Daily Reflections on Jn. 6:25-59 (Having My Cake and Eating Too)

I was recently talking with a friend of mine, an elder of another church, about what was happening in his church. He was recounting the sad story of a fallen staff member and the troubles that the church and leadership had endured over the last year. After a series of probing questions about the nature, make up, identity of the church, I asked where he thought they were going as a church. They had seen some growth which was obviously stymied for the time being. He wanted to see the growth continued but wondered how it effected the differing contingents of members, new and old. He finally said to me, "I think our leadership would like to have their cake and eat it too."

Boy, wouldn't we all. I can't tell you how many times I've heard people tell me, things like, "I'd like to have a large active church with a small church dynamic or feel." "I'd like to see lots of people come to Christ and keep the intimacy of a small church, where we know everyone." "I'd like to reach out to young people and keep things exactly they way they are." "I'd like to have a contemporary service with old time gospel music."

Basically, I'd like to have my cake and eat it too. Many of us approach our faith that way. We'd like to see God's will happen in our lives or in our church, but we'd also really like to have it our way. God's I'm all for it, as long as I like it, as long as it please me or meets my approval. Let's compromise God. I'll be faithful to you as long as it's according my standard, likes or preferences.

In John 6, the people following Jesus wanted their cake their way. Actually they were looking for an endless supply of bread. After the feeding of the 5,000, the crowd hounded Jesus for more food. They proclaimed that Moses fed the people with manna from heaven, why couldn't Jesus do the same thing for them. Follow Jesus around, enjoy the fellowship and get a free meal every day. Not a bad gig. I'd be doing my spiritual thing, listening to Jesus teach, hanging out with Him all day, don't have to work, get filled up. Have cake and eat it too.

The parallels are so striking to us today, especially among the churches of the US. "Feed me, feed me," is the cry heard from the pew. "Dazzle me, entertain me, send me manna from heaven with your amazing communication skills." "Bless me, give me a moving experience." Cake and eat it too.

When the crowd pressed Jesus, he told them, "You want bread sent from heaven? You're looking at Him. I'm bread sent from heaven. I'm the bread of life." What? How can Jesus be the bread of life, the bread sent from heaven? That was their question. It's not exactly what they had in mind. In fact, they started grumbling. Hey, we came to watch God do His thing, get wowed by a miracle or two, grab lunch on you. How 'bout it Jesus?

Sorry, no cake and eat it too. Jesus went on to say that unless they eat His flesh and drink His blood they didn't have any life in them. Ultimately what happened was that since they weren't going get what came for they weren't having any part of it so they decided to go back to their old ways. Instead of jumping in full bore with Jesus and experiencing something greater than their ancestors did, they decided their plans, their ways were more comfortable. They walked away. Lifeless. Empty. Hungry. Thirsty.

If you want real life, everlasting life, if you want to connect with God and enjoy real fellowship with Him you got to give up your cake and take a slice of the bread of life. And once slice isn't really enough. You have to eat it everyday. Jesus has to become you're exclusive diet.

God, I'm guilty. Having my cake and eating it too sounds awfully good, but I know it isn't very satisfying. I like things they way I like them. I'm interested in my comfort and my pleasure. I can't help but wonder where I'd be in the crowd that day. Eating your flesh and drinking your blood is hard sometimes, yet just like the disciples, I know that you alone have the words of eternal life. There's really no place, no other diet I'd rather have than you. Give a slice of the bread from heaven today.

Daily Reflections on Heb. 2:5-18 (The Arrogance of Some People)

I've never claimed to be a genius. But the more I look at the relationship between God and Jesus the more confusing it seems to get. John says that in the beginning the Jesus was with God and was God. Okay that seems easy enough. He goes on to say that Jesus became flesh, a human being. Got that too. I don't know how all that is, but I can get my little mind around that part.

But the part that starts stretching my mind is this father/son thing. If Jesus is God, and He says Himself, "whoever has seen me has seen the father," why the father/son designation? Seems a little odd in light of the fact that Paul talks about the fact that equality with God was something Jesus could easily grasp. Now tell me that doesn't confuse you just a little. To further add to my confusion, how can Jesus call me a brother if He is God and I'm, well, plain ol' human, flawed me?

Throughout Jesus ministry, from the time we find Him in the temple at 12 years of age, He talks about doing His father's business or will. He defers to the father regarding various teachings and miracles. He prays to the father. And here in Hebrews 2, He puts His trust in Him. Why would someone equal with God, the father, creator of the universe, put His trust in the father? Does this strike anyone else as a little perplexing?

Yet there is a great lesson here. If Jesus, God in the flesh, equal to God, creator of the universe puts His trust in God and defers to Him, what does that say about me? Why wouldn't I do the same thing. Instead, I often times rely on my on wisdom, ability, ingenuity, resources, etc. to do things. If Jesus, who had the right to go off on His own agenda, submitted His daily agenda to God, why shouldn't I? Why is it I think I have the audacity to live however I want and give God only partial input into my life? Why is it that I think I can take God when I want Him and ignore Him the rest of the time? Why do I think that my time, my money, my resources, my gifts, my life is actually mine? Who do I think I am? And who do I think God really is?

God, I'm pretty arrogant concerning my own life. It seems that I just go about doing whatever I want whenever I want with little to no regard for you. Instead of seeking you daily, hourly, minute by minute of my life, I have a tendency to check in with you whenever I feel like. It's almost like I show up to visit you on occasion or when I'm in dire straights. Forgive my arrogance. I recognize you as Lord of my life. Here I am. I put my trust in you.

Daily Reflections on Prov. 25:11-13 (It's All How You Say It)

It's really all how you say it. Recently we had a congregational meeting or as I prefer to call them, family meeting. We had some encouraging news to share and some challenges to lay out. Just like everything else in our economy, we're facing some tough economic times at our church. Several have lost jobs and on top of that, summer attendance and giving is down.

We could have gone into the meeting with a depressed attitude, sharing the doom and gloom over which we had no control. But instead we decided to focus on what God was doing in our midst. I thought our meeting would be relatively short, but in fact it lasted for about 45 minutes or so. Even when we got to the toughest stuff, we had to celebrate what God was doing, because even in a down economy our giving had nearly doubled this year over year to date last year.

The downside was that because of getting into a new, more permanent facility, our expenses had doubled too. And the challenge of what was ahead was no less daunting with outside support declining and rent going up. Our treasurer was phenomenal in praising our people for giving even though several had lost jobs. He was clear and concise on our battle ahead. And with all the other good news, we came away with a positive attitude about our future.

There have been plenty of times that I blurted out the wrong thing at the wrong time. I have this disease that if something is in my mind, unfortunately it's in my mouth or should I say coming out of my mouth before I've really had time to process it appropriately. Maybe it's just a male affliction. And since I live in a household of all girls, except the dog, I've received my fair share of disdainful looks and harsh reactions. It's a wonder they haven't attacked me wrapping my mouth in layers of duct tape.

How and when you say something makes all the difference in the world. I'm not saying you don't have to confront or be honest with others. But the manner in which you disclose the truth is really important if you honestly have the other person's best interest at heart. Sugar coating something doesn't always benefit the other person, but a gentle, honest tongue does. It's not just the words themselves, it's the attitude in which they are presented.

Nobody likes to be criticized. But I would be a fool not to listen to the observations of others and correct the error of my ways. It really boils down to the relationship we have with another person. The more I trust a person, the easier it is for me both to listen and receive news, good or bad, and to deliver information, both good and bad.

Solomon's advice is simple on this subject. How you say something will affect the response of the listener. It would be foolish not to listen to a friend, a wise counselor, or a person who has your best interest at heart.

God, help me to choose my words, my tone, my manner careful as I share with others. I don't want to come off as demanding, condescending, arrogant, aloof, cold, abusive or demeaning. Slow my tongue down. Mix truth with your grace in my words. Help me also to listen humbly and openly to others. Help me to be an encouragement to others.

Daily Reflections on Prov. 7:1-5 (This Is Really Tough)

When I was in college we had to follow Kate Turabian's format when submitting papers. Everything had to follow form. Back in those days we didn't have computers that would automatically footnote, justify margins, enumerate pages. It all had to be done manually, which took a little bit of work. Not only did you have to know how many lines it took for the footnote, you had to have everything figured out on the page because you had to have the proper amount of lines on each page.

Since it was impossible to memorize everything in Turabian's manual, you had to keep that book handy. Every rule on how a paper should be typed and submitted was in there. And most of the professors held you to it. You could lose grade points simply for wrong forms. I loved Kate Turabian and I loathed Kate Turabian. I loved it because it held all the answers to writing a correct paper. I loathed it because everything had to follow that format precisely. After struggling through my freshmen year, I either paid someone to type my long papers for me or I talked my girlfriend into it.

Following God's forms for living is tough. God gave ten basic commandments to follow, then the teachers of the law added about 600 more to it. By Jesus day you needed an expert in the law just to interpret what you could and couldn't do. It was a terrific burden on the average person. And let's not forget the consequences of violating the law. Some of the punishment was death.

Jesus summed up all the law into two simple commands; love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself. It's tough enough just to do that. From the time Moses introduced God's ten commands to this day, no one has been able to keep them. Nor will anyone ever be able to keep them. The only way that I'm going to be able to keep from getting my grade reduced, which is pass fail, is pay someone else to do it for me.

That's exactly what God did for me at calvary. Jesus lived His life perfectly for me then He paid the penalty for my screw ups on the cross. The weird thing is that I never had to pay for them. I didn't have to beg God to do me a personal favor. He did it on His own. Grace. And on top of that He enables me through His Spirit that He placed inside me to live out my life as He intended.

There is no way that I could ever memorize God's Word in its entirety. But I don't have to. That's what the Holy Spirit is for. He helps me know and act properly, as long as I'm listening to Him. Solomon talks about totally investing yourself in God's teaching so that you won't be lead astray. The more I focus on God's Word and His teachings for my life, the easier it is for the Holy Spirit to guide me. It takes an intentional, daily focus on God's truths to permeate your heart, soul and mind and to make following those truths second nature.

God, I confess that with all the stuff that I've got to get done in a day I sometimes lose track of you in my thoughts. I'm not really trying to ignore you as much as I'm just distracted by the routine and pressures of life. Help me zero in on you throughout my day. Help me to pause and bring my thoughts back to You.

Daily Reflections on Eccl. 3:8-12 (Lonely Days)

It's hard to be alone today. With facebook, myspace, twitter, IM, Skype and texting one can be connected to someone virtually 24 hours a day. You can be involved with others lives all day long. It almost seems strange to talk about loneliness or being alone in this day and age.

Yet loneliness is very much alive today. It's possible to be in a crowd of people and still be lonely or alone. Just because you are surrounded by other human beings, just because you can contact friends and family at a moments notice, doesn't mean you can't be lonely. Some people actually choose to isolate themselves. Some people are isolated or ignored by others. Couples who live in the same home, share the same bed can drift apart and end up going in different directions.

I once heard Randy Phillips, then president of Promise Keepers, asked the 50,000 plus men assembled if they had 6 other men in their lives who would carry their casket. As we talked about it among the 60 men in our group, very few could actually name 6 guys that they were really close to. In fact, most of the men had more than one or two guys. I had to ask myself if I was close enough to 6 guys to have them carry my casket.

Many guys, especially, don't have that many close relationships with which they interact. The older one gets, it seems that there are less of those relationships in a man's life. It's easy to slip into the "I'm a self made man" mentality. Don't show a need for others in your life is the mantra. It's as if as a man, we don't need relationships.

This morning as I was lying in bed listening to the thunder and lightening, before my alarm went off, I was just thinking about our church family. I realized that there are only three guys in my church that are older than me. A new church that is probably to be expected. I have found myself hanging out some with our younger men, 15 to 20 years my junior. I still think of myself as that young, even though my body doesn't. I can keep up on the golf course, but other athletic events, I'm a little behind.

But it's not the keeping up that matters. It's the relationships that matter. And although we are at different stages in life, we benefit each other. I bring some wisdom of life experience and they keep me thinking young and teach me lots of things. I need them probably more than they need me. But there is no question Solomon is right when he talks about the advantages of friendship and partners in Ecclesiastes 3. Two are better than one because; they are more productive together, they can protect and encourage each other, they can strengthen each other.

But the real power in any relationship is when these friends, partners are joined together as brothers or sisters in Christ. When God is at the center of each friend or partner's life, the bond between the two or more is deepened and strengthened.

God, I know that I have a tendency to just want to do things on my own. But my relationship with you is missing something without the companionship and encouragement from other brothers and sisters in Christ. It's tough going it alone. I've tried way too much in my life. Keep me involved, Lord, in the lives of other men. Bring other men into my life too. I need them. Help me to honestly show my vunerability. Make me sensitive to my brothers needs.

Daily Reflections on Rom. 3:21-26 (Give Me the Bad News First)

Nobody likes bad news, but we sure have been getting a lot of it over the last year and a half or so. The housing bubble burst, the banks are in trouble, the stock market tanks, the big 3 US auto makers about to go under, the big government bailouts leaving the country in trillions of dollars in debt, the rising unemployment rate all lead to a depressed society in more ways than one. Just the past week we've had more bad news concerning the deaths of Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcet, Micheal Jackson and Billy Mays. That's not to mention the daily accounts of service men and women being killed in Iraq or Afghanistan.

Enough with the bad news already. I'm ready for some good news. I don't need anymore bad news. But some how or another I can't seem to escape it. My dog greets me this morning with a huge "hot spot" on one of his legs, which means another trip to the vet, more antibiotics, more unnecessary bills just when I took a pay cut from the church due to declining income and rising expenses. Will it ever stop?

Romans is one of those books that not only lays out the good news but it also delivers some bad news. In Romans 1:16, Paul says that he's not ashamed of the Gospel because it is the power of God unto salvation. The word Gospel means good news. He goes on to say in verse 17 that in the Gospel a righteousness of God is revealed. As Martin Luther read those words he declared the Gospel not to be good news but bad news. How could anyone live up to the righteousness of God?

A few verses later Paul quotes from the Old Testament declaring that no one is righteous, not even one. That's not good news. Then here in Romans 3 he states that all, as in everyone on the planet, has sinned and is far away from the glory of God. Great! That rules out any chances I had of getting into a relationship with God or the hope of heaven.

But the Gospel truly is good news. Luther finally realized that although he didn't stand a chance with God on his own merit, through faith in what God did for us through Jesus Christ made it possible to live in intimacy with God today and in heaven with Him for eternity. He wrote on his monastery walls "Faith alone."

In today's verses, Paul clearly tells us that a righteousness from God is available through believing in Jesus. Even though we are all sinners in God's eyes (the only one who's opinion counts), there is justification and redemption in Christ substitutionary death on the cross. Justification simply means that God made things right for us with Him by paying the penalty of our sins through Jesus' death. Redemption simply means that God bought us from a life of slavery to ourselves and the burden of a sinful life. He paid our sin debt so that we could be free.

The good news is that I'm free in Christ to really live. I have a righteousness from God draped over my life. As Charles Swindol has said, I'm not 99.9% righteous otherwise the Bible would have to be rewritten to say, "though my sins be as scarlet, they will be light pink." As a believer in Jesus I'm considered 100% righteous in the eyes of God. In fact, that is the only way I can have a relationship with God and enter into the gates of heaven.

God, thanks for the GOOD NEWS. I know that I'm a mess without you. Thanks for clothing me with Christ. Thanks for loving me. Thanks for renewing me. Thanks for giving me hope for this life and beyond.

Daily Reflections on Isa. 30:15-18 (Why Do I Get So Tense?)

Since my accident several years ago in which I injured my knee, I've had to give up running. But I have recently taken up walking just to keep off the abundance of extra weight that seems to be collecting around my waist and elsewhere. I walk for about thirty minutes each day at a fairly rapid pace to get my heart rate up a bit. Being the competitive type that I am, I have a tendency when I walk to try to beat yesterday's distance. I attempt to get just a little bit farther than the day before.

As I'm pushing myself to get that extra distance I've noticed that I have a tendency to strain and tighten up just a bit, especially down the home stretch, the last five minutes or so. Instead of staying relaxed, I find myself tensing muscles. Every runner knows that it is important to stay relaxed when you run for maximum effect. Tightening up can shorten your stride and puts you at risk for pulling or injuring something.

Throughout my life I've found that instead of staying relaxed when the pressure is on to accomplish something, I bear down. I've apologized to my staff in advance every Easter for my tenseness and intenseness. It's just like my walking, I tighten up down the stretch. I put a lot of pressure on myself. I push myself. Not only am I shortening my spiritual stride, I put myself at risk of injuring myself and more importantly the relationships around me.

In today's passage God gives some clear instruction. He says in repentance and rest is our salvation, that in quietness and trust is our strength. Yet He also notes that His people have a tendency to have none of that. Rather they rely on their own strength, resources, ingenuity, etc. to deal with life's biggest challenges or even daily issues.

So God leaves us to our own devices. Therefore the problem only gets bigger and the challenge more intense and the frustration only more aggrivating. Yet, God longs to be gracious to us. Waiting on Him brings a blessing to us. As long as I insist on striving myself, I can expect a tense life.

God, I'm really tired of striving on my own. I want to change my thinking daily to your way of thinking. I want to rest from my incompetence and trust in your power and ability. I don't want a life of constant turmoil. I could use the stillness you provide, the strength you provide. Waiting on you Lord is really tough. I still find myself wanting to push forward on my own. Help me to readjust my focus onto you, your will, your plan, your strength.