State of the Union

Oh happy day... it's resolution time! Or to many, not so happy day, because it's time to go about the process of re-thinking priorities, setting health goals, initiating new family directions and just generally assessing life to this point. To some, it's their most favorite thing. To others, it's terrifying and daunting. I kinda fall somewhere in the middle. I try... try... to make fairly healthy choices throughout the year so I am not overwhelmed with the weight (no pun intended) of a complete health overhaul come every January. Thankfully my husband and I communicate easily, so we sort of work on prioritizing and re-prioritizing all throughout the year as well. However, there is always something about January that feels a bit heavy to me. Maybe it's the inevitable after effects of coming down from all the holiday festivities. We place so much time and energy into planning and preparations to make Christmas special, as we should because it deserves as much, but it can absolutely lead to those "downer" emotions when it's all said and done. If you relate to what I'm saying at all, this is just a message of solidarity to let you know I see you, I hear you and I am with you.

But then...

The baby is here! He came. In our hearts, he was born once again for all of us to remember. The physical celebration may be over, but the spiritual one has just been reignited. The thrill of hope for the weary world has already been delivered so that you and I can rejoice now. No presents needed this time. Just you, just me and just Jesus for each and every one of our exhausted souls. And if you choose to allow it to happen, He can change everything about your resolution setting season. If you choose to allow it to happen, your life and that of your family can have a brand new, perfectly vertical plumb line that forces all new goals, decisions and aspirations to look upward. Jesus truly is calling. That feeling in your gut that you've been ignoring that is inviting you to a life that is different, deeper, unknown and possibly a bit frightening... that's the Holy Spirit doing what He does best. Desperately trying to get your attention. Once again, it always and forevermore will come down to your choice. Plow forward along the same 'ol, same 'ol safe route in 2020 or dig deep and muster the courage to take a hard right and land yourself and your family square in the arms of the Savior that we just celebrated.

What will it be?

For those fellow readers who choose the hard right this year, get ready for the ride of your life. Some of you have been on that path for years and have experienced the true nature of the abundant life time and time again. Others of you are in a state of confusion and potential worry about what this sort of change might mean for you and your family. I am going to give you a few practical action items to help on your journey. These aren't meant to bring guilt or shame, these are meant to bring freedom from all of that junk. Remember, no matter what the outside world claims to be truth, Jesus doesn't deal in either of those emotions. In fact, He is the only way to truly rid ourselves of them!

But how?

• Surrender. Remember that gut feeling I mentioned above, the one that is beckoning you to follow a new path that you possibly have never experienced before? The Holy Spirit is, and always has been, going about the Father's business of bringing the people of the world into an awareness of our need for salvation. He does that by calling our attention to our sins which in turn brings a consciousness of just how far the divide between us and God really is. Our sin has purchased for us a one-way ticket to eternal separation from our Creator in a place called Hell and there is not a single human alive adequate enough to get rid of their sin on their own. Then a baby was born. The baby we just celebrated who was born for the express purpose of dying. Jesus Christ is God in human form and was the only person ever born who had the ability to wipe out sin once and for all. God the Father literally heaped every sin that had ever been committed up to that point and every sin that had yet to be committed in the future onto the body of Jesus the Son and orchestrated His death on a cross, burial in an empty tomb and resurrection three days later all for the purpose of providing a means for our salvation. And now, for those that will believe and surrender their lives to the Lordship of Jesus, God is no longer unreachable. We will be in His presence for all eternity the instant that we die instead of facing eternal separation. The Holy Spirit is NOT convicting you of your sins so that you will sit still, full of guilt, alone with head bowed in shame. Far from it! You are being convicted so that you can MOVE forward, full of hope, surrounded by others with faces turned upward rejoicing! Don't you see? Salvation is knocking! It is time to heed the Spirit's call on your life. It is time to tell Him you surrender to His rightful reign in your heart and join the ranks of those headed to Heaven.

• Find spiritual guidance. This is an absolute, stop the presses, no way out point of action that MUST take place. When you make the choice to surrender, you must have a spiritual leader to guide you, especially early on along your new path. Chances are, if you are like I was, your current knowledge of the bible is severely limited. There is little to no awareness of what it means to be a Christian, let alone live the rest of your life like one. In the bible, Jesus chose twelve special men to follow Him closely and learn everything they could from Him for a time. They did that by leaving their old lives behind and completely immersing themselves in His ways and teachings. These men were called His disciples and today we use a very church-y word called Discipleship that basically means learning how to do this thing called Christian living. If you are already associated with a church, this happens by seeking out spiritual guidance from a pastor, a small group leader, fellow small group attendees who are farther along the path than you, older and wiser men/women in the church who have lived a lot more life than you have, etc. If you are not plugged into a church yet, this step will be more challenging as it will require you to find one and soon. Ask your friends, co-workers or family members where they go and make plans to join them. You may end up trying several churches before you find your place, but don't give up. It's imperative that you surround yourself with faithful people as they can become your most valuable asset at this stage of the path. They can meet with you regularly to pray, talk and just hash out the day to day struggles of living for Jesus. Most likely you will be asked to start a daily bible reading plan where you will learn the utmost importance of spending time in God's word every day. It doesn't require hours and hours, but as little as 10 minutes a day to start. You may quickly discover that you crave more and more time as God begins to reveal Himself to you through those words. You will likely be asked to carve out time to pray on your own. It will definitely feel strange at first, but just like the bible reading, will become second nature over time. You will definitely be asked to do the following, which is an action item of it's own...

• Worship like it's not optional. Literally, you (and all those faces you see in your family every day) were created to worship God the Father. You were created to be in relationship with Jesus the Son. You were created to be inhabited by the Holy Spirit. And no you can not sit alone on your couch and worship all by yourself whenever you want. Worship is not a secret. It is not a solo sport. You absolutely do not have to join a 10,000 member mega-congregation. But you do have to be connected to a church with other believers somewhere. If you are not willing to make this a priority over the other things that currently happen on Sunday morning, you are already well on your way down the same 'ol, same 'ol safe route mentioned above. Prioritizing worship may mean hard things for you. Giving up PSLs or lazy Sunday mornings in pajamas or quite possibly wild Saturday nights that necessitate Sunday morning sleep. It might mean worry about what people will think about your past, questions they might ask or intimidation over not knowing much about the bible or faith in general. I hope I can put your mind at ease when I tell you that, at church, you can be among your greatest allies in all of these areas. If you are already on a church role somewhere, great! But again, if you are not, unfortunately not every church is created equal. However, if you view worship as non-negotiable and keep searching each and every week, you will find the place you are meant to be. Everyone started somewhere and a true Christ follower will always be there with an outstretched hand instead of a pointing finger. And if you can't find one, come to Judson and sit by me.

• Serve. You will never be more like Jesus in your earthly, human body than when you spend time serving others in His name. To clarify, humanitarian aide is a valiant and worthy endeavour, no doubt. People the world over need basic necessities every day like food, water, clothing and shelter just to live and we should do everything in our power to provide what we can. But it can't stop there. Giving people the necessities of earthly life without giving them the necessities of eternal life is futile. I have heard it said before by certain people that they find it horrible that Christians would dare use humanitarian aide opportunities to share Christ with starving people. As if it's a violation of trust to offer food "with an agenda." Let me say this as plainly as I can. Satan also has an agenda that includes taking unbelieving souls to Hell for all eternity and he doesn't really care if they are starving or not. So, if Christians are ever given a chance to open our mouths at all, let it never be said that we were intimidated out of a chance to share Jesus with anyone He puts in our path.

There is so much more I could write about each of these action items and there are so many additional action items I could write about, but for those who are finally about to decide that same 'ol, same 'ol just isn't going to cut it this year, these four truths will help the most as you start your new journey. It must start with surrender to the call of the Holy Spirit. Scary as it may be to obey this charge on your life leading to an (as of now) unknown place, the first step is always the hardest. You've heard the phrase "leap of faith" before and believing in Jesus for salvation can feel just like that. You are required to step out of your comfort zone and pay close attention to what it is He is asking of you. Where is He saying enough is enough or more is required? What is He telling you to avoid or to begin? Who is He telling you to move away from or to move toward? With true belief and surrender comes instructions meant only for you and part of those will always require giving over sovereignty of your life to Jesus. It will no longer be about what feels good to you. It will be about what is true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, of good reputation, excellent and worthy of praise.

Each step after this one can lead you closer to finding the spiritual guidance you need. Spiritually mature mentors are life savers and can physically model what Christian living is all about. Seek them out, spend time with them, learn from them, allow yourself to be challenged by them and open yourself up to bible reading, prayer and non-negotiable weekly worship.

Then, over time, make serving others in the name of Jesus part of regular life. This can be helping a stranded traveler at the gas station fill her tank all the while finding the opportunity to mention Jesus in your conversation. Or, if you are led, it can be feeding bread to hungry villagers in Africa all the while telling them of Jesus, the bread of life.

As we end 2019, how is the state of your union? Are you a weary, heavy-hearted traveler fed up with the same ol, same 'ol? Have you felt the call of the Holy Spirit, only to suppress it time and again? 2020 is the year for new paths. It's the year to install that perfect, Jesus-shaped, plumb line right smack in the middle of your goal setting plans. For some, it's the year to change your family tree into one that now includes a branch of faith that will be a legacy for those who come after you. For others, the legacy of faith is there, but you've done your best to ignore it so far. This is the year to give Jesus His rightful place of Lordship in your heart. No more excuses... NO more. Your abundant life awaits, step out this year and claim it.