King Jesus

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas. Trees and homes and churches are decorated with lights and wreaths and greenery. The nativity and the Elf on the shelf have made their way from the closets to prominent places within the home. There are cards to be addressed and presents to be purchased and parties to attend and, of course, holiday goodies to eat.

            But it’s actually not Christmastime, it’s Advent. The word “Advent” means arrival, and this month we focus on the Advent, or arrival, of the long awaited Messiah, Jesus. It is a time where we remember the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, as well as look forward to the day that he comes again. His second Advent.

            And during this season the most often thought of image of Jesus is as a cute little baby boy wrapped in snuggly blankets lying in a pristine manger filled with clean and comfortable hay. While this is not exactly how I picture this first night of Jesus’ birth (and I really don’t think it was a “silent” night either), the image of Emmanuel, God with us, in the form of a baby boy is a beautiful image of God’s love and His perfect plan of redemption for all of His creation.

            
            Of course there are other images that come to mind when we hear the name of Jesus.

Jesus the shepherd invokes the image of Christ carrying the lamb on His back as he walks back to the fold to reunite the lamb with the other 99 (Luke 15:3-7).

Nathan Greene

            And there is the image of Jesus as teacher, where I imagine Him on a rock while thousands of eager listeners are fed through the words of this perfect rabbi (Matthew 5-7).

            

                I see Jesus the miracle worker as He spits in the mud and wipes the mixture in the eyes of a blind man and tells him to go wash in a pool and then he received his sight (John 9:1-7).

            

               And one of my favorites is the image of Jesus as the loving father, hiking up His robe to run down the road to embrace His long lost prodigal son who had just returned home (Luke 15:11-32).

           

            The image of Jesus on the cross taking on the sins of the world, all of mine and all yours, the perfect lamb of God, is an image that I think of daily as I confess my sins and ask for his forgiveness new and fresh each morning.

            

           All of these images, and many others, reflect perfect pictures of who God is. They all show an aspect of God’s perfect and multi-faceted character.

            But this is Advent. And while the picture of Jesus in the manger may get the most air time this month, we cannot forget that is season of waiting and anticipation is as much about looking forward in hope as it is looking back in remembrance.

            And so today I want to leave you with this Advent image of Jesus that John gives us in the introduction to Revelation.

“Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all peoples on earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be! Amen. “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.” (Revelation 1:7-8)

                                            
                                           King Jesus. That’s the image on my mind today. 

          
           As we come into this Advent season, is Jesus the King of your life? Every area of your life? We do, after all, have an incredible ability to compartmentalize life. Is King Jesus King over all, or is He just a governor over certain territories you have allowed Him?

            This Advent, I pray that God’s kingdom come in a powerful and beautiful way in your life. I pray that you have accepted Christ’s Kingship and that you are living with a Kingdom-focus in every area of your life. And I pray this abundant life in Jesus (John 10:10) will be your offering of praise to the King of Kings this month, and forever more.

Confident in Christ

Many years ago, when I played high school baseball, I had a walk-up song. If you’re not familiar with a walk-up song, it is a song that is played as a batter walks from the on deck circle to home plate. My walk-up song was by a new rock n roll band, Guns N Roses, and the song was Welcome to the Jungle. I probably even strutted a little when I walked up.

            Now, let me explain something. I didn’t have this loud and in your face rock song playing because I knew that I was that good, I played it because I feared I wasn’t.

            I was about a .200 hitter in a good year. If you don’t follow baseball that means that I got a hit about once every 5 times up to bat, or so. And that’s not very good. So to try to get in the pitchers head I had a song played that I hoped made me look more confident than I was. But in reality I probably just looked cocky.

            Cocky is when you act like something you’re not. Confident is when you believe something to be true or have faith that something will or will not happen. I wasn’t confident in my batting, so I tried to fake it.

            What I did as a teenager on the baseball field, many people do in other areas of their lives. And it’s because they are not confident in who they are. The Bible has a lot to say about who we are and the confidence that we can have because of this.

            In 1 John, the writer says this:

“And we are confident that he hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases him. And since we know that he hears us when we pray, we also can be confident that he will give us what we ask for” (1 John 5:14-15)

            I know too many people that aren’t confident. They aren’t confident in their abilities, their looks, their relationships, their faith. And then because of this they try to do things or act in ways so that other people will think differently of them. But the truth is that’s just fake.

            We can be confident that God hears us when we pray.

            While I wasn’t confident as a batter in baseball, I was confident when I played defense. I was a catcher. So at any moment that I was on the field behind the plate I was thinking about the pitcher, how he felt and what he was thinking, how his mechanics looked. I thought about the batter, my other teammates on the field and where they were positioned, and even the umpire with his hand on my back. I thought about all these other people.

            Maybe that is a truth in confidence. When we focus on others we can be confident in what we do, but when we focus on ourselves we just get cocky.

            Hebrews 4:12 says that we can come with confidence before the throne of God. This is because of what Jesus has done for us. The source of our confidence isn’t really within us, it’s within God in us. We find our confidence not in ourselves, but in Him. That’s why Philippians 4:13 says that “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength”.

            You can be confident that when you pray the God of the universe hears you! Let that sink in for just a minute, please!

            You have been given confidence through Jesus. Live in this, believe in this, have faith in this, and be confident in this.

Demolishing Strongholds

“The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds”. (2 Corinthians 10:4)

A stronghold is a place that has been fortified so as to protect it against attack. That’s why all the cities of old had their main fortress built on a hill so it was better protected, it was higher ground and when there were dangerous times the citizens could come there for protection. There is even images in Scripture of God being this very thing for us, a mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark, a rampart, a refuge.

The city of Corinth was like this also. There was a hill that was 1857 feet above sea level and there was a citadel that sat atop this hill and all the major battles for this area were fought there. It was known that if you could capture the citadel, you could capture the city. All you had to do take secure of the stronghold, all you had to do was take possession of the high ground.

So as these guys in Corinth were reading this letter from Paul they just had to glance up to this hill and see their own citadel which they had seen battles for, from being a self-governing Corinthian city state to being under the rule of the Greek empire to now being under the rule of the Roman empire, they knew how important the high ground stronghold was, and Paul was saying there is a battle being waged in you and for the stronghold of your heart and mind. Whoever has possession of the stronghold has possession of the city. And there are issues in our lives, that when they aren’t dealt with immediately, they secure strongholds, handholds, and chokeholds in our lives, in our minds, in our moods, in our thoughts, and in our actions.

The question is not “are there strongholds in my life”, but rather, “what strongholds in my life is the devil trying to make me ignorant of”?

You will never experience all life holds living with these strongholds in your life.

Have you ever gone through security at the airport? It’s a hassle, but it’s there for a good reason. It’s there for our safety, and even for the safety of hundreds or thousands of people on the ground while we are in the air. And every person has to go through security, the officials don’t just judge by outward appearances and say, “Well, you look harmless, so you can go through”. No, every person gets inspected. And if you aren’t dangerous you get to go through.

We need a TSA security screening for our thoughts, a Thought Screening Assessment. Even the ones that seem harmless, because sometimes those are the ones that are the most dangerous. So Paul says capture every one, and run it through the Philippians Filter (look at Philippians 4:4), and if that thought doesn’t measure up then don’t let it pass through. Get it out of your head!

No weapon formed against you shall prosper, because you are IN Christ Jesus! We have divine power to demolish strongholds. The pulling down strongholds, the saying no to sin, the taking every thought captive. The Christian ground is not a playground, it’s a battleground. The mightiest weapon of all is the divine power of God in your life. The soldier on the ground needs eyes in the sky. And you have that.

Why would you rely on your willpower when you’ve been given God’s power to live an abundant life in Christ Jesus, our Lord? What strongholds are in your life today? Take time to pray specifically about this area and allow God to do His work in you right now.

Get Some Rest

“Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, Jesus said to them, ‘Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest’” (Mark 6:31)

           

            This is how one of the most popular and well-known miracles of Jesus begins. It’s the story of the feeding of the 5000. But the story starts in a unique way. The disciples are tired. They’ve been doing and doing and doing, and they’ve been so busy and they’ve had so many people coming to them for help that they don’t even have time to eat. Now that’s busy! Being a United Methodist pastor it seems that sometimes time is measured from potluck to potluck. But seriously, eating is important to maintain the pace that we set. Eating is important to survival. And here is Jesus and his disciples, so busy that they don’t even have time to take care of themselves.

            Maybe you know what that’s like. Maybe there aren’t hundreds or thousands of people coming to you for healing, but maybe it feels like it. Maybe the demands that are on you right now are wearing you down. Or maybe it is just that life itself seems to be wearing you down. The constant, or the monotnant, rhythms of life are simply too much right now.

            Notice what Jesus does. He tells his weary and worn workers to come away with him to a quiet place so that they can get some rest.

            They have been doing work, but they were worn out. You can’t keep giving to others if you aren’t getting filled back up yourself. So, the plan is that they get into a boat and head to the other side of the lake to this solitary place. Jesus had been modeling this for them for a while now. Jesus had a habit himself, of getting up early in the morning and going to a solitary place to pray. I think this helped Jesus fill back up. Prayer does that. It is fuel for the empty tank. It is comfort for the downtrodden. It is life giving energy to the spiritually dry.

            So they get away with Jesus, at least for a little while. See, all those people know where they are going, so they all head over to the other side of the lake, too. So there they are, with all their issues, all their problems, and all their needs. The very same people that Jesus was trying to help his disciples get away from. And now they’ve even created a new issue for themselves, they are far from home…it’s getting late…there’s nowhere to get them food….and you know the rest of that story. Jesus feeds them all with 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish.

            But here is what I really want you to hear today: Time alone with Jesus is critical for you.

There will be demands that you need to address. There will be distractions that vie for your time and attention. But Jesus is inviting you to come away with him for a little while, to a solitary place, and get some rest.

            The disciples do that, and then they are able to minister to the needs of the people as Jesus allows them to be a part of a mighty miracle showing God’s provision and grace. This will free us up from feeling we have to act because we are responsible for the people around us, to realizing we get this opportunity to act because we are responsible to the people around us.

            So today take some to come away with Jesus to a quiet place, and get some rest. And then when you are filled and rested…go feed the people.

Just Ask

I am reading through the Gospel of Mark. It’s a good idea to always be reading through a book of the Bible, I think. It is something that I encourage all disciples of Jesus to do regularly, in addition to other devotional materials. Just jump into a book of the Bible and read it!

            Today I read Jesus’ parable in Mark 4 about the four soils (aka the “Parable of the Sower”). The story is found in Mark 4:1-20. Let me encourage you to grab your Bible, put down this newspaper, and read that parable for yourself. There’s lots of good stuff in this one.

            So, now that you’ve read it and it’s fresh on your mind, let me point out something in this story today. It’s not exactly something from the parable itself. I love the fact that the disciples aren’t 100% sure they understood all of this, so did you catch what they did?

            “When he (Jesus) was alone, the twelve (disciples) and the others around him asked him about the parables” (Mark 4:10).

            They asked.

            I wonder if many of the things that we are uncertain about, many of the things that trouble us, could be faced more faithfully if we simply asked Jesus about.

            Is that too simplistic?

            “We have confidence before God and receive from him anything we ask” (1 John 3:21b-22a).

            “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you shall find; knock and the door shall be opened to you” (Matthew 7:7).

            Of course this is not a magic formula, nor am I saying ask God for a new Corvette, or ask who will win the World Series this year. I am saying that if we ask God, praying in his will, that he will answer us. If we need to understand something, as the disciples did in regards to that parable, then ask Jesus.

            James said that “if any one of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you” (James 1:5)

Maybe this is a lot to digest from this parable, and there is a lot more to talk about just in those verses. If we remember that our job is to share Christ with everyone, and that by sowing the seeds we are being faithful to our calling, then we are trusting God to do the rest.

And if you are in need…ASK! Our God is a loving and generous God. Talk to God today about what’s going on in your life that you don’t understand why it’s happening (or why something isn’t happening). Talk to God about what you feel that you need, and ask him to line your wants/needs up with his will so that in all the circumstances and situations of your life you can be content in his love. Make a list of what you are asking God for, don’t be afraid to this. It’s amazing at what I have asked God for and what he has in turn given me. It hasn’t even always been what I asked for, but it has been so much more and exactly what I needed, even if I didn’t know I needed it at the time!

If you need a little extra encouragement in this then read the parable of the persistent widow found in Luke 18:1-8.

God is your good Father. So just ask him today for what you need, and then trust him that this Father really does know best.

God will guide and provide

Jesus said some pretty amazing things! I mean, really, have you ever stopped to not just think about, not just read about, (not just preach about, Michael), but to really whole-heartedly-100% believe all things fantastic claims that we have recorded in the gospels?

            Today as I was sitting with my cup of coffee and a morning Scripture I read from John 14. This is not typically a passage I spend a lot of time in, except in funerals. There are obvious eternal promises in the first 14 verses of this chapter, and there is the obvious comfort from the promises of Jesus to those who are left here as their loved ones have moved in with Jesus.

            Today I wanted to share a couple of things from John 14 that I think are really important to all of us. So, (if you’ve read this before then you know what’s coming next) grab your Bible and check out John 14 with me now.

            “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God, believe also in me” (John 14:1).

            And that’s how Jesus starts this. Don’t let your hearts be troubled. What an amazing statement, right?!

            But we do let our hearts be troubled sometimes, don’t we? We have troubles that are present in our families, our marriages, our finances, our schools, our government, even in our churches. And this trouble can trouble our hearts.

            Maybe that’s why Jesus also said, “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.” (Matthew 6:34)

            Trouble is unavoidable. When I was younger my mother said that trouble just seemed to always find me. Truth is, I think I did my fair share to find it, too. I don't really like country music all that much, but I keep hearing that song (I think it was Travis Tritt) about T-R-O-U-B-L-E.

            But in the midst of these troubles of life, perspective is important. First, focus on the trouble of today. Not tomorrow, not next week or next month. We deal with what we can deal with now. Worrying about anything, especially potential future events that may or may not even happen, is pointless, useless, and, dare I say it…faithless.

            Jesus also said, “Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?” (Matthew 6:27).  That’s one of those redundant questions, the obvious answer is NO! And if that is the obvious answer, then the next obvious question is, “so what’s the point of worrying?”

            Do not let your hearts be troubled. And then Jesus goes on to talk about preparing a forever home for us, and then (look at verse 14), he says, “You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it”.

            I have to take a deep breath and pause every time I read this verse. This is one of those passages of Scriptures that have, on one hand, been taken so far to the extreme of craziness that this promise is reduced to our God being a genie in a bottle, or a cosmic vending-machine-prayer-answerer. And on the other hand, this promise is ignored.

            I believe Jesus meant this, or he would not have said it. I also think we need to prayerfully understand what he meant.

            “Ask”. Talk to God. Pray continually, in all situations. Pray believing and pray expecting God to do something, as in answer your prayer! Believe in God. Believe in Jesus. Just, ask.

            “In my name”. In the name of Jesus, there is power in that name! But also in his will (‘thy will be done, not mine’). Believe that God knows best. Pour out your honestly and trust your good Father to answer in a way that is best for you both now and long term.

            “I will do it.” So don’t let your hearts be troubled today. God will guide and provide.

It is well

            Music is good for the soul. I’ve been preaching a series on some of the great hymns of the faith and of our church. This has been fun for me, for as much as I love newer music (and of course classic rock), I deeply appreciate the theology and warmth of our church hymns. A couple of weeks ago I preached a sermon based on the hymn by Horatio Spafford, “It is well”.  This is probably one of my favorite hymns.

            To read the all the lyrics to this great hymn, and to read the tragic story that led to the writing of this hymn, check out this site: https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/history-of-hymns-it-is-well-with-my-soul. Horatio and his wife Anna had a son die of pneumonia and then four daughters drown when the ship they were travelling on sank. And while travelling over the spot where this watery tragedy occurred, he wrote, “whatever my lot, thou has taught me to say, it is well, it is well with my soul”.

            Here is what I want us to get at today, this is the question: Is it well with your soul?

            How does somebody write those lyrics in the middle of that kind of pain? I think the truth of how that is possible is very deep, very personal, and very intimate, and is found in Psalm 34:18, “the Lord is close to the broken hearted, and saves those who are crushed in spirit”.

I think a key to this is to not wait until disaster strikes to look for the presence and closeness of God, but to be nearer to God every day; in prayer and Scripture reading every morning, in conversation throughout the day, in seeing how God is working in the world around you and in listening to and obeying God’s voice in your life. Day by day, minute by minute. And then, in the middle of our pain, we know that God is still present because he has been with us in every other situation, and our God is close to the broken hearted and he saves those who are crushed in spirit.

That’s why Jesus said, “blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. The Message translation of this verse in Matthew 5 puts it this way: “You’re blessed when you feel that you’ve lost what is most important to you. Only then can you be embraced by the One most dear to you”.

No one endured more pain and hurt than Jesus. He was falsely accused, sentenced to be flogged and then crucified. He was stripped of his clothing, lots were cast by the Roman soldiers for his garments, he was then beaten within an inch of his life, a crown of thorns was placed upon his head, he was put upon a cross and nailed to it, with spikes through his hands and his feet, he was lifted up, a sign was placed above him that said King of the Jews. And people spat on him, and they mocked him, and they said, he saved others, let him save himself now. The creation mocking the creator. That's a lot of pain. In the middle of all that physical pain, there was also the consequences, the weight, of the sins of humanity, both mine, yours, the sins of all history placed upon him. And in that moment, at about 3:00 in the afternoon, Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “My God, my God, why? Why have you forsaken me?”

Have you ever feel like that, you ever feel like, why, I don't get it, why is this happening?

As Horatio stood on the deck of that ship and looked at the waters where his 4 daughters drowned he could have thought that. When Jesus was on the cross and it seemed like most of humanity just didn’t care he could have thought that, too.

But Horatio said “my sin, o the bliss of this glorious thought. My sin not in part by the whole, is nailed to the cross, I bear it no more. Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, o my soul! “

Oswald Chambers wrote that “any great calamity in the natural world, death, disease, bereavement, will awaken a man when nothing else would, and he is never again the same. We would never know the treasures of darkness if we were always in the place of placid security”

This hymn, is not about deep anguish and question, this is a hymn of great hope and expectation of what God is going to do to create a treasure in the darkness. To bring hope out of the hopeless and peace frm the turmoil

In the midst of this moment, it is well with my soul---

does that describe you?

          Because for some people today, your soul isn't well. Your soul feels broken, your spirit feels crushed. And it may seem like it’s because of external circumstances, but it can’t be. It can’t be that we suffer or go through excruciating times in our lives and that breaks our spirit. Not if Jesus is in us, not if that in all things the peace of God, our Jehovah Shalom is near to us, not if the Holy Spirit actually dwells in us to offer comfort and a peace that surpasses all understanding. As awful as things can get in life it can’t be that these things break us down because he who is in us is greater than he who is in the world. Jesus said we would have problems and troubles in this world but he said, “take heart, have courage, don’t give up, because I have overcome the world”

So the issues are not what is happening to us. That’s not the problem, because God is with us through all these things. So there’s a different problem if our soul is not well.

And the problem is sin.

Every one of us have sinned. Everyone. We've missed the mark. And the penalty, cost of that sin is separation from God. That's not a fun thing to talk about, but it is truth. But it’s so important that we understand this, because it makes the good news even better. And the good news is not religion or theology, the good news is Jesus, the One who took not just part of our sin, but the whole, all of it that ever was and all of it that ever will be. And it was nailed to the cross to set us free.

So, Praise the Lord, Praise the Lord, O my soul!

And may it be well with your soul today.

"Thank God I'm not like _______________"

So a Pharisee and a tax collector walk into a Temple…I know, this sounds like the beginning of a really bad joke. But the reality is this was how one of Jesus’ parables began. You can read the whole parable in Luke 18:9-14.

            But the point seems to be a matter of prayer. In particular, a matter of the position of our hearts when we pray.

            The Pharisee sounded ego-centric and self-sufficient in his prayer. He thanked God that he was not like other people, people who he viewed worse than him, and in any societal or religious ranking they probably were. Then he went on to remind God how good he was, what he did, and how he went above the requirements of the Law in his giving.

            And then there was the tax collector, a notorious-swindler-corrupt tax collector. Granted, he was just doing his job, but his job was part of a corrupt Empirical system that was draining the people and making the rich richer.

His prayer is “God, have mercy on me, a sinner”. That’s it. No list of his accolades. No list of his accomplishments. No reminding God how nice he had been and how naughty the other sinners were. There was no building himself up. In fact, he didn’t even look up. He couldn’t. He looked down at the ground, stood far away from everyone else in the Temple, and beat his chest as he cried out to God.

            He is not comparing himself to others like the Pharisee had done, he simply sees himself before a perfect and holy God, and realizes how far from that standard he is. How far we all are.

            That’s a pretty powerful picture of repentant prayer. I like to think that he quit his job, too. In the 2014 movie, Son of God, this scene was portrayed as Jesus telling the parable and then calling Levi (Matthew) from his tax collector booth and Levi left this lifestyle behind to follow Jesus. I think that’s a neat picture of this parable, but I don’t know if that’s exactly the historical context or not. In fact, in Luke’s gospel the calling of Matthew comes much earlier as recorded. The gospels were never meant to be chronological historical documents, but if any of them had a chronological base I think it would be the ordered and logical account of Luke.

            Here’s my point with all this today: Do you thank God you’re not like other people? This was one of the “21 Questions” of John Wesley (for more info on those questions you can visit our website under the resources tab at www.telforumc.holston.org). You can also watch a video devo for all 21 Questions on our Youtube channel.

            I know we could talk about prayer right now. We could say pray like the tax collector, not like the Pharisee.

But even there we have to be careful. C.S. Lewis wrote,

“Be careful about wanting to just pray like the tax collector, or before long you may be thanking God that you’re not like the Pharisee”.

           

So instead of just looking at this as an example of how to pray (or how not to pray), I think this has more to do with humility. It’s about having a right view of ourselves, a right view of God, and a right view of others.

            So, the question again, is “do you thank God you’re not like other people?”

            Maybe you can think of characteristics of people that you are thankful you are not like…

            Maybe you can think of names of people that you are thankful you are not like…

            Maybe you can think of nationalities, or races, or colors, of people that you are thankful you are not like…

            When we have too high a view of ourselves, or others, or even we have too low of a view of ourselves, or others, we are discrediting the creation of a perfect God. Jesus died for everyone. And He rose for everyone, too!

Thank God we are not all alike!

Thank God I am me, and thank God you are you!

And thank God that when we turn to Him with a humble and repentant heart that we are justified, and set on a path of life as works in progress following our Creator.

Thanks be to God!

           

The 3 R's

For my family the return to school signifies the end of summer. Even though it will still be in the near record high temps in August, going back to school is a signal that the sleep-in-late and no-homework relaxing days of summer are over. But, at the same time, there is a sense of anticipation for something new, moving into a new grade level, new classes and new people. Thankfully all my children kinda like school, and I thank the teachers at Jonesborough Elementary, Jonesborough Middle, and David Crockett for this. So, my two youngest are preparing to head back into high school, my middle child is heading off (way off to Austin Peay) to begin college, and my oldest son will return to ETSU.

            I will be back to work on classes for my ordination in August also, so school plays a big part in our lives right now. I was thinking about this as I was reading a Psalm this morning. I thought about all the teachers who have been so instrumental in our lives and helped create, instill, and nurture a love of learning and desire to make a difference.

            Do you remember the “3 R’s” of school? Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic? These were actually listed together by St Augustine in his autobiography, Confessions. Augustine said,

“Even now I have not yet discovered the reasons why I hated Greek literature when I was being taught it as a small boy. Latin I deeply loved, not at the stage of my primary teachers but at the secondary level taught by the teachers of literature called 'grammarians' (grammatici). The initial elements, where one learns the three Rs of reading, writing, and arithmetic, I felt to be on less a burden and an infliction than the entire series of Greek classes.”

            I came across 3 R’s in Psalm 85 that I would like to share with you today. Perhaps these will help you where you are now. Whether you are anticipating with excitement something new that is getting ready to happen in your life, or if you are looking at upcoming events or even current circumstances with a bit of dread, fear, or trepidation.

            Restore. The Psalm begins by remembering how God had restored His people in the past, and the psalmist asks the Lord to “Restore us again, God our Savior” (verse 4). There is a promise here, that if God has restored us in the past, he will do it again! Are you needing something restored to you today? Is there something that you are missing in your life, maybe a relationship, health, peace, or joy? Remember that you have not been forsaken and you are not alone. Ask God, for He is a Restoring God!

            Revive. “Will you not revive us again?” the psalmist goes on to ask (verse 6). This word means to restore back to life, consciousness, or strength, or to give new strength or energy to something. I can’t help but start humming that tune by W.P. Mackay, “Hallelujah, thine the glory, Hallelujah, Amen! Hallelujah, thine the glory, revive us again”. Is there something in you that needs to revived today? Or do you completely need a divine revival right now? Our God is a reviving God. He brings people from death to life every day. Ask for a revived spirit from our Lord today, and you will receive a fresh wind of His Spirit.

            Rejoice. The psalmist has asked to be restored and to be revived for a reason. And the reason is so “that your people may rejoice in you” (verse 6). We might think that the restoring and reviving is just for us, but it’s not. The purpose here, at least in this psalm, is for the people to be restored and revived in order to rejoice in the Lord, so that they might praise God for His goodness (verse 12), for His faithfulness (verse 10), for His righteousness (verse 11) for His peace (verse 8) and for His unfailing love (verse 7). That’s a whole lot to rejoice in, but that’s because our Lord has, in the words of Robert Plant, “a whole lotta love”!

            Embrace these 3 R’s today and live them out as you are embraced in the loving arms of your Lord Jesus.

Grumbling and Complaining

            In 1729 Charles Wesley was attending college at Oxford, and had begun meeting with a group of friends for prayer and Bible study. Their goal was to grow in their pursuit of holy living. To help them in this spiritual pursuit, Charles asked his brother John to join them, and John devised a series of 21 questions that they could ask each other daily or as they came together.

            The complete list of questions can be found on our website: http://holston.org/churches/telford-umc-telford-tn/resources/

            I have been doing a daily video devotional on our church’s Youtube channel where I look at one question per day and Scripture that goes along with it. The goal is to have an intentional 21 days for us to focus on our pursuit of holy living.

            21 questions in 21 days. It doesn’t sound that hard, right?

            A pursuit of holy living. That sounds like something that we should be doing anyway, right?

            The truth is that I think this is harder for us than we might think. 21 days is the amount of time that it takes an action to become a habit. And we often think of a habit as something harmful or that we need to stop. But habits can also be good, and in that case we just call them spiritual disciplines. But call them whatever you want, the point is that we are called to be holy, and to live holy lives, and this takes an intentional, focused, and Spirit driven commitment.

            Today we don’t have the space to address all 21 questions, that’s what my daily videos are for. If you want to see more of this you can visit here: https://www.youtube.com/user/telford umc

            But I would like to do today is simply look at one of the questions at random. Here is our question of the day:

Do I grumble or complain constantly?

            This should be a mute point for Christians. But the reality is that we are not immune to the temptations to grumble, argue, or complain. In fact, my United Methodist brothers and sisters, we are cornering a market on the ability to argue within our faith.

            I was talking with someone about this question recently and he asked me, “how often is ‘constantly’?” I think at that point we’ve missed the point.

“Do everything with grumbling or complaining”

-Philippians 2:14

            Everything.

            We all have bad days. We all have things right now at this very moment that we could complain about. We all have things that we could easily argue with another person about.

But why? What would be our motive in this? What would it change?

            I think the whole idea here behind this question is about our perspective. I am not denying that there are plenty of things we could complain about right now, but what I am asking, and I think John Wesley was asking with this question, is what other things could I focus on?

            A little later in Philippians, here is how Paul answered that question:

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God,which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

            You can choose to grumble, complain, and argue constantly. Or, you can choose, by the peace of our Lord, not to. Let’s turn our attention toward Jesus today, and what we have to be thankful for rather than what we can complain about. Make a list today, count your blessings and name them one by one and see what God has done for you!

Here I am....send me!

As I am writing this week’s article I am sitting at Camp Bays Mountain

There is a summer camp here, and Telford UMC, the church where I serve as pastor, has sent 12 children here for the week, and I am the MIR. That stands for “Minister In Residence”. Although when the campers see me they draw it out real long so it sounds like, “MIIIIRRRRRRR”.

            It’s pretty cool to be a MIR. And this is my first time doing this. I am here to lead morning, afternoon, and evening devotions with all the campers, and to spend time with them throughout the day to build relationships.

            First, let me say that camp counselors are simply amazing people. Actually, let me draw that out real long and say that they are AAAMMMMAAAZZZIIIINNNNGGG!

            Seriously, I mean that.

            If you have the chance to send a child/grandchild/next-door-neighbor’s-child to Camp Bays Mountain, then by all means you should definitely do it! And if you have questions about it just call me.

            Our theme for this summer is “Here I am”, and the Scripture focus is Isaiah 6:8. Here is that verse:

Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?”

And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”

            Isaiah had experienced the awe, wonder, and magnitude of a vision where he saw the throne of God, and the worship that was taking place. And among the holiness and magnificence of this moment he felt his own sinfulness and mortality.

            I know that feeling.

            I preach to people every Sunday morning, lead small group Bible studies every Wednesday night, and get many, many other opportunities throughout the week to share Jesus.

            Sometimes, my own issues are in the front of my mind. Sometimes I even have to share with people what God says about something, and my own actions are at odds with this, too.

            This is how Isaiah felt; sinful, inadequate, unworthy.

            And then he experience grace.

           

“Your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for”

(Isaiah 6:7b)

            I know how that feels too!

            Jesus has atoned for my sins, my guilt.

            And what possible response could we ever have in this type of situation?

            Well, in this moment Isaiah heard God ask a question. And the question was, “Whom shall I send?”

            And there was only one possible answer for Isiah. He had experienced this overwhelming love, grace, and forgiveness in his own life. His guilt was gone. He was a new creation standing before a holy God.

            So Isaiah’s natural response was, “Here I am. Send me!”

           

            That’s our theme for our camper this week. Not only Isaiah. But we are also looking at the stories of Mary, Samuel, and Ananais.

            That’s our story, too. At least that’s my story.

            I have experienced so much love and grace and forgiveness from Jesus, that the only possible reaction that I could possibly have to this is, “here I am. Send me!”

            If you know what I’m talking about, can you be so bold as to prat that prayer with me?

            Here I am. Send me.

            So now what?

            Now, my friend, you are in the hands of a loving God. You have put His will above your own. And you are about to find your true meaning, destiny, and purpose in life.

            You have prayed a bold and trusting prayer. Let me know what God says back to you…..

A Line in the Sand

Today I went to worship at Ocean View UMC with my wife and two of our children. We are on vacation here at Oak Island, NC, and we go to Oceanview each year when we are here. Being on vacation is a great opportunity to visit another church. Being United Methodist, I find comfort in getting into a new the town and seeing the cross and flame on a sign or a church building. It's kinda like a beacon for me, guiding me, and also reminding me of the beautiful aspects of our connectionalism. So going on vacation shouldn't be a time to skip church. What a wonderful chance to get to worship with some extended family that we don't know yet, but we will be spending eternity with!

Being a pastor on vacation is a great opportunity to worship with my family, and extended family, in the pews rather than the pulpit for once. I get to sing the hymns with the rest of the body, and receive the sacrament of Holy Communion with my wife, being served by others as I reminded that, "in the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven", and that the body and blood of Christ were given for me.

The preacher today was preaching a series on "Revival" from a book by United Methodist pastor Adam Hamilton. Today's topic was on holiness, and the Scripture was 1 Peter 1:15-16. Here is that passage:

But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”

 I love to read, and each year I bring a book or two to read while sitting on the beach. This year, ironically, I brought a book by Ken Collins, entitled, The Theology of John Wesley: Holy Love & the Shape of Grace. In the book Collins outlines the major themes of our faith, and Wesley's views on them, and how his views were shaped by others.

One chapter is on sanctification, or Christian perfection.
For Wesley, we are called to grow and mature in our Christian faith, we are not supposed to stay static in our faith. Once we are saved and ask for forgiveness of our sins and accept Jesus as our Lord and savior, we experience a new birth (aka "born again") and we are justified by the grace of God through faith in Jesus. As we mature into the faith we profess we are being sanctified by the grace of God.
It is a process of Christian perfection, growing in holiness. In fact, at the moment of our salvation, we are made holy before a perfect, holy, and loving God by believing in and trusting in Jesus, through the working of the Holy Spirit in us. That's a lot happening!
In 1776 Wesley wrote

"It is impossible that any retain what they receive without improving it. To use the grace given is the certain way to obtain more grace. To use all the faith you have will bring an increase of faith"

So then we are holy.
You are holy.
We don't like to use that term often, especially when we talk about ourselves. I have even heard born again Christians use terms like "sinner" to describe themselves.
Wesley would have been abhorred by this.
You have been created in the image of God. Jesus died for your sins to bring you into right relationship with God. You have asked Jesus to be the Lord of you life...and you call yourself a sinner?
Sure, that's who you were. That's who we all were. That's part of the whole "original sin" (I will write a post on that later). We need a savior, and we have one!
We were once lost, but now we are found. Blind, but now we see. Sinner, and now....saint...holy.

And yet we still sin at times. But the growing in sanctification, this process that is leading us toward Christian perfection, should be a sign of who we are. No, it should be a sign of WHOSE we are!
We are CHRISTians. We are, perhaps, the only glimpse of the goodness of God that some people might see today.
And He is holy.
And in the scripture referenced above Peter is reciting a passage from Leviticus, that God calls His people to be holy because we are His and He is holy. So the Holy Spirit is at work in us, making us holy.
Not  sinless. Although how we sin should be ever decreasing outwardly and more aware inwardly.

"Absolute perfection belongs not to man, nor to angels, but to God alone"- John Wesley

The long and short of all this is that we are called to be holy, and this means that we are being perfected in Holy Love. This is because God is love, and love is how we are showing God to the world around us.

I think sometimes we just don't do a good job showing love because of our differences. Rupert Meldinius, a German Lutheran theologian of the early 17th century, is attributed a quote that Wesley surely agreed with:

"In essentials unity. In non-essentials liberty".

I think we struggle in our own sanctification, in the growing in this holy love, because we have drawn too many lines in the sand.

 My daughter Hannah found this line in the sand today, and then she added these two words for me:
Sacred
Secular

I wonder how definitive that line is. I absolutely agree that there is a line between "lost" and "found", to use parable words of Jesus.
But I wonder if the line between what is deemed "holy", or sacred, and what is not, is more of our own making? Is the line exactly where we think it is? Or have we made the line ourselves?

I am not saying everything is holy. Sin is obviously not. I am just saying that maybe we can look for the holy in places where we might not have thought to. Maybe Jesus is at work in some unique places today. After all, He has been known to do that. And in so doing maybe He is making things and places holy because He is there.

I heard once that Jesus did not live in the "Holy Land", but rather Jesus made the "Land Holy" because He was there.

Maybe we can't drag people across the line in the sand from secular to the sacred. But maybe we can take some sacred across the line into their secular.

And maybe that is where holiness begins.

What do you want me to do for you?

Think about the last time you asked God for something. You probably don't have to think back too far. We are pretty good at that.

Now, think about how you asked God. Think about the words you used in making your request.

I have to admit, that when I am asking someone for something, even in my prayers at times, that I am pretty nice and polite.

Now, imagine this conversation:

You: "Jesus, I want you to do for me whatever I ask you".

OK, just to be real here for a minute, if anyone made that statement to me I am pretty sure they wouldn't be getting what they asked for. 

I mean, seriously, where is the respect? Where is their sense of gratitude? Even my children know if they are gonna ask me for something they need to butter me up a little bit first.

But now imagine this response:

Jesus: "Sure. What do you want me to do for you?"

Really?! That's Jesus' answer? How about reminding that person who they are talking to? Is that any way to speak to God?

But this is the conversation found in the gospel of Mark (Mark 10:35-45.)

James and John make a bold statement, and Jesus has a bold answer.

Before we get into what they asked of Jesus, and why, let's just think about the first two verses in terms of prayer.

Prayer is our conversation with God. It involves talking and listening, and the working of the Holy Spirit to help guide us in this divine conversation. Prayer is intimate, it is worship, it is a holy encounter with God.

So Jesus asks these two disciples, "What do you want me to do for you?"

This isn't the only time Jesus says something like this. In fact the next story that Mark's gospel recounts is Jesus healing a blind beggar in the city of Jericho. This was another bold and blazen 

human, who, in the presence of Jesus was shouting, "Son of David, have mercy on me!" 

(Mark 10:47-48)

So Jesus, being Jesus, does not rebuke him for him boldness. Jesus doesn't remind him who he is talking to. Jesus doesn't tell him that He's busy. Instead Jesus asks him a question.

And the question Jesus asks him is "What do you want me to do for you?" (Mark 10:51)

Two separate situations. 

Once with James and John, two of the first disciples of Jesus. 

And then with a blind beggar named Bartimaeus.

But the same question.

"What do you want me to do for you?"

And if this wasn't amazing enough, Jesus isn't asking this question because He doesn't know the answer. He is asking because He wants us to know the answer. He wants us to verbalize in prayer  what we need, or to know that we really don't have a clue what we need, but we know we need Jesus. He wants us in conversation with Him, to tell our Father what is on our mind.

I am thinking Jesus hasn't changed any. In fact I know this to be true.

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. (Hebrews 13:8) 

Imagine Jesus asking you this question right now. "What do you want me to do for you?"

He is.

At this very moment, as you turn your heart and your attention to Jesus, He is waiting for you, His beloved child.

And as your eyes meet His eyes, there is a moment of peace that is greater than anything you could ever comprehend. And as Jesus smiles at you in pure and perfect love, He asks you, 

"What do you want me to do for you?"

And now, what is your answer? Go ahead and tell Him.

In the name of Jesus, get up!

The Bible is full of healing miracles. Some of my favorite ones are in the book of Acts. Here God uses men like Peter and Paul to work through so that others are healed in name of Jesus.
This morning I was reading the healing of the man by the Beautiful Gate in Acts 3:1-10.
There are so many great parts of this story, but here is something that I really love: he got more than he asked for.

You've heard that saying, "be careful what you ask for, you just might get it", right?
Well, this guy got it and then some!
Here he was, lame since birth, doing the only thing that he could do: beg.
He didn't have any other options. He relied on people to drop him off in front of the temple gate so that he could beg for money from the people headed into the temple. And the gate where he was dropped off is called "Beautiful".

That's a pretty striking picture. There was nothing "beautiful" about this man's situation, and I wonder if people found his presence off-putting from what was supposed to be a beautiful scene. Or, maybe they didnt even notice him.

I think we are pretty good at that.

(Photo courtesy of https://www.canstockphoto.com/images-photos/homeless-man-holding-cardboard-sign.html)

So here he is, doing what he does every day. But today is gonna be different. It didn't seem that way when he woke up that morning. It sure didn't seem that way when he was being carried to his normal place to do his normal thing while all the normal people walked by him. He didn't know how different today was gonna be. He had no idea that today was gonna be a day where his life would change forever, and today would be a day that, thousands of years later, people would still be talking about him.

Peter and John come up into the scene about 3:00 in the afternoon. This was one of the routine times of prayers in the Temple. Let me just pause here and say that routine prayer times are a great routine to be in! I have talked to people that think that having set times for prayer is a bit rote and routine. They feel like they are scheduling time for God rather than being open to the surprising and unscheduled presence of the Holy Spirit. I think God works in our routines when we have focused them around Him.

So, as Peter and John approach this guy, laying there begging, does what he has been doing for years, he asks for money.
He asks for money...this is what he thinks he needs. And this is true. But here's the deal, he asks for what he thinks is enough, and God has something greater in store for him.
I wonder how many times we are asking for what we think we need, maybe even praying hesitantly for what we think is such a huge thing, and God has something so much bigger and better in store for us!
Peter says, "I don't have any silver or gold for you". Peter doesn't have any money to give away. How many days can you identify with that? But he doesn't just ignore the man. He is led by the Holy Spirit. And so he doesn't just keep walking into the Temple. He could have. He could have said, "We're on our way to church. We need to get there or else somebody might take our seat. We are on our way to do something important."

But instead Peter says, "I'll give you what I have. In the name of Jesus, get up and walk!"

Now, realistically, this guy is probably a little confused.
After all, the thing that he thought he needed was money. And here is this broke guy telling him to get up and walk. If he could have gotten up and walked don't you think that he would have already done that??

"Then Peter took him by the hand"

Today maybe there is somebody you need to take by the hand and help them take a step into this faith filled life. Or maybe you are lying there doing what you've always been doing waiting for somebody to take you by the hand.

Or maybe you are praying for what you think you need, and God has something even bigger and better in store.

Give what you have. God isn't asking you to give more than that, but to trust that what you have to offer is exactly what someone else needs right now.

Keep your routine, keep your focus and eyes on Jesus. And God will work in and through you. I believe this.

And in the name of Jesus, get up!