God is Not a GPS

Mar11

Recently, on a marquee outside a church, I saw written, “Let God be your GPS.”

Let’s break that down: With the GPS app on my iPhone, I tell it where I want to go, and it tells me how to get there. Or I ask it to tell me where I might find a certain type of business, and it gives me suggestions. I then can choose to which one I want to go. It will give me a suggested route, tell me how far it is and how long it will take me to get there, and then give me step by step vocal guidance of how to get where we’re going.

That doesn’t sound anything like God to me.

I would liken Him more to a magical treasure map that only reveals your next step when you have taken the one before. You hold it firmly, making sure the winds of doubt don’t blow it away. You keep your eye constantly on it so as to not lose your way.

This magical treasure map also shows you beauty unimaginable, gives you relationships inconceivable without it, and constantly sings you a love song in the most incredible voice you have ever heard.

And the treasure you find at the end of your road has, in large part, been the journey it took you to get there.

Thankful today for:
99. More light at the end of the day
100. A chance to help lead our congregation in worship
101. One more day of the weekend

Sisters From Other Mothers

Mar10

I didn’t want to miss a day, but it’s late (and even later with the approaching time change), so this will be brief. We just got in from enjoying a birthday dinner at Kobe Japanese Steakhouse for my wonderful friend Alyson. The food was really, really good, but I would have gone to McDonald’s (and I hate McDonald’s) to celebrate her.

I live far away from my two sisters, so the daily blessing of being in their lives is missing (although better after the advent of Facebook). But with my friend Alyson, and a couple of others in my life, I have sister-like relationships that I depend on for that emotional connection.

We take care of each other’s kids, we plan vacations together, we text, we chat, we have fun, we share our hearts. We are sisters from other mothers. And they, along with my blood sisters, mean the world to me.

Thankful today for:

96. birthday celebrations

97. Alyson

98. my sisters

If God is For Us

Mar9

If God is for us, who can be against us? And conversely, if God is against us, who can be for us?

When a problem comes up, do you pick up the phone first and call the experts, or do you pray?

When you’re making a decision, do you list the pros and cons first, or do you pray?

When you’re having a meeting, do you just have it, or do you pray first and throughout that meeting?

Let me tell you a story of a time when we dramatically saw God work after we prayed.

Our school, Trace Academy, rents space from my church. At the beginning of this school year, our facility underwent a fire inspection. This is a regular occurrence. When I was the one in charge of the facility, I had the same inspector every year and we never had any problems. This year, a different inspector came. And apparently, this inspector thought very highly of her authority. She gave the usual laundry list of things to move, fix or improve for fire safety, but then she fixated on the fact that we had four or five preschoolers being cared for in the nursery while their moms were working on campus.

What she determined could have shut us down.

So after panicking for a few moments, we were called to pray. I specifically prayed that God would either change this woman’s heart, or that He would remove her from her position.

Long story short, several weeks later–we had a 30-day deadline–the person now responsible for the facility for our school tried to call this inspector. Time after time she was unable to get in touch with her. Finally, someone else in the fire inspector’s office told us that she was no longer with the department. (!)

Is that a God story or what? They sent a new inspector who gave us a clean bill of health, and we were able to Imagecontinue business as usual, only with a more clear sense that God is on our side, and that we are doing what He wants us to do. I believe as a direct result of prayer, that fire that could have devastated us was extinguished.

Honestly, no authority on earth could have shut us down if God wanted us to keep going. We believe what we’re doing is from Him, and a power-hungry bureaucrat is not going to be able to shut that down.

David and Goliath

Paul and the Roman guards

Jesus and the grave

What God wants to accomplish and whomever He wants to use can never be defeated.

Thankful today for:

93. glasses

94. the sound of someone else doing the vacuuming

95. date night with my younger boy

It’s Baseball Season (And Why I Love it So)

Mar8

I have plastic Oakland Athletics cups that I’ve had since before I got married 21 years ago. 

Does that say anything about how obses–I mean loyal I am to my team? I grew up in Oakland, Calif., and much of my youth was spent at the ball park or listening to games on the radio. Televised games were still a thing of the future. I have autographs from the glory days of the A’s of the 70s, and can still remember attending the celebration parades in downtown Oakland after a World Series win.

I even got to go to game 1 of the 1988 series between the A’s and the Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. You know, the one where Kirk Gibson, gimpy as he was, came in against Dennis Eckersley in the bottom of the 9th. A’s fans thought we had it in the bag. Well, what did Gibson do? Hit one out of the park, over the right field wall if I remember correctly. I’ve never heard a place erupt as loudly as that stadium that day.

And I still have a VHS tape of the Earthquake game, in the 1989 series between the A’s and the Giants. What a sight that was.

Ah, those were the days.

My team hasn’t made the playoffs in a while, but that doesn’t dim my love for them. Players have come and gone, and I’ve been sad to see them go, but I usually end up loving the ones who replace them. What I’ve been asked by my kids, who have not inherited my love, is why I like it so much.

I actually have no idea, but here’s my attempt to figure it out:

There’s strategy and strength

I loved to watch Ricky Henderson steal bases. Now Jemile Weeks and Coco Crisp are filling that need. But I also love the beauty of a blast over the wall. The sheer strength it takes to hit a ball that far is completely beyond me, but Reggie Jackson, Frank Thomas–for the season we had him–and even the bash brothers, Jose Canseco and Mark McGuire, brought awe to the ballfield. Ever see a suicide squeeze in real life? You feel like your heart is going to burst right out of your chest.

It’s slow-paced, like summer

Some people would say it’s boring. I like the leisurely pace that allows conversation. Most baseball fans can talk about statistics and players with the best of them. I’m not for numbers, I just love the beauty of the game. With the advent of lights, baseball lost some of it’s summer-like qualities and became more of a money maker, it seems to me. Living on the east coast as a west-coast fan has been hard when the vast majority of games are at night. A reasonable 7:00 game on the west coast means 10:00 here for me. So I subscribe to MLB.TV and watch the archived game the next day, reliving my youth as it’s hot outside and I’m listening to the calls of “hot dogs! Get yer hot dogs here!”

There’s nothing like the intensity of two out in the bottom of the ninth, tie game, runners at the corners

OK, I admit it, when I’m watching a pre-recorded game I have been known to take a peak at the box score when the game is getting close to the end and the outcome is up in the air. I’ve got heart issues, remember? The hand-squeezing, heart-pumping thrill of batter against pitcher can be so intense, I’ve nearly had palpitations!

A baseball park is like nowhere else on earth

Whoever wrote the words to the 7th-inning-stretch classic, “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” was a true fan. “Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jacks. I don’t care if I ever get back.” Nowadays the fare is much fancier than just peanuts and Cracker Jacks. There’s nothing like a ballpark hotdog, cheesy fries, nachos. Whatever. It’s better at the ballpark. More expensive, too, but that’s another story. The sun, the smells, the hecklers: there’s nothing like it.

I don’t live anywhere near a ballpark anymore, and I miss it. On my bucket list is to visit every major league ballpark in one season. Don’t know if it will ever happen, but I’m hoping.

It’s spring. Baseball is in the air. Anyone want to go play some catch?

Thankful today for:

90. baseball

91. spring

92. mlb.tv

Faithful in the Little Things

Mar7

Recently, our vacuum cleaner broke. And, life being what it is, we couldn’t go right out and get it fixed. If we had a carpeted house, a few days, or maybe even a week of not vacuuming wouldn’t seem like all that big a deal. But nearly our entire house–save two of our smaller bedrooms–is hardwood or ceramic tile. And we have a big, black dog and a white and black cat. After just a day, the hair drifts are ankle high.

Daily vacuuming of pet hair is a kid chore, as is daily cleanup of the dog’s business in the backyard, the litter box in the garage, wiping down of the kids’ bathroom and setting and clearing of the table for dinner.

If any one of those things doesn’t get done, the affect is cumulative. Thus the ankle-deep drifts.

No amount of nagging gets me buy-in. So I’m taking it up a notch–if chores aren’t done, allowance is affected. No more Mrs. Nice-gal. Be faithful in the little things and you will be given more.

Matthew 25:14-30 tells the parable of the talents. Verse 21 says, “Well done, good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of your Master.”

What’s that old saying? If Momma ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy.

Momma’s not been too happy with the lack-luster attitude about chores, so we’ll see if this new standard works. I made them all sign a contract. Day one down. We’ll see how the rest of the week goes. This is life lessons, folks. If you don’t do the job, you don’t get paid. If you don’t do it well, you don’t keep the job. But even more so, it’s what God desires out of us. Do all things heartily, without complaining, as if God was your boss. Because, in the end, He really is.

Thankful today for:

87. a normal temperature for my middle child

88. a youth group my kids love

89. old TV shows