Souljourn

What would the results look like?

Romans 12:21 "...overcome evil with good..."

Romans 2:4 "...kindness leads to repentance..."

What if our lives became unexpected, spontaneous, surprising, joy inducing dispensers of goodness?  Watch this and be encouraged.

 

Listen to Creation speak

Romans 1:20 For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature.  

Just look at these photos of the Grand Canyon for a few minutes and allow them to speak to you about God.

  

I'll explain tomorrow

We can't go any further

I'm reading through John in my devotions, paying particular attention to the miracles of Jesus.  He clearly set a standard that He intends us all to continue in (John 14:12).  Other than the pages of scripture I have not seen this standard realized (albeit some are much closer than I am) but that does not give me the legitimacy to lower the standard to make myself feel comfortable. (or to create excuses that lead me to an incorrect view of God, others and myself)

I came across a statement that some followers of Jesus made in John 6 and it struck me how well it seemed to sum up a lot of human tendencies in response to following Jesus and the example He set.  In response to Jesus' teaching people began to say, "This is very hard to understand.  How can we accept it?" (v.60)  And because they couldn't understand what Jesus was asking of them, they chose to reject Jesus.  

They held their understanding above their obedience.  And they quickly came to a point of not being able to go any farther with Jesus.  I'm very thankful for the minds that God has given us, and I'm not for one moment suggesting that we 'check our brains at the door', but there must be a place for faith in our pursuit of Jesus.  If I have to have all of my questions answered, if I have to understand everything, then I am going to have a very limited journey with Jesus.

To be honest, I don't understand why some are healed and some aren't.  I don't understand why people I have prayed for are still in wheelchairs, or have passed away.  But I can not allow those experiences to stop my pursuit of Jesus and the fullness of His presence.  

That is why it's called faith.  And I never want to get to a point in my journey with Jesus where I determine we can't go any further because I don't understand something.  

I like the response of Peter in this situation when he was asked if he was also going to leave.  "Lord, to whom would we go?"   Peter knew that Jesus was the answer -- yes, he did make some mistakes along the way but that just gives me confidence that there's a place for me -- and Jesus is still the answer.  

A honest assessment

Last weekend we discussed that it is very possible for all of us to be deceived as to our true spiritual condition.  We looked at the Laodicean church in Revelations 3, and saw that believers who were once passionately pursuing Jesus (see Colossians 2:1-2; 4:13-16) could over time find themselves in a place of being 'lukewarm' and having a totally incorrect assessment of the condition of their hearts.  

This week I came across some questions that John Wesley created to help people avoid this trap  and maintain a soft, responsive and growing heart before Jesus.  He penned these questions over 200 years ago, and urged that they would be considered daily.  I invite you to look over these questions and then just imagine what might transpire in your spiritual life if you took up this challenge to honestly pose them to yourself everyday.

1. Am I consciously or unconsciously creating the impression that I am better than I really am? In other words, am I a hypocrite?
2. Am I honest in all my acts and words, or do I exaggerate?
3. Do I confidentially pass on to another what was told to me in confidence?
4. Can I be trusted?
5. Am I a slave to dress, friends, work, or habits?
6. Am I self-conscious, self-pitying, or self-justifying?
7. Did the Bible live in me today?
8. Do I give it time to speak to me everyday?
9. Am I enjoying prayer?
10. When did I last speak to someone else about my faith?
11. Do I pray about the money I spend?
12. Do I get to bed on time and get up on time?
13. Do I disobey God in anything?
14. Do I insist upon doing something about which my conscience is uneasy?
15. Am I defeated in any part of my life?
16. Am I jealous, impure, critical, irritable, touchy, or distrustful?
17. How do I spend my spare time?
18. Am I proud?
19. Do I thank God that I am not as other people, especially as the Pharisees who despised the publican?
20. Is there anyone whom I fear, dislike, disown, criticize, hold a resentment toward or disregard? If so, what am I doing about it?
21. Do I grumble or complain constantly?
22. Is Christ real to me?

 

The need for firewood

I've been thinking about firewood lately.  Not the inanimate kind that is stacked neatly in a woodshed waiting to be used.  The kind that has two legs and a mind of its own.  The kind that decides for itself if it will be placed on the altar and used to maintain, and increase, the warmth and light of the fire.

We are that firewood.  We must make that decision.

Here are some of the nuggets that have contributed to this train of thought. 

• "It is useless to pray for the fire of heaven to descend when the altar is not built and the sacrifice unprepared."   Evan Roberts - Welsh Revivalist 

 

• In Leviticus, the priests are instructed that it is their responsibility to keep the fire going.
• Leviticus 6:12,13 "The fire on the altar must be kept burning; it must not go out. Every morning the priest is to add firewood and arrange the burnt offering on the fire and burn the fat of the fellowship offerings on it.  The fire must be kept burning on the altar continuously; it must not go out."
• God would light the fire (Leviticus 9:23,24) but the responsibility of keeping it going was given to man.

 

• Nehemiah 13:31 "I also made sure that the supply of wood for the altar... was brought at the proper time."
• This is one of the last recorded actions of Nehemiah, to make sure there was wood for the fire on the altar.

The point seems pretty clear for me.  I'll leave you to draw your own conclusions.  Without pushing the point too much, if I see you at prayer I'll have a pretty good idea as to the conclusion you've reached.

 

 

Obedience first, understanding second

This morning when I was preaching I noticed something in the passage we were looking at.  It wasn't the point of the sermon so I mentioned it quickly but I definitely think it bears looking at more closely. Here's the verse that stuck out to me:  

        "...That day the Spirit led him [Simeon] to the Temple. So when Mary and Joseph came to present the baby Jesus to the Lord as the law required, ²⁸ Simeon was there..." Luke 2:27,28 

On an ordinary day, full of all its normal routine and schedule, Holy Spirit prompted Simeon to go the the Temple.  There was no explanation of why he was to do this, just the nudging of God towards a certain direction.  It was only once he was there that it became clear why Holy Spirit had directed him there. (he encountered Jesus)

What I noticed in reading this was that God desires a readiness in us to obey first and understand second. Our understanding of what God is doing in our lives comes AFTER our obedience not before it.  The other way around (understanding first and then obedience) would probably be easier but definitely not require the same amount of faith.

So the challenge before me is, am I willing to interrupt the schedule and normalcy of my life to respond to a prompting of Holy Spirit without even knowing why?  It's clear from this passage that it is the person who is willing to do this who will encounter and embrace Jesus.

This will probably be a sermon at some point next year so consider this a sneak peak.

 

 

Devotional thoughts

I am reading through Nehemiah in my devotions right now.  I am really enjoying it from the perspective of seeing a leader help people step out of brokenness and oppression and into the desire of God for them.  Here's a quick recap of some of the highlights for me:

Chp 1 - How will I respond when I become aware of the needs of others?  Nehemiah welcomed the burden and went before the Lord, his brother was even more aware than he and yet did nothing. 

Chp 2 - The power of testimony.  Nehemiah tells of what God has done in his life and those around him are encouraged to take bold steps of faith. (2:18)

Chp 3 - Revival (rebuilding the walls) requires everyone.  It isn't about superstars, it is about everyone standing together and working for the same purposes.

Chp 4 - The correct posture for engaging the enemy in battle comes out of a constant awareness of God's glory. (4:14)

Chp 5 - (What I read today) If my personal rights/freedoms will harm, or put others at a disadvantage, then I must willingly yield them.

 

I pray you have a great day!  I'm headed out today with Nehemiah 4:14 ringing in my mind and reflecting on our glorious God!!

A great challenge

Here's a verse I read in my devotions this morning. I think it pretty much sums it all up:

        “Don’t be afraid of the enemy! Remember the Lord, who is great and glorious, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes!” Nehemiah 4:14

But Dad, I'm starving!

We have three children and at different points they have all come to Naomi or me with the same plea for food, '...but I'm starving....if I don't get some food I'm going to die...'.  (I'm sure that I did the same to my parents.)  They really did believe they were starving, famished, ravenous.  If a morsel of food was not to soon pass over their lips their very lives would escape them.

Each time they came with that cry I knew they were not starving.  I knew that the actual state of their hunger was greatly exaggerated.  They may have thought they were starving but they were far from it.

Those childhood moments make a point very clear to me.  It is quite easy to be self deceived about our hunger level.  I know that even in the face of those anguished declarations had I produced a Disneyland brochure their supposed hunger pangs would have immediately subsided.

This self deception and misplaced satisfaction doesn't just happen with food.

It happens with our hunger for more of Jesus.  We can fool ourselves about our actual level of hunger for more of Jesus in our lives.  The Bible gives us a litmus test for our actual hunger level 

Proverbs 27:7 says, " A person who is full refuses honey, but even bitter food tastes sweet to the hungry."

All I need to do is pause and reflect on my life and I can quickly determine the level of my hunger for Jesus.  Do I pass over, or push back from sweet opportunities to worship, linger in God's presence, take time to enjoy reading His Word (these are just a few examples).  Do I embrace the more difficult (bitter) tasks in life - sacrificing my time in service, adjusting my schedule to walk with those in pain and dysfunction, dying to myself with opinions, perspectives and communication that does not add to the unity of the Body?

With just a quick reflection I can safely conclude that I am nowhere near as hungry as I thought I was.  I am nowhere near as hungry as I want to be, and need to be. I have allowed my hunger pangs (we all have them) to be drowned out and satisfied with so many other things.  

Why don't you take the Proverbs 27:7 test and see what your true hunger level is and then respond accordingly.