The Great Pumpkin

I saw the Charlie Brown episode about the Great Pumpkin over the last week.  It’s been a favorite of mine since I was just a kid.  I would always get annoyed with Linus, though, because he’d waste all that prime candy gathering time waiting in the pumpkin patch for the Great Pumpkin.  The Great Pumpkin never came!

 

Linus keeps reminding us, throughout the whole episode, of how sincere he is.  He knows that if his sincere belief in the Great Pumpkin will insure a visit from him.  Linus puts all his hope in his sincerity.  Then, toward the end of the episode, he has a slip of the tongue and says something about “if” the Great Pumpkin comes.  This slip of the tongue; the admittance that he’s not absolutely sure the Great Pumpkin comes, ends his hopes of a visit.  The truth is that there is no Great Pumpkin, regardless of the level or Linus’ sincerity.  His sincere belief is groundless and empty so we see his disappointment at the end of the episode.

Many people, I think, are like that.  We believe that sincerity is the key.  It’s almost as if we place our hope in our sincerity.  If we sincerely believe there is a ‘higher power’, then we are all set.  The truth is, though, that sincerely believing in something besides the truth of the gospel of Jesus will only make us sincerely wrong.  We are all, at one level or another, searching for true truth and our sincere belief in anything less than the true truth of the God of the Bible will only leave us empty; regardless of the sincerity we put in our belief.

The call

Mark 4:35-41 always encourages me to take a fresh look at life and at what God has called me to.  The story starts with Jesus’ disciples sailing across the Sea of Galilee, a lake really, and a storm coming up.  Jesus was asleep in the bow of the boat so the disciples woke him up to calm the storm.

But, did you notice what Jesus said before they ever set sail and before there was a storm?  He said, “Let us go over to the other side.”  Jesus set the course to go to the other side of the lake.  His call on the disciples was to take him there.

Jesus didn’t say, “Let us try to go over to the other side.”  He didn’t say, “Let’s hope we can make it over to the other side.”  He sure didn’t say, “Let’s go out in the lake and get swamped by a storm and die.”  He told the disciples they were going to the other side of the lake.  Maybe that’s why Jesus was comfortable enough to sleep during the storm.  He was comfortable with the calling he had on the disciples to get to the other side.

How many of us forget that Jesus calls us to the other side of the lake?  We forget that he doesn’t call us to fail; he calls us and equips us to succeed!  I need to remember that all the time; maybe you do too.  He’s called us to go to the other side of the lake, through any storms that might arise.  He’s comfortable with that calling so maybe we think he’s forgotten us and he’s fallen asleep.  The truth is though, that we need to walk in his calling on us and not fear the storms.

Make the path easy

There is a verse in Acts that grabs my attention every time I read through the book.  Paul, Barnabas, James, and others are discussing the gospel to the gentiles and about what the gentiles need to do in order to follow Jesus and be a part of their church.  In verse 19 James says, “It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God.”

It seems like many of us, at one time or another, want to make it difficult for people to come to God.  It seems that we all want people to clean up before coming to Him.  We expect them to beat their drinking problem and then come to Jesus.  We expect them to kick their drug habit and then find God.  We expect them to end their live-in relationships before coming to the Lord.  We forget, I think, where we were when we came to Him.  We forget that He loved us, accepted us, and forgave us right where we were.  God wants us to come to Him; just as we are, so that He can do the work that He wants to do in our lives.

I need to remember these things as I’m out and around and seeing people who haven’t come to Him.  He wants them to come just as they are.  He wanted me to come to Him, regardless of the mess I had made of my life.  He welcomes people just as they are – but He loves us too much to leave us just as we are.  He changes our hearts and transforms our minds into what He has planned for us.

I want to make it easy for others to turn to God.

Hope

As I was journaling this morning, a quote from Ezra caught my eye.  Shecaniah, one of Ezra’s contemporaries, told Ezra that, “We have been unfaithful to God by marrying foreign women from the peoples around us.  But in spite of this, there is still hope for Israel.”

God’s grace and mercy can truly give us all hope.  I’m sure we have all been like the Israelites and have been disobedient and unfaithful to God at times, I know I have.  It seems like God would just shut us down and take away all of the things He has promised us because of our disobedience and unfaithfulness, but He doesn’t.  Every promise from God, from the beginning of time, is still a promise from God.  He doesn’t give us what we deserve, He gives us grace and mercy and He accepts us just as we are.

Despite all the mistakes I’ve made and all of the wanderings I’ve done, I have more hope now for my family and me than I’ve ever had in the past.  God’s promises are all right out in front of me and I know He is faithful to all of them.  I could focus on all my failures, disobediences, and mistakes of the past or I can focus on the hope that I have because of God’s grace, mercy, and promises.  I will choose to focus and look forward with hope.

Mordecai’s Greatness

If you read through the book of Esther, you will see that Mordecai is a true hero of the Jewish race.  His brave actions saved the Jews from one of the very first attempts at genocide known to man.

The very last verse of the book says that Mordecai was held in high esteem with the Jews, and of course this high esteem was well earned and well deserved.  But, let’s don’t overlook the reason Mordecai was held in high esteem.  Let’s not forget that Mordecai wasn’t great because he was held in high esteem but that Mordecai was held in high esteem because he was great.  There is a big difference.

We see Mordecai’s greatness from early on in the book.  He decided to care for his orphan niece, Esther, who just happened to become queen a few years later.  Mordecai didn’t have to make this choice, he could have left it for someone else to do.  Mordecai saved the king’s life by unravelling a plot to kill the king.  He could have remained silent on the matter; the truth is that he didn’t really ‘have a dog in that hunt’ but he chose to be great by doing the right thing.

I’m sure there are many, many other choices Mordicai made over the years that added to his greatness.  These were choices that we will never know about, but they were important choices because they helped develop his character.  His character made him great and then his greatness made him to be held in high esteem.

We all make small choices every day.  We all have the chance to do the right thing or the wrong thing in these small choices.  It’s these decisions, made every day, that build up our character.  It’s these things, that no one will ever see, that will make us great and will make us to be highly esteemed.  Let’s all focus on these small choices and choose to do the right thing every day.

I’ve heard it said that a good manager does things right, but a good leader does the right things.  If we choose to lead, we need to choose to do the right things along the way.

The Power of One

Ezekiel 22:30 says, “I looked for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found none.”  God was looking for one person to stand up in the gap, to take action to build up the wall, but none were willing to step up.  There was power in one during this time but there was no ‘one’ to step up and be counted.

As a result God would destroy Jerusalem.  So many times, we think there is no power in ‘one’ who will take a stand, but the world cries out for one who will do God’s work and, as a result, save a nation or a people.  ’One’ can make a difference.  The power of ‘one’ is real.

I want to be the power of one and stand in the gap and take action to build the wall.  I want see and know that, as one, I can make a difference.  I want to be an example of the power of ‘one’.

Choices

Ezekiel 20:30 says “Therefore say to the house of Israel: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Will you defile yourselves the way your fathers did and lust after their vile images?’”

The wording of this verse makes it plain that our lives are a result of our choices.  We can choose to defile ourselves the way our fathers did or we can choose to remain true to the path God has for us.  So many people, so much of the time, blame their shortcomings, bad habits, and unfulfilled lives on their parents, their schools, or some other circumstances.  God’s Word says we can choose our way and remain in His path for our lives.

I can’t blame my shortcomings on others, bad relationships from the past, being mistreated by others, or losing my father at a young age.  I choose my way.  I can choose God’s way for me or I can walk my own way – but the bottom line is that I can choose my own path.  I choose, then, to follow Him and to see what He has for me along His path.  I’ll trust Him to love me more than I can imagine and know that He wants the best for me.

You can choose, too!

He loves me the most

The very first funeral I ever officiated was for the mother of a large Italian family.  During the service the children got up to tell stories and share memories of their mother.  A common theme that ended up weaving its way through the children’s comments was that ‘mom loved me the most’.  It seemed that this mother of a large family had that knack that most mothers have, the knack of making each child feel like they’re loved the most.  By the time the last child got up to speak, chuckles went through the audience when he said that his mom loved him the most.

All throughout his gospel, the apostle John refers to himself as ‘the one that Jesus loved’.  What’s up with that?  I used to think that John must have been a pretty cocky guy to think that Jesus loved him and not the others?  Did Jesus not love the others just as much?  Then, I realized that Jesus does have that knack of loving each of us like we are the only ones on the face of the earth.  He loves us all so deeply and individually that we can all say that we are ‘the one that Jesus loves’ and we can all be right in that analysis.  “Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so…” is so true but we also know that he loves us by the way the Holy Spirit comforts us and rescues us from unlovely situations.

After all, I’m the one Jesus loves!  He has spent so much one-on-one time with me to bring me through times where I could have felt so desperate and alone.  He has loved me when I’ve felt like no one else did.  He has shown me, through the path I’ve walked, that his hand has been on me, nudging me along that path that is his “Plan A” for me.  He has been a father to me when I’ve felt fatherless.  He has embraced me when I’ve been afraid.  I know he loves me because the Bible tells me so, and because I’ve felt his loving hand on me time and time again.

The Unlikely Disciple

I finished reading The Unlikely Disciple a little while ago and its themes are still running through my mind.  The book, written by Kevin Roose, is a true story of a Brown University liberal (Roose) who decides to spend a semester at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia.  Liberty, as most people know, is one of the most conservatively evangelical schools in America.  It seems that Roose doesn’t have a chance to succeed at Liberty.  When I first picked up the book at the bookstore, my initial thought was, “Oh great, here’s a book that is going to make fun of Christians and will make us all look bad.”  Who knows, maybe Roose was thinking this as he started his journey.

Roose found out, though, that the young men and women at Liberty were actually not all that different from him in a lot of ways.  Sure, the students had predictably liberal stances on many social issues but they were still fun-loving, video game playing, movie watching, young adults just like most college students.  I think this was a huge eye-opener for him as he settled into his semester at “Bible Boot Camp”.

As a follower of Christ, there was one chapter I found particularly interesting.  The chapter tells of a Spring Break mission trip to Daytona Beach, Florida.  Eight or ten kids packed into a van and headed to Daytona to convert as many people as possible to the Lord.  However, there was no plan to follow up with these people to make sure they stay on the path that they were being converted to.  Even a non-Christian like Roose questioned how the folks from Liberty could expect new Christians to stay focused with follow up and discipleship.

The book covers a lot of ground and gave me a chance to view my beliefs and lifestyle through the eyes of others.  It does me good to be reminded of how others see me so I can readjust some things.  We tend to get busy in our own ‘Bible Boot Camps’ and forget how we look in others’ views.  Jesus didn’t live in a Bible Boot Camp and I can’t find anywhere in scripture where he teaches us to live there.  We are here to be salt and light to others.  This book helps remind me that salt isn’t good until its sprinkled onto my food and a flashlight is useless if it’s sitting in a drawer in my kitchen.  These things, like my walk with Christ, need to be used every day.

From Plain to Great

I get excited every time I read the story in the book of John about Jesus turning the water into wine.  I always wondered why a simple miracle like this (if any miracle could be simple) would be Jesus’ first miracle.  Why would he take water and make it into wine as his first miracle?  Was he pressured by his mom?

Then, a couple of years ago, I read the story again and I saw it through a different lens.  I saw Jesus dipping the ladle into the jar of water and then I saw the immediate transformation of the plain, ordinary water into some of the most exquisite wine one could imagine.  I saw myself in that transformation.  I realized that I was just a plain, ordinary guy until Jesus dipped into my life and transformed me.

Pastor Kevin has been teaching us about being great to an audience of one.  Sometimes it’s hard for us to consider ourselves or what we do as ‘great’.  But, I’m convinced that just as Jesus transformed this water into this delicious wine; he can transform my plain, ordinary life into a life of greatness.  It just takes that dip from Jesus to make the transformation.

This transformation to greatness is available to all of us.  There are none too ordinary or none too plain for Jesus to transform.  It’s just a matter of us letting him dip into our lives and transform us.