Spirit Whispers – Part 1

Spirit Whispers – Part 1

Jagged hair framed the haggard face of a thirtyish-looking woman. She wore no makeup. Her bulky pants looked like they belonged to a short, fat man—but matched her XXL gray sweatshirt. She stood by McDonald’s on Main Street.

I stopped to take a second look. The woman held a cardboard sign with four words that have long represented an accepted spectacle across the American landscape of free speech: “Will work for food.”

iStock_000008405256SmallBack in the 1980s, sign-holders in our small town were a new phenomenon. I’d not seen this kind of thing before. The way my heart pounded, you’d have thought I’d just witnessed a car wreck. Who would do that—overcoming personal shame enough to stand out there on public display?

I hurried into McDonald’s and spoke to the assistant manager in chopped sentences.

“There’s a woman…and a sign…she’s in trouble…”

He nodded and politely informed me that the owner had already offered her a job—which she flatly refused. She was hustling far more money with her sign.

In that moment, I grew older and wiser.

Homeless Series - No TrespassingA man in a torn overcoat stood shivering in blinding snow by the grocery store. Who would fake that? His sign said, “Stranded—anything will help.” I bought him some hot soup and a roll from the deli. He seemed thankful and asked for money, but I didn’t have any cash. I returned to do my grocery shopping, but later, as I left the store, I noticed the soup and bread abandoned in the snow. Untouched. Uneaten. He had moved on.

Now I was irritated.

Nearly a decade passed. I continued to struggle with walking or driving by people holding cardboard signs. The Good Samaritan story pinned me with guilt if I did nothing. On the other hand, what about the sting of feeling scammed? Giving money without accountability didn’t seem like a good use of resources. How would I juggle compassion with suspicion?

Eventually I came to know a woman who’d lived a transient lifestyle. Continue reading

Finessing Love

Finessing Love

Picture four people at a bridge table. The deck is dealt, the cards sorted.

After a moment, the first bid is spoken. “Two clubs.” It’s a fairly strong pitch.

The next player doesn’t hesitate. “Four hearts,” he says, stunning everyone.

After that, the third and fourth players pass. All three look at the original bidder. Going to five clubs would be over the top, but it could mean less of a loss. A decision is weighed. The outcome remains unknown.

The gist of that scene came from a dream. Because dreams are highly symbolic, think with me about possible interpretations.

Justice and truth are necessary forces in the world.

Justice and truth are necessary forces in the world.

What if Hearts, Diamonds, Clubs, and Spades stood for different forces at work in our world? Hearts would obviously embody love, mercy, and grace. Diamonds could signify wealth or greed. Perhaps Spades represent labor, as the word is synonymous with “shovel.” Spade, if seen as a spear, might symbolize war. And what if Clubs pointed to the power of government and the rule of law. All these forces profoundly affect the human story.

In addition, bidding in a bridge game determines the trump suit. In the same way, how do forces of love, mercy, grace, wealth, greed, labor, war, government and law shape our lives? Does one trump the other depending on circumstance?

This particular dream highlighted Hearts and Clubs and could portray the tension of love, mercy, and grace—versus—truth, justice and righteousness. The human condition requires that both “hands are played,” but this difficult balance has brought turmoil through the ages.

As believers, our challenge is to do justice, love mercy and walk humbly with God. Being “just” in our behavior toward others is not the same a bringing justice on others. If we don’t understand the difference, we may get branded as judgmental—a popular adjective, marring Christians today.

Pastor and teacher, Rick Joyner, gave keen insight on that distinction. Continue reading

A Sunday Idea

A Sunday Idea

“The rush and pressures of modern life are a form, perhaps the most common form, of contemporary violence. To allow oneself to be carried away by a multitude of conflicting concerns, to surrender to too many demands, to commit oneself to too many projects, to want to help everyone in everything is to succumb to violence.”                        —Thomas Merton

Pretty strong words.Young handsome man working

Have you ever thought of busyness in terms of violence? I have. Many violent things happen both silently and insidiously.

200px-Future_shock

Was Toffler right?

Back in 1970, Random House released Alvin Toffler’s book, Future Shock. I remember it well though I was only fifteen. Toffler maintained that the pace of life was increasing exponentially, bringing “too much change in too short a period of time.” The psychological results of stress and anxiety would be profound. The book sold over 6 million copies. A documentary film followed in 1972 with Orson Welles as the on-screen narrator.

Does your To Do List feel overwhelming?

Do you have information overload every time you tune in the news?

Do emails and social media feel like a constant barrage?

Is multi-tasking the new normal?

Do you lay awake at night thinking too much?

How have we handled the stress of “future shock” over the last 44 years?

I recently watched a science show on the NTGEO channel called, The Numbers Game. The episode was called “Could You Be A Better Boss.” One experiment referenced Navy SEAL training and examined the ability to focus under stress. Participants were shown two similar pictures that differed in small details. At first, it seemed easy to differentiate.

Then stressful distractions were added. Continue reading