The Clearest of Messages - The Simplest of Tools

Recently, I posted Rachel Evans' contribution to the Eighth Letter Project, which invites participants to compose letters to the North American church in the spirit of John’s letters of Revelation. Rachel is from Birmingham originally.  Her letter was probably the most commented on post that I have sent out/posted.  Click here to read it again.

Below is a devotion by Max Lucado that is similar to her thoughts.  Read it slowly, savor every word....Enjoy!!

Long before the church had pulpits and baptisteries, she had kitchens and dinner tables. “The believers met together in the Temple every day. They ate together in their homes, happy to share their food with joyful hearts” (Acts 2:46 NCV). “Every day in the Temple and in people’s homes they continued teaching the people and telling the Good News—that Jesus is the Christ” (Acts 5:42 NCV).

Even a casual reading of the New Testament unveils the house as the primary tool of the church. “To Philemon our beloved friend and fellow laborer . . . and to the church in your house” (Philem. vv. 1–2). “Greet Priscilla and Aquila . . . the church that is in their house” (Rom. 16:3, 5). “Greet the brethren who are in Laodicea, and Nymphas and the church that is in his house” (Col. 4:15).

It’s no wonder that the elders were to be “given to hospitality” (1 Tim. 3:2 KJV). The primary gathering place of the church was the home. Consider the genius of God’s plan. The first generation of Christians was a tinderbox of contrasting cultures and backgrounds. At least fifteen different nationalities heard Peter’s sermon on the Day of Pentecost. Jews stood next to Gentiles. Men worshipped with women. Slaves and masters alike sought after Christ. Can people of such varied backgrounds and cultures get along with each other?

We wonder the same thing today. Can Hispanics live in peace with Anglos? Can Democrats find common ground with Republicans? Can a Christian family carry on a civil friendship with the Muslim couple down the street? Can divergent people get along?

The early church did—without the aid of sanctuaries, church buildings, clergy, or seminaries. They did so through the clearest of messages (the Cross) and the simplest of tools (the home).

Not everyone can serve in a foreign land, lead a relief effort, or volunteer at the downtown soup kitchen. But who can’t be hospitable? Do you have a front door? A table? Chairs? Bread and meat for sandwiches? Congratulations! You just qualified to serve in the most ancient of ministries: hospitality. You can join the ranks of people such as . . .

Abraham. He fed, not just angels, but the Lord of angels (Gen. 18). 

Rahab, the harlot. She received and protected the spies. Thanks to her kindness, her kindred survived, and her name is remembered (Josh. 6:22–23; Matt. 1:5). 

Martha and Mary. They opened their home for Jesus. He, in turn, opened the grave of Lazarus for them (John 11:1–45; Luke 10:38–42).  

Zacchaeus. He welcomed Jesus to his table. And Jesus left salvation as a thank-you gift (Luke 19:1–10).

And what about the greatest example of all—the “certain man” of Matthew 26:18? On the day before his death, Jesus told his followers, “Go into the city to a certain man and tell him, ‘The Teacher says: The chosen time is near. I will have the Passover with my followers at your house’”
(NCV).

How would you have liked to be the one who opened his home for Jesus? You can be. “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me” (Matt. 25:40 NIV). As you welcome strangers to your table, you are welcoming God himself.

Something holy happens around a dinner table that will never happen in a sanctuary. In a church auditorium you see the backs of heads. Around the table you see the expressions on faces. In the auditorium one person speaks; around the table everyone has a voice. Church services are on the clock. Around the table there is time to talk.

Hospitality opens the door to uncommon community. It’s no accident that hospitality and hospital come from the same Latin word, for they both lead to the same result: healing. When you open your door to someone, you are sending this message: “You matter to me and to God.” You may think you are saying, “Come over for a visit.” But what your guest hears is, “I’m worth the effort.”


Cheerfully share your home with those who need a meal or a place to
stay. God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual
gifts. Use them well to serve one another.
(1 Peter 4:9–10 NLT)

Heavenly Father, you have given me so much—every breath I take is a gift from your hand. Even so, I confess that sometimes my own hand remains tightly closed when I encounter the needs of others. Please open both my hand and my heart that I might learn to delight in taking advantage of the daily opportunities for hospitality that you present to me. Help me remember, Lord, that when I show your love in tangible ways to “the least of these,” I am ministering directly to you. As you help me open my heart and hand, O Lord, I ask that you also prompt me to open my door to those who need a taste of your love and bounty. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.

_____________________________________
From Outlive Your Life
Copyright (Thomas Nelson, 2010) Max Lucado

Is Weak Faith Still Faith?

From The Reason for God by Timothy Keller:

"The faith that changes the life and connects to God is best conveyed by the word "trust." Imagine you are on a high cliff and lose your footing and begin to fall. Just beside you as you fall is a branch sticking out of the very edge of the cliff. It is your only hope and it is more than strong enough to support your weight. How can it save you? If your mind is filled with intellectual certainty that the branch can support you, but you don't actually reach out and grab it, you are lost. If your mind is instead filled with doubts and uncertainty that the branch can hold you, but you reach out and grab it anyway, you will be saved. Why? It is not the strength of your faith but the object of your faith that actually saves you.  

 

Strong faith in a weak branch is fatally inferior to weak faith in a strong branch. This means you don't have to wait for all doubts and fears to go away to take hold of Christ. Don't make the mistake of thinking that you have to banish all misgivings in order to meet God. That would turn your faith into one more way to be your own Savior. Working on the quality and purity of your commitment would become a way to merit salvation and put God in your debt. It is not the depth and purity of your heart but the work of Jesus Christ on our behalf that saves us."

From All of Grace Blog:

  

This illustration is gold. Christ is the actor. He is doing the action, the saving itself. I confess how much I treat my faith as a spiritual resume I add to every day. I realize this in how much I think about my faith throughout the day, and not the author of my faith, Jesus. Keller's words resonate so powerfully to me because of how much I think about what I should do, rather than what Christ has done. My desire to want to essentially save myself is only evidence of my unbelief that my Savior will actually save me. May we rest in the security we have in Christ alone, who is certain to save those whom he has called. May we fix our eyes on Jesus, who has given us faith as a gift, and promises to carry us in it for all eternity.

Quote of the Week - Os Guinness

"We are not primarily called to do something or go somewhere; we are called to Someone. We are not called first to special work but to God. The key to answering the call is to be devoted to no one and to nothing above God himself."

Os Guinness, The Call: Finding and Fulfilling the Central Purpose of Your Life

A Prayer of Praise Because We are all Different

I am very much enjoying written prayers by Scotty Smith found here.  Yesterday my friend, Carrie, shared with me a blog post by her friend, Lee Ann Penick who has a blog called Lapenick's Blog.  Lee Ann's post that I copied earlier led me to a written prayer of praise and not just petitions.  I thought I might share:

Abba Father, you know I use prayer time to ask for stuff way more than simply stopping and praising you.  Even writing that confession doesn't seem sincere because I worry this pause in my normal practice won't last long.  Even still, you have led me to pause in praise because of the wonderful words of your faithful servant, Lee Ann.  Who knew that it would take a three step connection from Lee Ann to Carrie to me to make me pause today?  You knew and I give you praise for that.

What can I praise you for today, Lord?  Returning from vacation, it comes pretty easy.   To begin with, I praise you because you created more than one type of deer.  Is that too small of a thing to praise you for?  I hope not because it is significant to me that you created both large magnificent bucks but also the small Key Deer that live on one island in the Florida Keys.  I am in awe of this because it speaks to your character.  You created different animals not only for your pleasure but for ours....many many kinds of animals.  I praise you because you didn't stop there but created many kinds of each species of animals.  I know you created us and the stars and the animals for YOUR pleasure but I also praise you because you created these marvelous varieties for OUR pleasure as well.

I praise you because your creativity with birds, fish, butterflies and deer is more importantly on display in your creation of man and woman.  Shouldn't I offer you praise because you created all of us individually and differently.  I confess that I don't celebrate that enough.  I thank you for the variety of people in my life....young and old....rich and poor....liberal and conservative....quiet and loud....the differences go on and on.  Help me to be less frustrated by our differences and more joyful that you have given me a wonderful variety of friends.

Lastly and most importantly, I praise you because you gave your son for me.  You brought us a redeemer who you promised "a bruised reed shall he not break."   Your son, who though a king, "humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross."  Even though the Son of God, he praised you, his father.  He is a Savior King who called himself a lamb.  A redeemer who wept over his people and stopped to ask forgiveness from the cross for the very ones who nailed him to the cross. 

So Lord, I can't help but praise you today.  I pray you keep my heart focused more on praise than on my own selfish needs. 

One of These Days

Heavenbound

Very good post by Carrie Roger's friend, Lee Ann Penick.  Her blog is called Lapenick's Blog. 

Have you ever read a passage of Scripture and have certain words just jump off the page?  I firmly believe that happens when the Holy Spirit wants us to pay attention to the word(s) that keep jumping out at us.  This experience happened to me after a dear friend with great enthusiasm placed her autographed copy of “90 Minutes in Heaven” by Don Piper in my hands and said, “You’ve got to read this!”

Because this book is Don’s true story of his 90 minutes in heaven, I couldn’t wait to read it.  There are two chapters in which he goes into detail about his observations in heaven,  and the Spirit used Don’s account to grab my attention around the most central thing we are supposed to be doing on a daily basis as a Christian, and that is praising God.   The word “praise” and the phrase “praising God” refused to be ignored as I read them.  Here are excerpts that kept pricking my heart as Don did his best to describe heaven when he arrived:

“They rushed toward me, and every person was smiling, shouting, and praising God.”

“Everyone continually embraced me, touched me, spoke to me, laughed, and praised God.”

“The praise was unending…”

“Each voice praised God…”

“Praise was everywhere…”

“Hallelujah!” “Praise!” “Glory to God!” “Praise the King”

“Hymns of praise, modern-sounding choruses, and ancient chants filled my ears…” (Here’s my one- sentence sermon: Apparently, God is pleased with all forms of music in His churches as long as He is being praised, so we need to quit arguing about it.)

“…all (hymns that filled the air) were praises about Christ’s reign as the King of Kings”

“He must be pleased and blessed by the continuous sounds of praise”

“Instead of just hearing the music and the thousands of voices praising God, I had become a part of the choir.”

I have understood that life has never been about me (though I wouldn’t mind and not that I haven’t tried!).  I get that I am to glorify Him in all that I say and do.  Sheila Walsh says,  “Our life is one long worship service to the Lord.”  I love that word picture.  But the question is, “If life on earth is a dress rehearsal for the things to come, how I am doing in the area of praising God?”  The answer is I have plenty of room for improvement, which probably explains why this phrase held my attention with the help of the Spirit.  Praising God should be ongoing through everything I say or do.  Either my actions, thoughts and deeds glorify Him and have eternal impact, or they don’t. 

The more I focused on the phrase “praising God”, the more I realized how shallow my efforts are at praising Him.  Praising God doesn’t just happen during a one-hour church service (though I think many of us lapse into that false mentality), let me at least start there.  Perhaps you can relate.  How many times have you and I showed up for worship with the idea we are here to praise God, but just go through the motions of singing words on a screen?  Or worse, we chat with our friends while songs are being played.  How many times have we really showed up at church to “punch a clock”, yet our hearts were far away?  How many of us really come to worship with an attitude of profound reverence for God and a desire to communicate our adoration of Him?  Don’t many of us come to mainly hear a good sermon?  Doesn’t praising God tend to take a back seat?  What about our prayer life?  Are our prayers top-heavy with praise or mainly petitions?  When we get to heaven, praise is going to be continual as it should be right now. 

It  warmed my heart that music will permeate heaven and be a vital way that we praise God.  After reading that Don became a part of the choir, I just smiled remembering Psalm 150:6 that says, “Let everything that has breath (not pitch), praise the Lord.”  Though I have been blessed with some musical abilities and enjoy singing, it is fun to think that all followers of Christ will be in the choir whether you think you can sing or not, and you will blend in perfectly!  By the way, for those who are already wondering if heaven will be boring because of all of this praising going on, I can only say read “90 Minutes in Heaven”, and as my Dad put it the other day,  consider when we cast our crowns before Him that we will not be able to resist praising Him.  It will be the most natural response to a holy God!

After reading this book, I can no longer read, hear, or sing any form of the phrase “praise God” and be casual about it or be detached.  I will always think about Don’s encounters in heaven and the music he heard.  If you are wondering what it means to praise God,  praise is about celebrating and acknowledging WHO God is, while thanks is a response for WHAT God has done for us.  I would also invite you to read Psalms 145-150.  Let’s call Psalms 145-150 for the fun of it “Praising God 101” since these are specifically psalms of praise.  These Psalms are good training tools to help us exalt His name by focusing on a variety of His attributes.   In the meantime, if you were raised in the church and love hymns as I do, may you be blessed as you let me conclude with lyrics of praise from songs that come to mind that I can no longer sing casually:

“Praise God from whom all blessings flow.  Praise Him all creatures here below.  Praise Him all ‘bove ye heavenly hosts.  Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost.”

“To God be the Glory, great things He hath done….Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord! Let the earth hear your voice.  Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord! Let the people rejoice….”

“Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of Creation…”

“Hal-le-lujah! Hal-le-lujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!  Ha-le-lujah! For the Lord God omnipotent reigneth…”

“Praise the Lord, Oh my soul, and all that is within me bless His holy name.”

“O Worship the King, all glorious above; O gratefully sing His power and His Love.  Our Shield and Defender, the Ancient of Days, pavilioned in splendor and girded with praise… ”

“Joyful, Joyful, we adore thee, God of glory, Lord of love.  Hearts unfold like flowers before Thee, opening to the sun above…”

“O Lord, Our Lord, how majestic is your name in all of the earth…Oh Lord, we praise your name.  Oh Lord, we magnify your name, Prince of Peace, Mighty God, Oh Lord God Almighty.” 

“All creatures of our God and King.  Lift up your voice and with us sing, Alleluia! Alleluia!....”

“Oh Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder, consider all the worlds thy hands hath made…”

“Holy, Holy, Holy.  Lord God, Almighty.  Early in the morning, our song shall rise to thee.  Holy, Holy, Holy, Merciful and Mighty, God in Three Persons, blessed Trinity.”

Blessings,

Lee Ann

Do You Argue with God in Your Prayers?

Justin Taylor at the Gospel Coalition posts the following about Prayer.

What do you think?  Is Spurgeon right?

Charles Spurgeon says you should argue with God in your prayers—not to be argumentative, but to beseech the Lord with holy arguments with biblical precedence.
An excerpt:

The best prayers I have ever heard in our prayer meetings have been those which have been fullest of argument. Sometimes my soul has been fairly melted down where I have listened to the brethren who have come before God feeling the mercy to be really needed, and that they must have it, for they first pleaded with God to give it for this reason, and then for a second, and then for a third and then for a fourth and a fifth until they have awakened the fervency of the entire assembly.

Remedies Against Accusations

 From Kevin DeYoung at The Gospel Coalition:

And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death.” 

(Revelation 12:10-11).

Satan is an accuser and a deceiver. In both cases his weapons are words, which is why we must overcome him with the word of our testimony.

In other words, it is through our belief in the gospel and our confidence in the power of Jesus Christ that we can stand secure in the face of Satan’s lies and accusations.  And it is by the truth of the word of God–believed on and hoped in even unto death–that we can expose and destroy the deceptions of the Deceiver.  This is how we do battle, with the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God.

So when Satan whispers, “Can God really forgive you?  Can your sins be washed away?” you can answer confidently: “There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.” (Rom. 8:1-2).

When the Devil says your situation is hopeless, when he calls you an addict and says you can’t change, you can reply: “Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.” (Rom. 8:8-9).

And when Satan suggests that it must not matter then how we live, that grace and freedom are an excuse for license, we must answer: “For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live” (Rom. 8:13).

And when our Enemy points to our suffering and says, “Look, God cannot be trusted. Surely, there is no use in serving this Master” we will inform him that we “consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us” (Rom. 8:18).

And if Satan should tempt us to believe that God is singling us out for pain, we will remind him that “the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now” (Rom. 8:22).

If he spreads the lie that our trials will be the end of us, that God can no longer help us, we will declare, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good” (Rom. 8:28).

And when he shows us our weakness, when he points to the failures of the church, when he accuses us of having let God down and makes us doubt the power of the gospel and the ultimate triumph of the saints, when he comes at us with words and all the weapons of the world, we will stand our ground with a defiant shout: “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 8:37-39).

Satan is hell bent on destroying the church.  He breathes fiery accusations like a dragon and hisses deception like a serpent.  He is in pursuit of the woman and her children.  But the salvation and the power and the kingdom belong to God and to Christ our King.  And we shall overcome the devil, by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of our testimony.

Quote of the Week

The occupational hazard of liberal Christians is to leave open questions the Bible closes, and of conservative Christians to close questions the Bible leaves open. 


      -   Clark Pinnock

A Prayer About My Restless Antsy Heart

“Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” Psalm 46:10

Heavenly Father, I don’t have “ants in my pants”, but I am antsy. I don’t have “restless leg syndrome”, but I do have a restless heart. That’s why the command to be still and know that you are God, comes like a life-giving rebuke and a kiss from heaven. Please bring the settling and centering power of the gospel to bear—for my sake and the benefit of those around me.

I’m not sure what all’s going on inside of me. I haven’t been able to identify all the issues… but I know I’m not as peaceful, quiet or trusting as I want to be… or as you intend.

When I get in this anxious, edgy, squirmy place I usually run to my control idols. I try to micro-manage the chaos… and whoever and whatever is in sight. I start acting like an orphan or the 4^th member of the Trinity… vacillating between irritation and indifference.  I either multiply my words ad nauseam or withdraw into a sulky silence. I cannot remember a time when any of this ever led to anything good. It usually makes me less than a joy to be around.

So I humble myself before you, loving Father. I come boldly to an occupied throne of grace…  throwing down my plastic scepter and presumption about being in control. You will be exalted among the nations, so be exalted in my heart… my day… my circumstances. You are God and I am not. You are in control and I am not. You are working in all things for our good and your glory.

Lord Jesus, take captive my roaming thoughts. As you spoke and stilled the tossing waves for nervous disciples, speak and still my disquieted emotions—even if nothing or no one around me changes. As you harnessed the power of the wind, harness the passions of my will, that I might obey the gospel of grace. So very Amen, I pray, in your mighty and merciful name.

A Prayer About My Restless Antsy Heart is a post from: Heavenward by Scotty Smith