“I trust in God’s unfailing love for ever and ever.” Psalm 52:8

I was chomping away on some ‘Double Bubble’ bubble gum the other night when I just KNEW something was wrong! Within’ a few nanoseconds, the wisdom that comes ONLY from time and experience screamed out…. STOP!!!! Spitting out evidence that accompanies stupid, I held, in my hand, a ‘crown’ that had come off one of my teeth! THIS is the kind of thing mama had warned me about!

I remembered, back in my Scoutmaster days, an encouraged mantra that we were to say around the campfire… over and over… until we ‘got wise.’ It goes like this;

“OWHAAAA TAGOO SIAM”

Go ahead…say it…out loud…over and over…in increasing speed! I’ll wait! Yep! That‘s me!

So yesterday I found myself in the Dentist’s Office at… unbelievably…the PERFECT time. ‘Tooth Hurty!’ Yes… really! There, Dr. G. my dentist friend, greeted me and put me in the care of Lisa. Lisa is a believer and we always have great conversations. I usually talk until she politely tells me to shut up and open! Not being afraid or nervous at all, I sat calmly as she poked and prodded. That is until she said, “Uh-Oh… we’ve got a live wire here!” My only response was “…UH?” Then my WHOLE ATTITUDE CHANGED!

She went on to explain that, “since that tooth still has it’s nerve, I might experience a jolt of unexpected pain! Just let me know,” she said! All I could do was laugh uncontrollably and say… “O.K…. I will!!” ‘She’ again politely told me to shut up and open and! ‘I’ went back to trusting… but with prepared caution!

Life, like a dentist’s chair, is NOT a laughing matter. I appreciated her warning that, what I DIDN’T know COULD hurt me. It gave me occasion to take a serious matter… seriously. That I read this verse this morning is NOT an accident. It is a gentle ‘Holy Spirit’ reminder that I’d better place my trust in the hands of the ONLY one who can help… then ‘shut up and be open!’

Life happens entirely too fast. I, for one, am prone to not ‘get it’ as fast as most. Laughing and joking my way through this ‘nerve’ous journey, I NEED to be reminded that ‘Stupid Hurts!’ Then, taking that advice, I must APPLY it daily. With the world, the flesh and the devil coming at me every day…I am a ‘LIVE WIRE!’ And I am also reminded that I’m MUCH too old to be keeping ‘Stupid’ as a friend!

Thanks for the lesson Lisa!

“You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back from captivity.” Jeremiah 29:13-14

I was hoping that the weather would break and that heat and humidity would finally be gone before I tackled the tree and bush trimming job. But alas… no! The time had come, it was muggy and hot and I had run out of excuses. Without thinking I pulled on my work clothes and headed off, with no particular plan but to cut! When I got to it, I wondered, “where are my tools?”

Being an owner of foliage in Florida is full of frustration because this place was a ‘tropical rain forest’ LONG before I came! That means plants trees and shrubs just GROW! Eradicating them requires work and tools. Looking thorough the garage I found 1 tool and so, started with it. Lopping and filling trash cans, I stored 5 of them in the garage to be set out on trash day. Needing my chain saw, I then remembered… ‘it’s behind the trash cans!’

‘Plan your work and work your plan,’ is a popular saying for organized types. Since ‘knowing’ and ‘doing’ are two different things, and that planning doesn’t come naturally for me, it usually takes more time and sweat to accomplish things I don’t like to do… like tree trimming! Oh… if could only learn that! Then I read these teeter-totter verses this morning.

I am a captive to my OWN way of living. Being flesh, I have learned what I like and what I don’t. I have even discovered substitute behaviors that provide me with brief spurts of ‘happy’ to get me through tough times. Because I love these substitutes, I rarely see them as captors to which I am enslaved! BUT… God sees them… and has a plan for my life that RIDS me of ALL captors… but Him. He even tells me what to DO to eradicate the fake stuff. Now… if could only learn them!

Picture a teeter totter with “You will seek me and find me” on one side. And “I will be found by you,” on the other. While they are actually 2 separate verses, they pivot on the words, “when you seek me with all your heart.” ‘Seeking’ and ‘finding’ are 2 separate things that require WORK on MY part. The WORK is the ‘HEART’ effort I put into the search. Often, that effort requires I move some trash out of the way.

God has a plan for my life. I have to work HIS plan if I want to have it. I guess the inevitable question is… how badly do I REALLY WANT to find Him? And how badly do YOU?

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. Proverbs 9:10

There we were… 70 feet above the ground! One slip… one misstep… and BOOM!!!! 911 would be replaced with a call to the coroner. Undaunted… fearless even… I looked to my left to see my ‘partner in height’ standing on the 8” wide walking plank… holding onto… NOTHING! As my fingertips leaned against the wall in front of me for support, I felt beaten and small. I felt WORSE when he MENTIONED it…“I saw you holding on!!! The shame was embarrassing!

In reality we WEREN’T 70’ up. But from ground to feet, it was about 13’. If you counted from the ground to eye level it was 18’…. or 70’ if you were in the middle of the plank! Which I was! Oh… and the plank was 14” wide, not 8”. But it SEEMED like it! And yes, I DID feel like a baby at times. And yes.. he DID mention it to me. UGHHHHH!

My first job out of high school was an aluminum mechanic’s laborer. I remember the first day on the job. The picture above is almost EXACTLY the way the scaffolding laid out.. only up to the peak. When my boss told me to climb up and remove the molding, it became the scariest day of my life! I went on to LEARN how and to NOT be afraid of heights. But that was 46 years ago! Apparently I had UNLEARNED it, because the fear I was fighting to overcome was genuine!

When my friend told me he was painting, I offered to help. I looked forward to the challenge of the height, trusted him to have secured the scaffolding and KNEW it would hold me. When I was done, I was exhilarated for the experience. ‘The Fear of The Lord,’ is EXACTLY like that. It is not danger…but AWE! An opportunity for the Holy Spirit, the church and teacher to provide me intimate access to Holy God… and LIVE to TELL about it!

If I want wisdom and understanding, I must remember that it ONLY comes when MY head gets level with HIS feet! In humility, I must acknowledge that HE is God and I am not! And that, when I read His Word with the care it deserves…and APPLY it correctly to my life…I will have NOTHING to fear. TEASED about maybe… but NEVER afraid!

So when it comes to reaching God… how high are YOU?

“As dead flies give perfume a bad smell, so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.” Ecclesiastes 10:1

The other day a couple of us were cleaning up the church for Sunday services. This is a very enjoyable time for me, because I get to spend time talking about Jesus with a fellow friend and believer. It was going very well. I picked up the gathered trash, tied the bag and proceeded to the garbage can outside. Then the stench hit my nose!

Apparently, the last time the trash can was emptied, the garbage guy left the lid open. Heavy rain had filled the bottom with about 3” of water. But I KNEW that smell well and… it WASN’T from rain. Peering in, I saw a bag at the bottom that could ONLY be explained by a dead animal inside! I ALSO knew it hadn’t been placed there by any one of us! Being experienced at stench, I got some bleach, dumped it the can, and then left!

I mentioned that I have extensive experience at stench…and I do. I COULD tell you stories to prove that MY experience is probably stinkier than yours. But without a ‘stink-o-meter’ and a ‘judge,’ my conclusion is only opinion. Besides, who wants to win THAT contest?!! Yesterday I walked by the trash can again… let’s just say that the bleach didn’t work!

I am an expert at the stink of sin and because I am, I can say that Paul lied when he called himself “the chiefest of sinners.” HE isn’t… I am! But even even winning THAT contest would require a ‘sin-o-meter’ and a ‘judge!’ And right about now I am REALLY EXCITED to inform you that ‘The Judge’ has LEFT THE BUILDING!

Stench is subjective and requires both an event AND a participant. God smelled the COMBINED stench of ALL human sin… and chose to take it upon Himself to REMOVE its offense…once and for ALL! The place was called Calvary and the trash was my sin. ALL OF IT! As the hymn writer of “It is Well With My Soul,” said, “I bear it NO MORE!” Get it?

There is no one I know of who will take care of the growing stench in the can. SOMEONE has to take care of it. That someone is me! Why? Well…didn’t I just brag that my stench experience being worse than yours? And now you have the perfect example of WHY… ‘YOU’ and ‘I’ are called to ‘testify’ to the Grace of God! It’s because of EXPERIENCE!  So….‘press on’ stinky guy!

“Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household.” Ephesians 2:19

This last weekend, on my trip to Los Angeles, I got married AND adopted! I am SOOO excited I can’t wait any longer to tell you about it. See the picture? That’s Jake and Margaret (lucky Jake, huh?). Jake is my nephew on my wife’s side of the family. Just by default, you already KNOW who Margaret is. If you know ME… you already know how I feel about Margaret…. She’s my FAVORITE!

I KNEW about Jake all of his life… though I didn’t really KNOW him. But Jake is family! So when we were invited to the wedding, we naturally said we’d be there… in Los Angeles, California! Having been to L.A. a few times, I don’t really care for the place. But I was going for a family wedding…NOT the town. While there, we found ourselves with some time to kill and driving around, we hit Koreatown!

I could tell things were different in Koreatown because of the signs, most of which were written, assumedly, in Korean! One sign IMMEDIATELY jumped out! In English… it read “Immigration Attorney!” The REASON this stood out to me is that I have never seen that sign in ANY town where I have lived before. It made me stop and think!

Having met Margret, her mom and dad, her sisters and friends, we fell in love with them immediately! Talking to them I heard the story from her Father about how he came to this country in the 80’s… back in the early computer days. Staying, he was missing something important… his family! Over the years, following the laws of our country, he is a citizen. After hearing HIS story, I REALLY understood the sign in Koreatown! It’s all about FAMILY! Then I thought of Heaven!

Margaret and her family are STRONG Christians. In fact, when she met Jake and the sparks started to fly, she told HIM that Jesus would be the head of her marriage. I am proud to say that Jake signed up (smart Jake!) and is ALL IN!! Because they are Christians, that makes them some of the CLOSEST members of MY Family as well! We have adopted each other and are no longer aliens or strangers, but fellow citizens of a unique community where Christ is King and WE are His Queen! OK… that sounds weird!

If you read the verse today you will see it starts with the word ‘Consequently’ and ends with a comma! That means there is MORE to know, both before and after! I’ll let YOU look it up. And if YOU REALLY KNOW what the before and after means…welcome to the GREATEST FAMILY ON EARTH! You TOO have been married and adopted! Congratulations & Welcome!!

“The voice (of Jesus) spoke to him (Peter) a second time, ‘Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.’” Acts 10:15

Getting ready for any day can sometimes be as intense as the work to be done. Getting everything together… computer, Bible, notes, pens, phone, wallet, list etc., can become a game of hide and seek. As usual, getting IN, I got back OUT of my truck a couple of times yesterday because I had forgotten something. But the morning was pleasantly cool for a change and I looked forward to the rest of the day. Tick Tock!

Now before I go on, I don’t want you to think I am whining. I’m sure none of YOU ever have the problem of frustration that continuously plagues me. I set off working the list sequentially so time was not wasted. I am not naturally efficient, so working a plan helps… until something goes awry! Going through a store, I can be like a puppy when I see something tasty and…“BALL!!!!!” off I go! Only to become frustrated at myself upon check out! Trying to get through my list, I felt my temperature rising with the day.

It is amazing how time and temperature affect me. I’m pretty hard on myself, so I always feel like I am running behind. When heat and humidity are added to frustration, I start to get uncomfortable. If left unchecked, I can get downright irritable. At that point, like an overheated radiator, I break down. Then I feel bad about myself!

Reading Act, I found that Peter was a busy guy. On a long journey, he paused to pray before lunch. Scripture says he became hungry and fell into a trance. Hunger and exhaustion can do that to ya! At this point Jesus USES Peter’s experience to teach him a new way to look at things. But Peter had his list of do’s and don’ts and it took 3 times for him to get this message. What God cleans… STAYS clean! Then I thought about ME!

I can be VERY hard on myself. It doesn’t take much to make me feel like a failure in my own eyes, which HAS to reflect on the way God sees me. Right? WRONG! Jesus reminded me that I am His and have been made clean by His sacrifice then and His life in me now. He reminded me, without the trance, that I was made FOR God and His Glory! The REASON I am frustrated is because… I’m not home yet.  Which… when I think about it even more… is pretty cool!   

Are you clean?

“Evil will never leave the house of one who pays back evil for good.” Proverbs 17:13

This last weekend I stayed in a hotel in California. Not really knowing the best way to get a flight, car and hotel, I trusted the folks at Travelocity to help me. I assumed they are successful because they do a good job. And they did. The flight, car and hotel were awesome… for the most part. Though I had to laugh when I tried to leave the hotel parking lot.

Fine print can be dangerous. The hotel was ritzy, and as I stood in the huge foyer with mouth agape, I received my first shock? Parking my car was $36 a day if I wanted valet. If I parked around back myself, it was $28 a day! Pulling around back.. hee hee, I was required to swipe my hotel card key to raise the arm to park. When I was in a hurry to leave, I pulled up to arm… and nothing happened! I busted out laughing when I caught the significance. I had to swipe my hotel card to get OUT!

The song ‘Hotel California’ has a line the says, “You can check out anytime you like, but you can never leave!” It’s a great line. But some parking lot designing fool took it too seriously. It should be OBVIOUS that to get IN.. I HAD to be legitimate! Therefore, getting out should be easy. But no…!! Frustrated by time, I had to search for my card to exit. Then I thought about hell!

Sin, evil and death are the street signs of our home. We are BORN into a realm that we cannot escape. Unfortunately, we become accustomed to the signs and think nothing of them. Until we try to leave. With no way of escape, death laughs as we search for a key that ONLY God has. It’s price costs BOTH of us… EVERYTHING!

God’s fine print is dangerous. Even lethal! To live we must die! To get we must give! To lead we must follow! To reign we must serve! The ONLY Way of escape is the ‘Jesus Card.’ Sadly, so few desire ‘His Way’ that it seems the devil himself is shocked when show him mine! The ONLY way to leave is ‘His Way.’ And His way can be rather strange!

Signs of Jesus People are there… to those who look. Giving instead of taking. Not repaying evil with evil. Loving those who hate. And sharing that Good News of escape with those who aren’t really looking! The arm of life is down, and the REAL question is, ‘do YOU have what it takes to truly leave?’

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” Philippians 4:6

This last weekend, Katie and I took on an anxious assignment. Our nephew was getting married in Los Angeles, California and we were excited to go. There was a set date, place and time we were supposed to BE… IF we wanted to witness and enjoy this special event. About a month ago I started planning. A week ago, we started getting ready. Looking back, our entire trip was centered around 3 worldly devices. A calendar, a clock and a GPS.

Katie and I do not have vocations that permit dropping everything to just GO! Preparations and plans MUST be made for substitutes so that in our absence, what WE do can continue while we are gone. That mindset requires thinking ahead and then planning for our own absence. It is actually harder to plan to GO than it is if we just stayed! In reading this verse today, I have to admit it was IMPOSSIBLE to live WITHOUT anxiety while looking at the clock and GPS. Or is it?

My friend Bob had been in the hospital for about a week, and had been told that there was nothing they could do for him. I wanted to get up to see him before I went to LA Last Saturday, so at 8pm Friday, the night before, I went to see Bob. When I walked in… he was out. I could tell he was anxious. He could not talk or focus on me, but moved as though trying to get comfortable. I read the Word and prayed, but it did not help. When the nurse came in, I asked if she could give him something make him more comfortable. Then I left.

While at the airport, I received news that Bob had passed away Saturday Morning. Bob was finally home and AT REST! The thought made me smile, though I confess, I was a little jealous. Our talks of what Heaven would be like was no longer conjecture to Bob. He was LIVING where anxiousness has no home! His Faith was now SIGHT! Me? I had a date, place and time where I had to be. Or did I?

I could tell you the frustration as Katie used the GPS to navigate while I drove in LA Traffic! She sometimes gave the wrong directions and I sometimes steered us the wrong way. We DID make it to everything we needed to. But I realize now that, had we NOT made it, the wedding would STILL have gone ahead. Had we missed the plane, it would STILL have flown. Had we not planned for substitutes, the school and the church would still have gone on. So what is the lesson? I believe maybe God is trying to tell me that I am to give HIM MY REQUESTS! NOT HIS ASSIGNMENTS!      OUCH!

“Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints.” Psalm 116:15

Though it has been said many times, I do not know how easy it is to steal candy from a baby. It’s a dumb saying because little tiny babies shouldn’t have candy in the first place! But stealing cookies from a dying old man….?? Yup! VERY easy! In fact, I did it just yesterday!

My friend Bob is 85 years old. Bob is in the hospital because of a bad heart. I happened to be there when the Doctor came in and broke the news that there was nothing they could do for him. As he listened, the glaze over his eyes told me he wasn’t readily processing the information. A REALLY big question came into my mind…‘how does anyone?’

Yesterday I went again to visit my friend. Setting on his table was a package of unopened ‘Nutter Butter’ cookies… one of my favorites. As we talked, the nurse came in to check his blood sugar. When finished, she rolled her eyes and said, “not good… 260!” When I asked she said, “it’s supposed to be under 200!” I immediately picked up the cookies and put them into my pocket saying, “well you certainly don’t need THESE!” HIS immediate response was, “you can have ‘em.” BOTH of us were guilty of being ridiculous!

Bob is spry and witty. To look at and talk to him, you’d never know he is terminal. But he was in no condition to fight me over the cookies. I didn’t NEED his permission because I already HAD them. But since his condition is terminal, what would it matter if he DID eat them? WHY did I feel the impulse to take them from him? Strange things happen at the bedside of the dying. Having already committed theft, I went for broke and asked Bob, “So what’s the first thing you’re going to say to Him?” His answer was….“Huh? It was about to get real!

I had just read this Psalm to Bob and pointed out that God is watching and joyfully anticipating his earthly death and arrival in Glory. THAT is what this Psalm says to me. And if that is a correct interpretation, I wanted to know what Bob’s first words would be to the ‘Master of the Universe.’ He hadn’t thought about it before, so I suggested he might want to start! Then I asked him what he was anticipating the most? Bob hadn’t given much thought to that either. So I started telling him Bible facts about Heaven. The more we talked, the bigger he smiled!

Why do we humans say dumb things like, “well at least I woke up on the right side of the grass today?” In light of being in heaven, could there be any more ridiculous statement? Why do we fret and worry about earth things so much when the reality of Heaven makes earth look like a cesspool? And why don’t we believers spend more time thinking about ‘there’ than ‘here?’ After all, God has already stolen us from the grip of eternal death and He HAS us, no matter WHAT news comes our way?

What WILL I say to the Master when I see Him?