Bringing Faith to Life
Archive for March, 2014
Deception is never harmless and often lasting
3It seems harmless. A phrase posted on a Facebook status. It’s not true, but it’s part of a game. You post something that is nonsensical or hard to believe about yourself and then the comments start rolling in. What? What are you talking about? The trick is, everyone who comments then has to post one of these phrases on their status. And their friends, and their friends, and so on. This is how it can go viral. Which is exactly what the Breast Cancer folks want (read irony into that if you will) who started this “game” in the first place.
Here are your options if you want to play the game:
“LOL…You should not have liked or commented! Now you have to pick one of the 14 below and post to your status. This is the 2014 breast cancer awareness game. Don’t be a spoil sport! Choose your poison and change your status: 1) Damn diarrhea 2) Just used my boobs to get out of a speeding ticket 3) Anyone have a tampon, I’m out 4) How do you get rid of foot fungus 5) Why is nobody around when I’m horny? 6) No toilet paper goodbye socks! Post with no explanations. 7)Someone offered me a job as a prostitute but I’m hesitant. 8)I think I’m in love with someone what should I do? 9)I’ve decided 2 stop wearing underwear. 10)I still love my ex. 11)I really don’t know how 2 tell anyone and I’m sick of hiding it I’m gay. 12)Guess it was 2 good 2 b true I’m pregnant. 13)Just won $7000 on a scratchy. 14)I’ve just found out I’ve been cheated on for the past 5 months.Post with no explanations. Sorry I fell for it too ! LOL!!!”
Now “Don’t be a spoil sport.” “Choose your poison. “Now you have to…” Do any of those send out bells and whistles for you? … Just a game.
I declined to participate ~ which should be option #15. Even when this choice isn’t stated, it’s available. We can choose another path. I’m good with that. No hard feelings.
Except, in this case the status my friend posted was #13, the ‘least harmless’ I am sure it seemed to her. As a committed Christian, it’s the least obtrusive, least likely to hurt anyone who misunderstands. She was just sharing some “made up good news.” Since I am a close friend, I see all her status posts and was immediately excited for her. Albeit a bit confused that she had a lottery ticket but still, it’s nice to hear that a good person has stumbled on some really good fortune.
Then, when I commented with “!!!” I got her message with the “changes of status” that I had to choose from. I was appalled. Actually angry. Here was someone I trusted. I actually celebrated her good news and then she said, “Gotcha!”
Harmless, right? Well no. Because I know people who have fallen for “good news” …
- the good news that someone loves them, then really doesn’t
- good news that they’ve won a trip when they really haven’t
- good news that they are under consideration for a spot on the team when they really weren’t
- good news that life will get better and it hasn’t
There is lots of news out there masquerading as good news and it isn’t. When we practice deceit in the guise of good news it’s even worse than deceiving with news that is suspect. Because everyone knows to be suspicious of that. But people who have fallen prey to good news that wasn’t learn that news is not trustworthy, and they determine that they will never be so stupid again as to be deceived by anyone bearing good news. Their hearts are hardened against the one thing that will save them. This sounds to me like very bad news indeed.
Yes, as a Christian I must be discerning about all I read and all I hear, but especially about all I share. Because it has the power to reach the ends of the earth. And there’s only one thing that should have that power. Sharing anything else disrupts the power lines. And that is very, very bad news indeed.
I am with the Breast Cancer Community heart and soul. I have many friends who have suffered with this illness, some who currently are. Cancer, itself, is doing a fine job of spreading the news of the horror of this illness, it’s treatment and the lives lived in the shadow of it. But spreading good news and calling it true when it isn’t gives an already skeptical society even more reason not to trust good news when they hear it. And that is certainly not what you intend to go viral. In fact, it sounds much more like cancer.
Finishing touches may not kill you
0Finishing touches will kill you. Do you want the line to go up or down? the name to be this or that? is this darker or that? Should we label it or leave it alone? describe it in the caption or put it on the figure? And really, should this be positioned before or after, vertical or horizontal? It’s a veritable maze of decisions out there. And I’m only talking about the illustrations!
But I’ve come this far; I’ve got to finish. It might be tempting just to be done with it. Let good enough be enough and go on to other things. That would be the easy thing. Frankly, it would be the practical thing. But somehow it’s not the right thing. So each day I have to stare delay in the face and tell her (yes, her) “You have no power here.”
And then she gets angry. I know this because things start going wrong. Small things. I can see her throwing a temper tantrum. I can’t get hold of someone, can’t find something, can’t use, can’t open, can’t balance. Can’t is tricky, you know. It has sneaked the “no” out of cannot thinking no one will notice. But I have – in fact I just did, as I typed that – and so I am onto you, Ms. Delay. You who gleefully sprinkle can’ts around and convince me that finishing is much too hard.
I can.
I know this because God has already placed people around me who I’m meant to call upon down the finishing stretch. Some of them are tough. Some of them are demanding. Some of them speak sweetly but are rabbid about a deadline. Some just show up at my door, in my inbox or via text. There’s a whole daggone crowd gathering. So I think that must be the finish line just ahead.
In the meantime I am humming a tune that has popped into my head. The chorus goes,
“Oh I wonder what God was thinking
When he created you.
I wonder if he
Knew everything I would need
Because he made all my dreams come true.
When God made You
He must have been thinking about me.(Here’s the rest: New Song – When God Made You Lyrics | MetroLyrics)
It’s a dream I have that my daughters would choose that song for the first dance at their weddings. (Don’t tell, but in my dreams I start singing that song, and then they take over and sing the verses to their new husbands.)
But really, can we believe that when God created, everything He put in place came from a heart that knew just what we would need and when we would need it and made it so? Already? I suspect the dress rehearsal has already taken place in the heart of God. We were there, walking it all through, and now we just have to remember the steps.
Oh my. There’s gonna be some DANCING on at that heavenly reception!
For now, move over Delay, I’ve got work to do.
March Madness: only one team gets the trophy
411 years
by wlebolt
in Body, culture, current events, faith, In Action, Life, relationship, Sermon Response, Spirit, Sports
The orange team scores and the crowd explodes. The blue team answers back with a 3-point bucket and their fans jump to their feet. There is stomping and shouting, hugging and clapping. Frenzy in the fieldhouse! It’s madness; march madness. This is single elimination folks. Win, you move on. Lose, you go home. The NCAA championship trophy is on the line.
Next year, let’s change it up, why don’t we? Let’s just play a round robin? Go ahead and wear your uniforms so we know who’s who, but we’ll have the guy running the clock signal when it’s time for the next group to take the court, so everyone is sure to get equal playing time. At the buzzer we’ll shake hands and board the bus for another game in another city. Doesn’t matter who or where. At the end, let’s all just get together at the banquet and hand out the participation trophies. We’re all champions, after all.
Which one sounds like more fun to you?
I am ever amazed at the ability of sports to show us to ourselves. When nothing is on the line, it doesn’t matter. When something is on the line we discover the very best in ourselves. The key isn’t the winning; it’s the discovering. Which requires that there be only one prize. If we give one to everyone, it not only encourages some to coast without contributing, it devalues the prize.
The Christian life is exactly this: to play in such a way that you might win the prize. If we live as if everyone upon exit from this life is gonna be handed the Jesus trophy just for participating, we miss the point. We’re meant to live as if we mean it, as if everything is on the line.
Participation trophies are our response when ‘what if we don’t win?’ rings in our ears. But that’s fear speaking; not faith. Faith says, there is one prize and room enough for everyone to hold it high.
“Teamwork makes the dream work” … they say.
Portion management
1There are so many people “watching their weight” these days. They are not eating this, cutting out that; substituting for this, selecting out that. We study and read “the latest” about what’s in and what’s not in nutrition. Everybody has got advice, and it’s for sale. We’re desperate. Billions of dollars desperate. And we know the answer is in there. We just have to figure it out. After all, 20 years ago, we didn’t have this problem, so something has changed. Is it us? We are voracious people, after all. Helping ourselves to heaping servings of life. Living large. Doing it all. Drinking it all in.
I’m not sure that’s the problem, at least not the whole problem. We are meant to live life abundantly, to embrace all we’ve been given. Not to be ashamed of it. Not to defer or go halfway. ‘Give it all you’ve got’ still works in all circumstances. ‘Be all you can be’ is still a great motto, Army.
I just think we have gotten out of touch with our portion. We grew up eating what was on our plates (because “children were starving in India”) and the plates have gotten larger. We’re still finishing, but now it’s more. But more is what we want, right? Because that means we are getting more for our money. This is a good value, we convince ourselves, so why not order the whole meal? Why not supersize it? Why not buy it in bulk?
And then when we have it we don’t want to waste it. Others are starving, after all. So we consume, and not only all that is on our plate. We
- drink all in our cup
- order dessert because it’s “included”
- take the call because it’s coming in
- check messages because they are blinking
- access notifications because they are mounting
Just to clear things away and to leave nothing undone. But instead of feeling satisfied we feel sick. Because we have let circumstances speak to us about portion. We didn’t question whether all that needed eating, drinking, addressing or response. It said so, so we did. That way, we don’t miss anything and don’t miss out on anything.
We are operating on autopilot, but have we any idea we are heading straight for the mountain?
Ah, this generation that is full of questions but doesn’t question their portion. Well, except to compare it in size to their neighbor’s portion.
What if our starting point was …
The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot. ~Psalm 16:5
“Chosen portion.” Choosing may require un-choosing. Will power may require ‘won’t power’. What if we knew our plate was just the right size? What if we were already assured that what we have and who we are is enough? How would we answer…
- Am I hungry?
- Am I thirsty?
- Can that wait?
- Do I really need to?
It may be as simple as shrinking the size of the plate on which I serve myself. If this is all the space I have, what belongs here? Then I could feel completely free to enjoy every last morsel.
My flesh and my heart may fail,
but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. ~ Psalm 73:26
It’s true!!
011 years
What if someone knocked on your door with the news that your life’s work, everything you believed to be true, was confirmed? Would you let him in to show you the evidence?
The young scientist who has discovered the first tremors of the Big Bang – a light wave pattern which is evidence of gravitational waves from the birth of the universe – records the moment he shared the news with Professor Andre Linde, the originator of the Big Bang Theory, and his wife.
Watch his (and her) reaction:
The look on his face, the understanding expression of his wife, the glee of the young man delivering the news. It’s palpable.
Like every good scientist Linde hesitates. “I hope it is not a trick.” And it adds credibility that these scientists respect the work enough never to jump to conclusions. But they hope. Oh, they hope. That what they have imagined is fulfilled here. That this is the remaining part of the story, the one piece missing. The “smoking gun” evidence to confirm and convict. It’s their ‘Oh my God, it’s true’ moment.
As a scientist and a Christian, I am overjoyed to see faith and science greet each other this way. The “how” of creation is completely satisfying, given the “who” of creation and the inconceivable nature of His power to create.
This moment, the moment of complete illumination when the final piece is placed, must be so satisfying. It just gives me a glimpse of what must happen each time Christ knocks and we answer. And that final time, when He ushers us to the heavenly Kingdom and opens the gate. Oh my God! All I hoped for but was afraid to believe, there it is! Let me step in, just to be sure.
I imagine that moment would look very like this one.
Turning water to scotch
0So what if Jesus turned water to wine. I turn water to coffee every morning!
Okay. Irreverent, I know. But true confession. That’s what I was thinking this morning as I scooped that delightfully fragrant, just ground lusciousness, into the filter and then poured the clear fresh water into the reservoir from my pitcher. Flip a switch and a heavenly smelling brew filters into my pot. What’s so miraculous about that?
Nothing. Except maybe that I am thinking about Jesus’ miracles and the washing of baptismal waters when I am making my morning coffee. Those poor grounds are baptized every morning. By my hands. Then I drink up what gives me pleasure and energy for the start of my day. I can even return to the pot for my refill.
I have done this hundreds, perhaps thousands, of times. Always the same, or at least always the same proportions. Grind. Measure. Pour. Drink. I make a bit more now that my kids are joining me for a cup or two. If company is coming, I may even need to make a second pot. For me, coffee spells welcome. Come sit a spell.
But it better be bold. Who has time for this wimpy “blond” brew? Well, except if you want to eek just a bit more coffee – one more cup – from that pot that has run dry. No sense making a whole ‘nother pot. We make what my mom first termed “Scotch.” This is a small second batch, weaker than the first but serviceable, made by pouring a reduced volume of water through the already spent grounds. There’s still some zing to them; we just make them good to the last drop.
“Have you made scotch yet, Mom?!” rings out from my kids when the hour is late and they still have some studying to do. But we humans tend to stretch things a bit.
Christ didn’t need to. The baptism He offers is once for all. It never loses its power, and doesn’t need to be repeated. My poor imitation with the coffee has to happen again and again. Every morning and some days more than once. God knows I need the reminder… I did this for you… but rejuvenation is new everyday.
Jesus did not turn water to scotch. He turned water into the very best wine. And then, I imagine, He joined everyone on the dance floor. Because after dinner coffee would be way too tame for what He came to celebrate.
Beware the parenthetical
0“Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain,” belts the Great Oz. And oh how our attention goes there. Immediately, we peer behind and around or we want to, first chance we get, when no one is looking. Because when someone says, don’t look, that signals it is something they don’t want us to see, which means it is something important we should know. Or we’d be well-advised to, anyway.
We writers are a funny lot where this is concerned. We control the power of the pen! We put onto the page only what we want readers to read (except for the parenthetical, of course). That’s something we have left out but can’t quite bear to move on without recording. It’s what’s behind the curtain. And it’s very, very telling. Because parentheses immediately draw attention to it and away from the flow of the work. They draw attention to the author instead of the authored. And that stops you cold.
I am very grateful to the people who first showed me the effect of striking the words in the parenthesis. You don’t need them. In fact, you’re better off without them. Edit yourself out and let the words speak for themselves. Trust the reader to come to the right conclusion, or at least the conclusion that is right for them. What right do you have to tell them?
Somehow there is incredible power in this editing of self so the word can speak. I would do well to keep telling myself this every day. Because the temptation always exists to add just one little aside, one tiny exasperated expression, one telling remark (because after all we don’t need to hear this but others do, right?) And in that moment my pile of pride is right there on the page, glowing in glossy splendor.
Oh, I don’t deny it. There is that authority figure that comes knocking every time I sit down to write, but I can resist it, if I want to. Even if it means writing those words and then erasing them. Very much better when erased because, my goodness, how full of myself I appear later when I read it again and I’m painfully exposed all over the page.
My job, as author, writer, blogger, and probably too as mother, wife, coach, cook and everything else, is to pour everything I have and all that I am onto and into the effort and then disappear from view. No boxing or dodging. No arguing or sarcasm. No excuses and no apologies.
Say what you need to say in a way that pours right through you. Do your best not to meddle with it much. Give it the honesty and sincerity it deserves, but don’t claim it. It’s not yours.
On-going
0“Come”
Oh, how much heaviness there is in that word: come. Grudgingly, we drag ourselves over into the compliant pile. Hauling our stuff with us. We wipe our brow, let out a sigh and, just as we are poised to rest on our laurels God says,
“Follow me”
What an invitation: follow me. But I just sat down. What about my bags! My pillow. My clothes, my toothbrush, my computer, my iPhone, my…
“Leave that”
Here, we travel light.
Leave no doubt
0What if we forget? What if we don’t get around to it? What if we’re afraid?…to tell them…until it’s too late.
I live among the self-sufficient. Everybody’s “got this.” “I’m good,” they say. They don’t need my help, don’t entertain my suggestion, don’t want my advice. In fact, accepting help taints their ‘I can do this myself’ capacity, the capability we pride ourselves with here in America, land of the free, home of the brave. Independence is where we stake our claim.
So, if I want them to know that there may be another approach or a new way, I am told I should ‘lead by example.’ That is acceptable, inoffensive and safe. If they notice, good. If not, well I’ve shown them. It’s not my job to turn them around.
But what if what I do is “not do”? That is, what if I choose to withhold my words or resist action? This really leaves the door open to all sorts of supposition. People may surmise, “Oh, she’s such a wimp.” Or, “She lets them get away with everything.” Or even accuse, “Why doesn’t she come to their defense?”
Here, I credit the Positive Coaching Alliance who suggests that we be sure to ‘tell them why you did what you did.’ This is especially true when our actions are silent. Speaking dispels misunderstanding. We don’t do it to tout what we did or draw attention to ourselves, but rather to be clear. And, to open the door for conversation and discussion. Why? What were you thinking? How did you decide this? What will you do now? Would you do that again? All valid questions. All essential so they can consider it for themselves. What would they have done if they were in my shoes?
And if, as has happened all too often, my actions were not what I wish to have conveyed, now I have a forum to talk about that, too. “I shouldn’t have said that and next time I will do this…”
So many of us, though, shy away from this conversation. We want to let our actions speak so we don’t have. We like to quote the old standard of St. Francis “Preach the gospel at all times, and when absolutely necessary, use words.” Certainly yes. We don’t want to invade someone with overbearing expressions. Too many have used fear and force to do this. We would do well to be gentler, but we are challenged to go and tell.
Is it cowardly just to witness with my ways and let them draw their own conclusions? Am I hiding in plain sight, choosing to keep quiet about my faith lest someone might catch me doing something unChristian and call me out? Are we people who hide behind our good deeds and figure that’s good enough for God? Or are we meant to risk letting the Jesus show so that when we explain the why behind what we did or the why not behind what we didn’t, we testify to the truth.
I just love people who get creative about it. In fact, I am grateful because they give me ammunition and impetus to challenge myself to speak faith in a way that those who might not yet know the Lord will be tempted to consider Him. Now here’s someone who speaks it in style. 370Z style.
What message are we leaving behind?
How about this guy? He drives around with the message on his plate. I posted it to my Facebook page. Why not? Easter is coming. A harmless question … for the win. But I had better “be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks (me) to give the reason for the hope that (I) have.” (1 Peter 3:15) I have found that the right word is rarely as important as the timely word.
Don’t get too comfortable
1
People who are sitting comfortably are happy to speak up. From their seats they shout, “We’ve always done it this way.” “Why can’t they see?” “Whatever happened to?” “They just need to!” And they often land on, “How come I can’t get any respect?” Comfort breeds inertia. And to these, it may feel very much like steadfastness or tradition. Which has its place …. as long as we are willing to give up our seat.
I am grateful to have people in my life, including my pastor, who discomfort me. Because discomfort causes me to squirm. Squirming leads to wriggling. Wriggling leads to getting up to check if there is something wrong with my chair. And from standing I can look around – even move around – to work the room and get to know who’s there. After all, from the comfort of my seat I can only receive those who seek me out, but from standing I can seek out others. I can get to know how they feel, what they’ve been through, what they know and who they are.
Then when we’re called to order, I take a new seat. One which has been vacated by someone else or, if there are not enough seats, I will be happy to stand. When a seat comes open I can take it and get to know my new neighbors. Maybe they have seen me standing and have waved me over. Those are people I want to get to know. People who are willing to give up the empty seat next to them, even put their things on the floor, so someone can sit there. Just love those people. I hope to be those people.
But for now my objective is not to become so settled in my seat that I don’t notice when it’s time to move. I’m not looking to leap into the expensive seats, nor am I eyeing the podium. Just, maybe, to perch on the edge. Back straight, abs tight, shoulders back, feet on the floor. It’s funny how ‘ready position’ works for any situation. Balanced, expectant, looking and listening. There’s something good ahead. I just know it.