My husband and I locked eyes, as our children’s arguing escalated in the backseat. They were at it again... Comparing. Contrasting. Complaining.
 
I’m not sure if your kids have reached this particular stage of childhood, where everything becomes a contest. There are a lot of delightful things about watching your babies become more self-aware and independent— but the perpetual rat race isn’t one of them. 
 
My children look at each others’ different personalities, gifts, and passions and see them as a threat. I look at my three children’s different personalities, strengths and passions and see them as an advantage. Oh, how I wish they could see themselves the way that I see them. Oh, how I wish they could yet grasp that they were each handcrafted by God (Ps. 139:14) to fulfill a specific purpose.

I imagine the Apostle Paul shared the same sentiment, as he wrote to the Corinthian church. Still (spiritually) young and immature, the believers struggled with comparison. To paint a mental picture for them, Paul likens the church to a body where Christ is the head and each believer a part: head, shoulders, knees, and toes...

As a mom, I can’t count the number of times I’ve felt like I have nothing else to give.

How many times have you been so exhausted that you’ve said, “I just can’t take one more thing!”
 
But, also, how many times have you said that only to have “one more thing” come up?
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• Your child gets sick during the frantic weeks leading up to Christmas
• You’re facing a marital crisis, but your friend needs advice and encouragement
• Your family faces loss, after loss, after loss in a matter of weeks
• Your HVAC goes out... then your car breaks down... then a tree falls on your fence

 
Indeed, we all know how it feels to be exhausted and need a break.

This is the proverbial "boat" the disciples were in, when we read their story in Mark 6. For weeks upon weeks the apostles had been traveling with nothing to their name but an extra shirt and a staff (Mark 5:8). They visited nearby villages, driving out demons, healing the sick, and preaching that people should repent. When they gathered together again, they each gave a report, then Jesus said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a remote place and rest...”
 
Imagine how good that must have sounded. Mark tells us they were so bombarded with needy people, they “did not even have time to eat.” (Gosh, that sounds all too familiar.)
 
Yes, Jesus. I deserve this! The disciples were probably thinking. Then Mark tells us “they went away in the boat by themselves to a remote place.”
 
There was just one problem, to which I think we all can relate: “Many saw them leaving and recognized them, and they ran on foot from all the towns and arrived ahead of them.” (6:33)
 
“CAN’T I HAVE JUST ONE MINUTE TO MYSELF?!” I can imagine Peter lamenting. And all the Mamas say, “Amen” as a tiny hand slips under the bathroom door, again.

Did Jesus have mercy on them? Did He send the crowds away? No. He does something outrageous: He began to teach them. THEN, when dinner time came, He told the disciples to feed them.

Feed them? There were 5,000 men alone, let alone woman and children!
 
I can sense the tension in the disciples’ sassy response: “Should we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread?"
 
Jesus patiently endures their sarcasm, then He simply asks, “How many loaves do you have?” The disciples report, as they hand the meager snack to Jesus... Their total inventory? Five loaves and two fish.

Jesus isn’t alarmed. He simply blesses the food and breaks it, then hands pieces to each disciple to give to pass on to the people.
 
Now, I imagine you’ve heard this story before, so you’re not surprised to hear everyone ate until they were full. Well, apparently the disciples weren’t surprised either. Not because they’d seen Jesus raise a dead girl and open the eyes of the blind. Mark reveals that they didn't even perceive the miracle that happened through their very own hands "because their hearts were hardened” (Mark 6:52) 
 
Hardened by what? Most likely disappointment and sheer exhaustion. They were zeroed in on the escape they thought they needed.
 
In the following verses we read what happened after the world's largest picnic. Jesus sends the disciples away to stall the people and give them a break. Later that night, Jesus is up on a mountain praying. He looks out and sees the disciples in their physical boat, straining. The wind blew so hard they were unable to continue crossing. Yet, here comes Jesus— out on the water, walking. Now, at THIS miracle, the disciples were “completely astounded, because they had not understood about the loaves. Instead their hearts were hardened.” (Mark 6:51-52)
 
The disciples had played a part in feeding probably 15,000 men, women, and children from 5 loaves and 2 fish! Yet not Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John share in their accounts that the disciples were ever “astonished.”
 
Maybe they were bitter that it seemed Jesus showed more compassion for the crowds than He did for them that day. But He wasn’t being heartless, instead He was trying to teach them an important lesson:

Our annual destination was always the same— Kiawah Island, South Carolina. In my eyes, it was absolute paradise. The days were carefree, filled with sea water and sunshine. It may sound strange, but I always felt closer to God with my feet in the sand. Every night was an endless feast, welcomed after a day of playing hard with my cousins.

​Kiawah is what I’m reminded of when I read God’s description of the Promised Land in Deuteronomy 11. Through Moses, God tells the people of Israel that the land they’re about to enter into isn’t anything like the land they just came out of (Egypt). Instead of laboring to produce everything themselves, He would provide for their every need. Their job was simply to trust God and put Him first.
 
It didn’t take long for the people to fail on their end of the bargain...
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When I was 15, my family fell apart and, with it, my general belief that God was good and He was for me. I was left with a lot of questions and not a lot of great advice, much like our friend, Job, in this week’s reading.
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In two short chapters we watch Job’s life fall apart— his family, his wealth, and his health. Job wrestled to reconcile God’s justice with his own personal suffering, because it’s clear he had done nothing wrong. We read in Job 1:8 that Job was “a man of perfect integrity, who [feared] God.” Job’s story challenges Western ideas that are basically “Christian karma”— that if we’re good, God will be good to us, and if we’re experiencing suffering it’s because of something wrong we did.
 
The mental anguish revealed in the subsequent dialogue is not grief over loss of Job’s possessions, rather grief over his perceived abandonment by God...
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However, there is one thing that can ruin that good feeling quickly: coffee grounds.
 
It’s amazing to think those beloved beans that make such a glorious concoction can also create quite the ruckus in my mouth. Who has ever wanted to chew their coffee? Certainly not me. No thank you. This is why it is so important to use the right filter.

​When I think about it, the key to enjoying both my coffee and my life in peace aren’t all that different. Pleasant coffee and a pleasant mindset both require the same thing: good filters.
 
In Philippians 4, the apostle Paul is dishing out some practical advice to new believers—specifically, how to live in peace...
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​This is a word for Christian leaders. (We are all, in some capacity, leaders.)
 
Today, my Bible reading was in Isaiah, chapters 6 and 9. There are so many observations to make— from the timing of Isaiah’s call to ministry, to the posture of the seraphim (angels), to the promise of the Messiah’s coming. Despite prophesying Israel’s fall and God’s coming judgement, Isaiah’s words are rich with God’s holiness and goodness.

​However, there is a verse that caught my attention above the rest— “The leaders of the people misled them, and those they misled are swallowed up.” Isaiah 9:14
 
If you don’t know Israel’s story well and you’re wondering how they got from the Promised Land to destruction and exile. The roots of their judgment go all the way back to 1 Samuel. The people begged God for a king, so they could be like all the other surrounding nations. God advised against their request, yet they persisted, and God gave them over to their desire.
 
Because they looked to human (fallen, sinful) men to lead them, instead of a perfect and holy God, they were led into sin themselves. The people who had been delivered out of Egypt and into the Promised Land forsook the One who called them.
 
Now, you may read Isaiah’s proclamation of judgment and view God as harsh, but keep in mind this was not the first warning given to Israel. Over and over again, leading up to this point the prophets have warned of the need to rend their hearts, repent, and return to the Lord—or face inevitable discipline.
 
The people did not listen. They gave themselves over to the sin of apostasy. And here, in Isaiah 9, the prophet delivers a strong rebuke aimed at Israel’s leadership: Instead of leading the people to follow and worship God, they led them to follow and worship other gods and even themselves. Because of their reckless leadership, now the people would be “swallowed up" in destruction.
 
Whether we lead only our children, or a small group, or small business, or an entire church or other ministry, this  word applies to us. Who or what are you leading the people God has entrusted to you to follow and worship? 
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​As leaders, we will make mistakes. We’re human. God already knows that. The wonderful thing about our God is He delights in using “jars of clay” to allow His light to shine. When we repent, He responds— forgiving us and helping us move forward in obedience.
 
I would love to say “it’s never too late,” but the Bible makes it clear there will come a time when it will be. God says, on that day, those of us He has entrusted with leadership positions will be judged more severely (James 3:1). In that day, will your people stand before God, arms lifted high in worship? Or on that day, will they be swallowed up in destruction?

Jesus left us with this one command— to go and make disciples (Matthew 28:19-20). Not disciples of ourselves, or any other created thing, but disciples of the Creator.

Let us lead in humility, truth, and in action so that others may know Him.

With Love,