Black Friday Famous

Keva Juice made the front page of the Corpus Christi Caller Times. . . kinda.

And, NO!, they’re not lined up at 4:30am the day after Thanksgiving to get into Keva. They’re all waiting for Kohl’s to open.

Dang it!

The Fear of Man

This post from Ben Arment spoke to me today; perhaps it will you as well.

Every morning, I pray the same prayer: “God, let me fear only you today.” It’s not that I actually fear other people. It’s that I wage secret campaigns against them, rather than speak openly and honestly.

What are the signs of fearing man?

• The fake laugh
• Being a “yes man”
• Blending in with the crowd
• Not being true to my passions
• Not speaking truth at my own risk
• Putting on a fake persona

Ouch. Right?

24

I’m a 24 fan. I couldn’t wait for the new season to start last Sunday, but I wasn’t prepared for the splash of reality that the show presented.

Usually, 24 is so “Double-O-Seven-ish” that it’s more cartoonish than anything. This season’s opener, however, surfaced some moral issues that are all too real. . . perhaps too real for us to want to face.

If you want to find out more be sure to check out World Vision’s website here.

I Hurt

What a great way to spend an afternoon! About twenty or so of us played flag football at church today before our annual Thanksgiving Feast at CPC.

And (even if I say so myself) us old guys held our own against a bunch of young wippersnappers. Of course, I won’t be able to get out of bed tomorrow. . . But we had fun and had a few flashbacks to the glory days

Divine Appointment

I was pretty frustrated today.

Today was the day my daughter’s and I were supposed to decorate D-Town. Each year, about one hundred people hang the city’s Christmas decorations along Corpus Christi’s downtown streets. It’s fun to meet new people, work with friends, and contribute to our community.

But we didn’t get to do it this year.

Instead, late last night an employee called to say something had happened and no one was available to open Keva in the morning. So, guess who got to fill-in. . . me!

The drizzly, cold (by south Texas standards) day meant there were few customers; only 4 in the first 2 hours. I was wasting my time. . . until “Stan” came in.

Stan is a semi-regular customer. “How’s it going today, Stan?”

“Oh, okay, I guess.”

“That doesn’t sound to convincing,” I said.

“Oh, my girlfriend and I are having some trouble. . . . What do you have that will help with a bad hangover?” Stan asked.

As I mixed his smoothie, Stan went to the restroom, where he spent way too much time. I had images of him being sick all over the store’s restroom, or worse, him attempting suicide at Keva Juice. I could just read those headlines!!!

Eventually, though, he came out and we began to talk. We talked about how demanding his girlfriend was. We talked about how the bouncer threw him out of the bar last night because he was out of control. We talked about how people misjudged him because of his shaved head, tattoos, gold chains, torn jeans, and “wife-beater” undershirts.

All the while, I kept wondering and praying. Would there come a time to mention God? If so, how should I do it? Do I tell Stan I’m an occasional preacher in my other life? (I hate doing that. When people hear I work for a church their walls immediately go up). Then Stan said something almost in passing that caught my attention, “I’ve always believed God has something more for me than this.”

The door was wide open. I didn’t have to force the conversation; Stan made it easy. He was a seeker in the true sense. He was looking for something more from life and “somehow,” through some “quirk” of “circumstances” he knew God had something to do with it. “Somehow,” through some “quirk” of “circumstances” God brought Stan and I together at this very moment.

In his book, Wild Goose Chase, Mark Batterson imagines that in heaven there is a group of angels whose job it is to arrange divine appointments. If so, their conversation must have sounded something like this:

Ok, how can we bring Dan and Stan together? Stan is 23 and Dan is 43. Stan is a mechanic and Dan is a preacher and business owner. Stan is single; Dan is married with kids. They don’t know any of the same people, live in the same neighborhood, or share anything else in common. . . . Why don’t we set it up so that on November 21, 2008 Stan and his girlfriend have a fight. This will cause Stan to spend time with his friends at a bar. He’ll drink too much, get thrown out, and end up with a wicked hangover. While that’s going on, we’ll mess with Dan’s employee’s schedule so she can’t work the next morning. We’ll make sure his other employees can’t fill-in for her so he’ll have to work. Then, on the morning of December 22, 2008, we’ll cause Stan to want a smoothie to help ease his hangover. Oh, yeah, let’s make sure the weather is damp and cool so there won’t be any other customers in the store so they can talk uninterrupted.

The divine appointment had been set. The arrangements had been made before time began. The angels were watching.

Sure, I had to say, “Mmm, Stan, you know that thing you said a minute ago about God? Let’s talk about that some more.” Sure, I had to encourage the conversation in the right direction; but Stan, the angels, and God had already done the hard work. All I had to do was step through the door that was opened for me.

Eventually, someone did come in the store. Our conversation ended and Stan left. But before he left he shook my hand. He said thanks and said he wanted to continue our conversation sometime soon.

I don’t know what will happen. I may never see Stan again or we may become best of friends. Tonight I’m praying for him. I’m praying that those angels have already arranged another divine appointment for Stan and me or for Stan and someone else who can pick up where I left off.

I’m not frustrated anymore.

Oh, You’re Just Praying, Part 2

Yesterday’s post ended a bit strongly when I wrote:

Maybe one of the reasons we feel so week, vulnerable, and helpless is because our prayers have become pathetic little whimpers whispered quickly so we can get on with what really interests us.

After thinking about it, I stand by what I wrote.

Churches are busy with many good activities such as deep Bible studies, delicious potlucks, life-changing support groups, and more. We study and meet together to build better marriages, be better parents, improve our finances (for the sake of the kingdom, mind you), improve our self-esteem (so we see ourselves as God sees us), we study how to pray, we talk about how we should serve others, we support one another as we break free from addictions, and we discuss ways to share our faith.

Without doubt, such activities are “good”. They have their place and they are needed.

But I can’t help notice that we Christians don’t have any more success with our marriages than non-believers. Our debt loads are still overwhelming. We sure have our share of emotional problems; and we’re just as addicted to drugs, food, and illicit sex as our neighbors.

If anything, these things have gotten worse over the years.

In his book, “Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire,” Jim Cymbala raises similar concerns. He says the church has slowly shifted from being a “house of prayer” to a house of discussion among ourselves (my words, not his). We have more classes, more programs, more seminars, more videos, more retreats, more study, more discussion. . . and less prayer.

What if we took the time we spend talking to one another about stronger marriages, less debt, better mental health, greater evangelism, etc. and devote it to talking to God about these things?

Great question.

Oh, You’re Just Praying, Part 1

“You’ve got it easy this week. No class to teach. . . just praying.”

“Oh, you’re just praying Wednesday night aren’t you?”

I heard those comments–and others very similar–from people since Sunday, when I announced we’d have a church-wide prayer meeting this Wednesday night. I understand what they’re saying. They’re saying that I’m not reading, and researching, and preparing a lesson for my group. They’re saying that it’s going to be an easy night. We’re not doing anything other than just praying.

Just praying. JUST PRAYING! Are those people CRAZY??!!!

Don’t people know that praying is NOTHING LESS THAN CALLING ON THE CREATOR OF THE UNIVERSE to do our bidding?! Don’t people understand that it’s a dangerous thing to approach a king?! Don’t people know that the world can be changed when people “just pray”?!

How dare we take such a task lightly!

I believe it was Eugene Peterson, in his book “Working the Angles”, who talked about once being asked at a church potluck, “Pastor, could you get us started with a little prayer?”

If I remember correctly, Peterson goes on to write how amazing such a request is. There is no such thing as a “little prayer”. And nothing at church should “get started” with prayer–as if once we get the prayer out of the way we can get down to the real reason we came.

Don’t people know that the highest, grandest, and most worshipful thing we can do is pray?

Maybe one of the reasons we feel so week, vulnerable, and helpless is because our prayers have become pathetic little whimpers whispered quickly so we can get on with what really interests us.

Bubble Creek Canyon

This is hilarious! I’m not sure what I like best; the “you do right or I might smite” sign, or the “Christian Liquor Store,” or “ESPrayN”.

The really sad thing is that I know people who think this would be cool.

Veterans Day

Today is Veterans Day. A day set aside to remember the end of WWI (the Germans signed the armistice at 11 o’clock, on the eleventh day, of the eleventh month) and to honor all the men and women who have served this country in times of war.

I am humbled to think about the sacrifices that others have made so that I can experience freedom. Freedom is not always easy–especially when I don’t approve of how some express their freedom–but many have fought and died to give us this freedom.

Today, however, it occurred to me that there are no veterans in the Kingdom of God. No armistice has been signed between God and his enemy. No soldiers have returned from a foreign war. The battle between good and evi stilll rages.

One day we will celebrate our victory; but until that time comes we must keep fighting. As winston Churchill once said, “Never give up. Never give up! Never give up!”

Barak McCain