Jesus came
for the wise and the strong.
And He came, just as well, for the rest of us.
Jesus came for the days that life seemed ordered and filled with meaning.
But we rejoice because He came for the other days, too.
Blessed by old men and shepherds
Worshiped by kings and beggars
And the rest in between.
He loves us still.
He did not come to receive just our joy and elation.

He came for the rest of us.
He came for our doubts, our burdens, our sorrows and grief.
He even came for the times when we doubted His presence.
He reached down to us.
When our loneliness seemed unbearable.

His love courted us.
And His mercy enveloped us.
His holiness consumed us.
God’s advent of grace put the pieces of our broken lives together.
Along the path of our lives we’ve heard of blessed souls who could manage their problems, pick themselves up, find the reasons for all of life’s challenges.
But thank God, that He came for the rest of us!
Not just our good.
But also the rest of us.

He came to celebrate our youth but when our youth is spent,
He celebrates with even greater passion, the rest of us.
He came for the people of Bethlehem, Jerusalem, Judea.
But He also came for the rest of us.
So now He compels us to shout to the world, the joy of a coming King.
So that every person can hear the invitation to join…

The rest of us.

He came… for the rest of us.

The longing of our hearts
the thirst of our soul
When we are forsaken
When our joy is taken
We feel lost in the desert of dashed dreams
There is a river.
Our peace is so fleeting amidst wars and struggles
The heat hangs in the air like a curtain of despair
Even then let me remind you
There is a river
When we look in the mirror and we see an aging soul
And life seems so brief
And knowing death comes like a thief.
We stare at gravestones and unscalable walls
And in our despair we lose sight of our dreams
We are tired, thirsty and fearing the enemies schemes
Our song is silenced. And we reach the end of our rope
No vision, no laughter, no hand and no hope
We hear the voice of life-giving savior
Who leads us to this river
He is the everlasting giver
And if we look beyond the horizon of our hopelessness, we will see the river.
And we’ll hear a Savior say “Come. Come take rest. Come and be blest.
With all you are.
You emptiness,
your filth,
your doubts,
your despair
All things that have caught you unaware
Celebrate, reunite with the One who invites you.
Come…

I promise not take myself so seriously, remembering that God made the hippo and the hammerhead shark.

I promise to look at all the incredible blessings that are buried under our to-do lists, agendas, and behind the billboards that blur across the windshield as I shift into fifth on the open road.

I will remember that Jesus took naps even during high gale warnings.

I will choose to let myself off the hook when critical remarks fly my direction. If i wanted to judge my life on the opinions of others, I chose the wrong Savior.

I will remember to never attend a church business meeting, chaperone a youth retreat, get a root canal, and stand in line at the Department of Motor Vehicles in the same week.

I will try to give more than I get. I can’t keep it anyway. Remember, God is planning a huge end-of-the-earth bonfire. Even the antique doilies my wife bought for next-to-nothing on e-Bay will be ashes.

I will remember that this life is not predictable. It is best lived in a state of dangerous wonder rather than linear monotony.

I will NOT try to figure it all out today, and I really don’t expect you to do so either.

I will make it job #1 to hang on for dear life to my family, my friends, my mission, and my Jesus.

Everything else I’ll move to the back of the line.

Lord, may we not be like the Bethlehem visitors, so busy with the day-to-day tasks that we fail to notice the presence of God.

Lord, may we not be like the inn keeper, giving the best rooms to mortals and giving God our stable.

Lord, may we not be like Herod, shedding the blood of the innocence to secure our personal kingdom. Remind us that when we attack the innocence of babes we are attacking the nature of God.

Lord, may we not be like beloved Zacharius, praying fervently for the impossible and yet asking how when God surprises us with the answer of our dreams.

May we never forget that this God-with-us Savior is here and He has invited us to good news and great joy.

when it’s all said and done here.
look me up.
I’ll be kicking back, slinging jawbones
with samson
who made it in the door by the grace of God
same as noah
found grace
discovered it

(he happened upon it or rather it happened upon him)

i’ll be listening to stories of limping jacob and stumbling bartimaeus
I’ll be all ears– smiling and wondering about weak eyes, pharisees and romance
discussing it with the miracle boy of Jesus’ mud pies

look! there’s Paul (no longer writing with big letters–the lasik surgery is divine)
he’s catching up on his reading
checking out the far flung analysis of lettered theologians
from barclay to barnes to hal lindsay (just for fun)
I will not dare disturb him.

and Jesus is smiling
His kids–the whole crew is back home
all of them
He’s feasting on the vision He’s been waiting to see

me?
i’m the guy way over in the back of the family portrait
next to a man named bart wrinkle (of whom i have not met)

I run to You like streams
that are drawn into the sea,
like a fire to kindled tree,
like a child to dreams.
like time to eternity
my one and only destiny
You are full.
Fill me.
I don’t want to be more me.
I want to be new.
No me.
All You.
I want to hear Your voice.
Don’t turn me away.
Bless me Father.
I won’t leave until You do.

The truth that we are deeply flawed humans is supremely overshadowed by the truth that we have a triumphant Savior and He has a plan. His presence and our acknowledgment and devotion to Him equips us to overcome every challenge we face as believers.  As stumbling creatures, we own nothing more empowering than this strong, never changing moniker of His love: “He is with us!”

In a just a few verses in Hebrews, we find every reason to believe that His presence is enough. Jesus is the greatest.

Jesus is the greatest owner.

“He (God, the Father) has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things.”

Hebrews1:2b

In this chapter the writer reminds us that Jesus owns it all.  This changes our perspective on the sufficiency of Jesus. If He owns it all then we truly are without want.  God lavished everything on the Son who gives to us all good things.

Everything we need, he has. Everything we toss His way is made ever more glorious and effective. In His presence we walk into the sanctuary of the divine and encounter the aroma of warm, holy bread. God’s word tells us that He is the giver of everything good.  What an amazing thought! If Jesus is the one who gives and He is our champion, how could we ever lose in this life or the life to come.

Jesus is the greatest artist and creator.

And through whom also he created all things. Hebrews 1:2c

Just think about this amazing creation.  There are 300 billion stars in the Milky Way galaxy. And the brightest astronomers will tell you that there are more than that many galaxies in the universe.  They can’t be counted, much less named. Your body has more than 50 trillion cells and the more we know about cells, the more we find that each cell is like a huge metropolis of activity and parts.

This was no accidental occurrence and in this verse we find who holds the keys to this macro and micro creation.

Jesus is the greatest resource.

The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being sustaining all things by his powerful word.
Hebrews 1:3

Man sustains his belongings, his career, and his activities by the sweat of his brow. God sustains the entire universe with His Word! And He’s asked us to trust Him as our resource. He owns the herd! This is how Christians through the years have given dangerously to him through tithes and offerings.  When we give, we are saying, “God, I trust you with my resources because I know that You own it all. It all belongs to you.” That’s what we are saying when we give. God promises that he will keep His end of the deal.

• Do you trust Him to sustain you during financial turmoil?
• Do you trust Him to sustain you when marriage become difficult and kids rebel?
• Do you trust Him to sustain you when the grey clouds of adversity discourage you?

“I am the bread of life,” Jesus told them. “No one who comes to Me will ever be hungry, and no one who believes in Me will ever be thirsty again.
John 6:35 (HCSB)

4.  Jesus is the greatest authority.

…You crowned them with glory and honor and put everything under their feet.”

Hebrews 1:7b-8a

The writer of Hebrews uses this word picture to describe Jesus’ authority.  He is above it all. He wears the crown of authority and everything is under him.  

Still most people, including Christ-followers scrape and fight to get the upper hand in life.

Most people live their lives in calculated steps marching to their internal mental metronome. They measure their moments by pleasure and risk management. Most people in the church are prone to use worship as a guilt squelching, touchy feely, two dose shot in the arm. It’s just tragic. Most people are far too busy achieving to acknowledge who really holds the keys. They will end their life’s in greater regret of the smallness of lives hypnotic noises and the drone of the daily grind.

 And this one and only Jesus is our brother, father, provider, healer, friend, confidant, and redeemer.

(He is) the one who makes people holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters.  Hebrews 2:11-12

We aren’t made holy by all of our good deeds, our prohibitions on vices, or ability to look holy.  Jesus makes people holy. He covers us in His righteousness and here’s the other amazing truth: He calls us his brothers and sisters. This is the mystery of grace.

• What problem are you facing that’s too big for Jesus?
• What need are you lacking that’s too great for Jesus to handle?
• What leadership crisis in your life is too complex for Jesus?

Prayer:

I recognize you as my Source and my sustainer. Lord, I bow before you and trust you with everything that is within, beyond, around and beside me. Lord you have full access to my life. Possess me Lord, Renew me. Revitalize me. Change me. Transform me. Correct me. Equip me. Love me.

I acknowledge that above all you have full and complete authority. I speak against any power or earthly principality that seeks compromise me blood relationship with you.

(With apologies to Paul Simon)

“The problem is all inside your head” he said to me.
The deacon in my life group who thought so logically
I’d like to help you to help him, supportively.
There must be 50 ways to love your pastor!

1. Shake his hand, Fran.
2. Tell him you loved his sermon, Herman.
3. Compliment his kids, Sid.
4. Send him a friendly email, Gail.
5. Pray for his spouse, Rouse.

Just listen to me…

6. Let him know that you’ve got his back, Jack.
7. Help him fix his sedan, Stan.
8. Give him your vacation condo key, Lee. (His family needs a week free.)
9. In business meeting, don’t try to discuss much.
10. Compliment his style, Miles.

He’ll think you’re the best!

11. Pay off the church bus, Gus.
12. Help him make peace with the WMU, Lou.
13. Give him a cost of living raise, Jay.
14. Volunteer at the kids event, Vince.
15. Pay his green fee, Tee.

Bonus Ideas:

16. Give him grace. He’s going to mess things up from time to time. Allow him to make mistakes.

17. Learn his allergies and feed him accordingly. By the way, 8 out of 10 pastors are Green-Bean-French-Onion-Mushroom-Soup-Casserole intolerant.

18. Don’t call him on his day off.

19. Check your own agenda at the door when discussing change.

20. Acknowledge that he usually works 50 hours a week and not five like some people think.

21. Offer to go with him when he visits the hospital. (And buy the ice cream!)

22. Send him a financial love offering after a funeral. (He’s the last one the grieving family needs to think of during their time of need. A gift coming from someone outside the family would mean a lot.)

23. Celebrate his staff, too! A good pastor always wants his wingmen (and women) celebrated. Chances are he gets great joy in this.

24. Pray strategically for him on Sunday night. He is probably mentally, emotionally, physically and spiritually exhausted. His face hurts from smiling. He’s probably had a few jabs from irregular people. His voice is weary, not only from preaching but from conversation, counseling and meetings. If he’s going to do or say something stupid, it’s probably between the hours of 9:30 Sunday night and 9 Monday morning. As one pastor once told me, “Don’t take Monday’s off as a pastor. Nobody wants to feel that cruddy on their day off.”

25. Send him a note on his anniversary with the church. Do not say in that note: I can’t believe you’re still here.

26. Unless the skies part and a booming audible Voice shakes the shingles from your house, don’t say, “I’ve got a word from the Lord for you.” There’s no easier way to mess with a pastor’s mind than to speak verbatim words allegedly spoken uniquely to him that might just possibly be kind of the Word of God. You know what? No. Don’t go there – unless the aforementioned weather conditions have taken place. If so, then go there, write a book and give the proceeds to Lottie Moon.

27. Avoid the temptation to make him a part of the Trinity. He is not your rescuer on the white horse, but he does know One who is.

28. Don’t just say, “Great Sermon.” Let him know what particular thing was most impactful for you. This will help him prepare next time.

29. Do not discuss his salary in an open forum. (I can’t believe I’m even writing that! Yuk!) It feels yucky for him. It feels yucky for his wife. And you can bet it feels yucky for his kids.

30. Don’t just help identify problems, help him fix them!

31. Let his kids be kids not extensions of his ministry or Christianity Today cover models.

32. Pay for wellness perks like a gym membership. This may save a hospital bill.

33. Realize that Sundays come around pretty regular-like. Don’t expect him to knock it out of the park every time. And when he doesn’t meet your standards.

34. Check your diva scale. It might be high.

35. Be a bouncer. If you know that your pastor is being worked over stupidly by an irregular person, run interference and learn some Spirit-filled bouncer moves.

36. Provide a cold bottle of water on his desk on Sunday morning. I had someone do this for me every Sunday and it was perhaps the coolest simple blessing ever. It was kind of like saying, “Sock it to them and stay hydrated. We love you and want you to be spot on today!”

37. Amazon gift cards. Only he knows exactly what he needs and he’s probably not going to tell you. An Amazon card is universally awesome.

38. Upgrade his computer. Most pastors wait way too long to get a new computer. How long has your pastor been waiting? Here’s a litmus test: if the front of his computer says: “Commodore” or he’s using WordPerfect 4.0, it’s probably time.

39. Celebrate his accomplishments.

40. Give him an extended sabbatical every five years or so. If he’s made it five years, he’s beaten the odds by a couple of years.

41. Give him a gift to give to his wife. Don’t take credit. Just say, “I saw this and thought, “Hey, I bet Pastor Waldo would give this kind of thing to his wife. So I bought it so you could give it to her from you because you are so thoughtful!” (Then wink.)

42. Keep the kids during worship. Some call it bed babies. Some call it extended session. But whatever you call it. It is a blessing not to have to worry that people are lined up to serve. Also a screaming baby versus a sermon in the same room? Who’s going to win that match? I think you know.

43. Express your confidence in him. This can simply be done by saying, “You da man!!”

44. Give him books. Chances are, he loves books. BUT DO NOT ASK HIM IF HE READ IT. When you do that, you have not given him a gift, you’ve given him a task.

45. Write a note to their kids and state the obvious: “Being a preacher’s kid is tough. We love you so much for putting up with stuff.”

46. When he and the family go out of town. Mow their grass.

47. Give him tickets to the big game. (In other words, not State vs. Northern Illinois Community Career College.)

48. Compare him with a Bible character, say, “You remind me of Stephen- boldly speaking the truth.” Just make sure you don’t compare him to Ahab, Jonah, Samson, or the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.”

49. Don’t exclude him or his wife from parties. Chances are he won’t turn it into a funeral. In fact he might be more fun than you ever imagined he’d be. When at this well-fortified festive event, don’t talk church with him. Unstick his brain from the task for a little while. Also don’t be offended if he says no.

50. Buy him some waders. He doesn’t walk on water.

Every stage of life has its milestones and ceremonial rites. At 20, it’s a party surrounded by eligible bachelorettes. Turning 30, it’s a birthday lunch with business associates and a rare evening out without changing a diaper.  At 40, it’s a surprise birthday party orchestrated by your kids. In your 50s, it’s “Strap on this hospital gown, we need to see what’s going on down there.”

If you haven’t had a colonoscopy, I want to tell you that it’s really not that big of a deal. It starts with two delicious gallon-sized beverages that taste like a very heavy 7-Up that initiates all-out civil war in your stomach. I thought an alien would bust out of my midsection at any moment. But yea and verily, this lasts only for a season. Just stay close to the bathroom, invite no dignitaries over, and turn the music up loud throughout the house. The rumbling and ruckus will sporadically turn embarrassing.

After a day comprised of sugar-free lime Jello cups and enough broth tostrike fear in the hearts of chickens everywhere, we made our way to the diagnostic clinic. When we got there they informed me that the worst was over, and truly it was. They also informed me that I’d be getting the Michael Jackson drug.

“And you’re telling me this because…”

But I survived the propofol, the rear slit of the hospital gown, the long wait, the paperwork, the Miralax (AKA: InstaColonQuake), the paranoia about what they did to me while I slept, the embarrassing things you say after you wake up, and I was polyp free! Yes!

Shout out to the doctor, my wife, and the nurse that I thought was Mother Mary. I’m not even Catholic.

Guys, if it’s time, please get this screening. It’s no big deal. Just don’t go for pizza right after the procedure. Just trust me on that one.

One of the most peculiar backstories of writer and theologian C.S. Lewis is the unusual 30 year motherly relationship he had with Mrs. Janie Moore. When C.S. Lewis served in World War I, he fought alongside Paddy Moore. Lewis returned wounded and Paddy was killed in action. While in the hospital recovering, C.S. Lewis notified his father who promptly replied that he was too busy to see him. However Paddy’s mother, some 30 years older than Lewis did visit. Later Lewis stayed in her home and, according to C.S. Lewis’ brother, it reached the point of almost slavery, where C.S. Lewis attended to her and Moore became increasingly demanding in her old age.

As I read this story, I wondered how Lewis’ life would have been different if his dad had left the office and attended to the needs of his wounded son. I’m sure the story would have been much different. The rejection of a father caused an unhealthy attachment to a woman who found him to be easy prey for her own selfishness. As fathers, this story reminds us that if we don’t step up to the bat in our kids’ lives, they will seek a replacement for the love and presence we are withholding. Often those replacements are cheap substitutes for the blessing and attentiveness of a father. Our lack of concern could set our kids back for years.

What does it means to exasperate your children? Perhaps it begins by simply ignoring them. To seem invisible is often the worst feeling a child could ever experience.