When You Squeeze A Lemon

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When you squeeze a lemon, what comes out?

It's not a trick question. It's not a riddle. When you squeeze a lemon, what comes out?

Lemon juice.

So, when you get squeezed, what comes out of you?

When you are squeezed—rushed, hurried, worried, angered, depressed, despaired, tired, pressured, patronized, frustrated, frightened, mocked, teased, or fill in the blank unsettling emotion or event—what comes out of you?

What comes out is what is really inside you. Scary, isn't it?

I know we try to keep it together. And we do keep it together. Most of the the time. When things are easy or going our way. Or not too bad. Even when they are just a little stressful we can still keep it together. As adults, most of us are experienced at personal behavioral modification. We know when to keep it in. When to hold our tongues. When to censure ourselves. When others are around. Others we don't want to have a negative opinion of us. So we fake it. Until we get squeezed. Squeezed too much.

The squeeze expresses reality. Not our behavior modified apparently sanctified selves, but our real selves.

The squeeze exposes fallacy. We can't change ourselves. If we could have, we would have. But we can't. Not fully.

We don't need behavior modification, we need need heart transformation. Only Jesus can do that. Our surrender avails us to his strength. Our genuine transformation proclaims the truth of Easter. We revel in the reality of Easter all year round.

We'll still get squeezed. But we can be transformed. Through Christ.

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you maydiscern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. Romans 12:2 ESV

We all, with unveiled faces, are looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord and are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory; this is from the Lord who is the Spirit. 2 Corinthians 3:18 HCSB

Not behavior modification but heart transformation.

Let Jesus in. Be transformed.

Thug Preacher

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I’m a preacher. I love to preach. What a privilege!

It’s a sacred trust. Sharing God’s Word with others. But it’s also scary. What a responsibility! 

Having preached my first little five minute “sermon” at fifteen, and having been a teaching pastor with weekly sermon responsibilities for more than sixteen years, I have preached a lot.

And over the years, as you might imagine, I’ve had my share of feedback. Positive, negative, and neutral. And, as you will admit when you're honest with your preacher, you have said a WHOLE lot more about him & his sermons outside of his presence than you ever had to him. That may not be bad. But if it is judgmental or condeming, then I’ll leave that between you & God. And your preacher.

In all my preaching, however, I have never received a comment like the one I got today. A young man in my congregation wrote this:

Your sermons lately have been “spiritually punching me in the face.” Thank you :-) 

Alrighty then.

I’ve done plenty of things in ministry. I’ve been called plenty of names too. But now you might call me Thug Preacher. My tagline, "Punching folks in the face with God’s Word. With love. Of course."

He didn’t call me that. I just thought Thug Preacher was catchy. And, yes, he did say, “thank you.” And he even added the smiley face :-). So, I know he meant his comment as a compliment. Or, maybe, he is really scared of me! You think?!

Nah! Not me.

His Thug Preacher comment begs the question, however. When is the last time God’s Word got your attention?

To challenge you to obedience?

To convict you of sin?

To call you to surrender? 

It should. Regularly.

That is if you are receiving it regularly.

It’s the new year. And you can be a new you in a way even better than losing weight. You can engage God’s Word daily. gotandem.com can ship it to you via voicemail, email, or text. They’ll even have a real person called an Encourager call you once a week if you’d like. And it's all customized in content & delivery as you choose. youversion.com is available online or via a great, free apps for your phone or tablet. It has more reading plans than you can imagine with notifications on your mobile device or emails. And, of course, it has social sharing so you can do your part to spread the Word & redeem the web. 

In modern America we have no excuse for not engaging God’s Word daily. Other than our self-inflicted time poverty.

So, get off Facebook, eschew that addictive game, and pick up the Bible. Even in electronic form. It still has punch. Take it from the Thug Preacher.

Or you'll have to answer to Thug Preacher too. :-)

Sometimes "S"

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My willbesixbeforeweknowit year old son, the loving linebacker, JM, is learning to read and write in Kindergarten. It’s amazing to watch how his world is expanding. His little world of audible only words is becoming a greater world of written word. Couple those new skills with his God-given problem solving ability and you never know what he is going to come up with. Or when.

A small percentage of his original, oft humorous, offerings have made it to my quotes page as Markese. Read those in a moment.

His most recent, arresting pronouncement and the reason for my post is this: 

Sometimes “s” can be a good thing. Like “friends”. You just add “s” and you have more friends.—JM, age 5

His world, though rapidly expanding through language, is still so simple. Add an “s” and get more friends. He is learning language skills. But that observation reveals so much more about him. What’s important to him. Friends. What we all need more of. Friends. What we could all be more freely for others. Friends.

JM’s childhood logic begs the adult question: If you could add an “s” to anything to have more, honestly, what would it be?

What does that tell you about yourself?

Prioritizing God

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Have you ever had one of those times where it seemed as if nothing was going your way?

You worked hard. You did it right. You gave your all. Yet you got little in return.

You satisfy a need. Answer the request. Fill the bill. Yet it doesn’t seem enough.

You do everything you can. Everything you should. Dot every “i” & cross every “t”. Yet something unexpected happens.

You earn a good living. You get paid well. You have plenty of stuff. You even have stuff for your stuff. Yet you never seem to have enough money to meet the month. 

If you have ever had any of the above happen to you, then welcome to the Club. The Club of Misplaced Focus. Our membership goes way back to 520 BC, the second year of King Darius of Persia as Haggai addresses. You can read of these exact challenges—under-compensated, unsatisfied, unprepared, unfulfilled—in Haggai 1:6.

So what’s the problem?

Why don’t I get the expected return for my effort?

Why can’t I seem satisfy my nagging need?

Why aren’t I ready for everything, try as I might?

Why doesn’t my income cover all my expenses?

Could my problem be the same as those of God’s people that Haggai prophesied to? Misplaced focus? Unprioritized God? The Nation of Judah had been carried off into exile in 586 BC. Was freed to return home by the Edict of Cyrus in 538 BC. And home they went. Restored their homes. Worked to get things back to normal. And got back to life without an oppressive, foreign overlord. Yet they forgot God. 

God asked about their misplaced focus citing that they were living “in paneled (translate, ‘nice’) houses, while this house remains in ruin?” (1:4). “This house” wasn’t just any house. It was His house—the Temple—His dwelling among His people, THE place where His people could worship Him. 

“Give careful thought to your ways,” God said in Haggai 1:5. Your ways. Your focus. Your priorities. They had taken care of themselves. Yet they neglected God. He alone was their Covenant Father, Redeemer, Provider, and the One, True God.

Priorities. It may not always be the case—but it certainly could be the case—that my circumstances of being under-compensated, unsatisfied, unprepared, and unfulfilled are as a result of God trying to get my attention in a language I understand. God speaks Human. He knows selfishness is our native language.  

Don’t misunderstand me.

It’s not wrong to expect a fair return for your labor.

It’s not wrong to desire satisfaction from any pursuit.

It is not wrong to want to be prepared for anything.

It is not wrong to make a good living to provide for your family and others. 

It is wrong to forget God in the process of living the very life He has given me. God speaks human. God will get my attention. Sometimes using ways that make me uncomfortable. 

Do not forget God. Honor Him. Worship Him. Thank Him. Serve Him. Prioritize Him.

Read or listen to all of Haggai here on YouVersion. It’s only 38 verses. And consider these questions:

  • Where does my personal relationship with God rank in my current priorities?
  • How can I place a sharper focus on my love relationship with God?
  • What has to change in order for prioritizing God to really happen? What do I have to start or stop? 

This post based on Haggai is the tenth post from a series of twelve, Major Stuff from the Minor Prophets. Please share this post using the link below or subscribe to this site via email at the top right. You are welcome to leave your comments below as well. To hear the related sermon, subscribe via iTunes or visit here next Monday.