24,000 pieces

The front page of the Fort Worth Star Telegram noted the story of a young girl who just completed the largest jigsaw puzzle in the world--24,000 pieces! It took her more than 4 months and, I'm guessing, a lot of patience. The creator of the 14 foot by 5 foot puzzle titled it "Life"--a panorama of our planet fitting together.

The news article reminded me that the church of Jesus Christ is the largest, interlocking wonder of the world. The church isn't simply a local congregation, but the universal collection of all Believers everywhere. No two "pieces" are the same; Each member is unique [1 Corinthians 12:12]. Each piece has something to contribute to others around it and, likewise, each piece has a "gap" to receive the blessing of others. Each piece is indispensable, necessary for the whole composition [1 Corinthians 12:21-26]. And, when all the pieces come together, each in its proper place, a picture of the "life" of Christ is revealed to the world around us.

My in-laws typically have a jigsaw puzzle in process at their home during the Christmas season. A card table is set up in the living room, two chairs, and a floor lamp moved closer to the workspace. The table is an open invitation for anyone to contribute to the final piece. Sometimes, we work for 15 minutes. I can remember years where I sat for several hours until the puzzle was finished.

The church is an open invitation to anyone to come, sit for a while, search and connect. As we linger with the pieces, we begin to see where we fit into God's greater picture. And, we discover the incredible blessing called "Life."

now the work begins

Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever;
wisdom and power are his.
He changes times and seasons;
he sets up kings and deposes them. [Daniel 2:20-21]

I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone—for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. [1 Timothy 2:1-2]

indelible

In less than 48 hours, the next President of the United States will be elected by the people. Whichever candidate claims the victory, enormous change is in store for our country. The truth is, the whole world is changing around us, whether we notice it or not. In just 20 short years, music transitioned from clumsy 8-track tapes to cassette to compact discs to MP3s. Today, my son’s matchbox-size audio player holds 1500 songs. I expect and embrace the changes in my world that benefit me.

However, I despise the changes that are difficult and unexpected. Several weeks ago, the Stock Market plummeted more than 800 points, Hurricane Ike landed on the Gulf shore of Texas sending thousands of evacuees fleeing from their homes and the fuel pump went out on my SUV. These unexpected events are like a discordant note struck in the melody of life. It’s the change nobody likes.

How do we stay focused and balanced in the midst of so much change? What can we cling to when our world seems to be turning upside down and inside out? When life is topsy-turvy, we need an anchor. We must hold tight to what never changes in an ever-changing world.

The subtitle description of Psalm 102 is “The prayer of an afflicted man.” While it’s impossible to determine the writer or the circumstances behind the verses, it’s clear that he was in the crisis of change. He was anxious, frustrated, weak and beat up. He suffered sleepless nights and wasted days. Depending on the day of the week, I can probably identify with one or more of the emotions expressed in verses 1-11.

However, the author comes to a conclusion that climaxes in verses 23-28:

In the course of my life [God] broke my strength; he cut short my days.
So I said:
“Do not take me away, O my God, in the midst of my days;
your years go on through all generations.
In the beginning you laid the foundations of the earth,
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
They will perish, but you remain;
they will all wear out like a garment.
Like clothing you will change them
and they will be discarded.
But you remain the same,
and your years will never end.
The children of your servants will live in your presence;
their descendants will be established before you.”

I notice a repeating confidence in these lines. In the midst of my fleeting days, God’s years go on (v. 24). God was in the beginning before time even began (v. 25) and, when everything is done, God will remain (v. 26). People and life change like old t-shirts that tatter and are thrown away, but God is unchanging.

He’s indelible.

I watch my daughter write on the sidewalk with oversized chalk sticks. She’ll spend half an hour creating a giant masterpiece in front of the house and, in a moment, her creation can be washed or swept away. But God is immutable and immovable. God is like a Sharpie marker: waterproof and permanent. He’s the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8). God is the only thing that never changes in an ever-changing world. When life gets unpredictable, I cling to three aspects of our indelible God: His perfections, His precepts and His purposes.

If you're wrestling with the imminent change in our world, check out my sermon "Indelible" [Psalm 102] from January 13, 2008. You can find it here.

the believer, the Bible and the ballot box

OK, I don't usually self-promote. But, the response to God's Word and biblical principles relating to our involvement in the political process may be helpful for others outside of PBC who are looking for direction regarding the upcoming election. You may access today's sermon online at Sermon Resources or download a free audio file from the PBC archives on iTunes.

on the front lines

Several days ago, on my way home from the office, I noticed three military helicopters flying in formation overhead. They continued to circle southwest Arlington in an ominous flight path. As I watched them, I wondered what it must be like to live in a country where the presence of war is so normal. What is it like to not simply read about cafe bombings, but to be near enough to hear them? What is it like to like to see soldiers walking your neighborhood instead of retired couples with their poodle on a leash? What is it like to drive past barbed wire and road blocks instead of garage sale signs and lemonade stands?

Truth is, we all live on the front lines, whether we know it or not. Spiritual people face a spiritual battle every day. In Ephesians 6:10ff, Paul warns Christians to "be strong" and "take on armor" because of the intense warfare that is waged, not in the physical sphere, but in the invisible dimensions where the enemies of God are hiding.

I was aware of the spiritual attack this morning. Relationships are harmonious, calendars are clear, the body is healthy, great things are happening...then, WHAM!....spiritual ambush. You know the experience. Out of nowhere, your heart is thrown into battle.

In times like this, I read a lot into Luke 4:13: "When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time." The temptation of Jesus is recorded in 2 Gospels [Matthew and Luke]. And, when the dust had settled, Luke mentions that the devil departed until another "opportune time." The word "time" doesn't mean hours and minutes. It means "season" or "occasion." In other words, the enemy doesn't attack me every day at 3:20 p.m. He looks for the opportune seasons in my life to launch his spiritual assault.

When I study Jesus' temptation, I discern 4 characteristics of that season of His life that may have made him susceptible to attack. These seasons are dangerous for me too:

1. When I am alone. Jesus was alone in the desert. And, when we're alone, we leave ourselves vulnerable to enemy forces. See Ecclesiastes 4:9-12.

2. On the heels of success. Jesus had recently returned from the Jordan where he was baptized. His Father's voice boomed from heaven, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased" [Matthew 3:17]. When I feel affirmed, strong and supported, the Devil will try to kick my legs out from under me. See 1 Corinthians 10:12.

3. At the start of a great thing. Jesus' 40 day stint was in preparation for His earthly ministry. He was about to revealed as the long-awaited Messiah. The enemy works to undo the momentum we have moving forward in the joys of life. I think this is why couples have their worst arguments while packing the car for a family vacation. See Ephesians 5:15-16.

4. When I am tired, hungry and spent. Jesus had been fasting for 6 weeks. He lived out in the open (perhaps in caves) and endured the elements. Satan knows that when we are physically weary, we are spiritually vulnerable. See Psalm 63.

During Pearson's baseball games, his coach will sometimes yell to the players, "Heads up!" The phrase means "be alert!" Peter warns Christians, "Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour" [1 Peter 5:8]. This means war. This means that I am on the front lines. And, when all is going well for me in every possible way, I can expect that a battle is brewing beneath the surface. Fortunately, by the power of Christ, the war is already won!

red floor chronicles | Christ

If you do not attend Pantego Bible Church, or missed the service this last Sunday, you must review the "Cardboard Testimonies" at the end of today's sermon [here]. This idea didn't originate at PBC. Many other churches have used this effective presentation of changed lives. But, to see it in the context of people you know...wow.

red floor chronicles | death

Today in Staff Chapel, we talked about this second movement of the Gospel: the penalty of death. Romans 6:23 warns us that "the wages of sin is death." Literally, the just compensation for our sin is separation from God. All of us start life as "dead men walking."

Today, the Stock Market dropped 679 points. That's 1700 points in the last 5 days...the lowest market close in 5 years. Ironically, it comes on the anniversary of the highest close of 14,164 one year ago. In just a few months, investors have lost 20% of their portfolio.

One day, all of us will retire from this life and too many will not have the investments to sustain them in the presence of God. The spiritual bankruptcy will be the ultimate Great Depression. What if people saw their impending eternal loss with the same concern?

My financial advisor encourages me to do nothing in these sparse economic times. But, as spiritual advisers, we must urge our neighbors and friends to radically change their investment strategy. As those who have been made rich through Christ [2 Corinthians 8:9], we must show the Way to those living in spiritual poverty. It doesn't matter whether it's a Bull or Bear Market. The most important thing is that the world knows the Lion--Jesus Christ as Lord.

sin: part 3

Bill Maher has taken his crusade against religion to the big screen. Maher, who has been picking on organized religion for years on his TV shows "Politically Incorrect" and "Real Time," zealously traveled the world for "Religulous," his documentary challenging the validity and value of Christian, Jewish and Islamic faiths.

Raised in a Roman Catholic household by a Catholic father and Jewish mother, Maher decided at an early age that the trappings and mythology of the world's religions were preposterous, outdated and even dangerous. "Religulous," directed by fellow doubter Larry Charles ("Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan"), is intended to inspire similar skepticism in others — and perhaps get nonbelievers to talk more openly about their lack of faith.

Maher, 52, who started mocking religion back in his early standup comedy days, has no misconceptions that "Religulous" will shake people's lifelong convictions to the core. He's mainly looking for laughs such as those the film elicited from the enthusiastic crowd at its Toronto premiere.

"When you're talking about a man living to 900 years old, and drinking the blood of a 2,000-year-old god, and that Creation Museum where they put a saddle on the dinosaur because people rode dinosaurs. It's just a pile of comedy that was waiting for someone to exploit."

Charles shot 400 to 500 hours of material around the world as Maher visited a Christian chapel for truckers in North Carolina, a gay Muslim bar in the Netherlands, the Mormon Tabernacle in Salt Lake City, and Christian, Muslim and Jewish holy places in Israel. Maher meets with priests at the Vatican, chats with rabbis and Muslim scholars in Jerusalem, encounters street preachers in London, and hangs out with the performer who plays Christ in a crucifixion enactment at the Holy Land Experience theme park in Florida. They left Eastern religions such as Hinduism and Buddhism alone largely for budgetary reasons, saying the extra travel and expanded scope would have made the film too unwieldy. They also figured that Christianity, Islam and Judaism were the trinity of faiths at the heart of Western conflict.

Never one to soft-pedal his own opinions, Maher openly scorns remarks made by Christians, Jews and Muslims he interviews. He hopes audiences will laugh with him, and that "Religulous" will stand as a testament for people who share his scorn. "It is a sobering thought to think that the U.S. Congress has 535 members and there's not one who represents this point of view, and yet there are tens of millions of Americans who feel this way," Maher said. "Comedians have always made jokes about religion. It's a rich topic. I did when I was a young comedian, but they weren't jokes that got right to the essence of it, which is, this is dangerous and this is silly."

[article condensed from "Maher vs. God: `Religulous' flays organized faith" by David Germain, AP Movie Writer]

sin: part 2

The psychiatrist M. Scott Peck wrote the best seller The Road Less Travelled. As a psychiatrist it's his job to try and understand what makes people tick. Here's what he says in another book, What Return Can I Make:

"Sin has not been a very fashionable word these past few years...It would seem the doctrine of the day is that all that is needed in this world is a little more affirmation. I'm OK, You're OK is the title of one of the leading pop psychology best-sellers. But what happens if I'm not OK?... The reality is that this world is not all OK. Evil is not the figment of some medieval theologian's imagination. Auschwitz and My Lai and Jonestown are actual places and actually happened. Human evil is real.The reality is that we do betray God and ourselves and each other. We do it routinely. The worst of us do it blatantly, even compulsively. The noblest of us do it subtly and self-centeredly, even when we think we are not trying to do it. Whether it is done consciously or unconsciously is of no matter; the betrayal occurs."

red floor chronicles | sin

I began a new series yesterday: RED FLOOR CHRONICLES. The title is in reference to the epic drama of the cross that came to light for me standing on the painted red floor of Pier 1 Imports in 1983. I'll never forget hearing the Gospel for the first time, how God changed my heart and the resulting overflow for the next 25 years.

In this series, I'm exploring the theological and practical aspects of the Gospel. I believe that the Gospel can be told in four "movements." The first is SIN. The good news is good because the bad news is so terribly bad. Sin is a universal, ungodly, ugly obstacle to God's Divine design for our lives. It all started with Adam [I read today that Adam went "off sides" and the whole team was penalized]. Sin has been imputed [passed on] to every person. Our lives are a mess and, left alone to ourselves, we are desperately lost and without hope.

Check out the sermon page on our church website to see hear the larger message: http://www.pantego.org/. Better yet, feel the desperate darkness that describes our condition in Romans 1-3 and Isaiah 53:6.

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guess it #3

...and another.

i'm filthy rich

Many years ago, I took part in a Poverty Simulation with Mission Waco. In one of the sessions, my friend Jimmy Dorrell explained the incredible gap between American affluence and the rest of the world. If my memory serves me correctly [and my recent data gets me in the ballpark], the United States comprises 5% of the world's population but consumes almost a quarter of the world's resources. We are users, hoarders, getters.

In my research for the My Simple Life series, I stumbled across a sobering website that puts my personal income in context with the rest of the world [see Global Rich List here]. I won't spoil the surprise for you. But, when you're finished inserting your annual salary and review the results, you might start tithing to your church, giving to a local compassion agency or checking out Kiva to see how you might put some of your dollars to work as a blessing to those much further down the wealth continuum.

On a related note: The compelling reason why my financial riches should pour over into the world is because of the spiritual riches that I enjoy in Christ. Paul writes, "For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich" [2 Corinthians 8:9]. I don't just make a decent annual income, I enjoy a marvelous eternal income. God has "met all of my needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus" [Philippians 4:19]. I'm filthy rich. So much so...I can afford to give so much away.

guess it #2

Here's another Grant Daniels pic. Guess it.

blast from the past

OK. So, I was noticing the tags on my blogs and realized that it's been a while since I've posted anything under the category "humor." So, when my son told me about a new creative website [yearbookyourself.com] where I could import my current pic to recreate a yearbook photo, I couldn't resist. I've posted Grant's too, I'm so proud of him. Create your own and let me know when I can see your nostalgic self. I'm thinking of posting Tiffany's picture next. Then we'll get counseling.

guess it #1

Grant has been taking some extraordinary photos. I love his artful eye and the ability to abstract the simple. I'm going to post a few of my favorites. Can you guess what it is? You can see more of my son's pics at Grant Daniels Photography.

simplify

I turned off the television a little more than a week ago. I have filled my time with several good books. If you are like me --trying to get a handle on your time and stuff and simplifying your life so that you can find the margin to do what really matters -- I'd like to recommend a couple of good reads. Two books are helpful resources for our simple life: Simplify by Paul Borthwick (105 ways to simplify your life) and Simplify Your Spiritual Life by Donald S. Whitney (practicing the spiritual disciplines in a way that brings simple pleasure to your spiritual pursuit of God). They can be purchased online or in the Pantego Bible Church Connection Bookstore.

entropy

Our Home Group just retired for the evening and I thought would reflect on our great conversation together. We enjoyed a delicious Mexican food dinner chased by homemade spice cake. Brandon Swinney gave us a mini-concert showing us all how much he has progressed on guitar (Grant is his teacher). Then, we talked about the new sermon series I started this morning: My Simple Life. Each of us shared our perspective on one or more of the four points that I presented from Ecclesiastes 3:1-15. To live the simple life, we must:

1. Know who controls time
2. Say "no" until the right time
3. Go to our gladness
4. Zero in on the glory

One of the points of discussion was the law of entropy. In science class, I learned (and this is a non-scientific, simple explanation) that items will move from a condition of order to disorder, if left alone. This is a law of living too. If left alone, my schedule will naturally move from order to disorder. I will suddenly find myself overwhelmed and overloaded. In other words, I must wisely and intentionally set about to guard my schedule and watch my decisions every day. Otherwise, I may wake up to discover that my simple life has become chaotic. That's entropy.

a different take on "I do"

My friend and PBC attendee, Lena Lewis, gave me a copy of Gary Thomas' Sacred Marriage several months ago and I put it in my reading queue [which is a dozen books long]. I'm sorry I waited so long. Expect me to come back to reviewing it several more time. But, Thomas' main thesis is that God designed marriage, not for my happiness, but for my holiness. The reason I commit to love, sacrifice, be selfless or remain pure, (i.e.) is because it reflects my ongoing transformation by God and a commitment to Him. I have been greatly challenged and blessed by the point of view of this book and highly recommend it to anyone wanting to add value to their marriage relationship.

what moves me

Several weeks ago, we introduced a new song in our worship service and since then, I cannot get it out of my head. I thank God for leaders who write such God-centered anthems to His glory. I found Angels Cry available for you to listen to at GateWay Worship. Find Angels Cry by Jonathan Stockstill and click "listen." The words are beautiful:

I saw the Lord
High and lifted up
And His glory filled the earth
His face shone like the sun
He was light to everyone
And the glory that fell on me
Was the glory that set me free

Angels cry "Holy is the Lord"
Seated on the praises of His people
Nations cry "Glory to the Lamb"
The Savior of the world
He is exalted!