Friday Fortunes: Fortune for the Future

“Fortune” has to do with one’s providence or destiny—or it can also relate to wealth, property, or possessions. I believe that there is a lot of cross-over among these two categories when we look at the whole of our lives. Though I am not wealthy in the monetary sense of the word, I do have some possessions that represent great fortune to me—they are significant, and my life would not have been as rich without them. These possessions are generally associated with special people in my life, who represent God’s providence—He has put specific people in my life for specific reasons, and me in their lives. Which brings me back to wealth—I am wealthy in relationships.

At my fortieth birthday party, I had an impressive turn-out. Someone gave me a great compliment about the type of friend I am—evidenced by the longevity of my relationships. I can only conclude that I am a person of extreme fortune. I have a destiny that involves connecting with people and spurring others on in the Lord. I have a wonderful, full life, and I am blessed in countless ways in my daily life.

I believe fortune can be reduced to simple financial resources. But I like to think of it as more of a lifestyle—one we can only live if we are willing to see ourselves as God’s precious children whom He wants to provide for in astounding ways—giving vision for the future as well as the means for us to be the future. Fortune carries with it a responsibility to know who we are and live a life that seeks to share the wealth we have received—“pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you” (Luke 6:38).

Thursday Thrillers: The Reward of Well-placed Effort: Part I

I missed a lot of school in my elementary years…and my middle school years…and not quite as much during my high school years, with the exception of my senior year. It took me a long time to figure out that if I wanted good grades on my report card I’d have to put forth the effort to obtain them.

As it turned out, I didn’t have to work too hard in high school to achieve respectable grades—I graduated third in my class. It was once I got to college, though, that I began to feel the pressure to truly go above and beyond in my studies. My grade-point average dropped each term, and I began to feel a sense of despair. It became clear that “taking the high road” would mean taking what seemed like a step backward—attending community college for a while.

After about five terms in this much-milder-paced environment, I was ready to return to “the big leagues.” I found myself much more prepared and ready to challenge my abilities. I dove into projects and deadlines with gusto—and I even got an A in a modern history course (Twentieth Century Studies)!

Every person’s path to achievement is different. For me, university was a wake-up call. It wasn’t that I wasn’t “cut out” for it—it was that I hadn’t been fully prepared for it. As a return student, I had a new appreciation for course content, a stronger set of study strategies, and a fresh drive and momentum. I finally appreciated the value of a well-earned A. Or B, for that matter—but I pushed for as many A’s as I could get.

In my initial setback I learned some important lessons. Reaching a higher standard is worth a little humility. Responsibility and ingenuity—when applied well on a relatively small scale—could be more easily implemented and developed on a much larger scale. And…perspective gives you wings.

Wednesday Wonders: The Wonder of His Grace

Have you ever thought to yourself (in an “I’m certainly above that” kind of way) how unbelievably appalling someone’s behavior is—or even gone so far as to scoff at or sort of look down on them because of it? Most of us would be ashamed to admit it—but we probably have done it. When we do that, I believe our attitude does not reflect God’s heart for that person. Ironically, when we behave in that way, we are forgetting the very vehicle of our “new life in Christ”—grace.

“For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.…” (Ephesians 2:8-9). It’s not of us, so how can we act as if we’re somehow better than anyone else? We become like the Pharisee, who stood by himself and prayed, 'God, I thank you that I am not like other people--robbers, evildoers, adulterers--or even like this tax collector’ (Luke 18:11).

Perhaps we haven’t committed the same sins or been involved in the same negative behaviors (or maybe we have but have forgotten the “log” that was in our own eye), but we certainly could have been. We’ve all fallen short of God’s grace in one way or another, and often we fail to acknowledge all the potential hardship it has prevented us from—thus the well-known idiom, ‘There but for the grace of God go I.’ This means, essentially, “I would likely have experienced or done the same bad thing if God had not been watching over me.”

Paul clearly states in I Corinthians 15:10 that all he had become was not because of himself—but because of God’s grace: “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them--yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.” Paul was abundantly grateful of and aware of God’s grace in his life, marveling often at where he had been and where he could have ended up apart from God’s redeeming grace. None of us truly knows in what situation we may have found ourselves if Christ had not, through grace, taken hold of us (Philippians 3:12).

And so, Paul admonishes the Roman believers (chapter 12, verse 3) “…not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.” And the credit for this urging goes to “the grace given unto [him].” Grace is God’s operational power—it is the means by which we are saved, as well as the means by which we serve the Lord—this can include discipling others, evangelism, ministering to the poor, etc.—anything God tells us to do requires His grace in order to accomplish it.

So when grace is not being activated—i.e., we are walking in pride and judgment of others—it would seem that the converse would also be true, that exercising a lack of grace enables us to do what God asks us not to do. In Matthew 7:1-2, Jesus says, ““Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” Ouch. A lack of grace seems to go hand-in-hand with a lack of compassion—and therefore, mercy. This type of hypocritical judgment (remember, it’s an attitude of the heart) is contrary to the character of God. He is “gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love” (Psalm 145:8).

I’m not saying that we ignore destructive patterns if we can lovingly assist someone in altering them—free of judgment. Neither am I saying that we should allow ourselves to be abused or our healthy boundaries to be trampled on. What I am saying is that if the Lord’s mercies are new every morning, shouldn’t ours be also? And won’t more grace abound in our lives as we extend His grace to others? “Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again. Give portions to seven, yes to eight, for you do not know what disaster may come upon the land” (Ecclesiastes 11:1-2) means, figuratively, that if one shows liberal generosity it will be returned to him or her at a time when it is most needed. Do we not all desire grace to abound in our lives? Let us then be generous in our distribution of it—for it truly is a wonder, both to give and to receive.

Tuesday Treasures: Hearing God Through His Word

A short time ago, I wrote a blog post on hearing God’s voice, the main point being that we as His children are able to hear Him—to receive specific words from Him on a regular basis. I talked a bit about how to hear Him—today I want to focus on a part of God’s communication with us that is closely connected, and that is the written Word of God. The Greek word logos refers both to the inspired written word and to Jesus, the living Word. The Greek word rhema refers to the spoken word and literally means “an utterance.” When God highlights something in Scripture to our hearts, we often receive a  rhema word. Sometimes it will simply be the Scripture—the Holy Spirit is speaking that Scripture to us at that moment. But sometimes, we will read something in the Bible, and God will speak to us regarding the way we are to apply or take hold of it. That too is rhema.

The test of the authenticity of a rhema from God is how it compares to the whole of Scripture. God isn’t going to contradict His written word. Or His character.

Verses 9b and 10 of Psalm 19 read: “The decrees of the Lord are firm, and all of them are righteous. They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold; they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the honeycomb.” When we read God’s word, whether we receive a rhema word or not, we should feel encouraged and thankful—it should be sweet to our spirits. All that God chose to have written down—so that we could read it—is precious. There is no substitute for them. I think of all the different sweeteners that are available on the market—but nothing quite compares to natural honey.

And when it pours into our spirits in such a way that we are changed by it, it’s like liquid gold permeating us—we are so thankful that God cares about us so much that He wants to connect with us and work powerfully in our lives.

Monday Memories: T.V. With my Dad: A Joyous Journey

Watching t.v. with my dad was always an experience. I remember him laughing hysterically at Gilligan’s Island—he just couldn’t wait to see what pickle Gilligan would get the crew into this time. Dad would follow up most Star Trek (The Original Series) episodes by analyzing the scientific probabilities of parts of the story line. He would critique performances on the Lawrence Welk Show—not his all-time favorite, but when we were at my grandparents’ house we sort of had to watch it. Dad was more of a Hee-Haw guy; he reveled in the lame jokes and the country performances.

Dad would sometimes cry at Little House on the Prairie. He’d praise Jim Rockford wholeheartedly for his suave ability to solve yet another case. And he’d get truly tense—even angry—about his favorite Portland Wrestling heroes getting pounded mercilessly by their rivals. But this could be balanced out by an episode of The Carol Burnett Show. Yes, televised entertainment with my dad was always an emotional experience. Experiencing my dad’s reactions to various shows and scenes was just about as entertaining as the programs themselves, if not more.

Dad was a cartoon buff—he loved Looney Toons, and particularly Yosemite Sam and Bugs Bunny. He was a Flintstones fan, especially enjoying the banter between Fred and Barney. And he liked some of the classic Hanna-Barbera characters as well—Rocky and Bullwinkle, Huckleberry Hound, and Yogi the Bear to name a few. Technically, these were “kids’ shows,” but my father’s exuberance over these animated wonders seemed to exceed that of any kid I’d ever seen.

Dad would borrow lines from character interactions we’d seen—usually from Yosemite Sam or Ernie and Bert (of Sesame Street fame) and use them at random times—it was always a treat to relive those moments with him. His eyes would light up, and he’d use different voices, depending on the character he was mimicking. My dad made watching t.v. more than just an idle activity—it was an experience. I’ll always be grateful that he showed me how to be an interactive and fascinated viewer.

Our t.v. times were not without educational value, of course. We watched Jacques Cousteau and Wild Kingdom—and my dad would go off on scientific tangents related to the adventures we saw on the screen. He wanted me to know as much as I could about the wonders of our world, and he used television as a handy vehicle to that end. He was a teacher (by virtue of the way in which he shared poignant information with me), a humorist, and a scientist of sorts in his own right. T.V. opened up realms of discovery and creative expression, which my father found difficult to resist.

Though he was not a t.v. addict—he worked hard all the time—he definitely was an enthusiast. I still enjoy a good show here and there, but t.v. has never been the same as when I watched it with my dad. T.V. opened doors of adventure, curiosity, and levity—and my dad made the journey a joy.