(A Fable)
Aging and sad, a grand hulk of useless machinery sits in an airplane hangar when it probably should have been sold for scrap. Designed by an Engineer as an elegant flying machine, this plane has never left the ground or even taxied the runway. For reasons that still don’t make sense, when the time came to assemble all the parts, in the end the plane looked more assaulted than assembled.
To an untrained eye everything appeared to be in place. There was a fuselage, wings, wheels, and engine shrouds. But if you looked closer, you would see that the assemblers failed to actually install the engines.
The assemblers did other damage to the interior of the plane as it was being put together – so much, in fact, that the order was canceled and a new plane secured. Having royally failed inspection, the plane was unwanted and unneeded. It would have cost more to fix what was broken than it would have simply to start over. So for years, lost in the shadow of what could have been, the airplane sat, exposed to the elements, powerless, lifeless, and unwanted.
Word reached the Engineer of the plight of the flying machine. Moved by a sense of love for his designed creation and a conviction that airplanes were made to fly, the Engineer did the unthinkable. [click to continue…]
Imagine going to the mailbox and getting a letter – a personal letter – from a famous person. Not a politician or media darling, but someone who is supremely respected in spiritual circles. Let’s say for the sake of illustration that it’s a hand-written letter from Billy Graham.
And since I’m making all this up, let’s say you’ve never met Dr. Graham, and are a little surprised he knows you exist, much less knows your address. But there you are and there in the mailbox is his letter.
After some preliminaries, some kind greetings, Dr. Graham gets around to his reason for writing. “I want you to know, [insert your name here], that I’ve been struggling lately.” (Oh… step back… Let’s assume this isn’t a fund raising trick. Now on with the story…)
Instantly your concern and attention gravitates to these words. Egads, he’s getting personal! Why is he struggling? Why is he telling me he’s struggling? What does his struggle have to do with me?
“This has been going on for some time…”
Wow, this is serious.
“And I’ve been battling this with everything I have.”
He’s not kidding around.
“And the struggle is over you.” [click to continue…]
(A Conversation)
Stuck.
Stuck?
Yeah, that’s probably the best word for it.
As in, you’ve hit the ditch and can’t get out?
Maybe. Or more like I get so far and every time I hit this wall I can’t ever seem to break through.
Maybe you don’t really want to break through.
What’s that supposed to mean?
Maybe you’d rather lose a thousand pounds than 20.
I don’t follow.
Isn’t it easier to lose one pound and gain it back, then repeat the process a thousand times, than losing 20 and keeping it off?
Okay now you’ve gone to meddling! And yeah, maybe that’s true, but humor me. Let’s assume I really want to lose the 20 pounds. Or I really want to pray consistently. Or I really want to stop feeling so insecure.
But you feel stuck?
I feel stuck.
Powerless to break free?
Yeah, that.
Tired of 1 John 1:9 being your life verse?
Yeah… Hey! Wait a minute! Are we talking about me or you?
Well, let’s just say, to quote two former presidents, “Ah feel yur pain” because I’ve been “knee-deep in doo-doo” myself.
And what did you learn?
That I was a bad liar. [click to continue…]
I hate to start a piece with a bunch of disclaimers, but I think I should.
- This is a little off my reservation, but only a little.
- This article is addressed to Christian people who still believe they are or should be an influence in the culture and society. If that doesn’t describe you, there isn’t much of value for you here.
- This article is addressed also to those who have a growing sense of frustration that the America you thought you knew is a thing of the past.
- This is going to come across as very cynical, but I don’t mean for it to – I am actually very hopeful that you and I can be salt and light in this world.
Still with me?
OK.
I had an “Aha!” moment the other day. You may have figured this out a long time ago, and maybe I’m late to the party, but hey, I was a 10-month baby. [click to continue…]
Time and time again you’re the one who shows up when somebody needs you to.
Sometimes you bring your words with you, sometimes no words at all – just the enduring companionship of a faithful friend.
But who shows up for you when you’re the one who’s aching for the presence of another?
Jesus, that’s who. And in this case, me… because He wanted me to remind you, He’s always there.
You’re the one they turn to for their own self-understanding.
Like a human mirror or road map, you help others make sense of the terrain or the terrible, the magic or the mystifying of their lives.
But who holds up the mirror or points the way for you when the way seems baffling or impossible?
Jesus, that’s who. And in this case, me… because He wanted me to remind you, He’s always there.
Alone is just a figment of a blind imagination.
Lost is just the devil’s panic button of despair.
So when you need reminders of your hope and destination,
Hear the Spirit’s whisper that your Friend is Always There.
[click to continue…]
Into every life there come those moments that cut new paths – awkward, ugly paths – across our landscape. Shadow experiences that block the warmth of the sun’s rays and leave us in a dark spot – or leave dark spots on us.
Most of these shadow moments are fleeting. Just as the sun stays in motion across the sky and recasts the shadows on the ground, life moves on and the light returns to our lives.
But sometimes the Shadow has a life and mind of its own. Sometimes it simply refuses to leave, and we’re left with the scars and the questions and the daytime darkness that threaten to block our sun forever. Sometimes, regardless of the truths we know or the time gone by, it just seems that the Shadow’s always there.
When the Shadow’s always there, if feels as though you have your own personal cloud suspended right over you, while the rest of the world basks in the sunshine. It’s easy to worry that you’re everybody’s else’s downer… when the Shadow’s always there. [click to continue…]
I want to tell you about Wayne.
Wayne is a painter, and he’s doing some painting at my house.
He’s very friendly, has great rates and does fabulous work.
But that’s not what’s remarkable about Wayne.
What’s remarkable is that he loves to paint.
Now I’ve painted for money before.
I don’t love to paint.
I’ve painted for free before.
Verdict is the same.
Wayne? He’s crazy. [click to continue…]
The clock in my office, as you can see, says it’s 8:24.
Come back in an hour, it’ll say the same thing.
All day, every day, 8:24.
What the picture doesn’t show is that the battery isn’t dead.
The clock ticks.
The pendulum swings.
Regardless, the results are the same. [click to continue…]
This is for the gifted speaker or preacher who just can’t seem to get his point across. It’s for the exceptional teacher whose students this time just aren’t getting it.
This is for the counselor who isn’t making any difference whatsoever, or the business innovator who’s just run out of ideas as his organization is falling into the abyss.
This is for the genius sailor who just met up with the perfect storm.
It’s for the career fisherman who’s fished all night and caught nothing.
You may need to brace for impact.
You may need to prepare to be disturbed… not by how hard things are to you at your point of genius, but by how senselessly easy they are for Jesus when He shows up. [click to continue…]
There’s no arguing that you’re busy. No question that whatever you do or don’t get done today, plenty will be waiting for you tomorrow. Yet somehow you can’t help but feel a little like Rip Van Winkle. At least a part of your life has been asleep at the wheel, and you’re wondering how you got left behind.
Maybe it was your finances. Maybe your relationships. Maybe it was your professional life, or your grasp on what’s cool in the culture. Regardless, you can’t help but feel alone, isolated from the pulse and vibrant sensations of a life of awareness and relevance.
You’re busy, but suddenly awakened to the fact that you’re living in obscurity.
+++++++
You have the restless sense that something is broken, and you’re called to fix it. Something’s missing in the church and/or the world. The church and its message seem choked of life and the world and its values are increasingly hostile. And there you stand, somewhere in the middle. You have a sense of calling; a fire of truth burns in your belly and you’ll die if you don’t get it out there.
And yet, despite the confidence you have in your place in God’s plans, nobody’s giving you a chance to actually live it. Nobody’s interested in what you have to say; nobody’s taking what you’re offering. You’re reaching out in love to anybody who will listen, and they’re responding like birds to a scarecrow.
So there you stand, heart and arms outstretched in desperate obscurity.
+++++++ [click to continue…]