What Are We Really Missing?

This is Gracyn's second full week of kindergarten; you would have thought it was her first. By nature, she is highly sensitive, emotional, caring, and nurturing. However, this week, she exhibited those sweet and genuine qualities at a much higher level than what we are used to. Starting on Sunday evening, she began sobbing uncontrollably that she didn't want to go to school anymore. We calmed her down, but every morning and evening the tears started rolling again. Gracyn finally broke down and explained to Laura and I last night that she missed us during the day, she felt her brother and sister were having fun without her, that Laura was doing extracurricular events with Cannon and Anniston leaving her out, that she wasn't the leader all the time any more, etc. For those of you with kids, I can appreciate that most of you have experienced this previously.

I know that she'll get through this adjustment period, but it got me thinking. Gracyn felt so secure at home. Mom is here everyday showering her and her siblings with love and affection, teaching them life lessons and how to read, taking them outside to play and holding them when they scrape their knees. At school, Mom isn't around. Now, Gracyn didn't opt for kindergarten, it is required.

Don't we, though, relish that same warmth, compassion, comfort, and security when we are walking hand in hand with Christ? When we are "in sync" reading the scriptures, praying continuously, involved in church and small groups, striving to walk as did Jesus, we feel the warmth of God's spotlight on us. We sense His presence all around us and know we are being carried in His hands. Why then, do so many of us seem to then waver and drift out a ways? We know how good we have it, but does our flesh take over sometimes?

As a pharmaceutical rep, one of the medicines I used to have was a new drug for alcohol dependency. The drug worked to reduce cravings in a part of your brain. Doctors prescribed it like crazy for a year, but the company realized few refill prescriptions nationally. After conducting some market research with physicians, the company concluded that alcoholics were not refilling the prescription for two reasons. The first was that they just wanted to continue drinking. Not good candidates for treatment yet. The second reason was that so many had patients had been sober for a month, through their initial supply of pills, that they felt they had the disease conquered. They didn't associate being sober with the medicine, but as their own will.

I would submit that at times we feel so secure in Him and that we have things figured out, that we step out and venture a bit, confident in our own selves. Our minds wonder, at times, what we may be missing out on or see the"fun" others may be having without us. When in all actuality, our inner peace, security, and comfort has been fueled all along by staying right in the light.

When it gets a little cool in the shade, most of us step back in. If you have ever tried walking around at dusk after being in the bright sunshine all day, you notice that things get more difficult to make out and you stumble a bit. Likewise, after being in His light then taking a step out, it appears dusky. We may trip and stumble a little, but realize we see better in the light.

Spiritual journeys are difficult and full of obstacles themselves. The challenges are to enjoy being close to Him without the wonder of missing out, to never feel as if we've got it all figured out, and to appreciate the love and grace He showers on us regardless of where we stand.

What is Hope?

I was watching one of the news channels the other night laying in bed and a story pertaining to the Utah mine collapse aired. In it, one of the owners of the mine Bob Murray was peppered with questions at a press conference announcing that due to unsafe conditions after the second collapse killed 3 rescue workers, he was suspending human rescue efforts and would continue boring holes to search for any of the survivors. One specific question has stuck with me the last couple of days. A reporter asked Murray,"So, are you admitting that you are taking away all hope from the families of the missing miners?" The owner nearly buckled at the podium at hearing the question but responded that he was not going to risk further life when no signs of human activity have been recorded in any of the bored holes thus far. The company would continue the boring rescue effort.

Hope. What is hope? Can it be fleeting? In what is hope rooted? Are hope and faith intertwined? Is there room for hope in faith? Is hope the antithesis of faith? As Christians, what can we hope for? Can we hope?

I have generally felt that hoping for something derives it roots in selfish desires, i.e. I hope my wife has a healthy delivery, I hope my grandmother recovers from cancer, I hope my house sells. To that extent, doesn't that hope supercede my desire for God's will? If I am praying daily for God's will to be shown to me and affective in my life, then I shouldn't hope for those things. Right? "Thine will be done."

If that is true, then hope would be fleeting, because our desires and dreams change often. Hope can be taken away. So then is the difference between hope and faith that faith should be constant while hopes are not?

I have struggled with this for a couple of days, wrestling in my head over and over for hours in my car. Why? My heart wants my faith to be true and pure, without question, focused on God's holy and divine will. We've been reading about prayer the last couple of weeks and God got plenty from me since Monday!

This evening after soccer practices, I realized that I needed another resource God has left us. I hit the scriptures. Here is what I found:


Hebrews 6:16-20

16 Men swear by someone greater than themselves, and the oath confirms what is said and puts an end to all argument. 17 Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. 18 God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope offered to us may be greatly encouraged. 19 We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, 20 where Jesus, who went before us, has entered on our behalf.

God offers us hope through His promises. Further, Paul characterizes hope this hope as an anchor. That's not a bad thing. And this hope/anchor "enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain..." Behind the curtain. That's huge! Few ever even saw the curtain in the temples. The writers took care to pen that when Jesus died on the cross, the curtain was ripped in two signaling that we now had access to God in a new way. So, if hope gets us behind that symbolic curtain, then it must be from above.

Look at Galatians 5:5

5 But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope.

Faith and hope in the same passage. Now we're getting answers.

We can hope through faith. Therefore, since our faith is rooted in God's will, then our hopes should be planted there as well. I'm getting this now. But, if that is the case, then how can others take away our hope?

I can surmise only one explanation. Those hopes don't come from or through God. We can harbor hopes of the flesh and hopes of faith. (Trust me, I never once read that or heard that in a sermon!!!!) I guess that human desires fall under hopes of the flesh. Those can fade away or blow in the wind. You've heard that you can take away my happiness, but not my joy? Much the same here. What goes on around me may affect my hopes of the flesh, however, my hopes of faith can't be taken away by you. My soul hopes for wisdom, peace, companionship with God, understanding of His love and grace. Only I can dim that hope within my soul because we know God only wants to fan that flame.

I "hope" that this makes sense. I'm sure most of you don't let your minds go crazy I do. Isn't God amazing? We have questions and through prayer and His word, I can now go on to ponder other things.

I welcome any and ALL comments.

Rough Day

Today was a difficult day. Please bear with me as I unload a bit. Many of you have come to ralize I am highly passionate and enthusiastic about a lot of things. The root of that trait is that I am emotional. There are times that characteristic provides me an edge, and at others it holds me back. This morning was our oldest daughter's first day of kindergarten. I have had moments in my car the last two days of silent tears, but this morning was incredibly hard. Now, I understand many of you travelled this road as well and survived, as will I. But you have to understand I cried at our wedding and my lovely wife who had heard from a friend that I was counting her steps down the aisle to see when her first tear would fall, didn't shed a tear to show me up.

I'm not sure that if I was sad to see her leaving the fold, or happy that she gets to start flapping her little wings. Probably a bit of both. How does this relate to our study on prayer? First of all, believe me when I say that many prayers daily were sent for her by her mother and I. This is the first step in gauging how effective we are as parents. Have we instilled in her enough self-confidence? Manners? Respect for others? Rights and wrongs? Empathy for others? Basic academic skills to succeed at this level?

About midday, I felt God tugging at me as I was driving back from Emporia. I turned ESPN Radio down and opened up a dialogue with God. The feeling of His presence filling my car made my insides smile and sit up straight. What I felt Him telling me was that I have to trust her and the time we spent training her up just as He does us. God forms us in the womb and trusts that we'll find our way back to Him. He trusts that once we invite Him to abide in our souls, that His consistency and grace will suffice. He left the door open to talk with Him at any time to discuss concerns,struggles, praises, sins, and victories.

At that moment, I relaxed and shed another tear or two. Though I realize clearly that I still have many more years with Gracyn at home to continue helping her find her path and instilling positive qualities in her, I have to trust that God is looking after her. He has been present in our house and in the words we speak since she was born. She is learning to talk with God herself. If God can trust His teaching to charge us with leading others to Him, surely I can trust that He has helped us train our child to enter the world.

God-Gene?

Late last year, Dean Hamer, a behavioral geneticist with the National Institute of Health, published a book describing in his estimation, genetic predisosition in every human for spirituality and faith. Through studies of nuns, twins and those who practice Zen, he claims that our search for faith and the feelings of transcendence are innate to the human make-up and not the result of a Holy Spirit. Scientists and religious leaders alike have decried his research, but I ask why?

Who cares? Religious leaders are outraged that someone would claim that spirituality is genetic opposed to a fulfillment from above. I ask, why shouldn't we believe that it's conceivable that God would instill a component of our genetics that searches for Him? The researcher says that this gene is inherent in every human in different degrees. That explains why some become zealots and others lukewarm. We know that God doesn't discriminate, so at least this holds some weight. All we have to do is look around our churches, neighborhoods, and work to see the differing degrees of faith.

People are searching to fill that need all over the place, whether it be through religion, yoga, meditation, drigs/alcohol, human relationships, work, etc. What is unique, is that those who received the grace of the Holy Spirit finally stop their search. Others still feel the void.

Some argue that this "finding" cuts through the heart of many religions because it takes away the tenet of free choice. I disagree. Supposing there is a spirituality gene, man still must find God. An amnsesiac who remembers nothing about his past or even who he is, innately begins a quest for his history so that he can continue his future. He bears the need to search and will only be complete when he discovers that. Much like this scenario. We all may have a make-up to search for who we are and a higher power, and will only feel complete when we discover the grace and love of God.

Science is incredible and has brought us innumerable answers to life. Though, the scriptures make it abundantly clear that not everything will be figured out, we shouldn't dismiss every notion that could link science and religion. It just may help strengthen your own faith--it has mine.