Tag Archives: Renewal

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God is Faithful

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The Lord’s lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, for His compassions never fail.  They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.  Lamentations 3:22-23

As we study scripture, we learn about God. It is one thing to intellectually understand God’s faithfulness, His promises, His character, the sacrifice and intercession of Christ, the work of the Holy Spirit, etc.; however, it is something altogether different to experience them.  Knowing that Christ died for our sins does not save us…it is accepting His atoning work on our behalf that provides salvation.  Similarly, knowing about God intellectually does not develop a relationship with Him.  Rather, it is through reliance on Him throughout our life experiences, recognizing His work in our lives, and seeking to live for Him alone that we develop a relationship.  It is experiencing God that takes us from an intellectual understanding to a relationship that allows us to mature in faith.  Further, when we acknowledge God at work in our own lives, we provide edification and encouragement to others. To experience God and not share that fact with fellow believers would be remiss.  Consequently this week’s post is about testifying to God’s faithfulness as an experience.

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Rest

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Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.”  Mark 6:31

Going into this week I knew that it would be busy with obligations to family, friends and to you as readers.  I’m also trying to get yard work done early so that I don’t get so far behind that I wear myself out trying to get it all done before I do some traveling or get so stressed that I inflict stress on my wife.  In fact, I had so many tasks on my mind that I forgot that I was supposed to get my grandsons off of the bus Monday.  (They were safe as their parents have great neighbors; their parents kindly extended gracious forgiveness to me.) There was no room in this week for allergies, a sinus infection, a cold or whatever I have come down with.  I already struggle with my normal health concerns and I just don’t need another layer of illness, but there it is and I’ve been battling it for three days.  Even worse, when I thought it was getting better, I decided to work in the garden for an hour or so.  It was probably not the wisest choice as I have asthma and am allergic to dust, pollen and grass.  The point is that I didn’t listen to my body and tried to do everything…now I’m falling short and this isn’t the post that I started working on.

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Images of Hope

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Without Christ there is no hope

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.  Hebrews 10:23

For several years after I became seriously ill, I didn’t plan any events in my life.  I had no confidence that I would be around for the long haul, therefore, planning was out of the question.  The problem was a lack of hope.  While I still had the hope of eternity, I had no hope that God would sustain my body or that I could endure.  Eventually, that lack of hope made my soul sick.  Thankfully, God sustained me and slowly began to educate me on the finer points of living well before Him.  One of those lessons was that there seem to be two kinds of hope: jubilant hope and steadfast hope.  While I had witnessed plenty of examples of jubilant hope e.g. the hope that comes with: salvation, marriage, or a healthy newborn child, and the like, I had no living images of steadfast hope to lean on.  The culture in which I was raised didn’t deal kindly with people who openly discussed their problems and therefore, was devoid of discussions regarding God’s use of trials to mold, shape and equip them.  In that light, let’s consider a few images of steadfast hope, specifically hope that is: teachable, observant, patient, resilient, faithful trusting that God is enough.

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Pleasant Words and Abominations

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Picture of a farm home

“Evil plans are an abomination to the Lord, but pleasant words are pure.”  Proverbs 15:26

I recently spent a couple of weeks with my mother-in-law.  As she likes to listen to the news a lot, I heard just about every broadcast regarding the Judge Kavanaugh hearings.  Our culture seems to have lost the concept that people are innocent until proven guilty.  As I listened, to the newscasts, I was struck by the fact that I was listening to them in Danvers, Massachusetts.  For those who are unaware or need a refresher, Danvers was originally Salem Village.  In the late 1600’s the town held witch trials that resulted in the death of 25 people…19 were hung and another six died in custody.  (One of the victims was Rebecca Nurse whose house is shown above.  See also Britannica.com)  The trials started due to the behaviors of some girls that could not be explained medically and were, therefore, assumed to be satanic.  Lack of information, bad assumptions, and false accusations led to a tragic end.  The words of the girls and others involved led to the abominable deaths of innocent parties.  Contrary to the poem many of us learned in grade school, words have the power to harm and destroy; they also have the power to heal and encourage.   That’s why our use of words is so important.

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Pride and Humility Part 2

Humility Extolled

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"Only the poor in spirit can be humble. How often the experience, growth, and progress of a Christian become such precious matters to him that he loses his lowliness." Watchman Nee

O Lord, You have heard the desire of the humble; You will strengthen their heart, You will incline Your ear to vindicate the orphan and the oppressed, so that man who is of the earth will no longer cause terror.  Psalm 10:17-18

As I stated in the last post (Pride and Humility Part 1 –  Pride Renounced), we live in a culture that promotes autonomy, independence and self-assuredness.  When controlled, these characteristics are useful tools in life.  However, left unchecked, they will likely lead to pride.  Prideful arrogance impedes a relationship with God, inhibits relationships with others, multiplies guilt, brings dishonor and insures judgement.   Alternatively, humility is often despised by our culture because it appears to be the weaker trait.  However, it is desired by God because it yields rewards in both this life and the one to come.  Following are a few of the benefits.

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Our Temples Revisited

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“They assembled their brothers, consecrated themselves, and went in to cleanse the house of the Lord, according to the commandment of the king by the words of the Lord.” 2 Chronicles 29:15

It’s February and for this month I’m doing a “best of” series to allow time for me to update the website, get ahead on some writing and spend some time on my soul.  In a sense these plans are a type of resolution.  By now some people are still pressing on with New Year’s resolutions, some are faltering, and still others have given up.  Resolutions vary widely but common ones are getting organized, taking better care of their bodies, overcoming bad habits and seeking better attitudes in the New Year.  Some are successful while others are not.  The difference is diligence and fortitude.

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Renewal

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“And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”  Romans 12:2

My wife and I went to the gym on New Year’s Day to work off some of the holiday calories.  While there, I observed the eclectic mix of people.  There were familiar folks who, like me, are there on a regular basis; there were some who, like my wife, are less regular due to a busy schedule and used the holiday as an opportunity to get in a good workout; and then there were those who were clearly new to the gym, but who have most likely decided to try to exercise more in 2018.  After all, it is that time of year for resolutions.  We see the New Year as a time to start fresh and seek to improve our lifestyle in various ways.  However the success achieved will depend on the driving force behind the desire for change.  As Christians we’re called to daily renewal and transformation so that we live in a manner that is honoring to God and a blessing to us…it is a better way and a way to flourish.  No matter what changes we seek to make in our lives, for us to accomplish our goals or to simply live well, we need to maintain our focus in three areas:  our renewal must be God centered, we must be engaged and we must maintain a proper attitude.

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Hide and Seek

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They heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden.  Genesis 3:8

Sometimes when our grandsons come to our house, they like to play hide and seek.  It is such a different game than when I was a kid.  As children, they have not yet learned how many clues they may give away in the process of hiding nor have they learned to listen for clues that I may offer.  As an adult, I’ve learned to listen for those clues.  Fairly certain of their hiding places, I usually take extra the time to “search” rather than going directly to them which allows for more enjoyment of the game on their part.

Whether intentionally or unintentionally, I believe that we often try to hide from God.  Three common reasons we do this are: like Adam and Eve, it may be due to sin; there may be trials in our lives that cause us to doubt God’s goodness and love for us; or it may be as simple as lack of engagement in our spiritual life.  Pulling away from God is exactly where Satan wants us as it leaves us open to temptation.  Through his lies, he seeks to either turn us from God or at least immobilize us and lose our passion for God and engaging in the work that Lord may have planned for us.

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Dry Bones

Revival

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“‘O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord.’ Thus says the Lord God to these bones, ‘Behold, I will cause breath to enter you that you may come to life.  I will put sinews on you, make flesh grow back on you, cover you with skin and put breath in you that you may come alive; and you will know that I am the Lord.’”  Ezekiel 37:4-6

Most mornings, the pain in my body wakes me before the alarm goes off.  Laying there a bit irritated that my body has deprived me of sleep, the morning inventory and ponderings begin.  How much pain is there and is it the kind can it be ignored?  How much energy is available and will it improve as I start moving or quickly fade?  How angry is my gut and how well will it cooperate with eating throughout the day?  What is planned for today and will it have to be adjusted due to the responses to the prior queries?  At best, I will encourage my body to get moving and function relatively normally (for me) throughout the day.  At worst, I’ll end up more like a slug accomplishing the bare minimum.  More often than not, it will be somewhere in the middle of the two.  Notice that there is no “This is the day which the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it”, nor is there a mental or spiritual inventory.  In those early moments of the day, it’s usually all about the body.  Short sighted, focused and exhausting.  I long for days when I awaken refreshed and alive.  Whether or not one is ill, this life can be wearying.  Trials and illness most certainly sap the strength from us on every level encouraging us to withdraw and become self-focused.  However, jobs, family, relationships and social obligations are just as capable of draining us of physical, emotional and spiritual strength. Without attention to our souls, we become like the bones in Ezekiel’s vision: dried up, hopeless and cut off.  In those times it’s important to remember who we are, where our strength comes from and where or hope lies.

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God is the Strength of My Heart

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My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.  Psalm 73:26

Strength is one of those things that waxes and wanes, varies from person to person and can be considered in terms of physical, mental and spiritual attributes.  No matter what aspect is being considered, at the core of this discussion we must remember that any form or degree of strength that we have is provided and sustained by our Heavenly Father in Christ.  

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