December 1863, during the height of the Civil War, poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow received news that his son had been wounded in the Battle of New Hope Church. Longfellow had struggled much of his life with depression, and having had lost his wife only two years before, the news of his son’s wounds was difficult for him to bear.

On the morning of Christmas, as Longfellow sat down at his desk, the bells of a nearby church began to chime. Longfellow listened, and as he thought about their significance, he wrote these words…

I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old familiar carols play
And wild and sweet the words repeat
Of peace on earth, good will to men.

And thought how, as the day had come,
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along the unbroken song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

And in despair I bowed my head
There is no peace on earth I said
For hate is strong and mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good will to men.

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep,
God is not dead, nor doth he sleep.
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail
With peace on earth, good will to men.

This poem was put to music and has been sung by just about everybody. It was Johnny Cash’s favorite song. Here’s a video of him singing it on a Billy Graham special.

“If you never ask, the answer is always no.”

The person who made this statement recently was talking to marketers about closing the sale. It got my attention because it also applies to our prayer life.

James said, “You do not have because you do not ask God.” (James 4:2)

More and more I see asklessness as the root of our problems. James also said that we don’t receive sometimes because we ask with the wrong motives … but I’m convinced that the first part of the equation is a bigger problem for a good many of us.

The best way to solve this problem is with a pen, a paper, and some time spent in solitude.

Write down the things in your life that you have been dealing with on your own, that you have (inexplicably) neglected to pray about, and make a decision to bring these matters before the throne once a day until they’re resolved.

You and I both know from history that it works. Why then we go through seasons of asklessness is a mystery for the ages.

When the angel announced to Mary that she would give birth to the Son of God, he didn’t conclude with the words, “Therefore, we’ll put you in a mansion with a team of servants at your beck and call.” One could argue that she deserved it, but that’s not the life God calls us to. He calls us to a life with a price tag. A life of sacrifice.

Mary was the greatest of all women, but instead of luxury, she was given simplicity. She lived with her carpenter husband in a poor Galilean community. It was not unlike living in Appalachia or the hills of east Tennessee. At eight months pregnant, she was requited to take a long journey to a distant city. It was there she gave birth to her child — not in a comfortable home, surrounded by a loving family, but alone, with only her husband, in a stable, surrounded by farm animals.

This is how it is for those whom God chooses. Sometimes we have a hard way to go; there’s no getting around it. The road to the fulfillment of the promises of God does not run downhill. It’s an uphill climb, and sometimes it’s less than easy.

But I can guarantee you one thing: It’s always worth it.

My favorite verse in the Christmas story is found in Luke 2:19. After Jesus was born, and the angels announced his birth, and the shepherd boys came to witness this miracle, the Bible says…

Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often. (Luke 2:19)

Do you know what I imagine were the thoughts of her heart?

“It’s worth it. Every demanding day. Every whispered rumor. Every daring step of this difficult journey. It’s all worth it, because look at what God has given me.”

In the mother of our savior we find an example to follow. It challenges us to keep believing God, even when the road gets rough.

Here’s another great Connie Mack quote:

“No matter what I talk about, I always get back to baseball.”

He said this in an interview with  Sporting News magazine in March 1951. He was 88 at the time, retired from the game, but he still couldn’t stop talking about baseball.

We’ve all known people whose conversations always seem to end up in the same place. Some inevitably get back to a dirty joke, or a bit of gossip, or a political rant. Others come to an uplifting thought, a prayer request, a word of praise.

It has a lot to do with what’s on your mind all the time, and also what’s in your heart. That’s why Jesus said, “What you say flows from what is in your heart.” (Luke 6:45)

What does your conversation always get back to?

Connie Mack will always be remembered as one of the greatest personalities in baseball. After coaching the Philadelphia A’s for 50 years, he retired in 1950 at the age of 87 as the winningest manager in history.

Much has been written about the management techniques of Connie Mack. Even today, leaders have a lot to learn from his example.

One management technique: he refused to worry. Early in his career, when he realized how worry was threatening to destroy his ability to lead — especially worries over past defeats — he forced himself to get so busy preparing to win today’s game that he didn’t have time to worry about yesterday’s losses.

He summed up it by saying, “You can’t grind grain with water that has already gone down the creek.” This colloquialism is probably lost on most of us, but it is Mack’s way of saying what Paul said …

But I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us. (Philippians 3:13-14)

It works. Preparing today helps you keep your mind off yesterday’s regrets and away from tomorrow’s uncertainties. So give your attention to what is really pressing today … and press on.

On December 9, 1914, fire swept through the factories owned by Thomas Edison in West Orange, New Jersey. The damage totaled millions of dollars. Practically everything of Edison’s was destroyed, including journals and records of works in progress.

Edison was not a young man at the time this happened. Many people sent condolences and notes of sympathy, expecting that this tragedy would prompt his retirement.

Edison’s response? “I am 67, but I’m not too old to make a fresh start.”

It’s not too late for your fresh start, either. It doesn’t matter how old you are. Neither does it matter how much you have lost in the fires of the past. Today is a new day, a fresh start is yours for the taking.

I have friends who entered the mission field in their sixties. I also have friends who have launched new businesses after retirement. Chuck Swindoll planted a new church in Texas at the age of 64. My own dear gray-haired mother became a novelist at the age of 73; her third book will be published this month.

But this memo isn’t about age. It’s about change. It’s about never losing the capacity to start a new chapter in your life…regardless of how the last chapter may have ended.

Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing!
Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? (Isaiah 43:18-19)

God is ready to do something new in your life, to give you a fresh start. He has forgotten the former things; you can, too. The new creation will be springing up soon. Do you perceive it? Do you receive it?

A while back I heard someone say, “Problems are messages.”

Think about it.

A health problem — even a minor one — is a message that you’re not taking proper care of yourself. A financial problem is a hint that you’re not managing well the resources God has given you, or that you’re not properly prepared for the inevitable rainy days of life. Tension in a relationship tells you that, perhaps, you’re being too demanding, or too selfish, or too insensitive in this moment.

Problems are often messages from God: he uses them to shine light on the things we are doing in conflict with his Word, things which hurt ourselves and hurt others.

Problems are more than just messages. You can also consider each problem to be an implied mission from God. When difficulties get in your way, you can be sure that God is challenging you to do something about it.

Many people respond to problems by demanding more from those around them: “What’s wrong with you? Why can’t you change yourself for me? Why won’t somebody fix this situation for me?”

God’s people, especially those in leadership, need to respond to problems with the question: “What can I do?”

What can I do differently?

What can I do to make things better?

What can I do to make me better?

What can I do TODAY?

Remember Nehemiah. This Jewish refugee had landed on his feet, so to speak, in Babylon. He could have continued living in the king’s palace; it was the life of a slave, true, but it was also a life of relative comfort.

Instead, when he heard about the desolation of Israel, he fell to his knees and asked, “Lord, what can I do?” The prayer in Nehemiah 1:5-10 reflects his attitude of repentance and his resolve to make a difference. He identified what he needed to change about himself, and what he needed to do to change the situation.

What problem is picking at you today? Look at it closely. Open it up. There’s a message inside, a message that will take in the direction of your next mission.

Sometimes Lucado says it better than anyone else can. I picked up a copy of Cure for the Common Life earlier this week. I haven’t yet read it, though it’s been on the list for a long time. On  this day I just intended to skim for a few minutes.

Section One is titled “Use Your Uniqueness … to make a big deal out of God everyday of your life.” It’s the second part of this phrase that caught my eye. It pretty much sums up what Christian life is about: To make a big deal out of God every single day.

It’s worth thinking about. What will make you a big deal out of today? Someone’s mistake? Some inconvenience you must endure? Some problem or setback? When we make a big deal out these things, we miss the chance to make a big deal out of what really matters.

David wrote…

Let all those who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; And let those who love Your salvation say continually, “Let God be magnified!” (Psalm 70:4)

To magnify means to increase in size, volume or significance. I suppose another way to say it is: to magnify means to make a big deal out of something. Let’s look for ways we can make a big deal out of God today, in our thoughts, in our plans, in our attitudes, in our work, in what we read, in what we listen to, in what we look at, in all that we say and do, let God be magnified.

There’s a Dennis the Menace cartoon in which Dennis and his friend Joey are walking away from the Wilson’s house with their hands full of cookies. Joey asks, “I wonder what we did to deserve this?” Dennis tells his friend, “Joey, Mrs. Wilson gives us cookies not because we’re nice, but because she’s nice.”

The same can be said of our Heavenly Father. He gives, not because we’re good, but because he’s good. He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us for our iniquities. Instead, he is the one…

…who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. (Psalm 103:4-5)

There’s an old saying: Adversity introduces a man to himself. When things are toughest, you find out who you really are, and what you most need to change.

Are you willing to give to others when there’s money to spare? Many people are. But when there’s hardly enough to go around, you learn just how generous you’re really willing to be.

Are you charming and upbeat when things are going your way? Nearly everyone is. But how you treat others on your worst days tells you more about who you really are.
When you face adversity, you get a good look at you. More often than not, you see something that could use a little touch-up.

Look at the adversity you’re facing today — or look back on a past struggle — and ask yourself: What does this experience teach me about me? What do I need to make better about myself?

Paul said that suffering teaches perseverance and perseverance builds character. So, don’t waste a single setback. In the midst of difficulty, seize the opportunity to find out who you are, and what you need to be a little less of, and what you need to be a little more of.