La Bonne Vie

10.13.11

Nehemiah 9.3 3 They stood where they were and read from the Book of the Law of the LORD their God for a quarter of the day, and spent another quarter in confession and in worshiping the LORD their God. NIV

Sometimes it is the little things that get my attention… like standing for 12 hours at a prayer and worship service. Well, Paul it was not a quarter of a day in the sense of a 24 hour day, it was a quarter in the sense of daylight hours. Oh, okay then, it was for six hours: six hours of standing worshiping God and confessing one’s sins. The only time I ever spent that much time in church was when I worked for one and put in my time in the office and then attended the evening service.

Now, I admit the above was not the norm: they didn’t do that all the time. But I have read and heard accounts of where people today do such as what we read in Nehemiah 9 on a fairly regular basis. The question is: what is the level of devotion? And what is the level of pain in life? Why does it always have to include pain? Why does dependence on God mostly seem to want to spring from difficult circumstances?

Pain is a motivator; pain causes us to do something about it. Nehemiah and his people recognized what they had been promised and what they had thrown away and realized how foolish that was. They were once a free and blessed people but now they were serfs for a foreign king. They once ruled in power and subdued kingdoms and armies but now they were few in number and kings and armies subdued them. They did the math and saw that they had thrown away all that was precious to them. It was painful to think about what they had been and what they were now.

The higher the level of pain, the more we want to do about it. If it gets bad enough we’ll stand in church for a few hours and confess our sins and worship God. If it gets bad enough, we’ll read our Bibles; we’ll serve, we’ll even pray. In Kingdom terms, The Good Life may be viewed by most ‘normal’ people as a bad life because of the pain and difficulties involved. But in the right perspective, real and lasting good can come out of a ‘bad’ life if we accept it for what it is and are motivated to seek God for relief. That might cause some to stand for six, eight, or twelve hours to worship and repent in front of God. Life is all about what we do with it.

Sometimes it’s the little things that stand out to me and cause me to wonder about my own devotion… and my level of life-pain. And what that pain is causing me to do. Am I rebelling against the pain or am I standing before God in worship and repentance? Life is all about what I do with it and about it.

Today, I am motivated to pray and seek God for good to come out of my pain: good in whatever form He chooses. I have learned this in life: I don’t always get to prescribe as good what I call good. Good always comes from God in whatever package He has decided to deliver it. My job is to stand (literally or figuratively) and seek Him, and trust that from Him all good will come…

O God Help Me!

10.09.11

Nehemiah 2.4-5 4 The king said to me, “What is it you want?” Then I prayed to the God of heaven, 5 and I answered the king, “If it pleases the king and if your servant has found favor in his sight, let him send me to the city in Judah where my ancestors are buried so that I can rebuild it.” NIV

I love this little passage in Nehemiah. I love its transparency. I especially love the eight words between the king’s question to Nehemiah and Nehemiah’s answer to the king: “Then I prayed to the God of heaven…” Although I can’t be sure, I really believe Nehemiah’s prayer was something like, “O, God! Here goes! Help me!”

Many times prayer is thought to be like giving a sales pitch to a prospective client who (we assume) has more than enough wherewithal to buy but really needs to be convinced to give it up. So, because we think that way, we think we really need to pour it on thick in order to make our case. God doesn’t need to be convinced – He already knows what we need. God doesn’t need our business plan; He already knows what we’re up to. Sometimes it’s just a simple, quick prayer, O Lord, help me!

That’s not to say we can’t or shouldn’t lay our plans out before God and ask Him for His guidance, blessing, and direction – by all means we should do that; we should ask Him for His wisdom and insight. And we should pray with the understanding that God is present with us and deserves to be a Voice in whatever it is we’re doing or planning to do. We’ll always need God’s help in everything we do. But sometimes it boils down to simply asking, O Lord, help me.

Nehemiah was trying to do the unthinkable: he was asking a king for a leave of absence. I think the king favored Nehemiah and loved being with him. I think Nehemiah loved being with the king. But Nehemiah loved his God and his homeland more. I think Nehemiah thought about going home often. He knew things were happening and wanted to be a part of them; God put those thoughts there. But he had to convince his employer and he knew he’d need God’s help to get that done. I just don’t think he thought it would happen so quickly. But, sometimes, that is how God works.

I know it’s hard for me to think this way, but God uses everything that happens in my life to accomplish His will for me. God uses my victories and challenges to get me to mature in Him and depend on Him more. God desires that I give up every minute fiber of self-sufficiency and lean wholly and solely upon Him for everything in my life. God desires that I be proficient in the bullet-prayers: O Lord, Help me! And God uses all of my circumstances to bring this about in my life. God desires that I realize that my life is His life; and His life is my life. My goal in life is not to learn to depend on God less but to depend on Him more!

That’s how Jesus prayed in the garden: He knew His life was serving a Greater life and He would find every shred of sufficiency in God Alone apart from Himself. That’s what God desires from me and thee. Our lives are not our own and we are on assignment from God to live the life He’s chosen for us and not some version of the American Dream.

So, tomorrow as I head out to work, God, help me. Tomorrow as I drive to my destinations and conversations with people, God, help me. And as I live my life, may my prayer always be: yet not my will, but yours be done. (Luke 22.42)

Safe and Sane

10.08.11

Psalm 131.2 But I have calmed and quieted myself, I am like a weaned child with its mother;    like a weaned child I am content. NIV

What do we do when waves of worry begin to mount and roll over us? How do we respond when our mind goes off on a tangent and the winds of worry begin to form the storm clouds of fear? It should be then that we find ourselves engaged to fight through them and call out to the Lord.

What is the difference between a weaned child and a helpless infant? Well, age for one; maturity for another; and a focus other than only hunger for another. A weaned child has moved past the stage of continually crying out: FEED ME NOW! A weaned child is more self-sufficient than an infant and is able, at least in some small measure, to exercise some self-control knowing that when hunger assails, mommy is there to help him deal with it.

The psalmist, David, obviously observed small children and saw the differences in the way they acted and reacted. He had children of his own and took note of how they acted. When he wrote this psalm may have been going through a time of difficulty and these thoughts about children came into his mind. It seems like David always had something difficult going on and he saw the value in giving it all to God much like a weaned child gives it over to mom. Weaned children are not without their whininess, but they do cooperate with mom on a level that infants can’t.

It takes work to mature and to learn to calm and quiet oneself like a weaned child with its mother. It takes work to learn to be content. For some it comes quicker than for others but the important thing is that we all learn it at some point. Learned contentment is not easily unseated by difficulties; it slowly becomes more resolved than ever that in the midst of trying circumstances, God, Alone, will come to our rescue – either through additional training or through relief and proper understanding. God desires that we learn how to become like weaned children: calm, quiet and content; steadfastly trusting in Him for our every need.

The NIV uses the word wonderful to describe David’s state of mind as he sang this psalm. Wonderful here isn’t the same as wonderful in modern language. Wonderful in this psalm meant, something too big to think about. Some things are just beyond our ability to figure out and so the comfort of David’s words here is let’s just leave the outcome to God and trust Him in these things that are too big for us to comprehend. The truth is they aren’t too big for God.

And right here, as a child of the infinite and living God, is where I want to land and remain: God, some things are just too big for me to handle, but they aren’t for You and I am going to trust You for the outcome – I’m going to quiet and calm my soul like a weaned child with its mother; not worrying about the next meal, or my next move, but trusting that You have the bases already covered. Father, it’s my only safe and sane option…

Bold and Visible

10.07.11

 8.22-23 22 I was ashamed to ask the king for soldiers and horsemen to protect us from enemies on the road, because we had told the king, “The gracious hand of our God is on everyone who looks to him, but his great anger is against all who forsake him.” 23 So we fasted and petitioned our God about this, and he answered our prayer. NIV

I so appreciate the honesty of the Scripture and the journey of Ezra to Jerusalem is just one of the examples of that honesty. Ezra boasted of the Lord to king Artaxerxes. He told the king that they would be safe under God’s mighty hand and there would be no need for the protection of soldiers for the journey. I’m sure the king raised an eyebrow but Ezra had spoken so confidently that he was convinced.

But for Ezra to appear to have second thoughts shows me that he was honest. He said he was ashamed to ask because he knew he’d already boasted to the king. Maybe he second thought that a soldier or two might not be such a bad idea. But he was hemmed in by his words and knew that if he came back to the king and made such a request that the king might think: So now where is Ezra’s God?

Sometimes we just have to take the step and trust God that He is already there. Sometimes we have to take a stand and know that God is already standing with us. God knows what is at stake. God knew His people would have the support of the Median/Persian kings for a season. But God doesn’t need the support of the kings; He is quite capable of being who He is without man’s approval. And His love for His people is far greater than any of their boasts.

Here’s what I think it is: God loves to hear our voices; He loves to hear our prayers and petitions. God loves to be included in the conversation because God loves. And God loves to come through on behalf of His children. The journey to Jerusalem without “police protection” might’ve been foolhardy to some but God loves to show the naysayer he’s missing out on the greatest pleasures in life. Ezra was truly honest about his fears and God loves it when we’re honest. God is faithful because He cannot deny Himself. And God is faithful to those who come in faith and ask Him to meet their needs trusting, and perhaps boasting, that He will.

If Ezra’s faith was strengthened as the caliber of godly man he was, just think of the people around Ezra who were strengthened by his faith and the providence of God! It was a total win/win. There will always be those who doubt but there also will always be those who come up believing. And that is what life is all about: believing in God to come through even when we’ve put ourselves on the line, and our successes will only come by His hand. After all, what is faith if it isn’t, at some point, bold and visible to others? The king saw Ezra’s faith and so did the people around him. If Ezra did have second thoughts, he wisely petitioned God to be God and come through on their behalf – after all Lord, aren’t You sending us to Jerusalem?

To me the bottom line is what Ezra’s actions did to others and for others, as a result. I want my faith to be like his…

What Matters Most

10.04.11

Luke 17.32 32 Remember Lot’s wife! NIV

If there was ever a validation of the Old Testament this is it: Jesus told them to remember Lot’s wife. Lot’s wife had a problem: she didn’t see anything wrong with Sodom; she loved her culture and her place in her culture. She had everything she wanted. But her problem seemed to be she had no place in her life for God; her culture gave her everything she felt she needed.

Culture can be a funny thing: it can be a broad brush-stroke encompassing all or the majority in life or it can be simply customs found in indigenous people. Culture is what one makes it. A missionary couple I know went to serve God in Eastern Europe with their three boys. After a couple years they came home, not because they failed, but because of their boy’s exposure to the culture of the country where they were: that particular culture had no qualms at all about pornography. The missionaries knew the culture was very bad for their boys.

Lot’s wife seemed to be oblivious to the culture of Sodom, she seemed to like it. And on the day the city was destroyed she was too. But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt. (Genesis 19.26 NIV) Lot’s wife couldn’t take her eyes, and her heart, off of the culture.

In Ezekiel 16 is described what the culture of Sodom really was. “‘Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy. They were haughty and did detestable things before me. Therefore I did away with them as you have seen. (Ezekiel 16.49-50 NIV) That’s what Lot’s wife was attracted to. So not only did the Lord Jesus validate the Old Testament He warned His followers: Remember Lot’s wife! She was caught up in her culture and locked out of the Kingdom when it really mattered most.

I must be careful that I keep a close eye on how attached I may be to my culture. I must be careful that my attraction to the things around me, don’t occlude my perspective of what matters most. The pull of culture is sneaky; my preferences play a huge part in how I respond to it. Jesus warns me: Remember Lot’s wife! She perished because all she could see was the here and now.

I get caught up in life – my comings and goings, my job, my leisure. I can’t afford to allow these things to take precedence over the Kingdom of God. I can’t allow these things to be the focus of my prayer life. I can’t let true life pass me by because present life was too big; too all-consuming.

Today, I am going off to another town to work. I can’t let my work there make me forget about God and His purposes in that town. I must give thought to the truth that Lot’s wife missed the boat because she was in love with the pier.

A Proven People

Psalm 147. 11 11 …the LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love. NIV

Yesterday, we considered the partnership of God and what it is in our lives that we might need Him to remove. Today, let’s consider the delight of the Lord. The Lord doesn’t delight in power, He delights in people. His entire creation – the vastness of His universe – is for His pleasure, but He delights in people. And He really delights in those who fear Him and put their hope in Him.

Fear of the Lord is not terror but respect. Respect for God is honoring Him by believing that what He says He’ll do, He does. Respect for God is shown by obedience to what He says, the rejection of craven fear, and living as He lives: full of love for others. Respect for God is proven through patience endurance and persistent perseverance. And God delights in those who do all this. It isn’t earning merit badges it’s the proof of who we really are in the world in which we live.

God could’ve made a world without all the tests and trials we endure. God could’ve made life in the manner of just-follow-the-formula. But He didn’t, and despite sin and the fall of man, God has never lost sight of His goal of ruling and living among a proven people. So we must experience what we must experience and endure what we must endure because in the midst of it with God so that we’ll become that proven people and not just a pack of Pavlov’s dogs, cultured in conditioning. Our lives consist of loving God in present pain so that we may live with Him in future reward: eternal life in His presence. And there is the presence of hope.

Hope is that very real belief that causes us to live each passing present day as if we are already in the eternal presence of God; we don’t need to wait for eternity. God’s love and presence today are just as real as His love and presence tomorrow… we understand and accept that through our living today. That is how we hope.

Hope is real and hope is sure if we hope in the right things and live accordingly. I can hope in people, in the human spirit, but that hope will disappoint because people disappoint. I can hope in politics that man will get his act together and we will all learn to live together in peace, but again, with the human element, I am destined for disappointment if I do. I can coexist but that is dependent on others coexisting as well and I am right back to my first argument.

But hope in God never disappoints because God never disappoints – that is as long as I trust Him no matter what. It’s the result of the no-matter-what part that proves who I really am. God is delighted with those who fear Him and put their hope in Him, no matter what.

God's Partnership

10.01.11

Zechariah 11.8 8 In one month I got rid of the three shepherds. NIV

In reading this today, I assume Zechariah was speaking in the First Person for the Lord; the heartbreak of God is evident. I was also curious as to who the three shepherds were so I consulted the commentary to see what it had to say…it shrugged. What I do know is this: whether real or figurative, God got rid of them all in one month. I assume they were real people locked up in some kind of unbreakable leadership that needed removed, and nobody thought they would be...

What is happening in your life right now that you need God’s to get rid of? God’s people in Zechariah needed their leadership to change. Many nations are in that boat these days. From what I can see in the narrative, things were bad on the leadership level and the people needed God to intervene. God had a lot at stake with His people and they were forsaking Him at an unbelievable pace. So, again I ask, what is happening in your life right now that you need God to remove? Keep hoping, keep seeking, keep looking, He did it for ancient Israel in one month.

Sometimes what we really, really need is to go through what we're currently going through to sharpen and shape our spiritual senses. So, sometimes God sends us through a season that to awaken what may be sleeping or put to sleep what may be awake. Faith always needs to be awakened and fear needs to be put to sleep... literally.

God is aware of everyone. God knows the hearts of all of His people. The difficulty for us is often we fail to see what is happening around us; and in His love and mercy God does for us what we are impotent to do. It is in the midst of that unknowing that we need to trust Him to get us to where we need to be. That calls for patience, trust, and partnership with God. 

In what we’re going through currently, have we asked God to partner with us? Is God more than just a Friend or a Presence? Is God invited to take control of our business, our relationships, or even our prayers? Partnership with God requires me to do everything I know to do, but asking and waiting for Him to put all the right pieces into place at exactly the moment they’re needed. God can change things very, very quickly. Three shepherds in one month I think is way more than anyone expected.

So what needs to be removed in your life right now that seems unbreakably impossible to get rid of? Friends, trust God in the moment, and look to Him for the right timing of its release or removal. That we can take to the bank. That we can count on. The bottom line is to do what we know to do and then keep on hoping, seeking and looking for God to work. Our expectation needs to be that He will and He does. Three shepherds, or whatever it is, is no big deal for God.