Well, "The Decision" has been made, and most of the world, it seems, has weighed in on it. Funny how hung-up we’ve been waiting for one guy to decide where he’s going to play ball. You would think this was one of the most significant decisions of all time. The thing is, hundreds of thousands of people yesterday, many whom you and I know, made decisions yesterday that determined their whole life direction and eternal destinies. No one was watching, praying for them, or maybe even caring.
Here’s the real deal, though. The decisions you and I make about our daily lives are far more significant in the long run that anything LeBron could ever do. Truth is, we only make 4-5 major decisions in our lives, and then we spend the rest of our lives managing those decisions. That’s what LeBron has in front of him - a far more challenging and far-reaching deal than I imagine the 25 year old has even considered. He will be managing the ramifications of his decision the rest of his life, for good or evil. You and I will be doing that, too, with the decisions we make today. Let’s not get caught up in what LeBron is deciding while we make our decisions casually. The future matters now.
Showing posts with label in the news. Show all posts
Showing posts with label in the news. Show all posts
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Friday, March 19, 2010
WORLD WATER DAY
WORLD WATER DAY
March 22, 2010
Did you know that millions of people are struggling today without access to what you and I just took for granted? Yes, you and I got up, showered, brushed our teeth, made coffee--all without a thought of how precious the commodity of water is or how blessed we are to have clean, safe, water at our fingertips. We often waste more water in a day than an entire family has to drink daily in many desperate locations.
Monday, March 22, is a day the entire world has taken to remember this and make a difference. The Clear Blue Global Water Project thinks about it year-round. We realize that, truly, we with resources hold the rest of the world in our hands.
What can you do? Pray. Conserve. Share the need. Give. Get others involved. Visit Clear Blue water Project and get educated on the need and current projects. Then start collecting change, giving part of your tax refund, getting friends to help at work or school. This is a small world. We ARE our brother's keeper. Do SOMETHING.
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Tiger's in the Tank
You knew it, didn't you? Anyone who has witnessed two or three stories of betrayal, discovery and the accompanying blend of heartbreak and rage smelled something fishy about the Tiger Woods "accident" long before he owned his "transgressions." His attempted cover-up only gave fodder for the late night tv joke machines and the internet jokes that go viral in a nano-second. The jokesters seem to forget that, at bare minimum, four hearts have been crushed, four lives forever altered, two of them unsuspecting little children, with not a clue that a tsunami was beginning to batter the coastline of their safe home.
Yeah, I knew there was bad news coming sooner or later. Been there with too many people to not recognize the signs. Here's what I know for sure:
The wages of sin are death--every single time. No one ever sins without something dying. The death toll in Tiger's case is yet to be determined. Right now, the fatalities include trust, joy, dreams, innocence, reputation...
Money and prestige are a poor trade for character. Wonder how much less finances and fame Mrs. Tiger would be willing for her husband to have if she could get faithfulness and integrity she could take to the bank in return?
We are all the same under the skin. Pain rips away the differences between us. In the deepest pain, rich and poor, black and white, old and young, famous and unknown---we're all the same.
We all need redemption. A columnist suggested Tiger, a professed Buddhist,evidently needs to meditate more. She doesn't get it. Meditation can't pay the debt, change the heart, heal the wounds, make a new start. Tiger has nothing to offer that has any power in the ways that matter. He needs Someone to do for him and his family what he can never do on his own. He needs a Savior, Someone who can work in his heart and his wife's heart and over time do things that today seem completely out of reach.
Tiger and his family need my prayers. If he was my son or my brother, I wouldn't laugh or send jokes around about him. I wouldn't consider him a lost cause, I wouldn't point out all the things "I knew" were wrong about him long ago. I would be beating on the doors of heaven, pleading with God to move on his heart, to do a miracle, and to restore that family. To give those little children a father who will lead them to the Father.
Maybe I should do that for Tiger?
Yeah, I knew there was bad news coming sooner or later. Been there with too many people to not recognize the signs. Here's what I know for sure:
The wages of sin are death--every single time. No one ever sins without something dying. The death toll in Tiger's case is yet to be determined. Right now, the fatalities include trust, joy, dreams, innocence, reputation...
Money and prestige are a poor trade for character. Wonder how much less finances and fame Mrs. Tiger would be willing for her husband to have if she could get faithfulness and integrity she could take to the bank in return?
We are all the same under the skin. Pain rips away the differences between us. In the deepest pain, rich and poor, black and white, old and young, famous and unknown---we're all the same.
We all need redemption. A columnist suggested Tiger, a professed Buddhist,evidently needs to meditate more. She doesn't get it. Meditation can't pay the debt, change the heart, heal the wounds, make a new start. Tiger has nothing to offer that has any power in the ways that matter. He needs Someone to do for him and his family what he can never do on his own. He needs a Savior, Someone who can work in his heart and his wife's heart and over time do things that today seem completely out of reach.
Tiger and his family need my prayers. If he was my son or my brother, I wouldn't laugh or send jokes around about him. I wouldn't consider him a lost cause, I wouldn't point out all the things "I knew" were wrong about him long ago. I would be beating on the doors of heaven, pleading with God to move on his heart, to do a miracle, and to restore that family. To give those little children a father who will lead them to the Father.
Maybe I should do that for Tiger?
Saturday, March 21, 2009
John Maxwell at the Airport
John Maxwell, leadership guru and author of many books selling over 16 million copies, is an old friend of our family. I have known and respected John C. Maxwell since I was in high school. He is the person most responsible for my wonderful husband’s (of 35 years) salvation, and was a groomsman in our wedding.
Imagine my surprise when I read that John had been arrested an an airport for trying to board a jet with a weapon in his carry-on! A man where John had been speaking gave him the gun as a gift for protection for John's wife Margaret when John travels. John carried it with him for the next couple days and completely forgot about it until a few seconds after he casually laid his bag down on the conveyor belt. Thankfully, our security systems were working well, and despite John's explanation, he was cuffed and arrested, and eventually released on bail. True to form for John, he cooperated fully, took full responsibility for his "Mr. Magoo moment", and paid the piper.
He wrote about his experience on his blog, and many comments have been made. One writer bemoaned the fact that, though John has been "forgiven" by his followers, other people like Ted Haggard (former leader of the National Association of Evangelicals) who was caught and forced to resign over repeated sexual misconduct have been "unforgiven", and made to pay for their sins. Kim says they all deserve equal forgiveness.
Several of the writer's responses are understandable, but I would point out major differences that need to be considered. Ted Haggard’s issue was deliberate, ongoing sin, done by knowing choice. John’s was a stupid mistake, without intent to deceive. I have been very appreciative of Ted Haggard’s contributions in our world, my heart broke at his fall, and I pray for his complete restoration. He has long been forgiven by me. Ted and John both are due our forgiveness. But restoration to leadership is a different matter. A stupid, careless mistake clearly has different ramifications with God and with people than does a chosen pathway of sin. It is irresponsible and lacks wise love to the leader himself/herself and to the people who follow to equate all actions in their impact, and want the consequences to be the same. Mr. Haggard needs and deserves for the Body of Christ to love him, forgive him, walk with him–and withhold leadership from him until such a time as capable people are able to say that the issues that caused his very public sin and fall are resolved in a way that minimizes the chance of further heartbreak for him, his family, and anyone who follows him. That’s not a lack of forgiveness–that is Christ-like love at it’s best.
As for John? Maybe we should pay his tuition for a memory improvement course. His heart and his lifestyle are right on; his memory was bad.
Even so, he made no excuses, acknowledged it, and stepped up to pay the price for his failure. That is always what is at the the heart of true, godly repentance, whether it is for deliberate, chosen sin, or a unintentional mistake.
Imagine my surprise when I read that John had been arrested an an airport for trying to board a jet with a weapon in his carry-on! A man where John had been speaking gave him the gun as a gift for protection for John's wife Margaret when John travels. John carried it with him for the next couple days and completely forgot about it until a few seconds after he casually laid his bag down on the conveyor belt. Thankfully, our security systems were working well, and despite John's explanation, he was cuffed and arrested, and eventually released on bail. True to form for John, he cooperated fully, took full responsibility for his "Mr. Magoo moment", and paid the piper.
He wrote about his experience on his blog, and many comments have been made. One writer bemoaned the fact that, though John has been "forgiven" by his followers, other people like Ted Haggard (former leader of the National Association of Evangelicals) who was caught and forced to resign over repeated sexual misconduct have been "unforgiven", and made to pay for their sins. Kim says they all deserve equal forgiveness.
Several of the writer's responses are understandable, but I would point out major differences that need to be considered. Ted Haggard’s issue was deliberate, ongoing sin, done by knowing choice. John’s was a stupid mistake, without intent to deceive. I have been very appreciative of Ted Haggard’s contributions in our world, my heart broke at his fall, and I pray for his complete restoration. He has long been forgiven by me. Ted and John both are due our forgiveness. But restoration to leadership is a different matter. A stupid, careless mistake clearly has different ramifications with God and with people than does a chosen pathway of sin. It is irresponsible and lacks wise love to the leader himself/herself and to the people who follow to equate all actions in their impact, and want the consequences to be the same. Mr. Haggard needs and deserves for the Body of Christ to love him, forgive him, walk with him–and withhold leadership from him until such a time as capable people are able to say that the issues that caused his very public sin and fall are resolved in a way that minimizes the chance of further heartbreak for him, his family, and anyone who follows him. That’s not a lack of forgiveness–that is Christ-like love at it’s best.
As for John? Maybe we should pay his tuition for a memory improvement course. His heart and his lifestyle are right on; his memory was bad.
Even so, he made no excuses, acknowledged it, and stepped up to pay the price for his failure. That is always what is at the the heart of true, godly repentance, whether it is for deliberate, chosen sin, or a unintentional mistake.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)