TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES

2 Chronicles 29:1-36; Romans 14:1-23; Psalm 24:1-10; Proverbs 20:12

“In the very first month of the first year of his reign, Hezekiah reopened the doors of the Temple of the Lord and repaired them.”

“For we don’t live for ourselves or die for ourselves. If we live, it’s to honor the Lord. And if we die, it’s to honor the Lord. So whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.”

“Ears to hear and eyes to see--both are gifts from the Lord.”

“Open up, ancient gates! Open up, ancient doors, and let the King of glory enter.”

A week ago, I was skiing in the mountains of New Hampshire with my two sons. During that mini-vacation, I was determined to continue posting daily entries into this blog. There was just one problem: the Internet connection in the place we were staying was very much hit and miss. I could be seen at various times carrying my computer all over our complex, trying to capture a viable signal. For those who are interested, I finally found one about 5 in the morning in our bathroom. No, it was not available at other, more reasonable times; I tried. And I am not going to tell you how I discovered its availability in the first place. Suffice it to say I spent the early morning hours hunkered over my computer on the bathroom floor, pounding out my usual hunt-and-peck style typing, continually feeling there had to be a better way to communicate.

Come to think of it, my circumstances in New Hampshire mirrored a situation I all too often also experience at home and wherever else I may be. I try to pray, try to effectively communicate with God, but keep experiencing technical difficulties. It’s just not the right time. I’m not “feeling” it. There are things I’d prefer to keep to myself and not share with anyone, let alone Jesus. I just don’t have the words. The hurt is too great. There are as many reasons not to come before the Throne as there are human beings to conjure them up.  But at the end of the day, any such technical difficulties have the same effect they do in any other application: we miss the opportunity if we allow them to stop us.

 Today’s Scriptures from 2 Chronicles and Psalms share a common theme. Each addresses technical difficulties, and the opening of the Temple doors which were required to overcome them. Hezekiah came to power on the heels of one of the most corrupt Kings Judah ever knew. His father, Ahaz, had shut the doors of the Lord’s Temple so that no one could worship there, in order to force the people to worship pagan gods. David prayed for the King of Glory to once more occupy the Tabernacle. We pray that the doors of our hearts will be opened to the love and grace of our Savior, Jesus Christ. In every case, the world tries to make an actual relationship with the Holy Spirit difficult. Christians, though, have a sure-fire way to overcome the technical difficulties that come between us and our Creator.

Honor the Lord, first and foremost. So often, our spiritual communication is limited to the ritual of ACTS (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving and Supplication) or a literal to-do list for God to bless and assist that we forget to give Him at least equal time to speak to us. We need to remember that prayer and spiritual communion, like any good relationship, require time for mutual expression and response. Some technical difficulties are not difficulties at all, only reminders to put God and His Will first. Since we cannot truly honor anything to which we will not devote sufficient time, we need to stop rushing our relationship with the Spirit. We also should not forget that the Lord also probably has His list of things to address with us as well. Any good relationship takes time. We cannot claim to have a connection with our heavenly Father if we will not make time to talk with Him, rather than just to or at Him.

Second, we have to be willing to accept the answers we are given. Just because Yahweh chooses not to answer our prayers in a positive way does not mean our prayers have no force or audience. It just means “no” means “no.” If we are going to communicate effectively with God, we have to be willing to reconcile ourselves to the “nos” in our lives. They are not necessarily malfunctions in the prayer process.

Third, we have to make a commitment to be quiet. One of my favorite verses, from Isaiah, is “in quietness and confidence shall be your strength.” Yet so often, we mistake volume and busyness for power and significance that we forget altogether that salvation can never be earned, only accepted. We give up most of our strength when we allow ourselves to become over busy or too loud. We must not get so caught up in accomplishment that we ignore the nourishment our souls require. For any achievement to have meaning beyond the moment, it needs to be shared. If we would share our efforts with our Father, we must do so in stillness and give Him a chance to get His Word in edgewise, too.

Finally, when attempting to overcome the “technical difficulties” which would separate us from the Source of Life, we must remember we are captives in a world not our own. Understand Satan will throw as much interference at us as we allow him to muster. The Prince of this world does not take kindly to those who would bypass him on the way to meet their Creator. He loves nothing better than the well-timed detour or the well-placed roadblock. He will do whatever he can to separate us from the love of God. If we allow it, then shame on us. We are overcomers, made in the image of the Lord Himself! As such, we have the right and ability to tell ol’ Slewfoot to take a hike. But we have to mean it, and we may also need to repeat it until we believe it ourselves. Satan does not given in easily, but he will surrender if we fight him clothed in the full armor of God.

A thoughtful prayer life may sound like an ideal from an earlier generation that has little or no relevance to people today, but nothing could be farther from the Truth. God very much wants to go one-on-one with each of us, and nothing makes Him happier than when, in His power, we say no to the Devil and His distractions. We were not created to be wimps, and it is time for us to quit acting otherwise. Be bold! Approach the Throne of Glory with expectation and exuberance.  There is nothing that cannot be overcome, and nothing that Christ will not overcome on our behalf if we give Him the chance. Technical difficulties only cause problems if we let them. Instead, let’s let the Holy Spirit transcend and overcome them, so that we might know and love the Father even as the Father has known and loved us from the beginning. He will graciously give us ears to hear Him and eyes to see Him; they are ours for the asking and guaranteed for eternity!