One Thing Remains

"Endurance = The ability or strength to continue or last, especially despite fatigue, stress, or other adverse conditions." (www.dictionary.com)

Who knew you could keep going because of a bunch of crows?

At the end of a long day of sitting and being mostly confined, it felt great to put one foot in front of the other, breathe in the sweet smells of summer, and work my way around the track. On this particular beautiful day, with the humidity lower than it had been, the track had attracted other one-foot-in-front-of-the-others, too. One was sprinting over and over again and barely breaking a sweat. Another had the unfair advantage of very long legs and effortlessly left me in the dust.

None of that would have mattered much if I hadn't heard crows on the stadium lights laughing at me as I ran by. They didn't do that with the other guys. Just me. Next time around, another cawing chorus of "Ha! Who are you kidding? You'll never make it."

In this race that is the joyful, adventurous, unpredictable marathon of being a Christ-one, you can either agree with the accusations of the crows and give up, or laugh back and remind them: "But my God, His love endures forever. It never quits. And He gives me endurance and encouragement that are second to none!"

And like as many runners do, you find a song that fits the rhythm of your pace and the renewed conviction within so that you feel as though you are walking or running in lock-step with the Savior of the world. A surge of joy, of confidence, of hope, of energy, of laughter at crows, of purpose once more. At the top of your lungs, something like this...

Higher than the mountains that I face

Stronger than the power of the grave

Constant in the trial and the change

One thing remains

Your love never fails, it never gives up

Never runs out on me

And on and on and on and on it goes

It overwhelms and satisfies my soul

I never have to be afraid

One thing remains

Your love never fails, it never gives up

Never runs out on me

In death, in life, I'm confident and covered by

The power of Your great love

My debt is paid, there's nothing that can separate

My heart from Your great love.

—One Thing Remains (c) 2010 Bethel Music Publishing

What the crows don't know is this:

"For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope and overflow with confidence in His promises."

—Romans 15:4, Amplified

To all fellow travelers this day, Selah.

Recalibrating...

In the fun of knowing a faster route than your cell phone’s directions are giving you, or in the frustration of missing your exit, the voice of the phone's guide is similar:

In a half-mile, turn le…

In one mile, turn ri…

Recalibrating…

In 500 feet, take a slight left 

Take a slight left

Take a slight left

Proceed to the route...

Sometimes, like the religious leaders who were trying to outsmart the Master, we like to think we know a better, wiser route to the Finish line. And in so many words, Jesus’ response is: “Recalibrate. Strip away all your preconceived ideas of what is important and let this one thing be your guiding foundation: Love Me with all your affections, and all that is uniquely you, and all your thinking and thoughts, and then continually and perseveringly in all kinds of seasons. Then let it all spill over onto others. This is the one thing that really matters for a life that is full and abundant and everlasting."

Sometimes, like the woman at the well, we can be caught in a religious trap where there is a certain place and time and location to meet with God, but then life happens over the next six days until the next Sunday. And in so many words, Jesus’ response is: “Recalibrate. I am much bigger than Sunday morning, or the order of your service, or the size of your building. Let this one thing be your guiding foundation: Break down your preconceived boxes and worship Me, seek Me, in the daily grind, in the places and situations that seem far removed from My interest. The time to worship is always now and wherever you are."

Sometimes (quite often, in fact), like the sisters of Bethany—one who sat at Jesus’ feet and one who had a to-do list a mile long—we are tempted to side with the one who kept humming “gitter done.” Because that’s what Americans do. Because that’s what good church-goers do. And in so many words, Jesus’ response is: “Recalibrate. Let this one thing be your guiding foundation: Remember the religious leaders who were trying to outsmart Me. Remember the woman at the well who was caught in a religious trap. Getting stuff done is important. Go for it, and I will help. But never ever forget the one thing that really matters in the end—not what you have accomplished or learned, but rather, did you know Me and live that way?”

Yeah, but life is a battle.

To which Jesus’ great earthly ancestor responds:

“The Lord is my revelation-light to guide me along the way; he’s the source of my salvation to defend me every day. I fear no one! I’ll never turn back and run from you, Lord; surround and protect me. 

When evil ones come to destroy me, they will be the ones who turn back. My heart will not be afraid even if an army rises to attack. I know that you are there for me, so I will not be shaken.

Here’s the one thing I crave from God, the one thing I seek above all else: I want the privilege of living with him every moment in his house [presence], finding the sweet loveliness of his face, filled with awe, delighting in his glory and grace. I want to live my life so close to him that he takes pleasure in my every prayer.”

Recalibrating…proceeding to the route...

“I desire only Him and to be wholly His.”—Brother Lawrence

Just Be

"There is a season—a time appointed—for everything, and a time for every delight and event or purpose under heaven."—Ecclesiastes 3:1, Amplified

"I’ve got to be doing something."

Which is why I think my iPhone camera was drawn to this scene like a magnet. Everything about what is going on here, from the random footprints in the sand, to the chairs insisting that they not be straightened out, to the dog dancing in the surf, said something else entirely:

"Exhale..."

...There is an old New England joke that has many variations, including this one: “There are four seasons—winter, still winter, getting ready for winter, and almost winter.” And when summer arrives, you can almost feel a frantic desire to inhale every second of it, savor it from sunrise to sundown, and get out there and…do something.

Some “do somethings,” like boating, hiking, or swimming, are refreshing and relaxing. Others, like mowing lawns, weeding gardens, and still having to punch in for the 9-5 are obligatory. But then there are the “do somethings” that try to tell you that you aren’t being productive or making the most of your day unless you, well, do something.

That beach photo, though, was a good reminder that Jesus—the greatest "do something" Person of all time—also took time to rest from the weary road, to take a long drink of cool water, to get away from the crowds. And not only that, He told the enemy of our souls: "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes out of the mouth of God." Wonderful words of life. Exhale words like these....

• "This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says: “Only in returning to Me and resting in Me will you be saved. In quietness and confidence is your strength…”—Isaiah 30:25, NLT

• “Six days you shall work, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even in plowing time and in harvest you shall rest.”—Exodus 34:21, Amplified Classic

• “Better is a handful of quietness than two hands full of toil and a striving after wind.”—Ecclesiastes 4:6, ESV

• “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”—Matthew 11:28-29, Message

But, there is one “do something” that is always worthwhile wherever we go this summer: to worship. Sing if you'd like, but there's more to it than that. A beyond-Sunday-go-to-church kind of worship. Just follow the beach chairs photo...

Seek to continually face the warmth and glory of the sun, and the Son...

Breathe deeply the salt air and give thanks that God is the giver of life and breath...

Let the ocean waves (or mountain peaks or long, winding pathways) remind you of God’s faithfulness in every season, even this one...

Be grateful for life, and especially be grateful simply for today...

Be thankful that God has placed you in your particular neighborhood of His kingdom, and for a purpose...

Let the vastness of the sea — or the forest, or even your veggie garden— fill you with gratitude for God's abundant provision and endless Love...

Walk, sit, run, wade, play catch with a dog, then take time to rock on the porch, eat lots of ice cream, and drive with all windows down...
...And in the midst of it all, as natural as breathing out and breathing in, keep looking Up and:

“Seek the Lord and His strength; Seek His face continually, longing to be in His presence.”

—1 Chronicles 16:11, Amplified

It could just be a typical photo of beach chairs to be admired while on the way to doing something else. Or maybe it's better than that. Maybe those beach chairs are a reminder, and an invitation: "Just...be, even in the midst of doing, even if for only a few minutes of every day."

“Have you ever spent a day or several hours when you sensed the presence of God as you hiked, worked, gardened, drove, read, or did the dishes? Those are foretastes of heaven—not because we are doing nothing but worshiping, but because we are worshiping God as we do everything else.”—Randy Alcorn

[Originally titled: 'Do Something!']

Living in the Overflow

"The fact that our heart yearns for something Earth can't supply is proof that Heaven must be our home."—C.S. Lewis

Sometimes, it takes a heat wave to help you realize that you are built for more than what’s right in front of you. More than the next thing, the next goal, the next achievement, the next purchase, the next horizon. Like juice and coffee and lemonade, which all sound and look appealing under normal circumstances, when the heat and humidity have rendered your thirst to the point of beyond description, you realize that only water will satisfy. And even then, you ache for more...

"O God, You are my God; with deepest longing I will seek You;

My soul—my life, my very self—thirsts for You, my flesh longs and sighs for You,

In a dry and weary land where there is no water."—Psalm 63:1, Amplified

This is a glimpse of what David is feeling in this Psalm about his thirst, his ache for more of God in his life. They are phrases and emotions that are easy, in our nutty world, to pass off as out of touch with reality. But in some translations, the anchor word of what is happening here is anything but fleeting emotion, and to be sought after perhaps more than ever—it is “yearning.” A deep longing within for something you know is out there but you can’t describe, but you know is somehow higher and greater than anything you can imagine. It doesn’t happen every day, but when it does, it settles in the pit of your stomach and wraps your brain into a pretzel with “What is it?!”

“Yearning: It needs to hurt in order to be worthy of the word. Otherwise it is just wanting.”—John of the Cross

If you have ever stared at a stunning landscape and had this strange desire to have another layer peeled away to reveal something even more stunning…

If you have ever heard a song that seemed to have been downloaded from Heaven itself and then hit replay over and over again with a strange desire to go ever deeper into enjoyment…

If you have ever sat around a dinner table with family, friends, and newcomers and felt that all other good ideas about home fellowships miss the mark except this one…

If you have ever left a worship service on a Sunday morning thinking either “but we were just getting started” or “is that it?”…

….then far more than contracting David’s supposedly “out of touch with reality” words that have no answer, you have probably tapped into a yearning that is the vein of God’s everlasting Love—one that is so deep, and wide, and high, and mysterious, you could never plunge the depths of it all. And so, it aches. And maybe one reason why no one yearns that way all the time 24/7 is that the intensity of such longing would do us in. Which is not what God had in mind. We may indeed be built for Eternity, but until then, the prayer from the heart of God to us is “Thy [My] will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”

To, as much as it is possible within us every morning and throughout the day, drink in that yearning Love that alone satisfies and that cannot be contained, but that overflows into action, just as it was intended…

“…love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul (life), and with all your mind (thought, understanding), and with all your strength.’ This is the second: ‘You shall [unselfishly] love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these."

—Mark 12:30-31, Amplified

You're the God who loves

You're the Son that gives

You're the Spirit that moves

The reason that I live

You call me to Yourself

You call me to be free

You call me to new life

So generous to me

I worship You Jesus

My heart belongs to You

My mind is Yours Jesus

My soul it yearns for You

—"My Soul Yearns," Benjamin Lucas and Samuel Lane (c) 2007 Vineyard Songs (U.K./Eire)