Its not in our control

 I have often been amazed how much I can delude myself into thinking that I am in control of things that I have absolutely zero control over.  I have made just a short list:

    I am not in control of how other people respond to me.

    I am not in control of what other people think and feel.

    I am not in control of what happens on any given day.

    I am not in control of what my circumstances are or will be.

    I am not in control of what trials God chooses to send my way.

    I am not in control of what blessings God chooses to send my way.

    I am not in control over the choices of others.

And the list could go on.  I find it is helpful to remind myself of these things because if I do not it might affect how I think and feel about any of these items.  But realistically I have no control over them and so I should not stress about avoiding, preventing or causing any of them.  But I do have some semblance of control over how I respond to these things.  In fact, God calls me to respond in particular ways to these events and I am responsible to follow His will for me as I engage this world - even if I do not have as much control as I think I do.

A brief comment on love

 This Friday is Valentine's Day.  I do not know if you celebrate this particular day, but it is a day when the thoughts of most people go to love.  I think that in some respects, no one ever grows out of the phase of life where we share little candy heart messages that are supposed to express our "feelings" toward each other.  At the end of the day the whole idea of love that our culture preaches to us is a message that begins and ends with the self.  I am supposed to love myself, make sure that those I love love me in return.  It is all about me and what makes me happy.  

This is not the biblical picture of what love is.  A biblical love is not self focused, but focused upward and outward.  First love is to be directed upward to God.  Then it is to be directed outward toward others.  And only when you do those things properly will you find true joy.  

So the challenge this time of year is to focus our loves rightly.  To direct our feelings into action upward and outward!

Strength and Weakness

 I think that one of the areas in which we reveal if we are following culture or the Word of God is the area of strength and weakness.  The world around us is designed to point us to building strength and minimizing weakness.  We are told that we are supposed to emphasize the strong points.  Like we are building our resume, every time we talk to someone we emphasize the things we are good at and minimize the struggles.  Interestingly, the Bible says the opposite.  It says that God's strength is manifested when we are weak.  It tells us that when we are weak, then we are strong.  It emphasizes that we are to deny self and die to self and instead build up others.  What an interesting contrast.  So the next time you are feeling particularly helpless, perhaps remember that God will get the glory when you acknowledge that you cannot do it apart from His help!

The importance of the authority of the Word of God

 I am convinced, with a greater degree of certainty each day, that we have lost in our practical lives the doctrine of Sola Scriptura.  We actually have lots of paths to understanding authority.  Most of us are more influenced far more by our own individualism than we are by the Word of God.  We live under the authority of our own understanding than we do under the fear of the Lord and listening to the Scriptures He has left for us.  We are far more interested in the authority of what our close friends and family say than we are in the authority of Scripture.  We are far more concerned their values and making sure we are not falling short than we are understanding the value that God places on various aspects of our lives.  We are far too connected to cultural values and understanding than we are to the Biblical account of things.  We worry too much about what our friends and neighbors will think and say.  We sometimes are fearful of losing chances to proclaim the Word of God to them and so we do not mention it at all so as not to put them off.  

The idea of the sufficiency of the Scriptures for the role of sole authority and practice has been left behind practically.  Most of us of course would never say that we follow what the Pope says, but instead we have replaced the Pope with self, and family, and culture.  These become our guiding factors instead of the Word of the Lord.  

I wonder what would happen if we lived under the authority of the Scriptures in an intentional way.  Would it impact how we use our time?   Would it change how we spend our money?  Would it adjust how we view other people?   Would it correct our poor behaviors?   And if it is not doing these things on a daily basis, perhaps we should consider that the Word of God is not our true authority and ask ourselves, "What is?"

A New Year

 It is a new year!  I think that we sometimes celebrate weird things in weird ways.  After all, we count birthdays up from 1 and the longer they go the less we want to see them.  However, after celebrating my birthday this year and being one year older, I celebrate the new year and do not associate it with age.  We celebrate the transition between December 31 and January 1 with a dropping ball and fireworks.  And yet the passing of January 1 into January 2 or any day thereafter is essentially a meaningless passing.  When the clock hits midnight we begin a new day and have all sorts of goals that many set for how they will do better in certain areas in the coming year.  Why not start that on December 31?  Why not earlier?  Why do we struggle to keep our resolutions beyond the 4th of 5th?  We celebrate weird things in weird ways. 

The Jews had a new year too.  They celebrated it because the celebration marked the greatest redemptive act in their history.  It was to be 14 days before Passover.  It was to mark the time of the leaving of Egypt because of the greatness of their God.  I wonder what would happen if we marked and celebrated our new years based on the work that God had done for us.  Now that would be something worth remembering and celebrating.  

So, what has God done for you?  What is it that God has worked in your life in the last year?   Mark time this year by what God is doing in your life.  Count the days from what God has done and anticipate what God will do!

Ends and Beginnings

 One year is drawing to an end.  Another year is beginning.  So often we focus on either one or the other aspects of this.  Either we focus on the year we had (we typically do this when it was a good year) or we focus on the year to come (because we are so eager to get out of the year we just had).  We either look backward or forward.  I have found something interesting as I have taken up the habit of walking and now been walking regularly for a few years now.  I am not sure how well it applies, but I guess I will leave that for the reader to decide.  

When walking, you cannot look too far ahead, and you cannot look backward.  Both options are a recipe for disaster.  If you are looking too far down the sidewalk or the road you will miss what is right in front of you.  This often leads to tripping.  If you are not watching the ground you are walking on you tend to trip.  Sometimes it is the edge of a sidewalk block that is slightly raised.  Sometimes it is subtle curve or change in the pavement that trips you up, but if you do not see it, you will trip.  

When walking you cannot look behind you either.  Every time I look behind I wind up steering myself off to the side that I am looking toward.  So if I look over my left shoulder at something behind me, I tend to start walking to the left.  I cannot walk in a straight line without looking at where I am going.  But again, this does not mean I just have to look forward all the time.  In fact, the best place for me to look for safety (especially now that it is winter) is directly in front of me, where my feet will step next.   

It is almost like we are not supposed to worry about what is to come too much, and not fret over what we have left behind too much.  Biblical balance seems to have gratitude for the past and leave the future to God, but to fix our behaviors on what is happening now.  To behave in this moment in the way God has called us to behave.  To think and say in this moment what I am supposed to think and say.  To leave the rest to God!

Christ is Coming!

 Today we lit the first advent candle as part of our worship service.  The preparation of our hearts and minds as we approach the Christmas celebration is critically important.  I think that we do not take the time to prepare and because we do not take time to prepare, we forget.  After all, what we tend to remember we tend to prepare for.  We do not remember the quick trip to the grocery store for a loaf of bread for more than a day or two.  We do not remember the weekly trip to the grocery store much more than a week or two.  But we might remember the trip to the grocery store that we did to prepare for our 3 week vacation.  Or the trip to the grocery store to prepare for the holidays.  Because it is in the preparation for something that memory is created.  I remember the proposal I gave to my wife because I prepared for it.  I could not tell you what our fourth date was.  We just enjoyed it, there was no preparation for it. 

When it comes to Christmas, we so often simply let it happen to us.  We do not prepare.  We do not consider what the Bible says about the narrative.  And so to remind us today to prepare, let me simply state that the whole story of Scripture is focused in on the story of the coming of Christ to earth.  The OT looks forward to it and the NT looks back on it.  The life of Christ is the central theme of the gospel.  What He did for us in His life and death and resurrection is the central work for all who believe.  We NEED Jesus.  And so remind yourselves this year to prepare to celebrate the coming of Christ more than you prepare to celebrate with your families.  Make the celebration with your families center on the work of Christ and not just your own personal traditions.  Prepare to celebrate Christmas by preparing to remember that it is all about Jesus.