February
1
2010
Alex Haley, author of Roots, had a picture in his office of a turtle sitting on top of a fence post.
When you see a turtle sitting on a fence post, you know that he didn’t get there by himself; he had to have some help.
That’s why Haley kept the picture in his office. He said, “Anytime I start thinking, ‘Wow. Isn’t it marvelous what I have done?’ I look at that picture and remember how this turtle—me—got up on that post.”
We consider it admirable to be independent. We want Frank Sinatra’s song, “I Did It My Way” to be our theme song. Is it because we want all the glory and the praise?
The truth is that none us became who we are by ourselves. All of us had parents. All of us had someone to change our diapers. We all had teachers who taught us. We’ve had examples, good and bad, that have directed our lives. And, whether we believe it or not, we can look back and see the fingerprints of God all over our lives. In other words, we didn’t get on top of the fence post by ourselves.
We need to realize that humility is not a weakness as many try to portray it. It is a powerful strength that change our world. Jim Collins, in his book, Good to Great, makes the observation that one of the characteristics of great companies is that they have leaders who are quick to share the credit for success. Companies with prideful leadership never seem to make it to the top with lasting success.
Remember, humility is not a nice religious ideal that is not practical in the real world. It is what frees us to live the full and contented life we been wanting to live all along.
“Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.”
Philippians 2:3-4 (NLT)
January
27
2010
At a children’s church camp, one of the counselors was leading a discussion on the purpose God had for everything He created. They began to find good reasons for clouds and trees and rocks and rivers and animals and just about everything else in nature.
Finally, one of the children said, “If God had a good purpose for everything, then why did He create poison ivy?”
The discussion leader gulped and, as he struggled with the question, one of the other children came to his rescue, saying, “The reason God made poison ivy is because He wanted us to know there are certain things we should keep our cotton-pickin’ hands off.”
Too often, we view God’s forbidding commands as coming from one who wants to spoil our fun. We look at Him as a mean spirited dictator who takes pleasure in our misery. We think He is totally unreasonable and unrealistic. After all, this is the 21st Century.
Our God is a loving and caring father. He, like a good parent, often says “no,” not because He wants to ruin our day, but because He wants to protect us from greater harm. It is important for us to realize that He often tells us “no” to some things so that we might say “yes” to better and greater things.
There will always be things that we need to keep our cotton-pickin’ hands off of, but it’s so our hands will be open to receive His blessings.
“But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people.” Ephesians 5:3 (NIV)
January
12
2010
Many people love the sweet confection called “Milk Duds.” It was, however, the product of a mistake.
The Hoffman Company of Chicago, the original producers of the product, was trying to make a perfectly round chocolate-covered caramel. They failed and subsequently called their mistakes “duds.” Not wanting a total loss, the company decided to sell the “duds” anyway and get some of their money back. They were surprised at what happened. People loved these “duds” and so the company kept making them. The name and the candy have been popular ever since.
Sometimes even your mistakes can be of great value. Victory can come out of defeat and success out of failure. In fact, if our lives are surrendered to God, He can use every mistake for good. He can teach us many wonderful things about His love and our lives. He can bless every flop and every failure and turn it for good.
The world may call you a “dud,” but God calls you His child.
“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.”
Romans 8:28 (NLT)
December
27
2009
G. K. Chesterton
The House of Christmas
by G.K. Chesterton
There fared a mother driven forth
Out of an inn to roam;
In the place where she was homeless
All men are at home.
The crazy stable close at hand,
With shaking timber and shifting sand,
Grew a stronger thing to abide and stand
Than the square stones of Rome.
For men are homesick in their homes,
And strangers under the sun,
And they lay on their heads in a foreign land
Whenever the day is done.
Here we have battle and blazing eyes,
And chance and honour and high surprise,
But our homes are under miraculous skies
Where the yule tale was begun.
A Child in a foul stable,
Where the beasts feed and foam;
Only where He was homeless
Are you and I at home;
We have hands that fashion and heads that know,
But our hearts we lost – how long ago!
In a place no chart nor ship can show
Under the sky’s dome.
This world is wild as an old wives’ tale,
And strange the plain things are,
The earth is enough and the air is enough
For our wonder and our war;
But our rest is as far as the fire-drake swings
And our peace is put in impossible things
Where clashed and thundered unthinkable wings
Round an incredible star.
To an open house in the evening
Home shall men come,
To an older place than Eden
And a taller town than Rome.
To the end of the way of the wandering star,
To the things that cannot be and that are,
To the place where God was homeless
And all men are at home.
December
25
2009
One king holds the precious gold.
Another holds the myrrh.
One king holds the frankincense
While Mary holds the Word.
One king kneels to worship Him
Another bows in prayer
One king stares in disbelief
At the baby lying there.
Mary sits so quietly
Amazed that God would send
Such a precious gift to her
To save the souls of men.
©George Price 2009
December
24
2009
C. S. Lewis
Therefore once more I will astound these people
with wonder upon wonder;
the wisdom of the wise will perish,
the intelligence of the intelligent will vanish.
Isaiah 29:14 (NIV)
Ours is a living language. Words change. They change spelling. They change meaning. Words are created or coined. Words we once used become obsolete.
One word that has changed drastically is “magic.” Because of its relationship with superstition and deception, as well as it relation to evil supernaturalism, one hesitates to use it. It seems too cheap, too fake to use at Christmas. It seems its age of innocence and purity is gone.
C. S. Lewis redeemed the word “magic” for me. He qualifies it with the adjective “deeper.” He distinguishes the evil from the good. In his classic book, The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, the White Witch uses magic, but Aslan, the story’s Christ figure, knows the deeper magic.
Christmas is magical as some people say. There is the spell of lights, carols, wrapping paper, holly, and ornaments. It enchants the young and the young at heart. But Christmas also has a deeper magic. A magic that transforms. There is one specific miracle that captivates me.
“The Word became flesh.” (John 1:14)
Another work of “deeper Magic” is that God becomes human flesh.
The word “became” is not only a word of entrance but also one of beautification. We use it with clothing. We say, “that new coat becomes you.” Or “It is so becoming.”
By the very act of becoming flesh Christ began the redemption process. Redemption was not just done on the cross. It began in the cradle.
He took sinful human flesh and pronounced it worth the presence of God.
Note that it never says man became God. All that the flesh can produce in its own strength is sweat and the odor of the flesh’s product is a commentary on its sufficiency. We spend a great deal of time and energy trying to make God like us. Making Him suit us. But it will never work.
There was a group of people in the early church called Gnostics. They did not believe that Jesus actually became flesh. To them He was a ghost of sorts. They believed that God was so holy He wouldn’t get His hands dirty by actually becoming one of us. But they forgot one important truth. He could never redeem us until He first became us.
The magic of God becoming flesh. The deeper magic of God. Taking on our flesh so that He could bear our sins. All of which allows us to become like Him.
Behold the mystery, the magic of God.
Prayer:
Dear God,
Thank You for a deeper magic. Thank You for Your Son becoming flesh and blood just for us.
In His blessed name, Amen.
December
23
2009
That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people.
Luke 2:8–10 (NLT)
A little boy in a Christmas program had only one line to say, “Behold, I bring you good tidings.” After the rehearsal he asked his mother what “tidings” meant. She told him tidings meant “news.” When the program was performed, he was so scared before the large congregation that he forgot his line. Finally the idea came back to him and he blurted out, “Hey, have I got good news for you!”
Christmas, simply put, is “Good News.” Regardless of all the hype and commercialism, it is still “Good News.” In spite of all the hectic schedules and exhaustive work and activities, it is still “Good News.”
Why is it “Good News?” He loved us so much He couldn’t bear the thought of eternity without us, so, He sent Jesus into our world. He knew that even our best intentions will fall short of filling the emptiness of our hearts, so He sent His Son. So, regardless of your opinion about Christmas and all of its trappings, this is really “Good News.”
This Christmas, let’s celebrate this “Good News.”
Prayer:
Holy Father,
Thank You for the Good News of Your Son. We are glad You sent Him. We rejoice that You love us so much.
In Jesus’ name. Amen
December
22
2009
You are the light of the world—like a city on a mountain, glowing in the night for all to see. Don’t hide your light under a basket! Instead, put it on a stand and let it shine for all.
Matthew 5:14-15 (NLT)
The kids were putting on the Christmas play. To show the radiance of the new born Savior an electric light bulb was hidden in the manger. All the stage lights were to be turned off so that only the brightness of the manger could be seen, but the boy who controlled the light got confused and turned off all the lights!
It was a tense moment . . . broken only when one of the shepherds said in a loud stage whisper . . . “Hey! You switched off Jesus!”
With all of the bright lights and decorations it is easy to get confused about what is really important this time of year. I know people who spend more time putting up their Christmas tree than they spend with the Christ child. There are folks who spend more on gifts to people they don’t even like than they give to God who gave them himself. It is really easy to switch off Jesus.
To keep from switching off Jesus you just have to do a few simple things. You need to spend some time in worship. Read the Christmas story in the Gospel of Luke like it was the first time you ever heard it. Give someone a gift without expecting anything in return. There are other and maybe even better things you could do, but if you just stop a moment here and there and remember the One who came to bring us God’s love to each of us, you probably won’t switch off Jesus.
Prayer:
Our Gracious Father,
Help us keep our hands off the switch this year. May the light of Jesus shine bright in our lives this year.
In His name, Amen.
December
21
2009
He who is the faithful witness to all these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon!” Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!
Revelation 22:20 (NLT)
In C. S. Lewis’ children’s book, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, a young girl named Lucy mysteriously enters a magical land called Narnia. It is winter there and while wandering around in the snow she meets a faun named Mr. Tumnus. In the course of their conversation he mentions the White Witch.
“The White Witch?” asks Lucy, “Who is she?”
“Why,” said Mr. Tumnus, “It is she that has all Narnia under her thumb. It’s she that makes it always winter. Always winter and never Christmas; think of that!”
Think of that indeed! It would be terrible always having winter and never Christmas. What a dreary place! There is, thankfully, a happy ending to the book. Narnia is reclaimed and Christmas finally comes with Spring soon after.
However, even though Narnia is a magic land in a book, many people live in such a land. Christmas never really comes to their hearts. They often make the remark that for some reason unknown to them, they “just haven’t been able to get the Christmas Spirit this year.” It is always winter and never Christmas.
Christmas finally does come to Narnia when Aslan, the Lion, the true ruler of Narnia, returns with his power and love for his creatures.
The same is true for us. The only time Christmas (not just the holiday, but the real thing) enters our hearts is when Christ, our true ruler, comes in with the love of God.
Is it always winter and never Christmas with you? Spend time in worship. Read the story again and again. Ask Jesus Christ to bring the warmth of God’s love into your heart today, and let it be Christmas this year.
Prayer:
Dear Lord God,
As Jesus came so long ago to a stable in Bethlehem, let Him come today to our hearts. May there be room this time.
In our Savior’s name, Amen.
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