King of the Hill // Micah

I always thought of "King of the Hill" as a kid's game. You remember, the one where no sooner had you made it to the top and 'bam' you were waylaid, followed by a great view of your usurper from the bottom. Who knew that this childhood pastime was a foretaste of a deeply ingrained human desire to rule and reign.

Embedded in our core is an appetite to rise above the rest, to be atop the heap. The desire to be King fuels pursuit in every sector of our modern day culture. In sports, we call them MVP's and Champions, in business it is Chairman, CEO and Fortune 100, in academics it's valedictorian, and so it goes. We incessantly vie for the top and climb towards titles that declare who is supreme. While there is an upside to healthy competition and ambition, it must be noted that an ugly multidimensional downside emerges when people become obsessed with being king.

In our world's system, leading is about personal gain and glory. In Christ's Kingdom, it is about the good of others and glory of God. If left unchecked, our upward ambition will distance us from people and position us to be at odds with God. When we make it about us we work against God's design to lift us up that we may point people to Him, and no man survives between God and His glory.

As we navigate the business of this life we must remember that in God's economy, the higher we rise, the more we serve. And as we succeed, our soul must remember that in Christ's Kingdom our ascent is about the elevation of those we lead and the exaltation of the Most High God, who is the ultimate King of the Hill.

"When Jesus saw that they were ready to force him to be their king, he slipped away into the hills by himself." John 6:15

"I glorified you on earth by completing the work you gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify me at your side with the glory I had with you before the world was created." John 17:4-5

"He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less.“He has come from above and is greater than anyone else." John 3:30-31a

- Micah McElveen

One Degree Off Equals 100% Wrong // Micah

The old saying, "Almost only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades," is still pretty accurate today. In many instances slightly missing the mark eventually equals completely getting it wrong. We have all passed through hit or miss, in or out, pass or fail scenarios. In these instances, one can simultaneously be so close while completely missing it.

In the New Testament, we see this reality playing out over and over again, often amongst the piously religious. We see leaders rooted in the practice of the Law yet so far from the Spirit of God. Priests brushing up against the person of Jesus while missing the heart of Christ. Somewhere along the line religious performance was substituted for a heart that seeks after God. The compass began recalibrating to a slightly off "True North" leaving a road littered with traditions and void of the God it was meant to lead to. Some cases are astonishing.

One such instance plays out in John 5 when a cripple's faith met Jesus's words, "Pick up your mat and walk." The most shocking part of the text isn't the miracle but instead the response of the people's guardians. "[So] the Jewish leaders objected. They said to the man who was cured, 'You can't work on the Sabbath! The law doesn't allow you to carry that sleeping mat!'” (John 5:10)

Are you serious? Jesus suspends natural law, achieves an unparalleled medical breakthrough, and in an instant undoes 38 years of paralysis and all they could come up with was, "...well, technically it is Saturday and holding your soiled nasty mat that you have been suffering on for 38 years might qualify as work. After all, the weight of your urine in the fabric may have tipped the scale above the legal carrying weight..." Talk about "missing the forest for the trees".

It is amazing how far off we can get when we fix our eyes on the things that don't matter and lose sight of who it is all really about. In a world full of competing interests and twisted thinking we must keep the "main things the main things" and fill our view with Jesus, the author of life and perfector of our faith. For when we lose sight of Him and seek to run our lives on our own we may find ourselves only one degree off, yet 100% wrong.

"We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God's throne." Hebrews 12:2

- Micah McElveen

The Gift We Have // Micah

The Law of Diminishing Returns rules with an iron fist, especially in today's materialistic society. We are constantly searching for ever-elusive happiness in things that can't deliver. We reason, "If I just owned that, lived there, achieved this or had him/her then... I would be happy." No sooner have we traded the old toy in, it creeps in again, the reality that contentment wasn't achieved and the new toy must be replaced.

When given over to this cyclical roller coaster we become so dizzied by the ride that our vision is blurred. At some point, we must stop the merry-go-round, come to our senses, and realize that the answer to the problem is staring us right in the face, or in the case of the Samaritan women, sitting by her at the well.

In Jesus, we find "true life" for our weary bones, "living water" for our parched throats and "eternal hope" for our desperate souls. God so loved us in our brokenness that "He gave His one and only son that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." This priceless gift is given to us by the grace of God through Christ. It is ours for the taking if we will only reach out. O that we would take hold of that which is offered to us with both hands and not miss The Gift we have before us.

"Jesus replied, 'If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you would ask me, and I would give you living water.'” John 4:10

- Micah McElveen

Wired For Glory // Micah

In some fashion, we are all pressing upward, vying for glory. While corporate ladders typically outline upward mobility with clearly defined steps, successes in all arenas are fueled in part by some form of acknowledgement. A stay at home mom, who fulfills a most challenging and important role, may not have career advancement in mind, but may be driven by her children "rising up and calling her blessed" or Facebook friends "liking" the job she is doing.

In the marketplace, compensation plays to glory, as it is fundamentally a tool to reward and attribute value to a worker. Raises increase purchasing power, which in turn facilitates acquisition of products and brands that set one apart and subtly speak to what a person has achieved or is capable of.

At its foundation, performance itself is incentivized by recognition. At every stage in our lives, top performers are granted increased visibility in almost every field: Valedictorian, Rhodes Scholar, MD, VP, CEO, MVP, shoot, even kid's spelling bee's have a "champion". Whether being lifted up involves a podium, a trophy, or a simple pat on the back is not the point. Regardless the ladder we are climbing each rung is marked in some fashion by increase in title, status, recognition or reward, all of which lead to greater glory.

The question is not: do I live for glory, but instead, to what end will glory bestowed on me be used?

Will glory given me be a means to stake a temporary claim with temporal ends on this fleeting dirt wad we call Earth? Or will it be used for the eternal purposes of The One who will outshine the sun?

After all we are all Wired For Glory.

"I have given them the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are one. I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me." John 17:22-23

"Do you have the gift of speaking? Then speak as though God himself were speaking through you. Do you have the gift of helping others? Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies. Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus Christ. All glory and power to him forever and ever! Amen." I Peter 4:11

"O nations of the world, recognize the Lord, recognize that the Lord is glorious and strong. Give to the Lord the glory he deserves!" 1 Chronicles 16:28–29a

- Micah McElveen

Unfulfilled // Micah

Have you ever looked forward to something, and then upon experiencing it, walked away unfulfilled? The hope of a high, chased by the reality of a low. This is always the case when we "buy a bill of goods," after all, things weren't as advertised! But what about when 5 star was marketed, 5 star was delivered, and we still feel unfulfilled? When this occurs we are actually bumping up against a law built into the universe.

When we expect to be fully satisfied by a gift, we are asking it to fulfill a function it was not designed to carry out. The good gifts granted to us are like prequels; they are but hors d'oeuvres, meant to wet the appetite before the coming of the main dish.  When blessings are received for what they are- good gifts from our Maker who can Himself alone satisfy- we can rightly experience them as foretastes or illuminators, casting light on the wonder of the Giver. It is Good News that The Creator, who made the creation to know complete satisfaction only in Him, bids us come.

"Taste and see that the LORD is good! How blessed is the one who takes shelter in him!" Psalm 34:8

"He satisfies the desire of his loyal followers; he hears their cry for help and delivers them." Psalm 145:19

- Micah McElveen