Last night President George Bush made a speech from New Orleans. As speeches go it hit all the right notes: compassionate, visionary, and spiritual. I believe most Americans who heard him speaking agreed with the programs he outlined for re-building Mississippi and Louisiana and meeting the needs of the people whose lives are in ruins. Now, words must become action! Promises must be matched with performance. I honestly think that Washington, DC is full of good intentions. We all know, however, that many a political promise dies when the TV camera is turned off. In my own life, I've made more than a few promises: to God, to my wife, to those I serve; and some of those promises never translated from talk to action. Ever happen to you?
Why is executing our promises so difficult?
Sometimes it is because we simply 'over promise.' We do not think through the real cost and when we figure it out, we conclude that keeping the promise is just too expensive. Jesus warns: “Don’t begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first getting estimates and then checking to see if there is enough money to pay the bills?" (Luke 14:28, NLT)
Sometimes execution doesn't happen because we get distracted from the important things by today's urgent needs. That was my experience through much of yesterday. The most important agenda item for that day, to do some extended preparation for Sunday's sermon, kept getting bumped by urgent needs that landed on my desk. I let others manage my schedule and ended the day frustrated! Marriages get neglected, usually not because a spouse actually thinks, "I'll just ignore him, and my marriage will slowly die," but because the important need for intimacy is overcome by ringing phones, bills, and schedules that demand more and more time. The Bible teaches us a principle: "Choose today whom you will serve." (Joshua 24:15) Take charge of your life and set priorities. Learn to say, "no," to some of the demands made in the name of urgency, so you can say, "yes," to the really important things in life.
Sometimes promises go unfulfilled because we procrastinate! "Tomorrow, tomorrow, I love you tomorrow; you're only a day away." The hope of a better tomorrow can be buried by the accumulated 'junk' that carries over from yesterday! Lives, relationships, homes- go to ruin one day at time. A house that is full of dirt and in disarray, gets that way when today's mess carries over into the next day, and the next..... until the job of cleaning is overwhelming. Generally things don't just collapse, they disintegrate by one neglect that is piled on another.
30 years ago, in a management training session, I learned that whenever possible, handle paper once. It is such a simple principle, but it has served me well. The lecturer used daily mail as his example. When mail arrives, stop other activity and process it. Don't lay an ad flyer to one side to read 'later.' Look it over and make a decision - worth keeping or toss. If a letter can be answered, then do it instead adding it to the pile of 'to do's.' Finish a task before starting another. Of course, some things require more than a day to accomplish, but think of the promises that would be kept, if only we seized today's opportunities!
Sometimes promises fail because we are sinners. Paul, in that wonderful awful chapter 7 of Romans, says, "I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out." (Romans 7:18, NIV) The sinfulness of this world and the sinful nature that wrestles against the spiritual nature, works to frustrate our best intentions. Weeds will flourish even in an untended garden. Flowers only grow in a garden that is tended, watered, and cultivated. The Gardener must be invited into our lives regularly, so that He can do in us, what we cannot do for ourselves. At the end of our resources, He is our great Resource. Because of Him, we can say confidently, "I can do everything through him who gives me strength." (Philippians 4:13, NIV) That's no empty promise!
Determine today to be a person of integrity. Keep your word, even when it hurts to do so. Guard your talk and promise only what you're willing to act on. Make wise, priority decisions and stick with them. Most importantly- live in the Presence of the Spirit. Pray fervently for His work to be completed in you and for His purposes to be accomplished in you. For the glory of God.
__________________________
Jerry D. Scott
http://www.WashingtonAG.com
Friday, September 16, 2005
Thursday, September 15, 2005
Purpose in suffering?
His father loved him, perhaps too much. God chose him and while he was young made the sketch of His plans known to him. His brothers hated him- because he was favored by their father and God. So, finding an opportunity, they got rid of him by selling him to slave-traders who took him hundreds of miles from his home to a foreign land. So much for dreams of destiny, or so it seemed; but, he didn’t surrender to despair. Instead, when he found himself the property of a nobleman, he worked hard and was soon the household’s manager.
Then, the woman of the house became interested in him and when he wouldn’t cooperate with her illicit desires, he was accused of rape and jailed on false charges. He was soon a trusted man that was in charge of the jail! Years past and two men from the king’s court were jailed with him. They had dreams and he told them the meanings of their dreams. He asked the man who was going back to serve the king to please remember him. The man didn’t - at least for a few years – until the king had a nightmare that defied understanding. Then, the man remembered Joseph and Pharaoh sent for him. After decades of disappointment, Joseph realized the dream of destiny that God gave him while he was a teenage boy. He became the Prime Minister of Egypt.
I am fairly certain that a man who had Joseph’s abilities and intelligence must have been tempted to wonder, “what’s going on?” Has God forgotten me? Why is all this happening to me? But, he had faith and the dream of destiny that God gave to him which he held tightly…. waiting, trusting, hopeful! How do I know that? Because of his own words. When Joseph was at the pinnacle of power and his poor brothers came into his court seeking food and favors, not knowing they were standing in the presence of the person they sold to slave-traders years before, he told them this: "But don’t be angry with yourselves that you did this to me, for God did it. He sent me here ahead of you to preserve your lives. These two years of famine will grow to seven, during which there will be neither plowing nor harvest. God has sent me here to keep you and your families alive so that you will become a great nation. Yes, it was God who sent me here, not you! And he has made me a counselor to Pharaoh—manager of his entire household and ruler over all Egypt." (Genesis 45:5-8, NLT) God used the circuitous route that led through slavery and prison to produce a man that would save a nation and his own family.
Honestly, even though it has a happy end, I do not like the story of Joseph all that much. It makes me understand that God is at work, using people and situations that are not necessarily pleasant or of my choosing, to implement His sovereign plan for this world. My exalted sense of self-importance is challenged and the fact that my personal happiness is not God’s paramount purpose is under-lined in my understanding. For us, raised in a culture that emphasizes personal fulfillment and the avoidance of pain at all costs, the thought that God might allow us to suffer as He works out His plans is very, very hard to accept!
If God loves me (and He does, very much!) how could he ask me to suffer? Because He is perfecting us for His purposes, purposes which reach much more widely than we can see, given our finiteness. There is a widely misquoted and misunderstood text that assures us God is amazingly at work to bring all circumstances- good and bad- to a place where His will is done. It says: "… we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified. What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?" (Romans 8:28-31, NIV) Living in that truth requires a great faith- which God will provide to us, if we ask!
If you’re in a place where you’re asking, “what’s going on?” let me recommend the Psalm of Patience (37). The lead verbs in that Psalm point the way to endurance, the way to let God’s will emerge from the pyre on which self is offered up to His purposes. “Trust in the LORD… Delight in the LORD…Commit you way to the LORD… Be still before the LORD… and Wait on the LORD!”
Take this word from the Word to heart and let God love you today:
"But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord;
He is their strength in the time of trouble.
And the Lord shall help them and deliver them;
He shall deliver them from the wicked,
And save them,
Because they trust in Him." (Psalm 37:39-40, NKJV)
Then, the woman of the house became interested in him and when he wouldn’t cooperate with her illicit desires, he was accused of rape and jailed on false charges. He was soon a trusted man that was in charge of the jail! Years past and two men from the king’s court were jailed with him. They had dreams and he told them the meanings of their dreams. He asked the man who was going back to serve the king to please remember him. The man didn’t - at least for a few years – until the king had a nightmare that defied understanding. Then, the man remembered Joseph and Pharaoh sent for him. After decades of disappointment, Joseph realized the dream of destiny that God gave him while he was a teenage boy. He became the Prime Minister of Egypt.
I am fairly certain that a man who had Joseph’s abilities and intelligence must have been tempted to wonder, “what’s going on?” Has God forgotten me? Why is all this happening to me? But, he had faith and the dream of destiny that God gave to him which he held tightly…. waiting, trusting, hopeful! How do I know that? Because of his own words. When Joseph was at the pinnacle of power and his poor brothers came into his court seeking food and favors, not knowing they were standing in the presence of the person they sold to slave-traders years before, he told them this: "But don’t be angry with yourselves that you did this to me, for God did it. He sent me here ahead of you to preserve your lives. These two years of famine will grow to seven, during which there will be neither plowing nor harvest. God has sent me here to keep you and your families alive so that you will become a great nation. Yes, it was God who sent me here, not you! And he has made me a counselor to Pharaoh—manager of his entire household and ruler over all Egypt." (Genesis 45:5-8, NLT) God used the circuitous route that led through slavery and prison to produce a man that would save a nation and his own family.
Honestly, even though it has a happy end, I do not like the story of Joseph all that much. It makes me understand that God is at work, using people and situations that are not necessarily pleasant or of my choosing, to implement His sovereign plan for this world. My exalted sense of self-importance is challenged and the fact that my personal happiness is not God’s paramount purpose is under-lined in my understanding. For us, raised in a culture that emphasizes personal fulfillment and the avoidance of pain at all costs, the thought that God might allow us to suffer as He works out His plans is very, very hard to accept!
If God loves me (and He does, very much!) how could he ask me to suffer? Because He is perfecting us for His purposes, purposes which reach much more widely than we can see, given our finiteness. There is a widely misquoted and misunderstood text that assures us God is amazingly at work to bring all circumstances- good and bad- to a place where His will is done. It says: "… we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified. What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?" (Romans 8:28-31, NIV) Living in that truth requires a great faith- which God will provide to us, if we ask!
If you’re in a place where you’re asking, “what’s going on?” let me recommend the Psalm of Patience (37). The lead verbs in that Psalm point the way to endurance, the way to let God’s will emerge from the pyre on which self is offered up to His purposes. “Trust in the LORD… Delight in the LORD…Commit you way to the LORD… Be still before the LORD… and Wait on the LORD!”
Take this word from the Word to heart and let God love you today:
"But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord;
He is their strength in the time of trouble.
And the Lord shall help them and deliver them;
He shall deliver them from the wicked,
And save them,
Because they trust in Him." (Psalm 37:39-40, NKJV)
Wednesday, September 14, 2005
Yesterday’s trophies
While searching for the right room for a meeting I was to attend, I poked my head into an open doorway. There on the floor, in a cardboard box, I saw a pile of dusty, old trophies – once highly coveted awards, now a pile of junk. The golden sheen still reflected the light, the engraved notations of outstanding performances were still visible. Someone, somewhere, had worked very hard to win one of those trophies, but now there they were, tossed in a pile, in an box, awaiting transport to a dumpster. The achievement that these golden trophies marked were forgotten, the award made irrelevant by the passing of time.
The experience jarred me! That box of old trophies kept reappearing in my mind all day along with the question – “Jerry, what are you working for today? Are you striving for an award that will be forgotten, discarded in a decade or two?” It is quite natural for us to be enthralled with the sparkly ‘treasures’ that are dangled before our eyes. The high school athlete longs to win a trophy that will be put in the display case just outside of the gymnasium. Four years later, nobody even knows his name! We work hard to ‘win’ a new car, thinking that it will be a trophy that makes us feel successful, but it doesn’t, at least, not for very long! We pour ourselves into gaining approval and applause – I think it would be special to be named ‘Pastor of the Year, Fasting Growing Church in NJ’ – but next year, the accolades are forgotten as another is recognized.
So am I suggesting we all settle for mediocre lives, living without goals, aiming for nothing, avoiding recognition? Not on your life! Believer, we need to reach for the award that will never be tossed in a box, forgotten, and meaningless.
Peter urges us to remember always that, “God has something stored up for you in heaven, where it will never decay or be ruined or disappear." (1 Peter 1:4 CEV) and that "…when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away." (1 Peter 5:4, NIV) Paul, at the end of his life, as he sat on Rome’s Death Row, sent a letter to a younger preacher. He was not beaten or disillusioned. He knew he was about to appear at an award ceremony! "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing." (2 Timothy 4:7-8, NIV)
Both of these men were alluding to a familiar trophy of their time, the ‘crown’ given to outstanding athletes. It was a small wreath, worn on the head, made from laurel leaves. It was a grand symbol of achievement, that quickly dried out and fell apart. So the apostle says, "All athletes practice strict self-control. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. So I run straight to the goal with purpose in every step. I am not like a boxer who misses his punches." (1 Corinthians 9:25-26, NLT) Paul does not advocate apathy! He urges us to work hard, to strive to gain awards – ETERNAL ONES!
What are you working for today? Are you reaching for awards that will be forgotten, trophies that will be thrown into a box, destined for the dumpster in a decade or two? Re-focus your efforts. Instead of winning the certificate at the office, how about winning your son’s heart? Instead of putting in O/T for a vacation at Disney, how about time with your wife, meeting her needs for your love and affection? Instead of determining to do what is necessary to be approved by other people, how about working to gain the applause of Heaven, with a life full of good deeds that demonstrates your love for your Lord?
The trophies of eternity, according to Jesus, never get dusty, rusty, moth-eaten, or irrelevant!
_____________________
“Father, I thank you for letting me see that box full of old trophies,
for using them to speak so powerfully to me about what’s important in life.
Keep me focused on the goals that matter.
Give me glimpses of eternity as, by the work of the Spirit,
you open my eyes and understanding to the reality of the realm of spiritual things.
Thank you for providing the strength, all the resources I need, to win that prize.
Now help me, I pray, in Jesus’ name, to press on, and on, and on…
Until that day when You determine that I’ve reached the finish line,
and call me home forever.Amen.”
The experience jarred me! That box of old trophies kept reappearing in my mind all day along with the question – “Jerry, what are you working for today? Are you striving for an award that will be forgotten, discarded in a decade or two?” It is quite natural for us to be enthralled with the sparkly ‘treasures’ that are dangled before our eyes. The high school athlete longs to win a trophy that will be put in the display case just outside of the gymnasium. Four years later, nobody even knows his name! We work hard to ‘win’ a new car, thinking that it will be a trophy that makes us feel successful, but it doesn’t, at least, not for very long! We pour ourselves into gaining approval and applause – I think it would be special to be named ‘Pastor of the Year, Fasting Growing Church in NJ’ – but next year, the accolades are forgotten as another is recognized.
So am I suggesting we all settle for mediocre lives, living without goals, aiming for nothing, avoiding recognition? Not on your life! Believer, we need to reach for the award that will never be tossed in a box, forgotten, and meaningless.
Peter urges us to remember always that, “God has something stored up for you in heaven, where it will never decay or be ruined or disappear." (1 Peter 1:4 CEV) and that "…when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away." (1 Peter 5:4, NIV) Paul, at the end of his life, as he sat on Rome’s Death Row, sent a letter to a younger preacher. He was not beaten or disillusioned. He knew he was about to appear at an award ceremony! "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing." (2 Timothy 4:7-8, NIV)
Both of these men were alluding to a familiar trophy of their time, the ‘crown’ given to outstanding athletes. It was a small wreath, worn on the head, made from laurel leaves. It was a grand symbol of achievement, that quickly dried out and fell apart. So the apostle says, "All athletes practice strict self-control. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. So I run straight to the goal with purpose in every step. I am not like a boxer who misses his punches." (1 Corinthians 9:25-26, NLT) Paul does not advocate apathy! He urges us to work hard, to strive to gain awards – ETERNAL ONES!
What are you working for today? Are you reaching for awards that will be forgotten, trophies that will be thrown into a box, destined for the dumpster in a decade or two? Re-focus your efforts. Instead of winning the certificate at the office, how about winning your son’s heart? Instead of putting in O/T for a vacation at Disney, how about time with your wife, meeting her needs for your love and affection? Instead of determining to do what is necessary to be approved by other people, how about working to gain the applause of Heaven, with a life full of good deeds that demonstrates your love for your Lord?
The trophies of eternity, according to Jesus, never get dusty, rusty, moth-eaten, or irrelevant!
_____________________
“Father, I thank you for letting me see that box full of old trophies,
for using them to speak so powerfully to me about what’s important in life.
Keep me focused on the goals that matter.
Give me glimpses of eternity as, by the work of the Spirit,
you open my eyes and understanding to the reality of the realm of spiritual things.
Thank you for providing the strength, all the resources I need, to win that prize.
Now help me, I pray, in Jesus’ name, to press on, and on, and on…
Until that day when You determine that I’ve reached the finish line,
and call me home forever.Amen.”
Tuesday, September 13, 2005
Keep your eyes on the prize
When I think of somebody who chose to hang in there, whose steadiness is inspiring, I think of a man who looked like a bulldog, whose gravelly voice kept England’s morale up all the way through World War 2 – Winston Churchill. Once when asked to deliver a commencement address, he showed up with his usual flair, cigar clenched in his teeth, cane at the ready. At the podium he roared, “never give up,” paused for a moment, and repeated the line, then sat down! The crowd responded with thunderous applause. Why? Because that line was the epitome of Churchill’s life.
When the war was draining, London was in flames, and England’s armies were bogged down by the Nazi might, he called on the British to stand firm. In a memorable speech in the darkest days of the war, he said, “I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat. We have before us an ordeal of the most grievous kind. We have before us many, many months of struggle and suffering. You ask, what is our policy? I say it is to wage war by land, sea, and air. War with all our might and with all the strength God has given us, and to wage war against a monstrous tyranny never surpassed in the dark and lamentable catalogue of human crime. That is our policy.”
Ever wanted to quit?
Does your job feel like a crushing weight and you want to throw it off?
Maybe it’s your marriage that is a source of unending conflict and/or pain, so you just want it to be over.
Perhaps you’re tired of parenting a teenager who resists each and every effort you make at protecting her from herself and you want to say, “Fine, do what you want, I quit as your Dad.”
Feeling frustration with some habit that is resisting every attempt you make at change? Now you’re ready to say, “that’s just what I do, I can’t change.”
I know that desperate desire to escape, the thought that says, ‘anywhere but here, anything but this.’ We all become discouraged. We are worn down by fatigue, battered by criticism, disillusioned by failure- our own and of those around us, disheartened – to the point that we are ready to walk away. We need, in those days, to hear that simple phrase – “Never give up!”
Somebody wrote, “the world is run by those who stay to the end of the meeting.” All you corporate types will understand that one. It is at the end of the meeting when the action points are decided, the summations written down. Those who left 10 minutes too soon miss the opportunity. Battles are won, often not by the most skillful general or the better resourced army, but by the determination to prevail. The difference in an athletic competition frequently comes down to which team wants the win more, and thus, doesn’t ‘quit’ in the middle of the game.
The Bible encourages us to finish well with this great call to steadiness- “Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we’re in. Study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed—that exhilarating finish in and with God—he could put up with anything along the way: cross, shame, whatever. And now he’s there, in the place of honor, right alongside God.” Hebrews 12:2 (The Message) Jesus looked past the cross and saw the Throne! That’s the key to enduring – seeing the promise.
Paul, who endured every kind of difficulty and deprivation in his lifetime of ministry, reminds us to keep our eyes on the prize. " I am still not all I should be, but I am focusing all my energies on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I strain to reach the end of the race and receive the prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us up to heaven… we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior. He will take these weak mortal bodies of ours and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same mighty power that he will use to conquer everything, everywhere. Dear brothers and sisters, I love you and long to see you, for you are my joy and the reward for my work. So please stay true to the Lord, my dear friends." (Philippians 3: 13-14; 20-4:1, NLT)
If you’re on the edge – ready to quit – take a break.
Call for a strategic time-out. Call in your counselors (make sure they’re good ones!) and regain your focus.
With your focus on what’s important, on God’s promises, you can endure and you will emerge with the crown that God will give to all those who have served faithfully. Never give up!____________________
A correction…
Yesterday, I spoke with the colleague whose ideas I referred to in Monday’s TFTD. He felt that I mis-represented his thoughts. His suggestions about reasons that God allowed the Hurricane were not fore-gone conclusions, but rather suggestions that he felt Believers should consider as they prayerfully reflect on the ways of God. I apologize for implying otherwise.
When the war was draining, London was in flames, and England’s armies were bogged down by the Nazi might, he called on the British to stand firm. In a memorable speech in the darkest days of the war, he said, “I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat. We have before us an ordeal of the most grievous kind. We have before us many, many months of struggle and suffering. You ask, what is our policy? I say it is to wage war by land, sea, and air. War with all our might and with all the strength God has given us, and to wage war against a monstrous tyranny never surpassed in the dark and lamentable catalogue of human crime. That is our policy.”
Ever wanted to quit?
Does your job feel like a crushing weight and you want to throw it off?
Maybe it’s your marriage that is a source of unending conflict and/or pain, so you just want it to be over.
Perhaps you’re tired of parenting a teenager who resists each and every effort you make at protecting her from herself and you want to say, “Fine, do what you want, I quit as your Dad.”
Feeling frustration with some habit that is resisting every attempt you make at change? Now you’re ready to say, “that’s just what I do, I can’t change.”
I know that desperate desire to escape, the thought that says, ‘anywhere but here, anything but this.’ We all become discouraged. We are worn down by fatigue, battered by criticism, disillusioned by failure- our own and of those around us, disheartened – to the point that we are ready to walk away. We need, in those days, to hear that simple phrase – “Never give up!”
Somebody wrote, “the world is run by those who stay to the end of the meeting.” All you corporate types will understand that one. It is at the end of the meeting when the action points are decided, the summations written down. Those who left 10 minutes too soon miss the opportunity. Battles are won, often not by the most skillful general or the better resourced army, but by the determination to prevail. The difference in an athletic competition frequently comes down to which team wants the win more, and thus, doesn’t ‘quit’ in the middle of the game.
The Bible encourages us to finish well with this great call to steadiness- “Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we’re in. Study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed—that exhilarating finish in and with God—he could put up with anything along the way: cross, shame, whatever. And now he’s there, in the place of honor, right alongside God.” Hebrews 12:2 (The Message) Jesus looked past the cross and saw the Throne! That’s the key to enduring – seeing the promise.
Paul, who endured every kind of difficulty and deprivation in his lifetime of ministry, reminds us to keep our eyes on the prize. " I am still not all I should be, but I am focusing all my energies on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I strain to reach the end of the race and receive the prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us up to heaven… we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior. He will take these weak mortal bodies of ours and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same mighty power that he will use to conquer everything, everywhere. Dear brothers and sisters, I love you and long to see you, for you are my joy and the reward for my work. So please stay true to the Lord, my dear friends." (Philippians 3: 13-14; 20-4:1, NLT)
If you’re on the edge – ready to quit – take a break.
Call for a strategic time-out. Call in your counselors (make sure they’re good ones!) and regain your focus.
With your focus on what’s important, on God’s promises, you can endure and you will emerge with the crown that God will give to all those who have served faithfully. Never give up!____________________
A correction…
Yesterday, I spoke with the colleague whose ideas I referred to in Monday’s TFTD. He felt that I mis-represented his thoughts. His suggestions about reasons that God allowed the Hurricane were not fore-gone conclusions, but rather suggestions that he felt Believers should consider as they prayerfully reflect on the ways of God. I apologize for implying otherwise.
Monday, September 12, 2005
Why? Good question.
Children ask ‘why’ so much, it leaves parents exasperated! I was one of those kids. In my dim memory, I recall a nice yellow school bus toy, with blinking lights, that was a gift from my Grandmother. I’m talking 1960 when lights and sounds on toys was much more novel than today! I wanted to know why the lights blinked so I took the toy apart, much to Grandma’s dismay – since I couldn’t put it back together again. Later explorations of other devices were more successful. My treadmill recently stopped working. Since I had nothing to lose, I started to disassemble it to see if I could determine the malfunction. A couple of hours later I found the problem, ordered a $26 part on the Internet, and today I have a working machine again. Why is a valuable question! However, sometimes rushing to answer that question can lead us into silly, even dangerous, territory.
A couple of weeks ago a terrible storm blew into the Gulf Coast of these United States. People naturally asked, “why?” Four years ago, terrorists flew airplanes into buildings killing 3000 in a moment’s time and we all asked, ‘why?’ Is it wrong to wonder why these kinds of things happen? Of course not. But, we need to know our limitations in discerning the purposes of the God who rules the affairs of this world, who allows winds to blow, and terrorists to wreak their havoc. In the last few days, I’ve heard Hurricane Katrina explained as the wrath of God on New Orleans because it was a ‘sinful city;’ one that encouraged drunkenness, that celebrated homosexuality, or that had a segment of population that practiced voodoo. Another colleague suggested that it was God’s judgment on America for ‘forcing the Israeli nation to return occupied Gaza territory to the Palestinians.’ I don’t agree, but that doesn’t make me right!
I do insist that it is much too soon to be making conclusions about why this storm was allowed to happen. When we rush to offer an explanation to satisfy our need to know, ‘why,’ we risk looking very silly or worse, to miss the real message of God! Storms, wars, attacks, and other catastrophes should provoke us to deep thought, to extended reflection and to a humility that silences our chatter until the Spirit makes His purposes so clear that they are unmistakable! God is not pleased when we guess at His purposes and go out to declare what we have concluded, invoking His authority for our musings!
Israel was full of men who said, “God did that because He wants us to do this.” They went about preaching out of their own conclusions, and earned this powerful rebuke: “Son of man, speak against the false prophets of Israel who are inventing their own prophecies. Tell them to listen to the word of the Lord. This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Destruction is certain for the false prophets who are following their own imaginations and have seen nothing at all!" (Ezekiel 13:2-3, NLT) When we presume to speak on God’s behalf to explain ‘why’ He is allowing such great suffering and we have not actually heard from Him on the matter, we are breaking one of the Ten Commandments - “Do not misuse the name of the Lord your God. The Lord will not let you go unpunished if you misuse his name." (Exodus 20:7, NLT)
Please understand me! I am not calling those who have proclaimed the conclusions outlined above ‘false prophets.’ Perhaps they have heard from the Spirit of God, but I am encouraging all of us to be very cautious about jumping to conclusions about matter so serious. It would be tragic to mislead others away from the true message of God based on our own conclusions.
What if the tragedy of the hurricane had nothing at all to do with the overt sins of that city or the foreign policy of these United States? What if God wants us to reflect on our treatment of the poor, or on our materialism that causes us to want more to such an extent that we neglect the needs of the poorest among us? What if He wants us to see the plight of those who lack the resources to live in safety or to move out of the way of the disaster? Again, let me emphasize, I claim no revelation on this matter, I am simply suggesting that we great humility to close our mouth long enough to let God speak His message.
Even in our individual lives, we want to know, ‘why,’ and often, no immediate answer is forthcoming. That is why we need great faith to trust the living God when His ways are inscrutable. He says, “My thoughts are completely different from yours,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts." (Isaiah 55:8-9, NLT) That passage is a comfort and a caution! The comfort is that He is at work. Even terrible storms are allowed under the rule of the Almighty God. He is able to use all things for His purposes. The caution is that we may have difficulty understanding why: in this moment, this day, even in this lifetime!
Here’s a word from the Word to keep in your mind today. May it speak deeply to you. Proverbs 3:5-8 (The Message)
Trust God from the bottom of your heart;
don’t try to figure out everything on your own.
Listen for God’s voice in everything you do,
everywhere you go;
he’s the one who will keep you on track.
Don’t assume that you know it all.
Run to God! Run from evil!
Your body will glow with health,
your very bones will vibrate with life!
A couple of weeks ago a terrible storm blew into the Gulf Coast of these United States. People naturally asked, “why?” Four years ago, terrorists flew airplanes into buildings killing 3000 in a moment’s time and we all asked, ‘why?’ Is it wrong to wonder why these kinds of things happen? Of course not. But, we need to know our limitations in discerning the purposes of the God who rules the affairs of this world, who allows winds to blow, and terrorists to wreak their havoc. In the last few days, I’ve heard Hurricane Katrina explained as the wrath of God on New Orleans because it was a ‘sinful city;’ one that encouraged drunkenness, that celebrated homosexuality, or that had a segment of population that practiced voodoo. Another colleague suggested that it was God’s judgment on America for ‘forcing the Israeli nation to return occupied Gaza territory to the Palestinians.’ I don’t agree, but that doesn’t make me right!
I do insist that it is much too soon to be making conclusions about why this storm was allowed to happen. When we rush to offer an explanation to satisfy our need to know, ‘why,’ we risk looking very silly or worse, to miss the real message of God! Storms, wars, attacks, and other catastrophes should provoke us to deep thought, to extended reflection and to a humility that silences our chatter until the Spirit makes His purposes so clear that they are unmistakable! God is not pleased when we guess at His purposes and go out to declare what we have concluded, invoking His authority for our musings!
Israel was full of men who said, “God did that because He wants us to do this.” They went about preaching out of their own conclusions, and earned this powerful rebuke: “Son of man, speak against the false prophets of Israel who are inventing their own prophecies. Tell them to listen to the word of the Lord. This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Destruction is certain for the false prophets who are following their own imaginations and have seen nothing at all!" (Ezekiel 13:2-3, NLT) When we presume to speak on God’s behalf to explain ‘why’ He is allowing such great suffering and we have not actually heard from Him on the matter, we are breaking one of the Ten Commandments - “Do not misuse the name of the Lord your God. The Lord will not let you go unpunished if you misuse his name." (Exodus 20:7, NLT)
Please understand me! I am not calling those who have proclaimed the conclusions outlined above ‘false prophets.’ Perhaps they have heard from the Spirit of God, but I am encouraging all of us to be very cautious about jumping to conclusions about matter so serious. It would be tragic to mislead others away from the true message of God based on our own conclusions.
What if the tragedy of the hurricane had nothing at all to do with the overt sins of that city or the foreign policy of these United States? What if God wants us to reflect on our treatment of the poor, or on our materialism that causes us to want more to such an extent that we neglect the needs of the poorest among us? What if He wants us to see the plight of those who lack the resources to live in safety or to move out of the way of the disaster? Again, let me emphasize, I claim no revelation on this matter, I am simply suggesting that we great humility to close our mouth long enough to let God speak His message.
Even in our individual lives, we want to know, ‘why,’ and often, no immediate answer is forthcoming. That is why we need great faith to trust the living God when His ways are inscrutable. He says, “My thoughts are completely different from yours,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts." (Isaiah 55:8-9, NLT) That passage is a comfort and a caution! The comfort is that He is at work. Even terrible storms are allowed under the rule of the Almighty God. He is able to use all things for His purposes. The caution is that we may have difficulty understanding why: in this moment, this day, even in this lifetime!
Here’s a word from the Word to keep in your mind today. May it speak deeply to you. Proverbs 3:5-8 (The Message)
Trust God from the bottom of your heart;
don’t try to figure out everything on your own.
Listen for God’s voice in everything you do,
everywhere you go;
he’s the one who will keep you on track.
Don’t assume that you know it all.
Run to God! Run from evil!
Your body will glow with health,
your very bones will vibrate with life!
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