journey onWord with us

It was an interesting journey back in time as I looked through books donated to a relief auction. Popular books that I had used in the 1980’s could now be had for a simple donation. Although illustrations from these works are dated, the principles remain timeless. A quick scan of one, Three Steps Forward, Two Steps Back, by Charles Swindoll, was as penetrating as the first time I read it. A particular chapter caught my eye related to stress. Stress was different then, without the internet, cell-phones, twenty-four hour news and all the other “conveniences” meant to make our lives easier. But stress was stress, nonetheless! What mattered then, and now, is how we handle it.

Cease striving and know that I am God
Psalm 46:10a (NASB)

These are words which are recited with great conviction, regardless of the generation. Who doesn’t want to live with a heart that is quiet and at peace before the Lord? But striving after our objectives can easily dominate our lives, thus creating stress. Anyone who is a Christ-follower should be willing to examine their level of stress vs. their willingness to cease striving. A closer look at the word cease gives us direction. The Hebrew term for this word means relax. It is counter-intuitive to think that I can accomplish more in my walk with God by being relaxed rather than by striving. Ceasing to strive and daily dependence on a Greater power will accomplish His purpose in and through us.

From the dated, yet relevant reading, the following words gave great 21st century advice. My old relief sale copy of Three Steps Forward, Two Steps Back, quoted Tim Hansel’s work, When I Relax, I Feel Guilty. I am sure you will associate with the spirit in his words…

Slow me down, Lord.
Ease the pounding of my heart by the quieting of my mind.
Steady my hurried pace with a vision of the eternal reach of time.
Give me, amid the confusion of the day, the calmness of the everlasting hills.
Break the tensions of my nerves and muscles with the soothing music of the singing streams that live in my memory.
Teach me the art of taking minute vacations – of slowing down to look at a flower,
to chat with a friend, to pat a dog, to smile at a child, to read a few lines from a good book.
Slow me down, Lord, and inspire me to send my roots deep into the soil of life’s enduring values, that I may grow toward my greater destiny.
Remind me each day that the race is not always to the swift; that there is more to life than increasing its speed.
Let me look upward to the towering oak and know that it grew great and strong because it grew slowly and well.

Read and re-read those words.  Are you willing to join with me and cease striving? Is the word relax in your current vocabulary? The nature of stress hasn’t changed since the 1980’s.  We’ve simply added new sources.

I have many potential stressors in the next few days, and so might you. We can let stress invade our sense of peace or we can choose to slow down, relax and become better examples of what it means to truly follow Christ. Stressful circumstances aren’t going away, but living with a quiet heart will change the way we act and react.

Timeless treasures from old books … Still work!

Did your life have disconcerting circumstances last week? To give an example, last week my life contained: spilled coffee (3 times), food poisoning from a restaurant, being asked to pray for a client with cancer,  waking up at 4am (wide awake) once or twice, seeing a business opportunity fall through, and praying hard for our daughter’s musical presentation! I suspect you could answer with your own circumstances from last week and I expect this week to be marked by its own similar kinds of small to large interruptions. There will be circumstances which make us laugh, frustrate us, cause sleeplessness and maybe even internal pain or conflict. So how will you and I approach the next seven days?

For the past two weeks, I have spent a lot of time thinking about a man named Caleb. He was given a promise at age forty. He would inherit the land which he and eleven other men had been sent to scout. If you are a student of Scripture, you’ll recall the story of the twelve men who were sent to spy the land of Canaan. Ten returned with a negative report; only Joshua and Caleb were positive about taking the land. The consequences of their disobedience in not entering the land God had promised were devastating to the nation of Israel and they wandered in the wilderness for 38 years. At age eighty-five (45 years after the promise) Caleb asked for possession of his promised inheritance and received it. He was a man of faith who trusted God during those 45 years. Caleb never stopped believing the promise would one day be his possession. That is trust! You and I would be wise to simply believe the promises in Scripture for the next seven days.

Caleb received a promise and ended up in a wilderness for 38 years. Can you imagine what that would have been like? It would have been easy to see the dying, murmuring, complaining and struggle of those years and lose hope in his possession. There were certainly tough days, but he persevered as a man of great faith. I am sure that most Christ-followers would just like to live the next seven days with a Caleb kind of spirit.  And we can!  But will we take possession of the great truths of Scripture with the same vitality that bleeds from Caleb’s example?

Before presenting a verse to lean on for the next seven days, I would like to present words which, to me, frame the struggle we face while trying to possess the promises of God’s Word. The words are from the book If You Want to Walk on Water, You’ve Got to Get Out of the Boat, by John Ortberg.

“I strongly believe that the way we live is a consequence of the size of our God. The problem many of us have is that our God is too small. We are not convinced that we are absolutely safe in the hands of a fully competent, all-knowing, ever-present God. When we wake up in the morning, what happens if we live with a small God? We live in a constant state of fear and anxiety because everything depends on us. Our mood will be governed by our circumstances.”

I don’t believe Caleb lived with a small God or that his inheritance solely depended on him. What about our circumstances for the next seven days? Can we live viewing God as bigger than any circumstance and depend on His strength for each day? The answer for all Christ-followers is yes we can! Will we?!

For anyone really willing to live out the promises of Scripture in the next seven days please let the verse below resonate in your mind and heart during those days.

Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.
Psalm 55:22

The word burden in the verse implies “one’s circumstances,” and there will be many in the next seven days. I wonder what this week will look like if we choose to cast each burden on Him, and accept the promise that He will sustain us. Sure, most Christ-followers believe the promise, but for the next seven days, will we possess it as our reality? Caleb lived a long time trusting the promise of God. Let’s start with the next seven days!

“Love means never having to say you’re sorry,” is a famous line from the movie Love Story (a blockbuster hit from 1970). While everyone may have heard the line, I’m sure almost no one believes it. Children are taught early in life to mouth the words, “I’m sorry.” Married couples know that unless they are willing to admit wrongs with, “I’m sorry,” deep wounds will assuredly emerge. In fact, all good earthly relationships should be laced with words that admit wrong and, correspondingly, words which convey forgiveness. I am sure you would agree with me that it is sometimes hard to say, “I’m sorry,” and even harder to truly forgive.

Years ago I remember speaking with someone who was emotionally depleted. In our discussion it became clear that forgiveness needed to be given. However, the pain was deep! The offender had passed away, but my friend still needed the freedom which only true forgiveness can gift. In ways too numerous to count, we have all been offended. We have also been the offender. Think about your life, even today. Are there people around you now (or maybe from your past) who create strife within you … even from simply speaking or hearing their name? There is a place within all of us which wants people to pay for what they have done. But the response of Christ-followers should be patterned after the One who first forgave us.

Be alert. If you see your friend going wrong, correct him. If he responds, forgive him. Even if it’s personal against you and repeated seven times through the day, and seven times he says, ‘I’m sorry, I won’t do it again,’ forgive him.”  The apostles came up and said to the Master, “Give us more faith.
Luke 17:3-5 (MSG)

If you and I are honest, when someone hurts us the easiest road to take is one that involves holding a grudge and letting others know about the offense. But Jesus says our response should be altogether different.  We are to privately confront the issue and if our offender says, “I’m sorry,” forgive them. Jesus also challenges us to walk the second mile in continuing, ”Even if it’s personal against you and repeated seven times through the day, and seven times he says, ‘I’m sorry, I won’t do it again,’ forgive him.”

I believe we should create a habit of forgiving even before it is requested. There are times when a friend or family member hurts us unknowingly.  Sometimes they know, but they’ll never admit it. Sometimes forgiveness is easier said than accomplished.  In all of it, our choice is simple (whether you feel that way or no): forgive and release the person or hold a grudge and carry a burden.

It’s interesting the apostles responded to Christ, “Give us more faith.” To me, their comment suggests that forgivers need to trust God with the consequences. Knowing we can trust Him with the results (by faith) makes forgiveness more reasonable. No matter how painful, you and I can be secure in God’s design that forgiveness is always the right choice. He will give us the faith needed to forgive!

Sometimes we offend others, and sometimes others offend us. In both cases, we know what to do. The right choice won’t always be easy, but if our vertical relationship with the Father is controlling our horizontal relationship with others, “I’m sorry,” and, “you’re forgiven,” will be a core part of our vocabulary. And don’t forget:

Love means always being willing to say, “I’m sorry” and “You’re forgiven!”

Envy, lying, deception, greed, murder … sounds like a soap opera (so I’ve heard!).  I am not referring to the plot of a novel or a movie; I am referring to my daily Bible reading.  These vices and sins are as old as time.  I guess the old saying is true, “some things never change!”

As I have pondered the fact that man has a sinful nature, two things struck me.  First, our need of a Savior.  That fact presented itself early in our illustrious history when Adam and Eve first tasted of the forbidden fruit.  Sin entered our world that day in the Garden, and someone had to pay the price.  Even Job gave a powerful foreshadowing of our need for a Savior as he longed for an arbitrator to decide his case with God.

If only there were someone to arbitrate between us, to lay his hand upon us both.  Someone to remove God’s rod from me, so that his terror would frighten me no more.  Then I would speak up without fear of him, but as it now stands with me, I cannot.
Job 9: 33

I praise the Lord every day for the gift of His Son on that cross because now I am frightened no more.  The price has been paid!

The second thought that has struck me in these passages is that Satan is busy in our world (Yes, the whole world!). But allow me to personalize it a bit more … and think your little world.  I am saved by the blood of the Savior, but I am certainly NOT immune to the cunning of the devil.

How sly he was in the garden!  How divisive he was in the hearts and lives of the first brothers, turning envy into murder.  How he used Lot’s greed, in undoubtedly influencing his decision for the best looking land when presented with the choice.  How quickly Job’s friends began their judgments.  And in the midst of miracles, how could the Pharisees deny and seek to trick Jesus every chance they got?  Satan is good — expertly good — at what he does!

Be self-controlled and alert.  Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.  Resist him, standing firm in the faith …
I Peter 5:8-9a

I got devoured this week!  It was a subtle attack. I didn’t see it coming until it was too late.  But now that I see it in the light of truth, I am reminded that Satan is good at what he does!  He’s been at it since the beginning of time.  And he knows me so well … he knows us all so well.

Self-control.  Alertness.  Resistance.  Stand firm.  Yes, my Savior paid my price on the Cross.  But the Bible repeatedly warns about the power of the devil.  Even though we are assured he can roar, we can resist him.  And so in this “soap opera” world in which we must live, the Word offers hope as it always does…stay alert, resist, stand firm!

I’d like to back up a couple of days, if you’ll allow — a couple of days and years, actually.  The story in focus today is from Luke 8 (Monday’s reading), but the words of this post are borrowed from 2014.  I love, on occasion, to revisit old writing.  It’s a diary of sorts — a window into where my heart and life were as I engaged the same scripture in months or years past.  Let’s re-consider together the story of Jesus calming the storm.

I sometimes “envy” the new Christian.  Reading and discovering things for the first time is so thrilling, and seems to fuel your desire for even more.  Over the past few years I have made a personal commitment to intentionally read the Bible as if with new eyes.  I read and re-read stories, laser-focused on each detail of the person, place or thing.  It’s amazing how many times I find myself surprised by what I read.  Details I was sure were in the story that simply weren’t, and things I was sure people said but goodness if I could find them!  In our familiarity with scripture, it can be so easy to unintentionally add, subtract or confuse.

As I read the words of Jesus’ question to the disciples after He calmed the storm, it was as if I had misunderstood it my entire life.  As I read them with new eyes this morning, it was as if I made a brand new discovery!  “Ohhhhhhh … that’s what He meant!”

“Where is your faith?” Jesus asked.  For most of my life of faith, I assumed Jesus was making a statement in the form of a question.  Isn’t that what we do when we’re trying to make a point?  Ask a question that really isn’t a question.  I had assumed for all this time Jesus was rebuking the disciples.  “Where was your faith when you needed it?” (note that I did not italicize those words, nor did I change their color to red – my question, not His).  “I guess your faith failed you, didn’t it?” (again, no italics, no red)

What I just figured out two days ago, was that Jesus was genuinely asking his closest followers in what, or in who was their faith?  As men who had spent their adult lives on the water, was their faith in their sailing skills or a sturdy boat?  Did they believe in themselves to weather the storm, and when they finally concluded they were powerless against the wind and the waves, they ran to Jesus?  But wait, isn’t that what He would have wanted them to do?

As my heart and mind were opened to truth, I began to read backwards to see what else I might have missed or misunderstood.  It didn’t take long for me to see the disciples actions and words with new eyes as well.  These were not men that had tried to battle the storm, lost hope and went running to Jesus to save them.  These were His followers that tried to battle the storm, lost hope and went running to Jesus to tell Him they were all going to drown.  Impressive they would want to warn Him, but absolutely absent of any faith in Him to do anything about their dire condition.

Now, I’ll stop right here and emphatically insist that we must be quick to resist judging the disciples.  There are so many instances of “low hanging fruit” where we could sit in judgement of these men.  Walking along the road with Jesus (multiple times), having arguments over who is the best.  Asking if they could be the one to sit at Jesus’ right hand in heaven.  Trying to shield children from being brought to Jesus, and rebuking those who were bringing them.  Seriously, guys!  But before those words leave our lips, I hope the conviction of the Spirit stops us cold.  The disciples are us and we are them.

When you are in the midst of a violent storm in your life, who do you run to?  And if it’s Jesus, what do you say?  I know in my own life, there have been far too few times when I’ve run directly into His arms to simply seek shelter.  Far too few times I’ve simply spoken my fears and nestled into His embrace in full trust that He will save me from drowning and eventually calm the storm(s) with just the sound of His voice.  Where is their faith?  Where is my faith?

I find it so comforting that Jesus calmed the storm first.  He didn’t stand against the powerful gale and ask them the question.  He didn’t require affirmation of their faith before acting to remove the danger.  Do we trust God that much?  Do we trust there isn’t a “storm” too great that He is not Lord over it?  Can we run to Jesus and be content to simply ride out the storm below deck because He is there with us?

How did I miss this before?  Maybe it’s because sometimes I read or remember scripture with my own filter.  Maybe somewhere along my walk of faith I fell into Satan’s trap and began believing (even just a little) that God responds with sarcasm, disapproval or conditions when I try in my own power to battle the storms and fail.  “Where was your faith, Mark?” (no italics, no red).

I believe in this story He is saying to me, and to you, “Trust me.  I can be trusted.  No matter how powerful the winds and the waves are, no matter how desperate the situation seems … I can be trusted!”  Run to Him.  Trust Him.  There is no storm whose ear is deaf to the sound of His voice.

Do you believe in miracles? That was certainly a rhetorical question, wasn’t it? Of course we do! Then why do we live lives which rationally deny the awesome power of God? Sure, we are good with looking at the heavens and declaring, “Isn’t it amazing?!” or considering the birth of a child and saying, “How could you not believe in the miracle-working power of God?!”  Yet many Christ-followers live too much of their spiritual existence without capturing the essence of God’s power, recognizing answers to prayer, and, yes, truly seeing the miracles that He does around us. I am not only talking about major answers to prayer or life-changing events which God engineers, but the day-by-day protection, provision, victories and miracles which God performs on our journey . Are you intentional about capturing those God-moments which come your way?

It was a miracle that caught my attention last week and caused me to think about how we reflect on life. The granddaughter (Amanda) of a great couple my wife and I know went from seemingly healthy to virtually brain-dead in one afternoon. Her subsequent healing was even more dramatic, and the neurosurgeon who treated her was profoundly affected. After Amanda’s recovery, he stated that from now on, if he encountered a hopeless case, he would think of her (now fully recovered!). God answered prayer, did a miracle, and encouraged countless people in the process. It caused me to think of how often we pray without truly believing there will be a good outcome. Praying does not guarantee the result we desire, but Almighty God does choose to heal and do miracles in our midst. As a Christ-follower, living too focused on our circumstances and not on His power may cause us to miss God-moments … and yes, some miracles.

This morning in our reading of Luke eight, there are several instances recorded of Jesus performing miracles. He calmed a storm, healed a demon-possessed man, and caused the demons to enter a herd of pigs. In the same chapter, a woman was healed who touched the edge of His cloak. Before the end of the chapter, we read about Christ bringing the dead daughter of Jairus back to life. That’s certainly a lot of miracles for one chapter, and you may dismissively say, “But that is Scripture.” Yes, but it is also the never-changing power of Almighty God. Are we to assume that His never-changing power is not quite the same in our time?  You and I may not see any chapters in our lives which possess the very same circumstances as Luke chapter eight. We should, however, have our eyes and hearts open and tuned to capture the moments of God’s power, protection, provision … and yes, even miracles which happen on our journey. Without capturing them, you may find that these moments slip away while the distractions of each day dominate our thinking.

I have never looked to Albert Einstein for spiritual insight, but a particular quote of his was presented to me twice last week. It caused me to reflect on how I view this life. He said, “There are two ways to live life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle”. If we, as Christ-followers, are not careful, we can forget that our God still does miracles. The point is not to just look for miracles, but to live believing God’s power to do amazing work in and around us is never-changing. And when He does the amazing, let’s capture it!

As we start a new week, determine to live full of faith. When the Father does what only He can do, write it down, share it with someone, and whatever you do, don’t let it slip away. When the moments of God’s power are obvious, capturing them helps to memorialize the event — and will give us a reminder of His grace when the journey gets hard. Remember, He still does miracles!

Years ago, while sitting in an airport talking with a Bible scholar and successful author, I was amazed with what he told me. His words went something like, “I struggle with prayer.” If a man who has literally poured his life into knowing, teaching and communicating the truth of God’s Word would admit to a prayer struggle, what about the rest of us? Volumes have been written about the subject, but the truth remains that many Christ-followers feel woefully inept in their personal prayer life. My thoughts today, however, are about looking forward in our prayer journey, not backwards with regret.

In my personal reading earlier this week, I landed on prayer twice in the same chapter. On the surface, both readings seemed a bit outlandish. In Luke 6:12, Scripture gives this account…

One day soon afterward Jesus went up on a mountain to pray, and he prayed to God all night.

The next verse records Jesus calling all His disciples together and choosing the twelve apostles. Obviously, Jesus had some important stuff to talk over with the Father during His all-nighter of prayer. But how much time did He need? He could have probably rifled some words at the Father and gone to sleep pretty quickly, but I believe Jesus’ time with God (I love to think about God praying to God) was true communion — a deep exchange with Both speaking and listening. Can you imagine the depth of that night?! My point is not that we should pray all night, but maybe there needs to be a stronger emphasis in the prayer relationship … of speaking and listening. Often, I struggle with the listening part of prayer. What about you?

Later in the same chapter (v.28), we find words which seem a bit outlandish in the context of human reasoning, but represent a posture and power in prayer which many do not experience.

Bless those who curse you. Pray for those who hurt you.

There have been times we all have wanted to pray for those who hurt us … pray for the wrath of God, that is! But God has a better way. Praying with a sincere heart for those who hurt us is an act of yielding to God’s design and trusting His plan for us. God’s will in our pain and hurt goes beyond us — those who hurt us have needs also. I wish I could claim consistency in praying this way, but this is another area of prayer struggle for me. What about you?

So I have confessed a couple of prayer life problems which you may share too. We all have prayer struggles! Will you also accept (with me) that you desire a deeper relationship with the Father in prayer? Be assured, He is ready to spend more time with us. And when you and I are spending more time with the Father (speaking and listening), our hearts will soften and praying for those who hurt us becomes possible. All night praying is not the issue, growing in a prayer relationship is! There is a reason some people experience amazing answers to prayer, while others experience great frustration in their prayer life. How is your prayer life?

Early this morning, I took a book off the shelf in my basement. I opened the book, Prayer, by Philip Yancey, and was immediately blessed by words from a woman named Dee. Her experience of prayer with a man named Paul is the way I want to close this article.

“Prayer is an area where I desperately miss my elderly friend Paul. I used to steal glimpses of his face as he prayed.  The last time I prayed with him, I opened my eyes and he had his hands folded on the kitchen table with his head resting on them. Bowed before his Maker. I always felt that when Paul prayed, God silenced heaven, leaned forward on His throne and said, “Be still, my faithful servant Paul is praying.”

If someone viewed our prayer life, what would they say?

Before sharing a few thoughts to encourage your journey this week, I wanted to give my heartfelt thanks to Mark Robb (a partner with us in the ministry we have at Journey onWord). For eight days he shared his thoughts with the desire of helping each of us focus on the path which Jesus took from triumphal entry to the cross and His resurrection. It takes great energy to write one article, much less eight, in a short period of time. I trust that you were blessed and encouraged by Mark’s writing.

So, what now? What difference do the life, death and resurrection of our Savior make in our everyday ordinary existence? By the time you read this post, you have likely started back into your normal weekly activities. Stress points will come from all sides, and the pace of our journey can easily drain spiritual energy. We’ll make some mistakes and have some failures this week. There will be some moments of laughter and joy, measured by frustration and disappointment. But what practical difference will the life, death and resurrection of Christ bring to you this week?  It can, and should be the core of how we operate in a stress-filled, fast-paced world.

If you have accepted Christ as your Savior, His death and resurrection give you hope beyond the struggles of today and this week. His life gives all believers a pattern to live by while navigating the “stuff” of our everyday ordinary existence. Mark’s articles last week showed how Christ navigated well on His way to the cross, and gave fresh perspective on what His sacrifice and resurrection mean.  With Christ’s loving sacrificial death and resurrection as a background let me encourage your forward journey this week with two principles.

First, knowing what Christ did for us can only lead to one conclusion. The words come from a book by Brennan Manning called, Abba’s Child. An ordinary man was challenged by a spiritual mentor to view his life this way: “Define yourself radically as one beloved by God. God’s love for you and his choice of you constitute your worth. Accept that, and let it become the most important thing in your life”. If you are in Christ, live this week in the reality of how beloved you are by God. Nothing can separate us from His love! (Romans 8:35-39) When you and I define ourselves as beloved by God, our everyday ordinary activities are viewed through a different lens.

Looking at the life of Christ (even as He headed to the cross), helps me reflect on another principle I gleaned from that same book. Another ordinary man (named Yaconelli) understood his beloved-ness from God and was changed. Notice his perspective; “Taken captive by now, Yaconelli has no space left for anxiety about tomorrow”. The words, taken captive by now, convicted me. As I look at the life of Christ, He was always in the moment. Even hours before the cross, He took time to wash the disciple’s feet. So much of our frustration in life comes from what might happen tomorrow, but being taken captive by now helps you and I rest in a safe place.

In and to our everyday ordinary existence, Christ’s life, death and resurrection mean everything! Our hope for eternity and joy for today come through life in Christ. But do we consciously think about it? As we start back to our ordinary lives today, let us remember that we are beloved by God … look at what He did for you!  Use Christ as your example and be taken captive by the moment. What a difference it will make!