What's so Good about Good Friday?

Isaiah 53:5
But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.

I couldn't help but feel saddened at the lack of gratitude this day brings for so many.  Having dinner with my husband this evening at a restaurant- it was sad to take in the meaninglessness of this day to the world around us.  Just another day.  Just another evening.

But, I can't point the finger.  I myself have struggle with the measure of gratitude that is required of a day such as today.  It's hard to really grasp such a sacrifice. 

It's known to America as "Good Friday"...

But it's goodness is not found in the Friday evening socializing at a restaurant.  Nor is it found in the "Easter" deals at the stores.  Though this weekend has been stamped in pastel colors, bunnies, and chocolates...the truth of the matter is that it was originally stamped in blood.

The Goodness of Good Friday is found only in one thing: Jesus.  The God who saw it necessary to come into our worlds in order to win us over with His relentless love.  The God who saw it fit to take our imperfections upon Himself so that we could be healed.

That is nothing short of marvelous.  

Though this day in history was once filled with sadness at the death of a beloved Savior...today it is filled with all the gratitude I can muster.  I am grateful for a God who took it upon Himself to come and find me.  A God who counted my life...my sinful, futile, meaningless life...more valuable than His.

A God who gives His life to me every single day in the form of relationship.  

Because of this God...my life will never be the same.  

The servant grew up before God—a scrawny seedling,
   a scrubby plant in a parched field.
There was nothing attractive about him,
   nothing to cause us to take a second look.
He was looked down on and passed over,
   a man who suffered, who knew pain firsthand.
One look at him and people turned away.
   We looked down on him, thought he was scum.
But the fact is, it was our pains he carried—
   our disfigurements, all the things wrong with us.
We thought he brought it on himself,
   that God was punishing him for his own failures.
But it was our sins that did that to him,
   that ripped and tore and crushed him—our sins!
He took the punishment, and that made us whole.
   Through his bruises we get healed.
We're all like sheep who've wandered off and gotten lost.
   We've all done our own thing, gone our own way.
And God has piled all our sins, everything we've done wrong,
   on him, on him....Isaiah 53

How Pride Can Send you to Hell:

James 4:10
Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.

It seems to me that the greatest obstacle in having a relationship with Jesus is that of pride.  Pride is, in a sense, the antithesis of grace. 


Grace proclaims that there is a need.
Pride denies the need exists.  

Grace asks for help.
Pride looks to help itself.

Grace requires relationship with others.
Pride requires nothing but self.


John Piper wrote an entire sermon based on the principle of pride, and how it got in the way of really getting to know Jesus.  According to Piper, pride is the common root for many who did not believe.  Pride cannot stand the idea of confessing there is a need...and acknowledging that help must come from the outside in. 

One author put it this way with regards to Jesus and the people surrounding him: "Those who didn't go to church loved him.  He met their needs.  Those who were in the church hated him.  He exposed their needs"

And that is the root with the problem of pride- it never likes to be exposed.  


Jesus came to do just that.  He came to expose our sins and our weaknesses.  He came to expose to us the very need inside of us that He came to fill.  The need for Himself.

It's no coincidence that as Jesus was giving His life on the cross he was placed between two men- one on His right, and one on His left.   Both with great need.  Both paying the debts of their sins.  Both would determine their eternal destinations by the last words spoken to the Messiah, dying in between them.

Pride questioned Him.  Pride hurled insults at Him.  Pride was afraid to see the needs, even while hanging on a cross, bleeding to death on account of his sinful state.


Humility asked for only one thing, "Remember me, Jesus..."


Remember me, Jesus.  Put me back together.  Save me from this mess I have made for myself. 


Humility is the only way in which we can be lifted up.  Humility is the only way to Jesus.

Reverend Cable Guy:

John 13:35
By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.

I'm in the process of reading a great book called "Jesus Loves You, This I Know" by Craig Gross and Jason Harper.  It's an awesome book written by two men with a heart for Jesus...and in turn, a heart for their worlds and the people in them.  I'm sure I'll be sharing the lessons I'm learning from this book throughout my reading...but one part in particular captured my heart.

Jason Harper is a Pastor with a heart for outreach.  One thing he is constantly teaching from the pulpit is the concept of reaching out to the world around you with the love of Jesus.

But after a challenge from a congregation member, Jason realized that so much of his "ministry" was inward.  Not outward.  He was surrounded by people who loved Jesus...surrounded by his church...surrounded by his "Christian bubble".  His message was easier said than done.

So with a heart of compassion and a determination to practice what he preached, Jason took a part time job as a Cable Collections guy with one purpose in mind: to make contact with the real world.

And he did.

I love this book because it is full of real stories of men and women forgotten by the world...and the average every day life of two pastors who cared enough to do something about them.

I love this book because it echoes the cry of my heart - to reach out to a lost and dying world with the love of Jesus.  It doesn't take a pastor, a counselor, or a ministry leader to be the hands and feet of Jesus...

It takes a cable guy.  A secretary.  A landscaper.  A farmer.  A carpenter.  It takes average everyday people who are willing to say YES to the calling of Jesus, asking us to be His disciples...to follow Him.


During this season of Lent- Take a look at your sphere of influence.  Take a look at the lives you are touching everyday.  And ask yourself: Do you believe Jesus loves them?  Do you believe HE stepped out of His world in order to enter into theirs?  Do you believe that there is a brokenness that can only be healed by the knowledge of His love?

Live a life that answers YES. 

"Marriage is the Second Best Decision I Ever Made!"

Acts 4:20
For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.

I heard a speaker this morning who was speaking on the importance of keeping Jesus as the center of our lives every day- but particularly during this season of Lent. 


One way she does that is by sharing Jesus with the people she runs in to from day to day.  She shared that whenever she is out and about, if she happens to see a young lady wearing an engagement ring she asks:

"Are you getting married?"  If the woman replies yes, she then says to her, "Marriage is the second best decision I ever made!"

I can only imagine the kind of looks this kind of comment might get, but also, the kind of conversation starter that would be...and it got me excited at the prospect of this comment opening the door to good discussion. 

She continues by sharing that the first best decision she ever made- was entering a relationship with Jesus, and becoming a Christian.  As simple as this conversation starter is, it got me excited because frankly, when Jesus is the center of your life and you are truly in relationship with Him...conversation about Him is bound to happen. 


My husband and I were discussing this concept the other day.  The truth of the matter is, whatever is most important to you is that which overflows out of your heart and spills out of your mouth.  You can't help talk about it.  For some people it's sports.  For others- their children.  Hobbies, careers, friends...these are the things that tend to take over every conversation, every face book status update, and every passing comment.

Ask yourself this, what are the things that are overflowing onto your lips these days?  Are they the things that you WANT to reflect your heart?  Because if the answer is no....then something needs to change.  There is truth in he words of Jesus when he explains that out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks.  Your conversation is merely a reflection of your heart. 

May we be challenged to examine our hearts during this season of Lent.  May we be encouraged to shift our priorities and our affections so that with each and every passing conversation we are pointing others to Him.  

*For more information on what it means to enter into a relationship with Jesus, read this article...and then send me a message, I would love to chat.

For Sinners:

Luke 15:2

This man welcomes sinners and eats with them. 

There are so many things that could be said about God.  Descriptions of His power and might. Miraculous signs and wonders.  Mysterious and unsearchable things.  So many ways to describe His majesty and His glory.  To tell of His mercy and His grace.  To ponder His unfathomable ways.  There are so many ways to describe our God, but nothing compares to this.    

For in this description, we meet a God that is set apart from all other gods.  A God that has not allowed His majesty to hold Him back from our misery.  A God who sets aside His glory for a limitless pursuit of our hearts.  A God who not only welcomes sinners, he dines with them.  He invites them to his intimate table, seats them at his right hand, and takes care of all of their needs. 

We meet a God who gives His all to come find His lost sheep.  A God who will go anywhere and do anything, even to the point of death, to be able to bring us back home.  A God who reminds us that we are not the seekers for He came to seek us.  A God who is willing to break the status quo, reach out and humble Himself- in order to lift us up.

We meet a God who brings laughter where there have been tears, a God who brings his love where there has been hate.  We meet a God who sees sin as something to be forgiven and pain as something to be wiped away.  A God who finds it a joy to delight in us, when we finally respond to Him.  A God who gives the life of His son to remind us that we are His.  A God who finds company in us, in sinners.  Who welcomes us, sits with us, resides with us, and eats with us.   

A God who is for sinners, like you and like me. 

Thank you Lord that you put aside your majesty to save us from our misery.  Thank you that you did so to seek us out.  May we be moved during this season of Lent to open our hearts to you in response to such love. 

Hope was walking beside them:

Luke 24:21

 “…but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel”

With heads hanging low, tearful eyes looking towards the ground, they walked the dark road of despair.  Quietly discussing the events of the past few days, the deep feelings of confusion and disappointment combined in the depths of their souls.   

They had believed so strongly.  They had hoped so steadily.  They had waited all their lives for this.  They had invested everything in this One, this one who would save them.  And now He was gone.  The one who had promised to be their Way, their Truth and their Life.  He was now dead.  And their every dream died along side of Him.  There was nothing left to hope.

To many of us, the disappointment and despair of these women is a familiar and dull pain.  Many of us can understand the feelings of walking aimlessly, teary-eyed, with nothing left to hope.  Giving our all to believe, to hope, to dream.   Finding ourselves trusting in this One, and hoping that he will come through as he said he would; investing our hearts, our time, and our very lives.  And then the moments come where hope is destroyed.  Every dream is buried.  Every wish and expectation shattered.  There is nothing left to hope.

Death wins.  Rejection is familiar.  Disappointment echoes.  Fear Reigns. Depression sinks in. Worry abounds. Guilt destroys.  Anger grows.  Hopelessness encompasses.  Sorrow walks along side.  

And then we hear a familiar voice that challenges everything we thought and takes away all that we had feared:

“How foolish you are, how slow of heart to believe…

The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in His name…to all nations”

All along, Hope was walking beside them.  When they thought they were traveling alone. He had shattered their death and declared their acceptance; wiped away their tears as he Himself felt the agony of their pain.  He had gone to the depths of Hell, in order to offer them Heaven, and in the midst of their hopelessness, He came to embody their Hope once more.

Life is victorious.  Joy is familiar.  Acceptance echoes.  Confidence reigns.  Peace sinks in.  Love abounds.  Power grows.  Strength encompasses.  Hope walks along side.

Thank you, Lord, that you are our Hope. 

Is that you, Jesus?

John 4:25-26
 ²⁵ The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.”
 ²⁶ Then Jesus declared, “I, the one speaking to you—I am he.”

I was just reflecting on this passage about Jesus and his conversation with the Samaritan woman.   It struck me when I read the last two verses of the dialogue that all this time this woman was speaking with the Messiah and she didn't have a clue.

Here was the one she had been waiting for, here was the Answer to the questions she had.  Yet, so caught up in the tasks of the day...that Jesus went unnoticed.  Just another day.  Just another list of chores.  Just another man.  

I think about the scriptures and how apt humans are to miss Him.   Looking for fire when He came in the whisper.  Distracted by doubt when the embodiment of Faith was walking right beside them.  Waiting for a miracle, when the Miracle Maker was right there waiting to make their dreams come true.  Listening for His voice, though He had been calling our name the entire time.  


It's easy to miss Him, isn't it?  It's easy to go throughout our day, our weeks...and our lives without ever catching a glimpse of Him when He shows up.  We are so blinded by our own expectations of how He should make Himself known that sometimes we don't even recognize Him in our lives.  It's easy to find ourselves wondering- "Is that you, Jesus?"  

But thankfully, we serve a God who will not allow us to get in the way of His love.  We serve a God who will do whatever it takes in order to teach us to recognize Him.  He is relentless in his pursuit of our hearts - whether it takes the roar of a burning bush...or the sacrifice of His very life...

Take a moment today to look for Him.  Take a moment to recognize His presence in your life.  Take a moment to hear the beautiful words that He declares through all the madness and clutter of our lives: I, who speak to you, am He. 

 

What Does Jesus Thirst For?

 

 

[A gracious thank you to Father Nathan, serving as a Monk at the Community of Saint John, for taking the time to share with us what Jesus is teaching him during this season of Lent]

 

John 19:28

 And Jesus said, "I thirst."

The thirst of Jesus  as recorded here surely refers to the thirst he suffered as one crucified.  After all, many experts have written on the deep and insatiable thirst a crucified man would undergo.  

 

However, since Christ did nothing in vain, and the Holy Spirit willed this particular cry of thirst to be written, "For our salvation," (Jn. 20:31), perhaps we need to listen to his thirst from a deeper perspective.

The thirst of Christ on the Cross is prefigured by the other place where he refers to his thirst -- John 4.  In his dialogue with the Samaritan woman, Jesus' thirst, revealed to the Samaritan, is actually a thirst for her Faith, more than for water.  

 

Jesus thirsts for an opening, the opening of her heart to Him and His salvation, more than for physical water. Indeed, the gift He comes to bring satisfies for a lifetime, whereas the water she comes to draw will leave her thirsty again.  

When he speaks, "I thirst," again, this time from the Cross.  We may legitimately ask, "For what do you thirst, Jesus?"  What will He answer us?  What could He possibly desire upon the Cross more than our salvation, our love, our adoration for His Father?  

 

To respond to Jesus' thirst means to give Jesus to drink from our own hearts, by offering ourselves as "living sacrifices" (Rom. 12) to God under the upward motion of the Holy Spirit.  Indeed, to offer God the "new wine" (Jn. 2) of an adoration "in spirit and in truth" (Jn. 4) by the members of His body, fully inflamed by the love of the heart of the Son for the Father (Jn 15), is the glory of the Son.  

 

May we slake His thirst this Lent and always.  Let us pray!

Father Nathan

www.communityofstjohn.com

www.soaringforwisdom.com

www.marianfaithnetwork.com

www.saintjohnsummerconference.com

A Familiar Enemy:

John 7:5
For even his own brothers did not believe in him. 

There is something to be said about the dangerous reality of this verse.   The truth is, Jesus' own brothers did not grasp the miracle of who He was.  They ate, slept, played and lived together day in and day out.  But eventually, the familiarity of who He was began to set in...and the glory of who He was never birthed in their lives.

I don't know about you, but that's a sobering reality in my life as well.  Sometimes the familiarity trumps the glory. 

It's easy to live my life and get used to the awe and wonder of who Jesus is.  It's easy to take for granted His presence each and every single day, getting so comfortable with that truth that I never take the time to truly soak it in, to truly experience Him.

For me and you, the most dangerous enemy of our passion is familiarity.  It's an enemy whose mission is clear: "Take nothing from your victim, cause him only to take everything for granted."  It's an enemy that sneaks up on us without making a noise, leaving no hint of it's approach.  Leaving no trace that it came, until it has permeated every part of our lives...leaving behind the symptoms of apathy, doubt, and disbelief.

May you never grow so accustomed to your faith that you allow the seeds of familiarity to take root in your heart.  May you learn to wake up every morning and recognize His mercies as new.   May you be refreshed and reacquainted with His glory this season of Lent.

Why the Catholics have it Right (this time)...

Matthew 6:16-18
    ¹⁶ “When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. ¹⁷ But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, ¹⁸ so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

Let me be honest.  This is my first year to participate in Lent.  For me, this season of the year has never been that big-a-deal.  I remember in high school viewing Lent as a thing that "the Catholics" did.  My friends would come into class with some sort of dirt smeared on their foreheads, and then I would know Lent had began.


I mean, I always looked at my Catholic friends and felt sorry for them for all the things they had to do and the particular ways they had to do them.  I was grateful to be a part of a faith with very little "rules and regulations", a faith based on the principles of love and relationship.  And to be honest, I'm still grateful.


But one thing I'm realizing is this: we "evangelicals" have it too easy.  WAY too easy.  We've overcompensated so much in fear of entering into tradition and rituals that we have forgotten that maintaining a relationship with God requires some labor.  We get lost in the privilege of grace and forget that we are called to work out our faith with "fear and trembling".   What I believe that God means by that is this: put a little work into it! 


We tend to put our faith in "cruise-control" mode and neglect the spiritual disciplines that are involved in really experiencing God to the fullest.  


I've been reminded of my tendency to "cruise" through my faith as I've been going through Richard Foster's Book called Celebration of Discipline.  He takes 12 disciplines that have been foundational in the pursuit of our relationship with God and unfolds each one.


Coincidentally, (though there really is no such thing as a coincidence), my chapter on the discipline of Fasting coincides with this season of Lent.  And boy, has it been good.


Through my reading, I've been reminded of my need to work out my faith. 

This fast has been beneficial in so many ways.  But one thing in particular is that it has taught me to clear unnecessary coping mechanisms from my life.  The things I tend to run to when I am stressed, overwhelmed, and bored...are no longer available.

I'm left with me, myself, and my raw emotions.  Nowhere to run.  Nowhere to hide.  Nothing to numb.  I used to say that "oh....I'm just grumpy because I'm hungry....tired....thirsty..." whatever.  But now that these certain things have been purged from my life I come face to face with the reality that I am angry, miserable, and discontent....because of the things I have inside of my heart.  


There are no more excuses.  


In fasting, we come face to face with who we are.  In fasting, the things that have been clogging up our time, attention, and emotion are no longer given the authority to numb us.  In fasting, all of the things we have been trying to hide finally make their way to the surface...


And our gracious God takes His nail-pierced hand, and skims them away.  


This season of Lent is teaching me a lot about myself.  It's allowing me to see myself in a way that I haven't had the ability to see before, when my vision was clouded.  I am sad, silly and ignorant.   But in turn, it's taught me so much about my God.  

He's always known I was this sad, silly, and ignorant...yet, He loves me still.  That is beautiful to me. 


Happy Lent.  


PS. To all my Catholic friends...all my love and respect.  Don't knock the title of this post...it was just to get you reading ;)  See....it worked. 

Put Your Hands in the Air....

Psalm 63:3-4
³ Because your love is better than life,
   my lips will glorify you.
⁴ I will praise you as long as I live,
   and in your name I will lift up my hands. 

Last week my husband and I attended a Chris Tomlin concert.  It was an incredible night of worship.  During the concert, speaker Louie Giglio gave an uplifting talk about worship.  The following is my attempt to summarize his words into my own.  


He started off by discussing this concept of "raising your hands" to God during worship.  Some people write it off by saying it's a denominational thing.  "The charismatics raise their hands in church..."

He went on to explain that, no....it's not a matter of denomination.  It's a "human thing".  Louie gave examples all across the world of people, from Christians to Buddhists to none of the above, raising their hands as an act of being "human".

Sporting events...Concerts...Religious Ceremonies...all across our world, humanity raises it's hands as an act of expressing emotion.  Something inside that can no longer be held in.  Something that needs to be released. 

Louie then went on to explain three reasons why we raise our hands:

1.  Surrender:  The First thing that comes to my mind is the phrase "You're under arrest".  If you think about it, the act of surrender seems to always include hands raised to heaven.  In a sense we are saying, "I give up...I am submitting to you".  How many of us need to raise our hands in surrender?  How many of us have chosen to do things our way time and time again?  It's time to give in.  It's time to surrender.

2.  Celebration: People all over the world lift their hands to celebrate.  From dancing to music concerts to football games.  It's easy to raise our hands for Penn State football...but we shy away from letting our emotions celebrate the love of our God.  It's okay to let it out.  Take some time to celebrate who God is and what He has done in your life.

3.  Desperation:  Maybe you don't feel like you can celebrate.  Maybe your life is at a difficult place right now, and you feel the sting of desperation each and every single day.  You are at the end of your rope with no where else to turn.  You're hoping for a miracle.  Today, raise your hands to God in desperation.  Remind yourself that when all else fails, He is your hope...your last hope.  And those who hope in the Lord will not be let down. 

Don't ever let your "dignity" get in the way of allowing your heart and body to worship the way they were meant to.  No matter where your heart is today...take some time to raise your hands in worship of a God who deserves it. 

A Spirit of Lent all Year Long:

Matthew 26:39

“My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me.  Yet not as I will, but as you will.

The Gospels give a graphic account of the agony and desperation Jesus felt as he faced going to the cross.  What must have made it incredibly difficult is that he knew everything that was going to happen (John 18:4). 

According to Matthew 26:38 he said to 3 of his closest followers, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death.”  He asked them to “pray and keep watch with me”.  Then he prayed in desperation.  As Luke 22:44 says, “Being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood.”  

Talk about intense prayer.  In the Matthew account it says he prayed 3 times what is quoted above.  "Not as I will, but as You will".  How incredible.  When faced with the hardest circumstance conceivable he yielded his will to his Father and subjected himself to the worst kind of treatment imaginable—being mocked, beaten, humiliated and then crucified.  All because he loved us so deeply that he was willing to give all of himself up for our redemption.

I don’t mean to dwell on the gruesome, but during this season of Lent I am always gripped with all that Jesus was willing to do- all that was required of him- to provide my redemption.  

Fortunately, the suffering did not have the last word.  Death and the grave couldn’t hold him or keep him.  He rose victorious and triumphant over death and the grave.  All for us.  Consequently, I am delivered from the penalty I would have coming because of my sin.  Because he has overcome, so can I.  I can live victoriously and as a follower of Jesus reap the blessing of a purposeful, substantive, and meaningful life now and at the same time enjoy the hope of eternity to come.

In this season of Lent, I am amazed all over again with all that Jesus was willing to do for me—all that he was willing to give up (his very life)!  

And I am convicted with the need to give up my all for him.  I hope it’s not a cop out, but I don’t usually give up anything in particular during this time.  However. this year I have set a goal of losing 5 lbs.  It seems trivial, but it is something I need to do.  

What I really want to also do is give myself completely up for him all year.  It’s a continual struggle.  If I’m honest, too often I tend to do what I want or try to get my way.  Then I’m reminded of Jesus words, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.”  (Luke 9:23)  

Thank God for his grace because I fail often.  Yet at the same time I pray continually to keep my heart submitted to him and yielded to his purpose and will.  This is my goal now and always. 

Pastor Omar Zook

Pastor Zook is the Pastor for Pastoral Care at the Evangelical Free Church of Hershey.

Lonely Jesus: Lonely You

John 16:32
³² “A time is coming and in fact has come when you will be scattered, each to your own home. You will leave me all alone. Yet I am not alone, for my Father is with me."

Something about this verse caught my attention.  I think it was the reality of Jesus' words as he looked ahead at the suffering which he was about to take on.  


When looking at the passion of Christ, we tend to focus on the physical suffering that he went through, so much so that we forget the emotional journey that He experienced.  But the emotional turmoil that He took on is an important reality to consider- because there is a component to it that many of us go through each and every single day: 


Loneliness.

Jesus understood it.  He not only understood it, he experienced it.  He knew the feeling of being left by his dearest friends.  He felt the pain of being betrayed by the ones He loved.  He lived the reality of being disowned and rejected, and of being left alone.  

The reality of living as a man exposed Jesus to the brokenness of humanity...and in turn, the brokenness of the people He loved the most.  People let Him down...


Maybe you can relate.  Maybe you, too, understand the sting of rejection and the pain of abandonment.  Maybe the word loneliness holds a place in your life that you never imagined it could.  Find comfort in two things.


First, find comfort in the truth that the God of all creation allowed Himself to go through what you are going through.  Find comfort in knowing that when you are hurting, alone, and afraid- he has been there too.  He gets it.  He hurts with you because He has felt what you feel.


Second, find comfort in knowing that when everyone and everything fails and you find yourself all alone...you are not.  You will never be.  To the depth that you are able to feel loneliness, He is able to give you companionship.  You are not alone, because your Father God is right by your side.  You may not always feel it, and so it may be hard to believe it, but you must never allow your feelings to dictate your reality.  


"And remember that I am always with you until the end of time."


Reflect on this truth.  Allow it to sink into your heart.  And take heart in the truth that you are never, ever alone. 

A Moment of Silence:

Psalm 46:10
Be still, and know that I am God. 

What Does your Dash Count For?

Luke 13:6-8

 ⁶ Then he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree growing in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it but did not find any. ⁷ So he said to the man who took care of the vineyard, ‘For three years now I’ve been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven’t found any. Cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?’
   ⁸ “‘Sir,’ the man replied, ‘leave it alone for one more year, and I’ll dig around it and fertilize it. ⁹ If it bears fruit next year, fine! If not, then cut it down.’”

I listened to a sermon online this morning, by a dear friend and Pastor of my former church in Peoria, Illinois.  Pastor King was preaching about this parable in Luke 13- about the fig tree that bore no fruit.

Christians have a tendency to see their faith as "fire insurance".  What I mean by that, is that so many believers are living their lives grounded in the truth that they are "saved" from the wrath of Hell because they have prayed a prayer and asked Jesus into their heart.  But the truth of the matter is, this is only half of the gospel. 

We are truly saved by God's grace, and we are saved by His grace each and every single day.  But this salvation is only the first step.  There has got to be a response on our part to this grace that has been poured out on us, to this God that has exchanged His life for ours.

Pastor King noted a story about a pastor who was performing a funeral.  This pastor noted that on each and every tombstone stands two dates with a dash in the middle.  The date of birth, dash, the date of death.  It's amazing how our whole lives get summed up on one tiny dash on a stone slab, isn't it?

But you see, the dash still counts.  The pastor went on to ask the congregation: what does your dash count for?


What a sobering question, isn't it?  We spend so much time breathing...but so little time really living.  Our God desires more from us than the yes or no question of entering into a relationship with Him.  He asks for our lives.  Every second, every hour, every day.  He asks for our devotion, our obedience, and our service.  He asks for us to be consumed, in every fiber of our being, with Him.


The passage in yesterday's reflection reminded us that if we truly remain in Him, we will bear much fruit.  But too many of us are like the fig tree in Luke 13: bearing no fruit day after day, year after year.  Having no resemblance to who we were intended to be.  Living a life centered around ourselves rather than grounded in Christ. 


The parable above takes a sobering turn as the vineyard tender went to the his master and asked for the fruitless tree to be cut down and gotten rid of!  But the gracious master....said no.  Not yet.  Let me work on it first.  Let me tend to this tree.  Let me help it grow.  Give it more time.


Our God is patient.  Our God is loving.  Our God cares more about our success and fulfillment than we even care about ourselves.  And He continues to work on us.  He chooses to give us a second, third, and forth chance.  Rather than give us justice in what we deserve, He gives us mercy and offers us hope. 


Hope for transformation.
Hope for change.
Hope for restoration. 
Hope for a better life...


I don't know about you, but that is the kind of Love that motivates me to give my all.  That is the kind of love that gets me off of my seat and ready to do whatever God asks of me.  That is the kind of love that brings me to my knees in humble obedience.  That is the kind of love that enters into my heart and begins to run over...into the lives of others- as beautiful fruit. 

God is gracious...but may we never take advantage of such grace.  Christians, may we allow His kindness to lead us to repentance for the way we have lived our lives. May we acknowledge that we have led fruitless seasons in our lives, seasons in which we bore the weeds of selfishness, conceit, and apathy rather than the fruits of love, kindness, and faithfulness.  May we choose to live in such a way that bears His fruit and allows the "Dash" of our lives to reflect Jesus when it is all said and done. 

Thank you God for your grace.  May we never take advantage of your patience.  Help us to respond in a way that reflects your Love in our lives.  Help us to bear much fruit.  

To hear Pastor Kings entire message on Luke 13 (I recommend it!): Click here. 

Snorting Scripture:

John 15:5
I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

This season of Lent has been an important time for me to learn to "remain" in Jesus.  Personally, I find that it's easy to make my way through life not realizing that I have pushed God into a little corner of my heart, going to visit Him during quiet times and Sunday mornings.

I forget the truth of this passage, the truth that I can do nothing apart from Him...until my life spins so out of control that I am desperate for God's hand to touch it.  I don't want to get to that point before I learn to turn my eyes to Jesus.  

A speaker that I heard yesterday said something that stuck with me.  She spoke of a dear friend who was going through some significant struggles in her life.  She asked her friend "How are you getting through this season in your life without going crazy?"  To which her friend simply replied: "I'm snorting scripture".

And she was.  It sounds kind of funny, but the reality is, if you're going to snort something....Scripture is the way to go.  Practically speaking, this woman was making sure to eat, breath, sleep, live God's word, because she knew it was the only way to remain in Him and allow His word to penetrate her life beyond her struggles.  She read throughout the day and when she didn't have the strength, she had others read it to her. 


This season of your life, whether struggle or victory, may God give you the motivation to soak up His presence and His Word.  May He give you the concentration to say no to distractions and say yes to Him.  May He give you the discipline to continually choose to remain in Him as you seek to find sanity and peace.
  
"Listen less to your own thoughts and more to God's thoughts."-- François Fénelon
 

Better Than Secret Millionaire:

Philippians 2:6-8
⁶ Who, being in very nature^[a] God,
   did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
⁷ rather, he made himself nothing
   by taking the very nature^[b] of a servant,
   being made in human likeness.
⁸ And being found in appearance as a man,
   he humbled himself
   by becoming obedient to death—
      even death on a cross! 

My husband and I have a new favorite show on ABC called Secret Millionaire.  In this new series, a Millionaire goes undercover, giving up their time to volunteer in some of the most broken and destitute places in America.

The Millionaire is there with the ultimate intention of finding those in need, and sharing his/her wealth with them.  It's an uplifting program, and it's a challenge to me as a believer to remember the riches that I have in Christ, and all that I have to offer those around me, though I myself may not be a millionaire monetarily.

But ultimately, this show reflected something powerful to me, particularly during this season of Lent.  It reminded me of my Savior, who chose to leave the great riches of His world to come down into mine.  My God, who- though He was God- decided to make himself nothing...just so that I could meet Him.  Just so that I could see Him.  Just so that I could have relationship with Him.

More than all the money in the world, our God has given us Himself...He stepped into our worlds in a beautiful exchange, so that He could ultimately take us to His.  Do you get that?  Have you believed?  Did you receive it?  Do you live in it?

May God remind us today of this precious gift, and may we never grow so accustomed to it that we forget that it cost Him his life...

Take a few minutes to listen to this song and reflect on the beautiful exchange of our God.

Emotional Opiates: On Empathy

[Thank you to Pastor Jonny Rashid, for taking the time to help us reflect on Lent and giving us a glimpse of what God is teaching you and your congregation this season.]

Exodus 15: 22—27

Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea and they went into the Desert of Shur. For three days they traveled in the desert without finding water. When they came to Marah, they could not drink its water because it was bitter. (That is why the place is called Marah. So the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What are we to drink?”

Then Moses cried out to the LORD, and the LORD showed him a piece of wood. He threw it into the water, and the water became fit to drink.

There the LORD issued a ruling and instruction for them and put them to the test. He said, “If you listen carefully to the LORD your God and do what is right in his eyes, if you pay attention to his commands and keep all his decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the LORD, who heals you.”

Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs and seventy palm trees, and they camped there near the water.

This passage, when read through a lens of Jesus, powerfully illustrates one concept that is central to Lent, the season of fasting before Christ’s death and resurrection: empathy. During seasons of suffering, when hope is as rare as water for the Israelites, which is like the one we’re embarking on during Lent, when we begin empathizing with ourselves, we can see the hope that Jesus’ resurrection offer us – we can see the hope of life in a season that’s all about death.

Our propensity may be to offer empathy with others during this season and sometimes we do that so poorly that we can’t get passed judging ourselves for it. So before then, let’s try to get to a place where we can empathize with ourselves – empathy typically refers to relating to other people’s pain, but we’ve numbed and desensitized ourselves so much  that sometimes it’s challenging to really see the pain that we are in. We actually need to feel our pain and get self-aware.  In a sense, we need to empathize with ourselves.

Fasting, giving something up for Lent or taking a discipline on, is a good way to get weaker, to experience some suffering so that whatever might be numbing you – whether its substances, TV consumption, sleeping too much, overeating, filling every second of your day with people – can wither away so that you can see what’s really behind it. Getting rid of some of those sedatives, opiates, the antibiotics that numb our pain is a good way to really realize that we are thirsty. 

It took journeying through the desert for three days so that the Israelites could notice that they were indeed thirsty and that the water they were trying to drink was bitter. In their thirst and in the water’s bitterness, they actually saw what was holding them up. 

As they let go of their control and admitted to Moses and to God how thirsty they were, God provided them with wood that made the water drinkable – but through their ability to see their suffering, they could see what was holding them up. They could see that they weren’t following God – that they needed a paradigm shift. And that the paradigm shift led them to a better place, one without suffering.

Getting to a vulnerable place, a place where there is some self-imposed fatigue, hunger, and thirst can help us get out of our normal worlds the ones where we want to remedy all of the suffering that we experience typically in the name of productivity.  

Lent is about slowing down, fasting, going in solitude. Being willing to fast in the desert for 40 days, like Jesus did, and get tempted by the devil – and relying on God through it. It’s about getting freedom from the Egyptians and then signing up for a seemingly aimless trip through the desert and even being tempted to go back to the oppressor. 

We’re reawakening our feeling -- we need to get the stuff out of our system that’s numbing us. The result of fasting and being in suffering isn’t necessarily freedom from pain and suffering – sometimes it will seem like we are experiencing more pain and more suffering – but there’s hope to be had, hope that we can look to. It leads to transformation.

Drinking the bitter water helped the Israelites to see how bitter they were being with themselves and with God, and along with the transformation of the water – there was an internal transformation too. Along with ending up in Elim, an oasis in the desert, they found an oasis in their hearts too. God was with them all along.

And God is with us. Lent is about empathizing with Jesus and his suffering, so that you can more clearly embrace his resurrection. Lent is about suffering so that we know that Jesus suffered too – that Jesus experienced all of the hardships and difficulties that we do and that he was transformed and gave us the same key to transformation. 

As we suffer in the desert this season, we know that Jesus did too, and so we know that we can relate to him and he us. As we fast this season, we’re learning that Jesus is someone that we can relate to, someone that we can have a relationship with. We’re learning too, as we suffer, how He suffered for us. We’re finding hope through our heart through that empathy – empathy for Jesus, for others, and for ourselves.

www.circleofhope.net

Jonny Rashid is a pastor at Circle of Hope, a reconciling network of cell congregations in the Philadelphia region called to be a safe place to explore and express God’s love.

It's a Party: Tribal Style (On Child like Faith)

Matthew 18:4-5

⁴ Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child—this one is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. ⁵ And whoever welcomes ^[a] one child like this in My name welcomes Me.

I had another post in mind for today, but something I saw today totally rocked my world and took the forefront of my thoughts today.  In light of Pastor John King's reflection yesterday, I felt that it was fitting to take today's reflection in this direction. 

You see, I saw a YouTube video this afternoon about missionary Mark Zook and his incredible ministry to the Mouk people of Papa New Guinea.  They were a tribe of men and women living in the jungles of Papa New Guinea, who had absolutely NO exposure to the Bible or it's message.

It's hard to even comprehend this truth, considering that I have six bibles sitting on my shelf, and unlimited access to God's word through the internet, ipod, bible software, etc.  

The Mouk people's reaction to God's word is breathtaking.  It is a child-like faith that ushers them into a place of sheer celebration- celebration like I have never seen before- when presented with the truth of God's word.  It's incredible...and it brought me to tears.   Tears of joy...and tears of shame. 

It's a shame that, we get so accustomed to God's word and His story that it really holds little value in our lives.  I mean, ask your self: When is the last time you celebrated the incredible realization of your salvation?  We are bored by it, uninterested, and apathetic toward the story that changed the destiny of all of mankind.   It's sad, when you think about it- that we could have so much at our fingertips yet still be looking past it...tempted by the material things of this world and the people in it. 

As you watch this video, may you dig deep to find the child-like faith within you...the faith that trusts, the faith that believes, the faith that rejoices with all that is within you at the feet of the Savior who came to this world to change your destiny and save your soul.  

May you learn from the simplicity and genuineness of the Mouk people, who had nothing- but gained everything in the simple acceptance of God's truth.  

Thank you, Jesus...for choosing us.  

 
 

Come, Die with Me...

[Honored to introduce our first guest post in our "Daily reflections for Lent" series, written by Pastor John King- Senior Pastor of Riverside Community Church]


Matthew 16:20-25 
 "Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests, and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life." Hearing this, "Peter took [Jesus] aside and began to rebuke him. 'Never, Lord!' he said. 'This shall never happen to you!'"

What Jesus then said in the face of this apparent devotion consistently forces me to define discipleship in terms that I don't think I'd ever get to by my self. The Bible says that "Jesus turned and said to Peter, 'Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.' Then Jesus said to his disciples, 'If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.'"

There were many who would have said yes to Jesus to come dine with me, or come be a part of miracles happening.   But “come die with me”... that brings a different response in most: “Never Lord”.

Yet, the call of Jesus in His passion to win a lost world is often “DIE TO YOURSELF”.

The journey of the Gospel has been written in the blood of people who were willing to say ANY TIME, ANY PLACE, ANY COST.

Most of Christendom will only take the gospel to the safe places of earth. Still a third of the World (the area known as the 10/40 window) lacks real Gospel penetration and gets only a minute percentage of Christian’s resources and probably prayers.

It is said that 87 percent of missions giving goes to the regions of the world that the Gospel has already saturated and hardly any to where the Gospel still needs to go . . .we are willing to go to the safe places and not willing to go where we will need to die to self.




Ask yourself- Where is your safe place?  Are you willing to step outside of it?

God, grant this Lenten season that we will be empowered to say to Jesus “I am willing to take up your cross and willing to die for your cause and the salvation of lost people”. 


John King.
Senior Pastor
Riverside Community Church Peoria IL. 
An Inner City Church with a passion to influence a City toward Jesus.
WWW.RIVERSIDEPEORIA.COM