Random Thoughts… – Page 3 – Pastor Barry's Blog

Deep Roots…

Last week I had the enviable task of being a chaperone for a third-grade field trip! As I am writing I can almost feel the jealously that you are undoubtedly feeling right now… But seriously, It was rather interesting and the kids were very well behaved so it was easy.

We went to the Rice Northwest Museum of Rocks and Minerals and I arrived a little earlier than the school bus, so I took the opportunity to look around. The museum sits on a small hill in a very wooded area, very park like, with all sorts of trees, most very old…and very tall. But scattered in amongst them there were smaller trees, just a fraction of the size and age of the older ones. Protected from the wind, rain, and any strong storm that might happen.

It has been very wet in the Pacific Northwest this winter, and on occasion, extremely windy. Which, made me thankful that it was neither on this day, because I wanted the roots to hold firm and keep these trees standing tall and strong. Too often I have turned the news on to see a car crushed or a roof collapsed because the ground was too soft to hold the deep roots that these trees can put down.

Looking at those trees reminded me of a verse I had read just that morning in Proverbs chapter 12. In verse 3 it says that the Godly have deep roots.

Those big trees had roots that would hold on, stay strong, and find nourishment. Their roots even served to protect the younger trees who were just establishing themselves. I would be willing to bet that this was the image the writer of Proverbs intended. When saying that the Godly have deep roots, he was saying they have the ability to hold on, stay strong, find nourishment, and even protect those who are just beginning their journey!

Now this may not be an epiphany for you – but it was a definite ah-hah moment for me. It really caused me to think not only about my own roots, but about the roots of those close to me. Am I teaching, nourishing, protecting, and sheltering like I should?

Over the next few days think about your root system. Where are you finding food? Are you going deeper? Are you growing stronger? We all should be…after all those trees had deep roots and were still growing…they were still living….aren’t you?

Until next time…

Pastor Barry

Treasure Hunter…

Goonies is one of my all time favorite movies, after all what kid can’t identify with at least one of the characters. For those of you unfamiliar with the movie – Mikey, Brandon, Chunk, Mouth, Andy, Stef, and Data are a ragamuffin group who call themselves the “Goonies.” In short they find a pirate’s treasure map and ultimately…. (well I can’t really tell you because that would ruin the movie.)

This got me thinking. Who wouldn’t want to find a treasure map? Who hasn’t dreamed of stumbling upon untold riches? It’s the stuff stories and legends are made from. It’s contagious and infectious…just look around your city. How many times have you seen someone with a metal detector walking in a park or on a beach or in a vacant lot? Those people are looking for treasure!

I can’t tell you how many forts and secret hideouts I built as a kid. Each one was built around the premise of finding secret treasure. Occasionally I would find something – usually an old tool or a piece of wire or even a rock that looked like an arrowhead. Nothing ever very valuable – but it was the adventure that made it exciting.

The other day my wife and I were talking and she recommended that I read Proverbs 2. (On a side note – I have the best wife in the world!) So I started reading….

¹ My child,listen to what I say,
and treasure my commands.
² Tune your ears to wisdom,
and concentrate on understanding.
³ Cry out for insight,
and ask for understanding.
⁴ Search for them as you would for silver;
seek them like hidden treasures.
⁵ Then you will understand what it means to fear the Lord,
and you will gain knowledge of God.
⁶ For the Lord grants wisdom!
From his mouth come knowledge and understanding.

Did you catch that? Read it again….

God calls us to be treasure hunters! He tells us to search for wisdom, insight, and understanding like you would hidden treasure! And the best part is that we will find what we are looking for!

It’s about passion. Treasure hunters hunt with passion. They go after something full force and totally sold out. I can’t think of a better way to follow God than as a TREASURE HUNTER!

Until next time…

Pastor Barry

Backpack…

Backpacks are awesome! I just love mine – it holds a ton of stuff and almost anything I feel I might need during a day is in there. My iPod, the charger, headphones, an external hard drive, a scan disk, an adapter, usb drives, pens, pencils, power cords, my macbook, mail from the last 2 weeks, my Bible… I think you get the picture.

In reality I need to clean it out….but what do I remove? I’m sure the minute I take something out is the very moment I am going to need it.

But last week I decided I was going to do just that – clean it out. I emptied EVERY pocket and let me tell you there are a lot of pockets – just ask my wife. Many is the time that I have asked her to grab something for me and told her which pocket it was in. But, trying to figure out which pocket is the back pocket or the pocket inside of the third pocket ends up only being a lesson in futility (which for the record is not her fault.)

So there I sat emptying everything out onto my desk…it was an amazing site. There were piles everywhere! I couldn’t believe how much stuff was in there. Piece by piece I went through everything and you know what happened? Yep – it ALL ended up back in the back pack. I didn’t get rid of anything I simply changed where I kept it.

We all wear backpacks in life. Everyday we collect things and we stuff them inside. Some things we keep on top and easily accessible. Other things we bury deep down and hope to hide. Some things we like and want to share with others. Other things we hope no one ever sees. The only problem is that the more and more things we stuff in our backpack the heavier it gets. And let me tell you it can get very heavy and we don’t even realize it.

So today why don’t you sit back and empty your backpack. Take inventory of what’s in there. Find out what you want to keep, what you need to keep, and what you need to get rid of. Perhaps you have guilt, anger, jealously, fears, failures, shortcomings, or any number of things, you need to get rid of.

Find someone you trust. Find someone you know cares. Find a pastor. But find someone who can help you as you empty your backpack of the stuff you don’t need.

But, let me tell you it starts with Jesus! He is the one who can and wants to help you lighten the load – these other people – they are the ones that can help keep you accountable during the purging!

So until next time…

Pastor Barry

Helpless but not hopeless…

One of the privileges I have as a pastor is being able to teach in small group settings. Yesterday, during one of these groups, we were discussing some of the insights found in the 8th Chapter of Luke. Specifically, we looked at a couple of stories where Jesus healed in response to faith – the woman who had suffered for twelve years with constant bleeding and the synagogue leader Jairus whose daughter lay dying.

Two different people. One man. One woman. One rich. One poor. One respected. One shunned. One powerful. One powerless. One approached Jesus from the front. One snuck up from behind. I think you get the picture. So there I am as a reader, imagining Jairus having his people clearing the crowd as he strides up to Jesus, while the woman is dodging and weaving and perhaps even crawling just so she could touch Jesus’ garment….

But, no matter their differences, one thing made them equal…. Their FAITH! Both had an unmistakeable hope that Jesus could help them if they could only get to Him and fall at His feet!

What an amazing posture….falling at the feet of Jesus. Here are two utterly helpless individuals doing absolutely the only thing (albeit best thing) remaining for them to do. Fall at the feet of Jesus. They were helpless but they were definitely not hopeless!

Where are you today? Do you feel helpless? The good news is that no matter who we are, no matter what hand life has dealt us, and no matter what we have done. Jesus is there to give us hope. The only thing we have to do is make our way to Him and fall at His feet…

Until next time…

Pastor Barry

The Next Level…

Recently a good friend of mine (pastor Connie Wheeler) tweeted a very reflective thought – “Why would you invite someone to follow Christ if you have no intention of leading them to the next level?….”

A great question! Why would anyone invite someone to follow Christ if they then aren’t willing to follow through with what that looks like? What does it mean to share with someone the love of Jesus and then not show them? What does it mean to say Jesus will change your life and then not help them in their journey?

We have to ask ourselves, “Are we as the body of Christ really doing what Jesus has asked us to do, are we making a difference in someone’s life and in this world we live in? ” What came to mind was the song by Josh Wilson, “I Refuse.” A song that basically says we are to live out our faith, no matter what we are given, and no matter what our circumstance!

If all of us would do this – THAT would be taking it to the next level!

Until next time…

Pastor Barry

P.S. – Here are the words to that song.

I Refuse

Sometimes I, I just want to close my eyes

And act like everyone’s alright

When I know they’re not

This world needs God, but it’s easier to stand and watch

I could pray a prayer and just move on

Like nothing’s wrong

But I Refuse

I don’t want to live like I don’t care

I don’t want to say another empty prayer

Oh, I refuse to sit around and wait for someone else

To do what God has called me to do myself

I could choose not to move

But I Refuse

I can hear the least of these, crying out so desperately

And I know we are the hands and feet of You, oh God

So if You say move, it’s time for me to follow through

And do what I was made to do

And show them who You are

I don’t want to live like I don’t care

I don’t want to say another empty prayer

Oh, I refuse to sit around and wait for someone else

To do what God has called me to do myself

I could choose not to move

But I refuse

I refuse to stand and watch the weary and lost cry out for help

I refuse to turn my back and try and act like all is well

I refuse to stay unchanged, to wait another day to die to myself

I refuse to make one more excuse

I don’t want to live like I don’t care

I don’t want to say another empty prayer

Oh, I refuse to sit around and wait for someone else

To do what God has called me to do myself

I could choose not to move

But I refuse

Power Wash…

Have you ever had the opportunity to power wash something? It is incredible. I felt like Tim Taylor on “Tool Time!” The energy, the power, the brute force in which dirt and moss were no match for the air compressed water shooting through the wand of fury! Now granted there are side effects…mainly you tend to get soaked…but I kind of imagined I was standing near Niagra Falls (even though I have never been there) taking in the beauty and majesty and power of water as the mist settled in around me drenching me through and through.

Ok – I know this is an over-the-top poetic representation of a very mind-numbing task, but it really was fun! And it gives you a ton of time to think.

For example, I naturally thought about all the references of water in the Bible. Water in the Bible frequently represents life – new life. It provided an escape route for the Israelites out of the dessert. It provided life for Elijah as he drank from a creek. It provided a place for John to mark the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. And it even gave a talking point for the Jews and Samaritans to find common ground at a well. Everywhere you look throughout the scriptures water was powerful, it was significant, it was important.

So there I was a week or so ago…power washing my driveway and patio because I live in the Pacific Northwest and it is damp, and here, moss doesn’t just grow on the north side of trees…it grows on everything! It was time to make everything clean and shiny again!

The metaphor was so obvious as I watched the grime and crud and years of ugliness being stripped away to reveal the beauty of the original stone work.

This is exactly what Jesus does for you and me. Our lives can tend to build up a film, a gunk, an overall growth of ugliness if we don’t allow Him to “wash” us. Now this is more than just taking a baby wipe and scrubbing a little bit. Sure that makes you smell good, and most of the dirt is removed, but a power-wash is what we all need. A washing from the life giving water from Jesus.

We need to allow Jesus to really get at the buildup in our lives. That buildup is of course – sin! And let me tell you – it can be really hard to let go of things that are making our lives less than they should be – a representation of God. We were made in the image of God or Imago Dei – and that is the image that needs to be restored…

In the fourth chapter of John, Jesus is talking to the woman at the well and tells her in verse 14, “But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.” And again in John chapter 7 Jesus promises this living water. He says in verse 37, “Anyone who is thirsty may come to me! Anyone who believes in me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, ‘Rivers of living water will flow from his heart.”

And so there I was stripping away moss and dirt from the stonework around my house, all while praying that Jesus would continue to keep the build up of sin from my life…

Why? Simply because it is the Imago Dei that I want people to see in me! There is nothing more beautiful in life than that!

Until Next Time…

Pastor Barry

All things orthopedic…

It will always be interesting to me to see how quickly plans and agendas can change. Take for example today, I had planned on writing about the “Great I Am.” It was an inspiring weekend and I wanted to share some insights that I discovered. However, this morning in the office has been anything but inspiring, and I would rather tell you about the mundane….

To keep a long story short – I have knee pain. More specifically, I have torn cartilage and some beginnings of arthritis. It has been hurting for sometime and so I started the process of having it looked at. This is where it gets interesting. Don’t get me wrong – I am extremely happy that I have health insurance – but the way managed health care is operating I shutter at the horror of a nationalized government regulated health care system.

In August I scheduled an appointment (for September) with my primary care physician so I could get a referral appointment with an orthopedic surgeon. I spent all of ten minutes in the doctors office and that included the blood pressure check from his nurse. Anyhow, he ordered a set of x-rays (for what I don’t know) and I was done. A day later, the referral came along with the quote “because the x-rays were inconclusive” which is what I told the doctor when he ordered them – (I’d done this before).

It then took took 2 full months to get an appointment with the orthopedic surgeon, another 3 weeks for an MRI, another 2 weeks to get back into the orthopedic surgeon, and then finally surgery was “tentatively” scheduled for February 28th. And I say “tentatively” because when I called today they told me I was “tentatively” scheduled for March 21st….Holy Cow was I frustrated. It’s not that I am looking forward to my 4th surgery on my left knee, but having gone through this previously, I know something has to be done.

But despite all my emotion (I really felt like crying…and on Valentine’s Day of all days) I had a real peace. I was reminded of what Jesus had done for me and that my hope is in Him and not man. Yes, the pain is real, which serves to remind me that if our hope is in man and his systems then we will (at some point) be disappointed. But if our hope is in Jesus we will never be disappointed!

After hanging up the phone I was reminded of the lyrics to the song Everlasting God.

Strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord
We will wait upon the Lord
We will wait upon the Lord

Our God, You reign forever
Our hope, our Strong Deliverer
You are the everlasting God
The everlasting God
You do not faint
You won’t grow weary

You’re the defender of the weak
You comfort those in need
You lift us up on wings like eagles

Just what I needed to be reminded of today…and FYI – the doctor called back and I am “un-tentatively” scheduled back on the 28th!

Until next time…

Pastor Barry

Apple A Day…

I think we have all heard this common colloquialism, but have we ever pondered it’s truth….I haven’t and I’m not sure I am going to. But as I sat here eating an apple this morning I thought of two things.

First, I hate eating apples (despite their nutritional benefits) because they are a lot of work. I simply don’t like biting into apples – they have to be cut and cored. But when they are cut and cored the apples are exposed to air and begin to turn brown. Now I know there are tricks to keep them fresh – but this simple, shiny, good tasting snack has suddenly become work.

Secondly, apples look inviting. Especially, when one is sitting there with a bite out of it. (The logo design team of a popular computer company didn’t do too badly on their design of this bitten piece of fruit.)

Anyhow, this morning’s inviting apple then made me think about Genesis 3. That’s the story about original sin.

We are told that Eve took the “fruit” and ate of it and then gave some to Adam and he ate. We aren’t told that it was an apple – but unfortunately the apple has taken the starring role in this story. I suppose I could start a campaign for another fruit like a banana or pomegranate or something, but I suppose that misses the point of the story.

The real point is that man messed up – we broke our relationship with God – but God (like a good parent) already knew how He would fix this.

Fast forward to Romans 5:6-11 and we are told that at just the right time Christ came to die for us when we were sinners and utterly helpless! Yeah God! Relationship with Him was restored!

When you are eating an apple you can think about a lot of things… For me – I am going to forever link my apple eating as a reminder about Christ’s free gift. Perhaps, the saying should actually be, “An apple a day keeps the devil at bay….”

Sappy, I know. But true!

Until next time…

Pastor Barry

The Psalmist’s Cry

Let me begin with saying that the House Studio has done it again…with the publication of the Psalmist’s Cry your small group has another great resource at its disposal.

In this book, Walter Brueggemann explores the Psalms as a guide for expressing feelings honestly. What a great tool to help us be honest with ourselves, others, and God in a world that is hungry for authentic communication and true relationship!

I highly recommend this resource, and for that matter – every resource that the House Studio has published! Go check it our for yourself.

Until next time…

Pastor Barry

Where is your heart centered?

Earlier this week I was reading the story about Jesus healing the ten lepers. The story where all were healed but only one came back to thank Him AND to worship Him… We can learn so much from that one leper, not just about being thankful but about where our hearts should be centered.

His heart was centered on Jesus – on who Jesus was – and on what Jesus had done. The lesson we learn should learn is that when we are focused on what Jesus is doing, we will be absorbed into knowing who He is, and when we are absorbed into knowing who He is – we will become like Him! It is this complete absorption into “worshipping” Him that leads us into having a heart centered on Him and a heart like His.

But what does having a heart like Jesus’ or a heart centered on Him look like?

In my religious tradition we define this as holiness, sanctification, christian perfection and perfect love. These are terms that have long caused confusion for clergy AND non-clergy alike, mainly due in large part to the difficulty of defining and applying this concept to everyday life.

But we have to…So let’s try…

In order to have a heart centered on God it follows that one must be set apart for God. John Wesley understood the Christian to be a holy person set-aside for God as shown in verses such as Exodus 19:10 and 1 Peter 2:9. To be set apart for God is to be made holy!

But what does “being set apart” look like? If we know that love is the center of Wesley’s understanding, then this love must be the true test of holiness. Out of love we are to emulate Christ. Out of love we are set apart. Out of love we are holy.

Love is what caused the healed leper that returned to Jesus. Love is what caused him to see who Jesus was. Both Jesus’ love for him and the leper’s love for Jesus fueled their actions. Love is what should fuel our actions.

We are told that Jesus’ wept two times in the New Testament – once when his friend Lazarus had died and the other when He was looking over Jerusalem and was broken because the people just didn’t get who He was. It was His passion, His compassion, His brokenness, His love that caused Jesus to weep at these times. It showed where Jesus’ heart was – it showed His heart was broken.

So perhaps, we should ask ourselves, “Who do I weep for?” I bet the healed leper was weeping when He saw what had happened and realized who Jesus was…

So let me end with this thought…

It is only after we are broken and weeping for a deeper knowledge of Christ, for our families, our neighbors, our community, and our churches, that we develop a heart centered on God and therefore become “set apart” for God.

Where is your heart centered today?

Until next time…

Pastor Barry