Tag Archives: Religion and Spirituality

Shattered!

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Shattered!

The screech of tires! The scream of a child! Our favorite place desecrated by a thoughtless act! These are but a few of the images that in a moment can burn into our mind and heart. To a lesser degree there are those conversations, meetings, news reports, sights and sounds of our busy world that pull us from some piece of sacred space ever closer to a precipice into the yawning jaws of fear, worry, or hopelessness.

None of us are immune from these things. “When I was prosperous I said, ‘Nothing can stop me now!’ Your favor, O Lord, made me as secure as a mountain. Then you turned away from me, and I was shattered.” Psalm 30:6-7.
“I cried out to you, O Lord. … Hear me, Lord, and have mercy on me. Help me, O Lord. You have turned my mourning into joyful dancing. You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy, that I might sing praises to You and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give you thanks forever!” (Psalm 30:8, 10-12)

I am thankful that the Psalmist did not stop with verse 7. But unfortunately we often do. We sometimes go days, weeks, months in our shattered state. This is all so unnecessary. Why do we do this?

I believe that there are two reasons why we do.

1) We have believed the world around us which with ever growing crescendo proclaims to us that the solution to our problems is in the right insurance, phone, detergent, car, music, etc. Mindlessly we rummage around for answers and fulfillment where none can be found and often in the act increase our problem.

2) We do not believe God. In God’s Word and the testimony of the Church triumphant we have ample evidence that trust in God is still the only way to “stop the fiery arrows aimed at you by Satan” (Ephesians 6:16).

Today are we shattered? We cannot heal ourselves. We were never meant to heal ourselves. We have been created to live with God in constant connectedness. We have been and are lied to on a regular basis and told that we must do it ourselves. Yet the evidence floods our world that we are destroying our lives, others and our world. Our leaders can’t lead us out of this mess. Our doctors cannot cure all our ills. Our scholars cannot bring to us the wisdom we need to find our way.

There remains, as from the beginning, but one way to mend our shattered and broken lives.
“May God’s grace be upon all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with undying love.” Ephesians 6:24

The Illusion of Strength

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The Illusion of Strength

Having returned from spending an entire day painting our rental apartment, I awoke this morning feeling tired and sore in places that I had forgotten existed. As I struggled with the fact that I would indeed have to get up out of bed, I thought of a thousand excuses to just stay put. It would have been so much easier to have just hired someone to do this work. I could have then avoided the after effects I was now experiencing! It occurs to me that most of modern life, in fact, consists of conveniences designed to minimize such physical work. As a result, we are increasingly a society growing flabby and weak in both body and soul.

Physical exhaustion now and then either from overworking or perhaps from a period of illness or incapacitation, can sometimes serve as a reminder to us that we are not superhuman. That we have limitations. That our bodies are aging. That most of the time our faith in our own strength is really just an illusion. The truth of the matter is that one unfortunate accident or illness can side line us indefinitely. However, most of the time we live as if we are indestructible and can do anything, accomplish anything, if we just push ourselves hard enough.

The reality is that this is not so. Floods, hurricanes, and tornados are powerful reminders of nature how the seemingly indestructible can perish. In our own lives, an illness, an accident, the loss of employment, death of a family member, a economic downturn, a divorce- these can all test the limits of our strength and endurance. For many of us, it is only such drastic events as these which force us to turn to God and acknowledge our weakness and need. It is only in these circumstances when we cry out to Him. And sadly, once our world is righted again, we forget how much we truly need Him, and it’s back to business as usual. The illusion of strength returns…..

How wise are those who live in constant dependency upon Him! Blessed are those who remember daily their own insufficiency for all things and rely upon His grace and abiding love to navigate every circumstance in their lives. They have relinquished the illusion of strength and embraced weakness. And it is in this weakness that His strength is made perfect! Amen.

God and Gutter Balls

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God and Gutter balls

I have not bowled for a long time but I can still recall the experience well. I am an inconsistent bowler. I have earned a score as high as 263, and as low as 63. There seems to be no rhyme or reason to this. On days when I am bowling well the gutters seem like an unnecessary afterthought. On a bad day they seem more like a life saving barrier to protect me from killing or maiming other innocent patrons of the bowling alley!
It occurs to me that God functions in a somewhat similar way in our lives. He provides “gutters” to guard against choices brought on by having a bad day in the game of life. Life is a series of choices when you come right down to it. And we are the decision makers. God in His infinite great love and mercy has given us free will so that we may make any number of choices regarding our lives. I wish that I could say that all of mine had brought God glory and made the heavenly angels sing. Alas, this is not the case. Sadly there are days when most of my decisions would result in a score of 63 or even lower!

Because God knows each of us intimately, He is also aware of ways in which each of us should be limited in some way. As such we all face certain limitations in life, such as where we live, how much income we have, how much strength and energy we possess, our life situation, and even the number of years we have upon the earth. Many of us seem to spend an inordinate amount of time trying to alter these limitations. Our tendency, when confronted by a boundary or limitation, is to try to find a way around it. How often do we stop to consider that it may be serving some purpose in our lives? God demonstrates his approval of boundaries in the way that He created the heavens and the earth. He placed boundaries between the sea and the land; between night and day; between each species in where they should live and how they should function. A fish cannot nest and fly. A bird has no gills and cannot swim. These are limitations which are for the good of these species. Does it not make sense that a loving God would place limitations on his human children as well?
Paul asked for God to remove one of his limitations. A ” thorn in the flesh” as he described it. What was God’s answer? “My grace is sufficient for thee”. Whatever the limitation Paul was facing he apparently needed it. God left it in place.

And so He does in our lives as well. Before we ask God to push back a boundary, knock down a barrier, or remove a limitation, perhaps it would be wise to consider its possible meaning and purpose. When we feel ourselves frustrated by hitting the wall with something it may be the time to prayerfully seek wisdom and guidance from above. God is certainly still in the business of moving mountains. But He is also a God of order, of boundaries, and He knows just exactly how much of each we require in our lives. Our job is to humbly submit to His will for our lives, trusting that He always has our greatest good in mind.

The Valley of Decision

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The Valley of Decision

Modern Christianity has a serious problem. It has been hijacked by a consumer culture dedicated to proclaiming what is popular, doing what is fun, and devoted to what makes us feel “ok” about everything. At some point down the road of authentic Christianity, each of us will discover why Jesus said that only those who took up their cross and hated their lives in this world could follow Him.

What we see in our culture today is not true Christianity. It is a hybrid of Christianity and political correctness designed to offend no one. When challenged by the claims of Jesus Christ it will not accept Him or anyone else who insists that He is the only Way, the only Truth, and the only Life.

In looking at the life of Christ we see one which ended in a lonely, painful death. To the multitudes who followed him, the Jewish leaders, and the Roman authorities this is where His story ended. Only those who were empowered by His Holy Spirit ever learned of His resurrected life and The Rest of the Story. As it was then, so it is today. Why should we expect that the world would treat us as His followers any better than they treated Him and His disciples over 2000 years ago?

So – the question becomes this: why follow Him at all? Taken within the context of this world and an earthy life it makes no sense at all. However, Christ teaches us that this world is not our home. His Kingdom, our true Home, begins when this world ends. This is why Jesus said, “Do not lay up for yourself riches that rust, get stolen or corrupted. Instead lay up for yourselves true riches that are safe from these things.” The problem is this: there is a big part of us that still wants much of what this world has to offer. We want its acceptance, its love, its opportunities. When we find ourselves in a place where these two worlds collide we come to the valley of decision.