Friends

(friends are important!)

Friends have been on my mind a lot the last few weeks. Friends come in all shapes and sizes. There are work friends, friends who live next door, childhood friends, church friends, old friends, new friends, and (if you’re lucky) a few really close friends. I love how kids can meet someone at the park and 2 minutes later they introduce you to “my new friend.” We had a chance to see some friends on vacation and then more at church back home when we visited. It was so great to reconnect with people, even for a short time, since a change in physical proximity can make friendship a lot more work!

There are also friends like the ones mentioned in Mark Chapter 2. Four men brought their paralyzed friend to see Jesus; firm in their faith that Jesus could heal the man. The crowds were so large they could not get their friend in the door. So did they turn around and go home? No… they climbed to the roof, made a hole and lowered the man right at Jesus’ feet. And because of their faith, the man was healed.

Let’s see. Friends who care, friends who have faith, friends who want to help, friends who follow through, friends who love you so much they carry you to the Master’s feet. Wow! I want friends like that. Even more, I want to BE a friend like that.

Brian

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Background Noise

(pick up a shell and hear the ocean!)

We just took a trip to the North Carolina coast and spent several days enjoying the beach and the warm waters of the Atlantic Ocean. What an incredible vastness the ocean has. It helps me remember how small and insignificant I am. At the same time there is no more soothing sound than the constant crashing of the waves against the shore. It’s as if those waves are washing away all the stress and discordant parts of my life. Sometimes I think I could sit there on the beach forever.

But nothing lasts forever, and eventually duties as a husband, father and employee beckon. With that, the stress and discord eventually start to creep back in. I wonder then, is there something that can provide a soothing “background noise” back home?

The obvious answer is to buy a CD of recorded surf sounds! Or to listen to music, classical perhaps, or jazz, or Christian praise and worship music. Music can provide a pleasing backdrop for the day. But it’s much deeper than that, of course.

Periods of silence can help. Jesus often sought solitude to recharge or just to start the day on the right note. Quiet and prayer are central to the example He gave us.

But I think maybe the real key is to remember how the ocean made me feel like a mere grain of sand, and how incredibly vast our God is. He set the heavens in motion and is still in control of it all. Even my small, insignificant life.

Brian

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Battle Stations

(man that's a really big boat)

Our family recently toured the USS North Carolina, a battleship from World War II docked in Wilmington, North Carolina. We were taken aback by the size of the ship, the size of the rotating 16-inch gun turrets, and the size of the 2,200 member crew needed to keep this massive ship running. Working in shifts these brave men protected air craft carriers, supported amphibious landings and met the basic needs of their crewmates for food, water and some semblance of rest.

The crews’ quarters, rows of metal bunks four and five high, are scattered throughout the ship, always close to where the sailors worked, in case the cry of “battle stations” would come. Everything was close at hand so the response could be immediate.

Sometimes the cry of “battle stations’ comes in our own life. An important choice between right and wrong suddenly appears in front of you. A friend says, “Can we talk for a minute?” A co-worker experiences a difficult time in their life. What do we choose? What do we say? How do we help? Are we prepared?

The best way to answer “Yes” to each of these questions is to have the Word of God close at hand. Not just a Bible sitting on the desk or the nightstand, but written on our hearts and minds so the response can be immediate.

I want to find a way to be more prepared. How about you?

Brian

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It's raining

(man the coffee is good there!)

I was recently in Seattle for a conference. Some of my coworkers assured me it was the most exciting, beautiful city around. Now, I enjoyed catching a ballgame at Safeco Field and appreciated that I could get a great cup of coffee every 300 feet. But, mostly it seemed like a place where I wouldn’t feel very much at home. I suppose that was primarily because it rained most of every day. That rain caused me to notice an unusual phenomenon. Even though there is so much precipitation in Seattle, no one seems to carry an umbrella. It’s almost as if people have decided, ‘I’m going to get wet no matter what I do, so why bother?”

That attitude is alright for umbrellas, but a “why bother” frame of mind for larger life issues can be very dangerous. Think of these examples: “I’m just going to die someday anyway, so why bother exercising or eating healthy?” Or, “I’ll never be able to solve all the world’s problems, so why bother trying to help even one person?” Or worst of all, “This life is all there is, so why bother thinking about anything or anyone other than myself?”

I believe this life is not all there is. Jesus said this to Nicodemus in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

Into each life some rain must fall; keep your umbrella up.

Brian

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