Long Way Here

We are shaken by mourning as we hurt for those suffering due to the horrific events in Aurora Colorado on July 20. Yet even in our mourning the political and social debates have already begun to light up the air waves. And I am reminded of a most sobering reality.

No government, regardless of how strong or well-meaning can thoroughly legislate morality. To be sure, it can create laws that limit behaviors destructive to society (“You shall not steal”). But as a Christ-follower I am led to believe that what will bring lasting and systemic change is Jesus (“You shall have no other gods before Me”). And I do not mean in some ambiguous immeasurable way. I mean by how He lived–bringing peace through a life of sacrificial love that paves the way toward a humanity invited to live for a cause greater than self. His life gives breadth and depth to both how and why He died and was risen. It is His life, death, resurrection and ascension as Lord that makes possible eternal realities in our present world; God’s love, righteousness and peace, indeed God Himself, accessible to all of humanity in tangible ways. It makes these eternal realities present because it is a life that follows Jesus as Lord out of hatred into sacrificial love; out of violence into peace; out of judgment into mercy; out of darkness into light. Jesus as Lord and Creator shows us what kind of life really works when God is King.

The events of July 20 remind us that there is too much godless, dehumanizing, hatred and injustice in the world filled with lost hearts for Christ-followers to lose this focus. Too much is at stake to be tangled up (key point) in various debates (even the worthwhile ones). If Jesus truly is King of kings and the only hope for the world, we must live like it as everyday people in every day places in every day ways. As Christ-followers our lives must be the proof of our theology. Not just our words or persuasive arguments. For what cannot be up for debate is that “faith without works is dead” and the world will know us by our love. (James 2:14-26; John 13:35).

So we must go. Go into the public square, the city streets, the cubicle next to yours, your neighbor’s house, your child’s bedroom, and tell the story of the One who brought peace through sacrificial love, and not through violence. Offer them Jesus the Son of God and Son of Man, not just a plan. If Christ-followers want lasting change in this present world, then we must tell His story because only it can shine a light on where true hope, restoration, redemption and salvation is found.

May His Kingdom come and His will be done on earth, as it is in Heaven. And may God’s comfort be known in the hearts of those suffering due to the brokenness and depravity of this rebellious world.

This was written my beautiful bride of 8 years (today!), Alison. May her thoughtfulness bless you as she shares some of our story.

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A number of years ago, Fred and I went through premarital counseling with Jim Brinkerhoff, my campus minister from Auburn. His first statement at the beginning of the session was “Marriage is hard work.” In my naïve, “I’m currently planning a wedding, getting into shape, and trying on wedding bands” phase, I felt my mind snicker. Not that I didn’t believe him, but if you love someone, what makes marriage hard work? In my short 8 years (as of today), I have begun to understand what makes Jim’s statement so true. It isn’t the lack of love; it’s the reality of life. It’s moving to 3 different cities in various parts of the country. It’s buying and selling 3 homes during those moves and starting over each time with no one but your spouse. It’s releasing your mom to the Lord and dealing with the heartache of her absence. It’s being unemployed, changing jobs, and Fred currently being bi-vocational in ministry so I can stay home with our son. It’s having 2 miscarriages. It’s delivering our precious, healthy son. It’s learning how to parent. It’s wanting more children but not having that prayer answered at the moment. It’s sleepless nights with a crying baby and exhausted days with a busy toddler. It’s wanting time for yourself and a clean house with no dirty laundry. It’s adjusting to the various seasons of your life while attempting to be the spouse and parent God has called you to be. It’s accepting unmet expectations and releasing yourself from the pressure those expectations seem to cause. It’s an array of thoughts and feelings that come from your own experiences in life and in marriage. Your marriage.

So how does marriage work? If you’ve been married a lot longer than I, bear with me. But from what I can tell it’s having date nights at your favorite restaurant. It’s Netflix Friday night movie night. It’s weekend trips away. It’s random text messages throughout the day. It’s dinner at the table as much as possible. It’s coffee, muffins, and cartoons on Saturday mornings. It’s sporting events. It’s concern for one another’s dreams. It’s a listening ear that doesn’t interrupt. It’s saying “I may not understand why you’re upset, but I understand you.” It’s being compassionate in the midst of failure. It’s holding one another accountable to the calling of Jesus. It’s speaking God’s love into one another’s lives. It’s being their biggest fan. It’s sharing your thoughts and feelings, even if you aren’t “made that way.” It’s secrets that no one else knows. It’s offering forgiveness and being forgiven. It’s being quiet. It’s laughing…a lot. It’s defending your spouse even when others aren’t. It’s saying “I’m sorry” when you’ve let them down or been wrong, even if you thought you were right. It’s knowing what’s worth the fight and what isn’t. It’s knowing that only God’s love is perfect and grace and mercy surely abound. It’s compliments and compromise. It’s witnessing another’s life. It’s marriage. And it’s hard work. Have we mastered this list? Not at all. Do we try? Absolutely. Do we fail? Of course. But not one day has passed in the last 8 years that has ever caused me to question or rethink saying “I do,” and in God’s grace, nothing ever will.

I wrote this today to express my thoughts on marriage, but more importantly, to tell others what Jim so bodly told us: Marriage is hard work. Loving another unconditionally takes more than a beautiful dress and perfect flower arrangements. Wedding days are wonderful and fantastic and certainly something to be excited about, but the days after create your home, your life, and the lives of those you bring into it. So say “I do” with joy and expectation and take your marriage seriously. Marriage is hard work, but the work is worth the joy of having a healthy, happy life with the person you love.

Barwessa is a place with a very small population in the state/region of Rift Valley, Kenya. In this village of men, women and children, water and food was scarce. Well, okay, scarce understates the situation. The nearest water source was at least fifteen miles away. And instead of providing refreshment, it provides typhoid.

Can you imagine? No water. No food. No rain. No water? I have a faucet I can turn on anytime. No food? I live within a 10 mile radius of at least four grocery stores, and two miles from a Food Lion. Not to mention I have a refrigerator filled with food and a pantry full of non-perishables. No rain? As I write it is sprinkling. I don’t know about you, but I cannot imagine. No water. No food. No rain. Just sickness. Hunger. Thirst. Hopelessness. Until love and grace overflowed from the hearts of workers and volunteers through a compassion relief organization called CRF (Christian Relief Fund).

This is how love and grace works. They plant a mango farm. They build bee hives. They start new schools for orphans. They bring in tons of food. And they drilled a water well for the community almost fifteen miles closer than the water that was giving them typhoid.

This is how people who are gripped by the love and grace found in Jesus Christ respond. This is how CRF works.

And this is what I am reminded of: when God’s love and grace flood a place, nothing and no one remains the same.

I thank God for CRF and the work they do in the world. But most of all I thank God for His love and grace that in His name, has the power to change the world.

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You can get involved in the work CRF is doing and play a significant role in dealing out grace, hope and change: www.christianrelieffund.org

Also check out the blog of my dear friend, mentor and President
of CRF, Milton Jones for great stories of love and grace seen “through orange colored glasses”: www.miltonjonesblog.com

I’ve been reflecting on how God’s love revealed to us in Jesus Christ is meant to perfect us, not pamper us. His love is a soul-forming, mind-shaping, heart-filling, life-changing love. It is a love gentle enough to love me right where I am, yet unyeilding enough to move me into what I was (re)created to become in Jesus. It is a love deep enough to reach every shame, yet wide enough to cover every sin.

God’s love is a verb-kind of love. It is felt, known and seen, both in actions and words. It is a Divine love disclosed in Jesus Christ, declared by Jesus Christ, and demonstrated through Jesus Christ. John a devoted lover of Jesus, once said that God is love. Paul a devoted lover of God, once said that Jesus is the image of the invisible God, meaning Jesus is God. And this Jesus is the promised Redeemer King of Israel as prophesied in Hebrew Scripture. He was crowned with thorns at His death, crowned with glory at His resurrection, and crowned as Lord of all as He ascended back from whence He came, Heaven. In Jesus, God revealed His own love for us.

It is a Divine love. It is a true and faithful love. It is a gracious and merciful love. But is not a pampering love. It is a perfecting love meant to transform us from the inside out and give birth to Kingdom-shaped lives.