June 06


Dealing with Hard Emotions


Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another just as God through Christ forgave you.

Ephesians 4:31-32 (NLT)


These are key verses. At least, in my mind they are. I memorized them on my way home from Portland last weekend, or at least I tried to.

I got home in time to drop off my bags. I then hopped in the car and drove another 20 minutes across town to Jeff’s fashionable, NW Bend, two-story with a view. My Bible study group was already mingling when I arrived and I don't think they heard me knock. I let myself in, climbed the steep stairs, and pulled up to our host's large, wooden dinner table after grabbing a bowl of Katie’s delicious chicken and rice, something or other. I tried small talk with my friend Chris but found my mind still numb from the drive. That changed when we transitioned to the living room for our teaching session.

My brain came back to life as we began watching Rob Bell’s DVD lesson, Store. Rob was talking about stress and anger and how Jesus dealt with it. It seemed most appropriate because, lately, I had been battling with flare ups of strong emotion. Enough to get my attention and concern.

What grabbed me was when Rob said Jesus got angry. I had read this before but forgotten it. Rob was retelling the story where Jesus is teaching in a synagogue and the Pharisees are there. The Pharisees are observing and they notice there is a man with a withered hand, so they watch intently to see if Jesus will heal this man on the Sabbath, because if Jesus heals this man on the Sabbath, He will be breaking one of their many tedious rules.

In the Bible passage (Mark 3), Mark tells us Jesus asks the man with the crippled hand to step forward, and then, He asks the Pharisees a question. “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they remained silent. Mark tells us, “When He had looked around at them with anger, being grieved by the hardness of their hearts, He said to the man, stretch out your hand.” So he stretched out his hand, and it was restored.

Do you see what happened? Jesus got angry. He felt this so-strong emotion and then immediately relayed that emotion into a beautiful, healing work. As hard as that was for Him, He turned it to good. This is the key point for me. Anger is not a sin; it is an emotion. It’s what I do with this strong emotion that can be sinful. When Luke tells this story (Luke 6), he adds the comment at the end, “But they [the Pharisees] were filled with rage and discussed with one another what they might do to Jesus.” Ah ha. The Pharisees got mad too. They had their own emotional flare up at Jesus and then plotted to send Him to the Cross! Jesus, on the other hand, gets angry and turns it into something good: a healing work. What a contrast! Is that beautiful or what? Healing not destroying. It’s convicting.

When I experience strong emotions what do I do? What can I do? How do I get rid of my anger and funnel it in some productive, creative way? One thing I am convinced of, when I feel this way, it needs to become a little ping in my brain reminding me to ask for God’s wisdom. Wisdom to become more like Jesus. Wisdom I need to resist the urge to incinerate hard hearted, selfish people with lightning-bolt fists, or laser-beam eyes, or a sharp, two-edged tongue. Instead, like Him, I need to show the love of God and His incredible grace and mercy.

Like I said ... this is convicting. I don’t need to judge. I need to transform.

You know, Sunday was a great day, because I not only got a super verse or two, I received a great lesson as well. At the end of it, I drove home after a long day, not fatigued but energized and seeking wisdom. Hmm, wisdom. Isn't that what we all need?


Father, open our eyes and show us how to love. Show us how we can be more like Jesus. Amen.

June 05


Teamness


Oh magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt His name together.

Psalm 37:3 (NAS)


This morning, Sally, our Director of Connecting Ministries, sent me five logo alternatives to go with our new church purpose/process statement. They are all good, professionally done, and a couple I would call exceptional, but there’s something even better here. Something unspoken. Something subtly hidden in this happy, little email. Teamwork. Togetherness. Trying to do the best thing for the group, the whole, the body. A willingness to give ideas, to offer and receive suggestions, but in the end, surrendering to what must be His will. And in the process, growing closer. Growing closer to each other and growing closer to Christ. And ultimately, growing in Christlikeness. Together. One in Spirit. United for the good of all. For the glory of God.

I reread Sally’s email, and I smile!


Father God, thank You for teammates, and for this wonderful body of believers—dear sisters and brothers—my family, our family, the family of God....

June 04


Healing Words, Freeing Truth


The entirety of Your word is truth....

Psalm 119:160a (HCSB)


And you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.

John 8:31 (NKJV)


To me, Alex is the moodiest of our three boys. He is certainly the most sensitive. That was evident last night when he came home with his head drooping and his spirits trailing ten feet behind. It seems some friends had said some upsetting things. He sat down on the white sofa and stared at the carpet.

“He said he never wanted to be my friend again. And then his sister didn’t believe me when I said, ‘No, really, I don’t like cookies better than I like you!’”

“Alex, what did you do to make them say such things?”

“I didn’t do anything.”

I tried to get more out of him, but it didn’t come. He stood up and dragged himself to the kitchen to get a snack. I tried to comfort him, to encourage him and uncover the mystery of the unfriendly behavior, but it didn’t happen. Alex just moped until bedtime, but then things changed.

After donning his pjs and brushing his teeth, Alex climbed into his bed and picked up his Devotions for Boys book. The passage for that night was the classic text from Leviticus 19. It talked about not holding a grudge, about not taking vengeance and about loving your neighbor as yourself. Good, timely words with a great story thrown in, and then, this memory verse , “You must make allowance for each other’s faults and forgive the person who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others” (Colossians 3:13).

It was all he needed to hear. In an instant, his heart had changed, and he snuggled into bed with a smile. Alex was relaxed and happy. He knew the truth, and the truth had made him free!


LORD, thank You for life-giving truth!

June 03


Make It Sweet


Our days on earth are as a shadow.

I Chronicles 29:15 (NKJV)


You are a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away.

James 4:14 (NAS)


Today is Alex’s birthday ... and he is home ... sick. Bummer. It’s a bittersweet day, not just because he’s ill, but because he turns 10. The big one-o. Double digits. A major milestone. Actually, he’s still 9 for another 4 hours, but that’s getting too technical. Today is his birthday. He is 10 years old, and again I wonder, where does the time go?

A couple years back I reflected on the verse that says, “Teach me to number my days that I may gain a heart of wisdom.” And since the Bible says a man’s life is 70 years long or 80 if he is strong, I began numbering my days—a countdown to 70. Today, I show 6,169 days until my 70th birthday. That, of course, assumes I’ll live that long, but what if I only have a year, or a month? Do you ever think about what you would do if you discovered you only had a year to live? Would you do things differently? And if so, why?

Well, what if you or I only have 6,169 days remaining? How do we make them count? How do we make the most of this short life span? For in light of eternity, we are all young and we all die young.... The important thing about our short time remaining, whether it’s one year or a hundred, is what we make of it.

Let me leave you with a final thought on life from Chuck Swindoll:

“...let’s face it head on with enthusiasm. And because life is so terribly short, let’s do everything we can to make it sweet.”

Today is Alex’s 10th birthday. Lord, help us make it sweet!