Surely Goodness and Mercy 

      "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want." Even people that don't know scripture probably know that one. The 23rd Psalm is probably one of the most quoted scriptures. Students memorize it in Sunday school. It is read at funerals. It is used to comfort people facing difficult times. "Yea though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil" (v4) Who can't find comfort in those words? "Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of my enemies: thou annointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over." (v5) Again, comfort and peace in difficult times. 

      You have heard everything you can about this Psalm. You have probably learned about shepherds and the imagery that goes with that. You have heard about The Good Shepherd and all that means, have you paid attention to all of it? The psalms are full from beginning to end and you have to look at everything they contain. We can walk boldly into the valley of the shadow of death with the confidence that God's rod and staff will be there to comfort us. Wait, comfort us, not protect us? "Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life..."(v6) What? Follow me? No, I need your goodness to go before me. God's goodness and mercy are to follow us wherever we go, not go before us. 

     We should leave behind goodness and mercy where we go, it doesn't go before us. Don't wait for God's goodness to go before, take it with you. Take it to places where it isn't. God's rod and staff will be there to protect you and comfort you, but you need to walk though the valley as goodness and mercy follow you.

The Day After

In the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving you see them. No, not the early Christmas decorations, you will see the "Today I am thankful for..." posts. There is nothing wrong with that and, in fact, I have made them before. Having a day set aside specifically for thankfulness is a great idea, My question is this, "What about today?" Are you still thankful on Friday? "In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you." Those are the words of 1 Thessalonians 5:18. It seems clear that we are to be thankful, not just a few weeks in November, but all of the time. It also says to be thankful "In every thing..." A lot of people are thankful for things, but what about in things? Being thankful for things isn't inherently bad, I am thankful for a lot things: family, friends, a job I love, my students, etc... Being thankful for things is easy, being thankful in every thing is a different story. Being thankful in things means your current circumstances shouldn't affect your level of thankfulness. When your car won't start and you are running late, you are to be thankful. When your team loses, you are to be thankful. When you are facing your first holiday without a loved one, you are to be thankful. We are to be thankful in the hard times too. Now, being thankful in every thing is not the same as being thankful for every thing. Nowhere are we commanded to be thankful for every thing, just in every thing. That little preposition is important. For every thing give thanks would be a much different scripture. The man that penned these words wrote many of his letters while in jail. He was never thankful for being in jail, but he was thankful even though he was in jail. To be thankful in things you have to look beyond your current circumstances, be they good or bad, and focus on God and His blessings. God's blessings are not things, they are promises. They are the assurance of things hoped for, they are the promise of eternity with him. So now that it is Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, are you still thankful. I would encourage you to continue listing the things your are thankful for into December and beyond, and remember there is a difference between in and for.

Sparks Aren't Fires

     I recently heard this, "Sparks aren't fires." I heard it while watching someone analyzing a video about a band of three sisters that are now in their early 20s but have been performing together for over 10 years. These girls got the idea of being a band while playing the video game Rock Band. That was the spark for becoming a band. They have become a successful band through hard work and lots and lots of practice. They took that spark and tended to it and turned it into a fire.

     Sparks can start fires, but they can also just be sparks. If you want to start a fire you are going to have to do something more than have a spark. As Christians we experience those "spark" moments, times when the presence of God is tangible. Those moments are great, mountain top experiences, but if we don't do something to nurture that spark it will never turn into a fire. It is important to remember that sparks aren't fires. Sparks can start a fire, but it takes work after the spark to turn it into a fire.