Too Often

Too often I complain--oh, never out loud--that God is being silent. And there sits my closed Bible on the desk.

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Too often I think--what if people knew my thoughts and the struggles in my heart what would they think?

He knows.

He thinks--"I love you with a love that cannot cease."

That will do.

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Too often I wake up in the morning thinking, "I will never make it through this day!"

And then the Spirit who "specializes" in my weaknesses takes control.

That evening I think--"one of the best days ever."

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Too often I sit and think--imagine--what my future is going to look like--and wow! can I ever imagine. Then, I start to worry, feel stressed, even depressed. At times--do I dare admit it--angry.

And then I am reminded.
"that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate me from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus my Lord."

"This mortal will take on immortality. This corruptible will take on the incorruptible."

"And just so, shall I ever be with the Lord."

Just so. Ever.

That's my future.

It's far beyond my wildest imagination.

What do you think? Maybe I need to think about--meditate on--the future I know to be true. That might put the kibosh on that worrying, ungrateful thinking. "Whatever things are worthy of praise; think on these things."

"The sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us."

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Too often I spend so much time trying to come up with some spectacular way to say "I love you" that I miss out on all the simple but elegant opportunities I have each day to simply "say," "I love you." Couldn't be because the spectacular ways make me look good, could it? (I do love myself!)

Lord keep me simple.

To Know

My father was a man of quiet strength, unquestionable integrity, and deep commitment--to his wife, his children, his grandchildren, his friends of all ages, those he worked for--both those in authority over him and those he served, and his Savior. Perhaps a little shy--never timid. If something needed to be said or done, he said or did it as inconspicuously as possible. Often he shed tears at the singing of a hymn or the teaching of a message. He served the church in anyway asked of him from teaching to serving on a board to cleaning the building. His favorite verses were the following:
"And the witness is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son does not have the life. These things have I written unto you who believe in the name of the Son of God, in order that you may know that you have eternal life."

Never tell me that what you know does not impact the man or woman that you are becoming. My father had and lived each day "the life." The Life that he knew with confidence lived within Him.

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Jesus said, "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love one for another."

Those "anothers" are followed by a period--not a list of exceptions.

What do all men know about you?

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The Spiritual Mind:
"I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus, my Lord . . . that I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection and the participation in His sufferings, being conformed to His death"

The three evidences that I "count all things loss" and value above all else knowing Him: the power of His resurrection in my walk, joy when considered worthy to suffer for His sake, daily being conformed to His death.

"For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain."

"For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ."

"I can do all things through Him who strengthens me."

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The Principle of Ownership:
"Or do you not know that your body is a temple--a sanctuary, the holy of holies--of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own! For you have been bought with a price: therefore glory God in your body."

To know Him as your Redeemer, as the One who has purchased you--all of you--with His blood is to be intensely, personally, daily--moment by moment His living sacrifice. That is true worship.

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"And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose,"

Since you know that is true, never stop saying what you know to be true about Him, never be blinded by the momentary but trust and obey the One who makes all things beautiful in His time. Be thankful that He is the One who defines "good." No matter what; "Do good and serve others with a heart of love."

Be a Delight

Proverbs 6:16-19
"There are six things which the Lord hates, yes, seven that are an abomination to His soul:
Haughty eyes--pride, arrogance, rebellion, defiance
A lying tongue--truth twisters, betrayers, false teachers, vow breakers, blasphemers
Hands that shed innocent blood--those who take the life of the innocent of any and all ages; those who scoff at the sanctity of life
A heart that devises wicked plans--those who lie awake at night planning what evil they can do tomorrow
Feet that run rapidly to evil--they hasten in the morning to put their plots into action--find joy in their evil behavior
A false witness who utters lies--perjurers, false accusers, blame-gamers
One who spreads strife among brothers--trouble makers, gossips, creators of dissension."

God is not into subtlety.

But what then must bring delight to His soul?
Humility--those who put the needs of others above their own, servants
Truth tellers--the honest, the loyal, the vow keepers, those with integrity
Hands that protect the innocent--preservers of life,
A loving heart that rejoices in every opportunity to do good
Feet that run to do good--those that delight in righteous living
An honest witness--those who can be trusted to tell the truth regardless of what it costs them
Peacemakers--between God and men; and men and men
Be a delight to the soul of God.

All the Forms of Love He Wears

In my past:
In times of despair as deep and dark as death itself, He has wrapped my soul in the peace deeper than the darkness--He has whispered, "All will be well. All will be well."
In the times that my faith would make a mustard seed look like a mountain, He has lifted me on the wings of His faithfulness and empowered me to soar in the wildest storm.
In those times when I have in rebellion shaken my fist in His face proclaiming, "I don't care if it's sin!"--He has enclosed my fist in His nail-scarred hands and said, "I love you and I forgive you."
In lonely times--sometimes a loneliness that I did not even sense, I have been surrounded by His nearness, by a sense of His presence so real that I knew that if I would turn and look He would be there--that I would see Him. No doubt, with eyes of faith, my lonely heart has seen Him clearly.
In those times when I have peevishly exclaimed, "I told you I wasn't going to do that, no matter what!" He has smiled, given a holy shrug, taken my hand and laughing together He has led me down the path of obedience that He--and I--both knew that I would travel.
In times of physical need when all the resources I could imagine were empty, He has sent provision from an unexpected--dare, I say--least expected source--a source I didn't even know existed. "Out of My riches in glory, remember?"
Sometimes as I have uncontrollably wept--inside and out--He has put a song in my heart so powerful that it escaped my lips so that I--and those who knew me--would nod in praise--"Joy comes in the morning." More tears, too--but His joy. And a song.
In times of doubt He has often answered me with more questions so that I would finally see things as He sees them--finally see clearly the insights of my Father.
Sometimes when in prideful, arrogant, self-righteous indignation, I have longed to tell others all the wretchedness of their faults, He has closed my mouth--quieted my spirit--until I remembered "always a soft answer; always a soft answer. The fool is quick to speak; the wise quick to hear. Do you really want to play the fool today My imperfect, forgiven, beloved one?"
In times when I have been asked to speak and had no words to say--at least not words that I thought would impress them enough with all my wisdom--the Spirit has filled my lips with words from His heart instead of mine. Thus, when all was "said and done," I could only marvel, "Did I say that?" "No," He smiles, "I did."
In those times when I have stubbornly pushed at every padlocked door--more than once--He has patiently held open the one door until I was ready to submit. And then, as I walked through, He whispered, "Thank you."

In my past. And so today as I struggle with despair, loneliness, rebellion, need, sorrow, a lack of faith, pride, self-absorption, stubbornness--when I finally listen for His voice, I hear Him whisper, "All will be well. All will be well."

"O could I speak the matchless worth, O could I sound the glories forth which in my Savior shine . . . I'd sing the characters He bears, and all the forms of love He wears. . . triumphant in His grace."

"Triumphant in His grace."

Sweet

An old chorus:

Every day with Jesus is sweeter than the day before; every day with Jesus I love Him more and more; Jesus saves and keeps me, and He's the one I'm waiting for; every day with Jesus is sweeter than the day before.

And:

'Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus, just to take Him at His word, just to rest upon His promise, just to know "Thus saith the Lord. Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him, how I've proved Him o'er and o'er! Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus! O for grace to trust Him more!

And

In the sweet bye and bye we shall meet on that beautiful shore.

"Sweet!"

He Is Coming

Three characteristics of those genuinely looking for His coming:

One. Holy conduct and godliness--a conduct that separates us from the pursuits of the world. This is not something I need to try to do--if I am living a life of obedience to His Word, my conduct will set me apart from the world. And, of course, the reason I do so is because I am motivated by the fear of the Lord--by godliness. My heart's desire is to never grieve or hurt or disappoint the loving heart of my Savior who willingly sacrificed so much for me. He is the one I desire to please.

Two. "Diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless, taking advantage of His patience." Peace comes when I "in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving" make my requests known to Him. Spotless results from a hatred of the sin in my life--it only takes one spot. How do I know if I hate the sin in my life? Is confession my eager response to the Holy Spirit's prodding? Blamelessness results from an eagerness to meet the needs of the poor, the orphan, and the widow. What does it mean to take advantage of His patience? He patiently "delays" His return because He is not willing that any should perish. Am I a seeker of the lost?

Three. On guard so that "unprincipled men" who "distort" the Scripture do not undermine my commitment to holy conduct and godliness, my commitment to prayer and to living a spotless and blameless life, and my commitment to act on His heart's desire that all come to repentance.
Am I really looking for His return? Or you?

Be Holy.
Be Diligent.
Be on Guard.

He is coming.

Hope

Peter reminds us that our hope is a living--energizing hope. The inheritance that it represents is imperishable--eternal; undefiled--eternally pure; will never fade away--eternally undiminished; and reserved in Heaven for you--not by you--and thus, eternally secure. Our Father, omnipotent and immutable, is its Protector and Guarantor. Such a life infusing hope is necessary because in the present tense we face many trials. Trials of our faith. Those trials are always need based--"if necessary." They are never random. God doesn't allow trails in our life because He has nothing better to do. He has a purpose behind each one. And though those trials are different for each of us, the purpose is the same. To show that our faith is genuine, to refine us into His gold to be spent for the furtherance of His kingdom, and to bring praise and glory to His Name--to make the invisible God undeniably "visible" to those He has placed in our lives--even if in some cases that's only for a moment. As we respond to our trials spontaneously--genuinely--just as He responded to His, and as those responses transform us more and more into His likeness, we become the evidence of His mercy, love, and resurrection power. The world will say of us--"They have been with Jesus."

"Hope thou in God"