September 28, 2011

What Will Satisfy Our Souls

Posted by JeremyJK under Christianity, Meditations, Spiritual Formation
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Many words do not satisfy the soul; but a good life eases the mind, and a clean consience inspires great trust in God. – Thomas à Kempis

In the human heart and soul there is much restlessness.  We are always seeking for something to satisfy that craving in us.  In our culture we attempt to do this by acquiring material possessions.  We are under a false assumption that that new_______ (you fill in the blank) will make us feel more fulfilled.  For me, that temptation comes in the form of books.  I have this inward sense that the next book I get through amazon.com in the mail will be the book that has all the answers and satisfies me.  But you know, when I am done reading that book, it goes up on the book shelf and I forget close to 80% of the contents I read within.  In fact, there are but a select group of books that I find myself returning to for answers or resources in sermons or papers.

I have begun a process therefore of going through my books over the past few years to remove those books that are not much use to me.  They are clutter and take up space.  Thomas à Kempis in another place says something along the lines of: we will not be judged upon how many books we have read in this life.  The question is: have we lived a good and holy life before God in all purity.  Now books are indeed tremendous tools and I am a strong advocate for them…I LOVE BOOKS!  However, they are tools to merely help us maintain that life that is pleasing before the Lord.

But this post is not about books, it is about the fact that like à Kempis said in the quote above, the soul will not be satisfied by many words. It will not be satisfied by all the words I read in books, hear in sermons, get in counseling sessions, admonishment from a friend, or from the TV evangelist.  These things may help, but they will not satisfy.  So stop depending on them to.  This blog will not satisfy you.  The goal however is how Paul Reese once put it, “The goal of a sermon is to bring the congregants as close to the heart of God as possible, and leave them there.”  Why?  Because the preacher, book, CD, tape, counselor, and teacher can not do the work that only God can; namely satisfy our souls.

When we come in contact with God he does what Paul describes as “from glory to glory he changes me.”  That is to say, he does a work within us that makes us more like Christ so that we may acheive what à Kempis calls “a good life [that] eases the mind, a clean conscience.”  This is truly a great gift from God.  There have been times in my life when I have had everything going for me.  I was getting a great education, making decent money, people loved me, great family, and I had all the latest books.  Yet there was inner turmoil and want.  I was hungry for more and I felt shame inside me.  But as à Kempis put it in another place “a humble rustic who serves God is better than a proud intellectual who neglects his soul to study the course of the stars.”

I find great wisdom in à Kempis’ quote that I first mentioned above.  It is when I have closeness with God, strive to live a pure and good life, with a clean conscience that my soul is truly satisfied.  It is in that state that I find peace in the storms, calm in times of stress, joy in moments of sadness, clarity of thoughts and guidance when the journey is foggy and perilous, and wisdom in all of lives circumstances.

But note that he goes on to say that such “a clean conscience inspires  great trust in God.”  Why?  Because we see from experience that it works.  We learn that is what satisfies the soul.  This is why over and over again the apostles spend most of their letters admonishing the churches and the saints therein to live moral and ethical lives.  Behavior that is unbecoming of Christians, leads to failure and dissatisfaction in the Christian life.  Such a person is unfruitful and wish-washy.

Strive to live a holy life and your soul will be satisfied.  God can work and mold such a humble person.  To put it simply…there is less crap that has to be shoveled out of the way before he can get to us.  I pray that you and I will yield ourselves before the Holy Spirit so he can purify our hearts and minds so we can live our lives with a clean conscience and a mind at ease.  As we do we will live a good life.  To such a person Jesus says, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God (Matthew 5:8 RSV).”

**The picture above of the stained glass window is an image of St. John resting his head on Jesus.  The beauty of this image is imagining John being able to hear the beating heart Jesus.  Can you imagine such an experience?  I believe that God invites us all to draw near to him, so that we are so close that we may hear his beating heart.

 

September 27, 2011

Chime In: Should Christians Ever Be Violent?

Posted by JeremyJK under Chime Ins
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So here’s my chance to hear from you again.  Sometimes we get good conversations going and other times I get emails.  Either way, these “Chime Ins” are ways to think about pressing questions that Christians since the beginning up until today have wrestled with.

Why this question?  Because a buddy and I got into a pretty heated debate about this question.  I hope to write an article on this issue shortly after I have this question up for a couple of days.  So stay tuned and be bold with your beliefs and opinions.  So what do you think?  Should Christians ever be violent?

 

September 21, 2011

The Parable of the Widow and the Judge: Luke 18:1-8

Posted by JeremyJK under Gospel of Luke, Jesus, Judgment, Parables, Prayer, Scripture, Spiritual Formation, Teachings of Jesus
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Then Jesus* told them a parable about their need to pray always and not to lose heart.2He said, ‘In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor had respect for people.3In that city there was a widow who kept coming to him and saying, “Grant me justice against my opponent.”4For a while he refused; but later he said to himself, “Though I have no fear of God and no respect for anyone,5yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will grant her justice, so that she may not wear me out by continually coming.” ’*6And the Lord said, ‘Listen to what the unjust judge says.7And will not God grant justice to his chosen ones who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long in helping them?8I tell you, he will quickly grant justice to them. And yet, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?’ (Luke 18:1-8 NRSV).

As I read this passage today for my devotion, I was prompted to reflected upon some of the thoughts my readers and myself shared in the last article.  I was thinking of how we think of God in terms of our humanity.  For instance, when we think of God’s love for his children, we think of it in terms of our love of our children.  In this passage of scripture from Luke, this is what Jesus is doing in his parable.  Jesus calls the judge in this parable an “unrighteous judge.”  It is clear therefore that when Jesus reflects on the actions of this judge that he is not saying, “God is like this judge.”  Instead, what he is doing is giving an example in human terms.  As Leon Morris points out, it is an example of “degrees.”  That is to say, God acts in much MORE just ways and with more ethical and compassionate motives than this ”unrighteous judge.”

You see, this earthly judge responds to this helpless widow because  he finds her quite annoying with her persistence in seeking his help against her enemies.  This judge just wants to get rid of her.  He doesn’t feel compassion for her, benevolence, or mercy.  He doesn’t think it is the ethical thing to do.  He isn’t even concerned what God or men may think if he helps or doesn’t help at all.  His motives are completely selfish.  He helps this widow to help himself.  It is as though she is an annoying fly that he just can’t swat away so he appeases her merely to do away with her.  One gets the sense that if he could  have pushed her off of a cliff, it would have sufficed, just as long as she was removed.  However, the law did not allow him to do so so he takes the only avenue he has…using justice to silence her annoyance.

Jesus is not saying that God gets annoyed with our persistence, on the contrary.  What Jesus is saying is that God is NOTHING like this judge.  He is saying that if an earthly judge like this piece of work would defend a helpless widow merely out of a necessity to relieve himself of her harassment, then how much more would our God who is nothing like this judge come to our aid?  The answer is: MUCH MORE!

This parable offers hope for those in need of justice, defense, provision, and companionship (to name but a few).  No matter what we are experiencing, God is near to vindicate us and do it “speedily.”  God is the good judge.

Now some commentators point to this passage to say that we need to be persistent in seeking God for help.  I on the other hand do not believe that is what this passage is getting at.  I do however believe that there are other parables that teach us to be persistent, but not this one.  I think the main focus is on God as the true and good judge.  If this passage is saying anything, it is saying that we don’t need to be as persistent as this widow was because we are not dealing with an earthly and unrighteous judge like she was.  Our judge is quick to her us and quick to come to our aid without our nagging.

Think on that today, that our God is the good judge who is quick to aid us.  Praise be to God!

 

 

September 6, 2011

A Prayer Challenge For You and Me

Posted by JeremyJK under Prayer, Spiritual Formation
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This is a short post but I would like us to take it seriously.  Many Christians, including you and me, are at times quite displeased with our life of faith.  We may become disappointed because we know we need to be reading scripture, praying, meditating, and focusing on God.  However, it often seems that one day fades quickly into the next, week into week, and month into month without much accomplishment in these areas. 

Many times, we set unrealistic goals for ourselves.  We try to go from hardly reading scripture at all to promising ourselves and God we are going to read a chapter of the Bible a day.  Or we promise that we will pray 30 minutes before bed.  Then bedtime comes, the kids are whining for us to bring them a drink or turn on their light or cover them up again.  Or we are just so beat that as soon as we say, “Heavenly Father, I come to you…zzz…zzz…” we are out like a light. 

I am here to tell you that practicing the spiritual Disciplines (i.e. prayer, devotional reading, study, fasting, meditating etc.) do not come easy and can not be left undone one day and suddenly picked up as a pro the next.  In fact, becoming committed to the Disciplines takes time and practice.  We learn to mold and fix them into our lives, often times by trial and error.  For example, I used to try to read a chapter a day in the Bible.  Yet by the end of the day I forgot what I read.  So over time I learned that what works best for me is to, take a section (often marked by embedded subtitles in various Bibles) and read those.  What’s nice about this is that many sections are only 3-10 verses long.  Therefore they are quite managable to memorize and meditate on throughout the day.  This practice that took time to perfect greatly improved my engagement in scripture. 

I likewise have a challenge for us when it comes to prayer.  In the past I have promised myself that I would get up a half-hour early every morning to pray.  Sounds great huh?  Well it didn’t work out.  Why?  Because I am not a monk that lives in a monastery among fields of golden barley.  Instead I lead a life that consists of children who keep my wife and I up to ungodly hours of the night and several days I am up before 4 am or a little after.  It is unrealistic for me to go to bed consistently at 11 pm and wake up at 3 am or 4  am.  God bless you if you can function on 3 or  4 hours of sleep, because I can not.

If you find yourself in similar shoes I challenge you to start with another practice: Purpose to talk to and listen to God as you get ready for work and drive to work.  This may be difficult at first and continue to be so on various mornings.  The reality is that some mornings are more difficult than others…like when your brain is not working and all you can think about is “boy I wish I could sleep for 5 more minutes…it would feel so good.”  This is where discipline comes in and you must work at focusing your thoughts on God.  Even if you don’t feel like talking…GREAT!  Now you have your chance to LISTEN for God. 

This practice has allowed me significant time at the beginning of my day to pray and meditate on God and his Word.  From the moment I wake up, take my shower, get my stuff together, get in my car, drive to work, and walk to the time clock…I have about 45 minutes.  Not so bad huh?

The problem is that we want to find a perfectly quiet place, play some good worship music, get our feelings and emotions all stirred up before we feel that we can effectively pray.  If we can make that kind of time…that is terrific.  However, don’t not (double negative) pray at all because you are unable to find that time. We have to work at introducing the Disciplines into our particular life and our unique set of circumstances.  Not everyone has access to beautiful botanical gardens with humming birds and fountains to set the mood. 

Note, that this practice works for me and may not necessarily work for you.  But my goal in this post is to get us to find ways to be creative in our approach to maintaining the Disciplines in our lives.

 

August 6, 2011

Don’t Forget the Little Guy: How the Gospel Really Spread Across the Roman Empire and Beyond.

Posted by JeremyJK under Christianity, Church, Culture, Kingdom of God
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I will start with a question: During the days of the early Christian Church, who was responsible for the advancement of the Gospel message to all the nations?  The most common answer would probably be…the apostles, evangelists, missionaries etc.  Afterall, we think of Paul and his three great missionary trips into Asia Minor, Macedonia, Rome, and perhaps as far west as Spain (if we are to believe some early traditions).  Or maybe we think of Barnabas and Mark splitting off from Paul and going into Cyprus or Philip in Samaria.  Or perhaps we have heard that Thomas witnessed in India and there became a martyr as did James in Spain. 

These great men and women of God are usually the ones that pop into our minds when we think of the spreading of the Gospel in those early decades and centuries.  Yet in my readings and research, I have found that although these anointed folks impacted the Christian Church and its message for all time, they were not the main thrust of the advancement of the Gospel.  In fact, perhaps our greatest gratitude should go first to the Holy Spirit, but secondly to the countless Christian men and women whose names we will never know until we join them after this life. 

These people were what we may call the “everyday person” or “the little guy.” They held no titles, no airs, no fame, no glory and no credit.  They were not bishops, elders, pastors, missionaries, evangelists, or apostles (and I do not mean to take anything away from those individuals).  They did not write any theological treatises, epistles, hymns, psalms, sermons, apologies, or rhetorical speeches.  No.   Instead they were slaves, servants, merchants, shop-keepers, black-smiths, sailors, fisherman, masons, carpenters, shepherds, farmers, peasants, and tax collectors.  They were masters, wealthy business owners, aristocrats, scribes, teachers, soldiers, jailers and patrons.  They were men, women, and children from all different walks of life, in various regions of the empire and beyond.  It is to these folks that the spread of the Gospel may be attributed to. 

One great man said, “the Church was built on the blood of the martyrs.”  I agree.  But I must add, it was built on the average joe Christian who shared the Gospel wherever they went.  They shared in at their jobs, in the market place, at the port, in the court room, at school, in the field, on the ship, or walking down the road.  They shared it with their friends, their family, their acquaintances and their enemies.  They shared the Gospel in fair weather and under intense persecution. 

The men and women we know by name such as Tertullian, Ignatius, Polycarp, Perpetua, Cyprian, John Chrysostom, and Augustine are but a mere sliver of Christians that boldly lived and died proclaiming the message of Christ and Him crucified.  We thank God for the voices of those named above whose echoes we may still hear in their faithful writings.  Yet we also thank God for those nameless servants of Christ who bore the Gospel in their daily lives and who died without leaving a single letter on a page.  However, their simple lives combined to form a powerful force that invaded the Roman Empire for the glory of God and is felt by us two thousand years later. 

I am encouraged by this thought.  We live in an age and culture of celebrities.  In fact, I am quite fatigued by the pretty faces of people who litter our Christian networks with perfect hair, makeup and polished rhetoric.  My eyes sometime hurt from the shimmering gold and silver decor that fancies their stages and backdrops.  We are almost fooled into believing that it is because of them that the Gospel is still going forward and the Church survives.  But I will not be counted among the fooled.  I believe that the Church would be better off without our television programs and slushy networks.  I believe that it is not the minister on T.V. with his tailored made suits and extravagant cars that is the beating heart of the Church and Gospel.  No friend.  I believe the Church today is built on the backs of the local pastor in his small church who is pouring out his heart and prayers everyday for his seemingly insignificant flock.  It is built on the Christian worker who gets up early everyday to go to a job he is not entirely fond of to provide for his family, all the while sharing the Gospel day-to-day with his co-workers.  Or the mother who never gets to turn off the “mommy switch” because she loves her family endlessly and will give all of her time so that her children can grow to be godly men and women for the kingdom of God.

They may never preach a sermon, write a book, go to Bible school or seminary, chase after Christian speakers and conferences, or go down in the Hollywood Hall of Fame of T.V. evangelists you will never meet or know if they are legit.  These celebrities will never wipe your noses or dry your tears.  They will never sacrifice time with their family so you can have a shoulder to cry on.  No, that will be your local pastor who may be living paycheck to paycheck and will never darker the lens of a T.V. camera.  Or it will be the Christian friend, family member, or co-worker who is there because they simply love you.  I thank God for those people in my life.  In my book…those are the Christian heroes and heroines of our day; those whose names may never be spoken in Hollywood or even the next town. If you are one of those people…I thank God for you.  And I thank you. 

(Note: I do believe that SOME, okay a select few, on T.V. are worth their salt.  However, one must be very selective and modest about who and how much time is spent listening to these folks.  What is more valuable is the time you spend with strong Christians you can look at face to face.  Secondly, spend more time with Christ in prayer than with Pastor Pretty Teeth on TBN).

 

July 21, 2011

Learning to Listen to the Voice of God: Part 2

Posted by JeremyJK under Christianity, Church, Culture, Jesus, Kingdom of God, Spiritual Formation, Teachings of Jesus
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We live in a culture of busy-ness.  Anyone who has spent more than two seconds in this country will come to understand that.  In Richard Foster’s book Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth, he says, “our Adversary majors in three things: noise, hurry,and crowds.”   We are often caught up in this whirlwind of doing that we neglect the state of just being.  When we allow ourselves and our time to be filled up with stuffwe leave very little room if any for listening for the voice of God.  This is an issue I have addressed before in another post called  “Listening For Silence In A Blaring World: For God and Self.” 

I bring this point up again because I believe this is one of the main challenges of why most Christians are not being led by the voice of God and lack a deep, meaningful relationship with him…because they are frankly, just too BUSY.  And when they do get a moment to hear from God, they fall asleep because they are worn out from always being in a HURRY to get things done.  But in the words of Carl Jung, “Hurry is not of the Devil; it is the Devil.”  Why?  Because all of this HURRY and BUSY-NESS keeps us away from God.  It blurs our understanding of God.  It blocks our ability to hear and listen for God. 

I call this the “Martha Syndrome.”  In Luke 10:38-42 I see Martha as the American in this narrative. 

38 Now as they went on their way, he entered a certain village, where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. 39She had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to what he was saying.40But Martha was distracted by her many tasks; so she came to him and asked, ‘Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her then to help me.’ 41But the Lord answered her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; 42there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her (NRSV; italics is mine for emphasis).’

I want to point out a few things from this passage.  1) Martha “welcomed” Jesus into her home.  The world is filled with Christians who have welcomed Jesus into their home.  They invite him into their hearts and then go around telling everyone they “know Christ as their Savior.”  But then like many Christians do today, Martha got BUSY “work[ing]“  or for Jesus.  Slaving in the kitchen, keeping the grounds, being part of Church committees, pastoring, and all sorts of other ministries should never replace the time needed to spend listening for God. 

So we come to my second point.  2) Mary “sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching.”  Mary wanted to HEAR from Jesus.  She wanted to KNOW him and his teaching.  She took the time to FIRST listen to Jesus before she began DOING.  What was she doing?  She was putting KNOWING God above DOING for God.  Why?  Because only when we KNOW God will we ever be able to effectively and powerfully DO for God. 

You see, the passage says that Martha was “distracted.”  She was BUSY DOING.  Jesus even tells her that she was “anxious and troubled about many things.”  I believe that this is where most Christians in our culture are at.  Their anxiety to keep up with the Joneses causes them to be troubled with trying to obtain the American dream.  They feel that they have to be busy little bees because that is what everyone else does and a good work ethic means you never stop.  Arthur G. Gish says, “We buy things we don’t want to impress people we don’t like.”  Does that make any sense to anyone?

We have been sucked into our culture but not the kingdom of God.  In the kingdom of God, relationship is everything.   We need to be Mary-like Christians intent on LISTENING to Jesus and less Martha-like Christians being distracted by DOING.  DOING most certainly has a place, but it is never to replace LISTENING and KNOWING Jesus.  Christians that mainly DO but LISTEN little are shallow.  Yet Christians that LISTEN to and KNOW God and THEN DO are deep, fruitful, and effective.  

Which brings me to my final point.  We need to ALWAYS be in the state of LISTENING for God.  Even in the midst of the DOING, we need to be able to silence ourselves, to stop and LISTEN throughout the day to what the Lord is speaking to us.  If you are at school, block out the noise as you walk down the hallway and LISTEN.  As you are driving to and from work, turn off the radio and LISTEN.  If you are laying in bed early in the morning, instead of plotting out the day, LISTEN. 

I know many people who always do all the talking and hardly ever listen.  If I begin to interject a thought, they quickly interrupt and continue talking.  I can even tell by their body language and facial expressions if they are listening or not.  I have a feeling that those who have trouble listening to their brothers and sisters, probably are not listening to God either.  There are many people who are more impressed with the words that come out of their mouths than the words that come from the mouth of God.  Jesus said that humans live by “every word that comes out of the mouth of God.”  Notice that he does not say, “humans live by doing all of the talking.” 

Therefore in the words of James 1:19: “Be slow to speak and quick to listen.”

 

July 15, 2011

The Master Who Keeps On Serving: Thoughts on Luke 12:37

Posted by JeremyJK under Christianity, Jesus, Kingdom of God, Scripture, Spiritual Formation, Teachings of Jesus
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I work for a company that seems to specialize in manager/team leader meetings.  All of us department heads gather together in a conference  room, eat lunch, and then try to fight the afternoon urge to dose off in the middle of the store manager’s long winded speech about bottom-lines, whirlwinds, and company goals.  We all arrive at the meetings looking like King Arthur’s Knights of the Round Table going to a Bingo night.  We leave like Grumpy, Dopey and Let’s Get the Heck Out of Here dwarves. 

But I recall at one meeting in particular, we were introduced to our new assistant store manager.  That’s right, second in command.  Like Robin, Darth Vader, Joe Biden, Dick Cheney, Dan Quale (oh man remember that guy?) or Scottie Pippen.  In the past our assistants have been nice but not really nice.  

Anyhow, we were all introduced and the meeting continued as we ate our lunch.  Suddenly, as we all took turns taking our last bite and wiping those stranded crumbs from our mouths, this new assistant get’s up and begins clearing our plates.  Wha-wha, what? Some began to scratch their heads, others shook theirs in amazement, and those who had not yet finished eating stopped chewing as their jaws dropped and food and drool escaped ever so slightly from their mouths. 

Now I know what you’re thinking.  “Well he’s just the new guy trying to score some points.”  This, I have to admit, was many of our original thoughts too.  However, he would prove these premature thoughts wrong.  He became known as the manager who serves and is not afraid to chip in and get his hands dirty.  He rolls up his sleeves and instead of working against us, works for us and with us.  If you want to be a successful leader…follow this man’s example and I promise you success. 

I say all of that to highlight a detail I came across in my devotional reading today.  In Luke 12:35-40 we find it said:

35 ‘Be dressed for action and have your lamps lit; 36be like those who are waiting for their master to return from the wedding banquet, so that they may open the door for him as soon as he comes and knocks. 37Blessed are those slaves whom the master finds alert when he comes; truly I tell you, he will fasten his belt and have them sit down to eat, and he will come and serve them. 38If he comes during the middle of the night, or near dawn, and finds them so, blessed are those slaves.

39 ‘But know this: if the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he* would not have let his house be broken into. 40You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.’

This passage of scripture is about being ready when the Son of Man (who is Christ) returns.  Now there are varying thoughts on what being ready means, but I do not want to get caught up in those details.  What I want to briefly highlight is verse 37.  What is revealed here is that when Jesus returns, he is going to SERVE and wait on those who were ready at his coming.  Wha-wha, what?  Let me get this straight.  According to Philippians 2, Jesus sets aside his glory in heaven to become a nobody.  He willingly takes on humble circumstances and is a servant to all.  He even said, “I came not to be served but to serve.”  But because of his willingness to be lowered, he is exalted to the right hand of the Father.  But then he returns only to serve again???  WOW!!!

Even though Jesus was exalted as King of kings, given a name above all names, and is the second person of the trinity; he will still serve those who are faithful and ready at his coming.  Absolutely amazing!  I am so humbled by that truth.  No one, in the kingdom of God is above the role of a servant to all, not even our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  If Christ can wait tables at the great feast, even after his death, resurrection, ascension, and exaltation then…I think you can fill in the blanks.  We serve a mysterious and awesome God!!!

 

 

July 11, 2011

Learning to Listen to the Voice of God

Posted by JeremyJK under Gospel Of John, Jesus, Prayer, Spiritual Formation
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Jesus taught that his sheep know his voice.  But have you ever told another Christian that the Lord told you something and they look at you like you have three heads?  Or they act like you just told them you met with Elvis, Tupac, and Ghandi and they told you that they wanted you to lead the advertising for a comeback concert? The fact of the matter is that many Christians don’t believe God talks to his people like that anymore, I mean individually, in their hearts, or like God spoke with Moses face to face (Exod. 33:1).  But has God really stopped speaking?  Does he have nothing left to say?  Does he not want to help us with the day to day moments of life?  Are we supposed to cast lots like the apostles did in Acts 1 to figure out God’s will is?  Are we to look around for “angel feathers” and interpret such things as God communicating to us?  Seems like God can do better than that, doesn’t it?

I think God has a better way of speaking to us.  He doesn’t have to resort to the Patrick Swayze’s methods in the movie Ghost.  Remember him struggling to knock vases over when he is trying to get Demi Moore to realize he still exists?  Maybe there are some Christians he has to do that for because they are not listening.  But this was never meant to be the means God had to go to get our attention.  He does speak and he wants to speak daily to you and me.  In the words of Richard J. Foster in his book Celebration of Discipline (which you can find a link to on the sidebar of this blog), “He [Jesus] is not idle, nor has he developed laryngitis.”  Thus his sheep truly do have the opportunity to hear and know his voice.

When can you hear his voice?  Well it is possible to develop your hearing to the point of being able to hear him throughout the day even amongst the hustle and bustle.  Yet I personally find that I hear from God most when I am able to quiet my mind and heart and in Christian meditation…LISTEN for him.  Will it be audible?  There will be times when it seems like it, but usually not.  And it may not come right away.  But we must learn to WAIT and LISTEN.  Those are two things in our culture that are not very popular to do, especially “waiting.”  We want everything instantaneously.  But God does not work that way.  In fact, I often wonder if God likes to see if we are willing to WAIT for him.  Or are we going to say, “Come on I need an answer now.  I haven’t got all day.” 

No, we need to patiently listen for God and wait, maybe days, weeks or months.  I have learned that one of the best ways to know it is God’s guidance is listening for consistency over a period of time.  If it is God, he will not give up, he is relentless…especially if you are being a faithful listener.

But how can we be like what Jesus describes?  How can we KNOW his voice?  Answer: Time, Commitment, and Patience.  Elijah spent many days and nights learning to hear the “still small voice of God” in the wilderness (1 Kings 19:9-18).  In time, one is able to distinguish God’s voice from others.  But be patient with yourself and don’t get discouraged and give up.  And remember, no one get’s it down perfectly, but we are all learning. 

It is no coincidence that the Gospel writers often mention Jesus getting away to be alone and pray.  It is in these moments that he heard from the Father.  It is at those times he saw what the Father wanted him to do, for Jesus did nothing unless he saw the Father doing it or saying it (John 5:19; 14:10).  Then he could truly say “as I hear, I judge” (John 5:30).  That is, Jesus made judgments based on what the Father’s judgments were.  Not on feelings, opinion, prejudices etc. 

There is no perfect formula for hearing from God.  Like anything else, one learns by practicing.  Begin to listen and take that time with God.  As you do, rely on his grace to help you to hear and recognize his voice.  Remember, “ask and you will receive.”  Ask God to help you and I promise he will.  In time, you will experience such an overwhelming joy and peace that you can  journey through this life with the guidance and companionship with the Creator.  Is there anything more exhilarating than that?

 

July 7, 2011

Walnuts and Gifts? Recognizing the Value of Each Others Gifts in the Church

Posted by JeremyJK under Apostle Paul, Bible, Christianity, Church, Corinthians, Holy Spirit, Scripture, Spiritual Formation
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So I have this tree.  This tree is a black walnut tree.  It doesn’t bloom and get leaves until June and begins losing it’s leaves in August.  At some point in July it grows black walnuts.  Sounds cool huh?  Walnuts in your own backyard.  Well it’s not so cool.  Because as soon as these walnuts come on the tree they begin falling off the tree all over the yard.  Needless to say, this tree makes a mess of my yard and the leaves and walnuts begin killing the grass.  Last year I got so frustrated with the mess I told my wife I wanted to cut it down this year.  So at one of our picnics I told my father-in-law that I wanted to end this tree’s life. 

My father-in-law knows a guy who would do it for us and would take the wood too.  It would be a quick easy clean up.  I had my mind made up…this tree was going to get whacked!  But then my father-in-law said, “Yeah  we can cut it down, no problem.  You’re gonna lose some shade though.  It’s a really good shade tree for your backyard.”  Why did he have to say that?  I had my mind made up and everything.  I looked around the yard to see how much shade it really offered throughout the day and sure enough it covers almost half the yard.  But it makes such a mess.  “Nope we’re cutting it down.” I thought. 

Then my niece overheard that I wanted to take this tree out.  “Oh my gosh, you can’t do that!” she said.  “I love that tree!”  And in fact I did recall that every time she comes over my house one of the first things she does is run to that tree with a book, climbs it, sits on one of its branches (it looks like it was made for sitting) and reads.  Her younger brother went into the same type of panic mode as well.  He’s a young boy and loves to climb it too.  But dog-gone-it I hate the mess it makes.  But it does provide some nice privacy as well from neighbors. 

Then I realized, I was so obsessed and focused on the negative characteristics of this tree that I failed to see and appreciate  gifts.  In fact, I underestimated this tree and took it for granted.  Maybe this tree isn’t so bad.  So what if I have to clean up a mess now and then.  I think I want that shade and I really do enjoy seeing the kids run to that tree as soon as they get to the house. 

But isn’t this how we are with people?  At times we get so caught up in what we don’t like about them that we fail to see and appreciate the gifts God has given them.  Instead of encouraging them in their gifts we often become jealous, envious, and at times even covet their gifts.  One of my gifts is a gift of learning and teaching scripture.  I can’t count how many times a week I am told by some Christian that “you can have all the knowledge in the world but it doesn’t really matter to God.”  I am constantly reminded that one doesn’t need to go to seminary to be used of God, as though I was not aware of that.  I have even mentioned to my wife countless times that being a seminary student is one of the most thankless things I have ever done because of the passive aggressive attitudes I get about it, FROM CHRISTIANS.  Yet I believe it has mainly been my wife and father and a few other family members and friends who have strongly encouraged me in this calling.  Usually from others though it is a smug dismissal.

But it has caused me to reflect on 1 Corinthians 12-14 where Paul addresses the fact that we have all been given various gifts from the Holy Spirit.  Those gifts come to us only by the grace of God.  Paul often uses anatomy metaphor to illustrate this sundry gifting.  The hand for instance has its own gifts which are far different from the eyes’ or ears’ giftings.  But do we ever get mad or jealous of the eyes because they have the gift of vision or the feet for walking.  No way!  Why?  Because we clearly understand that we NEED them and if they all work together the harmony creates a glorious and productive outcome. 

Am I ever jealous of another’s gifts?  I would be a liar if I said, “No.”  But I have tried to transform that reaction from jealousy to genuine excitement for that individual.  How can I be mad at or jealous of them because of what God has chosen to give them by his grace?  I can’t.   I think the remedy therefore is to be thankful to God and appreciate the fact that he has given the body of Christ an individual with such wonderful blessings as to edify the Church and its mission to the world.

Just like that tree, I have had to change what it is I am focusing on.  Am I distracted by the seeming weaknesses and being blinded to the precious gifts?  I think so.  But now I can’t imagine a backyard without that shade, privacy and special children playing on it.  So I will keep the tree and my cherished brothers and sisters I have in the body of Christ.  “Thank you Lord for the gifts you have given to us all in your wisdom and grace.”

Amen.

 

June 28, 2011

Hooking Souls

Posted by JeremyJK under Christianity, Church, Spiritual Formation, Teachings of Jesus
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When it comes to premarital relationships, men will often pursue their female like a hawk or a lion hunting their prey.  They become hungry for her endless attention and obsessed with her affections.  Finally, her father entrusts her hand to him in marriage that special wedding day before all to see.  As they both exchange their “I do’s” the ring is slipped onto her finger.  It is at that moment that the predator of love knows his prey has finally been safely snatched.  The ring becomes the fishing hook that has landed his catch.  The man is exhilarated. 

The first several months and perhaps into the next year the new husband still shows his bride sole affection and attention.  Yet as is often the case, his feelings change, the excitement wanes, and his appetite for his prey of love fades.  He has captured his prey, the fight is over at last and he moves on to fresh and new pursuits.  His lover, though not forgotten, has surely been placed on the back burner and often times seems more of an annoyance than that object of pursuit that she once was.  In time this young bride catches on to what is really going on and finds another lover.  And so the epidemic continues.

This is not a romance novel I am writing my dear friends.  This is what I see as a parallel of contemporary evangelism in the Church today.  The Church is in hot pursuit to make unbelievers become Christians.  The hook we have made bigger than it needs to be is “the sinner’s prayer.”  Like the groom winning his bride, the Church today wins souls and slowly loses their affection for them.  The excitement of pursuing these individuals diminishes once they are “saved.”  Once we get them saved and convince them that they are on their way to heaven we begin to neglect them.  We fill their “new lives in Christ Jesus” with bulletins, services, songs, pie sales, cake bakes, offerings, and empty spiritual clichés. 

What we are not often times doing effectively is what Jesus commanded us to do…”make disciples.”  What ever happened to discipling?  What ever happened to mentoring?  What ever happened to making a lifetime committment to a couple of people with the determination to see them grow to full maturity in Christ?

What’s that Germy?  Oh I see, it’s the pastor’s job? Your right Germy.  But guess what?  It’s not his “job” it’s his/her calling.  It’s all of our callings as Christians, to make disciples of all humans.  We ALL have a part to play in this crusade of love.  And perhaps that pastor isn’t doing it as effectively because he/she is burned out from babysitting Christians that should be matured by now and should be contributing instead of just feeding off of the table of service the Church offers. 

My plea today is this: Don’t treat souls like fish.  We have twisted that imagery Jesus used as “fishers of men” and taken the analogy way to far.  We are not to get our hooks in their mouths and once we pull them out of the stormy waters to throw them either back into the water or toss them to the back of the boat like pieces of meat.  The pursuit is never to end.  We are to be as excited and thrilled with discipling them to full maturity in Christ as we are in getting them “saved.” 

WARNING!!!! This is going to take a lot of time, energy, and effort.  Discipling is a process filled with gradual changes and transformations. Making a disciple takes a lifetime.  We are all being transformed into the image of Christ…this is what true discipling is.  Heed the call of the Lord, but realize it is not a cat and mouse game that ends with the cat catching the mouse.  It is a courtship, filled with loving and wooing, that never ends but continues into marriage, with a lifetime of intimacy and unity. 

May the LORD help us all to make disciples of all humans.

Blessings!

 

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