Pastor's Prayer retreat day 2: Seaching for wisdom (job 28)

Have you ever looked at a group of people and thought, "no way, I am not going to find what I am looking for here?"

When I am looking for inspiration I usually go off by myself somewhere. I will find a new book I am interested in or some music that has moved me in the past. I then typically head out into the wild of nature some where. I'm not really as wild as some of you might be thinking right now. The places I go usually have trails and sometimes it might be the wildness of the waves on the coast of a cozy little town like Cannon beach. But all the same I find a movement in my soul when I encounter something not made by the hands of mankind.

Sometimes I really seem to find the inspiration I am looking for and sometimes it seems to allude me. I get so frustrated on those days. I set this time aside to come out here and find God, find clarity, find vision, find wisdom. I end up disappointed and confused. It almost feels like going to a Chinese restaurant when what you really wanted was a burrito.

In Job chap 28 the search for wisdom is described the same way. Mankind knows how to carve away at the earth, where to find all of the precious gems and metals. We have mines for silver and gold. We find ways to pry out emeralds and rubies we even know how to shine them up and make them sparkle. But when it comes to wisdom, true wisdom we are clueless. What to do with our lives, where to go next, how to understand what is happening to us and why. These are the answers we really want, these are more precious than any of the sparkelies in the earth. We just can't seem to find them.

Job concludes wisdom comes from fearing God and understanding from shunning what is evil. Aligning our lives with God, following his lead turns out to be the wisest thing we can do. The question then comes where do we find out what God has in mind. I ask myself this question every time I come on this prayer retreat. Where will I find God, how will I obtain wisdom this year. So I pack my bag full of too many books to read in three days and prepare to hunker down in my room and really seek God through whatever means necessary and into all hours of the night.

This plan however makes me annoyed at the get-togethers we have with the other pastor's who are here. I get taken away from my all important books and solitude. Each year I am tempted to skip all the gatherings and just disappear into solitude. Today however as I met with some of the other guys who are here. I realized it might be possible to find wisdom in the God fearing men and women around me. The flesh and blood ones sitting right there looking at me rather than just the words on a page written by someone far, far away.

The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom right? Well there are many people around us who have been living God-fearing lives for a long time. Perhaps they have found more than just the beginning of wisdom and perhaps we just might be able to learn some wisdom from them.

I would encourage you to look around. Notice the people around you, put your book down, and find out what God has taught them.

Pastor's Prayer retreat day 1: darkness and light

Have you ever noticed how ominous the ocean is at night?

I arrived at the pastors prayer retreat tonight in Cannon Beach at midnight. It's late and I am physically tired, but my mind was wound up so I brought my bags into my room and went right back out for a walk on the beach. I walked through a bit of the little cozy town of Cannon Beach on my way to the waves and was cheered by the Christmas lights and shop lights still on in the store fronts. I made my way to the beach and started walking across the sand away from the lights of the town and towards the dark ocean with only the breaking foam of the waves visible in the vast blackness. As much as I love the ocean and enjoy night walks on the beach I have to say there is something ominous about the endless expanse of inky void the ocean depths turns into on a foggy cloudless night.

As I came back towards town I was struck with the brightness of the single street light shining down the concrete steps to the sand. I thought to myself, it is good to be called out of the darkness and into the light. It is good to be rescued from the deep covering night engulfing this world and it's inhabitants. I began to think about the promises of scripture, we are holy nation a royal priesthood called out of the darkness and into his marvelous light. Yeah! I thought here is the light of the world calling all of us wondering children out on the night to a place of safety and warmth. All who are weary come home.

But then I thought, we need to go into the darkness to bring others into the light, we can't just sit here in the light and becon. We have to go out there and as long as we don't go so deep into the dark we loose sight of Jesus our light we will be safe. The problem is Jesus isn't waiting back on the shore of safety, he is in the midst of the darkness. He is the light that came into the darkness, he didn't stay in heaven he came here and dwelt among us. So we need to follow him in!

But what if our light gets swallowed up in the darkness and we get lost? What happens if we can't see the safe harbor anymore? The truth is, in Christ we are the light to the world. Paul was called to be the light to the gentiles, in Isaiah the whole nation of Israel is called to be the light to the gentiles. Jesus is the light for the whole world. In Christ we are the light of the world, and a city on the hill can not be hidden.

There are many who has said, "let us run from this evil darkness, take our families and flee into the safe and secluded little cabins in the countryside and wait for Jesus to come." This is putting your light under a bushel! This is not being the light of the world or the salt of the earth!

We must go into and dispel the darkness by shining light like the stars in the heavens as we hold out the word of life. When we go into the places of deep darkness, they are not so dark anymore. When we bring love to the loveless as the apostle John wrote, we are walking in the light.

The darkness of this world need not be so ominous when Christ is shining from the inside out, we become the street lights dispelling the darkness and ushering in the kingdom of light!

A wreck does not a failure make.

Have you ever given a life long passion up because of a single failure?

When I was in high school I loved to go skiing and later snowboarding. I still enjoy it now although I don't go as much for various reasons. I remember probably my freshman year we went up to Red Mountain in BC with the school ski program. It was a great place to go. The length of the runs far surpassed any other mountain I had been to before. I was skiing with a group of classmates who were not a proficient as I was. They knew it and you better believe I knew it. So they told me about a jump they hadn't been willing to try for being to scared and said I should do it. I wasn't very good at jumps really but I was a sucker for praise so I went for it. The problem is I didn't GO for it. I took it cautiously and didn't get enough speed so as my ski tips went over the lip of the jump they started to go down and ran into a lip at the bottom of the jump. My tips got caught and I went skidding on my face across the snow under the chair lift for all to see.

There are a couple of interesting lessons I can reflect on for this. One is to watch my pride because it did come right before a fall, second just because I failed on this one jump I'm not going to give up on skiing. Third my integrity, value, and worth are not tied to what I do or do not do, whether I fail or succeed.

This is what I pick up in Job chap 27. He says to his accusatory friends, " I will never admit you are in the right; till I die, I will not deny my integrity. I will maintain my righteousness and never let go of it: my conscience will not reproach me as long as I live." I struggle with this statement it seems so proud and so unrepentant. Job is a tricky subject, on one hand at the end of the book God says, "Job what you said about me was right, and what your friends said was wrong." And yet Job repents of speaking of things he does not understand and even despises himself.

So was what he said right or not? Is holding onto his integrity and righteousness really the right thing to do or not? I have to go back to the context once again. At the beginning of the book God calls job righteous, the suffering he is going through is not caused by any sense of punishment, but rather as a test of the devil. So Job is right to hold on to his integrity. He is right not to give up on his righteousness in the midst of what feels like a failure in life.

God is still there, Job is still the same righteous man who began this story, and Job is right to hang on.

Even when we fall on our faces we don't need to give up. Christ has still made us his righteousness. God placed value on us even when we were sinners, because he died for us while we were sinners while we were his enemies. All we need do is hold on to Jesus and we hold on to our integrity and stand righteous. Our failures need not make us to be failures. We do need to stop living or give up on our relationship with God when we fall or when the world seems to fall on us.

I hope today we can find the courage to hold on even when we feel like letting go.

By what spirit

Can you feel the war of the spirits in your life?

As soon as it begins to get colder in Portland land the fog really comes in. There are so many morning now when I drive my daughter to school through the pea soup. Sometimes visibility is reduced to a couple hundred feet and sometimes its seems its only to the front of the van. Sometimes I feel like my spiritual life is just about as clear.

Do you have the days when the temptation to go the wrong way with life and decisions just feels so strong? The days when it feels easier to stay in the house and watch TV or surf the internet. Why in the world would I want to get out and exercise or interact with any other human being in the world? Yet on the other side you really want to get out and actually do something productive with the day and know you would actually feel better about life if you could.

In Job chap 26, Job asks his advice spilling friends how their words are helpful to anyone around them, if in any way what they are saying is building up those who are weak. Finally he asks by what spirit are you speaking these "words of wisdom." This begs the question for me. By what spirit am I speaking today.

The are both at work in me - the spirit of God and the spirit of the age. In Christ its no long I who sin but the sin within me it is also no longer I who live but Christ who lives with in me. It's something like being multiple personality disorder or something. It is truly confusing at times. When I do the things I don't want to do and don't do the things that I want to do. As Paul would say who can save me from this body of death. Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

This has a two fold meaning for me. For one when I surrender my life to Christ I can live by the power of his spirit in my life. The second meaning is, when I fall I am so thankful that Jesus has given me the amazing gift of forgiveness and through him I can come back into relationship with God. I am reminded of the thorn in Paul's flesh which God had not chose to take away from Paul. The answer Paul is given? My grace is enough.

Thanks be to God his grace is enough for anything we run ourselves into and thanks be to God he that is in me, Christ, is greater than he who is in the world. So today can be a good day, I love the way Christ works and the way the fog clears from my mind as I seek him.

May we live lives by the power of the Holy Spirit in all we say and do. And when we fall may we run into the arms of grace.

Do maggots talk to God?

Does the view of who we are affect our relationship with God?

This past week I have been asked 3 times why I became a youth pastor. What was it that lead me to make that decision? So 3 times this past week I have told the story of my call to different individuals and groups. The story is of the subtle yet firm way in which God lead me to understand public ministry was the path he had for me to take. Starting with, well I don't really know what it started with probably something I haven't even recognized yet. The things I have recognized start with being on a drama team my senior year in high school. This was my first experience with public ministry anyway. He moved me from speaking lines other people had written to sharing my own thoughts and study my third year in college on a traveling youth ministry team. As I stepped back from sharing my own words back into the world of drama and then back into a major of behind the scenes ministry of counseling he let me feel the loss of the public ministry he was calling me to.

Then he spoke very directly using my own emotional control to get through to me. Panic attacks I had never had before and have never had sense to make me uncomfortable enough to ask him if he wanted a change from me. When I processed the choice of psychology or theology with him in prayer the peace and relief flooding my soul was clear enough, so I accepted my call into public ministry. (Feel free to ask me sometime if you don't actually know the story.)

So here is my question when it comes to Job chap 25, Bildad says, "man is nothing in the sight of God. What man can be righteous, who born of a woman can be pure? The stars were not good enough for God so how can a man be? Man is but a maggot before God the son of man is a worm." Does God talk to maggots? Does God call maggots to share the gospel to the rest of the maggot mankind? I know God cares for all of his creation he sees every sparrow fall, but I don't think he has the same relationship with maggots as he does with man. In fact, after the sparrow thing, Jesus tells us how much more will he look after us.

Sometimes we are still sharing this maggot message with the world around us. Man is nothing in the sight of God, he has the same reaction to us as we do to maggots. Disgusting! Get them out of my sight destroy them before they mature. But this isn't the way God sees us at all. In fact he became the son of man himself. Redemption is accomplished so we can have a relationship with him once again.

Even in Job's time this was true, the system of sacrifice had already been set up pointing to the messiah who was to come and has now come. Even in Job's time God cared about humanity and wanted relationship with them.

Those who take the view of the nothingness of man like Bildad can't have much of a relationship with God. If they believe themselves to be maggots then how can they actually have a conversation with God let alone a relationship. God would be someone to be feared and avoided. Life would be spent groveling just hoping not to get squished.

This is not what God has in mind. We are invited into an intimate and direct relationship with him. To approach boldly before the throne of grace. Jesus teaches us to pray to God as our Father not our exterminator.

May we accept the much more privileged relationship and status God has in mind for us and move from maggots of God, to men and women of God.

Longing for Judgement

Has anything created a longing for justice in you recently?

As I was preparing for my sermon last week I watched some videos online having to do with modern day slavery. I saw one video with a teen girl who had been kidnapped at 11 or 12 from her village in Cambodia and enslaved in the sex trade. Kept in these dingy little rooms her virginity sold three times. The slavers sewed her up twice. If she refused to "serve her clients" she was tied up with a live wire around and inside of her and she was tortured with electric shocks. Finally she refused and the madam of the brothel took out her eye with a pencil. Now disfigured she was useless to the brothel and was turned out into the street. In the interview with CNN she was in a shelter run by a woman who had been rescued when she was young from the same bondage.

There are many other stories like this online and in our world today. For Americans the most shocking part of this problem is it exists here as well. This is not just a third world, far removed problem. There were 12 brothels discovered within a 20 mile radius of the White House.

In Chap 24 Job cries, “Why does the Almighty not set times for judgment?
Why must those who know him look in vain for such days?" This is not usually a phrase we hear coming out of our mouths. We usually think of the judgment of God as something to be feared. Why would we want the judgment of God to come down on our heads? Job shares a precious truth with us in these words. Those who follow God, like Job, have nothing to fear in God's judgment. In fact we have vindication and salvation to long for in God's judgment. Job goes on to describe the situation of the poor and enslaved, naked though they work weaving clothe, hungry though they gather the sheaves of wheat, thirsty though they tread the wine press. Job knows one day the oppressor will be judged and come to nothing and he is asking why God withholds this day.

If we are paying attention to what is happening in the world today we would pray for the same thing. Judgment for the oppressor and vindication for the oppressed. As I read this the need struck me for God's final judgment yes, but also for the part we have to play.

The videos I was watching on CNN were in connection with the people who were engaged in setting the prisoners free. Does that phrase sound familiar to anyone? It should! It's one of the lines of the mission statement of Jesus the messiah. He came to enable the lame to walk, the blind to see, cast out demons, and set the prisoners free. International Justice Mission (IJM) is just one of the modern day abolitionist movements out there. While we will not be able to accomplish the fulfillment of absolute freedom as Christ will when he returns, we have our part to play now.

I encourage you to check out IJM and other movements like it and find out what you can do. A group of high school students at Portland Adventist Academy is currently organizing and student group to do what they can to fight modern day slavery. There are many other causes as well; fighting world hunger and poverty, digging wells for clean water, and sponsoring a child or a hundred children.

As we long for the vindication and complete deliverance of God, may we do our part in the fight against injustice. May the blinders be removed so we might be moved enough to act.

Our ever present invisible God

Have you ever felt like God was completely silent and absent only to find out he was right next to you?

I remember one particular dark night of the soul for me. I was pastoring in a five church district in Colorado. I had been reading a lot of books on church growth. How to have a healthy church, meaning there were more and more people joining. All of these strategies of how to make sure the nickels and noses being counted in our weekly gatherings was growing. I got very, very discouraged with all of this. I came to the point of saying, "if all I am doing as a pastor is growing an institution then I don't want any part of it." This conclusion was the spring board into the depths of questioning life, the universe, and everything. I began to wonder if what we thought or believed actually made any difference in our lives. Why do we bother with deep thoughts of faith and mystery? Why not just live by the things we can see, touch, feel, and experience and leave it at that?

I remember my questions dragging me in deeper and darker, until in the midst of the blackness I realized what had brought me there. It was my thoughts. Nothing had changed in my physical world. I was still in the same house, I still had food in the fridge, I was still married to the same lovely wife. All of the physical world was the same. The only thing changed was my mindset. There for what we think, believe, question does effect out lives. "I think therefore I am." It had just drug me down into this pit and now this new realization was bringing me back out again.

Sometimes when we get in these dark places it is very hard for us to find God in them. Perhaps the darkness is much more physical like Job's was or the people in Haiti. But the truth is even when we can't find God he still knows exactly where we are. In Job 23, Job has his complaints and his case to bring before God, but where ever he looks for him, God is not to be found. He can't find him working in any four points of the compass and yet he comes to the realization even though he can't find God;

10 But he knows the way that I take;
when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold.
11 My feet have closely followed his steps;
I have kept to his way without turning aside.
12 I have not departed from the commands of his lips;
I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily
bread.

God knows exactly where Job is and he knows Job has stayed on the path God has laid out for us. Even when we don't know where God is, he knows where we are. Let that sink in for a moment. Even when we feel lost. God knows where we are. Sense he is the one who can save us this is a good thing.

It reminds me of the old footprints story thing. There are two sets of footprints on the beach and then they go down to one. We look at this and say God why did you leave me during this trying time? Why would you leave when I needed you most? God's reply is that he didn't leave, the reason there is only one set of footprints is because he was carrying us.

Somehow in the midst of my questions about our faith affecting our lives, God was right there showing me through the same way I was sinking into the inky darkness he could lead me into the light. Through thoughts, belief, and a saving faith I could find hope in the very same physical circumstances I was sinking in discouragement.

May we come to see even when we don't know where God is or how he is working, he knows exactly where we are and may we find solace in this faith. The substance of things not seen.

The glory of God is a man fully alive

How can man actually benefit God? Does God need us?

I was with a group of people the other day and we were sharing our triumphs together. I don't know if you have done this with a group. If you haven't I would highly recommend it. To hear the stories of finishing marathons, going from disappointment to football super star, the moment when everything becomes electric on stage when performing a brand new song. When we share these stories with each other you can feel the exhilaration. It almost feels like you can touch the glory. For me I have moments of when what could have been a very harsh conversation turns into a possibility for friendship and encouragement. I also remember one time when I was preaching about the messiness of our lives and the God who does messy and unexpected things to meet us where we are. At the end of the sermon I offered a prayer for those who wanted to come to the front. It was an amazing blessing to me as those people walked down and knelt to pray with me.

We get these glimpses of glory, when God is there working through us and we can sense it, feel it, know we are in the center of his will. We are God's workmanship Paul says created to do the good works he had in mind for us to do. And when we find ourselves in the middle of that we can shine and radiate the glory of God. Christ in us, scripture says, the hope of glory.

In chap 22 of Job Eliphaz asks the question, can a man benefit God? What pleasure would it give the Almighty if you were righteous? Eliphaz is still trying to get Job to admit his wickedness and then we he comes back to God things will be better, he will get his blessings back. But this is a very ignorant question to ask. Does God need us? No probably not, he could create completely new people to spend time with and he is three in one so he is never really lonely. But do we benefit him? Is a righteous man something of value to God? This answer is a resounding yes!

Why else would Jesus have come to die for us? Why would it matter if he paid the penalty for our sins so we could stand righteous before God. St. Iranaeus is quoted as saying, "The glory of God is a man fully alive." We are made in the image of God. When we shine we are reflecting the glory of God. When we step into the righteousness of Christ and live a life of glory to God in everything we do, whether we eat, drink, or whatever we do we are a benefit to God. We shine his name forth.

We do it even more so when we are daily transformed by him to leave behind old sinful patterns. It really is glorious to see a life changed by the power of God.

May we live lives of glory today, in Christ, changed by the power of his sacrifice and resurrection so those around us might see a glimpse of the glory of God reflected through us.

Bring it on!!!

Bring it on!!!

I was watching "the emperor's new groove" with my daughter the other day. There is this great scene where the two main characters (emperor Kuzco, played by David Spade (who has been turned into a llama) and John Goodman's character Pancha) are lashed to a log floating down a river. There is the expected "oh no" from Pancha which is followed by Kuzco's prediction, "let me guess there is a huge waterfall, with massive sharp rocks at the bottom...bring it on!"

I feel like this is exactly what Job is doing in Chap 21. In Chap 20 Zophar (great name by the way) is explaining to Job the way it has always been, from the beginning of time he says, "the wicked only get pleasure for a short amount of time and then they are snuffed out. Their children have to pay for their wickedness, they are poisoned from the evil that is hiding in their mouths, their desire is never sated, etc. etc."

I love the first line of Job's response in chap 21,"“Listen carefully to my words; let this be the consolation you give me. Bear with me while I speak, and after I have spoken, mock on." I love that! OK guys just let me speak here listen for a little while as I speak my piece and then...mock on! Bring it on! He then goes on to tell it like it is. The wicked prosper all around him they see their children established and they go down to the grave in peace. But that's not all Job has to say. Both the man who is well fed and healthy and the man who is skin and bones when they die they lay down in the same earth and the same worms come to eat them.

In other words there are no favorites in this world. Righteous or evil the same fate awaits us in the dust. The wicked are just as likely to get rich and happy as are the righteous in this world. The life circumstances in which we find ourselves has very little to do with whether we are righteous or wicked and much more to do with fortuitous opportunities and hard work.

So what reason do we have to be righteous??? It goes beyond the wealth of this world. It goes into heavenly treasures. Jesus told us not to store up treasures here on earth where moth and rust destroy, but store up treasures in heaven where moth and rust cannot destroy nor thief break in and steal. We end up with the same lot here, whether righteous or wicked when it comes to the grave and the worms.

But after the grave when Jesus returns and the grave is open, then the results are so much different. The wicked to be burned as chaft and righteous to rule in heaven.

So Zophar kind of had it right, he just had the time line wrong. The pleasure of the wicked is short in the span of eternity, but in this little time we have on earth suffering is not a gauge we can use for who is righteous and who is not.

I remember hearing a story once of a missionary who was coming home after 40 years in the mission field. On the same plane was a soldier boy coming home from the war. When they landed there was a huge welcoming party there for the soldier, but there was no one there for the missionary. No fanfare, no banners, no T.V. cameras. The missionary felt a little cheated. What's the deal God, I serve you for all of these years faithfully and I receive nothing at my home coming? Then he heard a small voice say, "You're not home yet."

May we remember today we are not home yet and may we look at the people around us, rich or poor, as people. People who need Jesus and who have the chance for a much better life after the grave than the best this world has to offer. Then we will go home. Even so Lord Jesus, Bring it on!

Brittany Spears and Job

Have you ever said this phrase: "He/She just needs Jesus?"

I remember when Brittany Spears was going through all of her craziness. I don't know if it is over yet or not, but she isn't in the headlines like she used to be. While she was all over the news feeds for poor parenting choices and shaving her head we had a small group meeting in our home. At one of our small group meetings we were talking about crazy Brittany and all she was going through. One of our group made the suggestion we pray for her rather than shaking our heads at her. I think this is a very good suggestion I am sure Brittany needs prayer just as much as the rest of us. As I think back on it now though, there seemed to be this inference that Brittany needed Jesus, like she didn't have him yet. If she just knew God then things would be working out better for her, she would be making better decisions.

This suggestion feels similar to what is happening in Job chap 18. Bildad is once again going off about how the wicked never prosper, their days are cut short, and their wealth is taken away; all the horrible things that happen to the wicked. He finishes his description with the statement, "such is the place of the one who knows not God." The insinuation can't be missed. Bildad is telling Job, you don't know God. Job you need Jesus, let me pray for you. If you just knew God then these horrible things wouldn't be happening to you.

I remember feeling so kind and generous about our decision to pray for Brittany instead of condemning her like the rest of the world seemed to be doing. We knew she just needed Jesus.

Job responds to Bildad's accusation in chap 19. He continues to assert it is God who has brought this suffering on him. God is tearing him apart, he has only escaped death by the skin of his teeth. His friends have now betrayed him as well, bringing no comfort and accusing him of not knowing God. In the middle of this chapter, and the middle of the whole book of Job by the way, Job cries out,"25 I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand upon the earth.26 And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God;27 I myself will see him with my own eyes—I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!"

Don't you understand my foolish friends. I know God! I know he lives and I know I will see him. After I have perished, when my flesh has failed, after I have been rotting in the grave He will bring me back and I will see him.

Does Job need God? Yes! He already has God. He believes in his redeemer, he holds on to his redeemer, he knows he will see God and he longs for it. When we see people in hard situations in life and we think, "wow, that person needs Jesus." Who is to say they don't already have him.

"But Brittany was making these horrible decisions and she obviously wasn't doing to right thing for herself or her children." Are any of us perfect? Have you lived today without making a mistake, something you wish you could have done differently?

When the woman caught in adultery was brought to Jesus he told the pharisees, "He who is without sin cast the first stone." I wonder sometimes today if our stones are wrapped in prayers. I am not saying we shouldn't pray for people who are in need or in a hard place in life, please do pray. I'm just saying perhaps we need to check out hearts when we pray. Are we assuming less of their connection with God? Or are we truly praying out of compassion and a heart felt empathy for them.

I am reminded of an old Steve Camp song, "Don't tell them Jesus loves them until your ready to love them too. Till your heart breaks from the sorrow and the pain they're going through. With a life full of compassion may we do what we must do. Don't tell them Jesus loves them, till your ready to love them too."

May we recognize today, we all need Jesus and knowing him is eternal life even when it doesn't feel like it or look like it from the outside. Pray for me and I will pray for you as well. In fact I hope Brittany is praying for us too.

Where's the Love?

How important is friendship to you?

I don't know if you have every spent any time around drunk people. There are some mean drunks out there to be sure, but there are also some really loving drunks. Have you ever had the experience of an intoxicated fellow leaning on your shoulder and breathing out through his stench of breath the words of his undying love? "I love you man...no i really do!" On the opposite side have you ever walked into a church lobby and gotten nothing more than an evil eye and wondered if you were dressed correctly or if you had toilet paper stuck to your shoe? Why is it the most intoxicated are sometimes more loving than the most righteous?

I wonder sometimes if we are so concerned with the theology of the issue and finding the right answer to describe the difficult situation with which we are faced we forget the person in the middle of the situation. In Job 17, Job is asking God to put up the security for him in court because he friends don't seem to have any support for him. Even though Job has just said repeatedly, God is causing this suffering to him. He still finds more support from his "attacker" than from his friends. He even goes so far as to say those who betray their friends leave a legacy of abuse for their children (the message).

What kind of legacy are we leaving for our children? What kind of example do we set if we the righteous church folk great people with looks of judgment, when we great each other with these looks. And it goes both ways, I don't find myself judging the less than appropriate who walk through the doors of the church, but I sure do find myself judging those who are judging them. Its like saying I'm racist against racists.

I would much rather have my daughter see me greeting people with, "I love you man...I really do!" My hope would be I wouldn't have to be drunk in order to do that.

May we offer friendship rather than analysis and condemnation, may we build one another up in love. And may our children see our love and do likewise as our legacy.

Behind the curtain

How many times do we only look at the surface and assume?

Do you remember the first time you saw the wizard of Oz? Me neither, but I do have this impression in my mind of the fiery floating green head of the wizard with the booming voice and all. And I remember little Toto pulling back the curtain to reveal the little nervous man behind it. When I was in seminary I did a cultural exegesis paper on the movie Constantine with Keanu Reeves. At one point in the movie Keanu goes into Hell. What hell ends up being is just a different dimensional view of the earth. As he looks over the streets of LA the same buildings and palm trees are there but there are burning and falling apart. While I don't believe in ever burning hell and I don't believe anyone is burning as we speak, there was a certain ring of truth to this unveiling.

In Job 16, job cries says his adversary has sharpened his eyes against me he is gnashing him with his teeth and made him desolate. The typical translation shows Job's words as they are with no interpretation and it seems God is the one Job is blaming for all of these things happening to him. And really this is what Job is doing, he sees God as sovereign and responsible for what is happening. But is was very interesting when I read the amplified version. The translator seems to pull back the curtain and let us see what is happening behind the scenes. Let me show you the comparison.

Job 16:7 (ESV) Surely now God has worn me out;he has made desolate all my company.8 And he has shriveled me up, which is a witness against me, and my leanness has risen up against me; it testifies to my face. 9 He has torn me in his wrath and hated me;
he has gnashed his teeth at me; my adversary sharpens his eyes against me. 10 Men have gaped at me with their mouth; they have pstruck me insolently on the cheek; they mass themselves together against me. 11 God gives me up to the ungodly
and casts me into the hands of the wicked.

Job 16:7 (Amplified) 7But now [God] has taken away my strength. You [O Lord] have made desolate all my family and associates. 8You have laid firm hold on me and have shriveled me up, which is a witness against me; and my leanness [and wretched state of body] are further evidence [against me]; [they] testify to my face. 9[[a]My adversary Satan] has torn [me] in his wrath and hated and persecuted me; he has gnashed upon me with his teeth; my adversary sharpens his eyes against me. 10[The forces of evil] have gaped at me with their mouths; they have struck me upon the cheek insolently; they massed themselves together and conspired unanimously against me.(A) 11God has delivered me to the ungodly (to the evil one) and cast me [headlong] into the hands of the wicked (Satan's host).

While I think the translator took some interpretive liberty with the language he has effectively pulled back the curtain on what is really happening. We know this because of the context at the beginning of the book and theology from the rest of scripture. Sure enough the Devil is the one afflicting Job. The accuser of the brethren is the devil. He is the prosecuting attorney on the case. This is what the Devil does.

How often do we forget this? How often to we look at our lives and say, well I guess today just isn't a lucky day. Or we get into the pain of life and blame ourselves and our mistakes or the sin of others. But if we could remember to pull back the curtain we would see the dimension of the spiritual battle going on around us. "The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world that he didn't exist."

The good news though is the devil isn't the only one behind the spiritual veil. In the end of Chap 16 Job cries out for an advocate with the Father. He wants his defense lawyer in this court. When the curtain is pulled back we also get to see Jesus our advocate in heaven, our intercessor, our high priest. Evil is not the only power playing behind the curtain. Jesus is there. The holy angels of God are there waging war with us and for us. Fight for us today God of the angel armies!!!

May our eyes be opened today to the scene behind the curtain and see the evil we so often ignore and blame each other for and even more so the God who fights for us, who defends us, protects us, and sustains us. Jesus has already won the war so now he sustains us through the battle seeking to rescue as many as possible until the day comes when he will deliver us and vanquish evil for good.

Humanity and Rightous - oxymoron?

Have you ever felt how light righteousness really is?

It was a beautiful sunny day and my family was at the beach. I don't remember for sure how old I was maybe 9 or 10. It was the first time I had ever been boogie boarding. I was so stoked. One of my mom's cousins had a miniature surfboard and I got to use it instead of those cheesey foam boogie boards everyone else had to use. I was having the time of my life catching waves and riding them in on my stomach. Then something happened that I will never forget. I was headed back out into the waves and a bigger wave was coming in. I didn't know how to dive under the wave and I wasn't in the right place to catch it and ride it in. So for the first time I experienced undertow and just how hard a wave can slam you into the sand. I thought I might not make it. I scrambled to the top of the water after having the wind knocked out of me and sand ground into my chest. The problem was as soon as I got the top and caught a breath the next wave was crashing down and I was thrown back against the sandy bottom for the second time. Now I was really scared I wouldn't be able to get out.

The weight of the water was immense. But it is nothing compared to the weight of being a sinner on my heart and mind. In Job 15 another "wonderful" friend of Job speaks up to tell Job once again there is no way he can be righteous before God. There is no way man can ever stand before God as righteous, if God didn't consider the holy ones of heaven righteous enough, how can we even think he would look at a man that way. Job you must give up this talk of being blameless before the Lord. You must realize all of the weight of this hardship being piled upon your shoulders is because of your sin. Wake up Job and repent.

Job as a human being lives under the decision of Adam and sin is part of his life. The bible tells us all have fallen short of the glory of God. We all have sinned, Job has sinned. But Job actively participated in the story of redemption. We know from the beginning of the book he offered sacrifices for himself and his children. This was all the people before Jesus' sacrifice had. They repented on the head of the lambs and goats and they were forgiven. Job was forgiven and by the blood of Jesus foreshadowed by the blood of the lamb Job was righteous before the Lord.

How many times have we stepped into the pulpit or sat down at a bible study and echoed the words of job's friend. You are human, you are sinful, you will forever be a sinner, you must repent. We need to repent, we need forgiveness for our sins. We need to fall at the foot of the cross and accept Jesus as our savior. But we don't need to stay there. Jesus didn't stay on the cross, he didn't stay in the grave. He was resurrected to new life. And we are to do the same. To quote John Eldredge the greatest lie in the church today is that we are only sinners saved by grace. It is true we are, but we are so much more. We are new creations in Christ.

Job was no longer a sinner, he was a new creation in Christ. He was a child of God, he was a righteous man standing before a righteous God. Paul doesn't greet the people in his letters "to the sinners in Galatia write." He greets them as SAINTS!!!

Do we still struggle with sin? Yes. Do we need to die daily? Yes. But as Paul says in Romans it is no longer us who sins but the sin that lives within us. We are no longer sinners, its not our identity anymore. We are saints in Christ. Paul also says it is no longer I who live but Christ who lives within me. True we can not take credit for being righteous in any way. Jesus did it all for us he trades his life for ours. But HE DID IT!!! In Christ we are saints we are new creations! Our name is no longer sinner, IT IS CHRISTIAN!

Can you feel the weight lift off of you shoulders? Can you feel the force of the pounding waves of condemnation finally release?

If there are any preachers out there reading this blog today. I want to encourage you to stop calling yourselves sinners from the pulpit unless you have not repented. If you have repented and accepted the blood of Jesus then your identity has changed. Every time you get up there and do not claim your new identity in Christ you are heaping the weight of condemnation on your congregation. The scripture is clear there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

So if you still believe you are only a sinner saved by grace...STOP IT! You are a new creation in Christ and there is freedom and a burden to be lifted from you and those who listen to you!

May you find the weight of the waves of condemnation lifted from your soul today!

The Creation of His Hands

Do you know God's longing for you?

Lorelai and I were sitting on the couch this afternoon watching the new toy story, which is really well done by the way. Lorelai is a restless movie watcher as children should be. She changes position from time to time. At one point she was sitting on my lap absent mindedly sucking one of her thumbs and the other hand was matching mine finger tip to finger tip. Her sweet little hand measured opposed to my large one. It was one of those sweet moments of longing. One of those moments when I am so glad to be a father and to have this little creation of mine sitting in my lap.

Chapter 14 of Job brings forward Jobs despair of life, but not eternal life. He desires for this life to be over. Convinced God is the one bringing all of this trial and suffering on him, Job asks God to let him be hidden away in the grave. A tree might be cut down but if the rains come it can spring up shoots of new life. This is not so with man he lies in the grave. At first glimpse I though perhaps Job didn't believe in the resurrection, but the chapter goes on to point out he very clearly does. He asks God to lay him in the grave and forget about him until the time when all his sin is bound up in a bag and forgotten, when sin is done. Then Job says God will long for the creation of his hands.

Have you ever thought about this before? God longing for us? I got just a glimpse of that with Lorelai lying right there in my lap hand in hand. I can't imagine the longing God has for the creation of his hands being separated from them for all of these years. Given this I can also imagine the pain the heavenly Father is feeling as the creation of his hands, his child Job cries out for God not to think of him and to leave him in peace. And yet perhaps he sees Job reaching up his small hand trying to compare his infinitely small hand to the immense hand of the creator. Stretching out his small understanding to try and understand the plan God has in mind with all of this.

I think of the smallness of Lorelai's hand in mine and I think of the little bit of understanding I have compared to God's knowledge and infinite wisdom in knowing me and the plan for my life. God's knowledge of the plan of history and when the time will come for him to raise up the dry stump of humanity once again restoring us to life.

My prayer today it that I might reach up to my father in heaven and he would have a tender moment of longing for me as I had for Lorelai today sitting on my lap. My you stretch out your hand today and find the heart of a creator longing for the creation of his hands.

The Scruff of the Neck

Does making a decision for Christ at an early age really help?

My sophomore year in college I was in a world of confusion when it came to my relationship with God. I was leading - co-directing a christian drama group going around to different churches to perform and share the message of the gospel in a memorable and dramatic way. I was turning my radio tuning more and more to a christian station on a daily basis. I was attending a small group from time to time. On the other side, I wasn't sure about the existence of God or at least his involvement in my life which largely came from my desire to continue in my addiction of pornography and sleeping with my girlfriend at the time. If God didn't exist, then I can do whatever I want as much as I want to.

I took a trip on spring break to visit some friends in Oregon. This trip was the epitome of my two sided life. I was driving down the road fantasizing about hooking up with a girl at some gas station who I would never see again and not sure if I even wanted to come back to school. At the same time I was praying God would somehow use me to reach out to my friends I was going to see. And here is the kicker, I had submitted an application to join a traveling youth ministry team for the next year of my life. So while I'm in this massive lust spiral I am still looking for the opportunity of sharing Christ with others.

In the middle of this trip which included camping with friends who rolled their own cigarettes, target practice with 22s, life change stories shared around the campfire, and naively walking out of a store in which my friends had used their five finger discount. I get a call from the director of the ministry. Cory, he says, You're in I will see you in June. God was there the whole time watching me. He let me go so far, and then I feel like he grabbed me by the back of the collar and said, "that's far enough come on back now I have a job for you to do."

In Job 12 through the midst of his lament, Job affirms the sovereignty of God. God is the one who takes of shackles put on by kings, He leads priest away stripped and overthrows men long established. He makes nations great, and destroys them. In other words God is in charge and there is really nothing we can do about it. At least not in the outward circumstances. We can choose to reject his plan with in our hearts or to accept it.

I was baptized at 13 and I knew then I wanted to follow God. God took me at my word and at my vow even though I didn't know what was coming next. He kept a close eye on me when I wasn't sure if he was even around. When I was leaning out over the edge of the cliff he pulled me back on and gave me the opportunity to turn back around. It was still my choice what I was going to do with it. But he set it up for me and brought me back.

I am glad God is sovereign in my life, I don't know where I would have been without him but I got a good look over the cliff. He pulled me back again just last night. I was getting ready to take the plunge in to mediocrity and maintenance mode here in my church. But God caught me by the back of the neck once again and I was tipping forward and reminded me through a wonderful new mentor - get back your fire, your passion, your vision. You can do this.

May God grab you by the back of the neck today and keep you from falling, because...well...he promised to.

What do we know?

Have you ever cautioned someone else on explaining the mystery of God and then done so yourself? Well here I go.

My daughter and I have been having an argument the last couple of days. She is four and she learned at pre-school about deciduous trees. She is claiming her teacher told her the trees with needles are the deciduous ones and the ones with leaves are not. I have been trying to get through to her the concept the trees with needles are evergreens - see it even has green in its name. Look outside and see which trees are still green. She is convinced she is right and I am wrong or "just joking dad." She firmly believes what she has gotten into her head and it not letting it rest. Every time we get in the car and she sees an evergreen she points to it and says,"that one is deciduous."

Have you ever gotten so sure of something only to find out you are way off base, or really had no idea of the complexities you were trying to speak to. In Job 11 Zophar just sets himself up. He tells Job the depths of God are too deep for us and the heights of God are to high for us. We can't really understand him. And then he goes on to explain with perfect clarity what Job needs to do in relationship to his sin and this God no man can understand.

How many times have we done this? We explain some truth about God and find our we were just way off base. Zophar tells Job if he would just cast his sin aside and not let any sin dwell in his house then he would be able to stand again. Then he would be able to have hope again by some self produced righteousness. The problem is we know from the beginning of the book, Job is considered righteous in God's eyes. It is not his sin bringing down this suffering. Zophar has no idea what he is talking about.

I pray today we would be open to what God has to teach us about the mysteries of himself. There are things he has revealed to us in his word. Things we can place of feet on. If we confess our sin he is faithful and just to forgive us our sin and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. We can not put away our sin all on our own, we need a savior without him there is no hope. Christ is our righteousness, Christ is our savior, and Christ is our hope.

May God teach us today of himself, and may we open our minds and hearts to listen because he might just change our minds from deciduous to evergreens.

Undying love or bitterness?

Has life given up on you or have you given up on life?

You know the scene in the disaster movie when life on the planet is about to end. The characters move towards each other and confess their undying love to the person who they have held their feelings back from for years. “I just wanted you to know before we die, I love you, I always have loved you.” Or vows are recommitted between a couple, they well always love each other, they will never forget the other. As cheesy as this is, “I’ll ever let go Rose!” It still seems to tug at our heart strings. When we know life is about to end we are brought to the understanding of the importance of relationships. We reach out, we reconcile, we recommit to one another.

Contrast this to when we have given up on life before life is about to give up on us. Instead of love and reaching out, instead of coming together and reconciling we push others away. Instead of the desire and flow of love we let the words pour from the bitterness of our hearts. Job 9 & 10 are the pouring of a man’s heart as he has given up on live. The first verse of chap 10 is Job telling us he has no concern for his life, he has given up on being alive so he will let his complaint pour freely from the bitterness of his heart.

Have you ever been accosted by the bitterness of someone? The words shared are so bitter and hurtful. Perhaps the person questions you as a person, your integrity, even the call God has placed on your life. I remember a phone call like that a couple of years ago. A parent was very up set about a situation with their child and I was the one who received the full force of their anger. I have to confess I didn’t respond well and I got defensive. I made my apologies and after a time so did the parent. I remember a school newspaper railing against a ministry team I was a part of in College. We came to find out later the writer of these articles was a student who was very bitter at God and her own church experience.

If you have harsh words coming towards you today, I invite you into the possibly stressful situation of listening for the pain lying beneath the bitterness. This very possibly is someone who has given up on some part of their life. If we are the right ones to listen through their anger and bitterness we might just find out what the source of the pain is underneath and who knows perhaps God can use us to bring healing to this bitterness.

May we remember bitterness and bitter words often come from someone who has given up.