Middle Finger Promise

Kaden and his mommy were talking in the minivan over the Christmas break.  He was making a mess in the car.  Krissy was getting upset with him and asked him if he would clean it up.  He said he would.  Krissy, asked him again if would really do it, because he has a habit of not doing things we ask him to do.  He said, "I promise, Mommy, middle finger promise." 

Krissy cracked up, of course, because she knew he thought he was making a "pinky promise".  Looking at the positive, at least he picked one of his fingers...

Uncomfortable

I was out with a business account last night from the UK.  He is the Managing Director of a major Christian media company there.  He is younger than me and very sharp.  He shared something with me that I won't forget.  

"I never want to be comfortable in my job.  I always want to be in a position where I'm completely out of my comfort zone."

How completely opposite of our nature?!  I have to admit I've been complacent at times - looking for opportunities to be unchallenged.  

But it's in those positions where we are not comfortable and insecure that we learn and grow the most.  

This year, may I also put myself in a position to be completely uncomfortable and insecure.  Why do what I already know to do?  I'm just doing the same thing and remaining stagnant.  If I were a muscle, the same old workout would not produce any better results.  

Thank you, my friend, for sharing something profound with me.  

Quick Draw McGraw

That devotional from Os Hillman I posted today has got me asking a lot of questions.  

In my business, for example, what have I taken to God?  

Why has my work life been so difficult over the last year or so?  Why has the labor been more difficult than normal?  

Why have I been fighting off more and more negative thoughts this year regarding my work?  Have I stopped to ask God before making decisions this year?  No, not specifically.  Generally, I'll begin my days asking God to help me make good decisions.  But, is that really enough?

Could it be that I've taken on labels or artists that God never intended to give me?  My business manager often calls me 'Quick Draw McGraw' because I work too fast and sometimes make errors as a result.  Have I been 'Quick Draw McGraw' in picking up new business?  

As I pose these questions to God, in my spirit, I'm sensing the answer is yes to this last question.  I sense God saying "Yes, Eric, you've been making agreements with others that you shouldn't be making.  You need to slow down, release what I have not given you.  You are making your work life much more difficult than I ever intended for you." 

"A man can receive only what is given him from heaven." - John 3:27

I hope to expound more on this in future posts...for now, I'm going to do some more work, deal with my broken down minivan and continue praying about this over lunch.  Contemplatively yours...

Receiving Only From God

"A man can receive only what is given him from heaven." - John 3:27

When John's disciples came to him and asked if he was the Messiah, he responded that he was not and that one could only be what God had given him to be. He was a forerunner to the Messiah, and he was fulfilling a call God had given him. We cannot acquire and become anything that God has not given us. God gave John that anointing. We must ask whether we are trying to be or trying to acquire anything God has not given us. When we seek to acquire anything that God has not given us, we can expect God to respond to us like any good father would to a child. He will remove that which the child is not supposed to have.

David understood this principle. When he was preparing to furnish the temple, he told God in his prayer, "Everything comes from You, and we have given You only what comes from Your hand" (1 Chron. 29:14b).

- Os Hillman (Marketplaceleaders.org)

Failure

"The Hebrews knew that failure was a part of maturing in God. The Greeks used failure as a reason for disqualification. Sadly, in the Church, we often treat one another in this way. This is not God's way. We need to understand that failing does not make us failures. It makes us experienced. It makes us more prepared to be useful in God's Kingdom—if we have learned from it. And that is the most important ingredient for what God wants in His children." - Os Hillman

The Prodigal God: Recovering the Heart of the Christian Faith

Tim Keller opens up a new way of looking at the story of the Prodigal Son. He opens up many new aspects of Jesus' parable that I hadn't thought of before. A must read to more fully understand the heart of God.  

One of the most thought-provoking points is that the story is actually about both brothers and the father. Most people focus on the younger brother, his sin and the father's celebratory welcoming home. But, this book takes a more balanced look at what Jesus was intending with the parable. He was speaking to the Pharisees. Therefore, the elder brother's response is equally as interesting - especially since I hadn't given the elder brother as much thought before.

I finished it in a couple of hours. An easy read. I couldn't put it down. I hope to read more of Keller this year.

Dissolving Partnerships

Another excellent devotional reading from Os Hillman - TGIF...

So Abram moved his tents and went to live near the great trees of Mamre at Hebron, where he built an altar to the Lord. - Genesis 13:18

Abraham took a totally different approach to solving this problem. He told Lot to choose which land he wanted. Imagine, Abraham could have been dooming himself and his family if he was unable to find adequate land and water for them. He gave up his rights in the matter, and Lot took full advantage. "Lot looked up and saw that the whole plain of the Jordan was well watered, like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt, toward Zoar" (Gen. 13:10). So Lot left and took up residence in the valley later to be known as Sodom and Gomorrah. Sometimes what seems good on the front end turns out to be disastrous later. Such would be the case for Lot and his family. 

As for Abraham, he made a choice. He decided to take life's high road—a choice that didn't necessarily mean his life circumstances would benefit him. He was willing to leave that outcome to God. He made the decision based on an eternal measuring stick. Interestingly, the place where Abraham moved was called Mamre. In Hebrew, the name Mamre means "strength." How can choosing the weakest position become "strength"? Jesus must have asked the same question of His Father when faced with the proposition of going to the cross. How can the cross be a place of strength? The devil thought he had won, but the cross is what freed the captives for eternity. The Bible tells us that when we are weak, then we are really strong. To willingly choose the way of the cross becomes our strength.

Taken from Os Hillman's TGIF.