A Noisy Cricket (October 4, 2020)

Isn’t it interesting how a sound can be welcome in one environment and unwelcome in another?  What is completely acceptable and encouraged in one situation might be entirely unacceptable and even considered rude in another location.  

Let me give you a couple of examples. 

Exhibit A:  Belching.

Some of you might have cringed at the mention of the word.  In general, in our culture, among a “polite” audience, belching/burping/gurking (a new word for me…used the thesaurus!) is considered to be impolite, rude, crass, a no-no.  That’s the general rule for the general audience.

Change the audience to a group of elementary school boys?  

Belching becomes a welcomed sign of respect.  Able to recite the entire alphabet during a burp?  You rule!  You are awesome.  You have talents that will get you somewhere.  In this context of elementary-aged boys, a burp is a sign of awesomeness.  Now, you might be tempted to think that this is just because those boys are immature, but this isn’t the only environment where this type of expression is welcome.  In fact, there are some cultures where belching, in general, is considered to be a compliment.  If you are in China and enjoy your food, what do you do?  “Braaaaaappppp!”  “My compliments to the chef.”  A belch in this environment can be considered to be a compliment.  When one belches, one is saying “That was quite the tasty dish!”

What is considered rude in one context is considered complimentary in another.  What is an unwelcome sound in one situation is a welcome sound in another.

Exhibit B:  Crickets.

Many people like the sound of crickets.  Their chirp is a welcome cadence to nature enthusiasts and to those who enjoy their gentle call.  In fact, a number of white noise machines (you know those apps on your phone that you use, or the pre-programmed speakers you can buy that make different sounds to help you sleep…sounds of the jungle, ocean waves, whirring fans, etc.) include the sound of crickets as one of the selections.  In some contexts, the sound of chirping crickets = awesome. 

If white noise machines aren’t enough to convince you, let’s consider China again.  China has a history of raising and keeping crickets.  Sometimes this was done so that people might enjoy their sound at night.  Sometimes it has been done for sport (cricket fighting…a harmless battle between two crickets.  In the past, they even bred crickets just for this sport!)  Crickets have been highly valued, their chirping has been considered soothing, and it is desirable to have a cricket in one’s home.  Again, the sound of a chirping cricket = awesome.  

Do you want to know where the sound of a chirping cricket is unwelcome?  Where it is un-awesome?  In my house!  Outside crickets are fine.  Inside crickets?  NOT WELCOME!  Those buggers can be loud, irritating, and a source of stress.  Instead of helping people to sleep, a cricket within our home has the opposite effect.  People are unable to sleep.  When people are unable to sleep, problems occur.  In my home, the sound of a chirping cricket means one thing…it’s go time.  It’s time to find that sucker and escort them to a new location.  It’s time to wage war on the crickets until their population has been eradicated from our domain.  In our home, within our walls, the sound of a cricket is not welcome.

Recently, we’ve run into this problem.  We’ve heard the sound of crickets in our home.  To date, there have been about 8 that recently have needed to enter a relocation program of sorts.  (One of them wore a top hat, a tail coat, and was carrying a tiny umbrella.  He mentioned something about a mouse.  I told him he and any of his mice friends could take a hike.  I’m not interested.  Same rules apply to mice as to crickets…fine outside.  Stay out of our house.)  We’ve heard the sound of the cricket chirp.  Their war cry has been raised, and we’ve sprung into action.  Hopefully, we’ve evicted the entire clan, but we will still be on our guard in case another one appears.

What is a welcome sound in one context can be completely unwelcome in another.

This idea got me to thinking about our church environments, and it made me wonder…are there sounds that are unwelcome within our worship service that would actually be considered welcome to God?  Conversely, are there sounds that we welcome in our worship services that are unwelcome to God?

A number of years ago I was visiting a United Methodist Church in another community.  It was fairly typical of most United Methodist Churches…responses were either communal, printed in the bulletin, and recited together, or they were silent.  No “Amens” during the preaching.  No “preach it brothers” were said.  No “hallelujahs.”  Nothing of that sort.  I get it.  Some call us the “Frozen Chosen”.  I’m not going to dive too deep into that conversation for now.  But, there was one gentleman with Down Syndrome who didn’t follow the pattern.  He let out some “Amens”.  He said some “Hallelujahs.”  He might have even said “Praise the Lord” at one point.  Gasp!  I was sitting behind this gentleman and his caregiver, and I noticed the caregiver was responding to his “outbursts” by “shushing” him.  “Amen!”  “Shhh!!!”   “Praise the Lord!”   “Shhh!!!!”  “Hallelujah!!!”   “SSSSHHHHHH!!!!!!!”  It was obvious to me that the sounds that this gentleman was making were unwelcome to the caregiver.  He needed to learn the proper procedure for church.  That behavior was out of place.

But was it, really?  Was it really out of place?  Should he have been quiet?

He wasn’t being disruptive.  He wasn’t being rude.  In fact, to me, he was responding in ways that were completely authentic, genuine, and appropriate.

The preacher would say something like “Jesus is Alive!”  He would respond, “Hallelujah!”  The caregiver would say “Shhh!”  

Which, do you think, was the welcome sound to God?  Which, do you think, was the response that blessed the heart of our Savior?  Which, do you think, was appropriate?  “Hallelujah” or “Shhh”?

I know.  I know.  Even Paul teaches about being orderly in worship.  What about 1 Corinthians 14:26?

I’m not arguing against being orderly, but sometimes I wonder if the order has become the god instead of allowing or even encouraging people to respond to God within the context of an orderly worship service.  Sometimes I wonder if we have squelched some crickets, have quieted some chirps, have “Shhh’d” some sounds that would be welcome noises to the Lord all for the sake of “order”, “respect” or a general “that’s not how we roll around these parts.”  

Think on that for a while and see what you come up with.  Where have we quieted sounds that would be welcome to God just because they are unwelcome to us?

On the flip side of the coin is the opposite issue.  Where have we welcomed sounds that are unwelcome to God?

There’s a warning found in the book of Isaiah.  This is what it says: 

Stop bringing meaningless offerings!  Your incense is detestable to me.  New Moons, Sabbaths and convocations—I cannot bear your worthless assemblies.  Your New Moon feasts and your appointed festivals I hate with all my being.  They have become a burden to me;  I am weary of bearing them.  When you spread out your hands in prayer, I hide my eyes from you; even when you offer many prayers, I am not listening. Your hands are full of blood!  Wash and make yourselves clean.  Take your evil deeds out of my sight;  stop doing wrong.  Learn to do right; seek justice.  Defend the oppressed.  Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.

~Isaiah 1:13-17

Or how about this passage from the Psalms?

You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it;

you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.

My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit;

a broken and contrite heart

you, God, will not despise.

~Psalm 51:16-17

Here is what I am trying to convey.  It’s not so much the words, the songs, the gifts, or even the celebrations that matter (even Easter & Christmas).  You could say all of the right things on Christmas Eve, singing O Holy Night with a voice that would make Pavarotti jealous, and light the candle at the perfect time during Silent Night, and it still would not be a pleasing sound to the Lord if you are just “going through the motions” without your heart being in the proper place.  You could wake up Easter Sunday and proclaim “He is Alive!” in a voice loud and clear, but if it’s just words, it doesn’t amount to much.  If Sunday morning worship is a “check box” where you “have” to say the right prayers, sing the right hymns, respond in just the right way…well, it may not actually be worship.  It may be something else…like a performance or a ritual.

It’s possible for us to do/say/act in a way that looks like worship to others but is actually unwelcome noise to the Lord.  As a last example, check out the parable of the Pharisee and Tax Collector (Luke 18:9-14).

Even though the words we say are important (that could be the topic for another lesson), God is more concerned with our hearts, our lives.  The Lord’s Prayer said in faith with a heart of worship will be much more pleasing to God than the same words being perfectly stated with absolute eloquence by one who has no faith and is simply trying to look a part.

My hope, friend, is that we seek the Lord with all of our hearts.  My hope, friend, is that we are more concerned with what sounds are welcome to His ears, what noises bring joy to His heart, than we are with what may appear to be appropriate worship but is actually empty words.  My hope, friend, is that we will worship the Lord…in spirit, in truth, in humility, in love, in faith, in honesty.  

Even if this means uttering a “Hallelujah” and being “shushed.”  Even if it means sounding like an unwelcome cricket in a quiet house.  Even if we are looked at with condemnation.  My hope, friend, is that we would be concerned with making sounds that are welcomed by our Savior, that would be pleasing to His ears, that would cause His heart to smile, and that would bring Him joy.

~ Pastor Chris

A Downhill Coast (September 27, 2020)

Have you ever been faced with an unexpected challenge?

I know the answer is to that question is yes.  (If it isn’t, let’s have a chat.  Either you worry about absolutely everything under the sun so that nothing comes as a surprise, or you’re incredibly connected to God and you’re clued in on everything that life has coming for you.  In either case, we need to have a conversation.)  Life presents unexpected challenges often.  There are many times in life where challenges can sneak up and catch us unaware.

Not too long ago, we were faced with an unexpected challenge on a bicycle ride.  We had decided to go on a 10-mile ride on the Westmoreland Heritage Trail, one we had ridden in the past, but this time we chose a new section of the trail.  Taking off out of Saltsburg, PA, we planned on heading east along the Conemaugh River for five miles, turn around at that point, and take the same path home.  We figured this would make for a nice afternoon, and it would allow for us to do something fun while seeing some new sites.  

Right away the trail was beautiful.  It was wide, it was flat, it was scenic.  The trail was everything that you could ask for on a hot summer day…cool, flat, comfortable, and shaded.  

For three miles, we rode along in relative bliss.  Sure, we were exercising and it wasn’t completely easy, but it was enjoyable.  We would stop occasionally to look for a geocache (small containers that people hide…sometimes holding little treasures.  We find them through a geocaching app on our phone.).  We’d pause here and there to get a drink of water.  Once, we stopped and checked out a rope swing, noting that we’d like to return at another point and give it a try.  It was great.  For three miles.

Then, the trail changed.  

Somewhere after three miles, the trail turned away from the river, and when it did, it became a lot more challenging.  Gone was the wide, smooth path.  Gone was the sound of the river running next to us.  Gone was the light breeze that had been cooling us.  Gone was the “flat.”  Instead, we were met with an unexpected challenge.  If we wanted to reach our overall goal of ten miles, we had to go two more miles out on a narrower trail that seemed to slope upwards into eternity.

Granted, it wasn’t some undoable ascent, it wasn’t some extremely steep mountain, but for us occasional bicycle riders, it was challenging.  Not only that, it was unexpected.

We had thought that the path would continue on as it started.  Nice and easy, no big issues.  We thought we’d ride a relatively flat trail out 5 miles, turn around and ride a relatively flat trail 5 miles back.  But, that isn’t what happened.  The trail changed.  After three miles it took a turn that was much harder in all kinds of ways.  The terrain was worse, the temperature was worse.  The incline was worse.  Nearly everything about this section of the trail was harder and more difficult than the previous portion. 

At this point, we had a decision.  Continue on towards are goal, or turn around.

In general, we’re not easily dissuaded.  We had set out to do 10-miles, and it was going to take more than just a change of trail type for us to change our minds.  We pressed on towards our goal.

It wasn’t easy.

There would be breaks in the incline, but it certainly felt like we were climbing uphill on our bicycles for the next two miles.  The breeze had stopped.  The comfort had stopped.  The need for water breaks increased.  Our legs got tired, but we kept pumping.  We kept pedaling to reach the goal.  We kept pushing forward.

Finally, after a good deal of effort, we reached our goal.  We had traveled for five miles from our car.  It was time to turn around.

Now, there wasn’t anything spectacular that occurred at that point.  There was no great monument to see at that particular section.  There was no swimming hole for us to reach, no ice cream stand that we were trying to make.  Still, there was satisfaction.  There was satisfaction in knowing that we succeeded in what we set out to do, and there was satisfaction in knowing that we had overcome this unexpected obstacle.  We had pushed through.  We made it.  There was accomplishment in that.

But do you know what was the best part?  

The next two miles after we turned around.

The downhill coast.

It was glorious.  We just had to steer and pedal every once and a while.  Otherwise, gravity and the slope of the decline took care of the bulk of the work.  For almost two miles, we could coast downhill, laughing and having fun, enjoying the ride.

When we were finished for the day and we talked about the best part of our bike ride, guess what was everyone’s favorite section?  That downhill coast.  Guess what we never would have experienced if we would have quit earlier?  That downhill coast.  If we had stopped earlier, we never would have had the joy of riding back down.

Sometimes, in life, we get caught off guard by unexpected challenges, and we think that life will continue on that way forever, or that we have to stop right there and turn around.  Sometimes, we forget (or at least I forget) that an “enjoyable” part might be coming up right after the challenge is completed.  Sometimes, we forget (or at least I forget) that downhill coasts most often follow uphill climbs.

In a devotional that was shared a few weeks ago, Christa reminded us of the passage in Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 that points to the seasonal nature of things as well as there being a time for every purpose under heaven.  I encourage you to read that one if you haven’t.  

Though I do not wish to rehash that material, I do want for us to be reminded that there are times of uphill climbs, and times of downhill coasts.  Sometimes, the downhill coast will come sooner than we think.  Sometimes the downhill coast is just a couple more pedals away from where we are currently.  Sometimes, if we just keep pushing for just a little longer, we will get to that next period, that next, season, that next instance of rest.

I also want for us to remember a passage found in Isaiah.

A voice of one calling:

“In the wilderness prepare the way for the Lord;

 make straight in the desert a highway for our God.

Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; 

the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain.

And the glory of the Lord will be revealed,

and all people will see it together.

For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”

~Isaiah 40:3-5

Yet another reminder…this life will present challenges.  This life will present battles.  This life will present struggles and difficulties, most of which are much, much harder than riding a couple miles up a hill on a bicycle.  Nevertheless, there is a time that is coming where those challenges will end.  There is a time coming when the difficulties of life will be over.  There is a time coming when the valleys will be raised, when the mountains will be made low.  The rough ground will become level.  The rugged places a plain.  The time is coming. 

In fact, it has already come.

We know that John the Baptist was this voice who is calling to prepare the way of the Lord (John 1:23).  We know that Jesus is the One for Whom the path was prepared.  We also know that Jesus has defeated death, has overcome sin, has risen victorious, and has offered life everlasting for those who believe in Him (John 3:16).  

So, friend, when an unexpected hill climb comes along you path, don’t fret.  Don’t fear.  Don’t quit.  Instead, know that the Lord will continue to journey with you, that God will give you the strength.  Also, always know that a downhill coast awaits.  The best part of the ride is always in front of you.  As Isaiah reminds us, someday the glory of the Lord will be revealed, all people will see it together.  We will one day go and meet Jesus.  We will one day see Him face-to-face.  Every tear will be wiped from our eyes.  Every pain will be healed, every heartache mended.  Every defeat will be forgotten and we will consider our new life in Christ to be worth every bit of suffering that was endured, every hill that was ever climbed. 

~ Pastor Chris

Talking to Myself (September 20, 2020)

Hopefully, you all don’t think less of me, but I have conversations with myself.  Often.  Most of the time these occur within my mind.  Occasionally, they come out of my mouth.  The topics are broad, and I cover a lot of material, but sometimes the conversation is honestly a little one-sided.  I do most of talking on both ends, and I don’t leave much room for someone else to respond.  (You may initially think, “That’s good.  Who else would respond?”  Well, keep reading.  I’ll get there.)

Let me explain a little further.  Sometimes, I’ll have a conversation in my mind about a something that is negative.  I’ll play out and plan for scenarios that are causing me stress or anxiety.  If I fear a confrontation of some sort is on the horizon, I’ll go over the possibilities.  I’ll imagine and plan for what might happen, and then I’ll come up with answers that I might give, reactions that I might have, ways to respond to the confrontation that I fear is imminent.  (Typically, these self-conversations have me responding in amazing ways.  I’ll have just the right words, said at just the right time, and the other person will go… “Wow.  You’re a genius.  I want to do everything that you just said.  I am wrong.  You are right!”)

Other times, I’ll have a conversation in my mind about something that is positive.  I’ll play out and plan for scenarios that I believe will bring me positive outcomes.  Again, I’ll go over the possibilities, again, I’ll go over the responses. 

Occasionally, some types of self-talk will come out of my mouth and not just be in my head.  Typically, this isn’t in the form of a complete conversation, but more along the lines of encouragement/motivation or short phrases.  For instance, when I miss an easy shot in racquetball (happened just this morning), I’ll give myself the old “Come on Morris.”  If I hit a wimpy shot when I should have used more power, I’ll do the popular “Hit the ball!” phrase.  Every once in a while, even outside of sports, I’ll mutter, “You big dummy.”  This usually occurs when I do something that I feel was dumb.  

    Forget to duck while getting in the car and bang my head?  

    “You big dummy.”

    Spill hot coffee all over my shirt because I momentarily lose the location of my mouth?

    “You big dummy.”

    Walk straight into the glass pane because I failed to open the door?

    “You big dummy.”

You get the idea.  I talk to myself.  Sometimes it’s a full blown, hypothetical scenario in which there are a lot of details.  Sometimes those scenarios are negative.  Sometimes they are positive.  Typically, these conversations happen in my head.  Other times, I talk to myself in short snippets (and these may be out loud).  These statements are typically motivational/critical in relationship to sports, or they are self-critical (but sometimes said in jest) when I do something that I feel is dumb.  

Still, the fact remains, I talk to myself.  A lot.

I believe we all do.  (If you don’t, you’re really going to think that I have issues.)  Though the things we say might be different, I imagine that we all talk to ourselves.  There are times when we all envision what we think the future might hold, and we play out those scenarios (good or bad) in our head.  Likely, there are also times when some of us talk to ourselves out loud (at least I’ve heard a number of people doing this…I recognize that some may not).  We say things to ourselves to motivate, to chastise, to encourage, or to otherwise steer ourselves in the right direction.  (There are also other occasions where we may be talking out loud and have no idea that we’re actually talking out loud.  Let’s put those occasions aside for now.)

Do you know the problem with a lot of this self-talk and planning, especially the type when we’re predicting?  It rarely happens in reality.  We play out something in our heads.  It rarely comes to fruition.

Just this last weekend, I had a whole conversation and scenario run over and over through my head.  I’ve been looking to purchase some kayaks, and I talked to a guy who was selling four of them.  Though they weren’t ideal for us, I knew what I wanted to do.  I thought I’d buy all of them for one, discounted price.  I’d save the guy the hassle of getting rid of them as he didn’t seem to want to deal with that, and I would use them towards getting kayaks that I actually want.  I had the whole thing planned…which ones I would keep, which ones I would sell or trade, how much I would ask for each kayak that I didn’t want.  I had further conversations (in my mind) with other people after I had purchased the kayaks regarding trades/sales.  I had it all worked out.  All the details planned.  I was excited for these four kayaks that I was about to buy.

The problem?  The seller didn’t accept my offer.  He didn’t agree to my price.  We couldn’t work out the money in a mutually beneficial way.  I didn’t buy the kayaks.  It never happened.

Here I had spent time and brain power going over and over all of these scenarios that would take place after I had purchased these kayaks, and I NEVER BOUGHT THE KAYAKS!!!!   It never happened.  All of that time, all of that thinking, all of that planning, all of those conversations that played out in my head, and IT NEVER HAPPENED!  He kept the kayaks to sell individually at a later date, and I kept the money that I had planned to spend.  Done deal.  That was it.  Nothing further.

Isn’t that the problem with a lot of our self-talk?  Isn’t that the issue with a lot of those conversations that we have with ourselves?  Often, they never happen.

Oftentimes, we stress, we worry, we prep, we rehearse, we go over things over and over and over again only to find out that they never actually occur.  That argument we feared?  Never takes place.  That positive event that we were expecting?  Never happens.  There are a lot of times that we spend in conversation with ourselves over things that never happen in reality.  The scenarios we play out in our head just stay there, in our head, and they never actually occur.  Granted, sometimes they do, but more often than not, the worry, the fretting, the planning, the rehearsing is all in preparation for things that never take place.

In fact, sometimes we’re so good at worrying and conversing with ourselves, that we’re 17 “what ifs” down the line.  “What if this happens, then this happens, then this happens, then this happens, then this happens…then, I’ll do this and say this and react this way.”  We can get so far down the positive line that I’m going through how to trade some person a jet boat for a Tesla…all stemming from four kayaks that I never even purchased.  Or we get so far down the negative line that we imagine ourselves separated from our family, at Niagra Falls, jumping off the Maid of the Mist all while telling our pursuers that we’re innocent, we’re falsely accused…all stemming from a fear that we might forget to pay for a pack of gum at the self-checkout in Walmart.  We have conversations with ourselves that lead to other conversations with ourselves that lead to us planning for positive events that never occur or for negative situations that are never going to happen.  

So much time, so much thought, so much worry, so much fret, for what?  If we’re honest, a lot of our self-talk bears very little fruit. 

What, then, should we do?  Let’s look at a couple of Scriptures.

First, let’s consider this one in 2 Corinthians.  Paul says this, 

“We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”  ~2 Corinthians 10:5

“Take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”  

That right there is a battle that I’m still fighting.  

“Every thought obedient to Christ.”  Even this self-talk business.  Those conversations that I have regarding the future, have I subjected them to Christ?  Or, am I just playing out my fears or my hope?  Those scenarios that I’m running through, where do they fall in relationship to God’s plan for my life?  Have I even considered God as I run through them?  Even the short phrases that I utter about myself, those racquetball and daily blunder mutterings, how do they stack up?  When I’m saying, “You dummy!” (even though it’s directed at myself), is this thought/phrase/idea/self-talk in line with who I am in Christ Jesus?  (Now, most of the time, I’m not saying it in an actual, self-demeaning way.  What I really mean is that was a silly thing to do, pay attention.)  But, there are occasions where my self-talk is negative, where I view myself as less than what God has created.  God views me as a child of God, purchased at a cost, redeemed by the blood of Jesus.  When I think of myself as otherwise, am I taking these thoughts captive?  On the flip side, when I’m thinking about how I’m the greatest thing since sliced bread and that nobody can compare to how awesome I am, is this in line with Christ, with the fact that I’m a sinner, saved by grace, with the recognition that I am flawed, even while I’m loved?

  

Every thought.  Obedient to Christ.  Every.  Single.  One.

But what about being prepared?  What about figuring out our plan?  What about rehearsing for what is coming ahead?  

This isn’t all bad.  After all, 1 Peter 3:15 says this:

“Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.”

Be ready to talk about Jesus.  Have a reason for the hope that you have.  Know what Jesus has done for you.  Have a response on the ready to talk about God’s goodness.  The Scripture continues, 

“But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience…” 1 Peter 3:15-16

We’re not “ready” so we can beat people in an argument.  Nor are we “ready” so we can bash people with the truth, or just give some kind of response that we’ve memorized by rote so that we have something to say.  Instead, we’re to be ready, to be prepared, to respond with the truth in love.  To give people reason for the hope that we have because we have received the love of God through Christ and we wish for others to do the same.  

It’s OK to go through some “what if” scenarios, but let’s do so with the expectation that we are preparing in love, readying ourselves to point to the hope that we’ve found.

Huge task, so far, right?  Take captive every thought.  Be prepared to talk about Jesus.  Do so in love.

Fortunately, we’re not alone in this battle.  After all, we have been given God’s Spirit (1 John 4:13).  We can rely on the Lord.  We can seek God’s presence, God’s will.  When we’re going down through all of our scenarios, guess what?  We aren’t limited to self-talk.  God is there with us.

This brings me to one last thought before I run out of room…what if we spent more time conversing with God instead of just talking to ourselves?  What if we directed more of our conversation towards God, instead of towards us?  What would happen if as we talked, we actually paused and allowed God to answer?  

We may just find out that our views of the future, our views of ourselves, our views of others might line up more with Jesus.  Just saying…

~Pastor Chris

Be Careful Little Eyes... (September 13, 2020)

 At this point in my life, I believe that I have 6 email addresses.  6!  (And I may be leaving out one somewhere.)  Though that seems like a lot, there are reasons for each of them, and most of them filter through one email app on my phone.  So, I don’t have to check emails in 6 different locations, and it’s really not that bad.  Still, when the national average per person is less than 2, 6 email addresses seems to be a lot.

Here’s the summary:

 

• I have my primary address which is used for church/personal/general correspondence.  You’re welcome to email me there (pastorchrismorris@yahoo.com)
• I have a secondary address which had been my primary address.  It stemmed from my time running a photography business.
• I have an another email address from another photography business.
• I have an email address for selling items and using eBay.
• I have an address given to me by the seminary for the classwork that I am required to take.
• Finally, I have the email address which I classify as “everything else.”

Oh, I also established an email address for the churches’ YouTube page (rarely, rarely checked), and I’ve had at least one personal email that I’ve let expire, and a couple others that are no longer in existence.

It’s a lot of email.

Do you know the email account that is the most annoying?  The one for “everything else.”

You see, it is the one that I use for purchases, for online store accounts, to ask questions of websites when I need assistance, and things like that.  All of that isn’t necessarily bad.  The problem?  Unwanted emails.  SPAM (and not the spiced meat served in a can).  Because I have used this email for so many sites, it gets the bulk of the unwanted “junk”, the unsolicited advertisements, the undesired attempts to gain a “click” to whatever link, to gain a like, or to gain some $$$.  Of all of my email addresses, that one is the worst.

Even though it is the worst, I still have it come through my phone.  Why?  Well, I want the updates on the purchases, the answers to the questions, I want the use of it.  I just don’t want the junk.  So, on a multiple-times-a-day basis, I check all of the email on my phone, and I delete the junk.  Especially from that account.

The other day, as I was deleting the junk (and looking to see if there was anything important), one of the titles caught my attention.  It read:

            “It doesn’t hurt to look.”

It doesn’t hurt to look?  Well, let me just check to see who sent this, maybe they are running a promotional on something that I “need”.  

The sender?  eharmony.com  (For those of you who don’t know, eharmony.com is a matchmaking website, a site supposedly dedicated to helping people find a harmonious match…I’ve seen the commercials, never visited the webpage.)

            “It doesn’t hurt to look.” ~ eharmony.com

The message here, was clear.  I could look for a match.  I could check out their website.  I could see who is “available” in my area.  After all, it doesn’t hurt to look.

The email message was immediately deleted, never to be opened or seen again.  

            “It doesn’t hurt to look?”  eharmony.com?  For me?

ABSOLUTELY, COMPLETELY, CATEGORICALLY, EMPIRICALLY, ONE MILLION PERCENT WRONG!!!!  ENTIRELY FALSE.  NO TRUTH TO THAT STATEMENT WHATSOEVER.

Now, I’m not saying the website is the pinnacle of evil, or that it should never in any occasion be used by anyone.  But for me, a married man who is trying to serve Jesus and my family, the only thing that could come from me looking at that website is hurt.  “It doesn’t hurt to look?”  That would only be true in my case if you add the word “just”.  

It doesn’t “just" hurt to look.  

It wounds, it scars, it incapacitates, it disables, it impairs, it demolishes, it tears apart, it wrecks, it destroys, it…   

I hope you get the point.  Looking is not always just some innocent thing with no consequences.  In fact, where we look is very, very important.

There is a children’s song that says “O be careful little eyes what you see.  O be careful little eyes what you see.  For the Father up above is looking down in love.  So, be careful little eyes what you see.”

This song shouldn’t be limited to children.  It should be an anthem for the church.  Looking can have dire consequences.  It can ruin relationships.  It can destroy things.  Looking can hurt.  It can hurt a lot.

Don’t believe me?

Look at what Jesus says:

“The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light.  But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!”  (Matthew 6:22-23)

Just so we’re clear.  Jesus isn’t talking about whether or not you have eye “floaties”, suffer from glaucoma, wear glasses, or even if you’re legally blind.  Jesus is talking about what we fix our eyes upon.  If we focus on that which is “light”, our body will be full of light.  If we focus on that which is “dark”, our body will be full of darkness.

If I spend my time looking at what websites like eharmony has to offer (or worse), that will absolutely fill my body with darkness.  My eyes will take in images that are not meant to be seen by me.  My mind will focus on those images and carry them with me, even when I’m not directly looking at them.  My heart and my spirit will be filled with darkness instead of light.  This will hurt my relationship with myself.  It will hurt my relationship with my wife.  It will hurt my relationship with my son.  It will hurt my relationship with my church.  It will hurt my relationship with God.  Looking at darkness leads to darkness of the soul.

Now, before we quickly think, “I don’t have a problem with that!”, let’s remember this isn’t just limited to attraction to the opposite gender.  Say you keep looking at Kay Jewelers at some ring you can’t afford.  Say you keep looking at your neighbors and the life they have that you want.  Say you keep looking at ______.  You fill in the blank.  You know what draws you away and leads you into darkness.  You know what candy bar aisle to avoid when you’re on a diet.  You know where you shouldn’t look. 

Here’s the thing.  Looking rarely just stays at looking.  It leads to thinking, to feeling, to processing, to storing, to wanting, to coveting, to comparing, to acting, to being filled and defined by the objects that we have been viewing.  One day we are looking at darkness.  The next we find that we are filled with it. 

“It doesn’t hurt to look?”

Well, that depends.  

It doesn’t hurt to look at things that are in the light.

It absolutely kills to look at things that are in the darkness.

Just so we’re even clearer, this applies to our other senses as well.  

The song continues, “O be careful little ears what you hear, tongue what you say, hands what you do, feet where you go…”  The things we look at, the things we gaze upon, the things that we hear and listen to, the messages we receive or seek, the things we set about doing, the things where our feet travel…all of these things make a difference.  All of these things affect our overall health and our relationship with ourselves, with others, and most importantly, with God.

I think, sometimes, we hear a song like that and we end early.  We think that the ending is “For the Father up above is looking.”

We think, “Be careful little eyes what you see…for God is looking.”  God is watching.  God is waiting for you to slip up.  What we miss is the fact that God is watching in LOVE.  

God wants us to prioritize what we see/what we hear/the things we consume because he loves us.  Plus, God knows…when we focus on the dark, we become dark.  When we focus on the light, our whole body will be full of light.  God wants for us to be full of light because it is best for us, and because God is light.  In Him there is no darkness at all.  (1 John 1:5)  God desires for us to be in Him, to be in fellowship with Him, to be in relationship with Him, to be one with Him (John 17:21), and that is not possible when we are full of darkness.

Friends, I’m sure there will be occasions when the darkness beckons, “It doesn’t hurt to look.”  My hope is that you will swat that thought away quickly, that you will know that where we look does make a difference, and that you will seek to look at the light.

O be careful little eyes what you see.

~ Pastor Chris

The Best Part About Vacation... (September 6, 2020)

Hopefully, most of you know that I took a week off…some time just to step away from things and relax, recuperate, rejuvenate, re-…you get the idea.  If you didn’t know that I had a week off, and you were expecting to receive my weekly letter, I apologize.  What can I say?  “Read the announcements at the bottom of these things.  It was in there.  You should have known.”  Hopefully, you know that I’m joking.  I don’t always read everything I receive in terms of announcements either!  Anyway, I am sorry if you missed the memo, but I’m not sorry for vacation.

Vacation is awesome! 

I, like most people, love it when I have the chance to vacation.  Some of my all-time favorite memories happened on vacation.  Swimming in the ocean.  Building sandcastles.  Finding out that we were pregnant with Silas at Arches National Park in Utah.  Eating yummy food.  Getting stung by a Portuguese man o’ war.  Having a seagull swipe our pizza or the other one that did his business on me.  You know…the good stuff.   

Vacation is awesome!  I especially enjoy vacations where we get to travel, to see a part of the country that we haven’t seen, to eat foods that I haven’t eaten, or to re-visit special places that we haven’t visited in a while.  Vacation has the ability to create memories.  We can take vacation and come back refreshed.  A step away from the grind can be healthy and healing.  A nice vacation can be just the right thing, and every time that I am able to take some vacation time, I consider myself to be incredibly blessed.

This vacation was a little different than some.  Don’t get me wrong, it was awesome, but we didn’t “go” anywhere.  No trip to see family.  No jaunt out to the ocean.  No cabin in the woods.  No camping at the lake.  No big trip.  Instead, we chose to stay home.  We did what some refer to as a “staycation.”  

Though we chose to stay home, we didn’t want to let the week pass like a normal week.  So, we filled it full with fun, local adventures.  We had a picnic and played disc golf.  We went hiking out to Wolf Rocks in Forbes State Forest.  We went biking on two different trails, one of which we had never ridden before.  We went on a kayak trip down the Conemaugh River, leisurely spending an afternoon floating and paddling downstream, laughing and enjoying ourselves along the way.  We watched movies, we played ping pong, we went on long walks, we explored, we adventured, we refrained from doing any house projects, and we stepped away from our normal routines, and it was awesome!  

Now, some of you might look at our vacation itinerary and think, “Boy, that’s a lot to do in a week!  You’re going to need a vacation from your vacation!”  You might have a point.  We jammed a lot of things into our time off, and I’m a little bit sore and tired as I sit here typing, but they were all things we enjoy.  We enjoy being outside, having adventures, getting some exercise.  It is fun and relaxing for us.  Plus, I managed to sneak a nap or two into the schedule, and we did have some down time.  Still, I am happy that we had a lot of fun activities that we don’t typically have the time to experience.  I had a great vacation!

Do you want to know what I enjoyed the most about this vacation?  My favoritest thing of them all?

Spending time with Christa and Silas.

It didn’t really matter what we were doing or where we were doing it, I was thankful to have full days where we could be together and spend time in each other’s presence.  The best thing about the vacation was that I could just spend time with them without really worrying about getting things done or meeting deadlines or working on our project list.  I enjoyed just spending time with my wife and my son.  That was the best part of the vacation.  Family time.  I enjoyed it immensely.

We didn’t travel anywhere extraordinary.  We didn’t do anything that is outside of what we try to do with some regularity anyway (we like to hike, to bike, to kayak…although this was more concentrated and intentional).  Still, we had a great time, and the reason for this great time was that we were together.  The three of us, laughing, sharing, experiencing, (sometimes sweating, being hungry, tired and sore), but we were there, together, and it was glorious.

Right now, in this moment, and in many moments during my time off, I am thankful for our approach to the vacation, and I am grateful that I had the time to spend the time with my family.  In all reality, it could have gone differently.  I could have been upset.  I could have been angry that we didn’t get to travel or that we didn’t get to “go” and do something unique, something special.  Fortunately, this was not my attitude, and I’m grateful that we had an enjoyable time doing the small things, together.

This makes me wonder:  How does this type of attitude translate to my relationship with God?

Sometimes, I fear that I miss the best part of my relationship with God because I am too busy looking for the big things, the huge experiences, the mountaintop occurrences.  Sometimes, I miss the best thing that God has to offer me because I haven’t gone anywhere or done anything out of the ordinary.  I’m looking for some glorious vacation, some grand adventure, some out of the ordinary experience, and I miss the very thing that should be treasured most…spending time with Jesus, basking in the glow of the Holy Spirit, being in the presence of our Heavenly Father.  Sometimes, I miss out on the presence of God in my day-to-day life, in the ordinary passing of time, in the grind, in the routine, even in the vacations, because I am too busy looking for a “bigger” thing.  

“I’m not going anywhere on a mission trip…how could I possibly experience God in this circumstance?”

“We’re just staying at home!  We’re not even seeing anyone else!  How could we possibly come closer to God in a time like this?”

Sometimes, I think that I miss the absolute best thing, spending time in God’s presence, because I am searching for some type of elevated experience…some miraculous healing, some mighty move of the Spirit, some anointed mission trip, some magnanimous time in worship, some _____.  What I really need?  To appreciate the fellowship that I have with God in each moment.

As my vacation time ends and we return to our normal schedule, I know that I won’t get to spend as much time with Christa, with Silas.  There will be school, there will be work, there will be responsibilities and household necessities.  There will be times when we will be separated from each other.  Though that is the case, I hope to appreciate the time that we spend together even more, to appreciate evenings that we do have, the times that we can share, the experiences and memories that we can create.  I also hope to continue to be intentional about spending time with them…to not be so busy that I brush them aside, or to not be so tired that I can’t engage with them when I am at home.  I hope to continue in the importance and the joy of our relationship, even when we return to a “normal” routine.

In my life with Christ, I hope to do the same.  To celebrate when there are the big occasions, but more than that, to appreciate the relationship in my everyday life, to realize what is most important…time with God.  Time with God in my daily routines, time with God when I’m happy, time with God when I’m upset, time with God when ____.  The thing that can bring me the most joy, the most contentment, the most satisfaction, the best life that I can live…spending time with God.

This doesn’t need to be something extraordinary.  It doesn’t need to be some solitary time spent in a monastery, while doing nothing but fasting, worshiping, reflecting and praying (although that would be good too), but just the normal, practicing of the presence of God (I borrowed that line from Brother Laurence…awesome little, classic book that is well worth a read), recognizing God in our day-to-day lives, realizing that God is with us as we wash the dishes, as we cut the grass, as we type our papers, as we head to work, as we drive our car, that God is there and we can rejoice in God’s presence. 

Philippians 4:4 says, 

“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!”  

It doesn’t say, “Rejoice in the Lord on mission trips.”  Or “Rejoice in the Lord when you’re doing a service project.”  It doesn’t even say “Rejoice in the Lord on Sunday mornings at church.”  We’re asked to rejoice in the Lord always, to find joy in our relationship with God at all times.  As we begin to practice this, as we begin to recognize God in our lives, as we get to know God better, as we spend time in God’s presence, we will find great joy there.  We will find great peace there.  We will find that time with Jesus, really is the best way that we could spend any time.  We are to rejoice in our time with God, always.

Do you know what else?  God values you and time spent with you as well.  

Psalm 147:11 reads:

 

“the Lord delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love.”

It is an amazing thing to consider:  God delights in me!  God enjoys spending time with me!

Friend, I hope that you know that to be true.  I hope that you can find great joy in spending time with God, and I hope that you realize how much God has done to have a relationship with you, that God enjoys spending time with you.

At the end of it all, when this life is done, when all of the experiences have passed, and when our time is over, I think we will look back at our lives much like I look back on our vacation.  Sure, there were awesome things that we were able to do (and there were setbacks as well), but the best thing, the most important thing, the thing that stands above everything else?  The time we spent just being with God.

~ Pastor Chris