Consider Jesus!

 

The scenes from the streets of Ukraine are hard to look at, aren’t they?  The horror of war is even worse when it involves murder of civilians. I cry “why, Lord?”   Though I hear no audible response, I do find this in the Gospel record – “I suffer, too.”  Before we get to rejoice on Easter Sunday, we must walk to the cross and for good reason.  

 In an era when so many Christians want only victory the Bible takes us to the awfulness of the Cross to explain God’s response to evil, sin, and brokenness. We have so little patience these days. Along with faster internet and instant oatmeal, we want an instant maturity, a fully developed character in a day.  We want the ‘kingdom come’ now.  I love miracle stories, but mostly our God prefers to let us walk among sinners, just like He did:  loving, hoping, caring, being light in the darkness.

Isaiah saw the mission of the Messiah and described it this way: "He was despised and rejected— a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way. He was despised, and we did not care. Yet it was our weaknesses he carried; it was our sorrows that weighed him down. And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God, a punishment for his own sins! But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed." (Isaiah 53:3-5, NLT)  God entered into His creation, born a baby to Mary, lived in the real world, felt hunger and pain, and ultimately suffered an ignominious death on a Cross.

Our God allows us be fully human, gives us freedom to choose, and even when our choices -as well as those of a sinful world- are crushing us, He does not usually rush in to change everything. Instead, He stands alongside of us, offering to lead us to lead us to life in the middle of a dying world.  Somehow in all that, we are transformed.   

By the Cross, we are lifted and in the hope of the Resurrection we learn to live with tears, while we hope for the moment we are revealed as eternal children of God beyond the reach of pain. Our wise Father knows that we could never be who He desires us to be, we would never love Him as He desires us to love, we could not grow into mature saints without fiery trials. We, like Him, are called to ‘take up our cross’ where we die to Self, to this world, so that we can be raised to a new life. 

There simply is no Easter without Good Friday, no celebration of an Empty Tomb without a Full Cross!  Meditations on the Cross are so gruesome, so unpleasant, so bloody awful – we want to rush on quickly to the Resurrection, but we must not.

Yes, Christian friend, the suffering is part of this broken, fallen world. God leaves unexplained the ‘why’ of evil, but clearly calls us to renewal through the suffering Savior. There is purpose in the tears, though I am not filled with pleasure in the discovery. But, as He leads, as I accept the Comforter (the Holy Spirit) I will find “green pastures, quiet waters, and a restored soul.”  (Psalm 23)  

 The way of discipleship sometimes descends into darkness, leads occasionally through searing pain, does not evidence great triumph in every circumstance, but the disciple who humbly seeks is always led by the Spirit as he is ‘made into the likeness of Jesus.’  God’s ultimate desire for us is not blue skies and untroubled minds. It is that we would love Him more than life itself and find our Hope in His embrace.  

So, in the middle of Lent, the season of suffering before the Victory, here is a word for suffering followers of the suffering Savior.  Jesus "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, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Philippians 2:6-11, NIV)

God lead us to the Cross, even as we keep the Empty Tomb in view. Give us strength to walk steadily in faith, growing in grace so that the glory of God shines brilliantly through us in this very dark world. In the name of Jesus, Amen

(Video of this blog at this link)

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In The Cross Of Christ I Glory 

In the cross of Christ I glory
Tow'ring o'er the wrecks of time
All the light of sacred story
Gathers round its head sublime

When the woes of life o'ertake me
Hopes deceive and fears annoy
Never shall the cross forsake me
Lo it glows with peace and joy

When the sun of bliss is beaming
Light and love upon my way
From the cross the radiance streaming
Adds more luster to the day

Bane and blessing pain and pleasure
By the cross are sanctified
Peace is there that knows no measure
Joys that through all time abide

© Words: Public Domain

Eternity

Yesterday, the lesson for my Awana students was about Eternity.  We talked about sand castles on the beach erased by the waves as the tide comes in an illustration of the impermanence of life in this world.  I spoke of the hope we find in God’s love guiding us through our days so we are ready to step into eternity. Heavy stuff for 5^th and 6^th graders, isn’t it? That lesson was brought into sharp focus when I, on the way home, went to the home of an older woman from the church to check on her and found that she had stepped into eternity some days previous.  Do you consider Eternity, my friend?

Pondering the brevity of life and recognizing the shifting sands of our existence we could fall into despair! 
Or, we could take the way of those who choose to ‘eat, drink, and be merry for tomorrow we die.’  

Solomon’s Ecclesiastes can be a difficult part of Scripture to understand. That rich king forgot eternity and made life about building great cities, gaining great wealth, and indulging every sensual pleasure.  When advancing age no longer allowed him to ignore mortality, he looked at his life and saw only emptiness. "When I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun." (Ecclesiastes 2:11, NIV)  

He did not suggest that we defer all living to some time beyond our present world. That famous part of his book says "There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven." (Ecclesiastes 3:1, NIV)  Yes, we can find joy in our successes, in family, in accomplishments great and small – and we should.  

But, his conclusion is great wisdom. "Don’t let the excitement of youth cause you to forget your Creator. Honor him in your youth before you grow old and no longer enjoy living. … Here is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands, for this is the duty of every person. God will judge us for everything we do, including every secret thing, whether good or bad." (Ecclesiastes 12:1, 13-14, NLT)

Christian, as we conclude the season of Lent, a time of reflection in our lives, we begin to look toward the empty Tomb and the bedrock hope assured by the Resurrection of Christ Jesus, our Lord.  This is the great hope of life.  We enjoy the best life possible in this temporal world when we live in the light of Eternity, our choices framed by the fact that these brief years will be followed by a timeless existence in the Presence of God.

A Christianity that remembers Heaven and Eternity will be richer, right now in this world! Paul writes "if we have hope in Christ only for this life, we are the most miserable people in the world. But the fact is that Christ has been raised from the dead. He has become the first of a great harvest of those who will be raised to life again." (1 Corinthians 15:19-20, NLT)

Are you tempted by despair as you realize just how quickly life is passing?

Are you tempted to try to create immortality with grand schemes?

Choose instead to know, love, and serve Christ Jesus who is the proof of Eternity, Who has opened the way from death to life.  Receive the gift of eternal life and make His Way your way today.

The word from the Word encourages us.  We can live as eternal creatures, entering into life without end – even now in this world that is passing away. That’s no riddle. It is a fact! "O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power. How we thank God, who gives us victory over sin and death through Jesus Christ our Lord! So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and steady, always enthusiastic about the Lord’s work, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless." (1 Corinthians 15:55-58, NLT)

(Video of this blog at this link)

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Be Thou My Vision (Slane)

(Selah sings this beautiful, heart-felt prayer. Pray along with their song)

Be Thou my vision
O Lord of my heart
Naught be all else to me
Save that Thou art
Thou my best thought
By day or by night
Waking or sleeping
Thy presence my light

Be Thou my wisdom
Be Thou my true Word
I ever with Thee
And Thou with me Lord
Thou my great Father
I Thy true son
Thou in me dwelling
And I with Thee one

High King of heaven
When vict'ry is won
May I reach heaven's joys
O bright heaven's Sun
Heart of my own heart
Whatever befall
Still be my vision
O Ruler of all

Eleanor Henrietta Hull | Mary Elizabeth Byrne
© Words: Public Domain

 

Bring Back the Springtime!

 

Gazing out the window as I write this morning, I see the yellow flowers of the forsythia bush, announcing Spring!  The tree branches are tinged with green, the buds a sign of the earth’s renewal.  Tiny flowers poked through the mulch next to the garage. And, on a less positive note, my eyes are itching,  a yearly reminder that the we are awakening from winter.  The coming of Spring is a faith-builder in me, a reminder that God is present, the life of the Spirit persists even in the ‘wintery’ moments.

Yesterday was a day marked by sadness, not my own, but for many I know. In the morning, a friend met me with the news of a death in the family, her eyes filling with tears. Another texted me about her mother’s ongoing medical crisis and yet another set-back. A ministry colleague’s wife posted that he, a relatively young man, stands at death’s door after a long struggle with lung cancer. While sharing life with other’s in our church’s pantry ministry, there was a flow of human need – a nephew’s mental illness, a man’s broken family, another with his own demons and delusions, and the aged living on the edge financially.  It was an emotionally wintry day!

What a blessed gift to be able to take those needs and those of this warring world to my Savior and Lord to know that He invites me to give them all to Him. "Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about what happens to you." (1 Peter 5:6-7, NLT)  Oh yes, I admit that can be difficult. Sometimes I impatiently pray “Come on, Lord. Heal! Save! Renew!” But, He asks only that I wait on Him, that I let Him be God, with humility and faith.

It is not just the renewal of the earth in the Spring that instructs me. I see the pattern woven into the Scripture story, too. Time and again we read of those whose faith was battered by hardship, the light of life nearly extinguished, but as they trusted Him, He was there.   

Remember Joseph’s story in Genesis?  He was given a dream and then spent the next two decades mired in troubles – rejected and sold into slavery by his brothers, imprisoned on false charges, forgotten by those he helped. We would not have blamed him for giving up and growing bitter, but he did not.  The depth of his faith is never more obvious than in his words to his brothers years later when he had the power to punish them.  "But Joseph said to them, “Don’t be afraid. Am I in the place of God? You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives." (Genesis 50:19-20, NIV)

Centuries later, the land of Judah was devasted by the armies of Babylon. Jerusalem was torn down, the best and brightest of the land carried off to serve the pagan king.  It looked like the end of the nation, but God told His people that He would restore them, that their experiences were not hidden from His view. "I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope." (Jeremiah 29:11, NLT) 

Friend, are you in a wintry world?  Is your soul dormant, chilled by situations that defy explanation, by suffering that seems unrelenting?  Weep, He sees your tears. If words fail, simply wait, He hears the silent cry of your heart.  This passage is one dear to me - “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” (Psalm 46:10, NIV)

Quick fixes and instant cures are offered for everything from cancer to character flaws, from disappointment to disgust, from sin to sainthood. Don’t buy them! People are not machines that can be fixed with a turn of a wrench or the replacement of a bolt. We are complex; a mixture of motives, each with a past, wrestling with our pain, problems, and the promises of God.   

God’s grace can transform us into creatures of beauty, but only as we accept it and in turn learn to give it away.  The Word urges us to "imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised." (Hebrews 6:12, NIV) "Farmers do this all the time, waiting for their valuable crops to mature, patiently letting the rain do its slow but sure work. Be patient like that. Stay steady and strong." (James 5:7-8, The Message)

Are you waiting for your heart to heal?

Are you praying for relief from sorrow?

Are you waiting for the dawn of promise to overtake darkness of disappointment?

This is the word from the Word for those who are in process: "We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, in order to make your hope sure. …  Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. … And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him." (Hebrews 6:11, 11:1,6 NIV)  Lord, increase my faith, Amen.

(Video of this blog at this link)

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Bring Back The Springtime

When in the spring the flowers
Are blooming bright and fair
After the gray of winter's gone
Once again the lark begins its tuning
Back in the meadows of my home

Lord to my heart bring back the springtime
Take away the cold and dark of sin
O refill me now sweet Holy Spirit
May I warm and tender be again

Lord make me like that stream
That flows so cool and clear
Down from the mountains high above
I will tell the world that wondrous story
Of the precious stream filled with Your love

Kurt Kaiser© 1970 Curb Word Music (Admin. by WC Music Corp.)

CCLI License # 810055

When the feelings are not there

 

Seasons come when God seems far away, when we just don’t sense His Presence.  Others speak of knowing Him, of His love, but they might as well be speaking a foreign language to our hearts. Even in church we sit unmoved, our heart like a stone, our prayers just words without emotional engagement.   

Have you had times when these words are yours? “O God my rock,” I cry, “Why have you forsaken me? Why must I wander in darkness, oppressed by my enemies?” Their taunts pierce me like a fatal wound. They scoff, “Where is this God of yours?” (Psalm 42:9-10, NLT)

In my decades of discipleship I have experienced times of passionate love of Christ, knowing the overflow of the Spirit, and times of when, to my ears, Heaven is silent.  Such times have many names. St. John of the Cross called them the "dark night of the soul."  Others refer to "dry desert journeying" when the soul is thirsty for God's love.  Some refer to this as “faith walking time!”

David, the Psalmist, wrote ancient words that comfort me. "I will praise you with songs. I will be careful to live a blameless life— when will you come to help me?" (Psalm 101:1-2, NLT) Apparently, he was not feeling God’s Presence at that time. In a much more desperate tone he cries: "Hear my prayer, O LORD; let my cry for help come to you. Do not hide your face from me when I am in distress. Turn your ear to me; when I call, answer me quickly. For my days vanish like smoke; my bones burn like glowing embers. My heart is blighted and withered like grass; I forget to eat my food." (Psalm 102:1-4, NIV)

The enemy of God and good often exploits the silence, accusing us,  telling us that it is our fault that God is silent. “You’re a sinner, unworthy, rejected by your God,” he whispers when we are most vulnerable. It is true that when we persist in selfish ways, ignoring the voice of the Spirit, we can grieve Him. But, He we are never unloved or rejected. WE may push Him to the edge of our conscious mind, but He is always there, the waiting Father, calling us back to Himself.

So, what should we do when we do not sense Him near, when prayer and worship are an effort, not a ready response?

First, above all, is to hold onto the Truth. John reminds us that “God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything.”  (1 John 3:20)   Jesus assures us that “Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”  (John 16:33).   Write a meaningful passage of Scripture on a card and commit it to memory.  When the accusing thoughts come, speak the Truth to them.

Second, choose to love – God and others.  When we are struggling with doubts, when God seems far away, often we are tempted to isolate ourselves, to retreat from church, from friends, perhaps even from family.  There words of faith, their songs of hope, may grate on us. But, the choice to engage, though difficult, is part of finding our way to the Light again.

Third, remember eternity, that we are more than flesh and bone.  It is impossible that the things of this earth will heal the wound of the soul. Christ, alone, can make us alive to God.

Fourth, we tell ourselves to go "Steady on, to endure!" This is the directive of the Word for such times. "Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong." (Hebrews 12:13, NLT)  Paul, in his final letter, wrote to Timothy who was struggling and fearful.  I love the old preacher’s challenge to the younger man-  “keep your head in all situations, endure hardship.”  (2 Timothy 4:5) Remember, these words were not written by a man sitting in a resort by the sea, but rather from a man on death row in a Roman prison!

Fifth, we express real emotion;  we weep, but we refuse the poisons of self-pity and bitterness. To question God's seeming absence is no sin. To wonder why we are not able to hear His voice or sense the comfort of the Spirit is quite acceptable. To accuse Him of being uncaring, unloving, or unjust only creates a place for doubt to flourish and bitterness to take root. The Word warns that from that root of bitterness comes great and troubling discontent!  When the stormy emotions come, seek out a mature Christian who knows how to listen, how to pray, and find a release for those troubled emotions.

Lastly, I counsel you to keep praying earnestly for faithfulness, focused on God’s ability, not your own!  He is a faithful God. He has overcome the world. He is able to keep you, even when you cannot feel Him near.

The word from the Word is lengthy, but rich.  It was written at a low point in Paul’s ministry, a time when he thought that death was imminent. Meditate on them today.

"All praise to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. He is the source of every mercy and the God who comforts us. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When others are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. You can be sure that the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with his comfort through Christ. So when we are weighed down with troubles, it is for your benefit and salvation! For when God comforts us, it is so that we, in turn, can be an encouragement to you. Then you can patiently endure the same things we suffer. We are confident that as you share in suffering, you will also share God’s comfort." (2 Corinthians 1:3-7, NLT)

(Video of this blog at this link)

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You Say

 I keep fighting voices in my mind
That say I'm not enough
Ev'ry single lie that tells me
I will never measure up

 Am I more than just the sum of
Ev'ry high and ev'ry low
Remind me once again just who I am
Because I need to know oo oh

You say I am loved when I can't feel a thing
You say I am strong when I think I am weak
You say I am held when I am falling short
And when I don't belong oh You say I am Yours
And I believe oh I believe
What You say of me I believe

The only thing that matters now
Is ev'rything You think of me
In You I find my worth
In You I find my identity

Taking all I have and now I'm laying it at Your feet
You'll have ev'ry failure God
You'll have ev'ry victory

Oh I believe yes I believe
What You say of me I believe

Bebo Norman | Jason Ingram | Lauren Daigle | Mike Donehey | Paul Mabury

© 2016 Appstreet Music (Admin. by Capitol CMG Publishing)

CentricSongs (Admin. by Capitol CMG Publishing)

CCLI License # 810055