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Things have gotten a lot more sophisticated at my house.  Years ago when my children were all younger, the annual Leprechaun traps were simple: a discarded cardboard box propped up with a stick with some “gold” bait underneath or a heavy object carefully balanced so as to fall on an unsuspecting Leprechaun’s head.  Now, there are mechanized Lego machines designed to firmly capture the Leprechauns and hold them fast so their gold can be lifted from their pockets!

Luckily, even with the more sophisticated traps, the little rascals have escaped unharmed except for the loss of their chocolate gold coins they have dropped in their haste.  My children seem to take the escape of their proposed captives quite well each year, mollified by the sweet treats they leave behind.

I was thinking about all of this a few days ago.  It was actually sobering to me when I realized that this was all quite familiar in another way in my life.  When I was a young follower of Jesus, the enemy’s traps didn’t have to be that complicated to get me to fall for them.  Looking back, they were really fairly obvious.  However, as I have matured in my walk with Jesus, they have become far sneakier.

We have an enemy that doesn’t quit.  When we get wise in one area, another weakness will show up and be exploited.  Now that I have been being discipled by Jesus for as long as I have, the traps have become far more sophisticated.  Sometimes, there is no way for me to even see them by myself.

This is where other people come in.  It is crucial for us as believers to stay connected with each other.  We need others to point out blind spots and weaknesses and to keep us accountable.  And we need to do this for our friends.  We are not meant to walk this way of Jesus alone.  After all, I am sure even the Leprechauns help pull each other out of the traps my children have set for them!

  “Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up the other; but woe to one who is alone and falls and does not have another to help.” Ecclesiastes 4:9–12

Every year my children eagerly anticipate Punxsutawney Phil’s celebrated emergence from his den.  For those who may not know, Phil is a groundhog in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania with a gift for predicting weather.  Legend has it that if Phil sees his shadow when he exits his lair on February 2nd, Groundhog Day, there will be six more weeks of winter.  

The funny thing is that my children then remember which way his prediction went and talk about the weather accordingly until spring!  They enjoy arguing back and forth about whether Phil’s prediction is accurate for the year.  It is somewhat amazing the power this particular shadow has.  There is also another shadow that we should pay attention to.

There are only so many hours in the day and so many days in a week.  As westerners,  most of us are production-oriented.  Many of us try to “do it all.”  Reality is though, we can’t.  This is where that other shadow comes in.  When we are focused on something, that thing is getting our attention or our “light” if you will.  Other tasks, maybe even relationships, are going to be in shadow.  In other words, if we are saying “yes” to something, we are saying “no” to something else.  

Followers of Christ are not exempt from this.  We may be under the impression that we can do more than the average person, after all, we have Christ strengthening us.  But this isn’t exactly what Jesus taught.  Jesus Himself often cast shadows.  He stayed absolutely committed to doing only His Father’s will and if you read the Gospels closely, you will find that that involved a lot of “no’s.”  

This might make a lot of us uncomfortable.  It is uncomfortable.  Learning to be okay leaving some things in shadow can take a lot of work.  It involves learning about our limits and learning how to set boundaries primarily with ourselves.  The good news is that it also frees us up to focus on what God has called us to at the time and really let our light shine.

“In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”  Matthew 5:16

Like most Americans, my family is schedule and clock-driven. We have a giant whiteboard calendar on prominent display. Everything is color-coordinated and planned to the half hour. We definitely get a lot done, but if we are not careful, we don’t get a lot of time for rest and just plain fun.

Recently, we decided to take a day off and head to the pumpkin patch. The fall weather has been unseasonably warm and it was a great day to indulge in some apple cider slushies. There was no agenda, just meandering from one thing to the next with plenty of downtime in between. We took pictures, recreated some old photos, and created new memories.

As we were getting into the car to head home, my daughter commented, “That was a valuable waste of a day!” The comment struck me as so wise. Sometimes there is great value in not getting anything done. Taking time to stop and smell the roses, or pick a couple sunflowers, can be just as valuable as a day of work.

Of course, God has known this all along. One of the very first things He did for us was to model how to take a day of rest. He created the sabbath rest for us, I wonder why it is so difficult for some of us to receive this gift? I know for myself it has been a struggle my whole life to stop for a day. The rewards are so great whenever I do. Somehow, everything still gets done on time and the world keeps turning!

If this is something you struggle with as well, I would encourage you to try it. Take a day off, play with your family or spend some time with God. Tweaking my daughter’s comment a little, you just might find that it was a valuable use of a day.

Then Jesus said to them, “The Sabbath was made to meet the needs of people, and not people to meet the requirements of the Sabbath.” Mark 2:27

It is that time of year! There are school graduations from Kindergarten through college. This spring my family and I are celebrating two high school graduations, and I am fulfilling a long time goal of graduating from college. It is an exciting time as diplomas are handed out and students contemplate next steps in their career or educational journeys.

As I was thinking more about graduations, I realized that we experience “graduations” all the time, not just in the spring. Babies graduate from one type of food to another, in fact, a popular baby food brand even labels some of their food as “graduates.” These graduated steps may be most easy to see in babies and young children, but we all experience them.

We go from being children to teenagers to adults. We graduate to living on our own or to marriage. We graduate to working adults. We sometimes become parents and then grandparents. Even in between all of these larger milestones are the smaller, less noticeable ones.

While many of these graduations are happy occasions, there can still be a sense of loss or even trepidation about what comes next. To be honest, sometimes a graduation can feel more like standing on the edge of a precipice trying to find the bridge! Mixed in with the excitement of achievement, there can be some pressure to know what comes next. Well meaning friends and family may inquire about future plans.

It is so comforting to know that no matter what season we are in, or what “graduation” we may be facing, God is with us every step of the way. He holds our yesterdays, todays, and tomorrows in the palm of His hand. Even when we don’t quite know what is happening next, we can trust that He does.

I tend to picture my life path as a narrow, winding path up the side of the cliff. Sometimes I don’t dare breathe too deeply for fear of falling off course. When I take a moment to look up at God, I realize that His intent is to bring me to a spacious place where I can take a deep breath. I don’t have to cling to things so hard and worry so much about what comes next.

So if you too are in a season of graduation, feel free to throw that cap in the air! Celebrate your accomplishment and trust that you can look forward to the next season of life because as God told me awhile back, “You know the steps, let me lead.”

“The LORD makes firm the steps of the one who delights in Him; though they may stumble, they will not fall, for the LORD upholds them with His hand.” Psalms 37:23-24

Don’t worry, this is not a post about those terrible menaces to our beloved doggy pets! Those are something all pet owners work hard to prevent. The heart worms I am talking about are quite welcome in my life.

I have eight biological children ranging in age from twenty-two to eight. We figured that some day most, if not all, of them would bring home spouses that we would also love and cherish. I didn’t realize that along the way, other children would find their way into our family.

We have not officially adopted any children, but somehow, to date, I have a total of sixteen children! There are eight other children that have wormed their way into my heart and have become my “kids.” They are all amazing young people from all different kinds of backgrounds, but they all have a need for love and a big capacity for love.

When my biological children were still all mostly small, people would say I had my hands full. Now, I realize that at times I may have had my hands full, but my heart wasn’t too full. My heart has been able to expand with each child that has “wormed” its way into it. God has expanded my capacity to love each one.

I am so glad that our Heavenly Father’s heart is the same way. He has the biggest heart of all. He is just waiting to adopt us into his family through what his Son did for us. Just like my house at dinner time, God always has room for one more at his table!

I love what the book of Romans chapter 8 has to say about this, “For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God.” It goes on to say, “the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, ‘Abba, Father.'” We can even have assurance of our adoption into God’s family, “The Spirit himself testifies that we are God’s children.” (These verses are from Romans 8:14-16.)

This is good news for all of us, no matter what our past or current family may be like. We can be a part of God’s family by accepting what Jesus did for us in his crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension!

“But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, ‘Abba, Father.'” Galatians 4:4-6

It is no secret that we live in a consumer society. Our national motto could be, “More is always more!” Because of this, we encounter admonitions to be content with what we have and ways to save money in places from Facebook to the self-help section of Barnes and Noble. (Yes, there are still brick-and-mortar bookstores these days!) We will also be encouraged to practice gratitude through sermons and through other Bible teachers. With all of that, it may come as a surprise that I am going to encourage you to pursue more.

Don’t misunderstand though, I am not saying you should go out and buy the latest, greatest that the marketers are pushing on you. What I am advocating more of is something quite different. Which one of us wouldn’t want more time, more peace, more security, more rest, more comfort?

Going back to the self-help shelf, there are many, many books that promise to deliver a method or formula to find these things. Some of these are helpful, but only as far as we can do them in our own strength. However, there is a way that we can pursue that does deliver all of those things and even more!

The early pursuers of more identified themselves simply as “The Way.” They knew they were on a journey towards not an ideal, but a person. Jesus was the one who had told them that He Himself was this way, and the truth, and the life. These sold-out followers believed Him and set out after more–more life, more truth.

This Christmas season, I encourage you to also pursue more of Jesus. As you do, let the “more” that He gives you spill over into the other people in your life. I pray that together you can enjoy the peace, love, and joy of Christmas.

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6

“And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:7