What if...

It is election night. I love election night (even if I am really missing Tim Russert and his white board). The air. The excitement. The upsets. The victories. It is almost as good as March Madness.

I live in a very Republican area. It is hard to be a democrat or independent and a Christian in this area. I have been told that if you are not a Republican, you really can't love God. So, on this historical evening, the emails have already started. The conspiracy theories. The critical comments. The calls for lawsuits against the process. There is a lot of defeat for many people I know tonight. But part of me wonders.

What if as children of God we chose to pray for our president - no matter who that is? ...as Christians we chose to honor our president? ...as those with the greatest hope in the world, we chose to respect and submit to our president?

What if God is trying to do something BIG? What if God has a plan that is miraculous by human standards? What if this is the man that God has appointed for His purposes and to glorify His name? What if we are called to pray, and love and show grace? What if this is the perfect candidate in God's perfect plan for this moment? What if...

What do you do in the morning when your candidate has lost the big election? What do you do when your candidate has won the big election? You pray. You pray for wisdom and discernment. You pray for courage and strength. You pray for humility and a servant's heart. You pray for God's name to be glorified - not a man or a country's. You pray for your president. You pray for your vice president. You pray for the house and the senate and the cabinet. You pray for the staff and the pages, the assistants and administrators. And you pray that God will make you the servant that He wants. One who is will to honor authority - even when that authority is not your chosen man. Because in the end the cliche is still true. God is still God. He is still sovereign. He still appoints leaders.

Second Chances

My pastor talked about second chances on Sunday. I am always relieved to be reminded that my God is a god of second, third, fourth, one-hundredth chances. As I spent some time praising god about all of the chances that He has given me, I was challenged to think..."Am I a person of second chances?"

Jesus has called me to be His disciple. I want to follow after Him with my whole heart. So, am I a person of second chances?

I know about forgiveness and forgiving people over and over again. I know about love and caring for people. But, am I a person of second chances?

No. Not me. But I want to be. My heart cries out to be. My head thinks it would be awesome. It will revolutionize my life. So, God, make me a disciple of second chances...

An Outside Adventure

I am sitting here watching my cat. He is sitting by the back screen door watching the outside world. As the squirrels or birds approach, he will get into a crouched pose, ready to attack. He loves to interact with the outside world in this way. He is still a predator at heart.

However, he hates it outside. I tried to take him out once because I thought he would enjoy it. I could feel the terror in his heart as we stepped outside. I don't know if he remembers being a stray that had to fight for every meal. I don't know if he can still feel the bites of other animals, but he fought me with everything he had in him to get back to safety.

As I sit here looking at him, I have to think that I am a little like my cat. I love to look at the world and imagine all of the possibilities. I love the thought of a grand adventure. I even prepare myself for them, but when it comes time to step out of the door into the wide open world, I fight to get back in where it is safe.

Why do I live in the constant tension of stepping out into the life I was made to live and staying in the comfortable places? Why is it so much easier to bask in the sun while dreaming of adventures but rarely stepping out into the sun and taking those adventures? I don't know. Do I have it in me to actually be the person I want to be? Maybe. Someday.