When Exceptions Are The Rule, Week 5 Day 2, Exodus 20

When Exceptions Are The Rule, Week 5 Day 2, Exodus 20

The TEN COMMANDMENTS!  This is going to be a difficult one and I’m pretty sure not everyone is going to like what I have to say.

Boy, that Old Guy with a beard and wearing a robe sure is a kill joy.  Never wants us to have any fun.  It’s all “Shall” and “Shall Not”.  He’s nothing but a bunch of Does and Don’ts.  How is anyone supposed to have any fun with that God Kill Joy Guy hanging around?

If you’re not into following God, I would probably have a hard time convincing you, but I actually believe that God’s rules are meant to make our lives better. 

Some of these are pretty straight forward.  I think most people, Christian or not, would agree that killing is a bad idea.  Yeah, we might “quibble” (note to self, probably need a stronger word here) about self-defense and other areas as really being murder or not, but probably everyone would mostly agree on the basic concept.  Killing bad.  Don’t do it.  Even Hitler?  Even (insert your version of a historical or current day monster disguised as a human here)?  Well except maybe in this or that exceptional case which I really don’t see it as murder anyway so it’s not covered under this commandment anyway.

Ah, wait a minute.  I thought this was going to be easy. 

Well let’s try another easy one, stealing is bad.  Everyone would agree that it’s wrong to steal.  You just shouldn’t take another persons stuff.  That music that I “borrow” by using someone else’s account, I’m not really taking anything.  I’m just listening, on someone else’s account.  It's not stealing.

But stealing is bad.  Well, maybe if you’re hungry or if your kids were hungry I could see someone stealing some food.  It’s justified in that case.

But stealing is bad.  And what about those nasty business owners who over charge making money from the people they sell to, making money from the people that work for them that and they underpay.  That’s price gouging and wage theft.  They didn’t really earn that money so that don’t deserve it.  So it’s okay to steal, oops, I mean tax them at a higher rate and take the money from them since the really didn’t deserve it anyway.  So what if the money we take from them doesn’t actually go back to the people they “stole” if from in unfair prices and wages.  At least they don’t have it anymore.  And, and, wait, what was I talking about?  Oh yeah, everyone agrees that stealing is bad.  Unless of course the person stealing REALLY needs it or the person you’re taking it from REALLY didn’t deserve it.  And it’s not stealing if the IRS takes if from them for us….  It’s okay to take something from someone if I don’t think they really earned of deserved it in the first place.

Ah, wait a minute.  I thought this was going to be easy. 

I think I’ll stop now.  I dont what to hit any more sacred cows using more examples than I need to make my point.  Oops, sacred cows, there goes Commandment number three, “You shall not make for yourself and idol, in the form… on the earth.”  Man!  I’m breaking those rules left and right.

So let’s change the subject with a question:

Are Christians supposed to follow the Ten Commandments or not?

Christians like to beat up on the Pharisees, those old parsers of the law: 

To feed an animal trapped in a pit on the Sabbath is okay. 

But if someone were to actually lift an animal out of a pit on the Sabbath, then that would be considered work breaking the 5^th Commandment about keeping the Sabbath. 

They made the law so hard to follow that no one could.

Yet we Christians have some sense that we should follow the Ten Commandments.  But The Commandments are so outdated.  So we need to understand them in the current cultural context with our current understanding of human kind, psychology, medicine, etc.  We need to understand what was simply cultural for that time and re-interpret The Commandments for our modern culture. 

We look at God’s commandments and we whittle away at them, with excuses, with social differences, with political arguments and with justifications until there’s nothing left.  Or at least until that thing we do, is no longer covered by His rules.  And then it’s okay if we do that thing.  Because that thing that we like to do (or not do) isn’t covered by our whittled down version of The Commandments.  Because as Christians we don’t live under the law.  Because we live by grace.  So we don’t even have to worry about the stupid law anyway.

And we somehow how miss it.  If we really lived by grace, then we’d followed God’s Commandments without even really having to think about it.

Are we the exceptional people of God living in grace, or are we just God’s people looking for our own exception to not follow Him so we can do that thing that’s out of His will in our lives?

I’m no better at this than anyone else.  But I’m no worse either, so…  Ah, their I go equivocating again.  Cutting away at the rules until my own particular vice is no longer covered.  And The Commandments aren’t stupid.  Because whenever I take time to consider His Commandments, they show me that I need God, I need His grace and I need His Spirit.

We are supposed to be a people of grace, not a people of rules or law.  And I don’t want us to live by the rules and regulations.  But when we say that we live by grace and not the law, we can ever forget the purpose of God’s law.  We can never forget the purpose of God’s grace.  God’s law was originally meant to show how to live like God wants us to live.  God's law was originally meant to show us that we can not be the people God made us to be without Him.  God’s grace and His Holy Spirit are here so that we can actually live that way.  Not by following rules, but by living by His grace, by following Him and relying on His Spirit every moment of our lives.   

Now we can live under grace and by His Spirit.  But grace isn’t license.  That grace is freedom.  Not to do whatever we want.  But freedom to be the people that God wants us to be.

God, thank You for showing me that I need You by giving us Your Law, Your Ten Commandments.  God, thank You for giving me Your grace and Your Holy Spirit so that I could be in the process of becoming the person that You want me to be.  Not by my own strength God, but by You living in me.  I’ll confess that there’s still a lot that I need to work on.  Like just when I think I’ve got that coveting thing licked and then see my friend riding that cool new bike of his.  But as I look at my life now I see less of the old me and more of the new me that You and Your Spirit are creating.  Amen

Leonard

Not Your Moses’ Mountain Top, Week 5 Day 1, Exodus 19

Not Your Moses’ Mountain Top, Week 5 Day 1, Exodus 19

This is the first mountain top experience.  This is a scary encounter with the Lord God Almighty.  At first only Moses gets to go up on the mountain top.  Even though the rest of the people are not allowed on the mountain, they still have to prepare themselves.  The people have already said that they “will do everything the Lord has said.”  But Moses and only Moses is allowed on the mountain.  Later Aaron is allowed to join Moses on the mountain, only two out of a whole bunch of refugees on their way to becoming a nation.

And when I read about this first mountain top experience I think how odd it is that many Christians use the phrase “mountain top experience” to describe a time when they felt particularly close to God.  Moses’ encounter is so Old Testament that I find I have a hard time relating his encounter with God to the encounter that we can have today.

In Moses’ day, only the special, only the chosen one is allowed to go up on the mountain and meet directly with God.  Today, by the blood of Christ we are able to approach the Lord God Almighty directly.  While Moses was a singular experience reserved only for a chosen few, today everyone who is covered by the forgiveness offered through Christ Jesus can stand before God. 

In Moses’ day, to even touch the mountain is a death sentence.  But today, for those that are in Christ, we can approach God in the new life that He’s gives us because we are united with Christ in His resurrection.

In Moses’ day, they needed to warn those not invited to stay away.  But today Christians are to proclaim the Gospel and invite everyone they can to join us in the presence of God.

In Moses’ day they had to outwardly and ceremonially cleanse themselves to even be near the mountain where Moses would meet with God.  But today, all who are willing to admit that they are unclean and only God can cleanse their soul can come into the presence of God.

In Moses’ day God is the God of special effects, thunder and lightning, a thick cloud and a loud trumpet blast.  A Hollywood blockbuster to be sure.  But today God can do the special effects or come in a still small voice and everything in between.  It’s less about the outside and all about the inside.

Of course if my memory serves me correctly, God did the still quite voice thing in the Old Testament too.  So maybe He really hasn’t changed all that much.  But maybe how we interact with Him has changed.  

I’m glad we don’t have to do it the Moses way today.  I’m glad that it’s not only one person or two that gets to go up the mountain.  But the biggest change between us and Moses is that we don’t need a burning bush or a special effects filled mountain top to be in the presence to God.  We can experience that presence where ever we are and in every moment of our lives.

So why is it that sometimes we’re so busy looking for a mountain top?   We can experience God here with us in every moment of every day if we’ll just open our hearts and enter into His presence.  It’s doesn’t need to be about a special place for a special meeting.  God wants to spend the day with us.  God wants to be a part of our everyday, every moment lives and not be relegated to just a precious few mountain top experiences.

God, I don’t know if I’ve got any mountain tops on my travel itinerary for the day.  I don’t think there’s and dark clouds, lightning and thunder in the forecast for today.  Although we really could use some rain here in California if You wouldn’t mind.  So maybe it’s not going to be a special day in terms of the location or the circumstances.  But where ever You take me today and what You have for me to do, it could be a special day if I remember that You are with me every moment of the day.  Amen

Leonard

Near Sighted Faith, Week 4 Day 5, Exodus 16-17

Near Sighted Faith, Week 4 Day 5, Exodus 16-17

Sometimes I find writing these blogs quite easy.  I read, I pray, is start typing and they just come out.  Save it, come back a little for a quick proof read and some tweaks and I’m done.  Other times I read the passage, pray, and I got nothing.  Today, well today…

There’s this whole God – Moses/Aaron – Israelites dynamic with Moses and Aaron serving as a buffer, go between for God and the People.  And when the People get mad they tend to take it our on Moses / Aaron.  That’s probably safer than taking it directly to God.  You wouldn’t want to get God with the big G made at you after all.  And being the man in the middle is a difficult place to be.

Then there’s that whole grumbling.  There’s grumbling about no food.  There’s grumbling about no water.  There’s grumbling against Moses and Aaron.  And then there’s even grumbling about the grumbling when Moses calls them out, “You are not grumbling against us, but against the Lord.” 

And I like that it doesn’t matter how much manna that gather.  Whatever they gather is always enough and never too much.  But I could do without the part about the maggots, yuck! 

And there’s the keeping the Sabbath.  No gathering on the Sabbath but what’s gathered the day before is enough. 

And there’s eating the same thing everyday for forty years.  I’d be tired of it in the first week.  Can’t outdo Keith Green poking fun at that one, you can Google Keith Green and “So You Wanna Go Back to Egypt” if you’re not familiar with this:

“What…Oh no, manna again?

Oh, manna waffles….

Manna burgers...

Manna bagels...

Fillet of manna...

Mannacoti...

Bamanna bread!”

This is a blogging rich environment.  There’s enough here for pages and pages of blogging, but I won’t, collective sigh of relief.

But for me it seems to me that the central theme here testing, testing their memory and testing their ability to follow.  And a difficult test it is.  I think they fail the test because the faith is rather near sighted.  Guess they need some faith glasses.

First, they’re near sighted about the past.  Does anyone really believe that as slaves they, “sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted”?  Not likely There present predicament of being in the wilderness with no food or water has put a very rose colored pair of near sighted glasses on their view of the past.  They have a bad case of denial of past suffering of their time living by the Nile.  Nile-denial.

Second, they’re near sighted about the present, focusing on their problems and Moses rather than remembering focusing on God.  I don’t think that thought that God was going to starve them.  I think they can’t get past their hunger and thirst.  If they were thinking about God they might have remembered all He did to get them out of Egypt.  And why would God go to all that trouble to get them out of Egypt to kill when Pharaoh had been making decent progress on that task without God’s help?  The problem right in front of their face, or more accurately, in their stomachs, made them lose focus on God and what God had already done for them.

Third, they near sighted about the future.  God instructed them to not keep any manna for the next day, except on the sixth day when they gather enough for two days.  In fact, God even points out that He, “will test them and see whether the will follow my instructions.”  And at least some of them fail.  “However, some of them paid no attention to Moses; they kept part of it until morning, but it was full of maggots and began to smell.”  Again, yuck! 

What do to about the near sightedness?  There’s no 1 Hour Glasses of Faith to go and pick up a pair of clear faith spectacles.  The answer is right there in the passage.  But the answer isn’t a pair of glasses, it’s a jar.  “Take a jar and put an omer of manna in it.  Then place it before the Lord to be kept for the generations to come.”

I’m not big on religious artifacts.  Its way too easy to worship the artifact and not what it represents.  I thing that's why this one was to be placed “before the Testimony, that it might be kept.”  The Testimony was the place you went to worship God, to see God.  And when you went to see God, there would be the reminder.  A reminder of who God was.  A reminder of what God had done for His people.  A reminder of how God had fed His people in the wilderness. There would be a reminder of the character and the faithfulness of God.

I’m not saying you need a jar, but the human memory is a fickle thing.  And concrete things can help us to remember.  The Israelites would put a pile of stones to make a place where God was encountered.  They would name the place after what had happened there, another reminder of God and what He had done. 

What can we do?  A verse hung on the wall.  Keep pictures from a time and place where God was especially apparent in our lives.  Underline a passage in your Bible that was a help in difficult times.  Keep a journal, a log of prayers given and their answers.  And I’m finding even a blog help to remember.  These things can help us remember who God is, what God has done, and cure us of the near sightedness of our everyday lives and problems.  A kind of far sighted jar of faith.

God, help me to keep things in my life that remind of You.  Keep things that remind me of all that You’ve done.  Keep things that remind me of your character, Your faithfulness.  Never let me worship the things.  But always let those things draw me closer to You.  Amen

Leonard

Spiritual Alzheimer’s, Week 4 Day 4, Exodus 14

Spiritual Alzheimer’s, Week 4 Day 4, Exodus 14

The people of Israel had a hard time being convinced that this whole deliverance thing would actually work out.  Guess you really can’t blame them given the history.  They’ve been slaves for a long time.  Then Moses showed up had a chat with Pharaoh and things got worse.  “Keep making bricks but now you have to gather your own straw.”  You can go, you can’t go.  You can go, you can’t go.  It doesn’t really seem like God and this Moses character really have their act together.

So, after the final plague, the death of the first born, Pharaoh tells them to go and worship their God.  So they get out of Dodge, ah Egypt, with all their belongings and a lot of stuff from the Egyptian neighbors too.  But they aren’t out of trouble yet.

Pharaoh has another change of heat and decides to bring the Israelites back.  He chases after them chariots, officers, horsemen and troops.  And when the Israelites see that they are trapped between Pharaoh’s army and the sea they panic and cry out to God.   Trapped between an army and a wet place.  To Moses they say, “Was it because there were not enough graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die?  What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt?  Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians?’  It would be better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!”

They forgot.  They forgot that they had been slaves.  They forgot that Pharaoh had been killing their sons.  They forgot what God had done in the lives of their fathers.  They forgot the plagues that had led to their release.  They forgot the death of the Egyptians’ first born while their first born were spared.  That’s a whole lot of forgetting.  I guess they really needed some convincing.  Either that or maybe they needed some lessons in memory and recall.

They have a kind of spiritual Alzheimer’s disease.  They forgot what their life was like.  They forgot what God had already done.  And, spoiler alert, they’re going to keep on forgetting.   Yeah, I cheated and read ahead.

What ‘s God got to do to get their attention, to keep their attention? 

How about a rout of the Egyptian army while leading them across the Red Sea on dry land?  That should get their attention.  But their track record of remembering isn’t very memorable.   They’re kind of a what have you done for me lately kind of people.  Forget the past, good or bad, and look only at the present trouble.

And sure enough, God saves them and we leave today’s passage with the proclamation, “And the Israelites' saw the great power the Lord displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord and put their trust in Him and in Moses His servant.”

How long will that last?

And how good is my memory?  Do I remember what God has done in my life forty years ago, twenty years ago, ten years ago, five years ago, last month, last week or even yesterday?  We talk about faith as though it built on nothing.  But real faith is built on a relationship and a history of God being present in our lives, of God working in our lives.  Now for that be true you have to have seen times in your life where God has worked.

Maybe you’ve never crossed the Red Sea.  But what is your history with God?  Yeah, that first step might be a blind one.  But after that you should have a history and a relationship to build on.

I wonder how the Israelites felt as they walked across the Red Sea on dry land but with a wall of water on both sides.  I would be very nervous, and I know how to swim.  Those first steps had to be tentative ones, cautions ones.

But they've started a journey with the Lord God Almighty.  Just as I started my journey quite a number of years back.  I need to remember the start.  I need to remember the seas that I’ve crossed.  I need to remember what it is that I left behind and how different it is from where I am now.  All that history of God working in my life is there to help me take another step with God.  Always remembering the steps we’ve taken together in the past.  God has been trustworthy so far.  If I can remember that then maybe I can trust Him today.

God, give me a good memory.  Bring to mind how You have worked in my life in the past.  Burn it in my mind and into my heart.  Help me to recall those things when face with a new plague, a new army, a new sea.  God, never let me forget You.  Never.  Amen

Leonard

The Wonderful Horrible Passover, Week 4 Day 3, Exodus 12

The Wonderful Horrible Passover, Week 4 Day 3, Exodus 12

Of all the things that you can read about in the Old Testament, I find the Passover both the most amazing and the most awful.

This event solidified Israel’s place as a nation and as God’s people.  But the cost to the people of Egypt was unthinkable. 

And I go back and forth between this being the natural outcome of man’s sinfulness and an act of a harsh and cruel God.  Not that it’s my place to judge God.  But I know I couldn’t make that choice.

I wonder if there couldn’t have been some other way, any other way?  After all, if He’s God, can’t He do anything?  Was Passover and the death of all of Egypt’s first born the only way to move forward God’s plan of making a nation, to move forward God’s plan of salvation?  What an awful terrible price.

But God is a God who is willing to pay the terrible awful price to save those who will be saved.  And the God that sacrificed the first born of Egypt was also willing to sacrifice His own Son.  An awful terrible price. 

And in thinking about that I realize that the horrible awful price could only be required to pay a horrible awful debt, the price for my sins, the price for our sins.

And that is a scary awful thought.  That I and my sin were a part of the reason that Egypt paid that horrible price is too awful to consider.  That I am a part of the reason that God would pay the horrible awful price of salvatuon is too much to consider.

So I see myself removed from this story.  And that makes God the bad guy.  How could He do that?  But if I have a part to play, if my sin added to the debt that had to be paid, then do I bear part of the blame?  And if the angel of death and death of the Son somehow was required because of me and the things that I’ve done, that is just too much to consider.  It’s easier to blame God.  It’s easier to let Him take and the fall.  Let him take the accusations and the anger.  Because to consider that I had some part in the decision, in the path to salvation that God chose, that is a thought too hard to consider.

I couldn't make a choice like that.  I couldn’t make that great of a sacrifice.  God was ready to make the choices that had to be made to move forward His plan of salvation.  God was ready to sacrifice His own Son for His plan of salvation.  And only God could make that choice. 

How can something be both awful and great?  When what must be done is horrific, unthinkable, unimaginable, and what is to be gained is of value beyond comprehension, salvation.

I couldn't make that choice.  But because God could and did, we all have a possibility of new life in Him.

God, it’s difficult to consider that I had a part in the sacrifices that needed to be made.  But I can find comfort.  I find comfort that You were able to make the choices that needed to be made.  I find comfort that you considered each of us worthy of making those sacrifices.  I can find comfort that You were willing to make that sacrifices that needed to be made.  Thank You God for making the choices that made our choosing You possible.  God, You are both awful and wonderful and beyond my comprehension.  Amen

Leonard

An Incomplete Picture, Week 4 Day 2, Exodus 6 and 7

An Incomplete Picture, Week 4 Day 2, Exodus 6 and 7

Sometimes I find when I’m reading the Scriptures they really inform me about my life of faith.  Sometimes what is happening in my life really make something in Scripture come alive.  Sometimes I miss the train and don’t make any connections.  Today is one of those days.

I’ll hope you’ll forgive me for perhaps being a bit more personal in today’s writing.  This is just what’s going around in my heart and head.

So I’m reading about God sending Moses to the Israelites.  I’m reading about God giving Moses instructions on meeting with Pharaoh.  And then we get into the magic lessons.

And then this morning I went to the funeral for a former boss.  I’ll be frank and honest for the sake of discussion so I’ll hope you’ll forgive the harsh honesty.  The man was a difficult man to work for.  His directions were not clear.  He frequently asked you for something only to completely change his mind when you delivered on his request.  He would speak poorly of other employees to you and there was little sign that he had respect for anyone except himself.  Again, my apologies for my frankness.

Out of respect to the man, for my coworkers and for his family, I went to his funeral today.  Apparently they knew a completely different person than the man I knew.  He was a loving grandfather who took them to Europe, special dinners at favorite restaurants, and encouraged a grandchild to travel and try new things.  He and his wife took in a neighborhood friend of his children and made her a part of the family, included her in family trips and vacations, made her feel like a daughter.  He was a brother in law who wooed a sister to become his bride so that they could share a life together with kids and grand kids.  He was a father who encouraged his kids in school and life.

Yeah apparently I did not completely know the man.  And his family probably didn’t completely know him either.  And I certainly feel no need to and have no desire to let them know how I viewed the man.

Not sure I can tie this into today’s Bible passages except for this. 

I wonder what kind of father Pharaoh was?  Wouldn’t expect him to measure up to today’s standards of fatherhood, but wonder how he measured up against the standard of his day.  How did he measure up as a husband against the husbanding standards of his day?   Apart of his dealings with Moses and the Israelites, I wonder what kind of ruler he was?  Good?  Bad?  In between? 

Pretty much everything I know about the Pharaoh of Moses’ day could be summed up in two phrases; he enslaved the Israelites and he had a hard heart.  That’s a pretty lousy eulogy.

I’m willing to accept God’s judgment on the man.  God’s really the only one who can.  But perhaps I need to remember that I don’t know enough about anyone one to judge them.  I can’t see every moment of their life.  I can’t see what’s in their heart.  And even if I could it isn’t my job.  I can disagree with what they do.  I can disagree with how they see things.  I can even, based on Scripture and morals say if I think they are doing something wrong.  But only God sees and knows their heart.  Just like only He knows my heart.

So maybe I’d better just follow God, be the kind of person that he wants me to be, and always keep my heart wide open to Him and His Spirit.

God, when I read about Pharaoh I wonder why his heart had to be so hard.  I know that ultimately that’s between You and him.  Lord, as much as my heart is hard, soften it.  Break it if You have to.  Make me always ready to hear Your voice.  Make me always willing to be led by Your Spirit.  And Lord I pray that I will always walk with You, always live with You.  I give thanks for Your Son Jesus Christ who died for my sins, for everyones sins.  And I accept the forgiveness that You offer only through Him.  Let that same Love, Forgiveness and Spirit be what people see coming from You through my heart.  Amen

Leonard

No Experience Required, Week 4 Day 1, Exodus 1, 3, 4, 22

No Experience Required, Week 4 Day 1, Exodus 1, 3, 4, 22

God has some pretty strange recruiting habits.  I wonder what the ad for the job would have looked like for Moses’ job.

Wanted: Leader and Deliverer for a Nation, No experience necessary.  Must be born to the people he will deliver, but have lived with their masters as a prince since the age of 3 month.  No leadership experience is required.  Need not be an accomplished speaker.   Felony conviction for murder is a plus.  If interested, please apply at the burning but not consumed bush.

God clearly does not recruit like people do.  I often heard people use the phrase, “God doesn’t call the qualified.  God qualifies the called.”  I have to admit that kind of bugs me because I don’t think that it’s entirely accurate.  There are qualifications for serving God.   But I think those qualifications are radically different from the qualifications from what the world looks for.  Maybe the ad for Moses’ job would look more like this.

Wanted: Leader and Deliverer for a Nation.  Must be willing to follow directions.  Must be willing to face mistakes of the past.  Will train a willing candidate.

The qualifications for being used by God are completely different from what the world requirements.

And Moses still isn’t a perfect candidate.  He gets through the initial job interview at the burning bush.  He does pretty well with his orientation in performing signs and wonders but then he fails the oral test.  Thinks he has a speech problem.   And even with that, God doesn’t reject Moses.  God gives him an assistant.

Candidate must be willing to listen to God, willing to face your past, willing to follow God’s direction.

That doesn’t mean that God won’t use the gifts and talents that He’s given us.  It’s just that those gifts and talents aren’t what qualify us.

What qualifies is that God calls us and we answer that call.

God, thanks for calling me.  I’m no Moses but I figure that You’ve got things for me to do, places for me to go, people for me to meet, even things for me to say.  I figure You’ll use the gifts and talents that You’ve given me.  The rest, well, I’m willing to study, I’m willing to learn, and I’m willing to even accept a few surprises along the way.  Amen

Leonard

What’s the Plan Man, Week 3 Day 5, Genesis 49-50

What’s the Plan Man, Week 3 Day 5, Genesis 49-50

Partly it’s my personality.  Partly it’s from some of type of work that I’ve done.  But when it’s time to do something, a project, a large task, a trip, I like to know all the details.  I know some of that is from working on large projects, either managing them or working on them.  You’ve got tasks.  You’ve got milestones. You’ve got deadlines with (hopefully) well defined deliverables.  And you have the all important project calendar that tells you what is going to happen and when it’s going to happen.  All of this deigned to meet your project goals and deliver on time.

But the plan doesn’t work itself.  Everyone involved has to work on their own area and work the plan. They provide their requirements, estimates of what tasks and resources are required to complete the project.  They have to complete their tasks and give status on what they’ve done, what they haven’t done and any problems that they’re encountered.

And everyone knows what everyone else is doing because you have meetings, lots and lots of meetings.  When managing a large project, or a piece of a large project, it often feels like you meet about stuff more than you actually do stuff.  You meet with your team.  You meet with team leaders.  You meet with the boss and the boss’s boss.  You have team updates.  Status meetings.  Meetings to plan other meetings.   All so everyone can do what they need to do make sure that everyone knows what’s going on.  Those status meetings are also pretty handy when things go wrong.  You can spot problems.  You find out whose to blame for the problems and whose boss to call to “escalate” if the problems aren’t fixed in a timely manner.  Project managers are big on escalations.  You can get use to working in that way.

God definitely does not work that way.

Way back, when Joseph first had his dreams that his brothers and father would bow to him there was no project plan.  No meeting, “Okay Family, listen up.  God needs to get us all to Egypt a few years from now and here’s how He’s going to do it.  First, Joseph you have some dreams and make your brother mad.  Brothers, you plot to kill him but sell him into slavery instead.  Joseph, you get taken to Egypt….”  Year, pretty sure that meeting didn’t ever happen.

I’m not saying that God doesn’t have a plan.  (Attention grammar police, yes I used a double negative.  I know.)  God definitely has a plan.  But He doesn’t go over all the details with us, especially ahead of time.

So if you’re like me, waiting years, even decades to know what’s happening and why its happening, isn’t your strong suit.  But Joseph, apparently he’s okay with that.  When talking with his brothers who still fear retaliation, he says, “Don’t be afraid.  Am I in the place of God?  You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.  So then, don’t be afraid.  I will provide for you and your children.” 

And it’s not like Joseph doesn’t know how to plan.  Joseph must have been a great planner.  Remember, he was guy in charge of saving food during the seven good years and then rationing it out in the seven bad years, for an entire nation!  He even ender up with enough food stored so that he could help out the neighbors.  You don’t pull off that kind a project without some serious project management skills.  But the guy with the fourteen year plan to feed a nation is also the same guy who was willing to leave the really big picture stuff to God.  He’s willing to let God have control, even control in an area that’s his strength, long range planning. 

Now that is faith. 

We like to know what God is doing in our life.  But it’s easy to be obsessive about it.  I got a fix-it ticket, but that was God telling me to get the car fixed.  Didn’t get that class I wanted, God must want me to change my major.  Car would start, God probably saving me from an accident.  I’m not saying God doesn’t care or isn’t involved in the day to day stuff.  But He’s so much bigger than that.  He has so much more planned for us than just today.  And all the messed up bad stuff that happens in our lives, well the world may intend us evil, but God will use it for good.  And that’s whether I understand God’s plan  or not.

God, I know you have a plan and a purpose for my life, but I really struggle with seeing what it is.  I’d like some really clear directions, step A, step B, etc.  But You simply don’t work that way.  Help me to be more like Joseph, committed to working hard, doing what is right, trusting in You  and always ready to give You the credit.  A bit less questioning and a little more following.  Amen

Leonard

The Big Picture, Week 3 Day 4, Genesis 43-44

The Big Picture, Week 3 Day 4, Genesis 43-44

I got the experience a number of years back while traveling on business to see some actual Rembrandt paintings.  I know nothing about art.  And I find it difficult to explain the difference between seeing a picture of a master piece and seeing that master piece in person.  A number of things shocked me about his work.

First was the shear size of many of his paintings.  I just never knew how large many of his paintings were.  A portrait of a man riding a horse is life sized.  Some of his works are simply enormous.  Second was the detail.  The one painting of a sea battle had so much detail I could looked at it for hours and not really seen everything that was in that painting.  But you had to be close to see a lot the detail.  And if you get too close to a master piece the museum security guard starts to look at you with suspicion.  But if you take a few steps back, the majesty and glory of the whole great work takes your breath.  Amazing works of art create by a master.

Sometimes I think reading Scripture is like that too.  The story of Joseph and his brothers is long and complex.  You can examine the details, but if you stand back a bit you can begin to see some things you might have missed. 

In may last post I wondered if maybe Joseph was playing with his brothers, taunting them without their knowledge because of what they had done to him.  Why else would Joseph hide his identity?  Why put the sliver back in the bags?  Sure, he’ll give them food to eat, but not until he’s made the sweat a bit.  And Joseph is moved to tears at the sight of his brothers.  Why these games?  Why not immediately reveal himself?

I think you need to take the long view of the story to come up with the answer.  I think the brothers are being taught a lesson.  But this lesson isn’t a punishment.  It’s a lesson of forgiveness and repentance.

Repentance, there’s a good old fashioned Biblical word.  We live in a world of the public apology.  A public figure gets caught, a lie, an inappropriate remark, an arrest, whatever.  First the press and the news pounce.  There are the stories about what they did, everyone hoping to find new and juicy details.  Then there’s the vigil, waiting for the apology.  Was it sincere?  Did it have the right tone?  Are they really sound sorry?  Have they made the appropriate donations to make amends?  And I have to confess these modern day public apologies do nothing for me.  And most of the time is seems like the person is going through the motions, trying to repair their image.  The only thing that it seems they’re really sorry about is getting caught.  But can we blame them?  When at a very young age we teach our kids when they’ve done something wrong, “Now say you’re sorry.”  Even when they probably aren’t

But to repent, that is so much more than to apologize.  One dictionary definition of repent is to feel such sorrow for sin or fault as to be disposed to change one's life for the better; be penitent.  Apology is to be sorry.  Repentance is to change.

And when we step back we can clearly see how the brothers are repenting, right before our very eyes.  First time with the favorite younger brother they plot his murder, sell him into slavery and lie to their father telling him that Joseph is dead.  Now, when faced with the possibility of their imprisonment and death of their younger brother Benjamin. What do they do?  They’ve been given an out.  The deal was that since the Joseph’s cup was found in Benjamin’s sack, that Benjamin is the one who is supposed to die.  But when it’s found, they tear their clothes.  Joseph offers them freedom, only Benjamin will remain as a slave. 

Judah steps forward and says he cannot leave the Benjamin, the youngest son.  His father will die if Benjamin does not come back.  “Your servant guaranteed the boy’s safety to my father.  I (Judah) said, ‘If I do not bring him back to you, I will bear the blame before you, my father, all my life!  Now then, please let your servant remain here as my lord’s slave in place of the boy, and let the boy return with his brothers.  How can I go back to my father if the boy is not with me?  No! Do not let me see the misery that would come upon my father.”

And the brother who would have killed his youngest brother, the brother who would sell his youngest brother into slavery has changed, has repented.  He’s has become that brother who pleads to take the youngest brother’s place as a slave.

The story isn’t really about bags of grain, silver, trips for food and trickery.  This is a story about a God who goes to incredible lengths for Joseph’s brothers to find repentance.

Some people take longer to repent than others.  For Joseph’s brothers it took years, a famine, two trips to Egypt and the possible lose of Benjamin.  Sure hope my lessons aren’t so hard.

God, the world often thinks of You as angry, full of wrath and rage.  I wish they could see You like I see You.  You’re patient.  You’re kind.  You’re merciful.  You’re forgiving.  Sometimes it takes me a while to see it.  Thanks for letting me take what ever time I needed.  Amen

Leonard

The Waiting Game, Week 3 Day 3, Genesis 41-42

The Waiting Game, Week 3 Day 3, Genesis 41-42

Most people don’t like reading Old Testament passages out loud.  They can be full of hard to pronounce words.  Words from a foreign language that require our lips and tongue to move ways to which we are not accustom.  I took a couple of years of Spanish back in high school.  I couldn’t roll my R’s to save my soul, or my Spanish grade.  And being one of those blessed with a healthy dose of dyslexia, I often have a hard enough time reading English let alone those foreign names in a foreign tongue.

But names are important.  We’ve seen that with Abram, Abraham and Sarai, Sarah.  Names meant something.  And names can tell us something about a person.

So Joseph who has become the second in command in Egypt needs to name his two sons.  His first born is name Manasseh “because God made me forget all my trouble and all my father’s household.”  He names his second son Ephraim, “because God has made me fruitful in the land of my suffering.”  The names of his children are like the Reader’s Digest version of Joseph’s life so far.  And what do they tell us about how Joseph sees his life.

A few things stand out to me.  First, he pretty much owns his suffering.  I find it interesting that he doesn’t blame God.  He doesn’t even blame others.  For Joseph it’s just “my trouble”, “my fathers’ household” and “my suffering.”  He doesn’t blame God, “How could you have done that to me?”  He doesn’t blame his brother’s.  His life is his life.  He owns his life and the things that have gone wrong.  Amazing since much of it wasn’t his fault and wasn’t justified.

And when it comes to the good, for that he gives complete and total credit to God.  “God made me forget” and “God has made me fruitful.”  Even when it was time to interpret Pharaoh’s dream Joseph says, “I cannot do it, but God will give Pharaoh the answer he desires.”

With all his struggles, with all his adversity, Joseph points of God as the interpreter of dreams, the one who makes us forget our struggles, the one who makes us fruitful.  And Joseph doesn’t take one bit of credit for himself. 

That’s especially interesting when you consider how his brothers complained that Joseph thought he was better than them, would rule over them, even though he was the youngest.  It turns out that Joseph’s ego isn’t really that big after all. Or maybe his ego was big but years as a slave, in prison, serving Pharaoh have tempered this ego.  He doesn’t blame.  He doesn’t get mad.  He doesn’t get upset.  His life just is.

We often spend a lot of time trying to figure out why things happen in our lives.  We can spend a lot of time trying to figure out if what’s happening is good or bad, our fault or something God is doing in our lives.  But Joseph just rolls with the punches, and some pretty big punches they are.  Murder plots, slavery, false accusations and prison terms.  This is the stuff of a Lifetime Channel movie, or maybe just another hero of the faith.  This is the life of a hero of faith who gives all the credit to God.

Don’t know that I’ve got much a conclusion for this one.  Except maybe to say that it’s a good thing Joseph is so good at forgetting his troubles and so good at crediting God.  Because pretty soon he’s going to be meeting the very brothers who sold him into slavery.  Their lives, and the future of Israel , depends on a man named Joseph who, if he cared about the hurts of the past, has a golden opportunity for revenge.

But it turns out the Joseph, the one who was wronged, is the one who is ready to forgive.  It the brother’s that say to each other, “Surely we are being punished because of our brother.” 

I’d often wondered why it seemed that Joseph was playing with his brothers?   Was he taunting his plotting brothers?  Why does he wait and not simply reveal himself to them at their first meeting?  It never occurred to me that Joseph’s dealing with his brothers might all be to help them reach the place where they could receive his forgiveness.  They needed the time to realize there sin.  They needed time to come to terms with the need for forgiveness.

Sometimes the people just aren’t ready to accept God.  Sometimes people just aren’t ready to receive forgiveness.  Receive forgiveness from God or from anyone else.

The sin of the brother’s is completely apparent.  But they discuss it in from of Joseph unaware the he understands everything that they are saying.  Unaware that he knows.  And how much is that like our own lives.  Thinking our sin is hidden from God even though there is nothing we can hide from Him. 

And Joseph, just like God, let’s them work it out until ultimately they we be ready to receive forgiveness.  Joseph isn’t playing with them.  God isn’t playing with them.  They are preparing them for the greatest gift of all, the forgiveness of the one that they have sinned against.

God, I’m really dense sometimes.  I think I can do in secret that which offends You.  You stand there, ready to forgive and I thing of a million reasons why I can’t accept it, why I’m not worthy.  And that whole time You’re standing there, listening to everything that goes on in my heart and head, seeing everything that I do, and still completely ready to forgive.  I’ve wasted a lot of time.  But maybe not, because that time has prepared me for You, for Your Love, for Your Forgiveness.  Thanks for waiting God.  Perhaps Your most underappreciated virtue is Your patience.  Thanks for waiting for me.  Thanks for waiting for us all.  Amen

Leonard

Good News in the Midst of Bad News Week 3 Day 2 Genesis 39

Good News in the Midst of Bad News Week 3 Day 2 Genesis 39

We've probably all heard a joke that started, "I've got some good news and I've got some bad news.  Which do you want to hear first..."  So far that seems to the story of Joseph's life, good news and bad news.

The good news, he's Father's favorite.   The bad news, his brothers hate him.  More bad news, his brother's planned to kill him.  The good news, and I may be stretching the definition of good here, they "only" sold him into slavery.  Good news, he's put in charge of Potiphar's household and everything Potiphar owns.  That might even be a better gig than youngest son of a shepherd, even if he was dad's favorite.  All things considered a pretty good job, right up until the bad news.  He's falsely accused of trying to sleep with the master's wife. 

Then it's more bad news, he's off to prison.  Just like the old pie in the face routine, at some point the whole Good News, Bad News joke stops being funny, especially when it's about you.

And he got thrown into prison even though he did (or in this case DIDN'T do) the right thing.  He could have slept with Potiphar's wife and probably have gotten away with it for a while.  Instead he says no to doing wrong and ends up in prison for his trouble.


And the most curious part is that all of this happens while "the Lord was with Joseph and he prospered."  This is prospering?  This is what happens when the Lord is with you?  With Friends like these...

But then there's me.  I get grumpy when the car won't start.  Yeah, it's in the shop right now.  I’m doing extra stuff at work because I'm covering for someone who's out sick.  And there's the normal family stuff and our dog Faith that's really near the end of her life.  Yeah Joe, can I call you Joe, Joe old buddy, I really know how you feel. 

Really? Ok, I've got some stuff going on right now.  But I'm pretty sure my siblings never plotted to kill me.  They never sold me into slavery.  I've never been falsely imprisoned.  Seems my persecution complex might be somewhat overblown if not totally fictional. 

I've got a car and a truck that are paid for. I've got a job and they need me, especially when someone is out sick.  I've got family stuff and it comes with the love, care and belonging that have always been there, even when they've had to deal with my stuff.  And while we're facing the end of Faith's life she's been, great part of the family for about fourteen years.

Good news and bad news just like Joseph.  Yeah, I’m really not comfortable with that whole "Joe" thing.  We don’t really know each other that well.  And while Joseph was in prison "the Lord was with him; He showed him kindness and granted him favor..."  It's easy to think of favor as just the good stuff.  But the greatest favor is the good that comes in the midst of the bad.  

My family, church and friends that supported me when I was out of work, a great favor from the Lord.  The twenty to thirty friends who showed up to help us move and paint, they were a great blessing from God.  The friend that gave me a ride when the car is in the shop was an angle passing on God’s favor.  My family and Pastor that stood with me while I said goodbye to my brother Stephen and tried to ease his passing from this life to the next, an favor beyond measure granted by the Lord.  All these things were an amazing favor from God in midst of the hardest times.

Maybe I do know what it's like to be Joseph after all, at least a little bit.

In the midst of the bad news, Joseph's life, and my life, have been full of the Good News of God.

God, whenever the day has been hard, You’ve been there.  I know that You were there in the good times too.  But it’s so much easier to see You when You’ve been by my side during the hard times in life.  Maybe it’s that contrast between the bad and the good that make Your presence then so much more apparent.  But I thank You now, for all the blessings, all the angels that You have sent.  And I’d really appreciate it if you could make Faith as comfortable a possible for her last few days.  Amen

Leonard

Dumpster Diving and Dysfunctional Dreams, Week 3 Day 1, Genesis 37

Dumpster Diving and Dysfunctional Dreams, Week 3 Day 1, Genesis 37

Father is playing favorites with his youngest son.  Given Jacob turned Israel’s history with his older brother Esau you would think that he would know better than to play favorites.  Sigh.  Joseph, the youngest shares his dreams of ruling over his older brothers and his father as well, very socially unacceptable back in their day and age.  Brothers are jealous.  Father “kept the matter in mind.” 

How jealous were Joseph’s brothers?  When they see him coming from a distance they plot to kill him.  Now that is some grade A jealousy.  His oldest brother Reuben tries to rescue Joseph, a plan have them trap Joseph so he can rescue him later.  The trap is sprung and Joseph is in an empty cistern.  But before Reuben can save Joseph his other brothers sell him as a slave, better to make a profit of twenty shekels of silver off of him than kill him outright.  They plant evidence, his bloody coat to make their father thing that Joseph was killed by an animal.

Favoritism, dreams of grandeur, jealousy, murder plots, selling a brother in to slavery, cover it up with a faked death, and a father mourning the favorite son he thinks is dead.  Yeah, they put the ‘D’ in dysfunctional.  It would take a modern day soap opera (do they still have those?) at least a couple of weeks to cover that much ground.  Joseph’s family manages it in only one chapter of the Bible.

God clearly does not pick the people for His Story the same way that we would.  We would pick the smartest.  We would pick the strongest.  We would pick the fastest.  We would pick the cleverest, the most experienced, the most somethingist.  But not God.

God works with the dysfunctional.  Gods uses the oldest brother whose plan of rescue falls short.  God uses older brothers who would kill their youngest brother.  God uses a father who plays favorites.  God even uses an upstart kid who dreams of ruling over his family.

We sometimes watch TV shows about remodeling.  I constantly amazed by the people on those shows who take what looks like junk to me and makes it into something wonderful.  Someone dumpster dives or takes a curbside throw away.  And that trashed old dresser becomes a new entrainment center.  A cruddy looking old door is stripped, repaired and refinished to its former glory.  A house that was ready to be condemned it bought for a buck is completely restored and now a beautiful home for a family.

These people have a special kind of eye.  They don’t see what is.  They see what something can be.  They see something that can be restored to its former beauty.  They see something that can be cleaned, changed and used in a new and wondrous way. 

Sometimes we think of God as just an angry old dude ready to jump on us, to punish us when we do something wrong.  I think God looks at that and says, “I can work with that.”  He can take us from the curb side or the dumpster.  Strip away the crud.  Replace what’s broken.  Refinish us.  Take a person that everyone is ready to condemned and restore and renew them and make them a shining example of God’s love and grace.

God is the ultimate dumpster diver.  God is the king of the curb side throw away.  And there isn’t any dysfunction that He can change into functional. 

We sometimes wonder why God would let things go so wrong in the world, in our country, in our families, in ourselves.  For me the real wonder is how He can take all that wrong and in the end make it so right.

God, thanks for picking me up at the curb side, pulling me out of the dumpster.  Not sure that too many people saw a lot of value there.  But You did.  You see what I am. But more importantly, You see what I can be.  What I well be when You’ve completed Your work in me.  There are times when I feel a lot like Abraham playing favorites, or Joseph with delusions of grandeur, and sometimes even like those brothers who would just like to “get rid” of the problem.  You used all of them in Your Story of redemption.  If You can use them, then I suppose You can use me.  Sure hope You’ve got a lot of sandpaper to take care of my rough edges.  Amen

Leonard

Philippians 1:6

Wrong Part of the Story, Week 2 Day 5 Genesis 33

Wrong Part of the Story, Week 2 Day 5 Genesis 33

I often get a hold of the wrong part of the story.  Jacob now named Israel is the center of the story at this point.  He’s got the Esau’s birthright, Esau’s blessing, two wives, great riches and then a blessing from God.  He’s now the center of the story.

And me, I wonder what’s up with Esau.  Jacob high tailed it out of town when Esau wanted to kill him.  And now after decades it’s time for them to meet again.  Israel sees Esau coming and he is scared.  It’s been a lot of years.  And Israel isn’t sure what he’s going to find when he meets Esau.  Has Esau let go of the grudge?  Or has nursed the grudge for all those years?

Israel bows seven times as he approaches his brother.  And Esau runs to Israel, hugs him, kisses him, and weeps.  And where did all that hate go?  Where did the anger go?  How did he go from murder to hugs and kisses.

I would love to know what happened to Esau.  How did he go from murder to the embrace?

Did he just grow up?  Maybe he simply left it behind as he matured, left behind the childish rage and anger?  Simply grew out of it.

Maybe God had done a work in Esau’s heart?  Taken out the hurt, the anger, the murder and replaced it with brotherly love and forgiveness. 

Maybe Esau had learned the value of hard work?  Without his birthright, without his blessing, he would have had to work, to work hard for everything he had.  Not inherited.  Not given.  Earned.  And in earning it he learned how to be happy with what he had done.   As he told Israel, “I already have plenty.”

I’ll never know which it is.  Growing up, the work of God, the result of good old hard work, or maybe some combination of the three. 

But, while Esau is not the main character in the story, there is no story without him.   Without Esau’s anger Jacob never leaves, never gets married and never experiences the hugs and kisses of a forgiving brother.  And the story ends.

It’s easy to feel like a bit player in life.  Unimportant.  Inconsequential.  A bit player in the story of God.  But as it turns out there really are no bit players in God’s Story.  Without Esau, there is no Israel.  Without Esau the story ends. 

The truth is that we all matter.  We all have a place in God’s plan.  We all have a part to play in God’s story.  Without me there is no story.  And without you there is no story either.  We all matter to God.  And we all have a place in His Story.

God, it’s easy to feel unimportant.  It’s easy to feel like I don’t matter.  I’m not the lead in the play.  I’m not even a bit play.  Often I feel like I’m just sitting in the audience watching the action.  Heck, sometimes I don’t even feel like I’m in the theater.  But that’s not true God.  You have a place for me.  You have a part for me.  And my part and my place are important.  And I’m important to You.  Show me my place.  And help me play my part in Your Story.  Amen

Leonard

Waiting for the Other Hip to Pop, Week 2 Day 4 Genesis 32

Waiting for the Other Hip to Pop, Week 2 Day 4 Genesis 32

The lamp is broken, pieces on the floor.

You only meant to eat a couple of cookies and now that whole bag is gone.

You’re sitting outside the principal’s office.

You saw that red light camera flash as you went through the intersection and now you’re waiting for that envelope from the city with the ticket that’s going to end up costing you hundreds of dollars.

The boss has asked for your report or project, and it isn’t done.

Remember when you were a kid and you’d done something wrong.  It was obvious that you’d done it.  You knew you’d done it.  You knew your parents knew that you’d done it.  And now you’re waiting for whatever is going to happen next.  You’re waiting for the other shoe to drop.

That phrase came from tenement living.  The quality of the construction was marginal, and the bedroom of one unit was right above yours.  So when you heard one shoe drop, you waited for inevitable, the other shoe to drop.

First Jacob gets Esau’s birthright, a double portion of the inheritance bought for some bread and lentil stew.  Must have been some stew.  Esau was starving to death so he agreed to the deal.  A double portion of the birthright, that might be the largest tip for a meal in recorded history.

Then Jacob conspires with his Mom, Rebekah, to also get the blessing that was meant for oldest son Esau.  Yeah they played a dirty trick on the blind Father and Jacob got the blessing that was supposed to be Esau’s.  Esau, to put it mildly is mad!  He’s mad that Jacob got his birthright and his blessing.  I think his anger is only half justified.  He did sell his birthright after all, even if it was at huge discount.  Chalk it up to one huge case of seller’s remorse.  But Esau plans to kill Jacob who skips town.

Plenty of years, two wives and a huge increase in wealth later, it’s time for Jacob to come home.  But what will he find?  Jacob and Esau didn’t exactly part on good terms.  So Jacob does everything he can to hedge his bets.

He sends messengers ahead to promise gifts and call Esau “master.”  Jacob calls himself the servant.  And Esau sets out to meet him with 400 men.  Oh-oh! 

Jacob divides his company into two groups in the hopes that one group might escape.  And Jacob prays to God for mercy.  Jacob reminds God of God’s promise to make him prosper.  He then sends a gift to “his Lord Esau.”  And then he waits through the night for to see what will happen.  He’s buttered up Esau that best that he can.

And while waiting he ends up in an all night wrestling match with, if the text is to be read plainly, a wrestling match with God.  Jacob doesn’t know that yet.  Jacob gets a wrenched hip but fights to a draw until the morning.  (Personally I think God let him win, well, tie anyway.  My money was on God all the way.)  And Jacob, buyer of bargain discount birthrights and sneaky stealer of blessings agrees to a draw, but only if the “man” will bless him.  Talk about your wheeler and dealer.  And the “man” agrees, gives Jacob the name Israel and a blessing.  I guess sometimes it pays to be bold.

So what to make of all of this?  Jacob, with his bargain birthright, sneaky blessing, new name, another blessing and a bad hip, even with all of that he still has to face the music.  Esau and his 400 men are on the way.  And what good are birthrights, blessings and new names if you don’t live long enough to enjoy them. 

Waiting for the other shoe to drop.  Waiting for his other hip to pop.  All of his bargaining, his deceptions, his wrestling might count for nothing.  It’s all in Esau’s hands.  And Jacob is stuck with a limb.

That’s what makes waiting for your parent to find the broken lamp so hard.  They’re going to find out, and then what? 

What’s your family going to say when the find that empty bag of cookies?  Didn’t save any for me?  What about your diet?

What’s the principal going to say?  What are my parent’s going to say?  Detention?  Suspension?

How much is that red light ticket going to cost?  Has it been long enough since that last one that I can keep it off my record with traffic school and avoid the insurance rate increase?  And what’s my spouse going to say?

How angry is the boss going to be?  Will this affect my next increase?  Will I still have a shot at the promotion?  And what if there’s layoffs?  Does this put my name on that list?

It’s time to face the music.  It’s time for the other shoe to drop.  Is it time for his other hip to pop?

For me at least, this part of the story is about control.  Or more precisely it’s about the lack of control.  We like to be in control of our lives.  We want to decide what we’re going to do next. 

Any good business person would tell you how important it is to have a plan.  To work the plan.  To have risk mitigation strategies and contingency plans.  Recovery plans.  Projections of your progress with milestones to reached along the way so you’ll know you’re on track.  List if things to fix if you’re not on track.  Every good business man has a plan and works the plan.

Except sometimes your plans don’t matter.  Because you don’t control everything.  You can’t anticipate everything.  And you aren’t in charge of everything.  Bummer.

Yeah, having a plan is good.  Getting that bargain of a deal can really be sweet.  Being sneaky may even get you ahead.  Hard work and perseverance can give you wealth.  But sooner or later, you’re going to have to face the music, the other shoe will drop.  Sooner or later you’re going to face a situation that you can’t control, plan, or mitigate your way out of. You’re going to need to wrestle with God and face up to the situation.  Sometimes what you’re facing is justified, yeah, you stole the blessing.  Sometimes it won’t be fair; he sold you the birthright after all.  Either way, you’re between that rock and a hard place.  And the only thing left it is to wrestle with God, ask for His bless, and limp off to face whatever it is.

But Jacob’s, no make that Israel’s ace in the hole, he has God’s blessing.  But he still doesn’t know how it’s going to play out.

God, I want to be in charge.  Or I at least want to know that what’s going to happen will be okay.  But often I don’t know if it’s going to be okay or not.  I wrestle with my mistakes.  I wrestle with things unfairly going against me.  I wrestle with the unknown.  And I wrestle with You God. And while you’ve blessed me I’ve still got to face what the morning brings.  God, it would be a lot easier if I could face it with You, Amen

Leonard

Awkward Family Moments, Week 2 Day 3 Genesis 22

Awkward Family Moments, Week 2 Day 3 Genesis 22

Some passages of Scripture are harder to deal with than others.  And facing them head on requires a certain amount of, well I’m not exactly what it requires.  Honesty?  Bravery?  Skepticism?  Whatever, here goes.  And fair warning.  The title of my blog is “You Can’t Say That In Public!” but I might end up being offensive to Christians in this one.  

Christians have certain verses that we love, especially when it comes to sharing our faith with others.  “For God so loved the world that He sent His only Son that whoever believes in Him would have eternal life.”  “Behold I stand at the door and knock.  If anyone hears my voice and opens the door I will come in and eat with them and they with me.”  My apologies to all you Biblical scholars out there if these quotes aren’t 100% accurate.  These are from memory, the Leonard Memory Version of the New Testament if you will.

But as far as sharing the faith, “Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go the region of Moriah.  Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about.” is most definitely not one of the verses that we use to share our faith.  God often asks difficult things, but sacrifice his only son!  And Abraham, he was ready to do it!  And showing my somewhat irreverent side here, I think that it’s pretty safe to say if Child Protect Services has existed back in the day there might well not have been a Jewish faith.  And it would follow no Christian faith either since Christianity really only makes sense from the context of its Jewish heritage.

Thank God that God stopped him.  And maybe God never really intended for Abraham to sacrifice his son.  But to even ask him to do it seems harsh at best and down right cruel.  And I would think that Abraham’s willingness to go down that road had to lead to some pretty awkward Thanksgiving (okay, not Thanksgiving but whatever they celebrated) family gatherings after the fact.  “Hey Dad.”  “Yeah Isaac?”  “Remember that time up on the mountain in Moriah when you were going to kill me?”  “Yeah Isaac, boy those sure were fun times, huh?”  “Ah, sure Dad, swell times.  Right…”  And there I go being irreverent again.

So what am I to do with all of this?

Well, it’s clear that Abraham had great faith.  He was promised he would be the Father of Nations.  And after waiting years, decades to see that promise fulfilled, he was willing to destroy, to kill what looked like the only way that promise would come to pass.  I pray I’m never asked to demonstrate my faith in anyway remotely like that.

And God wasn’t asking Abraham to consider doing anything that God wasn’t willing to do Himself.  Not only was God willing to do the same, He actually did it when He sent His Son Jesus Christ to die on the Cross for all our sins.  God was did what He stopped Abraham from doing.

But I’ll confess that with all of that, I still really struggle with the fact that God would even ask.   Sometimes I don’t understand God at all. 

When I was driving to work today I passed a field that was covered in a thick layer of ground fog.  I grew up in Norco, California.  Anyone who grew up in Norco knows about fog.  They use to get this fog so thick that you literally could not see across the street.  No school today, ha ha!  But when I drove by the field today I was high enough above the fog that I could see down through it.  If I had been in the field, I wouldn’t have been able to see very far.  From above the field I could see right through it to the ground below.

I think that’s what it’s like, the difference between me and God.  I’m stuck on the ground, groping around in a fog, often unable to even see across the street.  God is above the fog, sees everything clearly.  Knows where I need to go, knows what I need to do.  And He’ll tell me, but it’s hard walking around in the fog.  It’s easy to lose your way.

So, I don’t really have an answer for this one.  At least no answer other than the standard Christian go to answer, “You’ve got to have faith.”  And I’ll admit in this case it seems a little weak.  I’m just not entirely sure if it’s my answer that’s weak or my faith.

God, I struggle with much of your Word.  Especially today’s passage.  I’ve heard sermons on the great faith of Abraham and I’ll agree that’s true.  But at want cost?  Seems like sometimes You ask for a lot.  When people talk about becoming a Christian they’ll say that it will make you life easier.  Things go better with God.  And I’ve found that to be true, most of the time.  But at times what You ask is oh so very hard and seems so unfair.  And so I’ll cling.  I’ll cling to You.  I’ll cling to the sacrifices that You have made, especially Your Son.  I’ll cling to Your love.  And I’ll cling to my faith, however thin it might seem.  Amen

Leonard