A Great God and Good Coffee

Perceived Truths are Dangerous

2012-02-25T10:55:00.001-08:00

In the Bible Satan is identified as, among many things, the deceiver of the world, the father of lies, and the accuser of the brethren. It is clear by these names, and his tactics going back to the Garden, that he works in lies, deception, and accusation. Jesus, on the other hand, is truth.

The dangerous thing about Satan's tactics are that we usually react to what we perceive to be true, which isn't always what is true. So, if he can get us to believe an untruth we will likely live and think in response to that, thinking we are reacting to truth. I, for one, can be stunned (and discouraged) by the number of things I can think, believe, etc., that are inconsistent with what I believe in regards to my faith. Somewhere in all of that I have often believed a lie, though I think I it is truth. Unless we stop and take our actions and thoughts captive to our Christian faith we can continue in wrong and destructive and often negative patterns and thoughts for long periods of time.

A key to turning this around is to start to identify the lies we believe. A good way to start is to evaluate, with the Holy Spirit's help,
1) the things we do,
2) the priorities we hold,
3) the fears and concerns we have, and
4) the way we think about ourselves and others and life.
The object of this is to identify those areas that are not consistent with the professions of our faith about God, His love, His power, what He says about us, etc. Chances are, the areas we find where we are inconsistent with our faith statements may well be areas we have unwittingly somewhere believed a lie (which we perceive to be truth, so we act in response to it).

My guess is that the first two areas to identify inconsistency in (things we do, and priorities we hold) will be pretty easy. It is often easy to see the things we do and priorities we hold that are inconsistent with what we believe. The last two (fears and concerns we have, and the way we think about ourselves and others and life) will be harder—but what we believe in these areas are probably drivers for many of our external actions. The goal in this is to disarm the enemy's devices (which we are not to be ignorant of) and to replace lies with truths.

One example I used with our youth group was a fear they might hold deep inside. I asked them to see if that fear was consistent with what they know to be true about God—that He is powerful (creates a universe), that He is present (will never leave them), and that He loves them (died for them). Is their fear consistent with those things they believe to be true about God? It was easy to see it wasn't. Somewhere in there they had started to replace truth with lies which they perceived to be truth, and then started living in response to that perceived truth.

We can find the same thing in many areas. For example, many youth (and adults) are insecure, or feel little worth, etc. Is that inconsistent with a God who promises to never leave them, who loves them so much He considers them worth dying for, who made them in His image, who knew their mistakes and sin before the foundation of the earth and still gave them life? Usually, a lie has been believed about themselves or their relationship with God, and that lie is what they are living and thinking in response to.

If we can identify the areas our actions, priorities, thoughts, fears, etc. are not consistent with what we profess about God we can start to look for areas we may be living and thinking in response to lies and not truth. Then we can begin to use God's Word and the tenets of our faith to replace those lies with truth, and to stand in faith on truth instead of on lies. God did this with Sarah's unbelief when He asked if anything was too hard for God. He identified the lie she was believing and confronted her with it. Or the father Jesus confronted who had asked if Jesus can heal his child and Jesus responded by identifying the lie, replying basically, "If I can?! All things are possible (with God)! Believe!"

Somewhere the Israelites believed a lie (or lies) when they refused to enter the promised land. Joshua and Caleb tried to bring them back to truth (we can do this if God is with us), but they chose to live by sight and in fear, neglecting God's promises (which God took as rejection of Him). Over and over in the Bible we see this pattern—thoughts based on lies or half truths, God confronting them with the truth about Himself, and then a choice being before them of which they will believe and act on.

Christian, what lies have you unwittingly believed, that you are now living in response to? Is the enemy whispering accusations at you, reminding you of your failures and shortcomings? So what does God have to say about that? Do you remember that, despite your shortcomings, if you have faith in Christ's death for you they have been paid for and forgiven, and you are redeemed and adopted by God and He lives in you and He'll never leave you? Do you realize that He did that because He loves you and considers you worth it?

Christian, how are you acting? Is it in response to a lie? Have somewhere you believed a lie about yourself, or God's love for you, or His power, or His faithfulness and are you now acting out in response to that lie? What is the truth of the situation? Which will you believe and live in response to?

From the beginning this has been Satan's way. He first cast doubt on God's love, Word, and trustworthiness ("Did God really say?" and "You won't die" and "God knows that you will be like Him"). AFTER Eve doubted God's Word, His trustworthiness, His good intentions and love for her, THEN she entertained temptation—THEN she bought the lie that she could find pleasure (pleasing to the eye), provision (good for food), and wisdom (desirable to make one wise) apart from God. My guess is that, for all of us, we are seeking pleasure, provision, and wisdom in some ways inconsistent with our faith, because somewhere we have first allowed ourselves to believe lies about God's Word, trustworthiness, and love.

May the Holy Spirit lead you and guide you into all truth, that we may disarm the weapons of the enemy of lies, deception and accusation. God bless you, and thanks for reading. —Erick

God is On the Move

2012-02-22T09:23:00.000-08:00

These are exciting times as a Christian who believes in the Bible and in bringing our life into consistency with our professed world view. These are times when, I believe, God is challenging American and much of the chaff will be separated from the wheat as were are, finally, being forced to evaluate our faith at a much deeper level than simply our stand on gay marriage or abortion. I will explain why I am so excited in a moment, but first I want to give a few caveats to nip in the bud some rebuttals. This is a longer post, but I would really value your thoughts and feedback.

Caveats

First: If you haven't read "Electability" (my January 19 post) you might want to. In it I lay out why I think that word is a subtle way of watering down our faith, causing us to pick a candidate who might not match our faith well over one who does. In it I talked about Rick Santorum (hardly on the radar screen at the time in many people's minds), and about how the Bible is full of examples of times when what was "wise" to the world was not honored by God, but rather God tested the heart of His people to see if they would choose faith over "conventional" wisdom (the same worldly system of wisdom, by the way, that tells you that your relatives down the line were monkeys and fish). Reading that post will help you understand me better, and where I am coming from, in this post.

Second: I recognize there are significant issues with Catholicism that Protestants and Evangelicals have. I disagree with Catholics on many issues of the faith. But, that said, I also know many individual Catholics who I am far more convinced are born again Christians than many professing non-Catholic "Christians" I have met who might be quick to point out Catholic faults. I am just glad none of us need perfect theology to be saved, because if we did none of us would be.

Third: No candidate is perfect. None of us are. I doubt any of us would want someone demanding perfection from our entire life, or someone going back and scrutinizing everything we have said, done, written, etc. over the last 20 years and then us having to defend it in 10 second sound bites. Whether you are voting for Santorum or not, I believe what I am about to say will be thought provoking and of value to you.

With That Said, God is On the Move . . .

I can't tell you how exciting it has been for Mary Ann and I to watch the news at night in the last week or two and see the discussions that Rick's Santorum's vetting is causing. Combine that with Tebowmania and now Linsanity and I can't remember a season when I have heard discussions of faith—specifically Christian faith!—so often in the media. (Even after 9/11 I remember God being talked about a lot as comfort and a place to turn, but never this extent of discussion about larger issues of world view.)

What is so exciting to me is that I am hearing things talked about now that I can not ever remember being addressed on such a scale. It seems so often that Christians are relegated (often self relegated) to abortion and gay marriage and a few specific button issues in election cycles. This shallow focus allows Christians to accept or reject individual issues without having to be confronted with a call to consistency in their faith across the board. But Santorum's vetting and the close examination of his statements now and in the past are confronting professing Christians on a much higher level, and I am shouting out, "At last!" Our faith and world view provides the framework and reason for our individual stands—and our individual stands without the full expression of our faith and world view make us be simply seen as angry, judgmental people. But, if our world view (the gospel, the love of God, the reality of sin, the hope of faith, the reality of spiritual warfare and evil, etc.) is shared in fulness and in full context it will, I believe draw many to it—or at least help them understand us better, and help Christians identify inconsistencies between their profession of belief and their lives and choices and priorities and thoughts.

Like him or not, I can't remember a major candidate in recent times who has made it this far seeming to be so across the board in consistency with his world view and his policies as Santorum is. You can't listen to him and not see that this man has a world view and he sticks to it and brings all his other views into consistency with it. If you have read my blog for any length of time you know that this is a major cry of mine—it is ignorant and shallow to expect to separate a candidate from their world view and faith as, if that world view and faith is truly held, it should impact all they are and do.

And, the world view being discussed, is one that should excite Christians beyond measure! Finally, in the major media, we are hearing discussions about Satan, and good and evil, and spiritual warfare, and Satan's attacks on America—and we are being given a much bigger picture of why life is sacred, why people are precious, why religious liberty is so important, why we must support Israel and see some things in the world as truly evil, why the earth is for people's use and stewardship (but not above or equal to people), etc. We are seeing convenient Christianity challenged (meaning people can't just throw out that they are a Christian to get elected, but their lives are being examined for consistency). We are seeing the Protestant denominations called out on their collapse to the world. (Criticize Catholics for what you will, but at least they have stood strong on many of the issues many Protestant denominations have completely caved in on.) When we have CNN printing some things like the following, it should excite us!

"This is not a political war at all, this is not a culture war at all, this is a spiritual war," Santorum said . . . "And the father of lies has his sights on what you think the father of lies, Satan, would have his sights on. A good, decent, powerful, influential country, the United States of America."

Santorum said Satan was first, and most successfully, attacked academia. Once academia fell to pride and its own truths, he said, the Protestant Church fell next in the United States. "We look at the shape of mainline Protestantism in this country, and it is in shambles, it is gone from the world of Christianity as I see it," he said.

Again, like Santorum or not, we finally are seeing the core issues addressed and I believe it will (or should) force individual Christians to decide where they stand. No longer can we simply reject an issue (choose economy over abortion as a priority, for example). The Santorum debate is forcing us to choose a world view and to see how many of our individual choices may be inconsistent with the world view we claim to believe in. It is forcing us to decide what we believe about the Bible. It is forcing us to look deep and decide, who are we going to serve? Our heart we will have to have been confronted. And, maybe, God, who values our heart and faith over external circumstances, is simply checking the heart of His children and beginning to force issues that will force Christians to decide who they are going to follow—Him, or the world. And, by having opposing world views so prominently displayed and contrasted, we may not be able, any more, to walk with one foot on each side of the fence. And that would be exciting to me, to see God's children finally have to choose!

Authority through Submission

2012-01-30T11:35:00.000-08:00

While the Bible gives us no basis to believe there are demons under “every rock” making every bad situation happen, it also gives us every reason to realize that demons (like angels) are real and active in our lives and the lives of people around us. Consider: Jesus’s encounters with demons were frequent and real. The angel responding to Daniel’s prayer makes it clear he was delayed in answering because he was caught up in spiritual warfare with a demonic principality for 21 days (Daniel 10:10-14). The pagan gods which people worshipped were (and are, today) true demonic entities—for example, see verses like Psalm 106:36–37 which says: They served their idols, which became a snare to them. They sacrificed their sons and their daughters to the demons, and 1 Corinthians 10:20 which says: No, I imply that what pagans sacrifice they offer to demons and not to God. . . Additionally, it is clear Pharoah’s magicians had true power to some degree that came from a source not of God, as did Simon in Acts. Or, simply talk to missionaries today who have encountered witch doctors with true power over a village and the villager’s health and welfare, or to people in the United States who have encountered the demonic through occultic or “ghostly” encounters.

Yes, the Bible makes it clear the spiritual world is real and that we are not to engage in the occult or contacting it. So, with it being true, and likely, that we will encounter the demonic world at work against us or those around us, what should our stand be as Christians? In a nutshell, we should be aware but not afraid, dealing with it in simple authority and not giving it more attention than we give God. As Christians we have authority against the demonic realm when we encounter it, and interestingly that authority comes from submission. One would think authority would come from being the biggest and most powerful we can make ourselves, but the contrary is true. Our authority comes from our submission to Christ.

The Centurion recognized that structure of authority when he asked Jesus to heal his servant and Jesus said He would come and do it. Matthew 8:8-9 tells us: But the centurion replied, "Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. And I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes, and to another, 'Come,' and he comes, and to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it." The Centurion recognized, as seen when he said “I too”, that Jesus was under God’s authority, and he understood the authority that gave Jesus because he, himself, was also a man OF authority because he was a man UNDER authority.

When I was in Panama in the military I visited many amazing villages deep in the interior that I fell in love with, so to speak. I visited them in a place of authority, as a platoon leader with a heavily armed platoon, under the authority, and with the backing, of the United States army. But, as a civilian, as much as I would like to take my family to visit them I wouldn’t because I would not be sure of our safety since I would not be in a position of authority. Back then I carried authority in the village because I was, myself, under authority I was submitted to.

As Christians we have authority in the spiritual realm because we, ourselves, are under authority. The seven sons of the priest Sceva found out what it is like to confront demons when they themselves were not under God’s authority. Acts 19:15-16 tells us what happened when they tried to command a demon to leave a man simply using Jesus’ name, but not being under Jesus’ authority. It says: But the evil spirit answered them, "Jesus I know, and Paul I recognize, but who are you?" And the man in whom was the evil spirit leaped on them, mastered all of them and overpowered them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. On the other hand, Paul, who the seven men were trying to imitate, simply commanded demons to leave and they did, and there is no indication it was a big, showy, screaming, drawn out exorcism process. Paul was a man of authority, because he was a man under authority. On his own he was nothing, but in Christ he carried Christ’s authority. This is a Kingdom of God principle we must understand.

Two of the best known New Testament passages about the devil are 1 Peter 5:6-9 and James 4:7. Do you see a common theme in each of them?

1 Peter 5:6-9 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God . . . Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him . . .

James 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Do you notice that both talk about resisting the devil, and both begin with humbling and submitting ourselves to God? By placing ourselves under God’s authority and reign, we walk in God’s authority. This makes sense. If we humble and submit ourselves before and to God we will walk in His plans and ways, and that means we will be right where He calls us to be, doing His will, and with His full backing. But when we resist God and go on our own paths, we find ourselves outside of God’s plan, and therefore under our authority and not His (this is not a salvation issue, but a daily issue). May this amazing reality give us a place for thought this week as we reflect on the authority we gain by submitting to authority.

Thanks for sharing in my life. God bless you. —Erick

From Milk to Solid Food

2012-01-27T11:52:00.000-08:00

The more I read the Old Testament through the lens of Christmas and the Cross (meaning it all pointed to, and aimed at, and passed through the life and ministry and death and resurrection of Christ) the more I am rocked by the foreshadows and physical pictures it contains of spiritual truths and realities to come after the cross, in the New Covenant. Like an hourglass turned on its side, all the sand (events, pictures, signs, hopes) of time before the life and death of Jesus on earth pointed to, and narrowed to, and passed through that narrow neck of the hourglass of time from His birth to death and resurrection. Likewise, on the other side (our side) of those events, all of the sand that spreads out from the neck passed through, and finds its origin and source and meaning in the life, death, and resurrection of Christ.

It is a fascinating reality—everything before that first Christmas (and ultimately the cross and empty tomb) looked to those moments, foreshadowed those moments, and awaited those moments. And everything after those moments—the spreading church, our position as believers, the power and authority we walk in, and our purpose and mission in life—find their origin and source by looking back to those moments. That first Christmas, leading to the death and resurrection, truly was, as Paul said twice, "the fullness of time" . . . the moment all history prior looked and pointed to and awaited, and the moment all history since finds its explanation, purpose, and origin in.

With that said, I am most of the way through Leviticus in my reading through the Bible, and I am struck by an interesting idea I'd love your thoughts on. We have, in Genesis and Exodus, a people in slavery and bondage in Egypt, as well as a line of redemption chosen and being prepared (Abraham's line). Then we have, in Moses, a man coming in, confronting the powers of darkness, defeating them, and setting the people free from bondage and slavery. Then, in the wilderness, before coming to the land they are to occupy, the people are given the Law and taught how to worship God and how to live. Ahead, they will be brought to the land they are expected to conquer—a calling most will turn from and remain in the wilderness, provided for, with God present, but in no victory and no threat to the enemy who occupies the land. Later a new generation will, in faith, take up the mantle and cross the Jordan and see the strongholds of the enemy fall and capture the land.

I was struck, reflecting on this, that it is quite a picture of the New Testament call. We are in darkness, bondage, slavery. Jesus comes in, confronts the darkness, and the power of God sets us free from that (we are born again, saved). We then, as infants in Christ, are taught God's heart, how to worship Him, how to live as His free people, how to be His people who are set apart from the rest. But then we are called to move past that, to a maturity if you will. We are called to confront the giants, to stand and step out in faith on God's character and promises, and to see the strongholds of the enemy toppled and to occupy the land (to be His hands and feet, His body, and to go in His authority). We are not supposed to remain wandering infants, happy and content in remaining provided for and knowing God is real and there, but not moving in any threat to the enemy or seeing the enemy knocked back or strongholds demolished. At some point we are to be God's people who in faith, and with His leading, start to go against the enemy who is holding families and marriages in bondage, people in addiction, people lost and blinded to the Gospel, etc. It is our calling, I believe, I had just not seen the Old Testament parallel or picture of it in that way before.

I'd love your thoughts. I hope that this has been a wonderful week for you and that it will be an amazing weekend in His presence. Thanks for being a part of my life. —Erick

"Electability"

2012-01-19T13:14:00.000-08:00

I hear a lot about "electability" today in the Republican primary race. It seems a lot of people are talking about voting for a candidate who doesn't best match their values, priorities, etc. because they think that candidate can best beat President Obama. I have some real mixed emotions about that whole issue.

I understand in the pure, "world's" sense, the logic of thinking that way and not "throwing away" a vote . . . but where does God come in to it all? What does it say about Christians who think that way? To the world they are logical and using common sense, but I wonder what God says about it. Some may say they are using the brain God gave them to make their decision and be practical . . . but I wonder.

Where is the God of the impossible in all this thinking? Where is faith? Where is a belief in a God who can, in days, upturn entire nations and regions in revival? What does it say when we vote for a candidate who marginally and questionably supports our values, instead of one who unashamedly has supported them and lived them through decades of visibility in the public sector?

Might it even be possible that God is watching and testing His people. After all, it is His people who He says must turn from their ways and call out to Him for Him to hear and heal their land. What if it is maybe like a time the Holy Spirit nudges you to do something illogical or irrational in the world's eyes (help someone, give someone money or the benefit of the doubt, etc.) and you get "burned". The world shakes its head and says, "Maybe you won't be so naive next time" . . . when maybe God is saying, "You were faithful, now trust Me."

I think that often there is something much bigger at work than what our limited understanding can fathom. At the heart of God is the issue of the faithfulness, and faith, of His people. When I read through the Bible I find example after example of God's anger at His people compromising with the world, though what they did seemed "logical" and "common sense" to those around. Take some time and start to think about different events in history you are aware of that mirror what I am saying.

How about Saul keeping back some of the enemy's goods because of the people, and not doing what God said. It cost him a kingdom. Think about Abraham and Sarah "helping" God out with Hagar—it cost our world a lot of turmoil. Think about Peter caving to the pressure from the Jews. It cost him a public tongue lashing from Paul. Think about the people of Israel wanting a king. It cost them the chance to have God be their king. We could fill hundreds of lines with more examples of people doing what was "logical" and "wise" in the world's system of thought and it grieving or angering God's heart.

On the flip side, what about Abraham offering up his son through whom the promise was to be fulfilled? It earned Him God's tremendous favor. What about Gideon leading an army of 300 against over 100,000 enemy? It was a great victory for God's people. What about the woman "wasting" a perfume worth a year's wages on Jesus' feet, to the complaints of the disciples? She will be remembered for eternity for it. What about a young virgin agreeing to carry a baby from God at tremendous cost to her in this world? It earned her a privilege beyond measure. What about a man building an ark for decades of his life when those around him probably mocked him? It saved him, his family, and all mankind.

I am a little leery of the word "electability" being thrown around more than the word "God" and "faith" and the concept of honoring God first and trusting Him with the results. I don't know who we will end up seeing in the Presidential race opposing President Obama, but I know that I, for one, at this time and based on what I currently know, am going to vote for Rick Santorum. He appears to be a strong Christian candidate who, by all accounts that I have read, embodies (and doesn't just tout) the values of our faith, who seems humble yet uncompromising, who has a wife who has chosen to stay home and raise and school her family at the sake of her career, and who seems to understand foreign policy through a Christian world view and lens. I'll just trust the results to God, and know He is always at work. I just know, for me, that I can't let the world's "wisdom" be a stronger pull to me than my faith. From there it is a short road to caving on most of the issues facing us in this culture. I would rather honor God and "lose" in the world's eyes, than "win" in the world's eyes and compromise my faith. My God is very, very big and I can trust Him with the results. May He just see my heart pure and my trust and love for Him being the driving force in my life. I am not saying anything about other Christians who don't vote for him, that is between them and God, I am just saying that for me I want to let my faith have more power than human wisdom. There may be other reasons to vote for a candidate than electability, and God may show someone them, but I want to be sure that, in my heart, I never compromise who I feel best represents the values and faith I believe are most important to God.

Need I Say More . . .

2012-01-11T10:42:00.000-08:00

It wasn't until I was a cadet at West Point and had to memorize more than the first stanza of the Star Spangled Banner that I found additional stanzas to it I was not aware of because they are rarely sung. After becoming a Christian the fourth and closing stanza of it came back to me strongly. Then, in homeschool yesterday, Mary Ann shared with the girls from a book of the history of hymns the story of My Country, 'Tis of Thee. I was blessed, listening to her, by the fourth and closing stanza of that as well.

With all the caving in of people about the origins of our nation and the heritage we have in God . . . and with the elections dominating the news right now and people deciding if the economy or values are their top issue and whether or not it is important to have a true Christian President, I thought I'd share the fourth stanza of each song with you in case its been awhile since you might have heard them. (The words and dates are copied from online sources. Please feel free to let me know if there are any mistakes in them.)

May this nation return to the reason it is great—our faith and trust in, and obedience to, the God of the Bible. May the winds of revival blow, not in an emotional frenzy that lasts but a short time, but in a turning of hearts back to Him. May those who claim His name and who claim they are His children start to make choices and vote and use their time and resources consistently with what they claim they believe. May those who don't know Him be awakened to their lost condition apart from Him and to His glorious love and grace for them. God bless you all, and thanks for sharing in my life. —Erick

Star Spangled Banner, fourth stanza, 1814
O! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand
Between their loved home and the war's desolation.
Blest with vict'ry and peace, may the Heav'n rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: "In God is our trust;"
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

My Country, 'Tis of Thee, fourth stanza, 1831
Our fathers' God to Thee,
Author of liberty,
To Thee we sing.
Long may our land be bright,
With freedom's holy light,
Protect us by Thy might,
Great God our King.

Need I Say More?

God's Plans

2012-01-10T11:39:00.000-08:00

In March of 1997 Mary Ann and I went with another couple to Hume Lake Christian Camp in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California. We were taking a couple of cars full of middle schoolers to winter camp . . . and I did not want to go! I wasn't a big fan of kids back then, and if I went in to a restaurant and there were a bunch of kids there I'd asked to be seated away from them. But, we were the logical couple to go with them when one of the couples who were supposed to couldn't. Mary Ann and I were the youngest people in the church, we didn't have kids, and we were self-employed. So, Mary Ann excited and me dragging my feet, we went. In the last chapel session there God overwhelmed my heart with a brief sense of the cumulative pain and tears ahead in the years to come for the 300 or so kids in the chapel. It deeply affected me and when we got home and an excited youth told his dad about his experience with God and his plans to read the Bible and the dad replied, "That will last about a week, get in the car," it broke my last wall and we decided to keep working with these youth. It was the working with youth in the next couple of years that made me the natural one to be asked to pastor the church when the pastor left, and in the years since then (January 2000) I have been both the senior pastor and the youth leader of our fellowship.

This weekend I sat in that same chapel with Mary Ann and with some other counselors and 16 of our high schoolers (among the 600+ people there) and reflected. This was my 25th trip there with youth, and as I looked back to that first trip I thought, "If you had told me, when I set out that first time, that I would be here at least 24 more times with youth (and multiple times as a family), let alone that I would be a pastor, I would have never believed it." In the years since then we have seen youth get married, have children, some walk with God, and some walk from God. As a pastor, youth leader, and volunteer fire fighter I have been there with them when a home of theirs has burned to the ground, when a sibling has committed suicide, when families have fallen apart, and when families have risen from the ashes and grown in to God-loving, strong units. I have done weddings, and funerals. I have confronted demons, seen the sick healed . . . and lost a lot of battles as well. I have felt the Holy Spirit moving strongly . . . and wondered just where He was. It has been an amazing journey, and certainly one I never, ever would have picked or designed or thought of for myself.

It all began when we said "yes" (even though I said it grudgingly). God's plans for us, each of us, are amazing. While they may never make headlines, or get on talk shows, they are miraculous and amazing simply in that the Creator of the universe partners with us and privileges us to walk out His plans and to colabor with Him as He works in and through us. It was truly stunning to sit there in that chapel and reflect back, and to see how different my life was from anything I would have ever planned, and how much more amazing it was than anything I would have ever planned. God is amazing, and God in us is incredible. I truly encourage you, if God is nudging you somewhere or to something, no matter how much it differs from your own plans, to trust Him and say, "yes." His plans for you will be far more fulfilling, meaningful, eternally valuable, and amazing than anything you can do by holding on to control of your life.

God bless you all. Thanks for sharing your life with me. —Erick

Snakes and Awe . . .

2012-01-05T12:22:00.000-08:00

I hope that this finds all of you having a wonderful start to the new year. May God pour out His favor over you during it and help you to be more aware than ever of how much He loves you.

I have been reading through Exodus lately and I keep coming back, in my still time, to when Moses and Aaron confronted Pharaoh and his magicians and their rods, turned into snakes, were swallowed by the snake which Moses and Aaron's rod turned in to. I have found that with that story . . . and with most in the Bible . . . it has become far to easy for me to simply read it, be familiar with it, and move past it. But . . .

. . . stop and think about it for a minute. A stick. A piece of wood. A part of a tree. It turns in to a snake! A living, twisting, life-filled snake. And then, tapping into Satan's power, Pharaoh's magicians do the same, but God shows that His power is always superior to the enemy's when their snakes are eaten! Sometimes I really struggle in my walk when I realize how far my anxieties, fears, priorities, expectations, etc., fall short of the incredible things I claim I believe. Then Satan comes along whispering, "Do you even really believe them? Are you even truly saved?"

I do believe the Bible. I do believe it is true, cover to cover, word for word. And that is why I can be so bothered by how easily I can read it and about the events it records and . . . be unmoved, be blase. I have had to force myself to slow down and process. To actually stop and think about what it must have been like to be a spectator in that room and literally, before my eyes, watch those rods turn in to living snakes and enter into mortal combat on the ground. Or later to watch the Red Sea literally part into two walls of water. Or to watch leprosy disappear . . . or a white and blind eye slowly turn clear and a person see for the first time . . . or to see the dead come to life. Yet, I believe these have happened, and I have met people who have, in our lifetime, seen the dead come back to life and seen a formless eye transition before their eyes into a seeing eye.

I believe these things, but unless I force myself to stop, project myself into the scenes, and be still and meditate on it until if affects my heart I find I too often breeze past them in to my next "crisis" or negative expectation or fear or grumbling or gloomy state. Yet, when I can slow myself down and take my feelings captive to the reality of the basic foundations of my faith I claim I believe, I find that awe starts to follow that exercise, and the things in my life that have gotten disproportionately big start to shrink down to their proper size and perspective in relationship to my God, His love for me, and His power.

One of my biggest hopes for myself this year as I read through the Bible is that the things it records will rock my world and my expectations and my faith and my attitudes, and not just be more theological knowledge that puffs up or makes me religious in form, but not different than a non-Christian in my true and deepest attitudes and fears and outlooks.

God bless you all. Thank you for reading and sharing in my life. As always, I treasure your comments, thoughts, feedback, things God has shown you, etc. I look forward to traveling through 2012 with you and seeing what our mighty God has in store! — Erick

Two Christmas "Compilations" . . .

2011-12-23T23:35:00.000-08:00

I have taken the liberty to “translate” a couple of Bible verses (no I am not a Greek scholar, and I don’t claim that these are “accurate” in that sense). I hope that they bless you as they have me as I have reflected on Christmas this season. Please don’t get offended that I have taken this liberty—nothing blasphemous is meant by it, and I am not trying to say it is a true “translation” or to add to or take away from His Word which is perfect and true. These are more accurately compilations of multiple verses put together into a way that helps me, by putting different thoughts in one place, grasp just what it is I believe.

May this Christmas be filled with joy, awe, and worship for all of you as you reflect on the wonder and the awe of God loving us as much as He does, and being so near to us. Thanks for reading my blog, sharing your thoughts, and being a part of my life. I value you. To paraphrase Paul Ellis in his “Escape to Reality” blog, through God’s eyes Jesus came to earth because God loves us, so through God’s eyes, “You are the reason for the season.”

God bless you all, and Merry Christmas! —Erick

"Translation" of Luke 2, verse 5: “to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child” becomes:

to be registered with Mary, [a young, poor virgin from a no account city], his betrothed [(because he was told in a dream that her story that an angel had come to her and that it was God who had put the child in her was true)], who [had inside her frail and very human womb the One who breathes out stars, the Creator of all the universe, the One who all things find in Him their beginning and their end, the One in whom all things are held together and around Whose throne the multitude of angels and hosts of heaven hover and bow and cry “holy, holy, holy]”.

"Translation" of John 1:14a, drawing heavily on Revelation 19:11–16: “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us . . .” becomes:

And the [One called “The Word of God” and “King of Kings and Lord of Lords” who will return on a white horse with eyes like a flame of fire and wearing a robe dipped in blood with all the armies of Heaven behind Him also arrayed on white horses when He returns to strike down the nations and rule them with a rod of iron as He treads out the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty] became [a baby, laid in an animal feed trough, surrounded by coarse straw and wrapped in rough cloths, totally helpless and dependent on a poor couple, hounded and chased from His own country] and [lived among us, getting tired, hungry, weeping, being single and homeless, rejected, spit on, mocked, beaten, and ultimately killed] . . .

It Matters to That One . . .

2011-12-02T19:28:00.001-08:00

Hello friends. It's been awhile. I haven't disappeared—I've just been spending some time reflecting. I hope that this finds you well and your hearts being drawn toward awe and worship as the reality of Christmas and God becomming man fills your thoughts.

I wanted to share something with you that recently touched me, and I hope changed me. It happened one night around a firepit with some guys from our fellowship. As a background to it, there's a story that is told and retold in different variations of a man walking on a beach and seeing tons of starfish washed up, starting to die in the sun as the tide recedes. He comes across someone (most versions say a boy) throwing one after another back in. One version has it ending with the man saying to the boy, "You can't save them all, so why bother trying? Why does it matter, anyway?" and then says: The boy thought about this for a while, a starfish in his hand; he answered, "Well, it matters to this one." And then he flung the starfish into the welcoming sea.”

Opening the "Praise Jar" on Thanksgiving morning.

Recently I was reminded of this by a man whose life was in shambles when I first met him, and who is now an amazing testimony of God's power to change lives and take what society has cast aside and turn it into something amazing! I had been sharing with the guys how sometimes I can look at our fellowship and feel such warmth and such a sense of family and that God is doing a good thing there, and other times I can look outside of it and wonder if we are doing any good, if we are making any difference. Sometimes it feels like trying to fill the ocean with a drop of water when I see the scope of the lost and just how distant so many are from God. This man quietly mentioned the starfish story . . . and with his quiet words, "It mattered to that one," suddenly no more words were needed. I knew what he meant, and it pierced my heart.

I think it is so easy for us to focus on what God is not seeming to do, or hasn't done, or the prayers that remain unanswered instead of focusing on what He is doing and has done. Yet, the Bible says we are to meditate on things wonderful (my paraphrase) and while this doesn't mean we live a fairytale life ignorant of the pain and sin and emptiness around us (how can we minister to what we aren't aware of?), I believe it does mean that the focus of our thoughts and meditations are to be on Him and His wonderful nature and love and character and works. Psalm 100, verse 4 says we enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise and I like to think of that as a picture of the temple. As we approach the Holy of Holies, the presence of God, through the outer gates and courts we draw near with thanksgiving and praise. I know that for me, when I can fix my heart and mind on those things, it seems to break through dry periods and bring me into sweeter fellowship with Him.

The "Praise Jar" and the wooden top
I made for it some years ago.

"It matters to that one . . ." How easy it is to almost lesson the miraculous work God is doing and has done by focusing on what isn't done. I hope I never forget that night. You have my permission to remind me of it if I do.

In His Love,
Erick

Note: In keeping with tradition (for those of you who have followed the blog for awhile) I am sharing a couple of pictures from our family's Thanksgiving morning opening our Praise Jar. The "Praise Jar" is something we started some years back in an effort to make God the center of our Thanksgiving. Throughout the year we write down praises of His hand in our life, and then open and read them on Thanksgiving morning while the Turkey is in the oven. It is amazing how many you thought you'd never forget at the time they happen, but you have indeed forgotten by Thanksgiving. It is an amazing way to refill your "faith tank", not to mention to record the testimony of God's hand in your and your family's life.

On What Authority?

2011-10-25T11:38:00.000-07:00

"On what authority?" It is a very powerful question that cuts straight to the heart of most of the values issues relating to us today. If a person says that something is OK (or not OK), it is the simple question that cuts through everything else and gets straight to the heart of the matter. For me, on the issues the Bible addresses, the answer to the question is clear, "Because God says so in His written Word." But, for someone who rejects the Bible as God's written Word and as inerrant, we must simply ask them what makes the things right they say are right, or wrong that they say are wrong . . . "On what authority?"

When I was at West Point I was not a Christian, and I concentrated in philosophy. I remember thinking, for a season, that I was a moral relativist after hearing about that line of thought. I found myself saying, "Why not? What is right for some is right for them, and what is right for others is right for them." An officer there, who I many years later found to be a Christian, talked to me in private and told me that if he truly thought I was a moral relativist he'd do his best to have me removed from the academy. He said it was a very dangerous position to hold, especially for people who will be in positions of influence. I was stunned. I was rocked to my core. To me it was as simple issue of debating philosophy and playing with different belief systems, and he saw it as deeply serious.

Today, I couldn't agree with him more. Moral relativism—the idea that people come up with what is right for them and their culture—is incredibly dangerous and can lead to societies that euthanize the elderly, abort babies, selectively eliminate races, enslave certain classes, etc. And it comes from determining what is right for them. But, moral relativism is a philosophy predicated on error. It ignores that there is one God who is Lord of all, and who defines right and wrong. It ignores that there are absolute rights and wrongs. It ignores that we are accountable to our Creator, and that there is someone bigger than us. It ignores the fact that, in the end, it will not matter if we think something is right or wrong, but only what He thinks is right or wrong.

The quickest way that I know to cut to the chase and find out the core philosophy or foundation of someone and their arguments is to ask the most basic of questions . . . "On what authority do you base your opinion?"

History-Cookbook Fundraiser

2011-10-24T16:38:00.000-07:00

Hello All! As readers know, I rarely mix my pastoring and youth leading with this blog as it is my personal blog, but since so many of you heard about the youth group's fund raising history-cookbook Mary Ann and I spent most of the summer working on (and some of you even sent us recipes for it!) I wanted to take a moment to announce: "It is here!" (The applause is resounding, especially from this house!)

If you want to read more about More Treasures Under the Oaks, or request a copy via PayPal (you don't have to have a PayPal account to do so), you can do so at our fellowship's web page: http://www.truelifecf.org/cookbook.htm. We are asking for a $12 donation per book, and all proceeds from the book go to the youth group and the outreach work we do to local youth (neither Mary Ann or I or any individual receive anything for this book). The postage is a little steep for a single copy, but because of our rural location we can't go to the post office to weigh individual orders so we are using flat rate priority envelopes and boxes. Of course, and I mean it!, don't feel any, any pressure to request a copy.

The book turned out wonderfully, and I don't say that because Mary Ann and I wrote it and typeset it. Simply, God's hand was on it. It is 224 pages of local history and photographs and recipes, with a special, large section on outdoor cooking (barbecuing, grilling, Dutch oven, smoking, etc). Many of the stories we recorded have never been in print before as God led us to interview old timers who have since died or moved and whose stories have never been written down in the past. In many cases these old timers gave us their scrapbooks with photographs never published before and told us to take them for as long as we needed and use what we wanted from them. God is woven throughout the book in scattered verses and the section titles, plus multiple of the articles and other writings. We have received wonderful feedback on the book so far, and it is exciting to me to hear how many people are reading it cover to cover who have never set foot inside the church building or will never hear me teaching or read my blog. It is exciting to realize they will read verses from God's written word, hear the story of a Creation-Scientist with a PhD in Evolutionary Biology who used to be an avid anti-Christian and evolutionist (a recipe from him is in the book), read how our area is not a slice of Heaven, but a shadow of Heaven, all as they read stories of treasures, wild-west shootouts, pioneer life in our area, and so much more! To God be the Glory! Whether or not you get a copy, please keep this in prayer as both a wonderful fund raiser for our youth, and as a door into people's hearts and homes in the region that otherwise might have stayed closed.

She Considered Him Faithful . . .

2011-10-14T12:23:00.000-07:00

I know faith has been used, at times, like a club that beats someone up further who hasn't been healed or seen a prayer answered and heard the words, "You don't have enough faith." That is sad. Faith is a beautiful word when used in the context of our confidence and trust in God, His Word, His character, His goodness, His promises. And, yes, faith does, often, play a role in God moving—the Bible is filled with stories of people whose faith caused something to happen—and it also records God moving in other times when it seems no faith was involved.

I have been teaching recently on the amazing, divine invitation we have from God as Christians to surrender our will and "kingdom" to His will and "kingdom" and to let His will be done where we have a realm of influence. It is amazing and awe inspiring and exciting that God invites us to colabor with Him and to be a part of His will and work—that He dwells in us, leads us, and offers Himself to us to partner in plans eternal, and to be a part of His kingdom driving back darkness. How could we ever buy the lie that we can somehow, on our own, make decisions for our life that will give us more happiness, meaning, purpose, joy, security, etc. then partnering with our Creator in the very plans and works He created us for?! Yet, how often each day we decide we can better secure our happiness or security or meaning than He can. It is so foolish . . . and yet, a lie we fall for far too often.

These last few Sundays I've been talking about some of the reasons we don't surrender to His will. Sometimes we don't want to give up control—our lives are already so regulated and to give up even more control of them seems to diminish us. Or, maybe we don't trust God—I know we'd never admit that, but it is true at some level for most of us. Maybe we don't trust Him to make us happy, or to speak to us, or to take care of us. Maybe we are afraid that what we think we need isn't what He thinks we need when He promises to take care of our needs. Maybe we are offended or angry at God because of something that happened to us once, or a prayer that wasn't answered, and it makes it hard for us to trust Him. There are so many reasons we might resist His will and choose our own in any given moment of our life.

One of the most powerful and revealing verses in the Bible to me is Hebrews 11:11. It says, "By faith Sarah herself received power to conceive, even when she was past the age, since she considered him faithful who had promised." Sarah, who mocked and didn't believe, had a promise from God for a child. At some point, after her mocking, it seems she stopped and took her unbelief captive to something and that gave her faith. Her faith brought out the life and power that was dormant in God's promise, waiting, and it came to pass. So, what did she take her unbelief captive to? To God Himself. To His character. Somewhere in there she stopped, recognized the lie and the error of her thinking, and realized just who it was that promised her. It was God! The God who created the Heavens! And, by taking her doubts and, maybe, fears, captive to the person of God Himself they melted away and were replaced by a faith that brought life to God's promise and she received the power to conceive. Her faith brought power, and life.

When we look at ourselves, we find, I believe, one of two things. If we are arrogant and proud we find a false confidence built on frail and temporal bodies and minds. If we are self-critical and even honest with ourselves we find little confidence because we realize how limited we are and how fragile we are. But, when we look at God we find something else, altogether! We find an all powerful God who loves us beyond measure and who never leaves us or forsakes us. We find a God who invites us to colabor with Him and to partake in the Kingdom's resources to bring His will and plans together. We find a Creator who created us for special works and leads us in fulfilling them, hence fulfilling the very purpose we were created for. We find a God who breathes out stars and yet says to us, "I want to spend eternity with you!" Suddenly, when we consider Him and not ourselves, His capability and not ours, His wisdom and not ours, His power and not ours, our faith is increased and the impossible becomes possible when it is Him leading us.

Sarah was bound by the world and her experience and her limitation. If formed the basis of her expectation, and in those boundaries she had no expectation of a child. But then she considered Him, and who He is, and His character and nature and power, and she realized that, while she is frail, He is faithful, and He has promised, and she was filled with faith and believed. And the power to conceive came upon her.

What has God invited you to colabor in? Are you considering yourself, or Him, in your assessing of it. When our own capability and resources form the outer boundary of our expectations the boundaries are small . . . but when He leads and we surrender and His capability and resources form the outer boundaries of our expectations, we find there are, in fact, no boundaries that exceed His capacity. He is faithful, even when we are not. Let us consider Him . . .

A Religious Test for President?

2011-10-12T09:11:00.000-07:00

A recent article on FOX News reported on Mitt Romney wanting Rick Perry to apologize for a pastor's comments about Mormonism being a cult. In the article it quoted Mitt as saying, "Gov. Perry selected an individual to introduce him, who then used religion as a basis for which he said he would endorse Gov. Perry, and as a reason to not support me," Romney said. "I would call upon Gov. Perry to repudiate the sentiment and the remarks made by that pastor."

There is a huge error, I believe, in Mitt's statement. While I do not believe our nation can, or should, have a religious test for offices as a law, I find it ignorant and irresponsible for people to say individuals should not use religion as a basis for personal voting choices and endorsements. To me this is just one more inroad of the enemy that has already so powerfully succeeded in blocking faith from life—to so many faith has become a thing for Sunday and heaven, whereas science and their own strength and capability are left to provide the "real" answers to "real" life.

We find so many who have bowed to science's words over God's Word, and so many who find themselves in a hollow gospel that saves Jesus for Heaven, but leaves them alone to walk through life on a day to day basis and deal with all of life's "stuff" on their own. Now we are told (or at least it is implied) that someone shouldn't use religion as a basis for endorsing and supporting a candidate (or not endorsing or supporting one). How sad! Do we realize that if everyone who proclaimed to be a Christian actually voted on their faith and not on their own definition or right and wrong, or on their own economic best interests, we'd have a majority every time? Already, it seems to me, too few people are voting (or caring about) God's values and priorities.

If we don't understand a candidates world view then how can we possibly understand what makes that candidate tick, or how they will vote on issues that aren't even on the table for discussion yet? How can we understand a candidate if we don't understand their attitude toward right and wrong, man's condition, good and evil, humans and the environment, etc.? If someone is true to their world view it will define everything they do! For people who believe in evolution, they will find themselves believing that in man the answer will eventually be found because we just keep getting better and better. On the other hand, a Creationist recognizes the fall and decay of man and the absolute necessity for God to move and man to move in partnership with Him. To the evolutionist we are equal to animals and plants, but to a Creationist we are clear that we are custodians of them and that they were given to us for us, but not as our equal. To an atheist there is no absolute standard of right and wrong and moral relativism is the rule. To a Christian God is the source of right and wrong. To an atheist there is no explanation for evil, but to a Christian we see evil as real and having a source, and we are careful in dealing with people ruled by it.

On and on we could list the issues that should be dramatically affected by our faith and world view. If we are true to it, and it isn't just a political expediency to woo a mass of voters, it will be the very definition of who we are, how we act, etc. It should be true for every individual, not just politicians, but in the case of those running for office it is, to me, sheer ignorance and foolishness to imply a candidates faith should not be an issue in individuals deciding who they will support. To the contrary, I wish more professing Christians actually voted the way they feel God's Word reveals God would feel on an issue.

Inward or Outward?

2011-09-27T19:57:00.000-07:00

Today I was sitting in a VA waiting room with a bunch of other vets waiting to be called for my routine physical. As I watched the nurses calling people and weighing them in one nurse seemed particularly rushed and even a little sour. One patient tried joking with her and she was obviously not appreciating it, and she was clearly not in a good mood (I need to say that this is the exception, not the rule, for all the people I have encountered in the VA system—the ones in the clinic I go to seem to truly care about vets and want to serve them).

As my time drew close to be called I thought, "I hope I don't get her!" Who'd want, after all, a grumpy nurse weighing you in and asking you questions and taking your blood pressure? But, almost immediately after that thought, I had this thought pop into my mind, "But what if she needs what you have?"

It was profound. In a mere second I saw my complete self-focus, desiring to make things easy for me, to have a cheerful nurse, etc. My eyes were completely focused on my self and my ease and comfort and pleasure. And in a moment, with a simply thought, it was as if the eyes of my heart spun 180-degrees and I saw myself as possibly there for her, and not for me. After all, I know the One who loves her and who brings hope and joy and peace and love into our lives. I carry His presence, and I bear His image. It was amazing how fast my entire focus shifted and I found myself excitedly saying, "God, if she needs what I have please give her to me as my nurse!" I was actually hoping to get her and eager to see what He was up to! It was incredible, actually, how quickly I went from being there to be served, to being there ready to serve. It was almost funny to think that maybe I'd been brought there not for me, but to do His business there.

I never did get her as my nurse, but I did get a real glimpse into my heart and into how quickly I can slip into a place of inward, self focus and forget just who I am in Christ and who goes with me and in me. I am worried about my own comfort and actually praying, without realizing it, that I might miss a divine appointment. Isn't it awesome how even in a place we go to in order to be served that we can find a place to be the server! May God open the eyes of our heart to see their inward focus and ignite in us a desire to be in the service of others, carrying His image and love and power to them!

The Ordinary is Extraordinary!

2011-09-22T11:48:00.000-07:00

Mary Ann working on her cast.

Last Sunday our family left for our "weekend" and slipped up to the Sierra Nevada Mountains after church for some fellowship and fishing. We love what happens in our hearts above 5,000 feet when the rivers are flowing with clear, cold water and the breeze blows through the tall trees that cover the rock covered mountains. Bethany caught a trout while we were there, Abigail became an amazing "caster," and Mary Ann and I got to practice fly fishing. There is something so beautiful about that line curling up in the air above and behind a person as they gently drop the fly into the stream or pool. The new header for this blog is a picture of our family from our trip (if you are reading this by email subscription you'll need to go to the blog to see it). It was wonderful, refreshing, and beautiful—and the fact that we shared the couple of days with some wonderful people up there who love the Lord and our family made it especially sweet.

On the way home Tuesday night we headed straight west for awhile, right into a sunset. The sun was slipping down behind the far hills and there must have been a haze or something out there because it was a big, orange ball that you could actually look at. I have seen hundreds of sunsets in my life, and there was nothing in and of itself spectacular about this one, but for some reason it really struck Mary Ann and I at the same time. Maybe it is because this last year or two God has been awakening me to the awe and wonder of His Creation in the heavens and I have been learning a lot, and sharing a lot, about them. Normally, during the day, you can't look at the sun. It is this ball of light in the corner of our eye that we take for granted. It is normal. But Tuesday night we couldn't not stare at it as it was straight in front of us right on the horizon. To take our eyes off it would be to take them off the road. As we stared at it we both were like, "That is a star!"

I don't know that this will make much sense, but there is a sense, at least for me, that I see all these stars out there at night, and then during the day there is our sun. Maybe it is because I equate stars with night, but it often eludes my conscious thought that the sun is a star. I know it intellectually, but fail to focus on that fact. It is just "the sun" in the sky, and it is "normal." Tuesday night, however, we both found ourselves in awe, realizing we were staring at a star—a great big, massive, ball of gas and fire that would consume us long before we ever got to it! We were staring at a star and it was big and it was close! It was astounding. It was awe inspiring. There is this star just a skip away in light year terms that we are circling around. We are feeling its heat. Its blazing light is lighting up our earth. It is so big and so powerful that nothing man has ever created is a fraction of its power. According to one web site, if we could harness it right, enough energy arrives at our earth every minute to meet all of our demands for a year—and that is with only about a hundredth of a millionth of a percent of the sun's energy actually hitting our earth! It is so mighty, and yet we (at least I) take it for granted and take our proximity to it for granted. I am afraid that in this, and in many things, I have let the extraordinary become ordinary.

God is Amazing

2011-09-17T15:55:00.000-07:00

Sometimes we move so fast that we miss the miracles in front of us. I snapped this shot last month in our garden and wanted to share it with you. Notice the pollen on the bee (in FireFox—I don't know about other browsers—you can click on the picture and it will take you to a larger version, then you can hit the back arrow to come back to the blog). Isn't God amazing? I find such comfort in knowing that since He has paid attention to the tiniest details in Creation I can trust Him with the details of my life, no matter how tiny. I really encourage you, today, to stop and "be still and know that He is God" as the Psalm says. Whether it is the details in a garden, the flight of birds above you, or the glory of the night sky above you, just stop and be still and let who He is and His awesome wonder and might and breadth and power wash over you and bring everything you are dealing with back into its proper perspective. God bless you all, and may today be a wonderful day filled with a deep awareness of His love for you and presence with you.

Laugh a Little More 1

2011-09-17T15:45:00.000-07:00

I love to laugh. I don't do it enough. I get so serious and caught up in stuff, and yet . . . aren't we a faith of joy? Aren't we a faith of coming like children? Aren't we a faith that, while we deal with serious stuff, we have a great big Father in Heaven who loves us and calls us His own? Some time back I started collecting Christian jokes—clean, God-centered things that made me laugh and smile. I don't think we need to divide our life into compartments where we have the work stuff, the God stuff, the fun stuff, the (you fill in the blank) stuff, etc. I believe that our faith can cross all the lines, and I have found that there really are out there a lot of fun, God-centered, clean jokes. So, now and then, I'll share my favorites with you. I've said from the start that this blog is simply a place for me to share reflections, thoughts, things God is showing me, slices of my life, etc. So, I hope no one is bothered by this or wishes everything was theology. We need to laugh! The world needs to see that side of us too, not just a serious message. I'd love to have you send me your favorite Christian joke(s).

So, here's the first. I have no idea how often I'll throw these in among my other sharings and thoughts. Let me know if they make you smile, too.

Locked Car Door
    A woman was at work when she received a phone call that her daughter was very sick with a fever. She left her work and stopped by the pharmacy to get some medication. She got back to her car and found that she had locked her keys in the car.
    She didn't know what to do, so she called home and told the baby sitter what had happened. The baby sitter told her that her the fever was getting worse. She said, "You might find a coat hanger and use that to open the door."
    The woman looked around and found an old rusty coat hanger that had been thrown down on the ground, possibly by someone else who at some time or other had locked their keys in their car. Then she looked at the hanger and said, "I don't know how to use this."
    So she bowed her head and asked God to send her some help. Within five minutes an old rusty car pulled up with a dirty, greasy, bearded man who was wearing an old biker skull rag on his head. The woman thought, "This is what you sent to help me?" But, she was desperate, so she was also very thankful.
    The man got out of his car and asked her if he could help. She said, "Yes, my daughter is very sick. I stopped to get her some medication and I locked my keys in my car. I must get home to her. Please, can you use this hanger to unlock my car?"
    He said, "Sure". He walked over to the car, and in less than a minute the car was opened. She hugged the man and through her tears she said, "Thank you so much! You are a very nice man."
    The man replied, "Lady, I am not a nice man. I just got out of prison today. I was in prison for car theft and have only been out for about an hour."
    The woman hugged the man again and with sobbing tears cried out loud, "Oh, Thank you God! You even sent me a professional!"
(author unknown)

Turning Our Sin and Inadequacies to Praise

2011-09-14T12:13:00.000-07:00

I have been struck recently by the wonderful opportunity we have to turn even our sin and our inadequacies into praise that glorifies the Son. Take, for instance, a sin I commit. There are two main possible responses. One focuses on my sin, my shortcoming, how bad I messed up, how lousy I am, etc. The other stands in awe that God forgave my sin, that He saw it before the earth was formed and created me anyway, that He loved me so much He would erase it with His own blood, that He has completely separated me from it, etc. One puts the eyes on me, the other the eyes on Him.

I tend to think the Biblical response is to dip quickly in and then out of the first, “Father, I’m sorry. I blew it," and then to dive and swim in the latter, “Oh, but thank You so much, Father, that you knew I’d do that before You even formed me yet you still did! I love you, Father. Thank you, precious Lord Jesus that you bore that sin on the cross for me! Thank you that I am completely forgiven of that sin and separated from it! Thank You that You will never leave or forsake me despite my mistakes! Thank you that you are so awesome and holy and wonderful that You love me with a love so vast and so deep and so wide! Thank You that sin matters to You, that you are purely good! Thank you that I matter to You, that You want me with You! Thank You! You are so wonderful and amazing! I praise You!” It strikes me that this is the pattern we see in Paul—he spent a bit of time, now and then, acknowledging his shortcomings, but the bulk of his time was spent praising God and God’s love and God’s complete sufficiency and provision and forgiveness in the face of his shortcomings.

What a difference a shift of focus can make! Our inadequacies can follow the same pattern. Either, “I am so inadequate to do this or that. I fall so short. I do so lousy at this or that,” on and on, etc., etc. Or we can say, “I praise You, Father, that though I alone am so weak at this or that, You are not, and Your grace is sufficient for me, and You are with me, and You will never leave me or forsake me, and that with You nothing is impossible, and that You are faithful to complete the good work You’ve begun in me, and that You both put Your desires in me and You work in me to bring them to pass! You are awesome and amazing and I love You and I praise You!” etc.

It’s about the eyes of our heart and mind. Are they on Him or on us? One path will take us down into the mucky pit and mud of self-focus, self-bashing, negative expectations, bitterness, depression, gloom, and darkness. The other will lift us beyond our shortcomings and into a place of praise and love and awe that stirs in us faith, positive expectancy of the future, and a longing to go on, to get closer to Him, and to glorify Him more. It has never been about us—we couldn't do anything to be born again (except faith) and we can't do anything to lose it. It is not about us, it is all about Him and what He has done. The enemy wants our eyes on us and our work (or lack of) so that we never fully understand the magnitude of the work Jesus did on the cross and our utter and complete forgiveness and acceptance before God, and the position we hold in Christ. God wants us to focus on His Son and the work His Son did, from love, on our behalf so we might walk from our position in Christ—completely forgiven, accepted, adopted, righteous, and with authority over the demonic. May we choose the latter and may all we do point to, and glorify, the Son! He alone is worthy!

Clarification on Global Warming Post

2011-09-13T08:35:00.000-07:00

If you received my Global Warming post this morning by email I have slightly modified it at the beginning and end to better explain why I wrote it and what bearing I feel it has on our Christian life as we try and make daily decisions, vote wisely, and walk out our faith across our life and not leave it a compartmentalized part of our life that has no bearing on other parts of it. You can read it at the blog site. God bless. Have a wonderful day! —Erick

Global Warming—Another Babel?

2011-09-12T18:30:00.000-07:00

Note: This is a slightly modified version from the post that went out to email subscribers this morning. Because this issue is so sensitive I tried to explain a little better why I wrote it and what application I feel it has to what we might face as Christians.

As a Christian who tries to make my faith relevant in every area of life, and not just as a compartmentalized part of my life, I feel like I often have to confront the assumption by others (in error) that I don't care about the environment because I either don't esteem sciences' opinion as high as others do, or because I make values and pro-life a higher priority in my voting. I want to share some reflections on this, and maybe it will help others who face the same thing.

I read today that Al Gore plans on a 24-hour broadcast to defend man’s impact on global warming. I think about this topic now and then because it comes up so much. I am not a scientist, and I am sure I don't understand all the arguments, but I’ll share my struggle with this whole thing, and then close with a thought. I am not bashing on global warming believers in what I am about to say—I am sure they have sincere hearts and I can only wish more Christians shared their passion for a cause. I just can't, at this point, buy what they are saying when I really think about it. I obviously can't personally verify the numbers I am using, but I have tried to find websites that seemed solid. So, here is how I think about it all:

Depending on what internet site you look at, anywhere from 70–75% of the earth’s surface is covered by water. That leaves only 25–30% covered by land.

One web site said that 70% of the world’s land mass is covered by vegetation. So, that means 17.5–21% (70% of 25% and 30%) of the world is vegetated. This means only 7.5–9% of the world is land that is not covered in vegetation.

According to one web site, half the earth’s landmass is unihabitable for one geographic reason or another. So now you are down to anywhere from 12.5–15% of the earth is even inhabitable.

So, of the 7.5–9% of the earth that is land not covered in vegetation, or of the 12.5–15% of the earth that is even inhabitable, what percent is covered by industrial, emissions producing people, buildings, and vehicles? I couldn’t find the figures, but I’ll bet it is tiny! I know I have flown over the United States many times and I am awed by the percent of the land below me that is uninhabited, or sparsely and agriculturally inhabited. One web site I did find says the U.S. Census Bureau qualifies “developed land” as land with 30 or more residents per square mile. According to that qualification, as of 2000 only 5.4% of the United States is considered developed! And we are a developed country!

So, take that fractional percent of the earth's water and land surface that is populated by emission producing, pollution producing people and facilities. Set that aside for a moment and consider that a conservative estimate of the thickness of the critical portions of our atmosphere is 29 miles thick. (The stratosphere is, I understand, the area of our atmosphere where the ozone is contained and it is from 11 miles above the surface to 29–31 miles.) If we take all of the atmosphere it is hard to know where it ends because it fades off into space, but different web sites put it at many hundreds of miles thick.

I can’t even do that math, but if you picture the critical atmosphere of 30 miles thick, spread that thick above every part of the earths surface (almost 197,000,000 square miles according to multiple web sites), that is a lot of atmosphere! Thirty miles thick over close to 200 million square miles! And the tiny percent of the earth that actually produces emissions (and many of those are heavily regulated) is supposed to be affecting that so much that it is altering the earth’s climates?

As I said earlier, I am not a scientist, but that just doesn’t make sense to me. And, honestly, I get tired of it being implied that I don’t care about the earth or the environment because I don’t buy global warming. Our family loves the outdoors. We live where we do, for one reason, because of the wide open spaces, the clear skies, the clean air, the wildlife, the stars, etc. We police after ourselves, and others, when we are in the wilds. We fish. We camp. We compost. We conserve water. We recycle. We believe God made us custodians of the earth, but we also believe He made the earth for us and not the other way around. I guess if you believe evolution then you believe Mother Nature is your equal, but if you believe Creation you know man is God’s shining Creation, made in His image, and given the earth for stewardship and use.

Frankly, the global warming argument strikes me as another tower of Babel. While I am not saying global warming believers are arrogant, I do believe that the extension of what they are saying, laid out as I have tried to do, is another sign of man’s arrogance (intentional or unintentional). To me it is inherently arrogant to think that we are so mighty that this fractional percent of people and factories can affect the earth’s climate on a global scale. I do believe sin affected it—I believe the whole earth groans under sin’s curse. And, I believe we can locally affect it and destroy its air and streams and land. But the claim of global warming is, too me, at this point, not something I can believe. Maybe I just don’t give us enough credit. I just know that there are, to me, much bigger issue at work and that we live in a world that desperately needs to know the love of the God that made them in His image and loves them beyond measure. This is, to me, the crisis that should energize us all, and I don't think it means we have to not care about the earth and be custodians of it, but we remember it is not our equal, it is for us and not us for it, and that it will pass away one day while human spirits will live eternally. I don't like having to choose sometimes in candidates that don't meet all of my viewpoints on things, but when I have to choose I will choose pro-life, family values, and a Christian with a solid, Biblical world view (and witness) every time.

A Sure Foundation

2011-09-08T17:26:00.000-07:00

This afternoon we were all having lunch out on our screen porch and the girls were sharing with me what they’ve learned about science today. Abigail gave me a pretty good 6-year-old’s definition of it, and then Bethany told me about the scientific method in which you ultimately form a hypothesis, test it, repeat it repeatedly, and then form a law or theory around your observations and results.

Naturally (at least in our house), the conversation turned to the theory of evolution. I shared how multiple of those components of even forming a decent theory that is justifiable are missing for evolution across species. One, you can’t observe it. Two, it can’t be replicated or created. Throw in there that there is no evidence for it and you have, at best, a very weak theory.

Bethany then asked about Creation and all of us talked about how it is a theory as well (at least it is presented as one, though we believe it is far from a theory, but rather fact). One major difference, however, between the two is that the evidence supports Creation—take, as just one piece, the multitude of creatures with mechanisms in place that would have caused the creature to die out and not reproduce if those mechanisms were at any point short of completely developed.

As we talked it struck me that there is another huge difference between the two “theories.” Creation has a primary source account of it from the One who not only observed it, but did it. We have the written record from the One who created it all and who told us how He did it. So, in the end, in addition to the overwhelming evidence for Creation, it comes down to the Bible and our view of it. Is it His Word or not? If it is, who are we to doubt or twist it or to try to conform it to man’s opinions? And, if it is not His Word, then we have far bigger problems than evolution or Creation. Thank God that He gives us every reason to believe His written Word is true, and for the revelation it gives us of His heart, His character, and His promises. It is a sure foundation on which to build our lives.

First Classroom Day . . .

2011-09-01T07:48:00.000-07:00

No, despite yesterdays post and now this, I won't be bombarding you with day after day of memory and internet hogging posts filled with pictures, but I couldn't miss my traditional “First Day of Homeschool” post, and I know many of you who know us enjoy sharing this day with us. Actually, yesterday was just the first day of classroom time—we’ve had a pretty amazing, educational summer (see our zoo trip to see one thing we did) and we are more and more seeing why some people call it home educating instead of home schooling. The education never really stops just because you aren’t in the classroom, and we are finding that it is much more of a lifestyle (and full of life skills) than the set number of days or curriculum you can tend to try and compare yourself to if you try and just do "school," only at home. (For those of you new to my blog, I am in no way implying anything against the wonderful teachers and parents and staff at public schools. We treasure the love shown at our local school, have many staff members at our fellowship, and volunteer at it coaching softball.)

The day began with the girls dressed in “baking” clothes and taking lead in measuring out and making up a batch of peanut butter cookies to bless a neighbor with who gave us some veggies, and to take to youth group. Then, after a recess (and Dad sneaking in a cup of coffee with Mom), the girls surprised Mom and changed into some pretty dresses and got to see the classroom and all the surprises it holds. As class began, of course, the Shofar was blown off of the upper deck, and the day and year were prayed for. May the Holy Spirit anoint the year and us for the trust of raising our children! I invite you to share a bit in our day, if you are interested, through some of the pictures I’ve included (they are each worth a thousand words, after all). You should be able to click on each picture to enlarge it, and then hit the back arrow to return to the post (at least that works in FireFox). God bless you, and thanks for being a part of our lives. —Erick

Eager to start!

Momma/Teacher & her girls.

Baking, and tasting, and . . .

Exciting learning ahead!

A trip to the Grand Canyon . . . at least a poster of it.

Momma even gets a gift!

Science table with microscope, tree rings, Saber Tooth Tiger
tooth cast, fossilized dinosaur bone, obsidian, an old 3 1/2"
disc and a new DVD (do you know that it would take a
stack of those discs as high as 14 Abigials on top of
each other to equal the storage on two DVDs?), and more.

Teacher loves her girls (and "principal" loves
his girls, all three, too!)!

The Zoo & Creation . . .

2011-08-31T13:24:00.000-07:00

California Condor Wing Span. Incredible!

The Gorilla came up to the window and sat down.

How sad children are taught apes are their relatives
when God has fearfully and wonderfully made them.

Lunch by the Elephants.

Cool!

Our family was blessed last week to get a tour of the Santa Barbara Zoo led by a Creationist (Russ McGlenn). Our homeschool group set it up and it was a wonderful and refreshing change to be part of a group glorifying God through the animals (and nature) instead of trying to make us believe we are their relatives (and they are equal to us). Here are some pictures to share with you of our day. He is truly evident in Creation, and His amazing design truly can give us confidence that He can handle the details of our life!

Good?

2011-08-31T09:22:00.000-07:00

In Romans 3:9–12 Paul writes: What then? Are we Jews any better off? No, not at all. For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin, as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.” He ends that description in verse 18 with, “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

Paul is describing both Jew and Greek, basically the “proper” religious ones and those totally ignorant of the true God (therefore, everyone). It is a stunning statement and it is a clear look at how God sees good and bad, Light and darkness. We must remember that he is including here even the man or woman next door who doesn’t hurt anyone and who helps others. None are righteous. No one does good. This is shocking if we are used to defining good and “righteous” by deeds and moral measuring sticks—the kind of defining that leaves us stunned that the “Son of Sam” (see “The Son of Sam and . . . You and I”) might be in heaven one day, and our neighbor or family member who has never done anything so horrific as he has be absent from there, and in hell.

If this reality stuns us, or bothers us, we are probably looking at good and bad as ranking or measured or rated, with people being compared and ranked by their “goodness” or “badness” of deeds. This is dangerous and it will draw us away from God and in to arrogance (or, in some cases, horrible depression if we start to believe we are so much more horrible than others). One thing must be clear in our understanding of the Gospel—the Law, the moral code, is not to encourage and build us up, but to point us to Jesus. Paul continues with verses 19–20 and says: Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.

The Law convicts. The moral code convicts. It makes the whole world accountable to God. By the Law NO ONE will be justified in God’s sight! The Law brings the knowledge of sin, not unlike Adam and Eve gained the knowledge of good and evil and were suddenly ashamed and afraid of God. That is it. That is the Law’s purpose. It is a tutor to bring us to Christ. The Pharisees made the horrible mistake of letting the Law exalt them because they measured good and bad by it, and found themselves “closer” to it than others. That is NOT the Law’s role! It is not to show us we are better than another, but to show us how horribly separated we are from God and how unrighteous we are—to prepare us for Christ and to show us our utter need for Him and His work on the cross as our SOLE basis and claim of righteousness.

When moral works exalt us or puff us up or cause us to esteem ourselves better than another we have completely missed the point of the Law. We were created to live in an intimate, moment by moment relationship with our Creator and Father, led by His Spirit. We were not created to live by a moral code. The Law kills, the Spirit gives life and freedom. What we must understand is that there is no good apart from God. Romans 14:23 will go so far as to say whatever does not proceed from faith is sin, and this is not talking about huge moral acts—but about eating! James tells us it is sin if we know what TO do and don't do it (so there is sin from doing, and from NOT doing!) We can start to see that there are NONE righteous—not one! There is no good apart from faith—none! This is so, so hard to absorb as long as we insist on defining good by works and not God. HE, alone, is good, and we must understand that. We become good and righteous in Him and through Him, only! It is only through a living, faith relationship with Him that we are found righteous—and it is only what is done by His Spirit through us that is good.

But, the amazing and awesome flip side of all this is that when we come to Christ, we become completely righteous! Christ has completely paid for our sin and we are completely crucified with Him at our born again moment, and completely raised with Him as a new creation, paid for and adopted, righteous and alive. It is not because of anything we have done, but all because of what He has done and what we have received in faith in our place. It is positional—just like we can travel at 60 mph in a car without doing anything ourself, but simply because we are in the car. Our righteousness is simply because we are in Christ, and that is the most wonderful news of all. If I didn't earn it by my works and can't lose it by my stumbles, and my God is perfectly able to keep me in Christ, no matter what the enemy might try and throw my way!

Thanks be to God! May the joy and freedom His grace and your total freedom from the Law fill you with joy today. —Erick

Son of Sam and . . . You and I

2011-08-24T11:05:00.000-07:00

Note: If you have not read the Light and Dark series (Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3) I recommend you do as a context for what follows. I believe that an understanding of this truth will dramatically affect both our understanding, and our sharing of the Gospel.

A Fox News story today reports that convicted serial killer David Berkowitz, also known as "Son of Sam," said he has "no interest" in parole thanks to forgiveness by Jesus Christ. It reports that Berkowitz—who terrorized New York in the late 1970s, killing six people and wounding seven—will not seek parole during his next opportunity in May. According to the article, he wrote Fox News, “I have no interest in parole and no plans to seek release . . . If you could understand this, I am already a 'free man.' I am not saying this jokingly. I really am. Jesus Christ has already forgiven and pardoned me, and I believe this.”

Now, I recognize that there is a lot of scepticism about prison conversions (I have almost never met with someone in jail who hasn’t said God got a hold of them this time and it is the last, but few have made significant and lasting changes toward God when they are out). I don’t know David personally, but I do know that there is much more to be said, and read, about him and his conversion. He even has a web page where he writes devotionals called www.ariseandshine.org. But, setting any skepticism aside (and in NO way saying what he did was not horrible or that God doesn't think it horrible), and assuming for the sake of this post that his conversion is real, this is a story almost guaranteed to reveal deep down your and my understanding of the holiness of God, the condition of man, the Gospel, and of Light and Darkness.

If you, as a Christian, struggle with the fact that this man will share Heaven with you while your neighbor, who gives to charity and does “good” deeds won’t as of now, you may not fully understand how God sees Light and Darkness. Likewise, if you are not a Christian, and you struggle with the idea of this man being eternally in Heaven and you being eternally in Hell, you probably don’t understand Light and Darkness.

At this point in my life and studies I believe that the major problem and obstacle to our understanding of the Gospel lies in defining good and bad by a moral measuring stick and not by God’s presence in it or absence from it. We must remember that the Bible says that the Light came into the Darkness, and that men loved darkness because of their wicked deeds and so rejected the Light. There are only two kinds of people—those in the Light and those in Darkness, and God’s reign is the defining mark. Colossians 1:13-14 says of God, “He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” The “domain [rule] of darkness” and the “wicked deeds” Jesus talks about in John, Chapter 3, apply to even those family and friends and neighbors who do “good” deeds. I believe we struggle with this because we want to measure ourself against others, and fail to see the vast distance we all are from God and the utter darkness of absence from Him.

I can not adequately explore this in a single post, and I will talk about this more in the coming days, but we must be very, very careful to not fall into the trap of looking left and right to define Light and Dark, and good and evil, instead of looking up to Him. He is the line, He is the mark, He is the litmus test, He is the measure. He is the life. We were created for relationship with Him, and we chose the knowledge of good and evil. WE chose a moral code. WE chose a set of rules that make it possible to live independent of His leading. HE created us for intimate, moment-by-moment relationship with Him and WE chose a path that made us “like God”—able to define right and wrong on our own. We MUST understand, HE is the measure, HE is life, and anything apart from Him and relationship with Him is Darkness and death. It may have the appearance, and even intention of good, but He alone is life. And, so, we come again to that place where “wicked deeds” are not defined by a moral measuring stick, but by His absence where we have replaced His rule with self-rule, and separated ourselves from Him. We will never grasp this if insist on believing good can exist apart from Him.

I know that this is a lot, and that I run the risk of offending people with such a limited explanation, but hang in there. More next time, but until then, may His love be felt strongly by you.
Erick

Fire Boring Preachers?

2011-08-21T18:41:00.000-07:00

An August 8th post by Eryn Sun in The Christian Post naturally, as a pastor/teacher, caught my eye. It was called, "Why 'Boring' Preachers Should Be Fired." It talks about Christian theologian Carl Trueman and credits him with writing about how, "good preachers preaching on doctrine or 'the description of who God is and how he has acted' should never leave audiences feeling cold and indifferent" (and how elders should fire ones who consistently do). You would need to read the whole article to get all of what he is said to have said, and to be truly fair to the full picture he presents, but a few comments the author of this post attributes to him include:

1. "The relationship between doctrine and worship in the structure of Paul’s letters allows us to infer that doctrine which does not lead to praise is not really true in the richest sense of the word" . . . "Doctrine which does not culminate in praise is not true doctrine" . . . "Teaching of doctrine and appropriate response to the same are inextricably tied together such that the former should really terminate in the latter."

2. “I was talking to a friend recently who told me of a Sunday school class on providence which he had attended. The presentation, while precise and correct at the level of formulation, left my friend cold. Nothing of the glory or the grace or the mercy or the patience of God had been conveyed in the presentation. There was nothing to call forth a response of praise and adoration.” The article also states that, "He clarified that this did not mean people should be swayed 'by aesthetics' or 'reader response' however. He just questioned a man who took 'the deep, mysterious and glorious things of God' and consistently turned them into a 'bland medium.' "

Naturally, this subject is something I reflected on, and I have a few thoughts about it. My thoughts are not all directly tied in to Mr. Trueman, but rather spawned by his. I have not read his original article, only the article about it, and I am not criticizing him at all, only sharing my reflections that the article birthed.

I wonder—what is the responsibility of a teacher? What is he accountable for? I would think that it would be an accurate presentation and exposition of the Word of God or subject that the Spirit of God led him to. If he picked a message from his own "good ideas" or because a denomination told him to then there is a strong chance that the Spirit is not leading it or anointing it. But, if he has prayed and sought the Lord and obeyed, then the Spirit will anoint it and he has done what he was called to do.

I wonder how Jesus would measure up to the standard of true doctrine being that which elicits praise in the audience? I, honestly, don't see a lot of that response coming from his words. We could say his audience was pre-Pentecost, but then Acts tells us a lot about the apostles being driven from cities for preaching (not praise coming). Of course, if this only refers to an audience of true, Spirit-filled believers then does the criticism find merit that true teaching should evoke praise? I am still unsure on this. What is the responsibility of the listener to be prepared for the teaching and to have his or her heart ready and his conscience cleansed. If the Spirit is grieved or quenched by him or her will a teaching cause praise to rise up?

I think that there is a danger (and a truth) in what Mr. Trueman brings up. Obviously, if a man is consistently unmoved by the glory of God and transmits that lack of emotion then there is a chance it will have an effect on the listener . . . but what a danger there is in putting the response of the listener on the back of the teacher as well. Might this not led to a pastor-centered church instead of a Christ-centered church? Might this bring about the situation where we follow a teacher and not the one the teacher points to? Might this standard subtly pull us into the realm of seeking out teachers who give our itching ears what they want to hear?

I think a key is that the Spirit alone can awaken a heart. If it is awakened or moved by the delivery of a man it is not going to be true. I have read that Jonathan Edwards delivered "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" in a monotone and people clutched the pews in fear. Other preachers can preach in a great oratory and evoke an emotion of praise that doesn't last past the first person that cuts them off on the way home. And, what about the mix in the congregation? I can't tell you how many times the same teaching I have delivered has caused one to two people to nod off and had multiple people come up after and tell me how much it moved and affected them. I have had, in the same week, the criticism that the church was too "Pentecostal" (I don't know what that means) and that it wasn't Spirit-filled enough—same week! I have had people complain I go to long and others wish I went longer. I have had our church condemned, and praised, because we long to see those come to it who are broken, addicted, outcast, and rejected. So, what becomes the standard in these cases?

I think the answer has to lie in the simple question, "Did the teacher do what God asked them to do?" That is all they are responsible for, I believe. But, it is an interesting question and line of thought and I'd love to hear your comments. Obviously, as a pastor, I'm a little pre-biased. What do you think? What do you believe God's Word says a teacher's responsibility is? What would cause you to fire a preacher, and what wouldn't?

Light and Darkness, Part 3

2011-08-15T10:03:00.000-07:00

I highly encourage you to read Paul Ellis' 8/16/11 post on his Escape to Reality blog called "12 Infamous Examples of Walking After the Flesh in the Bible." This post dovetails beautifully with my prior posts in this series—in which I shared how "darkness" and "wicked deeds" are not defined by our moral measuring stick, but by God's presence in them or not (and how this realization affects our understand and sharing of the Gospel, especially with "good" people). The comment I left on his post was: This is one of the best posts I have ever read. Thank you for teaching and reminding us that even our “good” ideas and leadings, apart from Him, are sin. I have been finding in my recent studies and teachings such an amazing revelation in Jesus’ talk with Nicodemus. When He tells Nicodemus that the light comes in to the darkness but men love the darkness because of their wicked deeds I shared with our church how this applies even to our friends and family who don’t do “bad” things, but even do charitable things and “good” things. Clearly, Jesus defines darkness and wicked deeds differently than we are tempted to do with our moral measuring stick. The conclusion I have come to is that darkness and wicked deeds are anything separate from Him. I really, really appreciate this post. I am going to share a link to it on my blog. I hope that is OK.

Accountable for Words . . .

2011-08-12T20:04:00.000-07:00

The whole account of Numbers 13 and 14 of the people spying out the land, and then choosing fear over faith, captivates me. Every time I read it I find more rich gems about faith, and fear, and trust in it. Today I was glancing through it and a verse I know I have read many times jumped out at me like it never has before. It is Numbers 14:36–37 and it comes right after the Lord told Moses and Aaron that all who were twenty years and older (except Joshua and Caleb) will fall in the wilderness over the forty years and not see the promised land. It says, “And the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land, who returned and made all the congregation grumble against him by bringing up a bad report about the land—the men who brought up a bad report of the land—died by plague before the Lord.”
    Wow! That really made me sit up and re-read it. What had these men done? The whole congregation would wander out their days in the wilderness because they had made the choice to not believe God, to be in fear and not faith, and to grumble and complain . . . but these men seemed to pay an extra hard price. What was their special “sin”? They brought the report that caused the people to fall in to fear.
    Now, Joshua and Caleb saw the same land they saw, and gave the same report of bounty and of the enemy . . . but the difference came after that. Of the ten spies singled out here Numbers 13:31–33 says, “Then the men who had gone up with him said, ‘We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are.’ So they brought to the people of Israel a bad report of the land that they had spied out, saying, ‘The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people that we saw in it are of great height. And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.’ ”
    What of Joshua and Caleb? What was their response that “earned” them the favor of seeing the promised land? Numbers 14:6–9 says: And Joshua . . . and Caleb . . . tore their clothes and said to all the congregation of the people of Israel, “The land, which we passed through to spy it out, is an exceedingly good land. If the Lord delights in us, he will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land that flows with milk and honey. Only do not rebel against the Lord. And do not fear the people of the land, for they are bread for us. Their protection is removed from them, and the Lord is with us; do not fear them.” Prior to that, in Numbers 13:30, Caleb had spoken the words that caused the other ten to rebut him when he said, “Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it.”
    The result? The people chose fear and grumbling over faith, and God would go so far as to say they didn’t believe in Him! That would be a shocking statement to a people who would absolutely say they believe in God and who would see a difference between believing in Him, and believing Him (He had promised them the land) . . . it appears God doesn’t see that difference.
    So, the people would wander and perish over the years in the wilderness . . . but of those ten, the ones whose words were words of fear and not faith, the ones whose words brought out the unbelief and fear in the others, there was stiff accountability. It makes me wonder, what is our responsibility for our words around those in whose lives God has given us influence? Are our words building up their faith and drawing their eyes to their great God, or are our words causing them to be in unbelief and grumbling? Do our words and expectations give more power to God, or to the enemy? Are they words of life and hope, or fear and pessimism? This isn’t about drumming up false encouragement and denying reality . . . it is about embracing true reality, in faith, and not letting sight define it. It is about God and His Word and His promises and His power being the most powerful influence on our expectations and words, and not the world and its “wisdom” and its predictions and its circumstances. We have the God who speaks out stars that are so big they would swallow our Sun and all the planets out to near Saturn (and all the space in between those planets). He is our God! Do our words reflect it? What are they bringing out in those we influence? It is a thought worth asking the Holy Spirit about, because our words have power and they have influence and God does listen to them.

Country Life

2011-08-11T09:41:00.000-07:00

I guess this is the day for sending you to other sites. That is what is so wonderful to me about the body of Christ—we can't, and shouldn't, operate effectively alone. Christ, alone, should be the center—not one man or woman's ministry, not one church, not one gift. I treasure the body of Christ, and one of my favorite places to "visit" is the blog of Stephen and Janet Bly, Christian writers with a lot of fiction out there. My heart leans toward the novels of the Old West—I love westerns and that era, and to find books that glorify God while allowing me to "step" in to that time is a true blessing. You can find a link to their blog in my "Links" section, and you might especially like to see their post from today as it has two very special girls in it . . . I'll leave it at that, but I think you'd enjoy seeing it. (To go to the post I am talking about, click here and scroll to the Thursday, 8/11/11 post called "This Country Caption Says It All.") As always, I'd treasure your feedback. I always want this blog to be a place for us all to grow and share, not just a place about me.

Devotional Christian Web Site

2011-08-11T08:19:00.000-07:00

As you know if you've followed this blog, my heart for it has always been a place to dialogue, connect with and encourage and challenge one another, and to share thoughts and reflections that will help us bear His image. Through it I have met many wonderful people, and been introduced to many blogs and "God Lovers" who have challenged me and helped me grow. I have often talked about Pearl and her blog, and Toyin's blog, and more recently I have come to really enjoy a blog by Glen, who writes The Renewed Mind—there are links to all three on my "Links" page. While I may not agree with every post each of them makes, and I am sure they don't agree with everything I write, they are all people who love the Lord and who seek to glorify Him and help others, and who I have been blessed by them.

Recently, Glen mentioned that it his blog had been accepted for listing on a site called "The Devotional Christian". I hadn't heard of the site, so I checked it out. While I can't, obviously, vouch for every posting or link on it, I really like the idea of the site and what it represents. Tony, who runs it, reviews Christian sites and blogs designed to help Christians in their walk and collects them in one place for ease of the rest of us finding them. I sent him by blog link and he approved it this morning (while sipping a cup of coffee, he added), and I wanted to thank him and share his page with you, that you, too, might be blessed by his work.

Home Page: http://devotionalchristian.com/
Blogs Page: http://devotionalchristian.com/blogs/

Tony also has a page I am really excited about diving in to more deeply (is that a correct wording?). Already Mary Ann, looking over my shoulder, said, "Bookmark that one!" for further exploration when we have access to high speed internet. It is called Ministry to Children.com.

Thanks, Tony, for including my site, and my God bless your work as you seek His glory! Thanks, Glen, for pointing me to it. May it bless all of you as we seek to grow in Him, together, and may we all encourage one another to not stop with theology, but to walk it out. As the sign I have that hangs below the pulpit I teach from says, "The lesson does not end here. Now it must be lived"!

Lessons from Hummingbirds . . .

2011-08-10T11:52:00.000-07:00

I will return to my "Light and darkness" series in the weeks ahead, but I wanted to share here a few thoughts I had yesterday while sitting in our sitting area and taking a little "be still" time. As I was out there I had the pleasure of watching hummingbirds coming to the feeder we have hanging above our vegetable garden. They are fascinating to watch and incredible evidence of a Creator, and I noticed a few things while I did:

1) Without the hummingbirds, the feeder was "dead": Hanging there, with no birds around, there was no beauty in the feeder itself. It was made for something, and when it wasn't used for that purpose it held no attraction. But, when the birds came to it, it suddenly became the center piece of beauty and part of drawing my mind toward God. We, too, are created for a purpose and a relationship. We find our purpose and meaning and beauty in our relationship with God, when He dwells in us and finds us a surrendered vessel for His presence and will. Then, we are vessels that bear His image and through us others' eyes are drawn toward Him.

2) Two things disrupted the beauty and purpose of the feeder: The first was when one bird chased off another. Suddenly, when they weren't united, the peace and beauty of the scene was lost in conflict. Though there are four holes on the feeder to drink at, often one bird would chase others away from it. There was plenty there for them all, but they not only prohibited others from drinking when they acted that way . . . but they couldn't drink themselves when they were doing it, either. How many times Christians chase others away from drinking deep of Him by their pettiness, criticism, self-focus, judgment, jealousy, lack of faith which makes them self-preserving, etc. And, of course, when those things mark us, we can never drink deeply ourselves as our fellowship with Him is broken by our actions and attitudes which grieve His Spirit and keep love from flowing—and He will not be where love is not, since He is, Himself, love. The other thing that disrupted the purpose of the feeder and the beauty of it was a Yellow Jacket trying to get something from the feeder. They are small next to even the tiny hummingbird, and yet the hummingbird fled from its charge each time it did so. How many times, I wonder, do we allow an enemy we have authority over, and whom Jesus has defeated, rob us from what God intends for us? I can't help but think that, if the hummingbirds could just see themselves from our perspective, they'd realize it is the Yellow Jacket that should flee from them and not the other way around. We, too, must remember that the thief (Satan) comes for nothing but to steal, kill, and destroy, but the promise to us is that if we resist him he WILL flee.

Just some thoughts, and maybe some lessons, from the hummingbird . . .

Too Cool!

2011-08-10T11:26:00.000-07:00

Abigail peering at the Praying Mantis.

The Praying Mantis peering at Abigail.

If you've followed this blog for awhile you know that there is something special God is doing with us and Praying Mantis. They have shown up on our property (and at our church) countless times on just the day we needed a reminder of the power of prayer, and the victory of God over darkness. They are something our family gets really excited when we see, and the other day Abigail saw one and came to get me to show me. I thought that these two pictures were too cool not to share, so I hope that you enjoy them. If you think this is awesome too, you might enjoy my August 31, 2009 post "I Receive That!"—if ever God sent a visual picture through nature of the power of Him and prayer over the sting of the enemy, that post shows it!

Ooops

2011-08-04T14:53:00.000-07:00

We are in the final three days of proofing and preparing the file for this history cookbook, and I found a pretty significant typo I made! I wonder what the reactions would have been if God hadn't helped me notice that, when talking about the types of meat you could use in the recipe for 25 lbs of Swiss Sausage, I had put that it had to be 1/2 pork and that the other 1/2 could be beer (instead of beef). Twelve and a half pounds of beer. Hmmm. I wonder if someone would have tried it. That's when a spell checker just doesn't help . . .

Please keep up your prayers. I still don't have the file fixed, but have found some workarounds. I will be continuing the series on Light and dark soon, and look forward to being back "together" with all of you.

Light and Darkness, Part 2

2011-08-02T08:36:00.000-07:00

Note: Please be praying strongly this week for this history-cookbook project I am wrapping up. We are very, very close and I am really struggling with the "closer" (Gospel) page which shares how our region is not a slice of Heaven (it is a wonderful place!), but a shadow of Heaven. Then, last night, Mary Ann and I were up until 11:30 trying to fix a corruption in the file---the first time this has happened, and the night before we were to print proofs. I can't figure out what happened, and yet I know that God is bigger than it all, and that this book will be finished and bless our community, our youth, and glorify God!

Light and Darkness, Part 2: One of the starkest contrasts the Bible presents between the Kingdom (reign and rule) of God and the reign and rule of Satan is that of Light versus dark. The Bible makes it clear that the world is in darkness. Now, anyone that has ever been sunburned knows we have a very big light above us half the day, so something else is meant in the following passages:

Matt 4:12-17   Now when he [Jesus] heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew into Galilee. . . . so that what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: ". . . the people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light, and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death, on them a light has dawned." From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."

Acts 26:15-18   And I [Paul] said, 'Who are you, Lord?' And the Lord said, 'I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. . . . for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you, . . . to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.'

Clearly, darkness is the default condition of man and the world, and clearly He means a spiritual and mental darkness. This ties in to the theme of blindness, also in the Bible describing the lost:

2 Cor 4:3-6   And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled only to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. . . . For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

So, just what does God mean by this darkness? It is a critical understanding to understand the Gospel, and it especially speaks to the heart of "good people" (of which I spent many years thinking I was, because I wasn't "as bad" as many around me). I believe the clue to God's meaning of "darkness" comes in John's encounter with Nicodemus in which Jesus (who calls Himself the Light of the World) says to him:

John 3:19-21   And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his deeds have been carried out in God.

Those who refuse to come to the Light (Jesus) are those who love darkness because of their wicked deeds. But, we all know people who, compared to others, are really "good" people and don't do "wicked" deeds (as long as man, and not God, is the standard). And yet, the Bible is clear they are lost and, tragically, going to Hell. So what are their wicked deeds? Why is the darkness they so love? It is the absence of God. He is the Light. Apart from Him is darkness. So wicked deeds are not just things like murder and drugs and adultery, but any deeds done in the darkness, done from self-rule and not God's rule (hence Kingdom). They are us, loving ourselves more than Him and others, and being our own Lord of our life. That is the ultimate tragedy and trap of the enemy, to get us to think that there is any good apart from God. When we love to rule our own life more than loving God and others and His rule in our life we are separated from Him, not walking in faith, and separation from Him is darkness. A great lie of the enemy is that it has to be "really bad" things, when He is so good that anything apart from Him is bad, and tragic.

I'll write more about this in the next post (God willing), but I encourage you to reflect on it. It is changing the way I share the Gospel and the concept of sin and darkness, and I truly believe that if "good" people understand this they will understand the Gospel better—people who don't do murder and the such and struggle to understand what is so dark about their life. This understanding of darkness elevates our eyes from others around us, and their lives, to Him. Until then, God bless, and don't hesitate to send your feedback. I treasure hearing from you!

Light and Darkness, Part 1

2011-08-01T08:33:00.000-07:00

Hello all. No, I haven’t “disappeared”—I have just been putting hours upon hours in to wrapping up the history-cookbook fundraiser we are doing for our youth group, and most of the rest of things have slipped to the side. But, it is close . . . and I am feeling things start returning to “normal” (whatever that is—someone said the other day that “normal” is a setting on a dryer and all the rest is life . . . )
    With that said, as a “sub” series in the running study I am teaching on the Kingdom of God (which is focusing on the present-day, “breaking in” aspect of His Kingdom—as opposed to the place Heaven, or the future Kingdom reality) I have been doing a shorter series on the stark contrast that exists (and should be evident) between the two kingdoms—God’s reign and rule versus Satan’s. The Kingdom of God, in the present day sense, is the reign or rule of God in a situation or person. Jesus said if He cast a demon out of someone the Kingdom of God had come upon them. He would heal a sick person and use it to talk about the Kingdom of God, and Colossians 1:13 says that when we are saved we are taken out of the rule/authority of Satan and into the Kingdom of Jesus.
    When God comes in to a person or situation the contrast should come to be stark because His rule has just replaced Satan’s, and their two hearts are very different. Jesus came in love that we might have life (eternal life begins at salvation), and have it abundantly, and He left us access to His joy and peace and indwelt by His Spirit which produces such things as love and kindness, etc. Satan, on the other hand, is by Jesus’ words a thief who comes naught except to steal, kill, and destroy. When God’s power comes against Satan’s, God’s is always superior—just ask Pharoah’s magicians, the demonized man in the tombs, or Simon or the woman with the spirit of divination in Acts.
    Unfortunately, in Western Christianity, the world seems to rarely see such a stark contrast between itself and God’s Kingdom, and I think that one of the reasons is that we try (and our culture permits us) to live at the same time with the security of Heaven, and the pleasures, values, and priorities of earth—and we often have little more respect for the authority and truth of His Word than the scientists do who mock it (hence our faith is weakened). Thus we are powerless, His voice is quieted, His Spirit is quenched, and all the world says is different about us is that they have Sunday morning off and we don’t. For the most part, Western Christianity is a far cry from those in Acts who “turned the world upside down.”
    I want to begin in the next few posts to talk about one of the stark contrasts between God’s Kingdom (reign and rule) versus Satan’s—the stark contrast between Light and darkness (and what God means by those two words). I think that it will really help us to better understand why a “good” person can go to Hell, and how we miss God as the mark of all that is good. I encourage you to follow this along, I think it will bless you. Until then, may God pour His favor upon you.

Another Thought on Unanswered Prayer

2011-07-14T07:26:00.000-07:00

In June I wrote a post involving Steinbeck and my dad called "Unanswered" Prayer in which I shared that maybe, sometimes, when we feel like God isn't answering our prayers, it is because the answer involves so many people and/or situations that aren't yet in place in our lives that we might not even recognize His answer as from Him if He told us what we wanted to know. Last night we had a young man from our youth group over for dinner to talk with him and spend some time together and we got talking about the future. He has a tremendous heart for God's will in His life, but experiences the uncertainty of not knowing what that is (something we all, often, experience, I would imagine). Mary Ann shared a thought with him that I believe is another reason God may not always share with us the information about the future we are requesting (seemingly not answering our prayer). She reminded him of Abraham and Sarah and the mess that came out of God telling them their future . . . and then them trying to "help God out" and make that future happen (the birth of a baby to them being the situation I am talking about). We have the whole situation with Hagar and the two sons when there was only supposed to be one and all the problems today that spring back to that moment. So, maybe, sometimes God doesn't give us an answer to a request for His will or plan for the future because He knows that we'll try and "help" it happen instead of letting Him bring it about in His timing through our surrender to His leading . . . and rather than help, we'll just mess it up. Just a thought, and one I felt was a good one. Interestingly, it was this same Abraham who earlier in his life left his homeland at God's command and traveled, not knowing where he was going, until God said stop. He is a man who should have been familiar with God leading every moment and orchestrating the timing of everything. I wonder . . . how many times do we learn a lesson and then forget it or blow it off?

God bless you all, and thanks for sharing in my life and this little blog world. We have a truly mighty and wonderful God!
Erick

Shuttle Launch and the Wizard of Oz . . .

2011-07-08T09:50:00.000-07:00

I must confess—I was caught off guard this morning with the emotion I felt while watching the shuttle Atlantis take off for the final Space Shuttle launch ever. I did not expect to feel such sadness, such a mix of emotions, and to have some tears trickle down my face. I don't know if it was the combined weight of remembering the first launch and having lived through the triumphs and the horror of the tragedies, or just plain ol' sentimentality. But, it was a moment in which I felt far more than I expected to.

Man is truly amazing. Who can watch that giant shuttle lift off, defy the bounds of gravity, and return safely and not realize that? If we are but a mere reflection of God, in whose image we are made, He must be so absolutely incredible and amazing that words can't begin to describe Him . . . and, of course, He is!

Watching the launch, I was struck, as the TV showed scenes of the launch center with its banks and banks of people and computers, at how many hundreds of people behind the scenes whose names will never be known by more than a handful of people made it possible for those few heroes in the cockpit to do what they do. It is not unlike the Kingdom of God work—there are the "few" with the visibility, the "few" with the name recognition or that an entire church prays for as they are in the mission field, etc., . . . and for each of them there are entire corps of people making it possible through prayer, financial support, keeping a home in order, being a friend or a support. These people each share the victory, though often there are only one or two sets of eyes recording their quiet service and support.

I was also struck, as I was hit by so many emotions, by how beautiful the human heart and mind are, when those parts made in God's image shine. It is truly amazing to feel such things as joy, pride, wistfulness, love, honor, sacrifice, courage, and more. How horrible it would be to not feel—to just go through life driven by primal urges and instincts. Man is truly amazing, and his myriad of emotions and possible things he can experience are amazing, but there is, of course, only one true way those can be good and the way they were intended—and that is harnessed to God with His Spirit inside of us.

Last night, after finding out about a month ago that one of the youth in our group hadn't seen The Wizard of Oz, we had a fun movie night at the church building, with the big 12' screen set up, watching it. A lady in our fellowship provided a soda, candy bar, and bag of popcorn for each of us, and it was a wonderful evening. When it was over we "grabbed some carpet" (my call to sit down on the floor in a casual circle and get in to some good God talk) and I shared some thoughts. Of course Baum wasn't writing a Christian analogy when he wrote the story, but there is an amazing (probably unintentional) message in it about how we are all looking for something and, if we aren't careful, we'll pursue it in things that appear to satisfy and be the source of our answer, but are really counterfeit masks when revealed . . . but sometimes it is too late.

Man is truly amazing, and his emotions and capacities are beautiful, but only when in relationship with His Creator. When we start looking for courage and identity (the lion), or wisdom (the scarecrow), or a heart and love (the tin man), or a home (a place of belonging and security, like Dorothy), apart from finding those things in and through God, we can step in to treacherous places with horrible costs. Just like Eve—if we doubt God's Word, trustworthiness, or love we can start to believe we can find pleasure (the tree was pleasing to the sight), provision for our needs (it was good for food), or wisdom (it was desirable to make one wise) apart from God and His Word and His wisdom.

It is striking to me how, after they achieved their goal and met the wizard, there was "one more thing" required. Isn't it always that way with anything of the world? It satisfies for a season, but then we need a little more to keep up being satisfied. God alone, through Jesus, truly satisfies and fulfills—and only when we are in a relationship with Him and in His will. It was also striking to me how the witch wanted to create a poison that was attractive to the eye and soothing (the poppy field that put them to sleep). Satan knows that few of us will leave the road and be distracted from the goal and the race with "obvious, big sin" . . . but if he can make something pleasing and appealing and seemingly harmless we are tempted to step off the path, step away from the course, "for just a little bit" and then lulled into his trap.

So, these are just a few thoughts I've had in the midst of trying to finish up the collection of stuff for the youth group's history cookbook. Thanks for "listening" to my rambling, and maybe something in it will speak to your heart. I never promised this blog would be all serious theological posts, but simply a place for me to share for anyone who might be interested. And, just remember, Christian—when the evil one faces you and cackles in your face, you have living water to throw his way! Enjoy him melting when you do!

Lessons from Chickens . . .

2011-06-24T19:09:00.000-07:00

Recently, when we've gone out of town, we've needed to have the person who watches our house leave the chickens in their pen instead of letting them out during the day to roam around a larger area we had fenced in for them. Why? Because they kept escaping and getting into our yard and lawn and vegetable garden causing damage, and because we didn't want our house sitter to have to chase them around the yard at night.

The result of this? Unhappy chickens! But, when we see the reason for that, it struck me that we probably aren't a lot different. If those chickens had stayed in the boundaries we set up for them, they could have had the freedom and food and pleasure of roaming around the large fenced area for each day we are gone. But, because they kept "escaping" the boundaries and going after what, to them, seemed more beneficial and pleasurable, it cost them tremendously in the end.

I wonder . . . how many times to we "escape" the boundaries God sets up for us, and push the envelope, and do things "our way" (kind of like Eve who saw the tree was pleasing to the eye, good for food, and desirable to make one wise)? And, how many times does it force God to restrain, or hold back, something He had in store for us that maybe we never even will ever find out about? Just a thought, and maybe a lesson, from watching chickens . . .

"Unanswered" Prayers

2011-06-20T09:10:00.000-07:00

Father's Day on Cannery Row.

Yesterday I had the wonderful blessing of being able to head north after church and spend Father's Day with my parents. For weeks I looked forward to a good, long cup of coffee at a special coffee shop on Cannery Row—sitting, catching up, just being together. As we headed up the Salinas Valley the fog bank ahead looked ominous, but when we got to the coffee shop I had requested the weather was beautiful, the ocean glittered in the sun, and someone had even left us two outside tables, pushed together, with an umbrella above them and six chairs arranged around them. Thanks, Lord!

When I went into the coffee shop to order while we waited for my folks to arrive I noticed on the top of the counter facing the door a few books on stands . . . a couple of titles by John Steinbeck, and my dad's pictorial history of the Monterey/Cannery Row waterfront and sardine industry, From Fisherman's Wharf to Steinbeck's Cannery Row. When he got there I had fun telling my dad that he was ranked up there side by side with Steinbeck!

Not bad company to be next to . . .

Later last night, as we sat around visiting at my parent's home, Dad reminded me of a time in the very early 1960s when he had bumped in to Steinbeck on the street up in San Francisco. All of a sudden, as he shared it, I thought of how, often, if we were told our future, we'd never believe it because it would be so out of our current frame of reference that we couldn't receive it. When my dad bumped in to John Steinbeck, at the time Steinbeck was a well known author . . . but my dad was not writing, I wasn't in the picture, and grand kids certainly weren't! It would have been, on that early 1960s day, mind-bending to be told that he would one day be a father of a son, a grandfather of two beautiful girls, an author of a book that would be shelved next to Steinbeck's, and spending a Father's day almost 50 years later with his wife, son, daughter-in-law and two granddaughters at a waterfront coffee shop at an elegant resort hotel in an area that, at that time, was marked old abandoned canneries with little tourist appeal.

As I reflected on that, I found myself thinking of how often we probably ask God for an answer to something and, while He knows it, He either can't give it to us, or we can't recognize it as from Him when He does (thinking, instead, we are just having weird thoughts or daydreams), because the answer is completely out of our frame of current reference because it involves situations and circumstances that we have yet to even know will happen. Sometimes, I believe, we must wait to get an answer from God because a person, or situation, or event involved in the answer is not even in place or in the picture yet, and there is no way for us to comprehend an answer that involves something or someone we are not even aware of yet.

As I look back at seasons of my life I realize how many places there are in it that if you had told me where I'd be five or ten or twenty years later I would have either laughed, called you crazy, or simply not been able to wrap myself around it (i.e. the college freshmen mocking a God he claims he doesn't believe in becoming a pastor, etc.). Certainly, if I had a thought about a future like that I would have dismissed it! And yet, when we pray and ask God a question about the future, how many times is that the same situation? We wouldn't recognize the answer if He gave it to us because it is so out of the current context of our life or situation. And so, in that period of waiting, we move ahead on faith—not believing God hasn't heard or doesn't care, but just trusting the love He showed us on the cross and knowing that, if we aren't seeming to get an answer from Him, we can trust His love and trust His character and goodness, and trust that there is a good reason for it—and that He has not left us, ceased to care for us, or stopped watching over us.

Is God a Christian?

2011-06-11T10:56:00.000-07:00

In a recent blog post Albert Mohler discussed a book by R. Kirby Godsey called Is God a Christian? Let me say that I have not read the book and I am only going on what Mr. Mohler said about it and quoted from it—but even if it is not an accurate picture of Mr. Godsey’s arguments, it certainly is of others we will come across.

In his post, Mr. Mohler quotes Mr. Godsey as writing, “Most Christians assume that Christianity is the one and only religion that is God-inspired and that carries the imprimatur of God’s blessing.” Mr. Mohler then says how Godsey opposes that assumption and argues that, “the stakes for mankind have grown too high for any of us to engage our faith as if our understanding of God represents the only way God’s presence may be known in the world.”

On the surface this argument which Mr. Godsey purportedly puts forth sounds so comforting for those who know and love non-Christians. It sounds kind and “tolerant.” It sounds humble, “Yeah, who are we to claim we have the only way?” But, it is a devastating path for a Christian to go on—and one we MUST recognize and be able to teach our children to recognize.

Fundamentally, as with evolution, the justification of homosexuality as a pleasing lifestyle before God, or any other thing we have created contrary to the Bible, the argument reportedly put forth by Mr. Godsey is one more attack on the Bible as the written and inspired and accurate record of God’s words to us. And, when we start to lose that place of authority in our own heart that the Bible is God’s word to us, from Genesis 1:1 to the end of Revelation, we lose the very foundation of our faith. This is why I am such a supporter of defenses of the Creation account—because the devil doesn’t care where he begins to cast doubt in our heart about the Bible . . . he will eventually take that doubt and move it to the gospel. We can not take these things lightly as Christians, and as those commissioned to pass the baton on to the next generation.

Let me first say that Romans makes it clear that God is known to all men through Creation. So much so that men are without excuse for denying God. Rom 1:19-20 says: For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. So, in that sense, our faith is not the only way God’s presence may be known in the world. With that I don’t argue. That is why, I believe, so many religions carry the same themes, the same types of stories in their heritage, etc.—because, at their core, they are “God-inspired” by our innate knowledge that He is real and our seeking to give Him shape and definition.

So, I do believe that many religions have a true sense of God’s reality and presence . . . but, from that point, Christianity makes a unique claim, and it is based on the words of the Bible. In it Jesus says that He is the way—that no one comes to the Father except through Him. The parable of the minas makes it clear that at His return those who didn’t want Him as their King will be cast out. On and on we could go, quoting verses that make it clear that if we don’t come to God through the cross then we are not going to stand before Him. All of these claims come from a common origin—the Bible. And the Bible makes it pretty clear that there is only one way. So, there really isn’t room, if we believe the Bible to the accurate word from God, to accept multiple paths to God.

Of course, and here’s the rub, if we don’t believe the Bible to be the word of God then each can define their own path and what “feels right” to them and come up with their own brand of faith and religion that “resonates” with them. Of course, the slippery slope of that, is that there are no absolutes and such a relativism is a catastrophic place for a society to fall in to. There are many people who assert they are Christians who don’t believe that Jesus is the only way. I must ask, “If there was another way then what Father, who loved His Son, would subject Him to the cross?” If there was another way, than do we have multiple, alternative “Saviors”? Often it is these same Christians who will define right and wrong in society totally contrary to the Bible’s words . . . and I have to ask, how do they define the faith? Where do they derive their doctrine?

No, Christianity is based upon the Bible as the doctrinal foundation of our faith. It is one of the most primary ways God reveals Himself and His ways and His path to us. And it is clear that, in what God has chosen to reveal to us, Jesus is the only way. To reject that is to reject the Bible. To reject the Bible is to reject the faith—or to create a faith based on one’s own feelings or ideas and call it “Christianity”. That is arrogance, I believe.

It strikes me that, beyond the inspired recognition that there is a God, if Christianity is not the only God-inspired religion then it isn’t God-inspired at all because it can’t be God-inspired and be wrong, and if it is right it doesn’t leave room for other ways. I don’t see how the two can be reconciled.

Note: It is not arrogant for us to claim we have the only way. We aren't claiming it like we are some super brains who "figured it out." It is actually a very humble claim which says, in faith, "I don't have a way on my own, I trust God and His Bible to have shown me this." It is simply faith in what we believe God says. He makes the claim, we don't. We just repeat it.

Turn Around, or Go Around?

2011-06-08T21:19:00.000-07:00

First, thanks so much to those of you who have sent, or promised, contributions to the outdoor cooking fundraising book we are doing to help our work with local youth! I really appreciate it! If you haven’t given me one, and you would still be willing, I would “treasure” your recipes, tips, tricks, marinades, secrets, for outdoor cooking (BBQ, grilling, dutch oven, smoking, etc.). It could be meats (I have very little fish recipes or tips!) or sides to go with a main course. I would really like to get a “sampling” from our own area, as well as different regions of the United States (hint, hint, my readers from out of California!), or the world. Please see my post on it by clicking here. The sooner you can let me know something is coming, the more it would help me.

Turn Around, or Go Around?
The other day I was glancing through a Christian magazine I had laying around and there was an article in it by evangelist Reinhard Bonnke (Reinhard Bonnke, The Harvest Continues, Charisma magazine, March 2010). I don’t know enough about him to comment on him, but a part of what he wrote jumped out at me. He was talking about something Jesus showed Him and then he said, “After Jesus spoke these words He planted His cross in the middle of the highway to hell, His arms open wide.” A bit later he said, “When an evangelist preaches ‘Repent!’ we are saying, in effect, ‘Turn around!’ When one sinner makes a U-turn, heaven rejoices and hell is left with nothing left to celebrate.”

This word picture of a road with everyone on it resonated with me because it seems that so often people put off the choice for God with the misperception that, one day, "down the road," they will make the choice either for OR against Him—the choice to get on one road or the other. They treat it like it is a choice they need to make between God or not (or between Heaven or not). What people miss understanding is that the only choice available is one for God—that they are already firmly in the middle of the road that is called separation from God. They must choose to choose God and the cross . . . and not making a choice is in fact already a choice—it leaves them on the road they are on, separated.

"God," or "no God," is not a fork in the road of life that we come to one day. Everyone, by sin, is from the beginning traveling in the same direction on the same road of "no God." The only choice is whether or not to change direction. So, in Bonnke’s example, we are all traveling down the road of separation from God which eternally ends in separation in Hell.

The origin of the word “repent” is not about tears at the altar (though repentance might or might not bring that), but about changing a mind or direction or way of thinking. “Repent”—change your mind, change your direction. In that context, seen in the picture of our life as a journey of separation from God, the analogy of the cross in the middle of the road as a call/sign to make a U-turn, or to turn around, is a very apt one. At least it worked for me and resonated well as it underscores that we are already ON the road of separation from God—we don’t choose that road, it is our default! The choice, the only choice, is whether to change direction. The scary part is that no choice is in fact a choice which leaves you on that awful road. Doing nothing is in fact doing something, and it is the worst thing one can "do"! So, really, it comes down to a person being on the road that is separation from God and being confronted with the cross . . . do they go around it and continue on, or turn around (repent) when it confronts them?

Clouds . . .

2011-05-29T20:12:00.000-07:00

A cloud picture I once took.

This afternoon Mary Ann and I were sitting outside having a cup of coffee and huge, billowing white clouds were blowing by. I love looking at clouds. They fascinate me! These were especially beautiful as the sky was such a deep blue, and the new leaves of the oak trees such a vibrant green, that the clouds really stood out and made all the other colors stand out as well.

I wonder, how long has it been since you ever really thought about clouds, and stopped and just watched them. Truly, they are fascinating! Think about it—water weighs just over eight pounds per gallon . . . and those clouds hold sometimes thousands and thousands of gallons of water in them. Just picture the water that comes out of them during a good storm when you can get multiple inches of rain in a day or a weekend. And yet, at eight pounds a gallon (imagine trying to lift thousands of one-gallon water bottles!) it remains aloft, suspended in some form, floating above us!

I know that scientists can explain all of it, and they use all these technical reasons and words for it, but don’t let that steal from you the childlike simplicity and wonder of simply a cloud. If man had tried to invent a way to suspend thousands, or millions, of gallons of water above him can you imagine the size of the vessel, or container, it would require, and the amount of lift it would take to get it up there, let alone keep it up there or move it around?!

Yet, somehow, the water hangs up there, is blown about effortlessly by the wind, is visible and yet we can put our hand right through it, defies gravity, and is painted with amazing colors at sunset and sunrise. It is truly a miracle of design when you think about it. Sadly, many would have you believe that these, too, (just like they claim about you), are a chance product of accident with no intelligent design behind them. Maybe it is no wonder that God says we must come to Him as little children . . . when we get old we get the truth that is obvious to a child educated right out of us.

Take time, today, I encourage you, to simply stare up at clouds and marvel . . . and, if you need to do it through a window, stop for a moment and think of how amazing glass is also—that you can see completely through, without even noticing it, something that is totally solid, and yet totally invisible. A product of accident, or design? I don’t need to wonder. It is truly “clear” to me!

May God awaken in you today a renewed, childlike wonder at His creation and may you find your eyes and heart and hands lifted to Him in awe and worship.
Erick

Note: In my browser (I don't know about yours) you can click on one of the cloud pictures and it will take you to an enlarged version of the picture for you to enjoy. Then, simply click on the back arrow to return to the post.

BBQ

2011-05-29T16:02:00.000-07:00

The original book, when it was the
Dry Bones Youth Group (now it is the True
Life Youth Group).

Outdoor cooking fans, we need your help!

Normally I don't cross the line between this, my personal blog, and my place as the pastor and the youth leader of True Life Christian Fellowship, but Mary Ann and I are reprinting and expanding a fundraising book we did for our youth group about 10 years ago and I would value your help. The original book was filled with recipes, history, old photographs, historical anecdotes, and so much more. It was a real "treasure" as many of the photographs were never before published, and of the 15 people we interviewed for it, 10 have either moved or died since then.

Well, the book has been out of print for many, many years, and since so many people have asked for it (and our youth group needs funds!) we are going to reprint it and add about 60 new pages of photographs, history, and recipes. The emphasis of the recipe portion of this new section is going to be something our area loves to do—cook outdoors!

So, here's what I need—if I can get enough of you to help out, I would like to put in a couple of pages of outdoor cooking tips, tricks, and recipes from other parts of the country (or even the world). Would you consider, please, sending me your favorite outdoor cooking (BBQ, grilling, dutch oven, smoking, deep pit, etc.) recipe, tip, trick, etc. I think it would be so neat to give the book a flavor of what comes from other states and countries (and for the youth to see such support). I am not just looking for recipes, but also the tips and tricks and art of outdoor cooking. So, maybe it isn't you, but it is a family member who excels at this type of cooking. Would you consider sending me your, or their, recipe, tip, trick? It could be for the main course, or something else you grill (like veggies), or a special marinade or rub or seasoning.

You can send them to me in a comment. Remember to follow the comment process all the way through, including the verification step. There is a tab at the top of the blog that helps walk you through the comment process if you have trouble. Please include your name, and the region you are from (i.e., east Texas, central Oklahoma, etc.). If you have a little fun information about the recipe or tip to include I would value that (i.e., "My grandpa always made this on Veteran's Day and he got it from his father," etc.).

Thanks so much! I won't publish these comments, but I will post a comment thanking you. If you don't see that within a few days please try again. You can also try and send it to me at my email: emar (at) tcsn (dot) net. You can replace the words in it with the proper symbols, it is written like that to protect against computer spammers.

Note: This book is completely not for profit as True Life Christian Fellowship is a 501 (3) (c) organization. All money from the book goes to the youth group and helps make the outreach we do to local youth possible. You can learn more about the cookbook project by clicking here.

David's Cry: Part 5

2011-05-27T22:51:00.000-07:00

David on the throne . . . a king who served The King!

Part 5 of 5 in a series on David’s cry to God in Psalm 89:26, “You are my Father, my God, and the Rock of my salvation.”
The risk of error in our walk with God, or in our sharing of God, is great if we do not have a full picture of God. I touched on this in Part 1, showing how if we only know God as grace, or if we only know Him as King and Lord, we can react too far in one direction or another and miss the fulness of who He is, and our relationship with Him.

Of course, we will never fully grasp who He is, or the magnificent depth of our relationship with Him, but David’s cry to God gives us a very good starting place to begin to see the full picture of who He is and our relationship with Him. It makes sense to study how David saw God because David was, by God’s own praise, a man after God’s own heart.

So, if we take each of the three separate aspects of God David expresses in this cry, as we did in parts 2–4, we start to see how:

1) Each one describes a part of God
2) Each one magnifies and gives detail to the others
3) Each one helps us understand our relationship with God
4) Each one is accurate . . . but not complete

What kind of God is God? He is a God who is our Father, and a God who loves us so much He died in our place to become the Rock of our Salvation!

What kind of a Father is He? He is one who is God—holy and mighty and ferocious and worthy of our awe and worship and obedience . . . and He is one who dies for His children, who lays His life down for His own.

What kind of relationship does He save us into? One with a Father to a child. And what kind of a Father is He? He is a perfect Father who is perfectly capable and perfectly love . . . He is God.

Back and forth we could go, showing how each one magnifies and clarifies the other, and gives us the balance. Each one pulls the other toward the center, full picture of God. If we understand each one it will keep us from taking any one of them too far in a direction it shouldn’t go. It is truly and amazing and succinct cry from David to God . . . one that, when meditated upon, opens our eyes in new ways.

Back and forth, each aspect helps flush out both the full picture, and the other parts of it . . .

. . . and that is the balance of how we are to walk out this Kingdom life, declaring and representing and carrying the reign and rule of God, who is supreme, our Father, who loves us and has relationship with us, and our Rock solid Savior, who makes us secure and confident and filled with authority as we go in His name.

I hope that you have enjoyed, and been blessed by, this series. I know that it has been a blessing to me. I’d love to hear your thoughts and reflections.

Erick

David's Cry: Part 4

2011-05-26T18:28:00.000-07:00

David finishes off Goliath, showing to all the power of the living God of Israel!

Part 4 in a series of 5 on David’s cry to the Lord in Psalm 89:26, “You are my Father, my God, and the Rock of my salvation.”

My Father, my God . . . and the Rock of my Salvation! Wow, that last one is as laden with meaning and implications as the first two, and it gives tremendous completion to the picture of God, and our relationship with Him, that we see in this three-fold cry of David.

Salvation—to recognize this about God is to recognize that we need to be saved—that there is something to be saved from, and that we are not in a good place until we are. It is to realize that there is a chasm between us and God.

To recognize that HE is the Rock of our Salvation is to recognize that we can’t save ourself, and that there is nothing we can do of our own to present ourselves acceptable before Him. That recognition brings tremendous humility, and grace toward others who are just as flawed as we are.

Ultimately this recognition leads us to the cross where Jesus paid for our sins with His own life, and where God poured His wrath at sin upon His own Son in our place, satisfying His justice, so we might be united with Him forever through faith in that as enough for us.

United with Him in what kind of a relationship, though? If you only know Him as Savior you might not know how to relate to Him. But, that isn’t all we know Him as through David’s cry. What kind of relationship does He save us into? One with our God, who is our Father.

To meditate on God as the Rock of our Salvation reminds us that His salvation was a gift of His love, not earned of our performance, given when we were completely cut off and rebellious from Him. The implication of this is huge and the most freeing one we can have—if we didn’t earn that salvation, if it was a gift of His love, and He never changes, then we can’t lose it by messing up—it was a gift, not earned. If we’d “earned” it by our performance or religious duty—if we’d "saved ourself"—can you imagine the pressure and fear we would be under needing to continue to perform lest we mess up and lose our salvation? But, if we understand, as David did, that He saved us from His unchanging love for us, we understand the freedom and joy of that gift of salvation . . .

. . . and the realization of this brings us to a place of such gratitude to Him that we find our heart burning with love for Him and a desire to serve Him and give back to Him a fraction of what He has given us.

He is the ROCK of our Salvation—there is no more secure and firm word than that. In faith in Jesus as our Savior there is complete safety and security, and that is the rock we can confidently build our life upon and frame our joy and peace over.

David's Cry: Part 3

2011-05-24T17:51:00.000-07:00

David, standing alone in faith in His God, slings the stone at Goliath.

Part 3 of 5 in a series on David’s cry to God in Psalm 89:26, "You are my Father, my God, and the Rock of my salvation."

If “Father” (see Part 2) is the only way we, as Christians, know to see, and relate to, God, we would have a partial picture of Him and our relationship with Him, but one that can lead us into error if we rely only on it as we can tend to ignore, grow casual to, or even walk away from a father. But, that isn’t the only aspect of God we see in David’s cry to Him—to this man after God’s own heart He is our Father, and our God!

According to Strongs this Hebrew word for God here means strength—as an adjective it is mighty, especially the Almighty.

God. Let that word roll around in your mouth and mind for a bit—God.

He is God. He breathes out stars and spreads the stars and galaxies out as a tent within which He dwells. He knits us together in our mother’s womb. He is holy—completely set apart from all evil or imperfection.

He is just, and He has wrath toward sin and evil. There is nothing that compares to Him, nothing we can compare Him to—He is indescribable, uncontainable, and nothing ranks above Him or even near Him.

He speaks and worlds are formed, and in His very word is the power of to bring it to life and to pass. He spans a universe, and yet knows our every thought and the number of hairs on our head. He strikes dead anywhere from 70 to 50,000 men of Beth-shemesh (depending on how you interpret the Hebrew and what translation you use—see 1 Samuel 6:19–20) for looking upon the ark of the covenant, causing the people of the village to cry out, “Who is able to stand before the Lord, this holy God?”

He is God—holy and pure and ferocious, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Alpha and the Omega, the One who descends upon the mountain in fire and smoke and a great dark cloud, and who causes the people of Israel to tremble in fear and to run from relationship with Him, preferring to let Moses do it.

He is God, and all this is true about Him, and He is worthy of our highest affection, our unashamed and unrestrained worship, our reverence, our service, our devotion, our deepest love. He is God, but . . .

. . . if that is all we know about Him we relate to Him only with fear, if we relate to Him at all. We do not draw close, but like Adam and Eve we hide from Him. If all we know of Him is as God, then we tremble and wait for His wrath to fall on us and to consume us in His holy fire.

But that isn’t all we know about Him, is it? What kind of a God is He? He is our Father. What kind of a Father is He? He is God. And thus, the picture starts to become a little more complete as we add another piece. This word “God,” like the word “Father,” is also worthy of hours and hours of our reflection and meditation upon, and as we do we will find that the word “Father” magnifies and gives detail to the word “God”, and the word “God” magnifies and gives detail to the word “Father.” Together they help us start to form an even more complete and accurate picture of both Him, and our relationship to Him, and it doesn’t end there. To David He is also the Rock of his salvation . . . and we will take a look at all of meaning and implications in that in Part 4.

Until then, may you find a renewed and awesome awakening to what it means to know Him as God. May you experience a deep and new realization of what He is like and what His glory and holiness are like. God bless you, and thanks for reading.

Erick

David's Cry: Part 2

2011-05-23T20:51:00.000-07:00

David slaying a lion while protecting his father's sheep.

Part 2 of a 5 part series on Psalm 89:26 He shall cry to me, 'You are my Father, my God, and the Rock of my salvation.'

Father . . . the word carries so much behind it. For many it is not a good word, bringing remembrance of maybe an absent father, an angry father, a father they were never good enough for, or . . . for others, like myself, it brings wonderful memories and associations to mind. But, whatever that word means to us in a human experience, when we consider a perfect father, we start to get a sense of how laden with meaning that word is when we identify it with God.

As a born again Christian, adopted through our faith in the work of Jesus in the cross as our salvation, we have the Holy Spirit dwelling in us and we are adopted by God as His own children. 1 John 3:1 says, “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are.”

We see the remarkable (actually stunning!) complete work of Jesus in our place—a work that gives us our adoption, and His righteousness and acceptance and standing before the Father—when we see that Jesus’ very own words of relationship with the Father becomes ours in our adoption. Mark 14:36 records Jesus addressing the Father: And he said, "Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. . . ." Then, Romans 8:14–17a (see, also, Galatians 4:4–7) says of us: For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, "Abba! Father!" The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ . . . .

Isn’t it stunning that Jesus relates to the Father with the same expression of love and relationship, “Abba, Father,” that we are given to relate to the Father with? That should give us such absolute, mind-rocking, comfort and assurance about how accepted we are by Him as His children.

Father—first, the word implies origin. If He is our Father we are from Him, and like Him, and that realization gives us great insight into the worth that we have, the value of each and every one of us. It also destroys the lie that our origin lies in a ancient pool of muck.

Then, the word “Father” implies we have a relationship with God and that He is not just some distant “force” or “it” or “person.” It implies we have relationship, and it gives form to that relationship—Father to child.

A father provides, protects, leads, counsels, corrects, and upholds his children. He is present in his children’s life and watches over them and guides them. David’s cry to God says that God is his Father, and He is ours as well as a Christian. It is an amazing, loaded, incredible word to describe God, and our relationship with God. It is a word, and a relationship, worthy of hours upon hours of our meditation and reflection on. But . . .

. . . if “Father” is the only way we know to relate to God then we run risks, because for many people there comes a time when they believe a father either “doesn’t know as much as them,” or that he is their equal. Or, there comes a time when he is taken for granted, or is seen with condescension, or is rebelled against without fear, or is not respected, or is broken away from to form one’s own life. So, if we know God only as Father, then we have a danger, and an incomplete picture of Him and our relationship with Him . . . but, that isn’t the only aspect of God we see in David’s cry to Him—to this man after God’s own heart He is our Father, and our God, and that is what we will look at in Part 3.

May the word “Father” excite in you, today, a wonderful new, or renewed, sense of His love for you and your relationship with Him.

Erick

David's Cry: Part 1

2011-05-23T12:10:00.000-07:00

King David leaps and dances before the Ark of the Lord.

I would like to share, probably in five parts, some of what I shared with our youth group last week, and our fellowship on Sunday, about the need for proper balance and perspective in our view of God and His relationship with us. (See the note below about listening to it if you are interested.)

Proper balance and perspective in our view of God is, I believe, imperative if we are to walk out our unique place as His children, soldiers, and ambassadors in these days in which the Kingdom (or reign, or rule, or dominion) of God is breaking in around us, over us, and through us . . . but is clearly still not here in fullness, and won’t be until He comes back. Until it does, we are called to carry this good news of the Kingdom, to walk in its power, to share in His joy and the freedom of our salvation, and to bear His image, as citizens of one Kingdom in, and at war with, another.

Without proper perspective and balance in our view of God and our relationship with Him we can fall in to error and be crippled in our walk. If, for example, all we know is God’s grace, then we run the risk of taking that grace for granted, or not having reverence for God, and becoming like those Paul had to address who ended up using that grace and forgiveness as a license to sin. On the other hand, if all we know is His Kingship and Lordship and His holy attributes as God, we run the risk of living in fear of Him, feeling we need to always perform for Him, and maybe never feeling like we are safe with Him. We might, even, run from Him and not recognize the relationship with Him that is possible.

It is crucial that we have a balanced and Biblical understanding of God and our relationship with Him. To illustrate that to the youth, I had them break in to five groups and each describe a different aspect of the building we were in where our fellowship meets. One group described the outside, one the inside, one the activities that went on there, one how they felt there, and one the people who met and led there. I then showed them how any one or two or even three of those gave a partial picture and feel and sense of the building and what it embodied to someone who hadn’t seen it before, but it was only in the bringing together of all five that we got a true and full picture of the building and fellowship and what it meant.

Likewise, if we only know one aspect, or maybe two, of God then we have a partial, but not a full picture of Him and our relationship with Him. Granted we will never fully grasp God, but there is a verse which, I believe, captures the major essence of Him and our relationship with Him. It comes from David, a man after God’s own heart. With such a compliment given to him by God—one we would probably all love to have God attribute to us—I believe it bears studying how David saw God and related to God. The passage I refer to is from Psalm 89. Verse 20 makes it clear God is talking about David, and in verse 26 the Lord says of David, “"He shall cry to me, 'You are my Father, my God, and the Rock of my salvation.' ' "

There is, in that one line, a beautiful and balanced picture of God and our relationship with Him, from a man after God’s own heart. My plan is to break each part of it down over the next three posts, and then to wrap it all together in a last one. I hope you enjoy it, and are blessed by it.

May you be deeply aware, today, of His love for you and nearness to you.
Erick

Note: If you would like to hear the teaching I gave on this whole subject, which will have, by far, more detail than this blog series, it should be up in a few days on our fellowship’s web page. You can click on the “About Me” link above, and scroll down to the link “Some Recent Teachings I Have Given (mp3)”. It will be called, “Kingdom of Heaven 15" and dated May 22, 2011.

What Will God Say?

2011-05-19T09:03:00.000-07:00

At this point, who hasn't heard of the rapture predictions for May 21st? From the Christians who believe it, to the Christians who don't and cringe at what ammunition this will give the mockers of the faith, to the atheist who set up the "pet watching" service (payment due in advance) where he is charging Christians to take care of their pets after the rapture, to the mockers who are planning parties and fun-poking throughout the weekend, everyone has heard of it.

Of course, while much of the Christian community has explained why we can't know the day or hour, and why this is wrong, and how the man behind it was wrong before, and tried to do damage control, etc., I can't help but have a deep, unsettled wondering in my heart. I wonder, what will God say to people like the 60-year-old man from New York who so believed in it that he spent his entire life savings of $140,000 to put up 1,000 ads on subways and bus stops warning people? Keep in mind—he didn't spend it on a wild, self-indulgent party for himself . . . he spent it to warn others.

Realizing that we all have skewed theology in one area or another, I can't help but wonder, "What will God say to him?" on the day he finally does meet God face to face . . . and what will we hear, who don't believe in May 21st specifically, but still do believe that the day will come when every man and woman on earth will meet God face to face and either be ushered in or cast out? I can't hear of stories like his and, behind all the jokes and mocking and panic rushes to "protect" God, wonder deep in my heart, will that man hear, "You believed too much!" . . . or might those, like the rest of us, who have been given much, and given up little, hear something else? What do I really, really believe that I would be willing to give up everything for to warn others. Don't I believe in Heaven? Don't I believe in Hell? Don't I believe that Jesus is the only way to the Father and eternal life with Him? Don't I believe that the end is near, even if it isn't the 21st (and that, even if the Rapture doesn't happen in our lifetime, we'll all be before Him quick enough).

Well, if I really, really believe those things then I can't help but ask myself, and wonder, as I read articles about people like that man, "What will God say to the one who believed and gave up everything to warn others" . . . and what will He say to people like me who also believe, and just don't think I know the date, and have given up so little to warn others. It is just a thought I have, a question I wrestle with. I wonder, will God ever say to someone, "You believed too much!"

Sweat . . .

2011-05-18T09:41:00.000-07:00

Recently I was doing a personal study into the amazing privilege and high calling we have as Christians of ministering to the Lord. I found myself in the following passage from Ezekiel 44:15-18, where God has rebuked much of Israel and then says, "But the Levitical priests, the sons of Zadok, who kept the charge of my sanctuary when the people of Israel went astray from me, shall come near to me to minister to me. And they shall stand before me to offer me the fat and the blood, declares the Lord God. They shall enter my sanctuary, and they shall approach my table, to minister to me, and they shall keep my charge. When they enter the gates of the inner court, they shall wear linen garments. They shall have nothing of wool on them, while they minister at the gates of the inner court, and within. They shall have linen turbans on their heads, and linen undergarments around their waists. They shall not bind themselves with anything that causes sweat."

And, their reward for the privilege of ministering to the Lord? Ezekiel 44:28, "This shall be their inheritance: I am their inheritance: and you shall give them no possession in Israel; I am their possession." Wow! It is such a Kingdom of God verse! As Christians we are not citizens of this land, we are citizens of His Kingdom—we, the body of Christ, are, according to Peter, His holy nation, His royal priesthood . . . and we live here as if it is not our home, serving Him, until He calls us home into His presence, into the place He has prepared for us with Him. Until then, and after then? He is our possession and our inheritance! The question, of course, is, "Is that enough for us, or do we need the pleasures and rewards of this earth as well?"

As I looked at the passage about those ministering to the Lord I was struck by the line that said they shall not bind themselves with anything that causes sweat when ministering to the Lord. For me, the obvious spiritual meaning and picture of that was they couldn't bring any work before Him because work causes sweat. But then I went to a bunch of commentaries and got confused because none of them mentioned that. But, after doing a search for the word "sweat" I found that the only other time it is mentioned in the Old Testament is after Adam and Eve fell and God said to Adam in Genesis 3:17-19, ". . . Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, 'You shall not eat of it,' cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, . . ." Hmm, sounds like sweat and work/labor are tied together to me.

The more I thought about that, about what this symbolized to me (knowing how we, in the New Testament, as born again believers, would become His royal priesthood), I thought, how could we ever minister to Him if we brought any of our own works or "righteousness" before Him? It would totally take from Him the sole glory and honor He deserves. He, alone, is our righteousness because of the "work" He did on the cross and our complete faith in that as our total payment and redemption on our behalf. There is no way we can truly come before Him and minister to Him in a way He would receive if we are carrying with us any part of us that says we are OK apart from Him, or that our works give us any right before Him. It takes the glory from Him and puts it on us, and it brings Him down to our level when He, in fact, is holy and completely separated from all of our tarnished works. We come boldly before Him, in confidence, because He did the work for us. We trust completely in His work to give us confidence as His children before Him. That gives Him the glory, and us the security.

Well, can you guess what I found in further searching His Word? Do you know the only other place the word "sweat" is used? Luke 22:39-44 says, "And he came out and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives, and the disciples followed him. And when he came to the place, he said to them, "Pray that you may not enter into temptation." And he withdrew from them about a stone's throw, and knelt down and prayed, saying, "Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done." And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him. And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground."

It sure seems to me that something was meant by that word "sweat." And, to me, it seems that it represents work, or works of righteousness. I might be wrong, and I can receive that, but it is worth meditating on. When I come to minister to the Lord there is only one "work" I can bring before Him. It is not my work, in any way. That claim can't be in His presence and stand. But, His Son's work on the cross? Yes. That is the complete work, the "it is finished" on my eternal passport. Jesus' work, His "sweat" (to use the imagery) is the only work I can claim before the Father . . . but since it is Jesus' and not mine, I am completely safe and secure in it.

A Wonderful Story . . .

2011-05-16T09:10:00.000-07:00

It is hard to believe that, two years ago today, I made my first blog post. It was about the "perfect" coffee mug, and a God who makes the impossible bow. You might enjoy it, and you can read it by clicking here. What I have to share, below, is long . . . but please give me a little grace since it's my "anniversary" and I think you will be very blessed and encouraged by it . . .

Often in the Christian life we are simply obedient, never knowing why God asked us to do something, and never knowing if it did any good. Sometimes He graces us with a glimpse of its effect, but often not. I remember one time, years ago, when Mary Ann and I were early in youth ministry and we had put on a youth camp for local youth. It was exhausting, and I had been so excited about the teaching, and I was so discouraged because I couldn't tell if any youth had heard a word I'd said. I'd called it, "Accident (big bang bam bish, look mom, I came from a fish), or PLAN?" Over the four sessions I'd taken the word "plan" and broken it down. Friday night was "P"—Planets, space, and such. Saturday morning was "L"—the miracle of Life. Saturday night was "A"—Alive, or in the tomb? (evidence for the resurrection). Sunday morning was "N"—Never had to wonder (all the things science has "discovered" that were already in the Bible).

After each session I would ask the youth, "You decide—Accident, or PLAN?" By the end of the weekend I felt like quitting ministry, but then, a month later, God was kind enough to grant us a glimpse of something when one of the high school girls told me about being in science class that day and the teacher saying that anyone who didn't believe they came from a fish was to get up and walk out the door. She did. The teacher was startled and asked what she was doing, and she replied that she believed God had created her (how many others felt so, too, but didn't stand?). The teacher told her she could stay as long as she didn't talk about it.

It was an awesome spark of encouragement for Mary Ann and I, but the truth is, even if God hadn't shown it to us, she still would have heard and believed at that campout, and just because we didn't know about it, it wouldn't have made it any less effective. I'll never forget the pastor we talked to that afternoon at the end of the campout when we were very discouraged, who simply asked us, "Did you do what God asked you to do?" When we said that we thought we had he replied, "Then that's all He asked you to do. Trust the results to Him."

Writing on this blog is a lot like that. You pour out and try and be obedient, often never knowing if it is making any difference, but just trying to trust. Then, at times, you'll get a comment, or meet someone, who tells you how blessed they've been by it and it feels so good. It's like the affirming nod or "amen" from someone when you are preaching that says, "I hear ya, and keep going, you're right on, brother." We shouldn't need that, but, then again, we are human, too.

Well, the other day I got one of those and I've asked permission to share it with you because it is so encouraging to me, and I believe it will be an encouragement and an example to you. I had made my post, "What's Been Stolen?", about how the enemy gets us to focus on the negative and not see the blessing in things, and I'd used our home and property as the example. I'd recommend you read it if you haven't. A friend and reader who is the moderator of a large Christian website asked me to post the same words on that site. I did so reluctantly, not very confident, and I got one of the most awesome replies I've ever gotten. With permission, I've put part of it below:

Erick,
Thank you! It was like you were speaking directly to what my husband and I have been struggling with. We've got so many things to do here at the house that it's become daunting to us. We have acreage to mow, weeds to hoe, fence to mend, etc. We've been bogged down by so many things on our "to do" list that it seems so defeating at times. Your post was like a glass of sweet iced tea on a hot day. It made me stop and think. You're right. We are blessed, and back when we were first starting out twenty years ago, we would've loved to have a place like we have now. It really is a dream come true. It made me sad to realize that I've let satan creep in and make taking care of this place feel burdensome. That starts getting corrected today! Thanks for a word in due season!

I replied to her comment and said, "Wow! You made my day . . . my week! I called my wife in and said, "You've got to read this! It makes it all worthwhile!" I am so glad I went ahead and posted this, though I almost didn't. I feel like my blog is a place people come to by choice, but posting a post now and then from it here [the other web site] feels like I am shoving my stuff out there. When ___ asked me to, I fought it, but didn't want to miss what God wanted. I am so, so glad I did if it blesses you and your husband and helps you grab the devil by the tail and kick him in the teeth! Feel free to stay in touch. You'll find some pictures of our place, my family, our cows, etc. on my blog if you want to visit it. I look forward to hearing more about your new victory!"

She then replied:

I read your post to my husband, and we talked about it. He felt the same way I did after reading it. We went outside and got busy with the project we had for this weekend. We got the pool up and running from the winter layover and raked, hoed, and spread weed killer. After we sat down, we started talking about the work we'd done, and the talk started to go down the path of "but we still haven't gotten the roof finished (we're re-shingling), or this, or this", etc. It was like the lightbulb went off, and we shut it down and said, "No! That's exactly what God showed us today, and we're not doing this anymore!". Immediately we changed our tune and talked about what we had accomplished. After that, I had a very long talk with God. It was filled with repentance and a lot of tears. Then, I looked around in awe. How amazing is God!!! He has given us such blessing in our lives that I never would have thought possible before; and not just the material things, our kids, our marriage, and the most important - our salvation! And from there just worshipping Him for the gift of salvation and His love and mercy and grace. I feel better than I've felt in a while. We're going to continue to kick satan in the teeth, and battle to get rid of that root of negative thinking.

I will definitely check in on your blog, and keep you posted on what's going on. I can tell that you have a very humble heart before the Lord. Please don't ever feel that by posting here that we will think you're saying "look at me". You have messages to give that we will love and need to hear, just like this one today! God has given you such an awesome voice to speak His truth! Please shove away!!!!

I hope that you are as encouraged by this as I was, and that it helps you see how to recognize what the enemy might be trying to steal in your life and heart, and how to take that captive to Christ and turn it around. Thanks, so much, for reading, and for those of you who subscribe by email or follow, you won't know how much that encourages me. I treasure you all and I look forward to that perfect cup of coffee in Heaven when we can sit around, get to know each other, and worship the Lord in pure spirit and truth. Until then, you all are welcome to drop by for an imperfect, but still good cup, here.

Just to Make You Smile . . .

2011-05-14T17:06:00.000-07:00

We all need to smile more, at least I know I do. So, here are a few things that might help you do that today. No, they aren’t “theological”—but, then again, this is just my personal blog to share and have fun and reflect with you, whatever the day or season calls for. Enjoy, and may God bless you with a deep awareness of His love and nearness to you . . .

The other day I got one of those SPAM emails from someone trying to get me to click on their link. It is below. Hmmmm, does anyone else find this ironic or humorous in any way (getting past the sadness of the industry it represents). I’ve pasted it just as I got it . . .

“Im a charming blue-eyed blonde, brunette with brown eyes, and I'm looking for an intelligent man to communicate by e-mail, Skype, or on real dates!”

(I can only imagine, if I had tons of readers, the comments that one would generate!)

And, now, some pictures I stumbled on going through some our family has taken over the years . . .

Hamming it up in Carrizo Plains a few years ago. Not sure why I can’t get a wireless network!

A friend’s power steering fluid cap went missing. No problem. We are resourceful (or redneck?) out here! Anyone want to set up an appointment to have their car worked on next?

We take guarding our girls seriously out here!

Just too cute. From some years back.

That’s my girl! NOBODY touches that coffee cup!

What’s Been Stolen?

2011-05-13T10:24:00.000-07:00

Recently someone was at our house and twice, while they were here, they looked over the hills, through the oaks, and down the valley (standing somewhat close to where this picture was taken last January) and said something to the effect of, “It’s so beautiful!” Once they added, “It’s so peaceful! I’ve looked all my life for a place like this!”

When they said that I was rattled. I realized that the same view they saw as beautiful was, too often to me, a sea of “to do” items—broken fence wiring going back to when a neighbor’s runaway bison crashed through it, a broken gate a neighbor’s bull smashed, weeds that needed mowing with fire season knocking on our door, ground squirrels that needed controlling, a dam that needed fixing, firewood that needed hauling and cutting and splitting, a well that needed electrical work . . . all that and more, and, it felt like, limited time and money to do any of it. Amazing . . . we were looking at the same view, and yet the viewpoint was so different!

Many times Mary Ann and I have said, and had to remind ourselves when we get drug down by things undone, “If we had visited this place before we owned it, we’d have said that if we ever had a place like this we’d be happy for the rest of our lives there!” It is a two-fold reminder:

1) No thing, or accomplishment, or position will ever make you or me permanently happy. Only God can do that.

2) The enemy seeks to always take what is good and steal it, and if we aren’t careful, we let him. Too often, if we aren't careful, we can start to primarily see the negative side of things. Granted, in the case like our property, I am the one who has to deal with those things and they don’t, but there is still tremendous good and blessing in it (it is a gift from God!) and if I am not careful I can miss, or lose that. Philippians 4:8 tells us, “. . . whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” Other translations say to "meditate" on these things, and I believe to meditate on it we, ourselves, must first see it. That is something we must practice because, all too often, it doesn’t come naturally.

So . . . take a look around you. What blessings from God—maybe a person, or persons; a job; a home; a situation; your body; your imperfect church; or ???—have you either taken for granted, or started to see only the negative in, or allowed to be stolen from your thoughts? I encourage you to refresh and renew your gratitude for it, and lift a praise and a thanks to God, from Whom every good and perfect gift comes (James 1:17).

Wishing you intimacy and joy in the Lord,
Erick

A Christian Tension . . .

2011-05-06T10:35:00.000-07:00

The more I study Christ and the early church's central message, or gospel, of the Kingdom, the more I realize how much of a "tension" we live in as Christians. By tension I mean a pull in two directions, or two separate ways.

The Bible makes it clear that when we are born again we are no longer of this world. It doesn't just say we aren't "like" this world, but that we aren't "of" this world, and the distinction is huge. In fact, when we are born again, or born from above, or made alive unto God, we are transferred into Christ's Kingdom and reign and rule. We, the body, become His holy nation, set apart for Him. No longer does He dwell in a temple in an earthly temple, but we, the body of Christ, become His dwelling place and residence. The reality is, as a born again Christian, we are more closely knit with, and have more tie with, a Christian in Iran than we do with a non-Christian in America.

This is the reality of the Kingdom. We are of a new Kingdom, with a higher authority and call. Yes, we are to obey the government of our land, and to give unto Caeser what is Caesar's, etc., but if our nation's laws or commands ever pulls us into conflict with God's laws or reign on our life we must choose God's Kingdom over any earthly nation.

This tension was made very evident to me this week in the reflections on the death of Usama bin Laden. I found the twin, and opposing, pulls very powerful. I have always been very patriotic, and the pain that man unrepentantly caused to our nation is too large for words. When I saw the cadets at West Point (my alma mater) cheering in the quad on TV I found myself drawn to the celebration and the joy and the relief. When I saw the American flag flying, I felt pride. While I am very concerned about the current direction of many trends and leaders in America, I still believe we are a great nation with a tremendous amount of generosity and willingness to sacrifice for others. There was, as an American, a sense of justice and pride in the elite team that pulled off that operation and helped America stand a little taller and be a little safer

But, pulling the other way, and causing a turbulence of emotions in me (and not all Christians agree with me on this), was the "other" Kingdom—God's—and I couldn't, in any way, envision Jesus dancing with joy at the news of a human being, created in His image, whom He died for on the cross, taking a bullet and dying amidst his family. I can only imagine grief . . . grief at how the world has become, grief at how people treat people, grief at the sin that continues in the face of the work His Son did on the cross to make a way for all men to come to Him, grief that it had to end that way when Usama could have chosen Jesus. This is not to say that what we did was wrong—as a nation God has ordained authorities and those authorities protect their nation and he was a man who chose evil against our nation. But, I had to ask myself, was the instinct to pump the fist in the air in victory justice, or revenge? Was the celebration for justice, or revenge? And do we, as Christians, realize that we all were deserving of death and it is only by God's grace that we have life?

We must not forget that justice—the true and final justice—did not happen when the trigger was pulled and the bullet struck, but would happen when he stood before God and found his name not in the Lamb's book of life and was sent from God's presence into eternity apart from God. That is the justice, and it is eternal. All of us deserve it, but some will escape it because we have trusted in Jesus' death on the cross as our substitute and only basis of righteousness before God. I think, in times like these, the temptation is to compare ourselves to someone like Usama bin Laden and start to, subtly, pump ourselves up a little as, "not so bad as him." We must never forget that there are none righteous the Bible says—not one. "There but for the grace of God go I," as the expression says.

Proverbs 24:17-20 says: Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, and let not your heart be glad when he stumbles, lest the Lord see it and be displeased, and turn away his anger from him. Fret not yourself because of evildoers, and be not envious of the wicked, for the evil man has no future; the lamp of the wicked will be put out. Usama bin Laden has met a far worse fate than simply death on this earth. Justice was done—eternal justice—because he chose to reject Jesus' work on the cross. We, as Christians, must be careful in the heart with which we receive such news.

So, therein lies the tension—at least for me. America did what America needed to do. I am proud of those who went in and pulled it off—their training and dedication every day and the countless jobs they do that we never hear about to keep us safe to worship Jesus, raise our children, vote, and walk our streets. But, as a citizen of God's Kingdom, I also find sadness. Sadness at what this world is, at why it even had to happen, at those who reject God's love. I find no joy in another person's death. Death, of a person separated from God, is only for me a place of grief. I have no place to lift myself above anyone. If God hadn't pursued me so diligently and relentlessly, and if others hadn't loved me through my cocky arrogance, and if . . . I, too, might face eternity apart from God and my loved ones who loved Him. He has done all the work. He has revealed Himself. He has paid the price. I have nothing to boast in.

I live in tension. There is a constant pull of the world in one direction and the pull of God in the other. May I always choose Him and His ways as my highest allegiance and love.

God is Love

2011-05-03T11:41:00.000-07:00

God doesn't just choose to be good, to avoid evil, to act morally, etc. God is holy. He is transcendent from those things—totally set apart and separate from them. It is not just some moral code or ethical law that we find in His law and commands . . . it is the very nature and character of Him. There is such a powerful realization in the truth those few sentences above contain. If someone simply chooses to be a certain way then there is always the option of them choosing not to be that way any longer. But when someone is that way—inherent in who they are, in their very being—and they are completely cut off from, and separated from, the alternative—then we can know with assurance they will always be that way.

The Apostle John tells us twice in 1 John 4 that God is love. It is part of who He is. It is not simply that God chooses to love, but that He is love, and there is a big difference. So, when we don't love another we are partaking in a something that God can't be a part of. He can't be a participant in, or an advocate of, or lend His hand to it when we don't love. So, while I know that He won't ever leave me, and that I am sealed in adoption as His child by my faith in Jesus, there is a sense that each and every time I don't love I am separating myself from God—or separating Him from what I am doing . . . not to mention I am not honoring Him by my choice to disobey Him, and I am failing to love one whom He loves enough to die for.

When I choose to not love another with a love that is patient, kind, not self seeking, not keeping a record of wrongs, not rejoicing in evil, etc., I am, in a sense, choosing to step outside of Him because, He can't be part of "not love" when He is love. I don't know the full "theological" implications (or explanations) of the concept I am trying to convey, but to me it is pretty clear that, up to the edge of losing my salvation, I am separating myself from God in those times (or at least moving outside of Him in my actions, or causing my actions to be outside of His cover and blessing and presence). I don't know if this is what the Bible talks about in quenching the Spirit and grieving the Spirit and things like that, but I do know that if I truly desire Him to be my breath and life, and to bear His image, and to have His voice and Spirit lead me, and to have Him work through me, then I must love. When I don't, in some way He pulls back, because He can't be a part of that because it is against who He is.

Matt 22:37-40 And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets."

1 John 4:7-8 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.

1 John 4:16 So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.

Easter Picture

2011-04-25T23:22:00.000-07:00

The new masthead photo was taken Saturday in a field at the home of a family in our fellowship. They blessed us by including us in their family Easter celebration—complete with a BBQ, egg hunt for the kids, wonderful fellowship, a telling of the Easter story to the kids, a fresh pot of coffee in my honor, a quad ride through fields of flowers, and lots of love. Enjoy the photo and share a little of our area with us. It is beautiful this time of year! (Email subscribers, you will have to visit the blog's home to see the photo I am talking about.)

Easter Teaching

2011-04-25T19:29:00.000-07:00

Many people said that they were blessed and encouraged by the teaching I gave yesterday (Easter) at our fellowship. I offer it to you in case you feel led to listen. (Below is a link to the 35 minute mp3 file. You can click on it to listen if your browser is set up for that, or right click on it and select the option "Save Link As" to save it to your hard drive). I used very few notes when giving the teaching as I felt the Lord directing me to simply share an overflow of the last two posts about the Saturday between the cross and the resurrection, and how the work was already done but not yet realized. God bless you all, and thanks so much for reading, listening, and most of all for sharing my life with me.

Easter Teaching

The Heart of Stone Rolled Away . . .

2011-04-24T06:56:00.000-07:00

Luke 24:1-12 But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel. And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, "Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise." And they remembered his words, and returning from the tomb they told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest. Now it was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles, but these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them. But Peter rose and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; and he went home marveling at what had happened.

Q: When did Jesus say, “It is finished?”
A: On the cross.

Q: When did the disciples “get it”?
A: The verse above, as well as some other verses (try John 12:16 and John 2:22), plus what the Bible records about the disciples hiding in fear of the Jews, would seem to indicate that it wasn’t until after the resurrection and glorification of Jesus.

The work was done on the cross, but it wasn’t received by them and made their own until after they met the risen Christ—until after the Spirit rolled away the stone of their heart, and the veil that masked their understanding was torn. It was then, it seems, that they realized what was done, and who He really was. The work was done on the cross, and made their own on Easter Sunday, but that Saturday in between those days (“The Darkest Day” which I speculated about in yesterday’s post), seems to me like such a picture of the lost world (and of each believer before they realized who He was and gave their life to Him)—the work is already done for us, but we live in the darkness not realizing it.

Sometimes this is, I fear, a picture of the Christian’s life as well. There are too many things I am anxious about, or afraid about, or in doubt about, when, in fact, the work is already done by Him, and the promise is already given by Him, and it is just mine to make my own through faith. Too often, it seems, I live in “Saturday.” Like Sarah and Abraham, I don’t have the faith to trust God at His promises and take Him at His word. But, I am so encouraged by Sarah and Abraham’s story as well, because Hebrews 11 assures us that even if we begin without faith in one of His promises or aspects of His character, we can turn to Him and consider Him faithful who has promised. Like Sarah, then, that faith will become the power to bring forth the life that is dormant in the seed of His promise, just waiting for the water and light of our faith to bring it forth.

This morning I plan to teach at our fellowship on many of the different emotions and fears and “confusions” that might have been swirling in the disciples on Saturday, that were swept away or answered on Sunday. The cry, “He’s Alive!” truly makes all the difference in the world, and I hope that each and every one of you have a joyous and wonderful day today celebrating that victory, and the hope and purpose it brings! And, remember—even when our faith falters, and our step stumbles, and the cry of “He’s Alive!” maybe doesn’t seem to carry the power it should to us, we have the cross of Friday towering over us, covering us in the shadow of its mercy and grace, and testifying of His amazing love. Wow! Words truly do fall short of describing what this whole period of time in our Lord’s life means for us . . .

The Darkest Day . . .

2011-04-23T10:02:00.000-07:00

You wake up and, for a moment, feel like you’ve had the worst dream of your life . . . and then you realize it wasn’t a dream. You lie there and hope, and go over the day before, but then you realize, that hope as you might, yesterday really happened. Yesterday you watched them beat and mutilate and mock and kill the One you had thought was God’s Son, the One you had left everything to follow, the One you had endured hostility and persecution to walk behind, the One who had maybe cast seven demons out of you, or had healed you of a crippling disease . . . the One who had offered you love and hope and peace with God when others condemned you and judged you and looked at you with contempt and cast you out.

Yesterday, after the earthquake and the darkened sky and the rumors of dead people walking around Jerusalem, you had hoped, waited, for something to change. You’d seen Him die, there was no doubt about it, but didn’t the signs in the sky mean something? Weren’t the Heavens displaying their anger—and He was going to awaken on the cross, or right after Joseph took Him down, and display your justification, and destroy your enemies, and prove He was God?

You’d waited, and waited, and hope had begun to die, and slowly fear, and numbness, and uncertainty, and hopelessness had crept in. You had watched evil win, and goodness die . . . but was He even good if He had lied and deceived so many of you? Yesterday, every secret knock on the door as you hid from the Jews, every rushing person past the window, awakened a hope. You sat up, crying in your heart for someone to tell you it had changed. But, eventually, somehow, exhausted and drained and broken and racked with sorrow, you’d fallen asleep and awoken this Saturday morning, hoping it had all been a bad dream, but the dirt on your clothes from last night where you’d fallen to the ground sobbing shatters even that hope and testifies that yesterday really happened. Jesus is dead—and He didn’t even defend Himself! He didn’t even DO anything to stop them! Anger at Him mixes with your sadness in a horrible soup in your soul. Two days ago you life had purpose and meaning and direction—you were a follower of Jesus! Today He is dead, and you have . . . nothing! Even worse, you have nowhere to go back to—you are alienated from all that you left, and there is no place for you any longer. Two days ago you had dared to believe that even your life might be redeemable before God . . . but today, you realize you are without hope of redemption at all.

Today is the darkest of days. The Jews continue their celebrations and feasts, and the One who offered you freedom from the law and religion and guilt and fear of God continues to lie in the grave. All of the ones who warned you about Him, and who threw you out for following Him, were right and you were wrong. Now what? You’ve left everything, for what? For a lie? Now, each footstep outside the window brings fear. Are you the next one to be arrested and crucified? Are all the promises and hope and love and acceptance He offered you now a mocking memory that laughs in your face? Clearly the Jews and your family and neighbors were right—and it only rips open the wounds His love and acceptance had begun to heal, and pours salt into them.

What about the power He displayed, the authority He spoke with, the way your religious leaders had backed down before Him, the healings He performed? What about them? Were they a show? No! You don’t want to believe that! You know what you were before He touched you, and how different you are now! But . . . what about the miracles? Was He a necromancer or sorcerer? He clearly had power, but your religious leaders had condemned Him. You’d thought He was good. You’d thought He was from God—but maybe they were right. Maybe you laughed with, and believed in, and ate with, and helped, a man working miracles by the power of Beelzebub as the religious teachers claimed. While He was beside you as they accused Him there was no way you could believe it—He was so good! You felt such pure love, for the first time ever! But now, He’s dead, and they’re still alive and in charge. Could you have been wrong? How could something so good have been so deceiving . . . and what now? What was next?

You thought yesterday, watching Jesus be beaten, mocked, “tried,” and crucified, was the worst day of your life . . . but today promises to be even worse—the darkest day of your life—because at least yesterday, up to the end, you’d clung to hope . . . but today there is no more, and without hope we perish. Yesterday you kept hoping that He’d finally say, “Enough!” and defend Himself. Yesterday you’d hoped that maybe He’d just fainted . . . but, seeing His mutilated body, and the blood and water pour from the spear hole, you knew deep down inside that He was really dead. Yesterday you’d hoped the Heavens would open and He would open His eyes and wrong would be made right. But today . . . He really is dead. It’s not a dream. And He is now wrapped in burial clothes and in a tomb with a massive stone in front of it, guarded by soldiers. If anything was going to happen it would have been yesterday, or last night, but today it is too late. Any hope that you had clung to is gone, and your life lies around you—shattered, impossible to fix. Yesterday you saw evil win, you saw evil have its greatest victory . . . but now you don’t even know what is evil and what is good anymore. Today is going to be a very long and dark day—if you even live through it . . .

Little do you know that tomorrow morning the knock will come, and the words will fly to your ears, “He’s Alive!” Little do you know that within a few days all the Scriptures you’ve known for years, and all the mysterious things He said, will suddenly make sense, and that you will realize that while you thought evil was working its greatest victory, and the wicked were going to prosper, God was in fact turning evil against itself and He was working His greatest victory! Little do you know that, within a few weeks, you will have touched the risen Jesus, been taught by the risen Jesus, watched the risen Jesus ascend into Heaven, and been filled with a fire, and the Spirit of God, and a sense of purpose and destiny that will carry you around the region declaring His truth, demonstrating His power, and proclaiming His name until you, too, joyously go to join Him!

“Today,” may look like the darkest of days, upwelling with hopelessness, doubt, fear, or frustration; seeming to scream out that darkness reigns, and that God must be either dead or uncaring or not real—but “tomorrow’s” cry of, “He’s Alive!” reminds us that, even when we don’t see it or understand how, God is always at work and on our side—and hope, peace, joy, eternal life are ours today, because He lives!

Who is Uncomprehending?

2011-04-21T09:29:00.000-07:00

Note: This is a long post, but I believe it is a critical one. Between this topic, the other firestorm topic these days of whether or not hell is real, and the U.N. debating if Mother Earth should have the same rights as people, the attacks on our faith these days are huge and we must be equipped to strengthen the faith of one another and ourselves. (And, yes, I finally gave in to the fact Winter is gone, and changed my masthead to a Spring one . . . email subscribers, you'll have to go to the blog to see it.)

On April 10th, 2011, Karl W. Giberson wrote a post that appeared in the CNN religion blogs, about how Jesus would believe in evolution. By Tuesday morning, April 19th, it had generated over 3,400 comments and it had over 8,300 people recommending it via Facebook. Whether it is someone saying that hell might not be forever, or someone saying you can be a Christian and reject the Bible’s words, it is amazing to me how many people will jump at anything that will help them feel “right,” or “justified,” in rejecting a complete surrender to the Bible as the written word of God, and to Jesus as both our Savior and Lord. Needless to say, this article has created a firestorm of articles, comments, rebuttals, defenses, etc.

According to the editor of the CNN page, “Karl W. Giberson, Ph.D., is vice president of The BioLogos Foundation and is the author or coauthor of seven books, including The Language of Science and Faith.” It is my understanding that the BioLogos Foundation is a group of scientists, etc., promoting theistic evolution, or the belief in evolution married with the belief in the Christian God. (I have put a link below to the article by Karl Giberson.)

Giberson’s article begins, “Jesus once famously said, ‘I am the Truth.’ Christianity at its best embodies this provocative idea and has long been committed to preserving, expanding and sharing truth.” He then goes on to talk about how scientists, many Christian, have "proven" evolution and some different “evidences” of that. After that he says, “Anyone who values truth must take these ideas seriously, for they have been established as true beyond any reasonable doubt. . . . Christians must come to welcome - rather than fear - the ideas of evolution. Truths about Nature are sacred, for they speak of our Creator. Such truths constitute ‘God’s second book’ for Christians to read alongside the Bible.”

About Genesis he says, “While Genesis contains wonderful insights into the relationship between God and the creation, it simply does not contain scientific ideas about the origin of the universe, the age of the earth or the development of life.” Earlier in the article he referred to Genesis as, “. . . a story that began as an oral tradition for a wandering tribe of Jews thousands of years ago.”

Giberson does not address the multitude of scientists who don’t believe in evolution, nor does he address all of the evidence for Creation, nor the suppression of scientists and teachers who believe in Creation (as documented in the video Expelled). He doesn’t talk about how things like love and self-sacrifice, etc. “evolve,” nor the explanation for the clearly evident spirit-world. In all fairness to him, a blog is not a place to be able to cover very much, but, unless I missed it, these things were not even referenced or alluded to in any credible form. Additionally, there is no reference to how a Christian deals with the irreconcilable differences between the Gospel and theistic evolution (I’ve posted on this before, and I will do so again in the near future). He does make two other quotes worth noting, which I’ll post here, and then I’ll close with a couple of thoughts:

“To suppose, as the so-called young earth creationists do, that God dictated modern scientific ideas to ancient and uncomprehending scribes is to distort the biblical message beyond recognition. Modern science was not in the worldview of the biblical authors and it is not in the Bible.”

“We are often asked to think about what Jesus would do, if he lived among us today. Who would Jesus vote for? What car would he drive? To these questions we should add ‘What would Jesus believe about origins?’ And the answer? Jesus would believe evolution, of course. He cares for the Truth.”

It is amazing to me how Christians, who believe in a God who can create a universe, struggle so much to believe His word about how He did it, and how quickly we feel like we must find some explanation that preserves “evidence” some scientist claims to have found. These scientists reject, without apology or attempt to preserve, our foundation of truth (the Bible), and yet we find ourselves trying to find a “theory” that meshes us and them. Is it any wonder that Jesus asked, in Luke 18:8, “. . . Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” Why do we seem, at times, to give those scientists so much more credence than all the scientists who believe in the Bible and its account?

To me, it is utter error for Giberson to say, “To suppose . . . that God dictated modern scientific ideas to ancient and uncomprehending scribes is to distort the biblical message beyond recognition.” To those who hold his view, the scribes of old were uncomprehending. Well, in most areas, aren’t we all? How many of us understand, first hand, how much of how anything really works? Rather, we learn it from someone, and the wisdom of that someone makes us either comprehending or uncomprehending—depending on whether our teacher is right or wrong. So, if God is right, and His written word is true, it would, in fact, make those who reject it uncomprehending . . . and those who they claim to be uncomprehending are, actually, the ones of true understanding because they believed God.

Did you ever notice how much the Bible foresaw the attacks on our faith? There is no way to attribute it to simply “uncomprehending” scribes who would have believed it if God only said it once. They could have never foreseen the type of attack our faith and Genesis would undergo thousands of years later. Yet, the Bible clearly did foresee it. Look carefully at its wording, with an eye to see how it addresses what only God could have know we would be challenged by today.

1)    In Gen 1:5 it says, “And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.” Six times this is repeated, once for each day of work. A clear statement against the theory that a day is longer than a real day. Why, without foreseeing today’s attacks, would that statement and repetition be necessary?

2)    Ten times in Genesis 1 it talks about plants and seeds created, “according to its kind.” Why this repetition? Why this detail? Might it not be to help equip believers like us with assurance against the theories that say one kind evolves into another?

3)    In Genesis 1:26 it says, “Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.’” Later, the Jesus whom Giberson says would believe in evolution says, in Matthew 19:4, “. . . Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female,” and, later, in Mark 10:6, Jesus says, “But from the beginning of creation, 'God made them male and female.'”

There is no way to reconcile God’s account of Creation with what some scientists are proposing happened. But, it is to me, as if God foresaw these “theories” that would attack our and our children’s faith today, and He worded His written word with such repetition that we could, in no way, convince ourselves He didn’t mean what He said. The repetition of things in Genesis and elsewhere is so strong, it is as if God saw words like Giberson’s who writes in the blog, “Evolution does not contradict the Bible unless you force an unreasonable interpretation on that ancient book,” and then wrote in His repetition to not give you any room to interpret His word any other way . . . to not be able to come up with a “more reasonable” interpretation and still believe the Bible. So, realizing God meant what He said, we are faced with a choice, and either one requires faith. The question is, who do you have your most faith in—scientists whose theories and ideas change year to year, or God who created a universe, gave you life, died on a cross for you, and is forever faithful?

Giberson Article

Leftovers . . .

2011-04-20T12:35:00.000-07:00

I wish you were here. I am blessed to be able to be at home today, and to enjoy two things I really enjoy, that I don't normally get this time of year. We are having an unexpected light rain, which means I have an "excuse" to light our wood stove. I am sitting in front of it, finishing a good cup of coffee, having just had a little time with my bride at "recess," and now reading a book by Francis Chan called Crazy Love. It is a near perfect day, and I wish you, reader and friend, were here to enjoy it. I'd put on a fresh pot of coffee (after grinding fresh beans, of course), and add some wood to the fire, and we'd talk about God . . . our wonderful, glorious, holy, awe-inspiring God. We'd get to know Him and each other better.

I have been intrigued by Francis Chan enough to read his book because to me, to have a pastor of a mega church (which I believe he founded) step away from it for an uncertain call, in this day and age of self-interest, is worthy of note. To be able to leave such security and recognition for a call of God to something not yet defined perks my interest. There is something about the step from security into faith that strikes at the core of what our walk should look like that I felt I'd at least give his book a try and see what God was doing in his heart before he felt led to make that decision.

This morning I was reading in his section about giving God our leftovers, and it really struck a note of resonance with me. I think that he pinpointed the issue at work when this happens when he said, "For years I gave God leftovers and felt no shame. I simply took my eyes off Scripture and instead compared myself to others" (pg. 91).

I think that this is so true. Like the frog slowly being boiled alive in water that doesn't realize it as the temperature is slowly raised, I think that we can, without realizing it, let the church (institution), or others, become our measuring stick instead of God's holiness and worth. We can, slowly, by taking our eyes off of Him and His majesty and wonder and holiness and justice and power and love and mercy, start to feel content in what we are giving Him because it is more than others, or most, are giving Him. The reality is, however, that if He alone were our measuring stick we would never be content, and always want to give Him more.

The origin of this isn't guilt, or legalism, but love and wonder. Simply because He is so worthy, and we love Him so, that we just want to give Him our first and our best—whether it is of our time, or our affection, or our value, or our finances, or . . ., we can go on and on. When we stop and stare at the stars, and realize there are billions of galaxies with billions of stars in each . . . when we look at the wonders of how life in a single tidepool interacts and is so perfectly complete . . . and then we realize that this huge, incredible, amazing, awe-inspiring God knows us and loves us and died for us and lives in us, it just starts to bring out in us the desire to give Him our very first and our very best of all that we are.

God says to be still and know that He is God. Sometimes, in our busy lives, that is hard. To just be still and to marvel at Him and His handiwork, and to reflect on His written word and His promises. But, I believe, the more we simply look at Him, and the less we look at others around us, the less we will find that He gets our leftovers, because the more we will find He is the center of our heart and awe, and we want to give our best to those that we love.

Palm Sunday

2011-04-16T10:18:00.000-07:00

Though the task ahead was one that would bring indescribable pain to our Lord, and we can't even fathom what it would have been like for the sinless Creator to have to carry our sin and to be mocked by His very own Creation, Luke 9:51-53 tells us that: When the days drew near for him [Jesus] to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem. And he sent messengers ahead of him, who went and entered a village of the Samaritans, to make preparations for him. But the people did not receive him, because his face was set toward Jerusalem.

I am struck by the repetition of the expression that His face was set to go to, or toward, Jerusalem. There is something so concrete and steadfast in that expression, ". . . He set His face to go to Jerusalem." Wow! It challenges me to ask myself, "What have I set my face towards?"

In Daniel 1:8 in the New King James translation it says, "But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's delicacies, nor with the wine which he drank; therefore he requested of the chief of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself." He purposed in his heart. The English Standard Version says he "resolved."

I know that I won't know the extent of God's plans for me all right now, nor even what my life will look like in months, let alone years, but I must ask myself, "Have I set my face, have I purposed in my heart, that the Lord's work and will is going to be done through me—that I will present myself before my King as a yielded vessel that He might find pliable and surrendered to His heart and work?"

I get the sense that for Jesus, and Daniel, there was resolve to let nothing distract them from the course. We read this theme of not getting entangled with sin or the cares of the world throughout the Bible. We see it in Abraham's steadfast march with his son Isaac toward the mountain of sacrifice. I wonder what my true determinations are . . . not what I "say" they are, but what my life and my priorities and the use of my time "reveal" they are.

Have I set my face? Have I purposed my heart? Is my King's (and Father's) will the determination of my mind, and the goal of my life? May He find me ready, willing, dependent, poured out, led by His Spirit, and joyous in the days ahead—may I set my face to that goal, and always remember the new mercies every morning He offers when I stumble and fall.

As recorded in Numbers 6:24-26, may, "The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace."

God bless you all. Thanks for reading.
Erick

Three Cheers for Combat Support!

2011-04-13T12:59:00.000-07:00

Note to Email Subscribers: This version differs slightly from the one you received via email as the feed burner sent it out before it was finalized.

I remember in the military being told that it took something like seven people working in the rear to keep one person on the front lines. I was a scout and my job was to push ahead of the unit, sometimes behind enemy lines, and either call in the needed assets, or direct our commander about what the enemy was doing so he could move units around and respond appropriately. While my position, in a Cavalry unit, was the glamorous one (you should see a picture of me in my black Stetson with the crossed Cav sabers on it!), my ability to do my job would have been nonexistent without the countless men and women in the rear fixing the Hummers, keeping the radios working, moving supplies and fuel forward, collecting information and processing and disseminating it, making the vehicles and uniforms and weapons and night vision gear, etc.

With that said, I wanted to give a shout out to all the people who work behind the scenes of Christian ministry and make what is visible happen! We are in a spiritual war, and it is a critical battle with eternal consequences! We have our pastors, our evangelists, our Bible study leaders, our worship leaders, our authors, our speakers, our radio personalities, etc., and they get a tremendous amount of visibility. But, taking nothing away from them, here's a toast with a good cup of coffee to all those who quietly make those things possible, and who quietly serve the Lord with little or no recognition.

Where would we be without the faithful wife who raises her children to love the Lord, and considers this and taking care of her home and husband a noble calling in the face of cries to be independent and make her own life, following her own goals? What church would survive without the faithful who give, serve, attend, witness to their neighbors and coworkers, weed the grounds, pick up the trash, etc.? What about the faithful editors and friends who polished the book you read, or the movie you watched, but whose names are a tiny mention in the credits or acknowledgments? What about all the people who faithfully taught Children's Church, and witnessed to others, and held others accountable—who seeded into the lives of the pastors and authors and personalities whose names are more recognized than others? All these people, as well as the elementary school teacher, the quiet car mechanic, and the coffee shop barista, are in the spiritual war just as much as the "visible" people, because the spiritual realm doesn't recognize "lines" like we do, and it is active all around all of us.

It is such an honor to be in the body of Christ. What a tremendous praise I give to those who are quietly faithful in their daily calling to follow Him, serving, walking in faith, with their only recognition being one day in the future when they hear, "Well done, good and faithful servant." Your jobs are critical, and you are amazing, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart! Don't ever buy the lie from the pit of hell that you are any less amazing, or valuable, or that you are making any less eternal difference, than someone else whose name is more recognized than yours, or who is in a position where they are maybe seeing more "fruit." Every person in those positions is there because countless other people, whose names will never be known this side of Heaven, made it possible.

Just Wondering . . .

2011-04-09T09:21:00.000-07:00

This post is just a reflection, just a wondering . . . I am sitting in the lobby of a hotel in Santa Clara, doing some studying, getting ready to go to the second day of a Christian homeschool convention looking for our curriculum for next year. The lobby is packed with hundreds of juniors and seniors at a mock government debate conference. It sounds like it is something similar to the Boy's State I went to in high school.

The "kids" are all dressed up, buying their Starbucks, and debating the government and resolutions and laws. Inherent in that, of course, would have to be the foundation of laws and government . . . do they come from man's good ideas, or from God. Whether or not they realize it, that is the core denominator.

As I watch these kids, who are dressed to kill (and modesty is definitely not a priority here), and who are, on the outside at least, confident and on top of the world, with the future of our nation's decisions in their hands, I wonder . . .

How many know our Lord as their King?

How many seek His heart as the basis of their wisdom and knowledge?

How many realize how desperately they need Him?

How many love our soldiers and the cost they have paid for them to even have the possibility to be in politics, or to vote?

How many have chosen purity and abstinence until they are married?

How many honor their mothers and fathers?

How many believe that God created the world in six days?

How many hold the Bible pure and true as the lamp unto their feet?

I just wonder . . .

What will it look like when my girls have their own children?

What freedom to homeschool and teach the Lord's truths will still exist?

What will our nation see as its foundation of truth and decisions?

What Christian values will still be honored?

What will be thought of a girl who stays in the home until she is married, and then simply loves to care for her family and home?

How many of these kids would defend the Lord and His values, and recognize that there is right, and there is wrong, and that we must make a stand for truth or perish as a nation?

I just wonder, as I sit here, and then I wonder, who will teach these kids? Who will stand before them and share the love of God, and His mighty and awesome wonder and awe? I shared an elevator with a kid who was the "governor" of Northern California. I didn't say anything to him. I thought about the things I could have said afterwords, but not then. Who will help them?

Just wondering . . . I guess sipping a good cup of coffee does that to me.

Museum, or Workshop?

2011-04-04T10:41:00.000-07:00

The fellowship I pastor is far from perfect. Beginning with me, we are all works in progress in our Christian life. While eternally completely forgiven, bearing Christ’s righteousness, and sealed in the adoption of the Holy Spirit, in the daily realm of life we all have struggles and victories, strengths and weaknesses, good days and bad days. We have days we (and I) love and bless one another, and days we (and I) let each other down and even wound one another. I would venture to say that any honest pastor would say the same thing about themselves and their fellowship.

The question is, I think, are we OK with that? I don’t mean that we are happy about those things in our life and passive about trying to grow closer to His image—I mean, are we OK realizing that we aren’t there yet, and nor are those around us? I think the minute that we aren’t we start being condemning, unforgiving, judgmental, and divisive, and a poison creeps into the body that is supposed to be united in love as one. (This isn’t about not being the iron that sharpens iron in another’s life, or not humbly holding one another accountable—it is about the attitude we carry in that.)

I have told our fellowship many times that we are a workshop, and not a museum. If they want perfect people, and people that always live up to their expectations, then they are in the wrong place. We are a collection of many people, from many different backgrounds and church experiences (or no church experience at all). Each has their own expectations and hopes and needs . . . and baggage. Isn’t that logical?

I think that if Christians aren’t careful we can become the older brother in the prodigal story, or the Jews struggling to receive Gentiles. We can start to look at how long we’ve walked with Jesus, and how “mature” we’ve become, or how “proper” we act in church, or how much “we” serve, or how “clean” our mouth is, or . . . and then we can look at another, who maybe isn’t as “polished,” and find judgement (or a condescending spirit) enter our heart.

We have to be so careful to love one another, to guard our hearts, to forgive quickly, to serve gratefully, to examine our log more than we focus on their speck, and to recognize that the person we are elevating ourself above may have come to Christ from a far more broken place then we did, and have actually traveled much farther in their Christian journey toward maturity then we have!

How many times churches are divided (literally, or in spirit though they remain “together”) by bitter roots of judgment, unforgiveness, self-focus, self-seeking, etc. Even when there are legitimate offenses to us—how many times have we offended or wounded others (or God) and been so grateful for grace and mercy!

In Acts 10:15 the Lord said to Peter, in this case about Gentiles, "What God has made clean, do not call common." When we speak ill of one of God’s children, or we judge them, or we fail to forgive them, or we hold something against them, or we withhold what He would have us give them, or we seek our own over them, we are doing it unto His own, and we are saying that they, who are good enough for God and loved by God and declared acceptable and clean by God, are not good enough, or clean enough, for us to love and forgive and serve . . . and that is a scary place to find your heart!

We shouldn’t wonder if the world rejects Jesus if they see in those who claim to bear His image nothing different from the world they live in. Workshop, or museum? It is a question to ask. What are we truly OK with?

"Christian A"

2011-03-31T20:35:00.000-07:00

I had fun with a Christian youth group I was with recently. I made up a story about a guy called “Christian A”. He says something like, “I am a Christian. I love God—at least I think I do. I want to serve God, I think. I am trying to follow God.”

Then God’s voice says, “Christian A—I want you to go serve at a homeless shelter this Saturday.” Suddenly Christian A is saying to himself, “Oh, man. This makes me sad. This Saturday is the Final Four basketball tournament! I’ve been waiting for months for this! Wow. I don’t want to do this!”

I then asked the youth their thoughts on Christian A. I got a lot of responses about how he should be excited about doing God’s will, about how he should be happy about it, about how he might not even be a Christian because of how he felt, etc. Things were pretty harsh on Christian A.

I then threw him into even worse light by adding, “Not only that, but then Christian A asks God to send someone else!” I had them rate, on a scale of 0 to 10, Christian A’s Christianity, with 0 being maybe not even a Christian, and 10 being Jesus-like. The answers were pretty brutal—in the 1-2 range, pretty consistently.

Then, I turned to Mark 14:33-36a, with Jesus in the Garden, facing His imminent arrest and crucifixion: And he took with him Peter and James and John, and began to be greatly distressed and troubled. And he said to them, "My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch." And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. And he said, "Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me."

I asked them if anyone blamed Jesus for not being thrilled about taking on all sin, about being beaten and marred beyond human recognition, nailed to a cross, speared, mocked, hung up in barely any clothes, and all this by His own creation! Not one of them felt Jesus should be thrilled by that, nor did any of them condemn Him for that.

I then read them the last part of verse 36—the one that captures it all—when Jesus continues to the Father, “Yet not what I will, but what you will.” Therein lies, I believe, the pivot point. Our initial feelings may not be the most excited at paying the price, or bearing the cross, we might be asked to pay or bear—but it is what we do in spite of our feelings that will define the moment. James 1:14 tells us that, “. . . each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.” At this point I believe it is only a temptation—we’ve got stuff in us that isn’t always perfectly aligned with God. James continues with verse 15 that tells us, “Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.” The temptation is not the sin, it is what we do with it—whether we give it life and let it “conceive.”

I realize the comparisons between Jesus and “Christian A” are far from perfect matches—and I know that most anyone could come up with tons of “yeah, but . . .” comments, and, “what about . . .?” questions to what I have said—but I think the youth got my main point as we talked. I think they realized how the voice of the enemy can condemn us when we aren’t initially thrilled with what God might ask us to do—how he can whisper how we are a lousy Christian, and maybe not even saved, if we aren’t thrilled at first reflection to do what God asks. Yet, we see that even Jesus had a moment when what was ahead in obedience didn’t make Him jump for joy . . . but He did it anyway, and those initial feelings didn’t make Him less of the perfect Christ, or in sin, because He didn’t live by those emotions, but rather by faith and obedience. I find comfort in that, because, if I am honest, my imperfect love for God falters enough that I don’t always initially want to do what I know He is asking me to do. Anyone else ever feel that way?

Easter Thoughts and "What Would Jesus Do?"

2011-03-30T11:06:00.000-07:00

I find that it is so easy to replace Jesus with the idea of Jesus—to substitute stuff for Jesus, and about Jesus, in place of Jesus. Does anyone else relate, or fall into that trap?

I try, in this blog, in my pastoring/teaching/counseling, and in my life, to avoid the trap of theology for knowledge’s sake, but to take theology and study to its end . . . to our relationship with Jesus and how that translates into daily living. Easter, in which we celebrate the risen Christ, is the perfect time to talk about a living, vibrant, daily, interactive faith—to explore a living relationship with a living God.

For so many religions and “ways” one follows the teaching’s of another—be it a religious leader, a parent, etc. That person can be alive, or long dead, and it doesn’t matter. But, in our faith, we follow a person . . . and for that person to be followed, they must be alive. While Jesus gave us many teachings and things we can look back on for wisdom in areas He addressed, He ultimately invites us to a living relationship with Him where we follow Him.

It is good to ask the question so popular among Christians, “What would Jesus do?”—and there are clear cut things that this is sufficient for—but if we are not careful we can subtly fuel a problem in the Christian walk of replacing ideas about Jesus with the living reality of Jesus. Asking, “What would Jesus do?” almost leaves an unsaid, but still real feeling at the end in which one might add, “. . . if He were here?”—and we can often arrive at that answer, or what we think that answer would be, without any interaction with Jesus Himself. He is here, with us, present—and that makes all the difference in the world!

The reality is that, if you have given the Lordship of your life to Jesus, He is here, with you, and it is so much better to ask, “What is Jesus doing?” (present tense). It is not easy to be so intimate with Him that we can always sense that, but it is critical that it is our goal. He is alive! He died, but He rose again! That is the core of our relationship with Him, that it is not following a dead man’s teachings, but following a living God. To follow we must be aware of, and in relationship with . . . but that is what Jesus modeled for us when He did only what the Father was doing, and said only what the Father was saying. Later the Apostles modeled that by seeking to follow the teaching of God to make disciples in the world, but allowing the Holy Spirit to give them “real time” leading and guidance in the moment, and about which region to go to.

When we walk down the streets, stand in the breakroom, sit in the classroom, hang out at the sewing group or sporting event, etc., Jesus is there with us, in us, waiting to be allowed to lead. We are His hands, his feet, his mouth, and when we can move in that relationship with Him where we are surrendered to Him He can direct us to the one in the crowd His eyes are on, where He is working, and we can follow Him in that moment, where He would go.

God bless, and be encouraged—we have a great and mighty and living God!
Erick

Faith and the Attacks on It

2011-03-28T11:55:00.000-07:00

I would encourage you, if God leads you, to listen to the teaching I gave on Sunday about the role of faith in Kingdom living, and the tactics of the enemy to undermine our faith, or to convince us that faith is simply believing in God. The quality of the recording is not good, but if you can bear with the annoyance of that, I think you will be blessed by it and I would value your feedback and thoughts and contributions to it. You can click on the link below to get to True Life Christian Fellowship's mp3 teaching page. The teaching is under the heading "Current Series" and it is called Kingdom of Heaven 10, dated March 27, 2011.

Click Here

Thanks, and God bless all of you.
Erick

He Must Be Enough . . .

2011-03-23T10:28:00.000-07:00

I was just reflecting this morning on the irony we face, as Christians, if we share a feeling that God is warning us of something (I am not talking about a prophetic word where God says to specifically tell people something is going to happen). Think about how, if God gives us a dream, or a vision, or a sense, that something bad might be about to happen, and we are fairly strongly sure He gave it to us and we then take the natural course to warn others of the possibility and then to intercede in prayer (and prepare if we feel He is leading us to) . . .

Well, what if that is exactly what God was warning us for—giving us a possible future so that Christians would wake up, rise up in unity, confess their sins, turn from their selfish ways and surrender again to His Lordship, and intercede in prayer, using our precious privilege as His children to go before Him at His throne? So, then, because His children return to Him, He stays His hand and, to all whom we shared with, we look like fools because that which we warned about never happened.

It truly is the case, for each of us, that He must be enough because, all too often, in obedience to Him we cut ourselves off from the respect and praise of those who don't understand Him. It must be enough to us, no matter what we are called to be or do, that He says, "Well done My good and faithful servant." If anyone else's opinion of us ranks higher on our priority scale than His, we are done for because we will then serve man and not God, and it is the most unsafe place in the world for a Christian to be if we are out of His will.

James 5:16-18   Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit.

2 Chron 7:13-15   When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command the locust to devour the land, or send pestilence among my people, if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land. Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayer that is made in this place.

Jeremiah 29:7   But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.

Lovely and Pure . . .

2011-03-21T11:23:00.000-07:00

All right, I have to admit it—I've watched more hours of television in the last week and a half then I have in probably the last three to four months. Between the tragedy in Japan, the strikes on Libya, the almost unreported strikes on Israel from Gaza, and all of the secular speculations and Christian prophetic words and/or feelings that the West Coast of the United States may be in for a major disaster, etc., I have found myself turning on the news over and over in a day, and then sitting in front of it for countless hours hearing the same things said over and over, waiting for some new breaking story or tidbit. It is addicting, and it sucks me in. Before I know it I have spent an entire evening watching news of negative events!

I believe that, as Christians, we are to be aware of the signs of the times, and looking to the return of Jesus. That is a great hope for us that carries us through the present turmoil. But, and I am being careful in how I word this, I also believe that we have to guard our heart and our focus through those times. I remember, as an early Christian, knowing some people who seemed to only talk about the end times and to analyze every event in the news based on that. I actually got "scared away" from looking at the signs of the times because it seemed it had, for them, consumed and overshadowed living, today, right now, for Jesus, in the midst of these times—living as the light of the world and the salt of the earth.

If we think about it, the closer we realize we are to the end, the more it should make us focus on where God has planted us right this minute. We may have the glorious hope and expectancy of His return and Heaven, but for many, many who surround each of us it is not going to be a good day! The proximity of the end should, I believe, increase the urgency of the present. For each and every one of us we are probably the closest representative of Jesus that at least one person knows. Is His light shining through us? Are we bearing His image? Have we surrendered to His Lordship that He might freely live out His will in their life through us? Are they seeing in us a radiant hope, or do we sound as negative and pessimistic and depressed as those who have no living God? Do the words of our mouth express one who is indwelt with a living Savior who is full of love and power and might, or do they sound like the same words coming out of the mouths of those who have no legitimate hope beyond their own capability?

These are the kinds of questions we must ask, I believe, as Christians in these days. When the end comes, will those around us have seen Jesus expressed through us in love, humility, servanthood, and power? Will they have had an encounter with Him? The Kingdom of God is a future reality, and a real place, but it is also a breaking in truth now, today. The Kingdom, or the reign and rule of God, is breaking in everywhere that His children surrender to His Lordship and let Him live through them. It is a Kingdom not just of word, but of power, and God has called us to be His continuing vessels in bearing, and showing, His image to the world. It is only increasingly critical that we show the full picture of Him to the world as the end seems to rush closer.

How can we stay aware of the times, but be His kids in this day? I think that we must guard our hearts. His Word tells us of tremendous, terrible signs that will mark the end, and the news makes sure we know about most of them as they happen. But He also says that in the last days He will pour out His Spirit! I love to measure the coming of the end by reading missionary reports and testimonies of His power being poured out in Muslim countries and across the globe. It is so much more encouraging to see the end coming by the increase of people coming to Him, by the stories of Him healing and delivering people, etc., than it is for me to watch the end approach through the bad news only. When I share the news with my daughters I want them to not fall into fear because all they have heard is news of war and earthquakes, but I want them to feel their faith and excitement rise because they realize that their great God is on the move, that His power is being poured out, and that He is greater than the one who paces about seeking to steal, kill, and destroy!

We must, in these days, be a people of faith! We must be a people of confident hope! We must be a people not afraid to stare darkness in the face in the name of Jesus! We are God's kids, and we must act like it! The world needs to see something different! It cries out for something more—some legitimate hope. That is why, I believe, witchcraft, occultism, and other "religions" hold such a strong appeal . . . because people know there is something more and if they don't find it in Him, through us, they will look elsewhere.

So, last night, I told Mary Ann I wanted to increase her faith and share exciting stuff with her. We stoked up the fire in our wood stove, sat down near it, and I read out loud long into the night an autobiography of a Christian man whose life was filled with amazing stories of how God moved in every dimension of the good news Jesus demonstrated—salvation, healing, the gifts of the Spirit, deliverance, etc. I ended up reading almost the whole book to her, and we went to bed after midnight—uplifted, excited, and ready to brag on God to anyone we encountered!

Philippians 4:8 commands us, "Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." We must, I believe, be careful that we obey that command and fix our eyes on God and His might in times when fear is invading people. It is the only way we will be different and be a light in the darkness, instead of blending in.

Quiet Nudges from a Big God

2011-03-13T20:33:00.000-07:00

As you set out this week on your journey with Jesus, I’d like to encourage you to make yourself available to the Spirit’s quiet nudges. It is one of the most amazing and astounding truths of all the earth that, as one who has surrendered their life to the Lordship of Jesus, He has come to dwell in you and live through you! Why He chooses to live in us and work out His will through us is almost too incredible to fathom, but none-the-less He does, and I encourage you to be ready and available to it, and looking for His divine appointments and leading.

Jesus said, basically, that He only did what He saw the Father doing, and He only said what the Father was saying—that required tremendous intimacy with the Father to be able to live like that. Likewise, Acts records when some, submitted to God’s call on their life, were led by the Spirit to His specific appointments when it says in Acts 16:6-8, “And they went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. And when they had come up to Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them. So, passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas.”

I remember back to a time when a lady in our fellowship kept popping in to my mind. Her husband was away on a work trip, but I didn’t give it much thought. The next day, at our Sunday service, I asked her if everything was OK with her the previous morning. She said that it was, unless you counted the fact that her water heater had sprung a leak and water was pouring all over her kitchen floor. I could have been there in under 15 minutes and helped tremendously, but I missed the nudge.

On the other hand, recently I was doing a hospital visitation with a friend and as we were leaving we passed a man parking his car and locking it. His hazard lights were on and my friend told him. He thanked us and began opening his door to turn them off as we walked past. I made a friendly comment about him not wanting to come back and find his battery dead. We were past him as I made the comment and he said something in response to the effect of, “Yeah, I don’t need any more bad news today” (or it might have been “anything more bad today”).

It is amazing the thoughts that can go through our minds in seconds . . . I was running a little late, I had an hour and a half drive ahead . . . and I also realized that was a God-loaded comment he had just made, and a divine insight into his heart. I turned around and stepped back toward him and said some something like, “You are having a bad day? What’s up?” My friend took my next words out of my mouth and said, “Yeah, we can pray for you right here.” Neither of us expected what was next. He seemed so grateful and he told us his daughter had a fever and was in the emergency room and could we come pray for her. Again, the thoughts that crossed my mind in seconds . . . what if we can’t get in for an hour or two? . . . could we just pray with him right here and go on? . . . but then there is the realization that God gives us these moments and asks us to be His hands and feet in them.

We said "sure" and within probably five minutes of passing his car I was signed in and being led by a confused mom who had already been there back to a room in emergency where a precious little girl was lying down and feeling poorly. I knelt next to her, told her a little about myself and my daughters, and asked her if I could pray for her. She nodded yes, with big eyes, without saying a word, and while the nurse was talking to the mom I had the privilege of praying over this little girl I'd never met before, and being a vessel to bring His presence and power to her. It was an awesome privilege, and it felt almost “tingly” to have seen God so clearly setting something up, and bringing about something so very unexpected, but wonderful.

How many moments did the Holy Spirit direct us toward that encounter that we didn’t even realize He was doing it? The nudge to say it was time to go? The decision to walk back to our van on another route from the one we took to the hospital? The man leaving his hazard lights on, or my friend noticing them and saying something? My lighthearted comment about the battery? I have no idea how many times my friend, or I, or the man, were nudged unaware to set that moment up. All I know is that, in that moment, there came one when I knew God had “set me up” and that I had a choice I was responsible for. It came when he made the comment about the bad day and I could have kept walking, or stopped and gone back. It was such a casual comment . . . but what a moment lay in the balance around it!

I don’t share this to brag on myself in any way (that’s why I shared my “water heater failure” first), but because there is power in the testimony to increases other's faith, and I want to encourage you to look for these moments, and expect them and be available to them. Let’s:

1) Expect divine encounters, because He loves people, and all you have to do is read the Gospels to realize that the Jesus that lives in you was always having wild, "unexpected" encounters with unlikely people!

2) Be available to those encounters and looking for the tiny, quiet signs (a drooped head, a sad face when they think no one is looking, a co-worker whose not as cheerful as normal, a person who appears in your life (or thoughts) multiple times, etc.).

3) Realize who we are in Christ, and Who goes with us, in (hint: the Creator of the Universe!).

4) Walk in gentleness and love and service and humility toward the people we meet, and in authority and righteous anger toward the darkness that enslaves them. Let’s remember that every time we come in to a room or a situation the Creator of the Universe just entered with us, and the entire spiritual atmosphere and dynamic just changed! Let us never forget that we serve a mighty God, and that the hosts of hell tremble before Him, and that with Him all things are possible!

God loves the world and His Kingdom rule and power are waiting to come to bear in it. We are the vessels of His power and authority amidst the world. Let’s walk in a manner that honors that.

So, what divine encounters do you want to share? Send them to me, I'd love to hear them. Let me know if I can share them. You can send them as a comment. It won't be seen until I "publish" it. Just let me know if it is OK or not. Remember, your testimony instructs and encourages others!

The Paradox of Authority

2011-03-10T12:14:00.000-08:00

If you are an email subscriber and reading this in an email you won't notice the new masthead header on the blog, but if you are visiting the blog on the web you will see that it is new. Yes, I am resisting surrendering to Spring! I am hoping for more rain and cool weather that welcomes a cozy fire in the wood stove, water in our ponds, and snow in the higher elevations. I have cast my vote for a little bit more Winter by sharing a few pictures in the header from our family's recent get away to the Sierra Nevada Mountains where we were blessed by wonderful friends loving on us, by fresh snow falling on us while we learned to cross-country ski through the woods, and by blessed fellowship and God's glorious creation.

Christian authority is an interesting paradox. We read how Jesus spoke with authority, how the demons and sickness responded to His authority, and how He confronted that which opposed God's Kingdom reign around Him with authority. Whenever He confronted the works of the enemy (either in false teachers, or in sickness, or in demons) He did so with an authority all Christians should desire to walk in against the hosts of darkness. Why should we desire that type of authority? Because all of us have areas in our lives where we are attacked by the enemy, and all of us know people who are bound in one way or another by the enemy. We should not shy from trying to understand that authority because it is the basis of our making disciples in the world . . . Jesus said that He had been given all authority and we were to go "therefore"—meaning, "because of," that authority (Matthew 28:18–20).

I believe that the Centurion nailed the basis of Jesus' authority, and it presents the paradox of authority. Matthew 8, starting with verse 5, records an encounter with Jesus and the Centurion with a paralyzed, suffering servant whom he desired healed. Clearly the Kingdom of God was not over this servant, as there is no paralysis and suffering in Heaven. What he was asking for, whether or not he realized it, was an encounter, or collision, between the Kingdom (or rule) of God and the present rule of darkness over his servant. Jesus says He'll go and heal the servant and the Centurion says Jesus doesn't need to go, but to just say the word and it will be done. He then says, in Matthew 8:9, "For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. And I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes, and to another, 'Come,' and he comes, and to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it." Following this it says Jesus marveled at the man's faith, evidenced by his words—and as a friend told me, "When Jesus is in awe I want to pay attention!"

The key to Jesus' authority, which the Centurion understood, is found in the word "too." The Centurion said that he, too, was a man both under authority . . . and in authority. The "too" clearly implies he recognized Jesus was as well. In other places in the Bible we read how Jesus surrendered His rights as God, how He became as an obedient servant, and how He did and said only what the Father did and said—He submitted Himself fully to the Father's will and authority (don't let the theology, or confusion, of the Trinity cloud the main point this encounter is showing us).

The basis of the Centurion's authority is that he, Himself, is under authority. If he was at the top his only authority would be what he could enforce, and the men would only have to follow him as long as he was tough enough to make them. But, since he was under authority, his authority was the authority of the one he served and represented (Rome) and as such, the men were submitting to Rome's authority, carried through him. Likewise, if a person on the street today decided to become a policeman and make laws on their own none of us would be accountable to their authority . . . but a true policeman, himself (or herself) under the authority of the government, carries authority because of who they are under—and our failure to submit to their authority is a failure to submit to the laws and authority of our goverment.

So, where does our Christian authority come from against the hosts of darkness? From being under authority ourselves—from laying our lives down at the feet of our Lord, and surrendering our lives to His authority. When we act, on our own, we are not under any authority (or the King's rule) and, as such, we carry no authority. But, when we live the will of the Father, when we are under His authority and doing His will and call, we carry with us His authority because we are representing Him. This is the paradox. To be one of authority we must, ourselves, submit to authority! When God is reigning in our lives (don't take the word "reigning" lightly or casually or assume this is true of all Christians) then He is able to live out His will through us, and that means His full authority and resources are behind us. But, when we just head off on our own good ideas and plans, not of Him, we do so without His authority behind us and, as the seven sons of Sceva found out, it is not a good place to be in, confronting darkness without the authority of God (Acts 19:11–20).

Note: I taught on this extensively at the fellowship I pastor in my Kingdom of Heaven 07 teaching which you can listen to by clicking here. I will continue this look at the Centurion's understanding, and the role of his faith, in a subsequent teaching.

Union with Christ

2011-02-26T12:54:00.000-08:00

Because of the fear of blasphemy, or making ourselves out to be something too great, I think that Christians often shy away from realizing, and declaring, the union we have with Christ, in Christ, because of Christ. Yet, the reality is, because of what Christ has done for us as His free gift to us, we have an amazing place with and in God.

Yes, we have to be careful that we never fall in to the trap of making our standing in Christ about anything we did, because we have done nothing to deserve or earn it. But, likewise, I believe that we need to be careful against belittling what He did, and who that now makes us as born again new creations, because we are trying to avoid anything sounding blasphemous. The reality is, because of what Christ did for us, we are forgiven, redeemed, born again, made new—and we are the body of Christ, the temple of Christ, the children of God, joint heirs with Christ, the bride of Christ, God’s own special people, His holy nation, His royal priesthood. We are forgiven, and we have the righteousness of Christ. This is all because of what He did, not because of anything we did, but it is true about us, as believers, just the same!

The danger is in going to far in trying to remember our fallen status, and actually degrading the work Christ did on our behalf by still identifying with it. We did not do the work, but the work has been done, none the less. He said, “It is finished.” The blood of Christ is enough. The work has been done, our sin paid for, and we have been transferred from the domain of Satan into God’s Kingdom. We are citizens of Heaven, serving our King here on Earth, and we are in union with Christ.

Reading in Acts this morning during Family Worship, Christ’s words to Saul on the road to Damascus jumped out. He didn’t say, “Saul, why are you persecuting my people?” He said, in Acts 9:4, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?" Elsewhere, in Luke 10:16, when He is sending them out, He says, “The one who hears you hears me, and the one who rejects you rejects me, and the one who rejects me rejects him who sent me.”

We are His body. The body of believers is His body, and He is the head. It is, I believe, in a way not easy for us to understand, far more of a true picture than we realize. Through the eyes of the Father we are so united with Him that when one of us is persecuted or rejected, it is as if Christ Himself was persecuted and rejected.

I know that this is hard—and the minute that we start to let any personal work become involved in why we have our identity we have fallen in to error—but we can’t afford to, in the effort to be humble and to exalt God, lose sight of just who we are in Christ—because failing to declare all that He has done for us is actually failing to lift up the full message and failing to give Him the full glory. The danger in losing sight of who we are in Christ, and who He calls us to be with Him, here, is that we begin to miss the identity and authority and place we carry as God’s children, children of the King, citizens of another Kingdom, in the midst of this dark and fallen world which lies in Satan’s sway. The reality of our identity with Him goes both ways—when we are persecuted it is Christ who is persecuted . . . and when we go forth (surrendered, obedient, and Spirit-led) against darkness, it is Christ going forth in, through, with, and as us! I believe the demons tremble at this reality, and work to make sure Christians don’t realize it. No wonder the Bible doesn’t tell us to fear the devil, but rather that if we simply resist him he will flee! (I know that this opens a whole new set of questions about obedience, submission, quenching the Spirit, etc., and those are all worthy of talking about and seeing how they impact our walk, but I am focusing on the bigger point and picture here.)

I believe that the proper perspective and posture which develops from keeping this in balance is that:

1) with other people, we are tender and loving and humble because we recognize that Christ has done all the work for us and we, like them, were helpless to do any of it ourselves . . .

2) but against the forces of darkness that would seek to steal, kill, and destroy us and our loved ones, we stand in authority and boldness because we know who we are in Him—we are children of the King, and He goes with us, and nothing can separate us from it, and the devil better never forget it!

It is, I believe, good to remember who we were and what He did, because it awakens in us love, gratitude, and worship for God—and it keeps us humble and on guard. But, we have to be careful to not let remembering who we were cloud who we now are! It is not arrogant to embrace and rejoice in who we are, as long as we give glory to the One who made us this way (and as long, obviously, as it springs from God’s Word). It is, in fact, dangerous to not receive who we now are and our union with Christ, because we become in danger of saying that His work on the cross is not enough, that more is required—and that can lead to either works and arrogance; or to a dismal, hanging head attitude that is no threat to the devil whatsoever, and no glory to God (though we think we are glorifying Him to be that way).

Let us never forget, that as Saul set out to persecute believers, Jesus asked why he was persecuting Him . . . He loves us that much, and identifies with us that much, and it is an amazing truth to chew on and mull over.

"Hate" Speech?

2011-02-25T13:08:00.000-08:00

Recently the Christian Post had an online article about a Maryland senator who changed his stance on gay marriage because of the “hate and venom” of gay marriage opponents (as he put it). One of the comments to the article asked, “Is it hate speech for a doctor to tell a patient he has cancer? Is it hate speech to be told to evacuate because a hurricane is coming? Is it hate speech for a parent too tell a child not to touch a hot stove?” A reply to that comment said, “Sure, if it was written in ancient times or involves an imaginary source as it's basis. Try using the medicinal remedies from Biblical times and you'll see what I mean.”

It raises an interesting question that we, as Christians, will have to deal more and more with in the days and years ahead if we choose to stand and declare from God's Word what He says is right and what He says is wrong. The question is, just what is “hate” speech? (Recently some nations have tried to hold pastors accountable if they had talked about homosexuality being a sin, and someone in their congregation has later committed a “hate crime” against a homosexual.) So, just what is “hate” speech?

Clearly, in the comments above, the distinction between the two commenters lies in their outlook on God’s Word. For one, it seems, telling a truth and warning people about a sin before God is as clear, and as necessary, and loving to the person, as warning them about a danger or sickness. To the other, because they don’t believe in God’s Word as truth, it is hateful. It seems that this is really what it comes down to. If someone doesn’t believe in God’s Word, then voicing an opinion (and even trying to bring about legislation) that speaks unfavorably about another lifestyle is intolerant, unloving, and hateful. But, to a person who believe’s in God’s Word, it would, in fact, be unloving to not warn someone of their choices that are sinful before God, or to embrace laws that encourage continuing in that lifestyle. Of course, we must be consistent in our speech . . . if we speak against gay marriage, but say nothing to a friend or coworker who is having an affair, or looking at pornography, or gossiping, etc., then we are in danger of being hypocritical because they, too, are practicing choices that are sin before God.

I think that the manner in which we speak says volumes. Recently a young man in Iowa, Joel Northrup, stepped down from a state championship wrestling match because he felt it went against his beliefs to wrestle against a girl and have that kind of contact with her. His statement was gracious and kind to the two girls in the match, and he is the one who paid the price and stepped out of any chance at the championship—in true, Christ-like fashion, he took the hit, he didn’t rant at the girls or try and get them thrown out.

Isn’t that Christ’s way—to speak truth, but to die for the very ones attacking Him? Yes, He fashioned a whip and drove money changers out of the temple . . . and yes, He called Pharisees hypocrites and other unkind things. But, we need to be very careful before we take that level of combative speech, and remember that He did so as One without sin . . . we address sin as ones saved from sin, but deserving of death for sin. There is a big difference.

Some of the most hateful web sites I have ever visited are self-appointed Christian watchdog web sites that slam other Christians and their belief differences (not all are like that, and discernment is important). What does that say about us when our hate and our attacks are no different from the worlds? Yes, we must speak truth. But we must also remember that Christ is truth, and He is love, and He modeled laying down a life for the very ones who hate you. I was not there to hear the testimonies that the senator in Maryland heard—but if they were not said in love then, no matter what was said and how true it was in word, it was not true in Spirit and God was not authoring it.

I believe that we can’t compromise our speech or stand on that which God declares as right or wrong, but:

1) We need to make sure we are even more aggressive in noticing, and correcting, our own places where our choices, lifestyle, and thoughts are sin as we are pointing out other’s sin, and . . .

2) We need to make sure that our life bears as much witness as our words. We can point out the sin of another’s choice, and share what God has to say about it, and encourage our nation not to adopt laws flaunting or enabling it, but if we don’t have love we have nothing. If we aren’t laying down our lives, loving those we share with, and doing it from a place of love, we ought to shut our mouth, get in our prayer closet, cry out to God, and get back into the proper place, or our words will never glorify God, nor model His love to another.

We, as Christians, have the greatest privilege in the world. We are the very dwelling place of the Creator of the universe, and we have recognized the very source of truth in the form of Christ, and His Word. We have tasted of the greatest love ever known, and we are privileged to serve God and bear His love, and words, and truth, and power in a world that is lost, dying, blinded, and in slavery to Satan. What a calling, and what a privilege! But, we can never, ever, forget that the greatest truth of God is love, and if we do, or say, anything that does not come from love and faith, then it is not from God, no matter how “true” it is at face value. And, if we aren't willing to lay down our life for the very ones who hate us, then we are not modeling Him as well.

Kingdom Teaching

2011-02-19T17:42:00.000-08:00

I hope that this finds each of you having a wonderful end to a wonderful week filled with reminders of God's amazing love and power. Tomorrow morning at church, God willing, I will be giving the sixth teaching in a series on the Kingdom of God that began, in my heart, many, many months ago—if not a year ago or more. I can not describe to you how much this teaching is impacting me as I study this subject, this "gospel" of the Kingdom that Jesus and the early church declared. There is no way I can even begin to put a fraction of the insight and background and evidence in this blog, I can only offer the audios of it. I put them on the website of the church I pastor by the middle of the week following each teaching. They are in mp3 format, between 40–45 minutes each, usually about 20 MB each, and totally free! There is a link to our fellowship's audio resources page below, and you'll find them listed, in reverse order, under the "Current Series: Kingdom of Heaven" section. (Kingdom of Heaven Audio Teachings)

I know that we are all busy, and that God may be leading each of you to other topics or places of study, but I say with all humility that, if you are able, I believe you will be blessed by starting at the beginning and following this series through. I am finding that the "Kingdom" lens, or "glasses," has changed the way I read the epistles and understand the parables. It was the message John the Baptist declared, the message Jesus declared, the message He sent the disciples to declare, the message He taught them between His resurrection and ascension, and the message taught throughout Acts, including in the last verses of Acts with Paul in prison. The epistles were written to people who had been taught about the Kingdom of Heaven/God . . . and Jesus, the disciples, and Paul were very familiar with its immediate power implications in the here and now, as well as its simultaneous realities of being both a future event and also a place called Heaven now. The study I am giving is focusing mainly in the third aspect of the Kingdom—the part Jesus said was in our midst now, the part Paul walked in knowledge of and had confidence in . . . and Jesus said that it was the gospel of the Kingdom that would be preached to all the world before the end would come.

I believe that the presentation of the Kingdom good news changes the entire focus of the Christian life from simply an emphasis on getting saved and to "Heaven" in the future, to living a life submitted to a King now. It changes the way we see ourselves, and how we carry ourselves as Christian. As we understand the war our Kingdom is in against a kingdom of darkness, as we understand the power both kingdoms bear (and which is superior!), and as we understand the reality that receiving Jesus as Lord means submitting the entirety of our lives to His Lordship, I believe that we will find our Christian life rocked. I believe that lukewarm Christianity finds its antidote in the Kingdom understanding, and that it is the true understanding we must have. When Colossian 1:13 tells us that, through Jesus, God has, ". . . delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son" it is telling us about much more than a future reality of Heaven, but also about a present reality of being born again as citizens, soldiers, and ambassadors of one Kingdom, now here in the midst of another kingdom with which we are at war.

I could go on for pages upon pages about why I feel this is important, and why I feel it is true, but I will just trust God to move you from here in the direction He has planned for you. I am excited about the study, and I covet your prayers and feedback on it. I have no interest in pursuing it for "gee whiz" knowledge, or simply for the sake of theology, but rather that I may grow in my walk with the Lord, and I would welcome any prayerful thoughts and insight you may have, as well as any questions. May we all grow together closer and closer in to His image, that He may more fully display Himself through us. May He bless you and keep you and pour His Spirit upon you.

Kingdom of Heaven Audio Teachings

Partners, or Threat?

2011-02-17T22:03:00.000-08:00

Recently I was in a meeting with a little over 20 other pastors and ministry leaders. It was wonderful to see the transparency, love, and support within the group. I reflected on how many times, it seems, however, that churches compete, and leaders feel threatened by other leaders and churches, and how critical leaders can be of other leaders.

I thought back to when I was a platoon leader in the army. I don’t ever remember, on a mission, being resentful or threatened or jealous of another platoon that was on the mission with mine. To the contrary, the more we were, and the better they did, made me and my men safer and more likely to succeed on the mission and at staying alive. It wasn’t my mission, it was the country’s mission and the commander's mission—we were all just partners in bringing it to pass and success.

It struck me that a lot of the way we react to others who work in a similar capacity to ourself depends on whether we see ourself as “king,” or as serving a king. If we see ourself at the top, as number one in our heart and priority, then everyone else working for a same goal as us is a threat. We must guard against them infringing on our territory, or getting bigger or more powerful than us. We are on guard, jealous, self-promoting, bitter. But, if we see ourself as willing servants of a king whom we love and honor, than everyone else working for the same goal as ourself is an asset, a benefit—someone to be grateful for, and to bless, and to rejoice in their success.It is so freeing to serve Someone bigger than yourself!

If the glory of our, and other's, success passes through us and goes to the King we both serve, and if that is our desire and hope, then whether it is us, or them, that brings glory to our King doesn’t matter. It is when glory, or recognition, or achievement is something we want for ourself that we are threatened by another getting it.

I wonder what this nation would be like if every pastor and church leader and denominational leader truly desired the glory of God and the expansion of His Kingdom above all else. I wonder what it would be like if every Christian desired that first and foremost as well, and sought for it in the workplace, the family, the neighborhood, the schools. If our life was not about us, our glory, our success, but about Him, and His glory, and His name—if it didn’t matter if one person every knew our name or what we did, but it only mattered that all that was said, thought, and done brought Him glory.

Because It Pleases Him . . . Is That Enough?

2011-02-16T21:25:00.000-08:00

Once I was in a position where I spent many hours in a car just listening to the talk of those around me. They were people who I had been ministering to for some time (years in some cases), and who I was taking to a Christian event (I am being intentionally vague). As I listened to them I could reflect on the priorities of their hearts, as was reflected by what consumed their conversation and what seemed to excite them, and I found myself wondering, “Is there any hope? It seems like God is so little a part of their lives and conversation—and their interests—and the things that consume their time and energy and passion seem so removed from Him . . .” As I listened I got really down and began to wonder, “What is it all about? Am I doing any good?” It seemed that the world and its lures was so overwhelmingly dominate in their lives, and that God was just a spoke on their wheel instead of its hub . . . One who was rarely even mentioned.

Later at the event, in a worship setting, I was behind many of them, watching them and reflecting and my heart was sad. Then, it was as if God started taking me down the line, one by one. He started reminding me of a role I had played in each of their lives—a time in each of their lives I had stood with them through some tremendous pain they were going through personally, or because of choices in their families. They each seemed so confident now, and “all together,” but I knew that in each of their lives, at a private time, there had been pain, uncertainty, tears, and fear. There were some amazingly hard times I had been through in their lives with them . . . and the thing was, few of them knew anything about those times in the lives of the ones they were standing next to. I realized that, in a quiet way, Jesus had allowed me to be His hands and feet and words in most of their lives . . . and no one but Him, them, and Mary Ann would ever know. (Note: It wasn't just His voice I heard—the enemy was quick to remind me, as well, of all the times I fell short in people's lives, all the times I was selfish and didn't minister when I could have, and all the times I just blew it.)

As I reflected, I realized that, for most of those in front of me, I probably wouldn’t be there to see the moment when God broke through for them and became not just a belief and a theology, but the center of their lives. I had been privileged to play a small part in it—to stand with them, hold them, comfort them, and show them Him for a moment. But, for so many, when the pain had become a distant thing, the world had pulled them back toward it. Yet, I knew that I wasn’t responsible for their choices, but had been faithful when asked. It was then like He asked me (or, I asked myself?), “Is that enough?”

I don’t share any of this to lift me up—each and every one of you have been there for people and touched people’s lives in quiet, but powerful ways—I share this more as a point of reflection for us, because I think that we all face the same question(s) as we seek to serve God. As the Spirit prompted that question, “Is that enough?”, I had to answer it in my heart. I had to face the question and wonder, “Am I OK with no one knowing the half of what I do or have done, and with maybe not even having it appreciated over the long haul by those I ministered to?” Then came the second half, “Am I OK just being obedient and being a part of their journey—being a surrendered vessel which Jesus was able to fill and use in their life to show them a little bit of Him—even if it means I don’t get to share in the joy of their final turning to God in total surrender some day, or even if I never get the encouragement of knowing that they have given their lives to Him?”

It was then that the question became fully apparent to me, “Is it enough?” Is it enough that only God knows what I have done, and that He is pleased—or do I need to see results, do I need others to know, do I need to promote myself and defend myself? Is it enough to have Jesus smile and quietly whisper, “I know. Thank you.”. . . which, in the end, really means the question is, “Is He enough?” Is it enough for me to love and serve my Master, without the world ever thanking me, or without even ever knowing if it made a difference, and without ever being considered a great pastor, without my blog ever having a huge following, or without my ever having a name that is known outside its little boundaries?

Some time back at Hume Lake Christian Camp where I was with some youth, Moi was the band and a song of theirs, It Pleases You, caught fire over the weekend and became the essence of the weekend. The core of the song talks about yielding our life to Him and it has the chorus, “It may not make a difference, it may not change a single life, it may not move a single stone, but it pleases You, it pleases You, it pleases You, it pleases You, oh cause it pleases You, cause it pleases You, I come, I come, I come.”

Is it enough—because it pleases Him? Is He enough? Or do I need more. It is a question I have to reflect on not just once, but I have to return to repeatedly as the world seeks to draw me away as well.

Viewpoint is Everything . . .

2011-02-09T10:50:00.000-08:00

How many GALAXIES can you count?

If any of you have known me, or followed my blog, any length of time, you know that I often turn to space and the stars as the place in which I put things back in proper perspective and remind myself how big and utterly amazing God is. Sometimes just stepping outside and staring up and reflecting for a few moments can bring a peace and restoration to my thoughts and anxieties that have gotten out of order and balance. But, that isn't the case for everyone, and I had a real lesson in how much viewpoint matters the other day . . .

Recently, with all the hype about the star Betelgeuse and whether it was dying next year or not, I spent a little time looking at more facts about it on the internet, and locating it in the night sky. What I learned was amazing (it is in the constellation Orion, by the way, and easy to see from our area at night). While one of the bigger stars, it is far from the biggest star, and yet, according to one video, if you were to take that tiny star and put its center where our sun is, its edges would go 90% of the way to Saturn's orbit! Picture that—this star, if it was put in the place of our sun, would have, inside of it, all the planets between the sun and Saturn—which means that Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, and the largest of our planets, Jupiter, would all be inside it . . . along with all the space inbetween them! And it's not the largest star!

According to one video, if a plane flew around the largest known star at 900 km/h (which I believe is 560 mph) it would take it 1,100 years to get around it once! And these are just a couple of stars in our single Milky Way galaxy. To put that in perspective, according to Wikipedia, the Milky Way galaxy alone has 100–400 billion STARS in it, and is 100,000 light years across! That means that, if you traveled at the speed of light (186,000 miles per second—or 700 million miles per hour—a speed that would take you around the earth over seven times in a second) it would take you 100,000 years to cross our galaxy alone . . . and there are billions of galaxies in our universe!

Now, here's where viewpoint matters. The impact that these figures had on the people making the videos I watched, and many of the people commenting on them on YouTube, was to make them feel completely insignificant. One video ended with flashing the words, "You are not the center of the universe!" Another had a quote by Carl Sagan in which he said, "Who are we? We find that we live on an insignificant planet of a humdrum star lost in a galaxy tucked away in some forgotten corner of a universe in which there are far more galaxies than people."

Some of the comments posted on these videos included (using their syntax/grammar):

Look? how small & insignificant we are. LOOK how small! We probably (possibly) the most insignificant thing in the galaxy. We are SMALL!!

i agree 100% that most people(including my wife) dont realize how lucky we are to be here.most people could care less about the universe and the planet we live on.what are the odds of there being a planet with the ingredients for life which orbits a sun in the? exact spot to form life with intelligence to figure out how lucky we really are??

"Luck . . . insignificant . . . forgotten corner . . . lost in a galaxy . . ." this is the perspective and viewpoint one gets by looking at these stars, galaxies, and facts without a knowledge of the love of God who made them, and the story of the cross. I, on the other hand, find myself drawn to completely opposite conclusions when I stare at the sky and ponder these same facts that these other people have. For example, the other night at our fire department drill, I stared up and saw Betelgeuse up there and I pictured the graphic I had seen of that single star swallowing our solar system out to almost Saturn, and I felt such a huge sense of how huge my God is, and I thought, "Why do I ever worry about anything when my God who loves me is so big!" Such peace and security flooded me after that.

I look up at these stars, and ponder the size of the universe, and then I realize that the God who made all of that crowned it with the creation of man, in His image. I read in the Word that before He ever formed the earth He had His plan in place to adopt me through His Son's death. I realize that, of this vast universe, He chose to come to our planet to die, to redeem us for His own, to live with us in eternity, and that, with this vast universe, He knows the number of hairs on my head and my every thought and He loves me and calls me His own. For me, the size of the stars and the universe doesn't make me feel insignificant—rather, I find that the more I realize that the God who made all of that knows me intimately and loves me so much that He died for me makes me realize that I am of great worth to the One whose estimate matters most.

I think the difference is that for those who don't know Him and His love they start from here and look farther and farther out and just feel smaller and more lost and more insignificant. I look at the same stars, but I start at the farthest point and I realize that the Father's eyes move from them closer and closer to us, here, who He has loved and made in His image and died for on a cross to have a relationship with of fellowship, love, adoption as His children, and eternal life with Him. When I see it that way I realize that we are, in fact, the center of the universe—because we are the center of His love and eye, and He is all that matters. Yes, the universe displays the glory of God . . . but we, as Christians, carry it . . . He dwells in us and calls us His own. Yes, viewpoint is everything . . .

Perspective . . .

2011-01-27T09:19:00.000-08:00


From a web page copyrighted by Michael Richmond under Creative Commons License.

This morning, during Family Worship, we got to the middle of Acts 4. Peter and John have just been threatened by the powerful religious people, and warned not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. They have replied with that line that I hope always marks my life, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard" (Acts 4:19).

Afterwords, they leave and go to their friends and report what the chief priests and elders said to them. Acts 4:24 records the beginning of the response of them all: And when they heard it, they lifted their voices together to God and said, "Sovereign Lord, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them, . . ."

The prayer goes on about how gentiles and kings and rulers plotted in vain and set themselves in vain against the Lord, and how God brought His will to pass in the life of Jesus despite all their efforts. Then, at the end of the prayer, for the last two of seven verses, they made their request, "And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness, while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus" (Acts 4:29-30).

It struck me how, faced with overwhelming odds and obstacles in the physical world, they didn't all immediately beginning bemoaning their situation, or crying out for help, or talking negatively, or sagging their heads in hopelessness, or praying about their problem and how huge it was. Instead, they began exalting God and making praises to Him about how He made all of Creation and how nations plot in vain against Him. They did this for 5/7 of their prayer! Then, almost as a tag at the end, they make their request.

It reminds me of David, faced with Goliath. He didn't try and talk down or deny Goliath's obvious strengths, "You aren't really over nine feet tall! You don't really have armor! You don't really have an armor bearer! You aren't really a great warrior!" No, instead, David just went right past Goliath to One who was bigger than him—to the One who, against all earthly odds, delivered to David the wild animals threatening his father's sheep. He didn't deny Goliath's strengths, or focus on Goliath's strengths—he just focused on His mighty God, Deliverer, and walked with confidence in spite of Goliath's strengths.

I find that facing obstacles as Christians isn't about denying the obstacle, but about reminding ourselves of who our God is. As I shared at our Family Worship, when you start to praise God and focus on how mighty and huge and powerful He is it seems to automatically put the other things in proper perspective. We can lose sight of our God, and things of the earth become bigger than they should be. Sometimes we need to sit back, be still, and know that He is God!

When I get overwhelmed, or things are pressing in, I will often step outside and look up at the stars. I will remind myself that I am only seeing a fraction of them, that most of them would make the earth look like a golf ball next to a house, that they are so far away that the distance is unfathomable to me, and that my God breathes them out, puts them in place, and knows them all by name . . . and that He knows the number of hairs on my head, and loves me enough to die for me. It is wonderful the peace that most often accompanies those moments. It is not that the problem on earth changed any, it is just that I put it all back in to perspective.