San Antonio knows how to celebrate. Fiesta is happening right now - twelve days of parades, music, fun and food at events all over town, all day and all night long. I’ve lived here my whole life, and it still amazes me how the entire city is always looking for a reason to party. During the Rodeo in February, everyone digs out their boots and hats and becomes cowboys and cowgirls for a couple of weeks. During Christmas, lights fill all the trees along the Riverwalk, and thousands of worshippers, singing Christmas carols, travel through downtown with La Posada, a reenactment of Mary and Joseph’s search through Bethlehem for a place for Jesus to be born. We host the nation’s largest Martin Luther King Day festivities, and you can’t begin to imagine the spontaneous revelry when our San Antonio Spurs win an NBA championship.
After being enslaved for centuries, Moses led the Israelites across the Red Sea on dry ground, and the Egyptians were swallowed up when God caused the sea to close in on them. That was a reason for a real celebration. They were free! Exuberant singing and dancing filled the Hebrews’ camp. And God enjoyed every minute of it.
The scriptures are filled with scenes of unbridled joy. Some of it was just spontaneous response to God’s goodness and faithfulness, like when David danced before the Lord. But much of the celebration was planned and intentional. Throughout the Old Testament God’s people were called to celebrate.
And the Levites, too, quieted the people, telling them, “Hush! Don’t weep! For this is a sacred day.” So the people went away to eat and drink at a festive meal, to share gifts of food, and to celebrate with great joy because they had heard God’s words and understood them.
Nehemiah 8:11-12 (NLT)
All the Israelites present in Jerusalem celebrated the Passover for seven days, celebrated exuberantly. The Levites and priests praised God day after day, filling the air with praise sounds of percussion and brass. Hezekiah commended the Levites for the superb way in which they had led the people in the worship of God. When the feast and festival—that glorious seven days of worship, the making of offerings, and the praising of God, the God of their ancestors—were over, the tables cleared and the floors swept, they all decided to keep going for another seven days! So they just kept on celebrating, and as joyfully as they began.
II Chronicles 30:21-23 (The Message)
Good people, cheer God! Right-living people sound best when praising. Use guitars to reinforce your Hallelujahs! Play his praise on a grand piano! Invent your own new song to him; give him a trumpet fanfare.
Psalm 33:1-3 (The Message)
It all sounds pretty lively doesn’t it?
In the New Testament, Jesus told about the celebrations of the “good and faithful servant” and the father after the prodigal son came home. In Thessalonians 5:16, Paul put it pretty simply – “rejoice evermore.”
I particularly enjoy the image in Zephaniah, when God actually joins in the celebration with His people.
On that day the announcement to Jerusalem will be,
“Cheer up, Zion! Don’t be afraid!
For the Lord your God is living among you.
He is a mighty savior.
He will take delight in you with gladness.
With his love, he will calm all your fears.
He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.”
Zephaniah 3:16-17 (NLT)
Maybe we just don’t celebrate enough. Or maybe we just need to refocus our rejoicing. God knows that celebrations are important when they’re directed to Him. He knows that our family’s faith is enriched when our homes are filled with praise. Kids don’t forget special times, fun and exciting times that are focused on the goodness of God. And, for that matter, adults don’t either.
I’ve realized how important it is to set aside specific moments to engage my family and friends in celebrating who God is. I want to acknowledge God’s working in our lives through even the little things. I want to make the seemingly insignificant things God does really significant. I think I’m going to throw more parties.
This is a great time of the year to be a man. It's one of those special times when sports converge and testosterone reigns. The NBA playoffs are underway, baseball season has begun, and the NFL will have its annual draft of college players next Saturday.
It's one time of the year when I really feel comfortable, because I can discuss any of these topics intelligently and incessantly. I'm in my zone, like Michael Jordan used to be when the Bulls were trailing in Game 7, or when John Elway was quarterbacking the Broncos with two minutes left and 80 yards for a win. Just give me half a chance and you're certain to be mesmerized.
I'm just like most men. When I'm operating in my arena I have all the confidence in the world. But, please don't put me in a place that I'm not very sure of myself. Don't insist that I navigate treacherous waters where I might go under. Don't set me up to fail, and above all, don't make me look bad. That's when I just might crawl back into my shell and whimper a little bit. Believe me, a whining man is not a pretty sight.
If I may, let me offer some wisdom to all the wives out there. Your husband doesn't particularly like to be called “artistic” or “creative.” There's something just a little dainty about those words. They conjure up images that are way too colorful, that smell too sweet, and that inevitably include lace and flowers. It reminds me of a time when Matt, our son, was about 10 years old, and somehow, he and I got duped into accompanying Martha into the craft store. About 15 minutes into the journey, he looked at me and said, “Dad, if hell is anything like this place, I really don't want to go there.” I understood completely.
The unfamiliar is not an easy place to be. The time comes, though, when the comfortable ways just don't work any more. I remember realizing that communicating God's truth to my kids was going to require more than sitting them down in front of me and reading a devotional book to them. If I wanted them to know a God who is alive and involved, I was going to have to portray Him to them in that way. I needed to be creative in order to demonstrate the Creator. And, that, sounded very scary to me.
McNair Wilson, was, at one time, Senior Imagineer for the Walt Disney Corporation. He was the guy who came up with ideas for all the rides and attractions at the theme parks and made them come to life. He created all the Disney things that not only captured kids' attention, but adults', as well. McNair now teaches companies and organizations not to be afraid of that word “creativity,” but, instead, use it to effectively communicate their message.
That starts with redefining it. McNair admits that the mystique of the word scares many people away. “I can talk about creativity for hours and never mention art supplies,” he said. Instead, he explains it as “rearranging the old to appear new.” That sounds much more within my element.
McNair talks about being creative in terms of “challenging assumptions” and “taking risks.” That's certainly something that guys can identify with. It makes you want to strap on the pads and get out on the field.
So, it requires courage to challenge those assumptions. We have to be bold about it, and keep taking risks even when we fail miserably. Creativity is a very manly thing.
“When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation. For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son. So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God.”
Romans 5:6-11 (NLT)
I was feeling pretty smug about what I had decided to teach in our Sunday School class. We’re spending the next couple of months discussing “churchspeak” – those words we hear so much but we might not really know their relevance in our family, our work and in all our day-to-day living. I figured I knew most of the definitions and applications of these words since I, too, had heard them all my life. I was confident I had it all covered.
The first word I chose was “grace.” It’s a good word, even though it’s a bit difficult to fully understand. But, I already knew all the offerings from Vine’s Expository Dictionary, all the technical explanations of “grace,” so I was off to a flying start. As He as often done before, though, God had another idea that He wanted to share with me. Although I knew the meaning of “grace,” I needed to be reminded of the reality of it.
It took something very unexpected to bring “grace” from my head to my heart. As I often do, I was discussing with my son, Matt, where I was headed in my writing and teaching. He asked if I had ever heard U2’s song “Grace”. I was vaguely familiar with it, but only for my musical enjoyment and not my theology. I re-listened to it, though, and found myself confronted by grace as it’s supposed to appear in real life. It seemed that Bono had taught me what I was planning to teach my Sunday School class. Imagine that!
As I began to read the “grace” settings in Scripture in a new fresh way, I was overwhelmed at the power contained within that word.
“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”
John 1:14-17 (NIV)
“For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD will give grace and glory; no good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly.”
Psalm 84:11 (NKJV)
Then, I began to see what grace means to me, personally.
“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.”
Romans 5:1-2 (NIV)
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”
Romans 3:23 (NIV)
But, probably the greatest impact of all was when I was reminded of my responsibility as a recipient of God’s grace. Thank God, His grace is free. It has no limits, and the very nature of grace is that there’s nothing that I can do to earn it. But, I am obligated to give back the same measure of grace that God gives me. And that’s where I’m humbled and convicted.
Just this week, a friend was treated unfairly on his job, and I wanted so much for that supervisor to suffer for it. On another occasion, I shut down when I should have responded to help someone who was in need. I confronted my own family members, whom I love so much, with a nasty “there-you-go-again” attitude. Those things aren’t graceful, and they certainly don’t reflect in the least God’s grace that has been extended to me.
What would “grace” look like in my relationships, or in my reactions to situations with which I’m confronted? How can I bring “grace” into settings around me that are ugly and Godless? How can I make “grace” more than just a word?
For a book that we’re writing, Martha and I had a chance to interview Lindsay, a young middle school teacher in the Bronx. Most of her students, because of the conditions they live in, are hopeless. Often, they react to their situations in very destructive and hurtful ways. But Lindsay understands that God has called her to love them anyway. She knows she must bring grace into those kids’ lives.
“On the first day of school,” she said, “the first thing I tell them is ‘I’ve been thinking about you all summer. I love you already. You may not believe this, but you can’t earn my love. You can make straight A’s and have perfect behavior all year, or you can get detention three times a week, and I’m going to love you the same.’ And then I spend all year trying to prove it.”
That is grace extended. That’s what the word really means.
The scriptures are filled with scenes of unbridled joy. Some of it was just spontaneous response to God’s goodness and faithfulness, like when David danced before the Lord. But much of the celebration was planned and intentional. Throughout the Old Testament God’s people were called to celebrate. 
Maybe we just don’t celebrate enough. Or maybe we just need to refocus our rejoicing. God knows that celebrations are important when they’re directed to Him. He knows that our family’s faith is enriched when our homes are filled with praise. Kids don’t forget special times, fun and exciting times that are focused on the goodness of God. And, for that matter, adults don’t either. 
I’ve realized how important it is to set aside specific moments to engage my family and friends in celebrating who God is. I want to acknowledge God’s working in our lives through even the little things. I want to make the seemingly insignificant things God does really significant. I think I’m going to throw more parties.
