Fighter Planes and Faithfulness

During World War II, U.S. bombers often flew under the protection of fighter planes. When enemy planes attacked, American fighters would retaliate and try to draw enemy planes away from the bombers. This left the larger, slower bombers exposed and vulnerable to other enemy fighters. As a result, they were shot down at alarming rates.

The famous Tuskegee Airmen employed a different strategy in protecting bombers that proved to be much more successful. It was simple: never leave. Tuskegee fighters would engage the enemy, but never chase the enemy away from the plane they were protecting. Their first mission was to stay close to the bomber. As a result, hundreds of bombers were saved while only a handful was lost on their watch.

The airmen and their innovative strategy illustrate the power of faithfulness. We are safest when those protecting us stick with us. Our well-being depends on our protector’s commitment to remain at our side.

This is true of God as our spiritual protector as well. We are kept safe by the fact that God is with us and will never, ever leave us. Deuteronomy 31 says, “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.” God’s faithfulness gives us confidence in our well-being.

As you go through the coming week, invite the Lord into your everyday life. Ask the Lord to draw close and rest assured that He will never leave you. As you do, you will find courage for the battles of life. You will also find an assurance in Christ that cannot be shot down.

The Spiritual Bath

This week, I read a story about an Iranian man who hasn’t taken a bath in sixty years. The last time Amou Haji washed was in 1954. The article said that Haji “has become almost the same colour as the earth around him and he totally blends in with his environment.” Haji is so dirty, his skin looks like the dirt in his desert home.

You would think that this is a problem. Haji lives alone. People report that he smells bad. He wants to find someone to love, but has no prospects.

Despite those challenges, Haji seems to be proud of the accomplishment. He is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the person who has gone the longest amount of time without a bath. He is quite famous for the grime and does not plan on bathing any time soon.

Haji’s story is a great illustration of the human spiritual condition. We know that our souls need a spiritual bath. But, we neglect it. We neglect it for so long, it becomes a source of pride. We win awards and celebrate the dirt caked on our spiritual lives. After years of broken relationships, we’ll say, “People know not to mess with me!” After years of addiction, we wear it like a badge: “Nobody can put ‘em back like me!” We never pause to think that our greatest ills are rooted in the things we celebrate as accomplishments.

As you go through the coming week, ask the Lord to give you a spiritual bath. Seek the Lord earnestly, asking Jesus to reveal areas of your life that need to be washed clean. Then, ask Jesus to do His cleansing work. As you do, you will find victory in ways you didn’t think possible. You will be cleansed in a ways far better than the longest of world records.

There is Power in the Blood

When I was kid, my church family loved to sing a song called “Power in the Blood.” I remember the lyrics clearly: “Would you be free from your burden of sin? There is power in the blood! Power in the blood!” I bet we sang that song once a week.

If you think about it, Jesus’ blood is a weird place to find power. Jesus shed his blood on a cross. Jesus’ blood is the blood of injury and suffering. Few associate that type of blood with power. But, Jesus’ people do.

Jesus finds and creates power in a lot of weird ways. He uses things associated with the powerless and makes them a source for empowerment. Jesus exalts the lowly, puts the last in first place, gives the earth to the meek, and conquers death through a humiliating execution. For some reason, the Son of God chooses to take the weakest areas of life and make them the seedbed for eternal power.

If you are experiencing challenges, pray that the Lord will use them to do something powerful.  Ask the Lord to make his power perfect in the weakest areas of life. As you do, you will find strength that does not play by the rules of this world. You will find power in the blood.

The Incredible Worth of Jesus

My friend’s dad gave him a collection of silver dollar coins when he was a kid. The coins had been handed down in the family. Some were very old. Being young at the time, my friend didn’t fully understand the value of the gift.

One day, that friend wanted to go shopping, but didn’t have the money. So, he took a few of the old silver dollars to the bank to cash them in. Because banks are not coin collectors, the bank honored the face value of the coins. Each silver dollar was exchanged for a dollar bill.

I cringed when my friend told me that story. I cringed because I knew that those coins were worth a lot more than a dollar. My friend learned that some things are worth way more than we give them credit for.

Much of the Christian life is spent learning similar lessons about the incredible worth of Jesus. God graciously reveals His Son to His people.  Early on, we recognize he is important, but don’t fully understand how precious he is. God graciously keeps after us, stressing how valuable His Son is. As we grow in our belief, we learn that Jesus is the most precious thing in our lives.

The Bible describes this process like building a house on a stone foundation. Our lives are a spiritual house that is built on the foundational rock of Jesus Christ. As we grow in the Lord, we learn how important the foundational stone is. 1 Peter 2:7 says, “Now to you who believe, this stone is precious…” The house God builds values Jesus beyond measure.

As you go through the coming week, ask God to reveal the value of His Son to you. Pray and read and think about how precious our Lord is. As you do, you will find a growing desire to serve Him.  You will find joy in His service simply because He is worth it.

Prayer and Presidents

Years ago, I read an article in the Washington Post about a woman named Emma Daniel Gray. Emma Daniel Gray cleaned the President’s offices in the White House for 24 years. That means she picked up after six different Presidents. Evidently, Mrs. Gray was a faithful follower of Jesus too. Every night, when she cleaned the President’s chair, she would pause for a moment of prayer. She would ask the Lord for wisdom, blessings and safety for each one of the Presidents she served. For 24 years, the faithful prayers of Emma Daniel Gray covered six different Presidents and their decisions.

Who knows the world shaping decisions that were made in that room during that time? Wars were fought, economies were managed, and laws were signed from that chair. All the while a faithful cleaning lady lifted them up to God. She may not have had the influence of the people who sat in that chair, but she knew even the President needs God’s help.

In our lives, we may not have power and resources or Presidents to solve problems. Few have the influence of the commander-in-chief. But, we do have access to the same God who answers the prayers of Presidents. We can call on that Commander-in-chief just like Emma Daniel Gray. Prayer allows us to seek and petition the one who is ultimately in control of everything. 

As you begin the New Year, make prayer a larger part of your life. Though much of life is out of our control, we can call on the One who is in control. Lift all the details of your life to Him in prayer. If the President needs it, so do we.

Augustine on Christmas

I love to read an old, African pastor named Augustine.  Augustine lived during the 4^th century and converted to the Christian faith as an adult.  He served a church in a town called Hippo and wrote a lot about Christian belief.  Augustine’s sermons and writings are still very influential in the Christian faith today.

Augustine wrote a lot about how God became a human in Jesus.  Some call it “the incarnation.”  Mostly, we call it Christmas. 

Preparing for this season’s services, I read bits of Augustine’s Christmas sermons.  I enjoyed them a lot and found beautiful descriptions of Jesus’ arrival in Bethlehem.  They made enough of an impact that I thought I would share. 

So, as the Christmas season comes to a close at Faith Center, remember:

Our Lord came down from life to suffer death;
the Bread came down, to hunger; 
the Way came down, on the way to weariness; 
the Fount came down, to thirst.


-       Sermon 78

He so loved us that, for our sake, 
He was made man in time, 
although through him all times were made. 
He was made man, who made man. He was created of a mother whom he created.
He was carried by hands that he formed. 
He cried in the manger in wordless infancy, he the Word,
without whom all human eloquence is mute.


- Sermon 188, 2

A Charlie Brown Christmas

In 1965, the CBS Network aired A Charlie Brown Christmas for the first time.  A Charlie Brown Christmas tells the story of a young boy (named Charlie Brown) who is depressed by the commercialism and materialism surrounding the holiday.  Time and time again, confronted by the excesses of the season, Charlie asks, “Is there anyone who knows what Christmas is all about?”

At the height of Charlie’s frustration, Charlie’s friend Linus answers the question.  Linus reads a passage from the second chapter of Luke.  It describes shepherds and angels celebrating Jesus’ birth.  Linus reads, “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.”  At the end of the passage, Linus adds, “That’s what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown.”

How many of us need Linus to remind us what Christmas is about this holiday season?  We feel so overrun by commercials and calendars and high expectations that we almost forget why we are celebrating in the first place.  We find ourselves asking the same question as Charlie Brown: “Isn’t there anyone who knows what Christmas is all about?”

If that is the case, remember Linus and Luke’s answer: “for unto you a child is born.”  God Almighty has come into our lives through the birth of His Son Jesus.  He is here.  He cares about your every challenge and frustration and fear. 

This Christmas, invite Jesus to be born in your life in fresh and new ways.  Find the answer to Charlie Brown’s question in Him.  As you do, you will learn what Christmas is really all about.