Keep Your Eye on the Ball

Keep Your Eye on the Ball

A tangled heap of cleats, pads, helmets and jerseys. The game of football. While I grasp the basic idea of the game, the details boggle my mind. However, a determination to learn prevails. Every time #88 enters the field I want to know what he is doing. Football moms, just one of our responsibilities and joys.

Capturing the game with prize pictures, another responsibility I take extremely seriously. The 150 plus photos taken at each game proves my determination yet also highlights my ignorance of the sport. As father and son peruse my photographic efforts, a running commentary on the game ensues. I desperately try to follow the conversation, unfortunately with limited success. Thankfully they eventually take pity on my frustration and, less than patiently, begin to instruct the clueless football mom.

These weekly sessions enhance my knowledge of this bewildering pastime. I now know positions, players’ responsibilities and what a good block, tackle, throw and play should look like. In pictures. On the field, the chaos still baffles me, as I often lose sight of the ball completely. And the field again appears to be a place of tossed about boys and their equipment. 

With minimal effort, these sports photos translate to life. At a glance, the disarray seems without purpose, a tangled mess of life and people. Observers easily lose sight of the primary purpose. As daily life requires quick calls, fast feet, and excessive strength, the participant must be fully aware of where God is in each moment.

Just as running, blocking, dodging and passing are worthless movements without the football, so are endless days of activity without Jesus. Actions, regardless of earthly value, have no eternal value without God. Likewise, regardless of how mundane, activities which include Him instantly achieve eternal significance. When life begins to look and feel disheveled, take a moment and readjust your focus. The Prince of Peace can take the tangled and tousled and provide meaning and value.

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Walking on the Rocks

            I just recently returned from a week of church camp, the same one I attended as a camper through junior high and high school. I can’t help but compare my experiences, even though 20 years separates them. Much about camp life has changed. The most important upgrade—air conditioning in all buildings! Pretty sure camp would just be a memory if that particular change had not been included. Activities have been added and others removed as times and teenagers continue to change. But much remains the same. Beautiful singing under the stars. Late nights and early mornings. Baptisms at the river.

            The river. A landmark at camp. A cherished spot for all. Worship, play, baptisms, Bible studies and more happen on the shore or in the clear flowing water of the Medina River. Unfortunately, the river, no longer draws me. In fact, I dread the trip down the hill to the bank of the river. What was once a favorite now represents challenge and possible danger.

            As I sit on my golf cart, I watch teenager after teenager run across the river rocks as they seek to get the best seat or at least a seat with friends. They fly across, never even looking down at the rocks that make up the shore of the river. I, too, once navigated the rocks without a single thought. They were just there, nothing to consider or slow me down. Not so now. Those rocks make me incredibly nervous. One wrong step and my already weak and injured ankle could be damaged beyond repair. The rocks scare me.

            As a teenager my ankles were as strong and hearty as the next guy. The rocks posed no threat. But add 20 years and an ankle weakened by Cerebral Palsy and the rocks that went unnoticed, now seem menacing. To get my camp chair with the other adults, who line the back of the youth, I must walk across about 20 feet of unstable river rock. And typically I do this multiple times throughout the week. It is exhausting both mentally and physically.

            It isn’t walking on water but the parallels still exist. My weak ankle causes me to focus on the rocks, the danger. The teenagers’ strong ankles allow them to cross the rocks oblivious to any danger. Rocks. Waves. Strong faith. Weakened faith. Eyes focused on the danger. Eyes focused on Jesus.

            Navigation through life, focus, and attitude directly link to the condition of faith. A weak faith sees ever danger as it forever focuses on the circumstances it continually encounters. A strong faith, eyes on Jesus, moves through circumstances confident and steady. If I want to one day cross those rocks as I once did, I must strengthen my ankle. A strong faith allows us to yield to the Good Shepherd with whom crossing through dangerous ground no longer holds fear, for our Shepherd will get us safely through. This does not mean rocks or circumstances are removed. What it means is—He has promised and He will faithfully see us through.  

Settling

            Physical therapy consumed much of my time as a child, or at least that is how my memory reads. There was much time stretching, strengthening, and complaining. I hated every minute of therapy. However, I am now eternally grateful for those long hours. I can do far more than the doctors ever dreamed, because my parents persevered despite my tantrums and tears. They understood the value of pressing forward despite the opposition (me)—because cerebral palsy was not something that was going away.

            I am once again seeing a physical therapist and we have become friends. Shocking but true. I need her knowledge and expertise to walk pain free. We have made huge strides together. However, recently she mentioned my hand and the possible need to see an occupational therapist. Since we are friends, I decided to give it a try.

            Well, I didn’t realize there was so much I couldn’t do. It was most disheartening. The therapist asked me to do the craziest things and most often, I couldn’t. And really who cares? Right? Why waste so much time on something that wasn’t even bothering me. My right hand can hold my phone or my drink; seemed enough to me. Why ask it to do more?

            The therapist had a much different opinion and outlook. “Why not be as healthy as you can be? Why settle for less than you can have?”

            Her words continue to haunt me. “Why settle?”

            In my physical life I have chosen to settle for years and the result is deterioration. Muscles are shrinking and weakening. The situation now requires hours of work each week just to try to regain all I have lost. And honestly, I lost it and didn’t even notice it going. Just one day, there were so many things I could no longer do.

            If not vigilant, spiritual life can suffer the same fate.  A thriving relationship with Jesus with enough “settling” quietly falls into disrepair. A compassionate heart becomes cold and hard without notice or warning. It doesn’t happen overnight; but it sure seems like it. A powerful prayer life decays into a rotting bunch of trite mumbled prayers. When did it happen? It was never the desire or intent, but it happened.

            Settling is more than just settling. It is an unconscious path to a subtle decline. Time masks the progression of dilapidation. Long before noticed the damage sets in. Full recovery demands intense time and energy just to regain what was lost.

            The solution? Never chose to settle! “Why not be as healthy as you can be?”

            The greatest aim—a powerful passionate pursuit of Jesus. In the chase, growth and fruit result.

            Settling is never an option.

A Fresh Glimpse of God’s Love

Hebrews 12:11 “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.”

 Being a mother is the greatest blessing and the hardest job ever. Your heart is so tightly laced with your children, you often aren’t sure where you end and they begin. Their joy brings you joy; their pain brings you pain. It is a delicate and precious bond. But for all its beauty it is also often messy and miserable.

This week one of my darlings made a series of bad choices at school. This resulted in a vast variety of consequences. My first emotional response was shock, quickly followed by anger and disappointment. My heart hurt over the intensity of it all. I had to be firm, but not mean. I had to show love but also displeasure. How do you know where the line is? What is too much? What is enough?

Thankfully the call from the school came before lunch so I had several hours to pray and seek wise counsel. As her father and I discussed, debated and deliberated over our options I felt completely unequipped to correctly navigate these unknown waters. But, I was equipped. God’s Word framed and guided our choices. We were ready. We agreed upon a plan and the school supported our choices. Step one and two done. The next step, telling the child and setting the consequences in motion.

The tears shed that afternoon by both child and mother could fill our bathtub, but we had accomplished our desire: to touch the heart and teach an invaluable lesson. But the whole of the consequences would not go into effect until today.

As I dropped my humbled and contrite child at school this morning, whispered words tumbled from the passenger seat, “I’m scared.”

My heart broke. But I held it together and assured all would be well. We had prayed and God would supply the strength needed. Backpack and lunch box were bravely grabbed, and chin lifted as the uncertain child made the trip into the school.

I made it out of the parking lot before I began to sob. I had agreed to this consequence. It was right. But it hurt unbelievably. I wanted to swoop in and rescue, spare the pain and possible embarrassment, but that would be wrong. This was best. The lesson was too important, a little heart was at stake. My child’s.

As I sat at my desk looking through baby pictures and crying a startling truth become glaringly evident. God allows consequences for our good. Yes, he could intervene and spare us, but he allows them because He knows—a heart is at stake. He isn’t looking to modify behavior; He wants to change our hearts and sometimes the process requires painful consequences. But God isn’t up there watching unaffected. He hurts with us. He shares our pain because of his great love for us. Just as we, the parents careful weighed the possibilities, our Heavenly Father allows nothing to touch us that He can’t use to grow and change us.

God is infinitely good and we are gloriously loved. Even when life hurts and the pain is crippling, the faithfulness of God can see us through and He will use those very things to mold us into the image of His Son. What a great God we serve!

 

 

Thirsty?

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” Matthew 5:6

Have you ever noticed we tend to crave what we commonly consume? My Cowboy drinks more than his fair share of Dr. Pepper. And that is what he wants often throughout the day. No substitutes allowed. Dr. Pepper or nothing. If we are out of his preferred beverage, a trip to the store happens immediately, regardless of present circumstances. He has conditioned his body and mind to want, desire and even crave Dr. Pepper.

As I am trying to eat a more healthy diet, which includes lots of water, I find myself thirsty for water. And only water. I could choose to quench my thirst with a less healthy option and if done repeatedly I would no longer be thirsty for water. We train our minds and bodies to desire what we give them.

The Dr. Pepper may appear to quench My Cowboy’s thirst, but the truth is, Dr. Pepper actually dehydrates, making him more thirsty and needing more. Our bodies to be healthy need water. Water is the true thirst quencher. It is how we are made.

This reality does not only apply to physical food. We can train our minds and souls to crave various things. We may NEED TV time. We may REQUIRE Face book time. We may CRAVE video games. How we spend our free time and what we value is intricately linked. But just like the Dr. Pepper, these activities and pastimes do not fill us; they only make us want more. We were created with a hunger only God can fill.

So how do we develop an appetite for God and His Word?

How do we reprogram our minds to crave the things of God?

By changing our diet. We feed our thirst with God’s Word.  At first it may seem all wrong, not satisfying. The TV or Face book may keep calling our name. But just as we don’t give into physical cravings as we seek to get healthy, we must ignore our old pastimes to develop a new mind set. As we continually feed on his truth we WILL see our desires begin to change.

After one bite of veggies or one sip of water we don’t give up. If we want a new, healthier life we persevere until new habits are formed and old habits are broken. With our spiritual lives we can do nothing less. As we hunger and thirst for righteousness we will be truly filled. Jesus promises and he is faithful.

Pigs & Pearls

“Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.” Matthew 7:6

While praying for a dearly loved young lady one night, asking God for wisdom and direction, my heart heard the whisper, “Don’t throw your pearls to the pigs.” I was horrified. Too harsh. Surely an ungodly thought. So I bowed my head again intent on continuing my prayer and again the words came, “Don’t throw your pearls to the pigs.” I was speechless (a very rare thing), but my mind began to spin out of control. This was a child of God. Yes, her behavior and attitude did not indicate or lead you to believe this, but… We couldn't just give up on her. More time. More lessons. More interactions. More. More. More.

But, no. Had I failed her? Could I have done something different? Was this my fault? I had poured and poured into this precious life, where had I gone wrong? With these thoughts plaguing me I reached for the phone. I needed wisdom and someone who had lived this. I called my youth minister’s wife. Because you see, she had poured into me for years and I too at one time was the pig. She would be able to shed light and give me some hope and hopefully direction.

Boy, did God use her to alter my perspective. We are called to spread seed and maybe even add some water, but only God can produce the plant and only God, with the consent of the individual, can change the soil. Over watering does not produce life in a plant with bad soil. It kills. Scattering more seed and more seed on rocky or weedy soil does not change the soil. We are seed scatterers and we trust God with the rest.

I hadn't failed. Jesus had Judas for three long years. He heard every story, saw every miracle and yet he rejected and betrayed Jesus. Jesus, the Son of God, loved Judas, washed his feet, prayed for him and yet Judas never allowed him to change the soil of his heart. Jesus didn't fail. And neither do we. We love, we pray and we scatter seed. And then we trust God to handle everything else.

That prodigal child, lost spouse, wayward youth, the best thing we can do for them is to love them and give them to God. Will it hurt? Do they take a piece of you with them? Yes. But, Jesus promises peace which makes no sense. And in that moment he will provide all that you need.

**Thanks Barbie, for allowing God to use you to minister to me as I let my little piggy go.

IF you are reading this and you are the wayward, the prodigal or the lost, I need you to know, no matter how far you have run, how deep the mud, you have a heavenly Father waiting with open arms for your return. You have not used up his patience or love. You are dearly loved and will always be welcome.

Puppy Love

Horses are not the only animal in abundance at our home.  We also raise Labradors. We presently have four females that at any given time may be expecting, nursing or recovering. A typical litter can range from eight to twelve puppies. That is a lot of dogs!  These puppies are both a blessing and a chore to my children. They love to play with them and show them off to their friends. However, the mess the puppies leave behind is not a sweet smelling job to clean up.

Each litter always produces a “favorite.” This puppy is usually the most eager to play yet also loves to be cuddled and wagged around. Puppy love typically last two weeks and then the puppy is forgotten as it goes to its new home.     

While this may seem heartless and cruel, it is part of being in the dog business. Thankfully my children have no problem with the arrangement. It is just part of how we do life.

Today a “favorite” is leaving. As I sat thinking about his departure and the temporary peace it would bring before the next litter, I began to ponder the fickle nature of Americans.    

As a new “something” comes on the market, we fall in love and excitedly make our purchase. But it doesn't take very long before a new “something” steals the spotlight and our attention. We are forever jumping from one new thing to another. We are breeding discontentment. The ramifications of this lifestyle may not completely rear their ugly heads in our lifetime but our children and grandchildren will feel the effect of our fickle and flighty decisions.

How do we teach commitment and contentment while frivolously disregarding the old and idolizing the new? Do we set an example of being content in all circumstances or do we exhibit an attitude of entitlement? How do we teach our children to rest in God’s provision while we are chasing the latest new gadget?

Puppy love, here today and gone tomorrow, is not the legacy I want to leave for my children. This means evaluating purchases and choices in a whole new light. This is certain to be uncomfortable and unpopular and yet it promises to be God honoring and ultimately a blessing without measure.

“But godliness with contentment is great gain.”
1 Timothy 6:6

When your Child is Sick

That dreaded call from the school nurse. “She’s sick.” “He fell.” “We aren't sure what happened, but…” Of course we rush to the school, wondering just how bad it really is, secretly hoping our darling child is just trying to get out of class.

When our child hurts, we hurt. Their tears are like spikes falling on our hearts. We want them fixed, no pain, and back to normal. Price isn't considered, time has stopped so that isn't a concern. Our only priority is seeing our child well.

I have several friends living out this nightmare right now. Ambulance rides, hospital stays, doctors with names and specialties we could never pronounce, and most important, a miserable, hurting child.

As mothers we would gladly take their place, but that option has not been given. So we wait, we comfort, we pray. And then we repeat and do it all over again. As many times as needed and then a few more times just to be safe.

Details pour in via text throughout the day from my friends. I feel helpless and I ache for them. As I continually go to my Father’s throne of grace I am reminded that He to is a parent. He understands. He hurts with us. He let his only son come to earth knowing he would be physically brutalized.  His son begged him to find another way, yet the crucifixion happen.

What does this say about our God? Didn't he love his son? Why would he let him go through that?

The answer to those questions is both humbling and overwhelming.

He loves us that much.

I can not begin to imagine loving anyone enough to allow my child to go through what Jesus went through. God’s love is beyond our understanding yet it is the very place where we learn to both love and receive love.

My prayer today for me and my friends, let us grasp just a piece of how deeply and completely God loves us.

John 3:16 “ For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son.”

May these words fall fresh and new on our ears and hearts today.

The Point of Spurs

“Let us consider how we may spur one another on to love and good works.” Hebrews 10:24

My back door opens and closes repeatedly throughout the day.. It does not take a genius to identify the intruder. Brady’s enters silently, bare feet making no noise on the concrete floor. Brooke also, typically bare foot still makes her presence known by the constant chatter streaming from her lips. The jingle marks Troy, My Cowboy’s entrance, his spurs rattling on his boots. Unlike dime store cowboys, his spurs are not a worthless accessory meant to impress.  Spurs fill a very specific role in My Cowboy’s day.

When used correctly a spur assists in guiding and training a horse. The size of the spur and sharpness varies as needed. My Cowboy, a professional trainer chooses the spur according to the response of the horse. A “dead sided” horse requires “rock grinding” spurs, very large and pointed. However, a more docile horse may require little to no spur.

If the rider incorrectly uses spurs, he may find himself in the dust with several aching pains. Horses are flight animals and will run and buck to disengage abusive treatment. Thus, cowboys engage spurs carefully and in just the right place with just the right amount of pressure.

We as Christians can learn much from the spur wearing Cowboy. Spurring each other on to love and good works also requires knowing the other person and the correct amount of pressure and choosing the proper time and place. Ignoring these simple guides can result in unnecessary pain and a mouthful of dust.

Words spoken in love fall gently on the ears allowing correction to be both beneficial and effective. Anger, judgement and self righteous attitudes have no place in in the spurring process.

For a horse to reach full potential and be an asset to the cowboy, spurs, correctly used are a must. Maturity in the Christian walk, which ultimately brings glory to our Lord, also requires the use of spurring words.

May we be a love filled spur and may we graciously respond to the spur as needed.