Author Archives: Liz

Interference

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I just asked Jesus to come interfere in my life. This is quite different from my usual prayers that ask Him to sustain me, support me, help me get through my day as I have planned it. It was part of a journaling exercise for the bible study I am doing this semester from the book “not a fan” by Kyle Idleman. This is a book that will shake you up no matter where you are on your faith journey. For the last two months, it has been challenging, upsetting, angering, convicting, and inspiring all at once, but this exercise from the Journal today brought me to tears. The instructions were to repeat ten times out loud the phrase:

“Lord Jesus come interfere in my life.”

I know it may sound a little silly, but it was powerful. Each time I repeated those seven words, my mind raced with thoughts as I subconsciously emphasized a different word each time. I was filled with so many emotions that by the third time I had to get up and find a tissue as they spilled out in my tears. But even as the tears flowed, I was reminded of the promise that we all have in Jesus. It was in that promise that I found the encouragement to pray these words with my whole heart.

Lord….

Jesus….

Come….

Interfere…

In…

My….

Life…

 

Lord…. King, Ruler. I am your servant. A slave for you. Once under the bondage of my sin, but set free by you. I am now a bondservant, a slave for you by my own choice. You are just and righteous and holy. Knowing that is what makes me want to follow you.

Jesus…. Savior, friend, teacher, intercessor. You gave Your very life for me that I might enjoy eternity with You. Perfect in every way though tempted just as I. Once human now seated at the right hand of the Father. You are coming again to judge and I will only be found worthy by Your blood.

Come…. Come down to me, send your Holy Spirit to guide me. If you are with me, who can stand against? You said if I would seek, I would find You. I’m seeking, Lord, meet me here right where I am now.

Interfere… Mess with it. Shake it up. Change my plans because You have perfect plans for me. Plans to prosper me, plans for peace and for hope. There are things in my life I don’t like…change them for your glory. Make my every move glorify Your Holy Name. Make Your plans obvious to me. Protect me from Satan’s attempts to bring doubt about Your plans for me.

In… Be IN my life in all its messy ugly sadness. Be in the moments of joy and happiness. Be IN my home, my car, IN all the places I go. Be IN my interactions with my husband, my children, family, friends, strangers. Be IN my heart, seal it with Your Holy Spirit.

My…. Not mine but yours. All I think I am, all I think I have are not my own. I do not rule any part of the life I live no matter how hard I try. My life is Yours. My moods, my attitudes, my speech, my actions, my thoughts, my expressions…they are all Yours make them glorify you!

Life… Any life I enjoy is from you. You created me. And I am fearfully and wonderfully made. This life on earth is temporary. You give life and You can take it away at any moment. Your promise of life is eternal. What I do with this life should all be for your Glory, for Your Kingdom. What do you want for my life here on earth, Lord?

“Lord Jesus come interfere in my life.”

When I finished, I was so ready to let Jesus mess with my day that when the phone rang I was almost convinced it was Him calling with some major change my whole game plan. I jumped up and answered the phone with a big grin despite the fact that the caller ID screen said “customer service” I was so ready to tell the person on the other end of the line about Jesus, that I was disappointed to hear a pre-recorded message. Even if He isn’t calling me to some major change to my life, there are thousands of little ways I can let Him interfere. When we allow Him to rule the little things in our lives, we become witnesses to His great faithfulness and love for us. These are the building blocks of a faith able to respond to His glory when He interferes in major ways.

So, I will start the rest of this day looking for ways that my Lord Jesus might come shake up my life. By His power, I am ready and waiting! Will you ask Him to interfere in yours?

FANtastic Wreath

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IMG_3607A friend of mine pinned an awesome wreath she found for sale by 1BabyToes1 on Etsy for $45 to one of my Pinterest boards, hoping that we could make it together. To be honest, I put her off for several weeks because I was scared to drill a hole in a baseball… I had visions of it flying off the workbench across the garage and shattering something! All my anxiety was unfounded, because it turns out, it was harder to bend the wire hanger closed than to do the drilling. For those of you who have baseball teams still in the running for the World Series, this might make a super nice gift for your hubby, or something you can do together if he is particular about his power tools. As an added bonus, you can buy all the supplies locally.. yes, even in Leesville!

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What you need:

11 baseballs

1 wire hanger

1 foot of thin ribbon in your team’s colors

1 yard of thick ribbon in your team’s colors (or burlap ribbon like we used)

1 wooden letter to represent your team name (other fonts available on-line and at craft stores)

Acrylic Craft paint in your team’s colors

Acrylic Spray Sealant (any brand will do)

Hot glue

2 pairs of heavy duty pliers

Electric drill with ½ inch drill bit

Scrap wood

Safety Goggles

Paint the letter in your desired color scheme. I recommend doing both front and back and using at least two coats of paint. For dying the front side, you can stick the tall thumb tacks into the back side to elevate the letter and minimize any lumpy paint along the edges. Once dry, spray with the sealer following manufacturer’s directions. Apply at least two coats, drying completely in between applications.

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Wearing your safety goggles, hold the baseball down firmly against the scrap lumber, with your hand shaped like a ‘c’. Starting slowly, push the drill straight down into the ball, until you get the feel of it.. Use an up and down motion to pull some of the cork out of the hole you are creating, or the drill will get bogged down. You will feel a change in pressure when the drill goes out the other side and into the wood. You’ll see, it is so much fun; you might want to do more than just 11, but restrain yourself because if you use more than 11 balls, the wreath will be too big to hold its shape.

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Straighten out a wire hanger and thread the balls on to it. You will probably want to do this part in the garage, as there will be a decent amount of cork that comes out during this step as well. Once all the balls are on the wire, twist the wire closed. This does not need to be pretty, but I do recommend getting any sharp edges tucked in and / or snipped off. You want to get the balls as close together as you can. Using at least one pair of pliers is helpful here.

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With the wide ribbon or burlap, make a bow, going around the twisted ends of the hanger. You can ruffle the long ends of the bow by tucking them between the balls and hot gluing when you get it how you want it.

Finally, depending on the letter used to represent your team, you can make a loop with the thin ribbon to hang the letter from the large bow (as we did with the “C” for Cubs… now you know why I’m not overly excited for the World Series). With some letters that don’t have a closed top (W, H, I, J, K, etc…) however, it will be necessary to glue the loose ends to the back side of the letter, after the ribbon through the large bow.

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Are you for real?

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Authentic, genuine, real, true… These are concepts that keep popping up in my life lately. From the bible study I’m doing in PWOC to conversations with friends and, of course, on Facebook. I doubt any of us intentionally plans to give off a vibe of perfection with our comments or posts. I think we are genuinely more comfortable sharing our victories than publicizing our defeats or airing our dirty laundry. But when is the last time you truthfully answered the question, “How are you?” Most often, “I’m great!”, comes out of my smiling mouth as an automatic response. Why is that? Am I so obsessed with keeping up the appearance that I’ve got it all together and under control.

What would happen if I admitted that there are things in my life, beyond my craft desk that are messy, or sad or frustrating, embarrassing, disappointing, worrisome, or even frightening? What if I said that I have a room that’s such a disaster I’m a little terrified to enter it. Yesterday when a friend came over to visit, I closed the door to it, but today I posted a picture of it on Facebook after seeing another post about a pile of laundry waiting to be folded on the guest bed. What I didn’t say was that it has been like that for quite some time. What if I said I had so many clean clothes waiting to be put away that I’ve been getting dressed in the laundry room for several days now. If I admitted to losing my temper with my children on more than rare occasions or that they had pizza two nights in a row this week? What if I told you I have a wardrobe box in the upstairs hall that has been sitting there since we moved here…over a year ago. What if I dared to utter that I’m very self conscious about my body, or reveal that I have clothes in at least 5 different sizes in the my closet because I can’t seem to stay any one of them, and I almost never leave the house wearing a dress without some sort of spanx-like undergarment, even when it’s 104 degrees outside. What if I tearfully confess that I wanted to throw things this morning after a argument with my husband and ultimately gave in to that frustration by flinging a dish rag across the kitchen and then crumpled up on the couch crying. That I let a good friend down because I was wallowing in my own pit of despair over that silly argument that I won’t remember in a month. How would you react if I casually mentioned that I’m tired of the late nights at work and TDY trips that sometimes leave me home alone with my children for days on end. My car is full of crushed cheerios and snack wrappers. The garage is a danger zone. I walked instead of running yesterday and it felt like a cop-out. I have plants I purchased in May that are still in their original (not decorative) pots in the front flower bed. These aren’t the things that I would run to my computer or phone to post on Facebook or text about. Would you judge me or wrap your arms around my neck and cry with me if I revealed my things I prefer to hide?

The truth is life is messy and stuff happens to all of us, not just me. By publishing our highs and burying our flows, we create a false sense of perfection to those around us who are likely struggling under the weight of their own messy lives. God never expected us to be perfect. He didn’t send His son to die for our sins because we are so worthy, but because we are SO flawed and broken. If we aren’t genuine with Him about our need for a Savior, we cannot have the deep personal relationship He wants with us. If we aren’t’ authentic about the good, the bad, and even the ugly with each other, then we are missing out on the kind of close friendship that supports, encourages and strengthens us.

If I don’t know what’s really going on in your life, I don’t know how to pray for you, how to help you or how to love you completely. Loving each other is what He has called us all to do. Jesus says, that next to loving the Lord, loving my neighbor is the most important thing I can do. Matthew 22:39 Paul tells us that love is the greatest gift. That love is patient, kind, and polite. It is not self-seeking, provoked, or evil thinking. That love rejoices in the truth, it bears, hopes, believes and endures all things. “Love never fails.” 1 Corinthians 13:4-8. There are no exceptions made for the skeletons in your closet, crumbs swept under your rug, or whatever may be shoved behind your bed skirt.

By appearing to have it all under control, we run the risk of scaring off the very people with whom we might wish to bond because, let’s face it, they don’t’ have it all together either. Very little is more intimidating than facing our own flaws when all we see are perfect people around us. The sum of all those picture-perfect moments and PR’s is actually less than the whole. It negates all the blood, sweat, tears, sacrifice and struggle that made it possible to get there.

So, let’s get real with each other. Quit faking our friends out and start living our lives in love, grace, authenticity, forgiveness and trust. Stop taking ourselves so seriously and start sharing a good laugh over life’s misfortunes. Isn’t that what community is all about, growing closer to one another through all kinds of shared experiences wherever we are in life. We might even find out we have more in common with each other than we would have ever guessed.

Holding on for Dear Life

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I was surprised to find that the definition of tenacious found in Webster’s discusses the idea of holding fast or clinging to something. This idea conjures up a picture of a 2-year-old at day care drop off who refuses to let go of his mother. Maybe you never had a child behave like this, but both of mine have and still do under certain circumstances though they are well out of their toddler years. Holding on for dear life, afraid of the unknown, afraid of being abandoned, afraid of meeting new people or perhaps being left out at play time, they wrap their arms around what is familiar and safe to them. Even though this can be somewhat frustrating or embarrassing for me, I am still honored to be their source of comfort.

What brings you comfort? To what do you cling? What are you holding on to for dear life?

When I first wrote about the characteristics common to survivors, I referenced the article that said tenacity was the ability to take the pain and keep going. While I still believe the ability to Just Keep Going is vital for survivors and that perseverance is one key aspect of getting through difficult circumstances, but that to which we cling when the going gets tough is at least as crucial.

I recently attended a bible study where the book of Ruth was the topic. In the days since this study, I have pondered the inspiring tale of this tenacious survivor. When I re-read the story the other morning, I picked up on something I had missed in the translation read during the study. Ruth 1:14 says that “Ruth clung to her.” Ruth clung to her mother-in-law after having lost her husband. Ruth was a Moabite woman who married one of two sons of an Israelite family who had fled to her country in search of food during a famine in their land. Both sons and their father died and the book began as the mother, Naomi, was about to return to Israel. The Moabites were the descendants of Lot, Abraham’s nephew. During the conquering of the Promised Land, contentions arose between the two peoples because the Moabite king feared the Israelites, who were peacefully encamped in his territory. King Balak called upon a pagan prophet to curse the Israelites (Numbers 22), but the one true God foiled their plans. Enmity ensued despite the failed attempts to bring destruction upon God’s people and the Moabites were forbidden to the 10th generation to enter the assembly of God (Deuteronomy 23:3-6).

Yet, we still read that Ruth clung to her Israelite mother-in-law and departed her home and all that was familiar to her to return with Naomi to Israel. Ruth willingly left her home, her family, the gods of the culture in which she was raised and followed her mother-in-law to go to a land where she would be an unwelcome and widowed foreigner. She makes a heartfelt plea to Naomi not leave her in which she says, “Your people shall be my people, and your God my God.” Ruth 1:16. She refused to let go of the faith in the one true God she had come to through her association with this Israelite family, and held on to it while letting go of all else she had ever known. Despite the hardships ahead, she chose to cling not just to her mother-in-law, but to Yahweh. By so doing, she was taken to be the wife of a distant relative of her husband’s family and was ultimately placed in the lineage of not only King David, but Jesus himself (Ruth 4:13-22). She chose to live like an eternal survivor and cling to God in a terribly troubling time, and was rewarded with a prestigious role in the salvation of all mankind because of her tenacious faith.

Could you do it? Would you be able to leave your home, your family, everything you had ever known to follow and seek God’s will for your life, even if you knew there would be hardships? Jesus called His disciples to do this very thing.

He repeatedly told those He was calling to follow Him and leave behind everything, to let go of all that brought them comfort, their family and friends, freedom, their belongings, their professions and homes, even their dead and dying. There is some evidence that many of these blessings were restored to them, but I cannot overlook their willingness of those early few to drop everything and follow Jesus. They learned quickly that you can only hold on to so much, but there is just one thing to which you can cling that will enable you to say, “it is well with my soul.” Deuteronomy 30:20 says we should, “cling to Him for He is your life and the length of your days.”

One of my favorite hymns, “It Is Well With My Soul,” is a perfect example of clinging to Jesus while letting go of what you hold dear. Horatio Spafford did not simply piece together a beautiful composition full of empty words. This is a song born of gut-wrenching loss and deep personal pain. In 1873, he wrote the hymn while on a ship to England where he would comfort his wife in the aftermath of a tragic ship-wreck that killed their four daughters. Two years earlier, their son had died in the Great Chicago Fire. Even as his ship sailed close to the point where his precious daughters drowned, he was still able to cling to the cross, and know that all was well with his soul despite the profound loss he had suffered on earth, that “The sky, not the grave, is our goal.”

I know Jesus was speaking of the end times when He said, “He who endures to the end will be saved” in Matthew 24:13, but I find great encouragement in these words for even my everyday trials. If I continue to cling to the cross, no matter what happens until I reach my earthly end, I am saved. Jesus knew the pain and suffering He would endure to ensure that salvation for all of us, but he remained true to the word and the will of His Father. Jesus, being fully human, asked, just as we would, if there was any other way for the Father’s will to be done, but He says, “Nevertheless, not my will but Yours be done.” Luke 22:42. Knowing that His betrayal, abandonment, brutal beating, crucifixion and separation from His Father was the only way to fulfill the word and the will of God, His final words were, “Father, into Your hands, I commit my spirit.” Luke 23:48. In other words, “I’m letting go of all that this earth holds and clinging to you and your will, Father.”

Jesus predicted his suffering and death to his followers several times during His ministry. When one of His well-meaning apostles attempted to correct Him, he was seriously rebuked. Peter simply said, “Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You.” Matthew 16:22. Surely many of us would react the same way if one of our friends or role models was to make a similar statement. Just like Peter, we likely react with unbelief and probably want to protect them from harm, to take away their pain. Instead of hugging Peter and being thankful for his concern, Jesus had a very different response. He said, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of Men.” Matthew 16:23 Peter was more concerned with comforting and saving Jesus, than the purpose to which He had been called, which was to endure the punishment for all of humanity’s sin so that we could all be saved.

As Eternal Survivors we are called not to simply endure the trials that come in this life, but Paul reminds us that “we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope.” Modern day tribulations can come in any number of ways, but I believe it is when we suffer the loss of something to which we would ordinarily find hope in this life that we are being pointed toward the true source of our life. When we lose our health, a person close to us, our livelihood, familiar surroundings, a home, or our security, we must act like the Christian Paul describes in Romans 12:9 and “cling to what is good.” Jesus tells us in Matthew 19:17 that, “No one is good but One, that is God.” We have His word, His will, and His purpose to cling to when all else falls away. Christian survivors are tenacious; they may feel the pain of this world, but still find the glory and hope in the love of God for us. When we are able to set aside our own personal pain, our comfort, our selfish desires and earthly possessions and commit ourselves to the will of God for His purposes and glory that is when we will begin to live with a tenacious spirit.

Military spouses are familiar with letting go. We let go of familiar places and routines when new orders come, we let go of friends who move away, we let go of places we have made our homes for a few precious years, we let go of things we don’t have space for in our new quarters, we let go of our husbands for weeks or months or even a year or more at a time. It is in this letting go, however that we are given an opportunity to grab hold of and cling to Jesus for all He has done and wants to work in our lives. If you aren’t living at the whim of Uncle Sam, or you aren’t up for a PCS any time soon, you can still take some steps to let go of anything that might be holding you back from all that God has planned for you. Start with some of your time, just give Him 5 minutes today, and maybe a couple more than that tomorrow. Build a relationship with Him and soon you will find that He is exactly what your heart has been longing for, that He is capable of filling all the voids where you have let go of something, that He is the only one to whom we must cling for the assurance of our status as an Eternal Survivor! So, I challenge you to let go of everything else and cling to the cross, to live with the tenacity of an Eternal Survivor and hold on for dear life to the only thing able to give us eternal life!

Can you hear it?

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Over the last week or so, I have been blessed to spend several of my morning prayer times on my screened in porch. This has easily become my favorite room in our home here. Since the love bugs that littered it last summer when I wrote about My Messy Friends haven’t yet returned and most of the thick yellow pollen that coated it in April has been wiped away, it is once again a peaceful place. I sit facing a grassy hill that leads up to the forest, and often, I can smell the sweet scent of a nearby blooming bush. The birdsong I hear there is music to my ears.

I remember thinking a few months ago that there was a time perhaps around 8:30 or so in the morning that the birds must all fly away to sing elsewhere. It usually coincided with the start of the work day… when the roar of cars could be heard on the road out front, construction work began on the new housing in the neighborhood, dogs that were let out for the morning began barking at passing people or squirrels, kids were playing at the park, or my own children began vying for my attention. On Saturday when the awakening of the neighborhood happened at a slower pace, I realized the birds didn’t go anywhere, I just couldn’t hear them anymore. They were still there singing, but the sounds of life had drowned out their song.

God’s voice is often like that of the birds that serenade me on my porch. Elijah learned this when he sought refuge in a cave from the people of Israel who wanted to kill him because they didn’t like the message God called him to carry. God’s voice was not in the strong wind, or the earthquake, or the fire that passed by the cave, but came in “a still, small voice.” 1 Kings 19:12. Too often we look for the voice of God to come to us in mighty sign that drowns out all other noises, like the silly woodpecker who insists on trying to pluck bugs from my metal gutters. Sometimes that is the case, but more often, His instruction comes at an almost imperceptible decibel. We have a responsibility to get to a place where we can hear Him whispering to us because He is always there waiting for us to seek Him

Too often, our attention is drawn away by the demands we face in our lives. Some of these distractions are good and necessary: a conversation with my husband, my children’s laughter, tending to the needs of my family, fellowship with friends, even volunteering in the community, at church or in school. Unfortunately, general busyness, secular noise, and our own rampant thoughts are just as responsible for dampening the voice of God in our ears. Satan has so many tools at his disposal in our age of activity and technology to keep us from hearing what God has to say.

So, power down, chill out and tune in to what God has to say to you right now. Take an inventory of the things in your life that keep you from hearing that small, quiet voice and the see how many of them you can silence. Find a time and a place where nothing stands between you and God and make a commitment to go there daily, just to listen. Then, “today, if you will hear His voice: ‘Do not harden your hearts….’” Psalm 95:7-8.

Shiny Shell with a Mission

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My husband and I recently took our boys on their first beach vacation. We could only fit in a couple of days, but it was so worth the 7 hour drive to see them running in the sand, jumping waves, exploring and taking an interest in one of my favorite things to do at the shore - look for seashells. I have to admit, several of the shells they found didn’t exactly meet my criteria for “keepers” and were left in the sands of the Gulf Shores. I thought I was a pretty selective seashell collector, but somehow we still managed to come home with a gallon sized Ziploc bag full of them!

Early one morning, I was fortunate enough to sneak out of our room before my boys woke, and escaped down to the beach alone. I wanted to be among the first people combing the edge of the water for any treasures that washed up over night. Quite by accident, I discovered that the best shells were a ways back from the surf, buried in the soft sand that seemed to be virtually untouched. I walked along, sweeping the sand away with my foot, hoping to stumble upon that one perfect find.

As I sifted through the sands, I realized that a shell had to first catch my eye, before I would consider bending over to pick it up. It might have been the glinting reflection of the rising sun on a perfectly polished jingle or lettered olive, the tell-tale swirl of a conch or snail, the sharp, pointy end of an auger, or even an interesting pattern or color just peeking out from under a pile of sand that would snag my attention. I had to be attracted by some small portion of the shell to give it a closer look.

It wasn’t always the shells that appeared perfect to the naked eye that made it into my bag. After finding about three dozen pristine olive shells, I was no longer all that interested in them, as most collectors would be. Eventually, even the thrill of perfection lost its allure for me. I wanted the shells that were interesting. The one that had an unexpectedly bright lavender color on the inside of what was otherwise a rather dull home to a bi-valve intrigued me. I selected one that was cracked down the middle, revealing the intricately twisted inner workings of a conch. I claimed a few that were so tiny and fragile looking that it defied logic to imagine them surviving the harsh conditions they had endured. I kept one piece that was just the outer edge of what I believe is a scotch bonnet, simply because of its distinctive curve and texture. Even some fragments found their way into my bag of keepers, because I was intrigued about what they could have been, by just how big and beautiful the whole was before the elements broke it apart. The shells that held the most interest for me were the ones that seemed to have a story to tell, the pieces that caused me to marvel at the possibilities of what once was.

All those shiny, seemingly perfect shells I picked up that morning were only perfect until I got a closer look. Not a single one of them is entirely void of flaws. There are microscopic nicks, tiny cracks and imperfections that can only be seen with close inspection or even a microscope. They all bear scars where wind, wave and sand have beaten them, but every one of those shells that I brought home was a survivor. Each, in their own way, either mostly whole or riddled with holes and cracks, miraculously arrived on the beach. As I looked upon these small pieces of creation, I found myself in awe of the mighty power of our Creator.

The message I learned that morning on the beach was even more valuable than the rarest of sea shells I might ever discover. It was an understanding of my purpose as a Survivor! The original survivors who inspired this series for me were a small portion of God’s people, the Israelites, whom He allowed to escape His righteous judgments. These people, though scattered from their holy land by exile or in refuge, had an important mission to carry out. God told His prophet, Ezekiel, over and over again what purpose he had for them. After all the years of punishment for both individual and national sin were carried out, His desire was that, “Then they shall know that I am the Lord.” Ezekiel 7:27. These people would stand to remember the sinfulness of Israel and the righteous condemnation of God. Those among the remnant who chose to repent and obey Him would be used to restore Israel to a status that would exceed its previous splendor. Their mission was to tell the story of how God saved and reestablished them according to His faithfulness so that He alone would be glorified.

Even the most sparkling of shells has no inherent light. It must reflect the light of the sun. We also have no light of our own, but rather are called to reflect the brilliance of God to all whom we meet. Do you remember how shiny Moses was when he descended from the mountain after spending time in the presence of God? Every one noticed him and they knew he had an important message for them. Before we can begin to share our personal story of what God has done in our lives, we have to grab somebody’s attention so they will listen. Let your best characteristics peek out from under all the things that tend to bury us and let your shininess in God be noticed. Spend some time with God and get yourself polished up so that people will notice you and want to hear what you have to say.

Let me be clear, this is not a recommendation that you should perform good deeds so that you yourself would be praised by man. Rather use the gifts God has blessed you with to get the attention of people for the purpose of glorifying Him. Paul’s message to Christians in Colosse was similar, “…whatever you do in words or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” Colossians 3:17. Give thanks to God for all that He has done to make you lustrous and glorify Him through the use of those skills, talents and abilities.

Just like the seashells, God made us each unique and intricate and beautiful, but we have to let people see those inner workings that make us interesting individuals. The shells are cracked and tossed about by wind and wave or crushed under the weight of a predator, and we humans are marked by the events of our lives as they shape and mold us. None of us lack faults either. These flaws are what make us interestingly human. Our perfection and our righteousness come from Christ alone.

We are all keepers in God’s book. He guaranteed that for us by sending His Son, who came from the line of David through the preserved remnant of Judah, to earth so that each and every one of us who believe in Him will be saved for eternity in heaven. None of our shininess, nor any completion of our mission can earn heaven for us. When we call upon Him as our savior, instead of baring all our faults and failures, God will see only His Son’s perfection and draw us into His arms. Eternal Survivors are assured of their keeper status because of what Jesus did for us on the cross. Jesus, the Ultimate Survivor, also knew that his purpose for coming to earth was to glorify His Father in heaven. He said, “But for this purpose I came to this hour. Father, glorify Your name.” John 12:28. This is the mission for all survivors, to emulate Jesus, to live out the purpose of bringing glory to the Father right up until our death.

After His resurrection, Jesus reiterated this purpose for His apostles to glorify God in what we refer to as the Great Commission. He told them to “go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.” Mark 16:15. Their mission is the same as ours today…Go and tell everybody you can get to listen to you what Jesus has done for you, glorify Him in all you say and do, where ever you may find yourself.

My favorite shell didn’t actually catch my eye, it caught my foot. I remember thinking it was probably just an old shoe, but it turned out to a 10 inch piece of a lightening whelk. Although a large portion of the outer curve had fallen off, it was certainly a keeper just for its massive size and because enough of it was intact to be identifiable. Sometimes we, too, stumble upon people who haven’t polished up their shiny side, but still have an amazing testimony to share. I feel we have a responsibility to seek out these fellow survivors and help them to be radiant for God. Who can you point toward the light today?

Each of us who woke up this morning is a survivor. We have washed up on the shores of our lives by the grace of God who has lovingly blessed us with a shininess that reflects His love. I am committing myself to using my shiny shell of God-given gifts to grab people’s attention so that I can share with them what He has done to make me an eternal survivor. Have you told your story of how God made you a keeper? How can you use your skills, talents, and spiritual gifts to bring Him glory? Put your best facet forward and shine for Him today so that others are attracted to you, then live out your purpose as an eternal survivor by glorifying Jesus!

Emphatically Empathetic

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By helping others, you ultimately help yourself. Who doesn’t get a rush from knowing they filled a need in the life of a friend? Helping others can even has great health benefits according to the Huffington Press article 19 Healthy Reasons to Help Others. Feel good chemicals, like oxytocin, dopamine and serotonin are released by our bodies. These chemicals have been shown to treat depression and block the stress hormone cortisol. There are also spiritual benefits to experiencing empathy. Here is the kicker, though…You have to genuinely care about the person you are helping. Volunteering out of obligation with no real connection to the cause or overextending yourself for even the best of reasons can actually be detrimental to your health. Eternal Survivors must seek guidance and power through prayer.

The author of the book of Hebrews talked about being in fellowship with and thinking diligently about others “in order to stir up love and good works” Hebrews 10:24. If we care for others and come to know and love them, we will genuinely understand their needs. With understanding comes empathy, then action. This is when all those healthy benefits of helping really kick in. We are to “let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.” Philippians 2:3-4.

Our own life experiences give us a unique way of connecting with other people in order show them empathy. We identify with people in situations similar to our own. I feel a pull toward people who have similar life experiences…. To mothers of young boys. To single, young women in the Army. To people searching out their gifts and passions in order to live fulfilling lives. To other Army wives. To people who aspire to hear the voice of God. To ladies who are willing to run for God. The things from our own lives that have made a profound impact on us are the most powerful tools for building the kind of empathy for others that spurs us to action in their time of need, because we understand what they are going through and what how to help.

Jesus, the Ultimate Survivor, was moved with compassion numerous times throughout the gospels. When He was, His compassion compelled him to action. He healed lepers, restored sight to the blind, raised the dead, fed the five thousand, and cured the sick throughout His ministry. If we are called to become more like Him, we need to take some cues from His actions. We may not be blessed with miraculous powers for the work He did, but we can certainly cook a meal, volunteer at a shelter, serve in our church, shop for a homebound friend, make a donation, provide childcare for a busy mom, or help out in any number of ways within our own community.

When He comes again to judge us, I want to be among the sheep to whom he says, “Come you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was hungry and you gave me food; I was thirsty and you gave me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in, I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me, I was in prison and you came to Me.” Matthew 25:34-35. There are countless opportunities in this world to do these things for people. It will be the eternal survivors who hear Jesus say, “Assuredly I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to Me.” Matthew 25:40.

Can you imagine being as busy helping others as Jesus was? There is so much need in today’s world, that any of us could likely be burned out in no time. The need was great in Jesus’ day, too, but he never seemed to grow weary despite the “great multitudes [that] came together to hear, and to be healed by Him of their infirmities.” Luke 5:15. I think there is great insight in the very next verse that tells us what Jesus did in order to restore Himself for His ministry. “He Himself often withdrew into the wilderness and prayed.” Luke 5:16. All four gospels record Jesus’ solitude in prayer. This is how He regained His strength, received His guidance from God, and renewed His capacity for compassion and empathy. The same benefits are available to us today. Through prayer our relationship with God and our faith is strengthened. By this strengthening of our faith, we will naturally become more empathetic and compassionate.

Jesus said, “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good…” Luke 7:45. James goes on to clarify that, “If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace and be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit?” James 2:15. Are you simply wishing well or praying for those in need, instead of realizing your call to be the hands and feet of Jesus to do the work of God for them? Let your faith move you with compassion to come to the aid of those around you.

We all need help at some point in our lives. Perhaps we can begin to more readily allow others who care about us to lend a hand if we view it as giving them an opportunity to help themselves, too. If we find it difficult to graciously accept some small act of assistance from a friend, how much less likely are we to fully grasp the ultimate act of compassion … Jesus’ death on the cross for our salvation? If we are unable to accept our need for earthly help, how much more difficult is it to fathom how utterly desperate we are for help from God in our daily lives? Eternal survivors have come to understand empathy from the perspective of a giver and receiver of help from both man and God. Their faith produces works of compassion for their fellow man while the acceptance of their own need for assistance gives them a deeper perception of their full reliance on God.

What are you passionate about? How can you use your skills or gifts to help others? What can you intentionally do for a neighbor or friend as if you were doing it for Jesus? Are you willing to let others demonstrate their faith with compassionate acts toward you? Are you living like an eternal Survivor! by manifesting your faith through empathy for others? How will you exercise the call to be emphatically empathetic?

Words of Wisdom

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The Survivors Club article listed intelligence, or the capacity to acquire and apply knowledge, as one of the key characteristic of survivors. Being intelligent gives people the ability to solve problems. I can see how having a knack for learning could give you the ability to survive in any number of sticky situations, but to live like an eternal survivor requires wisdom.

What’s the difference, you ask? I first heard this quote attributed to Miles Kington, who was a British journalist, musician, and broadcaster, from my sister a few years ago: “Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is knowing it doesn’t belong in a fruit salad.” Plenty of intelligent people can quote scripture, rattle off the Ten Commandments and recall biblical history, but eternal survivors have figured out how to apply their knowledge to their living. For an eternal survivor, wisdom is the word and it begins with the fear of the Lord. Proverbs 9:10. It is spiritual wisdom eternal survivors seek after and live out, not the supposed wisdom of the world we live in. “Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God.” 1 Corinthians 3:18-19

So, what is this fear of the Lord? I have found myself somewhat confused by the apparent contradiction between this and verses like Isaiah 41:10, “Fear not, for I am with you…” A first glance, the two seem mutually exclusive. But through the use of my new favorite app, Strong’s Concordance, I found that the two Hebrew words are slightly different. The “fear” used in Proverbs 9:10 means to reverence or to be in awe of. The “fear” used in Isaiah 41:10 is used more along the lines of being dreadful. So, through the use of two connotations of the Hebrew words both translated to mean fear, the bible tells us to be in awe of God and also to not be afraid of anything of this world. The more we reverence God, the less we have to fear the things of this world. So, how do we cultivate this characteristic in our own lives?

When was the last time you were in awe of something? Was it a breathtaking sunset, a flower in glorious bloom, the majestic colors of a rainbow, or perhaps a newborn child’s tiny fingers? My challenge to you is to find one thing today that leaves you in amazement. Fully recognize that thing as a work of the Creator. Let the realization that you also are a glorious work of that same God wash over you. Then, acknowledge God and His incredible power and unmatched holiness. These are the first steps toward gaining wisdom. Jeremiah marveled at the work of the Lord, saying, “Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for You!” Jeremiah 32:17

Once I have gained a little wisdom, I want more, don’t you? God created us to crave this kind of knowledge and its application. Proverbs 9:9 tells us that if we “give instruction to a wise man, he will be wiser still,” and if we teach a just man, he will increase in learning.” How do eternal survivors go about gaining more wisdom? Romans 15:4 tells us that all things in the bible “were written for our learning.” So, if we are to increase our learning, we need to be in The Word of God.

I consider myself fortunate to have been raised in a Christian home and blessed to have had many loving Sunday School Teachers over the years. I grew up with a fair amount of biblical knowledge, but it wasn’t until last year that I determined to actually read the bible from Genesis to Revelation for my own edification. Let me tell you, this has been an eye opening journey. In just over a year of faithful daily reading, study and application, I am still in the old testament, but I have learned so much. The more I read, the more I realize that I and our generation are not really so different from those who lived alongside Moses, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Jesus. The more I learn, the more I am committed to applying the lessons to my daily living.

The people of the old testament were just like me. They were unable to keep their end of the covenant with God. They were sinners who needed a savior. The only difference now is that Jesus has come and died for my sins, so that I may claim my eternal survivor status through Him. This is the kind of fool Paul was calling the Corinthians to become. To be fool for Jesus is to be wise in spiritual matters. God spoke to Isaiah and promised that “the wisdom of the wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hidden.” Isaiah 29:14. By sending His son Jesus to die on the cross for the sins of His people, he shattered all that they had previously known. Some viewed it as foolishness for God’s son to die such a brutal and humiliating death. They and we still today struggle to make sense of a love so great because we view it through our own filter of worldly knowledge. But Godly spiritual wisdom understands that this was the only way because even when the world is in possession of God’s wisdom and law, we cannot keep it. We tend to refuse to know Him and continually fail to acknowledge Him with our whole hearts. So, “it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.” 1 Corinthians 1:21. This message is the gospel: that Jesus Christ died and was resurrected for our sins, so that we could join Him in heaven.

I do not profess to be a bible or religious scholar and some people who have known me for more than a decade might question everything I write about the topic. But that, too, is a testament to the awesome power of God to change lives and work through His people to bring glory upon Himself. Lately, that has been my point of wonderment… that God would bless me with the life I enjoy while I was yet unworthy. That He would willingly provide the path to my righteousness long before I was born, despite, and even because of, His omnipotent knowledge of the multitude of mistakes I would make along the way. God has a purpose for this wisdom in my life. He has given me the way to eternal survivorship through His holy and precious son Jesus Christ and this end state is intended to give me hope and eliminate fear in every circumstance of my life in this world.

How do we apply what we know from the words of wisdom in the bible to our daily lives? The same way you would apply a training plan to your goal of running a certain race distance. What if you purchased the best training plan money could buy, authored by the most renowned trainers, but never read it? What if you read it, but didn’t understand it? What if you figured out what it said, but disagreed with it? What if you understood and believed but refused to implement the plan? You might not make it very far come race day. In order to go the distance, you must apply the training to your own life.

Cultivating wisdom follows a similar pattern. First, get a copy of the Training Plan for your life, authored by inspiration of God. Commit to knowing what the bible says. Through faithful reading, study and prayer both individually and with other believers, come to understand what scripture is teaching you. Then by way of reverencing the Lord, you must believe it to be entirely true and applicable. The prophet Jeremiah warns us against rejecting the word of God. He called out the supposed “wise” men who were teaching false doctrine and saying they had been ashamed, dismayed and taken into captivity, convicting them with this question, “Behold, they have rejected the word of the Lord; so what wisdom do they have?” Jeremiah 8:9. Finally, with the help of the Holy Spirit, you can put those truths into practice.

In Job 28:28, God spoke to Job saying, “Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to depart from evil is understanding.” In other words, reverence God, to gain wisdom and then with understanding, apply it to your life by departing from evil ways. Psalm 34:14 takes it a step further and calls us not only to “depart from evil,” but also to “do good.” This is knowledge in action. This is wisdom: to depart from evil and do good!

Eternal survivors have learned that spiritual wisdom is more valuable than silver or gold and more desirable than any treasures on earth. They know that “when wisdom enters your heart, and knowledge is pleasant to your soul, discretion will preserve you; understanding will keep you to deliver you from the way of evil…” Proverbs 2:10-12 By allowing the knowledge of the almighty God to penetrate our hearts and then applying His lessons to our lives, we will find protection from the ways of Satan that seek to destroy us. What are you seeking in this life? Are you ready to be a fool for Christ? Do you long to apply biblical knowledge in your life by living like an eternal survivor? How can you put spiritual wisdom to work in your life today?

Go with the Flow

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Flow calls to mind an image of a gentle stream meandering through the country side. Can you picture it? I would like to imagine my life like that, the stream is God’s path for me and I float peacefully down it resting calmly in the inner tube of God’s faithfulness. How idyllic if life were truly like that, but not many of us can equate that to our own personal experience. My life is rarely like that picture, especially this past spring break week. It has been more like a frenzied white water rafting trip. With the boys’ constant stream of urgent requirements, I’m finding it difficult to go with the flow, and have had to stop myself on a number of occasions from the futility of trying to control the uncontrollable. I’ve been finding it hard to make any forward progress and nothing has happened with anything that resembles ease to me.

Real life is full of changes in course, forks in the river to navigate, Class IV rapids, crashing seas, and flood waters. Our faith in God, “who stills the noise of the seas, the noise of their waves, and the tumult of the peoples.” Psalm 65:7, is the thing that keeps us moving forward along His path for us. Everything that distracts us from that faith threatens to knock us off the raft. God wants us to rest peacefully in our faith, certain that He will keep us afloat.

Just as hidden dangers below the surface cause rapids to form in a stream, stress, pain, suffering, guilt, shame, troubles, pride, sadness and sin shake our ability to rest safely in the faith that holds us afloat. By the words of Psalm 93:4, we are reassured that ”The Lord on high is mightier than the noise of many waters, than the mighty waves of the sea.” Because God is greater than any undercurrent or tsunami in our lives, greater even than sin and death.

To an eternal survivor, flow means following the will of God in your life without being weighed down by sin, held back by your past, fighting against current circumstances, or crippled by fear about the future. It means simply resting peacefully in the present, supported by the faith that God is greater than anything that threatens us now and forever. It means surrendering to His will for your life.

Unrepented sin as well as grief and guilt about our past can weigh us down and inhibit our ability to flow. Paul pleads with the Hebrews to “lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily ensnares us…” Hebrews 12:1 Let it go, confident in Christ’s redeeming work on the cross that secures our status as eternal survivors. By so doing, we can be free of the anchors that hold us back so we can freely flow the course He has set before us.

Fear of the future can keep us from flowing the way God has laid out. But His Word provides reassurance for us even to the end times, to Jesus’ triumphant return. God spoke comforting words to the prophet and author of the book of Revelation, “Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer … be faithful unto death and I will give you the crown of life.” Revelation 2:10. Eternal Survivors know that in order to reach the prize, they must stay in the raft, no matter where it takes them.

Those who seek after their own pleasure or success without regard for the will of God in their lives are like salmon struggling to swim upstream. Jesus did not seek His own fame or fortune, though He certainly could have exploited Himself to those means. Instead He said, “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.” Luke 6:38

Even those closest to the Savior struggled with their flow during a storm. Jesus modeled for them this Survivor characteristic as he slept peacefully despite the waves that were crashing over the boat. “Now when He got into a boat, His disciples followed Him. And suddenly a great tempest arose on the sea, so that the boat was covered with the waves. But He was asleep. Then His disciples came to Him and awoke Him saying, ‘Lord, save us! We are perishing!’ But He said to them, ‘Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?’ Then, He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. So the men marveled, saying ‘Who can this be, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?” Matthew 8:23-27 Jesus knew that God would take care of them and he slept while the others panicked. He rested peacefully in the boat despite the raging storm threatening the faith of His followers.

The one lesson we can learn from the disciples is to call upon, God to bring us great calm in the midst of our own trials. For Paul tells us to “be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God and the peace which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7

Jesus knew His future included suffering and death on a cross. He presented His request to be spared the agony, but still prayed, “:…nevertheless, not My will, but Yours be done.” Luke 22:42. Jesus is our role model to emulate as we cultivate the characteristics of survivorship in our own lives and He is also our assurance of becoming eternal survivors.

What are your anchors? Where in your life are you swimming upstream? Do fears about the future have you considering jumping ship? Are you still on the banks of the river afraid to take the plunge? Do you long to rest peacefully held afloat by your faith?

Eternal survivors have learned how to “Be still and know that [He] is God…” Psalm 46:10. They don’t try to paddle against the current, they refrain from rocking the boat or making any waves of their own. They know that God is greater than any storm that might oppose them on earth and that He “…will be exalted among the nations, [He] will be exalted in the earth!” Psalm 46:10 That every change in course will bring glory to God and us to His Kingdom if we simply rest in the faith that allows us to flow toward Him.

 

 

 

Training Plans

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In Survivor!: Part II, I wrote that one of the characteristics survivors share is not just faith that God exists, but a firm belief that He has a plan for their lives. The goal of that plan is heaven for each and every one of us. He has provided the guarantee of that through His Son Jesus Christ. However, led by the Holy Spirit and their God instincts (read about how you can Hone Your Instincts), eternal survivors are not satisfied with simply getting there, they are driven by a desire to reach heaven having fully lived the life God calls them to by which He intends to draw us closer to Him and make us more like His Holy and Precious Son. This is God’s Training Plan for each of us!

If you have ever trained for a race or athletic event, you know it can be helpful to have a training plan. I am training to run a half marathon next month and through my research have found a multitude of training plans written by people who have trained for and survived races themselves or coached and studied those who have. My goal is really just to finish, having run every step of the way and to honor the family and friends of Catherine Hubbard, for whom I’ve been praying throughout my training. I’m not concerned with doing it fast, qualifying for a more serious race, or having an impressive time. Just running that far with be a Personal Record (PR) for me.

Race training plans can be found on-line, in a library or book store. Some are free, others are written by exerts trying to make a living. You can find one to suit your needs, no matter where you are physically, or what your goals are. The more strenuous the race, the more committed the athlete is to following the plan. God’s training plan is one size fits all and has all of humanity running the same race together. It stands the test of time and speculation and was written by many authors, experts and eye-witnesses with one goal in mind. You probably already own one or perhaps several copies of it. If not, you can pick up a free bible at just about any church. It is the ultimate training plan authored by divine inspiration. In the words of Paul to his protegé Timothy, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” 2 Timothy 16-17

I have been loosely following a plan that has me adding a mile to my long run every week. Other plans call for you to add a certain number of minutes to you long run each week. I realized last Saturday that time and distance are arbitrary numbers and do not necessarily correlate well to a point on the terrain where I’m running. As I approached my turn around point, I was running at a good-for-me pace down hill, which meant that I had to reverse my forward momentum and then run back up that same hill. Mentally, that was a challenging way to start the second half of my run. Life can be like that, too. We can be cruising along at a good clip, doing what we feel we should, when all of a sudden, our honed instincts tell us to “Turn Around,” to head in a different direction. It may even be a significantly harder course, but eternal survivors have faith in God’s plan and live their life in constant training for the upward call of heaven.

Most plans for long races stop a mile or two short of the actual distance for which you are training. So on race day you step out in faith, trusting that all your hard work will pay off. Faith is belief in things unseen. I don’t know if I can run 13.1 miles next month, but I have faith that my training plan will have prepared me for the challenge. Eternal survivors can know beyond a shadow of a doubt they will cross the finish line into heaven but must have faith in God’s plan for our lives on earth to bring us closer to Him, to make us more like Jesus. Jesus was quoted in Luke 6:40 as saying, “A disciple is not above his teacher, but every one who is perfectly trained will be like his teacher.” God calls us to be more like Jesus and He alone knows how to perfectly train and mold us in the image of our Savior.

Even the best of the best, the most elite athletes are always seeking to improve themselves. They consider each training plan and race a means to achieve a PR, to out do themselves or sometimes others. Even if our faith in Jesus for our salvation is strong, God calls believers to strive for more. Eternal Survivors step out in faith, knowing that our race has already been won for us by Jesus, so by this faith we also seek to continue God’s training plan of righteousness for each of us. Eternal Survivors should be fueled to improve themselves just as Paul who wrote to the Philippians, “Not that I have already attained or am already perfected but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus also laid hold of me.” Philippians 3:22 Our race is not over until we see Jesus face to face, so until that day we train by faith, holding fast to the plan God has written for us.

Training is hard, but there is a constant stream of motivation available to get you through it. We see quotes like, “No pain, no gain,” “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger,” and “Pain is just weakness leaving the body,” encouraging us to train harder, to train through the pain, to relish the pain that means we have given our muscles what they need to be stronger and our bodies more efficient. We seem to have a higher tolerance for pain in our physical training, than we do in our spiritual training. God’s training plan is designed to draw me closer and deeper into my relationship with Him, to make me more like Christ. To trust His plan, to have faith in it is to accept that every challenge, every new distance, struggle, every change in course, all the pain He calls me to is intentional and aimed at giving me a more full, rich relationship with Him.

If you are in need of some motivation to run your own race of faith as an eternal survivor, I urge you to look at Hebrews 11 and read about the lives of God’s faithful people. Able, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Rahab… Their training plans were brutal yet they were able to overcome by their faith, not necessarily in this world, but certainly in their eternal home. The medals for finishing the race as an eternal survivor may not be awarded in this life, but by faith we can look forward to our ultimate reward in heaven.

Encouraged by these stories recorded in the bible and also by people who live by great faith in our own time who can serve as our Training Partners, “let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.” Hebrews 12:1. Because of the life, death and resurrection of the Ultimate Survivor, we should be “looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith who for the joy that was set before Him, endured the cross, despising the shame and has set down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:2

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things unseen.” Hebrews 11:11 Faith, by the very definition of the word, is a belief in the unseen, but when faith is manifested in our lives something miraculous and very visible happens. Eternal survivors run their race by faith and obedience to God’s training plan, acknowledging that God is the expert and foremost authority on our training plan, we are able to bypass any obstacles and relieve ourselves of the things of this world that encumber us from reaching God’s goal of righteousness for us. By faith, we begin to live like eternal survivors, more concerned with living out the plan that God has written for us, than with the opinions of and goals of man.

No matter what distance you have been training for, who your Training Partners have been, or how good your plan, come race day you run alone. No matter if you are surrounded by hundreds or even thousands of other runners, your training all comes down to how your own two feet carry you to the finish line. We all stand alone with God at the finish line of life, too. So, what are you training for? Are you striving for success in this world, or allowing God to train you to be eternal survivor? Are you studying His plan like an athlete preparing for an Iron Man?