SEEING THE EXTRAORDINARY

Category: God Speaking

  • Sacred Steps

    Ever hear or say – “I’m tired of walking…how much further?…do you have to park so far away from the door?…how many steps have you taken today?”   It is as if every step in our world seems to be measured.  I purposefully park far away from the entrance of where I am going…I want to save the closer spaces for those who don’t have those capabilities.  I wear a Garmin and the number of my steps are tracked every day.  My steps lead me to work and around my house…to church… But, rarely do I see my steps as sacred…at least not when I am taking them.  Sacred – connected to God, holy, hallowed, blessed…

    Looking back over the past, though, is a different story.  The sacred begins to appear as I consider where my footsteps have taken me.  I remember taking the sacred steps as I walked down the aisle almost 20 years ago with my beautiful bride arm in arm and we started our forever journey.  I remember walking the steps of the hospital as we made our way to experience the unbelievable birth of our babies.  I have experienced sacred steps in that same hospital of life and death…the long stark halls filled with tears of pain and of joy.  I have watched as God entered a life and as life left…all sacred steps (and a whole different picture all together when those steps are with you on the stretcher).  I have walked the journey with people that celebrated miracles and mourned loss.  I walked sacred steps to be baptized and ordained into the ministry and walked those same steps to baptize others.  I have walked sacred steps as I crossed the platform at Campbell Divinity School to receive the Master of Divinity Degree.  And I walk sacred steps as I begin a new journey in pursuit of another degree.

    Do steps become sacred simply because of that particular moment?  I don’t think so.  I think steps become sacred because God is in them…because we are walking a little closer to him…because he is guiding us.  When I consider sacred steps, I am reminded of some of the most sacred recorded in the Bible.  Adam and Eve walking with God…Imagine actually taking steps WITH God…that had to be sacred.  Moses had an experience with God and God told him to take off his shoes, he was on Holy Ground…sacred steps before a burning bush.  It is recorded in Romans that the feet of those who bring the good news are beautiful…I have to imagine that the steps they take are also sacred.  Jesus took the journey on the road to his own crucifixion and then on the road with friends after his resurrection to Emmaus…sacred steps.  Those who walk by faith, not by sight are walking a sacred journey.

    It is important to also understand that some sacred steps aren’t actual steps at all.  Some are traveled in a wheelchair or even on a hospital bed.  Some are traveled in the hearts of those who cannot move physically.  Sacred steps take us on a journey to and with God.  Know that they can be frightening….painful…tiring…sorrowful.  They are also peaceful…joyful…rejuvenating…enlightening.  These are steps taken with our Creator.  They carry you somewhere you have never been before or places you have visited many times, just in new ways.  Where might your sacred steps take you today? May we find our way on this journey…no matter the bumps, bruises, scrapes, hills, or valleys…just step forward…God is there.beautiful-feet

    image from Google Images

  • Not a “know it all”

    Some things are just hard to explain.  They go beyond words.  I can tell my children I love them, but in reality, how much I love them goes beyond explanation.  People ask me all the time why I enjoy running so much – that it seems like torture.  I can’t really explain it except to have you actually start running.  I have found that there are experiences in my life that I have had that go beyond explanation.  Something as simple as watching a sunrise to eating a fresh tomato grown in a garden to listening to birds sing in a world of chaos.  There are so many experiences that we can’t really explain…but when we have them, we just want to show somebody and have them experience it too.  Sometimes we may try to capture those moments in pictures – but a sunrise never looks the same through a lens like it does through the experience.

    In our lives of faith, we have feelings like that…I feel like God is really working on me or I feel like I am not doing what God has called me to do…or I know God is with me and I can feel his presence.  All of these are really indescribable experiences – we just know them and we don’t know why.  We want to hold on to them…we may write about them, we may take pictures, we may tell someone – but nothing really captures the essence of what is going on.

    Jesus seems to be telling the Jews that had gathered with him that day something along those lines.  They want it plain and simple.  They want it the way that is easiest for them.  Jesus has something to say about that.

    John 10:22-30

    They want to know if Jesus is the Messiah – plain and simple.  Give it to us, Jesus.  They could have been curious or could have been looking for something to accuse him.  That would have been considered blasphemy – and remember that is brought back up at his trial.  Jesus doesn’t give them a simple yes or no answer though.  Why?  Because something this big – something this powerful goes beyond explanation – it isn’t as simple as they want – and even if he gave it to them, they wouldn’t get it.  Jesus doesn’t answer many questions directly, though.  His call and what he is all about is so much bigger than words.  He points them to his actions.  He does what he does because that is what the Father has called him and sent him to do.

    This should have been enough for them – but wasn’t.  Jesus tells them that it is because they are NOT his sheep.  His sheep know his voice and follow him.  He has already said that he is the good shepherd.  His sheep follow him.

    That could seem like a harsh statement – except keep in mind that there were many during Jesus’ time that didn’t want to be part of his sheep and didn’t care what kind of shepherd he was.  They didn’t want to know him or follow him.  He is revolutionary.  He isn’t comfortable.  He isn’t what they have been doing when it comes to religion.  He breaks the rules – he makes people squirm – he completely changes everything they have ever known.  He has statements that include loving God and loving others – these are statement that they knew really well and thought they knew how to follow.  But, Jesus is showing them that they don’t.  Jesus shows them that loving others includes feeding and clothing and caring for and visiting.  He shows them that loving others is not about condemnation but about outreaching arms.  He makes them uncomfortable.  They probably could care less that he says they aren’t his sheep.  They think they are good just the way they are.

    But, for those who are his sheep…he has something for them.  This loving and caring business…this getting uncomfortable and going against the established religion…this doing something completely different…all leads to something extraordinary.

    Jesus says that his sheep…they hear him, they know him, and they follow him.  None of these things are simple to grasp.  None of these things are plain or easy.  All of these are indescribable.  If I ask you if you have ever heard Jesus, I will likely get a variety of answers.  Some of you will say…well not audibly – but yes.  Some will say, of course I have.  Some might say they don’t know what in the world I am talking about.  If I ask someone outside of the faith, outside the church, they may think I have lost my mind…do I mean Jesus, a person they go to school with?  If I tell you I have heard Jesus calling – I can’t describe that.  I just know it.  I can’t explain it – can’t tell you what his voice sounds like – can’t tell you why – all I can tell you is that I have.

    We have the opportunity to know about him because we have the scriptures.  The Bible is a window into who he is.  This doesn’t describe God fully.  It doesn’t give us complete explanations of anything.  I can tell you to read and you can read all about him.  But that doesn’t mean you know him any more than when you started.  That takes faith.  It takes a faith that God inspired this Word and that it is for our instruction and direction.  It is alive in that it is still applicable today.  But, it doesn’t answer all of our questions.  Some things are left to faith and knowing the Shepherd.  The more I hear him, the more I know him.  How is that possible?  Well, that’s not easy to explain.

    It also says that his sheep follow him.  Following Christ often means making some really difficult choices.  It often means leaving behind the comforts of this world to really love.  It often means leaving behind familiarities to follow.  Being a follower of Christ may mean pushing you to your very limits…and then beyond into the realm of where God works.  I can’t tell you what your calling is.  I can possibly tell you what gifts you exhibit if I spend time with you.  But, I can’t tell you how God wants to use those gifts.  I can’t tell you how that will look in the future.  I can’t tell you anything except what it means for me to follow.  I know what that looks like for me. I can’t explain what following is except to say that I follow because I heard him call.

    Now for the good news…For those who are called by him…for those who hear his voice, and know him, and follow him…there is great joy.  He promises eternal life – never perishing.  He promises that he has a grasp on us that is an eternal grasp.  No one will be able to snatch us out of his grasp.  We may not grasp him, but he sure has a grasp on us!  As if that is not enough, to be grasped by Jesus, the Good Shepherd, is to be grasped by God the Father.  Jesus and the Father are unified…in words and deeds.  And God has a hold on us with a mighty grip that will carry us through the most difficult storms and lift us up in the most terrifying times.  His grip isn’t there because of who we are but because of who he is.  Praise him that his grip is forever.

    How do I know?  Jesus says it.  You may say that this is not enough explanation.  I will remind you that we are but humans…we are loved, we are held…but we don’t have to get it.  We just have to live it.  May we live it together.

  • The hidden message that was in front of me

    In a recent devotion, the scripture reference was in Genesis 32-33.  This was a familiar story to me, so I read over it fairly quickly.  This time was different, though.  This reading caused me to stop and reflect on what was happening.  The words were the same.  The story was the same.  Somehow, the meaning had changed.  The meaning had not changed for the author but for me, as the reader/hearer.  That’s the joy of reading the scripture.  My life has changed since the last time that I read this whole story.  I have gotten older and see the world a little differently.  My circumstances have changed.  Things that once meant so much now seem petty.  This reminded me of one of the many lessons I learned in Seminary.  I studied World Religions and one of the religions that I really wanted to know more about was Judaism.  I spent some time with a wonderful person that offered so much insight and passion into the faith.  Rabbi Solomon and I were talking about how the Jews read the Torah through every year.  He taught that it was important to read the Torah again and again because we change.  Our life situation is different and what the Torah means to us is often shaped by those situations.  I found that true in this text of Genesis 32-33.

    What I discovered: 

    Jacob has been a liar and deceiver.  God has instructed him to return to his father’s home.  The only problem with that is Esau is there.  Esau, his older brother, was extremely angry the last time he saw him.  Esau even had plans to kill Jacob.  It had been several years since then, but the facts had not changed.  Jacob had taken Esau’s birthright and his blessing.  The other fact is that Esau was a skilled hunter/gatherer.  Jacob was not.  Jacob’s chances of winning any dispute, other than through deceit, are slim to none.  Jacob was terrified to return – even though God had told him to.  He had an elaborate plan – filled with droves of gifts and a whole lot of begging/groveling.  What Jacob didn’t know is that Esau was changed.  When Esau finally got to Jacob…the scene really blew me away.  Here is the reunion…

    4 But Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept. 5 When Esau looked up and saw the women and children, he said, “Who are these with you?” Jacob said, “The children whom God has graciously given your servant.” 6 Then the maids drew near, they and their children, and bowed down; 7 Leah likewise and her children drew near and bowed down; and finally Joseph and Rachel drew near, and they bowed down. 8 Esau said, “What do you mean by all this company that I met?” Jacob answered, “To find favor with my lord.” 9 But Esau said, “I have enough, my brother; keep what you have for yourself.”

    Esau wasn’t just glad to see him…he ran to meet him and embrace him.  It was completely NOT what Jacob was expecting or deserved.  Esau didn’t even want the gifts.  He told Jacob he had enough.  I LOVE that.  Esau knew he had what he needed…it wasn’t gifts that had changed him.  He didn’t need what Jacob HAD.  And Jacob says this…

    Jacob said, “No, please; if I find favor with you, then accept my present from my hand; for truly to see your face is like seeing the face of God—since you have received me with such favor.

    He told him that to see his face was to see the face of God.  That was IT!  Jacob received from Esau what he didn’t deserve – forgiveness, reconciliation, love and GRACE.  Wow!  That’s what God does for us.  I am blown away by God’s love, forgiveness, and grace – none of which do I deserve.  I am thankful that I was able to see read this.  I am hopeful it blesses someone else as well.

    What have you been skipping over in the scripture because you have “read it before?”  I encourage you to slow down and listen.  God has a powerful message to share if we will only pay attention.

  • Making Time to Breathe

    As this new year begins, there are quite a few changes.  I do not have to return to school this semester, which is probably the biggest change.  Because I spent so much time studying and reading and going to class, you would think I would have so much extra time.  You might even think I would have so much free time I wouldn’t know what to do.  I have already had many people ask what I was going to do with all my extra time.  The interesting thing is that there isn’t much free time…and I’m not sure how I survived with all I had going on.

    Last semester, I often thought of what I would do when I didn’t have to go to school.  The only answer in my mind was…breathe.  I can’t remember taking too many deep breaths in the last five years.  My schedule was so overloaded that I really don’t even remember relaxing at all.  Don’t get me wrong…it is not in my nature to relax too long.  I have to be on the move, doing something.  I loved what I did and wouldn’t change anything.  My experience in Seminary has been priceless.  But I had the desire to…just breathe.

    I looked at my schedule yesterday and it is packed.  I am doing things I wasn’t able to do when I was in school, but the calendar is still full.  I thought to myself…how did this happen so soon?  If I just had more time…or if I could just make the time to do what needs to be done…and…

    And then I heard Jonny Diaz’s new song, “Breathe.”  God has an interesting way of reaching us, doesn’t he?   I have to learn to slow down and just breathe…rest at the feet of Jesus.  His presence is in me…around me…if I will just take the time to…breathe.  He can bring rest to my overstressed life if I will just let him.  I don’t need more time.  I don’t need to “make time” even if I could.  Sometimes, I just need to stop, breathe, and listen to God speak…feel his presence…see his creation.  May I learn to…breathe.