Blind Leaders: Jesus Series

   Luke 6:39 "If a blind person is leading a blind person, both will end up in a ditch."   Jesus said this after he talked about judging others and why we shouldn't do it. He then began talking about leaders. This one seems kind of obvious. Why would Jesus say this? I'll tell you one thing I know about Jesus, and I hope you know or will soon see, Jesus does everything for a reason. 

   In our lives we will probably be a follower and a leader at some point. I don't know about you, but it's hard for me to follow someone who's morals and character I don't agree with. That's because eventually that leader may ask me to do something I don't want to do because I don't agree with it.
   Jesus is talking about a blind man being a leader. This isn't someone who is physically blind, though it is what the parable wants us to picture. This leader is blind to the truth. Following leaders who are blind to the truth will only get us hurt.
   Let me illustrate it this way: one time I was at a barn party with my soccer team. At the barn party there was this huge hay maze. This maze was as wide as the barn and as high as the bottom of the roof. It had many levels and turns. Some of the girls had already done the maze. One of my friends, who hadn't done the maze yet, wanted me to go in with her. I didn't really want to do it. I don't do well in small, dark spaces when I don't know how to get out.
   Nevertheless, eventually I gave in. My friend went in the maze first and I followed her. Soon it became clear we couldn't figure out how to get out (it was a really good maze). One of my other friends, who had already completed the maze, came in with a flashlight. She found us and led us out safely.
   The friend who was originally leading me was blind. But, the friend with the flashlight wasn't blind in more ways than one. She knew the way and brought a light. That's what good leaders do. They know the truth and the light. Then they pass that knowledge on to their followers. After that, the followers become leaders and pass on their knowledge and the cycle goes on and on. If that leader isn't passing the right knowledge then the followers will not have the right knowledge; that's why teachers are held to such a high standard because their teaching can lead people to truth or away from it.
   What does this mean for us? It means that we need to make sure we keep who we are following accountable. If we know our leader is leading others astray it is our job to let them know in a nice way. It means that when we are leaders we need to make sure we are teaching our followers the right way to go. It means that we need to know the truth that Jesus is our savior and the ultimate teacher.
   So, are you following godly leaders? Are you a godly leader? Do you know the truth about Jesus?

   Image from here. 

The Enigma That is Jesus: Jesus Series Intro

   Jesus. That name has power in it. It means savior, which is exactly who he is. But, he is also so much more. While on earth, Jesus healed people, preached, are with sinners, performed miracles, and more. Jesus is amazing but he is also confusing.
   Atheists and other people from various religious backgrounds look at Jesus in different ways. Some think he was a liar. Others think he was a lunatic. While others still believe he was a great prophet, but not God. There are many different reasons for why people think these things about Jesus. I'm not going to list all of these because we would be here forever.
   Instead, I'd like to focus on why people think Jesus was a lunatic. Jesus said and did many things that people thought were crazy. People don't understand why he said and did these things. They don't understand for different reasons but some just don't want to look deeper and get to know who Jesus really is.
   This is the reason why I am doing the digging for these people. I have looked into different things Jesus said that people thought were strange or didn't make sense. Each week we are going to dig deep into who Jesus is and why he did what he did. I hope you will put on your shoes and take this journey with me.
   So, I'd like you to think about who you say Jesus is. Do you truly believe that he is your savior? Do you think you understand who he is and why he did what he did?

   John 14:6

   Image from here. 

Focus on What You Have

    As a goalkeeper for soccer, I had to do many different drills in order to get my skills as a keeper up to par. Some of those drills involved had me having multiple soccer balls shot at me at once. In that drill if I focus on all of the soccer balls coming at me then I could either get hurt or miss stopping all of the soccer balls, which, in case you did not know, the job of a goalkeeper is to stop the ball from going in the net. 
   At this point you may be wondering why I am telling you this. This situation relates to our lives in multiple ways. The first way is that many times we are focused on what we don't have in life rather than what we do have. In goal if I go to stop one shot but I take my eyes off that one shot and look at another shot that is better I lose out on saving the first shot. In life if we focus on what we don't have we will never be happy. Romans 12:2 says, "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect." The things of this earth are temporary. If we focus on the things we don't have, the people we don't have, or the looks we don't have we won't be happy and we won't be able to reach others for God. We need to be transformed and focus on what God has blessed us with. 
   The next way this situation relates to you is leadership. At some point in your life you will probably be asked to lead. Being a leader is not always easy. Leaders make many choices and people under them may not always agree with them. That's why leaders need to focus on what they do have character wise and follower wise. If leaders focus on what other people have or the people who stopped following them then they will not be as effective. A leader's job is to do his work to the best of his ability. The leader must focus on what God is calling him to do. 
   So, are you focused on what you don't have? Are you using the abilities God has given you to glorify him? 

   Image from here.

Pressing On

   One place that I go every year whether on vacation or to counsel is Camp YoliJwa. This year the camp's theme is Press On. It comes from the verse Philippians 3:14 which says: "I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." 
   It seems like a fitting theme for what has happened in the world. We all got blindsided by COVID last year. No one, except God, was expecting a virus to shut down the world. Many of us got sick, were stuck at home, lost jobs, lost money, etc. We all had rough years. And, we all have a choice.
   One quote I say to my soccer players a lot is: "when something happens you have a choice: you can let it rule you or fuel you." That is a lot like this verse. When bad things happen, we can dwell on them. We can focus on how bad our lives are. We can complain about how unfair life is. Or we can choose to press on. We can say "this situation will not beat me." We can lean into God or press into him. We can gain strength from going through a difficult situation with the Lord by our side.
   Think about something that has happened in your life that may have been what you consider a bad situation. Did that problem bring you closer to God or did it make you angry with the Lord? Reflection is important in life. It is good to look back and see how much you have changed and grown. However, we cannot continue to be content to just sit by and stay stagnant in our growth. Verse 13 in Philippians 3 says "Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead." If we dwell on the past, we will not be focused on our goal. It is just like in a race. You can look back for a bit but if you continue to look back you will trip and fall. That's why Paul tells us to press on toward the prize. If we keep our eyes fixed on our goal or heaven, then we will make a difference for the kingdom. We will grow in God. We will, eventually, finish the race and truly abide with Jesus, our savior.
   So, are you focused too much on the past that you are hindering your future? How can you grow in God today? Are you focused on pressing on toward our heavenly goal?

Image from here.

Facing Failure

   I am a failure. Do not misunderstand that sentence. I am not in a low place right now, but I was. For a long period of time I felt like an idiot, misunderstood, not needed, and just not good enough. Have you ever felt that way?

   The funny thing was, before I failed, things were going fantastic (I love that word; people just don’t use it enough). I had gotten a job that I was a great fit for, I had just had a relaxing summer, and I felt God was with me. Then it all came down in an instant.

   Sometimes when we fail it is of our own doing. Other times we fail and it’s just because of circumstances outside our control. Either way you fail it is not fun (unless you are into feeling like a ton of bricks conked you over the head, but most people aren’t that I know of). Now, if you’ve ever failed and I am sure you have, then you know it’s not easy to get over. It’s especially hard when it’s not your fault or not part of your plan. If this is how you are feeling I have good news, you’re not the only one that this has happened to.

   In Joshua 6 we hear about the story of how Joshua defeated the city of Jericho. They defeated Jericho in a really unconventional way, and it was a great victory. After the battle Joshua and the Israelites were to destroy everything in the city, except for Rahab and her family. That is exactly what the Israelites did, or so they thought.

   Joshua sent men to another city called Ai (Joshua 7). They said to send 3,000 men to defeat the city. Those 3,000 men came back defeated. The Israelites had just defeated this huge city of Jericho and they could not beat this small city? Joshua and the elders were crushed and they cried out to God because their reputation as a nation/army was ruined. God told them the reason they were defeated was because someone took something from Jericho and did not destroy it. Long story short they find out who took all the plunder and kill him. Then God tells Joshua to go to Ai again and they crush Ai.

   Joshua was on top of the world, then brought to the deepest valley, and then brought up the hill again. It wasn’t Joshua’s fault someone disobeyed God, yet he paid the price because he was the leader. He failed, but he did not wallow in grief. Joshua cried out to God, obeyed God’s instruction, and made a huge comeback.

   When we fail we can choose to wallow in grief because something bad happened to us; or we can get up and trust in God. Joshua chose to seek God for instruction because he knew God would never leave him. God won’t leave you either.

   So, when you fail will you wallow or walk with God? What can you do to further you’re your walk with God so when hard times come you are ready?

   Joshua 6-7, 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, Philippians 4:4-7

   Image from here.

What in the World is Happening to Children These Days?!

   "R-E-S-P-E-C-T, find out what it means to me" (Respect Aretha Franklin). I've heard this song many times but I've never thought much about this particular lyric until recently. I love children. I really do because they have amazing curiosity, kindness, love for life, etc. But children, and people, have changed.

   We could blame the change on many different things: society, technology, morals, etc. But that's not why I'm writing this blog. I'm writing this blog for 2 reasons. The first is so people realize the changes in people/children, we will get to the second reason later.

   Today children do not listen to those in authority, do not have patience, need instant gratification, whine, and ask why rather than trusting those in authority.

   When I was younger I, and I'm sure many of you as well, listened to those in authority. Sure sometimes I failed to listen to my parents or teachers but I did the best I could to please my elders. Today children do not want to respect others no matter who that person is. They use the excuse of "we don't get any respect so why should we give it?"

   Children do not have patience and need instant gratification. We could blame technology and say that whenever children want an answer or want to win something all the need to do is turn to technology. They have an ideal that they should win something even if they lose because we have participation awards.

   If children do not get what they want they whine. If they get an answer they do not like they ask "why?" Rather than being okay with the answer they got from the person in authority.

   Now I understand that we want children to be curious, want them to work hard, we want them to question things. But this has been taken way too far.

   We are headed down a path that we may not be able to come back from. This path of selfishness and no patience because we want what we want and we want it now. This path of "I deserve it." You don't deserve anything but death (blog link)! This path of disrespect where we only think of ourselves and do not care about others' feelings.

   This is when we get to the second reason why I wrote this blog... see I made you wait and have patience ;) Thus far this blog has been pretty pessimistic but, just like in life, there is hope. We can change this path. We can choose to go down a different trail.

   How can we do this? We can say no to kids and people. Thus making those people realize that they do not deserve everything and making them work hard for themselves. We can stop giving participation awards and instant gratification. This makes people work hard for what they earn and work even harder to get that award again. We can disciple people and teach them right from wrong. This will help immensely with the disrespect problem if rewards are given for doing the right thing and taken away for doing the wrong thing.

   Above all else we must come along side people, lean on God, and pray. This path has already been paved and it's not going to be easy to turn around and change direction unless we are all working together toward this goal. We must keep one another accountable and help children who may not have good role models. And, when it seems hopeless, we must trust that God has a plan.

   So, have you seen this path that people and children are going down? Are you willing to make these changes so that children's lives can be better? Will you come along side others, be a role model, and trust in God?

   Matthew 5:16. Romans 12:12, Philippians 2:4

What's Your Motivation?

   In movies sometimes you will see someone who is acting like an actor. That person will sometimes ask the question, "what's my motivation?" In other words, "why is my character doing what he is doing?" The actor is trying to immerse himself into his character so that he can become that character.
   Sometimes I wonder if it would be good to ask other people that question. When people are younger, we enjoy asking them questions about what they plan to do with their lives. Then we ask them why they want to do that. Why do we stop asking people that question?
   I'll tell you who never stops asking questions: children. One day a child in my preschool class said, "Ms. Kat, why did you become a teacher? Is it so you could watch us eat lunch?" After I finished laughing, I had to actually think about that answer. It had been so long since someone had asked me that question. I had to think back and remember why I became a teacher in the first place.
   What about you? Why do you do what you do? Why do you get up in the morning? Why do you go to work? Why do you follow the religion you follow? Please pause a minute to answer these questions because sometimes I think we forget why we do what we do.
   I don't know what you do, and I don't know why you chose to do it. I don't even know why you continue to choose to do it each day. What I do know is that if you claim Jesus as your Lord and Savior then you and I should have some motivation in common. 
   1 Corinthians 10:31 says, "So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." Did you catch that? That one verse tells us what our motivation should be. Whatever we do we should do it to reflect God's glory. That means if you are working on a big project at work you are working on that project for God. If you are making breakfast for your family, you are making that breakfast not just for your family but for God.
   WHATEVER you do you are doing it FOR GOD. That should kind of change how we think about our everyday tasks. It should also change our attitude toward tasks we don't enjoy as much. What would happen if we thought about everything we do as if we were doing it for God? What would this world be like? What would your life be like? I encourage you to take a look at your motivation in all you do. Why do you do what you do? Or, the better question may be, who are you doing everything for?

   Image from here.