"Listen to Him"

 

            Perhaps they felt honored. Perhaps it did not faze them at all. The invitation by Jesus to join Him on the mountain would, however, teach them much…about God….about Jesus….about themselves. They were often invited to accompany Jesus when the other disciples were not. Here they were again, on ‘special assignment.’ But climbing a high mountain? Were fishermen really equipped for that kind of physical exertion? Sleepiness, as Luke tells us, enveloped them as did a strange cloud, transforming the mountain into a classroom that God designed.

            Fishermen, whose lives on the sea gave them many opportunities to experience the gamut of emotion, were to stretch those feelings to depths they had never known. Consider these: the sheer wonder of seeing their Teacher completely engulfed in light from within Himself. The awe of seeing two of the giants of their faith, Moses and Elijah, alive and talking with Jesus about His coming departure from earth to enter heaven. Panic as the ‘visiting saints’ were leaving Jesus. Overwhelming fear as events unfolded and as the cloud engulfed them and the voice from heaven spoke to them. Shame and confusion as their suggestion to camp out on the mountain top was rejected. Emotional-overload might best describe the entire experience. But wait. What did they learn, or did they? Was the experience in itself enough to help them, or were there lessons God wanted them to learn that they could possibly learn in no other way than a direct, clear word from God Himself?

            Matthew’s account of the event records the essence of the message God wanted Peter (and us) to learn, four specific facts that can transform our lives if we let them: (1) That Jesus is God’s unique Son, (2) That God loves His Son, (3) That God is well-pleased with His Son, and (4)  We must learn how important it is to listen to the Son. There they are: truths vastly important for us all to learn, and ones that God will engineer circumstances in our lives to help us learn them.

            Ponder. (1) Jesus is never to be compared with other great men; He is indeed unique. He is God. He is Lord. He is not just another good teacher. (2) God loves His Son and He loves all who love His Son. There is no other way to acceptance by God except through His Son, no matter how wonderful we think that ‘way’ or person is. (3) God is well-pleased with His Son, and so should we be. If we seek satisfaction or peace or happiness in any other place, we will fail, because God will never allow us to experience true joy anywhere except in the Son. (4) And the message that ends this dialogue from God is urgent for us, too: “Listen to Him.” Listening to the Son must be our daily pursuit. And listening in the true sense of the word means to respond positively, to obey what He says. We must never be enamored with or distracted by the glitzy, the new and different, even when it is housed in religious garb. For them to see and hear Elijah and Moses was indeed very exciting, even overwhelming. But their ecstasy was hollow when compared with what they could know by listening to the Son of God! To become callous or indifferent toward the wonder of Jesus is dangerous ground for us all. Perhaps it is that kind of apathy or familiarity that brings the rebuke of Jesus that we have lost our first love . This enemy of apathy stalks the church as much as any other monster today. We must never place anyone or anything on the same level as our love for Jesus, no matter how wonderful humans are or even how religious experiences effect us. He alone must be our passion, our desire, our reason for being, our goal….our love-object. No matter how many ‘tents’ we want to erect on the same level as our devotion to Jesus, no matter how afraid we may feel at times when we see His workings around us, no matter how awestruck with people we are, nothing, absolutely nothing, must detract us from our Master. The cloud from God will engulf us and doggedly obscure those elusive ‘idols.’ He loves us too much to allow us to find any satisfaction in anyone or anything but His Son. The voice will continue to speak to any with open, receptive hearts: “Listen to Him. Listen to Him.” And what will He say to us when we listen? Much, I am sure, but of this I am positive. The most life-changing thing we will hear from the Savior Himself will be: “I love you.” To hear and believe that is indeed life-changing.

The Christmas Spirit

The Christmas Spirit

            It is December 9 today. I recently read several postings on Facebook from people who were discussing the fact that they did not feel the Christmas spirit yet. Their comments made me ponder: Just what is the Christmas spirit and how do you get it? What causes it and is there anything we can do to get it to come? Here are some of my reflections on the topic.  

            Just what is the Christmas spirit; how can it best be described? My description would certainly include these: a feeling of peace, love and joy. Other words I would use would be: thankfulness, contentment, a sense of happiness and belonging, loving others and feeling loved by them. How would you describe this rather illusive phenomenon called ‘the Christmas Spirit?’

            Have you ever wondered what causes these feelings we call ‘the Christmas spirit?’ Since feelings are caused by thoughts, if I have these ‘positive Christmas-Spirit feelings,’ then I must be thinking some sort of good thoughts. So, it appears obvious to me if I want to have these feelings, I must start with an examination of what I am thinking. Clue: if I think negative feelings, the Christmas spirit flies out of my life! But what if my life is full of things that are negative? Do I just ignore them and live in unreality? Obviously, the answer is no. But what I must learn how to do is to focus on the positive things in my life. And the best way to do that is to think about what God did for me by sending His son that first Christmas morning. There it is. Love. Forgiveness. Purpose.

            Another suggestion: The Christmas Spirit might best be thought of as the Spirit of Christmas, God’s demonstration of His great love for us. I think we need to recall often that God really does love us, no matter how rotten our life might seem! I can handle anything that life throws at me when I truly believe that “God so loved the world that He gave His only Son….” My role? To believe and receive. Here are some truths to believe:

1.     Happiness is not in the giving or receiving of gifts at Christmas, but whether we have received God’s gift of Jesus.

2.     Real treasures are not money or things, but people, memories, the promise of the presence and power of God.

3.     Real joy comes from receiving God’s love and giving Him my life in return.

4.     God’s purpose for creating me was for relationship with me. I will never find peace or joy apart from that.

5.     When I try to find the Christmas spirit anywhere but in my relationship with God, I may have a short-lived emotional high, but I will miss the real thing.

            So, what must I do this Christmas season? How can I gain and maintain the true ‘feeling of Christmas?’ It is really not all that hard, except for the fact that we like to try other things, the phony and plastic replicas of the real thing. Wonder why we do that? It is really smarter to believe and do the right things, isn’t it?

1.     Take time to ponder, really ponder on how much God loves you.

2.     Read the Christmas story again, slowly, and prayerfully put yourself into the story.

3.     Use music to help you worship the One who came to die for you and to live in you.

4.     Do as the Savior did: go about doing good. Focus on making others happy and watch how your own happiness level increases.

5.     Refuse to throw any pity-parties. Focusing on our own problems instead of the grace and mercy of God will chase the Spirit of Christmas away.

6.     Praise the Lord for His willingness to come to earth as a baby, to live as a human, to die for your sins, to rise so you can count on being raised one day, and for inviting you to be His child. And thank Him for the Spirit who dwells in your heart.

Remember this:  when God’s Spirit is filling you and controlling you, your ‘Christmas Spirit’ will be obvious to you and to others. And you will then enjoy this great peace, love and joy, during the Christmas season …. and all year long!

God's Calls

The Calls

            I was reading in I Peter yesterday in preparation for Sunday School class lessons and realized that the emphasis on God’s calls I found in that book seemed to jump out at me. This morning I remembered when Dad used to whistle to call us kids to come home from the neighborhood yards in which we found great joy in playing with our friends. We did not ponder whether to answer the whistle or not. We knew it was time to go in and so we went.

            I wonder how promptly I answer the calls of God in my life? I think I will reflect just a few minutes this morning on some calls from Scripture that I remember. On another day, I want to reflect on another topic that is pressing in on my mind this morning: the questions God and Jesus asked. I have wondered about this topic for some time and know that I want to do an extensive study on it at some point. I have a long list of things I want to do!

            Some of the calls in Scripture I remember this morning:

1.     God’s call to Adam and Eve in the garden when He asked them where they were and what they had been doing. This is a good example of the ponderings I want to do…both on the calls and the questions of God. Perhaps I will see they are more related than I first considered.

2.     God’s call to Abraham to leave his country and go to a land where God would show him. It takes faith to do this…to answer and to go, not knowing all the details!

3.   God’s call to Moses to stand before the Pharaoh. God had to humble Moses before he was usable. That is a good reminder for us. Perhaps one of the reasons we do not hear the call of God on our lives or we are unable to carry it out is because we are not through the humbling by God that is necessary.

4.     God’s calls to the prophets. All kinds of people, with all kinds of giftings and weaknesses. But God always equips those He calls if they will but answer and obey.

5.     I think of God’s call to Jonah to do something he did not want to do. What an humbling experience God had to take him through to get him to be obedient. And even when he went, there was more humbling necessary. It is definitely a process. I am glad God keeps at it! Transformation is done as we allow Him to do it. The more we fight and resist, the longer it will take. But He never gives up. I like that, although it is painful to go through the process. But we are the ones who make it painful, not God.

6.     There are all kinds of calls recorded in the Bible, both the initial call and the little ‘calls within a calling,’ as I would describe them. Elijah was most certainly called to be a prophet, but there are many callings within that calling. Some were exciting ones, like the Mount Carmel experience, while others were not so fun. Running from Jezebel was not anything enviable to be sure. And Jeremiah probably loved some of his work while certainly hating things like being thrown in a cistern or wearing a yoke as an object lesson to disobedient listeners. And I am sure Amos hated going into the middle of the alternate worship center in the north, preaching a message of doom and subsequently being asked to go back home to the south where he belonged. And that threat was by a religious leader!

7.     I think of the calls of Jesus to His various disciples, and to the calls within calls to them as they walked along with Him and as He left them to return to heaven. The training of the called is interesting, too. My, what patience our Lord has with His called ones!

8.     There were the calls to discipleship that Jesus offered to everyone He met, some gladly accepting the invitation and some rejecting the call. Money stood in the way of the rich young ruler. Religious convictions and pride stood in the way of the Pharisees and other religious groups. Some of their stubbornness was the result of self-satisfaction and religious pride. Why would anyone be open to a call when we feel we are just fine as we are?

9.     There are on-going calls to all of us to go deeper with God. We are called to a life of holiness, commitment, walking in the light, confession and cleansing. We are called to take up our crosses, to die to self, to choose the way of life. I wonder how well we are doing with the ongoing calls of the Spirit to follow Jesus and to do His will no matter how difficult it may seem?

10. We are called to be free, called to pray, called to witness, called to preach, called to prayer, called to walk humbly with God, called to obey, called to be faithful. I can only search my heart and listen for the daily call of God on my own life. But I also desire and choose to be a vessel to help others understand the call of God on their life.

            One day I will hear the ‘whistle of God’ to come home. I will gladly answer. I know He knows when is the right time for that. But in the meantime I will do my best, by His grace, to answer and obey the other callings on my life. “Here I am, Lord. I gladly answer and follow.”

                                                                                                                                    -Alice
                                                                                                                                    11/2/13

Psalm 103 musings

            I was journaling in the psalms this morning and thought I would take a moment to put some thoughts on my blog. As I began to read Psalm 103, I saw what I had written in the margin near the first verse: the word ‘praise’ means to ‘affectionately, gratefully praise’ the Lord. I realized that is really does make a difference to add those two descriptive words. They help us understand what true praise encompasses. Unfortunately, it is all too common for us to focus on and offer praises to God without affection or gratitude. But then, I wonder if praise is really praise without these two behaviors? Going through religious motions or activities without affection and gratitude to God strip away the heart of what praise is all about! It is all too easy for religious activity to replace heart relationship with God. Do we see that too many times in our times of corporate worship?

            What can I do to foster true praise in my life and to avoid and even eliminate the heartless, ungrateful praise in which I may sometimes engage? I am sure there are many ways to do this, but a few pop into my mind this morning. (1) Realize the possibility of engaging in empty, heartless, ungrateful praise. (2) Spend time in self-examination, repentance and confession before running into the presence of God. (3) Ask for His help in learning how to praise correctly. (4) Focus on truth, on Who He really is, how much He loves me, what He has done for me, etc. True gratitude will rise and love for Him will grow. (5) Learn that praise is different from thanksgiving, but realize that focusing on thanking God for all He has done for us helps stir up praise in our hearts for Who He is. (6)Stop  when you realize that gratitude and affection are missing from your praise and remedy the situation before you continue.

            These are just a few musings this morning. My attention has been peaked and my alertness heightened in the matter of guarding my heart against empty praise-activity!

The Door

This is a meditation I wrote a few years back that I found on my computer today and thought you might like to read it.

The Door

Why do we fear the door? Is it because we do not know what is on the other side?

Some of us grew up with game shows as our entertainment, especially when we were at home due to illness. Children and teens who are sick rarely enjoy anything more stimulating than a comic book or a good TV show to help pass the boring hours. The fever stifles enthusiasm for much else. The game shows are there to help fill the void.

"What is behind door number one," the game show host declares with great excitement. As the door opens, ‘oohs’ and ‘ahs’ are heard from the audience. Laughter erupts when the door reveals an unwanted ‘treasure.’ And whether our fever gets better or grows worse that game-day, our minds are impressed with the fact that some doors hide treasures and others reveal unwanted junk. Our young minds dream of winning the shiny, red car, but yet we wonder why someone can be thrilled with a washing machine and refrigerator. We are too immature to understand that a perceived treasure often reveals more about the person who desires it.

Other doors attach themselves in our storehouse of memories. The childhood scary doors that shut us into our bedroom, in the dark, away from those in whom we found comfort and security. The doors that allowed us to escape from threats or to needed privacy to think or feel, often painfully. There were doors of guilt that shut us in with unconfessed sin or hid our messages of shame and failure. There are mental doors we build to protect us from love or from memories of love lost. There are emotional doors we have built deep within ourselves to hide our bruised egos. There are invisible doors that we do not see, but that shut out affection and caring because someone once hurt us with rejection or abuse.

It would do us well to look at our own doors to see of what they are made and why. Sometimes we fear that our very self will crumble if we dare let someone past our protective doors, for when we were too young to erect them or too immature to know we even needed them, we were hurt….or disillusioned…rejected….shamed…ignored. The pain was almost too great to bear, and thus the door-building began. We are good at it now. We quickly size up a relationship and build the appropriate door: one that opens when it is safe, or one that is closed forever.

Some doors seem to be made of steel, and are locked so tight, we cannot open them even if we want to do so. Why have they become such a part of us? To open them might destroy who we are. Others seem to be made of flimsy materials that disintegrate when approached by someone who knows how to make them collapse. "How did they know the weak area?" we ask, when the doors crumble no matter how hard we try to keep it from occurring. Where did they find the key? Is isolation the only respite I have from these threats? But isolation often makes me unavailable even to healthy love.

And there are spiritual doors: some open to vistas that bring great joy, and we cannot begin to understand or express the deep and pleasant feelings that result. But other spiritual doors seem to block out those who would love us in the love of the Lord. Those steal bars are all to easy to construct. And some seem to block out the Lord Himself, the only one who wants us to know what love truly is. We dare not even give Him a key or allow Him access to the inner chambers of our self. The risk seems too great.

There is a ‘spiritual door,’ the path to which strikes terror to our hearts. And because of the frightening path leading up to the door, we often forget the importance of the door itself and what is on the other side. This door was not in the original plan by God, but it does lead to realms of glory we can barely understand or appreciate. This glorious but much misunderstood door is named ‘death.’ It lies at the end of the valley of shadows, and all must walk there one day. Some will travel in an instant through the valley; others will slowly and painfully make their way. Some will lose faith; others will walk so triumphantly that others are encouraged to be faithful. Some will cry; some will sing. Some will be afraid; others will find peace. Some of the young may go before the elders.

But this is a strange door, not like the ones on the game show. This door has two destinations behind it: a blessing and a curse. A grand prize and one to dread. This door of death leads to different journeys beyond it. Perhaps that is why some fear….or scream when approaching it. What do they see that we cannot? Why do some sing and experience peace, and others wail uncontrollably? What do they see? What do we need to know?

For Christians, the door opens to life eternal with their Father and with the One who called Himself ‘the Door.’ For non-believers, the door opens to eternal punishment, apart from all that is good and holy. For these, we must be the ambassador of good news to share with them the true treasures that lie behind the door of death. But what about us believers? What should we remember about the door, and the dreaded path to it?

Life is a game of sorts. Everyday we are asked to make decisions, comparisons, choices. The ultimate choice, of course, is to enter in through the Door Himself. But once we are on the path to life, is there not something else we should keep in mind? Will this path keep us from the dreaded valley of the shadow? No, it does not assure us freedom from pain, suffering, and sorrow. All must travel this path. But we have a companion, and the assurance of One who has traveled that path before us. He promises to accompany us through the valley and to open the door of death for us. Some of us will go quickly through; some of us will go slowly, and will have opportunity to share with our loved-ones. Some of us are allowed to ‘say good-bye,’ and others do not have that blessing. But all of us are traveling toward the door.

The door. Perhaps we should concentrate on the door instead of the dreaded pathway. Perhaps we should ponder what lies ‘behind’ the door, and not what or who we are leaving behind. If we accept the joys that are before us, we can endure patiently as did our Lord. It is normal to fear, to want to hold on to the only life we have known. But the truths have been told us from one Who went through the door and has come back. He let us know that both the path and the door itself are brightly lit when He travels it with us. And He knows what is on the other side: His home.

The door. Concentrate on the door. There is light streaming under it. There are sounds of joy emanating from behind it. There is joy and rejoicing; loved-ones wait with open arms to receive us. The Savior walks beside us, and carries us when we are too weary to walk anymore. The door. I see the door. I welcome the light. I see the Father. The Savior walks with me. There is nothing to fear.