Breaking Free

In this final part of our series, Gravity: Overcoming the Weight of Our Stuff, we talk about one last, powerful way to break free from the pull our stuff otherwise naturally has on our lives.  Along the way, I offer a three step process for how to begin building the practice of sacrificial generosity into our lives, an example of what generosity can do, and a chance to respond.  Thanks for reading and blessings as you make your plan to break free from the gravity of your stuff.

Breaking Free

Have you noticed that one of Disney’s goals lately seems to be to make live-action remakes of all their classic animated films?  We’ve so far seen Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, The Jungle Book, Maleficent, Pete’s Dragon, and Christopher Robin, with films like Dumbo, Mulan, the Lion King, and Aladdin on the near horizon.  A bit of research allowed me to discover that there are also tentative plans to redo other classic films such as Snow White, Robinhood, The Sword in the Stone, and Pinocchio. Read the rest…

Morning Musing: Mark 10:21-22

“And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, ‘You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.’ Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.”  (ESV – Read the chapter) ‬‬

This is one of those sayings of Jesus that have given people trouble for a long, long time. What did He mean by this? Was He being literal with this command? Was this a one time thing or something He intended for a broader application? Is this something we can reinterpret as metaphorical, or was He somehow saying that just poor people can get into Heaven? What are we supposed to do with this? Read the rest…

Morning Musing: Mark 10:26-27

“And they were exceedingly astonished, and said to him, ‘Then who can be saved?’ Jesus looked at them and said, ‘With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.’”  (ESV – Read the chapter)

Consider the disciples’ reaction here. Jesus had just made His famous declaration that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle (almost certainly a real camel and a real needle rather than some gate) than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven. They understood Jesus rightly to be saying that rich people can’t get to heaven. And now that I have you hung up just like they were, if for a different reason, let me explain. Read the rest…

Zero G’s

In this third part of our series, Gravity: Overcoming the Weight of Our Stuff, we talk about another way to reduce its pull on us.  Once we know who is the real owner of the stuff we normally call “ours,” what comes next?  Simply put: We have to learn how to use it like He would.  To find out how that is and what we should do about it, keep reading.

 

Zero G’s

We recently watched the Oscar-nominated film, The Martian, starring Matt Damon.  It really was a great movie.  It’s about a team of astronauts who have established a little outpost on Mars.  During their research, however, a wild storm moves in and they have to abandon the post, at which point they decide to begin their year-long return to earth.  In the chaos of trying to get on their escape vessel as the storm rages around them, however, Matt Damon’s character gets separated from the group.  Presuming him dead, the group’s leader makes the agonizing decision to return without him.  I’ll stop the synopsis there so as to not give anything away if you haven’t seen it, but needless to say, the film includes quite a few scenes of the astronauts doing life on their enormous ship.  With the exception of a section of the ship in which they have somehow simulated gravity, all the movements about the ship take place in the weightlessness of space.  In order to film most of the scenes the actors were put on wires or else pantomimed being weightless in outer space while balancing on one foot. Read the rest…

You Don’t Own Me

In this second part of our new teaching series, Gravity: Overcoming the Weight of Our Stuff, we begin talking about some of the ways to do just that.  The first way we can make our stuff small in our lives is to begin to develop an attitude of gratitude about it.  For the whys and hows check out the text below.  Thanks, as always.

You Don’t Own Me

Have you ever experienced the change of attitude that can come from being grateful for something?  Whether they knew it or not, when your parents and grandparents and teachers and any other busy-body adults you’ve had in your life taught you to say, “thank you,” when someone has done something for you, they were not just teaching you good manners.  They were actually giving you some powerful spiritual advice.  There’s something about developing a grateful heart that can cause changes in our outlook on just about everything.  Think about it like this: Have you ever had a really bad attitude about something?  Of course you have.  The better question is when was the last time you had a really bad attitude about something? Read the rest…