Treasuring the Mystery

The Christmas season is slipping away from us. I hope you’ve had time to quietly ponder the mystery of the Christmas story. When the shepherds told Joseph and Mary that angels had announced the birth of her son to them in the fields, Luke says, “Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart” (Luke 2:19, NIV). Just think of what has happened. Mary is in a strange place not her own home; she has given birth to a son who was conceived by a miracle through the Holy Spirit; angels have visited; shepherds have visited; the people around her are in wonder; this little baby is called Christ, Savior, Lord; and He will bring God’s peace and favor to us! Mary must have wondered, How! How can this be? What does this all mean?

During World War II, General Dwight Eisenhower was in Europe, directing the planning for the D-Day invasion. During the intense moments of preparation word came of the death of his father. What do you do at such a moment? It was impossible for Eisenhower to leave his command. He couldn’t possibly return home, nor was it possible for him to take time off to grieve and process his sorrow. But, as he wrote in his book, it also was not possible to go ahead with business-as-usual. What did he do? He sent everyone out of his office and he set aside thirty minutes to think about his dad, and to write out his thoughts in a diary. After half an hour, he forced himself to get back to work; but he left his office early that evening thinking about his dad and putting his feelings to paper. That’s all he could do.

As we leave the Christmas season this year, think of this. If General Eisenhower, in the midst of planning for the invasion of Europe, could shut the door and spend half an hour thinking about the death of his earthly father, should we not find a way to shut the door, open our Bibles, and think again about the birth of our earthly Savior? Friends, it is good to take time to ponder, as did Mary, these wonderful things in our hearts. In these last few days before the new year, I invite you to take time to sit at your desk or your kitchen table in the soft glow of a single lamp or candle, and read through the Christmas story once again, contemplating and praising and worshiping Almighty God. Like Simeon, hold Jesus in your thoughts and bless God; then ask God to be with you in 2014.

Trust God Always

The psalmist speaks rather matter-of-factly when he says, “Trust God at all times, you people. Pour out your hearts in his presence. God is our refuge” (Psalm 62:8). He doesn’t say we should consider trusting God, or weigh the value of it. He doesn’t tell us to give it a lot of thought. He just says do it. Trust God at all times. We may complain that’s not always easy, but he still says just do it, because he’s convinced God is near to those who trust him.

Today I want to share a poem from Susan W. N. Ruach. It’s called A New Way of Struggling.

To struggle used to be

To grab with both hands

and shake

and twist

and turn

and push

and shove and not give in

But wrest an answer from it all

As Jacob did a blessing.

But there is another way

To struggle with an issue, a question –

Simply to jump

off

into the abyss

and find ourselves

floating

falling

tumbling

being led

slowly and gently

but surely

to the answers God has for us –

to watch the answers unfold

before our eyes and still

to be a part of the unfolding.

But, oh! the trust

necessary for this new way!

Not to be always reaching out

For the old hand-holds.

Being Like Jesus

A word about Jesus. I hear some Christians say, "I want to be like Jesus," which is good, but I’m not sure we always understand how Jesus felt and acted, and what he said and did. There’s a portrait of Jesus in Matthew 9:35-38. Matthew writes, "Jesus traveled among all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, announcing the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness. Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he had compassion for them because they were troubled and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The size of the harvest is bigger than you can imagine, but there are few workers. Therefore, plead with the Lord of the harvest to send out workers for his harvest."

Everywhere Jesus went, huge crowds of people followed him. In the portrait above we learn that Jesus saw these people not as a hindrance, but as an opportunity for witness and ministry. First, he saw their needs. America is filled with people in need: the homeless, jobless, and hopeless. If you want to be like Jesus, you will have to really sense a person’s needs. Second, Jesus saw them as people needing God. In verse 36 Matthew says he saw them as ‘sheep without a shepherd.’ He wanted them to acknowledge God’s authority over life. Being like Jesus means wanting this for all people. And third, Jesus saw their potential. To him, every one of them was a precious soul with unlimited potential. Being like Jesus is having this kind of regard for humanity.

A key verse in this portrait is verse 36: "Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he had compassion for them because they were troubled and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd." The phrase, had compassion for them, literally means that Jesus became sick inside. His love for people was so sincere, he wept for people needing his help. If you really want to be like Jesus, you’ll have to let your love for people break your heart and make you vulnerable time and again.

Natural Activities

Regardless of the form of government, sometimes it’s hard to accept a leader’s decisions. I swear I believe I have a higher IQ than some of my elected officials. But like it or not, in Romans 13 Paul states that God establishes the governments of the world, and lawmakers are God’s servants given for the public good. God puts governmental leaders in place to maintain societal law and order.

In a broader sense, God enables each of us to contribute to the common good. All we need to do is offer our daily activities to God. So tomorrow morning make your bed before you leave for work. On the way to work resist the urge to run a single yellow light. And once you’re there, greet your coworkers and clients, students or patients with sincere joy; then serve them with real integrity.
Offer these activities to God, and God will use them to shape the world.

As C. S. Lewis once put it, “All our merely natural activities will be accepted, if they are offered to God, even the humblest; and all of them, even the noblest, will be sinful if they are not.” The key, of course, is to offer all you do to God.

So you see, God’s not only using politicians to shape the world economy. He’s using you and me to make a difference here and now. Offer your activities to God today and you’ll accomplish all that’s needed.

Calm, Not Frazzled

Some days I feel frazzled, pulled in different directions. I suppose it’s like having Attention Deficit Disorder. If I understand correctly, people who suffer with ADD are easily distracted, often act impulsively, and are at times physically restless. I’ve never been diagnosed with ADD, but I can relate to the symptoms. There are days when I catch myself trapped in the rush of life, missing what matters most, that inner peace which passes understanding. The uneasiness, the restlessness is not of God.

I know that because the prophet Zephaniah refers to God as one who creates calm with his amazing love. A calm and level-headed presence of mind is evidence of God’s love at work in us (Zephaniah 3:17).

Mrs. Thomas Edison once told Glenn Clark, “Mr. Edison is always perfectly natural and always perfectly relaxed. He feels that all of his discoveries have ‘come through him,’ that he is but a channel for forces greater than himself.”
Rest in the warmth of God’s love and your restlessness will evaporate as quickly as the morning dew.

Crushed

Isaiah tells us that God lives engrossed in holiness (Isaiah 57:15), but this doesn’t mean that God is hiding behind a veil of smoke and mystery. God is here, now; especially with the crushed and lowly. The prophet says it much better than me: ‘The one who is high and lifted up, who lives forever, whose name is holy, says: I live on high, in holiness, and also with the crushed and the lowly, reviving the spirit of the lowly, reviving the heart of those who have been crushed.’ The word translated crushed is sometimes called contrite. So even though the Creator is immersed in holiness, he is always close to people who recognize their need for mercy and grace – the remorseful, the repentant, the humble.

George MacDonald used to say, ‘The person who is proud of anything he thinks he’s reached, has not reached it. He is but proud of himself … Blessed are the poor in spirit, for they are of the same spirit as God, and of nature the kingdom of heaven is theirs.’

Check the way you hold yourself, your posture. If you’ve learned to walk through life with an unpretentious stance, God is closer to you than your fingertips.

Pardon

In George MacDonald’s Diary of an Old Soul he says, Up, up the hill, to the whiter than snow-shine, Help me to climb, and dwell in pardon’s light. I think this is where I will live today, in the warmth of God’s forgiveness. No one is worthy of such a privilege, but it is afforded to anyone who cares to have it. And the psalmist says, The one whose wrongdoing is forgiven, whose sin is covered over, is truly happy!

Yes, I’m going to lounge in pardon’s light and enjoy the life that’s mine through faith in Jesus Christ!

Christ's Sayings

Christ’s words are fascinating! They promise life. They are loaded with grace. And if we accept his words as true, they have the power to transform the quality of our lives! Christ’s words make life worth living. They bring meaning and purpose to life, and they promise a life beyond a life. Jesus said, I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. And again, I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. And let’s not forget Christ’s words to Martha, I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live.

When Thomas More was awaiting execution in the Tower of London he wrote, The sayings of our Savior Jesus Christ were not a poet’s fable, nor a harper’s song, but the very holy Word of Almighty God himself. And this is what gives Christ’s sayings such power; all the might of God is contained within them. Our part is, to respond to them, by trying our best to comply with their appeals.

If a gritty paraphrase of Paul will help, Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision is worth much. Living by Christ’s sayings is what counts (1 Corinthians 7:19). And remember: When we try to live by Christ’s sayings, we gain a better understanding of them. In the words of Oswald Chambers: The tiniest fragment of obedience, and heaven opens up and the profoundest truths of God are yours straight way. God will never reveal more truth about himself till you obey what you know already.

Praise Jesus for all his wonderful sayings. Let his words pierce your heart and change your way of thinking.

Venturing to Speak to God

Abraham respectfully asked God to spare Sodom. He began his request by saying, ‘If I may be so bold as to ask you [Lord], although I am only dust and ashes …’ We learn two things from this: First, it makes sense to know your place before God. God is Creator of all living things. We are only dust and ashes, physical beings here for a limited amount of time, with limited strength to survive the elements of everyday life. Second, our weaknesses should not prevent us from asking God to give us what we want. Abraham knew that he was nothing when compared to God, but he hoped God would spare Sodom for mercy’s sake, so he asked God to do this for him.

I think sometimes we are reluctant to ask God to do something for us, because we feel we don’t deserve God’s attention or because we feel we can’t repay God for his kindnesses to us. Maybe we assume God isn’t interested in what we want or doesn’t care about our feelings. After all, we’re dust and ashes. Why should God want to do something for us?

Well, the answer is: Because God is! God exists, God cares, and God longs to be intimately involved in human affairs. God knows we haves wants; he made us to have them. So the next time you want God to do something for you, remember your place before God, then ask him to do it. Remember Paul’s words to his friends at Philippi: ‘By prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.’
Peace!

Just Because God Is

When David ordered Asaph and his relatives to give thanks to God, he took the lead by giving thanks himself. At one point in his praising he said, ‘Declare God’s glory among the nations; declare his wondrous works among all people because the Lord is great and so worthy of praise’ (1 Chronicles 16). In David’s mind, we don’t have to wait for God to act before we praise him. God is worthy of our praise just because he’s great. God has created the places we live and blessed us with life within them. Why not take a moment right now to thank God for being God, a God who loves and cares for each of us.

Loose Tongue Disease

Dr. Kent Spann believes there is a disease spreading rapidly in our society, and the Center for Disease Control hasn’t acknowledged it. He calls it loose tongue disease, and as with most diseases, it presents itself in assorted ways. The disease compels some of us to spread rumors and gossip, some of us to tell lies, some of us to rant about people who upset us, and some of us to boast about our goodness and accomplishments. It is a deadly disease because it can destroy relationships and ruin reputations.

A little girl asked her mom, ‘Which is worse: to tell a lie, or to steal?’ Her mother replied that both were bad. The child said, ‘I’ve been thinking about it lately, and I think it’s worse to lie.’ ‘Why?’ asked her mother. The child responded, ‘Well, if you steal, you can take it back or pay for it, but a lie is forever.’

It would be nice if we could be immunized for this disease. Unfortunately it’s not that easy. In fact, the only cure is to work with God to build up an immunity to it. We do that first by recognizing the power of the tongue. In Proverbs, Solomon says the tongue has the power of life and death, and James says, Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.

After recognizing the power of the tongue, the next step is to resolve to guard it. Again Solomon says, The person who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself from calamity. David was so determined to do this he said, I will put a muzzle on my mouth. In Ephesians Paul tells us, Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, and Peter says, Whoever would love life and see good days must keep her tongue from evil and her lips from deceitful speech.

Look for ways to guard your tongue. Try finding something positive to do or say. Weigh your words. The heart of the righteous weighs its answers, but the mouth of the wicked gushes evil. And when you get a touch of loose tongue disease, run to the medicine chest and confess you have it. Isaiah did. “Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty.” If confessing the problem helped Isaiah recover, shouldn’t it do the same for you?

Party Party Party

In a song called 'Paso (The Nini Anthem)', produced by Sak Noel, the singer croons:

Monday – Party!Tuesday – Party!
Wednesday – Party!
Ok!
Thursday – Party!
Friday – Party!
Weekend, weekend, weekend – Party! Wow!

I’m telling you mama, there's no need for drama. I don’t wanna study. I just wanna party.

I’m a nini, mom;
You know what a nini is?
Don’t wait for me awake.
I’m coming home late –
Maybe at 5 ... maybe at 6.
Look at me, mom,
I’m dressing like a ...
I just wanna party, party ... Mama, yo paso de todo. Wow!

The lyrics are a little sparse, but the music moves!

If your Spanish is a little rusty, 'nini' is a word that is used to describe a young, rebellious, global generation person who is only interested in having a party – no job, no study, only party. This kind of person is a 'nini' because the word 'nini' comes from ni estudia ni trabaja, which means 'neither work nor study.' I'm not really sure about yo paso de todo, unless it means 'I'm giving the party all I got.'
If you've ever read the Apocrypha you may remember something that's stated in Ecclesiasticus 31:31. It goes this way: "Don’t correct your neighbors at a wine banquet, and don’t show them contempt when they are partying; don’t say any reproachful word to them, and don’t trouble them with any demands." I think the point there is that correcting your neighbors while they're partying is probably not the best time to do it.

I would never correct the singer while she parties, but I will say there comes a time when partying wears you thin. The drinks, the laughs, the monotonous small-talk – all of it can leave you feeling hollow after awhile. Like you realize the parties add very little meaning to your life. Sure, it's fun to celebrate when it's called for, but celebrating just because it's something to do gets old quickly. Find a little time to be by yourself, to be quiet, to be open to something unexpected that might happen. Too much partying will leave you numb.

Which Will You Employ

James Allen once asked a rhetorical question. He wrote, The will to evil and the will to good are both within thee, which wilt thou employ?

I know he asked this in an old stuffy form of the English language, but you've got to admit, it's a darn good question. So which will it be? And careful now before you answer, because doing right can be costly.

Isaiah says by the time a child turns twelve years old, he or she is able to make moral decisions (Is. 7:15). So the question is not can we do it; it's will we do it. Will we choose to do what we feel is right even when it costs us, or even when no one else agrees with us?

The actor, Edward James Olmos, said, "Life has a tendency to teach what's right and what's wrong, and you learn it from experience. Trust, integrity, commitment – we must have that. If we have that, then we have everything." And Maya Angelou, "If we are honest and fair, then we are known by that. If we're not, alas, we're known by that as well. What we want to do is do right, but you have to say it. You have to show it, and not stop." Like they say in the Union Bank slogan, "Doing right. It's just good business."

The next time you are conscious of the will to evil and the will to good scuffling deep in your soul, remind yourself you have a choice, and do good. You'll feel better in the morning.

Bloom Where You Are Planted

In prophecy given after the Babylonian exile, Isaiah promised that Israel's children would sprout up like trees in the grass, like poplars beside channels of water (Isaiah 44:4). Drawing on that imagery, I would suggest that God intends for all us to grow up in our walk with him. If you need a biblical proof-text, take Paul's "God wants us to grow up, to know the whole truth and tell it in love—like Christ in everything. We take our lead from Christ, who is the source of everything we do" (Ephesians 4:15 MSSG). If you prefer a source from outside the Bible, take the quote attributed to Francis de Sales, who said, "Bloom where you are planted." Grow up in Christ. Be real. Love yourself, and sprout up like flowers in the garden.

A Little Party

Fergie's 'A Little Party Never Killed Nobody' makes me want to test that theory to see if it is true. I think Fergie knows what she's talking about though, because it looks like she was born to fly the Let's Party! flag. "A little party never killed nobody, so we are going to dance until we drop – drop. A little party never killed nobody, right here, right now is all we got."  Now let me say before I go any farther: Count me in. I'd love to dance with Fergie until I drop, or until I am dropped by the unlucky soul who catches me doing it. I'm not a good dancer.

 

I love this song, but I just can't get my mind around that last line, "Right here, right now is all we got," because I believe we've always got some more. Some call it a second-chance; some label it reincarnation. I like to think of it as heaven. Another singer-songwriter who lived over 260 years ago named, Isaac Watts, put it this way: 

 

Oh! could we make our doubts remove,

These gloomy thoughts that rise,

And see that Canaan that we love

With unbeclouded eyes –

 

Could we but climb where Moses stood,

And view the landscape o'er,

Not Jordan's stream, nor death's cold flood,

Could fright us from the shore.

 

Now, I'll admit: Watts' song doesn't have the dance umph that Fergie's has, but he makes a good point. There's more to life than meets the eye, just waiting for anyone who hopes to see it. Go ahead – a little party never killed nobody. But just remember, there's more of life to come on the flip side.

Ruby, Don't Take Your Love to Town

One of the songs I sing in the shower is an old Mel Tillis song Kenny Rogers sang ages ago called, Ruby, Don't Take Your Love to Town.

In the song, a wounded soldier begs his girlfriend, Ruby, to keep her love at home. Whenever the sun begins to drop behind the pines, Ruby lets her passion get the best of her. She slips into a nice dress and heels, paints her lips, curls her tinted hair, and slams the door behind her.

I've always heard that love is fickle. I like that word fickle because it reminds me of the word pickle, and pickles are one of my favorite vegetables. I can eat them right out of the jar. I guess when people say that love is fickle they mean that love is unstable, unpredictable, changeable. The Oxford Dictionary, which is about the size of a small piece of luggage, states that when something is fickle it is treacherous and unsafe.

At first I assumed that Ruby's love was fickle, because the sunset made her do wild and crazy things. But Ruby's love is not nearly as unsafe as her hero's. At the end of the song, her boyfriend who is confined to bed says, "She's leaving now 'cause I just heard the slamming of the door, the way I know I've heard it some 100 times before. If I could move, I'd get my gun and put her in the ground. Please, Ruby, don't take your love to town." And then I like the last line, "Oh Ruby, for God's sake turn around."

Whew! I don't know about you but, if we all let love bring out the worst in us, I'd rather stick to being single. 

Speeding Towards You

I was browsing through a few old journal entries and came across this quote from James Allen. I probably picked it up from a book of his collected works called "Mind Is the Master." The quote I'd scribbled in my journal is: "If you love people, and speak of them with praise, until they in some way thwart you, or do something of which you disapprove, and then you dislike them and speak of them with dispraise, you are not governed by the love which is of God."

Because you see the love which is of God is unconditional. It doesn't appear when we behave and disappear when we misbehave. I don't remember watching this, but I've read that in 1983 the magician, David Copperfield, made the Statue of Liberty disappear on live television. He raised a giant curtain on Liberty Island; then lowered it again a few seconds later to show that the space where the statue stood was empty. A nearby helicopter crew filmed an aerial view of the illusion, and the statue appeared to vanish.

God's love never vanishes. It is always constant, always streaming toward humanity at super-spiritual speed.

Allen believed if the love we extend to others fluctuates on the basis of their behavior, it isn't the kind of love that comes from God. It is the kind of love which comes from people, and let's be honest here. We normally extend our love to folks who either agree with us or please us in some way. People mete out love this way, which is why the Scriptures warn, "It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man" (Psalm 118:8).

If you're feeling betrayed or misunderstood, chin up! God's love is nearing your heart even you as you read!

Soul Food

A year or so ago my wife, Karen, bought a Groupon for a meal at a soul food restaurant in Rochester – fried chicken and waffles, turnips with ham hocks, the works! For those of you unaccustomed to soul food, a ham hock is the lower segment of the pig that corresponds to the ankle or calf region. A hock is made tender from all the collagen that breaks down during cooking. Best of all, the whole thing is covered in skin, and as soul food lovers always say, The more skin the better! I should probably confess that I made a pig of myself on Lake Avenue.

My Jewish friends have never really gotten over their memories of Eve taking the forbidden fruit. Moses instituted dozens of clean and unclean food laws for the people to comply with in his day, and later the Pharisees added so many of their own laws and long-winded explanations, lawyers were needed to unravel the mishmash of dietary data for the average man and woman on the street.

When Jesus came along, he got on to these legal food warriors by saying, “Alas for you, scholars and Pharisees, hypocrites that you are! You pay tithes on mint, fennel, and caraway seed, and have neglected the weightier matters of the Law – justice, compassion, and good faith. These last you ought to have put into practice, without neglecting the first” (Matthew 23:23).

God has given us bodies capable of assimilating the food he provides for us to eat. They are ‘fearfully and wonderfully made’ (Psalm 139:14) to ingest, digest, and convert into physical energy the huge variety of foods we enjoy every day.

But really there are two kinds of soul food – the kind of food I grew up with in Georgia, and the kind of food which comes out of my soul, like the goodwill and compassion I try to extend to others. It’s probably helpful to ask yourself: What sort of food am I giving out to others today? Does it help them see God more clearly? Does it ease the trouble they are in? Does it give them lasting sustenance? If the food we give is to be of lasting value, it must always be good – for, to paraphrase Stephen Grelley, we may not ‘pass this way again.’

Think about this: God has given us a spiritual diet chart of good and bad foods. In Mark 7, Jesus tells us that the foods we must avoid are: sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, indecency, envy, slander, haughtiness, and folly. “All these wicked things come from within, and do defile a person." In Galatians 5, Paul lists all the good foods: "love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindliness, generosity, trustfulness, gentleness and self-control."

What kind of diet are you on? Stick with the good foods, because the good ones are food for life!

Can't We Get Along

I’ve always been a big James Allen fan. Allen believed there are four tendencies in the human mind which interfere with our ability to get along. The four tendencies are: Pride; Self-love; Hatred; and Condemnation.

Allen was convinced if we’ll be a little more modest, a little less interested in our own petty wants and wishes, a little slower at tossing the first stone, and a little faster appreciating people we have yet to understand, there’s a good chance we can become friends with people we never dreamed of knowing.h

The four foundation stones which contribute to friendship are: Humility; Self-surrender; Love; and Compassion. Whenever these four things are present, there exists a possibility for unity and peace. The problem is these things run contrary to human nature. I don’t always want to put my neighbor’s interests first. I find it hard to bite my tongue, to control my temper, and especially hard to love people who disagree with me. And my compassion tank, oh my! that runs awfully low at times.

In Allen’s words: “Where two are determined to maintain an opposing opinion, the clinging to self and ill-will are there, and Brotherhood is absent. Where two are prepared to sympathize with each other, to see no evil in each other, to serve and not to attack each other, the Love of Truth and Good-will are there, and Brotherhood is present. All strifes, divisions, and wars inhere in the proud, unyielding self; all peace, unity, and concord inhere in the Principles which the yielding up of self reveals. Brotherhood is only practiced and known by him [her] whose heart is at peace with all the world.”

Oh Lord, give me a heart at peace with all the world!

Not Their Life

It is good to acknowledge that each of us has our own life to live. If I choose to live my life in a way that dissatisfies you, I'm sorry, but you'll have to admit, it is my life to live, not yours. And what suits me may not fit you at all. I might enjoy sleeping outdoors on air mattresses and in canvas tents, while you prefer relaxing in plush suites at the Hampton Inn. I might take a late night stroll through a dimly lit village, while you would never dream of taking such a risk. Each of us is different, which is why each of us is so interesting. I guess Karle Wilson Baker captured the crux of the issue in a poem she wrote called, Creeds (Macmillan 1938).

Friend, you are grieved that I should go

Unhoused, unsheltered, gaunt and free,
My cloak for armor – for my tent
The roadside tree;

And I – I know not how you bear
A roof betwixt you and the blue,
Brother, the creed would stifle me
That shelters you.

Yet, that same light that floods at dawn
Your cloistered room, your cryptic stair,
Wakes me too – sleeping by the hedge –
To morning prayer!

So enjoy who you are, who you were meant to be, and don't worry if some don't get it. It's not their life to live.