The Tiger in the Living Room

Emerald is twenty-two months old now, and she has really been enjoying following the new cat around. She walks behind the cat, talking all the way, singing, and laughing. When the cat sits down, so does Emerald. She loves to get as close to the kitty as possible, and she kind of goes back and forth between being afraid of the cat and wanting to smother her with an overenthusiastic love.

Sometimes when the cat flops down someplace, Emerald will lie down on her round toddler belly and reach chubby fingers out to pet the her. She really seems taken by that beautiful silky fur, the golden eyes, and the cute pink sparkly collar. Sometimes she goes so far as to follow the kitty on her hands and knees, meowing as if they are sisters.

So far the cat has taken all of this fairly well. She allows the petting and the poking and the loud talking and giggling most of the time. But, there have been a few times when Emerald was in the kitty’s face or petting her a little too vigorously, when the cat just reached out her paw and scratched that cute chubby hand.

Each time it happens Emerald runs to me, crying, holding up her hand for me to see it and kiss it and assure her that the kitty is still her friend.  I point out those sharp claws that she needs to watch out for.  And each time she gets scratched, she is afraid of the cat for awhile. She won’t get close to those claws, remembering how they hurt her not long ago.

But, after a night’s sleep she generally seems to have forgotten all about the scratches, and she starts in again the exact same way, following the cat around, petting her, imitating her, generally focused on being near her at all times.

While I watched Emerald meowing along behind the cat this morning, I was struck by how her relationship with the cat looks a lot like the Christian’s relationship with the world. We’re attracted to the things of Earth because they’re pretty. They’re fun. They entertain us and give us interesting things to look at and chase after and imitate. So, we bring these things into our homes and we play with them, and sit as close to them as possible, and we giggle and we enjoy them.

And, while we do this, we realize that there are lots of things in the world that are good and virtuous and teach us important lessons that are not necessarily “Christian” things.  Art, for instance, books, movies, television shows, music, fashion, technology.  It’s okay to like and appreciate and enjoy those things.

But, there is real danger in the things of this world.  There seems to be dispute about this among Christians, but let me be the one to say this to you very clearly and concisely:  there is no comparison between the things of this world and the things of God.  They are not equally beneficial.  When we invite worldly things into our lives and the lives of our children, we should do so with great caution and extreme care.  Because when the world comes into our homes, we are letting our children play with it the way Emerald plays with the cat.  And, it is inevitable that the scratches will come.  Some things we invite in–television shows, for example– might cause some pain and conviction in our hearts.  But, other things, like unfiltered access to pornography on cell phones and computers, are equal to inviting a full-grown tiger into your home and allowing your family to play with it.  And, it doesn’t have to be officially qualified as pornography to have the same horrible effects on the minds and spirits of you and your loved ones.  Many things on television and in movies and in books and in music are easy ways to allow your soul to be mauled by the one who, incidentally, the Bible says is prowling around, ready to devour you.

The attitude that “art” can teach us things about God while directly conflicting with His word has got to be Satan’s favorite lie of our day.  It’s such an easy way to get Christians to lose focus.  Our goal is humble holiness, and there are just some things that this world offers that directly conflict with that goal.   When we play with the tiger in the living room, we are going to get hurt.

So, we need to be careful and evaluate with all seriousness the value of each worldly influence we allow into our homes.  Many things are beautiful, touching, and interesting.  But, we should not be fooled into thinking that an unbelieving world has things to teach us about God.  His word is sufficient.  Romans 12:2 says this:

Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you. (MSG)

If we want to be changed,  if we want to kick the tiger out of the living room, we can do it by fixing our attention on God and responding to His word.  This means we have to carefully evaluate what we allow into our homes.  Sure, we may be called prudes, but if that’s the worst thing that happens to us today, I’d say we have it pretty good.

And, when Emerald runs to me with her next scratch, I’ll kiss it and hug her and remind her that her friend has claws.

 

 

In His Hands

Tonight while I was brushing the kids’ teeth, Chad came into the bathroom with his ukulele, and before long we were in full blown sing-along mode.  At one point, Chad was standing in the middle of the bathroom, singing at the top of his lungs, and all three kids were sitting at his feet as if he were the new Elvis of the elementary school set.   Then he busted out an oldie but a goodie:  “He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands.”

We sang together, enjoying the last few moments of the day, and the final memories of spring break were made during this verse:

He’s got the little bitty babies in His hands, He’s got the whole world in His hands.

We herded the kids out of the bathroom and off to bed, and I put on my comfy pants and sat down on this couch.  The verse we had just sung was hanging in the air around me like a whisper.  I sang it absentmindedly while I picked up dirty socks and put green shirts in the wash to ensure that no pinching befalls my people on Saint Patrick’s Day.  I sang, and I thought about the Malaysian airplane that has vanished without a trace.  He’s got you and me, brother, in His hands. . .

I sang, and I remembered the moment when the doctor told me that my pregnancy was over.  He’s got the wind and the rain in His hands. . .

I sang, and I thought about how often I try to control what’s happening around me.  He’s got the whole world in His hands. . .

It’s a silly kids’ song.  But, it does ring with truth.  The Bible tells us that not even a little bird will fall from the sky without God’s involvement.  It tells us that we make lots of plans, but the Lord determines which way we go.  It tells us that He knows exactly how many hairs are on each and every head.  The Bible makes it clear that He is more than a distant God who spun the universe into being and then sat back to watch what would happen next.  He is ever present, and He is firmly in control.

Yes, as a matter of fact, He really does have this whole crazy messed up world in His hands.  And He knows exactly what He is doing.

So, when we are worried, when we can’t see how an airplane could disappear, when we get bad news, when we just feel lost, we can know that God has the little bitty babies, even the little bitty birds, in His hands, and He is carrying us, too.

So, keep singing.  Keeping remembering.  We are never forgotten.  We are held tight in the loving hands of a God who doesn’t let go, who doesn’t make mistakes, and who isn’t worried even a little bit.

My kids went to bed singing about that truth tonight.  And, I pray when we all wake up tomorrow, whatever the day may hold, that we will be able to sing with assurance that He has the whole world in His hands, and He isn’t letting go anytime soon.

Sing on, my friends.  Ukulele optional.

Emerald Saw a Movie, and I Saw Emerald

Today I stopped to really see Emerald.  We were in the middle of her first ever in-the-theater movie.  This twenty-two month old little ball of energy was nap-deprived and candy-hyped, so I was really surprised when she sat in the seat and even put on her 3D glasses.  She seemed really proud of herself, a tiny tagalong to her older siblings and cousins, sitting on the end of the row, eating her very own movie theater popcorn.

She was squirmy and she was excited.  The loud music started with the previews, and it didn’t phase her even a little bit.  She seemed completely at ease, kicked back in her chair like she owned the place, while I held down her seat with my leg to keep it from folding up on her tiny self.

Every once in awhile she would turn to grin at me, obviously pleased by the turn of events that had led her to this spot.  And, every time she looked over to catch my eye, with her silly movie glasses and her smile filled with those gorgeous little baby teeth, I thought about how quickly she is growing.  How one day in the not-so-distant future those little pearly whites will be replaced by awkward big kid teeth.  How soon I will be walking my last baby to kindergarten.  All of life comes soon.  And big kid-ness comes like fog that one morning is suddenly standing at your door.  You didn’t even notice it coming, and then one day you wake up and there it is.

And I thought about how many days go by when I don’t take the time to stop and really see my babiest baby.  But, today was not one of those days.

Today I saw her.

And, when she and I walked out into the bright mall corridor about an hour into the movie, I  was almost glad that she grew bored and got a little too talkative in the theater.  We walked around the mall, she lagging, meandering, singing, stopping to look at what interested her.  And, while passers-by  smiled her way, I watched her with fresh eyes.  I saw her as the tiny God-gift she is, the baby that I thought would never be, the child who wears me out and wakes me up and wants me above all others.  What a precious time in life.

Today I really saw her.  And tonight I whisper a little prayer before I lay down a very weary head that tomorrow will be another seeing day.  That I won’t lose a moment of the wonder of her, even when things get chaotic in this family of five.  She is worth slowing down for.  Time may speed on, but I will steal some moments to look into those blue eyes and remember what a blessing she is.  Because right now she is mine.

And I love what I see.

A Spring Break Update

Sorry I’ve been scarce around here this week. It’s spring break, and we’ve been breaking. We took the kids to Six Flags yesterday, and it seems that we had the same idea as everyone else in the state. Walking around the park on one of the first really warm days of the spring, I was once again reminded that I don’t understand fashion. Everyone was strutting around in their weird outfits that made no sense, and all I was thinking was that this is what they’re going to expect us to wear this summer. I suppose this is how you become an old lady. I think I’m there, friends.

The whole time we were gone I was thinking about how lonely our cat must be.  I am suddenly one of those people who worries about my cat’s feelings.  Yet another sign that I’m old.  I may as well go ahead and sign up for the cheese of the month club or find myself a bingo hall.

Today I went to lunch with my best friend, whom I haven’t seen since last summer, and I got a glimpse inside her purse.  Can I tell you that it was a glorious and beautiful sight?  Lots of useful things tucked neatly into their places, no trash, no cap-less pens or half-eaten suckers, no old receipts or broken crayons.  I knew that mom purses like hers were rumored to exist, but I always thought they were more of an urban legend than anything.  And, my trash-filled purse sagged over there uselessly, filled with nothing that I need and everything I don’t want to dig through just to find my lipstick.

If you’re interested in what kind of deep thoughts I’ve been thinking lately, here’s one for you:  What do you call a fish with no eye?  A fsh.  Get it?  No I?????  I learned that little gem from my niece tonight.  As you can tell, spring break has been all about solving the problems of the world and/or figuring out how close I am getting to old lady status.

Plus, the neatly organized mom purse sighting.  Rare and wonderful, and I didn’t even get a picture.

Some people spend spring break on the beach.  I’m glad to spend it with the people I love,  listening to hyped up kid cousins sing at the top of their lungs in a living room crammed with happy people, piling onto a roller coaster on a sunny day, talking to a friend over a plate of food that would make Jenny Craig weep.  It’s been a much needed break.  And God is in it all.

He gives lots of gifts.  Spring break is one of my favorites.

 

 

 

 

Jesus Would Do Whatever He Would Do

What would Jesus do? Believe it or not, this question, which basically became a joke to most Christians after it graced every t-shirt, bracelet, and bumper sticker for awhile, has now become a serious and essential question of the Christian faith. I’ve seen it asked in all kinds of contexts, and usually those of us who are quick to answer it seem to feel as if we have a direct line to Jesus’ brain that tells us in any and every situation how Jesus would handle things.

The fact is that we can never know with all certainty how Jesus would handle anything because He is God, and the Bible clearly tells us that His thoughts are higher than our thoughts and His ways are higher than our ways.

Yes, we can see His character played out in Scripture. But, we see Him both rebuke and forgive. We see Him love and we see Him feel righteous anger. We see him humble himself as a servant, and we see Him exalted at the right hand of the Father. We see Jesus eat with sinners, and we see Him meet with religious leaders. We see Him combat Satan in the desert and we see Him stand silent before His accusers in the courts. We see Him healing the masses and we see Him allowing His friend to die. Jesus is a highly complex, completely perfect, holy in every way God and man. He is beyond our comprehension and yet is completely accessible.

But, what Jesus would do cannot be reduced to one simple always-the-right-answer idea. The truth is that Jesus, complex as He is, complicated as His calling is, could and would do any number of things in any given situation. Yet, we talk about Him as if we have a window to His own thoughts.

We would do better to humble ourselves and admit that we might not be exactly sure what Jesus would do in every situation, but we know that whatever He does is good, is holy, and is perfect in every way. Maybe instead of asking what Jesus would do, we should stop dealing in the world of hypotheticals and instead ask the tougher question: What would Jesus have me do?

And, then we start getting someplace in the run toward holiness.

Love and Other Tough Things

Following Christ is hard. Living the Christian life well is hard. The Bible is filled with hard teachings. We are called to love others, even those who hate us.

There have been times during the course of history when the call to love and to love well and to love everyone was considered the ultimate goal of Christianity. That love alone trumps every other truth of the Bible. And, if it were true that we could boil down the whole Bible to the simple truth: Love others, then Christianity might not be quite so hard to live out. If we could say that nothing matters more than loving others, then we would never be hated. We would never have to say hard things to one another. We would never have to speak truth that is unpopular.

But, the Bible has one other major command in it that cannot be ignored. The command is to love God with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength. And that command, to love God with all we have an all we are, demands that we are obedient to our Father. It means that we wrestle with our sins. It means that we stand up for the truth of His word. It means that we sharpen each other as iron sharpens iron, using the word of God to guide our every choice, every motive.

The Ten Commandments were handed down to Moses, not just to give us a set of rules follow, but to give us a clear way to see how far we are from the holiness of a perfect God, to show us how much we need a Savior in Jesus Christ. And, when Jesus arrived, He made it so clear that it isn’t the “rules” that matter, but the spirit behind the rules, which is one of total obedience, complete surrender to the God who loves us, who saves us, and, yes, who demands that we turn away from our sin and reach for a better way of living. A huge part of that way of living is loving others. But, there is much more to it. And, the other stuff? It’s a lot more involved that just saying “I love you.” It is laying down your life for others. It is laying down your life before a holy God, chasing Jesus’ example of living with love, with reverence for God, with hatred for sin, with humility of spirit, and with the knowledge that we are unworthy of His care and blessings. This way of living is being unpopular, even hated, for trying to kill off the sin in our lives, and it is being scorned for saying that we should.

And that is why Christianity is hard.

I know many who read this will laugh, scoff, tell me I’m ignorant, uneducated, naïve, brainwashed, and who knows what else. But, there is one authority in my life: the Word of God. So, throw stones as you see fit. My God can take it.

And, with His strength, I can, too.

The McConaughey Follow-Up

Well, yesterday was interesting. I wrote a post and put it out there as usual, expecting my usual 150-ish people to read it, and somehow it got passed all over the world. I generally don’t write for all over the world. No, I write for my friends and family, and I consider them my true audience.

I started this blog because I wanted to leave something of myself for my children to read when I’m gone. I wanted to leave a legacy of faith in Jesus, and a testimony of how real God is and how He has worked in my life. Despite all of His work on me through the years, I am still plagued by plenty of weaknesses. But, I’m learning to depend on Him and trust that where I am weak He is strong, and He can take my okay-ness and do something good with it. I am trusting that is what He is doing with the Matthew McConaughey post from yesterday.

If you’ve read the comments, you know that I was not a popular person in lots of different circles yesterday. Many people felt like I was judging Matthew McConaughey. I was certainly judging the content of his movies. I think that it’s okay for me to do that, as a Christian. I didn’t watch the movies, but I get information about the content of movies and television shows from a great website called pluggedin.com. I don’t enjoy watching movies that are filled with sexual content and foul language, even if the overall message is good. I think explicit sex scenes are spiritually harmful to Christian people.

Yesterday’s post was not about whether Matthew McConaughey is a Christian. It wasn’t about whether I am better than him or worse than him. It wasn’t even about him thanking God in his acceptance speech. The post was a reaction to what I was seeing on the internet in the hours following his speech. What I saw was Christian people reaching up to that stage in Hollywood to cling to Matthew McConaughey’s nice tuxedo jacket, to hang on to his coattails and excitedly exclaim that he is one of us. That he validates us and he makes our God more acceptable, and if Matthew McConaughey is going the praise the Lord, then that must make our faith worth more. I didn’t want us, as Christians, to feel like Matthew’s speech somehow legitimized our trust in Jesus.

This is my little corner of the internet, and I try to fill it with truth. I certainly don’t hold myself up as an amazing example of Christianity. I fail. A lot. But, this is my place to be honest with fellow Christians about the wonderful things and the difficult things about being a Christian in our current world. And, that’s all I was doing yesterday. I was trying to speak the truth.

One person asked what I thought Jesus would think about my blog post yesterday. I don’t presume to speak for Jesus, but I pray that He, knowing my heart, has taken what I said, in all its imperfection, and done something good with it for His kingdom. I know that He can bring beauty from ashes, in my life, in Matthew McConaughey’s life, and in this little blog that suddenly got big for a day. It was an interesting experience.

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Matthew McConaughey is Not My Hero

Matthew McConaughey won an Oscar. And, boy, are Christians happy about it. I mean, Christians are jumping up and down for this Texas boy for his big win because he actually thanked God in his acceptance speech. He did, he gave God credit and he thanked his wife like he should and he gave a rambling speech that really made me wonder why they weren’t starting up the music to cut him off. They let Matthew talk for almost four minutes, and the clip of his speech is all over the internet.

Christians are so proud.

And, I can’t blame us. I mean, how often do we hear a major celebrity, an Oscar winner, no less, identifying with us? How often do we get that kind of star power in our corner? It almost makes us seem sort of cool and legitimate.

I liked his speech, although I thought it was a little heavy on the Matthew McConaughey. He’s chasing a hero, who is himself in ten years? Really? But, no matter. He mentioned God and that’s all that counts. It obviously shows that he loves the Lord and lives his life for Him and we will all be fans of his forever because of this speech.

But, there’s one tiny issue with setting Matthew McConaughey up as our next great Christian idol. And, the problem is the movie he won the Oscar for. And pretty much every other movie he’s ever made.  (Anyone remember a little film called Magic Mike?) According to pluggedin.com, Dallas Buyer’s Club opens with McConaughey’s character having sex with two girls at the same time in a rodeo stall.  That’s only the beginning of the explicit sexual content in the movie.  In addition to the nudity, masturbation, and pornography, the film contains over 100 f-words and God’s name is used as a curse word over 20 times.

Matthew McConaughey made this movie, which he was rewarded by Hollywood for making, which goes out into our society and poisons the hearts and minds of our men, women, and young people.  And then he gets up to accept his award for making filth that turns hearts away from God, and he thanks God for the opportunity, and Christians applaud him as if he has done something incredible.

We have got to get over our obsession with celebrity and start making connections between what people say and what they actually do.  It is never going to be a good thing for Christianity for us to hold these celebrities up as examples of what a Christian should be.  If we want to show the world examples of Christianity that should make us cheer, it’ll be our faithful pastors, our grandmothers who have lived quiet sacrificial lives, our friends who would lay down their lives for us, the teachers who go to school every day and live out the commands to love the unlovable and to value every life.

Not Matthew McConaughey.  I’m sure he’s a fun guy to hang around with, and I bet he’s a great dad and probably a really good actor.  But he is not the next great champion for Christianity.

And that’s probably why I’m not a member of the Academy.  Thank you, and good night.

**Please check out the follow-up to this post here!

**Due to the fact that everything that can be said HAS been said–many, many times–comments are now disabled.  Thanks for stopping by!

Are Our Loved Ones Looking Down on Us from Heaven?

We often hear Christian people say that deceased loved ones are watching over them, taking care of them, smiling down on them, or sending them signs. The Bible doesn’t specifically  have much to say about this topic, but there are several clues in Scripture that seem to show that this is not true.

1.  He will not return to me.

In 2 Samuel, we see David, a distraught father who has lost his only child.  He has been fasting and praying that God might spare his son’s life, but when the child passes away, David makes this statement:

But, now that he is dead, why should I go on fasting?  Can I bring him back again?  I will go to him, but he will not return to me.  (2 Samuel 12:23)

David shows here that the child is now gone, never to return to this Earth.  He talks about how they will one day be reunited in Heaven, but until that time, David indicates that they are separated.  He does not seem to expect the child to leave him signs of any kind or to be a presence in his life.

2.  Present with the Lord.

In 2 Corinthians 5:8, the Bible tells us that when we are absent from the body we are present with the Lord.  In other passages we get glimpses of what being in the presence of the Lord might look like.  Isaiah and Revelation both paint vivid pictures of the singular focus of those in Heaven, as they gather round the throne of God singing an eternal song of worship and praise, “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty.”

There is no indication in these descriptions of Heaven or any other place in Scripture that those in Heaven are involved in or cognizant of the things that are happening on Earth.  Although some claim that the “great cloud of witnesses” in Hebrews 12:1 indicates that our loved ones are watching us,  John MacArthur explains why this passage doesn’t support that idea:

The witnesses in that verse are not modern-day loved ones, but the faithful saints in Hebrews 11 who lived victorious lives by trusting God. Those saints are witnesses to us because their lives testify about the value of trusting God no matter what hardships we face. They are active witnesses who speak to us by their example; not passive witnesses who watch us with their eyes.

Hebrews 11 shows how the great fathers of the faith lived out that faith.  Their stories witness to us about trusting God, and they are the witnesses mentioned in verse 12:1.  These aren’t our loved ones witnessing what we do, but Abraham, Isaac, and others whose lives witness to us.

3.  No tears in Heaven.

In Revelation 17:7 and 21:4, we read that in Heaven God will wipe away every tear:  “There will be no more death or tears or crying or pain.”  If our loved ones can look down on this tragedy-filled world and watch us struggle through it, watch us lose people we love, watch us make mistakes that grieve God, how can they be without tears?  How can they exist with no pain if they are aware of or involved in our daily struggles?

It seems it would be impossible for our loved ones to enjoy Heaven as the Bible says we all will, to live in perfect peace with no fear or worry or sorrow, if they are witnessing the many terrible things that go on here on Earth.  Even a great day on Earth is marred by sin and imperfections the likes of which are abolished forever in Heaven, so it seems unlikely that our loved ones are looking down, sending rainbows, or helping us through situations.  God is our help, and He is all we need.  So, even though it may be a comforting thought to imagine that we still have a connection with our loved ones after they die, it is likely that only our memories and the hope of being reunited with them in Heaven remain.

Losing those we love is indescribably difficult.  But, we can take comfort in knowing that our believing loved ones are safe, at peace, and in the presence of God, no longer concerned by all of the many worries of our world, but resting in the arms of the Savior.  1 Thessalonians 4:17 says that we do not grieve like the rest of the world, which has no hope.  We don’t have to look for signs or hope for the spiritual presence of our loved ones.  We can know without a doubt that they are happily escaped from a world of great sorrow and pain, and we can console ourselves, knowing that they would not wish to be privy anymore to the sadness and troubles of this life.

We can trust God on this.  We can believe His word, and we can enjoy the memories of time with our loved ones until we see them again in Heaven.