Tag: discipleship

A Game to Stretch Spiritual Muscles

August 12, 2019 /

Ok, I’ll admit it…I’m not sure how many people are reading blog posts in August. I feel like I may be throwing words out into a void. So today I’ve edited and am reposting some thoughts from years ago. You can prove me wrong if you actually read this by posting a thought in the comments!

Spiritual practices are usually kind of like workouts at the gym, right?

They’re supposed to stretch the spiritual muscles that need stretching…to practice what you hope will one day come naturally.

Like you run a mile on the treadmill so that if one day you’re being chased by a bear you won’t collapse in a heap after 15 yards.

But that can sound a little…intense, so a couple weeks ago I decided to make a little game for myself.  

In our family we LOVE games, especially games with points.  (In case you’re worried about my theology, I know discipleship isn’t a game and it is about grace and cooperating with God’s work in our lives.  Just give this a chance! :))

I decided to see how many times I could genuinely affirm different people during the day.  I chose to give myself extra credit points for specific compliments that weren’t appearance related and for words of affirmation directed at strangers.

Maggie’s response when I told her about my game?  “Mom, you’re weird. Kind. But weird.”

I told her I didn’t think she was being very affirming.

I continued this practice over the week and it has been a rich discipline that has helped me notice things with gratitude…notice God’s gifts to me.

Some of the most fun moments of affirmation:

▪ Asking to speak to a customer service rep’s supervisor on the phone because she had been so helpful and I wanted to be sure she was recognized. (She was so shocked I wondered if anyone EVER says anything positive to Customer Service folks)

▪ Texting a young man with a reminder that I see God in him and he is a man of integrity in hard situations.

▪ Writing a note to a man who had been let go from his job, affirming the value he had brought to the organization

▪ Introducing myself and thanking a mentally challenged young man for the great job he was doing cleaning the health club.

Anyway, it’s been so much fun and has stretched my “gratitude muscles”

We’re bombarded with so much information that sometimes we need to just try ONE THING and see how it goes.  Maybe give this one a go and see what you think!

OR suggest a different spiritual experiment!  I’d love to hear your ideas!

Let me know what happens!

Watching from a Distance

April 4, 2015 /

It’s Saturday morning. I’ve walked with Jesus and His disciples this past week.  I’ve tried to hear the noise, the shouts, the whispers, the work sounds, the shuffle of dusty feet. I’ve tried to smell the animal smells and the sweat and the anointing spices. I’ve tried to feel the heat, and uncertainty. I’ve tried to draw near and touch Jesus’ robe.

We walked into Jerusalem with excitement last Sunday, out to Bethany to eat and rest with friends, back into Jerusalem filled with stress, activity, agendas, fear, and hatred, out to Bethany to be anointed, and in for the Last Supper and Passover. Out to the Mt. of Olives for prayer, and into Jerusalem for His trial and death.

Here’s one of the things I’ve noticed. Everyone was watching.

Judas watched for an opportunity to hand Jesus over. (Mt.26:16)

Jesus asked His disciples to keep watch with Him on the Mt. of Olives. (26:38)

Peter watched from a distance when Jesus was arrested. (26:58)

Many women watched from a distance at the crucifixion. (27:55)

But one person did more than watch. He courageously drew near after Jesus had been crucified. (Mt. 27:57-61)

When a criminal was executed the body was often left unburied or put in a pauper’s field. A relative, like a mother might ask for the body, but Joseph of Arimathea was a wealthy member of the Sanhedrin.

The Sanhedrin. One of the groups committed to getting rid of Jesus. But Joseph had become a disciple. And now he went to Pilate and advocated for Jesus. Asked for the body. Gave him a burial in a new tomb. He didn’t follow at a distance. He drew near and honored Jesus.

Joseph felt the sacrifice and was willing to share in it, not just watch.

Watching from a distance is like scrolling through our Facebook newsfeed and “liking” what we see others post. It’s like giving Jesus a wink and a thumbs up without getting our hands dirty. Without any cost to us.

Sometimes Easter morning can feel like that. Just a thumbs up for Jesus before we return to our agendas.

The thing I’m thinking about this morning is how Jesus was “all in” for us. How He didn’t watch from a distance, but drew near and loved us thoroughly and sacrificially. Because of the cross…

There is nothing we can do to make Jesus love us more, and nothing we can do to make Him love us less.

Forgiveness in Christ is there for the taking, but it’s not cheap. It’s not meant to be appreciated from a distance. It’s only as we draw near that we learn that grace cost Jesus everything. And as we do, we see that grace isn’t the permission to withdraw, but the courage and power to step in.

Praying that you and I will draw close this Easter…

IMG_6255

How Jen Hatmaker Interrupted my Perfectly Lovely Summer (and may wreck yours too)

August 18, 2014 /

It was the beginning of June and the whole summer stretched gloriously before me.  Oh the dreams I’d dream, the goals I’d achieve, the books I’d not only read, but remember and apply to EVERY AREA OF MY LIFE!  I was especially excited to get my grubby little hands on the new edition of Jen Hatmaker’s book, Interrupted.

I pounced on the opportunity to get an advance copy in order to link up and post on it.  After all, my merry little band of spiritual misfits had joyfully jumped into “7” and experienced our own mutiny against excess a couple of summers ago.  I figured we were game for something new.

But here’s the thing…I missed some “fine” print.

Ok, it might not have been so “fine”, but I definitely missed two important details.

First?  The subtitle: When Jesus Wrecks your Comfortable Christianity.  WHY in the name of sweet baby Jesus would I want to read THAT??  If I’m comfortable with my Christian life (and I definitely am!), why would I want to be wrecked?

Note to marketing department: No one who actually reads the subtitle of this book is going to want to buy it.  “Wrecking” is not a selling point. Continue reading

No More Bozos For Jesus?

January 22, 2014 /

This morning I was praying for some twenty-somethings I know who have kind of wandered away from God.  They’re really enjoying the partying hard thing, the sex without strings thing, and carpe without commitment.  I was praying that God might draw them back to Himself – remind them of the grace and meaning and joy to be found in dependence on Him.

But I have a Confession:  I don’t have the gift of “evangelism” and I often think I don’t care as much as I should about the souls of those far from God.  The culture of “live and let live” has immunized me.  Plus there’s the risk of making anyone feel like a “project” or being labeled one of “those” Christians with pat answers and tracts in place of candy at Halloween that scares me.  Unknown-1

Continue reading

Jesus Stalker?

August 19, 2013 /

Bob Goff is one of my favorite guys.  He inspires, encourages, challenges, and cheerleads for Jesus. He reminds me of Peter Pan – a perpetual kid on a kingdom adventure filled with hope and joy.  He throws candy down to kayakers from a cliff above them. He helps orphans in Uganda.  I want to be his friend.

If you haven’t read Love Does, DO! (Check back in on Wednesday for an opportunity to win a free copy!)

Unknown-2

Bob spoke at the Leadership Summit a couple of weeks ago and asked, “Are we just stalking Jesus?  Have we just been learning more and more stuff about Him?”

I picture a psycho with a creepy room with a stash of Jesus pictures, and Bible verses with strings to cards with the Greek translations, and maps with arrows.  But then…maybe he’s talking about people like me who love to learn and can get stuck there.

Continue reading

Checking Jesus off my List

April 27, 2013 /

Yesterday morning I tried to check Jesus off my to-do list.

This happens in seasons of stress and busyness (are there any seasons of not-stress-and-busyness??).  I check him off by giving Him a nod (Read: glance at a paragraph of a devotional or toss up a “bless so-and-so”).  Check.  Done.  Moving on to important stuff.

The thing is, when I do that, it’s kind of like being in the “fun” house at the circus.  Deadlines, people, circumstances become distorted like in those crazy mirrors – scarier than they really are.  My perspective is skewed.

I feel the fear of failure.

I feel the pressure of performance, not the presence of Jesus.

I miss the sacred moments.  I miss the small mercies to be thankful for.

But yesterday Jesus didn’t seem to want to remain as just a checkmark.  He graciously kept showing up in my day, reminding me that He goes before me and behind me (Isaiah 52:12b).

Continue reading

The Other “F Word”, Part 2

September 17, 2012 /

Friday I posted about the other “F word” in our family.

On reflection I think there’s more than one “other”.  There may be a whole slew of other “f words” that lurk around like stealth ninjas ready to take us down.

So here’s number 2.  Fear.

I don’t think I’m a particularly fearful person.  But I might have slept in the car instead of with the bats in a mountain cabin once upon a time.  And Maggie and I might have told the producers of the Amazing Race that snakes were a no-go for us when we were auditioning.

I’ll admit I AM afraid of heights, failure, suffering, looking foolish in public, and dying in an airplane crash to name a few.  But so is everyone, right?

(John, not me, bungee jumping at Victoria Falls, Zambia)

If I’m honest, what I’m really afraid of is losing control.  At least the illusion of control.

Continue reading

© 2024 Laura Crosby

Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑