Good Friday.

Good Friday. When we reflect on what happened some 2000 years ago it seems anything but good on the surface. Jesus was falsely accused, convicted and condemned. He was ridiculed, beaten and executed without mercy. On top of all that was abandoned and alone. The word ‘good’ seems to be sorely out of place. Except that he endured all of these things so we wouldn’t have to.

“Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” – Isaiah 53:4-6 NIV

Separated from God by our sin there was no other way to bridge the chasm between God and us. Justice demanded a judgment and the debt was just too great for us to ever repay. So God in his great mercy and love took it upon himself to settle the account. All of the brokenness of mankind Jesus carried to that cross and it was buried with him.

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” – Hebrews 12:1-3 NIV

Take a moment to recognize today that you, YOU, are the joy that was set before him. Take a minute to reflect on all that Jesus has done for you, and how much he loves you. See it’s not just Good Friday; it’s the Best Friday ever!

My first Spartan Race!

Last weekend I ran my first Spartan Race and it was an absolute blast! The course was 4.8 miles long with 23 obstacles and over 1200 feet of elevation change. The obstacles included a sand bag hoist, barbed wire crawl, Atlas stone carry and cargo net climb up a cliff just to name a few.

My favorite part wasn't the finish line or nailing all the challenges. It wasn't the cool medal or even my new favorite T-shirt. My favorite part was the 5 guys I ran the race with. We overcome obstacles as a team, we struggled through the mud as a team, we cheered each other on as a team and when someone couldn't complete a challenge we did burpees as a team. All of us.

See the race rules say that for every obstacle that isn't completed successfully a participant is assessed a 30 burpee penalty. Now for the uninitiated a burpee is pretty much the bane of the fitness world. Starting from a standing position you drop to the deck, do a pushup and then jump back up, feet off the floor and hands touching overhead. If that doesn't sound too bad you obviously haven't done one recently. Much less 30. Much less 100's of them.

Early on we decided that if any of us failed an obstacle we would split the burpees up amongst the team. It wasn't ringing the bell at the top of the rope climb or sticking the spear throw (which only 14% of racers do FYI) that defined my race. It was on my face, in the mud, counting off burpees with my brothers by my side.

"But God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it. Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it." - 1 Corinthians 12:24-27 NIV

The best life has to offer is found in the people we surround ourselves with. The best church has to offer us isn't the music or even the message. The best church has to offer is relationship, with Jesus and with each other.

"They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved." - Acts 2:42-47 NIV

If we're running alone we may cross the finish line but I have to wonder are we really winning?

Help is closer than you think.

I'm getting ready to run my first Spartan Race this weekend near Atlanta. It's basically a 4 mile long obstacle course with water, mud, ropes, walls, fire, etc. I've been training for 6 months and I'm really looking forward to conquering a new challenge. In addition to the physical preparation I've done I'm making sure that I have all the right equipment to succeed - trail shoes, running socks, quick drying clothes, a hydration pack and fuel. I've done a good bit of research since I'm new to all this and most people recommend energy gel packs to keep your body fueled and blood sugar up during the strenuous exercise. They're small, light and quick to consume so it makes sense. However in the little town I call home they are apparently not easy to find. 

My friend, who is racing with me, and I went out looking for them this week. We tried GNC. Then Walmart. Then the local backpacking store in town. Nothing. As we were walking around, in the bitter cold mind you, my friend has a great thought, "What about the bike store?!" We walked to the end of the block, down the hill, across the street and into the shop. Not only did they have EXACTLY what we were looking for but they had two displays full of them!

The funny thing is that the bike store is literally right across the street from where we work. I mean there isn't another building physically closer to ours than theirs. We spent all that time running around and the whole time what we needed was less than 100 feet from where we started. It took us 3 days, several miles and multiple trips to find it. 

I think life is like that sometimes. We forget just how close and how good God is. We spend more time worrying about things than we do praying about them. The more time we spend praising Jesus the less time we have left to stress.

“God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.” – Psalm 46:1 NIV

Prayer shouldn't be our last resort; it should be our first response. Whatever it is that we need God has more than enough. He has aisle and aisle of displays full of physical healing, financial provision, emotional support, spiritual transformation and so much more. And God has given us brothers and sisters to wait with us and to pray for us. Our church family is there to share life together with all its ups and downs and unexpected turns along the way. Sometimes we just have to walk across the street. And sometime we just have to be willing to reach out. Who knows? Maybe we’ll find exactly what we need!

The Final Score.

I’m not a big sports fan but I do enjoy a great game. I am however a HUGE fan of the Superbowl. Every year some friends and I get together and cook a ridiculous amount of food and hang out. We eat, we laugh till we cry and sometimes we even watch a little football.

This year was no different. At halftime it looked like the game was pretty much over. The Falcons had a commanding lead and it appeared as though the Patriots forgot to show up. Atlanta fans were already going nuts on social media. And Patriots fans were, well pretty discouraged to say the least. The commentators were discussing all the historical stats as to why a comeback from this deficit wasn’t going to happen. But it did. The first Superbowl to go into overtime. Ever. People who left early and headed off to bed woke up in utter disbelief.

But what if you knew the final score before the game was even played? Would it make a difference? Of course it would! If you were a Patriots fan and knew that they were going to win by 6 in overtime you wouldn’t have batted an eye at the halftime score. As a matter of fact the further behind your team fell the bolder you would get – KNOWING that a huge upset was right around the corner.

See the thing is we do know the final score –

“And they overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb and because of the word of their testimony, and they did not love their life even when faced with death.” – Revelation 12:11 NASB

We are ‘they’ and ‘him’ is the enemy just to be clear. So many of us live day to day like we don’t know the outcome. Insecurity, fear, doubt and unbelief worm their way into our heads and our hearts. Sure we may be down but WE ARE NOT DONE! As my good friend once said, ‘Your setback might just be God’s setup!’ We need to remind ourselves and each other what God has said about the final score…

“And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” – Romans 8:28 NASB

“”No weapon that is formed against you will prosper; and every tongue that accuses you in judgment you will condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their vindication is from Me,” declares the Lord.” – Isaiah 54:17 NASB

And then God gave us a glimpse of the future glory we have in Revelation 22.

When Jesus died on the cross it looked like the devil had won. The disciples scattered, the woman wept, all hope was lost. But little did they know that the game had gone into overtime and when Jesus rose from the grave he emerged victorious! It’s the greatest comeback story the world has ever known. And guess what? It’s our story too!

Resolutions

As we reflect upon 2016 and look forward to 2017 all I can say is that my heart is full with expectation. I am fully convinced that our best days lie ahead and not behind. You might call me an optimist, but I really think that I am a realist. See I know who my Father is and He delights in giving good things to His kids (Matt. 7:11).

I recently heard someone say that 'if you want something to change then you must first change something.' As we celebrate the New Year many people will make resolutions. Resolutions to lose weight, to spend more time with family, to read the Bible daily, etc. If I may be so bold I'd like to suggest the most important resolution you can make in the coming year -

"But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." - Matthew 6:33 NIV

Wherever we are at in our relationship with God there is always room for growth! The Greek word used here for 'first' is Protos and Strong's defines it as, "first in time or place; in any succession of things or persons; first in rank; influence, honour; chief, principal."

Make a decision to put Jesus first in your life in 2017. If He already is then make Him firster! If we will I am convinced that God has great things in store for us!

What's the TIME?

So the Cubs just won the World Series after a 108 year drought. AND they did it in style – game 7, extra innings, a rain delay – it doesn’t get much better than that! Well unless you’re an Indians fan. I’m not a particularly huge sports guy and honestly didn’t have much invested in which team won but wow! It’s been said that hitting a major league fastball is the most difficult feat in all of sports. Let me break it down for you with a few quick, REALLY QUICK figures –

• 400 milliseconds – roughly the time is takes for a major league fastball to travel from the pitcher’s hand to home plate. Now we start subtracting.
• 100 milliseconds – the time it takes for your brain to process the image of the ball being hurled precariously close to your body.
• 25 milliseconds – the time it takes for your brain to send a signal to your muscles to swing the bat.
• 150 milliseconds – the time it takes to physically swing the bat.
• 125 milliseconds – the amount of time left to gauge the trajectory of the pitch and decided whether or not to swing.

Just to put that in context it takes 3 times longer to blink (300-400 milliseconds). The actual window in which a pitch can successfully be hit is only 7 milliseconds! Too soon and it goes foul, too late and WHIFF! Swing and a miss. It all comes down to timing.

In 1 Chronicles we have a list of the people who began to gather around David before he became king. Among those named were some -

“from Issachar, men who understood the times and knew what Israel should do—200 chiefs, with all their relatives under their command;” - 1 Chronicles 12:32 NIV

These guys understood the importance of timing. See you can do the right thing, the right way, in the right place with the right people and still fail. If you miss the timing. When it comes to timing I see three options –

1. Too early.
2. Too late.
3. Just right.

It is essential to get the timing right if we are to fulfill the God dreams He has placed in our hearts. We don’t want to get our ahead of Him, or lag behind. We want to walk ‘with’ Him, like Adam did in the garden. I think there are a couple of things to consider when it comes to God’s timing and His plans for our lives.

The first is IMPATIENCE. I’ve seen so many people, myself included, miss God because we were not willing to wait. When we are patient we don’t end up settling for less than God’s best. I usually find when I full surrender the timing to God THEN things begin to move forward. See with God the journey is just as important as the destination. He is building our faith every step of the way.

The second would be FEAR. Faith requires action and often a certain amount of risk. Just like Abram set out into the unknown we must be willing to step out in obedience and trust that God will show up. If you never step up to the plate and take a swing I promise you will never connect with the ball.

So what is God calling you to? And when? And what you should doing right now? May God help us to be more like those sons of Issachar.

What I learned while teaching my teenager to drive.

I’ve recently enjoyed one of parenting’s greatest experiences… teaching a teenager to drive! Let me just say that it does wonders for your prayer life. Actually my girl did great, especially considering she had little to no experience driving any motorized vehicle before getting behind the wheel. But there were a few things that occurred to me during our adventures that I think may have broader application.

One of the things I encouraged her to do was to focus on doing everything purposely smooth. Let me explain. Jack rabbit starts, abrupt turns and sudden stops do not make for an enjoyable ride. It also causes unnecessary wear and tear on your vehicle. Gas mileage suffers, tires and brakes need replaced more frequently and other components endure excessive strain. Beyond all that it increases the probability that you will have an accident.

You know the same thing applies to life. I’ve observed hundreds if not thousands of people over the course of more than two decades in ministry. I’ve noticed that people who take thoughtful and intentional actions do better than those who make rash decisions.

“Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’ “Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Won’t he first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace. In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples. “Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; it is thrown out. “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.”” - Luke 14:25-35 NIV

In other words slow and steady wins the race… and saves wear and tear on the vehicle… and avoids accidents… and makes for a more enjoyable ride. Cars are meant to be driven just like lives are meant to be lived. A follower of Jesus who does not serve their brothers and sisters in Christ and their community is like an un-driven car. But a disciple who tries to do everything only to burn out and quit is like car that has been driven into the ditch. Both are going nowhere and both have lost their saltiness.

Do something, do it well and do it consistently. It works when it comes to driving. It also works when it comes to your health, your family, your finances, the Kingdom and well just about everything else. Small adjustments over the course of time make huge differences and keep us on the road and moving forward.

Be safe out there and just one more thing… don’t forget to use your signals!