I will not offer that which costs me nothing

Today is nicknamed “Fat Tuesday” because of the feasting on this day before the beginning of Lent. Some cultures mark the day with “Carnival” literally meaning ‘goodbye to the flesh’- marking the beginning of fasting for Lent;  the 40 day season of spiritual discipline leading up to the celebration of Jesus’ Resurrection. Spiritual disciplines have been largely abandoned by Christians so the ‘fast’ of Lent for many is ignored or merely symbolic such as giving up chocolate.

Do American Christians of 2011 even understand Paul’s declaration? He said, “I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.” (1 Corinthians 9:27) Our culture of indulgence has convinced us that real life is found in having more of everything. We eat huge portions of food, consume exorbitant amounts of energy coddling ourselves in perfectly controlled climates, think that the meaning of life is sex, and spend vast amounts of time and money entertaining ourselves. Our souls wither, starved for worship, atrophied by neglect. Yet, we boldly lay claim to the Kingdom of God and expect to waddle into Heaven to claim our rich reward.

Recognizing human frailty, the first generations of Christians built regular times of renewal into the annual calendar. Those times were to be a collective time to remember and refocus. But, even then, religion replaced reality. Fasts became mere outward form, conformity to a rule that produced more guilt and more death, instead of a cry for the Spirit to bring life and freedom!  I clearly know the temptation to worship the form that is part of religion. Jesus roundly condemned the Pharisees of His time for their rigid observation of religious law without turning their hearts to God. “You wash the outside of the cup, but leave the inside dirty and polluted,” He told them. “You’re like whitewashed tombs, gleaming on the surface, but full of death!” If our practice of Lenten fasting fails to focus on the Lord and His life, we have nothing but an adventure in missing the point! Knowing that danger, we still must recognize the importance of allowing the Spirit to work in the disciplines to break the stranglehold of pleasure that chokes the Life out of us.

Near the end of the letter in which Paul rails on mere religion, on loving form more than substance, of turning from the Cross to the Law, there is this call: "Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit." (Galatians 5:24-25, NIV) This Lent I encourage you to recover the fast with meaning. Pray for the Spirit to lead you to some discipline that will allow Him to enlarge your soul’s capacity for the Presence of God. Spontaneity has its place in our adoration of our Lord. So does devotion! Ask the Lord to show you what bids to own you. Then, pray that He will lead you to crucify the flesh, to put it to death, so that the Spirit will own you: body, soul, and spirit.

Here  is the word from the Word, a story from the life of David. May the challenge to offer sacrifice of real cost speak to you today.
"David said to him, “Let me have the site of your threshing floor so I can build an altar to the Lord, that the plague on the people may be stopped. Sell it to me at the full price.”

Araunah said to David, “Take it! Let my lord the king do whatever pleases him. Look, I will give the oxen for the burnt offerings, the threshing sledges for the wood, and the wheat for the grain offering. I will give all this.”

But King David replied to Araunah, “No, I insist on paying the full price. I will not take for the Lord what is yours, or sacrifice a burnt offering that costs me nothing.”

So David paid Araunah six hundred shekels of gold for the site. David built an altar to the Lord there and sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. He called on the Lord, and the Lord answered him with fire from heaven on the altar of burnt offering." (1 Chronicles 21:22-26, NIV)

_________________

Take my life and let it be

Consecrated Lord to Thee

Take my moments and my days

Let them flow in ceaseless praise

Take my hands and let them move

At the impulse of Thy love

Take my feet and let them be

Swift and beautiful for Thee

Take my voice and let me sing

Always only for my King

Take my lips and let them be

Filled with messages from Thee

Take my silver and my gold

Not a mite would I withhold

Take my intellect and use

Ev'ry pow'r as Thou shalt choose

Take my will and make it Thine

It shall be no longer mine

Take my heart it is Thine own

It shall be Thy royal throne

Take my love my Lord I pour

At Thy feet its treasure store

Take my self and I will be

Ever only all for Thee

Take My Life And Let It Be

© Public Domain

Frances R. Havergal

Networking - just a buzz word?

I remember building my first computer network, probably about 20 years ago. Tim brought the hardware and we spent the day, connecting my PC, the secretary’s PC, and a printer. Now, my PC is networked to millions of computers, worldwide, on the Internet. Networking is for more than computers. I belong to several different networks; the Assemblies of God, my local church, and several working groups.

Are you networking? Solomon observes that "A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken." (Ecclesiastes 4:12, NLT)  A web of friends and partners does not just create itself. We have to work to form and maintain connections with others. The return makes the time invested well spent. We gain the joy of friendship as well as becoming many times more effective in our work.

I’m not always good at building networks because I can become too focused on the outcome to appreciate the process.  I know it is important to give others the opportunity to 'buy in' and become a part of the effort, but,  I am tempted just to get the job done.  Why not just do it alone?  Because what works in the short-term hinders, perhaps even destroys the long-term results.  When people are encouraged to tie in to the network, to be involved meaningfully in the process; the end result will be more creative, have more longevity, and find broader acceptance. That is true no matter what social structure we are thinking of - family, neighborhood, church, corporation, or government.

So, if the advantages of networking are so obvious, why don't more of us get connected?

By definition, networks limit our autonomy! When we become part of a network, we give up some of our rights to just be ourselves. We have to start to think 'we' as a higher value than 'me.' Human nature resists genuine networking because of a sin as old as Eden - selfishness. The devil's lie is - "Express yourself. Do your own thing. It's the only way to be happy." God's truth is - "Give yourself away. Serve and love, and you will discover joy!"

Here's a word from the Word about becoming part of the Spirit’s network.
"Make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one heart and purpose." (Philippians 2:2, NLT)

 "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,... taking the nature of a servant." (Philippians 2:3-7, NIV)

Now, that’s REAL networking.

Bloody Christians

I am reading through Foxe’s Book of Martyrs, a 16^th record of Christian sacrifice. I haven’t picked it up in 30 years and, it is deeply speaking to my life about my own willingness to identify with Christ at any cost. It’s a tough read, brutality and bloodshed on every page. Would I be as noble as this?  Ignatius, the Bishop of Antioch in 2^nd century, was being prepared for the arena, where he knew he would be torn apart by the lions. He refused all help and in a letter to his follow Christians wrote: “I am the wheat of Christ: I am going to be ground with the teeth of wild beasts, that I may be found pure bread.”

The treasure of knowing Christ Jesus and the promise of an eternal home in the glorious Presence of God gave thousands reason to refuse the pressure to renounce their faith and to die with courage, often after terrible suffering at the hands of sadistic, demon-possessed men. Martyrs were torn apart on racks, grilled over slow fires, and women placed in brothels to be used before they were killed. The torture devised by evil men to be visited on those disciples could only be inspired by the Devil himself. Often the testimony of the condemned was so compelling that some of the soldiers guarding them were converted, only to die with them!

What a contrast to the Christianity of our time and culture. Some may abandon their ‘faith walk’ over matters such as the ‘wrong’ music played in ‘their’ church or the failure of the pastor to remember their need in the congregational prayer.  A large percentage of those who claim Christ as Lord will not engage in ministry that requires them to reduce their involvement in leisure activities,  much less give of their resources beyond what they feel they can afford. If we can barely make the ‘sacrifice’ of 90 minutes on Sunday morning for the sake of worship, how would we face the prospect of death for Christ’s sake?  Are we sold into the service of Christ, our King; or have we so exalted a sense of Self that He must meet our every demand for more comfort, things, and pleasure lest we turn our back on Him?

I am thankful, oh, so grateful to God to be able to claim the Name of Jesus without fear of prison or sword!  I am not longing for martyrdom or a return to a time of bloody Christians. My cry is that I might love Him as fervently, that I might lose myself in Him to such a degree, that even death itself would hold no terrors for me.  I pray for a passion for the things of the Lord that would make all other things in my life meaningless by comparison. Jesus spoke of His own sacrifice and reminded those who would follow Him of the cost. “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life." (John 12:23-25, NIV)

Here’s a word from the Word. Lord, let us live wholly and holy.
"Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.
And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons: “My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son.” Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father?" (Hebrews 12:2-7, NIV)

_______________

Am I a soldier of the cross,

A follower of the Lamb?

And shall I fear to own His cause

Or blush to speak His name?

Must I be carried to the skies

On flowery beds of ease?

While others fought to win the prize

And sailed thro' bloody seas?

Sure I must fight if I would reign.

Increase my courage, Lord!

I'll bear the toil, endure the pain,

Supported by Thy Word.

And when the battle's over

We shall wear a crown!

Yes, we shall wear a crown;

Yes, we shall wear a crown.

And when the battle's over

We shall wear a crown,

In the new Jerusalem.

Wear a crown, wear a crown,

Wear a bright and shining crown.

And when the battle's over

We shall wear a crown

In the new Jerusalem!

When The Battle's Over

© Public Domain, Isaac Watts

That is completely unreasonable!

At various times, major problems have crept into my life for which I had no immediate answers. No amount of study, reflection, or effort seemed to change those situations. To all appearances, as time passed they went from bad to worse! I would like to be able to report that I was always a 'mighty man of valor!' In reality, I sometimes found myself fearful. 20 years ago, I went for more than a year awakening in the early morning hours and unable to go back to sleep night after night.  

Thankfully, the experience of God's faithfulness has built a deeper faith that allows me to rest in Him, but I still have days when I grow anxious about challenges for which He has not revealed His plan, until I remember His amazing ways.

Times were tough. The Israelites were demoralized, hiding in the hills from their enemies who regularly came and stole their livestock and grain stores. "So Israel was reduced to starvation by the Midianites. Then the Israelites cried out to the Lord for help." (Judges 6:6, NLT) God found a man named Gideon, a farmer who was just trying to eke out a living. We get a clue about his fear from this: "Gideon was threshing wheat at the bottom of a winepress to hide the grain from the Midianites." (Judges 6:11, NLT) This fearful man was the one chosen to lead the people to victory!

It was to be a strange victory. The Lord was completely unreasonable. After Gideon raised an army of 30,000 God came with this apparently ridiculous directive: "You have too many men for me to deliver Midian into their hands. In order that Israel may not boast against me that her own strength has saved her, announce now to the people, 'Anyone who trembles with fear may turn back and leave Mount Gilead.' " So twenty-two thousand men left, while ten thousand remained." (Judges 7:2-3, NIV) Overnight, he sent two-thirds of his force home. Now, he was ready for war. No, God would be even more unreasonable. "The Lord said to Gideon, "There are still too many men. Take them down to the water, and I will sift them for you there. If I say, 'This one shall go with you,' he shall go; but if I say, 'This one shall not go with you,' he shall not go." (Judges 7:4, NIV) In the end, Gideon went to battle with 300 men. Using a strange strategy, his army routed the superior force and won peace for Israel.

When we walk in step with the Spirit, we must be prepared for Him to be unreasonable, at least from our perspective. The critical issues are obedience and integrity.

Are we living authentically before the Lord so that we can hear His direction clearly?

That being true, we must obey.

Joshua must have felt silly leading the Israelite army around the walls of Jericho singing! The reasonable thing would have been to start a siege, to starve the city into submission, but the Lord had a different strategy.

Noah's project of building a major ship far from the sea was to all appearances a work of folly. God used it to save Noah and his family from disaster.

Nehemiah must have wondered how he could rebuild a major city that was in complete ruins with so few men, but he listened to the Spirit and did it against 'impossible' odds. In the course of his work he found himself the object of ridicule, but stayed obediently on course to the finish. 

Jesus was willing to go to the Cross. How could evil be defeated by allowing the death of the God's Son? What good could come from this spectacle of cruelty?
"The Message that points to Christ on the Cross seems like sheer silliness to those hell-bent on destruction, but for those on the way of salvation it makes perfect sense. This is the way God works, and most powerfully as it turns out. It's written, I'll turn conventional wisdom on its head, I'll expose so-called experts as crackpots." (1 Corinthians 1:18-19, The Message) In obedient faith, we embrace the truth and "we preach Christ crucified ... Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength." (1 Corinthians 1:23-25, NIV)

Here's a word from the Word. May it build faith and resolve in us as we seek the Lord.

"My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts," says the Lord.
"And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.
For just as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.

"The rain and snow come down from the heavens
and stay on the ground to water the earth.
They cause the grain to grow, producing seed for the farmer
and bread for the hungry.

It is the same with my word.
I send it out, and it always produces fruit.
It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it.
You will live in joy and peace.
The mountains and hills will burst into song,
and the trees of the field will clap their hands!"    

(Isaiah 55:8-12, NLT)