Walking with God

The following is an excerpt from some writing I've been doing lately.

Do you enjoy walking? I do, most of the time. Sure there are those moments at a concert or some largely populated activity when walking seems completely overrated because of the massive amount of cars and people present. But let's be honest. That's mostly a first world problem created by the constantly encroaching laziness of mine, and subsequent generations.

Many people walk because it's their only means of transportation. Many do it for exercise. Many do not do it at all because of a disability.

I love recreational walking, i.e. hiking. This past weekend I spent over forty hours on a mountain with students and staff from our ministry. During a planned lull in Saturday's schedule the majority of our group went for a jaunt around the mountain. It was spectacular.

The weather was lovely. The sky was a blazing azure blue mottled by streaky wisps of cotton-esque clouds. The temperature was flirting with the fifties. It was a great afternoon. We turned a two mile, two hour walk, into a four hour hike by snaking back and forth via interconnected trails and stopping frequently to soak up the serenity of it all. It was a memorable moment shared with cherished friends that I won't soon forget, and it might not have happened.

What if we'd experienced the type of weather that typically accompanies January in Arkansas? What if we'd packed or planned too much activity for the short weekend retreat? What if no one had wanted to participate?

Christians regularly use the phrase, "walking with God." It's an innocent enough little idiom that references a passage from Genesis. Genesis 5:24 tells the story of Enoch walking with God, and "God taking him." When I think of this phrase I can't help but think back on our little hike this past weekend and not draw some serious spiritual parallels from all of the "what ifs".

What if I let the seasons of my life, the ups and downs, the hot or cold moments of emotion, dictate the depth of my relationship with the Almighty? Many people will never understand the goodness and sovereignty of God simply because they spend to much time fearing the apparent storm clouds looming over their life and not nearly enough time in communion with "the Peace Speaker."

What if I let the rapid paced, day-plannered, über-busyness of my lifestyle squeeze out my time with God? It would be easy to do. So many do it. However, my quiet time with Him is one of my most cherished daily moments. To make it habitual it must take priority, always. My life gets busy, as I'm sure yours does, but I'm never too busy to begin, or end, the day without spending time with God.

What if I had to do this alone? It's a scary thought. One of the prevailing feelings among young people today in our social media saturated society is the palpable permeance of loneliness. The facts are clear. As Christians in America we are not alone. If we think we are alone it is really only because we choose to be, or--we have been deceived. There are great Christ-centered faith families in every town, county, and parish in this country.

I can only hike so far. Physically I can only do so much. My breath, legs, lungs, and strength will only take me as far as it can take me. The trail ends, my strength ends, or my time ends. Walking with God is a walk that starts and never ends.

God's Good

God's good stuff is better than my best stuff.

God's good, as in the good stuff that belongs to Him, which is basically anything that could really be called good.  You know, God's.  Not the contraction.  The possessive.  Not God+is.  Simply God's.

My best isn't best enough, or better enough, or good enough, or even really good.  And I know for all those pedantic kinds of peeps that last sentence caused much mental woe.

My most well-meaning moments are still flawed if not founded in Him and empowered by Him.  What I'm really trying to say here is:

My good is not good at all, and the only way for me to be good, is to be my best, which also is not mine; but His.  Confused yet?  I am.  It will always be baffling and boggling to my poor little brain.  I want to understand.  I want to get it, yet I can't.

So rather than ramble relentlessly I'll just wrap it up repiticiously.

God's good stuff is better than my best stuff.

Knowledge of the Holy #4

Keeping with the tribute to the incredible literary awesomeness of A.W. Tozer and Frederick William Faber I'd like to post a few more bits from "Knowledge of the Holy".  I spent several hours every Wednesday this past semester discussing this book with some awesome guys.  Here were some of our favorite portions.

This post highlights some of our favorite thoughts from the portion titled, "Something True About God".

The study of the attributes of God, far from being dull and heavy, may for the enlightened Christian be a sweet and absorbing spiritual exercise.  To teh soul that is athirst for God, nothing could be more delightful.

Only to sit and think of God,
   Oh what a joy it is!
To think the thought, to breathe the Name
   Earth has no higher bliss.
                         -- Frederick W. Faber

Glory thine attributes confess,
Glorious all and numberless.

If an attribute is something that is true of God, we may as well not try to enumerate them.

If an attribute is something true of God, it is also something that we can conceive as being true of Him.  God, being infinite, must possess attributes about which we can know nothing.  An attribute, as we can know it, is a mental concept, and intellectual response to God's self-revelation.  It is an answer to a question, the reply God makes to our interrogation concerning Himself.

To our questions God has provided answers; not all the answer, certainly, but enough to satisfy our intellects and ravish our hearts.  These answers he has provided in nature, in the Scriptures, and in the person of His Son.

Knowledge of the Holy #1
Knowledge of the Holy #2 
Knowledge of the Holy #3

ABC's of God

I wrote this some years ago and shared it tonight during my message.  Some folks asked me to post it, so here it is.  I hope it encourages you.

God is the

Absolutely Astounding Almighty Architect,

Beautifully Benevolent,

Creatively Compassionate,

Delightfully Divine,

Eternally Empathetic,

Forever Forgiving Friendly Father of Fate

Gracious Giver of Grace.

Holy Healer of Hope and Hope for Healing.

Infinitely Indescribable and Infallible Intercessor,

Jubilantly Joyful Justification,

King of Kindness,

The Lone, Lamp, Light, Life, and Lord,

Mighty, Miraculous, and Moving Mediator.

Never leaving, Never forsaking,

The Only Outstanding, Otherworldly, Omnipresent, Omnipotent One

Powerful, Practical, and Priceless Prince of Passion,

of an Unquantifiable Quality.

Remarkably Righteous Ruler,

Supernatural Sole Source of Soul Saving Sanctification,

Truly Triumphant Terrific & Trustworthy.

Upright Utterly Unending and Unique Utterance of Unity,

Vivacious and Victorious,

Wondrous and Willful

eXalted eXcellence.

Yearning with a

Zeal for Zion.

God's Kid

As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” – Matthew 3:16,17

It’s good being God’s kid.  I’m not really one that gets extremely wrapped up in the emotional side of my faith too much; but it’s hard to avoid some pretty strong emotion when I start thinking about the idea of God looking down at us and being pleased.  Of course, sometimes we fall really short of pleasing Him.  But it’s a great feeling knowing that because I have given my life and my heart to His service that He sees my life and is pleased.

If you’ve given your life to Christ He sees you and feels the same way.  You’re His son or His daughter and He looks on and says, “I love you, I am well pleased.”

Just a thought to think on next time you’re feeling unloved or underappreciated.

Forever

Image via WikipediaYesterday I was discussing the various aspects of eternity with a group of students I meet with regularly.  We talked for a good long while and one of the things we lingered on for a bit is the notion of "forever" in relation to us and eternity.

If I'm being completely transparent here I have to admit that eternity in terms of forever-forward is a hard thing for me to comprehend, or even contemplate for that matter.  The idea of endlessness or everlastingness as concerns our existence is just incredibly difficult to absorb.  That is not to say that I don't believe in the eternal here-after.  Rather, it is my acknowledgement that when dealing with this particular line of thought my intellectual reasoning is simply not up to the task.  It is purely a faith issue for me.

My pea-brain understands that biologically there is an end to how long it can exist.  My thirty-one year old body bares witness with this in that I can't quite do some things as well or as quickly as I used to.  Forever, rings to me as something akin to infinite, at least in terms of time, and what are we as mortal human beings if not finite.  In the seas of time and foreverness we exist as but a vapor and a mist caught up in this mortal coil, and yet we are offered eternity.


Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” - John 4:13,14

 In times when I begin to seriously consider the nature of forever and eternity my humanity has great difficulty.  Rarely is there a greater opportunity for my faith step up.

Blogs by others

• Thirsty (countingmyblessings.typepad.com)
• The G.O.S.P.E.L. Truth (boundlessblog.wordpress.com)
• Soaked (refusingtotiptoe.com)

Beauty Happens

Image via WikipediaI've been laying here tonight trying to wind down from an incredibly packed day. Campus Church was great tonight. We had a wonderful turnout and I was just replaying all the awesome God-things that took place in my life over the last twenty-four hours.

As I was reading though 1 Chronicles 10 Jamie snuggled up to me in her sleep. She was already at that point in her rest where she didn't even really realize what she was doing. Something in her just knew its warmer, safer . . . better, in togetherness.

I was nearing the end of the chapter and glanced over...and just looked at her. My beautiful, tired, sleeping, wonderful wife. It was enough to just make me want to write.

(Pardon my mixed tenses. The writer in me says, "don't do it," but the storyteller says, "go on," and it seems he has the stronger voice at 12:45 a.m..)

It has nothing all to do with what I've been blogging lately, but it has everything to do with this crazy lens through which I see God. Remember? I'm the guy that gets convinced of the awesomeness of the Almighty by the poetic yumminess of a grilled-cheese sandwich.

Paul often wrote of God revealing Himself through the wondrous beauty of creation. David and the other Psalmists couldn't get enough of it. Neither can I.

Be it a snowy Rocky Mountain summit, an Arkansas Fall, an East Coast dawn, or my Enchanting Bride, God's Beauty is everywhere. I see these things He created and I see His creativity lovingly lavishing His goodness upon my senses and soul.

He doesn't have to bottle it or manufacture it. Neither does God must need give forth great effort or expense to craft all these things of beauty. Beauty itself, and the ability to recognize it, like Him, simply is.

Because He is. Because He is Good. Beauty Happens.

Need?

During my study time yesterday I was reading Knowledge of the Holy by A.W. Tozer. In one of the chapters he talks a bit about the dangers of the secularization of the Church due to people's changing perceptions of God. The following are some thoughts I typed up on my phone while mulling it all over.

As our perception of self increased, our perception of God decreased. Where once men worshipped , wept, and trembled before the Awesomeness of The Almighty they now malign and mock the mere mention of His name. And the Church? We, His bride, purchased with the immeasurable bride-price of sacrificed Deity...we beg and plead people to take Him and accept Him, as if He is the one in need of us.

God needs none of us. Indeed, even, God does not need. As Tozer puts it, "need is a creature word" and can never describe the Creator.

However, we often vex ourselves, most unnecessarily, by thinking we're doing God some great favor by begging people to "accept" Him. The plain truth is that we are the ones in desperate need of acceptance. We need His sovereign love and grace to repair the damage our sin caused to the God-man-relationship.

Lord, help us not to think You need us. Help us to show others how desperately we all need You.

Authenticity or Acceptance

What's your aim in life-- authenticity or acceptance? What's the difference between those two?

To aim for acceptance is to live your life by the question, "How far can I go and still call myself a Christian?" You want to seem to be a Christian, but you also still want to be accepted by your peers, without seeming weird or fanatical. Authenticity requires a different question, which can be stated like this: "How holy can I be?"

This isn't to say that we can ever attain a measure of holiness that impresses the Father. We shouldn't dare to be so presumptuous. But the glorious effort of striving is a marathon ran in the name of the One who bought and paid for you in full with the blood of His Son.

Life throws curve balls nearly every second of the day. The authentic person judges the pitch and makes a choice. The accepting person sees the flashing of the stadium lights, the multi-bazillion dollar contract, and the lofty endorsements. Above all though, they hear the roar of the crowd, and without a thought as to just what might happen... they swing.

It doesn't really matter where the ball goes. If it's a grand slam in the bottom of the ninth the crowd loves you and you’re everybody's hero of the week. If it's a foul ball you've got a few more tries before they set you down. But, by then it doesn't matter. You've made your choice and acceptance owns you.

The authentic person seeks the greater cause than them self and their gratification. They are spent in glorious worthy effort. My prayer is everyday that Christ would use me as He sees fit and spend me as loose change at His very whim. What's your prayer?

Nursing Home Prayer

Recently I've been going back through some old writings that I haven't shared on this blog yet.  This one struck a profound chord with me this evening.
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What kind of thoughts do you have at midnight when you can't sleep because you inadvertently napped the previous afternoon? My midnight meanderings are often random at best and distracted as much as anything else, but-- as of right now I am stuck somewhere between reflection and affection, contemplation and nostalgia. The last month has been strange for me.

Generally, I am not the type of person that is prone to an abundance of sentiment in my emotional diet. I am not without compassion, and have a deep love for people, I just don't always choose to thrust it into the limelight and parade it around for the world like a bleeding heart liberal during election year.

A visit to the nursing home the week before Jamie's grandmother passed dealt a heavy blow to that emotional fortitude. If you have ever witnessed a loved one in a nursing home you may well understand. It is not easy to see someone you love and admire lying in such a state. Though I never knew her during her years as the mighty minister of the gospel so many had to come to cherish, she was still important to me as a part of my family--and the sight of her condition elicited an emotion which surprised me. I was angry.

It wasn't her sickly unresponsive condition or the state of the facility caring for her which affronted me. Rather, it was the general overall situation which assaulted my worldview. Like many before me who have been confronted by something that seems unnecessarily tragic I took my raw emotion to the only destination which could not be affected by my temperament, God.

I remember several things very distinctly about that moment. Jamie stood just in front of me by the bed side stroking her grandmother's hair and telling her how much she loved her. I stood just behind her with one arm around my bride and one hand on her grandmother's arm praying. It probably wasn't the kind of prayer that you would hear from behind a pulpit or read about in very many of those "How to Pray Effectively and Make Sure God Hears You" type of books, but it was real, it was honest, and I'm just as certain that He heard me then as I am that He has heard any other prayer I've ever prayed in my life.

We can't have been in that room for more than ten minutes and I spent the better part of it praying, but I remember the general unfolding of my prayer, if not the words-- and more importantly what I felt when we left the room some minutes later. I preceded to tell God, in a hushed inaudible voice, how mad I was at Him for letting such a seemingly miserable situation befall such a faithful servant. I went on to recount to Him how He had a responsibility to make it better and I continued to reiterate my point. In hindsight I realize I must have felt a bit like Jacob as He wrestled with God, except instead of trying to elicit a blessing I really just needed some peace to smooth over my lack of understanding in the face of perceived injustice. As I stood there, simultaneously praying my angry prayer and attempting to comfort my weeping wife, something happened.

I am not so haughty or pompous as to sit here and write that I completely understand what took place or the theological implications for it, but I do know that God immediately began to minister to both Jamie and myself. Like any loving father He listened to my (albeit silent) prayer and began to comfort me, all the while showing me truth and correcting some of my misconceptions about His nature. Jamie, He comforted as the hurting granddaughter who would dearly miss her cherished grandmother. Myself, He approached with what I could only describe as a counter accusation. "Don't you trust me? Don't you think I know what is happening?"

As we drove away from the nursing home that day I remember feeling several mixed emotions. For one, I was still a little angry, although by this point my anger was not really pointed at God. Secondly, I remember feeling a bit like Job must have felt when He puffed up and went after God with the only thing He still had left, pride. Did God judge me or punish me? No. He corrected me like the loving Father He is.

He showed me that we do not suffer, we do not endure tragedy, hardship, or injustice alone; because He who was without sin became man--suffered tragedy, hardship and injustice alone on the cross so that we might know Him and make Him known.

As a man in the ministry, everything always seems to boil down to one simple verse for me.

"Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him" - Job 13: 15a KJV

Grilled Cheese as Proof for the Existence of God

The slighty browned golden crisp crust crumbles in a symphony of crunchy-buttery delight. Your taste buds descend upon the feeble frame of the delectable sandwich. Your incisors pierce the glorious boundaries as you are met with the heavenly flood of gooey golden goodness which breeches its breaded borders. Mmmmmmm.

Cheese sandwich, grilled cheese, hot cheese ... this delightful dish has taken many names. Many of those who enjoy it have probably named it something aptly appropriate for reflecting their appreciation of the joy it brings them. And why not? Few things so seemingly normal can provide such a wonderful treat.

Take a few regular household items from fridge or pantry. Whip them together. Give a little time, attention, and heat--Bibbidi-bobbidi-boo--the result is as grandiose a goodie as ever graced your gullet.

Who first thought of a grilled cheese? Where did they come from? Was it by happenstance or accident that ancient Babylonians drafted the original? Does it hearken back to the days of pre-history?

How could something so incredibly ordinary offer such sensationally amazing results? How did a multitude of millennial mishaps yield the unquestionably astounding result we now know as the grilled cheese sandwich?

Friend, if you can answer that I'll let you have my grilled cheese sandwich. Yum.

Timing

When? Right now please. As in immediately. Like, I wanted it yesterday.

Sound familiar?

It should. This is our typical western approach to pretty much everything. Want a burger? No problem, that restaurant has a hole in the wall so you can just drive by and grab it. Looking for a new song? Hey, just download it. Want to know what that book says? Don't bother reading it. Someone else already did and will share the info in bite sized chunks for the right price.

Even our news distribution is radically changing to work within this frame of mind. Monthlies gave way to weeklies; which turned into dailies; which were replaced by 24-hour news; and that rolled into web news, which is even being 1-upped by social media.

We are an impatient "right-now" kind of culture.

This invades our spiritual life in dangerous ways sometimes. We pray for something and become immensely disappointed because we don't see results that fit our time-table. We don't like to wait and we exhaust ourselves with a sense of over anxious anticipation.

God wants something different for us. After all, at the end of the day, we either believe He is sovereign or we don't. Either He has it all under control or we are on our own.

I'm glad to know that God's timing is better than mine. He offers me what I can handle when I can handle it, and not just when I want it.

Next time your stuck waiting on something from Him, don't be so anxious...

Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. - Isaiha 40:28

Pling Pling

Matt R. is still to this day simply the greatest guitarist I've ever known. I look back on the years we spent together in a praise band and wonder how in the world that ever happened. He could make that Fender guitar produce the most beautiful cacophony of awesome your ears could ever hope to withstand. And there I was standing beside him every week with my one-trick-rhythm and power chords.

The disparity in our musical talent was only highlighted by the differences in our personality. He had the musical makings to be a legendary guitarist, and a humble spirit that you just had to see to believe; whereas, I was a cocky showboat with almost no talent to speak of.

I still remember when he produced his first album how excited we all were for him. And it was pretty much incredible. I copied it over to my hard drive years ago and every once-in-a-while I still bust it out to show young musicians I meet. The mix of the speed metal electric craziness and unbelievably complicated classical acoustic flair are rare, and magical.

The height of that album for me was "Pling Pling." It is a song that highlights Matt's insane melodical craftsmanship. The coolest part is a real standout moment during the refrain when he would reach above the saddle of the guitar neck and strum twice just below the tuning keys... "Pling Pling."

What strikes me, still after all these years, is that his total mastery of his instrument allowed him to wield rarely harnessed aspects of the guitar to make beautiful music. But this mastery wasn't something he just decided to do one day because it sounded cool, it was the culmination of thousands of hours of extreme discipline, dedication, and learning. Matt did more than play the guitar, Matt made music.

Sometimes I wonder if you and I are trying to just play at being Christian. I wonder what would happen if we poured ourselves into it with the kind of supreme devotion a master musician has to his instrument? Would we continue to be just a bunch of noise those around us are trying to filter out? Or, would we begin to offer something so completely beautiful, authentic, and majestic to behold that everyone had to stop and take note?! I for one am tired of being another source of noise. I say it's time to make music. Pling. Pling.

H is for Heaven

The final piece of the plan of salvation, one that all Christians will one day experience, is eternal life.  Jesus spoke often of it during His public ministry.  One of my favorite passages is Christ’s verbal exchange with the woman at the well in John chapter four, but here are a couple more of His shorter words concerning heaven.

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. – John 10:10

And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. – John 14:3

Do we understand everything about heaven?  Of course not.  Nevertheless, the Bible declares to us the reality of this eternal place.  I’m so glad to know that we have an eternal home.

I is for Impossible

Sin separates man from God.  You need only to go back and read the third chapter of Genesis for the sad account of Adam and Eve and their failures in the Garden.  As a result of their actions God forever removes them from his presence.  A condition we all face prior to salvation is our eternal separation from God.

As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one” – Romans 3:10

It is impossible for God to allow sin into heaven.  God is loving and just, his judgment is against sin, and we are all sinners.  How then can a sinful person enter heaven, when God allows no sin?

Mercy triumphs over judgment. – James 2:13

Just as we are inclined to communicate the necessity of forgiveness and it’s availability; it is also of upmost importance that we realize access to God is impossible apart from God’s own means.

A is for Available

Just as the first talking point in the “plan of salvation” is forgiveness, or helping someone to realize their need for it, the second is the availability of forgiveness to any who come to God seeking it.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. – John 3:16

Most of us are incredibly familiar with this oft-quoted passage, but a key component of salvation that often goes overlooked is that it does require something on our part.

Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. – Matthew 7:21

Forgiveness is available for all, but it is not automatic.  It requires acknowledging our need for God, accepting the forgiveness that is available, and submitting to God’s will for our lives.

F is for FORGIVENESS

So often Christians desire to share their faith with people, but aren’t really sure what to say.  Sometimes an authentic God-centered lifestyle really is enough to spark conversation about faith, and sometimes it takes words, but at some point it will always lead to discussing what is commonly referred to as the “plan of salvation.”

I’m going to spend the next few posts looking at an acronym for faith I came across while studying several years ago.  Yes, it is cheesy, as all good acronyms typically are, but its principles are superb.  It is essentially your primary talking points when discussing salvation with someone unfamiliar to this concept.

F is for FORGIVENESS.

In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace. – Ephesians 1:7

Each of us needs forgiveness in our lives.  Your failures and moral misgivings are your own.  No one else can vouch for them, well no one amongst your normal social circles.  The fact of the matter is that we are, all of us, in desperate need of reconnection with the Father.  This is only achieved through forgiveness, which in turn only comes through Christ.

The first point of communication then is in helping someone understand their need for God.  Until they realize this, there is no moving forward.

Some Presidential Thoughts

The following is a list of quotes about the bible from American presidents, courtesy of The American Patriot's Bible.

It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible. - George Washington, 1st President

The first and almost the only book deserving of universal attention is the Bible. I speak as a man of the world...and I say to you, "Search the Scriptures." - John Quincy Adams, 6th President

That book, sir, is the rock on which our republic rests. - Andrew Jackson, 7th President

In regard for this Great Book, I have this to say, it is the best gift God has given to man. All the Good Savior gave to the world was communicated through this book. - Abraham Lincoln, 16th President

Hold fast to the Bible as the sheet anchor of your liberties. Write its precepts in your hearts, and practice them in your lives. To the influence of this book are we indebted for all the progress made in true civilization, and to this we must look as our guide in the future. Righteousness exalteth a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people. - Ulysses S. Grant, 18th President

If you take out of your statutes, your constitution, your family life all that is taken from the Sacred Book, what would there be left to bind society together? - Benjamin Harrison, 23rd President

The Bible is the one supreme source of revelation of the meaning of life, the nature of God, and spiritual nature and needs of men. It is the only guide of life which really leads the spirit in the way of peace and salvation. America was born a Christian nation. America was born to exemplify that devotion to the elements of righteousness which are derived from the revelations of Holy Scripture. - Woodrow Wilson, 28th President

The strength of our country is the strength of its religious convictions. The foundations of our society and our government rest so much on the teachings of the Bible that it would be difficult to support them if faith in these teachings would cease to be practically universal in our country. - Calvin Coolidge, 30th President

We cannot read the history of our rise and development as a nation without reckoning with the place the Bible has occupied in shaping the advances of the Republic. Where we have been the truest and most consistent in obeying its precepts, we have attained the greatest measure of contentment and prosperity. - Franklin Roosevelt, 32nd President

The fundamental basis of this nation's laws was given to Moses on the Mount. The fundamental basis of our Bill of Rights comes from the teachings we get from Exodus and Saint Matthew, from Isaiah and Saint Paul . . . If we don't have a proper fundamental moral background, we will finally end up with a totalitarian government which does not believe in rights for anybody except the State! - Harry Truman, 33rd President

Inside the Bible's pages lie all the answers to all of the problems man has ever known . . . It is my firm belief that the enduring values presented in its pages have a great meaning for each of us and for our nation. The Bible can touch our hearts, order our minds, and refresh our souls. - Ronald Reagan, 40th President

Stuff Love (Empty Love)

One of the most immediately recognizable things about our society is our love for stuff.  We have stores where you can buy stuff; TV shows for selling, making, and reviewing stuff; an entire transportation industry revolving around moving stuff.  We build houses with attics, basements, and massive garages and fill them with stuff, so we have to rent storage space for even more stuff.  We depend on the assistance of regularly scheduled crews of men to remove our wasted stuff and have yard/garage sales to profit from our unwanted stuff.  We love our stuff.

Stuff is most easily identifiable as acquired physical possessions; but really it goes beyond even that.  Stuff is generally what we are interacting with to fill our schedules.  It could be physical possessions like a nice house, sweet vehicle, or highly valued thingamajig; but it may very well be something not quite so tangible like a relational attachment, job, or hobby.

Is all stuff bad?  No.  Is all stuff good?  No.  How do I know the difference?  It all boils down to priorities.

Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world—the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does—comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever. – 1 John 2:15-17

If you are too busy salivating over your new shiny toy, making sure your kitchen counter tops glow from Pinesol overload, or lost in the thralls of sports-delirium to recognize, and engage, in the meaningful things of life … then you have a stuff problem.

Love is a _____.

Love, such a short little word—but let’s face it, we have such a tremendously difficult time understanding it.  Doing some studying recently I went to the dictionary, as I am often prone to do, and discovered that my dictionary of choice had twenty-eight different definitions for love.  I found all of them to be sorely inadequate.  I want to spend the next few days looking at this wonderful little word.

Rather than just diving straight off into the grandiose theological implications inferred by the word love, let’s just think about a few examples of what our society considers love.  We have holidays based on loving things, relationships, family members, and hobbies.  There are huge corporations designed around the promise of connecting people to love.  In America we tailor our lifestyle, including routines, possessions, wardrobe, religion, and friends to the thing(s) we love.

Waylon Jennings summed it up pretty good, “I’ve been looking for love in all the wrong places.”