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When summer heats up, I love to hit the water. Swimming, paddleboarding, floating, you name it! For us parents, it is also an important time to be alert around bodies of water to make sure everyone is safe.
While coming to the aid of a struggling child swimmer is relatively straightforward due to their smaller size, saving a drowning adult is harder than it seems. It requires a degree of cooperation by the swimmer, or you too can be dragged under. The challenge is that fear from the struggling swimmer often gets in the way of trusting the one coming to help. The two remaining options are poor at best when fear takes over, and there is no trust. Either knock the swimmer unconscious and then drag them to shore (with superhuman strength), or wait for them to struggle until their strength gives way, and then rescue them (with superhuman strength). Indeed, the best option is a compliant struggling swimmer, eager to surrender all fear and release full trust to the aid of another. This illustration is a great reminder of our relationship with God. The circumstances of our lives, and our responses to them, can often make us feel like we are drowning. And we as well can easily be overcome with fear. Rather than surrender our full trust to God, we naturally work even harder on our own to try to get our heads above water. God is always right beside us in arms reach, yet our fear or pride can keep us from reaching out. He simply waits for us to give up our fruitless struggle and reach out our limp hands for his life-giving embrace. In 2 Corinthians 12, the apostle Paul himself lamented over the circumstances he was drowning in. God’s response was simply, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” If you are lamenting over any of your current circumstances, or perhaps you are frustrated with your response to those circumstances, receive those same words from your Father. You were not meant to be enough on your own. Allow hard things to move you to the easy thing of making room for God to take over. Then you can join in Paul’s conclusion, “Therefore, I will rejoice in my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” If it seems like Paul’s life was always going swimmingly, it was due to his full surrender to God. His power was not found in His own efforts, but in God’s power shining through His weaknesses. Maybe the next time you gasp for air after a cool dip in the water, remember God is our ultimate life preserver that fits each of us perfectly! Have you ever accidentally seen a surprise gift meant for you ahead of time? It happened to me when I was 8 years old. I was talking with my mom in her bedroom and noticed a large box in her closet. The name on the box said “Atari.” I screamed, “Mom, is that my Christmas present?” She quickly clarified, “No, that is for your older brother.” I was very disappointed.
As Christmas approached, I saw the large box wrapped next to the Christmas tree with no name tag on it. I wisely assumed that my parents had not put my brother’s name on the box to prevent him from guessing its contents. But on Christmas morning, my mom grabbed the box and placed it on my lap! I shouted, “No, this is my brother’s gift!” She explained, “Actually, this is your gift.” I couldn’t believe it. No, literally. I couldn’t believe it. I began to argue with my mother that the gift was not mine, but indeed my brother’s. For weeks I had prepared myself for a mediocre Christmas, and to watch my brother enjoy the gift rather than me. I just couldn’t wrap my mind around how the gift was actually for me! We often fall into this same trap with our hand-me-down Christian faith. For many of us, our faith was passed down to us from a parent, grandparent, Pastor, or neighbor. And how thankful we are for that! God intends His believers to share the Good News with others. But sometimes we are slow to take true possession and ownership of our faith. We might rest upon King David’s faith, or our grandma’s faith, and fail to realize that God is big enough to have a personal and individual relationship with each of us. When we live off another person’s faith, our walk with the Lord can understandably become stale and feel like a chore. We are not living out the plan He has set for us. The apostle Paul instructs us to work out our own salvation, and it is God who works in us. How beautiful is that! God does the work in us! Our job is to work it out with Him! Not someone else’s faith, but our own. After my mom had clarified that Christmas morning the purpose of her little white lie, I quickly enjoyed the video game that was meant for me. I was quick to share with others the gift I had received. As believers, we should be quick to share with others the amazing gift of salvation and abundant life we have received. When we live off someone else’s faith, or when we fail to engage with God working in us, our excitement can turn into a mediocre faith. God’s gift of salvation is always available to everyone, but it is the most powerful when you truly receive it for yourself. This is perhaps one of the most counterproductive statements a parent or student leader could make. Have you ever said it? Most of us have. And the reason is simple. We are not Jesus. We certainly try to imitate Him the best we can, but even our best efforts do not always line up with our convictions…or our instructions to others.
One of my favorite convictions is “Early is on time, on time is late, and late is absolutely unacceptable.” Punctuality is certainly influenced much by culture and is not an absolute for everyone, but showing respect for others is a common standard. During my 15 years of being a Christian school administrator, I have always had the privilege to be in the classroom with students. Currently, I teach advanced mathematics to our senior students. I love spending consistent time with our oldest students before they transition to their next season. Some of them I have known for well over a decade! But here is the problem. This 2nd-period class happens to occur 1st period on Wednesdays, which I often fail to remember. Multiple times this year I have had to eat humble pie (not my favorite) due to my own tardiness to my Wednesday math class. Just this week, I almost fainted during our Pledge of Allegiance as I had just huffed it up the stairs after carline and barely made it. In Philippians, Paul encourages us to “work out our own salvation,” as it is God “who works in you.” I like that. My part is to release God to do all the parts in me. In 2 Corinthians Paul proclaims that God’s power is made perfect in our weakness. So perhaps “Do what I say, not as I do” should be replaced with “Let God do in you what you can’t on your own.” Not as catchy, or grammatically correct, but certainly more powerful! When the new high school building was completed in the winter of 2019/2020, my big Christmas gift wish was a weather station to place on top of the building. My wife pulled through, and I have been collecting and analyzing weather data ever since. With a math/science teaching background, the weather numbers for our campus always interest me. Can you believe we have had over 10 inches of rain in since April 1st! Did you know our top wind gust so far in 2022 was 45.6 mph? And in the past 12 months, we have experienced temperatures (wind chill/heat index) spanning 108℉(13℉-121℉)!
In Romans chapter 2, Paul describes how many Gentiles who were not aware of God’s laws, still followed the guidelines of the law. He illustrates how every human has the knowledge of right and wrong through our “conscience” which is part of our created being. Our God-given “conscience” can confirm God’s just order when it leads us naturally to walk in His ways, even when we may not be explicitly aware of them. But our “conscience” can also be diluted by the sinful nature that opposes His ways. It reminds me of how weather can so easily erode and damage something previously so healthy and vibrant. Whether too much rain, not enough rain, ice, hard freezes, wind, or heat, the natural patterns of weather constantly keep us on our toes. We are regularly responding and making adjustments due to the wacky weather that surprises us. In the same way, our God-given “conscience” can quickly become damaged or polluted by the unholy things of this world. When our moral compass is off, it can lead us and those we love away from God’s good purposes. Paul later writes to the Romans how the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ has filled our lives with something greater and more supernatural than our conscience. His Holy Spirit. The indwelling of His Spirit in our lives is an even greater guide to help us not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit and God’s good purposes. So the next time you experience extreme weather and its frustrating impacts on our lives, remind yourself of how the ways of the world can frustrate our conscience. Beware of trusting your own conscience, and be quick to pursue God’s perfect truths. Press in to His Word and fellowship with Him and other believers to realign the compass of our conscience with His Holy Spirit. His grace like rain will continue to bring new life to our hearts and minds through His Spirit! My 2nd-grade year as a student was one of the most enjoyable years of my schooling. I was living in a small Oregon town called Camas Valley and I had one of my favorite teachers. Her name, ironically, was “Mrs. K.” She made me feel like I was the most valued student in her class (I assume she did that for all the students). She was always available for me to talk to before and after school. She would go out of the way to ensure that I had the best 2nd-grade year ever.
This Mother’s Day I will be sending“Mrs. K.” a Mother’s Day card. You guessed it! “Mrs. K”, my former 2nd-grade teacher, is my mom. For most of my life, I was blessed to spend time with my mom (and my dad) in our home and at school. The person I am today is very much a product of their direct and indirect influences on me as both parents and teachers. In Hebrews Chapter 11, the author walks us through a list of men and women who demonstrated lives of faith. The author references Abraham’s wife, Sarah, the mother of Isaac, as a person who demonstrated faith. She conceived in her old age because she considered God, who had promised her a child in her old age, as faithful. Yet in Genesis 18 we read how she initially laughed to herself when she heard the promise. How encouraging to us as parents. Despite her humanness, Sarah's faith was an example to her family and to future generations! Living a life of faith does not require constant perfection, just simple humility and devotion. As a child and a student, I’m sure I observed a few flaws in my mom at home and as my 2nd-grade teacher at school (and I’m sure she saw ten times as many in me). I also observed and still observe a consistent heart that desires to give glory to God and try to love others as He does. I can only hope that this original "Mrs. K" has rubbed off on the current Mr. and Mrs. K. Sometimes I feel exhausted as a parent. Other times I rejoice in the immeasurable joy of parenting. My oldest child just turned 19. Our parenting has not ended, nor will it ever end. While my dad has since passed, my own relationship with my mother continues to enrich my life. As we celebrate the mothers in our lives, may we rejoice in our Lord Jesus Christ, who through faith, grants us access to these treasures today, and so many more to come. It was the tail end of the 2021 summer heat wave and my son and I were halfway up Mt. Adams. Despite hiking near glaciers, the heat had us sweating and stopping often. As we knelt near a stream to refill our water bottles, my trusty old water filter suddenly broke beyond repair. My son and I just stared at each other in disbelief!
You see, we have watched WAY too many survival shows to ever consider drinking unfiltered water in the wilderness. Sure, the risk is minimal, but stories of those infected with Giardia are not pretty. Fortunately, my son had stowed away a LifeStraw as an extra precaution. So like dogs on our bellies, we rehydrated ourselves directly from the stream, sharing the LifeStraw. Yet there was still a problem. This little glacier stream was probably our last access to liquid water until we completed our final ascent (and descent). There was just no practical way to refill our water bottles with our LifeStraw. How would we stay hydrated on our way to the 12,000 ft summit? We knew that turning back was not an option. Despite our overly sensitive fear of intestinal parasites, we decided that the glacial runoff was probably safer than the tap water at our house. We dunked our water bottles directly in the stream, and completed our journey (with no unhealthy consequences later on). In John chapter 4 Jesus describes to a woman from Samaria a type of living water that would quench her thirst permanently. The source of the living water is Jesus. The cost for this living water was paid at the cross through His death and resurrection. There is no payment required to receive this living water other than faith and full surrender. A life without thirst is always fully hydrated with love, joy, and peace. Often we are too easily satisfied with the murky water of this world that always leaves us wanting more and never satisfies. C.S. Lewis writes: “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.” Sometimes we attempt a watered-down Christianity. We want both the perfect riches of the eternal Kingdom and the incomplete temporary riches of this world. We turn Jesus into our LifeStraw. We use him when necessary to partially purify our participation in the “mud pies” we insanely prefer over a “holiday at the sea.” Jesus is our Living Water. May we fix our eyes on Him as the author and perfecter of our faith, rather than a temporary $10 Costco fix to our self-imposed trials. So if you ever see me on a mountain with 3 water filters in my pack, don’t call me a hypocrite. If my path crosses a Jewish carpenter who offers me a drink, I’m all in! |
Adam Kronberger
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