Road Trip: Lost before we start

We headed out on our family vacation this morning. We packed up the Excursion with our four kids and luggage and headed for the mountains. We're on a genuine family road trip - 17 hours over 2 days. I'm riding shot gun right now after putting in the first four hours of driving this morning. We have about three more to go for today's leg.

Our trip started a little stressful as we found ourselves lost within 20 minutes of leaving the house. Well, we weren't actually lost. The problem was our GPS was giving us different directions than what we routed via MapQuest and both of these were different than what I was thinking in my head. We knew where we were and where we wanted to go. We just weren't sure of the right way to get there.

Does this sound a little too familiar to real life?

I know where I'm at. I have a job, family, house with a mortgage, etc... I think I have a good idea where I want to go. I want to be able to put my kids through college, finish a successful career and retire comfortably. But do I know how to get there? Just like conflicting information on our road trip, I am flooded with different information on how to get where I think I want to be in life.

How do we get where we want be? Some experts tell you to put x dollars or x percentage into college fund and 401k. Or should you put money into an annuity? How about life insurance? Real-Estate? What happens if the stock-market crashes? What if gas prices never come back down? What if I lose my job?

Directions on a road trip are much simpler. I just enter my destination into the TomTom and it guides me turn by turn. It may not be the way I want to get there but if I have faith, it will eventually get me there. There is one catch with GPS and any other tool you use to find your way. If you put in the wrong destination, you'll never get where you need to be.

This is where we blow it in life. We decide where we think we want or need to go and then try to figure out how to get there. However, what if we pick the wrong destination? Maybe college for my kids and a relaxing retirement are not the right destination? It won't matter what advice we follow or how much faith we have in those directions, we won't end up where we were really meant to be.

Fortunately, I have a much better tool for directions in life than I have for my family road trip. I have God's Word. The Bible not only gives me directions but it also tells me where I need to go - something my TomTom can never do.

The directions may not always seem to make sense to me. They may be counter intuitive to the directions I might normally head on my own. However, I've tried my own routes many times and sure enough, what I thought was right was in the wrong direction. Fortunately, my forgiving God patiently instructs me to U-turn and head in the direction He directs.

Psalms 119:105 (ESV) 105 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.

Father Knows Best: Blessed are the poor

I have four awesome kids and I love them beyond words. So when they ask me for their hearts desire and it is something I can afford, how do I say no?

I remember when I was growing up that my Dad said many times that he wanted to give to us boys because his parents could not afford much when he was growing up. I did not get everything, but there was not much I didn't get that I wanted. So what did I get that I just had to have?

I have no idea.

I got lots of stuff and I can remember some of the stuff I had, but I certainly can't remember any gift that made my heart swell and think, "Wow! My mom and dad really do love me!" I'm sure some of the stuff I got really made me happy when I got it but over time, the joy brought by that gift was forgotten. Why is that?

We are basically born selfish and prideful. What is one of the first words we learn? "Mine!"

When parents feed that selfish desire it grows. If we continue to feed this desire it soon becomes almost impossible to turn back. When we do try to say no, we risk being pulled into psychological warfare with our little loved ones and we discover that they are really good at it. (How do they learn to push our buttons like that?)

Before we know it, we are giving to our kids out of guilt or avoidance of conflict rather than out of love.

What if we had no money to give our kids anything? What if the children in the picture above were you're own children? How would you show them that you love them if you can't give them any stuff?

It's really an easy question. We'd hold them. We'd console them. We'd give them our portion of food. We'd pray for them and do whatever we could so they did not have to scrounge for food in the streets. Basically, we'd love them.

The problem we have in America is that even most of our poor are rich. For most of us, we can feed those selfish desires in our kids until they pop. It's an easy way for us as parents to attempt to show love. It's an easy way to keep the peace. What becomes increasingly difficult is saying "no".

However, saying "no" once in awhile may be the greatest gift you can give your children. They will already have more stuff than they will ever really need and any stuff you give them will soon be forgotten. But if you can teach them that the world is not about stuff, then you have given them a great gift that will not only always be remembered, but it may just save their soul.

Matthew 19:21-22 (ESV)
²¹ Jesus said to him, "If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me."
²² When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

Is Christianity Inclusive or Exclusive?

We Christians claim that there is only one way to heaven. Non-Christians see this as prideful and intolerant. Who are we to claim to have the only true religion? Why am I any better than a Hindu, Muslim, or new age philosopher that I should get to heaven but they are headed to hell?

To make matters worse, we Christians are often guilty of acting like we are in an exclusive club. I can say this because I know I am often guilty of it. I hang out with my church friends, look at the world, and say come quickly Lord Jesus, this world is a lost cause.

It's easy, once you believe that you have the ticket to heaven, to look down on those that you believe do not have it. What we forget is that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. We are not saved because we are better than a Muslim or a Hindu. In fact, even though we are now saved, we're still sinners while Christ completes what he has started in us.

So does Christianity have exclusive rights into heaven and all the other world religions are wrong?

First, we have to define Christianity.

From Webster's Online Dictionary:

1 : the religion derived from Jesus Christ, based on the Bible as sacred scripture, and professed by Eastern, Roman Catholic, and Protestant bodies 2 : conformity to the Christian religion 3 : the practice of Christianity

Nothing in this definition assures anyone that they will go to heaven. When you speak of Christianity as a "religion" then it is really no different than any other world religion. As a religion, it becomes just a label that we attach to ourselves based on what we do for "religion".

However, Christianity is really not a religion. The best way I've heard it explained, is that religions are are list of "do's". In Chrisitianity everything that needs to be done has already been done. There is nothing left to "do".

Does that mean that's it? We're all in.

Not quite. Jesus has done everything that is needed for you to have eternal life. The only thing for you to do is receive it.

Romans 10:9 (ESV) 9 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

There is one more piece that is often forgotten nowadays as the church seeks to be more "inclusive". In order for someone to be "saved" they must have some idea that there is something they need to be saved from.

What is it that Jesus actually saves us from? Death? Hell? These are just consequences. What we need to be saved from is our slavery to sin. Sin being - sexual immorality, moral impurity, promiscuity, idolatry, sorcery, hatreds, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambitions, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and anything similar.

Yes, Jesus has already died for our sins. However, we have to recognize that sin is a bad thing to begin with and something that needs to change while understanding that you can't change on your own (hence, Romans 10:9).

If you can recognize that you have sin in your life, and want to be free from it, then it is as simple as believing that God has already taken care of it through the death and resurrection of His Son, and you'll be free.

So back to our original questsion, is Christianity inclusive or exclusive?

It's both. It's exclusive in that you must acknowledge that you're a sinner and want to be free form those sins. It's inclusive in that your sex, race, political party and nationality do not matter. Most importantly, it is inclusive because it does not matter what sin has you inslaved, you can be saved from it all.

Still have questions? Try here.

Father Knows Best: Kiss and make it better

We've all been there. A traumatizing moment. Maybe it's caused by fear. Maybe it's caused by someone else hurting you. Maybe it's just an embarrassing moment that you think you'll never survive. There is really nothing anyone else can do to help. Family and friends can put their arms around you and tell you everything will be ok but it's just words. At best, someone can come along beside you and share a similar experience. This may help. However, usually at the time, you can't believe anyone has experienced what you've been through.

What do you do, as a parent, when your son or daughter has one of these moments? If they skin a knee you can kiss it and put a band-aid on it. What do you do when you can't see the boo-boo but you can only see the hurt?

You do what you can. You put your arms around them. You love them. You share similar experiences. However, you've been there. This does not make the hurt go away. So what else can you do? Pray? Does that work?

A couple of weeks ago my 10 year-old son had his first baseball game. He played tee-ball when he was five but baseball had not made the rotation again until now. With four kids all under 10 years of age, you're forced into not playing the "life revolves around your kids' activities" game if you want to keep your sanity (this is another future blog topic in itself). He was excited and nervous. Excited because he loves sports and challenges. Nervous because he'd never played real baseball in a real game.

While playing right field, the traumatizing event occurred. I'm not going to share the particulars with the world but it's enough to know that it wasn't a missed fly ball or an errant throw. He ran off the field and we really only had the option of leaving. There was nothing I could do and nothing I could say. I knew as a grown-up that it was not the end of the world. However, I was also ten once, so I know that it doesn't matter what you'll know someday as a grown-up when your ten right now.

The rest of the story I'll let you read directly from my son. He has his own private blog where he likes to post and journal his life. I won't link you there but I do want to share what he learned.

"Last night I had my first baseball game. It was great, I mean, we were winning 3 to 2, until one moment in the outfield, I got a little sick lets say. I ran to my Dad and told him what happened. We ended up leaving the game early, and we lost. When I got home, I felt really disappointed to not finish my very first game. This is the cool part-When my Mom got home, she told me to pray about it. I went and prayed for at least 15-20 minutes, and next thing I know I feel like nothing happen! I thought I'd just share that with you. It's so awesome to know God's real. Now I can be sure God listens to prayer!"

I hope the lesson our Father taught him that night never leaves him. When mom and dad can't kiss it and make it better, our Father can.

Psalms 147:3 (ESV) 3 He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.

Father Knows Best: Fragile - Handle with Care

My four year old daughter broke her arm yesterday on Easter Sunday. I'm told the fracture is somewhere in the circled area in the above picture. I'll have to trust the doctors. The accident wasn't the result of an Easter Egg hunt gone crazy. However, it was just as innocent as she fell while playing tag with her brothers and sisters.

We were all enjoying a peaceful Easter afternoon with the laughter of children in the background when suddenly the laughter stopped and the crying started. At first it sounded like any other tumble, a scraped knee or bruised elbow. However, it soon became apparent that this was more serious and we were in for an Easter evening at the emergency room.

Life is fragile. We can go from laughter and playing to pain and crying in an instant. A broken arm is minor compared to other things that can break in our life. A loved one gets cancer or someone we love is hurt or dies in a car wreck. Laughter can turn to tears in an instant. Why is life so fragile?

I could walk you through the Bible from Genesis to Revelation and show you how God created a perfect world, how man blew it by believing the devil over God, how God intervened to repair our broken world, and what the future holds when our world is finally restored. However that would be a book, not a blog post. So what's a good blog response?

If you're a father, you know there is only so much you can do to protect your children. What's even harder is that you also know that they often don't want your protection. However, when they break a bone or get a broken heart, they run back to you to help pick up the pieces.

God could certainly keep my life pain free. However, how much faith would I have if I never had to deal with pain? If I manage to take God for granted and ignore his wisdom when I know my life could break apart at any point, how faithless would I be if I never knew what pain was like?

Don't misunderstand my point. God does not put pain in our life in order keep us coming back to Him. We (mankind) brought pain in this world with our own decisions. However, our Father is there to put us back together again, if only we run back to Him.

God loves you

If you've read my other posts on "God loves" then maybe you've figured out where I'm going with this.

I have many more I could write:

God loves the atheist
God loves the terrorist
God loves the thief
God loves the cheating spouse
God loves the hypocrite
God loves the drunk
God loves the drug addict
God loves the gangster
God loves the poor
God loves the rich
God loves prideful
God loves the selfish
God loves jealous and envious
God loves those that are self-centered
God loves those that don't even love themselves

How do I know? I know because he sent His Son to die for me and you, in spite of ourselves. And even better, this Jesus rose again, conquering our inadequacies and giving us a hope if we only let Him.

Romans 3:22 We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are. (NLT)

Remember this on this Easter Sunday...

God loves you.

God loves the unborn baby

Pro choice or pro life? Where do you stand? Where do you think God stands? There are two sides of this argument. There is the side that believes that the unborn baby is a live human being and should be protected. There is the other side that believes the mother should have full control over her body, including the unborn baby she is carrying.

The entire topic is a tragedy. Try if you can to separate yourself from the charged up political aspect of this debate. This is much more than a red versus blue state issue.

A baby, a new life, one that would someday laugh, cry, think, dream, and love will never get that chance. Sure, his or her life could be hard and full of challenges. Maybe this child would grow up to be a criminal. Maybe this child would grow up lead our nation. We'll never know.

There is another tragedy. There is the tragedy of the mother. She is a life that laughs, cries, thinks, dreams, and loves. First, she has the emotional nightmare that has her in a position to make her choice. Then, if she chooses against her child, she has to live with that painful choice for the rest of her life.

God loves the unborn baby. God also loves the mother. If your faith calls you to do what you can for the unborn baby, don't forget to start with the support for the mother that is hurting and driven to this decision in the first place.

If a mother chooses to give her child life, despite whatever fears she if facing, God can make a hopeless situation one full of hope. If a mother chose against her child, God can heal her pain.

Share God's love for the unborn child. Share God's love for the hurting mom as well.