Sometimes when kids are told to do something they ask, "why?" And sometimes a parent answers, "Because I said so!" That's not a great parenting style all the time, but there are situations where that's all you can say. Explanations won't work, the situation is urgent, or reasoning would require more information than the parent can give, so they just give an order with the expectation of obedience. Blessed is the child who will accept that and do what is asked of them. Blessed is the parent of such a child, too!
Sometimes our Father in Heaven says, "just do it!" He expects we will obey. The Israelites had two of those kinds of experiences as they were entering the Promised Land after their long wander through the wilderness. First, they came to the crossing of the Jordan River. God told them to ready themselves for the crossing. They could see the river was at flood stage! How was this going to work out? But, they prepared to cross. "As soon as the feet of the priests who were carrying the Ark touched the water at the river's edge, the water above that point began backing up a great distance away at a town called Adam, which is near Zarethan. And the water below that point flowed on to the Dead Sea until the riverbed was dry. Then all the people crossed over near the town of Jericho." (Joshua 3:15-16, NLT) The whole nation walked across the dry riverbed and into their new home! A test of faith, to be sure, but God was faithful.
The first fortified town they encountered was Jericho. "Now Jericho was tightly shut up because of the Israelites. No one went out and no one came in." (Joshua 6:1, NIV) There, too, God issued a command that was without explanation. "Go and march around the town once each morning for a whole week, then on the seventh day, march around it seven times, and blow the trumpets! When you hear the trumpets, shout the victory shout." I wonder if that sounded as silly to those people as it does to us? And yet, they did it! "When the people heard the sound of the rams' horns, they shouted as loud as they could. Suddenly, the walls of Jericho collapsed, and the Israelites charged straight into the town and captured it." (Joshua 6:20, NLT)
Disciple, we are wise to obey the Lord's directive even when we want to whine, "But, why?"
He says, "Forgive those who offend you," we must just do it.
He says, "Put me first in your use of resources," and we must just do it.
He says, "Love your enemies," and we must just do it.
He says, "Stop fretting about tomorrow," and we must choose to trust and obey.
The nation of Israel was not always as obedient as they were in the examples I used a moment ago. Often in their long history, they resisted the Lord, argued against His will, and even ignored Him. Their long history reveals that when they choose short-term self-interest over long-term obedience, there were always negative consequences. When they were willing to 'just do it,' they discovered the goodness of the Lord in unanticipated ways. The key was faith to believe God, even when it made no sense in the moment!
Take one of the Bible's shortest prayers with you today. When you struggle to obey, just breathe this one line prayer. It was first prayed by a father who was in terrible distress over his son's terrible condition. He brought the boy to Jesus. Take a look.
"If you can do anything, take pity on us and help us."
" 'If you can'?" said Jesus. "Everything is possible for him who believes."
Immediately the boy's father exclaimed,
"I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!"
When Jesus saw that a crowd was running to the scene, he rebuked the evil spirit.
"You deaf and mute spirit," he said, "I command you, come out of him and never enter him again.""(Mark 9:22-25, NIV)
The gift of faith that comes in response to our humble entreaty creates a heart ready to radically obey. Let's just do it!
__________________
"Be of good courage",
God spake unto Joshua.
When o'er the river
God pointed the way;
Jordan uncrossable!
Things seemed impossible,
Waters divide
As they march and obey.
Battles to win!
They would meet
With their obstacles.
Jericho's walls too
Must fall to the ground;
God never failed
He stood back of His promises.
Walls had to crumble
As they marched around.
God is the same
And His Word is dependable.
He'll make a way
Thru the waters for you;
Life's situations
By Him are amendable.
Mountains and hills,
He will part for you too.
Got any rivers
You think are uncrossable?
Got any mountains
You can't tunnel through?
God specializes in
Things tho't impossible.
He does the things
Others cannot do.
Got Any Rivers
Eliason, Oscar C.
Brentwood-Benson Music Publishing, Inc. © 1945, 1973 Oscar C. Eliason.
Assigned Singspiration Music (Admin. by Brentwood-Benson Music Publishing, Inc., 741 Coolsprings Blvd., Franklin TN 37067)
CCLI License No. 810055
Friday, March 26, 2010
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Fresh, but not new!
There is an obsession among some Christians about making the Gospel “new.” Many are caught up in a pursuit of re-discovery of Jesus' true message and identity. Most of the things we accept about Who He was and what He taught are being questioned by somebody, somewhere; well, at least that how it seems to me. It leads to a lot of speculative nonsense finding its way onto paper, into blogs, and being published in books. Most of it will be forgotten in a year or two. Four years ago it was “The DaVinci Code” that had the headlines. Does anybody really remember the controversies raised by "The Last Temptation of Christ," or "The Passover Plot"? Huh? Exactly!
The stories recorded in the inspired texts of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John have stood the test of time, telling us about a Man who is also God, who lived, died, and rose again. He really walked the pathways of a dusty, out-of-the-way place called Palestine 2 millennia ago. His timeless story has inspired people from primitive cultures in the Amazonian jungles and in luxury Manhattan apartments. The simple and the intellectual are moved by His sacrificial love which is displayed in His willingness to die on the Cross. The young and the old are thrilled by the miracles that attest to His uniqueness.
It is not wrong to carefully study the ways in which the ancient Gospel applies to our lives and times. Seeing the old truth in fresh ways is not wrong. One of the most amazing things about Him is that He doesn't fall 'out of style.' His Gospel works in Bombay and Los Angeles and Zambia addressing the basic human needs shared by every culture. From time to time we need to re-examine our understanding of the Gospel texts. Why? Because, ideas not found in the text get attached to it that corrupt it.
So, make it fresh, but don't re-write the Bible. Find Him, but don't try to do a "Jesus make over" that robs Him of His majesty and message. Jesus is a controversial and shocking Individual. He makes claims that are stupendous! He provokes and prods, demanding our attention and devotion. We don't do Him or the Gospel a service by trying to round off the edges. He meant to challenge the status quo. He meant to call us to change, to tell us that there was a new Way back to God opening up through Him.
In his book, Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis says it best: "I am trying here to prevent anyone from saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him [Jesus Christ]: "I'm ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don't accept his claim to be God." That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic -- on a level with a man who says he is a poached egg -- or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse .... You can shut him up for fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon; or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God. But let us not come up with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that option open to us. He did not intend to."
Here's a word from the Word. Believer, it may be familiar to you and therefore you'll be tempted to let your eyes quickly run through it... but don't! Ponder it, meditate on it, believe it - and the testimony it makes about Him.
"He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth." (John 1:10-14, NKJV)
_____________________
The stories recorded in the inspired texts of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John have stood the test of time, telling us about a Man who is also God, who lived, died, and rose again. He really walked the pathways of a dusty, out-of-the-way place called Palestine 2 millennia ago. His timeless story has inspired people from primitive cultures in the Amazonian jungles and in luxury Manhattan apartments. The simple and the intellectual are moved by His sacrificial love which is displayed in His willingness to die on the Cross. The young and the old are thrilled by the miracles that attest to His uniqueness.
It is not wrong to carefully study the ways in which the ancient Gospel applies to our lives and times. Seeing the old truth in fresh ways is not wrong. One of the most amazing things about Him is that He doesn't fall 'out of style.' His Gospel works in Bombay and Los Angeles and Zambia addressing the basic human needs shared by every culture. From time to time we need to re-examine our understanding of the Gospel texts. Why? Because, ideas not found in the text get attached to it that corrupt it.
So, make it fresh, but don't re-write the Bible. Find Him, but don't try to do a "Jesus make over" that robs Him of His majesty and message. Jesus is a controversial and shocking Individual. He makes claims that are stupendous! He provokes and prods, demanding our attention and devotion. We don't do Him or the Gospel a service by trying to round off the edges. He meant to challenge the status quo. He meant to call us to change, to tell us that there was a new Way back to God opening up through Him.
In his book, Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis says it best: "I am trying here to prevent anyone from saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him [Jesus Christ]: "I'm ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don't accept his claim to be God." That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic -- on a level with a man who says he is a poached egg -- or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse .... You can shut him up for fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon; or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God. But let us not come up with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that option open to us. He did not intend to."
Here's a word from the Word. Believer, it may be familiar to you and therefore you'll be tempted to let your eyes quickly run through it... but don't! Ponder it, meditate on it, believe it - and the testimony it makes about Him.
"He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth." (John 1:10-14, NKJV)
_____________________
Jesus! What a friend for sinners!
Jesus lover of my soul!
Friends may fail me, foes assail me;
He, my Savior, makes me whole.
Jesus! What a strength in weakness!
Let me hide myself in Him;
Tempted tried and sometimes failing,
He, my strength my victory wins.
Jesus! I do now receive Him;
More than all in Him I find.
He hath granted me forgiveness;
I am His and He is mine.
Hallelujah what a Savior.
Hallelujah what a Friend.
Saving, helping, keeping, loving,
He is with me to the end.
Our Great Savior
Chapman, J. Wilbur / Prichard, Rowland H.- Copyright:
Public Domain
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
The Formula for Success
This was posted on Facebook: “Success is the place where preparation, courage, and opportunity meet.” (Scott Wilson) Hmm. Really? What kind of success is that? I used to read a lot of the ‘success’ literature. Each author had a different way of presenting the formulas but all shared common ingredients. Hard work, boldness, vision, getting the right education all figured prominently. A few were forthright in saying, “Be like me and you will succeed!” Their definition of success was invariably about growing your organization into a larger one, gaining a wider sphere of influence, and increasing your control of resources. That is a kind of success, but it is not the only way to measure life.
When I was around 40 years of age, I attended a conference in Boston, MA led by a man named Bob Buford who had enjoyed the kind of success that is measured by dollars and a big office. Then, after going through the crisis of losing his son and a deep self-evaluation, he shifted focus. Bob described the shift from success to significance. His book, Halftime, explored the shift that many make around mid-life from chasing titles and money to fulfillment, to becoming a person of character who seeks the purpose for which he was created by God. Better, I think.
The Bible makes an arresting statement that supersedes all the success literature as our guide to the best life! "The Lord is your life… Take to heart all the words I have solemnly declared to you this day, so that you may command your children to obey carefully all the words of this law. They are not just idle words for you—they are your life. By them you will live long … " (Deuteronomy 30:20, 32:46-47, NIV)
The Lord is your life! What a phrase. The Hebrew word translated as “life,” is one that bursts with energy. It is translated in other places in the Bible as green (like vegetation), animal, running, flowing (as a stream of water), and renew (as in springtime). In our relationship with our God, we find that kind of active life-force. Paul, preaching in Athens, declared that "In Him we live and move and have our being.” (Acts 17:28, NIV)
Whether we live in a palace or a cabin, drive a new car or a clunker, wear the latest fashion or blue jeans from the thrift store, have a 401(k) for retirement or just a hope that our kids will give us a room – we will be a success IF we have shaped our lives around the will and Word of the One who is our Life. Is that hard? Sometimes it is so difficult that the Bible describes the process as ‘dying to Self!’ It is not a ‘once and done’ moment. Each day there are two paths that diverge before us. Jesus described them as the “Broadway that leads to destruction,” and “the Narrow way that leads to life eternal.” One offers immediate gratification of our baser desires; the other the long-term reward that comes from faithful love, service to others, and obedience.
Much of the “Christian” success literature is not universal! It claims to be “godly truth,” but is really just the American dream re-packaged. God’s success formula is equally true in Bangladesh and New York City! It works for the bright and beautiful and the those who are not so fortunate. “The Lord is your life,” is accessible to us all – if we will accept it by faith and pursue loving and serving Him whole-heartedly. Which kind of success are you chasing, friend? From which fountain are you trying to draw life’s sustenance? May the Spirit guide you to the life that is truly life, to success that survives the end of your journey on this globe.
Here’s a word from the Word to ponder today. Is it describing your deepest aspirations?
"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful.
And now the prize awaits me—the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge,
will give me on the day of his return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to his appearing." (2 Timothy 4:7-8, NLT)
Now, that is real success, isn't it?
When I was around 40 years of age, I attended a conference in Boston, MA led by a man named Bob Buford who had enjoyed the kind of success that is measured by dollars and a big office. Then, after going through the crisis of losing his son and a deep self-evaluation, he shifted focus. Bob described the shift from success to significance. His book, Halftime, explored the shift that many make around mid-life from chasing titles and money to fulfillment, to becoming a person of character who seeks the purpose for which he was created by God. Better, I think.
The Bible makes an arresting statement that supersedes all the success literature as our guide to the best life! "The Lord is your life… Take to heart all the words I have solemnly declared to you this day, so that you may command your children to obey carefully all the words of this law. They are not just idle words for you—they are your life. By them you will live long … " (Deuteronomy 30:20, 32:46-47, NIV)
The Lord is your life! What a phrase. The Hebrew word translated as “life,” is one that bursts with energy. It is translated in other places in the Bible as green (like vegetation), animal, running, flowing (as a stream of water), and renew (as in springtime). In our relationship with our God, we find that kind of active life-force. Paul, preaching in Athens, declared that "In Him we live and move and have our being.” (Acts 17:28, NIV)
Whether we live in a palace or a cabin, drive a new car or a clunker, wear the latest fashion or blue jeans from the thrift store, have a 401(k) for retirement or just a hope that our kids will give us a room – we will be a success IF we have shaped our lives around the will and Word of the One who is our Life. Is that hard? Sometimes it is so difficult that the Bible describes the process as ‘dying to Self!’ It is not a ‘once and done’ moment. Each day there are two paths that diverge before us. Jesus described them as the “Broadway that leads to destruction,” and “the Narrow way that leads to life eternal.” One offers immediate gratification of our baser desires; the other the long-term reward that comes from faithful love, service to others, and obedience.
Much of the “Christian” success literature is not universal! It claims to be “godly truth,” but is really just the American dream re-packaged. God’s success formula is equally true in Bangladesh and New York City! It works for the bright and beautiful and the those who are not so fortunate. “The Lord is your life,” is accessible to us all – if we will accept it by faith and pursue loving and serving Him whole-heartedly. Which kind of success are you chasing, friend? From which fountain are you trying to draw life’s sustenance? May the Spirit guide you to the life that is truly life, to success that survives the end of your journey on this globe.
Here’s a word from the Word to ponder today. Is it describing your deepest aspirations?
"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful.
And now the prize awaits me—the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge,
will give me on the day of his return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to his appearing." (2 Timothy 4:7-8, NLT)
Now, that is real success, isn't it?
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Are you ‘God-aware?’
There are people who bumble their way through the day with no idea about what is going on around them, about how they are being perceived, unaware of how they affect others. They lack self-awareness. They are sometimes offensive but have no idea why others react to them negatively. They are frequently lonely but fail to understand that their own behavior or lack of manners is the reason. They are missing the social feedback sensors that others have which allows us to adjust ourselves to the situation. The person who lacks self-awareness talks too loudly in public, answers her cell phone and talks at length when it is clearly disturbing others, says things that are inappropriate, and generally misses social cues. The good news is that a person can learn this skill! If they desire to gain better relational skills, they can be coached to become self-aware.
There is another awareness that is critically important in the disciple’s daily life, one that the rush of the day can rob from us: God-awareness. A person who ‘forgets’ God, who fails acknowledge His Presence, becomes irreverent, profane, and often- insecure! It is a wonderfully assuring steadying blessing to know that He is near. Moses urged the Israelites to cultivate their God-awareness. He said, "Acknowledge and take to heart this day that the Lord is God in heaven above and on the earth below. There is no other." (Deuteronomy 4:39, NIV)
When Hagar, the maidservant of Abraham’s wife, Sarah, was badly mistreated and sent away with her child, in the wilderness He met her and she gave Him a new name: El Roi – “The God who sees me!” "An angel of God found her beside a spring in the desert; it was the spring on the road to Shur. …She answered God by name, praying to the God who spoke to her, “You’re the God who sees me! “Yes! He saw me; and then I saw him!” " (Genesis 16:7, 13, The Message)
Each morning my first act upon awakening is to offer thanks and praise to the Lord. It only takes a few seconds, but it is a habit that helps me to be God-aware. From time to time through the day, I pause to look up (emotionally and mentally, more than physically) to thank Him. Why? To keep myself aware that He is the “God who sees me!” This is not for God’s benefit, but for mine! When I fail to remember that He is with me, it is but a short trip to anxiety or needless cares or even to sin.
Disciple, be intentionally God-aware. It is true that when we are children of God, through faith in Christ Jesus, that the Holy Spirit lives in us, but He does so sometimes without our conscious knowledge. When this happens we tend to lose the nobility of holiness that comes from knowing we are children of God, that our Father is with us. Ask any child who has a great relationship with his father what the knowledge that ‘Dad is here’ does for him! Dad means safety. Dad’s affirmation brings encouragement. Dad’s discipline provides secure boundaries! We know that is true for children. Be reminded, it is true for children of the Heavenly Father, too.
Here is a word from the Word. May it be the prayer of the God-aware today.
"O Lord, you have searched me and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar.
You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways." (Psalm 139:1-3, NIV)
"Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast." (Psalm 139:7-10, NIV)
______________
Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!
O what a foretaste of glory divine!
Heir of salvation, purchase of God.
Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.
Perfect submission, all is at rest.
I in my Savior am happy and blest.
Watching and waiting, looking above.
Filled with His goodness, lost in His love.
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long.
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long.
Blessed Assurance
Crosby, Fanny J. / Knapp, Phoebe P. / Wagner, Dougles E.
© 1989 Lorenz Publishing Company (a div. of the Lorenz Corporation)
CCLI License No. 810055
There is another awareness that is critically important in the disciple’s daily life, one that the rush of the day can rob from us: God-awareness. A person who ‘forgets’ God, who fails acknowledge His Presence, becomes irreverent, profane, and often- insecure! It is a wonderfully assuring steadying blessing to know that He is near. Moses urged the Israelites to cultivate their God-awareness. He said, "Acknowledge and take to heart this day that the Lord is God in heaven above and on the earth below. There is no other." (Deuteronomy 4:39, NIV)
When Hagar, the maidservant of Abraham’s wife, Sarah, was badly mistreated and sent away with her child, in the wilderness He met her and she gave Him a new name: El Roi – “The God who sees me!” "An angel of God found her beside a spring in the desert; it was the spring on the road to Shur. …She answered God by name, praying to the God who spoke to her, “You’re the God who sees me! “Yes! He saw me; and then I saw him!” " (Genesis 16:7, 13, The Message)
Each morning my first act upon awakening is to offer thanks and praise to the Lord. It only takes a few seconds, but it is a habit that helps me to be God-aware. From time to time through the day, I pause to look up (emotionally and mentally, more than physically) to thank Him. Why? To keep myself aware that He is the “God who sees me!” This is not for God’s benefit, but for mine! When I fail to remember that He is with me, it is but a short trip to anxiety or needless cares or even to sin.
Disciple, be intentionally God-aware. It is true that when we are children of God, through faith in Christ Jesus, that the Holy Spirit lives in us, but He does so sometimes without our conscious knowledge. When this happens we tend to lose the nobility of holiness that comes from knowing we are children of God, that our Father is with us. Ask any child who has a great relationship with his father what the knowledge that ‘Dad is here’ does for him! Dad means safety. Dad’s affirmation brings encouragement. Dad’s discipline provides secure boundaries! We know that is true for children. Be reminded, it is true for children of the Heavenly Father, too.
Here is a word from the Word. May it be the prayer of the God-aware today.
"O Lord, you have searched me and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar.
You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways." (Psalm 139:1-3, NIV)
"Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast." (Psalm 139:7-10, NIV)
______________
Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!
O what a foretaste of glory divine!
Heir of salvation, purchase of God.
Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.
Perfect submission, all is at rest.
I in my Savior am happy and blest.
Watching and waiting, looking above.
Filled with His goodness, lost in His love.
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long.
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long.
Blessed Assurance
Crosby, Fanny J. / Knapp, Phoebe P. / Wagner, Dougles E.
© 1989 Lorenz Publishing Company (a div. of the Lorenz Corporation)
CCLI License No. 810055
Monday, March 22, 2010
Too blessed, perhaps?
Deep faith and abundant blessings should go together. Too many times, prosperity and peace only produce apathy about the things of God. A once deeply devout disciple develops a sense of independence based on the illusion that he can manage life quite well on his own, so long as he gives a nod in God's direction every now and then. As a Pastor for many years, I have observed the pattern over and over again. Life falls apart and a man is left in ruins. For some, it is a divorce that destroys their family life. For others, it is financial loss that follows a job loss or disaster. Yet for others it is a time of sickness. In desperation this broken person remembers God. He finds that old friend that always talked about Jesus. As he looks to the Lord and sincerely seeks after Him, just as the Word promises, he finds Him to be a Friend and Savior. He loves worship, showing up every time the doors are open. He devours books that show him the ways of Christ.
As he grows in faith and walks in spiritual disciplines, his life takes on new ways. Destructive habits are replaced with responsibility. Godly ways are the fertile soil in which blessings grow. What will he do with his blessings? Sadly, many grow independent of the very God that blessed them! Financial independence allows diversions that lead away from faithfulness to the things of God. Ministries that once were the core of his life are side-lined as he pursues the hobbies he can now afford. Focus on family life is eroded by demands of his work. Because he has moved into a place of greater responsibilities and more compensation, his kids don't see him pray except the formal kinds of prayer at dinner, because Dad really doesn't pray that much at all. He doesn't feel any real need to pray, to worship. Of course, if you ask him, he will thank God for the things he now enjoys, but his words and his true values are far apart.
Think that's far-fetched? Take a look at the wisdom of the Word from two sources: Jesus spoke of the seed of the Word which was received with joy but then "the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful." (Mark 4:19, NIV)
As an old man near the end of his life, Moses warned Israel of the dangers of prosperity they would confront when they entered the Promised Land – “Jeshurun (God's people) grew fat and kicked; filled with food, he became heavy and sleek. He abandoned the God who made him and rejected the Rock his Savior." (Deuteronomy 32:15, NIV)
In what is, even in this time of economic downturn, the richest nation on earth, empty churches on Sunday morning are but one stark symbol of our lack of regard for the Lord and things of the Spirit. Entertainment has replaced worship as the central focus of the weekend. Sports, properly enjoyed as a diversion, are now gods that received the adoration of millions. Our kids are trained like professional athletes from the time they are 4 years of age, leaving little time for God, for church, for family prayer. Christian parents focus their children on attaining physical prowess or academic degrees with little more than formal acknowledgement that a life of real abundance lies in knowing and serving God.
How I pray that the price of real spiritual revival and continued spiritual fervency is not sorrow and deprivation. Here’s a prayer that the honest man will pray in sincerity, trusting God to keep him. "Give me neither poverty nor riches! Give me just enough to satisfy my needs. For if I grow rich, I may deny you and say, “Who is the Lord?” And if I am too poor, I may steal and thus insult God’s holy name." (Proverbs 30:8-9, NLT)
Jesus said, "Anyone who intends to come with me has to let me lead. You're not in the driver's seat; I am. Don't run from suffering; embrace it. Follow me and I'll show you how. Self-help is no help at all.
Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to saving yourself, your true self. What good would it do to get everything you want and lose you, the real you?" (Mark 8:34-36, The Message)
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As he grows in faith and walks in spiritual disciplines, his life takes on new ways. Destructive habits are replaced with responsibility. Godly ways are the fertile soil in which blessings grow. What will he do with his blessings? Sadly, many grow independent of the very God that blessed them! Financial independence allows diversions that lead away from faithfulness to the things of God. Ministries that once were the core of his life are side-lined as he pursues the hobbies he can now afford. Focus on family life is eroded by demands of his work. Because he has moved into a place of greater responsibilities and more compensation, his kids don't see him pray except the formal kinds of prayer at dinner, because Dad really doesn't pray that much at all. He doesn't feel any real need to pray, to worship. Of course, if you ask him, he will thank God for the things he now enjoys, but his words and his true values are far apart.
Think that's far-fetched? Take a look at the wisdom of the Word from two sources: Jesus spoke of the seed of the Word which was received with joy but then "the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful." (Mark 4:19, NIV)
As an old man near the end of his life, Moses warned Israel of the dangers of prosperity they would confront when they entered the Promised Land – “Jeshurun (God's people) grew fat and kicked; filled with food, he became heavy and sleek. He abandoned the God who made him and rejected the Rock his Savior." (Deuteronomy 32:15, NIV)
In what is, even in this time of economic downturn, the richest nation on earth, empty churches on Sunday morning are but one stark symbol of our lack of regard for the Lord and things of the Spirit. Entertainment has replaced worship as the central focus of the weekend. Sports, properly enjoyed as a diversion, are now gods that received the adoration of millions. Our kids are trained like professional athletes from the time they are 4 years of age, leaving little time for God, for church, for family prayer. Christian parents focus their children on attaining physical prowess or academic degrees with little more than formal acknowledgement that a life of real abundance lies in knowing and serving God.
How I pray that the price of real spiritual revival and continued spiritual fervency is not sorrow and deprivation. Here’s a prayer that the honest man will pray in sincerity, trusting God to keep him. "Give me neither poverty nor riches! Give me just enough to satisfy my needs. For if I grow rich, I may deny you and say, “Who is the Lord?” And if I am too poor, I may steal and thus insult God’s holy name." (Proverbs 30:8-9, NLT)
Jesus said, "Anyone who intends to come with me has to let me lead. You're not in the driver's seat; I am. Don't run from suffering; embrace it. Follow me and I'll show you how. Self-help is no help at all.
Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to saving yourself, your true self. What good would it do to get everything you want and lose you, the real you?" (Mark 8:34-36, The Message)
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