A Lesson From Teeth

I have a confession to make.  When I  became a teenager I didn't brush my teeth very often.  In fact, I hated brushing my teeth.  Wow, I feel a lot better now that this is off my chest!  I don't know why I didn't like brushing them.  It was probably a combination of factors - being forced to brush them when I was younger, laziness, busyness, forgetfulness, and just not liking the aftertaste of the toothpaste.  The result was as expected - cavities.

A cavity here and a cavity there.  Then fillings.  Then root canals.  You'd think at this point I would have learned my lesson.  Wrong!  From there it degenerated to pulled teeth.  One here, one there.  Actually, it was more like one-not-here and one-not-there!  Finally, it got to the point where it looked like I was going to be a good candidate for dentures.  I didn't want to go there.  I felt like getting dentures was giving up and I wasn't going to get them if I could help it.  It was at that point that I decided to stand up for the rest of my teeth. By George, I would fight to save the ones I had!

So I made a deliberate attempt to start taking care of my teeth.  I started brushing them each night.  Then I began flossing them as well.  I began to use mouthwash.  I faithfully scheduled 2 cleanings/year.  I also had some 'repair' work done.  I got a partial bridge put in on one side and a couple of implants on the other side (to the tune of several thousand dollars!). 

At this point I would have to say that it looks like I have been successful.  I haven't lost any more teeth.  I haven't had any more root canals.  I haven't had any cavities.  None.  Zilch.  Nada.  My dental hygienist is proud of me!  I have come to the place where I couldn't possibly go to bed without brushing and flossing my teeth.  However, even though I am proud of the fact that I am currently taking good care of my teeth, every time I brush them I am reminded of my years of neglect.  It is right there for me to see.  I will never have the kind of teeth and smile that I could have had.  My bad.

The point is this. Whenever I look at my teeth I see a lesson in sin.  Some sins are relatively small and can be quickly repented of without too much damage.  But other sins are huge, or we commit so many 'small' sins over a period of time, that we suffer some damage in our lives.  If we don't confess these sins and repent, the damage can end up being quite substantial.  Now while sins can be forgiven, sometimes the damage from them remains.  Years later, a person can see this damage in the form of health issues, a divorce, financial instability, children who've wandered far from God, etc.  So the key is to make regular spiritual maintenance (Bible reading, prayer, confession, fellowship, accountability) a part of our lives.  The sooner and the younger that we do this, and the more vigilant we are, the less damage we will sustain.  We won't have to be constantly reminded of our past and what could have been.  We will be able to reap all of the benefits of a life lived for God.

Lord, thank you for second chances, for the forgiveness of sins that you freely give.  Help me not to neglect my spiritual health but to make it a daily priority.  Amen.

"Remember your Creator in the days of your youth." - Ecclesiastes 12:1

Smelling Gas

Wow!  Did that title pique your interest or what?  Be honest!  But it's no what you think.

Last summer my daughter-in-law called me late in the evening.  It seems that she thought she could smell natural gas fumes in her house.  Natural gas, in its 'natural' state, is odorless so the gas company puts a scent in it so that in the event of a gas leak, someone will know and avoid either being overcome by the fumes or blowing their house sky-high.  I went over and couldn't smell anything.  She called the gas company anyway - they came over and couldn't detect anything either.  False alarm.

The problem is that sometimes natural gas is hard to detect, even with the odor.  You think you smell it once but then it's like your nose can't detect it anymore.  You almost need to leave the area, let your nose refresh, and come back.  What's the purpose of this story?

The Bible is pretty clear that when we do good deeds we ought to do them for the right reasons, the love of Christ, to help someone in need, etc.  Deeds done for show, for selfish purposes, and other such reasons will not be recognized.  There are days when I am not sure about the motivation for my good deeds.  I hope that they are being done for the right reasons but I honestly don't know.  The more I think about this the more confused I get.  It's just like trying to smell natural gas.  You thought you caught a whiff of it but now that you are trying to confirm it, you can't! This is when I find 1 John 3:20 to be so comforting.  "For whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and He knows everything."

Praise God that He knows my heart.  When I really don't know my true motivation, He does!

Lord, purify my heart so that everything I do is out of love and devotion for You.  Calm my spirit during those times when I stress out about this and can't tell what my motivation is. 

Lincoln's Pockets

When Abraham Lincoln died on April 15, 1865, it was very interesting to find out what he had been carrying in his pockets.  (http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/treasures/trm012.html)  The items included two pairs of reading glasses, a lens polisher, a pocketknife, a watch fob, a linen handkerchief, and a brown leather wallet containing a five-dollar Confederate note and nine newspaper clippings.  Outside of the Confederate note, the newspaper clippings were the most interesting.  They consisted of articles that cast the President and his policies in a  favorable light.

If you know much about Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War, you would know that he suffered a great deal of criticism while in office. Most of the South hated him and thought him to be the very embodiment of evil.  He wasn't treated much better in the North either.  Depending upon the person, he was too radical or not radical enough, his decisions were scrutinized and second-guessed and he was regularly lampooned in cartoons across the country as being some sort of gorilla who didn't know what he was doing.  Now do you understand why Lincoln carried those favorable newspaper clippings around with him?  Because they were a source of encouragement to him! Trying to lead a fickle and often thankless nation, with congressmen and military personnel who were either incompetent or self-serving, was very draining.  Then there were the wounded soldiers whom Lincoln went to see late in the evenings.  He felt their pain, the pain of their families, the pain of the nation.  For as great a man as he was, Abraham Lincoln desperately needed encouragement!

The fact is that we live in a very negative world.  95% of the news we read and hear is negative - natural disasters, crime, war, political intrigue, looming crises.  On a personal level, our conversations at work often revolve around people and situations we don't like.  In our marriages, much of our conversation and attention  revolve around problems and our spouse's short-comings.  Even in the church, there is a great deal of criticism and the pointing out of faults and shortcomings.  More often that not our world is a place where 'seldom is heard an encouraging word'.

What would God have us do?  Well, while not ignoring injustice or situations that need to be addressed, He would have to encourage and bless others!  That's right - to find the positive in a situation, to be quick to praise and thank others, to let them know the good qualities we see in them and the good they are doing.

I love encouraging others.  I believe that it is one of my spiritual gifts.  You might say that it comes 'supernaturally' to me!  If ever there was something that our world desperately needs, it is encouragers.  So, decide to be one!  It's not all that difficult.  Look around.  Who can you encourage today?  A parent, a spouse, a child, a neighbor, a co-worker, a stranger?  Call them, write them, e-mail them, speak to them, send them a card, leave them an encouraging post.  Encourage, encourage, encourage!

"Therefore, encourage one another and build one another up."  I Thessalonians 5:11

A Message I Needed To Hear

Several years ago I received an interesting communication from God.  In the space of about one week both of my part-time secretaries, Debi & Ramona, presented me with the same devotional thought from Roy Lessin.  Roy Lessin is the modern version of Helen Steiner Rice of Christian greeting cards.  His creative words and thoughts are everywhere. One secretary presented his devotional material to me in the form a card while the other presented it to me printed out on a page.  It was a message that I needed to hear from God.  Over the years I have kept both copies in my laptop tote so that I can re-read whenever I want.  I have also shared these words with other pastors whom I felt could benefit from them.  Timely words.  Godly words.  Wise words.  Enjoy!

Pastor, God Has Chosen You

"God was the one who formed you, gave you the breath of life, and brought you into the world. He did this so that His arms could embrace you and His love could keep you - He wanted you to know that your relationship with Him would always be of more value than the things He would have you do for Him. He wanted you to be certain that He loved you completely before you ever did anything in His service, so that your service would never become a way of trying to earn His love or favor.

As you came to know His heart and hear His voice, you heard Him speak a call to your life. This call would mean that He would never ask you to do anything for Him that He expected you to do without Him. He alone would be the source of your sufficiency. His only desire would be that you would daily open your heart to His resources - He wanted you to be sure that you would never have to say, "I can't", without being able to say, "He can!"

You are now in the place He has called you. He has made no mistakes leading you here. Even in the hard places He is working out what is best - not only for you and for others, but also for His Kingdom. He is not looking at your statistics or programs to measure you; He is looking at your heart to see if you are faithful. He wants you to know that the results of your obedience are for Him to determine. Be assured that it is His presence that will keep you and make you strong.

You are in God's place at God's perfect time. Your days are in His hands, and He is your future. He has gifted you, and placed His hand upon you to bless you and make you a blessing. The burden of your ministry is not yours to carry - as you rest, He will work; as you abide, He will bring fruit; as you sow, He will give the increase. He is your shield and your exceeding great reward.

He is your provider. He will take care of you. He will nurture and sustain you. His spirit is the wind to cool you, the water to refresh you, the power to enable you, the oil to anoint you, and the river that flows through you to touch the lives of others. Continue to be God's man, in God's place, doing God's will, and always remember - God has chosen you!

The Paradoxical Commandments

I mentioned these several weeks ago at the end of a sermon.  I thought that I would post them here in case anybody would like them for personal use.  While they are not Scripture there is a lot of truth in them.  Enjoy!

The Paradoxical Commandments

People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered.
Love them anyway.


If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives.
Do good anyway.


If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.


The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.


Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.
Be honest and frank anyway.


The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds.
Think big anyway.


People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs.
Fight for a few underdogs anyway.


What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.


People really need help but may attack you if you do help them.
Help people anyway.


Give the world the best you have and you'll get kicked in the teeth.
Give the world the best you have anyway.


© Copyright Kent M. Keith 1968, renewed 2001

Little Things

Today I took the day off - which is rather unusual for my workaholic self!  It was a chance to rest and recuperate a little bit and also to enjoy spending some time with my grandkids which I don't get to do all that often.  So, I watched Batman videos with Brett, played 'shoot the monster' with toy guns made from blocks, ate lunch with them, took each of them for a couple of laps around the yard on the riding lawnmower and made paper airplanes for each of them (which I continuously flew for 45 minutes!).  I really didn't do much but, then again, I did quite a bit.

The truth is that we all live lives that are so busy and hectic that the simple pleasures of life often go unnoticed.  In my own life, I find that I often gulp food down without taking the time to enjoy it, I drive around Kalispell while seldom lifting my eyes to notice the mountains, I don't take time to look at the various cloud formations in the sky nor am I always fully present when I am with people.  This is largely a result of my focus always being elsewhere.  You could very well say that I am busy but not living.

What I need to do is to savor life as I live it each day, to enjoy each moment as it comes to me and not be so consumed with my next project or appointment.

Lord, help me to live life like your Son did, fully present and aware in each moment of life.  Help me to take the time for, and to savor, the little things along the way.

Triumph

The following is a poem that I wrote for Easter 2003.  I think it's been read several times on Easter since then.  On this Easter Sunday, let us remember that "we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us!"

TRIUMPH

It was a dark & sullen morn, as several women approached the tomb,

With breaking hearts and deepest gloom,

The furthest thing from their minds....was triumph

“Why did He have to die?” they asked, each other on the road that morn,

It made no sense, their hearts were torn,

To them it seemed like anything....but triumph

Arriving at the empty tomb, the women were amazed to find,

The stone removed, and angels kind,

Upon their face they wore the sign....of triumph

“He is not here, He’s risen indeed”, the angels gladly told the women,

Death could not keep the Savior in,

And now He lives, no more to die....in triumph

They fled the scene, their fears were gone, to tell the Good News to the rest,

For from now on, their hearts were blessed,

With the great truth, that they now lived....in triumph

Two thousand years have come and gone, it hardly seems like that much time,

Since Christ arose from death sublime,

And still He leads, all of His saints....in triumph!

Dying To Self - Part IV

What would our lives look like if we truly died to self?  Good question.  Something I have been thinking about lately.

To better picture this, let's pretend that we are dead.  How much of this life would affect us then?  Would we be envious if God blessed someone else in a great way?  No.  Would we get upset if we found out that someone had lied about us, spoke ill of us, or was critical of us?  No.  Would we be consumed by worry about our finances, the economy, the world?  No.  Would we be slaves to what others think about us, about managing our image?  Again, the answer would be No.  The truth is that when we are dead to self, a lot of things no longer matter to us.  We are immune to them.  We are dead to them.  They no longer have any power over us.

On this Good Friday, as we remember the death of Jesus on the cross, let us not hide from Him or admire Him from afar.  Rather let us die with Him.  Let us die to ourselves - our goals, our ambitions, our thoughts.  When we do, we will find the abundant life that Jesus has promised us!

" I die daily." - the Apostle Paul  ( I Cor 15:31)       

Dying To Self - Part III

Recently, in an attempt to die to self,  I have begun each morning by quoting Galatians 2:20.  "I have been crucified with Christ.  It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.  And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."  It's a verse that I memorized many years ago.  It is a verse that I am trying to make a reality.

I must say that, thus far, my track record of dying to self is rather abysmal.  A case in point is a situation that occurred a month ago.  I was talking to someone from our church on a Monday morning who was going on and on about how great this church was that they attended over the weekend (while they were visiting family).  It was a 'happening' church.  The longer they talked, the more upset I got.  When they were finished I was ticked.  I suppose the reason why I felt this way is that I was terribly convicted that our church was not a 'happening' church - and it should be, I want it to be, God wants it to be.  Needless to say the rest of the day I brooded over this perceived offense.

Later that night, as I was taking a shower, God spoke to me.  "What did you pray for this morning?"  I stopped and thought for a moment.  I prayed to die to self.  Ouch!  I had prayed to die to self and not more than two hours later I had a perfect opportunity to do so - and failed!  The worst part of it is - that I went the whole day without seeing this!

Thank you, God, for Your gentle rebuke.  Don't give up on me.  And help me not to give up on dying to myself.  I am going to get this right - even if it kills me!

Dying To Self - Part II

Every time I officiate at a funeral I am reminded of how unpleasant death is.  Unless a person is in a lot of pain, no one wants to die - nor do family members and friends want them to die either.  In our culture death is certainly something that most people don't want to go through, nor do they want to think or talk about it.

In the same way, dying to self is unpleasant.  It is not something that most of us want to do.  The problem is that each one of us wants to be the captain of our own soul.  No matter how little control we have anywhere else in life, at least we can control our own lives.  Self-determination is huge.  So there is a natural inclination within us to resist dying to self.  We must acknowledge and face this reality.

I find that although Jesus calls me to die to self, that I often shrink back from it.  I don't have the time for it.  It is going to hurt.  It is going to be unpleasant.  It is going to change the way that I live.  Do I really want to go ahead with this?  Yet, I am tired of the way I am living.  I am tired of the daily challenge of living and my meager resources.  I am tired of living with this nagging feeling that I am missing out on so much that God has for me.

So the choice is before me.  Am I willing to die?  Yes, in a resigned sort of way.  If this is the only way that I can become closer to God, then I will do it.

God, this is hard.  Help me to do it.  Help me to like it.  Help me to glorify You in this!

Dying To Self - Part I

As we head toward Good Friday this weekend the emphasis will obviously be on Jesus' death on the cross.  Of course, we all know the story well.  However, a unique and interesting thought that I have been pondering lately is that Jesus wants us to follow Him in this.  Yes, Jesus also wants us to be crucified!  Not a literal crucifixion, but a spiritual one, for sure.

In Matthew 16:24, almost a year before He would die on the cross, Jesus said the following to His disciples. "If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me."  Though I am very familiar with this verse, the words that jump out at me are, "take up his cross."  There has been a lot of confusion over the meaning of this phrase down through the centuries.  Periodically we read in the news of someone who takes this literally and carries a cross on their shoulder through town or on some sort of pilgrimage.  To understand what Jesus meant by these words we have to understand why a person would carry a cross in the first place.  

In the Roman Empire at the time of Christ, a condemned criminal, as part of their punishment and humiliation, was forced to carry their own cross to the place of execution.  We see that this was also required of Jesus in John 19:17.  The fact is, no one carried a cross for fun.  No one carried a cross to make a statement.  You only carried a cross if you were on your way to die!  And that is the point.

The invitation for us to take up our cross is an invitation to die - to ourselves.  I have never looked at it this way before.  Now I am challenged.  Am I willing to die?  Do I want to die?  More tomorrow.

Other People's Garbage

Saturday I spent some time out in the yard getting things back into shape.  The wind blows predominantly from the west, we are at the end of the street, and we have a split rail fence on our western property line.  This means that paper, wrappers, cardboard, and just about anything else from the entire block blows into my yard!  And since we have a chain link fence on the eastern end of our property this litter will stay in my yard until I go pick it up.  No chance that it's going to blow into anyone elses yard.  The annoying thing about this is that none of the garbage is mine - not one, single piece!  As I was picking it up the thought crossed my mind, 'I am tired of picking up other people's garbage!'

The fact is that many times in life we have to contend with other people's 'garbage'.  Their carelessness, their irresponsibility, their thoughtlessness, their overspending, their anger, end up impacting us - and we have to deal with it.  We have to clean it up.  Sometimes this can be annoying, especially when it keeps happening over and over again.

But then I think of Jesus.  He came to this earth to clean up a mess that He didn't create.  When He died on the cross for sins, none of them was His, not a single one!  He simply cleaned up the mess because somebody had to do it - and He was that somebody.  The best part of it is that He did it without complaint or being annoyed.  He did it simply because He loved us.  So, shouldn't I be willing and glad to do the same for others?  Isn't that the loving thing to do?  Of course it is

.

Excuse me.  I think I see another piece of garbage in my yard.  I am going to go pick it up and be glad that I can help!

Additional Insight On Forgiveness Sermon

One thing I want to be careful of is not to minimize the significant hurt or pain that some people have experienced as they work on forgiving others.  In other words, there is a great deal of difference in forgiving someone for talking about us behind our back and shooting our dog; there is a great deal of difference between forgiving someone for saying something to us in anger and physically assaulting us.  The greater the offense we suffer, the greater the forgiveness that is required of us.  The greater the offense, the longer the time that we may need to process our pain, to allow God to heal us and to come to the place where we can extend forgiveness.  The key with Joseph, Corrie Ten Boom and Jesus and their ability to forgive so much, so completely, is that each of them kept their hearts in tune with God.  It was a daily, if not an hourly, process.  So we may, indeed, need some significant time to process a major wound, possibly even years, before we are able to extend forgiveness.  We just need to make sure that, through God's grace and strength, we get to the point where we actually do forgive - that we set both ourselves and our offender free!  

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Feelings

One of the biggest challenges in the Christian life is overcoming our feelings.  Now, there is nothing wrong with feelings.  They were given to us by God to bring intensity and diversity to our lives.  Who really wants to live life without feelings?  I don't!  Feelings help us to experience life to its fullest.  However, the fact is that many times feelings get in the way of our spiritual growth.  There are dozens of examples of this where we let feelings run the show - we don't pray, read our Bible or go to the church because we don't feel like it, we don't praise God or give thanks to Him because our heart is not in it, we don't forgive others because we can't seem to summon the desire to, etc.  The fact is that if we wait to do the things that we should in the Christian life until we feel like it - we will never get around to doing them!  What God desires of us is that we overcome our feelings and to do in obedience that which we are supposed to do - pray, read, forgive, etc. - even when we don't feel like it.  The amazing aspect of all this is that many times, if we do the right thing in the absence of feelings, the feelings will come afterward!  Remember - obedience first, feelings second.  It is the pathway to transformation and deepening our walk with God.