He’s Calling You!

I came home Monday from an early morning birding excursion with a fresh awareness of bird songs and calls and of my own ignorance of them!  Standing and listening motionless to birdsong for 15 minutes at a time is an exercise I hadn’t tried before.  Apparently birds sing most in the early morning.  They have songs and calls which are generally unique to their species.  It is primarily the males which sing the songs as a means of attracting a mate and establishing their territory.  Calls are simpler and less musical and used by both male and female to keep in touch, to sound a warning, to beg, and to intimidate enemies… I am learning these things.

But I must admit this first outing was a little like a blind man seeing for the first time.  What’s that? was my most pressing wonder. Only I couldn’t ask for fear of disturbing the birdsong. I can identify  the sounds of so few birds that by the end of that first outing I must admit I had turned to the more familiar and was snapping pictures of flowers and reading trailside plant identification signs.  I am not a good auditory learner. 

We were listening specifically for just a handful of species.  But birdsong was everywhere.  In contrast to my ignorance, the birding expert I accompanied had jotted down the names of at least half a dozen species at each stop.  We had not seen them necessarily, but her ears were quick to hear them.  Her job was to give an account of the birds in the area under study.  And for this job it’s the hearing that really matters. If you’ve learned to listen even the secretive unseen types can be counted.

Well, so that was all very interesting and I hope to be invited out again and to hone my listening skills.  But fresh on the heels of that experience, with bird songs and calls on my mind, I came home and  opened to the day’s Bible reading, the story of Bartimaeus, the blind beggar in Mark 10. He had no choice but to be an auditory learner!

There he was sitting at the dusty roadside, listening,  hoping for the pity of passers-by, hoping they could spare a shekel…His ears were no doubt attuned to the sounds of sandal traffic..Suddenly there was a great crowd approaching.  “What’s going on?” It wasn’t a feast day, why all the traffic?  He listened acutely to the snatches of conversation around him. “It’s Jesus, from Nazareth!” somebody hollered as feet raced by to meet the approaching crowd.  Hope surged in his heart.  He had heard the stories of this man.  He taught and acted with authority unlike any teacher before him.  Demons obeyed him. He made the sick well, the deaf to hear and way up North a blind man had regained his sight.  Had Bartimaeus heard this story too?  Perhaps. 

One thing he had heard somewhere, somehow, was that this man Jesus claimed to be the Messiah, ‘the Son of David’.  He believed it.  And over the noise and bustle of the approaching crowd he began to cry out at the top of his lungs:  “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me.” 

What more could he hope for than mercy?  He was despised, a useless tramp, dependent on the alms-giving of the pitying public.  in fact his cries embarrassed them, annoyed them.  “Shut up!” they said, as if to put him in his place.  He cried out all the louder, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” hoping somehow to be heard above the clamor of the crowd.  If only Jesus could hear him…

I have a hunch Jesus would have made a stellar birding companion.  He wouldn’t have missed a ‘cheep’ or a ‘tut’.  After all it was He that composed the songs that come chortling in the early morning,  He that designed language and gave the birds their calls, to each kind its own.  Then He walked our dusty trails and noticed little fallen sparrows and circling vultures.  He knew the habits of a barnyard hen gathering its chicks and heard the early-riser rooster. He saw the seeming innocence of cooing doves.  None of these escaped His notice.  Nor did Bartimaeus.  Obscured and nearly drowned out  by the crowd, his voice still came to Jesus’ ear.  Since Jesus could not make his way to the man for the press of the crowd He called to him to come.  And the next thing beggar Bart knew, people were no longer telling him to be quiet.  In fact they were saying the unbelievable:

“Take heart. Get up; he is calling you!!!”  They probably couldn’t believe it either.  But Jesus had stopped in his tracks and was waiting for this scruffy blind beggar to feel his way through the crowd to Him.  He didn’t have to wait long.  Bart leaped up flinging off his cloak and the crowd parted and drew him forward till he was standing right in front of Jesus. 

The next words he heard were: “What do you want me to do for you?” The Messiah was offering to serve a beggar--calling him to Himself, extending the very mercy the man had hoped for.  This is our Jesus. 

Just prior to this incident, His own disciples, James and John had come with their mom to ask Him a big favor.  And He had said to them also:  “What do you want me to do for you?”  They had asked to share His glory in the coming Kingdom, to sit one on his right hand and one on His left.  Their request was denied, not being His prerogative to grant.  He told them they did not know what they were asking! When the rest of the disciples heard their presumptuous request they were indignant.  A teaching moment followed in which Jesus told them clearly that servanthood was to be the mark of His disciples.  “…and whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all.” Mk.10:43,44

Jesus was no exception: “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many,” he had gone on to say. (Mk.10:45)  Next thing you know, they are on the outskirts of Jericho and a blind beggar is crying out to be heard.  What followed was an object lesson for Jesus’ disciples.  He turned from the fawning crowds who would soon be hailing him their King and offered His services to a helpless beggar:

What do you want me to do for you?

Bartimaeus respectfully asks for his vision to be restored.  And Jesus, pleased by his faith, and his humility (Have you noticed how the two go together?)  grants him his request saying, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” But Bartimaeus doesn’t go.  He leaves his roadside rags and follows Jesus on His way to Jerusalem. This would be the final week of Jesus’ earthly ministry in which He would demonstrate ultimate servanthood, laying down His life ‘as a ransom for many’.  Bartimaeus would be a part of that week because Jesus had heard his cry for mercy and called him to Himself.

And still He calls.  It doesn’t take a birder’s trained ear to hear.  We do not need a course in listening, or a book, or an advisor, anymore than a bird needs an Audubon guide book to identify his own species calling.  God’s voice is the one we are wired to hear; we are made in His image.  Adam heard it in the Garden, God in the cool of the day coming to walk with him, calling him by name: “Adam, where are you?”  He cringed. He had sinned.  He was in desperate need of mercy, like the blind beggar on the roadside. We too are  designed for fellowship with God.  We hide like secretive marsh birds because sin has broken that fellowship, marred that image.  But Jesus is near, calling, listening for our cry for mercy.  He calls us to come to Him.  He will do the rest.  He has come to seek and to save the lost, to open our eyes to the hope of our calling, to free us to follow Him…

Isn’t this the heart of the Gospel—this news that God has made a way for man to come near to a Holy God?  Whether we find ourselves in the place of Bartimaeus, the blind man crying for mercy, or in the place of the people in the crowd who brought Bart the good news: “Take heart, get up, He’s calling you!” we have a calling from God. 

For those of us who have long since had our eyes opened and have answered the call to follow Jesus, this story reminds us that Jesus hears our heart’s cries still.  Though we have left behind our rags to follow Him, He doesn’t expect that we will cease to need Him for even a moment.  Still He calls us to take heart and clamber out of the ruts we fall in from time to time.  Still He calls us to relationship with Himself when we stray.  Still He offers to serve us:  “What can I do for you?” and He knows when to say “Yes” to our requests and, mercifully, when to deny them because we don’t really know what we are asking. 

We are the ‘called out’ ones who have gone from being roadside beggars ‘having no hope and without God in the world’ to being ‘brought near by the blood of Christ’, reconciled to God with access in the Spirit to the Father, ‘no longer strangers and aliens but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God.’  Ours is now the song of the redeemed.  And like so many songbirds who cannot help but sing, we are wired to sing His praise with our very lives.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pcHw_rkSdqc

Let my lifesong sing to You!

--LS

‘…having the eyes of your hearts enlightened that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you’ (Eph.1:18)

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.  I Pet.2:9,10

Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us,  to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen. Eph.3:20,21

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[This old hymn came to mind as I was writing today.  It seems so fitting I pass it on…—LS]

Jesus calls us o’er the tumult

1 Jesus calls us: o'er the tumult
of our life's wild, restless sea;
day by day his sweet voice soundeth
saying, "Christian, follow me."

2 Jesus calls us from the worship
of the vain world's golden store,
from each idol that would keep us,
saying, "Christian, love me more."

3 In our joys and in our sorrows,
days of toil and hours of ease,
still he calls, in cares and pleasures,
"Christian, love me more than these."

4 Jesus calls us: by thy mercies,
Savior, may we hear thy call,
give our hearts to thy obedience,
serve and love thee best of all.

--Cecil F. Alexander (1852)

It’s always the right thing to do

As the rhythm of my life changes with all the little ‘chirps’ nearly flown, and I wonder what the new tempo will be like, I’ve been reminded this week that it is always fitting to rejoice in the Lord. 

When all else sways, moves, leaves empty, disappoints, here is One who is constant and unchanging. Everything else is subject to change but Him.  I’ve been realizing how much I have to rejoice in this week but also recognizing that my rejoicing has to go beyond these earthly reasons because they’re so fickle.  It was great to spend time with family, such a wonderful lot of family.  I’ve been so blessed. There are all sorts of joys and things to praise God for but I guess what I see is that  as we grow up so life’s victories and struggles get bigger too.  It’s as if the flip side of every praise is a cause for prayer. It can all seem too big for me and then I’m reminded: Rejoice in the Lord always.  He is, after all, the LORD of all of it!

Whether in Ezekiel or Ephesians or somewhere in between there are endless reasons to rejoice in the Lord. I’ve been collecting them this week. Can I share them with you?

For starters, we are members of His body!—He nourishes and cherishes us.  He gave himself up for us to sanctify us, to wash us clean with His word, to present us to Himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that we might be holy and without blemish. Imagine it. Believe it. Incredible! [Eph.5]

If there were nothing else to rejoice in today, this would be enough.

It is always fitting to rejoice in the Lord—this Lord who has us in His care, who counts us His own cherished sheep,

who gives life and hope where once there were only dry bones, 

who softens hearts that once were stone,

who brings to repentance and restores relationships,

who saves His own from their backslidings and makes them fresh and clean,

who prompts and answers the prayers of our hearts,  [see Ezek.36]

who makes Himself known in unexpected places—in lions’ dens and fishes’ bellies, in storms at sea and  quiet walks…

This is our God. This is our LORD.  Aren’t you glad?!

I took a stroll in the woods this afternoon. It was too balmy a day to stay indoors—70 degrees with 70% humidity.  Splendid.  I huffed up the side of Scout to sit a while overlooking the Strait, couched in thick moss, barefooted, bare-armed, a soft breeze cooling my face…No agenda. Can’t see what’s ahead, only that change is imminent. Don’t know how to plan for it except to follow the Spirit’s lead and rejoice in the One who is unchanging…So I sat sketching roughly the scene before me—the graceful arbutus, the distant islands, the sea in between and the dark stands of fir trees-- sketching as a means of slowing down to savor this moment, this beauty.  Then I started a scattered listing of reasons to rejoice in the Lord.  It looked something like this:

Rejoice in the Lord

unchanging

faithful to love

compassionate

near

aware

mighty to save

a wonderful counselor

Strong

My Helper

My Refuge

In Charge

Patient

Kind

All-Knowing

With me. Always.

And I pulled out Philippians for a read-through of this classic text on joy no matter what.  Paul commends rejoicing in the Lord as always fitting, always a smart safeguard.  Some days its easier than others. Perhaps these days recharge our batteries and re-set our hearts for those to come.  They certainly raise me above the temporary reasons to cheer or groan…

Meanwhile a hymn came to mind. I could still hear its echoes from last Sunday’s glorious rendition. We were back at our alma mater on the prairies with a host of folks who really know how to sing hymns—with energy and harmony and deeply felt confidence.  It gave me goosebumps and is still ringing in my heart.  I wrote down the words I could remember and had to look up the rest here. How fitting for such a setting as this afternoon’s:

1 I sing the mighty power of God
that made the mountains rise,
That spread the flowing seas abroad
and built the lofty skies.
I sing the wisdom that ordained
the sun to rule the day;
The moon shines full at his command,
and all the stars obey.

2 I sing the goodness of the Lord
that filled the earth with food;
He formed the creatures with His word
and then pronounced them good.
Lord, how Thy wonders are displayed,
where'er I turn my eye:
If I survey the ground I tread
Or gaze upon the skies.

3 There's not a plant or flower below
but makes Thy glories known,
And clouds arise and tempests blow
by order from Thy throne;
While all that borrows life from Thee
is ever in Thy care,
And everywhere that man can be,
Thou, God, art present there.

--Isaac Watts 1674-1748

Amen and Amen! And that’s Someone worth rejoicing in, always!

--LS

What tops your list of reasons to rejoice in the Lord?  I’d love to hear.  Drop a comment in the box or send along an email…

Chewing on Chesterton

I dived into G.K. Chesterton earlier this week, never mind that there are dozens of books on my priority shelf waiting, barely waded in to…No, instead I tried something new, an online audio book.  And while I listened I looked at an online print version, and cutandpasted thought-provoking morsels to chew on later.  Chesterton churns out a lot of these. He was a man characterized by indomitable joy from what I’ve read, along with a brilliant mind and a charming wit.

So I decided to try The Man Who Was Thursday: a Nightmare.* Peculiar title, I know, but fitting; the chief characters each had code names after the days of the week.  The genre of ‘metaphysical thriller’ did little to pique my interest.  What does ‘metaphysical’ mean anyway?  (I now have turned to Wikipedia and sort of get it)  And I’m really not into thrillers, but I do admire Chesterton’s genius and optimistic outlook, and the book was recommended by a friend, so… I tried it.

I think I might not have persevered without the excellent rendering, complete with wonderful accents, at LibriVox. [Don’t miss this terrific free resource if you enjoy an audio book!] It was definitely not a story to fall asleep to, or even doodle idly to.  Once I’d realized this and took it seriously enough to start at the beginning a second time, (with notebook at hand) the chapters started flying—suspenseful and strange, surreal and outrageous, full of intriguing symbolism.

On the surface were issues of anarchy vs. law and order--a plotline based on a police detective infiltrating a top-secret Anarchist society. But this is an allegorical and impossibly bizarre tale of a world that is not what it seems. (And do we not live in just such a world?) The detective’s profound and unexpected discoveries culminate in a profoundly soul-satisfying finish, revealing…

Well, I don’t want to give the whole story away.  Suffice it to say the story, in retrospect, is all wound around with God superintending the affairs of man, God who appoints all things (and people) to accomplish His purposes, and ultimately wishes to be known.  And scattered all along the way to keep me from getting too serious in sleuthing out the story’s hidden meaning were gems of dry wit that tickled my elusive funny bone!

Even if an allegorical ‘thriller’ is not your idea of a good read, this one is worth the effort just for its triumphant, faith-affirming, every-thing-is-gonna-be-alright conclusion. Only after you’ve been along for the harrowing journey of Thursday can you appreciate these closing lines:

“He felt he was in possession of some impossible good  news, which made every other thing a triviality, but an adorable triviality.”

Are we too not in possession of such Good News? Pessimism be vanquished! God is in control.  His redemptive purposes will be accomplished in and through and despite the evil and heartache which surrounds us.  Though we be called to suffer, though we may long to understand what’s going on when things just don’t  make sense…God knows and ordains all things for our good, for He is not only supremely powerful, He is supremely good, no matter what the enemy of our souls may say! 

And that has been the storyline undergirding my thoughts this week—as I wrestle for answers to perplexing problems, as I live day to day on the manna He does supply, and as I revel with thankful heart in His plentiful blessings… In all these things God is superintending and sufficient.  In all these things, whether obvious or hidden, God is good.

Two passages come to mind that affirm Chesterton’s storyline and with these I’ll stop, not having intended a book review today but glad for the chance to re-affirm God’s steady goodness towards the likes of us.

For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.  II Cor.4:17,18

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us. Rom.8:18

Oh and never mind stopping there, may as well keep going and read the whole of Romans 8, very good news indeed! 

Need that to music?  Consider these perspective restoring lyrics: “…purpose in all our suffering and Joy that will never die."

[from Risen, by Sovereign Grace Music]

You are Our Hope

[Doesn’t work in your browser?  Click here to go directly to YouTube]

Thanks for stopping by today to consider my ponderings ( :

--LS

May I leave you with a little taste of Chesteron thought, excerpted from The Man Who Was Thursday:

“Through all this ordeal his root horror had been isolation, and there are no words to express the abyss between isolation and having one ally. It may be conceded to the mathematicians that four is twice two. But two is not twice one; two is two thousand times one. That is why, in spite of a hundred disadvantages, the world will always return to monogamy.”

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*Full audio version of The Man Who Was Thursday available here.

Online print version, available here.

Storm Surge

“It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them.
And the sea arose by reason of a great wind that blew.” Jn.6:18

It happens. Life gets dark. Storms come. Jesus is nowhere in sight. We strain at the oars to make headway alone. When yikes!-- Is that a ghost? Our worst fears get the better of us and HELP!!! Panic ensues. And then the voice: "Don't be afraid. It's me." WHEW! And gladly we let Jesus into our boat and suddenly we've reached our destination. What was the big deal? [Click here to read John 6]

One moment we're exhausted, haunted by imagined ghosts and about to die. The next we're safely in harbor, the wind either abated or not an issue… The difference? Jesus in the boat.

"Without me, you can do nothing" He says. (Jn.15:5-7)  Funny, how much energy we can expend doing nothing!!!  But when we abide in Him and let His words abide in us—when we let Him in for the boat ride--it's amazing what will be accomplished just for the asking.  Peter admonished his readers as they were undergoing persecution to be self-controlled for the sake of their prayers because the end was at hand. I Pet.4:7

In a similar passage Jesus warns his followers of tumultuous events that will come upon the earth and says they should "watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a trap." In the midst of "people fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world" and "in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves", we are to be those who walk with confidence, recognizing that "our redemption is drawing nigh!" Lk.21:25-34 How is this possible? Only because we have His words. We know the rest of the story. Heaven and earth will pass away, but not His words…

I listened with sympathy this week to a young guy candidly rationalizing the acceptability of his lifestyle choices. He has chosen to forego 'old school' moral standards. He's got the map upside down and is heading a direction he doesn't expect. Things are pretty backwards, but in a world of other people doing the same sorts of things, he figures it will all work out. He can't see through this fog of relativism. His grandparents wouldn't approve. His girlfriend's parents either. But this is a new generation. It's all good… And I thought, no. I sympathize with the way things 'seem' to be, but it's a sham. I'll stick with the 'old school' any day if that means the tried and true Word of God. When did God get old anyway? He's not a Grandpa! He is forever timeless. His standards don't flex with our changing times and that's a good thing, not a bondage. His Word is a lifeline! And I'm praying for this young starry-eyed couple. They're entering a storm unawares. I'm holding out the hope that they will cry out in the storm and find that Jesus is close by.

Way back when, people were offended at Jesus' words too. He claimed to be better than the sweet manna that had fed their forebears. He claimed to offer eternal wellbeing, true nourishment. They scoffed and thought Him sacrilegious and impertinent to make such claims.  They only followed for today’s loaves and fishes… Many turned back from following Him. This was too much.

But His hand-picked disciples, what did they say? "To whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life!" (Jn.6:68)

This is the one whose words we most need to hear in the storm surges of life. When all is dark, when the rules to live by seem to have changed and we're unsure what to do, when we can't see past the rising waves… we can invite Him into the boat and listen to His reassuring, eternally true words—these words of spirit and life that transcend all craziness of place and time. Operating on any other basis is a useless expenditure of energy at best, and a recipe for destruction at worst. Only the Spirit of God, breathing through the Word of God gives the life and peace that we so need. (Jn.6:63)

And I'm passing on this story of Jesus climbing into the boat, to a new generation. With a three-year old attention span my grandson listened this morning, all cuddled up on Grandmom’s bed, imagining as best he could what it would be like to be in a boat at sea in a storm… and the difference it could make to invite Jesus into the boat. He knows little of storms, or boats, or oceans, or life!  But one day I pray this story will hold him in good stead. With Jesus in the boat, we can weather anything.

--LS

“For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." Jn.6:33

My Own Soundtrack

God is here in these moments as I finish up the supper dishes, everyone gone out for the evening but me, here, with Him. Grateful. There is no audible presence. No proof of His nearness. Just His Word, His oath—I will never leave you nor forsake you… Tonight that is enough.
I walked this afternoon, the days now cool and gray, accented with the brilliance of changing leaves. The energy of rhythm and of the stirring lyrics sung in my ears put a spring in my steps. I smiled thinking of something Jim once said: "Imagine life with your own soundtrack."  Yes, imagine it, just like in the movies. You know, that behind-the-scenes music that sets the tone for what's going to happen, whether romance (bring on the violins!) or suspense or drama. The music makes the mood.
I need a soundtrack some days. Like this morning. I woke early fretting like a silly mother hen, fretting because someone's got to do it if things are going to change, right?!  What I needed was an inspiring soundtrack to stir my soul to rise and believe in things yet unseen…
Instead I woke dwelling on my insufficiency for all that came to mind! I prayed, but sleepily and doubtful, loathe to leave the comfort of warm covers, though needing far more to rouse body and soul to the truth of the matter: My grace is sufficient for you in your weakness…II Cor.12:9
But now at the other end of the day I am ready to write out some things I am sure of, my 'soundtrack' if you will, for foggy mornings when my head's all sleepy and my faith unsteady, mornings when I need the rhythm and music of truth ringing in my ears. Let these things sound in the background of my days:
#1 God is our Shepherd, faithful to shepherd every generation. (Ps.95,100)
This goes for me and my kids, whose success in life is my greatest obsession and easily rises to become idolatry. Each of us must bring our dreams, our fears, and our desires to Him and bow down. He's our Maker. If He leads through a wilderness where we cannot find a thing to drink, we have only to ask, not to whine, not to threaten, not to mutiny. He waits to hear our voice, to see our trust, to know what's in our hearts. This is our test, not His. It is not for us to demand that He prove His nearness: "Is the Lord among us or not?!" (Ex.17:7) We are to trust His heart and learn His ways of answering our every prayer—whether we see instant results or not. He is shepherding. Only by trusting will we find rest.
#2 God does as He pleases. The will of man is no obstacle to Him.
"Who has spoken and it came to pass, unless the Lord has commanded it? Is it not from the mouth of the Most High that good and bad come? Why should a living man complain, a man, about the punishment of his sins?" (Lam.3:37-39)
Gone are the days when the solution is as simple as "she spanked them all soundly and sent them to bed". My charges are no longer living in my shoe. But they are not out of reach of the God who has chosen and called them for His glory. He will fulfill His purposes without the old woman's spanking spoon! Nebuchadnezzar learned these things the hard way. His sanity was restored only after he was willing to acknowledge that God's kingdom far outranked his own:

"He does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth. No one can hold back his hand or say to him: 'What have you done?'" Dan.4:35

I sometimes pray as if in a 'spoof' of the old hymn, Have Thine Own Way, Lord.* It's as though I've rewritten it to "I want my own way, Lord. I want my own way". No wonder I don't find peace when I'm through! I want what I want, and soon. Surely He does too? I want us all to live happily ever after. I want for my children the good things we have found. I want for them to be unscathed by the mistakes that we have made. Is this too much to ask? Can I assume God's thoughts are my thoughts on this? And then just pray my will be done as though I were the potter and He the clay? As though "power all power, surely is...[mine!]". I can easily forget that God does not exist to fulfill my dreams but that we exist for His glory, however He intends to bring that about. The Kingdom is His and the Glory and the Power. He is not thwarted by man.
#3 God is able to keep that which I've entrusted to Him (and He to me!) (II Tim.1:12)
He is in fact able to do exceeding abundantly above all that I ask or even think? His power is already at work. Must I see it to believe or will I choose to trust His Word? (Eph.1:19,20) Will I trust Him too with my dreams? His are far better and though they foil my best-timed scenarios, His have eternity in view!
#4 Only God is able to change a heart, to fill it with hope, to reveal an unseen inheritance, and to give courage and strength. But I can pray. (Eph.1:17-19)
These things are sure, my stirring soundtrack for mornings that dawn foggy… Can you hear the music?
I read an article this week titled: Four Essentials for Finishing Well.** The author summarized by commending these four keys to persevering. I pass them on to you in closing:

• a daily time of focused communion with God
• a daily appropriation of the gospel
• a daily presenting yourself as a living sacrifice, and
• a continual firm belief in the sovereignty and the goodness of God

And to these I say 'Amen!' , by the grace of God 'so be it' in my life. Bring on the soundtrack!
--LS
 

“Oh come, let us sing to the LORD; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!” Ps.95:1

"…who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began" II Tim.1:9
“…for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.” II Tim.1:12
‘Today if you hear His voice, do not harden you hearts…’ Ps.95:7
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*Have Thine Own Way, Lord! by Adelaide Pollard, 1862-1934. Words available here.
**by Jerry Bridges, p.35, Stand: A Call for the Endurance of the Saints. Eds. John Piper and Justin Taylor, Crossway Books, 2008.

The Work of Faith

I went out in the backyard to catch up on a little watering this morning. The sweet peas have risen like a curtain of green and delicate pinks and purples to hide the unsightly rickety fencing that surrounds the old chicken yard…Their fragrance is everything I remembered it to be when, daring to hope, I planted those unassuming hard dry peas. First there was the eradication of crab grass entangled in the chain link—the tugging and digging out every trace of a dry root that might spring to life and foil my plans of beautification…It was hard duty on my knees, carried forward only by the vision of sweet peas climbing happily to the sun and the memory of an inimitable scent… This was an act of faith, an undertaking inspired by the yet unseen.

Would these unlikely dark balls even germinate or was the seed too old? Would the tender greens be devoured by rampant slugs or brazen deer? Was it worth the effort? This morning as I watered the thirsty roots with bucket after bucket of cool water a verse came to mind, a prayer… for you, for me, for us to pray for all to whom our prayers extend…"that our God may count you worthy of His calling, and that by His power He may fulfill every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith." (II Thess.1:11)

Paul first prayed these words for the Thessalonians who were suffering persecution, needing hope that their perseverance would be rewarded. He commended their growing faith and obvious love for each other in the middle of hard times and even hinted that their persecution was itself  evidence of their calling to a Kingdom not of this world. But the focus of his encouragement was the coming of Jesus to grant them relief and avenge their suffering "when he comes on that day to be glorified in His saints, and to be marveled at among all who have believed…"
(II Thess.1:10) Then he prayed this prayer of blessing on their lives: that God would fulfill the desires He had placed within them and whatever they put their hands to by faith He would likewise bring to fruition by His power. Awesome blessing!

I can pull weeds on my knees. I can plant seeds in faith. I can pray…I can believe…but it is God's good hand that causes the seed planted in faith to sprout and grow into a beautiful vine that covers all the ugliness and effuses a heavenly fragrance…Precisely His intent-- that through our faith-filled enterprises 'the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in [us], and [we] in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.' (II Thess.1:12)

So don't lose heart if your harvest is not yet in. Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with an eye to what it will become with God's blessing. He will prosper that which He inspires us to undertake, for His glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus. May the fragrance of Heaven exude from our lives by His grace.

"…but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not." Gal.6:8,9

--LS

In Christ Jesus the only thing that matters is faith working through love.
(Gal. 5:6)

Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward  of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve. Col. 3:23,24

“Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.” I Cor.15:58

If You’re Happy and You Know It…

…but nobody else can tell!

Despite being married to a man who laughs every day, I'm a pretty serious somebody. Side-splitting laughter seldom shakes my frame (unless my sister's at hand). Nor does the face brightening kind for that matter. If you've been reading my 'columns' here for long, this comes as no surprise to you. Reserve, caution, and persistent introspection seem to keep a lid on hilarity for me. Smiling is something of a discipline, not because there's nothing to smile about, but because I'm pre-occupied with other (serious!) things.

So today I'm thinking on things that are happy!

In Hebrew, that's 'esher', related to 'ashar' to 'go straight, set right, be made happy or blessed'. It's where the unusual name, Asher, which is incidentally my father's middle name, comes from. Leah was happy at Asher's birth and he was tagged! There's not a lot said about laughter in the Bible but there's a lot of happiness. It's a cousin to truth and righeousness in a way. Just look at all the conditions pronounced 'happy'…

---Happy are you, O Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the LORD, The shield of your help And the sword of your majesty! Your enemies shall submit to you, And you shall tread down their high places." Deut.33:29

---ESHER is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. Ps.1:1

---ESHER is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Ps.32:1

---ESHER is the nation whose God is the LORD; and the people whom he has chosen for his own inheritance. Ps.33:12

---Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good! ESHER is the man who takes refuge in him! Ps.34:8

---ESHER are the people who know the festal shout, who walk, O LORD, in the light of your face, who exult in your name all the day and in your righteousness are exalted. Ps.89:15,16

Now, stop there. Happy are the people who walk in the light of God's face—is God smiling? Who exult in His name and are exalted in His righteousness. Now there's a condition quite the opposite of working out one's own code of acceptable conduct, which takes unrelenting diligence and yes, self-preoccupation. But as His children part of our birthright is to be clothed in His robes of righteousness. We are set free from the pre-occupation of how we're looking…

Hmm… this is something I know a little about, this urge to get sewing my own robes and forget that I'm already decked out in the finest apparel. It's called 'rule-keeping'. I saw an apt description of such a lifestyle this week. Pretty much the anti-thesis to happiness!

"…at the core of “rule-based living” there is a defining of who you are and your worth as a person and the level of "safety" you feel about life by how well you’ve followed the system of rules you’ve adopted from your upbringing and culture. In this way of life, the rules become measuring sticks for your personhood and in many ways your identity is defined by rules—not only the rules you keep, but also the rules about the way you keep the rules.

So the rules become a double handicap—you’re limited and handicapped when you keep them and you’re emotionally tormented whether you keep them or not, since the very presence of the rules means you aren’t good enough or loveable enough just as you are.

The rules also are used as measuring sticks for other people and create either a continual judgement of those who have violated our rules ("You're bad because you don't live up to my expectations for you!") or a continual "comparison mentality" that fosters competition with others ("I'm better than you because I follow the rules better than you do!") "*

Whew! not much room for side-splitting laughter there, or even a smile!

Paul describes such self-righteous rule-keepers this way: "being ignorant of the Righteousness of God and seeking to establish their own, they did no submit to God's Righteousness. For Christ is the end of the law of Righteousness to everyone who believes." Rom.10:3,4

It's one thing to welcome Jesus into my life to help me sort through my baggage and make my load a little lighter, and yes, to help me be good… better… best. (??!) It's another to invite Him to be my righteousness. This entails the 'offense of the Cross' (Gal.5:11) acknowledging that all my attempts at righteousness apart from the activity of His Spirit are 'filthy rags' Is.64:6. But it's only in living in the self-forgetful freedom of this kind of righteousness that I can be truly happy. An author I sampled this week brings out this distinction:

Nobody will raise a fuss if you find Jesus helpful for your personal well-being and relationships, or even if you think he was the greatest person in history—a model worthy of devotion and emulation. But start talking about the real crisis—where our best efforts are filthy rags and Jesus came to bear the condemnation of helpless sinners who place their confidence in him rather than in themselves—and people begin shifting in their seats, even in churches.

He continues elsewhere to point out that a Christianity focused on my efforts is a recipe for burnout:

Discipleship, spiritual disciplines, life transformation,culture-transformation, relationships, marriage and family, stress, the spiritual gifts, financial gifts, radical experiences of conversion, end-times curiosities that seem to have less to do with Christ’s bodily return than with matching verses to newspaper headlines, and accounts of overcoming significant obstacles through the power of faith. This is the steady diet we’re getting today, and it is bound to burn us out because it’s all about us and our work rather than about Christ and his work.**

But here I am back at churning up the negative…. The happiest reading I've done this week has been in the Word. I woke one morning from a dream with a recurring theme—about failure. Feeling lost and confused and unable to get my bearings or keep to my schedule or find my classes… (This dream harks back to highschool days as a shy kid far from home at boarding school.) Failing and not knowing how to fix it. Failing and noone else seeming to notice (or care). I hate this dream. It reminds me of my longing for a 'life coach' to steer me through all the 'must do's of life. So I get it right and don't miss any 'classes'. I woke thinking these things. Enter, the Word.

"I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye. Do not be like the horse or like the mule, Which have no understanding, Which must be harnessed with bit and bridle…" Ps.32:8

What am I thinking?! I do have a Life Coach. (Incidentally, I had a Life Coach then as well. I wasn't in fact failing, only fearing that I might.) The disciples likely felt the same. Jesus reassured them: "And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you." Jn.14:16-18

And here's the solution for rule-keepers too, those ones living under the pressure of never failing. The Spirit. It's not about keeping the law but walking by the Spirit. The Galatians slipped back into attempts at their own righteousness too and Paul soundly warned them: "You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace." Gal.5:4

In Christ Jesus neither [keeping the rules] or not [keeping the rules] counts for ANYTHING, but only faith working through love. (my paraphrase of Gal.5:6) This is so because Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law—that body of rules we couldn't keep no matter how hard we tried. He became a curse for us 'so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, SO THAT WE MIGHT RECEIVE THE PROMISED SPIRIT THROUGH FAITH.’ Gal.3:14 There it is again, the Spirit, our source of life and our guide through life. Nightmare be gone. If I fail to attend a class or do an assignment or ace a test, all is not lost. I am not lost. I am not unnoticed. He will guide me with His eye upon me. I am His. His Spirit is in me. This is happy news for a rule-keeper!

And it keeps coming:

"But now we are released from the law, having died to that which held us captive, so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit and not in the old way of the written code." Rom.7:6

"The Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we don't know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us…" Rom.8:26

Christ Jesus died, more than that, was raised for my justification Rom.4:25. Who can accuse me? It is God who justifies. Who can condemn? Rom.8:33,34

And this is the choicest tidbit of all this week:

For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified. Heb.10:14

I love this passage in Hebrews. You really need to look at the whole context, but here is a clear-cut case for the work Jesus has already done being enough for me. Some snatches:

"I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds,…I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more. Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin. Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh,  and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful."

It's ultimately His faithfulness that matters.  His sacrifice.  His work. He pours in the grace. He grants the faith. I believe and live by His Spirit's empowering. This is HAPPY news!

Paul encapsulated this so well in his own testimony: "And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose." Gal.2:20 This was in sharp contrast to what he observed in the Galatian church:

"Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?"! Gal.3:3

Rule-keeping for righteousness was on the rise and with it the attendant conceit and envy. Their corrective prescription: "For you were called to freedom, brothers. Don't use it as an opportunity for the flesh…If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit." Gal.5:13,25

These are the makings of 'ashar' to 'go straight, set right, be made happy or blessed', and they begin with counting on His righteousness, luxuriating in His robes of righteousness, as I walk not by some concocted code of "do's" and "don'ts", but by His Spirit.

So I'm thinking on these things this week, things that are true of me as God's dearly loved child. And maybe this truth will yet set me free from bondage to self-consciousness to smile and laugh a little more often, a little more freely… “for My Redeemer is strong. The Lord of Hosts is His Name!”

When the LORD turned again the captivity of Zion,
we were like them that dream.
Then was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing:
then said they among the heathen,
The LORD hath done great things for them.

The LORD hath done great things for us; whereof we are glad.
Ps.126:1-3

--LS

-----------------

*Ellyn Davis of Homeschool Marketplace.com

**Excerpts from Chapter One ---Michael Horton, Christless Christianity: The Alternative Gospel of the American Church, Baker Books© 2008 available online at: http://www.christlesschristianity.org/images/CC-Book-Excerpt.pdf

A Place to Rest

Have you ever puzzled over how it works that we are in a ‘fight of faith’, armed to the hilt against the ‘schemes of the devil’, ever alert and persevering, ever praying for ‘all the saints’… and yet called to REST. In fact we’re called to ‘strive to enter that rest!’ I don’t know about you but I find this a challenging balancing act.

On carefree days, preferably with the sun shining and ‘everything going my way’ (and Mr. Bluebird on my shoulder), I can see quite clearly that rest has to do with maintaining a calm and confident faith in God that knows beyond the shadow of a doubt that He is both present and working for my best good in everything.

But then there are those days… when the body has its ills and the weather is dismal besides. Or perhaps prayers don’t appear to be heard and circumstances seem daunting in one way or another. Then the enemy of our souls, not known to ‘play fair’, zeroes in on our weakest points and whispers his toxins in our ears… gloomy things, hopeless things, reminisces that make the present seem disappointing, fearful prognosis—dismal thoughts to drag down soul and body. The interplay of physical and spiritual is not always obvious. Yes, maybe a good nap and some heart-pumping exercise would do wonders to clarify the situation. I’ve found these to be spiritually beneficial solutions at times. But sometimes there is more to it. When weariness washes desire for everything away, even the passion of one’s calling (and the nap doesn’t fix it)… look out for sabotage.

The temptation may be to ‘throw in the towel’ on some ministry we thought was our calling…or to just shrug and not care about anything…or to grumble, whine, stone somebody, or go to bed for the rest of the day! How do we resist? This is where it helps to have that foundation of trust in God’s goodness and presence with us, firmly laid. The active acknowledgment of these truths will keep the muscle in our faith and prevent us from being easy prey for the enemy’s taunts: “Where is your God?” and the subsequent accusations he knows best how to tailor to our weaknesses.

What do I mean by ‘active acknowledgment’? Well, I’m thinking along the lines of thanksgiving and praise and rejoicing in the Lord, who after all is my strength. I keep being brought back to these themes.
I’ve been memorizing Psalm 32 with Rachel. This is David’s celebration of finding forgiveness after a wearisome harboring of sin. It concludes: “Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice O righteous, and shout for joy, all you upright in heart!” He’s excited! Reciting this aloud with enthusiasm is counter-intuitive some school mornings. But it surely is a safeguard against the gloomies! Another line in this psalm says: “You are a hiding place for me; you preserve me from trouble; you surround me with shouts of deliverance.”(32:7) What is that supposed to mean--'shouts of deliverance'? I haven’t done any formal word studies or read any commentaries on this but as I mulled it over I pictured God calling out something like: “Over here! Grab the lifeline… here’s the way out” and I thought of Paul’s words about temptation: ‘and He will make a way of escape that you may be able to bear it’ (I Cor.10:13).

If I believe this, my response will be to look to God for the way out. If I don’t… well, likely I’ll sound like the thirsty Israelites in the desert: “Is the LORD among us or not?” (Ex.17:7) They seemed to even exasperate God! After all He’d done to show them His loving care and continuous presence, had they forgotten everything? (Have I?) Even the cloud over their heads (while they complained) sparing them from the blazing heat of noonday sun in the desert? And now they’re ready to stone Moses and run back to Egypt’s ‘free’ food. God did not look lightly on their whining. He saw it as rejection of Himself:

“…you have rejected the LORD who is among you and have wept before him, saying, ‘Why did we come out of Egypt?’” (Numbers 11:20) 

And since trusting in His care was their only hope of getting to a place of rest, they got to wander restless for the remainder of their lives.

I don’t want that to be my lot! I don’t really want to be a doubting whiner who panics every time life seems rough. God has chosen to call me His own and to stick with me through thick and thin, in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer… committed to my eternal well-being. He invites me to bring my requests with the assurance that He hears each one (I Jn. 5:14,15). He supplies me with all the armor I need for any battle and the sword of His word besides. He asks me to stand firm in faith, nothing flinching, resting in His strength… Surely I can rest in His commitment to me and learn to live out my vows in return. He is mine, and I am His. Nothing can separate us. Will I struggle in this union or learn to rest? Surely I pay Him the highest honor when I choose thanksgiving and turn my gaze His direction when temptation oppresses.

“Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving, and perform your vows to the Most High, and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.” (Ps.50:14)


“The one who offers thanksgiving as his sacrifice glorifies me; to the one who orders his way rightly I will show the salvation of God.” (Ps.50:23)


David had to talk to his soul at times when oppression mounted and good times seemed just a memory “Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?... while they say to me all the day long, “Where is your God?” (Ps.42:9,10) but his thirst was set on God: “My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.”(Ps.42:2) and his hopes were all there too. That’s the way I want to live. And I thank you for listening in this post as I have given my own soul a ‘talking to’ from all the words that have encouraged me this week.

--LS



“Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you and evil and unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God.” (Heb. 3:12)



“By this I know that you delight in me: my enemy will not shout in triumph over me. But you have upheld me because of my integrity, and set me in your presence forever.” (Ps. 41:12)

Of Sadness and Gladness

 Let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice! 

Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his presence continually! (I Chr.16:10,11)

It is easy to be sad, counter-intuitive to be glad, at least for me.  I’ve been thinking lately about reasons for good cheer.  There are plenty of evident indicators for sadness, and even if they weren’t so obvious I have this uncanny bent toward brewing them up.  If you’ve ever read Owl at Home (by Arnold Lobel) to your kids, you’ll remember the story of ‘Tear-Water Tea’.  (At least that’s the one I found most memorable. Hmm, wonder why?).  In this story, Owl concocts a salty tea by thinking of all the sad things he can remember…both silly and poignant—pencils too short to use, a book that can’t be finished because a page is missing, mornings nobody saw because everybody was sleeping, songs that won't be sung because no one remembers the words.. sad things, broken things, lost thing, wasted things.  It’s a melancholy little tale but the tears are put to good use with the resultant salty tea. I have this propensity myself even when ‘all is well’.

But then there are the seasons when so many things really seem so very sad.  Whether in the world at large—earthquakes, violence, persecution, Hell looming for so many-- or the Body nearer home-- a baby born sightless, a young father losing a leg, a teenager killed in a car crash, a husband dead from cancer (these things are happening in our Body here).  Or even closer to home, family things—a favorite uncle dies suddenly (this week), having just visited his brother (my dad) who is lost in the lonely anguish of Alzheimer’s, a mother tries to hang on to hope…And the details could go on ad infinitum. A mother’s heart is always under some tension or another and can easily be swamped by sadness.  And yet…

Speaking of swamped, I had my first sailing outing of the season this week. It was sunny but a bit surly wind-wise.  I no longer fear being capsized but being sea-sick is very real on such days!  So I headed down below to curl up eyes-closed and meditate on other things.  These words came to mind from a passage I’ve tried to memorize—“Let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice!”.  I am authorized, even commanded to rejoice in the process of problems so long as I am seeking the Lord.  It is not only in the resolution of conflict, pain, and loss that there is cause for celebration, but in the middle of it.  This is so because my Saviour is unchanging, faithful, good, just, all-knowing, all-seeing, and all I need!  And if I’m seeking Him, I’m right on course for good cheer.

In fact, if I could see every sad thing from eternity’s side there would be a luster of gold from the strands being woven for God’s glory.  If He is over all and through all and in all (Eph.4:6) how could this not be so?  On the back-side of each bleak reality in this world shines hope and grounds for joy.  And this joy is not just in the here-after!  It’s my rightful heritage now.

I’ve been gleaning thoughts on the why’s and wherefore’s of joy this week.  Another passage that came to mind on the boat had this to say when I got home to see the whole context:

Many are the sorrows of the wicked,
but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the LORD.
Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, O righteous,
and shout for joy, all you upright in heart!
and further along: Shout for joy in the LORD, O you righteous! Praise befits the upright. (Ps.32:10,11; Ps.33:1)

Of course believers too experience sorrow, but we don’t sorrow as those without hope, without understanding, without God in the world!  I’ve been reading Ephesians and the contrast there is so clear.  We have hope, an inheritance, immeasurable power at our disposal!  We are not stuck in futility, pursuing our passions mindlessly, alienated from God and the meaning of life.  We are saints—chosen, loved, destined for glory, children of light!  In view of this calling we hang on to hope, we are shielded by faith in an evil world and we can go on our way with a melody in our hearts, thankful and celebrating God’s goodness in our conversations.  This is pretty radical.  No place for tear-soup here.  But when there are tears, we can rest assured God sees.  David said: “You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book.” (Ps.56:8)  And we know that seeds sown with weeping will yield sheaves with shouts of joy! (Ps.126:6)

I was looking in the Gospels at reasons for joy… 

• There’s the call to rejoice when persecuted for sharing the Gospel, because a great reward is coming (Mt.5:12)
• There’s Jesus’ admonition to the disciples to rejoice that that their names are written in heaven, not merely that demons submit to them! (Lk.10:20)
• But the passage that particularly caught my eye was in Luke 15: “…there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance…”  This is the sort of thing that makes God rejoice!

And of course, the story that illustrates this is the Prodigal Son and his elder brother.  We know all about the prodigal and the father’s warm welcome and the big celebration of the prodigal’s homecoming.  But it was the other son that caught my eye.  The joyless one.  Why was he joyless?  Why did he fail to share the Father’s joy?  He boasted of his own goodness and faulted the Father for not ever having given him a goat for a party with his friends.  Had he ever asked?

The Father’s gentle response reminds me of someone I know well who is prone to take so much for granted and forget the awesome truth she lives in: “Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours.”  What more is there?  Had the older son realized he was living in his inheritance—it was not all a future thing!? Have I?   When Peter says God has given us ‘all things that pertain to life and godliness’ what does that mean?  Is that not everything?  Of course it’s important to notice that these things are granted “through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence”. (II Pet.1:3-4)  The elder son apparently did not know His Father’s heart, did not live in close proximity to Him, had not become ‘partaker of the divine nature’.  He had followed the letter of the law, but not understood his father’s heart for him.  I’m reminded here of Jesus’ promise to his disciples: “Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.” (Jn.16:24) God does not begrudge us joy.  He invites us to share His joy, not just in the hereafter, but now, offering all we need for life and godliness. 

Remembering what this parable is illustrating takes me back to the condition for joy—‘one sinner who repents’.   This brings God more joy than 99 elder sons who try to work their way into His good graces and never ‘cash in’ on all He means to be to them.  Wow.  Repentance-- coming back to the Father, agreeing with Him about everything, refusing to take life in my own hands and ‘do it my way’… herein is JOY! For Him, and for me.

Daughter, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours… Now that’s an inheritance! Sounds like I’m richer than I realize.

So who needs tear tea?  And why not call for a party?  Can I not live in perpetual repentance and rejoicing, thankful to the One who is always with me providing all I need for life and godliness?  It’s a high calling. Is this the kind of living Paul was picturing when he prayed for the Ephesians that God would give them ‘a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him’ so that they would really KNOW ‘what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe!' (Eph. 1:17-19).  I’ve been praying this a lot lately.  It’s the stuff of heady joy.

Maybe good cheer, joy and gladness are not so counter-intuitive.  Depends on what factors I’m ruminating on… I love this passage in I Peter 1 that concludes: “Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”


And the first part just exudes enthusiasm about the living hope we’ve been born again into—‘to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you…in this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials…’ and even these, Peter makes clear, are part of a  priceless refining process that will yield a faith more precious than gold…
So I’m switching teas.  Not settling for the salty homebrew.  God grant us all eyes to see through the sadness to His reasons for gladness and so to hang on in the hope of our glorious inheritance!

'He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the LORD hath spoken it. And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us: this is the LORD; we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation.' (Is.25:8,9)

“In this world you will have tribulation but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” –Jesus Jn.16:33


“And this is the victory that has overcome the world—even our faith.” I Jn.5:4




--LS


P.S. Feel like singing?  May I suggest Kim Walker’s upbeat “I Have Found”
 
I have found a peace that ploughs on through the storm.
I have found a joy that jumps over sadness.
I have found a love that lights up every room.
I have found, I've found You!

Chorus:
You are all I want, You are all I need,
Everything my heart could hope for.
We are longing for, the Glory of the Lord,
Cause we know there's so much more!

Sweet Summer Sun-Day

...as we pedaled in tandem

cooled feet under the Bridge

in pools on stone

to the sound of water rushing, gurgling--

            falling

 

...as we shared the load back to town again

a couple well suited

a glory to You

with iced tea for reward

and sweet joy shared, in tandem.

 

Sweet summer Sun-day

...as we sliced through calm ocean

to survey the 'Hulks'--

time tested stalwarts, still steady,

with grapefruit slushie to follow

and sweet joy shared, in tandem.

Home again we cat-napped

and feasted on fowl

and sweet summer slices of

wet watermelon

and I lay me down as sun faded down

under fleece-lined quilt to read poems

and dream of sweet summer sun

in verse.

___________________________________

That was the gist of our sweet day. For the straight up detailed version go to my alternate blog: www.lindaskelton.blogspot.com