It’s been quite some time since I visited a pawn shop. Years ago I was looking for a guitar and several people suggested I might want to see what might be available in the local pawn shops. Almost every one had at least one guitar among all the other appliances, car stereos, and obsolete computers; but the stores were depressing.
When someone needs cash to take care of some pressing obligation, a pawn shop is a place where they can take an item they own and leave it as collateral for a short-term loan. The pawnbroker bases the amount of money he will loan to the customer based on how much he might get for it if the person is unable or unwilling to repay the loan. That means a guitar that may have originally sold for around $3,000 might secure a loan for $800 to $1,000.
Now if the person pawning their guitar isn’t able to repay the loan, the pawnbroker can sell it for $1,500 to $1,800 and make a pretty nice profit—and it would be a sweet deal for the person who was hoping to buy a quality instrument. Still, there is something about profiting from another person’s misfortune that just doesn’t sit right with me.
And looking around the pawn shop—in and among the used DVD’s, worn power tools, and first-generation video games—you spot a few real treasures. There’s a vintage ring that belonged to someone’s grandmother. Here’s a silver chest that was handed done several times. A porcelain statue someone carefully brought back with them from a once-in-a-lifetime journey sits on a shelf crowded cheap knickknacks.
Of course, the person who hocked that “treasure” knew what they were doing. They freely entered into the contract with the pawnbroker. Still, there’s a part of me that would like to be able to reunite some people with their “treasure”—that would love to hear them play sweet music again.
I imagine that is the way God feels when he sees one of his children who have “sold” themselves. The good news is that Christ came to pay the price to buy you back—no matter how deep your debt. You’ve been redeemed! Let that good news shape your new life in Christ!
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Waiting for an Answer
Filling out an application can be a very exciting undertaking. Whether you are applying for a new job, hoping to enroll in a new school, or considering joining a new organization; as you answer each successive question, your imagination begins to anticipate what it will be like to be invited to participate in this new opportunity.
Perhaps you have also experienced the anxiety that grows as you move through the easy questions (like your name and address) to the ones that are difficult to answer (like “What are your strengths and weaknesses?”). Now you’re wondering how many other people are also applying for this opportunity. You might find yourself wishing you had been a little more friendly with your last boss or more focused in a couple of classes. Would it make your application stronger if you could list a couple of places where you had volunteered?
The time between submitting your application and receiving a decision becomes a place where both the excitement and the anxiety grow. You move back and forth between being confident that you are the person they’ve been looking for, to wondering why you ever thought you had a chance of being considered. You begin to think about who you might need to know, or where you might need to go, or what you might need to acquire, or how you might need to think to improve your chances of be accepted.
Whether you have an application you are waiting to hear back from or not, you may wonder if there is a place where you are accepted. Paul assures the believers in Rome that if they will only give themselves to God without reservation, God will accept their offering—because the grace of God is the proof that God accepts them.
May you accept the fact that you are accepted by a gracious God who wants you to experience a life that is good and pleasing and perfect; and may the knowledge of that acceptance give you peace with yourself, your neighbor, and your God.
Perhaps you have also experienced the anxiety that grows as you move through the easy questions (like your name and address) to the ones that are difficult to answer (like “What are your strengths and weaknesses?”). Now you’re wondering how many other people are also applying for this opportunity. You might find yourself wishing you had been a little more friendly with your last boss or more focused in a couple of classes. Would it make your application stronger if you could list a couple of places where you had volunteered?
The time between submitting your application and receiving a decision becomes a place where both the excitement and the anxiety grow. You move back and forth between being confident that you are the person they’ve been looking for, to wondering why you ever thought you had a chance of being considered. You begin to think about who you might need to know, or where you might need to go, or what you might need to acquire, or how you might need to think to improve your chances of be accepted.
Whether you have an application you are waiting to hear back from or not, you may wonder if there is a place where you are accepted. Paul assures the believers in Rome that if they will only give themselves to God without reservation, God will accept their offering—because the grace of God is the proof that God accepts them.
May you accept the fact that you are accepted by a gracious God who wants you to experience a life that is good and pleasing and perfect; and may the knowledge of that acceptance give you peace with yourself, your neighbor, and your God.
Friday, May 13, 2011
More than “Kindred Spirits” or “Bosom Friends”
As Matthew is leaving for the train station to pick up the young person they have arranged to come live with them, Marilla reminds him they have asked for a boy. They are both growing older and the work on the farm has become too much for them to do alone. There is a glut of orphans in Nova Scotia, so it seems to be the perfect solution.
When Matthew arrives at the station, the “boy” they have been sent turns out to be a slight, eleven-year-old girl. Anne Shirley quickly charms her way into Matthew’s heart. Marilla is much more difficult to convince; and Anne’s vivid imagination, flair for drama, and inclination to fill every silence with conversation nearly drives Marilla to distraction. Nevertheless, the Cuthbert’s decide to make a place in their home and in their lives for this peculiar young woman—and Green Gables is never the same.
While Anne of Green Gables focuses on the adventures and misadventures of Anne Shirley, her new wards, and the friends she makes as she moves into the community; it also presents a picture of adoption as the opportunity to experience a life that is full of promise. Because of her freckles and red hair, Anne thinks she is so unattractive that she could understand why the Cuthbert’s might not welcome her. In spite of her best efforts to do the right thing, Anne manages to make one profound blunder after another. She willingly admits that she deserves to be sent back to the orphanage.
In her imagination she has a fully developed picture of how miserable her life would be if that were to happen. Her dread of that possibility touches even the stoic heart of Marilla. As they all learn to live together as a family, we have the privilege of watching them each experience more of the abundance of life than they would have if they had decided not to stay faithful to their commitment to become one family.
Paul tells the Ephesians that, “God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure” (1:5). Perhaps you wonder if God would welcome you into his home. You may be afraid that some of the things you have done have ruined your chances of finding your place in God’s family. Let me assure you that God is ready to show you grace beyond measure—grace that will make you more than “kindred spirits” or “bosom friends”—grace that will enable you to believe that God truly is your Father.
When Matthew arrives at the station, the “boy” they have been sent turns out to be a slight, eleven-year-old girl. Anne Shirley quickly charms her way into Matthew’s heart. Marilla is much more difficult to convince; and Anne’s vivid imagination, flair for drama, and inclination to fill every silence with conversation nearly drives Marilla to distraction. Nevertheless, the Cuthbert’s decide to make a place in their home and in their lives for this peculiar young woman—and Green Gables is never the same.
While Anne of Green Gables focuses on the adventures and misadventures of Anne Shirley, her new wards, and the friends she makes as she moves into the community; it also presents a picture of adoption as the opportunity to experience a life that is full of promise. Because of her freckles and red hair, Anne thinks she is so unattractive that she could understand why the Cuthbert’s might not welcome her. In spite of her best efforts to do the right thing, Anne manages to make one profound blunder after another. She willingly admits that she deserves to be sent back to the orphanage.
In her imagination she has a fully developed picture of how miserable her life would be if that were to happen. Her dread of that possibility touches even the stoic heart of Marilla. As they all learn to live together as a family, we have the privilege of watching them each experience more of the abundance of life than they would have if they had decided not to stay faithful to their commitment to become one family.
Paul tells the Ephesians that, “God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure” (1:5). Perhaps you wonder if God would welcome you into his home. You may be afraid that some of the things you have done have ruined your chances of finding your place in God’s family. Let me assure you that God is ready to show you grace beyond measure—grace that will make you more than “kindred spirits” or “bosom friends”—grace that will enable you to believe that God truly is your Father.
Friday, May 6, 2011
Your Place on the Team
When was the last time you saw a group of kids standing around the ball field trying to decide who is going to be on whose team? I wonder if it ever happens these days with all the organized leagues and kids dressed in uniforms that rival the pro’s.
Perhaps you can remember playing in the front yard when one of your neighbors walked by and let you know there was going to be a game at the field in thirty minutes. You ran inside to tell your mom where you were headed, grabbed your glove, and took off.
Just a handful of kids were there when you arrived. You even wondered if there would be enough to make one team, let alone two. Within a few minutes a few more kids had showed up. A couple had a ball. Two or three bats appeared from somewhere. It was time for a game.
Now came one of the most significant—and anxiety-producing—events in your life. It was time to choose up sides. Somehow two kids (not always the oldest or the strongest, but usually) were standing on either side of home plate and pointing at one kid and then another, saying, “I choose you.”
If you were always one of the first couple of kids who were chosen, then you probably don’t remember that knot that started growing in your stomach as the “captains” continued to pick their teams and treat you as if you were invisible. Some of you will remember waving your hand as you tried to get the attention of the “captain” of the team you wanted to be on; and then turning away when it came time for the other “captain” to choose. Still, being chosen to be on the “wrong” team was better than being chosen last or—worse, yet—not being chosen at all.
It may not have begun on the ball field, but many people continue to carry that nagging question in the back of their minds, “Would anyone choose me?” It is a question that can trouble people in many different areas of their lives: professional, relational, and spiritual.
If this is a question that haunts you, hear this good news: God chooses you! Yes, God wants you to be on the team. Your new life in Jesus Christ means that you are not meant for the sidelines. God has a place for you in the game.
May you come to realize your value to God and your importance to the community of faith as you hear God say, “I choose you!”
Perhaps you can remember playing in the front yard when one of your neighbors walked by and let you know there was going to be a game at the field in thirty minutes. You ran inside to tell your mom where you were headed, grabbed your glove, and took off.
Just a handful of kids were there when you arrived. You even wondered if there would be enough to make one team, let alone two. Within a few minutes a few more kids had showed up. A couple had a ball. Two or three bats appeared from somewhere. It was time for a game.
Now came one of the most significant—and anxiety-producing—events in your life. It was time to choose up sides. Somehow two kids (not always the oldest or the strongest, but usually) were standing on either side of home plate and pointing at one kid and then another, saying, “I choose you.”
If you were always one of the first couple of kids who were chosen, then you probably don’t remember that knot that started growing in your stomach as the “captains” continued to pick their teams and treat you as if you were invisible. Some of you will remember waving your hand as you tried to get the attention of the “captain” of the team you wanted to be on; and then turning away when it came time for the other “captain” to choose. Still, being chosen to be on the “wrong” team was better than being chosen last or—worse, yet—not being chosen at all.
It may not have begun on the ball field, but many people continue to carry that nagging question in the back of their minds, “Would anyone choose me?” It is a question that can trouble people in many different areas of their lives: professional, relational, and spiritual.
If this is a question that haunts you, hear this good news: God chooses you! Yes, God wants you to be on the team. Your new life in Jesus Christ means that you are not meant for the sidelines. God has a place for you in the game.
May you come to realize your value to God and your importance to the community of faith as you hear God say, “I choose you!”
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