Abdominal Adventures

On January 12th, I underwent the knife- or at least the scope. Now I am without gall in this present world. Supposedly, this was the sole solution to end my on-again, off-again adventures in abdominal pain. “Poof” the doc led me to believe, “the suffering will disappear.”

At first he was right. I even preached three days after the “procedure.”

But disappeared, not quite so. My adventures have continued. I lunched one day and then felt like I had been kicked in the gut! Where is the refund line?

Right now, the rumblings have receded somewhat. The recovery process continues. I still do not fully trust food. And, I wouldn’t trust me if I were you. My abdominal adventures find a way to express themselves.

I have lost some weight however. I guess that is a good thing. I would not recommend the diet though.

Bottom line- unless you absolutely have to- hang on to that gallbladder God gave you. It is there for a purpose.

Unbroken

One of my Christmas gifts was a book entitled Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand. Normally, I get a few books each Christmas- ones that I have picked out in advance and passed along as “gift ideas.” This book however was not on my list. It was new to me. I had not previously seen it, nor had I ever heard of Louis Zamperini.

I enjoy WWII history along with a good adventure story and this book seemed to have it all. Actually it had much more. What I thought was just another ineresting book about another adventure-filled, semi-forgotten chapter in WWII turned out to be a “wow” story. The life story of Louis Zamperini is one of the most inspirational I have ever read.

He was a world-class runner on the verge of breaking the four-minute mile. He ran in the 1936 Berlin Olympics and even met Hitler. WWII erupted and like most in the “greatest generation” Louie enlisted and soon was flying over the Pacific in a bomber.  These parts of his life were thrilling in themselves, but it was after he found himself afloat for weeks on a rubber raft in the Pacific and later captured and imprisoned by the Japanese Army that his story really becomes riveting.

But that is not all. Louie’s story- if possible- is deeper than just this. It is what happens after he returns home- trying to cope and adjust- that impacted me the most.

If you like WWII history. If you enjoy true-life adventure stories. If you want to be inspired. If you want your faith reaffirmed, then read this book. Understand however, that Hillenbrand is graphic at times in detailing life, language, and suffering in POW camps.

And BTW. Louie is still alive and enjoying life. Check out the promo video below.

Alone for the Holidays?

I wrote the following article in 1997 for the now defunct newsletter, Set Apart and Single. Perhaps it may be of some help for someone struggling now through the holidays. 

It was truly an experience forever etched in my mind.  It was December 24, 1995 and I was all alone. Not just alone, but desperately lonely with nothing but memories and tears to keep me company. To say that my first Christmas after my divorce was difficult would be an understatement. Twas not the season to be jolly for me. Being alone and lonely is a hidden heartache many feel during the holiday season.

It is my earnest prayer that no one go through a night like this, however.  At the time I thought it was something I had to endure- and endure alone, but I was wrong. My mistake was in not seeking the comfort and compassion of family and friends. No one has to be alone for the holidays. There are much better alternatives.

• Surround yourself with support. Seek out those who care among family, friends, and church family. Don’t even wait to be asked. There are many who would welcome in another person in their Christmas celebration. Just let others know and seek them out. Do not suffer in silence.
• Focus on giving. Give of yourself during the holidays. Volunteer to serve the needy through a church or civic group. Proactively spread the goodwill of the season. It is amazing how serving others also blesses the server! It is reflective of the season and of who Christ wants us to be (Philippians 2:2-4).
• Look ahead, not back.  Paul gave this divine advice a long time ago (Philippians 3:13-14) and it is still valuable counsel. While it may not be possible to remove past experiences of loss and pain, balancing them with the anticipation of what God has next in store for our lives offers great encouragement. Regardless of our past, God has a bright future in store for us.
• Find comfort in God’s presence. Think of the traditional meaning of Christmas. God sent Christ for us. In him we are never alone. He remains “our ever present help in time of need” (Psalm 46:1). Allow him to bring you the peace and goodwill of heaven during the challenges of the holiday season.

We all go through our own process after loss and heartbreak. Our challenge is to allow Christ to go through it with us- to lean upon him and his people to help soothe our grief and loneliness. Allow this to happen during the holidays also. I finally did. I learned that I do not have to be alone on the holidays. Neither do you.  Christmas can be merry again.

Be strong in the Lord!

 

 

Post-Christian

This is the label now used to describe our times. Where once our culture was framed by a general allegiance to Christian values and ethics-  it no longer is. This is probably not a shocker to most of us.  The evidence of this surrounds. Headlines blurt it out daily.

Now I could launch into a discussion explaining how this might not necessarily be as great a negative as it appears. I could explore the strong and growing similarities between our century and the first one and then point out how the church flourished in that pre-Christian era. That is indeed an interesting discussion.

But for now- here are some brief and general thoughts on how we got to be “post-Christian.”

• We have surrendered our identities as Christians. No, we still wear the tag Christian, but in reality there is not much that separates us church-goers from those who don’t. Brad J. Waggoner in his book, The Shape of Faith to Come: Spiritual Formation and the Future of Discipleship speaks of “cultural seepage” within the church- basically dumbing down our  commitment to living and sharing kingdom principles. The lines have simply blurred. We look and act too much like surrounding culture to be taken seriously as a penetrating voice for Christ in the cultural dialogue.
• Related to that is the moral ambiguity among us. We all know about scandals in high places among churches and church leaders. This has not helped, but what further hurts our attempts to share the joy of Christ is the failure of many Christians to faithfully live out godly virtues. We are simply failing to put these (see 2 Peter 1:5-9) on and wear them with any consistency. Instead (and again) we do not look much different than unbelievers. This actually disqualifies us from being a credible witness to Christ (1 Corinthians 9:27).  And then, when we do speak we open ourselves up to criticism of being judgmental and hypocritical.
• Our message has become too politicized.  God’s kingdom transcends any nation or country. Our call regardless of our nationality is to be salt and light to that nation. God’s kingdom can transform an earthly one, but not by becoming equal partners with it (2 Corinthians 6:14). When “God issues” become pawns in political debate designed only to pander for votes- it then hinders our ability to make a difference in that culture by sharing the overall life-giving message of Christ.
• There is simply too much general apathy in our churches. Where now is our passion for evangelism? Where is our zeal to truly live a life worthy of our calling? Where is our commitment to Bible study and worship?

I am speaking in generalities here. Praise God there are exceptions. There are also solutions. God provides them (start by reading the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7. This is indeed a heavenly resource for penetrating any culture with the message of Christ). Ultimately it comes back to me. Am I being salt and light? Does my life- while imperfect- genuinely reflect godly values in a consistent way? Am I fueling my soul through God’s Spirit and with the Word of God? Am I passionately in love with Christ? Do I verbally share the joys of my faith?

I am not afraid of living in a post-Christian culture. God still reigns. He just wants us to demonstrate that reign in our lives.

Feel free to agree or disagree and add your thoughts to the discussion.

From Mourning to Morning

Here I am sitting at the keyboard trying to collect the right words to describe my feelings about last week- about what I witnessed and felt in the aftermath of the horrific events that took the precious lives of Karen and Cole Ferguson.

I can’t really find many.

I do not want to rehearse any of those events. I am still thinking about the overwhelming outpouring of support demonstrated by those touched by this tragedy. God’s people rose up and surrounded Les, his boys and their family in truly tremendous ways. Darkness struck an awful blow, but Light powerfully responded. God was and is at work among his people. The Ferguson and Brown families are not and will not be alone in their grief.

To be sure- it is their (and to a lesser degree our) time for mourning. Few among us can really know the extent of their grief. There is really no way to compare it. It is journey they must undertake through the edges of the “valley of the shadow of death.”  Faithfully- I believe- they will take it. Faithfully God and his staff will be there to comfort and guide them-to eventually find peace beside still waters.

It is a journey from mourning to morning.

It will happen for each in their own time (and God’s). It will likely remain a bittersweet process. Perhaps it will not be fully complete until an eternal reunion, but one day it will be complete.

Les, I am praying for you- for strength on this journey.

Oh, and one more thing- no matter the depth of darkness and the damage it creates, it will never triumph over Light.