Kingdom Surrender

20 years ago, I was an overnight assistant manager with Walmart.  Back then, we did in one shift what it takes two or more shifts to do today: unload trucks and stock the merchandise from those trucks. It didn’t matter whether there was only one general merchandise truck with 800 pieces (rare) or 1500 pieces (usual) or several trucks with a total of 2500 pieces (common during Christmas season.) Everything had to be unloaded, stocked to the floor or placed in overstock bins, and the backroom floor clear of all freight, in an 8 hour shift. One night we had 2 trucks totaling over 2800 pieces and a demoralized work crew. The back room was a hot mess when I got there at 8 pm and had managed to get it only half cleared and ready for unloading by the time the crew showed at 10.

This past Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, we went bowling with family. I haven’t bowled in 7 years. And that time was only 2 frames. I quit after realizing I couldn’t bowl any longer, thanks to being all out of balance from 2 hip replacement surgeries 4 years prior. In the years leading up to those surgeries, I couldn’t bowl either as the pain from the deteriorating hips was too much. I used to bowl regularly when in the Air Force, for pleasure and in leagues, maintaining around a 200 average, with a high game of 258. After struggling through 2 games last Friday, I didn’t even knock down 100 pins either game.  This time around it was because of my knees.

Each of the above stories has a different morale, but the same result. The first involved attitude and the second involved focus.

20 years ago, prior to that 2800 piece night, I had committed to reshaping the attitudes of my crew. I had been off for two days and during that time I decided to teach them how attitude can make all the difference.  Little did I know about the 2800 pieces awaiting me on my return.  I showed up to work, discovered the daunting task before us that night, but pressed ahead.  I held the prework meeting in the back room, rather than the break room, and kept it very short.  I talked about a “can-do” attitude and challenged them to get the work done like never before.  I set the expectation that there would be no pallets on the floor in the back room.  Obviously, I got immediate pushback, to put it mildly.

I explained with that kind of attitude it would be impossible to accomplish, but with the right attitude, there was a possibility to accomplish. At 6:50 the next morning, I gathered the crew in the back room.  We had not met the expectation, but there was much to celebrate.  The crew had taken the challenge to heart, worked hard all night and as we gathered in the back room, they discovered that there was one pallet of bleach not in the steel.  They missed the expectation of a clear floor by one pallet of high turnover merchandise that would be gone before lunch. I pointed out that with a can-do attitude, much can be accomplished. Had they not started work with that attitude, the back room would have been a hot mess, to say the least.  The clear back room by morning became the norm for the remaining nine months I worked there.

Last Friday as I bowled and watched the others bowl, I thought back to my “glory days” of league bowling.  I recognized the result of a 200 average came from practice, awareness and focus. No two lanes bowl the same.  Lane conditions on any given night can vary.  The conditions on a particular lane can change during the course of a 3 game match even.  Practicing allows you the ability to adjust as you become aware of those changing conditions.  The one thing that never changes is your focus.  Good bowlers become creatures of habit, doing the same thing every time. They develop a sweet spot of focus and strive to hit that spot every ball bowled.  The better bowlers hit that spot often and usually know when the roll will have a good result because they were so focused, they saw the ball pass over the spot they were aiming for.

Much can be accomplished with the right attitude and focus.  They both rely on trust. We don’t know how things will end up at the end of the night but trusting in the right attitude will more often than not produce the intended results. Focusing on the objective at hand may not always produce the intended results but trusting in the practice and habits and study you have put in beforehand have a greater chance of positive results.

That’s how it is in the Kingdom realm.  Trust in God, remain focused on Christ, strive to lead a Christ-centered life.  There is one difference, though that makes trust even more important.  There is a specific goal working overnights at Walmart: unload the truck(s) and put all the freight away every night. There is a specific goal every time you bowl: knock all the pins down. Before you pop the door of the truck, before you unleash the ball from your grip, you know the specific goal. God has a plan for each of us. We don’t always know what that plan is. But we put our trust in Him, stay focused on Him, and know that whatever it is, His plan will be accomplished through us.  As Philippians 4:13 states, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”

Attitude. Focus. Trust.  Be Blessed!

“But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:31)

There are 160 instances of the word “wait” being used in the King James Version bible, according to “The Strongest Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible.” Many are followed by the word “for” to suggest one is waiting for something to happen. There are also many that say “wait on the Lord,” as in the above Scripture. An interesting aspect of this research showed that some of the verses identified in KJV had been changed in the NKJV to say “serve” or “attend.” Many people interpret “wait on the Lord” to mean “wait for the Lord.” That is “wait to see what God will do.” Thus in the above Scripture the meaning would be that those who wait for God to do something in a situation will have their strength renewed.

God has shown me a different meaning. In reading the verses that say “wait on the Lord,” in context, I see that we are being told to “serve” the Lord. Waiters and waitresses in a restaurant don’t just stand around waiting for us to call them over to the table for service. Yes, some impatient customers do a lot of that waving wait staff down for any and everything. But wait staff actually approach us to wait on us, to attend to our needs, to serve the meals and drinks to us, and provide whatever else is needed. They take the initiative and anticipate our needs.

That’s how it should be in waiting on the Lord. If you sit back and wait for God to come to you, expecting Him to do something about your situation, you might very well miss the boat. He does not want you to be that bump on a log or an immovable rock in a river bed. He is a God of action. We must take those first steps towards Him.

Yes, Scriptures tell us more than a few times to “Be Still,” as Jesus commanded the wind and waves to be still. But in that stillness, God still expects action. In the waiting, you’re not just that immovable rock. At the very least you are watchful, looking for God, seeking His hand at work around you. Hopefully you’re also praying to God. Rarely is the command meant for us to do nothing, unless rest is what we truly need as I discussed in a previous post, concerning what happened after my recent surgery. Psalm 25: 3-5 tells us:

“Indeed, let no one who waits on You be ashamed; let those be ashamed who deal treacherously without cause. Show me Your ways, O Lord; teach me Your paths. Lead me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; on You I wait all the day.”

God intends us to be in His presence all day (and night,) always focused on Him, walking in His love, and being His light to those around us. In attending to others’ needs we are waiting on (serving) Him. How does that play out? Here’s one way it has worked in my life.

I began hearing a symphonic percussion intro in my mind not long after Pat and I married in 2015. It got louder through 2016 and by the beginning of 2017 it was deafening. God was calling me to the ministry, to become ordained. I felt I was already doing His work, waiting on Him. Pat and I were already involved with GriefShare. But that apparently wasn’t enough. In Aug 2017, I approached our Pastor, explained about the drum beats, and wanted to answer God’s call. It took 4 years. I was ordained May 30, 2021. As we all know, God doesn’t call the equipped, He equips the called. Thus I wasn’t sitting around waiting to be ordained in those 4 years. We began facilitating DivorceCare along with GriefShare, I took over a bible study group when the mentor moved to Houston and dove deeper into Scriptures, studying His Word. I drew closer to Him.

Had I answered His call, then sat back and waited for Him to do something, to make it happen, I’d still be waiting. In those 4 years, I grew stronger in the knowledge of His Word, but more importantly, I grew stronger in knowing Him and anticipating His needs, which were that He wanted my complete surrender and obedience to Him. He has given me strength to follow Him and not become weary (bad knees and all,) to walk in His ways and not become fearful (faint.) He has guided me and taught me in such a way that I can see His Word come to life, to see His hand working in everything, as the eagle sees everything below him in detail as he soars high above. Praise God! Without Him I would be nothing.

The next time you ask someone what’s going on in their life and they say they’re just waiting on the Lord, ask them to explain what they mean by waiting. Guide them into action if their response is that they are waiting on God to move on their behalf. Don’t let them be the guy who was stuck on a deserted island, praying to God to rescue him. When a boat stops by, and later a plane, offering help, he dismisses them because he’s waiting for God to save him.

Be Blessed!

“Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.” (Ephesians 4:29)

“Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.” (Galatians 5:31-32)

My last two blogs discussed being the light for others and to share the gifts God has given you. Today’s topic will be related to those two, but from a different angle. God often reveals topics to me in the strangest of ways. A piece of seaweed blowing into the opening of a crab hole on the beach. A chance comment overheard while standing in line at the grocery store. Or as in today’s example, a FaceBook post I read yesterday, that on the surface may seem innocent enough.

I’m sure most of us would agree that the world is in some state of chaos. People are at each other’s throats over race, governmental mandates, religious attacks, gender issues, police brutality, etc. Anything and everything seems to get turned into a cause, which divides people, for or against. It’s happening not just in the secular world; churches are feeling the pressure as well.

Our marriage enrichment class (Rooted In Christ) had a meeting Sunday night, studying Ephesians 4 and applying it to marriage and relationships. Both scriptures above were discussed during the evening. This morning I ran across a post on FaceBook stating, “Did anyone else catch the salute to WW2 veterans last night, it started after the 10 pm news? Why so late! Grrrr! Nice of them to pay tribute to veterans (sarcasm) at a time when the school age kids won’t see it.”

At first glance, the statement appears innocent enough. The poster may have felt they were coming to the “defense” of WW2 veterans. This person may have a relative who was a WW2 veteran and have school age children they would have wanted to have seen this salute, maybe aired after the 6 pm news. This post was on a military FaceBook group page. So, one could assume such a post might incense some of the readers, of course siding with the poster. Oh, I saw the post because I belong to the group by virtue of my being a veteran, though not of WW2. I retired from the Air Force in 1994.

Here’s the problem. Unless the station manager of the station that aired the salute was also a member of the military page, nobody reading the person’s post was in a position to do anything about it. So why post anything on the page? Call the station and discuss your concerns about the timing of the salute, offering reasons you feel that way. Part of the problem today is some people grumble to everyone but the person(s) who could actually do something to correct the problem or at least discuss the reasons the matter went the way it did. They air it out on FaceBook.

Was posting on FaceBook necessary for edification? Did the comments impart grace on the readers? Again, the poster may have had a relative identified on the salute, that the poster would have wanted their children to see but couldn’t because of the timing. Though the feelings may have been understandable, Scriptures tell us to hold our tongue, unless it is something constructive to contribute, to be kind and tenderhearted. I don’t know the poster or whether the person is a believer. I just use this as an example of how easy it is to be led astray. Choose your words wisely, pick your battles and battlegrounds carefully. Let the Holy Spirit guide your heart.  Always try to lead a Christ-centered life.

A side note. I saw the post yesterday and worked on this throughout the day. Today I read my morning emails before editing and posting this blog. Greg Laurie’s Daily Devo post was titled “Mouth Control,” using James 1:19 as the basis (“So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath.”) That may not directly apply to the post I read, but comes closer to why we need to control our tongue when you add the very next verse: “for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” It bears repeating, always try to lead a Christ-centered life!

Have a Blessed week!

“As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.” (1 Peter 4:10)

One final thought on what to do with the grace, blessings and gifts God has bestowed upon you. Don’t hoard it. Share those gifts and talents with others. God has made this point abundantly clear in the last 24 hours.

In my blog yesterday, I spoke of how we tell our GriefShare and DivorceCare participants to be willing to share what they learn in the sessions with others who may be struggling. Last night we showed a previous edition DivorceCare video concerning what the owner’s manual (the Bible) says about divorce. Regarding how to discern what to do if one’s divorce was not based on biblical grounds (there are a couple), the program gave a “Decision Making Tool Kit” list to help. The last tool referred to Matthew 18:15-17, which talks about how to deal with a sinning brother or sister. The point was that an effort should be made to restore a marriage ended due to unbiblical reasons if at all possible, using the steps in Matthew 18. After the video I told the participants that this passage was a general process to resolve issues with others, presented in the video to apply to restoring marriages. I informed them that they should look at this passage closely and apply it to their general walk with Christ as well, not just with broken marriages, thus sharing the gift of lessons taught through this course.

Then this morning, as I was reading through the various devotionals and blogs I subscribe to, Rick Warren talks about 1 Peter 4:10 in his Daily Hope blog. The title of his blog was “Your Gifts Are for Other People.” The idea of sharing gifts has crossed my radar three times since yesterday morning. God is trying to make a point, and I am sharing that with you, now, as I have all week. Accept and acknowledge the gifts He has blessed you with. Give God the glory for those gifts by sharing with others you come in contact with. Make a conscious effort to look for those opportunities.

Have a Blessed weekend!

“You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:14-16)

Jesus has given us rest for our souls (grace.) And because of our acceptance, He has poured rivers of living waters into and through our hearts (the Holy Spirit.) We are not to hoard or hide the gifts He has given us, but to use them for His glory. Through our salvation we are God’s living temple. The Holy Spirit indwells us. In this passage from the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus is telling the disciples, and by extension, us, that we are the light of the world. We can’t hide that light, but must allow it to shine forth. How do we do that? By walking it out with Christ in our daily lives, using the gifts of salvation and ministry He has given us.

Flying insects are naturally attracted to light bulbs glowing on a dark night. It is hard for them to resist. So it can be with non-believers and strayed believers. God made us lights of the world, so that His light will shine through us for all to see. He knows our tendencies to hoard and to hide. It’s hard to do that when we have that supernatural attractive light bursting from our pores. We know that nobody can come to the Father, unless Jesus calls them. He doesn’t stand on a street corner with a bull horn and call out people’s names, or does He? He doesn’t just lean over and whisper in someone’s ear, “Come.” He does that sometimes. He also uses all the tools at His disposal. We are some of those tools in his toolbox. People see us walking in joy, unaffected by events around us, always finding good in everything, humble, gentle, patient, treating all with love. They are curious and approach to see where we get such gifts. That is Jesus using us to draw people to Him, assuming we don’t blow it because we were too busy, not paying attention, not seeking such opportunities, or put off by appearances.

How many of us hear a good message at church on Sunday, or receive some awesome advise in a small church life group, and go home, filing away what you heard or learned, never to be thought of again, maybe because it doesn’t apply to you? Maybe Jesus put you in position to hear that word, because someone who really needed that word would cross your path so that you could deliver that word. That’s why the light in us comes without an off switch. Just like some people may need to be baited into seeking God, some of us need to be put in situations where we have no choice but to minister. We must always be ready to respond with a word. That’s how we walk out being the light of Christ in this dark world. We often tell our GriefShare and DivorceCare participants to make every effort to attend all sessions in the cycle, even if they feel a particular session doesn’t apply to them. Either they might hear something that will come to mind some time in the future when talking to someone who could truly benefit from what you learned. Or someone at the session you felt was inapplicable is encouraged because you were able to share something they needed to hear.

Be bold, as Paul and Barnabas were in being rejected by the Jews, yet welcomed by the Gentiles while preaching in Antioch. They responded to the Jews in Acts 13:47 by saying, “For so the Lord has commanded us: ‘I have set you as a light to the Gentiles, that you should be for salvation to the ends of the earth.'”

They were fulfilling their destiny. Are you? Be Blessed!