Your Pride Smells!

9:55pm, Thanksgiving night. I have been standing in Walmart in front of a large stack of crock-pot's for over 20 minutes waiting for the 10:00 sale to begin . There are people crowded around everywhere, who have been there much longer than I have, yet for how many people there are it is oddly quiet (I assume because of everyone wiping the drool off their chins from the great deals about to be had).

Then from behind me I hear a deep voice whisper, "Go and stand in that open space." As I turn around I see a dad holding the hand of his daughter. He loudly declares, in his deep voice, "You can stand wherever you'd like honey." Then this man leads his daughter to a tiny open space in front of the large crowd that has been waiting for over 20 minutes... and then has the audacity to say, loud enough for everyone to hear again, "Good spot hon, right next to the crock-pots."

 

This dad just used his daughter to get a crock-pot... I could not even believe it. I was appalled! I could see everyone who was gathered around giving him the stink-eye; each of them just as appalled as I was.
Since I didn't know anybody and wasn't going to say anything (probably because I am a little shy to such confrontation), I decided I would vent to God. So standing next to a stack of crock-pots and well over 500 people, I started to pray (in my head of coarse).

"God, can you believe this guy! What kind of arrogant and horrible person would use their own daughter just to get a crock-pot! God, thank you that I am not like him. I am way more patient and respectful that this chump. I even let an older woman stand up in front of me. I hope everyone around this guy at least saw my decency. God, if I ever do something as prideful this idiot I pray that you would knock me down a peg or two..."

And just as I was saying it God... it hit me... "Brian, you are just as prideful as this idiot. You are just like him, only you try to hide it."

It's funny how pride works. Some people are prideful and aren't afraid to show it - like this dad. and other people are just as prideful, but they try and hide it by pretending they are just a good person when really they are just trying to puff themselves up - like me (sadly).

Jesus talks about this in a parable in Luke 18.

"Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: 'God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.' But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me, a sinner!' I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted."

So what kind of pride are you carrying? The obvious kind or the hidden kind?

What A Load Of...

I've been running through this commercial in my head over and over, and I just can't find any logical explanation as to why this commercial ever made it on the air...

Let's just take a minute and process what it took in order for this commercial to get shown on national television (many many times):

1. Someone, at a meeting about how to advertise these new diapers, had to verbally suggest, "What about an 'American Idol' type feel where babies poop in their diapers and the judges score how big the diaper gets... and it will all be to the music of "woop, there it is", but we'll change the lyrics to "Poop, there it is."

2. Whoever was in charge, then, in a moment of pure dilusion, had to think, "What a great idea."

3. Then, the idea had to be explained to a great number of advertisers and cartoon artists (I'm sure many many times in order for each of them to have a lapse in judgement and somehow be convinced that this idea was actually brilliant), who then began creating the footage for this commercial.

4. After the commercial was finished a final Approval Team had to watch the commercial and again think to themselves, "My gosh, we are actually going to show this on television... HOW FANTASTIC!"

I mean seriously!?!? Not one person on this advertising team thought to themselves "Ok, this has been a good laugh, but I should really speak up and put some real ideas on the table for this commercial."

It makes me wonder how many terrible ideas I have just gone along with because I was too afraid to speak up...

Seeking After These "Plans"

"'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 a hope and a future...'" - Jeremiah 29:11

This verse has never sat well with me. I'm not completely sure why (I'm usually an extremely optimistic person - as I'm sure many of you would agree), but every time I hear this verse I cringe a little inside and think, "Your plans for hope and prospering only happen if I work hard and earn it for myself."


God says I'm gonna prosper, then I'm taking a nap!


Maybe I've just heard one too many people use it as a cop-out for being lazy or having a negative attitude, or maybe I am just a control freak and don't like that God's plans trump my own plans, or maybe I am just selfish and don't want other people to prosper if they don't earn it...  whatever the case, this verse just tends to bug me.

But in my 10+ years of loving Jesus, I have found that whenever I am irritated by something in the Bible, God continues to brings me back to it until I learn from it.

"...Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you.'"

These are the next 3 sentences after the "plans to prosper" verse. How interesting that God says, "my plans are for you to prosper, to have hope, to not be harmed, to live a better story" and then says "this is how you will find my plans".

When I read about Jesus I see a man who I gives and gives and gives... and then says, "but I want your heart" Jesus is our hope. The treasures of heaven is our prosperity. Living a story free of guilt and walking with God is our future. This should cause our hearts to seek God!

When life is hard and you desire hope... do you seek God. When nothing is going right and you need a taste of prospering... do you seek God. When the story of your life is meaningless and insignificant... do you seek God.

Jesus has a greater plan for you; one with hope, purpose, meaning... The question is: are you seeking after Him?

There Is Hope

It wasn't too long ago that I found myself in one of life's valleys. You know what I'm talking about, those times when things seem so hopeless, no matter which direction you turn or how far you look you just can't seem to find a way of escape. Those times when life just seems... meaningless...

For me, these valleys in life came when close family or friends had passed away, or when the poor choices I had made resulted in severed relationships, but the deepest valley's for me have always come from when the circumstances around me were outside of my control... and they blew up.

We all experience these valley's in life. I don't think we ever hope for them, but they are always bound to come - times when hope seems so far away and any sign of relief is just too far to see. Jesus understood this.

In Matthew 11 Jesus talks about life's valleys; about sickness, brokenness, and death... He sees the deep shadow that we can stand in when we are in the valley. Then he reminds us of who he is.

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls."

In the darkness of the valley, Jesus shines a light of hope. Coming to Jesus is restful. When life hurts and the depth of the valley is overwhelming... Jesus gently and humbly says, "come to me... I will give you rest."

This video is a poem called "There is Hope" by Bradley Hathaway. In a short book that Bradley wrote, all that was written in a chapter about this poem was the simple sentence, "If hope were not so, I would not choose to live."

Are you standing in a valley right now?
Are there areas of your life that seem to be without hope?
Then may you find hope in the restfulness of Jesus.

Student Ministries Blog Launch

Hey Students and Leaders! It's Brian and Jason here. We are going to start a Student Ministries blog! (I know, we're as excited as you are!!)

Our hope and prayer is that this blog would be a place to have a few laughs, jot down some honest thoughts about God, and continue our walk with Jesus Christ. We don't really have a scheduled time or day that we'll post new blogs, but we'll be updating the blog as much as possible.

We recognize that the holidays can get super busy and can become the time of year when we check-out of our faith, but Hebrews 10:24-25 tells us to "...consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near."

As we devote ourselves to Jesus, let's not get in the habit of forgetting to meet with each other, pray for each other, and fellowship with each other.

Keep checking in and writing some comments! (*Brian : every time I write the word "habit" I want to write "rabbit". ha ha)