Advice From a 5-Year-Old

"Just pretend like you're a slave and you'll die if you don't do it."

This was 5-year-old Evan's advice for his older brother the other day when Jacob was complaining about his chore.  I chuckled as I listened in on the conversation, because it could only lead me to believe that this was the mentality Evan was using as well.  It wasn't totally new to me, since at the dinner table, when I have served something that doesn't exactly appeal to him, he has informed me that he doesn't like it, "but I'm going to pretend I'm in jail and it's all I have to eat."  I usually encourage him to do just that, because even though he isn't in jail, it really is all he has to eat at the moment!

Obviously, I do not my wish for my children to think of their relationship with me as that of slave/master or jailer/inmate.  :) But I do think Evan is on to something; frame of mind is important! 

It's like running.  We are a running family.  While some of my family members train to compete, I run for exercise.  Sometimes, before a run, it's helpful for me to acknowledge "Ok, I will be in pain for the next thirty minutes" (or forty or fifty, or however long the run is).  I have to be mentally prepared for the discomfort of exercise because I believe in the benefit it provides for me.  Even the more serious runners in our family have to be mentally prepared for pain because they are looking towards a greater goal!  Something we say when the run gets hard is,

"We are out here--make it count!"

To think this way reinforces the fact that the pain will not be forever, and it encourages us to focus on the end goal, not the pain of the training itself.  It's the same when they actually run their races.  Being prepared mentally can help with achieving the goals of completion and hopefully a good finish. 

Our time on earth is temporary.  James says that we "are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes".  We aren't going to be here forever.  As I've heard it said recently, one out of every one person dies.  For those who have trusted Christ, we have a better place awaiting us.  We look forward to the life to come, and eagerly await the glorious return of our Savior.  It is natural and right for a person filled with the Holy Spirit to be disgusted by the sin and corruption of this world, as well as our own sin with which we must contend while we are here.  However, it is essential that we consistently remind ourselves that it is not forever.  That doesn't mean we just sit around and wait, and not deal with the issues at hand.  We should work for the coming Kingdom and take the gospel to our neighbors.  Keeping the end in sight, and more importantly, keeping the goal of becoming more like Christ within our minds helps us to press on.

 "Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, 

but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. 

Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. 

But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead,   

I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.   

Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, 

God will reveal that also to you. Only let us hold true to what we have attained.

Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according 

to the example you have in us.  For many, of whom I have often told you 

and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ.  

 Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, 

and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things.  

But our citizenship is in heaven, 

and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,  

 who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, 

by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.

Philippians 3:12-21 

Our frame of mind can make a difference.  A mind that is set on eternity will no longer view the things of this world as the end.  Material things will rightly become lackluster, and the glory of God will be of utmost importance!  We are here for just a little while in the scheme of eternity.  Make it count!

The God of All Comfort

"I would go to the deeps a hundred times to cheer a downcast spirit; it is good for me to have been afflicted, that I might know how to speak a word in season to one that is weary."

~Charles Spurgeon

I can't say that I've gone through the same things you have been through.  I won't say that my circumstances are better than yours, and I won't say that my circumstances are worse.  No matter what may appear on the outside, the fact is that everybody suffers on some level.  

Everybody.

Because we live in a fallen world.

We all have bad days, we all suffer from trials.  And if you are a fellow believer, you can rejoice with me in the fact that our suffering is not in vain!  He has purposed it for a reason.  We can believe that life consists of more than ourselves; that there is a greater purpose.  It is within that promise that we find Hope.  

If I believed that my life was all about my happiness and my comfort, then any suffering that came my way (and it would come my way) would impart to me complete misery and despondency.  

But because our Savior is more powerful than even death, I can believe that my life on this earth is not where it ends for me.  Abundant life awaits me after death.

But, what about while I'm here?  As a Christian, what do I do with the trials I go through while I'm still living?

I can rejoice in them (James 1:2-3)
...because I can trust that God will use them to make me more like Christ.  As a Christian, I want to please God more than anything, because of what He has done for me by saving me.  I want to become more like His Son, who was the only perfect human who ever lived.  I want to live a life of thanks unto Him for the salvation He has given to me, a wretched sinner.  

I can be thankful in them (1 Thessalonians 5:18) 
...because nothing can happen to me which isn't allowed by God (Matthew 10:28-29).  Since this is true, I can know that He will give me the strength to endure.  Even the death of His own Son, Jesus, would not have happened if He hadn't willed it.  I can honestly give Him praise, because I know that He is sovereign and is in complete control.

I can use them to comfort others (2 Corinthians 1:3-7)
...because of the great comfort He gives me in the midst of the trial.  This may not come for a while, but it may come.  Whatever evil we may face in life, we must never forget that God is good.  Suffering is not wasted.  It will accomplish His purpose and can be used to encourage others who may walk the same road at a later time.  That is one reason why anger and bitterness must never take root in our lives!
























I think most would agree that life is interesting.  It is a journey full of joy, milestones, wonder and yes, trials.  And certainly this isn't a comprehensive commentary on the afflictions that we bear in this life.  But rather, these are thoughts to consider - merely the beginning, really.  God has packed the Bible full of instruction and promises dealing with the circumstances of our lives on earth!  The quote by Spurgeon at the beginning challenges me, encourages me and frankly, causes me to reflect on whether it is true of me.  I sure hope it is, because it is this sort of thinking and attitude that truly glorifies the Lord in our trials.

Thoughts of Earth Day

So last Thursday was Earth Day, huh?

I like the earth. Really I do. It's where I live, right? It's a planet perfectly designed for human life. It has a perfect atmosphere. A perfect magnetosphere. A perfect tilt.

I also like taking care of the earth. I like not littering. I like teaching my children to pick up trash, and when it is possible, to recycle.

I also like trees. And flowers. And mountains. And rivers. Oh I really like rivers. In fact, I think this place is beautiful. My family and I love to be out where we can really experience the beauty that God has created.

Yes, that God has created.

As much as I like this planet we call home, I still realize that the best is yet to come. This is not the end all be all. It's sometimes hard to imagine that as wonderful as our world is, that it is actually still in a fallen state. It makes me anxious for what is to come!

But, for now, this is where I live.

So I am all for planting trees, and picking up trash, and doing things that naturally keep our world beautiful (notice I do not mention things like taxing AIR. That's as far as I'll go with that for now).

Ahem.

Anyway, I say all this to say that...I like the earth.

But I LOVE its Creator.

There is a cult among us which encourages us to love the earth, yet it denies God as the Creator.

It denies that He actually is the end all be all. And one day, when the earth actually is destroyed, He will still be on His throne. Psalm 97:5 prophesies that the mountains will "melt like wax before the Lord" at His coming.

So, even in the midst of our "green" culture, don't lose sight of the fact that this rock is our temporary home. Sure, we should live responsibly and do our best to take care of it. God wants us to enjoy His creation and teaches us so much through it.

But my encouragement is this: the next time you plant a tree, don't just think of it as a small act toward saving the environment. Think, for example, about the miracle that God has provided through the dying of seeds and the restoring of new life. Realize that this earth is full of beauty that points to God. It is merely His creation, and He will not be outdone.