OCTOBER 28, 2017

" ...Give him humility, so that he may always remember the simplicity of true greatness, the open mind of true wisdom, and the weakness of true strength. Then I, his father will dare to whisper, “I have not lived in vain. ”

― Douglas MacArthur - Prayer for his son

“Make every day your masterpiece. ” 
― John Wooden

JEREMIAH 23-24

 6My eyes will watch over them for their good, and I will bring them back to this land. I will build them up and not tear them down; I will plant them and not uproot them. 7I will give them a heart to know me, that I am the Lord. They will be my people, and I will be their God, for they will return to me with all their heart. (24:6-7)

2 TIMOTHY 2

22Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. 23Don’t have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels. 24And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. 25Opponents must be gently instructed, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, 26and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will.

JOURNAL 

The book of 2 Timothy is considered to be Paul's final letter before he is executed. Timothy is considered to be his "son in the faith". Paul serves as a "spiritual father"...so this are his last words to Timothy...his final instruction. In many ways it reminds me of the Poem "If" by Rudyard Kipling.

Over the years I have been fascinated by final letters written as people faced their death. Mostly these are from soldiers and to me there is something holy about the final moments of a soul on this earth...especially when they are choosing through sacrifice and principle to risk their lives. One of those was from a civil war soldier named Sullivan Ballou who died at the First Battle of Bull Run. This letter captures the essence of sacrifice and the preciousness of life that God grants us. It is a reminder that every day and every moment is a gift and should be treated as such. It is also a reminder of the timelessness of our hearts and souls and that there is a longing and a reality that is beyond the borders of our flesh and  blood. 

God asks us to persist and trust even when it is not to our immediate benefit...to do it because that is what it really means to trust and to believe. These words are so beautiful, strong, elegant and would seem impossible that this would be his last words. Yet this sacrifice that God called him to has inspired millions of people all over the world. It has been read in locker rooms, board rooms and yes even on the steps of Congress upon the oath of presidents. So while I may never understand God's timing and his purposes, he is always good and his timing and plan are ultimately perfect.

Camp Clark, Washington

My very dear Sarah: 

The indications are very strong that we shall move in a few days - perhaps tomorrow. Lest I should not be able to write you again, I feel impelled to write lines that may fall under your eye when I shall be no more.

Our movement may be one of a few days duration and full of pleasure - and it may be one of severe conflict and death to me. Not my will, but thine 0 God, be done. If it is necessary that I should fall on the battlefield for my country, I am ready. I have no misgivings about, or lack of confidence in, the cause in which I am engaged, and my courage does not halt or falter. I know how strongly American Civilization now leans upon the triumph of the Government, and how great a debt we owe to those who went before us through the blood and suffering of the Revolution. And I am willing - perfectly willing - to lay down all my joys in this life, to help maintain this Government, and to pay that debt.

But, my dear wife, when I know that with my own joys I lay down nearly all of yours, and replace them in this life with cares and sorrows - when, after having eaten for long years the bitter fruit of orphanage myself, I must offer it as their only sustenance to my dear little children - is it weak or dishonorable, while the banner of my purpose floats calmly and proudly in the breeze, that my unbounded love for you, my darling wife and children, should struggle in fierce, though useless, contest with my love of country?

I cannot describe to you my feelings on this calm summer night, when two thousand men are sleeping around me, many of them enjoying the last, perhaps, before that of death -- and I, suspicious that Death is creeping behind me with his fatal dart, am communing with God, my country, and thee.

I have sought most closely and diligently, and often in my breast, for a wrong motive in thus hazarding the happiness of those I loved and I could not find one. A pure love of my country and of the principles have often advocated before the people and "the name of honor that I love more than I fear death" have called upon me, and I have obeyed.

Sarah, my love for you is deathless, it seems to bind me to you with mighty cables that nothing but Omnipotence could break; and yet my love of Country comes over me like a strong wind and bears me irresistibly on with all these chains to the battlefield.

The memories of the blissful moments I have spent with you come creeping over me, and I feel most gratified to God and to you that I have enjoyed them so long. And hard it is for me to give them up and burn to ashes the hopes of future years, when God willing, we might still have lived and loved together and seen our sons grow up to honorable manhood around us. I have, I know, but few and small claims upon Divine Providence, but something whispers to me - perhaps it is the wafted prayer of my little Edgar -- that I shall return to my loved ones unharmed. If I do not, my dear Sarah, never forget how much I love you, and when my last breath escapes me on the battlefield, it will whisper your name.

Forgive my many faults, and the many pains I have caused you. How thoughtless and foolish I have oftentimes been! How gladly would I wash out with my tears every little spot upon your happiness, and struggle with all the misfortune of this world, to shield you and my children from harm. But I cannot. I must watch you from the spirit land and hover near you, while you buffet the storms with your precious little freight, and wait with sad patience till we meet to part no more.

But, O Sarah! If the dead can come back to this earth and flit unseen around those they loved, I shall always be near you; in the garish day and in the darkest night -- amidst your happiest scenes and gloomiest hours - always, always; and if there be a soft breeze upon your cheek, it shall be my breath; or the cool air fans your throbbing temple, it shall be my spirit passing by.

Sarah, do not mourn me dead; think I am gone and wait for thee, for we shall meet again.

As for my little boys, they will grow as I have done, and never know a father's love and care. Little Willie is too young to remember me long, and my blue eyed Edgar will keep my frolics with him among the dimmest memories of his childhood. Sarah, I have unlimited confidence in your maternal care and your development of their characters. Tell my two mothers his and hers I call God's blessing upon them. O Sarah, I wait for you there! Come to me, and lead thither my children.

--Sullivan

OCTOBER 27, 2017

“If you stay intent and your ability warrants it, you will eventually reach the top of the mountain.” 
― John Wooden

JEREMIAH 20-22

  3This is what the Lord says: Do what is just and right. Rescue from the hand of the oppressor the one who has been robbed. Do no wrong or violence to the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow, and do not shed innocent blood in this place. (22:3)

2 TIMOTHY 1

 I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. 7For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. 

JOURNAL 

For years this has been my favorite verse...it reminds me that we have power and we can increase that power which comes from God by "fanning into flame".  Being someone who loves to build fires, I know exactly the benefit of doing this...fanning brings oxygen to the fire which can cause a few tiny embers to erupt into flames. Many times the fire will appear to be out, yet you add some wood and begin to blow and as if by magic, flames erupt. 

I love this visual and again it is the Bible that brings this reminder and it comes from the book of 2nd Timothy...often considered Paul's last letter, written from prison to Timothy, who had become like a son to him. These words were written to give him the keys to understanding the spirit and power of God. God plants the seeds of power, love and discipline in our lives, but we must tend to it and fan it into flame.  We can't expect to ignore it and just hope that it will erupt...we must focus on it and do all the things through obedience, prayer and action that will bring oxygen to the spirit in our lives. 

5For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. 8For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins.

2 PETER 1:5-9

OCTOBER 26, 2017

“Things work out best for those who make the best of how things work out.”― John Wooden

JEREMIAH 17-19

5This is what the Lord says:

“Cursed is the one who trusts in man,

who draws strength from mere flesh

and whose heart turns away from the Lord.

6That person will be like a bush in the wastelands;

they will not see prosperity when it comes.

They will dwell in the parched places of the desert,

in a salt land where no one lives.

7“But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord,

whose confidence is in him.

8They will be like a tree planted by the water

that sends out its roots by the stream.

It does not fear when heat comes;

its leaves are always green.

It has no worries in a year of drought

and never fails to bear fruit.” (17:5-8) 

1 TIMOTHY 6

6But godliness with contentment is great gain. 7For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. 8But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. 9Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 10For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.

11But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. 12Fight the good fight of the faith.

JOURNAL 

Life is tough and I think what makes life so difficult other than the obvious fact that we have to face pain, death and a host of unfortunate circumstances, is that it never goes quite the way we want it to go. It can seem and feel that we are cursed with the idea of perfection because we are never able to attain it. 

That's why it is imperative that I inundate myself in scripture every single day. Scripture has a way of flipping my perspective and giving me the mindset I need to press into the difficulties, the blunders, the unfortunate, the painful. It also has a way of helping me see truth and how to navigate a world that sometimes just feels to be working against me. 

I came accross the Wooden quote back in the summer. It hit me as profound but it seems that every week since it has come back up as I face disappointments and circumstances that fall short of my desire and hope. The beauty of the quote is it's packed with so much biblical truth within 15 words. It essentially says that life will turn out best when you stop complaining, and stop insisting that life turn out a certain way. It demands that for things to really turn out the best, you have to accept what is and continue to give the best of yourself no matter what happens. No matter if you strike out, blow it, no matter if you get a terrible diagnosis or get betrayed or lose someone close to you. No matter if you are falsely imprisoned or accused or crucified. It also means that when things do go your way and you are blessed then you still seek to make the best of the circumstance.  

To me this quote is an RX for life. Whatever happens, make the best of it and trust that God will in turn make the best of your efforts, your sacrifice, your persistence, your talent. Regardless of whether its accepted by the world or rejected by the world...the result is not what matters, but how you respond means everything. 

2Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters,^a whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. 5If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. 6But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. 7That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. 8Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.

JAMES 1:2-8

OCTOBER 25, 2017

“Sacrifice is a part of life. It's supposed to be. It's not something to regret. It's something to aspire to.” 
― Mitch Albom, The Five People You Meet in Heaven

JEREMIAH 14-16

19Lord, my strength and my fortress,

my refuge in time of distress,

to you the nations will come

from the ends of the earth and say,

“Our ancestors possessed nothing but false gods,

worthless idols that did them no good.

20Do people make their own gods?

Yes, but they are not gods!” (16:19-20)

1 TIMOTHY 5

8Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

JOURNAL 

It is very clear from these verses that man is to do all he can with what he has to provide for himself and his family in obedience to God.  He is to trust God and God only and is not to be consumed with things that are not God. 

This is such a tough word yet it is pretty cut and dry. To follow this means that I am willing to give up pursuit of anything other than God and his direction as my ultimate goal. This means that every action, encounter, situation and circumstance has to be put through the filter of this obedience.  Obedience to God has to be my ultimate objective or else I am not really a believer. I see no other way of interpreting scripture. 

However once obedience to God is my ultimate pursuit then many things will follow that pursuit. Humility, diligence, generosity, honesty, sacrifice, courage, joy and love. To live life with these attributes being poured out of my life becomes a life that is the best of which I can give. It is a life that I am honored to live and one in which I will have no regrets. 

17Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. 18Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. 19In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.

1 TIMOTHY 6:17-19

OCTOBER 24, 2017

“You have not lived today until you have done something for someone who can never repay you.” 
― John Bunyan

JEREMIAH 11-13

I said, ‘Obey me and do everything I command you, and you will be my people, and I will be your God. (11:4)

1 TIMOTHY 4

4For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, 5because it is consecrated by the word of God and prayer.

6If you point these things out to the brothers and sisters,^a you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus, nourished on the truths of the faith and of the good teaching that you have followed. 7Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. 8For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. 9This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance. 10That is why we labor and strive, because we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all people, and especially of those who believe.

JOURNAL 

This morning Eli and I were getting breakfast after working out and I had a thought...it was a thought I have had before but it clearly was a reminder that our mindset can really be a game changer. I asked him, "what if yesterday when you went to bed, you were in an ISIS prison and it had been determined that you were going to be executed this morning. However...instead of waking up to that nightmare, you woke up to your present life instead.  How would you view today, would it make a difference in how you lived it?" The answer of course is yes...I think of all the movies, from Family Man to It's a Wonderful Life to all the Christmas Hallmark movies...then there is Les Miserables and the scene with the priest when he forgives Jean Valjean in stealing the candlesticks. All of these are perspective altering and as a result behavior altering.

Why? That's just the way God wired us, which is why we have the Bible and all the stories instead of just a set of rules. I think of Paul, the disciples, Moses, Noah, David...the list goes on and on, all of which had a perspective change and then a life change. To me that is a clue that being open to changing my perspective is part of the way God speaks to me. My life is such a blessing and if I view it through a certain lens then it really is wonderful and I am so grateful to have the opportunity to live it. 

God help me to keep this perspective. Take the filter of apathy away so that I see life and the opportunities in front of me in all the wonder and opportunity that they actually possess. 

17Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. 18Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. 19In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.

1 TIMOTHY 6:17-19