After spending four years in bible college, five years in seminary and twenty years in ministry; some scripture is too familiar. Familiarity erects an impressive blockade against truth that we may need to rock our world. When we are able to recite the profound truth God wants to say to us even as He wants to get our attention, sometimes our minds intercept what our hearts most need to hear. Our mouths are moving, but our souls are in neutral. The motor is running -- yet we're not getting anywhere.
What is particularly unfortunate is that often the most familiar truths are also the ones we most need to be told. We may not recall well what is in Leviticus 14 or Zephaniah 2; but we also probably don't need to consider those words as desperately as we need to reflect on Matthew 5 or Philippians 1. Too much familiarity with the most profound truths and experiences God gives us can innoculate us against the divine infection we're supposed to be carrying. I suspect we all know this -- but the solution is far more problematic. It is easy for the David Lettermans of the world to critique what is wrong. But it requires wisdom to offer guidance in the face of daunting spiritual hurdles.
I don't pretend to be an expert in such things. But I read things smarter people suggest, and several of them seem wise. If this diagnosis seems accurate as you examine the state of your heart, allow me to make a couple of suggestions.
1. We NEED routines, but they must change. Don't downplay the importance of routine simply because familiarity can be harmful. We need patterns of behavior to reinforce positive actions. I'm indebted to David Crowder's little book "Praise Habit" for this thought. Whatever you regularly do to connect with God -- do it regularly. Go back to it over and over. Just know that sooner or later the routine will need to change or it will become stale.
2. Look at truth from a different ANGLE. This can be done in several ways. One way I've begun doing recently is reading very familiar books of Scripture from a different version than I'm used to. I started reading Philippians today and used the NLT. I found that the wording forced me to rethink what God wants to say to my heart through Paul. Another way to do this is to discuss spiritual topics with someone who is a Christian but isn't from the exact same background. Perhaps they are from a different culture, perhaps they are from a different denomination. Either way they may jumpstart your ability to think through what God may want us to hear. A final thought on this concept is to avoid books that you completely agree with. Outside of Scripture, it is often valuable to seek books that will challenge what we believe. I'm not talking about complete rubbish, but things that will provoke serious consideration.
3. Associate with PECULIAR individuals. We often gather friends and associates around ourselves who make us feel good about what we think. But finding Christians who see things you miss will often open up whole vistas I would have never otherwise even realized existed. In my case, as a logical, analytical type of thinker, it helps to be married to a left-handed artist who works at a fabric store. I have friends who are visionaries, poets, musicians, counselors, and work with young children. They all view a world that is largely invisible to me. But I'm convinced their perspective is often something God wants to use to show me things He wants me to see.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Saturday, April 17, 2010
One Call
How many times has life been just moving along normally like a leaf floating on the surface of a stream when a phone call dramatically moved life in a different direction? Sometimes these calls are ominous reports of a friend or family member who has received a diagnosis or been fired from their job. Occasionally these calls are urgent requests for assistance (my car broke down, I'm locked out of my house) -- can you help?
On other occasions, these phone calls can be long awaited good news or an old friend who suddenly made contact after years of being out of touch. Sometimes the call that changes our day, our week -- even our life -- is one that is so random and unpredictable that we could never have seen it coming. I received a random call like that yesterday. Not a life-changing call by any means, but a random call that was an opportunity for the Lord to teach me. The call came while I was having a serious conversation. I looked down at the caller ID on my cell phone and saw an unfamiliar area code. I made a mental note to make sure to check the message when my meeting ended. When I checked the message, it was someone whose name I've heard, but I've never actually talked to before. The information honestly wasn't at all earth shattering.
That being said, I found the rest of my day was suddenly consumed with thoughts of something I hadn't even considered prior to that call. I went running yesterday (a truly invigorating marvelous run btw!). For the entire time I ran, I found myself savoring the details of this phone call. I couldn't help but notice how fickle our attention can be. Had I not returned that phone call when I did, my evening run and thoughts would have been completely different. Some of this is simply interesting to me. But to some extent it is a bit troubling. Does this merely indicate how captive I am to my momentary circumstances?
Where is the line between being responsive and attentive "in the moment" and having our hearts and heads led around by whatever is dangled in front of us? Jesus was a man on a mission. His long term goals were directly before Him and His main path was not one that would be altered. Yet he was constantly presented with impromptu situations that required a change in focus. I think of the woman with the bleeding problem (Luke 8:42ff) who snuck up on Jesus to pursue healing. He stopped what he was doing and addressed her, and when he did another opportunity presented itself (Jairus). His focus changed, but his priorities didn't. I need to figure out how to do this better.
On other occasions, these phone calls can be long awaited good news or an old friend who suddenly made contact after years of being out of touch. Sometimes the call that changes our day, our week -- even our life -- is one that is so random and unpredictable that we could never have seen it coming. I received a random call like that yesterday. Not a life-changing call by any means, but a random call that was an opportunity for the Lord to teach me. The call came while I was having a serious conversation. I looked down at the caller ID on my cell phone and saw an unfamiliar area code. I made a mental note to make sure to check the message when my meeting ended. When I checked the message, it was someone whose name I've heard, but I've never actually talked to before. The information honestly wasn't at all earth shattering.
That being said, I found the rest of my day was suddenly consumed with thoughts of something I hadn't even considered prior to that call. I went running yesterday (a truly invigorating marvelous run btw!). For the entire time I ran, I found myself savoring the details of this phone call. I couldn't help but notice how fickle our attention can be. Had I not returned that phone call when I did, my evening run and thoughts would have been completely different. Some of this is simply interesting to me. But to some extent it is a bit troubling. Does this merely indicate how captive I am to my momentary circumstances?
Where is the line between being responsive and attentive "in the moment" and having our hearts and heads led around by whatever is dangled in front of us? Jesus was a man on a mission. His long term goals were directly before Him and His main path was not one that would be altered. Yet he was constantly presented with impromptu situations that required a change in focus. I think of the woman with the bleeding problem (Luke 8:42ff) who snuck up on Jesus to pursue healing. He stopped what he was doing and addressed her, and when he did another opportunity presented itself (Jairus). His focus changed, but his priorities didn't. I need to figure out how to do this better.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Love Incarnate
The gospel in a word is love. They'll know we are Christians by our love. God is love. For all the talk about love, you'd think it would be so commonly evident in the Body of Christ that the connection would be axiomatic. You would think churches would be full of people whose love for God and others would be so manifest that people would wonder, "what has gotten into these people?" (Wouldn't you love to have to answer that question?).
Yet somehow along the way, the majority of us seemed to have missed the memo. The church has a far greater reputation for being harsh, judgemental, and hypocritical than it does for loving people. By and large this reputation seems well-earned. But as Francis Schaeffer aptly pointed out in his book The Mark of a Christian, this really is to be the distinguishing characteristic of those who are in Christ. Jesus has given license to the world to judge whether we are authentic by viewing our love for one another. What do they see in us?
Today we lost a man in love. A dear brother in our congregation left suddenly this Sunday morning from here to worship the Lord in person rather than at New Hope. He was a Theophilus, a lover of God. His life oozed passion for a Savior he couldn't wait to see. Even though doctors had told him cancer would likely claim him, the Lord had other -- and it turns out earlier -- plans. And as selfish as many of us feel in losing him, the greatest hurt is not that we've lost the man, but the model.
How often do you meet a middle aged man who loves Jesus so much that his affection for him cannot be hidden? So many of us know "good" men, "solid" men, "hard-working" men, even "godly" men. Certainly these characteristics are admirable. But we need people with skin on to show us what love looks like. I suspect that was the most important reason for God sending His Son Jesus to us in the first place. We couldn't imagine what real love was like until we saw it ourselves.
For my own part, I miss the conversation I'm not going to get to have with him. That's two men now with whom I've postponed an important conversation who left for their eternal reward before I was able to have it with them. Hopefully this time I will heed the warning that there really is precious little time left. If there is a conversation I need to have, I need to make the time and opportunity for it to happen. Otherwise it may not happen, and what is incarnate may be available to us no longer.
Yet somehow along the way, the majority of us seemed to have missed the memo. The church has a far greater reputation for being harsh, judgemental, and hypocritical than it does for loving people. By and large this reputation seems well-earned. But as Francis Schaeffer aptly pointed out in his book The Mark of a Christian, this really is to be the distinguishing characteristic of those who are in Christ. Jesus has given license to the world to judge whether we are authentic by viewing our love for one another. What do they see in us?
Today we lost a man in love. A dear brother in our congregation left suddenly this Sunday morning from here to worship the Lord in person rather than at New Hope. He was a Theophilus, a lover of God. His life oozed passion for a Savior he couldn't wait to see. Even though doctors had told him cancer would likely claim him, the Lord had other -- and it turns out earlier -- plans. And as selfish as many of us feel in losing him, the greatest hurt is not that we've lost the man, but the model.
How often do you meet a middle aged man who loves Jesus so much that his affection for him cannot be hidden? So many of us know "good" men, "solid" men, "hard-working" men, even "godly" men. Certainly these characteristics are admirable. But we need people with skin on to show us what love looks like. I suspect that was the most important reason for God sending His Son Jesus to us in the first place. We couldn't imagine what real love was like until we saw it ourselves.
For my own part, I miss the conversation I'm not going to get to have with him. That's two men now with whom I've postponed an important conversation who left for their eternal reward before I was able to have it with them. Hopefully this time I will heed the warning that there really is precious little time left. If there is a conversation I need to have, I need to make the time and opportunity for it to happen. Otherwise it may not happen, and what is incarnate may be available to us no longer.
Saturday, April 10, 2010
The Inexorable March
Time marches dependably forward -- at least if you're human and not divine. Few things are more bizarrely eerie than the phenomenon that takes place when you go to be with an ill family member. For you and those with you, time nearly stands still and almost everything revolves around this individual for whom all have gathered. Whether it is time spent in a waiting room, or a home whose family life wraps around the chair where that individual sits -- life is different under these circumstances. Things slow down, priorities change, we are aware of different issues.
What punctuates this oddity is when life resumes in the acceleration lane. Suddenly we find ourselves pulled forward, our pace quickened as we recognize the rest of the world hasn't been on watch with us. Life has gone on without our awareness. Perhaps nothing makes this more clearly evident than the well intentioned questions we face when we get back to the rest of life. "So, how's your [insert relationship here]?"
Most often of course a very quick cursory response will do. But on the occasions when we know people want to know more than "fine," it is often hard to frame words around the experience accurately. We may find ourselves guarded as well, not always knowing ourselves whether we are ready to fully embrace the developments others want to hear.
Our family has returned to Roanoke from NoVa. I'm not sure how to answer the question "How's your Dad?" But I appreciate the intent of those who will inevitably ask it tomorrow. I'm glad to be home. But the mail here was a timely reminder that life goes on. And one way or another, so must we when we find ourselves colliding with expectations. Perhaps this is one powerful lesson we can learn from the numerous stories of the Old Testament. No matter how bizarre, incredible, powerful, and even miraculous those events were; each generation had to learn from what happened before them and realize that time and God's plan continue to move forward.
I'm glad for breaks from the routine of life. But when we pull away from our responsibilities with job and daily life to tend to family, it doesn't quite feel like a vacation. Either way, life goes on. May we learn from the lessons God teaches us to make the most of each moment -- however it is spent.
What punctuates this oddity is when life resumes in the acceleration lane. Suddenly we find ourselves pulled forward, our pace quickened as we recognize the rest of the world hasn't been on watch with us. Life has gone on without our awareness. Perhaps nothing makes this more clearly evident than the well intentioned questions we face when we get back to the rest of life. "So, how's your [insert relationship here]?"
Most often of course a very quick cursory response will do. But on the occasions when we know people want to know more than "fine," it is often hard to frame words around the experience accurately. We may find ourselves guarded as well, not always knowing ourselves whether we are ready to fully embrace the developments others want to hear.
Our family has returned to Roanoke from NoVa. I'm not sure how to answer the question "How's your Dad?" But I appreciate the intent of those who will inevitably ask it tomorrow. I'm glad to be home. But the mail here was a timely reminder that life goes on. And one way or another, so must we when we find ourselves colliding with expectations. Perhaps this is one powerful lesson we can learn from the numerous stories of the Old Testament. No matter how bizarre, incredible, powerful, and even miraculous those events were; each generation had to learn from what happened before them and realize that time and God's plan continue to move forward.
I'm glad for breaks from the routine of life. But when we pull away from our responsibilities with job and daily life to tend to family, it doesn't quite feel like a vacation. Either way, life goes on. May we learn from the lessons God teaches us to make the most of each moment -- however it is spent.
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