Friends

Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. John 15:13

As some of you know, I have been interviewing for a new position with Merck back in Pennsylvania. I just officially found out today that I got the job. The prospect of starting a new position and moving back close to family and old friends is very exciting. Yet at the same time, we are already dreading the thought of being so far from the great friends we have made in New Mexico. I will miss New Mexico for a variety of reasons but the main reason by far is the friends we have made.

This week pray about your friends. Take some time to cherish the gifts they are.

Have a great week and a great fast.
Your brother,
Bob

Count 'em up

At the bottom of this blog there is a little gizmo that counts page views. Every time this page or any page from the blog's archive or comments is viewed, the little counter increases by 1. I check it out every now and then to see how much traffic is coming through the site. Imagine my surprise about 10 days ago when the number shot up by 10,000 in one day. I've worked in internet metrics in the past so I was pretty sure it was artificially boosted. There are little computer programs called spiders that get sent out be search engines to categorize websites. Still, in the back of my mind, I had the thought that maybe it was real traffic through some new source. There was this mixed excitement and fear that the number of readers had just increased exponentially. Alas, when I checked the little counter on the following day, it was only up a little bit. I was then sure that the initial boost was from a spider.

Ever since then, I've found myself periodically thinking about how and why we measure things. Look around and you'll see we measure lots of stuff. We measure how fast and how far we drive. We measure our weight and height. We measure our cholesterol, our heart rate, and in some cases, our portion sizes. We measure how well we do on tests and we measure how long it takes to do certain tasks. And in the case of most businesses, we try to measure things that indicate success. Things like gross sales, profit margins, research spending, return on marketing expenditures, and a multitude of others. The problem is, often times the things that really indicate success can't be measured. The little counter at the bottom of this blog is a neat little gizmo but it doesn't mean success. Growth and changed lives mean success. I like it when my kids do well on their school tests. However, ultimately as parents we want to grow kind, well rounded, well adjusted kids and the school tests don't really measure this. I like it when my bank account gets bigger. And I've often looked at this financial measure as an indicator of success. I suppose as a measure it will point out success or failure with sticking to a budget but we too often get net worth and self worth intertwined in ways they shouldn't be. Money in my bank account doesn't mean that I am becoming more loving and kind to my neighbors.

This week, when you get a chance, give some thought to the things you measure. Are you putting too much value in some measurements that really don't matter in the long run?

Have a great week and a great fast.
Your brother,
Bob

it's mine it's mine it's all mine...

My wife recently turned me on to a blog that is written by an author who is originally from India. In one of her recent posts, she wrote about an ancient king of India named Bharat. Bharat had 8 sons and as a king, he had to determine who would be his heir. But contrary to tradition, Bharat chose a man who was not one of his sons. Understandably, his family and sons were not happy with this decision because it deprived them of their perceived birthright. Bharat's explanation was that ability and competence trumped birthright. He loved his country too much to leave it in the hands of people he knew to be incompetent (even if they were his own people).

The story fascinated me because it instantly reminded me of Jonathan and David from the old testament. As you probably remember, Jonathan was the son of King Saul. He was also best friends with David. After David's success with Goliath and as a military commander, Saul felt threatened and tried to kill David on numerous occasions. However, Jonathan worked behind the scenes to thwart his fathers murderous attempts and he goes out of his way to encourage his friend David. 1 Samuel 23:15-18 documents one of these accounts - While David was at Horesh in the Desert of Ziph, he learned that Saul had come out to take his life. And Saul's son Jonathan went to David at Horesh and helped him find strength in God. "Don't be afraid," he said. "My father Saul will not lay a hand on you. You will be king over Israel, and I will be second to you. Even my father Saul knows this." The two of them made a covenant before the LORD. Then Jonathan went home, but David remained at Horesh.

It's amazing what all is packed in these couple verses. Remember, Jonathan is Saul's son. That means he is in line for the throne. Yet he is saying David will be king and he will be second to David. He is willfully giving up his birthright. It's hard to wrap my brain around that. From what the bible records about Jonathan, I would assume he would have been a good king. Yet he seems to recognize the greater potential of his friend. Talk about selflessness. I think about this account with respect to my own life. Am I selfless enough to step aside when one more gifted by God comes along? Would I give up a ministry… a job… etc.? Or would I cling to it because it's mine… Would my pride get in the way of what God has planned? Any thoughts? Sometimes the enemy of 'greatness' is 'good enough'.

Have a great week and a great fast.
Your brother,
Bob

Ghosts

If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him! Luke 11:13

Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. Acts 8:17

When I was a kid, I occasionally went to church. Most of the time it was with my grandma and grandpa. I remember we used to say the Lord's prayer at every one of those services in my grandparent's church. That's where I first heard about that mysterious character called the Holy Spirit. Back then, in my grandparent's church, it was referred to as the Holy Ghost. The term 'Ghost' made it even more mysterious. I wish I could say the mystery was all cleared up as soon as I was saved but the reality is, that 'Holy Spirit' part of the trinity continued to be kind of spooky to me. It took a couple years and the counsel of good friends to de-mystify the whole thing. But in the end, it opened me up to accepting the help and guidance that comes from that still small voice.

I think the Holy Spirit is mysterious for many believers. This week, pray for your own understanding and the understanding of your fellow believers. Pray for the filling of the spirit. Pray that we all learn to listen to the guidance that comes from the spirit.

Have a great week and a great fast.
Your brother,
Bob

Temptation

There is an older man I know who acted as a mentor to me when I first got saved. He was a married man with 4 children and he had a personal rule that he wouldn't allow himself to be alone in a car with a female. He shared with me that he set up this boundary to simply protect himself from himself. But he also shared that more importantly, this was his own personal rule. He was always careful to not impose this rule on others. He said you always need to err on the side of grace and not presume that all others struggle with the same temptations that you struggle with. Since then, I've met Christian men who will not go to the beach because they know the limitations of their own thought life. Yet they recognize this restriction doesn't apply to all. I've met married women who will not engage in a friendship with a man. Yet they recognize this restriction doesn't apply to all. Overall, the message here is that we need to understand our own temptations and yet, at the same time, not presume all others struggle with the same temptations. As a Christian brother or sister, it's OK and loving to warn others of potential temptations. But at the same time, don't presume all others will fall into sin. We need to recognize that some others can ride in a car with someone from the opposite sex… others can go to the beach… others can be friends with the opposite sex… If we presume that everyone will fall to the same temptations we struggle with, we pass too quickly from a loving warning to presumptive judgement.

Have a great week and a great fast.
Your brother,
Bob