The Most Excellent Way!

We just spent the last 24+ hours driving 580 miles to spend an evening with my baby brother and his wife in Brown County, Indiana. His church was holding a couples retreat and they had some extra spots and I figured we could use some time away, even if it's only a day and a half. It was held at the Abe Martin Lodge at the state park. A beautiful facility and the park is huge. We talked about getting back there some time to hike the trails and maybe even stay in one of the family cabins. It is an absolutely beautiful area. There was a speaker there from their association to talk to the couples about marriage and what Gods Word has to say about marriage. He did a great job sharing stories and relating biblical principles into our everyday lives. I grew up in the church and my parents were Godly examples to us. It is my belief that Jesus is the Son of God and that a personal relationship with Him is the only way to spend eternity in heaven. You may not have the same belief, but this is my story and by reading on it might give you something to think about. I'll be 48 yrs. old this fall and I've had some pretty awesome experiences in my life. I believe that every chapter in your life, good or bad, has formed us to be the people we are today. During my almost 48 yrs, I spent about 10 yrs. investing almost every breathing hour of the day, ministering to youth and their families. I was ordained into ministry and served as our churches Student Minister/Assoc. Pastor. I may not have been the best or even a very good student minister, but I loved almost every minute of it, and some of the best relationships that we still have today are with some of the families we served. I say "We" because doing ministry is a family commitment. Don't ever doubt that for a minute. Like I said before, I grew up in the church, and I've read the Bible forwards, backwards, in chronological order, Bible in a year plan, The novel, and numerous other reading plans as well as several different translations. I also studied at Johnson Bible College. I've been privileged to speak at funerals and perform wedding ceremonies for some special people. I tell you all of this to get to the story from this weekend. Most people know when you're talking about the Bible and you say, 'the love chapter' you are referring to First Corinthians 13. It's been read at just about every wedding ceremony I've attended. If you're not familiar with it, basically it describes what true love is. The heart of the reading goes something like this; "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy or boast, it's not proud. It doesn't dishonor others, it's not self-seeking, it's not easily angered, and it keeps no record of wrongs. Love doesn't delight in evil but celebrates in truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails." It spends some time telling you what happens if love isn't at the center of our actions and words. Talk about a convicting chapter. Every time I read it I'm reminded of all the times I've messed up or disappointed others or myself. And then to wrap up the chapter it ends with a reminder, "These three things remain; faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." Imagine the impact on our world today if everyone embraced and acted just on the instruction of this one short chapter. That's a whole other blog post on its own for another time. Anyway, Friday night the speaker was using First Corinthians 13 as the building block for the weekend. As he began he said, "let me show you something that so many of us miss." And in my mind I'm going over the chapter in my head and thinking to myself, what could we have possibly missed all the times I've read, heard, helped students memorize this chapter? Was I ever wrong...again! He asks, "does anyone know the last verse of chapter 12 before you get to 13?" I didn't, but here are a few of the translations; Good News Translation of 12:31- "Set your hearts, then, on the more important gifts. Best of all, however, is the following way." The Message Translation of 12:31- "But now I want to lay out a far better way for you." King James Version of 12:31- "But covet earnestly the best gifts, and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way." And my personal favorite translation of this verse, the NIV translation of 12:31- "Now eagerly desire the greater gifts. And yet I will show you the most excellent way." What? The writer, the Apostle Paul, who called himself the worst of sinners, said in his best 'Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventures' voice, "Chase after the good in life, and here is the most excellent way!" He didn't say here's a good idea. He didn't say if nothing else works try this. He didn't say this may or may not work. He said, "Here is the most EXCELLENT way." I'm sitting there thinking to myself, how did I miss that all these years? That verse can preach, and it did! Chapter 13 is not just about what love is, but it starts off by telling us that if we speak with human eloquence but don't love, our words are nothing more than clanging cymbal, a resounding gong, or a creaking rusty gate; empty words. 12:31 sets the standard for our relationships, especially with our spouses, but also with our children, family members, and others. I've made my share of mistakes in relationships and will probably make a few more in my lifetime. But I have an understanding of the words grace and mercy. Without a belief in God, grace, mercy and forgiveness are words without meaning. As crazy as things have gotten in our society in my 47+ years, I believe that a life without a personal relationship with Jesus is reckless. And I also believe that relationship is indeed, personal. We're all different, and have different needs and ideas about how relationships work. But don't forget, the 'MOST EXCELLENT'way is to be sure that love is in the center of all that you do. Earlier I shared the last couple of verses of Chapter 13 from the NIV translation. I want to share them again from a different translation called The Message. It was written by a theologian and professor, Eugene Peterson. I like this translation because of his choice of words and the ability he has to make the text relate to anyone, regardless of where you are in life's journey. Here's verse 13:"But for right now, until that completeness, we have three things to do to lead us toward that consummation. Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love." See what I mean? The weekend isn't over, but I'm sure glad we drove that 580 miles and got to see Jim & Melissa, some beautiful country scenery, and be reminded of 'The Most Excellent Way'. That's the view from my stand! PS: This is the first time I've tried posting fom the IPad so please forgive the grammar mistakes until I get this thing figured out. Thanks!