Stay on God’s good side!

Got any pet peeves? A friend of mine is really set off by drivers who aren’t focused on the road. He’s a commuter, so that makes sense. I get peeved by people who wait until the last minute to get to a task they’ve known about for weeks, who then makes excuses about why it’s not done right. I’m not sure why that bugs me so much. (Go ahead, let me know what you think.) Based on personality, experience, and training each of us is sensitive to different issues. What looks like silly irritation to me may be deadly serious stuff to you.

Proverbs tells us that there are seven things that make the Lord angry! Really, it is true and it’s not silly. If we want to enjoy His blessing, we would be wise to pay attention. Take a look. "There are six things the Lord hates— no, seven things he detests: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that kill the innocent, a heart that plots evil, feet that race to do wrong, a false witness who pours out lies, a person who sows discord in a family." (Proverbs 6:16-19, NLT) Arrogance, dishonesty, injustice, conspiring to sin, chasing after the thrill of sin, using lies to make someone look bad, and troublemaking in the family are on the Lord’s list of things that stir up his anger.

That list makes a lot of sense when placed against the basic characteristic of the nature of God, love. John, the beloved disciple, explains: "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." (1 John 4:7-9, NIV) When we are self-centered and sinfully diminish the worth and quality of the lives of others in the ways listed in Proverbs, we really anger the One who is Love personified. Do you really want to live in a way that angers the Lord of the Universe, disciple?

Do you know that God loves you? Yes, He does; not for what you do, for how much you own, for your beauty or your brains- but just because you are! We will never love others the best way until we have accepted His love and settled, once and for all, our insecurities about our Self-worth. That is why John tells us that ‘we love because He first loved us.’ Oh, what liberation comes from the love of God. And, what slavery to sin keeps us wrapped up in ourselves if we will not accept the love of God shown to us through Christ Jesus.

Want to enjoy God’s blessings?
Want to live the best life possible, one of joy, of peace, of fulfillment?

Learn to love! It’s a beautiful thing!

_____________________

Lord, I come to You,
Let my heart be changed, renewed;
Flowing from the grace
That I've found in You;
And Lord, I've come to know,
The weaknesses I see in me,
Will be stripped away
By the pow'r of Your love.

Hold me close,
Let Your love surround me;
Bring me near,
Draw me to Your side;
And as I wait,
I'll rise up like the eagle,
And I will soar with You,
Your Spirit leads me on
In the pow'r of Your love.

Lord, unveil my eyes,
Let me see You face to face,
The knowledge of Your love
As You live in me.
Lord, renew my mind,
As Your will unfolds in my life,
In living ev'ry day
In the pow'r of Your love.

Power Of Your Love
Bullock, Geoff

© 1992 Word Music, Inc. (Admin. by Word Music Group, Inc.) / Maranatha! Music (Admin. by Word Music Group, Inc.)

CCLI License No. 810055

Who are you becoming?

We are, today, the shadow of who we will be tomorrow. C. S. Lewis said it eloquently: “There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations - these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub and exploit - immortal horrors or everlasting splendors. It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses, to remember that the dullest and most uninteresting person you can talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship, or else a horror and a corruption such as you now meet, if at all, only in a nightmare. All day long we are, in some degree, helping each other to one or the other of these destinations.”

In short, through the redemption of Christ and the transformation of the Spirit, we can become beautiful residents in the Father’s House; or in the service of Self and left to sin, we will become horrific denizens of Hell! Life is not static, friend. We are moving either toward God or away from Him in each decision. It is His desire that we are ‘transformed by the renewing of our minds’ (Romans 12:2) so that we will understand and live in His will. Indeed, we are His ‘workmanship,’ and to the extent that we will cooperate with Him, can become a masterpiece, a work of divine artistry! (Ephesians 2:10)

Change begins with vision! An architect ‘sees’ a building before the masons lay the first stone. A teacher ‘sees’ the lesson before he says the first word. Do you see what God sees as you look at your life or do you see only the present chaos? He sees you as a holy man or woman, a person who loves others intensely, who has vanquished insecurity, fear, and self-loathing because of His love. He sees you as an ‘everlasting splendor,’ and He will do whatever it takes (the Cross is silent witness to this!) to break you free from the habits and sins that keep you from emerging as a saint. Will you cooperate with the process of metamorphosis?

How I thank God that I am not who I once was, nor I am yet all that I will be. I am a becomer! Are you?

Here’s a word from the Word. Believe it and begin the transformation.
"Whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image." (2 Corinthians 3:16-18, NLT)

_______________

Deeper, deeper in the love of Jesus
Daily let me go;
Higher, higher in the school of wisdom,
More of grace to know.

Deeper, deeper! Blessed Holy Spirit,
Take me deeper still,
Till my life is wholly lost in Jesus
And His perfect will.

Deeper, deeper! Tho' it cost hard trials,
Deeper let me go!
Rooted in the holy love of Jesus,
Let me fruitful grow.
Deeper, higher, ev'ry day in Jesus,
Till all conflicts past
Finds me conqu'ror, and in His own image
perfected at last.

Oh, deeper yet, I pray,
And higher ev'ry day,
And wiser, blessed Lord,
In Thy precious holy Word.

Deeper Deeper
Jones, Charles P.

© Public Domain

Big Prayers

In the film, “Bruce Almighty,” Jim Carrey plays a TV reporter from Buffalo, NY who gets angry with God and wishes he could be God. His request is granted and he is given divine authority over just one city! (It’s a comedy film, people. OK?) As the prayers come flooding in, he is overwhelmed by them, even though most are about trivial matters like winning the lottery! He decides to answer everyone with a ‘Yes,’ and chaos soon follows. He realizes that being God is much more than just dispensing favors.

Our greatest privilege as Christian disciples is prayer! Our prayers are not just about getting God to give us what we want right now. Our prayers are about becoming part of His work in this world, about bringing His will into existence, seeing His reign extended. Let me ask you, are your prayers timid and tentative? Do you carefully surround each and every request with qualifying phrases and give God loopholes so you won't be disappointed if He doesn't ‘come through' for you? Enough of that!

The Sovereign Lord of the Universe invites us to "approach the throne of grace with confidence, and … find grace to help us in our time of need." (Hebrews 4:16, NIV) Jesus taught us that we are given access directly to God because of Him! "Ask the Father directly, and he will grant your request because you use my name. You haven’t done this before. Ask, using my name, and you will receive, and you will have abundant joy." (John 16:23-24, NLT)

Are you confused about praying?
Do you think that going to God and asking boldly is somehow impolite, disrespectful?
Wrong! I hope you’re not just whining to Him about making your life easier, about keeping the weeds from growing in your yard, about taking away consequences of short-sighted or foolish choices you made, or about giving you more money! He invites us into a rich conversation about growing deep in the life of the Spirit, overcoming sin and Satan, defeating forces of anarchy and evil!

The greater issue is not WHAT we pray for, but WHY we are praying for it. If we use the privilege of prayer to beg for more comfort and more things just to feed our selfish wants, God will refuse our petition. James explains that our motives need to be aligned with God’s purposes. He writes "...the reason you don't have what you want is that you don't ask God for it. And even when you do ask, you don't get it because your whole motive is wrong— you want only what will give you pleasure." (James 4:2-3, NLT) But if we ask for Him to do those things in us and with us and through us that cause His Name to be awesome in the eyes of the world, He is honored by our petition. He reserves the right to answer according to plans and purposes that we are incapable of knowing this side of Eternity. Remember a 'no' from our Father is surely as much an answer as a 'yes.'

Step back from the activity of life! Get alone with God and get honest in prayer. Listen to what your heart cry is.

Is it aligned with God's great purposes for you?
Is it filled with worship, giving Him pleasure with adoration?
Is it marked by love of His family as you pray for your church and your pastor be empowered by a fresh experience of God’s Holy Spirit?
Is it marked with humble confession and petitions for power and wisdom to live a Christ-like life?
It is an expression of your desire to be used of God to do His will in your daily life?
Are you asking the Spirit to draw your friends, family, and neighbors to Himself, saving them from death and sin's destruction?

No more weak, timid prayers! Pray His purposes confidently.
Go stand on the front steps of your house and gaze at your neighbor's homes. Tell the Lord that you want them for His kingdom and ask Him to give you opportunities and the courage to exploit the moment to bring them the knowledge of the immense love that the Father has for them.
Lift up your teen-age son every day, asking God to make clear what lies at the ends of the diverging paths that boy is facing.

Give up your need to control the world and put yourself in the hands of your Father, so that you can enjoy the wholeness of life that belongs to you as a child of Heaven and live with joy despite the tensions of life.

Here’s a word from the Word. When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray, He gave them this model. We pray it often, word for word, which is fine, but it is actually more like a template for our own prayers. As you read it today, see if your conversation with the Lord of Glory show the same kind of worship, confession, petition that are part of Jesus’ prayer.

“This, then, is how you should pray:

‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.’" (Matthew 6:9-13, NIV)

___________________

Oh, let the Son of God enfold you
With His Spirit and His love,
Let Him fill your heart
And satisfy your soul.
Oh, let Him have
Those things that hold you,
And His Spirit, like a dove,
Will descend upon your life
And make you whole.

Oh, come and sing this song with gladness
As your hearts are filled with joy,
Lift your hands in sweet surrender
To His name.
Oh, give Him all your tears and sadness,
Give Him all your years of pain,
And you'll enter into life in Jesus' name.

Jesus, oh Jesus,
Come and fill Your lambs.
Jesus, oh Jesus,
Come and fill Your lambs.

Spirit Song
Wimber, John

© 1979 Mercy / Vineyard Publishing (Admin. by Music Services)

CCLI License No. 810055

The other great commission

Jesus left his followers with a big responsibility which is known as the Great Commission: "Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." (Matthew 28:19, NIV) We have a divine mandate to bring the message of hope and reconciliation to God to every age, every race, every culture. With varying degrees of enthusiasm and success, Christians have responded to His challenge and the message about Jesus Christ has spread to the ends of the earth.

The Bible opens with another divine mandate, much misunderstood, often even forgotten. His words are spoken in the context of Creation, to humans which were the last of His works. "God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground.” (Genesis 1:28, NIV)

“Rule” and “subdue” are provocative words, aren’t they? Some read that as God’s permission to exploit Creation, extracting what we want from the natural world. We are given, they claim, God’s authority, to do as we wish with the resources of this planet. What happens to human authorities who govern in that manner? Does a good king care nothing for his subjects? Does he exploit those he rules only for his own pleasure? A good king governs to benefit the people he leads, not serving himself, but serving them. The Bible speaks of those who have authority as having a responsibility to seek the best for those who are under their direction.

Romans 13 reminds us that authority and leadership flows from the plan of God Himself. “The authorities are God’s servants,” to bring order and to punish wrong-doing. By implication, those who rule have a responsibility to create a place of safety that benefits those who are subject to them. When they govern well, they bring glory to God! "When the godly are in authority, the people rejoice. But when the wicked are in power, they groan." (Proverbs 29:2, NLT)

So let me ask you if you are ‘ruling Creation’ as a good authority or a bad one?
Are you exploiting the earth or managing it for God’s glory?
Is your attitude towards this wonderful Earth one of reverence, seeing it as God’s gift, handed to you as a sacred trust? Or, do you see it as something from which you can take what you want for your own pleasure?

No, we must not worship Creation as some do. God made the world. It is not eternal. Someday, He will write, “The End,” to this Creation and Peter says that it will all perish ‘in fervent heat,’ to be replaced with a new Heaven and a New Earth. What mystery that is!  Until then, we are given a sacred responsibility to care for Creation in a way that makes the earth fruitful, that causes greater beauty to emerge, even as she yields the benefit of her resources to our husbandry. This is the other great commission!

The issue of caring for the environment is not a Democratic or Republican cause. It is a Christian issue. I am convinced, disciple, that the Lord will ask each of us to give an accounting for the way we used the resources He put in our care. Will we be able to say, “Lord, I left it a better place than I found it, carefully using her resources, investing in making her a place that would sustain the next generation. I ruled well!”?

___________

This is my Father's world,
And to my listening ears;
All nature sings and round me rings
The music of the spheres.
This is my Father's world;
I rest me in the thought
Of rocks and trees, of skies and seas;
His hand the wonders wrought.

This is my Father's world;
The birds their carols raise.
The morning light, the lily white,
Declare their Maker's praise;
This is my Father's world;
He shines in all that's fair;
In the rustling grass I hear Him pass,
He speaks to me everywhere.

This is my Father's world,
O let me ne'er forget
That though the wrong seems oft so strong,
God is the Ruler yet.
This is my Father's world;
The battle is not done;
Jesus, who died, shall be satisfied,
And earth and heaven be one.

This Is My Father's World
Babcock, Maltbie D. / Sheppard, Franklin

© Public Domain

CCLI License No. 810055

Don’t live in the cemetery

Remember those now gone, but don’t linger too long in the cemetery! Memorial Day was once called Decoration Day. It began in the United States after the Civil War as a day to visit the cemeteries to decorate the graves of those who lost their lives in that terrible conflict. After the first World War, the day’s focus widened to include a remembrance of all those fallen in war. Visiting a memorial to soldiers lost can be a powerfully moving experience. On several occasions, I have walked the length of the Vietnam memorial on the Mall in Washington, DC and each time, I find that black slab bearing 50,000 names evokes deep emotions, real tears for those who never came home.

We must never forget those who paid the ultimate price to defend our Nation. But, we cannot live in the cemetery with them! Their sacrifice is meaningless if we do not move on, living life in a way that honors them, cherishing freedom, insisting on the protection of liberty, and demanding that our government maintains the principles of our Constitution!

Christians understand the powerful encouragement of remembering. On the night before He went to the Cross, Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper, the Communion meal that Christians have celebrated for two millennia. The cup reminds us of His shed blood which sets us right with our Father, providing complete forgiveness of our sins. The bread reminds us of His broken body, that He is our Wounded Healer. The Bible’s familiar words are: "On the night when he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took some bread and gave thanks to God for it. Then he broke it in pieces and said, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this to remember me.” In the same way, he took the cup of wine after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people—an agreement confirmed with my blood. Do this to remember me as often as you drink it.” For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are announcing the Lord’s death until he comes again." (1 Corinthians 11:23-26, NLT)

Disciple, we don’t live in the cemetery! We remember the Cross, but live on the other side of the Resurrection. His death brought us life! That is the amazing fact we remember at the Lord’s Table. “Walk worthy!” is the command we hear. Take the gift of the sacrifice and make it count in your day to day choices.

The Memorial Day, I hope you will remember, perhaps even walking through a cemetery where flags decorate the graves of those who died in the armed services of our great nation. Then, I pray you will leave the cemetery inspired to be a citizen who makes their sacrifice meaningful.