A Light Unto My Path

Rejoice not over me, O my enemy; when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the LORD will be a light to me. (Micah 7:8)

I had a dream that I was driving down a mountain highway in the dead of night. It was pitch black, so black that I had to switch my high-beam lights on in order to see the road ahead. There were no other cars nor buildings along the road to draw any light from. It was just me, in my car, on a sharply curving road in the utter darkness. Then all of a sudden, my lights went out. In a single instant, I went from cruising under the power of my car's headlights, to hitting the curb and then rolling over and over down the steep enbankment on the side of the road. In that moment of the dream, I was gripped with how dark the darkness that enveloped me actually was...and I realized that I was absolutely unable to navigate along the road without the assistance of light. I was completely and utterly dependent upon the light, but unfortunately it wasn't until the light went out that I truly saw that need.

Do I Trust God?

Can we honestly say we trust God?

Trust can be a terrifying thing. It is a deep confidence in or reliance upon something. This confidence or reliance can only be developed through experience with or deep personal knowledge of. A person can never trust someone who has not already proven themselves to be trustworthy. Real trust must be earned, it cannot merely given. Think back over your closest friends, the people who you would share anything with and who have always been there for you....Have those people not proven through their manner of life to be people of integrity, reliability, and faithfulness?

If trust is a cornerstone of any successful relationship, why is it that so many of us, who are followers of Jesus Christ, lack that very trust in our relationship with God? Has God not proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that he is supremely faithful, totally good, completely reliable, constantly present, and ultimately in control? Why is it so hard to trust the only one who is completely trustworthy? The Bible reveals story after story of real people who are faithless, godless, heartless, dishonorable, and abound in wrongdoing...and then we see God who is faithful, good, loving, gracious, forgiving, patient, and trustworthy. God is the only one who will not fail us, will not abandon us, will protect us, and loves us unconditionally. What greater evidence of his trustworthiness could we ask for then that which has already been given through him sending his only son, Jesus Christ, to suffer the wrath and death that we deserved for our sins so that we might be made alive in him?

God is so worthy of our trust. So why aren't we resting wholeheartedly in him? God desires a deep, intimate relationship with each one of us. This relationship is rooted in his son Jesus Christ and what he did for us. If we are to experience the relationship that God desires for us and to live the life that God created us for, we must trust God wholeheartedly. Why is this trust so integral? The life that followers of Christ are called to is one of radical, total dependance upon God. We are asked to give up our desires, hopes, and dreams in order to pursue something greater, the God of the universe, his desires, and his will for our lives. Who would be willing to give up all that they have and all that they are in order to follow God, if he had not already proven he were worth the cost?

Every true follower of Jesus Christ has trusted God with their eternal salvation by placing their faith in Jesus Christ and kneeling before him. If then we have trusted him with something so great as our very salvation, why can't we trust him with today or tomorrow or the next day? Why can't we lay our worried, weary, troubled hearts upon him and experience the rest, peace, joy that comes from standing in the arms of our creator? God is good, loving, all knowing, and all powerful, who better to entrust our lives to than him?

Psalm 9:10 And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek you.

Psalm 37:5 Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him, and he will act.

Psalm 62:8 Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us. Selah

Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.

Isaiah 40:31 But they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.

Isaiah 44:8 "Fear not, nor be afraid; have I not told you from of old and declared it? And you are my witnesses! Is there a God besides me? There is no Rock; I know not any."

Jeremiah 17:7-8 "Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose trust is the LORD. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit."

Lamentations 3:25 The LORD is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him.

Philippians 4:5-7 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Mighty is Our God in Redemption Pt 2

Firstly, I want to say how happy I am to be back writing from a long break, and hope that God will use each and every word that I write this semester for His ultimate glory and fame.

Last article, I wrote about God's might as it is displayed through each and every aspect of this universe from the mightiest mountain down to the very molecules and atoms that our bodies consist of. Perhaps not as obvious as His mighty works in creation, our redemption as told in the gospel story displays His magnificence and might on cosmic levels that should bring each of us to our knees in awe and worship. Redemption, at its essence, means "repurchase or restoration." Keep this firmly in mind as we explore the incredible truths the redemption of mankind reveals about our mighty God.

Mighty is our God in Creation: Part 1

The Might of God displayed in creation...Is something that anyone who believes in God will whole-heartily acknowledge, however do we really grasp the magnitude of His might?

Firstly, we need to arrive at a working definition of might. The greek word in the Bible for might is Dynamis, which is an awesome word meaning the power, strength, and ability that resides in a thing by virtue of its nature. With this in our minds we can now move forward and explore God's incredible might in creation.

This idea of the Might of God grasped me last week while I was at the beach. We went to the Atlantic coast of Florida, and for someone who normally goes to the Gulf Coast when he goes to the beach at all, I was awed at the powerful surf, waves, and undertow of the Atlantic. I was surprised as I waded out barely15-20 feet before I could feel the invisible currents begin to tug at my legs and the 3-5 foot waves would begin to batter me back towards the land. The farther I walked out into the water, the stronger the currents became. I reached a point where I had to essentially walk sideways up-current to keep my footing. I pushed my way out into the water until I reached a sandbar where I could at least hold my ground against the current's strong pull. I was far enough out that the waves had grown to 5-10 feet.

Wave after wave hit me and I was blown backwards time and time again. I was fighting one of those battles that I could never hope to win. Ten times out of ten the ocean's strength will overcome my own. I just stood there fighting the current and waves and gazing out at the endless ocean with the blinding sun reflecting off the beautiful white caps of the waves. As I stood there, it struck me how these very waves that battered me spoke literal volumes about the incredible might and power of God displayed in His creation; and in that moment I truly saw how inadequate my view of God actually was.

Maybe Success is Measured Best by Nothing Less than Our Obedience?

How do we measure our success in the moment? Over a life-time? It could be any number of things: wealth, education, knowledge, fame, prestige, power; or in the opposite direction: wife, kids, a family, serving others, helping the poor and desperate, giving to charity; or in some other direction altogether. We find meaning in so many things...but which actually lead to a life of success?
I was sitting at work at few days ago listening to some music when I heard this line in a song by Jimmy Needham:

"Maybe success is measured best by nothing less than obedience..."

This particular song “The Reason I Sing,” is about his journey and struggles as a musician. When I heard that line, it was as if a montage of life experiences, lessons, and Bible verses flashed before my eyes.

It was kind of like what happened to me the other night as I was watching The Usual Suspects.

Have you ever watched one of those confusing, suspense movies where you don't quite know what's going on until the credits roll? That’s how it was for me with The Usual Suspects. At the very end, one of the main characters, a police detective, finally pieced together the puzzle that the entire movie is centered around and the movie flashed through all of these images that were going through his mind, and I had an “aha” moment, I got it.


Well that is exactly what I experienced as that simple, poignant line was sung; everything at once came together and made sense. I am convinced that we have this awful habit of overcomplicating things that don't need to be overcomplicated. Ponder with Jimmy Needham and myself the definition of a successul life, maybe it's not as complicated as we make it...maybe it is incredibly simple.
 

Nightlights

Here is a powerful and convicting poem from Jimmy Needham called Nightlights:

Be Thou exalted over my reputation

Cause applause is a poor form of soul medication

And I've tried it for years but my symptoms remain

Still fretting the day that they'll misplace my name

Still selling my soul for American fame

Treating the promotion of Jesus like a well oiled machine

Advancing His kingdom just to snag some acclaim

Now, I'm both comforted and haunted that it isn't just me though

I see a nation of people needing to feed their own egos

Parading status like steeples

Do we not know it's evil to love ourselves more than both God and His people?

But see, here's where you turn this poem on it's head

Cause the greatest among us came as servant instead

And You humbled Yourself to the point of Your death

Apparently love for the Father's glory runs red

So friends, will we point to the Son till our own flames grow dim?

Will our bright lights become merely nightlights near Him?

Words echo once, let them echo again

Be Thou exalted over my reputation

Will we allow our bright lights to become merely nightlights near Him? Will we allow our desire for prestige and glory to fade while allowing His prestige and His glory to radiate through our lives?

Be thou exalted over my reputation

What will I choose to live my life for?

A few days ago I was sitting at a red light, while I was waiting for the light to change, I began to read the bumper stickers on the cars around me. The car directly in front of me had a Twilight movie bumper sticker on the rear windshield which said,

"When you can live forever, what will you live for?"

That question is one of those fun, conversation starting questions that people ask as a great ice breaker for large groups. If you asked that question to 10 different people, you would probably get 10 different answers:

Love, relationships, marriage, family, physical pleasure, success, prestige, respect, money, career, adventure, service, others, God, and the list goes on and on.

However, this question is not just a surface, "get-to-know-you" question, it makes a very profound statement directed right at the heart of each and every person:

What will you live for?

That got me thinking, what will I live for...what will you live for? Our very lives are defined by this simple yet powerful question. Religious or secular, no one can escape this one question if they desire to find meaning and purpose in their life.

In one sense, we don't live forever. We are born, we grow old, and we die. On the other hand, God through the Bible tells us that we will live forever. We will all most certainly die a physical death, but that death is not the end but the beginning. Death ushers the Christian into heaven where we will see, experience, and worship God for all eternity; while death ushers the non-Christian into an infinite separation from God. This is an in-escapable truth.

In light of eternity and an eternal God, what will you and I choose to live our lives for?

What we will live for is centered upon what we value most; what we value most is what we will desire most; what we desire most is what we pursue hardest; and all of these things combine to define what our purpose in life will be.

Will we choose to focus on that which is eternal or on that which will perish and end someday?

What will matter beyond this life? Not success, prestige, wealth, respect, careers, physical pleasures, adventures, no not even family or friends. There are so many amazing, wonderful things this life has to offer and many bad as well, but do we realize that they all, no matter how good or meaningful, will come crumbling down at the end? When we get to the end of our lives there is going to be one thing, and one thing alone that matters and that is God and our relationship with him. This is why Jesus says in Luke 14:26-27, 33:

If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple...So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.

What Jesus is not saying is, "Hate everyone you ever knew including yourself, leave everything, and carry your cross or else you cannot be my disciple." What he is saying is, "Do you love me enough that you are willing to abandon everything for my sake; do you love me so much that it makes your love for your family appear to be hatred; and do you love me enough to suffer as I have suffered and even die for my sake?" He is in reality asking the very same question we have been asking above,

Are you willing to give up everything and everyone for my sake because in the context of eternity nothing else really matters?

Jesus is asking, Am I worth it to you? Is he? Is he worth more than all your dreams, desires, goals, pursuits, and possessions? When we ponder our lives what will we choose to value most?

When we gaze at the cost of discipleship that Jesus demands, it is very easy to say, "That is a lot to ask, Jesus!" or "It seems like I'm giving more than I'm receiving." or "This is an unreasonable cost, that it doesn't appear to be worth it." Haven't we all said or thought something along those lines? The amazing truth is that Jesus is absolutely worth it; and when we see him for who he really is we will be gripped with the absurdity of our previous questions and doubts, and be consumed with his magnificent worth and beauty! Jesus reveals this truth in a simple parable,

The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. (Matthew 13:44)

Don't miss the amazing truth in this verse, the man finds something that is of great value and so he goes and sells all he has in order to buy the field that the treasure is hidden in. Imagine the ridicule that he would have received from his friends and family, because from the outside it appears absurd to sell everything you have to buy one field. It is the exact opposite of what any Wall Street stock trader would advise. They would say never put all of your eggs in one basket, but that is exactly what the man does. Why does the man do this? Because he alone understands that the treasure in the field is worth more than all of his possessions combined. Therefore he is no longer a fool, but the smartest man in the world. He has seen the treasure and knows that he gives up essentially nothing in order to gain everything. The cost of discipleship is nothing compared with the gain we have in Christ.

We do live in the context of eternity whether we like it or not, so what will you and I choose to live for? What will we value most, desire greatest, and pursue hardest? Will we continue to live for things that perish or will we grasp on to the one thing that matters beyond this life, God? We have such a warped sense of worth, in view of eternity, we so often choose to settle for things that are momentary and finite. Jesus has placed himself opposite all of the momentary things this world has to offer and said,

Am I worth more to you?

Am I worth giving up virtually nothing, your life, in order that you may gain absolutely everything, Jesus Christ?