Flip The Script

In a previous post I said something sorta right, sorta wrong:  “Seeing Jesus put even His own grief aside is a powerful lesson for His followers to learn.”  True, Jesus tried to get some time alone to grieve for the loss of John the Baptist, but Jesus may not have actually “put that grief aside” when He fed the five thousand.

There are a lot of reasons I should not use Brett Favre as an illustration in this blog, but hang with me…  Here’s the game summary: Favre passed for 399 yards and four touchdowns a day after his father's death, moving into second place in NFL history for career TD passes while leading the Packers to a 41-7 victory over the Oakland Raiders on Monday night.  In the midst of his grief, instead of depressed, Brett Favre was animated by the passing of his father.

Now, there are a lot of reasons I should not use a grieving Brett Favre as a parallel of Jesus, but hang with me…  Jesus lost His cousin and the forerunner of Jesus’ earthly ministry.  And John didn’t die of old age, he was beheaded because of John’s religious zeal – he died because he served God.  How do you think that made Jesus feel?  In the midst of his grief, instead of depressed, the passing of his cousin animated Jesus to richly touch the lives of “the sheep without a shepherd”.

Sorrow and grief are powerful emotions.  So is compassion.  If we paused now for a word from our Sponsor, we’d turn again to Matthew 14:14.  When Jesus looked upon the people who sought Him, He “felt compassion for them”.  His compassion, His love was much stronger than His personal feeling of loss.

Followers of Jesus are called to “flip the script” and live for others, not themselves.  You’d think that losing a loved one would be the right time to focus on yourself for a minute.  Understandable.  Just remember that “follow” means going where Jesus goes in the way that He goes.  In your loss, you don’t put aside your grief, you let it remind you of the spiritual hunger all people have.  Go compassionately.

Clark H Smith

Pyromaniacs Anonymous Meets At My House

I don’t know when it started, probably before I was eating solid food, but I love fire, a lot!  Any chance I get, I’ll gather up half a forest and set it ablaze.  I don’t like camping, but the prospect of a bonfire is enough to get me out in the boonies for at least a day. 

One year, we vacationed in beautiful Wisconsin.  I reserved a one-tent campsite at Potawatomi State Park, just on the south side of Sturgeon Bay.  Before night fell, we made our way to the local WalMart to stock up on wieners, chips, sodas, and everything necessary to make world-class s’mores… oh and one more thing – a big jug of charcoal starter fluid.  We pulled up to the campsite, I stepped out of the van, and headed straight into the woods.  In 15 minutes, I was dragging back a train car load of deadfall limbs.  My wife had taken the boys down to the campground toilet / shower facilities to do whatever mothers and children do while dads do what they do.  As the family walked the lane back to the campsite, my wife feared a forest fire had broken out – a fierce blaze was lighting up the woods.  It was just me… being me.

The funniest scene of this whole evening was over at the campsite next to us.  At dusk there was a distinct sound of metal and stone snapping against one another.  At the sound of every snap, a flash would illuminate two figures hunkered over a pile of sticks.  This sad process continued for about 20 minutes as father and son bonded over the laborious process of trying to start a fire with flint and steel.  All the while, my sons and I were bonding over my outrageous success of starting and stoking a roaring fire.  More on this after a word from our Sponsor… no, it’s not Diamond Match Company.

And with great power the apostles were giving testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and abundant grace was upon them all.  (Acts 4:33)

Sometimes followers of Jesus go through life with a flint and steel, barely getting enough fire to keep them from being too cold.  We’re not supposed to live that way.  There is so much power available to us.  We get stuck doing things under our own power – many times because we are not doing the things that God is calling us to do.  The apostles, the original followers of Jesus, experienced unparalleled success because their hearts were set on doing the things God called them to do.  Sometime soon you should read the book of Acts and realize that you are called to no less success than the apostles.  Do you have faith in that?

I got up about 4am the next morning – who can sleep in a tent on rocky ground?  I stirred the fire and saw some flickering embers.  I went back into the woods, gathered another cord of deadfall and greeted my family with another inferno to incinerate warm their pop tarts over.  By mid-morning, rain was falling.  I declared that we were not camping in a muddy forest and we headed straight to the Holiday Inn in Egg Harbor – leaving the flint and steel family to enjoy the swamp all to themselves. That’s how I roll.


Clark H Smith

Why Are Ye Fearful

Years ago, I had developed a friendship with a young man nicknamed “Bear”, a great big guy and gentle as far as I knew.  He had graduated high school and was still living at home with his mom.  The two of them together was dysfunctional and things were likely to get serious soon.  Bear’s mom called me late one night, related some current events, and convinced me that he needed to move out of the home, now!  We agreed that I would drop by the house early the next morning, after mom had left for work, and I would tell Bear he had to leave.  Bear’s mom said she would leave the front door unlocked as Bear was accustomed to sleeping late and he probably wouldn't respond to a knock at the door.  On a cold winter morning, I arrived at Bear’s house reluctantly, but still convinced that leaving his home was the right thing to do.  I gave the front door a courtesy knock… and that’s when the storm started. 

Woof!  Woof!  Woof!  (Should I put dog statements in quotes?)  Oh, for crying out, I thought.  Not a dog.  I don’t like dogs.  They have a mind of their own and I never know then that pea-sized brain of theirs is going to tell them to bite me.  I froze.  Stay tuned for the rest of the story.  First, a word from our Sponsor.

And when [Jesus] was entered into a ship, his disciples followed him.  And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but He was asleep.  And His disciples came to Him, and awoke Him, saying, “Lord, save us: we perish.”
        And He saith unto them, “Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith?” Then He arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm.  (Matthew 8:23-26 KJV)

Standing at Bear’s door, I thought about waking Jesus up.  “Jesus, what about the dog?  Can you make the dog go away, you know, like that storm?”  But the Spirit cautioned me not to do that.  As clear as a bell, the Holy Spirit said to me, “Clark, are you serious?  You are here to tell a Bear to leave his den and you are paralyzed with fear of a yappy little dog?  Open that door and do your job.”

When God talks to you like that, you get moving.  I opened the door, I told the dog in no uncertain terms to shut up, I woke Bear up, and I laid out the situation for him.  There was nothing irrational about being afraid of barging into a house protected by a dog.  That’s for real!  But it was an offense to faith let something like that stop me from my greater mission.  Just like the disciples on the sea, Jesus had not called them out there to die and God had not sent me to Bear’s house to get eaten by a dog.  The fear was all mine and I had to decide whether to back up in fear or move forward in faith.

Followers of Jesus follow in spite of circumstances.  Is your fear keeping you on the porch?  Remember that you are following the Lord of Heaven and Earth.  He’s bigger than the yappy dogs in your Flesh and Blood world.

Clark H Smith