Give Me Patience … Now!

Patience is not one of my strongest traits, and that is an understatement. When I’m stuck in heavy traffic, I grow impatient. When I sit in an office waiting for my appointment to begin, I have to do some mental exercises to stay calm. When the circumstances of life are frustrating me, I want things fixed and orderly – right now!

To me, God speaks this wisdom. "Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD." (Psalm 27:14, NIV) He does not always work at the speed at which I desire. He does not always reveal His plans. Yet I am told to ‘wait.’

Sometimes in those seasons when I am waiting, I confess that other issues enter my life.
My prayers grow colder and more formal.
Scripture is harder to understand.
Worship does not flow from a glad heart, offered more from duty than delight.
As I grow more restless, distractions draw me in many directions.

Thankfully, there is this promise that helps me press through the difficult time. "He gives power to those who are tired and worn out; he offers strength to the weak. Even youths will become exhausted, and young men will give up. But those who wait on the Lord will find new strength. They will fly high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint." (Isaiah 40:29-31, NLT) What a paradox. In our anxious desire to see something happen, the answer is not “try harder.” Rather, it is trust Him with patience.

What does it mean to ‘wait on the Lord?’ 

A key part is the willingness to surrender to His will. The Psalm illustrates the concept - "Behold, as the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their masters, and as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress; so, our eyes wait upon the LORD our God, until that he have mercy upon us." (Psalm 123:2, KJV) Those who worked in a household as servants stood by, patiently. They were not focused on their own agenda but were attentive to the desires of another. “So, we wait upon the LORD, our God.” 

Waiting on the Lord requires deep faith.
Others may see the choice as laziness or lack of enthusiasm.
Some may claim to have a vision for you, urging you to act now.

Even the first disciples, who had an urgent mission to ‘go in all the world and preach the Good News’ were told first to wait. There was work to be done in them before they were ready to serve. It may be that the Spirit desires to do something IN YOU, building faith, changing your heart.

Here is what Jesus said to those first disciples about expectantly and patiently waiting for the Spirit.
"Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about." (Acts 1:4, NIV) “Wait,” He said, “don't rush off, trying to force something to happen while you are only half-prepared.” 

In God's time, the Spirit moved on them. "Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting." (Acts 2:2, NIV) "All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them." (Acts 2:4, NIV) Those men and women left that Upper Room, filled with the Spirit, empowered to go and become the foundation of the Church. Prepared, ready, and effective - changing the world! Let God do what He needs to do as you wait patiently on Him.

Our word from the Word is a Psalmist's prayer. If you are in a time of waiting – make it your plea. "I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope. My soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning. O Israel (people of God), put your hope in the LORD, for with the LORD is unfailing love and with him is full redemption."  (Psalm 130:5-7, NIV)

I will wait on the Lord. Will you?

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Video at https://www.youtube.com/@JerScott55

 

It Doesn’t Make Any Sense

A flow of information floods our lives like water pouring from a firehose! Pundits tell us about public policy. Doctors inform us about the latest health trend. Podcasts bring us ideas about every conceivable subject. Conversations with dozens of people each week require more thought and evaluation.

We absorb information about the economy, wars around the world, the corruption in our government, the failure of higher education … and a thousand other things. Much of it is presented in terms that demand changes unless I want to witness the end of life as I know it.

My question is - how do we evaluate all this information?
How do we make the best choices with such an array of options before us?

If left to human wisdom alone – be it my own or that borrowed from others - I realize that I am in real peril because the so-called ‘experts’ have failed me too many times. The 'wise' have turned out to be fools; the 'righteous' revealed as frauds; last year's 'truth' was replaced by this year's discoveries.

The late Dr. David Wells wrote that when we turn from a God-centered life to a man-centered one, "everything drifts apart. It begins to resemble confetti - a myriad of experiences, none of which is related to the others.... and which can mean anything. The human being becomes 'homeless' adrift in a world that is beyond comprehension."

Solomon tried making sense of life with various philosophies. In Ecclesiastes we read his cynical conclusions. "Come on, let’s try pleasure. Let’s look for the ‘good things’ in life." But I found that this, too, was meaningless. ...I decided to cheer myself with wine. ... In this way, I tried to experience the only happiness most people find during their brief life in this world. I also tried to find meaning by building huge homes for myself and by planting beautiful vineyards. . .. I collected great sums of silver and gold, the treasure of many kings and provinces. .... I had everything a man could desire!

So, I became greater than all who had lived in Jerusalem before me, and my wisdom never failed me. ... But as I looked at everything I had worked so hard to accomplish, it was all so meaningless—like chasing the wind. . . . This is all so meaningless!" (Ecclesiastes 2:1-15, NLT)

How easily we can slip into that kind of cynicism. When we attempt to make sense of life without an anchor in the truth of the Living God, the Creator and Source of life itself we will inevitably be cast adrift in a sea of contradictions. With age and experience we can lose touch with good, with beauty, with the joy of a life that rests on a solid foundation. 

Are you attempting to make sense of your life with pleasure, money, technology, control and/or organization, education, or something else in this present world? Those things will, in the short term, give us some bright days and social benefits, but they will certainly fail to provide a life with meaning and hope as our days come to an end.

Perhaps you have taken yet a different path attempting to live ‘above it all’ retreating from engagement with the wider world as much as you can. Maybe you have made this your philosophy - "I don't ask the questions! I just retreat into my little world and forget the rest."  

Even that choice ultimately fails because eventually the world we have tried to ignore will invade our little circle and we will know the consequences of choices made on our behalf by others.

Here is the best choice, one recommended by Solomon, near the end of his life. Solomon, after all his efforts to satisfy his inner longings, to understand life as meaningful, comes to this conclusion:  "Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil." (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14, NIV)

My friend is the True Center of your life the Lord Jesus Christ? Jesus promises that He will be with us 'even to the end of the age.'   He gave us the gift of the Spirit of God Whom He said would not just be with us, but Who would live in us, when we choose to submit ourselves to Him in faith. He said – “If you love me, obey my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth.”  (John 14:15)

 Of Himself, Jesus says, “I am the Alpha and the Omega—the beginning and the end,” says the Lord God. “I am the one who is, who always was, and who is still to come, the Almighty One.” (Revelation 1:8, NLT)

This is not a simplistic answer to the complexity of life. In Him, in His wisdom, and by the Spirit we find an anchor, a point of reference, and access to a way of living that supersedes all the things of this temporal world. As He guides us, our lives become meaningful; even the pain we suffer useful in the hand of God for His eternal purposes.

The word from the Word today reflects the certainty found in our trust and faith. May these words grant us peace in these tumultuous times. “Overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from his love. Death can’t, and life can’t. The angels can’t, and the demons can’t. Our fears for today, our worries about tomorrow, and even the powers of hell can’t keep God’s love away. Whether we are high above the sky or in the deepest ocean, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.”  (Romans 8)

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Video at https://www.youtube.com/@JerScott55

The END of us?

 

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Last week some bright guys warned the world with alarming language about the potential demise of the
human race, killed off by Artificial Intelligence. Were they just being sensational, trying to create a sense of urgency or is there a real threat? What I know about AI would not even fill a page so I will not comment on the accuracy of their claims.

I am watching this news with interest and some concern, wondering what it will mean for my children’s future, for employment millions of people, and the effect on weapons of war, the lethality of which we humans seem to love to ‘improve’ with all means, including AI.

But this I know for certain. It is critically important to be reminded of the source of our TRUE hope and our REAL security. Followers of Jesus Christ need not allow be overtaken with panicky emotions.

·       We need not be sleepless through the night!

·       We need not fear the future.

·       We can settle ourselves on the Rock of our Salvation, remaining focused on the fact that our God is eternal, as Scripture says, “the Alpha and Omega,” encompassing all things from beginning to end. This surety keeps us steady when the world around shakes.

I love the security that David sings about Psalm 57. He wrote this song at a time of many troubles. The king of Israel was mentally unstable and came to believe that young David was a threat, so he mobilized his special forces to try to kill him. David had no refuge, living the life of fugitive in caves in the desert, constantly on the move. His circumstances were fertile soil in which hopelessness might grow, but did he let that happen?
Look at this song.

"They spread a net for my feet— I was bowed down in distress. They dug a pit in my path— but they have fallen into it themselves. (Selah)

While his enemies plotted his destruction, he made his heart quiet. “Steady as she goes,” he whispered and then, looking to God who reigns, he broke into song!

“My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and make music. Awake, my soul! Awake, harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn. I will praise you, O Lord, among the nations; I will sing of you among the peoples. For great is your love, reaching to the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the skies. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; let your glory be over all the earth." (Psalm 57:6-11, NIV)

When he writes about a ‘steadfast’ heart, he is speaking of an active choice to settle himself. He has chosen to look beyond the circumstances of the moment to the Lord’s promises. IF we would know peace, we must make the same choice. “My heart is steadfast, O God!”

We cannot allow our emotions to drag us into despair. We must not let the doubts take control. Instead, we choose to be steady. One of my favorite authors, Eugene Peterson, penned a meditation on the Psalms which he titled – A Long Obedience in the Same Direction. He makes the point that our Christian faith is a series of choices, made each day. We will not sustain hope based on an experience of the Spirit that is a decade old!

·       We open the Scripture for a Word for this day.

·       We quiet ourselves in contemplative prayer today refusing to let the hurriedness of life to rob us of that renewal found in the Spirit.

·       We deal with the challenges of the day, not letting them pile up into apparently insurmountable mountains.

Yes, we go “Steady on!” 

Isaiah, God’s preacher to Judah in a time of spiritual apathy and pending judgment, could have thrown up his hands in disgust, and retreated from his calling. He did not. He points to the secret of being faithful.
"You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord, is the Rock eternal." (Isaiah 26:3-4, NIV) 

Is the sky falling? Are tough times ahead? I do not know but I will choose God's peace. I will choose to live in faith, and I will store my treasure in Heaven. And I will pray for my faith in Jesus to grow stronger, replacing my natural desire to find security in some safe place of my making. How about you?

Here is a familiar word from the Word. May the Lord make our ‘truth for the day.’
"Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

And the God of all grace,
who called you to his eternal glory in Christ,
after you have suffered a little while,
will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.

To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen." (1 Peter 5:8-11, NIV)

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Video at https://www.youtube.com/@JerScott55

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Dreamin’ with my eyes wide open

Sometimes I find myself daydreaming! Yes, with my eyes wide open and complete awareness of what is going on around me, I begin to think “What could change? How can I make it better? What would create happiness in this situation?" I am told by those who study such things that our brain does better at solving problems when we give ourselves permission to dream about possibilities, not simply what we are told is the ‘reality’ with which we must cope.

Too many people surrender to their critics, giving in to the struggles and just choosing to exist!  IF we give up on life disappointment and disillusionment will replace hope. We will begin to let the days slip by- on Monday aiming for Friday, in the morning already thinking about losing ourselves in meaningless TV for the entire evening. IF we lose sight of ‘why’ we are alive, if we refuse to dream because we are told we should not, we will live a defeated existence and drift through day after day.

I am NOT suggesting that we avoid reality and choose to live in fantasies. That, too, is a waste of our days and does not fulfill the high and holy calling that God desires for each one of us.

God does not desire that we become successful people by the common measures of fame, wealth, or celebrity, BUT He does want you and me to be  people of significance.

The best life is not a destiny, but a path shaped by a God-sized dream. We can pray – “Lord God, form in me a dream worthy of You. Show me how to best use the opportunities in my life, to overcome the broken places in myself, and to understand who I am in Your purposes.”   As strange as it sounds, the best life emerges from surrender to His will; not giving up, not becoming numb to the world, but pursuing His purpose over self- promotion. Believe me, there is real joy in that choice.

John Ortberg (pastor and author) writes that "surrender is not passivity nor abdication. It is saying yes to God and life each day. It is accepting the gifts He has given to me - my body, my mind, my biorhythms, my energy. It is letting go of my envy or desire for what He has given to someone else. It is letting go of outcomes... Surrender is accepting reality ... the ultimate reality: I am a ceaseless being with an eternal destiny in God's great universe."  {When the Game Is Over, It All Goes Back Into the Box, 2007, Zondervan} The deepest surrender, Ortberg says, grows out of the profound realization that I am not master of the game, the God of life IS!

Real vision forms when we surrender to the Spirit. Jesus says "If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake and for the sake of the Good News, you will save it." (Mark 8:34-35, NLT) To paraphrase His words- “If you live selfishly, you will lose everything in the end. If you live as God desires, you will gain an unshakeable hope and the gift of an eternal reward.”

I am convinced that when we are surrendered to Him in our attitudes, God is able to shape our dreams and create opportunities for us to become His partners in changing the world.

Sound too lofty? Is that grandiose? Not at all. It is our privileged place as children of the Heavenly Father. Can you imagine a life more significant than that?  

·       What would life look like if instead of working to impress others or building a network of power to defend our rights, we chose humble service without needing thanks or applause?

·       What if we measured “success” as being content to be useful to God with no expectation other than to find the joy of obedience?  

I want, by the grace of God and the help of the Spirit, to dream big - so that I will not remain where I was yesterday, nor will I lose myself in fantasies about tomorrow. Instead, I will follow Christ’s plan that I become like Him today, with but one desire – that He shines through me in a way that is unique to my gifts and circumstances.

Make this declaration-
“For the glory of God, I want to be the best __________________________
(fill the blank) that is possible!

Here’s a word from the Word. I love the truth declared here.  
"Now glory be to God! By his mighty power at work within us, he is able to accomplish infinitely more than we would ever dare to ask or hope. May he be given glory in the church and in Christ Jesus forever and ever through endless ages. Amen." (Ephesians 3:20-21, NLT)

Let’s dare to dream a godly dream and live the life prepared in His wisdom for us.

Amen.

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Video at https://www.youtube.com/@JerScott55

Oh, God …

Each morning, even before I throw back the covers of my bed, I pray … not long prayers, not well-thought prayers, but still I pray. In those words, murmured in the first moments of consciousness, I thank God for a new day. I present myself to Him and ask that I will live in a way that He can use me for His purposes.

Then, there are those times of prayer when I bow my head and all that I can say is “Oh, God …” Either I do not know what to say, or perhaps I do not even know what I desire of Him, or I am too angry or sad to speak. What then?

IF I just walk away from prayer in those moments
it is likely that a distance will creep into my relationship with Him.

In years of Pastoral ministry, I have talked with hundreds (no exaggeration) of Christians who struggle with meaningful prayer.
Sometimes it is a misunderstanding of prayer as a one-sided conversation. It IS important to learn to ‘wait on the Lord’ focused and silent before Him.
Often it is a struggle of faith; an inner hidden conflict with one’s self that recognizes a gap between what is being prayed for and real faith to believe God will respond.
And sometimes there is just a sense that we want to express ourselves to Him more fully but lack the words.

That is when I learned to pray the Psalms.’  
Borrowing that ancient, inspired text, I speak aloud to the Lord and find my heart lifted, my mind changed. Who could improve on this prayer in times of disappointment? "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God? My tears have been my food day and night, while men say to me all day long, “Where is your God?” (Psalm 42:1-3, NIV) I have prayed those words dozens of times.

The worship of these lines can move me into my own time of praise. "I will praise you, O LORD, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonders. I will be glad and rejoice in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most High." (Psalm 9:1-2, NIV)

In times of failure, these words of confession have been my prayer. "Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. … Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me." (Psalm 51:1-3, 10-12, NIV) What joy I have found in confessing both my sin and His grace to forgive!

In the 150 Psalms we find all kinds of prayers – worship and adoration, cries for help and rescue, and angry expressions of doubt and fear. So, use them as your prayer book! Let them teach you how to commune with God in a deeper, richer way. Let them lead you beyond fumbling and muttering into amazing worship.

It is my experience that praying the Psalms launches me into my own prayers, inspiring me to know God better. Christian, for us prayer is not an option. When we pray, we open up our lives to the power of God and, in ways that defy our understanding. In prayer we word WITH to build His Kingdom here on earth. How amazing is that?  

Pray first, not last.
Pray often, not seldom.
Pray boldly, not tentatively.
Pray faithfully, knowing that He is faithful, even when you cannot discern His ways or hear His voice.

Here’s the word from the Word, some prayers from the Psalms.
"But now, Lord, what do I look for? My hope is in you. Hear my prayer, O LORD, listen to my cry for help; be not deaf to my weeping. For I dwell with you as an alien, a stranger, as all my fathers were." (Psalm 39:12, NIV) "You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book." (Psalm 56:8, NLT)

"I will fulfill my vows to you, O God, and will offer a sacrifice of thanks for your help. For you have rescued me from death; you have kept my feet from slipping. So now I can walk in your presence, O God, in your life-giving light." (Psalm 56:12-13, NLT)
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The Prayers Of The Saints

Let these prayers of the saints
Be sweet smelling incense
Let these prayers of the saints
Be sweet smelling incense to Your heart

Matt Redman © 1998 Thankyou Music (Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing)

Amen.

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Video at https://www.youtube.com/@JerScott55

Stop picking at that scab!

Some of you will find my opening lines unpleasant but I hope you will hang in there for the point today. Our skin is an amazing thing, capable of repair, protective of our health, and filled with sensitive nerve ending. When damaged with a cut or abrasion, our skin forms a scab. Scabs might seem like a gross thing, but they are critically important to healing, protecting wounds against infections. Underneath that ugly, scaly thing the body is busy with a process of repair of skin cells and blood vessel restoration. There are white blood cells actively fighting off germs. So, stop picking at that scab! If you pull it off you risk infection and you most certainly delay healing, while risking development of a bigger scar.

In an age when we have become much more aware of our mental health, tending to be more thoughtful, and generally much more sensitive to being ‘hurt’ by others in so many ways, I am of the opinion that some of us delay healing with repetitive picking at our emotional wound. We are ready to recount, in detail, that wrong that was done to us a decade ago. We refuse to forgive the person who treated us cruelly, rehearsing the wrong, reminding ourselves of the ‘toxic’ treatment we received.

Let me pause to acknowledge that pain is real. Wounds can go deep. In another time we might have been encouraged to minimize those things. We may have been taught to ‘step over’ it or to just ‘get over it. That is not what I am encouraging today. Spending time with a good therapist who can help us gain perspective can be valuable. Praying through our pain with a trusted and wise friend offers the hope of real healing.

However, we must be willing to let the wound heal, to come to a place where we acknowledge the hurt but are ready to move on in life without a need to excuse our present by pointing at our past! We can learn to say things like this -
“It happened!
I learned from it!
I accept my part in it!
I am willing to forgive others who participated in it!
I am more than that trauma!”

Forty years ago, I went through an intense time of emotional trauma. I spare you the details, but it was truly awful. I did what I thought was the Christian thing to do at the time – excusing the wrong in myself and others, professing a forgiveness I did not truly feel, and carrying on with life in a busy way. A few years later, I became clinically depressed and it nearly cost me my life.

I finally acknowledged the incompleteness of my experience and with the loving care of some and the patient encouragement of my wife I found true healing. The scar remains but the wound is gone. The hurt turned into a source of genuine life change and a much more profound appreciation of the grace and love of Jesus!

Yes, we can heal. Those real hurts from a divorce, a church split, a broken friendship, even abuse of many kinds can heal. They will leave a scar. But they need not stay open wounds for the rest of our lives because we keep picking the scab, ripping them open again and again.

How can we heal?

At the risk of over-simplification, I offer these thoughts today.

First, find a friend!
I love the work of Alcoholics Anonymous. Why? It provides a safe place for an alcoholic to find friends who share the addiction and encouragement to work for sobriety. Whatever your wound, a primary step in starting to heal is finding a place to talk about it with people who understand. How I pray that the Church will be more like AA and less like a country club!

Second, be honest!
Don’t offer excuses for yourself or those who hurt you. Dealing with the facts is important. Self-deception can trap us as we reframe the experience to fit our own needs. Commit to the truth.

Third, be prayerful!
The old hymn says, “take it to the Lord in prayer.”  In my experience decades ago, I took that terrible situation to the Lord so many times. I knelt in our church sanctuary alone and wept as I talked to Jesus. He began the healing by showing me His love and leading me to great people who loved me, prayed for me, and gave professional care that saved my life.

Fourth, be appropriately forgiving!
True forgiveness is not just ‘letting the other guy off the hook.’ It is not making an excuse for them such as, “well, they’re only human.’  We forgive when we release whatever debt we feel to God for His judgment. Some justice we desire is just out of reach in this world and we are wise to take Jesus’ word when He says, “forgive and you will be forgiven.”

Lastly, learn acceptance and grace!
People are imperfect, including me and you. Good people make awful decisions. Yes, some are truly evil and require removal from our circle, but most are just garden variety sinners who hurt without thinking, who say stupid or foolish things, who make an awful choice in a moment of weakness. Does it make the wound they inflict less real? Not at all, but IF we want to heal we need to say this often - "There but for the grace of God, go I."

Let’s grow into spiritual maturity, scarred from the battles of life, but courageous for the future and committed to the goodness of God.

The word from the Word says
"Christ’s love … has the first and last word in everything we do. Our firm decision is to work from this focused center: One man died for everyone. That puts everyone in the same boat. He included everyone in his death so that everyone could also be included in his life, a resurrection life, a far better life than people ever lived on their own.

Because of this decision we don’t evaluate people by what they have or how they look. We looked at the Messiah that way once and got it all wrong, as you know. We certainly don’t look at him that way anymore.

Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life burgeons! Look at it! All this comes from the God who settled the relationship between us and him, and then called us to settle our relationships with each other."  (2 Corinthians 5:14-18, The Message)

Amen.

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Video at https://www.youtube.com/@JerScott55

Love? Is it real?

Jesus Himself said that love is the mark of His genuine followers. “By this will all people know you are my disciples – that you love another.”  You’re nodding your head in agreement, right?  Yet, think about it.
We are capable of ripping each other to shreds over when our traditions are threatened, our comfort impeded, or our beliefs challenged.
When a Christian fails or falters, observe the cruel, loveless judgments that come flooding on social media.
I have been appalled by the public musings of so many conservative Christians about various subjects that show hearts and minds that are anything but loving!

Love can be fragile, too, can’t it? Everyone knows the pain of a failed friendship. An angry word is spoken, a misunderstanding blows in like a summer thunderstorm, offense takes hold and becomes a fortress wall. A friend becomes an enemy and the wound goes deep! The love once enjoyed mysteriously turns into a bitter hatred.

Even familial love fails! Sons and mothers do not speak over some insignificant slight. Lovers who once could not stand to be apart for a moment become enemies who actively desire the destruction of each other.

So, can we really love? Is love just a mirage or momentary emotion or is it a profound choice for life, a way we learn to live to know the highest and best of the promises of Jesus?

One of the best books I have ever read on the complicated subject of human relationships is titled – Bold Love- (Dr. Dan Allender, NavPress, 1993). One of his assertions is that 'love is not natural.'

Allender writes, "There is an enormous drive in the fallen human personality that impedes the process of learning to love and an equally powerful force outside of every person that labors to destroy every effort to love. ... Complacency and presumption work hand-in-hand to blind even Christians to the importance of love and inherent battle involved in learning to love. IF we are to learn to love, we must begin with an acknowledgment that love is not natural and that love's failure is not easy to admit."

Let me rephrase that paragraph!
Sin and selfishness work inside of us and the Devil works outside of us- conspiring against love's birth and/or survival. Then, too, there is the false belief that love does not need daily care. Neglect allows it to cool until it dies, all the while we live in denial of the truth!

The only way we learn to love and remain loving is to be renewed constantly in the love of Christ! "We love each other because he loved us first." (1 John 4:19, NLT) Authentic and deep love like that of Jesus requires dying to Self. He insists that "No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other." (Matthew 6:24, NLT) We cannot love God and ourselves at the same time. We cannot love others deeply while selfishly serving our own needs, either!

Is love challenged in your life?

Before you form a fist and attempt to force a change, go to your knees! Let the Lord of Love, love you!
Before you pray, "God make them change!" give the Holy Spirit full access to your heart and mind and let Him change you! Before you walk away, expressing hatred through cool contempt, ask God to help you love others - the same way that He loves you.

Love is a force for change that is more powerful than any weapon ever devised by human beings. At the same time, genuine Christ-like love often appears to be weak on the surface as we seek to understand others, when we are gentle and allow ourselves to be vulnerable. In fact, real love leaves us open to real HURT. C.S. Lewis wrote, “To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything and your heart will be wrung and possibly broken.”

The word from the Word- "Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. Love does not demand its own way. Love is not irritable, and it keeps no record of when it has been wronged. It is never glad about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance." … "There are three things that will endure—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love." (1 Corinthians 13:4-7,13, NLT)

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Video at https://www.youtube.com/@JerScott55

Compassion for Clancy?

Given all the attention the story has received recently you must know at least the outlines of a horrific story out of Massachusetts. A young mother, Lindsay Clancy, killed each of her children not long after the birth of her third child, then cut her own wrists and jumped out of a 2^nd story window in attempted suicide. The tragic aftermath so very dark – there are three little bodies buried, she lives as a paraplegic, her marriage ended, and an extended family lives with awful grief.

Her trial ended this week with a hung jury, 11 voting to acquit her by reason of insanity, 1 voting for conviction on murder charges.

I listened to people talk about the case this week and heard a range of responses. Some think she should receive a death penalty. A few suggest she should die an awful death like her children did. Some think she really was out of her mind and should be treated with compassion.

Ours is a culture that knows little about mercy. “Give’em what they deserve,” we insist. American jails and prisons are full to overflowing. Our political system is in a state of constant war, the ‘win’ valued more than trying to think about the issues with an understanding for the other guy. We take a perverse delight in the fall and/or destruction of the famous, the powerful. 

So, on which side do you tend to lean – for blind justice or tender mercy?

Having known grace, the mercy of God, I desire to lean into it for others. Yes, I find the results of evil often repulsive, and my reflex is to “Give that person what he deserves!”  But, often with a silent prayer, I ask God to forgive me first, and then to create a tender heart in my that is willing to enter the experience of another with the hope of redemption.

What is mercy? It is showing another compassion or forgiveness when it is without your ability to punish or condemn them. It goes beyond withholding judgment out of politeness as in thinking ‘what an idiot’ but not saying it aloud.

Mercy causes a person to consider the needs of the other, to actively pursue the best interest of one that may well justly deserve anger or rejection. Mercy is not to be confused with being naïve or incapable of facing reality like a grandmother who just cannot face up to the truth about her beloved grandson who is a brat for whom she makes all kinds of excuses.

Evil is real. People do awful things, sometimes because they are truly evil, without conscience, consumed by sin’s darkness. It is wrong to excuse all wrong, to ignore the need for justice and judgment, however, we should come to that place carefully, prayerfully, and only after weighing ALL the factors.

Yes, justice is good, but our ‘justice’ is frequently flawed, often colored by self-interest, or fails to account for the context of the actions of another. We need to think about the possibility of redemption or change. We get angry when someone is unkind, or selfish, or hurtful and we want them to pay … except that Jesus calls us to be different. Are you full of mercy? Jesus says that it is a pathway to joy! "Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy." (Matthew 5:7, NIV)

The mercy to which God calls us is modeled after His own. He knows us inside out, seeing our core motives, knowing even our ‘secret’ sins. And He holds out hope and renewal. "Where is another God like you, who pardons the sins of the survivors among his people? You cannot stay angry with your people forever because you delight in showing mercy. Once again you will have compassion on us. You will trample our sins under your feet and throw them into the depths of the ocean!" (Micah 7:18-19, NLT)

If we keep a careful record of every slight, every hurt, refusing to be merciful – we become a captive of anger, turning into a sour, cynical individual. No wonder Jesus tells us mercy is a choice that leads to ‘blessedness.’

Dear Christian, are you harsh?
Are you quick to judge?
Do you live in the Old Testament law – “Eye for eye, tooth for tooth?”
Are you a critic?
Do you cast blame on others?

Our word from the Word calls us, in the Spirit, to a new way. "Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. Do your part to live in peace with everyone, as much as possible. Dear friends, never avenge yourselves. Leave that to God.

For it is written, “I will take vengeance; I will repay those who deserve it,” says the Lord. Instead, do what the Scriptures say: “If your enemies are hungry, feed them. If they are thirsty, give them something to drink, and they will be ashamed of what they have done to you.” Don’t let evil get the best of you but conquer evil by doing good."
(Romans 12:17-21, NLT)   

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Father, help us! It’s hard to let You judge,
to release those who hurt us from our condemnation.
Teach us to be merciful, compassionate, and wise through the Spirit.
In Jesus’ name. Amen

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Video at https://www.youtube.com/@JerScott55

Morning Prayer 91

 

Abba, a new morning brings challenges, dreams, work, and hopes – some old, some new. I pray that the Spirit will renew my heart and mind making me ready to meet this day as You would desire. May my will be shaped to Yours.

This world shudders and quakes;
floods, fires, wars, and human cruelty visiting suffering on millions.

Oh, Lord, I pray for that “Your kingdom would come, that Your will would be done on earth as it is in Heaven.”  Come, Lord Jesus, and reign over us, defeating sin’s curse and bringing Heaven’s joys to earth.

Make us aware of our own failures to love well. When we turn to You may the Spirit flow into us and then through us so that we will be a source of hope and genuine care for others. Take our selfishness away and give us generous hearts that choose the best, the highest, the true.

I thank You for the profound grace in the Gospel of Christ Jesus – the message of restoration to You, our Father, through Him. Keep us from religious pride, from trying to do what You have already fully done – remembering that “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”

I love you, Lord, and pray these things in the Holy Name of Jesus. Amen.

Heart Broken?

Are you crying? Is your heart broken?

I do not like to spend time talking about sorrow. It is not my way to ‘moan’ my prayers or to rehearse my disappointments, and yet I know that our days include many things that cause pain, that we walk through seasons of terrible grief. Yes, I have known a broken heart and my life as a pastor has led me close to the tears of many.

When tears flow and my heart is crushed, I bring this Word to mind: "The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit." (Psalm 34:18, NIV)  

John’s Gospel lets us see the heart of Jesus. His friend, Lazarus, died and when Jesus went to Bethany, Mary and Martha, both accused Him of being uncaring, for not showing up when they called on Him. Their words are full of both grief and anger - “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”  And how did the perfect Man respond? Not with defensiveness nor by pulling away from them. John tells us simply that “Jesus wept." (John 11:35, NIV) We have the advantage of knowing ‘the rest of the story’ and see that Jesus was displaying His authority even over death itself when He raised Lazarus from the dead. But it moves me to know that He entered into the grief of those sisters letting His heart be broken with theirs.

My friend, He knows your sorrow. He knows the sting of rejection. He knows the disappointment of being misjudged and/or falsely accused. He knows the pain that comes with suffering in the body. Isaiah, that that majestic 53^rd chapter, reminds us that "He was despised and rejected—a man of sorrows, acquainted with bitterest grief ..., it was our weaknesses he carried; it was our sorrows that weighed him down.”  The prophet goes on to tell us that from His willingness to endure that grief came our salvation, our healing, our hope of restoration to our Father.

My friend, your broken heart can be the means that God uses to turn you to Himself or a way that He makes you aware of the need to lean on Him with true faith. “If through a broken heart God can bring His purposes to pass in the world, then thank Him for breaking your heart.” (Oswald Chambers) From experience I know that suffering can break us from self-reliance, from pride making us grace-filled, tender hearted, focused more clearly on eternity.

Not long after I walked with Bev through months of awful sorrow and pain and then lived with the crushing grief of her death, someone told me - “You are a much better Pastor these days. You know how we feel when we are sad.” I am not just trying to find a silver lining in those dark clouds! While I still wish my lovely wife walked by my side, it is clear that the sorrow of that loss has made a true difference in me.

Are you dealing with a broken heart? Be willing to let God do His work. The natural desire is to find some diversion, some way to avoid sorrow. Instead, let yourself feel the suffering and enter into it with Christ at your side. Don’t try to numb your soul by turning up the noise or burying yourself in pleasure. Those things offer no balm for the soul.

No, we need not wallow in self-pity, nor must we live with a long face! But, there are times when we do well to quietly wait on God. There can be healing when we allow our tears flow. Be gentle with those who try to rush you from the process of grief offering well-meant platitudes and clichéd words of ‘comfort.’  Perhaps they have never hurt in the way that you do but they mean well.

Do not forget to ask the Holy Spirit to protect you from becoming a cynic, seeing only the worst, the awful, and the failures of others. Descending into that way of life does not heal or help. It just makes a person one who is self-absorbed and mean!

Finally, I want to tell you, with the words of David that “weeping may remain for a night, but joy comes in the morning.”  (Psalm 30:5) Truly God is the healer of broken hearts. Our ultimate hope rests on the promise of an eternal home.

The word from the Word is a shout of triumph from John, the apostle who had known great sorrows. The Spirit inspired him to assure us of this -
"I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, the home of God is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will remove all of their sorrows, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. For the old world and its evils are gone forever.” And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making all things new!” (Revelation 21:3-5, NLT)

Hold on! Let sorrow do the work it must and, by faith, let Jesus walk through the darkness with you. Then, receive the joy that comes with the morning.

Amen.

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Video at https://www.youtube.com/@JerScott55