Author: Pastor'sPonderings

Just a guy who asks questions, considers life and tries not to take any of it for granted

On Grace and Good Friday…

 

On Grace:

Sometimes laughter is

the medicine best consumed

Removing any bitter pill

catching our fill of joy

hopefully by the bucket full

While we scratch and scrape to obliterate

The evidence of the empty

 

Other times there exists

this wish, this droaning desire

the brush fire of urgency

to unwind the vivid recall

that catches our fall

into this levity

 

we attempt,

we yearn to protect

this fragile sanity

casting shadows on the walls

of our iniquities

all the while struggling

refraining from peering

at that tree on Calvary

 

Could this be our undoing?

The unraveling of life’s

Guilt and selfishness

We have been pursuing this…

We the murder guilty

Hands crimson and stained..

Our eyes struggling to ignore it

Pulling our attention away

Yet discovering the end of our wit

Our wisdom, our inadequate understanding

 

Yet this heart,…

This shackled slave to self

 is crash landing

bailing out…expanding panic

I think I’ll be sick

As I find myself wading

Through my own filth

Which eclipses feeble strength

Within these tired hands

This vacant soul…

Hallowed and emptied out

I have lost control

Shattered, bits and pieces

Sharp and jagged

Course as no longer whole

 

And glancing once more

Rugged cross in view

Life’s blood is spilt

Redemption, salvation, new life

Comes Crashing through…yet I will not

Comprehend it… just yet

No, not yet…

For hell has to relinquish

Diminish in the world…in me…

Then three days  

Three gut wrenching, tear bursting

Sleep fleeting days…

To grave side

Torn pride, without guide

I will make my way

To mourn, to break again

But only then…only then

Will I meet nail shattered hands

Light from the cave of death

I will catch my breath,

I will catch His grace

And from His lips I will

Hear I love you, this…

This…was all for you.

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Here comes the pitch…

“Cast your cares on the Lord and He will sustain you”

Psalm 55:22

 

I always get this image in my mind when I think of this passage of some guy throwing this big heap of cares in the general direction of Jesus like a pitcher would a ball to home plate.  Yet when I pause and truly consider the implications of such a passage however, I quickly realize that this passage is about my cares, my concerns, my frustrations.  Everyone who reads this passage ought to find some peace of mind in the knowledge that this verse is for us! 

 

Do you have cares?  Concerns?  I know I do, and what I am reminded of is that I don’t have to carry these concerns and troubles alone.  I am reminded of the promise at the end of this verse, not only do we find peace of mind in that we can cast our worries, concerns and cares onto Him, but the verse promises that He will sustain us through it all!  The word sustain is an interesting word to me it means to support, to keep something in position and also to nourish.  With so many descriptive definitions of this one solitary word I can begin to find more comfort in what it is that He will do for me when I relinquish control of my cares and concerns. 

 

He will hold me steadfast, support me and also nourish my feeble strength…now that’s a promise worth checking out today!  I’m at the pitcher’s mound…here goes.

 

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Calling… the freaks, the geeks, the rejects and the not good enough!

Mark 2:13-17 (NIV)
13 Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him, and he began to teach them. 14 As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed him.

 

 

The sounds of the crowd echoed off of the small lean-to as they passed.  Some of the people scowled as they walked by then shaking their heads in disgust and finally disappearing out of sight.  This repeated numerous times within the hour, and the occupier of the rickety shack was used to the looks his line of work emitted from the population.  He was a tax collector after all, and the reputation of such an established profession was despised by most and avoided by the rest.  The whispers and cursing under the breath was all a part of the hazards of the job.  He lets the moment pass by, exhales a deep breath, and then bends over the weathered table again to resume his work. 

 

He is so consumed with his “paperwork” that he almost misses the most epic moment of his life.  As the sound of rustling paper replaces the echoes of the passing crowd he begins to sense that he is being watched.  He looks up from the stack of papers still needing to be inspected, and sees a man looking directly at him.  He doesn’t know how long the man had been there just looking at him, but the tax collector is nervous.  “No one looks directly at a tax collector” He thinks to himself, “Why is he just staring at me?” he wonders.  Then the most peculiar thing happens.  The man calls this collector of taxes by name, “Levi, come with me” He says.    For a moment, for one single solitary moment, Levi is absolutely still, as if he is firmly glued to the ground within his work space.  “I can’t just get up and go…can I?” He wonders to himself.  His entire future hinges on this one pivotal moment in time and he doesn’t know it yet.   On one hand if he says “no I’m not going anywhere, I have work to do” then things will remain the same.  Taxes will be collected, harsh expressions on faces, and he will always be unwanted within many social circles around town.   On the other hand, if Levi does go with this teacher what will happen?  What will happen to his family?  Will he be able to return home?  So much hinges on this decision, so many variables and yet Levi, finding the strength to move once more picks himself up and makes the decision to follows Jesus. 

 

Levi, known to us by the name of Matthew made a crucial decision that day which would  not only change his life, but the lives of all those who would one day read his writings also known as the gospel of Matthew, one of the four gospels of Jesus Christ. 

Isn’t it amazing that Jesus selected a tax collector, a profession despised by most people in society to help him spread His story of redemption to the world!  Among his other disciples were the rejects, outcasts and the not-good enoughs.  He turned the world upside down with His message of love, redemption and grace.  He used both men and women, Jew and Gentile, rich and poor, the educated and the street smart to convey this all inclusive message to the lost, seeking, and broken. 

 

Still today, the Lord calls to you and to me to follow Him!  We may be far from perfect.  We may be lacking education, self-confidence, social and peer acceptance and many other inadequacies.   Yet He calls us, and can use us if we are available to accept His direction for our lives.  Matthew couldn’t have imagined that day where Jesus would lead him, yet he followed.  We too are asked to do the same.  “Follow me” Jesus says to us…what will your answer be? Image

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Prayer: connecting the finite with the infinite

“Children do not find it difficult or complicated to talk to their parents, nor do they feel embarrassed to bring the simplest need to their attention. Neither should we hesitate to bring the simplest requests confidently to the Father.” –Richard Foster

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Prayer is often misused, abused, and treated more like a bartering system with God than a moment by moment, daily conversation with our Father in Heaven.   It’s something that we’re all guilty of, but if we are to grow, we need to adjust and change our perception and importance of prayer in our lives.  Brother Lawrence once said on the topic of prayer; “One way to recollect the mind easily in the time of prayer, and preserve it more in tranquility, is not to let it wander too far at other times. You should keep it strictly in the presence of God; and being accustomed to think of Him often, you will find it easy to keep your mind calm in the time of prayer, or at least to recall it from its wanderings.” 

 

Misconceptions of Prayer:

 

We are obligated to pray.

Prayer should not be considered an obligation.  If we feel as if it is our duty to pray and that we are forced into prayers of penitence, petition and supplication then we are more inclined to just go through the motions with little or no true significance or meaning.  When prayer becomes routine and obligatory we lose the true significance of communing and fellowshipping with our God who greatly desires a moment by moment inclusion in our day. 

 

Prayer is like a fire alarm. 

We only pull the fire alarm in a building if we are in great need of help and for the fire department to come out and extinguish a fire.  We sometimes treat our prayer life like this as well.  We think that God is only available to us in times of need.  It’s like the quote “as long as there are tests there will be prayer in school”.  We often treat our communications with God as if they are for emergencies only.  We pray prayers like; “Lord if you get me out of this situation I will…,” and the fire alarm of prayer is pulled and we expect God to honor our cries for help when our discipline of prayer in all seasons is nonexistent. 

 

We have to pray in King James Vocabulary. 

Believe it or not, God doesn’t want our big and lofty words when we pray.  He doesn’t require of us to speak eloquently by using words like Thee and Thou and speaketh…if you don’t talk like that to your friends and family then why would you need to speak to God in that manner?  Of course we are to be reverent before God, but that doesn’t mean we need to have all the right words and pray with intricately crafted archaic speech.  God knows who you are, He knows where you come from and He will meet you where you are at in your life right now.  He doesn’t need us to speak in a way that is foreign to us.  Simply communicating to Him as we would our friends and family is what is best and most sincere when it comes to prayer. 

 

The Facts on Prayer:

We need to discipline our minds and hearts when we pray!  Prayer is more of a constant conversation with our God than just about kneeling at our bedsides before bed time.  He wants us to talk to Him and include Him in our daily routines through a moment by moment relationship to Him.  Prayer can and will become much, much deeper when we train our thoughts and surrender who we are to Him with every opportunity that we get.  It might be one of the most difficult things that ever do, many times we will fail, yet if and when we train our thought processes to constantly consider God in our conversations, actions and decisions, our perspectives, priorities and motives will drastically change!  Prayer is a mighty and powerful thing that connects the finite with the Infinite!   When we can find true discipline within our thought processes to consider the Almighty in every aspect of our lives, our spiritual walk and relationship to Him will greatly deepen and we will wonder how we ever lived without this deep connection to our Father in Heaven.

 

 

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Dear Posers: Stop Faking it!

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me – watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” (Matthew 11:28-30 Msg version)

Are you tired of phonies? Tired of posers? Fakers who claim one thing and live completely opposite of their words? Me too! Not to sound hypocritical because I have my faults, I’m sure you have yours as well. I just can’t stand it when someone has this “holier than thou” attitude and acts judgmentally – going around convicting people of their sins and or pointing out other people’s flaws when all along they aren’t being honest with themselves. Sometimes I think people like that are so afraid of facing their own issues and struggles that it is just easier to point out the issues and struggles in others instead. The problem is I’m tired of these modern day Pharisees standing up and being the “poster children” for what a Christian represents. That model of Christianity is hateful, judgmental, and often hypocritical. It preaches raising the standard high but hardly ever addresses spiritual maturity, discipleship, personal accountability or holiness. This fundamental Christianity is hell bent on damning people to hell, protesting at soldier’s graves, slamming other “Christians” because of differences or because they don’t have the same translation of bible as they do, goading and harassing single parents because of their choice to live and raise their children alone…yet never attempting to try and understand their circumstances and situations.

I’m tired of this false representation of Christ in our world! It grinds on me like course sandpaper to the skin. Would Jesus really have acted this way? If this is what Christ-like love looks like, then I want nothing to do with it! That is not the Christ I follow! The Jesus I know, had more harsh things to say to the fakers, the arrogant teachers of scripture, the actors praying in the streets…He had more harsh things to say to these hypocrites than he had to say to the lost, the lonely, the downtrodden – the empty.

Why was Jesus so rough on these teachers and posers over others? Why them? For starters there is the obvious, they treated scripture blatantly incorrect. They twisted it to apply to everyone besides themselves. Who was to benefit from such usage of scripture? It certainly wasn’t God. The Pharisees, teachers of scriptures had so many laws that no one could go through a day without breaking at least one of them. On top of this inappropriate application of God’s word, there was also the irreverent attitude, a sense of importance and arrogance that accompanied their authority. Jesus even called the Pharisees hypocrites, vipers, whitewashed graves. He went on to say that they outwardly looked bright and clean, but inside they were full of dead men’s bones (Matt 23). That’s pretty harsh! The Sadducees weren’t off the hook either, Jesus declared that these teachers and scribes had made His Father’s temple a den of thieves (Mark 11:15-18).

Long story short, if we know better and still live contrary to what we preach we too are posers…we too are fakers. This above all things scares me. James 3:1 says that preachers and teachers of God Word will be judged more harshly. Why? Because if we claim to know God’s word and that of what He desires of us and do not hold ourselves first and foremost to His standards of living then we are truly in a heap of trouble. How dare any of us cast judgment on the sinner before we are on our knees daily submitting whole heartedly to Christ in every aspect of our lives? I’m not sure about you, but I do not want to be a faker for Christ…it’s all or nothing. When we as Christians can live like Christ, act like Christ and love like Christ, then and only then will we have the power to change this world around us for His glory.

Don’t misunderstand what I’m saying here. I am not advocating any kind of liberal application of God’s Word towards sin, accountability and loose living…what I am advocating and railing against is hypocritical, “you know better” behavior that is so pervasive in the modern church from pastors on down to laity in the pews. Godly living is required of His people! Without it, we are worse off than anyone who is still ignorant to God and in the darkness of sin within our world. Either act and live like Christ or get out of the way and stop the damage that you are inflicting on this world through your half and half lifestyle. It’s either you live for Christ or you don’t.

This for me is a very difficult pill to swallow so to speak. It is a very unpopular message…but I am convicted of it, I have been the hypocrite, the actor at times and I know God requires more from me. Yes God’s grace is sufficient, yet what we do with that grace once we know how to live is on us. Get on with it, live it and cast off the poser in us all.

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Dishwater (poem by Ted Kooser)

Slap of the screen door, flat knock
Of my grandmother’s boxy black shoes on the wooden stoop,
The hush and sweep
Of her knob-kneed, cotton-aproned stride out to the edge and then, toed in with furious twist and heave,
A bridge that leaps from her hot red hands and hangs there shining for fifty years over the mystified chickens, over the swaying nettles, the ragweed, the clay slope down to the creek, over the redwing blackbirds in the tops of the willows, a glorious rainbow with an empty dishpan swinging at one end.

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“Let Go!” -the hardest sentence you will ever face!

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There’s an old story that goes like this: A man named Jack was walking along a steep cliff one day, when he accidentally got too close to the edge and fell. On the way down he grabbed a branch, which temporarily stopped his fall. He looked down and to his horror saw that the canyon fell straight down for more than a thousand feet.   He couldn’t hang onto the branch forever, and there was no way for him to climb up the steep wall of the cliff. So Jack began yelling for help, hoping that someone passing by would hear him and lower a rope or something.  “HELP! HELP! Is anyone up there? “HELP!”   He yelled for a long time, but no one heard him. He was about to give up when he heard a voice. Jack, Jack. Can you hear me?”  “Yes, yes! I can hear you. I’m down here!”    “I can see you, Jack. Are you all right?” “Yes, but who are you, and where are you?”   “I am the Lord, Jack. I’m everywhere.”   “The Lord? You mean, GOD?”

“That’s Me.”

“God, please help me! I promise if, you’ll get me down from here, I’ll stop sinning. I’ll be a really good person. I’ll serve You for the rest of my life.”

“Easy on the promises, Jack. Let’s get you off from there; then we can talk.”

“Now, here’s what I want you to do. Listen carefully.”

“I’ll do anything, Lord. Just tell me what to do.”

“Okay. Let go of the branch.””What?” “I said, let go of the branch. Just trust Me. Let go.”
There was a long silence.
Finally Jack yelled, “HELP! HELP! IS ANYONE ELSE UP THERE?”

Sometimes we’re like Jack hanging on by a branch…or twig…and we’re afraid to let go.

Worry is all around us.  Look, there goes worry now with your medical bills.  Made you look!  Isn’t it interesting that worry is all around us and many times we allow it into our lives, hearts and minds?  You might argue that we don’t really want to allow it into our lives yet it seems to find a way all by itself.  Stresses of life, difficulties, and anxieties have been around since Adam and Eve stressed about which fig leaf they were going to wear after they were kicked out of the garden.  We struggle daily with these stresses in our lives but do we really have to?  Are they a part of you and me?  Do they dictate whether or not we will sleep tonight?

Truly Jesus’ words about worry are for all of us today, when He said; “So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”  (Matthew 6:31-34)

We are spoken to directly from the Son of God in this passage and told not to worry…so why do we still continue to struggle with this issue in our lives?   Could it be that we have not relinquished control over every part of our lives to Him?  Could it be that our trust of God and his providential care only goes so far and then we take back our control again?  I have found this to be true in my life, all too often and ashamedly so, I have allowed God to work in my life up to a certain point, only until something or someone gets the better of me and then WHAM I’m taking charge and trust of God goes out the window.

Learning to trust God in all aspects of our lives is very difficult.  It was never meant to be easy.  Yet, when we relinquish control and allow Him to lead and to handle our areas of anxiety and fear we can begin to grow and fully mature in the grace and knowledge of Christ.

Do you have worries today?  Then: Let go!  Let go and allow God to accomplish something amazing in your life!  Just…let…go…!

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Therapy of Holiness

Founder and first General of The Salvation Army William Booth once said, “The greatness of a man’s power is the measure of his surrender.”

There is an old saying that goes like this; “No Pain, no gain”…have you ever heard it?

A number of years ago, when I was still playing soccer and desired to play at the collegiate level and beyond, I began having trouble with one of my knees.  No matter how much I stretched before and after our practices, I inevitably came away sore and concerned that my years of playing my favorite sport were over.  It finally got so bad that I consulted a doctor who in turn referred me to a physical therapist who specialized in sports injuries and recovery.  He took a look at my knee, frowned, and then said something that shocked me.  He said; “I’m sorry I can’t help you…”  There was suddenly a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach, my dreams seemed dashed and I pulled myself up from the table completely and utterly defeated.  But, my physical therapist wasn’t finished speaking.  “I’m sorry I can’t help you…because you have to help yourself!”  He finished saying this and looked at me with penetrating eyes.

What?  What did that even mean?  For a moment the darkness that had initially descended upon me with what I thought was bad news slowly dissipated.  Was there still hope?  My physical therapist went on to explain to me that he could show me how to heal my knee, but the work, the pain and effort would have to come from me.   I would have to decide if I was going to follow through with it.  There would not be a quick fix, no secret remedy; it was going to be a lot of sweat and tears.  I considered myself an athlete and was familiar with that old saying “No Pain, no gain”, but I wasn’t prepared for the pain and hard work that lay ahead of me.

Every appointment with my physical therapist began with thirty minutes of full out effort on a stationary bike, followed by stretching that ached every muscle and some muscles I never knew I possessed.  After which, he showed me a series of weights that I would need to lift with my leg while focusing my effort on my hurting knee.  It hurt, I did grimace many times, stopping to catch my breath and dull the screaming pain.  Every time I stopped, however, my therapist would encourage me, he would push me…sometimes I would hate it, but he kept reminding me he couldn’t help me if I didn’t do the work.  I thought he was a slave driver, a real mean, uncaring person, but his promptings kept me going, kept me focused and finally I would complete my workout, very sore yet slowly mending my injured knee.   After many appointments, frustrations, and tough encouragement I finally felt whole again.  I had been mended.

Physical therapy is a lot like our Spiritual walk with God and that of Holiness.   His Holy Spirit comes along side of us, identifies damaged areas of our lives and prompts us to do something about them.  God has all of the power, encouragement, and strength for us, but He too looks us in the eyes and says, “I can’t help you… if you don’t help yourself.”  It’s not an indictment, but a focused statement to get our attention to remind us that we have a real choice to make.  God can change us, transform us, renew us and make us whole again, but we have to want it!  We have to have the desire for Him, and that of the image of Christ reflected in our lives.

Holiness is extended to us all, as children of God, but we have to want to change, we have to want to surrender our afflictions and our marred selves completely to the task of Holiness.  Yes, Holiness is God’s transforming work and power He gives to us, but our responsibility lies in our measure of surrender.  Holiness without surrender is like physical therapy without the drive to get better.   Romans 6:22 says, “But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life.”   Becoming a slave to God brings us face to face with our inadequacies, our imperfections and God’s deep desire not to leave us there in our broken state, but to transform and make us whole. But we must decide if we will let Him begin this therapy of holiness in us.  The pathway is painful, there will be difficulties and discomfort but to reap such a reward of Christ-likeness and complete surrender is priceless and this is what He desires from us all.  Remember: “No pain, no gain!”  Let’s do this together!

 

 

 

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