SEEING THE EXTRAORDINARY

Category: Service

  • The Dream Job?

    Can you imagine this job posting?  You begin your search online looking for just the right position.  You know your qualifications…you know your education level…you have a good feel for your abilities.  You search like you have done so many times.  Only this time is different…there is a very different position that causes you to stop and ponder…your eyes can’t leave the screen…you can’t even move on.  There it is…Executive Assistant.  It’s not that this is a unique position.  It’s not that this is something you have never considered before.  It is the boss that catches your eye…the ‘executive’ you would be assisting.  You would be the right hand to this person who is famous…and well known… People read all about him.  When he speaks, people listen.  It’s not that they always do what he says…but they at least listen, they can’t help it.  He has that spark.  He captivates when he gives speeches.  His stories are riveting.  You can’t believe that this is actually an option…so you apply…and you hold on…if you get this position, you know your life is about to change forever…

    Driving to work a couple of days ago, I was listening to a podcast as I often do.  This particular segment was focused on what people think would make them happy…dream jobs and such.  There was a survey conducted that asked respondents if they would rather be the president of Harvard or an executive assistant to someone famous.  A large majority chose executive assistant.  When they were asked who they would like to be an executive assistant to…the first person was Je-Lo (Jennifer Lopez).  The second was Jesus.  That caught my attention.  I was not surprised that people would want to be Je-Lo’s assistant.  She’s famous and seems to have a lot of redeeming qualities of someone you would like to be around.  But then to hear…Jesus.

    What might it look like to be Jesus’ assistant?  To be an executive assistant is one who plans trips, takes care of speaking engagements, makes sure the logistics from one place to the other are taken care of.  A really good assistant would know what the person needs and wants before they even speak.  They would be right there for it all…at their beckoned call…to assist in any way possible.

    I’m not sure if the respondents considered what it might be like to assist Jesus.  He wouldn’t want to be booked at a large speaking venue.  He wouldn’t want to have his face plastered in Times Square.  I can’t imagine that he would want to be interviewed by the Today Show.  It seems to me that he might have his assistant book him a flight to the poorest parts of the world…the forgotten places…the places where no one would go.  I think he would want to go meet people who are out fishing or in the middle of the field…people in prison or in the middle of a board room.  You might have to spend time in places where there was no bathroom or houses or even quality food.  This is where I am sure we would see Jesus.

    But, isn’t the Executive Assistant Position really what we should have as Christians anyway? Isn’t that already our position? Following Jesus…watching him work…going where he tells us to go…reaching people he wants to reach…feeding people who are hungry…going to the places that no one else would go…doing the dirty work…loving the unlovable…going out into the world to show his love to all you meet.  That sounds like the call to be a Christian to me.  So maybe we already have the call to be an Executive Assistant and we don’t even know it.  Maybe we have that dream job and we just haven’t accepted it.  Maybe it is time we actually started following Jesus and reaching…the least of these…

    least

  • 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

  • Breath and Life

    It just doesn’t seem fair…this whole death thing.  It doesn’t have favorites.  It isn’t particular to a group or even an age.  Death comes and takes those we hold so dear right from our arms…even as we cling to them trying to hold on…to their very last breath.  I read about a  16 year old that breathed her last breath after a brave fight with cancer.  I can’t help but think how unfair that is.  I think of a couple who recently lost a newborn…he didn’t have a chance to make his mark on the world.  I think of people around the world that are starving and thirsting to death…young people who deserve to live just as much as anyone else.  It just seems so harsh, cruel, and unfair.  And, honestly, it hurts.

    It is true that the sting is a little more noticeable this week than usual.  My Grandpa passed away almost one week ago.  He had lived what we consider a long life.  He had lived life well.  He was a wonderful example of a man that loved God and loved his family.  Personally, for me, he is an even better example because he didn’t pretend to be perfect.  He knew he didn’t always get it right.  But, he did the best that he knew how…and as it turns out…he did some pretty incredible things.  He loved others…he cared for others…he shared his gifts…he did what he was called to do.  And, he was okay with breathing that last breath.  That doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt.  It doesn’t mean I was ready for him to go.  But it at least seems to make some sense in my small, finite, time bound mind.

    So, I hold all these things in perspective.  A young lady who experienced 16 years on this earth…an older man who experienced almost 88.  Both have breathed their last breath.  Life as we know it has left them.  As I looked at my Grandpa after he breathed his last, his body changed.  His body changed because the very life that God had breathed into him was now gone.

    This reminds me that God is still breathing life into me.  He is still breathing life into you.  As long as God is providing life to us…as long as we continue to breathe…we have a life to live.  I’m not talking about a sentimental hallmark card moment with fields and flowers and a theme of “Go live your life…”  I’m talking about taking a moment to feel your breath and realize that you are given this breath so that you truly experience life.

    How many of us have breath…but we are not experiencing life?  How many of us go through our day…the same old patterns…the same work…the same scenery and miss the life we are to experience?  How many times do we miss a sunrise or not hear the birds that sing?  How many times do we fail to tell someone we love them with the idea that they will be here tomorrow?  How many times do we dread our day or resent having to get up in the morning…AND YET WE HAVE BREATH…

    I am jolted awake with a reminder to live life…to appreciate the gift of breath…the opportunity to live…the joy of a new sunrise…the beauty of a day…the song of a bird…and even the struggles.  For there will come a day when my breath will be no more.  I will value the gift until then.

    vinsonfamlake09-043

  • Cloudy Mirrors

    Mirrors can be powerful instruments.  They can help us to see ourselves as we get ready to meet the world.  They can help us to identify our “trouble areas” and see where we might need to work on things.  There is a problem though.  It would seem that too many of us have cloudy mirrors.  We do not actually see our real reflection.  We instead see what we want to see staring back in the mirror.

    How can that be?  We seem to have no trouble seeing others.  We seem to have no problem making judgments about other people…the way they dress, the way they did their hair, the way they carry themselves.  We have no trouble identifying others imperfections.  And often, we wonder if they looked in the mirror before they walked out of the house.  We wonder if there mirror was more than cloudy.  After all…we would never leave the house looking like THAT.

    But maybe it’s not our mirror at all that is the problem.  I don’t think it is our eyesight.  That can be a problem as we age, but I’m thankful for glasses to help us along.  I don’t think it is the size of our mirror or where it is in our house.  The problem is with us.

    There is a Bible verse that has always been difficult for me.  It is in the book of James, chapter 1.  James is writing how believers should be people of action, be a part of the game…not just sitting on the sidelines waiting for others to do the work.  That’s a difficult enough statement.  But, he continues to say that those who sit on the sidelines are like those who see themselves in a mirror.  When they walk away, they immediately forget what they look like.  As I have read this scripture, I always thought…how does someone forget what they look like.  Sometimes we might want to forget what we look like…we all have those “rough” days.  But, how do we forget?

    And it dawned on me…That’s the answer…that’s how our view in the mirror becomes so skewed.  We can be so focused on what other people are doing (or not doing)…we can be constantly criticize or judge…we can point out the faults of everyone else… That we forget who we are…or we create this image of how good or bad we are that isn’t even real.  We forget that we are to be people who are of action.  We forget to take a good long look at ourselves and what we are doing.  If we, as Christians, spent as much time working for God…focusing on what he wants us to do…rather than being critical of everyone around us…we might actually see change happen.

    That image in the mirror might actually become clearer.  We might see the beautiful creation made and fashioned by God staring at us in the mirror.  And that beautiful creation is not only fashioned by God, but created for a purpose.  Our purpose is not to judge everyone else…but rather to do as we are called and created.

    It is true that we can only change ourselves…and to change the world, it begins with me.  Maybe today, I wipe that mirror clean and begin to take a long, hard look at me.  How has God created and fashioned me to do his work?  What am I doing for him?  How am I living?  What message am I sending?  How am I loving my neighbor?  How am I living out what Jesus taught?

    May we stop at the mirror today, truly see ourselves as beautiful and created by God, and walk away serving others… Loving God and loving our neighbor…regardless of what they look like.

  • Who’s the best?

    Who’s the best?  That’s a thought that often runs through the minds of so many in our competitive society.  Our culture seems to be one of comparison – who has the best, who does this the best, that person did that better than you.  In some situations, competition is great and necessary.  You want the best players on a basketball team.  You want the best athletes in the Olympics.  You want the best taking care of you medically.  But, sometimes this gets out of control.

    If our world is about competition, then we are constantly in a comparison game.  Why don’t I run better than he does?  Why doesn’t my hair look like hers?  Why is their house bigger than mine?  Why does he play the piano so much better than I do?  This is a no win game.  We will always have someone to compare ourselves to.  Even if we are the best at one thing, there are a ton of other things in our lives that someone else is better at.

    This even spills over into our lives as Christians.  She reads the Bible better than I do.  He sings better than I do.  That church has a better youth program.  There are more people attending that church than mine.  There are more younger people there.  There are less activities here.  And we find ourselves in another no win game of who is best.

    Comparing ourselves to others can lead to envy, to a financial disaster, to anxiety and stress, to difficulties in relationships, and even to a church trying to be something other than what God intended.

    How do we avoid this when it is so engrained in our culture?  I think that we by taking a long difficult look at why we do what we do.  What really is your motives?  What really is driving you?  What or who are you comparing yourself to?  Who are you trying to emulate?

    As a Christian, my focus has to be on following Christ.  If I do that, then my comparison is…am I doing what I have been called to do.  That doesn’t mean that I do it better than someone else.  That means that I look at what God’s calling on my life is, and do that to the best of my ability.  The same goes for the church.  As the church, are we doing what God has called us…our fellowship…to do?  While all churches are called to follow Christ as a community of believers, that looks different in every church.  Worship and activities that are done may be different.  One church may be called particularly to reach out in prison ministry while another may be called to carry out a feeding program.  The point is that if every Christian is doing what he or she is called to do and every church is living out the calling God has for it – then working together – what a beautiful picture of Christ that becomes.

    That leaves out the idea that I am doing something better than you.  I am just doing what God has called me to do to the best of my abilities.  That leaves out the idea that my church is better than yours.  My church and your church are doing what God calls and we are working together towards a common goal.  We serve and follow the same Lord.  We should be working together.  That means we can celebrate the successes of others.  We can truly be excited for a church that is doing what God has called.  We can celebrate with the pianist that has faithful given her life to that calling.  It’s not a competition, it is an opportunity to work together to show the love of Christ to a world starving for it.  That’s when the Body of Christ really makes a difference.

    To conclude, I have one last thought:

    we are all crazy cartoon

    Blessings as you seek to follow Christ in what he has called YOU to do.

  • The Night the Clock Stopped

    I was at a basketball game recently when something happened.  A stunt the cheerleaders were performing went wrong…a girl fell and got hurt.  I think my heart stopped and my daughter wasn’t even the cheerleader that was hurt.  It was during half time.  They always have the clock running during half time so the teams can know when to begin warming up again before they start the second half.  But not today…as all of this was going on, I look up at the clock and…it was stopped.  There was no countdown…for that moment, time seemed to stand still.  Those are the moments that become forever embedded in your mind.

    Time seems to stand still on a few occasions…like watching a car accident…or seeing something tragic happen right before your eyes.

    Or, like sitting at the bedside of someone as they take their last breath…People say that life flashes before their eyes when they experience something tragic or life-altering.  There may not be another time to say what needs to be said to people.  We may not get another moment to love on those that mean something to us.  I understand that may sound cliche.

    For me, though, I don’t always stop to really see people until the clock stops.  I don’t consider what I should or should not be saying until there is no opportunity left to speak.  I don’t often reflect on what I should or shouldn’t be doing until it is all said and done.

    What might our lives look like if we started seeing what really is around us…without the clock stopping?  What should we say or do or not say if the clock was to stop right now?  What do you need to change, even if the clock keeps on counting?

  • Without a voice

    I’m not sure I have ever been this long with little to no voice.  Funny how it happened right after I preached a sermon on Sunday, which went fine.  Not having a voice has had an interesting effect on me…

    I’ve had a lot of time to think.  School is complete and I am unable to run.  This time of thinking has been good.  As I was thinking about this really minor problem that will correct itself soon, these two important things came up:

    –Not having a voice has given me the opportunity to listen more.  I try not strain my voice to say anything unless I think it really needs to be said.  It has definitely caused me to stop and think before I speak…not something I do often enough.  When it requires effort to say something, you want to make sure what you say counts.  This has allowed me to be quiet and have the opportunity to simply listen.  It has been an opportunity to not only listen to others, but also to listen to God.  All too often, when I pray, it is me talking and God listening.  This type of prayer isn’t building a relationship, but more unloading my list of things I need help with.  It could be called my “God-do” list rather than the “honey-do” list.  If this is my only prayer, I am missing opportunities to fellowship with God, to worship, and to hear.  Being silent allows me to reflect on what God is doing.  It allows me to worship without asking for anything.  It allows me to focus on the Creator of it all and appreciate what he has made and is doing.  May God continue to work on me with this, even after my voice returns.

    -It brought to mind those in our world who have “no voice.”  There are people all over the world that truly have no voice.  I don’t mean that they cannot speak literally.  I mean that they are ignored, treated poorly, abused, abandoned and/or forgotten.  There are people who have found themselves in situations that they are screaming for help but no one can hear them…or at least no one chooses to hear them.  I thought about the often quoted Matthew 25 and “the least of these.”  Maybe God has given us ears to hear…not the things of this world…but ears to hear those shouting to be heard.  Maybe God is giving us eyes to see…to see those who have been forgotten or abandoned.  Maybe God is giving us hands to reach out…to show others that they are somebody…to bring them to the table and fellowship.  Maybe God is giving us feet to go…to those places where he leads, no matter how scary…so that we can visit those who need HIM.  Maybe, just maybe, taking care of the least of these is not just feeding…but loving, supporting, and giving voice to those who have forgotten they even have one.

    I’m praying that God will allow me to hear…to see…to serve…and to go!