Packing My Suitcase

I’ve gotten to travel several times this semester and, each time, I struggle with what to put in my suitcase. If I’m flying, I’ve got to be very judicious about my choices because I don’t want to haul a bunch of luggage through the airport, even if Southwest lets two of my bags fly free. But if I’m driving, my choices seem even harder because, well, I don’t make choices; I just dump stuff in the car and then sort it out as I go along. There must be a happy compromise somewhere between the two.

In our spiritual journeys, we are all the time packing a suitcase. Every Bible study, every sermon, and even conversations with friends are full of spiritual direction that sometimes makes us think, “God, why am I hearing this? I have no point of reference for this stuff.”

It’s really a natural response because that’s how most adults are wired … that’s how adults learn. It’s this concept called andragogy which basically means that adults are most interested in learning subjects that have immediate relevance to their jobs or personal lives. Basically, our lives are so full that we tend to think we don’t have time or energy to invest in stuff that doesn’t matter RIGHT NOW!

But it’s like packing a suitcase. Sure, you need to fit in the things you know you’ll need, but it’s not out-of-the-ordinary to throw in an extra outfit or jacket or swimsuit just in case. You want to be prepared . . . just in case!

So, as you struggle through the end-of-the-semester “why am studying this stuff” blues, hang in there. Picture yourself layering your suitcase with the necessary, the important, and the just-in-case … you’ll be surprised at how much of this information you’ll use right away while other details will be tucked away into the extra spaces just in case.

Oh, and while you’re at it, don’t forget to save room for souvenirs. God’s got some doozies for us to pick up along the way! But that’s a story for a different blog . . . .

We Can Trust Him

How many times have you prayed the Lord’s Prayer? Yes, in your entire life … is there any way you can count how many times you’ve said it? I know I can’t. It’s not that I go to a church that recites it congregationally every week. It’s just that over the years I’ve said it a lot. A lot of years equals a lot of times.

The other night I went to a wedding where we joined the bride and groom in saying the Lord’s Prayer as part of the service. I’m so used to rolling through it that I was caught off guard that this particular church didn’t include the ‘for Thine be the glory’ section. Sometimes saying the Lord’s Prayer can be so mechanical that it takes a change in tradition to remind me to think about what I’m saying and not just say it.

In a recent small group Bible study, we looked at the Lord’s Prayer, and I was caught off guard again. But this time it was because of two of the discussion questions. The first one instructed us to look at Matthew 6:5-15 and make a list of all that we can know about God according to all of these verses. Simple enough. He sees what is done in secret. He knows what you need before you ask Him. He’s in heaven. He forgives us as we forgives others and visa versa. He has a kingdom He’s invited us to be a part of, and He has a will that He wants us to surrender to.

Fast forward through the discussion of ‘our Father,’ ‘hallowed be Thy name,’ and ‘Thy kingdom come.’ We were then asked to look back at the above characteristics and discuss what it would mean to pray ‘Thy will be done’ to this kind of God. Wow! What a perspective check! ‘Thy will be done’ implies a level of trust and dependence on the One to Whom it is said. He’s proven Himself faithful before; I can count on Him to be the same in the future. Those characteristics remind me He is certainly worthy!

I don’t know where you are in your spiritual journey but I imagine at this time in the semester you’ve got some doubts about being in seminary! Don’t give up! Read those chapters. Write that paper. Pull together that review. Trust the same God who faithfully walked you through the first twelve weeks to get you through the next three. And, while you’re at it, be sure to trust Him as you pray ‘Thy will be done!’

Because He Lives

Can I admit that news of several recent deaths has me fighting sadness? I know as believers we have a peek into the end of the story but, my goodness, it’s just so difficult to sit by and know these families are struggling with loss.

Rick and Jonann Byargeon had been at NOBTS about a year when we moved here in 1994. They quickly became friends, and we shared a number of life intersections, including the celebration of Rick and Allen’s birthdays (both in early November). Rick found out he had cancer last fall and, after valiantly pursuing a number of treatment options, on Thursday, April 4, “left this life for the life that lasts forever.”

Then, on Friday evening, newlyweds Deb and Jake Goforth (Deb works in the Dean of Students office and Jake is an NOBTS student) got word that Jake’s brother-in-law had been killed in a car accident that afternoon. Paul Marin and Jake’s sister Holly have two precious children and another on the way due in less than two weeks.

Perhaps you were on Facebook Saturday afternoon like I was when news of the death of Rick and Kay Warren’s youngest son hit friends’ statuses. Matthew, after a lifetime of struggling with mental illness,  gave into “a wave of despair” and took his own life.

Add to these the passing of Dr. Preston Nix’s father as well as Dr. Don Aderhold, former NOBTS extension center director. Plus a local church and family buried a young man this week, killed in a senseless murder (made even more difficult since his brother was killed last fall).

And so I fight sadness with a three-fold battle plan: 

•  I cling to the promise of eternal life.
•  I cling to the promise of comfort.
• I cling to the hope that God will use all of this for His greater glory.

It’s not a polly-anna take on life-and-death; it’s the only way I can get up each morning and do more than just go through the motions of work, school, and family. To borrow from the words of an old chorus:

Because He lives, I can face tomorrow;

Because He lives, all fear is gone;

Because I know He holds the future

And life is worth the living, just because He lives.

You ask a lot of questions!

Have you ever thought about why questions are used as a teaching tool? Sure, there’s the obvious review of knowledge shared but, even more, questions can be a great way to get students thinking outside the obvious and the comfortable. We live in a generation of information overload, and research has been reduced at times to just knowing where to find the info and less about setting ourselves up for deeper thinking.

Jesus used questions a lot as He interacted with people. Someone would ask Him a question but, instead of coming back with a direct answer, he directed the discussion with another question. In Luke 18, a ‘certain ruler’ asked Jesus: “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Before Jesus got to the heart of the matter, He shot back with, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good – except God alone.”

At the Last Supper, as the disciples quibbled about who was the worst and then who was the best, Jesus framed the issue: “For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves” (Luke 22:27).

Even in the garden, after His resurrection, Jesus addressed Mary Magdalene with questions: “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?” (John 20:15). Good grief! Couldn’t He have eased her pain immediately by identifying Himself? Why was it so important for her to come to the realization that He was Jesus instead of pointing it out for her?

I was a journalism major in college (LSU! Go Tigers!) and, during this time, was introduced to the art of asking questions: Who? What? When? Why? Where? How? One thing that I have found in all the years between then and now is that I have a lot more questions than I have answers. But that’s not all bad. As a matter of fact, it’s got me trusting God to fill in the blanks and allowing Him to gently (and sometimes not-so-gently) direct me to His perfect ways, rather than my limited plans.

What questions have you heard from Jesus lately? Is He shaking you out of the status quo? Redirecting your study plans? Challenging you to see the world through His eyes? Receive His questions. Ask some of your own right back. And then see where the process leads. It could put you feeding the homeless in inner-city New Orleans or heading to Africa to work in an orphanage or studying Greek for more semesters than you’ve even studied English.

My prayer is that the questions don’t become an end in themselves. But, instead, may they direct you into a deeper relationship with the One who truly is the Answer!