Making Your "Awesome List" of Blessings

Have you ever made a 'gratitude list'? You know, one of those exercises in which you list everything you should be grateful for? It's a good exercise, of course, to remember what's good about life. But it can go deeper. Here's how.

Psalm 136 takes it beyond a gratitude list, to a list of some times God 'showed up' in Israel's history. It starts off with praise for his many acts of creation,(verses 1-9) and moves

To Tame the Monster

Nessie. Bigfoot/Sasquatch. Grendel.  Cancer, AIDS, Zika and many other diseases. Nuclear threats, climate change and the presidential election. A thousand more named and unnamed spooks like vampires and werewolves, that make us

Lent, Discomfort and Grace

A stagecoach was a very uncomfortable way to travel. Six or more people were crowded inside a small box that swayed, bounced and rattled over a dusty road, and sometimes got attacked by Indians or bandits. This would not be our idea of a good time! Our Savior gladly gave up comforts to travel with us -- all the comforts of heaven (Phil. 2:3-11) and during his

Grief and Grieving, Part 2: Why Grief Is Important

Suffering a loss of some kind has been part of human life since we first got here. There's something almost foreign about death, though, because it betrays our friendships by ending them, and it takes away our best-loved family members. The 'viewing' at a funeral is painful:  looking at the face of

Doing it for Him

My niece is a Registered Nurse. Her career is all about taking care of the sick and the dying, and for her it's a very rewarding career. But she can tell you, the

You Belong!

What if your life was filled with horrific circumstances, suffering abuse and neglect and anger and hatred from all the people around you? What if your despair at the life you were unable to escape led you to commit acts

Confession and Grace

We don't like accepting our weaknesses and sins (those we can admit, theoretically, that we might have). And we hope nobody else can see any, so we show up in public with our Public Face on. But God already knows what's wrong with each human, and he gives each one total forgiveness in Christ. And James 5:16 tells the church community, as we work together, "Confess

Storms

On Sunday, May 22, a tornado half a mile wide left a six-mile swath of destruction in Joplin, Missouri -- not far from my mother's home town.  So far, 116 people are known dead and several hundred were injured in that storm. We join Christians around the country in praying for the people who were affected, not only in this storm but the many that will surely follow this year.  

There are storms in life produced by the weather, and there are "storms" of another kind, difficult circumstances of life that teach us lessons we usually can't get anywhere else (or perhaps they won't sink into our minds in any other way).  The Bible often calls these situations "trials" and there are several important passages on trials in its pages.  Let's look at just a few:

1 Peter 4:12-19 reminds us not to be shocked "as if something strange were happening to you.  Instead, be very glad..." The text tell us that trials are normal for the Christian life, and have two purposes:  first, they test us; second, they allow us to be "partners with Christ in his suffering."  Ouch, you mean we have to suffer as Jesus did?  Well, yes, that is part of Christian life -- it shows we identify with Jesus, just as he identified with us by becoming human.  "So be happy when you are insulted for being a Christian" says verse 14. 

James 1:2-4 says much the same thing, more briefly:  "For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow."  That's a little like lifting weights, using the resistance of the weight to build muscle and strength.  We grow in our faith and endurance by facing problems we can't work through on our own, and relying on the strength God gives us to endure.  That growth is why James says "when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy." 

Hebrews 11 is a long list of faith-driven accomplishments of the saints of old.  And after all those stories of faithful heroes, we are told "none of them received all that God had promised. For God had something better in mind for us, so that they would not reach perfection without us."  We get to join the list of the faithful, as our faith is made plain to others while we endure our trials; and one day, we will all see that "something better" God has waiting for us.  I have no doubt -- that is, I have faith, despite the troubles of today -- that the trials will be worth it.  Do you?

Soul Amendment

The Lovely Joanne has been working in the soil lately, planting flowers and helping me in the vegetable garden.  The soil around our house is mostly clay, which is fine for some plants and not so fine for others.  We've decided that it needs "amending" which is a term for adding different components to the soil.  Soil amendments loosen the soil or make it hold water better, or make it more or less alkaline.  This is so the soil can be more balanced, have more nutrients available for the plants, and in general help the plants grow better -- that is, soil the way it's supposed to be.

I have a plan for soil amendment in our garden.  You may or may not have realized that God has a "soul amendment" plan going on in your life.  Why is that?  Well, all of us have grown up in a world that is far from what God intended.  In Romans 5, Paul describes the desolation that rejecting God has brought on the world:  "When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned." So even if we had loving parents and a happy childhood, we've grown up in a broken world, and one way or another we ourselves are broken.  We need help--and God gives it!  It comes in the form of "soul amendment" -- not only forgiveness of our sins, but a whole new life in Christ, a life of growth and change.

Some of what my lawn and garden need can be simply spread on top, and it will soak in and do its work.  Other amendments need to be dug into the soil, so out come my shovel and spading fork to turn it all upside down. The worms aren't happy about being dug out of their home, but it has to be if I'm going to give then a new bunch of goodies to chew on. Sometimes 'soul amendment' has to be done that way too, even though it seems very painful at the time.  James writes in chapter 1: "Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow."  Ouch!  Joy??  I'd rather be comfortable, and receive joy from getting a fat tax refund.  But being comfortable doesn't usually help us grow, and it won't break up the spiritual 'hard ground' we've all inherited as children of Adam and Eve.

We usually don't know how to handle the discomfort during a trial or difficult time.  James continues in verse 5, "If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking." God doesn't leave us alone or without resources -- he remains a generous and loving Father who wants us to thrive, and will provide wisdom and encouragement.  Sometimes those come from his word, and sometimes from other people. 

Soil amendment can be hard work, and it takes time.  Same with soul amendment.  But in both cases, the eventual result is beautiful growth, showing the best of God's creation -- the way it is supposed to be -- in our gardens, and in our souls.