Love, Peace and Jesus Cheese

"Would you like cheese on that?"

Talk about a moment of truth. You haven't really given any thought to the question prior to this very blip in time. It doesn't matter if the person behind the counter/at your table is asking about a salad, a Big Mac (ick) or Subway sandwich. 

For me, the answer is almost always yes. 

Cheese is awesome. I am a non-discriminatory cheese eater. My only stipulations are if it smells like a foot or comes in a can,  it is not going in my mouth. Other than that, bring on the cheese baby! 

Just last Saturday, my supervisor Kelli and I traveled to Macon, GA to do some SHAPE training for a church plant. As we were discussing each person's spiritual gifts, heart, abilities, personality and experiences, we got to the topic of "filling" holes in ministry with volunteers. 

Now, this is a baby church, just being planted and doing the work to get off the ground. Their numbers are small, so "filling holes" within their group was a challenge. But one participate piped up and jokingly said, "Holes aren't bad. Just think of swiss cheese. People love swiss cheese. We are the swiss cheese church."

This comment not only made us laugh, but it got me to thinking. We know that Jesus is all about love and peace... but how would he feel about cheese? Specifically, swiss cheese. (Hang in there readers... this will make more sense momentarily, I promise.)

We have already determined some types of cheese are "holey." And I don't know about you... but so are our lives. 

Let's start with our holey selves. We are full of holes. Looking to be fulfilled. Broken. Searching for something greater. Seeking love and peace. Completeness. 

So where do we find it? In Christ. Jesus fills our holes with His eternal love and neverending peace. We can be wholly His. ALL of us can live in Him. Lean on Him. Trust in Him... And ultimately we can become...

HOLY.  This is a good kind of holy. Fully, deeply and completely dedicated to Him through our actions, words and lives. We can live a full un-holey life by being holy. Our original holes are filled to the brim with love and peace through Him.  

So maybe Jesus is a cheese fan like me and you. He understands our "holes" and embraces our longing to be filled wholly with Him... to make us holy FOR Him. 

And let's not forget that Jesus STILL has holes... no, not the ones that are needed for perfection. He needs nothing, because He is perfect. But He himself has holes in his nail-scarred hands. The holes in His hands ultimately compensate for the holes in our lives caused by sin. 

Don't be ashamed or concerned if your life looks like swiss cheese. Mine does. Instead, find the love and peace from Jesus. And next time when someone asks if you want cheese on it, you can simply reply, "Sure, but I've already got some... I have love, peace and Jesus Cheese." 

Life is cheesy,

SGK

"They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak God's Word with fearless confidence." Acts 4:31 MSG

A Family Tradition

“Pass the green bean casserole.”

“White or dark meat?”

“Bahhaaahaa! Look at Dad… He’s snoring on the couch!!”

“Hey, who took a bite out of my pumpkin pie?!?”

“Let’s pray…”

In case you didn’t get the memo, it’s Thanksgiving. I know that folks have been blogging, talking and preparing for this festive holiday for days, ready to discuss of overeating, conversation, football, worship and in my family’s case, activities that involve shooting rifles and/or hunting.

Just like the quotes above, families throughout the world have a variety of traditions. Some do the turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes route. Others order a pizza and watch football until their eyes go googly. Others are busy mapping out their Black Friday shopping domination strategy. Some gatherings have dozens of people present (high blood pressure anyone?) and others might just have a wife and husband with their new baby, or some due to circumstances or choice, fly solo.  My family here in Kansas has a few traditions as well…

We usually have the staple Thanksgiving foods listed above, but add things like cornbread stuffing (Grandma Neva’s recipe) and fried okra. We usually dine early afternoon and then our tryptophan-induced activities post-gorge include lounging, TV (maybe football… eh) and maybe even doing some target practice in the front yard. Then, after a light supper of leftovers (since we are typically still reeling from the afternoon feasting activities) we bundle up, strap on our headlamps and head to the trees for a round of coon hunting with our hounds. (But that’s whole ‘nother post…)

Regardless of your personal family traditions, there is one that we all can share together. If you are member in the family of Christ, we can worship Him for the sacrifice of The Son. No matter how you slice it, I firmly believe He is the reason we are here, with the ability to give thanks today.

I’m thankful for my faith. And that, my darling family of Christ, is a family tradition we can all share.

Thankful for Jesus,

SGK

"These things I remember as I pour out my soul: how I used to go with the multitude, leading the procession to the house of God, with shouts of joy and thanksgiving among the festive throng." -Psalm 42:4

Leftovers: Only For Eating

Ready for a quick trip down memory lane? Sweet, let's go. When I was growing up, one of my favorite foods was... (wait for it...) leftovers. Yes, we were the family that it was totally legit to eat the leftover lasagna from supper for breakfast the next day. I remember in middle school we were writing our "Newsletter" and did a survey of our tiny student body of their favorite "after school snack." There was one write-in vote for "Leftovers." Fortunately for me,  the surveys were anonymous and when everyone literally laughed out loud at the ridiculousness (practicality?) of the thought, I never owned up that twas I who wrote that as my favorite snack.

Let's be honest, somethings are better leftover. My top picks: Homemade macaroni and cheese, chicken and dumplings, pizza, egg casserole, strawberry pretzel salad, German potato salad and anything involving chocolate. (Ok, chocolate is good fresh, leftover or licked off a plate-- anything goes in that category.) Hold on... now I gotta run and take a snack break. (Just kidding) 

As much as I still adore leftovers,  I do know someone who isn't the biggest fan... God. He doesn't want our leftovers. And sometimes, that can be hard! Most of us deal with some, all or a combination of the following on a daily basis: spouse, work, kids, bills, church, community activities, parents, siblings, homework, exercise, grocery shopping, sleep, (insert your own daily activities here). So the question is: Where does God fit?

Unlike our "shoved-to-the-back-of-the-fridge-leftovers," God should be at the front of the list for a priority of things in our life. Exodus 23:19 says  “Bring the best of the firstfruits of your soil to the house of the Lord your God." Now don't miss construe what I am saying here. God DOES understand that we aren't always going to be on our A-game, peppy as Saturday Night Live Spartan Cheerleaders. However, he does expect the BEST or "Firstfruits" of ourselves to be dedicated to him.

"Firstfruits" is mentioned in the NIV 31 times... "Leftover" is only mentioned once. To me, that is an indication of what God expects from us. We can give the most and best of ourselves daily by our actions and our thoughts. I don't know about you, but if I put off something until the end of the day, the less likely it is going to get done. Example: If I wait to have my quiet time with the Lord until after supper, something seems to be more likely to come up or cause distraction. Plus, I might be weary from the days hoopla and chaos, so I won't be my "best." I try to pray before I even get out of bed in the morning, asking God that whatever I do that day it may be to his glory. After all: "This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it." (Psalm 118:24) 

Another and more "touchy" area of "firstfruits" and the non-leftovers issue is the idea of money, especially tithing. No where in the Bible does it say "Each time you get paid, wait til the end of that money then give me whatever you have leftover. Yep, that'll be fine." Instead it says "Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine." (Proverbs 3:9-10) This is the great news-- God isn't asking to tithe back to Him because He "said so" and is on a power trip. Instead He has made us a PROMISE that if we show this act of faith and reverence to Him by giving our "firstfruits" He will let the returns overflow! If that's not motivation to cut a check, I don't know what is! 

Bottom line: God doesn't want our leftovers, whether it is in devotion, energy, love, money or service. He desires our firstfruits. Yes, it seems as if much is asked of us, but oh beloved, SO much more is given! It is our privilege to serve him in this way. “We also assume responsibility for bringing to the house of the Lord each year the firstfruits of our crops and of every fruit tree." (Nehemiah 10:35)

Are you representing a beautiful, ripe, sweet piece of fruit right off the tree or a wilted lettuce salad leftover from the day(s) before? God desires our firstfruits, not our tupperware-clad-back-of-the-fridge leftovers. It tastes sweet to Him-- but oh-so-sweeter for us!

To the Glory of God,

SGK 

"As soon as the order went out, the Israelites generously gave the firstfruits of their grain, new wine, oil and honey and all that the fields produced. They brought a great amount, a tithe of everything." - 2 Chronicles 31:5