PAST IS... (well...) PASSED!

Not that anyone in my little circle needs wisdom from me... (Truth be told, my wisdom pool runs pretty shallow.) But on the off chance it's encouraging, this is what I'm thinking through today. (Partially plagiarized, partially original - kind of like the hundreds of sermons I preached over the years).

I AM NOT DEFINED BY MY PAST...

Today I am thankful that my past does not define me.

I am more than the culmination of my decisions and circumstances.

My past is just that... past (Passed); it does not dictate my present, nor my future.

I am not defined by my past: I learn from it... I grow because of it... I find in it both joy and pain. 

But I am more than my past. I am present... and I have a future.

Don't believe me... then take it up with the Creator!

“I have come that you may have life, and have it to the fullest.” 

~ Jesus

“I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. 

“Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, 

plans to give you a hope and a future.” \

~ Father

Forgetting and forgiving the past, I look forward to what lies ahead.

~ Paul

For now...

D

A Stumbler's Walk | TRIALS... STAND!

So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead,

even though you must endure many trials for a little while.

- 1 Peter 1:6, NLT

It has been a bit since my last post. A little ironic (coincidental? - I always confuse the two), the topic I was working on was that of trials. 

We all have trials. They are inevitable. I've heard preachers quip (and have been guilty of such myself), "You are either in the storm, have just come out of the storm, or are about to enter the storm." Quippy... but it usually proves to be true.

For many of you, like me, the skies have been or are looking a little stormy. But in the immortal words of Donna Summer (and a loose transliteration of the Apostle Paul), I will survive! And so will you. 

To do so, we need the imminent presence of the Holy Spirit, the support of the community of faith, and some old fashion guts. 

At times we cannot move forward. We feel like we cannot advance. Paul writes, ...having done everything to stand... stand firm. (Ephesian 1:14). 

SO STAND!

More to come on trials. (There may be a ray shining through the clouds.)

Since I've already broken all reverence with a disco quote, I'll end with an 80's Elton John lyric: I'm still standing!

God, I will stand... by leaning on you (and those you put in my path).

For now...
D

A Stumbler's Walk | STUMBLING...

Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling...

- Jude 24

The older I get, the more stumbling hurts. I stuck my toe in some deep carpet while walking through a convention hall a while back. The resulting stumble was minor - imperceptible to anyone who might have been watching - but the back pain was immediate and lasting. 

Stumbling hurts. And though I am being literal at the moment, it is also true metaphorically. 

Stumbling brings pain into our lives, and often to those around us. 

A problem though: We all stumble in life; missed steps and missteps, bobbles and trip-ups that don't usually result in full face-plants. They are painful nonetheless. 

We casually gather ourselves, look around to make sure no one noticed, and limp away as gracefully as we can muster. 

When we stumble, it is usually not due to a lack of willpower (and I am speaking of life/faith stumbles). Most of our stumbles result from a lag in relationship. 

There is One who goes before us, who walks with us, who shows the way. He is a light to our path and a compass to our course. He points out the rocks and roots (and carpet monsters) that might catch our feet. But we must follow. Striking out on our own will lead to stumbles... and pain. 

Now a dose of reality: We will stumble - probably sooner than later. (This blog is, after all, entitled A Stumbler's Walk!) We will face-plant. We will at times wobble and drunkenly stagger. But there is grace in the One who points out the path. He is also the One who steadies the falling and picks up the fallen. He is the duster of hands and knees. The cleaner of muddy faces. The healer of bruises and the bandager of cuts and scrapes. 

He is the one who says, "Follow me... walk with me..." And with a smile he leads - while he nods and points out a carpet monster. 

God, direct my footsteps according to your word (Psalm 119:133), that I might not stumble.

For now...

D

A Stumbler's Walk | NAILED IT! (Pt.2)

This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.

-- Colossians 2:14

(This is part two. For context, please first read part one. To help distinguish, I cleverly titled them Pt.1 and Pt.2)

In the last post we addressed BEING guilty and the incredible depth of grace that removes our guilt. There is however, another and deceptively dangerous side of guilt - FEELING guilty.

When we are redeemed by Christ we are completely free. Our guilt is removed. Our debt has been paid.

Whom the Son sets free, is truly free.

-- John 8:36

And yet, from time to time many (most) of us struggle with a sense of guilt. The shadows of our past close in. Or recent failure draws the curtains blocking the sunshine of grace.  

Guilt. 
It is an ugly word. 
Guilt can burden. 

It can oppress. 
Guilt can shut us down...

Guilt and fear are cousins. We feel guilty when we fear we do not measure up; when we fear we are not worthy; when we fear we are not loved; when we fear our failure will cause God and others to turn their backs. 

The self-defeating insidiousness is that we sometimes find pseudo-comfort in our guilt. (That was a weird sentence, but may be worth a re-read.) The outward whimsical expressions: "Well, that's just how I am..., I'm no saint..." or "I just suck," are simply covers that lay like a tattered blanket trying, and failing, to bring some kind of warmth to the pain beneath. They fail. We are not designed to live feeling guilty. 

There is a sorrow according to the will of God that produces repentance without regret, 

leading to salvation. But the sorrow according to the world produces death.

-- 2 Corinthians 7:10

True freedom is found in living beyond regret - without being weighed down by guilt. When Jesus nailed our record of debt to the cross, he crucified guilt. It is only we who choose to resurrect it. 

As a redeemed person you are a saint; albeit, usually a messed up saint. You are free, though you sometimes stumble. Your guilt list, past present and even future is overwritten in the blood of Christ with the words:

I love you.
Debt paid.

It is finished.

Freedom!

And the record of wrongs written beneath is no longer legible through the scarlet words of love. 

God, you nailed it! And I am free...

For now,

D

A Stumbler's Walk | NAILED IT! (Pt.1)

This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.

-- Colossians 2:14

Guilt. 

It is an ugly word. What thoughts and emotions does it illicit? Guilt can burden. It can oppress. Guilt can shut us down. Sometimes it has no effect at all. (Hopefully I can make the point.)

There is a difference between BEING guilty and FEELING guilty. It is possible for the murderous psychopath to BE guilty - while feeling completely free of any sense of guilt. My guess is this is not the case for any reading this post (I hope).

It is also possible for the guilty offender to be completely unaware of his offense. I once was driving a Texas road with a posted 65 mph speed limit. It was a divided highway with two lanes moving in each direction. Suddenly, I noticed friendly red and blue flashing lights behind. What I had not noticed was the sudden change in the posted speed limit - from 65 to 45 in a matter of what seemed three feet. (I later discovered it was a notorious spot.) Driving those three feet, (realistically, hundreds) I had no sense of guilt whatsoever. This did not change the fact that I WAS guilty. And I paid the price - or the debt as the Apostle Paul puts it - for my offense.

Very frankly, and with no judgement or joy on my part, I am compelled to note we each ARE guilty before God; whether we know it - feel it - or not. Jesus said if we fail at one point in our righteousness, we've failed completely. This goes for popes, pastors, prisoners... all. We are guilty. And with this guilt comes a debt.

The problem is, unlike my speeding offense which cost me about 100 Starbucks Venti Americanos, this is a debt we are incapable of paying. Our righteousness bank account has woefully insufficient funds to cover the price to redeem our souls. It is a spiritual debt that spiritually bankrupt people cannot pay.

Now the good news. Christ paid our debt from the riches of his grace. As Paul writes, Jesus nailed our IOU to his cross. With his death he paid our penalty. And though he was buried and rose again, what remains, figuratively speaking, nailed to the cross is the record of our debt (and sins). The list is overwritten however, in bloody red letters with the words...

PAID IN FULL

It is up to us to receive or reject his payment for us personally. It doesn't matter how religious, good or bad, etc. we are or have been (or ever will be). What matters is that we simply admit our guilt, accept what he has done and experience the incredible freedom offered.

(I've not yet gotten to the point I had in mind as I began writing this post. But being several paragraphs in, I'll save it for part two. Like the teasers on the news, I'll go to commercial with this: In part two I hope to deal with the insidiousness of FEELING guilty. Hopefully you'll stick with me.)

God, as the camp(y) song goes, "You paid a debt you did not owe, I owed a debt I could not pay..." How can I ever thank you enough?

For now...
D

A Stumbler's Walk | FLAWED...

Flawed...

I will boast of the things that show my weakness. 

-- 2 Corinthians 11:30

Thankfully the writers of the various narratives, histories, poems, and letters that make up the Bible never attempted to cover up the flaws of faith's heroes. 

David's murderous lust. Peter's tempestuousness. Sarah's lack of faith. James' and John's ambition. Mary's past.

Real people with real strengths and real weaknesses; real faith and real doubts. 

Much like us. 

Paul is one of those super-saints with whom we feel we cannot relate. His shadow is cast over much of the New Testament and the formation of the early church. His pen produced much of what we consider sacred scripture. 

Yet Paul is flawed. His story is not a simple one. It is not fairy-tale clean. 

Paul was a man of incredible faith; a picture of passion and mission. But I think Paul was at times a lonely man. You can hear it in his voice when he gets personal in his writings. Groups of people, both outside the church and within, continually attacked Paul's credibility and motives. He was mocked, ridiculed and worse. He was also, on a few occasions, abandoned. 

Paul was a man of strengths. His greatest? Intimacy with his weakness. Paul was flawed; and he hugged it. It is in this understanding of his own inability that he was enabled to completely rely on God's power within; God's power to transform. 

The same is true for us. There is a swelling confidence that comes when we choose not to hide our weaknesses from God. Instead, when we reveal ourselves completely - when we hug our flaws - God's grace will do in and through us what only he can. And the results are beyond our wildest imaginations. 

What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the hear of man imagined, 

what God has prepared for those who love him...

-- 1 Corinthians 2:9

God, I am flawed... But your grace overwhelms my weakness. 

For now...

D

A Stumbler's Walk | GOD OF YES

For the Son of God, Jesus Christ... in him it is always Yes. For all the promises of God find their Yes in him.

-- 2 Corinthians 1:19-20

Religions tend to preach a God of No. And to some extent, this is true... Don't kill, don't steal... don't worship idols... don't dance... OK, I added that last one. But see how easy it is? Religion tends to add to... to extend the borders... to overstep.

There was a time in my life when I served a God of No. I attempted to live up to rules - most centering around what I could not do, say, think or be. More and more however, I've come to know God as a God of YES.

He is the God who sees us as we are and says "YES, I will redeem." He is aware of our struggles and says "YES, I will be present." He knows our weakness and says "YES, I will transform."

He has made promises about our past (redeemed)... our present (empowered)... our future (heaven). And his promises are YES. How do we know this? Because he gave us the ULTIMATE YES in Christ his son. And in Christ, all of God's promises are... YES!

So don't kill... don't steal... don't worship idols. But not because of a No. Instead, know that every No must be based on a BIGGER YES!

(And go ahead and dance!)

God, today - and every day - you are my YES.

For now...
D