A BOUNDED LIFE

Joshua 19:1-20:9; Luke 19:28-48; Psalm 88:1-18; Proverbs 13:12-14

“The third allotment of land went to the clans of the tribe of Zebulun. The boundary of Zebulun’s homeland started at Sarid. From there it went west, going past Maralah, touching Dabbesheth, and proceeding to the brook east of Jokneam....”

“Then Jesus entered the Temple and began to drive out the people selling animals for sacrifices. He said to them, ‘The Scriptures declare, ‘My Temple will be a house of prayer,’ but you have turned it into a den of thieves.’”

Boundaries are not my favorite things. I claim they stifle creativity. I know they restrict my thoughts and actions.  There’s no getting around the fact that they limit what can be accomplished or achieved. Boundaries are for people who cannot handle unrestricted freedom, who cannot be trusted to behave themselves, respect others and just “do right.” They are for those who will not follow Christ or the direction of the Spirit. They are for people just like me, and they have prevented great problems and heartache on times too numerous to count. Nevertheless, I rebel against boundaries almost every time I am confronted by one. When I do, I usually just become the exception that proves the rule. I learn, once again, at my own expense. God no doubt shakes His mighty head in wonder at how one of His own can remain so stubborn.

What is it about human nature that wants to apply the rules to everyone but ourselves? How can we honestly look in the mirror and even begin to believe we are so trustworthy? On a personal level, I know the truth; I cannot be trusted, not within myself. Give me an inch, and I’ll take a mile. There is no self-delusion on that score. There is only flat-out rebellion, a prideful desire to prove to myself, others and God that I can successfully live “outside the lines.” Put another way, I like to play God. But I am singularly unqualified. Every time I try, disaster looms.

One quick, easy example will make the point. I began this blog because I finally woke up one day and had to admit to myself I was utterly lost. Not damned, just lost. Inspiration has always been a big part of my lifeblood. I know the kind of spiritual discipline and priority inspiration requires – the field of my soul requires constant tilling to remain fertile, to stretch a metaphor. Yet, I had let myself get lazy. Probably for years, I ran on little more than grace, memory and spiritual momentum and was not diligent about prayer or Bible reading. I showed up at church to teach Sunday School always ready with the “right” theology, but when it came to matters of the heart, I usually relied on personal emotion and feeling instead of the Spirit. I didn’t feel the need to adhere to God’s guidelines for growth. Let me give myself one break: none of this was intentional and little of it was even conscious. It was just the path of least resistance, and I thought I was getting away with it. In any event, though, when I finally saw the truth, it was devastating. For months, I was truly a spiritual shell. It took confession, forgiveness and getting back to the Bible, prayer and the accountability of Christian fellowship and mission to once more find the inspiration I craved. I am a lot more busy now, and it’s plainly not convenient. There are times I get really exhausted, in fact. But that’s the best tired of all, because that’s when the Holy Spirit really takes over! (I just thank God I have a really secure and understanding wife!!!)

The almost primal instinct to paint outside the lines of a disciplined life may be the other side of Pharisitism; call it anti-Pharisitism. On one hand is perfectionism, a slavish adherence to every recognized rule and regulation known to man, with maybe a few extra thrown in besides, just for clarity and to insure we maintain our assumed superiority to everyone else. But on the other side are those who simply live by a different code altogether. These folks make their own rules, the main one being there ain’t no rules. Anti-Pharisees can become agents of chaos and spiritual anarchists if they are not careful. I know. Some of my favorite verses also come from Romans where Paul decries the Law. I love to claim, as does Paul, to follow the higher and better law of the Spirit. However, for me and others of similar mind, too often, the “S” is not capitalized. Translation? We end up doing what we feel like, not the work or Will of God.

Let us be clear today. “Freestyle” living has little to do with the Spirit, God or the life Christ died to give us. It is no more than the egotistical presumption that we know better than Jesus how our lives should work, ofttimes accompanied by a callous disregard for the needs and rights of others. It is exceptionally seductive and usually subtle until we go crashing out of bounds and become lost in the wilderness. But that’s never a pleasant place to be. There’s plenty of adventure inside a slalom run. God really does know the best way through the course.

THE RELATIONSHIP OF HEAVEN

Joshua 16:1-18:28; Luke 19:1-27; Psalm 87:1-7; Proverbs 13:11

“But his people hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, ‘We do not want him to be our king….’ The king replied, ‘…To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away. And as for these enemies of mine who didn’t want me to be their king—bring them in and execute them right here in front of me.’”

I had to research this one, friends. As many times as I have heard the parable of the talents, I had never heard a sermon on – nor did I recall reading - the verses about the destruction of the people who rejected the King. Turns out, Herod’s son went to Rome seeking a king’s commission which was rejected by Caesar when the Jews sent a delegation to protest. He returned to Judea with a vengeance. Jesus is not actually comparing Archelaus to God, but He is using a loose reference to history and implied analogy to illustrate a point. Everyone will face judgment. Those who reject Christ will have a predictable end. But Christians who neglect and fail to invest and multiply their blessings also will find themselves without them in the Kingdom of Heaven. Heaven still will be a darn sight preferable to the alternative of Hell. Nevertheless, while underachieving believers won’t face condemnation, they still may have to deal with an eternity of regret over what could have been. The parable just doesn’t leave room for any other interpretation.

I, like most Christians, prefer to think salvation absolves us of all judgment, but it just ain’t so scripturally. The Bible is clear there will be heavenly rewards… or not. We are accountable to Christ for our sanctification. In short, the take-away seems to be that God did not save us for eternal life so we could be dead wood. He saved us to share and multiply eternal life with others. We are to build His Body and will be responsible to Him for any infirmity we cause because of our failure to invest ourselves and our blessings wisely in others.

This can be difficult to accept for Christians especially, because it sounds like it contradicts “justification by faith.” It does not. We are justified – or “saved,” in the popular vernacular – simply and exclusively through claiming Jesus as Savior and Lord. But sanctification – growing in and into grace – is a whole ‘nother thing. It helps me to look at it this way: we can be saved but not healed; justified but not whole. Sanctification is the process of God remaking us into His image, into what we were planned to be from the beginning of Creation, after we submit to His Will for our lives. That process is a partnership that depends as much on our willingness to take our “medicine” as on God’s ability to “prescribe” what will make us whole.

Let’s take the imperfect example of my own children. All three will always have a key to our house, a place to celebrate or crash, unless they choose not to (which decision I will have no practical choice but to honor). The joy of their Father, however, can never be fully realized until they get inside. At the same time, though, they may either fellowship with me, Mom, siblings and friends, or they may, or may be asked to, stay in their rooms with the doors closed. They will be secure as long as they are in the house, but they will never be completely fulfilled without present, growing relationships. (I said it was an imperfect example.)

At its essence, I believe heaven is perfect relationship, relationship with Christ, God, the Spirit, angels and other souls. It is relationship so full, complete and wonderful – so unconditional and spontaneous – that we will wonder how we ever got along without it. But it also is relationship we are called to begin practicing now. If we don’t, how can we ever expect to get better?    

LIVING AND LEARNING

Joshua 15:1-63; Luke 18:18-43; Psalm 86:1-17; Proverbs 13:9-10

“But they didn’t understand any of this. The significance of his words was hidden from them, and they failed to grasp what he was talking about.”

“Teach me your ways, O Lord, that I may live according to your truth! Grant me purity of heart,
so that I may honor you.
With all my heart I will praise you, O Lord my God. I will give glory to your name forever,
for your love for me is very great.
You have rescued me from the depths of death!”

“Pride leads to conflict; those who take advice are wise.”

My Mom had a favorite saying when her youngest (yours truly) was acting too big for his britches: “I was as smart as you are at eighteen, and I’ve gotten dumber ever since.” This usually was said in preparation for some form of discipline, so it did me no good to ague with her. But woe unto me if I ever agreed with the statement. Some things just aren’t meant for a response. Only as I got a little older did I realize she was not complaining of losing gray matter. She was, of course, talking about maturity. The older we get, the more we understand how much more there is to learn about ourselves, others, the world and particularly God.

Yet, how we bristle when someone else tries to educate us. How dare they set themselves above us, or pretend to be better? Their line to the Almighty is no more direct than ours, their information no better. We tend not to learn much new as a result. This is a genuinely bad idea. When we stop learning from those God puts in our lives to teach us, we live in ignorance of the blessings He wants to bestow.

Over the last several weeks, I have been involved with a number of others in attempting to restructure a major ministry of our church to better position it for predicted growth over the next decade. The process has not been easy, but we were progressing until we hit an apparent impasse when we brought our plans to the church proper for approval. Feelings were in danger of getting hurt; noses (mine included) already were getting seriously out of joint. So, I prayed. And as it so often is, the answer was almost painfully simple: follow Matthew 18. Do lunch. I did, and learned the brother I thought our greatest barrier was only being prudently cautious for a variety of good reasons unknown to me and actually is our biggest advocate when long range plans are on the table. Who knew? Certainly, I never would have if I had not been obedient to God, or if I had simply assumed my initial disappointment was justified and irreversible.

We give up on ourselves and others too soon. Our willingness to sacrifice knowledge for pride is illogical and self-defeating. There is enough conflict in the world. I doubt seriously God wants us to create more by refusing to listen to each other. We may not understand. We may not appreciate what we are told. But if we attend with respect to those whose opinions differ, we might just learn something, in spite of ourselves. We might even make a new or deeper friend. And, if we get real good at submitting ourselves and our pride to the Will of God, we might just win a soul or two for Jesus in the bargain.

WEARING GOD OUT

Joshua 13:1-14:15; Luke 18:1-17; Psalm 85:1-13; Proverbs 13:7-8

“But Moses gave no allotment of land to the tribe of Levi, for the Lord, the God of Israel, had promised that he himself would be their allotment.”

“The judge ignored her for a while, but finally he said to himself, ‘I don’t fear God or care about people, but this woman is driving me crazy. I’m going to see that she gets justice, because she is wearing me out with her constant requests!’”

“Show us your unfailing love, O Lord, and grant us your salvation. I listen carefully to what God the Lord is saying, for he speaks peace to his faithful people. But let them not return to their foolish ways.
 Surely his salvation is near to those who fear him, so our land will be filled with his glory. Unfailing love and truth have met together.
Righteousness and peace have kissed!
 Truth springs up from the earth, and righteousness smiles down from heaven!”

I’ve never been quite sure what to do with the unjust judge. The whole parable makes me uncomfortable. It seems to suggest God will bless us just to get us to shut up and leave Him alone; hardly the kind of relationship a loving Father would want from His whiny kids. But today, since the reading forced me to look at it again, I looked deeper. I saw the lesson as Dad to my own kids.

The kids are pretty much adults now, all grown up and graduating from law school and college and two years into University life, respectively. Two are home for Christmas Break but spend more time out with friends than in the house. The third is already married. After typing the third sentence of this blog, I realized something. Actually, it’s pretty neat that they still ask me for stuff. It’s really cool to be able to provide it when I can and it’s appropriate. Even when the answer is no mas, I often find myself wishing they’d keep asking. Because I want to know their hearts, and I want them to be sure they know them, too. I want them to know what’s important, what is truly necessary, and not just what they want. I actually like being the Dad-provider, as much as I grouse about it to them. Because that’s what Dads and Moms do; their joy is providing for their kids. I don’t believe God is any different, except He’s a lot more generous.

So, the message today is pretty simple: keep asking. Stay in relationship. Don’t hide our hearts from the One who wants to know us and be known by us more than anything. Fear not. If we’re wrong about what it is we think we need, the urge will pass. But if it means so much that we continually bring our need before the Father, He will provide.

“Then the Lord said, “Learn a lesson from this unjust judge. Even he rendered a just decision in the end. So don’t you think God will surely give justice to his chosen people who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will grant justice to them quickly! But when the Son of Man returns, how many will he find on the earth who have faith?”

The Holy Spirit actually wants to be our provision. Jesus’ point in the story was not that we wear God out. It was that, in his humanness, even the unjust judge still gave the petitioner what she asked. Christ will do this and so much more than any judge, if we just keep seeking out relationship with Him. In fact, I kinda think there’s an implied challenge here. I think Christ is daring us to just try to wear God out, daring us to stay at it until He knows our whole heart, and can fulfill our deepest desires, because we finally open ourselves up to accept His grace and bounty. Maybe that’s what Christmas is all about. Actually, the Gift is already given. God wants us to keep asking for it until we finally realize we already have Him.

WAITING FOR CHRISTMAS

Joshua 11:1-12:24; Luke 17:11-37; Psalm 84:1-12; Proverbs 13:5-6

“All these kings came out to fight. Their combined armies formed a vast horde. And with all their horses and chariots, they covered the landscape like the sand on the seashore. The kings joined forces and established their camp around the water near Merom to fight against Israel. Then the Lord said to Joshua, ‘Do not be afraid of them. By this time tomorrow I will hand all of them over to Israel as dead men.’”

“The Kingdom of God can’t be detected by visible signs. You won’t be able to say, ‘Here it is!’ or ‘It’s over there!’ For the Kingdom of God is already among you.... The time is coming when you will long to see the day when the Son of Man returns, but you won’t see it. People will tell you, ‘Look, there is the Son of Man,’ or ‘Here he is,’ but don’t go out and follow them. For when the Son of Man returns, you will know it beyond all doubt.”

“I long, yes, I faint with longing to enter the courts of the Lord. With my whole being, body and soul, I will shout joyfully to the living God.”

This is my very favorite time of year. Not Christmas itself, necessarily. Somehow, we never seem able to do the actual day justice. But the anticipation, Christmas Eve communion and candlelight services, getting excited with friends, the music and lights and even the shopping for others, that’s all pretty cool nonetheless. Especially now, it says something that we still celebrate and get excited about anything. Thank God Christians have the audacity to continue to proclaim the coming of the Lord, even to those who think Christ quit caring long ago.

Each Advent, though, a point always comes when I ask myself exactly what I am expecting of Christmas. (One reason we don’t do the day justice is probably because we don’t know what we’re looking for.) I’d be happy to sit out in the cold all night if I knew I could count on a celestial choir appearing. Riding cross-country on a camel would be worth it to see the light in Mary’s eyes and hear the first cries of her newborn Son. But assuming those were once-in-a-history occurrences, I tend to content myself with looking back toward Bethlehem when I should be looking ahead to the Lord’s return. Don’t get me wrong. There’s nothing wrong with the past. Unless, of course, it doesn’t prepare us for the future. Have I ever truly been fully prepared for Christmas? Not if all I really expect or hope for is a living crèche and a remarkably consistent, sad little: “Nothing much.” With that outlook, I’m rarely disappointed or surprised that Jesus doesn’t put in more of an appearance, but that’s the saddest thing of all….

The Bible is clear we will never know in advance when Jesus is going to return. Like the shepherds, we’ll only know it when we see it. However, there’s more to seeing than looking. True vision comes as much from the heart as the eyeballs. Ask the Scribes of ancient Israel. Lifetimes spent studying the Prophets and other Scripture no more prepared them for Jesus’ intervention into our world than my quiet time prepares me. The Lord made no secret of the fact that the Kingdom of God was right in front of them. They just refused delivery, because it didn’t look the way they thought it should.

This year, I’m not going into Christmas with any preconceived notions of what it should be, either. But I am going into Christmas expecting something special, because I know if I don’t, I may be the only reason that what could happen doesn’t. What if the Kingdom of heaven is at hand? Would it hurt anyone to actually be looking for it, or to expect it? Who knows, maybe it’s been right in front of our noses the whole time.  Let’s at least go into it with an open mind and full appreciation of what might be possible in the power of God.

BUSTED!

Joshua 9:3-10:43; Luke 16:19-17:10; Psalm 83:1-18; Proverbs 13:4

“… They resorted to deception to save themselves.”

“There will always be temptations to sin, but what sorrow awaits the person who does the tempting!”

It is unfortunate (actually, downright sad) that “cover up” and denial have become the expected, first responses to almost every human failing. Maybe I’m naïve, but the most shocking things about this are: it no longer shocks us at all; and it is flat, stinkin’ illogical for anyone who claims Christ as Savior. To the first point, obviously, we don’t demand non-negotiable integrity from ourselves or our leaders, even though we’re quick enough to assume righteous indignation when things don’t turn out well. We deplore any lack of ethics when immorality fails us. As long as we’re happy, though, deluded by perceived stability, we’re also happy to look the other way if our self-satisfaction requires a small sacrifice of truth. It is no real surprise to any student of history, then, that we now find ourselves “busted” in every sense of the word. Christ, prophets before Him, Paul and others all warned us. Our loss of material wealth is merely a symptom of our moral bankruptcy. But there is no integrity in finger pointing, folks. The buck stops with us. We tolerated it. Heck, we encouraged it. Trying to get around that fact is, quite possibly, the worst, most blatant deception in which any of us can engage.

However, all this is redundant. Far wiser men and women have decried our societal woes. That we are reaping what we sowed gets us nowhere. It is simply the door to an even darker, sadder reality: we break God’s heart when we fear confession and forgiveness more than corruption.

Still, that fear is not just remarkably ironic but instinctive. I often think, “How can I get out of (or away with) this?” But I also wonder why. Why, if I truly believe that there is no condemnation in Christ, do I still worry more about what others think and try to cover up my sin rather than confess it and seek forgiveness - UP FRONT!? (This has nothing to do with the “caught with my hand in the cookie jar,” after-the-fact, disingenuous “confessions” we see so often today.) The undeniable truth can only be that it’s more important to me to look good than be righteous. It would – and should – be easy to hate myself for this monstrous blindness, if I ever let myself dwell on it.  So, I don’t. I just lower the bar of “acceptable” behavior until my conscience calluses over, never appreciating how very insidious and evil this way of thinking is.

Looking back, cover up – refusing to engage God or others in immediate confession and forgiveness – is as old a strategy as Eden’s fig leaves. The first, instinctive human reaction to almost every personal ethical lapse is deception. Fear can turn even the most generous saint into a deceptive sinner.  But it is time to ask ourselves what we’re really afraid of. The fact that we fear exposure more than judgment shows just how myopic we are, and just how far we have to go to honestly trust Christ.

TRIPPED UP BY THE LITTLE THINGS

Joshua 7:16-9:2; Luke 16:1-18; Psalm 82:1-8; Proverbs 13:2-3

“Achan replied, ‘It is true! I have sinned against the Lord, the God of Israel. Among the plunder I saw a beautiful robe from Babylon, 200 silver coins, and a bar of gold weighing more than a pound. I wanted them so much that I took them. They are hidden in the ground beneath my tent, with the silver buried deeper than the rest.’”

“If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won’t be honest with greater responsibilities. And if you are untrustworthy about worldly wealth, who will trust you with the true riches of heaven? And if you are not faithful with other people’s things, why should you be trusted with things of your own?”

My problems seldom begin with big deals. I usually am well aware when I am in over my head if I start in the deep end. It’s when I just start wading into areas I shouldn’t go and gradually move deeper and deeper into sin that I end up foundering. I’m not alone; big corruption almost always has its genesis in little compromises. The devil seldom visits except undercover. Consequently, there are no “little compromises.” The wages of sin – all sin – is death. We disregard Paul’s warning at our peril.

Anger has always been my “big thing.” It took me many years, though, to learn that the rage I not so affectionately call “Red Dragon” usually built over time under the surface until it boiled over and burned anyone in the way. Something would irritate me. In mock “Christian charity,” I would swallow it, pretend to ignore it, and it would fester into resentment. That turned the focus completely on me and my hurt feelings. The resulting self-pity compounded resentment into, in turn: bitterness; anger; and finally rage. The cycle got shorter and shorter as my tolerance for even minor irritations became less and less. Pretty soon, I was lost and had no idea how things could have gone so far wrong.

No, the answer was not to give vent to every little imagined or real slight or offense. That kind of overt negativism creates an isolation even deeper than fits of anger. The answer was to start paying attention, and to bring Christ into the picture as soon as irritation raised its ugly head. It’s a little harder, for example, to be enraged about being passed over for a promotion when one first thinks about what happened on the Cross. In that context, injustice and agony have an entirely different meaning, and our anger pales in comparison to what God had the unquestioned right to feel.

The thing is, the Father wrapped His agony in love and it turned into redemption! Now, I’ll never be that good; I’ll never be God. But I have learned that if I start the process of redemption earlier by clearly forgiving the little slights and thoughtlessnesses of others before they fester, it tends to preserve, and even heal, a lot more relationships.

When I was a kid, we used to put small rocks on the railroad tracks so we could see passing trains smash them to sand. (My friends and I were easily, if unusually, amused.) One day, a killjoy adult saw us and gave us a serious “talking to,” claiming we might derail a train some day. Now, I seriously doubted him, and doubt it now, but the message was clear. Why take the risk? There is just no point to flirting with what we may think is insignificant sin. First, there isn’t any, really.  As important, the derailment it can cause is always harder to correct and redeem. Nothing is impossible for Christ, thank God, but we are already freed from sin through Him, and there’s just no good reason to go wading back into that cesspool.

IN SEARCH OF SPIRITUAL LEADERS

Joshua 5:1-7:15; Luke 15:1-32; Psalm 81:1-16; Proverbs 13:1

When you hear the priests give one long blast on the rams’ horns, have all the people shout as loud as they can. Then the walls of the town will collapse, and the people can charge straight into the town."

“Tax collectors and other notorious sinners often came to listen to Jesus teach. This made the Pharisees and teachers of religious law complain that he was associating with such sinful people—even eating with them!”

“Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it with good things. “But no, my people wouldn’t listen. Israel did not want me around.
So I let them follow their own stubborn desires,
living according to their own ideas.”

I long for church leaders who possess and live out personal security and vision in the Lord. My heart yearns for spiritual mentors willing to trust their flocks to and in the Lord and willing to be vulnerable and accountable rather than defensive when their personal opinions are challenged. I understand this is not an easy place to get to, given the thoughtless criticism so often carelessly leveled by the Body of Christ against its leaders. But I don’t care. Give me a leader absolutely committed to discerning and following the Lord’s will and intractable in his or her submission to the Lord’s direction as discerned with and through the Body of Christ, and they can lead me into battle anytime, even against the tide of popular opinion. I cry out to the Lord for disciples who unflinchingly lead into growth, rather than worry so much about protecting their own personal authority, vision and ambition.

Spiritual leadership has very little to do with personal opinions of right and wrong and almost nothing to do with logic or practicalities. Since when has it been practical to even think about just walking through a raging, flooded river to enter into the Promised Land, much less do it? What is logical about thinking a group of people might destroy a major city’s walls with a few shouts and trumpet blasts, let alone trying to do so? But here’s the point: when spiritual leaders affirmatively focus on uniting the people behind a common cause or ministry, rather than defensively defending doctrine, themselves or what they see as their turf, logic always takes a back seat to the power of God. The world needs more disciples who understand and will accept that simple fact, and be less consumed with what they think is “reality” or their own authority. Neither reality nor personal authority (to be distinguished from Spirit-given authority) is ever quite what it’s cracked up to be.

I am blessed to be joined in ministry with a number of Christian brothers and sisters without whom the ministry I help lead simply would not exist, certainly not as it stands strong today. They are Christ-centered, focused and accountable to each other and to me, and I to them. Even as a group, we sometimes make mistakes. But in Christ, we find the strength and vulnerability to admit them and fix them in love, usually without a lot of angst. It was not always so easy. Last Spring, I flat overstepped my bounds and took too great a piece of leadership for myself. That wording is intentional and honest and painful to read even now, but then, I really thought I was just doing the “right” thing. In no uncertain terms, they brought me back into line with the loving discipline of Jesus. What could have caused rebellion and dissention was instead blessing. Our partnership is stronger, and the presence of the Spirit in our ministry much more palpable, because they lead with Christ, and not personal opinion, their heads or even their hearts. Not a day goes by that I do not give thanks for the opportunity to be accountable to each and every one of them!

Pharisees never get this. They have their rules and regulations about how religion and/or their place of authority ought to look, and they tolerate no dissention or variance among the ranks. Sinners, prostitutes and other rule breakers need not apply to their exclusive club. If they have any interest in what the Lord thinks, it is only when He seems to agree with them. Been there, done that. And I can honestly say there is a far better way to live, and to minister. The power of a Body unified and focused behind a leader governed only by the Will and mission of God is the very power of Christ. It does not depend on logic or practicalities to accomplish its purposes. It is a place I very much hope to get to, and with friends to hold me accountable, I’m a whole lot closer.

GOD GOES FIRST

Joshua 3:1-4:24; Luke 14:7-35; Psalm 80:1-19; Proverbs 12:27-28

“When you see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, and the priests, who are Levites, carrying it, you are to move out from your positions and follow it. Then you will know which way to go, since you have never been this way before…. Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do amazing things among you."

“And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple. But don’t begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first calculating the cost to see if there is enough money to finish it? Otherwise, you might complete only the foundation before running out of money, and then everyone would laugh at you.”

“Turn us again to yourself, O God. Make your face shine down upon us. Only then will we be saved.”

What is it about men and directions? I would happily drive five miles out of my way than admit to a wrong turn. (Of course, my dear, sweet wife invariably sees through the ruse, and gloats. It’s so unattractive….) For me, though, its not the asking for directions that’s the real problem. It’s the stopping for help. It’s the distraction, the diversion. Pretty simple, actually: I am bent on getting ahead of myself. And I’m not above getting ahead of God, either. This is wrong on many levels. The worst is that, if we are on the wrong road, the faster we go and the more “efficient and productive” we are, the more lost we get. And the more chances we have to mess things up worse when we try to get back on course.

God knows this. It’s why He commanded the Hebrews to follow the Levites into the Jordan River when they crossed into the Promised Land. Imagine being there at the culmination of a generation of longing, of waiting, of disappointment and disillusion. Who wants to wait for a bunch of priests with a giant trunk on their back to lead them into Canaan? But there was a lesson here. If we are going to travel on the Lord’s path at all, then God has got to go first, and we need to consistently focus on Him first. The sad truth is we don’t know the way. We simply are incapable of sticking to the straight and narrow on our own. We get off course, and wonder why the water suddenly gets so deep.

There is nothing wrong with initiative, or enthusiasm… in measured doses. That said, though, we also need to remember that adrenalin can be addictive. “Progress” can get good to us – and it may be good – but if it becomes more about our own achievement than God’s grace, we are headed down a dark and twisted road indeed.

One of the things that truly makes my soul sing is directing dramatic stage productions. The creativity involved is significant, but seeing an idea being birthed into reality by the actors is truly an incredibly exciting experience. For those who direct screenplays or stage plays, very little compares to the pure rush of a good show realized. But imagine, after dress rehearsal, if the actors’ excitement gets the best of them, and they decide to ad lib and improvise on opening night. Simply, the show they present will not be the show they rehearsed, and they are likely to have one disappointed director. The parable needs no explanation.

As the saying goes, it’s not rocket science, either. It is an oft-ignored fact. No matter how well intended, when we get ahead of Christ, the results are predictably less than satisfactory, to us and to Him. It is good to prepare, to plan, and even to take up our crosses in the assurance that the Spirit will empower us to do what we are purposed to do by our Heavenly Father. But it is best, always, to follow Christ. He knows the way. He doesn’t get lost, or lose those who follow Him. And He never, ever, needs to ask for directions. He drew the map, after all.

TOO WEARY NOT TO RECONCILE

Deuteronomy 34:1-Joshua 2:24; Luke 13:22-14:6; Psalm 79:1-13; Proverbs 12:26

“We are all afraid of you. Everyone in the land is living in terror. For we have heard how the Lord made a dry path for you through the Red Sea when you left Egypt. And we know what you did to Sihon and Og, the two Amorite kings east of the Jordan River, whose people you completely destroyed.”

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones God’s messengers! How often I have wanted to gather your children together as a hen protects her chicks beneath her wings, but you wouldn’t let me. And now, look, your house is abandoned. And you will never see me again until you say, ‘Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord!’”

“Help us, O God of our salvation! Help us for the glory of your name. 
Save us and forgive our sins for the honor of your name.”

“The godly give good advice to their friends; the wicked lead them astray.”

There is probably very little that alienates God’s people from each other and God more than fear. Fear breeds suspicion; emphasizes self-doubt and vulnerability; and generates hopelessness and anger. While all this is bad enough, the biggest problem is fear can blind us to the very things and people who can get us past it. In fear and anxiety, we often withdraw. We refuse to reach out to others. We reduce church attendance. We cut ourselves off from the instruments of grace. In sum, we push away. We don’t want help; we want a magic cure.  We come to resent God more and more when the magic never happens, missing completely that we are living a self-fulfilling curse. So Jesus calls again, “Fear not!”

Christ longs to take us under His wings! But I have a problem: I am reluctant to open up to anyone more complete than I feel. I fear being exposed. I fear ridicule for my own hypocrisy more. Try as I might, I hesitate to reveal my heart. Even when it is revealed – often, against my will, but inevitably nonetheless -  I’ve been known to try to fight the Spirit off, much like Jacob at the River Jabbok. As if He doesn’t already know how I think and feel. As if He doesn’t already know every single inch of my sin. That’s why sometimes equate reconciliation with simple exhaustion. My greatest reconciliations with God have come after months of fighting Him. I make things hard on us both. God can handle it, but there is an easier way.

As long as I can remember actually knowing there was a group of “sick people,” I have had a tough time being in places like nursing homes or hospitals. I cannot explain why; it is a primal, instinctive anxiety without logic or, to my recall, any cause at all. I would love to say I was just cautious about saying or doing the wrong thing, but it’s tons deeper than that. I’d rather be pretty much anywhere else. One thing good did come of it, though. When I finally confessed to myself and Jesus that my anxiety was really fear, I learned the depth of God’s sense of humor. He put me in a place where I had to regularly visit nursing homes to make a living. I became a nursing home attorney. Even years later, after moving into another area of practice, I’m still not sure how I ended up in nursing home litigation. It is possible I was just the last person out of the room when the Firm asked for volunteers. More likely, it was the Spirit doing what it often does – teach me never to say never.

I will not lie and say I ever got perfectly comfortable. I did not. But I did come to recognize the potential for ministry both in my work and my simple presence. Almost against my natural inclination, I found I could help the patients and staff reconnect with hope.  That made all the difference! When I gave God my weakness and timidity, he remade it into compassion and opportunity for His Kingdom.

All this raises one simple question: what is there to really be afraid of? If God can take our worst and turn it to good, if He can take our good and make it His best, why do we resist? It is always safe to trust God. It may – frequently, is – unsettling, but that’s only because we are usually stuck in a rut of self-doubt to begin, and we need a push to get started. I’m mostly exhausted from exhausting myself trying to keep God at arm’s length. I know He loves me. I just need to allow Him to do more of it I need to be reconciled more and more to Him, until His thoughts are my thoughts, so I won’t even think of fighting. Boy, have I got some reconciling to do!

FRONT OF THE CLASS

Deuteronomy 33:1-29; Luke 13:1-21; Psalm 78:65-72; Proverbs 12:25

“…Who else is like you, a people saved by the Lord? He is your protecting shield and your triumphant sword! Your enemies will cringe before you….”

“The gardener answered, ‘Sir, give it one more chance. Leave it another year, and I’ll give it special attention and plenty of fertilizer. If we get figs next year, fine. If not, then you can cut it down.’”

“He cared for them with a true heart and led them with skillful hands.”

“Worry weighs a person down;
an encouraging word cheers a person up.”

Life is a school, and there are times lessons come to us at the least expected time and under the least likely circumstances. Here is what I learned tonight: we teach best when we live life well. Period. In spite of the obstacles. Sometimes, even because of the obstacles. We just need to understand one thing: hope is a hard habit to break, and we need to be more intentional about developing it.

As I write this, I am being blessed by one of the most incredible television shows I have seen in a long time. It’s not schmaltzy, phony, overly emotional or manipulative.  Well, OK, maybe it is a little schmaltzy. After all, it’s a Hallmark Hall of Fame production. But mainly, it is, at times, excruciatingly painful to watch - which says more about me than the program – and incredibly uplifting, mostly at the same time. Every single scene teaches it’s OK to be different; it’s OK to be challenged; and it’s incredibly important to have friends who love us through it all. Front of the Class may not win any Emmys. It may win all of them. Either way, I will look at life a little differently tomorrow.

The story is about a young teacher with Tourettes Syndrome. He overcomes a ton to become the second grade teacher he always wanted to be.  He does so by hanging on to the kind of spirit and spunk which make it worthwhile to be human. There is nary an ounce of religion in the show, and there doesn’t need to be. The young man ends up thanking his Tourettes for his success. He knows what it means to make all things work to good for those who love. And for just a moment, those who saw the show saw one man the way the Father sees us all: as incredibly special.

God loves us, in part, because He knows our potential. He sees what is clearly, but He also sees better and farther than we see. God sees what’s worth saving. The part of us that’s worth saving is that part of us that is Him. It’s the part of us that can learn to keep going. The part that can learn not to let adversity stop us. The part that does not let sin, or others’ negative opinions, win. It’s the part that does not ever let anything keep us from our dreams.

In the middle of religion is God. He’s the focus, the Source of everything. But just for today, can we also remember that Christ thinks humans are pretty wonderful, too? I get so tired of religious people who can see no farther than others’ sins or weaknesses. We all need to remember those very weaknesses give Jesus His grip on our lives. They are His way in. 

IN THE STARTING BLOCKS

Deuteronomy 32:28-52; Luke 12:35-59; Psalm 78:56-64; Proverbs 12:24

“Be dressed for service and keep your lamps burning, as though you were waiting for your master to return from the wedding feast. Then you will be ready to open the door and let him in the moment he arrives and knocks. The servants who are ready and waiting for his return will be rewarded….

But what if the servant thinks, ‘My master won’t be back for a while,’ and he begins beating the other servants, partying, and getting drunk? The master will return unannounced and unexpected, and he will cut the servant in pieces and banish him with the unfaithful.”

Yet though God did all this for them, they continued to test his patience. They rebelled against the Most High and refused to follow His decrees.
They turned back and were as faithless as their parents. They were as useless as a crooked bow.”

“Work hard and become a leader; be lazy and become a slave.”

Epiphanies are odd creatures. They rarely come in complete stories and sometimes not even in complete sentences. Mary didn’t get more than the barest “gist” of Christmas – and certainly, no sense of her Son’s complete ministry – when Gabriel visited. That was for the best, no doubt. Imagine the results of a complete download: “Nine months pregnant, on a donkey?!? To the posh lodgings of a bed of hay in an outdoor stable? Tell God thanks, Gabriel, but that blessing sounds like it’s got somebody else’s name on it!” Or, at least, that would have been my reaction (were I female; as is, it would have been something else altogether). God does not tell us everything He knows for some very good reasons.

That doesn’t make His silence any less frustrating. The past two days have included some dramatic revelations for me personally. Whether the previous two entries convey it or not, writing them has led me down a fascinating road. Seeing the glass full to overflowing from the start rather than half empty at best is a paradigm shift in perspective. It will take discipline and practice before it becomes the habit I know God wants it to be. Nevertheless, already, I sense the lesson may impact me right down to the level of personality, if I allow it.

There’s the rub. I’ve got to get into the starting blocks and begin to run, and it’s a very long course with lots of hills, twists and turns. I don’t know where or when it will end. I have to ask myself how hard I am really willing to work at this, and from where I will get the needed endurance to stick with it. I have to commit to give myself over to Christ throughout and no matter what. This isn’t doubting myself or Christ; this is the realism of true discipleship. And it’s never easy to face!

Then, since I was asked, I’ll confess: I’m working off an incomplete epiphany here. I’m not sure I have any real idea of what it looks like to radically rely on Christ. I thought I did, but I was thinking passive belief and trust could pass for active, affirmative, at-risk reliance, and I was dead wrong. So, I only know radical reliance as my new invitation from Christ. Well…, I also know it is more than I have done to date, and it is likely to play out differently than I expect and maybe even different from what I would like. I won’t be in charge.  I won’t determine the course, or even the pace. My decision, my authority – if I do this right – begins and ends at the starting blocks.

Run, or don’t.

Follow, or don’t.

Run to win, or don’t bother.

There’s some movie somewhere in which a character says to his young ward something like, “You say, ‘Do, or do not.’ There is no ‘Do not.’ Just do. Never do not. Do!” (Strange I remember that, and not the movie….) Jesus offers us pretty much the same choice. If we are in a relationship with Him, there can be no “Do not.”

Let the race begin!

PLAYING TO WIN

Deuteronomy 31:1-32:27; Luke 12:8-34; Psalm 78:32-55; Proverbs 12:21-23

“Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you.”

“So don’t be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom.”

“Then they remembered that God was their rock, that God Most High was their redeemer. But all they gave him was lip service; they lied to him with their tongues.
Their hearts were not loyal to him.
They did not keep his covenant.
Yet he was merciful and forgave their sins.”

Could it, just maybe, really be possible to live without – I mean, completely free of! - ultimate failure? I’m not talking about little slips and screw-ups, or even significant-but-not-fatal “educational experiences.” We can, and should, learn to live with those. I mean the GINORMOUS (yeah, it’s almost a word – go ask your kids…), Oh-my-God-how-I have-been-so-stupid, ruined-my-life, self-image crushing failures. Once again, I find my two “inner men” disagreeing, and pretty violently over this one. The practical, worldly one is bellowing in protest, “NO! Pollyanna, how could you be so utterly stupid?!? And talk about impractical and unrealistic! You’re just setting yourself up for even worse disappointment!!!” However,… just over the last 24 hours, I’ve begun to hear another, much smaller voice, but it’s been gaining strength. Two words: “What if?”

“WHAT IF?” indeed….

OK, rest easy, I don’t really hear actual voices. Probably, I’m just mostly absolutely sick to death of all the incredibly morbid negativity and depression in the world right now. But no matter how I’ve tried to blow it off or rationalize it, the thought just keeps hanging around, tickling my imagination: “What if?”

Simply chewing on this, for me, is almost an earth-shattering thought, a seismic shift. No ultimate failure? Could that be anything like what the Bible means in a here-and-now, pragmatic sense when it talks about eternal life? I think this line of questioning just might change my whole approach to life, if I’m daring and dedicated enough to stick with it. Fact is, I think I’d like that very much, but I’m already starting to doubt myself. No, that’s not strictly true, either. If I’m going to be unflinchingly honest – and that’s actually a pretty good place to start testing the whole “What if?”/no failure idea – I’m just continuing to doubt Christ!

Wait a minute! Could it be that simple? Probably not. But still, “What if?” my fears and even experiences of serious failures really are mainly a symptom of my continuing to doubt Christ? Oh, my God! How much of my life have I already wasted, just because I didn’t dare dream and got bound up in slavery to anxiety instead! (No, that’s not a question. It is an exclamation!)

Please forgive me if you are reading this. In all truth, I’m only beginning to understand some of this as I write it, so please bear with me. This may be what I was close to hitting on yesterday, which started all this, when I wrote about playing to win instead of playing not to lose. That point, if any, probably doesn’t matter much, but here’s what does: there’s just a massive difference between believing in, and even trusting in, Christ; and actually, honestly living in RADICAL, I MEAN RADICAL!, reliance on Him. Now, this last thought probably borders on blasphemy, but still, here goes: I wonder if only one of those options is really “choosing life.” Maybe all this time, I honestly thought I was affirmatively choosing life by accepting and trying to trust Christ, when all I really was doing was barely “getting by.”

Tell you what; not much of this is Scriptural, but it is certainly beginning to feel about right to me. It needs more thought, to be sure, but I can do that. I think I’ll start where I began today:

“Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you.”

“So don’t be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom.”

CHOOSING LIFE... AND DEATH

Deuteronomy 29:1-30:20; Luke 11:37-12:7; Psalm 78:1-31; Proverbs 12:19-20

“Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live! Choose to love the Lord your God, and to obey him, and commit yourself to him, for he is your life.”

“What is the price of five sparrows—two copper coins? Yet God does not forget a single one of them. And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows.”

‘Truthful words stand the test of time, but lies are soon exposed.”

God actually wants us to win. Judgment brings Him no pleasure. He cares whether we go to heaven or hell. God implores us to choose life, and blessings. The Spirit’s heart’s desire is that we all spend eternity with Him. In part, that’s just what Love does. But it’s also significant that Creation, for God, is never an assembly line process. Each person is unique, for a reason. We were designed to fit a special place in His Body. That’s why Jesus died: to bring us back into fellowship with God, to fulfill our destiny and His purposes for us. So, Christ made us winners. But because I forget all that, I fear. I fret and worry. I give up on myself. Consequently, I give up on Christ, wondering, once more, if He can and will really save me.

What a stupid way to live! Talk about beaten before I start! I am literally giving up the position of blessing and peace Jesus gave me in the first place. It may be a natural, human reaction. It may be spiritual inertia. It may, on occasion, even be Satan. But whatever it is, it’s the wrong perspective.

It bears repeating, every day: Christians start out as winners. By definition, we are forgiven; given the Holy Spirit to guide and instruct us; and empowered to be the very hands and feet of Christ, to be conduits of grace. In short, we begin with abundant life! As long as we continue to claim the blessing, it is ours for the asking. We fail, fear and worry only because we choose not to affirmatively choose life.

That seems critically important to me. Moses was very clear: the only choice we have to make is a positive one, for life. We just have to decide to hold onto and develop our favored position of grace and all it represents. Yet, if I am honest, this is very contrary to the way I normally think, however subconsciously I may think it. I don’t affirmatively choose life very often. I usually worry about losing it, about losing blessings. In other words, I don’t play to win; I play not to lose. And I’m beginning to suspect there is a massively critical, eternal difference between those two views.

Death is a default; the Bible says it is the natural, human inevitability. It requires no effort, no character, no choice at all. It is the automatic result of any failure not to affirmatively choose on a daily basis the life Christ died to give us. Because only the affirmative choice for Christ brings with it the supernatural power not just to live life, but live it to the full. Brothers and Sisters, we are heirs of Christ. We can, and should, think with the mind of Christ. We are adopted sons and daughters of God. It’s time to experience, and quit wasting, our given inheritance. I figure that, if we begin choosing life, we’ll also begin to experience a lot more of the Truth of God and know Him, and the security of our own potential in Him, much better. 

DANGERS OF FORGIVENESS

Deuteronomy 28:1-68; Luke 11:14-36; Psalm 77:1-20; Proverbs 12:18

“When an evil spirit leaves a person, it goes into the desert, searching for rest. But when it finds none, it says, ‘I will return to the person I came from.’ So it returns and finds that its former home is all swept and in order. Then the spirit finds seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they all enter the person and live there. And so that person is worse off than before.”

“Make sure that the light you think you have is not actually darkness. If you are filled with light, with no dark corners, then your whole life will be radiant, as though a floodlight were filling you with light.”

There is a young man I know who has struggled with drug addiction most of his adult life. It began with prescription painkillers he underestimated and overused in an effort to stay in the starting lineup despite an injury.  Finally, mercifully, the scripts themselves gave him away, and he found himself in rehab. The rehab went well, but when he returned to the outside, his craving returned, and the only way to satisfy it then was with illegal drugs. In turn, his need expanded to include pathological lying, theft, jail and a host of lesser problems. All because he never learned to fill his emptiness with any better choices.

It is never enough simply to accept forgiveness. Accepting forgiveness may “clean house,” as it were, but there isn’t much lonelier or tempting than a clean, empty house. Most people feel compelled either to move or fill it up with a lot of stuff they don’t need. The Scriptural mandate, therefore, is that we “repent.” We can’t just stop doing wrong. We need to go beyond confession and forgiveness. Repentance literally requires an “about face.” It takes an affirmative decision not just to turn away from something but to turn and move toward something else, something better.

Indeed, it does us no good to give up sin, if we don’t take up something better to replace it. Otherwise, Scripture is clear that we will eventually succumb to something worse than the sin we gave up in the first place. I think that’s what Jesus was talking about when He encouraged His followers to be sure that the light they thought they had was not really darkness. Substitutes for the Spirit’s indwelling power – including stand alone confession and forgiveness - may seem sufficient in the short term, but over the long haul, they always end up wanting. Without a daily relationship with Christ, daily communion with Him through prayer and Bible study, whatever light we think we have can be no better than a pale imitation of the real Light God wants to put in our hearts.

The danger of forgiveness, standing on its own, is that we think it’s enough to save us. Only Christ Himself can do that. Only the Spirit can give us the strength to face the future without lapsing back into sin. The point of Jesus’ forgiveness of our sins is not just to clear away the junk but also to make room for the Spirit to more fully possess and work through us. We have to let Him complete the process or, more than likely, we will just end up compounding the sin. Forgiveness is the door through which the Spirit will fill the space where sin once lived, as long as we make sure to invite Him in.

DEVIL'S IN THE DETAILS

Deuteronomy 26:1-27:26; Luke 10:38-11:13; Psalm 76:1-12; Proverbs 12:15-17

“But Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, ‘Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me.’ But the Lord said to her, ‘My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.’”

“Fools think their own way is right, but the wise listen to others. A fool is quick-tempered, but a wise person stays calm when insulted.”

Somebody has to pay attention to the details! Every time I read about Mary and Martha, I still think Martha is unfairly criticized. Where would the world be without those who plan and make things happen, without those who prepare? After all, it mattered that Jesus and the disciples were fed a meal. Almost certainly, they were hungry. Regardless, only the worst of Hebrew hosts would not feed their guests, and it would have been the height of discourtesy not to at least have food available. Pretty clearly, the invitation contemplated the meal. Maybe Jesus didn’t need feeding or care about courtesy. But Martha needed to serve; it was her way of honoring Him. Why would Jesus dishonor her efforts?

The ice here is not as thin as it seems at first glance. Jesus did not dishonor Martha. Popular culture has done that all by itself. People who plan and work for a goal make those who don’t uncomfortable. When we get uncomfortable, we tend to get critical. But the fact is, Jesus never told Martha she was wrong; He merely pointed out the source of her anxiety and the distraction it caused, and that there was a way to be righter. That’s not just a semantic difference. Martha’s good was the enemy of her best. First, because she gave little thought to what Jesus actually wanted; she decided how to serve, rather than allow the Spirit to guide her worship and work. Second, though, she tried to impose her ideas of “proper” service on her sister and ended up judging Mary.

It’s never a good idea to dictate how others should serve or worship. It’s just not our business. We all come to Christ in our own way. There is no one size fits all approach to salvation or growing in grace. As long as folks are trying and are focused on Christ, we do well to stay out of the way. What we may think is “gentle correction” may be seen by others as a major distraction. More than one person has been totally alienated by others’ well-intentioned (or not!) efforts to “guide” their worship or service. Whether it’s being told to lay prostrate, raise arms in worship or submit to a laying on of hands that is not comfortable, such directions do no more than create false tests of faith and set one person above another.

That was where Martha really went wrong. Her judgment regarding “proper” behavior put her in the position of judge over her sister and risked alienation and disagreement Jesus knew was neither necessary nor helpful. There is a time to pay attention to the details. Spontaneity is wonderful, but often, even that begins in some kind of structure. However, when structure or details become an obsession that causes us to think more of appearances than of the opportunity we have to experience the Spirit, we have crossed a line better left uncrossed. Details are never more than the means to an end. They are tools. When they are misused to set us over others, it’s time to relax our grip on them a bit. Otherwise, the saying that “the devil’s in the details” might just be more true than we think.

TAKE IT OUTSIDE THE CAMP!

Deuteronomy 23:1-25:19; Luke 10:13-37; Psalm 75:1-10; Proverbs 12:12-14

“You must have a designated area outside the camp where you can go to relieve yourself. Each of you must have a spade as part of your equipment. Whenever you relieve yourself, dig a hole with the spade and cover the excrement. The camp must be holy, for the Lord your God moves around in your camp to protect you and to defeat your enemies.”

“I warned the proud, ‘Stop your boasting!’
 I told the wicked, ‘Don’t raise your fists!
 Don’t raise your fists in defiance at the heavens or speak with such arrogance.’ For no one on earth—from east or west, or even from the wilderness—should raise a defiant fist. It is God alone who judges; he decides who will rise and who will fall.”

“The wicked are trapped by their own words, but the godly escape such trouble.”

I love the Bible’s practicality, never more so than when thinking about today’s quote from Deuteronomy. Once more, God provides for the health of His people in a very pragmatic way: take your excrement outside the camp, and cover it so it does not endanger others! What sound advice! It applies equally to all the spiritual excrement we spread throughout the Body of Christ.  Take all the garbage outside the camp. It’s dangerous to spread rumors and criticism. Don’t tolerate it. Make those who insist on dwelling on such things take it outside and bury it.

I should be clear about my concept of “spiritual excrement.” I am not speaking of honest concerns or theological disagreements. In no way would I support rejection of legitimate Christian instruction, correction or education. Accountability is a critical component of the character of the Body of Christ. What is not critical, but can be deadly, is the ad nauseum repetition of personal opinion, gossip and hearsay without foundation as if it was fact. That kind of judgment poisons everything it touches. Its impact and destructive potential is almost always underestimated by those who arrogantly believe they are divinely appointed to distribute their personal feelings as gospel to anyone who will listen and, especially, to those who’d prefer not to. In short, picking a scab until it bleeds does nothing but promote infection.

Tonight, our church faces a distinct crossroads, and it is very unclear how the tide will turn. Several church members have legitimate concerns about various things. Some really did try to follow the dictates of Matthew 18, but felt their efforts were dishonored and dismissed without fair hearing. So they formed a group within the Church. Then, they made the fatal mistake of giving the group a name and, hence, presumed legitimacy. Pretty soon, the group’s leaders lost their own perspective, as they were consumed by the sheer volume of criticisms levied by various individuals at church leadership. Rather than being the positive agent of change its leaders hoped for, the group rapidly became a cesspool for the dumping of every frustration and personal vendetta any member of the group cared to raise. They now are perilously close to creating precisely the type of schism they say they wanted to avoid in the first place. Tonight is our annual church conference where the plans and leadership of the church are set for the upcoming year. I pray it does not turn into the bloodbath some maliciously are hoping it becomes.

What causes one believer to voice such venom against fellow believers? Why do others tolerate the spread of such destructive forces within an institution specifically designed by God to stand against those very things? I don’t know. But I do know the Church is not the place to air our dirty laundry or to vent our spleens in the name of Christ.  And, thankfully, I still believe in the power of prayer to reconcile individuals and turn all hearts to the Spirit’s will. May those who make Jesus their first and only objective always prevail! May those who disagree with that priority take it outside the camp!

CONVICTION OF THE MIND

Deuteronomy 21:1-22:30; Luke 9:51-10:12; Psalm 74:1-23; Proverbs 12:11

“Jesus told him, ‘Anyone who puts a hand to the plow and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God.’ These were his instructions to them: ‘The harvest is great, but the workers are few. So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields. Now go, and remember that I am sending you out as lambs among wolves.’”

“We no longer see your miraculous signs. 
All the prophets are gone, and no one can tell us when it will end.”

It’s so easy to lose faith. Probably, it has been that way forever. Seems there’s always something waiting to lure us away, always some reason to feel disenchanted, if we decide that’s the path we want to take. We lose faith when we stop practicing it. Much, if not most, of what we feel, think and believe is determined by the way we decide we want to feel, think and believe. What some of us fail to understand is that, in at least one sense, failing to make an affirmative decision of faith for God – particularly when He seems distant - is itself a decision which usually leads us away from God.

Jesus understood there is a time in every person’s life when the miracles stop and the dreams and visions fade. Few actually live on the mountaintop of inspiration all the time. We get that, too; it’s one reason folks hesitate to commit to much of anything. We worry about being stuck after our enthusiasm fades. However, the character of our faith is determined more by what we do in the plateaus and valleys of everyday life than by our responses to those times when our sense of the Spirit is at its most focused. Jesus was emphatic that His disciples had to be irrevocably committed to their mission, to the point of leaving everything else behind, even when they did not necessarily feel so inspired, and especially when they were under attack. He looks for conviction of the head as well as of the heart.

I remember serving on the Board of a non-profit charitable organization early in my career. I approached the opportunity with a lot of enthusiasm and creativity. I was even named their volunteer of the year my first year. Later, though, the organization lost its way and its focus. We became more about fundraising than hands-on ministry, and I left in disillusion. In a word, rather than stick around to fight the momentum of stagnation and help direct the group back to its mission statement, I just quit. In the process, I did absolutely no one any good.

If we turn away from chances to minister when Christ seems distant, how will we know when He draws close? The Spirit calls us to a higher level of dedication, one that does not necessarily even have much to do with inspiration. He calls us to an intellectual commitment to the Gospel and to Him, not just to an emotional attachment. Joshua said it well, “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” It was not optional for Joshua. He realized a daily relationship with God depends on a radical daily reliance on the Lord that shows itself in service, regardless of how we may feel about it at the time.