A Life Worthy

Thanksgiving for the Dad-Man book cover

Thanksgiving for the Dad-Man

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  • One-a-Day Tuesday 5/20/14

    number 1Be Thou my wisdom and Thou my true word

    I ever with Thee, and Thou with me, Lord

    Thou my great Father; I thy true son

    Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one

    Whence cometh thy wisdom, Beloved?

    Sorry…I got a little caught up in the whole Thee and Thou business.

    The question, however, is still valid—where do you get your wisdom?  Do you look to the world, with its political leaders and life coaches and self-help gurus?  Do you watch T.V., and adopt the attitudes and mores of the celebrity set?  Do you listen to the prevailing opinion of society, and claim it as wisdom?

    Because you know that the wisdom of the world is foolishness to God, right?

    Like the first verse of this hymn, this one asks God to do more than provide.  It asks him to be.  Be wisdom in me.  Be truth in me.  You see, wisdom and truth aren’t just tools that you can get from God and go off and use on your own, like some sort of spiritual ratchet set.

    Though I do find that concept intriguing…

    Wisdom and truth come from, and are used in, relationship with the Father.  As we grow closer to him, we grow closer to the source of all wisdom and all truth.  They sorta seep into us, like vitamin D when you’re out in the sun.  They become part of us.  Walking in wisdom and truth then becomes as natural as, well, as walking.

    I must admit, I still walk with two left feet and a bit of a stutter step, but I’m working on it.

    What about you, Beloved?  Are you spending enough time with your Father to soak in his wisdom, his truth?

    Make the time today.  I know you’re busy, but he’s worth it.

    So are you.

  • One-a-Day Monday 5/19/14

    number 1*note: This is a bit different from my normal One-a-Days.  For this week, I have chosen to focus on a hymn that has special meaning for me.  It may not be Scripture, but I think it has much to teach us about loving Christ.

    Be Thou my vision, O Lord of my heart

    Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art

    Thou, my best thought by day or by night

    Waking or sleeping, thy presence my light

    I love that it doesn’t say, “Validate the vision that I have for my own life.”

    Although that would be catchy.

    It doesn’t even say “Lord, grant me a vision for my life,” which is, frankly, about as good as I ever get.

    The song says, “Be my vision.”  I gotta admit, I’m not even entirely sure what that means, except that it speaks of total commitment.  The following lines press the thought:

    Nothing matters without you.

    Be the focus of my thoughts every day.

    Being with you is my reason for living.

    Oh, Beloved, can we ever reach that level of devotion this side of glory?

    I don’t know…but it’s what I want to want.

    It will be the song of my heart today.

    Will you sing with me?

  • Failure

    failure“Failure is not an option!”

    Yawanna bet?

    The current philosophy in education is that students should not be “allowed” to fail.  Somehow as a teacher it is my job to ensure that kids are poked and prodded and nudged and cajoled into doing the basic work that is expected of them as students.  If they say the work is too hard, I should make it easier; if it is too much, I should make it less.  If they failed a test that they chose not to study for, I should consider what interventions I might employ to help this “struggling student”—a misnomer if ever there was one—reach his or her goal of being a nuclear physicist.  Because, in the end, if the student gets an “F,” it is really the teacher who failed.

    May I tell you why that is such a dangerous and flawed philosophy? (more…)

  • One-a-Day Friday 5/16/14

    number 1Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing, and perfect will (Romans 12:2).

    I want a running Director’s Commentary on my life.  You know, like when you buy a DVD, you can look in the “bonus features” section and watch the movie with the director talking over the action. He explains the back story, provides behind-the-scenes tidbits, and gives insight into why certain production decisions were made.

    I want the Holy Spirit to provide running commentary for me.  As I go through my day he can whisper in my ear—better yet, he can have an angel appear from time to time with a little scroll.  You know, something tangible, ‘cause I don’t always trust voices in my head.  Anyway, he can point out the Father’s will in every situation, and explain why things happen the way they do.  That would be good.

    While we’re at it, I want a pony.

    OK, this is odd.  I was composing the above in my head while driving home from work.  As I got to the part about the pony, I glanced to my right and saw…

    A pony.

    It was just standing there, by the side of the road, munching on some random flora.  I have driven this road twice a day every workday for eight years.  Never once have I seen a pony.  I attach no spiritual significance to this, other than proof that God has a sense of humor.

    And yet…

    I did not stop and collect the pony, partly because I don’t want a felony on my record, and partly because I really do not want a pony.  I was only pretending I wanted a pony.

    Which makes me wonder…do I really want the Holy Spirit speaking directly to me, passing me notes, or am I just pretending I do?  Do I really want to be responsible for knowing God’s will?  Because, frankly, not being sure of his will gives me a certain amount of wiggle room that I often exploit.

    This passage suggests to me that, as we allow God to put our minds back in whack through his Word and his Holy Spirit, we actually do get something akin to Director’s Commentary.  But as with any gift, we are responsible for how we use it.

    What do you say, Beloved?  Are you willing to accept the gift God offers?  Are you willing to be transformed and renewed, to be able to, “test and approve what God’s will is…”?  Because what he gives, you must use.

    Unless he gives you a pony.  A pony you may leave by the side of the road.

  • One-a-Day Thursday 5/15/14

    number 1Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind (Romans 12:2).

    Not your heart?

    Nope.

    Your mind.

    Sure, God works in your heart too, but the transformation Paul is talking about here comes through your mind.

    What you think about.

    How you think about it.

    How you make your decisions.

    How you look at the world.

    In case you hadn’t noticed, we live in a sinful, broken world.  Growing up in it, surrounded by the messages that society puts out, well, it warps our minds.

    There it is, Beloved.  You have a warped mind.

    It’s kinda like putting on your friend’s eyeglasses.  Everything looks wrong, distorted, and out of whack.

    God wants to put you back in whack.  He wants to renew your mind.

    Some parts of the renewal are immediate, like taking off your friend’s glasses and putting on your own.  When you came to Christ, the Holy Spirit came to live within you, and certain things changed immediately.  You saw sin as bondage, for example, and wondered how you could ever have thought it was freedom.

    Other parts of the transformation take more time.  They’re like the caterpillar, quietly waiting in its cocoon, allowing God to work his will in his own way, in his own time.  God uses his word, day by day, little by little, to transform the way you think, the way you see the world around you.  He is gentle and patient, because your brain is a fragile little thing, and you’re of little use to him in a catatonic state.  But if you remain in the word, he will continue to work in you, until the butterfly is released.

    That’s an awful lot of metaphor for a Thursday.

    Rest today, Beloved.  Rest in the knowledge that he is a work in you, even now.

  • One-a-Day Wednesday 5/14/14

    number 1Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind (Romans 12:2).

    My favorite image of transformation is the butterfly.

    I’m sure there are cooler images I could come up with, something involving thunder, and magic, and arcing electricity, and tectonic movement, and chaotic forces battling in the nether realms…

    But I like the butterfly.

    For one thing, it’s quiet.  No trumpets announcing it.  No commemorative coins struck in its honor.  Mr. Caterpillar simply goes off into a corner, or a bush, or whatever, and lets it happen.  So calm.  So peaceful.  So fundamentally life changing.

    For another thing, the butterfly transformation is amazing.  Think about it—there are few creatures that God has seen fit to create that are uglier than caterpillars.

    Goblin sharks?  Yes, um, goblin sharks are uglier than caterpillars, but they do not transform, so they do not really apply here, do they?

    Anyway, the transformation from ugly, ground-bound, leaf-eating caterpillar to beautiful, graceful, floating, soaring, nectar-sipping butterfly is nothing short of astounding.

    It’s wondrous.

    It’s miraculous.

    It’s what he wants to do in you, Beloved.

  • One-a-Day Tuesday 5/13/14

    number 1Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world… (Romans 12:2a).

    I know all about conforming—I teach middle school.

    These poor kids.  They so very much want to belong that they will wear the silliest clothes, listen to the lousiest music, and eat the nastiest snacks, just to be like everyone else.  The irony is, they think they’re the picture of bold individualism, when in fact they are poster children for the Clone Society.

    But they are children.

    We are not.

    Right?

    Everybody wants to belong.  It’s natural. It’s normal. It’s healthy.  The danger comes from what you want to belong to.  And what you’re willing to do to fit in.  This sinful, broken world is not worth belonging to.  These lost, dying people are not fit for emulating.

    Loving, yes.

    Conforming to, no.

    If we are going to stand for God in this place, if we’re going to reach people for Christ, we have to be willing to stick out like the proverbial sore thumb.

    How do you conform to this world, Beloved?  In what areas do you go with the flow, try to fit in with the people around you?  Paul says, “Do not conform any longer…”  That means you have a choice.  You have the power to stand for God instead of falling in line.  Use it.

    Be a sore thumb for Christ today, Beloved.

  • One-a-Day Monday 5/12/14

    number 1Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship (Romans 12:1).

    The Jews offered a dead sacrifice.  They were, in a sense, fulfilling a contract, paying, “The wages of sin” that Paul talks about in Romans 6:23.  But we are not under that contract—that law.  We are under the covenant of grace.  We receive “The gift of God…eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord” that comes in the second half of that verse.  So our sacrifice is a living sacrifice.  We offer ourselves.

    I mentioned on Saturday that I think I could die for Jesus if it came to that—if someone put a gun to my head and told me to deny him, or some such thing.  I’m sure that, under the same conditions, you would die for him as well.

    But we’re not called to die for him—not in that sense.

    We’re called to live for him.  And, some days, that can seem so much harder.

    One definition of worship is, “To offer God all that we are in response to all that he is.” I like that, because it implies that everything we do can be worship, if we do it for him.

    Will you worship him today, Beloved?  Will you offer your body—your life—to him, to do with as he pleases?  I don’t know what that will entail, but I know that it will bring you closer to your Lord.

    And it will bring him the glory he deserves.

    Not a bad way to start your week, hmm?

  • Big Crosses/ Little Crosses

    I’m driving along and I get stuck in a massive traffic jam.  InchingBig cross little cross my way down the road, I fret, wondering if I will get to where I need to go by the time I need to be there.  Then, up ahead on the right, I see the cause of the jam—an overturned car.  The thought that runs through my head—I kid you not—is, “Oh good.  It’s an accident.  Once I get past that, the speed will pick up.”

    Tell me you’ve done that, at least once.  I’d hate to think I’m the only one. (more…)

  • One-a-Day Friday 5/9/14

    number 1Warning: this poem–if you can call it that–kinda blindsided me.  It’s not what I intended to write today.  And yet, it’s what came out.  Read gently.

    For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it (Matthew 5:14).

    When will I let go?

    I am a child gripping candy in his fist.

    I won’t let go, even though the candy is old

    and foul

    and sticky

    and no good for me.

    I scream and wail and weep because you ask me to give you

    that which only rots my teeth

    and, frankly, tastes awful.

    It’s been on the ground, but I’ve scooped it up.

    I rubbed it on my shirt, but still it’s covered

    with dirt

    and grit

    and nasty bits.

    I can’t possibly enjoy it, but I will

    not

    let

    it

    go

    no matter how you ask.

    Why must you ask?

    Why must you be so gentle?

    Tear it from my hand, Lord—I know you could.

    Ignore the shrieks of protest.

    Ignore the tantrum.

    Just do it.

    Because if you wait for me to give it up, I fear I never will.

    Because if I…

    if I give it up, what if there is nothing else?

    What if, in spite of your promises, this sticky

    filthy

    nasty

    mess is all there is or ever will be

    of life

    of self

    of me?

    What if, once lost, I am never found?

    Oh God, you curse me with a freedom that is more than I can bear.

    Quickly now, before I can think about it

    like a splinter

    or a bandaid.

    I hold my breath

    and grit my teeth

    and close my eyes…

    and release.