Asking God For Help When Our Faith Is Weak

In the Scriptures, a father who desires healing for his son says to Jesus “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!” The man’s comment reveals an important truth. We can honestly and genuinely believe in Christ and yet still have some elements of doubt or weakness in our faith. Jesus did heal this man’s son. Here’s my prayer: Lord, we believe, we really do, but we ask for Your help where our faith is weak.

Making A Run For It?

I was at the church for a wedding rehearsal, quite a few years ago, and we were waiting for the bride to show up.  The starting time for the rehearsal had come and gone.  People were making phone calls.  The bridesmaids and groomsmen were standing around waiting and whispering.  Other family members were standing around waiting and whispering.

I didn’t have anyone to talk to, so I just whispered to myself.  Boy, I told myself some pretty good secrets.

The bride and her maid of honor were coming, we had all been assured, but in the meantime, we stood around and the clock kept ticking.

Finally, about 25 minutes after we were scheduled to start, someone standing in the lobby looking at the parking lot yelled out, “She’s here!  The bride is here!”  And everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

I walked to the lobby and, as the bride walked in the door, I smiled and started to say, “Well, well, there she is…”  But I never got the words out.  She stepped inside the building, burst into tears, and ran down the hall into the ladies rest room.

That’s not a good sign.

I know that planning weddings can cause some tension.  It can be stressful.  It’s a big event and there are lots of details that have to be managed in order for the day to come off smoothly.  That kind of pressure can certainly get the nerves on edge, but by and large, it is usually a fairly happy experience.  It’s normally a time of celebration.  Well, I don’t have to tell you, the celebratory feelings were not particularly powerful, at that moment.

I never did find out what the exact problem was.  I heard rumors that her tardiness and her tears involved hurt feelings resulting from some remark.  Another rumor was that it had something to do with a family member’s involvement in the wedding ceremony that displeased the bride.  (*Rule of thumb: Don’t displease the bride at a wedding, if you can help it.)

We waited another 15 minutes, or so, before we actually got the rehearsal underway.  During that waiting time, I noticed that the groom had gone off by himself and simply sat down in the one of the pews with his head in his hands, staring at the ground.  Was he praying?  I don’t know.  Should he have been praying?  Yeah, sure, that would have been a good idea.

From time to time, the groom would look up and shake his head, as if he knew that what was happening now, was probably not going to be an uncommon experience in his life.

At one point, for a real quick moment—just a flash in time—our eyes met, the groom and I.  Maybe I’m wrong, but I believe that, with his eyes, he communicated to me this question:  “Should I just make a run for it?”  He said this with merely the look in his eyes.

It was very subtle.  It happened quickly as our eyes met.  It was almost imperceptible, but I’m pretty sure it happened.  I think I read that question in his eyes.  So with my eyes, as he looked at me, I tried to communicate back to him: “Yes.  Yes, run.”  Just using my eyes, “If you’re going to run, now is the time.  But if you run, remember this: run fast, and run far.  And you will probably need to stay gone for a while.”

Well, fortunately, he knew better.  He didn’t run.  And we had the rehearsal.  It went pretty well.  And the next day we had the wedding.  It went very well.  And today… they are still happily married.

So, you never know.  Sometimes an inauspicious beginning doesn’t mean that love can’t continue to flower and bloom.

Alright, I’m going to go practice saying things with my eyes.

Managing Life Through Prayer

“I’m actually managing my life through my daily prayer time. I’m shaping my heart, my work, my family—in fact everything that is dear to me—through prayer in fellowship with my heavenly Father.”—Paul Miller. Imagine developing your conversation with God to such a degree that you are “managing” your life through a daily prayer time. I thought this quote provided something interesting for us to ponder.

Wisdom Requires Experience

There are some things in life that we do not understand except with the passage of time. The fact that certain understandings take time is not a reflection of a lack of intelligence. It is simply due to the fact that certain aspects of wisdom can only be learned through EXPERIENCE no matter how smart a person may be. And, so, time and patience are required.

Brownie For Jill

When I was in 3^rd grade, I had a crush on a cute girl in my class named Jill.

What do you do with such feelings of love when you are 8 years old?  How do you make your love known?  No matter how brilliant a case you make, your dad is very unlikely to let you use the car for a date.  (You know, the whole thing about “reaching the pedals”, and all…)

One night my mom made brownies and I had a terrific idea.  I would take a brownie to school the next day and give it to Jill!  Yes!  This was a fantastic idea!  I would take a brownie to school and I would say, “Jill, we’ve known each other since first grade…and…well… I was thinking…um…do you like brownies…”  Alright, I didn’t know what I would say.  I hadn’t figured that part out, yet.  But even though I didn’t have the whole plan mapped out, I felt pretty darned good about the brownie part of it.  Most girls like brownies, right?

That night, before I went to bed, I wrote “Brownie For Jill” on a piece of paper and I taped it to my closet door.  I knew that I would be likely to dash off in the morning and forget the brownie if I didn’t make a note for myself.  (I was sort of forgetful, even then.)

It was at this point that I made a mistake.  The major flaw in this scheme was taping the note to the door where my older brother Cam could see it. 

Yep, sure enough, “What’s this?!?” laughed Cam, when he saw the note.  “Brownie for Jill?!?”  Cam was pointing and laughing uproariously.

“Ha! Ha! Ha!  Isn’t that cute!  Danny’s got his little reminder here that he’s going to take a brownie to school tomorrow and give it to Jill!”  He was incredibly amused by it all.  In fact, if it’s possible that there is something inherently good about bringing laughter to a fellow human being, I did something good for my brother by putting that note on the closet door that night.

In the morning I was running late for the bus…as usual.  And my thoughts were scattered…as usual.  And I ran out the door without the brownie for Jill.  Oh no, don’t feel bad, though.  The truth is that I never would have given the brownie to Jill, anyhow.  I would have been too scared.  I was about 27 before I actually worked up the courage to talk to any girls.  (Which is strange when you realize that I got married at age 25.)

Long after that incident occurred, Cam would laugh and tease me with that three word phrase, “Brownie for Jill.”  He’s liable to smile and say it to me even today.

And I suppose the childhood psychological impressions created by this incident may explain why I now prefer chocolate chip cookies.

Be Careful What You Ask For

Did you ever hear this line? “Be careful what you ask for.” There is truth and wisdom in it. A philosopher says this, “The very things we yearn for most and regard as our highest good (wealth, fame, power, luxury, leisure, and even scientific insight) can be our undoing.” [William Dembski] This can be hard to admit…but often…we don’t actually know what would be best for us. But, of course, God does.

I Like Simplicity

The older I get, the more impressed I am with “simplicity”. I know, it’s not fancy. In a way, that’s the point. There’s something beautiful and elegant about simple things. It’s part of what makes the Gospel of Jesus Christ so attractive. “For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.” 1 Cor.2:2.  Ah, yes…simplicity.

E-Flash From Dan, Feb. 2, 2010

Dear E-Flash Friends;

Where are you, spiritually?

Last year, our church participated in a fairly sophisticated survey titled REVEAL, that has to do with the spiritual vitality of our church.  The REVEAL survey was designed to help us have a little better understanding of the answer to the question I posed above:  “Where are you, spiritually?” 

If you’ve been wondering, “Hey, when are we going to hear about the findings of that survey?”  The answer is: tomorrow night.

Tomorrow night, Wednesday, Feb. 3^rd, at 7:00pm, I will be presenting the findings of the REVEAL survey.  We’ll get information like this:

* Our church’s Spiritual Vitality Index number.    [Hint: it’s good!]

* What people want most from First Church of God.

* What people say works best at First Church of God.  [The top answer will probably surprise you.  It surprised me.]

* What people want most from the Senior Pastor.

* Reasons why people “stall” spiritually.

And this critical question will be answered:  “By the way, who writes these E-flash messages on behalf of the senior pastor—it can’t be him, can it?”

I hope you can make it, tomorrow night, I’m actually very curious to see what I’m going to be saying.

Ha!  Just kidding….sort of.

It’s also Carry-In Dinner night.  On the first Wednesday of every month (that’s tomorrow) we all bring our dinner to church—stop and grab some fast food or bring something from home that you made—and we eat and talk and laugh and talk and eat together.  Did I mention that we “talk”?  Yeah we do, and we eat, too.  It’s very informal, the doors are open at 6:00 p.m.  You’re invited!

Looking forward to seeing you tomorrow.

Blessings,

Dan

*NOTE:  If you would like to have the "E-Flash" sent directly to your e-mail, simply send an e-mail message to:  cog111st@aol.com   ...and write:  "I would like to receive the E-Flash From Dan",  in the "subject" field.

Love God And Love Others...The Greatest Commandment

I created a Facebook page called:  “Love God And Love Others…The Greatest Commandment”.  I hope you might take a moment to look at it.  There is a link to the page on the right hand side of this blog page (if you scroll down a bit).  I invite you to join it, if you haven’t already done so.  I created the page for a few different reasons.  One reason goes back to a recent trip I took.  When I’m on vacation I think about different things than I ponder when I’m at home.  I’m not exactly sure why that is but I suspect it has to do with my mind being freed up from certain obligations and certain responsibilities and, therefore, able to pursue less typical thoughts. 

Anyhow, I was out walking one morning and I started thinking about how I wanted to be remembered.  I know it’s a little maudlin, but it was one of those “what-will-people-think-about-me-when-I’m-gone?” kind of thinking sessions.  Sounds like a super fun “walk”, huh?  No wonder the other walkers were crossing over to the other side of the path when they saw me coming.  They must have picked up a strange “vibe”.

I tried to think of all of my great skills and talents and the lasting impact they would have on people.  And, then, I had the troubling realization that I don’t have any skills or talents that are so extraordinary that people would remember them and remain dazzled by them long after I’m gone.

The simple thought that finally occurred to me was, actually, a biblical type of thought.  What I realized, as I made my walk around the lake that day was that God was creating in me a heart of authentic love for people.  (Don’t worry, I’m not at the point where I arrogantly believe I’m the most loving, caring person God has ever created.  Some people still “bug me”.)  But I honestly believe that—with the help of God’s Holy Spirit—I can love people with the love of God.  Imperfectly, to be sure, but authentically.  (Boy, I hope that doesn’t sound bizarre or fanatical, I simply mean it to represent my understanding of how God’s love can work through a person in the way that scripture tells us it can.  “As I have loved you, so you must love one another.”—Jesus (John 13:34))

A couple of days after that walk I got the idea to create the “Love God And Love Others…” page.  (I’m hoping that was a God-thing.)  I have tried to create interesting and helpful content on the page for Christians who want to follow the command of Jesus to “love God and love others” and I truly hope that it would be of value to people who connect to the page, for that reason.  And I hope it could be a contribution to this calling of Jesus on our lives that is substantial and important and lasting.

There’s another reason that I created the page.  I haven’t been doing the online social networking thing for a long time at this point, but I find that I have become truly fascinated by it.  I’m almost embarrassed to admit that, since I was a bit reluctant to even get involved with a social network like Facebook.  But now I find it to be incredibly interesting.  (My how things change, huh?)  I’m particularly interested in the potential online social networks have for connecting people and spreading ideas.  I’ve been reading and doing some research on networks and how they work and how things spread through networks.  I have to admit, I don’t completely understand it—I do so much better when things are in comic-book form—but it’s very intriguing to me.  And the more I read about this, the more I keep thinking that it has an amazing potential for doing good things for God.  Really.

So having shared all that, I would like to ask you to consider helping me with something.   Would you be willing to take a look at the page and join it, if you haven’t already done so?  And would you consider inviting people who you think might be interested in the page to connect to it?

Based on what I have been reading about networks, a small handful of people, theoretically, could powerfully and quickly spread a concept through a very large group.  I’d like to see if that’s possible.  And I would like to see if it could happen with a concept that Jesus says is worthy, a concept He says is of utmost importance:  Loving God and Loving Others.

I know that everyone who reads this is busy and has a life and has lots of other things going on.  I appreciate that you even took the time to read such a long post.  So, if you don’t have time to check the page out and invite people to it, I understand completely.  Please don’t feel pressured or obligated.  This is just an idea that is intriguing to me and I’m passing it along to folks to see what MIGHT happen.  I’m genuinely curious.

Thank you!

I hope you’re sensing God’s love and blessing in your life!

Dan

Jesus Offers Us...Himself

Life can have a way of feeling relentless and draining and our responsibilities can seem extraordinarily heavy. The natural impulse is “escape”. We want to escape from the burdens and pressures. But some of the ways that we choose to escape can be worse than the original pressures. Jesus offers us….HIMSELF.  “Come to ME all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” Matt.11:28

February 1st Christmas Tree Update

Now, please be patient.  I know that in a post on Saturday I WROTE that the Christmas tree would be put away by February 1^st.  And when I wrote that post, please know that I absolutely meant it.  I was firmly committed to that objective.  I was.  Really.  But you have to understand, life can be tricky.  Come on, things happen, you know!  Unexpected obstacles arise.  Life doesn’t always allow us to do the things we intend to do.  Sometimes goals and objectives have to be reevaluated and readjusted and timelines have to be changed to better represent the realities that…..

Ha!  I’m just kidding.  I got you!!!

You’ll be happy to know that as of 9:21 a.m. CST, February 1^st, the Christmas tree has BEEN PUT AWAY!!!   [Cue marching band music.]

Jasper and his friend Jake sat and watched me with great curiosity.   In fact, when I got to the front door, carrying this big, bulky tree, Jake actually got in my way.  He stood right in the doorway as I was trying to take the tree out.  I took that to mean that he didn’t want Christmas to be over.  He didn’t want me to put the tree away.  Dogs seem to love Christmas.  Then Jake “hiked” his leg and gave the tree one last “special christening”.  Hmm, dogs also seem to love Christmas trees.

But, alas, all good things must come to an end.  So, the tree is back in its storage space and things have been returned to normal.  (Oh, there I go again applying the word “normal” to my life.  I should know better than that by now.)

Jake [left] and Jasper [right] sit and watch

the Christmas tree project with great curiosity.

Jasper only ate one ornament during the

process.

Escape The "Noise"

It’s important for us, once in a while, to escape the “noise”. We live in a noisy culture, TV’s, radios, car horns, phones, MP3s, constant talking…we’re barraged with continuous sound. In order to go deeper with God, we have to have some breaks from the noise. Thomas Keating, “Unless the noise stops on occasion, we do not have a chance at experiencing the sacrament of spiritual depth.”