Upside Down Faith

            He did it! Tiger Woods won the Master’s this past weekend. What a great story. Here are the three things I learned over the past few days.

America loves a redemption story.

Just in case you were unaware, Tiger Woods is slated as being one the greatest golfers in the history of the world. He is ranked only behind Jack Nicklaus according to the PGA. In a span of 10 years, Tiger had earned 15 majors and was on his way to shatter Nicklaus’ record of 18.

However, that all changed in November of 2009 when Woods’ lost control of his vehicle and crashed into a fire hydrant outside of his house. It was at this time that rumors began to fly about multiple affairs, sex addiction, and alcohol abuse. Over the next several months, Tiger lost many endorsements and was written off as a waste of talent. It seemed in that moment that the world had turned its back on their once beloved king of the sport.

But on Sunday, with Tiger never carrying a lead throughout the tournament, America collectively held her breath and then celebrated as Tiger closed the Master’s as champion.

America loves redemption!

My life is not defined by my sin and setbacks.

            As 2010 rolled around, it seemed as if Tiger would never be able to step out into public again. He was written off, shamed, slandered, and forgotten in many ways. His sin was front-page news and was even earned an edgy (if not over-the-line) skit on SNL. The world made a mockery his failures and public disappointments.

I am in no way endorsing or softening the choices he made. In fact, he has never claimed to be a Christian and I would be in the wrong to hold him to any other standard than that of God’s Word. What I am suggesting is that in a time when someone should have experienced great compassion and love, he rather experienced a deeper since of shame and scorn from an unapologetic world. But thank God our sin does not define us! In fact, we are defined by the one who paid for our sin – Jesus Christ!

Not only did Tiger suffer from a great since of shame, he also suffered several medical setbacks that would keep him off the course both physically and mentally. In 2018, Woods’ had his best year since 2007 as he finished second in the FedEx Cup standings. While he showed moments of greatness throughout the season, he also had moments of mental breakdowns and physical pains that would cause him to miss the final cut or withdraw from tournaments.

But once again, that was in 2018 and this is a new year and a new season!

My life is defined by WHO made me, not what others think of me.

“Tiger Woods is totally, completely, unequivocally, and utterly done.” – Shane Ryan

That’s what was said of Tiger Woods in July of 2015. He was written off and thrown away. But I for one am grateful that Tiger did not let those words define him. Instead of accepting the world’s dismissal of his ability and future, he crawled, bled, worked, and eventually made his way back to the top.

In fact, the same article that wrote him off said:

“Lastly, if Tiger Woods or anyone else says something different on the topic of him being done, you should understand that they are lying or misinformed. Into perpetuity, forever and ever, Tiger Woods is done. Tiger Woods. Is Done. Done.”

Well. I do believe someone else has something to say about our fate. Scripture makes is clear when it says, “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”– Genesis 1.27

Furthermore, God tells us, “For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”– Jeremiah 29.11

What we know is that each person has been uniquely made in the image of God. The Psalmist proclaims that we were, “fearfully and wonderfully made,” (Psalm 139.14)! Our identity is grounded in God’s image. In His character. God is good. God is faithful. God is just. God is right. I can go on and on and on and on.

We also know that God has a plan for us. The Apostle Paul says that God’s will for us is good, perfect, and pleasing (Romans 12.2). The Bible teaches us that God will “never leave us or forsake us,”(Deuteronomy 31.6-8; Hebrews 13.5).  So what we have is a promise that the God who formed us, also has a plan for us, and that throughout that perfectly good and pleasing plan, He will always be by our side.

While Tiger Woods’ story of redemption from hero-to zero-back to hero is powerful and exciting, it pales in comparison to the greatest story of redemption the world has ever known. This weekend we will celebrate the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

So no! I am not defined by what the world says about me. I am defined by whomy God made me to be. I am His workmanship (Ephesians 2.10). I am His creation (Genesis 1.26-27). And because of the cross and what Jesus accomplished through His life, death, and resurrection, in God’s eyes, I am worth it (John 3.16).

It has been some time since my last post. A lot has happened in the past two months. My wife, Alicia, and I traveled to the Philippines with a group from our church. My parents came to Paducah to celebrate Christmas with us. Then Alicia and I took the girls to Indiana to bring in the New Year with our families. I couldn’t even begin to calculate the hours and miles we have endured over the past 67 days.

In addition to the travel I accepted a position as President-Elect for the Discipleship Network of Kentucky Baptist Churches. I know it’s a mouthful but it basically means I have the privilege of working with fellow ministers across the state as we aim to provide discipleship coaching and opportunities for training throughout the year. We have already started planning our first event and have a few others on the docket for 2019!

It had been a busy season but as 2018 was coming to an end I had a sense of longing. I didn’t know what was going on internally but I knew something was missing in my life. My joy was diminishing and my energy was beginning to fade day-by-day. I thought if I read more I would be filled. So I read 4 books in the course of 3 weeks but that didn’t fill the void in my life. I started going to the gym again. I ran. I lifted weights. I ate better. While those things made me feel better and did help with my energy, my joy was still struggling. I prayed more. I mediated more. I searched God’s Word for hope and direction, but I was still missing something.

Have you ever had a season like that? It seems that no matter how hard you try, nothing can scratch the itch! It wasn’t until recently did I realize what was missing. And now that I look back at it, it makes perfect sense! The problem wasn’t a lack of filling in my life. Obviously I was doing more than I had in some time. I filled myself with God’s Word. I filled myself with exercise and healthier eating habits. I filled myself with knowledge and sought wisdom. But what I wasn’t doing. What I was missing. What I needed to be doing all along was pouring out to others all that I was pouring into myself.

The Bible tells us that we all have gifts. Paul calls them ‘gifts of the Spirit,” (1 Cor. 12.1). Each person who has professed Jesus Christ as Lord has received the Holy Spirit and therefore received ‘gifts of the Spirit.’ Some are given one and others given more. There are several gifts and I won’t go into them all right now but I know that one my gifts is teaching. This has been affirmed to me over the years. My greatest joy comes from studying God’s Word and then teaching others how to apply His truth in their lives. Truth be told, that was one of the motivations for this blog. I want to encourage you, challenge you, and motivate you to live a life that brings glory to God. There is no way we can do that apart from His Word.

What I discovered was that I had not had an opportunity to teach in nearly 3 months. I poured out everything I had while we were in the Philippines. When we returned I welcomed the thought of a short break. But then Thanksgiving was around the corner. Christmas came and went. We were busy at church planning for special services and programs. My family was busy with the hustle and bustle of the holidays. I was busy but not satisfied.

Then last week everything clicked. We launched a 4-month initiative focused on Evangelism that allows me to teach every Sunday morning from now until Palm Sunday. I have the honor of working with every class in our church from 7^thgrade thru senior adults as I teach them how to share their testimony in 2-minutes or less.

Four days prior to the Evangelism training I kicked off an 8-week series on Spiritual Gifts during our Wednesday night ministry. As I write this I am preparing to teach for the fourth time in 8 days and I couldn’t be more energized! The Apostle Peter writes, “Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God,”(1 Peter 4.10-11a).

Let me end with this. There is an undeniable joy that comes from using what God has given you. I can testify to that! If you have trusted your life to Christ, you have been given a gift to be used for His glory. Maybe you are like me: you know your gift but haven’t used it in some time. But maybe you don’t know what it is. If that’s you, I encourage you ask God to reveal His gifting to you.  Ask others what they see in you and then begin to, ‘use whatever gift you have received to serve others.’

 

 

***SPECIAL NOTE***

There are several ‘tests’ you can take to begin the process of determining your gifting. Understand that these ‘tests’ are not the answer. They are however a great place to start. If you have never taken a Spiritual Gifts test I recommend the Spiritual Gifts Survey provided by Lifeway. Click on this link to download a free test, https://www.lifeway.com/en/articles/women-leadership-spiritual-gifts-growth-service   Find “Spritual Gifts Survey (Discover Tool).” Print it. Take it. Pray over it. And post your spiritual gift to this blog! Let me know where the Lord is leading you and how I can pray for you.

There are many spiritual disciplines that followers of Jesus should be practicing on a daily basis: prayer, worship, fellowship, scripture memorization, meditation, and the reading of the Bible just to mention a few. However, there is one that I often overlook. Truth is, it is probably the most non-threatening, least intimidating, and simplest discipline of them all. That discipline is stillness.

Recently I attended a piano concert performed by a friend of mine. She is the most accomplished pianist I have ever met and has a heart of gold. She loves Jesus and prayed that God would be worshipped during the concert. The weeks leading up to the performance I would walk into the church office and hear her practicing for hours. When the night of the concert came, my mind was scrambled with the chaos that is Sunday morning ministry. If you’re a pastor or serve in any capacity of ministry on Sunday morning, you know what I’m talking about. I was tired. I was already thinking about Monday. I even brought a book to the concert with me to read so I could prepare for a new class I was developing. However, all that changed the moment my friend began to play. I put down my book. I closed my eyes and drifted into an hour of peaceful stillness as my heart was comforted by the melodies of familiar hymns and modern worship songs. In fact, it was that night that inspired me to write this post.

The Psalmist writes, “For He says, ‘Be still and know that I am God,’” (Psalm 46.10). We find two truths in this short verse. First, we are called to be still. That means let go of what keeps us from staying focused on the Lord. The word, still, is a military term used in the Hebrew language that calls for a cease-fire. In other words, the Lord is telling us to stop fighting, to drop our weapons, and let go of what we think will give us satisfaction or fulfillment.

I don’t know about you but I have a hard time finding clarity in the midst of distraction and chaos. Have you ever tried to drive through downtown Atlanta or Chicago? It’s not easy! I remember the first time I tried to navigate the complex roadways of Chicago. Trains were moving around me in all directions. Cars were passing under me and over me at the same time. Semi-trucks were merging onto the highway from the right and the left! You need to understand, I grew up in a rural Midwest community where we had to watch out for cows instead of pedestrians. You could drive to a four-way stop and wait 15 minutes before you saw another car. When you came across a vehicle on the side of the road, it was probably a farmer checking his crops or a hunter set out for whatever was open that season. The insanity of large city highways was nearly enough to make me lose my mind. However, after some time, I began to familiarize myself with my surroundings and adjust. But isn’t that what we do with just about everything. We are surrounded by chaos, so we adjust. We learn to maneuver around the challenges and obstacles in our way and keep moving forward. But here’s the problem with that approach, the chaos hasn’t stopped, we just got used to it.

God never intended for us to live in chaos, certainly not on our own. That’s why He sent Jesus; so that we can have a constant, stable relationship. Jesus wants us to give Him our burdens, stresses, fears, frustrations, tiredness, and whatever tends to burden us at any given time (Matthew 11:30). So we must learn to let go and seek stillness. That brings us to the second truth: Know that He is God.

Know is in this passage means to “have the right perspective.” When we see things the way God intended them to be we will experience clarity and confidence. My family has a history of poor eyesight. Without my contacts or glasses, the world looks like a painting by the hands of Picasso, VanGogh, and Philip Barlow all-in-one. I remember when my oldest daughter, Brooklyn, received her first pair of glasses. At first she was excited because of the design. We spent nearly 45 minutes trying on glasses before she settled on a pair of dark brown plastic frames with teal-blue leopard-print arms. After a week of waiting for the glasses to arrive we received the phone call that they were ready and off we went to the eye doctor. What I enjoyed most about the moment was when she actually put them on. She was excited to have glasses but she wasn’t expecting them to make a difference. For the next 2 days she would put her glasses on and then take them off. Each time with a play-by-play action report about what she could see. It looked like this:

Glasses off. “Daddy, I can’t read that sign.”

Glasses on. “Daddy, the sign says ‘Home Depot.’”

Glasses off. “Daddy, I don’t know what that says.”

Glasses on. “Daddy, it says ‘Speed Limit.’”

Glasses off. “Daddy, I don’t know who that is.”

Glasses on. “Daddy, I didn’t know my friend’s dad is on that billboard!”

The beauty of perspective is that we experience life the way God intended it to be. When we have clarity we develop confidence. Over the next several weeks, Brooklyn’s grades were better. She made some new friends. She joined a soccer team. She could catch a football. She even beat me at corn hole! Her perspective was clear and her confidence was high.

That is exactly what the Lord wants for us. He is calling us to find peace in Him by letting go of distractions. He wants us to have confidence in who He is and who He has made us. He wants us to experience peace, rest, and clarity. So turn off the TV. Put down that book. Place your cell phone out of sight. Close your eyes. Breathe. And for a moment (or two or three) experience the presence of God.