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Chapter Nine: Give people hope

When we were studying Philippians together, we talked about how the church started. Paul and Silas in prison singing together became a witness to the community and to the men about the absolute faithfulness of God. It gave everyone hope. In chapter nine of his book MAKE YOUR BED, Admiral Mcraven says, “We will find ourselves neck deep in mud someday. That is the time to sing loudly, to smile broadly, to lift up those around you and give them hope that tomorrow will be a better day.” So well said and excellent spiritual advice for any who feel life is a bit unfair. Just start singing anyway.

~Grace & Peace~
Pastor Ernie

Are we supposed to take a risk? Jesus does. He takes s huge risk on Peter. Every trip to Jerusalem was a bit risky, and the last one cost him his life. Why did he do it? Why would he go to Jerusalem when He knew full well they would kill him. All risks have a cost. If we succeed, there is a benefit, a reward. If we fail, there is a loss. We all do a risk/reward analysis of situations before we act. Driving to work is a risk, but the reward (making money) is greater than the risk. So off to work we go. Playing a game, like football, has inherent risks. Those who play determine the reward is worth it. The first time someone falls in love is a bit risky, but love is strong and always seems to be worth the risk. Unless of course we have felt the pain of betrayal, then we start wondering if it is worth it. Stopping love because it is too risky would take quite a bit of loss. So did Jesus do a risk/reward when He decided to go to Jerusalem? He decided to go and was there crucified. Was that a success or a failure? It seems so crazy to us that the cross was the victory. I often wonder how strong the temptation was not to go. And what exactly was the reward for being killed? In His book, MAKE YOUR BED, McRaven challenges seal recruits to “dare greatly.” Jesus dares to be great and turns the whole understanding on it head. “Any who would dare to be great must become a servant of all.” I hope and pray you dare to be great today.

~Grace & Peace~
Pastor Ernie

Chapter 6 Failure can make you stronger

Not everything in life works out exactly the way you have planned. In fact my plans so rarely work just right my kids ask why do you keep making those plans. Honestly, I have become better at making adjustments than at making the original plan, and maybe that is the point. Being able to make adjustments is a misunderstood skill. It has to be learned and can only be learned when plans start falling apart. When I was a youth pastor, I was notorious for changing the rules of a game in midstream. It drove everyone nuts but I wanted them to learn how to adjust. One time we were playing football and the rule change was, “when you score the other team gets the points.” They all just sat down. Very funny. I hope you know that God appreciates people who make adjustments and do not simply give up, sit down. If it is time for you in life to make an adjustment, I pray God lead they way.

Chapter five “Life’s not fair. Drive on.” Seal team trainers would randomly pick one recruit out of the bunch and shout, “sugar cookie.” The recruit would have to roll around in the sand and pile sand on his head and in his trousers and run around all day like a “sugar cookie.” This was not a punishment, totally random. And the point? Life is not fair. So what. Get over it. The next day another random recruit became a sugar cookie. The whole point of the training was to drill into the heads of the seals that they cannot be effective in their work if they are always concerned about what is fair and unfair. Get up. Do your job. End of the story. I can think of a few people who would have benefitted greatly from seal training. Myself being one. God does not promise fair. He does though promise presence. And that is enough for me.

~Grace & Peace~
Pastor Ernie

Only the size of your heart matters. The next chapter in Make your Bed seems straight out of Samuel, like it is a story about David. Israel cries out for a king to be like other nations and God says no. They continue to cry out and God says fine. He gives them Saul and they are impressed because he is ” a man of standing” and “a head taller than everyone else.” He’s also a lunatic. But the people are duped and he becomes the king and the reign is an abysmal failure. Meanwhile God has a plan B. He has Samuel anoint David who is small in stature and “ruddy.” David also happens to be a man after God’s own heart. Samuel is surprised when God says David is the one. “Are you sure?” God tells him, “man looks at the outward appearance but God looks at the heart.” No doubt we have all done this and probably even had it done to us. It is no fun being the last person selected for a team, or not being picked at all. We often regret being overlooked at work, or maybe even at home. All the while, God sees the heart. And the size of the heart does matter. I hope you have a heart for God. It will eventually be recognized and win the day.

Chapter two of MAKE YOUR BED

Get a paddle buddy. In training for Navy Seals, men would be put on a team of six to paddle a raft often through the night and deliberately in inclement weather. Over the many weeks of training it was inevitable that someone would get sick. You could not just sit out the exercise, but if you are sick, it is clear to everyone that you cannot pull your weight. When one seal recruit was weak, the rest stood up and became stronger. They pulled him along because they knew that at any time they might need the help. If you have ever paddled a canoe for an entire week, day after day in inclement weather, you know how important it is to have the right paddle buddy. The wrong person doesn’t help. They complain that it is too hard, or that the weather is terrible, or the wind too strong or the waves too high, or even that they wish they would never have come along. The right paddle buddy just gets stronger when you need them. They rest when you work and you rest when they work. Sometimes they are even a stronger paddler than you are. So it is in life, in our family, and in the church. It is important to surround ourselves with the right partners.

Recently I read a book by Admiral William H. McRaven MAKE YOUR BED…Little things that can change your life and maybe the world. It is a really simple read, maybe an afternoon. But as is true of most really simple ideas, it is quite profound. I found it worth a few weeks in our word of encouragement. As I read, I felt like I had said many of the same ideas on Sunday mornings. There are ten ideas the admiral presents learned from Navy Seal training, each one has the potential to create real change in a life.

1. “Start your day with a task completed–make your bed.” When there are so many tasks and incidents and choices that come at us every day, it is important to begin the day with an accomplishment because a task completed sets the tone for the day. And if you begin each day, the task itself becomes a statement to you and to the people around you that you are ready for a new day and ready to handle what comes your way. Admiral McRave tells of the time he was in a serious parachute accident and hospitalized for many weeks. The first day he was able to get out of bed, the first thing he did was make his bed, his hospital bed. He needed to tell himself, the nursing staff, his colleagues and his family that he was now ready to conquer his injuries and proceed into whatever the day had in store.

~Grace & Peace~
Pastor Ernie

I am beginning to prepare the fall series for Wesley and am excited as I read thru the parables Jesus taught. His incredible gift of taking an everyday item or event and turning it into a spiritual lesson just amazes me. Such depth and purpose in a story. I am looking forward to sharing these with everyone at Wesley. As a way of amplifying what we are learning, we will be forming life groups around the series so we can all grow in faith together. So I want to encourage everyone to be in a life group. There will be a number of groups forming:
Sunday mornings 11 am a middle school group
Sunday mornings a lunch group will meet at Wesley right after the second service and share lunch and the learning together.
Monday mornings 10:00 in the overflow.
Monday evenings a woman’s group at Nadia Nunez-Wood’s home.
Wednesday evenings 6:30 a men’s group meeting in the choir room of the FLC
Wednesday evenings an open group meeting in the FLC

As we roll into August, you will hear more about this on Sunday mornings. Groups will begin the week of August 26 and run through the end of October.