Snow Day

Snow in Texas is rare.   Most of the time it is ice.  

Thursday morning I woke up to a beautiful sight. It was 2 a.m. and snow was falling.  I looked out the kitchen window into our front yard and watched the snowcoming down as I heated a bottle for Righteous. It really is awe-inspiring to watch as the snow covers the tree branches, the cars, the street with its breathtaking white artistry.

 Later that morning, during my morning reflection, realizing the snow had once again slowed down the pace of life; I was reminded of Psalm 46:10 –

“Be still, and know that I am God!
    I am exalted among the nations,
    I am exalted in the earth.” (NRSV)

The snow had forced me to stop, to slow down.  

I am reminded of what God said to Job to "stop and consider the wondrous works of God." (Job 37:14)

Today the sun is shining and we are back to the busy schedule. But I encourage you to take some time to be still.  To stop, take stock of the wonderful creation around you and, if it's snowing (or raining or sunny ...), to slow down and recognize God's power. 

Take a few minutes and read Job chapter 37 and consider what God wants to share with you today.

Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day is Saturday! Some people can’t wait and have been planning on how to celebrate for weeks if not months. Why? Because they love to celebrate love. But others dread it. They feel obligated to prove their affection for their significant other. And then there are those who wish to skip the day altogether because Valentine's Day reminds them they are single.

 I remember last year, I spent Valentine's Day volunteering at my kids' school. Part of my job was taking flowers and cards to different rooms. One of my deliveries was to a student in first grade—six red roses. The students were gone to Specials, so several of the first grade teachers were visiting in the hall and became very curious when I went into the classroom I did. They all said the teacher would be right back. I told them it wasn’t for the teacher but a student. You could see the let-down when I told them it was for a student. They thought this single first grade teacher had someone new in her life.

 How are you feeling?

 I must confess I have mixed emotions about Valentine's Day. Not because I don’t want to celebrate love, because I do. I have the love of my wife of almost 16 years, I have the love of my beautiful children and my extended family and friends. And I have the greatest unconditional love of God through Jesus Christ that I can celebrate on Saturday.

 I struggle with the influence of the 18 billion dollar holiday. I can get flowers for Allison on Valentine's Day or I can buy them on the day after for 75% off and afford to shower her with flowers on other occasions, which she deserves. Seriously, if you don’t believe me, go to Kroger on Sunday. But if I save the money, I feel horrible. Why? Because I didn’t do what is expected (by culture) to give cards, flowers, and chocolates—all of which are temporary.

Hear me say buying gifts for Valentine's isn’t inherently wrong – and sometimes they are the perfect gifts – but there are so many other ways I can communicate my affection for my wife and kids. But I still feel all the trappings of buying traditional gifts.

As I am writing this blog post, this verse on love came to me: "Jesus said, No one has greater love than to give up one’s life for one’s friends" (John 15:13). In the 15th chapter, John reminds us of how great God’s love is for each and every one of us, and reminds us that the greatest of love is not shown through material items, but through giving completely of ourselves. Maybe the best gift I can give this Valentine's Day is of myself, through intentional acts.

Whether your desk is filled with flowers and chocolates or you're rolling your eyes at it all because you're without a special someone this year, remember this: You are loved by God completely, and that's what matters. And if you are still looking for the best gift to give, consider giving intentional acts which show those you love that they are worthy of your whole being.

The Puzzle of Life

One of the things we did as a family when I was growing up was work on jigsaw puzzles. It would take weeks. The first step was always laying out all the pieces and turning them right-side up. The next step involved putting all the edge pieces together. Then, we would look for large sections of the puzzle that had the same color pattern. We would work together, and slowly but surely, the final image would begin to emerge. One of the great things about working together on a puzzle was that we all saw different things along the way. Each person helped fill in missing sections that the rest of us hadn’t been able to figure out. It took all of us, and if we had missed any single piece, it mattered to the outcome—the picture would be incomplete. I don’t know about you, but at times, my life reminds me of a gigantic jigsaw puzzle. I work hard to put all the pieces together – kids, marriage, work, friends, family, church, and ministry – but it can all become a bit overwhelming. I don’t think I’m the only one who feels this way. We all work hard to lay out the many pieces of our lives so they will ultimately form a cohesive picture. We try to get a framework of what life is to look like, then we start putting everything together. But then something inevitably happens that causes a piece to be misplaced, or keeps us from clearly seeing the big picture. It is at these times that we need others to help us see the pieces we are missing, to see the picture from a different angle, or to connect pieces of life that we had not yet realized fit together. Life is not intended to be spent alone. God created us to be in relationship with Him and with each other. This is why, as a church, we want everyone to be part of an intentional small group. This is why we structure the leadership of the church in teams. We need each other. Every piece matters, and we are better when we work together. We need our spouses, partners, children, friends, neighbors, small group members, and colleagues to help pick up the pieces, and to better see God’s vision for our lives. I am grateful for my wife, Allison, the Faith staff, my friends, my extended family, and my colleagues who have always been there to help pick up the pieces, who have seen things I could not see, and who stepped in to help connect parts of the big picture for me. They have all gathered around the table with me and helped put together the pieces of a beautiful life. Who are you grateful for this week? How might God be calling you to help with someone else’s puzzle?