“Freedom is the privilege to do what you want, but not having to.”
Loren Thornburg
Memorial Day first began to honor Union soldiers who had died in the American Civil War. At its origin they really honored freedom because they had experienced what it was like not to be free. Today, for most of us, freedom has been a way of life, and even an entitlement, rather than a privilege. It is defined as having the power to do as one wants without hinderance. Yet, I think it is not truly defined without the additional definition often included which is “the state of not being imprisoned or enslaved” (American Oxford Dictionaries). Often we abuse freedom taking it as a reason to do whatever we want, not realizing we have become enslaved to what we want. It’s not really freedom if you are not free to not do what you want as well. As we honor Memorial Day and remember those who have died let us remember the true privilege of freedom. Freedom that doesn’t have to do what you want is really free.
“I will heal their faithlessness; I will love them freely, for my anger is turned away from Israel.”
Hosea 14:4 AMP
God loves freely. Even after being pushed away and rejected by Israel who has abandoned God by turning to pagan idols God still loves Israel. We see this paralleled with the undying love of Hosea to his adulterous wife in the book of Hosea. Both show us what it looks like to love freely. It is not based on what is easy or on the actions of someone else as I find my love can be. Often it seems we love based on how we are loved, on what feels good, or on what we want; but that is not loving freely. God loves freely and as we receive more of this kind of love, not based on anything, we find more freedom to really love others in that way too. Be loved with this love that loves freely so you can love others freely as well. This is freedom, when you can really love hindered by nothing, in spite of everything.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Monday, May 23, 2011
More than You
“Your life is not an isolated event. It is intertwined, closely connected, influencing and affecting those around you.
Loren Thornburg
Every time I pass by a car accident after sitting in traffic I am reminded how the events of our lives effect more than just our own. I see how that one accident effected hundreds of cars and lives to follow. It causes me to think about the ways that our lives have an affect on the lives of those around us. Sometimes in ways like traffic but also in ways like those that help move the accident out of the way so that traffic can flow freely again and restore the lives of those affected by the accident. Our lives are not isolated. They can’t be unaffected by those around us nor can they not affect those around us. We can’t help but influence the lives of others. The question is in what ways will it influence others...causing traffic or to help restore, causing pain or bringing freedom. It’s about more than you.
“They were only hearing it said, He who used to persecute us is now proclaiming the very faith he once reviled and which he set out to ruin and tried with all his might to destroy. And they glorified God as the Author and Source of what had taken place in me.”
Galatians 1:23-24 AMP
The life of Paul, once Saul is a picture of a clearly changed life. From one extreme to another, from persecuting Christians to boldly preaching the gospel. Those who knew him as Saul couldn’t help but notice the change and be changed by it. In Galatians as Paul is sharing about Jesus and the grace of God we see how the change in Paul changed those around him. And the best part about it is they knew who brought the change. They knew it could not have happened by Paul himself but that God was the source and author of that change and they wanted to be a part of it. Paul merely allowed the change that God brought, but it was his allowing that then allowed others to see their own invitation to be changed. God used Paul’s life to influence hundreds around him. Before he was effecting the lives of others towards pain and hardship and now God used him to bring Jesus and freedom. God wants to use us as well to be those affecting others to glorify Him. Let us know the Author and Source of our change and let God use it to change others.
Loren Thornburg
Every time I pass by a car accident after sitting in traffic I am reminded how the events of our lives effect more than just our own. I see how that one accident effected hundreds of cars and lives to follow. It causes me to think about the ways that our lives have an affect on the lives of those around us. Sometimes in ways like traffic but also in ways like those that help move the accident out of the way so that traffic can flow freely again and restore the lives of those affected by the accident. Our lives are not isolated. They can’t be unaffected by those around us nor can they not affect those around us. We can’t help but influence the lives of others. The question is in what ways will it influence others...causing traffic or to help restore, causing pain or bringing freedom. It’s about more than you.
“They were only hearing it said, He who used to persecute us is now proclaiming the very faith he once reviled and which he set out to ruin and tried with all his might to destroy. And they glorified God as the Author and Source of what had taken place in me.”
Galatians 1:23-24 AMP
The life of Paul, once Saul is a picture of a clearly changed life. From one extreme to another, from persecuting Christians to boldly preaching the gospel. Those who knew him as Saul couldn’t help but notice the change and be changed by it. In Galatians as Paul is sharing about Jesus and the grace of God we see how the change in Paul changed those around him. And the best part about it is they knew who brought the change. They knew it could not have happened by Paul himself but that God was the source and author of that change and they wanted to be a part of it. Paul merely allowed the change that God brought, but it was his allowing that then allowed others to see their own invitation to be changed. God used Paul’s life to influence hundreds around him. Before he was effecting the lives of others towards pain and hardship and now God used him to bring Jesus and freedom. God wants to use us as well to be those affecting others to glorify Him. Let us know the Author and Source of our change and let God use it to change others.
Monday, May 16, 2011
Unseen Purposes
“You have purposes unseen; abilities unknown.
Though you see reasons not to, step out and let them be shown.”
Loren Thornburg
We don’t see clearly when we look at ourselves. Our vision seems to be off, magnifying certain aspects of ourselves, diminishing other parts and keeping some under a microscope. Then we take those off-sized aspects and compare them to others only creating a greater misperception of ourselves. We need to come out from the magnifying glass, out from under the microscope and get a fresh glance at who we are. Let those around you who know you show you what they see. Take a good look in the mirror not at what you’ve seen but at the unseen. Now this isn’t to say that you don’t have any weaknesses or things that should be addressed and looked at. However, we need to see them as they are and not any bigger than they are. Not as big enough to keep your purposes and abilities from showing. Step out from under and into the light. You have purposes and abilities unique to you.
“Now, Samuel, though only a boy was the Lord’s helper.”
1 Samuel 2:18 NLT
The Lord used Samuel at a young age. Even though he was only a boy the Lord placed Samuel as His helper. We all have our “though only” that could be obstacles in our journey. Some of us are using them as reasons not to step out. For some of us it sounds more like ‘since I am only a boy I won’t step out.’ We all have our ‘though only’ but the Lord uses us. The key here is the Lord. It really has nothing to do with us. The Lord can do whatever He wants if only we are willing to step out and be used. I want to be called the Lord’s helper even in the midst of all the reasons that I see that I am disqualified from being eligible to be used in this way. Step out and see things as He does. See you as He does. The one who is the Lord’s helper. The one with purposes ordained by the Lord. Step out of excuses and step into Him.
Though you see reasons not to, step out and let them be shown.”
Loren Thornburg
We don’t see clearly when we look at ourselves. Our vision seems to be off, magnifying certain aspects of ourselves, diminishing other parts and keeping some under a microscope. Then we take those off-sized aspects and compare them to others only creating a greater misperception of ourselves. We need to come out from the magnifying glass, out from under the microscope and get a fresh glance at who we are. Let those around you who know you show you what they see. Take a good look in the mirror not at what you’ve seen but at the unseen. Now this isn’t to say that you don’t have any weaknesses or things that should be addressed and looked at. However, we need to see them as they are and not any bigger than they are. Not as big enough to keep your purposes and abilities from showing. Step out from under and into the light. You have purposes and abilities unique to you.
“Now, Samuel, though only a boy was the Lord’s helper.”
1 Samuel 2:18 NLT
The Lord used Samuel at a young age. Even though he was only a boy the Lord placed Samuel as His helper. We all have our “though only” that could be obstacles in our journey. Some of us are using them as reasons not to step out. For some of us it sounds more like ‘since I am only a boy I won’t step out.’ We all have our ‘though only’ but the Lord uses us. The key here is the Lord. It really has nothing to do with us. The Lord can do whatever He wants if only we are willing to step out and be used. I want to be called the Lord’s helper even in the midst of all the reasons that I see that I am disqualified from being eligible to be used in this way. Step out and see things as He does. See you as He does. The one who is the Lord’s helper. The one with purposes ordained by the Lord. Step out of excuses and step into Him.
Monday, May 9, 2011
All You Need
“Sometimes we find ourselves searching for something more, when all that we need, we already have.”
Loren Thornburg
I often find myself walking around the house looking for the sunglasses that are on my head, or the keys that are in my pocket, or the pen I put behind my ear. We’ve all done it and are sure to do it again. It’s so interesting to me once I realize what I’ve done to know that I had what I needed the whole time I was looking. I wonder how I do that in things beyond the “missing” object. Searching for joy that it’s in the things around me, searching for growth that is taking place, searching for skills I already have, searching for confidence that’s there if I will grab it, searching for more when I have what I need. Like the moment I realize that the sunglasses I’ve looking for have been on my head the whole time; I want to see what I already have as part of finding what I’ve been searching for. How might what’s in front of you be part of what you’ve been searching for?
“It stands to reason, doesn’t it, that if the alive-and-present God who raised Jesus from the dead moves into your life, he’ll do the same thing in you that he did in Jesus, bringing you alive to himself? When God lives and breathes in you (and he does, as surely as he did in Jesus), you are delivered from that dead life. With his Spirit living in you, your body will be as alive as Christ’s!”
Romans 8:11 MSG
The Spirit of the “alive-and-present” God lives in you. That is powerful! The God who raised Jesus from the dead is the same God that lives and breathes in you. That means you are alive and you have power to share life with others. This also means that we have all that we need to do all God has called us to do. By His Spirit there is nothing that He can’t do in and through us. His Spirit lives in you and that is more than enough for all that you need. I seem to forget this in the midst of daily life. I forget how personally the Spirit lives in me for the little stuff too, to bring life to those things as well. He is alive and present to me, to you, here and now to be all that we need.
Sunday, May 1, 2011
De-Cape
“Take off your cape and let down your mask. Your greatest powers lie within you...weakness and all.”
Loren Thornburg
Superman and Superwoman are comic superheroes as well as terms used to imply having exceptional strength or ability. Although we don’t run around in capes we often expect ourselves to have many qualities of a superhero. It is our nature to want to emulate this figure who always saves the day and is essentially perfect. We do what we can to save the day, to have it all together, to be “exceptional” in all that we undertake. The problem is that we are not fictional characters, we are human. We all have different gifts and talents, but we also all have weaknesses and limits. As opportunities to do more increase so do the standards. Often the highest standards are those we put on ourselves, expecting us to be something we were never designed to be. So the key is not to be superman or superwoman but to be super ”You.” To be an exceptional You, in all of Your strengths, admitting your weakness and accepting your limits. That is where the real power lies. So take off your cape and start living free.
“The Lord is like a father to his children; tender and compassionate to those who fear him. For he understands how weak we are; he knows we are only dust.”
Psalm 103:13-14 NLT
God made us. He knows better than we do how weak we are. So I wonder why we expect ourselves to be more than human. Now it is true that we are called to be like Christ, that we are made in His image, that we have the power of the Holy Spirit in us. It is true that God loves it when we do exceptional things that glorify Him. Yet it is also true that He loves us when we don’t. It is also true that He understands our shortcomings and even there He is a father to us with compassion. He is not asking for us to be superman, superwoman, or even super Christians. He is asking that we sit at His feet as children loved by the Father. For there we will fall in love with Him and there we will find freedom to take off our capes and be all that He intended us to be, weaknesses and all.
Loren Thornburg
Superman and Superwoman are comic superheroes as well as terms used to imply having exceptional strength or ability. Although we don’t run around in capes we often expect ourselves to have many qualities of a superhero. It is our nature to want to emulate this figure who always saves the day and is essentially perfect. We do what we can to save the day, to have it all together, to be “exceptional” in all that we undertake. The problem is that we are not fictional characters, we are human. We all have different gifts and talents, but we also all have weaknesses and limits. As opportunities to do more increase so do the standards. Often the highest standards are those we put on ourselves, expecting us to be something we were never designed to be. So the key is not to be superman or superwoman but to be super ”You.” To be an exceptional You, in all of Your strengths, admitting your weakness and accepting your limits. That is where the real power lies. So take off your cape and start living free.
“The Lord is like a father to his children; tender and compassionate to those who fear him. For he understands how weak we are; he knows we are only dust.”
Psalm 103:13-14 NLT
God made us. He knows better than we do how weak we are. So I wonder why we expect ourselves to be more than human. Now it is true that we are called to be like Christ, that we are made in His image, that we have the power of the Holy Spirit in us. It is true that God loves it when we do exceptional things that glorify Him. Yet it is also true that He loves us when we don’t. It is also true that He understands our shortcomings and even there He is a father to us with compassion. He is not asking for us to be superman, superwoman, or even super Christians. He is asking that we sit at His feet as children loved by the Father. For there we will fall in love with Him and there we will find freedom to take off our capes and be all that He intended us to be, weaknesses and all.
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Get the Full Story
“See beyond this moment, look beyond right here
The story isn’t over, there’s hope, yes hope that’s near.”
Loren Thornburg
I love Easter because beyond all the eggs and candy there is a story that reminds us that things aren’t always as they seem and what you think will be is not always what is to come. Jesus was killed on a cross, but that wasn’t the end of the story. Hope still remained for He rose from the dead and thus our hope still remains. So often I base things on what I see and what I’ve been told forgetting the story isn’t over yet. I have to get the full story before I lose all hope. This is true in life and lives, including our own. So often I see the trials in my life and that’s all I can see. I get frustrated wishing I was farther along in one area or another. I know where I’ve been and I am unable to see where I could go. But, there is more to my story; there is more to your story. Lets get the full story before we resort to losing hope.
“So we don’t look at the troubles we can see right now; rather, we look forward to what we have not yet seen. For the troubles we see will soon be over, but the joys to come will last forever.”
2 Corinthians 4:18 NLT
Jesus is all about hope. Hope means that in all things we believe in the full story. It means that we “look beyond the tombstone, see the living God”(Paul Baloche, Glorious). Corinthians says it so well in the encouragement not to look at the troubles we see right now, in front of us, but instead to look beyond them, even though we look to things we haven’t yet seen. We can do this because we trust in the hope of our living God. We trust that as the Message version says, “There's far more here than meets the eye.” With Jesus there is always more than we can see going on. There is always more to the story than where we find ourselves in this moment. That means we can hope. Yes, even now, we can hope, even here, we can hope. Jesus is near and so hope is near. In the face of today see the living God. He is at work in a really big story calling you to be a part of it. It’s a story that has shown us we can hope in things we haven’t seen.
The story isn’t over, there’s hope, yes hope that’s near.”
Loren Thornburg
I love Easter because beyond all the eggs and candy there is a story that reminds us that things aren’t always as they seem and what you think will be is not always what is to come. Jesus was killed on a cross, but that wasn’t the end of the story. Hope still remained for He rose from the dead and thus our hope still remains. So often I base things on what I see and what I’ve been told forgetting the story isn’t over yet. I have to get the full story before I lose all hope. This is true in life and lives, including our own. So often I see the trials in my life and that’s all I can see. I get frustrated wishing I was farther along in one area or another. I know where I’ve been and I am unable to see where I could go. But, there is more to my story; there is more to your story. Lets get the full story before we resort to losing hope.
“So we don’t look at the troubles we can see right now; rather, we look forward to what we have not yet seen. For the troubles we see will soon be over, but the joys to come will last forever.”
2 Corinthians 4:18 NLT
Jesus is all about hope. Hope means that in all things we believe in the full story. It means that we “look beyond the tombstone, see the living God”(Paul Baloche, Glorious). Corinthians says it so well in the encouragement not to look at the troubles we see right now, in front of us, but instead to look beyond them, even though we look to things we haven’t yet seen. We can do this because we trust in the hope of our living God. We trust that as the Message version says, “There's far more here than meets the eye.” With Jesus there is always more than we can see going on. There is always more to the story than where we find ourselves in this moment. That means we can hope. Yes, even now, we can hope, even here, we can hope. Jesus is near and so hope is near. In the face of today see the living God. He is at work in a really big story calling you to be a part of it. It’s a story that has shown us we can hope in things we haven’t seen.
Monday, April 18, 2011
True Absurdities
“Truth is true, absurdities and all.”
Loren Thornburg
Life is full of paradoxes. You have to spend money to make money; you break your muscles down to build them up; your giving is what fills you up. A paradox is something that sounds absurd, but is actually true. More and more I see that life is full of paradoxes. It is in the hard things of life, which bring sadness that I come to know more of joy and enjoyment. It is when we allow ourselves to be hurt, needy, broken, and weak that we can be most thankful and find joy in healing, provision, and strength. It sounds rather absurd to me that to know joy I must know much heartache; to know strength I must know weakness; and to know more I must know less. It makes me wonder how many other things that I think are absurd are actually true. What we think is disaster may be the thing that is saving us. Life has a paradoxical way of bringing life from death.
“Our hearts ache but we always have joy. We are poor, but we give spiritual riches to others. We own nothing and yet we have everything.”
2 Corinthians 6: 10 NLT
The last shall be first, the first shall be last, those who are poor shall be rich, those who own nothing have everything. Even more, God brought life from death taking crucifixion on a cross of His only Son to bring abundant life for all who believe. Following Jesus is full of paradoxes. He doesn’t think the way that we think, work the way we work, or see things the way that we do. Paul exhorts the Corinthians to take heart in the nature of our paradoxical God. Following Jesus requires allowing His absurdities to be our truth. It means seeing our crises and trusting that God can and will work a blessing in it where we thought no blessing could be found. No longer seeing things from our perspective, but from over His shoulder where the poor are spiritually rich and those with nothing live lives where they find they have everything. It’s a process and it takes time, but the more we seek His ways the more we find what once was absurd has become truth; what once was our disaster has become our blessing; and what once was our death has become our saving.
Loren Thornburg
Life is full of paradoxes. You have to spend money to make money; you break your muscles down to build them up; your giving is what fills you up. A paradox is something that sounds absurd, but is actually true. More and more I see that life is full of paradoxes. It is in the hard things of life, which bring sadness that I come to know more of joy and enjoyment. It is when we allow ourselves to be hurt, needy, broken, and weak that we can be most thankful and find joy in healing, provision, and strength. It sounds rather absurd to me that to know joy I must know much heartache; to know strength I must know weakness; and to know more I must know less. It makes me wonder how many other things that I think are absurd are actually true. What we think is disaster may be the thing that is saving us. Life has a paradoxical way of bringing life from death.
“Our hearts ache but we always have joy. We are poor, but we give spiritual riches to others. We own nothing and yet we have everything.”
2 Corinthians 6: 10 NLT
The last shall be first, the first shall be last, those who are poor shall be rich, those who own nothing have everything. Even more, God brought life from death taking crucifixion on a cross of His only Son to bring abundant life for all who believe. Following Jesus is full of paradoxes. He doesn’t think the way that we think, work the way we work, or see things the way that we do. Paul exhorts the Corinthians to take heart in the nature of our paradoxical God. Following Jesus requires allowing His absurdities to be our truth. It means seeing our crises and trusting that God can and will work a blessing in it where we thought no blessing could be found. No longer seeing things from our perspective, but from over His shoulder where the poor are spiritually rich and those with nothing live lives where they find they have everything. It’s a process and it takes time, but the more we seek His ways the more we find what once was absurd has become truth; what once was our disaster has become our blessing; and what once was our death has become our saving.
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