SCRIPTURE

Scripture.

I hear people say "I know God will not put more on me than I can handle." It is a strange

saying. It is as if God is saying "you are handling that burden ok, so I am going to give you

more stress, more work, more trouble, more grief." If you think about it long enough, it is a

pretty narcissistic statement. We keep telling ourselves that we are strong, invincible, God-like.

Scripture does not say that God will put more burden on you. Rather, scripture clearly shows

that we live in a broken world. It tells us of war, betrayal, displacement and slavery. It tells us of

famine, disease, flood and pestilence. It tells us of brokenness. It tells us of death. None of

these are things that God does to us. Satan does these things. Satan promises power and

prosperity. Satan never delivers, and we are left broken and defeated.

Scripture says that God comes to be with us. God does not abandon us, but even when we are

lonely, God is present. At our weakest moment, God brings strength. At our darkest moment,

God brings light. When we feel defeated, God brings victory. At those times when it becomes

clear that we are not god and that we cannot handle everything, God comes and handles our

burden for us. And when we die, God brings life.

Scripture is full of stories of how God acts. Liberation from slavery. Order out of chaos.

Empowerment to the weak. Justice to the victim. Food to the hungry. Forgiveness to the

transgressor. Hospitality to the stranger. Healing to the sick. Justice for the victim. Grace to the

sinner.

Scripture also shows that even the most devout are not immune from the brokenness of the

world. King Saul became paranoid. Uriah was murdered by King David who was trying to cover

up his adultery. Job suffered great pain and loss. The disciples of Christ either died violently or

in exile. Paul was afflicted with his "thorn in the flesh." Stephen was stoned to death. To "put

on Christ" or to commit to love God with our whole heart, mind, and strength will not protect us

from harm.

But those who do acknowledge and daily worship God find strength, courage, and purpose.

Those who align themselves with God produce the fruits of the Spirit which are love, joy, peace,

forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Those who trust in

God can stare down the darkness of evil.

If we focus on the ways of the world, we will be beaten and bruised. But, if we focus on God in

the midst of our struggle, we will confirm that which the prophet Isaiah said "those who hope in

the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not

grow weary, they will walk and not be faint."

So let us be careful not to use pithy statements that sound like they come from the Bible. Let us

actually read and study the Bible so that it reveals to us the nature and glory of God.

We can find what we look for in scripture. 

The Wright Word for Today.

OPTIONS

Options

At any moment, we have unlimited options. Usually, we think we have only one or two or perhaps a few options - stop, move forward, turn left, turn right. But, the truth is that we have many options - turn around, go up, go down, turn circles, and more. 

Just think about what you can do right now - stand up, sit down, sing a song, paint a picture, scream bloody murder, do handstands (or attempt to do handstands), get in your car, take a walk, read a book, go to the kitchen, go to the bathroom, go to bed. 

We do have unlimited options, but only one choice. We can only take one step at a time and each step brings us to a whole new set of unlimited options. We are constantly making a choice from our options all day long. 

There are benefits and consequences to each choice that we make. When we choose to marry, we get the joy of being committed to one person for life's journey. But, we eliminate every other person in the world as a partner. We find joy in eating that piece of cake, but that choice might bring diabetes or the need for new pants as our waist expands. We can buy that huge SUV, but we pay dearly at the pump. 

Choosing the interstate can get us there faster, but we miss all of the beauty and culture along the back roads. We can choose the serenity of the back roads, but we might miss the ballgame, or party, or concert because we took the road least traveled. 

Some choices have immediate blessings but long term consequences. We can rejoice at buying the latest and greatest thing, but the debt can be costly. Some blessings are delayed but bring long term benefit. We might want that double latte now, but putting that money daily into a savings account might help us be able to retire early later on. 

If we are not careful, we will choose to seek immediate gratification and suffer later because we did not put something away for a rainy day. Or, we will put all that we have in a rainy day fund and never enjoy the fruits of our labors. 

And carefully making choices based on what appears to be the best option might lead us to a cliff or quicksand. Until we complete the journey, we will not know whether or not we made the best choices. Sometimes, we need to make difficult choices to go through the dark valleys in order to eventually be able to see the beauty of the meadow or the sunrise from the mountain top. 

That is why it is best to choose something or someone that will help guide us. Joshua said to the people of Israel "Choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD." The Psalmist said "the Lord is my shepherd." Jesus said "I am the way, the truth, and the life." The wise person will not listen to the get rich schemes of humankind, but the wise person will seek God and follow along the path that God's lays out. 

Making The Lord our shepherd is the best option. The Wright Word for today.

SOAPBOX

Soapbox.

Any idiot can get on a soapbox and draw a following. Strange things have been espoused by street corner preachers, politicians, fanatics, and others. Usually, when we encounter them, we chuckle. Yet, they feel the need to keep expounding their narrow thoughts over and over again. In time, instead of striking a nerve, they strike a chord with others that agree with what they are saying and they fall in line with the piper.

There are many out there. Some are pro choice and others that are pro life. Some support gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender persons. Others angrily speaak against them. Those on the right say that we must have a strong defense at all costs, and those on the left say that we must drop our weapons of war and put all resources into social services. Conservatives say we should spend less money and liberals say we should spend more. There are capitalists, communists, marxist, atheists, white supremacists, anarchists. There are Republicans, Democrats, Tea Partiers and Independents. They are white, black, hispanic, asian, middle eastern, old, young, male and female. 

Generations ago, people went from town to town, found others who held similar beliefs and tried to make converts. A critical mass formed as two or three agreed with the messenger and they would successfully recruit others to follow along a very narrow path. As technology developed, more and more people took to the airways. First, they spread their message through word and music on the radio. Then TV. Then the internet. Now there is Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and a host of other social media outlets used as our modern day soapboxes.

Today, instead of a handful of soapbox proclaimers, hundreds of thousands of people spread their thoughts and countless people hear their messages. Many agree with what they hear and send money, leave family and friends, share messages with others, and whether the message is true or not, people say "Oh yeah, That is exactly right!". Some of the more popular people on their soapboxes can take one kernel of truth and twist it to help them fill their egos and coffers.

And now, ISIS is successful in recruiting young people from around the world to their cause. Certainly, most people reject their message of power and violence, but with their words falling on millions of ears even the small percentage who respond are a large and troubling number. We are no longer chuckling. We are worried.

We need new people on soapboxes. We need people proclaiming a different message from all that has poured into our ears over the past 20 to 30 years. We need a message that will change our minds and our hearts. We need a powerful message that will counter the powerful forces at work in our world.

So, let me crawl up on my soapbox and offer a simple message that has been proclaimed before, but seems to have been lost. Let me say something that will change the world. Let me preach something that will counter the power grab of so many. Let me offer our only hope to counter the hate.

My message? Love. It is a commandment. Let us love God, let us love our neighbor, let us love our enemy. Let us love one another. Let us stop spending our time preaching that the sky is falling, that everyone else is an idiot, and that those that disagree with us are going straight to hell. Let us love.

Love is my message from the soapbox. The Wright Word for today.