A Chain of Inspiration

C. S. Lewis is my favorite author of all time - Christian or secular.  His books "Mere Christianity" and "The Screwtape Letters" did more to help my understanding of Jesus (and Satan) than any other books, besides the Bible.   As I read him, I often wonder, "Who or what helped him learn how to think and write that way?"  I'm sure his schooling played a major part in shaping him.  He also studied privately with W. T. Kirkpatrick who was the father of the headmaster from one of his schools.  I have written in the past about his friendship with J. R. Tolkien, whom Lewis credits with leading him from atheism to Christianity.  In Lewis's "Surprised By Joy," he mentions that G. K. Chesterton's "The Everlasting Man" was pivotal to his understanding of Jesus.  Lewis stated, " I did not know what I was letting myself in for. A young man who wishes to remain a sound Atheist cannot be too careful of his reading."   I have not read anything by Chesterton to date, but I ordered "The Everlasting Man" today.   Let me know if you have read it or if you would like to read along with me.  After this one, I expect to want to find out who inspired him.

I Think I Can

 

In two months, at the age of 65, I will attempt to ride 26 miles on my bike for the first time ever.   I mentioned in an earlier post that I will participate in an Olympic distance triathlon with my daughter Lizzy, who will swim, and my son-in-law Trey, who will run.  I'm not sure if I can bike 26 miles, but I think I can.   We certainly don't have any illusion that we will win the race, or even place high, but we are going to be there.  So whether we finish or not, we have already won.  Not making the decision to participate means we would never know if we could.  This past week, I went with my wife to her annual company meeting.  I had the please of hearing Ryan Leak speak for the first time.  He is a sought after inspirational speaker and a best-selling author.  I found his story of trying and failing forward.   I hope you will take a few minutes to be inspired.  Click here for his story, and let me know what important decision you have been putting off that you could act on this week.

Time keeps on tickin'

 

I turned 65 this year, and I have to say that sounds old to me.  I know many older people, but my brother passed away at 69, which is very sobering.   I am fortunate to be in reasonably good health, but statistics suggest I am most likely in this last quadrant of my life.  I have a choice to make every day.  I can choose to groan about being old, or I can choose to treat each day as a gift from God.  That gift comes with an obligation to live that day for Him.  He wants me to love others, love myself and love Him in every moment.  I found this short sermon clip from Billy Graham which expresses my thoughts better than I can.   Take a few minutes to meditate on it.  

Note: Dr. Graham mentions the average life span is 70 for American men, but Google states it is now 76.5 for men and 81.4 for women.

Something Beautiful

 

June is one of the busiest months of every year for us.  We have Pirate Camp for our grandkids, birthdays and anniversaries, Father's Day and that all rolls into the Fourth of July weekend,  one of the most popular times of the year at the lake.  On top of all of that, June is usually one of the busiest times of the year for our real estate business.  After recovering from the excitement of being around so many people and the behind-the-scenes work to pull it all off, I feel like I need some rest.   Sleeping is not one of my greatest gifts, so I  have found having a restful mind during the day is critical.  I'm not very good at that either, but these things help me:  I am thankful for our small group from church that prays for me and encourages me.  I am thankful for the new Bible reading plan that I have started, The Bible Recap which is led by Tara-Leigh Cobble.  I am thankful for the  beauty of worship music and the way it makes me feel closer to God.  CeCe Winans is one of my favorite singers, and I found her version of Holy Forever this morning.  Take 5 minutes to focus your mind on Something Beautiful.

A Peculiar Glory

I am reading the book of Job.  Job is not one of the Bible's most encouraging books, but many people are drawn to it because it helps them in times of desperation.  Job is an upright man who seems to have everything going for him.   God is speaking with Satan, an accuser, who states that the only reason Job is righteous is because of all his worldly possessions.  Satan then claims that if those possessions were taken from Job, he would stop being righteous.  God allows Satan to take away all that Job has: his position, his possessions, his family and friends and his health.  The middle section of the book is a poetic conversation between Job and four "friends" about God's justice.  The first three friends believe Job must have committed huge sins to deserve such punishment, but Job claims he was righteous, thereby dismissing that argument.  The fourth friend, affirms that God is just and perhaps there are reasons God allows bad things to happen to good people, such as preventing future sins or teaching people more about themselves and God.  The last section of the book is a conversation between God and Job where Job continues to try to understand why there is pain and suffering on the Earth.  God doesn't directly answer the questions but states that while the world is beautiful and awe-inspiring, it is also complex and dangerous.  The world in its current state does not exclude pain and suffering.  Most importantly, while we may not fully understand the "why", God is pleased that we come to him earnestly to try to understand.

The Bible Recap is the Bible reading plan I am currently using, and it directed me to this great song by Shane and Shane with an interlude by pastor and author, John Piper.  I encourage you to take a few minutes to listen.

Babeling Book

I was reading this morning in the book of Genesis about Noah, the flood and the events following the flood.  After the flood killed all living creatures not on the ark, God directed Noah's sons and their wives to be fruitful, multiply and cover the Earth.  That worked for a bit until a group of his descendants settled on the plain of Shinar.  They decided to build a tower there so they could "make a name for themselves" and NOT be scattered over the earth.  This is the first post-flood mention of humanity's ultimate sin: putting ourselves and our needs above God and what he desires for us.  God stepped in, confused their language, and caused them to disperse and cover the Earth as originally directed.  The tower became known as the Tower of Babel.  The Mesopotamian word Babel means "gateway to the gods" and is associated with the Hebrew word, balal, which means to mix, jumble, or confuse.  The Greeks later translated the word Babel to Babylon.  Babylon continues to represent the desires of men and political systems to be greater than God all the way through the Old and New Testaments until its final destruction in Revelation 18: "Fallen, fallen is Babylon the Great".   God, help us to remember that you are the greatest and that nothing we create can come close to what you have for us.

Bonus fact: While the english word "babble" is actually derived from a Germanic word mimicking infantile, indistinct speech, its proliferation is connected with the biblical account of the Tower of Babel.

Pirate Pay Day

 

It's that time of year when pirates invade Lake Hartwell.  Together, with our good friends down the street, we host Pirate Camp for our grandkids for three fun-filled days.  Captain Hook steals their treasure on the first day which sets off a series of chases on land and sea where the scalawags try to track down Captain Hook and regain the treasure.  They usually find success by the end of the week which keeps them coming back year after year.  While the week is exhausting for us, I continue to believe it is one of the most important things we do all year long.  If you use Facebook, you can check out some of the fun here.   I hope you have the opportunity to invest in your kids and/or grandkids this year!