What began as 39 failures became a product for which consumers have found more than 2,000 uses. These brilliant men must surely have been frustrated as they continued to fail. But they didn’t give up. Their repeated mistakes led them to refine the product into something great – though perhaps not in the way they intended.

The Bible is full of smart men and women who messed up. For some, their mistakes brought grief and pain that led to repentance and redemption. Having experienced God’s grace, they understood it more profoundly and it fueled a stronger passion for His work.

We’ve all known failure and will surely know it again. How it influences us is our choice. We can allow it to defeat us and forfeit the peace of knowing we are forgiven, or we can choose to use the insight gained to strengthen our character.

Though we don’t often escape the consequences of our mistakes, God’s forgiveness allows us to be restored to fellowship with Him, and often with others, as He fortifies and sanctifies us. His forgiveness is neither grudging nor reluctant; it’s permanent, complete and filled with lavish grace.

In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us …
— Ephesians 1:7 – 8

The creators of WD-40 used their failures to perfect their idea. The Father uses our failures to teach us as He shapes and molds us into His image.

But love isn’t always romantic and it is much more than just a noun. God’s kind of love is a verb. More than merely a feeling, it is daily actions and choices that honor others’ needs above our own. To love is to choose commitment over convenience, sacrifice over selfishness and to bear the burdens of another when it would be far easier to travel light.

Human love is often messy, inconvenient and complicated. Love wipes away tears, holds grubby hands and washes feet. It denies self, forgives and offers grace in return for insults.

The greatest demonstration of love in human history is the Cross. The sacrifice of the Father was to endure the suffering and death of His beloved Son. The sacrifice of the Son was His very life, which He gave by His choice for our sake.

God’s agape love is unconditional, unchanging and unending. It is not showered upon us because of our own goodness or works, but just because we are His. We can’t earn it and we can’t lose it; we can only accept it and live in such a way that all are drawn to Him through the witness of our lives.

For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
— Romans 8:38 – 39

Jesus used verbs to teach us to love better: He healed the blind, comforted the sick, cared for the poor and suffered and died so that we may know His Father’s love.

Related posts:

1. Happy Independence Day!

Fear alerts us to imminent danger and can motivate us to be cautious and wise, but when it begins to work overtime in our hearts, it can cripple us and keep us from realizing God’s plan for our lives. We often fear the unknown not because we perceive danger, but just because it is beyond our control.

Our fears are no surprise to God; He knew that our selfishness would drive us away from Him, but our anxieties would send us running back.

When he was 120 years old, Moses could no longer lead the Israelites. Knowing he would not go with them into the Promised Land, he prepared them for their journey:

Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of [your enemies], for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Deuteronomy 31:6

Moses reminded his people that the same God that had already defeated their enemies once and had parted the Red Sea would walk before them into the land that He would give them.

Comforting, isn’t it? Wherever we go, He goes before us. It’s the difference between returning home alone late at night to a dark, empty house and having a loved one greet you at the door.

Don’t be afraid to go where He is leading you. He’s already there with the lights on.

Related posts:

1. Christ is Risen!

Engineers who study sound call this a poor signal-to-noise ratio. The signal-to-noise ratio compares the volume of the desired signal to the volume of the noise. A ratio less than one-to-one means the noise is louder than the signal.

Sometimes our lives are like a noisy room. Caught up in earthly priorities and struggles, our signal-to-noise ratio drops until we barely hear the Creator’s voice. The background noise of our busy lives shuts out His signal and we become overwhelmed and lost.

No matter how noisy our hearts become, God never gives up, even when we’re not listening. While we’re sometimes content with a casual wave across the room, He continues to pursue a deeper connection, to cut through the racket and get our attention. We say we long to know Him, yet we remain lost in the clatter and confusion.

Hear these words from contemporary Christian artist Steven Curtis Chapman’s song, Be Still and Know That He is God, taken from Psalm 46:

Be still and know that He is God
Be still and know that He is holy
Be still, O restless soul of mine
Bow before the Prince of peace
Let the noise and clamor cease
Be still.

How do we improve our spiritual signal-to-noise ratio and find peace in our restless souls?

Whether our noise is stress and worry or the joy of a blessed and fulfilling life, we all need quiet communication with God. Spare the time you think you don’t have and find a distraction-free place to read His word. Read it again and meditate on its meaning, on what God is saying to you. Listen and pray.

To hear the signal, turn down the noise.

Related posts:

1. Sound and Community

An urban ministry training experience

Dr. John M. Perkins, Dr. Bob Lupton, Michael Mata, and Memphis’ own David Montague will discuss the issues of biblical justice, toxic charity, holistic mission and education reform.

When: Saturday, March 17, 2012, 8:30 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Where: Christ United Methodist Church [GoogleMap]

Register By: Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Registration fees include all events on March 17, a continental breakfast, and lunch at the event.

Back to MCUTS

Related posts:

1. Generous Justice

“There is a sacredness in tears. They are not the mark of weakness, but of power. They speak more eloquently than ten thousand tongues. They are the messengers of overwhelming grief, of deep contrition, and of unspeakable love.”
— Washington Irving

The things that make us cry speak volumes about who we are. We cry at a baby’s birth, the death of a loved one, a groom’s face at first glance of his bride on their wedding day — and thousands of other times our hearts are touched by empathy, pain or joy.

Tears are an outward sign of need and vulnerability that would perhaps not otherwise have been expressed. They offer others the opportunity to empathize and walk with us through the moment as we bear the sorrow together. They prompt us to put an arm around a brother or sister and offer comfort, as God offers comfort to us.

An invitation onto the sacred ground of another’s tears is an honor, a measure of trust and confidence, a chance to minister and console. God prepares us to bring His solace to those around us who are suffering:

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.
2 Corinthians 1:3 – 4

In ancient times, tear bottles (or wineskins) were used to catch the owners’ tears in times of grief. David, in Psalm 56:8, says,

Record my lament; list my tears on your scroll*; are they not in your record?

Some Bible scholars say that David believed God has a tear bottle of His own in which He collects our tears.
What a beautiful thought; that He sees each tear as it falls and keeps them in His bottle, that every tear we shed is known to Him. And that He comes, with bottle in hand, into those raw, vulnerable moments when the tears will not be contained any other way.

*Some translations say “in your wineskin”

Credit: Library of Congress. New York World-Telegram & Sun Collection.

Today we remember the lasting legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. In observance of his 83^rd birthday, our nation collectively pauses to remember both a history of disunity and injustice, as well as bold efforts to reunite and heal.
Dr. King encouraged our nation to see the dignity of all persons. Each day we are faced with the choice of whether or not to view those we encounter as made in God’s image. Part of this process is remembering Luke’s call to deny ourselves and take up our cross. This idea was ever-present in King’s work, as when he said:

An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity. Our goal should not our own comfort, but rather honoring God as we love our neighbor and strive for justice, no matter how different we are.

Today, in light of Dr. King, we also remember the rich history Memphis enjoys. Our city is filled with the legacy of Dr. King and others who took its problems and molded them into reform. No problem is beyond hope, but by the power of God, is within reach of restoration.

Praise to our God who is the author of all restoration. Thanks to Him for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the many courageous others who worked towards Gospel equality. May we continue the same just fight.

Related posts:

1. Honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
2. Happy Mother’s Day!
3. Happy Independence Day!

Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. Luke 16:10

In the 1980s, rock band Van Halen was at the height of their popularity, playing to packed venues and amassing millions in music sales. They were rock stars in every sense of the word, including a reputation for diva behavior. Concerts were lavishly produced with over-the-top special effects.

A strange and seemingly trivial clause in their touring contract called for a bowl of M&Ms in the dressing room at each stop. Not so unusual — who doesn’t love M&Ms? But Van Halen’s contract demanded that all brown M&Ms be removed. Failure to do so would result in a forfeit of the show, with full compensation, which they reportedly did at least once.

For years, the brown M&M clause was dismissed as a frivolous demand of a group of temperamental artists, until Roth released his memoir in July 2011.

In the book, Roth explains the brown M&M clause.

We’d pull up with nine 18-wheeler trucks, full of gear, where the standard was three trucks, max. And there were many, many technical errors — whether it was the girders couldn’t support the weight, or the flooring would sink in, or the doors weren’t big enough to move the gear through … So just as a little test, buried somewhere in the middle of the rider, would be article 126, the no-brown-M&M’s clause. “When I would walk backstage, if I saw a brown M&M in that bowl,” he wrote, “well, we’d line-check the entire production. [Because if they missed that detail then it was] guaranteed you’re going to arrive at a technical error …

What does an 80s rock star have to do with Luke 16:10? Roth may or may not have read the book of Luke, but he understands the principle of that verse. One small error by a careless technician and the band could have been seriously injured or worse.

Obviously, we don’t draw wisdom from aging rock stars, but the story does remind us that God calls us to missions large and small. Sometimes He calls us to minister in big sweeping ways and sometimes He calls us to sort M&Ms one at a time.

May we be faithful in all that He calls us to accomplish in His name.

We certainly should strive to be better people; but this “better” is not merely an improved form of ourselves. Our “better” self is found in becoming more like Christ Himself. The church calls this process sanctification and we are not alone or left to our own devices in this journey. God has given us His Word to guide our lives and his Holy Spirit to direct us. As Paul tells us, “There is none righteous,” but “We have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

As you consider your goals for this year, remember that our ultimate goal is not to be skinnier or healthier or wealthier, but to become holy and pure, restored to fullness in Christ. Sanctification is a glorious process; one that brings glory to our Father as we are made more like Him. May your resolutions this year be a strong force in your becoming more like Christ.

Related posts:

1. Happy New Year!

“Has it ever occurred to you that one hundred pianos all tuned to the same fork are automatically tuned to each other? They are of one accord by being tuned, not to each other, but to another standard to which each one must individually bow. So one hundred worshipers … each one looking away to Christ, are in heart nearer to each other than they could possibly be, were they to become ‘unity’ conscious and turn their eyes away from God to strive for closer fellowship.”
― A.W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God

Have you ever watched a piano tuner work? They begin with one single tone — A440 — near the middle of the keyboard. It’s the starting point for the piano tuner’s work and the standard for the symphony orchestra. The tuner gets the pitch from a metal tuning fork that vibrates at a frequency of 440Hz. Its pitch is constant; it is never out of tune.

Perfect tuning takes careful listening and an ear that is practiced as it listens for subtle differences in pitch. That’s how a room full of 100 pianos can be tuned to perfect unison; as they are tuned to the constant, the unchanging A440, they are also in tune with one another.

As Christians, our A440 is Christ. As we listen carefully and tune to Him, the music of our lives glorifies Him in both harmony and unison. We do not tune to one another, but to Him, the constant, always perfectly in tune. True unity is only found when all focus eyes, ears and hearts on Him.

As we begin a new year, may we tune ourselves to the perfect pitch of our Creator. May our hearts be as practiced as the piano tuner’s ear, so that we detect even the slightest deviation from the standard. May we know unison with God and harmony with all.

May Christ be our A440.