"Have a happy holiday, sir." the service attendant said as we closed the transaction, "and a Merry Christmas to you," I replied. "Merry Christmas!" he then said, with obvious enthusiasm. "Hey, guys, # 4 for Merry Christmas," he shouted to his co-workers in the shop with obvious glee. He then explained that the policy of the company forbade him to extned the traditional Christmas greeting to customers unless that customer said it first! The greeting was so rare, he said, that they were now keeping count. I was number four that week. The little exchange made me laugh. I guess all the noise that some people made about keeping Christ is Christmas is having some effect.
But, it isn't really a matter of words, is it? It's easy to wish somebody a Merry Christmas, but much more difficult to share the Christ of Christmas. A day after that incident in that auto service establishment, I went to our local county jail to conduct a service. Six men showed up and we sang Christmas carols together with gusto as I plunked out the tunes on my electric keyboard. We sounded nothing like the Mormon Tabernacle choir, to be sure, but we glorified God with worship. Emotion is off-limits for men who are behind bars, but there was a glint of tears in their eyes when we sang. We opened our Bibles to Romans and talked about the gift of God - eternal life - that Jesus Christ brought to us when He came to love us and to die for our sins. We were still having an animated discussion about God's love and our forgiveness when the officer knocked on the door to tell us that our time was up. It was much more than just a "Merry Christmas," and a wave! I had the opportunity to actually share the Christ of Christmas.
I sincerely hope that you will go beyond a cheery greeting, do more than share some brightly wrapped gifts with friends and family, in celebrating this wonderful Season. Don't settle for just a "Happy Holiday!" Make it a real "Merry Christmas," by remembering Jesus Christ and His love. Pull out your Bible on Christmas morning and ask your family if you can read them the story from the 2nd chapter of Luke's Gospel. Take a cue from Mary, the mother of Jesus, who heard the shepherd's report of angels in the sky, singing of a Messiah in a manger, and she "treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart." (Luke 2:19, NIV)
Meditate on the amazing fact that the Lord of Creation stepped over the threshold of time and space to become a Baby, that He submitted Himself to life as we know it, being "tempted in every way as we are," (Hebrews 4:15) so He is able to be our Great High Priest now in God's Holy Presence, interceding for us. Remember that He was purposefully born to die - the Lamb of God to take away the sins of the world (and mine; and yours!)
Make sure to include times of personal and corporate worship in your celebration, too. Bow before the King of Glory and offer Him, anew, your life. It is the only Gift that is fitting for Him.
And my prayer is that you will have a Joyous Christmas, fillled with the Presence of the Lord Christ, Jesus our Savior.
___________________________
The words of this carol are familiar, but as you read them today- really read them!
They are amazing, wonderful, and tell the story inside and out.
Hark The Herald Angels Sing-- Wesley, Charles / Mendelssohn, Felix
Hark! the herald angels sing,
"Glory to the newborn King;
Peace on earth and mercy mild,
God and sinners reconciled."
Joyful, all ye nations, rise,
Join the triumph of the skies;
With angelic hosts proclaim,
"Christ is born in Bethlehem."
Hark! the herald angels sing,
"Glory to the newborn King."
Christ, by highest heav'n adored,
Christ, the everlasting Lord;
Late in time behold Him come,
Offspring of a virgin's womb.
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see,
Hail, the incarnate Deity!
Pleased as man with men to dwell,
Jesus our Emmanuel.
Hark! the herald angels sing,
"Glory to the newborn King."
Hail the heav'n born Prince of Peace!
Hail the Sun of righteousness!
Light and life to all He brings,
Ris'n with healing in His wings.
Mild He lays His glory by,
Born that man no more may die;
Born to raise the sons of earth,
Born to give them second birth.
Hark! the herald angels sing,
"Glory to the newborn King!"
Come, Desire of nations, come!
Fix in us Thy humble home.
Rise, the woman's conqu'ring seed,
Bruise in us the serpent's head;
Adam's likeness now efface,
Stamp Thine image in its place;
Second Adam from above,
Reinstate us in Thy love.
Hark! the herald angels sing,
"Glory to the newborn King."
© Public Domain
Friday, December 22, 2006
Wednesday, December 20, 2006
An Intentional Love
Dean pointed those of us gathered at the Men's Ministry group to John 13, where we read about Jesus washing the feet of His friends at the Last Supper. As we talked our way through the text, one thought was persistent in my mind. Jesus' actions that evening did not come from some surge of emotion at the realization that this was the last Passover He would celebrate with those 12 men. He was intentional, taking advantage of the moment to teach the the self-sacrificial quality of love that God desires in each one of us. "After washing their feet, he put on his robe again and sat down and asked, “Do you understand what I was doing? You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and you are right, because it is true. And since I, the Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet." (John 13:12-14, NLT) Dean helped to remember that Jesus also washing Judas' feet, a choice to serve the man who was about to betray Him to His enemies! Dan added that loving people out to do us wrong is possible only if we are acting in faith, honoring God with our actions, without any demand for a specific outcome.
I am asking myself, "Jerry, is your love intentional in that way? Do you choose to love, or wait for some stirring of sentiment before you act?" Serving others comes easily when they're nice, appreciative, and are capable of reciprocating my loving acts. But, what about those who are nasty, mean, selfish, and/or critical? Will I serve them with love on purpose? The questions are difficult because they reveal a very human trait in me that tends to love the lovely! Jesus puts it straight - "If you only love the lovable, do you expect a pat on the back? Run-of-the-mill sinners do that. If you only help those who help you, do you expect a medal? Garden-variety sinners do that. If you only give for what you hope to get out of it, do you think that’s charity? The stingiest of pawnbrokers does that." (Luke 6:31-34, The Message)
During this Christmas time, there will be gathering that will likely bring you into contact with people at work who have tried to undermine you or who have been critical of you during the year. Are you going to 'play nice' and paste a smile over your hostility, or will you take the road of Jesus and serve them with intentional love? Extended families will gather. When you meet up with Aunt Emily, who has snubbed you too many times to count over the years, you will have an opportunity to be genuinely loving. Will you do it, for Jesus' sake?
Jesus could not have found washing the feet of those twelve men all that enjoyable! Come on, take off the rose-colored glasses and see the story for what it is. Dusty, sweaty, stinking feet of men who had walked through city streets where animals walked and emptied their bowels and bladders, where garbage was thrown.... yeah, there it is! That's where those feet had been. Now, He's holding them in His hands, washing the grime from them. No soft lighting, no violins playing the background. It isn't the movies, it is real life! His love was intentional, costly, and - best of all- life changing for those men, though not for all of them. John never forgot that moment and decades later wrote it down for us. Judas missed the lesson, went out and betrayed the Lord, and died at his own hand, filled with regrets.
Learn from Jesus. Love with intentional love, and yes, even love the unlovely.
-- “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’
But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven.
He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous." (Matthew 5:43-45, NIV)
__________________
How Deep The Father's Love For Us
Townend, Stuart
How deep the Father's love for us,
How vast beyond all measure,
That He should give His only Son
To make a wretch His treasure.
How great the pain of searing loss,
The Father turns His face away,
As wounds which mar the Chosen One
Bring many sons to glory.
Behold the man upon a cross.
My sin upon His shoulders;
Ashamed, I hear my mocking voice
Call out among the scoffers.
It was my sin that held Him there
Until it was accomplished;
His dying breath has brought me life -
I know that it is finished.
I will not boast in anything,
No gifts, no power, no wisdom;
But I will boast in Jesus Christ,
His death and resurrection.
Why should I gain from His reward?
I cannot give an answer.
But this I know with all my heart,
His wounds have paid my ransom.
© 1995 Kingsway's Thankyou Music
(Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing)
CCLI License No. 810055
I am asking myself, "Jerry, is your love intentional in that way? Do you choose to love, or wait for some stirring of sentiment before you act?" Serving others comes easily when they're nice, appreciative, and are capable of reciprocating my loving acts. But, what about those who are nasty, mean, selfish, and/or critical? Will I serve them with love on purpose? The questions are difficult because they reveal a very human trait in me that tends to love the lovely! Jesus puts it straight - "If you only love the lovable, do you expect a pat on the back? Run-of-the-mill sinners do that. If you only help those who help you, do you expect a medal? Garden-variety sinners do that. If you only give for what you hope to get out of it, do you think that’s charity? The stingiest of pawnbrokers does that." (Luke 6:31-34, The Message)
During this Christmas time, there will be gathering that will likely bring you into contact with people at work who have tried to undermine you or who have been critical of you during the year. Are you going to 'play nice' and paste a smile over your hostility, or will you take the road of Jesus and serve them with intentional love? Extended families will gather. When you meet up with Aunt Emily, who has snubbed you too many times to count over the years, you will have an opportunity to be genuinely loving. Will you do it, for Jesus' sake?
Jesus could not have found washing the feet of those twelve men all that enjoyable! Come on, take off the rose-colored glasses and see the story for what it is. Dusty, sweaty, stinking feet of men who had walked through city streets where animals walked and emptied their bowels and bladders, where garbage was thrown.... yeah, there it is! That's where those feet had been. Now, He's holding them in His hands, washing the grime from them. No soft lighting, no violins playing the background. It isn't the movies, it is real life! His love was intentional, costly, and - best of all- life changing for those men, though not for all of them. John never forgot that moment and decades later wrote it down for us. Judas missed the lesson, went out and betrayed the Lord, and died at his own hand, filled with regrets.
Learn from Jesus. Love with intentional love, and yes, even love the unlovely.
-- “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’
But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven.
He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous." (Matthew 5:43-45, NIV)
__________________
How Deep The Father's Love For Us
Townend, Stuart
How deep the Father's love for us,
How vast beyond all measure,
That He should give His only Son
To make a wretch His treasure.
How great the pain of searing loss,
The Father turns His face away,
As wounds which mar the Chosen One
Bring many sons to glory.
Behold the man upon a cross.
My sin upon His shoulders;
Ashamed, I hear my mocking voice
Call out among the scoffers.
It was my sin that held Him there
Until it was accomplished;
His dying breath has brought me life -
I know that it is finished.
I will not boast in anything,
No gifts, no power, no wisdom;
But I will boast in Jesus Christ,
His death and resurrection.
Why should I gain from His reward?
I cannot give an answer.
But this I know with all my heart,
His wounds have paid my ransom.
© 1995 Kingsway's Thankyou Music
(Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing)
CCLI License No. 810055
Tuesday, December 19, 2006
"Two are better than one!"
I watch Survivor, the CBS TV series. The season which concluded this past Sunday evening was notable for the group dynamics. This season started with 20 or so people divided into ethnic groups: African American, Latin, Asian, and Caucasian. Over the 13 weeks those divisions broke down as people realized the need to work together. By mid-season there were four people - an African American woman, an Asian man., an Asian woman, and a Latin man - who had formed a working alliance that defeated a much stronger group of twice the size. The difference? Primarily it was the level of cooperation and trust. That foursome would not allow anyone or anything to divide them fro each other and it got them successfully to the end of the show.
Nothing can replace a friend! A movie is twice as funny when viewed in the company of a companion. A project does not seem half as difficult when an extra pair of hands is available. A walk in the evening is much more enjoyable when a friend walks with you sharing the time and conversing about life. Even worship takes on an entirely different dynamic at church compared to our private devotions. Sure I can sing, "How Great Thou Art" in my living room, alone, and the words are the same. But the song is much more majestic when lifted on the voices of a hundred people joined in praise of their God and the response of my soul is different, too. When a person becomes isolated, she is much more likely to have emotional and spiritual difficulties. Despair grows like a weed in the heart of the person who has withdrawn from others because of disappointment or pain. Sin flourishes when bitterness causes us to build walls of separation. We need each other. Having a friend is not just a luxury! Dr. Dan Allender writes: "Without human relationships to provide us with encouragement and home, the world seems dangerous, cold, and profitless - in a word, meaningless. This perception leads to deeper, chronic despair when we ... escape into lonely isolation." The Cry of the Soul, NavPress
I am convinced that one of America's greatest challenges in 2007 goes beyond terrorism, crime, or the state of the economy. We have a community crisis; a breakdown of human relationships that create trust, that cause us to sacrifice for another, that provide the web work of a truly great nation. In my work with a local congregation I am deeply concerned about the need to build connections between people who occupy the church house on Sunday. It is not enough to come together just to sing some songs and hear a sermon. A church that is creating strong, healthy Christian disciples is a place that encourages relationships. But that is becoming more and more challenging in a society that celebrates radical independence, where we spend most evenings in our house watching TV instead of engaged in some activity or service involving other people. Even teenagers who usually do things in groups, are increasingly relating to each other virtually using the Internet and online places such as My Space or Facebook.
Solomon, the wise, observed: "Two people can accomplish more than twice as much as one; they get a better return for their labor. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But people who are alone when they fall are in real trouble. And on a cold night, two under the same blanket can gain warmth from each other. But how can one be warm alone? 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 4:9-12, NLT)
Because of the importance of relationships the Evil One works hard to divide people from each other. Conversely, God is love! Where God is truly invited, people are drawn together in close and self-sacrificing relationships! Don't confuse "God" with religion. Religion separates people. There are few things in the world as ugly as a church fight where all kinds of "God talk" is used to attack, destroy, and demean other people. Millions of people down through history have been killed in the name of God by other's who assumed they were superior because of their 'truth.'
The Truth is demonstrated in what we celebrate at Christmas - Emmanuel - "God with us!" Our Creator would not stand at a distance to observe us like some science experiment. He desired to know us, to be with us, to walk with us, to know us. Our disobedience had created a chasm, a break in relationship, which we could not bridge, but He did - by sending us His Son to live with us, to die for us, and to invite us back into the Family, with our debt settled at His expense.
Experience the love of God by receiving the Savior. Invite the Lord of Love to touch your heart, to convince you of His care for you. Trust Him - with the good, the bad, and the ugly of life. Allow Him to forgive you for your sins, to release you from the guilt of the past, and to give you a bright hope for the future. Find a community of Believers that is more than religious, real people who are working out the implications of loving God - individually and corporately. Join them! Might you be disappointed? No, you most certainly will, for we human beings are notorious for failing each other. It is in that moment that you have a choice - follow the Devil's road into isolation, division, and ultimately into despair; or follow the way of Christ Jesus, dying to self, and embracing the people around you with love.
Here's a word from the Word to ponder today. May it speak deeply to you and help you to build bridges to people, beginning this Holy Season.
"Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another." (1 John 4:7-11, NIV)
Nothing can replace a friend! A movie is twice as funny when viewed in the company of a companion. A project does not seem half as difficult when an extra pair of hands is available. A walk in the evening is much more enjoyable when a friend walks with you sharing the time and conversing about life. Even worship takes on an entirely different dynamic at church compared to our private devotions. Sure I can sing, "How Great Thou Art" in my living room, alone, and the words are the same. But the song is much more majestic when lifted on the voices of a hundred people joined in praise of their God and the response of my soul is different, too. When a person becomes isolated, she is much more likely to have emotional and spiritual difficulties. Despair grows like a weed in the heart of the person who has withdrawn from others because of disappointment or pain. Sin flourishes when bitterness causes us to build walls of separation. We need each other. Having a friend is not just a luxury! Dr. Dan Allender writes: "Without human relationships to provide us with encouragement and home, the world seems dangerous, cold, and profitless - in a word, meaningless. This perception leads to deeper, chronic despair when we ... escape into lonely isolation." The Cry of the Soul, NavPress
I am convinced that one of America's greatest challenges in 2007 goes beyond terrorism, crime, or the state of the economy. We have a community crisis; a breakdown of human relationships that create trust, that cause us to sacrifice for another, that provide the web work of a truly great nation. In my work with a local congregation I am deeply concerned about the need to build connections between people who occupy the church house on Sunday. It is not enough to come together just to sing some songs and hear a sermon. A church that is creating strong, healthy Christian disciples is a place that encourages relationships. But that is becoming more and more challenging in a society that celebrates radical independence, where we spend most evenings in our house watching TV instead of engaged in some activity or service involving other people. Even teenagers who usually do things in groups, are increasingly relating to each other virtually using the Internet and online places such as My Space or Facebook.
Solomon, the wise, observed: "Two people can accomplish more than twice as much as one; they get a better return for their labor. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But people who are alone when they fall are in real trouble. And on a cold night, two under the same blanket can gain warmth from each other. But how can one be warm alone? 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 4:9-12, NLT)
Because of the importance of relationships the Evil One works hard to divide people from each other. Conversely, God is love! Where God is truly invited, people are drawn together in close and self-sacrificing relationships! Don't confuse "God" with religion. Religion separates people. There are few things in the world as ugly as a church fight where all kinds of "God talk" is used to attack, destroy, and demean other people. Millions of people down through history have been killed in the name of God by other's who assumed they were superior because of their 'truth.'
The Truth is demonstrated in what we celebrate at Christmas - Emmanuel - "God with us!" Our Creator would not stand at a distance to observe us like some science experiment. He desired to know us, to be with us, to walk with us, to know us. Our disobedience had created a chasm, a break in relationship, which we could not bridge, but He did - by sending us His Son to live with us, to die for us, and to invite us back into the Family, with our debt settled at His expense.
Experience the love of God by receiving the Savior. Invite the Lord of Love to touch your heart, to convince you of His care for you. Trust Him - with the good, the bad, and the ugly of life. Allow Him to forgive you for your sins, to release you from the guilt of the past, and to give you a bright hope for the future. Find a community of Believers that is more than religious, real people who are working out the implications of loving God - individually and corporately. Join them! Might you be disappointed? No, you most certainly will, for we human beings are notorious for failing each other. It is in that moment that you have a choice - follow the Devil's road into isolation, division, and ultimately into despair; or follow the way of Christ Jesus, dying to self, and embracing the people around you with love.
Here's a word from the Word to ponder today. May it speak deeply to you and help you to build bridges to people, beginning this Holy Season.
"Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another." (1 John 4:7-11, NIV)
Monday, December 18, 2006
"Good news of great joy"
I am praying for joy this Season; joy to the world! There's so much sadness all around. Maybe I am just more aware of this than most because of my calling as a pastor. Almost everyday people with crises, big and small, enter my life. So many are like the man I'll call Sam, who stopped by my office on Saturday. I was just getting ready to go home and I heard a tentative knock on the door. I looked up to see a middle-aged man with obvious distress on his face. I opened my office and invited him in. He sat and it took a moment for him to compose himself, tears brimming in his eyes, hands wringing. "How can I help you, friend?" I asked and waited. Finally, in a quiet voice, he said, "I'm mentally ill, alone, and broke." The way that he said it was less a statement than a challenge, as he implied, 'what can you do to help with those kinds of situations?' No, he wasn't belligerent; more like desperate, I'd say. We talked for a few moments and I think the fact that someone treated him kindly, actually listening, meant as much to Sam as anything else. I promised we could help him from the church's food pantry and gave him $20 from my discretionary fund before he left. Ours was, hopefully, a conversation that will continue, because I want Sam, and the millions who are living with quiet little dramas just like him, to find the lasting joy that Jesus alone can give.
Christmas brings us a story that creates the possibility of joy; "for all the people!" With this phrase, "I bring you good news of great joy," the angel reassured a group of frightened men, shepherds who were seeing the strangest sight ever there in the field outside of Bethlehem! Shepherds of that day were not anywhere near the top of heap of society. They were a rough lot, earthy men. They were likely illiterate, almost certainly not well versed in the prophetic texts, or even all that observant of the Law. But God choose to make His announcement to them. Accidentally? Did the angels get lost on their way to the home of the mayor of Bethlehem? No, of course not. God's desire was to bring all people - shepherds from the field - and wise men from the East - to worship the Savior. And in that worship, they found joy.
My prayerful goal this Season is to bring people the joy of Jesus. I hope I can provide a little happiness this year, with some appropriate gifts. I hope that our family celebration brings us some cheerful moments. But, even more important to me is the sharing of the lasting joy of the Lord with those whose lives I touch. People like Sam, the man who stopped by my office, need more than a cheery moment or $20! They need to know God's love. Those who are working through loneliness or illness or dealing with the limitations brought on by aging, or the devastation visited on their well-being by their sins or the those who have sinned against them, won't be 'fixed' by a present or a happy song. Only in God can the find a reason for real joy, a hope that is bigger than any set of circumstances in this world.
I invite you to join me in this mission! "Hey, Jerry, we're no angels." Right you are! But we are ambassadors, God said so. We have the awesome privilege of leading others to Him, sharing with them the Hope we have found. The Bible says,
"All this comes from the God who settled the relationship between us and him, and then called us to settle our relationships with each other. God put the world square with himself through the Messiah, giving the world a fresh start by offering forgiveness of sins.
God has given us the task of telling everyone what he is doing. We’re Christ’s representatives. God uses us to persuade men and women to drop their differences and enter into God’s work of making things right between them.
We’re speaking for Christ himself now: Become friends with God; he’s already a friend with you. How? you say. In Christ. God put the wrong on him who never did anything wrong, so we could be put right with God. " (2 Corinthians 5:18-21, The Message)
Pray for opportunities to be a bringer of joy, a messenger of hope.
If you're reading this today and you do not have real joy (not to confused with transient happiness), let me point you to Jesus. He came to be our Savior, to close the gap between the Father and ourselves. He came to give us the gift of eternal life, which we can own now, while we wait for the Second Advent of our King. Tell Him your deepest need, yes, in your own words, your own way. Ask Him to help you. His answer may not come in the way you expect, but He will come to you. He promises!
_____________________________
Angels we have heard on high,
Sweetly singing o'er the plains;
And the mountains in reply,
Echoing their joyous strains.
Gloria, in excelsis Deo!
Gloria, in excelsis Deo!
Shepherds, why this jubilee?
Why your joyous strains prolong?
Say what may the tidings be;
Which inspire your heav'nly song?
Gloria, in excelsis Deo!
Gloria, in excelsis Deo!
Come to Bethlehem and see,
Him whose birth the angels sing;
Come adore on bended knee,
Christ the Lord, the newborn King.
Gloria, in excelsis Deo!
Gloria, in excelsis Deo!
Angels We Have Heard On High
Chadwick, James / Barnes, Edward Shippen
© Public Domain CCLI License No. 810055
Christmas brings us a story that creates the possibility of joy; "for all the people!" With this phrase, "I bring you good news of great joy," the angel reassured a group of frightened men, shepherds who were seeing the strangest sight ever there in the field outside of Bethlehem! Shepherds of that day were not anywhere near the top of heap of society. They were a rough lot, earthy men. They were likely illiterate, almost certainly not well versed in the prophetic texts, or even all that observant of the Law. But God choose to make His announcement to them. Accidentally? Did the angels get lost on their way to the home of the mayor of Bethlehem? No, of course not. God's desire was to bring all people - shepherds from the field - and wise men from the East - to worship the Savior. And in that worship, they found joy.
My prayerful goal this Season is to bring people the joy of Jesus. I hope I can provide a little happiness this year, with some appropriate gifts. I hope that our family celebration brings us some cheerful moments. But, even more important to me is the sharing of the lasting joy of the Lord with those whose lives I touch. People like Sam, the man who stopped by my office, need more than a cheery moment or $20! They need to know God's love. Those who are working through loneliness or illness or dealing with the limitations brought on by aging, or the devastation visited on their well-being by their sins or the those who have sinned against them, won't be 'fixed' by a present or a happy song. Only in God can the find a reason for real joy, a hope that is bigger than any set of circumstances in this world.
I invite you to join me in this mission! "Hey, Jerry, we're no angels." Right you are! But we are ambassadors, God said so. We have the awesome privilege of leading others to Him, sharing with them the Hope we have found. The Bible says,
"All this comes from the God who settled the relationship between us and him, and then called us to settle our relationships with each other. God put the world square with himself through the Messiah, giving the world a fresh start by offering forgiveness of sins.
God has given us the task of telling everyone what he is doing. We’re Christ’s representatives. God uses us to persuade men and women to drop their differences and enter into God’s work of making things right between them.
We’re speaking for Christ himself now: Become friends with God; he’s already a friend with you. How? you say. In Christ. God put the wrong on him who never did anything wrong, so we could be put right with God. " (2 Corinthians 5:18-21, The Message)
Pray for opportunities to be a bringer of joy, a messenger of hope.
If you're reading this today and you do not have real joy (not to confused with transient happiness), let me point you to Jesus. He came to be our Savior, to close the gap between the Father and ourselves. He came to give us the gift of eternal life, which we can own now, while we wait for the Second Advent of our King. Tell Him your deepest need, yes, in your own words, your own way. Ask Him to help you. His answer may not come in the way you expect, but He will come to you. He promises!
_____________________________
Angels we have heard on high,
Sweetly singing o'er the plains;
And the mountains in reply,
Echoing their joyous strains.
Gloria, in excelsis Deo!
Gloria, in excelsis Deo!
Shepherds, why this jubilee?
Why your joyous strains prolong?
Say what may the tidings be;
Which inspire your heav'nly song?
Gloria, in excelsis Deo!
Gloria, in excelsis Deo!
Come to Bethlehem and see,
Him whose birth the angels sing;
Come adore on bended knee,
Christ the Lord, the newborn King.
Gloria, in excelsis Deo!
Gloria, in excelsis Deo!
Angels We Have Heard On High
Chadwick, James / Barnes, Edward Shippen
© Public Domain CCLI License No. 810055
Friday, December 15, 2006
Showing the Gospel, an important part of telling it
Pastor Steve Sjogren suggests that before we try to convince other people of God's love with a four point presentation and carefully printed literature we ought to show them the love of God practically. Case in point; Theresa, a young single mom, who was broke and discouraged. Her dented Toyota idled roughly at the Taco Bell drive thru. She was there because a search for loose change had produced a few bucks, all she had in the world. She just decided to take her 8 year old son out thinking, "Anyway you look at it, we don't have enough money to make it to my next welfare check, so let's go out with a little style." As she pulled up to the window to pay, the guy standing there met her with a big smile and told her it was her lucky day. "The people in the car ahead of you paid for your order and told me to give you this card." On it she read, "We hope this small act of service shows you God's love in a practical way." A church's name and address were printed on the flip side of the card. The next day found Theresa and her son in that church, where she found the help she needed to get back on her feet and a new beginning in life. (REV., January, 2007)
James urges us to keep our faith connected to real life. What we truly believe, he says, will always have a discernable effect on the way we live. "What’s the use of saying you have faith if you don’t prove it by your actions? That kind of faith can’t save anyone. Suppose you see a brother or sister who needs food or clothing, and you say, “Well, good-bye and God bless you; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do? So you see, it isn’t enough just to have faith. Faith that doesn’t show itself by good deeds is no faith at all—it is dead and useless. Now someone may argue, “Some people have faith; others have good deeds.” I say, “I can’t see your faith if you don’t have good deeds, but I will show you my faith through my good deeds.” (James 2:14-18, NLT)
I am examining my life for places where my professed faith in Jesus is disconnected from my words and actions. I don't want to bring dishonor on the Name of Christ by being hypocritical, that is, living a life where my rhetoric is unmatched by what I do, even unconsciously. This applies to so many areas in addition to compassion to those who are poor which is where James, the Apostle, makes his point. How about the way we deal with outcasts? For example, there is a whole group of people in America that experience rejection on a grand scale everyday - those convicted of crimes of a sexual nature, especially against children. Yes, such a crime is repugnant and has terrible consequences for those who are abused, but Jesus loves and died for pedophiles, didn't He? Shouldn't we love them, too, albeit with proper safeguards in place for our children? Of course, we must! Conservative Christians have had a terrible relationship with homosexuals, in part admittedly because we hold to the Bible's truth that homosexual behavior is not acceptable to God. But we also need to face the fact that, as a group, we have not exactly extended a welcome mat to gay men and lesbian women in our church communities, either.
"I will show you my faith through my good deeds" has implications for our personal relationships, too. Love is the core of Jesus' teaching, and yet many who claim to be His followers are carrying around terrible anger over unresolved conflicts. How many of us, even as we say we love God and are loved by Him, at the same time, continue to harbor bitterness against a neighbor, or a family member, or a church leader? How can this be? Can we really have experienced the reality of God's love and remain hateful? Not according to Scripture. "If we love our Christian brothers and sisters, it proves that we have passed from death to eternal life. But a person who has no love is still dead. Anyone who hates another Christian is really a murderer at heart. And you know that murderers don’t have eternal life within them." (1 John 3:14-15, NLT) Ouch! That hits kind of close to home, doesn't it? Since conflict is the number one issue for most American churches, I'll leave you to draw your own conclusions about the reality of the spiritual experience of many who claim to be followers of Christ! What I will do is to ask the Holy Spirit to help me to close the gap between my words and actions, to make my faith real and observable to those among whom I work and play.
We must not miss the point of being a Christian. We are not Christians simply because we have claimed to have understood the four spiritual laws, or because we once said a prayer with Billy Graham at the end of a televised service, or because we affirmed some doctrinal statement and received a baptism certificate. We are Christians when our faith is real, which leads us to working out the implications of the Gospel of Christ in the real world, with the Spirit's help, on a daily basis. John says, "My dear children, let’s not just talk about love; let’s practice real love. This is the only way we’ll know we’re living truly, living in God’s reality." (1 John 3:18-19, The Message)
Here's a 50 cent phrase to remember - Orthodoxy will produce orthopraxy. In simpler terms, if we really connect to the truth of God, our lives will come into line with the will of God!
So, it's Christmas. There's a ton of sentimentality attached to this holiday. Let me encourage you to go beyond that little tear in the corner of your eye, that catch in your throat, to do the tough work of applying the Story to life. If you believe that Jesus is really Emmanuel, God with us, then invite Him to live in you. Think through what it means to embrace Him as both Savior and Lord - and let it show- for the glory of God.
_________________________
O come, O come Emmanuel
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.
O come, thou Rod of Jesse free,
Thine own from Satan's tyranny
From depths of hell thy people save
And give them victory o'er the grave
O come, thou Dayspring, come and cheer
Our spirits by Thine advent here;
And drive away the shades of night,
And pierce the clouds and bring us light.
O come, thou Key of David, come,
And open wide our heavenly home.
Make safe the way that leads on high,
And close the path to misery.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel, Shall come to thee, O Israel!
O Come O Come Emmanuel -Neale, John M. / Coffin, Henry S. / Helmore, Thomas
© Public Domain
James urges us to keep our faith connected to real life. What we truly believe, he says, will always have a discernable effect on the way we live. "What’s the use of saying you have faith if you don’t prove it by your actions? That kind of faith can’t save anyone. Suppose you see a brother or sister who needs food or clothing, and you say, “Well, good-bye and God bless you; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do? So you see, it isn’t enough just to have faith. Faith that doesn’t show itself by good deeds is no faith at all—it is dead and useless. Now someone may argue, “Some people have faith; others have good deeds.” I say, “I can’t see your faith if you don’t have good deeds, but I will show you my faith through my good deeds.” (James 2:14-18, NLT)
I am examining my life for places where my professed faith in Jesus is disconnected from my words and actions. I don't want to bring dishonor on the Name of Christ by being hypocritical, that is, living a life where my rhetoric is unmatched by what I do, even unconsciously. This applies to so many areas in addition to compassion to those who are poor which is where James, the Apostle, makes his point. How about the way we deal with outcasts? For example, there is a whole group of people in America that experience rejection on a grand scale everyday - those convicted of crimes of a sexual nature, especially against children. Yes, such a crime is repugnant and has terrible consequences for those who are abused, but Jesus loves and died for pedophiles, didn't He? Shouldn't we love them, too, albeit with proper safeguards in place for our children? Of course, we must! Conservative Christians have had a terrible relationship with homosexuals, in part admittedly because we hold to the Bible's truth that homosexual behavior is not acceptable to God. But we also need to face the fact that, as a group, we have not exactly extended a welcome mat to gay men and lesbian women in our church communities, either.
"I will show you my faith through my good deeds" has implications for our personal relationships, too. Love is the core of Jesus' teaching, and yet many who claim to be His followers are carrying around terrible anger over unresolved conflicts. How many of us, even as we say we love God and are loved by Him, at the same time, continue to harbor bitterness against a neighbor, or a family member, or a church leader? How can this be? Can we really have experienced the reality of God's love and remain hateful? Not according to Scripture. "If we love our Christian brothers and sisters, it proves that we have passed from death to eternal life. But a person who has no love is still dead. Anyone who hates another Christian is really a murderer at heart. And you know that murderers don’t have eternal life within them." (1 John 3:14-15, NLT) Ouch! That hits kind of close to home, doesn't it? Since conflict is the number one issue for most American churches, I'll leave you to draw your own conclusions about the reality of the spiritual experience of many who claim to be followers of Christ! What I will do is to ask the Holy Spirit to help me to close the gap between my words and actions, to make my faith real and observable to those among whom I work and play.
We must not miss the point of being a Christian. We are not Christians simply because we have claimed to have understood the four spiritual laws, or because we once said a prayer with Billy Graham at the end of a televised service, or because we affirmed some doctrinal statement and received a baptism certificate. We are Christians when our faith is real, which leads us to working out the implications of the Gospel of Christ in the real world, with the Spirit's help, on a daily basis. John says, "My dear children, let’s not just talk about love; let’s practice real love. This is the only way we’ll know we’re living truly, living in God’s reality." (1 John 3:18-19, The Message)
Here's a 50 cent phrase to remember - Orthodoxy will produce orthopraxy. In simpler terms, if we really connect to the truth of God, our lives will come into line with the will of God!
So, it's Christmas. There's a ton of sentimentality attached to this holiday. Let me encourage you to go beyond that little tear in the corner of your eye, that catch in your throat, to do the tough work of applying the Story to life. If you believe that Jesus is really Emmanuel, God with us, then invite Him to live in you. Think through what it means to embrace Him as both Savior and Lord - and let it show- for the glory of God.
_________________________
O come, O come Emmanuel
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.
O come, thou Rod of Jesse free,
Thine own from Satan's tyranny
From depths of hell thy people save
And give them victory o'er the grave
O come, thou Dayspring, come and cheer
Our spirits by Thine advent here;
And drive away the shades of night,
And pierce the clouds and bring us light.
O come, thou Key of David, come,
And open wide our heavenly home.
Make safe the way that leads on high,
And close the path to misery.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel, Shall come to thee, O Israel!
O Come O Come Emmanuel -Neale, John M. / Coffin, Henry S. / Helmore, Thomas
© Public Domain
Thursday, December 14, 2006
I'm better than you are.
Yesterday, as I was reading yet another article about Ted Haggard, the former pastor of a large church in Colorado who resigned after sins involving drug use and sexual misconduct in his life become public, I found myself thinking, - "Why didn't he shape up? What's wrong with him?" God forgive me! What gracelessness! In fact, I fail, too. However, because they are 'my' failures, in my mind they are excusable, even reasonable under the circumstances. For example, if I am short-tempered or unloving, I let myself off the hook because "I am tired due to my full schedule."
So, as I was mentally railing on Ted Haggard, I heard the Spirit's challenge as He asked me: "Why are you so unwilling and/or unable to give others the same grace that you give to yourself?" What I desire is that God will continue to work on transformation of my heart and mind that causes me to love, to encourage, to comfort, and even when there is reason to correct another person, to be able to do it with such grace, that even words of rebuke are heard as a gift. I am challenged today by this passage from the Word. It is lengthy and probably familiar, but I urge you to read it attentively.
"We are made right in God’s sight when we trust in Jesus Christ to take away our sins. And we all can be saved in this same way, no matter who we are or what we have done. For all have sinned; all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet now God in his gracious kindness declares us not guilty. He has done this through Christ Jesus, who has freed us by taking away our sins. For God sent Jesus to take the punishment for our sins and to satisfy God’s anger against us. We are made right with God when we believe that Jesus shed his blood, sacrificing his life for us. . . .
Can we boast, then, that we have done anything to be accepted by God? No, because our acquittal is not based on our good deeds. It is based on our faith." (Romans 3:22-27, NLT)
Does that mean we are free to live as we want to live, that our daily actions are unimportant in terms of our relationship with God?
Some might reach that conclusion, but they would be wrong. We are set right with God by faith in Christ Jesus, but that faith is not a ethereal thing, disconnected from 'real' life! Here's the glory of grace-based Christianity. When we take the focus off of ourselves and put it rightly on God's gracious work, we gain the ability to say, 'no' to ungodliness and 'yes' to the Spirit. What all of our self-discipline, peer pressure from other Believers, and moral codes can never accomplish - making us truly good and completely acceptable to God- begins to take place from the inside out!
When I am focused on me- determined to be good, to say the right things, to make a good impression - all supposedly 'for the glory of God,' I get stressed and graceless, losing the joy of the Lord. When I face up to my religiosity, I have to admit that concern for reputation and respect, which are all about Jerry, have crept up on me; again! There is only one thing to do in that moment - get on my face before the Lord and 'give up.' "I did it again, Lord. I became proud, I compared myself to someone else. I started to believe You are blessed to have me on your team!" That confession, coupled with thankfulness for Jesus Christ, the great grace gift, whose death and resurrection brings me the promise of life and godliness, restores my joy, and - that moment of grace renewal - temptation loses much of its power over me.
Pastor Ted, I am not better than you are! We are both sinners in need of the grace of Christ. I pray he understands that today, more than intellectually.
I pray that I will continue to hang onto to Jesus's grace, kept from disgrace and from dishonoring His Holy Name - by grace and grace alone.
_____________
Father, Your love for me is astounding.
Your favor extended to me makes me both glad and uncomfortable.
I want to do something to pay you back, but I know that I never could,
and even to attempt to do so, insults You!
Defeat my sinful tendency to perfectionism and religiosity, which leads to judgment.
Stir up a love for You in me that spills over to others, that takes no thought of their deservedness.
Thank you, Jesus, for the Manger, which speaks to me so powerfully that you became Flesh, God with us;
for the Cross that shows me Your love and sacrifice, and
the Empty Tomb, which assures me that the work done for sinners is complete!
Spirit of God, guide me into all Truth today.
Keep me centered on You.
Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me.... yes, for the glory of God alone. Amen.
So, as I was mentally railing on Ted Haggard, I heard the Spirit's challenge as He asked me: "Why are you so unwilling and/or unable to give others the same grace that you give to yourself?" What I desire is that God will continue to work on transformation of my heart and mind that causes me to love, to encourage, to comfort, and even when there is reason to correct another person, to be able to do it with such grace, that even words of rebuke are heard as a gift. I am challenged today by this passage from the Word. It is lengthy and probably familiar, but I urge you to read it attentively.
"We are made right in God’s sight when we trust in Jesus Christ to take away our sins. And we all can be saved in this same way, no matter who we are or what we have done. For all have sinned; all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet now God in his gracious kindness declares us not guilty. He has done this through Christ Jesus, who has freed us by taking away our sins. For God sent Jesus to take the punishment for our sins and to satisfy God’s anger against us. We are made right with God when we believe that Jesus shed his blood, sacrificing his life for us. . . .
Can we boast, then, that we have done anything to be accepted by God? No, because our acquittal is not based on our good deeds. It is based on our faith." (Romans 3:22-27, NLT)
Does that mean we are free to live as we want to live, that our daily actions are unimportant in terms of our relationship with God?
Some might reach that conclusion, but they would be wrong. We are set right with God by faith in Christ Jesus, but that faith is not a ethereal thing, disconnected from 'real' life! Here's the glory of grace-based Christianity. When we take the focus off of ourselves and put it rightly on God's gracious work, we gain the ability to say, 'no' to ungodliness and 'yes' to the Spirit. What all of our self-discipline, peer pressure from other Believers, and moral codes can never accomplish - making us truly good and completely acceptable to God- begins to take place from the inside out!
When I am focused on me- determined to be good, to say the right things, to make a good impression - all supposedly 'for the glory of God,' I get stressed and graceless, losing the joy of the Lord. When I face up to my religiosity, I have to admit that concern for reputation and respect, which are all about Jerry, have crept up on me; again! There is only one thing to do in that moment - get on my face before the Lord and 'give up.' "I did it again, Lord. I became proud, I compared myself to someone else. I started to believe You are blessed to have me on your team!" That confession, coupled with thankfulness for Jesus Christ, the great grace gift, whose death and resurrection brings me the promise of life and godliness, restores my joy, and - that moment of grace renewal - temptation loses much of its power over me.
Pastor Ted, I am not better than you are! We are both sinners in need of the grace of Christ. I pray he understands that today, more than intellectually.
I pray that I will continue to hang onto to Jesus's grace, kept from disgrace and from dishonoring His Holy Name - by grace and grace alone.
_____________
Father, Your love for me is astounding.
Your favor extended to me makes me both glad and uncomfortable.
I want to do something to pay you back, but I know that I never could,
and even to attempt to do so, insults You!
Defeat my sinful tendency to perfectionism and religiosity, which leads to judgment.
Stir up a love for You in me that spills over to others, that takes no thought of their deservedness.
Thank you, Jesus, for the Manger, which speaks to me so powerfully that you became Flesh, God with us;
for the Cross that shows me Your love and sacrifice, and
the Empty Tomb, which assures me that the work done for sinners is complete!
Spirit of God, guide me into all Truth today.
Keep me centered on You.
Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me.... yes, for the glory of God alone. Amen.
Wednesday, December 13, 2006
Christmas gifts
Have you finished your Christmas shopping yet? Many of us still have people on our gift list without a matching present! We will venture out to make our purchases motivated in many different ways. Consider these...
There is the CHEAP giver. He is driven by one goal - buying something, anything, that satisfies the imperative for gift giving - while spending as little money or energy as possible. My one question to this person is - "Why bother?" You have missed the meaning of Christmas entirely. Save yourself the effort because the person who receives your 'gift' will only be obligated to write an insincere 'thank you' note!
There is HURRIED giver. With hummingbird-like rapidity, she darts from store to store, grabbing this and that, checking off the names on her list. Obligation, not love, is the primary motivation for giving a gift, so most any gift will do, just get it and wrap it up.
There is the PAY MY DEBTS giver. This person foolishly believes that with one gift, usually one that costs way too much, he can make up for his failures through the year. Yes, it is particularly a 'man' thing! Men are much more likely, according to published reports, to overspend to compensate for misdeeds than women. But, the truth is, no single gift can erase a year's worth of inattention or emotional distance. This shopper is in for disappointment!
There is the "I'D SURE LIKE THAT" giver who buys things he would like to receive and presents them to others! His gifts are often very nice, but they don't 'fit.' Why? Because, his gifts are not thoughtfully chosen with the recipient in mind. Even his 'giving' reflects his preoccupation with himself. To me a 1 Gig USB Flash Drive is a fine gift, but if I buy one for my wife, she'll say, "What's this?" She has no use for it, and probably doesn't even know what it is.
And, there is the "BECAUSE I LOVE YOU" giver. Finally, we find the heart of Christmas! This person thinks carefully about the tastes, the needs, the personality of the person for whom he is getting a gift and, after a careful search, prepares a gift that he presents with no strings attached. This kind of giving reflects what the Bible says, "It is more blessed to give than to receive." (Acts 20:35, NLT) This is how God gave to us. John says, that "God so loved the world (you could insert your name in place of 'the world') that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." (John 3:16, NIV)
God's Gift to us was costly, prepared from eternity, based on my need, and shaped by love! What a gift.
"Out of sheer generosity he put us in right standing with himself. A pure gift. He got us out of the mess we’re in and restored us to where he always wanted us to be. And he did it by means of Jesus Christ." (Romans 3:24, The Message)
In your gift-giving, make LOVE the reason. Having trouble finding a gift for someone on your list? Relax and think about who they are, what they need, and how you can express love in a language they'll understand. It will come to you!
____________________
There is the CHEAP giver. He is driven by one goal - buying something, anything, that satisfies the imperative for gift giving - while spending as little money or energy as possible. My one question to this person is - "Why bother?" You have missed the meaning of Christmas entirely. Save yourself the effort because the person who receives your 'gift' will only be obligated to write an insincere 'thank you' note!
There is HURRIED giver. With hummingbird-like rapidity, she darts from store to store, grabbing this and that, checking off the names on her list. Obligation, not love, is the primary motivation for giving a gift, so most any gift will do, just get it and wrap it up.
There is the PAY MY DEBTS giver. This person foolishly believes that with one gift, usually one that costs way too much, he can make up for his failures through the year. Yes, it is particularly a 'man' thing! Men are much more likely, according to published reports, to overspend to compensate for misdeeds than women. But, the truth is, no single gift can erase a year's worth of inattention or emotional distance. This shopper is in for disappointment!
There is the "I'D SURE LIKE THAT" giver who buys things he would like to receive and presents them to others! His gifts are often very nice, but they don't 'fit.' Why? Because, his gifts are not thoughtfully chosen with the recipient in mind. Even his 'giving' reflects his preoccupation with himself. To me a 1 Gig USB Flash Drive is a fine gift, but if I buy one for my wife, she'll say, "What's this?" She has no use for it, and probably doesn't even know what it is.
And, there is the "BECAUSE I LOVE YOU" giver. Finally, we find the heart of Christmas! This person thinks carefully about the tastes, the needs, the personality of the person for whom he is getting a gift and, after a careful search, prepares a gift that he presents with no strings attached. This kind of giving reflects what the Bible says, "It is more blessed to give than to receive." (Acts 20:35, NLT) This is how God gave to us. John says, that "God so loved the world (you could insert your name in place of 'the world') that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." (John 3:16, NIV)
God's Gift to us was costly, prepared from eternity, based on my need, and shaped by love! What a gift.
"Out of sheer generosity he put us in right standing with himself. A pure gift. He got us out of the mess we’re in and restored us to where he always wanted us to be. And he did it by means of Jesus Christ." (Romans 3:24, The Message)
In your gift-giving, make LOVE the reason. Having trouble finding a gift for someone on your list? Relax and think about who they are, what they need, and how you can express love in a language they'll understand. It will come to you!
____________________
Tuesday, December 12, 2006
Pressured and Squeezed
I think I'll re-write a holiday song, "T'is the Season to be pressured, Oh, oh, oh, oh, how much can I stand?" I am fairly certain that it is not just me that feels the weight of social obligations, family expectations, the desire to something meaningful in God's name, and even the weight of my own hopes for the holiday. The pressure comes in all sizes of packages- "Could Christmas finally bring resolution to that old grudge that Aunt Ruth holds against me?" or- "I hope the gift I selected for him communicates the right message," or - "God please let me worship you from my heart." We pile on extra activities this time of year, stir in a large helping of travel, and what should be a time to celebrate too often turns into a month to endure. When we finally get to January, we breath a sigh of relief that it is finally over!
So how can we better celebrate this Season?
First of all, we need to become conscious of the expectations we are putting on ourselves and others. Often the pressure comes from a place deep in our sub-conscious where, in an almost childish way, we somehow believe that there is something magical about Christmas day. Sure, we may be a little more kind, somewhat more generous and thoughtful. But, a single day does not change a person's character or personality! Old Ebenezer Scrooge may have had a revelation about his life in Dickens's "Christmas Carol," but a true change of his ways required more than the visitations of Christmas' Past, Present, and Future! Just because it is Christmas, don't expect that miserable person that rains on your parade to suddenly become Sam Sunshine. Be realistic! Know, too, that one gift or gesture, as nice or generous as it may be, cannot erase a past event. Face the fact that a marriage that is cracking at the seams won't be repaired by an expensive gift. If we are realistic about the limits of the day, it will help us to celebrate with more joy.
Second, focus on the spiritual part of the Season. Yep, you've heard that before, too, haven't you? It is celebration of Christ's birthday. You won't find Him in the mall, on Overstock.com, or in the twinkling lights of the decorations. Giving gifts can be a lot of fun. Decorating our homes and offices can add a festive air. Parties are great, sometimes. It is worship, however, that brings true peace, that connects us to the One who came to be our Prince of Peace. Prioritize (don't you hate that word?) your life so that there are quiet moments in which you can listen to God's voice. Make time to pray and meditate. Serve someone in the Name of Jesus with no ulterior motive. Go to church having prepared your heart to participate in the corporate acts of worship.
Third, admit to yourself - "I cannot do it all!" Somebody will be disappointed that you didn't get to their party. Somebody won't get the perfect gift. The pie you bake might turn out with a burnt crust. That's life. Smile, anyway! It's all right to be human. Admit it - first to yourself. If you own your own humanity, it is a way to unload a ton of pressure.
And, don't forget to be child-like. Give yourself permission to experience some wonder. Let the Grinch be cynical! Laugh at those things that are absurd. Hug Grandma. Sing, even you can't, and enjoy the experience. Ponder the story of a Baby born in a manger, of Shepherds who heard angels sing, of God come to earth to change everything, including your eternal destiny. Ask God to give you the eyes of a child again.
I think if you'll do these things, January 1st will roll around, and you'll wish it were still Christmas, instead of being glad it is gone for another year. Let me know, won't you?
Read these ancient words today. I pray that you will experience something like the wonder of those who lived the story.
"And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn. And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord." (Luke 2:6-11, KJV)
"And all they that heard it wondered at those things ..." (Luke 2:18, KJV)
So how can we better celebrate this Season?
First of all, we need to become conscious of the expectations we are putting on ourselves and others. Often the pressure comes from a place deep in our sub-conscious where, in an almost childish way, we somehow believe that there is something magical about Christmas day. Sure, we may be a little more kind, somewhat more generous and thoughtful. But, a single day does not change a person's character or personality! Old Ebenezer Scrooge may have had a revelation about his life in Dickens's "Christmas Carol," but a true change of his ways required more than the visitations of Christmas' Past, Present, and Future! Just because it is Christmas, don't expect that miserable person that rains on your parade to suddenly become Sam Sunshine. Be realistic! Know, too, that one gift or gesture, as nice or generous as it may be, cannot erase a past event. Face the fact that a marriage that is cracking at the seams won't be repaired by an expensive gift. If we are realistic about the limits of the day, it will help us to celebrate with more joy.
Second, focus on the spiritual part of the Season. Yep, you've heard that before, too, haven't you? It is celebration of Christ's birthday. You won't find Him in the mall, on Overstock.com, or in the twinkling lights of the decorations. Giving gifts can be a lot of fun. Decorating our homes and offices can add a festive air. Parties are great, sometimes. It is worship, however, that brings true peace, that connects us to the One who came to be our Prince of Peace. Prioritize (don't you hate that word?) your life so that there are quiet moments in which you can listen to God's voice. Make time to pray and meditate. Serve someone in the Name of Jesus with no ulterior motive. Go to church having prepared your heart to participate in the corporate acts of worship.
Third, admit to yourself - "I cannot do it all!" Somebody will be disappointed that you didn't get to their party. Somebody won't get the perfect gift. The pie you bake might turn out with a burnt crust. That's life. Smile, anyway! It's all right to be human. Admit it - first to yourself. If you own your own humanity, it is a way to unload a ton of pressure.
And, don't forget to be child-like. Give yourself permission to experience some wonder. Let the Grinch be cynical! Laugh at those things that are absurd. Hug Grandma. Sing, even you can't, and enjoy the experience. Ponder the story of a Baby born in a manger, of Shepherds who heard angels sing, of God come to earth to change everything, including your eternal destiny. Ask God to give you the eyes of a child again.
I think if you'll do these things, January 1st will roll around, and you'll wish it were still Christmas, instead of being glad it is gone for another year. Let me know, won't you?
Read these ancient words today. I pray that you will experience something like the wonder of those who lived the story.
"And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn. And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord." (Luke 2:6-11, KJV)
"And all they that heard it wondered at those things ..." (Luke 2:18, KJV)
Monday, December 11, 2006
For whom do you sing?
In his book, The Cry of the Soul, Dan Allender tells the true story of Tom, a young preacher fresh out of seminary, who was struggling to be effective in the pulpit. One day a man from the congregation showed up in Tom's office with 7 tapes in hand. "Week after week we listen to you drone on. Your preaching is killing us and you're going to destroy this church." He pushed the tapes into Tom's hands with the admonition that he should listen to the speaker on them and learn his style! Of course the next Sunday in the pulpit was torture for Tom. Try as he may, he could not see anyone in the congregation except his critic and that man seemed to be glaring at him. His mouth was dry and there was knot in his stomach. Such is the stuff of fear! After that service, he was standing by the door greeting the departing congregants. The last person to leave was an elderly woman. She approached with a stern expression on her face. "I don't know what's gotten into you, Tom, but you are preaching to please someone in this church. I want you to go to your study immediately and repent. Next week, just preach to please God!"
Most of us are performing for somebody: saying the things that we hope will earn their approval, trying to do a job that will assure our value as an employee, even telling ourselves, "I'm OK," and then trying prove it with money, beauty, awards, or whatever we believe worthy. Such a life is marked by the sin of idol worship! We have put someone else or Self in the place at the center of our life that only God should occupy. There's another problem with living that way, too. Fear and her cousin, inferiority, are our constant companion. If we measure our worth as a person by what we do or by what others say of us, the prize almost always slips from our grasp. One critic drowns out the voices of a hundred who praise us. Someone in life's competition shows up to outwit, out race, or out shine us just when we think we're about to win. And even if we do 'win,' our victory is soon eclipsed by another's performance.
The Scripture declares - "Those who fear the Lord are secure; he will be a place of refuge for their children. Fear of the Lord is a life-giving fountain; it offers escape from the snares of death." (Proverbs 14:26-27, NLT) When God says, "Fear Me alone!" - He is not asking us to live in terror. He wants us to live for His approval alone. "Skilled living gets its start in the Fear-of-God, insight into life from knowing a Holy God." (Proverbs 9:10, The Message) Oh, that we would believe that. It is true! Yes, it is amazingly, wonderfully true. If we are living for God and God alone, much of the silly posturing that we put ourselves through, drops away. We don't have to work so hard at concealing our true selves and creating an image we think that others will like. We no longer attempt to 'look good,' for if we are living and working for God, we actually become good because of the love of Jesus Christ and the life of the Holy Spirit.
Friend, I write this as one who knows what it is to fall into the idolatry of the fear of man! I have spent more than a few days in the grip of critics, squeezed into their expectations, but unable to fit there comfortably. I've spent many days dancing feverishly to win the applause of those who surround me. Sometimes I've succeeded and drank from the cup of their affirmation, but the refreshment I find there is short-lived and soon, I thirst for more, and even more intensely than I did before.
Then, too, I can say I have experienced the warm smile of God. I have known what it is to just be who He wants me to be, not perfectly, but none-the-less accepted in His love. What rest, what joy, what wholeness is found in that place. My prayer is that He would deliver me from idols and fill all my vision!
Today, take a look at your life. Listen to your conversation. Whose praise are you seeking? Whose approval matters most -- God's or that of the people around you?
Pray that the 'fear of the Lord will become a life-giving fountain,' so that as you are at rest and at peace, whole, healed, and satisfied - you will pour that peace and wholeness into the world in which you walk today.
Soli Deo Gloria! (For the glory of God alone!)
________________
Be Thou my Vision,
O Lord of my heart;
Nought 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.
Riches I heed not,
Nor man's empty praise,
Thou mine inheritance,
Now and always:
Thou and Thou only,
First in my heart,
High King of heaven,
My Treasure Thou art.
High King of heaven,
My victory 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.
© Public Domain
Most of us are performing for somebody: saying the things that we hope will earn their approval, trying to do a job that will assure our value as an employee, even telling ourselves, "I'm OK," and then trying prove it with money, beauty, awards, or whatever we believe worthy. Such a life is marked by the sin of idol worship! We have put someone else or Self in the place at the center of our life that only God should occupy. There's another problem with living that way, too. Fear and her cousin, inferiority, are our constant companion. If we measure our worth as a person by what we do or by what others say of us, the prize almost always slips from our grasp. One critic drowns out the voices of a hundred who praise us. Someone in life's competition shows up to outwit, out race, or out shine us just when we think we're about to win. And even if we do 'win,' our victory is soon eclipsed by another's performance.
The Scripture declares - "Those who fear the Lord are secure; he will be a place of refuge for their children. Fear of the Lord is a life-giving fountain; it offers escape from the snares of death." (Proverbs 14:26-27, NLT) When God says, "Fear Me alone!" - He is not asking us to live in terror. He wants us to live for His approval alone. "Skilled living gets its start in the Fear-of-God, insight into life from knowing a Holy God." (Proverbs 9:10, The Message) Oh, that we would believe that. It is true! Yes, it is amazingly, wonderfully true. If we are living for God and God alone, much of the silly posturing that we put ourselves through, drops away. We don't have to work so hard at concealing our true selves and creating an image we think that others will like. We no longer attempt to 'look good,' for if we are living and working for God, we actually become good because of the love of Jesus Christ and the life of the Holy Spirit.
Friend, I write this as one who knows what it is to fall into the idolatry of the fear of man! I have spent more than a few days in the grip of critics, squeezed into their expectations, but unable to fit there comfortably. I've spent many days dancing feverishly to win the applause of those who surround me. Sometimes I've succeeded and drank from the cup of their affirmation, but the refreshment I find there is short-lived and soon, I thirst for more, and even more intensely than I did before.
Then, too, I can say I have experienced the warm smile of God. I have known what it is to just be who He wants me to be, not perfectly, but none-the-less accepted in His love. What rest, what joy, what wholeness is found in that place. My prayer is that He would deliver me from idols and fill all my vision!
Today, take a look at your life. Listen to your conversation. Whose praise are you seeking? Whose approval matters most -- God's or that of the people around you?
Pray that the 'fear of the Lord will become a life-giving fountain,' so that as you are at rest and at peace, whole, healed, and satisfied - you will pour that peace and wholeness into the world in which you walk today.
Soli Deo Gloria! (For the glory of God alone!)
________________
Be Thou my Vision,
O Lord of my heart;
Nought 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.
Riches I heed not,
Nor man's empty praise,
Thou mine inheritance,
Now and always:
Thou and Thou only,
First in my heart,
High King of heaven,
My Treasure Thou art.
High King of heaven,
My victory 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.
© Public Domain
Friday, December 08, 2006
So Who is God?
Baylor University released a study in which they found that 92% of Americans believe in God, but that we hold "four distinct views of God's personality and engagement in human affairs. These Four Gods — are dubbed by researchers as Authoritarian, Benevolent, Critical or Distant." These views of God reveal much about our social, moral and political views and personal piety.
About 32% see God as Authoritarian, directing the affairs of the world and ready to bring his judgment on the ungodly. As you might imagine, those who primarily view God in that manner, generally hold very conservative political and absolute moral positions.
Another 24% believe that He is a Benevolent God, forgiving, best described by Jesus' story of the waiting father who welcomes home his wayward son. A Benevolent God sets absolute standards for mankind in the Bible.
16% believe that He is a a Critical God who keeps His eye on the world. But, they do not think He gets involved. It is a paradox that those who believe in a Critical God believe that He holds humanity to account, but they tend not to pray or think to turn to Him in time of need.
And about 25% of Americans have adopted a view similar to that of the Deists of two centuries ago, believing in a Distant God, Who, they believe, got things started here on earth and then removed Himself from the picture. Those who think God is distant tend to moral relativism and generally hold the most liberal social views.
The results of this study are not surprising. From it we see that people tend to 'create God in their own image and likeness,' to misuse a Scriptural quote. Instead of going to the Bible and waiting on the Spirit to reveal the fullness of God, many of us tend only to see the God we want, or the face of God that was painted for us by parents or spiritual leaders in our formative years. We also tend more to define God by our experience, rather than by intelligent thought. It is important to know God; that is, to invite Him to be a part of lives and to be open to experiencing His Presence. However, and this is important, if we have only our personal experience to define God, we will not truly know Him! Experience will color our perception of God, depending on several factors, including our spiritual maturity and the circumstances of our lives. To know Him best, we must also know Him from the pages of the Scripture, where He reveals Himself in His fullness. And, that means we study the whole of the Bible to learn Who He truly is. If our only revelation of God was drawn from the Pentateuch, the Law of Moses, He will be seen quite differently than if we only viewed Him through the four Gospels! God is a Person, an active, living, purposeful Being who is not one-dimensional. He is loving and capable of anger, accepting and judging, kind and stern - a perfect Father!
Theology is not a dry pursuit, peripheral to real life, as some would think. Theology, the study of God, is important to us, for how we perceive Him, has a definite impact on the way we live in our day to day world!
Here's a word from the Word. Let it sink into your mind and heart today. As you read it, note the many facets of the Person of God and especially take note of the last sentence!
"... the Lord shall endure forever; He has prepared His throne for judgment.
He shall judge the world in righteousness,
And He shall administer judgment for the peoples in uprightness.
The Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed, A refuge in times of trouble.
And those who know Your name will put their trust in You;
For You, Lord, have not forsaken those who seek You. " (Psalm 9:7-10, NKJV)
About 32% see God as Authoritarian, directing the affairs of the world and ready to bring his judgment on the ungodly. As you might imagine, those who primarily view God in that manner, generally hold very conservative political and absolute moral positions.
Another 24% believe that He is a Benevolent God, forgiving, best described by Jesus' story of the waiting father who welcomes home his wayward son. A Benevolent God sets absolute standards for mankind in the Bible.
16% believe that He is a a Critical God who keeps His eye on the world. But, they do not think He gets involved. It is a paradox that those who believe in a Critical God believe that He holds humanity to account, but they tend not to pray or think to turn to Him in time of need.
And about 25% of Americans have adopted a view similar to that of the Deists of two centuries ago, believing in a Distant God, Who, they believe, got things started here on earth and then removed Himself from the picture. Those who think God is distant tend to moral relativism and generally hold the most liberal social views.
The results of this study are not surprising. From it we see that people tend to 'create God in their own image and likeness,' to misuse a Scriptural quote. Instead of going to the Bible and waiting on the Spirit to reveal the fullness of God, many of us tend only to see the God we want, or the face of God that was painted for us by parents or spiritual leaders in our formative years. We also tend more to define God by our experience, rather than by intelligent thought. It is important to know God; that is, to invite Him to be a part of lives and to be open to experiencing His Presence. However, and this is important, if we have only our personal experience to define God, we will not truly know Him! Experience will color our perception of God, depending on several factors, including our spiritual maturity and the circumstances of our lives. To know Him best, we must also know Him from the pages of the Scripture, where He reveals Himself in His fullness. And, that means we study the whole of the Bible to learn Who He truly is. If our only revelation of God was drawn from the Pentateuch, the Law of Moses, He will be seen quite differently than if we only viewed Him through the four Gospels! God is a Person, an active, living, purposeful Being who is not one-dimensional. He is loving and capable of anger, accepting and judging, kind and stern - a perfect Father!
Theology is not a dry pursuit, peripheral to real life, as some would think. Theology, the study of God, is important to us, for how we perceive Him, has a definite impact on the way we live in our day to day world!
Here's a word from the Word. Let it sink into your mind and heart today. As you read it, note the many facets of the Person of God and especially take note of the last sentence!
"... the Lord shall endure forever; He has prepared His throne for judgment.
He shall judge the world in righteousness,
And He shall administer judgment for the peoples in uprightness.
The Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed, A refuge in times of trouble.
And those who know Your name will put their trust in You;
For You, Lord, have not forsaken those who seek You. " (Psalm 9:7-10, NKJV)
Thursday, December 07, 2006
Here I am, Lord, use me!
We are doing a survey in our Wednesday evening School of the Bible. It's been good to take a wide lens look at the Word, to learn again that within the individual dramas God was at work, creating and preserving His people. Last night, we came to the little book of Esther, which tells the story of a Jewish girl in the Persian Empire who through an amazing series of 'coincidences' became the queen and, in that position, had the opportunity to save her people from annihilation. The Book reminds us that God is always working - visibly and invisibly- to accomplish His purposes. The key passage of the book says - "Don’t think for a moment that you will escape there in the palace when all other Jews are killed. If you keep quiet at a time like this, deliverance for the Jews will arise from some other place, but you and your relatives will die. What’s more, who can say but that you have been elevated to the palace for just such a time as this?” (Esther 4:13-15, NLT)
Interesting, isn't it? Esther's guardian, the man who raised her when she was orphaned, reminds her that her 'good luck' is more than that. God has brought her to this place. His purposes will be fulfilled and now she has the opportunity to step up and be a part of what He will do!
Great stuff, isn't it? God will always accomplish His purposes, with or without us. He invites us to participate and by His providence brings us to moments of decision where we can put ourselves on the line for Him, or walk away. Two principles that appear to us to be in direct conflict are taught as being equally true in the Bible:
A. God is charge and will do what He purposes to do. And,
B. I am free to choose to join Him or refuse Him.
How can both be true? Only by faith! He is not a puppeteer making us dance on the end of the string. Yet, He will still accomplish His will. Difficult to understand? Yes! Is faith required? Absolutely. Does our lfe story always tie up all the loose ends as neatly as the story of Esther? Nope! Some situations will not make sense until we join the Lord in eternity and are able to see what He sees and grasp the grand sweep of time.
I nearly missed the point of the story of Esther for a couple of reasons.
First, I over analyzed the story. I got caught up asking, "If God is charge, why didn't He just keep old Haman from his jealousy and rage that provoked the attempt to annihilate the Jews in the first place?" Good question but there's no answer this side of Heaven. If I go there, I won't see the later developments that do reveal God at work. Yep, I do the same thing when somebody tells how God ministered to them in a tough spot, like an auto accident or getting cancer. If I'm not careful I miss the joy they found in His grace because I am protesting, "Well, if He's so good, why did He allow that wreck or disease to happen?" Yes, God is good even as He allows sin and suffering to continue.
Second, I read my own cultural assumptions into the story of Esther. When I got to chapter 2 and read of old King Xerxes sending out his representatives to gather up hundreds of beautiful girls from the empire to become part of the search for a new queen and then to live the rest of their lives in his harem, I was outraged by the treatment of women who were basically just 'boy toys' in that era. My outrage blinded me to the fact, temporarily, that it wasn't the 21st century and that God works with people in the time and place where He finds them! In Bible study, somebody reminded me that Esther's story can be read as a lesson of the beauty of God's selection of those whom He will love and our response to His love. True enough! And, again, we must understand that we cannot read our cultural assumptions into the Text, unless we want to mostly miss the point!
Faith isn't easy for us, is it? However, "By faith, we see the world called into existence by God’s word, what we see created by what we don’t see. ... It’s impossible to please God apart from faith. And why? Because anyone who wants to approach God must believe both that he exists and that he cares enough to respond to those who seek him." (Hebrews 11: 3,6 The Message) An intelligent faith asks God for understanding, studies the Word and the situations of life, and wrestles with the questions, but humility causes us to know limits of our vision. So, when we come to the wall too high for us to climb or see over, we offer ourselves to the One who reveals Himself as "Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End," and say, "Here I am, Lord, use me!" And He does, and we experience joy! Hallelujah.
__________________
God Is Good All The Time
Moen, Don / Overstreet, Paul
God is good all the time.
He put a song of praise,
In this heart of mine;
God is good all the time.
Through the darkest night,
His light will shine;
God is good,
God is good all the time.
If you're walking through the valley,
And there are shadows all around,
Do not fear, He will guide You,
He will keep you safe and sound.
He has promised to never leave you
Nor forsake you, and His Word is true.
We were sinners so unworthy,
Still for us He chose to die;
Filled us with His Holy Spirit,
Now we can stand and testify,
That His love is everlasting,
And His mercies, they will never end.
Though I may not understand,
All the plans You have for me,
My life is in Your hands,
And through the eyes of faith,
I can clearly see,
God is good, God is good - all the time!
© 1995 Integrity's Hosanna! Music (c/o Integrity Music, Inc.) / Scarlet Moon (Admin. by Copyright Management, Inc.)- CCLI License No. 810055
Interesting, isn't it? Esther's guardian, the man who raised her when she was orphaned, reminds her that her 'good luck' is more than that. God has brought her to this place. His purposes will be fulfilled and now she has the opportunity to step up and be a part of what He will do!
Great stuff, isn't it? God will always accomplish His purposes, with or without us. He invites us to participate and by His providence brings us to moments of decision where we can put ourselves on the line for Him, or walk away. Two principles that appear to us to be in direct conflict are taught as being equally true in the Bible:
A. God is charge and will do what He purposes to do. And,
B. I am free to choose to join Him or refuse Him.
How can both be true? Only by faith! He is not a puppeteer making us dance on the end of the string. Yet, He will still accomplish His will. Difficult to understand? Yes! Is faith required? Absolutely. Does our lfe story always tie up all the loose ends as neatly as the story of Esther? Nope! Some situations will not make sense until we join the Lord in eternity and are able to see what He sees and grasp the grand sweep of time.
I nearly missed the point of the story of Esther for a couple of reasons.
First, I over analyzed the story. I got caught up asking, "If God is charge, why didn't He just keep old Haman from his jealousy and rage that provoked the attempt to annihilate the Jews in the first place?" Good question but there's no answer this side of Heaven. If I go there, I won't see the later developments that do reveal God at work. Yep, I do the same thing when somebody tells how God ministered to them in a tough spot, like an auto accident or getting cancer. If I'm not careful I miss the joy they found in His grace because I am protesting, "Well, if He's so good, why did He allow that wreck or disease to happen?" Yes, God is good even as He allows sin and suffering to continue.
Second, I read my own cultural assumptions into the story of Esther. When I got to chapter 2 and read of old King Xerxes sending out his representatives to gather up hundreds of beautiful girls from the empire to become part of the search for a new queen and then to live the rest of their lives in his harem, I was outraged by the treatment of women who were basically just 'boy toys' in that era. My outrage blinded me to the fact, temporarily, that it wasn't the 21st century and that God works with people in the time and place where He finds them! In Bible study, somebody reminded me that Esther's story can be read as a lesson of the beauty of God's selection of those whom He will love and our response to His love. True enough! And, again, we must understand that we cannot read our cultural assumptions into the Text, unless we want to mostly miss the point!
Faith isn't easy for us, is it? However, "By faith, we see the world called into existence by God’s word, what we see created by what we don’t see. ... It’s impossible to please God apart from faith. And why? Because anyone who wants to approach God must believe both that he exists and that he cares enough to respond to those who seek him." (Hebrews 11: 3,6 The Message) An intelligent faith asks God for understanding, studies the Word and the situations of life, and wrestles with the questions, but humility causes us to know limits of our vision. So, when we come to the wall too high for us to climb or see over, we offer ourselves to the One who reveals Himself as "Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End," and say, "Here I am, Lord, use me!" And He does, and we experience joy! Hallelujah.
__________________
God Is Good All The Time
Moen, Don / Overstreet, Paul
God is good all the time.
He put a song of praise,
In this heart of mine;
God is good all the time.
Through the darkest night,
His light will shine;
God is good,
God is good all the time.
If you're walking through the valley,
And there are shadows all around,
Do not fear, He will guide You,
He will keep you safe and sound.
He has promised to never leave you
Nor forsake you, and His Word is true.
We were sinners so unworthy,
Still for us He chose to die;
Filled us with His Holy Spirit,
Now we can stand and testify,
That His love is everlasting,
And His mercies, they will never end.
Though I may not understand,
All the plans You have for me,
My life is in Your hands,
And through the eyes of faith,
I can clearly see,
God is good, God is good - all the time!
© 1995 Integrity's Hosanna! Music (c/o Integrity Music, Inc.) / Scarlet Moon (Admin. by Copyright Management, Inc.)- CCLI License No. 810055
Wednesday, December 06, 2006
Zeal
The doorbell rang at 6:50 PM and there at my front door, in the cold evening, stood two well-dressed, handsome boys. Their nametags identified them as "Elder ________" and I knew they were Mormon missionaries. When I invited them into the house, out of the chill, they were thankful, polite, and yet still very focused on their work. They respectfully and articulately told me about Mormon faith and tried valiantly to get me to accept a Book of Mormon. Theirs is a tough assignment. They knock on doors to invite people to consider the 'prophetic' claims of Joseph Smith. Though I reject the doctrine of the Mormons whose theology is not orthodox Christianity, the earnestness and devotion of 19 year old kids who give two full years of their lives, living far from home, is something to admire.
In a recent TFTD I reflected on God as a Divine Diversion, One we try to fit between those activities that take higher priority. (see http://jerryscott.blogspot.com/2006/12/divine-diversion.html) It is clear to me that those two boys at my front door have made a priority commitment to their religion, setting aside personal comfort, educational pursuits, relationships, and profit to do what they see as God's work. And I ask myself, am I at least that dedicated to the Truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ? It is a question worth asking ourselves, Believer! How quickly we fall into complacency, overly concerned with ourselves, touchy and sensitive to the slightest inconvenience or perception of offense. Those Mormon boys press on, house to house, with most doors closed in their face, brushed off brusquely even rudely, time and again, but they take no thought of that because they are focused on a goal much higher in their estimation than personal comfort or convenience.
Believer, God has given us the very Words of Life! He has commissioned us to change the world, one person at a time, with His good news - that Christ came once to die for our sins and that He will come again to be the King of Glory. How can we yawn about such a calling? Are we asleep in the Light, dead on our feet OR are we full of zeal, inspired by the Spirit, giving Him our best, our all? In that disturbing book called "The Apocalypse," or the Revelation of Jesus Christ, at the end of the Bible, John hears the words of the King addressed to the various churches of Asia Minor. Those words echo to us today. Read them -
“I see right through your work. You have a reputation for vigor and zest, but you’re dead, stone dead. “Up on your feet! Take a deep breath! Maybe there’s life in you yet. But I wouldn’t know it by looking at your busywork; nothing of God’s work has been completed. Your condition is desperate. Think of the gift you once had in your hands, the Message you heard with your ears—grasp it again and turn back to God.
“If you pull the covers back over your head and sleep on, oblivious to God, I’ll return when you least expect it, break into your life like a thief in the night.
“You still have a few Christians in Sardis who haven’t ruined themselves wallowing in the muck of the world’s ways. They’ll walk with me on parade! They’ve proved their worth! “Conquerors will march in the victory parade, their names indelible in the Book of Life. I’ll lead them up and present them by name to my Father and his Angels. “Are your ears awake? Listen. Listen to the Wind Words, the Spirit blowing through the churches.” (Revelation 3:1-6, The Message)
Don't come to the wrong conclusion today. I am not advocating that we all quit our jobs and start going door to door with Bibles! I am repeating the call of the Lord Himself that we take up the commission to "go into all the world and preach the Good News." I am reminding us of the importance of keeping Jesus Christ in the first place in our affections. How we demonstrate our zeal for Him will take many different forms and expressions - humble service in our home, forgiveness for God's sake extended to those who do wrong to us, generosity with our time and resources because of a genuine love for people He creates in us, boldness to speak up about the hope that we have in Christ.
Jesus plainly says to you and to me: "Great crowds were following Jesus. He turned around and said to them, “If you want to be my follower you must love me more than your own father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, more than your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple. And you cannot be my disciple if you do not carry your own cross and follow me." (Luke 14:25-27, NLT)
What does your life say about your zeal, Believer?
Do your daily choices show that Jesus is Lord of all of your life?
Keith Green, the songwriter whose life ended too soon, a couple of decades ago, penned these words.
They are a confession, a prayer.
My eyes are dry, my faith is old,
My heart is hard, my prayers are cold;
And I know how I ought to be:
Alive to You and dead to me.
But what can be done
With an old heart like mine?
Soften it up with oil and wine
The oil is You, the Spirit of love
Please wash me anew
In the wine of Your blood.
My Eyes Are Dry -- Green, Keith
© 1978 Birdwing Music (Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing; Admin. by BMG Music Publishing) / Ears To Hear ü / BMG Songs, Inc. (Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing; Admin. by BMG Music Publishing) CCLI License No. 810055
Amen!
In a recent TFTD I reflected on God as a Divine Diversion, One we try to fit between those activities that take higher priority. (see http://jerryscott.blogspot.com/2006/12/divine-diversion.html) It is clear to me that those two boys at my front door have made a priority commitment to their religion, setting aside personal comfort, educational pursuits, relationships, and profit to do what they see as God's work. And I ask myself, am I at least that dedicated to the Truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ? It is a question worth asking ourselves, Believer! How quickly we fall into complacency, overly concerned with ourselves, touchy and sensitive to the slightest inconvenience or perception of offense. Those Mormon boys press on, house to house, with most doors closed in their face, brushed off brusquely even rudely, time and again, but they take no thought of that because they are focused on a goal much higher in their estimation than personal comfort or convenience.
Believer, God has given us the very Words of Life! He has commissioned us to change the world, one person at a time, with His good news - that Christ came once to die for our sins and that He will come again to be the King of Glory. How can we yawn about such a calling? Are we asleep in the Light, dead on our feet OR are we full of zeal, inspired by the Spirit, giving Him our best, our all? In that disturbing book called "The Apocalypse," or the Revelation of Jesus Christ, at the end of the Bible, John hears the words of the King addressed to the various churches of Asia Minor. Those words echo to us today. Read them -
“I see right through your work. You have a reputation for vigor and zest, but you’re dead, stone dead. “Up on your feet! Take a deep breath! Maybe there’s life in you yet. But I wouldn’t know it by looking at your busywork; nothing of God’s work has been completed. Your condition is desperate. Think of the gift you once had in your hands, the Message you heard with your ears—grasp it again and turn back to God.
“If you pull the covers back over your head and sleep on, oblivious to God, I’ll return when you least expect it, break into your life like a thief in the night.
“You still have a few Christians in Sardis who haven’t ruined themselves wallowing in the muck of the world’s ways. They’ll walk with me on parade! They’ve proved their worth! “Conquerors will march in the victory parade, their names indelible in the Book of Life. I’ll lead them up and present them by name to my Father and his Angels. “Are your ears awake? Listen. Listen to the Wind Words, the Spirit blowing through the churches.” (Revelation 3:1-6, The Message)
Don't come to the wrong conclusion today. I am not advocating that we all quit our jobs and start going door to door with Bibles! I am repeating the call of the Lord Himself that we take up the commission to "go into all the world and preach the Good News." I am reminding us of the importance of keeping Jesus Christ in the first place in our affections. How we demonstrate our zeal for Him will take many different forms and expressions - humble service in our home, forgiveness for God's sake extended to those who do wrong to us, generosity with our time and resources because of a genuine love for people He creates in us, boldness to speak up about the hope that we have in Christ.
Jesus plainly says to you and to me: "Great crowds were following Jesus. He turned around and said to them, “If you want to be my follower you must love me more than your own father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, more than your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple. And you cannot be my disciple if you do not carry your own cross and follow me." (Luke 14:25-27, NLT)
What does your life say about your zeal, Believer?
Do your daily choices show that Jesus is Lord of all of your life?
Keith Green, the songwriter whose life ended too soon, a couple of decades ago, penned these words.
They are a confession, a prayer.
My eyes are dry, my faith is old,
My heart is hard, my prayers are cold;
And I know how I ought to be:
Alive to You and dead to me.
But what can be done
With an old heart like mine?
Soften it up with oil and wine
The oil is You, the Spirit of love
Please wash me anew
In the wine of Your blood.
My Eyes Are Dry -- Green, Keith
© 1978 Birdwing Music (Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing; Admin. by BMG Music Publishing) / Ears To Hear ü / BMG Songs, Inc. (Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing; Admin. by BMG Music Publishing) CCLI License No. 810055
Amen!
Tuesday, December 05, 2006
Shameless, what a loss!
Shame rises in us when we become aware that we have violated accepted social or religious standards. It differs from embarrassment in that we can feel shame even when our actions are undetected by others. Embarrassment results when our failure becomes public. Shame is useful in that it helps us to regulate our behaviors and reminds us that we have a responsibility to fit into a community. When one loses his sense of propriety, he becomes shameless and the net result is not positive! We've seen this, time and again, in the public conduct of some of our celebrities. Last week, Danny DeVito, the actor, appeared on a national daytime TV talk show so inebriated that he was near incoherent. Was he ashamed of himself? Apparently not. Britney and Paris went out on the town last week wearing far too little in the way of clothing and were exposed (literally!) but apparently feel no shame. Mark Twain said, "Man is the only animal that blushes, or needs to." To our loss, many of us no longer have the ability to blush! The social coarseness that results when manners are forgotten is regrettable.
My focus today is on the tragedy of the loss of a sense of right and wrong that comes when we sin against God again and again. God put a conscience in each of us. The voice of conscience speaks to us, causing us to feel shame, and as we are sensitive to the Holy Spirit, pulls us toward the Lord. The Bible says, "Even when Gentiles, who do not have God’s written law, instinctively follow what the law says, they show that in their hearts they know right from wrong. They demonstrate that God’s law is written within them, for their own consciences either accuse them or tell them they are doing what is right. The day will surely come when God, by Jesus Christ, will judge everyone’s secret life." (Romans 2:14-16, NLT) But conscience can become desensitized! The Bible speaks of those whose "consciences are seared, as with a hot iron." (2 Tim. 4.2) When we violate our conscience repeatedly, it loses its function. We get so accustomed to our sin, we no longer feel shame. We no longer feel any need to turn to God and seek to be changed by the Truth of the Scripture and the Power of the Spirit.
The conviction of the Holy Spirit, which operates through our conscience, is a great gift! My conscience often screams - "Stop, Jerry! You're headed in the wrong direction. If you do this, you will sin against God and bring destruction on yourself!" And, yes, if I ignore the warning and persist, conscience brings shame on me, which is not pleasant, and that is a good thing. Yes, of course, our conscience is not infallible. We can become overly sensitive in some areas and desensitized in others. For example, I know one man who becomes offended the moment that anyone around him even mentions sex. He gets agitated at just the mention of sex. Filthy talk and coarse jokes should make us feel shame, but his conscience has been damaged so that he is overly sensitive in this one area. Another Believer that I know swears liberally, and seemingly without any sense that his language is inappropriate for one who belongs to Christ. Again, the conscience is not fully functional. We need our conscience! Jeremiah saw the sins of God's people and cried - "Are they ashamed of their loathsome conduct? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush. So they will fall among the fallen; they will be brought down when I punish them,” says the LORD." (Jeremiah 6:15, NIV)
In certain matters of Christian conduct, the role of conscience is key. It is one of the ways that God helps us deal with issues that lie within the so-called 'gray' areas, outside of the clear direction of the Scripture. Some things are always sin, for all people, everywhere, at all times! Adultery, for example, cannot be justified. We do not need our conscience to tell us to 'stop!' The Scripture is clear as crystal on the issue. But there are many issues for the Christian that are 'matters of conscience.' In the early church one of those issues was the consumption of meat. Some Believers felt that buying and consuming meat was sinful, others felt differently. Paul, under the inspiration of the Spirit, reminds us that we cannot make our individual conscience the guide for the whole Church! He urges us to be accepting of one another, making allowances for our various sensitivities.
"Welcome with open arms fellow believers who don’t see things the way you do. And don’t jump all over them every time they do or say something you don’t agree with—even when it seems that they are strong on opinions but weak in the faith department. Remember, they have their own history to deal with. Treat them gently. For instance, a person who has been around for a while might well be convinced that he can eat anything on the table, while another, with a different background, might assume all Christians should be vegetarians and eat accordingly. But since both are guests at Christ’s table, wouldn’t it be terribly rude if they fell to criticizing what the other ate or didn’t eat? God, after all, invited them both to the table. Do you have any business crossing people off the guest list or interfering with God’s welcome? If there are corrections to be made or manners to be learned, God can handle that without your help." (Romans 14:1-4, The Message)
"When you sit down to a meal, your primary concern should not be to feed your own face but to share the life of Jesus. So be sensitive and courteous to the others who are eating. Don’t eat or say or do things that might interfere with the free exchange of love. Cultivate your own relationship with God, but don’t impose it on others. You’re fortunate if your behavior and your belief are coherent." (Romans 14:21-22, The Message)
Is your conscience healthy and functioning well?
Keep it sensitive to God, by responding quickly to its correction. Properly sensitize your conscience by reading and understanding the Scripture, knowing what God's will is for your life.
Pray that the Spirit will correct and keep your conscience healthy, too.
My focus today is on the tragedy of the loss of a sense of right and wrong that comes when we sin against God again and again. God put a conscience in each of us. The voice of conscience speaks to us, causing us to feel shame, and as we are sensitive to the Holy Spirit, pulls us toward the Lord. The Bible says, "Even when Gentiles, who do not have God’s written law, instinctively follow what the law says, they show that in their hearts they know right from wrong. They demonstrate that God’s law is written within them, for their own consciences either accuse them or tell them they are doing what is right. The day will surely come when God, by Jesus Christ, will judge everyone’s secret life." (Romans 2:14-16, NLT) But conscience can become desensitized! The Bible speaks of those whose "consciences are seared, as with a hot iron." (2 Tim. 4.2) When we violate our conscience repeatedly, it loses its function. We get so accustomed to our sin, we no longer feel shame. We no longer feel any need to turn to God and seek to be changed by the Truth of the Scripture and the Power of the Spirit.
The conviction of the Holy Spirit, which operates through our conscience, is a great gift! My conscience often screams - "Stop, Jerry! You're headed in the wrong direction. If you do this, you will sin against God and bring destruction on yourself!" And, yes, if I ignore the warning and persist, conscience brings shame on me, which is not pleasant, and that is a good thing. Yes, of course, our conscience is not infallible. We can become overly sensitive in some areas and desensitized in others. For example, I know one man who becomes offended the moment that anyone around him even mentions sex. He gets agitated at just the mention of sex. Filthy talk and coarse jokes should make us feel shame, but his conscience has been damaged so that he is overly sensitive in this one area. Another Believer that I know swears liberally, and seemingly without any sense that his language is inappropriate for one who belongs to Christ. Again, the conscience is not fully functional. We need our conscience! Jeremiah saw the sins of God's people and cried - "Are they ashamed of their loathsome conduct? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush. So they will fall among the fallen; they will be brought down when I punish them,” says the LORD." (Jeremiah 6:15, NIV)
In certain matters of Christian conduct, the role of conscience is key. It is one of the ways that God helps us deal with issues that lie within the so-called 'gray' areas, outside of the clear direction of the Scripture. Some things are always sin, for all people, everywhere, at all times! Adultery, for example, cannot be justified. We do not need our conscience to tell us to 'stop!' The Scripture is clear as crystal on the issue. But there are many issues for the Christian that are 'matters of conscience.' In the early church one of those issues was the consumption of meat. Some Believers felt that buying and consuming meat was sinful, others felt differently. Paul, under the inspiration of the Spirit, reminds us that we cannot make our individual conscience the guide for the whole Church! He urges us to be accepting of one another, making allowances for our various sensitivities.
"Welcome with open arms fellow believers who don’t see things the way you do. And don’t jump all over them every time they do or say something you don’t agree with—even when it seems that they are strong on opinions but weak in the faith department. Remember, they have their own history to deal with. Treat them gently. For instance, a person who has been around for a while might well be convinced that he can eat anything on the table, while another, with a different background, might assume all Christians should be vegetarians and eat accordingly. But since both are guests at Christ’s table, wouldn’t it be terribly rude if they fell to criticizing what the other ate or didn’t eat? God, after all, invited them both to the table. Do you have any business crossing people off the guest list or interfering with God’s welcome? If there are corrections to be made or manners to be learned, God can handle that without your help." (Romans 14:1-4, The Message)
"When you sit down to a meal, your primary concern should not be to feed your own face but to share the life of Jesus. So be sensitive and courteous to the others who are eating. Don’t eat or say or do things that might interfere with the free exchange of love. Cultivate your own relationship with God, but don’t impose it on others. You’re fortunate if your behavior and your belief are coherent." (Romans 14:21-22, The Message)
Is your conscience healthy and functioning well?
Keep it sensitive to God, by responding quickly to its correction. Properly sensitize your conscience by reading and understanding the Scripture, knowing what God's will is for your life.
Pray that the Spirit will correct and keep your conscience healthy, too.
Monday, December 04, 2006
A Divine diversion?
hob·by – an activity or interest pursued for pleasure or relaxation and not as a main occupation So what's your hobby? Please don't say watching TV or playing video games... sorry, that just couldn't be helped! For many people, TV watching consumes the largest percentage of their leisure time. TV's are on in the average US household for 8 hours of each day, with the average person watching about 4.5 hours a day. TV is a diversion, but it certainly does not qualify as a real hobby. A real hobby adds value to our lives by giving us a creative outlet, by connecting us to other people, and/or by helping us develop new skills. I hope you've got one! You're probably wondering where I am going with this line of thought, don't you?
Here it is - I get impression that to many people God is a kind of hobby, a diversion, but not really the main thing in their lives. For those for whom God is a divine diversion, He is placed down the list of priorities of activities not at the top. He gets a donation from money that is left over after 'real needs' have been addressed. His work fills in the gaps in the day planner, after the 'real work' is finished - as a hobby ought to, but as He never should. It's an old, yes even ancient, problem among us humans. We tend to forget that we are spiritual beings first and foremost, that our physical bodies are dying, that things of this world that we love are subject to decay. We begin to worship ourselves, our bodies, our achievements, our stuff even as we play at spiritual matters such as worshipping God and using the gifts of the Spirit to serve others in His Name.
The Lord God desires that our entire life be oriented around Him. The Bible tells us to "Let the words of Christ, in all their richness, live in your hearts and make you wise. Use his words to teach and counsel each other. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. And whatever you do or say, let it be as a representative of the Lord Jesus, all the while giving thanks through him to God the Father." (Colossians 3:16-17, NLT) What does that really mean to us? Everything!
As I go to work today, I must ask myself, "Am I going to do God's work or to simply earn a living?" How I answer that question will make a difference in the way I work.
When I am making decisions about spending the resources I have, I must ask, "will it be as one who understands that I am managing a sacred trust or as an American consumer looking for a way to buy more stuff?"
As a parent I can seek to live in such a way that my children are God-aware and I can help them to understand that serving Christ wholeheartedly is their primary purpose; or I can focus on developing their social skills and education with such focus, that they conclude that success in this temporal world is their reason for living.
If God is a hobby, you'll go off to work today and forget that He even exists until you get home or perhaps even until next Sunday rolls around... if you're not too exhausted from your Saturday activities to attend church.
If God is a hobby, you won't take the first 10% of your income to build His kingdom and serve those in need, you will wait and see if there's anything left over before you put Him in your spending plan.
If God is a hobby, you will raise children who "worship their play, and play at their worship!"
In the last book of the Old Testament, a prophet named Malachi received a word from God for His people. Seems that the Jews were being blessed, but they were forgetting Who was blessing them. God was playing second fiddle to their own desires and plans. He was getting the left-overs and He was angered by this kind of treatment.
He said, “I am honored all over the world. And there are people who know how to worship me all over the world, who honor me by bringing their best to me. They’re saying it everywhere: ‘God is greater, this God-of-the-Angel-Armies.’ “All except you. Instead of honoring me, you profane me.
You profane me when you say, ‘Worship is not important, and what we bring to worship is of no account,’ and when you say, ‘I’m bored—this doesn’t do anything for me.’ You act so superior, sticking your noses in the air—act superior to me, God-of-the-Angel-Armies!
And when you do offer something to me, it’s a hand-me-down, or broken, or useless. Do you think I’m going to accept it? This is God speaking to you! “A curse on the person who makes a big show of doing something great for me—an expensive sacrifice, say—and then at the last minute brings in something puny and worthless! I’m a great king, God-of-the-Angel-Armies, honored far and wide, and I’ll not put up with it!"
A 'hobby' God is unable to meet our deepest needs. That is a reason that so many Christians are unfulfilled spiritually! The One who could give them purpose, steady them on their way, and be the Center for their being is pushed to one side, leaving them unbalanced and out of focus. Because they are neither 'of this world,' nor fully devoted to Christ, life is confusing; they are conflicted and without the joy of the Lord. The answer, for many, is to look for a new spiritual experience, to go here and there in search of inspiring sermon or an exhilarating worship service. However, the real answer is not a 'what' nor is is a 'where.' Satisfaction of soul hunger is only found in a whole-hearted commitment. When they choose to make Him Lord of all, they find that He is more than enough!
I leave us pondering this word from the Word today. Mediate deeply on it! "... do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the (those without God) seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you." (Matthew 6:31-33, NKJV)
______________________
Here it is - I get impression that to many people God is a kind of hobby, a diversion, but not really the main thing in their lives. For those for whom God is a divine diversion, He is placed down the list of priorities of activities not at the top. He gets a donation from money that is left over after 'real needs' have been addressed. His work fills in the gaps in the day planner, after the 'real work' is finished - as a hobby ought to, but as He never should. It's an old, yes even ancient, problem among us humans. We tend to forget that we are spiritual beings first and foremost, that our physical bodies are dying, that things of this world that we love are subject to decay. We begin to worship ourselves, our bodies, our achievements, our stuff even as we play at spiritual matters such as worshipping God and using the gifts of the Spirit to serve others in His Name.
The Lord God desires that our entire life be oriented around Him. The Bible tells us to "Let the words of Christ, in all their richness, live in your hearts and make you wise. Use his words to teach and counsel each other. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. And whatever you do or say, let it be as a representative of the Lord Jesus, all the while giving thanks through him to God the Father." (Colossians 3:16-17, NLT) What does that really mean to us? Everything!
As I go to work today, I must ask myself, "Am I going to do God's work or to simply earn a living?" How I answer that question will make a difference in the way I work.
When I am making decisions about spending the resources I have, I must ask, "will it be as one who understands that I am managing a sacred trust or as an American consumer looking for a way to buy more stuff?"
As a parent I can seek to live in such a way that my children are God-aware and I can help them to understand that serving Christ wholeheartedly is their primary purpose; or I can focus on developing their social skills and education with such focus, that they conclude that success in this temporal world is their reason for living.
If God is a hobby, you'll go off to work today and forget that He even exists until you get home or perhaps even until next Sunday rolls around... if you're not too exhausted from your Saturday activities to attend church.
If God is a hobby, you won't take the first 10% of your income to build His kingdom and serve those in need, you will wait and see if there's anything left over before you put Him in your spending plan.
If God is a hobby, you will raise children who "worship their play, and play at their worship!"
In the last book of the Old Testament, a prophet named Malachi received a word from God for His people. Seems that the Jews were being blessed, but they were forgetting Who was blessing them. God was playing second fiddle to their own desires and plans. He was getting the left-overs and He was angered by this kind of treatment.
He said, “I am honored all over the world. And there are people who know how to worship me all over the world, who honor me by bringing their best to me. They’re saying it everywhere: ‘God is greater, this God-of-the-Angel-Armies.’ “All except you. Instead of honoring me, you profane me.
You profane me when you say, ‘Worship is not important, and what we bring to worship is of no account,’ and when you say, ‘I’m bored—this doesn’t do anything for me.’ You act so superior, sticking your noses in the air—act superior to me, God-of-the-Angel-Armies!
And when you do offer something to me, it’s a hand-me-down, or broken, or useless. Do you think I’m going to accept it? This is God speaking to you! “A curse on the person who makes a big show of doing something great for me—an expensive sacrifice, say—and then at the last minute brings in something puny and worthless! I’m a great king, God-of-the-Angel-Armies, honored far and wide, and I’ll not put up with it!"
A 'hobby' God is unable to meet our deepest needs. That is a reason that so many Christians are unfulfilled spiritually! The One who could give them purpose, steady them on their way, and be the Center for their being is pushed to one side, leaving them unbalanced and out of focus. Because they are neither 'of this world,' nor fully devoted to Christ, life is confusing; they are conflicted and without the joy of the Lord. The answer, for many, is to look for a new spiritual experience, to go here and there in search of inspiring sermon or an exhilarating worship service. However, the real answer is not a 'what' nor is is a 'where.' Satisfaction of soul hunger is only found in a whole-hearted commitment. When they choose to make Him Lord of all, they find that He is more than enough!
I leave us pondering this word from the Word today. Mediate deeply on it! "... do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the (those without God) seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you." (Matthew 6:31-33, NKJV)
______________________
Friday, December 01, 2006
Forgiveness - God's answer for the rage of a troubled soul
She came to inquire about getting her children involved in the church. She was concerned about their spiritual care. She had barely opened her mouth when tears filled her eyes. The depth of her emotion startled her. "I didn't think this would happen," she said. For the next 30 minutes, Mary (not her real name) could not stop crying as she told me a story of a priest's abuse of her when she was a child! She told me that she had not been in church for many years, cut off from faith, by the sinful actions of a man who represented God to her. I soon realized that her tears were not flowing from sorrow, but from a rage hidden deep in her heart. I pray that God will allow me to help her to re-discover His love that can secure her soul, and then, hopefully she will be ready to discover the release from her rage and emotional pain that is possible through forgiveness.
During this Holy Season the phrase first announced in the skies over Bethlehem about 'peace on earth' is often heard, and little practiced. In fact, the holiday season often uncovers old wounds, family rivalries, and bitterness that is carefully packed under layers of politeness or denial. The remedy for the pain is found in only one thing -- forgiveness. This is the most costly gift we give to ourselves or offer to another. Forgiveness as an expression of grace. The whole subject stirs up deep emotions, and often not positive ones. Despite the benefits that a person receives when they release another to God with active forgiveness, many people resist taking that step. We love justice (as long as it's for someone else) and usually consider the idea of extending another forgiveness unfair.
People offer all kinds of reasons (and excuses) for not extending forgiveness to someone. I've heard these and many more in the course of offering Pastoral care to my flock.
"But I just can't let her off the hook! She must make things right with me."
"How will he learn the lessons he needs if I forgive him?"
"He hurt me. He must pay!"
The greater truth is that forgiveness is the only thing that breaks the cycle of escalating conflict and ever greater retaliatory measures. The gift of forgiveness is irrational, and yes, unfair by natural reasoning! Grace, by definition is undeserved! God shows us the way in how He treats us. He sent Christ Jesus into the world to bear the burden of justice on our behalf, to take away our sin, so we could be forgiven. The Psalmist sings, "...nor does he deal with us as we deserve. For his unfailing love toward those who fear him is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth. He has removed our rebellious acts as far away from us as the east is from the west." (Psalm 103:9-12, NLT)
When we forgive, we are like God. His love for us shows us the way. It requires great courage to lay down our grudge, to set aside our rights, and to offer another forgiveness. If we will not forgive, we make ourselves slaves to guilt and bitterness. Unforgiveness hands another person the keys to our heart and allows them to keep us locked into the past.
Here in the weeks prior to Christmas when we celebrate the birth of the One who brought us God's gift of forgiveness - it's time to forgive! Lewis Smedes says, "the only person healed is frequently the forgiver." Don't expect your forgiveness to bring about some miraculous transformation in the one who has offended you. They may actually feel vindicated! Don't expect that forgiveness will lead to reconciliation. The other person may wish to continue in hatred.
Forgiveness is YOUR act, YOUR choice, YOUR gift- to the offender and to YOURSELF! Letting the hurt go, releasing that other person from any debt to you by transferring it to God who judges with ultimate justice, will be one of the most difficult choices you make. It is the right choice.The Lord's Prayer, there is this line- which we pray hopefully with sincerity - "forgive us our sins, just as we have forgiven those who have sinned against us." (Matthew 6:12, NLT) Jesus follows that with this warning - “...there is a connection between what God does and what you do. You can’t get forgiveness from God, for instance, without also forgiving others. If you refuse to do your part, you cut yourself off from God’s part." (Matthew 6:14-15, The Message)
Peace on Earth! That is the declaration of the One who came to bring us a message of forgiveness, with all debts paid at His expense.
Let that peace find a way into your heart as you break down every wall, discharge every debt, and forgive those who have trespassed against you. It will make for a Merry Christmas!
During this Holy Season the phrase first announced in the skies over Bethlehem about 'peace on earth' is often heard, and little practiced. In fact, the holiday season often uncovers old wounds, family rivalries, and bitterness that is carefully packed under layers of politeness or denial. The remedy for the pain is found in only one thing -- forgiveness. This is the most costly gift we give to ourselves or offer to another. Forgiveness as an expression of grace. The whole subject stirs up deep emotions, and often not positive ones. Despite the benefits that a person receives when they release another to God with active forgiveness, many people resist taking that step. We love justice (as long as it's for someone else) and usually consider the idea of extending another forgiveness unfair.
People offer all kinds of reasons (and excuses) for not extending forgiveness to someone. I've heard these and many more in the course of offering Pastoral care to my flock.
"But I just can't let her off the hook! She must make things right with me."
"How will he learn the lessons he needs if I forgive him?"
"He hurt me. He must pay!"
The greater truth is that forgiveness is the only thing that breaks the cycle of escalating conflict and ever greater retaliatory measures. The gift of forgiveness is irrational, and yes, unfair by natural reasoning! Grace, by definition is undeserved! God shows us the way in how He treats us. He sent Christ Jesus into the world to bear the burden of justice on our behalf, to take away our sin, so we could be forgiven. The Psalmist sings, "...nor does he deal with us as we deserve. For his unfailing love toward those who fear him is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth. He has removed our rebellious acts as far away from us as the east is from the west." (Psalm 103:9-12, NLT)
When we forgive, we are like God. His love for us shows us the way. It requires great courage to lay down our grudge, to set aside our rights, and to offer another forgiveness. If we will not forgive, we make ourselves slaves to guilt and bitterness. Unforgiveness hands another person the keys to our heart and allows them to keep us locked into the past.
Here in the weeks prior to Christmas when we celebrate the birth of the One who brought us God's gift of forgiveness - it's time to forgive! Lewis Smedes says, "the only person healed is frequently the forgiver." Don't expect your forgiveness to bring about some miraculous transformation in the one who has offended you. They may actually feel vindicated! Don't expect that forgiveness will lead to reconciliation. The other person may wish to continue in hatred.
Forgiveness is YOUR act, YOUR choice, YOUR gift- to the offender and to YOURSELF! Letting the hurt go, releasing that other person from any debt to you by transferring it to God who judges with ultimate justice, will be one of the most difficult choices you make. It is the right choice.The Lord's Prayer, there is this line- which we pray hopefully with sincerity - "forgive us our sins, just as we have forgiven those who have sinned against us." (Matthew 6:12, NLT) Jesus follows that with this warning - “...there is a connection between what God does and what you do. You can’t get forgiveness from God, for instance, without also forgiving others. If you refuse to do your part, you cut yourself off from God’s part." (Matthew 6:14-15, The Message)
Peace on Earth! That is the declaration of the One who came to bring us a message of forgiveness, with all debts paid at His expense.
Let that peace find a way into your heart as you break down every wall, discharge every debt, and forgive those who have trespassed against you. It will make for a Merry Christmas!
Thursday, November 30, 2006
"I am the Lord's servant."
With that faithful response, Mary accepted the message of her pending pregnancy from the angel Gabriel. Her entire life was about to be thrown upside down. Her fiancé would question her fidelity. Friends would think she was immoral. Her story would be judged a fantasy by those who heard it. But, this young woman, a girl really, from Nazareth embraced God's plan with humility that reveals her deep faith. “I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her." (Luke 1:38, NIV) We are left mainly with our imagination about the events of the next 9 months of her life. We are told she took a trip to see her cousin, Elizabeth, probably to avoid the questions and stares that her expanding womb brought her way in the village of Nazareth. We also know that Joseph took her on a long journey to Bethlehem in the final days of her pregnancy, but mostly her story is left untold. Her faith, however, remained strong! She embraced God's plan and 33 years later was standing near the cross with a broken heart watching her Son die in the plan of God. Two millennia later, we respect this woman for her unique place in our faith and her example of faith inspires us!
When I was a teenager, the Lord spoke to my heart concerning giving my life to His service. My response, unlike that of Mary, was not immediately positive. I wrestled and waffled and resisted. My immaturity, both emotional and spiritual, led me to believe that I would be happier doing something other than Christian ministry with the gift of my life, but God was patient and merciful. He drew me to Himself. The decades of experiencing His faithfulness and provision, have brought me to a place where I find myself saying "I am the Lord's servant," more readily. I embrace His plans with greater enthusiasm, too. 'Bout time, wouldn't you say? I join Jeremiah in praising God, borrowing his prose - "The unfailing love of the Lord never ends! By his mercies we have been kept from complete destruction. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each day. I say to myself, “The Lord is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!” The Lord is wonderfully good to those who wait for him and seek him. So it is good to wait quietly for salvation from the Lord." (Lamentations 3:22-26, NLT) Amen and amen! Because of His promise, I know my home is ultimately in the Presence of God, in a place of unimaginable beauty called Heaven. The road between today and eternity is hidden in His mind, but by His grace I will say "I am the Lord's servant" at each turn, at each new challenge.
God has a plan for you, just as He did for Mary and for me. Don't be misled by those who say that His plan will always lead you along sunny pathways, strewn with flowers of sweet fragrance! Praise God, there are moments on the mountaintop. And, some days, even the most faithful are led through deep valleys. Some of us He leads to greatness, others to obscurity. In the great faith-walk chapter, we read of those who saw God's promises unfold in glorious ways; and we read of those who died in persecution holding onto their faith. The Word assures us that "All of these people we have mentioned received God’s approval because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised.
For God had far better things in mind for us that would also benefit them, for they can’t receive the prize at the end of the race until we finish the race.
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily hinders our progress. And let us run with endurance the race that God has set before us." (Hebrews 11:39-12:1, NLT)
Are you ready to trust Him with your life, friend? Yes, that is rather grand, isn't it?
Better we ask ourselves, "will I trust Him with this day?" and leave tomorrow's faith until then.
Let the faith of Mary instruct you today. As she was willing to let God use her for His purposes, may you, too, respond to Him with a simple faith, without pre-qualification, saying, “I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said.”
_________________________
I am weak but Thou art strong;
Jesus, keep me from all wrong;
I'll be satisfied as long
As I walk, let me walk, Close to Thee.
Through this world of toil and snares,
If I falter, Lord, who cares?
Who with me my burden shares?
None but Thee, dear Lord, None but Thee.
Just A Closer Walk With TheeCopyright: Public Domain
When I was a teenager, the Lord spoke to my heart concerning giving my life to His service. My response, unlike that of Mary, was not immediately positive. I wrestled and waffled and resisted. My immaturity, both emotional and spiritual, led me to believe that I would be happier doing something other than Christian ministry with the gift of my life, but God was patient and merciful. He drew me to Himself. The decades of experiencing His faithfulness and provision, have brought me to a place where I find myself saying "I am the Lord's servant," more readily. I embrace His plans with greater enthusiasm, too. 'Bout time, wouldn't you say? I join Jeremiah in praising God, borrowing his prose - "The unfailing love of the Lord never ends! By his mercies we have been kept from complete destruction. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each day. I say to myself, “The Lord is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!” The Lord is wonderfully good to those who wait for him and seek him. So it is good to wait quietly for salvation from the Lord." (Lamentations 3:22-26, NLT) Amen and amen! Because of His promise, I know my home is ultimately in the Presence of God, in a place of unimaginable beauty called Heaven. The road between today and eternity is hidden in His mind, but by His grace I will say "I am the Lord's servant" at each turn, at each new challenge.
God has a plan for you, just as He did for Mary and for me. Don't be misled by those who say that His plan will always lead you along sunny pathways, strewn with flowers of sweet fragrance! Praise God, there are moments on the mountaintop. And, some days, even the most faithful are led through deep valleys. Some of us He leads to greatness, others to obscurity. In the great faith-walk chapter, we read of those who saw God's promises unfold in glorious ways; and we read of those who died in persecution holding onto their faith. The Word assures us that "All of these people we have mentioned received God’s approval because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised.
For God had far better things in mind for us that would also benefit them, for they can’t receive the prize at the end of the race until we finish the race.
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily hinders our progress. And let us run with endurance the race that God has set before us." (Hebrews 11:39-12:1, NLT)
Are you ready to trust Him with your life, friend? Yes, that is rather grand, isn't it?
Better we ask ourselves, "will I trust Him with this day?" and leave tomorrow's faith until then.
Let the faith of Mary instruct you today. As she was willing to let God use her for His purposes, may you, too, respond to Him with a simple faith, without pre-qualification, saying, “I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said.”
_________________________
I am weak but Thou art strong;
Jesus, keep me from all wrong;
I'll be satisfied as long
As I walk, let me walk, Close to Thee.
Through this world of toil and snares,
If I falter, Lord, who cares?
Who with me my burden shares?
None but Thee, dear Lord, None but Thee.
Just A Closer Walk With TheeCopyright: Public Domain
Wednesday, November 29, 2006
Walk with the wise
In the course of my life I've made some really dumb mistakes! Up until I was around 30, I could pass them off to youth and/or ignorance. I do not have that luxury now. After a half century of living, it's a lot more difficult to say, "I did not know...." convincingly to myself or others. With the gray hair in my beard comes the expectation that I should have accumulated a measure of wisdom. Without intending to sound arrogant, let me say that the shortage of true wisdom in our world never ceases to amaze me. How can people make some of the choices they make is beyond my comprehension. Last week's flap over the proposed book and TV program by O.J. Simpson entitled, "If I Did It, Here's How It Happened," is one of those moments. In case you're out of touch, he had collaborated on a book that "hypothetically described" how he would have committed the murders of his wife and a friend who were killed in 1994 in a terrible and bloody way. Dumb, dumb, dumb! When the public reacted to this bit of idiocy, the publishers and producers cancelled the release. I'm sure you have a situation in mind that makes you question human intelligence, too.
Truthfully, often what appears to be obviously without merit to some, seems quite logical to another. That is why we need a reference point outside of ourselves, an external source of Wisdom, if we desire to live judiciously. The Bible holds out this promise: "Cry out for insight and understanding. Search for them as you would for lost money or hidden treasure. Then you will understand what it means to fear the Lord, and you will gain knowledge of God. For the Lord grants wisdom! From his mouth come knowledge and understanding. He grants a treasure of good sense to the godly. He is their shield, protecting those who walk with integrity. He guards the paths of justice and protects those who are faithful to him. Then you will understand what is right, just, and fair, and you will know how to find the right course of action every time. For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will fill you with joy. Wise planning will watch over you. Understanding will keep you safe. Wisdom will save you from evil people, from those whose speech is corrupt." (Proverbs 2:3-12, NLT)
Knowing my natural propensity to make short-sighted, ill advised, and/or self-serving decisions, one of my daily prayers is for the wisdom of the Spirit to guard and to guide me. I pray for the ability to understand how the Scripture's principles apply to my life and the internal discipline to say 'no' to those impulses that would bring short term satisfaction but long term regrets! I ask the Lord to help me to keep in mind that the choices I make today have consequences I will live with for years. That is not all bad! The principle applies for good, too. We can harvest a rich crop of blessings if we sow wisdom consistently in our daily decisions. The Psalmist sings: "Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers." (Psalm 1:1-3, NIV) What a promise! The wise person who loves God will enjoy continual refreshment and become a source of blessings to those around him. Now, that's what I really desire, how about you?
Want to enjoy the benefits of true wisdom? Fear God! Turn to Him and let Christ change you from the inside out. Seek advice from godly people. Gather friends from those who love God. Don't admire those who are flip, arrogant, and smug! Love the Word. The result will be insight that preserves you in a world full of folly.
Here is a word from the Word. Meditate on it today. "Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil. This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones." (Proverbs 3:5-8, NIV)
________________________
Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;
Nought 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 And 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, My victory 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.
Be Thou My Vision - Hull, Eleanor / Byrne, Mary E.
Copyright: Public Domain
Truthfully, often what appears to be obviously without merit to some, seems quite logical to another. That is why we need a reference point outside of ourselves, an external source of Wisdom, if we desire to live judiciously. The Bible holds out this promise: "Cry out for insight and understanding. Search for them as you would for lost money or hidden treasure. Then you will understand what it means to fear the Lord, and you will gain knowledge of God. For the Lord grants wisdom! From his mouth come knowledge and understanding. He grants a treasure of good sense to the godly. He is their shield, protecting those who walk with integrity. He guards the paths of justice and protects those who are faithful to him. Then you will understand what is right, just, and fair, and you will know how to find the right course of action every time. For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will fill you with joy. Wise planning will watch over you. Understanding will keep you safe. Wisdom will save you from evil people, from those whose speech is corrupt." (Proverbs 2:3-12, NLT)
Knowing my natural propensity to make short-sighted, ill advised, and/or self-serving decisions, one of my daily prayers is for the wisdom of the Spirit to guard and to guide me. I pray for the ability to understand how the Scripture's principles apply to my life and the internal discipline to say 'no' to those impulses that would bring short term satisfaction but long term regrets! I ask the Lord to help me to keep in mind that the choices I make today have consequences I will live with for years. That is not all bad! The principle applies for good, too. We can harvest a rich crop of blessings if we sow wisdom consistently in our daily decisions. The Psalmist sings: "Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers." (Psalm 1:1-3, NIV) What a promise! The wise person who loves God will enjoy continual refreshment and become a source of blessings to those around him. Now, that's what I really desire, how about you?
Want to enjoy the benefits of true wisdom? Fear God! Turn to Him and let Christ change you from the inside out. Seek advice from godly people. Gather friends from those who love God. Don't admire those who are flip, arrogant, and smug! Love the Word. The result will be insight that preserves you in a world full of folly.
Here is a word from the Word. Meditate on it today. "Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil. This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones." (Proverbs 3:5-8, NIV)
________________________
Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;
Nought 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 And 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, My victory 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.
Be Thou My Vision - Hull, Eleanor / Byrne, Mary E.
Copyright: Public Domain
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Advent's reasons - simply amazing
While shaking my head over a story of yet another egregious moral failure that appeared in our newspaper yesterday - this time a grandmother and local mayor caught stealing $9000 from a church where she volunteered to work in the office - I had another grace awakening! Once again I came to understand that God's love story for us, which we celebrate anew this Advent season, is so amazing precisely because it is told to a dark world in desperate need of the Light. God looks over a world where people hate each with murderous intent in His Name! He sees cruelty on a scale that is beyond my imagination. He hears the secret conversations we have inside our own heads- where we lust, covet, and hate in secret. He sees the mass murderers in action and the little child learning to sin - and loves this world anyway.
You and I become impatient with someone after just a few failures. We are ready to dismiss a person from our life for a sin or two. When I look at all the evil around me and feel the storms of temptation that blow over my own heart, the story of Noah makes a lot more sense to me than the story of Jesus. I can understand God's anger and the solution He proposed! "God saw that human evil was out of control. People thought evil, imagined evil—evil, evil, evil from morning to night. God was sorry that he had made the human race in the first place; it broke his heart. God said, “I’ll get rid of my ruined creation, make a clean sweep: people, animals, snakes and bugs, birds—the works. I’m sorry I made them.”" (Genesis 6:5-7, The Message) That makes sense, doesn't it? Just destroy it and start over!
But, the New Covenant is different. God acts from an amazing grace, a love that defies my understanding. God steps into the darkness and reveals the Light. He intervenes, not to destroy but to restore. Advent is summed up in this passage which says - "When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. Now, no one is likely to die for a good person, though someone might be willing to die for a person who is especially good. But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners." (Romans 5:6-8, NLT)
Our brokenness becomes the place for the display of God's beauty! Our sinfulness provides the canvas on which He paints His picture of forgiveness.
The darkness makes His Light shine brilliantly.
We must not make the faulty leap in reasoning that would then say, "well, then let us sin all the more!" The Word reminds us that His desire is transformation and that when His love touches us, we are changed. "Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?" (Romans 6:1-2, NIV)
Today, I am filled with a new sense of hope - for myself, for the world that I live in. It is not a hope that springs from any human self-improvement program or some personal victory. This hope comes from the promise of Jesus Christ to love us despite our sin. Advent sings with joyful celebration -"He comes to make His blessings flow far as the curse is found!" My prayer today is that His grace will teach me to be 'grace-full.' Instead of seeking to dismiss or destroy those who sin - against God or even against me with some small offense - I pray that I will be full of love that looks for a way to restore.
Are you in despair this morning? Are you discouraged - by your own sins, by the failures of a friend or family member, by the darkness of the world?
Fall on your knees and look up to the Cross where the broken Savior built a bridge that connects us to our Father. Take renewed hope and rejoice in the amazing grace that can transform the most desperate sin or situation into a thing of beauty.
____________________________
Joy to the world, the Lord is come!
Let earth receive her King;
Let every heart prepare Him room,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven, and Heaven, and nature sing.
Joy to the earth, the Savior reigns!
Let men their songs employ;
While fields and floods,
rocks, hills and plains
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat, repeat, the sounding joy.
No more let sins and sorrows grow,
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found,
Far as the curse is found,
Far as, far as, the curse is found.
He rules the world with truth and grace,
And makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders, wonders, of His love. - Isaac Watts
You and I become impatient with someone after just a few failures. We are ready to dismiss a person from our life for a sin or two. When I look at all the evil around me and feel the storms of temptation that blow over my own heart, the story of Noah makes a lot more sense to me than the story of Jesus. I can understand God's anger and the solution He proposed! "God saw that human evil was out of control. People thought evil, imagined evil—evil, evil, evil from morning to night. God was sorry that he had made the human race in the first place; it broke his heart. God said, “I’ll get rid of my ruined creation, make a clean sweep: people, animals, snakes and bugs, birds—the works. I’m sorry I made them.”" (Genesis 6:5-7, The Message) That makes sense, doesn't it? Just destroy it and start over!
But, the New Covenant is different. God acts from an amazing grace, a love that defies my understanding. God steps into the darkness and reveals the Light. He intervenes, not to destroy but to restore. Advent is summed up in this passage which says - "When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. Now, no one is likely to die for a good person, though someone might be willing to die for a person who is especially good. But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners." (Romans 5:6-8, NLT)
Our brokenness becomes the place for the display of God's beauty! Our sinfulness provides the canvas on which He paints His picture of forgiveness.
The darkness makes His Light shine brilliantly.
We must not make the faulty leap in reasoning that would then say, "well, then let us sin all the more!" The Word reminds us that His desire is transformation and that when His love touches us, we are changed. "Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?" (Romans 6:1-2, NIV)
Today, I am filled with a new sense of hope - for myself, for the world that I live in. It is not a hope that springs from any human self-improvement program or some personal victory. This hope comes from the promise of Jesus Christ to love us despite our sin. Advent sings with joyful celebration -"He comes to make His blessings flow far as the curse is found!" My prayer today is that His grace will teach me to be 'grace-full.' Instead of seeking to dismiss or destroy those who sin - against God or even against me with some small offense - I pray that I will be full of love that looks for a way to restore.
Are you in despair this morning? Are you discouraged - by your own sins, by the failures of a friend or family member, by the darkness of the world?
Fall on your knees and look up to the Cross where the broken Savior built a bridge that connects us to our Father. Take renewed hope and rejoice in the amazing grace that can transform the most desperate sin or situation into a thing of beauty.
____________________________
Joy to the world, the Lord is come!
Let earth receive her King;
Let every heart prepare Him room,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven, and Heaven, and nature sing.
Joy to the earth, the Savior reigns!
Let men their songs employ;
While fields and floods,
rocks, hills and plains
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat, repeat, the sounding joy.
No more let sins and sorrows grow,
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found,
Far as the curse is found,
Far as, far as, the curse is found.
He rules the world with truth and grace,
And makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders, wonders, of His love. - Isaac Watts
Monday, November 27, 2006
My fickle heart
Yesterday around 7 AM I was praying in the sanctuary before the church services as I customarily do. Music was playing in the background and I became aware of the lyrics of the song which spoke of loving Jesus whole-heartedly because there was nothing in life that compared to knowing Him. The song said that "all I have in You is more than enough!" Nice song, but is it true for me? That's what I asked the Lord as I prayed. "Jesus, am I really content with knowing You? If I found myself going through a Job-like experience, where my family, my home, my reputation, my stuff - were stripped away from me, would I still sing, all I have in You is more than enough?" It was a difficult prayer to pray. The growing realization that there is often a gap between my expression of love and experience of devotion was not all that pleasant, either.
The Holy Spirit made me face the fact that I have a fickle heart that sings of loving Jesus, but that is also captivated by the Circuit City ad for an HD TV. I don't mean to set up an either/or situation for those of us who are followers of Christ. We don't necessarily have to choose between an HD TV set or Jesus! Sincere Christians can have nice homes, cars, and goods. We are not all called to vows of poverty or monastic lives. But we must all wrestle with the question that Jesus put to Peter there on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. As He gestured toward the fishing boats, the familiar surroundings of Peter's life, He asked - "Do you love me more than these?" (John 21:15)
The rich young man who came to Jesus asking about gaining eternal life was told - "Go and sell all that you have, then, come follow me!" The man left Jesus sad because, "he had great wealth." He loved his stuff and his status. In the moment of testing, what he loved most became evident as he choose his stuff over Jesus! The rest of the passage grips me, for I, too, am a rich man comparatively speaking. "Then Jesus said to his disciples, “I tell you the truth, it is very hard for a rich person to get into the Kingdom of Heaven. I say it again—it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God!” The disciples were astounded. “Then who in the world can be saved?” they asked. Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.”" (Matthew 19:23-26, NLT)
I cling to that final phrase as my hope as I deal with my fickle heart -'with God all things are possible.' I cannot save myself, nor can you. We cannot do enough to prove to ourselves the depth of our love and devotion. We can only pray that He will keep us faithful, day by day. We can only respond to the leading of the Holy Spirit in this moment, and rest in the fact that we have obeyed today. He will save us from ourselves tomorrow. Yes, I do love Him. How much? Truthfully, only God knows!
Let me encourage you to think and pray about your love for Jesus and the things of God today. I believe He is asking us - "Do you love me more than these?" Watch out! Don't compare yourself to others. God does not ask you or me, "Do you love Me more than Sam or Sally loves Me?" Each of us must examine our own heart, then we present ourselves to Him. He asks different sacrifice from each one - according to His will. And He rewards our faithful obedience to Him, not to the rules and expectations of others.
___________________________
Spirit of God
Descend upon my heart,
wean it from earth,
through all its pulses move.
Stoop to my weakness
mighty as Thou art,
and make me love Thee
as I ought to love.
Hast Thou not bid us
love Thee, God and King?
All, all Thine own --
soul, heart, and strength and mind.
I see Thy cross --
there teach my heart to cling,
O let me seek Thee
and O let me find.
Teach me to love Thee
as Thine angels love,
Only holy passion
filling all my frame.
The baptism of the
heave'n descended Dove,
My heart an altar,
and Thy love - the flame.
Title: Spirit of God, Descend Upon My Heart
Author: George Croly
Copyright: Public Domain
The Holy Spirit made me face the fact that I have a fickle heart that sings of loving Jesus, but that is also captivated by the Circuit City ad for an HD TV. I don't mean to set up an either/or situation for those of us who are followers of Christ. We don't necessarily have to choose between an HD TV set or Jesus! Sincere Christians can have nice homes, cars, and goods. We are not all called to vows of poverty or monastic lives. But we must all wrestle with the question that Jesus put to Peter there on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. As He gestured toward the fishing boats, the familiar surroundings of Peter's life, He asked - "Do you love me more than these?" (John 21:15)
The rich young man who came to Jesus asking about gaining eternal life was told - "Go and sell all that you have, then, come follow me!" The man left Jesus sad because, "he had great wealth." He loved his stuff and his status. In the moment of testing, what he loved most became evident as he choose his stuff over Jesus! The rest of the passage grips me, for I, too, am a rich man comparatively speaking. "Then Jesus said to his disciples, “I tell you the truth, it is very hard for a rich person to get into the Kingdom of Heaven. I say it again—it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God!” The disciples were astounded. “Then who in the world can be saved?” they asked. Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.”" (Matthew 19:23-26, NLT)
I cling to that final phrase as my hope as I deal with my fickle heart -'with God all things are possible.' I cannot save myself, nor can you. We cannot do enough to prove to ourselves the depth of our love and devotion. We can only pray that He will keep us faithful, day by day. We can only respond to the leading of the Holy Spirit in this moment, and rest in the fact that we have obeyed today. He will save us from ourselves tomorrow. Yes, I do love Him. How much? Truthfully, only God knows!
Let me encourage you to think and pray about your love for Jesus and the things of God today. I believe He is asking us - "Do you love me more than these?" Watch out! Don't compare yourself to others. God does not ask you or me, "Do you love Me more than Sam or Sally loves Me?" Each of us must examine our own heart, then we present ourselves to Him. He asks different sacrifice from each one - according to His will. And He rewards our faithful obedience to Him, not to the rules and expectations of others.
___________________________
Spirit of God
Descend upon my heart,
wean it from earth,
through all its pulses move.
Stoop to my weakness
mighty as Thou art,
and make me love Thee
as I ought to love.
Hast Thou not bid us
love Thee, God and King?
All, all Thine own --
soul, heart, and strength and mind.
I see Thy cross --
there teach my heart to cling,
O let me seek Thee
and O let me find.
Teach me to love Thee
as Thine angels love,
Only holy passion
filling all my frame.
The baptism of the
heave'n descended Dove,
My heart an altar,
and Thy love - the flame.
Title: Spirit of God, Descend Upon My Heart
Author: George Croly
Copyright: Public Domain
Friday, November 24, 2006
Keep Christ in Christmas.
Thanksgiving feasts are over. Football games played out for us who watched from our recliners! Our families are thinking about going home. And today ... is 'Black Friday,' the day when American consumers spend $Billions! It is called "Black Friday" because retailers count on the burst of spending to put their annual revenue in the black. Today and tomorrow will likely be the most profitable days in retail sales for the entire year. So begins the Christmas Season, but hopefully, But, hopefully Believer, you will walk through the Advent Season differently than the wider culture.I want to encourage you to make this a holy time of great joy.
Advent is the time when Christians prepare themselves for the coming of the King. In various ways- fasting and feasting, with special songs, exchange of gifts, meditations on Scripture, readings, and worship - we celebrate the fact that God entered the world as a baby boy, or as John's Gospel tells us: "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth." (John 1:14, NIV)
Without attacking the rituals that are very much a part of an American Christmas, may I plead with you to make it a Christ-centered Christmas this year?
By that I do not mean that we play into the hype about the 'X-mas' ads or the failure of public school programs to include Christmas in their 'holiday' concerts. Yes, let's just acknowledge that in many ways America is a secular country that is increasingly losing touch with her Christian roots, then let's go beyond symbols and rhetoric, to truly celebrate a Christian Christmas! Instead of coming to January 1, 2007 with credit cards maxed out and an extra 10 pounds packed onto our waistline, why not come into the New Year with a full heart and the joy of knowing that you touched someone with the same kind of love that God showed us in the Gift of His Son? Like Peter and John, who realized the source of True wealth, let's give away the best and richest gifts in the Name of Jesus. Those two men were presented with an opportunity when a beggar asked them for money as they went to worship. Peter's reply makes me smile.... "Peter said, “I don’t have a nickel to my name, but what I do have, I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk!”" (Acts 3:6, The Message) That beggar received a grace gift that day and his life was changed. Wouldn't it be great to be used of God this Christmas Season to give away grace gifts of love and healing?
Let me make some suggestions for a sane and Christ-honoring celebration:
Set an affordable budget for all your gift-giving BEFORE you venture to the store. If you find it too hard to discipline yourself to the spending limits, then leave your credit cards home and shop with cash only.
Keep yourself from exhaustion by wisely choosing which activities you will attend. When we try to fill our schedule too full with many good things, we become cranky and miserable, and end up making the Season something to endure rather than days to celebrate.
Include regular times of spiritual renewal. Move church attendance UP on the list, not down. Step out of your comfort zone and go to church with other members of your family that attend a church that worships differently. (Believe it or not, some of the most meaningful Christmas services this life-long Pentecostal Believer has attended were at an Episcopal church where the priest was a close personal friend. Those ancient liturgies, reading, and prayers - interspersed with carols - made me REALLY think about the meaning of the Gift of Heaven.)
Include charitable organizations, needy families, and/or your church on your gift list - giving in honor of Jesus, God's gift.
Here's an ancient hymn/prayer - weaving together many strands of the prophetic themes that God used to tell of the coming of His Messiah. Here at the beginning of the season of Advent, make this hymn your personal prayer.
___________________
O come, O come, Emmanuel, And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here Until the Son of God appear.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free Thine own from Satan's tyranny;
From depths of hell Thy people save, And give them victory over the grave.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, Thou Day-spring, come and cheer Our spirits by Thine advent here;
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night, And death's dark shadows put to flight.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, Thou Key of David, come, And open wide our heavenly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high, And close the path to misery.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, Desire of nations, bind In one the hearts of all mankind;
Bid Thou our sad divisions cease, And be Thyself our King of Peace.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
Advent is the time when Christians prepare themselves for the coming of the King. In various ways- fasting and feasting, with special songs, exchange of gifts, meditations on Scripture, readings, and worship - we celebrate the fact that God entered the world as a baby boy, or as John's Gospel tells us: "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth." (John 1:14, NIV)
Without attacking the rituals that are very much a part of an American Christmas, may I plead with you to make it a Christ-centered Christmas this year?
By that I do not mean that we play into the hype about the 'X-mas' ads or the failure of public school programs to include Christmas in their 'holiday' concerts. Yes, let's just acknowledge that in many ways America is a secular country that is increasingly losing touch with her Christian roots, then let's go beyond symbols and rhetoric, to truly celebrate a Christian Christmas! Instead of coming to January 1, 2007 with credit cards maxed out and an extra 10 pounds packed onto our waistline, why not come into the New Year with a full heart and the joy of knowing that you touched someone with the same kind of love that God showed us in the Gift of His Son? Like Peter and John, who realized the source of True wealth, let's give away the best and richest gifts in the Name of Jesus. Those two men were presented with an opportunity when a beggar asked them for money as they went to worship. Peter's reply makes me smile.... "Peter said, “I don’t have a nickel to my name, but what I do have, I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk!”" (Acts 3:6, The Message) That beggar received a grace gift that day and his life was changed. Wouldn't it be great to be used of God this Christmas Season to give away grace gifts of love and healing?
Let me make some suggestions for a sane and Christ-honoring celebration:
Set an affordable budget for all your gift-giving BEFORE you venture to the store. If you find it too hard to discipline yourself to the spending limits, then leave your credit cards home and shop with cash only.
Keep yourself from exhaustion by wisely choosing which activities you will attend. When we try to fill our schedule too full with many good things, we become cranky and miserable, and end up making the Season something to endure rather than days to celebrate.
Include regular times of spiritual renewal. Move church attendance UP on the list, not down. Step out of your comfort zone and go to church with other members of your family that attend a church that worships differently. (Believe it or not, some of the most meaningful Christmas services this life-long Pentecostal Believer has attended were at an Episcopal church where the priest was a close personal friend. Those ancient liturgies, reading, and prayers - interspersed with carols - made me REALLY think about the meaning of the Gift of Heaven.)
Include charitable organizations, needy families, and/or your church on your gift list - giving in honor of Jesus, God's gift.
Here's an ancient hymn/prayer - weaving together many strands of the prophetic themes that God used to tell of the coming of His Messiah. Here at the beginning of the season of Advent, make this hymn your personal prayer.
___________________
O come, O come, Emmanuel, And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here Until the Son of God appear.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free Thine own from Satan's tyranny;
From depths of hell Thy people save, And give them victory over the grave.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, Thou Day-spring, come and cheer Our spirits by Thine advent here;
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night, And death's dark shadows put to flight.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, Thou Key of David, come, And open wide our heavenly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high, And close the path to misery.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, Desire of nations, bind In one the hearts of all mankind;
Bid Thou our sad divisions cease, And be Thyself our King of Peace.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
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