get in line, chris

My heart is heavy today for so many people.

Death, illness, relationship problems and financial struggles have put a damper on my day. There are so many people who are hurting in my world that it makes me hurt as well.

I find it ironic—and a bit pathetic—that I started the day feeling sorry for myself. Yet my problems now seem insignificant in comparison. Which reminds me of a lesson I learned many years ago and must continuously re-learn: There is almost always someone who is worse off than me.

Does that make me feel better? No. But it does help put things in perspective.

What about you? What’s bugging you today? Why are you down in the dumps?

My hunch is it hurts. A lot. And for that I’m sorry. Very sorry.

Yet—and please don’t curse my name or throw something heavy in my direction—is it possible there are others who are struggling more? In more pain? In worst circumstances?

That doesn’t diminish what you’re going through, no way. What you’re experiencing right now no doubt stinks and that’s a nice way of putting it. I get it. Things are hard and you’re at the end of your rope.

But as I was reminded so vividly today, I’m not the only one who’s hurting. In fact, as I think about the problems of so many people that I know, my problems don't seem so bad.

In fact, even though I’m not feeling so hot right now (that’s putting it mildly), somebody needs my help so I have to get going.

I’m not glad that others have problems, but I am glad for the opportunity to help. And to get my mind off my own problems.

Lest you think I’m some kind of spiritual giant or super Christian, think again. I’m just a regular guy who had to re-learn a lesson yet again. Will I ever learn that there are others who are in worse pain than me?

Probably not. Tomorrow I’ll no doubt be right back at it, obsessing on my many problems at the neglect of others.

But for today, right now, I’ve got to go. Somebody needs me.

                                                                                                           

a helping hand

She and her three-year-old got financial help, but I was the one who was helped the most.

After repairing her car the previous week, the single mom didn’t have anything left for gas or groceries. So she humbled herself and shared her need with me by phone. An hour later she had more than enough to get through the next week, and so did I.

I guess Jesus knew what He was talking about when He said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive."1

I was blessed by sharing something with someone who needed help. I can still picture the grateful look on her face and the sincere thank you. And it helped that her son was absolutely adorable and thanked me as well with a smile and a handshake.

All of this brings me to today’s challenge: Who do you know that could use a helping hand? It might be financial help, a lift to the doctor’s office, a few hours away from the kids, or any number of things.

Seriously, please don’t blow this off. My hunch is someone in your sphere of influence could use a helping hand today. And it could be that no one else is willing or able to help, except for you.

So will you? Help, that is.

Take it from me, “it is more blessed to give than to receive.”

1  Acts 20:35

a little help, please?

The news was tragic: A psychiatric patient had pried open a window with a butter knife and then fell to his death. The news was particularly bad for me: It was my job to accommodate the media  and also do my best to protect the reputation of the hospital, my employer.

As I walked down the hall towards the auditorium packed with reporters and TV cameras, my boss, amazed at my composure, said, “Are your veins full of ice water? Don’t you ever get nervous?”

The answers, respectively, were “No” and “Yes.”

What she didn’t know was I had just spent the last ten minutes sitting in a bathroom stall praying my heart out to God, telling Him how nervous I was and how much I needed Him in this moment.

Now refreshed by the Lord, I entered the auditorium, walked up to the podium jammed with microphones and tape recorders and did my thing.

How’d it go? Well, I was as forthcoming as I could be, answered everyone’s questions the best I could and, perhaps best of all, wasn’t fired.

Why do I share this story? Because I’m betting some of you are facing something in your life today, something so intimidating, so big, and so impossible that you need divine help. Without supernatural help, it’s not going to happen. Or if it does, it won’t go well. And you know it.

So what are you waiting for? Why not pick up your heavenly cell phone and give Him a call?

Nervous? Don’t be. Just follow Jesus’ model prayer:

"This, then, is how you should pray: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread.  Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.”1

·         By saying “hallowed be your name,” you’ve shown respect and honor to your heavenly Father.

·         By saying “your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven,” you’re acknowledging that His will trumps your will, and that includes whatever you need help with.

·         By saying “give us today our daily bread” you’re showing your dependence upon the Lord to meet your basic needs.

·         By saying “forgive us our debts” you’re admitting you’ve sinned and need His forgiveness.

·         By saying “as we also have forgiven our debtors” you're saying you’ve forgiven those who have sinned against you.

·         By saying “lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one” you’re asking for His divine protection from Satan and from falling into sin.

Once you’ve prayed this prayer—and understood and meant what you’ve said—then you’re ready to tell your heavenly Father about your problem. And don’t forget to thank Him for listening and caring about you.

Then? Well, go on with your life and do what you need to do, confident the Creator of the universe loves you and knows about your situation.

How will it all turn out? I have no idea. But know this: When your trial or decision comes to a head, guess who’s on your side?

The Lord God almighty.

Pretty cool, huh?

1  Matthew 6:9-13

help wanted?

I ran up to the truck, laid down on my stomach, and inched forward until I could peek through what used to be the windshield. Broken glass and twisted metal was everywhere. But where was the driver? And how did the truck end up upside down in this ditch?

The answer to the second question came quickly: The smell of alcohol was very strong. Oh. Drunk driver.

The answer to the first question eventually came from another driver who had stopped to help. Crawling up beside me, he said the driver was somewhere in the back of the truck, out of sight. The man said he had talked extensively with him before I arrived, but he had refused to come out.

Not couldn’t come out, but wouldn’t come out.

Then, as if on cue, I heard the driver mumbling incoherently. While I still wondered whether he was hurt, my strong overall impression was he was mostly just too loaded to know where he was or what had happened.

After several minutes of trying to convince him to crawl towards us, we gave up. When the police finally arrived we told them what we knew, went back to our cars, and drove off.

Some people just can’t be helped. We can try all we want, but if the other person isn’t willing to play along, well, there’s not much we can do.

That’s true in life and it’s also true in the spiritual realm. For 35 years various people tried to warn me that I was on a collision course with hell, but I’d hold my arm up in front of my body and say, “Talk to the hand, ‘cause the face ain’t listenin’.”

I was a living example of the following verses:

“As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath.”1

Prior to following Jesus, I was “dead in” my “transgressions and sins.” That is, I was spiritually-dead as a door nail, unable and unwilling to listen and believe in the truth.

During that time, unbeknownst to me, I “followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.” The “ruler,” of course, is Satan.2

That’s right, before I was a Christ-follower, I followed Satan. In fact, all unbelievers follow the devil. Hard to swallow? Yeah. But undeniable if you believe Scripture, and I do.

Not surprisingly, during my unbelieving years I gratified “the cravings of” my “sinful nature and” followed “its desires and thoughts.” Like all non-Christians, I was “by nature” an object “of wrath.”

In other words I was sinfully preoccupied with me, me, me. And because of that, I was an object of  God’s “wrath,” both in this life and the life to come.

But that was my choice. Just as the drunk driver refused to accept help in rescuing him from an over-turned truck, I was unwilling to accept Christ’s help when it came to my sins.

What about you? Are you following Christ or “the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient”? Jesus wants to help, but you have to want His help. I urge you not to remain an object of His “wrath.” You'll be eternally sorry.

For those of you who are following Jesus, here’s something for you to think about: Even though your eternal sin problem is taken care of, the Lord wants to help you in other ways. For instance, He wants to change you into His image, but needs your cooperation.3

Do you want to be changed into His image? Are you going along with the plan? Do you want the Lord’s help?

Whoever we are and whatever our spiritual state, let’s not be like the drunk driver who refused much-needed assistance.

“As the Scripture says, “’Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame.’"4

1  Ephesians 2:1-3

2  John 8:43-47, 1 John 1:19, Job 1:7

3  2 Corinthians 3:18

4  Romans 10:11

is help on the way?

I had made a complete mess of my life and had no self-confidence. But then God sent Barbara into my life.

As my advisor at the community college I attended, she quickly grasped that I was a lost soul, someone desperately in need of direction and encouragement. Barb provided both.

After bombing out at a four-year college and doing manual labor for a while, this was my last chance to make something of myself. So I enrolled in a few classes just to see what would happen.

Knowing I could unravel at any time, she met with me regularly doing everything she could to make sure I’d succeed. With her help, I did. I eventually graduated with a two-year degree and then completed my bachelor’s elsewhere.

I have two vivid memories of Barb: Her clearing her calendar to help me work through a personal crisis and going with me on a campus visit that was a four-hour drive one-way.

There’s no question in my mind that without her help, I’d still be lost and lacking self-confidence. That was a pivotal time in my life—I could have just as easily self-destructed.

Why do I share this story with you? Because I suspect there are messed up people all around us who need our help. And who knows, maybe you’re it. That is, maybe the Lord wants you to come to that person’s aid.

In the Old Testament book of Esther we read about how she becomes queen at the same time someone in the government comes up with a plan to kill all the Jews. At first she’s reluctant to come to the aid of her own people, but then her cousin says this:

“And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?"1

In other words, “Maybe, just maybe, God has placed you where you are to do what needs to be done. This is your time. This is why you’re where you are.”

My point is this: Perhaps you’ve been placed where you are so you can come to the aid of someone who needs what only you can give.

Look around. Is there someone in your family, at work or at school who’s lost and in need of help? Someone who’s hurting and needs comforting? Someone who’s discouraged and needs encouragement?

If Barb was around, she’d do it herself. But right now there’s just you.

“And who knows but that you have come to (your) position for such a time as this?"

1  Esther 4:14

what will you do?

I smiled as Bob licked the back of my hand. Grateful, I reached up and stroked the side of his head.

I’m guessing he wondered why his master was sitting quietly in the dark, eyes closed and moaning. I doubt whether he knew I had a migraine, but he seemed to sense something was wrong.

So he leaned over and gave me a big old lick with that sandpaper tongue of his. Bob is a good friend, even though he’s a cat.

He did what he could and I appreciated it.

Later, after taking a nap (being unconscious is a good thing), I heard him meow outside the bedroom door. When I let Bob in he walked right up to me, rubbed against my leg and virtually begged me to pick him up and give him a hug. I took him up on the offer, and it felt good.

He did what he could and I appreciated it.

I say again, Bob is a good friend, even though he’s a cat. Somehow, someway he sensed I was in pain and came to my aid.

“Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions.”1

Bob could’ve just meowed his sympathies but decided that wasn’t good enough. So he licked me and then offered himself up for a hug. As a cat, there wasn’t much more that he could do, was there? He gave it his best shot.

But people, oh my, people can do much more, can’t they?

We can pray for and with others. We can listen patiently when they need to talk. And we can hug them and hold them tight when they’re at the end of their rope.

So do you know someone who’s in pain? Surely someone comes to mind.

Now, what are you going to do about it?

Bob did what he could, but he’s only a cat. You, on the other hand, have resources cats can only dream about. Compared to them, you have a vast aresenal at your disposal.

So, what are you going to do for the person you know who’s in pain? Maybe, just maybe they’re sitting in the dark, eyes closed and moaning in pain. And there’s nobody there who can help.

What are you going to do?

“Let us not love with words or tongue but with actions.”

1  1 John 3:18