Join the Parade

 

With nicer weather, we are entering into Parade season. Don’t you love hearing the marching bands? First the drums, then the tubas, with the full music swelling as it approaches. But before you know it, this band fades into the next one in line.

This is also the season of flowers. Have you noticed the pictures at worship? We’ve tried to show a weekly progression of the blossoms around the church. Every springtime is like a parade of flowers! First the crocus and the daffodils, then tulips. The blooming trees burst out, each in their turn. As one fades, another marches down the street blaring out its beauty. Lilacs are just beginning, peonies are on the way, and a host of others just beginning to push their way out of the ground. How easy it is to see the hand of God behind it all, in beauty revealing His love to the world. Spring would be pretty if the only flower were tulips, and the only color red. But don’t you appreciate God’s exuberance?

You might say that the Bible is like a parade also. We read about one character after another who was faithful in serving God in their day. Noah, Abraham, Moses, Joshua, Gideon, Sampson, David… none of them perfect, but all of them making a contribution. In the New Testament we read about Peter and John and Paul continuing the march. Jesus, the Grand Marshal, came in the middle.

You could read church history and see that the parade has continued on over the centuries. Again, easy to see God’s hand guiding, His word inspiring, His Holy Spirit empowering. God has a purpose and a design for this world.

I like to read and remember our own church history, the pastors who have served here, the members who helped shape who we are today. Like Loretta McCombs teaching the Busy Bee class for over 50 years! Even though she has been gone for several years now, her service to Christ is still affecting lives. I love hearing the stories of our first VBS, or pouring the concrete for the basement walls all in one day.  It’s amazing how God has planned it so one generation flows into another and the music keeps playing.

Does it make you wonder what a future generation will remember about us? We are part of the parade! We didn’t start it; we didn’t even choose the music. We’re just trying to follow the Director.

Wait… if we are in the parade, then who is watching it? Our children, of course. They want to know if it is worth it to jump in line. Will our lives inspire them to take music lessons so they can play in God’s marching band? Those who have made wrong decisions, living apart from Christ, whose lives are in turmoil, are also watching to see if there might be hope for them.

I think there are more – the Saints who have gone before, who have already finished the course, are watching to see how we will continue. Not with a critical eye to point out our sour notes, but cheering us on and celebrating that the song goes on.

And ultimately God is our audience. He’s the one who really matters. He is the one who designed the parade in the first place. It’s His mind that planned the route. His hand wrote the music and set the tempo.

       Keep on Marching!

  

            Blessings!       

Heroes - part 2

            Moses had the right stuff – the stuff heroes are made of. When Pharoah gave orders to throw all Hebrew babies into the Nile, Moses had the good luck of being in the right place at the right time. All heroes start with a large dose of good luck – even Superman did not invent his superpowers, he had the good luck to be born with them. But a true hero does need to nurture and develop and hone his or her abilities. No amount of work will ever make me as good a basketball player as Michael Jordan; yet it certainly required a lot of work on his part to develop his natural abilities.

            Moses had the Mo. He was a rising star in Egypt. He had the connections, the training, the resources. He was a mover and shaker. When he wanted something, he made it happen. So naturally, when he began to think of his Hebrew heritage, he thought he could do something to make life better for his people. Who else was in a position to help?

            Ever notice in a ball game how easy it is for momentum to change? A team is down 20 points just minutes before the half, then intercepts a pass for a touchdown, then on the kickoff recovers a fumble and scores again. They are still down 6 points, but the momentum has shifted. Moses suddenly found himself running into the wilderness, a price on his head. Going from prince to pauper, all his hero dreams were dashed. He was trying to do something great for God, but failed.

            What Christian doesn’t want to do something great for God? Isn’t that why we signed up for camp? We use our skills, our training, our networks to recruit counselors and staff. We plan out what we are going to do when. We’ve got the Mo working our way! Then someone calls to cancel. Monkey wrenches get tossed into the gears, and everything comes screeching to a halt. Bills come due, and we wonder where the $$$ is going to come from.

            It must’ve been depressing out in the wilderness for someone like Moses, raised on hero dreams. Out there he had no fancy clothes to impress. No one cared what books he had read, or poets he had known. His social network was gone… replaced with a family of shepherds. Moses, the man who thought he had the right stuff to fix any problem, discovered he had very little.

            He must’ve learned the lesson well, because when God called from the burning bush 40 years later, Moses had no desire to respond. When God said “Go to Egypt and set my people free” Moses declined because he was a nobody. When God said “I will be with you, now go” Moses replied “I don’t even know your name… how can I claim to represent you?” When God said “I am who I am – the God of your fathers – I will reveal myself to you” Moses answered “I have no authority, no power; why should anyone listen to me?” When God said “What is in your hand, Moses? Throw it down,” and turned the stick into a snake, promising Moses the power of miracles, Moses came back with “but I can’t speak – I’m out of practice, and not eloquent.” When God promised to give him the words, Moses begged God to just send someone else. Anyone could do a better job – he had already tried and failed. He thought he was hero material, but it didn’t work out. Moses saw himself as better suited to be a shepherd. He was too scared to try again.

            As it turns out, that is just the kind of attitude that God was looking for. The world is full of hot-shots thinking they can fix the problems. And often they can, but they create 3 or 4 others in the process. They step on toes and break hearts and disappoint the people who love them most. God does not need our talents and abilities, as if we had something to offer Him that no one else could… He is the one who created our talents and abilities in the first place. “Humble yourself beneath the mighty hand of God, and in due time He will exalt you.” “If anyone would be great among you, he must become least of all.” “The first will be last, and the last will be first.” Get the point? God wants His power and His love to shine through us, not our talents and abilities.

            When we try our best to do something for God, we are surprised when God does not seem impressed. God should be grateful that we have given so much… far more than those other “lukewarm Christians.” Why does He let these great plans fizzle? We worked so hard for Him…

            Give God your nothingness. Remember Paul in Philippians 3:1-11, “Whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ….”

            If God wanted glorious service, He would’ve sent the angels.

            God wants the fellowship of working together with us and through us. His power is not something we can wield or control; but when we humbly submit to Him, He can wield us as a weapon to tear down strongholds. God wielded Moses to the destruction of the false systems of Egypt. God chooses the foolish things of this world to same the wise; God chooses the weak things of the world to shame the strong (1Cor 1:27).

            May God use our weak efforts, but submitted hearts, to accomplish His purpose at Solid Rock Camp 2009.