Here in Australia I remember reciting what we call "the Lord's prayer" at school assembly (parade) every morning. I don't really think it did a lot for my spiritual development. In fact, I think it probably turned a fantastic piece of teaching by Jesus into a repetitious paragraph void of any meaning whatsoever. I think that only recently have I come to appreciate some of the real meaning and teaching behind this 'model' prayer.
Like most followers of Jesus, I've often heard advice and explanations about this prayer. But for so long I don't think I was ever really inspired by it because of the boring act of repeating this prayer from my school days. Having said that, I know there are people who feel very close to God every time they say this prayer, and that I'm sure is the whole aim of prayer.
But for me, I think God knew I wasn't wired up to learn that way. For something to become true and real to me I would have to experience some kind of 'reality', or 'revelation' about prayer or God himself. Prayer would need to be something more than reciting words over and over. I think I began to understand more about prayer when I realised the power of the first 2 words Jesus said.
"Our Father". You know, I'm sure there were a bunch of words Jesus could have used to introduce God to us. Like, 'Creator', or 'Powerful Being', or 'Lord of the Universe'. But he chose the words, Our Father.
Right at the beginning of this teaching there is Relationship. Now I'm no scholar, but I reckon that if we were to move on to Jesus next point without getting the first, I think we would be missing something important.
It seems that prayer without this relationship would be like writing a letter to someone else's loved one pretending to be them. It's a bit like reading someone else's mail - you read and understand the words, but you're just not part of it. Is it possible that we need to stop all pretense and ask ourselves, "Do I know the one I'm praying to"?
This isn't a accusing statement; I just want to be real. It doesn't matter at what depth or level you think you know God - some are just starting out on this road to friendship with Jesus, and others have been on the road a long time - what matters is honesty! Do you believe that God would want you to continue this pretend friendship, or do you think he wants us to get this right and be known to you as a loving, interested Father? If we really believe that reciting a 'list' of requests to the heavens, hoping that there is some sort of Karma going on then there is a good chance that you don't know the Father that Jesus knew. You only have to imagine yourself as a parent putting these expectations on your own kids to realise how wrong the concept is. This kind of 'praying' can only lead to ritual and weariness. I say weariness because your joy in prayer will be based on how well you perform - Did you pray the right way? Did you say the right things, in the right order? Did you spend enough time? These things are so unnatural in good family relationships; why do we think that God is different?
Jesus said, "Come to me if you're weary . . . ". Do you think he made the invitation just so he could punish you when you came to him? God loves us so much more than our lists and attempts to reach him. Human attempts to reach God are wearying and useless. He's the one who made the invitation in the first place, with just a couple of strings attached: 1. Come with simple, child-like trust; and 2. Come with honesty. Remember, God knows your failings, and yet still invites you. He also knows your true spiritual state; so why try and pretend different? Come as you are.
Talk again . . .
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Seasons . . .
Seasons. This word speaks to us about change, doesn't it? One of our cities here in Oz, the city of Melbourne, is known to experience 4 seasons in the one day! Generally though, the word season refers to the change of weather and temperature over the course of a year. Things grow and flourish at certain times of the year, and at other times they dry out and die. Instead of fruit and leaves getting bigger and better, they fall off and die.
Did you ever experience a change of season in your life that came about much quicker than you expected? Possibly a death in your family; you may have lost your job at very short notice; maybe a friendship, or marriage came to a premature end, and left you floundering with questions about how and why? All of these things, and countless other experiences, could be considered SEASONS in our lives. I've heard many people say (myself included) that if you were to ask them a year ago did they think their life would look like it does now, they would have said no way!
I think seasons in our lives are as unavoidable as seaons in the weather. Things happen, times change, people change, circumstances change. The thing is, I think, is to find something that doesn't change, and hang on to it tightly. It's a bit like an anchor for a boat. Or like the cyclone rods that bolt your house to the ground. The idea is that when the weather changes - and it will change - your house hopefully will still be standing pretty close to where it was before the storm. I think that we get WEARY when we try to resist the seasons, instead of allowing them to make us stronger, or build new character and integrity in us.
Maybe one of the keys to staying strong in spite of the weather is to acknowledge that the weather will change. It's unrealistic to expect that your circumstances will remain just how you want them to forever. There are times in my own life that I've felt like I could take on the world and win every time. And there are seasons when I've experienced the kind of weariness that saps your drive and strength, and makes you just want to lie down and let life run over you. These are the times that tend to throw me out of my tree; to make me panic, and make me feel that my life as I know it is coming to an end.
This isn't a good position to be in, and opens the door to fear, and other nasties that seem to want to force me to make decisions that I might regret later on. I've heard it said that you should never make a major life decision when you are experiencing a major up OR down in your circumstances.
The Bible, in my opinion, has a bit to say about these dramas we face. We read the stories of men, and women, and entire communities who faced changing times and seasons that would alter their world as they knew it. Whether it was persecution, war, bereavement, unemployment, family breakdown, famine, and a whole bunch of other challenges, they had to face their difficulties head on to survive. And not just to survive: but to come through the trial a better person; a more gracious person; someone who has an ear for others who struggle, and a helping hand or word where possible.
I reckon the words of Jesus are at least as powerful today as when he originally spoke them:
"Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly". (Matthew 11:28-30 The Message NT)
Jesus made this invitation because he could keep his end of the bargain. Sadly, though, we will rarely take him up on it until we've nothing else to hang on to.
Talk again soon . . .
Did you ever experience a change of season in your life that came about much quicker than you expected? Possibly a death in your family; you may have lost your job at very short notice; maybe a friendship, or marriage came to a premature end, and left you floundering with questions about how and why? All of these things, and countless other experiences, could be considered SEASONS in our lives. I've heard many people say (myself included) that if you were to ask them a year ago did they think their life would look like it does now, they would have said no way!
I think seasons in our lives are as unavoidable as seaons in the weather. Things happen, times change, people change, circumstances change. The thing is, I think, is to find something that doesn't change, and hang on to it tightly. It's a bit like an anchor for a boat. Or like the cyclone rods that bolt your house to the ground. The idea is that when the weather changes - and it will change - your house hopefully will still be standing pretty close to where it was before the storm. I think that we get WEARY when we try to resist the seasons, instead of allowing them to make us stronger, or build new character and integrity in us.
Maybe one of the keys to staying strong in spite of the weather is to acknowledge that the weather will change. It's unrealistic to expect that your circumstances will remain just how you want them to forever. There are times in my own life that I've felt like I could take on the world and win every time. And there are seasons when I've experienced the kind of weariness that saps your drive and strength, and makes you just want to lie down and let life run over you. These are the times that tend to throw me out of my tree; to make me panic, and make me feel that my life as I know it is coming to an end.
This isn't a good position to be in, and opens the door to fear, and other nasties that seem to want to force me to make decisions that I might regret later on. I've heard it said that you should never make a major life decision when you are experiencing a major up OR down in your circumstances.
The Bible, in my opinion, has a bit to say about these dramas we face. We read the stories of men, and women, and entire communities who faced changing times and seasons that would alter their world as they knew it. Whether it was persecution, war, bereavement, unemployment, family breakdown, famine, and a whole bunch of other challenges, they had to face their difficulties head on to survive. And not just to survive: but to come through the trial a better person; a more gracious person; someone who has an ear for others who struggle, and a helping hand or word where possible.
I reckon the words of Jesus are at least as powerful today as when he originally spoke them:
"Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly". (Matthew 11:28-30 The Message NT)
Jesus made this invitation because he could keep his end of the bargain. Sadly, though, we will rarely take him up on it until we've nothing else to hang on to.
Talk again soon . . .
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Love that won't let go . . .
I am writing these words a day after Valentine's Day, and one particular teen soap opera here in Oz has a Valentine's Day theme happening for the week, with the advertisements for the program featuring men and women at various stages of dress (and undress) apparently "in love" with each other. It makes me angry that this is served up to us as "love"! We spend our years growing up seeing and hearing from society, and Hollywood that 'love' must end up in the bedroom.
I'd like to remind us of a whole new concept of love; one that is not new, but foreign to many of us because we have had the truth kept from us by the loud voices of our culture. The voices that say, "If you really love me you'll sleep with me". Or how about, "Look at everything I've done for you! You owe me"! There is a weariness that comes from this mentality and lifestyle that forces us to settle for second best. I believe there is a love that trancends anything on earth, and it's available to us all. To get it though will cost you. It will cost you a child-like faith, and being prepared to throw out everything you thought you knew about God and love.
Most of us have seen that human love does fail. It does give up, gets divorced, gets angry, keeps records of wrong against it, etc. But let me show you another description.
Two things: 1. The Bible says God IS love. 2. The Bible gives us a very clear description of what love looks like in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8.
- Love is patient - Love is kind. - It doesn't envy - It doesn't boast - It isn't proud - It isn't rude - It is not self-seeking - It is not easily angered - It keeps no record of wrongs -Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth -It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.
If you get the opportunity to meet an older couple who've been married for many years and still enjoy each other's company, ask them if it's the sex that has kept them together? Probably not. They will have found that real love looks for the other's interest above their own. And if this works both ways you have the basis for a very strong friendship.
How about this for a definition of what love is: "This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us . . . ". This comes from the Bible also (1 John 4:10), and it's like God is not interested in any other definition of what love is. He's saying that real love has nothing to do with human descriptions, but rather starts and ends with him. God's love "gave Jesus as a sacrifice for us". Right here is a clue - love gives and doesn't take. Love will prefer the other person's needs above it's own needs. Could you possibly believe that God doesn't want to take anything from you? This is a common misconception about God, that He wants you to do stuff you don't want to do; to give this up, to stop doing that, to not drink not smoke not swear, etc. This is so unfair, and is a human description of God that is incorrect, I believe.
If Love is patient, then God is patient with me.
If love isn't rude or boastful, then God isn't either.
If love doesn't keep a record of wrongs, then neither does God.
If love perseveres then God will persevere with me because he loves me.
If love never fails then His love for me will never fail.
Here's the trick: Because we are so used to seeing love fail; because we've seen love act rudely; because we have seen it act proudly, and keep a record of wrongs, we find it hard to imagine otherwise. This is where you won't get it without starting from scratch. Starting with a child's faith and acceptance. We need to be prepared to put our preconceived ideas about God and Jesus away. I'm not pretending this is easy, but I believe that it is possible. And if you feel a call within you that this is what you need to do, DO IT! Talk to God, and ask Jesus to show you the way. And then begin to take some steps toward trusting God. I can't tell you what this will involve for you, but I believe that God is closer than you think and that he is dying to meet you.
Talk soon . . .
I'd like to remind us of a whole new concept of love; one that is not new, but foreign to many of us because we have had the truth kept from us by the loud voices of our culture. The voices that say, "If you really love me you'll sleep with me". Or how about, "Look at everything I've done for you! You owe me"! There is a weariness that comes from this mentality and lifestyle that forces us to settle for second best. I believe there is a love that trancends anything on earth, and it's available to us all. To get it though will cost you. It will cost you a child-like faith, and being prepared to throw out everything you thought you knew about God and love.
Most of us have seen that human love does fail. It does give up, gets divorced, gets angry, keeps records of wrong against it, etc. But let me show you another description.
Two things: 1. The Bible says God IS love. 2. The Bible gives us a very clear description of what love looks like in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8.
- Love is patient - Love is kind. - It doesn't envy - It doesn't boast - It isn't proud - It isn't rude - It is not self-seeking - It is not easily angered - It keeps no record of wrongs -Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth -It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.
If you get the opportunity to meet an older couple who've been married for many years and still enjoy each other's company, ask them if it's the sex that has kept them together? Probably not. They will have found that real love looks for the other's interest above their own. And if this works both ways you have the basis for a very strong friendship.
How about this for a definition of what love is: "This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us . . . ". This comes from the Bible also (1 John 4:10), and it's like God is not interested in any other definition of what love is. He's saying that real love has nothing to do with human descriptions, but rather starts and ends with him. God's love "gave Jesus as a sacrifice for us". Right here is a clue - love gives and doesn't take. Love will prefer the other person's needs above it's own needs. Could you possibly believe that God doesn't want to take anything from you? This is a common misconception about God, that He wants you to do stuff you don't want to do; to give this up, to stop doing that, to not drink not smoke not swear, etc. This is so unfair, and is a human description of God that is incorrect, I believe.
If Love is patient, then God is patient with me.
If love isn't rude or boastful, then God isn't either.
If love doesn't keep a record of wrongs, then neither does God.
If love perseveres then God will persevere with me because he loves me.
If love never fails then His love for me will never fail.
Here's the trick: Because we are so used to seeing love fail; because we've seen love act rudely; because we have seen it act proudly, and keep a record of wrongs, we find it hard to imagine otherwise. This is where you won't get it without starting from scratch. Starting with a child's faith and acceptance. We need to be prepared to put our preconceived ideas about God and Jesus away. I'm not pretending this is easy, but I believe that it is possible. And if you feel a call within you that this is what you need to do, DO IT! Talk to God, and ask Jesus to show you the way. And then begin to take some steps toward trusting God. I can't tell you what this will involve for you, but I believe that God is closer than you think and that he is dying to meet you.
Talk soon . . .
Monday, February 8, 2010
Being weak is no sin . . . (part 2)
When John's friends return to the prison with Jesus' reply, this is what they were told to say to John:
" . . . tell him what you have heard and seen — the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is being preached to the poor. And tell him, ‘God blesses those who do not turn away because of me". (Matthew 11: 4-6 NLT)
Now for years, ever since I've heard or read these verses I've always wondered at the last sentence Jesus said: " . . . God blesses those who do not turn away because of me". It doesn't seem to fit. Everything else Jesus says fits the theme of answering the question John asked. But that little part on the end just didn't seem to answer anything John asked, and therefore made me wonder whether Jesus was answering a question John wasn't asking!
I think this is exactly what Jesus was doing. I think the first part was the answer to John's spoken question, and the last line was the answer to John's unspoken question: "Jesus, what's going to happen to me"? The reason I think this is so is because of what unfolds in prison for John. It's recorded in Matthew 14.
King Herod, who put John in prison, has thrown himself a birthday party at the palace. At some time during the party his step-daughter is dancing in front of him, and Herod is all turned on and makes the girl a stupid promise that she could have anything she wanted! Now, if you're the king you should be careful what you promise to give to someone. Maybe he was drunk at the time, or maybe he was just thinking with his penis, but a lot of other people heard him promise the girl anything, and so Herod knew that whatever she asked for he would have to come good with the promise. The girl went and spoke briefly with her mother, then returned to Herod and said, "I want the head of John the baptiser brought to me right here on a plate".
Is she serious?! She can't be serious! For a few seconds Herod must have been waiting for the girl to start laughing and say, "just kidding". But she wasn't kidding, and if you read between the lines you can tell that Herod would have actually given the girl half of Jerusalem rather than this grisly request. You see, Herod actually didn't mind John at all. He didn't like his preaching, or the way John highlighted his blatant sins, but he wasn't ready to just kill the guy for no reason. But herod was a people pleaser to the back teeth. He had the authority to put any prisoner to death, and he also had the right to go back on his stupid promise. But his reputation in front of his cronies and officials was more important to him than doing the right thing; and so he ordered the deed be done.
Like most of us I've seen my share of hollywood blood and gore scenes; but I think this must go down in history as one of the most gruesome, obscene, and cold-blooded acts of pathetic treachery recorded. It isn't hard for us to imagine the scene, and I can picture quite clearly the severed head on the plate being brought onto the palace dance floor. But think back a few moments before this, and put yourself in John's cell. He hears footsteps coming toward his jail cell, the door opens, a couple of soldiers walk in and one of them has a sword drawn. I do wonder if in that brief moment John remembered Jesus' last sentence. In fact, I wonder if John had reason to turn it over and over in his head since Jesus said it to him. You see, everything else Jesus said in that reply was about good news. But I believe Jesus' message to John was different - I believe it was a personal message to him to remember that whatever happens, being weak is no sin, just remember who holds the future. And don't forgot that he who called you to this task you're doing will see it through to the end with you, and will take you home to be with him when all this is over. His message to us today probably isn't all that different: You may be healed of blindness, deafness, being lame, or some skin disease; but if it doesn't happen to you personally don't get thrown out of your tree.
God is still God. His message to one person may not be your message. His particular promise to some may not be his promise to all at exactly the time we expect it. But don't stumble because of it! Don't turn away from God, or take offence because somebody else got something you wanted. Don't get angry with God's choices. Jesus had the ability to free John from prison, but he had a bigger, better plan for him - to take him home! There's no way John could have seen this coming: Jesus only asked him to hold on tight no matter what happens.
Talk soon . . .
" . . . tell him what you have heard and seen — the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is being preached to the poor. And tell him, ‘God blesses those who do not turn away because of me". (Matthew 11: 4-6 NLT)
Now for years, ever since I've heard or read these verses I've always wondered at the last sentence Jesus said: " . . . God blesses those who do not turn away because of me". It doesn't seem to fit. Everything else Jesus says fits the theme of answering the question John asked. But that little part on the end just didn't seem to answer anything John asked, and therefore made me wonder whether Jesus was answering a question John wasn't asking!
I think this is exactly what Jesus was doing. I think the first part was the answer to John's spoken question, and the last line was the answer to John's unspoken question: "Jesus, what's going to happen to me"? The reason I think this is so is because of what unfolds in prison for John. It's recorded in Matthew 14.
King Herod, who put John in prison, has thrown himself a birthday party at the palace. At some time during the party his step-daughter is dancing in front of him, and Herod is all turned on and makes the girl a stupid promise that she could have anything she wanted! Now, if you're the king you should be careful what you promise to give to someone. Maybe he was drunk at the time, or maybe he was just thinking with his penis, but a lot of other people heard him promise the girl anything, and so Herod knew that whatever she asked for he would have to come good with the promise. The girl went and spoke briefly with her mother, then returned to Herod and said, "I want the head of John the baptiser brought to me right here on a plate".
Is she serious?! She can't be serious! For a few seconds Herod must have been waiting for the girl to start laughing and say, "just kidding". But she wasn't kidding, and if you read between the lines you can tell that Herod would have actually given the girl half of Jerusalem rather than this grisly request. You see, Herod actually didn't mind John at all. He didn't like his preaching, or the way John highlighted his blatant sins, but he wasn't ready to just kill the guy for no reason. But herod was a people pleaser to the back teeth. He had the authority to put any prisoner to death, and he also had the right to go back on his stupid promise. But his reputation in front of his cronies and officials was more important to him than doing the right thing; and so he ordered the deed be done.
Like most of us I've seen my share of hollywood blood and gore scenes; but I think this must go down in history as one of the most gruesome, obscene, and cold-blooded acts of pathetic treachery recorded. It isn't hard for us to imagine the scene, and I can picture quite clearly the severed head on the plate being brought onto the palace dance floor. But think back a few moments before this, and put yourself in John's cell. He hears footsteps coming toward his jail cell, the door opens, a couple of soldiers walk in and one of them has a sword drawn. I do wonder if in that brief moment John remembered Jesus' last sentence. In fact, I wonder if John had reason to turn it over and over in his head since Jesus said it to him. You see, everything else Jesus said in that reply was about good news. But I believe Jesus' message to John was different - I believe it was a personal message to him to remember that whatever happens, being weak is no sin, just remember who holds the future. And don't forgot that he who called you to this task you're doing will see it through to the end with you, and will take you home to be with him when all this is over. His message to us today probably isn't all that different: You may be healed of blindness, deafness, being lame, or some skin disease; but if it doesn't happen to you personally don't get thrown out of your tree.
God is still God. His message to one person may not be your message. His particular promise to some may not be his promise to all at exactly the time we expect it. But don't stumble because of it! Don't turn away from God, or take offence because somebody else got something you wanted. Don't get angry with God's choices. Jesus had the ability to free John from prison, but he had a bigger, better plan for him - to take him home! There's no way John could have seen this coming: Jesus only asked him to hold on tight no matter what happens.
Talk soon . . .
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Being weak is no sin . . . (part 1)
Do you remember the story of John the baptiser? (Or the ‘Baptist’, as you may recall him)? Do you recall his fearlessness and boldness when he was confronting the hypocritical religious leaders of his day? He called them ‘snakes’, and he likened them to ‘graves that were painted white’ – clean on the outside but dead on the inside. He boldly challenged the ordinary people, also, to stop continually doing the wrong thing, whether they were at work, or home, or at play. He confronted injustice at a personal level, and challenged people to do their part in making society a better and fairer place for all. He taught them to honour God and prepare their hearts for the coming of the Messiah.
Of all the words you would use to describe John, vulnerable probably wouldn’t be one of them. Or would it? In the New Testament, in Matthew 11, John is in prison (for telling King Herod he wasn’t such a nice person), and he asks his friends to go and ask Jesus if he really is the Messiah – the promised one sent from God. Now this in itself is odd, considering that it was John himself who baptised Jesus, and then saw the heavens open and saw a dove fly over and land on him. And he heard with his own ears God’s voice speak from above that Jesus was indeed the promised one. If that wasn’t enough John also saw and heard about some of the miracles that Jesus was doing, and how Jesus had taken over where John himself had backed away from public life. John knew this was exactly how the Prophets of old had predicted the Messiah would come, and that he himself was the fore-runner – the one who would ‘prepare’ the way for him.
So, you would think that ‘vulnerable’ is not a word that would suit John. Believe it or not, John is very vulnerable at this time. He is in the typical position of a battle weary soldier who needs encouragement to continue fighting when it seems that all the odds are stacked against him. Think about it: you are in prison for doing the work you believe God asked you to do. All you’ve done to land yourself there is tell the truth to an insecure tyrant who has lots of authority but no conscience.
But John’s friends are allowed to visit him, so he asks if they will just check with Jesus that it is indeed worth all the effort. I understand his feelings of vulnerability, and I would ask Jesus in a heart beat the same question if I knew he were around!
Jesus’ response to John is very interesting, and I’ll talk about that next blog; but I believe words recorded by Matthew earlier are the words John needed to hear.
He (Jesus) will not crush the weakest reed or put out a flickering candle. (12:20NLT)
At this moment John was a weak reed, a flickering candle. He was experiencing a moment of weakness everybody experiences that works hard to achieve a greater goal than their own life and needs.
John’s friends delivered Jesus’ reply to him (next blog), but if Jesus himself had gone to the prison to see John, he would have encouraged him not to be discouraged, not to be unhappy about where he was, or what was to happen in the immediate future. He would have put a hand on his shoulder and said, “Well done, friend”.
Talk soon . . .
Of all the words you would use to describe John, vulnerable probably wouldn’t be one of them. Or would it? In the New Testament, in Matthew 11, John is in prison (for telling King Herod he wasn’t such a nice person), and he asks his friends to go and ask Jesus if he really is the Messiah – the promised one sent from God. Now this in itself is odd, considering that it was John himself who baptised Jesus, and then saw the heavens open and saw a dove fly over and land on him. And he heard with his own ears God’s voice speak from above that Jesus was indeed the promised one. If that wasn’t enough John also saw and heard about some of the miracles that Jesus was doing, and how Jesus had taken over where John himself had backed away from public life. John knew this was exactly how the Prophets of old had predicted the Messiah would come, and that he himself was the fore-runner – the one who would ‘prepare’ the way for him.
So, you would think that ‘vulnerable’ is not a word that would suit John. Believe it or not, John is very vulnerable at this time. He is in the typical position of a battle weary soldier who needs encouragement to continue fighting when it seems that all the odds are stacked against him. Think about it: you are in prison for doing the work you believe God asked you to do. All you’ve done to land yourself there is tell the truth to an insecure tyrant who has lots of authority but no conscience.
But John’s friends are allowed to visit him, so he asks if they will just check with Jesus that it is indeed worth all the effort. I understand his feelings of vulnerability, and I would ask Jesus in a heart beat the same question if I knew he were around!
Jesus’ response to John is very interesting, and I’ll talk about that next blog; but I believe words recorded by Matthew earlier are the words John needed to hear.
He (Jesus) will not crush the weakest reed or put out a flickering candle. (12:20NLT)
At this moment John was a weak reed, a flickering candle. He was experiencing a moment of weakness everybody experiences that works hard to achieve a greater goal than their own life and needs.
John’s friends delivered Jesus’ reply to him (next blog), but if Jesus himself had gone to the prison to see John, he would have encouraged him not to be discouraged, not to be unhappy about where he was, or what was to happen in the immediate future. He would have put a hand on his shoulder and said, “Well done, friend”.
Talk soon . . .
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Could God enjoy my company?
Is it possible that God could enjoy my company?
Is it possible that he could sit back in his heavenly lounge chair, take a deep breath, and sigh, “That’s my boy”, or “That’s my little girl”?
This is a necessary question to ask, and answer, because if I don’t know the answer then I must be living my life on the assumption that God is moody, unpredictable, and at times both pleased and unpleased with me.
The Bible, in Zephaniah 3 verse 17 says,
For the Lord your God is living among you. He is a mighty saviour. He will take delight in you with gladness. With his love he will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.”(NLT)
If there is any way that this could be as true today as it was when Zeph wrote these words, then I am indeed in a great place! Think of the possibilities! To quote another saint: “If God is for me who can be against me”? (Romans 8:31)
Question: Among your friends, do you know or have you ever seen a father who was really proud of his kids? Maybe at a sporting event where winning wasn’t as important as doing your best. (I’ve seen a Dad I know just about crying with pride when his 8 year old daughter finished a lap of an Olympic pool, even though she came last). Or what about a parent just brimming with pride (money can’t buy this kind of pride) watching from a distance while their child is simply playing in the backyard? My point is this: that if God is my heavenly father (this is how he has described himself thru history), is it possible that he finds this kind of happiness and delight in me? According to Zephaniah this is exactly how he feels. Let’s break it down:
1. “He is our Saviour”. This should be our first clue – we can’t save ourselves!!
2. “He takes delight in me with gladness”. I think our problem with this statement is that we don’t think it could be this way all the time. To think this way means that God is either moody, or that we completely surprised him and he didn’t see it coming when we messed up! I believe neither is true. God knows our weakness and he knows when we’re going to miss the mark. But he is incredibly patient with us (love is patient, remember) and he sees the big picture that one day we will beat the things that trip us up.
3. “He will calm your fears with his love”. To me this speaks of security. I am secure in my fathers love. We’ve all heard of a child who sleeps in their mum and dad’s bed when they’re afraid of something. If God chose the image of a father to describe himself to us then it stands to reason that we will be allowed to feel the security of his love at times when we are afraid. I guess that most of us are affected to some extent by the way we saw our earthly parents act toward us. But God is perfect, and his affection toward us is unchanging. He’s not moody or temperamental.
4. “He will rejoice over you with songs”. Now, think of all the songs you know where someone is singing about their sweetheart. Imagine the pure and perfect love of your heavenly father singing to you and about you. Now that’s going to take some faith isn’t it!? That’s exactly what it’s going to take! But do it! Be secure in your father’s love. Allow yourself to hear his songs for you. Allow him to save you and take delight in you.
Talk soon . . . Dave Morrie Dick
Is it possible that he could sit back in his heavenly lounge chair, take a deep breath, and sigh, “That’s my boy”, or “That’s my little girl”?
This is a necessary question to ask, and answer, because if I don’t know the answer then I must be living my life on the assumption that God is moody, unpredictable, and at times both pleased and unpleased with me.
The Bible, in Zephaniah 3 verse 17 says,
For the Lord your God is living among you. He is a mighty saviour. He will take delight in you with gladness. With his love he will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.”(NLT)
If there is any way that this could be as true today as it was when Zeph wrote these words, then I am indeed in a great place! Think of the possibilities! To quote another saint: “If God is for me who can be against me”? (Romans 8:31)
Question: Among your friends, do you know or have you ever seen a father who was really proud of his kids? Maybe at a sporting event where winning wasn’t as important as doing your best. (I’ve seen a Dad I know just about crying with pride when his 8 year old daughter finished a lap of an Olympic pool, even though she came last). Or what about a parent just brimming with pride (money can’t buy this kind of pride) watching from a distance while their child is simply playing in the backyard? My point is this: that if God is my heavenly father (this is how he has described himself thru history), is it possible that he finds this kind of happiness and delight in me? According to Zephaniah this is exactly how he feels. Let’s break it down:
1. “He is our Saviour”. This should be our first clue – we can’t save ourselves!!
2. “He takes delight in me with gladness”. I think our problem with this statement is that we don’t think it could be this way all the time. To think this way means that God is either moody, or that we completely surprised him and he didn’t see it coming when we messed up! I believe neither is true. God knows our weakness and he knows when we’re going to miss the mark. But he is incredibly patient with us (love is patient, remember) and he sees the big picture that one day we will beat the things that trip us up.
3. “He will calm your fears with his love”. To me this speaks of security. I am secure in my fathers love. We’ve all heard of a child who sleeps in their mum and dad’s bed when they’re afraid of something. If God chose the image of a father to describe himself to us then it stands to reason that we will be allowed to feel the security of his love at times when we are afraid. I guess that most of us are affected to some extent by the way we saw our earthly parents act toward us. But God is perfect, and his affection toward us is unchanging. He’s not moody or temperamental.
4. “He will rejoice over you with songs”. Now, think of all the songs you know where someone is singing about their sweetheart. Imagine the pure and perfect love of your heavenly father singing to you and about you. Now that’s going to take some faith isn’t it!? That’s exactly what it’s going to take! But do it! Be secure in your father’s love. Allow yourself to hear his songs for you. Allow him to save you and take delight in you.
Talk soon . . . Dave Morrie Dick
Saturday, January 23, 2010
LOVE - an over-used word . . .
It could be that the word LOVE is the most over-used word in our language over the last 100 years. What pictures come to your mind when you hear that two people LOVE each other? A television sex scene? An afternoon soap opera? A teen soap opera? Maybe your favourite magazine where you keep up with who loves who these days? What about the latest ET news?
Please . . . give me a break!! If these things are our standard of what true love is then we are all standing neck-deep in the nasty stuff! If these are the standards of what real love is, then I say there is no true hope for our relationships, our families, or our futures. There must be a better anchor in the storms of life than what this temperamental crap dishes out to us as reality!
A long time ago I heard someone talking about God, and they said, "he likes me very much". At the time I thought that was an odd thing to say, because as a Christian I believe that God "loves" me very much. To me, this would seem to be a more affectionate term to use. Over the last few years, though, I've come to see the statement in a new light, and I realize that this person was right on the money about God "liking" us.
Jesus made a statement to his followers one night over dinner, "I no longer call you servants . . . . but instead I call you friends". And he was saying this right in the middle of teaching them about how they can know God!
To me, the idea that I love someone - say a family member - almost implies a sense of duty. It's a bit like saying your marriage vows at the altar and then following thru as a commitment to those vows. But to really like someone implies that I would like to spend time with them, that I could enjoy the things they enjoy, (imagine God liking what you like), that if I have a choice I will gladly spend every day of the rest of my life with you.
I think we all know what's it's like to love someone (or be loved) out of obligation; but to know that a particular person actually thinks I'm terrific, fabulous, cool, smashing, super, etc, well that's very different!!
Probably the ultimate test of someone liking me or not is how much they are willing to spend time with me.
This is actually quite easy for me to picture this, because I've known for a long time that God and Jesus enjoy my company, but I appreciate that others may have no idea how this could work. Perhaps you've been hoodwinked with the concept of "survival of the fittest", and changed it to "survival of the purest", or holiest, or spiritually talented, etc. Maybe we've been fooled into thinking that God would only be interested in spending time with really good people, or saints, or church leaders, or the Mother Theresa types.
But is this true?
It's so important to come to grips with this because you may never be a Mother Theresa, or a Billy Graham, or a famous spiritual leader, or priest, or nun, etc.
I read a story once where there were 2 brothers living with their parents. The older brother, from a young age, convinced his younger brother that his parents didn't particularly like him very much because he was adopted. He also convinced his brother to never talk about this in front of his parents because they would only distance themselves further from him, and he should be content to just accept the facts as they were; that he was in fact loved by his parents, but not liked as much as him. None of this was true, however, and somehow the parents never became aware of the lies their youngest was living with and thereby confronting the untruths. It wasn't until his mid-teens that it all surfaced. The two brothers had actually forgotten about the original conversations they had when they were children, but the truth now had a much more difficult task to be pushed home.
This is very similar to many of our ways of thinking: we are almost conditioned to think that God's special love and attention is reserved for people who actually "work" for him, or those who live in other poorer countries and feed the hungry, etc. Or maybe you've come to believe that a fancy suit and a nice car is evidence that God likes successful people more than battlers.
The Bible says of Jesus, "He won't brush aside the bruised and the hurt, and he won't disregard the small and insignificant." (Isaiah 42 The Message). Another translation says he won't snuff out a flickering candle, or crush a bruised branch. That sounds to me like Jesus may just be a little bit interested in the survivor, and not just in the 'fittest', or the ‘holiest’, etc.
I believe that not only does my heavenly father love me, but he actually likes me very much indeed. And if you knew me the way God knows me you would know that I’m not all that holy, or spiritual, or pure at times. And I don’t believe that it’s simply a choice God makes that he has to stick with me to the end, but rather he actually thinks I’m worth spending eternity with, and letting me into his life and feelings for me. When I look at the New Testament in this light I see that so much of what is written is written to draw me into friendship with Jesus. The kind of friendship that overlooks faults and failings, that wants to pick me up when I fall, that wants to reassure me that I am loved and believed in.
Let me finish with a little mind twister that I heard recently:
If God is love, then according to the New Testament in
1 Corinthians 13:4, “Love is patient and kind”.
That would mean that God is patient and kind.
Does that make sense? Or am I being a little too simplistic here? If this is too simple to be true I’m sticking with it anyway! I wonder if for some of us the problem is not whether or not God loves us, as much as we don’t think he should (or could) love us?
We’ll talk again . . . Dave Morrie Dick
Please . . . give me a break!! If these things are our standard of what true love is then we are all standing neck-deep in the nasty stuff! If these are the standards of what real love is, then I say there is no true hope for our relationships, our families, or our futures. There must be a better anchor in the storms of life than what this temperamental crap dishes out to us as reality!
A long time ago I heard someone talking about God, and they said, "he likes me very much". At the time I thought that was an odd thing to say, because as a Christian I believe that God "loves" me very much. To me, this would seem to be a more affectionate term to use. Over the last few years, though, I've come to see the statement in a new light, and I realize that this person was right on the money about God "liking" us.
Jesus made a statement to his followers one night over dinner, "I no longer call you servants . . . . but instead I call you friends". And he was saying this right in the middle of teaching them about how they can know God!
To me, the idea that I love someone - say a family member - almost implies a sense of duty. It's a bit like saying your marriage vows at the altar and then following thru as a commitment to those vows. But to really like someone implies that I would like to spend time with them, that I could enjoy the things they enjoy, (imagine God liking what you like), that if I have a choice I will gladly spend every day of the rest of my life with you.
I think we all know what's it's like to love someone (or be loved) out of obligation; but to know that a particular person actually thinks I'm terrific, fabulous, cool, smashing, super, etc, well that's very different!!
Probably the ultimate test of someone liking me or not is how much they are willing to spend time with me.
This is actually quite easy for me to picture this, because I've known for a long time that God and Jesus enjoy my company, but I appreciate that others may have no idea how this could work. Perhaps you've been hoodwinked with the concept of "survival of the fittest", and changed it to "survival of the purest", or holiest, or spiritually talented, etc. Maybe we've been fooled into thinking that God would only be interested in spending time with really good people, or saints, or church leaders, or the Mother Theresa types.
But is this true?
It's so important to come to grips with this because you may never be a Mother Theresa, or a Billy Graham, or a famous spiritual leader, or priest, or nun, etc.
I read a story once where there were 2 brothers living with their parents. The older brother, from a young age, convinced his younger brother that his parents didn't particularly like him very much because he was adopted. He also convinced his brother to never talk about this in front of his parents because they would only distance themselves further from him, and he should be content to just accept the facts as they were; that he was in fact loved by his parents, but not liked as much as him. None of this was true, however, and somehow the parents never became aware of the lies their youngest was living with and thereby confronting the untruths. It wasn't until his mid-teens that it all surfaced. The two brothers had actually forgotten about the original conversations they had when they were children, but the truth now had a much more difficult task to be pushed home.
This is very similar to many of our ways of thinking: we are almost conditioned to think that God's special love and attention is reserved for people who actually "work" for him, or those who live in other poorer countries and feed the hungry, etc. Or maybe you've come to believe that a fancy suit and a nice car is evidence that God likes successful people more than battlers.
The Bible says of Jesus, "He won't brush aside the bruised and the hurt, and he won't disregard the small and insignificant." (Isaiah 42 The Message). Another translation says he won't snuff out a flickering candle, or crush a bruised branch. That sounds to me like Jesus may just be a little bit interested in the survivor, and not just in the 'fittest', or the ‘holiest’, etc.
I believe that not only does my heavenly father love me, but he actually likes me very much indeed. And if you knew me the way God knows me you would know that I’m not all that holy, or spiritual, or pure at times. And I don’t believe that it’s simply a choice God makes that he has to stick with me to the end, but rather he actually thinks I’m worth spending eternity with, and letting me into his life and feelings for me. When I look at the New Testament in this light I see that so much of what is written is written to draw me into friendship with Jesus. The kind of friendship that overlooks faults and failings, that wants to pick me up when I fall, that wants to reassure me that I am loved and believed in.
Let me finish with a little mind twister that I heard recently:
If God is love, then according to the New Testament in
1 Corinthians 13:4, “Love is patient and kind”.
That would mean that God is patient and kind.
Does that make sense? Or am I being a little too simplistic here? If this is too simple to be true I’m sticking with it anyway! I wonder if for some of us the problem is not whether or not God loves us, as much as we don’t think he should (or could) love us?
We’ll talk again . . . Dave Morrie Dick
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