Monthly Archives: March 2012

Telling the Truth

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All seven of our children attended a Christian elementary school, followed by several years in public schools. Although the government-regulated high school taught opinions we didn’t always like, Nate and I thought this was a good chance for our teens to decide what they believed.

One day Louisa came home with quite a story. In her freshman English class, the teacher had sparked a lively political debate by pitting one group of students against another. Then he’d told them to line up from most liberal to most conservative, based on the opinions that had been offered during discussion.

Louisa ended up at the very end of the line, identified as “most conservative.” The teacher quizzed her, as well as the boy deemed “most liberal,” garnering extremely diverse viewpoints on the same political hot topics. After a few minutes he said to Louisa, “I’ll bet you’re a Christian.” When she answered affirmatively, he said, “What brand? I mean, what kind?”

Louisa didn’t even pause. She said, “The born-again kind.”

I had to hand it to her. She came on strong and labeled herself, despite knowing she might be teased for her extreme point of view.

All of us have occasionally been handed a golden opportunity to testify for Christ, then forfeited it by watering down our answers. I’ve done it repeatedly, always regretting it later.

One of the many admirable traits of Jesus was his consistent refusal to back away from telling the truth… the whole truth. He paid no mind to how it would be received. It wasn’t that he relished rejection, and he experienced the ultimate rejection since he was murdered for his beliefs. It was that his relationship with God was #1, and he wouldn’t compromise it in any way.

The question then is, what’s wrong with me? Why am I so worried about how people will respond? Is their approval more important to me than God’s?

Something Jesus said has always bothered me:

“Whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.” (10:33)

I certainly want Jesus to stand up for me when that time comes. The thought of him saying, “Her? No, not her,” is frightening. But which scene scares me more; that one then, or public ridicule now?

It’s good to put ourselves through an occasional behavioral analysis. Jesus tells us that if we label ourselves “Christian” or “born again,” we’re going to be sitting ducks for rejection by those who aren’t. He said we should expect it and should even prepare to be hated. After all, he was.

Louisa acted courageously that day in class, opening herself up to mockery by telling the truth about herself. But by doing so, she won Jesus’ endorsement in front of the heavenly Father and actually brought pleasure to the Godhead.

“Everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before My Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 10:32)

Late Blooming?

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This spring our flowering trees and shrubs are over a month ahead of schedule, and we’re loving it. As Louisa said today, “There are blooms in every color of the rainbow right now.” Other years have seen them blossom a month late, but whenever they come, we all get a lift.

Several of the yards in our neighborhood have bushes with a unique approach to blossoming. Although most flowering plants bloom on the previous year’s growth, the “flowering quince” reaches back the year before that, producing pretty red flowers on branch growth from 2 years ago. In other words, this summer’s 2012 growth won’t produce flowers until 2014.

This bush seems oddly programmed by the Creator, and sometimes God programs people in unusual ways, too. All of us have experienced periods of strong spiritual growth when we feel close to the Lord and are making great gains in our inner life. But at other times, we experience a dryness with no “blossoming” going on at all. It might be because we’re in a season of pain, or maybe it’s anger or rebellion against God. Blossoming is out of the question, and we might even feel like we’re dying from the roots up.

But during those seasons of non-productivity, God is quietly working on tiny, invisible buds of change, reaching back to prior periods of soul-growth the way the quince reaches back to bloom on a prior year’s growth. When we least expect it, an inner spring will begin, buds of improvement will blossom, and our relationship with the Lord will become as delightful as a neighborhood full of  rainbow-colored flowers, but the “colors” will be things like stability, love, strength, peace, truth, gratitude, joy.

The red blossoms of the flowering quince seem to be in the wrong branch-position every year, just like an early or late blooming spring seems to have missed its proper place on the calendar. Growth spurts in youngsters, too, can seem untimely as kids wait for new height and maturity to come. Our 7 late-blooming children sometimes found it difficult to be the smallest one in the class when their friends had grown a head taller and begun to look like adults, wondering when growth and change would come to them.

But God is in charge of all blooms, the botanical kind, the biological kind, and the spiritual kind. He isn’t in a rush, and he’s never behind in his choice of a blooming schedule. He waits for the optimum moment, and when the time is exactly right, he causes new life to burst forth.

“Let your roots grow down into him… Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.” (Colossians 2:7)

Burden-Bearer

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After a woman learns she’s expecting her first baby, like it or not she’s joined the Burden-Bearing Club. She doesn’t feel the weight of it at first, but as the weeks pass, understanding dawns. Then after 9 months, she’s eager to go through the misery of labor and delivery, because it means she can unload her burden.

But burden-bearing doesn’t end there. All parents quickly become acquainted with the lifting, hauling, and holding that their new role brings. Even a 7 pound newborn becomes a back-breaker after enough carrying duty.

Looking back on the heavy lifting of parenthood, my prominent thought is of Nate. His M.O. was always to lighten my load, and his constant question was, “Can I carry that for you?” Even if he already had his arms full and I had only one thing, he’d offer to take it from me.

I remember trudging through Disney World years ago with our own children and another family, watching Nate walk ahead of me next to the other dad. The two men were laughing, having a good time, and Nate resembled a pack horse for all the bags and bundles hanging from his shoulders. But because his motivation was always to help me, he carried his load lightly.

Scripture describes a similar picture when God says, “Can I carry that for you?” He’s referring to our sins, knowing how burdened we feel when we know we’re in the wrong and haven’t done anything about it.

The biblical David described this exact dilemma: “My guilt overwhelms me—it is a burden too heavy to bear. I am on the verge of collapse… But I confess my sins; I am deeply sorry for what I have done.” (Psalm 38:3-4,17-18) If we follow David’s example, we’ll find the same relief he did: “May all who search for you [Lord] be filled with joy and gladness in you. May those who love your salvation repeatedly shout, ‘The Lord is great!’ You are my helper and my savior.” (Psalm 40:16-17)

Although Nate’s shouldering of my burdens had to end when he passed away, God’s carrying never stops. He established it permanently when Jesus took responsibility for all sin, for all time, everywhere. And it’ll continue forevermore for anyone who takes advantage of the reprieve he offers.

I probably shouldn’t have taken such regular advantage of Nate’s offer to carry my burdens, but his “can I carry” continued, even when he didn’t feel good. This picture, taken about 6 months before he died, tells the tale. We knew nothing of his deadly cancer then, although it had probably already taken hold, but his back was torturing him. Even then he asked if he could carry my weighty red purse on a sight-seeing trip in England.

 

Although every good man offers to carry his wife’s burdens, only the finest will shoulder her purse.

“Give your burdens to the Lord, and he will take care of you.” (Psalm 55:22)