Weekly Word: timely, personal, provocative

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Comment by Chris S Heinz on November 6, 2009 at 6:37am

Weekly Word: Important Announcement

For personal reasons, I’m taking a sabbatical from being company chaplain. The sabbatical will be for an indefinite period of time. I appreciate your understanding.

For almost three years now, I’ve enjoyed serving those who have wanted to be served by the company chaplain program. I’ve sent 150 Weekly Words, never missing a week. I’ve led company prayer meetings. I’ve counseled and prayed with the hurting, the seeking, the celebrating. I’ve led four prayer breakfasts at our training conferences, led three company-sponsored movie showings, taught five sessions on spiritual disciplines, developed a small business chaplain initiative website (which hasn’t been launched yet), and have loved doing all of it. Thank you for participating in any of these activities.

During the sabbatical, I will not be leading any of these activities as company chaplain. If you enjoy the Weekly Word, I encourage you to visit www.weeklyword.net and read a past entry. If you like to gather for prayer, I encourage you to keep gathering. If you need prayer or counsel, find someone else to meet with. I know God, who sees all things, will help you if you ask for it.

Again, thank you for your understanding. I’m looking forward to this time off to nurture my own faith, which has been neglected as of late.

Comment by Chris S Heinz on October 30, 2009 at 2:53pm

Weekly Word: A Night at Hibachi

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13.8)

We decided to do something special to celebrate Day 30 of our Adoption Year, and since the tattoo place was closed, we settled on a Japanese hibachi dinner. We thought Rex would appreciate cooking that was familiar--at least from the same continent--as well as waiters who look like him more than we do. The four of us took our seats around the big hibachi grill, ordered, and were soon eating our appetizers. Rex loved his soup, and as I looked around at my happy family, I sighed satisfyingly. This was a good idea.

We had four, maybe five minutes of bliss until the chef sprayed oil on his grill and lit the thing on fire. Even before the flames exploded and we could feel the heat on our faces, Rex started wailing. I quickly grabbed Rex from his high chair and held him close, turning him away from the evil grill. Soon he calmed down--I had distracted him with chopsticks--and he could once again face the chef. The chef seemed to be prepared for this kind of reaction because he held up a little man and said, "No pwoblem, he put out fire-ah." Then he squeezed the little man and water sprayed out, right into Rex' face.

Nice, thanks Iron Chef. Rex started crying again, and so Colette moved him over with her, the farthest away from Iron Chef as possible. He apologized to me and all I was thinking was, "I hope you don't throw broccoli at my boy." I've eaten here before and that's part of their thing. They throw broccoli at you and you try to catch it in your mouth. Well, thank God he caught on and didn't toss any vegetables at Rex. He must have attended sensitivity training, which taught him that if first the fire scares the boy, and then if spraying water in his face doesn't fix it, then you skip hurling broccoli at him. After Iron Chef left, Rex calmed down, ate his whole meal, and we had a lovely time. Maybe next time I'll settle for the tattoo.

You don’t always know what you’re going to get in life. There are people and circumstances and seasons you don’t have any control over.

I’m glad Jesus is constant.

Comment by Chris S Heinz on October 23, 2009 at 2:50pm

Weekly Word: Why Be Ashamed?

“I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.” (Romans 1.16)

Yesterday our daughter Asia wore something special to school. It was a t-shirt her friend gave her. He had grown out of it, and when he realized he was too big for it, he set it aside for when he’d see her again. They don’t see each other often because he lives in the Philippines, but when we were there recently, he brought it out, and she was thrilled, and she wore it yesterday. The shirt is special not only because of who it’s from, but also what it says. In big letters it says, “JESUS.”

Now, the shirt’s not a name tag. Asia’s not announcing that she’s God, not telling the kids the answers to the test because she’s omniscient, and she’s not sitting in class and playing kickball at the same time because she’s omnipresent. She’s not turning their water into chocolate milk or their chicken nuggets into cupcakes. She’s not even flying. Asia’s not God and she knows it. But she does know God, and isn’t afraid to say it. I think that’s the point of the shirt, why it makes the shirt so special.

In the Bible, Paul writes, “I am not ashamed of the gospel,” and then he gives the reason why: “because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.” To speak of the gospel is to speak of Jesus. The Greek word for gospel is “euangelion” and is literally “the good news.” It’s shorthand for the good news of God’s Kingdom, the story of God. The story is this: God made us, we strayed from Him, God sent Jesus, Jesus didn’t stray, Jesus died because we strayed, Jesus resurrected from the dead, Jesus offers us closeness with God who made us. If we accept the story, we are saved. The gospel is that simple.

Is that really something to be ashamed of? Something to be embarrassed about? I have to confess that at times in my life, I have been. But really, why? All of us has junk that needs to be dealt with. Why be ashamed of the power of God that saves us? Why be ashamed of the one who offers salvation?

JESUS.

Comment by Chris S Heinz on October 16, 2009 at 1:32pm

Weekly Word: When Blessing Becomes Abuse

“If you find honey, eat just enough—too much of it, and you will vomit.” (Proverbs 25.16)

I’ve been eating too much lately. It’s not that Chips Ahoy trucks are delivering to my house. I just find myself taking big first portions and even bigger second portions, and eating desserts more often. It probably started the weeks leading up to our adoption trip, and has gone on ever since. I don’t know exactly why I’m eating more. Is it a way to cope with change? A way to control my circumstances? In the Philippines a teenager was surprised that I used to be a swimmer. He said, “Oh, with your body I thought you were a football player.”

Eating too much (or too little) isn’t really about the weight—having a swimmer’s body or a football player’s body. It’s about what you do with the blessing. The Bible says that if you find honey—something sweet—eat just enough or else you’ll throw it up. Finding the honey is the blessing. To really enjoy it, you have to eat just enough. Otherwise, if you eat too much, you won’t enjoy it. The honey will turn on you and you’ll vomit it up. The blessing will turn to abuse.

This simple principle—let the blessing stay a blessing lest it be abuse—has so many applications. Food, drink, technology, relationships, entertainment, you count them. There are so many areas of life that are meant to be blessings, but they get out of control and we end up abusing ourselves through them. We eat too much; we drink too much; we get too close, we watch too long; and so that which God intended as a blessing ends up as abuse.

So let me ask you this—if you give your child a toy and he hurts himself with it, wouldn’t you hesitate to give him one again? If God gives us a blessing and we hurt ourselves with it, wouldn’t He hesitate to give us one again? And should we hold back the toy, should God hold back the blessing, it wouldn’t be punishment; it would be protection. I wonder how many blessings we miss because God is protecting us, because we can’t handle them.

I wonder how many more He’d like to pour on us, but can’t.

Comment by Chris S Heinz on October 9, 2009 at 8:20am

Notes: Adoption Year is on day 13! Check it out. As an adoptive father, I'm blogging thru this first year, from Day 1 thru Day 365. [www.adoptionyear.com]

Weekly Word: What We Admit

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.” (2 Corinthians 12.9)

I have something to admit. I’m not just admitting it to myself; I’m admitting it to others. Actually, I’m boasting in it, glorying in it, getting it out. Here it is: We can't do this anymore. By this, I mean the life we've been living. It's not working and something has to change. I was waiting to see if it would turn around, but it hasn't, and I don't see that it will. So on Monday, our daughter Asia starts in public school.

We thought we could do it—adoption and homeschooling at the same time. We admit we can't. It seemed good on paper—Colette would school Asia while Rex played in the next room, and when Rex napped, they'd have really focused school time. But real life is different than it is on paper, isn’t it? Set and solid reality is different than mushy and mashy idealism, isn’t it?

It turns out two year-old Rex doesn't want to play in the next room when Asia is around; he wants to play with her. And Rex wants his Mommy. And Rex' naps aren't always the entire two hours Colette had planned for, which leaves her rushing to try to get everything in should Rex wake up early. This has left Colette completely stressed out, Asia wanting something else, who knows what Rex is thinking, and I, well I want my wife back.

In the Bible, Paul writes that he will boast—actually means to glory or rejoice in—his weaknesses so that Christ may reveal His power. You see, God is not delighted so much in showing himself at our strength. No, He prefers to be seen at our weakness. That’s how He likes it. And now—right now—we are weak. My wife is one of the strongest I know because—get this—she’s not afraid to admit she’s not perfect. Her glory is in her limitation because that is where God resides, takes up residence. Truth is, it requires more strength to admit you’re weak, than it does to pretend you’re strong.

And so we will be fine. Asia is really excited for public school. She's going to the same elementary school I did. And Rex, he'll get one-on-one time with his Mommy. And Colette, she’ll experience Christ in a way that perfect people can’t. And me, I’ll get my wife back.

I'm proud of what we admit.

Comment by Chris S Heinz on September 16, 2009 at 7:11am

Weekly Word: $100

“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink…I needed clothes and you clothed me….” (Matthew 25.35,36)

What can you do with $100? I’m going to tell you what I’ve spent $100 on before and then I’m going to tell you what I spent it on today. Before, I’ve used $100 to buy a nice dinner with my wife; I signed the bill without even flinching. I’ve also put down $100 for new running shoes; I didn’t even notice when that money ran away because there was more where it came from. I’ve also paid $100 for new books—on a regular basis—many of which remain unread on my shelves. This is what I’ve done with $100.

But today I did something different with $100. I bought 60 pairs of sandals, 30 outfits, and 60 pairs of underwear (yes, all with $100) and gave them out to children and adults living in a slum in Manila. My friend Roy is a pastor in the Philippines whose passion is to serve the people of the slums with the love of Jesus. He and his wife have been visiting this particular slum for four months now and although they’ve been spooning up soup once a week, they wanted to do more. But financial resources limited them, so they started praying. That’s where we came in.

Turns out we had $100 (or more) to spare and God knew that. He caused our paths to cross, and the rest is history. But not the kind of history you don’t remember. No, this is the kind of history you do remember, and repeat to others, and relive. I couldn’t tell you what food I ate in my $100 meal, or who made my $100 pair of running shoes, or even what books I bought for $100. But I can tell you that with today’s $100, there are some slum dwellers in Manila going to bed with a full stomach and fresh clothes.

It’s not worth a Nobel Prize, I realize. A bowl of soup and some clothes won’t get them out of the slums. They’ll still play in the trash heaps and pee in the streets. They’ll still sleep on cardboard, even when it’s wet, like today. But what is it worth, if it’s not a Nobel? A lot more than $100, that’s for sure.

What can you do with $100?

Comment by Chris S Heinz on September 9, 2009 at 11:10am

Weekly Word: Always in the Right Place

“The steps of a righteous man are ordered by God….” (Psalm 37.23)

As I start writing this, I’m supposed to be at the airport. I’m supposed to be sitting at the terminal with my family, having put our shoes back on after going through the security checkpoint. I’m supposed to be double checking (again) that we brought all the right paperwork so we can bring back what we’re planning to bring back…a son from the Philippines. But I’m not at the airport—I’m at my kitchen table—and the only planes around are the toy ones that Rex will play with, someday.

Our plans changed yesterday when our caseworker called to say the arrangements weren’t ready yet. I could tell by the tone of her voice that something was wrong even before she explained the situation. I wonder if my wife detected the same when I called her with the news. For both of us, this was difficult. This wasn’t supposed to happen: our bags were packed, our reservations were made, our friends and family had said goodbye. Heck, our church had even prayed for us at the front. And we, well, we just wanted our son.

I lingered in a cloud of disappointment for awhile. You know what I mean? When you’re looking forward to something for so long, and suddenly it falls through or is delayed or changes completely, and you can’t see past the cloud? All you can think of is what was lost or slowed down or different. You can’t think straight. Someone can speak sound logic to you and it’s like they’re singing backwards with marshmallows in their mouth. We weren’t losing Rex; we would just have to wait longer to get him. That was the truth, but in the cloud I couldn’t see it.

Then I received a text message from my friend. It read, “The steps of a righteous man are ordered by God.” That verse knocked me out of the cloud—that’s what divine revelation does sometimes—and my spirit jumped and I felt a “yeah, that’s right” kind of feeling. I surrendered to the fact that God was indeed ordering my steps. I had designed none of them; He was doing the work; He was laying them down. And now I’m excited to see what will happen because when God orders your steps…

He always places them in the right place.

Comment by Chris S Heinz on September 2, 2009 at 2:42pm

Note: Get adoption updates during our trip to the Philippines from the blog site or join the Philippines Adoption Updates Facebook Group.

Weekly Word: Three Responses to a New Thing

“See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.” (Isaiah 43.19)

Next week, my family flies to the Philippines, where we’ll meet our new son Rex and bring him home with us. Although this adoption has taken two years, it’s really four years in the making. Four years ago we started to try for another child. Since we conceived our daughter quickly, we thought the second time around would be the same. It was not. In the beginning we were hopeful we’d conceive, “Oh, just wait until next month, honey.” But next month turned to next month, which turned to next season, and into next year. Hope turned to sadness, which turned to frustration and into anger.

Somewhere between frustration and anger, our doctor recommended several medical procedures that might have improved our chances. Although we desperately wanted another child, we felt this was not the way to go (although it would have been fine for others), and that God would take care of it. At first I thought God would reward our obedience with an immediate (or immaculate) conception. But He didn’t. Instead, He placed people around us who had adopted. They sprang up everywhere, and eventually we got the hint. On September 13, 2007 our case worker visited our home to do a home study. And now, on September 14, 2009, we’ll meet our new son. Because in our family, God is doing a new thing.

When God does a new thing, there are three ways we can respond. We can miss it; we can avoid it; or we can join it. We miss it when we don’t perceive God is at work. Maybe we don’t know how to recognize God’s voice or His hand (think of Samuel in 1 Samuel 3), or maybe we don’t care what God is up to. Plenty of people don’t. Missing it is a passive response to God’s new thing—we don’t do anything about it, and we miss the opportunity.

If we don’t miss it, we might avoid it. Avoiding it is an active response to God’s new thing. We might not like the way it’s unfolding or it’s taking too long, so we make our own way (Abram and Sarai in Genesis 16). Had Colette and I moved forward with the medical procedures, we would have been avoiding God’s plan. Another way to avoid is to oppose the work directly. We fight against the very thing God is trying to do (Paul in Galatians 1.13). Fighting is a means to avoid the new thing from coming to pass.

Instead of missing it or avoiding it, we can join it (Paul in Galatians 1.15-16). This is always the best choice. God doesn’t force his choices on us; He allows us to make our own decisions. Sometimes we make good ones; sometimes we make bad ones; sometimes we perceive his move; sometimes we don’t. But Colette and I are so glad that we perceived this new thing and we joined it because now, we’re gaining a son…and Rex is gaining a family.

When God does a new thing in your life, how will you respond?

Comment by Chris S Heinz on August 28, 2009 at 3:55am

Weekly Word: A New Thing

“See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.” (Isaiah 43.19)

When I was a young boy, my mom brought Jesus into our family. He was trying to get in for awhile, but it was my mom who finally opened the door to Him. She began living for Jesus. My dad followed a few years later, and all of a sudden we boys were growing up in a Christian household. All of a sudden we were reading the Bible and making decisions through prayer and treating each other like Jesus would (well, trying to) and learning to walk with God. It was quite a change.

Now that I’m raising my own family, I’m so grateful that my mom let Jesus in. She changed the way my family went and she changed the way my family will go. That is, she changed our family of origin—where I was a son—and she changed my immediate family—where I am a father. Now I lead my family the way I was led as a child—with Jesus. By her bold decision, my mom changed two generations and if it goes as I’d like it to, she’ll end up changing many more. Our kids will lead their kids to Jesus, who will lead their kids to Jesus, and so forth. All because my mom did a new thing.

In the Bible, God says that He’s doing a new thing. He’s talking to Israel about a specific situation, but the general principle still applies to us. There are seasons in life in which God does new things. He calls us into new seasons, changes the situation completely. He creates new ways in the desert and carves out new streams in the wasteland. At the time, it seems radically different. It seems earth-shattering, maybe impossible. Streams aren’t supposed to spring up in the wasteland, are they?

But when God does a new thing, it’s a good thing. It’s best to get on board, best to perceive it and act. You don’t know when that season will come around again; don’t know if it ever will; new ways are not made in the desert every day, you know. And, it might be something to change the generations of your family. One day, my grandchildren might ask how we came to follow Jesus, and I’ll tell them about my mom, how she let Jesus in.

Because God was doing a new thing.

Chris S. Heinz
www.weeklyword.net

Reader Comment from Last Week:
Thank you!!!! I so needed this as I am in the midst of being bullied big time.!!! If I keep my mind focused on enjoying Jesus then you are right, he can't really touch me!! What a great truth to hold onto in the midst...right now...as the battle rages and the bully keeps striking. YES!!! God just added your weekly word to the arsenal of weapons HE has been giving me to stand strong and not crumble.

Comment by Chris S Heinz on August 21, 2009 at 3:15am

If God Is For Us

“If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8.31)

When I was in elementary school, I had a bully. Physically he was smaller than me, but his trash talk and persistence made him appear much bigger than he was. Years later at our ten year reunion, I looked at him and thought, “Really? This was my bully?” There was nothing intimidating about him! During the reunion, he stayed in the corner and talked with a small group of friends. I on the other hand, was asked to address the entire class from the podium, which I did and had a good time of it.

But it wasn’t always this way, you know. In elementary school he would tease me and taunt me on the way to school. He would call me names and say things that people should never say to each other. I felt helpless—bigger in stature yes—but smaller in nature. I just didn’t have it in me to fight back. The relief came when my father stepped in. He found out what was going on and the next day, he walked right up to my bully and told him to stop. I didn’t hear everything he said, but it was enough—the bullying stopped.

The Bible asks, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” We can face some pretty ominous forces in life, can’t we? Health concerns and job losses and difficult relationships and criminal acts and learning disabilities and spiritual enemies and physical addictions and emotional setbacks and untimely deaths and impossible expectations and appropriate uncertainties and shaky finances and growing timeframes and even, just even, small-framed bullies.

But might I remind us all: If God is for us, who can be against us? In the season of pressure, we tend to focus on our bully. He becomes bigger to us and he is all we can see. We forget God, who is for us. We forget our Father who has come to stand with us against the bully. It’s usually later, when the season has passed, that we see the bully for who he is—someone who can’t really touch us.
And so I ask you this: If God is for us, who can be against us?

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