"For the wages of sin is death..."

I was listening to a podcast this week about parenting. The speaker was explaining why you need to discipline and train your children, and he shared this verse. He was making it clear that “training them in righteousness” is both necessary and urgent. He didn’t yell, cry or repeat himself countless times. He just stated it and let it sink in. He went on to explain that the point of training our children isn’t just so that we can have things the way we want them to be or so that they can impress others with their angelic demeanor. The purpose of training should be to show them their need for a Savior and to help them develop the skill of obedience.

So I’m driving down the busy road. My two boys are buckled up in the back of our minivan watching a movie and snacking on granola bars and I felt this pit. Death. Their death. I can barely bring myself to type those words. It goes against everything I feel like I’m designed for. There’s something so cruel about imagining that for them, physically and spiritually. I prayed. I pleaded. I begged God to not let them die. I tried to think of every verse I’ve memorized regarding Christ and salvation and protection.

It’s not that the sermon touched on something new. In fact, I feel this way rather often. I don’t think I have prayed for them and not mentioned it to God. We attempt to teach them God’s Word so that they can have faith and know Jesus for themselves and to practice wisdom in living. So why was I so overwhelmed by this statement?

I think it’s because I seem to be more aware of the reality of death lately. I manage to think about it every day. Somehow it comes up. I can be telling my son about his grandfathers or taking my pill to help with fertility. I mean the very computer I’m using now, belonged to my Uncle who passed away last April. And that’s just the heaviest personal stuff. While scrolling through Facebook or having conversations, I’m learning about friends losing their spouses or parents, having miscarriages, or even just trying to extend life by eating better or exercising because they want to see their grandchildren grow up and they feel the effects of aging. My husband and I are listening to young men grapple with their friends’ lives being taken and their Mommas worrying about losing them on the streets. The news is filled with war, sickness, and crime. I just can’t seem to escape it.  And you know, I even feel the need to apologize to you for being heavy or depressing. I want to change the subject or make a joke to lighten things up. I don't even want to post this and seem sad.

But something is telling me not to give in to that. Instead, I will just let that sit. I’m going to take a breath, and acknowledge that this world is full of pain and tears and death. Ignoring it won’t help. Making light of it won’t either. But feeling it. Owning up it. That has promise.

Because just like that teacher was saying, I need to remember that I need a Savior and so does everyone else. What good is it to hear that, when I don’t really believe I need to be saved from anything? Boy, am I glad someone told me about him! People took the time to teach me where to find hope in the brokenness that was so obvious in my life. I wasn't even aware of how much hurt was to come. And you know, I don’t always weep. Time does allow for healing and surrendering to the fact that I’m not in control.

“But the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.” Yes. Amen. I’m in. Bring on the eternal life. That gives me freedom from despair. It gives hope and purpose to keep on living. Living full of joy.

Death is heavy. It’s final and sad and here because of sin. So I won’t just accept it or deal with it. I’m going to cling to the One who promises life. Death, along with sin, has been defeated. And God is gracious enough to show us that here too. I’ve gotten to see cancer leave, families being restored because of forgiveness, addictions no longer controlling a person’s life, crippling fear being replaced with courage, children being born into families who weren't sure it'd ever happen. How exciting it will be when there will be no more goodbyes! Go ahead a read 1 Corinthians 15 and let yourself hope even in the brokenness. And tell someone else about it because that’s news worth hearing.

Matt Mahr - Christ is Risen w/lyrics

Kari Jobe - Forever w/lyrics

Romans 6:23

Christ Church Kings

We recently participated in a local basketball league called Athletes for Christ Outreach (AFCO).  The league is for boys ages 13-17 and ran for 6 weeks.  Each Saturday the teams had a game; finishing up by a league championship tournament. The Christ Church Kings had 9 boys and 3 coaches who came together with the hopes of being this year’s champion.  More than that though, we hoped that by participating this group of young men would develop into men of God who would work together and trust one another long term.

Some of the guys I’ve known for a while, some I coached on the Northside High Freshman Basketball team this year and others were from the neighborhood I had recently met. While a few were friends before or knew of each other, not all of them had personal relationships. We started practicing about 2 weeks before the season began so they could meet one another and start to learn how to work as a team. Naturally, at our first few practices the guys were reserved and kept to themselves. Then one night things took a turn for the worse.

It was one of those practices where nothing was going right for anyone (coaches included).  We were in the middle of our UCLA shooting drill and the guys were just out of sync and you could see the frustration pouring out of their faces.  At the end of a drill, two of the boys began to exchange words and then two more joined in, one on each side.  Frustration began to escalate until we as coaches stepped in. Once the boys settled down we brought them together. We explained teamwork and being accountable for our own actions.  This was something that we had been discussing in our weekly bible study so it wasn’t the first time they had heard it. It was, however, the first time they had to decide to apply it in this situation when they really didn’t want to.  As we returned back to our practice you could sense that the fellas weren’t quiet as into things as they had previously been and that there was still some tension in the air. It was anyone’s guess as to how the rest of the season would go.

As the weeks went on though, you could see friendships developing.  Before games, the guys would sit together in the stands and watch other teams play. The tone went from tense to playful (sometimes a little too much).  At this point we were 3-0 and the guys were coming together on the court; but this league was about more than just winning basketball games.  After practice one night one of the guys gets everybody’s attention and says, “Hey look, after this we all gonna be cool still, I mean y’all my boys now.”  This may not seem like much but this came from one of the guys who earlier in the season has the shortest temper and really didn’t want to let the others get to know him. As the season went on I watched them begin to trust one another more and more.  When things weren’t going the way someone wanted during a game or when they were struggling with a new drill, often one of their teammates was the one who would step in and encourage them.  We call that “picking their teammate up.”  Just seeing one of them taking input from another was a major improvement! 

While we may not have become league champions, 1 point loss in the semi-finals, this group locked arms each week on and off the court.  It took some time and there’s plenty of growth to be had, but walls eventually came down. What is even more exciting is that they all wanted to stick together and continue with our Sunday night bible study and practice.

The end of Chapter 2 in the book of Acts is often a passage in the bible that speaks to community and people coming together. More than just helping these guys develop friendships, which is an important skill, it is our hope that they would “receive the Word…and be devoted to the apostles teaching and to one another…having all things in common” in the Lord. Please pray for these young men, their families and the friends that they are now bringing with them.