I have never been a big fan of Valentine's Day. I am sure that there are some deep seeded issues here like maybe in first grade I got snubbed or something, but there are no major events that I can remember that have darkened me to the day. I do sometimes feel bad for my wife because she has never been able to brag about getting something on that day. (for the record, I do try to make sure she has gifts throughout the year - I am not a monster). I think the commercialism of the day has turned me off, but even more, I reject the notion of love that the day and our culture commemorate.
Love has been completely misused. And one of the reasons for this is that love has been turned inward on ourselves. We have been told that we need to love ourselves and love ourselves first and it is only when you love yourself that you will be able to move forward and love others. It is interesting that the Scriptures do not address this self-love with the same sort of admiration. In point of fact, self love is assumed in the Scriptures. We do love ourselves. Paul tells husbands to love their wives as they love themselves (Eph. 5:28-29). We are told that the second greatest commandment is to, "Love your neighbor as yourself." Self love is something we do not need any help with. It comes naturally. And the Scriptures tell us that if our self love becomes to great it is idolatry. If our love is expressed toward ourselves first and foremost, we are missing the boat because the first command is to love the Lord our God with all that we have. And then the God whom we are to love first tells us that we are to express love toward one another. In fact the commands of the New Testament alone makes this abundantly clear. I will cite only one example, but there are many.
"Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind, regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for our own personal interests, but also for the interests of others." (Philippians 2:3-4, NASB)
Again note that it assumes self love. What biblical love is is setting self aside for the benefit of another. Where is that conception of love in our culture today? Where is the understanding that love is fundamentally setting self aside willingly for the sake of others. This is how we are to love our children. This is how we are to love our spouses. This is how we are to love our neighbors. This is how we are to love our church family. Love is about others. Love is about self-sacrifice and service. And there is no greater example than the love that Jesus shows to us. When I compare His love to the love shown by the culture around me, there is no real comparison. God is love. He is the standard by which I am to measure that which I call love. So there is some work to do. Maybe I should get my wife something!
Tuesday, February 4, 2020
Tuesday, January 14, 2020
Eating a Banana
Have you ever had a moment when you were struck by the glory of our God in a weird way? Today I was eating a banana. As I bit into the slightly crunchy banana (the only way to eat them FYI) and the delicious banana flavor brought up so many memories of childhood banana pudding with those little round cookies in it. I finished the bite and just say in amazement at a God who would allow me to eat so many different and all delicious fruits. I can have this banana for breakfast and enjoy its sweet memories. I can eat my favorite fruit (pineapple) for lunch if I desire and enjoy the sweet acidic taste. I have oranges in my fridge too and can enjoy the taste of Florida and the reminder of our trip to see my sister-in-law and the stop at the welcome center for fresh Florida orange juice. I can look forward to the taste of strawberries this summer and eating them with shortcake and milk! I can even include the juicy tomato - on a burger or just poppable little grape tomatoes. And don't get me started on the exotic fruits that I can still get here in Michigan in winter.
I have all of these options to please my palate and of course I can thank my local grocer for that but even deeper, I am reminded of Eden before the fall. God created us a world so that we could enjoy it and enjoy the life we get to live for the glory of God in it. Sometimes we can adult too much and get caught up in worry and anxiety. Today, while eating a banana, (which I used to inexplicably call ba-mon-i as an toddler) I was reminded of the glory of God and His goodness to us!
I have all of these options to please my palate and of course I can thank my local grocer for that but even deeper, I am reminded of Eden before the fall. God created us a world so that we could enjoy it and enjoy the life we get to live for the glory of God in it. Sometimes we can adult too much and get caught up in worry and anxiety. Today, while eating a banana, (which I used to inexplicably call ba-mon-i as an toddler) I was reminded of the glory of God and His goodness to us!
Tuesday, January 7, 2020
New Year, New Start?
I think that for many people the new year becomes a time of both reflection and then a hope for a new start in some aspect of their life. For some it is the new start in diet and exercise that they look forward to. For others it is perhaps a new start in some aspect of their goals - be they at work or at home. It is a time to make plans and get organized in some aspect of life for a good number of people. I wonder however if anyone has actually taken the time to analyze the nature of change itself and wondered why and how it is that so many people fail when they have this new start.
Change in general is a difficult thing. And many people see change as something within their grasp to do as if change were simply a mental choice - I want to change the way that I look at something and so I just say, I am going to change and magically, change will happen. Except that does not seem to match the reality that change is hard and sure enough frustration comes because change does not actually happen no matter how much I mentally assent to the desire to do so.
Some people think that if they just get the right tools that change will happen. If I want to change my life through exercise I simply have to buy the best machine on the market and when I have the proper tools and the mental desire I will be able to of course change. And yet a number of homes have machines gathering dust. Apparently, adding the proper tools to the arsenal of mental desire is not sufficient to create change either.
I say all of this because many of us desire change in some spiritual aspect of our lives and we simply get frustrated and even maybe angry when this change does not occur. We have the desire and we may even add tools to our list but at then end of the day we have not really changed our mental state or the spiritual conditions we desire to change. My contention is that part of what change entails is a process - a process of first of all understanding the conditions that are contained by that which I need to change. If I am changing my diet I need to understand why my diet is the way it is. In order to change my diet I need to understand the reason I eat and the reasons I eat what I eat. I need to deal with the change not just at the level of the food entering my mouth but the change the food that is available to put in my mouth and change not only the access to food, but the mental and physical processes behind them.
When it comes to spiritual change I need to understand that there is a fundamental truth that seems to come with this type of change. It begins with surrendering my own ability. In other words, I cannot at the end of the day actually accomplish changing my spirit at all. That is work that only God can do as I am willing to surrender the process and the results to Him. I cannot do anything apart from Christ and His Spirit living in me. But I also need to understand that surrender does not mean just giving it up and doing nothing. Surrender involves finding out what He to whom I am surrendered wants me to do. And so I need to turn to the Word of God to see what He would have me do instead of just doing on my own. And in it all I must admit the temptation and habit of taking back that which I am doing and wanting credit for myself. It is a perpetual process of surrender and recognition that I cannot do that which I must let the Spirit of God do in my place which leads me to do that which only He can enable me to do. No wonder change is so hard!
I say all of this not to just increase understanding of a complex process of change but to encourage you today that if you are wanting to change to do so in the way that God designs. Seek in His Word that which He would have you do to change from the root of the problem to its surface. Pray continually as you do that you would not take control from Him, but instead surrender to Him as He accomplishes the change that only He can do.
Change in general is a difficult thing. And many people see change as something within their grasp to do as if change were simply a mental choice - I want to change the way that I look at something and so I just say, I am going to change and magically, change will happen. Except that does not seem to match the reality that change is hard and sure enough frustration comes because change does not actually happen no matter how much I mentally assent to the desire to do so.
Some people think that if they just get the right tools that change will happen. If I want to change my life through exercise I simply have to buy the best machine on the market and when I have the proper tools and the mental desire I will be able to of course change. And yet a number of homes have machines gathering dust. Apparently, adding the proper tools to the arsenal of mental desire is not sufficient to create change either.
I say all of this because many of us desire change in some spiritual aspect of our lives and we simply get frustrated and even maybe angry when this change does not occur. We have the desire and we may even add tools to our list but at then end of the day we have not really changed our mental state or the spiritual conditions we desire to change. My contention is that part of what change entails is a process - a process of first of all understanding the conditions that are contained by that which I need to change. If I am changing my diet I need to understand why my diet is the way it is. In order to change my diet I need to understand the reason I eat and the reasons I eat what I eat. I need to deal with the change not just at the level of the food entering my mouth but the change the food that is available to put in my mouth and change not only the access to food, but the mental and physical processes behind them.
When it comes to spiritual change I need to understand that there is a fundamental truth that seems to come with this type of change. It begins with surrendering my own ability. In other words, I cannot at the end of the day actually accomplish changing my spirit at all. That is work that only God can do as I am willing to surrender the process and the results to Him. I cannot do anything apart from Christ and His Spirit living in me. But I also need to understand that surrender does not mean just giving it up and doing nothing. Surrender involves finding out what He to whom I am surrendered wants me to do. And so I need to turn to the Word of God to see what He would have me do instead of just doing on my own. And in it all I must admit the temptation and habit of taking back that which I am doing and wanting credit for myself. It is a perpetual process of surrender and recognition that I cannot do that which I must let the Spirit of God do in my place which leads me to do that which only He can enable me to do. No wonder change is so hard!
I say all of this not to just increase understanding of a complex process of change but to encourage you today that if you are wanting to change to do so in the way that God designs. Seek in His Word that which He would have you do to change from the root of the problem to its surface. Pray continually as you do that you would not take control from Him, but instead surrender to Him as He accomplishes the change that only He can do.
Tuesday, December 17, 2019
Focusing on God
This last week and a half has been very difficult for me. I have been without my family as they have had to travel down to Florida for the wedding of my sister-in-law. I do not do well alone. It is not that I cannot survive, I can cook and clean and generally take care of myself, but emotionally I have come to realize just how much I love having my wife and children around and it is just plain odd to come home to a house that is empty. In moments like these I have encouraged others to focus on God and allow Him to be a help, but for some reason this time I realized that there was something more to focusing on God.
As I daily prayed and reflected on the absence of my family, I wanted to focus on God. When I was feeling something was missing, I took that thing and focused on the character of God related to the very item that I was experiencing. For example, when I missed the presence of my family I focused on the presence of God and verses like Hebrews 13:5, "I will never leave you or forsake you". When I was missing the loving hugs and kisses, I focused on the love of God expressed to me. When I was concerned for their safety, I thought about the way that God cares for even the sparrows and how not a single one falls to the ground without his knowledge.
In each item of anxiety, I was helped when I focused on the character of God and His revealed Word. I found solace and encouragement each time I chose to look away from my circumstances and look to the God who is in control. This does not mean there were not tears or that I suddenly started smiling every time I came home, it was still a really hard week, but I had the ability to better cope because I was looking at someone bigger than myself each time I was struggling.
I wonder if this would help you too today. In whatever it is that you are struggling with, look to the character of God that He reveals in His Word. Find solace and comfort in the arms of the one who has promised that He will meet all your needs according to the riches of grace expressed to us in Jesus Christ. Hold on to the one who is holding on to you and realize that even in anxiety and hardship, He is there.
As I daily prayed and reflected on the absence of my family, I wanted to focus on God. When I was feeling something was missing, I took that thing and focused on the character of God related to the very item that I was experiencing. For example, when I missed the presence of my family I focused on the presence of God and verses like Hebrews 13:5, "I will never leave you or forsake you". When I was missing the loving hugs and kisses, I focused on the love of God expressed to me. When I was concerned for their safety, I thought about the way that God cares for even the sparrows and how not a single one falls to the ground without his knowledge.
In each item of anxiety, I was helped when I focused on the character of God and His revealed Word. I found solace and encouragement each time I chose to look away from my circumstances and look to the God who is in control. This does not mean there were not tears or that I suddenly started smiling every time I came home, it was still a really hard week, but I had the ability to better cope because I was looking at someone bigger than myself each time I was struggling.
I wonder if this would help you too today. In whatever it is that you are struggling with, look to the character of God that He reveals in His Word. Find solace and comfort in the arms of the one who has promised that He will meet all your needs according to the riches of grace expressed to us in Jesus Christ. Hold on to the one who is holding on to you and realize that even in anxiety and hardship, He is there.
Tuesday, December 3, 2019
Preparing for Christmas
When we think of preparing for Christmas, I am sure that most of us think fairly alike. We think about getting the decorations up and finishing the Christmas shopping. We think of mentally getting ready for the hustle and bustle and the preparation of making sure we can handle our time at the in-laws. We think of all of the cooking and baking. And most of us can remember a time when we forgot something in our Christmas preparation and we make sure that we don’t forget it again. But the regular preparations are not what I have in mind when I think of preparing for Christmas.
When we mention advent we often think of ritual and tradition. But the idea of advent is simply the reminder that something or someone is coming. Advent is the preparation for the coming of Christ. We celebrate the first coming of Christ to earth on December 25 each year. This is not the day Santa comes - it is the day set aside for the celebration of Christ coming to earth. When you go through the list in the first paragraph, how many of those things are preparing to celebrate the coming of Christ to earth? Is it enough to read the Christmas story before tearing into our wrapped goodies? Is it enough to say grace before consuming the holiday food we are looking forward to?
As we came closer to Thanksgiving, numerous people asked me what I was most looking forward to about the holiday. I think we need to remind each other of what the coming of Christ means in our lives and prepare ourselves in a way that focuses us on that which is really important.
The coming of Christ means that you and I have access to God the Father because of the forgiveness of our sins. It means that we have freedom to do that which is right in the sight of God because of the ability given us by the Spirit of God to discern right and wrong. It means that God has already conquered sin and death and that now we wait in anticipatory hope of the joy of the Kingdom that is coming. The coming of Christ means He will come again and He has made promises about that second coming!
All this and so much more. Are you ready to really celebrate Jesus this Christmas season?
When we mention advent we often think of ritual and tradition. But the idea of advent is simply the reminder that something or someone is coming. Advent is the preparation for the coming of Christ. We celebrate the first coming of Christ to earth on December 25 each year. This is not the day Santa comes - it is the day set aside for the celebration of Christ coming to earth. When you go through the list in the first paragraph, how many of those things are preparing to celebrate the coming of Christ to earth? Is it enough to read the Christmas story before tearing into our wrapped goodies? Is it enough to say grace before consuming the holiday food we are looking forward to?
As we came closer to Thanksgiving, numerous people asked me what I was most looking forward to about the holiday. I think we need to remind each other of what the coming of Christ means in our lives and prepare ourselves in a way that focuses us on that which is really important.
The coming of Christ means that you and I have access to God the Father because of the forgiveness of our sins. It means that we have freedom to do that which is right in the sight of God because of the ability given us by the Spirit of God to discern right and wrong. It means that God has already conquered sin and death and that now we wait in anticipatory hope of the joy of the Kingdom that is coming. The coming of Christ means He will come again and He has made promises about that second coming!
All this and so much more. Are you ready to really celebrate Jesus this Christmas season?
Tuesday, November 19, 2019
Understanding My Purpose
Often times we get our lives turned upside down. Sometimes this happens by our own hand and sometimes it happens because we could never have predicted the hand that was dealt to us. Be it self-inflicted or external, the upending of our lives often results in a great deal of turmoil and pain. In these moments, especially these moments, it is essential that we remember our purpose.
Allow me to illustrate an all too familiar scene. This holiday season there is much to be thankful for and joyous about. However there are many who find their lives this year has given them a different perspective on the holidays. For some these days will be filled with sadness and sorrow due to the absence of a member of the family. For some these days will be filled with pain as all that their family seems to do is fight at the holidays. For some it will be a reminder that they are parentless, spouseless or in some other way broken. For those with a full table and full hearts it is far to easy to simply distance ourselves from the pain and revel in the joy of our full table and heart. And yet in doing so both the brokenhearted and those with full hearts have missed the point.
We tend to make our lives about us. And this is where understanding our purpose comes in extremely handy. Our lives are not about us. We were put on earth to bring honor and glory to a God who is over all, in all and through whom all that we see has been made and given to us not as a playground, but as a place in which we are able to point to and magnify our Creator God. More than that, our Creator sent His Son to place us into a right relationship with Him. A relationship that we broke by sin and He fixed by obedience and then gave to us by grace. And we now live and wait for Him to make all things right. This is an oversimplified version of the Scriptures but it is none-the-less true. And so be our experience joy or pain, the truth of our place here is the same. We are not here for us but we are here for Him.
I want to encourage myself and others to look not for ways to make my own life better, but for ways that I can point to the purpose I was placed here for. That my life would show Jesus to the world around me. And I can do that even if my heart is filled with sorrow. I can do that if I am rejoicing in the goodness of God or rejoicing in the pain that God has allowed in my life this year. I can do that in happiness and sorrow. I can do that in richness or poverty. No matter what my circumstances, I can find purpose in understanding that I am here to point to the God who put me here. And that is my purpose.
Allow me to illustrate an all too familiar scene. This holiday season there is much to be thankful for and joyous about. However there are many who find their lives this year has given them a different perspective on the holidays. For some these days will be filled with sadness and sorrow due to the absence of a member of the family. For some these days will be filled with pain as all that their family seems to do is fight at the holidays. For some it will be a reminder that they are parentless, spouseless or in some other way broken. For those with a full table and full hearts it is far to easy to simply distance ourselves from the pain and revel in the joy of our full table and heart. And yet in doing so both the brokenhearted and those with full hearts have missed the point.
We tend to make our lives about us. And this is where understanding our purpose comes in extremely handy. Our lives are not about us. We were put on earth to bring honor and glory to a God who is over all, in all and through whom all that we see has been made and given to us not as a playground, but as a place in which we are able to point to and magnify our Creator God. More than that, our Creator sent His Son to place us into a right relationship with Him. A relationship that we broke by sin and He fixed by obedience and then gave to us by grace. And we now live and wait for Him to make all things right. This is an oversimplified version of the Scriptures but it is none-the-less true. And so be our experience joy or pain, the truth of our place here is the same. We are not here for us but we are here for Him.
I want to encourage myself and others to look not for ways to make my own life better, but for ways that I can point to the purpose I was placed here for. That my life would show Jesus to the world around me. And I can do that even if my heart is filled with sorrow. I can do that if I am rejoicing in the goodness of God or rejoicing in the pain that God has allowed in my life this year. I can do that in happiness and sorrow. I can do that in richness or poverty. No matter what my circumstances, I can find purpose in understanding that I am here to point to the God who put me here. And that is my purpose.
Tuesday, November 5, 2019
Are you truly thankful?
Have you even asked yourself the question, "Am I truly Thankful?" I want to ask this question this morning from two perspectives. The first is the perspective of that which I am thankful for. The word Thankful is broken into a root and a suffix - Thank and ful. Literally thankful is to be full of thanks. And so the things for which I am to be thankful for is all things. Paul says as much in 1 Thessalonians 5:19 ". . . in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." We are to give thanks in everything. Now the trouble as I examine my life is that I have taken thankfulness to mean gratitude for those things that please me. I tend to place myself at the center of the universe and when I do so I can divide my life into two categories - those things for which I am thankful and those things that I am not thankful for. The problem with this very human perspective is that it is not biblical.
The second approach is related to the first but slightly tuned. I then think about how often I give thanks. Paul a few verses earlier says, "Rejoice always." At all times and in all things we are to give thanks. When I focus on the things for which I am thankful as the things that please me then the moment the pleasure goes away I often cease to be thankful. I am thankful for a meal at dinner time but if at 9 PM I am suddenly snacky I somehow forget to be thankful for the meal I ate less than a few hours ago. If God blesses me with something but then a few days later I experience hardship I tend to focus on the hardship and forget the blessing.
At the end of the day the trouble with both the what and the how often of thankfulness tends to demonstrate that I am far too focused on myself. My thankfulness is determined by what God and others are doing for me and my thankfulness is only as frequent as the feeling of euphoria. I need to change perspective so that my thankfulness is biblical. When it is biblical my thanks will be ever present and continual. I will truly be full of thanks. Thankful.
The second approach is related to the first but slightly tuned. I then think about how often I give thanks. Paul a few verses earlier says, "Rejoice always." At all times and in all things we are to give thanks. When I focus on the things for which I am thankful as the things that please me then the moment the pleasure goes away I often cease to be thankful. I am thankful for a meal at dinner time but if at 9 PM I am suddenly snacky I somehow forget to be thankful for the meal I ate less than a few hours ago. If God blesses me with something but then a few days later I experience hardship I tend to focus on the hardship and forget the blessing.
At the end of the day the trouble with both the what and the how often of thankfulness tends to demonstrate that I am far too focused on myself. My thankfulness is determined by what God and others are doing for me and my thankfulness is only as frequent as the feeling of euphoria. I need to change perspective so that my thankfulness is biblical. When it is biblical my thanks will be ever present and continual. I will truly be full of thanks. Thankful.
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