“DON’T JUDGE ME – I’M A FAN” – Jan. 3

“Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who alone does wondrous things.  Blessed be his glorious name forever; may the whole earth be filled with his glory!”  Psalm 72:18-19

I have struggled for motivation to climb upon my bicycle while it is clamped into the trainer.   However, I have to do something because the digits on my scale are continuing to increase inversely to the outdoors temperatures.  I’ve sought may aids to curb the monotony of a cycling trainer; music, cycling training videos, Tour de France videos, sermons, audiobooks, and even stand-up comics.  None has been able to keep me contentedly pedaling beyond 30 minutes.

However, I finally found my tonic for trainer tedium – Dark Matter.

My tonic is not the invisible matter constituting the majority of the universe.  Mine comes from the Syfy channel.  I got hooked on this story of a spaceship crew who awakens from stasis with no memory of who they are, what they have done, or why they are on board a mercenary spaceship.

I love a good story and if it is set in space, then it’s even better.

I saved watching Dark Matter as the carrot before my motionless bike.  I easily pedaled through each episode as subsequent adventures revealed mysteries of forgotten pasts.  I was actually starting to look forward to my time on that accursed contraption when it all came to an end.

The final episode of Season 1 successfully left me spinning on the edge of my saddle, wanting to know what will happen next.  I went to click on Season 2, to spin through another episode, but made a stark discovery.

There is no Season 2.

I was done.  I climbed off my bike and felt that familiar disdain for my next date with the trainer.  I searched the internet to discover whether there was another season with a growing concern.  I learned more about Dark Matter than I had intended.  I learned about the actors and the production.  I read reviews, both positive and negative.  I was delighted to find that there will be another season but annoyed to know that it is only in production.

I even discovered the WordPress blog of Joseph Mallozzi – Josephmallozzi’s Weblog.  He is the co-writer and creator of Dark Matter.  He has a lot of behind the scene photos of the current filming of Dark Matter on his blog.  I flipped through each post in my developing sense of fandom.

I learned that Dark Matter was originally a comic book that Joseph Mallozzi co-wrote.  So, I did what any newly minted fan would do.  I got on Amazon to see if I could buy one.  I’m a little embarrassed to admit that the compilation book of all four comics should arrive in two days.  I haven’t bought myself a comic book in three decades.

Don’t judge me, I’m a fan.

I find it interesting that I wasn’t really a fan of Dark Matter while Netflix held a trove of unwatched episodes.

It wasn’t until the streaming dried up that I even thought about the writer.
It wasn’t until the entertainment stopped that I began searching.
It wasn’t until I was forced to wait that I became a fan.

My reaction to Dark Matter reminded me of this quote from A.W. Pink.

I can testify to these dry seasons of the soul.

Most Christians will experience these periods of drought
if they follow Christ any length of time.

It is part of sanctification.

Have you ever wondered why we experience these periods where the river of God’s presence feels like it has dried up?

Some may say that these seasons are periods of preparation or testing or due to sin.  I agree in part.

However, I wonder if dry periods are simply a process to make us into fans.

When I enter a dry period, I tend to think more about God.  I confess that my thoughts often sound like complaints, “why is God doing this to me”, but my eyes definitely get focused back on Him.

When I feel spiritually lethargic, I tend to search more earnestly in His word.  I start digging into the mysteries of God and realize that I am usually not even asking the right questions.

When I am waiting on God, I inevitably begin to ask myself, who I am waiting for, which brings me back to the Gospel, the wonderful treasure of the good news of Jesus Christ and I become more of a fan.

A dry period  will inevitably
bring me to the glory of God.

It will make me a fan.

When I am a fully glorifying fan:

I am prepared to follow Christ in whatever He has called me to do.

I am ready to persevere through the suffering and trials that are before me.

I am willing to turn my back on the temptations of this world for the surpassing worth of my loving Savior.

The lukewarm Christian is a lukewarm fan.

Christians should be more enthusiastic than any of the fans in a sports stadium.

Our demeanor should clothe us as followers of Christ more than any avid comic con attendees.

Our homes should proudly display our fandom of the One.

We were created to be fans; we were created to worship.
A true fan should be easy to spot.

God wants us to be easy to spot.
God wants us to be true fans.
He is willing to take us through those dry periods to teach us that our fandom rests only in Him.

PRAYER: Lord, I pray that you will make me into a fan.  Help me to want to join my voice with that of the Psalmist and declare your wondrous deeds in unabashed fandom.  Help me to accept the dry seasons.  Help to see that you are taking me to greater happiness.  Father, do your work in me even when I am not fully cooperating.  I pray this in the precious name of your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen

“Say Ah” – Nov. 3

“Ah, Lord God!  It is you who has made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm!  Nothing is too hard for you.”  Jeremiah 32:17

Upon September’s conclusion, I knew October’s difficulties.  The nature of my employment had conspired against me by scheduling five business trips in the span of four weeks.  I realize that, for some, this may have been business as usual.  However, six business trips constituted my annual total in years past.  I am not accustomed to this level of business travel.

In the spirit of full disclosure, I should reveal the locations of my business travel before you commiserate too much with me.  I was working in the following National Parks:

Mount Rainer National Park
Death Valley National Park
Golden Gate National Recreation Area
Muir Woods National Monument
Olympic National Park
Yosemite National Park

I can just feel the sympathy evaporating as this list is read.  It was rough duty but someone has to do it.  My only appeal for sympathy is that while I was traveling to beautiful locations it was for work.  My typical trip was a three day affair; flying to the Park on day one, conducting the project meeting on the following, and then returning on the third day.  These trips contained a lot of time in airports, planes, rental cars and hotels, albeit, in the context of a spectacular National Park.

I have found that it takes purposefulness to truly combat the busyness of business.  I endeavor to purposefully carve out time in each business trip to appreciate the particular locale of my trip, especially on trips to national parks, otherwise I will miss the spectacular.  It is easy to fly in, do the work, and fly out without ever looking up.  We can miss a lot of wonder in our diligent toil.

Therefore, I try to find a moment or two on each business trip to set aside my labor, look around me and say, “Ah, this is spectacular!”

I have realized my need to be purposeful in looking past myself so that I can appreciate the wonder of the world I live in, otherwise it doesn’t happen.  Beholding the glorious is one of the unique characteristics of being human.  There is no other creature who has this unique ability to appreciate the spectacular.  It is what we were made to do.

However, I often fail to regularly do what I was uniquely created for.  I get so consumed by my daily toils that I fail to look up and appreciate the world around me.

If I am failing to appreciate the world in which I am placed,
how can I truly appreciate the Creator of that world?

If I am failing to appreciate my Creator,
how can I truly trust him?

If I don’t truly trust Him,
how can I say that I have faith in Him?

Consider how Jeremiah may have come to his declaration of faith, “nothing is too hard for God”.

He beheld the heavens and the earth;
He praises the Creator, “Ah, Lord”;
He reasons that creation must have required great power through the outstretched arm of God;
He concludes in faith that if God can create the world around him then there is nothing too hard for him.

I don’t know if this is exactly how Jeremiah thought.  Although, this is how my faith often works.

My soul is most refreshed when I lay aside my preoccupations and simply behold His glory.
My faith is renewed through each exclamation of “Ah, Lord”.
My resolve is strengthened when reminded of my God who can do anything.

I believe that we all can grow in our trust that “nothing is too hard for God”, which means that we all can use more “Ah, Lord” moments.  Maybe, rather than trying to do more, we simply need to carve out 15 minutes a day to merely relax and enjoy the spectacular nature of our Creator.

PRAYER: Lord, thank you for the spectacular world that we live in.   Thank you for putting on display your glory.  Thank you for creating me with the ability to praise you.  Forgive me for often failing to do what I have been uniquely created to do.  Lord, remind me, today, to look up.  Remind me to behold your glory, today.  Father, inform my theology through the appreciation of your creation.  Build my faith through all the “Ah” moments that you grant me.  I pray this in the precious name of your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen

TALENTLESS GLORY – Sept 10

“You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.” 1 Corinthians 6:19b-20

 The other morning, I once again watched this video as I ate my breakfast.

The emotions elicited from Carrie Underwood’s exaltation of our God’s greatness caused me to linger upon God’s glory. I am always encouraged to see God-given talent directed back toward our Creator.

Musicians using their talents to lead me in worship of God;
Teachers whose charisma encourages me to follow Jesus;
The intellect of pastors drawing me deeper into the mysteries of the divine;
Authors explaining difficult truths that ease my understanding;
Poets whose words plow fresh soil in my soul;
Artists who create works that raise my eyes beyond this world.

I can easily acknowledge and join in the praise that the talented present to the Lord through the works of their bodies.

I am equally tempted, in darker moments, to think that the glory potential of my body is significantly lower than that of the talented. I know that the price paid for my salvation is the same as that paid for Carrie Underwood or C.S. Lewis or Spurgeon or Milton or any number of talented people who love or have love our Lord Jesus Christ.

Therefore, it seems that the Lord might have gotten a poor bargain when he saved me. When I consider what I have to offer God, I am inclined to place myself on the clearance rack.

I don’t want to diminish my talents, but I also recognize that they are not “world class”.  However, there are billions of people just like me.

We have never been at the top of the class.
We have never been invited to an audition.
We have never been courted for the corner office.
We have never won a race.
We have never had a best-seller.
We have never even been close to a platform.

As a result, the glory that God receives from my body and those like me comes quietly, without ovation, from a heart that fumbles with rudimentary talents in simple love for our Savior.

I wonder if this glory from the simple is not the glory highly esteemed by our Lord.

Consider the fact that He has created more “unexceptional” people than the world class variant.  There is rarely a question of motivation for the under-gifted. The gifted will always have to struggle against their love for the praise of men.

I have never made melody with my voice in praise to our Lord with the secret hope of a compliment. I am not musical. Therefore, I have only one motivation when I worship our Lord through singing – love. I sing praises to the glory of God because I love him. I believe that the glory from my body, at that moment, is purest and most undefiled by my love of self, primarily because I lack talent.

I believe God relishes that glory – pure glory coming from a heart that is loving Him first and foremost.

However, I have preached with a secret hope of being complimented. I have written with a desire to be liked. I have used my talents in assorted ministries for God’s glory and gotten a little boost in my self-love. This self-love complicates the purity of my worship. It contaminates the motivation of my praise. As a result, the glory to God from those who were blessed by the use of my talents was probably purer than the direct glory from my conflicted motives.

Those with unexceptional talents should be encouraged when we consider the primary purpose of man – to glorify God and enjoy him forever. God has created us perfectly. He has given everyone some gifts, but He has not given those gifts equally. He was not random. He was not arbitrary.

Consider for a moment that God has not given you talent so that you can better serve your God-given purpose, which is to glorify Him with your untalented body.

The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. (1 Timothy 1:5)

Let us use our under-talented bodies to glorify God; motivated by a love for Him from a pure heart, good conscience and a sincere faith. We are the one who can do that the best – we were created for it.

PRAYER: Father, thank you for the gifts that you have given me. Help me to use them to glorify you. Forgive me for using the talents that you have given me to seek the praise of men. Teach me how to use the talents that I have with a pure heart, good conscience and a sincere faith. Lord, thank you for the gifts that I don’t have. Thank you for depriving me of world class talent. Thank you for obscurity. Thank you for anonymity. Thank you for creating me just as I am so that I can better fulfill my purpose with all that I am, in purity and sincerity.  I pray this in the precious name of your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen

 

ASCENDING THE IMPOSSIBLE – May 1

“Jesus answered him, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the Kingdom of God.’” John 3:3

I just returned from another business trip to Mount Rainer National Park. Unlike my last trip (Knowing Greatness without Sight), the skies were clear and I was able to behold clearly the mountain. I gazed upon the heights of the mountains with a yearning eye.

The clarity of the skies promised an unimpeded view to anyone at the pinnacle of such a mountain. I so wanted to see that view. Yet, I knew that neither I nor anyone else would behold the view on that day. The snow is still too deep and the trails too treacherous to ascend Mount Rainer. Therefore, the prize of the glorious view from its pinnacle was not beheld by any mortal man on that clear day.

There is another site that is even more unattainable than the wintry panorama of Mount Rainer’s peak. No man can ascend to God’s presence and behold the Kingdom of God. For this site, Jesus told us that we must be born again.

How does one ascend to a peak that has no trail?
How does one scale a summit whose base cannot be found?
How does the flesh accomplish that which is born of the Spirit?

It is impossible. It is impossible for man to find access or even to see the Kingdom of God from the pinnacle of any human accomplishment. No one can ascend to heaven.

No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. (John 4:13-15)

This is the glorious good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The ascent to heaven, access to the Kingdom of God, is now possible – not by any work of the flesh but by the work of the Spirit.

We can stand at the pinnacle of the mountain of God and see His Kingdom. We can enter into His rest and eternal life. It is an ascent that we cannot make but was accomplished for us. The prize of this summit is a gift given to all how believe in the Son of Man, Jesus Christ.

Praise be to God who has made the impossible possible. May we marvel at the miraculous heavenly things of God Almighty!

PRAYER: Father, thank you for making a way to your holy presence. Thank you for making the ascent to your Kingdom for us.  Thank you for the work the Spirit that I might be born of the Spirit.  Forgive me for my lack of marvel at the gift of eternal life that you have given me.  You are great and greatly to be praised.  I pray this in the precious name of your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen

APPRECIATING THE PHENOMIAL – April 16

“As he was drawing near – already on the way down the Mount of Olives – the whole multitude of his disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen, saying, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”” Luke 19:37-38

 “Mediocrity knows nothing higher than itself,
but talent instantly recognizes genius.” 
~ Arthur Conan Doyle

It is easy to become a critic in our culture of entertainment. Genius is streamed in from the far reaches of the world as critics assume their roles upon couches and in recliners before countless televisions.

We lament our team’s quarterback, who struggles to identify a safety blitz.
We cringe at the singer whose high note is a bit flat.
We cannot comprehend how a referee can miss a call.
We smirk at the actor who portrays the same character in every role.
We bemoan the sophomore slump which fails to live up to the standards of an artist’s debut.
We expect world class performances but often excellence is lost upon those being entertained.

Most of us live in the world of the mediocre. That fact is reflected by our application of the words genius and exceptional upon those who are typically neither. We apply those terms to acquaintances of our daily lives who are exceptional, in comparison to ourselves, but rarely are they world class. Our direct experience is rarely much higher than ourselves.

It is when we move from entertainment to participation that we begin to truly recognize and appreciate the truly phenomenal.

I was perusing the results of the 2013 Ironman 70.3 World Championship. Sebastian Kienle won the event with 1:19/100 meter swim pace, 25.81 mph bike pace, and a 5:42/mile run pace. Since I am participating in triathlons, I can compare my best to those times. I recognize just how crazy fast those times actually are. I can better appreciate Sebastian Kienle’s excellence unlike someone who is not swimming, bicycling, or running.

I wonder if this is the principle at play in many churches. Many professing Christians live their lives absent the awe for the excellence of Jesus Christ. Their faith resides in the tidy compartment of their balanced and structured existence but absent any real passion. In many ways, they have assumed the role of critic in a church culture of entertainment. Week in and week out, many churches press for little more than Sunday morning attendance. It should not be surprising that those who come for entertainment fail to appreciate the majesty of our God who redeems.

A dynamic faith requires participation. We cannot sit complacently in our pews of mediocrity knowing nothing higher than our experience and those around us.

When we are striving for obedience, the sinless nature of Christ becomes astounding.

When we try to love our neighbors, God loving a world by sacrificing His Son for us while we were yet sinners is beyond comprehension.

When we suffer, Christ’s acceptance of the cross when a legion of angels awaited His call is a marvel.

When we struggle to forgive, the total forgiveness and condemnation of our sin will boggle the mind.

When we are walking in the Spirit, the gifts of the fruit of the Spirit attest to the phenomenal goodness of a God who cares for His own.

Those who accompanied Jesus during the triumphant entry were eye-witnesses to the excellence of Christ. Based on their experience, they acknowledged the majesty of the King of kings. We can have that same experience but we have to have a faith that is participating with the Spirit. It is when we participate with the Spirit by setting our eyes on the things of the Spirit that we will begin to truly recognize and appreciate the phenomenal nature of the Son of God. It is then that the dynamic faith of a child of God will join in the praise, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”

There is no better time to renew our awe in the majesty of the Cross than during Easter. May we join with our brothers and sisters of old in praise of our Savior, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”

PRAYER: Father, forgive me of my often lackadaisical attitude to your majesty. Forgive me for not appreciating what you have done for me. Lord, renew a spirit of awe within my soul. Open my eyes to the phenomenal nature of your Son. Help my grateful heart put words to praise. Blessed is the King who has come in the name of the Lord and with return. Come quickly, my Lord; Come and establish here on earth the peace that is in heaven and glory that is in the highest. I pray this in the precious name of your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen

 

“MY DAD – An Update / Answered Prayers” – Feb 14

“And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God.  Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea, and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him.  Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.”  Mark 11:22-24

I am so appreciative of all the prayers that you have lifted up for my Dad.  I want to give you an update and some more information.

My Mom and Dad are in their seventies and rarely sleep through an entire night.  Sunday night / Monday morning was no exception.  They had both woke around 3 AM on Monday morning.  Since they were both awake, my Mom made some eggs for breakfast and they watched some television.  My Mom went back to bed after a short while, and my Dad fell asleep in his recliner.

At around 7 AM, my Mom awoke to sounds of my Dad coughing.  She discovered that he was not coughing but throwing up.  My Dad was too weak to get up so an ambulance was called.  His blood pressure began to drop on the way to the hospital.

My Dad in the intensive care unit experiencing septic shock.

They discovered that my Dad had a massive infection.  Testing revealed  his gallbladder  had turned gangrenous.  He had a white blood cell count of over 60,000; normal is approximately 10,000.  He was placed into the hospital’s intensive care unit and he needed intensive care.  My Dad took a turn for the worse Monday night / Tuesday morning.  He had gone into septic shock through the night.  They had to put him on life support and were using four blood pressure medicines to sustain his blood pressure.  We were told that they were at the limit of what they could do to maintain his blood pressure.  The doctor told us that he was experiencing organ failure of the kidneys and heart.  They were at the limits of what they could do for my Dad.

I believe it was at this time, after the doctors and nurses had done all that they could do, that the Creator of the Universe said, “Now, it is my turn”.  It was at this point that I posted PRAYER REQUEST – My Dad and my family lit up Facebook and prayer-chains as best we could.

From that dark point of preparing to lose our beloved Dad and Grandpa, my Dad began his miraculous recovery.  Through the course of two days, they were able to get my Dad down to only one blood pressure medicine and all of his vital signs were getting strong.  However, he was still on a ventilator and dialysis, but by Thursday morning his breathing was getting stronger and he was able to demonstrate that he could sustain his oxygen levels and volumes without the machine, so they were able to take him off the ventilator and remove the breathing tube which had caused him so much distress.

His heart has started to recover so they have him off all of the blood pressure medicine.  He can sit up and talk; even laugh and smile a little.  His white blood cell count is down to ≈ 24K.  They still have not been able to operate to remove the gallbladder but his improving condition should enable them to operate sooner than we had hoped.  He is still on dialysis and we don’t know the extent of organ damage.

However, there is so much good news compared to just a few days ago.  We are overwhelmed with gratitude to our great God who has once again shown us that He answers prayers.  We have had several people from the medical profession tell us that what we have just experienced is truly miraculous.  Seventy-eight year old patients, weak from other medical issues, usually do not recover from cascading organ failure due to septic shock.

My Dad – off of life support!

I wanted to share the full story with you and thank you for all of your prayers in this critical time because many of you have played a part and all are witnesses to the miraculous hand of God Almighty.  We are so very thankful that it appears to be the Lord’s will for my Dad to be with us a while longer.  Please continue to pray for my Dad and his recovery.  We do not know the extent of damage to his organs.

I am earnestly praying that there is no damage and that he will fully recover.

However, it is never to early too praise God.  I ask that you will join me in praising our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ who hears and answers prayer.  I don’t know all of the reasons why He has chosen to restore my Dad to this point, but I do know that it is for His glory and He is so glorious.  Therefore, please join me in worshipping the King of kings, who hangs the stars in their place and calls forth the sun every morning, and yet still watched over His child, in the feebleness of old age, and heard the pleas of faith from His children.

He has answered our prayers.  All praise be to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Soli Deo Gloria.

Here is one of my Dad’s favorite songs.  Because He Lives

PRAYER: Lord, You are so good.  Thank you for answering our prayers.  Thank you for giving us more time with my Dad.  May you be glorified.  May you be highly praised for what you have done of the last several days.  I pray this in the precious name of your Son,  Jesus Christ.   Amen.

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“MISSING THE GLORIOUS” – Feb 8

“And they watched Jesus, to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him.”  Mark 3:2

I was traveling for three of the five workdays this last week.  If you have to be away from home, traveling to Yosemite National Park is not a bad place for a business meeting.    A main conversational topic of our first day of meetings was the drought that California is currently enduring.  While that is bad for California, my co-worker and I planned to take advantage of the clear skies to behold the grandeur of Yosemite on the morning before we had to travel home.  Unfortunately, the weather did not cooperate with our sight-seeing endeavors.

I awoke to the drizzle of rain cascading from rooftops.  The prayers for moisture had been answered by a storm front that moved in while I slept in my hotel room.  When I peered from my window, I could not see more than 100 feet beyond the pane of glass.  A thick fog has settled upon the valley.  It was not going to be a good day for sight-seeing.

My co-worker and I had nothing better to do, so we went into Yosemite Valley despite the poor visibility.  The rain turned into snow as we made our way into Valley.  It was beautiful to see trees coated with snow in the spirit of Christmas.  However, that was not what we had come to see.  A canopy of clouds obscured the colossal glory of El Capitan, Half Dome, Yosemite Falls and all the other sites that loom above tiny observers in the valley below.

We stood in one of the most beautiful places on earth but were blinded to the very manifestations that make Yosemite special.  We were blinded because we could not see above us.  I would never know what I was missing, if I had not been to Yosemite before.

I think  many people  stumble through life never knowing what they are missing.  We stand in the valley of our reality, believing only what our eyes can sense, oblivious to the grandeur that surrounds us.  We are continually surrounded by colossal glory but blinded to the miracles that make our lives truly special.

I know of no better example than the Pharisees who were trying to accuse Jesus.  Consider what Jesus was doing:

He was healing people.
He was instantaneously cleansing men of leprosy.
He was casting out demons.
He was causing paralytics to rise, pick up their beds, and walk home.
He was controlling storms.
He was making wine out of water.
He was creating food out of nothing.
He was restoring a withered hand.

Yet, the Pharisees were more concerned about when he was doing the miraculous rather than acknowledging what He was doing.  They refused to look up.  If they acknowledged what He was doing, then they would have to acknowledge who He was.  They were blinded by the hardness of their hearts.  They were experiencing the most spectacular events of all time but they were oblivious.  They were in the presence of the King of Kings, but could not recognize Him.

They were blinded by their religion. 

We all can become blinded by very good things.  The Pharisees valued the keeping of the law more than the fulfillment of the prophecies that were literally happening before their eyes. The law was a wonderful gift but it was never greater than the Giver.  We have been blessed by so many gifts from our heavenly Father.  All good things have the potential to lower our eyes into the valley when we should be looking up into the glorious.

May we never miss the colossal grandeur that continually surrounds us by being content with good things.  Let us always set our eyes on the Great.

PRAYER: Lord, Your Word is light to us. It is power and life.  It clears away all that blinds us.  Lord, let that light, that life, that power, that truth break upon the darkness of my heart.  Keep my eyes set upon you.  Whatever hardness of heart may be in me, let your light shine, may the light of the gospel, the glorious gospel, shine in and through my heart; softening me to see all that you are and the glorious that surrounds me   I pray this in the precious name of your Son,  Jesus Christ.   Amen.

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“ALL OF CREATION, SING WITH ME NOW” – Nov 3

“Shout for joy to God, all the earth; sing the glory of his name; give to him glorious praise!”  Psalm 66:1-2

The electron microscope creates images from a beam of electrons.  This microscope reveals details of the microscopic world by exposing it to magnification of up to 10 million times.  These details have never been knowable until Hans Busch developed the first electron microscope in 1926.

Humans have been oblivious to the precision of shark’s skin, the geometric beauty of a fly’s eye, the symmetry of a butterfly’s wing, the wonder of a human egg, for a majority of human history.

Images from Electron Microscope – Exploring the Beauty in 3D Images (30 Photos).

Mankind has spent our time on this planet in relative ignorance of the world swirling around them.  We spend our days consumed by the busyness of life as wonder after wonder occurs around and within us.  There is wonder in the fly that annoys my rest.  There is amazing complexity in the regular exchange of oxygen from air to blood that I take for granted with every breath.  The development of life does not get any less marvelous the closer one looks.

We are forced to conclude that the details in the microscopic world were not created for mankind.  There is a beauty in creation that man’s eye cannot see.  Why?  Why create beauty that man cannot know and appreciate?

God did not create the microscopic for man.
God did not create the outer limits of the universe for man.

If the majority of creation was not created for me, it is presumptuous to assume the miniscule faction of creation that I can perceive was created for me.

The microscopic was not created for me.
The cosmos were not created for me.
All the wonders of known science were not created for me.
Therefore, all that I can see and possess were not created for me.

If nothing in the vastness of this world was created for me, then even I, my being, was not created for me.  I am a part of a vast created world, most of which I am oblivious to.  If it was not created for me then why was it created?

We are told that the whole world declares His glory.

The glory of our Creator is declared as we stare at the vastness of the cosmos.
Yet, His glory does not end at the limit of our telescopes.

The glory of our Creator is declared in the minuscule.
Yet, His glory does not end at the limit of our bifocals or the electron microscope.

The glory of our Creator is declared in all that we see.
Yet, we have a voice in His glory through all that we know of His creation.

Mankind has a very special role in all of creation.  We have been created in the image of God.  God gave us a role unique in all of creation.  God created us so that we can know and glorify Him.  We can proclaim His glory through our knowledge of science, medicine, philosophy and all other areas of knowledge.

We were created for Him.  The entire world passively declares this reality.
Yet, we have been created to actively participate in the single declaration of the universe – to sing the glory of His name; give to Him glorious praise!

May we look to creation and join in our created purpose!

PRAYER: Lord, you are glorious and greatly to be praised.  I raise my voice with all of creation to sing of your mercy and grace, to sing of your mighty works, to sing of you abounding love, to sing of your glory.  I join my voice with all of creation to fill heaven with the sound of your praise; let your glory resound.  (All of Creation, Mercy Me_.  I pray this in the precious name of your Son,  Jesus Christ.   Amen.

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UNKNOWN MARVELS
GOD IS (NOT) MY BUDDY
GOD IS LORD
DENYING THE EVIDENCE

“GOD IS LORD” – Oct 20

“It is not for your sake that I will act, declares the Lord God; let that be known to you.  Be ashamed and confounded for your ways, O house of Israel.”  Ezekiel 36:32

I have been thinking about how we make our decisions and why those decisions can be so inconsistent with what we say that we believe.  I wrote about those thoughts in my last post, Acceptable Worship.  Inevitably, this line of thinking converges upon our perfect example, Jesus Christ.  I have inconsistent moral motivations because my beliefs are often unsound and my desires blemished.  However, Christ does not have those flaws.  He has perfect understanding of the world; therefore, unwavering belief.  He has a pure and sinless heart; therefore, perfect desires.

Christ had perfect moral motivation that resulted in action.  He came into this for a purpose.  He told us what that purpose was:

…I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.  I am the good shepherd.  The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.  (John 10:10-11)

For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me.  And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day.  For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.  (John 6:38-40)

VinothChandar / Foter / CC BY

Jesus demonstrated his perfect moral motivation through His actions here on earth.  His desire was to do the will of the Father.  The will of the Father was for Him to lay down His life and then take it up again, so that we might have eternal life.  That is what He did.

However, why would the Father send His son, in the likeness of sinful flesh, into this world, to suffer and die on a cross so that we might have eternal life?

There is a common theme asserted for the motivation behind the Father sending Jesus.  I have heard this assertion made in many songs, books, and sermons.  The declarations are made of God’s motivation as being His love for you and me.

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that however believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.  For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.  (John 3:16-17)

God showed His love for this world by sending His son but why does He love us?

Does God love me because He knows my value and sees my potential?
Does God love me to confirm my value?
Does God show His love to me because I am His prized possession?

I do believe that it is important for us to understand God’s motivation.  It is important because God has told us the reason for His actions on many occasions.  I have been reading through Ezekiel.  From chapter 34 through 36, God makes clear that His actions have a motivation.  The prophecies of condemnation and blessings all end with a similar stated purpose;

You will know that I am the Lord. 

Ezekiel prophesied regarding the new covenant that be established through Christ.

And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you.  And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.  And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules. (Ezekiel 36:26-27)

That is a very loving act of God.  It is particularly loving when you consider that God condemned other nations for the same actions that the nation of Israel had been doing.  So, did God condemn the other nations and blessed Israel because He loved Israel more?  We don’t need to speculate since He tells why He acted:

Thus says the Lord God: It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations to which you came.  And I will vindicate the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, and which you have profaned among them.  And the nations will know that I am the Lord, declares the Lord God, when through you I vindicate my holiness before their eyes. (Ezekiel 36:22-23 )

God did not promise to put a new heart into the people of Israel because they were inherently more valuable than the people of other nations.  He did not love them because they were His prized possession.

He set aside the nation of Israel because of His Great Name. 

God shows His incredible love not because of the value of the loved but due to the purpose of the loved.  To act based on the value of man is to deny what God knows to be true; that there is nothing more valuable than His name.  We are not God’s prized possession.  His name is His prized possession because there is nothing more prized then Him.

When we believe that redemptive history is based on God’s love for the value of man then we place man at the center of God’s purpose.  This has lead to so much confusion in our faith.

God did not create man to be glorified. 

God knows perfectly the value of creation.  There is nothing greater than the Father.

God created man to glorify Him.

God’s will, His desire, is that all of creation acknowledge what is of most value in the universe; to know that He is the Lord.  Therefore, God sent His son, Jesus Christ, in love, to save us and give us new hearts, so that all of mankind will know that He is the Lord when He vindicates His holiness before the world through us.

A Perfect Heart / Foter / CC BY-NC-SA

God saved us for a purpose much greater than our personal value.  God saved us for the highest purpose.  It is through the redeemed that God’s holiness is made known to the world.  There is no higher purpose for mankind.

To think that I was saved because of my inherent value actually diminishes God’s love.  The love shown to me is so great because it not only redeemed my soul but also my purpose.  By God’s love, I have been brought into the anthem of all creation; that God is Lord.  I could not be a part of vindicating the holiness of God before the nations if it were not for this great love shown to me.

When we recognize God’s motivation in showing us love, we will understand the purpose behind the holiness to which we have been called.  Christ’s perfect example calls us to live not according to our own will but the will of Him who has shown us so much love.

May we live so that the holiness of God can be seen in our lives as a billboard to the most valuable reality in the universe, that God is the Lord.

PRAYER: Lord, thank you for loving me to a degree that is beyond myself.  Thank you for showing me the greatest love that is possible.  Thank you for redeeming my soul and my purpose.  May your name be vindicated through me.  May the nations see your holiness through me.  Help me to live in holiness through the power of your Spirit for your glory.   I pray this in the precious name of your Son,  Jesus Christ.   Amen.

“SUCH LITTLE FAITH” – Sept. 18

“And above the expanse over their heads there was the likeness of a throne, in appearance like sapphire, and seated above the likeness of a throne was a likeness with a human appearance.  And upward from what had the appearance of his waist I saw as it were gleaming metal, like the appearance of fire enclosed all around.  And downward from what had the appearance of his waist I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and there was brightness around him.  Like the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud on the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness all around.  Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord.  And when I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard the voice of one speaking.”  Ezekiel 1:26-28

My knowledge of God is merely an introductory paragraph to depths beyond the Library of Congress’ content.
My experience of God is a single grain of salt in comparison to the seasoning of a gourmet meal.
My faith is a mole hill in the presence of Mount Everest.

I am astounded by the reality of Ezekiel’s theophany, as God appeared to him in a visionary form.  I am reminded that our eyes behold a world but there lies a reality beyond this veil.  God reigns to an extent that is beyond my knowledge, experience, and faith.

At this moment, His glory is radiating forth.
At this moment, His Spirit goes where He wills.
At this moment, the sound of the Almighty is thundering.
At this moment, His presence has the appearance of fire enclosed all around.

Yet,

At this moment, He knows my name.
At this moment, He knows the hairs on my head.
At this moment, He cares for me.
At this moment, He calls me friend.
At this moment, I am His child.
At this moment, He loves me.

I am a man of such little faith.  I have eyes but I do not see.  I have ears but I do not hear.  Muted is my existence in the presence of the divine.  My Lord is all around me but I walk mostly ignorant of His reality.

How can I worry about tomorrow, when I am His?

How can I live prayerlessly, when I am awash in His love?

How can I doubt, when He is directing my steps?

My God reigns and I am His.
My hope is in the reality of the Almighty.
My faith is in what I cannot see but I know to be.

Lord, help me in my unbelief.

PRAYER: Lord, you are great and greatly to be praised.  You are higher than I can understand.  You are deeper than I can comprehend.  Thank you for showing me grace and mercy.  Thank you for saving me.  Thank you for showing me your steadfast love when I have been unloving.  Thank you for being faithful when I have been faithless.  Thank you for keeping me when I wander.  Help me Lord to live in your reality.  Help to live beyond my eyes and ears.  Help me to live by faith.  I pray this in the precious name of your Son,  Jesus Christ.   Amen.