"Free"

We've all seen it, "Free"; free trial, free 4 day/3 night vacation, free iPad2, the list goes on and on. Then comes the disclaimer, subscription at full price automatically starts if not canceled prior to exipration of "free" trial. Or, in order to get that "free" vacation you have to listen to a sales pitch for a timeshare or some other opportunity. In order to get the "free" iPad2 you have to complete 6 offers. All of these "free" things are suddenly no longer free.

Yesterday, my wife came to me with a "free" opportunity that she came across while running. A neighbor of ours had several stones about beside the road with a sign indicating that they were free. So, my wife literally ran home to get me and a vehicle to load up the stones. I was about to leave for the office and wasn't really in attire suitable for lifting dirty wet stones in a our vehicle. In addition, our vehicle was not ready to have dirty wet stones put into it (in other words there was no tarp or plastic or other material to keep the interior of our vehicle from getting dirty). I also knew that these "free" stones meant that some sort of project was coming and were going to need a permament location which I was sure would not be immediately agreed upon. So, to sum things up, I was instantly seeing the "disclaimer" while my wife was focused on the "free". Later, I had conversations with my wife about where these stones were to be put, saw several bags of paver base to create a suitable base for the rocks (these bags were not free) and heard about the emotional displeasure of my daughter who did not want to give up our playset as the new location for these rocks. These "free" rocks were not feeling very "free" to me.

I don't bring this up to make my wife look bad (I actually appreciate her desire to save us money), instead I bring this up as an example to show how easy it is to get enticed by something that ends up being "not all it's cracked up to be". In life we tend to settle for the quick fix, the latest and the greatest, the new fad, etc. When we do, we usually find out that these things weren't what we thought they would be. They don't satisfy, they don't fulfill. We leave feeling taken, cheated, disappointed.

Jesus offers us something different. In Galatians 5:1, Paul says to the church in Galatia; "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery." The people in Galatia were trying to add to the grace of God, they were creating a disclaimer to Jesus' offer of FREE. Jesus' offer is different than the "free" offers we are accustomed to. in Jesus, we are offered true life, we are offered freedom from religion, from works, from the bondage of sin. What have you done with this offer? Have you accepted it or are you still looking for the disclaimer? Jesus wants to set you free, will you let Him?

What Do You See?

A friend of mine pointed this puzzle out to me today. What do you think when you come across a puzzle in this state of completeness? Some people see chaos and immediately get stressed out. Some people see a challenge and get excited about it. Some people are apathetic and just leave it to someone else.

Life is kind of like a puzzle. There are lots of pieces, some of which are in place, some are backwards, upside down or jammed where they don't fit. Like with a puzzle, there are many responses/feelings when we look at life. We may get overwhelmed by all that is unknown, or we may be comforted feeling that all the pieces will get put in the right spot at some point.

Whatever your response is, know that God has a plan. What may look or feel like chaos to you is known to God. He chooses to reveal where the pieces go in His time and when each piece gets placed you can look back and see how perfectly it fits. Instead of feeling stressed, overwhelmed, chaotic or even apathetic, look at the puzzle of life and know that the one who made the puzzle is putting it together.

When Passion is a Problem

If you have spent much time with me, you have probably discovered that I am a huge fan of the University of Washington. While I think it is a great university, I am really talking mostly about their football team and to a slightly lesser extent their basketball team. As a huge fan, today, February 1st, is pretty much a holiday for me. Why, because today is National Letter of Intent day. This is the day where high school seniors can officially commit to attend a school to play football. For many this is the end of what has been a year or even longer process of coaches, friends, family, strangers trying to "help" decide where to go to school. For fans of these schools it is a day of being hopeful of the future of the program or being disappointed about the direction.

In other words, I am a geek. I have been reading articles, checking tweets and looking for hints of where 18 year old kids are going to go to school. I don't know how much time I have spent doing all of this, not really a lot (depending on how you define "a lot"). But even though it hasn't been a lot, I have been increasingly convicted as today's "holiday" has come closer, about how much time, energy and passion has been expended on such a thing.

Do I have as much passion for Jesus and spending time with Him as I have for Husky football? I would honestly say that the answer is...sometimes. I don't follow Husky football because I have to. There was no requirement when I graduated that I had to take an interest in the program for the rest of my life or risk losing my degree. No, I follow Husky football because I am passionate about it. However, my passion for Jesus should be much greater. And, if it is much greater, it should my life should look like it.

What are you passionate about? Is it taking the place of Jesus in your life? If you say you are passionate about Jesus, is that apparent to those who see your life? I am really excited about the Huskies but I am in love with Jesus and want my life to look like it. I have some work to do!