I go to a college full of pranksters. You have to be constantly on guard around my friends. In the words of a cowboy friend, we’ve all “been had” at some point or another. There have been some pretty good pranks since I’ve been at college, but this week a prank was pulled that beat the rest – I mean, this was the practical joke of the century!

A friend of mine, Zach, had been pranked by another friend, David. So Zach decided to exact revenge. He created a Facebook account for a fake girl. Her name was “Kelly.” He created all of her personal information, posted pictures of one of his friends (a girl David wouldn’t recognize) and made her appear perfect. Among other things, her email address was proverbs31girl04@____.com.

“Kelly” contacted David and began conversing with him for a couple of days. David totally took the bait – hook, line, and sinker – and fell hard and fast for this girl. He was so excited that a girl this amazing and this beautiful would pursue him! He told all of his friends (including me) about Kelly and how he thought she was “the one” for him… all of the things that usually accompany a high school or college crush. The problem was that this girl did not exist, a fact which he would soon realize. “Kelly” asked David to coffee at Starbucks and the poor victim went like a lamb to slaughter. David waited eagerly at Starbucks, but at the appointed time Zach appeared, handed him some flowers, and introduced himself as “Kelly!” David was so disappointed. This fantasy girl with whom he had nearly fallen in love turned about to be absolutely fake and he admitted that it was the best revenge prank he’d ever seen.

This made me think about my walk with the Lord. How many times do I fall for a fake when the genuine item, Jesus, desires a true relationship with me? Sometimes a sin, or a relationship, or a particular venture seems so right, but then it turns out to be completely wrong. It might appear pleasurable, but Hebrews 11 reminds Christians that sin is only for a season, and then reality hits – it is a fake, a fraud. Romans 1:24-25 says that God judged humanity because we exchanged the truth of God for lie. I am challenged greatly by these verses and hope that I will recognize a fake when one presents itself. What about you? Have you fallen in love with a lie, or do you love the one true God?

I hate running. I mean, why go out in the summer heat and beat it out on the pavement when you can sit at home, watch a movie and eat a huge bowl of ice cream? You can be healthy and exercise, but you’ll just die anyway. I’d rather die face-down in a plate of fudge! My wife, on the other hand, is another story. She very much enjoys running. In fact, the very first “date” we had was when she asked if I would accompany her while she ran in downtown Dallas, so she wouldn’t have to worry about being mugged or anything. The only reason I agreed was that I thought this would be the only way I could get to be around her, and I personally think she was using this as an excuse for the same thing, but she will never admit it. As soon as I knew that we had become an item, the running quickly stopped. Was I running with ulterior motives? Absolutely!

But even considering my distaste for running and the ulterior motives for doing so, one thing that my wife taught me about running has stuck with me. She said that when she was in cross country in high school, all of the runners were taught to keep their eyes on the runner ahead of them at all times. This allowed them certain advantages. First, it kept them from getting distracted by things going on around them and thus slowing down because of it. Second, for some reason, keeping your eyes on a runner in front of you makes you run faster yourself. On a subconscious level you start thinking of the race as a race between you and the person in front of you, thus creating a personal contest in which you can’t help but run faster. The same is true of horse racing. A horse is more likely to run faster if it is next to another horse, rather than being all by itself. Third, keeping your eyes on the runner in front of you gives you encouragement to keep running because you know that if that runner can make it so far, you can to.

This got me to thinking about Hebrews 12:1-3. The passage states that we are to run the race (that being the Christian life) with endurance. Some form of the word “endurance” is mentioned in every verse of that text. The author of Hebrews must have been like me and known how hard it is to run, so he says that the way we run should be with endurance. But then he describes how we are to run. First, he says that we must lay aside the sin which so easily drags us down. Just like a runner takes off all unnecessary clothing and weight, so we must also take off all of the sin that would keep us from running the race in the best way possible. Second, the author must have known about cross country running because he says that we are to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, who was the forerunner of our faith. Jesus is the runner who is in front of us.

When we do this, the same three advantages that apply in cross country apply here. When we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus who has run the race before us, it keeps us from getting distracted by things that can get us distracted from running and slow us down, be that a bad relationship, a pet sin, a job, or something else. It also allows us to run the race faster and with endurance because we are following in the footsteps of Jesus. Finally, we have encouragement to run the race before us, to tackle anything that comes our way, because we know that Jesus has already been there. That’s why the author says in verse 3, “consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”

I have a choice of whether or not I go out and run today. But I do not have a choice of whether or not to run the Christian race. We are all running; the question is how well are we running? Let’s look to Jesus – it’s the only way we can cross the finish line.

Do you remember the first time you went on a rope swing over a river or a lake? I remember the first time I ever used one. All of my friends were egging me on, daring me to swing out over the water and let go of the rope. All of the older kids had already done it, and it looked easy enough until…I actually had to do it. I remember holding the rope, swinging back and going all the way to the edge, and then just as I was about to let go, fear got a hold of me, and I stayed on the shore. It looked scary out there over the water! But I remember the first time that I was willing to risk my life out there over the water, because death by rope swing was definitely better than living and enduring all of the jokes and scorn of my older friends for the rest of my life. I pulled all the way back and then swung out over the water, and even though it was scary, I let go of the rope. Then there was a moment of intense midair flailing and flying, followed by being swallowed up in the water where I was sure I was going to drown. But then I finally came up out of the water, and I realized it was the most awesome thing I’d ever done, and I couldn’t wait to do it again!

The Christian life is kind of like that rope swing. A lot of times, life is scary out over the water, and we are afraid to let go of our lives - the rope - and so we hold on. But as soon as we realize that we can no longer hang onto the rope and we let go and give our lives to God, even though it might be scary out there, we realize that we’ve found life like we never knew was out there. And we find that life was nothing before we gave it to God.

This week was Great Commission week at my college. We had a speaker who spoke on the importance of following Jesus’ command to share our faith everywhere we go. He brought up a very interesting point that I’ve never thought about before. He said the problem with churches and Christians today is that we’ve lost the concept of a great idea.

Have you ever thought about what motivated the terrorists on September 11, 2001, to hijack several planes and fly them into buildings in suicide missions? They had what was for them a great idea. Now I am in no way endorsing what they did, but it is interesting to note that they so believed in their cause, their “great idea,” that they were willing to give their very lives for it. How many Christians today would be willing to give their lives for our cause, our great idea – the command to go and make disciples of all nations? I think we aren’t willing to give our lives is because we value our lives more than we do the Gospel. We are afraid of losing our lives because we think that we are the most important part of our existence. We’ve lost sight of a great idea that supersedes the importance of individual lives. Instead of telling God that we will go and spread the Gospel wherever He sends us, even if it means that we may lose our lives in the process, we have gotten to the point where we won’t even share our faith with a neighbor because we value our reputation more than we do their eternal destiny.

Jesus said that in order to find our lives, we must first lose them (Luke 9:23-24). He says that we must take up our cross and follow Him. The Apostle Paul says that he dies daily and that he is crucified with Christ. That means simply that in order to follow Jesus, I must value Him more than I do myself. I die to myself so Christ can live through me (Galatians 2:20). Will I lose my life? Yes. Will I find my life? Yes!

Let go of the rope and live your life for God. Grasp the great idea of the Gospel and give yourself to it!

Have you ever had a circumstance that has just totally brought you down to the harsh reality of life? It feels like gravity is just crushing in on you and your world is falling apart – maybe when you lose your job or receive a phone call and find out a friend has committed suicide. Somehow life will never be the same and you are stuck dealing with the tragic realities of life on earth.

I have some friends who have experienced exactly that this week. Hannah and Winston played in a jazz band with me for most of my high school career. They were great friends who were really there for me in some crucial moments of my life. I found out that they were home from college for spring break and were driving with their parents and younger sister to a concert when they were hit by a drunk driver. Their dad was killed instantly upon impact. He was a pastor in my hometown. Their mom is in critical condition and is not expected to live. Hannah and Winston are both in the hospital and are recovering from several surgeries done because of internal bleeding. Their younger sister had several broken bones and is now out of the hospital. The drunk driver walked away from the accident uninjured. This family is in desperate need of prayer. On top of the physical difficulties associated with the wreck, I can only imagine the emotional distress that must be accompanying this accident. Feelings of mourning for their father, anger towards the drunk driver, worry for their mother, anxiety concerning their own recovery – gravity is crushing.

As a friend, what can I say to this family that has experienced such a loss this week? How can there be any hope for them? I’ve thought about this question for the last few days and have really had a difficult time coming up with anything that would be meaningful to this family right now. The only answer I’ve been able to come to is that there is no hope outside of Jesus.

I was reading in Hebrews 2 and God really showed me some awesome things about His Son. The Bible says that Jesus, because He died and rose from the grave, conquered the one who had the power of death – the devil – and can now free the ones who have fear of death – us. That passage says that Jesus is the author of our salvation. I found that the word used for author is the Greek word archegos. The interesting thing about this word is that in classical literature this is the word used to describe Hercules, the mighty champion of war. So what you have in Hebrews 2 is that Jesus was horribly crucified on a cross for our sins. But we celebrate Easter this week because the story did not end there. Three days after His death, Jesus came back to life! Death could not hold him – He came out the other side of death and in doing so snatched the throat out of the devil relieving him of his power over death. This then frees us who have been in slavery to the fear of death all of our lives. Jesus then is the reigning champion over all things, including death, and rules as the archegos from His throne forever and ever. His children are freed from fear because we will follow Him out the other side of death and be victorious over death because of His resurrection.

That’s hope! If I could give any comfort to Hannah and Winston, it would be this: even though this is a tragedy, take hope because Jesus conquered death and your dad is now with Jesus. You don’t have to live in fear. Jesus is the champion.

I have an embarrassing confession to make. Sometimes those of us who are in preparation for ministry have some weird quirks. As an example, I sometimes like to challenge myself to find sermon illustrations in situations where I have nothing better to do. For instance, when I am sitting in traffic or studying at the library or shopping at the grocery store, I like to keep my “preacher senses” sharp by trying to observe and find sermon illustrations in that particular situation.

One of the more embarrassing and dorky situations is trying to find illustrations in the restroom. I know it sounds weird, but it’s amazing how many you can find. The example I am going to give you is one of the most recent observations I’ve made.

The other day I saw a bottle of Clorox wipes. On the front of the container, it indicated the wipes are good for cleaning surfaces and killing germs. It even claimed to kill the flu bacteria. It said that it was useful for keeping kids safe because it kills the germs before the germs make the kids sick. It sounds like a great product and it is – but there’s a hitch. It has to be used according to the instructions on the back of the container. There’s a warning label there that tells consumers to keep the wipes away from children because if the Clorox wipe comes in contact with a child’s mouth, it can cause them to get very sick, perhaps much sicker than the flu. So what you have is a product that is very good but if misused can bring great harm. The only way to know how to use it and how not to misuse it is to read the instructions on the label.

This led me to think about the Christian life. How many times does God give us something that is meant for good and then we misuse it?

This could apply to most anything, but let’s take sex for example. God has created sex as a part of His plan for the world. It is something that is useful in that it helps to populate the earth. It is also something pleasurable that God created to occur between a husband and a wife. We have a natural desire for sex and it is a good, God-given desire. But you almost can’t count the number of ways in which it can be misused. Whether it is pre-marital or extra-marital sex, or if it is mere lust that causes us to commit adultery in the heart (Matthew 5:28), it is a misuse of what God created and it causes harm to us – be it sexual disease, emotional heartbreak, or any number of other things. The only way we can know how to use it and how not to misuse it is to read the instruction manual, God’s Word.

I think of all the times that I’ve misused something that God created for my good. If I had only listened to His Word, I could have avoided a lot of trouble in the process. We just need to hear God’s Word and obey it.

All of Scripture is breathed out by God himself and is profitable to us for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that we can be whole and complete, totally equipped for that which God has for us. (2 Timothy 3:16-17)

I could feel the blood rushing to my head. The whole room seemed to be swirling around me as I sat down in my seat, thoroughly humiliated, thoroughly embarrassed. It seemed as if everyone was laughing at me after someone who I thought was my friend made fun of me in front of the entire class. I was so mad that this guy made me look so stupid in front of everyone.

The relationship that I thought I had with this person continued to head downhill from there. The jokes, pranks, and under-handed insults that we threw in each other’s direction eventually escalated to more heated arguments and fights. Finally, we weren’t even speaking to each other. Not only were we not speaking with each other, but I actively wished for bad things to happen to this guy. This was my first encounter with bitterness.

I’m not sure if this story may ring any bells with you but I have a feeling that I’m not the only person out there who has been hurt in some way and has decided to hold a grudge or become bitter because of it. I don’t think it happens on purpose. Initially, it seems as if it’s the other person’s fault, and indeed it may be – they caused the hurt, they messed up the relationship. But it is really easy to progress from there. So many times I have decided to let my anger towards a person for something they did to me turn into something far worse – at best, an utter distaste for the person, and at worst, an out-and-out hatred.

I have many friends who have had hurts that are far worse than the ones I’ve experienced – friends who’ve gone through a divorce, or verbal abuse, or sometimes even sexual or physical abuse. It seems as if the natural reaction to hurt is bitterness.

There’s an antidote to this problem. Whenever we harbor something against someone because they’ve hurt us in some way, we are choosing not to forgive them. I was reading a verse the other day that was really convicting. Ephesians 4:32 says, “Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ forgave you.” Just as Christ forgave you. When I read this verse I felt God impressing a question upon me – How can you hold something against someone when I sent my Son to die for them so that something could be forgiven? That question has stuck with me over the last few days. As hard as it is to forgive people sometimes, when I consider the sacrifice that was made to forgive me of my sins, it suddenly doesn’t seem as hard to forgive those who’ve done far less to me than I’ve done to Christ. If Jesus can forgive me for the hurt I caused Him, I can forgive others for the hurts they’ve caused me.

Jesus, please help me to so understand your love for me – that I love others the way you love me. Forgive me when I choose to harbor bitterness against someone for whom you died. Empower me to let go of my pride and forgive others as you forgave me. Amen.

In keeping my promise from last week to discuss my biggest personal struggles, I came upon an ironic twist. The very reason it’s hard to discuss my personal struggles is actually a struggle in itself, that of pride. Somehow, coming to grips with the reality of my shortcomings is easier than telling others about them. There’s something humiliating about confessing that I make mistakes, and yet, being too proud to admit that I make them is actually a mistake in itself.

I remember the game very well. I had just hit an in-the-park home run. After squeezing two extra bases out of what should have been a double, I proudly bowed to the crowd and started strutting towards the dugout. Always one with a flair for the dramatic, I decided to give one final bow to the crowd before entering the dugout. Unfortunately, after the bow, I turned around to enter the dugout and ran right into the metal pole that formed the doorframe. As I was sitting on the bench afterwards trying to stop my nose from bleeding, the words “pride goes before the fall” kept replaying themselves over in my head.

While this is one of the funnier examples of the results of my pride, there are far more serious examples. I think of times when I have been too proud to talk to someone who, in my opinion, wasn’t as cool as me, times when a relationship has been ruined because I have been too proud to admit that I was wrong or ask for forgiveness. Although I am ashamed to admit it, there have even been times when my pride has kept me from admitting my sin to God and asking for His forgiveness.

Recently, as I was reading the New Testament, I discovered that the word for pride describes not just a man who is concerned with only himself, but a man who has contempt for everyone but himself. It is not merely a positive view of oneself, but a negative view of everyone else. When I am prideful, I’m not only hurting myself but I’m hurting everyone else around me. Pride is destructive – the Bible is correct when it says that pride goes before destruction, and an arrogant mind before the fall.

The Apostle Paul encouraged the church at Philippi in this regard. He told them that they should have the same attitude as Jesus, who, although He was God, humbled Himself and became a servant, suffering and dying in a way that a King never should have had to experience. He did it because He viewed the well-being of others as more important than His own well-being (Philippians 2:5-8). Paul’s encouragement to that church still rings true for the church and for me today – I should be like Jesus. Sound too hard? Paul didn’t think so, because in that same letter, he said that he could do all things through Christ (Philippians 4:13). The only way to overcome pride and be like Jesus where I humble myself so I can serve others is to depend on His power and strength. And true to His Word, He will always strengthen me and allow me to live the way He commanded me to live.

One of my biggest struggles is that of repetitive sin. It started when I was a younger. No matter how many times my parents told me not to, and no matter how many times they would discipline me when I disobeyed, I just couldn’t seem to stop dissing my parents (smarting off to them) when they told me to do something that I didn’t want to do. Even though I knew it was wrong, I did it anyway. As life progressed and I got into high school and college, the sins became more serious. Whether it was lying , lust, selfish desires, or pride, I just couldn’t seem to get any victory over my ‘pet’ sins. Does anyone else know what I’m talking about?

My experience reveals the truth of Scripture. Jesus said that whoever commits sin is a slave to sin (John 8:34). That is a great word picture. The idea of being chained up and forced to do the bidding of a master other than self—that’s exactly what happens when we sin. We serve sin and cannot free ourselves from the chains that sin puts on us.

“Therefore if the Son sets you free, you really will be free.” John 8:36 (HCSB)

This seems like a downer except for the fact that Jesus also said that whoever the Son sets free is free indeed (John 8:36), which means Jesus is able to free us from the slavery of sin. Because He died and paid the penalty for my sins and rose from the dead three days later, I can have the victory over sin—not because of anything good in me, but it’s because the same power that raised Jesus back to life is the power that is living in me through the Holy Spirit. So it is no longer me fighting the battle on my own. I have died to myself and asked Jesus to take over and control my life. He then wins the battle and gets all of the praise. All I can do is sit back and thank Him for doing in His power what I cannot do in my own. Although I still struggle with repetitive sin and will until I die, I have found that it is when I am counting on my own strength to resist sin that I mess up. When I constantly rely on God’s strength and the power of the Holy Spirit, He wins the day.

Figure 1 The Hebert Clan

Growing up in a family of seven kids was not always an easy thing to do. Besides the embarrassment of wearing hand-me down clothes that could be up to ten years out of style, things such as sharing a room with three brothers and sharing a bathroom with three brothers and three sisters were difficult and trying times for a kid. Probably the worst thing was at mealtimes. There were eight other people at the table – all hungry – and if you weren’t quick, you didn’t eat. By the time I reached high school, I finally realized that if I would start serving my plate while everybody’s heads were bowed in prayer, I could get enough food to get by.

One potential problem in a big family (Figure 1) is neglect. Although this was not a problem in my family, there were times that I wondered if my parents even remembered that they had a son named Andrew. My parents had seven kids with seven individual schedules. Seven sets of friends, seven sports teams, seven sets of needs. They had a real balancing act trying to give each of us individual attention.

But somehow in the midst of the circus that was my family, my parents managed to make me feel unique and special. My parents were at every single baseball game, every single band concert, at every important milestone in my life. They made me feel one-of-a-kind, and we never were able to tell if they loved one child more than another. They treated us all the same and loved us each as if we were their only child.

I was thinking this morning, if I am treated as so unique and special by my parents in this earthly relationship, how much more unique and special am I to God? I started thinking of all the ways that God acts towards me as an individual. Rather than merely relating to humans as a group, he relates to humans as individuals. He doesn’t lose me in the group or forget about me because there are so many others who look, sound, and act like me. He has a particular plan for my life. He took the punishment for my sin on himself when He went to the cross. He hears me when I pray and cares enough about my individual situation to answer. He created me as an individual. He will one day receive me as an individual. And one day, as an individual in a group of other individuals, I will worship at His feet and thank Him for taking care of each of His children to an extent that merely magnified every good thing I saw in my parents.

It constantly amazes me how many times I can be told something and still not get it. I think most everyone has experienced this at some point or another. Whether as a child it was my mother telling me to pick up my socks or now my wife suggesting that I iron my shirt before I wear it, all of us know what it’s like to hear something again and again and yet it never sinks in.

This also seems to happen to me when it comes to spiritual matters. In fact, there is one particular lesson that I always seem to be re-learning – the lesson of total dependence on Christ.

I remember the first time I heard this concept was on a fishing trip in south Texas with my pastor. He said, “Andrew, Jesus is all you need for life. If you have him, you have everything you need.” Seems simple, right? But I kept wondering—what does that look like? How can that be a reality in my life?

It wasn’t until my first semester of college that I began to realize what he was talking about on that fishing trip. It was the first time I had to pay for my car, pay for an apartment, pay for tuition, and keep myself disciplined to study and it almost drove me insane.

I couldn’t believe the amount of responsibility that was on my shoulders. I remember nearly breaking down one night and thinking that if I had to even look at one more book, I’d take my entire library and burn it! I recalled my pastor’s words and decided to take a step of faith and try out this “Let Jesus do it” thing. I didn’t know exactly what to do but I remember crying out to Jesus and just asking for his help. I wanted to see Him become strong in my weakness. In a way that I can’t explain a wave of comfort and security swept over me. It was something I had never experienced before.

After getting married while still a college student, I can’t tell you how many times that same kind of a thing happened over and over again. When my wife and I had a physical or spiritual need and asked Jesus to be there for us, to be sufficient for our lives, he was.

I sit here this morning facing another situation where I have to trust this simple but powerful truth. My wife and I are expecting our first child in about four months. The daunting prospect of having to care and provide for a little baby seems to sometimes overcome me with fear and anxiety. I once again have to cry out to Jesus for help. I find myself at work just thinking about this baby and trying to think how in the world I can be a good father when I seem to be still learning and growing myself. Yet, I can look to the past examples of Jesus’ faithfulness in my life and I can look to Scripture and understand that Jesus is very near. If I will only lean on him, He’ll take care of me. It’s like the song that says “I’m not holding on to Jesus; He’s holding on to me.”

Jesus, take care of me again!