Isaac asked me the other day if it was still winter. I told him that according to the calendar it was spring. He proceeded to tell me that the evidence outside would seem to indicate that the calendar is wrong. Frankly, I couldn't argue with him. Aren't we all eagerly anticipating the arrival of spring? I personally can't wait until the warm weather hits, the grass begins to green, and we can start our spring sports with an eye towards summer break. My thought through all of this is whether or not we are anticipating the celebration of Easter as much or more.
We have begun one of the most important weeks of the Christian year, but how many of us truly pause to consider what this week means to us. It is easy to glide right through this week, maybe attend church on Easter Sunday, eat some Easter ham, and then go right back to waiting for spring to arrive. If we do that, I believe we miss an important chance to reconnect and deepen our connection with the Spirit. Will we take the time to ponder what it means that the creator of everything became a human, suffered, and died for us? Will we take a minute to consider if we are living our lives in a way that honors that sacrifice? Will we even be able to pause and take a breath from eating all the Easter candy to consider what we are celebrating that early Easter morning? I certainly hope so.
I've been on a kick lately because I've discovered that I all to easily jump right from the celebration of Palm Sunday to the celebration of Easter Sunday. Didn't I miss an important event somewhere in the middle there? What about the trial, torture, and death of Jesus? There were certainly some dark times during that week, but I don't like to think about that too much. Why I ask? Maybe it makes me feel uncomfortable thinking about how Jesus was treated. Maybe I feel a little guilty that my sin may have been one of the reasons he had to endure that horrible experience. Maybe, just maybe it makes this whole faith thing a little to real when I think that God died to show me just how much he loves me. When I think about it that way, then I can't help but want to strengthen my connection and tap into that sort of love. Wouldn't you? There is no greater sacrifice then one's life, and our God showed us just how far he'll go to show us his love. Are you willing to accept that love, and then do your absolute best to live a life to honor that love? I hope so...I hope I am. Let us celebrate that show of love this Holy Week.
Monday, March 25, 2013
Monday, March 18, 2013
March Madness
What comes to mind when you hear the phrase "March Madness"? NCAA basketball? Maybe the
madness that creeps in as winter gets too long and you can't wait for spring to be here? Whatever you might think of...the first thing that pops into my head is the college basketball tournament. I admit that I do fill a bracket out trying to predict the winners, and I'll also admit that I'm not very good at it. Case and point is the fact that my wife and I have been competing against each other year after year to see who does better with their brackets. We've been married 11 years, we've done a bracket each year, and I have won once. Yup...I'm 1 for 10, a 10% winning percentage.
Isaac was asking me about the brackets this year and as I was telling him about this competition, as if it is really even a competition anymore, and I tired to explain to him how hard it was to lose each year and make it look like I was trying to win. I told him it was important to daddy that mom's self esteem be built up this time of the year and that I had to let her win most of the time. He wasn't buying it...the kid's 6 and he has already figured out I'm full of it a lot of the time. I promised him that the honor of the Wohlhuter men was on this years challenge and that him and I combined could take mom of her championship post. Stay tuned to see what happens.
If you'll engage in a little mental stretching with me we are about to celebrate another kind of tournament victory in a couple months. Jesus is going to win the ultimate game against sin and death when he is resurrected from the tomb. As we prepare for the joy of Palm Sunday, the darkness that follows Maundy Thursday and Black Friday, and eventually the greatness that is Easter I want all of us to think about what Jesus' victory means. How do we say thank you to Jesus for his gift of eternal life and forgiveness that he secured for us so long ago? Do we live a life that reflects the selflessness that Jesus showed on his journey to the cross? Does the fact that our freedom has been bought with a price affect how we live our lives? Easter is certainly a celebration, and it should be a reminder that we are called to live as best we can as lights of the Spirit. Take these next two weeks and take note of where we could do better, and take note of where we are living a Godly life. And, if you have some inside tips on the tourny I'll take those too!
madness that creeps in as winter gets too long and you can't wait for spring to be here? Whatever you might think of...the first thing that pops into my head is the college basketball tournament. I admit that I do fill a bracket out trying to predict the winners, and I'll also admit that I'm not very good at it. Case and point is the fact that my wife and I have been competing against each other year after year to see who does better with their brackets. We've been married 11 years, we've done a bracket each year, and I have won once. Yup...I'm 1 for 10, a 10% winning percentage.
Isaac was asking me about the brackets this year and as I was telling him about this competition, as if it is really even a competition anymore, and I tired to explain to him how hard it was to lose each year and make it look like I was trying to win. I told him it was important to daddy that mom's self esteem be built up this time of the year and that I had to let her win most of the time. He wasn't buying it...the kid's 6 and he has already figured out I'm full of it a lot of the time. I promised him that the honor of the Wohlhuter men was on this years challenge and that him and I combined could take mom of her championship post. Stay tuned to see what happens.
If you'll engage in a little mental stretching with me we are about to celebrate another kind of tournament victory in a couple months. Jesus is going to win the ultimate game against sin and death when he is resurrected from the tomb. As we prepare for the joy of Palm Sunday, the darkness that follows Maundy Thursday and Black Friday, and eventually the greatness that is Easter I want all of us to think about what Jesus' victory means. How do we say thank you to Jesus for his gift of eternal life and forgiveness that he secured for us so long ago? Do we live a life that reflects the selflessness that Jesus showed on his journey to the cross? Does the fact that our freedom has been bought with a price affect how we live our lives? Easter is certainly a celebration, and it should be a reminder that we are called to live as best we can as lights of the Spirit. Take these next two weeks and take note of where we could do better, and take note of where we are living a Godly life. And, if you have some inside tips on the tourny I'll take those too!
Monday, March 4, 2013
Habits...
As some of you may or may not know I've been taking a class to become an EMT. So far so good, as long as I can pass a few more tests I'll be certified as an EMT(and that is a big IF). As part of my class I have to spend some time in an ER and riding along in an ambulance. The past 2 weekends I've spent 16 hours divided between Jennie and Mercy Hospitals in Council Bluffs. I have learned a lot, but what has struck me is the habits that people get in and can't get out of. Like I'm one to talk much though...I have more than a few bad habits that I'd like to stop but I can't, and I'd like to implement a few better habits but can't. But what I've seen amazes me.
A patient comes into the ER with complaints of chest pain. The pain was a 9 out of 10, which is pretty bad, and he/she was really scared. After running some quick tests it was determined the patient wasn't having a massive heart attack, but the patient still needed to wait for some blood work to be done to see if a minor heart attack had occurred. I imagine the only minor heart attack is one that happens to someone else! As we're waiting for the results the nurse and I get some history from the patient. The history sounds like this: smoker, diabetic, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, no exercise, poor diet, heart attack in December last year, father died of massive heart attack as did the patient's mother. Holy Cow! Walking time bomb.
I kept thinking to myself how many signs does this patient need to let him/her know that maybe it's time to change his/her lifestyle before it's too late? I mean really...this patient had every risk factor known for heart disease and he/she wasn't controlling the risk factors he/she could eliminate. Why? Are habits that hard to break? Does it take surviving 3 "minor" heart attacks to change your lifestyle? Maybe it takes a major heart attack before things will change.
I know I find it hard to change a habit unless I see immediate results or the negative effects of the habit are hurting me right now. I struggled forever starting and sticking to a diet until I finally committed to one and saw results. I fail sticking to it now because the results aren't as obvious and maintaining isn't as exciting as losing. Other habits I'd like to start are difficult because the payoff isn't going to come until well into the future, such as saving more for retirement or a house eventually. We humans like immediate gratification. And sometimes working on our relationship with God doesn't seem to pay off immediately. We don't get the immediate answer to our prayers, or at least the answer we think we need/deserve, and we don't get an immediate voice or light from heaven. Sometimes the pay off doesn't come later until we really need that connection and the time and effort put into building it pays off. It is hard for me, and I'm going to assume others, to get into habits that don't payoff immediately, such as tithing to church, having a strong prayer and devotional life, and so on and so on. We don't see immediate results so we wait until there is a disaster and then turn to God in prayer and maybe we give more of our time and of ourselves for awhile, but after the immediate threat is gone we fall away again. Would a stronger relationship before the disaster kept it at bay? Probably not, but having a strong foundation to stand on helps in all aspects of life instead of struggling when crisis occur and you'd wish you had something more solid to stand on.
Just as staying healthy is an investment in our future, building our relationship with God is an investment in our future. Let's hope that by being proactive now we don't have to have a crisis to turn our attention to what's important and shift our focus. Can we make it a priority now to spend some time getting to know God better and making that a habit? Build a solid foundation now and it is less likely to crumble in the future.
A patient comes into the ER with complaints of chest pain. The pain was a 9 out of 10, which is pretty bad, and he/she was really scared. After running some quick tests it was determined the patient wasn't having a massive heart attack, but the patient still needed to wait for some blood work to be done to see if a minor heart attack had occurred. I imagine the only minor heart attack is one that happens to someone else! As we're waiting for the results the nurse and I get some history from the patient. The history sounds like this: smoker, diabetic, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, no exercise, poor diet, heart attack in December last year, father died of massive heart attack as did the patient's mother. Holy Cow! Walking time bomb.
I kept thinking to myself how many signs does this patient need to let him/her know that maybe it's time to change his/her lifestyle before it's too late? I mean really...this patient had every risk factor known for heart disease and he/she wasn't controlling the risk factors he/she could eliminate. Why? Are habits that hard to break? Does it take surviving 3 "minor" heart attacks to change your lifestyle? Maybe it takes a major heart attack before things will change.
I know I find it hard to change a habit unless I see immediate results or the negative effects of the habit are hurting me right now. I struggled forever starting and sticking to a diet until I finally committed to one and saw results. I fail sticking to it now because the results aren't as obvious and maintaining isn't as exciting as losing. Other habits I'd like to start are difficult because the payoff isn't going to come until well into the future, such as saving more for retirement or a house eventually. We humans like immediate gratification. And sometimes working on our relationship with God doesn't seem to pay off immediately. We don't get the immediate answer to our prayers, or at least the answer we think we need/deserve, and we don't get an immediate voice or light from heaven. Sometimes the pay off doesn't come later until we really need that connection and the time and effort put into building it pays off. It is hard for me, and I'm going to assume others, to get into habits that don't payoff immediately, such as tithing to church, having a strong prayer and devotional life, and so on and so on. We don't see immediate results so we wait until there is a disaster and then turn to God in prayer and maybe we give more of our time and of ourselves for awhile, but after the immediate threat is gone we fall away again. Would a stronger relationship before the disaster kept it at bay? Probably not, but having a strong foundation to stand on helps in all aspects of life instead of struggling when crisis occur and you'd wish you had something more solid to stand on.
Just as staying healthy is an investment in our future, building our relationship with God is an investment in our future. Let's hope that by being proactive now we don't have to have a crisis to turn our attention to what's important and shift our focus. Can we make it a priority now to spend some time getting to know God better and making that a habit? Build a solid foundation now and it is less likely to crumble in the future.
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