Walking by faith isn’t easy!

Keep the Faith! It’s a great line and an even better choice for life.  We have all heard enough bad news in the last couple of weeks to last a lifetime. Are you going to just camp in the awful, hang onto the dread, rehearse the losses? Don’t do it. Christ Jesus invites us to be led by our Great Shepherd giving us reason for hope no matter what is happening around us, to us, or inside of us.  

Yesterday, at Faith Discovery Church, I joined 5 other people, average age about 65, who spent the afternoon distributing food from our church pantry. (We were wise, practicing good social distancing.) What joy I discovered in giving supplies and a hearty “God bless and keep you” to those 45 families that showed up. I found further joy in remembering that effort was possible because of dozens of others who give, support, serve, and pray to keep hope alive and faith evident in our church.

I want to urge you to FOCUS upwards and outwards today- with hope formed in FAITH. Habakkuk, the preacher who was a contemporary of Jeremiah, living in Jerusalem about 600 years before the time of Jesus, wrote about living by faith. He pondered the question of fairness and God’s will. He was inspired to leave us a little book that shines bright for us with a message capsulated in this passage -  "the righteous will live by his faith— the Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth be silent before him.” (Habakkuk 2:4,20, NIV)

Listen to his aching heart and let the words become your cry in this season. "How long, O Lord, must I call for help? But you do not listen! “Violence is everywhere!” I cry, but you do not come to save." (Habakkuk 1:2, NLT)  Living in faith is not easy and it never has been!  

He continues his prayer for understanding this way. "God, you’re from eternity, aren’t you? Holy God, we aren’t going to die, are we? God, you chose Babylonians for your judgment work? Rock-Solid God, you gave them the job of discipline? But you can’t be serious! You can’t condone evil! So why don’t you do something about this? Why are you silent now? This outrage! Evil men swallow up the righteous and you stand around and watch!" (Habakkuk 1:12-13, The Message)  I feel his emotions, don’t you?

But, Habakkuk moved beyond that place to rest in FAITH and to LOOK UP.  He surrendered himself to God.  Don’t read that to mean that we should throw in the towel and walk away from the fight! Faith leads us to acceptance of God’s will and to hope that is anchored securely on His assurance that justice will be done.  This is the declaration that is the anchor of our faith. "Do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord, no matter what happens. Remember the great reward it brings you! Patient endurance is what you need now, so you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive all that he has promised. “For in just a little while, the Coming One will come and not delay. And a righteous person will live by faith. . . . we are not like those who turn their backs on God and seal their fate. We have faith that assures our salvation." (Hebrews 10:35-39, NLT)

My late father often reminded me of the importance of faithfulness with this homely little phrase – “Remember, son, God’s payday is not necessarily this Friday.” Both reward and judgment are sometimes out of sight in our limited line of vision, but they are assured by the eternal purpose and promise of our Father!

Habakkuk sums up his faith walk in the words that reflect our earnest hope to see things made right and our determination to wait on the Lord.

Take this word from the Word today to heart and pray for faith to grow strong, faith that stabilizes you, that keeps you serving, loving, and looking for the Kingdom to come.

O Lord, I have heard Your speech and was afraid;

O Lord, revive Your work in the midst of the years!

In the midst of the years make it known;

    In wrath remember mercy.

Though the fig tree may not blossom,

Nor fruit be on the vines;

Though the labor of the olive may fail,

And the fields yield no food;

Though the flock may be cut off from the fold,

And there be no herd in the stalls—

Yet I will rejoice in the Lord,

I will joy in the God of my salvation.

The Lord God is my strength;

He will make my feet like deer’s feet,

And He will make me walk on my high hills.

Habakkuk 3:2; 17-19 (NKJV)

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Blessed Assurance

(actual song begins 2 minutes in

CeCe Winans will blow you away)

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 perfect delight

Visions of rapture now burst on my sight

Angels descending bring from above

Echoes of mercy whispers of love

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

Fanny Jane Crosby | Phoebe Palmer Knapp

© Words: Public Domain

A Message Nobody Wants To Hear

In the predawn hours, I was in prayer for friends, for the nation, for restoration of our land. In the darkness, when the whisper of the Spirit came to me. “Jerry, I am offering an opportunity for change, holding open my heart to My church. Return to Me.” I paused in my prayer, just to listen, to reflect. 

Then the words of Isaiah, spoken to the broken nation of his time, filled my mind. "This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says: “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it." (Isaiah 30:15, NIV) 

God’s amazing love and grace is my life song.  One nationally known pastor that I was listening to this week made a startling statement. “I won’t trust any spiritual leader who has not been terribly hurt, who has not experienced the restoration of God.” He went on to explain that those who are unbroken often turn into harsh critics, judges of the weak, the fallen, the sinful; not really knowing the depth of God’s grace for themselves.   

The word of the Lord that I speak today does not come from a lofty place of superiority but rather from a man who has known failure and restoration, found in true repentance.

Let me hasten to say that I am NOT saying that God sent the coronavirus to punish the world. He is not a vengeful God, nor is He cruel. This virus, and all the accompanying suffering, is part of life in a fallen world where evil and sin are still very much in evidence.  

 I am saying that our healing is found when we abandon our self-sufficiency, submit our hearts and will to God, and turn back (repent) to Him. He is allowing this time to invite us to hear His Voice clearly. Will we?

Paul, the spiritual father of the Christians in the city of Corinth, sent a letter of correction that made them sad! He rebuked them for abusing spiritual gifts, pointed out their immaturity that showed in their divisions, and reminded them that they were failing to represent Christ well before the city.  Titus brought news of their response to Paul. “They are,” he said,  “experiencing true sorrow and repentance.”  

Paul wrote a second letter in which he said - “I am glad that you were sad.”  Is he gloating?  Not at all!  "Even if I caused you sorrow by my letter, I do not regret it. Though I did regret it—I see that my letter hurt you, but only for a little while— yet now I am happy, not because you were made sorry, but because your sorrow led you to repentance. For you became sorrowful as God intended and so were not harmed in any way by us. Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death." (2 Corinthians 7:8-10, NIV)

When we act like willful children, as a good Father the Lord will allow us to feel the consequences of our choices. Sometimes we hurt so badly, don’t we?  But, HE does not reject us or say, “Good enough for you. Now suffer!”  He loves us too much to let us to destroy ourselves without offering corrective discipline, without asking us to turn. Paul tells the church that failing to recognize Jesus as Lord will cause us to lose our joy. Ignoring His ways, or rebelling against His will is a sure way to find ourselves in terrible difficulties. 

In times like these, even as we pray for healing and renewal,  we are wise to ask the Father to change our hearts, too!  When the Spirit points out our empty worship, our rebellious thoughts, our Self-centered ways - there is only one thing to do:  repent! "The sacrifice you want is a broken spirit. A broken and repentant heart, O God, you will not despise." (Psalm 51:17, NLT)  Paul calls this “godly sorrow.”

Let me say it again!  God is not petty nor petulant. He is good and kind. The Scripture is clear that not all of the outcomes of life are direct cause and effect, at least from our limited perspective.  Godly people often suffer and sometimes the wicked prosper.  But, we cannot ignore the fact that God, our Father, desires obedience and corrects us for our own good.  He is glad when we are sad if that sorrow leads us to deeper devotion and sincere change of heart.

This time of sickness, of economic chaos, of isolation, when all the ‘normal’ is set aside, we who claim to know Christ would do well to pause and reflect, to listen carefully for the Spirit. Then we can embrace the promise as we turn: “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength.”

Here’s the word from the Word. “My dear child, don’t shrug off God’s discipline, but don’t be crushed by it either. It’s the child he loves that he disciplines; the child he embraces, he also corrects. God is educating you; that’s why you must never drop out. He’s treating you as dear children. 

This trouble you’re in isn’t punishment; it’s training, the normal experience of children. Only irresponsible parents leave children to fend for themselves. Would you prefer an irresponsible God? We respect our own parents for training and not spoiling us, so why not embrace God’s training so we can truly live? While we were children, our parents did what seemed best to them. 

But God is doing what is best for us, training us to live God’s holy best.” 

-The Message, Hebrews 12:5-10

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Abba, renew my faith.

Help me to be ready to say “yes,”

to respond to correction with real repentance.

These are days of difficulty, Lord, making us deeply uncertain.

Settle us on You, like a Rock of Refuge.

Help us to go beyond singing loud songs to drown out

The voice of the Spirit and conscience,

Having a listening heart and a discerning mind to understand

What You desire, to accept Your invitation to become more like Jesus.

Draw me close to Your heart.

Keep me in Your grace.
Let me know joy in a new day of mature godliness.

In Jesus’ Name. Amen

Staying Connected

A long time ago, in our small church office, a friend brought some strange looking computer hardware and cables. That day we built a network! It connected my PC, the secretary's PC, and a printer. Those same tasks are now accomplished easily over wi-fi, with automated installations. Back then it was a real job that required technical knowledge. This morning, sitting here in my kitchen my computer is part of the Internet, networked to millions of computers, worldwide, where I can find information, chat with friends, watch podcasts, and exchange messages.

Networking is for more than computers. The last few days when the corona virus has kept most of us at home, the virtual connections became a great source of joy. Even as I was preparing to write this blog, Charlie posted a beautiful violin solo of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” on my Facebook page, which I really enjoyed! Solomon told us that "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 4:12, NLT)

If get too focused on the task at hand we may fail to appreciate the people involved in the process. It’s a weakness I know well. But, when we slow down, love people, create opportunities for others to ‘join’ us in life, we find real joy.  And, yes, that product we are working at, it will be better for the sharing. Teams make us more creative, give our work more longevity, and enjoy broader acceptance. That is true no matter what social structure we are thinking of - family, neighborhood, church, corporation, or government.

So, if the advantages of networking are so obvious, why don't more of us get connected?

By definition, networks limit our autonomy! When we become part of a network, we give up some of our rights. We must think of 'we' as a higher value than 'me.'  Self is strong and our human nature resists letting go of some of our ‘freedom.’ The devil's lie is - "Express yourself. Do your own thing. It's the only way to be happy." God's truth is - "Give yourself away. Serve and love, and you will discover joy!"

One of my prayers is that this corona virus with the ‘social distancing’ requirements will actually serve to get us reconnected. You and me, in Christ, being His Body.  Let’s make Him beautiful in our world – caring, sharing, serving, loving.

Here's a word from the Word about becoming part of the Spirit's network.
"Make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one heart and purpose." (Philippians 2:2, NLT) "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,... taking the nature of a servant." (Philippians 2:3-7, NIV)

Now, that's REAL networking.

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Old Church Choir

There's revival and it's spreading

Like a wildfire in my heart

A Sunday morning hallelujah

And it's lasting all week long

Can you hear it

Can you feel it

It's the rhythm of a gospel song

Oh once you choose it you can't lose it

 (Oh 'cause) There ain't nothing

There ain't nothing gonna steal my joy

I've got an old church choir singing in my soul

I've got a sweet salvation and it's beautiful

I've got a heart overflowing

'Cause I've been restored

(No) there ain't nothing gonna steal my joy

No there ain't nothing gonna steal my joy

When the valleys that I wander

Turn to mountains that I can't climb

Oh You are with me You never leave me

Clap your hands and stomp your feet

'Til you find that gospel beat

'Cause He's all you'll ever need

All you'll ever need

Clap your hands and stomp your feet

'Til you find that gospel beat

'Cause He's all you'll ever need

All you'll ever need

I've got an old church choir singing in my soul

I've got a sweet salvation and it's beautiful

Oh there ain't nothing gonna steal my joy

Colby Wedgeworth | Ethan Hulse | Zach Williams

© 2016 Anthems of Hope (Admin. by Essential Music Publishing LLC)

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