The Pooh Bear Preacher Personality Profile

Lets be honest, all preachers are not created the same. Some preachers are funny, some are serious, and some are just plain furious. Wouldn’t it be nice if there were a handy-dandy guide to go by before visiting a new church? Well, now there is! Say hello to “The Pooh Bear Guide to Preacher Personality”. This guide is simple to use, just read the description and decide for yourself which profile your preacher fits into, and because we’ve all heard of Pooh Bear and his friends a connection should be a snap. Some preachers may be a combination of several or all profiles; however, the one that is most dominant will be your preacher’s personality profile.

Pooh Bear: Compassionate – This preacher is as passionate about his church members as Pooh is about honey… cherishing what he has and finding ways to get more. This preacher will go out of his way to help others, and offers grace whenever possible.

Tigger: Dynamic – This preacher is a great communicator. The stage is his friend and he “bounces” to life when in front of an audience. He is often characterized as being energetic and lively and holds a very active role as the leader of the church. (He may also talk about “bouncing through the process” a lot too.)

Piglet: Organized – This preacher has his work in order. Tidy is not the word to describe his desk… immaculate is. Nothing is left undone: phone calls are returned, paper work is completed, notes are written and studied, and plans are made well in advance. Disorganization causes chaos for this preacher, and as a result he is usually viewed as being nervous and uneasy.

Rabbit: Manager – This preacher views the church as a gardener manages his garden… by planting seeds, weeding the soil and harvesting the crop. The right tool is always used at the right time and the right people are always in the right places. This preacher is driven by a purpose to accomplish the goal that is set in front of him.

Eeyor: Monotonous – This preacher can see the good in most things because he sees the bad in everything. Although his gloomy outlook on life frequently overshadows the finer points of life, he is often respected as being a sensible preacher with a consistent attitude. However, his best attribute is his humble heart, which is rooted deep in his values.

Owl: Counselor – Shrewd, wise and perceptive are adjectives that describe this preacher. Although he may not be the most articulate, his wise council is often desired. A preacher with an Owl personality can generally help people with their problems (just as long as those people don’t mind the bitter truth).

So, there you have it… did you rate your preacher? If so, I urge you to contact him sometime this week and call him by his Pooh Bear Profile name. Explain to him what it means and then have him check out this site. Remember, most preachers will have a mixture of all these profiles, but one will generally surface to the top.

Fresh Inspiration

Louie Giglio, i am not but i know I AM

John (The Baptist) was a little leader. I don't mean he was small in stature or vision or courage, or short on influence. Just that John knew who he wasn't - and who HE (Christ) is.

There's something pretty powerful about knowing who you are - and know who you're not. Because John knew his name was I am not, he was free from -

- the seduction of fame,
- the tyranny of comparison,
- the delusional current of self-deception,
- the never-ending scramble to the top of the heap,
- ego,
- jealousy,
- backbiting,
- a massively swollen head.
And he was free from the ultimate rip-off -- holding onto the starring role in a tiny story that was quickly vanishing from view. (91-92)

Giglio, Louie. i am not but i know I AM. Sisters, Oregon: Multnomah Publishers, 2005.

The Biggest Loser: Week 4-4

Rest

In the last three installments we have discussed three visible attributes to the television show “The Biggest Loser”: diet, workout and the challenge. However, there is a fourth attribute that is rarely, if ever seen. After all, who would watch two hours of contestants sleeping?

Although it is seldom seen, rest is one of the most important qualities to losing weight [I read on AOL news that seven hours of sleep a night could help one maintain or lose weight… just by sleeping at least seven hours!] Rest is important, but although it is rarely seen it is often overlooked.

This became a major issue during the spring 2009 series of “The Biggest Loser” as one contestant came head to head with the fact that she just needed to rest. If you have watched the program you know that it is normal for the contestants to lose anywhere from five to thirteen pounds in a given week, especially at the outset. However, as time goes on it becomes tougher to put up big numbers. One particular week Tara didn’t put up a big number, in fact it was a totally discouraging week for her. She couldn’t understand why, after all her work, she hadn’t lost any weight. She had worked extremely hard and eaten extremely healthy but didn’t lose enough weight to show for her effort. Disappointment was an understatement.

You see, Tara was working out a lot… so much in fact she had been missing sleep, and although her workout was intense, her recovery time was suffering. She needed rest. After she adjusted her schedule, paced her self, and made time for rest she once again began losing the big numbers that she needed to stay in the game.

This shouldn’t really shock us, after all, God rested on the seventh day of creation, and since we are made in His image we need to find time to rest too [I understand God didn’t “need” rest but instead modeled rest for His creation].

Again, the parallel between being physically overweight and being spiritually loaded down with sin-fat are too obvious to discount. If rest is necessary for the loss of physical-fat, then it is only obvious that rest is essential for the loss of sin-fat.

Jesus, the Master Trainer, said it this way, "Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28, NASV).

Now, when I think of rest I think of relaxation – I think of comfort. In the spring of 2007, my wife gave birth to our son. We arrived at the hospital on Friday evening; however, Jack didn’t show up until Saturday afternoon. The way I like to think of this is the time between checking in to the hospital and the actual arrival of our son was the complete opposite of comfort – in fact it was very uncomfortable. Twice during the night we made 45-minute walks around the hospital halls [apparently walking aids in baby delivery], we were both starving because you aren’t allowed to eat when you’re about to have a baby [although I had made a secret, emergency run to Wendy’s when I moved the car], and when they did hook Bethany up to a monitor it would alarm every 30-minutes or so [I am leaving out the archaic “husband” chair they expect the significant other to rest on simply because I am trying to eliminate this from my memory]. Oh, and of course the labor pains and all that the mommy incurs are painful and uncomfortable too, I’m sure [I really am sure… I’m not man enough to go through that myself!]. Baby delivery is physically exhausting. Only once Jack arrived and we knew he was in capable hands could we search for rest; only then could we look for comfort.

Lets face it, our lives are a workout. Every day we are forced with new obstacles to climb and hurdles to jump, and every day we constantly search for comfort. Some of us try to find comfort in food, while others find comfort in repetition. For some, the “known” offers the safety net of comfort, whereas the “unknown” builds tension and anxiety. Most of the time comfort is not found in adventure or discipline but it is found in the mundane, day-to-day activity of going through the motions. We are all searching for comfort…

And all the while Jesus is inviting us, "Come to me, all of you who are tired and have heavy loads, and I will give you rest” (NCV).

Understand, God never invites His people to find comfort in anything but Him. Yes, there’s going to be trials, challenges, and temptations, but we are only invited to find comfort in Christ. Any other attempt to find comfort is an attempt to manufacture our own comfort, and when we manufacture our own comfort we don’t have to rely on God’s comfort.

Lets unpack this further. Why do financial institutions freak out during an economic crises? Because their comfort is in manufactured in their finances. Why do drug users freak out without drugs? Because their comfort is manufactured in their next fix. Why do church people freak out over a change in worship order? Because their comfort is manufactured in a tradition [I believe tradition is good if there is reason behind it but bad when it becomes the thing we worship]. Why do we freak out at the first sign of a new opportunity? Because we manufacture comfort in our human limitations.

However, God never invites His people to find comfort in anything but Him.

We are closest to God when we find rest/comfort in God. When we are stressed, tired and vulnerable is when we truly rely on God; when we rely on God is when God can mold us into who He has designed us to be. After we have eaten the right foods, diligently trained, and overcome challenges we need the recovery time that only rest can bring.
Just as in our physical weight loss so it is in our spiritual work-off of sin-fat: it’s time for rest when stress and weakness takeover. As the disciple Peter explains, “…6 humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and in his good time he will honor you. 7Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about what happens to you” (I Peter 5:6-7, NLT).

That’s reassuring… God cares about you and wants you to trust Him!

Are you tired? Do you need rest? God is inviting you to find comfort in Him.

The Biggest Loser: Week 3-4

Challenge

“The Biggest Loser” is a game show. When the dust settles and the winner is standing victoriously it will all come down to who played the game the best. That’s it… period. Along the way there are some great times, some will lose a lot of weight, and some will have changed their lives forever… but ultimately, The Biggest Loser will be that individual that played the game the best.

One deciding factor in what makes, or breaks, a Biggest Loser contestant is how he or she handles himself or herself during a challenge. In case you don’t know, the show isn’t only about eating correctly and vigorously working out; it is also about mental stamina. This is an aspect of the game that can really twist the end results in a hurry. During the coarse of the show, the contestants are required to involve themselves in various “challenges”. Often, the challenges are both mentally and physically demanding – like an obstacle coarse, a rope climb, or a stamina inspired waiting game; however, my favorite challenge is one that is totally mental in nature: the temptation.

Here’s how the temptation works: the contestants are faced with a room full of calorie and fat filled foods, of which they are allowed to eat as much as they want. Usually, the one that eats the most will receive a monetary prize… $500 - $5000. However, eating the most has a big price to pay. The contestants are faced with the temptation to eat as much as they can for the cash, or deny the calories for less weight on the scale.

It could really play with your mind.

Because that is what temptation does.

In real life we are all faced with temptations. Okay, so they aren’t always food for cash, but we do play the “this for that” game. Face it; we’ve all been tempted.

Temptations come in all shapes and sizes. Some people are tempted by food, others by tax evasion. Some by infidelity while others by illegally copying compact disks. Some people are even tempted during a simple drive to the store. One day, as I was driving along, minding my own business at the “suggested” speed, another motorist came along insisting that I pursue my location a bit faster. He followed me ever so closely [I could tell he had a uni-brow from my rear view mirror] until we reached a point in the road where he could pass, which he did with great enthusiasm. Now, I was faced with a dilemma: should I (a) allow this kind, compassionate, inpatient motorist to forge ahead with no complications, or (b) ride his tail like a baby bull frog on his momma… giving him a piece of his own medicine. Temptations can be tough – temptations make you choose.

You see, “The Biggest Loser” television show is all about the elimination of fat and the strengthening of muscle, which makes the food temptation so difficult. These people have a bad background with food. Similarly, as humans we deal with sin-fat on a daily basis – we’ve covered that… we know the spiritual diet and we know the spiritual workout. However, because we live in a fallen world we still have to deal with temptations, and we have a bad background with all that keeps us from being everything God intended us to be.

During Jesus’ time on earth He dealt with the same temptation issues you and I deal with daily. He had to in order to complete his mission. In fact, three of the four gospels record His famous temptation.

1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” 4 But he answered, “It is written,“‘Man shall not live by bread alone,but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple 6 and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written,
“‘He will command his angels concerning you,’
and
“‘On their hands they will bear you up,lest you strike your foot against a stone.’”
7 Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’” 8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9 And he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.” 10 Then Jesus said to him, “Be gone, Satan! For it is written,
“‘You shall worship the Lord your Godand him only shall you serve.’”
11 Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him. (Matthew 4:1-11, ESV)

This is a classic passage. It really couldn’t be any easier to dissect. As Matthew [and Mark, and Luke] point out, Jesus faced temptation issues just as we all do. There are, however, a few key points to wrap our thoughts around.

First, understand that Jesus was tempted. Remember, Jesus knew no sin because He was, after all, the only perfect person to walk on this earth. I make that point for clarity… to be tempted is not sin; to fall into temptation is sin. I once heard a friend say that if you think “it” you might as well do “it”, because to think “it” is just as bad as the sin itself. I don’t agree. From the beginning of time God blessed His creation with free will, and the beauty of free will is that we have the choice to make our own decisions. My opinion is that God is glorified when we make decisions based on what honors Him. To be tempted is not to sin, it is to be human; however, humans do have the capacity to fall into temptation, which is sin.

Second, notice when Jesus was tempted. 2 “And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 And the tempter came..” Jesus, the Savior of the world, God in human form, the alpha and omega (the beginning and the end)… was tempted when He was weak. Being weak is a great time to be tempted, isn’t it? Think about it, we are never easily tempted at our strongest points. No, it’s seemingly when we are low on cash, worn out, or just plain tired of our socioeconomic condition that we seem to be tempted the most.

We are tempted when we are weak, and we are going to be weak from time to time. The passage doesn’t say, “If the tempter would have come”, instead it reads, “And the tempter came”. The fact is we are going to be tempted, and no one is exempt – because we all become weak.

Finally, observe Jesus’ response to the temptations. His first reaction is in reference to His own physical state, after all, He is hungry. The tempter encourages Him to turn stones into bread, in which Jesus responds by quoting an Old Testament passage:

“He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD. (Deuteronomy 8:3, italics added)

The second situation came as a question to Jesus’ own deity. The tempter states, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written,”‘ He will command his angels concerning you, and,”‘ On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone’” (verse 6). Two things stand out in this temptation. First, the word “if” is a strong word. The phrase, “if you are,” is nothing more than a call to prove oneself – basically a, “if you can do it, prove it” type of command. Jesus, however, had no reason to prove His divinity by jumping from a high point only to be rescued by angels. Could He have done it? Of course! But He chose not to because he wanted to prove His deity through the cross.

Second, the tempter utilizes a slick move in quoting scripture although out of context. Psalms 91:11-12 states:

11 For He will give His angels charge concerning you,
To guard you in all your ways.
12 They will bear you up in their hands,
That you do not strike your foot against a stone. (NASV, bold script added)

In this attempt, the tempter “adjusts” the words of the psalmist by leaving out the phrase, “To guard you in all your ways”, in which to say, “You can do it, Jesus; the Bible promises that You’ll be rescued”. The Coffman Commentary explains that Satan's purpose in quoting Scripture is not to heed God's word but to thwart it.

Again, Jesus didn’t need to prove His deity and therefore countered with another quote from Deuteronomy:

"You shall not put the LORD your God to the test, as you tested Him at Massah.” (6:16, NASV, italics added)

Jesus knew that to call upon God for such a demonstration was an attempt to control God, which the scriptures state is prohibited.

The third temptation attacked Jesus in the form of greed. In this temptation, the tempter offered Jesus all the kingdoms of the world and the glory that comes from ruling them, if only Jesus would bow down and worship him. In a nutshell, this temptation was a way for Christ to avoid the cross. Think about it, why did God send Jesus in the first place? To endure the cross in order to make a way to God because sin had so corrupted the world (kingdoms and their glories) that only Jesus conquering death, hell and the grave could repair. Of course the tempter wanted Jesus to accept this offer because Jesus’ death and resurrection is what gives humanity its hope.

Jesus, again, opposed this temptation with the command for Satan to leave immediately and once again quoted from Deuteronomy:

"Respect the LORD your God. You must worship him and make your promises only in his name.” (6:13, NCV)

I think it is safe to assume that Jesus had had enough at this point. His physical state, deity, and passion had been tested and it was time to bring it to an end. He commands the tempter to “be gone” in which the tempter had no choice but to comply. Jesus had won, and in doing so proved that God’s word, which is the truth, is the one and only effective counter to Satan’s deception.

Interestingly, our physical state, beliefs and passions are tempted quite regularly if not exclusively. We are tempted when we are weak, when we doubt and when our emotions are provoked. Temptation to sin is a part of life. We get tangled up in sin [as Hebrews 12:1 (NIV) explains, “let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us”], and the only way to get untangled is to know what God’s word says. This is why our diet in God’s word and our spiritual workout is so important, so we can prevent temptations when they come our way. We do this through scripture memorization. Memorizing scripture, just as Jesus did, is the only sure fire way to deal with our temptations.

Because temptation can really play with your mind, since that is what temptation does.

Sure, Jesus could have just told Satan to leave because He was God in the flesh, and it would have worked; however, Jesus chose to model scripture memorization for us so that we would understand His word and know God’s will for our lives. By understanding God’s word and finding God’s will for our lives the opportunity for temptation to play with our mind is decreased considerably.

There is no doubt that sin temptations are tough. When we fail them [and we will fail them from time to time] we are robbed of the opportunity to represent Jesus and live up to all that God wants us to be. Speaking of failing temptations, are you still wondering about what choice I made that day on the way to the store? Lets just say I didn’t act very Christ like. Had Jesus been in my place He would have probably said, “Love your neighbors as yourself” [see “The Biggest Loser- Workout”]. I attempted to give him a piece of his own medicine, but what I learned was that temptation could really play with my mind, twist the facts and hinder my witness. In the words of John 10:10, “The thief's purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My (Jesus’) purpose is to give life in all its fullness.” Life in Christ is life outside of sin; therefore, to win the challenge we need to avoid getting tangled up in the sin of temptation.

The Biggest Loser: Week 2-4

Workout

In my mind two things stand out when I think of “The Biggest Loser”:
1.) The encouragement the show gives people… even those who aren’t overweight.
2.) The passion the contestants have to shed weight and work towards being healthy.

We’ll focus on number 2…

There is no denying that the most visible example of the contestants passion comes from the workout. You can see it in their faces, their sweat, their emotions – these people are seriously passionate about what they are doing. The workout is agonizing, strenuous and demanding. It separates the men from the boys [and the women from the girls if you’re a stickler for politically correctness].

If you’ve seen the show you know what I mean. From what is shown on T.V., these folks are worked hard, but there is a method to the madness. If you’ve noticed, they are constantly being given directions… “five more reps”, “push with all your strength”, “ride hard for three more minutes”, etc… you get the idea. They are given directions to keep them on track so they can stay on course. The trainers know that they have to keep encouraging the contestants with these directions so they will stay focused and not lose sight of the bigger picture. In short, they are telling them what is required for a healthy, physically fit lifestyle.

The similarities between body-fat and sin-fat are too obvious to ignore, and while a physical workout promotes the burning of body fat, a spiritual workout promotes the burning of sin fat.

During Jesus’ time on earth, He was constantly being pushed into a corner to prove himself. The religious leaders of the day were relentlessly coming at Him insisting He explain His motives, and Jesus consistently proved Himself right.

The disciple Matthew records one of these raids. He tells it like this:

34Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. 35One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: 36"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" 37Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'38This is the first and greatest commandment. 39And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' 40All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." (Matthew 22:34-40, NIV)

In essence, the Pharisee’s (the religious leaders of the day) were saying, “So, tell us Jesus… what’s the best way to work off sin-fat?” To which Jesus responded, “Love. Love God with everything you’ve got and love everyone else as much as you love yourself. Do this and everything else will fall in place.” In short, Jesus is telling them what is required for a healthy, spiritually fit lifestyle.

To be fair and remain consistent, we need to examine the two responses Jesus gives. First, He says that in order to stay spiritually fit and burn sin-fat we need to love God with our everything – not just bits and pieces. The NIV translators affirm heart, soul and mind, and in all actuality there isn’t anything left after that. If we devote our heart and mind to something, then that’s not everything. If we give up our mind and soul to a cause, our heart could still lead our passions. No, in order to truly love God we’ve got to give Him our everything. This should be our reaction to God. Theologian A.W. Tozer once said, “What comes into our mind when we think about God is the most important thing about us.” So, do you think of God as oppression or as love? It’s hard to embrace oppression, but love is easily received. The writer of I John 4:8 explains, “God is love.” Therefore, to know who God is is to know what love is. Thus, our response to God should be that of love – a love that encompasses everything and conquers all things… every aspect of who we are – heart, soul and mind. Everything.

But Jesus didn’t stop there. He also says we should love our neighbors as ourselves. This statement is much deeper than it sounds. On the surface it sounds like Jesus is dealing only with our response to our neighbors, but in all actuality He is dealing with how we view ourselves as well. I translate neighbor to be the people we come in contact with – the people we’ve known and the people we are just now meeting. Sometimes our neighbors are our best friends; sometimes our neighbors are our worst enemies – in either case God commands us to love them. Unlike God, our neighbors are not love, but God is love. Some people may argue that they don’t love themselves and in turn don’t love anyone else. However, it is my belief that Jesus mentioned the command to love God first for a huge reason… because God is love. If we love God with our everything then we have to love ourselves, because God is love and we are giving into love with everything we have. If we love others as we love ourselves, then we are showing them the best example we can give of God’s love. Again, the author of I John explains, “19We love each other as a result of his (God) loving us first” (I John 4:19, NLT). Because God loved us first we have been given the instruction to love other people – no matter what.

Even when they are rude.

Even when we don’t get the raise we deserve.

Even when they buy our lunch.

Even when they don’t let us out in traffic.

Even when they are obnoxious.

Even when it was really our fault.

Even when they are arrogant.

Even when they are right.

Even when we need to forgive.

Even when they need to forgive.

Even when it’s a messy situation.

Even when they go behind our backs.

Even when we break a commitment.

Even when they break our trust.

Even when we think it can’t get any worse… and it does.

Even when etc. happens.

No
Matter
What.

God commands us to love others. And to disobey God is sin.

And our goal here is to work-off the sin-fat.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. (Hebrews 12:1, NIV, italics added)

So why did Jesus decide that love is the greatest commandment? Glad you asked… because love covers everything. A proud heart is eliminated by love. Lustful desires are removed by love. Envy, self-indulgence and resentment are all eradicated by a truly loving heart. True love covers everything. You cannot be jealous of your neighbors new car if your true, heartfelt love for your neighbor is genuine; similarly, you cannot be too proud to help another person if you honestly love that person with the love that God blesses you with. Love is the hinge on which every other direction hangs on. The author of I Corinthians explains, “13there are three things that will endure—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love” (13:13, NLT).

Love is a workout for me. Some people seem to love so easily, but not me. For me, loving others is like spending a day in the gym, diligently working, sweating, burning fat, and training to understand more about the life God has planned for me. I don’t see this as a negative; I use it as a positive. When we work hard for what we want we appreciate things more. As I work out this love issue in my life I am reminded of just how much Christ loves me and wants me to strive to be like Him [Check out II Corinthians 5:21]. Our goal, our direction, our exercise is to love – love God with our everything and love everyone else the way that God wants us to love ourselves. My favorite verse as translated by The Message Bible is I Timothy 1:5:

5The whole point of what we're urging is simply love--love uncontaminated by self-interest and counterfeit faith, a life open to God.

I think the Apostle Paul nailed it… our workout is to love – uncontaminated, unpolluted, and untainted; just pure, clean, simple… love.

The Biggest Loser: Week 1-4

Diet

I like "The Biggest Loser". I’m not a fan of many reality shows [actually, I only admit to liking three: "The Biggest Loser", "The Next Food Network Star" (that’s irony for you), and "Celebrity Apprentice" (I just can’t live without The Donald)], but I do enjoy watching "The Biggest Loser".

If you’re not a fan, here is how it works. Overweight contestants are chosen and are fed right, worked hard, and are emotionally challenged in order to be the overall winner. The contestants chosen are generally in the 400 to 600 pound range and, at the end of the season, generally lose down to around 180 to 220 pounds. It is simply amazing.

I once watched another program featuring a man that would have been an excellent contestant for The Biggest Loser. My wife likes to watch those programs on cable T.V. that show babies being born or tumors removed. I could care less about watching one of those programs; however, in between a program about a tumor being detached from a small intestine and fully developed healthy baby being born in someone’s living room, there was a program about people that were addicted to food. It must have been on TLC or the Discovery Channel, but it was actually an expose on people who couldn’t stop eating. We’ll call the man I remember most Ray. Ray had an eating problem. At Ray’s largest weight he topped the scales at around 570 pounds. Ray was unhappy, unhealthy and uncomfortable, so he decided to do something about it. Through hard work Ray lost down to an astonishing 200 pounds! It was amazing… he didn’t even look the same. According to the documentary he gained global notoriety as an overweight man who had his weight under control. However, the story does not end there. Once Ray had lost all the weight he wanted to celebrate, so he went to his favorite restaurant where they served his favorite chilidogs. His intention was to celebrate with only one… but that’s not all he ate. In his own terms he ate the one, but thought another wouldn’t be bad… so he ate two. Two turned into four, four into eight and eight in to 27 [27ish, I really can’t recall the actual number… but it was a lot!]. At the end of the documentary, Ray had topped his original highest weight and was confined to a wheel chair and an oxygen mask. Due to a medical emergency, a rescue team had to tear down a wall at his house and move him to the hospital on a wooden pallet with a flat bed truck because the ambulance was not big enough. Ray had once again become a victim to what controlled him.

Any contestant on The Biggest Loser will tell you that they didn’t secure their spot on T.V. by eating like a bird and drinking water all day long. No, just like Ray, all of them [and many of us] have experienced the wrong diet.

Maybe it’s only me, but I don’t believe the term diet is a quality term anymore. When I hear the word “diet” it congers up in me the thoughts of going two or three weeks without something so I can go to some sort of reunion. However, only logic tells you that if you eat double cheese burgers and fries everyday and gain 50 pounds, once you lose that 50 pounds by “dieting” and then resume the cheese burger-fry diet you will once again gain back 50 pounds or more. Therefore, I think “lifestyle change” is a better, more quality term to use when referring to what’s expected of us when it comes to keeping the weight off.

A lifestyle change is a desire to re-prioritize some things in our life. When dealing with food, a lifestyle change would mean less junk and more quality food – forever.

This may sound way too elementary, but it is true… you eat too much junk and you’ll hold too much junk. The same is true with sin. The resemblance between being overweight and sin is impossible to ignore. Take the example of Ray. Ray was weighed down with body fat until he decided to do something about it. Through “dieting” he eliminated the majority of that fat, but one meal on top of another meal resulted in his being weighed down more than he was before becasue he became a victim of what controlled him.

This is how sin-fat in our lives works as well. We think one sin will not hurt… but if one doesn’t hurt why not try two. Two turns to four, four to eight, and before you know it you are so weighed down with sin-fat that you can hardly breathe... because we become victims to sin. That’s why we need a diet, or lifestyle change, in our spiritual life to help keep us spiritually healthy.

What does a spiritual lifestyle diet look like? Glad you asked!

Just like a physical lifestyle diet, our Spiritual Lifestyle Diet (SLD) consists of two areas: What we take in and how much we take in.

What we take in:

As mentioned before, you can’t expect to eat cheeseburgers everyday and lose weight. Why, because cheeseburgers aren’t a healthy food. Good - yes, healthy… no. Cheeseburgers, especially good cheeseburgers, are loaded with fat, carbs, calories, oil, grease, polymonosaturated diclorimethaline [okay… maybe not that…], and all kinds of other non-mentionables that could lead to obesity [at the very best]. To lose physical weight, you can’t take in that kind of junk on a regular basis. On the other hand, eating only lettuce for every meal will never give you the proper sustenance for a healthy body. There needs to be a good balance that gives the best food available that offers the best nourishment available. The same is true with our SLD.

We are consistently being bombarded with junk to take in. Grocery store isles have magazines stuffed with garbage for us to graze on. Television is like an endless buffet of trash that lends itself to our ever-budging belt line. Movies, music, video games and internet offer endless opportunities to fill us with violence, sexual immorality, anger, rage, fear, self-denial, bitterness, hatred, and etc. All of this is just like the junk we find on our plates, and all the while our sin-fat is building up – and as it builds up it manifests itself in our lives.

So what can we do to keep things from building up? The first thing we need is stable staples. Physical staples include veggies, fruit, lean meat, whole grains, and so on. For our SLD we look the Bible to be our standard staple. The author of the book of Psalms understood this as he wrote in chapter 119:

1You're blessed when you stay on course, walking steadily on the road revealed by GOD.
2You're blessed when you follow his directions,doing your best to find him.
3That's right--you don't go off on your own;you walk straight along the road he set.
4You, GOD, prescribed the right way to live;now you expect us to live it.
5Oh, that my steps might be steady,keeping to the course you set;
6Then I'd never have any regretsin comparing my life with your counsel.
7I thank you for speaking straight from your heart;I learn the pattern of your righteous ways.
8I'm going to do what you tell me to do;don't ever walk off and leave me.
9How can a young person live a clean life?By carefully reading the map of your Word.
10I'm single-minded in pursuit of you;don't let me miss the road signs you've posted. (The Message, italics added)

The Bible is our constant staple. It is what motivates and inspires, convicts and condemns our every action. This Bible, the Word of God, should be what drives us to every decision we make, every opportunity we see, and every action we engage in. This Word should be our strongest influence of energy. In the Bible we have hope, we have future, we have health. Consuming the Bible will result in a healthy, sin-fat free life [refer again to verse 9].


Another portion in our SLD are good Christian authors. These authors serve as side items on our plate… but never as the main entrée, which is reserved for the Bible. Some authors I respect (in no particular order) include: Erwin McManus, Rick Warren, Mike Yaconelli, Andy Stanley, Louie Giglio, and Doug Fields. These are men that I believe can complement the entrée, but not over power it. I believe they would all agree with I Psalms 119:103-104:

103 How sweet are your words to my taste; they are sweeter than honey.
104 Your commandments give me understanding; no wonder I hate every false way of life. (NLT)

How much we take in:

This is probably more debatable than desirable, but in any physical lifestyle change you have to monitor the amount of food you take in. No matter what you eat, healthy or unhealthy, too much can cause complications. I believe our SLD is no different.

When it comes to reading and studying the Bible, I consider bite-sized portions to be healthier than big chunks. Why? Bigger chunks are harder to swallow, but bite-sized portions digest easier. We are programmed to compute only so much information at given times. When my wife asks me to make a very serious decision, she understands that she will not receive an instant answer. I require time to dwell on the subject before I can deliver a verdict. She also knows that if she gives me too much to dwell on at one time she will never get an answer on anything – because I am not programmed to compute that much information. This is how our SLD works. We can only take in so much before it all becomes numb. This is one reason that I don’t encourage people to read through the Bible in a year [at least not on the first go-around]. When you begin trying to digest three to four or maybe five chapters in one sitting the information becomes blurry and the act of reading turns into a sacrifice rather than a desire [not all people are programmed the same… if you can digest 4, 5, 18 chapters in one sitting be my guest. I cannot]. Please don’t misunderstand… if you are finding pleasure in reading and are grasping the text, continue by all means. However, if it is difficult to wrap your thoughts around, it might be best to cut it into bite-sized portions.

So there you have it… a healthy meal consists of healthy food and healthy portions [easy enough, right]. Now, if we will apply that to our spiritual discipline of studying God’s Word we should be on our way in no time towards a lifestyle as described in Hebrews 12:1… “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” (NIV)

Guilty

“I’m so sorry, it was an accident”, but it was no accident. The older man glanced up from his paperwork, a smirk of disapproval across his face. “What if I promise never do it again?” I was begging – hoping, praying that my groveling would encourage him to understand. The number 73 was still shining brightly above the radio, ahead the sign boldly stated 55 – there was no mistaking it. With a look of compassion and conviction the gentleman quietly explained, “I have to write you this ticket… you broke the law… you’re guilty”.

._._._._._._._._._.

Congratulations!

You and I have something in common… we’re both sinners. This, however, is not why I am congratulating you.

We killed Jesus. [Still, not a reason to celebrate.]

Actually, our sin killed Jesus. We are all guilty of sin – repulsive, filthy, ugly, putrid, disgusting, nauseating, rancid sin. We are born to sin. It is our nature, our instinct, and our impulse. We do not learn sin; we are embedded with sin. Sin is a common characteristic of every human being ever created, except one… Jesus – and our sin killed Him.

Sin keeps us from experiencing the freedom of life. Oddly, it is in sin that we feel most free; however, sin actually constricts all freedom. We wallow in sin, embrace it and dance with it. We let sin lead. Sin motivates our decisions and encourages our actions. We are good at sin and we are all excellent sinners… but to live in sin is to live in slavery. Jesus [the one our sin killed] put it this way, 34”I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. 35Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. 36So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:34-36, NIV). Now, “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:24), but Jesus’ purpose is, “to give life in all its fullness” (John 10:10b, NLT). We choose to live in sin.

A short lesson on the history of God verses sin explains why Jesus was so adamantly against it.

Adam and Eve: Eve was enticed by the serpent to eat the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil (although God had told them not to – that it would cause death). Adam saw that it was good too, and through this action sin entered the world. Adam and Eve were kicked out of paradise and the serpent went crawling.

Noah: The world was becoming more wicked. God chose one man and his family in which to spare and begin the rebuilding process of His people. Noah and his family spent 40 days and 40 nights aboard the ark with a zoo full of animals. Everyone else was eliminated.

Moses and the Ten Commandments: God saw that the people were once again getting into too much mischief… engaging in sinful activities and worshipping objects other than Himself. He chose Moses to lead his people and gave them a list of warning signs that would help keep them on the course. He promised them the Promised Land, but they didn’t believe that He would deliver. They all wandered in the wilderness for 40 years.

God’s Prophets: The world grew in population. Technology was on the rise and new areas were being inhabited. Sin was abundant and God’s Law was not being adhered to very well. God began sending His messengers (prophets) to lead the people back to where they needed to be. Some listened… others declined. God got mad; the prophets pleaded to God for the people – another example of God’s love.

The Silent Treatment: Between where the Old Testament ends and the New Testament begins [we call this the Intertestamental Period] there was 400 years of Silence on God’s part. Things were still happening, only God chose to be quiet – which He did until he sent an angel to visit the father of John the Baptist.

Jesus Christ Superstar: Never watched the musical of the same name, but when Jesus entered the scene He spent his time loving the riff-raff and opposing the religious monarchy. In fulfilling what the Old Testament Prophets affirmed, He came to bring the world back to God and proclaimed that living in sin was living in prison. He became angry with what had become of “religion” and took matters into His own hands.

Death and Resurrection: The death and resurrection of Jesus was the most triumphant event ever for all of civilization. When Jesus died on the cross, He took with him all the sin that humanity would ever produce. His death was the only way to redeem sinful man and offer an escape hatch from what mankind had become. His death was the ultimate sacrifice, and Jesus paid the price that no one would ever be able to pay (For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16. KJV)

The death and resurrection of Jesus was the only way we could ever be truly free from sin. Some may say, “Why didn’t God just abolish sin all together?” The answer is simply that God is a Gentleman. Gentlemen never impose anything on anyone. They will encourage and inspire you to be your best, but a true gentleman will allow you to make your decision. God does not force us to be His followers. He does, however, offer us free will When I was eleven years old I was infatuated with a girl I met at the roller skating rink. I just knew we would be together forever [which I am thankful was not the case], but I’m sure she just knew that she had no idea who I was. Had I had the power to force her to be my girlfriend she would have been, but not because it was her idea [in other words, no free will]… it would have been because of my choosing. When we have the power of free will to choose what we want to be associated with, we put more emphasis on what that is, and God wants us to choose Him; God wants us to put emphasis on Him.

Jesus did not die to eliminate sin; rather, He died to erase sin from our past. Sin is still running wild in the vast abyss of the future and, while Christ’s death and resurrection covers all sin, we should not continue sinning just so we can experience more of God’s love. Instead, Followers of Christ should take the advice that the author of Hebrews offers:
1Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. 2Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. (Hebrews 12:1-3, NIV)

So, what does it take to throw off the sin that so easily entangles, and experience the true freedom of life? Discipline. Over the next four weeks I will discuss some things that can help untangle the sin mess in our lives. I am no pro, but I do believe there are some pretty basic steps that can point us in the right direction.

So, congratulations! There’s something we can do to take the weight off!

Get ready, because we all have to weigh in.

Fresh Inspiration

Mike Yaconelli, Messy Spirituality

Threaten others with a loud and boisterous faith, and you will be politely (at first) asked to quiet down; dance you faith instead of sitting still in your pew, and you will be asked to leave; talk about your faith with passion, and you will get expressions of concern about the inappropriateness of your emotions. Allow others to see your brokenness, and you will be reprimanded for being too open; hear the music of faith, and you will be warned of the danger of emotional instability. (40-41)

Yaconelli, Michael. Messy Spirituality. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2002.

Pimple

Warning: This might be gross. If you have a weak stomach you might want to scroll down to start reading.
Also, this post is not meant to poke fun at acute acne problems. I fully understand severe acne problems are very serious. Please read this in humor.

When I was 14 I had the best zit ever. I mean, this thing was great… a trophy among other zits… King of the Zitworld. You may think I’m exaggerating, but I’m not. It was at least 3/16” tall and as big around as a pencil eraser. White capped, taught and shiny, this beauty was positioned just to the right of my nose and stood out like a hood ornament on a 1978 Buick Electra. I remember I primed on this thing for at least three days before it finally… released [released is the nicest way I could find to put that this bad-boy zit erupted like Mount St. Helens and shot at least six inches in a gooey glob landing on the mirror]. Obviously, this was one memorable moment.

Thinking back, however, what I really remember most was the soreness. It’s funny that a pimple could cause my whole face to hurt. Smiling, frowning, scrunching my nose, winking, nodding [you get the idea]… any facial movement was painful. My social life suffered too. Everyone could see my zit because I carried it around with me wherever I would go. It seemed the more I tried to disguise the zit, the better the zit would show up.

And then came the “release day”. I can remember that the pain I felt as I [ever so gently] “encouraged” my friend into “liberation” was one of the most excruciating pains I had felt in my vast 14 years of existence. Although the pressure was gone, the scar remained, and a sore scar is an unhealthy scar.

So, I ask myself, what could I have done to eliminate this tragic incident? Using some acne medication would have been a good choice [Clearasil was always my fave… the tinted formula that didn’t show up as well. Kinda worked like makeup now that I think of it]. Acne medication is probably the easiest of the topical medications to use… you just open the tube and smear is on the “blemished” area. In most instances it dries things up rather nicely – much like forgiveness dries up emotional zits…our hard hearts, hurt feelings, and stubborn pride.

It’s easy to see our emotional zits. We carry them with us wherever we go, almost as if we’re proud of them. As they become more irritated they begin to grow and become sore, up until the moment they “release” and make a huge mess – usually affecting the people we care about most. It’s at this point the emotional zit turns into an emotional scar, and, just like a physical acne scar, acne medication can’t help. Only time heals physical scars.

The goal, however, is to apply the medication before the zit gets irritated, and chances are it will heal without the irritation, soreness and the scarring. Chances are others won’t even notice it, because with medication the skin is on it’s way to healing. Chances are, with medication, it will never “release” or cause an ugly mess with those we care so deeply about.

There have been times when I’ve needed to use some forgiveness medication in my own life… I think it’s safe to say we’ve all needed it at some point or another. The Apostle Paul reminds us of this in Colossians 3:13:

You must make allowance for each other's faults and forgive the person who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. (NLT)

During the late 1990’s and into the early 2000’s, I had the unique opportunity to drive a dirt oval racecar at local tracks in our area. It was time consuming and stressful, but I had a great amount of fun and excitement doing something I had always wanted to do. One Saturday evening, however, that fun came to an abrupt halt. As I was leading the race another driver rammed into me causing a substantial amount of damage to my car. Seemingly overnight I went from being the guy who races cars to the guy who was wrecked. As time wore on, my heart became hardened towards the other racer. I couldn’t stand to hear his name and I hated his car number. More than that, I began to hate what had happened to me. I felt like I was a victim – and my emotional zit began to become more and more irritated.

This incident really affected me, both as a person and a Christ follower. The human nature in me wanted revenge… good revenge that would teach this guy a lesson and show him just how irritated I was. The human part of me wanted to give back to him what he had dealt to me. However, the Christ follower in me reminded me that revenge was not an option. Jesus never encouraged revenge; on the contrary, Jesus was a great promoter of forgiveness. His words are obvious of that in Matthew’s Gospel:

14"In prayer there is a connection between what God does and what you do. You can't get forgiveness from God, for instance, without also forgiving others. 15If you refuse to do your part, you cut yourself off from God's part. (Matthew 6:14-15, The Message)

Then, later in Matthew’s writings…

21At that point Peter got up the nerve to ask, "Master, how many times do I forgive a brother or sister who hurts me? Seven?" 22Jesus replied, "Seven! Hardly. Try seventy times seven. (Matthew 18:21-22, The Message)

Jesus taught what we all must know, that people will offend, but forgiveness will free. A hard heart or a bad attitude will only result in retaliation, but forgiveness will free the offender and the offended. Forgiveness will dry up that ugly emotional zit and heal the wound from the inside out. Forgiveness will allow relationships to once again be healthy.

Emotional zits can definitely paralyze even the best of us. Hard hearts, bitter attitudes and stubborn pride can ruin an otherwise healthy individual. The remedy is simply to forgive. Just as Luke 6:31 puts it, “Do for others as you would like them to do for you” (NLT), we should be forgiving others because Christ forgave us. The author of Hebrews puts it as purely as possible:

14Try to live in peace with everyone, and seek to live a clean and holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord. 15Look after each other so that none of you will miss out on the special favor of God. Watch out that no bitter root of unbelief rises up among you, for whenever it springs up, many are corrupted by its poison. (Hebrews 12:14-15, NLT)

Are you ready to live in peace? Are you ready to heal some emotional zits?

Drain

Something funny occurred to me the other day.

I was taking my daily shower [and probably not washing my feet] when I noticed that some drops of water were just hitting the tub floor and washing down the drain, having never “lived” to their full potential. And this happens every time I take a shower.

I know what you may be thinking… “This is a way over critical observation”, and for the sake of an argument you would be right. But if each drop of water hit its target, how much more efficient and meaningful would our time in the shower be? But unfortunately, I would say at least one-third of these droplets [maybe more] never hit their mark, never have an impact, never reach their potential, and never get used.

Life would be better if we could use all the water in the shower. Think of what a refreshingly clean experience that would be if every single water droplet was used. Instead, a vast majority of them get washed down the drain – just like a moment in time.

Each day is filled with moments that we take for granted. Just like being in the shower, we are hit by the stronger moments as we miss the small moments that disappear down the drain. More often than not, these small moments are great opportunities that we undervalue and misinterpret as daily life. It’s in these small moments that our character is defined.

How is our character defined in the miniscule moments? It is in these moments that we identify with who we are living for, and who we are trying to please. It is in these moments that we decide if we are serving ourselves or serving others. It is in these moments that we have the opportunity to reveal the nature of God (love, grace, peace forgiveness, patience, hope, etc- Galatians 5:22-23).

Galatians 5:13 shares these thoughts:
You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. (NIV)

I’ve only seen my father cry in public once. He’s a typical man… no emotions, especially not publicly. However, some 22 or so years ago, I saw him cry in front of everyone.

At the little church we attended when I was 12 years old my Dad took on a list of responsibilities, one of which was the role of Sunday School Director, which carried with it the obligation of giving the Sunday morning announcements to the congregation. On this particular Sunday morning, Dad got up and gave the Sunday School attendance and the other weekly information, and then he paused. As he began to tear up he told the story of how he had helped move a bed to my uncles house.

My uncle had recently come out of the military. He and his wife and children had moved to Georgia from Tennessee to find work in the mill that my father worked in. They had lived in Georgia for about three months. It was on this particular weekend that my Dad had driven to Clarksville, Tennessee from Rome, Georgia to pick up a bed frame, mattress, box springs and some other household items for my uncles home in Georgia.

As the story unfolded, it became obvious that my Dad was not crying because of his accomplishment; rather, he was crying because of what he hadn’t accomplished. He confessed that my uncle and aunt had been sleeping on the floor for some time. He confessed that He had been slow and inconsiderate in helping move the bed. He confessed that it was his responsibility to serve others, and he had not been a good servant. In essence, my Father was chasing a lost-forever shower drop that was destined for the drain. Luckily (for him and my uncle) he caught it at the last minute.

I have to admit; when it comes to serving I am great at serving myself. A lot of us are. I don’t think intend to be selfish, I think we’ve just been programmed this way. I think we’ve just been inundated with a culture that embraces ourselves. That’s nowhere near what Jesus teaches. Luke 6:31 simply explains, “Here is a simple rule of thumb for behavior: Ask yourself what you want people to do for you; then grab the initiative and do it for them!” (The Message).

This should be the goal of the Christ Follower: to design a shower in that all the water is used to its full potential… or in other words, make every possible moment count before they are gone forever – before they are gone down the drain.