Socrates said: Know yourself. Freud said: Be yourself. Jesus said: Give yourself. And at Easter He shows us what that looks like. “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mt. 20:28)
Knowing yourself is a valuable thing. How can address your need to grow as a person if you don’t know where to begin? Knowing yourself leads to confidence and self assurance.
Being yourself is a valuable thing. How can you find your way in this world if you are always pretending to be who you are not? Being yourself leads to finding your real place in this real world.
But giving yourself … living out of self giving love … is the only way to impact this world with muscular love. Because it’s not self focused but other focused. Its not about knowing myself or being myself. Imagine: its not about my self at all.
As Lent walks us toward Easter, our eyes come off our self and onto the One who gave himself for others. And we learn in new ways what the self giving love that changes the world really looks like.
It’s not that Socrates and Freud are wrong or have nothing meaningful to say. It’s just that they do not say enough. Only self giving love is enough. So think about it: who do you know that needs to be loved more than they need the advice of Socrates or the insight of Freud?
And we thought Christmas was the season of giving.
…just thinkling
Monday, February 23, 2009
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Eight more sleeps!
Eight more sleeps …
Do you remember counting up the sleeps to some important event in your life? Christmas. Birthdays. Vacation. Finally getting out of school!!
Well … in our house we are counting the days down to February 11th , the day that Marilyn and I leave for Florida to do a four day retreat for pastors and their spouses. Did you catch that? It’s in Florida! We have a lot of work to do down there but it’s down there! In Florida!!
The only problem is living in the days that are between now and then: staying focused, doing good work, attending to life, etc. When you have some big thing you are looking forward to … if you are not careful … you can wish away the days in between and literally waste them.
And all of us only get so many days, don’t we? There is an unseen clock of life that keeps ticking even if we ignore it. To waste any days is to waste life. We don’t get those days back to live over.
So the Bible tells us “to number our days” for a reason. God wants us to get the most out of life by wasting the very least of it. And He wants us to make use of it wisely, productively, and redemptively in a world that could use some wisdom, some productivity and some redemption.
So even if you’re not going to Florida next week number your days and redeem the time. And if I can remember, I’ll bring you back a shell and a handful of sunshine! (How many more sleeps is that now!?)
…just thinkling
Do you remember counting up the sleeps to some important event in your life? Christmas. Birthdays. Vacation. Finally getting out of school!!
Well … in our house we are counting the days down to February 11th , the day that Marilyn and I leave for Florida to do a four day retreat for pastors and their spouses. Did you catch that? It’s in Florida! We have a lot of work to do down there but it’s down there! In Florida!!
The only problem is living in the days that are between now and then: staying focused, doing good work, attending to life, etc. When you have some big thing you are looking forward to … if you are not careful … you can wish away the days in between and literally waste them.
And all of us only get so many days, don’t we? There is an unseen clock of life that keeps ticking even if we ignore it. To waste any days is to waste life. We don’t get those days back to live over.
So the Bible tells us “to number our days” for a reason. God wants us to get the most out of life by wasting the very least of it. And He wants us to make use of it wisely, productively, and redemptively in a world that could use some wisdom, some productivity and some redemption.
So even if you’re not going to Florida next week number your days and redeem the time. And if I can remember, I’ll bring you back a shell and a handful of sunshine! (How many more sleeps is that now!?)
…just thinkling
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