OK, this is my 10th blog entry and I’m taking a moment to consider the path so far. The idea is basically, Hey, I’m a guy who’s trying to live my life with Jesus at the center, so what does that look like for me? If Jesus is at the center, what makes up the concentric circles of my life? Part of my motivation is the misconception I see every day about folks like me. So I’m taking the liberty to fill in my own circles, thank you very much, and if you’re reading this you’ve come at least part way for the ride. So far: Filling In My Circles; I Melt; TEA Parties; Humble King; My Tribe; Ambition; Eric Clapton and My Kids; Summers with the Brew Crew; To Pastor Again…. But enough about my eccentricities! I’d like to pause today and focus purely on my center. If I could boil a near-lifetime of Jesus following down to a few paragraphs, what would I say?
I have to start with love. My center, Jesus, starts with love. God is love. And love’s not just an affectionate thing, although I’m all for expressing affection. Love has the guts and grit to say, I’m going to put your needs ahead of my own. I love the famous John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” God becoming man, forgiving us…I know I need it. I’m so thankful! So I try to emulate that self-sacrificing love.
Then this paradoxical thing happens where we lay down our lives with that sort of sacrificial commitment, and we get back more than we could have hoped for. We get joy. And it’s not just “Hey, look at my new Cadillac” joy. It’s also “Let’s go for a ride in my rusted out Bronco II” joy. And pretty much no one instinctively wants to sign up for that kind of joy, but it ends up being the real stuff. The non-mirage. I’m overwhelmed by joy.
Jason, my littlest guy, and I have been doing this thing when we hear a dove this spring: saying “I hear peacefulness.” You know, because doves are one of the symbols of peace. And we have our little house in the Shire and we run around like little hobbits in the green grass, and I thank God for peace. And we have these excruciating moments as a family, in our marriage and with our kids, and then there’s peace. And we all mature day by day, and the good times get richer, and I hear the doves. Jesus is a big peace guy.
I talked about ambition in a blog entry a few weeks ago. I have to temper that drive I feel, and that’s part of the patience I feel the Holy Spirit working in me. More Jesus. Part of it is the eternal perspective that says, in light of the grand story of God, I can humbly accept my circumstances and timeline. I need that.
Jesus was pretty direct, even hostile, with arrogant religious people. But to normal, run of the mill folks like you and I, kindness all the way. Romans 2:4: “Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God's kindness leads you toward repentance?” Turns out God isn’t trying to catch me in sin and then nail me to the wall. Sweet! Makes me want to show kindness. Brings me off my high horse.
If this is sounding like a bit of a list, it is. They call it the fruit of the Spirit, in Galatians 5:22-23: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” We’re 55% done.
Good vs evil. We’re so wary of defining that these days, and not wanting to be judgmental is a good thing. But Jesus is all good. He’s like the rock under the lighthouse when the waves are going wild. I’ve still got so much to learn about good and evil and being tossed on the waves. Religious people make some very unhelpful pronouncements…but I want to have a rock at my center.
I have to start with love. My center, Jesus, starts with love. God is love. And love’s not just an affectionate thing, although I’m all for expressing affection. Love has the guts and grit to say, I’m going to put your needs ahead of my own. I love the famous John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” God becoming man, forgiving us…I know I need it. I’m so thankful! So I try to emulate that self-sacrificing love.
Then this paradoxical thing happens where we lay down our lives with that sort of sacrificial commitment, and we get back more than we could have hoped for. We get joy. And it’s not just “Hey, look at my new Cadillac” joy. It’s also “Let’s go for a ride in my rusted out Bronco II” joy. And pretty much no one instinctively wants to sign up for that kind of joy, but it ends up being the real stuff. The non-mirage. I’m overwhelmed by joy.
Jason, my littlest guy, and I have been doing this thing when we hear a dove this spring: saying “I hear peacefulness.” You know, because doves are one of the symbols of peace. And we have our little house in the Shire and we run around like little hobbits in the green grass, and I thank God for peace. And we have these excruciating moments as a family, in our marriage and with our kids, and then there’s peace. And we all mature day by day, and the good times get richer, and I hear the doves. Jesus is a big peace guy.
I talked about ambition in a blog entry a few weeks ago. I have to temper that drive I feel, and that’s part of the patience I feel the Holy Spirit working in me. More Jesus. Part of it is the eternal perspective that says, in light of the grand story of God, I can humbly accept my circumstances and timeline. I need that.
Jesus was pretty direct, even hostile, with arrogant religious people. But to normal, run of the mill folks like you and I, kindness all the way. Romans 2:4: “Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God's kindness leads you toward repentance?” Turns out God isn’t trying to catch me in sin and then nail me to the wall. Sweet! Makes me want to show kindness. Brings me off my high horse.
If this is sounding like a bit of a list, it is. They call it the fruit of the Spirit, in Galatians 5:22-23: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” We’re 55% done.
Good vs evil. We’re so wary of defining that these days, and not wanting to be judgmental is a good thing. But Jesus is all good. He’s like the rock under the lighthouse when the waves are going wild. I’ve still got so much to learn about good and evil and being tossed on the waves. Religious people make some very unhelpful pronouncements…but I want to have a rock at my center.
Gentleness. Ah, you might have read my Humble King post. This is so core for me. Paul says it very directly in Ephesians 4:2: “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.” Are you kidding me!!! Completely humble and gentle!!! Seriously, just put that one in your pipe and smoke it for a minute. So as I field challenges to be successful, be a winner, be powerful, be an influencer, this “completely humble and gentle” thing resonates out from the middle. Kinda feels like a spiritual “Revenge of the Nerds.” I’m OK with that.
Last stop, self-control, which is much to do with personal discipline. Paul rocks on this, 1 Cor 9:24-27: “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. 25Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. 26Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. 27No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.” So no letting myself off easy or claiming the victim tag. God help me!
There it is! In these virtues I see the character of Jesus, and that’s one angle from which to view my core. It’s so rich, so deep. I’m continually striving to be more Jesus-centric. I get distracted. My efforts get diluted and diffused, but that’s what I’m shooting for. Inside all of the circles, that’s the center.
*****
Song links: Be the Center, Jami Smith Be the Center, Vineyard UK
