Meditating on Circumstances

Balaam's donkey turned aside, and for all he could see, she was working against him. But he didn't see the angel. He didn't know she was blessing him. And he struck her.

How often, o Lord, do I strike out against the circumstances You shape to bless me? Your word says "You will keep in perfect peace the mind that is dependent on You, for it is trusting in You." Help me, God to trust You in all circumstances. Help me to be a man of peace.

When money is scarce,

When things break,

When my children fight,

When my wife and I disagree,

When the church seems to turn aside,

When I lose things,

When I have too much to do,

When I don't get my way,

When I don't have much time,

When I don't like the plan,

When people are stupid,

When I am stupid,

When children are ignored,

When ministry is missed,

When I stumble and fall...

In all these and other circumstances, when action is required and when stillness is, may I act or be still in peace. For all things are in Your hand, and I am Yours.

Meditating on Circumcision

Warning: The following thoughts center around circumcision, which happens to involve a part of the body we don't normally talk about in connection to God. Nothing herein is profane, but if you do not wish to read about such earthy things, perhaps you should wait for the next post.

***

Seriously? Really, God? Circumcision? That's how you wanted to mark Your people as belonging to You by covenant? Not a braid like Anakin Skywalker? Not a brand of an Alpha and an Omega on the shoulder? Not an awl through the ear at the doorpost? None of these, but that? THERE?

Nothing could more clearly illustrate that Your ways are not like our ways. No way we would ever have picked that part of the body to represent Your covenant. And NO WAY we would ever have come up with cutting it!

So what were Your thoughts? Why did You decide on circumcision? Of course I'm sure I could never discover all You had in mind, but I have some thoughts. . .some maybe's.

* * *

Maybe. . .God was showing us how comprehensive His interest in our lives is. With this body part we do both the lowest and the highest of physical activities. We use it both for excretion and for love-making. In the former, we differ not a bit from the lowest of animals in the biological need to eliminate waste. In the latter, we rise above the animals and aspire toward the realms of heaven--ok, not always, but ideally. In union of husband and wife we express and explore the image of God, we delight in the intimacies of eros and agape intermingled, and we foreshadow the union of the Lord and His people at the end of time! God not only combined these two functions, the animalistic and the divine, in one organ--He then chose that organ to use for the mark of His covenant. Maybe in this He was showing us that He has concern for, and He claims rights to, every single aspect of our life, from the meanest to the most majestic.

Maybe. . .God was hinting at the internal nature of salvation. That part of the body is almost always hidden. It is seen by almost no one else. We do so many religious things out where people can see. Maybe God was giving us a clue that it is what others don't see that matters most.

Maybe. . .God was setting up another contrast between the old covenant and the new, another wall to be torn down. Obviously, only males could participate in this mark of the covenant. I wonder how that made females feel? Was it just another taken-for-granted thread in the fabric of their male-dominated society, or was it a specific cause for envy? Was there a connection between the man-mark, sexual union, and the hope of salvation through childbirth? At any rate, in the new covenant there is no male or female. All can be baptized. All are equal in Christ Jesus!

Maybe. . .God was helping with sexual temptation. Would the mark of the covenant have made any difference? The rabbis who wrote the Talmud seemed to think so. They said if a man was reminded by his circumcision of the covenant it would help him avoid sexual sin. Of course, the Talmud isn't always the best source for what God really intended. . .It does make me wonder, though, whether it aided in this way at all. I'm trying to come up with a NT parallel. To sin with the very thing that represented your agreement not to sin, would that be like using torn-out pages of the Bible to light up a doobie? Would it be like going skinny-dipping with your mistress in the baptistry?

* * *

If any of this is on the right track, it's a reminder to me of Your total 360-degree design of life, the universe, and everything (to quote Douglas Adams). Every detail of creation and relationship meshes with hundreds of others. The air we breathe surrounds us but doesn't keep us from moving, provides the oxygen we need but doesn't keep us from seeing (what if air weren't clear?), gives us a metaphor for Spirit and provides the lift for birds and helicopters, dissolves in the water for sea-life and holds water for rainfall. Every detail of the universe is like this, intertwined with countless others. . .and it shows how wonderfully wise You are. . .as does circumcision, I'm sure, if only we can rightly understand it.

Meditating on the Holiness of God

God is holy. This seems self-explanatory, but in my mind it becomes a little more difficult to understand as I analyze the meaning of the word holy.

The man-on-the-street definition of holy is probably most often expressed in terms of doing pious things. Someone is holy who reads their Bible a lot, and prays a lot, and goes to church a lot, etc. Or else “holy” is defined in terms of avoidance. Someone is holy who doesn’t drink or smoke or tell dirty jokes.

In opposition to these popular definitions, our pastoral staff has emphasized that holy means set apart. We ARE holy because we belong to God. The fact of our holy-ness is established by our Savior, not by us or our actions.

This concept is helpful, but I begin to see it is incomplete. I Peter 1:16 tells us it is written, “Be holy, because I am holy.” This makes no sense as a command if my above definition is comprehensive. Maybe, “You are holy,” but not “Be holy.”

Be holy implies that there is something we do that qualifies us a holy. I think it would be an over-simplification to return to the idea that holy equals pious. I think holy has two levels of meaning, when it comes to us who belong to God. There is the holy-as-set-apart aspect which I still believe is true. But there is also a living aspect. I would say it is living differently because of Who we belong to.

In the Old Testament, living differently included not planting two kings of crops in the same field, and not wearing blended fabrics. These prohibitions reinforced the idea of separation, that Israel was not to mix with those who worshiped other gods. Separation was part and parcel of holiness in the OT. God remained apart from humanity, and Israel remained apart from other nations.

But in the New Testament, the emphasis is no longer on separation. It is on incarnation. God meats us. :) God meets us in our flesh. Then we meet others in theirs. Holiness is not about pulling away from the muck and mire of sin, but about diving into it, being unchanged by it, and shining through it.

To say we are holy, then, is to say we belong to God, and He wants us to reflect Him to those who don't. We do this by being different, not just keeping a list of dos and don'ts. Our responsibility is to draw close to Him so we can better reflect Him.

Son in this sense we define ourselves as holy in relation to god--belonging to Him or reflecting Him. But how do we define God's holiness? I've usually defined it thus: He is OTHER. But I'm struggling with the limitations of this definition.

God isn't just Other--He's also like us, or rather we are like Him. We are made in His image. We are made to be like Him in many ways. But God does say His ways and thoughts are higher than ours. So He is both like us and different from us.

And a platypus is different from us. But that doesn't make it holy. Satan is different from us. He's certainly not holy.

I think when we describe God as holy, we are talking about the beautiful, wonderful ways in which He is different, higher, greater. He is wise, just, pure, good, loving, patient, the list goes on and on, each one a trait we may share, and aspire to improve in, but which God exhibits with perfection. Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty!

Meditating on the Goodness of God

God is good. Such a simple truth, yet it carries layers of meaning.

• God is good, therefore "good" is defined by God. When we say, "How can a good God allow [or cause] such a tragedy?" we are missing the larger picture. Our concept of goodness is limited by our own perspective, which is in some ways merely limited, but in other ways decidedly flawed. God is too wise to make decisions based on anything less than all the facts and all His purposes. The parallel that I often use is that of a parent providing for her two-year-old to be vaccinated. The child only knows the pain of the moment, but the parent comprehends the greater good accomplished. Love, wisdom and knowledge come together to say, "Even though you don't understand, this pain is for your good, and not for yours only; your vaccination is part of the greater process of protecting the population at large from this virus reaching critical mass among the people."

• God is good, as opposed to evil. Though ultimately the definitions of good and evil find their source in the character of God, we have a sense of good and evil whether we comprehend God or not. Probably every religion teaches it is more blessed to give than to receive, and do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Though some societies may differ, humanity in general recognizes murder, stealing, and lying as evil, and generosity, sacrifice, and loyalty as good. When we consider any well-agreed-upon standard of "good," we will find that God meets and exceeds all human standards. Though His actions can be mis-characterized (some describe the cross as cosmic child abuse), rightly comprehended God shows Himself to be loving, just, compassionate, thoughtful, sacrificial, truthful, and every other "good" we might choose to name.

• God is good, as in good to us. In creation God provided for our physical needs, our enjoyment of beauty, our joy of discovery, our ability to improve the conditions of life, etc. He gave us air, food, water, sunsets, music, sex, fire, electricity, eclipses, oil, iron, x-rays, space exploration and dreams! In our lives He shows us our sin and provides forgiveness. He exposes our isolation and grants us fellowship. He tests our limits and equips us for greatness. He probes our hearts' longings and establishes for us purpose and meaning in life. He has given me a wife who has been an instrument of immeasurable good in my life, beside the joy, love and passion she brings. He has given me four children, always a home, always enough food (more than enough, judging from the bathroom scale), books unnumbered, multiple computers and other gadgets, a ministry of historical significance, friends, opportunities--the list could go on forever! God is so good/God is so good/God is so good/He's so good to me!

• God is good at what He does. He knows what needs to be done, when, where, and how. In creation we see His vast wisdom and limitless power. In the story of redemption , we see the same traits, as He works through Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, Rahab, Ruth, Mary, and Joseph to provide a Savior. He takes a motley crew of apostles and changes the world. He preserves His truth and His church through persecution, corruption, decay and Dark Ages. He doeth all things well.

Meditating on God and His words

The most fundamental element of our faith is God. That He is and Who He is are the starting points for everything else. Out of His existence and personhood flow His actions. And out of these actions spring our existence and personhood.

We first recognize Him as the One who existed before we did. Second, as the One who authored our existence--the Creator. We are the creature, and we come from and find our meaning in our Creator-God. This relationship is simultaneously one of intimacy and one of separation. The act of creation is a moment of naked connectedness, but it necessarily includes a stepping-apart, else He has not created an other, but only tattooed Himself.

Thus we, blinking in the light see the great Other, our Creator, with space between us. And when the space is smaller, our joy is greater. But sin widens the gap and lessens our joy.

First, pre-existent. Second, Creator. Third, Lawgiver and Judge. Do not eat the fruit. Dying thou shalt die. Cursed is the ground for thy sake. The space between us and our Creator grows greater and greater. And as sin works against the blessings of creation, the splendid holiness of God becomes something to fear rather than dwell in. The fire of our birth threatens to consume us if we draw too near, and the separation is nearly complete.

God is holy, and we are not. God is righteous, and we are not. God is good, and we...are...not.

And yet...the love of the Creator for His creation is undiminished. What we do not know, what we cannot see, is that the widening gulf, the ever-increasing Otherness, is serving an unimaginably beautiful counter-purpose: to develop in the creature a yearning for the Creator to mirror the yearning the Creator has had for the creature since the moment they first parted.

* * *

Throughout this story God has spoken. We read words He spoke in the act of creation--"Let there be....Let us make..." Additionally, we may imagine He spoke to the mud He shaped as we speak to the belly-button of a pregnant mother: "I will be your Father, and I will care for you, and I will never stop loving you. . ." Then after breathing life into the earth-man, He spoke blessing: "Be fruitful and multiply!" And, of course, the words of Law and Judgment already recalled above. And as the gap widened, He kept speaking, sometimes a whisper, sometimes a shout so mighty an empire would crumble. And every word--every law, prophecy, song, proverb, judgment--was precious, and beautiful, and wonderful.

Not merely in themselves, but because they carried the heart of the One who spoke them. Through them He conveyed His yearning. And His promise. "This space will not forever come between us! There is no mountain too high, no ocean too vast, that my love will not find you! I am at work to cross the gap, and in due time I will have both won your heart and set it free! We will be together, you and I!"

And even through this time perhaps the image we are using of a gap, across which God sent His words, is only partially effective in representing reality. For in truth the Creator has found numerous times and ways to draw closer to His creatures. A fire in a bush speaks to Moses, and it is not just a word from God, but God Himself whom Moses faces. Prophets, kings, shepherds and soldiers have touched, or better, been touched by God. Yet each encounter carried with it the promise of one greater, one with the power to re-create creation, to reunite the Maker and the made in ways only hoped for by Moses, David, Daniel and the rest.

In the absence of immediate encounter, the Words were treasured, as a lover stores up letters from the front. This is what God is like! And this is what we are to be like! And here is His promise that we will be united someday!

But some grew confused. Some came to believe that these Words of promise do not portend our unity with our Creator, they ARE that unity. In them, we have what life is to be had! In them we meet our God in what way He is to be met! And the promise of life was exchanged for a life of death. The hope of the Sun was replaced with satisfaction in a fire in a cave. And the Words had to be controlled, reshaped, reinterpreted, hemmed in, lest the reality of the promise burst forth and engulf those who kept the words.

* * *

Then came the moment. The promises found fulfillment in a Child, a cross, a church. The beginning of the end, the end of the beginning, God crossed the gap and now dwells not just with, but WITHIN those who accept the Promises for what they are, and the Promiser for Who He is.

And so now, if the most fundamental element of our faith is God, the second must be God in us. Creation has begun to find fulfillment in its undoing and redoing. We are new creations in Christ, but this happens not in the stepping back, as at the first, but in coming together. The gap has been crossed! We are one!! His Spirit witnesses to our spirit!

So what of the Words? Are they now to be discarded? No! Though we have direct contact with our Creator, our faculties for comprehending Him are yet developing. Through His words he still teaches us about Him. Only now, as spirit unites with Spirit, we can grasp more fully the truths therein. And new Words have been given. "Now that you have seen what the Promise really meant, you are ready to learn more! And new Words are being given. "I want you to trust me with your wayward daughter." "This church needs to open a food bank." you "I forgive you for your abortion." But the words, as always, are not valuable most of all in themselves, but because they carry the heart of our God. It is in Him, not them, that we have life and the fulfillment of the promise.

But we don't act like it. We act like our primary contact with our Creator is still the words, when it is HIM! His Spirit within us! Yes, let us study the words. Yes let us teach new believers to study the words. But let us also learn and teach to commune with God directly, in prayer, fasting, meditation, and in other ways. Let ours not be a faith in Words, but in the Speaker of the Words.

Amen.

Purpose-related thoughts

I'm dropping the Warren and Prayer guide quotes for now. I have some thoughts to share with LeBron, and I want to share them here first.

Worship

I already raised some questions about how we evaluate our worship services. I am beginning to question the concept of a "worship service." I haven't thoroughly researched this yet, but it seems that the "services" that the early church held would be more accurately described as "discipleship and fellowship services." http://www.alanknox.net/2008/09/early-church-gatherings/ Not that there was no worship in those meetings, but I don't think they felt compelled to label everything as Worship through the reading of the Torah, Worship through the breaking of bread, etc. Worship was part of their gathering, I'm pretty sure, but it was also part of their life! They worshiped in prison, they rejoiced after being flogged by the religious leaders in Acts 5, but it doesn't seem (admittedly, after only a cursory search) that they had "worship services" in our contemporary sense.

I'm not trying to advocate cutting worship out of our gatherings, but it might be easier to realistically plan and evaluate our gatherings if we don't feel the need to label everything as worship. It might be easier to interrupt a sermon (one form of discipleship) to tend to rebellious teenagers (another form of discipleship) if we don't take the view that we are "interrupting" the WORSHIP OF THE LORD. If worship is viewed as every breath we take rather than what we do when we gather, how would it change our expectations?

Fellowship

I believe the current culture of church-hopping undermines fellowship in its deeper senses. Accountability and church discipline are destroyed when all a rebellious person has to do is go to the church down the street and start over. If people bounce from church to church every now and then when they get bored or ticked off, they will never develop deep relationships with fellow church members. I propose we found a movement: first on an associational level, but eventually globally. The pastors and churches that subscribe to the concept would agree not to take new members moving from other local churches that were part of the movement without first meeting with the prospective members and the soon-to-be-former pastors. The reasons for moving can be discussed honestly, and any issues that need to be dealt with (conflict, ego, bitterness) can be lovingly addressed, rather than simply ignored to fester. In many, if not most, cases the aim would be reconciliation with the original church family, though the second church could provide a nurturing environment for healing and growth if necessary on the path to such restoration.

Discipleship

I raised the idea of depending on the Spirit to lead new (or otherwise) converts in their own discipleship. I guess individual needs also need to be balanced with community needs, which is what happens in larger settings, like Sunday School and especially sermons. And I think our community of modern Christians needs to be taught some basic things like: all suffering is not to be avoided, being dishonored for the cause of Christ is worth rejoicing over, mission work is messy and costly, forget about what you "like" and give your life for the kingdom, etc. Of course, others could look at me and list things I need to be taught, I am sure...

Service

While I am intrigued by the idea that our pastor has raised, that we are to do good "especially to those of the household of faith" (Gal 6) my thoughts today have taken me in another direction. I have thought of the example of William Wilberforce, who actively and intentionally and for years pursued the end of the slave trade in England. By comparison, most of our "benevolence" is random and compulsory--we help when someone comes to us. (I do realize that some had to come to Wilberforce, but once he learned of the greater need he did not need individual slaves to come up to him over and over again.) I think of those who worked to end slavery in this country. I think of Mother Theresa serving in Calcutta. I think of Heidi Baker in Mozambique. I think of Paul going from city to city collecting for the poor in Jerusalem. I think we need a ministry mission (at least one). I think we need to look at our community, and perhaps beyond our community, and say to ourselves what is the greatest need that we can impact as ambassadors of the Kingdom, and then marshal the forces of heaven and earth in the effort (all under the direction of God, of course, not to imply directing Him)!

Evangelism

I believe if our church is to matter, we have got to get serious about penetrating the darkness around us with the light of the Gospel. I think we need to make a declaration. We are staking claim to our block for the Kingdom of Heaven. There are about 22 buildings on this block. Some are residences, some are businesses. Within a month, we will get to know every family and every business on this block. We will know them and something of their story. If they have needs, we will seek to aid them. If they are lost we will share Christ. If they are unchurched we will share EHBC. If they are active church members with us or with someone else, we will seek to bless them in their walk with the Lord. If we can patronize their business we will. We will know and be known by this block in the name of Jesus Christ. . .and then we'll take another. And another. Our reach in ministry and evangelism will grow and grow and as we bring in new people they will help us grow even more. And our talk about being a light in this community will mean something.

A second, parallel line of attack comes from the lives of our members. I still believe in the "Wellspring" concept, and the idea of Babystep Evangelism. Maybe it needs to be packaged differently. Maybe my ego got in the way when we tried to launch it before. Whatever the case, our reach shouldn't only spread from the location of our building, but also from the lives of our members.

40 Days of Prayer Days 10-21

Um, ok. I'm failing more than I'm succeeding at this 40-day-blog thing. Still, better to bat 400 than 200, so I'll try again tonight.

Day 10

Point to Ponder: The heart of worship is surrender.

Prayer guide note: PRAY for protection of the relationships in our church body. Pray that the enemy would not be able to deceive us and disrupt the unity of the body. Pray that you would not fall prey to the lies of the enemy about your brothers and sisters.

Day 11

Point to Ponder: God wants to be my best friend.

Prayer guide note: PRAY for the marriages in our church body. Pray for protection from the darts of the enemy. Pray for love and unity in the families of our church. Pray for the recent marriages in our congregation, and the special stresses of that first year.

Day 12

Point to Ponder: I'm as close to God as I choose to be.

Prayer guide note: Pray that we realize that our inheritance and hope as a church family is in God’s incomparable and incredible great power which is available to us Eph. 1:18-19

Day 13

Point to Ponder: God wants all of me.

Prayer guide note: Pray that our Church Staff becomes more and more surrendered and poured out to Christ, so they can have the mind of Christ. 1 Cor. 2:16

In an earlier blog I asked how God evaluates worship. I anticipated that I would have to engage in a huge word study to track this down. As it turns out, Rick Warren has done at least some of my work for me. His Day 13 is all about worship that pleases God. According to Warren...

God is pleased when our worship is accurate. (John 4:23) To "worship in truth" means to worship God as he is truly revealed in the Bible.

God is pleased when our worship is authentic. (1 Samuel 16:7b) When we worship, God looks past our words to see the attitude of our hearts.

God is pleased when our worship is thoughtful. (Matthew 6:7) If worship is mindless, it is meaningless.

God is pleased when our worship is practical. (Romans 12:1) In eternity, you will receive a new, improved, upgraded body, but while you're here on earth, God says, "Give me what you've got!"

I can agree with all of this, and while I don't know that it's exhaustive, it's enough to return to the question--if this is how God evaluates worship, then how can we begin to evaluate it in the same way instead of in our conventional categories of how-I-liked-the-sermon, how-I-liked-the-music, and how-I-liked-the-kids'-behavior?

40 Days of Prayer Day 06-09

Well, it doesn't take much to get me off track, but I feel it's a minor victory to get back in the swing of things...

Day 6

Purpose Driven Life Point to Ponder: This world is not my home.

EHBC Prayer Guide Note: PRAY for our community— that our church would be a LIGHT to this neighborhood.

Day 7

Purpose Driven Life Point to Ponder: It's all for Him.

EHBC Prayer Guide Note: PRAY asking God to break your heart for the things that break His. Pray for a spirit of conviction and repentance. Read Psalm 32 and thank God for His mercy and forgiveness.

Day 8

Purpose Driven Life Point to Ponder: I was planned for God's pleasure.

EHBC Prayer Guide Note: Read Psalm 29. Pray that God would sharpen your ears to be able to hear His voice clearly. Pray that each member of our church would be able to clearly discern His voice.

Day 9

Purpose Driven Life Point to Ponder: God smiles when I trust Him.

EHBC Prayer Guide Note: Pray for the Spirit of God to move on the hearts our loved ones who are lost so that they will be able to see how God is grieved and how their lives are being destroyed by sin.

Thoughts I have had over the past few days, hopefully some of them thoughts from God:

(1) I still have way too much of ME in my living, as evidenced by (among other things) how quickly I faded away from my prayer and Bible study and also how easily I take offence at perceived snubs. I must decrease, that He may increase!

(2) All my adult life I have read in Matthew 4:18-22 how these men followed Jesus after hearing Him speak one sentence, and where some have seen faith, I have seen insanity. I have been convinced that they must have heard or seen something of Him prior to this encounter, but I have never been able to support this position with anything other than my thoughts of what seemed reasonable. Last night, I was reading in Luke, and there it was! In chapters 4 and 5 we see that the first disciples did indeed have other interactions with Christ before He invited them to follow Him. It has been there all along and I never saw it. This serves as a reminder how critical it is to READ Scripture, to be thoroughly familiar with the Book from front to back!

(3) There are two ways (at least) to use a concordance. The first is to look for verses you already kindof know to confirm what you already kindof think. The second is to find out what you DON'T know about what the Bible says about a particular subject. This seems to me reflective of two ways to read the Bible. Do we read the Bible to feel good about what we already think? Or do we read the Bible to discover more about our Lord and to submit our lives to what we find?

(4) Is it true that worship is supposed to be for God, not for us? If no, why do we keep saying yes? If yes, why do we still view worship through the lens of our experience? >Our enjoyment of the songs. >Our appreciation of the sermon. >Our level of distraction. If our worship is really for God, then how does HE evaluate it? Is He pleased with "the service" if a certain percentage are "truly" worshiping? Does God only focus on the positive, ignoring those who aren't worshiping or is His Spirit "grieved" by them? (In Isaiah 63, the Spirit is grieved by rebellion, and in Ephesians 4 He is grieved by broken fellowship.) Does He only evaluate individuals, not congregations? In Revelation He addresses churches as groups and says "anyone who has an ear. . ." The overall church is warned concerning the actions of individuals. In Sardis, it's reversed, the overall is bad, but there are a few good people. I conclude God evaluates the body AND the individuals. So how does God evaluate worship? First, DOES God evaluate worship? I would say yes. Jesus said the Father wants "such people" (true worshipers) to worship Him in spirit and truth. God said in places in the Old Testament that worship was unacceptable to Him because of the hearts of the worshipers and/or their behavior outside of the worship environment. So how DOES God evaluate worship, and can we use His criteria to judge our own? I don't have answers to these questions yet, but I think this is the direction our discussion of worship needs to be moving. . .

40 Days of Prayer Day 05

Purpose Driven Life Point to Ponder: Life is a test and a trust.

EHBC Prayer Guide Note: Read PSALM 42 Pray for that deep calling to deep. Ask God to deepen your hunger for Him.

What I think I have heard from God today:

Hmmm...I've talked to God a lot today, but I don't have any particular thoughts that stand out as "a word from the Lord." I read through Galatians again, and I stopped and prayed over parts of it, regarding Calvinism, and the role of the Holy Spirit in salvation, and the plan of salvation in the Old Testament, and walking in the Spirit. Oh, I do remember one thing, kind of minor, that I think I heard from God...it was to give the Ouija board response only to the girl who asked the question, and let her share it if she wants to. I initially planned to make copies for the whole class, but I think God has warned me that would be unwise, maybe upset some parents. All of which reminds me, I had another student ask me a "religious" question I have yet to follow up on. I'll try to do that this weekend also.

40 Days of Prayer Day 04

Purpose Driven Life Point to Ponder: There is more to life than just here and now.

EHBC Prayer Guide Note: PRAY for Christ’s followers to walk in the fullness of God’s Spirit so that they can live in the likeness of Christ.

What I think I have heard from God today:

(1) "I am with you on this journey." Yesterday, I'm pondering "walking in the Spirit." Today, our prayer note is to pray that we will walk in the fullness of God's Spirit. How cool is that? I have another item like that, but I'm saving it for point number two. Did God manufacture these coincidences just for me? I don't think so. I think there are too many other people involved for any of it to be "just for me." But God is big enough to weave together ALL the coincidences He needs to speak to any number of us in any number of ways, and then He is near enough to highlight for me in my mind what I need to see "just for me." :)

(2) Yesterday I questioned whether I would have the opportunity to speak to my HT students about spiritual matters. Today one of them asks me what I think about using a Ouija board! Thank you, God! I still didn't have time to get into it in the class, but I'll type up and print a response that she and any other student can read. It's possible that God is allowing me this opportunity but that it doesn't mean I'm "supposed" to be there. Yet as this follows so closely on the heels of my questions yesterday...I conclude with moderate confidence that He is also saying that it is He, and not my own wisdom, that has placed me in this position.

(3) Time for a new go-to preacher. Whenever I have wanted to listen to preaching I have for some time now clicked over to Piper. He's Calvinist and I'm not, but this has never been a hindrance. My wife and my pastor are also both Calvinists! :) But today, listening to a sermon called "If You Abide in My Word, You Are Truly My Disciples," I reached a point (unrelated to Calvinism) where I'm ready to go somewhere else to feed. Piper seems to me to have a bias against unmediated encounters with God. What I mean is, he seems to think that the Bible is the chief (and by his own words, in some ways the ONLY) means by which God speaks to His people today. I don't know that I disagree with the above statement (minus the part in parenthesis), but the bias seems to go beyond that. In explaining the statement of Christ that forms the title of the sermon, Piper makes what I think is an unsupported jump from "My word," to "the Bible." I've seen this bias before. I would say that the Holy Spirit (Spirit of Christ) is our chief connection with God, and the Bible is secondary, but he seems to reverse that. I may not be explaining this well, and I don't want to do anything to tear him down--I love him, his passion for God and His glory, his style of preaching, his pastor's heart, and his vulnerability as a church leader. I will still listen to him in the future, I am sure. But right now, what I yearn for, learning how to hear God's Spirit testify to my spirit, I don't think Piper will teach me, and beyond that I think he will try to discourage me. So, no hard feelings, but I'll be shopping around for a new go-to preacher. Any recommendations?

40 Days of Prayer Day 03

Purpose Driven Life Point to Ponder: Living on purpose is the path to peace.

EHBC Prayer Guide Note: PRAY for God to revive and unite His people as one family before Him.

What I think I heard from God today:

(1) [via PDL] I have had competing drives. Guilt, resentment and anger, need for approval, and God's purposes have each been the driving force at different times in my forty-almost-two years. . .ok, even in the last year, maybe even in the last month! I have two great hopes for this PDL experience. The first is that I'll learn how to minimize the first three and maximize the fourth. The second is that I'll learn how to judge wisely my opportunities. This school thing, for instance. It definitely takes time away from my "church" job. . .but I'm not sure whether it takes time away from my "kingdom" mission. I mean, I can tell myself that in this position I'll be able to plant evangelistic seeds and nurture the faith of Christian students. . .but will I really? So far there's not been a whole lot of time for spiritual conversations. . .

(2) [via Galatians 5] The Christian walk is so NOT about rules to follow. Walking by the Spirit leads to the kind of life we would want to create with rules, but never could. Of course, what exactly "walking by the Spirit" entails is for me yet a rather nebulous issue. . .

Acts 9:31 So the church throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace, being built up and walking in the fear of the Lord and in the encouragement of the Holy Spirit, and it increased in numbers.

Romans 8:3-4 What the law could not do since it was limited^[3] by the flesh, God did. He condemned sin in the flesh by sending His own Son in flesh like ours under sin’s domain,^[4] and as a sin offering,^{[5] 4} in order that the law’s requirement would be accomplished in us who do not •walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

Galatians 5:16 I say then, • walk by the Spirit and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.

(3) This--this every day searching the Scriptures and/or listening to them taught, spider-senses on edge, waiting for that moment when God's voice comes through with life-changing significance, meditating on what He has said, and sharing it with others--this is supposed to be all my life, not just a 40-day project. Why do I so often settle for such a lesser life?

(4) [via the Narnia movie] Edmund was destined to be a king. It was his right, his proper place. And yet the witch lured him to darkness with promises that he could be king. She FALSELY offered him WHAT WAS ALREADY HIS!!! In order to fall to her temptation, he had to turn away from kingship in truth to a lie--with her, he never would be king! It seems to me that the promises of Satan are always thus. Whatever pleasures, freedoms and powers he offers (and which will be fleeting, hollow, or simply not really there at all), we who name the name of Christ ALREADY HAVE pleasures, freedoms and powers far superior AND WHICH WILL NEVER END!!! Yet so often we, like Edmund, do not know or fully comprehend what has been provided for us, and we sell our birthright for porridge.

40 Days of Prayer Day 02

Purpose Driven Life Point to Ponder: I am not an accident.

EHBC Prayer Guide Note: Read Acts 2:17-21 and pray according to these verses, that God will again pour out His Spirit upon our church and our community.

What I think I've heard from God today:

Nothing. :) At least not like yesterday. I've listened to more Piper today, and this morning was working on the introductory verses in Galatians. I prayed that while I'm at the school I'll be God's agent of grace and somehow have an impact on these teens. (There's not a whole lot of opportunity to interact with them...)

I heard some very interesting teaching on Daniel's 70th week on 3ABN (the 7th Day Adventist network) which held that Daniel's 70th week was about the Messiah, not the anti-Christ, and that it's already been fulfilled. The little bit I heard made a lot of sense, but I haven't followed up on it yet.

Piper mentioned a funeral in which the minister said at one point in a booming voice "[Whatever the name was] IS NOT DEAD!" That was awesome. He also said that at "death," our fellowship with God is not interrupted for a millisecond, but is in that instant perfected. Wow.

The prayer guide note above ties into something I was thinking...maybe Sunday? Maybe yesterday? It's that we can't share what we don't have. If I want to lead people to go deeper with God, I must go deeper with God. There is no substitute.

None.

No doctrine, outline, book study or even the "gift of teaching" can make up for a shallow walk with Christ. I love my Lord, and I have learned so much from Him, but I know how easily distracted I am, and I know I have never plumbed the depths of His Spirit. I'm asking Him to take me deeper.

I think He's reminding me that He's taught me (some) about the Spiritual Disciplines as a means for opening up to His depth-diving. I've been trying to renew my exploration (as in practice--I think my "research" phase is over) of meditation the last few days, so far in only brief moments, but I intend to continue by His grace. I want to claim the words of "I Refuse," by Josh Wilson, as my own. I just hope I don't look back at the end of these 40 days and have to eat them.

40 Days of Prayer Day 01

Purpose Driven Life Point to Ponder: It's not about me.

EHBC Prayer Guide Note: Pray that as you spend the next 40 days in prayer and seeking God, you will be able to clearly discern His voice. Record in this journal the things you read and hear. Pray for protection from the enemy. Seeking God on a deeper level makes you vulnerable to spiritual attack. BE AWARE. Cover yourself in prayer, and cover the other members of the church. Read PSALM 42 Pray for that deep calling to deep.

What I think I have heard from God today:

(1) Years after first reading "it's not about me," I still fail so often to live in the light of this wisdom. Many of my angers, frustrations, and impatient attitudes simply crumble before the force of this simple statement. For example, when my children are fighting, why does it make me so angry? What does it have to do with me? The moment is not about my "peace and quiet," but about the adults into which God is growing these children--and He has tasked me to participate in that developmental process! I do not have to meet their anger with my own, because "it's not about me."

(2) [via John Piper preaching] Pursuing the cause is not important; seeking purpose is. What this means in my context is this: I feel fairly certain that certain actions and attitudes have resulted in our church being disciplined, and that this is the cause for the financial problems we have been experiencing. Almost no one that I know of agrees with me on this. I want them to. I want them to hear me, agree with me, and then REPENT! I think God is telling me to let that go. Maybe (if I'm right) He'll show them these things some day, but for now the important thing is not how did we get here, but what does God want to do from here forward. This is hard for me to accept, because if sin got us here, then I think we need to recognize that and repent before we can move forward. But I think God is telling me that changing the minds of other people is not my department. What I need to focus on is primarily this: what will God do in ME through this situation, regardless of the cause. Even if sin got us here, God has an overruling purpose for me--and for the church. This is where I need to focus. [I'm still not sure I'm hearing this one right. I don't want it to be this way. I want to FIX what I think is wrong! I'll ask God to help me see clearly on this matter.]

(3) [incidental, triggered by a glance at a "new believer's workbook"] Discipleship should not be about managing the growth of another believer (new or otherwise), but about facilitating that growth. I have tried on occasion to design a discipleship strategy for our church, and I think they have always been about managing: making sure everyone went through this or that series of studies, learned this or that series of truths... I don't believe having some overall goals or strategies is necessarily a bad thing, but I think my tendency (and I doubt I'm alone in this) is to want to control the path the new believer walks. In considering the concept of facilitating rather than managing, I can envision that a newly baptized believer is paired with a mentor (coach, partner, whatever) who takes him to lunch and at some point asks the new believer: "What questions do you have?" Now, even if the mentor knows the answers to the questions, he doesn't answer them. Rather he leads his new friend to pray to God about the questions, and then (over time, perhaps) they work together to find the answers in Scripture. In this way, the mentor moves in the direction God seems to be moving in this new convert's heart, and he teaches not just the answer to a question, but how to find answers. The joy of discovery and the faithfulness of God to answer prayer are highlighted for the one new to the faith! I'm not saying this is an entire discipleship strategy. I'm just jotting these ideas down while they are fresh in my mind.

Confirmed by Three Witnesses...

In Experiencing God: Knowing and Doing the Will of God, Henry Blackaby said:

You need to know what God has on His agenda for your church, community, and nation at this time in history. Then you and your church can adjust your lives to God, so that He can move you into the mainstream of His activity before it is too late. Though God likely will not give you a detailed schedule, He will let you know one step at a time how you and your church need to respond to what He is doing.

I read that in the 1990s. That was the first time I remember encountering this concept. Sometime later, I read The Purpose Driven Church by Rick Warren. In it, he states, "Our job as church leaders, like experienced surfers, is to recognize a wave of God's Spirit and ride it. It is not our responsibility to make waves but to recognize how God is working in the world and join him in the endeavor."

Last month I began rereading a book I had just finished reading, The Contemplative Pastor, by Eugene Peterson. I came upon this statement on page 4: "The assumption of spirituality is that always God is doing something before I know it. So the task is not to get God to do something I think needs to be done, but to become aware of what God is doing so that I can respond to it and participate and take delight in it."

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