The REAL Ace of Cakes

I heard it said one time that God is making a cake of our life. He picks the ingredients, and puts them in the batter in just the right proportions.

If we were making the cake, we might tend to leave out the stuff that didn't taste good. In fact, if we're being honest, we may taste the raw eggs and decide they weren't necessary. Flour doesn't really taste that good either. And have you ever tried to down a teaspoon of baking powder by itself? How about drink a bottle of vanilla? Yuck! If I were making a cake of my life, it very likely would only have sugar in it. But that wouldn't be a good cake now, would it?

But God warned us that there will be things in our life that we don't like. "In this life you will have trouble," Jesus once said. That's some promise for becoming a Christian, huh? "Hey, follow me and you'll still have problems."

But, here's the real promise... let Me have control of your life, and I'll make it beautiful. Let me bake your cake... there will still be stuff put in that you don't like. There will still be lots of stirring and whipping and intense heat applied from time to time. But, I promise, at the end, it will be worth it.

The way Jesus said it is this, "...but take heart, for I have overcome the world." The problems of this world are temporary, and if you truly put your faith in Jesus... if you trust him to be the leader of your life, what you'll end up with is a glorious, delicious cake that is your life.

A Festivus Miracle

"What marvelous love the Father has extended to us! Just look at it—we're called children of God! That's who we really are. But that's also why the world doesn't recognize us or take us seriously, because it has no idea who he is or what he's up to." 1 John 3:1 (The Message)

I don't know about other Christians out there, but I often get frustrated when the world doesn't understand me. Like, when I tell a friend, "I'll pray for you," and they stutter and stammer, "uh, yeah, um, thanks. I can use all the good thoughts I can get."

Last night, I attended a Winter Chorale Concert at a local high school. Great music, good production, overall well done. There is no doubt if you only listened to the music, that this was a Christmas production- not a Winter production, a Christmas production. Silent Night was sung. Christmas trees were everywhere (as opposed to Festivus poles). And as the choir belted out the "Halleluja" chorus from Handel's Messiah, more than half the crowd stood in reverence and worship. But, here's the thing. Why not call it a Christmas Concert? What's the harm? Why wouldn't one of the teachers mention, even in passing, that Christmas was coming? Would it really be out of place given that the 180 students on stage were singing "King of Kings - Lord of Lords" at the top of their High School Musical lungs?

Some people are too politically correct for Christmas. Some people are constrained by their environment. But, the truth is, my real annoyance comes when people I talk to don't immediately see the benefits of following Christ like I try to follow Him. I just want to point to my family and how He's blessed me and say, "Don't you see what it's like to follow Christ? Don't you see how you can be blessed?"

But the truth is, and John wrote it, they don't. The world doesn't understand because they don't know what He's up to. And as long as the world doesn't understand Christ, they won't be on board with Christmas. And that has to be okay with me.

When push comes to shove

Many people did believe in him, however, including some of the Jewish leaders. But they wouldn’t admit it for fear that the Pharisees would expel them from the synagogue. For they loved human praise more than the praise of God. -John 12:42-43

The Parisees loved human praise more than the praise of God. Some events in my life lately have left me to question which is more important to me. My friend Steve (who may be reading this) took a test one time that said he has an abnormally high need for recognition. I'm glad he took it before me, because now I can dodge it and no one will ever know.

I love the praise of man. I crave it. I try to deny it, but I'm a prideful man. In the version of the bible called The Message, verse 43 above says this, "When push came to shove they cared more for human approval than for God's glory."

I know God. I trust God (mostly). I want Him to be glorified. But, when push comes to shove, which do I want more? Something to work on....

Lazarus, come out!

When Jesus finally got there, he found Lazarus already four days dead. Bethany was near Jerusalem, only a couple of miles away, and many of the Jews were visiting Martha and Mary, sympathizing with them over their brother. Martha heard Jesus was coming and went out to meet him. Mary remained in the house....

Then Jesus, the anger again welling up within him, arrived at the tomb. It was a simple cave in the hillside with a slab of stone laid against it. Jesus said, "Remove the stone."

The sister of the dead man, Martha, said, "Master, by this time there's a stench. He's been dead four days!"

Then, to the others, "Go ahead, take away the stone."

They removed the stone. Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and prayed, "Father, I'm grateful that you have listened to me. I know you always do listen, but on account of this crowd standing here I've spoken so that they might believe that you sent me."

Then he shouted, "Lazarus, come out!" And he came out, a cadaver, wrapped from head to toe, and with a kerchief over his face.

Jesus told them, "Unwrap him and let him loose." - John 11:17-20, 38-39, 41-44 (The Message)

The tension was palpable. People were upset. Even those who believed everything Jesus said, everything he claimed to be, didn't understand why he would let Lazarus die. (1)Lazarus was a popular man. The story tells us that "many of the Jews" had come from Jerusalem to console Lazarus's sisters, Mary and Martha. (2)Lazarus was a friend of Jesus. The scripture tells us this, and we see it in the way Jesus weeps when he sees Lazarus's tomb. (3) Some would say, Jesus "owed" it to Mary, who in a moment of extravagant love, had washed Jesus' feet with expensive perfume and dried them with her hair. Of all the miracles, this is the one he should surely have performed- saving Lazarus. Yet, he chose not to. Instead, he chose to let His glory be displayed later, to the distress and dismay of everyone around. Why?

Jesus answers this question in verse 15: "You're about to be given new grounds for believing. Let's go there."

We as human beings are so stubborn about believing only what we see. If I could just trust that, since everything the bible says about God, I've found to be true, then all he must really have it all under control, my life would be much less complicated. Instead, I fuss about things and worry a lot and I doubt sometimes that God is who He says he is.

As for God, his way is perfect;
the word of the LORD is flawless.
He is a shield
for all who take refuge in him.- Psalm 18:30 (NIV)