True North

When Lloyd C. Douglas, author of The Robe, was a university student, he lived in a boarding house. An elderly, retired music teacher, infirm and unable to leave the apartment, resided on the first floor. Douglas and the man had a ritual for the morning. He would come down the steps, open the old man’s door, and ask, “Well, what’s the good news?” The old man would pick up his tuning fork, tap it on the side of his wheelchair and say, “That’s middle C! It was middle C yesterday; it will be middle C tomorrow; it will be middle C a thousand years from now. The tenor upstairs sings flat, the piano across the hall is out of tune, but, my friend, THAT is middle C!” The old man had discovered one thing upon which he could depend, one constant reality in his life, one “still point in a turning world.” (The Trivialization of God, NavPress, 1995, D. McCollough)

What is the anchor in your life?  To borrow another metaphor, what serves as your true North?  I am thankful for the GPS device that guides me through unfamiliar areas, that aids me in finding my way, but long before that technology arrived ships sailed featureless seas navigating by the stars. The heavenly lights are fixed points from which the navigator could find his position.  Do you have a guide for life, a standard by which you measure all things?

Long ago, I responded to God’s invitation to faith in Christ Jesus. He is my “way, Truth, and life.”  In Him I find healing for my soul, purpose for today, and assurance of life eternal.  Wealth can be lost. Health will fail. Pleasure slips away.  But,  Jesus is the same “yesterday, today, and forever!”    Knowing Him in this way does not mean that I no longer grow or that I have arrived at perfection.   With Paul, I say, “I am well on my way, reaching out for Christ, who has so wondrously reached out for me. Friends, don’t get me wrong: By no means do I count myself an expert in all of this, but I’ve got my eye on the goal, where God is beckoning us onward—to Jesus. I’m off and running, and I’m not turning back.”  (Philippians 3:12-14, The Message)

Expressions of faith will change with time.  In just my brief lifetime, I have observed trends come and go, ideas ever changing among the people of God. But the cross of Christ remains the place of transformation, the Resurrection of Christ the reason for hope.  Worship forms will change.  The culture into which Christ speaks will change.  But, He remains immutable!

Here is our word from the Word.  May the Spirit make the Lord of which it speaks your Rock of Ages. "He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross." (Colossians 1:15-20, NIV)

Take 3 minutes and listen to Dr. S. M. Lockridge tell about his King.  “That’s My King”  will leave you in tears, wanting to cheer, and ready to walk with your King!

When You Need A Friend

Simon and Garfunkel released  “Bridge Over Troubled Water” the year that I started high school. The 60’s brought a kind of revolution to the United States. Civil rights struggles brought riots to the streets. The Vietnam war divided the nation.  Assassins brought down a President, his brother, and Martin Luther King, Jr.  Society was being reshaped. It was the era of sex, drugs, and rock music redefining how America lived. And then we heard the voices of two guys offering a way to get through the mess:

 

When you're weary, feeling small; 
When tears are in your eyes,
I will dry them all.
I'm on your side
When times get rough,
And friends just can't be found; 
Like a bridge over troubled water,
I will lay me down. – Paul Simon, copyright, 1969

What did I know about ‘troubled waters’ at the tender age of 14? Not much at all.  But, I knew the value of a friend and I still do! When a person offers concern and demonstrates love, it helps to restore hope of a new day.  A friend is a kind of bridge.  Even as an old cynic, Solomon acknowledged the importance of friendship. "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)

But, troubles come that no earthly friend can take away, that cannot be soothed by calming words of concern. What then?  You and I still need a Friend, who is closer than a brother.  His invitation is sweeter than the old folk song by far.  Jesus says, “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you." (Matthew 11:28-29, The Message)  

Peter knew this Friend and tells that we can "cast all your care upon Him, for He cares for you." (1 Peter 5:7, NKJV)  “Cast” is an action word in the original language of the New Testament.  It means ‘throwing something down violently!’  We are urged to take those heavy burdens of life and throw them onto the shoulders of an Almighty God. Peter, the impulsive disciple, was inspired to pen those words for us. He wrote them out of his own experience of Jesus’ amazing Friendship.   When Peter responded to Jesus’ invitation to walk on water and got out of the boat, it was only a moment before he saw the waves and sank, saved only by his Friend’s strong grasp. He followed Jesus on the night of His arrest showing more courage than all except John, but then his courage collapsed and he swore, “I never knew Him.” But, his Friend found him in Galilee, restored him, and told him to “feed My sheep!”   Peter led the disciples through the first decade of Christianity.  And through it all he found the treasure of knowing a great Friend. So, he tells us that whne we are bent under the weight of worry, troubled by life, there is just one solution:  Throw it onto the shoulders of your strong Friend! He is ready to care for you.

Situations will arise that do not yield to your best efforts at finding an answer. People will act irrationally, disappointing and frustrating you. Disasters come – fire, flood, and disease – and we cannot understand why. These are the times to cast your care on Him! Fall on your face and give it up, letting go of control, releasing your need to know – not in resignation to fate, but in an act of faith that says, “Lord, I cannot carry it; please lift it from my shoulders.”

Here’s a word from the Word for this day.  "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30, NKJV)

Go ahead, right now…

take that heavy thing that is breaking your heart and imagine you have in your grasp. Got it? 
Now, throw it to Him, “Here it is. Thank you for helping me carry it, Lord. Amen.”

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What A Friend We Have In Jesus (Converse)

What a friend we have in Jesus,

All our sins and griefs to bear.

What a privilege to carry

Everything to God in prayer.

O what peace we often forfeit,

O what needless pain we bear.

All because we do not carry

Everything to God in prayer!

Have we trials and temptations,

Is there trouble anywhere?

We should never be discouraged,

Take it to the Lord in prayer.

Can we find a friend so faithful,

Who will all our sorrows share?

Jesus knows our every weakness,

Take it to the Lord in prayer.

Are we weak and heavy laden,

Cumbered with a load of care?

Precious Savior, still our refuge,

Take it to the Lord in prayer.

Do thy friends despise, forsake thee?

Take it to the Lord in prayer!

In His arms He'll take and shield thee,

Thou wilt find a solace there.

Charles Crozat Converse | Joseph Medlicott Scriven

© Words: Public Domain

Walking with a limp?

In the middle of a mess, when a crisis strikes, do you ever just want to scream, “I quit!”?  In four decades of serving God’s church as a pastor I confess that I have wanted to leave my post on several occasions. One Sunday morning, about 25 years ago, I had every intention of ending the worship service with my resignation. The conflicts that were going on had wearied me and obscured the vision, leaving me joyless.  While praying in my office before going to the sanctuary, I felt the Spirit say, “No, not now.”   I was equally furious and broken hearted.  But, in obedience, I tore up the resignation letter and pushed ahead.  The following years God blessed that church and we had an effective ministry.

There are things about God and yourself that you cannot discover except through difficulty!

Jacob had made a mess of his life.  He conspired with his mother to defraud his older brother by stealing his father’s blessing.  Realizing that Esau would kill him, he ran for his life.  He ended up living in Laban’s camp,  where he got what he had given; deception.  (The story of his marriages to Leah and Rachel are the stuff of both tragedy and comedy.) After years in exile, he decided it was time to go home to face the music, so to speak.  On the way, he heard that his brother Esau was coming to meet him. Jacob expected violence and schemed to buy his brother’s forgiveness.  He did not run this time.  And, in his crisis, he became a changed man.  The Bible tells it this way.

"Jacob sent messengers ahead of him to his brother Esau in the land of Seir, the country of Edom. … When the messengers returned to Jacob, they said, “We went to your brother Esau, and now he is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him.” In great fear and distress Jacob divided the people who were with him into two groups, and the flocks and herds and camels as well. He thought, “If Esau comes and attacks one group, the group that is left may escape.” Then Jacob prayed, “O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac, O LORD, who said to me, ‘Go back to your country and your relatives, and I will make you prosper,’  … Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid he will come and attack me, and also the mothers with their children." …

That night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two maidservants and his eleven sons and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. After he had sent them across the stream, he sent over all his possessions. So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.” But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”

The man asked him, “What is your name?” “Jacob,” he answered.  Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men and have overcome.”

Jacob said, “Please tell me your name.” But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed him there. So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, “It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.” The sun rose above him as he passed Peniel, and he was limping because of his hip. Therefore to this day the Israelites do not eat the tendon attached to the socket of the hip, because the socket of Jacob’s hip was touched near the tendon." (Genesis 32:3, 6-9, 11, 22-32, NIV)

A new name in the Bible is about a new identity!  Remember when Jesus renamed Simon?  He called him “Peter,”  the rock, foreshadowing Peter’s critical role of leadership in the first generation of Christians.

Jacob, whose name means “deceiver” spent the night wrestling with God and came out of the struggle with a new name and a new way to live.  God named him  Israel,  which means “God overcomes.”  Do not miss a key fact in that story.  Israel’s encounter with God left him with a limp, a source of pain that kept that proud schemer aware of the importance of relying on the Lord, not on himself.

Are there messes in your life created by your past sin?

Is there some difficult, frightening, miserable, challenging thing facing you?

Do you want to turn and run?

A better choice is to push through the pain!  I am not just talking about gritted teeth and grim determination.  Take your troubled heart, your fearful thoughts, your dread, your uncertainty to God in prayer.  Wrestle with Him honestly, humbly.  Feeling fury? Tell Him. Feeling confused? Tell Him. Trapped? Tell him.  But, do not walk away from Him.  Work it out. (It might take longer than a day!)  I promise you that if you will be honest with Him, wait patiently for Him, and keep your heart right – He will meet you.  He may not change your situation, but He will change you, equipping you to live differently.  The struggle may leave you with a limp, but it will always remind you of the time you wrestled with God and discovered new things about Him and yourself.

The word from the Word is a song of David. "I waited and waited and waited for God. At last he looked; finally he listened. He lifted me out of the ditch, pulled me from deep mud. He stood me up on a solid rock to make sure I wouldn’t slip. He taught me how to sing the latest God-song, a praise-song to our God. More and more people are seeing this: they enter the mystery, abandoning themselves to God. Blessed are you who give yourselves over to God, turn your backs on the world’s “sure thing,” ignore what the world worships." (Psalm 40:1-4, The Message)

______________

You Are God Alone (Not A God)

You are not a god created

By human hands.

You are not a god dependent

On any mortal man.

You are not a god in need of

Anything we can give.

By Your plan,

That's just the way it is.

You are God alone

from before time began;

You were on Your throne-

You are God alone!

And right now, in the good times and bad,

You are on Your throne –

You are God alone!

You're unchangeable!

You're unshakable!

You're unstoppable; that's what You are.

You're the only God whose power

None can contend.

You're the only God whose name and

Praise will never end.

You're the only God who's worthy

Of ev'rything we can give.

You are God,

That's just the way it is.

And right now, in the good times and bad,

You are on Your throne, You are God alone!

Billy J. Foote | Cindy Foote

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