It seems the world is in turmoil. As I read the headlines I see recession, war, pain and suffering, yet it has always been like that since we were exiled from the Garden of Eden. I wonder sometimes how much I am supposed to care about all this. It can get pretty depressing, in fact it is incredibly easy to fall into despair because I can't change it. I want to help, but there are limitations to what I can do. And it seems those who are in positions of power and could help, often let the ball drop. I'm hoping that when the ball comes to me I will be able to field it and do the right thing, whatever that is, but in the meantime, I am battling sadness for all the pain of humanity. Further, though I have known Jesus as my loving Saviour for more than 40 years, I have experienced such a hunger for the Lord for the last two and a half years that I thought I would die for longing.
For the last few days, though, things have brightened. Not that outward circumstances have changed, but that I have changed. I have been taking communion each morning. First I ask forgiveness for sin and make sure I have forgiven others for we must never take the Lord's supper without these disciplines. Then I ask that the bread and cup be the body and blood of my Lord to my body, that He would be truly in me. The results have been amazing. There is a peace and calm that I can't explain. The despair is gone. I still feel emotions and concerns, but the hopelessness is gone. It seems there is a pillow in my soul that prevents the happenings of the day from striking at my core. Instead my core is now stable. And the presence of the Lord is sweetly gentle and peaceable in my spirit. I am going to continue this consecration for 21 days. I will post the results.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Sunday, February 1, 2009
The Gospel of Mark 1:21-28
I have been studying the text Mark 1:21-28 and it has been a real eye-opener. To read of a demon-possessed man being delivered through the authoritative Word of Jesus Christ is pretty exciting stuff. I am afraid we tend to think of those things as being part of the past. We make a grave error with such thinking. I have personally known folks who were delivered from the grasp of the enemy and their experiences were not unlike what happened to the man in this chapter when the demons threw him down and screamed their departure.
We need to be honest with ourselves. We do have an enemy who wishes us no good whatsoever. If we deny this, we deny ourselves the opportunity to be rescued. It reminds me of a favorite story I used to read to my children when they were small. It was about a very small dragon that appeared in a little boy's room one day. He told his mother about it when he went downstairs to breakfast, but she dismissed it and reminded him that there was no such thing as a dragon. As the day progressed, the dragon grew bigger and bigger and even when the dragon made it difficult for Mom to go from room to room doing her chores, she still denied he existed. At last, the dragon became so huge that his limbs protruded from the windows and doors of the house and he eventually took off down the road chasing a bread truck. Now Mom had no choice and admitted that perhaps dragons really do exist. Instantly, the dragon shrunk back to his smallest size.
This is much like how we in this culture view evil. If we just don't look at it or refuse to believe it exists-well, then it just won't be there. That works when it is small, but soon enough it grows arms and legs that are long enough to carry us away and no longer are we deciding our own comings and goings! We get ourselves in deeper and deeper and wonder why we can't get out, afterall we got there on our own, shouldn't we be able to dig out on our own?
We want to pretend evil is not the result of an enemy who plans well his strategy, but instead it exists because folks don't have enough education or opportunities or money. Indeed, folks need the basics of life and we need to care for one another to see that it is so. But to think we can educate or spend the evil out of human beings is exactly what our enemy wants us to think, simply because those approaches to the problem of evil are no threat to him. If we keep trying them, even when they are clearly not working, we will be so distracted we will not pull out the real weapon that can defeat the enemy. The real weapon, as Jesus demonstrated in this account, is Himself. He is in control and His Words have the power to bind and loose.
It is essential that we not relegate our Saviour to a place of nice, loving Teacher. No one is nicer or more loving or a better teacher than Jesus Christ. But to stop there is to miss the point. Jesus is Saviour. From what is He to save us-our over-drawn bank accounts? Yes, I pray over that too-but there is so much more to Him! Without light, there is no darkness, without small, there is no large, without less there is no more, without danger, there is no saving, without an enemy who needs a Saviour?
We, the Church, need to wake up and refuse to accept the humanistic version of our faith within which our politically correct culture wishes to frame us where everyone and everything is okay if it works for you. We need to own the tennets of our faith- that we have a King who died and rose again on our behalf-because we have an enemy who wants to destroy us. He was there in the Garden of Eden and he hasn't come up with anything new in his approach nor has he changed his goal to own us in all these thousands of years.
But the Good News is this: We have a Saviour who is unafraid, undaunted, all-powerful and best of all-on our side! We have a hope, because we can call upon Him, surrender our lives to Him and trust him with our lives. After-all, the demons were afraid of my Big Brother in that synogogue, so I think I'll stick with HIM!
We need to be honest with ourselves. We do have an enemy who wishes us no good whatsoever. If we deny this, we deny ourselves the opportunity to be rescued. It reminds me of a favorite story I used to read to my children when they were small. It was about a very small dragon that appeared in a little boy's room one day. He told his mother about it when he went downstairs to breakfast, but she dismissed it and reminded him that there was no such thing as a dragon. As the day progressed, the dragon grew bigger and bigger and even when the dragon made it difficult for Mom to go from room to room doing her chores, she still denied he existed. At last, the dragon became so huge that his limbs protruded from the windows and doors of the house and he eventually took off down the road chasing a bread truck. Now Mom had no choice and admitted that perhaps dragons really do exist. Instantly, the dragon shrunk back to his smallest size.
This is much like how we in this culture view evil. If we just don't look at it or refuse to believe it exists-well, then it just won't be there. That works when it is small, but soon enough it grows arms and legs that are long enough to carry us away and no longer are we deciding our own comings and goings! We get ourselves in deeper and deeper and wonder why we can't get out, afterall we got there on our own, shouldn't we be able to dig out on our own?
We want to pretend evil is not the result of an enemy who plans well his strategy, but instead it exists because folks don't have enough education or opportunities or money. Indeed, folks need the basics of life and we need to care for one another to see that it is so. But to think we can educate or spend the evil out of human beings is exactly what our enemy wants us to think, simply because those approaches to the problem of evil are no threat to him. If we keep trying them, even when they are clearly not working, we will be so distracted we will not pull out the real weapon that can defeat the enemy. The real weapon, as Jesus demonstrated in this account, is Himself. He is in control and His Words have the power to bind and loose.
It is essential that we not relegate our Saviour to a place of nice, loving Teacher. No one is nicer or more loving or a better teacher than Jesus Christ. But to stop there is to miss the point. Jesus is Saviour. From what is He to save us-our over-drawn bank accounts? Yes, I pray over that too-but there is so much more to Him! Without light, there is no darkness, without small, there is no large, without less there is no more, without danger, there is no saving, without an enemy who needs a Saviour?
We, the Church, need to wake up and refuse to accept the humanistic version of our faith within which our politically correct culture wishes to frame us where everyone and everything is okay if it works for you. We need to own the tennets of our faith- that we have a King who died and rose again on our behalf-because we have an enemy who wants to destroy us. He was there in the Garden of Eden and he hasn't come up with anything new in his approach nor has he changed his goal to own us in all these thousands of years.
But the Good News is this: We have a Saviour who is unafraid, undaunted, all-powerful and best of all-on our side! We have a hope, because we can call upon Him, surrender our lives to Him and trust him with our lives. After-all, the demons were afraid of my Big Brother in that synogogue, so I think I'll stick with HIM!
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
We are snowed in. Being snowed in can be such an inconvenience, but it is wonderful in it's own way. It reminds me of a huge, soft blanket that wraps me up and slows me down. It gives me the opportunity to stay home, snuggled up in my fuzzy robe, drinking hot cocoa and spending time with my precious family.
I love it because I don't have to BE anywhere, simply because nobody else can get there either, so the pressure is off. I realize there are some who work at hospitals and clear the roads and for them I am incredibly grateful. But for most of us, nothing is important enough to risk one's life going out in such conditions. I can just be here, in the moment-almost as if there is no tomorrow. Time just slows down and lets me be.
You know, maybe that explains why I have always loved being snowed in! Because it reduces my world to what truly matters. The one thing that counts, when all else is stripped away isn't really the going! It is instead the simple act of BEING!
We get so caught up in the world and it's value systems- power, ownership, pursuit- that we cannot extract ourselves, simply because we have become adjusted to the lack of gravity. But when we are forced to land we become reacquainted with that for which we were created. We were created to BE, to BE in Christ, to Be in the Vine, to BE in love, to BE at peace, to BE there for each other......
The only time Jesus said "GO" was when he was sending someone to spread the Gospel-the Good News. Telling good news is not a burden. I love to spread good news. My adult son won a contest recently and with it a nice check. Believe me, I was on my cell phone texting the good news within seconds! Passing on good news did not require me to shove or push or lie or cheat. It wasn't about going anywhere or getting ahead or getting my share. So no ruthless tactics were needed. It was just good news and I was just passing it along to share the joy!
There's a lesson here. Maybe more than one. But what I get from it all is that I need to be watchful. When the world revs back up again, when we all dig out and things begin to spin again, I need a reference point. One that will warn me when I am spinning out of control. I need to remember what I learned during the snow storm. What matters most is being and sharing the Good News. If I catch myself pushing the lines of honesty, or rushing to the point of rudeness, or tempted to cheat because I'm afraid of losing ownership-these are signs-very large neon signs-flashing in my face signs-that I am spinning way too fast and it is time to hook my tether line to the unmovable, unchangeable, Master of the Universe. I must anchor myself to the Rock lest I be swept away.
Is it possible to just BE in this mad world? Well, the only one I know who accomplished it fully is Jesus Christ. So I for one intend to go with the expert on this. I may want to stop the world and get off sometimes, but we all know that isn't possible. However, I know the One who holds the world in the palm of His hand and if I learn His language, my words will be wise; if I walk with Him, my goings and comings will be purposeful and unhurried; if I trust His providence, my grasping and reaching will fall by the wayside and if I rest at His feet I will not grow weary, because every day will feel like a deep, peaceful snow blanket that wraps me up and comforts me with the peace of Being in Christ.
I love it because I don't have to BE anywhere, simply because nobody else can get there either, so the pressure is off. I realize there are some who work at hospitals and clear the roads and for them I am incredibly grateful. But for most of us, nothing is important enough to risk one's life going out in such conditions. I can just be here, in the moment-almost as if there is no tomorrow. Time just slows down and lets me be.
You know, maybe that explains why I have always loved being snowed in! Because it reduces my world to what truly matters. The one thing that counts, when all else is stripped away isn't really the going! It is instead the simple act of BEING!
We get so caught up in the world and it's value systems- power, ownership, pursuit- that we cannot extract ourselves, simply because we have become adjusted to the lack of gravity. But when we are forced to land we become reacquainted with that for which we were created. We were created to BE, to BE in Christ, to Be in the Vine, to BE in love, to BE at peace, to BE there for each other......
The only time Jesus said "GO" was when he was sending someone to spread the Gospel-the Good News. Telling good news is not a burden. I love to spread good news. My adult son won a contest recently and with it a nice check. Believe me, I was on my cell phone texting the good news within seconds! Passing on good news did not require me to shove or push or lie or cheat. It wasn't about going anywhere or getting ahead or getting my share. So no ruthless tactics were needed. It was just good news and I was just passing it along to share the joy!
There's a lesson here. Maybe more than one. But what I get from it all is that I need to be watchful. When the world revs back up again, when we all dig out and things begin to spin again, I need a reference point. One that will warn me when I am spinning out of control. I need to remember what I learned during the snow storm. What matters most is being and sharing the Good News. If I catch myself pushing the lines of honesty, or rushing to the point of rudeness, or tempted to cheat because I'm afraid of losing ownership-these are signs-very large neon signs-flashing in my face signs-that I am spinning way too fast and it is time to hook my tether line to the unmovable, unchangeable, Master of the Universe. I must anchor myself to the Rock lest I be swept away.
Is it possible to just BE in this mad world? Well, the only one I know who accomplished it fully is Jesus Christ. So I for one intend to go with the expert on this. I may want to stop the world and get off sometimes, but we all know that isn't possible. However, I know the One who holds the world in the palm of His hand and if I learn His language, my words will be wise; if I walk with Him, my goings and comings will be purposeful and unhurried; if I trust His providence, my grasping and reaching will fall by the wayside and if I rest at His feet I will not grow weary, because every day will feel like a deep, peaceful snow blanket that wraps me up and comforts me with the peace of Being in Christ.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Just learning
Hello, again, I'm just learning about this blogging thing. I am well past 40, so technology is a second language to me, but I am getting the hang of it. I am raising the last 2 children of several and I have grandchildren as well, so there is quite a mix of worlds for me. I homeschool one of 2 teenagers and teach school full time. So I stay busy.
I love the Lord, I love my family and I love to write, so....it's time to start. I will be holding forth from time to time on whatever comes into my head and heart. Maybe no one will ever want to read it and maybe they will. But my hope is that whoever reads will firstly be pointed to Jesus Christ and secondly be encouraged to live another day with joy and hope!
I love the Lord, I love my family and I love to write, so....it's time to start. I will be holding forth from time to time on whatever comes into my head and heart. Maybe no one will ever want to read it and maybe they will. But my hope is that whoever reads will firstly be pointed to Jesus Christ and secondly be encouraged to live another day with joy and hope!
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