Would You Be Well?

 A couple of weeks ago, I had the opportunity to serve as facilitator for a panel of pastors, rabbis and ministry leaders as they discussed the impact of faith on today's culture here in our city and how their ministry/organization was positioned to help be a part of this impact.

One of the panelists, a former restaurant manager who now runs a restaurant style feeding ministry here in the area, made a profound comment. He said, "At some point, we have to teach people to move past crisis mode so that they can be self-sufficient."

I thought about Jesus and the lame man at the pool of Bethsaida in John 5. I love the King James Version of this text as Jesus asks the man in verse 6, "Wouldst thou be made whole?" Songwriter Kirk Franklin states it simply, "Do You Want to Be Happy?" What a powerful question as we sit and grapple with all of the tragedy and hurts that plague us as a society!

Note the lame man's response to Jesus. He doesn't give him a straight answer, but rather launches into a list of excuses as to why he has not received his healing. The cure was less than 100 feet away, and yet for 38 years, he lay lame on its edge waiting for someone else to carry him to it.

It is easy to blame others for our failures and poor choices, but we can only attain wholeness when we take ownership of our destiny and recognize that we were created for more.

We are worth more than minimum wage jobs and government assistance to fill in the gaps of our existence. We are worth more than public housing projects or even Section 8 vouchers that place limits on where we can live and raise our families.

We are worth more than abusive relationships fraught with mental, verbal and even physical violations of the sanctity of our personhood. We are more to God than a one night stand or a temporary high that leaves us exhausted, empty and abandoned.

Our lives matter not because of the color of our skin, not even because of the content of our character. We matter because Christ died that we may live a life of abundance. A life of exceedingly abundantly above. A life of more than enough. A life of wholeness.

Wholeness is a beautiful concept--it indicates a state of completion with no lack; a sense of perfection--not necessarily the absence of flaws, but rather a maturity in knowing who we are and what we are purposed for in life.

You were made for more....

Wholeness is a state that took me over thirty years to reach. For me, it came when I was able to look into the mirror of my own soul and realize that what I was seeking--who I was seeking--was already inside of me. The God of the Universe who created the cosmos and then shaped it from chaos to a curated masterpiece resided on the inside of me. And that same God created me for more than what I was settling for in my life. Would I be made well? Would I allow God to make me whole?

The first step in becoming whole is wanting wholeness. Jesus asked the man, "Do you want to be healed?"

As we work with others who may find themselves in an unfortunate situation or circumstance in life, we are called to help them in their immediate crisis, but then we must coach them to a place of wholeness. That requires relationship. That is a place that for many of us is uncomfortable because it requires hard conversations and tough decisions. And it requires us to walk with them as they take their own journey towards wholeness serving as their cheerleader, critic and confidant along the way. Sometimes, it even requires us to walk away realizing that we cannot want for them that which they don't want for themselves.

It may be a family member or loved one who comes knocking on our door like clockwork every payday asking for a "loan". Or, it may be the relative who refuses to take ownership of their health, but seeks us out to serve as their ambulance and emergency room as we nurse them back from the brink of their own self-destructive habits again and again. Still it may be the friend that calls just as we enter that dreamy stage of sleep to cry about their latest relationship catastrophe that we warned them about at its onset.

Jesus did not pick the lame man up and carry him to the pool. He spoke to the man and awakened something deep within that made him believe that he could be whole. Jesus told him to "Rise up, take your mat, and sin no more..." It's time for us to speak to the recesses of our souls and command it to rise up--from whatever situation life has presented to us, from whatever frustrations, disappointments and delusions that we have allowed ourselves to wallow in. God says, "Rise up". Then we must take up our mat--own our issue and deal with it; really own it and deal with its reality and requirements. And finally, we must sin no more. Whatever led to us being in that situation the first time around, we must take the necessary steps so that we don't find ourselves back laying on the edges of our healing, waiting for someone else to carry us where we were made to walk.

Until the Divas talk again, may you be well, may your soul be whole, and may your style be graced by God's smile.

Sincerely,

Pastor J-
The Divine Diva

Carrying More Than We Need

As I sat in the surgery waiting to hear news of my mother's knee replacement surgery, I thought about the wondrous machine that is our bodies. Of all the parts of our body that amaze me, the knees are the most fascinating. Each carrying 7x its weight, the knees are the structural workhorses of our bodies. Knees allow us to walk, jump, bend, stoop and even sit. Without knees, our legs would have nothing holding the upper and lower leg together making it virtually impossible to move about.

Turns out that we have different sized knee joints. In a knee replacement, there are 8 sizes available, ranging from very large to very small. On a scale from 1-8, my mom is a size 3.

Anyone who has seen my mom, however, would never think her knee is a size "3". She is carrying the weight of someone with a size 6 or 7 knee. Her knees are carrying more than they can handle, and after 60 years of carrying that load, they have given out and must be replaced.

The same is true with us in life. God has designed us to carry a certain sized load, but we take on more than He ever intended and as a result, our spiritual ability to walk and move about becomes difficult at times. We lose our enthusiasm for life and the passion that God has deposited in us to carry out His purpose in the earth. We amble about clumsily from one thing from another without a clear sense of direction or purpose and eventually, we quake, tremble and fall under the weight of it all.

So what do we do with all this extra weight? Well, the Bible gives three examples of how to handle it:

The first is found in Galatians 6:2. Paul exhorts the believers at the church in Galatia to bear one another's burdens. Found in the context of restoring a brother/sister overtaken in sin, Paul tells the church that those who are more spiritually mature to restore him/her in love, being careful not to think more highly of themselves than they ought. In other words, we are to seek the counsel and support of those mature in the faith. We should seek out wise counsel and submit to the reconciliation/restorative process in letting go of the sin that has caused our burden. Whether it is unforgiveness, bitterness, lying, sexual sin or addiction, we should seek help from the church. And the church should be prepared to love us back to wholeness, maintaining a posture of humility realizing that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.

As I struggle with my physical weight, I constantly have to enlist the help of family and friends to hold me accountable in my goals. My family checks in with me every week to see have I reached my weekly eating and exercise goals. My husband is my workout partner and helps me to be consistent with my workouts. It takes a community to help us overcome some of our burdens. Share the load.

The second example is found in Hebrews 12:1 in which the author instructs us to lay aside every weight and the sin that so easily ensnares us and run with endurance. Here, we are instructed to evaluate and eradicate. This requires us to take stock of our choices and decision making process. We have to look at the responsibilities we have taken on and evaluate whether or not these activities are helping our hindering our walk with Christ. Every weight is not sin. Sometimes, we take on duties and responsibilities that are noble causes; however, for us it is a weight that God has not designed us to carry, at least not at this season in our lives.

I remember when I was asked to serve on a local board for a public organization. The meetings were monthly, and it seemed like something I could handle and fit into my schedule. However, as time went on, the demands of the organization grew, and what started out as a monthly two hour meeting, quickly became an all consuming daily list of tasks to complete. While I loved the organization and its mission and goals, I realized that this was a weight that was pulling me away from the things that God had assigned for me to do. I had to make a decision to lay it aside and resign from the board. A pastor of mine once said to me, "There are many good things for you to do in life. Your challenge is the find the God-thing for your life and pursue that and that alone." Find your God-thing and lay aside Every.Thing. Else.


Finally, 1 Peter 5:6-7 tells us to submit ourselves to God and cast all of our cares on Him for He cares for us. When we realize that we have a loving and caring Father in heaven who longs to take on our burdens and concerns, we can go to Him in prayer and lay our worries at His feet. As my husband always says, we have to dismantle ourselves as little "god-players". Recognize that we cannot save anyone--not evey ourselves. That is God's job. Our job is to pray and point others to Jesus. Once we embrace this truth, we can free ourselves of a lot of stress and worry as we cast (throw off, jettison, push away) all of our cares and concerns--for our lives and others--onto Him and allow Him to do what only He can.

I realized sitting in that waiting room that I cannot force my mother to change. This was a battle that she has to fight. As my heart quaked within me and the overwhelming sense of responsibility settled on me, I found myself falling to my knees under the weight of it all. I then heard Jesus say to me, "Finally, you are in the posture I've been trying to get you in all along. That of prayer."

Until the Divas meet again, may your burdens place you in the position of prayer as you allow God to make your heart light.

Sincerely,

Pastor J-
The Divine Diva