Month: November 2010

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Fantasy Lost

Well, I had been winning my fantasy league until last night!  I went head to head with the other team with a 7-3 record and come up short – 4 points short.  And today I can blame it on the coaching!  Not, the highly paid NFL coaches, I can blame it on this blogger’s coaching.  I guessed wrong.  I benched the players who scored touchdowns, and I played the players who forgot they had a game to play!  But really who would play Mark Sanchez over Kyle Orton or Forte over Bradshaw?  The inconsistency of it all is about to make me pull my hair out!  One week 2 touchdowns 150 yards, the next 25 yards and fumble! Who should I bench now!

The inconsistency of that fantasy football stuff started me thinking.  I found myself thinking about our spiritual lives.  We’re hot, we’re cold.  We fight off the devil, we let him win.  Man, if our Creator was playing Fantasy Spiritual Living, he would be going crazy with out inability to keep high scores each week.  But then again, he’s used to it – as he struggled with the nation of Israel for years in the love-love-not-so-much relationship.

However, he is always there.  He never trades us, he never benches us.  He is still there despite our selfish ambition and our affairs with Satan.

8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Hebrews 13:8 (New International Version, ©2010)

Wow. I don’t know about you, but I find comfort in knowing that. Despite my inconsistencies, he’s still the same, and still full of forgiveness.
Maybe, I just found a new coaching technique.

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Wacky Weekend

It was a wacky weekend for me, full of movies, parenting adventures, compassionate encounters, personal frustrations and football.  Several of those events are probably blog worthy, but just have not completely settled in my brain to become sharable.  What I do know is it has become more and more obvious how richly blessed I am, but how little I am concerned about those blessings.

Throughout the weekend, I become aware of places where I am “giving the Devil a foothold” (eph 4:27).  It was interesting that this morning, as I carved out the few minutes to jot down something before I headed off to work, that I opened up my Bible to Ephesians 4 and 5.  It’s an excellent reminder that followers of Christ are also to be imitators of Christ – kind, compassionate, and forgiven ( as He has forgiven you!!!).

Today, lets head the advice from the middle of chapter 5 of Ephesians as we imitator our leader and Savior:

15 Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.  Ephesians 5:15-16 (New International Version)

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Undesirable Number One

As most of you know Harry Potter 7 was released today, and in this one Harry becomes “Undesirable Number One” in his battle of good versus evil. After I made a poster with my son’s picture and name on it at the Harry Potter web site, I started to think about those words.

Undesirable.  It made me think about a real person, who was in the exact state.

Remember this guy mentioned in 1 Peter

4 As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him—

and in Isaiah 53

4 Surely he took up our pain
and bore our suffering,
yet we considered him punished by God,
stricken by him, and afflicted.
5 But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;

Yep.  That guy, Jesus, he was labeled, and still is lots of times, as undesirable number one, yet he still took the burden on sin for you.

the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
and by his wounds we are healed.
6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
each of us has turned to our own way;
and the LORD has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.

So today, remember that he who was undesirable, gave himself that you might life.  Use your life to bring him the glory and to shine the light throughout the world!

To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.
22 “He committed no sin,
and no deceit was found in his mouth.”[e]

23 When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. 24 “He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.” 1 Peter 2:21-24

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Divide by Zero

Yesterday I was ready to give up, to give in – to just plain quit. I want to act like the inner city children do when they get in trouble – just go limp.

It was just one of those days when the whole meaningless nature of the work just gets the best of you.

I wanted to follow the advice I received in the bottom of the the Think Geek weekly email update (I love Think Geek, its one of my favorite stores)

When faced with trouble
And in need of an escape
Divide by zero. – Safiya from Vancouver, Canada!

That’s right. Yesterday I wanted to divide by zero and blow the whole thing up.  However….

9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Galatians 6:9 (New International Version)

Yep, the harvest, the goal.  I have to remember that the things that choke me are not the important things in this world. There’s no place to give up. There’s no place to give in. Our lives are so much more then the mundane life sucking hope searing, mind scrambling activities thrust upon us. Our lives are to be lived to glorify God, our Savior, even in those situations. We are called to be a light, and we cannot, I cannot, let it be squished, stomped and put out.

11 Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. 12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Romans 12:11-12 (New International Version)

So, I will not push the escape button or mess up the math world by dividing by zero. Together, with your encouragement, I will press on to the goal! How about you?

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In For Service

For the last few weeks I have been trying to find a day when I can drop my vehicle off at the garage and spend the time being carted to and fro the garage whilst it has a little routine maintenance completed. I think today may be the day – of course with early morning meetings that always makes it a little bit of a challenge.
Last night, I was feeling the anxiety of what could happen to my vehicle if I didn’t get the belt inspected, and the fluids topped off. It presented quite a bleak picture of a ruined investment.
As you know from previous post, I do enjoy quite a love affair with my vehicle and so I must sacrifice some time to keep it in tip top running condition. ( Sacrificing for keeping it clean appears to be a different issue!)

Anyway, it interesting how we will remind ourselves through stickers, alarms, mailing and phone calls to keep our vehicles tunes up. This morning, I drifted off to the routine maintenance we need in our lives, especially our spiritual lives, and how we also sometimes just let that go to the wayside as well. And the prospect of ruining that investment ( our lives) is of such greater consequence then a vehicle. Keep yourselves well oiled by sacrificing a little time for your spiritual routine maintenance.

5Therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry.

6For it is because of these things that the wrath of God will come upon the sons of disobedience,

7and in them you also once walked, when you were living in them.

8But now you also, put them all aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech from your mouth.

9Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices,

10and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him–
Colossians 3:5-10 (New American Standard Bible)