Russian Roulette

Does life ever seem to you like a game of Russian Roulette? Especially when it comes to tragedy?

At times it has for me. Just emotionally, of course; my brain doesn't buy it. There have been times when it feels a gun is placed to all our heads. Click. Nothing, so you go on living. Bang. Someone near you dies or is hurt.

Thankfully, I know that life isn't random events. It's this knowledge that reigns in my feelings.

I read this morning the well-quoted and loved passage of Psalm 139. There David goes into great detail on God's care of him, of His watch over who he is today, of His creation of him in the womb, and of His knowledge of exactly how many days he has and how they will play out.

All the days ordained for me
were written in your book
before one of them came to be.

What are you going through today? Sickness? Worry? Grief?

[Yahweh], You know when I sit and when I rise;
You perceive my thoughts from afar...
You are familiar with all my ways...
You hem me in—behind and before;
You have laid Your hand upon me...
Where can I flee from Your presence?
...even the darkness will not be dark to You; 

He knows. He is there. The darkness may hide Him from our perception, but you were in His plan before the earth was formed. He has not forgotten you. There is no chance He will forget you.

For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus. (Philippians 1:6)

Yahweh who planned your existence, formed your body and designed your mind, personality, and gifts, will hold on tightly to you. Hold tightly to Him.

Search me, O God, and know my heart;

test me and know my anxious thoughts.
See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.

(Psalm 139:23-24)

9-1-1

Who can forget where one was September 1, 2001? Terror struck New York and Washington, and its ripples shot through the rest of the States.

The smallest child is taught to call 9-1-1 in an emergency. Whether intentional or accidental, the date called out this emergency.

Yet out of horror, beauty sprung up as we saw the bravery of men and women risking their lives before and after the towers fell. We truly wept with those who wept.



For a minute, all of America came together. People flooded into churches to find something greater than themselves. And in many parts of the world, nations looked on us with compassion and friendship instead of distant mocking.

It is strange to look at what has happened these past nine years. Steering away from the political realm, it grieves me to see the misrepresentation of Christianity by pastors burning the Koran. Bigger plans for this were thankfully abandoned. Yet, I think of the Bible's blatant command:

But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. (1 Peter 3:15-16)

Being known by love and reaching out in forgiveness to their enemies is what Jesus and His followers modeled. The great irony in Emperor Nero's reign was his maligning Christians for burning Rome, cannibalism, etc., yet they reacted in love and died gallantly.

Today, I fear that many pastors, more or less their congregations, do not know the God of the Bible or what He taught. We have embraced the god of our own understanding and religiously clung to him, split churches over the colour of his carpets, slammed shut the hearts of the searching by our selfishness and pride. Some have made patriotism, politics or a political party a religion, and they are more devoted to preaching their good opinion than to sharing the Good News.

If we don't know Yahweh, how can we make Him known to a world that is empty and aching? We slander Him by our very eagerness to serve Him without knowing Him, Oswald Chambers so rightly said.

What will it take to awaken us again? Will a third world war have to happen? Will we lose religious freedom before we realize how much we've lost? Will we bring on persecution by our flaunting of our rights before those who hate us?

If you know the God of the Bible, make Him known. But honour Him with your gentle love and respect for all those He died to save.

Developing Prayer Power

Last weekend I had the chance to hear my father preach (something I always enjoy). He spoke on Romans 8:26-27—"Developing Prayer Power."

One of my earliest memories of my father was finding him on the coach reading his Bible or down on his knees praying. He chose an hour when the house was quiet, and he did it every day. I believe this left a deep impression on all my siblings as well as myself. His example spoke more to me about the importance of daily time with God than numerous sermons could have. So, when he admitted in his sermon that he doesn't fully understand prayer, one listens.

What can we know about prayer?

I. Understanding Our Need to Pray

A. Our Weakness (v. 26a): "the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness"

We are not only totally unable to do anything good in the flesh, but we also don't know how to ask for what is good. The Holy Spirit then helps us "in our weakness."

Divine participation: the Spirit brings us to salvation, guides us to all Truth, shows us our need to be dependent on Him, gives us hope in the midst of trials—not doing everything for us, but working in us so that we do what fulfills God's purpose.

B. Our Prayerlessness (v. 26b): "we do not know what to pray for"

Cross-reference this passage with Matthew 7:7-11 where Jesus tells His disciples what our intercession should look like:

     1) Ask and keep on asking—Simplicity. Our prayers do not need to be flowery or complex, but rather should be simple, asking our Father in heaven for what we need and desire.

     2) Seek and keep on seeking—Intensity. Our prayers shouldn't be trite or out of habit/tradition, but should be honest, heart-felt, intense.

     3) Knock and keep on knocking—Persistency. If God says "wait," He has a purpose. Keep seeking His will until He tells you "yes" or "no."

C. Our Groaning (vv. 22, 23, 26c) "creation groans, we grown, the Spirit groans"

The Greek word here for "groan" is to "utter a deep sound expressing grief, disapproval, etc."

Can you relate? Have you felt the groan in your heart when you've seen pictures of disasters, heard of the horrors of injustice, witnessed the twisting of truth, felt the pain of loss? We all have.

We know creation groans too. We've all seen the oil-covered birds and sea creatures in the Gulf. We've known of species that have gone extinct. We've known the waste and destruction of once beautiful land. It groans.

In this passage we also hear that the Spirit groans. His groans, however, change circumstances and hearts. Although we do not know what to ask for, the Spirit asks for what is good and harmonious with the will of God.

All that is good and bad in life are different colours on God's canvas. We do not see the whole design now, but one day we will see these colours formed the perfect picture under the control of the Artist's hand.

II. Understanding God's Resources in Prayer (v. 27)

A. Knowing the Mind of God: "He who searches the hearts knows"

The Holy Spirit knows our heart and our motives, and He also knows the mind of God. We must cooperate with the Divine. We need too accept what we don't understand. However God answers our prayer or works in our life, He is fulfilling a good purpose.

B. Yielding to the Will of God: "the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God"

The Spirit helps us to pray; our part is to yield to Him for what we don't understand.

C. Fulfilling the Purpose of God: "intercedes with groans that words cannot express"

God knows what is best and has promised the best for those who love Him.

Conclusion: To be effective in our Christian lives, we need to develop a growing prayer life. Paul reminds us in Philippians 4:6-7 that through prayer we can replace anxiety with peace. We must begin by praying and intensify our prayer life; interceding for others and not just ourselves.
 
Prayer is a journey that takes us throughout life and ends when we speak face-to-face with Yahweh.

Seeing in a Different Light

"Every possible statement that can be made about God expresses some possession or virtue of God, rather than God Himself. The conception of God as He is can only be grasped in one way—by thinking of Him as a Being whose attributes and greatness are beyond our powers of understanding, or even of thought." ~Novatian

When the sun rises or sets we get a glimpse of light and colour as its rays filter through the clouds and atmosphere. We would say we "saw the sun set." But we didn't. We saw aspects of the sun, not the sun itself. We all know that if we saw the sun, we would never see again.

One of the snares most common to humankind is pride. It shows itself blatantly through bragging, belittling retorts, or physical snubs. It shows itself subtly through false-humility, refusal to accept a kindness or gift, or avoidance of a certain person or people.

Pride also subtly creeps in puffing us up with our own knowledge. This is perhaps the most dangerous rearing of pride's ugly head.

Satan's downfall was pride. He said: "I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High."

Where did Satan go wrong? He assumed he knew the Most High. He who masquerades as an angel of light thought that the light equaled the sun. If he had truly known Yahweh, he would have also known he could not compete.

What about our pride? Do we think, as Christians especially, that we can describe God? Do we feel the necessity to defend His reputation to one who's grieving or hurt?

It may seem so easy to enlighten others until our own world falls apart. Then, lest we cling to Him, we may fall away because He no longer fits our understanding of a "loving God." Tragedy is personal.

One parent who lost a daughter eight years ago shares it this way:

If the whole thing comes crashing down because my daughter died? That makes me the center of the universe. This is something that happened in our lives, and it’s hard, but it’s still part of God’s plan.

Being able to accept the mystery of God is a maturing process. Our desire to be able to explain God is not necessarily good. To long to know God and pursue knowing Him is commendable. To want to define God, however, is a desire to defang the Lion of Judah, render Him helpless to harm us or those we love, make Him safe.

Mrs Beaver: "[I]f there's anyone who can appear before Aslan without their knees knocking they're either braver than most or else just silly."

"Then he isn't safe?" said Lucy.

"Safe?" said Mr Beaver; "don't you hear what Mrs Beaver tells you? Who said anything about safe? 'Course he isn't safe. But he's good. He's the King, I tell you." (The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, Chapter 8)

Yahweh is so much bigger than we can comprehend. When we believe we "know God," in the complete sense of knowing Him, we enter the danger of pride. God is always surprising. We need to foster that sense of wonder and discovery. We must always be learning about Him, talking to Him, reading His Word.

"Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known." (1 Corinthians 13:12)

The more we grow in our faith, the more we will realize how much there is to know about God. He becomes like the "Lover" in the Song of Solomon. Our hearts ache for Him, and we delight to pursue and be pursued by the One we love; ever seeking a glimpse of His shadow.

The immature see one aspect of God and think He's complete. The mature realize that three pounds of brain is not capable of knowing God. We grasp whatever "possession or virtue of God" we can understand and surrender in trust what is beyond us; ever pursuing the sweet mystery of His love.

Honest to Goodness

I think Christians are some of the most dishonest people in the world. No, I don't believe we mean to be. I think we've bought into the world's myth that we're to be perfect.

For some, this dishonesty gives birth to hypocrisy. They put on a mask to protect themselves. Disguising their true self. 

They're convinced that to follow Christ means one does everything one should in every way, all the time. When that Christian sees where he/she is failing, it must be hidden. This effort to cover up, eventually is exposed and, for those watching, Christianity as a whole is thrown out with the baptismal water.

Other Christians trust humans to be kind. But God? He's perfect, right? He can't know that I harbour hatred or bitterness. He mustn't know that I feel lust or envy. We must spare Him at all costs.

Oh, I know. We don't think of it in such black-and-white terms. It's the little preacher inside our heads. The one that when emotion stirs, says: "You know that isn't right." Yes, we know. Instead of bringing it to God, however, we quickly say a half-hearted "sorry" and change the subject.

Because we have this problem concealing our own sins, we dare not excuse a fellow believer who is honest. Are you kidding?

Someone comes forward saying he's into pornography—She's had an affair. We hold out our weapon to stab first. We quote Scripture at them. We tell them what dirty-rotten-sinners they are. Do they know what bad examples they are to the youth?

We kick them while they're down.

In case you suspect this is an exaggeration, when Southern Gospel singer Kirk Talley confessed his struggle with homosexuality, he received so many condemning e-mails from angry Christians, he had to close down his website.

What should we do then—with ourselves and with other people? Do we turn a blind eye to our sin? Do we accept it as part of life in this fallen world and give up trying to fight? Do we tell everyone every struggle we ever face?

No. No. No.

We must first deal with ourselves. In the case of sin, it is important to put ourselves first. If you realize an area in which you are struggling or have given in, tell God. Confess every detail.

Have you ever noticed how cringingly honest David and the other Psalm writers were? Psalms such as 137 make us cringe with their blatant hatred and seeming cruelty. Habakkuk provides a less ugly example. But all these men pour out sincere feelings to the Lord. Instead of acting in cruelty, they bring their cruel thoughts or, like Habakkuk, their concerns about the horrors of unpunished sin. In the latter's case, we have a written answer from Yahweh explaining His plans.

Multitudes of passages interwoven throughout Scripture prove, plead, and provide reasons for humans to confess everything. Yahweh can handle it.

In Psalm 50 Yahweh declares the opposite scenario to be the problem. Those who go through the rituals of worship, but hide their sins—those are the lives He detests. Those are the lives that anger Him.

Instead, what does He prefer?

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, You will not despise. (Psalm 51:17)

Even if you don't feel contrite, confessing your sins openly before God gives Him entrance into your conscience and heart. Praying, even if it's wrestling in prayer, plugs you into the source for power, for freedom. It allows you to aim your weapons at your real opponent, within and without.

And your fellow Christian?

Interestingly, just below the passage in Matthew 18 where Jesus explains what to do with a brother who has wronged you is the parable of the unjust servant. The master forgave a great debt of the servant's. But, when a fellow servant asked that servant to forgive a lesser debt, the former had him thrown into prison. The master heard about it and in anger demanded full payment from the unjust one.

When someone admits guilt, that one is vulnerable. He or she has exposed an ugly truth. The world publishes these disclosures in Star, People, the latest talk shows and blogs.

But how should the Christian respond?

Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.

My brothers, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring him back, remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save him from death and cover over a multitude of sins. (James 5:16, 19-20)

It is the job of the family of Christ to bring love and healing to each other.

Therefore encourage one another and build up one another (1 Thessalonians 5:11)

Encouragement is the preventative. Love and prayer are the healing. If your brother or sister has sinned and has confessed it, in love with encouragement and prayer, build up (champion, defend, guard, support, go to battle for, back) your neighbor against the enemy inside and outside.

As God forgives and frees us from our sins, may we actively fight for and not against our brothers and sisters.

Pursue God and advocate the spiritual success of others, and God will give you victory in your battles.

A Mist

Have you ever wanted to know someone, but the interest isn't returned? I'm not thinking romantically, although it's applicable; I'm thinking of one in your family (maybe an older sibling you respect or an absent parent), a co-worker, or an acquaintance.

We've all lived on both sides of the situation: being liked to a degree we can't return and giving interest we don't receive back.

The hurt we feel from this "rejection" is sharp. But why do we feel it? If we indeed have not returned all affection given to us, why should we feel other's condescension so undeserved?

In some cases, as in an abusive childhood, there are wounds that must be healed.

In most situations, however, (and I'm speaking very much for myself), we take ourselves much too seriously.

Paul says as much in Romans 12:3: "Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you."

We become so tuned into our own acceptance or rejection, our own feelings, that the sun and planets begin to revolve around us. If it were not so, why should one person's dismissal of our importance devastate us so?

Maybe God gives us these rejections in part to remind us that life isn't about us. We are a "mist that appears for a little while and than vanishes" (James 4:14).

Credit: Ken Sturm

The missionary C.T. Studd summarized our position:

Only one life, the still small voice, Gently pleads for a better choice

Bidding me selfish aims to leave, And to God’s holy will to cleave;

Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, a few brief years, Each with its burdens, hopes, and fears;

Each with its days I must fulfill, living for self or in His will;

Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

We may still feel a sting when rejected. Instead of dwelling on it, maybe we can ponder the amazement that, although insignificant in our brother's eyes, the Creator of the world loves us.

Come On and Rescue Me

Life is lonely. We don't like to think of it that way, but at our core we are all alone.

Nine months in the womb is the closest we ever get to being constantly near someone. As we get older, we make friends and often marry. For a while, that one or two fill an emptiness, bring laughter, share tears. Often memories create a feeling of satisfaction greater than the reality of the relationship or event.

Eventually, each one lets us down.We'll feel a sense of rejection or betrayal. That is when we realize, we are, in a sense, a floating island occasionally running alongside another shore.

This may sound depressing, but if you've read this far, you have felt it in yourself. It's reality. But, it's not all negative. There is something good about this ache.

When people fail us, there are many other ways we try to fill this void: pets, work, money, possessions, thrills, alcohol, travel, pornography, parties, and even constant church or charitable activity. The purpose is to keep from thinking, keep from feeling the emptiness.

In essence, we are trying to flee from ourselves.

What's the good news?

That loneliness means something. It is evidence that we were made for something that satisfies. Something that not only sooths an ache, but quenches a thirst.

SomeOne made us to not be random and temporary. SomeOne wants a relationship. SomeOne who is above creation, above circumstances, never to reject our cry to Him for help.

Through Jesus, Yahweh made a way for Him to have a relationship with fallen humans. Though He does not need us, He knows we were designed to need Him.

How great is His compassion to reach our need and ignore our fist.

Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. (James 4:7-8)

Now is the day of salvation. When you are aching, when you feel the loneliness, remember and reach out for the hand of God.

Only fellowship with God touches lonely hearts with peace.