Be yourself; Everyone else is already taken.
— Oscar Wilde.
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A New Year’s Thought from Arlington
Beginning a new year is a great time to consider how we view the world, what is central and meaningful to a purposeful life, and how we can live significantly in that dash between our birth date and death.
Here in Arlington lie ordinary women and men, many only boys. They honorably served their country, and many tragically sacrificed their lives so that others might enjoy freedom. Deserving of our respect and gratitude, they are remembered in this special way at Christmas. Unlike their simple, stark, generic tomb stones, their personal stories are varied, colorful, and mostly unknown to us. Even though they gave up dreams and loves when they died, they remind us that we the living are privileged to be still writing our stories. They demand we think about meaning and purpose of our lives.
Sometimes we fail to recoginize the commonality of our humanity. Birth and death are great reminders! Regardless of our self-perceptions, we enter the world and will leave it in the same way we arrived, a fact lamented by Job, Kings David and Solomon (Job 1:21) (Psalm 49:17) (Ecclesiastes 5:15), and the Apostle Paul, who wrote to Timothy: “For we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of it.” (1 Timothy 6:7) Death is a leveling influence. The uniformity of these simple grave markers at Arlington testify to the fact that ultimately all that matters is the state of our souls. Power, status, wealth and fame are left behind; we take no treasure with us.
Although we may be courageous, generous and kind, we all share the vulnerabilities and self-centeredness which lead to flawed lives and to a world that needs redemption. We are on a very short road to eternity. That raises questions. Is life just about me, my body, my choices? Scripture indicates that life is not just about us and that God in His sovereignty and authority has persistently and lovingly given humanity guidelines for health, peace, contentment and joy. He has eternal purposes and desires for us. That is why Christ came to be “God with us” and to be “the Way” back to God by not only showing and teaching us how to live but, more importantly, by dying on the cross, shedding his blood to mend our rebellion and brokenness, and making possible forgiveness of sins and reconciliation with God when we repent and believe.
While the solemn scenes of Arlington are replete with stories of courage and valor, they also speak of war, death, and the sadness of man’s depravity. Above all, they remind us that one day God will right all wrongs. He will restore creation to its original innocence, but until then, Christ has come to solve our moral and mortal dilemmas. God’s perfect redemptive plan promises that those who have faith, those who believe and trust will discover forgiveness and everlasting life (John3:16). No longer condemned, believers are free us to be who they are intended to be and live their best possible stories in relationship with God forever.
That “good news” is worth pondering as we begin another trip around the sun.
Is Christmas Really the Most Wonderful Time of the Year?
What makes Christmas Eve beautiful and wonder-filled? Perhaps it’s large, soft snow flakes gently brushing faces and whitening eyebrows while twinkling tree lights interrupt the darkness and church carillons chime Silent Night. Maybe it’s Andy Williams singing Christmas is “The Most Wonderful Time of the Year” where “ those holiday greetings and gay happy meetings when friends come back to call” become“ the hap-happiest season of all.”
But is Christmas really the happiest season?
Not everyone believes in the Christmas “story.” Not everyone tunes into the season’s carol singing, good will, and “tales of the glories of Christmases long, long ago” with enthusiasm. And for some, holiday gaiety and happy faces are unsettling. Loss, loneliness, disappointment, guilt, humiliating or difficult times, and memories of dysfunctional and broken relationships are ghosts haunting Christmas. They rob or deflate a celebratory spirit for many.
That first Christmas Eve in Bethlehem didn’t start out so great either. It was a difficult, lonely time riddled with tension. There was no room or concern for Joseph’s and Mary’s predicament as they struggled to find a place to give birth to their baby boy. (They knew he was a boy centuries before ultrasound diagnosing!) They were alone and unsupported. The night was not silent, calm, peaceful, and bright. The lowing of cattle was mixed with the cries of birth pains. A sense of urgency, fear, desperation, and confusion emanated from a dark, smelly stable where God’s unrecognized grace and the glorious reason for the season lay humbly swaddled on a musty mound of hay.
Desperation suddenly turned to wonder when excited, inquisitive, awe struck shepherds arrived to see this child because an angel had suddenly appeared to them with “good news of great joy.” It was a monumental God-surprise! Israel had waited centuries to hear it!. That very day their long awaited Savior had been born! Even more surprisingly, this baby was the Savior for “all people” not just Israel. The immensity, beauty, and profound mystery of that announcement had been magnified and verified by God’s indescribable glory surrounding a heavenly choir singing and praising God that His peace would be upon those with whom he was pleased (Luke 2).
However, Jesus had not come to defeat Roman tyranny with sword and rebellion or political power. He would perfectly fulfill the Law and defeat sin on a Roman cross and death with an empty tomb as the once and only sin sacrifice for all mankind. His peace would be on those who believed because trusting faith is what pleases God (Hebrews 11:6, John 3:16).
We may have lost the wonder and joy of that promise and those moments. This may not have been the best year or this Christmas the most wonderful holiday. Yet, the miracle and meaning of Christ’s birth is as crucial and marvelous now as the night he was born. This special season brings us the best news ever heard! God came to us! Jesus is humanity’s hope for redemption and eternal life.
Maybe soft, flaky snow falling upon lighted Christmas trees and a church steeple chiming “Silent Night” will remind us of the reality that God loves us so much he came to dwell with us. He lights our way through the darkness to a place of peace if we trust His gift to be our Savior.
“Joy to the world, the Lord has come.” Let’s receive him.
Chasing the Wind
Powerful winds can quickly whip the sea into a beautiful but terrifying, pounding fury, but regardless of how much we feel, utilize, or struggle against these blowing gales, we cannot grasp the wind. It slips through our fingers.
Following a long life of adventure, ideas, pleasures, and “things,” powerful King Solomon used the imagery of “chasing” or “striving after” the wind to illustrate the futility of many of life’s pursuits. (Ecclesiastes). Although renowned for his intellect, wisdom, and wealth, he perceived he had not fully grasped the overarching meaning and purpose to life.
Eventually concluding that life is meant to be enjoyed but is truly meaningful only when lived in relationship with its Creator, he saw that all human interests and endeavors are ultimately unfulfilling and inconsequential when God’s intended plans for our good are ignored. So, he urged others to build life around a relationship with God and His principles for living. He said that honoring God and living according to His moral plan are imperatives meant for mankind’s good. Therefore, he reminded his youthful readers to not waste their lives: “Remember now Your Creator in the days of your youth…”
Jesus also taught the importance of orienting our physical energies and spiritual lives toward an eternal perspective. He spoke of seeking “first the kingdom of God and his righteousness…” and to not lay up treasures on earth…”but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matt. 6:33; 19-21).
Latching onto ideas and endeavors which exclude God and His good purposes is “striving after the wind” because there is no enduring substance to them. But one can live with an eternal perspective and meaning. God’s Kingdom “ways” are discovered through the intents of the moral law and Christ’s teachings. But the “Way” to the Kingdom is found through trusting in Christ, who as the perfect fulfillment of the law became the holy payment for our moral failures, our sins, when he died on the cross. Scripture clearly states that it is Christ’s righteousness not ours that is redemptive: “When the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy” (Titus 3:4-5). So, redemption and righteousness come to us through trusting Christ’s sacrifice on our behalf.
Life quickly slips through our fingers while we struggle with defining our purpose. The Westminster catechism states: The chief end of man is “To glorify God and enjoy Him forever.” When we don’t do that, when we become sidetracked, when we don’t acknowledge God and His good desires for us, when we ignore His redemptive gift, when we live lives without love and gratitude for Him, then we minimize ourselves and jeopardize our future. We are just chasing the wind.
Thankful and Content?
Watching this humming bird at its feeder while I porch-sat with an early morning cup of coffee was both entertaining and enlightening. Undoubtedly this tiny but magnificent creature was acting instinctively as it drove away other hungry “hummers.” It showed no signs of grace or generosity while ferociously guarding a feeder filled with enough food to last a month. Rather than being grateful for a blessing bestowed, it became entitled to something not of its making or doing.
That sandbox mentality of “it is mine” with no compunction to share is also a familiar human trait. However, forgetting that all good things are blessings from God, taking them for granted, and assuming that we deserve them or that they are the product of our own doing are ungrateful and disordered beliefs which lead to dissatisfaction.
Dissatisfaction is not always detrimental. It can be a positive motivator leading to improvement or greater achievement or increased dedication to a cause or to instigating change and promoting social justice. Yet, our culture seems to increasingly focus on the “I want” rather than the “I have.” That attitude is destructive, harms our souls, and generates an unhappy, dysfunctional society. Whether it is the demand for special rights, the desire for instant gratification, materialistic goals, cynicism, the lack of moral foundational truths, or the lack of personal discipline, (and the list goes on), we feel the personal and cultural turmoil of ingratitude.
Scripture encourages us to concentrate on blessings and to be content with what we have (Hebrews 13:15) The Apostle Paul encouraged the Philippian believers with the truth that thankfulness is key to contentment. He said “with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7).
Taking blessings for granted and believing them to be deserved gives ingratitude an opportunity to works its wicked way, but a thankful attitude results in greater happiness and satisfaction and less depression and anxiety. Neither prosperity nor good circumstances give lasting satisfaction or have eternal value. They are transitory, but Christ holds the answer to inner peace. He essentially said that seeking God and thirsting after His righteousness is what satisfies. That righteousness is not self generated but is the righteousness of Christ gifted to us when we repent and believe and are authentically changed to live in light of the Gospel.
If you “Ain’t Got no Satisfaction” (Kiss), consider the words of Charles Swindoll: “Nothing physical satisfies the soul. Remember that the soul belongs to God. He alone can gratify it.” And hear the Psalmist: “Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever…For he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness.”(Psalm 107:1,9)
Contentment arises from appreciation for God’s goodness, saving grace, and sovereign providence
Thank God.
Ain’t No Mountain High Enough
Although the song “Aint’t No Mountain High Enough” is a secular song made famous by Diana Ross, it has a gospel feel to it. The idea that there is nothing either high or deep enough to outreach God and His love is a basic biblical concept.
The Apostle Paul attempted to express the magnitude of God’s love for those who love Him when he told the Roman Church that he was “convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love.No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8: 38-39)
There “ain’t no mountain” peak of human experience too high for God to understand or heal. Regardless of the personal mountains one faces, the moral morass one might be in, or the depth of grief, chaos, anxiety or fear which overwhelms, we are reassured that there is no place where redemption is unavailable and where the Spirit of God is not present. King David sang to us: “I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! ( Psalm 139:7)
Jesus knew what he was talking about when he spoke with his disciples about the power of faith to remove mountainous obstacles: “…if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.” (Matthew 17:20)
Jesus understands our dilemmas because he experienced the traumas, temptations, sufferings, and difficulties which beset us. He qualified to be humanity’s Redeemer because he faced those challenges sinlessly. With transcendent love, grace, and perfection, Christ has taken our sinful imperfections upon himself and saves us when we accept his gift of redemption . As we trust Him, God moves within us and our circumstances. In him is forgiveness, redemption, righteousness, comfort, healing, and hope.
There just “ain’t no mountain” higher than that!
It’s All About the Rocks…
In an illusion of safety, this skiff sat on these large rocks unattended, unsecured, unanchored. Oblivious to threats beyond the distant southern mountains, it sat unprotected, vulnerable to gale force winds, rising tides, and thunderous, crashing surf which unexpectedly but invariably will sweep in and batter the skiff against the rocks.
Therein lies a parable about false security. Protection for our souls requires more than the safety nets of wealth, social status, intellect, and power. Self-effort, self-promotion, self-righteousness, self-justification and even religion are short sighted and insufficient remedies for unhappiness or as the foundation for our quest for hope, forgiveness and redemption. No matter how grand or good, human effort will never be enough to out weigh our sinful natures or to redeem our souls.
Jesus pointed out the reality that it is the believer (not the performer) who receives everlasting life (John 3:16). And scripture clearly declares that it is not our righteousness or rule keeping but God’s mercy that saves us (Titus 3:5). Salvation is a gift received by faith alone (Ephesians 2:8-9).
Spiritual safety has always been founded upon God’s grace, mercy, and love. Isaiah, the Old Testament prophet, understood that. He said, “(The Lord) will be the sure foundation for your times, a storehouse of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge.” (Isaiah 33:6) Martin Luther conveyed this reassuring message in one of the stanza’s of “A Mighty Fortress is Our God” :
“Did we in our own strength confide
Our striving would be losing
Were not the right Man on our side
The Man of God’s own choosing
Dost ask who that may be?
Christ Jesus, it is He
Lord Sabaoth His Name
From age to age, the same
And He must win the battle”
What a wonderful, ageless expression of the redemptive power, protection, and sufficiency found in Christ! He is the Rock upon which to rest. Depending on anything or anyone else for redemption is standing in “sinking sand.”
Just Wondering
Sitting here beside the river, Listening to rippling waters run,
Wondering, Thinking of matters underneath the sun
How great the universe, how blue the sky
How beautiful and broken
the world to which you came to die
Sitting here beside the river, Listening to the rippling water run. Pondering. Thinking about why you had to come
Love beyond comprehension,
Compassion so extreme
Why should I sit here forgiven
Here beside my stream
Listening to the rippling waters run?
Sovereign God, Creator
to you I owe my life
How wonderful your Gospel
Which took away my sin and strife
A child of God praying by the water,
Listening to the rippling river run
At peace despite disorder
Because of what Christ has done
Sitting by the river. Watching the rippling waters run, Wondering, Thinking about matters way beyond the sun
The Talking Moose….
“But ask the beasts, and they will teach you; the birds of the heavens, and they will tell you; or the bushes of the earth, and they will teach you; and the fish of the sea will declare to you…” (Job 12:7-10)
Nature speaks. It sparks moments of wonder about a planet given to us to steward and enjoy. Full of mysterious creatures, fascinating flora, and baffling events, our world tells of God’s mystery and magnificence. Not all would agree with that, but the world has always inspired thoughts of God and our relationship to Him. “The heavens declared the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge.There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard.” (Psalm 19)
God is not nature, but He is ever present in it. From myriads of chemical reactions and unseen cellular particles to forces that hold us precariously, precisely, and securely in a vast universe of orbiting planets, black holes, and expanding galaxies, God’s glory, goodness, creativity, and sustaining power are evident everywhere. The Apostle Paul wrote that God’s “invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made…” (Roman 1:20)
Our world also conveys a humbling message about humanity. Hear the Psalmist again: “When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him.” (Psalm 8) As he observed how transitory life is, King Solomon realized that man’s self seeking, self promotion, and self oriented efforts to find validity and happiness were futile and that meaning and purpose are rooted in a relationship with the sovereign, eternal God. (Ecclesiastes 12) When Job struggled with life’s unfairness and God’s justice and sovereignty, he was instructed to ponder nature’s mysteries. Through them his eyes were opened to God’s omniscience and goodness and to an understanding that God’s thoughts, ways, and purposes are superior to man’s. (Job 38-42)
Jesus illustrated his teachings about God, fallen creation, sin-marred mankind, moral issues, redemption, eternal principles, and God’s kingdom with richly painted word pictures drawn from nature. The sun and rain showed God’s grace. Dead fig trees illustrated hypocrisy and judgment. Wheat fields represented the world waiting to hear the Gospel; withering grass emphasized the brevity of life; and weeds became examples of an evil world system opposing God. Germinating seeds illustrated the effects of the Good News on a life. Sparrows revealed God’s intimate knowledge of and compassion for all His creatures; the beauty of lilies spoke of God’s provision and the futility of anxiety. There were more lessons illustrated with swine, fish, sheep, wolves, goats and yeast!
However, Jesus did more than tell stories and parables. He demonstrated his divinity through powerful, compassionate miracles. He calmed seas, walked on water, turned water into wine, healed the sick, made a feast for 5000 from a few fish and several loaves of bread, and raised the dead. His death for humanity’s sins during an unjust and cruel crucifixion revealed the unfathomable depth of divine love, mercy, and grace. Furthermore, he dispelled the dread and power of death. His resurrection proved that sin-marred humanity can have confidence of eternal life if they will acknowledge him as their Redeemer. As the visible manifestation of invisible God, as personified love, grace, and mercy, he continues to brings us into relationship with God and His eternal protection.
We are wonderfully made to live in a magnificent world which reveals our insignificance but more importantly it tells us of the ever present God who lovingly cares for our souls. The beasts, the birds, the bushes, and the fish point us to God’s sovereignty: “Who among all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this?” To be certain that we get the impact and specificity of the question, they answer it: “In his hand is the life of every living thing and the breath of all mankind” (Job 12:7-10)
A Different Kind of Poverty
Whether by neglect or for lack of financial resources, this structure is in need of attention. Its condition is not hopeless but needs someone to restore it. Likewise, when our emotional or spiritual needs are unmet, a state of poverty exists, and restoration is needed.
Jesus addressed spiritual poverty and its solution in his Sermon on the Mount with the startling statement; “Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
Forever restless and discontent, we constantly search for something to satisfy our hunger and thirst for security, meaning, and purpose. We attempt to fill that inner void with relationships, achievements, pleasures and “things.” Yet, even though we have the capacity for contentment, we do not have the ability or personal resources to sustain a satisfied spirit calmed by peace, joy, and hope. “Things” and goals and pleasure-seeking activities easily displace God and thereby impoverish our lives. We are by nature spiritually destitute without God, but we are not hopeless.
In a subsequent beatitude, Christ said that “ blessed are they who hunger and thrust after righteousness for they will be satisfied.” By definition that is the pursuit of God. The only eternal value we can hold onto is our relationship with Him, a relationship based on His love for us and our believing faith in His provision for our redemption through Christ. So, the blessedness of which Christ spoke is discovered by recognizing our redemptive need and living within the context of who God is and His intentions for our existence.
The “blessed” empty themselves of pride and celebrate God as the source of all that is right and good and recognize that His Kingdom’s treasures are unending: love with its mercy and grace; forgiveness with its gratitude and joy; salvation from shame, guilt and condemnation, restoration with new meaning and purpose; the empowering presence of Christ now; and the complete confidence of ultimately being with God.
“Blessed are the poor in spirit” for they know it and seek God’s righteousness and restoration. They are rich with the treasures of heaven.”
The Untangling
There are times when we find ourselves all tangled up “in the weeds” of emotionally or spiritually unhealthy “things.” We may struggle with unsatisfying lifestyles or disappointment and emptiness because relationships, achievements, and pleasures fail to sustain our emotional and spiritual needs. It is even possible to be achieving our potential but left wondering whether there is purpose to it all?
Although created in God’s image, we still struggle with worldly chaos and disordered natures. We are stirred by a culture obsessed with entertainment, physical appearance, materialism, personal rights, and self-actualization. So, we are easily attracted to and captured by “vain philosophies and empty deceit “according to human tradition” (Colossians 2:8).
When we do not keep an eternal perspective, ugliness surfaces. Greed, envy, jealousy, pride, unrighteous anger, and unforgiveness lead to the deadly consequences of unhappiness, bitterness, shame, broken relationships, aggression, and crime. Life can take on the aura of senselessness. King Solomon said that”…all is vanity.” Shakespeare wrote in that famous soliloquy , “All our yesterdays light fools the way to dusty death…Life is but a walking shadow, a poor player who walks and struts upon the stage, and then is heard no more!” In his “ The Hollow Men,” T.S. Eliot suggested an inglorious end: “ This is the way the world ends, not with a bang but a whimper.”
God guides us into a different perspective, into a hope that is not found “in the efforts and traditions of men” but discovered in His inspired, empowering words which the Psalmist calls “a light to our path.” The Mosaic Law and the Gospel of Jesus are “other-oriented” and “outward focused.” They are powerful forces for change when examined through the lens of God’s grace and faith. Although we fail the moral imperative of selflessly loving God with all our being and our “neighbor” as ourselves, Christ came to lift us up and transform our minds and souls. Christian faith fixes its eyes on the gracious, humble, selfless, perfect Christ who thought not of himself but went to the cross to take upon himself the wrath which our unholiness deserves. In him, we discover forgiveness, redemption, hope, meaning, and purpose,healing and wholeness.
Christ’s teachings enlighten and instruct, and his immeasurable grace, mercy, and love give us the righteousness and strength necessary to be what humans are meant to be. He came to untangle us—to free us from the bonds of guilt and shame, to release us from burdensome selfishness, and to disengage us from the vapid entrapments of this world through faith in him.
Sweet Words from Maine 