Keep The Big Pictures In Mind

Posted on by February 8, 2014
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June 24, 2013

Revelation 21:5 — And he that sat upon the throne said , Behold , I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write : for these words are true and faithful.

I want to group the verse that tugged at me this morning with another verse, and a longer passage:

2 Cor 5:17 —  Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

Romans 8:18-23 —  For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope, Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.

Sometimes (not more than nine or ten times every day …) I lose sight of the big pictures. I get depressed, or irritated, or frustrated because things are not going the way I think they should. I forget the two big pictures:

  1. God is renewing creation – repairing the damage done to His perfect creation by sin.
  2. God is renewing the creature — repairing the damage done to me by sin!

The jobs are not finished yet. But, as it says elsewhere, “The Lord is not slow about His promises, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you …”

Are you familiar with the idea of “helicopter parents”? The term actually originated in the late 60’s, but it’s become increasingly popular in the last several years. It describes parents who constrain their children’s independence by “hovering” over their children and swooping in at any sign of difficulty or unhappiness. Our God is not like that! He is helping us to grow into His ideal for us by allowing us to face the challenges of life. Fixing creation isn’t going to get done until the children – us, the sons of God, get fixed. And that’s a big job. I’m a new creation, but I’m still a work in progress which means I have a lot of growing to do. SO I’m going to have to deal with the things that depress, or irritate, or frustrate me, because there’s no “helicopter super-parent” going to come swooping in to make it all better. But one day … one day …all things WILL be made new.

A lot of smart people think that the day is imminent. I’d say I can’t wait, except that I know I have to. While I wait, I’m going to try to do better at keeping my eyes on the big pictures.

Remember The Sabbath Day

Posted on by July 28, 2013
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June 23

Exodus 20:8 — Remember the sabbath day to keep it holy.

If the Spirit leads, this will be the first of a few devotions on the Sabbath.

Part of God’s provision for us was a rhythm for life. The earth’s rotation about it’s axis provides day and night. It’s rotation about the sun gives us summer and winter. But God gave us another rhythm; six days to work and another special day — a holy, separated day. (I know we can find other rhythms in the Bible too — the Jubilee, for instance.)

What has happened to God’s rhythms in modern life? We have deconstructed them. We travel across time zones and destroy the patterns of night and day. We cool the summer and heat the winter and transport foodstuffs across the world to eliminate the seasons. Most of all we have set aside God’s weekly cycle.

Are you thinking “ho hum, here comes another lecture about going to church, not forsaking the assembly of ourselves together … “? No, no, I want to go another way, knowing that most of those who read these devotionals are probably believers, good church goers …

What do we do on the other six days of the week? Remember how the scripture continues? Exodus 20:9 says “Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work.” So what do you do on the other six days? You see, I think most of us fall into four groups; those like me, working a five-day week; those who are retired; those who are unemployed and those who are wives and mothers (who, let’s be honest, are more or less on a seven day, non-stop pattern!) Very few of us, now, follow God’s six and one pattern.

As this devotion came into my mind, I realized that I haven’t answered the question for myself yet. I work five days, and with the blessing of a wonderfully supportive wife, I do a fair job of keeping the sabbath day holy … But what am I doing on that sixth day? What should I be doing?

How about you? If you’re unemployed, or retired, or working some “different” patterns, or a busy wife and mom, what do “six days of labor” look like to you? I haven’t worked it out (cut me some slack, I’m just a student not a theologian or even seminary-trained …) but I think it should go with the two commissions — the “great” commission to make disciples and the “cultural” commission to “have dominion over the earth” (laid out in Genesis 1:26-28).

If you feel inspired, let me know … What do six days look like?

Mind Your Own Business!

Posted on by June 22, 2013
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June 22

 John 21:22 — Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come , what is that to thee? Follow thou me.

 Before I became a Christian, I had a lot of wrong ideas about the Christian life. One was that Christians did a lot of good things for other people, because that was part of being approved of by God. Well, as I know now, and you already did I suppose, that’s not it. In fact, to a startling degree, it’s not about that at all. Of course we are supposed to do stuff — especially for fellow believers – but the focus is something else entirely. The focus is the person of Jesus. The verse above is the one that makes it plainest to me. The Greek says “What to you? You follow Me.” In other words, mind your own business, and focus on me!

We find similar ideas elsewhere – Romans 14:4 says, “Who art thou that judgest another man’s servant? To his own master he standeth or falleth . Yea, he shall be holden up : for God is able to make him stand.” Perhaps 1 Peter 4:14 is bluntest of all: “But let none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or as an evildoer, or as a busybody in other men’s matters.”

Does all this mean we are not to care about what other people do, or what happens to them, or what’s going on in their lives? Of course not! I could find plenty of counter-texts. But it does mean that we are to be very careful about why we get involved in the things we get involved in (as well as what we do, and who we do it with and for).

Our God is a jealous God. It is not a silly, trivial, jealousy. He is fiercely protective of His honor and glory. These are to be those things we pursue … because the more we pursue these things, the more surely we will grow like Him, and the better we will come to know Him.

There is a great temptation to want to set others on the right path, to help them see the mote in their eyes. Sometimes those things become our business. Most often, they don’t!

Is Your Ambition Confusing Your Communication?

Posted on by June 21, 2013
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June 21, 2013

Genesis 11:9 — Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the LORD did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the LORD scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth.

Sometimes I work on big projects. Sometimes I’m working on small tasks. The only time I don’t have communication challenges is when there’s only one person involved! (Alright … sometimes I have trouble talking to myself, too!). Why is it so hard?

To be fair to me, sometimes the things I’m working on need several people involved, from more than one country. When I say, “we’re just not talking the same language, it’s true”. But there are plenty of times when other things are getting in the way.

The biggest cause of confusion might be that although we might think we have the same objectives, sometimes we have different motivations. We might think we are working at the same thing but we are not, necessarily, going to end in the same place because we are doing it for different reasons!

Another issue is when we think we are saying the same thing, but actually we are not. And this is taking me nearer to my thoughts about Babel. One interpretation of “Babel” is related to a Hebrew word meaning “mingled, mixed, confused or confounded”. All too often we fail to make progress (or even get along) because we fail to make sure we are “talking the same language” even with those we love the most. This is a problem that might be at its worst across generations … which is why I get very protective of the English language (don’t get me started….). I believe that when God confounded the language of all the earth it was more than just creating many different “natural” languages. It was a matter, too, of mixing up our minds so that we need to work very hard if we want to stay on the same page!

What was really on my mind today, not though, was another thing. Did you ever, with the best of intentions, take on a really big job … and just not finish? How come? Are you just a scatterbrain, not counting the cost before you get started, or is it something else? Why did The Lord decide to confound the language? It’s in verse 6 of the same chapter: “And the LORD said , Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do : and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do .” Another interpretation of “Babel” is “The Gate of God”. The people had decided on a really big project – they were going to visit heaven itself, without an invitation! Sometimes I make the same mistake. I take on a really big challenge without finding out if it is God’s plan or not. It never works … I get so focused on my plan that I end up saying all the wrong things to all the wrong people … in the wrong way. My ambition gets in the way of what I want to share, God’s love, the need for salvation, my good intentions and caring …

Sometimes ambition gets in the way of communication. Big or small, make sure it’s God’s plan. When He says “I have a plan for you”, He’s saying “Come and be part of my plan … don’t go off building towers to nowhere”.

Trust And Obey

Posted on by June 20, 2013
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June 20, 2013

Numbers 19:1-2 — “The LORD said to Moses and Aaron:  “This is a requirement of the law that the LORD has commanded: Tell the Israelites to bring you a red heifer without defect or blemish and that has never been under a yoke.”

In the “Theological Declaration of Barmen” Written by Karl Barth and the confessing church in Nazi Germany in response to Hitler’s national church we find “Jesus Christ, as he is attested for us in Holy Scripture, is the one Word of God which we have to hear and which we have to trust and obey in life and in death.”

Now how does that connect to this odd business in the Book of Numbers that talks about the Red Heifer. Do you remember — The Red heifer (which must not have hairs of any other color, must be in perfect health, and it must not have been used to perform work) is sacrificed and burned outside of the camp. Cedar wood, hyssop, and wool dyed scarlet are added to the fire, and the remaining ashes are placed in a vessel containing pure water which is then used to purify a person who has become ritually contaminated by contact with a corpse — water from the vessel is sprinkled on him, using a bunch of hyssop, on the third and seventh day of the purification process. Just to compound the oddity, the priest who officiated then becomes ritually unclean, and must then bathe himself and his clothes in a ritual bath and is deemed impure until evening. Where’s the logic to all of this? There isn’t any! There doesn’t need to be. There is another translation of “This is the requirement of the law” that says, “This is the law of the Torah” – or in other words, “This is how God says it has to be”. That’s the only explanation necessary, and that’s all we get.

I love the wonderful words that Karl Barth and his colleagues penned, knowing perhaps that they were writing what might, in the fullness of time, become their death warrant. They perfectly express the requirement, and its source.

Of course John Sammis expressed it beautifully too, and perhaps more simply, in the hymn so many of us love …

When we walk with the Lord in the light of His word, what a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will, He abides with us still, and with all who will trust and obey.
Trust and obey, for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.

Somebody asked me today, “What things does God want from us?” I could find all sorts of Biblical texts – but the bottom line is that God knows what He’s doing, and all He want of us is that we trust … and obey! Just do it!

Sunrise, Sunset

Posted on by June 19, 2013
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June 19, 2013

Psalm 19:1-6  — The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge. There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard. Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun, Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race. His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it: and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof.

The thought for this devotional was inspired by a comment Myra made as we were driving away from church one evening, and saw one of our beautiful Florida sunsets. She commented on the rising and setting of the sun, and it put one of my favorite Psalms into mind.

Usually the Bible has a remarkably scientifically accurate view of natural processes, but Psalm 19 really has a man-centered view of sunrise, sunset … It is the darkest moment, far into the night. We see the first glimmer of light. “Look”, we say, “the dawn, the sun is rising.” As day goes by we see the sun rising, and we bask in it’s warmth. Evening comes, and if it is the right kind of day, God paints His glory in the skies. “Look”, we say, “night is falling, the sun is setting.” The language we use reflects the way we see things — our point of view. We are the fixed point, and the sun is turning it’s face to us, moving past, and then moving away. The reality is, we have come to know, very different. The sun is more or less fixed in relation to our point of view on any given day. It is the earth — it’s us — that is rotating. We turn our face to the sun, we move through time, and we eventually rotate so that we are not facing the sun.

So what’s the application? why did this come to me as a “devotional” thought?

Have you ever felt God turn his favor away from you — go “cold” on you? Or have you felt that blessed warmth as He turns back to you, and favors you once again? How can that be? God does not change — “It is of the LORD’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.” If God does not change, what is happening? The world doesn’t revolve around us. We are not the center! God never turns from us — we turn from Him. He never turns back to us. We turn back to Him — it’s called repentance.

If you’re in the sun, keep your face pointed in the right direction. If your feeling the cold — change your point of view!

 

 

Pray Like This

Posted on by February 8, 2014
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June 18, 2013

Mathew 6:9 —  After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.

Our Sunday School class (we call them Bible and Life Groups) has been asked to pray today for a young lady who is having both knees replaced. I’m sorry to confess that one of my first reactions was maybe a little irreverent: “Worn out knees eh? Shouldn’t every Christian have worn out knees? Isn’t that how we should be spending a good amount of time — praying — on our knees?”. Don’t get me wrong, I’m going to pray for the lady in question, but somehow it seems like the Holy Spirit might have put that thought in my head, to have me think (once again) about how I pray.

Do you know how much has been written about how to pray? It might be one of the most written about the Christian life. I’ve read some great things by men like Elmer Towns, E.M. Bounds and the great Charles Spurgeon.  But it’s not just a recent thing. Church fathers like Athanasius and Origen wrote about how to pray. And sooner or later every Christian takes Jesus’s masterclass from the Book of Matthew.

So what is the right way to pray. Trick question, of course. There isn’t really a right way — there isn’t the ONE right way — not in terms of technique. In fact, I’ve come to realize that as soon as I start thinking that way, I’ve missed the point. I’ve come to believe that prayer is a conversation where I share my heart with the Father, and trust Him to turn me round and point me in the right direction. If you have read the first few days of this devotional (and thank you if you have 🙂 ) you will know that I beleieve that the whole point about being a Christian is to ahve a closer realtionship with God and to help others do the same thing. Prayer is part of the process.

What’s the right process for any important conversation with anyone who is really important in your life? (I’m a man — I’m really not good at this stuff!) How do you talk with anyone you want to build a closer relationship with?

  • Prepare your thoughts
  • Find a quiet place
  • Allow plenty of time
  • Listen more than talk
  • Be prepared for the conversation to go in unexpected directions
  • Take note of what you hear
  • Act on what you hear

And one last thing … practice! Prayer is like a lot of things. The more you do it, the better you get at it!

 

Where Do You Go in a Dry Spell?

Posted on by June 17, 2013
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June 17

Genesis 21:19 — And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the bottle with water, and gave the lad drink.

 Do you get them? Spiritual dry spells I mean? Times when prayer seems to hit a glass ceiling, preaching seems dull and teaching seems dusty (with apologies to those charged with teaching me, the fault is entirely with me, I know). I do. And I know I’m not alone. I’m not there just now — this is one of those blessed times in the uplands. But where do you go when you run into one of those times? (Can I be honest, I think I might be writing this to have a reminder the next time the lights go out …)

I have noticed something about my dry times. They usually come when I’ve been feeling comfortable, maybe even smug. When things are running well … When I’m thinking maybe I know what’s going on. And the story of Hagar has in it what seems to me to be a key. You remember Hagar, of course. The servant whom Sarah encouraged Abraham to father a son on, as it seemed Sarah was never going to be a mother. Poor Hagar, she did her bit, and then along came Isaac, and her mistresses favor irretrievably dried up. What was Hagar to do? She went to the desert. What did she find there? Water, from God. And it wasn’t the first time. The first time was after she became pregnant and Sarah, jealous perhaps, “used her hardly”. Hagar went to the well in the desert, and met the angel who gave her good advice. She went to “the well of Him that seeth and heareth me”. There’s the clue, for me at least. When the water runs dry, run away from the comfort and seek living water in the desert.

There was a Spanish mystic, John of The Cross, who understood this. He called the dry spells “The dark night of the soul”. Here’s how he described the remedy: “Turn not to the easiest, but to the most difficult … not to the more, but to the less; not towards what is high and precious, but to what is low and despised; not towards desiring anything, but to desiring nothing.”

If like me, you are bathing in living water just now, rejoice, sing and be happy. But when things get dry — and they will — head for the desert!

Honor Your Father …

Posted on by June 16, 2013
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June 16

 Exodus 20:12 — Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.

I never had a relationship with my father. He was in the military while I was a toddler, and by my early teens he had left my mother with a young family of four to raise. It wasn’t easy, not for any of us although, like many a youngster I was oblivious to a lot of what Mom was dealing with. Later I was resentful of a lot of things. Later still I began to see it wasn’t so straightforward.
Over the years, and especially since becoming a Christian, I have come to know that fatherlessness — the father wound — is very common, and sadly is becoming almost normal in America today. Indeed, after the decline of the Christian faith itself, it might be that this break in the family is the greatest weakness the country is struggling with. I know many men like myself who had no relationship with their fathers. Sadly, too, I know many fathers who feel they have — literally or metaphorically — abandoned their sons. But I have a grain of hope …
Search the Bible. How many really good role models are there for Fathers? They’re hard to find! Look at this list:

  • Adam — eldest son killed his brother.
  • Jacob — sons plotted to kill their brother, and then sold him into slavery.
  • Eli — sons were such a disgrace, the family lost the priesthood.
  • Manoah — Samson … Need I say more?
  • David — one son raped his sister, and another rebelled against his father.
  • Solomon (the wisest man ever!) — raised a son who was such a fool that nine parts of the kingdom were torn away from him.

If your relationship with your father, or your son, isn’t all it should be, you are not alone! But there is a role model. There is one Father, who never failed His Son, nor was ever failed by Him. That Son honored His Father. The Hebrew word for “honor” is kabed. It is about weight — to “honor” is to give weight to someone, to give importance, respect, consideration and value. God was delighted in His Son — “Thou art my beloved Son, in Thee I am well pleased”. Jesus supremely honored His Father — “not my will, but thine”.
It’s not easy — but try it. If you are a father, tell your son of your delight in him. If you’re a son, let your father know of the respect and value you place in him.
I have come to see some great things in my father. He gave me the gift of intelligence, and humor and a willing tongue. He couldn’t, in the end, carry the weight placed on him. But then, neither can I, unless my Father’s Son carries the greater part of the burdens.
God bless you Dad. I honor you.

It’s about Perspective …

Posted on by June 15, 2013
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June 15

Proverbs 4:25 — Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee

We have a plumbing problem in our garage. It started on Thursday, and we were promised it would be fixed today. Yesterday, the company that was supposed to fix it told us that we would have to wait until Monday — the people who did that sort of work didn’t work on Saturday’s.

I was pretty annoyed to start with. Frustrated, really, because it’s not anything we can do anything about. But as usual, taking a deep breath and getting another point of view helps! Actually, the first revision wasn’t very comfortable.

“Who made you God, so that everything would work according to your plan?”

“Yes, but Lord …

“Don’t you trust me? When I said I had a plan for everything in your life, and that all things would work together for your good, did you think that didn’t include the plumbing? Are there any other areas of your life you want Me to exclude?”

“Oh. No. Sorry Lord.”

“Well then.”   

But the painful little conversation did start me thinking about how I could look for the good in this (helped by my sweetheart, who’s usually quicker than I am). For one thing, we don’t have to wait around all day Saturday for the workers to call. And then, we didn’t have to be up and about early, in case they came in the morning (lazy, I know…). And it’s given us a reason to go exercise and then eat out tonight. And these are just the obvious, immediate, not very spiritual benefits! Who knows what else might be stored up …

Here’s the thing. For those of you who know the “Winnie the Pooh” stories, sometimes I can be a bit of an Eeyore. I eeyorereally do try to look on the bright side, but some times it escapes me for a while.  I can allow people or circumstances to change my point of view … to let my eyes wander to the left or right, so that I see the difficulties that surround me instead of the future that lies ahead of me … even the short term future of plumbing fixed, dry garage floor, all well in that department.

I’m not going to go through the many many scriptures that warn that the path is full of ups and downs, that being a Christian doesn’t let us off the trials of life (might even add to them!). You know them as well as I do. This is just an invitation. If you find me moping under the circumstances, please remind me of what Adrian Rogers said — “Under the circumstances, you suffocate; on them you rest pretty well.” Please don’t join me underneath!