Bill

"Hey, are you the Baptist minister?" The old man in the white pick-up stopped in the street in front of my church yesterday and asked me that question as I walked down the sidewalk. I wasn't sure whether to answer him or start running. Feeling like a trapped criminal, I fessed up and claimed ownership of my nefarious profession.

"I've been looking for you," he said, "We need to talk." I was starting to wish I had said I was the Presbyterian pastor.

The man pulled to the curb and introduced himself as Bill. Then he asked the last question I would ever expect. "How can I understand the Bible? I keep trying to read it but it makes no sense. Can you help me?" The tears in his eyes confirmed his sincerity.

It turns out God has been working in Bill's life, big time. I found out one of the men from our church had invited Bill to come and worship with him. This invitation, combined with Bill's desire to read the Bible, has led Bill to believe that just maybe God has a plan and purpose for his life.

I asked Bill to let me think about his question. I told him I'd gather up some resources that might help him. I told him I'd be in touch, that we would talk about the Bible together. And then I invited him to worship.

We shook hands and Bill the Seeker drove off. As I resumed my journey down the sidewalk I prayed. I asked God to continue to his pursuit of Bill. The Lord is a passionate Lover of the lost. God is pursuing Bill. Bill is seeking God. Bill's going to be just fine...forever.

Find Your Fit

I made an interesting scientific discover this weekend - 6'5" guys are NOT meant to fit under the kitchen sink. The evidence to support this discovery is found in the aching muscles in my shoulders, arms, and back.

In a moment of Sunday afternoon inspiration, I decided to replace our kitchen faucet. Sue was in K.C. visiting our daughter, so I thought I would surprise my wife, who considers her husband totally inept at home repairs. Next time, I'm just giving her flowers - much easier.

I emptied out the stuff under the kitchen sink and gathered up my tools - crescent wrench, screwdriver, channel lock, bucket, plumber's putty. I even made sure I had the mandatory plumber's crack. (Just kidding on that one. TMI.)

The box for the faucet said, "New, easy installation." Yeah, if you're one of those little dudes from Willy Wonka. I quickly discovered my 6'5" frame does not fit under a tiny kitchen sink cabinet filled with pipes and a garbage disposal. What should have been a fairly quick replacement turned into a three hour, frustration filled, body punishing, evening of torture.

I finally finished the job. There is both hot and cold water, there are no leaks, and the faucet actually looks great, much to my amazement. But the job was way too hard because I was not a good fit for the job.

Need a bulb changed in your ceiling light? I got it. Need your ceiling painted? No problem. Feeling a little short and need someone to grab something off the top shelf? I'm there for you. I'm great at those things - they fit me well.

As we walk through life it's important to find the right fit. God has created us with both potential and limitations. He has given us gifts and short-comings. Each of us has our strengths and weaknesses.

Wise people understand this. Wise people play to their strengths. Wise people spend the majority of their time and energy doing those things that fit.

By the way, the next time I have a job that involves crawling into a cabinet, I'm calling a plumber.

Dennis the Menace and God's Grace

It's Sunday night and another week has come to an end. It's been a good week. And I have no reason to believe the coming week will be any different. Day after day I receive blessings too numerous to count and blessings I know I certainly don't deserve. I wonder, am I just lucky or is there some other principle at work in my life?

Remember Dennis the Menace? Dennis and his little friend, Joey, are leaving Mrs. Wilson’s house with their hands full of cookies. As you may remember, Dennis is not always very considerate toward the Wilsons who are his next-door neighbors (especially Mr. Wilson).
But Joey says, "I wonder what we did to deserve this?"
Dennis answers, "Look, Joey, Mrs. Wilson gives us cookies not because we’re nice, but because she’s nice."

Theologians speak of something called common grace - God's goodness to humanity because he is good. Through common grace we receive blessings (cookies), not because of who we are or what we have done, but because God is good and he loves us. In other words, I'm not lucky, I am blessed by the principle of common grace.

How should we respond to common grace? How should we respond to the blessings God so freely gives? How about we start by being thankful? If Mrs.Wilson gave me some fresh baked cookies I hope I would say thank you. It seems when God gives us blessings we should do the same thing.

Here's a simple idea. Start each morning by thanking God for the blessings you're going to receive. And then at night take some time to say thank you for the blessings you did receive.

"Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name." (Psalm 100:4)

Mind Control

The cables of Half Dome. I faced them yesterday on a long-awaited hike in Yosemite. If you're not familiar with the cables, they are on the side of Half Dome, placed there so hikers can make it to the top. To say they are intimidating is an understatement.
I found myself on the cables yesterday and was surprised, even stunned at how afraid I was. The ascent on the cables is physically difficult. But I found them even more difficult mentally. The entire way up I had to fight my mind, convincing my hands to release their grip on the cables and forcing my legs to take a few more steps towards the summit. I was amazed at how powerful a negative force the mind can be.
Just a few hours later I was heading down the trail, finishing a 20 mile round trip hike, and I found myself fighting a different battle. This time my enemy was my body. Every muscle begged me to stop. I was exhausted.
As I struggled down the trail I discovered a new ally, my mind. Earlier on the cables my mind encouraged me to stop and give up, now my mind was encouraging me to go forward. "Take another step, keep going, you can do it," my mind repeated over and over. So listened, and I finished.
Same mind. Same brain. Different thoughts. One was a hindrance, the other was a help. In both instances it was a matter of mind control.
Romans 12 says, "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will"
God, please renew my mind. Thanks.

Good Chemistry

On July 11, 1981, I stood with knees trembling, at the front of the sanctuary of Urbana 1st Baptist Church and watched in wonder as the most beautiful woman I've ever seen walked down the aisle to become my bride. 29 years later, two kids, three moves across the country, we're still in love and going strong. We've been blessed with good chemistry from the very beginning.

Our journey began in the fall of 1976, outside the chemistry building at The Ohio State University. As first quarter freshmen, we both had been closed out of the chemistry class we wanted and were forced to take a night class. This posed a problem for Sue. It wasn't safe for women to walk the campus alone at night. She had to find someone to walk her back to the dorm.

Here's where being tall and having a red back pack pays off. Sue noticed me walking from our dorm to class so after class she approached me outside of McPherson Hall and asked me to walk her back to the dorm. For three quarters we walked back and forth to and from chemistry class. By the end of our freshmen year the chemistry between us was coming alive. We've been walking together through life ever since.

I was tall and had a red back pack. And she was, and is, the most beautiful person I've ever seen. Doesn't quite seem like a fair exchange does it? Sort of like God's grace.

Sue, thanks for 29 incredible years. The chemistry has been wonderful! Amo te.

Stop and smell the roses

(This the third post of three in a series of reflections on life and hiking.)

Did you know that I spend about 95% of my time staring at the ground when I hike in the mountains? This is humorous when you consider Yosemite is one of the most beautiful places on the face of the earth, but I spend hours hiking miles with my eyes fixed on the ground.

Because the trails are usually boulders, granite stairs, up and down, and very twisty, it's mandatory I keep my eyes looking down. It's called survival. If I look up while I'm hiking, I'm inviting disaster. Trust me, been there, done that. So it's necessary to stop from time to time, look around, and appreciate the amazing scenery.

I was heading down the trail this afternoon totally focused on the ground before me, concentrating on keeping my footing sure. For some reason I stopped and looked up. And I laughed. To my left was a spectacular panorama. The mountains rose from the green carpeted forest like granite sentries watching over creation. This magnificent blessing was in plain sight, but I had failed to see it because my eyes were fixed on the dusty trail. My focus was on the task at hand and not on the blessings around me.

That's hiking and that's life. So often I walk through life totally focused on the task at hand while I miss seeing God's incredible blessings all around me. When I hike, I need to remind myself to stop and smell the roses, to stop and see God's handiwork all around me. Maybe I should do the same thing in life.

Excuse me now, I've got some roses to sniff.

Thinking

(This is the second of three blogs created from a day of hiking in Yosemite.)

For those of you who know me, you know one thing is true, I'm not shy. On every personality test I've ever taken I score off the charts as an extrovert. The tests call me sanguine, to the max. That means I'm a people person. I love being around people, I love to be in front of people, I love being loved by people. That's why my love for hiking puzzles me.

I'm beginning to understand that deep within me lies a burning need to be alone at times. (It has only taken me 53 years to see this.) For as much as I'm an extrovert, there is private introvert that dwells within me. It's that introvert that loves the solitude of hiking in the mountains.

I'm beginning to understand my introvert self needs time alone. It is during the alone times that I think. It is during these thinking times that I most often hear God's Spirit whispering to me. Which amazes me. Because most of the time my extroverted self does the thinking and my extroverted self loves to think in the midst of crowds and noise. I despise libraries - they're too quiet for me to think. I read with the TV on. I even do my sermons in Starbucks. But I think when I hike. It is then that I am alone and quiet. And the Spirit whispers.

When the prophet Elijah was suffering a severe bout of depression, God led this great leader to a mountain cave and spoke to him. God told him to stand at the mouth of the cave, for God was about to pass by. You can check the passage out yourself. It's in I Kings 19. It says there was a great wind, but God was not there. There was a great earthquake, but God was not there. There was a great fire, but God was not there. Three noisy events. And then it says God spoke to Elijah in a whisper.

Communicating through a whisper is a tricky business. It assumes that the listener is being quiet and still enough to hear. So I hike, I think, and I listen. And every now and then, God speaks.

Maybe God's Spirit is whispering to you. "Be still and know that he is God."

Motivation

(This is the first of three blogs about some reflections on life I had while hiking in Yosemite)

What do you do on your day off? I head to Yosemite and hike. Today I put in 12 miles. 12 heart-pounding, lung-busting, thigh-thumping, toe-crunching glorious miles in the mountains. Today's trek took me about four miles further than I'm used to. And I'm paying for it right now - I can barely move, my legs are so sore and stiff. But it was worth it, definitely worth it. And I'll be back up there as soon as I can find a free day.

I often wonder why I enjoy hiking so much. When you think about it, hiking is simply walking - something most of us have done since we were two. Maybe that's why I enjoy it so much. Hiking is simply putting one foot in front of the other over and over again. Not too complicated. Even I can handle that.

But I think what motivates me to hike is the challenge to finish. It's that competitive urge that lies deep within me that enjoys the challenge of finishing what I start. I find a sense of achievement in finishing a hike. It feels good to walk farther than I've walked before, on a difficult trail, at high elevations. It feels good to finish.

It's not unusual for me to want to quit in the middle of a hike. I'm tired, my legs and feet hurt, I'm dusty and dirty, and I still have another hour of hiking before I can quit. I can't stop, I'm still on the trail on the side of the mountain. But my mind says, "Stop." That's when instinct kicks in and I start placing one foot in front of the other, over and over until I finish.

It occurred to me today that life and hiking are a lot alike. Sometimes you just want to quit. You're tired, hurting, and feel like you can't continue. But you keep on going.

A wise man once said, "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. " (Philippians 3:13) Finish!

Faith in Starbucks

It's Wednesday afternoon and I'm sitting in Starbucks, my second office, and favorite "thinking place." I spend a lot of time here - working on sermons, catching up on correspondence, writing blogs. But more than anything, I come here and connect. This is where I go to leave my ivory tower and experience life. OK, it's not really an ivory tower, more like a 60's cinder block cube with bad paneling and worn carpet.

But I do come here to connect. This is where the people are. James, Jeremy, Natasha, Alan, Adrianna, and Christina are behind the counter talking about life. People from Fowler stop by my table and say hi. The mayor, Pastor Paul from the Presbyterian Church, Mary who collects cans, Sandie from my church, the UPS guy. People from all walks of life form a human parade, marching to a really bad reggae song playing too loudly through the speakers. In some crazy way these people are my friends. We're fellow members of the human race, loved by God and trying to find our way in life.

This afternoon I asked the partners (the people in the green aprons), "If you could ask God one question, what would it be?" I got a variety of answers, but two stood out. One response was, "Where am I in the universe? The other response was "How am I doing?" I think those two questions capture where most of us are in life. We want to know, we need to know, where we are and how we're doing in life. So we search.

We laugh, succeed, fail, flounder, cry, dance, pretend, grow, struggle. We live. And through it all, we wonder.

My cup is empty. Time for a refill.

Leader of the Band

I wrote these lyrics when our son was born. I remember holding him in my arms and wondering how in the world I would ever manage to be the father I'd need to be. (Apologies to Dan Folgelberg)

The Leader of the Band

I gaze into my son's eyes,
the tears begin to flow.
Fear and trepidation,
what will the future hold?

Joshua, the greatest gift
the Lord has placed in my hands.
My prayer is this, that I might be
like the Leader of the band.

I know that he will turn out right.
He'll grow to be a man,
if I can give to him the qualities
of the Leader of the band.

Honesty, integrity,
a pure and loving heart,
these my father gave me,
to my son I will impart.

I gaze into my son's eyes,
asmile comes to my mouth,
I had the finest teacher.
I know how he'll turn out.

My life has been a mere attempt
to imitate the man.
I'm just a living legacy
of the Leader of the band.

To Dad; Father's Day, 1985

Bingo!

Daniel in the lions' den. David facing Goliath. Me calling bingo at the seniors center. At some point you have to ask yourself, "What in the world am I doing here and will I survive this endeavor?"

I entered the amazing world of bingo last week when I called bingo for an hour at the Fowler Senior Center. It was fun, crazy, and surprisingly intense. When the pot for each game is a whopping $7, emotions can run high. For an hour one thought ran through my mind, "Screw this up and you're going to be mobbed by fifty little old ladies and angry old men." I think I'd rather face the lions and the giant.

I survived my ordeal and actually had fun. I'd probably be willing to do it again. But I was still faced with the question, "What in the world am I doing here?" That question was answered after the bingo ended and the seniors were leaving. When almost everyone was gone, a young man, about 25 years old approached me and asked, "Are you a pastor?" I nodded yes and he asked if he could speak with me.

We sat down and he proceeded to pour his heart to me. I listened to his troubled story of a life filled with drugs, violence, and abuse. To say his words were disturbing is an understatement.

Over and over he said, "I just want God to show me how to live my life." It was clear he was paralyzed with a fear of the future. The thought of living right for the rest of his life was overwhelming, guaranteeing defeat before he could even start to change.

Every once in a blue moon I come up with just the right insight. Trust me, it doesn't happen nearly as often as I wish it would. But in this instance I knew just what to say. I gently suggested that he stop asking God to help him with his future. This advice surprised him, he stopped speaking and just listened. And then, borrowing from my friends in recovery, I suggested he try asking God to help him just one day at time. I encouraged him to begin each day by asking God to just get him through that day.

I saw the light bulb light up in his eyes, as a smile came across his face. He got it. And I got it. I understood what in the world I was doing there. God is funny that way. He loves to set up divine appointments when we least expect it.