Laying on the Pavement

I like to run. We have a dog named Albie. He is a puppy; just one year old. It’s a challenge to walk Albie because he has so much energy. It works out best if we run. The thing about running with a puppy though, is that they like to make sudden and frequent stops to smell, chase, and investigate. Albie really likes lizards, squirrels of course, and any kind of scent from other dogs. It’s fun when he stops or tries to dart off in a new direction. It’s like running an obstacle course.

One day this past week Albie really challenged me. We were running up in San Antonio heights where the streets are narrow and the houses are big. One house is having construction done. There was a truck parked on the street, as well as several other cars all parked along the curb. We were surprised to see a man sitting on the curb, smoking a cigarette, and writing on a clipboard. This surprised and spooked Albie. He did a full stop and started backing up fast and hard. With one fell swoop he pulled himself out of his collar. 

I turned and ran toward Albie the dog to grab him. He was scared though and ran away from me. I called him and kept running, and I think he started to think it was a game. I realized there was no chance I could catch him. So I stopped moving and started calling him. As he stood there in the middle of the street a car started approaching. I was scared, and yes a little angry that he was not listening and obeying.

Last week you learned that we have peace with God through Christ. This week Jesus says that he came not to bring peace, but a sword. Is it possible that there would be a contradiction in the Bible? 

Jesus goes on to say that part of following him is experiencing division and rejection within families. Finding your life in God means losing it from some of the familiar and comfortable places that have given you security. Loved ones may not listen to you. They might go in a different direction than you. They might see the world differently than you.

Nothing is covered up that will not be uncovered

Do you ever feel like you’re not getting the whole story? Every person and group has a bias in what they believe to be true. When you watch the news they present to you a perspective that is limited. How about social media? It seems like there is so much misinformation that it is hard to know what to believe. You might be tempted to wonder if there is any reality at all that can be agreed upon. 

The good news is that God makes sure that the truth will be known. Lies and deception are temporary. They only last a little while. Jesus said, ‘So have no fear of them; for nothing is covered up that will not be uncovered, and nothing secret that will not become known.’ Matthew 10:26. Eventually the truth will come out.

The prophet Jeremiah described what it was like to try to hold in the truth. ‘If I say, “I will not mention him, or speak any more in his name,” then within me there is something like a burning fire shut up in my bones; I am weary with holding it in, and I cannot.’ Jeremiah 20:9

In a way you don’t have to worry about the truth being known. God is going to make it come out whether or not you are ready or willing. The truth is unstoppable. But if God has given you something to say, you can exercise great care in how you share the truth. Focusing on the process of truth telling can greatly affect how the truth is received and understood.

There are many applications for how the process of telling the truth can make a huge difference. 

Sometimes businesses have to downsize, especially during times of economic recession. Nobody wants to lose their job, and it almost always would be extremely painful. Yet companies who take time in a process of communicating to their employees what is going on, are way less likely to get sued. Employees who have been let go but with a fair process are going to recover more quickly, and less likely to fall into despair. 

Governments that take time to listen to their citizens, and share the reasons why changes happen earn the trust and compliance of their people. It’s interesting that countries throughout the world that are doing the best in combating CoronaVirus have women leaders who have gone to great lengths to engage in a process of communicating with their people why they are asking certain protocols to be followed. 

Street cred

So there I was in San Antonio Heights trying to convince my dog to run back to me, even though I was standing near the man that spooked the dog. The dog would rather have me chase him back down the mountain. What could I do. Yelling at him wouldn’t work. Chasing wouldn’t work. Even though I knew the truth was that I needed to get him back on his leash to protect him from cars. 

Eventually an idea occurred to me. I remembered how whenever any of us lays down at home the dog loves to to run up, sit on us, and lick our faces. So what could I do? The street was narrow. There was no sidewalk. I kneeled and called the puppy. He didn’t come. I sat down and called the dog. He didn’t come. I layed down, but propped myself up on an elbow to see him. He didn’t come. Finally a layed down on my back, my head on the pavement. I couldn’t see anything but the June gloom sky. Then I felt the warm wet lick of dog’s tongue on my cheek. I sat up and he let me put his collar on him. I tightened the collar while I was at it. The construction guy gave me thumb’s up. We continued on our run.

Jesus said, “Those who find their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it” Matthew 10:39. Lay down your life. Don’t worry about others seeing the truth, God will make it happen. Amen.