Weekly Devotion

“If you want to make God laugh, tell him about your plans.” This might be the only time I quote Woody Allen, but this one is a keeper. Whether he wrote it or borrowed it from a Yiddish proverb is irrelevant. God has a plan, God’s in charge, and we can’t do anything about it. The good news is that God’s plan is better than any plan we could ever develop. We second guess Him all the time, but when bad things are happening to us we might end up making the same choices He does for us if we had all the information He does.

“God won’t give you more than you can handle.”
Yep, I’ve used this phrase on many occasions. I don’t think I’ve offered it to sound more informed, but rather to offer some kind of comfort. The words sound like reassurance from the Bible. In fact, it’s not Biblical, it’s taken out of context, and it actually casts a bad light on God’s goodness.

On Monday night, I had the opportunity to attend a concert featuring popular Christian bands. The guys in our group were from church. Some I know really well and the others I was looking forward getting to know better. That day, I was stressing out. I’d been swamped at work and we had to leave early in the afternoon. Then, I discovered that the band I really wanted to see wasn’t part of the show. On the ride home, I thought to myself, don’t be so skeptical, have faith in God’s plans. We had a fantastic time! Lot’s of lively brotherhood, witty conversations, and some incredible music.

It’s hard to remember a time when we weren’t experiencing war, racial conflict, or violence that tries its best at being a worse example than the incident before it. Last I checked, 19 children and 2 adults were killed in the recent shooting in Uvalde, Texas. I tweeted something the other day that put accountability on all our shoulders. No part of our society is above reproach in these inexcusable, violent tragedies. Through this week’s devotional, you’ll see what I mean.

After meeting a neurologist, he mentioned some “red flags.” Well, when a specialist talks about red flags, that makes a chronic worrier like me hit my knees. I prayed after that appointment and before and after each of my diagnostic exams. I prayed for healing of course, but my prayers were more of a conversation about trusting my life to God’s plans for me. Surrendering. When I don’t surrender, I’m still clinging to control. Only God has the remote.

We missed them tremendously after they moved. That next summer, we flew out to visit with them. It was like no time had passed. Looking back on these early days of our relationship, I’m perplexed by the fact that we rarely discussed our faith. If we did, it didn’t leave much of an impression.

Last week, we got rid of the cold spell. Most days this week, it’s been in the mid-70’s. Not bad for April. Of course, we fish all year long, but it’s so much more fun fishing when the warm sun is peaking through some clouds painting sparkles on the water. We made our plans to fish this afternoon a week ago. My two friends are guys I call my brothers because they are also men who follow Jesus Christ, and they would do anything for me.

The crescendo from “Christ the Lord Has Risen Today” still brings tears to my eyes every time I hear it. It’s not just the melody, the trumpets, or the words of the Hymn that creates the emotional experience within me, it’s the power of it all. My Mom was not a big churchgoer and yet she used to look forward to hearing the song at Easter. I will look around to make sure no one is looking because I’m often too overwhelmed to sing along.

Most agree that there have been 5 Great Jesus Revivals in our history. The Jesus Movement, or the Twentieth Century Revival, is the one we might be most familiar with. It’s where the term “Jesus Freak” came from. Originally intended to reflect a positive light on people using spiritual gifts, Bible studies, and workings of the Holy Spirit in the modern world, eventually was hijacked by a subculture of the hippie crowd who focused on pacifism and universal love.

I’ve been wanting to get to know one of my neighbors better for a long time. We have always enjoyed good conversations at community gatherings and have even been in his boat a few times. He’s not as much of an extrovert as people claim I am and even though I know he’s a believer, he’s so quiet about it, I was curious about knowing more of his story. A while back, I asked him if he’d mind sharing his faith journey and in his always agreeable way, he said he would be glad to.