JRMITCH85 Character, Decisions, Faith, Hope, Ramblings

Once all the eggs have been found…

So I have been out of the game for far too long. It seems like Ash Wednesday was yesterday, Lent was this morning, Palm Sunday was lunch, and Easter finished five minutes ago. But in our congregation, similar to many congregations, we spoke about the journey toward the cross and the road we take toward a deeper relationship with God through the process of going without during Lent. But that is all done now, because all of the eggs have been found and we can move past that stage in our faith walk for another year. Or can we?

For many of us the journey toward the cross is filled with the reminder of our failures, marks showing us how we have fallen short of the glory of God. But that pain doesn’t tell the whole story, because the story doesn’t end on Friday; but rather death, pain, and our failure are overshadowed and redeemed through God’s victory and the Resurrection of Christ Jesus!

We spend much of our lives alternating between living our lives flaunting our failures and trying to redeem ourselves because we are not worthy.

When we flaunt our failures and are living in the world of  “cheap” grace we are of the mindset that the Easter Egg of Grace should be brightly colored and three-feet in diameter. We know the egg is there and we can turn around and get it at any time, but we are going to do our own thing until it is more convenient.

However, when we view ourselves as not worthy, we are of the mindset that the Easter Egg of Grace should be camouflaged and the size of a pea.  The quest is going to be arduous, and we don’t think it is possible to find the egg because we are so blind from our sinfulness.

Most of the time we are actually in the middle, and see the Easter Egg of Grace as the pink egg above.

But the story tacked on to the end of John is how the Lord reaches out to us, especially after we have finished celebrating the Resurrection.

When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?”

 “Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.”

Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”

Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”

He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”

Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”

The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”

Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.”

Jesus said, “Feed my sheep. Very truly I tell you, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, “Follow me!”

The Almighty is calling us to follow. We failed, and we continue to fail, just like Simon Peter, but the Lord calls out to each one of us to do the Kingdom work each day. We have chores we need to get done, the sheep need to be taken care of and fed, the lambs need to be fed, and we need to learn to follow better. The eggs are not hard to find, but we need to follow Jesus to their hiding place, and once we get there we find abundant grace.

JRMITCH85 Character, Decisions, Faith, Hope

Gifts, Humility, Forgiveness, and Heroism

Last week I prepared a sermon about Joseph (OT) and I have always been intrigued about this man. Was he perfect? No he wasn’t. However, most of the characters in the Old Testament had some flaw. With certainty though, Joseph was GIFTED, God had given him something, but he didn’t exactly know how to use the gifting at first.

God spoke to Joseph through his dreams, and probably understanding full and well what it meant, sought to blab it to his brothers. This dream essentially rubbed it in his brothers face that they would bow down to him, and he would rule over them. He was the arrogant kid that essentially rubbed in the face of his brothers that he knew he was better than them. His brothers were already upset with him because they saw him as a tattle tale, and as daddy’s favorite, which was thrown into their face every time they looked at his coat. So they looked at their arrogant brother and sought to break him, so they eventually sold him, and removed him from their sight. Joseph’s arrogance had betrayed him, and he lost all that he had which fed his pride.

Humbled, Joseph went around and was a good servant. He did all that he could to be successful, giving his work into the hands of God, and God blessed him. Not that this went straight to his head, but the success caused Joseph to let his guard down, and he fell into the trap set by his master’s wife. Feelings of invincibility probably caused him to enter into a circumstance that ultimately got him thrown into prison. Lesser arrogance than what he threw into the face of his brothers, but still a lack of humility.

God stayed with him, and continued to offer him gifts and blessings, even in the outward appearance of no gifts, no reason for pride, as he was locked up. God had a plan for his life, one that he probably had no clue, and his thoughts were far from those dreams that he had told his brothers, another life ago.

So Joseph used the gift God had given him even while in prison. This time he interpreted two men’s dreams, but this time the reward was not instant, for as soon as the man that benefitted from Joseph’s interpretation, did not help Joseph. This caused a deep humility to dwell within Joseph, so much so that he would remember that God is the source, and Joseph is merely the vessel.

Thus the time came when Pharaoh needed some dreams interpreted. Here Joseph supplied the information that allowed Egypt to be saved from the effects of a Great Famine. For this act Joseph, was rewarded with great power and prestige. At this point his brothers enter the scene again because the famine reached Canaan and his family. They came looking for assistance from Egypt. Instead of treating them with the wrath they probably deserved, Joseph helps them out, and actually saves his whole family, because through the power of the Holy Spirit, Joseph offers forgiveness and salvation to those who started his downward spiral.

He even wanted to offer them the assurance that they were forgiven because he knew that God blessed him throughout the midst of his humbling, by telling them, “Do not fear, for am I in the place of God? As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today. So do not fear; I will provide for you and your little ones.” His brothers needed to be humbled, but Joseph did this through the love of God, not the wrath.

JRMITCH85 Hope, Ramblings

A Small Hike

The other day we took a small hike in the San Gabriel Mountains and climbed up Echo Mountain. The intent was just to go for a hike and we had no specific goal in mind as the hike began. This was an easy 5 mile round-trip hike, and because we had plans later in the day, we thought this would be the perfect distance to travel. It was an opportunity to get away from the conveniences of television and computers (although I still had my phone and camera) and go spend some time in nature and look at the beauty that is not far away.

I lived in Pasadena when I first moved down to Southern California, and I always thought about hiking up in the San Gabriel Mountains, especially since the trail head was just at the top of the closest major street, but it took me moving an hour away to actually make my first hike in this area.

Unfortunately, as many days in Southern California, the smoggy haze covered the Southland and we didn’t get to see the urban sprawl of the LA Basin with much clarity. I was looking forward to seeing that, and I heard from several people on the trail verbalize what I was thinking, “We should come up here after a good rain, and then this view would be amazing.”

However, I was astonished when we got to the end of the trail, because here are remnants of a dose of man’s intrusion into nature, as we saw what remained of a resort. Here in my attempt to get away from the city and into nature, I found the city. In my reading since going up there this was described as the Disneyland of its day. However, in 2011, all that remains is some concrete, metal gears, pulleys, and motor parts. I couldn’t say that I was terribly surprised that something like this was up there, because one needs only to look to the top of the mountains to see a great deal of metal towers and buildings. Also as we walked up the hill you pass under power lines and directly under a tower.

Although it still surprises me that we as people carve out spaces in the mountains and we live like we would in our cities. Our “retreats” into the wilderness, while spending time in the beauty of God’s creation, become less leaving the city, and more creating a city in the wilderness. I am comforted that this is not something new, but something that we have been dealing with for more than 100 years. But as I look at these “relics” of a bygone age, I think there is a beauty in nature reclaiming them. Sure if they weren’t protected I’m sure someone would meaninglessly take these parts, but nature has claimed them, and made them beautiful once again.

However, we as people don’t return the favor to nature, we take our cities and make the air “dirty”, so much so that as I looked forward to seeing the San Gabriel Valley from a new vantage point, I was disappointed because all I got was a hazy image.

God has made us stewards of this planet, and I need to do a better job at carrying out this mission.

JRMITCH85 Character, Decisions, Faith, Hope, Ramblings

No, You Can’t

My son has repeated to me numerous times the phrase, “I can do it myself, Daddy.” It is one of the most annoying phrases, even though it comes from the a person that I love so dearly. I can guess that it is certainly not unique to my family, and that there are parents out there who feel the same way I do. My own parents probably fall into that category.

No matter his true independence level on a number of tasks, there are many things he does need help doing, for instance, he needed help turning on the faucet at a sink because the handles were just outside his reach. He kept telling me he didn’t need my help, and insisted that I turn the water off, until finally he stood on top of my feet which gave him the necessary boost to reach the faucet handles. In his mind, he probably thinks he did it himself.

Another incident tonight was as he was trying to fall asleep, and he kept whining, indicating he was uncomfortable. I was worried that he might be sick, I asked him whether there was anything I could do to make him more comfortable. In true form, he told me that he was taking care of it himself, and didn’t need my help. However, after another ten minutes of struggling he let me know that he needed another blanket because he was too cold. Oddly enough, he would have had the issue resolved earlier had he just let me know when I first asked him.

These two examples are similar to how we often think we can do everything ourselves, we think we are completely self-reliant. However, we aren’t! We don’t want to hear, “No, you can’t do it all on your own.” However, we often walk along in our lives struggling to do it on our own, when we really just need to learn to ask for help.

The Almighty God desires us in relationship to lay EVERYTHING at the foot of the throne, for nothing is too much or too heavy.

When are we going to wake up and allow others to help us?

 

JRMITCH85 Hope

I’m Thankful

I am so very thankful that there are a number of people that care for me. For I do realize that there are a great deal of people in the world without even close to the support system with which I have been graced. I look at those in Haiti still suffering a year later, I look at the toll war takes on societies half way around the world, and I look into the eyes of the homeless and hopeless in my own community, and I realize that I am blessed.

So I lift my glass to my support system. And I ask for all of you to be in prayer for those without.

How about going a step further, and extending God’s grace and allowing yourself to become support for those without hope?

JRMITCH85 Faith, Hope

32

Today the world sees me as a thirty-two year old. Gone are the glory days of thirty-one.  Now I must…

I know there aren’t too many things that are expected of me, other than the expectations that I place upon myself. Birthdays and New Years are filled with I am going to do this or that in the next year, and I think that if you are driven by “resolutions” then good for you, however that is not how I am wired. There are goals and resolutions I have set for myself, which have put me on a certain trajectory, but if I were to define myself based on whether or not I met my goals, I would be an utter failure!

However, I am not a failure. I am a beloved child of God. While I am not where I thought I would be 10 years ago, God has been by my side and I need to choose to follow the Almighty wherever I am led. I can lose sight of God’s direction if I am too fixated upon being this or that by the age of thirty-two, upon doing this or that in this next year. Losing God’s direction would be true failure in this year.

As I step back and get to fill in a different number in the age box, I choose to be the man God desires me to be this year. I am not setting a goal of being a different weight, I am not setting a goal of doing this or that, I simply want to be more humble, and rely more upon God in everything in my life.

“Here am I Lord, send me!”

JRMITCH85 Faith, Hope, Ramblings

Even Greater Gifts

Now that the holiday season is past and the gift giving has ended for a while, I looked back at one of my deepest joys was getting the opportunity to look at the face of my son as he opened his birthday gifts earlier in the season, and Christmas gifts. For his birthday I decided to give him a skateboard (with a helmet and pads), and I was filled with so much glee that he wanted to go out and immediately put on the pads and go ride his skateboard. That feeling was only to be topped by “Christmas” morning, and he woke me up to tell me, “I got a kitchen daddy, I got a kitchen!”, when the night before I was up until 2 AM putting it together, but his excitement made the sleep deprivation worth it.

Although I am not always the most astute person when it comes to getting people gifts, I knew what it was that would bring him a great deal of joy. Certainly, the excitement of getting gifts is enough to bring joy, no matter what the gift might be, but there is a certain gleam in his eye when he gets some particular gifts. I was overjoyed that the gifts I picked out for him were those special gifts. Even when “Santa” gets the credit for bringing the gifts.

However, no matter how good I was at picking out gifts, God is better at getting us just what we need at the right time. At the same time, God is pleased to give us what we need, and sometimes we also get those wants. We are blessed, we are bestowed with gifts, and God expresses love to us in diverse ways. God wants a relationship with us no matter what, and has gone to the cross to show us the extent of that love.

Jesus teaches us about God’s gift giving in Luke’s Gospel,

“So I say to you, Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. Is there anyone among you who, if your child asks fore a fish, will give a snake instead of a fish? Or if the child asks for an egg, will give a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (Luke 11:9-13)

One of those great gifts God blessed me with after Christmas was snow. On Sunday after church the snow started coming down, and it kept going until the next morning. I was just in awe of the beauty with which God has blessed us. Although I never would have thought to ask God for snow, I hope that the worship filled response I had toward the snow, allowed God the same joy I had when I saw the excitement in my son’s face.

 

JRMITCH85 Hope

Happy New Year

I want to thank my readers, my friends, my loved ones, and all those who have touched my life this past year. There is so much for which to be thankful. I have a family that loves me, friends that offer me so much support. I pray that this year is marvelous, and prosperous for everyone of you.

With every new year we think of new beginnings, but I pray that we not forget where we have been because those things help shape us into the people we are, and help guide us and instruct our path as we move forward.

With much love, hope, and wishes for peace and wholeness, I wish you all a Happy New Year!

JRMITCH85 Decisions, Hope, Ramblings

So Many Things To Do, So Little Time (Christmas Eve Edition)

It is here.

It has come like the kid playing hide-and-seek who has just finished counting, and has begun the search for those hiding, proclaiming, “ready or not, here I come!”

“Oh no, I never finished putting the decorations up!”

“I’ve got to get to the mall and finish my Christmas shopping.”

“This house is a mess, I have to get it clean!”

“Those presents aren’t going to wrap themselves.”

“There is so much to do, and I have so little time to accomplish it!”

These thoughts are the thoughts of a frantic person that has probably procrastinated on getting their Christmas tasks completed, and is now stressing out over their inability to complete the task list. This person is me. Maybe I am continuing the procrastination by taking time to write this blog, since I have not written any since the month began. (Another thing on the list that got pushed to the side.)

This stress level is proof positive that I have failed to keep perspective on the season. A season that started so promising, as we got the tree up the week after Thanksgiving. My son’s help was fantastic, as he made sure the candy canes were placed perfectly, and all of his favorite ornaments were in the same place. This was fun and helped me focus on the fact that I have been blessed with a marvelous 3-year-old, and watching the Christmas excitement in his eyes has been marvelous.

However, that was where the peace and time to just be in the season started to fade, as one thing led to another, and stress and to do lists began to take over. I don’t think it is unique to the time around Christmas, but it seems to be amplified by the fact that there is one day where everything happens, and judging by the way stores look the week after x-mas, the season ends, off to the next holiday.

Well here I am, trying to gain more perspective. This season is about the eager anticipation of the coming of the savior of the world: A savior who has come to us first as a vulnerable baby, a savior that remains with us to guide us through the Holy Spirit, and a savior who promised to come again! It isn’t about lists or calendars, it is about breathing in deep the breath of God, and allowing our hearts to let go of hustle and bustle, and rest in the fact that the Creator of the Universe loves you, and provides more joys, more presents, and more love than any man in a Red Suit.

So I wish you all a Merry Christmas, let us celebrate, and I encourage you to take a deep breath today!

JRMITCH85 Faith, Hope, Ramblings

Thankfulness

Happy Day After Thanksgiving!

Many people like to refer to this day as “Black Friday”, because of all the shopping that goes on, and stores go into “the black” for the year, but I really wish we would just focus on the things that we have to be thankful for this year.

I am thankful for my family, for the friends that are so close that they are family, and for the people that have impacted my life in special ways. I am thankful for a job, and a roof over my head. I am thankful for all sorts of provision that has guided and guarded me in the past year. I am thankful that I live in this country, and I am free to speak my mind, and free to move, and free from many of the world’s vulnerabilities. Most of all, I am thankful that I have a relationship with a loving God that loves me more than I will ever know.

I appreciate Advent as we enter after thanksgiving. Let us prepare for the arrival of the King of Kings, by being thankful that the Lord of Lords has given us so much for which to be thankful. Let us think about those things as we enter into this season.