Monthly Archives: February 2014

Treasured joy

Leave a reply

One of the treasures that perhaps everyone seeks is that of deeper and lasting joy. But a deeper joy requires a deeper life. A.W. Tozer (in his book Keys To The Deeper Life) said the deeper life only seems deep because the average life is so shallow. Ouch. Have you ever noticed that when real truth shines into our lives that it reveals something uncomfortable?

I suppose our lives are like a community swimming pool, having both shallow and deep parts. If we want to enjoy the deeper joys of life we have to spend more time in the deep end. Marcia and I were talking tonight how sometimes it takes suffering through some crisis to push us into the deep end of the pool. It is difficulty that wake us up and allows us to focus on what is truly important.

Years ago, my friend Norm was dying of cancer. During a more resilient phase he spoke before the church. He said sincerely that he had fallen ‘asleep’ spiritually, and then said that if being healed meant he would fall back ‘asleep’ he would rather have the cancer because it had drawn him closer to God. You know what is like to get sleepy and start to nod off. You are still cognizant of what is going around, but everything starts to lose focus. That physical phenomenon happens to us spiritually and relationally too. It is easy to drift away, only partially focused on our most prized ambitions and relationships.

What price would you pay to always “stay awake?” Would you embrace suffering with more joy and wish to keep it if being healed meant we would drift farther away from God and others you love?

It seems to me we too easily pray away suffering as if we have this genie that exists solely to make our life more comfortable and luxurious. There is nothing wrong with comfort, unless it causes us to drift away from our pursuit of Godly ambitions.

We also talked tonight about the joy of contentment (Phil 4:11-13) that comes with suffering. Not to glorify the act of suffering, but to glorify God who shows us the way to endure suffering. And not only endure but to thrive in the process.

What are you willing to change in your life to find the treasure of deeper and lasting joy?

Finding Treasure

Leave a reply

Do you like treasure hunts? As a child I was captivated by pirate stories and their adventurous pursuits of buried treasure. ‘X’ always marked the spot on some deserted island, if you could only find the ‘X’.

Did you know God has a lot to say about treasures and even treasure hunts? In Matthew 13:44, Jesus tells a parable of a man who discovers treasure: “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.” I imagine most of would do that too, if we found a hidden treasure of great worth, sell everything to possess it.

Job was a pretty well-to-do guy before and after his trials. In his sufferings he reflected that all a man’s treasures cannot save him. (Job 20:20) And despite his extreme suffering Job said he treasured God’s word more than his own daily bread. (Job 23:12)

Proverbs 2:4 advises us to live lives of adventure and pursue the treasure of understanding God’s word. Elsewhere, we are counseled to pursue the treasure of wisdom. And there is much more in the bible about treasures gained and treasures lost.

Did you know that YOU are God’s treasure? Exodus 19:5 tells us that we are treasured by God, if in fact we are his children. Jesus tells us that we should store up treasures in heaven. Unlike our earthy treasures, heavenly treasures can’t be ruined by a falling stock market or destroyed or stolen.

I suppose everyone pursues treasures of various kinds, hoping they will bring happiness. Even when our heart desires to pursue Jesus, we still have a tendency to cling to our earthly possessions. This was the case of the rich young ruler who wanted to inherit the kingdom of God. Jesus knew the man’s heart was obsessed with his riches and told him to sell everything he had, give to the poor, pursue riches in heaven, and follow him (Jesus). (Mark 10:20)

It seems that God is not so much concerned that we come to possess treasures, but what kind of treasures we seek and what we do with them. A common theme when people experience life changing crises is that they come to evaluate the things, people and relationships they treasure. Better yet that we discover and meditate of the quality of our treasures before crisis comes upon us.

As you think about your daily routines and your life ambitions, what treasures are you choosing to seek? As the old knight said in the Indiana Jones movie, “Choose wisely.”

Enjoying love

Leave a reply

What if on Valentines Day a husband came to his wife and gave her a bouquet of flowers and a box of chocolates? That sounds pretty nice. And what if his wife thanked him profusely for the thoughtful gifts. Then what if the husband responded, “Oh don’t think anything of it. It is my duty to give you these tokens of appreciation. I do it because I am supposed to do it.” (Yikes, is there a way to hit reverse in this story?!) How would you feel if a gift was presented in this way? Probably not very honored or loved.

Let’s hit rewind and consider a different and heartfelt response to his wife:
“It makes me glad to bring you things. In fact, it brings me more delight to spend this night with you than anyone I might. I cannot think of a way I’d rather spend this day than satisfying my desire with one I so much admire. It gladdens me to be with you. I will magnify you by making you the joy of my life.”
(From John Piper, Desiring God)

It is not that duty is wrong. In fact it is a virtue to behold. But loving out of duty is not the greatest expression of love. Loving because there is nothing else which you find more satisfying, now that is love.

Now imagine that instead of man and wife, the scenario is between you and God. “God, look at my good deeds that I do for you. Consider my gifts to the church. Watch how my life is one of service to you, because it is my duty to serve you.” Maybe that doesn’t sound too bad to you, because we have been raised, many of us, to think of our spiritual life as one of service and duty. And it is, but only because this stems from a greater enjoyment of spending time with God, being more satisfied when in his presence than anything else on earth. I think God is as pleased with such an expression of love as you are when a child comes to you simply because they enjoy your company.

Enjoy God. Be fully satisfied in him and celebrate such great love.

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
his love endures forever. Psalm 107:1

Consider it joy

Leave a reply

If you are a student of the bible you are familiar with the passage in James 1 where he says, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”

Most people’s response to this is often, “Yeah, right.” I mean, how many of us pray for more trials so we can develop perseverance and become more mature? But we ought not run away to quickly from trials and suffering because in their path we discover God revealing more of himself to us, and more about who we are meant to be. These lessons can’t be learned and such character can’t be built in any other way than through the crucible of the refiner’s fire.

It’s not that we should run around and yell, “Whoopee for cancer!” There is nothing to celebrate in that wretched disease. Except this: that in the midst of trials and suffering, we draw closer to God and rediscover God’s grace and his enduring love. And how could we draw closer to Christ unless we participate in some way in his suffering? (Philippians 3) Such trials have a way of bringing us to the end of ourselves and redirect us to the real purpose and meaning in our life. And it is there that we find God waiting for us, ready to carry us through the difficult battles.

Consider it joy? Maybe not the bubbly effervescent joy we normally pursue, but the deeper joy of contentment and being fully satisfied that God’s plan is for good.

Are you facing trials today? Turn your focus from the discomfort and turn your eyes to Jesus. Seek his presence and find a peace that transcends all understanding, a contented joy in resting in him.

Stepping out in faith

Leave a reply

There are two stories in the old testament about water parting so God’s people could walk through to the other side. The most familiar is the account of the parting of the Red Sea that allowed Moses and all the Israelites to escape the armies of Pharaoh.

The other, less remembered story, is that of Joshua and the entire nation of Israel who crossed the Jordan River on their way fight the battle at Jericho as told in Joshua chapter three and four. The interesting thing about this account is that Joshua told the people the day before to watch for God to do a miraculous thing the next day. And that next day he instructed the priests carrying the ark of the covenant to step into the water and the water would part. I imagine it would be stunning enough to watch the waters part and the river bottom dry up instantly. But to step out into the water before that happened… What faith is required for that?! I think I would have run across as fast as I can, but they took time to take twelve large stones from the middle of the river bed and carry them to their new camp where they made a stone memorial to commemorate God’s miraculous provision.

I don’t know about you but I have never witnessed such a manifest miracle. Though I believe that God could perform such a feat even today. Truly, perhaps an even greater miracle is that he loved us so much that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us! And that he could take the selfish heart of man and transform it to a heart that loves God and others.

It seems a common story, God taking ordinary people and using them in extraordinary ways, that begin with a step of faith. In what situation in your life is calling you to step out in faith? In what ways do you find it difficult to trust him completely? Perhaps you are afraid to apologize to someone. Do it anyway. Maybe you find fear and worry about the future are paralyzing you. Let it go. The idea that we control the future is an illusion. Put worry down and pick up peace instead. Maybe you feel called to step out and serve others in a new way, teaching, encouraging, visiting others. Do it if that is what God is telling you. I have never found that putting off what God tells us to be a good plan. Usually calamity results. (One day you can ask Jonah about that.)

Ask God what he desires of you. Grow your faith by stepping out in it.

To be noticed

1 Reply

P1000626Do you like to have your picture taken? And do you always check the photo to make sure it is a satisfactory rendition of you?

I found it a curious phenomenon when we were playing with the poor children of Las Lomas (Ushpa Ushpa) Bolivia. When the children saw my camera they wanted me to take a picture of them. Some asked to look at the screen picture but most did not. They did not ask for a copy of the picture. It was sufficient to them that a picture was taken. My brother says he found the same response when he did street photography in the USA. Where you might expect to find resistance, hesitation, or suspicion, people instead demonstrated an eagerness to have their picture taken by a stranger they will probably never see again.

And I wondered, how many people of the world do not have a picture of themselves or of their loved ones? How many live, to use Thoreau’s phrase, lives of quiet desperation that go unnoticed, unwitnessed by others? How many go to the grave with an unsung song, a journey walked alone, a dream unrealized?

I think there is this drive to be noticed, to be acknowledged. Not in the sense of, “Look at me. I am so important.” But rather, it’s as if it isn’t enough to live a solitary life, and that we are wired to need a witness to our existence and the meaning of our journey.

I wonder how many people live in the shadows of our own journeys. How many unassumingly blend into the background of our day and are so easily missed by those who pass by? At the grocery store, at church, those whose paths we meet on the sidewalk or in the halls of commerce?

What does it take to witness the journey of another? Affirming others often begins with a smile, a simple, “How’s your day going?,” or a brief compliment.

Make today count. Show others the love of God who sees them where they are. (He sees you where you are too!) Live a life that acknowledges the value of others.

What sustains me

Leave a reply

As I reflect back upon the journey so far with Leukemia, I think on those people and things that have sustained me through some very difficult, painful, and dark times. My dear wife Marcia has been a gift from God. It is difficult being a care giver to someone with a life threatening condition. But she has been my true love. While I wouldn’t have chosen this path, I am certainly so very thankful I have her to share it with me.

My family and those true friends that have stuck this out with me and encouraged me in so many ways have been so very helpful in making sure I knew I was not alone in this battle.

As I have written many times before, our great God who gives us faith, has always been faithful to meet me in my times of trouble. His promises have been proven true, his grace IS sufficient for all my needs, his strength is made perfect in my weakness.

In addition to hundreds of scripture verses, certain songs have also ministered to my soul during this time, this one by Graham Kendrick as much as any. May you be blessed reflecting on its words from Philippians 3. And as you do so, I hope you will take time to consider what and who sustains you through life… And who do you help sustain?

Knowing You Jesus

by Graham Kendrick

All I once held dear, built my life upon
All this world reveres, and wars to own
All I once thought gain I have counted loss
Spent and worthless now, compared to this

Knowing you, Jesus
Knowing you, there is no greater thing
You’re my all, you’re the best
You’re my joy, my righteousness
And I love you, Lord

Now my heart’s desire is to know you more
To be found in you and known as yours
To possess by faith what I could not earn
All-surpassing gift of righteousness

Oh, to know the power of your risen life
And to know You in Your sufferings
To become like you in your death, my Lord
So with you to live and never die

Graham Kendrick

Infusions

Leave a reply

I was reflecting back on how many blood and platelet transfusions I had over the early months of this journey with leukemia, over 30. (When you donate blood, it really DOES save lives, mine included.) The only bad reaction was with a certain bag of platelets.

I still remember what surprised me at the time was that my mind remained calmly cognizant of each phase of the attack on my body. I told the nurse that my palms were becoming red and very itchy. Then my arms and then my feet and legs. Then my torso, with hives setting in all over. Of course within 15-20 seconds of entering my body, the infusion was disconnected. Then I told the nurse it was becoming difficult to swallow and finally that my throat was swelling and closing up making it difficult to breathe and talk. Someone from the Rapid Response Team arrived came running into my room from another part of the hospital. I was given three doses of antihistamine and a shot of steroids and an oxygen mask and within 15 minutes I was breathing clearly. Within 3 hours, all the symptoms were relieved.

Not always, but often, attacks on the body are sudden and you are clearly aware of them. But did you know that there are attacks on our spiritual being too? Unlike bodily attacks that seem to heighten our awareness, spiritual attacks seem to desensitize us at first, like a shot of lidocaine numbs our skin. Movies, books, magazines, and social environments are cunning like this. It might start with a cuss word or two here and there, a sexual innuendo (or more). Dishonesty and betrayal are presented as tolerable in the lives of our favorite characters. Moral compromises are rationalized. What keeps us from standing up and leaving the situation, tossing the media in the garbage? We think it doesn’t affect us.

Just as most of us try to take care of our bodies, we ought to be even more concerned with the attacks on our spiritual being. Think back on the last week or two. What attacks have their been on your spirit that maybe you weren’t aware of? In addition to filth, there are other forces that strive to get a stronghold in your spirit: uncontrollable regret, bitterness, anger, impatience with others, insistence on being right, depression, self-pity or striving to ‘succeed’ at the price of your relationship with your family and others. The list goes on.

What do you do? Ask for a spiritual transfusion. The Holy Spirit fights these battles with and sometimes for us. We just need to put ourselves in a place to receive that spiritual transfusion. Renewal awaits those who desire it.

Transcending anxiety and suffering

Leave a reply

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7

It’s easy to become anxious about things, isn’t it? I think it is a part of our earthly nature, and so will challenge us as long as we have these earthy bodies. But there is an effective antidote against anxiety. It is in prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, presenting all our requests, our concerns and our anxious thoughts to God. And how does God respond? He gives peace to those who trust him. Not just any peace, but that peace which transcends all understanding. Not the peace that is merely the absence of anxiety, but peace that mysteriously and powerfully transcends it.

Other than this passage, my only other recollection of this word is from my college days. Transcendental Meditation (TM) was taught and encouraged throughout the university. But this focused on ‘new age’ and eastern philosophies that I didn’t want to be associated with. I remembered the saying that if it’s new, it isn’t true, and if it’s true, it isn’t new.

Much of the time I suspect we settle for enduring suffering. Is that your experience – learning to grit your teeth and put up with your hurts and anxious thoughts? Or maybe you have learned how to cope with suffering: experiencing suffering and at the same time not being ruled by it.

So how do we pursue Godly transcendental meditation? The Bible offers guidance for those disciplined to learn this ‘secret.’ It starts with ‘being still.’ But being still isn’t the absence of activity and it isn’t a vacation into mindlessness. I am still learning but I think it is about contemplating the fullness of God, his peace, his purpose, his power in your life. Contemplating his Word and his characteristics may guide you into Godly stillness. This stillness is a preparation for a conversation with God, both speaking and listening. It’s about focused listening to what God wants to reveal to you about YOUR life.

Transcendent peace is not only found in being still before a sovereign God and keenly focusing on what he wants to reveal to you. It is about really trusting him to do just that. And this comes from faithfully following him throughout the whole day, through the business of life, the mundane chores, the sorrows, and the celebrations. It is about being mindful of his love for you and sensitive to his plan for your life.

So here is a challenge: try this every day for thirty days. Pursue his love and his peace; that peace which transcends all understanding.

Facing the enemy

Leave a reply

Walt Kelly’s Pogo cartoon was a favorite of mine when I was a teen. Often political and satire in nature, this strip about a possum living in Okefenoki Swamp, often hit on important life truths. This one features Pogo’s most famous quote, “We have met the enemy and he is us.” While the focus of this cartoon was environmental pollution, it speaks another truth to me. That is, when our minds consider the image of enemies, we might do well to look at ourselves first. Why?

We often are to blame for making up our enemies. We are so adept at categorizing people who look, think, talk, and act differently from us, we have this tendency to put a label on them and to regard their interests as opposed and threatening to ours. We put up defensive fences to keep them distant. In our minds they become ‘enemies.’ Quite the opposite, learning to understand each other helps us to learn from each other. It is a very small circle that includes only those who agree with you in every way. It seems to me we encounter enough real foes in life that we needn’t imagine more just because we find ourselves different from one another.

Another reason we become our own enemies is that we are so good at looking at what we see and then conjuring up irrational thoughts about it. Say the word very slowly and you find that “rationalize” sounds a lot like “rationale lies.” What rational lies have you told yourself over and over again. The truths in life often aren’t readily perceived by the eyes, but by the heart and mind. You have one image of yourself and likely, God has another. I think we are best off seeing ourselves as the one who created us sees us. Whenever you hear one of those negative inner voices, answer it with the promises of God over your life and your future. As the old saying goes, “When fear comes knocking, let faith answer the door.”

Another reason we become our own enemy is that we don’t dress properly. To go outside in this -25 degree weather without a coat and gloves would be asking for trouble. Likewise to go swimming with all your winter clothes on is just as dangerous. The bible tells us that when we strive against each other we are really facing a battle of spiritual forces. It tells us to “dress” properly each day with the spiritual armor of God: the breastplate of righteousness, the belt of truth, the boots of peace, the shield of faith, the sword of the Spirit, and the helmet of salvation. If we don’t, our vulnerability is our own doing. And notice that the armor of God doesn’t come with any protection for your back, so don’t run from attacks from the enemy. Just make sure the enemy you face isn’t yourself.