Waste

I started training for my new position on Monday at a Walmart about 30 miles from my home store. So far the training has gone well but there is one thing that completely upsets me. It’s not anything to do with a company policy or the store itself. It has to do with something I’ve been seeing.

Today, which was the second day of “food stamp day” for our store, I had to throw out close to $150 worth of meat that a customer had left in their cart. I guess often people will load up on expensive items only to get to the register and realize that either they don’t have enough food stamp money or that the item is not eligible to be purchased with the food stamps (by the way this is not an affront to people who need food stamps, just those who abuse them).

What really bothered me about this whole scenario is that I stood there while the customer loaded up their cart with really expensive items, carelessly throwing it in. About two hours later a cashier came back from the front with the cart full of all of the meat which had to be thrown out since we had no way of knowing how long it had been out and since it had left the meat area in the possession of a customer.

All I could think about as I threw it out was how many people could benefit from this food. I then thought to myself how many times this scenario is repeated each day at food stores and even homes all over our world. It’s really made me begin to think about my own home and how much food I myself waste.

Genesis 2:15 says “The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.” We are definitely not taking care of our earth. The food that we throw out, both plant and animal, is atrocious. Instead of becoming stewards of this earth we’ve been given, we’ve become abusers ravaging and taking what isn’t ours. As a result it’s left this world in a pretty sorry state.

Not just food but natural resources. Look what happened with the well in the Gulf. Even the wars that we fight are often over natural resources, people being abused so they can mine diamonds for the greedy, it happens more than we realize.

I think it’s time as a society that we all take a long, hard look at ourselves. But this will never happen as long as it’s all about us. That’s what’s gotten us here in the first place. Eventually, it’ll happen. When the resources run out or when something happens to make us step back and look at the world around us break of us of our self-centered nature, then maybe change can occur.

Instead of calling environmentalists “tree huggers” and “hippies”, it’s time we all try to lend a hand to make little changes in our own lives. In our homes, our schools, our workplaces, we can be the one who starts the changes that need to happen. The irony in all of this is, in time, our bodies will go back to where they came from, and we’ll be a part of this earth too.

Remembering

I’ll never forget where I was on September 11, 2001. Still living in Kokomo, I was home with my oldest daughter who was three at the time. She was watching cartoons on public television and I never would have known that anything was amiss if it weren’t for the phone calls I received from others asking me if I saw what had happened. I tried to carefully catch up without exposing her to the horrific scenes that were being shown on the news. I soon found out a few weeks later that we hadn’t succeeded when she asked her grandparents about the flashing red lights atop the radio towers. When they told her that it was to keep airplanes from running into them she responded with “You mean like when it hit those big buildings and all those people died.”

September 11, 2001 is a date that should always be remembered. I think it should be remembered for a time when we saw both the best and worst that humanity has to offer. We saw the affects of what hatred and bigotry can do. How a few people can cause an immense amount of devastation and harm. How those same few can cast a shadow upon an entire belief system and create even more hatred.

But it should also be remembered for what happens when people put aside their own needs for a while. How people can help pick each other up and help encourage each other. How brave some can be by risking their lives to save others. We saw true heroes who in the heat of the moment gave the greatest gift they could give…their lives.

John 15:13 says “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” Nine years ago we saw people give their lives not just for their friends but for complete strangers. There are people who were given a second chance at life, because someone else gave up their lives to save them.

What I wonder is what those people did with their lives? Given a second chance, are they making the most of what they’ve been given? Are they honoring those who died for them by using their lives to make a difference for someone else?

John 3:16 reads “”For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” We too have been given a second chance. We’ve been promised something so much more for our lives, but are we making the most of it?

I personally believe there are times that I have squandered what I’ve been given. That I’ve taken God’s gift to me for granted and not made the most of my life. I think that’s been the hardest lesson for me in everything that I’ve gone through.

But no more. I want to make the most of each day. No more whining or complaining. No more wishing for something that isn’t. I want to take what I have, what I’ve been given, and make the most of it. I want to use the time I have left on this earth to its fullest.

No matter who you are or where you are in life, you have something left to give. You’ve been given a gift by God and it’s up to you to receive it. But regardless, you still can make a difference. It doesn’t take much to make a difference to someone else. Little gestures, random acts of kindness, an encouraging word. You can choose to wallow in the circumstances in which you find yourself, or you can make the most of where you are and live life to the fullest.

Alexander Woollcott said, “There is no such thing in anyone’s life as an unimportant day.”

Glass Houses

Back when I was in Boy Scouts (yes I’m an Eagle Scout) we used to go camping at a farm near where I grew up. One of the things I can remember about camping there, besides the giant water moccasin we encountered, was that in the woods nearby there was a house with huge windows. At the time I can remember thinking about how very little privacy the people who lived there would have and wondered how they could feel secure in such a house where everyone could easily see in.

In my last post I mentioned that one of my favorite stories from the Bible is the story of the woman brought before Jesus to be stoned by the Pharisees. It can be found in John 8:2-11 in case you missed it. In my post I talked about things from the woman’s perspective, this time I want to turn things around a bit.

In my career in ministry I saw a lot of people in some very difficult situations. This was never truer than at the church outside of Philly. While it was a low-income church, it was still a very generous church that was actively involved in helping the less fortunate, so people would often come to us for help.

When I first came to this church I wanted to help everyone. I believed every story I heard and was filled with compassion for people. However, after a time this compassion soon began to fade and I started to become very jaded. I found myself judging people who were struggling, not understanding why they couldn’t just get their lives together. It always seemed to be that the same people were struggling with the same issues over and over again.

Needless to say, do to my recent struggles, my perspective has changed quite a bit since then. I do still believe, as with my own situation, many of the struggles people have in life are of their own doing. When people allow themselves to fall into habits or situations which are not the best for them. This can happen for a variety of reasons, but it often does start with one choice somewhere in their life followed by a series of bad decisions.

The problem is, once you’re in the situation, it’s next to impossible to get out of. Soon you find your choices have left you in a place where you feel totally helpless and all alone. You fear there’s no way out and you’re going to spend the rest of your life struggling and every day you feel like you’re barely treading water trying to survive. If you’re lucky you’ll find someone willing to work with you to help you find a way out of your situation, or you’ll find the strength to find your own way.

Most Christians will never know how this feels. If they did I believe our churches would not be filled with such judgmental people. In my own situation I have had so many cast judgment on me in times when I just needed a friend who cared. I’ve had “friends” turn their back on me, call me names and basically tell me what a disappointment I am.

The thing is when someone is in a situation where they’re struggling, they’re already aware that they’ve caused it and that it’s not where God would have them to be. But when they reach out for help, they don’t need someone to smack their hand and tell them how bad they are. They need someone to take their hand, to hold it, to help them, to tell them that they’re there with them. They need someone to let them know that God still loves them and so do they, and that in time everything will be okay.

Luke 6:36-38 reads:”Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, 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.”

From someone who has been where others are, PLEASE don’t judge people when they ask for your help. Don’t remind them of something they already know. If someone is looking for a hand to hold then please just hold their hand and let them know you care.

Besides most of the people I know, even pastors, have things in their lives that they would rather other people not figure out. They have their own temptations, struggles and fears. Just like the Pharisees, no one is perfect and as such no one is in the position that they are worthy to judge another. As the old saying goes “people in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.”

Plateau

If you’ve ever flown into the Billings, Montana airport you’ll know how interesting a flight it can be. The reason being the Billings airport sits on a plateau. As you’re flying in you’re a little surprised when the runway seems to appear out of nowhere. As you’re leaving you’re likewise surprised when the runway seems to disappear into thin air. The nice thing about an airport that sits on a plateau overlooking the city is that it’s very easy to find since you can see it from just about anywhere.

Plateaus aren’t exactly something us Hoosiers are familiar with. When your state is mostly as flat as a pancake, you tend to be in amazement of any surroundings with some contour (by the way if you’ve never been to Montana I suggest you take a trip, it’s the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen).

Even if we’ve never been to a place like Montana and seen a plateau with our own eyes, we’ve definitely experienced one in life. Whether it’s spiritual, physical, professional or personal, at some point in time we all hit plateaus. They’re those areas in life where we feel like we’re not making any progress (if you’ve ever dieted then you definitely know what I’m talking about). Plateaus are completely frustrating and can completely demoralize us and cause us to give up.

The interesting thing about plateaus in life is that they don’t last long. When we get the feeling we’re stuck on one it won’t be long before we have a choice to make. We can either persevere and push forward or we can give up and start falling backwards.

James 1:2-4 says that we should “Consider it pure joy…whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”

No matter what area of life it’s in, we will grow stronger as we learn to persevere. We will also learn more about ourselves as we do. We’ll learn where our limits are and what steps we must take to keep on going. We’ll also learn who our friends are and what things tend to be the ones that lead us to a plateau.

If you’ve ever seen the movie “Finding Nemo” you’ll remember Dory and her motto. Sometimes in life all we can hope to do is…”just keep swimming.”

Loyalty

A couple of months ago I started to write a post I never finished. I started writing it because I had just gotten the news that my 15 year old dog Sasha had passed away. Sasha was a pound puppy that I got right after I graduated from college. She’d been with me off and on since then but when we moved from a house in Philly to an apartment in Wilkes-Barre we had to give her up. Some friends from Philly said they would keep her since they’d become close to her while dog sitting her a few times.

When Sasha passed I was saddened because I didn’t get a chance to say goodbye. She’d been a loyal friend to me through all the years and I felt like I let her down by not at least seeing her in her last days. No matter what happened Sasha was always there for me and she never gave up on me. She’d spent some time living with my parents after my youngest was born and even though she wasn’t with me she’d always come running up to me when I’d go see them. There were probably even times I was meaner to her than I should have been, yet she never held a grudge and always come running with her tail wagging and her ears up. All she ever wanted was my love and affection, for me to let her know that I still loved and cared for her.

I think to a certain extent God is the same way. The Bible tells us in Revelation 3:20: “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.” God is constantly seeking us out. He’s standing there waiting for us to let Him into our lives. But unfortunately many have dead-bolted the door to Him and are just hoping He goes away. But He won’t.

It doesn’t matter what we’ve said or done, God will always be there knocking waiting for us to answer. God longs for us, his children, to open the door and let Him in. He may try to get our attention. He’ll send people and situations into our lives, trying to get us to open up. But He won’t force his way in, He’ll just patiently knock until we decide to open. Some will, some won’t, but He’ll never give up on us. And if you’re quiet enough maybe, just maybe, you’ll hear Him knocking right now.

Two-Faced

Lately at work has been crazy. With all of the changes coming from the building of our new store and the one up the road a few miles, there’s been all kinds of drama going on. As people are leaving and others are coming in, rumors are flying, backstabbing is taking place, and things aren’t pretty.

Through all of this I’ve been hearing reports of how people are talking about me. I’ve also walked up on conversations that people are having about others I work with. I have to confess I’ve let myself get caught up in a couple of these conversations. More recently though I’m trying my best to stay out of all of the drama, and simply minding my own business.

What has frustrated me though, is that I’ve heard that people I’ve considered friends are some of the ones talking about me. People who I’ve confided have said things to others against me sounding like anything but a friend. It’s made me really rethink who my friends are and be very careful who I confide in. To be honest I’m really not sure who I can trust at work right now.

All this brings me to Ephesians 4:25 which says: “What this adds up to, then, is this: no more lies, no more pretense. Tell your neighbor the truth. In Christ’s body we’re all connected to each other, after all. When you lie to others, you end up lying to yourself.” (The Message).

A lot of what is going on at work is because of people not being willing to tell the truth. It began with management making some questionable choices and then making excuses for why they made them. It’s continued with people jockeying for the positions that open up as people leave and the store expands, and instead of being good sports about whatever happens backstabbing and undermining the reputation of others.

I know that all of this is because we human beings have the need to elevate ourselves at the expense of others. We’d rather see someone fail with us than watch them succeed without us. The best example of this I can think of is sports. Instead of rooting for the team that beats ours, so we can say our team was beaten by the champions, we’d rather see the other team crash and burn.

I truly hope that I can step up and be the person I need to be at work. I hope that I can put aside my need to be a part of the rumor mill and step outside it all the be the bigger person. It’s definitely going to be a challenge as I have struggled with how I’ve gotten passed over a bit and felt I’ve been treated unfairly. But at this point I have no control over it, so I need to take what I’ve been given and run with it. It’s time for me to put up AND shut up!

Parent Theology

One of the hardest things I ever had to deal with was when I was a youth pastor. The father of a girl in our youth group was diagnosed with cancer and was given a month to live. Two weeks later we received word while on a mission trip that he had passed away. We did our very best as a youth group to be there for her and to show support for her and her family. But deep down we all struggled to understand why God had allowed this to happen.

All of this spilled over into church camp where she struggled to understand why this would happen to her father. He was a Christian who had never smoked. She wondered if it was punishment for something her or her father did. As I struggled to answer her questions I pulled aside the guest speaker for the week and talked to him about it.

His point was that sometimes things like this happen. It’s unfortunately a part of life. We live in a sinful and dying world and as a result diseases like cancer exist. God doesn’t cause these things to happen, but God is there to help pick up the pieces after it does.

Through this experience I developed what I like to call a “parent theology”. Viewing God as a parent I compare and contrast my relationship with Him as I would the one with me and my own children. For instance, as a parent I can tell my children not to run on the sidewalk or they might fall and skin their knees. Inevitably they will fall, sometimes because they are running but sometimes it just happens because the sidewalk is uneven. Regardless of what happens I’m going to be there the minute they fall to help pick them up and tend to their wounds. I played no part in causing them to fall, but I’m there beside them when they do.

This theology always worked for me until last April when an eerily similar situation happened to my girlfriend’s mother. I spent so much time praying that God would come through for them, that he would heal her. I told him it would make such a difference for her whole family. I even tried to bargain with Him telling Him I’d do whatever He asked of me as long as He healed her. He didn’t.

The same thing happened or me with my grandfather when I was diagnosed with Crohn’s. I got out of Riley Hospital on Easter Sunday and decided to go see him in the hospital. He fell later that week and hit his head while in the hospital, went into a coma and passed away a few days later. Everyone prayed that he’d get better. He didn’t.

When these things happen everyone says the token responses about how none of us knows God’s plan or it was their time. But when you’re the one going through it all just seems like a load of…well you get my drift. I don’t even think the people who say it truly believe it and are just thankful it hasn’t happened to them. If God really loves us then why doesn’t He intervene when we pray? Why do some people get healed but others don’t? Why don’t the evil suffer the way the good seem to?

1 Corinthians 15:55 says: “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?”

I wish I had the answers to these questions, but I don’t. All I know is that this life will eventually end for all of us. It could be today, tomorrow or years from now, but it will end. And I truly believe, in my heart, that when it does I will spend forever with God in heaven. That when I close my eyes and take my last breath, God will be waiting there when I open them again. And I can think of at least three people that will be there with Him.

“Help Me Jebus!”

There is an episode of “The Simpsons” called “Missionary: Impossible”  in which Homer enlists to become a missionary in order to avoid the local PBS affiliate collecting on his pledge.  On his way to the island he’s been assigned to his plane starts to go down and we hear Homer pray “Help me Jebus!” obviously poking fun at the fact that someone with such a limited knowledge of Christianity would become a missionary.

The thing about this episode is it gets me thinking about whether God listens to such prayers. What I mean by “such prayers” are prayers that are said out of desperation and last resort. Does God listen to people who pray to Him in the 11th hour when they have nowhere else to go? And what about people who’ve never really paid much mind to God, who in their desperation and need cry out to Him?

Romans 8:26-27 says: “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will.”

According to this verse the Holy Spirit will intercede for us in those times when we can’t think of the words to say. But I can’t get past the word “saints” in verse 27. Does this mean the Spirit will only intercede for the saints and that the rest are left to their own devices?

I don’t believe so. I think of the examples of David who when he was out of God’s will cried out to God for help and God answered. I think of all the Scriptures that talk about giving our burdens over to God and how Christ died for the ungodly.

However, it’s one thing to believe that God hears and cares about such prayers. It’s an entirely different thing to think that God will step in and fix the situation. I do believe that God cares for all of us and listens when we cry out to Him. But I also think there are times that God has to let us learn our lesson. This isn’t to say God causes the bad stuff, He just merely lets our situation run its course.

It’s usually these situations that lead to my doubts in God. Those times when I’ve cried out to Him in desperation hoping He’d step in and fix things but He doesn’t. It’s these moments that make me question if He’s there and if He cares about me. Deep down I know He does and I know that most of these situations were created by my own hand. The choices and mistakes I’ve made that lead me to a place I don’t want to be in.

As I write this I’m reminded of the Israelites as they wandered for 40 years in the desert. Their wandering was caused by their own choices so God used the desert to teach them a lesson. However, in the end they came into the land God promised them.

I guess right now I’m in my own desert of sorts. God’s using this time to teach my a lesson, and trust me I’ve learned a lot about who I am and who God is. I hope one day soon that my desert will come to an end and I’ll reach my own promised land that God has prepared for me. But for now I must keep letting God lead me and teach me until that day comes.

In their song “Full Circle” Creed writes: “I got one foot stuck in heaven, yeah/One boot stuck in hell/I looked at God, he winked at me/I made this mess myself”.

Horoscope

I have a confession to make. I read my horoscope just about every day. Now some might wonder what’s the big deal, but others would scold me for it. I’m not saying I buy into it. I’ve seen days when it was eerily correct, but I’ve also had days when it was completely off the mark. Regardless, I came to the conclusion the other day of why I read it. I read it hoping for a little good news and encouragement for my day. A glimmer of hope that the day will be a good day and maybe even a little something to guide me in the choices that I make.

As I was thinking about this, I realized that don’t read my Bible or devotional as diligently as I do my horoscope. I also realized that when I do it doesn’t seem to fill me with the same sense of hope and guidance for the day. This made me begin to wonder why this true. I know down deep that I don’t really buy into my horoscope. However, I do buy into what the Bible has to say. So what gives? Could it be because my horoscope always seems to be different while the Bible and it’s themes are familiar to me?

I think the problem comes in that my horoscope seems to attempt to put an encouraging spin on what is to come regardless of whether it’s good or bad. The Bible, on the other hand, can sometimes be a little more heavy handed. It also probably doesn’t help that the devotional I choose to use is “My Utmost for His Highest” by Oswald Chambers which can be a little harsh at times (I think I might start reading “Our Daily Bread” from time to time too).

The truth of the matter is that the Bible says in Ecclesiastes 8:7 that “Since no man knows the future, who can tell him what is to come?” I don’t think reading my horoscope is a sin. It’s just words on a page and if it helps me a little then I don’t think it’s a big deal. I just have to be careful as to how much faith I put into it.

As for the Bible, I think I need to start looking a little deeper, beyond the surface for insights. If I’m familiar enough with it that I’m no longer gleaning anything from it, then it’s time for me to dig deeper and do more study. I need to explore unfamiliar passages maybe through starting a reading plan. I also think I need to pray as I read asking God to give me insight into what it means for my life right now.

Oh, in case you were wondering, I’m a Pisces. What’s your sign?

Checking Out

When I was young I had a fear of water. It all stemmed from almost drowning in a fountain when I was nine months old. If it weren’t for my grandma jumping in to save me I wouldn’t be here today. It’s a bit of a funny story actually and my mom loves to tell it.

We were at the Promenade in Richmond, Indiana. At the time it was sort of an open air mall with stores lining both sides. All along the middle they had fountains that were at ground level with no sides. Each fountain consisted of pipes that came up to form random shapes from which the water flowed down.

The story goes that I was sitting in my stroller by the fountain, leaned out to touch the water and SPLASH I went in. My grandma without thinking jumped in to save me, both of us ending up soaking wet. My mom ran in to the five and dime to grab some towels for us to dry off with. The story ends with my mom overhearing a couple older ladies near by commenting on people bathing their children in the fountain.

Because of this experience I was scared to death of water, not learning to swim until I was eight years old. I’ve since conquered my fear of water, and while not a strong swimmer, I’m good enough to stay afloat. Oddly enough, however, I had another near death experience which involved water and me being jettisoned over a falls while whitewater rafting.

I’ve probably had more near death experiences than I’d like to remember. Even my ongoing battle with Crohn’s disease has at times left me in a very fragile state. I think it’s because of my most recent battle and the fact my Crohn’s is out of remission that I write this. I’m discovering that my body does not recover as well as it used to and I’m noticing more and more aches and pains. I’ve come to realize that I’m not immortal.

As I’ve thought about this fact I’ve come to realize that I’m not scared to die. It used to be that the thought of Christ’s return or my own demise would come as a major inconvenience. I can remember thinking how I hope that Christ would wait just long enough so that I could make it to this or that milestone. These days I don’t find myself wishing that Christ would plan His return around my social calendar. But this doesn’t mean I’m ready for Him to come back tomorrow either.

Personally, I hope I am ready, that I’ve made my peace and am “right” with God. But I sometimes worry that I’m not. I’m trying to do my best to stay in a relationship with God, but I think that sometimes I let my upbringing lead me to believe that God isn’t as loving and forgiving as I believe him to be. I let the picture I grew up hearing of a judgmental and wrathful God become the God I know. When this happens I worry that I’ll never be good enough for God to love me. But I know that this isn’t the truth.

Most everyone is familiar with John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son,that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” But how many have heard Romans 5:8 says: “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” This doesn’t sound like a wrathful and judgmental God that gets angry when we don’t listen. This sounds like a loving and caring God that loves us even when we screw up.

Based on these verses I do believe that I personally, am ready for Christ’s return. But I’m not ready because there are people in my life that I worry aren’t prepared. It is my hope that in the days I have left on this earth I can help them come to know who God is. That I can be a positive influence and God’s “hands and feet” here on earth.

I hope that when the time comes that I do “check out”, whether it’s because my earthly body has given up or because Christ returns, that I can open my eyes on the other side and see familiar faces and know that in some way, I helped them get there.