Life Turns on a Dime

This is the lesson that I have been learning over the past several weeks. It started with me being informed that the grant that has funded my position will be ending this summer. Time to polish up the ole resume :-) I have discovered that my experience (and the salary that schools are contractually obligated to provide a person of my experience) is working against me in these tough economic times. I can only imagine what my 40 and 50 something friends are going through as they seek employment to provide for their families. However, my struggles pale in comparison to other situations that some of my friends and acquaintances have been dealing with over the past couple of weeks.

A couple of weeks ago on of my co-workers started experiencing some unexplained headaches and had difficulty putting her words together. This was on a Monday. She worked Tuesday and went to her doctor Wednesday. To make a long story short, after several different tests it was determined that she has an inoperable brain tumor the size of a tennis ball and has been given 2-6 months to live. As far as we know, she did not have any prior symptoms. She is the age of my mother. Please pray for her and the family that will be operating as caregivers in the days to come.

I was also saddened to hear of the sudden passing of a fellow minister last week in an automobile accident. I did not know the brother personally, but have been inspired by the accounts given about others about this man’s ministry and love for the Lord’s people. I hope that I can leave such a legacy when my time on earth is done.

All of these events have served to remind me that life can change quickly. We do not know when we might breathe our last breath. One of the most eloquent statements to this effect can be found in the book of James:

Jam 4:13-15 Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain: Whereas ye know not what [shall be] on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.


At best, our life is like a wisp of air. We have 90 to 100 years on this earth at most. Knowing this truth, how are we spending our time? Are we focusing on what is important? How many words have gone unsaid? How many grudges and ill feelings do we harbor? The honest truth is that we should be living every day like it is possibly the last. Our times are ultimately in the Lord’s hands are they not? James believed that!

Today’s lesson is this:

1. Frequently tell your loved ones and friends how much you love them. Better yet, show them by your deeds!

2. Do not harbor grudges! I have counseled several heartbroken folks that neglected to mend fences and later regretted this decision when the other person passed away suddenly. Today is a good day to practice Ephesians 4:32.

3. Constantly assess your priorities. God first, then family/loved ones, and everything else falls into place somewhere behind. When your life is drawing to an end, you won’t be regretting not spending enough time working or playing. You will wish that you had taken advantage of more opportunities to engage in spiritual endeavors or had spent more time with your wife, children, cherished friends and loved ones.

Life indeed turns on a dime. I pray that we will make the most of our time on this earth. We all are not likely to make it out alive unless the Lord returns soon. Whatever the case, may we remember what is important!

Time, what an empty vapor 'tis!

And days, how swift they are!

Swift as an Indian arrow flies,

Or like a shooting star.

The present moments just appear,

Then slide away in haste,

That we can never say, "They're here,"

But only say, "They're past."

Our life is ever on the wing,

And death is ever nigh;

The moment when our lives begin

We all begin to die.

Yet, mighty God! our fleeting days

Thy lasting favors share,

Yet with the bounties of thy grace

Thou load'st the rolling year.

'Tis sovereign mercy finds us food,

And we are clothed with love;

While grace stands pointing out the road

That leads our souls above.

His goodness runs an endless round;

All glory to the Lord!

His mercy never knows a bound,

And be his name adored!

Thus we begin the lasting song;

And when we close our eyes,

Let the next age thy praise prolong,

Till time and nature dies.

The Psalms and Hymns of Isaac Watts, 1806

Have a great week!

Don’t Worry, It's Only Grass!

Sometimes we worry and obsess about the craziest things. I admit that somewhere between our move to Northern Indiana and the present, I developed an obsession with our lawn. Perhaps it is because of my rapidly approaching entrance into middle aged adulthood. Maybe it is the sheer awesomeness of the lush Kentucky bluegrass that sucked me in. I don’t know!

I have invested a great deal of time and resources to cultivating the perfect patch of grass around our dwelling. The weeds were removed. Bald areas reseeded. Total warfare has been waged on the dandelions. But to what end? I found myself overly concerned about the kids injuring the grass by trampling on it like a herd of cattle. I was even fretting to Sarah about them sullying up the backyard; their play area!

The bottom line is that it doesn’t matter what the grass looks like. It is not that important in the big scheme of things. What are you obsessing about? An immaculate house? Business endeavors? Your appearance? There is nothing inherently wrong with any of these as long as they are placed in proper perspective.

It is far more important to make a few messes if it gives you an opportunity to build lasting memories with your children. Seeking the kingdom of God and edifying relationships with friends/loved ones should be top priority. How often to we get it all wrong. Notice the words of Jesus from Matthew 6:

Mat 6:19-21 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

I remember a father who lost a young child relating his experiences in this realm. He used to constantly scold his son about leaving crayons on the carpet and possibly causing stains. Some time after this the boy tragically drowned in the family pool. The father recalled seeing one of his son’s crayons on the floor. He crushed it under foot and grounded it into the carpet. To this day the stain is still on the floor. The father looks at it as a reminder of what is really important.

Lord help us to constantly assess our own priorities and remember what is really important in life!

The Apple Chapel?

I confess that I am an Apple nerd. I do not venture very far from home without this....

I also invested in one of these guys several months ago...

I have found the iPad to be the most innovative and useful piece of technology to enter my life since my dad purchased our first PC around 1996. It has quickly become my primary computer. I use it for study, reading, Internet surfing, music, videos, etc. I have even started using it as a.... bible in the pulpit ***insert collective gasp here***. Don't sharpen your pitchforks or light your torches just yet. I am firmly committed to using a KJV bible reader. It is exactly like my regular bible, only electronic.

As much as I like these products and appreciate the convenience that they offer, this reaction might be a tad overboard....

Apple triggers 'religious' reaction in fans' brains, report says By Mark Milian, CNN

May 19, 2011 6:33 p.m. EDT
Filed under: Gaming & Gadgets

At product launches, Apple store employees cheer for the first customers to buy the company's latest gadgets.
 
(CNN) -- Next time Grandma asks why you're going to the mall on Sunday morning instead of church, tell her you're going to Apple Chapel.

For Apple fans, the brand triggers a reaction in the brain that's not unlike that of religious devotees, according to a BBC documentary series that cites neurological research.

The neuroscientists ran a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) test on an Apple fanatic and discovered that images of the technology company's gadgets lit up the same parts of the brain as images of a deity do for religious people, the report says.

The first episode of the documentary shows Apple employees "whipped up into some sort of crazy, evangelical frenzy" at the recent opening of an Apple store in London.

Observers and Apple critics have long accused fans of the tech company of taking their infatuation to an extreme.

People have gone to great lengths to prove their love of Apple with tattoos, bumper stickers and home shrines to outmoded Mac computers. Apple's cult-like following was highlighted in a 2009 documentary called "Macheads."

A blog, aptly titled Cult of Mac, wrote on Thursday about Oakland, California, resident Gary Allen's cross-country pilgrimage to Apple's first store in Virginia to celebrate the retail chain's 10th anniversary this week.

In speeches, Pope Benedict XVI has said technology consumption poses a threat to religion and the Roman Catholic church. The holy leader told a Palm Sunday crowd last month that technology cannot replace God.

However, apparently it may inspire god-like devotion.

The full article can be found at: http://www.cnn.com/2011/TECH/gaming.gadgets/05/19/apple.religion/index.html?iref=obnetwork

I could not help but chuckle out loud when I read this article. If you get whipped into an emotional frenzy about any piece of technology, then you might need to reassess your life priorities. It goes to show you that anything can become an idol!

Some questions do come to mind. Is Steve Jobs the Mac cult's messiah or chief priest? Does one have to wear a black long sleeve shirt and blue jeans sans belt to religious gatherings?

Are faithful followers reincarnated into Apple Store, Fifth Avenue Employees?

These are questions that demand an answer! Or perhaps our time is better spent pondering the following:

Mat 6:19-21 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

I enjoy the conveniences and information availability that comes with technology. But it is just STUFF. My iPad will likely be rendered obsolete in the next few years. Something bigger and better will come along. The toys that the Apple fanatics go berserk over today will be landfill fodder before the next President is elected. They, and all other earthly treasures will soon pass away.

Perhaps our time/excitement/energy is better spent in treasuring heavenly things... Laboring in the kingdom of God. Helping those in need. Prayer. Studying and meditating on the word of God. Call me a fanatic if you must, but these activities will reap longer term benefits than even this:

Lord help us to keep our priorities straight!

Have a great weekend!