come back

Does anyone out there remember the TV ad "Come Back To Jamaica?"

I ask because a lot of people around me are drifting in a variety of ways.

Don't see the connection? Hang with me...



Think about that infectious jingle, "Come back to Jamaica, make it your own, come back to Jamaica, your new island home." I can still sing it - I hope someone made some good coin off of that because twenty five years later it's still rattling around in my brain... next to the theme from Small Wonder (that crazy show about a robotic kid living in a human home), but that's a whole side topic we won't get into.

And then there are other songs like it. At the local rec center last week I was walking by a kid who must have been about ten years old, and he was singing the song "Kokomo" by the Beach Boys. Again - this is a kid who wasn't even alive when it came out, and yet somehow he's picked up on the easy listening stylings of this tune from the 80's. Must be listening to some of the tunrs mom/dad has been playing around the house.

I think these songs have appeal (especially during the winter months) because we yearn for the chance to "recenter" our lives. Whether things are going great or you're feeling like you're in a losing battle, the idea of going someplace warm and slower paced where everything feels "different" seems appealing. It's why people like going to the movies or tuning into their favorite TV show each week - it gives you access to another world beyond the one you've been living in.

One of the first parts of God's Story in the Bible tells how Adam and Eve, the first people He created, decided to go their own way in sin (Genesis 3). When they realized they had done something wrong, the first thing they did was hide. But God didn’t let them stay hidden. He looked for them and let them know how much He loved them.

While we may not physically hide our head somewhere when we blow it, we might feel like doing this relationally with God and others. And yet those are exactly where we can find that "Sabbath" in our lives - the kind that gives perspective to our lives. And if we can't find it legitimately, we'll look for it in an artificial way.

Maybe this is why they say that the back lot of a strip club is fuller than the front, or why two people having an affair and feel they've taken every precaution of being found out freeze when there's a knock at the door, or how after someone makes it to their car after taking a ream of paper from work they sigh for a moment at the steering wheel before turning the key.

That's the Holy Spirit of God doing His part to remind us and guide us into Truth... and every one of those moments is an opportunity to "come back" to the Lord.

An important part of being a follower of Jesus is knowing deep down that GOD SEES YOU PERFECTLY, even when you and others don’t see you that way. Yes, He will convict us of our sins - from the outright socially unacceptable ones to the hidden attitude issues many Christians can "get away" with. But the amazing news is that He's not out to ground you down to the ground... rather, God is all about letting the real you—the masterpiece He created you to be—come out from hiding.

So I want to invite you to "Come back to Jesus" and "Come back to Church." I wish I had a snazzy little jingle of my own to help you remember that in those moments of sin and doubt, but it would seem like God has a better idea:

Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.
- Romans 12:2 (New Living Translation)

slow ride... take it easy

Time passes differently for everyone.

"Bart's" phone doesn't ring as often as he'd like it to. After seven months of unemployment, he's heard all the cliches from his well-meaning friends, and they no longer feel comfortable being around him because nothing has changed in his life. He wonders, "Do they think I'm lazy?" They wonder, "I wonder if he thinks that I think he's lazy."

Bart looks at the phone and counts the milliseconds in between rings... which barely come.

His friends look at the phone, flip it open, and continue on with life.

Time passes differently for everyone.

Then there is "Sara" who is itching for graduation. She's not sure what's exactly happening after she gets her diploma, but she knows that it will be "better" than how things are now. At least she hopes so, for right now she is swamped with a to do list that she's quite convinced will change once she's in the real world.

So she turns all her papers in, and all of her teachers receive them. They sigh as they do, knowing that Sara's paper is but one of many that they will have to read. Each educator longs for the days when they were in school and had all sorts of time to kill... at least, it seems that way in their memories. Life in the real world seems a bit different than they thought it would.

Time passes differently for everyone.

"Art" is finding the current fiscal crisis to be more of a spiritual crisis "Where is God in this?" he wonders, "and why is this happening to me? I had my retirement all planned out. Now... nothing." He keeps watching the endless scribble of the Wall Street updates, trying to understand what seems like random computer code. So he relies on the explanation of others to tell him what he thinks he's seeing.

Which is what he does spiritually, too. He's too worn out to look for God himself, and so he keeps hoping someone will explain what he can't seem to see in his faith anymore. There are some in his life who are helpful in this, and others who only seem to add to the confusion... as if they just don't get how serious a crisis he's going through... as if they only see his crisis through 2-dimensional eyes.

Time passes differently for everyone.

How should we respond in these moments?

Most of us know the advice for such times when the clock doesn't tick as fast as we'd like is to just wait it out. Or write a better resume. Or network more. Or read a book on this or that. Or knock on more doors, and knock harder.

Or "just trust God."

(Notice the quotes - that indicates a cliche versus actually trusting in God, because if we actually trusted in God we wouldn't care if things turned out our way or not. Seriously, think about that for a moment.)

So where do we turn when none of those band-aids provide the surgery we need?

• First, we must recognize the temptations we face in times like this. When our confidence and self-esteem are attacked, we are in a dangerous spot of isolation - not necessarily shutting us down relationally in life (so we can still appear normal), but internally creating all sorts of fears in us that paralyze our ability to make choices. Sometimes we are so fatigued that we lash out at those closest. Most often, though, we wake up for our day already worn out... which can easily get in the way of us seeing what God is genuinely up to.
  
  Only we don't realize the true level of any of that on our own.
  
  
• Second, we may have to finally face up to some very practical challenges - such as not having enough money to pay the bills, meet our deadlines, or keep up with friends. It could be that we feel that we've done our part, but there is a small reserve of effort we've held back because we don't want to be disappointed. We may even find ourselves tempted not to take part in productive spiritual habits like prayer, Bible reading, and tithing.
  
  Isn't it odd how in times when we know we need to trust God more we hang on to the things that keep us from trusting Him?
  
  Some of my boldest steps spiritually happened when I threw myself forward with the last ounce of prayer I had... the last moment of wakefulness I could muster before my body collapsed into sleep... or setting aside that "first 10%" of our limited income to join into the beyond-us movement of God.
  
  Such things don't make a whole lot of sense on the surface, but in hindsight you find they are the emergency shock paddles of defibrillation to your soul.
  
  
• Third, or perhaps "first," maybe it's time to slow down. I know that's ridiculous because when you're slowed down against your will you find that everything in you wants things to change in a second at hyper-speed. And yet sometimes we are challenged with a hurdle because God wants our attention. Even in those times when being in a trial has nothing to do with your spiritual state, setting aside intentional time to slow down and "take it easy" with Him can calm your soul, and produce unexpected spiritual growth in the midst of struggle.

We are not immune from falling away on our hardest days from the hope that seems so clear on our best days. And yet we always have a resource in the Heavenly Father - One who promises never to leave us or forsake us. Failing to call upon Him relationally from the places of our ache denies us access to His comforting Presence in the midst of the very time we need Him most.

And we also have a resource in a community of imperfect people on the same journey we are. That's what a Church is - "people and God" fleshing it all out in practical ways. We remind each other of what is true when the blind spots become our focal point, and help each other find something powerful to do "in the meantime" - a purpose for our lives that turns us into proactive builders with the pieces of our lives instead of reactive lumps to the attacks of the Enemy.

I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge-that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. (Ephesians 3:16-19)

a season for a season

Shhhh.

I know you may be familiar with the text you're about to read. The Byrds used it to give guts to the song "Turn! Turn! Turn!" back in the mid-60's... it's been shared at more than one memorial service as a means of comfort to tragedy... and even Kevin Bacon quoted it in Footloose when John Lithgow inappropriately told him the Lord was against dancing (even though the whole town was made up of professional dancing teenagers).

Shhhh.

Quiet those references down for a moment, because sometimes our familiarity with something sacred can turn it into something less than what it is. Lean into what God is about to breathe on you through this:

There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:

• a time to be born and a time to die,
• a time to plant and a time to uproot,
• a time to kill and a time to heal,
• a time to tear down and a time to build,
• a time to weep and a time to laugh,
• a time to mourn and a time to dance,
• a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
• a time to embrace and a time to refrain,
• a time to search and a time to give up,
• a time to keep and a time to throw away.
• a time to tear and a time to mend,
• a time to be silent and a time to speak,
• a time to love and a time to hate,
• a time for war and a time for peace.

(Ecclesiastes 3:1-8)

Shhhh.

Which of those words jump out to you in each phrase? Answering that can help you gain a footing regarding what has happened, is happening, and will happen to you. Whether you're facing the consequences of your own hands or are engaged in circumstances that others have put upon you, either can bring extreme joy... or exhausting tension.

And apparently... there is a time for both.

Shhhh.

For a while, I have been practicing and putting intentional space in my routine to better hear from God and understand the "time" I'm in.

• All throughout the day, I pray a simple prayer that asks, "God, where are you at in this and how should I respond?"
• Once a day, I build in a pocket of time to reflect on what the Holy Spirit has shown me and how He is nudging me.
• Once a week, I take a Sabbath where my family and I spend our time differently than the other six days... all to remind us that the world doesn't run on our energy and voice mail works just fine.
• Once a month, I get away for a day of reconnecting. That sounds hyper spiritual, but it's just a simple practice of slowing down, looking into people (instead of just "at" people), walking in familiar places and situations with a fresh set of eyes, and asking God to break my heart in all the places it's gotten hard.

Are you up for this kind of practice? Stilling ourselves so that we can hear God is becoming a critical discipline in our techno world.

And it just might help us remember what matters most.

leftovers: remembering...

Sharing with you what I shared when our church gathered today... may this be nothing about personal politics and instead inspiration to pray for those who serve us and protect the freedom we take for granted.