Happy Thanksgiving!

"O come, let us sing for joy to the Lord!

Let us shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation. 

Let us come before His presence with 

Thanksgiving!

Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms. 

For the Lord is a great God, 

and a great King above all gods, 

in whose hand are the depths of the earth; 

the peaks of the mountains are His also. 

The sea is His, for it was He who made it;

and His hands formed the dry land. 

Come, let us worship and bow down; 

let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.

For He is our God, 

and we are the people of his pasture

and the sheep of his hand. 

Psalm 95:1-7  

     Today in the United States, we celebrate Thanksgiving, and truly, we have much to be thankful for. My prayer is that we will not forget Who to give thanks to. 

     Now, GET OFF THE COMPUTER. Go find someone to love and enjoy. 

And have a Happy Thanksgiving. 

Walking in Sonlight

“He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and broke their bands apart.  Let them give thanks to the Lord for His lovingkindness and for His wonders to the sons of men.” 

Psalms 107:14-15

            Imagine a world where there is no color.  Everything appears in shades of gray, as if at twilight or just before the sun rises.  Everything is muted.  Lines blur.  Everything seems slightly surreal and out of focus.  This is life as we know it apart from faith in Jesus.  We live our lives in darkness, under the curse, covered by the shadow of death.  We have a hard time making choices because all the lines are blurred and out of focus. 

            Once the Son comes up everything is different.  The light of God’s glory brings out the color, sharpens the lines, brings focus to a fuzzy world.  Sin becomes apparent and avoidable when seen through the scope of God’s holiness.  Darkness flees.

The good news is that we don’t have to stay in the dark.  Jesus came and broke the curse of darkness so that we could enjoy the light with Him. 

            The Nation of Israel, when wandering in the wilderness, chose darkness.  They saw the face of Moses that shone from talking with God, and rather than sharing in the glory, they were afraid.  They asked him to veil his face and hide the light.  Lest we be too hard on the Israelites, we are not so different.  We have the opportunity to share intimacy with God through prayer and a personal relationship with Him, and we often withdraw – content to hide in the shadows rather than face the glory and scrutiny of the Holy Spirit. 

Jesus calls us out of the darkness.  He said

“I am the light of the world; he who follows me shall not walk in the darkness, but shall have the light of life.”  (John 8:12) 

We don’t have to be afraid of the light.  We can instead choose to walk in it, giving thanks to the Lord for His lovingkindness and for His wonders to us.  As we walk in increasing intimacy with God, perhaps our faces will begin to shine.  Shadow or light – which one for you today?

            “You were formerly darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.  Walk as children of the light.”  Ephesians 5:8 

Joy in the midst of weeping

“The Lord’s lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, for His compassions never fail.  The are new every morning; Great is Thy faithfulness.”  Lamentations 3:21-22

The book of Lamentations is a book of five poems, thought to have been written by Jeremiah, Israel’s weeping prophet.  It is a book of intense mourning.

Jerusalem had fallen. The nation of Israel had fallen into idolatry and rebellion and so God gave her over to the Babylonians.  Jeremiah made it clear that the only reason she fell was because of the anger of the Lord, not because of the national strength of Babylon – God caused it.  Jeremiah weeps over the destruction of the city.  He mourns because of the sin of the nation that led to the anger and rejection of Israel by God. God had told them that this would happen, and that he would do whatever it took, including being exiled, to bring them to repentance.

           

Almost exactly in the middle of this sad book, Jeremiah remembers and reaffirms the love of God.  In the center of the destroyed city, Jeremiah remembers who God is, and he finds hope.

“This I recalled to my mind, therefore I have hope,” he says.  “If He causes grief, then He will have compassion, according to His lovingkindnesses.”  (3:21, 32)

Jeremiah understood something of the nature of God.  God is holy and will not tolerate sin forever, but God is also love.  He disciplines us for a season, to correct and direct us away from sin.  He loves us too much to allow us to continue in a direction away from Him.  In His compassion, in His faithfulness, He disciplines.  Because Jeremiah understood, in the midst of destruction he could say, “the Lord’s lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, His compassions never fail.  They are new every morning.  Great is Thy faithfulness.”

As we go through our lives, we will be unavoidably confronted with difficulties.  Sometimes God disciplines us.  Sometimes we go through rough times because of the sin of another.  Sometimes stuff just happens.  The only way through it is to remember the nature of God, and to allow it to give us hope.  In the midst of our weeping, we, like Jeremiah, can remember God’s compassions, His lovingkindness, and can stand firm on truth.  We can only hold on to what we know; we can only remember what we have learned. 

How well do you know God?  If you are not in His word, studying His nature and getting to know Him and in fellowship through prayer, when hard times come you will have little or nothing to stand on.  Turn off the TV, the radio, the movie – the noise.  Exchange the need to be entertained for a solid foundation of truth as revealed by the Holy Spirit to the quiet and receiving heart.  Give yourself a reason for joy in the midst of sorrow, a reason for joy now.

An easy yoke...

“Come to me, all who are weary and heavy-laden and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you shall find rest for your souls.  For My yoke is easy and My load is light.”  Matthew 11:28-30

            It is commonly taught that Jesus was talking in this passage about a yoke that harnessed two animals together when pulling a plow.  This yoke was a large piece of wood, fashioned by a carpenter to allow two animals of equal size and strength to pull together, enabling greater strength than either could summon alone.  The more skilled the carpenter, the better the yoke would fit and the easier the pull would be on the animals.  Animals of different size or strength were never to be yoked together as this would cause the weaker animal damage.

            While all of this is true, there was another kind of yoke in use in Bible times.  Often a piece of wood was fitted over the shoulders of a servant so that loads could be hung from it.  A slave or porter was often asked to carry loads that were humanly impossible to carry.  When given a yoke, the loads became much more easily transported.  A yoke was a tool of mercy.

            Jesus removed the burden of sin.  St. Augustine said that when the burden of sin was removed, all other burdens become bearable.  Jesus never tells us that He will take our burdens away, only that He will never give us more than we can bear.  He does promise that, as the Master carpenter, His yoke will be easy and our burden light.  We must choose to wear His yoke.  We must make the choice to be a servant, to do the things the Master wants in the way the Master wants them done.  When we put on His yoke, fashioned by His expert hands especially to fit us, we find that the work is light.  When we struggle under a burden that seems too much to carry, we can come to Him.  He has promised to give us rest.

            Today when you struggle, weary and heavy hearted, instead of looking at the burden, look at the yoke.  The yoke Jesus made is light, but often we struggle under a yoke of our own, amateur making.  We’re just servants, not carpenters.  Put down your burden.  Take off your yoke and come to Jesus for rest.  Learn from Him, for He is gentle and humble hearted.  Let Him give you a yoke of His choosing.

Help for the Philippines

For anyone who watches the news, the horrible conditions in the Philippines are no surprise. Numbers vary with each report, but the latest that I heard was that 9.7 million people have been affected by the typhoon that hit there on Saturday. 650,000 people are displaced, and the death toll is rising. People are hungry, without shelter, and have lost everything. As if the typhoon weren’t enough, the country was still reeling from a 7.1 earthquake in October, and a smaller 4.8 quake hit one of the southern islands yesterday. These are a people who are hurting.

“Arise, Lord! Lift up your hand, O God. Do not forget the helpless.” Psalm 10:12

If you are anything like me, your heart goes out to those in who have lost so much, who are in such deep need. You are moved, but don’t know what you can do. I know that I feel helpless in the face of such overwhelming tragedy.

We are not helpless.

“For He will deliver the needy who cry out, the afflicted who have no one to help. He will take pity on the weak and needy and save the needy from death. He will rescue them from oppression and violence, for precious is their blood in his sight.” Psalm 72:12-14

We are the children of the King. We have infinite resources. We can all do our part.

So, what can we do?

            1. We can pray. “The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” James 5:15. There are multiple verses in scripture that remind us to pray, to pray without ceasing, to pray in faith. Pray. Pray some more.

            2. We can give. I attend River Rock Church in Vancouver, Washington. We have 16 churches in the Philippines, most of them on the island of Panay and on Palawan, right where the eye of the storm went through. Our church is networking with other churches and denominations on the island to immediately provide food and meet other needs. The people of the area are extremely poor and have little resources to rebuild or care for their families. We are the Body of Christ. It is time for us to do what we can to remind these people that God has not forgotten them.

            This Sunday we are launching Operation Philippines. We are launching a website (www.operationphilippines.com) before Sunday for people to visit and see what we are doing and how they can give. We are preparing a list of needs and will be ordering a shipping container so that we can give of our abundance. We have already sent money to get them started, and will raise as much as we can in the coming weeks. Every dollar will go into rebuilding churches and houses and feeding people immediately. We will have t-shirts available saying “I (heart) the Philippines” to remind people to continue. If there is anyway you can participate in this effort, please do!

            3. Send money. So often we send stuff without knowing what the needs really are, and we end up making more problems than we solve. Find a reputable organization and send what you can. Send through our church, or through Samaritan’s Purse (http://www.samaritanspurse.org/). Samaritan’s Purse has had people and resources on the ground since before the earthquake last month. They know what the local needs are, and have the systems in place to get food and resources to people quickly. 

            God cares deeply about the people in the Philippines. We can do no less. Reach out. We can't do everything, but we can do something. Do what you can. Pray without ceasing.

“But you, O God, do see trouble and grief; you consider it to take it in hand. The victim commits himself to you; you are the helper of the fatherless… You hear, O Lord, the desire of the afflicted; you encourage them, and you listen to their cry.” Psalm 10:14, 17

Happy Veterans Day!

            Today we celebrate Veterans Day. I am so grateful to the men and women who choose to serve so that the rest of us can enjoy our freedoms. My Dad was veteran, as is my brother-in-law. My brother served as well. I have many friends who are veterans, and are proud to serve. Veterans and their families know the meaning of sacrifice. Most of them have thought through what they are fighting for, and what they value most in life. They understand discipline and the value of hard work. They know what it is to fight for others who often cannot fight for themselves, and sometimes to fight for those who are hostile to them and their uniform. They fight anyway. The United States, the world, is a better place because of them.

            The Christian faith has been compared to being in an army. One children’s song speaks of being in the Lord’s Army. In the World War II era, the idea of an army was positive; it was a group of men who arrived to save. We had an enemy so evil that we could easily unite and agree to thwart him. In today’s society, the idea of an army is ambiguous at best. We understand that the issues are not cut and dried, that different people have different ideas about how we should interact in our world, and we see the horrors and damage that are the result of armed force. Our soldiers put themselves in harms way, and often bear the scars. Innocents often bear them as well. This post is not a condemnation of our fighting men and women. It is a reminder that the United States and the people of God are two different entities. We are not Christian simply because we are American. The two are not the same.

            God has made it clear that we are not his army. He certainly doesn’t need us fighting and killing for him. The Army of the Lord is made of his heavenly hosts, and he fights the battles for us.

“Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord Almighty.” Zech. 4:1

 At one point when Joshua was fighting to claim the promised land, God rained hail down upon his enemy, killing them before Joshua and his men even got there. When Gideon was going against the Midianites, God surrounded them with an angelic army, and opened Gideon’s eyes to encourage him. To God belonged the battle.

            No, we are not God’s army; we are his body. We aren’t fighting battles. God is doing that. He gives us armor to protect us, and then tells us to stand firm. He’s doing the actual fighting. We are his physical body, the way he reaches to a physical world. We are his arms, to hug and hold the hurting. We are his feet, taking his message of peace to an angry world. We are his lips, singing the songs of mercy and bringing the words of salvation.

“How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion,

‘Your God Reigns!’ Isaiah 52:7

           

We are to be the people with the beautiful feet! We have news to share, and it is good news, indeed. We have news of restoration and help for the people of the Philippines today. We have news of peace for people in Syria. We have news of healing and completeness for the wounded Veterans around the United States.

I am so grateful for our Veterans. I am both American and Christian, and I am blessed by both of those facts. My gratitude needs to go beyond a blog post or a Facebook posting on Veterans Day. I need to see them, to thank them, to offer whatever help I can every day. I need to live as his body.

How will we live as his body today?

Are You Devourable?

“Be of sober spirit, be on the alert.  Your adversary, the devil, prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.  But resist him, firm in your faith…”  I Peter 5:8-9

            Christians typically make one of two mistakes regarding Satan.  Either they discount the existence of Satan, reducing him to the personification of the potential evil present in our world, or they go to the opposite extreme, seeing satanic activity in every illness, addiction and atmospheric disturbance. 

            Satan is real.  Jesus Himself spoke of him in terms that were in no way symbolic.  Paul describes him as disguising himself as an angel of light.  He, too, clearly believed in the person of Satan.  He is described as the author of lies, and James says that what comes from him is disorder and every evil thing.

            Satan is bad, no question about it.  But he is not to be a source of fear for the believer in Jesus Christ.  His doom is sure.  While we enjoy heaven and fellowship with God, Satan’s demise, already foretold, will be in the lake of fire.  He holds no power over us, except that which we give him.  Jesus conquered Satan and took his power over us away when He died in our place, and rose from the dead.  “Greater is He that is in you than He that is in the world.” 

            Peter tells us that Satan prowls around like a lion, looking for someone to devour.  Clearly, not everyone is devourable.  Peter tells us how to be devour-proof.  Resist him.  Stand firm.  James 4:8 tells us to resist the devil and he will flee from us.  Not actively fight against. Not exorcise.  Not even engage in warfare.  Simply resist.  James goes on to remind us that if we draw near to God, He will draw near to us. 

            Our view of Satan must be balanced.  Our attitude must be one of realistic respect.  He is real. If we give him a chance, show him areas of sin that we refuse to submit to God, then we leave ourselves open to his attacks.  But we are sealed by the Spirit and indwelt by God.  We should not be overawed by his brilliance or cowed by his power.  He is feeble indeed in comparison to Christ.

            Lord Jesus, give us victory over Satan and his schemes.  Help us to hand every area of our lives over in submission to You.  Help us to keep our eyes so firmly on You that Satan is irrelevant.  Thank You for Your work of salvation and freedom in our lives.     

Post-Halloween

Once again, I am sitting in class, looking out the window instead of paying strict attention, like I should. This has been a problem for me my whole life, by the way. On nearly every report card was the comment, “Daydreams too much.” Or “engages her neighbor rather than paying attention.” Anyway, as I sit tuning out my professor, trying not to miss anything but really not focusing, there is a group of people who are walking by in costume. There is an aging Viking. It might be Thor, but if so he’s lacking a little. Like abs. A princess. Frankenstein. A whole mash of zombies. I have no idea what they were doing. My class didn’t dress up, and its not actually Halloween.

            I admit that I have a love/hate relationship with Halloween. Evil is such a present reality, and I don’t ever want to make light of the real evil that exists. People have real experience at the hand of evil. Halloween seems to make light of that. There are real monsters out there. Some of us are living with them or grew up with them. Some of us have suffered at their hands. History is full of them.

            On the other hand, dressing up and pretending to be scared, having things jump out at you while you know you are completely safe, and eating candy is fun! Decorating for Halloween is so much easier than for other holidays; the cobwebs are already up! Little people dressed up as some adult figure are so darned cute. I love seeing the princesses and cowboys and batmen that show up at the door. Even the pets get in on the dressing up these days.

            When my kids were little, our church dealt with this tension by having harvest parties where we bobbed for apples and ate doughnuts off a string and played carnival games, and where kids dressed up as Bible characters. Today, my kids are grown up and making their own choices about Halloween.

            However you feel about Halloween, I hope you are thinking about the issues. I hope you wrestle with how God would have you glorify him on that day.  Actually, that’s my hope for you everyday. Every day, we should be wrestling with how to live in this world, how to participate in culture, and how to do it with integrity of how we say we believe. How can I bring glory to God in my classes? (I know what you’re thinking; perhaps I should stop looking out the window!) How can I bring glory to God in my home, in my workplace, among my friends?

Beloved, do not imitate evil, but imitate good.

3 John 11

Hate evil, and love good, and establish justice… Amos 5:15

I elected not post this on Halloween because I wanted us to focus on the real issue. I don’t care how you address Halloween; I care that you address evil in every part of your life. Do you think about entertainment? How do you decide what TV shows or movies to watch? What about work ethics? Would you engage in practices for work that you wouldn’t engage in otherwise? Is it OK to lie to your boss about being sick? Is it OK to lie for your boss? Is your language different when you drive than it is at church? Do you smile at the lady you are gossiping about later?

            How do you make choices about how to live your life, every day?

Each moment, we get to choose what we will do or say, whether we will bring glory to God or not. We get to choose how to live for him. We decide what others around us will see and know about God. We decide whether we will draw closer or turn away from him.

            So its not whether we dress up and eat too much candy, its how we reflect him to the world around us in this moment. We need to address the evil around us, to armor up and be aware of the choices we are making. Evil is real. We don’t need to be afraid, but we do need to be aware, and not participate in it. It’s not who we are anymore.

Put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness. Ephesians 4:22-24