Archive for the ‘By Craig Kuhlman’ Category
“If you are still up there…”
Filed under: By Craig Kuhlman, Christian Living, Gospel, Love, Prayer, Relationships | Tags: Hearing God's voice, Helping those in need, Will work for food
Comments (9) That was the prayer Pat recalled to me while standing in line at Ralph’s grocery store on January 20th, 1992 (Martin Luther King, Jr. day). I was reminded of my experience a couple weeks ago as we celebrated the national holiday.
Nan and I were living in Pasadena, California, at the time. I worked for a large bank in Beverly Hills, and it was a holiday so I was enjoying an unstructured day in beautiful Southern California. I had the top down on my sports car as I headed up Lake Avenue, one of the most heavily-traveled streets in Pasadena. As I approached Ralph’s, I noticed a young man in his late-twenties carrying a large (probably five by five feet) sign overhead with the words “Will Work For Food.” Those words weren’t extraordinary; there were many homeless living in and around the city. What was extraordinary was the size of his sign and that his entire family was seated in the grass along the sidewalk with signs stating the same words.
As I passed, I felt a burden. Here I was, headed to the local bookstore, and this family didn’t have enough to eat. Then I heard a very clear and distinct voice in my mind, just as if there was someone seated in my car next to me: “You need to help him.” Immediately, a little startled, I retorted back, “I can’t help him. I don’t have any money on me.” Immediately, the response came back to me: “You have your checkbook. You can take them inside and buy whatever they need.” Without a response, I relented and said, “Okay, I’ll head to the bookstore, and if he is still there when I return, I’ll stop.”
I must have been in the bookstore for at least 45 minutes before I checked out. As I headed back, I almost forgot about the interaction until I got nearer, and my heart started pounding. There, in the same spot, was this young man pacing back and forth with large sign overhead. How many others had driven by without stopping, I wondered. As I pulled into the parking lot, my heart started pounding more heavily. As I approached him, his clear blue eyes met mine, and he put his sign down. Still not knowing what to say, I opened my mouth and out came the words: “My name is Craig. I want to help.”
I’ll never forget the look in his eyes. It was as if they were saying, “I can’t believe this is happening.” I noticed relief on his face. He told me his name was Pat. After putting 
their signs in the trunk of their car, we walked toward the store, and he shared that he was a pipefitter and had been out of work for six months. His wife told me their son’s name was Matthew and their daughter was Sandy. After we got inside, I told him to get whatever they needed and I’d hang out near the magazine rack. I told them to take their time; I didn’t have anywhere else to be.
After awhile, they returned with a full cart. As we were waiting in line at the checkout, we looked at each other in a moment of awkward silence. He spoke first, and I’ll never forget the prayer he recollected: “This morning I woke up, and we didn’t have any food in the house. I looked up and said, ‘If you are still up there, we need your help.’ It’s obvious that He still is, because you came along. I know I’m going to beat this, and when I get back to work, I want to go out and find someone to help just like you helped us.”
Even though Pat may have not realized it at the time, he was included (perhaps without a clue) in God’s love, and I had been given an opportunity to participate in that love for him and his family. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are actively involved in the personal lives of all humanity. What a privilege it is to participate in that love, even if it is a little scary at the time. When we do, the recipient of God’s love naturally wants to pay it forward. When we don’t believe, we naturally doubt, and may ask God, “Are you still up there?” As we participate in God’s love for all humanity, we help others feel assured of his response.
~by Craig Kuhlman
Are You Staying With Us?
Filed under: By Craig Kuhlman, Gospel, Relationships, The Plan of Adoption | Tags: Beverly Hills Hotel, Glenn Frey, Hotel California, Polo Lounge, The Eagles
Comments (8) 
“You can check-out any time you like, but you can never leave.” Those words from Glenn Frey, and “Hotel California,” were recalled by our close friend Ed Dunn as we were sitting in the Century City plaza sipping coffee and waiting on our kids while they were shopping during the New Year’s weekend.
Our family had the opportunity to experience a bucket list vacation a few weeks ago. I’ve always wanted our three kids to experience the Rose Parade and Rose Bowl Game (as Nan and I had while living in Pasadena) and we were able to make that happen this year.
To me, the highlight of the trip was the opportunity to stay at the Beverly Hills Hotel, and to catch up with Ed, a friendship that goes back to our Pasadena college days. After we checked in and got settled, Ed and I went down to the infamous Polo Lounge for a drink. We were asked if we had a reservation and I replied, “No.” That’s when we were first asked the question that would become familiar: “Are you staying with us?” I replied,”Yes, we are,” We were then directed to a great seat right next to the piano.
After we had a chance to catch up for a couple hours, we decided to find a place to share a couple cigars. It was a little chilly outside, and when I asked if they could turn on the heat lamps, I was told they had another bar in the hotel with a cigar lounge right outside. We made our way there and the server acted a little put out given the hour. She said they were about to close, but then she asked, “Are you staying with us?” It was like we were given mystical access to the entire complex because we were staying with them. Her reluctance became “No problem, sir.” We were directed to a fabulous patio with soft lounge chairs and coffee tables. Our server brought us another drink, ashtray, matches, and a friendly “take your time, and enjoy.”
About forty-five minutes later, we headed in. I had read about the infamous swimming pool and cabanas where Hollywood’s stars and moguls had been hanging out for 
years. I just had to see it. But it was past 1:30 a.m. I approached the gentleman at the desk and apologetically requested to see the pool. “Pool hours have been closed for sometime, sir.” Ruefully, I said, “I realize that, but I was wondering if we could just see it?” Then came the magic question: “Are you staying with us?” Once again, the initial reluctance became, “No problem, sir. Let me call someone and we can take you out there.”
A well-dressed man appeared and guided us past the high-end shops, adorned with pink-covered walls in the hotel, and outside to the gated pool. After unlocking the gate, he said, “Take your time.” Ed and I were mesmerized, recalling all of the world-renowned celebrities who had spent their time in the very spot we were standing. It was quite an experience that created lasting memories.
“Are you staying with us?” I learned to love those words and will never forget them. Humanity has the opportunity to experience all the splendor of a relationship with God, or simply remain a spectator by not believing in the acceptance and inclusion already provided. By “staying,” Ed and I (and by extension our family and son’s girlfriend) were able to truly experience the splendor of the Beverly Hills Hotel.
Others, who weren’t staying, could enjoy the surroundings (our kids were able to spot Ozzie Osbourne and his wife Sharon exit the Polo Lounge after the ball dropped on New Year’s), but not truly experience what we experienced, simply by asking (and of course, staying).
The difference between truly experiencing a life with God and simply being included without a clue has a lot to do with how we believe what we’ve been given, and our decision “to stay.” Regardless of our response, we will be included (universally) in God’s love forever. Putting a positive spin on Glen Frey’s lyrics, we truly can “check out anytime we like, but can never leave.” God doesn’t force us to stay (personally), but always, politely, asks the question of each of us, “are you staying with us?” The world we experience from that point has a lot to do with our response, just as it did that evening, for Ed and me.
So, what do you think? Will you be staying with us?
~by Craig Kuhlman
The Waiting Father
Filed under: By Craig Kuhlman, Gospel, Love, Perichoresis, Relationships, Trinity, Uncategorized | Tags: Doubt, Fear, Guilt, Home, hopeful universalism, Luke 15:11-32, security, Separation, Shame, Sin, The Waiting Father, unconditional acceptance, union
Comments (6) 
Luke 15: 11-32, for me, is one of the most beautiful passages of Scripture describing our Father’s love for all humanity. It provides each one of us the foundation to stand before our Creator with no fear, no shame, no guilt, and no doubt.
A number of years ago my family and I were flying home from a vacation trip. I entered into a rare moment of deep meditation, lost in my own thoughts. A vision flooded my mind when my mom and I were waiting in the parking lot for my dad. It had been years since I thought about those trips to pick him up from work to take him home. I remembered very clearly, how, as a young boy, I would wait for the doors of the RCA plant to open at the 4 p.m. bell. I eagerly waited to see my dad in the crowd, on his way “home.” I remembered the joy of seeing him. Although it brought a smile to my face, I didn’t know why I was recalling this, until I felt God’s presence speak to me. In that moment, it became clear. I heard God say to me, “that’s how I feel toward you. I get the same joy of seeing you just like you did in seeing your dad come through those doors.” I immediately broke into tears with an awkward hope no one was looking. It became a very touching memory and metaphor of the Love our Father has in seeing and waiting for all of humanity, all of his children, “coming through the doors of life on their way home.” He always smiles with joy at seeing you and me, just as I did, when I saw my dad.
Commentators have called the Parable of the Prodigal Son, many things. The one I love the most is, “The Waiting Father.”
Breaking into the story, when the son requested his inheritance, his father had an amazing reaction. There was no imposition of fear, or shame, or guilt, or doubt. There was no anger, or punishment. He simply gave him what he asked for and let him leave on a trip leading to a life less than zero. The son gathered what he had, left home, and “headed for Hollywood.”
Verse 17 begins with a beautiful line, “When he (the son) came to his senses…” Because of God’s love for His creation He sent His Son to unite us forever and included us (and the entire cosmos) in Union with Him. When Jesus died on the cross, he said, “It is finished.” Our Union in Him is accomplished forever, and is irrevocable. For any one human being to cease to exist, Jesus would have to cease to exist. It is an accomplished fact. Unfortunately, most of humanity is included without a clue, until we come to our senses, believe, and come home. When we do, we find a Waiting Father. A Father who doesn’t wait for a moment, or a few years, or just in this lifetime (as some Christian friends may tell us) but one who will be waiting for eternity, as long as it takes.
In verse 20 we find that Waiting Father (waiting for his son to come home)…”but while he was still a long way off, his father saw him.” The son had worked up a repentance speech to make his way back home into the family just as a hired servant, but his dad didn’t allow him to finish his speech. He restored him to full fellowship in the family as if he never left. His dad didn’t allow sin to separate him from his son. He had been his son, and the relationship with his son had never changed. He had always been his son. But when the son came to his senses and came home, the son’s relationship and fellowship changed toward his Father. His Father never moved, never changed his love for his son, and remained…waiting. For us, just as with the son, it is always our move, because Jesus made the first move toward us when he brought us home.
Just as I would wait with anticipation for my dad, our heavenly Dad waits with anticipation for us. Our loving father waits, and waits, and waits, and will forever wait until all humanity comes to its senses, and comes “home.” While He is waiting, He never loses His sense of joy and feeling toward us, despite what we may think. When humanity comes through those doors, comes home, one by one, our dad will be standing there with open arms.
~by Craig Kuhlman