Seeing the forest through the To-Do List - John 10:22-40

The Jews gathered around him. They said, “How long will you keep us waiting? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.”

John 10:24

Have you ever heard the phrase, "You can't see the forest for the trees."?

Basically it means, that you are so caught up in the details, you are missing the big picture. This is an EASY thing to do. We become obsessed in getting the tiny things right - checking off our to-do list and we forget what the end goal is.

I need to study for my test and I need to pick up my room and I need to wash the dishes and I need to get more pencils and I need to....

What is the ultimate goal in all of those to-do's? Go to college? Have a clean house? Write the next Great American Novel? Have clean dishes for dinner?

When we focus on all of the pieces of the puzzle we have a hard time remember what the picture looks like- this is what was happening to the Jews in Jesus's time.

Imagine, Jesus is performing miracles like the Men's USA basketball team scoring points - Often and with great impact. And yet the Jews were unconvinced that Jesus was the Christ - the long awaited Messiah.

And rather than step back and see the big picture, they were focused in on the details - trying to find a flaw in his ministry - trying to find a reason to discount Jesus and the salvation he was offering them through grace.

Jesus answered, “I did tell you. But you do not believe. The kinds of things I do in my Father’s name speak for me. ²⁶ But you do not believe, because you are not my sheep. (John 10:25-26)

They refused to see who Jesus was. They couldn't see the forest for the trees.

They instantly made a judgement that Jesus had to be a false teacher and a blasphemer because they had not experienced anything like him. And instead of stepping back and seeing that the reason they hadn't experienced anyone like Jesus was because he was one of a kind  - the One of a kind - they chose be blind to him. They chose to pick apart the beautiful tapestry of his ministry and only see the colored threads. They chose the comfort of following their lists rather than stepping back and experiencing the fullness of God's love.

To-Do lists are a good thing - - they help to keep us organized and focused. But when we get so caught up in what we are to-do, we miss out on whose we are and what His end purpose is for our lives.

Step back - smell the roses - see the forest - enjoy the beauty - and revel in the majesty of the everyday miracles around you. The To-Do List can wait until tomorrow.

 

Scripture

John 10:22-40

Quote
Sadly it is much easier to create a desert than a forest.
James Lovelock
 

Letting God Work Through the Junk - John 9

He replied, “Whether he is a sinner or not, I don’t know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!”

John 9:25

Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me.

I once was lost, but now am found; was blind but now I see.

The comforting words of the old hymn are ones which nearly every person who has spent more than one Sunday morning in a church can recite.

The story behind John Newton's writing of "Amazing Grace" is one that is worth reading (see link:Amazing Grace History) but the point isn't the story, but rather it is meaning of the words. 

In today's scripture, Jesus has healed a man who was blind from birth. There was a philosophy of the day that if you had an illness or a defect that your sin was responsible - that in fact you were the cause of your own suffering. 

Jesus dispels this myth by saying, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him." John 9:3

Did you ever think that the reason you face difficulty, hardships and handicaps might be so that God can show His glory through you? 

Wow! 

What a thought?!?  

All of that junk and stuff you have to go through - God can use it for His glory....

It doesn't make the junk easier - - but there is some comfort in knowing that something good and right will come from your suffering.

The key to allowing our junk to be used for God's glory is recognize that God is in control and that He is always with us. Sometimes we face consequences of our own making and sometimes bad stuff just happens - but either way GOD can make something beautiful - - even out of the most wretched - - even out of us.

Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me.

I once was lost, but now am found; was blind but now I see.

We each have a choice - we can stay blind - wallow in our self-pity, muck and mire or we can turn to God and allow Him to wipe away our blindness - to help us to see the beauty He can make in each of us - even me.

Scripture
John 9

Quote
Sometimes things fall apart so that better things can fall together.
Marilyn Monroe

Question

When have you faced a pit - only to see Christ reaching out his hand to steady you as you walk through it?

It

Truth or Tabloids - John 8:31-58

 To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

John 8:31-32

I have a confession.

When I travel for work I buy the magazines in the little convenience stores at the airport which scream headlines like:

"TomKat separating because he has two heads! Details inside"

"Khloe & Lamar: Living Apart - Insider reveals all!"

"Jennifer Aniston to wed in a Scottish ceremony to a Buddist Monk! Secrets revealed on page 43."

Okay, so I admit those are a bit extreme, but there is something tantalizing about a headline that calls out a deep dark secret. I get sucked into the drama of other people's reality - - or often a reality built on a house of cards. We all want to know what is hidden deep within - to know the "real truth". 

But, what really is the truth?

We live in a country that plasters headlines designed to draw you in so you will buy the magazine, tabloid or newspaper, but all too often what you find inside is just more....well, junk. The headlines are padded with half-truths and the stories are often riddled with misinformation or blatant lies. So if the "media" is supposed to be our source of truth, how do we dicern what is really true?

We go to the source of all truth - God.

When Jesus was trying to reveal his true nature to the Jews of his day, he was facing an uphill battle. Many had heard of his fame associated with his miracles through the old-fashioned version of tabloids - - word of mouth gossip. They looked to Jesus to be a great profit or a mysterious healer - essentially a side-show. They did not see Jesus as the One sent from God. They could not see Jesus as the Messiah. 

They couldn't see the truth. 

They were okay with the flash and the half-truths. They were okay with the gossip and the innuendos. They were okay with being jailed by misleading information. They were okay with the tabloid truths.

But Jesus was offering them truth and the freedom that comes with that truth.

When we know truth - - absolute truth - - it is freedom because we don't have to guess or wonder. We don't have to dig a little deeper under the covers to find out what is "really" happening. We just know. 

And that is who Jesus is. He is truth. By knowing Jesus we know The Father. We know truth and through that knowledge we have the freedom to accept the grace that the Father offers us through Jesus. Through that acceptance - we are free indeed.

Way better that any glossy tabloid or gossip magazine...don't you think?

Scripture

 John 8:31-58

Quote of the Day

Gossip needn't be false to be evil - there's a lot of truth that shouldn't be passed around. 

Frank A. Clark 

 

Flipping the Switch - John 8:12-30

When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” 

 John 8:12



There is something about light. It makes the boogey-man run away. It allows us to see where we are driving in the middle of the night. It brings freshness to a new day. Light is equivalent to hope and joy. A single light bulb in a dark room can transform even the furthest corners.

But light – true light – is not limited to what is illuminated on the outside. Having a life filled with light doesn’t mean that one will never have darkness, struggles or obstacles, but rather having a light filled life means always having a central core of understanding whose you are.

When we are inconvenienced for a day or several without electricity – as many were this summer- we find we are nearly at a loss by not having lights in our homes. We unconsciously walk into a room and flip the switch expecting the light to emerge, and when it doesn’t we are shocked and a little outraged. What would happen if we began to feel outraged when we didn’t experience the light of Christ in ourselves or in others? How different would our approach to evangelism or to sharing God’s love be if we assumed that the light of Christ already existed in another friend? If in fact the switch just needed to be flipped in his or her life?



In reality, we have all been born with a desire to be in the light. We crave it. We need light both externally in our lives to function but more importantly inside our spirits to help us truly see; to truly love; to truly feel; to truly be children of God.



As we approach our friends, let us not be leery of how to share God’s love with them, but rather let us look at their lives as needing someone to help “flip the switch” so that they might know the light of Jesus and their lives can also be bright and full of all of the good stuff – even in a very dark world.



Scripture
John 8:12-30


Quote of the Day 

(with some explanation)

Helen Keller was born deaf and blind. She could not see or hear and yet she had one of the more profoundly impactful lives in the world – without ever seeing the light many of us take for granted.

She said, “I can see, and that is why I can be happy, in what you call the dark, but which to me is golden. I can see a God-made world, not a man made world.” 

By not being constrained by what the outside world showed her, she was able to experience true happiness and beauty lit from within – lit with the light of Jesus.