A Special Olympics Discovery

Today was my 9 year old son Josh’s first basketball game. We never would have envisioned Josh ever being able to play in an official game, due to his special needs. He actually is quite the athlete but would not be able to function well at his age level in youth basketball. But thanks to Special Olympics, this experience is now possible. Josh has been attending practices for a few weeks, and today was their first official game/tournament—including scoreboard, referees, awards ribbons, etc. It was very cool. Josh had a blast and we did as well.

One of things that immediately impacted me as we were watching our first game this morning: Everyone cheers for everyone. First basket, everyone clapped—spectators, coaches from both sides clapped. At one point, my son Josh gave a high five to another participant who had just made a basket. Near the end of the second game, the other team was giving my son the ball under the basket just to let him have one more chance to get it in there. It was clear that the joy was not in winning. It was in playing.

Now I’ve got to confess…while I initially found myself appreciating this, it wasn’t long before I started to get frustrated with an opposing player that was intent on boxing my son out wherever he went. Even at the 3 point line, he was keeping Josh from getting any passed balls to him. So as I vented a bit to Raylene, she said to me, “Look at Joshua. He’s having a great time. He thinks it’s funny.” I looked. She was right. He was laughing. I was the one who was furious.

I guess I’m a slow learner. For me, when the whistle starts, it’s all about winning and being treated fairly. For Josh and his other Special Olympic friends, it’s really about the game…enjoying the privilege of being out there playing. There is a life lesson in here, for me at least. My life is often all about the competition— from the first alarm to the closing snore. Hurry, worry, produce, produce more, produce more than someone else, stay disciplined, keep at it. It’s a race and I’ve got to be moving fast. The problem of course with moving fast is that you never really enjoy the moment; you are never free to simply enjoy the journey.

Thanks to those kids today who reminded me that life really isn’t about winning. It’s about enjoying the privilege of playing and celebrating all the successes along the way.

Now I gotta hurry home and enjoy my family! Okay…I won’t hurry.

When Does Life Begin?

This past week was the anniversary of the 1973 Roe vs Wade Supreme Court decision which legalized abortion. Since that time, millions of unborn children have been denied the opportunity to live. What makes this so astounding is that we live in a country that asserts in its founding documents the inalienable right of every human being to enjoy life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. While many assert that this issue is too complicated to sort out (or that it’s ‘above their pay grade’), the reality is that this issue is not complex at all. It really boils down to one question: When does life begin?

That’s the ultimate question, isn’t it? If we as a nation have already agreed that everyone has a right to life, then we simply must determine when life begins. So how can we determine that? There are several perspectives that can contribute to this discussion.

First, the area of science. If we look at this issue scientifically, we discover some amazing things about the unborn fetus, things which were unknown decades ago but now are clearly seen due to the advanced technology that exists in the medical arena. We know from science that the newly fertilized egg needs only time and nutrients to develop into a mature human being. At the moment of conception, it has everything it needs in terms of DNA.

“Between five and nine days after conception , the new person burrows into the womb’s wall for safety and nourishment. Already his or her gender can be determined by scientific means. By fourteen days the child produces a hormone that suppresses the mother’s menstrual period….At eighteen days after conception, the heart is forming and the eyes start to develop. By twenty one days the heart is pumping blood throughout the body. By twenty-eight days the unborn has budding arms and legs. By thirty days she has a brain…and at forty days the preborn child’s brainwaves can be recorded and her heartbeat can already be detected.” (quoted from “Why Pro-life” by Randy Alcorn). These things are all happening before a woman is even aware that she is pregnant.

Second, we can look at the issue theologically. What does God’s Word say about when life begins? We read in Psalm 139:13-16 “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made…my time frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body.” The language here speaks of the personal relationship between God and the unborn child. God is creating and forming the child from the moment of conception.

In the New Testament we see that at times, the word used for infant or child is also used to describe a baby in the womb. For instance in Luke 1:44 which is talking about Elizabeth carrying a preborn John the Baptist: “As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy.” This fetus is referred to as a child. Not only that, we are told that Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit, which means that His incarnation began, not when he came out of Mary’s womb but when the Holy Spirit came upon Mary and she became pregnant.

A third area of consideration regarding this issue is common sense. For instance, some argue that a baby is not human until it is viable—i.e. until it can survive apart from the mother’s womb. But what then do we make of the fact that improved technology has made the point of viability earlier and earlier? Does that mean the point of life’s beginning is dependent upon the technology at the time? The truth of the matter is, even a newborn baby outside the mother’s womb can’t survive for long without his or her mother. Common sense would suggest that viability is a lousy way of determining when life begins.

Any attempt to state that life begins at some point after conception is faced with huge difficulties. Namely, why that particular time? Why 5 weeks? Why the first trimester? I appreciate Ronald Reagan’s analogy as expressed in his book on this subject. If a hunter sees movement in the woods, should he fire on whatever is making the movement, even if he doesn’t know for sure if it is an animal or human? Or should he give it the benefit of the doubt and wait until he is certain? Surely human life is valuable enough to give it the benefit of the doubt on this issue.

Given the weight of science, theology and common sense, it seems to me that this should be our starting place. If life truly does begin at the moment of conception, ending that life is morally indefensible. The issues of ‘every child and wanted child’ and “a woman has a right to her own body” divert our attention from the ultimate issue. Since when does someone’s right to live depend upon whether or not they are wanted? Since when does a person’s right to their own body allow them to end the life of another human being?

Often people will argue, well what about conceptions that occur from rape and incest? Should a woman be forced to give birth to a child under those circumstances? This is obviously a very difficult issue because it deals with such awful tragedy. But again, I would ask—if life begins at conception, should the child be punished for the circumstances that brought about its conception? Does ending that child’s life really help solve the initial tragedy, or does it compound the problem?

Now it is easy to discuss these things at a convenient distance, but I think we must wrestle with the personal implications of life beginning at conception. If we truly believe this, we must be willing to offer whatever help we can to those who choose life—supporting our local Pregnancy Resource Center, helping baby sit and care for the needs of single moms, and promoting adoption. I am so thankful for the number of families in our church that have adopted or are considering adoption. What a wonderful way to assert the value of life!

I do get frustrated at the dichotomy in our society. On one hand, thousands of babies are being aborted. On the other hand, thousands of couples want to adopt. Why can’t we make it easier and cheaper to connect these two? I don’t get it.

The other personal implication of believing that life begins at conception is facing past choices we’ve made that resulted in abortion. Rather than stuffing those decisions in some secret closet in our souls, it is critical that we face them. The good news is that Jesus’ mercy extends to every sin, even the taking of life. Jesus makes it very clear in the sermon on the mount that in his mind, hating our brother is the same thing as murder. So the reality is, all of us have committed murder and need Jesus’ forgiveness.

Now if you feel that Jesus couldn’t possible forgive you for having an abortion, please remember: All of us murdered Him because of our sin. Our sin is what put Him on the cross. So all of us are guilty of murder, and yet in the miracle of God’s plan, the murder of Jesus is what enables us to experience life in the aftermath of our failures. Jesus loves us absolutely. He gave His life to pay for all of our sin and He longs for us to walk in the freedom and joy of that, no matter what we’ve done in our past.

If you would like someone to talk to about the emotional weight you carry from a previous abortion, please call the Pregnancy Resource Center and they can let you help you walk through the pain to experience the grace of Jesus.

I realize that this issue often can become heated or politicized, but it is far too important to ignore. Life is precious. It is valuable. It was worth supporting and defending—for the sake of our society, for the sake of women, for the sake of the unborn and ultimately for God’s sake and glory.

Earthquakes, Pat Robertson, and Judgment

The events this past week in Haiti have broken all of our hearts…to see such human suffering and to have no immediate way to ‘fix’ it. I would encourage all of us to respond with prayers on behalf of the people of Haiti as well as financial gifts toward ministry/relief organizations. On our Web Page (www.cccgreeley.org) we have listed 2 organizations that are credible and will use the resources for ministry and relief purposes. I commend them to you.

An event like this—an earthquake, tsunami, tornado—often stirs within us some significant theological wrestling. In particular, ‘Why, God?’ ‘Why Haiti?’ These questions cut to the heart of our faith. On one hand, we certainly assert God’s Sovereignty and our need to trust Him even when we don’t understand. Absolutely true. But I think there is more theological processing that needs to be done, particularly related to the issue of judgment. Does this tragedy have anything to do with the judgment of God?

In wrestling with this question, it is easy for followers of Jesus to fall into a couple of theological danger zones. One such danger, as evidenced by Pat Robertson’s comments this past week, is to try and link a tragedy to the specific sinfulness of a particular people. I remember years ago Christians asserting that the earthquake in Northridge California was a specific sign of judgment because that area is a epicenter for pornography.

But that of course raises some immediate questions: why did God pour out judgment directly on the pornographic industry and not on the sex trafficking industry, which enslaves millions of young girls? Why that particular sin? Anytime we are proclaiming that some tragedy happened to someone because of a specific sin, we are left in a very precarious position because we ourselves are sinners deserving of judgment. Such declarations tend to feed our own self righteousness—which has been one of the reasons Robertson’s comments have caused so much offense.

The other danger I’ve noticed in some of the responses to Pat Robertson’s comments is the tendency to want to completely dismiss any notion of judgment in a tragedy such as this. I find the words of Jesus in Luke 13 very instructive and relevant. He is responding to two tragedies that had recently occurred—some Jews in Galilee who had been killed by Pilate while offering sacrifices and 18 people who had died when a tower fell upon them.

When Jesus is told about the tragedy in Galilee, He responds by saying “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.” Luke 13:1-5

This a very interesting passage that exposes both dangerous responses to tragedy. On one hand, Jesus completely dismisses the idea that these tragedies occurred to these people because they were more guilty of sin. He clearly says this is not the case. But interestingly enough, He doesn’t dismiss the notion of judgment. Instead, He actually expands it to include everyone: “But unless you repent, you too will all perish.” This is not what we would expect from Jesus. We would expect a more compassionate response. But what He does is highlight a very important fact—all of us deserve judgment. All of us deserve to perish as a result of our sin.

Tragedies like earthquakes and towers falling on people are not signs of specific judgment on specific sins. But they are signs of general judgment on humanity as a whole. There is a clear relationship in Scripture between creation and Creator. God created this world good and beautiful. There were no earthquakes and tsunamis in the world initially. But when sin and rebellion manifest themselves, all of creation was impacted. Our entire world was in rebellion and has been ever sin. (See Romans 8:19-22) We live in a world under judgment. Every tragedy should remind us of this—not that we are less sinful than those to whom it happened. Rather, we are actually just as deserving because all of us are under judgment in a general sense for our rebellion.

Commenting on Luke 13, Dr. D. A. Carson states in his excellent book, How Long O Lord, “Jesus treats wars and natural disasters not as agenda items in a discussion of the mysterious ways of God, but as incentives to repentance. It is as if He is saying that God uses disaster as a megaphone to call our attention to our guilt and destination, to the imminence of his righteous judgment if he sees no repentance….It is a mark of our lostness that we invert these two. We think we deserve the times of blessing and prosperity, and that the times of war and disaster are not only unfair but come perilously close to calling into question God’s goodness or His power—even His very existence. Jesus simply does not see it that way.”

This is why Jesus’ primary urging in this passage is repentance. All of us are under judgment due to our own rebellion against God. The only way to escape this judgment is repentance. Now I know to many this kind of language will sound archaic. But it is the language Jesus uses when talking with people who are theologically processing a very similar tragedy. What it says to us is that all of these tragedies—natural disasters and manmade disasters—are ultimately signs of God’s judgment. Not a specific judgment on a specific behavior, but a general sense of judgment for a creation that is living in rebellion against its Creator. We need to be saved from God’s judgment.

The good news of course is that Jesus experienced the full weight of God’s judgment upon Himself by dying on the cross. To try and understand the cross without a deep sense of God’s judgment misses the point entirely. Jesus didn’t die on the cross as an example for us. He died the death we should have died. When we repent and turn to Him, we are freed from God’s judgment upon our sin.

Now of course, we still live in a fallen world in which creation is groaning for its redemption. This groaning involves tragedies that happen every day. But our hope is in heaven, where one day God will make all things right. He will right every wrong and wipe away every tear. Until then, we rest in the mercy of Jesus and like Him, urge everyone to turn to Him in repentance.

What About Those Who Haven’t Heard?

This weekend, we looked at John 14:1-6 where Jesus makes an absolutely astounding claim: “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” vs 6 This claim of exclusivity is one that many non-believers feel is arrogant and intolerant while many believers are embarrassed by it. It certainly raises a couple of important questions.

First, is it arrogant for Christians to assert that Jesus is the only way to God? I certainly understand the perception of arrogance but the reality is, Jesus gives us no other option. He is the one who made the claim in the first place. As Christians, we are in no position to reduce certain claims of Jesus, even those that seem to upset our culture’s sensibilities.

In addition, it is important to realize that the sword of arrogance cuts both ways. For those who assert that there is no one way to God, that in and of itself is an absolute truth claim. They are claiming to know a ‘truth’ that Christians don’t know. So a Christian could just as easily accuse them of arrogance in their tightly held conviction.

One other thought related to this question of arrogance: Why is it that in the spiritual arena, it is okay to be a seeker of truth as long as you don’t find it? Someone claiming to be seeking truth is viewed as having such an open mind. But the moment that person claims to have found truth, they are suddenly arrogant and intolerant. I don’t get it. Isn’t it logically possible that truth could actually be discovered in the spiritual realm? If so, why berate those who claim to have found it?

For instance, imagine a researcher discovering a cure for cancer—one shot, cancer gone. She goes on television claiming that, unlike any other drug used today, her new drug absolutely cures cancer. Would anyone in our society be offended at her truth claim and accuse her of arrogance and intolerance? Certainly not. They would eagerly want to try it. So why is it that when a Christian claims truth is found in Jesus, that by default is seen as bigoted and intolerant? It’s not bigoted if it’s true. If Jesus truly is who He claims to be, it is a compassionate response to share it, and an incredibly selfish response to not let anyone else know about it.

Second question: So if Jesus is the only way to God, what about those people who have never heard about Him? Are they destined to hell simply because they didn’t hear? This question is one that I have personally wrestled for a long time. I don’t have a neat and tidy answer but there are some Biblical ideas that guide my thinking.

For one thing, God is absolutely just and fair. No one can ever justly accuse God of being unfair, which means that anyone facing eternal judgment from God experiences it deservingly. When God lets Abraham know that He is going to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah because of their wickedness, Abraham probes the very character of God. In Genesis 18:23-33, he asks God, “Will you destroy the city if there are 50 righteous people in it?” God says “No.” Abraham continues to probe: How about if there are 45? Same answer. 40? 30?All the way down to 10, he receives the same answer. “For the sake of ten, I will not destroy it.” At one point in the dialog, Abraham expresses the heart of his concern and ours: “Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?” That’s really our question, isn’t it? Our concern is that somehow a person will be punished for something that was out of their control (i.e. not hearing of Jesus). But what we know from Scripture is that God will always do what is right and fair. No one in hell will be able to accuse God of doing anything unjust.

The assumption we often make is that, if given a choice, people would choose heaven over hell. But the nature of sin is ultimately a continual assertion of our desire to be in control. To paraphrase CS Lewis, “Hell is what happens when a person all their life has said ‘My will be done’ and God finally gives them exactly what they want.” Eternal separation from Him. While Jesus often uses imagery of fire to describe hell, I am convinced that the ultimate torture of hell is not a literal fire but rather a final separation from God’s presence and love.

Another point: it is clear that Old Testament believers are saved without ever knowing specifically of Jesus. They are saved by faith in God. It is a faith that ultimately points to Jesus (ie He is still the means of salvation) but during their life on earth, they had no specific awareness of who Jesus was, since He hadn’t been born yet. This would seem to indicate that it is possible for someone who has not heard the name of Jesus to still be saved through faith in God. I believe that a sinner who earnestly cries out for God’s mercy can experience it in Christ, even without knowing of Jesus.

However, this in no way minimizes the Biblical necessity and urgency of sharing the good news with people. Paul makes it very clear that it is the preaching of the gospel that brings life. Salvation is not simply a ticket to heaven. It is to experience the fullness of relationship with God now. A person in an African jungle crying out for mercy in their sinfulness may wind up in heaven, but they will miss the good news of life in Jesus and all the things that accompany that.

I continually hear stories of Muslims that have come to faith in Christ as a result of having a dream in which Jesus reveals Himself. This is God’s ultimate desire—that the world would know Jesus. He is using every means possible to get the message out, including our urgency in reaching the lost. While I certainly understand asking the question about what happens to those who have never heard of Jesus, I would not recommend basing your decision for or against Christ to rest upon that. While the Bible may not be completely clear on the fate of someone who has not heard, it is very clear as to the fate of those who have heard and have chosen to reject that truth.

One other thought to throw into the mix: Jesus spoke of degrees of punishment in hell. He said in Matthew 11:21 “Woe to you, Korazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you.” Jesus is saying that people’s punishment will be based somewhat on the amount of knowledge they had. The punishment for Korazin and Bethsaida will be greater because they saw Jesus’ miracles and rejected Him.

All of this is a reminder to me that God’s ways are beyond my comprehension. What I do know is this: The gospel of Jesus is good news to be proclaimed. Hell is a real place for those who reject God’s provision and continue in unbelief. And finally, God is an absolutely righteous and holy God who will do what’s right and fair. While it is certainly okay to ponder the question of those who haven’t heard, the more significant issue is this: what are we doing with the truth we do know?

Updates: Health and otherwise

Some updates:

My Surgery

Four weeks ago yesterday, I had surgery on my right elbow, which may explain why I haven’t posted a blog since Nov 14…that plus the absolute craziness of this time of year. The surgery was actually on my ulnar nerve, which had become compressed right around my funny bone area. I had been experiencing pain for about a year and a half and nothing seemed to really help at all. The pain wasn’t constant but it kept me from playing tennis with my boys for the past two summers. So I was ready to do something.

The surgery went well. The surgeon said the ulnar nerve was indeed compressed and he was able to release it, for which I am thankful. I just started therapy last Wednesday and feel like it is off to a good start. It actually feels good to get the arm out of the cast and moving a bit.

The worst part of the whole experience was the nausea that hit about 2 hours after surgery. They drug you up in the recovery room so that you feel great as you walk out the door–then it hits. Full blown nausea. I hate nausea. I mean, really hate it. My attitude toward nausea is similar to what I saw on the finale of Monk a few weeks ago. He had been poisoned and was dying, so he was talking to the doctor about how this would play out. The doctor said something like, “You’re going to experience some nausea, and then you’re gonna die.” To which Monk replied, “Nausea? Couldn’t we switch those two things? Death…THEN nausea?” That’s me. I was miserable.

This too shall pass. It did and I woke up the next morning feeling great. (In fact, I actually preached that day at the Saturday night service–yes, with a pillow under my arm. Didn’t have the strength to do that Sunday morning. Thank the Lord for video technology!)

That was 4 weeks ago. I am still unable to fully extend my arm away from my body or bring it in close to my body, so I’m using a removable cast periodically. Thanks so much for your prayers and concern.

My Mom
Since I’m giving health updates, I want to give an update on my mom. She was diagnosed with colon cancer last summer and had a portion of her colon removed. She has been doing chemotherapy since then. She recently was experiencing some back pain and went to the hospital. Initially, there was some specialist who said he saw evidence that the cancer had spread. We were devastated. But her oncologist later told her he saw nothing that concerned him. A pet scan was done just in case and revealed no cancer. So we are rejoicing and looking forward to being with my mom and dad for Christmas.

Translation
Pastor Steve has been urging me to consider having my book translated into Spanish, given how needed the message of grace is in that culture. Through Steve’s contacts in Peru, we have found a great translator and editor and are now moving forward on this project. I am so thankful to some dear friends who so believe in the message of the book that they are graciously helping finance this endeavor. I’ll keep you posted.

This will probably be my last post before Christmas, since I’m trying to take some time off around the holidays. I hope to see you at our Christmas Eve services (3:00pm, 4:30pm and 6:00pm). If not, have a wonderful Christmas! (Don’t forget to take time to enjoy your Savior. He really is worth celebrating!)

Ray of Hope Wrestling

This weekend we are finishing up a teaching series entitled “A Ray of Hope.” For the past four weeks, we have been focusing on Isaiah 58 and looking at how God rebukes His people for seeking Him. Now how can that be? Aren’t we supposed to seek God? Absolutely, but the problem was, while they were seeking Him, they were also neglecting the needy around them—the oppressed, the impoverished, the wanderer.

I gotta admit, God has been kicking my butt in this series. (Can I say that?) It started about 4 weeks ago when I read the book, “The Hole in the Gospel” by Richard Stearns. What a great read. It was not what I expected. I guess I expected a bunch of stats to make me feel guilty. What I found was a brutally honest description of a successful CEO trying to wrestle with God’s call upon his life. In it, I saw more clearly the need around the world and was challenged to wrestle with the question, “How does God want me to leverage my resources for the needy?”

Our family has been wrestling with this question in a very specific way. Here are some of the ideas we are seriously considering. One is to spend half as much on gifts for our children and to take the other half and use it intentionally. But instead of having Raylene and I do that, we think it would be cool to let our kids do it. So, our plan is to give them in cash the 50% we aren’t spending on them, and to let them choose from the Project Beyond Gift Catalog specific gifts for the needy. Then on Christmas morning, after opening half as many gifts, we can each share what we purchased for needy families. What do you think? It sounds pretty cool to us. I’ll let you know how it goes.

Another idea relates to some extra income I have recently received for a couple speaking opportunities I’ve had. Instead of simply tithing on that amount, I am praying about setting aside 50% of it and using that in specific ways to help the oppressed and impoverished. I know all the logical objections (because I’m hearing them in my mind!) but I can’t get beyond a couple things: My sense of gratitude to God for the blessings I have and my heartfelt obligation to help people (including children) who are experiencing oppression and poverty beyond what I could even imagine.

My prayer for this series is that it is not just a 4 week awareness raising experience but that it actually changes the way we view the needy around us and around the world. I pray that we are continually asking, what does it look like to give ourselves on behalf of the oppressed, the impoverished, the orphan, the immigrant?

One of the specific responses provided in this series is not just the Project Beyond Gift Catalog but also what we are calling “A Bag of Hope”. We distributed bags 2 weeks ago and asked everyone in our church to bring it back to church with food in it—even if it’s just one can—as a way to share our food with the hungry. Our plan is to distribute this in a variety of ways next weekend. Check out these photographs of the response.

Isn’t that cool? Hundreds of bags have been brought to Zoe’s and 15th Street campuses. It’s not too late! Bring your bags this weekend or next and let’s be a part of sharing our food with the hungry in our community.

The Harvest Show Rebroadcast

Well, I thought that the Harvest Show was going to be rebroadcast last night at 8:00pm since it is normally the case. However, I found out at 7:59pm last night that they broadcast a health special instead. So, for those of you who tried to watch it last night and weren’t able to, you can actually see it at the Harvest Show web site under the “Show info” tab. Here’s the link:

Harvest show

The Harvest Show

I’m writing this from Midway airport in Chicago. On Monday and Tuesday of this week, I had the privilege of speaking at a conference for pastors in Wisconsin on the themes from my book–the good news we all need to hear of God’s grace in our weakness.

When that was over yesterday, I got in the car and drove to South Bend Indiana where I had the opportunity to be a guest on The Harvest Show, which is a Christian television show broadcast nationally and internationally. We actually get the show in Greeley on Comcast channel 17. (I think it’s on Direct and Dish as well but I’m not certain about the channels). It was live this morning but then will be rebroadcast tonight at 8:00pm, I believe. I thought the interview went well, although as I was driving to the studio, my stomach was in knots. I was SO nervous. I think live TV is probably terrifying for most people, including me.

However I did have one of those cool “Bible moments” as I was sitting in the “pre-show” waiting room. I had probably 25 minutes before the producer was supposed to come in a chat with me, so I grabbed my Bible and literally just opened to whatever page to pass the time. That “whatever” page happened to be Isaiah 40 and it started with these words: “Comfort, comfort my people.” That sounded nice!

I kept reading and came across these words would seemed to jump off the page: You who bring good tidings (ie good news for those trying harder!) to Zion, go up on a high mountain. You who bring good tidings to Jerusalem, lift up your voice with a shout. Lift it up, do not be afraid. Say to the towns of Judah, “Here is your God!”

Now I know these words were originally written to the prophet Isaiah and were to be spoken to the nation of Judah, but I believe the Spirit of God spoke directly to my heart from this passage. I was not to be afraid but was to boldly proclaim the good news that Jesus is a big Savior for big sinners. Behold your God!

By the time the show started, I had an overwhelming sense of peace. I was no longer short of breath and feeling sick to my stomach. I was at peace and ready to talk about God’s grace. Whew!

I am so grateful for God’s Spirit, for God’s Word and for so many of God’s people, who were praying for me back home. It was a cool experience.

Retreating

I’m writing this from the YMCA camp in Winter Park where I am speaking at a men’s retreat for a church in Boulder. What a great group of guys. It’s been fun to see how engaged they have been in the subject matter–that of living the gospel. As I see them processing this information in various ways, I’m reminded of how all of our lives will be a constant process of more deeply understanding the wonder of the gospel. I don’t think we will ever completely “get it”. We need the constant reminders. Martin Luther was probably fairly accurate, but perhaps a bit too crass, in his assessment that we have to continually beat it into our heads. It is good news but for some reason we tend to want to believe that we can do something to make God like us more.

Tomorrow morning the retreat end with one final session in which we will talk about how to drink deeply of Jesus, then I’m headed home, thankful for the privilege of being able to share the gospel with these dear brothers in Christ.

A Homecoming Wish

My daughter is at her school’s homecoming tonight. It’s been fun seeing her so excited about getting a dress, heels, boutoniere, etc. Last night was the highlight for me, the dad. Erin had asked me to teach her how to do a slow dance, so we got out the record player (Just kidding). We got out the ipod and played 2 songs: So Close, from the movie “Enchanted”, and “Cinderalla” by Steven Curtis Chapman. It was one of those moments–you know, the kind you wish you could freeze for a really long time.

Near the end of our ‘dance’, I felt in my heart a desire to tell my daughter how special she is to me and what a neat girl I think she is. So I did…which brings me to my homecoming wish. As I was leaving church tonight, I noticed that a nearby high school was also having their homecoming dance. While walking to my car in their parking lot, I saw some girls coming in and out of the building, dressed to the nines–some with dates, many with girlfriends. And in my heart, I had this thought: I hope their dads looked them in the eyes sometime today and told them how beautiful and special they are.

I’m not sure why it takes special moments like these for us dads to be intentional about this. Our daughters need to hear this from us. They need to know they indeed are princesses–perhaps not in the selective way the world judges, but in the way that matters the most…in the eyes of their dad. Talk about a simple way to breathe life into the souls of our daughters. Our words matter. If they don’t feel love from us, they will try and find it somehow, even if it means doing some unhealthy things.

So dads, let’s not wait for homecoming dances to let our daughters know how special and precious they really are.