Sent and Made – Giving up the Credit

We are in the midst of the political process that will ramp up to the presidential election. It is rather remarkable, a process culminating in a change of leadership with no tanks rolling through the streets nor fear of an incoming coup. In the midst of this change, it seems we are provided a bevy of each candidate touting their beliefs and qualifications as loudly and proficiently as they can. At times, to my ears it becomes a noise of egos and polls to me.

 We all have some ego involved in our life; this is the sense of self-importance and self-respect we need to act with healthy confidence. It impacts how we decide to treat ourselves and others, to distinguish our identity. A healthy ego helps us create the needed sense of respect which establishes good esteem and helps us to pursue wholesome options. An unhealthy ego could show itself with a range of issues; bottoming out by seeing ourselves as disvalued and damaged or ratcheting up to a point where the self is more important than others around them.

Joseph was sent to Egypt as a sold slave, betrayed by his family and placed through what must have been a terrifying sequence of events. That would have been an ego blow, confidence and identify would seemingly be completely devastating. Yet, with every twist and turn of Joseph’s story, when he had supposed justification to throw his hands up in disgust at the situations or the opportunity to claim the credit of preserving a people through a drought, he instead pointed always back to God.

Nearly at the end of Joseph’s story, as the loose ends are being tied up, Joseph’s ego perspective is clearly displayed.

“And Joseph said to his brothers, ‘Please come near to me.’ So they came near. Then he said: ‘I am Joseph your brother, whom you sold into Egypt. But now, do not therefore be grieved or angry with yourselves because you sold me here; for God sent me before you to preserve life. For these two years the famine has been in the land, and there are still five years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvesting. And God sent me before you to preserve a posterity for you in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So now it was not you who sent me here, but God; and He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt.’”

Genesis 45:4-8

God sent, the phrase is said over and over in these words. In just a few strokes of a pen Joseph displays a maximum amount of confidence along with great humility; giving God credit for all of the good things and in giving God faith through all of the bad things. Joseph’s sense of identity and trust, of being able to focus on using his talents for the good of the people around him did not falter. That is a healthy ego attitude of credit. 

Lead Wings

   Now that the weather has turned, the birds are starting to return. Strings of geese fly overhead, honking and forming great v’s in the sky. As they fly up there, I notice that the v is a constant changing thing, like a living breathing entity. One goose holds the lead and then another. They sweep into the lead position and back out, moving gracefully and without argument over and over.

   The lead goose, cutting through the air for all the others has a most tiring job. Leadership, whether in a sweep of geese or of people, can be a tiring thing. We can learn from the geese as they allow the leadership position to move through the whole flock. The fortitude of the birds, it is one because they share responsibilities. We also can learn to share the burdens of leadership.

Waltzing Matilda

“Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda, You’ll come a-waltzing Matilda with me…” That song has been quite literally stuck in my brain for the last twenty four hours. I woke up yesterday with it in my mind and it has stayed there since. At odd intervals, I – the person who really does wander grocery stores and choir lofts alike singing aloud, I have had a hard time not bursting out with a billabong or coolabah tree. But somehow staring at the work in front of me, I don’t think that all my fellow office sitters would appreciate my vocal interruptions. Oh well….

   Isn’t it strange how a song can lodge in your mind and just stay there? How does that happen? Did I dream of Australia the previous night? But some songs will just stay there, as if they had actually been written on me with indelible ink. If songs and words that became stuck really did become written on me with indelible ink, I wonder what would show up. I know what I would like to show up, maybe something similar to Paul.
   The Apostle Paul went and worked among the Jews and Greeks. Then, Silas and Timothy came from Macedonia but were opposed to Paul and he drew his boundaries and headed out a different way. I think that that must have been a difficult thing for Paul to do. Here he is, devoting himself to a work that he believes in and now is forced from it. When Paul left, he had a vision from the Lord. Paul was told “Do not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent.” Paul had something stuck in his head and heart, words from God. No, he had never heard Waltzing Matilda, but his song was one of salvation – a message of hope and life. If we could have seen those words, it would have been “keep speaking”.
   Hopefully, this song will be done with me soon and move along to someone else’s brain. I’d be happy to share. But, the thoughts of “keep speaking”, those I will cling to, holding on to them and wrapping my fingers into the fabric of God’s word as tightly as I can.

Attention Campers

Last week was Character Camp (like a Vacation Bible School) at my church. Regardless of what it is called, there are lots of kids, games, songs, lessons, and a desperate need on the part of the workers for ibuprofen by the last night. I really enjoyed this camp this year, not only due to the campers I had in my group, but largely due to the co-tent leader. She was wonderful. THANK YOU!!!

As a crowd control method in this squirmy, talkative, hyper, smore addicted bunch of kids, our camp leader would start out with bellowing a great big YOOOOO (a.k.a. yo). The kids and leaders responded in kind with YOOOOOOOOOOO. Some of the kids carried out a bit long at times. Then we received our instructions.
So, YOOOOO - attention campers, here are some camp lessons that I thought I would share.
- Smores are really good, but they taste better if worn on the face. For the very extraverted smore eater, try wearing it as a goatee.  - If you have the chance to pick your own camp spot in an Iowa July, head for the deepest bit of shade you can find with a breeze. You will need lots and lots of bug spray, but the break from the heat is worth it.  - When kids pick out meals a day ahead of time, write down their order. Something else sounds good the next day and they have completely forgotten what they ordered.  - Be dramatic and expressive, be dynamic in your volumes, be silly and laugh a lot.  - Encourage other leaders. We all need it.
- Encourage other campers. They may need it too.  - Don’t overreact when you see blood, it frightens everyone and they are already frightened to see blood.  - If there is a water balloon fight, know who has a secret stockpile of ammunition. Either ally yourself with them, or watch out for them. Unless it’s 100 degrees and then maybe you should go run through the sprinkler.  - Laugh a lot, it is a wonderful release in a tense moment and will also help reenergize you.  - Use good manners, practice what you preach, and model what you expect.   - For the lone boy in a tent of girls, he may say that he is miserable because he is vastly outnumbered, but if you give him a little extra responsibility and some extra attention, he will be just fine.  - At the end of a camp day, go home, kick off your shoes, and lay in the floor. It’s cool, it’s not buggy, and it’s a lot better than falling down from the sheer drain of the day.  - Drink lots and lots of water. Actually, the combination I found working was coffee, water, then a V8 Splash about 4, then more water.   - When you watch your teens in the youth group work hard, in the heat, for no pay and little recognition of the adults around them, you are burst your buttons kind of proud. When they get excited because they just made a little kid’s day, you are leap tall building proud. When they want to make an impact on the life of a kid and work harder and dig deeper, just in case they can, you are over the moon proud.  - Thank the kitchen workers and the clean-uppers, and the traffic controllers, and security-watchers, laundry-doers, and all the behind the scene-ers. They do more than you realize and are absolutely vital.  - As a leader, you need to dance around with the music or most of the kids won’t feel free to do so either.   - Praise lots, pray for patience, and love each camper.

The Procession

I was part of a funeral procession earlier this week. It was traveling from the graveside to the church, to celebrate the life of a good man and the beautiful legacy he is leaving his family. It struck me as the cars moved along, that this procession is such a fitting thing to do. Cars moved out of the cemetery and onto the road. Cemetery’s are sad places, but for those who know Christ it is more the grieving of change as the believer is taken to heaven.

I was in-between a white car and a bluish grey car. We pulled out of the cemetery onto the road. We traveled together, headlights on. Then, at our first intersection, another car was added. It turned off a short while later. A few more cars and a truck were added shortly after. One pulled off and another traveled on with us for a while more. Others just passed through the line, moving across the intersection and never joining us. We turned at the road for the church, found parking spots.
It struck me that this is so appropriate for life. Some people are with us from the beginning and to the end, through the entire journey. Others join us along the way and then travel with us for a little while. Some just pass through in a moment and then are gone again. Some join us part of the way through and then stay the rest of the time. Impact can be had throughout, even with those shortest of encounters.

Grow Up

A fan of Disney movies, Peter Pan is right up there, especially the one with Robin Williams. They are flying all around, a then a great food fight. Or the song, Young at Heart, crooned by Frank Sinatra, those words are wonderful as well.

I just celebrated my birthday. Birthdays really don’t bother me. The only one that really has is 25, because it was a quarter of a century mark – which led to a few minutes of thinking. But, all in all – they really don’t bother me. I did receive the inevitable question several times though, “What are you going to be when you grow up?” I have to grow up?
No, not the Peter Pan type of staying away from growing up, where the actions and thoughts are childish, I don’t really want that. I think it’s more about being Young at Heart. Let me take the lessons learned, continue to dream, and still hold joy in my life – young at heart! Now that really doesn’t answer the question though. Let’s see, I want to be a friend, a woman, a Christ follower, a daughter, a cousin. I want to be accomplished in my profession, I want to be an author, an artist, a philosopher. I want to be someone who has the nerve to explore and the wisdom to know how to do that. I want to be a help, a leader, and a source of inspiration. I want to be creative, analytical, and independently dependent. I want to teach and to learn. I can’t grow up right away – I have a long list of things to do along the way!

Claiming the Lime Light

Have you ever stood back and thought, that was my work – I deserve the credit? Or perhaps the mistake of impression of how you look, what kind of an impression has taken you over to the point that you have forgotten that the substance underneath is of drastic significance.



It’s fine for someone to pat you on the back, to say congratulations, to recognize your unique abilities and special possibilities. But, there is a turn that comes when this becomes a burden rather than a pleasure, a craving rather than a highlight.


We aren’t alone with that. It’s not new. Jesus commented about the Pharisees, comparing what they said verses what they did. “Everything they do is done for men to see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on the garments long; they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; they love to be greeted in the marketplaces and to have men call them ‘Rabbi.’” (Matthew 23: 5-7).


These were men gravitating to the lime light, craving the bright lights and big letters on the marquis, wanting the write ups in the newspaper. Maybe this group had forgotten how much fun it is to give in secret, to know that someone would be blessed and not know who is was from. Perhaps they forgot how much joy can be found in doing the right things, not for public approval, but for God’s approval.


Let’s not forget.

A Leader or an Authority

If the Pharisees were such a problem, was Jesus about to incite some sort of rebellion against them? Forgot those people over there – they don’t follow through, they don’t help you. No, instead the answer may surprise you….

“Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: ‘The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. So you must obey them and do everything they tell you.’” (Matthew 23:1-2).


These people are in authority over you, obey them. Obey? That really goes against our inertia in the heat of the moment when we are angry or confused. These people were in authority, obey.


“But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. They tie up heavy loads and put them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them,” (Matthew 23:3-4). Obey what they say, but do not do what they do.


How many leaders do we have out there that we don’t listen to and yet model what they do? Let’s make a choice. As leaders, to model and speak well. As followers, to pray for our leaders so that they will have wisdom in speaking and modeling behavior.