Ozymandias

When you bow down before the Lord and admit your dependence on him, he will lift you up and give you honor. – James 4:10

I met a traveller from an antique land,
Who said -- "two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert ... near them, on the sand,
Half sunk a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
And wrinkled lips, and sneer of cold command,
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them, and the heart that fed;
And on the pedestal these words appear:
My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings,
Look on my Works ye Mighty, and despair!
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal Wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away." – P. Shelly

Osymandias is the Greek name for the Egyptian king Rameses II, who lived from 1304-1237 BC. You know, the Pharaoh of Exodus fame. He reigned for 67 years and if there had been a Guinness Book of World Records at the time, he would have appeared in it. He built the most cities, the most statues, the biggest pyramid, had the most wives (eight–not counting concubines), and fathered over a hundred children! He ruled a territory that stretched from Libya to Iraq, from the Sudan to Turkey. At his command, cities were demolished and families were separated. He actually believed that he was a god! The inscription on the pedestal of his statue reads "King of Kings am I, Osymandias. If anyone would know how great I am and where I lie, let him surpass one of my works." This Pharaoh thought that he was all that and a bag of chips.

But then he came across the real deal. He encountered the God Job described in Job 9:4-13 For God is so wise and so mighty. Who has ever challenged him successfully? Without warning, he moves the mountains, overturning them in his anger…If he sends death to snatch someone away, who can stop him? Who dares to ask him, “What are you doing?” And God does not restrain his anger. The mightiest forces against him are crushed beneath his feet.

We all know what it took to break Pharaoh. What will it take before you submit to the mighty hand of God? When will you yield to Him? At what point will you lower your flag in unconditional surrender? I don’t want you to miss the point – you will yield. You WILL surrender. The question is not if but when. At the name of Jesus every knee will bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:10-11) A wise man would recognize an unbeatable force and reconcile himself with it. A wise man would beware of the Ozymandias syndrome.

Patience of the Sands

It is better to be patient than powerful; it is better to have self-control than to conquer a city. – Proverbs 16:32

Many years ago, a French company decided it was going to mine the desert. It brought in its machines, pushed aside the huge dunes building in their place an airstrip and a building complex. They hooked up huge diesel-powered generators and began digging.

But the Sahara has been around a while and is unimpressed by our civilization. After all, it has seen many human empires come and go. Like a dragon sleeping on its hoard, it jealously guards millions of human bones deep within its bowels.

Dust wore out the monster machines repeatedly and the heat killed off many more. The sand dunes kept shifting and burying the airstrip and the highway they had built. It began costing more and more until the company finally realized they were paying a huge price for their mineral harvest. Grain by grain, dust mote by dust mote the desert started to smother the Frenchmen.

After the French finally cut their losses and went home, the desert patiently began stripping the buildings of their paint. It rusted all the metal till everything collapsed. Then it buried the whole sad affair under one huge dune. Five years after the human invaders gave up, there was no evidence they had ever even been there.

There are lessons to be learned from this debacle. First, we must not be so arrogant in our estimation of technology. Sometimes, we feel that our machines can conquer anything. But we must recognize in our efforts to fill the earth, and subdue it (Genesis 1:28) that we are stewards – not conquerors.

Second, we should understand the concept of “die back.” Nature has a way of finding equilibrium. If, like a virus, we endlessly replicate and spew our excretions all over creation, like any living system invaded by another, creation will fight back. It will overheat until our polar ice caps start melting and the glaciers begin retreating, throwing our weather into a hurricane creating frenzy. The coral reefs will die, red tide will flourish and the large fish will be reduced to less than ten percent of their previous population. Viruses will rise (Ebola, Aids, Sars, Mad Cow, West Nile) that are resistant to our best drugs. Does any of this sound familiar? If we push nature, nature will push back – and we may lose.

Third, on a more personal level, nature’s patience should be imitated. We usually want our solutions immediately. Someone can’t get along and play nice so we just quit! But nature fights back a grain of sand or one virus at a time. Take your time. Fight like the jungle does. Send out creepers that wear down walls, slowly form cracks in concrete and cover up all their works. Wear them down, be slow, be patient, be in it for the long haul. Be as patient as the desert.

The Fiddler

The rain and snow come down from the heavens and stay on the ground to water the earth. They cause the grain to grow, producing seed for the farmer and bread for the hungry. It is the same with my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it. You will live in joy and peace. The mountains and hills will burst into song, and the trees of the field will clap their hands! - Isaiah 55:10-12

One day a very gifted, very skilled fiddler began playing in a park. His devotion to his music was such that he was soon completely enraptured by the act of playing. A crowd of people began to form around him, listening to music that was so uplifting that they spontaneously began dancing, forgetting all their worldly cares.

But then a deaf man happened by and stood with wondering eyes, gazing at the scene before him. He could not hear the music, so he could not understand why all the people were whirling around, stamping their feet, clapping their hands, smiling at one another. Since he couldn’t understand the reason for their joy and movement, he concluded that they were all madmen.

The music of God’s presence is everywhere around us. Nature sings of His almighty presence. Those who have a spiritual ear hear it, recognize the tune and cannot help but fall sway to its rhythms. The believer dances with joy, tapping his feet to the beat of God’s heart. He becomes enraptured by the Spirit’s presence, not inebriated with wine but on God’s love.

The unbeliever, being spiritually tone deaf, cannot understand what all the excitement is about. He does not hear the music that is playing in our hearts but looks only upon the outward ecstatic expressions of that love. That music is expressed when we care for one another, when we serve our community, when we submit to the appropriate authorities and work hard for our living; generosity is the harmony, love takes the lead, service is the backbeat and worship is the result.

The world looks at our eyes shining through our tears, our hope in the midst of terrible circumstances, our strength in the face of persecution and shakes its head crying out “Fools!” But they didn’t understand Christ’s light when He came either. “Although the world was made through him, the world didn’t recognize him when he came. Even in his own land and among his own people, he was not accepted. But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. They are reborn! This is not a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan—this rebirth comes from God.” (John 1:10-13).

Are you struggling through your life? Are you barely making it emotionally? Maybe you need to start listening to the Fiddler.

A Cattle Dealer’s Worship

The kind of fasting I want calls you to free those who are wrongly imprisoned and to stop oppressing those who work for you. Treat them fairly and give them what they earn. I want you to share your food with the hungry and to welcome poor wanderers into your homes. Give clothes to those who need them, and do not hide from relatives who need your help.
– Isaiah 58:6-7

There once lived a wealthy business man who took $1,500 (a fabulous sum in the day) to a distant city in order to conduct some business. While there, he happened to see on the street a remarkable elderly man whose entire demeanor expressed a holy joy. People explained to him, “That’s our Pastor. He is seeking donations to free people who have been imprisoned for their debts.”

Today’s passage teaches that ransoming captives is a very sacred deed (a mitzvah). The cattle dealer was so impressed with the godly man’s evident spirituality and holy desire that he approached the tzaddik and asked, “How much money do you need to collect?”

The Pastor replied “Only $1,500. I have worked for many days and have already collected $12! Praise to the Holy One!”

The cattle dealer gave the Pastor the $1,500 that had been designated for his business who in return gave the cattle dealer the $12 so that he could get home. The business man started to go and then turned back. “I have one favor to ask in return for my gift.” He said. “I would like for you to pray that I would experience the presence of the Holy One like you do.” The Pastor laid his gnarled old hands on the business man’s head and prayed for Jehovah’s blessing upon him.

When the business man returned home, his wife asked, “Where are the cattle you were supposed to buy?”

As he thought of the prisoners being released and the joy caused by his gift, he responded, “I have bought much better merchandise.”

That Sunday, the business man entered into worship with great zest. He fully realized the joy of worship liberated from material desires. He danced to the songs and lifted his hands in praise to the Lord as he heard the words of truth spoken.

Many of us long to experience true worship. But we remain trapped in our ideas of what worship entails. We long for relationship, but fail to reach out and serve others. We long for freedom, but clutch our wallets with palsied hands when the world is reaching out in need. You were liberated of the eternal consequences of your sin if you accepted Christ as your Savior. But are you still trapped by your desires? Seek first the Kingdom of God, above all else. Fear the Lord above all else. Therein lies to path to liberated worship.

Glorifying Work

The truth is, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father. You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, because the work of the Son brings glory to the Father. Yes ask anything in my name, and I will do it! - John 14:12-14

The work of the Son brings glory to the Father. That seems like a truism but when you put it together with what Jesus says in verse twelve, you begin to realize how important our role is in the universe. We exist to bring glory to the Father. We are to worship Him, glorify Him and enjoy Him. “But how do I do that?” you ask. Again, we turn to the phrase “the work of the Son brings glory to the Father.”

If you can identify the work of the Son and join yourself to that work, then you are realizing your purpose in life. What did Christ do while on earth? He fed, clothed, healed, exorcised, taught, led, challenged, rebuked, comforted, rejoiced, suffered and ultimately, died for humanity. So, feed the hungry. Heal the sick. Build hospitals, dispensaries, participate in or finance medical studies. Clothe the naked.

Do you know that there are some twenty million orphans in the southern half of the continent of Africa? Do you care? Bring people to Christ, freeing them from the darkness and the shackles of sin. Break the bondage of addiction and fear. Study so you can answer the world’s questions concerning God. If God is good, why is there evil in the world? If He is powerful, why doesn’t He stop wicked people? If God cares, why did this innocent child have to die? Comfort those who are hurting; rejoice with those who are happy. Accept your share of the suffering of this world and then take on some more so that someone else doesn’t have to. Identify with the weak and the sinful without falling into their sins. Be willing to lay down your life for the world.

Don’t whine about the evil in the world, yet do nothing to stop it. Don’t complain about the politicians who try to drive God out of our schools when you don’t get out and vote. Why sing “Nearer My God To Thee” when you don’t take the time to meet Him in devotions?

You see, Christianity is not about what you think. It is not a cerebral religion. It’s really quite simple. What you truly believe will drive you to action. If you think that the stove will burn you, then you will withhold your hand. You are built to glorify God. You are called to the work of the Son. Do you believe it? Do you understand it? Or, are you in rebellion to it? What are you DOING? That’s the real answer to these questions.

The Prideful Mouse

Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the world’s eyes, or powerful, or wealthy when God called you. Instead, God deliberately chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose those who are powerless to shame those who are powerful. God chose things despised by the world, things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important, so that no one can ever boast in the presence of God. – 1 Corinthians 1:26-29

A fable goes like this, a wise man was walking through the jungle when he saw a little mouse being attacked by a crow. Being filled with compassion, he chased off the crow and took the wounded mouse home. He fed his tiny charge milk and rice until it got better. One day, however, a cat saw the mouse and decided to eat it. Fortunately, the wise man was close by and saw the mouse running for its life once again. Out of pity for it he spoke an incantation and transformed the puny mouse into a muscular tomcat. The cat could now handily defend himself.

A few days later, a dog decided to bite the cat that had once been a mouse. Again the wise man was near, spoke a few magical words and the cat became a powerful pit bull that quickly dispatched his tormentor. Soon, as the pit was trotting through the jungle after the wise man, a panther came along and figured it hadn’t had dog for lunch for a while. The wise man quickly turned the dog into a huge, powerful lion and the panther decided it wasn’t that hungry after all.

Now the mouse was a lion – king of the jungle. But he became filled with pride and arrogance. He abused his power by chasing animals unnecessarily and roaring for the sheer delight of hearing his own voice. The wise man chided him. “Be filled with pity on those who are weaker than you. Remember what you used to be. Without my help you would still be a mouse!” The lion was angry at the suggestion that he was less than a kingly lion. His pride injured, he decided to kill his benefactor. The wise man, however, knew the lion’s mind and changed him back into the mouse he truly was. The little mouse scuttled away into the jungle to live out his lackluster, fearful and decidedly short life.

We must remember that without Christ, we would be nothing. We were sinners when He came into our lives. We are still sinners at heart, but we now have a new status by the grace of God. Anything we accomplish is accomplished by His strength. Any gift or talent we possess came from the Giver of good gifts. Let us humbly serve Him in whatever way He deems best. Let us revel in our “kingliness” but give the glory to the Maker.

Unfailing Love

Your unfailing love is better to me than life itself; how I praise you! Psalm 63:3

A person who recognizes God’s unfailing love in his life is on his way to wisdom. He will discover that peace comes from knowing that God has his best interest at heart. He will find joy because he is now at liberty to pursue the interests that develop from his natural gifts and talents. He will be patient in that pursuit because he understands that he is immortal and has all eternity to develop his skills. He is kind to his fellow man because he can afford to be. Their petty slights are meaningless to an immortal. As a result of his kindness, he is generally better loved by others.

All these traits come from discovering that God’s love is truly unfailing. But how can one go about discovering this eternal fount? How can you know intellectually – experientially - that God loves you? Take a look at the cross.

God’s love was so deep and unimaginable that even before you were born, before the foundations of the universe were laid, He set a plan in motion that would offer reconciliation for sins you had not yet committed. He loved you so much that when He knew that your sin would separate you from Him, He preferred death to that separation. He took on the form of a man (in itself a type of death for an infinite God), was born in a backwater province of the Roman Empire, withstood all the onslaughts of Satan, refused to give in to the temptations of his human flesh, and died a horrible death which by all rights should have been yours.

God’s gifts may be delayed by His love. That’s right, by His love. He may want to give you all things immediately, yet His love will only allow Him to give them to you at the perfect time. He will not spoil you, but He also will not bring undue hardships to you.

When life throws you curves and you are tempted to ask God “why?”, ask yourself “why not?” Why not you? Would you prefer that hardship be given to someone else? Who then? To whom would you give this suffering? Christianity should breed heroes. We do not fear the consequences of death so we face it gladly. Because we are assured of our place in heaven, we should be willing to lay down our lives for someone else whose fate is not so assured. We should be willing to imitate our Master who took on all the sins, burdens and grief of the whole world and bore it in the world’s stead. What have you done to deserve an easy life? With all the things He has done for you, could you not take a few hardships for him? Trust Him. Trust His love.

Three Views

Then a despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw the man, he felt deep pity. Kneeling beside him, the Samaritan soothed his wounds with medicine and bandaged them. Then he put the man on his own donkey and took him to an inn, where he took care of him. - Luke 10:33-34

In the story of the Good Samaritan, we see three very distinct perspectives on life. There were the thieves who mugged the poor man, taking his things and leaving him for dead. They are like those who care nothing for the poor, but deliberately exploit them. Their view is “What’s yours is mine – I’ll take it.”

Then you have the religious and the successful that pass by those in need; too busy to see, too disgusted to stop. They refuse to take time out of their busy schedules to raise someone out of the ditch into which they’ve fallen. They cannot stain their Armani suits with the body fluids of someone who “should’ve known better.” Their choice is to ignore the need. Their view is “What’s mine is mine – I’ll keep it.”

Then you have the good Samaritans of life. They stop, look and act. They pick up those who are wounded by life and take them to help. They give of their time, of their money, of their efforts and of their hearts. They not only take a moment of their time to write a check but make a commitment to return to the issue and do more if necessary. Their view is “What’s mine is yours – I’ll share it.”

Which of these three views do we see the most evidence of in the world? One and one-half acres of rainforest are lost every second with tragic consequences for both developing and industrial countries. And rain forests are merely one issue of many thousands! We are destroying our own planet for the sake of the bottom line.

Which of these views do we see in our county? Where I live in the rural midwest, we have 51 churches in a county of approximately 18,000 people. If each church could care for, nurture and love 350 people, no one would fall through the cracks. And yet we have working poor with no health insurance and who cannot escape the consequences of their own mistakes and sins.

Jesus, when faced with people’s needs, inevitably dealt with both their physical and spiritual needs. (Mark 2:9-12) It is time for the Church to gather her wits about her and seek solutions to this world’s problems. If we cannot offer solutions to the poverty of their lives, how can we pretend to offer help for the poverty of their souls? If we are more concerned about liability in ministry than the liberation OF the ministry, then we should evaluate which of these three views characterize us.

Wile E. Coyote and Odd Symmetry

If you set a trap for others, you will get caught in it yourself. If you roll a boulder down on others, it will roll back and crush you. - Proverbs 26:27

Do you remember the Bugs Bunny Road Runner Show? I used to love watching the coyote trying to catch the road runner. “Wile E. Coyote – Genius” it said on his business card. He would buy a catapult from the ACME company and try to launch a big rock. The only problem was that the rock went straight up and landed on him. He tried to move farther away but the platform flipped instead of the arm and landed on him. It seemed that no matter what he did, it ended up hurting him!

There is a great biblical principle hidden in this cartoon designed for children (or the child-like). There is an odd symmetry to the universe. “I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you,” says the Lord (Genesis 12:3). “(The wicked) set an ambush for themselves; they booby-trap their own lives! Such is the fate of all who are greedy for gain. It ends up robbing them of life” (Proverbs 1:18-19). “Those who shut their ears to the cries of the poor will be ignored in their own time of need” (Proverbs 21:13). Jesus taught, “Stop judging others, and you will not be judged. For others will treat you as you treat them. Whatever measure you use in judging others, it will be used to measure how you are judged.” What goes around comes around.

In the book of Esther, a wicked bigot named Haman lusted after power and hated a Jew named Mordecai. He plotted and schemed to gain power for which Mordecai cared not a fig. But because Mordecai loyally served the king, Haman ended up being forced to honor Mordecai publicly (6:11). He tried to have the Jews killed by deceiving the king, only to end up having the Gentiles slaughtered by the Jews by order of the king. He wanted to have Mordecai hung, so he had gallows built in his yard that he and his sons ended up hanging on! We see in chapter eight that Haman’s signet ring was given to Mordecai. His house was given to Mordecai. Everything he desired was given to his enemy. Everything he plotted fell back on him.

Jesus understood this odd symmetry, this reciprocity that runs the universe and taught that if we want to gain our lives we must be willing to lose them. If we want to be great in the kingdom of God, we must be willing to be the least. If we want to rule, we must be willing to serve. Small wonder then that He would teach us “Do for others what you would like them to do for you. This is a summary of all that is taught in the law and the prophets” (Matthew 7:12).

Wrestling Gorillas

Draw close to God, and God will draw close to you. – James 4:8a

Have you ever tried to grapple a 300-pound gorilla? It would be like wrestling under water. When you push, instead of moving your opponent, you actually end up moving yourself. I understand that this same effect is found in space. Astronauts end up spending many, many hours in huge pools, trying to get used to the difference in leverage.

Unfortunately, many Christians have not learned how to use the different leverage that is found in prayer. We believe that by praying, we are going to move God to perform a certain action. Instead, we find that prayer is like pulling on a rope that is attached to something immoveable. Instead of moving the anchor point, we end up moving ourselves. This is not necessarily a bad thing. Through prayer, we end up with a different perspective on things. We learn that by moving ourselves, we still end up at the same relative distance and we are now in a new position of power and leverage. It is counterintuitive, but works.

When I say that prayer draws you closer to God, I don’t mean that He loves you more. He could never love you any more than He already does. After all, Christ showed His love for us in that while we were still sinners, He died for us. I also don’t mean that you are closer to God in the sense of space. God at times created things that allowed us to “see” Him like the shekina glory over the tabernacle so that we would know when to address Him and would have a place to look. He allowed Moses to see the “back” trailing edge of His glory which caused Moses’ face to shine for days. But Christ tells us that “no one has seen God (the Father) at any time.” Your prayers cannot bring you any closer to a God who is omnipresent. But it does bring you closer to His way of thinking. It causes you to become more “Godlike”. Remember the Devil’s lie to Adam and Eve that if they would disobey God they would become gods? The truth was sadly the opposite. They became mortal and further from being Godlike than they were before. Only through prayer, only through righteousness, only through obedience and submission to God does that hope ever get fulfilled.

If you let it, prayer will also allow you to begin thinking outside of the box. It will allow you to see the world from God’s perspective. Instead of trying to cause your circumstances to change, you will begin trying to see what God wants you to do IN your circumstances. It will teach you the wisdom of God. But you cannot try to move the immoveable throne of God. Instead, pull on the towrope of prayer and you will find yourself a little closer to the throne with a whole new perspective opening up for you.

False Humility

This command I am giving you today is not too difficult for you to understand or perform. It is not up in heaven, so distant that you must ask, ‘Who will go to heaven and bring it down so we can hear and obey it?’ It is not beyond the sea, so far away that you must ask, ‘Who will cross the sea to bring it to us so we can hear and obey it?’ The message is very close at hand; it is on your lips and in your heart so that you can obey it. – Deuteronomy 30:11-14

Sometimes people come to me complaining about their struggle with sin. They talk about their battle with the devil as though it were World War III and liken it to the struggle described in Ephesians 6:12.

I understand what they’re saying and to a degree I’m forced to agree with them because I am equally guilty! I also have not achieved a sinless state as yet. Maybe next week!!! Though there is a process to salvation and we are “working out” our salvation like a baker works the yeast into every bit of the dough (Philippians 2:12), I must also believe that the commands of God are not impossible to achieve.

Christ told us that His yoke was easy. There is still a yoke, a burden, but it is a light one. God tells us that His commands are not difficult. They don’t require a tremendous effort. Christ reiterated this when He said that if we just had a mustard seed’s worth of faith, we could move mountains. So, what’s the problem?

Part of it could be the Pharisee Syndrome. The Pharisees were a legalistic and separatistic group who strictly but often hypocritically kept the law of Moses and the unwritten “tradition of the elders” (Matthew 15:2). Jesus accused them in Matthew 23:4 of crushing the people with impossible religious demands, yet those hypocrites would never lift a finger in order to help. Perhaps the terrible burden that you are struggling with is one of your own making. Carefully check it out in the Scriptures. Is this something that God is actually demanding of you?

A large part of the problem, however, is false humility. I call it false because it seems so humble to admit your failures and weaknesses. All the while, our wicked and treacherous hearts are providing us with an excuse to not do what we know we should. “If only I were stronger, I could accomplish this, Lord! If only I weren’t sinful by nature, I could better love my neighbor, Lord! If only my heart weren’t so wretchedly evil I could do what you tell me.”

God’s response is “Listen folks, this isn’t rocket science.” As a wise man once said, “It is not so much all the things in the Bible that I do not understand that disturb me so much as all the things that I do understand and don’t obey.”

Resistez!

And I assure you of this: If anyone acknowledges me publicly here on earth, I, the Son of Man, will openly acknowledge that person in the presence of God’s angels. But if anyone denies me here on earth, I will deny that person before God’s angels. – Luke 12:8-9

A couple hundred years ago, in the southern French town of Aigues-Mortes, a young girl named Marie Durant was dragged before the court and charged with heresy. Marie was a Huguenot. She was bright, attractive and only fourteen years old. In those days, fourteen was marriageable. She was commanded to deny the Huguenot faith. She was not asked to commit any immoral act, sacrifice to an idol or even change her lifestyle significantly. She only had to say one French word – “J’abjure”. It means “I deny.” That was it. But she would not deny Christ. So she and thirty other women who were accused of the same crime of heresy were imprisoned in a tower by the sea.

“J’abjure.” It’s not a lot to say. Such a small price to pay for one’s freedom. She could have been at home in her village. She could have enjoyed the attentions of young suitors. Marriage and children were hers for the asking. But for thirty-eight years she continued to refuse to utter that short word. And instead of saying “J’abjure” she scratched into the stone walls of her dungeon “Resistez!” which means “Resist!”

We live in a time marked by unholy loves, persistent self-seeking and monumental indifference. We think of the nearly four decades that she survived in that hellish place and shake our heads in wonder. Imagine the agonizingly slow passage of time in such a place; time which consumed and dried the once-beautiful skin, atrophied the muscles, caused the joints to become stiff and the mind to become stupefied by lack of stimulation. To feel all this and yet persevere in stubborn refusal to give up on a matter of principle seems stupid to religiously relativistic people.

Being a Christian is more than attending church as long as it is socially useful; more than something to mark on a card; so much more than the petty squabbles over inconsequentials that characterize most churches. It is a deep, abiding passion for the Christ that confesses His lovely name not just once in a quick, fiery blaze of martyrdom, but day after day after day for decades. A true Christian places the name of Jesus Christ above all other names and would rather die than ever deny Him before others or deny Him access to a part of our lives.

If you ever find yourself wondering whether or not Christianity is real; if you begin to doubt because you have never met a person you considered to be truly changed by their faith – then meditate on what it would take for a teenager to show that much strength and character. Whatever it was, what would happen if you could unleash it upon YOUR soul?

Ugly but Serviceable

Asserting in pride and in arrogance of heart: “The bricks have fallen down, but we will rebuild with smooth stones; the sycamores have been cut down, but we will replace them with cedars." Therefore the LORD raises against them adversaries – Isaiah 9:9b-11a

Ugly often works better. Though my current service dog is a pure bred Golden Labrador, some of the best dogs I have ever owned have been Heinz-57 mutts. In my experience, the best trucks are the beat up old rust pots that just never say die. The M-16A2 is a beautifully precise rifle. But if you even think about mud, it jams. The AK47 on the other hand is ugly but unbelievably rugged.

In the East, bricks are generally of sun-dried mud and therefore susceptible to rain. But since there is not a whole lot of rain in the Middle East, they work wonderfully. Consider how few stone artifacts remain for archeologists to study. Now compare the number of enormous mud brick cities that have survived the millennia and are still there for our perusal. Stone, though considered by the wealthy to be preferable to mud, is not actually better in the long run. Amos actually decried the stone mansions of the wicked because of their pretentiousness (Amos 5:11)!

Sycamores grow abundantly in the low lands of Judea and are useful in construction because of their antiseptic property. In fact, it is precisely because of this quality that the Egyptians used sycamore in their mummy cases. However, cedar smells nice. It’s free of knots (making for ease of use) and was again more highly valued because of its appearance (1 Kings 7:2-3; 10:27)

God provided the people of Israel with manna from heaven on a daily basis but they soon grew tired of this heavenly bread and longed for the leeks and onions of their bondage!

God offers us simple, healthy fare and we desire the sweet meats of this world, not realizing that it will soon turn to rottenness in our gut. We look for stuff that smells nice and is easy to use while God tries to get us to use material that actually works. Like children, we are easily attracted to the world’s candy when what we need is some spiritual broccoli.

This is why we are commanded to be satisfied with whatever condition or state God brings our way (Philippians 4:11). This is why Daniel satisfied himself with gruel when he could have had the kings’ meats (Daniel 1:8). This is why Moses turned down the chance to be Pharaoh and looked instead for the kingdom of God (Hebrews 11:24).

Perhaps your calling in life is not flashy. Perhaps there is not a lot of recognition or gratitude for what you do. Or, perhaps you’re thinking that your marriage is blah and the grass is looking greener elsewhere. Practice the spiritual discipline of simplicity. Remember – prettier is not always better.

Parents

Discipline your children while there is hope. If you don’t, you will ruin their lives. - Proverbs 19:18

Let me ask you a question, parents. What kind of a parent are you?

“Peter Pan” parents try to be mistaken for their teen’s older sibling. They know the name of the lead drummer of the latest rock band and can actually recite the words of a heavy metal song. They watch MTV and like sharing clothes with their teens.

“Good old boys” try to get along with their kids by sharing beer with their underage friends and lending them a car for their date alone with a girl. They smirk and allude to their own excesses as teens as they get their kids condoms or cigarettes.

“Doormats” talk the talk but when it comes down to it, they wimp out. They threaten constantly but when the kids call their bluff, they accuse everyone else but their kids.

“Ostriches” are also pushovers. They believe their kids when they come home from a party reeking of liquor and are told someone else splashed the kid with liquor as a joke…the same thing has happened at the last 6 parties.

“Corporate raiders” threaten teachers, sneer at other parents and generally have snobby attitudes. People try to avoid issues with them because they’re always threatening to sue. They’re constantly pushing their kids to get straight A’s, and are never satisfied with the child’s achievements.

“Donald Trumps” rent limos for school dances and reward their child with a Corvette for passing the driver’s exam. In comparison to Trump teen’s designer wardrobes, Nancy Reagan dressed like a bag lady. But they don’t have the time to spend getting to know their kids. They’re shocked when their spoiled brats shoot someone at school because they couldn’t see the signs.

And then there are the “super parents”. They gladly get up at 5 A.M. to drive to swim meets, they chauffeur their kids when their kids are too slow or lazy to get on the school bus. They sew costumes for school plays on 5 minutes notice and have been known to give up World Series Tickets for a chance to chaperone a band trip to Boca Raton. We usually pray they’ll be ruined by scandal in order to prove to our teens that their behavior masks the fact that they are evil aliens trying to dupe us all until it’s time to take over the planet and turn us all into mindless parentoids.

Whatever kind you are, are you aware of what God expects of us? According to Proverbs, we are to instruct, teach, guide and exhort our kids – not be their best friend. Hebrews 11:23 says that parents are to protect their children – not buy cigarettes for them. Deuteronomy says we are to correct our children and 2 Corinthians that we should provide for them. Paul tells fathers to not stimulate anger in their children. How can you correct, train, educate and discipline your child without stimulating anger? Two words: Care and Consistency.

Here Lies an Honest Man

“The Lord demands fairness in every business deal; he sets the standard.” – Proverbs 16:11

Quentin O’Connor, the noted lawyer, died and went to heaven. He had no sooner gotten inside the Pearly Gates when a tremendous chorus of angels began to sing gloriously in his honor. The air was filled with a golden aura, clouds of incense wafted everywhere, and approaching O’Connor was St. Peter himself.

“O’Connor,” said the celestial gatekeeper, “we have long been awaiting you. You are the first human being ever to break Methuselah’s mark for longevity. You have lived 1,037 years.”

“What are you talking about?” said O’Connor, astonished. “I died at the age of sixty-five.”

“At the age of sixty-five?” said St. Peter, astonished in his turn, “Aren’t you Quentin O’Connor? The corporate lawyer?”

“Yes.”

“From Philadelphia?”

“Yes.”

“But the Record Book has you down for 1,037 years.”

“There must be some mistake. I’m only sixty-five.”

“Something must be wrong,” said St. Peter. “Let me study the book.” He did so and suddenly clapped his hand to his forehead. “Ah, I see where we made our mistake. We added up the hours you billed to your clients.”

Why is it so important to be honest? Well, for one thing, honesty is necessary for us to live in God’s presence. Psalm 24:3-4 says “Who may climb the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? Only those whose hands and hearts are pure, who do not worship idols and never tell lies.” God expects honesty from us.

My level of honesty or dishonesty reveals just what my character is. The Bible tells us that “the plans of the godly are just” (Prov. 12:5) and that “a tree is identified by its fruit” (Matt. 12:33). The Lord also told us in Luke 16:10 that “if you cheat even a little, you won’t be honest with greater responsibilities.”

So look out for all the little subtle dishonesties that we tend to play. Watch for trying to put yourself in the best light, even when it “stretches” the truth a bit. Otherwise you may end up as the lawyer who was buried in a cemetery with a tombstone that was inscribed “Here lies a good lawyer and an honest man.” A little boy walking by with his mother read the inscription and asked, “Mommy, why did they bury two men there?”

God Lover

This is the Good News about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God. Many people have set out to write accounts about the events that have been fulfilled among us. They used the eyewitness reports circulating among us from the early disciples. Having carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I also have decided to write a careful account for you, most honorable Theophilus, so you can be certain of the truth of everything you were taught. – Mark 1:1; Luke 1:1-4

There once was a great rabbi named Hillel who loved learning the Scriptures above all else. In his day, one had to pay a daily fee in order to be able to go to school and learn. Hillel was extremely poor and earned only one small tropaik a day. Part of it he paid to the academy in order to be able to study in the evenings after working all day. The rest supported his family.

One day he had not even earned a whole tropaik and could not afford the entrance fee. So that evening, he climbed up on the roof to listen to the lectures. He was so engrossed in the study of the Word going on that he didn’t notice that it was snowing. Soon he was covered in several feet of snow.

Fortunately, the next morning people noticed a human form was blocking the sunlight coming through the skylight. When they climbed up to see who was up there they found Hillel nearly frozen to death!

Luke addressed his gospel and the book of Acts to “Theophilus”. This name literally means “God lover”. Luke must have had a wonderful relationship with this person to have decided to write two whole books to him! Luke knew that Theophilus’ relationship with God was so important to him that he would appreciate the information on the life of the Master. Truth was so important to the both of them that they dedicated inordinate amounts of time checking the facts and pursuing leads.

As a pastor, I can pretty much predict the rise and fall of church attendance by the rainy days and holidays. If I hear that someone has a cold or an aching back, I can be fairly sure that they won’t be attending next Sunday. We make all kinds of excuses for not attending church or studying our Bibles. “It’s my only day to sleep in!” “I have to play golf sometime!” “I watched ER too late and now I’m too tired for my devotions.”

Oh! If only we had a generation of God Lovers; people who loved the Master so much that they would sacrifice parts of their meager salaries in order to be able to study the Word. If only there were people who would lie in the snow all night long just to hear the Scriptures explained – who would spend months tracking down other Christians just to hear their testimonies and write them down. If only we were all named Theophilus!

Christian Vaccination

I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot. So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth. - Revelation 3:15-16

In the 18th century, smallpox was a killer. Those infected would become covered in horrible pustules and die a painful death. Those who were fortunate enough to recover were left with ugly scars called “poc marks” on their skin.

Lady Mary Wortley Montagu had seen people in Turkey deliberately infect themselves with a mild form of smallpox in order to develop immunity to the more virile form - the first form of inoculation. She brought the knowledge back to England in 1721. Unfortunately, many died from the smallpox they were using to protect themselves.

Edward Jenner noticed that people who had contracted cowpox rarely caught smallpox. In 1796, he deliberately infected an eight year old boy named James Phipps with the pus of a cowpox sore. The boy became ill but recovered. Jenner then infected the boy with the normally deadly smallpox. The boy never caught smallpox and the practice of modern vaccination was born.

Vaccination against disease is a good thing. But I firmly believe that too many parents are giving their children a small dose of Christianity, which makes them immune to the real thing! The children know the religious rituals of Sunday but know nothing of a relationship with God Monday thru Saturday!

We attend church fitfully, read our Bible occasionally, and pray half-heartedly. Our worship is nonchalant and does not affect our day to day lives. Then our kids fail to take God seriously when they come of age because we have given them just enough “religion” to inoculate them against Christ.

Even worse, we convince ourselves of our Christianity because we are members of a certain church, or because we have regularly donated to charity, or whatever we decide to put under the “Christian activity” list. We fail to recognize that God is not impressed by our works. Our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment according to Isaiah 64:6. What a terrible thing to fool yourself into believing you possess something you do not. Jesus described what will happen to those poor self-deluded souls:

Not everyone who says to Me, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?” And then I will declare to them, “I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.” (Matthew 7:21-23)

Do not vaccinate yourself against the only thing in your life that can make you right with both God and man. Do not satisfy yourself with just a little religion. Take Christ – all of Him.

Laughing Off the Facts

Asserting in pride and in arrogance of heart: “The bricks have fallen down, but we will rebuild with smooth stones; the sycamores have been cut down, but we will replace them with cedars." Therefore the LORD raises against them adversaries – Isaiah 9:9b-11a

On September 12, 2001, Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle stood before the Senate and gave a speech decrying the 9/11 terrorist attack which included an unfortunate quote from Isaiah 9:10. Like many, he failed to note the context of that verse. It is actually a judgment on bravado!

Around 700 BC, the people of Israel had fallen away from God, forcing Him to bring judgment against them. Their pro-Assyrian king had been assassinated and replaced by an anti-Assyrian tool (2 Kings 15:22-26). They were under pressure from Syria and the Philistines to join an anti-Assyrian alliance. Calamity followed calamity and allies became enemies in a dizzying whirl of betrayal. But instead of humbly realizing that God was trying to bring them back into the fold, they arrogantly pronounced that come what may, they would rise from the ashes.

To laugh off the facts with false bravado may put heart into an audience. But to stubbornly refuse to face what the symptoms imply is foolishness. Nothing then can avert judgment. For a church to boldly claim good health when no one is joining and they have a bad reputation in the community is ludicrous. They should ask “Why are we in such straits?” and then change! To put on a brave front in the face of mounting terrorism is hubris. We need to ask “Why do they hate us?” A marriage that soldiers on through a succession of fights and long silences without counseling is a marriage that is doomed to failure, whether the couple actually divorces or not!

If you are not at peace with God and men, you need to ask yourself why. If your life has been a succession of dismal failures, or has been characterized by a “cut and run” doctrine, you need to stop and determine the reason.

First, get a reality check from a wise person. Candidly discuss your life with your counselor and see if patterns emerge (James 5:16). Second, compare your thought patterns, your philosophies and metaphysical outlook with the Scriptures. There is a way that SEEMS right, but that leads to destruction (Proverbs 14:12). See if you are actually on the right path. Third, spend time quietly asking God to examine you and see if there is any wicked way in you (Psalm 139:23-24). These three elements comprise a spiritual hat-trick: submission to wise counselors, submission to the scriptures and submission to the leading of the Holy Spirit.

Don’t stubbornly continue in self-destructive habits. Follow the Master Who was Himself submissive to the will of the Father (Philippians 2:5-11). The scriptures are clear – the path of submission is the path to ultimate victory.

Reminding God

“Have mercy on me, O God, because of your unfailing love. Because of your great compassion, blot out the stain of my sins.” - Psalm 51:1

We know that God is omniscient. We know that He cannot forget anything He chooses to remember. Yet, we find instances in Scripture where people remind God of His own attributes. In Psalm 51, David seems to be reminding God that His love is unfailing – that He is characterized by compassion. Why does David feel the need to remind God? It’s not so much that God forgets when He’s angry; it’s more like claiming promises of God. God tells us that His love never ends. So in prayer, we respond “God, I’m claiming the love that you promised.”

In the Bible, we find people arguing with God, like Moses who tried to stop God from killing the Israelis in the desert. He argued “The Egyptians will say, ‘God tricked them into coming to the mountains so he could kill them and wipe them from the face of the earth.’ Turn away from your fierce anger. Change your mind about this terrible disaster you are planning against your people! Remember your covenant...” (Exodus). 1 John 5:14 tells us that if we pray according to His will, God hears us. We know that it is God’s will that He be glorified. We know that it is His will that others see His power and witness His mercy. Make sure He knows that you will give Him the glory for the answer to prayer. Be sure to tell Him that you are looking out for Him, not just trying to escape the consequences of your sin.

This means that when He forgives you this time, you need to put some kind of safeguard in place so that sin won’t happen again. You cannot ask Him to forgive you while knowing in your heart of hearts that you plan to do it again. Repentance is not just mouthing the words “I’m sorry”. Repentance involves a changing of your ways. Do not think that you can psychologically manipulate the Lord of the Universe into becoming your private genie in a bottle, granting your three wishes. Remember that He knows your heart. He knows things about you that you don’t know about yourself!

Claim His power, love, mercy, compassion, pity, righteousness. Claim His goodness when asking for something material. Claim His immutability when asking for something He’s given someone else. Remind Him of His faithfulness when staking a claim on a promise He gave in Scripture. But my suggestion is: when you do…do it respectfully.

Terah’s Idols

Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit…You have not lied to men but to God. And as he heard these words, Ananias fell down and breathed his last. Acts 5:3-5a

There’s an old Jewish midrash out of Tanna d’Bei Eliyahu about Abraham and his father, Terah. It says that Abraham’s father, Terah, was an idol worshipper. In fact, he owned a shop where people could buy idols of whatever god they chose to worship. One day, Terah had to go somewhere and he left Abraham in charge. Abraham had doubted the power of these idols for a while, so he decided to smash them all while his father was gone. He proceeded to destroy the idols with an ax except for one, the largest, in whose hands he placed the ax.

Terah returned to find his stock demolished and naturally questioned Abraham as to what had happened. Abraham told him that the large idol had become angry at the lesser ones and had destroyed them all with an ax. Terah was absolutely livid and screamed, “Stop lying to me! You know that these idols can’t walk or talk or move!”

So, Abraham responded, “If they can’t protect themselves then why do you pray to them to protect you?”

Good question! Tell me something. To whom are you praying to today? Are you truly praying to God? Or, are you perhaps praying to yourself? Many times we discover, that when we should be praying to God, we are praying to ourselves instead. You know what I’m talking about. Those long rambling prayers that really sound like you’re trying to figure things out; trying to find a way out; trying to connive an escape route; trying to comfort yourself by developing excuses for your behavior. Making false promises to “never do it again” when in your heart of hearts you already know you want to.

Ananias and Saphira tried that one time. They wanted to look and act like they were doing something really holy. They were going through the motions, being religious, but they weren’t doing it for God. They were worshiping the people around them. They wanted to look good to the others in their church. So many times we catch ourselves praying to ourselves or to other humans. Yet, we humans are powerless to protect ourselves much less each other. What does it matter what other humans think of you? Can they add another day to your life? Why struggle – trying to answer your own questions? The fact that you’re asking questions shows you don’t have the answers. Why not give it up? Why not dedicate yourself anew to the real Lord of the universe? The Lord is the One who needs no one to defend Him; He’s the One who can actually make a difference in your life. But you must be sure that you’re actually praying to Him.

How to Say I love You

He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him. – John 14:21

A man approached a tzaddick, wanting to be reassured that he was on the right path. When the elder gently pointed out sins that the young man was contentedly living with, he answered, “Yeah, I know that those are probably sins, but I attend church, I provide for my wife and I don’t steal. So, I think that in the end God will accept me.”

The tzaddik was nonplussed by this attitude and sat thinking for a minute. “What do you do for a living?” he asked. The man said that he owned a construction company. “I would like to work for you for a day,” the tzaddik responded. The owner was bemused by the request but agreed.

When the day arrived, the tzaddik showed up late. He told the owner, “I know I’m late, but it’s okay. I brought a big lunch!” The owner had no idea how one was related to the other, but decided to let it go.

The young man gave the tzaddik instructions to clean up debris left over from the previous work days. “Clean this up and I’ll be back in an hour to give you more to do” he commanded.

When he came back, every bit of garbage was still sitting on the ground. The owner bit his tongue as the elder excused himself. “I didn’t get the garbage picked up like you asked but I did build a table at which to eat lunch!”

The owner asked the tzaddik to plumb a wall with a 4 foot level. Instead, the tzaddik used a 6” torpedo level. Of course, the wall he built was leaning terribly. The owner was fuming internally, but managed to control himself.

On and on, the day went. Everything the holy man was told to do was left undone. He always did something different instead. Finally, the young construction worker could take no more. He roared his disapproval, calling the tzaddik disobedient, rebellious and completely inept.

The tzaddik smiled at him and said, “Now you know how God feels when you choose to replace His will with your own.”

God says “I want you to attend church” (Hebrews 10:25). We answer, “But it’s my only day to sleep in!”

God commands, “Serve one another. Think of other’s needs not just your own” (Philippians 2:3-4). We whine, “They just aren’t meeting my needs! They don’t make me feel good, safe or comfortable.”

God tells us, “Do not conform yourself to the mindset and philosophies of this world” (Romans 12:1-2). And of course, we say, “How close to the edge of sin I can get without getting burnt?”

We truly demonstrate love when we obey. Are you telling God you love Him very often?

Treading the Necks of Kings

Then Joshua said, “Remove the rocks covering the opening of the cave and bring the five kings to me.” So they brought the five kings out of the cave—the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish, and Eglon. Joshua told the captains of his army, “Come and put your feet on the kings’ necks.” And they did as they were told. “Don’t ever be afraid or discouraged,” Joshua told his men. “Be strong and courageous, for the Lord is going to do this to all of your enemies.” - Joshua 10:22-26

The first time God commanded the Israelites to cross the Jordan River and begin taking possession of Canaan, the people had balked. They considered the giants that were in the land, the huge fortified cities and the large professional armies and were too afraid to proceed. So, God made them wander in the desert for forty years until that entire generation died. Then He tried again. The next generation was made of sterner stuff and went about the task enthusiastically if not always intelligently.

But apparently, there was still a residual fear because Joshua himself had to be reminded several times to be courageous (Joshua 1:6-9). Here, after a tremendous battle that involved taking on five armies at once, Joshua felt it was necessary to provide a visual lesson in courage.

The five kings they had fought against had deserted their armies and were hiding in a cave. Joshua ordered the people to wall it up so they could finish dealing with the armies. When the battle was over, they took the wall down and dragged the kings out. By making the captains place their feet on the necks of these proud kings, Joshua was hammering home the fact that these kings had no real power over God’s people.

What a lesson! We may not be fighting human armies, but we struggle every day with sin and the evil influences that pervade this world (Eph.6:12). And so many times, we run when we should be triumphantly placing our feet on their proud necks. We are opposed and persecuted and we run away caterwauling like a little baby when we should be spiritual warriors! God has already given us the victory – all we have to do is claim it!

Surely there is a mountain you can claim? Is there not one giant that you could dispatch? Are you truly content to remain safe and sound in the wilderness, to simply survive and wait for death?

Be strong and courageous, for you are destined to gain victory over the world, the flesh and the devil. Study the Bible continually. Meditate on it day and night so you may be sure to obey it well. Only then will you succeed. Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. Go place your feet on the neck of some proud king. See what God can do – through you.

The Healing Powers of Joy

A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person’s strength. – Proverbs 17:22

A tzaddik once visited an elderly woman who was gravely ill and expected to die. Everyone was sitting around mourning the passing of this godly lady. There were tears, sorrow, serious faces and whispered words. When the tzaddik arrived, he smiled at the family and asked them about their matriarch. He asked questions about her life, about the contributions she had made. As they spoke, the woman’s family began to be heartened and to speak louder. Soon the tzaddik was asking about the family vacations and good memories. As the family became more and more comfortable, they began to recall humorous incidents on their own.

Where once there was mourning and darkness, there was now rejoicing, laughter and celebration over a great life lived well. Lo and behold, the woman opened her eyes and began speaking. Within an hour, she asked where her supper was. There were many tears of joy and loving embraces as her loved ones took the opportunity to tell her one more time how much they loved her and appreciated her contributions to their lives.

Tell me – if you were lying in a sick bed dying and could hear what was going on, would you be tempted to stay here on earth if all you heard was mourning and weeping? Let me ask you something else – if you are suffering; if you are in pain; how does making everyone around you suffer help? Does it relieve your pain to wallow in self-pity? Do you find healing in making your loved ones miserable?

Take the Master as your example. He suffered in all ways as we, yet without sin. He went to the cross and was tortured yet did not open his mouth in protest. His response was to forgive his torturers and to provide care for his mother.

If you will graciously accept whatever God has determined for you, perhaps you will find a degree of comfort and healing. There are very few drugs that are as effective as a good joke. I have watched people undergo terrible traumas. I have watched those who took their injuries well, with a sense of humor and I have watched those who did not. Inevitably those who disciplined themselves to be thankful for whatever God sent their way suffered less, healed more quickly or at the very least died well with the respect of those who watched over them.

Take pain, sickness and suffering well, with a cheerful attitude and a serving spirit; or, take pain, sickness and suffering badly, with a rotten attitude and a self-centered narcissistic attitude. Either way, you have to deal with it. Which way will be more Christ-like? Pain with joy – pain with bitterness; you choose.

Jonah's Box

“Throw me into the sea,” Jonah said, “and it will become calm again. For I know that this terrible storm is all my fault.”… Now the Lord had arranged for a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was inside the fish for three days and three nights. – Jonah 1:12, 17

Jonah was trying to take the credit for the storm. “Don’t you mean ‘took the blame’?” you may ask. No – I mean the credit. Jonah had a serious pride problem. It was always about his reputation. Apparently, he was something of a national hero, having successfully predicted that Jeroboam would restore Israel’s borders (2 Kings 14:25). But he tried to run from God and having been caught, he rose up and arrogantly stated “I am a Hebrew, and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the land.” (Jonah 1:9) He then decided that it would look better for him to have died sacrificing himself to save a ship, than to be remembered as a runaway, but God had other plans.

Later, when faced again with the possibility of looking bad, he resorted a second time to extravagant suicidal ideation. “This change of plans upset Jonah, and he became very angry. So he complained to the Lord about it: “Didn’t I say before I left home that you would do this, Lord? That is why I ran away to Tarshish! I knew that you were a gracious and compassionate God, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. I knew how easily you could cancel your plans for destroying these people. Just kill me now, Lord! I’d rather be dead than alive because nothing I predicted is going to happen.” (Jonah 4:1-3). There it is again – that death wish. He was upset because his predictions weren’t coming true. It was about pride!

Jonah continuously boxed himself in. He felt he had to maintain a certain image and that self-deception became his undoing. And in the process, he lost perspective of what was really important – people. People were coming to the Lord in repentance and confession of their sins. He was more upset over a dying plant that gave him shade than the destruction of 120,000 people.

We are all guilty (at times) of locking ourselves into boxes. As a pastor, it would be very easy for me to begin thinking I have to have the answers to life, the universe and everything. People come to me for counseling every day. They refer to me by my title and offer a certain amount of respect. But if I ever forget that I can make mistakes, I’ll be crowded into Jonah’s box too. I’ll lose perspective and think that it’s all about me and how I appear. I’ll begin thinking that my comfort, self-respect, image and reputation are more important than the people I serve. If that happens, I hope that God kills my shady plant too. Be careful! Don’t get stuck in Jonah’s box.

The Jewelry Merchant’s Suitcase

Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke fits perfectly, and the burden I give you is light.” – Matthew 11:29-30

A jewelry merchant and a tool seller simultaneously checked into a hotel. The jewelry merchant had his small case, filled with diamonds, emeralds and pearls. The tool seller had a trunk filled with hammers, saws, drills and other kinds of tools.

Both were served by the same porter. The jewelry merchant proceeded up to his room and the porter soon arrived and extended his hand for a tip. The merchant gave the man something for his efforts, but the porter cleared his throat and continued to hold his hand out, clearly indicating that it was not enough. He muttered something about the difficulty of lugging the jewelry merchant’s case up the stairs and how heavy it was.

The jewelry merchant exclaimed, “If you carried up a big heavy suitcase, then that was not mine! My suitcase is very light. You’ve brought the wrong suitcase!”

We Christians tend to carry the wrong suitcase at times. Jesus said that being His disciple would involve a cost, that there would be a load, but that it would be a light one. But we add all kinds of baggage to the load. We start adding on our human philosophies, our corporate procedures, our rituals and ceremonies. We carry all this excess weight around and then wonder why the Christian life is so difficult!

Paul encouraged us to strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily hinders our progress. He commanded us to run with endurance the race that God has set before us. How are we to do this? By keeping our eyes on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from start to finish. (Hebrews 12:1-2).

Our labors are often difficult. Ministry is not for the timid or the weak! But because it is a labor of love, it is not considered difficult. Because it is done with Christ as the co-laborer, the time passes quickly.

My wife enjoys gardening. She attacks the weeds with great gusto. She sweats, she gets dirty, she stays bent over on her knees for hours at a time. But when she stands up and surveys her work she smiles with satisfaction. I, for one, find no particular joy out of gardening. To me it is only labor pure and simple. But that serves to illustrate the point. Jesus gave each of us a particular gift, provided us with opportunities to hone them and put them to good use, and works along beside us as we grunt through it. That lightens the load.

We are warned that on judgment day many will discover their labors were in vain because they were unauthorized (Matthew 7:22-23). Let’s make sure that we are not carrying any excess and unnecessary baggage.

How to Become a Crocodile

“Who regards you as superior? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boat as if you had not received it?” 1 Corinthians 4:7

There once was a beautiful and talented river creature who would sing delightful songs to attract small animals to the banks of the river. Once there, the animals would be so captivated by the beauty of both its person and its song that it was able to capture the creatures for dinner. Its loveliness was a gift from heaven and it had a purpose. However, it became so proud of its song that it sang constantly, bringing more animals to itself than it needed to eat. It began killing for the sheer pleasure of killing. It became so caught up in its own beauty that it became sensuous. It would sunbathe all day and roll about in the mud simply to feel it sliding over its skin.

After a while, it sang so much that its voice grew tough and it could only croak. It spent so much time in the sun and rolling in the mud that its skin became tough and leathery. From being a beautiful river nymph, it transformed over time into a crocodile!

Any gift from God can be misused. We are susceptible to the sin of abusing the good things that our Father brings our way. We may be good looking and be susceptible to sensuousness. We may be intelligent and susceptible to pride. Patience may become procrastinating laziness. Diligence may turn into “workaholism.”

We must be careful to not turn the gifts of God into the tools of the Devil! Peter once made a great step forward when he proclaimed to the Christ, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.” (Matt. 16:13-19) The Christ commended him for his realization. However, Peter became filled with pride and in the very following verses (vv. 21-23) he took our Lord aside and rebuked Him for saying that He would have to die. Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.” Peter had gone from holding the keys to the Kingdom to camping out in Hell’s doorway!

Do not get so caught up in your good works that you begin thinking that the Kingdom of God cannot be built without you! Take other’s proclamations of your wisdom with a grain of salt. Do not take credit for the life lessons you have learned. Give that credit to the Master Teacher at whose knee you received the instruction. The Bible says that when we become a Christian that old things are passed away and we can look forward to new things. We are all constantly transforming. The question is – what are you transforming into?

The Emperor's Dirt

And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. Romans 8:28

A man named Nahum of Gamzu would always say, no matter what happened, “This too is for the best”.

The people of his village wanted to send a gift to the emperor. They decided to send Nahum because Nahum (with his cheerful disposition and evident rapport with God) had witnessed many miracles. He was sent with a saddlebag full of precious stones and pearls.

On the way, he stopped overnight at an inn. The innkeeper crept into his room while Nahum slept and emptied his bag of its precious cargo and replaced the jewels with earth. The next morning, Nahum discovered the change but simply said, “This too is for the best!”

When Nahum arrived at his destination, and bags were opened, they were found to be filled with dirt. The emperor thought the people of Nahum’s village meant to mock him and ordered Nahum’s death. Again, Nahum exclaimed, “This too is for the best!”

One of the emperor’s ministers whispered into the emperor’s ear, “Perhaps this is magical earth. It is said that when Abraham threw earth against his enemies, it turned into swords, and when he threw stubble, it transformed into arrows.” It just happened that there was a province the emperor was having a terrible time conquering. So the superstitious emperor ordered a stay on Nahum’s execution and had the dirt carried to the recalcitrant province. His generals threw some of the dirt at the enemy before attacking and then quickly defeated them.

The emperor was so overjoyed that he took Nahum to the royal treasury. The emperor had Nahum’s bags filled with precious stones and pearls, and then sent him home with great honor.

When Nahum arrived at the inn where he had stayed before, the innkeepers asked him: “Why are you being treated with such honor?” Nahum explained, “I brought only what I had in my bags when I left from here.” The innkeepers took some of the earth to the emperor and said to him, “The earth that was brought to you before belonged to us.” The emperor had the earth tested in battle, but God did not allow the enemies to be overcome this time and the innkeepers were put to death for insolence.

God can take the “dirt” that shows up in your life, those things that you tend to think are difficult, uncomfortable and unworthy, and make wonderful things happen through them. He can take your frustrations and turn them into character traits like patience, faith or longsuffering. But you have to trust Him. Look at each circumstance and tell yourself “This too is for the best.” Ask yourself what you can learn from this. Search for God each time and He will make Himself known to you.

In Jesus' Name

“The truth is, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father. You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, because the work of the Son brings glory to the Father. Yes ask anything in my name, and I will do it!” John 14:12-14

Did you notice that a couple elements are necessary for us to receive answers to our prayers? The first is that the Lord had to return to the Father. Jesus said He had to go so that we could receive the Comforter, the Holy Spirit. The Spirit’s role in prayer is to whisper to us of Jesus. Everything should ultimately lead us back to the glorification of Christ. The Holy Spirit also teaches us what is right and wrong. He prods our consciences so that things that previously may have never bothered us now do. Sometimes it works the other way. Things that bothered us tremendously before, may become trifling and unimportant under His tutelage. He keeps us focused on the truly important things in life. He also gives us the power to achieve what our consciences and hearts are trying to get us to do. So the Holy Spirit establishes the goal (Christ-likeness), shows us the way, and gives us the power to achieve our objective. That’s what I call a complete package! But in order for us to get it, Christ had to leave us.

The second required element for prayers to be answered is that they be in His name. This is so much more than simply tacking “in Jesus’ name – Amen” on the end of our prayers. Tacking on those words to the end of a self-centered, egotistical prayer will not cause God to answer positively. God is not a machine that automatically responds to a set of stimuli. To pray in Jesus’ name is to place His interests above your own. It means that you take on the projects, missions and goals that Christ had at the center of His ministry while He was here on earth. It means you pray for those and act in their interests. It also means you don’t hope your good works will get you on God’s good side so He’ll answer. Our works are so futile that He doesn’t love us any more for them or any less for their lack. His only consideration is our degree of faith and submission to His Son, Jesus. That’s painful. We like to think that if we feed the poor, God will love us more. We are like the prodigal son’s brother. He grew resentful when he realized the father loved both sons the same even though one ran away and the other remained. Praying in Jesus’ name means we realize that He’s the only one that counts. His will is the only one that matters. He must increase and we must decrease.

Spoiled Brat Prayers

“Your unfailing love is better to me than life itself; how I praise You!” Psalm 63:3

There are few things in life that are more irritating than a spoiled brat. We hate hearing that whining tone from our kids. So, why do we use the same tone with God? He gives us so much. How grateful are we? Every time something comes along that we don’t particularly care for, we murmur and complain. “Why me?” we ask. We develop negative attitudes and wonder why we haven’t heard from God lately.

We should be grateful for anything we get. We were the ones who broke the contract. We are the ones who daily give Him grief. We are the bad apples, the renegades, the prodigals. If we receive anything from Him, it’s a mercy. But we accept all the good things as a matter of course and then squeal when anything the least bit difficult comes our way.

Read through the Psalms, a book entirely devoted to prayer. Count out the number of verses in its chapters. Then as you’re reading, keep track of how many are devoted to requests and how many are dedicated to praise or gratitude. You will find that it is almost equal. How large a share does praise have in your personal devotions? How much time do you spend simply worshipping Him? Spending time on your knees in prayer is not necessarily time spent in worship if it is spent asking, asking and asking. Worship involves meditation on His attributes, His character and characteristics. It involves submitting yourself to His will and acknowledging that His ways are best.

Spend some time in prayer with a hymnbook in front of you. Pray through the ones that are filled with praise and adoration. Read poetry to God. Look through a coffee table book devoted to nature and share your impressions and gratitude for creation with Him. Devote yourself to thankfulness, for ingratitude is the death of prayer.

If you are given difficult circumstances, don’t try to get out of them or wonder what you did wrong. Instead, stop and consider that maybe God thinks you’re strong enough to handle it. It’s actually a compliment. Maybe He thinks you’re ready to step up to a higher difficulty level. Think of life as a video game. One of the characteristics of a good video game is that it gradually becomes more difficult as your skills improve. Whenever you get to that next level of difficulty, don’t whine and complain and cry “Why me?”. Try to rise to the challenge and glory in the idea that you were considered mature enough to get to this level. Periodically, just as in the video games, you get these big mean “bosses” that are so much harder and you sometimes despair of beating them. But you can rest assured that there is always a solution. How do I know that? Because that’s the nature of the game and the Programmer designed it that way.

Blue Blood

The record of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham: - Matthew 1:1

A tzaddik was called to be the elder of a wealthy church in a large metropolitan city. Shortly after his arrival, some of the more prominent members invited him to lunch. Hoping to impress their new elder, they each began listing their various exalted positions within the social strata of that great city. As the conversation progressed, they started discussing their heritage. “My ancestors came over on the Mayflower” claimed one. “I list Robert the Bruce as one of my ancestors” boasted another.

The tzaddik had listened quietly up to this point, but as the boasts began to be more and more apparent, he softly cleared his voice and put down his coffee cup. As the eyes of his parishioners turned expectantly toward him, he reminded them of their true heritage. “I,” he gently stated, “am a child of God.” (John 1:12)

We humans are easily sidetracked by pride. “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never yet been enslaved to anyone” the Pharisees boasted (John 8:33). They were forgetting that their heritage included 400 years of slavery in Egypt. They forgot that they had been conquered by the Babylonians, the Chaldeans, the Philistines, the Hittites and the Greeks. At the time of their boast, they were effectively subjugated by the Romans. The Master had come to offer them the Kingdom, but they turned from His offer in order to more effectively cling to their own pride.

We must beware of anything that would cause us to lean on something other than Christ. “We have the fastest growing church.” “We have the biggest church.” “We have the most famous pastor.” “Our pastor is on such and such a board.” “We read the Bible cover to cover once a year.” Our vain boasting goes on.

If there was ever anyone who could boast, it was our Master. By virtue of Joseph’s adoption, the Lord could legally claim the throne of Israel. But far greater than the claim to the throne of some poor back-water Middle Eastern subjugated kingdom is His claim to have personally seen and been sent by God Himself (John 6:46)!

If we are to be His disciples, we must imitate His mindset. Nothing we do should be motivated by selfishness or empty conceit. We must humbly consider our brothers and sisters in Christ as more important than ourselves and not merely look out for our own interests but also for the interests of others (Philippians 2:3-11). When we do this, we are clearly demonstrating that God is our Father and Christ our brother (Hebrews 2:11). We can then take appropriate pride in our blue blood.

An Inflexible Hippo

There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven…A time to keep and a time to throw away. - Ecclesiastes 3:1, 6

Most people think of hippopotami as fat, lumbering, slow, inoffensive creatures. But they can actually be very fast and very dangerous. They can become a serious problem when humans and hippos try to share the same space.

Many years ago in the country of Chad, a hippo had been kicked out of its territory by other hippos. It decided to take up residence in an area of the river where the villagers swam, washed clothes, and bathed. Several people had died as a result and the villagers were unsuccessful in killing the rogue animal. They sent for a missionary lady who had a high powered rifle and asked for her help. She quickly realized the problem. Hippos can stay underwater for a long time and this one would rarely surface and then only for a quick breath. It realized it was in danger and was using this strategy to remain alive. She watched the hippo all afternoon and most of the night. She finally realized that there was a pattern to where the hippo would surface. Once she knew what the pattern was, she simply set up a tripod at the next point, waited with her rifle and when the hippo surfaced…BOOM! The village had hippo steaks for a week!

The hippo had fallen into the trap of using an outdated strategy on a new problem. Its strategy had been perfectly adequate as long as it was facing villagers with bows and spears. But when circumstances changed, it failed to change with them and died.

The Bible says that there is a season for everything. That means that things that were perfectly all right at one time, may now no longer be appropriate. This includes human ideas and ways of doing things. What may have worked for you in the past may no longer work in the present. What may be bringing you success now may be your undoing in the future.

Christians must realize that there are new threats today and if we fail to identify them and modify our approach to life appropriately, we will fail in our mission. Our churches may die. Our families may founder. We must recognize the ongoing dissolution of the family unit and react. We must recognize that our children will face issues and dangers that we have never even dreamed of! The church must not be satisfied with the status quo. We must be constantly searching for new, better ways of preaching the old Gospel message. Our doctrine will not change. Our message will not change. Our love will not change. But if our “technique” does not change with the times, then we will be rightfully relegated to the trash heap of history for being obsolete and irrelevant.