The Last Straw

"When your days are over and you go to be with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for me, and I will establish his throne forever.” – 1 Chronicles 17: 11-12

Today’s Reading: 1 Chronicles 16-18; John 7:28-53

When I was in college I had these delusions of grandeur about saving the world. I stayed up countless, sleepless nights wondering what it was that I was going to do to make this huge change that I thought needed to be made.

Of course I still have huge visions… I’ll never grow out of that… sorry Dad!

But one thing that my Dad did teach me was that we are all part of a bigger process.

One day we were talking about life and making a change and he said something like this: “It’s not your job to change the world, God does that. But it’s your job to do your part.”

This is extremely unsatisfying… but I am starting to get the larger point.

I wrote a piece a little while back referencing Martin Luther King’s last speech. In it he invokes the imagery of Moses and talks about how he has been to the mountain top. He has seen the Promised Land and even if he does not get there with us, he knows that we will get there.

He got shot the next day.

At first I used to get really sad thinking about this clip. How could someone speak about their own future with such clairvoyance? It always seemed so eerie to me.

But now I’m starting to see the other side of that coin. He was a man who did the best that he could with the resources that he had at his disposal. Did he succeed in realizing all of the change that he envisioned before he died? No.

But…

Did he fight the good fight hand have a substantive enough impact to be able to see the fruits of his labor?

Yes.

The work wasn’t about him. It was for people that he would never see, people like you and me who may or may not have been born yet.

He was also helped by countless other folk. He didn’t do the work alone.

When we strive to do good for those around us it may be disheartening when we do not see an immediate result. And that’s ok. It’s natural to want to reap an immediate harvest from the seeds that we plant.

But if we remember that it takes a thousands straws to break a camels back it is easier to chill and relax and enjoy being part of the process of those fighting the good fight. Whether we are the first or the last, all thousand of those straws are necessary and important.

Even if history doesn’t remember all of their names…

Question of the Day: Who are the unsung heroes of your life? What did they do for you? How did they make a difference?

An Open Letter to Solomon

Today’s Reading: 1 Kings 12-13; Luke 22: 1-20

What up Solomon?

Things started off really good for you didn’t they? Your father gave you a united Israel and safety and security from your neighbors. You built a temple for God and a palace for yourself.

God asked you what you wanted and you told him that you wanted wisdom. He was so impressed that He not only gave you wisdom, but also more riches than anyone could imagine.

You and Israel were eatin’ real good.

Just reading through the chapters of how plush your situation was made a hater out of me for a quick second.

But then came the fall…

Ok… we’re not gonna blame the women here man. Why did you have a thousand wives and concubines? Did you really need that many? And why did they have to be from all over the region? I bet it sure was hard to find a super bad woman in your time.

You had all of them!

But with all of these women came their culture, beliefs, and baggage. Unfortunate… but such is the game right?

WRONG.

You knew that according to the law you weren’t supposed to marry outside of Israel. After all you were the wisest man ever on earth!

But you did it anyway. Why?

Because you could…

I guess wisdom doesn’t imply discipline. We may know all of the right things to do but it takes discipline and focus to follow through on the decision to do right.

And what happened? The closer you got the foreign women in your old age the further you drifted from God. You even created altars to their gods in Israel!

Not a good look sir.

But I’m glad that I am privy to your story. Between you and the rich young ruler I have learned a lot this past week.

If I lose sight of what is most important, then everything else can fall apart. Life isn’t about women, or money, or things. Life is about being close to God, living your purpose, and giving as much as you can to as many as you can.

Lesson learned… I hope.

Equally Yoked

And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart. For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the LORD his God… - 1 Kings 10: 3-4

Today’s Reading: 1 King 10-11; Luke 21: 20-38

When I was growing up my Dad used to always talk about the perils of being unequally yoked.

What the heck does that mean?

Well here’s the literal imagery. Imagine you have two horses or oxen (pick your beast of burden) attached to a yoke. Together they are supposed to pull a plow in a straight line so that there will be a nice straight path plant the seeds.

But what happens if the ox on the left is weak?

That ox will slow down; and will pull both oxen to the left. If this is allowed to remain unchecked you can imagine what might happen. The two oxen will drift more and more to the left until they either stop, end up going back where they started or someone corrects them.

The weak always pull the strong towards them until both are off the path.

This is what happened with Solomon. He was blessed with a more decadent lifestyle than I can even hope to imagine. But as a result he invited things in his life that weighed him down (in his case 700 wives and 300 concubines!).

Man… He must have been like this dude.

Holla holla holla atcha.

In his effort to please them he built shrines to their gods all throughout Israel.

God was none too pleased.

So this is another food for thought moment. What are the times in your life where you have allowed someone close to you to derail your dream? How did you handle it? Have you handled it?

When it comes down to doing the work required in fulfilling our purpose, we need to make sure that the closest folks to us are going in a similar direction, have the same discipline, and can help us when we fall.

We need to make sure we are equally yoked.

The longer these relationships are one sided the further we are pulled away from the right path by the dead weight that these folks bring.

The Facts of Life

“When Your people Israel are defeated before an enemy because they have sinned against You, and when they turn back to You and confess Your name, and pray and make supplication to You in this temple, then hear in heaven, and forgive the sin of Your people Israel, and bring them back to the land which You gave to their fathers.” – Excerpt from 1 Kings 8: 22-53

Today's Reading: 1 Kings 8-9; Luke 21: 1-19

So the scene here is that Solomon has just finished building the first temple for God. At the dedication ceremony he says this long prayer about the steps that Israel took to get where they are. He also reminds God of the promises that He made to Israel.

But the excerpt above is where it starts getting interesting for me. He starts to break down all of the ways that Israel will fail God in the future and asks God to forgive Israel if they return to the good path.

Given that Solomon was the wisest of the wise… this must mean something right?

Just like Israel… we will all make mistakes, stumble, fail, and let God, others and ourselves down.

This is just a fact of life.

But the key isn’t dwelling on this fact, but rather, that we have the opportunity to get up again. If we can focus on getting up, rather than on the fall, no setback will derail us for long.

PASA Lessons: Lead with Love

Then God said to him: “Because you have asked this thing, and have not asked long life for yourself, nor have asked riches for yourself, nor have asked the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern justice, behold, I have done according to your words; see, I have given you a wise and understanding heart, so that there has not been anyone like you before you, nor shall any like you arise after you. And I have also given you what you have not asked: both riches and honor, so that there shall not be anyone like you among the kings all your days. 1 Kings 3: 11-13

Today's Reading: 1 Kings 3-5; Luke 20: 1-26

Ok…

So, Solomon is doper than I. I can deal with that.

I’ve been talking all this time about pursuing dreams and what not. But, when Solomon is asked by God what he wishes to have he says wisdom.

I’m a know–it-all and even I wouldn’t have said that. It makes me think of how much love it takes to be a great leader.

Yes you read that right… love.

Have you ever been a leader of an organization? I have. And let me tell you. It’s a pretty thankless job.

During my sophomore year at Pomona College I was president of our Pan-African Student Association (PASA). I’m not even sure how that happened. I think it might have been one of those moments when they asked for volunteers and everyone took a step back while I was picking my nose or something.

All I know is that I was nominated, the nomination was seconded, and within about ten minutes I had the title.

I was cool with it though because I was really excited about the organization and really wanted to help out. During my freshman year my friends Kieran, Aaron, Yohance, Kofi, and Christina were really involved with the group. We were happy to do our part to help.

But man… I learned a whole lot that year.

One of the things I learned was that being a good leader means that it ain’t about you.

There were so many things that I wanted to be done a certain way but often times it turned out not to be the best way. It was frustrating to not get my way at times, and even more frustrating to realize that my way wasn’t the best way.

I had a ways to go on the path toward humility back then. Still do.

This is why I’m so impressed by Solomon. This dude had the opportunity to ask God for ANYTHING. And what does he ask for? He asks for the thing that he thinks will best help him serve the people he is leading.

He asks for wisdom.

It is this attitude of humility and sacrificial love that separates politicians from leaders, hustlers from servants.

Are you in it for you or for others? That is the question.

Solomon was in it for his people that he loved and as a result God gave him way more than he could have ever dreamed.

I hope that the next time I am in the position to lead I will have grown to be more like Solomon.

We live and learn right?

Amen

And Bathsheba bowed and did homage to the king. Then the king said, “What is your wish?”
Then she said to him, “My lord, you swore by the LORD your God to your maidservant, saying, ‘Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne.’ - 1 Kings 1: 16-17

Today’s Reading: 1 Kings: 1-2; Luke 19: 28-48

And Solomon did become the next king…

This is the same great and wise Solomon of the book of Proverbs. He was the second child of the Bathsheba; the woman with whom David began his fall into his biggest sins.

Once again, God turns a bad situation into a blessing, the lowest possible means into the greatest possible result. This theme occurs so much that it cries out for us to pay attention.

Joseph rises from slave to be second to Pharaoh. Gideon rises from cowardice to become a great judge of Israel. Ruth makes it through a rough situation as widow to be the forefather of David. A Young David slays the giant Goliath with a stone and sling.

It’s almost as if God enjoys defying all odds. He provides paths of victory through the impossible forests of fear and circumstance.

What is required of us is faith.

We may still be afraid. We may hesitate. We may linger at the crossroads of fate entirely too long. But once we decide to act in faith, we are asking God to move in our lives. We are granting permission for the impossible to be made possible.

So don’t worry if you come from a bad family, have a troubled past, don’t have money, education, or the resources that you need to achieve what you want to achieve.

If you have faith then no circumstance can stop you from getting where you are supposed to be.

God has already said yes, now He’s just waiting on us to say Amen.

So be it....