Look Ahead and Win the Race. Look Back and Break Your Nose!

They were stride for stride as they came down the last stretch of the third leg of the four by one hundred meter relay. Waiting for them were the final runners poised to take the batons and sprint to the finish. These last runners are in, what they call, the anchor-leg position and are usually the fastest members of the team. They're there because they have the ability to make up for lost time and hopefully catch up if they're behind coming into the last leg of the race. As the third-leg runners approached, the anchors began running with one hand stretched behind them, ready to grab a hold of the baton as the previous runner placed it in his hand.  One anchor had his eyes fixed ahead and ran quickly and smoothly down the track and the passing of the baton was flawless.  The second anchor continued to look backwards and lost focus of the track ahead.  He was concentrating so intently on the runner behind him that as the baton was placed in his hand his feet became entangled and he crashed face first onto the track.  The first runner won the race and the second broke his nose.  I want to be like the first.  How about you?

There are a number of places in the Word of God that remind us to keep our eyes fixed ahead and I want to share them with you today.  

Jesus told his followers, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God."

He was telling them (and us) that when we turn to him and begin our walk with him it is not fruitful or beneficial to be looking back. On a practical note, as we drive forward down the road it is usually more important to look out of the windshield that into the rearview mirror.  I don't know about you but I have a hard time moving ahead at times.  I am constantly reminded of my failures and of my past hurts. They have a way of crippling me so that I miss the blessings that God has for me today.  I also think that Satan wants to keep us caught up in our old lives to prevent us from serving God in the new life he gives us when we are born again of the Spirit by faith in Jesus Christ.

In Paul's letter to the Philippian church he shared a similar thought:

". . . I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.  Brother, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it.  But one thing I do:  Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."

I'm thankful that Paul was humble enough to let me know that he hadn't had it all figured out then, but that he was smart enough to know that the answer lied ahead and not behind.  He also gives me hope in knowing that at the end of this race waits a prize for me in heaven, one that the Bible tells us is better than we can imagine.

One quick story that I want to share before I let you get back to the busyness of your day:

A few years ago a few friends and I were fly fishing a stretch of river in Wyoming just outside of Yellowstone National Park.  The river was running through a deep and quite steep walled canyon.  We were about a thousand feet below the rim of the canyon and the trail from the shore of the river up to the top was narrow, rock strewn, and a bit dangerous.  The first few hundred feet required us to crawl on our hands and feet and there were sections that, if we slipped, our trip home wouldn't be in coach but in the cargo hold, confined to a pine box.  I found out quite quickly that looking back was a bad thing.  A few things happened when I took my eyes of the path in front of me and turned my gaze back down the slope.  First, I realized how high I was and it gave me the willies (is that still a word?). Second, it messed with my balance and I felt myself tipping backwards and that gave me the willies too!  Lastly, it slowed me down.  A lot!  My buddy Bob (who is likely reading this post) was standing at the top already relaxing with a cold beverage long before my feet reached the safety of the canyon rim.  I don't think Bob looked back once.  Good plan for the next trip.

So, in order to not beat a dead horse, I want to leave you with this advise. Heed the words of Jesus and of Paul and keep looking ahead in your walk with the Lord.  My eight-year-old son just looked over my shoulder and asked me what I was writing about and I told him, "About looking ahead and not back."  He said, "Like those people who were running away from the cities God was going to destroy and Lot's wife looked back and became a pillar of salt?"  "Yep!"  I love it how God puts an exclamation mark at the end of the sentence.  I don't think becoming a pillar of salt sounds like much fun.  So let's not fall back into the canyon, break our noses on the track, or become pillars of salt, but instead, let's run the race to win.

Peace in Christ,

David

The Christian Diet - Don't Get Stuck on Baby's Milk

So, my wife is away at a conference for the weekend, it's seven PM and my stomach starts to grumble. My sons ask me, "What's for dinner?" "Hmmm? I'm not really sure. Let me look and see what we have." BINGO! Frozen mozzarella sticks and a bowl of Lucky Charms. Dad is the greatest! Then, just to complete the menu we finish off the last of the chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream. As the final spoonful goes down, the phone rings.

"Hi honey. How's your trip", I say.

"Great. What did you and the boys have for dinner?"

"Um, well just some stuff."

"What kind of stuff"

"Mozzarella sticks, Lucky Charms, and ice cream."

"Wonderful!" She says with a sigh. "And what vegetable did you make?"

"Don't the green marshmallows have some vegetables in them?"

GO DAD!

Nutrition. We're surrounded by diets, been taught the food groups, and know what we need to eat to stay healthy. Clearly, my attempt at preparing dinner was inadequate and over time (if I was in charge) my boys would become over weight and vitamin deficient and eventually the Child Protective Service would come and haul them away.

OK, what does this have to do with being a Christian? Read on. Good nutrition starts when we are born. We know that the very best food a new born baby can have is mother's milk. In the first few days after birth moms make a special milk called colostrum which has a variety of growth factors and also antibodies to help fight infection. Then the milk changes to regular breast milk. The baby's small body and immature digestive system isn't ready for solid food yet. A T-bone steak and mashed potatoes just wouldn't sit well. Not only that, it's little toothless gums couldn't even begin to chew the meat.

I want to share with you a spiritual correlation to this concept of nutrition and growth. Although what I'm about to share applies particularly to those who have already accepted Christ, I don't want those of you who haven't to stop here. Please keep reading. When we are new to the faith (or maybe exploring our faith) we are like newborns. Actually, the Bible says that when we trust Christ, we have been born again so this is probably very accurate. As newborns, we aren't ready for solid food or things that are hard to swallow. The Apostle Paul wrote these words to an immature church in the city of Corinth, "Brothers, I could not address you as spiritual but as worldly - mere infants in Christ. I gave you milk, not solid food, because you were not ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready for it."

There is a time in the life of a Christian and in the life of a church when we need to be fed baby's milk (the simple things of the faith). Here is the problem. Many people and many churches never move past the baby food and their growth is stunted. They may have the gift of salvation but they struggle in and with the world and don't have the knowledge of the Word nor do they grow in their understanding of the deeper things of God. Because of their lack of growth they are spiritually weak and when the winds of life blow they are easily toppled.

Then there are those who begin to dine on more grown up spiritual food but only the food that tastes good. Like I said in my last post, these are the ones who only like the parts of the Bible that make them feel good and don't make them uncomfortable. This is like the fats and carbohydrates in the food world. I love a good piece of Boston cream pie and I love french fries. They are easy to chew, taste great, and go down easy. But, if I ate only those things I would grow in girth, be tired, and very unfit. Sometimes I need to eat protein. Protein is harder to chew and occasionally I may need to even cut it in small pieces to get it down. Protein is like the deeper and harder to understand parts of the Word but without them we stay little children and even infants in Christ. Paul spoke to the Church at Corinth to encourage them to grow.

Then there are the Brussels sprouts and the radishes! The things that make kid's faces contort and grimace but the things packed with vitamins and minerals. They (at least to most of us) taste like dirt and just rub us the wrong way. These are the parts of the Bible that we just don't like to hear but are, nonetheless, as true as the parts that say God loves us. For instance, in the parable of the sheep and the goats when Jesus describes his second coming he tells his disciples that all the nations will be gathered before him and he will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. Then he will say to the goats (the unrighteous) "Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the Devil and his angels." Wow, If that isn't a spiritual radish I don't know what is! But, it is from the mouth the One who also says, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." That is more like a cup of hot chocolate on a cold winter day! But we need to feed on both to grow in the knowledge of God.

So, my friend, if you are in a church or Bible study and seem to be getting only baby's milk, or maybe just the desert, you might want to also find a place to get some meat and vegetables. Find a bible believing small group or bible study that presses you and challenges you. Find a good book that dives into the deep things of God and see how you grow. Open the Word, read the Book of Matthew and ask God to open your spiritual eyes to see and discern. See how you stand when the tidal waves come and try to sweep you away! See how your faith grows and then you will also start to feed others who maybe still sipping on milk. Don't be afraid or offended by those parts that don't seem to taste so good. God knows what he's doing and he knows what you need. The banquet is ready! Come.

Peace,

David