Front Row Seats...I'm There!

When I was growing up, my Dad didn't come to church with us. My Mom would take my sister and brother and I every Sunday. I didn't understand why he didn't go until the year I turned 14. We had moved to another state and were attending a church there. Mom found a prayer group to attend. I don't know how or when my Dad decided to go with her, but once he started going, an amazing change took place. My Dad could get excited about things in life, but after going to the prayer group, he became ALIVE inside. It was almost like a switch was flipped! He lived before, but he was ALIVE after.
You see, Dad had grown up going to church every time "the doors were open." He said that he'd "been saved" many times. This time, however, was different. His relationship with Jesus became real, it became personal to him. He saw things differently. He tried to live differently. And...he started going to church with us.

You might think that's a good thing...but my Dad was so excited, he wanted to get to church early and sit in the FRONT ROW. When you are 14...you DO NOT want to sit in the front row at church or anywhere else that isn't at a concert for your favorite band. Not only that, but my Dad was so excited, he wanted to visit other churches, too, and sit in their FRONT ROWS. While I was doing my best to blend into the pew cushions, my Dad was raising his hand for the "Is there anyone here for the first time?" question. There was no hiding.

The best part of that year was when my Dad and Mom shared their faith with me. It seemed like so much more than just going to church. I knew about Jesus, about God, about church, but only "about." My Dad and my Mom prayed with me when I asked Jesus into my heart and gave Him my life. The Jesus I had prayed to before but didn't really know, became real to me. I became ALIVE, too! And not just FRONT ROW alive, but IN FRONT OF OTHERS alive!

I was learning to play the guitar and the church had a group that would play the songs at church. You guessed it...I joined! When we moved to another state, I joined the guitar group at that church and, then, joined a youth choir at another church! And it didn't stop there. I had always been a third or fourth row person in life. I wanted to be close enough to see what was going on, but far enough back not to get "called on" to join in. But all that was changed now that I was a FRONT ROW person. When opportunities would come my way to join in that would really be out of my comfort zone, I would do it anyway, just to experience it. It was an amazing time in my life.

Over the years, I have "switched seats" many times from FRONT ROW, to MIDDLE ROW, and, sometimes, even the BACK ROW depending on where I was in life. In the past few years, though, I have really made an effort to stay in the FRONT ROW. I don't want life to pass me by. I want to be ALIVE. It might be uncomfortable, sometimes, to choose the FRONT ROW, but I know that is where I want to be.

How about you? Are you living in the third, fourth or even back row of your own life? Get up and switch seats! Move to the FRONT ROW! You won't believe what you've been missing!

My Parking Spot?

For years I parked in the same spot at work, on the same side of the building, every workday. (It's nice to know that in your regular morning routine, you can just pull in and park and head on in to work). One day, after following my regular routine, I pulled in and someone else was in MY parking spot. Ok, so my name wasn't on it or anything like that, but if you park in the same spot EVERY day, you start to feel like it's yours. Isn't it funny how we feel that way? No one assigned it to us...we just assumed everyone would know that's our spot. So, I found another "spot" and hurried on in to work.

The next day, you guessed it, the spot was taken. And the next day. And the next day.... (So...if someone takes my spot, does that make me "spot-less?" No, no, no, that's another story).

When something happens to "mess with" my comfort zone, I take notice. It usually means God is trying to tell me something. Parking in the same spot for years was a comfort zone, of sorts, to me, and God knew it. When I am in my comfort zone, I tend to like to stay there. It's familiar, it's secure, it's comforting. I also tend to not want to leave my comfort zone. The "unknown" can be scary or intimidating or any of the other reasons I can come up with so I don't have to leave.

When I came to work last week, and the spot was taken, God reminded me of a song that has become important to me. It's called Oceans (Where Feet May Fail), and it's done by Hillsong United. The first time I heard that song, it spoke to me. The message in the song is all about trusting in God when the "waves" in our lives are scary or hard. He is helping me to "keep my eyes above the waves."

He was reminding me of this song, not because not having "my" parking spot was scary, but because of the other words in the song.  "Spirit, lead me where my trust is without borders, let me walk upon the waters, wherever you may call me." I've really been focusing on those words in the song, lately. I want to go wherever He leads me and to do whatever He has called me to do.

And then it hit me. What He was trying to tell me.

How can He lead me to where my "trust is without borders" if I can't even let go of a parking spot? How can I walk upon the "waters" He leads me to, if I am content to follow my same routine and stay in my same comfort zone.

Wow. I didn't see that one coming. Talk about a message in a moment.

The message was clear. Even more than I realized. You see, if I'm "parked," I'm not moving. Let me say it again. If I'm parked, I'm not moving. I hear you, Lord.

From now on, wherever I park, will be "a" parking spot, not "my" parking spot. It's only temporary. I want to be ready to "pull out" and move on to "wherever He may call me."

All That AND a Bag of Chips

I'll never forget being with a group of students and hearing the phrase, "she thinks she's all that AND a bag of chips!" I just had to laugh. What a perfect way to describe someone so focused on themselves that they felt they were not just the complete package, but they were something extra! Now that is prideful!

Pride, however, is no laughing matter. There are many verses in the Bible about pride. In Proverbs 16:18, the verse reads, Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. In Proverbs 11:2, the verse reads, When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.

You see, when we focus too much on ourselves or on our accomplishments, we are not focused on the One who created us with the gifts and talents we have. It is sort of like focusing more on the gift, than on the Giver. There would be no gift without the Giver.

Not all pride is bad, though.  For example, how many parents are proud of their children when they take their first steps across the floor, and then, later, when they walk across a graduation stage? Or how many teachers are proud of their students at the end of a school year for all of their hard work? And let's not forget about how proud someone can be of themselves when they try to do something that they were afraid to do and, then, they accomplish it.

If we put a lot of time and effort into achieving something, it is alright to be proud of that effort. The danger comes when we become full of pride about our efforts or our accomplishments. When we put too much focus on what WE'VE done, it crosses over from being proud to being prideful. This takes the focus away from what HE'S done in us and for us.

The next time you start to feel your focus slipping, just remember the Giver.

Without Him, we are nothing. We are an incomplete package. With Him, we can be "all that" He created us to be...and more!

(Way better than a bag of chips, don't you think?)

Hold On...Daylight is Coming!

I try to imagine what it was like for the disciples when Jesus died. The person who loved them and they loved and followed, was gone. Although he'd told them that he would have to die but then would rise again on the third day, it was, I imagine, hard for them to believe (Matthew 16:21). They did see Jesus raise Lazarus and Jairus' daughter from the dead, but this would be completely different. The One who raised the others from the dead, was dead, himself.

Can you imagine? Waiting together, afraid to go out into town, lest they be arrested, too, by association. The light of their lives, their guiding light, gone. What were they thinking? What did they say among themselves? Did they have hope? Or did they feel that all hope was gone? It must have been a very dark time, indeed.

But daylight was coming...

Very early in the morning, on the third day, the women went to the tomb. When they got there, the stone covering the tomb's entrance was moved away.  They went into the tomb but the body of Jesus was gone! Then two men appeared next to them in "gleaming garments" and they were afraid. But the men said to them "Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here, he is risen! Remember how he told you when he was still with you in Galilee?  The Son of Man must be delivered over to the hands of sinners, be crucified, and on the third day be raised again." (Luke 24:1-9)

I love the next verse: "Then they remembered his words."

Isn't that just like us?

We go through dark periods in our lives where it seems that all light, all hope is gone. We know what we've been told. We know what we've been taught. But when we are in the middle of the dark time, we can only see the dark. How much better would it be if we remembered His words and held onto hope instead?

In Psalm 30, David talks about when he was "in the pit" and he called on God, who rescued him. In the second part of verse 5, he says 'weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.'

In Isaiah 40:31, it says, "Those who wait on the Lord will renew their strength, they will soar on wings like eagles, they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint."

What darkness are you in today? Let me share the one who is Hope with you.  Remember his words, remember his hope, remember the promise in Romans 10:13 "all who call on the name of the Lord shall be saved."

Hold on...daylight is coming! He is risen, indeed!

A group named Remedy Drive has done a song called "Daylight." If you'd like to listen, click here for the link.

Maintaining Idle Speed in a "No Wake Zone"

Growing up in South Florida, there were a lot of opportunities to see boats and ride in boats. My grandmother had a house on the Intracoastal waterway and we would sit out on the dock and watch the boats go by. We learned what channel markers and buoys were for and why boats had red lights and green lights on them.

There were two signs on the waterway near my grandmother's house. One was "Idle Speed" and the other was "No Wake Zone." When seeing those signs, the boaters knew that they should be traveling at or below idle speed to ensure that the boat's wake would not cause any injury or damage to any person, boat or property.

What's a wake? Basically, a wake is a swell of water, waves, path, or water pattern that follows behind a boat moving through the water. Anyone who's been in a smaller boat when a larger boat passes by, knows to "hang on" because the small boat can be rocked back and forth when crossing the wake of the larger boat.

I think we should have "No Wake Zones" in our lives. Think about it. When was the last time your "world was rocked" by something someone said or did? You didn't see it coming. You didn't know to "hold on" until the way was smooth again. The other person may or may not have had any idea of the impact of their "wake" as they just moved on.

Navigating through life's "waterways" can be a challenge. It would certainly help if we knew where our personal "No Wake Zones" were. We all have them. Those little areas where we are more sensitive and prone to have our "world rocked" (or at least tipped off-kilter). What if we focused on the boat captain, Jesus, through those zones and asked him to help us to maintain an "idle speed" through it? We can't control how someone else might speed through our "No Wake Zone" but we can control how we react to it. Sometimes we might need to speak with the person about their "wake." They might not even be aware of it. Sometimes we might need to just "hold on" and maintain our "idle speed" through the interaction. Sometimes, though, we might need to change our course and take a different direction. Whatever we choose, though, will be our choice.

The next time someone comes zooming into your "No Wake Zone," be prepared. Let the "captain" help you navigate the waters and maintain your "Idle Speed." (Philippians 4:6-7)

Godspeed!

Shoulda, Coulda, Woulda and the Green Light Pause

When I was growing up, the family would sit around the dinner table telling about our day. One of us would be talking about something we had said in a situation when my dad would say, "You shoulda said....". He would go on to share "Dad" wisdom of what he thought would have been a better response. The whole family would then get involved in the "shoulda saids." It became a part of the family banter.

As an adult, I still have "shoulda saids" running through my mind. Sometimes I'll review my response to something and think, "Maybe, I should've said this or maybe I should've said that, instead."

I think all of us have moments in our lives where we "shoulda" said something differently. Sometimes we have regrets that we "coulda" said something, but we didn't. We even think on some things and say, "If I had to do it over, I 'woulda' done it differently."

Sometimes we mean the words we say, at the moment, only to think about them later, with regret. Sometimes the words "fly out of our mouths" before we've even thought about it. Sometimes, though, we've had an opportunity to say something...but didn't.

Words can be very powerful. They can build up and they can tear down.

The Bible has a lot to say about the power of words, especially in the book of Proverbs.
In Proverbs 16:24, it says, "Kind words are like honey, sweet to the soul and healthy for the body."
In Proverbs 15:1, it says, "A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger."
In Proverbs 12:18, it says, "The words of the reckless pierce like swords, but the tongue of the wise brings healing."

I really do try to watch what I say. Some days are better than others. I have discovered, though, that if I pause before saying something, it gives me a moment to consider my words. It's sort of like the green light pause. You know when you're at a stop light and the light turns green but you wait that extra second or two to make sure no one is coming before you go? That's a green light pause. It doesn't matter to me if the person behind me honks, I'm more concerned for my safety than their need to "go, NOW."

Perhaps we all could take a green light pause before we speak. We could take a moment and think before we speak. It might prevent some verbal "accidents" and avoid possible damage.

Hawk Nelson, a Canadian Christian Rock Band, does a song called "Words" that really says this much better than I can. I'm including a link to their video, here. The song talks about how words can "build us up" and "tear us down," "start a fire in our hearts" or "put it out." It's a powerful song.

"Shoulda, Coulda, Woulda." Those words speak volumes, don't they? The next time a "shoulda said" pops up in my mind, I hope it's just a memory of those family dinners, long ago. If I use my green light pause, maybe I'll actually be saying what I "shoulda said," first.

X-ray Vision? Well, Maybe not...

If you are as old as I am, somewhere between "older than dirt" and "just sprouted," you might remember those ads in the back of comic books that told us all about the AMAZING things we could buy. For $2, you could buy a family of "sea monkeys." For just a little bit more, you could buy X-ray glasses and have X-ray Vision! You could see through things and amaze your friends! Of course, none of those products were "for real" and many children learned their first lesson in life about "if it's too good to be true," but...just for a moment...the idea of owning the X-ray glasses was very exciting!

Now that I'm "grown up," I look back on the idea of X-ray glasses. When I think about it, they wouldn't be very practical unless you were a doctor. I mean, why would anyone want to see the inside of someone unless they were a doctor?

What I really need, though, is a pair of "God Glasses." Something that would help me to see things the way He sees them.

Do you ever get so busy in life that you just keep going and barely slow down to look around you? You have a checklist of things that you have to get done; a project at work, kids to baseball practice, laundry to be done, groceries to be bought, and on and on. Anything that breaks your stride feels like a distraction and can cause frustration. Have you ever been in a line in the grocery store and every line but the one you're in seems to be moving? Or what about when you are stuck in a traffic jam? You know you have to be someplace at a specific time and when it looks like you're going to be late, it can be stressful.

Let me ask you a question. When you are in any of those situations, do you ever look at anyone else around you? I mean really look at them? Probably not. When we are so focused on whatever our "plan" is at the moment, we really aren't aware of others around us.

This is where I need "God Glasses." If I stopped long enough from focusing on my "to do" list and saw things from His perspective, I might see things differently.

There might be a young mother, with a baby in the front of her cart, at the front of my checkout line who is carefully watching the total as her items are checked out because she knows she only has a specific, small amount of money to pay for her groceries. At that moment, when she sees the total and has to ask that some of the items be put back, she must decide which of the items that she really needs, will have to be left behind. She is ashamed that she went "over" and is causing the line to back up. She is dealing with a lot of emotions at the time.  If I was looking at the situation through "God Glasses," I could do something to help. Perhaps, if I'm next in line, I could quietly ask the cashier to add those items to what I was paying for, and have them bagged for the young mother.

What if I am in the traffic jam and no cars seem to be moving? What if it might be caused by an accident up ahead? If I was using my "God Glasses," I could look around at the people also stuck in traffic. I could pray for each of us to relax and be filled with peace as we wait, and I could pray for the people that might be involved in the accident up ahead.

The thing is, people all around us are going through many hard things, heartbreaking things. But we can't see it because everyone "puts on a good face" when we are out and about. If we could see people as God sees them, we would be sensitive to someone who might need a hug or an encouraging word. We might be able to help someone who might need a little extra financial help, like a bag of groceries. We could reach out to that person who God puts on our heart to ask them if they are ok and then stay with them long enough to know that their "I'm fine" really means, "ask me, again, please. I'm really not."

I really don't need "X-Ray Glasses," what I really need are "God Glasses."

Brandon Heath sings a song that is all about "God Glasses." It's called "Give Me Your Eyes." If you'd like to hear it, I've included a link to his YouTube version, here. It helps me to see things differently, to really try to be sensitive to what others are going through.

I have a long way to go, but I really need your "glasses," God, along the way.

Give me eyes to see and ears to hear.