Hello, reader. I am reaching back for a CoffeeBreak written a little over a year ago, (3/2/2009) resending it today. On Monday, my mother received a diagnosis of lung cancer from her physicians. It was the kind of news that slaps a person in the face, that slows everything else to a crawl as you try to make some sense of it. My mind has been in a loop – alternately sad, then hopeful in the Lord. Last night a friend whose husband died suddenly last year sent me a copy of what I wrote the day following his death. The Word in it ministered to me, again. May the Lord use to touch any of you who are struggling to make sense of what God is allowing in your life today.
______________
Bob died yesterday. A week ago, to all appearances, he was a healthy middle-aged man. On Sunday, his heart quit! What is God doing and why did Bob die? Honestly, I do not know! It is faith-walkin' time for me. Sometimes God can be infuriatingly unpredictable. God, why is one dream realized and another shattered? There are not enough answers this side of Heaven to satisfy every question. However, there are enough testimonies of grace to help us to trust Him even when we cannot understand His ways.
Naomi, whose story is told in the book of Ruth, moved to Moab with her husband and two sons to escape a famine. It looked like finally they were getting life together, then Elimelech died. Naomi, picked up the pieces of her life and went on. Her two sons married Moabite women and for 10 years, life was good, then... both sons died! Naomi's life was tragic, her dreams shattered. Where was God in all that happened to her? Right there with her. Now that might just seem to the 'right' answer, but it is the true answer.
Dear disciple, consider that sometimes our dreams must be shattered so we can find God's dreams for us. When God doesn't make OUR dreams come true, we are faced with a huge choice. Will we trust Him and wait for a new dream to replace the shattered one OR will we descend into bitterness and unbelief? In such moments, I borrow the prayer of a desperate father who brought his son for healing to Jesus and cried out when the Lord asked him to believe: "I do believe, but help me not to doubt!" (Mark 9.24)
IF we will trust Him, He can give us a new dream, a new life that recovers JOY! After learning of the tragic circumstances of her life, we read the end of Naomi's story... "Boaz married Ruth. She became his wife. Boaz slept with her. By God's gracious gift she conceived and had a son. The town women said to Naomi, "Blessed be God! He didn't leave you without family to carry on your life. May this baby grow up to be famous in Israel! He'll make you young again! He'll take care of you in old age. And this daughter-in-law who has brought him into the world and loves you so much, why, she's worth more to you than seven sons!" Naomi took the baby and held him in her arms, cuddling him, cooing over him, waiting on him hand and foot." (Ruth 4:13-16, The Message)
That baby became the grandfather of Israel's great king, David! God used Naomi, to touch an alien woman’s life. Ruth, was brought to Israel and included in the line of David and the line of the Messiah, Jesus. You might read that and say, "So, does that make the pain Naomi had to endure all right?" I cannot answer that, nor can you!
Life is not about us living in a perfectly balanced scale where the pain is always offset by the blessings, where the hard times are offset by the good times. Life is about living in full faith, trusting that He is able to keep us secure in His love through the shattered dreams!
Are your dreams for life shattered today? Reach out to people who will love you, weep with you, and hold you up until your faith is strong enough to touch the heart of God again. Reject the easy answers, the psycho-babble, the half- truths..... but do not reject God. Ask Him for courage to weep yet keep hope and faith intact as you pray --- "I do believe, but help me not to doubt!"
________________
O love that will not let me go,
I rest my weary soul in Thee.
I give Thee back the life I owe,
That in Thine ocean depths its flow,
May richer fuller be.
O light that foll'west all my way,
I yield my flick'ring torch to Thee.
My heart restores its borrowed ray,
That in Thy sunshine's blaze it's day,
May brighter fairer be.
O joy that seekest me through pain,
I cannot close my heart to Thee.
I trace the rainbow through the rain,
And feel the promise is not vain,
That morn shall tearless be.
O Love That Will Not Let Me Go
George Matteson © Public Domain
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Hindered by Self-esteem?
We make much of self-esteem, don’t we? We value self-confidence, teach our children to express themselves, and hold our opinions in very high regard. Americans are individualists, quick to defend personal rights. “I matter!” – is a core belief of our culture. I believe that God loves me, both as a member of His Body, the Church; and as an individual to whom He has given a unique place in this world.
A healthy sense of self worth, however, can morph into ugly pride and arrogance quite quickly! It can make us hard to deal with, unforgiving, and worst – unwilling to submit ourselves to the Lord. Imagine Jesus Christ as a modern American. As He approaches the end of His earthly ministry and faces the Cross, He says, “I’m not doing that. It makes me look like a criminal. I deserve better than this.” Nonsense, right? The Gospels reveal Him in his humanity struggling with the will of God, as we do. In the Garden of Gethsemane, He prays intensely, wrestling with God’s plan and purpose, the cost that it would bring to Him. Even on the Cross, He cries out, “WHY?” But, in each situation, we see Him choose humility!
One of the earliest hymns of the church worships Him, not for His individualism or expression of self-will, but for His submission. Paul records that hymn for us in his letter to the Philippian church:
"Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death— even death on a cross!
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name." (Philippians 2:6-9, NIV)
Yesterday, I ran up against a situation in my extended family that I do not like, do not want, and do not understand. I would like to demand that the Lord remember ME, that WE don’t deserve this, that He make it change NOW! I am still angry about this thing, without even the most basic idea about how it could possibly be ‘good’ in any sense of the word. Ever been in that state of mind? I am choosing humility as the Word teaches: "All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time." (1 Peter 5:5-6, NIV)
Humility does not rob us of dignity or worth. It does not mean that we throw away our self-esteem. It is a choice to elevate the Lord, to remind ourselves that He is worthy of our worship, and that it is good to bow our head in His Presence. Job raged against the Lord when his pain became too much, when he could no longer make sense of life. He pressed God to show up and explain Himself. How very 21st century of Job! But note how that worked out. "God then confronted Job directly: “Now what do you have to say for yourself? Are you going to haul me, the Mighty One, into court and press charges?” Job answered: “I’m speechless, in awe—words fail me. I should never have opened my mouth! I’ve talked too much, way too much. I’m ready to shut up and listen.” (Job 40:1-5, The Message)
With God’s help, I will choose the Jesus road! I will adopt Job’s response and ‘shut up and listen.’ I do not want self-esteem to hinder God’s ability to pour His grace into my life.
How about you, disciple? Will you choose humility? It’s truly an ennobling response of faith.
Here’s a word from the Word for those who are humble before Him. May the promise protect our hearts this day.
"Arise, O Lord! O God, lift up Your hand!
Do not forget the humble.
Why do the wicked renounce God?
He has said in his heart, “You will not require an account.”
But You have seen, for You observe trouble and grief,
To repay it by Your hand.
The helpless commits himself to You;
You are the helper of the fatherless." (Psalm 10:12-14, NKJV)
A healthy sense of self worth, however, can morph into ugly pride and arrogance quite quickly! It can make us hard to deal with, unforgiving, and worst – unwilling to submit ourselves to the Lord. Imagine Jesus Christ as a modern American. As He approaches the end of His earthly ministry and faces the Cross, He says, “I’m not doing that. It makes me look like a criminal. I deserve better than this.” Nonsense, right? The Gospels reveal Him in his humanity struggling with the will of God, as we do. In the Garden of Gethsemane, He prays intensely, wrestling with God’s plan and purpose, the cost that it would bring to Him. Even on the Cross, He cries out, “WHY?” But, in each situation, we see Him choose humility!
One of the earliest hymns of the church worships Him, not for His individualism or expression of self-will, but for His submission. Paul records that hymn for us in his letter to the Philippian church:
"Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death— even death on a cross!
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name." (Philippians 2:6-9, NIV)
Yesterday, I ran up against a situation in my extended family that I do not like, do not want, and do not understand. I would like to demand that the Lord remember ME, that WE don’t deserve this, that He make it change NOW! I am still angry about this thing, without even the most basic idea about how it could possibly be ‘good’ in any sense of the word. Ever been in that state of mind? I am choosing humility as the Word teaches: "All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time." (1 Peter 5:5-6, NIV)
Humility does not rob us of dignity or worth. It does not mean that we throw away our self-esteem. It is a choice to elevate the Lord, to remind ourselves that He is worthy of our worship, and that it is good to bow our head in His Presence. Job raged against the Lord when his pain became too much, when he could no longer make sense of life. He pressed God to show up and explain Himself. How very 21st century of Job! But note how that worked out. "God then confronted Job directly: “Now what do you have to say for yourself? Are you going to haul me, the Mighty One, into court and press charges?” Job answered: “I’m speechless, in awe—words fail me. I should never have opened my mouth! I’ve talked too much, way too much. I’m ready to shut up and listen.” (Job 40:1-5, The Message)
With God’s help, I will choose the Jesus road! I will adopt Job’s response and ‘shut up and listen.’ I do not want self-esteem to hinder God’s ability to pour His grace into my life.
How about you, disciple? Will you choose humility? It’s truly an ennobling response of faith.
Here’s a word from the Word for those who are humble before Him. May the promise protect our hearts this day.
"Arise, O Lord! O God, lift up Your hand!
Do not forget the humble.
Why do the wicked renounce God?
He has said in his heart, “You will not require an account.”
But You have seen, for You observe trouble and grief,
To repay it by Your hand.
The helpless commits himself to You;
You are the helper of the fatherless." (Psalm 10:12-14, NKJV)
Monday, August 16, 2010
Your Bridge Over Troubled Water
The year I entered high school, a song that has become something of a standard was first sung: Simon and Garfunkel’s “Bridge Over Troubled Water.” It was a time of social unrest and war protests. The Kennedy brothers and Martin Luther King had been assassinated. And then came the folk anthem about making one’s way through the mess:
When you're weary, feeling small;
When tears are in your eyes,
I will dry them all.
I'm on your side
When times get rough,
And friends just can't be found;
Like a bridge over troubled water,
I will lay me down. – Paul Simon, copyright, 1969
There is nothing like a friend in a time of trouble, is there? That person who offers concern, who helps us to see past the bleakness of this day to the hope of a new day, is indeed a kind of bridge. But troubles come that no friend can take away, that no amount of song can soothe, that will not be erased by calming words of concern. What then? I go to the fountain of life and there I find the wisdom of the One is ‘yesterday, today, and tomorrow’ for me. There I read this directive that invites the troubled person to make the choice of "casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you." (1 Peter 5:7, NKJV)
The verb is one of action in the original language of the New Testament. It only appears twice and has the meaning of ‘throwing something down violently!’ We are urged to take those heavy burdens of life and throw them onto the shoulders of an Almighty God. The writer of the letter is Peter, the impulsive disciple whose faith, at first, was expressed in fits and starts! He responded to Jesus’ invitation to walk on water, then saw the waves and sank, saved only by the Master’s grasp. He followed Jesus on the night of His arrest showing more courage than all except John, but then his courage collapsed and he swore, “I never knew Him.” But, when the Holy Spirit filled him, he fearlessly preached on the streets of Jerusalem and led the disciples through the first decade of Christianity. Now he uses the same kind of language of action that is reflected in his personality. “Weighed down by concern, troubled by life? Throw it on the Lord! He is ready to care for you.”
Situations will arise that do not yield to your best efforts at finding an answer. People will act irrationally, disappointing and frustrating you. Disasters come – fire, flood, and disease – and we cannot understand why. These are the times to cast your care on Him! Fall on your face and give it up, letting go of control, releasing your need to know – not in resignation to fate, but in an act of faith that says, “Lord, I cannot carry it; please lift it from my shoulders.”
Here’s a word from the Word for this day.
"Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30, NKJV)
Go ahead, right now… take that heavy thing that is breaking your heart and imagine you have in your grasp. Got it? Now, with a toss heavenward say, “Here it is. Thank you for helping me carry it, Lord. Amen.”
______________________
There is no problem so big,
God cannot solve it.
There is no mountain so tall,
He cannot move it.
There is no storm so dark,
God cannot calm it.
There is no sorrow so deep,
God cannot soothe it.
If He carried the weight of the world
Upon His shoulders,
I know my brother, that He will carry you.
If He carried the weight of the world
Upon His shoulder,
I know my brother, that He will carry you.
He Will Carry You
Brown, Scott Wesley
© 1982 Birdwing Music (Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing; Admin. by BMG Music Publishing) / BMG Songs, Inc.
CCLI License No. 810055
When you're weary, feeling small;
When tears are in your eyes,
I will dry them all.
I'm on your side
When times get rough,
And friends just can't be found;
Like a bridge over troubled water,
I will lay me down. – Paul Simon, copyright, 1969
There is nothing like a friend in a time of trouble, is there? That person who offers concern, who helps us to see past the bleakness of this day to the hope of a new day, is indeed a kind of bridge. But troubles come that no friend can take away, that no amount of song can soothe, that will not be erased by calming words of concern. What then? I go to the fountain of life and there I find the wisdom of the One is ‘yesterday, today, and tomorrow’ for me. There I read this directive that invites the troubled person to make the choice of "casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you." (1 Peter 5:7, NKJV)
The verb is one of action in the original language of the New Testament. It only appears twice and has the meaning of ‘throwing something down violently!’ We are urged to take those heavy burdens of life and throw them onto the shoulders of an Almighty God. The writer of the letter is Peter, the impulsive disciple whose faith, at first, was expressed in fits and starts! He responded to Jesus’ invitation to walk on water, then saw the waves and sank, saved only by the Master’s grasp. He followed Jesus on the night of His arrest showing more courage than all except John, but then his courage collapsed and he swore, “I never knew Him.” But, when the Holy Spirit filled him, he fearlessly preached on the streets of Jerusalem and led the disciples through the first decade of Christianity. Now he uses the same kind of language of action that is reflected in his personality. “Weighed down by concern, troubled by life? Throw it on the Lord! He is ready to care for you.”
Situations will arise that do not yield to your best efforts at finding an answer. People will act irrationally, disappointing and frustrating you. Disasters come – fire, flood, and disease – and we cannot understand why. These are the times to cast your care on Him! Fall on your face and give it up, letting go of control, releasing your need to know – not in resignation to fate, but in an act of faith that says, “Lord, I cannot carry it; please lift it from my shoulders.”
Here’s a word from the Word for this day.
"Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30, NKJV)
Go ahead, right now… take that heavy thing that is breaking your heart and imagine you have in your grasp. Got it? Now, with a toss heavenward say, “Here it is. Thank you for helping me carry it, Lord. Amen.”
______________________
There is no problem so big,
God cannot solve it.
There is no mountain so tall,
He cannot move it.
There is no storm so dark,
God cannot calm it.
There is no sorrow so deep,
God cannot soothe it.
If He carried the weight of the world
Upon His shoulders,
I know my brother, that He will carry you.
If He carried the weight of the world
Upon His shoulder,
I know my brother, that He will carry you.
He Will Carry You
Brown, Scott Wesley
© 1982 Birdwing Music (Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing; Admin. by BMG Music Publishing) / BMG Songs, Inc.
CCLI License No. 810055
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