The Tomb Is Still Empty

Every Easter we reflect on the empty tomb and are reminded, that in spite of all the difficulties of this life, all is well, for Jesus Christ is alive.  But today is Monday, we are back to life, and life has a way of robbing us of the joy and confidence gained in knowing that Jesus is truly alive.  Jesus' resurrection puts a new light on everything, and though I may not understand life's headaches, or the Lord's methods and timing, this I do know He is alive and reigning.  I've discovered in my Christian journey that it is important for me to take a regular reflective pilgrimage to the empty tomb.  In doing so my heart and mind get centered and stable.  So, I know it's Monday, but the tomb is still empty.  I know that bill is still hanging over your head, but the tomb is still empty.  Your boss is a "#!$*%", but the tomb is still empty.  He or she or they were mean to you, but the tomb is still empty.  Those kids drain you and won't listen, but the tomb is still empty!  The power of His resurrection is available to us every single day, may you find in it strength and joy.

Watch Your Words

Proverbs 16:24 "Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the bones."

I was told a funny story of a brand new state of the art music center at a major city here in the States.  Apparently this fancy opera house had an orchestra pit that could be raised and lowered by powerful lifts.  These lifts worked on a wireless system and would go into affect with the push of a button.  I don't know all the technical details, but the fact that this system somehow works using sound waves, caused a bit of a problem on opening night.  At some point in the evenings performance a woman with a beautiful and powerful operatic voice, hit a certain note or pitch, that caused the lifts for the orchestra pit to spring into action.   The orchestra was lifted into plain view, but not long after, the singer hit the same note and the orchestra slowly vanished.  This happened a number of times during her singing, and soon the serious song became a comedy act.  Laughter and applause followed every disappearance and reappearance of the orchestra.  What a great picture, this woman with the power of her voice was able to lift up, and to bring down.  The Bible teaches us, and warns us, that our voices have that very same power.  The words we use can encourage or discourage, can bring joy, or dejection, can carry up, or carry down.  Keep the picture of the orchestra pit in your mind as you speak.  When speaking of someone, or to someone, are your words lifting up, or bringing down?

Name That Tune

Psalm 84:5-6 "Blessed is the man whose strength is in You, whose heart is set on pilgrimage.  As they pass through the Valley of Baca, they make it spring; the rain also covers it with pools."

Working retail management can a be grind, so I remember being very happy I hired a particular employee who was hilarious.  This guy always kept me entertained, and his antics usually helped store morale.  One game he would play was to hum or whistle a tune that he felt represented certain people walking around the store.  He was good at it too, his song always seemed to match whoever might be wandering the aisles.  Through the day the tunes would come out of nowhere, "Bad to the Bone", "Viva Las Vegas", "Mellow Yellow", and sure enough I'd look up and passing right in front of me would be someone matching that song.  I don't remember him ever being mean about it, and it always brought his desired end, a shake of the head and a smile on my face.  His little game did teach me something that I carry with me to this day.  Wherever I go or whatever I do, I carry with me a song, or attitude, or vibe.  The question for me is what sort of vibe am I giving off?  As a Christian I carry my Lord with me, so wherever I am, ought to be blessed with His holy song or attitude.  The above verses from Psalm 84 speak of this.  The blessed of the Lord are passing through the Valley of Baca, and make it spring to life.  The Valley of Baca is literally the Valley of Weeping.  How amazing, a place of tears and lamenting becomes a place springing with life, because the blessed of the Lord are passing through.  The psalmist often speaks of the Lord giving him a new song.  This is a song of our loving God, a song that is holy, and right, and joyous, a heavenly song.  As we pass through the work place, or sit in the food court, or wander the valley, may it be that whomever we pass will be moved to hum or whistle a new song, as they recognize our Lord's life in us.

Hate Sin

Romans 12:9 "Let love be without hypocrisy.  Abhor what is evil.  Cling to what is good."

I have never been one to think much about germs, I know they are around me and can make me sick, but unlike some, I've never really made a big deal about them.  I lived very happily in my insensibility toward germs, until our current cold and flu season hit.  This year it seems like we are being bombarded with too much germ information.  On television, on the radio, in articles, and even on billboards we are being warned on how not to catch, or spread these bugs.  I have to be honest for the first time, germs are starting to creep me out.  I think we are supposed to wash our hands a hundred times a day.  To make sure you wash long enough, sing happy birthday or the alphabet song all the way through while washing.  To keep from spreading germs, we have been taught how to sneeze, and how to properly dispose of tissues.  The list of things we shouldn't touch is endless.  Don't touch: door knobs, stair rails, counter tops, other people's pens, kitchen sponges, elevator buttons, cell phones, key pads, gas pumps, and never ever touch your own nose or eyes.  I'm pretty sure it's alright to breathe in most places, except it might be best to hold your breath in elevators, airplanes, and public restrooms.  As I'm writing this I'm fighting a cold, so I'm kicking myself for going out in public and breathing and touching things.  There is a dangerous germ out there that gets too little attention, in fact I have never seen a public service announcement warning us how to avoid it.  This bug spreads quickly and is devastating to all who are infected by it.  You are all sharp enough to know where I'm going with this.  That foul germ is SIN.  Sadly we can feel more creepy about all the microorganisms that encompass us, then about the sin bug that abounds.  God hates sin, and calls us to abhor it.  Let us therefore be vigilant in cleansing,  be wise in what we touch, and careful what we breathe in.  

GIVE THE AD A BREAK

I've heard a few pro-life folks complaining about the Focus on the Family Tim Tebow ad on the Super Bowl telecast.  I have to admit when I first saw it, I was a bit disappointed.  But upon further review (clever football analogy), I had a change of heart.  I think my disappointment stemmed from all of the pre-ad hype.  There was plenty of press coverage, there were threats and accusations, and the pro-abortion crowd was saying that CBS should not run the ad because it was dangerous and anti-women.   All of the controversy got me in a fighting mood, I couldn't wait for Sunday, and not because of the game.  I knew the ad was running in the first quarter, so I sat a little nervous waiting for Tim and his mom to come out throwing pro-life blows.  I anticipated an aggressive attack on abortion, sort of a counter-punch for all the pro-abortion antics I'd been subjected to for the past two weeks.  What I then saw was a sweet, loving mom telling us that life is precious, not one punch was thrown, and abortion wasn't even mentioned.  I'm not an expert on using mass-media to reach people, but I'm sure that those who did the commercial know more about it than me, they took a step of faith and chose a subtle approach.  My disappointment came because I was told there was going to be a fight at the bike racks and one of the kids wouldn't fight, he had a better idea.  By the way, Focus on the Family never said there would be a fight, they just said don't judge the ad until you see it.  Focus didn't cop out, and they aren't afraid.  They have taken the lead in the battle against same-sex marriage, pornography, gambling, and most certainly abortion.  They have been at this a long while, and I trust that they put a great deal of prayer into it, so let's cut them some slack.  I believe if I hadn't heard all of the hoopla beforehand and saw the ad fresh, that I would have been thrilled that Tim and his mom, in the midst of screaming chickens, go daddy, and beer can houses, were able to share a brief message of life.  Focus on the Family and the Tebow's took a big step of faith.  I'm praying that through that faith many eyes will be opened, and little lives saved.

Wise Love

Philippians 1:9 "And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment."

The grocery store is a great place to witness interesting parenting skills.  It seems most times I'm in some local store I'll be treated to a parent either over disciplining or under disciplining or entertaining a child.  Poor mom or dad are just doing whatever they can to quickly get enough for dinner, and get out of the store with some sanity intact.  Now that my kids are grown it's fun to observe.  I forget what aisle I was on, but I saw a round little boy tugging at his mom wanting some snack he was holding.  The boy was very tenacious and kept asking, even though mom was saying no and trying to ignore him.  I kept my eyes on the shelves but was paying close attention to the drama, because I wanted to see if mom would stick to her guns.  I was rooting for mom not to give in, so I was a bit disappointed when she caved.  The worst thing about her letting him get the snack was what she said to him.  She said something like this..."well ok you can have it but only because I love you".  I know when it comes down to it, it was none of my business, but I was so tempted to pull mom aside and give her a little advice.  I wanted to tell her that to say no to your son is very loving, and sometimes more loving than saying yes.  I would have liked to explain how a simple "no" might be hard right now, but would pay dividends later down the line.  If I was feeling extra bold I would have quoted the above verse and given her a mini Bible study, right there in Ralphs.  The lesson would have been simple, and would have applied to us all.  We need to learn and discern how best to love.  Love can be difficult, it's not always warm and fuzzy.  Love says no, love rebukes and confronts, and love at times may appear unloving to the person to whom it is extended.  The most powerful love requires a heavenly discernment, so that we might know how best to love.  I didn't give mom a sermon, and I'm sure she loves her son, it just seemed at that moment that her love was not in knowledge and all discernment.  Lord, teach us how to love, give us the wisdom we need to love as You would love.

I Need To Workout

The hardest part of me doing my physical exercise, whether it's going for a run or hitting the gym, is getting out the front door.  I love working out, in fact I can't think of a time, after the gym or a run, that I was disappointed that I went.  Once I take that first step and get going, I'm glad, and seem to always be energized and healthy afterwards.  Knowing these things, why in the world do I find it so hard to take that first step out the front door?  I have in fact become quite good at making excuses, and would share some with you,  but I don't want you to use them yourself.  This in the forefront of my thoughts today, because the cold and rainy weather has made my excuse making far to easy, and my workouts have slacked off a bit.  Now, I'm not sharing this because I think you care about my exercise habits.  I'm sharing this because I see clear application in our spiritual lives.  As with physical workouts, so it is with our spiritual workouts, it seems the hardest thing is getting started, taking that first step.  We know once we get started and open the Word or begin to pray, we''ll be blessed.  How is it that excuses can be made for not doing something so needful and healthy?  I guess there is no easy or soft way of looking at this, the bottom line is, we need to be disciplined and just do what we need to do.  Turn off the big screen, set aside the I pod, the I phone, the I pad, and the I anything else, and open our Bible.  We all know there is no good excuse, so take the first step, begin your spiritual workout and I know you will be blessed.