Sacred Reminder

I got this from Scott Hodge, pastor of The Orchard and I thought I would pass it on…

The programs aren’t sacred.
The methods aren’t sacred.
The ministries aren’t sacred.
The service times aren’t sacred.
The communication style isn’t sacred.
The committees aren’t sacred.
The bylaws aren’t sacred.
The denomination isn’t sacred.
The style of music isn’t sacred.
The color of carpet isn’t sacred.
The font that’s used on in the bulletin isn’t sacred.

The only thing that’s sacred is the mission of Jesus.

Sometimes we just need to be reminded…

 

Don’t Forget a Stick of Butter

Growing up, on Sesame Street there was a sketch where the kid had to go to the grocery store so he made up a little song with his list, “A loaf of bread, a container of milk, and a stick o’ butter.” Maybe you hear it now too and like me, won’t be able to get it out of your head,

That’s what the writer of Proverbs is doing here. He’s giving a ‘shopping list’ so-to-speak of what one needs to get by in life. “Get the truth and don’t ever sell it; also get wisdom, discipline, and discernment. (23:23).”

If you make sure those things are in your life’s ‘shopping cart’ I can assure you that you will be well on your way to living a life full of blessing and contentment. Remember Jesus told us that ‘the truth will set you free (John 8:32).” Now get out there and go shopping!

At least that’s how I see it.

C

 

GIVE THANKS – LOUD AND PROUD!!!!

I have to admit, I’m the type of driver who will come right up to someone’s bumper at a light in order to read what the bumper sticker says. I’ve seen some funny ones like “Like a roll of toilet paper, life goes faster near the end.” / “I had a handle on life but it broke.” / and “Honk if your horn works!”

Then there are the ones bragging of their child’s accolades, scholarships, schools of choice and blah, blah, blah… (if you have one on your car then I’m sure you have every reason to be proud!).

My point is this. No matter how you feel about that person’s bumper sticker, it’s there because of the pride that THEY have for that child. In Psalm 105:1 the writer declares to “give thanks to the Lord and proclaim his greatness. Let the whole world know what he has done.”

There is no doubt… God has, is, and is going to do great things. Why don’t we take that verse to heart and show some pride and tell others about it!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

At least that’s how I see it,

C

 

It’s TOO High!!!

Ever watch pole-vaulting? You know, where a perfectly healthy man or woman runs dangerously fast with an incredibly long pole only to jam it into the ground and hope that the force of the run will successfully throw them violently into the air high enough as to clear a bar which is hovering high into the heavens.

Do you know what is ironic about this sport? You HAVE to fail at it in order to succeed. Think about it. The game isn’t over until you actually keep missing the bar.

That’s the same with our lives. It’s not until we recognize that we are unable to meet God’s standards on our own that we can allow Him to succeed for us. Romans 3:20 says “for no one can ever be made right in God’s sight by doing what He commands. For the more we know God’s law, the clearer it becomes that we are not obeying it.”

In essence, the better we get, the more we realize that we will never be able to reach the top. That’s why we know of God’s ‘grace’. Grace lifts us over the bar when we can’t make it… That’s how we succeed and finally win!

At least that’s how I see it,

C

 

28 Hours With ME in a car

A number of years ago I had the privilege of going on a week long golf trip with my dad. It was one of those once-in-a-lifetime dreams that Dad had and we made it happen. For me, I loved the trips there and back because it gave me a chance to find out more of his upbringing (he was trapped in a car for 28 hours… it’s not like he could go anywhere).

If I had never heard the stories, there would so much of my history that I would never know. The battles, the victories, the failures, the successes; all making him, and my heritage what it is.

In the book of Deuteronomy (6:6-7), the families of Israel are instructed to make sure that their children hear the stories of what God had done. Without those stories, the children would lose sight of God’s importance in their lives.

Sometimes I wonder if we ‘tell our children’ enough of what God has done. If they never hear then they will grow up being not only being unsure of His importance but not understand how involved He wants to be in our everyday lives. We need to make a point of reliving the memories and instilling them in our future.

At least that’s how I see it,

C

 

This House Is Not A Home

Well I’m staring at the last week in this house that we’ve loved to live in. It’s been a long journey trying to sell it. Ten arduous months of open houses, last-minute showings, and meals in the car while trying to spy on the potential buyers.

Kerry said something extremely profound during the process. She said, “Craig, the moment we decided to move this house no longer was our home.” It was true. It felt more like a museum or hotel. Something was missing. We were yearning for a new home… one that we can’t wait to move into at the end of this week.

The Bible talks about the same thing. The moment that we decide to follow Christ there is a new home that we look forward to. We can enjoy life and all of the blessings that God gives us here right now but there is a new place that we can’t wait to get to (see 2Corinthians 5:1-5).

Yep. Sure loved this house. It was a beautiful house and I’ll never forget it… but I just can’t wait to finally get HOME!!!

At least that’s how I see it.

C

 

CNE, Loud Noises, and a Tiny Hand

I number of years ago I had honour of going to the CNE with my family as well as my in-laws (really… I like them). What an incredible experience! All the lights, the huge rides, the horns from the those rides attempting the break the land-speed record. I thought it was simply incredible. Apparently there were others who felt differently.

Somewhere between the cotton candy booth and the man telling me that all I had to do was put a softball in a bushel basket; in the middle of a crowd larger than life, I felt a tiny little hand slowly but methodically slide into the middle of mine. I looked down to see my daughter taking in the sights… mesmerized, but a little overwhelmed.

It reminds me of the Psalm that says “Do not be far from me, for trouble is near and there is no one to help. (22:11)” Sometimes we can get a little like that. We enjoy our independence. We look forward to the ‘fun in the sun’ but when life becomes a little overwhelming, a little staggering, and we don’t know where to turn, we can raise our little hands and set them in the palm of the One who is not only in control, but desiring to take us through the journey together.

At least that’s how I see it,

C

 

Julia Child is to Food like Following Jesus is to…

Okay… I don’t know much about Julia Child. Some would be surprised that I wouldn’t know much about cooking. I like one of her quotes, “I didn’t start cooking until I was 32. Up until then I just ate.”

But in my limited and very primitive research on her one thing jumped out to me… she didn’t care what was expected of her. Julia just did her own thing and ended up changing cook books & cooking for an entire generation.

Imagine if we followed Jesus the same way? Imagine, for a moment, what could happen if we chose to not concern ourselves with how we thought other people would act / react to our choice to follow Jesus? A journey of faith void of second guesses, shallow judgments, and pre-determined expectations could be such a liberating experience.

People were drawn more to Juila’s passion for what she believed in than whether or not she was qualified enough. Jesus is not looking for people with more letters beside their name than the alphabet. God is looking for men and women who will, like Julia Child, be passionate for what they believe in.

At least that’s how I see it, (now what’s in the fridge?)

Craig

 

I Text Because I Hate Talking

This is another one of these “haven’t quite thought this through yet” blogs but I’m stuck pondering this thought…

Do people text because they don’t want to talk and deal with people?

Hey… don’t get me wrong. I text… I tweet… I status… like the best of them. But lately I’ve wondered if people text on their cell phones because they don’t want to have to deal with a) how the recipient will react and b) how they will react to the reaction.

Look at it this way… We are living in a society that is isolating people more and more. Get in your car alone; go to work… eat lunch in your cubicle… come home… drive into your garage with your garage door opener so that you don’t have to see your neighbours… look at the Caller ID and choose to take the call or not… if they leave their message on the voice mail then I can call back on their voice mail… it keeps going.

Texting is just the next phase of ‘downloading what you want to say’ while having to control when and how you give a response.

Man… this can go a lot of ways… think about it… Many people take prayer with God the same way. God… this is the list… now deal with it. I don’t care what you think… I don’t want to get your opinion. Here it is. Thanks… I’ll talk to you the next time ‘I’ am ready with my updated list.

That’s not prayer… that’s texting God.

We need to stop ‘texting’ God and start talking… communing… sharing feelings and waiting for a response. That goes beyond our relationship with God… but with others as well. We need to start looking at the relationships around us as opportunities to not just ‘dump’ info but rather grow, hear, learn, and encourage one another.

Romans 12:10 says to “be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves.”

Chime in. Give me your thoughts on this one. But don’t just ‘give me your opinion’. Let’s dialogue… let’s reason this out.

At least that’s how I see it.

C

 

The Co-dependency of Mountains & Valleys

Happy Canada Day to everyone!

I was just looking at my friends’ statuses (statie???) this morning and was noticing that one person was commenting on how rough life was at that moment.

Before anyone thinks that I’m going to point fingers let me assure you that over the last year, some of ‘my’ statuses (stati???) have had the same tone.

I got thinking about why God would allow us to go through dark times, rough times, desperate times, even despairing times. I must admit that I haven’t really fleshed this out yet and would love to get your thoughts on it as well but as I was thinking about it, an ‘impression’ came to me (me? God? – not my call).

“You can’t have a mountain without a valley. Neither can you have a valley without a mountain.”

If life were always on the mountain top… it would no longer be a mountain but rather a plateau. We always strive for more… more money… more peace… more of God.

Valleys are dark, depressing, and discouraging. But valleys never last either. Valleys always have an end.

So to my friend who is going a hard time I want to assure you that valleys eventually turn into mountain tops because “he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 1:6)

At least that’s how I see it,

C