Love

I have been given the perfect illustration of God's love.

Would you like to see?

This...

...is my daughter Melody Joan. She provides a daily reminder of the endless love of God for me.

It is not because she was a miracle gift from him after we had been told we could not have kids and spent years as a married couple believing that we would not have a family.

It is not because she has a remarkably joyful personality, and she brings light and love to my wife and me on an endless basis.

So why is she a "perfect illustration" of God's love?

It is because she is, and most probably will remain, my one and only child.

The Bible tells us that "God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8) You see, Christ is the one and only son of God.

God literally sacrificed his only child on my behalf, and on your behalf.

As you read this, whoever you are, you have a certain relationship to me. You may be immediate family or a distant relative. A close friend or a mere acquaintance. A brother or sister in Christ or a complete stranger. Whatever our relationship, I have some degree of love in my heart for you. That degree varies according to our relationship and situation. I truly love some of you very dearly.

Still, would you like to guess how many of you, how many people in all of human history, mean so much to me that I would sacrifice my Melody Joan on your behalf?

To quote Phil from the mail room on Boy Meets World, "I'll give you a hint. It's less than two."

That's why she perfectly illustrates the love of God for me. Knowing how much I love her, and how unwilling I am to give her up for virtually anybody, I can appreciate how much more God loves me if he was willing to give up his son for me.

That amount of love for me is also how much love he has for you. Even if you were the only person in history, God still would have made that sacrifice. For you.

For you.

That is the truest love.

It is a truly sobering reality.

Scripture: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." - John 3:16

Quote: "Grace means the free, unmerited, unexpected love of God and all the benefits, delights, and comforts which flow from it. It means that while we were sinners and enemies, we have been treated as sons and heirs." - R.P.C. Hanson

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Doubts

I doubt that God exists.

Wait...what?

I actually said that. I doubt that God exists.

To the few people who truly know me, that admission could be startling, unsettling, infuriating, and potentially heartbreaking. After all, I was raised in a Christian home. My entire family is Christian. I married a Christian girl, and I have been actively involved for years in various levels of service in Christian churches.

How could a guy with such a background, not believe in God?

Because of some recent changes in my life-old friendships lost, new friendships growing, and moving to a new (Christian) home church-there are other people who don't know me so well yet. These people sit and discuss God and the church with me. They play with me on the worship team at the new church, or they see me playing guitar and singing songs to God every Sunday morning and helping to lead others in worship of God.

How could that guy not believe in God?

Then there's a third group of people. You may actually be one of these people. They're past acquaintances or friends and family separated from me by great distances or the passing of time who, in between photos of my daughter and interesting historical quotes, read scriptures or Christian song lyrics that I post on Facebook. They're complete strangers who, in between rants about the flaws of the Texas Rangers or Carolina Panthers and the most brilliant 140 character quips online, read the spiritual thoughts and insights that I tweet or retweet on twitter. Perhaps they're readers of this blog, either loyal followers or someone who accidentally stumbled upon it through some long, crazy web browsing session. They've read my posts about God's freedom, God's music, and even God's justice. They see that I incorporate God into most of my writings and include at least one Bible verse or passage at the end of each post on this blog.

How could a writer with so much published material about, related to, or referencing God actually not believe in God? (The words "writer" and "published" being very loosely defined for the purposes of this illustration.)

To clarify, I didn't say that I don't believe in God. I said I doubt that God exists.

What's the difference?

The truth is that I utilized a dirty little writer's trick where I took a few words out of context, set them out as their own stand alone thought, and created a misleading point to grab the observer's attention.

You know. It's like when somebody tells you that "You shall not make any cuts on your body for the dead or tattoo yourselves..." (from Leviticus 19) when you start talking about finally getting that body art that you have wanted for years.

You see, if I had started off by saying "Every once in a while, because of circumstances or events in my life, there are moments in time where temporarily I wonder or I doubt that God exists...occasionally," you probably wouldn't have been as interested. It just doesn't have the same gripping effect.

I think the problem is that many people, some believers and some non-believers, have confused the concepts of doubt and unbelief. I do not think that they are interchangeable. Yet, I'm certain some of my Christian friends and family saw the beginning of this writing and immediately feared that I had turned my back on God. I've also heard atheists discuss their outlook with phrases like "Here's why I doubt that God exists." I've listened to skeptics who state that they doubt there is a God, but that it is possible

That is the difference. Doubt is not unbelief. Doubt, if not dealt with or confronted properly, can lead one into unbelief.

The definition of doubt is to be uncertain about something. It is a natural, human reaction to many things a person may (or may not) see, hear, or experience. To disbelieve something, by definition, means to withhold or reject belief. That is very different. Unbelief is not a fleeting moment of wonder or questioning. Unbelief is a personal, conscious decision to not believe.

I can remember being a kid when Nolan Ryan threw his seventh and final no hitter for the Texas Rangers. My parents had to tell me about it the next day. I didn't see it for myself. I recall arguing with them because I wasn't sure it was possible. I thought perhaps they were just playing around with me. I doubted.

How did I resolve my doubt? Two ways really. One, I listened to my parents. They were the people with more knowledge and who had actual experience with the question at hand, in this case baseball history. Two, I checked documentation. Turns out they keep records of major events in history. All you have to do is read all about it.

I have stated before that doubt is one of my most frequent struggles. This is due in no small part to my scientific background. Having spent much of my time in high school and nearly all of my time in college inside a science classroom, I have been presented with many reasons to disbelieve God. Many in the scientific community will not acknowledge the possibility of God or supernatural events because they cannot not be physically tested and explained.


Many others believe that the evidence presented by our physical world overwhelmingly indicates that everything in the universe formed and/or evolved naturally, without any influence of God at all.

That type of education combined with my analytical personality and what my wife describes as a "hyperlogical brain" probably leads me to doubt more than many other Christians might. However, it does not change my beliefs.

Allow me to state definitively: I believe that Nolan Ryan did throw seven no hitters. More importantly, I believe there is a God. I believe there is only one true God, and that he is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I believe there is a heaven and a hell and that you and I both will eventually end up spending eternity in one of those destinations. I believe that science and the diversity of life and complexity of life on Earth serves as evidence for, not against, God.

I also believe that I am not immune to doubt.

To date, the most successful post on this blog relates the story of the event in my life that tried my faith the most. It is the closest my doubt has ever come to being converted to unbelief. There have been a plethora of smaller thoughts, events, or experiences that have led to doubt.

How do I resolve my doubt? I use the same two techniques that I did with Nolan Ryan. I rely on the knowledge and wisdom of others with more experience than me. This could be family, friends, pastors, teachers, etc. Also, I check the documentation. I refer to the official record book, the Bible. I can ALWAYS find the answer there.

I often regret the fact that doubt enters my life.

I don't believe that I should feel guilty though.

Those are often the instances where I seek after, and draw even closer to, God.

Scripture: "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." - Hebrews 11:1

Quote: "Science brings men nearer to God." - Louis Pasteur

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RIP Mr. Price

Today is a sad day.

Mr. Price has passed away.

Robert Price spent many years as a teacher at San Angelo Central High School. That is where I met him. That is where I remember him-in his classroom, sharing his knowledge and his love of science with hundreds of high school students.

I remember more of Mr. Price's lessons than any of those from my other teachers. And just about every Central student, whether they had to...er...make that GOT to attempt it or not, knew of his famous "bug project."

The greatest thing that he shared with me was passion for science and specifically for biology. You see, I earned my college degree in biology. Mr. Price was my first biology teacher. He was the man who truly introduced me to the discipline. More importantly, he was the first to instill a love of biology in me-a love for a study that would eventually become my college major.

I had heard recently that Mr. Price was having health problems. Sadly, in the years since I graduated, I have only seen and spoken with Mr. Price a handful of times. I regret that.

Now, he is gone.

So, I just have a few things that still need to be said.

Mr. Price, for the last time, from one biology lover to another, thank you.

And goodbye sir.


Scripture: "Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us," - Hebrews 12:1 ESV

Quote: "What we have done for ourselves alone, dies with us; what we have done for others and the world, remains and is immortal." - Albert Pike

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Where Words Fail

One of the great things about having a blog is that you get to share your passions with your readers. I am sure to include at least one scripture in every post I write. I have written about my wife. I have written about my daughter...on more than one occasion. If you look closely, you may even find an occasional reference to sports, movies, or TV shows like "Boy Meets World" sprinkled in to my writing. These are all passions of mine that God uses to reveal things about my world, my life, or myself.

Yet there is one very important area in my life that I have yet to write much about.

Music.

"Music is well said to be the speech of angels." - Thomas Carlyle

More than any other medium, God uses music to reach my heart. Also, I personally believe God most often and most effectively uses me through music.

I am by no means a professional musician. I don't have a record deal or a hit single on iTunes. In fact, I have never successfully written an entire song. The music that I do make doesn't reach millions of people, yet. Rather, I am very much involved in the wonderful world of music ministry. I am now, and have been for years, a guitarist (and occasional bassist, pianist, drummer, or vocalist) on my church's worship team. It is a position that I am humbled and honored to hold. It is simultaneously a privilege and a responsibility for which I could never express enough gratitude. It is a task of which I do not ever grow tired. In short, it is what I am supposed to do.

This is why I was created.

Serving my Lord and leading others into his presence through praise and worship is a truly special experience.

"Music produces a kind of pleasure which human nature cannot do without." - Confucius

So why haven't I written about it before? I'll tell you.

I don't know.

For some reason, I had to hear my entire philosophy on music ministry packaged perfectly into four little lines to trigger my creativity. I know this will be hard to believe at this point, but what got me going on this was, of all things, the chorus of a song.

It was like a kinder, gentler version of God's backhand smacked my forehead. "Wake up!"

"One good thing about music, when it hits you, you feel no pain." - Bob Marley

The song is a gospel song. I'm sure that, just like every gospel song, many individuals and/or groups have recorded it. The version I like is performed by the Gaither Vocal Band (another shocker) and features Guy Penrod. It's called "I'm Gonna Sing." Here's how it goes:

"I'm gonna sing just as long as it takes for a song to make sad, heavy spirits free.
I'm gonna keep making music that carries the secret that Jesus is liberty.
I'm gonna turn off the sounds that will drag people down to the pit of despondency.
With a sweet happy tune, He is coming soon for His children like you and me."

Each individual line in that chorus is a worthy aspiration of any member of a music ministry team. Add them up and consider them all together, and you have a very succinct description of what I feel music ministry is or at least should be.

The first parts of each of the first two lines speak of persistence or endurance. Music is something you can learn, improve upon, and share for the rest of your life. Your level of involvement, your position or title, or your church might change many times, but once called, you are a minister.

"Without music, life would be a mistake." - Nietzsche

If you were to call my cell phone, you would hear part of an incredible song off of the Zac Brown Band's latest record. The last part of the chorus says "When I've lived out my days until the very end, I hope they find me in my home with my guitar in my hand." That really illustrates my desire to share God through music as long as I can still breathe air.

The third line in the Gaither song tells of the power that worship music has to lift one's spirit. Now, let me be clear here. I am NOT condemning secular music. I'm not the kind of person who believes we should all listen to only Christian music. In fact, if you were to scan my personal CD collection, you would find a very eclectic array. I just love many types of music. However, I also realize that there are certain genres, artists, or songs that are truly influenced by Satan. They evoke very dark responses and emotions from the listener. These are the sounds that we need to tune out and replace with songs glorifying our Lord God.

The ends of each of the first two lines remind me of the freedom in Christ described in John 8:36 and 2 Corinthians 3:17. When you've been set free in Christ, why wouldn't you want to sing about it? I may have chosen a different word than "secret" in the second line though. It's not a secret. People may not have had the chance to hear the good news yet, but God's love is for everyone on Earth. Nobody is intentionally left in the dark. (As I write, a gut wrenching thought hits me. If I know Jesus is liberty, and the person next to me doesn't know yet, and I don't tell them, have I just turned it into a secret by keeping it to myself?)

"Music is God's gift to man, the only art of Heaven given to earth, the only art of earth we take to Heaven." - Walter Savage Landor

Finally, we come to the last line. Jesus is coming soon to take us home. When he does, what do we have to look forward to? Revelation chapters 4 and 5 describe the throne room of heaven. In particular, the end of chapter 5, starting with verse 11, says this.

"Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!” And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!” And the four living creatures said, “Amen!” and the elders fell down and worshiped."

Here, we call it Revelation Song. In Heaven, it will simply be all of us giving honor and glory to God.

Holy, holy, holy is The Lord God almighty who was, and is, and is to come.

Sounds like a great praise and worship service, doesn't it?

You see, I have long felt that our job as music ministers or praise and worship leaders is twofold. One, to invite and usher in the presence of God. Two, to guide and lead those around us into that very presence.

I firmly believe, and will believe until my dying day, that when this happens, we all have the most spiritual experience possible on this mortal planet...true, honest worship of the King of Kings.

It is literally the closest we can come to Heaven on Earth.

"After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music." - Aldous Huxley



Scripture: "Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises! Sing praises to the LORD with the lyre, with the lyre and the sound of melody! With trumpets and the sound of the horn make a joyful noise before the King, the LORD!" - Psalm 98:4-6

Quote: "Where words fail, music speaks." - Hans Christian Andersen

Bonus Quote: "There's energy there in music. No one ever danced to Houdini." - Penn Jillette

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It's A Simple Game

Wow! I have written 25 posts on this little blog. That's a fairly good start, but I've learned one thing already. I've still got a lot to learn. One thing I could still learn more about is topic selection. I have realized that I often leave a lot unwritten as I search for or even, at times, wait for the perfect idea to use.

What this has led to is me not writing as much as I probably should for fear of posting something of poor quality. If you have known me for very long, this element of perfectionism is not likely to shock you greatly.

When I started this blog, I intended to incorporate observations, responses, and personal beliefs about the world of sports. Two sports quotes seem to apply perfectly to this situation.

One is from hockey legend Wayne Gretzky who said "You miss one hundred percent of the shots you don't take."

The other comes from the movie Bull Durham. "Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, sometimes it rains. Think about that for a while."

What these quotes show me is that if I never let an idea see the light of day, it can never have a chance to be great. If I have something to write, I should write. Sometimes it'll be good, and sometimes it'll be bad. Sometimes, it won't matter much at all, but writing is how I will learn and improve. I just need to fight against the doubt and worry that tries to tell me how poorly I am doing.

Perhaps this whole post could have been written as a much shorter passage.

"Don't think Meat. Just throw."

(I hope to have a post soon about my views on music ministry. Stay tuned.)




Scripture: "In the fear of the LORD there is strong confidence, and His children will have a place of refuge." Proverbs 14:26

Quote: "Great works are performed, not by strength, but by perseverance." - Samuel Johnson


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The Most Dangerous Word

My daughter is going to be a high school track star. I just know it.

She won't be a sprinter or hurdler either. No, she will be a distance runner, and her best event will likely be the longest one that they offer in UIL competition.

This won't be a result of me forcing her to do something. It's not because I'm trying to relive my missed opportunities vicariously through her like so many pathetic parents do with their kids. It's quite the opposite. I have no desire to run long distances. None at all.

In fact, when I played sports in school, I chose tennis. It's a sport where the running is broken down into very short distances, and there are built in breaks while you wait for the ball to travel from you to your opponent and then be returned to you again. There are longer breaks between points, even longer breaks between games, and still longer breaks between sets. There is actually little to no continuous running at all. That's more my speed.

And that is precisely why I'm convinced my baby girl will end up going to the complete opposite end of the athletic spectrum.

When this concept struck me the other day, the horror that attacked me was the thought that she will want me to help her at times with her training. I can already hear it.

"Hey Dad, I am going to go run a quick five miles. Will you come with me?"

Yikes! Oh well, as long as it's not yoga I guess.

I love my daughter. When that time comes, if she wants me to run, I will want to run with her. I want to be able to run, but I'm in very poor physical condition.

That thought is what clued me in to what is potentially the most dangerous word in our language. But. Three little letters that give us all an incredibly easy way out of facing or enjoying what we could or should be.

But.

I know this isn't a completely original concept. (For example, wait until you see the incredible quote I found for the end of this post.) It is just something that has been been nagging my conscience for weeks now. How much have I weasled out of in life by tacking on a simple "but"?

I'm reminded of a tobacco prevention poster from my school days. It showed rows of straight on photos of various animal hind quarters. The last photo was the remnant of a cigarette. The poster claimed that "Butts are gross." It was effective campaigning. I have never forgotten it. Now, I want to amend it slightly.

Buts are gross.

I don't believe that we can successfully eliminate the word from such a well established lexicon. So, how can we effectively reverse the effects of a but? I suggest simply reversing the but.

When you catch yourself adding a negative but onto a positive thought, just flip it. For example, "I want to write more, but I don't have much time" becomes "I don't have much time, but I want to write more." Now instead of an excuse, it has become a challenge. You've literally created an opportunity for yourself. Now instead of using a but as a reason not to do something, you can use the but to encourage yourself to find a way to make something happen.

WARNING!! Similar to other rules such as "I before E except after C," this rule applies only in cases where it is convenient to apply it. If the statement is something like "I want to jump out of this plane, but I do not have a parachute," DO NOT reverse the but.

Use with caution. Repeat as often as required.

So what's it going to be? What buts are gross in your life? What buts need reversing?

As for me...

I'm in very poor physical condition, but I want to be able to run.




Scripture: "for the LORD will be your confidence and will keep your foot from being caught." - Proverbs 3:26

Quote: "The only limits to the possibilities in your life tomorrow are the buts you use today." - Les Brown

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Clouds

We sang a great new song at church last Sunday. Perhaps you have heard of it. It's called "Blessed Assurance."

Ok. Ok. So maybe it's not THAT new, but it is the song that often comes to mind when I think about old becoming new.

You may ask...why? I'll tell you.

I couldn't begin to guess how many times I had heard or sung this song before I grasped the first verse. I am ashamed to admit that I fell victim to hearing the words as stanzas of the song, and not as actual sentences. Have you ever done that? I hate that.

The verse is sung like so:

Blessed assurance
Jesus is mine
Oh what a foretaste
Of glory divine

The last two lines musically flow so that the sentence works as intended. However, I always considered "Jesus is mine" to be it's own stand alone thought. If you consider the words a sentence instead of song lyrics, the true meaning should speak to you. (Hopefully much sooner than it did to me in my life. Oops.)

Jesus is my blessed assurance.

Wow! What a thought.

Also not exactly what I want to talk about. I want to talk about clouds.

You see, the newness of that old song is found in the version that we played. It's a recent recording by Matthew West. He took some liberties with the old melody, and he also added this tremendous chorus:

My king is coming soon.
He will roll the clouds away.
Light of heaven bursting through.
Oh what a glorious day!

Of course the cloud lyric here refers to when Jesus returns to Earth in his glory and power. That will indeed be a glorious day, but why limit God to that? Why keep him in such a specific box?

It occurs to me that clouds can symbolize many things in our lives. Figurative clouds can envelop us daily in our walks. Examples could be clouds of sadness, clouds of anger, clouds of heaviness, or clouds of fear. The one I feel that I deal with most is the cloud of doubt. What about a state of confusion? We actually refer to it as things being "a little cloudy."

Any of these clouds can come and go on their own, but sometimes they linger. Other times, they grow. They turn into storm clouds and threaten to destroy us. If allowed to, clouds of sadness can turn to depression. Clouds of heaviness can turn to despair. Clouds of fear can ruin us without any transformation at all, let alone after they have intensified into terrible storms around us.

So, how do you and I escape our clouds? How do we defeat them?

We don't.

We don't because we can't. Not by ourselves, and not with our own strength. That is why we need Jesus. That is why we must cry out to him, and we must do so fervently and without ceasing. It doesn't matter what type of storm we are in. It doesn't matter how long we have been there. Call on Jesus. He has the answer. He IS the answer.

Whatever your cloud is, you may have just encountered it, or you may have been dealing with it for a long time. I encourage you to always continue to call out to Jesus. He always hears us when we pray. You may not have seen your answer yet. Just remember one thing.

Your king is coming soon. He will roll the clouds away.




Scripture: "To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness, that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He might be glorified.” - Isaiah 61:3

Quote: "He will come to where you are. You're not too lost. You're not that far. When you're caught in stormy weather, and you're no match for the waves, the water walking God is gonna come and save the day." - Ernie Haase & Signature Sound (on the new album entitled, appropriately enough, Glorious Day)

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