Dave's Deep Thoughts - Time to Hit a Home Run

 

Here's Pastor Dave McDowell's weekly devotional that he sends out to members of his church. Dave is my brother and serves as the Music Minister at Stewartstown UMC in PA. 

 

Sometimes you hit a home run,

and sometimes..........not so much.

 

Celebrating the first day of spring,

means different things to different people.

Some get garden supplies ready.

Some have their lawn mowers tuned.

Others break out the shorts and got o Ritas for a free Italian Ice.

 

For me, the first day of spring

makes me think of baseball .........

and piano lessons.

 

You might wonder about

the connection between those two things.

 

As a child,

I remember having this fear of balls flying towards my head.

I don't know what was the source of this fear,

but I do remember that whenever Dad would play catch with me,

I would always cringe when the ball was launched my way.

 

My Dad would talk about me playing little league baseball

when I was old enough.

Back in the day, that would be ten years old,

the summer after fourth grade.

 

But when I was in first grade,

I remember asking Mom and Dad if I could take piano lessons.

My two older sisters were taking lessons

and mostly hating it.

 

All I knew was that I was fascinated by the piano.

I remember coming up to the piano when they weren't practicing

(which was quite often)

and figuring out how to play familiar tunes.

Then I began to peek inside their lesson books,

and I began to figure out basic music principles.

 

As each spring arrived,

first grade, second, grade, third grade.......

I would ask if I could take piano lessons.

"You don't want to take piano lessons"

my parents would say,

"You're going to play baseball!"

 

I never quite understood why my sisters, who hated lessons,

had to take piano lessons

while I, who wanted desperately to crawl up on the piano bench,

was barred from membership to the keyboard club.

 

All I knew was that in a few years,

I would be playing little league baseball,

and that I would be scared to death

of that little orb flying toward my cranium.

 

Oh, I left clues about my desires.....

like figuring out how to play "The Frog Chorus" song on page 58 of my sisters' book,

before they could play it

or playing a piano solo at a third grade assembly

and not thinking that it was any big deal

until my unknowing mom almost fell out of her chair

when her son marched up to the piano and nailed Heart and Soul.

 

Nope, I was going to play baseball.

That's what boys in the 60's did.

 

When the spring of my fourth grade year rolled around,

my dad took me to Little League registration.

My dad had been a pretty good ball player in his day.

His reputation as ball player in the town was larger than life.

 

"You're Norm's boy!" the balding, pot bellied man behind the table ellowed.

We're going to put you in the A league.

I guess a middle aged man puffing on a cigar

thought I was the second coming of Babe Ruth.

 

As I was being shipped off to the A league of Little League Baseball,

sirens were going off in my head.

The A league was the "major leagues" reserved for the really good players.

Inside, I was begging that they put me in the B league,

the league designed for kids who were afraid of baseballs cracking their skulls.

 

Obviously, they had big plans for Norm's boy.

And obviously, they didn't know about my ball phobia.

Where do you place a boy who thinks every baseball

is like a Scud missile homing in on his head?

 

3rd base of course.

The hot spot.

 

I spent two very successful weeks in the A league

before I was put on waivers and sent to the B league,

for a player to be named later.

 

I felt a bit of relief playing in the minor leagues of little league baseball,

but a baseball is a baseball no matter what league you are in,

and my head was still one of my most valued possessions.

 

For a ten year old who was out of his comfort zone,

the season seemed to last for about 10 months.

 

The last game of the season,

our team was trailing by a run and we had a runner on 1st base.

 

Norm's boy came up to the plate.

Hits had been pretty scarce for Norm's boy throughout the summer that wouldn't end.

That was until that moment.

 

Norm's boy ripped a weak dribbler

that was botched by the 3rd baseman

(no doubt he was terrified of flying baseballs too...)

 

The 3rd baseman, in a panic,

through the ball over the 1st baseman's head.

Norm's boy, in a state of shock that he had reached base,

took it to the next level, and headed for 2nd.

 

The shell shocked 1st basement

who was likely experiencing an adrenaline rush,

launched the wayward ball towards 2nd base,

overshooting it by twenty feet.

 

The ball dribbled into the outfield toward the left fielder

who was probably studying at the clouds to see which one looked like an elephant.

 

Meanwhile, Norm's boy, focused as never before,

steamed past 2nd base towards third when he heard the coach

scream something he had never heard before....

 

"Head for home boy!"

Norm's boy did just that.

He crossed the plate as the cloud surfing left fielder

finally realized that the ball was laying in front of him.

 

Home run!

Our team took the lead!

 

Norm's boy had never been high fived before in the dugout,

probably because Norm's boy had never hit a home run,

or as some scorekeepers would call it,

a four base error.

 

That was the highpoint of life in the B league for me.

After the season was over,

I asked my parent's one more time if I could take piano lessons.

My father,

doing a quick inventory in his head of my baseball skills said,

"Sure, why not?"

 

Sometimes you know what your passion is.

It doesn't matter how young or old you are.

You know what you are supposed to be doing.

 

Some people choose to ignore those yearnings deep inside,

others are blocked by circumstances or conditions.

But to those who listen to their heart,

follow their passion.

 

For some, it is playing an instrument.

For others it is working on car engines or painting.

Some become the surgeons that heal.

 

Each of has a passion and a purpose.

Spring also reminds me of the One who had as His purpose,

to save the world from itself.

 

I often wonder at what age did Jesus came into awareness of His divine purpose as a child.

I have a feeling it was before he begged for piano lessons.

At anytime, he could have chosen to walk away from that purpose......

 

in the desert with Satan,

as he looked upon Jerusalem, the holy city,

before Pilate.

 

But He didn't.

Because he knew His purpose

and that purpose led to His passion.

 

Since the Bible makes numerous references to Christ’s death on the cross

(many of which explicitly tell us the spiritual significance of His death)

I sometimes wonder why so many people fail to understand the purpose of Christ, stated in plain language, time and time again?

Could it be that people compromise everything that the Bible says about Christ’s death on the cross,

in a vain attempt to make it agree with God’s law,

and with the delusion that works make us righteous ?(Romans 3:19-20).

 

If so, what people fail to understand is that the law and gospel are two separate messages

that are intended for two entirely different groups of people.

In other words, because the law cannot make us righteous, its purpose is not to make us righteous,

but to point us to Christ by showing us our sin and need for the forgiveness that He obtained for us by His death (Romans 3:10-20, Galatians 3:24).

That being the case, the law is God’s warning to the unrepentant,

while the gospel is God’s promise of forgiveness in Christ to all who repent (1Timothy 1:9, 1Corinthians 15:1-4, Galatians 3:6-22).

 

Through the law, God shows the unrepentant their sin, while reminding them that they will someday have to account for those sins.

Through the gospel, on the other hand, He comforts those who are sorry for their sins, while assuring them of forgiveness in Christ.

For that reason, God never intended for the gospel to agree with the law.

On the contrary, the law must be proclaimed in a way that makes it clear that there is none righteous,

while the gospel is preached in a way that makes it clear that salvation is through Christ alone,

without the works of the law (Ephesians 2:8-9, Romans 3:10-28 and 11:6, Galatians 3:6-22 and 5:4).  

Eventually my parents understood my purpose, but it took a while.

There are many for whom it is taking a while to understand God's passion for them,

and for understanding God's purpose for their lives.

 

This spring, and this Easter,

take time to dwell on God's passion and purpose for you.

 

Take time to share that passion with someone who doesn't understand.

 

Who knows,

you just might hit a home run.

Can Baptism Be This Fun?

Yesterday, I baptized four people during our worship services. One of them was a little boy named, Logan (see picture above.)

As you can see from the picture, Logan took great delight in his baptism. As soon as I placed my hand in the water, he wanted to play in the water, too! So for about a minute, Logan and I had some fun playing in the waters of his baptism. 

He didn't want to stop. He kept dipping his hand into the water basin and making little splashes. I must admit that I didn't want to stop our play time either.  But we did. And when I sprinkled the first amount of water on his head, he thought that was pretty cool. He also enjoyed the second time and the third time.

After the third sprinkle of water, I kissed his forehead and said a little prayer, "Dear God, may Logan always remember his baptism and how much you love him."

Logan's joy in being baptized reminds us of the joy we can have in our journey with Christ.  Sometimes, we take our faith so seriously that we forget to play a little.  We don't need a whole lot to experience joy, just a baptism font with some water in it and a child-like faith.

Thank you, Logan for reminding us that baptism can be fun. And thank you, God for your gift of water which reminds us to have a playful faith that is filled with joy.

Holy Week Services - Maundy Thursday & Good Friday

 

Maundy Thursday
.

March 28 - 12:00 P.M. (Half Hour Service) & 7:30 P.M.
Sermon - A Very Unusual Meal
Features - Maundy Thursday & Holy Communion
Scripture - I Corinthians 11:23-26 & John 13:1-17, 31b-35
Theme - The Corinthian Christians had forgotten why the Lord's Supper was a very unique meal. The Apostle Paul reminds them of this meal's meaning. On this Maundy Thursday, we too are reminded of how important it is to hear the words, 'This is my body...This is my blood.' 

Good Friday:

March 29 - 12:00 P.M. (Half Hour Service) & 7:30 P.M.
Features - Good Friday
Scripture - Several passion narrative scriptures.

Theme - On Good Friday, we remember the story of Jesus' crucifixion and how far God was willing to go to bring salvation to the world.

Sunday Worship Preview - March 31 (Easter Sunday)

Sunday, March 31 - (7:30, 9:00, & 10:30 Services) & Wednesday, April 3  (6:30 pm Casual Service @ Crossroads, 2095 Fair Avenue)

Sermon - "Liv'n My Dream"

Features - Easter Sunday

Scripture - Acts 10:34-43 & Luke 24:1-12

Theme - The good news of the empty tomb is what enabled the frightened followers of Jesus to become world changers. It is also what empowers us to live out our dream of being the people God created us to be.

Sermon (March 10) - "Unbinding Your Soul: God Sightings"

 

I read about a woman named Annie who backpacked around Greece a few summers ago. When she arrived in Athens, she was ready for a break. She started sizing up the hostels near the ancient market. She was looking for someplace to lay her head for the night, not too expensive, with a clean bathroom.

Ahh, heaven, she thought. One particularly dingy-looking option had an old Greek merchant standing outside, hawking his place. “Come and see!” he pleaded with her. “I, George, will show you the view!”

Annie looked up at the vintage 1950s sign, flashing the hostel’s name: “Parthenon Paradise.” “Suuure,” she thought to herself. But George was quite persistent: “Come, come and see! I show you the view!”

So Annie followed George up the rickety, winding staircase of the place. George burst open the doors of an attic room at the top of the staircase.

He proudly displayed a room that looked as if it hadn’t been dusted in years.

Annie shifted on her heels to turn and get out of there. She was on her way to more sanitary conditions. Then, George peeled back the dust-laden curtains of the room and triumphantly proclaimed, “The view! The view!”

Annie stepped over to see what could possibly redeem this dump. And then, she saw it: The view.

Just out the window was the Parthenon. Laid out before her eyes were the ancient ruins of Greek worship. A perfect blue sky was the canvas for this wonder of the world. Annie could have reached out and touched the statues. It took her breath away.

Annie figured she could sleep on top of the sheets. “I’ll take the room,” she whispered.

What if we could actually see God? What if, in the dust and dimness of this world, we could glimpse God? Moses did. He was out sweating, taking care of somebody else’s sheep one day when it happened. Moses was looking around, counting sheep’s noses – is that 98 or 99? – when something caught the corner of his eye.

Was something on fire? Moses looked more closely and there it was. Right there in the middle of the field. A bush was on fire. But more than that, the bush wasn’t burning. It was just blazing.

Now Moses didn’t just move on, thinking, “Wow, that was weird. Must be getting dehydrated out here. Better go get some Gatorade.” Instead, Moses thought, “I need to check this out!”

And the Bible says that when God saw that Moses stopped to look, God started talking to Moses! God called Moses by his name. Then God told Moses to take off his sandals. Apparently you’re not supposed to wear shoes when you’re standing on holy ground. You need to be able to actually feel the holiness with your toes.

Then God started telling Moses God’s name. God started letting Moses see something of who God is … giving Moses more. All the while, Moses is standing there, in his bare feet. Moses is standing there, toes a-wrigglin,’ looking at this amazing flaming foliage. And seeing God.

In his book, Unseen Footprints, Sheridan Voysey writes that in one vast and lonely desert lies a secret. As winds sweep along the parched soil of the land – kicking particles of dust into the air, ruffling the fur of the few animals scavenging for moisture, an unseen reality lies beneath its surface: Water. Trillions of litres of water.

Some years ago, an underground basin was found in Western Australia’s Great Victoria Desert. Beneath the red sand, sticks and scrub of that desolate land lay a reservoir holding a potential 2 trillion kiloliters of slightly saline water.

In Perth, the state’s capital city, the media compared the find to one of its well-known dams, the Mundaring Weir. The basin’s capacity was equivalent to 31,000 Mundaring Weirs. That arid desert may have looked like death from above, but underneath flowed a river of life.

A giant lake in the desert – what an unexpected surprise. Stories like that remind me that unseen does not equal unreal. I wonder how many trekked across that dusty land oblivious of the life beneath them. I wonder how many still do.

The poet Emily Dickinson wrote, “"All the earth is crammed with heaven and every bush aflame with God, but only those who see take off their shoes."

As Christians we believe we did, and do, see God. Especially through this human being named Jesus. We believe that God showed up in Jesus. And God could be seen clearly by anyone willing to notice.

Anyone who stopped to look at a baby in a manger,

or a carpenter teaching children

or a man touching another man’s blind eyes

or a person dying on the outskirts of town.

Anyone willing to look could see God in Jesus.

This is, actually, what Jesus invited people to do. The very first words Jesus says in the Gospel of John are: “What are you looking for?” Jesus said it to two potential followers. They said, of all things, that they wanted to see the room where he was staying in town.

So Jesus simply invites them. He says, “Come and see.” Come and see, Jesus said.

Sometimes I’m afraid people who don’t go to church think we Christians just want to get them to believe a certain thing. Or, make them act a certain way. I wonder if they think we are going to try to cram a bunch of doctrine in their heads. Or try to get them to quit watching Mad Men and change the channel to religious television.

I hope that’s not true about us. Jesus didn’t say “come and believe.” He didn’t say “come and get your act together.” He said, “Come and see.”

What if you started looking out of the corner of your eye for burning bushes in the yard? What if you lived life on the lookout for views of the Parthenon out dusty windows? What if you looked for God in your house? At work? What if you looked for God in the homeless guy you always pass by? Or in the faces of those who say ‘hi’ to you at church?

What if church were a place where we opened ourselves to “come and see,” where we actually looked?

Let’s conduct the “God Experiment” this week. Let’s allow ourselves and others the space and time to experiment, to test out, to taste, to see God.

A member of one of our adult Sunday School classes called me a couple of weeks ago. He told me that his Sunday School class felt led by God to give out little crosses to the people who receive lunches at our church during the week. He said, “It’s a simple thing. We just want others to know that Jesus loves them and that our church is reaching out to them.”

And then he said, “We heard about our new welcome stations where worship guests can receive a gift bag from our church to let them know that we are glad they came. And we thought that it would be good to include a cross in each of these gift bags just as a little reminder that God loves them.”

He said, “And then we got to thinking that these crosses would be nice for patients in the hospital to let them know that they’re not alone and that God is with them.”

Can you sense the presence of the Holy Spirit at work in our church during this Season of Lent? People are noticing the burning bushes. They are pulling back the drapes and seeing the beautiful view of God’s presence. And they want others to see the view too.

Laura Hall is best known as the pianist on the comedy show, “Whose Line is It, Anyway?” She didn’t grow up in church. But she married a guy who did. He didn’t push her about coming with him. He just invited her occasionally and that was it.

So, one day, to put a smile on her husband’s face, Laura came to church with him. She was impressed that people spoke to her warmly. And she liked the music. So she came back.

She liked it more, so she came back again. Pretty soon, Laura was going to church. But she still wouldn’t receive communion. And she certainly wasn’t going to be baptized or join or anything like that. The church people told her that was completely fine. They said they were just glad to see her.

And they meant it.

She could hang around as much as she wanted. Check out anything she liked. They were just happy she was there.

Seven years later, seven, Laura saw the communion tray coming for her. Something shone extra brightly about it that day. It was kind of, well, blazing. She was compelled to hold it for a while longer than was normal. But no one yanked it away from her or looked at her funny. The usher just stood there, quietly, gently waiting.

Laura touched the bread. She deeply breathed in the scent of it.

And she could see God.

Dave's Deep Thoughts - Raise Your Glass!

Here's Pastor Dave McDowell's weekly devotional that he sends out to members of his church. Dave is my brother and serves as the Music Minister at Stewartstown UMC in PA. 

 

Sometimes you need to raise the glass

But there are times too put it down as well.

 

Anyone who knows me, knows I love Shamrock Shakes.

I love them so much that for sake of health and body mass,

I restrict myself to one shake a year,

That would be one Extra Big Biggie on St Patrick's Day.

Several years ago,

I ran into problems regarding my Shamrock Shake tradition.

 

There was the I'm sorry but we're out of them debacle of '07,

and the pistachio con job in '08,

In 2009, I was determined to let nothing stop me

from getting my Extra Big Biggie Shake.

And yes, this story is true.

 

It was the year that I was also in search of chocolate coins for an upcoming fundraiser.

When I was younger, the coins used to be easy to find

in most drugstores and supermarkets around St Patrick's Day.

In recent years though,

they were difficult to locate.

 

A friend of mine told me they could be found in a chocolate shop located in a nearby mall.

Since there was a McDonald's located in the mall,

I planned a trip on March 17th to get both my Shamrock Shake and the chocolate coins.

 

Once in the mall,

I bolted immediately to the McDonalds.

My three year Shamrock Shake drought was about to end.

 

There is nothing else quite like the first taste of a refreshing beverage.

As I left the restaurant,

I let the first taste of the green nectar slip down my throat.

Joy

Unmitigated joy

This time, I was not to be denied my Shamrock Shakefest.

 

That was, until I headed over to the chocolate shop.

Upon entry,

I greeted the cashier and explained that I was in search of chocolate coins.

 

While she apportioned the number of coins that I needed,

I explained that I needed them for an upcoming fundraiser.

 

I continued to take slow deep sips of the minty confection as we continued to chit chat.

I was in heaven and heaven was painted green.

 

Out of nowhere, the conversation quickly changed

as the cashier abruptly commented,

"My cat just died"

 

Not sure if I should continue to enjoy my Extra Big Biggie pleasure

at the expense of someone's sorrow,

I opted for selfishness

and took another deep sip

as I offered a perfunctory expression of sympathy.

 

"Her name was Flickers" she whimpered.

I was in trouble.

She had named it.

She had made it personal.

She wasn't going to stop.

 

There are cultural norms to observe when someone is mourning........

flowers are sent,

meals are provided,

hugs are offered,

expressions of sympathy are extended.

 

I began to ponder the morality

of enjoying a long awaited culinary pleasure

while in the presence of someone who was hurting.

 

And so I reasoned.......

since the Extra Big Biggie Cup was opaque,

and my minty pleasure was unknown to her.

I could continue to savor my frosty delight

while offering sympathetic expressions on behalf of Flickers.

 

"The last few weeks were terrible," she said

I paused, and then I slurped once again.

 

"It was Feline Leukemia" she said as she bared her soul to me.

Slurp, slurp.

 

"She really suffered in the end" the cashier continued.

Slower slurp as guilt began to set in.

 

" In the last days, it was awful,

she was in a lot of pain,

and there was this green cat diarrhea."

 

Mid-slurp, Stop.

 

"It was thick and so messy. Just awful"

 

I put my Shamrock Shake down.

Party now officially interrupted.

 

If there were four words that I didn't need to hear

while inhaling my Shamrock Shake,

it was green, thick cat diarrhea.

 

My lovefest with sugar and cream

needed to be exchanged for moments of compassionate listening.

I told her that I understood the pain of letting a pet go.

I told her that I would be praying for her

that she would find a happiness to eventually replace the sorrow she was experiencing.

 

Life is filled with a mixture of sorrow and happiness.

Sometimes they happen simultaneously.

Sometimes, they come out of nowhere.

 

The repentant criminal on the cross next to Jesus,

experienced the joy of salvation

while enduring the agony of crucifixion.

 

The unrepentant criminal on the other side

knew only pain and agony.

 

Two men.

Two attitudes ad responses

And One in the middle to meet them both.

Joy and sorrow

all converging on a wooden cross.

 

The cashier I met,

needed someone to listen to her pain.

Sometimes, that means setting aside one's glass of happiness for a while.

Eventually, the glass will be raised again.

 

Whether you cross paths with someone whose glass is raised in celebration

or is presently put to the side in despair,

believe that you were placed in that person's life for a reason,

if only for a moment.

 

That moment may make all the difference in the world to that person.

The response you give, will make all the difference in you.

 

To Flickers' owner,

I will raise my glass to you on this St. Patrick's Day.

My prayer is that you found happiness once again,

and that your glass is once again raised.

 

"Truly I say to you,

today you shall be with me in Paradise."

Luke 23:43

Sermon (March 17) - "Unbinding Your Soul: First Steps"

 

Once, there was a son who was more than ready to get out from under his parents’ roof. He wanted to throw off the rules and expectations of the family. He wanted to do life his way, without any interference from mom and dad.

So one day he took everything that belonged to him, told his parents off, and headed out on his own. He traveled the world. He traveled through several romantic relationships. He traveled through all his money.

The son had to get a job working at a pig farm just to feed himself. One day, when he was out slopping the pigs, he hit rock bottom. This was not at all the life he had envisioned. He was broke, alone, in a disgusting, dirty, dead-end job, hungry, and everything he’d dreamed of for himself had disappeared.

Now what?

Do you know a guy or woman like this? Maybe it’s you.

Jesus told this story. It’s known as the story, or parable, of the prodigal son. Some really religious people were giving Jesus a hard time about having dinner with “sinners.”

So Jesus told this story to people who thought they were God’s favorites. Jesus wanted religious people to understand more about how God operates. He wanted us to know how to grow closer to God.

The rest of the story goes like this:

“Now what?” the son thought. There was no hope for the son where he was. The pigs were poor company. So the son decided to head back home. He knew he would need to apologize. And he knew his family had the right not to invite him back in. But he decided to try his luck anyway. That took some pretty amazing courage. The son started walking home.

But something even more amazing happened. That dad, the one the son had told off? He ran out to meet the son. Listen to that part of the story again. It’s in verse 20:

“When the son was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion; the father ran to him and put his arms around him and kissed him.” When the son was still far off, the father ran! The man ran.

This, Jesus wants us to understand, is what God is like! God sees us taking one small step towards God, God sees us headed towards healing in the tiniest of ways, and God is full-speed ahead, running towards us.

God is not waiting on us to make the whole faith journey on our own. God is not testing our willpower to see if we’ll be hardy enough to make it to spiritual maturity.

God is looking for the slightest inkling that we want to reconnect with God, and then God is pumping legs to get to us and sweep us up in divine embrace. All God needs is to see us taking that first tiny step.

If we are going to develop a real, powerful, delightful relationship with God, all we have to do is step toward God every day. And we will discover that God has already moved toward us far more than we can ask or imagine.

How do we step toward God everyday?

We pray everyday. We read a little bit of Scripture everyday. And we ask God to use us to help somebody else everyday. These are our spiritual exercises. They don’t have to be heroic. They don’t have to be pretty. They just have to be done.

Pray, read a little of the bible, and ask God to use us. Everyday. Doing these spiritual exercises are the tiny indication to God that we are moving toward God. They let God know we are moving toward healing, toward reconciliation, toward freedom, toward life. We pray. It’s our step. God does the rest.

Now, there are a couple of things that are really going to increase your chances of stepping toward God everyday.

One is, to have a buddy. We step towards God both alone and with others. We have to make the steps ourselves. But we are much more likely to pray and read a little of the Bible everyday if we have a partner doing this with us.

Many of us have been meeting in Unbinding Your Soul small groups during this season of Lent.  Small groups can serve as a buddy system so that we can help each other to continue to take steps toward a growing relationship with Jesus Christ.

This week marks the fourth and final week of our small group study. Your small group may want to continue to meet after this final week.  If you do, the Unbinding Your Soul books that we have been using contain another four week study if you choose to continue. 

I invite you to pray about this in your small group this week to see if your group would like to meet for another four weeks after this week.  You might want to take a short break over Easter and resume sometime in April or maybe it will work out to not take any time off. 

So, the buddy system and your small group can increase our chances of stepping toward God everyday. 

Here’s a second way to help you to take steps toward God.  And that’s by stepping toward God at the same time everyday. Step toward God at the same time everyday.  Give God the fifteen minutes before you go to work, or the fifteen minutes before you go to bed, or on your lunch hour, or whenever it is, every day.

If you set a specific time to step toward God, you’ll get in the habit of stepping toward God everyday. Sure, give God other times too. Spontaneous times are great! Just be sure you give God the planned time.

Recently, we interviewed one of our church members to hear how she is taking steps toward God everyday.
 

 

Imagine God waiting on the front porch, looking out to see if you’re heading God’s way at the time you said you’d be there. Now, sometimes, maybe most of the time, we won’t do this very well.

Martha Grace Reese, the author of Unbinding Your Soul, writes, “Our best efforts usually have a ‘sorta, kinda, oh wow, I forgot’ quality to them.The good news is that if we’ll even try to show up, God can work with us. God can work miracles with that. Our part in this divine-human conversation is pretty humble.”

Romans 8:26 tells us that “The Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness, for we do not know how to pray like we ought.”  If we show up, and try to step toward God, God is already running full-tilt to meet us and help us. One step toward God. Every day.

Derek Redmond was a world-class runner who made it to the finals of the 1992 Olympics.3 He started out strong in the 400 meter. Everyone was cheering him on.

But all of a sudden, heartbreak. His hamstring muscle popped. Derek was immediately on the ground in a heap. What now?

This was the Olympics. Derek Redmond wasn’t about to be carted off in a stretcher as his final moment on the world stage. His training kicked in. He had run this race nearly

everyday of his life. He got up. Barely. And he started hobbling towards the finish line. The crowd went wild. Then Derek stopped, grimacing in pain. He wasn’t sure he could make it.

 

Suddenly, someone else came on the scene. Pushing past the guards was a determined, older man. No one and nothing was going to stop Derek Redmond’s father from getting to his son.

Derek’s dad got to him down on the track. Derek’s dad wrapped him in his arms. He took on Derek’s weight. Together, with tender determination, father and son headed towards the finish line. Derek Redmond finished that race.

Derek just kept on stepping. His dad did the rest.