Category: Life

Open the Door!

Christ compared indifference to lukewarm water in His mouth.  It’s a vivid image that makes a powerful point about the dangers of not feeling. Indifference is insidious. It’s gradual and subtle on the outside but deadly when it creeps inside the human heart.

“I know all the things you do, that you are neither hot nor cold. I wish that you were one or the other! But since you are like lukewarm water, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth! You say, ‘I am rich. I have everything I want. I don’t need a thing!’ And you don’t realize that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked. So I advise you to buy gold from me—gold that has been purified by fire. Then you will be rich. Also buy white garments from me so you will not be shamed by your nakedness, and ointment for your eyes so you will be able to see. I correct and discipline everyone I love. So be diligent and turn from your indifference.

“Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends. Those who are victorious will sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat with my Father on his throne.

“Anyone with ears to hear must listen to the Spirit and understand what he is saying to the churches.” (Revelation 3:15-22 NLT)

Christ reminds those who will listen that riches we think we have do not compare to the refined gold of a transformed heart, the freedom of a changed mind, and the clear vision of truth God’s love offers. Christ knocks at the door, offering those riches along with a friendly meal. He makes it clear that He would prefer a hot or cold response to no response at all. I agree because there’s nothing worse than being left standing outside the door when it comes to love.

I can chose how to respond to Christ. I can open the door with delight and welcome Him in; I can tell Him to get lost and never come back, or I can ignore His knock and go about my normal routine. The latter is lukewarm and safe, and that’s what’s so dangerous about it. I don’t know anyone who would be so cold as to tell Christ to leave, but a cold response is better than leaving Him standing on the other side of the door with no response at all. I know Christ is speaking to the churches in this passage, but the clear message to all who refuse to respond when love is offered is, “Open the door!”

jesus-knocking-on-door

Carrying the Wrong Cross

I was brought up believing that carrying my cross was accepting the ailments and heartbreaks in life and drudging forward. I shake my head and sigh when I think of the time between my old and new testaments. Jesus carried His cross, and I must carry mine. He loved and trusted God with all His heart, mind, soul, and strength. Crosses are about obedience and trust, and no one understands that better than Jesus.

A large crowd was following Jesus. He turned around and said to them, “If you want to be my disciple, you must hate everyone else by comparison—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple. And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple.

“But don’t begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first calculating the cost to see if there is enough money to finish it? Otherwise, you might complete only the foundation before running out of money, and then everyone would laugh at you. They would say, ‘There’s the person who started that building and couldn’t afford to finish it!’

“Or what king would go to war against another king without first sitting down with his counselors to discuss whether his army of 10,000 could defeat the 20,000 soldiers marching against him? And if he can’t, he will send a delegation to discuss terms of peace while the enemy is still far away. So you cannot become my disciple without giving up everything you own.

“Salt is good for seasoning. But if it loses its flavor, how do you make it salty again? Flavorless salt is good neither for the soil nor for the manure pile. It is thrown away. Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand!” (Luke 14:25-35 NLT)

Christ didn’t have to take up His cross and carry it. He chose to. He didn’t have to die. He chose to. Obedience is up to me; it’s my cross. I used to think I had to save others. Again, I’m shaking my head in disbelief. Trying to carry Christ’s cross instead of my own left me depleted and discouraged. Carrying the wrong cross is a common problem among Christ’s followers, and it leads to frustration and violence.

An older gentleman told me last week that Christians were going to have to start fighting. I reminded him that the Crusades didn’t go well. He insisted that we had to do something about muslims in our country. He is a good man at heart, so I was surprised by his words. I was disappointed that he thought I would appreciate his ideas of violence toward muslims. When we try to take up Christ’s cross, frustration leads to anger and violence.

I don’t want to be a flavorless follower, and I don’t want to join an angry mob. Jesus was not on either end of that spectrum. His love was at the center of His cross, and His love must be at the center of mine. It is up to me to obey God, but I cannot do that on my own. Christ’s precious love keeps my heart and my walk centered and focused upon God’s love. I didn’t hear that love in the conversation last week, but I hear it in His words.

The cost of carrying my cross is giving up my need to carry Christ’s cross and obeying when I’m not sure where He is leading me. Discipleship is never easy, but it isn’t as hard as carrying Christ’s cross for Him. He already carried His cross, so I only need to worry about carrying mine, and He will help me with that.

Help

 


Love’s Legacy

My legacy will become my son’s inheritance when I die, so what I leave behind is very important to me. The rich fool in Christ’s parable has a legacy that will most likely consume his heirs the way it consumed him. The value of a life is measured in many ways, but I measure mine by what I treasure. Such was the case of the rich fool.

Jesus tried to warn the man of his folly, but I doubt he listened. Few of us do. Greed is a cruel master that cuts off communication with the ones closest to its victim. Riches have a way of getting in the way of relationship, and Jesus is trying to show that to the son asking Him for help with his brother.

Then someone called from the crowd, “Teacher, please tell my brother to divide our father’s estate with me.”

Jesus replied, “Friend, who made me a judge over you to decide such things as that?” Then he said, “Beware! Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own.”

Then he told them a story: “A rich man had a fertile farm that produced fine crops. He said to himself, ‘What should I do? I don’t have room for all my crops.’ Then he said, ‘I know! I’ll tear down my barns and build bigger ones. Then I’ll have room enough to store all my wheat and other goods.  And I’ll sit back and say to myself, “My friend, you have enough stored away for years to come. Now take it easy! Eat, drink, and be merry!”’

“But God said to him, ‘You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get everything you worked for?’

“Yes, a person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God.” (Luke 12:13-21 NLT)

Riches make a fool of the wisest man, but lust and love go in opposite directions. A heart cannot serve both. Lust disguises itself as love, successfully fooling many. In Christ’s story, God recognizes the trap ensnaring the rich fool and tries to warn him before it is too late. Jesus is hoping to do the same for the two brothers and for us.

Love is the true measure of a rich life. It cannot be stored or counted; but it is the only thing I can count on. The riches of the man in Christ’s parable will most likely go to someone like the arguing brothers, and the legacy of lust will be passed to the next generation.

God’s legacy is love. Christ is His heir, and His precious love allows me to share that inheritance. The value of my inheritance grows if I share it with others, but it dwindles when I keep it for myself. The sons are worried that one will receive more than the other, and many of God’s children have the same fear when it comes to approval and love. God’s love is for all, and it grows as it is shared. That’s the biggest difference between a legacy of lust and a legacy of love is that lust divides while love multiplies.

I hope Christ’s precious love is the legacy I leave for my son and his beautiful family. It’s the only thing I can carry with me into eternity and leave behind in the hearts of those I love.

Photo Credit: yayabme.wix.com
Photo Credit: yayabme.wix.com

Leisure Born in Stillness

Isaiah assures those seeking deliverance that God has delivered before, and He will deliver again. That brings a sweet stillness to my heart.

“Listen to me, all who hope for deliverance—
    all who seek the Lord!
Consider the rock from which you were cut,
    the quarry from which you were mined.
Yes, think about Abraham, your ancestor,
    and Sarah, who gave birth to your nation.
Abraham was only one man when I called him.
    But when I blessed him, he became a great nation.”

The Lord will comfort Israel again
    and have pity on her ruins.
Her desert will blossom like Eden,
    her barren wilderness like the garden of the Lord.
Joy and gladness will be found there.
    Songs of thanksgiving will fill the air.

“Listen to me, my people.
    Hear me, Israel,
for my law will be proclaimed,
    and my justice will become a light to the nations.
My mercy and justice are coming soon.
    My salvation is on the way.
    My strong arm will bring justice to the nations.
All distant lands will look to me
    and wait in hope for my powerful arm.
Look up to the skies above,
    and gaze down on the earth below.
For the skies will disappear like smoke,
    and the earth will wear out like a piece of clothing.
The people of the earth will die like flies,
    but my salvation lasts forever.
    My righteous rule will never end!

“Listen to me, you who know right from wrong,
    you who cherish my law in your hearts.
Do not be afraid of people’s scorn,
    nor fear their insults.
For the moth will devour them as it devours clothing.
    The worm will eat at them as it eats wool.
But my righteousness will last forever.
    My salvation will continue from generation to generation.”

(Isaiah 51:1-8 NLT)

We’ve all heard a pep talk that begins with, “Remember who you are! Remember where you’ve been…You’ve done it before, and you can do it again!!”

Isaiah is saying, “Remember Who God is! Remember what He has done! He’s done it before, and He will do it again!!” By reminding Israel of the Rock from which they are forged, he brings calm to their troubled hearts.

Isaiah knew the earth would wear out and the people would die. Christ knew the same. His righteousness lasts forever, and His salvation continues from generation to generation. If I really believe that, I can live my life in a different way. I can be still and recognize God.

January has been a time of stillness. Being still hasn’t been easy, but the results have been amazing. I have a new sense of direction that doesn’t involve a new plan, agenda, or project.

I’m not sure what’s in store for February, but I hope to carry the stillness of January into it. Isaiah reminds me that the world isn’t all there is, and I have a loving God watching over me. That helps me find peace in the chaos and do what God places in my path with a leisure born in stillness.

Stillness in a Busy World Photo Credit: Joan Jerkovich
Stillness in a Busy World
Photo Credit: Joan Jerkovich

Authentic Authority

Evil spirits haunting a man in the synagogue knew Jesus and asked why He was interfering with them. That made those in attendance stop and stare in disbelief. Jesus had performed  miracles before, but a conversation with evil spirits? When He told the spirits to be quiet and come out of the man, the crowd heard something they hadn’t heard before. They heard a man speaking with authority and wanted to know where He got that authority.

Jesus and his companions went to the town of Capernaum. When the Sabbath day came, he went into the synagogue and began to teach. The people were amazed at his teaching, for he taught with real authority—quite unlike the teachers of religious law.

Suddenly, a man in the synagogue who was possessed by an evil spirit began shouting, “Why are you interfering with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!”

Jesus cut him short. “Be quiet! Come out of the man,” he ordered. At that, the evil spirit screamed, threw the man into a convulsion, and then came out of him.

Amazement gripped the audience, and they began to discuss what had happened. “What sort of new teaching is this?” they asked excitedly. “It has such authority! Even evil spirits obey his orders!” The news about Jesus spread quickly throughout the entire region of Galilee. (Mark 1:21-28 NLT)

The crowds were used to being read to, lectured, and told how they should behave. They were not accustomed to hearing someone speak with God’s authority. Jesus exerted that authority to the evil spirits, and they obeyed Him because they had no choice. God gives me a choice because He wants my obedience to be out of love.

Religious leaders resented Jesus. They were, and wanted to remain, the authority when it came to God and His Word. Who did this rabbi think He was? To the Pharisees, authority meant control. To Christ, authority meant freedom. The evil sprits were forced to obey Christ’s commands, and He could make all of us obey in the same way, but He wants obedience born in freedom and carried out in love. That’s the way He obeyed, and it made a beautiful difference in the world.

Photo Credit:maxresdefault
Photo Credit:maxresdefault

Get With the Program!

When Jesus told Simon and Andrew He would make them fishers of men, I wonder what was going through their minds. I may not know what they were thinking, but I do know what they did. They dropped their nets and followed Him.

Later on, after John was arrested, Jesus went into Galilee, where he preached God’s Good News. “The time promised by God has come at last!” he announced. “The Kingdom of God is near! Repent of your sins and believe the Good News!”

One day as Jesus was walking along the shore of the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew throwing a net into the water, for they fished for a living. Jesus called out to them, “Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!” And they left their nets at once and followed him.

A little farther up the shore Jesus saw Zebedee’s sons, James and John, in a boat repairing their nets. He called them at once, and they also followed him, leaving their father, Zebedee, in the boat with the hired men. Mark 1:14-20 (NLT)

Simon, Andrew, James, and John were going about their normal work routines when Jesus asked them to trust Him. The fishermen followed without flinching. When I read these verses, I envy their faith. Unlike them, I want to know the plan and see the map before I drop my net and leave my boat.

Years ago, I came into work to find a banged up old fishing boat sitting inside the building. I taught middle school, so I was accustomed to seeing strange things in the hallway; but this was a first. The boat was a prop for my principal’s newest motto, “Get in the boat!” As his campaign unfolded, we did our best to hide insubordinate grins and pretend to be as serious as he was about his newest epiphany. I’m afraid we weren’t successful and neither were the students. The boat disappeared along with the principal’s buoyant mood.

I thought about that silly boat when I visited the middle school yesterday. I also thought about Christ asking those dedicated men to get out of their boats and follow Him.  Change isn’t easy for middle schoolers, and it’s even more difficult for professional fishermen. My principal had good intentions when he put a boat in the hallway. He knew change was necessary for growth, and it took a lot of effort to get that boat through the front door. The middle schoolers didn’t get with his program because they knew it was designed to control them. If you know anything about middle school students, you know they don’t like being controlled.

Christ’s invitation involved a complete change of life for the men who stepped away from their boats and followed Him. He knew the work they would be doing could not be part time. They knew, when they followed Him, life as they knew it would be gone. The same is true for me when I choose to follow Jesus. Life, as I know it, has to go before I can live the life He desires.

Jesus didn’t ask His disciples to get with the program or get in the boat. He asked them to come away from the world they knew and trust Him to show them a new way of living. I wonder how those fishermen would have reacted if Jesus had brought an old fishing boat inside the building and asked them to get into it. I believe they would have gotten right in because they knew He knew what He was doing. They were willing to follow Him no matter where He led because what, where, when, and how didn’t matter anymore. They were only concerned with Who.

Get in the Boat!!
Get in the Boat!!

Religion or Relationship?

Christ’s love allows me to go from religion to relationship. Hebrews 8:5-13 describes how His precious love changes everything. God didn’t revise or amend His old covenant. His Son’s precious love forged a brand new one.

But now Jesus, our High Priest, has been given a ministry that is far superior to the old priesthood, for he is the one who mediates for us a far better covenant with God, based on better promises.

If the first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no need for a second covenant to replace it. But when God found fault with the people, he said:

“The day is coming, says the Lord,
    when I will make a new covenant
    with the people of Israel and Judah.
This covenant will not be like the one
    I made with their ancestors
when I took them by the hand
    and led them out of the land of Egypt.
They did not remain faithful to my covenant,
    so I turned my back on them, says the Lord.
But this is the new covenant I will make
    with the people of Israel on that day, says the Lord:
I will put my laws in their minds,
    and I will write them on their hearts.
I will be their God,
    and they will be my people.
And they will not need to teach their neighbors,
    nor will they need to teach their relatives,
    saying, ‘You should know the Lord.’
For everyone, from the least to the greatest,
    will know me already.
And I will forgive their wickedness,
    and I will never again remember their sin

When God speaks of a “new” covenant, it means he has made the first one obsolete. It is now out of date and will soon disappear. (NLT)

I’m preparing to move into a new home that is nothing like the one I’m in now. I’m going from 4000 square foot house sitting on top of a mountain to a tiny apartment downtown. I love the fact that my new home is a brand new house. New houses are wonderful, but new covenants can be uncomfortable.

Going from religion to relationship is difficult. Relationship is personal, and that means exposing my heart. God knows me, forgives me, and loves me. That makes the old way of relating obsolete. Religions cannot compete or compare with relationships, and no one understands that better than God. He prefers a loving family to a religious hierarchy. He always has, and He always will.
It’s difficult to do business with someone when you’re in love with them; that keeps love out of board rooms and office buildings. God didn’t, doesn’t, and never will run a business. He is love and sent His only Son to replace the “business” of religion with the love of relationship. Even the disciples didn’t completely get the point at first.  They wanted to know who would be in what position, but the resurrection made it crystal clear that Christ changed business as usual. Love had come down, and it was the new authority.
I wish we could all just love one another as God desires, but I know that won’t be possible as long as the world has a hold on us. God may have made a new covenant, but this world is still driven by business. I can allow myself to be driven by the world or let love do the driving. When I go with love, God opens the road and frees my heart in a way the world may not understand but does notice 🙂
Open Road

Attached at the Heart

1 Corinthians 7:29-31 invites me to look at my attachments and see how they affect my focus. Paul isn’t just talking about relationships in his letter to Corinth; he’s talking about accomplishments, regrets, possessions, or anything to which I may be too attached. There’s nothing wrong with a happy marriage, an engaging job, a time of grief, or nice things as long as my heart isn’t attached so tightly that my focus is misdirected.

But let me say this, dear brothers and sisters: The time that remains is very short. So from now on, those with wives should not focus only on their marriage. Those who weep or who rejoice or who buy things should not be absorbed by their weeping or their joy or their possessions. Those who use the things of the world should not become attached to them. For this world as we know it will soon pass away.(NLT)

Unhealthy attachments cause my heart to fuse, and fusion leads to confusion. God isn’t controlling, or I would be a mindless drone in His field or a heartless statue at His feet. God has the power to make me do exactly what He wants, but He will not use His power to make me love or obey Him. He knows obedience is worthless without free will, and love will never be forced or coerced.

Self differentiation is necessary for love to grow as God desires. Fusion appears to forge a powerful bond, but it only confines and defines in negative ways. Self differentiation frees my heart and leads to healthy connections. God is the ultimate example of self differentiation. He is the great “I Am.” He is who He is, and He wants me to be who He created me to be. That requires putting my focus upon His love and getting away from unhealthy attachments.

I love being a daughter, sister, mother, mother-in-law, Gigi, teacher, friend, etc., but if I cannot have an unhealthy attachment to any role. I am me, and if I fail to be the true me, no relationship, title, or possession will fill the void left in my heart. I believe it’s what Paul is trying to tell the Corinthians.  This world is not permanent, and nothing in it will last. Rather than making me sad, I should find great joy in knowing that the essence of my truest self isn’t about the things in this world. I am created for eternity, and I am free to live and love in a way that reflects that beautiful truth.

Heart in the Sand

God Friends

Psalm 62:5-8 paints a beautiful portrait of God. He’s a powerful fortress who protects me from my enemies and a trusted friend to whom I can pour out my heart and know that it will be heard and cherished. David knew that God has his back and his heart.

Let all that I am wait quietly before God,
    for my hope is in him.
He alone is my rock and my salvation,
    my fortress where I will not be shaken.
My victory and honor come from God alone.
    He is my refuge, a rock where no enemy can reach me.
O my people, trust in him at all times.
    Pour out your heart to him,
    for God is our refuge. (NLT)

David’s psalm reflects his love for and trust in God. In all his trials, he wasn’t shaken because He knew God not only protected him, but loved him dearly. I am fortunate to have family and friends who have my back and my heart. It’s a combination that reflects God’s love and provides a taste of what’s to come. God’s got my back, my front, my sides, my head, and my heart, but I don’t always remember that. When I do, I am able to wait quietly. Now, if I could only remember that all the time!

Waiting quietly has never been my strong suit, but I’m learning. There are times when I pour my heart out and talk to Him the way I would to my sisters or dear friends. He hears me when I cry. He hears me when I yell, and He hears me when I’m silent. I know I can tell Him everything anytime.

God made it clear last week that pouring out my heart and allowing others to pour out theirs to me is what love is all about. I have a few friends and three sweet sisters to whom I can pour out my heart. My heart is healed in their loving, nonjudgmental presence. None of them can replace God, but I like to call them God friends because they nudge me a little nearer to Him each time we connect.

Psalm 62

And God Changed His Mind

Jonah 3:1-5, 10 is a glimpse of the grace that results when God changes His mind. God never changes, but I love that He can and will change His mind. He can do whatever He wants to do, but; like Jonah, I find myself wanting Him to do what I want Him to do. That means sticking to the agenda and not embarrassing me with last minute changes.

Then the Lord spoke to Jonah a second time: “Get up and go to the great city of Nineveh, and deliver the message I have given you.”

This time Jonah obeyed the Lord’s command and went to Nineveh, a city so large that it took three days to see it all. On the day Jonah entered the city, he shouted to the crowds: “Forty days from now Nineveh will be destroyed!” The people of Nineveh believed God’s message, and from the greatest to the least, they declared a fast and put on burlap to show their sorrow.

When God saw what they had done and how they had put a stop to their evil ways, he changed his mind and did not carry out the destruction he had threatened. (NLT)

Jonah was an important man delivering the message that Nineveh was about to be destroyed. The people heard and repented, but that didn’t make Jonah happy. In fact, he was angry when God extended grace and let them live. That may sound strange, but it is human nature to hurt when humiliated. He wanted them to get what they deserved, and he wanted to be right! God wanted them to change, so he forgave them when they did.

Forgiveness heals as nothing else, and no one knows that better than God. I don’t know what happened to Jonah. We leave him sulking over a plant while God asks where his compassion is for the 120,000 people and the animals of Nineveh who would have perished. God spared Jonah’s life and the lives of the sailors who pleaded for mercy, but time in the belly of the big fish didn’t seem to sweeten Jonah’s disposition.

Jonah is a book of incredible love, but that love doesn’t come from Jonah. I hope he found compassion, and I hope he learned to extend and accept forgiveness. I know God forgave him, but that doesn’t  mean he accepted. He may not have recognized his need for it. Like the older son in the story of the Prodigal Son, Jonah may have had a hard time seeing those who don’t deserve forgiveness and grace getting it. None of us deserve God’s grace, love, mercy, or forgiveness, but that doesn’t stop Him.

God lets me get angry, and he allows me to sulk when things don’t turn out the way I want. I can’t be too hard on Jonah because I’ve been where he is, and it isn’t a pleasant place to be. I learned years ago that seriousness is a serious sin that disguises itself in many ways. The need to be right or the need to retaliate get in the way of true forgiveness and cause my journey to be a self righteous march rather than a walk in God’s kingdom. I’m learning to let God humble me with humor when the sin of seriousness creeps into my path. As a dear friend once told me, a little levity goes a long way 🙂

 

Photo Credit: MisfitWisdom
Photo Credit: MisfitWisdom