I’ve written before that I enjoy working the Friday meta crossword puzzle in the Wall Street Journal and that sometimes solutions come quicker than others. But what happens when they don’t come? This week’s has been particularly frustrating because I can see all the hidden words I’m supposed to see, but I can’t tease an answer out of them.

The problem then is that I devote too much time to it. As I write this Saturday morning, I’ve been messing with the puzzle since Thursday afternoon. Too much. And it interferes with other things I should be doing. So I’m taking another sabbatical from these things. I’ve done it before. I just don’t look at them for weeks or months. Sometimes moderation isn’t possible. I just have to quit.

For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love. (Galatians 5.13, NLT)

You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is good for you. And even though “I am allowed to do anything,” I must not become a slave to anything. (1 Corinthians 6.12, NLT)

Back in May 2017, June woke up in the middle of the night with what turned out to be a bowel obstruction. It was a long 10 days before it was completely diagnosed and resolved, and we’ve not had that happen since. Reading these verses in Psalm 116 reminded me:

The snares of death encompassed me; the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me; I suffered distress and anguish. Then I called on the name of the Lord: “O Lord, I pray, deliver my soul!” (Psalm 116.3, 4, ESV)

The rest of the Psalm reminds us that every day is a gift from our gracious God:

For you have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling; I will walk before the Lord in the land of the living…What shall I render to the Lord for all his benefits to me? I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord, I will pay my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people. (Psalm 116.8, 9, 12 – 14, ESV)

A friend of mine shared a notice said to be posted on the walls of many churches in France. Here is the translation:

It is possible that on entering this church, you may hear the Call of God.  On the other hand, it is not likely that he will contact you by phone. Thank you for turning off your phone.  If you would like to talk to God, come in, choose a quiet place, and talk to him.  If you would like to see him, send him a text while driving.

It’s clever, nicely telling people to turn off their cell phones and reminding them not to text while driving. And I like the encouragement to come into the church, choose a quiet place, and talk to God. Of course, we don’t need to go to a church to find a quiet place for talking to God although if you work in a city, and there’s a church nearby, that’s not a bad use of lunch hour time!

The point here is: find that quiet place. Another friend of mine says, “You need to interrupt life to have your time with God.”

I was talking with another friend recently and asked about his time with God. He told me is faithful to spend time with God while he’s driving to work! While reviewing a verse while driving is better, perhaps, than listening to mindless radio, I don’t think that’s the optimal way to spend time with God. (And my friend can drive to work in about 10 minutes, so it’s not even very long.)

I suggested that he intentionally carve out a few minutes at home before going to work. Shortly thereafter, I received this email:

Hey Bob, I used your weekly journal for my time with God today.  I think its a good tool and I’ll look forward to sharing it with you.

We haven’t met since then, but it’s clear that his time with God was more meaningful with a few minutes of focused attention at home than while driving.

In the morning, LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly. (Psalm 5.3, NIV)

Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. (Mark 1.35, NIV)

There were some men on our street yesterday and today, and I couldn’t tell from the signs on their trucks what they were doing, so I asked. Turns out they were hired by our community to use a special process to rinse the sewer lines and then inspect the lines with a video camera to be sure all is well.

I made a point of thanking them for their work. I told them, “I’ve been to countries where there is no waste disposal of any kind. What you do might not be glamorous, but it is very important, and I appreciate it!” They seemed encouraged that I thanked them for their work. I don’t know how often that happens for them–they are probably “unsung heroes.”

If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as a Michaelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, “Here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.” -Martin Luther King, Jr.

Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation…The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. (Genesis 2.1 – 3, 15, ESV, emphasis mine)

The tongue has the power of life and death… (Proverbs 18.21, NIV, emphasis mine)

As Advent begins I was reading the opening of Luke 1 which is addressed to “Theophilus,” as is the opening of Acts.

It seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught. (Luke 1.3, 4, ESV, emphasis mine)

Since there’s no mention of this “Theophilus,” which in Greek means “lover of God” anywhere else, we really don’t know if this is someone’s nickname, his actual name, or a generic name that could apply to anyone.

The Passion Translation takes the position that “Theophilus” is not a person but could refer to anyone who loves God. Here’s the footnote:

The Greek text can be translated “most excellent Theophilus.” The name Theophilus means “friend of God” or “lover of God.” The Greek word [for excellent] means “most honorable” or “mightiest.” Some scholars believe there was no individual named Theophilus mentioned in Luke’s writings. This becomes instead a greeting to all the lovers of God.

Luke’s opening becomes:

I am writing for you, mighty lover of God, an orderly account of what Jesus, the Anointed One, accomplished and fulfilled among us. (from Luke 1.1 – 4, Passion Translation)

I like that. It reminds me of the angel’s greeting to Gideon:

The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valor! (Judges 6.12, ESV)

God called Gideon a mighty man of valor before he was one, and he calls us “mighty lovers of God,” whether we feel that’s true of us or not.

…God, who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did. (Romans 4.17, NKV)

After another “It’s not who I am, and it’s not who we are” response to a really stupid action, this time by an Ole Miss player (look it up), finally a coach takes responsibility.

University of Georgia receiver George Pickens was ejected for fighting during Georgia’s rout of Georgia Tech Saturday. Here’s some of what Georgia Head Coach Kirby Smart said about the incident and the player:

Just disappointed, that’s the biggest thing. We don’t want to reflect ourselves that way. He would be the first one to tell you that he lost his composure… Unfortunately, [Pickens] got an undisciplined penalty, and when you make undisciplined decisions, regardless of what’s done first, you pay a penalty for that…We’re going to help George. We’re going to help him grow up. We’re going to help him make better decisions so he can help our team…I mean, don’t be stupid…It’s just silly, it’s selfish, it’s undisciplined…But you live and you grow up and you love them.

In this case, to love the player involves helping him be more disciplined. Coach Smart recognizes that Pickens’ decisions and actions do reflect who he is, and Coach wants to help him change that. 

For the Spirit God gave us…gives us power, love and self-discipline. (2 Timothy 1.7, NIV)

But the fruit of the Spirit is…self-control. (Galatians 5.22, 23, NIV)

If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1.8, 9, ESV)

I always enjoy talking with my friends who are in Alcoholics Anonymous (A.A.). I get so many insights on life and ministry.

Recently, an A.A. friend was telling me about something that happened when he had been sober about six months. Someone asked how he was, and he replied with an A.A. acronym that meant, among other things, “insecure, neurotic, and emotional.” The older A.A. member said, “Do you know what that means?” My friend: “Yes.” The older A.A. member replied, “That’s OK. You can feel any way you want…as long as you stay sober.”

I like that. Often, we’re told directly or in movies or on television, “Just follow your heart.” That sounds good, but the heart can call us in the wrong direction. In that case, “You can feel any way you want…as long as you keep following Jesus…as long as you stay faithful to your spouse…as long as you don’t falsify that expense report…as long as…[fill in the blank].”

And [Jesus] said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. (Luke 9.23, ESV)

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things…I discipline my body and keep it under control… (1 Corinthians 9.24, 25, 27, ESV)

Please permit me one more blog involving the visit with my Haitian friends: it appropriately involves thanksgiving. I am thankful that the snow that fell Monday night into Tuesday came then instead of four days earlier! 

We had a few inches of snow last week, but it didn’t prevent our getting to the memorial service on time, and Fort Collins, our destination, got hardly any. Not so this week when both Monument where I live and Fort Collins got 16+ inches.  

When my son Matt was a freshman in college, I flew him home to help judge the Math Olympiad I’ve written about before. It’s the only time in the history of the event that we had to postpone because of snow! So Matt missed it, and, contrary to the popular Colorado adage, “Don’t let the weather interfere with your plans,” sometimes it does.

So I am thankful for the good weather we had last week enabling us not only to get to the memorial service but also to visit Glen Eyrie, The Navigators’ Conference Center on Saturday, and our church on Sunday.

In everything give thanks… (1 Thessalonians 5.18)

He says to the snow, “Fall on the earth…” (Job 37.6, NIV)

He spreads the snow like wool and scatters the frost like ashes. (Psalm 147.17, NIV)

Lightning and hail, snow and clouds, stormy winds that do his bidding. (Psalm 148.8, NIV)

Last Sunday, the day before my friends Vilmer and Lucner returned to Haiti, we were able to give them a few minutes to share during our Sunday morning service. Lucner did a brief version of the story of the Lord’s conquering the Voodoo village, that I wrote about a couple of weeks ago.

Then, Vilmer and I shared this exchange:

• Bob: In addition to being the pastor of a church, Vilmer runs a school because he believes deeply in the importance of Christian education. Vilmer, how many students do you have in your school?
• Vilmer: 1,087
• Bob: 1,087! Wow. But tell me, what is it like for you, living in a place like Haiti, to visit the United States?
• Vilmer: The U.S. is a wonderful place. I am U.S. educated. I would love to stay here. It would be better for my family and me to stay here. Living in Haiti is difficult. But the Lord has not called me here. He has called me to stay in Haiti. What would happen to my 600 church members and the 1,087 children in my school and their families if I stayed here? Jesus left heaven to come to earth not because it was easy but in order to save us. I can’t think about what is better for the six members of my family when there are thousands depending on me in Haiti. It’s a matter of what’s best for the Kingdom.

At this, the congregation, not given to spontaneous outbursts, broke into applause! They knew they were witnessing something significant.

After the service, there was a steady stream of people wanting to interact with them.

It is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. I am hard-pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith. (Philippians 1.20 – 25, ESV, emphasis mine)