I was in beautiful San Francisco last weekend with my sister and a good friend. We saw many interesting things, but what I am about to tell you next is probably the most intersting of them all. We took the Muni (aka the public bus system) around everywhere we went, and on the second day we took it down to Pier 39. A couple of stops before we got off, a homeless man got on carrying a big bundle of freshly cut leafy branches. They were about 3 feet long and rather cumbersome in the bus. When we got off at our stop he stayed on. We looked around the pier for a couple hours and then walked down a couple of blocks for lunch. On our way back, we saw the man with the branches again. He was kneeling on the sidewalk and holding the branches in front of him, so they kind of looked like a bush and he was mostly hidden behind them. As we walked by, he jumped out at a person walking the other direction, presumably to scare them. Apparently this is what he did to make money, although we didn't see a cup or hat or anything on the sidewalk.
This is rather an amusing story, mainly because it seems like an odd way to make money, if that's what he was doing. It got me thinking, "Why is he doing that?" That thought in turn got me thinking of another question: Why do I do what I do? Everyone has a reason for what they do, whether they realize it or not. The man hiding behind the branches on the sidewalk had a reason for doing that, and I had reason for walking by to see him. Nothing happens by accident. You made a choice to do everything you did today,and so I ask you, "Why did you do it?" At first the answers seem obvious, but I encourage you to dig deeper. Why am I writing this blog? At first, the answer is because one of my new year's resolution was to write one blog a week, and I am running out of time for this week. Going deeper, however, I discover that I don't want to fail at keeping my resolution, and publically fail at that, which is the motivation behind this blog. That in turn could lead to if I worry about how I look in other people's eyes and keeping a good face. At that point I learn something about myself. I could do this for all of my activities, and I am sure it would be very revealing.
The point of doing this little excercise is to check my motives and see what they are, and what they should be. Am I glorifying God in ALL my actions? Are the surface motives that I want people to see the same as my inward motives? I challenge you: Take one area or one activity and really question yourself on why you do it. If you need a good place to start, try it for Facebook and see what you discover. I'd love to hear about it!
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Before the Throne of God Above
BEFORE THE THRONE OF GOD ABOVE
Before the throne of God above
I have a high and perfect plea
A great high priest whose name is love
Who ever lives and pleads for me
My name graven on His hands
My name written on His heart
I know that while in heaven He stands
No tongue can bid me thence depart
When Satan tempts me to despair
And tells me of the guilt within
Upward I look and see Him there
Who made an end to all my sin
Because sinless Savior died
My sinful soul is counted free
For God the Just is satisfied
To look on Him and pardon me
Hallejulah, hallejulah!
Praise the one, the risen Son of God
Behold Him there the risen lamb
My perfect, spotless righteousness
The great unchangeable I Am
The King of glory and of grace
One with himself I cannot die
My soul is purchased by His blood
My life is hid with Christ on high
With Christ my Savior and my God
Hallelujah, Hallelujah!
Praise the one, the risen Son of God
When I hear this song and read the lyrics, it gives me chills. It tells so eloquently and yet so simply our position in Christ. My favorite verse is: "Because the sinless Savior died, my sinful soul is counted free. For God the Just is satisfied to look on Him and pardon me." It's simple, and yet so profound. As Christians, we need to remind ourselves of the gospel regularly. I was reminded of this again and again last year, though books I read and sermons I listened to. And yet, every time I heard it, I needed to hear it again. It seems strange the the cornerstone of Christianity can be overlooked so easily, and yet it is. We think that we know the gospel and so instead of dwelling on it every day, we start working on being good Christians by crossing our t's and dotting out i's. Too soon we forget why we're doing what we're doing. The simple truth is this: you cannot think of the gospel too much; it is the essence of Christianity. The other reason I like this song is because of the hallelujah part. You hear the words, you realize once again what Christ did, and your heart overflows with gratitude. And then the song switches from theology to praise, right at the perfect moment. It's beautiful.
I challenge you: Sit down and think about the gospel today. And tomorrow. And thank God for what He's done for you. You won't regret it.
Monday, January 3, 2011
I Am Resolved
Happy New Year to all twelve people who read my blog : ) Don't worry, it doesn't bother me. I write more for myself than for anyone else. Blogging let's me organize my thoughts and share something that I feel might be beneficial to someone else. Wasn't that the purpose of blogs in the first place? That being said, let me share one of my new year's resolution for 2011.
I am resolved to write a blog at least once a week.
There. I've said it. In once sense, I glad that I am forcing myself to be disciplined. In another sense, I'm scared of adding another commitment to my already semi-crazy life. How will I find time? How will I think of things to write about? What if I fail and everyone knows it since I've posted it for everyone to see?
I don't know how this will work out. Up until now, writing one post a month has been a challenge. Some things will probably change, such as the posts will probably we shorter, which might be a blessing for my reading audience. I will also probably have to give something else up, which will probably be facebook time.
The question that naturally follows is this: Why am I doing this? First and most of all, I was convicted by a post by my fellow blogger Aaron Katreeb on discipline. I am disciplined in many areas of my life, but this is not one of them. I believe in discipline in all areas of life, and the more areas it is in, the easier it gets. I know some of you might cringe at the word discipline. It conjures up images of an army-like regulated life with no fun or excitement. Let me tell you something: my life ain't nothing like that. I have a lot of fun, and it is very exciting. I believe that my life is like that because I am disciplined and the freedom that it brings. I could write a whole post just about that, and maybe I will, but not right now. The other reason I decided on this resolution is because many people have told me: "You should write more, Katie." I usually agree with them, and then I usually don't. I believe my ability to write is a gift from God, and I don't want to waste something God gave me. Right now, I am using that gift in a small way in my little blog, but that's better than nothing. I'd rather return to God one talent than bury it in the ground and give Him nothing in return. I believe that this is both my obligation and my privilege.
So there it is. I'm counting on you, people, to help me keep this resolution. If you have an idea that you want me to write about, drop me a line. I could use some ideas. Thank you for your faithful reading over the past two years.
Katie
I am resolved to write a blog at least once a week.
There. I've said it. In once sense, I glad that I am forcing myself to be disciplined. In another sense, I'm scared of adding another commitment to my already semi-crazy life. How will I find time? How will I think of things to write about? What if I fail and everyone knows it since I've posted it for everyone to see?
I don't know how this will work out. Up until now, writing one post a month has been a challenge. Some things will probably change, such as the posts will probably we shorter, which might be a blessing for my reading audience. I will also probably have to give something else up, which will probably be facebook time.
The question that naturally follows is this: Why am I doing this? First and most of all, I was convicted by a post by my fellow blogger Aaron Katreeb on discipline. I am disciplined in many areas of my life, but this is not one of them. I believe in discipline in all areas of life, and the more areas it is in, the easier it gets. I know some of you might cringe at the word discipline. It conjures up images of an army-like regulated life with no fun or excitement. Let me tell you something: my life ain't nothing like that. I have a lot of fun, and it is very exciting. I believe that my life is like that because I am disciplined and the freedom that it brings. I could write a whole post just about that, and maybe I will, but not right now. The other reason I decided on this resolution is because many people have told me: "You should write more, Katie." I usually agree with them, and then I usually don't. I believe my ability to write is a gift from God, and I don't want to waste something God gave me. Right now, I am using that gift in a small way in my little blog, but that's better than nothing. I'd rather return to God one talent than bury it in the ground and give Him nothing in return. I believe that this is both my obligation and my privilege.
So there it is. I'm counting on you, people, to help me keep this resolution. If you have an idea that you want me to write about, drop me a line. I could use some ideas. Thank you for your faithful reading over the past two years.
Katie
Friday, December 24, 2010
The Miracle of Christmas
The King of Heaven came down to us.
He came to a sinful world full of sinners who sinned-
Sinned against Him.
But He didn't sin.
Instead, He loved them.
He loved us.
He came in the humblest of ways,
As the humblest of beings:
A Baby.
Helpless.
Born of girl who was a nobody
From a nothing town.
He was hated, despised
His life was threatened from infancy
To adulthood
Until finally, the threat became reality.
He was wounded for our transgressions
He was bruised for our iniquities
The chastisement for our sins was upon Him
And by His stripes, we are healed.
The death He died for us,
Was invented for its cruelty.
The suffering it caused is staggering.
And yet,
He suffered that for us, and that was only the beginning.
The Son endured the wrath of the Father;
Wrath He didn't deserve for sins He didn't commit.
And yet, He took our place.
Because we couldn't save ourselves,
He saved us.
The miracle is not that Jesus came to save the lost:
That was simple obedience.
The miracle is that He loved those
He came to save.
The miracle is that Jesus came down at Christmas
To a broken, hopeless world.
And He lived a perfect life.
And when He went to the cross,
He saw a very desperate you and a really pathetic me in the distance
And He died anyways.
If that doesn't amaze you
Why not?
Passages adapted with poetic license taken from "Living Whole Without a Better Half", "Lover of My Soul" and Isaiah 53:5
He came to a sinful world full of sinners who sinned-
Sinned against Him.
But He didn't sin.
Instead, He loved them.
He loved us.
He came in the humblest of ways,
As the humblest of beings:
A Baby.
Helpless.
Born of girl who was a nobody
From a nothing town.
He was hated, despised
His life was threatened from infancy
To adulthood
Until finally, the threat became reality.
He was wounded for our transgressions
He was bruised for our iniquities
The chastisement for our sins was upon Him
And by His stripes, we are healed.
The death He died for us,
Was invented for its cruelty.
The suffering it caused is staggering.
And yet,
He suffered that for us, and that was only the beginning.
The Son endured the wrath of the Father;
Wrath He didn't deserve for sins He didn't commit.
And yet, He took our place.
Because we couldn't save ourselves,
He saved us.
The miracle is not that Jesus came to save the lost:
That was simple obedience.
The miracle is that He loved those
He came to save.
The miracle is that Jesus came down at Christmas
To a broken, hopeless world.
And He lived a perfect life.
And when He went to the cross,
He saw a very desperate you and a really pathetic me in the distance
And He died anyways.
If that doesn't amaze you
Why not?
Passages adapted with poetic license taken from "Living Whole Without a Better Half", "Lover of My Soul" and Isaiah 53:5
Sunday, December 5, 2010
The Other Side of Christmas
There are so many words associated with Christmas: joy, peace, love and goodwill, just to name a few. Feelings associated with Christmas are usually what can be called warm and fuzzy. For many people, Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year, and rightly so. For Christians, Christmas is the season we celebrate God becoming one of us, a baby born to save us from our sin. I could use this whole blog just to wax eloquently about God becoming on of us, because out of all the things the Bible talks about, that is one of the things that never ceases to amaze me. But, I am not going to do that, because this blog is about something else. Even for non-Christians, Christmas is usually a season of happiness and goodwill. But was it always like that? Or, is there a different side of Christmas than what we usually think about?
Think about times in your life that you grew the most, specifically spiritually. Those are usually good memories because you remember the outcome and how beneficial it was. But I am guessing that those were hard times, too. From my experience, the best times of growth are when life's the hardest. They seem to go hand in hand. But, by the grace of God, we usually remember the good better than we remember the bad. It's like how a mother forgets the labor when she sees her baby for the first time. Why do I mention this? Because I am speculating that with the Christmas story (i.e. the birth of Jesus) the hard part has faded and we are left with the happy, joyful story we are familiar with.
Let me take you to the possible other side of the Christmas story. I don't know if this is accurate, because I wasn't there, but roll with me on this one and see what you think. My goal is to look at a familiar story a different way. Mary was a young teenage girl who was pregnant. Besides from all of the normal uncertainties and fears that come with being pregnant, especially for the first time, along with morning sickness and everything else, Mary was unwed. Unwed girls that were pregnant in that day could have been stoned. Do you think Mary might have been a little fearful about that? Even her own fiance didn't believe her at the beginning, so probably there were some other people who didn't either. We know she wasn't stoned, but she might have been shunned, outcast, or any of the other ways people can show disapproval. I always thought that she went to go see Elizabeth for as long as she did because it was getting uncomfortable for her to stay in her own village, but I don't know for sure. There was some fear for Joseph, too. The angel said, "Do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife." His fear might have been about a soiled reputation. He was a just man, the Bible says, and so it wouldn't look good for him to have a pregnant betrothed. It would hurt his reputation. So here we have two people who are doing the right thing, but who are maybe uncertain and fearful about how this is going to turn out.
Next scene: Bethlehem. Joseph and Mary have traveled for days. She is nine months pregnant. It doesn't matter how you travel at nine months pregnant, it is going to be uncomfortable. Tired and dirty, they make it to Bethlehem right as the first contractions start. There's no room in any inn, so they get sent to the stable. Imagine driving across the United States from Virginia to California and camping all the way. When you get to California smelly and tired, instead of a hotel with a hot shower and soft bed, you have to sleep on the floor in a smelly barn. In nativity scenes it's cute. In real life, maybe not so much. Mary gives birth in a strange town with strange people. She knows her child is the Messiah, but is it possible that in the moment that fact is overwhelmed by the uncomfortableness and uncertainty? You've been there; I've been there. In my head I know God is in control and that everything is happening for His glory. But sometimes my head doesn't connect to my heart real well, and life can seem out of control, painful, uncertain, and I forget the bigger picture. Did Mary ever forget the bigger picture?
Next scene: It's been maybe a year or two. Things have settled down for the young family. They are still in Bethlehem, and they now have a house. Did they not go back to their home village because of the hostility they faced the last time they were there? Is there nothing and no one to go back to? Out of nowhere, wise men appear the east. They bear expensive gifts and they come to worship the King. The words of the angel are confirmed, and yet on the heels of this wonderful moment comes a new fear: Herod now knows of the Messiah, and he wants him dead. Imagine you're Mary. The most powerful man in the region wants to kill your son. How does that feel? A little terrifying, maybe? Joseph is told in a dream to take his family to Egypt to escape the wrath of Herod. Matthew 2:14 says, "When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt." Just like that. He has a dream, BOOM! He gets up, gets Mary and Jesus and leaves. The life they had established in Bethlehem is wiped out in an instance. They probably didn't get to say goodbye to friends. They literally run for their lives to Egypt. A new town, again. They probably don't know anyone, again. They have to start all over, again. This time they don't even know the language.
I don't think the first Christmas was easy for Mary and Joseph, and I don't think that the following years were easy, either. They had to endure faith-trying difficulties and uncertainties, but they were people of faith, so they were able to. They had a promise from God, and they held onto that promise whenever things were uncertain or frightening. I wanted to write about this because I think so often we forget that the people in the Bible were people, just like us. So often we forget that they didn't know the ending to their story when they made tough decisions, just like we don't know how things will turn out when we have to make tough decisions. When David said he would face Goliath, he didn't know that he would kill him, or the string of events that would follow from that. When Daniel defied the king and prayed to God, he didn't know his life would be spared in the lion's den. They were people, just like Mary and Joseph were people. The Bible is so much more enriching and encouraging when we think of it like that. So I encourage you this Christmas to put yourself in the story that you have heard so often. See it through new eyes. Look at it a different way, and see something new.
Think about times in your life that you grew the most, specifically spiritually. Those are usually good memories because you remember the outcome and how beneficial it was. But I am guessing that those were hard times, too. From my experience, the best times of growth are when life's the hardest. They seem to go hand in hand. But, by the grace of God, we usually remember the good better than we remember the bad. It's like how a mother forgets the labor when she sees her baby for the first time. Why do I mention this? Because I am speculating that with the Christmas story (i.e. the birth of Jesus) the hard part has faded and we are left with the happy, joyful story we are familiar with.
Let me take you to the possible other side of the Christmas story. I don't know if this is accurate, because I wasn't there, but roll with me on this one and see what you think. My goal is to look at a familiar story a different way. Mary was a young teenage girl who was pregnant. Besides from all of the normal uncertainties and fears that come with being pregnant, especially for the first time, along with morning sickness and everything else, Mary was unwed. Unwed girls that were pregnant in that day could have been stoned. Do you think Mary might have been a little fearful about that? Even her own fiance didn't believe her at the beginning, so probably there were some other people who didn't either. We know she wasn't stoned, but she might have been shunned, outcast, or any of the other ways people can show disapproval. I always thought that she went to go see Elizabeth for as long as she did because it was getting uncomfortable for her to stay in her own village, but I don't know for sure. There was some fear for Joseph, too. The angel said, "Do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife." His fear might have been about a soiled reputation. He was a just man, the Bible says, and so it wouldn't look good for him to have a pregnant betrothed. It would hurt his reputation. So here we have two people who are doing the right thing, but who are maybe uncertain and fearful about how this is going to turn out.
Next scene: Bethlehem. Joseph and Mary have traveled for days. She is nine months pregnant. It doesn't matter how you travel at nine months pregnant, it is going to be uncomfortable. Tired and dirty, they make it to Bethlehem right as the first contractions start. There's no room in any inn, so they get sent to the stable. Imagine driving across the United States from Virginia to California and camping all the way. When you get to California smelly and tired, instead of a hotel with a hot shower and soft bed, you have to sleep on the floor in a smelly barn. In nativity scenes it's cute. In real life, maybe not so much. Mary gives birth in a strange town with strange people. She knows her child is the Messiah, but is it possible that in the moment that fact is overwhelmed by the uncomfortableness and uncertainty? You've been there; I've been there. In my head I know God is in control and that everything is happening for His glory. But sometimes my head doesn't connect to my heart real well, and life can seem out of control, painful, uncertain, and I forget the bigger picture. Did Mary ever forget the bigger picture?
Next scene: It's been maybe a year or two. Things have settled down for the young family. They are still in Bethlehem, and they now have a house. Did they not go back to their home village because of the hostility they faced the last time they were there? Is there nothing and no one to go back to? Out of nowhere, wise men appear the east. They bear expensive gifts and they come to worship the King. The words of the angel are confirmed, and yet on the heels of this wonderful moment comes a new fear: Herod now knows of the Messiah, and he wants him dead. Imagine you're Mary. The most powerful man in the region wants to kill your son. How does that feel? A little terrifying, maybe? Joseph is told in a dream to take his family to Egypt to escape the wrath of Herod. Matthew 2:14 says, "When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt." Just like that. He has a dream, BOOM! He gets up, gets Mary and Jesus and leaves. The life they had established in Bethlehem is wiped out in an instance. They probably didn't get to say goodbye to friends. They literally run for their lives to Egypt. A new town, again. They probably don't know anyone, again. They have to start all over, again. This time they don't even know the language.
I don't think the first Christmas was easy for Mary and Joseph, and I don't think that the following years were easy, either. They had to endure faith-trying difficulties and uncertainties, but they were people of faith, so they were able to. They had a promise from God, and they held onto that promise whenever things were uncertain or frightening. I wanted to write about this because I think so often we forget that the people in the Bible were people, just like us. So often we forget that they didn't know the ending to their story when they made tough decisions, just like we don't know how things will turn out when we have to make tough decisions. When David said he would face Goliath, he didn't know that he would kill him, or the string of events that would follow from that. When Daniel defied the king and prayed to God, he didn't know his life would be spared in the lion's den. They were people, just like Mary and Joseph were people. The Bible is so much more enriching and encouraging when we think of it like that. So I encourage you this Christmas to put yourself in the story that you have heard so often. See it through new eyes. Look at it a different way, and see something new.
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Disappointed
"This isn't where I thought I would be at this point in my life."
How many times have I heard that from one of my friends? How many times have you?
How many times have I said it myself?
It amazes me how often we get disillusioned with God when He fails to coordinate His grand scheme for the world with our personal plan for our lives. Of course, we don't think of it like that. What we think is: "All I want is a steady job so that I can get out of debt. I want to be a good steward of my money, but I'm not making enough to make ends meet right now. God doesn't want me to struggle like this." Or, "I just want ONE guy to ask me out on a date. Just one! I don't need a long-term relationship, I just want some confirmation that I'm attractive on some level." Outrageous requests? No. But they are requests stemming from the wrong motives all the same. Requests like that are self motivated, and from my experience God's highest priority is not our self requests. He is working to mold and make us into the image of Himself, not the image of who we would like to look like. The problem is that we don't see them as self motivated. We put religious words on the end of them so we convince ourselves that we are asking for something spiritual and not something selfish. And then we get upset when God doesn't answer our "spiritual" requests. That's when the problem starts.
It doesn't happen all at once, but like most things it starts small and grows and grows until we finally notice it. What is it? Disappointment. We pray for more hours at work so that we can build relationships with co-workers and "witness" to them. We don't get more hours. We pray that Grandma gets better so that she can keep serving God for many more years. Grandma doesn't get better. Relationships don't happen. Cars break down right when you need them. Tests don't get passed even after you study for hours. You keep praying and praying and God seems to keep saying "No" to everything. Have you been there? I have. Then you wake up one day and look around and say, "This isn't the life I wanted at all. I had so many plans, so many dreams, but look where I'm at. God, why did you let this happen to me?" At that moment, you let yourself become disillusioned with God. YOU had a great plan for your life, but God wouldn't cooperate. YOU had it all figured out, but God wouldn't listen.
Oh, Sinner, how often we fall. In our minds it's okay to disappoint God. Yeah, we sin, but we're human, right? We don't read our Bibles or pray as often as we should, but we're busy. We don't give our time or money to God, because we need it more than He does. In every area, we don't meet God's standards, and yet we justify it in our minds. But then, when God doesn't meet our artificial standards, we feel justified to doubt His goodness. We don't care about God wants but He had better care about what we want. We are selfish people who care more about an easy life than seeing God glorified on this earth. Shame on us.
My favorite passage when thinking about God's plan versus our plan is Hebrews 5:7:
"Who, in the days of His flesh, when He had offered up prayers and supplications, with vehement cries and tears to Him who was able to save Him from death, and was heard because of His godly fear..."
I know this is a sentence fragment and therefore hard to grasp in context, but hear me out. This passage is referring back to Jesus praying in the garden before His arrest. Jesus didn't like where He was at. He didn't like the plan, and He was praying to His father to "take this cup away from me." (Luke 22:42) Have you prayed that prayer? Have you asked God to remove you from a difficult situation? Unlike you, Jesus had completely pure motivations when He prayed. He knew that His death was needed as an atoning sacrifice, but He still asked for a way out. He passionately cried out to the God who was able to save Him from an excruciating death. The beloved Son prayed to His loving Father, and God heard the prayer of His righteous Son.
And God said no.
No. It was that simple. God didn't give a reason. He didn't have to. He never has to. God's ways are higher than our ways, and the Creator does not owe the creation an explanation for anything. At the end of Luke 22:42, Jesus said, "Not my will, but Yours, be done." God answered that prayer. God's will was done. His Son was in agony, pleading for another plan, crying out to be saved from the wrath of His Father when He took on the sins of the world. But the Father didn't change His plan, because His plan was the best plan.
Does that give you hope, Beloved? It gives me hope, because it puts my prayers into perspective, and my life. God loves us. God hears our prayers. And sometimes God says "no" even when it doesn't make sense to us. God might say "no" when we're hurting, or confused, or alone. But we can rest assured that we are exactly where we are supposed to be: resting in His love, surrounded by His grace.
When you get to a point in your life when you are tempted to say, "This isn't where I wanted to be right now", remember your Saviour, who has been right where you are. Like your Saviour, I urge you to set aside your dreams and ambitions, to humble yourself before the sovereign God, and say, "Not my will, but Yours, be done."
How many times have I heard that from one of my friends? How many times have you?
How many times have I said it myself?
It amazes me how often we get disillusioned with God when He fails to coordinate His grand scheme for the world with our personal plan for our lives. Of course, we don't think of it like that. What we think is: "All I want is a steady job so that I can get out of debt. I want to be a good steward of my money, but I'm not making enough to make ends meet right now. God doesn't want me to struggle like this." Or, "I just want ONE guy to ask me out on a date. Just one! I don't need a long-term relationship, I just want some confirmation that I'm attractive on some level." Outrageous requests? No. But they are requests stemming from the wrong motives all the same. Requests like that are self motivated, and from my experience God's highest priority is not our self requests. He is working to mold and make us into the image of Himself, not the image of who we would like to look like. The problem is that we don't see them as self motivated. We put religious words on the end of them so we convince ourselves that we are asking for something spiritual and not something selfish. And then we get upset when God doesn't answer our "spiritual" requests. That's when the problem starts.
It doesn't happen all at once, but like most things it starts small and grows and grows until we finally notice it. What is it? Disappointment. We pray for more hours at work so that we can build relationships with co-workers and "witness" to them. We don't get more hours. We pray that Grandma gets better so that she can keep serving God for many more years. Grandma doesn't get better. Relationships don't happen. Cars break down right when you need them. Tests don't get passed even after you study for hours. You keep praying and praying and God seems to keep saying "No" to everything. Have you been there? I have. Then you wake up one day and look around and say, "This isn't the life I wanted at all. I had so many plans, so many dreams, but look where I'm at. God, why did you let this happen to me?" At that moment, you let yourself become disillusioned with God. YOU had a great plan for your life, but God wouldn't cooperate. YOU had it all figured out, but God wouldn't listen.
Oh, Sinner, how often we fall. In our minds it's okay to disappoint God. Yeah, we sin, but we're human, right? We don't read our Bibles or pray as often as we should, but we're busy. We don't give our time or money to God, because we need it more than He does. In every area, we don't meet God's standards, and yet we justify it in our minds. But then, when God doesn't meet our artificial standards, we feel justified to doubt His goodness. We don't care about God wants but He had better care about what we want. We are selfish people who care more about an easy life than seeing God glorified on this earth. Shame on us.
My favorite passage when thinking about God's plan versus our plan is Hebrews 5:7:
"Who, in the days of His flesh, when He had offered up prayers and supplications, with vehement cries and tears to Him who was able to save Him from death, and was heard because of His godly fear..."
I know this is a sentence fragment and therefore hard to grasp in context, but hear me out. This passage is referring back to Jesus praying in the garden before His arrest. Jesus didn't like where He was at. He didn't like the plan, and He was praying to His father to "take this cup away from me." (Luke 22:42) Have you prayed that prayer? Have you asked God to remove you from a difficult situation? Unlike you, Jesus had completely pure motivations when He prayed. He knew that His death was needed as an atoning sacrifice, but He still asked for a way out. He passionately cried out to the God who was able to save Him from an excruciating death. The beloved Son prayed to His loving Father, and God heard the prayer of His righteous Son.
And God said no.
No. It was that simple. God didn't give a reason. He didn't have to. He never has to. God's ways are higher than our ways, and the Creator does not owe the creation an explanation for anything. At the end of Luke 22:42, Jesus said, "Not my will, but Yours, be done." God answered that prayer. God's will was done. His Son was in agony, pleading for another plan, crying out to be saved from the wrath of His Father when He took on the sins of the world. But the Father didn't change His plan, because His plan was the best plan.
Does that give you hope, Beloved? It gives me hope, because it puts my prayers into perspective, and my life. God loves us. God hears our prayers. And sometimes God says "no" even when it doesn't make sense to us. God might say "no" when we're hurting, or confused, or alone. But we can rest assured that we are exactly where we are supposed to be: resting in His love, surrounded by His grace.
When you get to a point in your life when you are tempted to say, "This isn't where I wanted to be right now", remember your Saviour, who has been right where you are. Like your Saviour, I urge you to set aside your dreams and ambitions, to humble yourself before the sovereign God, and say, "Not my will, but Yours, be done."
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Revelation: The part I understand
I don't understand a whole lot from the book of Revelations, I must admit, but I understand the first three chapters. I love the first three chapters of Revelations. Seven different churches, seven different situations. From each one there is something to learn. Five have serious issues that need to be addressed. One is suffering persecution. And one is the example we should follow.
In this blog I want to talk about the church in Ephesus. This is the first church that is mentioned out of all the churches, which means that it is the one the apostle John had on the forefront of his thoughts when he was thinking about the churches and what they needed to hear. After the introduction, the letter to the church of Ephesus starts likes this:
"I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars;"
This was a church that held fast to truth. They tested false doctrine and did not allow it in their midst. This means that the members of the church in Ephesus knew the scripture and the gospel well. They could recognize false teaching, and they had the courage to push it away and not fall for sweet sounding words. This was also a church that labored and that did good works. The passage goes on to say:
"And you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name's sake, and have not become weary."
This church had gone through some hard times it seems to indicate, but they had persevered. In Christ's name they labored, and they did not grow weary of their labor. That is a far cry from the burned-out church workers and pastors that populate so many of our churches today. Weary is an accurate description of many churches today, but the church of Ephesus was not weary.
"Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love."
Wait, what?!?! Isn't this the church we are supposed to emulate? These people were zealous for truth, hard-working, laboring for Christ, patient. How could they be all that and yet John still find fault with them? The answer is simple really: they had forgotten the reason for why they did what they did. These people went through the motions, they did all the right things. I believe that their motives were pure but their eyes were blind. They got so caught up in doing things for God that they lost their focus. They left their first love.
The first love of any Christian is Christ and the Gospel. How could it not be so? We were lost, but now we're found. We were dead in sin and had no way of escape, but Christ broke through our chains and paid the price for our sin with His death on calvary. Then He defeated death, the punishment for our sin, by rising from the day and ascending into heaven, where He reigns as king at the right hand of God. The gospel is glorious, is it not? It has to be our first love because without it, there would be no love at all. The gospel is where we must start, but it is also the place we must stay.
Christians have a tendency to move on from the gospel. I am reading a book called "Counsel from the Cross" for the second time because it is that good, and the authors emphasize this quite a bit. We think we understand the gospel, and so we move on to other things. We start finding the passages that talk about how Christians should live their lives, and start applying those verses to our lives. We start developing theologies and opinions based on what we learn through scripture. But in the midst of all that, the tendency is to do exactly what the churh at Ephesus did. We, too, can leave our first love. And, I contend, we do it quite often.
We stop being amazed by the cross. We hear it so often, we stop hearing it. Why are we astonished at the church in Ephesus when we do the exact same thing all the time? We do the right things. We fight false doctrine. We persevere. But we do it without the gospel in mind. My friends, we have left our first love, too. This is why I believe John put the letter to the church in Ephesus first: what he had to say to them applied to all of the other churches. The lukewarm church? Where was their first love? The corrupt church? They needed to go back to the gospel.
What I want to challenge you with is this: Have you left your first love? Are you going through the motions but have long ago forgotten why? I suggest you look back to the cross and fall in love again.
In this blog I want to talk about the church in Ephesus. This is the first church that is mentioned out of all the churches, which means that it is the one the apostle John had on the forefront of his thoughts when he was thinking about the churches and what they needed to hear. After the introduction, the letter to the church of Ephesus starts likes this:
"I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars;"
This was a church that held fast to truth. They tested false doctrine and did not allow it in their midst. This means that the members of the church in Ephesus knew the scripture and the gospel well. They could recognize false teaching, and they had the courage to push it away and not fall for sweet sounding words. This was also a church that labored and that did good works. The passage goes on to say:
"And you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name's sake, and have not become weary."
This church had gone through some hard times it seems to indicate, but they had persevered. In Christ's name they labored, and they did not grow weary of their labor. That is a far cry from the burned-out church workers and pastors that populate so many of our churches today. Weary is an accurate description of many churches today, but the church of Ephesus was not weary.
"Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love."
Wait, what?!?! Isn't this the church we are supposed to emulate? These people were zealous for truth, hard-working, laboring for Christ, patient. How could they be all that and yet John still find fault with them? The answer is simple really: they had forgotten the reason for why they did what they did. These people went through the motions, they did all the right things. I believe that their motives were pure but their eyes were blind. They got so caught up in doing things for God that they lost their focus. They left their first love.
The first love of any Christian is Christ and the Gospel. How could it not be so? We were lost, but now we're found. We were dead in sin and had no way of escape, but Christ broke through our chains and paid the price for our sin with His death on calvary. Then He defeated death, the punishment for our sin, by rising from the day and ascending into heaven, where He reigns as king at the right hand of God. The gospel is glorious, is it not? It has to be our first love because without it, there would be no love at all. The gospel is where we must start, but it is also the place we must stay.
Christians have a tendency to move on from the gospel. I am reading a book called "Counsel from the Cross" for the second time because it is that good, and the authors emphasize this quite a bit. We think we understand the gospel, and so we move on to other things. We start finding the passages that talk about how Christians should live their lives, and start applying those verses to our lives. We start developing theologies and opinions based on what we learn through scripture. But in the midst of all that, the tendency is to do exactly what the churh at Ephesus did. We, too, can leave our first love. And, I contend, we do it quite often.
We stop being amazed by the cross. We hear it so often, we stop hearing it. Why are we astonished at the church in Ephesus when we do the exact same thing all the time? We do the right things. We fight false doctrine. We persevere. But we do it without the gospel in mind. My friends, we have left our first love, too. This is why I believe John put the letter to the church in Ephesus first: what he had to say to them applied to all of the other churches. The lukewarm church? Where was their first love? The corrupt church? They needed to go back to the gospel.
What I want to challenge you with is this: Have you left your first love? Are you going through the motions but have long ago forgotten why? I suggest you look back to the cross and fall in love again.
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