September - Up, Down and Content Through It All
On a shelf in my office stands a first place trophy for bowling. Draped over it is a last place crying towel. I keep them together to remind me of life’s ups and downs. One day you’re on top and the next you may be at the bottom.
Paul understood this well. In Philippians 4:11-12 (NIV) he said: “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.” As you can read in his letters, he experienced many ups and downs, more than most of us ever have or will.
When Paul said he knew what it meant to be in need, he wasn’t kidding. While I’m sure he didn’t enjoy the times of need, he learned from them and kept going. He learned, and so can we, to be thankful for the times we’re flying high (in all things give thanks) but not surprised when things turn sour (think it not strange when fiery trials come). And like Paul, we can learn to be content in every situation.
That is so easy to say, yet so hard to do. But if Paul could do it, can’t we? We have the same Holy Spirit to comfort and guide us through the deep valleys. We have the joy of the Lord as our strength. We have the hope of the resurrection and the promise of eternal life. And we have Jesus, who understands everything we’re going through.
Jesus experienced his share of life’s ups and downs too. As we read in John 1:1, he enjoyed the glory of the Godhead from eternity. But Philippians 2 explains he didn’t hold on to it, but humbled himself to come to us as a baby, born in a stable. He learned to walk and to talk and to work, building with his dad. He then became a rabbi, a big accomplishment in his society. He was chased by crowds and sought after by the sick and hurting. For a normal human, these would be cause for celebration. I’m sure Jesus took them in stride. One of his high points must have been the incredible intimacy he enjoyed with his Father.
Then he had more lows: betrayal, trial, crucifixion and death. A big high followed – the resurrection.
I used to think Jesus understands us simply because he was human. But I think there’s more to it. We often don’t understand everything behind a trial or even a mountaintop experience. Sometimes that’s a good thing. But Jesus understood--from his point of view as the Creator, the Triune master of the universe and as Infinite Wisdom--all the ramifications of sin and suffering. We can rest assured that even though he wasn’t a woman, didn’t have to go through old age or debilitating disease, or any of the other experiences we sometimes wonder if he can relate to, he understands.
We will have our ups and downs. We’ll have trials and we’ll have high moments. We’ll continue to earn first place trophies and crying towels. Neither should surprise or devastate us. Remember Paul, content in every situation. Remember Jesus, who understands more than we can comprehend. Enjoy the highs and don’t worry about the lows. Make the best of them, as one team on my bowling league jokes, and make a quilt out of all those crying towels!
August - A Tool or a Friend?
I like to go to home improvement stores and look at gardening tools. I love a
well-shaped pair of pruning shears or sharp grass clippers. My favorite tool
is the electric loppers my husband got me as a gift. That baby makes short
work of pruning trees!
Not long ago I had to repair some of our lawn sprinklers but couldn’t loosen
one of the pipes. So I went rummaging in the garage and found the most
amazing tool. It’s called Robo-Grip and it worked like a charm. I even love
the name. Doing repairs is so much easier with the right tools. They make any
job more enjoyable.
Some liken Christians to tools God can use. As I used my Robo-Grip, I thought
about that concept. Am I a tool in God’s hands? Does he think of me as I
think of my pruners, loppers or Robo-Grip?
What about an instrument? Am I an instrument in God’s hands? I tried playing
a clarinet when I was younger and regret not keeping it up. I remember how
good it felt to make the clarinet produce the right notes to make a melody.
It inspired me and made me feel creative.
I doubt God looks at me in this way. In fact, I’m sure he doesn’t. We use a
tool to do a job and we use an instrument to make music. I am more than that
to God. We have a relationship. He calls me his friend. Through his Son, he
invites all of us to participate in the life he lives as Father, Son and Holy
Spirit. We get to share what he has.
Baxter Kruger likens what goes on in the realm of the Trinity to a great
dance. His book by that title is an interesting read and even a must read if
you want to open your mind to new possibilities about how God is a triune
being.
But can a tool dance? Can an instrument get up and twirl around a room? Only
a human being can participate in this dance of life. God said in Deuteronomy
to choose life. Choose to dance, rather than sit on the sidelines as a
wallflower. Choose to dance, rather than think of yourself as merely a tool
or an instrument. Kick up your heels and fly across the floor to the
incredible music of God’s world.
Thinking of ourselves as tools seems to me a limiting mindset. God gives us
the freedom to choose, to think and to be creative in how we relate to him
and to others. A tool has no freedom and does only what the user wants.
Rather we can think of ourselves as participants and partners with God,
working together in collaboration and cooperation.
I love my tools, but only as they are useful to me. If they break, I throw
them out. Thank God he loves us all the time, even when we break, which we
often do. We don’t become useless to him though. He heals us and helps us
keep going, because that’s what friends do.
July - Like a Weaned Child
Sometimes I skim over verses in the Bible that don’t mean anything to me personally, without taking time to delve into them. I’d read the Psalms several times and always flew through Psalm 131 without really getting what it meant. I don’t remember being weaned and I doubt any of you do either. It usually happens by the time a child is 2, and earlier in most cases. So what exactly does a weaned child do? Or feel? Or think?
At my first silent retreat, I spent a whole day praying, reading the Bible, writing in my journal and reflecting on my relationship with God. Toward late afternoon, I curled up in a chair by the window in my room. The warm sun and the hum of the wind and distant traffic lulled me to sleep. When I awoke, I felt incredibly refreshed and content. Psalm 131:2 popped into my mind. It was an aha moment. I knew what the psalmist meant when he said: “I have stilled and quieted my soul; like a weaned child with its mother, like a weaned child is my soul within me” (NIV).
I had no needs, no worries and no thoughts. A contented sigh was all that came out of me. I felt so full of God I could agree with Horatio Spafford that all was indeed well with my soul.
If you are having trouble relating, perhaps you are too busy. Life is full of stress and it’s not often we can say with David our souls are still and quiet. It’s usually the opposite, isn’t it? Our souls are troubled and anxious and our problems do seem like the sea billowing over us, with no life raft in sight. I don’t believe life is meant to be lived this way. Our bodies aren’t made to be in a constant state of anxiety, with adrenalin rushes one after the other.
Archibald Hart, professor of
psychology at Fuller Theological Seminary,
likens our nerves to a giant rubber
band. When we live under constant stress, our rubber-band nerves get stretched over and over and finally give out.
Is your rubber band near the breaking point? Have your nerves had it? You might not have time for a three-day silent retreat, but you can still lessen the stress in your daily routine. You’ve heard this before, but maybe this time you should do something about it.
Make sure you get enough sleep. Many people don’t. Lack of sleep makes any situation worse. Eat breakfast. Your brain and your body both need something to run on. Learn to be more grateful. Instead of complaining, thank God for every little blessing and grace. You’ll stay calmer if your focus is on gratitude rather than difficulties.
Finally, take time to talk with God. Make him part of your waking thoughts, your waiting thoughts (make standing in line a time of prayer), your whispering thoughts (turn self talk into a time of prayer) and your waning thoughts (you could call this pillow talk with God).
Clichéd and worn out advice? Maybe. But the basics always work, and they just may help your worn out, over-stretched nerves get back in shape. You may also find yourself quoting Psalm 131:2 and humming, “It is well with my soul.”
I’ve always been
a list maker. I came across a long to-do list I made while in college. I
marveled at how much I managed to do in just one week. My life isn’t much
different now. I still make lists and rely on them to keep me going. I like to
think of them as my brain on paper. Of course, I use my computer now, and share
the fear with many that if it were lost or stolen I’d be in big trouble. Sometimes
it seems as if my brain is on my hard drive! I wish it were as easy to back up
my brain as it is to back up my computer.
Inspired by a time travel movie, I’ve started
making notes to what I like to refer to as my future self. The computer is
great for that too, as I can access the calendar feature months and years in
advance. If only my future self could give me some advice.
Our brains are
wonderful – quick, powerful and with a lot of available memory. The only
problem is retrieving things. I watch the game show Jeopardy! and get frustrated when I can’t recall an answer. I’m
sure it’s in there, but I just can’t find it.
Sometimes when I
can’t find something or can’t remember something, I think, God knows, but he’s
not talking! Wouldn’t it be great to have his recall ability? He never forgets
unless he wants to. I forget when I don’t want to! But we never have to worry
that he will forget about us. He remembers even when we don’t. His faithfulness
is constant. In Isaiah 49:15 he asks, “Can a mother forget the
baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though
she may forget, I will not forget you!” (NIV).
As we grow in our relationship
with God, it’s important to remember he is not like us. He doesn’t think or act
like us. We tend to humanize him, ascribing foibles and weaknesses to him as we
see them in ourselves or in others. One of my favorite passages in the Bible
reminds us to be careful not to do this. “’For my thoughts are not your
thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the LORD. ‘As the heavens
are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts
than your thoughts’” (Isaiah 55:7-9, NIV).
This is a
positive thing as it helps us keep our lives in perspective. Even the best
virtues and noblest acts of humanity pale in comparison to the greatness of
God. There really is no one like him.
“Oh, the depth
of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his
judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! ‘Who has known the mind of the
Lord? Or who has been his counselor?’ ‘Who has ever given to God, that God
should repay him?’ For from him and through him and to him are all things. To
him be the glory forever! Amen” (Romans 11:33-36, NIV).
How wonderful I
can rely on his memory even when mine fails. I guess you could say he’s my
backup.
Christians have to adjust to a new
culture too. Before knowing God, we live in a culture based on
performance. But
when we accept Christ as Savior, we move from legalism to grace. We
learn of
undeserved pardon, a concept foreign to this world. Because legalism is
so
pervasive, those who practice grace almost seem to be from a different
planet,
which can make the transition difficult.
Where legalism wants
retribution,
grace forgives. Where legalism wants everyone to look and think alike,
grace
gives freedom to be ourselves in Christ. The old culture puts
conditions on
everything; grace says Jesus met all conditions on the cross. Legalism
tries to
keep people out; grace finds a place for everyone.
Christ-plus
exists in many forms. It’s hard for us to let everything go and see
grace for
what it really is: a no-strings-attached deal where all that’s required
is
belief, pure and simple. And even the act of belief comes from the will
of God.
He is the initiator. He loved us first and he is the one who wants us
to come
to him. Paul said the carnal mind is enmity against God, so we can’t
even
believe without him. Out of his unlimited grace, he gives us what we
don’t
deserve—inclusion in his life.Grace involves death too. When we
die physically, we’ll receive the reality of God’s grace in all its
fullness.
We’ll have new bodies and won’t sin anymore. We’ll have no more fears
and no
more tears.
But while we’re still alive, we’ll
be able to receive and give more grace the more we learn to die to
self.
Instead of holding on to pride, we can die to it by laying ourselves
down for
others. Without our awful pride, we can humbly accept God’s underserved
forgiveness and also give it to others. Just as we know we don’t
deserve grace,
so we know others don’t deserve it either. But we all want it.In 1
Corinthians 15:31 (NIV), Paul said: “I die every day—I mean that,
brothers—just
as surely as I glory over you in Christ Jesus our Lord.” To me, dying
daily
means giving up myself—my wants, my needs, my pride and my opinions—for
the
good of someone else. It also means surrendering all of me to God
because he is
the Lord of the universe and I’m blessed to know him.
Unlearning
the culture of legalism and
learning the culture of grace is the
most important cultural adjustment we’ll ever make. May we all continue
to grow
in God’s grace.
April
– From Bulb to Beauty
Spring flowers are a wonderful
reminder of new life. Especially for those in areas where winter is
cold, snowy and seemingly endless, spring feels like rebirth. It also
reminds me of the opposite, perhaps because when I think of the bulbs I
planted I marvel that such beautiful flowers can come out of brown,
ugly, dead-looking little things. The contrast is striking to me and is
no doubt a divine reminder of what God has in mind for us through
Christ.
In the death and resurrection of
Jesus we see the same amazing contrast. He died as a criminal, tortured
and beaten, almost unrecognizable and repulsive to human sensibility.
His body lay in a tomb for three days, probably decomposing, as dead
bodies do. But then from death and decay, by the power of our
omnipotent God, he rose to glorious new life. This was a marvelous
event, the cornerstone of our Christian faith.
But wait, there’s more. Paul said we
died with him, and were buried with him in baptism. We have also risen
with him to new life, life in the Spirit, and we’re being transformed
into new creatures.
But how are we transformed? Paul
tells us it’s by the renewing of our minds (Romans 12:2). Then in
Colossians he tells us to put to death whatever belongs to our earthly
nature and to “put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge
in the image of its Creator” (Colossians 3:10, NIV). Putting to death
whatever belongs to our earthly nature can only be accomplished by
dying to self, and that only through the Spirit (Romans 8:13).
This is a difficult
concept, as death
is the natural enemy of mankind. I instinctively recoil from all
thoughts of dying in any form. But as C.S. Lewis said in The
Weight of Glory,
“A rejection, or in Scripture’s strong
language, a crucifixion of the natural self is the passport to
everlasting life. Nothing that has not died will be resurrected….” We
can only rise with Christ (Ephesians 2:4-6) if we have died first
(Colossians 3:3) and been buried with him in baptism. We
are to be living sacrifices, but
as Jill Briscoe has said, the trouble with living sacrifices is they
keep climbing down from the altar! Dying to self is a daily occurrence
for us, as our natural, earthly selves will not truly die until we die
physically.
Jesus voluntarily laid down his life
for us. We die to self by laying down our lives for others, voluntarily
setting aside our own wants and even needs to help or give to another.
To die daily is to crucify our pride and selfishness, both of which can
cause us to elevate ourselves over others.
Jesus said those who try to
save their lives will lose them, but if we give up our lives in this
way, we’ll save them.We won’t learn to do it all at once
and we can’t do it on our own, but only with the grace and strength of
Jesus. So happy spring and may we all continue to celebrate the
resurrection by continually dying to the old self and rising to the new.
March - Do You Have the Key?
For most of my life, I believed Jesus was my Savior, but I was convinced obedience to the laws of the Old Testament was also necessary for salvation. I had no idea this is called “Christ plus.” I heard the term, and discovered I practiced it, all on the same day!
I also thought this was a modern problem. But in the process of owning the book of Colossians (see my February article at the link below), I came across something called the Colossian Heresy. It’s not mentioned by name, but the commentaries all talk about it. It seems some people in Colosse were teaching a different gospel, one that more or less openly intimated Jesus wasn’t enough. So Christ plus is nothing new. It existed back in Paul’s day too.
The commentaries say no one really knows what the Colossian Heresy was, but they do agree it “attacked the total adequacy and the unique supremacy of Christ” (The Letters to the Philippians, Colossians, and the Thessalonians, William Barclay). Paul covers several points to refute these Gnostic teachings, including Christ’s role in creation, his total divinity and total humanity, warnings about angel worship, empty philosophies and legalistic teachings.
Some of the books I’ve read and websites I’ve visited give me a feeling this Christ plus agenda is still alive and well in the 21st century. Everyone seems to have some special knowledge or a key to whatever you need, either for salvation or spiritual fulfillment. If you follow their advice or seven keys or physical or spiritual regimen, you’re in like Flynn.
But do we need special knowledge to attain salvation? Do we need secret keys to unlock the doors of heaven? Yes, we do, but both are found in one word: Jesus. (The doors of heaven aren’t locked, but some would have you believe this.) Paul said he was chosen by God “to present to you [the Colossians] the word of God in its fullness” (Colossians 1:25, NIV throughout), and “to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27).
The answer to the mystery of God is as simple as that, and needs no embellishment or special knowledge. Jesus himself said he is the Way, the Truth and the Life. He offered no secret handshake or password. He put no conditions on life in him, he simply said come to me and I will give you rest (Matthew 11:28). He said all we have to do is ask and he will give us living water (John 4:10). In an amazing display of grace, when the thief on the cross asked to be remembered when Jesus came into his kingdom, Jesus assured the man he would be with him in paradise (Luke 23:42-43).
Paul’s words of warning are as relevant today as they were almost 2,000 years ago. “I tell you this so that no one may deceive you by fine-sounding arguments” (Colossians 2:4). “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ” (2:8).
And don’t fall for the gimmicks and keys some try to convince us are necessary to be a Christian or necessary even for salvation. To paraphrase the song, all you need is Christ.
February - Do You Own the Bible?
We own our home and also take care of it, including the yard, so I am familiar with it. Inside, I’ve dusted, mopped, wiped and vacuumed almost every square inch (at least the parts I can reach). Outside, I’ve planted, mulched, trimmed, mowed, pruned and swept every bit. Not only do we own it as a possession, but I own it in the sense of knowing it intimately.
I also own a Bible, actually several Bibles. They are my possessions. But it’s not enough just to possess a Bible. Many people own at least one, but sadly many of those same people have no idea, or the wrong idea, of what’s inside. They own a Bible, but they don’t own the Bible.
You may have heard about programs to help you read the Bible in one year, and you can also buy one that guides you through the year. This is probably a good way to get familiar with the book as a whole, but you still won’t own it. In a Christian magazine I saw a one-sentence piece of advice that’s guiding me right now: “Study a book of the Bible until you own it.”
Last year at a conference in Palm Springs, theologian Dallas Willard suggested we memorize scripture as a way to let the Word of God sink deeply into our hearts. He says memorization is the primary discipline for the thought life. He recommended Colossians 3:1-17 as a place to start, so I decided to memorize it, and I’m starting to own it.
As I began memorizing, some phrases intrigued me and I wanted to know more. So I opened a commentary about Colossians and found out more than I wanted to know! Well, not really, just more than I bargained for and some I didn’t really understand. But it’s interesting and has provided some nuggets of knowledge and inspiration.
In a notebook, I’ve written the verses I want to memorize first. I check it to help me keep on track. When I awaken in the middle of the night, I try reciting (silently of course) until I fall back asleep.
Dallas Willard, in his book, Renovation of the Heart in Daily Practice (a companion book to Renovation of the Heart), says: “The desired effect will not be realized by focusing on isolated verses but will come as we ingest passages such as Romans 5:1-8 or 8:1-15, 1 Corinthians 13, or Colossians 3:1-17. When we take these into our mind, our mind will become filled with the light of God himself.”
Scripture memorization isn’t as easy for adults as it is for children, but as Dallas Willard says, our minds are made for it, and God wants us to do it. He will help us as we try, and cheer us on as we need encouragement. If we keep at it, we’ll eventually own our Bibles as never before.
In a world where many let their thoughts wander where they may, Scripture memorization can help us focus our thoughts on our loving God and be filled with his light.
January - The Real Test
‘Tis the season – for political hype in North America. Our elections are upon us and they provide a large amount of grist for the hype mill. It seems to start earlier every election year, with parties promoting and exaggerating the virtues of their favored ones.