Teach us today to love.
We pray it often.
We pray it flippantly.
But today, my friends, let's pray it deeply.
And today, my friends, let's pray it slowly.
To love at great cost.
To love at great loss.
To love sacrificially.
To weep with others as they weep.
To smile with others as they rejoice.
To give an ear when others need to be heard.
Let us be all things to all people.
Let the introvert mingle as an extrovert if that is what is required to show love.
Let the extrovert retreat to solitude and silence if God desires it so that they might see more clearly.
Let the scholar do his work in the dirty street.
Let the pastor read something of theological substance.
Let the snob learn to be a servant and reach out to all.
Let us pray earnestly.
Let us be a people who confess daily.
Let us be profoundly repentant.
Let us be a people who cling to the cross.
Let us shout of our Lord's mercy and grace.
Teach us today to love deeply.
Teach us to pray it more deeply.
And teach us to pray it more slowly.
May we decrease so that God's image in the world may increase.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Friday, May 9, 2008
Does Your Soul Pant for God?
I wrote this one rather quickly, so you'll have to take it as is.
"So I'm deeply troubled and deeply vexed." That's how I would truthfully open just about every talk I would ever give. Or I would open it with, "The Lord is great in mercy."
I gave some thoughts this past weekend to our leaders, giving them a window into my devotional life. I think it's important for your leaders to see you as you wrestle with yourself before the Lord. Below are some elements that I included, to help our leaders understand the honest struggles I have when I approach the Bible.
Psa 42 starts out as follows... "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God." So I stop myself after v.1 and ask myself if this is true of myself. Do I long after God, like a deer longs for water? Do I thirst after and pant after the Lord like a deer pants for the streams? I stop, reflect, and pray, because often times it's not true of me. Therefore, at times when I'm distant from the Lord, I believe I have in a sense disqualified myself from any consoling and comfort that the Psalm can provide because I cannot identify with the Psalmist's heart disposition before the Lord in v.1. I cannot say, "this is a Psalm for me." Because it's not true of me. It's not talking about me. Because in the naked honesty of the moment I cannot say, "I pant after God." So I cannot move on, until I confess before the Lord, and ask Him to rekindle the fire in my heart. Psa 42:1 is beautiful. But we must be honest when it's not true of us.
Also, I spoke about how I wrestle with myself to be "totally present" when I read Scripture, and wrestle with myself to prevent my mind from wandering all over the place. It's heard enough to hear from God when we're paying attention and concentrating and praying fervently, much less attempting to hear from God when are mind is spinning in multiple directions.
An additional passage that I used was from 2 Corinthians.
"Are they servants of Christ?-- I speak as if insane-- I more so; in far more labors, in far more imprisonments, beaten times without number, often in danger of death. 24 Five times I received from the Jews thirty-nine lashes. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, a night and a day I have spent in the deep. 26 I have been on frequent journeys, in dangers from rivers, dangers from robbers, dangers from my countrymen, dangers from the Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, dangers on the sea, dangers among false brethren; 27 I have been in labor and hardship, through many sleepless nights, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure." (2 Corinthians 11:23-27)
It was plainly evident that Paul sacrificed himself so that He could love God and love his neighbor. In order to love, it comes at a cost. So I read this passage and think, "what was going through the mind of Paul that would make him come to the conclusion that living that lifestyle would be a good idea?" Living the lifestyle of a disciple of Christ makes no sense to the world, no sense at all! Why put yourself into a sacrificial lifestyle if you don't have to? Answer: Paul knew God's love, and therefore was compelled to love others sacrificially as God had loved him. How do we get into the mindset of living as a disciple of Jesus? Answer: Ask yourself the following question all the time. "Am I making decisions that demand me to live a crucified life?" After all, the goal has always been, "That I may know the Savior, and Him crucified." God's disciples made conscious active decisions where they sacrificed themselves to others, we must follow in their footsteps and do likewise.
May God's mercy keep you.
"So I'm deeply troubled and deeply vexed." That's how I would truthfully open just about every talk I would ever give. Or I would open it with, "The Lord is great in mercy."
I gave some thoughts this past weekend to our leaders, giving them a window into my devotional life. I think it's important for your leaders to see you as you wrestle with yourself before the Lord. Below are some elements that I included, to help our leaders understand the honest struggles I have when I approach the Bible.
Psa 42 starts out as follows... "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God." So I stop myself after v.1 and ask myself if this is true of myself. Do I long after God, like a deer longs for water? Do I thirst after and pant after the Lord like a deer pants for the streams? I stop, reflect, and pray, because often times it's not true of me. Therefore, at times when I'm distant from the Lord, I believe I have in a sense disqualified myself from any consoling and comfort that the Psalm can provide because I cannot identify with the Psalmist's heart disposition before the Lord in v.1. I cannot say, "this is a Psalm for me." Because it's not true of me. It's not talking about me. Because in the naked honesty of the moment I cannot say, "I pant after God." So I cannot move on, until I confess before the Lord, and ask Him to rekindle the fire in my heart. Psa 42:1 is beautiful. But we must be honest when it's not true of us.
Also, I spoke about how I wrestle with myself to be "totally present" when I read Scripture, and wrestle with myself to prevent my mind from wandering all over the place. It's heard enough to hear from God when we're paying attention and concentrating and praying fervently, much less attempting to hear from God when are mind is spinning in multiple directions.
An additional passage that I used was from 2 Corinthians.
"Are they servants of Christ?-- I speak as if insane-- I more so; in far more labors, in far more imprisonments, beaten times without number, often in danger of death. 24 Five times I received from the Jews thirty-nine lashes. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, a night and a day I have spent in the deep. 26 I have been on frequent journeys, in dangers from rivers, dangers from robbers, dangers from my countrymen, dangers from the Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, dangers on the sea, dangers among false brethren; 27 I have been in labor and hardship, through many sleepless nights, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure." (2 Corinthians 11:23-27)
It was plainly evident that Paul sacrificed himself so that He could love God and love his neighbor. In order to love, it comes at a cost. So I read this passage and think, "what was going through the mind of Paul that would make him come to the conclusion that living that lifestyle would be a good idea?" Living the lifestyle of a disciple of Christ makes no sense to the world, no sense at all! Why put yourself into a sacrificial lifestyle if you don't have to? Answer: Paul knew God's love, and therefore was compelled to love others sacrificially as God had loved him. How do we get into the mindset of living as a disciple of Jesus? Answer: Ask yourself the following question all the time. "Am I making decisions that demand me to live a crucified life?" After all, the goal has always been, "That I may know the Savior, and Him crucified." God's disciples made conscious active decisions where they sacrificed themselves to others, we must follow in their footsteps and do likewise.
May God's mercy keep you.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Beauty Redefined (Part 3)
Can beauty fade, or is beauty eternal?
Can something which is defiled be made beautiful?
Do you believe in the God who does miracles?
Can something devoid of holiness be made holy?
Can the unclean be cleansed?
Is forgiveness beauty?
Is the holy hand reaching down to the sinful mind beautiful?
There is beauty in a choice.
There is beauty when we decide to pick of the cross and follow.
Can something painful be beautiful?
Will you enter into the beauty of suffering discipleship today?
Can something which is defiled be made beautiful?
Do you believe in the God who does miracles?
Can something devoid of holiness be made holy?
Can the unclean be cleansed?
Is forgiveness beauty?
Is the holy hand reaching down to the sinful mind beautiful?
There is beauty in a choice.
There is beauty when we decide to pick of the cross and follow.
Can something painful be beautiful?
Will you enter into the beauty of suffering discipleship today?
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Beauty Redefined (Part 2)
When heaven reaches down and touches earth, is that beauty?
When heaven opened, and the Spirit of God descended like a dove and lighting on him, is that beauty?
When a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased." Is that beauty?
When he was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil, is that beauty?
When he denied himself, and past those temptations, is that beauty?
When he fasted and prayed, is that beauty?
When Moses heard the voice of God on Mt. Sinai, was that beauty?
When Jeremiah wept for God's people, was that beauty?
When a voice shouted in the wilderness for us to repent and prepare ourselves for the coming of the Lord, was that beauty?
More to come...
When heaven opened, and the Spirit of God descended like a dove and lighting on him, is that beauty?
When a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased." Is that beauty?
When he was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil, is that beauty?
When he denied himself, and past those temptations, is that beauty?
When he fasted and prayed, is that beauty?
When Moses heard the voice of God on Mt. Sinai, was that beauty?
When Jeremiah wept for God's people, was that beauty?
When a voice shouted in the wilderness for us to repent and prepare ourselves for the coming of the Lord, was that beauty?
More to come...
Friday, April 4, 2008
Beauty Redefined (Part 1)
I need to recapture the essence of beauty. Beauty is not the destruction of something sacred. Sadly, in our sinfulness we’ve fed ourselves lies calling the unholy beautiful. Ironically, humans now pursue the impure and call that beauty, and want nothing to do with the purely beautiful. We chase after beauty that isn’t intended to be ours, and in turn lose our innocence when we bite into the skin of the apple. We have stripped the proper boundaries and parameters from beauty and are left with a diffused oozing undefined beauty.
I have vainly chased after the wind and called that fulfilling. I need to rethink what it means to behold beauty. I need to see as if for the first time the beauty of our glorious Lord. I don’t need another lecture-ish type of sermon stating 10 things that beauty isn’t. I don’t need to hear about how our society has perverted beauty. I don’t need to hear another rant on our society’s insane twisting and distortion of beauty.
I just want to hear about beauty. I don’t want to hear about the tainted other side for a change. Just give me the beautiful side, and let us see beauty, raw beauty. I want to read about beauty. I want to write about beauty. I want my life to display beauty. I want to breathe beauty.
More to come…
I have vainly chased after the wind and called that fulfilling. I need to rethink what it means to behold beauty. I need to see as if for the first time the beauty of our glorious Lord. I don’t need another lecture-ish type of sermon stating 10 things that beauty isn’t. I don’t need to hear about how our society has perverted beauty. I don’t need to hear another rant on our society’s insane twisting and distortion of beauty.
I just want to hear about beauty. I don’t want to hear about the tainted other side for a change. Just give me the beautiful side, and let us see beauty, raw beauty. I want to read about beauty. I want to write about beauty. I want my life to display beauty. I want to breathe beauty.
More to come…
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