THE HALF-WAY POINT: WHAT I'VE LEARNED

2 Kings 22:3-23:30; Acts 21:37-22:16; Psalm 1:1-6; Proverbs 18:11-12

“When the king heard what was written in the Book of the Law, he tore his clothes in despair. … ‘We have not been doing everything it says we must do.’ Josiah also got rid of the mediums and psychics, the household gods, the idols, and every other kind of detestable practice, both in Jerusalem and throughout the land of Judah. He did this in obedience to the laws written in the scroll…. Never before had there been a king like Josiah, who turned to the Lord with all his heart and soul and strength, obeying all the laws of Moses. And there has never been a king like him since.”

“’Brothers and esteemed fathers,’ Paul said, ‘listen to me as I offer my defense.’”

“Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with mockers. But they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night.”

“The name of the Lord is a strong fortress; the godly run to him and are safe. The rich think of their wealth as a strong defense; they imagine it to be a high wall of safety. Haughtiness goes before destruction; humility precedes honor.”

Six months ago, I started this blog as an exercise in self-preservation. Spiritually adrift, uninspired, irrationally insecure and just plain fearful, I took the advice of a good friend and pastor to get back to the basics of Bible study and accountability. At the time, his suggestion seemed so elementary I almost dismissed it. But I was desperate to change my outlook and find a way past what was starting to feel like depression, so I took the plunge. Today, while I cannot begin to logically explain the relationship, I know in my heart of hearts that the daily effort, study and meditation of doing this has changed me dramatically. Life remains a puzzle, but the pieces are coming together better. Irrationality and fear still lurk in the corners of my soul, to be sure; I remain, after all, in this world (although, hopefully, not so much of it). But I am no longer consumed by my demons, and the rekindled light of Christ is slowly pushing them out of what relatively little, dark territory they still claim.

So, halfway through this commitment to God, it seems a good time to evaluate my progress as I gird my loins, so to speak, for the final six months. Perhaps I will better understand the change the Spirit has wrought if I actually focus on what I have learned or re-learned in the process.

     1.     Pardon the practicality, but this is much more time consuming than I expected or intended, and can be downright inconvenient (a/k/a, a real pain). I think about stopping weekly. The only thing that keeps me going is the power of my promise, and how it has opened the door for the Spirit to begin to re-inspire me. I suspect this is a major thing to understand. Life was never intended to be convenient. It was designed to be committed. Without some level of sacrifice, not many of our accomplishments stand for much. But when we offer ourselves to Christ, we can be assured He will give back far more than we give up.

     2.     Emotions are not reality. DUH! But they sure feel that way sometimes, and it is important to have something more concrete – like the basic, bedrock promises of Jesus – to fall back on when uncertainty says we just aren’t getting (or aren’t worth) our Creator’s attention, much less His caring, compassionate love. The clay does not get to tell the potter it is unworthy of the wheel. We are being molded, daily. Our opinions about ourselves need to take a back seat to what God says is our future.

     3.     I previously missed some things in Scripture that are kinda important. Like, for example, why didn’t Josiah get more press than David? He was the “best King ever” and certainly did not experience the pitfalls David did. But neither did he experience the same depth of redemption. If I had to guess, this just emphasizes that all of Scripture is aimed far more at the idea of redemption than success. The extra good news? Readjusting my own priorities to bring more of my life into the Light where it can be redeemed has brought with it unexpected “success” as well.

     4.     Especially in times of trouble, we absolutely need – and were created - to be connected to something and someone outside ourselves and even outside our families. This is particularly important at times like these when the adversity the world throws at us triggers our instinctive “retreat and withdraw” response. I am convinced that, especially when we are under attack, isolating ourselves is the worst possible thing we can do. It probably is one of the most tangible signs we are still ruled by our sin nature.

     5.     The Spirit does not work in us to make us feel better about ourselves. It works through us so that we can have the blessing of making others feel better about themselves. However, as we submit to and accept the way the Spirit does business, we find a new sense of personal significance and godly purpose which does make us feel better about ourselves.

       6.     I had been putting way too much emphasis on economic security and was getting consumed by an obsession with the reality that it is all temporary. While there’s no arguing the import of food on the table and shelter over our heads, I needed to also look beyond the temporal and seek out visions of the eternal. Miracles are still happening. Hope still exists. As members of the human race, we all need to rededicate ourselves to their preservation and development and quit feeling so stinkin’ sorry for ourselves. Stuff happens. But Christ has overcome the world. We do well to remind ourselves of that every day.

       7.     There are hard choices to be made, and not to decide is to decide. No longer is “go with the flow” a viable option. Like lemmings, the “herd” of humanity is fast approaching a deadly cliff. Its sheer momentum threatens to sweep us down the same terminal path. Without our own individual, absolute re-commitment to follow Christ to the Cross and beyond - instead of following humanity off that cliff - we will be lost. Wherever Jesus leads has got to be a better choice than that! I have got to be more dedicated to following Him and cultivating His presence and purpose in my life.

There are some hard words here. No doubt, I will miss more fellow pilgrims than I hit with today’s message. I cannot apologize. God has brought me to this place and these convictions. I can only pray that those who read them will be the ones the Spirit intends to read them, and that He will use my limited understanding to help others deal with the separation and disenchantment in their own lives.