I Thess.5:9-11 For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us that whether we are awake or asleep, we may u live together with Him. Therefore encourage one another and build one another up as you also are doing.
Rev. 21:3-5 And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, "Behold the tabernacle of God is among men, and He shall dwell among them and they shall be His people and God Himself shall be among them, and He shall wipe away every tear and there shall be no longer any death; there shall no longer be any mourning or crying or pain; the first things have passed away." And He who sits on the throne said, "Behold, I am making all things new." And He said, "Write, for these words are faithful and true."
It' s been a week already since our vacation stay in a little (one room) log cabin in the hills of Pennsylvania, and I still feel refreshed when I think of it. Virtually no cell or Internet service, at the end of a dirt road, our little cabin provided one of the most refreshing retreats we have enjoyed. The cabin did have a TV and video player and a few videos, one of which was What Dreams May Come starring Robin Williams about the life of a man whose children die, who dies himself, and whose wife follows him into the afterlife by suicide. Because she has taken her own life, she is not allowed into heaven...that's the crux of the film. And for various reasons, I loved this movie.
The next movie we watched (it was supposed to be a comedy) was made in the '30's, and the theme again was the afterlife as you follow one man into his experience of hell and a sort of redemption.
We had not planned on watching either of these movies, so I cannot call the timing anything other than a God-thing and purposeful, even if the purpose was only to make me think a bit about the reality of the next life, or should it be called the continuation of this life for the believer.
I used to think that when I left this earthly life for heaven that I would not be able to open my eyes, the glory of God would be so brilliant. And honestly, I couldn't get a lot farther in my imagination of what it would all be like. However, I am thinking something much differently right now. I wonder what it will be like in a place of perfect love. To wake up in the presence of the One Who loves me without limits, without conditions. Will it be as an earthly child runs into the arms of her daddy at the end of the day, we will run into His arms? Will we be finished with our own fears and doubts? Will our eagerness to love Him back and to glorify Him control us?
Ah, there's the thought. Do we really love Him now? Do we seek now to glorify Him first, over self? Funny how what was supposed to be a bit of entertainment can be used by God to get our attention.
Friday, August 5, 2011
Thursday, August 4, 2011
August 4 Dead to Self
Romans 6:11 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Have you ever read a book that you didn't want to let get far away from you, besides the Bible? I just read a little novel Lying Awake by Mark Salzman that was just that kind of book. It's about a cloistered nun who so loves God that she turns every day events into opportunities to remember that her role is to love God. For instance, as she sees deer outside the garden walls, she thinks: As the deer longs for running streams, so my soul longs for you, O God.
While she waits for a CT scan, she thinks/prays I will not struggle against You, no matter where you lead me....and later as she lay in that noisy cylinder, Perfect affirmation, perfect understanding, perfect silence: Your love, dear God, in full voice.
The book is full of these silent asides or prayers where you get a glimpse of her response to not just change, but the routine in her life. Her goal is to practice the presence of God, to acknowledge Him in everything she does.
As a reader, you watch her wrestle with a decision that could rob her of the joyous intimacies she shares with God at the cost of distracting those around her. The bottom line, it's always all about self. How many of the choices that we make are almost made for us because we let the self rule as a default mechanism. We are so used to doing what pleases ourselves, what is easiest or most comfortable without ever considering how our choice might either affect others or speak to God.
The cover says this is a novel, but it is one of the most challenging novels personally and spiritually that I have read in a while. Perhaps it won't strike you that way. I have learned that what God uses in my life He may not use in yours, but just maybe He will allow you to have your thinking challenged here.
Have you ever read a book that you didn't want to let get far away from you, besides the Bible? I just read a little novel Lying Awake by Mark Salzman that was just that kind of book. It's about a cloistered nun who so loves God that she turns every day events into opportunities to remember that her role is to love God. For instance, as she sees deer outside the garden walls, she thinks: As the deer longs for running streams, so my soul longs for you, O God.
While she waits for a CT scan, she thinks/prays I will not struggle against You, no matter where you lead me....and later as she lay in that noisy cylinder, Perfect affirmation, perfect understanding, perfect silence: Your love, dear God, in full voice.
The book is full of these silent asides or prayers where you get a glimpse of her response to not just change, but the routine in her life. Her goal is to practice the presence of God, to acknowledge Him in everything she does.
As a reader, you watch her wrestle with a decision that could rob her of the joyous intimacies she shares with God at the cost of distracting those around her. The bottom line, it's always all about self. How many of the choices that we make are almost made for us because we let the self rule as a default mechanism. We are so used to doing what pleases ourselves, what is easiest or most comfortable without ever considering how our choice might either affect others or speak to God.
The cover says this is a novel, but it is one of the most challenging novels personally and spiritually that I have read in a while. Perhaps it won't strike you that way. I have learned that what God uses in my life He may not use in yours, but just maybe He will allow you to have your thinking challenged here.
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
August 2, Like a Nursing Mother or a Loving Father
Back from vacation:
I Thessalonians 2: 1-12, 1 For you yourselves know, brethren, that our coming to you was not in vain, v. 4 but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not as pleasing men but God....7 But we proved to be gentle among you, as a nursing mother cares for her own children....11 exhorting and encouraging and imploring each one of you as a father would his own children 12 so that you may walk in a manner worth of the God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory.
As I read this I was reminded of the standard Paul set and how far from it I fall. He bent himself into the form needed to minister, gave up some things, worked at whatever was needed to help his friends know how to live out their faith. I was further reminded of how our culture has made us so self-centered, guarding our rights, our comfort levels, putting our own needs and desires first.
God did not do that. Jesus Christ did not do that. Paul did not do that, nor did Phoebe or Priscilla or...well, you get the point. It is so easy in life to fall into a rut, a pattern of busyness, even doing good things, that we miss the beauty all around us. This last week we spent a few days in a log cabin at the end of a dirt road. We sat in the stillness on our front porch, definitely not a deck, and watched and listened to the rain fall, the sun shine, and the sun set. We listened for the voice of God, and I have to tell you, it was easier to hear there, with no internet or phone service. I heartily recommend it to all.
Anyway, it reminded me of how much more beauty and joy and peace of heart is available to us when we stop thinking about ourselves, when we loosen the grip of the world and its entertainments and distractions to just love on people. That is what God does, loves on people, and what He calls us to do. And it is far more satisfying than anything else there is to do.
I Thessalonians 2: 1-12, 1 For you yourselves know, brethren, that our coming to you was not in vain, v. 4 but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not as pleasing men but God....7 But we proved to be gentle among you, as a nursing mother cares for her own children....11 exhorting and encouraging and imploring each one of you as a father would his own children 12 so that you may walk in a manner worth of the God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory.
As I read this I was reminded of the standard Paul set and how far from it I fall. He bent himself into the form needed to minister, gave up some things, worked at whatever was needed to help his friends know how to live out their faith. I was further reminded of how our culture has made us so self-centered, guarding our rights, our comfort levels, putting our own needs and desires first.
God did not do that. Jesus Christ did not do that. Paul did not do that, nor did Phoebe or Priscilla or...well, you get the point. It is so easy in life to fall into a rut, a pattern of busyness, even doing good things, that we miss the beauty all around us. This last week we spent a few days in a log cabin at the end of a dirt road. We sat in the stillness on our front porch, definitely not a deck, and watched and listened to the rain fall, the sun shine, and the sun set. We listened for the voice of God, and I have to tell you, it was easier to hear there, with no internet or phone service. I heartily recommend it to all.
Anyway, it reminded me of how much more beauty and joy and peace of heart is available to us when we stop thinking about ourselves, when we loosen the grip of the world and its entertainments and distractions to just love on people. That is what God does, loves on people, and what He calls us to do. And it is far more satisfying than anything else there is to do.
Thursday, July 21, 2011
July 21 Be a Building Block
I Thessalonians 5:11 Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.
Paul is bringing this letter to a close, and I love it that as he ends the letter with admonitions and advice, he also commends them...he affirms that he sees more than what they lack. He has caught them doing something good and tells them so.
I have been involved in the training of college residence hall staffs since 1984, and I often tell my staff to catch students doing something good. Build them up by recognizing what they are doing right or well, and they are much more likely to be able to hear your counsel where they need to learn something.
In this part of the letter Paul tells these young believers to encourage and build each other up. Remember, these are very young believers since the church itself was pretty young at the time of this writing. Paul believed these early and young Christians had something to offer each other...and it certainly was not going to be the advice we too often give, "Read your Bible more. Read other writers...Listen to tapes. Memorize the Word." - meaning the Bible. What we have to remember is that none of these things were even available to the early Church in the way they are to us today.
So how do we encourage and edify each other? Well, to be heard, it is helpful to have relationships. You have to have demonstrated that you do care about other people, and not for how they help you, but for who they are as a child of God and your sibling in the faith.
Then, remember we are self-centered people; really we are. And if you want someone to understand or learn something, you have to get them involved in the process. You cannot simply give them a lecture or a set of notes and expect them to believe they need this material. Yes, God sometimes uses those methods, but be sure it is in the minority of situations that this works.
So what does work? I think, and loads of experts support this, ask them questions. Get them thinking about what they need. In the 18th century, leaders of small study groups (not pastors) used the following four questions as the focus of what we might call Bible study or small groups: "How doth your soul prosper?" or how have you been doing in your personal walk with Christ this last week?
The second questions was "What advantage have you take of the means of grace?" or what are you doing to facilitate your own spiritual growth? The third question, "What opportunities have you had for service and witness and how did you avail yourself of them?" gave the group members an opportunity to share the blessings and challenges of ministry (serving others). The final question was this: "What temptations have you faced and how did you overcome them?" Do you see how even just the final question could bless the participants? As you shared how you were tempted and what helped you overcome, you are encouraging (by your transparency) and edifying (by sharing what worked for you and could well work for others) the body.< The four questions are found in One Conversation at a Time by Henderson, p67-68>
Sometimes I think we fear Bible studies and even witnessing or talking to other believers about spiritual things because we might be put on the spot and we might not have the right answer. But we don't have to have the right answer. The Holy Spirit will guide believers; John says he will teach you all things (John 14:26). And it all boils down to loving others and asking very simple questions.
Paul is bringing this letter to a close, and I love it that as he ends the letter with admonitions and advice, he also commends them...he affirms that he sees more than what they lack. He has caught them doing something good and tells them so.
I have been involved in the training of college residence hall staffs since 1984, and I often tell my staff to catch students doing something good. Build them up by recognizing what they are doing right or well, and they are much more likely to be able to hear your counsel where they need to learn something.
In this part of the letter Paul tells these young believers to encourage and build each other up. Remember, these are very young believers since the church itself was pretty young at the time of this writing. Paul believed these early and young Christians had something to offer each other...and it certainly was not going to be the advice we too often give, "Read your Bible more. Read other writers...Listen to tapes. Memorize the Word." - meaning the Bible. What we have to remember is that none of these things were even available to the early Church in the way they are to us today.
So how do we encourage and edify each other? Well, to be heard, it is helpful to have relationships. You have to have demonstrated that you do care about other people, and not for how they help you, but for who they are as a child of God and your sibling in the faith.
Then, remember we are self-centered people; really we are. And if you want someone to understand or learn something, you have to get them involved in the process. You cannot simply give them a lecture or a set of notes and expect them to believe they need this material. Yes, God sometimes uses those methods, but be sure it is in the minority of situations that this works.
So what does work? I think, and loads of experts support this, ask them questions. Get them thinking about what they need. In the 18th century, leaders of small study groups (not pastors) used the following four questions as the focus of what we might call Bible study or small groups: "How doth your soul prosper?" or how have you been doing in your personal walk with Christ this last week?
The second questions was "What advantage have you take of the means of grace?" or what are you doing to facilitate your own spiritual growth? The third question, "What opportunities have you had for service and witness and how did you avail yourself of them?" gave the group members an opportunity to share the blessings and challenges of ministry (serving others). The final question was this: "What temptations have you faced and how did you overcome them?" Do you see how even just the final question could bless the participants? As you shared how you were tempted and what helped you overcome, you are encouraging (by your transparency) and edifying (by sharing what worked for you and could well work for others) the body.< The four questions are found in One Conversation at a Time by Henderson, p67-68>
Sometimes I think we fear Bible studies and even witnessing or talking to other believers about spiritual things because we might be put on the spot and we might not have the right answer. But we don't have to have the right answer. The Holy Spirit will guide believers; John says he will teach you all things (John 14:26). And it all boils down to loving others and asking very simple questions.
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
July 20 Out of your life
John 15: 5-11 I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing...9 Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love...11 These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.
I know that I have heard it before, and probably have said it, but when I read this in One Conversation at a Time (55) I wanted to pass it on: "ministry is not something you go into, it's something that comes out of you. It's the overflow of your walk with God."
When I read these words in "Conversation" the passage in John came to mind as did Psalms 1: 3," And he will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water which yields its fruit in its season and its leaf does not wither, and in whatever he does he prospers." The point is the only thing that will emerge from our being, our lives is what we have put in there. I often tell students that the Holy Spirit can only work with what we have taken in and made a part of us - what we have heard, read, learned or memorized. That's why it is so important to read with comprehension, to think through what we have read to make sure we "got" it.
As a grad student, I had to read hundreds of pages a week, and I confess, my eyes went over all the words, and maybe even registered them, for a short time. But I could not give you even a list of those books today, much less tell you what they were all about. Once in a while, I would come across a book or writer that I loved, and I read and reread those works, underlining and storing up the sense of them. And today I can still tell you about them.
So God wants us to see the value of His Word, His presence, knowing Him as a person, so that His mark is upon us. And, the more time we spend time with Him, the more we will be like Him. When we soak ourselves in God, root ourselves in His Person, we will begin to look and act like Him...and He was all about ministry - about serving because He loved first. And we will likewise find our pleasure in serving, in ministering - it won't be an effort, or something we have to think about. It will be what we call second nature...or maybe first nature.
I know that I have heard it before, and probably have said it, but when I read this in One Conversation at a Time (55) I wanted to pass it on: "ministry is not something you go into, it's something that comes out of you. It's the overflow of your walk with God."
When I read these words in "Conversation" the passage in John came to mind as did Psalms 1: 3," And he will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water which yields its fruit in its season and its leaf does not wither, and in whatever he does he prospers." The point is the only thing that will emerge from our being, our lives is what we have put in there. I often tell students that the Holy Spirit can only work with what we have taken in and made a part of us - what we have heard, read, learned or memorized. That's why it is so important to read with comprehension, to think through what we have read to make sure we "got" it.
As a grad student, I had to read hundreds of pages a week, and I confess, my eyes went over all the words, and maybe even registered them, for a short time. But I could not give you even a list of those books today, much less tell you what they were all about. Once in a while, I would come across a book or writer that I loved, and I read and reread those works, underlining and storing up the sense of them. And today I can still tell you about them.
So God wants us to see the value of His Word, His presence, knowing Him as a person, so that His mark is upon us. And, the more time we spend time with Him, the more we will be like Him. When we soak ourselves in God, root ourselves in His Person, we will begin to look and act like Him...and He was all about ministry - about serving because He loved first. And we will likewise find our pleasure in serving, in ministering - it won't be an effort, or something we have to think about. It will be what we call second nature...or maybe first nature.
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
July 19 Use Your Words
I John 1:3-4 what we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also, that you also may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Chris and these things we write so that our joy may be made complete.
I continue to work my way through One Conversation at a Time, and the chapter I just completed talked about being intentional in our conversations, always considering what we can talk about today that will "help us in our walk with Christ (43) and sharing vital "information that helps us get to our objective" (45).
John was nearing the end of his life when he wrote the books or letters we call First, Second and Third John. As I reread these books it is interesting that he states a clear purpose for each one, and you can sum that purpose up as driven by his love for the readers. In First John, he says his instruction to them is so that their joy might be complete. In the second, he tells them to walk in love according to his (meaning God's) commandments, so they would not lose the ground they have made in their spiritual walk but receive a full reward. In the third book, he tells them how they have encouraged him by their godly walk and faithful behavior. His further admonition is to bless the brethren, even strangers, who "went out for the sake of the Name, accepting nothing from the Gentiles. Therefore we ought to support such men that we may be fellow workers with the truth."
Here John is, knowing his days remaining are few, but his focus is to use his last words to encourage and edify and bless the believers behind him. He believes that as they carry out his admonitions, they will have a different quality of life, one filled with joy. I wonder if my words would communicate such a clear message: this is how you live a life that will result in joy. Recently one of my classmates died, prematurely - six years fewer than her allotted three score and ten. In the news recently, I have read of many whose life ended long before that even that. We never know which words will be our last, but I do want my last words to accomplish what John's did: to edify for the purpose of encouragement and glorying God.
For those following this blog as part of a movement through the Bible chronologically, it appears I left my book in Virginia over vacation. But, you are still invited to join me in my pursuit of God.
I continue to work my way through One Conversation at a Time, and the chapter I just completed talked about being intentional in our conversations, always considering what we can talk about today that will "help us in our walk with Christ (43) and sharing vital "information that helps us get to our objective" (45).
John was nearing the end of his life when he wrote the books or letters we call First, Second and Third John. As I reread these books it is interesting that he states a clear purpose for each one, and you can sum that purpose up as driven by his love for the readers. In First John, he says his instruction to them is so that their joy might be complete. In the second, he tells them to walk in love according to his (meaning God's) commandments, so they would not lose the ground they have made in their spiritual walk but receive a full reward. In the third book, he tells them how they have encouraged him by their godly walk and faithful behavior. His further admonition is to bless the brethren, even strangers, who "went out for the sake of the Name, accepting nothing from the Gentiles. Therefore we ought to support such men that we may be fellow workers with the truth."
Here John is, knowing his days remaining are few, but his focus is to use his last words to encourage and edify and bless the believers behind him. He believes that as they carry out his admonitions, they will have a different quality of life, one filled with joy. I wonder if my words would communicate such a clear message: this is how you live a life that will result in joy. Recently one of my classmates died, prematurely - six years fewer than her allotted three score and ten. In the news recently, I have read of many whose life ended long before that even that. We never know which words will be our last, but I do want my last words to accomplish what John's did: to edify for the purpose of encouragement and glorying God.
For those following this blog as part of a movement through the Bible chronologically, it appears I left my book in Virginia over vacation. But, you are still invited to join me in my pursuit of God.
Monday, July 18, 2011
July 18 II Peter 1:2--5 Knowing About or Knowing ?
My pastor is doing a series from this passage in Second Peter, and I have been mulling over the words: knowledge of God and adding knowledge. The verbs translated knowledge here have the sense of knowledge and understanding. This made me think of Christ's words that I talked about in my last entry, "If you knew me, you would know my father also."( John 8:19)
I have been married over 40 years, and in that time, I have learned a lot, arrived at a lot of knowledge about my husband - just because I have lived so intimately with him. And, humanly speaking, I really like hanging out with him. I can recognize his voice in a crowded room, and I know, that though I may not agree with all of his decisions, he has my best interests at heart...at least most of the time.
Now for those same 40 years, I have been in a relationship with God, but I am ashamed to say, I have not consciously spent nearly as much time with Him. I say consciously because He has spent all that time with me, but I have not paid nearly the attention to His presence as I have to my husband's.
Another thing I have been thinking a lot about is how we allow others to set our agenda; we think more about pleasing other humans and measuring up to their priorities than we do to God's. We feel very comfortable telling people that we have spent a couple of hours watching a movie or some kind of sporting event or even cooking shows. We are not the least bit reticent about telling someone that we have spent an hour or more working in the garden or kitchen or in the gym. But, when it comes to telling them we spent an hour or more reading the Bible or studying it or reading some other spiritual-growth producing materials, it is another matter.
We fear that others might think we are bragging or trying to look spiritual (more spiritual than they are) or trying to appear better than they are, so we keep our mouths shut, about spiritual things. And everybody suffers! We do, because it is as we talk about spiritual matters, about what we are learning about the person God, that we are both encouraged and challenged and we encourage and challenge others. And others suffer because we are so afraid to be misunderstood that we refuse to be vehicles God might use to encourage others.
God gave me the opportunity to encourage an old friend today, and I took it. I sure hope that it wasn't just a once in a while thing, and that I listen more to Him than I do to anyone else, especially when it comes to not just knowing God, but passing it along.
I have been married over 40 years, and in that time, I have learned a lot, arrived at a lot of knowledge about my husband - just because I have lived so intimately with him. And, humanly speaking, I really like hanging out with him. I can recognize his voice in a crowded room, and I know, that though I may not agree with all of his decisions, he has my best interests at heart...at least most of the time.
Now for those same 40 years, I have been in a relationship with God, but I am ashamed to say, I have not consciously spent nearly as much time with Him. I say consciously because He has spent all that time with me, but I have not paid nearly the attention to His presence as I have to my husband's.
Another thing I have been thinking a lot about is how we allow others to set our agenda; we think more about pleasing other humans and measuring up to their priorities than we do to God's. We feel very comfortable telling people that we have spent a couple of hours watching a movie or some kind of sporting event or even cooking shows. We are not the least bit reticent about telling someone that we have spent an hour or more working in the garden or kitchen or in the gym. But, when it comes to telling them we spent an hour or more reading the Bible or studying it or reading some other spiritual-growth producing materials, it is another matter.
We fear that others might think we are bragging or trying to look spiritual (more spiritual than they are) or trying to appear better than they are, so we keep our mouths shut, about spiritual things. And everybody suffers! We do, because it is as we talk about spiritual matters, about what we are learning about the person God, that we are both encouraged and challenged and we encourage and challenge others. And others suffer because we are so afraid to be misunderstood that we refuse to be vehicles God might use to encourage others.
God gave me the opportunity to encourage an old friend today, and I took it. I sure hope that it wasn't just a once in a while thing, and that I listen more to Him than I do to anyone else, especially when it comes to not just knowing God, but passing it along.
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