At some points today, I'm pretty sure my body has undergone some temperature shocks as I have moved from the arctic tundra of my office to the blazing heat of southern Louisiana crouching at the door, waiting to consume me. My body doesn't know whether to thaw out or chill out?!?!
What's interesting though...moving between church buildings or just sitting outside to read a bit (that would be a very, very small amount of time), I can sense the energy being zapped from inside. Like the heat beckons any ounce of energy to escape my body from each and every pore, leaving me lethargic and almost lifeless in momentum. And please understand, I KNOW there are so many in the heat. All day long. With no arctic tundra for an office or even air conditioning in which to momentarily rest...I simply mention this to paint a contrast of the climate around me.
So the heat settles in. And besides the sweat pouring down, what else pours out and escapes? First, my patience. There it goes. Next, my Christ-like attitude of contentment. Complaining has taken hold. Third, my will to honor the Lord by not letting the temperature gage my desire to do what He has called me to do. Yep, the heat is too much. Change of plans - on to my plans.
And at this point, I'm not talking about the heat measured in fahrenheit. Now, I'm talking about the heat of circumstances that our Lord uses to refine our being. The heat of intense situations that bring up from the depths within us the things we don't want to realize are still holding residence inside. It's like as the heat rises, so is the ease of putting on display the things we don't want to rise up in our flesh.
So, as I wipe the sweat from my brow, I ask myself, as I ask you - should the temperature of the trials around us dictate how we respond in the heat? Absolutely not. If it does, we are functioning out of our flesh instead of the cool, refreshing life of the Spirit flowing from with us. And so, within those trials and times that seem too much, when we must with everything within us hold fast to the Spirit of God strengthening us, perhaps we should remember God's Word in James 1:11: "Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him."
I believe we can pass the test. I believe we can withstand the heat. I believe we can praise Him in the scorching nature of our trials. And then, when we do get to chill in the calming springs of Christ, praise Him then also.
#4hisfame.
Tuesday, July 21, 2015
Wednesday, July 15, 2015
An Overwhelming Presence
There I was, settled in a creaky bunk bed in a state park campground dormitory. We were on an overnight retreat with some high schoolers from school. But it's not the nighttime wildlife that I consider...not the sound of crickets chirping, or raccoons scrambling through trash cans, or even the rowdiness of guys playing a late night card game. My thoughts turn to the afternoon arboretum hike undertaken earlier that day.
And while on that hike, amidst the array of plantlife - of fallen trees and hollowed stumps, I recognized a repeated "threat" that continuously consumed my focus.
The overwhelming presence of spiders. I mean, everywhere. Webs stretched across paths with small captured prey caught in the grasp of the arachnid traps. Ducking, eyes squinting searching for possible silky threads hanging in my path. I continued along the uneven terrain wondering where the next mini-beast would appear. And not just me...but many others noticed the uncanny amount of eight-legged creatures. Which carried late into the evening, when prior to an outrageous game of capture the flag...I enjoyed the benefit of watching a black widow spider play capture-the-moth. The spider won.
And so, there I was again in the coldness of the dormitory. Laying in the bunk pondering how much my thoughts had been focused on those tiny, yet dark, creatures that had been allowed by God to "overtake" the wooded area.
And it hit me. This is just what I do on a daily basis. Not look for spiders, but focus on the "dark" things of life. Looking for the next spiritual attack. Focusing intently on the sin so obvious in myself or the lives of others. Staring unswervingly at the difficulties or hardships along the path of the day. Recognizing the overwhelming presence of the fallen world around me.
But what do I miss while doing so? The Maker of all things beautiful. Focusing intently on the victory of the cross and the power of the Resurrection which overcame the sting and power of sin and death. Staring unswervingly at the majesty of my Lord who is sovereign over and working intimately in each and every difficulty or hardship. Recognizing the overwhelming presence of the glory of God in the midst of a fallen world.
How sad...that I spent all that time looking for the tiniest of creatures at the cost of missing the splendor of the environment around me. And too often, I spend time looking to the past, or the present shame-ridden steps, instead of gazing upon the One worthy of my attention, worthy of the love of my mind, worthy of the worship of my heart.
As the Psalmist declared, so too should we - "You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore" (Psalm 16:11). What a beautiful Truth of which to walk in constant consideration.
So with utter fatigue knocking at the door of my mind, I rolled over in the creaky bunk and praised God for changing my attention from the things of the earth to the Glory of heaven. And that was how my day ended. Aware of the overwhelming presence of the glory of God. May that be how I rest today. Aware of Him.
#4hisfame.
And so, there I was again in the coldness of the dormitory. Laying in the bunk pondering how much my thoughts had been focused on those tiny, yet dark, creatures that had been allowed by God to "overtake" the wooded area.
And it hit me. This is just what I do on a daily basis. Not look for spiders, but focus on the "dark" things of life. Looking for the next spiritual attack. Focusing intently on the sin so obvious in myself or the lives of others. Staring unswervingly at the difficulties or hardships along the path of the day. Recognizing the overwhelming presence of the fallen world around me.
But what do I miss while doing so? The Maker of all things beautiful. Focusing intently on the victory of the cross and the power of the Resurrection which overcame the sting and power of sin and death. Staring unswervingly at the majesty of my Lord who is sovereign over and working intimately in each and every difficulty or hardship. Recognizing the overwhelming presence of the glory of God in the midst of a fallen world.
How sad...that I spent all that time looking for the tiniest of creatures at the cost of missing the splendor of the environment around me. And too often, I spend time looking to the past, or the present shame-ridden steps, instead of gazing upon the One worthy of my attention, worthy of the love of my mind, worthy of the worship of my heart.
As the Psalmist declared, so too should we - "You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore" (Psalm 16:11). What a beautiful Truth of which to walk in constant consideration.
So with utter fatigue knocking at the door of my mind, I rolled over in the creaky bunk and praised God for changing my attention from the things of the earth to the Glory of heaven. And that was how my day ended. Aware of the overwhelming presence of the glory of God. May that be how I rest today. Aware of Him.
#4hisfame.
Friday, July 10, 2015
His Purpose Will Stand
Countless times I have felt that my efforts fall short of any form of magnificent ability to bring about the best results that could possibly come to pass. No matter how much I study, prepare, plan, organize, save up, enlist, ask for help, cast vision, rest, stay busy, read, pray, disciple, be discipled, (and the list could go on) I find this law at work within me:
My efforts are never really good enough. Never.
They might look good or seem beneficial, however, Scripture teaches that apart from Christ, as John 15:5 states, I can do nothing. Nothing of any significant, lasting, eternal, valuable, meaningful, excellent, God-glorifying worth.
Now, I know that God blesses us with gifts and talents that we are able to function in on a daily basis; however, if we are totally relying on ourselves in a moment for success, our flesh will feed us lies to think that we can rely on ourselves more of the time...and more of the time...until we wind up like the world, and find ourselves trying to do life on our own. Apart from Christ. Apart from His Spirit's power. Apart from God.
So, what can I say to offer hope in the midst of this ever-present condition of the human nature? What can we focus on to know what God desires of us in the parts we play in His glorious plan of redemption and obedience? I think what is best to quote would be Scripture itself.
"The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps." - Proverbs 16:9
"Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the LORD that will stand." - Proverbs 19:21
"Remember this and stand firm, recall it to mind, you transgressors, remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’ calling a bird of prey from the east, the man of my counsel from a far country. I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass; I have purposed, and I will do it." - Isaiah 46:8-11
I can rejoice in knowing that what God wants accomplished, nothing I can do or NOT do will keep Him from fulfilling His purposes. And, as I trust in Him and rest in Him, I can be even more confident that He will use the obedience we bring Him in love to bring about "everything according to the counsel of His will" (Ephesians 1:11).
Believer, today I encourage you to trust in the One who enables you to be filled with all wisdom and ability to obey for His honor and pleasure. And when you feel that you are not good enough, or that what you bring to Him is not good enough, remember that He is at work in you to do through you what He desires to take place. Praise Him today...His purpose WILL stand.
#4hisfame.
My efforts are never really good enough. Never.
They might look good or seem beneficial, however, Scripture teaches that apart from Christ, as John 15:5 states, I can do nothing. Nothing of any significant, lasting, eternal, valuable, meaningful, excellent, God-glorifying worth.
Now, I know that God blesses us with gifts and talents that we are able to function in on a daily basis; however, if we are totally relying on ourselves in a moment for success, our flesh will feed us lies to think that we can rely on ourselves more of the time...and more of the time...until we wind up like the world, and find ourselves trying to do life on our own. Apart from Christ. Apart from His Spirit's power. Apart from God.
So, what can I say to offer hope in the midst of this ever-present condition of the human nature? What can we focus on to know what God desires of us in the parts we play in His glorious plan of redemption and obedience? I think what is best to quote would be Scripture itself.
"The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps." - Proverbs 16:9
"Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the LORD that will stand." - Proverbs 19:21
"Remember this and stand firm, recall it to mind, you transgressors, remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’ calling a bird of prey from the east, the man of my counsel from a far country. I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass; I have purposed, and I will do it." - Isaiah 46:8-11
Believer, today I encourage you to trust in the One who enables you to be filled with all wisdom and ability to obey for His honor and pleasure. And when you feel that you are not good enough, or that what you bring to Him is not good enough, remember that He is at work in you to do through you what He desires to take place. Praise Him today...His purpose WILL stand.
#4hisfame.
Wednesday, July 8, 2015
John 6 - Part 5 - A Sign and the Secluding Savior
As I reach the conclusion of my time in John 6:1-15, I am reminded so much of the richness of the Word and the reality of my need for the Spirit of God to illuminate the Truth to me. So often, we:
- ...hurry through Scripture, missing necessary elements of context and word usage - thereby causing misinterpretation of the text.
- ...go to the text with our own agenda and read truth into the text, rather than taking truth out of the text - thereby again causing misinterpretation of the text.
Just as we can so easily misinterpret Scripture, we see in today's text that the people misinterpret a sign provided by the miracle of Christ. Let's read again, John 6:1-15.
Again, John writes:
1 After this Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias. 2 And a large crowd was following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing on the sick. 3 Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. 4 Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was at hand. 5 Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?” 6 He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he would do. 7 Philip answered him, “Two hundred denarii worth of bread would not be enough for each of them to get a little.” 8 One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to him, 9 “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are they for so many?” 10 Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, about five thousand in number. 11 Jesus then took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated. So also the fish, as much as they wanted. 12 And when they had eaten their fill, he told his disciples, “Gather up the leftover fragments, that nothing may be lost.” 13 So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves left by those who had eaten. 14 When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, “This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world!”
15 Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself. (John 6:1-15, ESV, emphasis mine)
The Lord had just performed a miraculous wonder among the people - feeding the multitudes with a measly amount of bread and fish. In awe, the people refer to it as a sign - as should we. But a sign for what? Or better, a sign pointing to whom?
As evidenced in Scripture, a sign is an important event of supernatural effect that gives awareness to the reality of God as well as granting a sign of God-given authority to the one performing the miracle. Often times, instead of seeking the heart of God in prayer and His Word, people solely search for signs to receive a "confirmation" of God's decreed will for their lives, as in the case of Gideon's fleece in the book of Judges. I am in conversation often with individuals who love God and live for Him daily, yet their main tool for measuring what the secret will of God is for their future or present decisions is reading into signs; unfortunately, we often wind up doing just that. We read into signs - making them say what we want them to say. What's interesting about the sign here in John 6 performed by Jesus, is that Jesus wanted the sign to not be read into, but merely read. The recipients of the miraculous meal read into the sign to mean that Jesus "is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world" (v.14). Which prophet? These would be referring to the one Moses would have foretold (Deuteronomy 18:15)...and therefore they read into that meaning they were to take Jesus and immediately MAKE Him king.
My exhortation to you, believer, is that we are to be careful about how we read things in our daily lives. Definitely, God is able to use people, conversations, events, circumstances, and an array of other things as a sign to lead and direct us. However, do not let your faith be led by circumstances, but let your choices be led by faith. In Scripture, signs were used to point people TO Christ...to see the God-man and His authority placed on His people He used to authenticate the Gospel being spread. As declared of the Lord by Peter in Acts 2:22, "Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst..." The signs asserted that Jesus was in fact the Son of God come to be Savior for His people. Therefore, when things are happening that seem to offer guidance, or you are praying for a confirmation and it seems to have arrived, please make sure not to miss the Giver of the sign. He is to be worshipped and adored for Who He is, not just what He is doing.
Perceiving that the people had misread the sign and were ready to act upon their mistaken interpretation, Jesus secluded Himself from the people, withdrawing to the mountain alone (v.15). Like our secluded Savior, may we escape the temptation to be directed by the misinterpretations of our world, and instead, run to meet with God alone to determine and distinguish what His desires are for us in our daily obedience to His Word and His answers to our prayers.
So, as we seek to see the answers in the signs the Lord affords us, make sure we seek and keep on seeking the Savior from whom all blessings flow and to whom all praise is to be given!
#4hisfame.
1 After this Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias. 2 And a large crowd was following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing on the sick. 3 Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. 4 Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was at hand. 5 Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?” 6 He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he would do. 7 Philip answered him, “Two hundred denarii worth of bread would not be enough for each of them to get a little.” 8 One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to him, 9 “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are they for so many?” 10 Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, about five thousand in number. 11 Jesus then took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated. So also the fish, as much as they wanted. 12 And when they had eaten their fill, he told his disciples, “Gather up the leftover fragments, that nothing may be lost.” 13 So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves left by those who had eaten. 14 When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, “This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world!”
15 Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself. (John 6:1-15, ESV, emphasis mine)
The Lord had just performed a miraculous wonder among the people - feeding the multitudes with a measly amount of bread and fish. In awe, the people refer to it as a sign - as should we. But a sign for what? Or better, a sign pointing to whom?
As evidenced in Scripture, a sign is an important event of supernatural effect that gives awareness to the reality of God as well as granting a sign of God-given authority to the one performing the miracle. Often times, instead of seeking the heart of God in prayer and His Word, people solely search for signs to receive a "confirmation" of God's decreed will for their lives, as in the case of Gideon's fleece in the book of Judges. I am in conversation often with individuals who love God and live for Him daily, yet their main tool for measuring what the secret will of God is for their future or present decisions is reading into signs; unfortunately, we often wind up doing just that. We read into signs - making them say what we want them to say. What's interesting about the sign here in John 6 performed by Jesus, is that Jesus wanted the sign to not be read into, but merely read. The recipients of the miraculous meal read into the sign to mean that Jesus "is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world" (v.14). Which prophet? These would be referring to the one Moses would have foretold (Deuteronomy 18:15)...and therefore they read into that meaning they were to take Jesus and immediately MAKE Him king.
My exhortation to you, believer, is that we are to be careful about how we read things in our daily lives. Definitely, God is able to use people, conversations, events, circumstances, and an array of other things as a sign to lead and direct us. However, do not let your faith be led by circumstances, but let your choices be led by faith. In Scripture, signs were used to point people TO Christ...to see the God-man and His authority placed on His people He used to authenticate the Gospel being spread. As declared of the Lord by Peter in Acts 2:22, "Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst..." The signs asserted that Jesus was in fact the Son of God come to be Savior for His people. Therefore, when things are happening that seem to offer guidance, or you are praying for a confirmation and it seems to have arrived, please make sure not to miss the Giver of the sign. He is to be worshipped and adored for Who He is, not just what He is doing.
Perceiving that the people had misread the sign and were ready to act upon their mistaken interpretation, Jesus secluded Himself from the people, withdrawing to the mountain alone (v.15). Like our secluded Savior, may we escape the temptation to be directed by the misinterpretations of our world, and instead, run to meet with God alone to determine and distinguish what His desires are for us in our daily obedience to His Word and His answers to our prayers.
So, as we seek to see the answers in the signs the Lord affords us, make sure we seek and keep on seeking the Savior from whom all blessings flow and to whom all praise is to be given!
#4hisfame.
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