I am not Superman

Hebrews 11:1 - Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.

All of us like to hear messages about faith. It is one of the most popular things to write about. We try to encourage each other with words like "just have faith." The reason it is such a universal topic is because all of us have our struggles. All of us have those things we deal with in private (and some not so private) that try our endurance levels. Even the most stalwart of us have those times of uncertainty when we wonder how things are going to work out. It is times like these when we need faith the most and yet struggle with it the most.

Faith is often misunderstood. It is not just a mental exercise in believe. I can believe I'm Superman all day but if I jump off a building I'm going to fall and break my neck. Why? Because I'm not Superman and I can't fly. What gives faith its power is the one in whom we have faith. When we understand that the God we serve has never lost a battle, never made a mistake, and never run out of answers it is easy to trust him.

It is not about how strong or weak my faith is. The gospels tell a story about a man who needed healing for his son. Jesus told him that he would receive if he could believe. His answer still speaks to us today. "Lord, I believe. Please help my unbelief." He received his miracle. It is ok to admit that our faith is wavering. I believe God likes our honesty; He knows anyway. In the end it is not up to my great faith. It is up to Him anyway and he knows exactly how to handle my situation. Who wouldn't want to serve a God like that.

Lord, I believe. Please help my unbelief!

Sincerely,

Sullivan Jones

Seize the Day!

Did you ever wish life had a rewind button? I know I sure have. Like the day I stuck my finger in hot, melted chocolate to see if it was ready for pouring. I jerked it back out quick enough but the damage had been done.  What about those times we say things we shouldn't say. A co-worker of mine once walked up an told me that another co-worker had caught her sleeping in the closet. The boss was standing right next to me when she said it. OOPS! Rewind!

Unfortunately life doesn't give us that pleasure. We have to make the most of every situation while we can. There is an old Latin expression, "Carpe Diem" , that seems to sum it up. Simply put it means "seize the day". Take advantage of the right now. There are so many things around us that need doing. There is always something we can find to be productive in right where we are. Seize the day!

I can only speak for myself. I have wasted for too much time in life worrying about the yesterday I can't change and the tomorrow that may never arrive. It is time to seize the day. A portion of time, once spent, can never be regained. We must make our choices carefully. There are some things that we can not undo.

I am thankful that God forgives and restores. He can renew us when we have fallen and need his grace. But I am not necessarily thinking of sin. I am thinking about the hasty decisions we are prone to make and then wish we wouldn't have. The old saying is "act in haste, repent at leisure." We know the young are liable to make quick decisions without considering the consequences. But I have seen some "not-so-young" folks make bad decisions as well. My thoughts were, "they should have known better."

Now I'm not saying we should be afraid to make decisions. Being afraid to make a decision is not healthy either; it holds back any progress. I'm only saying that we need to be careful to think things through. If  I have one shot in life, I want to get it right. In life there is no rewind button.

Carpe Diem! Seize the Day!

Thoughtfully,

Sullivan Jones

The Bucket List

I recently heard a term I wasn't familiar with: bucket list. I was reading Facebook and saw a conversation where someone was talking about their bucket list. I had to ask my wife to learn that this is a list of things people hope to do before they die. It seems the term evolved from the old cliché "to kick the bucket". I suppose I have a vivid imagination but I could just see someone walking around with a bucket trying to cram as much as they could into it.

 

I am reminded of the story Jesus told about the man who wanted to tear down his barns and build bigger barns to hold more of his accumulated wealth. Then Jesus said, "You fool, this very night you will be required to answer for your soul." I am sure the man's wealth meant very little to him after he stood in judgment before God.

 

 Those of you who know me know that I love to travel. There are a whole list of places I'd like to see and things I'd like to experience. There was a time when the things I wanted to do defined everything about me. I was motivated but what I wanted to do and nothing else. If an item wasn't on my "bucket list" I  considered it a waste of time no matter how important it might be.

 

It took me a while to realize that there were things God might have planned for me that weren't on my list. In fact, I am convinced that the best way to make God laugh is to give him a list of things we think are important. It is not that he is a callous, indifferent God. It's just that his ways are so much higher than our ways. God is truly like a parent and we are so often like children. We demand to have things the way we want them and he knows that some things are simply not good for us.

 

Now I am all for dreaming. I believe God wants us to better ourselves. Without a dream very little would be accomplished in this life. But we can't be so set in our dreams that we don't leave room for God to redirect our paths as he sees fit. A very popular book came out several years ago called The Purpose Driven Life. In it the author sets forth his idea about how we all need to be driven by a purpose to keep us going. It sort of sounds like that bucket list again.

 

Everything I have ever said I would never do I have found myself doing. I remember telling a junior high football coach that I never wanted to work as a janitor. I spent three years working as a janitor and it was a very good experience, though somewhat humbling. I told a mentor of mine that I never wanted to work with little kids. If I taught, I wanted to teach high school or college. I make my living working in Head Start. I didn't realize what a joy it can be to work with children until I was involved in it. You get the picture.

 

You see, the problem with making our own lists is that we usually set our sights to low. God wants us to prosper. He designed each of us with a purpose. But only he knows what all that purpose will encompass. A bucket will be way to small to hold all the good things He has for us if we yield our lives to Him.

 

Lord, help me not to limit myself to a bucket list. The sky is the limit with you in control. Amen.

 

Prayerfully Yours,

 

Sullivan Jones