Mettle of Honor.

Most of us dream of doing something great, of achieving something significant enough that we will leave our mark on the world.  Listen to the words of one person who has accomplished this:

“I ran through the gun fire to see what was going on with Sarge….maybe we could hide behind the same rock and shoot together.  I did what I did because in the scheme of painting the picture of that ambush, that was just my brush stroke. I didn’t take the biggest brush stroke, and it wasn’t the most important brush stroke.”

These are the words of Staff Sargeant Salvatore Giunta, who was awarded the Medal of Honor last week on November 16, 2010.  Three years ago on October 25, 2007, then Corporal Giunta, saved his fatally wounded squad leader from being captured, while exposing himself to intense enemy gunfire. 

He was cited for “his unwavering courage, selflessness and decisive leadership under extreme enemy fire that led to defeat of an enemy ambush and the recovery of an injured fellow American soldier.”  Like most Medal of Honor recipients, Giunta expressed that he did not feel he had done anything out of the ordinary.

He joins an elite corps of individuals, who are distinguished in receiving the highest honor given by the government to a member of the armed forces. Since it was established 150 years ago, the Medal of Honor has been awarded only 3449 times. It is clearly a medal to honor the mettle (the quality of exceptional courage and fortitude) of a person.  Due to the extreme bravery it honors, most recipients receive the award posthumously.  In fact, SSgt Giunta is the first living recipient since the Vietnam War in 1973.

We admire such courage and commitment.  SSgt Giunta not only displayed his own honorable mettle under fire, he also honored his squad members by considering them worthy of sacrificing his own life. 

How would it change the way you see yourself to know that someone considered you worth enough to risk their life for you?  That they esteemed and valued you so much they were willing to face certain death to see you live?  Can you imagine being that important to anyone?

Well you are!  There is someone who knows every detail about you, and honored your worth by dying to give you life.  He took the guilt and wrongdoing of all of us, and freely accepted our punishment undergoing the most tortuous death ever devised by the human mind.  On the cross, Jesus Christ displayed the supreme mettle of honor in willingly sacrificing Himself for your freedom. 

And you are so important to Him that He did it joyfully!  Hebrews 12:2b states:  “because of the joy awaiting Him, Jesus endured the cross, despising its shame. Now He is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.”

How can we honor this One who has honored us so much?  We can offer to Him what He most desires from us: our presence and intimacy.  Choosing to honor Him with our time and desire for His presence is the heart of worship.  Spend time today seeking God in worship and see how He will honor and lavish His love upon you!

Come and join us this Sunday at 10:30 AM to continue this discussion.  My wife, Sue Ahn’s sermon is “Honor, the Heart of Worship,” part 4 in our current series on “Wired for Worship.” 

Thought-Full or Thankful?

I just returned from a trip to Israel this past week, and in my absence, it was clear that the holiday season “arrived”.  Everywhere I went, I was bombarded by reminders of the approaching holidays; or maybe I should say the encroaching holidays?  Amid all the lights, decorations, plastic snow and strains of “Santa Claus is coming to town,” the heightened energy level was so thick, it felt inescapable. 

This is the time of year when our personal planners quickly fill with numerous obligatory appearances at a series of family and work-related festivities.  Time not delegated to these holiday gatherings gets consumed in preparing for them: baking traditional favorite dishes, writing and (e)mailing the annual newsletter, decorating, shopping, wrapping, shipping etc. etc.

While most of us enjoy the holiday season, we may also find ourselves caught up in the activity frenzy, and pushed into a stressed state.  Frequently this season of joy and peace becomes an endurance trial of frustration, as we search for elusive parking spots in overcrowded malls, and spend sleepless nights dreading the holiday meal with bickering extended family members.  Our anxiety rises as we wonder if our children will be delighted or disappointed with their gifts.  If we’re honest, we must admit at times we find ourselves wishing the season was behind us.  

Between the Ho, Ho, Ho’s, and Fa, la, la, la, la’s, a new holiday tradition has arisen: the 60 second expert interview on “Tips for Taming Holiday Stress” aired on our local nightly newscast.  Typical offerings include gems like, “use paper plates,” “travel after rush hour,” “buy prepared foods,” “set a budget,” and “get adequate sleep.”  Hardly earth-shattering!

I like the advice Jesus offered 2,000 years ago.  He had arrived with his followers at the home of his good friend Lazarus.  The size of this group would have been at least 13 and might have been 70 or more.  It was a major entertainment event, and Lazarus’ sister Martha immediately went into hyperactivity mode focusing on the preparations. Her sister, Mary, sat and listened to Jesus.  In a fit of irritability, Martha confronted Jesus demanding that He send Mary to help.  But Jesus told her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and spent over all these details.  There is only one thing worth being concerned about and Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.” (Luke 10:41-42)

What did Mary discover?  She realized the importance of spending time in God’s presence.  In the midst of her hectic schedule she knew that focusing on God, listening to His direction would reset her priorities, and relieve her stress, as she saw her tasks from His perspective.

During the holidays, especially when I begin to feel overwhelmed, I think about things I am thankful for.  I get still, and start thanking God for these things. As I do, the feeling of stressful pressure engulfing me lifts, and my attitude shifts as I see things in a new way.  I leave refreshed, energized and centered again, ready to enjoy the season. 

                       

As you go through the upcoming holidays, when you get “thought-full” (full of too many “to do” thoughts), take some time to be thankful to God for all the good things in your life.  Let His perspective give you back the joy and wonder of the season!

Come and join us this Sunday at 10:30AM as we continue the discussion on the life- giving power of God’s presence.   My sermon, “ Pursuing His Presence Through Our Worship,” is part 3 in our current series on “Wired for Worship.”

Don’t Take Me for Granted!

“Don’t take me for granted!”  Have you ever said or felt that?  I’m sure we all have, numerous times.  None of us like to feel that our actions or personhood are being taken for granted.  It leaves us feeling invisible, worthless, like a non-person.  And our typical response is frustration and anger.  We want “them” to see just how much they depend on us and don’t realize it.  “I’ll show them,” we say as we contemplate revenge.

But have you ever considered all the things you take for granted everyday…like air for instance?  Did you know, that on average, you take about 23,000 breaths per day, inhaling 10,800 liters of air? 

Unless it is very smoggy, you probably don’t even think about the air around you. You can’t see it or feel it, and the air is always there when you need it, so you just take it for granted.  But how long would you survive in a vacuum chamber?  Probably not more than a maximum of 6-10 minutes.  Air is critical for your survival and you just take it for granted.

Right now you may be thinking, “Come on Che!  Air is a substance.  Taking a substance for granted is very different than taking a person for granted.”  Of course you’re right.  But there is a person who is closer than the air we breathe, and more vital to our survival than our next breath.  He’s the creator and sustainer of everything that is.  Whether we realize it or not, He’s our protector, defender and loving best friend.  He is God, but we can’t see or feel Him, so it’s easy to take Him completely for granted.

God doesn’t like being taken for granted anymore than we do, but for a very different reason.  We get offended at being overlooked and want to pull back from the relationship.  God loves us so much that He desires intimacy with us no matter how much we ignore Him.  He understands that the more we know Him and experience His love, the more we will trust Him and allow Him to do good things in and for us.  He longs to abundantly bless us, but often we are not open to receive from Him, so we get very little.

Years ago as a new Christian, I learned it was vital for me to seek God everyday and spend time with Him.  I wanted His counsel and guidance to direct my plans, and I needed His love and encouragement.  I found it most helpful to begin each day pursuing His presence, a practice I continue to this day.  When I begin my day this way I have clarity and focus, plans come together, and I am productive and feel on top of my game.   

When I get distracted and neglect my time with Him, circumstances compete for my attention.  I lose clarity, have difficulty focusing, and get frustrated as I struggle to get things done. I start feeling anxious and irritated.  I realize I am trying to make my life work in a spiritual vacuum.  My vital contact with God is disrupted and I’m starved for His presence and intimacy with Him.  When I once again seek Him, I am refreshed and my life comes back into balance.

Don’t cheat yourself by living in a spiritual vacuum.  Seek God’s presence daily.  Let Him surround you with His life-giving blessings and experience how your life will become filled with purpose, direction and deep satisfaction.  And next time you feel taken for granted, use it as an opportunity to ask yourself, “Am I taking God for granted today?” 

This Sunday at 10:30 AM we will look at the Biblical King David who made it his life goal to never take God for granted.  He pursued intimacy with God with such passion, that God named him “a man after God’s own heart.”  Come join us and discover how David kept God’s presence first in his life.  Our guest speaker, Cindy Jacobs, will discuss “The Tabernacle of David,” the second part in our current series on “Wired for Worship.”

Now What Do I Do?

How are you feeling these days: discouraged and overwhelmed, pessimistic and depressed, anxious and confused, or joyful and expectant?

It is the morning after the 2010 elections and the results are now history.  Regardless of how we may feel about the results, we can all breathe a collective sigh of relief that we will no longer be subjected to those political attack ads!

Typical of most midterm elections, the party that was out of power has made substantial gains, but the strength of the reversal is unusual.  There hasn’t been such a large reversal of Congressional seats since the mid 1930’s when we were in the Great Depression.  Two years ago the country voted for change, and in a landslide, rejected the policies of the party now being welcomed back in a tidal wave of incumbent turnovers.  Can the political climate change this radically in just two years?

It can and will during times of great anxiety and uncertainty, when people are searching for solutions that will re-establish a sense of security and control.  Historical analysts tell us that radical shifts in political sentiment are indicative of an unstable society being tossed from political pillar to post, anxiously grabbing at straws, and looking for a quick fix to establish a comfortable status quo.

I travel the world, and everywhere I go these days I meet worried, anxious people who are experiencing the disruption of everything they were depending on.  Their lives are in a state of perpetual flux and their problems have grown to what feel like insurmountable levels.  Sound familiar?

For some, that dream house of a few years ago has become a nightmare as they are now trapped in an upside down mortgage with large monthly payments.  They agonize over whether to stay and throw their money down a pit knowing they may never retrieve it, or walk away and destroy their good credit rating.  Others have watched their retirement plans fizzle as investment next eggs eroded in value with the precipitous stock market fall.  Now retirement is on permanent hold, and they just anxiously hope they can continue to stay employed.

I meet students who are disillusioned, their education plans fading as tuition costs skyrocket.  They wonder just how much debt they should realistically take on in pursuit of their degree.  Higher education used to be the ticket to a better job and a secure future, but now students worry about what job market will exist when they graduate.  For many young adults the present uncertainties mean delaying decisions like getting a place of their own, getting married or starting a family.

As people focus on their problems, they become more hopeless and confused.  The writer of James expressed it this way:  “For the one who wavers is like the billowing surge out at sea, that is blown hither and thither, tossed by the wind.  For being a person unable to decide, he hesitates, is unstable and uncertain about everything he thinks and feels.”  (James 1:6,8)

God knows that what we attend to grows in our awareness and defines our world and possibilities.  If we focus on problems, we magnify them and give them power over us.  We become trapped in an endless cycle of worry, wondering: “Now what do I do?” God never intended for us to tackle problems alone.  He wants us to focus on solutions rather than our problems.  How do we become solution focused?  We worship God.

Surprised?  Worship is not a set of religious acts we perform together in a church on Sunday morning.  Worship is an invitation from God to become involved in a relationship of intimacy with Him, as we focus on His attributes and character.  As He grows in our awareness, our problems and pending decisions shrink, and we become acquainted with His capability and desire to assist us.  Our hope is restored and life becomes doable and joyful again!

Come and join us this Sunday at 10:30 am as we begin a new series for November, called  “Wired for Worship.”  The sermon this week is “Worship and the Kingdom.”  We hope to see you there!