Who is Jesus?

Who do I claim Jesus to be? As I examine scripture I have to admit that I don’t get the same view of Jesus that I grew up with. I have grown up with this cultural view of Jesus that has colored my view of who Jesus is. I am afraid that I have not let Jesus speak for himself. It’s not because I don’t see it. It’s because I don’t want to see it. I like the Jesus of pot luck suppers after church. I like the Jesus who rides around on bumper stickers. I am like Peter I can confess that Jesus is the Son of the Living God but only because I have my own definition of what that suppose to mean. For Peter, as we see later it didn’t mean that the Christ would suffer and die. It meant from Peter’s view that he was going to be victorious and triumphant. Which he was and is but not from Peter’s perspective. We must ask ourselves this morning what do we mean when we confess Jesus as Lord and Savior? Depends on who we are talking about when we say Jesus!

Many of us have equated our faith with common decency. We have confused faith with moral upright living. Philip Yancey says, “Somehow we have created a community of respectability in the church. The down-and-out, who flocked to Jesus when he lived on earth, no longer feel welcome.” Anyone can be moral and still not have a faith. Living morally is not the same thing as living faithfully. Morality and ethics are a result of a life lived following Christ. It is easy to confess Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of the living God, within the confines of the church. But what if we took our faith into the streets, workplace, and homes? What would it mean to profess your belief in Jesus there as well as at church?

Being a person of faith is about following Jesus, doing what Jesus did, speaking as Jesus spoke. So belief in Jesus is a way of life. It is more than reciting a creed. I would go as far as to say that simply reciting a creed is not really claiming anything. Following Jesus is the precondition for knowing Jesus. You want to know who Jesus is love your enemies, feed the hungry, clothe the naked, visit the prisoner, proclaim the good news to the poor. If you are not doing those things then you don’t know Jesus no matter what you claim to profess in church. I am speaking to those of you who have been a part of the church for generations. For those of you like me who have read scripture through the lense of culture. For those of you who like me think you know who Jesus is. Just because you go to church, live upright, and don’t commit illegal acts does not make you a follower of Jesus. It is about a relationship. Will Willimon says, “Being Christian is about the challenging, life-long struggle to be friends with Jesus and to allow him to be friends with you.” Jesus, your friend asks, “Who do you say that I am?” Have you answered that question lately?

Change the World

Helen Keller was asked one time what would be worse than being born blind. She quickly replied, “To have sight and no vision.” Our world is full of people who see only the immediate. These are people who go for the convenient. They never look beyond themselves. They never imagine what they could be. They never dream. We have them in all walks of life: school teachers, construction workers, business women, truck drivers, salesmen. If you don’t have a dream you’re never going to become what you could become. Robert Kennedy said, “Some people look at things as they are and say, why? Some people look at things as they could be and say, why not?” As followers of Jesus we have looked beyond the stone and are able to say, “Why not?”

Followers of Jesus live out their God-dreams. Followers of the resurrected Savior dream dreams that are bigger than themselves. Jesus says, “If you keep your life you will lose it, and if you lose your life you will keep it” (Luke 9:24).

Light has invaded darkness. Hope has overcome despair. Death has lost its sting. Dare to dream. Dream of a world where cancer, heart disease, and AIDS do not exist. Dare to dream. Dream of a world where soup kitchens and homeless shelters do not exist. Dare to dream. Dream of a world where rehab centers and divorce courts are all empty. Dare to dream. Dream of a world where we are free from racism, free from lonliness, free from guilt, free from bondage to anything or anybody. Go and live your dream!

Beauty, part two

A children’s book entitled “The Beautiful Princess Without a Face” written by April, Jay, and Celeste Robins speaks to the issue of real beauty. The book tells the story of Sarah, a young girl concerned with her appearance. “Fascinated by the gorgeous beauty queen riding on a float during a New Year’s Day Parade, Sarah begins to wonder if she too is beautiful. She drifts off into a dreamlike state across Moonbeams to Doll Land, where she relives a folktale as a beautiful Native American doll named Princess-Loves-the-Pond. Princess-loves-the-Pond is obsessed with being beautiful. She is so concerned with her own appearance, that she totally ignores the beauty surrounding her in Doll Land: Princess-loves-the-Pond always asked the pond, ‘Am I beautiful?” The pond always replied, ‘Yes, my Princess. One day the princess bent over to see her reflection. She slipped on a stone and fell into the pond. A gush of water washed away her delicate face. She no longer had eyes, ears, nose or a mouth. Without a face, the princess is only left with the ability to feel. She realizes more and more what she can no longer see, hear, taste, or smell. She realizes that there is a beautiful world around her.

We need to do the same. As God works to restore creation, we need him to restore some of us. We need to have our eyes renewed and see the beauty all around us. We need to have him wipe away the cynicism from our heart and give us a heart of joy. We need him to close our ears to criticism and give us ears that hear the sound of beauty. Imagine a world where we strived to create beauty instead of working to destroy it. Today we can have hope for such a world because God has invited us into the beauty of His holiness.

Longing For Beauty

I think all baby pictures are cute but there is a picture of a toddler in Cracker Barrel that scares me. The baby is in a portrait with his family and it looks like they put make-up on this little boy for his family picture. I’m thinking to myself I would never do that to my child. Don’t criticize me. We have been told that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, or is it something more?

Most of us are taught that beauty is a matter of taste.My great uncle liked listening to big band type music. He loved music of the 20’s and 30’s. I think it is just racket. So when I had to ride with him up to Tennessee one time, I showed up early and took out the fuse that was connected to his radio. He thought it was just broke. A math teacher looks at Algebra problems as the greatest piece of masterpiece ever written, I want to puke every time I see an equation.

Beauty can also be a matter of perspective. I am always captured by the beauty of the ocean. But watch in horror as the same waters can destroy thousands of lives in a Tsunami. It is an awesome display of beauty to watch a volcano erupt from a distance but when you turn and notice a village lying in its path the beauty disappears. Beauty fades so quickly. What role does beauty play in our lives? It is so powerful that it evokes deep feelings of awe, wonder, and gratitude. What is this longing that I have in my heart to be captured by beauty. We all find different things beautiful. We have all experienced beauty in some way we will never forget; beauty that has brought longing to our hearts. In one sense I think that beauty is found in the sense of the longing, the kind of pleasure which is wonderful and yet leaves us unsatisfied. An example is in the way we view fake flowers. I was in a restaurant the other day and looking at this beautiful arrangement of flowers by the front door. They were exquisite. I was convinced that they were real. As I left the restaurant I reached out and touched the flowers only to discover they were fake. I felt let down, betrayed, and yet was convinced just a few moments earlier that I could smell the aroma coming from those flowers. The sunset is soon over. Fall colors will freeze. Spring flowers will dry in the summer heat. The world is full of beauty, but the beauty is incomplete. I believe that is the way God intended for it to be.

The poets who penned some of the psalms speaks of the earth being full of God’s glory. The term “glory” is sometimes translated beauty. As a believer in God, I believe that true beauty belongs to the Lord. It is his voice that we hear in the rise of the sun. It is his power we feel in the crashing of the waves. It is his beauty we see reflected in a thousand colors. The earth is full of the beauty of the Lord, a beauty that cannot be reduced to the terms of our senses. The full extent of true beauty can only be experienced in relationship with the Creator.

Unfinished Work

Why did God take a day off? Did God need to rest? Was God exhausted after creation? Maybe or maybe not. But I don’t think God rested because God was tired. He rested because he was done. The scripture says, “And on the seventh day God finished all the work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all the work that he had done”(Genesis 2:2). The work had been completed. God was able to enjoy His work because His work of creating was completed. Some of us don’t know what that is. We have never finished anything. Here is something to remember: We can’t bless what we have not finished. Unfinished work becomes a curse. There must be a point where we stand back from our work and rest from our labors. We cannot bless what we have not finished. Rest is important for our health. It is crucial for our well-being but if we never finish what we start then we will never get to a place of rest.
God still loves us in spite of our busyness but he must get frustrated with our work and/or rest habits. How do we start taking rest seriously? There is a couple of things we can do.

First, we can take a clue from God. In his work of creation the day begins not with morning but with evening. At the end of each day at the beginning of creation God says, “And there was evening and there was morning, . . .” The day begins the evening before and not the morning we wake up. So the day starts with us resting. It is a reminder that whatever happens the next twenty four hours ultimately God is in control. We start the day in vulnerability – asleep resting in the arms of God and not in the busyness of the morning hour.

The second thing we can do is change the name of that buzzing noise that wakes us up in the morning. We call it the “alarm” clock. What does that imply? Be alert, be on the look out, something or someone is lurching around the corner to devour you. At least this is the way I feel when I hear the sound of the alarm clock. So instead of an alarm clock you will from now on have a “resurrection” clock. It is God waking you up to live the gift of a new day.

Sunday at The Mill

* Sunday Small Group was great. I love teaching the bible.
* I am interested in building bridges with Muslims and what does God do? He sends a lady to church who has interviewed the Hezbollah. I am reading a book called "Tea with Hezbollah: Sitting at the Enemies Table Our Journey Through the Middle East"
* D.S. visited today. I really appreciate his leadership.
* A lot of guests today. I love guests.
* Servant/Volunteers made it happen today!\
* I learned the Care Minister on staff enjoyed "cow tipping" in her younger years (I bet she still does it as a stress reliever) The last time I went cow tipping I got shot at and running for cover I did a face plant in a big pile of cow poo. (This is not cow tipping: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51PxXxnzdFY )
* We had some special guests from our former church visit. It was great seeing The Gooby's.
* Message was on finding time to rest. My day of rest is Friday. "Our work will remain a curse if we don’t take time to rest." "Work without rest is slavery. Choosing to rest is a matter of justice. It is declaring our freedom." "We can’t bless what we have not finished."
* Had lunch w/ the Gooby's.
* Drove to Clermont, GA (my hometown) for a b-day party. Hung out at the pool w/ the family.
* SPRC Meeting back at the church. Liberty Hill has a great SPRC Team. They rock!
* Picked up road signs. I got some help from my homeless friend Edgar.
* Met a lady taking pictures of her children outside the building. Showed her inside the building for more pictures. Invited her to church. Heard her story. Praying for God to do a work in her life.
*Getting ready to welcome in a new day!

The Life of the Party

Why did Jesus choose a wedding as the place to perform his first miracle? (Read John 2:1 - 11). Why was it in the midst of this party that Jesus gives the world a sign of his true identity? I am not sure if I know the answer. But I do believe that the story teaches us that joy comes when God has broken into the routine experiences of our daily existence. Throughout the scriptures we find Jesus taking bad moments and making them redeemable moments. John Ortberg says, "Jesus makes good things better." Everything is made better when Jesus is involved. We serve a God who is full of joy. Joy resides in the heart of God. When God looks out over creation he rejoices (Ps. 104:31; Gen. 1:31). He rejoices over the good found in his people (Deut. 30:9; Zeph. 3:17). Jesus declares, that his joy may be in us and “that our joy may be complete” (Jn 15:11). According to Jesus, the problem with people is not that we are too happy for God’s taste, but that we are not happy enough. The Hebrew word for joy is “simhah” which is understood as “to be bright” or “to shine.” Joy is at the center of God’s character. God is the happiest being in the universe. His desire is that we would radiate that joy in our own lives.

Scripture tells us that joy of the Lord is our strength (Neh. 8:10). Celebrating the small things in life brings joy into life, and joy makes us strong. Joy is a part of the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22). Joy produces energy. Joy makes us strong. The absence of joy brings weakness. Many of us give into sin because we lack true joy. We think the person, thing, or desire that we are being tempted with will somehow bring us joy. But if we are already living in joy then we have no reason to turn to something or someone to give us joy. What Jesus has come to bring is freedom. Freedom to enjoy life and to live in happiness. Being a follower of Christ is like going to a Jewish wedding. It is a celebration. To know Christ is to taste new wine. The teachings of Jesus were like new wine for all those that had been drinking out of the bottle of legalism. The call of discipleship with all its challenges and struggles is a call to experience the joy of life. Like turning water into wine, Jesus takes our lives and puts into us celebration. It is interesting how this story plays out. If the wine had ran out the party would have been over. Everyone would have said their goodbye’s and went home. Instead by turning the water into wine Jesus extends the party. He keeps the party going. Now that is an interesting way to look at Jesus? Invite Jesus to your party and He might keep it going into the long hours of the night.

Crossing the River

In the North Georgia Mountains are small streams that are ideal for trout fishing. They are not too big that you cannot cross. They are not too deep that you cannot just stand in and fish. But somewhere down the way those streams turn into brooks. The brooks turn into rivers which eventually flow into the ocean. So the best time to cross the river is before it gets to big.

The same is true in life. It is easier to change the course of your life before it gets to complicated. Like a river, our lives can get fixed as the years go by. We get in a rut and it is hard to get out. We start doing things out of habit instead of out of purpose.

I am not sure if it is true or not but the theory is that the "seventh-inning" stretch began when President William Howard Taft was attending a baseball game in Washington. Just after the seventh-inning the President stood up to stretch. The fans thinking he was leaving stood up out of respect. But the President sat back down and continue watching the game. the "seventh-inning" stretch is as much a part of baseball as yelling at the umpire and trying to keep fly balls from landing in your beer.

Patterns become habits and habits keep us in ruts. It is easier to cross the river when the waters are low and the rush is slower. The Good News is that there are no hopeless situations. The river never gets so wide that we cannot make changes. We can't always start over but we can start from where we are. The time for most of us to cross the river is before it gets to wide. In case you need some help I know someone who walks on water.

Listen to the Voice of God

Pay attention to your prayers. The way you pray will say a lot if you actually expect God to hear your prayers and respond. Have you ever heard the voice of God? I know this sounds like the preacher has gone crazy. He is now talking about God actually speaking. But why not? God spoke to Adam and Eve in the garden. God spoke to Noah and told him to build a boat. God spoke to Moses through a burning bush. God spoke to Abraham about a promise. God spoke through the prophets. One of those prophets was Jeremiah and through Jeremiah God says, “Call to me and I will answer you; and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known” (Jeremiah 33:3). Jesus talking about his followers says, “My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me” (John 10: 27). God is still speaking. He speaks through direct revelation, through dreams, written words, prophets, and the Holy Spirit. The four basic ways that God speaks to us today is through His Word, the Holy Spirit, circumstances, and other people. Why would God still speak to us? God loves us as much as he did the people of the Old and New Testament. We need God’s direction for our lives as much as Moses and Joshua. God knows we need the comfort and assurance of his presence. And, God wants us to know him. This is the nature of our God. He spoke the world into existence and he continues to speak hopes and dreams into existence today. He says, “Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known” (Jeremiah 33:3). When was the last time you called to him expecting him to answer?

Sunday At The Mill

* Acoustic worship was good. It was appropriate for today's service.
* I spoke on "discerning the voice of God" and sense that some folks were really struggling with issues where they needed to hear the voice of God.
* Prayer warriors gathered in prayer room.
* Children's ministry continues to rock! - Even w/ a children's minister who was a former Miss Kennesaw :)
* Went to lunch w/ Randy and his sister to discuss how to "market" the Mill. Smart people!
* Sharon is excited about being able to pour into some teenage girls.
* Picked up signs and about got ran over by a dude on a bicycle because I wasn't watching where I was walking.
* Prayed over my truck and drove it back home (we will see!)
* Cut grass. Is it bad to cut grass on Sunday if you actually enjoy it?
* Boys played in the mud and brought some inside the house.
* Called all our guests.
* Prepared to speak at the Monday Outreach. Preaching in English through a Spanish translator.
* Excited about Monday Night Family Small Group.

On Your Tombstone?

The other day I visited the Georgia Military Cemetery located on Hwy 20. It was interesting reading the epitaphs. One said, "Going to my Last Party." Another one said, "Sailing Away." I connected to the one that said, "Steal Drums and Sandy Beaches are Calling." As I wondered through the tombstones I came across a man with my name. It is kind of odd reading your own epitaph. Of course I wasn't born in 1934 and have never fought in a World War.

I was reminded of a story about Alfred Nobel. One morning Mr. Nobel picked up a newspaper and read an account of his own death. It seems that a relative had died and the reporter mistakenly assumed it was the famous inventor. As he read the article, he was disturbed about the way he was being remembered. He resolved to use the remainder of his days to change the way people would remember him. Not many remember him as the inventor of dynamite, but we all know about the Nobel Peace Prize.

"How do you want people to remember you?" It may be morbid to think about but every now and then we need to ask ourselves how will I be remembered. It seems that there are only three possibilities.

First, we can have a negative effect on the world. Like scavengers, we live off the labors of others. We exploit others. Secondly, we can have a neutral effect on the world. In the New Testament there is a story of some people who lived in the ancient city of Laodicea. Jesus said about these people, "I know your works. You are neither hot nor cold." These people lived in a time when positioned needed to be taken. They were called to make decisions. They chose to remain neutral. Thirdly, we can have a positive effect on the world. Lincoln was asked how he would like people to remember him. He did not ask history to remember his as president or a great leader. He said he wanted to be known as a man who "plucked a thistle and planted a flower where a flower would grow."

I have decided what I want on my tomb when I die: "He danced and he taught others to dance." This says a lot because I have not yet found my rhythm.

Cohen and Toy Story

Cohen comes home from pre-k and says, "My teacher likes my Woody." Of course, I have a puzzled look on my face. "Your what," I ask? He holds up his Toy Story character and says, "My Woody."

It got me thinking about the role of context in communication. Only those who have access to privileged knowledge (i.e., The Toy Story movie) may interpret the context. I did not understand the context of Cohen's statement which left me in the dark as to what he was saying. The reason many missionary/church movements have broken down over the centuries is because we have forgotten about context. We have attempted to transmit the Gospel outside of understanding context. It is important to remember that Jesus' birth, death, and resurrection took place within a particular context and so today the Gospel must me translated in a particular context: political, social, economic, and religious.

Engaging in sharing the gospel in different context requires a discerning of the signs of the times and an openness to understanding the context that one is attempting to communicate the gospel. We must seek to figure out what God is doing in that particular context and get on board with God's mission.

It is also a good reminded that I do theology (my understanding of God, myself, and the world) from a particular context. This keeps me open to hear from indigenous voices and gain a deeper understanding of God's mission in the world.

Paying attention to context is always a good idea. As I learned with Cohen, it can keep your mind out of the gutter!

Friendships Come in All Sizes

Sunday at The Mill

* The worship was awesome today! The worship team was in the Holy Spirit zone.
* Children's ministry was packed out.
* Met a lot of new people today who visited with us.
* Message: "We will be remembered for the relationships we did or did not develop."
* Servants stepped up to pull out more chairs and even gave up their seats.
* I have a great staff.
* Brett Kelsey gave me "Last Supper Mints." Afraid to see how they taste.
* Brent Abernathy worked a miracle turning a blank screen to a video.
* 17 members of my family worshipped with us.
* Great time at the house w/ family.
* During clean-up Cohen, Sharon, and I get stung by bees.
* Cohen wanted to watch "Frosty the Snowman"
* Benadryl making me sleepy!
* Reminded how beautiful my wife is.

Jesus focus on the Important

Rick Warren says, “We have just enough time to do God’s will while you’re on earth.” When we try to do more than God planned for us, it is natural that you feel stressed out or always out of time. If it doesn’t fit the purpose of your life then God doesn’t want you to do it.

Jesus understood the difference between importance and urgency. It is amazing that Jesus’ life was not consumed by the urgent. Here is the Son of Man, the miracle worker, walking among the people. I am sure every person had a need that needed to be met. A son who needed healing, a daughter who was sick, a leg that needed to be fixed, eyesight that needed restoring, a relationship that needed mending, finances that needed fixing, problem after problem. But when you look closer at the scriptures it is clear that Jesus chose not to live in urgent mode. He lived with greater importance. In the gospel of Luke chapter nine Jesus’ ministry takes a turn. It says in verse 51, “When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem.” Up to this point he had been hanging out in Galilee. Now he knew that it was time to fulfill what he came to do. So starting in chapter nine we read over and over how he was determined to go to Jerusalem. It was in Jerusalem that he would complete his mission of redemption for the whole world. Listen to a few verses. In 9:51, he writes, “When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem.” In 10:1, “After this the Lord appointed seventy others and sent them on ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he himself intended to go.” In 13:22, “Jesus went through one town and village after another, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem.” In 13:33, “Yet today, tomorrow and the next day, I must be on my way, because it is impossible for a prophet to be killed outside of Jerusalem.” In 17:11, “On the way to Jerusalem, Jesus was going through the region between Samaria and Galilee.” In 18:31, “Then he took the twelve aside and said to them, ‘See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written about the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished.’” In 18:35, “As he approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging.” In 19:1, “He entered Jericho and was passing through it. In 19:11, “As they were listening to this, he went on to tell a parable, because he was near Jerusalem.” And in 19:28, “After he had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem.”

In between these moments Jesus takes time to teach and tell stories. He performs a healing and cleanses some lepers. He even takes time to stop and bless children. He takes a day and has dinner in the house of Zachaeus. He finds time for prayer. He finds time to spend with just his disciples. Jesus does ministry while on his way. He responds to the urgency on his way up to Jerusalem. But he doesn’t let the urgency take away from what is important. Jesus reminds us it’s not just about going; it’s about going with purpose.

Important Vs. Urgent, part two

How do you know if you are living life in urgent mode? Stephen Covey has some good questions that are helpful for us: "Are there things you’d like to do that you can’t do because you feel tired or out of shape? Are you in debt, working-long hours, and barely scraping by? Do you feel alienated and alone; unable to spend quality time with the people you love? Do you feel stagnant? Are you being held back in career advancement because you lack the education? Do you feel vague about what’s important and unclear about what you want to do with your life?" Any of the questions that you answered “yes” to means that you are probably living in urgent mode in any of those circumstances. Do you feel that your life is being lived for you? If so, then urgency is the dominant factor in your life.

Some things demand our attention. Urgency is a part of life. A car needs repairing, an illness occurs, a teacher walks in class and says, “We are having a pop quiz,” death comes to every family, someone losses a job, a friend needs a place to stay; a family member needs to borrow some money. Urgency shows up in every life. It is a fact of life. The problem is when urgency becomes the dominant force in our life.


Urgent things will always fight for the attention of your schedule. Important things will stand by and wait for you to make them important. Never let important things wait until you get the urgent out of the way. There will always be something pressing for your time. We cannot manage time. We will always have twenty-four hours to work with. What we can manage is the choices we make in regards to how we use our time.

Important vs. Urgent

One of the lessons of life we need to learn is the difference between what is important and what is urgent. It is a lesson that I am still trying to learn. It is essential that we get this because if we always live our life in urgent mode then we really don’t live. Life in urgent mode is always life in response to crisis. The more urgency we have in our lives the less we are focused on what is important.

Urgent things are stressful. Living life in urgent mode can also be adrenaline driven. We feel useful or validated when we go around putting out fires all the time. It makes us feel powerful. We become a super-hero that flies in and saves the day. The problem is super-hero’s are always lonely people.

Living life in urgency mode is also a good excuse for not dealing with the important things in your life. How many people have you spoken with at the end of their life say that they wish they had spent more time at the office?

Time of Your Life

For the past month I have not been wearing a watch. Since I quit wearing a watch I have learned a lot about time. I have learned that not all time is identical. Some minutes are not identical. An afternoon in a doctor’s office is eternity compared to an afternoon spent with my family by the pool. Two hours watching the Braves at Turner Stadium is nothing compared to two hours watching the Sound of Music (sorry not my thing).

Different cultures treat time differently. When I visit a South American country and invited over to a house for dinner at eight, if I arrived at eight I would be early. The host would not even be ready. If I arrived at nine I would still be one of the first one’s to arrive. Around ten the party would just be getting started. However, in America, time is a commodity. We talk about “spending” time or “wasting” time. We must have something to show for our time. We spend money on gadgets that help us to manage our time because nothing is worse than to “waste” our time.

Most of the decisions we make in life revolve around time. What will I do this year? Is it time to change careers? Is this the season for a child? Is this decision going to take away time from the family? Decisions would be a lot easier if somehow we could control time.

Jesus starts his ministry by saying, “The time is fulfilled” (Mark 1:15). The Greek word for time is kairos. It means a decisive moment, a turning point, or a time of fulfillment. In another book of the bible the word is used to describe that precise moment when the grapes are ready for picking (Matt. 21:34).

Kairos is that moment that is interjected into the chronology of our time. It is that moment when there is not enough hours in the day to get everything done and all of a sudden you run into a long-time friend and time stops. Kairos is that moment when supper has to be on the table, baths have to be given, and bills paid and your child comes down stairs dressed as a pirate and wants you to be the captain of his ship. In the course of our day God interjects into our life kairos moments. May we never be so busy that we miss them. The young struggling diabetic Shelby, in the movie Steel Magnolias (1989) muses, “I would rather have thirty minutes of wonderful than a lifetime of nothing special.” Wonderful is all around. I started noticing it when I stopped asking, “What time is it?”