Archive for February 2024

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The Entitled Nature of Happiness

February 25, 2024

This afternoon, my family will sing “Happy Birthday” to three family members who have birthdays close together. We’ll enjoy being together, eating pizza and salad, opening gifts, and being amazed by the buzz of activity that occurs anytime our three kids, two spouses, one girlfriend, and five grandkids gather.

It will be a happy time, a blessed event. In the midst of it, assuredly, there will be a few moments of pouting because the four-year-old is being denied his third piece of cake, or the fifteen-year-old is told to put his third bottle of soda pop back and get a glass of water. The four-year-old may drop his chin and stare at the floor in protest of the denial, but the fifteen-year-old will engage his mom in debate with the question “Why?”, and further statements of the wrongful parental mandate.

And then two minutes later it will be forgotten.

Thus, the unrealistic expectation of happiness. Happiness is now something we have come to believe we are entitled to. Let me clarify. Happiness is “getting what I want,” no matter the effect it may have on others or the consequences it may have on myself. Happiness is about the moment, about my immediate desire, and, most of all, happiness is often in a battle with health…spiritual, emotional, physical, and mental.

The Apostle Paul had a few things to say about “happiness at the expense of others.” He has some heated words in 1 Corinthians 11 about the selfish actions of some of the attendees at the gathering, which usually included some kind of meal and the observance of the breaking of bread and drinking from the cup in remembrance of Jesus. The offenders were thinking only of themselves and happiness at the expense of others. Some people worship happiness at the risk of future peril.

When happiness becomes our narrative, things like “discipline,” “order,” “practice, “wise planning and actions,” and “what is just and right” get pushed to the back. Thank God, Jesus’ goal was not to be happy. If it was, He never would have gone to the cross for us.

Overseeing a four-year-old’s constant seeking happiness in each moment is one thing, but when adults have that mindset for their lives, it creates incredible and often ridiculous conflict. It can be seen in schools where students cringe at learning math concepts because it interferes with their screen time. It can be seen in churches where the wisdom of the church leader is questioned because it interferes with what some of the people want. It can be seen in a child’s relationship with his parents when he seeks fulfillment in the moment and they’re unyielding. It can be seen in a player’s displeasure with his coach because he doesn’t get the playing time he wants. And it can be seen in a mentoree’s disgruntlement with his mentor, who sees the future consequences if wants in the present are yielded to.

There’s nothing wrong with being happy, but for many people it is the sole platform to stand on. In the disorder of our times, it blurs the mission and purpose of our lives.

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Faith Blame

February 16, 2024

“When he had gone indoors, the blind men came to him, and he asked them, ‘Do you believe that I am able to do this?’

‘Yes, Lord,’ they replied.

 Then he touched their eyes and said, ‘According to your faith let it be done to you’;  and their sight was restored. Jesus warned them sternly, ‘See that no one knows about this.’ “(Matthew 9:28-30)

Recently, my wife told me about a sermon she had heard that touched a nerve. Without giving you the long version, I’ll summarize. It revolved around a person who was a part of a church, had cancer, and died. It may have only been one person, or it may have been several, whose cold-hearted analysis was, “Guess he didn’t have enough faith!”

It was a spiritual copout, a way of rationalizing why cancer, or any other disease, isn’t always defeated. Quite honestly, it’s a way for some followers of the Great Physician to protect part of their theology. Here’s the rub. There is nothing wrong with believing that Jesus heals. He does. But when healing doesn’t happen, maybe in the way we perceive it should, it’s bad theology to put the blame on the wounded.

It’s also bad theology to blame the community of faith for not having enough faith, to judge it as being lacking in prayer. After all, when a church loses one of its people, it is just as much a time of grieving for them, a wound to the fellowship, as it is for the family of the departed.

I was looking at “faith situations” in the Gospel of Matthew. Whenever Jesus mentions a lack of faith, he’s talking to His disciples, the very ones to are with Him 24-7. Whenever he mentions faith as what has healed someone, it is in connection with one of the least of these. For instance, Matthew 9 is ripe with stories of healing faith. They include a group of men who bring a paralyzed man to Jesus, a woman with an ongoing female malady, the blind, and the mute. In each situation, Jesus affirms them for their faith.

On the other hand, His disciples are questioned for their lack of faith when it comes to their fears during the storm that descends on the lake that they are sailing across, Simon Peter’s fear in the midst of walking on the water, and when the disciples ask Him why they couldn’t drive out a demon. Jesus seems to shake His head in the moments the disciples trust more in the power of nature than in His power.

Still, trying to wrap our arms around the framework of faith is like trying to catch the wind. It’s mysterious, not able to be packaged, and not restricted by our whims or the moments we spiritually high.

To use the “lack of faith” card to evaluate why someone isn’t healed, in my mind, falls into the same category as the disciples’ debate about who of them would be greatest in the Kingdom of God. It misses the point.

Jesus offers hope, peace, and an eternal relationship. The Holy Spirit comforts us in times of need. What an encouragement it is for someone who is struggling to know that his community of faith offers hope, peace, and comfort. What an encouragement for a discouraged soul to know that he is not alone and that his brothers and sisters are with him.

For someone to blame a loss on a person’s lack of faith is the spiritualized Christian way of really saying, “It sucks to be you!” It’s standing above the hurting instead of standing with them.

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Kidney Stone

February 15, 2024

“Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me.” (2 Corinthians 12:7)

I’ve been blessed with fairly decent health my whole life. Oh, there was the gallbladder episode, which made it a “past tense” part of my abdomen. And there was a broken jaw as a result of a first baseman not catching the softball as I stepped on the base. Other than those memorable experiences I’ve traveled the first 70 years missing the “potholes of life.”

Until this week, when I was in such excruciating pain that Carol drove me to the Emergency Room at 5:30 in the morning. Even a broken jaw didn’t compare with it. If I could, I would have knocked myself silly and laid on the couch unconscious.

A kidney stone.

There’s always been conjecture about the thorn in Paul’s side. Some think it was a person tormenting him. (We’ve all had people like that!) Others think it was some kind of situation that worried him sick. With my kidney stone affliction, my view of it has been altered. I know, I know, it’s a confusing verse. I mean…how was Paul bordering on being conceited…and what about this Satan messenger?

Sometimes, however, the thorns of life cause us to step back and see how blessed we are. For instance, I flew back from Ohio on Sunday. It had been a wonderful week of visiting my sister, and also meeting up with my brother. Thank the Lord that the misery in my tummy didn’t begin until I had returned. Small blessings are easily not seen until later.

Suffering and pain are a part of life. My assurance, however, is that the Lord is with me all the time and all the way. He goes before me and follows after me. No matter what kind of pain or suffering God is with each one of us.

No matter how much of the pain and complications are the result of our bad decisions (Can you say bad diet?), the Lord is with us. In fact, my uninvited visitor had been invited in a boatload of times as a result of my food and drink choices. Even though it was only 3mm in size, it felt like it was a snowball creating an avalanche of misery.

Just like in life, where the accumulation of our transgressions suddenly become too much and life takes on an emergency status. Even in the muck of our mess, the Lord is with us. His mercy is not dependent upon my perfection.

I still wonder, though, was it a kidney stone that was bugging Paul?

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Cringing At The Disinterest in Being Responsible

February 10, 2024

I was at a high school basketball game last night in southern Ohio. My sister’s grandson, a senior point guard, was playing and I had flown back from Colorado to see a couple of his final games. Unfortunately, we got to the school so early that we saw almost all of the JV game first. I say u nfortunate because the two referees officiating the junior varsity game looked disinterested in their responsibility.

Understand that my view of the situation was greatly affected by the fact that I wore the black-and-white stripes for 16 years, blowing the whistle at high school and small college contests. Not that I was a great official. Above average would best describe me, but all those years of doing games, watching games, and being instructed on the art of calling games has given me an eye for what is professional, what are good mechanics, and what good communication entails.

One of the JV officials wore black sweat pants and shot baskets during timeouts. Those are two things that are okay at a YMCA 2nd grade game…sometimes, but not a high school JV game. Everytime he blew his whistle, which wasn’t often, it was like a mystery about to be revealed. His partner looked like he was about to fall asleep. His walk to the scorer’s table after calling a foul made him look about as energetic as Floyd the Barber from Mayberry, North Carolina.

The game wasn’t close, which would also be the adjective to describe where each of them was in terms of positioning to be able to call the game. The varsity officials were on the other end of the spectrum, consistent, in good position, great communication, and…they looked like they wanted to be there.

Call me critical. Tell me I’m overreacting, but being disinterested in being responsible is something that makes me grind my teeth. Covid-19 and the pandemic get blamed for causing it. That’s a cop-out. It’s been around since Adam, morphing into different appearances and arenas. Jesus’ disciples had moments of disinterest in being responsible. Paul criticizes the Corinthian church for it in the midst of his instruction about observing the Lord’s Supper. Some were coming to the gathering early and gorging themselves without thinking of the meaning of the meal, and others couldn’t get there until later.

Disinterest in responsibility has rained down in every area of life. There aren’t many Mother Teresas around these days who genuinely (That means no whining!) see the poor, diseased, and downtrodden as their responsibility. Heartfelt responsibility is at a premium.

Just as the three varsity officials showed professionalism and interest, let me go in the other direction. I know of numerous teachers who are passionate about teaching their students. Long hours of preparation do not phase them, even when the physical and mental weariness is evident. I know pastors who aren’t disgruntled by late-night calls, some of which are from families in crisis and others from people who just have an axe to grind. I know of numerous people in the workplace (restaurants, office buildings, bus drivers, custodial staff, security officers) who keep their places up and running. When one of them calls in sick, the others look confused and disoriented. I know of neighbors who look out for one another even though no one has designated that responsibility to them. I know of faithful people of prayers who cry out to the Lord for those who are suffering, and they have told them they would pray for them.

Here’s the thing. Disinterest in responsibility is as easy to detect as mayonnaise on peanut butter. On the other hand, total investment in responsibility stands out like Pike’s Peak on the Front Range of Colorado.

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Losing Those You Haven’t Seen

February 9, 2024

“A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a time of adversity.” (Proverbs 17:17)

Another high school friend of mine, Jeff Grubb, died this week. We went to the same church, were in the same youth group, went to Giiovanni’s Pizza after Sunday night church, and razzed one another in ways that made us roar with laughter. Good guy! Funny, smart, and a friend.

The last time I saw him was probably in the late 70s.

I throw that in there because it’s part of the struggle and, unfortunately, the reality. As our lives get launched, we lose touch with most of the people that we grew up with, people that chiseled briefly into the sculpture of our life. Growing up in Ohio, but then going to college and seminary in Illinois, and then taking my first three ministry positions in Michigan before finishing in Colorado…the distance from my growing up roots always seemed to get greater instead of less.

Jeff is the third person who was a part of our youth group who has been called Home to Glory in the past year. It’s that stretch of our journey where the road becomes less and less populated with our traveling companions.

My dad had that experience. Living to be just shy of ninety, all of his close friends had preceded him in death. His last couple of years were a lonely stretch of road.

In less than three months, there will be a seven in front of my age. The number ‘7’ seems to be looking behind itself at all of the country it has already traveled. Most of the road is behind it, and there aren’t too many miles in front of it before reaching the exit ramp.

At 70, a person realizes, if he’s clueless enough not to grasp it already, that the important things in life have nothing to do with Las Vegas, soap operas, who the Bengals are going to draft first, or how upper-class the make and model of his car is. Those are irrelevant, the fluff of an ungrounded life.

The important things in life are rooted in relationships. Spiritual, emotional, intellectual, loving, and entwined relationships. Even the relationships with people you haven’t seen in 45 years are priceless.

Quite frankly, that category of long, lost friends is over-crowded. Facebook and other forms of social media have brought many of them back to us in a weird, sorta authentic, but superficial way. We’re able to see what’s going on in many of their lives, pictures of proms, parades, and promotions, but it’s different. Kinda like getting a postcard from the Grand Canyon. It’s different than actually seeing the place with your own eyes. Seeing a post from an old friend on Facebook is not the same as sitting in Giovanni’s and razzing one another on a Sunday night.

It causes an ache in my soul to know of the loss of someone who used to be on our church bus and it also makes me treasure what has been.

That being said, my journey this week to Ohio to see my sister, brother, nieces, nephews, and their extended families will end with a reunion at Skyline Chili in Cincinnati with two men who were a part of my college days period. I saw one of them about three years ago, but I have not seen the other one since 1974. Before I get on a plane heading back to Colorado, I’ll spend a couple of precious hours with them, reminiscing about the times we spent together and feeding the aching hunger in my soul for the old days and old friends.

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Political Preaching

February 5, 2024

 “Then the Pharisees went out and laid plans to trap him in his words. They sent their disciples to him along with the Herodians. ‘Teacher,’ they said, ‘we know that you are a man of integrity and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You aren’t swayed by others, because you pay no attention to who they are. Tell us then, what is your opinion? Is it right to pay the poll-tax to Caesar or not?’ But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, ‘You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me? Show me the coin used for paying the tax.’ They brought him a denarius, and he asked them, ‘Whose image is this? And whose inscription?’ ‘Caesar’s,’ they replied.” (Matthew 22-15-22)

Then he said to them, ‘So give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.’When they heard this, they were amazed. So they left him and went away.

On February 3, 1864, The Christian Union was formed in Columbus, Ohio. The union was made up of Protestant congregations opposed to political preaching. The Civil War had brought to the forefront the issues of abolition of slavery, racial injustice, and the need for national unity. However, a United Methodist minister, James Given, refused to preach on political issues and was dismissed from preaching. Instead of getting rid of the troublemaker, the United Methodists lit the fuse for the establishment of the formation of the Christian Union, which spread like wildfire.

Over the next century, the organization had its highs and lows, problems and victories, and conflicts that resulted in splits and reorganizing. With the Civil War fading off into the historical past, the glue that held the churches and their pastors together began to disintegrate.

The memory of The Christian Union and its purpose has risen back to the surface. However, instead of the Civil War, this time, church pulpits have become the spouting place for the war of opposite beliefs. Staying rooted to scripture and sacraments is becoming ore challenging for pastors. There is a growing preference for pastors to spout the views of a specific political persuasion and search for a scripture to support what they have already decided to say.

On the other side, there are numerous people in the pews who are more than willing to go down the road to a different church that is compatible with their political views. In many locations, the theology of a new pastor has become scaringly secondary in importance to their commitment to a certain political party. James Given is fidgeting in his grave.

Don’t misunderstand me. I have certain political views, but when I see Jesus through the lens of my political views, instead of the other way around things quickly become bizarre and suspect. Too often someone whose love for Jesus is deeper than his love for his country is lambasted as being unchristian.

Tim Alberta brings some of these distortions to light in his recent book The Kingdom, The Power, and The Glory. Although most of his book is written in reaction to the extremism of some of the American evangelical, the argument is just as justified for the extremism of the progressive left.

On either side, the words of Jesus can quickly be rephrased with the lead-in “What Jesus meant to say was…” A bad habit is prevalent these days to translate Jesus’ teachings into what is felt to be relevant to our beliefs today. In the church, the result, instead of community, is disunity and distrust. Grace and forgiveness get shoved into the trunk, so there’s more room up front for judgment and criticism.

Sorry, James! We’ve lost sight of your calling.

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Athletic Fever and Spiritual Freezes

February 4, 2024

Sports has lost its way, which is a deep source of grief for me since I love the sports arena. I grew up listening to Cawood Ledford giving the radio play-by-play of Kentucky Wildcat basketball games. I pretended I was Louie Dampier as I shot baskets on the school playground hoop. I played whiffle ball in the backyard and pretended I was Johnny Bench and Tony Perez. I love sports.

But it has lost its way. When ESPN gives the point spreads for wagers on college football and basketball games at the bottom of the TV screen, it’s a sign. When the University of Florida offers an NIL contract to an incoming freshman quarterback for 13 million dollars, it’s a sign. When two basketball officials get into a fight with each other at a fourth-grade basketball game, it’s a sign. On the other side, when there aren’t enough sports officials to referee the games mainly because of the abuse they are subjected to, it’s a sign. When the college transfer portal is more populated than an O’Hare terminal at Christmas time, it’s a sign.

There’s more concern over a point guard’s assist-to-turnover ratio than his GPA, more scrutiny in making the weekly Fantasy Football lineup than making sure the kids are properly dressed and have their lunches for school.

When parents are more than willing to pay thousands and thousands of dollars for their children to be involved in a club sports team while giving a pittance to charitable causes, it’s a sign. When Jenny sports a new $200 pair of tennis shoes to accompany her $200 tennis racket, but doesn’t have enough money to buy lunch at school, it’s a sign.

Sports has become the new religion and has lost its way. Meanwhile, the spiritual element of more and more people’s lives has been put in a deep freeze. The Living Word can’t survive in the deadness of inner lives. As church attendance continues to drop, ticket prices at athletic events continue to climb. People identify Lebron James as the king more than Jesus as the King of Kings. Scripture memorization has taken a backseat to knowing a shortstop’s batting averager for the past five seasons.

Sports has lost its way, while the spiritual lives of countless people have lost their purpose. It’s sad, both in how the meaningfulness of lives is wasted, and also in an eternal sense of the word.

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