Hope for Life Blog

“Don’t come to church!”  That is not something you will usually hear a minister say, but sometimes it is true.  I recently heard someone talking about the troubles currently in their life and they mentioned that maybe going to church would help.  I am not sure it would.  They are looking for a “magic bullet” to make life better.  That is not the purpose of church.  Attending worship services and being involved in a church are outcomes of a decision to follow Jesus.    

Jesus is the answer to the struggles of life.  He is the one that heals, restores, forgives, and gives meaning to life.  He is where hope is found.  He is the way to God.  He is the truth.  He is life.  When you turn your life and heart to Jesus, then church makes sense.  Church is one of the outcomes of following Jesus.  It is a gathering of family members united by faith in the Son of God.  It is where the community of believers gathers to praise the God who loves them.

To hope going to church will help you is getting the cart before the horse.  Jesus is the first decision you must make.  Maybe that is why so many people misunderstand church.  Church is not the answer.  It cannot save you.  It is a fellowship, a community, a gathering, a family… of those who have been saved by Jesus.

So if you are expecting church to be the answer to your problems, don’t come.  You will be disappointed.  But if you are looking for some good news in your life… let me tell you about Jesus.  He is the answer.  Then, and only then, will church make sense.  So write me at steve@hopeforlife.org.  Or look around our website, www.hopeforlife.org.

There have been a number of For Sale signs in my neighborhood over the past year and I have watched them being put up, seen “sold” or “reduced” additions attached, and watched them taken down when off the market.  In talking to people who have recently sold a house, I was struck by the advice given concerning how to do this effectively.  The first thing is to spruce up the outside.  You know – fresh paint, flowers, and a throw rug or two.  This makes an attractive look for a buyer, even though it may not really reflect the condition of the house.  When you show a house, sweep up the trash and hide the dirty clothes.  Answer direct questions, but do not volunteer any information that may detract from the asking price.

Some people might think that is what you need to do in order to become a Christian.  Fix up the outside so it looks nice, even if the rest of you is a mess.  Hide all the trash and dirty laundry.  After all, you don’t want anyone to know the real you.  And do not volunteer any information about yourself that might detract from your image.

Why do people think this way?  Jesus didn’t.  He reached out to the socially disenfranchised, the addicted, the unpopular, and those whose lives where a mess.  He still reaches out for those who don’t have it all together.  He wants us just as we are.  He came for sinners.  He came to find the lost, give life to the dead, and heal the broken.  So maybe the real estate signs of our life should be more like these.

For Sale by Owner:  Jesus calls us to let go of ourselves, our ego, and our lives so that he might own us.  Completely.

Fixer-upper:  We all need Jesus to make right the things that we cannot.  He is the one who can restore the brokenness of our lives.

As Is:  You do not have to have it all together to come to Jesus.  In fact, you only have to know that you do not have it together.

Hidden Value:  God made you, knows you, and has great plans for you.  He values you enough that He sent His only Son to this earth to bring you back to Him.

If you are ready to know the Jesus who loves you just as you are, I can introduce you to him.  Look around this site, www.hopeforlife.org or drop me a note at steve@hopeforlife.org.

Blessings,

Steve

We walked out of a meeting to find one of our vehicles had a flat tire.  All three of us knew how to change a tire.  We were good with our hands.  This would be done in no time.  The only problem was… we could not get the spare tire off.  At different times, all three of us tried and failed.  A fourth friend walked out and offered to help.  You could tell he was amused that we were stymied by a spare tire.  You could tell he had no doubt whatsoever that he would do what we could not.  Until he couldn’t.

It was then that another friend joined us.  “Did you check the owner’s manual?”  Three of us ignored him and continued our futile efforts, but one did get out the instruction manual.  Problem solved.  Ten minutes later the tire was changed.  Why did we not look at the manual sooner?  It was because we did not realize we needed it.  We had all changed many tires in the past.  We were confident we were doing the right thing.  It took someone else to point out what we needed.

This is the same thing that happens to followers of Jesus.  We believe we know exactly how to handle every situation in life.  Because we think things are going well, we may not even realize when we are in trouble.  We need someone to remind us to check out the owner’s manual,  the Bible.  God created us and He gave us a blueprint for life.  It helps when we are in trouble, and it helps prevent trouble and it helps us live the life God desires for us.

So I have now read my vehicle’s owner manual.  I have learned things I did not know about how to maintain my vehicle.  And, more importantly, I will read the owner’s manual written for my life.  After all, my vehicle will not last forever no matter what I do.  But I will.

I like the idea of being healthy.  I know if I practice a healthy lifestyle I will feel better and live longer.  I know that to be healthy I need to eat right and exercise.  I have friends who belong to health clubs and who enroll in weight loss programs to accomplish their healthy goals.  That’s fine for them, but I do not need them to be healthy.  I do not like them.

Weight loss programs are consumed with rules — always telling you what you can and cannot eat.  They are so caught up in numbers that they want you to keep a record of how much you weigh.  Gyms are no better.  Someone is always yelling at you, telling you what to do.  All they do is ask for my money, and they are pretty unrealistic about how often a busy person can attend.  So I want to be healthy, but I do not need memberships and programs.

Sure there is some benefit to being with other people with the same goals and focus.  I guess the accountability factor could help.  Their programs evidently work.  I know healthy people belong to health clubs and weight management programs.  But not me.  I do not need them and I do not want them.  But I am really serious about being healthy!  I will lose weight my way and I will feel better one of these days.

You have figured out by now that if I really had an attitude like that I would not be real serious about being healthy.  Nor would I want to be around people who were.  You would conclude that I was fooling myself.

In the same way, how can someone say they want to be a follower of Jesus but not have any connection with a church?  Maybe being part of a community of believers is not for you.  If you do not enjoy being around people passionate for Jesus, if you do not want to be part of programs that help you grow spiritually, and if you get offended by anyone who expects you to live up to the commitment you made … then church is not for you.

But if you are serious about living a life for Jesus, connect with others who can walk with you on that journey.

Steve

It is a good thing that I like changing weather.  I enjoy knowing that one night it can be 25 degrees with snow but in a short time could be 61 degrees.  However, I live in West Texas and that weather change recently occurred within a twelve hour time span.  On some days, I go to work in a sweater and coat and by lunch have the air conditioning on.    And in West Texas, the change sometimes catches even our meteorologists by surprise.  How can you prepare for change like that?

It’s like life, isn’t it?  Sometimes something happens that we had no idea was coming:  sickness, job loss, accidents, or natural disasters.  Our emotional life fluctuates from one extreme to the other.  We can go from joy to heartache in just a few moments.  Relationships falter, marriages struggle, friends hurt us.  It works the other way also.  Good news on test results, a hug from a child, a job promotion, a birthday or anniversary, a heartfelt apology, and time spent with people who love us can lift us to emotional highs.

We all want the wonderful experiences of life, yet we know the hard times come… sometimes quickly, and sometimes unexpectedly.  Surviving the “climate changes” of life is not as easy as putting on – or taking off – a sweater.  We all need something solid, stable, and permanent in our life… something we can count on no matter what happens or how we are feeling.

There is something – someone in fact – you can count on to be unfailingly consistent.  Jesus was the same yesterday as he is today.  And he will be the same tomorrow.  He is always there, always loves you, and will not be affected by the circumstances of your life.  In a world where things can change dramatically in just a heartbeat, he is the one certainty you can count on… no matter what happens tomorrow.

That is how I have survived the radical changes in my life.

So what do  you think?

Blessings,

steve

It’s that time of year — the time to make my list of presents to buy.  I have no trouble with who I want to remember with a gift.  I just have trouble knowing what to give.  Trying to be helpful, someone suggested I start by remembering the best gifts I ever received and see what they had in common.  I thought about it and at first did not see a connection.

I don’t remember the gifts, but I do remember how excited I would get when our grown daughter would come over and stay with us at Christmas… even though she had her own place.  I do remember that last year, my wife and daughter-in-law gave my son and me the fishing trip of a lifetime.  I do remember that one of the couples in our small group has the group over for a fancy dinner every year around Christmas.

Then it dawned on me.  What I loved about these gifts was “who” not “what”.  My best Christmas memories are of family and friends.  It is being together to open the gifts.  It is the meals together.  It is watching the kids, and now the grandkids, playing together.  It’s seeing my parents and my in-laws watching the fourth generation growing up.  That’s the part of Christmas I wish could never end.

That is also what I love about being a Christian.  It’s the people.  It’s not church buildings, or ministry programs.  It is belonging to a family, a community, a fellowship.  Programs end and buildings collapse in time.  But the people in my church family never end.  We are together… forever.

If you have thought Christmas is just about gifts, you may be disappointed.  If you think church is just about the buildings and the programs, you will be disappointed.   Because real community, real family, is not found in presents and programs.  Community and family are about the people.

Blessings,

Steve

Buy in.  Let go.  Take a leap.  Get out of the boat.  Walk on the water.  Go all in.  Sell out completely.  Give it all up.  Don’t hold anything back.

All of these phrases refer to the spiritual concept of being totally committed to Jesus.  It is a desire many of us have had but not all of us have done.  Maybe you are one of those.   You find yourself hanging around the fringes of Christianity – knowing there is more to it.  You go to church on Easter, Christmas, and Mother’s Day.  You pray when in crisis.  You try not to do anything very bad, and you try to be a pretty good person.  But all the time you know there is more to it.  What is holding you back?

It may be the fear that you will not be able to live up to that kind of commitment.  What if you don’t get all the sin out of your life?  What if you lose your spiritual focus sometimes?

Let me share some good news.  God does not expect you to do it all on your own.  When you make that decision to fully commit to Jesus, he provides valuable resources to help you be His person in this world.

God gives you His Holy Spirit to live in you.  You get that gift when you are baptized.  The Holy Spirit gives you power to put to death the sin in your life.  The Holy Spirit will help you become the person God sees in you.  It serves as a guarantee of salvation until Jesus comes back.

God puts you in community.  You are not on this journey alone.  We are family.  We are one body.  We share in the same baptism, we celebrate the death and resurrection of Jesus together, and we share the same Holy Spirit.  We pray together, worship together, and serve together.  We provide for our needs together.  We encourage each other, hold each other accountable, and forgive each other.  We laugh together and we cry together.

God will provide the help we  need.  It is up to us  to make the commitment.

I admit it.  I love the office shredder.  It might be because I am mesmerized by loud machines that destroy things.  But I am also fascinated by the process.  After a document is run through, there is no way to reconstruct it, no way to put it together again, and no way to know what was originally there.  We use it to destroy sensitive documents, addresses, and any material we do not want seen.

I also use it for something else.  I use it to destroy my mistakes.  If I print the wrong form, misspell a name, or use the wrong name — a quick trip to the shredder and it is as if it never happened.  It is gone forever.

But I also enjoy the shredder because there are times when see it as a reminder of what God has done for me.  I envision lists of my mistakes and sins kept somewhere by the Devil himself.  And I picture Jesus taking those lists and running them through the shredder.  The evidence of my guilt is destroyed.  The list of my sins can never be reconstructed.  They are gone forever.

That is exactly what God did when He sent His Son Jesus to die for my sins.  Because I believe in Jesus, because I decided to die with him, my sins are gone forever.  The devil cannot use them against me to keep me out of heaven.

So I enjoy using the shredder.  It reminds me how grateful I am that God has wiped away my sins forever.  He can do that for you too.  If you want to visit more about this, check out our blog at www.hopeforlife.org.  Or write me at steve@hopeforlife.org.

I admit it.  I love the office shredder.  It might be because I am mesmerized by loud machines that destroy things.  But I am also fascinated by the process.  After a document is run through, there is no way to reconstruct it, no way to put it together again, and no way to know what was originally there.  We use it to destroy sensitive documents, addresses, and any material we do not want seen.

I also use it for something else.  I use it to destroy my mistakes.  If I print the wrong form, misspell a name, or use the wrong name — a quick trip to the shredder and it is as if it never happened.  It is gone forever.

But I also enjoy the shredder because there are times when see it as a reminder of what God has done for me.  I envision lists of my mistakes and sins kept somewhere by the Devil himself.  And I picture Jesus taking those lists and running them through the shredder.  The evidence of my guilt is destroyed.  The list of my sins can never be reconstructed.  They are gone forever.

That is exactly what God did when He sent His Son Jesus to die for my sins.  Because I believe in Jesus, because I decided to die with him, my sins are gone forever.  The devil cannot use them against me to keep me out of heaven.

So I enjoy using the shredder.  It reminds me how grateful I am that God has wiped away my sins forever.  He can do that for you too.

I was at a large convention recently where all the participants wore nametags around their neck. This is a really good idea. It lets people know who you are, prompts you when you cannot remember names, and gives you a visual aid when you are meeting people. Nametags identify the company people work for. They let you know who you are talking to. But they only work when they are facing the right way. If they are turned around, they are absolutely useless.

Why would you wear a nametag no one is able to read? Why would you forget to check and be sure it had not twisted the wrong direction? Maybe they do not care if anyone knows their name. Maybe they do not want anyone to know who they are. Maybe they are ashamed of whom they are, or the company they work for.

I have known Christians who want to keep their identity secret. Maybe they are ashamed of things in their life, or they are embarrassed to be seen as a Jesus follower, or perhaps they do not even realize they are hiding their identity.

Jesus did not call us to live as “hidden” believers. The very act of coming to Jesus is not done in secret. It involves confession and baptism. From that point on, Christians serve as light in a dark world pointing to Jesus.

So maybe we all ought to pay attention to which way our name tag faces.