by Jimmy McAfee | Jul 25, 2018 | Uncategorized
If you’ve met Jesus, I hope you’ll share your story. I’d love to hear it. If you haven’t met him yet, I hope you will seek him. He promises you will find him.
This is my story.
I grew up in the suburbs of Nashville in a traditional family. I was enrolled in a small, Christian school from the 1st – 11th grades and attended the local Baptist church three times most weeks.
I had three Bibles when I entered the 1st grade. Soon, I was able to list all the books of the Old and New Testaments, had learned all of the major stories and characters and could recite verses from memory by the handful. I have believed in God and the Bible for as long as I can remember and never had cause to doubt what I’d been taught about them.
It was an easy decision for me to commit my life to Christ when I was thirteen and to stand in front of the church to be baptized. After all, everyone I knew did the same thing.
My upbringing gave me every advantage for a great relationship with Jesus. But for whatever the reason, it stalled at the maturity of a thirteen-year-old.
College came and I was introduced to people who hadn’t grown up in my bubble. A few had different religions, but most people just didn’t care. I never abandoned my faith but didn’t rock the boat. I tried to lead a good life and left it at that. After all, I had already done what I understood was necessary to get into heaven. That’s the point, right?
As soon as we graduated, Kim and I got married. We got good jobs. We worked hard and built solid lives. We had two children and our days filled up quickly. We received God’s blessings and offered the thanks a polite kid would give his father for an allowance.
My comfortable world would be shaken in an unexpected way.
Holding my small children in my arms, I would daydream about the lives ahead of them. I tried to envision the very best lives possible so that I could invest in making those dreams into their realities. I carefully considered each blessing to ask on their behalf.
Money? Doesn’t seem to bring happiness.
Beauty, strength? Too fleeting.
Big family? Either way.
Powerful or famous? Too much temptation and corruption.
If not these, what did I want for them?
I wanted them to be loved by many and to give love freely in return. I wanted them to receive every good thing that God had for them, not just in heaven but for all of their days. I wanted them to have a life of impact. Last, I wanted them to love God passionately and worship the Savior who died for them.
I imagined these lives stretching ahead of them and smiled with satisfaction. That is what I would work to provide them.
My dreams were crushed with a single thought. “How could I give them something I didn’t have?”
Outside of family, I didn’t love well. I only spoke to God occasionally, and that was usually just to ask for something. I actually avoided worship, associating it with liturgical verses from a Baptist hymnal that never seemed to end.
I had grown and matured, but my spiritual development was stuck in junior high school.
I began to search for Jesus because I was scared that my children would never recognize him. I tried to find him so that I could show them the way.
Jesus entered my life through a door I had opened for someone else.
I prayed for understanding. I prayed for my heart to soften. I made lists of things I was thankful for. I read the Bible from cover to cover a couple of times.
What I found wasn’t what I expected. I found real people with real struggles, not the caricatures and platitudes I remembered.
The themes didn’t match what I expected either. Without realizing it, I had absorbed a perspective of a disconnected god who was equally content with destruction or blessing. The isolated verses I heard thrown around didn’t match the tone of the Bible as a whole.
I found grace over judgment, passion over protocol, inclusion over isolation, and life in abundance.
I abandoned the two-dimensional, man-in-the-sky God of my childhood. I let go of what I thought I knew and embraced something real.
Jesus is a real person who always wanted a real relationship with me. He speaks to me in whispers, comforts me in pain and walks with me at all times. He fills my heart with truths that bring me ever closer to him.
I am the son of the High King and enjoy the full favor of that position. My life has been redeemed and all my sins are forgotten, past and future. The same power that conquered the grave lives in me. I am loved more than I can imagine.
The love I receive flows out of me and into others. I worship in a loud voice with tears of joy streaming down my face. My life is his and I will go bravely wherever he calls me. I want everyone to meet the real Jesus.
I don’t have a story where everything changed in an instant. Candidly, I’m jealous sometimes of people who have those really cool testimonies.
My story is a love that grows stronger every day.
I have found the same life I wished for my children.
Thank you, Jesus.
IF you have already found Jesus, I hope you will share your story, too. You will find freedom and be a voice of truth.
If you have questions and want to talk more, I’d love to hear from you.
by Jimmy McAfee | Jul 19, 2018 | Uncategorized
A shiver ran through Patrick and he pulled his blanket tighter. The hard earth and cold night air reminded him that he was no longer as young as the men who slept around him.
The campfire had burned to embers but there was no reason to rebuild it. They would be leaving soon.
The pale moonlight provided enough light to see down the hillside and into the valley in front of them. Any detail was still shrouded in darkness. He tried not to imagine the fire’s destruction. In his mind’s eye, he could still picture everything as he had always known it.
He knew better. There was no way to tell if the fire had been caused by an enemy, accident or act of nature. Whatever the cause, from his home many miles away, the glow of the flames had foretold what he would find in the valley.
He had quickly collected help and supplies and immediately set out on the trip. Now sitting silently in the restless time before daybreak, he held onto hope that his neighbors had escaped the blazes.
The younger men with him slept soundly. He knew they were dreaming of the job in front of them, how they would use their strength to bring comfort and protection, and of the stories they would share when it was over.
Patrick had no such thoughts. Hardships, years, and the pains of great loss all ran together. He couldn’t see what lay ahead, but he knew the danger was real.
Wrapped tightly against the cold, his thoughts carried him back to better times he had enjoyed in this valley, when he had eaten dinner with the sounds of music and laughter echoing off the hill he now sat on.
He remembered the children smiling as they played, the elders telling stories, the women cleaning and polishing the keepsakes they reserved for guests, and the men watching proudly over their families as they relaxed at the end of a hard day. In his mind’s eye, he shifted his gaze from person to person, saying their names like some sort of hopeful roll call.
Fear gripped his heart. Threats that would take life indiscriminately haunted his thoughts. In the midst of a hard life, the pain and loss of young ones tormented him most.
Children look up into your eyes, trusting you to care for them. They place a simple faith in you to protect them. Their innocence is a blossom of hope in an unworthy world. He would gladly forfeit himself for them. He silently prayed “Please, Father. Spare them.”
In the midst of circumstances he could not understand, Patrick held onto his faith. Whatever awaited him, he placed himself in the hands of a Father who could save through the fire, heal with a touch or restore what had been broken. Even if He didn’t, Patrick would glorify him.
During dark times, Patrick knew that he had to make a choice. He could submit to his fears and rely on his own strength for protection. He could shut out the pain and numb himself from the sadness around him.
Instead, he chose to ignore likelihood and probabilities. He released his desire for control. He held tightly onto hope that he would find life in the valley, hope that better times lay ahead.
He awoke from his thoughts at the sound of the others stirring from their sleep. The sun was beginning to rise and the first brushstrokes of color began to fill the sky.
Patrick wondered what the day would hold. His looked at the young men with him and then into the valley where they would soon go. What will he find there? Are his neighbors safe? Is the danger behind them? Nothing was certain.
He stood up slowly, stretching muscles and joints that loudly complained about his unwelcome bed. Looking into the coming sunlight, he collected his thoughts.
To bring life into the valley, he must force out the darkness inside him. He released thoughts of his own safety. He released concern about whether he was adequate to the challenges ahead. He let go of his anger at an unfair world.
With these cleared from his mind, he held tightly to what was left. These three remained: faith, hope, and love. And the greatest of these is love.
The first rays of light filled the valley.
by Jimmy McAfee | Jul 11, 2018 | Uncategorized
Sometimes the best advice in life seems upside down at first. Relationships are frequently like that. But if you want different results, you gotta change perspective.
I always want more friends. You probably do too. I’m trying to get better at turning people I meet into friends. The latest thing I’ve learned is called “The Ben Franklin Effect”.
Hopefully, it can help all of us to build friendships. Let me explain.
I joined a local serving team in hopes of making friends. The people on this team try to help neighbors who need it most. They emphasize relationships by focusing first on the person and second on the job to be done. It seemed like a great approach.
It’s been a lot harder than I thought.
Here’s our friendship formula:
- Step 1: Find something you are good at and enjoy doing.
- Step 2: Find a neighbor with a need that matches what you have to give.
- Step 3: Get to know the neighbor and be generous in exceeding their need.
- Step 4: Watch amazing friendships grow.
Solid plan, right? Unfortunately, it doesn’t routinely work. Here is a typical story.
We had a great workday at Anna’s home. The atmosphere was upbeat. We had great music, laughed together, worked hard, and did a great job. Anna was overwhelmed and tearfully grateful. Joy filled her home for the first time in too long, and her pending tragedy was avoided. We talked regularly for the next few weeks.
Then it started to cool off.
She declined to join us for future events. Then she was busy when we invited her to join us for lunch or a cup of coffee. She was very thankful for the help she had received and happy to hear from us, but no friendship was forming.
On the other hand, John was relatively new to our group. I knew him well enough to have a conversation, but not much more. He came to the workday, worked incredibly hard, and did an amazing job. That day catalyzed the growth of our enduring friendship.
Why did it work with one person, but not the other?
There is a name for this phenomenon. It is called The Ben Franklin Effect (yes, the hundred dollar bill, kite-flying guy). He said:
“He that has once done you a Kindness will be more ready to do you another, than he whom you yourself have obliged.”
It’s kind of King James-ish, so you may need read it a couple times.
He basically says that you are more likely to make a friend with someone who has done a favor for you than someone who received a favor from you.
In my example, Anna was a neighbor in need, and all the gifts flowed her way. She never wanted to be in a situation where she needed other people’s help to survive. She avoided situations that confronted her with feelings of perceived inadequacy.
On the other hand, John gave his best effort and was celebrated for it. He was drawn to receive more attention like that.
What is the point?
To make friends, draw people in by acknowledging how they have blessed you. Bond with them by praising their positive impacts on your life.
We all want to be special and to be loved. We are drawn to people who see something remarkable inside us that they are excited to share.
I’m going to have to practice to get this right. It’s easier for me to focus on what I am good at and what I can do for someone. There is nothing wrong with that, but my focus tends to remain on me, and that is less powerful.
I am a more desirable friend when I draw attention to others’ strengths, not their struggles.
It can also help me to be a better servant. If I want to build connections while making home repairs, I need to provide chances for my future friend to extend kindness. Increasing focus on their value and decreasing focus on their need are like friendship fertilizer.
It will require being more intentional with my observations to appreciate each person’s unique gifts. However, I receive something from everyone who gives me their time and attention.
Maybe they have a story that I need to hear. Maybe they are leaving a legacy in my city that will inspire generations. Maybe they light the room with a simple smile.
In his story, Ben Franklin asked someone if he could borrow a book. He built a long-term relationship on a minor gesture. It doesn’t have to be big, just intentional.
If I can learn to pay more attention to people and value the gifts God gave them, maybe they will want to spend more time together.
It’s just crazy enough to work.
One day I may approach you and offer a clumsy expression of my gratitude. Please take it easy on me. It still looks funny when I’m upside down. But I’m learning.
by Jimmy McAfee | Jul 3, 2018 | Uncategorized
After almost fifty years, God’s plan for my life is becoming clear. It’s not about me doing the right thing in the right place at the right time. He wants me to grow into my full potential.
At the dawn of time, while the echo of the creator’s voice could still be heard, and his warm breath hung heavy in the air, the beauty of this world was unrivaled. Pristine gardens, beaches that perfectly joined forests with oceans, and mountaintop views that extended forever – all exactly as he envisioned them.
It is still magnificent. His handiwork is undeniable and gives every creature insight into his nature. But evil crept into paradise. It feeds on our strength to spread its infection.
I walk through a world that is broken, and neighbors in need surround me. They are hungry, sick, and alone. Their eyes are an open window that draws me into their pain and their longing for hope.
Their individual needs are large, and the devastation is widespread. I am compelled to help, but I am only one. I feel small and powerless. In despair, I cry out.
“Who am I?”
God calls me his beloved son. He proclaims that I am heir to his kingdom, that everything he has is mine, and that his spirit and power live in me.
Through him, I can move the mountains his hands carved, heal sickness where he breathed life, and restore hope to a world he spoke into existence. He offers me his full authority.
Yet I hesitate and await his specific instruction at every step. I kneel and ask when it is time to stand and act.
I am not able to wield his full power, but neither am I a child with a wooden sword. The armor of God lies before me. I lift each of the pieces and put them on.
Helmet of salvation, breastplate of righteousness, belt of truth, sword of Spirit, shield of faith, and feet ready to carry peace – together they form the full armor.
They fit like a second skin and respond as an extension of my body. Not only are they weightless, but wrapped in them I feel complete. Fear melts away, and I am drawn to the fight.
My neighbors will not suffer alone and without hope. I will not stand by and wait for someone else. The evil must be defeated and its curse lifted.
I am a warrior. It is time to rise up and embrace my destiny.
Hear my prayer, Lord!
The Knight’s Prayer
Father –
Anoint me as protector of your beloved children, who are my brothers and sisters and the territory of your eternal kingdom. Help me to love them as you do.
Keep me vigilant when demons descend, spreading sickness, pain, addiction, and destruction. Though the clash comes quickly, remove my doubts and hesitation. Give me strength and make my hand swift and sure.
Allow peace to mark my footprints.
Shield my heart from the deceiver, who fills my path with temptation.
Forgive my failures, and encourage me when I pray for answers that do not come. Your grace is sufficient.
May I hunger to do good, seek you in uncertainty, and love fearlessly at all times.
My life is yours.
Amen.