Staying Connected

A long time ago, in our small church office, a friend brought some strange looking computer hardware and cables. That day we built a network! It connected my PC, the secretary's PC, and a printer. Those same tasks are now accomplished easily over wi-fi, with automated installations. Back then it was a real job that required technical knowledge. This morning, sitting here in my kitchen my computer is part of the Internet, networked to millions of computers, worldwide, where I can find information, chat with friends, watch podcasts, and exchange messages.

Networking is for more than computers. The last few days when the corona virus has kept most of us at home, the virtual connections became a great source of joy. Even as I was preparing to write this blog, Charlie posted a beautiful violin solo of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” on my Facebook page, which I really enjoyed! Solomon told us that "A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken." (Ecclesiastes 4:12, NLT)

If get too focused on the task at hand we may fail to appreciate the people involved in the process. It’s a weakness I know well. But, when we slow down, love people, create opportunities for others to ‘join’ us in life, we find real joy.  And, yes, that product we are working at, it will be better for the sharing. Teams make us more creative, give our work more longevity, and enjoy broader acceptance. That is true no matter what social structure we are thinking of - family, neighborhood, church, corporation, or government.

So, if the advantages of networking are so obvious, why don't more of us get connected?

By definition, networks limit our autonomy! When we become part of a network, we give up some of our rights. We must think of 'we' as a higher value than 'me.'  Self is strong and our human nature resists letting go of some of our ‘freedom.’ The devil's lie is - "Express yourself. Do your own thing. It's the only way to be happy." God's truth is - "Give yourself away. Serve and love, and you will discover joy!"

One of my prayers is that this corona virus with the ‘social distancing’ requirements will actually serve to get us reconnected. You and me, in Christ, being His Body.  Let’s make Him beautiful in our world – caring, sharing, serving, loving.

Here's a word from the Word about becoming part of the Spirit's network.
"Make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one heart and purpose." (Philippians 2:2, NLT) "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,... taking the nature of a servant." (Philippians 2:3-7, NIV)

Now, that's REAL networking.

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Old Church Choir

There's revival and it's spreading

Like a wildfire in my heart

A Sunday morning hallelujah

And it's lasting all week long

Can you hear it

Can you feel it

It's the rhythm of a gospel song

Oh once you choose it you can't lose it

 (Oh 'cause) There ain't nothing

There ain't nothing gonna steal my joy

I've got an old church choir singing in my soul

I've got a sweet salvation and it's beautiful

I've got a heart overflowing

'Cause I've been restored

(No) there ain't nothing gonna steal my joy

No there ain't nothing gonna steal my joy

When the valleys that I wander

Turn to mountains that I can't climb

Oh You are with me You never leave me

Clap your hands and stomp your feet

'Til you find that gospel beat

'Cause He's all you'll ever need

All you'll ever need

Clap your hands and stomp your feet

'Til you find that gospel beat

'Cause He's all you'll ever need

All you'll ever need

I've got an old church choir singing in my soul

I've got a sweet salvation and it's beautiful

Oh there ain't nothing gonna steal my joy

Colby Wedgeworth | Ethan Hulse | Zach Williams

© 2016 Anthems of Hope (Admin. by Essential Music Publishing LLC)

Be Essential Songs (Admin. by Essential Music Publishing LLC)

EGH Music Publishing (Admin. by Essential Music Publishing LLC)

CCLI License # 810055

Uncertain Faith?

The one common factor of this virus crisis is the uncertainty of it all. The guidelines change each week about who can gather, where we can go. We do not know if our children will be able to finish the school year, if we will get back to work anytime soon. I did an interview yesterday in which I was asked, “What does an extended shutdown mean for the future of your church?”  Honestly, I don’t know. Nobody does.

If you are feeling unsure, unsettled, uncertain – please do not think that your faith is faulty. Uncertainty can be a gift to us! How so, you ask?  As unpleasant as it may be to live with, uncertainty is a kind of suffering that reminds us of a simple truth- “I am not God!”  Recent events have shaken many of us to the core.  Our robust economy hit a brick wall and is crumbling before our eyes. Millions of us are staring into a thick fog that obscures the future. My prayer is that we will respond by looking to the Father, humbly willing to wait with trust.

Some of the most obnoxious Christians are those who claim to know every detail about what God is doing, about why things happen, and about just exactly how we can get Him to do what we want Him to do. I do believe that God speaks to us but I am deeply skeptical of that person who loudly announces, “I have a word from the Lord for you” without admitting that they are fallible, without allowing for the fact that they could be confusing their will with His.  A little modesty about our limits of knowledge goes a long way to creating credibility for our faith.

In reading the book of Job, a difficult book of the Bible, among the many lessons I find there is one about uncertainty. In case you’re not familiar with the outline of the story. Job was a great guy who really loved God. Satan appears before the Lord and says that Job only loves God because he is so blessed and prosperous. God knows Job’s heart and allows Satan to test the man to limits, taking everything but his life. In the middle of his suffering, three friends show up to offer comfort. They are absolutely certain about God’s ways, so they think,  and they tell Job that all of his pain and suffering must be the result of some hidden sin. “If you would just confess it, God will restore you,” they insist. They are full of certainty, and they are wrong!

Job, on the other hand, is full of uncertainty. He complains about the injustice, cries out to God about why He has hidden Himself, wonders why God has done him wrong.  When God finally speaks, He does NOT commend the absolute certainty of Job’s friends. In fact, He is angry with them for saying things about Him that are not true. It is Job’s faith, in the middle of his doubts, his willingness to keep on talking with God, that the Lord commends. God sees more faith in Job’s honest doubt than he does in the other men’s declarations of which they are so certain.

If you are struggling with uncertainty today, let it do the work of building character. Frederick Buechner offers this picture – “Whether your faith is that there is a God or that there is not a God, if you don't have any doubts you are either kidding yourself or asleep. Doubts are the ants in the pants of faith. They keep it awake and moving."  

We trust God even when we are confused by the things happening around us. Even when I am unable to see what He is up to, I am willing to commit myself, without any reservation, to His care.

John Ortberg writes “There are times when a decision will require a commitment when we don’t have total certainty. For the most important decisions in life, this is almost always the case.”  (Faith and Doubt) How true. We fall in love and marry a person – making unequivocal promises – “for better, for worse; for richer, for poorer; in sickness, in health; until death do us part.”  We pledge lifetime love having no idea what they may do, who we may become. Why do we do it? Because we love a person and our love inspires a faith for the future. (Another subject, but if we took those vows more seriously, understanding the real nature of love, we might slow down the trip to the altar, right?)

Knowing, serving, and loving God does not require us to have complete certainty about everything. Faith invites us to love a Person who has shown Himself trustworthy. Will we?

Here is a word from the Word.
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart;
do not depend on your own understanding.
Seek his will in all you do, and he will direct your paths.

Don’t be impressed with your own wisdom.
Instead, fear the Lord and turn your back on evil.
Then you will gain renewed health and vitality." (Proverbs 3:5-8, NLT)

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One of my favorite worship songs from recent times. Enjoy.

Build My Life

(A great song that points us to real faith in the Builder)

Worthy of ev’ry song we could ever sing

Worthy of all the praise we could ever bring

Worthy of ev’ry breath we could ever breathe

We live for You

Jesus the name above ev’ry other name

Jesus the only one who could ever save

Worthy of ev’ry breath we could ever breathe

We live for You

We live for You

Holy there is no one like You

There is none besides You

Open up my eyes in wonder and show me who You are

And fill me with Your heart

And lead me in Your love to those around me

I will build my life upon Your love

It is a firm foundation

I will put my trust in You alone

And I will not be shaken

Brett Younker | Karl Martin | Kirby Elizabeth Kaple | Matt Redman | Pat Barrett

© 2016 Martin, Karl Andrew (Admin. by Arkyard Music Services Limited)

Kaple Music (Admin. by Bethel Music Publishing)

Bethel Music Publishing

CCLI License # 810055

Celebrating a beautiful woman

Good Monday morning!  This CoffeeBreak blog is a personal reflection, more so than most, as I celebrate a person today. Today, Bev would have been 66! Happy Birthday in Heaven.

She’s been gone a little over 4 years now and today I am remembering her, not sadly, but with joy.  Dr. Suess allegedly wrote “Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened!”  I had 41 years of joy with a woman that God gave to me. We were a team, inseparable, and so much stronger because of each other.  How I thank God for her legacy. She left me with four beautiful children, with memories of godliness. Was she a saint? Yes and no. She was a real human being, who had something of a stubborn streak, and whose Sicilian heritage could find its way to the surface when she was provoked. But, she also loved God. From the first day of our relationship to the last, her highest priority was serving Him.

One of my great joys in life was watching her in her work as a teacher. She loved those first graders – giving them discipline and love in equal measures. Every class learned her philosophy early in the school years – “Obedience equals fun.” She was great with kid’s ministries whether leading a chapel worship session or on the stage at Vacation Bible School. Seeing her standing on the church’s platform during worship or watching her leading a woman’s Bible study was to see grace in action. She claimed not to be a ‘counselor’ yet over our pastoral life together, she mentored many, quietly, as much be example as by word.

She was incredibly disciplined, taking care of herself, her home, her family, her work – without slacking off or excuse. She loved me quietly with steady affection. My overt affection in public was a constant irritation to her. She wouldn’t hang all over me in a crowd, but she would, when she thought it needed, rise to my defense like a lioness. She prayed for her family and was my daily advocate before the Lord.

My Bev was tough and tender.  She could fall apart when she felt overwhelmed by life’s sorrows. She did not quit, ever, in the face of critics and the stormy times that come to us all. Tiny in stature, some thought she was fragile, but she was not. She knew the importance of relying on the Lord, on gathering her resources, and putting first things first.

So, today, I celebrate her memory - thankful that the Lord gave this gift to our world. Remembering her I say, “Happy Birthday. The world was blessed when you were born!”   And, yes, of course, Babe, you are missed still.

This morning her oldest son posted this Scripture on Facebook in tribute to his Mom, words that say it best. "She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future. When she speaks, her words are wise, and she gives instructions with kindness. She carefully watches everything in her household and suffers nothing from laziness. Her children stand and bless her. Her husband praises her: “There are many virtuous and capable women in the world, but you surpass them all!” Charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last; but a woman who fears the Lord will be greatly praised. Reward her for all she has done. Let her deeds publicly declare her praise." (Proverbs 31:25-32, NLT)

Thanks for letting me remember. My prayer is that we all live in a way that when we are called home, we leave a memory that is a benediction, that inspires others to reach higher.

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