Deregulation Notice

Photo by Stefan Cosma on Unsplash

Seems overly “governmenty” to declare deregulation for Road Report Journal (RRJ) but I thought some kind of notice was in order.  Been thinking about this awhile - to pull away from weekly RRJ posts arriving on Tuesday morning and ease into a more spontaneous schedule.

Less regularity may look like less or more than weekly with posts; And days other than Tuesday too.

With sympathies to my pastor friends, I do not have their Sunday sermon grind to hold to.  No one is showing up to read RRJ posts Tuesday morning.  I imposed that schedule on myself as a sort of test for putting content “out” with enough regularity to warrant having a blog at all.

According to marketing gurus, a couple important keys to building brand and audience are frequency and repetitiveness.  Note commercials on TV, radio and annoyingly scrolling across or blocking your reading view when you’re on the net. Blogwise, daily posting is considered optimal so my weekly posts are falling way short of the minimum.  

Much as I still enjoy writing in general and Road Report Journal in particular, I hoped it would be develop into more a dialogue than a monologue.  In my mind’s eye, reader comments and my replies would be the backbone of us fellow believers walking out faith together in a pseudo public context that other readers along the way could benefit and grow from.  

Alas, subscribers are few, readers fewer and, besides one particular friend, commenters virtually non-existent.  Often, remarks to posts striking closest to home do not appear in comments but circle back to me offline because someone suspects I’m writing about them in particular and wants me to answer directly to them.

I’m heading that kind of stuff off with some new policies.  See the “About” page for more on that.

To you who both subscribe and read, thanks for supporting RRJ with your attention. I’m particularly grateful for your comments because others can also benefit from your insights.

Looking forward, Road Report Journal posts will arrive “as the Spirit moves me” to coin an over-worn idea.  Although I’m not holding myself to a weekly schedule, perhaps posts over a given period will average to once weekly or more.  Arrival days will vary but only on a weekdays.

Gonna cue more on the rhythms of life and resurrect some focuses shoved aside due to time constraints the writing process has eaten up.  A few house projects are pending and my guitar is gathering dust.

Perhaps (hopefully?), Road Report Journal will emerge better.  

Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need to have anything written to you. (1 Thessalonians 5:1, ESV)

Paul wrote this regarding the Lord’s next arrival.  He followed by insisting that we who follow the Lord and cue on him know him, are known by him and will (or should) be awake and sober of mind when he arrives.

Take it from Paul.  You don’t really need me to write the Lord into your life but I delight to reflect to you about how we matter to him in the context of my own journey along the roads of life.  Also, writing helps me to internalize the life lesson I'm writing about.  I'm pretty sure I get more out of this than you.

Most of all, I pray that all forms of my expression are ultimately blessing and grace to you. 

“Because you matter to God!”

— Road Report Journal

Thankful ... For EVERYTHING?

Photo by Zac Durant on Unsplash

How will you celebrate Thanksgiving this year? We will go to a sister’s home and I imagine a special prayer will be offered, perhaps participatory.  What to say if invited to reflect what I’m thankful for?

My inclination is to think about what I feel best about in my life right now, according to me.  The Bible, on the other hand, offers a somewhat BROADER perspective on thankfulness.

Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.    (1 Thessalonians 5:18, ESV)

Giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, (Ephesians 5:20)

Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name. (Hebrews 13:5)

“All - Always - Everything-Continually” doesn’t leave much room for what seems good to me at any given moment.

At work, one of my regular jobs is making different sizes of rubber pads for installing racks in commercial vehicles. Although learning this job was somewhat involved, I’ve got it down now and let’s just say that when I get on a parts-making roll, I struggle to keep my brain engaged.  

I did production work in my younger years so when this job came along, I resolved to mentally prepare myself for the mind-numbing aspects of factory work. Turns out, plenty of positives with this company as well - friendly and supportive management and coworkers, steady and predictable hours, optional overtime, a comfortable and casual workplace. Still, the production doldrums sometimes gets to me.

 At my lowest moments, my resolve to be thankful languishes into pleading with the Lord, something like, “Lord, does all-always-continually cover repetitive, mind-numbing factory work that didn’t even exist when you created the world?”

For drama, I sometimes expand the criteria.  “Lord, what about when someone is wronged or mistreated or victimized by violence… instances of suffering or injustice...suffering losses due to natural disasters?

Something Jesus said that I quote often and think about even more - that believers are to “take heart” when we experience trouble because he has overcome all such trouble. (John 16:33).  What does he mean by “take heart?”  Other translations use “take courage.”

Seems like the Lord is conveying something along the line of, “I know life in the world is tough and troublesome but hang in there because I’ve got you. Trust me.”

I just re-read Joseph’s story in Genesis. At some point, he realized that nothing got to him that the Lord didn’t allow. What others meant to harm him, God used for good.  (See Genesis 50:20). Grasping that, he was freed to receive and forgive the brothers who wronged him.  

The Lord said something along that line to me the other day. “Glenn, I’ve got you, no matter what.  Be thankful for everything.”

Other Bible stories besides Joseph bear this out, such as Job, Moses, David, Esther, Ruth, and Rahab to name a few.

In the third chapter of  Ephesians  Paul prays that we believers would “be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, ..." (Ephesians 3: 19b-20)

Assured that the Lord has me in hand and is able to do more than I can ask or imagine, I am free to be “Thankful for everything!”

I’m going to give that a go.

Not Abiding

Photo by Mitchel Lensink on Unsplash

I had some bad moments last week of not abiding way too well.

Abide is most often a Biblical word from the Greek word menó, to stay, abide, remain.

Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. (John 15:4, ESV)

I like the Merriam-Webster’s definition.

Abide (transitive verb)
1 a :to bear patiently :tolerate
b :to endure without yielding :withstand
2 :to wait for :await
3 :to accept without objection

Teachings of abide in John 15:4 usually regards clinging to, remaining attached to the vine that is Jesus/God.  Whatever happens, abide.

In that sense, I guess I do abide, technically. I say technically because I never actually let go. However, I waver and my mind wanders into thoughts unfit to abide with the Lord that spawn from doubt that arises in unfavorable situations.  

Any disciple worth his salt should know better than to let feelings rule the moment but this disciple doubts.  Sometimes I doubt so deeply that it seems I have barely a shred of hope in me.

If let myself slip down that doubt slope, not abiding may manifest as anxiety or bitterness or resentment or judgment or envy or self-pity.  I may even start spewing a lot of stupid questions God’s way, like "Why? What’s going on? How could this be happening?" I completely forget that I don’t need answers to any of those questions, all I need is God himself.

Abide.  Cling.  Remain. Hold on… "Take a deep breath," I tell myself.

Summarizing the consummation of Job’s ordeal, Sam Williamson notes, “When Job gives conversational control back to God, God simply reveals himself...When Job sees God, he drops all his pretensions of control...In seeing God, Job is completely satisfied. He never needed the answer he thought he needed; he needed God alone.”  

Here’s a great list of what abiding looks like: “...love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…” (Galatians 5: 22-23). Precede each with “genuine” vs. the disingenuous but very popular, “Fake it ‘till you make it.”

Here again, turning to God’s Word is lifesaving.  Meditating on a few verses gets me back on the abiding track:

• Philippians 4:6-7 - Don’t be anxious.  Pray instead and receive God’s peace.
• Exodus 23:22 - Listen carefully to me and I’ll fight on your side (God)
• Colossians 3:1-3 - Seek the things above, not that on earth
• Matthew 21:21 - Faith without doubt moves mountains

Care to offer a few of your own favorites? 

--------------------------

Notes

1. Photo by Mitchel Lensink on Unsplash
2. Sam Williamson quote from his book, “Hearing God in Conversation,” page 102

First Answer

Boys D1 "stampede" at 400 meter mark. Nick is among the leaders on the right side.

Last weekend, I went to the Michigan High School Athletic Association Lower Peninsula Cross Country State Championships to watch our nephew Nick run.  Runners qualify for the state meet by placing in the top 15 of their respective Regional Championship meets.

Eight races were held, four divisions of boys and girls.  The predicted inclement weather held off until the last two races of the day.  The worst weather arrived prior to the very last race that Nick ran, the boy’s Division 1 race that finally got underway 80 minutes past schedule after delays due to nearby lightning strikes.

I didn't Nick's expectations but I supposed they might include a personal best and earning top-30 all-state honors.  My prayer was for him to be content with his performance and, while you're at it Lord, all-state would also be nice.

I felt a little funny asking God to allow Nick top-30 placement among the 250 runners competing in his division. Nevertheless, Nick worked hard to become one of that state’s fastest runners this year so all-state was certainly within his reach. Even so, except for the 30 all-staters in each division, most runners that day would cherish simply having qualified and running in this prestigious event.

More than anything, I prayed for trust.  “Lord, that I accept whatever you grant for Nick, whether he is satisfied or dissatisfied with his performance, earns all-state honors or falls short.”

Selecting a first viewing position just past the 400-meter mark, I was grateful that my windbreaker/rain jacket kept me dry during on-again, off-again bouts of rain and thunder that set the start time back three times.  When the race finally got underway, I spotted Nick in the lead pack before I hustled back across the vast complex to stand near the final turn.  When the lead runners finally came into sight, Nick was still well-positioned and I shouted encouragement to him as he passed by on his way to the finish line.

As I casually strolled back toward the finishing area, excited spectators steamed past me to learn results and greet their favorite competitors.  Not sure then how Nick finished but trusting God for whatever was when I received God's first answer to my prayers for Nick - peace.

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.  (Philippians 4: 5b-7, NLT)

The praying person IS God's first answer for every person or situation prayed about and for. When we pray for another, we abide with God, drawing ourselves and the person we pray for closer to God. 

The race results?  God worked that out as well, allowing Nick to earn all-state honors with a 17th place finish at 15:43.2.

Fall Ride

Fall riding along Huron River Drive in 2012

No matter how busy we are or how many deadlines loom or broken items needing fixing,  my wife and I always find time to take a fall ride each autumn.

We follow a pretty basic plan. We pick a Saturday or Sunday preferably when autumn color is at or near its peak and head out with a couple guest riders, often my wife’s sister and mom. We drive a hundred or so miles along tree-lined roads.  Every now and then, we pull over to gawk and snap a few pictures.

Fortunately we live in heavily wooded Michigan that is blanketed top to bottom with deciduous hardwoods that change color before dropping their leaves.  Contrasting hardward stands are prolific evergreens providing marvelous contrast while softening every landscape with their lush fullness.

Fall at home, 2010

As I write, trees right outside our home are bursting with autumn foliage.  Although outside temps are cool, I have a window cracked open to the let the crisp air in and to hear the breezes that are beginning to send leaves to cover the ground below.

Although I will never tire of this season, as much as I can wax eloquent about autumn’s magnificence, to think is but a dim reflection of our loving God whose creation autumn is part of sends shivers through me.

“For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known,” wrote Paul in his first letter to the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 13:12, NASB)

Likewise wrote the psalmist:

“One thing I ask from the Lord,
this only do I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord
all the days of my life,
to gaze on the beauty of the Lord
and to seek him (meditate) in his temple.”
(Psalm 27:4, NIV)

As I can never imagine tiring of autumn, what could gazing on the beauty of the Lord be like?  I am but a mortal, “living in darkness… in the land of the shadow of death.“ So wrote the prophet Isaiah regarding the people the Messiah would come to save, me and you - us. (See Isaiah 9:1-2 and Matthew 4:12-16).

The land of the shadow…. “Farewell to Shadowlands” is the title C.S. Lewis gave the final chapter of “The Last Battle,” the seventh and final book of his Chronicles of Narnia. Telling of the known end of Narnia, the characters are drawn by the “Glorious One” to dwell with him in eternity.

As they journey “further up and further in,” timelessly traversing centuries in seconds, one of those who arrived earlier and serves now to escort the newcomers tries to explain, “It is far bigger inside than it was outside….The further up and the further in you go, the bigger everything gets. The inside is larger than the outside.”

"Larger on the inside than the outside..."  A description of God’s kingdom or church that seems so insignificant in the day-to-day life of most Americans?

More and more, we Americans live in a world of our own making that seems so real and relevant. So enlightened, scientific and technological are we that an illusion of being impenetrably unshakable is not so far-fetched.

Then something happens that so unceremoniously flicks us from our fortress that we are shaken to the core - a wind or flood or fire or cancer, a power outage, break-in, downsizing,  health crisis or death….

Meanwhile all along on our carefully crafted way, creation quietly beckons beside roadways and bursting through the crevices of our pavement. Ever and always behind creation is creation’s Creator.

Autumn is one of nature’s calmer and friendlier expressions.  Take heed as autumn awaits to puts on its show just for us to enjoy...perhaps also to be drawn into its mystery.

Away Church

An "Away Church"

We were out of town visiting last weekend and while there my wife and I talked and prayed about whether to attend a local church service on Sunday if our hosts preferred not to go. Although both grew up in church, met at a Christian college and married, they aren’t regular church-goers now.

We talk with them about this now and then and have even “tried” some services with them in their area but they always have reasons for not going back.  

They live a few hours away from us and we visit back and forth regularly.  When they are visiting us, they attend our church. When we visit them, we used to bring up faith and church attendance more often a few years ago but less so now.

This is a sensitive subject with them so we backed off with our "going to church" discussions.  Meanwhile, we regularly pray that they will receive the Lord back into their lives in a way that is discernible to us.

I admit the “discernible” part is somewhat selfish - not that they have to prove to us that they follow the Lord but because they are dear to us.  We care about their faith well-being.

For me, church-going is one solid sign that a person is dedicated to following Jesus Christ.  Let me be clear that church-going will NOT endear a person to the Lord but neglecting church attendance makes faithfully following Him more difficult.

Let's face it, all the rest of our lives competes with the Lord's claim on us, including church-going.  Quite simply, for me, church-going is worshiping the Lord with His people. Two teachings of Jesus anchor this for me:

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples if you love one another.” (John 13: 34-35, NIV)

That Jesus said this is significant, how he wants his followers to be known - their love for one another.  Pretty difficult to love people you don’t regularly spend time with. Even once weekly church going won't really get you there but it's a start.

Church isn’t so much a place as a people. Going to church and not connecting with the people there isn’t really church in my book.  That’s why we sometimes neglect to find an “Away Church” when we're away from home on Sundays.

I feebly hold a notion is that not being in relationship with "Away Church" people renders church-going somewhat ritualistic. I say feebly because most times when we're away, we find a local church anyway and go but, due to my notion, not always.

Last weekend, the Lord challenged my “Away Church” notion by bringing this teaching to mind from Hebrews:

"And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another--and all the more as you see the Day approaching." (Hebrews 10:24-25, NIV84)

Directed to believers of a particular local church, this guidance falls into the middle of a teaching that my NIV84 Bible subtitled, “A Call to Persevere.”

“Let us consider…” is a suggestion vs. do this or else.  Look also at “not give up,” as in don't stop doing something you were doing.  Soon enough, not going becomes a new norm.

Reasons to stop going to church are many.  Outside of church, you won’t find many, if any, reasons to continue going to church.  Giving up going to church is easy but if we give up going, we will not and in fact cannot encourage each other toward the kinds of love and good deeds that mark or should mark following Christ.  

What was God's challenge regarding my “Away Church” notion?  Simply to "go to church” and let our hosts know our plan.

We looked up a nearby church we had attended once with them and picked a service time.  The second sentence on the church’s home page spoke to me: “We are dedicated to taking the broken values of this world and turning them upside down.”

Upside down church is a term we also use at our home church, Grace Chapel.  So while “Away Church” may not be the same as “Home Church,” it still fits my basic definition for church-going - worshiping the Lord with His people.

Turns out, our hosts decided to attend church with us and the teaching was based on John 15:5-9 that believers are like grapevine branches.  In order to bear fruit, we have to stay connected to the vine, God.  

Don’t know if they got the message but we sure did.

Church Home

Sunday service at Grace Chapel

I guess I’m a homebody to a fault.  Home is where you find me except for an annual vacation away for a week or two and occasional weekend visits with friends and family within a several hour drive of where we live.

This may seem boring to those who hop on planes almost as much as they drive cars or who at the very least fly or drive somewhere multiple times annually if not monthly.  We know plenty of people like that - adept at travel arrangements and throwing enough into a carry-on to look passable in virtually every situation and able to settle into and be at home in themselves wherever they are.  

Conversely, the life path that found me didn’t include or require travel and, beyond pleasure trips,  I’ve never dreamed about going to or working in faraway places.  So home is where I am and I’m generally content with that, maybe too content at times.

I am writing this on the second of three successive weekends visiting friends and family.  While I enjoy activities and company of these little trips, missing church for nearly a month of Sunday’s has oddly unnerved me.

Sunday church centers me. I’m talking about the totality of church - arriving, greeting, mingling in the hallway before filing in for the worship service that involves singing, a message, monthly communion, often followed by a post-service meeting to process the message.

This isn't about going to any church service but the service at the church where we belong, where many of those who also attend are close friends over the 15 or so years we’ve all belonged.  Not so much friendship in the classic sense but fellowship characterized by our commonality in Christ along with at least a sense to having been called or drawn or committed to this particular community of faith.

I miss “our” church when we are elsewhere on Sundays, even when we attend a service where we are visiting. For me, our church home is home base for my faith in a way that is hard to understand and harder to explain.

See, God has formed our particular assembly of people in this particular venue.  I would offer that we are a unique expression of Christ’s body unlike any other such gathering.  We have a particular role suited for how the Lord has blended and shaped us with all the limitless particulars at his disposal.

Undeniably, God has such an affinity for bodies that he has deemed them sanctuaries of his own spiritual  essence in each of us.  Didn't our Messiah show up in a human body associated with particular places in a particular region on Earth?

Something too about places with God.  His story take places in all kinds of places like Eden, Canaan, Egypt, the holy land, a vineyard, a shepherd’s field, a wheat field, Bethlehem, a manger, the temple, the upper room, Jerusalem, Gethsemane, and Golgotha.

And what about how the church unfolds in epistle letters written to particular gatherings of people known for the cities where they met like Corinth, Ephesus, Colosse, Thessalonica, Sardis and Laodicea?

My attachment to and sense of missing these particular people and place, Grace Chapel, that I consider my/our church home has some basis beyond just me.

“...let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.” (Hebrews 10:25, NLT)

Given the mentality of this time in history, we Christ-followers are like aliens when we are not with each other centering on our relationship with the Lord and each other.  Recall Jesus declaring (boasting?) that we, his followers, will be known by our love for one another.  (John 13:35).  For that to be witnessed, we have to be seen together.

While I often bring myself before the Lord when I am detached from church home by reading and reflecting on God’s biblical word, praying, sharing about the Lord with my wife and other believers along the way, something about the gathering and the place and the longevity of belonging that is, as I earlier noted, mysterious to understand and harder to explain.

“They are planted in the house of the Lord; they flourish in the courts of our God.”

— Psalm 93:13, ESV

Mourn with

Mourning

I feel like I’ve been weeping on and off all week.  NPR’s coverage of the Las Vegas shooting featured several moving reflections by love ones of some who died.  Closer to home, a flurry of deaths of church friends and a cousin’s father….  

“...mourn with those who mourn” encouraged Paul in the twelfth chapter of his letter to the Romans.  That's the chapter that begins with the oft-quoted “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”(see Romans 12:2 and 15b, NIV). .

This letter is one of most taught in the Bible - how redeemed people live - “by grace...not thinking themselves more highly than they ought...in Christ they, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others...offering each other gifts from the Holy Spirit for building each other up… so that they love sincerely, hate evil, clingto good, honor one another, practice hospitality…”  (see Romans 12)

If Las Vegas shooter Steven Paddock had any of this going on, he wouldn’t have done what he did.  More than likely, a few of those he murdered were believers.  And even though their passage from mortality means they are now face to face with the Lord, mourning for them is entirely in order.

Mourn with.  Living in Christ doesn’t prevent but engages mourning.  Mourning is part of the fullness of life John 10:10 heralds Christ as assuring for all those who receive him as Lord.  

Why God created our mortal state beings is anyone’s guess.  While both immortal and mortal beings share the will to receive or reject God’s invitation for relationship with him, we mortals live out our choices in a “worldly” realm that is shaped by how we chose that God allows even though most choose to turn away from him (see Matthew 7:13-14).

That God allows mortals to receive or reject him and then to live out the consequences of our  choices seems a perilous experiment indeed. Only in Christ do we learn that we all fail to merit  God’s favor.

Each of us deals with life setbacks or disappointments differently.  Often, we try harder.  Las Vegas shooter Steven Paddock gave himself over to the evil lurking in his soul.  God’s guidance is to admit our vulnerability and unworthiness and submit to his mercy.  

God’s only mercy road goes through Jesus Christ who emphatically stated, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me..” (John 14:6, NIV)

But even Jesus mourned the passing of his friend Lazarus (see John 11:35) while declaring, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” (Matthew 5:4, ESV).

We long for a life of comfort, ease and happiness, but life is often and unavoidably difficult, hard, and troublesome.  While believers are not spared any of this, God walks every step with us, providing strength to endure and to overcome every adversity and enemy.

Said Jesus, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." (John 16:33b, NIV).  In return for obedience, God promises in Exodus to be an enemy for his people’s enemies (Exodus 23:22, ESV).  

Overcoming trouble, not avoiding it. And while we may still suffer at the hands of our enemies, foes engaging us now take on God as well. (“For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.” - James 2:13).

Faith is the key to trusting the Lord, a big idea that is both mysterious and wondrous to behold - “the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1, KJV)

While God doubters and detractors dismiss faith as fluff, it’s actually the only evidence God accepts as eligibility for his kingdom.  Each of us will have that day but until we do, we mourn with those who mourn.   

For lovers of the Lord, the highest form of mourning is for those who nurtured our own lives in Christ.  These now enjoy what we all ultimately long for - full union with our precious Lord.

“For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.” (1 Corinthians 13:12, NIV)

One day, death and mourning will forever cease. (see Revelations 21:4).  Until that day, let us fully engage to mourn with those who mourn.

Evidence of Deliberate Goodness

Rodgers Corner Produce, a frequent fall ride stop

Happy October – Harvest Time!  Even in the heart of this sprawling metropolis where I live, less than a mile from the border of Detroit and many miles from any farm, harvest themes abound.  Already in our neighborhood, harvest decorations featuring pumpkins and cornstalks, hay bales, colored corn, and gourds are popping up everywhere. Cider mills visits are in order for many of us.

My wife and I observe an annual “fall drive” ritual.  We pick a Sunday in October and take a day-long meandering drive through a region south of where we live that is marked by windy blacktop roads threading through a beautiful river valley bordered by striking vistas of Michigan hardwoods decked out in autumn color.  For many years, we stopped a Roger’s Produce Farm for a horse-drawn hayride back into their fields to pick out a couple pumpkins right from the patch where they were grown.

Something about harvest time, even for us city dwellers…..In harvest observances, we find renewal for our parched and weary spirits. I don’t expect many to argue with me on this. However, attaching harvest time to God may give rise to a few objections. But try this idea on for a moment – that harvest time is given by God to draw us to himself.  Consider these comments by Paul in the book of Acts during a missionary trip to the town of Iconium in what is now modern-day Turkey.

In the past he (God) permitted all the nations to go their own ways, but he never left them without evidence of himself and his goodness. For instance, he sends you rain and good crops and gives you food and joyful hearts. (Acts 14: 16-17, NLT)

Here Paul was attempting to deflect his audience from worshiping him, Paul, for miracles the Lord allowed him to perform in support of the gospel message he presented.  God is the source of miracles not to mention the bountiful harvests they routinely enjoy.  However, they refused to accept his claims.

But even with these words, Paul and Barnabas could scarcely restrain the people from sacrificing to them. (Acts 14:16-18, NLT)

Like these Iconiums, we attribute our harvests and prosperity and good fortune to mother nature or effort or just about anything than God.  Conversely, Paul’s words mirror many statements in the Bible that God is the one and only source of all such goodness as bountiful harvests, prosperity, well-being, nature, fresh air, enjoyment of life and on and on.  That we fail to attribute any or all of this to God is on us, not God.

If you are a believer or an aspiring believer, note Paul’s comments here about “why” God provides in this manner – to never leave us without evidence of himself and his goodness.

God doesn’t abandon us to figure out life on our own. He is near and actively providing evidence of himself – as near as our harvest observances this autumn.

---

Notes:

This post was initially published on October 1, 2012 at my former site, farmingtonglenn.net.

Men of faith

Worship session during 2017 retreat

I am just home from our church’s men’s retreat.  In 20 years of attending Grace Chapel, I've been able to attend 16 of the 17 such retreats held over that span.  Retreats offer time away for the men to receive teaching on a topic pertinent to guys and build on our relationships with each other.

This year's speaker, Kevin Harbin, pastor of Christ Church in Fraser entitled his teaching based on Paul’s letter to Titus, “Getting Your Life in Order.”

Titus was a Gentile convert who partnered with Paul to spread the gospel. After the two planted a church in Crete, Titus stayed to get the new church in order as Paul headed off to take the Gospel elsewhere.  Paul's letter to Titus offers instructions along the lines of furthering faith and building knowledge of the truth, two essential steps to getting life in order.

In chapter 2, Paul’s focuses on certain groups in the church, beginning with “the older men.” (v2). Subsequent instructions are then offered to “older woman” (v3), younger women (v4-5), young men (v6-8) and slaves (v 9-10).  

Leading with older men is key, noted Kevin.  Men who learn and practice sound doctrine often anchor strong families that in turn provide a solid foundation for churches. Faith practice undergirded by sound doctrine produces godliness in people.

Pastor Kevin Harbin

Noted Kevin, godly people honor God while ungodly people do not.

Tracking through the brief Titus letter all weekend, Kevin offered many great lessons and life applications for us men to draw from, such as: practice godliness and cut out ungodliness.  

I was fortunate to be raised by a godly father whose faith practice anchored our family. Women of faith are often instrumental in the faith of their children but too often, men are missing from the equation.  That men of faith support both their wives and children in faith was one of Pastor Harbin’s points.

Although my dad didn’t always see my faith emerging along the line of his preference, I never hesitated to let him know that the faith he and mom planted in me was what took root in my late 20’s.  

In the context of a men’s fellowship I joined in 1983, I answered Jesus’ call to follow him.  In 1997, this men’s retreat tradition of our church was instrumental in my decision to bring my family to Grace Chapel where I and my family have been surrounded with solid ybelievers ever since.  Our church’s strongest families are lead by strongly faith-filled men.

As I looked around the room at this year’s retreat, I saw many of the men who are instrumental in my faith walk right now, including elders I am presently serving with to lead our church. Thanks to each of them* for undergirding my faith walk and for making time this year to join me on this retreat weekend.

Thank you God for the godly men you’ve placed in my life.

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Notes:

1. 2017 Grace Chapel Men’s Retreat attendees: Alan, Tom, John, Mark, Steve, Bruce, Jim, Greg, Andy, Joe, Kevin, Doug, David, Roy, Ron, Rick and Brandon

2. Banner Photo by Ben White on Unsplash

Regarding global (luke)warming ....

Wind farms to reduce dependency on emissions-spewing coal-powered plants. (See notes for photo credit.)

Interviewing an expert after the recent 8.1 magnitude earthquake off the southern coast of Mexico, a local radio reporter lead with this question,

“Dr. (so and so), to what extent would you attribute this earthquake to global warming?”

The expert quickly responded that global warming had nothing to do with this earthquake or with the study of earthquakes in general. He then offered a brief explanation about earthquakes and noted that this region near Mexico experiences considerable earthquake activity.

Not that the question was surprising. Global warming or “climate change” is so hot that the condition’s promoters manage to find a way to associate it with all nature events.  (Pun intended.)  Like this Tweet by “kate”

“3 hurricanes, the entire west coast is on fire, & now an earthquake in Mexico? THIS IS NOT GOD. THIS IS CLIMATE CHANGE.”

— Tweet by kate‏ @kate__bear

Climate change believers are practically stumbling over themselves to prove that global warming is real while promoting whatever measures they deem necessary to reverse or slow the warming trend.

Detractors claim the theory is flawed and that modulations in climate temperatures are natural and historically well-documented. They claim that climate change advocates advance actions that unnecessarily impedes development that boost economies and improve the human condition.  

Me? I tend to file the debate under planet stewardship. Our creator God charged humanity to manage and care for the earth home he gifted to us.

The Lord God placed the man in the Garden of Eden to tend and watch over it. (Genesis 2:15, NLT)

My take of man’s original charge was to balance nature’s needs with his own - except the unthinkable happened. Man disobeyed God and all once blessed through man became cursed including the very creation he was to care God’s image-bearer.

To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’ “Cursed is the ground because of you;  through painful toil, you will eat food from it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. (Genesis 3: 17-18, NIV)

At odds with both God and creation, man has fought for survival ever since.  

So creation diminishment is indeed a man made issue but the root cause is not global warming but global luke-warming as identified in the book of Revelations.

“Write this letter to the angel of the church in Laodicea. This is the message from the one who is the Amen—the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God’s new creation:

“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! (Revelations 3: 14-16, NLT, bold added)

This is a letter from the Lord to a church in Laodicea who purport to follow Christ but who live in a manner the Lord labels as “lukewarm.”  God is so repulsed by this condition that he warns he will spit them from his mouth.

While gross to read and think about, even more repulsive is that global “lukewarmness” in the Church isn't just a church problem, it places our planet in much greater jeopardy than any emission or practice or chemical implicated in the global warming/climate change debate. Here’s why - The redeemed church factors into God’s plan to restore our ruined planet.

Listen to what Paul wrote to the Romans:

Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later. For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are. Against its will, all creation was subjected to God’s curse. But with eager hope, the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay. For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. (Romans 8: 18-22, NIV, italics added)

Nothing wrong with having a healthy concern for the well-being of our planet but fellow believers, in particular, let’s not become so preoccupied with defending or combatting so-called global warming/climate change that we are lax about the much more serious condition of global luke-warming.  

The remedy for lukewarm is hot.  

“Anyone who isn’t with me opposes me, and anyone who isn’t working with me is actually working against me.”

— Luke 11:23, NLT

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Notes:

1. Biblical verses on Creation Care: http://www.earthcareonline.org/pages/bibleverses.html

2. Photo by Karsten Würth (@inf1783) on Unsplash

Threat reflex? (II)

Hurricane Irma blasts Florida (People.com)

Note: Don't know why but I labored over this post. The first version that went out had many typos and phrasings that didn't quite say what I wanted.  Here it is again with some edits.  Did I miss any?

----------------------------------------------------

Hard not to feel the whole world is under siege from threats both natural and human. Last weekend, a massive, category 4 hurricane blasted Florida just a couple weeks after a similarly fierce hurricane inundated Houston.  An 8.1 magnitude earthquake just erupted off the southern coast of Mexico.  

Meanwhile, human-initiated threats escalate as North Korea tests nuclear bombs to take aim at the continental United States. Terrorism continues unabated with attacks in Barcelona, London, and Brussels. Here in the U.S, an incident in Charlottesville, Va. uncovers a growing white-supremacist movement.  

When threats loom, we often appeal to God for rescue and answers. While God rarely answers directly or specifically, he is actually a situational rescue specialist though credit is usually attributed to factors other than him.  

God is ever reaching out to people who don't know him but relates best to people who relate to him, who find his Bible a source of much insight and comfort for the threats life brings.  They know he can also bring plenty of muscle when it suits him.  

His story features many shows of power more than sufficient to turn back the most formidable foes, to dial nature up and down at will, and bring remorse to people and nations that refuse to acknowledge and obey him.

Although undeniably mighty, shows of power are not God’s style or even his default and rarely does his timing coincide with our demands or desires. He trends more along the line of calming storms than causing them and favors winning over forcing. He is more about transformation than momentary fixes and enjoys engaging our minds and hearts more than solving our safety and comfort issues.

“‘Come now, let us reason together,’ says the LORD: ‘though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.’” (Isaiah 1:18, ESV)

God really, really wants people to turn to him and he will definitely allow a good threat or two to inspire us to do just that.  When we do appeal, go as you are and leave biases about him behind.  Although a popular notion, blind faith isn’t on the menu of God who created our brains. Rather, use it to engage with him.

When the storms come, via nature or humanity, God promotes a threat reflex that looks most like letting go and letting him.  

Although God is known for so-called "fox-hole" rescues, the letting go reflex is honed best in mundane moments when the learning process is detached from dire repercussions.  Most of us take many preliminary steps, many of them backward before we fully engage with letting go.

Letting go opens revelation leading to realization that can and will fully sync with the highest levels of our intelligence. However, such realization eludes us if we refuse or fail to let go with God.  

A major Ah-Ha! moment is realizing that no matter what we think we’ve accomplished in our lives, we, in fact, have nothing, can do nothing and are nothing without the Lord. (John 15:5) Humility is when his love leads us to truly know that he is the sole source of all goodness that we previously claimed as earned or entitled.

“Our greatest fear should not be of failure but of succeeding at things in life that don’t really matter. ”

— Francis Chan.

His more enthusiastic followers will testify that God-sourced humility, love, grace, trust, peace and strength stands against storms and packs more than enough to power to vaporize every threat, doubt and belittling remark.

His strength and manner just looks, feels and acts a LOT differently than ours. Ditto with his timing.

Letting go is where we all begin and end with the Lord.  Not that we don't continue to falter but I'm growing into the sense that each subsequent "letting go" happens a little further down the line.

“be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

— Romans 12:2, ESV

Hang in there to develop a letting go reflex. God is almost endlessly patient because, well, we matter to him.

Poor reception or something else?

From: Bad Idea T-Shirts.com

I’ve had some conversations lately that were not received as I intended.  Ditto with some of my writing and social media posts.    

As I increasingly resolve to lean into and live for the Lord while also planting seeds of faith every chance I get, I encounter more instances of, shall I say, poor reception.  This despite the Lord’s assurance that the Holy Spirit will give us words to say when our faith is on the line. (Matthew 10:19-20).  

In fairness, the context for Jesus’ assurance regarded more of a “being handed over to the authorities” situation.  Still, some otherwise normal conversations intended to be winsome feel like that, sinking into argumentative debating.

Does the Lord’s word accomplish his purposes even when poorly delivered by the likes of me? While I enter a conversation intending to be loving and responsive, somewhere along the line, another spirit butts in.  Did that nasty retort actually come out of MY mouth?  

Why is it that struggling, sad, or traumatized people are generally more open and attentive to faith conversations?  The hardest to connect with are those who: (a) are doing well in life, at least inasmuch as can be observed or feigned; and, (b) who I am closest to.  In the case of family, multiply the likely disconnect quotient by ten.   

No matter how toughened I think I am, to have my intentions doubted or dismissed by those I am most known to is emotionally deflating.  It's also something I realize I need to get beyond.  

Even Jesus’ experienced this when we visited his hometown during the height of his popularity everywhere else. There Jesus commented, “A prophet is honored everywhere except in his own hometown and among his relatives and his own family.” … And he was amazed at their unbelief. (Mark 6: 4,6, NLT)

I italicized amazed.  Imagine Jesus amazed by unbelief.  Whose unbelief amazed him?

Unbelief has lots of help, like success in life already noted.  Then there’s that other “presence” I mentioned that is virtually invisible to enlightened moderns but who likes to horn into every opportunity to plant Gospel seeds.  

Warned Paul, “...our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Ephesians 6:12, NIV)

Here God’s message in Scripture is consistent and often.  The basis of all our hope is not results or even receptive people but the Lord.  Period. You’ll never hear the Lord ask, “How is that working for you?”  Only, “Are you abiding in me?”

No matter how well or badly our attempt to share faith seems, the Holy Spirit is the only one able to bring new believers across the start line.  All the feathers are in God’s cap while none are in ours.  

Help me tell myself to take a deep breath, relax and have some fun with this, to not take myself so seriously.

No matter how much pressure I put on myself, the sobering realization also cited often in Scripture is that most people are not open to the Lord.  Most shut him down or off and prefer to live according to their own intelligence.  Jesus’ “narrow road” analogy is alarmingly in that it easily accommodates everyone who is tuned into God through Christ. (Matthew 7:14)

Check out how God coached Isaiah to approach his prophetic ministry.

He said, “Go and tell these people:

‘Listen continually, but don’t understand!
Look continually, but don’t perceive!’
Make the hearts of these people calloused;
make their ears deaf and their eyes blind!
Otherwise, they might see with their eyes and hear with their ears,
their hearts might understand and they might repent and be healed.”
(Isaiah 6:9-13, NET)

Ever hear that from a professor on the first day of class? “The road to an A is to listen and understand but every one of you is going to ignore my advice and fail.”   

Distressed, Isaiah replied, “How long, sovereign master?” The Lord’s answer doesn’t paint a pretty picture. (See Isaiah 6: 11-13, NET)

Every Gospel writer picks up Jesus citing this passage, as does Acts and Paul’s letters to the Romans and Corinthians.*

“Stand on God’s words and assurances vs. my own assessment about the situations and people I encounter. ”

— (Note to self)

When I feel cast aside, I need to order myself to fall back and regroup with the Lord!  Instead of rehearsing answers to anticipated objections or questions, more and more I pray that my hope and trust in the Lord is dialed up so I am strong in his assurance that I am covered no matter how things go.

When Jesus engages us, he also assures us that he’s got our backs.

“...do not worry about how to respond or what to say. In that hour you will be given what to say. For it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.”

— Jesus, Matthew 10:19-20

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Notes:

1) Isaiah passage cited in New Testament: Matthew 13:14–15; Mark 4:12; Luke 8:10; John 12:39–40; Acts 28:26–27 and in the background of some of Paul’s letters (Rom 11:7; 2 Cor 3:14)  from "The Use of Isaiah in the New Testament" by Donald W. Mills

Memoir

One of many benefits of serving as an elder for our church is discussions lead by our pastor at the beginning of our meetings.  Last week’s discussion regarded Hebrews 4:12.

“For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”

— Hebrews 4:12, NIV

In this case, the “the word of God” is Scripture, God’s written word.

We customarily think about Scripture as the basis for God’s commands, standards, positions, and expectations, often quoting verses to support a lesson, point or premise.  I draw upon Scripture in every Road Report post.

I wonder how often recipients and readers skate past or around verses, not really taking them in. Alongside a premise being supported, perhaps Scripture poses certain challenges.  Spoken or written, chiseled in stone or displayed on a poster or screen, Scripture activates that “sharper than any double-edged sword” effect noted by the writer of Hebrews - penetrating, dividing, judging….

Scripture is irrefutably from and about God.  Even if used incorrectly or out of context, Scripture is God speaking.

Through the prophet Isaiah, God emphatically said this about his word.

“...so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” (Isaiah 55:11)

My word does NOT return to me empty, insists God.  It ALWAYS accomplishes the purpose for which I sent it.  Here, Scripture stands alone with an ironclad guarantee from the author himself.

We take a risk when we use Scripture to undergird teaching or prayer or to support a point or anchor a vow.  Why?  Because, regardless of how we see it or how pure our intentions, we can’t really know God’s desire or purpose for any word he offers.  Here again, God explains through Isaiah.

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
   neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the Lord.
“As the heavens are higher than the earth,
   so are my ways higher than your ways
   and my thoughts than your thoughts." (Isaiah 55: 8-9, NIV)

“These are the very Scriptures that testify about me,” said Jesus.  (see John 5:39, NIV). Scripture is about God, not us.

“It is God’s self-revelation, literally a book authored by God that unveils his heart, mind, and Spirit," noted author Samuel Williamson. "Someone once said, ‘We come to Scripture not to learn a subject but to steep ourselves in a person.’”

Consider approaching Scripture not as a what but a who.  Meditate on God’s memoir to become familiar with his manner, tone, inflection, longings, inclinations, tendencies, passions and principles.

Given the risks, we venture into Scripture primarily because God intended this word for us, relentlessly inviting us to engage with him.  

Come now, and let us reason together, Says the Lord, (Isaiah 1:18, NASB)

Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; says the Lord to his prophet Jeremiah and to us (Jeremiah 1:5, NIV)

If we sincerely seek him, he assures we are safe with him because he alone knows our heart, our true intent even if we miserably fail to say what we intend or use Scripture “incorrectly.” *

We may not be safe with people but we are always safe with God.  Even though he is not predictable or controllable or tame, he is good.  By regularly encountering him in his word, his voice can become intimately recognizable and familiar without any reverence due him being lost.

(For a brief listing of some verses featuring many attributes, see my companion post, “In His Own Words.” )

“God speaks mostly in whispers,” said Williamson.  “The secret to a lifetime of hearing him lies in learning to distinguish his voice from the clamor of other voices in our lives.”  He then concludes:

“The best way to become familiar with God’s voice is to meditate on His Word, just as the best way to spot a counterfeit is to spend lots of time with the real thing.”

Williamson’s counterfeit analogy struck me.  Scripture meditation tweaks my spirit to be at ease when Scripture’s use resonates with how God revealed himself in his word. Conversely, my spirit cringes when Scripture is used to a manner that seems unlike God’s revelation of himself in his word.  

Far from reliable on this, I am grateful to trusted advisers for catching and correcting my own foibles and abuses.  This is a perfect role for the Church - the fellowship of believers with whom we work out our faith together.

In the end, our saving grace is God himself, who knows our hearts, and his word that stands alone in speaking for itself and him. Only by him are we righteous.  Despite our best or worst intentions, we are unable to thwart or even improve God’s intentions and purposes.

Rather, God invites us to participate in his redemptive purposes.  The privilege is all ours.

Meditate on God’s Word to become familiar with him and to hear his voice in your life and regarding the matters you encounter along the way.  Through Scripture, our love for God grows along with our realization of how much we matter to him.

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Notes:

1. Image source: http://primacyofreason.blogspot.com/2014/11/meditating-on-bible_22.html

2. How can Jesus and the Bible both be the Word of God?

3. Scriptures about God's various attributes: See related Road Report Journal post: “In His Own Words.”

4. God knows our hearts: See 1 Kings 8:9; 1 Chronicles 28:9; 1 Samuel 16:7; Psalm 44:21; Psalm 139: 2-23; Ezekiel 11:5; Matthew 9:4 and many others

5. Samuel Williamson's books is "Hearing God in Conversation."

Fears imagined real

Photo by Patrick Fore on Unsplash

As if life doesn’t bring enough real perils, I have this bad habit of imagining unreal fears.  If I don’t head them off, I can really get myself worked up over these imagined perils.

Imagined fears surface most when I’m asleep. If I “over-entertain” them, they fester long enough to cross over from my subconscious to consciousness.  That’s when I awaken with a prompting to pray.

“Lord, I confess this fear. Rescue me.”

Prayer isn’t a magic button or anything. It works in concert with faith, my conviction that God loves me, redeems me and is in control of my life no matter what happens.

“If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.” (John 15:7, ESV)

and

“Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.”  (Mark 11:24, ESV)

Notice the parts God reserves for us - “If you abide” and “believe.” God is ever strong, true and faithful but my faith sometimes wavers and fear gains a foothold. That’s when I resign myself to get out of bed, don my robe, grab a bible and head to my favorite late night prayer chair.

A frequent companion of these middle-of-the-night intervention sessions is a little devotional book I bought 35 years ago, “The Personal Promise Pocketbock.” It’s a simply organized index of Bible verses selected from 10 different translations regarding three groupings of God’s promises and purposes...for me, my relationship with Him, and my relationship with others.

Lest anyone mistake me for one of stalwart, unshakable faith, let me confess that the most turned-to promises in the booklet regard “feeling depressed and desperate” (pg 19) and “I’m afraid” (pg 22).

Occasionally during these anxious moments, God responds in a rescuing manner with a peaceful tranquility whooshing through me like a calming breeze swooping down from heaven.  But most often, He coaxes me in thought to figuratively stand in faith to confront the fear with the authority of His word.

Usually, just a couple of verses gets me headed back to bed and sleep but sometimes, a more determined offensive is required.  During one particularly challenging night, I prayed through a number of verses before finally locking onto 2 Timothy 1:7 in the “I’m afraid” list.

“God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”  (NKJV)

In his letter to the Ephesians, the Apostle Paul exposes where these spirits of fear originate.

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. (Ephesians 6:12, ESV)

Wrestling is not a passive sport.  Nevertheless, I’m pretty sure that it wasn’t the bathrobe-attired sumo-dude standing in his living room that finally dispelled that persistent principality that had ahold of me that night.  But me standing in faith was definitely a part of the equation, bathrobe and all.

I don’t why God so explicitly prefers involving little people like me in his redemptive work but I appreciate that he does.

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God" (Philippians 4:6, NIV)

Furthermore, he cares about our well-being all the way down to ensure that we are fortified with a good night’s sleep each night.

“If you lie down, you will not be afraid; when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.” (Proverbs 3:24)

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Notes:

1.  "Fears Imagined Real" was originally posted as a Road Report on FarmingtonGlenn.net on 12/8/2015.

2. Photo by Patrick Fore on Unsplash

3. The Personal Promise Pocketbock by Harold Shaw Publishers is out of print but used copies are available at various internet booksellers.

Quiet Please!

Morning stillness near Elsworth, MI

Visiting friends last weekend in their lovely cottage home in northern Michigan, the notable quiet of the region struck me our first night there.  I noticed immediately as my head hit the pillow the profound lack of city din - just the dark stillness unbroken by city lights.

Now I do like our home neighborhood, an attractive and peaceful place offering the blessings and curses of suburbia.  Conveniences that support our work, shopping, visiting and busy lifestyles also press into our beings to keep us in a constant state of agitation. To escape “up north” requires jumping onto a convenient road until we “exit” onto a less convenient but slower-paced one that winds over, around and through woods and farms and small towns.  

Driving leisurely, we enjoyed the ride until we arrived at our friends’ getaway perched atop a land swale overlooking rolling, treed lands on one side and a huge bay on the other that opens onto Lake Michigan, one of five “great lakes,” three that envelop our mitten-shaped home state.   

Just after arriving, we were treated to a stunning sunset over the bay followed closely by a robust rainstorm that rolled in to wash the land with much-needed refreshment.

Due to a series of job changes over the last year that had me always earning my place in another new pecking order, I haven’t been able to take time off for a little getaway.  When our friends graciously invited us up for quick weekend, we readily accepted.  

After getting off the highway, we drove atop yellow-striped, black-topped roads that I’ve grown to love and often use as imagery for reflecting on my journey through life under God’s tutelage.  Just a few miles from our friend’s place is the stretch of M88 that has served as the banner for Road Report Journal since its launch in 2012.

No need to talk to me about regular respite.  I am very intentional about building plenty of it into my life such as morning devotions, Saturday morning writing and a prayer meeting, reading, and scenic walks and drives with my wife….

Back when my work schedule was more set and predictable, we took annual, two-week vacations that usually involved camping in the woods, often near a lake or river or mountain far away from city din.

While on the one hand, God created our bountiful earth just for us humans to live, work, play and commune with neighbors and build community, we rebelled against his intent to draw from and trust, acknowledge and honor him every moment. Mercifully, he refrained from ridding creation of us by allowing us to pursue life according to us while also hatching a “Mission Christ” redemption strategy to win us back into his fold.

I wonder what life would be like had we not rebelled?  Not that urban congestion and noise would not be part of our lives but maintaining connection and relationship with God would be normal and common.  Perhaps escape would be unnecessary since relating to and honoring God would be a part of our regular life pattern.  

Thankfully, God’s Christ strategy included conscripting certain people down through the ages for key roles while also compiling the unfolding story into a grand read we know today as “the Bible.” There we  find plenty of context and insight for how to live for him in a creation spoiled by our rebellion.

On looking to nature for cues:

• Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; let the sea roar, and all that fills it; let the field exult, and everything in it! Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy (Psalm 96:11-12, ESV)
• “For you shall go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall break forth into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. (Isaiah 55:12, ESV)

On God speaking into our stillness:

• “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” (Psalm 46:10, ESV)
• He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters.  (Psalm 23:2, ESV)
• But I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me. (Psalm 131:2, ESV)

Of course, Jesus himself walked the talk as he invited his apostles to ‘“Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.’ For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. And they went away in the boat to a desolate place by themselves.” (Mark 6:31-32, ESV)

He urged that  “...when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” (Matthew 6:6) while also modeling his own advice.

“After He had sent the crowds away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray; and when it was evening, He was there alone.” (Matthew 14:23)

As his story resonates in my being, I gratefully incorporate regular quiet into my life and, occasionally, with a little help from my friends, more extended doses of it. 

Livin' on Love!

Livin' on Love! (see notes for image source)

“Livin’ on Love” is an endearment I sometimes offer my wife when something we were counting on to happen doesn’t work the way we hoped.  It goes something like,

“Well, honey while that car repair just zapped our savings, at least we have each other - ‘Livin’ on love!”

If that comes across as lame to you, be assured that she usually sees it that way as well. Protecting the so-called nest egg sure seems more secure than simply “Livin’ on Love!”  

Then again, what if God secured the love we’re livin’ on?  “God is love,” said John in his first epistle (1 John 4:7-8) and he “holds everything together,” wrote Paul to the Colossians (Colossians 1:17).  Therefore, if we’re livin’ on God’s love, how much more secure can we be?

Our pastor recently completed a great 13-message series entitled, “Making Room.” He covered such topics as “Making room for … the Gospel, the poor, widows and orphans, your neighbor, children, your betrayers, and grief. He completed the series with “Making Room for Love.”

A point of his love message that struck me was that God is the origin of a love so magnificent and encompassing that even those who have no regard for him share in it. In Christ, the Holy Spirit infuses believers with God's limitless love.

That coincides with my understanding of “common grace,” holding that God’s grace, his unmerited favor, covers all people without discrimination. Think of common grace as any favor experienced in life.

Said Wil Pounds in his 2006 message, “The Common Grace of God,” ‘The purpose of God’s common grace is to cause us to turn to Him and receive even greater grace.”’

Substitute love for grace then consider how much we humans benefit from a life that is amazingly loving even considering all the evil, tragedy, suffering, and misfortune that occurs in life. As troubled as our world can be, it is significantly more kind than unkind, more good than bad, more safe than unsafe - even in the nastiest, most dangerous places where day to day survival is at great risk.  

Without God’s loving grace, none of us would survive another second.  Best of all, his love and grace are not dependent on our conduct.  Even those who openly oppose God or don’t believe he exists are included.

While some Christ followers may be unsettled about God’s love covering those who blatantly disregard or oppose him, that God loves indiscriminately actually provides a more solid foundation for everyone than if based on a standard or conduct or belief that would be subject to human interpretation - a wrinkle most religions suffer from.

Unlike us, God is unchanging, unfailing, unwavering and unflappable.  He is reliable when we are not.

So when our plans fail or the image we desire to convey about ourselves falters, God’s love prevails - for our good and his glory.  Thank God!

Quite literally, “Livin’ on Love” is a lot more than an endearing expression or hippie chant from the 1960’s.  It’s a sustaining reality we can all count on that is not only fully secured by God, it is not the least bit dependent on us.

Wow.  We must REALLY matter to God.

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Notes:

1. Link to 13 “Making Room” podcast messages from 5/7 thru 7/30/2017 by Pastor Doug Walker, Grace Chapel Church, Farmington Hills, MI

2. What does “God is love” mean?

3. 10 Bible verses re: The earth is filled with God (who is love)

4. Photo by Mayur Gala on UnSplash

Fresh Air

Kinetic "Daisy" wind spinner in our yard

This summer has featured many temperate days with low humidity and cool nights for leaving windows open and air conditioning off.  

In Michigan, we are blessed with three seasons of moderate temperatures that provide an abundance of fresh air moving through our living spaces. We have ceiling fans in every room running year-round, keeping cool or warm air moving around us all the time.

Breezes soothe me.  I have thee wind chimes around our house and I recently received a wind spinner for our backyard. The kinetic ones with fans on two sides that rotate in different directions in the lightest of breezes particularly fascinate me.  

Nothing like “hearing” the wind pass through our two tubular chimes or stir our bamboo one into a gentle cloppity-clop, cloppity-clop rhythm. Even in the dead of winter, if I notice the chimes stirring outside our dining room window where I read the Bible and journal each morning, I will crack the window just a little to hear them better.  

Chimes adjacent to my morning devotions spot.

Hot coffee, fresh air, and a lovely, breeze-stirred chime sets me up perfectly for my morning time with the Lord. The sounds and sensation of the wind coming and going refreshes my being, evidence to me that the wind’s author, God, is near.

Recall the apostles' reaction when Jesus calmed the wind and seas in the fourth chapter of Mark’s gospel.

“They were terrified and asked each other, ‘Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”’ (Mark 4:41, NIV)

Whereas God’s power over tempestuous winds speaks to the awesome magnitude of his power, I am drawn to the story of how God chose to personify Himself to Elijah.

“Go out and stand before me on the mountain,” the Lord told him. And as Elijah stood there, the Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave.

And a voice said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”  (1st Kings 19:11-13, NLT)

Perhaps God's gentle whisper was like the calmest of breezes or the silence in the middle of the night when all is still.

Water, woods and wind are three natural features that particularly captivate me. While we don’t live within sight of a lake or river or bordering a woods, our neighborhood is plentifully treed and neighbors adorn their homes with shrubs and flowering greenery, tended lawns and various ornamental trees and plants to keep nature close to our mutual spaces.

For wind, our chimes and spinner convert fresh breezes to a chorus for our listening and visual enjoyment.  When the breeze at ground level is too slight to stir our chimes or wind spinner, I need only look to the nearby treetops to be assured that the wind is ever present, like God

Like physical space is stifling without a steady supply of fresh air, so my faith stagnates when I am closed to new ways that God is working in and through me.  When I am stuck or digging into a stance that shuts God out, He has a way of opening me with his "fresh air" to let me know he is near and ready when I am.  

“He makes the clouds his chariot
and rides on the wings of the wind.
He makes winds his messengers,
flames of fire his servants. ”

— Psalm 104: 3-4, NIV

Healing Wasn't Why He Came

July 19 is an auspicious date for me, the day that both my mom, Nancy and brother, Roger died in 1977 and 2014, respectively, 37 years apart.  In memory of them and to offer hope to many loved ones today whose passionate prayers for healing seem to go unanswered, I again share this reflection I originally wrote after Roger's death. I pray it ministers to you.

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True healing here

Recently, cancer took my brother Roger's life. Even though the insidious disease resisted treatment every step of the way, he managed to hold it at bay for over thirteen long years. Meanwhile, he was able to see his two children into their teen years and to solidify a life legacy that those of us who knew him will carry with us for the rest of our lives.

Roger is ninth of my parents’ ten children that I am oldest of.  A simple man by choice, he was devoted to his family and successful in his work. Accomplished in golf, the game was not so much a platform for his golfing skills and intense competitiveness as just another avenue through which he touched others with his character, wit, warmth and genuineness. Family, golf, character and a great sense of humor are four common descriptors expressed about Roger.

A significant number of people cared about his Roger’s well-being and deeply desired for him to beat cancer. I have no way of knowing how many people prayed for Roger during his illness but a few expressed to me their belief that faith-doubters would be swayed toward belief by Roger overcoming cancer.  While I know my own faith would be bolstered by that happening, I think the relationship between healing and belief is weak.

Healing WAS a big drawing card for Jesus’ earthly ministry but when he began to shift away from healing to focus more on his true mission - to sacrifice himself to redeem people from the curse of sin, his popularity waned and the crowds thinned.  That the throngs were drawn more to his miracles than this message didn’t sit well with Jesus.

As the crowds increased, Jesus said, "This is a wicked generation. It asks for a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah. (Luke 11:29)

Healing and miracles demonstrated Jesus’ power over biology and chemistry but the cross is where Jesus’ greatest demonstration of power occurred - where he sacrificed himself to break the stranglehold of sin that is the cause for all that we suffer - sickness, pain, despair, trial and death.  The power of Jesus' cross occurred where the real action is - in the spiritual realm.

By bringing Roger to God in our prayer, we followed in the footsteps of those who did the same in Jesus time. On two such instances, Jesus acknowledged the faith of the bringer(s) in the healing of the brought - 1) the centurion who requested healing for his servant (Luke 7: 1-10) and 2) the friends who lowered the paralyzed man through a hole they dug in the roof of the house to where Jesus was teaching below (Mark 2: 1-5).

So did God answer any of our prayers for Roger?

Diagnosed in 2000, his disease was arrested briefly between 2006 and 2010.  The rest of the time,  this usually fast-progressing disease worsened steadily but slowly.  Although he endured through several crisis and sampled a few new treatment developments that emerged, surviving as long as he did could be attributed as easily to medicine as to God.  Ultimately he shared the same fate as those who Jesus unquestionably healed during his ministry.  Roger experienced the fate all of us will also face - mortal death.

While Jesus was able to heal bodies effortlessly, those healings were temporary whereas the much harder work he did on the cross made something more permanent possible - eternal life for all who believe in him. In contrast to the difficulty of Jesus’ work on the cross, our belief work is easy and just a little earnest faith is all that’s needed…. as little as a mustard seed…

(Said Jesus): "If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it will obey you. (Luke 17:6, NIV)

…. as meager as mere crumbs of food that fall from someone else’s table….

(Said Jesus): “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.”  “Yes it is, Lord,” she said. “Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.” (Matthew 15:26-27, NIV)

Roger in 2014

Two days before he died, Roger opted to begin hospice care. Perhaps sensing his mortality, he put the word out for family members to visit with him if they wished.  I was able to see Roger the day before he died.

As Roger’s body faded, I prayed for his faith to rise up in him, to know beyond doubt and be comforted by the sure and steady hand of his Lord and Savior gathering him in.  

I firmly believe that only when we are finally face-to-face with our Lord will we truly understand why healing wasn’t why he came.

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. (Hebrews 11: 1, NAS)        

If you declare with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. (Romans 10:9).

He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.  (Revelations 21:4)

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Originally posted by Road Report on August 19, 2014

Image by Aaron Burden via Unsplash

Workplace Grace

Photo credit: see notes

A co-worker admitted to a bit of a laissez-faire attitude about work that he attributes to perceived inequities experienced or observed during his work history. Offering a few experiences of my own, I sympathized with his sentiments.

Given that we all spend a considerable amount of our lives at work, experiencing problems there should come as no surprise to any of us.  However, Christ-followers should be ready to offer that while sin weighs on everything to do with life and creation, including workplaces, grace triumphs over sin. (See James 1:14-15 and Romans 6:14, NLT)

Am I taking St. Paul too literally to suggest that we believers “work out” much of our salvation at work?

“...continue to WORK OUT your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who WORKS in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose. Do everything without grumbling or arguing, ”

— Philippians 2: 12b-14, NIV

Unfortunately, hearing my experiences only reinforced my co-worker’s cynicism.  Not my intention but our duties that day didn’t allow me to dive more into this with him and we haven’t worked together again for a couple weeks.  

Reflecting later on our exchange, I prayed for an opportunity to revisit our discussion.  If that occurred, I would want to say something like….

“As a Christian, my context is based on Jesus Christ and the Bible. While work disappointments are certainly troubling, they should come as no surprise since all people are born with a condition called sin.  Sin inclines most people to be prideful and act in their own best interests in a way that may be detrimental to others.  This is natural and should be expected even with the nicest people.”

If able, I might add that “pride and selfishness are especially prevalent at work. However, Jesus came to cure people of this sin condition even while we were still sinners and enemies of him.  (Romans 5:8, NIV).  As a Christian, I am a new man in Christ, enabled to bless my co-workers and supervisors regardless of how they treat me in return.”

Side note.  I’ve never said anything so succinct to anyone before but, God-willing, I’ll have other opportunities to do so - to be prepared to share the hope that is in me. (See 1 Peter 3:15, NIV).  

While I suspect I’ve suffered more workplace disappointment than most of my mostly-younger co-workers, my inclination to be negatively influenced by those disappointments is tempered by something far stronger, stronger even than sin itself - grace.  

This becoming a new man due to grace has evolved over time and experience.  Truly, God used workplace disappointments to mold me into what I’ve become.

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” (2 Corinthians 5:17, NIV)

In a former job, a coworker/friend there expressed concern that the efficiencies I was introducing might eventually give the boss reason to no longer need me. In response, I failed to put into words my conviction that the Lord gifted me to bless in certain ways, especially at work.  To hold back God’s gifting would violate who I am, even if the boss used my innovations to justify eliminating my position.

Ultimately he did eliminate my position so it seems my friend’s concerns were warranted. However, he is ultimately answerable to God for his motivations.  (See Proverbs 25: 21-22, NLT)

I pray that the Lord’s molding of me is shaping me to live graciously more and more because I am becoming a new “I am” in the likeness of God who also defines himself that way.

“God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: 'I AM has sent me to you.'" (Exodus 3:14, NIV)

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Photo credit:   rawpixel.com via Unsplash