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Seeking Him

October 17, 2011 in Growth with 2 Comments

When you are holding a small child, you realize how much time they spend touching your face. They are fascinated by it and will reach for a nose or an ear (or sometimes an earring) so that they can feel this person that is staring down at them. Soon they realize, however, that if they want something, it usually comes from a person’s hands. Faces are great for kisses and snuggles, but they aren’t the normal delivery method for toys or food. Someone’s hands brings them these things and as they get older, the child is much more likely to reach for someone’s hands than to touch their face.

We often follow the same pattern with God. We have an insatiable desire to get to know Him – to see Him for Who He is and to love Him because of it.  Then, as He dispenses good gifts to us, we make the foolish decision to seek the distribution of His kindness rather than the knowledge of His character. We trade our eternal relationship with Him for our temporal comforts and conveniences.

It’s a ridiculous exchange. Yet despite its foolishness, it happens time and time again. We pursue the gifts and not the Giver. Instead of His face, we seek His hands. He’s offered us all He is, and we’re content with what He can give to us.

Yet in the Christian faith, that’s not what growth look like. Growth means knowing Him more, not less. It means that we are longing to understand Him, not just to understand His plans. It means that we desire Him and His will, not our own.

May this be true of us – may we seek Him and Him alone. Knowing that as we do so, He is faithful to dispense good gifts to us. But even if He doesn’t, it would be o.k., because we would have Him.

 

Share your thoughts – What are the ways that you seek God and not only what He can give you?

 

(Author’s Note – This post was inspired in part by “Audience of One” by Big Daddy Weave.)


Pain & Praise

October 12, 2011 in Growth, Hope with 2 Comments

In Christian circles there is a lot of talk about “giving God everything.” Jesus made it clear that being His followers meant abandoning all rights to “my” in order to receive “His” (Mt. 16:24). It’s not an easy task and this side of eternity we will have to be constantly saying “no” to ourselves in order to say “yes” to Him.

It is often instructive, though, to think about those things that we easily give to God, and to think about those things that we hold back. We may easily turn over 95% of our lives, and yet want to hold 5% for ourselves. This was the struggle of the rich young ruler (Mt. 19:16-30). He was willing to sacrificially obey the commands of God, but not part with his wealth. Being a Christian means giving it all to Christ, and daily living in the truth of that relinquishment.

What we may not remember though is that when God says He wants it all, what He means is that He wants it all – the triumphs and the struggles, the joys and the sorrows, the healing and the hurts. As a song [affiliate link] recorded by Enfield and written by Ryan Foglesong states “In season of sorrow and blessing I give you my pain and my praise.”  We tend to want to give God one or the other. We turn to Him only when things are bad, when it’s obvious (to us) that we need His help. Or we think that we get things in order for ourselves, before we can turn to Him – we wait until things are good so that we can present Him our futile gifts. But Jesus doesn’t just want the good times, and He doesn’t just want the bad. He wants it all. In season and out of season – He wants you, His child, simply to be His.

It’s sorrowfully ironic that in an age where we “just want to be wanted” the King of Kings desires us, yet we hold back. And the reason we do so is that at some level we don’t trust Him. We don’t give Him our all, because we’re afraid of what relinquishing that control means. Yet, time and time again, He’s proven faithful and true. He’s demonstrated that He works in the good and the bad. He’s shown that He wants our pain and our praise.

If only we would give it to Him.

 

Share your thoughts – is it easier to give God our pain or our praise? Why do you think that is?


A Prayer of Blessing

October 11, 2011 in Growth with 4 Comments

Knowing what to pray can sometimes be difficult for Christians.  We might have a whole list of things that we want, things that we think should happen, but we don’t know if they are also what God wants. Sometimes our prayer life can turn into a litany of requests as we go down the list of things that we desire. Much like children write out their wish list for Santa, we present ours to the King of Kings.

While God graciously lets us present requests to Him, as many have observed before, this wasn’t what His Son modeled when He prayed (Mt. 6:9-13). He spent considerable time extolling the goodness of God before He started making requests. And His first petition wasn’t even for His own needs. Instead, He prayed that God’s kingdom would come on Earth. His first instinct was to give God glory, immediately followed by the plea that His glory would be demonstrated in this world.

It’s something that we should keep in mind. We’re tempted to do our own thing, and ask God for assistance, when really we should be seeking God’s way and aligning our life with Him. As Robert Pierce, the founder of World Vision, is quoted as saying, “I don’t ask God to bless what I do. I pray He will help me to do what He blesses. ” This was the model of our Savior. Yet, our lives often fail to emulate it.

How do we do this? How do we pray so that our petitions are for God’s will rather than our own? Quite simply, we acknowledge that:

1) As Creator  He is the best person to arrange the details of this world to align with His plans (Gen. 1:1).

2) 3) As a Holy God His ways are not our ways, and therefore He knows things that we simply can not (Is. 55:8-9).

3) As a Just God He ways are trustworthy. (Deut. 32:4)

4) As a Loving God He longs to lavish good gifts on His children, and therefore His ways will not only bring Him glory, but will be for our good (Mt. 7:11)

In other words, in acknowledging Who God is, we remind ourselves that what He has planned is far better than the requests that we can generate.

This doesn’t mean that we don’t ask God for things. Much like a dad wants his kids to ask for the help he already knows that he needs to provide, our Father wants us to know that we can turn to Him with our requests. However, it does mean that in making our request, our first and primary concern should be that we would do the things God desires, not the other way around.

 

Share your thoughts:

Why is it hard to pray like Jesus did – for God’s will to be done?


Fruit-Worthy

October 10, 2011 in Growth with 2 Comments

My church has something that we like to call DBR or Daily Bible Reading. It’s a way for the church to read the Word together and share comments and insights via a web page. It’s a great way to be encouraged and instructed as you take part in your daily bread.

Recently, as we read through Galatians 5 a friend prayed that she would check her actions and words by whether they were “fruit-worthy.” I thought it was a great turn of phrase. After all, while we are grateful that the Spirit is faithful to bring about these things in the life of those who follow Jesus, it’s important that we are walking in the Spirit for Him to do so in us. Checking our hearts as to whether our thoughts, actions and words are in keeping with the things He desires, is a great way to ensure that our feet are following closely after Him.

Yet, this doesn’t mean that it will be easy. John 12:23-25 tells us something that we learned in science class. In nature, it’s only in death that fruit is produced. The seeds are scattered when the fruit rots and falls to the ground spreading the seeds for further production. In the same way, fruits are produced in our own life through death – death to ourselves and our own desires. This means we not only have to check our hearts and motives as to whether they are fruit-worthy, we have to put to death anything that isn’t. In order to produce the fruits of the Spirit, we have to put to death the “fruits” of the flesh. Galatians 2:20 makes this clear – if Christ is living in us, then “we” are no longer alive. We live then, not by faith in ourselves, but in the Son of God – the ultimate example of One who died to self in order to do the will of His Father.

As His followers, we must follow His example  – dying to our desires in order to do what our Father wants. It’s only as we do so that we will replicate the fruits of His Spirit. Its only in doing so that we will live a “fruit-worthy” life.

 

Now it’s your turn…

Why is it so hard to die to self ? How does knowing that the Spirit is at work within us encourage the Christian?


Little Things

October 5, 2011 in Growth with 4 Comments

They say that in relationships its the little things that matter. Anyone can do a grand gesture once or twice, but it’s the daily demonstrations of love that display our commitment. The encouraging word, the comforting hug, the unmitigated support -  these are the things that truly count. The extravagant gift will soon fade from our memory, but the daily demonstrations will keep relationships strong.

It is much the same way in our relationship with God. It’s easy to make the proclamation of drastic steps we will take for His kingdom’s purpose. It’s less easy to actually enact them. However, it’s often the small, daily sacrifices that are a clearer indication of our commitment. It’s not responding in anger when someone cuts us off on the freeway. It’s giving grace to the seemingly flustered store clerk. It’s these little things, these everyday occurrences, where we don’t feel the pressure of being “on display” that actually do display our growing love for our Savior.

As Francois Fénelon stated:

It is only by fidelity in little things that the grace of true love to God can be sustained, and distinguished from a passing fervor of spirit…

No one can well believe that our piety is sincere, when our behavior is lax and irregular in its little details. What probability is there that we should not hesitate to make the greatest sacrifices, when we shrink from the smallest?” (Selections from Fénelon).

May we strive to do the little things well for God – knowing that it’s the little things that are often the greater indication of what our hearts treasure.  In doing so, may our commitment to doing the big things well also increase.

Join in…why do you think it’s important to do the little things well?


Selfless Ambition

October 3, 2011 in Growth with 6 Comments

When I received a promotion early in my career, some friends started teasing me about my “ruthless quest for power.” Later on in my career, another co-worker and I disagreed over whether or not I was “ambitious.” As I always maintained, there wasn’t some grand plan that I was working in order to achieve some position of strength. I never had grand ideals for who I was going to be – being president, or an astronaut, or even a princess wasn’t in the cards for me. I just wanted to make the most of every opportunity I was given, and as much as possible lead a simple life of worship.

To most Christians, this sounds like the right attitude to have. We know that we aren’t supposed to be consumed with the things of this world – power, money and prestige. What I failed to realize, however, is that God doesn’t call us to not have any ambition at all. Instead, His Word says we should be devoid of any selfish ambition (Phil. 2:3). I should, however, be ambitious about serving others. I should be ambitious about doing the things of God. Not to make myself look good – but to radiate His goodness through my life.

It’s a hard position to maintain – being filled with selfless ambition and not letting it become selfish conceit. We can all probably recount stories of people that started off doing things for the right motives, only to later on be consumed about how their good deeds would fulfill their personal desires. For the Christian, however,  in recognizing that we already have all we need in Christ, we are free to be ambitious about the things of Him. In resting in the fact that He will provide, we no longer have to worry about making it happen for ourselves. When being His is our ambition, then our life will be rightly focused on serving Him through serving others.

If we want to check our motives, a key sign of whether our ambition is rightly focused is how we respond when things don’t go “according to plan.” If it’s about furthering our own agenda, we’re going to get upset, complaining and bitter. However, if it’s about being ambitious for God – we are going to trust that He is working even in these unexpected events to bring about His plan. If we’re ambitious for Him, we’re going to trust that He’s working to bring about something better – something lasting – something eternal.

It’s o.k. to have ambition – as long as our ambition is about furthering His kingdom and not setting up ours. In fact, we should have ambition – because it should be our desire that our lives increasingly display how great God is.

 

Now it’s your turn ….In practical terms, what does selfless ambition look like?


Denied

September 20, 2011 in Growth, Purpose with 4 Comments

Soon after her daughter could walk, a friend of mine taught her little girl to say “charge it” when she handed the credit card to the cashier. It was adorably cute, but also dangerous, because the little girl hadn’t been taught how that little card allowed the purchase to be completed. She didn’t realize the debt that was incurred when that purchase was made. I think everyone recognized that at some point another lesson would need to follow, otherwise, she could get into some unfortunate purchase patterns later in life.

Another lesson that wasn’t taught was what to do when you hand the card to the cashier and hear the dreaded words, “I’m sorry, but that card has been denied.” These words are especially concerning when you know that there’s credit there to be spent. You quickly search your brain for explanations as to why what you know you have received would be deny at the moment of importance.

Unfortunately, Christians often live in such a way that they regularly deny the credit that they have received. As Walter Raleigh says, “We profess that we know God, but by works we deny Him; for beatitude doth not consist in the knowledge of divine things, but in a divine life, for the devils know them better than man.” (The Works of Sir Walter Ralegh, Kt., v. II). In other words, we are tempted to think that what we know about Christ is evidence of our relationship with Him. However, the Bible clearly states that how our faith is demonstrated by our works (James 2:14-26). This isn’t to say that our faith is the result of our works, but they are the natural outcome of it. When our lives don’t conform to the faith that we profess. we are denying the righteousness that’s been credited to us in Christ (2 Cor. 5:21).

Just like we all shake our heads when we see a billionaire who is stingy with his money, so the angels in heaven might shake their heads when they see us , who have been credited all of Christ’s righteousness, live as if we have none. May instead we do the things that He has called us to do, knowing that because of the richness of His grace and His sacrifice on the Cross, our account has already been paid in full.

 

Now it’s your turn – How do you stay strong to do the things that God has called you to do? 


For No Other Reason

September 14, 2011 in Growth with 3 Comments

When I was younger, I started a thankfulness journal. I can’t remember the exact reason for it other than I thought I wasn’t particularly grateful and that I needed to practice that characteristic in order to make it more more of a character trait. I would write down what I was thankful for as it occurred to me.  Soon I had a very long list of reasons to give thanks.

We may employ a similar approach when we think of reasons to praise God. We think of all the things that He has given us, and much like we list the attributes of the one we admire, we bestow praise on our Creator. We extol Him for the ways that He has shown us His grace. We give Him glory because He has given us good gifts.

It’s fitting that we praise God for these things, however, the truth is, even when we aren’t the recipients of God’s particular generosity, we should still be giving Him praise. In other words, even if no good thing is happening to me, my life should still glorify Him.  I praise Him for Who He is, not (only) for how He relates to me.

This is a hard thing. We’re used to showing our gratitude to God by celebrating what He has done for us.  We applaud the ways that He has worked in our lives, that He has been generous with His blessings, or that He has provided opportunities. We may all have our own list of 10,000 reasons that we should praise Him, but even if our own personal celebrations were nonexistent, there would still be millions of reasons to honor His name. His goodness alone, not as it is expressed as a gift to us, but simply because it is Who He is, is an overwhelming reason to bring Him praise.

What does this mean? Simply that there is always a reason to celebrate Him. Whether good or bad things are happening to us, He is good, and if for no other reason, that should prompts shouts  of praise.

 

 

Share your thoughts…what will you celebrate about God today?


Dangerous Christians

September 13, 2011 in Growth with 1 Comment

We take great strides to prevent danger. We lock our doors, look both ways, and remain aware of our surroundings. Wet think that we will recognize that which threatens our safety and that we can act against it. However, those who make a career out of protection know that it’s the harm that you don’t anticipate that is the most concerning. It’s the threat that you do not see that is often your undoing.

In Christian circles, we too are on the lookout out for that which might do damage to our faith. However, as Jim Elliot reminds us, perhaps it’s the threat that we aren’t even aware of that we need to be most watchful of. As Elliot states:

We are so utterly ordinary, so commonplace, while we profess to know a Power the Twentieth Century does not reckon with. But we are “harmless,” and therefore unharmed. We are spiritual pacifists, non-militants, conscientious objectors in this battle-to-the-death with principalities and powers in high places. Meekness must be had for contact with men, but brass, outspoken boldness is required to take part in the comradeship of the Cross. We are “sideliners”—coaching and criticizing the real wrestlers while content to sit by and leave the enemies of God unchallenged. The world cannot hate us, we are too much like its own. Oh that God would make us dangerous! (qtd. by Elisabeth Elliot in Shadow of the Almighty: The Life and Testimony of Jim Elliot.)

In other words, it’s the temptation to be safe that is often the greatest threat. We want to remain neutral – to not cause offense, while forgetting that our salvation rests on the scandal of grace. The Good News is promised to be “a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles” (1 Corinthians 1:23), yet we try to make our message palatable and end up making it phony. We want to be a part of the crowd, rather than set apart from it.

Yet, this is not what God has called us to. As Elliot rightly reminds us, when we are harmless – when we preach a God that does not call for a radical eradication of our former self in place of a radical commitment to the one true Christ – we are also impotent. We don’t have an impact because we aren’t even participating in the fight.

My dad used to always say that if Satan wasn’t attacking you it meant one of two things. You better “check your six” because he was coming after you, or, he had decided that you weren’t worth the effort. If you weren’t worth the effort, then you weren’t doing much for Christ’s kingdom – which mean you weren’t a very “dangerous” Christian.

As Elliot exclaims “Oh that God would make us dangerous!”

 

Now it’s your turn…How are you “dangerous” for Christ?


(Re)Memory Problems

September 9, 2011 in Growth with 0 Comments

Many years ago I was working out at my apartment when I got a call from a friend. “Where are you?” she asked. “At my apartment” I innocently answered. And in the pause that followed, suddenly it hit me – I was supposed to meet her for dinner! As we were meeting over an hour away, there was no way for me to redeem the gaffe and make it to our appointment.

It was one of the first, but certainly not the last time that I realized that my memory is not what it used to be. In the past, I could keep my appointments in my head and be on time, if not early, for all of them. Now, I find myself leaving post-it notes, electronic reminders, and voice-mail messages for myself if I want to remember things that I’m supposed to do. It could be that I have more things to remember – and I’m pretty sure that’s at least part of it -  but sometimes I long for the days when everything was stored in my internal memory bank, when I could readily access that things I was supposed to know.

However, I’m not the only one that’s prone to bouts of forgetfulness. Throughout Exodus and Deuteronomy we see that the people of Israel regularly forgot the things that God did for them and what He promised them.  We read passages like Deuteronomy 28:1-14 and we see the many blessings that God longs to pour out on them if they will walk in His ways. Yet, we know from history that it won’t be long before they are doing what they want rather than what God says. We may wonder how the Israelites could have ever gone astray after the clarity with which God spoke to them. The blessings of their right actions (i.e. obeying Him) and the consequences of their wrong actions (i.e. sin) were made abundantly clear. Over and over again, God commands them to “remember” – yet they didn’t. They didn’t remember what He had done or the words that He had said – at least not in any way that influenced their action. Because they forgot or neglected their relationship with God, His promises ceased to be as powerful for them. And so they were led astray.

I, too, can “forget” what God has done and the promises that He has made, and this often is the cause of my own sin. I neglect to remember that I will give an account – that there will be consequences for my actions. I forget the faithfulness of God, seize “control,”  and follow my own desires rather than His.

The solution of course is to remember – to remember what He has promised, and Who He is. I need to cling tightly to the promises of God, knowing that He “is not slow” “as some count slowness” – but that He will make good on what He’s promised (2 Peter 3:9).  I need to give thanks when I do remember, knowing that even this is an act of His grace.  I need to be assured that diligent obedience to Him will have a reward – either in this life or the next. And I need to remember that standing before Him, hearing “well done, my good and faithful servant” will be a moment I won’t forget.

 

 


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