Who Makes It Happen?

"Go, make something happen.” That was Seth Godin's
charge to his first graduating class of nine in his informal MBA program. Godin
is the author of TRIBES, a highly regarded marketing book.

That phrase reminds me of the times I’ve talked to
psychotherapy clients who were trying to “make something happen”—but it wasn’t
working. They were trying to get a spouse to call them if they were going to be
late to dinner, or trying to change a culture at a workplace, or trying to change
their own addiction to porn.

Making something happen didn’t work because,
though my clients had some responsibility, they couldn’t accomplish the task alone. If a
husband kept forgetting to call, his wife couldn’t make him do it. If a worker
tries to change how the intake process works at a nursing home, but it’s been
done that way for twenty years, she needs to persuade many co-workers of the
wisdom of her plan. Addictions require our attention to the temptation process.
But what stops the process at the beginning is the power to imagine the
aftermath of shame.

“God, make something happen.” When we want to create a new process, we need God’s help. It’s not that we have no part, it’s that we must
not ignore God’s part. Life with our Papa-God is a both/and process. He’s the
one to convict the spouse, to change the co-workers, and at the point of
temptation, to give power to imagine consequences.

We can influence. We can obey what we sense the Father speaking to us. We can understand our own vulnerabilities and educate ourselves about a
process of growth. But, let’s not forget, it’s the Holy Spirit working together with us
that will make something good happen.

Dan and Jodi working together Pictures, Images and Photos

Sweet Jesus, Dear Father, Holy Spirit. You have invited us
into your intimacy so that, together, we can bring good into this broken world.

 

Long-Standing Shelters

How long do you expect the house you live in to stand? I walked by a twenty-year-old Cape Cod this morning, already looking shabby. Our hundred year old bungalow, with lots of loving attention, looks better.

A key difference is the materials. The Cape Cod is sided in vinyl, our cottage is painted redwood, the narrow boards typical of the early 1900s. I've not been in that particular Cape Cod, but others of the same vintage feature plastic interior trim. Patterned with wood grain, they look like the real thing, but they will not hold up like the four-inch-wide painted pine with shaped trim that many older houses boast. Both our roofs are architectural shingles-that's one good thing that will protect both our domiciles from our Central Illinois spring hail storms. 

In 1910 our house was built for railroad workers. We're the middle of three that look alike from the outside, but are different inside. What's similar, though, is the material quality. Even so, at that time, the standard, for example, of wood flooring was 5/8" thick oak. Though all 900 square feet are oak, the thickness is 3/8", thick enough for only the one sanding we did when we moved in more than thirty years ago. But it's been enough to support families for a hundred years.

St. Paul says we need to pay attention to our building materials. (1Corinthians 1:12) He's speaking specifically of our building into other's lives, but how we build our own lives counts, too. How can we build into others what we have not constructed in our own?

How do we teach our children to pray if we don't pray? How do we help others grasp the tender, fierce, love of Papa-God if we don't know it ourselves? What materials can we use to help others erect strong walls against sin if our walls are made of paper?

I want to build a house that will be a legacy for generations, don't you? Let's ask God to show us the quality of our materials. Then, if we need to, we can ask him for better defenses from the hail of temptations and lies that often assault us.

Papa, build with us the shelters we need. 

Class Freedom

"Did you get enough?" Our host might ask as we celebrate American Independence day this weekend. As we gather around grills, enjoying our good food, a different party-giver might ask, "Did the potato salad taste good?" A third hostess, presiding over a meticulously decorated dining room, will call our attention to the elegant presentation of salmon canapes.

Depending on the "class" of the people we are with, we'll hear some variation of "Was it enough?", "How did it taste?", and "Was it well-presented?".  I read that analysis a few years ago and it's stuck with me. I grew up with "Was it enough?" I live now with "How did it taste?" I like to do a nice presentation, but "enough" and "taste" are still my key indicators of satisfaction.

Millions, of course, in America and around the world do not get enough. Millions more get enough and are able to concern themselves primarily with taste. A relative few live with elegant presentations of their daily sustenance.

Wherever our attitude toward our current meals, days are coming when Jesus will welcome those who love him to his wedding supper. Dressed in fine linen, we saints will rejoice at the bountiful, delicious, beautiful food spread for all. In the freedom that is real freedom, no classes exist. Every table will be laden with golden lilies, the taste will be beyond imagining, and abundance will reign.

Father, as we celebrate American freedom Saturday, may we also taste the freedom that lasts forever.