Expectations: Going Against the Flow

I admit it. I made false assumptions.

For some reason, as I took my Hyundai i10 to the streets of Cairo, I assumed a few things. For instance, I assumed lane lines meant something; that one-way streets were intended to be, well, one-way. I didn't know round-abouts were multi-directional or that backing up on a major freeway is not only not a problem, but an appropriate way of back-tracking. I suppose I missed the memo that the highway doubles up as a cross-walk and the sidewalk doubles up as a highway. Forgot that donkey carts are equally four-cylinder vehicles of transportation. It was convenient to discover you can stop in the middle of a busy street to congratulate your neighbor on his purchase of a new television while an orchestra of honking horns serenade the conversation. Perhaps even more beautiful was the realization that stop-lights have no significance and the concept of right-of-way is subjective. Indeed, I was mistaken.

Ah, expectations! The expectations of others; our expectations of others; our expectations of ourselves. Disappointment. Apprehension. Worry. Dissatisfaction. Fear. All products from the same source.

We base success, contentment, and happiness on the outcome of assumptions, competition, relationships, and results. We spend our days attempting to live up to what other people expect our lives to produce, rather than pursuing the God-given purpose for which we were created. We allow the world to define "success" and "failure." The very foundations of our lives are built on particular expectations, and when we fail to achieve them, we become depressed, discouraged, or frustrated.

Jesus conveyed this thought in a beautiful parable. (A parable is a simple story illustrating a deeper meaning.) He told of two men. One built his house on the rock; the other, on the sand. In both cases, the storms came and torrentially beat on the houses. The house on the rock held its ground while the house on the sand buckled and collapsed under the force of the storm.(Matthew 7:24-27) The point of the parable is NOT about building in a storm-free environment. We all go through the storms of life. Regardless of our faith, culture, ethnicity, or nationality we go through disease, disaster, pain, separation, heartache, disappointment, and ultimately, death. The real question lies in this: "What is your foundation?" When the storms of life hit, is your foundation intact?

Janet Paschal, songwriter/singer penned these lyrics, "For every beginning, something is ending. Everything changes but change. Funny how life is, forever amending, the plans that we all prearranged. So laugh when you can, cry when you must, I pray you'll always live deep. Never forget, sometimes you just drink from the bitter to savor the sweet."

Life isn't stable. It wasn't meant to be. Change is constant. Are you building your life on a solid foundation? If you build your life on expectations, disappointment is guaranteed. People will fail you, bank accounts will collapse, bodies will grow old, questions will go unanswered.

There is one foundation I trust. Jesus shared with His disciples, "I have come that they may have life and that they may have it more abundantly. I am the Good Shepherd...My sheep hear My voice and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life and they shall never perish...I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me though he may die, he shall live." (John 10:10-11, 27-28; 11:25) God wants us to have not only life, but abundant life AND eternal life with Him. The problem is that all too often we choose the “broken cisterns” (Jeremiah 2:13) of the world while ignoring our very raison d'être. We seek things which simply do not last and pursue temporal pleasures.

It is this tragedy that spurred C.S. Lewis to declare, “If we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.” (Read that quote again)

So I ask, WHEN the expectations of your world crumble, will your foundation be secure?

In Cairo traffic, I’ve learned to go with the flow. But when it comes to the world’s expectations, I’m determined to go against the flow.

Are You Holding a Lion???

The zoo. A word which inspires thoughts of joy and excitement in the mind of a child. An expedition of adventure, learning, thrill, and exploration. A place where dreams are birthed, the wild comes to life, and fiction becomes reality.

Over the years, I've visited a wide array of zoological parks around the world with no shortage of experiences to match the expectations. From the grandeur of the San Diego Zoo in California to the beauty and serenity of the zoo in Santa Barbara, to the exotic flair of the Sydney's Koala Park Sanctuary—each had its magic.

In years to follow, I was blessed with experiencing wildlife in more natural settings—from camel-trekking in the Sahara desert, to riding elephants through Asia's jungles,a safari in Southern Senegal, to encountering Great White Sharks face to face off South Africa's coast in the Indian Ocean. In each case, the beauty and power of God's creation was revealed in new ways.

Sometimes, however, the most distinctive memories emerge from the parks less recognized for their orderly and managed facilities, such as the randomness and dilapidation of Dakar's Animal Park (Senegal). From their sale of lion's urine for an assortment of ailments, to the random fugitive monkeys roaming the parks, to the diseased hyenas in inhumane cement cubicles haphazardly inserted throughout the park, its array of experiences proved original and unique in my growing up years.

Despite my past encounters, my recent trip with friends to Cairo's Giza Zoo proved to be truly unique and entertaining in many ways. Aside from from being Egypt's largest zoo (100 acres), it provides a nice escape from Cairo's desert atmosphere with its gardens, parks, and small canals (including a suspension bridge designed by Gustave Eiffel). This zoo prides itself on providing the visitor a special "behind the scenes" experience of wildlife at its best. All that is required is a little "baksheesh" (or "tips") and politesse.

One such memory was the invitation to hold a "baby" African lion. With the promise in hand, we were ushered through a heavy metal door and into the lion's den. A narrow corridor accessed the cages of slightly unhappy, obnoxiously loud roaring lions. Gave a whole new perspective to Daniel's experience! (To read the story, see Daniel 6:1-23.) True to his promise, the zoo keeper brought out the "baby" for us to hold, which he had aforementioned. This "baby" lion was nearly four feet long, had well-developed teeth, and a personality of his own. Nonetheless, the investment of 10LE ($1.82) was not going to waste! Apparently, this cub's name was Medhat, though we never developed much of a relationship.

As I held the lion, my thoughts drifted to what this cub would one day become. That in my hands, I held the "king of beasts." (Proverbs 30:30) A well-deserved title and a vital warning! Though seemingly innocent and beautiful, I held a potentially dangerous creature in my arms which required respect and care.

Yet, how frequently in our lives do we "play" with the seemingly innocent things without regarding their effects? We "hold the lions" of gossip, slander, and anger without considering their effects to be divisive and deadly. We flirt with immorality assuming our will-power strong enough to flee when necessary. How polarized these thoughts are in relationship to Jesus' teachings. "For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies... but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a man." (Matthew 15:19, 20b) God looks at the heart, and thus, evil must be uprooted from that point. (I Samuel 16:7) Hence, the prophet David prayed after committing adultery, "Create in me a clean heart." (Psalm 51:10) Not simply, "Forgive my sin." The heart is the source of the issue.

Acts of piety mean nothing before God without a transformed heart. Following God is NOT about following a "To Do" & "Not To DO" list. Rather, it's about developing a relationship of knowing His heart and what He desires from us. He didn't make us robots; He gave us a soul to choose to love Him.

Thus, out of love for God, we are to flee the very semblance of evil. In Scripture, leaven (yeast) often represents sin. At the feast of unleavened bread, not only were the observers of the feast to remove leaven from their baking, but in addition, they were to remove ALL leaven from their homes and land! (Exodus 12:19; Deuteronomy 16:4)

In our society today, "to flee" is a sign of weakness, but in God's economy, a test of strength. (To "flee" could be defined as "to run away, as from trouble or danger.") Time and time again, the Word of God commands us to "flee" those things which would destroy our soul. From "sexual immorality" (I Corinthians 6:18), "idols" (similar to addictions—anything that is “worshiped” before God) (I Corinthians 10:14), "the love of money" (I Timothy 6:10) and "youthful lusts" (2 Timothy 2:22), the command remains the same. Flee. NOT because we have a kill-joy God.

Get real. God created sex, worship, a mind to develop business, and the desires of the body. His longing, however, is that we know the path to ultimate joy rather than selling ourselves short through the devil's lies. As we release that which places us in danger, we are freed to live out the purpose of our existence.

So, what lion are you holding?

Golf, Pyramids, & Perspective

With Giza's Pyramids towering in the background, I lined up my putt for birdie on the par-five nine. Despite the uneven greens, trash scattered in the rough, random moisture collections on the fairways, and the presence of history itself on this nineteenth-century, Egyptian golf course, my concentration was zeroed in on the thirteen-foot putt at hand. (A putt I miserably misread on a fast green!)

Founded in 1899, the Mena House Oberoi Golf Course is Egypt's oldest and one of the more unique courses on our planet. Only yards from the Great Pyramids of Giza, the view is spectacular and history itself becomes part of the game.

As my friend Bobby and I finished our round of nine and headed for the clubhouse, my thoughts wandered back to the bigger picture. Despite having had the privilege of golfing in the shadow of the Great Pyramids, my attention had been focused on a small, dimpled golf ball and the objective of putting it into a cup four hundred yards away. How easy in this life to be so focused on our pursuits, distractions, addictions, struggles, and conflicts that we lose sight of the big picture!

Is life just about "our game" or are we part of a

much larger story? One bigger than ourselves? Is this vapor called "life" just about living and then dying and that's it? Somehow, I find this difficult to believe when I see the investment our Creator put into forming the world around us, breathing life into organisms, and creating "in His image" the amazing people I interact with on a daily basis. (Genesis 1:27) Psalm 139 describes God careful design. "For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother's womb." (v13) It goes on to say "How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them!" (v17) You aren't a mistake or some haphazard invention. Rather, you are part of a plan. A master plan. A masterpiece.

I believe the Bible to be true when it says that we have been created "for the pleasure" of God. (Revelation 4:11) This word "pleasure" indicates a desire on God's part for a relationship with us... for us to enjoy His presence and worship Him for who He is: God. From the beginning with Adam and Eve, God walked and talked with them in the Garden of Eden. As sin/evil entered and broke the intimacy of their relationship, God’s story is one of sacrifice, love and redemption. One of God giving His best (Jesus) out of love to buy us back from the grasp of this world that has blinded us from the reality of our existence. But like any good relationship, it's a choice. God doesn't force His love. He offers it. Freedom to accept His love, freedom to reject it.

Life is the test. The opportunity. The choice. All the hardships, disappointments, blessings, and joys are a chance to see His story. I think we sometimes make the mistake of turning the focus inward. It's not about putting God into our life's plans. It's about putting our life into God's plan. When the Lord appeared to Joshua, Joshua asked, “Are you for us or for our adversaries?” The Lord replied, “No, but as Commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.” (Joshua 5:13-14) He doesn't want to be a part of our life. He wants our life. He wants to be our life. (Colossians 3:3)

Though I managed to save par on nine, a greater perspective grabbed my attention that day. Don't miss the big picture! Whether it's the Pyramids overshadowing your putt or God's love inundating your life, there's more than meets the eye.

Don't miss it!

(A great summary of God's story can be found here: "Your Story" www.one-god-one-message.com)

A Resolution To Live By

Mobs of people, a few staggering drunks, police clad in riot gear, traffic at a standstill, street vendors profits skyrocketing, horns blaring, children awed by the confusion.

Scene: the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur Central on New Year's Eve minutes from midnight. Somehow, in the midst of the chaos, I found an abandoned ledge in an old parking lot with a clear view of the towers. Perching myself upon it, I watched the madness from a semi-safe distance. My only companions were a couple security guards who periodically told me the time. Then it happened...the countdown, the fireworks, the celebration.

As the explosions of fireworks lit up the night sky, I contemplated, why? Why do we usher in the new year with such happiness, expectation, and excitement? What unites people to push into the future with such vigor? My hypothesis may be deemed simple or incomplete, but give it thought. We celebrate the desire for a fresh start, freedom from the failures of the past, liberation from painful memories, a discharge of unmet expectations, the hope of a better tomorrow, and a place of new beginnings.

Thus, we make our resolutions for the new year. Often times, eerily similar to our past commitments. According to various polls, the most common resolutions are as follows.

1. Lose weight and get in better physical shape

2. Reduce debt and stick to a budget

3. Enjoy more quality time with family

4. Quit smoking and drinking

5. Volunteer more often

6. Learn something new

7. Get organized

Noble endeavors, without doubt, but what is the foundation of such pursuits? Are we pursuing self-actualization, a life of significance, purpose, acceptance, forgiveness? As I considered these things, it became evident that we focus on the superficial symptoms of our problems while failing to reconcile the heart of the issue. There is nothing wrong with pursuing the aforementioned items, but what will make our pursuit this year any different than the past?

Working among street children has put this point to the test. I can easily deal with the superficial issues of the street (drugs, sexual abuse, violence, etc) but without asking the question, "Why are these phenomena's present in the first place?" A child didn't just wake up one morning and decide, "I'm going to go live on the street and be sexually abused." Events of life caused this digression.

Likewise, our actions are the product of our life's decisions.

King Solomon so beautiful states, "God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God's work from beginning to end." (Ecclesiastes 3:11) We have not been created to live a temporal life with limited achievements. We are eternal beings with an eternal purpose and until we pursue THAT purpose, we will continue to suffer failed expectations and unmet potential. Perhaps, our problem is that we are striving for the wrong goal.

Prioritizing our activities can be a hassle and pain, but I believe Jesus offers us a clue. " Do not worry about tomorrow...but seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." (Matthew 6:32-33) To "seek" is "to strive, to search". To know God, His authority in your life, AND His righteousness (or justice) is not simply a matter of head-knowledge. Rather, it must be converted into wisdom which demands action (based on faith). We know through both knowledge and experience. To "seek" is an active pursuit requiring determination.

Solomon added, "There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace." My friend, notice that it is not God's plan to spare us from the events of life, but rather, to use these lessons to draw us to His real purpose of our existence. To know Him, have a relationship with Him, to love Him!

The real question is, "How will we respond?" With our old habits, or with a fresh perspective of a great plan/purpose? Will we look on the temporal or the eternal? "So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." (2 Corinthians 4:18)

Thus as we embark on this new year, I close with a compelling question worth considering, directly from the mouth of Jesus. "And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul?" (Matthew 16:26) Therefore, my resolution is simple. "That I may know Him...the fellowship of His sufferings...the power of His resurrection." (Philippians 3:10) In that pursuit, I find purpose.

Happy New Year!