The Sinner, My Mirror-Image

"...[T]here is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free person, there is not male and female..." ~Galatians 3:28

"...[T]he Mass commences with a gathering of people...from all walks of life, from different social and educational backgrounds, from a variety of economic strata, with differing levels of moral excellence...gathered around the altar of Christ." ~ Robert Barron, Catholicism


I don't know about you, but my world is draped in a tapestry of diversity, whether at work, at the store, commuting, visiting, and so forth. Thank goodness everyone isn't exactly like me--they'd drive me nuts! I have annoying habits, moods, and sometimes I haven't been as patient or kind to my loved ones, or strangers, as I ought to have been. I might be inclined to seek justification in the words or actions of others, but a visit to my mirror is all I truly need to be reminded who the culprit has been. You see, I'm a sinner. And, Jesus loves me anyway.

Wow! Stop and think about that for an additional moment...

I'm a sinner. When faced with choices in life, I sometimes choose words, thoughts, actions or ommissions that contravene what God would have preferred me to undertake. Apparently I'm not alone. The accomplished person we might admire...a sinner. The poor individual we might pity...a sinner. The role model educator or coach...a sinner. Our favorite saints...sinners, too. Such good company does not, of course, excuse my own sinfulness. Fortunately, I have Lent.

God has loved you and I from before we were even formed. He is taking no pleasure in our sinfulness, but he is also not seeking harsh punishment for us. But, until I can name my sin, admit my sin, recognize the grave impact that my sin has upon my relationship with God, as well as my relationship with those upon whom my sin affects, I am broken.

I am NOT forsaken. But, I am responsible to repent.

Our Lord is not going to analyze our worldly measurements before washing away our sins. He is not going to differentiate between earthly strata or human-made honors when dispensing His forgiveness. God loved me just as much when I was a young ditch-digger and restaurant dishwasher, as he will when I am a retired grandfather.

Do I exercise that same level of non-judgmental, status-blind love and forgiveness in my daily walk?

While we undoubtedly each love the Lord with all our hearts and souls, are we fully living out our baptismal promise as we engage the world each day, sharing the Eucharist with all whom we encounter?

...Do we sincerely thank our husbands or wives for the necessary tasks they perform each day for our family's benefit?

...Do we genuinely listen to our children as they recount their highlights and challenges of the school day?

...Do we greet the custodian or security guard at work with the same caring smile and enthusiasm that we greet our boss?

...Do we offer non-judgmental and active listening to a co-worker or neighbor who expresses personal challenges?

...Do we say "yes" to volunteer when it would have been easier and more self-convenient to have said "no" instead?

...Add your own...

Sadly, I fail. No, I don't fail each and every time. But I fail often enough that I know I could do better to build God's Kingdom by embracing these daily moments to be Christ to that person whom I encounter. I'm...a sinner.

Thankfully, it's Lent! And I have the opportunity EVERY DAY to better live out our Faith. I believe that folks really don't care how pious we appear, but they do observe how genuinely we actively represent our Faith. It's the little things that count.

They will know that we have something that they are lacking. Be yourself.

They will ask how they can get what we have. Be yourself.

They will know that we don't have all the answers. Be yourself.

Yourself. Myself. That's how God created us and how He loves us.

I looked in the mirror today...and I saw a sinner...and that sinner is me.

The Enemy of the Good

"The value of life lies not in the length of days, but in the use we make of them...Whether you find satisfaction in life depends not on your tale of years, but on your will." -Michel de Montaigne

"One of the most important discoveries I have ever made is this truth: God is most glorified in me when I am most satisfied in him. This is the motor that drives my ministry as a pastor. It affects everything I do." - John Piper


My perspective is not unique to the broader populace to be certain, but I am none the less daily refreshed by the many blessings that fill my life. From my passionate commitment to my beautiful Bride to my jovial fatherhood for our seven year old daughter, my daily existence is enveloped in a brightly-colored garment of peace.

As we have entered into this Lenten season, I am again reminded that my imperfections, my sinful nature require cleansing and improvement. I love this time of the year! Recognizing my broader audience, if you are not currently walking the Lenten journey yourself due to your own beliefs of spiritual conscience, I welcome you to this time (or your own time) of self-reflection, spiritual cleansing, and renewal.

I am imperfect. At this point in my life, I am so very aware and so very comfortable admitting my very humanity. Casting an eye back toward youth, so much time, energy and resources are devoted to creating an image of perfection for fear of exposing oneself to one's peers in an unflattering light. Guided by the media, by our peers, and by the self-conscious examples modeled daily in the adults whom we encountered, in our youth we were led to seek a worldly image of perfection.

Competitively, for many of us, we carried this quest for public perfection into our young adulthood through our ever-increasing educational and professional stature. The systems of rewards we encountered fed directly into this driven impulse. We rose individually and we rose collectively. Recognition...honors...money...power...

Where was God during this phase of our journey upward? Where was our concern for those less fortunate around us? For those of us who never took our eye off of our Lord, then the externalities may not have drawn us off course so sharply or even at all. Admittedly, for the weak and sinful like me, the journey was not so much a journey upward as it was a journey downward into a place darkened, cold and devoid of true companionship. All that striving, all that competing had NOT led to perfection.

I was fortunate several years ago to have been touched at a very particular moment with the realization that my own quest for my image of perfection had been the very enemy of the good. The Hand of Perfection reached into my life and I welcomed Him as He led me deeply into my Catholic faith. I was ready to admit that my concept of worldly perfection was true imperfection. Over the years that have followed, I have instead increasingly embraced the daily good that infuses my existence, working steadily to eradicate my own sinfulness by getting outside myself and focusing upon God through my prayers, thoughts, words and actions. I am still so very imperfect...I have a long way to go on this journey.

I am not implying that we settle for mediocre or "just good enough," but I am inviting you to embrace the daily goodness that surrounds you. I find it when I look into my Bride's eyes while I'm listening to her describe her day's events. I find it when I accept my daughter's invitation to play a game together. I find it when I perform a simple task well. I find it when I give of myself to others in some small way. You yourself have many of your own examples, and I hope I hear more of them from you.

Our Lenten journey, our admission of our own sinfulness, our commitment to work with God to eradicate the stumbling blocks that mark our own imperfection will lead us to His Perfection one day. Along the journey, let us not strive for and cling to the false worldly images of perfection, but instead deeply experience the true daily experiences of the Good with which we have been blessed. I invite you to embrace your Good while you walk with God toward his Kingdom.

PATHWAY TO VICTORY

"Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths."  --Proverbs 3:5-6

"Happiness is that state of consciousness which proceeds from the achievement of one's values." --Ayn Rand

For me, my Faith in God eases my path daily. Inevitably each of us will face challenges en route to achieving our aims, but I have always believed that we are strengthened to overcome those challenges when we have named and embraced our Core Values. As we approach the November election, living our Values and our Faith in all of our daily actions remains imperative.

The courage to live our core values must eminate consistently from within, lest we habitually subsume our core values to society's expectations. The elected officials and corporate executives I admire most consistently live values-driven lives. Their power springs forth from genuine Faith and Knowledge, discerning right from wrong even when the simpler, more popular path might provide immediate gratification.

Leaders--of families, of businesses, of schools, of elected bodies--adhere to their values and remain aware of the guideposts provided by God in all matters. Parents provide discipline even when giving in to a child's demands might appear easier. Executives strategically plan for the future even when satisfying the public's appetite for glowing quarterly financial results might garner more favorable press.

True happiness lies not in today's perceived victory but in every day's genuine victory. Be not afraid to rely upon your Faith, to prayerfully go to your God for guidance, to act upon your core values, for at the end of the evening you will be able to lay your head upon the pillow for deep and peaceful rest. Your victory must also be God's victory for His people.

TODAY'S QUESTION: As YOU approach the November election, have YOU gone to the Lord in prayer regarding your strategy, your objectives, and your concerns?

LIFE, LIBERTY AND THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed."  -Thomas Jefferson, The Declaration of Independence

"But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does."  JAMES 1:25, New King James Version


As we enjoy and participate in the active celebration of our great Nation's 234th birthday, I find it instructive to return to the Document itself and the scriptural precursor, The Bible, to remind ourselves that The United States of America was born and remains a blessed nation. Our Founders, beginning with the 17th century settlers who sought refuge from British religious persecution and leading to the brave men and women who courageously signed and defended The Declaration of Independence against 18th century British tyranny, derived their Faith and Grace directly from the Creator, God Almighty.

I find it equally instructive that "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" are "among" our "unalienable rights"...we are not simply limited to those ennumerated rights. God has provided his People throughout history with much opportunity for freedom, and when exercised faithfully, fairly, and fruitfully, our Nation has grown and prospered, enjoying the fruits of our combined labors. George Washington avoided political party affiliation, recognizing the tendency for partisanship to undermine the productive collaboration necessary to forge enabling legislation vital to the efficient functioning of a national government. Thomas Jefferson trusted the power of the individual citizen to direct the Nation's affairs by electing his/her representatives to travel to the seat of government, draft sensible legislation, and cast well-informed votes.

Both men, Washington and Jefferson, together with many others recognized--and continue to recognize--that our unalienable rights must be defended, respected, and exercised.

• Sometimes defended upon the battlefield, domestic or internationally, and for that WE MUST PRAY FOR AND THANK OUR BRAVE AND SELFLESS ACTIVE AND VETERAN SERVICE MEMBERS.
• Sometimes defended in the courtrooms, legislatures, and executive offices of our cities & towns, states, and federal government, and for that we must pray for continued fidelity for our elected leaders and appointed officials.
• Respecting and exercising our unalienable rights remains incumbent upon each of us as citizens. We each have an obligation to lead this nation, one citizen at a time, daily. When we cease to respect and exercise our rights, those rights will erode and eventually be eliminated or forgotten.

You and I, and our Families, our Neighbors, and our Congregations...we are today's Defenders of the God-given Rights and Responsibilities ennumerated and implied in The Declaration of Independence and United States (and State) Constitution. Go forth this Independence Day and proudly proclaim the Life, Liberty and Pursuit of Happiness for which so many, including you, have labored so hard for and died for. Amen.

TODAY'S QUESTION: When evaluating prospective candidates for 2010 elections, have YOU measured their commitment to preserving, defending and respecting YOUR God-given, unalienable rights?

LEADERSHIP TRUMPS LONGEVITY

"In the history of mankind many republics have risen, have flourished for a lesser or greater time, and then have fallen because their citizens lost the power of governing themselves and thereby of governing their state; and in no way has this loss of power been so often and so clearly shown as in the tendency to turn the government into a government primarily for the benefit of one class, a ruling class, instead of a government for the benefit of the people as a whole."  -Theodore Roosevelt

“Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will.”  -Frederick Douglass


Nothing cries out for Change and Leadership like the defeat of incumbents. Lame ducks all: Utah Senator Bob Bennett, Florida Governor Charlie Crist, and West Virginia Congressman Alan Mollohan. Their bipartisan outbound migration will be joined by many more local, state, and national figures between now and January 2011.

As I've noted to my clients for some time, the collective electoral will of the Independent American voter prizes Principles over party affiliation, favors Faith and Family Values over favoritism, and loves Life for All more than lazy government-sanctioned preferences. The Constitution is a non-partisan living document drafted and ratified by a diverse body of farmers, business leaders, and lawyers --statesman all-- who early recognized the tendency for one ruling class to displace less powerful interests of the common citizen. The Constitution remains safeguarded by their descendants --you and I--- today and every day.

Our nation and its citizens have always fared best when elected officials embraced the will of those who elected them and honored the sacred entrustment placed upon them to carry out the limited role of government in town/city halls, state houses, and the nation's capital. This is NOT a Political Party's nation, but it IS the People's nation! The individual who blindly calls all of one Party saints and all of the opposing Party sinners lazily casts aside the insight to discern the individual Leader's strengths and weaknesses. History is replete with principled, Faithful, family-committed, prolife leaders of all Party affiliations, so we must not devolve into petty soundbite statements purporting to label all one way and all the other way.

2010 has already begun to demonstrate that Americans love America and its Freedom, love their God, love their Families and Life, love their Neighbors, and value Economic Opportunity MORE than they are willing to defer to the failed leadership of the past. The forced migration of incumbency has begun.

TODAY'S QUESTION: Does your candidacy demonstrate Leadership experience supported by a foundation of Faith, Family, Life, Liberty, and Economic Opportunity that the Independent Voter will reward with that sacred trust of electoral victory?