Pushin' My Buttons!

Why is it that no one on earth has the peculiar power to "push our buttons" more than our family members?  Can I "get a witness"?  Particularly, this is often true with children and parents.  I think that one reason is ... we are often so much like our parents or children.  We sometimes don't want to admit that, unless we are talking about their favorable qualities.  I sometimes have referred to "YOUR son", when talking with my husband about one of our sons who has done something boneheaded.  Then, later, when he does something wonderful he is "MY son", lol!

If you believe that God is sovereign, however, you recognize (whether you want to or not), that He has given to you the parents and (if you have any) the children He absolutely wanted you to have.  I was blessed with wonderful, godly parents, and with two precious sons, all of whom I love dearly. Unfortunately, though, this has not been the case for all of you, my dear brothers and sisters and non-believer readers.  Some of you have had "terrible parents" and/or "heartbreaking children".

Because God gave to humankind free will, some of our parents and/or children have made disastrous choices, which severely impacted our lives in a negative way.  Some of these negative impacts have been long-lasting, over a course of years!

The truth is:  our closest family members have the greatest potential to both enrich our lives and to destroy our lives.

Today's text focuses on family relationships and the mutual love and respect which make them healthy.  I've written about the relationship between husbands and wives, in my devotional meanderings through other of Paul's writings. You can explore those at these links below:

Here's the complete text, but we will be focusing on verses 20-21:

18Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. 19Husbands, love your wives and do not be embittered against them.20Children, obey your parents in everything, for this is pleasing in the Lord. 21Fathers, do not provoke your children, so they will not become disheartened.

Colossians 3:18-21

If you grew up in a Christian church, you probably had verse 20 quoted to you repeatedly.   (I have always been sort of ... intense ... so, it was quoted to me a lot!) Children can be quite provocative....that is to say, rebellious and disobedient.  Believe me, mine have provoked me plenty! The thing is, though, that verse 20 really goes hand-in-hand with verse 21, as verses 18 and 19 go together.

The only other thing to give us pause in verse 20 is that, obviously, we should not obey our parents in ungodliness.  Let's say your father is a philanderer and urges you to follow his example.  No, just (obviously) NO.  That is not what is meant by this verse, which assumes that the parents are walking in righteousness before their children, and leading them accordingly.  Parents are never going to be perfect; so, to expect them to be is an impossible standard.

Have you ever known or witnessed a parent, though, who deliberately provoked his or her children? I have.  What some would cause "playful teasing" is viewed by some as provocation.  I have a child like that.  He absolutely does NOT like to be teased.  But, that is not what is meant here.  Let's look at two action words from this verse, in various translations.

First, the word translated in the NET version as "provoke".  Here are synonyms from other versions:
embitter, aggravate, exasperate, "fret and harass", vex, "make angry".  You can see that these go beyond simple, playful teasing.  Nor do they mean the godly correction that parents are commanded to give their children, although the children will often find such godly correction less-than-pleasant.

When, as parents, we correct our children with an attitude of "lording it over them", and/or using our God-given authority as a mace or a club or a battering ram, then we will often get the response the Bible refers to in the NET as "disheartened" children.

What, then, are some words other translations use for "disheartened"?  Discouraged, "lose heart", "become morose".

There are so many applications of this verse in every day life, but when I read it, I think of the meme I put at the top of today's blog post.  There are times when we need to correct our children, and even give constructive criticism about their choices, particularly when our children are young and living at home.  As they mature and become young adults, we must be very judicious about our "advice".  I am learning that lesson, with two "twenty-somethings" whom I love.

The very worst outcome of our training of our children would not be that they come to doubt our love for them, although that would be awful.  No, the worst outcome would be if they start to doubt God's love for them.  Fortunately or unfortunately, our children begin to derive their concept of God according to how we love them (or not) in our homes.

When you look at our good, good Father, He does not "push our buttons".  He does not provoke us to anger or ungodliness, but instead gently "restores my soul" and "leads us in paths of righteousness for His name's sake" (Psalm 23:3). May we, parents or children, follow His example in endeavoring to do the same for each other.

Father, teach me to deal with my dearest loved ones in gentleness and kindness, as well as in holiness. It is an area of weakness for me, this gentle holiness, and a lesson I need to learn over and over. In Jesus' name, amen. 

Source:

http://www.picturequotes.com/if-a-child-lives-with-criticism-he-learns-to-condemn-if-a-child-lives-with-fear-he-learns-to-be-quote-228313

A Hob-nail Boot

Does that look like a boot to you?  Does to me.  It's a seashore scene from South Africa.  Do you know what a hob-nail boot is?  It's a boot with short nails inserted into the sole in a regular pattern. The primary purpose for these nails is to give the sole more durability, but they also serve to give traction to the boot.  No slippery soles with hob-nails.  You step on something with a hob-nail boot and whatever you step on isn't going anywhere.

I figure there are situations in most of our lives, Christians, which frustrate us.  In my case, I get very aggravated when I see .... well, let's just call it "evil prospering".  I do not like to see evil prosper. When the anti-God side wins, it makes me mad, especially when I've poured heart and soul into what "should" have been "the winning side".  Are you feelin' what I'm feelin' this morning?  Can you point to an area like this in your life and say, "uhm-hm, yeah...."

It SEEMS like God is oblivious, at times like that, doesn't it?  Paul must have felt this type of consternation because he often referenced it in his letters.  Today's text is Ephesians 1:20-23.

20which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, 21far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 22And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church,23which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

In a moment I'm going to reference some other places Paul echoes this same theme.  But first, look at Psalm 110:1 - - 

Of David. A psalm. The LORD says to my lord: "Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet."

Yes, this verse has dual applicability, like a lot of OT prophetic scriptures.  It referred to David's reign, first of all, but also to God's speaking to Jesus, in one of those intra-Godhead conversations. You may recall that Jesus tied the Pharisees up in knots over this verse, in Matthew 22:41-46.  In that exchange, by the way, He was declaring his Messiahship to them; but, they were too obtuse to either see or embrace Him as such.  In Acts 2:34-35, Luke referenced this same verse from Psalms, recounting Peter's sermon on the Day of Pentecost, the very day the Holy Spirit was given.

Here, now, are the other Pauline references:

 For he "has put everything under his feet." Now when it says that "everything" has been put under him, it is clear that this does not include God himself, who put everything under Christ.

1 Cor. 15:27

Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ.

Ephesians 4:15

And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.

Colossians 1:18

12but He, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, SAT DOWN AT THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD, 13waiting from that time onward UNTIL HIS ENEMIES BE MADE A FOOTSTOOL FOR HIS FEET. 

Hebrews 10:12-13

The last enemy to be eliminated is death.  

1 Cor. 15:26

This plan of God's, to give Jesus Christ the spot of King Jesus, has been going on long before Jesus was ever born as a human baby.  The same Person of the Triune Godhead who was the Creator-of-all is the same One who put on flesh (Greek: sarx) and the same One who now sits at the right hand of God the Father, advocating for us, interceding for us ... and ruling over the Church as well as this entire world.  Death - - the last enemy to be destroyed.  Oh, He triumphed over death when He rose from the grave, but He will not totally destroy death (as it still serves His plan) until "the end of time", as described in Revelation.

So, why can't we see it?  We are not designed to see God's master plan, unfurled outside of the bounds of Time.  If we could, we would not need faith, would we?  But, even then, our humanity limits our understanding.  Even in those times when God peeled back a corner of Heaven and revealed to one of us His ways, we dealt with that knowledge in incredibly imbecilic fashion, generally speaking.  He is "beyond us" - - far past our limited understanding.

Still, He rules.  He reigns.  Even when it does not look like it around here.  Even when it appears as if evil is crowing triumphantly, evil is a pawn in God's mighty hand.  Ephesians 1:21 emphasizes that NO spiritual entity or power is superior to Christ Jesus, NO matter how things appear.  Christ's "hob-nail boot" is on Satan's neck.  It is finished, Satan.  You.Are.Done.

Seeing is not believing, unless you are looking with eyes of faith.  That's what I have resolved to do, today.  How about you?

Father, Son and Spirit, You rule over all.  I choose to trust You and even to praise You today, even in the face of discouragement, disappointment and fear.   Keeping my eyes fixed on my Head, Jesus, banishes those negative, incapacitating emotions.  King Jesus is on the throne!  He has it all in His hands.  Hallelujah for that.  What a truth worth praising!  What a King worth worshipping!  In Jesus' name, amen.

A Dead, Hollow Tree

I'm moving on through the wonderful Romans 12 and focusing on verse 11 today.

11Do not lag in zeal, be enthusiastic in spirit, serve the Lord.

Thinking on this scripture verse I was reminded of a dead tree.

Yesterday afternoon after church a friend called to ask if I wanted to go see that new movie, "Miracles from Heaven".  Delightedly, I said "yes".  We also dragged our Hubsters along.

Spoiler alert!  If you have not heard anything about this movie and don't want to know, stop reading now!

So, the gist of the movie is that this very, very sick little girl...sick to the point of death fell headfirst 3 stories down through a dead, hollow tree, and was miraculously healed by God.  Crazy, huh?  Based on a true story...  Crazier still!

What does this have to do with today's verse?

Remember that Paul was talking to believers, Christians.  In this verse he was exhorting them to use their time, gifts and talents in service to the Lord.  Most of the time, most Christians have no problem doing that.  They actually long to do that.  Other times, though, usually because of adverse life circumstances, Christians believe they no longer have anything to offer.

The little girl in the movie, for instance, Annabelle Beam.  She told her mother she wanted to die, because of her ever-present pain.  Yet, at the time she thought she had nothing more to offer, God used her life to touch the lives of millions.

The mother, Christi Beam, temporarily lost her faith during this time of dealing with her daughter's devastating illness.

Yesterday I was reading a testimony from a friend who lost her beloved husband, her dearest friend, six months ago.  Another hollow-tree experience.

Did you catch that the title of the movie is "Miracles from Heaven"?  The healing of Abby was not the only miracle.  The movie was full of miracles, brought about from ordinary people allowing God to use them.

Aren't you glad God uses ordinary, flawed people?  (In fact, that's the only kind He creates...) The Bible is full of stories of God choosing to use Everyday Man, Typical Woman.  Then, He makes them extraordinary, by His saving grace and power!

He can even use someone who appears to be "dead", because He raises the dead in the same way He raised His Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ!

Some truly ARE dead, as the Bible says, "dead in our sins".  I pray that if you have not yet encountered Jesus Christ and accepted Him as your Savior, that you will do that today.  I just can't back away from this because it is absolutely foundation, inescapable and crucial!  There is no true joy apart from Jesus Christ, only pale imitations.  He is the only One who can bring the dead to life, forgive our sins eternally and make us spiritually alive in Him.  This is life's GREATEST miracle!

…4But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,…

Ephesians 2:4-6 

One final point to Christians:  Note that Paul did not exhort the Christians to wait until they felt good about zealously serving the Lord.  If we wait until we "feel like it", we won't step out in obedience. You are not going to necessarily have that "joy from serving Jesus" until AFTER you allow yourself to be filled with the Spirit and used for His glory.

Do you feel like that big, dead, hollow tree today?  In the movie, Anna asked her mother why God had not healed her.  As Christi told Anna in the movie:  "There are so many things I don't know.  But, I know God loves you!"  Amen to that, and praise Him for His miraculous love!

Loving Father, I was dead, so dead in my sins until You rescued me!  I can't thank you enough for saving my soul, making me alive through Jesus.  It's hard to explain and even harder to understand how that works in the spiritual realm.  But, then, we don't have to understand everything.  Faith means taking you at Your word, trusting in Your promises.  I pray specifically this day for those who have never met Jesus, have never thrown all their sins on Him, who feel hopelessly trapped.  Speak to them, Father, through Your holy Word, by Your Holy Spirit and/or through one of Your redeemed, one of Your beloved.  I pray that these will find Your love to be inescapable!  For those beloved who already know You as Savior, but who yet feel like that huge, dead tree, speak to them today also, in the depths of their hearts.  Reaffirm Your love for them in tangible ways that let them know You have not left or forsaken them.  And, empower us all, Father, to step out in obedient service to You so that Satan's adversity which beats and bruises us does not overcome us. (Revelation 12:11) In Jesus' name, amen.

Source:

http://www.enzasbargains.com/miracles-from-heaven-movie-quotes/

The Entanglement of Comparisons

Today's schedule was not full of flexibility.  I had to leave the house at 7:00 and, so, did not have my morning devotions.  That means....VESPERS!  ...which, I think, means evening devotions or evening prayers in the Latin.  At any rate, after driving nearly 200 miles today, and observing three different teachers in three different schools (which I'd never visited before), I'm happy to be sitting here with my bowl of soup, my Bible and laptop in a warm house.  God is good.

I guess we'd better wind up Galatians, don't you think?  Last time we were there, it was before my "locusts" post.  Now, we are in chapter 6, verses 4 & 5.  I already included these verses in a previous post, but did not focus on them.

4-5 Make a careful exploration of who you are and the work you have been given, and then sink yourself into that. Don’t be impressed with yourself. Don’t compare yourself with others. Each of you must take responsibility for doing the creative best you can with your own life.

The Message

In real time, when this post is being written, we are in the throes of an American presidential race. The lifeblood of politics is that the candidates compare and contrast themselves with their opponents or competitors, in order to stand out from the crowd and earn the most approval, the most votes.  Of necessity, that is the nature of politics.

Unfortunately, we tend to take that same way of doing and apply it to our Christian lives.  We think other Christians should think or believe like us on matters of personal conviction (in the New Testament an example was whether to eat meat offered to idols, or not).  If they don't, we get all tangled up in ourselves.  We compare ourselves and our Christian experiences with others.  If our path does not track alongside someone's whom we admire, we think we are a hopeless failure.  We waste a lot of time evaluating and criticizing each other, out loud and face-to-face...or not.  It consumes so much of our energy!

Last night I was at a Bible study with other adults from our church and also the young adult college students we mentor in the faith.  It was a tremendous blessing!  My friend who was teaching totally led us into a time of worship, personal reflection and excitement about our God.  My fleshly nature's first response was this:  (ok, I'm being totally transparent here) - - - "Well, we should just ask her to teach all the time!  She teaches circles around me." Yep, that old flesh just leapt right up there and brought out the nasty.  Right?  Oh, ok, I know - - - it has never happened to you.  LOL!

At that very same event, within the hour, another adult leader was excitedly exclaiming over what God has put on her heart to share at our upcoming girls conference: www.pillarsgirlsconference.com . I didn't say anything, but here came that old fleshly nature again - - - "I'm so frustrated because God has not led me to do a breakout at the conference!"

It should be obvious to you that neither of these responses was the mark of a godly woman, albeit an honest one...

Today's scripture tells us that such reactions may (allright, WILL) happen.  They did to the Galatians too!  But, when we feel that carnal response beginning, we are to remind ourselves of God's commands in his Word and do the following:

1.  Seek God about your own spiritual gifts and find (or reaffirm) His calling to you concerning the spiritual work you've been given.
Now, let me stop right here for a minute.  Suppose you read that and you thought, "What gifts?  What calling?"  I've addressed this in other blog posts, and I'll reference them under the Sources: section at the bottom of the post.  In short, however, all Christians have a "gift set" from the Holy Spirit, and we all have work given to us by Him, for the express purpose of furthering His kingdom.  I'm not talking about your "day-job", unless you work in full-time ministry.  (I told you about mine in today's first paragraph.)  No, if you aren't doing some kind of part-time ministry to advance the kingdom of Jesus Christ, you are not walking resplendent.  Instead you are walking in disobedience, which brings on you a whole host of other complications and, usually, flat-out problems.  I don't care how young or how old you are, either.  Mamas, we need to be training our children from a very young age to give-back in service to the Lord Jesus, even when toddlers are too young to actually make a decision to accept Him as Savior and Lord.  Older folks, don't give me that guff about you being too old to do anything.  That's an excuse.  I am quickly joining your ranks, but everyone can do something.  Find it, and "sink yourself into it".  Let me move on now before I get all bothered.

2.  Don't be overly impressed with yourself.
This is another unfortunate by-product of comparing yourself with a Christian brother or sister. (Remember, Paul is talking to the Galatians about their dealings with other Christians.)  If we don't think our gifts or callings are superior to those of others, then we take the complete opposite tack, believing ourselves to be not worth a dime for God's kingdom.  Both are sinful attitudes/judgments. The first is produced by sinful pride, and the second by a failure to recognize who each believer is in Jesus Christ.  (See item #1 above.)  Paul exhorts us to simply not compare ourselves with each other. Period.  In verse 5 he explains that, if we just tend to our own business, doing the creative best we can with our own lives, we'll have our hands full.  There'll be no room for "busybodying" ourselves, poking our noses into other believers' gifts and callings.

3.  Tote your own pack.
That's an almost literal translation from the J.B. Phillips New Testament. "Tote", "shoulder", whatever.
When my son #2 went to a 12-day wilderness excursion nearly 2 years ago, he had to pass a physical. One of the items asked the physician to evaluate whether or not my son was physically able to hike for miles with a heavy load of camping equipment on his back.  Each young man on the trip had to shoulder his own load.  No one could shoulder all of his and all of his neighbors' as well.  It was a rigorous endeavor for those young men.
And so it is with God's callings to us.  In fact, I truly believe that if God's calling to you is not a little bit challenging or scary or difficult for you, it's probably not from God.  After all, if you could do it with almost no effort, why do you need to depend on God in the first place?
Paul is saying here in verse 5 that we need to focus on our own stuff, yet helping our neighbors as they have need. If we as a Body are not willing to walk the path we have been given by the Lord, it is unreasonable to expect a brother or sister to walk it for us.

I feel like closing with two quotes.

"There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self."
Ernest Hemingway

"Every time you compare yourself to others, you kill a piece of who you are."
Humble the Poet

Blessed Lord!  Please deliver us from the entanglement of comparisons.  In Jesus' name, amen.

Sources:

http://thepoetproject.tumblr.com/post/63050057678/every-time-you-compare-yourself-to-others-you

Gifts, Small and Great
https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=967525413435341031#editor/target=post;postID=8895965426068390858;onPublishedMenu=allposts;onClosedMenu=allposts;postNum=9;src=postname

To Each His Own
https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=967525413435341031#editor/target=post;postID=7375941140857941248;onPublishedMenu=allposts;onClosedMenu=allposts;postNum=10;src=postname

Decently and in Order
https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=967525413435341031#editor/target=post;postID=1445288615710014047;onPublishedMenu=allposts;onClosedMenu=allposts;postNum=78;src=postname

Since We Have This Ministry

Good morning,

I'm just now sitting down to have devotions and blog, here at 10:00 a.m., because I had an early morning "rise and shine" (5:30).  Our church had the privilege of ministering to a wonderful group of middle school teachers today.  They are having a teacher workday; so, some of our members brought them breakfast.  What a privilege to love on those who give so much to our community.

Today's text is 2 Corinthians 4:1-6 (NET):

Therefore, since we have this ministry, just as God has shown us mercy, we do not become discouraged. 2 But we have rejected shameful hidden deeds, not behaving with deceptiveness or distorting the word of God, but by open proclamation of the truth we commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience before God. 3 But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled only to those who are perishing, 4 among whom the god of this age has blinded the minds of those who do not believe so they would not see the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God. 5 For we do not proclaim ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your slaves for Jesus’ sake. 6 For God, who said “Let light shine out of darkness,” is the one who shined in our hearts to give us the light of the glorious knowledge of God in the face of Christ.

Last night, Hubster and I had the privilege of hosting some college-age students from church in our home for Bible study.  We were talking about, in part, how God will often give us a task to do that seems impossible to us.  Our pastor has said before that, "if the task is not God-sized, if it doesn't force you to depend on Him to do it, then it probably is not from God."  Yet, even so, it is easy for us to get discouraged in our ministries, isn't it?

First of all, things "rarely go according to plan"....our plan, that is.  When that happens, we question whether or not we are really doing what God called to do, or even if He called us to it at all!  Sure, there are times when we can have "misheard" the Lord, that is, Satan has deceived us.  Usually though, it is simply that Satan is opposing our efforts because God is using us and wanting to use us even more for the advancement of His kingdom.  Setbacks should not surprise us or dissuade us.

Paul also said here that it is the mercy of God that motivated him in ministry.  Because God showed mercy to him, he got past his temporary discouragement to go on and show God's mercy to others. He did this by proclaiming the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ. He stated that he was a  "slave" to this ministry, this life-calling of shining the light of Jesus Christ into a dark, fallen world.  Jesus shined brilliant light into Paul's life on the road to Damascus.  Because of this Paul gained the glorious truth about God, the truth embodied in Jesus.

In the college Bible study, we just began a book study of David Platt's book, Radical.  It has already been such a blessing, and we are just into the first chapters!  You can't truly encounter Jesus Christ, as Paul did, as I have, as many others have, and come away unchanged.  Those who claim to have done so have never really met Him.  Instead they have met some pale imitation or some distortion.  The gospel of Jesus Christ changes hearts, changes lives.  It is the ONLY solution to man's many problems.  David Platt asks us, "So, how do we respond to this gospel?"1  How can we keep this to ourselves?  Paul couldn't; and neither should we.

It is this knowledge, this treasure we possess, which lifts us out of our periodic discouragements. Because we have been utterly transformed, we cannot be silent.  Although our message is often ridiculed as "nonsense", "foolishness", and even the sign of a low IQ, we have experienced the power of The One and Only.  We have tasted of Jesus Christ.  We have drunk from the well of salvation to become His Beloved.  We know that nothing is greater, or higher, or better or more satisfying.  And, that radicalizes us to share this incomparable Light, which shines out of the darkness of mistakes, willful sin, self-centeredness, pride - - - the slime pit of the world in which people find themselves mired.  We extend the hand of faith to them and say, "Brother, let me lead you to the Savior, because He is sufficient for every need, the source of all good things.  All else is, ultimately, unsatisfying."

So, Christian, don't be discouraged.  Every day presents a new opportunity to share the life-changing truth of Jesus with someone in desperate need.  Take those opportunities God puts before you.  Don't let the enemy "talk you down".  None of us is immune, as this is one of Satan's most potent weapons. Don't play right into his hand.  He's defeated before he even starts, and it's okay to remind him of that.  Shine your light today, for the glory of The Incomparable One.

Father, you are a good, good Father, in spite of "circumstances".  Help us to center our thoughts on You, to keep our eyes on our Savior, in order to fight off discouragement.  You have given each one of us a special skill-set, to use in the advancement of Your kingdom.  Empower us to do what You have called each of us to do, for Your praise and for Your glory alone.  In Jesus' name, amen.

Source:

1  Platt, David. Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream. Colorado Springs, Colo.: Multnomah, 2010. p. 36. Print.