Sometimes it takes more faith just to be nice than to move a mountain. I think we've all had those moments. You've just been so hurt, cheated, betrayed, whatever, that everything inside you is screaming to respond in a way that's, well, not exactly Christlike. Your heart feels smashed into a thousand pieces and your brain is on code red alert, "Defend yourself! Defend yourself!" At this moment, being gracious or kind or loving seems like pure idiocy. How better to guarantee that you will simply be hurt or taken advantage of again?
Jesus asked, "When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?" (Luke 18:8) I wonder what kind of faith he will be looking for. Matt. 7:22 says, "Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?'" Clearly, these works outside of relationship will not impress Jesus. And my experience is that it doesn't impress the world much either.
Just like Jesus, the world is also looking to see if we really have that relationship. When they wonder if God is real and if the Gospel is true, they don't look for miracles as much as they look to see if Christians really look like Jesus. If God the Holy Spirit is real, then the evidence should be a transformed and "peculiar" people who know Jesus so well that they have enough faith to live according to his teaching. THAT is what takes faith.
Don't get me wrong. I love miracles and "power evangelism" as a way to demonstrate the goodness of God, but frankly, it doesn't take a lot of faith to pray for a miracle. Amazingly, I can watch God dissolve a tumor right under my fingertips, then go right back to my own self-centered thoughts. My battle for faith takes place in the deep places of my heart, not in public places of ministry. To live the "Sermon on the Mount" and not just brush it off as a hypothetical goal we should aim at but never expect to reach - now that takes faith! In the O.T. God said, "Come out from them and be a peculiar people..." I think Matthew 5-7 and elsewhere in the N.T. we are told exactly what "peculiar" is supposed to look like.
When I look at the Church and see it riddled with much of the same anger, bitterness, pride, greed and self-centeredness that characterizes the world, I have to wonder, "Will he find faith?" I can look in the mirror and ask the same question.
I want the kind of faith that pleases God. Faith to be peculiar. Faith to lay down my defenses and let him be my Shield. Faith to lay down my protective anger and let him be the One who holds my heart, safe in his love. Faith to lay down my rights and let him be my Reward.
Thank God, his work in me is a finished work, finished at the cross. But my heart's desire is that it will also be a manifest work in this life. He is faith-full. He will do it. Through all the bumps and bruises - all the crash-and-burns of this life - he is growing in us the faith to be peculiar.
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Monday, July 4, 2011
Finding God's Will in Friendship
The first thing I wanted to know after deciding to seriously be a Jesus-follower was, “How do I know God’s will for me?” I met people who didn’t choose their shoes for the day without consulting “God’s will” on the matter. Really? If God was going to choose my shoes, then surely I’d better consult him on my career path! But I had this nagging doubt. Was his will really that specific? Shoes? And if not, where did he draw the line? I can choose to eat organic (or not) but God decides on the pork issue? Just how much was up to me and how much did I need to search for divine direction or risk really missing the boat for my life? I noticed a lot of Christians walking around anxiously wondering if they were “out of God’s will” or not. Some concerns were relatively trivial – did I buy the right present for my friend variety. Some were huge – did I marry the wrong person? Yikes. That’s a lot of anxiety. Some people seemed to be stuck in years of torment, struggling with questions like, “Does God want me to quit my job and be a missionary to Kazambi?” They went to pastors, prophets and endless special meetings hoping for the finger of God to come down and burn into the carpet, “GO to Kazambi!” Because, of course, unless that happened, you just couldn’t be sure and you wanted to be sure when it comes to God’s will!
I’ve come to believe the answer to knowing God’s will lies in what we DO know about God’s character. And what we DO know about his ultimate desire for us, which is relationship. Intimate relationship, real relationship – the kind best friends share, the kind genuine lovers share. The whole Bible, beginning to end, is about this relationship – how it got ruined and the extreme lengths God has gone to, to restore it. It’s not about what God has done to acquire more servants and it’s not about what God has done to build a bigger army of soldiers. It’s about walking in the garden with him like Adam did. It’s about being called a “friend of God” like Abraham, speaking face to face like Moses did. This is God’s heart…and therein we find his will.
Your best friend doesn’t tell you what to wear in the morning. Your beloved doesn’t tell you what to order for dinner. They might have a suggestion, but they are not going to shun you in disgust and sever your relationship if you don’t take their advice. God’s like that. He’s nice. Not just powerful and big, but nice! He has great ideas. He knows best what will work for you and satisfy your soul, so it’s really good to embrace those ideas. He cares even about the details, but he doesn’t dictate the details of your life, waiting with a, “Oh you blew it this time,” paddle of rebuke if you miss it. But what about the really big stuff?
Does God have a purpose and destiny for your life? You bet. Are you called to something glorious? Yes! So…how do you find out what it is? Take a walk in the garden. Hang out with God. When you are with him, what makes you happy? When your heart is aligned with his, what makes you want to get up in the morning? He is not calling you to something that makes you want to pull the covers over your head. If Kazambi makes you cringe, that’s not what God wired you for. If, on the other hand, the thought of Kazambi puts fire in your bones, you probably just got hot-wired to go! When your heart is his, you can trust what grows there.
Consider the following clues:
“Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.” Ps. 37:4
He is the One who “satisfies your desires with good things.” Ps. 103:5
“If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given to you.” John 15:7
Whoa, Nelly! Did Jonah want to go to Ninevah? No! Did Moses want to go before Pharaoh? No! Hence the big fish and burning bush. I think God reserves those voice-of-God experiences for when he has to overcome the fact that our hearts are NOT aligned with His. Sometimes he just has to pull out the 2x4 to get through. But in the context of abiding, being connected in relationship, he speaks most often through the transformed heart.
A short time ago, I asked God, “Do you want me to go back to India?” I was amazed at what I heard in my spirit. His gentle response was, “Well, what do YOU want to do?”
Really? I get to choose? Of course, I realized. He’s my friend. He said, “Ask of me and I will make the nations your inheritance.” (Ps. 2:8) So I asked him. I love India. More specifically, I love the women of India. So I prayed, “Give me the women of India. Let that be my work, the place where I can give myself.” Within 24 hours, I received an email from a woman in India I had not heard from in a year. She was inviting me to India for a women’s conference! I told you. God’s nice! He loves to love us and he longs to satisfy the desires of our heart.
God does not have a vague, elusive will hidden in some holy fog, forcing you to spend anxious days, months, even years searching in frustration to find it. That would just be plain mean. And he’s not mean. That’s not his character. In the context of your friendship with God, what rings your bell? He is the one who made you, who wired you, who gave you a new heart that resonates with His. Look at what it is that you desire and embrace the fact that God created this desire for a reason! Yes, we are created for His glory and whatever we do, we do for his glory. But you were also wired for joy. Those are mutually compatible ideas. That was Jesus’ promise. Joy.
For me, joy comes from watching the Holy Spirit settle over a Nepali woman’s soul, flooding her with peace as she understands the Word for perhaps the first time. For you, it could be anything! Eric Liddell, Olympic champion runner, said it well, as quoted in Chariots of Fire. His sister thought his running career was frivolous. She thought he should give it up for more religious endeavors. Eric disagreed. He said, “When I run, I feel God’s pleasure.” You see, God wired him to run for his glory. Maybe you are wired to grow flowers for his glory, or fix cars for his glory, or raise children for his glory. You know what it is. It’s that thing that makes you say, “Thank you Abba Daddy that I GET to do this!” It’s not a chore; it’s not a duty. It’s a joy!
It’s not complicated or hard. The indwelling Holy Spirit has made you one with the Father and the Son. His heart beats in yours. Really. It might not seem like it a lot of the time, but it does. What makes your heart race and thrill and say “Yes!”? Bingo. You found what he wired you for. And he’s just waiting for you to ask him for more, to “enlarge the place of your tent” so to speak. He loves to love you by satisfying the God-given desires of your heart. That’s his will.
I’ve come to believe the answer to knowing God’s will lies in what we DO know about God’s character. And what we DO know about his ultimate desire for us, which is relationship. Intimate relationship, real relationship – the kind best friends share, the kind genuine lovers share. The whole Bible, beginning to end, is about this relationship – how it got ruined and the extreme lengths God has gone to, to restore it. It’s not about what God has done to acquire more servants and it’s not about what God has done to build a bigger army of soldiers. It’s about walking in the garden with him like Adam did. It’s about being called a “friend of God” like Abraham, speaking face to face like Moses did. This is God’s heart…and therein we find his will.
Your best friend doesn’t tell you what to wear in the morning. Your beloved doesn’t tell you what to order for dinner. They might have a suggestion, but they are not going to shun you in disgust and sever your relationship if you don’t take their advice. God’s like that. He’s nice. Not just powerful and big, but nice! He has great ideas. He knows best what will work for you and satisfy your soul, so it’s really good to embrace those ideas. He cares even about the details, but he doesn’t dictate the details of your life, waiting with a, “Oh you blew it this time,” paddle of rebuke if you miss it. But what about the really big stuff?
Does God have a purpose and destiny for your life? You bet. Are you called to something glorious? Yes! So…how do you find out what it is? Take a walk in the garden. Hang out with God. When you are with him, what makes you happy? When your heart is aligned with his, what makes you want to get up in the morning? He is not calling you to something that makes you want to pull the covers over your head. If Kazambi makes you cringe, that’s not what God wired you for. If, on the other hand, the thought of Kazambi puts fire in your bones, you probably just got hot-wired to go! When your heart is his, you can trust what grows there.
Consider the following clues:
“Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.” Ps. 37:4
He is the One who “satisfies your desires with good things.” Ps. 103:5
“If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given to you.” John 15:7
Whoa, Nelly! Did Jonah want to go to Ninevah? No! Did Moses want to go before Pharaoh? No! Hence the big fish and burning bush. I think God reserves those voice-of-God experiences for when he has to overcome the fact that our hearts are NOT aligned with His. Sometimes he just has to pull out the 2x4 to get through. But in the context of abiding, being connected in relationship, he speaks most often through the transformed heart.
A short time ago, I asked God, “Do you want me to go back to India?” I was amazed at what I heard in my spirit. His gentle response was, “Well, what do YOU want to do?”
Really? I get to choose? Of course, I realized. He’s my friend. He said, “Ask of me and I will make the nations your inheritance.” (Ps. 2:8) So I asked him. I love India. More specifically, I love the women of India. So I prayed, “Give me the women of India. Let that be my work, the place where I can give myself.” Within 24 hours, I received an email from a woman in India I had not heard from in a year. She was inviting me to India for a women’s conference! I told you. God’s nice! He loves to love us and he longs to satisfy the desires of our heart.
God does not have a vague, elusive will hidden in some holy fog, forcing you to spend anxious days, months, even years searching in frustration to find it. That would just be plain mean. And he’s not mean. That’s not his character. In the context of your friendship with God, what rings your bell? He is the one who made you, who wired you, who gave you a new heart that resonates with His. Look at what it is that you desire and embrace the fact that God created this desire for a reason! Yes, we are created for His glory and whatever we do, we do for his glory. But you were also wired for joy. Those are mutually compatible ideas. That was Jesus’ promise. Joy.
For me, joy comes from watching the Holy Spirit settle over a Nepali woman’s soul, flooding her with peace as she understands the Word for perhaps the first time. For you, it could be anything! Eric Liddell, Olympic champion runner, said it well, as quoted in Chariots of Fire. His sister thought his running career was frivolous. She thought he should give it up for more religious endeavors. Eric disagreed. He said, “When I run, I feel God’s pleasure.” You see, God wired him to run for his glory. Maybe you are wired to grow flowers for his glory, or fix cars for his glory, or raise children for his glory. You know what it is. It’s that thing that makes you say, “Thank you Abba Daddy that I GET to do this!” It’s not a chore; it’s not a duty. It’s a joy!
It’s not complicated or hard. The indwelling Holy Spirit has made you one with the Father and the Son. His heart beats in yours. Really. It might not seem like it a lot of the time, but it does. What makes your heart race and thrill and say “Yes!”? Bingo. You found what he wired you for. And he’s just waiting for you to ask him for more, to “enlarge the place of your tent” so to speak. He loves to love you by satisfying the God-given desires of your heart. That’s his will.
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
silver & gold
In case you haven't noticed, we live in a world of hurt. Over the last few years, almost every part of the globe has been hit with a natural, man-made, or political disaster. Before one area can recover, another is hit - like waves crashing down while the previous one is still receding. If you've ever almost drowned in a shore break, you know what that feels like! Resources to deal with these disasters are strained as compassionate people empty their pockets yet again. Earthquakes in China, Haiti...oil explosion in the gulf...floods in Tennessee, Thailand...Tsunami in Japan and the Pacific Rim...rioting in France, Egypt...a new war in Libya...nuclear meltdown? Religious persecution rages unchecked for millions. Drug addiction and human slave trafficking have reached an historic high. Crazy-level corruption causes terror and chaos all over Africa and South America. On top of all this, many predict the damage caused by the recent tsunami will pale in comparison to the catastrophic effects of the coming worldwide, economic "tsunami." Feeling a little anxiety yet?
How do YOU respond when human suffering reaches such proportions? Are you just too charity'd out to hear anymore? So you set your TIVO and throw another burger on the barby? Even the most caring and well-meaning can only take so much, right? But then you step outside and realize that pain is not just for the far away...it's right at your door. Marriages are crumbling, cancer crops up in the "nicest" people, the young husband next door will not be returning from Iraq, the Ph.d can't find a job and bills are piling up... So, how DO you respond?
This morning, as I read about yet another group of Christians in Pakistan being murdered in the street, I asked myself that question. So much suffering, yet what can I do? I have NOTHING to give! I am like someone with a squirt gun standing in the middle of a California forest fire. Suddenly the Holy Spirit brought to mind the story of Peter and John at the steps of the temple, faced with the impossible need of a crippled man. They could not give him what he thought he needed; their pockets were empty. Peter replied, "Silver and gold I do not have..." Ah, but he didn't stop there. He continued, "...but what I have, I give you."
OK, then! Silver and gold we may not have, but think about what we DO have! We have what is needed! I was sitting here thinking, "I have nothing." And Jesus agreed with me in a sense. "You're right. Apart from me, you have nothing. But you have me! And 'me' is what is needed. In me, you have your inheritance, the resources of heaven."
I have inherited so much more than silver and gold. What have I done with my inheritance? When is the last time I said to someone, "what I have, I give you" and prayed the Kingdom into their life? How have I stewarded this amazing inheritance? I think about the younger brother in Jesus' parable of the man with two sons. He was not a type of the unbeliever as many interpret the story. He was a "son!" But he took his inheritance and squandered it on selfish, short-sighted living. We have an anointing, an inheritance that we are meant to steward wisely. "Freely you have received; freely give," Jesus said regarding this inheritance. Am I giving away the presence and power of Jesus? Or am I just enjoying the blessings of my own little world?
We live in a world of hurt. But we have a whole lot more than a squirt gun. We have the thundering rain of heaven! And it showers comfort on the deepest sorrows and healing on the greatest pain. Every Christian out there needs to be rising up, dancing in the rain and telling the world, "Silver and gold I may not have, but what I DO have, I freely give you." Let it rain!
How do YOU respond when human suffering reaches such proportions? Are you just too charity'd out to hear anymore? So you set your TIVO and throw another burger on the barby? Even the most caring and well-meaning can only take so much, right? But then you step outside and realize that pain is not just for the far away...it's right at your door. Marriages are crumbling, cancer crops up in the "nicest" people, the young husband next door will not be returning from Iraq, the Ph.d can't find a job and bills are piling up... So, how DO you respond?
This morning, as I read about yet another group of Christians in Pakistan being murdered in the street, I asked myself that question. So much suffering, yet what can I do? I have NOTHING to give! I am like someone with a squirt gun standing in the middle of a California forest fire. Suddenly the Holy Spirit brought to mind the story of Peter and John at the steps of the temple, faced with the impossible need of a crippled man. They could not give him what he thought he needed; their pockets were empty. Peter replied, "Silver and gold I do not have..." Ah, but he didn't stop there. He continued, "...but what I have, I give you."
OK, then! Silver and gold we may not have, but think about what we DO have! We have what is needed! I was sitting here thinking, "I have nothing." And Jesus agreed with me in a sense. "You're right. Apart from me, you have nothing. But you have me! And 'me' is what is needed. In me, you have your inheritance, the resources of heaven."
I have inherited so much more than silver and gold. What have I done with my inheritance? When is the last time I said to someone, "what I have, I give you" and prayed the Kingdom into their life? How have I stewarded this amazing inheritance? I think about the younger brother in Jesus' parable of the man with two sons. He was not a type of the unbeliever as many interpret the story. He was a "son!" But he took his inheritance and squandered it on selfish, short-sighted living. We have an anointing, an inheritance that we are meant to steward wisely. "Freely you have received; freely give," Jesus said regarding this inheritance. Am I giving away the presence and power of Jesus? Or am I just enjoying the blessings of my own little world?
We live in a world of hurt. But we have a whole lot more than a squirt gun. We have the thundering rain of heaven! And it showers comfort on the deepest sorrows and healing on the greatest pain. Every Christian out there needs to be rising up, dancing in the rain and telling the world, "Silver and gold I may not have, but what I DO have, I freely give you." Let it rain!
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