Have you noticed, people just don't pay attention!

               More and more accounts of distracted driving are reported with increasing property damage, personal injury and death. We are distracted by almost anything these days. So much so that we don’t really pay attention to what is going on right in front of our faces. Our hurry plays an important role in our distraction. You might think people who travel through the 21 I-95 interchange daily with its 30-60 minute waits would arrive at work calm, cool and collected having sat in their cars waiting but not so much. We could be chilling, meditating or jamin’ but no we are tensed up with ever increasing levels of hostility and yet unaware of the opportunity presented.

Conversations, real ones face to face and NOT text to text, suffer the most. Almost all of us enter a conversation and listen to the point where we can formulate what we will say next instead of listening to hear and understand what the other is saying. Family takes the greatest beating in this area. We talk but never listen to the ideas, hurts, concerns or delight behind the words. We are too busy thinking about what we will say or how we can “tell them off” that we fail to listen, really listen. People are hurting to be really heard. Recently an individual asked how we were in light of Mom and Dad’s deaths. We shared a few words and then our questioner told us of all of their woes from their parents’ passing several years ago. They wanted to be heard but they failed to listen.

Our attention lacks in what we read as well. I often don’t want to read every word so I scan the piece. But that means I have not read every word and probably missed a step or two. With Christmas so close there may indeed be more than one parent late at night trying desperately to assemble a gift frustrated it is not turning out well who failed to complete one step or to execute the steps in the proper order. Could that be you? This is probably more genetic to the male of the species although I do know of a few females who suffer the same fate. SO, how do we fix our attention deficit?

Recently as a friend and I talked we agreed that regarding instructions and Bible reading we needed to slow down and carefully read the story. Slow down and take the words in not trying to fit them in or get ready to respond but take them in first. It’s like a wide receiver who misses the ball because he got ready to run before he caught the pass. Let’s “catch the pass” and then see what we can do with it. This is especially true of Christmas.

Christmas is all about traditions. How about we start a new tradition? Let’s plan to slow down. At least once a day, read some scripture, pray a bit and then listen. Be still and take God in for a few! Since time began God has been speaking trying to get our attention. He is still at it. Yet, we’re not listening. Life is so about us. Christmas is about us as well. It's all about God becoming human so that we could see and hear him and his message of love.

Come on people let’s focus on Jesus.

It’s Christmas!    

In HIS Service and Yours.

BroG

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

               I read this week a question posed on Facebook regarding Christmas. The question was, what makes Christmas for you or something to that effect. In other words what helps you move to the spirit of Christmas? It’s a good question. We are to our detriment people motivated by our environment. This time of year the sights, sounds and smells are a huge motivator.

In my family we have a cookie recipe that we only make at Christmas. The recipe calls for the dough to be mixed and to sit 3 days to 3 weeks in a covered bowl before baking. It makes a dark gingerbread like cookie that is topped with a pecan half and a glaze. I think they are delicious just by the smell in the bowl. By the way we have a bowl in our kitchen just waiting to be baked and consumed. Maybe it is the smell of sugar in the house as candy is made and piles up on the counter plate by delicious plate. The season of Christmas has a lot to do with food. Well at least with me and my house.

Christmas is not the same without sound. This week I hurt my knee requiring a trip to the orthopedist. This was my first time seeing this doctor. As the conversation went he said he loved the Christmas season because of the music. Everyone in his family is musical except him but he loves music and the abundance of music at Christmas from orchestra to children’s choirs. Bells ring and people sing even folks who would never sing any other time sing a little at Christmas. Sacred or secular it doesn’t matter at Christmas people like the sounds of the season.

The sight of lights is what sets me in the season. Since I was a small boy I have loved looking at the lights of Christmas. We would get in the car and drive through neighborhoods to see the lights and comment on how beautiful each home was. Thursday night I was coming south through Guyton when I was struck by a light display. There on Central Avenue was a home brightly lit with a cross, nativity and other colors of the rainbow all in lights. I was dazzled. I have decided to go back Friday night to get some pictures it is that good.

Sights, sounds and smells are powerful motivators of this season but they are external. The real motivator of the season is Jesus. He is an internal kind of guy. He is transforming us form the inside out. It is his light that needs to shine not into but out of us every season of the year. Yet all too often for me his light is shrouded by other external factors. It is sad that I have to be coerced into the Christmas spirit. Why is Christ in me not enough? Why is his grace alone insufficient for me to shout “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom he is pleased?”

I’m not sure I know the answer but I am taking it all in to prepare me once again this year for Christmas.

What about you?

How are you preparing for Christ this Christmas?

It is Advent! The season of preparation!

              

In HIS Service and Yours.

BroG

In the mail this week!

               I opened a card from an address I did not recognize. No, I was not worried about a virus because it came in the snail mail. Yes, a real card with real ink and a real stamp affixed to the corner. Yes, people do still use this archaic form of communication. I pulled the card from the envelope and the cover is a Christmas greetings scene. As I began to read, it was a thank you card from a family we had helped with food and a meal before Thanksgiving. Others collected the goods for the box and I delivered it to a common contact who then took it on to the intended recipient. So, I had not direct contact although I do know who they are. It began as most thank you notes do with gratitude for the gift and genuine appreciation. That’s where we took a turn.

The second paragraph started with, “We were able to feed twelve people on Thanksgiving Day and ten more on Saturday and we still have some left.” Those words shocked me. One because I did not think there was that much food in the box. What more profoundly struck me was they shared their gift with 22 people. My understanding is life is difficult right now for them and they can use all that comes their way yet they chose to share their blessing with others. In my almost 30 years of vocational ministry I have never had a Thank You card like this. Why would they do this? The key was in the third paragraph.

“My husband and I have been in the ministry for over thirty-five years and have given many baskets of food away, so it was nice to be on the receiving end for a change.” They were on the receiving end this time but they were giving as always. They have been faithful for all of those years and so they continued to be faithful. What a blessing. People who are thankful then giving what they have. God will respond to their generosity and faithfulness.

Give away your life; you’ll find life given back, but not merely given back—given back with bonus and blessing. Giving, not getting, is the way. Generosity begets generosity.” Luke 6:38 MSG

Recently a friend wished me a blessed day. I replied I am blessed I just need to live like it. Today I am having a difficult time with that. All I can focus on is some pain in one of my knees. Maybe you are focused on one or two issues in your life. That is all you can see. To your sight there is yet to be a blessing there. Let me ask, what about other areas of your life? Are you blessed there? I you will look I think you can answer yes.

Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met. Matthew 6:33 MSG        

                

In HIS Service and Yours.

BroG

Why Give Thanks at All?

Psalm 136 (NIV)

¹ Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
His love endures forever.
² Give thanks to the God of gods.
His love endures forever.
³ Give thanks to the Lord of lords:
His love endures forever.

⁴ to him who alone does great wonders,
His love endures forever.
⁵ who by his understanding made the heavens,
His love endures forever.
⁶ who spread out the earth upon the waters,
His love endures forever.
⁷ who made the great lights—
His love endures forever.
⁸ the sun to govern the day,
His love endures forever.
⁹ the moon and stars to govern the night;
His love endures forever.

¹⁰ to him who struck down the firstborn of Egypt
His love endures forever.
¹¹ and brought Israel out from among them
His love endures forever.
¹² with a mighty hand and outstretched arm;
His love endures forever.

¹³ to him who divided the Red Sea asunder
His love endures forever.
¹⁴ and brought Israel through the midst of it,
His love endures forever.
¹⁵ but swept Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea;
His love endures forever.

¹⁶ to him who led his people through the wilderness;
His love endures forever.

¹⁷ to him who struck down great kings,
His love endures forever.
¹⁸ and killed mighty kings—
His love endures forever.
¹⁹ Sihon king of the Amorites
His love endures forever.
²⁰ and Og king of Bashan—
His love endures forever.
²¹ and gave their land as an inheritance,
His love endures forever.
²² an inheritance to his servant Israel.
His love endures forever.

²³ He remembered us in our low estate
His love endures forever.
²⁴ and freed us from our enemies.
His love endures forever.
²⁵ He gives food to every creature.
His love endures forever.

²⁶ Give thanks to the God of heaven.
His love endures forever.

The first verse answers the question. Give thanks to the Lord for He is good. He is good. His heart, actions, activity, his all is good. In seasons of difficult circumstances or loss or life we doubt He is good because among other things we cannot see the outcome or understand the purpose. Let me encourage you to put to "hide in your heart" like Mary the mother of Jesus these words, "Give thanks to the Lord for He is good." It has been said, "When you can't see the hand of God trust his heart."

You can, For He is good."

In HIS Service and Yours.

BroG

The days before Thanksgiving 2016!

                That of course means Christmas is right around the corner. I guess the election has captured my attention this year so as to distract me from the Christmas decorations that have been on sale since August (maybe earlier). I am writing Thursday one week before Thanksgiving, the weather has turned cooler here in south Georgia more like the season but my heart and mind have not turned to giving thanks.

                I’m thankful but I’m not feeling it. Maybe that means I am not really thankful. My issue is all I can see is what I’ve got to do and what is not done. There I’ve said it. I can’t seem to get anything completed. There is always one more hiccup, one more delay, one more piece of information needed that I don’t have or cannot get.

                I get a lot of satisfaction from completing a task or event, maybe too much. It is satisfying to me to conclude a quest, trip or project. Of course, it is not complete until it is cleaned up but even then there is a level of satisfaction for me that comes from the promise of completion and/or seeing it on the horizon. Right now I just can’t seem to even get to a point to see the horizon of completion. It’s just where I am. I don’t like it. So, it is hard for me to be thankful.

                In my less than stellar moments, I am tempted to quit, just walk away and forget about it. It’s easier. On the surface that is. The problem is I am a duty/completion kind of guy. It would bug me forever knowing that was left undone. The other problem is it is not of God. That is me being overwhelmed for a moment in life and choosing an outcome that while being freeing and satisfying at that moment would not benefit me in the future nor my relationship with God. It’s a struggle to believe God has got this when nothing seems to be moving towards completion and I’m tired of pushing. There is always something else to get done. It just never stops! Does it?

                Some of you know, I mean really KNOW what I’m saying. Elijah did too. Paul did as well. Hmm, life is like that but both of these men of God called out to God for their relief. You know, I would guess you like me, have not done that yet. We have been trying to do all of this “God stuff” on our own for Him instead of with Him following Him and we wonder why we are tired. The weight of our world is a lot.

                This phrase comes to mind from “Dear Younger Me” by Mercy Me, “You were never meant to carry this beyond the cross.” The cross is the end of the line our freedom. All that matters was done and taken care of at the cross.

Be cheerful no matter what; pray all the time; thank God no matter what happens. This is the way God wants you who belong to Christ Jesus to live. 1 Thess. 5:16-18 MSG

Let us slow down and BE Thankful for ALL of God's Blessings! 

In HIS Service and Yours.

BroG 

Who would have thought?

                I was genuinely surprised Wednesday morning (like this little one to the right) with the election outcome. I was really surprised. I had drunk the media cool-aid and so I was surprised. I was not the only one, duh! Again I have been surprised by the gloating on the part of some and the despair on the part of others. It is confusing to me unless you consider some think this reality is all there is, then their response makes sense.

                Equally confusing and more disappointing is the response of some Christians to the political outcome and others sounding like Chicken Little “the sky is falling.” Really? I thought we got that figured out when we read Revelation 21-22? Seems we should have understood at our salvation eternity awaits us? But by our words and worry, I guess not. So what about our situation? Jesus has some words for both “sides.”

^28-30 “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”   Matthew 11:28-30 The Message (MSG)

                We could replace “religion” with “politics” following this campaign. But the invitation is still the same. Jesus invites us to himself. Not his surrogate, study plan, sermon series no himself. He is the key. “Learn the unforced rhythms of grace,” that phrase convicts me every time (including today) when I get stressed, worried, overwhelmed, well you know.

                We never see Jesus in a hurry in the New Testament. We never see him worried or fearful. No, he has a confidence not cockiness but a certainty in His Father and His plan for Jesus’ life. He follows his Father’s lead for life and living and is comfortable and committed to it. That path is not usually a straight line to a destination but rather a straight line to a destiny for a life lost in the world. Consider the woman at the well in Samaria, NOT on the way to Jerusalem.

                Another aspect of the unforced rhythm of grace is a willingness to let life come to you. There is a saying in sports when a player is trying to force shots to make something happen. They need to let the game come to them. NASCAR drivers face the same with car setups and conditions to be ready when the race comes to them. You and I must count on the promise of God for our good welfare and allow life and it’s circumstances to come to us. We need to be ready “in season and out” to run with the ball God hands to us. But we have to wait for it to come to us and not help Him out. That is unforced grace! It is the life Jesus lived and will live in us as we trust Him in us! 

                                                                                                                                               In HIS Service and Yours.

BroG 

Curve Balls

             

Who would have thought the Cubbies and the Indians would be playing the World Series? I can’t imagine anyone other than a diehard fan of either team predicting before the season started that either team would make the series none the less that both teams would be playing for the championship! What a story it is.

Who would have thought that the nominees of the two major political parties would be the individuals that have emerged? Could any of us have predicted the upside down season of politics we have endured? What we thought was predictable has turned out to be anything but predictable. At this writing there are 10 days until the election, I continue to talk to people who have a clear idea who they will NOT vote for but not any idea who they WILL vote for. In the circles I live, that is the most common comment. People are troubled over this. My Mother was concerned in the early summer about her presidential vote this fall wondering who she might choose. God had other plans as she did not have to choose!

Our building process has been unexpected. Of course we have gone about it in a non-traditional way. What else would Crossroads do? I mean really! It has taken much longer even after we really got started. We are making progress but not as quickly as I think we should. Now we are held up completing more inside work by needing an electrician to “rough in” the wiring. I have been talking to electricians since early spring and each encounter has over a number of weeks or months failed to pan out into work being done. It is frustrating but a curve ball.    

Who of us expect curve balls? If you play in the major leagues you have to expect a curve at every at bat. As a hitter you have to learn to deal with the curve ball or else that is all you will see coming across the plate. Life throws us curve balls all the time. Just about the time things seem to be going in one direction her comes a curve. It frustrates us and confounds our sense of direction. It really is just life. Something always comes along unexpected. Usually it challenges our sense of stability and security. Of course what we thought was so stable and secure was never really guaranteed and so we end up in an unstable land with an unstable foundation or so we think.

Who would think that instability is what is need to drive us towards stability? God thinks like that. He knows us better than we know ourselves. We get confused as to what is stable and what is not. We think jobs, health, political systems, elections and sports casters can be counted on as anchors. They can’t. That is when we look for a real anchor. There Jesus stands waving with a smile on his face saying, “Where have you been,” as he wraps his arm around you walking by your side.

Who would think that the path in the Kingdom of God is filled with curves? I do and so do you!

In HIS Service and Yours.

  BroG

When you stand on faith, what are you believing?

              In the Genesis account of Abraham and his offering of Isaac at the request of God, repeatedly we read Abraham believed God. We repeatedly see that Abraham believed God even when circumstances said otherwise. We also see Abraham and Sarah believe God needed their help with an offspring and Ishmael is born. Whenever we believe we can help God we are in for a big mistake! Abraham believed God. What does that mean? His faith was counted as righteousness.

Abraham believed the promises of God period. What are the promises of God? How many are there? Well, that depends on what you consider a promise. So, the number is constantly moving depending on a subjective opinion. Biblegateway.com lists 5467 promises of God. “The promises of God reveal his particular and eternal purposes to which he is unchangeably committed and upon which believers can totally depend. The promises are, however, conditional upon obedience on the part of believers.”  What we see in Abraham was his obedience. Belief is only real when we take actions that are dependent upon our belief being true even though it may not yet be in existence. We call that faith. The key here is the obedience on the part of the believer. Oh man!

 So if I take a stand on faith, I have to stand up. I have to do something, take action on my belief most of the time when there is no visible reason to do so. I have to believe this promise I am claiming is true even though I have no proof in front of me. Yep, that is about it! So, what did Abraham believe?

Abraham believed Isaac was God’s promise. Hebrews tells us Abraham believed God would bring him back to life. God had brought Abraham and Sara back to life to have a son at 100 and 90. Abraham believed God would do the same for Isaac. But still it does not make sense. Why would God…we ask...and then spend a great amount of time wondering instead of doing thereby delaying the fulfillment of the promise.

Let me ask of the 5467 promises, what do you stand on? What do you count on even when there is no visible or reasonable (in this reality) evidence to believe? In this season of politics, have you asked God about your vote? Would you believe God is in control if He instructed you to vote different than your thoughts? Would God do such a thing? Let’s ask Abraham or Hosea or Paul, Jonah, Gideon, Elijah, Rahab, David, Jeremiah or Lazarus? How do you think they would answer? That would become a question of faith in God and his promises. Where would you stand?

                      

In HIS Service and Yours,

BroG

It has been a week!

It was 1979 when Hurricane David came ashore here. For some that was not so long ago for others it was before their existence, history. Since then other than the threat of Hugo and Floyd all we have had was remnants of storms we call “back door” as most often they come from the panhandle of Florida across Georgia and out to sea by us. Lots of rain and some thunderstorms but that is about it. Not so this time.

The center of the eye passed our barrier island about 30 miles off shore as a Cat2 hurricane. So 50 miles inland here in Effingham we had tropical storm force winds 40-60 mph (straight line constant) with gusts above that. My house is surrounded by pine trees. The wind makes a sound through the needles with normal wind speeds. Saturday morning from 4am-6:30am it sounded like a jet engine was outside my window. I noticed the wind had died down by the sudden quiet later that morning.

Storms come and go but with all of these years with no damage we have come to believe they might never come. Matthew just glanced us. It could have been so much worse. It wasn’t. While they are going on it is all we can think about. Coming from the Midwest, I like tornados better. When the warning goes out it is already too late. All you have time to do is duck and cover. No “hunker down or cone of uncertainty” no, when that siren sounds it’s certain you are late. Even then it only lasts 15 minutes maybe. Then comes clean-up. Hurricanes are a whole other thing. Days to prepare with uncertainty as to track and therefore damage and worry. There I said it, worry with great uncertainty. While the storm is blowing there is nothing to do until the wind stops. So you wait hour-upon-hour, the ugliest word in the language. Nothing to do until it stops. All you can think about doing is making it stop and you can’t. You have to wait. Even before the storm hit, those who had evacuated wanted to know when they could return. Emergency management folks had no answer as they did not know. Both had to wait until the storm passed to begin to answer that question.

Waiting is powerlessness. Our waiting is at the mercy of what we cannot control. Truth is most of life is out of our control. We are powerless to affect events. Sure we can prepare before and then after the storm consider what we need to do differently, but we are unable to change the course of nature or even predict it well. All of that has been and always will be in God’s realm. What it leaves us with is faith and an opportunity to exercise and strengthen our faith that we, “Can do all things through Christ who strengthens us.” Once again a need to learn and exercise our dependence on God our Maker and Sustainer.

I am sure He can hold us up.

Storms help us remember!      

            

In HIS Service and Yours,

BroG

Change is your friend!

                I wrote several posts ago about finding change on the floor of my bus now that I transport middle and high school students. I find it every day. I am still surprised. I forget that these are not elementary students who would throw down over a quarter and go to war over a dollar. The quarter equaled candy at school and the dollar ice cream. Come to think of it I would throw down too over candy and ice cream. It seems older students are not so inclined so it goes in our coke can bank for our Operation Christmas Child Shoe Boxes. That kind of change is my friend.

                We all know that the kind of change that involves disturbing our lives or lifestyles is NOT our friend or so we believe. Change like that will take us out of our comfortableness of what we have known. We don’t like that as a rule. Some do, but most not at all even though change is constant. I think this is a first world problem and particularly so in North America. We like and cherish comfortable and hate, despise and thwart any and all change all because it threatens our comfort, and our comfortable life.

                I have spent some time this week thinking about comfort and being comfortable. As much as I like to be comfortable and in comfort, I wonder if it the best thing for me? Is comfort my friend or enemy? The following is a list of ways comfort or comfortable is my enemy: 1) It demotivates innovation. Why make something better “that ain’t broke?” 2) It is opposed to change. 3) It stops growth. It makes it a non-starter. 4) It stifles entrepreneurship. Why do anything different? 5) It halts conquest. 6) It avoids a challenge. Consider those qualities, hallmarks of Americans and America, qualities we state with pride yet comfort and comfortable will stop them dead in their tracks. Our comfort and comfortable lifestyle is an enemy to our spiritual progress as well. When God called Abram, God was calling Abram from his comfort. The Lord said to Abram: Go out from your land, your relatives, and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. Gen 12:1 (HCSB).               

I have underlined the three areas that make us comfortable but also hold is back from the greater possibility in the Kingdom of God. Abram had to leave his comfort of those people and places to become the father of a great nation, a man of great faith and the first in the lineage of the Messiah. He could not become all God had in store until he left his comfort and embraced change. The REAL challenge with change is a spiritual. One of comfort vs. faith. Comfort represents what we know and believe we have obtained through our own efforts (It’s not really true). Change requires obeying when we do not know where, how, when, and why but must trust and believe God.

Abram believed God.

⁶ Abram believed the Lord, and He credited it to him as righteousness. Gen 15:6 (HCSB)

What about you?

In HIS Service and Yours;                                      

BroG

P.S. No change this morning but the day is young!

We just don't want to do it!

                This hurricane season has been busy. Four, count’em, four tropical storms in one season. They have not been bad locally. However other parts of our area have suffered flooding and downed trees. This last one Julia is still wandering around and just this morning (Thursday) CEMA is forecasting a return to shore in our area Sunday (I will update you later on that prophesy). I must admit I don’t want to do that again. Yes, we are prepared (well almost). Yes, the previous storms have not been bad at all for us. All of that being said, this one could be different. Life is like that. All of the preparation in the world comes down to riding the storm out (REO Speedwagon) and dealing with the aftermath.

                A story on the CBS program 60 minutes last Sunday has bothered me all week. The piece was well reported, well done so it is not the mechanics of reporting or editorial bias nor the subject matter. It was about gold star parents (parents who have lost children in military service particularly since 9/11). The story brought to light the efforts being made to help these folks in their loss. Especially on the part of blue star parents (parents who have children still serving). What has bothered me all week is the nagging question are all those efforts were helping them with the grief or facilitating their stagnation in their grief?

                The obvious answer is to make sure no other parent/family ever has to go through the loss of a child. There is hope one day Jesus will make that happen. That day is coming. But, it is not here yet and we live in a world infested, infected and affected by sin. The reality for the time being is parents will lose children. Death not just in military service but by disease, accident, defect, drugs you name it. It is going to happen. So my question is how do we help these people and families and not facilitate their stagnation in grief? I wish this was definitive but it is a work in progress.

                This morning my wife said, “God is God over Google.” She gave me permission to use this (thanks). If He is God over Google then he is God over everything even grief. That of course leads to why and I refer you to the above answer regarding sin. But God never leaves us dangling in the wind. He never leaves us nor forsakes us. We have that in writing. However he does not take away the pain either. Now we want that pain gone. But pain identifies us with others in a unique fraternity. It gives us authority and experience in their eyes. Experience you would not wish on anyone but real and undeniable none-the-less. Once connected we would like to take the burden off of these folks and they would like us to do it too. But we cannot and God does not. What we can do is comfort them as we have been comforted.

⁴ He comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any kind of affliction, through the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 2 Corinthians 1:4 HCSB

                God’s example is to walk with them. Be there for them when they hurt and when they are happy. No, it’s not easy nor fun and at times we don’t want to do it but it is healing. No, it is not a short commitment but a marathon maybe even and Iron Man type connection. Come to think of it, Jesus is the Iron Man!                                     

In HIS service and yours,                                         

BroG