A Need for More Yellow Lights

I can recall the times when I hit all red lights and when I hit all green lights, however I don't recall the times when I hit a slew of yellow lights. I wonder why I don't remember?

It could be that we live in a world that prefers red light/green lights. We are either going or stopping.

For instance, the Church is a place where red/green light living is in full swing. There are ministries where we give the green light and we are blowing and going! There are other times when too much is happening too quickly and there is a collective red light that stops the body. Some people are annoyed with green lights because we move to fast. Others find red lights frustrating since we are not going anywhere. So the push and pull between the red lighters and the green lighters continues on. 

I would submit that what the Church needs is not more red or green but more yellow lights. Often times we think that yellow lights mean to "slow down" or "pause". But that is not accurate:

Yellow lights are the place that give us greater ability to practice discernment. 

Living a life of red and green lights means that you don't to discern what to do. We see it most easily in red light living, you have not choice but to stop. However, green light living has just as little freedom: you have no choice but to go. Yellow lights however require a good bit of discernment - should I accelerate? Slow down? How far am I to the next car? What about behind me? Should I change lanes? Thus yellow light living is the most liberating way to live but for most of us that amount of freedom is too much. It is easier to stop or go, discerning is difficult. 

While red lights give us space to stopping, and green lights give us space to move, yellow lights give us space to discern. More than stopping or moving, discernment is what is needed most today. 

In a red and green light world, the humble yellow light is often forgotten.

Seeking Balance is a Fools Errand

Balance is okay for rocks. You are not a rock.

If you listen to people long enough you will hear a desire for balance in people's lives. Beyond the work/life balance people talk about, there is the balance that is sought in the everyday things. How much time do I give my kids the iPad before I feel guilty? How much should I eat of this desert? How much time do I need to spend with my friends and how much should I spend alone? How much should I give and how much should I keep and how much should I save?

It is all built on the myth that what if we find and keep the balance of our lives then we will be alright. So we work hard in order to try to bring "balance" the forces in our lives. It is exhausting and frankly never possible. Balance is a nice idea, but not very practical. 

Rather than seeking balance, I believe the Christian life is one of seeking the center. It is a journey of finding our center in Christ and thus able to stand the waves that toss us about. Peter was able to walk on the water while he was looking at Jesus (centered) but began to sink when he looked down (trying to balance). Striving for balance only leaves us seasick as we run from one side to the other.

So if you find you are seasick or feel whiplashed by trying to seek a balance, might I suggest you just stop trying to strike a balance it is a fools errand. 

Preachers sometimes don't tell the truth on purpose

Preaching is less a public speaking teaching opportunity and more an act of worship. This means that sometimes, preachers don't tell the truth on purpose. That does not mean that preachers lie, only that preaching as an at of worship is trying to communicate a deeper and transcendent reality than the truth can express. Which is why the old preacher joke ("are you telling the truth or are you preaching?") is funny. Preaching does not always share the truth. 

Before we freak out, let me be clear, there is a difference in telling the truth and telling Truth. The story of the "Giving Tree" is not a story about the truth but it is full of Truth. Most children's books I have experienced do not tell the truth on purpose either, but that is to be expected by the reader. I would submit that when we began to see the preaching moment as primarily a "teaching moment" we reduced preaching to teaching the truth and that means many times preacher are not able to express with deep wonder and beauty Truth of the Gospel. Yes, you can make a children's book about how much a mother loves her son and it will be True, but it has not captured the imagination as the story of a tree that loves a boy (which is not the truth but very True).

Many preachers often don't tell the truth on purpose because preachers are not trying to share the truth but they are trying to express Truth - just like Jesus.

The parables of Jesus are not the truth, but they are True. There was not a woman who searched her house for the missing coin or a man who had two sons or a man who sold all they had for treasure in a field or a Good Samaritan or...

If something has to be the truth in order for you to accept any Truth in it, then you are missing a lot of beauty and joy. Don't let the lack of truth keep you from seeing Truth in this world.