ALookintoT

What is the difference between participation and commitment? By definition, participation is the action of taking part in something. Commitment is dedication to a task or purpose. I like bacon and eggs for breakfast. Which animal is truly committed to the cause? Is it the chicken or the pig? I believe life is full of people who participate but less people are truly committed to a cause. Unfortunately, I also believe that there are much more people that neither participate or a true committed person. I know Palm/Passion is behind us as we rejoice in knowing Christ is risen, but I wanted to reflect a little on the passion story.

Mark chapters 14 and 15 are full of those who participated in the story. The man carrying a water jar (14:13) was a man way ahead of his time as it was unheard of a man doing what was considered a woman’s job in those days. Where did he come from and what happened to him? How about the slave who had his ear cut off only to be restored to health (14:47). You think he may have had a change of heart who became a testifier of the truth from that point onward? Of course, who can forget about Barabbas (15:6) that was saved from death by being replaced with an innocent person. I imagine he too became a convert. Then there was Simon (15:21) who was forced to carry the cross. He probably believed his circumstance changed drastically by being at that place at that time. Finally, there was Joseph from Arimathea who dared to approach Pilate (15:43). (Get the book “Christ Commission” by Og Mandino to learn more about the author’s fictional story of Joseph. Maybe true?) I can go on about other characters but I ask you what did these characters have in common? They all were participants in the passion story. Who was the only person truly committed to the cause? During this new season of Easter, may we all remember to be participants in the story but let us give all credit for the one who paid the ultimate price for our everlasting freedom.

T

Conclusion means “the end or finish of an event or process”. Last week I wrote about process. Would you consider your life as a process to an end? The end may lead us to where we do not want to go, by our actions. The end may lead to a life everlasting, also by our actions. It is truly our chose in which way we go.

What if we choose a hero approach to conclude our life? As a hero, we would overcome all odds by our own efforts and our own sacrifice. We may think that a monument of our sacrifice will buy us the recognition we are seeking. Heroism is really not a chose. Heroes are made by unconditional sacrifice, in my opinion.

What if we conclude to become a martyr for some misguided ideals? Success may be achieved for a temporary moment in time but time moves on to other news of someone else trying to get on the band wagon.

What if we become a forbearer of the truth? A forbearer is one who remains patient in the face of provocation. If someone has shown forbearance, they behave in a calm and sensible manner even though they have every right to be angry. They are patient and tolerant even in the face of adversity.

It is our choice how we behave and how we end our existence here on this earth, in my opinion. During Holy Thursday, I was asked to participate in the celebration of life for a 94 year old forbearer of the truth. He could have ended a Hero during a time of conflict in World War II but as circumstances go, his mission on this earth did not conclude then. I believe God had so much more for him to share. I can attest to his forbearance for the last 4+ years of his life. I shall always remember this gentle, funny, calming person as a reminder of a sower of good seeds in life to bear good fruit. He always remained in the moment asking what does God what us to do next?

Hebrews 5:10 says he was appointed by God, John 13:1 says he love his own in this world, and John 13:34 says he gave us the commandment to love one another so we may be recognized as one of his. As we remember the sacrifices of Jesus, let us remember that we all need to pick up our cross and follow the way, the truth and the light.

T

I recently watched an awesome movie with my wife called, “If Only I Can Imagine”. I recommend this movie but be prepared to wipe away tears. No spoiler alert here as I want you to watch this movie yourself. It is a perfect example of the process at work in our lives that can result in a desirable outcome.

The word process means a series of actions or steps taken in order to achieve a desirable end. In reality, we are all on a journey to an end. If we continue down a certain path taking wrong steps along the way, the end is tragic. But we can change our direction by taking new steps. The whole process may take many steps to achieve your goal but I submit to you a simple two step process.

God’s grace is given to us all. Without divine guidance, we never reach our desired destiny. Now, us humans are given a free will. We can choose to go it alone where failure is the final result. We can try over and over again, but the end result is still the same. However, we can choose to take action by partnership with God’s grace. That action is called faith. Step one in the process is the gift of God’s grace which we have no control over but is given freely. Step two in the process is our faith which is totally in our control.

Ephesians 2:8 states that we are saved by God’s grace because of our faith. I believe faith may be a series of actions needed to reach the point where we will accept His grace. Air is all around us and thanks to our body’s action, we breath. Grace is also all around us, but unlike our lungs that work through the miracle of life, we must go on faith to accept His grace.

Like in the movie, we can struggle most of our lives trying to achieve our goals and become bitter when we fail. However, we can choose a simpler approach. We can eliminate a whole bunch of unnecessary wrong steps and go on faith where we will be saved by His grace. Salvation is God’s gift. It’s not something we possess or did to earn. Instead, we are God’s accomplishment, created in Christ Jesus to do good things. These good things are the way we live our lives according to God’s plan. (Ep 2:9-10)

We are rewarded for our faith, which yields good deeds, not by our works alone. Our works alone may provide short term recognition but in the long term leads to a dead end.

T

1RM (repetition max) test is often considered the “benchmark” for measuring strength. This is the greatest amount of force that muscles can produce in a single maximum effort. I submit to you another measurement of strength as the maximum amount of force we can endure to avoid foolishness. Where do we get our wisdom and strength? Is it going to the gym for maximum work outs? That may provide our body with additional strength but not an ability to use our strength wisely. Is it spending all of our time to maximize our brains? That may provide intellectual stimuli but over time, our bodies may fail us sooner that we thought. How do we really measure strength? If you spend time researching this question, you may be amazed at how many answers come back. Go for it!

I think the more important question is where do we get our balance of wisdom and strength? If the lights go off in your gym, do you continue exercising in the dark? If you have no power for your computer or lighting to read, can you finish that paper in order to achieve more wisdom? We may find ourselves without a power source to continue our strength and wisdom building efforts. But what if we rely on a source that seems foolish to the seemingly wise and powerful of this world?

1 Corinthians 1:25 explains no matter how smart and strong we think we are, God is wiser and stronger. I submit to you to consider your source of wisdom and strength. Should we rely on man-made sources for our wisdom and strength or a higher power? Jesus would raise the temple in three days but the leaders of the time said no way. (John 2:13-22) Who was correct?

T

 

Google’s definition of reason is a “cause, explanation, or justification for an action or event”. The first law of thermodynamics states that energy can neither be created or destroyed. It can only change forms. Newton’s third law states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. I refer you to these basic laws and ask why do people do what they do? Is it a reason for what happened to them? Are they full of negative energy that needs to be channeled into an alternate form of energy? Is it a reaction to an action? Perhaps, it is all three.

I believe we are living in a world full of justification without logic, negative energy, and reactionary impulses. All we have to do is watch a little “breaking news” on the 24 hour news cycles to get all twisted up. It is hard to find peace so I like to retreat into myself where peace finds me.

If we are full of negative energy, it will come out in some other form that will adversely affect us and others. Likewise, if we fill ourselves with positive energy, that energy will also change form into a positive result for you and others. If we are impacted by a negative action, do we have to react negatively? No, it actually goes against fundamental laws. Instead, we should react in a positive manner to make it equal and opposite to the negative action.

In Mark 8, Peter has reacted negatively to Jesus’ teaching about what is to come. I believe we are all guilty of reacting on what we believe to be true instead of searching in our souls for the real reasons. Verse 36, ask the painful question why would people gain the whole world at the price of losing their eternal lives?

Why do people do what they do? I believe we are all influenced by actions. If the action is negative, should we react negatively? Why would we sacrifice our soul to gain a temporary victory? Maybe next time when we are faced with a challenge by a negative action, we can change the outcome by a positive reaction.

The audio below contains a poem read by my wife and written by our brother in law after a very rough time many years ago. The poem is called “My Visitor”. This was his positive reaction to a very tragic event in his life.

T