This Little Light of Mine

The early morning of February 10, 1977 is still a vivid moment in my life.  I became a father that day at about 6 am!  My emotions wildly swung between elation and terror when they placed that little baby boy in my arms for the first time.  I was responsible for a helpless infant; to protect, to feed, to lead along the pathway to productive adulthood. Most weighty that day was the realization that an eternal being was in my care. 42 years have passed and Jay, my son, is a joy, a man who has his own sons now. Most everything else I have done in life will be erased by time and/or could have been done by someone else. But, being Jay’s Dad is my unique privilege and he, along with my other children are my legacy.

After my children, near the top of list of the things that bring me joy there is another kind of ‘fathering.’  Nothing compares to the experience of being a partner with the Spirit of God in the spiritual re-birth of another person. When that person chooses to trust Christ Jesus, to receive the Spirit, and to be born into the family of God, I feel an elation akin to what I knew at the birth of my own children. Seeing faith mature, walking through the up’s and down’s of life with those who are my children in the faith, gives purpose and meaning to my life.

Have you had the privilege of praying with a friend to receive Christ? Have you led another along the pathway of discipleship, sharing discovery of truth, praying through hardship, celebrating break-throughs?  It is not just the work of pastors. All of us are given the privilege of sharing the Gospel and seeing the miracle of new birth come to others.  You don’t need a pulpit or a church office to be a witness for Jesus and His Gospel.  After His resurrection and prior to returning to His Father, Jesus said this - "When the Holy Spirit has come upon you, you will receive power and will tell people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8, NLT)

Evangelism (telling good news) is the privilege of every Christian.  A recent study in the church found that many Christians do not engage others in spiritual conversations. Talking about the importance of knowing Jesus is regarded by about half of young Christians as something that should not be done in our culture of tolerance and self-expression. I understand the angst of those younger Christians. They have no wish to be part of mega-movements that record ‘conversions’ as a measure of success; as in, ‘hundreds saved in weekend revival.’  They intuit that getting someone to raise their hand at the end of a meeting is not the same as inviting someone to become wholly new in Christ through new birth.  Even more offensive to these younger Believers is the mess of religion and politics that confuses being a patriot with being a disciple. Those younger Christians want to know Jesus in an authentic way.  

But, to use a cliché, we cannot throw out the baby with the bathwater.  Evangelism remains our commission. Jesus sends us to the ends of the earth with His message of eternal life. The best ‘sermon’ is our life, our love, our joy, and our hope. The authentic experience of the Spirit is far more important than our words in drawing others to know Him.  Evangelism need not be a forced or awkward thing.  We are simply introducing our friends to our Friend. Peter explains "Worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if you are asked about your Christian hope, always be ready to explain it." (1 Peter 3:15, NLT)

Would you like to live life with your friends and family eternally, knowing the joy of a shared love of Jesus? Don’t make Him invisible.  Moses said “Love God, your God, with your whole heart: love him with all that’s in you, love him with all you’ve got! Write these commandments that I’ve given you today on your hearts. Get them inside of you and then get them inside your children. Talk about them wherever you are, sitting at home or walking in the street; talk about them from the time you get up in the morning to when you fall into bed at night.” (Deuteronomy 6)

Here is a word from the Word. "Here’s another way to put it: You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven." (Matthew 5:14-16, The Message)

________

This little light of mine

I'm gonna let it shine

This little light of mine

I'm gonna let it shine

This little light of mine

I'm gonna let it shine

Let it shine let it shine let it shine

Let it shine till Jesus comes

I'm gonna let it shine

Let it shine tell Jesus comes

I'm gonna let it shine

Let it shine tell Jesus comes

I'm gonna let it shine

Let it shine let it shine let it shine

Harry Dixon Loes

© Words: Public Domain

“It’s really just this simple”

It was a long phone call that tried my patience.  The discussion was about a challenging situation that involves attempting to meet many converging needs. Every ‘solution’ creates wins and losses. The man with whom I was speaking was singularly focused on protecting his interest at the expense of all the rest. He was insistent that answers could be found, implying that all we had to do was work a little harder. The truth is that there are answers but none are simple, none easy, and the best will require a lot of compromise.

People love slogans, mottos, and memes, don’t they?  Those one-liners imply that the complex nature of life can be met with a quick fix. Christians do it, too.
-Guilt got you down?

Just ask Jesus into your heart and you can instantly change.
- Struggling with a chronic sickness?
             Find a healer and say a faithful prayer and claim your healing.
- Stuck in apathy? Struggling with faith in your crisis?   

All you need is some author’s testimony of faith or a grand story about some charismatic leader to get through it. Perhaps, but not likely.

Not for one moment is it my intention to make the Christian way of life into a grim long slog through gloom and misery. There is joy in serving Jesus, hope for every day, and victory over sin, death, and Hell as we walk with Him in integrity working out the implications of the call of the Spirit to a holy life.

Conversion, Healing, and examples of overcoming faith ARE rich resources that help to mobilize Christians. However, just getting someone to repeat the sinner’s prayer does not guarantee real transformation of character unless that person subsequently becomes a disciple of Jesus. Healing is more than a miraculous relief of symptoms. Healing is about wholeness - forgiveness, balanced worship and rest, better food choices, for example.  Passion for Jesus is a choice each day about making Him first, over self-interest. Most service is done in hidden places, and will never be recognized this side of Heaven. If it takes applause and appreciation to keep us serving, apathy is inevitable.

If that all sounds complex, it should; because life is complex! While we might like simple slogans, Jesus never spoke in one-liners for the media. He invites us to let the Spirit work in us, deeply. He asks us to take up our cross daily, in order to let the true life of the Spirit emerge.  In Christ, the power of our sinful nature is replaced with the power of the Holy Spirit working within us. 

How did Jesus illustrate that transformative power? He chose the seed. His Gospel, He said, is like seed that is planted in a field. That seed finds all kinds of soil – hard, shallow, weedy, fertile – in which to take root. “This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the word of God." (Luke 8:11, NIV) "But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop." (Luke 8:15, NIV)  Hear, retain, persevere – and find a harvest.

Only a foolish person plants one day and expects to harvest the next. There is a time for germination, growth, and ripening before the realization of the fruit. A mixture of sun and rain are required in the process. It’s not ‘just that simple.’

Whether you are dealing with your own challenges or helping someone else work through theirs, have patience.  Patient endurance is a consistent theme of the Bible when describing the way of those who are godly.  Paul, a man who knew much about complex situations, urges us to stand faithfully.  "Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us." (Romans 5:1-5, NIV)

Here's a word from the Word for your thoughts today. "Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him. Do everything without complaining and arguing, so that no one can criticize you. Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people." (Philippians 2:12-15, NLT)

__________

King Of My Heart

(worship at this link, renewed in an upward focus)

Let the King of my heart

Be the mountain where I run

The fountain I drink from

Oh He is my song

Let the King of my heart

Be the shadow where I hide

The ransom for my life

Oh He is my song

You are good good oh

You are good good oh

Let the King of my heart

Be the wind inside my sails

The anchor in the waves

Oh He is my song

Let the King of my heart

Be the fire inside my veins

The echo of my days

Oh He is my song

You're never gonna let

Never gonna let me down

When the night is holding on to me

God is holding on

When the night is holding on to me

God is holding on

John Mark McMillan | Sarah McMillan

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Raucous Ruckus Publishing (Admin. by Capitol CMG Publishing)

McMillan, Sarah (Admin. by Moniker Music Group)

CCLI License # 810055

I'm offended!

As I listened to the President’s State of the Union speech last night, I was mentally writing the headlines that I knew would appear the next day. This morning they appeared as expected, invective hurled back and forth from Left to Right, pundits cheering those ‘their side’ while heaping scorn on the other. We are nation full of offended special interests quick to take the worst view of those whose positions we do not share.

Do you get offended? No, I am not talking about your politics now. Let’s make it personal. Do you hear a critical word and retreat into a defensive position, with a wounded spirit?  Do you hear an insult, or even a perceived one, and then repeat it to yourself, over and over, letting the words slash at your heart?  Do you share them with friends so that they can join you in your woundedness? Your offense will deepen a divide. Solomon offers insight about this. "An offended brother is more unyielding than a fortified city, and disputes are like the barred gates of a citadel." (Proverbs 18:19, NIV)

A man who was part of our pastoral ministry team at Faith Discovery Church several years ago, who now pastors a church in New York, Eric Hoke, blogged about the cost of holding onto an offended heart. He wrote. “My attitude of constant offense led to anger, which led to resentment that led to bitterness. What it ultimately came down to is that my resentment towards people for not acting the way I think they should, my bitterness towards them for their words that hurt me and my anger building up because of my offense had nothing to do with them, but everything to do with me. I was living in that state by choice!”  From personal experience, I can certainly agree with him, knowing those same feelings.

Another blogger, Yaholo Hoyt, reminds us of an important fact. “No one can push your buttons if you don’t have any. When we are offendable, then other people can control our behavior. They can “rile us up” or get a reaction. Only by ridding ourselves of reactionary habits can we be in control of our words and our actions to others.”   (Never Offended)

Disappointment is real. People do fail us. We are hurt by words that sometimes flow from carelessness and sometimes are aimed at us to wound and destroy.  But, Christians who are secured by the love of Christ, taught to set aside self-interest to serve like their Savior, should be among the most difficult people to offend in the world. Peter teaches that “love covers over a multitude of sins.”  Friction in human relationships is inevitable. But, the love of Christ heals the burn, soothes the heart, and sustains our unity.

When I am tempted to offense, and I am, I know it is best to pause, reflect, and pray.  I know that words that wound in a moment of heated exchange or in a context of confrontation usually sound much different the next day when the emotion has subsided. I know that if I rush off to find a friend and repeat those words, I can drive them deeply into my spirit where they fester like a thorn that lodges under my skin. How I pray that the love of Jesus will shape my heart’s responses to others. That love is not trite or cheap. "Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. Love does not demand its own way. Love is not irritable, and it keeps no record of when it has been wronged. It is never glad about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance." (1 Corinthians 13:4-7, NLT)

Are you offended this morning, ready to take issue with someone?

Did your spouse fail to treat you as you hoped, leaving you angry?

Did your friend overlook you, disrespect you, or judge you unfairly?

The word from the Word has some healing wisdom for the offended heart.  Paul says "Do your part to live in peace with everyone, as much as possible. Dear friends, never avenge yourselves. Leave that to God. For it is written, “I will take vengeance; I will repay those who deserve it,” says the Lord. Instead, do what the Scriptures say: “If your enemies are hungry, feed them. If they are thirsty, give them something to drink, and they will be ashamed of what they have done to you.” Don’t let evil get the best of you, but conquer evil by doing good." (Romans 12:18-21, NLT)

Pray this prayer, first prayed by St. Francis of Assisi centuries ago.

Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace;

Where there is hatred, let me sow charity;

Where there is injury, pardon;

Where there is error, truth;

Where there is doubt, faith;

Where there is despair, hope;

Where there is darkness, light; and
Where there is sadness, joy.

O, Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek

to be consoled, as to console;

To be understood as to understand;
To be loved as to love;

For it is in giving that we receive;

It is in pardoning that we are pardoned;

And it is in dying to ourselves that we are born to eternal life.

Amen.