Now, in what seems a lifetime later, I see the effects of crack cocaine permeating our local culture. That in itself is bad enough, but what really hits hard is when crack affects those whom you love. Some manage to stay clean of it for a few weeks or months before the claws of the drug reach out and drag victims back into the slimy pit. The collateral damages are relationships severed in sobbing tears; dollars disappearing not in hundreds, but in thousands and life’s loves, passions and values all on the table like a second-rate flea market. Nothing is not for sale — all for a rock.

What is left when the smoke clears is a cheapened life, rejected by most, piled into a corner with a pocketful of ATM withdrawal receipts, wondering how could this happen… again? This is the story of crack cocaine.

I am surely not an authority on recovery and addictions, but I remember my first almost infantile, attitude to those in a crack-ridden lifestyle. I thought, “If ya don’t want to use crack — then just stop. Then get a job.” Simple. I can’t believe how naive I was.

Paul, the Apostle, writer of much of the Bible’s New Testament, struggled with the same thing that crack addicts do and writes in Romans:

“I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do, I do not do, but what I hate I do… As it is, it s no longer myself who do it, but it is sin living in me… what a wretched man I am. Who will rescue me from this body of death?” – Romans 7:15,17,24

So, now that we have found the specks in the eyes of the addict and the Apostle Paul, let’s pull the mirror up real close and see if we can spot a plank or two in our own eyes.

What is this ever-present pull that the crack addict feels? This dark side, as Luke Skywalker described it, is our sinful nature and has a compelling draw in our lives. We even see it in our middle class homes where, say, the plank of unforgiveness broods in marriages and ex’s… just watch the dark fury escalate when the wrong comment is made. We just can’t help ourselves we say. What about your tendency to lie or to cheat on taxes or quietly berate that minority family who, in our inflated opinion, might have too many people living in their large house. Or maybe the grinding out our teeth when we have faced off with someone who is not as doctrinally tweaked as we are… Ouch!

In my own life, I am beginning to see the makings of a lumber pile rather than the odd plank. This sinful nature is where our independence from God reigns, where we are so insistent on calling our own shots, God or not, that everything is on the table — yes, just like a second-rate flea market and no different than the street level crack addict.

Yet here comes the solution for all of us, one verse later in verse 25:

“Thanks be to God — through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law.”

By His mercy, God rescued us through Jesus Christ! He did it all — what a victory it is! And He leaves us with His Word (God’s Law), that our minds may become a slave to it. Not that we may be arrogant and unloving in our application of the Word to our neighbor’s specks, but our own planks.

Reading the Word daily, applying it daily — being a slave to it, applying it in the little stuff and the big stuff… repenting quickly when we do fall. The solution worked for Paul the Apostle and it works for the crack addict on the corner and us alike — it always has. Selah.

The Apostle Paul wrote 2000 years ago about another annoying sound, “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.” 1 Corinthians 13:1

What Paul is saying here is that no matter what great things can come out of our mouths, it would sound like a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal if we don’t have love to accompany it.

Just imagine my alarm buzzer (and Paul’s clanging cymbals) place conspicuously throughout all areas of our lives and these were hooked up to a sensor that detected when there was no love present. If we said or even did something without love, my alarm buzzer and Paul’s clanging cymbals would go off for all to hear.

Perhaps a husband runs to London Drugs after work on Valentines Day to buy a card for his wife. Since there are no “wife” Valentines cards left on the shelf, and he is too lazy to run to another store, he buys a Happy Valentines Grandma card, crosses out the word Grandma and inserts the word wife. “My wife likes humor,” he says to himself. He arrives home late, presents the Valentines card (and a box of chocolates to compensate for the card) to his wife and says “I love you”.

This would instantly trigger the buzzer and the cymbals to ring out for all to hear. (You might laugh at this example — but I actually did this years ago when I was not so smart).

But the truth is, the alarms really did ring out in my wife’s heart. I spoke the words, but no love.

- If we cut-off, eye roll and hand gesture the driver in front of us on the way to church and he sees your fish symbol on your car bumper — the buzzer and cymbals sound loud and clear.

- If our dinnertime prayers become rote, followed by deriding our daughter because of her new belly button ring — the buzzer and cymbals sound again.

Listen closely to see if you can hear the buzzer and cymbals in the hearts of those around you… then remind yourself of Paul’s words in verses 4-6 that will silence the buzzer and cymbals.

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trust, always hopes, always perseveres.” 1 Corinthians 13:4-6

I guess if we could create our own utopia, we would only hang out with those we like/love or agree with. Conversely, all others who we dislike or hurt us, disagree with us or just plain get under our skin could move to eastern Mongolia where they wouldn’t affect our otherwise happy lives.

But life does not worketh that way.

Reality says the very same people who fill us with the abounding joy, love and fulfillment can cause us pain or tick us off. And we do the very same thing to them and gulp… even repeatedly.

For this dilemma, the Bible gives us this instruction, from Colossians 3:13:

- Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. (New Living Translation)

- Put up with each other and forgive each other (God’s Word Translation)

-  Bearing with one another and readily forgiving each other (Weymouth N.T.)

Listen closely to the heart of the Lord as you openly say to yourself  “Put up with… make allowance for… and readily forgive”, knowing that others who love you are thinking of you in the very same way – perhaps at this very moment. Even more so, Christ did this for us and continues to do it every day.

And watch the season of “Peace on Earth” get just a little longer.

- Moms and dads racing home from work, shoveling down some Kraft dinner or Wendy’s burgers as they enter the church to dress up for one of the scenes. Venti-sized Starbucks and Timmy’s are prevalent supplying a dose of energy to get through the evening. Some are on cell phones closing off business and family commitments to don robes or put out traffic cones or feed the sheep and light all the candles.

- Volunteers braving freezing winds or our typical Lower Mainland downpours (or both at the same time) to set up scenes or take them down at near midnight on the last night of the event.

- Folks putting their Christmas shopping on hold to grab a flashlight and steer traffic with a smile and add some cheer to a car-full of kids and their haggard parents on their way home from the mall.

- The warmth of good friends in our coffee break time, complete with all the laughs at Ivan’s jokes (I think every church needs an Ivan – he is a sure cure for sourpusses) or watching Stevie, one of our traffic directors, doing his penguin imitations for passersby.

- Cars full of people who know Jesus, being encouraged in their faith one more time as they forget their to-do lists and think again on the miracle of Christmas.

- Wide-eyed folks that are not quite so sure about this God or Jesus thing but choosing to take just one more step on their journey of faith.

In the end, as the last Nativity scenes are stowed away for next year and the sheep and hay are loaded on the truck, I cannot help but think of all these small things that happened in our Nativity Drive Through.

I was reminded of Zechariah 4:10 (N:T) “Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin.”

One day we shall all see the fruit born of these seeds faithfully planted… albeit small seeds, but seeds planted nonetheless.

Hourly CNN storm warnings update us as hurricanes such as Irene gather intensity off the Eastern US seaboard. We all intently watch as weather conditions change, with some storms becoming hurricanes and yet others fizzling as soon as they are named.

As we navigate our families in this fallen world–we know all days are not sunny skies and glassy waters. Temptation will come.

Temptation to sin, especially the sin that we have done before and said we never would do again, rarely comes on a blue sky day. The conditions need be just right, like tropical storms.

After unsuccessfully tempting Jesus to sin,  Satan left Jesus for a more opportune time (Luke 4:13). Satan is an opportunist and doesn’t mind doing the legwork and waiting for the right wind conditions to obtain his desired results.

His strategies are effective with early temptations being ever so subtle, like a breeze picking up, maybe a favorable breeze, and it might even feel pleasurable.

Then comes a slight change in wind direction and a rise in temperature and humidity–all happening with diabolical coincidence.  Yet the conditions seem somewhat manageable to us.

“I can handle this,” we say.

Then, out of nowhere, things get out of control; we are “dragged away and enticed” (James 1:14).  Satan’s true purpose comes clear and it is the destruction of your faith–the “shipwreck of your faith”  (1 Timothy 1:19).

Now shipwrecks destroy not only just the ship itself, but the precious cargo for which the ship was built by it’s Maker.

We have all seen it in families of shipwrecked marriages, spilling out the cargo of  lives….so many little ones drowning and broken on the rocks like so much flotsam and jetsam.

Disgraced televangelists take the brunt of our notice, as well, where Christians are left disillusioned and awash when their leaders shipwreck their own faith and fall into disrepute.

It can  happen for us common folk too, maybe not on such a grand scale, but the people  we touch and influence each day are OUR cargo,  united together in our heaven-bound journey–and  our cargo is precious to Him.

We carry nothing into Glory aside from this cargo, so it is befitting for us to be alert and sober minded (1 Peter 5:8) at the helm, watching the horizon for the first evidence of shipwrecking temptations.

Hebrews 4:11 says “Let us, therefore, make every effort…. so that no one will perish”

And one day our ships will enter the rest of our final harbor–both cargo and ship-battered, but intact.

What a day that will be!

Majesty, majesty
Your grace has found me just as I am
Empty handed but alive in your hands
(Majesty – Here I Am by Martin Smith)

I repeated each word one by one.

I came to know Jesus as my Saviour about 22 years ago and I was a little like the prodigal son… no, actually a lot like the prodigal son. I caroused with the world till I had more than my fill and yet, God reached down from heaven and touched my life.

I remember the first time at church, sitting in nearly the back row – I think someone had already scooped the very back row seats. As a new baby Christian, I was overwhelmed with the joy that I was now heaven bound and that God was for me, not against me. I knew deep down that it was God who did it all for me; I did nothing aside from accepting His love and forgiveness.

I brought nothing to the table; it was like I was paying for an around-the-world cruise with pocket lint… I was empty handed and yet Jesus gave it all for me…

On Sunday morning, I thought to myself, “It has been a long time since I felt this way.”

I came into the kingdom as the prodigal son (See Luke 15), empty handed and full of gratitude for a Father God who came running to me and hugged me (verse 20). Someone coined the phrase “an attitude of gratitude” and that surely was me. You couldn’t keep me out of church. I had a whole new family – I remember the first time a man called me “brother” and I thought, I really am his brother.

Sin began to fall from my life and then, for some reason unknown to me, I slowly began to take on a new attitude. Somehow, some of the gratitude was ebbing away and I now had expectations for God and “my rights”. It was as if I had paid for a piece of heaven with my own blood. My serving God joyously and being obedient to His Word had become “slaving and never disobeying orders” (verse 29) and in crept a little arrogance and judgmentalism. I was becoming the elder brother in the parable of the prodigal son.

But, as the song says, we are “Empty handed but alive in Your hands”. We are indeed empty handed. He paid it all.

Remind yourself today, as I remind myself, that your Heavenly Father looked for you, as the scripture says; He saw you “when you were a long way off… He ran to you… He threw His arms around you and kissed you…” And don’t be the elder brother.

And what happens on the stock market, happens in households across North America each day. We estimate our neighbours personal value based on their most recent performance or even purchase. (We recently bought a new vacuum cleaner and were advised by the sales person that by buying this brand of vacuum cleaner, clients of my wife’s house cleaning business would surely see that her business was top notch. Helloooo….this is a vacuum cleaner for Pete’s sake.)

Worse than that, we can assign values to ourselves based on our own performance. A promotion at work would boost our perception of ourselves, but a demotion or being without work seems to send our personal worth into the drain. We feel it, our kids feel it–each of us somehow linking our value (and even how we feel God values us) to our performance.

Back to the stock market; the most ardent investors seek companies that have a high intrinsic value (Investopedia defines intrinsic as the “TRUE” value of the stock), especially where the intrinsic value exceeds the markets perceived value of the stock.

God knows our intrinsic value, our true value, scripture says we are His dear children, where this value far exceeds any value assigned to us by our culture or employers or family members.

Isaiah 43: 1-7 includes these words:

“But now, this is what the LORD says: …… I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. …. you are precious and honored in my sight……..I love you……Do not be afraid, for I am with you.”

Forbes magazine reports that the highest price stock is Berkshire Hathaway at $115,000 per share, far above industry leaders like Google or Apple, and know in your heart, that if you were on the stock market today, God would value you far more than any of these….

1. Yes

2. No

3. Wait

We all really like the first answer and not so keen about the other two. Today, I would like to add a 4th answer—one that applies to us married men.

4. Prayers stuck in the out-box.

I think we have all looked at our computer screens at one time or another and seen emails stuck in our outbox. Why do they get stuck? After all, we pushed the SEND button, even repeatedly. Talking to the screen doesn’t seem to help, so we begin the quest of finding out why.

Just as emails gett stuck in the outbox, so can a husband’s prayers. Let’s look to the Bible to find out why:

Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.1 Peter 3:7

Now I know some folks might get their knickers in a knot and side-tracked over the word “weaker”, so let’s first describe what it is not! It is not a patriarchal view of a feeble, substandard person. (My wife has abilities in many areas that surpass mine and she can do any job that I can. Even though she can do any job, I don’t think she should have to–that’s where God has given me gifts and talents). Actually, the principle point here is not about capacity; it is about honor. After all, we are co-heirs of heaven and in Christ; we are neither male or female (Galations 3:28).

As a husband, how can I live with my wife in an understanding way, showing honor, so that my prayers are not stuck in the outbox (i.e. hindered)?

On a practical level, to understand her is to know her and this knowledge requires effort–much effort. This intimate pursuit will slowly unveil her hopes,  her dreams and even her deepest fears…and I know that for my wife, whenever I have commenced this pursuit even in the most microscopic form, she feels more than honored. I think all wives would say a hearty amen to that.

But some husbands would ask just how much effort do I have to put in? How much do I have to give to this pursuit? First of all guys, it is the dumbest question you can ask your wife, so the Bible saves you the trouble and gives you the answer instead.

Ephesians 5:25 says “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her”

Just as Christ gave himself up for his church (that’s you and me–His church, the bride of Christ), husbands need to give themselves up for their wives, their brides.

So today guys, remind yourself that your wife IS your bride… give yourself wholly to the pursuit and don’t hold back….swing for the fence and your prayers will be surely SENT.

- Could this pain be repercussions of our own sin? Maybe. Most of us mature folks are fully willing to pay the piper for our own bad choices… We have all walked that road.

-Could this pain be from just a little heavenly discipline from a loving Father, shaping and molding us for His glory? Maybe.

But what about pain inflicted on us, not of our own doing, where we are truly innocent?

The apostle Paul undoubtedly asked the same questions as he sat in the darkness of prison, but summarized it in Philippians 1:12 “Now I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel.”

Could it be that God is advancing the gospel through your pain and circumstances? Are those who “jailed” you now seeing Christ in you? It would not be the first time in history. Know this–On that day He returns, when we stand before our Maker and all things in Creation will be “laid bare” 2 Peter 3:10, we will then see how God has used our pain to reach a dying world. We will see lives changed and souls saved and we won’t give a second thought to our circumstances on this earth. The pain you feel today will have value, great eternal value and will be seen by all.

Suddenly, even my own pain seems a little more bearable…

I am thinking about children and how much I appreciate them, but more so I am thinking about grandparents and and great-grandparents and HOW MUCH they appreciate children.

When I was young, I could not understand why 80 and 90 year-olds loved their children and grandchildren so much…  I thought that maybe in their retirement, that they did not have much activity or fun, so they loved us all the more. We were sorta all they had.

Not so…

“Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from Him.”  Psalm 127:3

I have been blessed by many things in my 53 years on this earth — But no gift surpasses a gift from God.

I realize now that it just takes a whole lifetime to comprehend the full value of the gift.

Dad