Something quick...

This ain't much but it's how my night went, therefore it's meaningful to me.

First, these lyrics were sung tonight by Andy Ford and, even though I've heard them countless times, they really hit home tonight. So I'm praising God for His faithfulness.

And I will fear no evil,

For my God is with me.

And if my God is with me,

Whom then shall I fear?

Whom then shall I fear?

Oh no, you never let go

Through the calm and through the storm.

Oh no, you never let go

In every high and every low.

Oh no, you never let go,

Lord, you never let go of me.

Second, more lyrics. I rejoined the choir tonight and we practiced this song. I told Brannan that it must have been my reward for coming back because I can hardly ever make it through this song without losing it.

Holy, holy, holy

Is the Lord God Almighty

Who was and is and is to come.

With all creation I sing

Praise to the King of Kings.

You are my Everything,

And I will adore You.

For years I understood the book of the Revelation to be only doomsday prophecies and "Woe unto them" kind of stuff. But when you really start to see the praise and worship going on in heaven, it makes you long to be there. I know we shouldn't wish our lives away, but some days I find myself thinking that it would be nice if we were all there already, giving praise to Him forever.

Have a wonderful day.

Last one. I promise.

I finished Robinson Crusoe. Finally. I can't remember when it has taken me so long to complete such a short book. But that doesn't mean it hasn't been rewarding.

I've previously posted about the deeply spiritual themes in this book and how young Robinson rejected the godly advice of his father and others and set out on his own course with no regard for God. I've talked about how he experienced "near repentance" several times when his ships fell into danger but quickly turned back to his ungodly direction once the fear had passed. And I've written about how he came to understand that, first, there is a God who is sovereign over all, and second, his own miserable situation was a result of his choices and joy and peace can be found even in the worst of circumstances. To put it simply, Crusoe had to be lost to find God. Such is the case still today, nearly 300 years later.

If this story were to be first published today, it would fill the shelves at Lifeway. It is considered to be one of the first English novels, and it would certainly be the first Christian fiction novel. Few books that I have read recently that fall into that category have the God-centered views of Robinson Crusoe. At its most basic points, it is about a man who is stranded for twenty-eight years, isolated from civilization, and who's greatest concern becomes not about his deliverance from the island, but his place in God's master plan.

So I'll summarize my three week long book report with one final observation. And it's a doozy.

After years of isolation, he finally rescues a "savage" from the hands of cannibals and names him Friday, after the day of the week on which he met him (genius). His first order of business is to teach Friday some rudimentary English. But right after that, and I mean immediately after that, he proceeds to teach him about Jesus Christ. After many long and difficult conversations, some of which Robinson finds himself learning more about God, Friday becomes a Christian. At this point, Robinson enlightens us on the true simplicity of God's Word.

Another thing I cannot refrain from observing here also, from experience in this retired part of my life, how infinite and inexpressible a blessing it is that the knowledge of God, and of the doctrine of salvation by Christ Jesus, is so plainly laid down in the Word of God, so easy to be received and understood, that, as the bare reading the Scripture made me capable of understanding enough of my duty to carry me directly on to the great work of sincere repentance for my sins, and of laying hold of a Saviour for life and salvation, to a stated reformation in practice, and obedience to all God's commands, and this without any teacher or instructor, I mean human; so the same plain instruction sufficiently served to the enlightening of this savage creature, and bringing him to be such a Christian as I have known few equals to him in my life.

In case all that escaped you, he's saying that without any human being to guide them through the plan of salvation, or to tell them what the Bible meant, he and his new friend were both led to the truth of Jesus Christ simply through dutifully reading the Word and following the leading of the Holy Spirit. Wow! And all they had was the King James Version. 1611, of course.

No Sunday School, no worship music, no Chris Tomlin or Dave Crowder, no bulletins or hymnals or praise lyrics, no seven-point sermon outline to follow, no "Purpose-Driven Shipwreck/Castaway" to read, and no F.A.I.T.H., or outreach team rowing up to the shore with a welcome basket and a visitor's card.

All of these things are valid tools, don't get me wrong. We are blessed to have many things at our disposal with which to evangelize the lost. But we shouldn't forget that salvation lies with none of them.

"To try to win a soul to Christ by keeping that soul in ignorance of any truth, is contrary to the mind of the Spirit; and to endeavor to save men by mere claptrap, or excitement, or oratorical display, is as foolish as to hope to hold an angel with bird-line, or to lure a star with music. The best attraction is the gospel in its purity. The weapon with which the Lord conquers men is the truth as it is in Jesus. The gospel will be found equal to every emergency; an arrow which can pierce the hardest heart, a balm which will heal the deadliest wound. Preach it, and preach nothing else. Rely implicitly upon the old, old gospel. You need no other nets when you fish for men; those your Master has given you are strong enough for the great fishes, and have meshes fine enough to hold the little ones. Spread those nets and no others, and you will need not fear the fulfillment of His Word, 'I will make you fishers of men.'" --Charles Spurgeon

Such is the suffiency of the Word of God.

My final thought from Robinson Crusoe is this, and I will allow you to draw your own conclusions about the relevance of it for the church of today, specifically our church:

As to the disputes, wrangling, strife, and contention which have happened in the world about religion, whether niceties in doctrines or schemes of church government, they were all perfectly useless to us, and, for aught I can yet see, they have been to the rest of the world. We had the sure guide to heaven, the Word of God; and had, blessed be God, comfortable views of the Spirit of God teaching and instructing us by his word, leading us into all truth, and making us both willing and obedient to the instruction of His Word. And I cannot see the least use that the greatest knowledge of the disputed points of religion, which have made such confusions in the world, would have been to us, if we could have obtained it.

Hope e'erybody's having a great week.

Ain't nothin' wrong with lovin' chunky

Madagascar 2 has been showing on television all week and I cannot get this song out of my head. Is that a bad thing? It's actually kinda catchy, don't you think? But when I walk around singing it all day at work, the guys kind of keep their distance. However, I have told some people that I think I'll try Moto Moto's pick-up line: "Girl, you HUGE!"

Guaranteed to fulfill Sarah's prophecy.

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Poor, poor Vanessa. I have no words of comfort or counsel, except that if you play tennis with Tonya Harding, you're kind of asking for it.

Ya know I almost, I mean for one split second, nay, nano-second, felt bad about making fun of you on here for all the world to see. But then I remembered how you harrass me about color-blindness and tobacco. The guilt passed rather quickly. :)

Are you sure it was really a tennis match? You didn't accidentally sneak some of your skybox party favors, did you?

Hope you feel better soon.

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So, on Saturday I will be voluntarily immersing myself in that most dreaded and foulest of all earthly stenches. Dolly-water.

Yes, dear readers, there is nothing in this sinful and fallen world that can compare to the nose-burning, stomach-churning smell of the putrid liquid that courses through the canals and misting machines at Dollywood. It starts early each summer morning splashing up on unsuspecting tourists, saturating the dirty socks and gym shorts of those poor, helpless Ohioans who sojourn each year to this fair land of ours simply for the pure elation of hearing "Life is Like a Butterfly" flow on waves of Bose-like sound from hidden flowerpots and restroom signs.

It is the baptism of the simple folk, symbolically washing away the evil nature of the cities from whence they come, and joining in true fellowship with, and becoming one with the mountains.

What would a trip to lovely, serene Pigeon Forge be without suffusing one's self with this holy nectar, allowing it to permeate each and every fiber of polyester adornment, and then...

shuckin' 'em off in the truck 'cause the smell is unbearable.

Can I get a amen?

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Okay, enough of that. One more quote from Robinson Crusoe (deal with it). I think this story is very valid for pondering on Spiritual things, that's why I share it with you. Here, as always, Crusoe is contemplating his situation, now twenty-four years on the island, and thanking God for unseen deliverance from the "savages" who frequent the shores.

This renewed a contemplation which often had come into my thoughts in former times, when first I began to see the merciful dispositions of Heaven in the dangers we run through in this life; how wonderfully we are delivered when we know nothing of it; how, when we are in a quandry, a doubt or hesitation whether to go this way or that way, a secret hint shall direct us this way when we intended to go that way; nay, when sense, our own inclination, and perhaps business, has called us to go the other way, yet a strange impression upon the mind, from we know not what springs, and by we know not what power, shall overrule us to go this way; and it shall afterwards appear that had we gone that way which we should have gone, and even to our imagination ought to have gone, we should have been ruined and lost.

But it is never too late to be wise; and I cannot but advise all considering men, whose lives are attended with such extraordinary incidents as mine, or even, though not so extraordinary, not to slight such secret intimations of Providence, let them come from what invisible intelligence the will.

Wow! Now that is acknowledging the Holy Spirit's gentle nudgings as eloquently as I can imagine. Personally, I am grateful, these days more than ever, for those "secret intimations of Providence" that have kept me from following the wrong path.

Love some chunky this weekend.

Ladies and Gentlemen...

This is how you rock it out! I love this kid, even though every week he tells me which karate belt he has recently achieved and then proceeds to show me on my shins and kneecaps. Caleb has no reservations about letting it all go in worship, though his particular brand of expression strongly resembles a Kid Rock concert.



And this is how I spent my Wednesday night. Left to right are Jake, Boone, and Tyler. My nerves may never recover. But it was a blast and I'm sure the kids all had a great time, except maybe the little girls. Poor little Josie seemed to shy away in terror but, heck, can you blame her? Props to the college students who orchestrated the melee/fracas/hullabaloo. I hope we do it again soon.

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And I have a story that came to mind when I read Prof. Cross's post about the Biblical kings. I have laughed about this all day and I'm actually sorry I didn't share it with you all sooner.

Several months ago, I went through a little study about the kings with my Sunday night high school and middle school boys group. It wasn't anything terribly deep but we just touched on each king that the Bible mentions and talked about their reigns and what they accomplished or didn't. We discussed the blessings of obedience and the judgments and disciplines of "doing evil in the eyes of the Lord." Then, we would move on down the line, or up the line. Whatever.

One Sunday I was carrying on and the guys were kind of drifting in and out (normal behavior). So I cut it a little short and finished up with reading the rest of the Scripture passage for the night: 2 Kings 24:6, which says, "So Jehoiakim slept with his fathers..."

Landon Raby (no further explanation needed), who had been yawning and rubbing his eyes, perks up real quick and says, "He did WHUT?!?!?"

I'm so proud.

Have a great day, y'all.

Can I claim two college students as dependents on my W-2?

Tonight I grilled three roasts. Seriously, these were three of the biggest steaks you've ever seen. But that's not what this post is about (although, Sarah scarfed hers down in record time).

For the past two nights, I've watched Sarah and Spenser prepare their genograms. Apparently, my dining room table makes a wonderful craft area. As I watched them research their families and write (or fabricate) positive and non-dysfunctional things to say about their relatives, I couldn't help but wonder what a genogram of our church family would look like. If we were given the task of describing our spiritual relatives, those in our close circles at church, could we honestly describe them in uplifting and positive terms? Or would the diagram overflow with flaws and deep, personal issues?

What I noticed the most is that the people on their family trees that had the most positive words describing them were the ones they knew the best. But the people who were distant or they just didn't know very well had all these generic and sometimes bluntly truthful descriptions.

Maybe if we took the time to get to know our church family a little better we would find it easier to describe them using words that portrayed them in a positive light, instead of tearing them down all the time.

I was worried that this would bore you, but...

it's my blog. One man's trash is another man's treasure. So, no more censoring myself.

As I had posted before, I am reading Robinson Crusoe. It's taking longer than usual because of the general busyness of life. However, in a way I am glad that I am forced to take my time with it. It is chock full of wonderful insights, especially into the mind of a seventeenth century Christian. If you have never read it, I highly recommend it, if for nothing but the simple view of faith that is portrayed.

As the story goes, Crusoe is stranded on an island, at this point in the story for somewhere around his sixth year. He has gone from a faithless wanderer with no regard for God and bent on his own desires to a devout believer and daily disciple of Bible reading and prayer. His newfound faith has caused him to be content in his present condition and even praise God continually for the wisdom and Spiritual growth brought on by what he repeatedly refers to as, "the hand of Providence."

Now, he desires to sail around his little island kingdom in a canoe fashioned from a tree but soon falls into dangerous seas that threaten his life. His mood instantly deteriorates. And he soon realizes how fickle the faith of man can be.

And now I saw how easy it is for the providence of God to make the most miserable condition that mankind could be in, worse. Now I looked back upon my desolate, solitary island as the most pleasant place in the world, and all the happiness my heart could wish for was to be there again. I stretched out my hands to it, with eager wishes. "O happy desert!" said I, "I shall never see thee more. O miserable creature! Whither am I going?" Then I reproached myself with my unthankful temper, and how I repined at my solitary condition; and now what would I give to be on shore there again! Thus we never see the true state of our condition till it is illustrated to us by its contraries, nor know how to value what we enjoy but by the want of it.

"Don't know whatcha got 'til it's gaw-awn." (Anybody remember the rock band Cinderella? From the '80's?) Joking aside, the point is, how often do we dive head-first into the "greener grass" on the other side, only to look behind us and know at once we have made the wrong decision? And then, having found out the truth of our present state, let our prideful, selfish hearts keep us from rising up from the hog-pit and returning home?

Well, Crusoe makes it back to land safely. Thank goodness, otherwise the story would end abruptly. His first act is to drop to his knees and thank God for deliverance. Soon after, while walking along the beach, he sees a man's footprint that isn't his and convinces himself that it must have been made by the Devil himself, there to lead him away to his death. Just previously he had longed for human companionship. Crusoe says, "Thus my fear banished all my religious hope; all that former confidence in God, which was founded upon such wonderful experience as I had had of His goodness, now vanished."

Like I said, fickle.

But again, in another moment of self-awareness, he enlightens us, and himself, on the unfaithfulness of the human heart.

How strange a checkerwork of Providence is the life of man! And by what secret differing springs are the affections hurried about, as differing circumstances present! Today we love what tomorrow we hate; today we seek what tomorrow we shun; today we desire what tomorrow we fear, nay, even tremble at the apprehensions of. This was exemplified in me at this time in the most lively manner imaginable.

I will let you draw your own conclusions about how this applies to your own life. But doesn't it reflect the self-righteous attitude that plagues our prayer lives? There's that big-ticket item, that one thing that we just know without a doubt will make everything okay, solve all our problems, if God will just grant it to us. Because we know, we have all the answers. We have determined what is good and right and satisfying, based on our idea of what God should be for us.

The question is, what happens when we get it and it was nothing more than a distraction to entrap us?

What then?

Are we afraid of love?

This can be found at Francis Chan's blog. If you aren't familiar with him, I can tell you that he is definitely an outside-of-the-box kind of preacher. The current popular trend seems to be to teach that God exists for us, to supply our wants and bless us with a comfortable life and fulfill our desires. It's really sad to hear all of the Scriptural spin going on these days. Francis Chan's teaching embraces the truth that, "the answer to religious complacency isn't working harder at a list of do's and don'ts—it's falling in love with God."

His book, Crazy Love, is a must read.

The quick, little message above actually addresses something that has been a concern of mine lately. We are on the verge of some really great things. People are starting to get motivated and develop passion for the cause. We have drawn nearer and nearer to this for some time now, but we too easily get sidelined. I believe that one thing that we have talked about doing but have failed to do is hold each other accountable for our way of living, specifically our way of Christian living. In our pursuit of holiness, we must have the support and love of those in our close family to keep us in check.

Benji has been hitting on this on Wednesday nights. Psalm 141:5 says, "Let a righteous man strike me, it is a kindness; let him rebuke me, it is oil for my head; let my head not refuse it."

I think it's time we realize that letting those who love us hold us accountable is a great act of love. I can honestly say that there have been times when I have rejected accountability, and times when I have longed for it. I need it now more than ever. There are some that I love dearly who need to be held accountable for actions and attitudes, not out of spite or self-righteousness, but out of a deep desire to see them living and walking as close to God as He desires. As Chan has said, it won't be popular, but it is Christ-like.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that I feel as if now is the time for all of us to really fall in love with God. I think we all agree that it isn't about following a list of rules for the sake of following, but because He loves us enough to give us a Book full of things that He knows will keep us safe and close to Him. He fell in love with us first.

Pray about this, please.

Have a great Monday.

Here's a great tip: After the video above finishes, you'll see other vid-caps along the bottom. Scroll across and watch some of those sermons. You won't be sorry.

The Wisdom of the Old Timers, or Post #200.

I'm glad that my 200th post comes with a good story. Not that it really matters.

I had a conversation today with a gentleman who wasn't exactly old but older than me. That's getting rarer these days. But for the sake of this story, we'll call him the old guy.

It was a light-hearted, off-the-cuff, casual, small-talk kind of conversation at first but it eventually turned more personal until he said something that really got my wheels turning. After the fact, I stopped and thanked God for this man and his words.

We talked about the weather, what part of town you from, how the cooler summer's been good for his damaters (tomatoes), his gout, the wife's arthritis, and other TMI topics. But, inevitably, he asked what all people ask when they meet a thirty-seven year old minus a wedding ring.

"You not married?"

"Nope. I mean, No, sir."

"Hmph. Why not? You think you're better than the rest of us? (a small grin forms) No use in tryin' to be happy your whole life."

(I laugh along with him for courtesy)

"Naw, I'm just kidding. I've found nothing better than marriage. I couldn't imagine who I'd be without the missus. You find yourself a good, Christian gal who's a good Christian and everything you thought you ever knew will change."

I have to admit that was refreshing to hear. Most of the time these days people won't even talk about their spouse without griping and complaining and warning of the pitfalls of tying yourself down. Walk a mile in these moccasins, that's all I'm saying.

"No kids either?"

"No....sir."

"Boy you just missed it all, huh?" (Gee, thanks. Jerk.)

"Well, I hope not. Just learning what to look for, I guess. Slow learner."

"Let me tell you what I love about being a father. I spent years raising my gals to love the Lord and make good decisions. Then they grew up and went out on their own and I prayed every day that when they made mistakes and learned the hard lessons, which I knew they would, they would recognize it and not be too proud to admit it. 'Cause when they come running back home after realizing that they didn't have life all figured out and the answers aren't always there, the feeling is indescribable. Your heart breaks because theirs is broken, but you're happy because they figured out who's always there to take 'em back."

Shortly after this, I excused myself and laughed (and cried a little) out loud at the beautiful simplicity and profound wisdom in what he said. I replayed what he said over and over in my head until it finally sounded something like this:

"Let Me tell you what I love about being the Father. I spend years raising My children to love Me and rely on Me to make good decisions. Then they grow up and go out on their own and I wait for the day when they realize their mistakes, which they will, and they humble themselves and admit it to Me. 'Cause when they come running back home after realizing that they didn't have life all figured out and the answers aren't always for them to know, the feeling is indescribable. My heart breaks because theirs is broken, but I'm happy because they figured out that I'm always here to take them back."

Have a great day.

Do you ever get something stuck in your head and it just won't go away?

The journey from your mind to your hands
Is shorter than you're thinking
Be careful if you think you stand
You just might be sinking

Maybe this will get rid of it.

This was an awesome day

I pulled into the church parking lot this morning whispering a prayer. "Lord, just get me through today." For some reason, I had a bad vibe about even going to church.

O, Ye of little faith.

I can't remember when I've enjoyed a Sunday more than I did today. Right from the start things were light-hearted, fun, Spirit-filled, and very, very relevant.

Sunday school was great even though I can't pinpoint any special reason. Our lesson was about the paralytic who was lowered through the roof to see Jesus. That truly was an act of great faith but I was struck by the thought of seeing the man as he walked out. Mark 2:12 says that he went out and everyone was amazed and glorified God. But I wonder how he went out. Did he jump up and run out, turning back flips and triple axels, whooping and hollering and giving high-fives to the onlookers? Or was he so humbled by Jesus's grace and mercy that he simply arose and walked out the door, praising God in his heart in silent awe of the power and majesty of the Son of God?

I guess we'll never know. But I'm not sure it matters either way, as long as God gets the glory. As long as God's blessings don't get turned into attention-getters.

Dr. Golden was in the zone this morning. That was a great message about the invalid being healed at the pool at Bethesda. I think if I had been that guy (John 5:1-15), when Jesus asked if I wanted to be healed I would have said, "YES! Yes, yes, yes." No explanation, no sob story, just please heal me before You change Your mind. I guess I would be afraid that I would change His mind for Him.

But the question today was, "Why didn't Jesus just heal everyone there? Why only the one man?"

I have to say that Jesus did heal everyone. His sacrifice covered everyone from then until now and beyond. But this man chose to accept the healing. He said, "I can't get healed without You. You'll have to do it otherwise I will never be healed."

It all comes down to choice again. We have to choose salvation, to accept Jesus, to repent and surrender to Him. We have to choose to die to ourselves daily and walk with Him. We must choose to live and love as He wants us to. We must choose to stay near to Him through our disciplines and not let the world drag us away. We have to choose to remain set apart from the world and let them persecute and hate us for His glory. The power is there, we have to choose it.

Okay, I'm almost done. Juli did an amazing job singing Mighty to Save this morning. She has never sounded better and it set the tone for the rest of the service. I just realized that it sounds like I'm giving a play-by-play of church today. Oh well.

Finally, the point of the sermon that really hit home. Revelation 3:20. You remember that whole "stand at the door and knock" thing? Dr. Golden noted that we always use that in an evangelistic sense. But the writer is not addressing the lost. He is writing to the church in Laodicea. Jesus is saying that He wants to be let in to the church. If the church will open its door and let Him come in and dine, it will be granted to them to sit with Him on His throne. How's that for getting smacked in the face.

And right before that, Jesus says that He disciplines and reproves those that He loves. Good stuff.

And don't even get me started about Sunday night.

You Tennessee fans should thank me. I was going to post about counting chickens.

Have a great Monday. Ask God today what is in your life that is keeping you from Him and let Him remove it.

Man, I'm a slacker

I've fallen off the blogwagon this week, but for good reason. As soon as I think of a good reason I'll let you know.

It has been a somewhat topsy-turvy week actually. I don't really know why but it feels as if this weekend comes hard-earned. Work has been even more physical than normal, which isn't a bad thing. I actually enjoy those days when I work my little tush off and quitting time comes before you know it. I think it's the sense of accomplishment that I like. Sort of like weathering a storm and coming out on the other side wide-eyed and pumped up. It's weird, really.

But also, I've worked this week in Seymour, Hinkle Road to be precise. That means that I've seen some of my peeps passing on the road. And for some reason, I LOVE that. I absolutely love looking up or hearing a horn beep and seeing a friend of mine. For example, this week I saw Terri England (I'm sure I spelled that wrong), V-baby, The Mikles's's's's, and a few others that most of you don't know. It kinda takes my mind off my living and reminds me of my life. Plus, it proves to people that I really do work sometimes.

JGen is on a break, which is good considering some have just lost interest. We'll start back refreshed and with a new game plan next month, which is our one year birthday. Oh, our little one is growing up so fast! (sniffle)

Thanks, Vanessa, for dinner and your computer expertise at mom's. And for making fun of my hideously overgrown mustache from back in the day. I'm still thinking of brangin' it back, y'all.

I hope everyone has a great weekend. Really, I mean that.

Daniel Defoe just reminded me of all the times I should have admitted I was wrong.

One of my favorite stories has always been Robinson Crusoe. The last time I read it I was a little too young to fully understand it due to the nearly three hundred year old language used. In fact, I think it is very neat that it is often considered one of the first novels in English, along with Gulliver's Travels and The Pilgrim's Progress.

Anyway, I'm reading Robinson Crusoe again. Now that I understand the language better, I remember why I loved it in the first place. The adventures he faces throughout the book would have any kid, or grown man, tossing aside the Playstation controllers and wishing he had set sail on an ocean voyage. Imagination really is better than computer graphics anyday.

The story goes that Robinson is a young kid who dreams of setting off on the seas, even against his father's adament warnings of falling into a life of misery and wandering. He runs off anyway and on his first voyage encounters a storm that has him begging for home and swearing off the seafaring life forever. But as is so often the case, once the sting of fear wears off he looks for another ship to board. I'll stop there in case you haven't read it. That's enough information to make my point.

I ran across this quote from the book that I actually remembered from the last time I read it, which was probably in my very early twenties. Oh, if I had only taken it to heart then. It quite possibly could have saved me much heartache. But here it is anyway. Crusoe is struggling between returning home or returning to the seas.

As to going home, shame opposed the best motions that offered to my thoughts; and it immediately occurred to me how I should be laughed at among the neighbours, and should be ashamed to see, not my father and mother only, but even everybody else; from whence I have often since observed how incongruous and irrational the common temper of mankind is, especially of youth, to that reason which ought to guide them in such cases, that they are not ashamed to sin, and yet are ashamed to repent; not ashamed of the action for which they ought justly to be esteemed fools, but are ashamed of the returning, which only can make them be esteemed wise men.

Pride is an ugly little booger.

"The gates of grace are never shut nor even less opened..."

And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon." But He did not answer her a word. And His disciples came and begged Him, saying, "Send her away, for she is crying out after us." He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." But she came and knelt before Him, saying, "Lord, help me!" And He answered, "It is not right to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs." She said, "Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table." Then Jesus answered her, "O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire." And her daughter was healed instantly. --Matthew 15:22-28

I've often wondered why Jesus gave this woman such a seemingly harsh response. You can almost hear the collective gasps from all who were there. The great and loving, benevolent Son of God first ignores her and then tells her off. What's up, Jesus? Having a bad day or something?

As the writer of my devotional says, "Ah, the exercises that train a vigorous faith."

Jesus knew this woman just like He knew the woman at the well, just like He knows all of us who petition Him for blessings or deliverance. He knew that she could take some heat and that it would benefit her, and eventually us, greatly. Were she weak and unable to stand it, He no doubt would have spared her this test. But this chick had some grit.

According to this same account in Mark, Jesus came to Tyre and Sidon looking for some seclusion. He didn't want anyone to know He was there. But He could not be hidden. She wanted her child to be blessed and He cannot be hidden from a seeking soul.

Well, the disciples, loving and compassionate as they were, were bothered by her. They wanted Jesus to get rid of her. But her prayer was simple yet effective, "Lord, help me!"

Stop. What's up with these disciples? They want rid of people who need Jesus because they feel disturbed and can't hear Him, they bicker and argue over which one is the teacher's pet, they constantly presume to know what Jesus wants, and they even think they know best how worshippers should spend their money (relevant). Hmmm.... we would never do that, would we?

Moving on. Jesus's cold and cutting answers to this woman could not stop her, no sir. So here's what really got me about this story. The Creator of the universe, Son of God, Redeemer of all mankind, and Almighty God tells her to bug off. He's got other things to worry about. Does she sulk away?

Heck no, man. She turns it up a notch. This gal is seeking and will not be denied. I love this. How often do we take no for an answer and tuck our tails between our legs when God wishes us to soldier on? His Word tells of His great love for us, how He desires to give us good things, so why do we sometimes act like He is unconcerned?

I believe with all my heart that if God answered every prayer instantly, He would become nothing more to us than a servant who exists to fulfill our whimsical dreams. We must be trained. He must make us seek Him diligently and sometimes forcefully. Faith would not be strengthened in "magic eight ball" type solutions. It would be weakened to failure.

We must believe that the things His Word promises are true. He says to keep asking until the answer comes. If we would prove our faith to Him, we must believe that our prayers are beyond the help of any other source, and we must persevere.

I think the key to this whole story was that she agreed with Jesus. When He tells her that she is pretty much a dog, she agrees. "Yes, Lord, yet." She knows that she is undeserving of the children's bread, and simply asks for a crumb of the children's bread. She realizes her state and in three words, has His attention.

I think this is just what He was wanting to hear. "Yeah, I know I'm scum but who else am I going to turn to?" She acknowledges her condition and His grace.

When we pray to God, when we beg Him for blessings, how does He respond? If He says, "Why should I? Look at yourself. What have you done with what I've already given you?", do we reply, "Well, I've done this and this and this, I've prayed and read my Bible, I go to church and mostly act like a Christian in public."

Or do we agree with Him. "You're right. I'm lazy, unfaithful, selfish, unloving and after my own gain most of the time. But..."

But because of Jesus's blood You see me as Yours.

But You have promised to be faithful to me even though I mock Your love and grace daily.

But one small crumb of Your blessing is an eternal meal.

If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!

Happy long weekend!

A word of advice for the ladies

I'll get to that in a minute. So I usually save my random stuff for Thursday nights, I don't know why, that's just my routine. But it is late and, though I had a neat little devotional thing to share, I will have to postpone that until I can devote the proper time to coherent thoughts.

Someone asked me earlier in the evening if I had an adventurous day. I answered, "Naw, it was pretty boring."

Do you believe in jinxes?

I went to Spenser's soccer game around 7:00. They lost but it doesn't matter because he did a fantastic job, was sixteen times more agressive than any other player, and kept his cool. Proud of you on all counts, bro.

I sat through the game in excruciating pain. I pulled a bonehead move yesterday at work and totally screwed up my lower back. It didn't bother me that much at work today but later on it really started hurting. No amount of Advil, Tylenol, or Doan's back pills has had any effect yet.

I left the game hungry so I had big plans of fixing a big ol' supper when I got home. But first I had to unclog my tub drain. It has been slow-draining for a few days and Drano has been powerless against it. Today, it stopped draining at all. So I took a shower this evening standing in day old, cold, stagnant water.

Okay, unclog drain then supper. I tried to snake the drain to no avail. For those of you who aren't novice plumbers, that's a bad thing. A snake will usually take care of any normal clog. So I went under the house. It's now around 10:00, by the way. I introduce myself to Aragog and his multitude of children under my house and soon find the under side of the tub. There is a drain plug in the u-bend, which is a very good thing so I loosen the nut only to get showered by the water from my previous two showers. Not to mention the dirt, grease, hair, and whatever else is trapped in the drain pipe from the previous tenants. It's black and stinky. Ryan, you have my utmost respect for what you do.

Anyway, with filthy black hands and face, I manage to get the drain flowing properly. Victory!!! I get the tub cleaned up, then myself, and go to put on my pajamas.

I have two favorite pairs of pajamas. Maybe I'm just weird but I like wearing them better than any others. I had just washed and dried them last night so I was looking forward to donning them and eating supper, at 11:30 now, then crashing.

I pulled the blue-and-white striped ones out of the drawer and step in. My toe catches the little escape hatch in the front and RIIIPPP! All the way to the knee. I let out a frustrated sigh, count to ten, then calmly toss them. It's a sad loss but, hey, I've got another pair of favorites to fall back on. So I grab the dark and light blue checkered ones and step in.

RIIIPPP!!!

Oh you gotta be freakin' kidding me. Same thing happened. Why, God, why?!?!?

The morals of this story:

Don't, under any circumstances, do anything stupid at work that will aggravate chronic back injuries. Having a good work ethic has its limits.

Ladies, clean your hair out of the little screen that sits atop your tub drain so poor saps like me don't have to fix it later. And if you're a poor sap like me who is fixing a clogged drain due to ladies who don't clean the hair off the little screen that sits atop the tub drain, stand back, wear rubber gloves, and start earlier in the evening.

And, most importantly, be sure you have three pairs of favorite pajamas.

I'm going to bed hungry tonight. The perfect end to a "pretty boring" day.