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January 20, 2008
The Packers Lose
Well the Packers lost tonight, sad day. I thought they had a
good chance to win but they just didn't play a good game. So
why am I talking about football in a column that's all about
God and faith? The answer is simple really...the two are
intertwine. There are the obvious things to begin. In
Wisconsin especially, it seems we see a good number of people
more concerned about the Packers than God. I'm not saying
there is anything wrong with being a fan, I've been a big
Packers fan throughout the season, but we really need to watch
how much importance we put on things like football,
popularity, winning, money, etc...
What I really want to talk about tonight is an eternal
perspective. When Jesus is brought before Pontius Pilate,
Pilate asks him, "Your own nation and the chief priests handed
you over to me. What have you done? Jesus answered, "My
kingdom does not belong to this world..." (John 18:35-36)
Jesus is very clear here, his kingdom is not of the world that
we know. For everyone who desires to know God and serve Him,
we must look to the kingdom that belongs to Christ, the
eternal kingdom that is in heaven.
This can be a very hard thing to do because it is so easy to
get wrapped up in this world. It is so easy to become the
super fan who doesn't go to Mass on Sunday because you want to
see pre game. It's just as easy to practice for a sport seven
days a week or work for hours on end on homework and find
yourself without time at the end of the day for God. Many
times I find myself thinking I don't have time to read the
Bible or I don't have time to pray when in fact the reality is
that I've had all the time I need but I haven't made it a
priority. It's a pretty simple thing really: which is
more important, God or the life you lead? When we are truly
leading the lives God desires for us it's not an issue because
when we put God at the center, he becomes the most important
part of our life and everything falls in place around Him. If
we can do that, we can truly begin to see how our lives can be
geared towards something bigger than life on Earth and how we
can live for an eternal kingdom.
So I sit here a little upset with the outcome of Packer game
but realizing, it's a very small thing in the scheme of
things. Life will go on, the Packers will try again next year
to get to the Super Bowl and I can cheer again then. But as
all this happens, I need to be thinking about how I can live
for God, how I can make choices that will affect the world for
eternity. This is where my mind needs to focus. This is where
my heart needs to be.
October 1, 2007
Desperation
Yesterday
seemed a day like many others to me, but as I ended my day and
came before God in prayer it became obvious to me that the
last week of my life had not played out how God would have
liked it to. Sitting on the couch I didn’t feel right, I knew
that God desired a change in me in some way, but I wasn’t sure
how. I sat before God wanting so much to understand how he
wanted me to live my life. I found myself in a place that I
both despise and cherish. I found myself in desperation.
Now it may
seem a foreign thing to be despising and cherishing of
something at the same time. Let me explain. What I despise
about nights like the one I faced last night is that they
bring me to once again realize that I’ve gone my own way. Time
and again I find myself looking over the day I have just
endured and realizing I wasn’t asking the Lord for guidance or
I simply wasn’t listening. Sometimes, even when I do feel I
hear the desires He has for me, I ignore them. Instead I chose
my own way. And as with last night, it’s not that my own way
seems selfish. It’s not that I did “bad” things last week; the
desires I found in my heart were ones designed to glorify God.
It’s just that I put them there and it became obvious
God had other desires he wanted to implant within my soul.
So what happens when we realize things like this? So many
times we screw up and pound ourselves for it. How many times
have you beaten yourself up over something you did that was
wrong? But last night that didn’t happen. I had two choices. I
could beat myself up and promise to do better in the future or
I could bow before God and acknowledge that I needed His
leadership. I chose the latter.
What I learned
relieved me. When I woke this morning it was as if all the
pressures I had put upon myself to live a Christian life and
do Godly things were gone. As I prayed in the morning I felt
the presence of something larger than myself, telling me that
there was no grand event I must plan or speech I must give.
What I heard was simple. “Follow Me.” Sitting here it reminds
me of the words of Mary at the wedding feast in Cana, “Do
whatever he tells you.” That is what I’m called to do, to
humbly ask for guidance from the God who made me and do
whatever he commands of me.
Have you ever
been here before? I think in all of us is the desire to do
good, whether it be for God, for parents or for friends. But
when it comes to God, it’s not about how many good works you
do or being a “good” person. It’s about realizing that we
need God. It’s about loving Him so much that we ask Him to
show us what He desires in our lives. When we do this, greater
things will happen in our lives than we could ever accomplish
on our own.
