From shamrocks to green beer to mandatory green dress (which I will surely wear just to avoid getting pinched), St. Patrick’s Day is somewhat of a silly holiday.  Most people (Irish included) when asked why we celebrate St. Patrick’s Day have absolutely no clue…other than that it is a cultural holiday traditionally celebrated in Ireland, in honor of Ireland’s patron saint – Patrick.

But what’s the big deal with Patrick anyway?  Was he garbed in royal robes and jewelled crowns (like the stained

glass image viewed on the side), or with a green kilt, bow tie, and top hat?
Neither image is terribly accurate.

While little is actually knowable about Patrick, what we do know is that he was one of the most influential Christian missionaries to Ireland.  As a matter of fact, that Christian spirituality took root at all in Ireland is owed much to the efforts, humility, passion, and Christlike love of this amazing man.

Born in the 5th Century A.D. as a privileged Roman citizen in Roman Brittain, Patrick was a self-avowed atheist (though having grown up in a “Christian” home).  One fateful night his life was turned upside down when a group of Irish (“barbarian”) slave raiders stormed his village and captured or killed all the people of his villa.  Patrick (probably called “Patricus”) was taken as a slave to Ireland where he spent the next 6-7 years in bondage to an Irish chieftain.  During that time, Patrick, the once spiritually indifferent atheist, found himself crying out to God in prayer.  Through his captivity He learned to experience freedom in Christ by entrusting himself to God.   Eventually God opened a door for Patrick to escape and he miraculously made it back to his home.

However, and this is where it gets crazy, one night in a vision God calls Patrick to go back to Ireland to share the love of Jesus with the very people who degraded and brutalized him.  I can’t imagine the conflict he must have felt, and the tremendous love that prevailed in his heart.

Eventually, Patrick made it back to Ireland with an entourage of other Christians from Roman Brittain eager to share the love of Jesus with the Irish barbarians (doesn’t seem fair to call them that, but one of the reasons the Romans thought they were barbarians was they would charge into battle screaming … buck-naked!  Apparently they believed fighting in the nude gave them extra supernatural strength).  Patrick knew, however, despite some of these “barbarian” practices there was much in ancient Celtic culture that could be redeemed through the love of Jesus.

No one knows for sure, but over the next several decades it is estimated that Patrick baptized several thousand Irish converts.  Among his disciples were a number of other slaves, particularly female slaves who were sold into sexual servitude to Irish chieftains and land owners.  The Gospel gave these oppressed people a new hope, dignity, and sense of identity and purpose as they realized their tremendous worth and freedom in Jesus.

Patrick’s legacy is also hard to measure.  Scores of Celtic missionaries rose up following Patrick’s influence, spreading the message of hope and forgiveness in Jesus to the people of ancient Scotland, and then into all parts of Western Europe and beyond.  All because one man did the unthinkable…chose to forgive those who injured and enslaved him and trust that the God who was calling him to reach out to these people was capable of transforming their hearts, and indeed their very culture.

Who are the “heathens” or “barbarians” in your world?  The ones that it is impossible for you to tolerate, forgive, or believe could ever be capable of good?  How is Jesus calling you to step beyond the natural human boundaries of fear and distrust to extend the love of Jesus to these “barbarians”?

This St. Patrick’s Day, choose to get in touch with the REAL Patrick and the mission that drove and impassioned his life.  Choose to believe that God can forgive, heal, renew, and transform your life and the lives of all those impossible people who surround us.  If you do, prepare to see the amazing.  God is still at work, still on mission, and still desiring to seek and save the lost.

in HIM<   Jeremy

For more on Patrick (and to see me ATTEMPT to play an Irish Bodhran), check out this video blog.  (Called “Seasons”)

There’s certainly much I can say, but maybe a moment of silence is best.  A moment to remember how frail life is, how big God is despite the chaos of this world, and how without the love of Christ everything crumbles.  I invite you to consider these things today.

AND, let me refer you to a mentor/pastor of mine, James Emery White, and a great blog series on what 9/11 has done to us.  You can see his messages live at:  http://icampus.mecklenburg.org .   You can read his blog at:  http://churchandculture.org .

It would seem drummerrev dropped off the face of the earth, or at the least went on a very long fishin’ trip. In fact, over the last several months I’ve been going through a LOT of life transition. Good changes, and challenging changes, but changes nonetheless, and as changes tend to go… they are all-consuming.
I hope to “pick up the pen again”, so to speak, and start blogging again soon. Until then, may your life be filled with God, groove, and grace beyond measure.

Have you ever just had one of those days?  You know, where you woke up wrong and felt like your head was under water all day?  Where on top of that you forgot your homework, or work was particularly bad or hectic, or it seemed like everyone you ran into was just… mean?  Has it ever felt like EVERY day is like that?

I know I’m not alone.  Can I hear a loud, collective “AMEN”?

Last week I had more than a few days like that.  I just felt … “blah”.  You know what I mean?  Now, sometimes sin can cause that wonderful malaise in our life –  doing stupid things that we know as Christ-followers we shouldn’t be doing.   Perpetual sin on our part creates a big barrier between us and the fulfilling life-in-Christ God intends for us to live.

But, sometimes, life is just hard.  Or at the very least annoying.  Sometimes what’s needed is not necessarily confession and repentance of a specific sin, but just an overall shift in our perspective.

At one point in my annoyingly “blah” morning I decided to take a walk break outside… in the 95 degree heat.  I was annoyed enough that the temperature didn’t even bother me!  I put my music playlist on “shuffle” and popped in my earplugs, wanting desperately to melt away into another world.  The first song on random shuffle was a Mercy Me song called “My Heart Will Fly”.

Now, admittedly, I’m not a huge Mercy Me fan.  They’re good and all, and I appreciate their songs , I’ve just never been crazy about their music.  But….this song hit me right between the eyes… in a good way.   The lyric at the chorus:

“My heart will fly,
When I finally see You face to face
And my tears will fly
Away… away.”

Instantly a smile started creeping across my face and that warm, tingling feeling started washing over me.  It was the Holy Spirit tangibly touching me and reassuring me that He really was there, and the best really is yet to come.  What precious relief!

In a heartbeat God took my focus off the stress and annoyance of my day and lifted the eyes of my spirit to the reality of Jesus in His mercy, kindness, and power, ruling over EVERYthing in this world.  And my heart really did fly.

After that, I was able to handle the rest of the trivial silliness my day had in store.  God’s grace was with me.  And whenever I felt the tentacles of funk and depression trying to wrap around me, I plugged in my earphones and reminded myself again of how my heart will fly.

Songs like that are what I call “Gaze-Getters”.  They have the power to lift you out of the junk of the world and set your heart in the right place.  Memorizing Scripture helps here too.   For example,  Here’s a great Gaze-Getter by the Apostle Paul:

“Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.  For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.”  (Colossians 3:1-4, NIV)

Maybe there’s a particular passage of Scripture or a song that serves as a “Gaze-Getter” for you.  I’d love to hear what your “Gaze-Getters” are!  I bet they could help others fix their eyes on Jesus throughout the day too.
Life is too short and precious for us to keep our thoughts and lives in the gutters.  If there’s sin in the way, get on your knees and get honest with Jesus.  Confess it to Him.  He already knows about it anyway!  Ask for His forgiveness and His strength to help keep you out of sin.  If you just need a gaze-lift and a spiritual boost, dig into the Word and turn up those songs that lift your spirit.

Let your heart fly.

My wife and I arrived home from vacation last week late one night with an unexpected discovery near our front door – two fledgling birds which had apparently tried to do some base jumping from their nest in the front eaves of our house.

They were pathetic.  Eyes not open yet, mostly just skin and no feathers.  Flopping around waiting to either die of exposure or be carried off by some night animal.  I couldn’t just leave them.  I don’t know why, but something just kicked in – if I didn’t do SOMETHING they were goners for sure.

So, I improvised.  I found an old pot hanger with a dry thatch bedding in it.  I Grabbed some paper towels for reinforcement and some dry pine straw and quickly tried to make-shift a nest.  Then, I carefully picked them up with gloves (because I’ve heard mothers will reject their babies if they detect human scent on them…something I later learned is myth), and placed them in the nest.  Knowing I could get it no where near their original nest, my wife and I carefully hung it in a nearby tree…and we prayed.  I know that may sound terribly sentimental, but yes, I prayed God would do a miracle and let them live through the night, and then let their momma find them in the morning.

Day one – a small miracle.

They lived, and momma found them.  What a welcome sound to hear their hungry cheaping.  Throughout  the day I tried to check in on them and make sure they were doing ok.  (Pictured below is one of the hungry fledglings hanging over nest edge cheaping for food)

Day two – more small miracles.

One of the anxious fledglings (obviously the one who instigated the initial base jump) had again jumped from the makeshift nest and landed pathetically in the mulch bed beneath the tree.   (pictured below)

I found him just in time as ants were beginning to make an early attempt at carting away their big find.  I carefully picked him up and placed him back in the nest.  (This time, he mistook me for momma and the entire time I lifted him he squeaked loudly with mouth wide open expecting me to drop in some regurgitated goody : )

I had to perform the same rescue at least one more time that day.  This bird really needs to control his thrill-seeking tendencies!

That night (last night) – horrible storms!  It rained and rained – soaking, torrential rains.  At one break in the downpour I checked on them, expecting them to be washed away.  There they were – huddled, wet, and pathetic again.  But, I didn’t want to risk moving them since momma knew where they were.  So I managed to maneuver a small umbrella into the tree above them to hopefully protect them from some of the weather’s onslaught.

And, I said another prayer.

At this point, I have to admit, this was becoming more than a little rescue project, this was starting to consume my mind.  I REALLY want these guys to make it!

Day Three – yet another miracle.

This morning I wake up expecting to find them dead or washed away.  There they are, wet and pathetic, but fully alive.  Momma had been in to feed them and they were huddled together for warmth.  (Pictured Below)

So, more nest reinforcement to make sure there would be no morning attempts at jumping again, a prayer of thanksgiving and another for continued protection.

And then God brought Jesus’ words to mind – Matthew 10:29-31:
“Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.“

Suddenly I see it.  I am that pathetic, base-jumping bird.  Time and again I jump out of God’s protective care and land flat on my pathetic fledgling backside, flopping around, completely exposed to everything in the Universe…helpless.  And God time and again picks me up, places me back in a safe place, and watches over me.

This strong protective urge I feel for these little birds is just an insignificant fraction of the tremendous love and care God has for me…and for YOU.  Wherever you are, whatever you’ve done, however you feel lost and insignificant, Jesus is there wanting to shelter, protect, restore, heal, forgive, and nourish you.  You are worth more than many sparrows.  No matter what this world tells you, no matter what your family and friends tell you, and no matter what Satan, the Accuser, tells you in your heart – you are valuable to God.

Don’t resist his love and grace – don’t insist on continually “base-jumping out of his nest” by refusing His guidance and His good and perfect will for your life.  Let your life be lived in the constant realization that Jesus is Lord and Alive in your life – and if you’ve never made Him Lord of your life, don’t waste another moment!  There’s is too much at stake – He wants to save, heal, and fill you with a new sense of identity, purpose, and passion for True Life.  He loves you and He’s watching over you…  He really, really is.

What next?

Hopefully, when I get home, they’re still there alive and well.  I have a feeling, given all the small miracles so far, that they will be.  If so, I’ll probably have to name them.   Maybe “Lucky” and “Bounce”.  Better yet – “Hope” and “Faith”.

What name does God want to speak over you today?  Get alone with Him and let Him speak His powerful truth into your life.  You are precious to Him.

Have you ever found yourself wondering about how better things could be if Jesus were still around…I mean, physically in person?

What if you had some troubling theological question and you knew Jesus would be walking through town tomorrow.  You could maybe stalk him at Starbucks and pop the question while he waited in line for his latte (although, let’s be honest, Jesus wouldn’t visit Starbucks – he’d probably visit some little family-owned hole in the wall coffee shop that served organic fair-trade coffee : )

Or worse, imagine you had some debilitating disease that all the doctors had written off as incurable.  BUT, you’d heard about the crazy healings Jesus was doing and you were just desperate enough to believe there might be something to those stories, and even more so, maybe Jesus could do the same for you!  So you stalk him at the local hole-in-the-wall coffee joint prepared to jump out and grab him, hoping to draw out some of his healing power by your miserable, desperate faith.

Now, put yourself in the shoes of Jesus’ disciples 2000 years ago, when all of a sudden the miracle-working, wisdom-speaking, nature-mastering Jesus you’d spent nearly every moment of your life with for the last three years tells you he’s getting ready to leave, and you won’t see him any longer.

Imagine the heartache and sheer devastation.  I mean, you’ve tasted the wonders of His kingdom and experienced the unthinkable, and now you’re to go back to “life as normal”??  Forget it!!  You’ll find some way to restrain him or persuade him not to do whatever crazy thing he’s planning to do next (die on a cross, rise from the dead, return to Heaven).

Then, just as you’ve hatched in your mind the ridiculous plot to kidnap Jesus and hide him in your closet, he turns around and says –

“But in fact, it is best for you that I go away, because if I don’t, the Advocate won’t come. If I do go away, then I will send him to you.”  (John 16:7, NLT)

It is best for you.  What could be better than having Jesus here in person?  Have you ever really thought about that?  What was it that not only comforted and encouraged Jesus’ followers to not only press on after his death, resurrrection, and ascension, but then go on to mobilize the most significant world-changing movement that’s ever come on the spiritual scene?

The Advocate.  Also translated as the Comforter, or Helper, or Friend (the actual greek word is “paraclete”).  All of this is referring to the Holy Spirit.

Possibly the most misunderstood, misrepresented, and under-utilized person of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit.  Holy Spirit is NOT an “it”, or a “force”, or a philosophical concept.  The Holy Spirit is a “HE” – specifically He is the Spirit of Christ, Himself.

Look at what Jesus says about Him in John 14 –
“If you love Me, you will keep My commandments. And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Counselor to be with you forever. He is the Spirit of truth. The world is unable to receive Him because it doesn’t see Him or know Him. But you do know Him, because He remains with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I am coming to you.

“In a little while the world will see Me no longer, but you will see Me. Because I live, you will live too. In that day you will know that I am in My Father, you are in Me, and I am in you. The one who has My commands and keeps them is the one who loves Me. And the one who loves Me will be loved by My Father. I also will love him and will reveal Myself to him.” (John 14:15-21, HCSB)

Last issue we looked at how God’s intention is for you and I to be a “God Vortex” – an irresistible center of God’s transforming activity.  Jesus told His disciples (and I believe us, in effect) “you will do the works that I do…you will do even greater things than these.”  How is this possible?  Certainly not by our own capability or strength!  The ONLY way this promise becomes reality is by the Spirit of Christ Himself dwelling within us, teaching us, inspiring us, and empowering us.

Perhaps all this Holy Spirit stuff is new to you.  Maybe you’ve never heard Holy Spirit is a “He”, and not some mysterioius force.  Maybe the thought of Jesus’ Spirit actually dwelling in you is hard to believe, and harder yet to access in your day-in, day-out experiences.  Let me invite you to ask Him to reveal Himself to you.  Ask Him to show you more of what it means to truly be “led” by Him and “empowered” by Him.  If you do, and earnestly mean it, be prepared for the unexpected!

For some further reading on the Holy Spirit – check out these passages of Scripture:

Ezekial 36:26-28
Joel 2:28-29
Matthew 3:11
Luke 24:49
John 16:12-15
Acts 2:1-13, 33, 38
Romans 5:5
Romans 8 (what a chapter!)
Galatians 4:6-7
Ephesians 1:13-14

and there’s so much more…