Seasons

One Sunday morning at church the pastor stood before his congregation and picked out three individuals from the crowd. He called them forward to stand in a line beginning with the youngest and ending with the oldest.

The first was a child of six. She was a small girl with curly brown hair and beautiful dark eyes. She stood there twisting and wiggling from side to side excited that she was called up but still feeling shy and self conscious. The pastor got down on one knee to be on her level.

“Honey” he asked. “ Has anyone ever really hurt you and made you really really sad?”

The little girl’s eyes widened as she looked at the preacher. “Uh huh” she answered looking very serious. The pastor placed his arm around the girl’s shoulders and asked “Can you tell me what is the baddest thing that someone ever did to you and made you very sad?

She placed a finger on her chin and appeared to be in deep thought for a moment. Then looking at the pastor she blurted “There was this boy at school. He was really big.” To emphasize her statement she reached her arm as high in the air as she could. “He was really mean. He pushed me down on the steps when I was getting off the school bus.“

“Oh that was really bad” the preacher responded.

Encouraged by his sympathy the child went on “Yeah it hurt really bad. I hurt my knee.” With that she picked up one leg to show which knee had been injured.

“Boy that was really mean of him wasn’t it” the pastor comforted.

“Yeah” she answered. Then she dropped her chin a little and spoke softly “everyone laughed at me. The preacher gave her a little hug before he spoke again.

“But look at you now” he said. She looked up puzzled. “It’s all better.” He tapped what had been her injured knee. Her eyes suddenly sparkled again as a big smile came across her face.

“Yup” she chirped as she once again began to twist and wiggle from side to side. “And that boy got in trouble.” The congregation burst into laughter.

“As well he should have” the pastor responded. The congregation continued to chuckle as the child made her way back to her seat.

The pastor then moved to the next person. He was a man in his mid to late thirties with slight wisps of gray beginning to show in his hair. The pastor had specifically chosen this man because he was aware that he was going through a particularly difficult period.

“Mike” the pastor began “You heard me ask Honey if something really bad had ever happened to her. Can you tell me if anything really bad has ever happened to you?”

The man dropped his head shaking it slowly from side to side. “Pastor, I don’t know where to begin. It seems like just one thing after another. I lost my job. My house is going into foreclosure. My kids stay in trouble. I pray and pray for God to help me get through. But as soon as he answers one prayer something else happens. I am trying. I have to believe God is going to fix it all. But it is hard. I really try though.”

The pastor placed his hand upon Mikes shoulder. “Son, you hang in there. Keep on trying. Keep on praying. God is never far away”. With that statement the pastor dismissed him to return to his seat.

Now left alone, was a frail ninety year old woman sitting in a chair at the front of the room. The pastor approached her and pulled a chair alongside her. He reached out and took her small weathered hand in his.

The sweet looking little lady cocked her head to one side and looked at the pastor. “Preacher don’t you be asking me if anything bad has ever happened to me. You don’t have enough time here for me to tell you what I’ve been through.”

With that the congregation burst into laughter. This tiny little creature that looked so vulnerable had just taken command of the situation. The pastor was caught off guard as he laughed with the congregation.

“I bet you have Sister” he chuckled. “Can you just share a little of what you have been through.”

The little woman looked deeply into his eyes and spoke with a timeless confidence. “ I have lived. I have loved. I have lost everything and gained more. I have had feasts and known hunger. I know Pain intimately. He has walked with me throughout my life. But I have known unbounded joy. I learned hope and trust for they don’t come easy. I have had blessings beyond measure. I have salvation. Above all I have a God who has proven that there is nothing He cannot deliver me from. There is no hurt he will not heal. There is no need he cannot fill. He has proven to me that I have absolutely nothing to fear.”

The atmosphere of the room was filled with the unwavering certainty in her voice. The pastor gave her a careful hug thanking her and dismissed her to return to her seat. For several moments the room was quiet.

Seasons

There is an order to all things. I am often asked “why do bad things happen to Christians. Why can’t young Christians just quickly grasp the concept of faith? And if you have enough faith doesn’t God just fix everything?”

No matter what age you are or what stage of life you may be in the hardship or tragedy you are enduring seems like the worst you have ever been through. There is no life that is not touched at some time by tragedy and repeated hardship.

The trust of the child is unquestioning but it is also unproven and is without an intimate relationship with God.

The trust of the young adult is tenuous, strained, struggling, ebbing and flowing. Compare it to exercising muscles, stretching your limits, with muscle aches as you develop strength and ability.

The final result is the life proven by Christ and our God. Confidence in Gods abiding love and steadfastness can only be gained by circumstances in which he can prove himself. There are no short cuts to becoming spiritually mature. The child cannot become the seasoned Christian without the journey through young adulthood.

As you make the journey you will find that you look back on the scar from your pain and will see that you are alright. The scar itself will be a reminder that God heals, God strengthens, and God will get you past all pain.

I can tell you without a doubt if you live long enough you will have pain, hardship, illness and tragedy. But I can also tell you that there is NOTHING my God cannot bring you through. God is a loving God. He does not bring pain to you. But He will use every hardship and suffering as an opportunity to prove His love to you and strengthen your relationship with Him. Trust Him. Seek comfort,solace, and guidance in Him in all things.

Inadequate

In a young ministry, you begin your mission with vision, passion and assurance that you are doing God‘s will. However in most cases as you move forward and begin to encounter disappointment it is easy to become discouraged. I have recently experienced another disappointment in our ministry which resulted in me feeling like a failure, heartbroken and inadequate.

As I prayed for guidance, I asked, “God could I have been so wrong in your direction for my life?” I questioned my ability to perform the task laid before me and even the vision itself. I prayed that afternoon for God to speak to me. I prayed for guidance and assurance that I was doing His will and not mine in His name.

A sleepless night lay ahead for me.

God reminded me that these feelings and doubts are not new. He gave me this example throughout the night.

MOSES
Most of us know who Moses was. The son of a Hebrew slave who had been adopted by Pharaoh’s daughter and eventually delivered Israel from the hand of Egypt. According to history Moses spent 40 years in the house of Pharaoh. He is described as a princely figure of a man with a commanding presence. After he killed an Egyptian taskmaster he fled to Midian.

Moses then endured 40 years of a sense of failure. He knew 40 years of rejection from not only the home in which he had grown up, but from the peoples that he had tried to embrace by his ill fated action. He has run away from facing his problem. He lives with guilt, confusion, as well as a sense of betrayal to both the mother who had nurtured him and the one who bore him. He is a coward, a criminal, and a failure.

It is odd that the bible does not mention in the early portion of Moses’ life that he had a speech problem. This is only brought to attention when God calls him to serve. Scholars have different ideas about what the true problem was. It as been widely accepted that he stuttered. Some scholars believe he had an inability to articulate certain sounds. Still others believe that he was just slow in verbal responses and not comfortable speaking to people. Regardless of which problem it was, it was a source of insecurity for him.

Yet God called him. God not only called him to a purpose but he had a one on one audience with him. This coward. This criminal. This failure who couldn’t even speak for himself was called to lead a nation. Not only was he called to lead a nation but to also confront one of the most powerful leaders in the known world. His response in paraphrase “ I am not adequate.”

Yet through God, this inadequate man lead a nation to freedom. He then led them for another 40 years through the wilderness. Many times in the 40 years he was told that he was wrong. That he was still inadequate. But he took one step at a time. He didn’t try to plan the outcome He merely took one step and then another walking in the faith that God would do what He said He would .

As I wrestled with God about this example, I whined “God you gave him a burning bush, a stick and miracles, and a helper, and …” His response was “ Yes I did. Why do I have to repeat myself?”

Asking God for reassurance every time there is disappointment is not faith. Faith is not having to have the plan laid out for you. Faith is not knowing the end result before you start. Faith is knowing you cant do it by yourself. Faith is taking that step in spite of inadequacies even if you have to carry your heavy heart in a bucket. Faith is not quitting. You can take a breather now and then. Sometimes you have to wait for God to part the seas.

So ok, I am not the best at anything. I may not even be very good at anything. But what I want to be is faithful. I may not have a PHD attached to my name but what I do have is a heart full of praise and a desire to serve.

So when the fire and passion of the vision begins to cool, find the courage to walk on faith. God honors his faithful. Fix your eyes ahead and take one step…….

HUNGER PAINS

Stephen King wrote a story some years ago about a man who the more he ate, the thinner he got. No matter how much he consumed, nothing met the needs of his body. He ate everything he could find. He went to doctors who found nothing wrong other than the man was literally starving to death.

Eventually he died from starvation.
As I prepared to go to church this morning I thought “Man my spirit is so hungry today”. It renewed my realization that there is a hunger in man that nothing but God can satisfy. It is sad that so many people are walking around with spiritual hunger pains and they don’t know what it is they are in need of.

We live in a world of excessive consumption. We are constantly consuming media, food, entertainment, excitement, drugs, alcohol, sex, and all manner of self indulgences. We absorb anything that will keep our minds and senses titillated and feeling alive as well as distracted. It is almost like a dieter who must keep busy so they don’t think about food. All the while the hunger pains gnaw at your spirit.

In the past couple of years I have become a avid student of history. I have studied the British Monarchy from its inception to present day and have noted how present day Christianity was shaped by the various king’s views. I have currently been studying in detail about the founding of our nation and the principles upon which it was established. The price paid by the separatists in England just to own a Bible and have the freedom to worship and study God’s word is not taught in our schools. It wasn’t taught to me. Instead we had a glossy picture of pilgrims with big buckles and pointy hats sailing over on ships to plant corn and have turkey with the Indians.

Our Founders recognized that it was important for not only the society as a whole, but for the individual to find strength through the gospel. It was so important that Congress commissioned the printing of bibles to be distributed to every household and to be given in all the schools in the late 1700s. Yet today, we begin spiritually depriving our children at a young age.

There is an old saying “ You don’t miss what you never had”. Children used to be raised with stories of David and Goliath or Jonah and the whale. The lessons of the bible were our inspiration and gave us heroes to emulate. Now our children emulate Spiderman, and Iron Man, while we give them the latest electronic devises available. They never know that Spiderman is nothing compared to a young boy with a sling shot and a heart for God.

Matthew chapter 4 tells us that “Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God”.

Jesus fasted for 40 days.

What kind of people could we be if we were able to unplug for 40 days? No cell phone for 40 days. No internet for 40 days. Could you survive without television for 40 days? As parents, you could alter your child’s future if you took away the electronic games and television and replaced them with bible stories. Would we make wiser decisions, show more kindness, and have closer family units if we were to electronically fast 40 days? Teach your children to not be consumers of the world but of the word instead.

No house, no car, no iPad or drug, no sex or designer clothes, nothing in this world will ever give you peace. They will never give you strength in time of need. They will never give you comfort when you hurt. They can never give you good guidance and direction. They cannot give your soul salvation. Only God’s word with all its’ wonder, glory, history and truth can satisfy the hunger pains of your soul.

The Dressing Room

I have heard sermons preached about the difficulty and discomfort of having to wait upon the Lord at various times in our lives. It has been compared to hospital waiting rooms with all of the anxiety, stress, pain, along with a multitude of other issues we must accept while in the waiting room before a situation can be made better. However I have never heard anyone discuss “The Dressing Room”.

The Church is described as the glorious bride of Christ which He, the Savior will return and claim in an instant. I want to offer a perspective on this truth that I have not heard anyone talk about.

In order to have a bride, we must first have a proposal.  Christ has proposed to His body through His sacrifice and offered us the most wonderful invitation to be with Him forever in the presence of our all mighty God. 

Just as a marriage vow states “for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, till death do us part” Christ has vowed to us, his bride, only without the poorer, the sickness and the death. Once you say “yes” to Christ and accept salvation just as a new fiancé, there is a future ahead of you to plan for.

As a new fiancé you can cheat yourself of all that is offered to you.  You can try to do things the quick and easy way figuring the end result is the same.  But any bride can tell you that the justice of the peace is no comparison to the beauty and significance found in a wedding gown, a church, a minister and witnesses.  If you recognize your status as the bride of the King of all Kings, you will want to do things right. Even if you felt unworthy of the grandeur, He, the King is entitled to and deserving of only the best.

So you begin the long process. You first begin to study everything you can find on the proper planning of the event.  You read books, you talk to experts, and you enlist the aid and advice of family and friends.  You taste cakes. You look at colors, flowers, dresses, people, rings and listen to dozens of songs. Slowly through a long process in which you are faced with a multitude of confusing choices you begin to form a definitive vision.  

There are numerous times throughout the process that you feel overwhelmed and consider giving up. Nothing goes as planned. You at times question your decisions, even the commitment itself. But somewhere in the chaos you find a quiet moment in which you find the embrace of your betrothed. It is in that moment that you know there is nothing you would not endure for an eternity embraced In His love.

Our lives are like the planning process full of choices, disappointments, and stress. But it is only the process. We have to find that quiet moment with the betrothed to renew our reason and our passion for the decision. It is also important to be careful in whom you choose for your bridal party.  The bride should have close associations with those who will aid in her journey, encourage her and remind her of who she really is.

Then after what will seem like an eternity of working, studying, planning, and preparing, the day will arrive. There will be no waiting room. There will be the dressing room.

The bride on that day does not look back. She no longer concerns herself with decisions of the past. What she feels this day is a mix of anticipation, longing, love and a little fear.  The butterflies flit back and forth inside with little nagging doubts.  Will he change his mind at the last minute? Will he finally see me for the flawed person I really am and decide I am not good enough to be accepted? Can he really love me so much?

With nervous and excited hands she does her makeup. Every hair must be carefully placed. Her jewels have been chosen with the utmost care. The wedding dress is the most exquisite gown anyone has ever seen. At this moment she overlooks no detail. All she has to offer him at the end of this long process is herself and her heart. She will present him with only her best.

So I want to ask you. Where are you?

Are you right now preparing yourself to give only your best to Christ? Have you spent the time to prepare for the most important day of your life? Or have you not even accepted the proposal and are still walking alone with an uncertain future?

I personally want to only offer my very best.  The butterflies stay in my stomach. But I find those quiet moments in which He reassures me of his love. Don’t cheat yourself of the wonder and glory He has planned for you. Don’t diminish the importance of who he is by not properly preparing yourself. And if you have not accepted His proposal, reach out to Him and know his love.  There is nothing that can fill the soul, heal the hurts, and give purpose to life like the love of Christ.

The Child

At church this Sunday morning, there was a beautiful sketch of Christ leaning his face against a child in an embrace of love. As I looked at the picture I couldn’t help but feel that I wanted to be that child. Lord just hold me close like that and love me. With no cares, no worries, no responsibilities, just in the moment with Jesus. Then it came to me that although, I get caught up in being a “grown up “ Christian, I am always that child.

It is true that faith without works is dead. The church has a job to do in winning the souls of the lost and comforting those in need.  But even the most valiant and courageous soldier must sometime remove his armor.

What parent among you does not long to have your grown children be small just one more time?  You want to embrace them, protect them, and love them while their trust in you is so complete. Their trust is not affected by hardship or disappointment. All they have is love.

Scripture says “if we have faith of a little child”.  Take time to be that child again. We don’t always have to come to Christ with works, prayer or even with praise. Sometimes we can just come be with him to love him and to let him love on us. We should never forget that we are above all else, children of the king and his capacity for loving us is unlimited.

The Handmaiden

In a royal household there are many servants. They may be housemaids, cooks, servers, butlers, managers, and many more all with various roles and duties to fulfill. Each position is important and is necessary to insure the proper function of the household. But I want to focus on the position of the royal handmaiden.

Throughout history, the masters of any house would have personal attendants. These attendants were the closest to the master of all their servants. They would continuously faithfully carry out the bidding of their masters and were the most trusted of all the servants. Not only were they the most trusted of all servants, but they were most often women.

In our Master’s house there are many servants positions as well. Prophets, shepherds, healers, prayer warriors, missionaries, teachers name just a few of these servants.  But still there is a special place in our Lords house for the handmaid of Christ.

The handmaid of Christ walks with him daily. She listens for his every word and is ready at a moment’s notice to do his will. She places her needs and wants aside to fulfill the duties of her position. She is cautious of her words and deeds so as to not bring shame upon her masters house. Hers is a position of honor and she is held dear to the Master’s heart.

To be a faithful handmaid there are some things you must do.

Spend time with him. Find time in your life to devote to prayer and listening for his voice. He will speak to you and tell you what he desires of your life.

Be sure that whatever task you feel led to is His will and not your own. One sure way to tell His will is that it is never the easy way. No task given by God has been comfortable or easy. If it is easy for you then it is not a sacrifice and is most likely serving a need of your own and not a need of Christ. However, the blessings you receive will more than make up for any hardship you may face.

Be resolute.  When you know in your heart that the Master has called you for a purpose despite anything the world may say, you must be determined to achieve it.

Be faithful. Do not grow weary of the task. For God’s grace will increase your strength, your faith and your ability.

Be humble. Remember your position of service is an honor given by His grace and mercy.

Remember, that being a servant close to your Master places you in the position to truly know his heart. Then as you know His heart, yours will be the hands that wipe away the tears of the hurting. Yours will be the arms that comfort the sick and lonely. Yours will be the hands that feed the hungry. Yours will be the tongue that speaks encouragement to the weak.  Yours will be the heart to give love to the unlovely.

We are all to serve as the handmaids or man servants of Christ. We are the children of God and joint heirs with him. But until our time of inheritance, we hold a place of honor and trust with our Lord. We have the great honor of serving His will in this life.

Eighteen Months

You sit in the leather chair facing a large oak desk.  The wall behind it, as well as the adjoining walls, are hung with certificates, degrees, doctorates all proclaiming the qualifications of the man who is speaking.  The words sound like distorted voices you would hear while under water. The air seems to have been completely sucked from your lungs while your pounding heart reverberates throughout your whole being.

Your spouse immediately begins offering words of encouragement, taking charge and beginning to make plans.  As they hold your hand, every muscle in their body is fighting to not give in to fear and to not reflect anything but determination and support in their countenance. In the days to come you feel disconnected. You don’t want to talk about it. You want to pretend you never sat in that office or heard those words.

TWELVE TO EIGHTEEN MONTHS.

You had asked for the truth and got it.  Eighteen months on the outside with taking every treatment that can be pumped and prodded into your ailing body. As you are led from one treatment to another, the reality begins to sink in more with every needle prick. And the quiet tears begin to flow. The prayers come; the anger comes mixed with the questions. “Why me”? What are they going to do without me? Who is going to take care of this or that? The emotions erupt in volcanic proportion with fallout landing on anyone who is around.  Then one day it is all gone.  All of the emotion is spent.

If what man says is true and your life has become finite with X number of days available to you, a choice will be made. You can spend your remaining days partying and in denial. You can spend your remaining days angry with God and all of life. You can sink into a depression and self pity. Or you can look around and cherish everything that is really precious in your life.

Think about it.

Your spouse, that gets on your nerves so badly with his stinky socks and farts.  You wonder if the man was ever capable of putting a dish in the sink or picking up clothes.  If you had to watch another football or golf game you think you would scream.  His sense of humor is sooo corny. And you wonder if he speaks your language because he cant seem to understand what you are saying most times.  But if you KNOW that person would be taken from you, it changes how you see them.  Those corny jokes become sweet and more humorous. The dirty clothes and dishes don’t matter. What matters is when you are cuddled up beside them while they touch your hair. When you can look in their eyes or hear in their voice how much you mean to them. And you know what they mean to you. You know that if its only eighteen months or eighteen days, you want to spend them with this person.

Your children. They don’t listen to you. They don’t show appreciation. They sure don’t do what you think they should.  You wonder how their lives veered so far from the path you had chosen for them.  But you have X number of days.  With X number of days, you begin to see past their choices and mistakes. Amazingly you can only see the face of the little child who snuggled up to you that you have loved so dearly. You can see the same vulerability that they had as they climbed in your lap with tear streaked faces and scraped knees.

Ambition. Ambition could be your job, your business or your dreams of stardom. I used to measure my success by my bank account.  But with eighteen months, what you accomplish here doesn’t matter anymore. All the money or acclaim this world has to offer wont give you one day more.

Finally, and most importantly, there’s God. You are left with one inevitable truth facing you. Your life is completely in God’s hands. At that time, you can choose to completely surrender all control to Him and accept that whatever the outcome may be, that you trust Him.

God made this perspective very clear to me one night several months ago and it has completely changed my life.

Besides the change in perspective that I have already discussed, it made me think. If I had only eighteen months left what would I want to do with them.  I came to the conclusion that I would want to spend every last day being completely committed to my God.  Not because there would be an end to my life and I was afraid of hell. But because He has been so good to me that I want to give everything back to Him that I can.  All that I am, all that I have, however imperfect I may be.  He has sheltered me, loved me, saved me, protected my family and brought me through unimaginable dark times. In my darkest hours He wrapped me in His love and wouldn’t let go.

A lifetime seems like it will last forever.  While we know there is an end, we can’t typically relate to it. If we were to live our lives as if we only had eighteen months to live you would find that you could throw off unnecessary shackles. You would find it easier to focus on the ones that you love and the things that really matter. Live like you have only eighteen months even if you have 180 years.

Still Waters

The Spirit of God is likened to a beautiful pool of water. When you first see it and begin to approach it you have a sense of anticipation. You just know it’s going to be good. As you step in ankle deep your heartbeat picks up as you begin to experience a difference.  You keep on going till you’re waist deep. Next thing you know you are up to you neck treading water. You float, dip your head under, and come up exuberant, renewed and never disappointed.  Then you make your way back out of the water and step back into the world as it was before. You feel better.  You feel refreshed and ready to move on.

This is how most Christians live. And there is nothing wrong with it. But like still deep waters, the Spirit of God has so much more to offer.

I would say to you to leave the shore behind. Pursue Gods Spirit so far that you can never go back. Don’t satisfy yourself with having just enough of Him that you feel more capable of getting by in this world.  When you dive deep under the surface of the waters, you find a whole new world full of beauty and wonders that you never experience by being a shallow swimmer. There is abundance of life there that cannot be seen anywhere else.

As you immerse yourself in God’s word and Spirit, He will reveal things to you that can only be experienced at the deepest levels.  When you reach there, it is only you and Him.  The world is so far away it cannot impede on the peace that envelopes you and the wonders that surround you.

It takes effort. It takes decision and commitment. But God has so much more for you than you can imagine.  Don’t be satisfied with less. Go deep.

A Linen Belt

Jeremiah 13:1


God told Jeremiah to buy a new linen belt. Since linen is considered a rather fine fabric by today's standards, it must have been very rare and costly in Jeremiah's day.

God was specific that Jeremiah was not to let the belt touch water. The belt is symbolic of God's people, clean, pure, close to God when serving the purpose it was designed for. Had the belt become wet it would have become mishaped and drawn.  If it didnt shrink too much, you could have probably still tied it around you. But it would have lost its ability to function as designed, its beauty and its value.

After a while (the bible doesnt specify how long) Jeremiah is told to remove the belt. He is then told to take it to a distant place and hide it in a crevice in the rocks. Once Jeremiah reached Perath, God told him to place the belt in a crevice in the rocks. After many days God commanded Jeremiah to return and retrieve the belt. The belt was soiled, ruined and worthless.  Although this scripture goes on to declare Gods displeasure and judgement for the nation of Judah, the significance of the belt itself is what stuck with me.

It made me realize that it is too easy to lay aside our purpose. Our intent is never to abandon our path or our calling. But in doing so we find ourselves distanced  like the belt, from the one we serve and end up in dark places where we dont belong. In those places, we spiritually and emotionally decay until we are useless to ourselves, the ones we love and the one we serve. It was and is an unneccessary waste.

Be vigilant of the value in your calling for you have value and purpose in the site of the Lord. Stay close to Him and you will not find yourself in dark places where you dont belong.

I CHOOSE

                                                                                 

      John, chapter 8 tells us of an adulterous woman who was brought before Jesus.  It is an account that almost every believer has heard a sermon about at some time or another.  Terrified, scripture tells us that she was drug out in humiliation and shame. She could only listen while her accusers demanded that she be stoned to death. But Jesus did not look upon the woman’s shame and pain.

      Think of the utter hopelessness she had to feel. She was caught in the act of adultery.  She could not defend herself. She could only plead for mercy. However the law did not allow for mercy and she knew this.

I will not call this a story because it diminishes the word of Christ.

      Scripture reflects that as the crowd clamored for her destruction, the only response Christ gave was “He that is without sin, let him cast the first stone”. Every reference I have heard to this scripture has reflected upon the revealing of the sin of the accusers. But there is more to be learned.

      Jesus could have very easily made a big sermon standing over the woman about the cost of sin. He could have preached about “all have sinned….” He could have made any number of comparisons using her as an example and still have spared her life. She would have been just as grateful.  The crowd would have been just as amazed.

      But Jesus chose not to look upon the worst part of her. He chose not to acknowledge the worst shame in her life. He chose not to accuse and He chose not to judge. The only time Jesus addressed her was after the crowd had dispersed when he said “Woman, where are thine accusers. Has no man condemned thee? Neither do I condemn thee. Go and sin no more”.  No lectures.

      Something to note however is that although Jesus did not judge this woman, neither did he judge the accusers. He made them judge themselves. He didn’t tell them they were a bunch of hypocrites.  He didn’t find fault with them for following what was their laws.  They questioned him about why he would not uphold the law. In paraphrase, he simply told them “I know who I am and where I come from .Basically you are going to do what you want if I am here or not”.     But the awesome thing he said was “Ye judge after the flesh; I judge no man”

I CHOOSE

      I choose to not find fault. Fault is there in front of us everywhere we look. It is blatant and irritating in your coworkers, your family, and your church. It is like the gravel in your shoes that gets harder to ignore with each progressive step you take.

      However finding fault serves absolutely no useful purpose. Fault finding does however create negative emotions and a negative attitude.  In response you will react either defensively or aggressively when interacting with those you are judging.  These negative emotions then take the focus of attention away from other aspects of the individual.

      Fault finding creates walls between people. In judging others, you increasingly isolate yourself and in time find that being “right or righteous” becomes hollow and lonely.

      Who cares? People are not going to change who they are because of your disapproval.  The church will not change how it worships because you think  they should. Your boss is not going to change how he runs his business because you know better. Scripture says to not worry about the speck in our brother’s eye without first removing the beam from our own.

     I CHOOSE to not look for fault. I CHOOSE to try to look for the good and the positive in everything and everyone in my life. When my nature kicks up and my flesh wants to react by finding fault, I will consciously choose to not entertain the thoughts.

      Some days may prove more difficult than others. But each day I have the opportunity to start with a new pledge. I CHOOSE TO LIVE IN THE FULLNESS OF LIFE, THE FULLNESS OF JOY, THE FULLNESS OF LOVE AND FELLOWSHIP.

  I feel so humble to know that my Jesus chooses to not look at the worst part of me.  If the Son of God said “I JUDGE NO MAN”  then who in the world am I to try to judge or feel ill will toward anyone else.