Only

Only Luke is with me. 

 - From II Timothy 4

You gotta show up. I have shared this thought before. For most of our lives, this is not based on what we say, or do, or think. Rather, it's whether or not we're there. Or here. Or present. Right now, right now.

When I spent an overnight in a hospital years ago, during a heart scare, I found that I appreciated visitors, but not just to talk to me. I liked it, simply, just for them to be there. In the room. Not even in sight necessarily. It helped for them just to be there. To be present. 

Yesterday in church, Dr. Matt Hook urged us to learn God's will. Not necessarily His will for me. Not His will for the future. Just: His Will. Now. Right here. In this moment. 

And God's will always has to do with others. Taking care of them. Listening to them. And that requires simply that you be there. With them. That's it.

We are sensory beings. We can feel, smell, taste, hear, and see. All of these things bring us the gamut of what it means to be alive. We experience joy, and we experience devastation - all because we have these senses. Our senses are do powerful, that they can easily override our facilities of wisdom and of judgment. It is so easy just to fall back on what feels good. 

It's almost like the war between evil and good is more like a war between feelers and thinkers. The problem is that both sides, in any conflict, claim to be the ones that think, while the those on the other side are the feelers. But therein lies a very important point: Whether we are feelers, or thinkers, humans seem to realize instantly that it is better to be a thinker. 

Paul companions all left him, because something else felt better. They came to miss their warm bed and daily fellowship with friends and family so much, that it was no longer important to them, to stay with Paul, minister to him, and be integral parts of world history and the advancement of God's eternal kingdom. 

But Luke stayed. And Luke is remembered. And Luke will certainly be present in eternity. 

Truth, and eternity, and equity, and justice, and all good things, have nothing to do with democracy and majorities. The closer you get to virtue, the fewer people you will find. 

Only Luke. 

And that is important to remember in these troubled, partisan, bitter times. 

More

I have more understanding than all my teachers, 

 - From Psalm 119

I discovered something transformational in the past couple of weeks. 

In attempting to complete a daily list of tasks, I was always coming up short. Invariably, I would put the really important things, like practicing my music, reading, and most importantly, prayer, to the bottom of the list, so that I can focus on more "urgent" things. 

I got the idea to have a goal of, say, ten minutes per day in focused prayer. But still I wasn't getting to it. 

I broke the ten minutes into one minute sessions, that I would accumulate until reaching ten minutes for the day. But that didn't work either. So I tried something crazy and counter-intuitive . . . 

I broke the one-minute slots into one-second slots. I added a twist: these very short slots would be placed in my task list, every five or six items. And with each successive round, I would add a second, and keep track of the accumulations. 

Okay, by now the reader is thinking this all is just crazy. But here's what I discovered:

A one-second prayer, in which all I do is mouth the words "My Father, God," has way more power than we realize. In three seconds, you can say "My Father, my Creator . . . ". And by the time you get to ten seconds, you are including a short confession, or request for forgiveness. 

The main takeaway is this: Even one, five, ten, or thirty seconds of focused prayer can add great value to your entire day. And admittedly, this already is far more than most people do on any given day. A short break, just to fully focus and say "My Father God" has great power. I recommend it. 

And this gets us on our way to what the Psalmist is talking about in #119. All knowledge, all wisdom, all learning, all excellence . . . begins with a simple acknowledgement of God. 

Humanity 2.0

 I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts . . . 

   - From Jeremiah 31

Why would a loving God just let us continue forever in sin, evil, and death?

Exactly. 

But the people that ask such questions always tend to be the last to welcome this opportunity to rid the earth of evil. (By the way . . . why are they always only concerned about evil in the world, without ever mentioning death at the end of all lives as the true problem?)

They don't want God's law written on their hearts. They don't want to be changed. If they're the cause of evil in the world (even a little bit) they don't want to know it. They don't even consider it. They are incapable of thinking about it. 

Their solution to the world's problems is "Somebody take care of it. Somebody that's not me. Because I am as I am and I will never change."

Right.

God gives us the chance to change, and to be the people that, if we're truly honest and truly caring, we actually want to be. Don't you want to become immortal? Don't you want to have perfect control over your thoughts and words? Why is there resistance to this?

God's solution is something like an upgrade. We are still who we always are, but better. We still laugh and love. Except that we will live forever and we won't go around making others miserable. 

Jeremiah got this. The "crying prophet," whose life was awash in sadness - probably to the point of clinical depression - had to rejoice in thinking about God's plan to upgrade creation. 

And that means, all of us. 

Feet

He prostrated himself at Jesus' feet.

 - From Luke 17

At first the ten lepers kept their distance from everybody, especially Jesus. They didn't have global corporations funding research into contagious and deadly skin diseases, breaking down the viruses and bacteria at the cellular level, artificially mutating them, developing antidotes and vaccines on the side (just in case); maybe accidentally releasing some viral agent into the community - with of course, not even a faint wink or nod in the direction of stock values.

They just knew that they needed to keep their distance, and there was enough regard for authority of any kind that they paid particular attention to staying clear of the Lord. 

But after He healed them, one of them came running back, a Samaritan (or, someone from a religious or social sect considered beneath the Judeans). This Samaritan was no longer concerned about social distancing. He had been healed!

When you've been sick, you take care to recover and not spread your ailment to others. 

But the goal is always to get well. Your objective is to get things back to normal. We are a problem-solving and creative creature. The goal is normalcy, predictability, steadiness, structure, and routine. We need those things in order to do the value-added and life-enriching activities, like hobbies and the arts, that make life worth living. 

We want to be normal. As soon as we are well, we immediately forget that we're sick. We go back to normal behavior where we no longer see others as pariahs, but rather, we embrace closeness to others and even throw ourselves at each other's feet!

We're okay now. We're well. We're healed. We're safe.

We should be running back to the attitude of being okay . . . and even dive at the feet of anything, or anybody, that represents normal.

Wrangle

 . . . and warn them before God that they are to avoid wrangling over words.

 - From 2 Timothy 2

I have to admit, I had to go and double-check the definition of the word "wrangle." I always assumed that I knew what it meant. It seems like it had some connection to working on a horse ranch; or shepherding a herd of wild horses. Cowboys are wranglers, because they're outside with lassos and chaps. Wrangler is a popular brand of blue jeans . . . with a really cool "Old West"-looking logo. 

But if I had to provide an accurate and concise definition, without looking it up, I couldn't.

Paul warned us not to wrangle over words. 

Wordnik.com offers this definition: To quarrel noisily or angrily.

Now that I can understand. 

It is in the nature of my own distinct understanding of Scripture. that it draws a lot of wranglers into my vicinity, if all I do is assert an honest tenet of my beliefs. 

Facebook is a haven for digital wranglers. People argue for the sake of arguing, or to make sure other people can see how bright, or articular, or smart, or well-read, or terse, or glib they are. It seems like that's all that happens on Facebook: wrangling. 

Wrangling is arguing that has no point. It is two or more people trying to outwit each other, getting themselves hatefully cross at each other. And "hatefully" is a deliberate and accurate characterization of what's going on. 

We're training ourselves how to hate. 

We will contend with evil. We will use words from Holy Spirit, in defending our faith. We will counter-punch when someone takes a verbal jab at God and His Son. 

But we must resist wrangling with other believers (for this weakens the Body). We must not wrangle with unbelievers either. Pointless, vain disputes that are no less than virtue signaling, and that really are unseemly attempts at drawing attention to oneself. 

That's all it is. Let's not wrangle. 

Study

 Great are the deeds of the Lord! they are studied by all who delight in them.

 - From Psalm 111

This is something that I do not do, enough:

Study

I need to study the music that I am supposed to be preparing for performance, with other people, in ensembles, for audiences. Don't just practice - study.

This requires me to listen to recordings of the music. Maybe read up on the back story. Collaborate with the other artists involve. Have practice sessions with them, that go deeper into the music than a formal rehearsal (you should be well-oiled and well-prepped by the time you get to rehearsal).

I need to study the news. I need to study the problems of my friends and family. Research. Understand. Empathize. 

I need to study the problems that I am going through. Learn their labels. Understand root causes. Talk to others dealing with the same thing. 

Studying is the opposite of ignoring. It gets you beyond simple awareness. You study so that you can know, and know well. You study in order to memorize. Your studying makes important concepts get locked away into your heart and conscience. Study can remake you into a better person. Study is necessary for continual personal improvement. 

Every moment is an opportunity to study something: a problem, a virtue, a milestone; something outside ourselves. Something that connects us to the world around us. Things that are not simply what's going on between our ears. 

Study = presence of mind. It equals perspective. It equals wisdom. It equals perspective. And it equals humility. 

So study. 

Jerusalem

 If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget it's skill.

 - From Psalm 137

And once again, today, the Scripture reference brings to mind a favorite song from way back. In 1978, this version of Rivers of Babylon, by Boney M, received some considerable airplay. Detroit's J.P. McCarthy, of WJR AM-760, had it on his regular playlist for much of the year. This is where I first heard it, and loved it instantly. 

The sentiment stuck with me. This longing for a homeland that had been stolen from us. We had been conquered and dispersed: we, who had enjoyed such freedom and wealth for so many years. We, who had been the world's breadbox, the source of unlimited relief for the world's disasters. We, who had led artistic advancements for centuries, enriching the lives of people all over the globe. 

For whatever reason, Babylon hated us, and as soon as it had the capability, swept across the ancient world and dashed us to ruins, took our spoils, scattered us throughout the known world, and almost wiped us from the history pages, for good. 

Babylon, as powerful as it was, could not have done this without help from some of our countrymen. You have to weaken the culture, the families, the institutions - - - all of that which is the foundation of any great society. Every society has greedy and envious people - even the good ones! They had their own form of hate against us: their brothers, sisters, and neighbors. Because of slights or perceived insults from long ago, they were all too willing to participate in bringing us low, destroying our freedoms and quality of life along with our wealth. The impact was also to harm countries throughout the world that relied on us for protection and markets. 

We hear beautiful songs like The Rivers of Babylon, and find in its inspiration, a misplaced desire to have what they had - - - epic and heroic experiences that led to such songs of aspiration and hope. 

But that too is misplaced. 

You should never want the destruction of your own society. You should never want ruin for your own kin, your own neighbors, your own people. 

It's better to live in a free and prosperous land . . . than to have to remember what it was like.