I lost my faith

 

I’ll call him John (a pseudonym). He was a friend who died a few years ago. He was once a pastor and a good one. He preached the Gospel to many and led a thriving church in a small town. When I befriended him, he was a foul-mouthed, bitter, hate filled person! He candidly told me that he thought my work was a joke, that God was humanity’s invention to cope with life’s uncertainty. 

In one of our conversations over lunch, he told me about the way that some in the church he served had abused him, about the disappointment that grew in him. He candidly told me that he had, in a time of inner turmoil, turned to a woman other than his wife for solace. When challenged by his elders to repent, he refused, and was dismissed from his position.  His voice dropped as he said, “Jerry, I just lost my faith.”  As much compassion as I felt for him, I could not agree. John did not lose his faith, he walked away from it.

I have served and loved God, through good times and bad, for 60 years since my conversion as a little child. And yes,  there are days when I do not sense His Presence. There are days when my prayers are no more than simple petitions or when I just sit in silence waiting. I am not trying to shock you, but to let you know that up’s and down’s in our faith are quite normal. Fatigue, illness, brain chemistry, demonic opposition, and our personal choices are all factors in how we sense the Presence of God, the Holy Spirit. 

But,  my assurance of God’s love does not rest in how I feel on a given day. The foundation of His Covenant, His Promise, His completed work on my behalf is my rock-solid hope!

Just as I know the sun continues to shine behind the dense layers of rain clouds; I know that God is near even when I cannot feel Him. When it appear as though I have mislaid my faith somewhere, I do not fall into despair or disobedience.  I know that "We live by faith, not by sight." (2 Corinthians 5:7, NIV)

Faith is both a gift of God and a choice we make. Neither part can exist without the other.  God, the Holy Spirit stirs faith in us. But, we choose to accept it, to exercise faith. Mark’s Gospel records an incident in which Jesus cursed a fig tree. The next day when the disciples were passing by they saw it withered and were astonished. “How did that happen?” they wondered. Listen to what Jesus told them. “Have faith in God!” (Mark 11:22, NIV)  The Lord commanded them to choose – letting them know that they had a responsibility to exercise faith even when their feelings resisted that choice.

Though God’s work is unchanging and His Word is true, our faith must be nurtured. Just as our bodies grow weak if we do not nourish and rest them, so our soul will weaken if not cared for. Vital faith must be fed the Truth.  The Word reminds us that "faith comes from hearing, that is, hearing the Good News about Christ." (Romans 10:17, NLT)  

Muscles are strengthened when we exercise them. Faith grows when we use it, live by it. Our faith grows strong when we choose to trusting God in ever increasing ways. Many of the faith choices I make at now are grounded in a faith that was beyond me 20 years ago. No amount of ‘wanting’ made it real! Faith has grown deeper and stronger through the tests and choices to trust the Lord, each new day.

Yesterday I stood beside a hospital bed that was occupied by an elderly lady, a Christian of many years who was troubled. “Pastor, God has abandoned me. Where is He?” Her sickness, her weakness, the uncertainty of the moment had simply overwhelmed her. How thankful I was to be able to sit down, take her hand, and pray for her, turning our focus from fear to faith. God’s Spirit came near. As I read some of the Psalms to her, her heart quieted, the peace of God visible on her face.  You, too, may feel as she did. But, fear not!  God is faithful, even when our faith wavers.

Troubled? Feeling that faith is failing?

Reach out to a friend. Pray together.

Enter into worship. Invite the Spirit to come near.

Re-center your soul in the Truth that is greater than your heart.

If necessary, make things right with God and/or others.

Feed faith and let God lead you to maturity, a life of trust in Him ‘come Hell or high water.’

 Here’s a word from the Word. Ponder it, pray it, live it!

"Since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus … do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised." (Hebrews 10:35-36, NIV)

____________

 

Blessed Assurance

 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

 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

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

Fanny Jane Crosby © Words: Public Domain

Propaganda

 

In the early 20th century it was considered improper for a lady to smoke but the American Tobacco Company realized that it could potentially double its customer base if women could be convinced to smoke. The chair of the company hired Edward Bernay, a nephew of Sigmund Freud, to design a campaign to change public ideas about women smoking in public. He saw an opportunity in the fact that women really wanted a better life, one that recognized their independence. 

Bernay hired women who were attractive yet relatable to march in the New York City Easter Sunday Parade of in 1929 while smoking what he labeled "torches of freedom."  Almost overnight, cigarettes became a symbol of feminine strength and of resistance of to the dominance of males. The taboo about women smoking was replaced with a new ideal of an independent, strong woman holding her ‘Torch of Freedom!’ That little footnote of American history is not a unique story about manipulation.

The Genesis story of the Garden tells of the Devil’s own propaganda. Finding Eve, he whispered suggestions that the God who had created paradise for them was holding out on the best. The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil stood at the center of the garden, with the stipulation that they should not eat of it or they would die, which was the truth.

The devil told a half-truth -  “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." (Genesis 3:5, NIV)  “Yes,” he said, “they would lose their innocence, but it would be a good thing, making them like God!”  The lie was planted, and when believed, it changed them, bringing on spiritual death.

Christian friend, are you allowing subtle lies to steal the truth from you?
Are you losing sight of Jesus, believing that your best life can be found in temporal successes and treasures?

We who have the Spirit of God living in us need not become deceived. He will give us a discerning mind! I love Paul’s prayer for Believers in Ephesians 1. "I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe." (Ephesians 1:17-19, NIV)  

The Spirit will help us to be wise, understanding right and wrong, capable of strategic choices in our lives. Beyond that, He also promises to reveal the unseen, to open our eyes to the spiritual and eternal so that we know Jesus better with each passing day.  What hope, what assurance, what power is ours through Christ. Will we trade these for empty promises of worldly success and/or social acceptance?

The Church of Jesus has fallen into disrepute, her attention misfocused, her agenda wrongly placed. Corruption has crept in. Tragically even as the father of lies exploits her mistakes, many are deceived by his propaganda. But, we who are ‘in Christ’ are not in the dark. We can be fully aware of his strategy if we choose to live in the Light, focused on the Gospel of Christ, which is our singular hope and the hope of the world. Pray for a discerning mind. Fill up your mind and heart with true faith, a mature and thoughtful faith. 

Here is a word from the Word. May it be both a caution and promise for us in this world of propaganda, so that we will know the Truth that sets us free.  "For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.  … They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen." (Romans 1:20-25, NIV)

"But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." (Romans 3:21-24, NIV)  That’s the Truth!

__________________

Living Hope

How great the chasm that lay between us

How high the mountain I could not climb

In desperation I turned to heaven

And spoke Your name into the night

Then through the darkness Your loving-kindness

Tore through the shadows of my soul

The work is finished the end is written

Jesus Christ my living hope

 

Who could imagine so great a mercy

What heart could fathom such boundless grace

The God of ages stepped down from glory

To wear my sin and bear my shame

The cross has spoken I am forgiven

The King of kings calls me His own

Beautiful Savior I’m Yours forever

Jesus Christ my living hope

 

Hallelujah praise the One who set me free

Hallelujah death has lost its grip on me

You have broken every chain

There’s salvation in Your name

Jesus Christ my living hope

 

Then came the morning that sealed the promise

Your buried body began to breathe

Out of the silence the Roaring Lion

Declared the grave has no claim on me

Jesus Yours is the victory whoa

 

Jesus Christ my living hope

Oh God You are my living hope

 

Brian Johnson | Phil Wickham © 2017 Phil Wickham Music (Fair Trade Music Publishing [c/o Essential Music Publishing LLC])

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Because He cares

 

“Just don’t worry about it!” That instruction is not all that helpful to those who are anxious. Anxiety afflicts roughly half of Americans in some way. All humans tend to worry some of the time, some of us more than others. Life provides us with plenty of raw material to work with in our worrying, doesn’t it?  Will my kids make good choices as they move in adulthood? Will that irritating health issue become chronic? How can I manage the care of that aging parent who is relying on me more?  Perhaps the anxiety grows out of a deeper source, a real sense that you just don’t ‘have what it takes’ to meet life’s demands.

Our choices to cope with anxiety often involve a Band-Aid™ approach. Not finding a real or lasting solution for their anxious thoughts, many choose to cover the emotional wound that continues to fester.
Need to ‘wind down’ after the stress of the day? Have a drink, or two.
Feeling life is unmanageable? Escape into television’s world of fantasy for 3 or 4 hours in the evening.  
Anger offers an illusion of control, turning some anxious people into very aggressive people.
Food soothes some, starkly evidenced by the general weight gain across our nation during the pandemic.

God offers us peace!  
We must be careful not to turn Him into another of our Band-Aids. God-talk, plastering a “Bible Promise” over our fears, is not the path to true peace. Nor, am I suggesting that some level of religiosity will relieve us of anxious care!  The peace that is the birthright of the child of God rests on the foundation of faith in His providential care.

God, the Holy Spirit, lives in us, and He helps us to choose faith over fear!  Paul was a man who had plenty of reasons to be crippled by self-doubt and terrible anxiety. But, the record reveals that he remained strong and steady even as he endured multiple unbelievably difficult circumstances in his life. How?  He tells us- "Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. If you do this, you will experience God’s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:6-7, NLT)  He found, in God, an assurance that was greater than his problems.

As Christians, we can make the same choice.
We do not make the problems of life less; we magnify God more, making Him greater!  

The peace that we find is not our own happiness, it is the work of the Spirit, the peace of God. I can truly identify with Jesus’ disciples who found themselves terrified in a boat, on the lake, in a storm in the middle of the night. They screamed at Jesus – “Don’t You care that we are about to die?”  He woke up, stood up, calmed the storm and then asked them  “Why are you so afraid? Do you still not have faith in me?” (Mark 4:40, NLT)  When life is stormy, when sleep eludes me at 2 am while I worry, I tend to question Him, too. But, I also know the amazing gift of peace that is found in honest prayer and faith that hands it all over to Him. 

If we want to live in the peace that is God’s gift, we must be willing to enter into prayer, real communion with God consistently. It is not a simple thing to set aside the natural impulse to worry and work, trusting God to provide. From the dawn of time, the lie of the devil has been that God cannot be trusted, that our pain is evidence of His unwillingness or inability to care for us.  So, we pray – for greater faith, for willingness to wait, for wisdom to reject the superficial ‘solutions’ and to live as children of the Heavenly Father. 

Jesus, knowing the pervasiveness of anxiety, taught us of faith in the Father.  Meditate on His words, our word from the Word today.  Pray that these words will be living truth, an assurance that rests on God’s amazing love.
 “I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?

Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans (those who do not know God) run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." (Matthew 6:25-34, NIV)

So, what about it? Will you turn to Him, pray for His peace, and obediently seek His rule in your life?  Yes? Then, peace will come!

_________

Good God Almighty

(Yes, He is a good God, the Almighty.
Find joy in this happy song today)

I can't count the times

I've called Your name some broken night

And You showed up and patched me up

Like You do every time

I get amnesia I forget that You keep coming around

Yeah ain't no way You'll ever let me down

 

Good God Almighty

I hope You'll find me

Praising Your Name no matter what comes

'Cause I know where I'd be

Without Your mercy

So I keep praising Your name at the top of my lungs

 

Tell me is He good (He's good)

Tell me is He God (He's God)

He is Good God Almighty

 

You say Your love goes on forever

That Your mercy never stops

So why would I assume

You'd be somebody that You're not

Like sun in the morning

I know You're gonna be there every day

So what on earth could make me be afraid

 

Praise Him in the morning

Praise Him in the noon time

Praise Him when the sun goes down

Love Him in the morning

Love Him in the noon time

Love Him when the sun goes down

 

Jesus in the morning

Jesus in the noon time

Jesus when the sun goes down

Jesus in the morning

Jesus in the noon time

Jesus when the sun goes down

 

Ben Glover | David Crowder | Jeff Sojka

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Present to One Another

 

One of the privileges of pastoral ministry is being invited into the lives of other people. I get to share wonderful joy in weddings and child dedications.  I grieve with many in time of death and I bring comfort to those who are sick.  I remember when a  young man died. His family called me to their home where his body rested as he had fallen. I found the man’s father kneeling by his son’s body crying, murmuring words of loving affection. I felt no need to quote Scripture or even to pray aloud.  Nothing I could say would comfort him, so I stood by, my hand on his shoulder to remind him that he was not alone, and we were brothers in sorrow for a long time. That is called the “ministry of ‘presence.’”  

It is not just those of us who are pastors who can offer the gift of presence. All Christians are called into relationship, to bear one another’s burdens, to share their gifts for mutual benefit. Paul teaches us "When others are happy, be happy with them. If they are sad, share their sorrow. Live in harmony with each other. Don’t try to act important, but enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don’t think you know it all!" (Romans 12:15-16, NLT)  There is strength and fulfillment to be discovered in the relationships of the Church.

Want to be the best for Christ you can be?  Commit yourself to His Church.
Want to experience the most joy of the Lord?  Create strong relationships in the Church.
Want to have a reserve of strength for the tough times? Keep your ties strong to His Church.

The New Testament consistently emphasizes the shared experience of Christ to which we are called.
"The church is Christ’s body, in which he speaks and acts, by which he fills everything with his presence." (Ephesians 1:23, The Message)  "So then, let us aim for harmony in the church and try to build each other up." (Romans 14:19, NLT)

When we become a Christian, through faith in Jesus, the next step is to become part of a local church. There we can start to fulfil the high calling of Christ as part of a whole new social order, one God created. It is a place where the old lines of separation are erased. "So you are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus. And all who have been united with Christ in baptism have been made like him. There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male or female. For you are all Christians—you are one in Christ Jesus." (Galatians 3:26-28, NLT)  You have not found that in your church?  Then, pray for change, for unity, for a renewed focus on Christ Jesus.

If your church has become a political action committee, or devolved into a place where the most exciting event is the next church supper, or turned worship into a performance – pray for God’s leading to find a church that desires to be the Body of Christ. It need not be big or beautiful. It won’t be perfect and if it were, it would no longer be when you or me or any other imperfect human being showed up. (joke, there, ok?)  Look for true devotion, for hunger for God’s Presence, for 2-fold love: for God, for others. AND – be present!  If disappointment or disillusionment causes you to be absent from church, you are hurting yourself, and if you have children, you are assuring that they will completely abandon the faith.  

Being part of a church requires many of the same choices as building a strong marriage – patience, gentleness, adaptability, communication, growth – to name a few.  Your church, if alive, will continue to change, always focused on the Gospel of Christ, but learning new ways to live that Good News. Dysfunctional people will drag their relational mess into your church creating times of tension. Those who lead will sometimes get it right and sometimes make a mess of things!  People will delight you and disappoint you in equal measure.  

That is why Spirit-inspired and sustained LOVE is critical.  The Word tells us that "the most important piece of clothing you must wear is love. Love is what binds us all together in perfect harmony. And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are all called to live in peace. And always be thankful. 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." (Colossians 3:14-16, NLT)  That sounds like a community of Christians in which I want to live. How about you?

In an era where many are choosing a privatized faith, when many are abandoning the Church, let’s choose God’s way, for the sake of obedience, and with a profound faith in the Spirit’s power. He calls us, as part of following His Son, into the rich work of His church, His bride.  Let’s learn to be present to one another, simply loving, simply being, trusting that He will form us into beautiful people "who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory." (Ephesians 1:14, NIV)

The word from the Word is my prayer for us, together, as we desire to be His Church. "I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth. I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will give you mighty inner strength through his Holy Spirit. And I pray that Christ will be more and more at home in your hearts as you trust in him. May your roots go down deep into the soil of God’s marvelous love. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love really is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is so great you will never fully understand it. Then you will be filled with the fullness of life and power that comes from God." (Ephesians 3:14-19, NLT)  Amen

____________

If We Are The Body

(Casting Crowns asks us to think about the Church)

It's crowded in worship today
As she slips in trying to fade into the faces
The girls teasing laughter is carrying
Farther than they know
Farther than they know

(But) if we are the body
Why aren't His arms reaching
Why aren't His hands healing
Why aren't His words teaching
And if we are the body
Why aren't His feet going
Why is His love not showing them there is a way
(There is a way)

A traveler is far away from home
He sheds his coat and quietly
Sinks into the back row
The weight of their judgmental glances
Tells him that his chances are better
Out on the road

Jesus paid much too high a price
For us to pick and choose who should come
And we are the body of Christ

Jesus is the way

Mark Hall

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I love you

 

“I love you, Pastor,” the little girl told me with a sad face. I sat down next to her and asked why she was sad. She told me that she had heard I was retiring and that she would miss me at church. Her face brightened when I told her that I planned to still be around, that she couldn’t get rid of this old guy that easily.  She encouraged me with her openly affectionate heart!

I hope that I will consistently do the same for others. A word of hope, a note of appreciation, a pause to take an interest in another – these are gifts of encouragement that enrich our lives.  Do you let the stress and fatigue of life to turn you into a critic? “Why does he do that anyway? What is wrong with him?”  “Doesn’t she know that she looks silly? Someone ought to tell her the truth!”  

Christian, let’s ask the Holy Spirit to change us into people who encourage.  How about it?

Let’s take a lesson from Jesus.  His disciples, when they saw an extravagantly loving choice, missed the beauty in the moment, becoming critics. "Jesus was in Bethany at the home of Simon, a man who had previously had leprosy. While he was eating, a woman came in with a beautiful alabaster jar of expensive perfume and poured it over his head. The disciples were indignant when they saw this. “What a waste!” they said. “It could have been sold for a high price and the money given to the poor.”

But Jesus, aware of this, replied, “Why criticize this woman for doing such a good thing to me?"  (Matthew 26:6-10, NLT) “Celebrate her choice,” He told them.  They didn’t take time to look into her heart and thus they missed out on the opportunity to share in her joy.

We will not always understand why others do the things they do. We may question the impracticality of another’s choice. We may not get why they choose that path. Let’s be cautious, very careful, about setting ourselves us to judge! Who gave you or me the right to decide what is best for everyone?  Yes, there is a time to correct, but even then, we are to do so gently as we ‘speak the truth in love.’   Face the fact, dear friend, most oof our criticisms have nothing to do with absolute right or wrong. They are based on preferences and priorities that we press on others.

This Monday morning, I want to invite you to take up the work of encouragement.  Pray for the grace of God to help you to express real appreciation to the unique people who are a part of your life. There is a richness to be found in the variety of people in your church, your family.  In Christ’s Church we are, despite our differences, truly one.  

Paul reminds us that even if somebody does not work like we do or express their faith as we do, we are to value them.  He says , “You can easily enough see how this kind of thing works by looking no further than your own body. Your body has many parts—limbs, organs, cells—but no matter how many parts you can name, you’re still one body. It’s exactly the same with Christ.” (The Message, 1 Corinthians 12:12)

Make your encouragement sincere. You just might change someone’s life by showing a real, encouraging Jesus-inspired love!

Here’s a word from the Word. "You must encourage one another each day. And you must keep on while there is still a time that can be called “today.” If you don’t, then sin may fool some of you and make you stubborn." (Hebrews 3:13, CEV)  "Some people have gotten out of the habit of meeting for worship, but we must not do that. We should keep on encouraging each other, especially since you know that the day of the Lord’s coming is getting closer." (Hebrews 10:25, CEV)

___________________

Look Up Child

(Lauren Daigle’s beautiful song of encouragement)

Where are You now
When darkness seems to win
Where are You now
When the world is crumbling

Oh I I
I hear You say
I hear You say

Look up child hey
Look up child hey
(Look up)

Where are You now
When all I feel is doubt
Where are You now
When I can't figure it out

You're not threatened by the war
You're not shaken by the storm
I know You're in control
Even in our suffering
Even when it can't be seen
I know You're in control

Jason Ingram | Lauren Daigle | Paul Mabury

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