Bud Lamb Talks

Reading from his recently published book Chasing the Sage, Bud continues reading from the chapter titled "Orphan to Son".

In today's podcast, he begins reading on page 25 and continues to talk into the season of living as a "functional orphan" and the downward spiral that takes many men in their journey of Chasing the Sage.

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“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as though you were working for the Lord and not people.” Colossians 3:23 GNT

“There is a difference between serving and being a servant. Typically, when we serve, we determine when, where, and what we’re going to do. When we are a servant, we surrender those decisions to those we serve. In essence, the servant says, “Put me in coach - anywhere will do, just put me in. I want to be on the team.” -- Bud Lamb, Chasing the Sage, Page 149

Dallas Willard writes, “I believe the discipline of service is even more important for Christians who find themselves of influence, power, and leadership (at home, marketplace, or community). To live as a servant while fulfilling socially important roles is one of the greatest challenges any disciple ever faces.” -- Dallas Willard, Spirit of the Disciplines, Page 183

Jesus defines greatness in the Kingdom of God as being a servant of all. “To be “great” and to live as a servant is one of the most difficult spiritual attainments...for it alone will train them to exercise great power without corrupting their souls.” ibid, Page 183

The distinction between “service” and “servant” reveals our hearts. Clearly, Jesus calls us to be servants -- servants of all. His example of washing the disciple's feet (John 13:3-5) gives us a clear picture of the heart in action.

How then can we practice being a servant?

“Doing precedes feeling.” Determine to serve with kindness -- one act each day.

Hidden acts of kindness...Small kindnesses: picking up the newspaper of a neighbor and placing it on the doorstep; taking a bowl of hot soup from your own pot to a neighbor, pausing to listen to a neighbor who is having a hard time dealing with COVID; or assembling “Care Packages” -- one gallon zip lock bags loaded with energy bars, toothpaste and toothbrush, kleenex, travel deodorant, and a $5 Starbucks card to have available to give to homeless standing at the street corner.

Be alert to opportunities...For example the quickening of your heart to some need or person. A friend of mine became aware of a 95-year-old couple in our area and began cooking and delivering a simple meal once each week. Begin the day with “What will it be today God?” Then be vigilant and swiftly do what presents itself.

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Pray

Help me keep this simple Lord. I can overcomplicate things -- help me see micro-opportunities to be a servant to the people in my life and take action even while everything in me is screaming “This can wait!!!!” I want to live and love like Jesus. Thank You. Amen.

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The Bible tells us "God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure." Ephesians 5:1 NLT

Most guys operate as functional orphans; the result of wounds from the hands of our fathers, their absence; or from the hands of betrayals where we asked for help but were shamed.

We learn the first lesson of an orphaned - it is unwise to trust others. We learn to move through life believing survival is all up to us.

Bud reads from Chasing the Sage, Pages 17-18.

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Listen to what the impulsive Peter wrote about submission: “...clothe yourself with humility toward one another, for God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” 1 Peter 5:5 NASB

The practice of this ancient pathway can tear down the barrier we build from thinking we are the center of the universe. It teaches us humility. We discover what compassion really means. For as we learn to let go of our rights, “we lay down the terrible burden of needing to get our own way.” -- Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline, Page 111

I submit to my wife when I allow her to influence me. Several years ago, my wife Lea Ann and I introduced Re|engage Marriage to our church with powerful healing results. Following the weekly meeting, I would send a quickly crafted email of encouragement and send it to the leaders and participants. Usually, the email included typos and incomplete sentences. What mattered most was that I pound out the email quickly or else it would get lost in a sea of other pressing details.

One day Lea Ann asked if we could edit it together before I sent it out. Something knotted up inside me. In my head, I did the math. I thought, “If I write and send it myself it will take me 10 minutes. If I say “OK,” it will take me at least 30 minutes!”

Well, I said “OK.” And yes, it took longer..., but it truly was a better email. This situation helped me become willing to be open to help from Lea Ann and others. As I learned to let go of control, our marriage became stronger.

When, in our hearts, we are open to the influence of others, we learn the freedom to surrender the right to retaliate as we practice turning the other cheek.

We learn submission as we follow Jesus’ Way...if you want to follow Me, learn to deny yourself of what you want.

Yes, submission is hard because it confronts my stubborn need to be in control. And yet it is such a liberating discipline to practice.

“Although this discipline has been the source of some of the greatest abuses through inadequate understanding and teaching on it, it is essential to our call to follow, and become like, Jesus.” -- Bud Lamb, Chasing the Sage, page 149

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Pray

Another zinger God. On the surface, I’m not interested in learning this ancient pathway. But, again, I’m willing to try. Help me become aware this week when something knots up inside when I face an opportunity to accept someone to influence how I want to handle things. First “aware of” and then “embrace” the help of others. Amen

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Bud reads the introduction to his book Chasing the Sage using personal stories, reflective questions, and offers three movements that can help a guy move through the thread of “Who am I and what am I doing?”

Chasing the Sage is about this slow, painful, magnificent process of the continued Fathering of men by God, Who offers us His blessing and abundance with no strings attached.

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Jesus knows what we need to sustain the pace of life. He says, “Come away by yourselves to a secluded place and rest for a while.” Mark 6:31 NASB

“In the relentless busyness of modern life, we have lost the rhythm between work and rest,” writes Wayne Muller in his pearl of a book Sabbath: Finding Rest, Renewal, and Delight in Our Busy Lives.

The practice of this ancient pathway will help you slow down, become unhurried, and as a result, you will grow closer to God and others.

I know, you're probably thinking, “Silence and solitude? You’ve got to be kidding!! I hardly have time to pull together the paperwork for my tax returns!”

OK, I get it -- so approach this path in micro-moments. It is a state of mind, not a place.

Take a breath. One or two deep inhales and exhales.

Take a break. Walk across the room, around the house waving your arms, or around the block.

Take a moment. Restart your phone then ask God to bring to mind two things to be grateful for.

Take a look. The sky, your spouse or child, a great memory...focus for a few.

Take it further. “Sabbath can only begin if we close the factory, turn out the lights, turn off the computer, and withdraw from the concerns of the marketplace. Choose one heavily used appliance or device - and let it rest for a morning, afternoon, or entire day, surrender to a quality of time when you will not be disturbed, seduced, or responsive to what our technologies have to offer. -- Wane Muller, Sabbath, page 28

“The discipline of solitude is creating time alone and in silence, where it’s just God and you. We must get away from people so we can be truly present with them.” --Bud Lamb, Chasing the Sage, page 149

“Without silence, there is no solitude. Though silence sometimes involves the absence of speech, it always involves the act of listening. Simply to refrain from talking, without a heart of listening to God, is not silence.” -- Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline, page 98

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Pray

I will take that breath, God. It’s a micro-step in the right direction. We both know I can’t sustain this pace, so thank You for this tiny pathway to peace. Amen

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In this episode entitled “Perspective,” I’m going to read you a letter from a distant friend of mine, but first a little back-story.

Twenty years ago about once a month when I walked into our house after work, Lea Ann would shout “You got a letter from John!”

It was from John Eldredge who, then and now, always seems to have something encouraging to say to me.

Now the letter isn’t addressed to me as "Dear Bud" but rather a "Dear Friend." Yes, it’s a newsletter sent to perhaps thousands, but to me, it is deeply personal. He doesn’t know me from the next guy and it doesn’t matter to me.

Well, I got another letter from John last week.

So here we go…

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Several years ago, this was my verse for the year: “...make it your ambition to lead a quiet life and attend to your own business..." 1 Thessalonians 4:11 NASB

I was harried; feeling strained as a result of having demands that exceeded my resources. I have hurried: everything I did, I did in a hurry. I felt rushed all the time.

It wasn’t about being more disciplined with my time, managing my calendar, or being lazy. It was my appetite. My appetite for more.

What I needed was to slow down, simplify, and return to a sustainable pace of living.

Now, with this COVID Wilderness, everything is hyper what it was pre-COVID. Now it’s harried and hurried on steroids! We need to simplify and slow down before we blow up, crash, or burn.

Jesus offers us a better way, a more simple way, when He says, “Come to Me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Matthew 11:26-27 NASB

So, you’re not sure how to simplify in this wilderness? Ask God. He will make a way through the wilderness. He knows you are looking for the land of milk and honey and He can get you there. Show your good intentions by taking a few micro-steps.

Practice slowing. Cultivate awareness when you’re out of control, going too fast, breathing too heavy, pushing too hard, wanting it too much. Awareness is the key. Practice slowing. Give yourself a time-out if even for five seconds. With practice, you will slow down.

Less is more. Practice saying “no.” No to more stuff, more email, more calls, more technology, more excitement, more activities that pull your family apart. Less is more.

More is less. Reduce clutter. Get rid of stuff. Have a garage sale and get rid of anything you’ve not touched in 6 months. Create some space to live in and then learn to live in it.

“There is a healthy kind of busyness where your life is full with things that matter...by that definition Jesus himself was busy.” -- John Mark Comer, The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry

This is the season to discover a sustainable pace. Make this your ambition -- to pursue a sustainable pace, to make your house a home, and carve our space in this wilderness for hope to come alive.

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Pray

Oh man God, this hits home! I can hardly imagine plain, basic, uncomplicated with all the technology I deal with, the zoom meetings with the kids in the background of my kitchen-table-turned-home-office. You know I need this. Help me remember to talk to my spouse or a good friend and begin to slow down. Amen

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In this episode, Bud talks with Dr. Aaron Carr. Aaron is a fellowship-trained minimally invasive, robotic, and bariatric surgeon. He specializes in bringing the latest surgical techniques to the treatment of common diseases like reflux, obesity, and gastrointestinal pathology. He and his author-wife, Meredith, and their three children live in Athens, GA.

Together Bud and Aaron unpack the idea of “The COVID Man: Lessons from the COVID Wilderness.” As they share the story of their friendship, recovery, and faith in Jesus, they will discuss:

1. How COVID is affecting men as a magnifier for men in their relationships, marriage, and parenting.
2. How “Pre-COVID” issues at work and business can become hyperactive or more problematic in this time of uncertainty. 
3. How COVID brings to surface dormant issues in many areas of our life (i.e health, emotional/psych, and spiritual). 

They will also talk about how this crisis has affected their faith and practice as followers of Jesus as they draw comparisons with this COVID wilderness and the wilderness experience of the nation of Israel found in the book of Exodus in the Bible.

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The Bible tells us that - “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.” 2 Timothy 3:16-17 KJV

The Bible is no ordinary book. It is inspired by God. Written with history, biography, poetry, songs, and a mysterious prophecy. It can be intimidating. It consists of 66 “books” written by over 30 different authors. If you started with the first book, Genesis, it wouldn’t be too long before you got bogged down and quite possibly discouraged.

Learning to study the bible begins with a few simple tools. Your confidence will grow as you add study to your list of ancient practices to your modern-day life.

“Whereas meditation on scripture is devotional, the study of scripture is analytical. We study scripture to learn the history of our faith, the people who have gone before us, and how to know God, enjoy Him, and to love like Jesus.” -- Bud Lamb, Chasing the Sage, Page 148

The ancient pathway of “study” means we devote time and attention to acquire a growing familiarity with God’s Word. Note: You may not study the Bible every day; however, you will come to reflect, remember, and apply it to life every day!

I have found myself most motivated to study when I’m “faced with a need-to-know or need-to-grow situation” ― Larry Osborne, Sticky Church.

So here are a few tools I have used which will help you gain confidence as you read and study the Bible.

30 Days to Understanding the Bible by Max Anders. Yes, in 15 minutes a day you will be introduced to key Bible characters, places, and events in chronological order as well as core teachings of the Bible.

Life Application Study Bible by Tyndale House. I call this the “big gun.” It has over 100 profiles of key people, 500 maps, charts, and a dictionary. It also has verse-by-verse commentary which explains the complicated sections and helps make them more understandable.

Yes, your confidence with your faith will grow leaps and bounds, you will discover food for its soul, and you will come to know what you believe!

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Pray

I have read parts of books about You, but I’ve not read the Bible -- it’s confusing. I don’t understand the “why” about so many things - like why You seem so angry at times, or why You “smote” (Exodus 32:35 NASB) some people and not others. I’m curious though about these simple tools Bud wrote about, so I’m going to check out the links and take it from there. Help me do the right thing. Amen

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