall never be with those timid souls who know neither victory or defeat.”

Theodore Roosevelt

Today’s Prayer

“Father, my heart is filled with thanksgiving that your Son has called me to go out and be His hands and feet in the world. Allow me your grace as I venture out to reach others with your love. And please, guide and empower me with your Holy Spirit so that I may always run to win your great victory!. Amen.”

A FATHER'S PLACE

“A man finds joy in giving an apt reply and how good is a timely word!”

Proverbs 15:23

Sitting in a restaurant recently, I watched a little girl climb up to her father’s lap, snuggle deeply into his arms and say warmly, “This is my safe place!”

Fathers, YOU are the “safe place” for your children. Without exception, you are their protector and provider. That’s all children really need from you. They just want to be in the same place as you, with you, and have you totally be with them.

It’s simple. They desperately, urgently need your time with the TV, cell phone, and computer all off. Your children need a safe place where you can ask them the important questions . . . and where they can answer them safely. “How are you and the Lord getting along?” “How can we pray today?” “What’s worrying you the most?” “What’s the funniest thing that happened to you today?” “What’s the best thing you learned?”

They need the safe place you give them so they can cry or laugh, be silly or silent, challenge or cherish, and have it all be okay. They just need a time to relax and sink into your arms and your heart with no distractions or agendas. Then they will always know that they can come to you, pray with you, and if you have truly opened the door to them, come to you for help.

Your children need a place where their opinions and perspectives are respected, and where God always has the last Word. They need a leader in their life who is a gentleman not a general. Being a father is far more than being a disciplinarian. Keep in mind that knowing the Lord is on your side means it’s okay to be gracious, assured, relaxed . . . even human.

Your children need a family shepherd. You don’t need to show them absolute and infallible authority. Just live your life with a powerful thirst for God and they will be thirsty for Him all the days of their lives.

Here are some wonderful words of wisdom to consider:

The Lord needs Fathers who:

·       Are committed to their children.

·       Know their children.

·       Are consistent in their attitudes and behavior.

·       Protect and provide for their children.

·       Love their children’s mother.

·       Actively listen to their children.

·       Spiritually equip their children.

The Lord needs Fathers who teach:

• Kindness by being thoughtful and gracious.
• Patience by being gentle and understanding.
• Honesty by keeping his promises to his family no matter what.
• Courage by living fearlessly with faith, in all circumstances.
• Justice by being fair and dealing equally with everyone.
• Obedience to God’s Word.
• Love for God and His Church. 

Father's Day prayer

Dear Jesus, thank you for entrusting these children to me. Help me to be the father you need me to be in every situation. Give me the strength and patience to truly be available for my children whenever they need me. Provide me with the wisdom and the words that they will need in the coming years. Allow me to love them with Your heart, hold them with Your Hands, guide them with Your Word and see them through Your Eyes. Amen.