무릇 징계가 당시에는 즐거워 보이지 않고 슬퍼 보이나 그로 말미암아 연단한 자에게는의의 평강한 열매를 맺나니. (히 12:11)
No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. (Hebrews 12:11)
O break my heart; but break it as a field
Is by the plough up-broken for the corn;
O break it as the buds, by green leaf seated,
Are, to unloose the golden blossom, torn;
Love would I offer unto Love's great Master,
Set free the odor, break the alabaster.
(Thomas Toke Bunch)
I've believed a lie. So subtly that Enemy crept up and quietly suggested that I am alone; that even God, who knows and loves me best, has little concern for how I feel or what I want. Oh, foolish that I believed it, but I did! Though my mind struggled against it, I kept it in my heart. The truth is, I am never alone! There is One who always sits with me, walks beside me, works along with me. He is Jesus. He is always with me, and I am never alone.
Sometimes God's discipline is hard, but let us take care to remember that it is never harsh. He is gentle, with a heart that is the origin of the ideas of "father" and "mother". Though He disciplines, he is tender-hearted. He not only pities us - he created us and loves us and seeks our good and our joy. Who taught us that love delights to give? Make no mistake - our God is kind.
Friday, November 16, 2007
Thursday, October 18, 2007
The Final Lesson
I HAVE sought beauty through the dust of strife,
I have sought meaning for the ancient ache,
And music in the grinding wheels of life;
Long have I sought, and little found as yet
Beyond this truth: that Love alone can make
Earth beautiful, and life without regret!
(by Arthur Stringer)
I have sought meaning for the ancient ache,
And music in the grinding wheels of life;
Long have I sought, and little found as yet
Beyond this truth: that Love alone can make
Earth beautiful, and life without regret!
(by Arthur Stringer)
Saturday, October 13, 2007
"Our Great God"-Storm
(song by Fernando Ortega and Mac Powell)
Eternal God, unchanging, mysterious and unknown.
Your boundless love unfailing, in grace and mercy shown.
Bright seraphim in endless flight around your glorious throne.
They raise their voices day and night in praise to you alone.
Chorus:
Hallelujah! Glory be to our great God! (x2)
Lord, we are weak and frail, helpless in the storm.
Surround us with your angels, hold us in your arms.
Our cold and ruthless enemy, his pleasure is our harm.
Rise up, oh Lord, and he will flee before our Sovereign God.
Let every creature in the sea and every flying bird;
Let every mountain, every field and valley of the earth;
Let all the moons and all the stars in all the universe
Sing praises to the living God, who rules them by His word.
Eternal God, unchanging, mysterious and unknown.
Your boundless love unfailing, in grace and mercy shown.
Bright seraphim in endless flight around your glorious throne.
They raise their voices day and night in praise to you alone.
Chorus:
Hallelujah! Glory be to our great God! (x2)
Lord, we are weak and frail, helpless in the storm.
Surround us with your angels, hold us in your arms.
Our cold and ruthless enemy, his pleasure is our harm.
Rise up, oh Lord, and he will flee before our Sovereign God.
Let every creature in the sea and every flying bird;
Let every mountain, every field and valley of the earth;
Let all the moons and all the stars in all the universe
Sing praises to the living God, who rules them by His word.
Monday, October 1, 2007
Random Internet Gems
Found a surprising number of treasures strewn about the World Wide Web today, and thought I'd share:
From some thoughts (for his glory and our joy):
“It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses, to remember that the dullest and most uninteresting person you talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship, or else a horror and a corruption such as you now meet, if at all, only in a nightmare. All day long we are, in some degree, helping each other to one or other of these destinations. It is in the light of these overwhelming possibilities, it is with the awe and the circumspection proper to them, that we should conduct all our dealings with one another, all friendships, all loves, all play, all politics. There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilization—these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of gnat. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploitexploit—immortal horrors or everlasting splendours. This does not mean that we are to be perpetually solemn. We must play. But our merriment must be of that kind (and it is, in fact, the merriest kind) which exists between people who have, from the outset, taken each other seriously—no flippancy, no superiority, no presumption. And our charity must be a real and costly love, with deep feeling for the sins in spite of which we love the sinner—no mere tolerance or indulgence which parodies love as flippancy parodies merriment.”
(From The Weight of Glory, available here.)
From bjk at In The Quiet:
"What is REAL?” asked the Rabbit one day, when they were lying side by side near the nursery fender, before Nana came to tidy the room. “Does it mean having things that buzz inside you and a stick-out handle?”
“Real isn’t how you are made,” said the Skin Horse. “It’s a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real.”
“Does it hurt?” asked the Rabbit.
“Sometimes,” said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. “When you are Real you don’t mind being hurt.”
“Does it happen all at once, like being wound up,” he asked, “or bit by bit?”
“It doesn’t happen all at once,” said the Skin Horse. “You become. It takes a long time. That’s why it doesn’t happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in your joints and very shabby. But these things don’t matter at all, because once you are Real you can’t be ugly, except to people who don’t understand.”
From Whispering Word:
So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, The crawling locust, The consuming locust, And the chewing locust,…. Joel 2:25
From Artistic Theologue:
Jim Elliot used to love to quote the Gold Rush era poet Robert Service. This excerpt from Service’s “The Call Of The Wild“–which Elliot loved–tells us that God is calling us to something, Someone far greater than the religious status quo will settle for:
“They have cradled you in custom, they have primed you with their preaching,
They have soaked you in convention through and through;
They have put you in a showcase; you’re a credit to their teaching –
But can’t you hear the Wild? — it’s calling you.
Let us probe the silent places, let us seek what luck betide us;
Let us journey to a lonely land I know.
There’s a whisper on the night-wind, there’s a star agleam to guide us,
And the Wild is calling, calling. . .let us go.”
We serve a God who calls to the wild in us. He’s a lion. And as C.S. Lewis wrote of Him–typified by Aslan in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe–“Safe? ‘Course He’s not safe. But He’s good.” This wild to which the Lion of Judah calls us is not the wildness of living fast and loose. Not the wildness of an undisciplined and reprehensible life. But the wildness of living wholly and obediently within the full character of God–His love and His holiness; His goodness and severity; His mercy and His judgement; His kindness and His wrath. Our God is holy. He is to be feared and had in reverence by His people. Only a God like that is worthy of our worship and obedience. A “God” who simply speaks of soft, easy, smooth, fun and enjoyable things is not the God we find in the pages of scripture. A.W. Tozer used to say that God always acts like Himself. This Wild One is calling you today to join Him in that wild, sometimes barren and unpredictable place where He is….
From some thoughts (for his glory and our joy):
“It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses, to remember that the dullest and most uninteresting person you talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship, or else a horror and a corruption such as you now meet, if at all, only in a nightmare. All day long we are, in some degree, helping each other to one or other of these destinations. It is in the light of these overwhelming possibilities, it is with the awe and the circumspection proper to them, that we should conduct all our dealings with one another, all friendships, all loves, all play, all politics. There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilization—these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of gnat. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploitexploit—immortal horrors or everlasting splendours. This does not mean that we are to be perpetually solemn. We must play. But our merriment must be of that kind (and it is, in fact, the merriest kind) which exists between people who have, from the outset, taken each other seriously—no flippancy, no superiority, no presumption. And our charity must be a real and costly love, with deep feeling for the sins in spite of which we love the sinner—no mere tolerance or indulgence which parodies love as flippancy parodies merriment.”
(From The Weight of Glory, available here.)
From bjk at In The Quiet:
"What is REAL?” asked the Rabbit one day, when they were lying side by side near the nursery fender, before Nana came to tidy the room. “Does it mean having things that buzz inside you and a stick-out handle?”
“Real isn’t how you are made,” said the Skin Horse. “It’s a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real.”
“Does it hurt?” asked the Rabbit.
“Sometimes,” said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. “When you are Real you don’t mind being hurt.”
“Does it happen all at once, like being wound up,” he asked, “or bit by bit?”
“It doesn’t happen all at once,” said the Skin Horse. “You become. It takes a long time. That’s why it doesn’t happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in your joints and very shabby. But these things don’t matter at all, because once you are Real you can’t be ugly, except to people who don’t understand.”
From Whispering Word:
So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, The crawling locust, The consuming locust, And the chewing locust,…. Joel 2:25
From Artistic Theologue:
Jim Elliot used to love to quote the Gold Rush era poet Robert Service. This excerpt from Service’s “The Call Of The Wild“–which Elliot loved–tells us that God is calling us to something, Someone far greater than the religious status quo will settle for:
“They have cradled you in custom, they have primed you with their preaching,
They have soaked you in convention through and through;
They have put you in a showcase; you’re a credit to their teaching –
But can’t you hear the Wild? — it’s calling you.
Let us probe the silent places, let us seek what luck betide us;
Let us journey to a lonely land I know.
There’s a whisper on the night-wind, there’s a star agleam to guide us,
And the Wild is calling, calling. . .let us go.”
We serve a God who calls to the wild in us. He’s a lion. And as C.S. Lewis wrote of Him–typified by Aslan in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe–“Safe? ‘Course He’s not safe. But He’s good.” This wild to which the Lion of Judah calls us is not the wildness of living fast and loose. Not the wildness of an undisciplined and reprehensible life. But the wildness of living wholly and obediently within the full character of God–His love and His holiness; His goodness and severity; His mercy and His judgement; His kindness and His wrath. Our God is holy. He is to be feared and had in reverence by His people. Only a God like that is worthy of our worship and obedience. A “God” who simply speaks of soft, easy, smooth, fun and enjoyable things is not the God we find in the pages of scripture. A.W. Tozer used to say that God always acts like Himself. This Wild One is calling you today to join Him in that wild, sometimes barren and unpredictable place where He is….
Saturday, September 1, 2007
I have had Thee - !
Thou wast alone through Thy redemption-vigil,
Thy friends had fled;
The angel at the garden from Thee parted,
And solitude instead
More than the scourge, or cross, O tender-hearted,
Under the crown of thorns bowed down
Thy head.
But I, amid the torture, and the taunting,
I have had Thee!
Thy hand was holding my hand fast and faster,
Thy voice was close to me
And glorious eyes said,"Follow Me, Thy Master,
Smile as I smile thy faithfulness to see."
H.E. Hamilton King
O, lovely Lord Jesus! He is the One that I need. Other things, and other people, attract me, but the lustre of all else fades and fails. But Jesus - he never fails! I am never tired of him. He is always beautiful, always deep and clean and vast and dear. He alone fills all the longing of my heart. He alone is complete, and makes me complete.
When I am alone in the core of my heart, he is there.
Thy friends had fled;
The angel at the garden from Thee parted,
And solitude instead
More than the scourge, or cross, O tender-hearted,
Under the crown of thorns bowed down
Thy head.
But I, amid the torture, and the taunting,
I have had Thee!
Thy hand was holding my hand fast and faster,
Thy voice was close to me
And glorious eyes said,"Follow Me, Thy Master,
Smile as I smile thy faithfulness to see."
H.E. Hamilton King
O, lovely Lord Jesus! He is the One that I need. Other things, and other people, attract me, but the lustre of all else fades and fails. But Jesus - he never fails! I am never tired of him. He is always beautiful, always deep and clean and vast and dear. He alone fills all the longing of my heart. He alone is complete, and makes me complete.
When I am alone in the core of my heart, he is there.
Friday, August 24, 2007
The Spiritual and the Secular
The following is from a blog I stumbled across today and liked:
http://home.earthlink.net/~jbakke/2004_03_01_archive.html
Benedictine everyday life
Currently, the readings from Sister Joan Chittister's commentary on the Rule of St Benedict discuss household management. The reading and commentary for March 10 are as follows:
The goods of the monastery, that is, its tools, clothing or anything else, should be entrusted to members whom the prioress or abbot appoints and in whose manner of life they have confidence. The abbot or prioress will, as they see fit, issue to them the various articles to be cared for and collected after use. The prioress and abbot will maintain a list of these, so that when the members succeed one another in their assigned tasks, they may be aware of what they hand out and what they receive back.
Whoever fails to keep the things belonging to the monastery clean or treats them carelessly should be reproved. If they do not amend, let them be subjected to the discipline of the rule.
To those who think for a moment that the spiritual life is an excuse to ignore the things of the world, to go through time suspended above the mundane, to lurch from place to place with a balmy head and a saccharine smile on the face, let this chapter be fair warning. Benedictine spirituality is as much about good order, wise management and housecleaning as it is about the meditative and the immaterial dimensions of life. Benedictine spirituality sees the care of the earth, and the integration of prayer and work, body and soul, as essential parts of the journey to wholeness that answers the emptiness in each of us.
These words are so easy to write—even easier to cut-and-paste!—yet so difficult for me to live out.
http://home.earthlink.net/~jbakke/2004_03_01_archive.html
Benedictine everyday life
Currently, the readings from Sister Joan Chittister's commentary on the Rule of St Benedict discuss household management. The reading and commentary for March 10 are as follows:
The goods of the monastery, that is, its tools, clothing or anything else, should be entrusted to members whom the prioress or abbot appoints and in whose manner of life they have confidence. The abbot or prioress will, as they see fit, issue to them the various articles to be cared for and collected after use. The prioress and abbot will maintain a list of these, so that when the members succeed one another in their assigned tasks, they may be aware of what they hand out and what they receive back.
Whoever fails to keep the things belonging to the monastery clean or treats them carelessly should be reproved. If they do not amend, let them be subjected to the discipline of the rule.
To those who think for a moment that the spiritual life is an excuse to ignore the things of the world, to go through time suspended above the mundane, to lurch from place to place with a balmy head and a saccharine smile on the face, let this chapter be fair warning. Benedictine spirituality is as much about good order, wise management and housecleaning as it is about the meditative and the immaterial dimensions of life. Benedictine spirituality sees the care of the earth, and the integration of prayer and work, body and soul, as essential parts of the journey to wholeness that answers the emptiness in each of us.
These words are so easy to write—even easier to cut-and-paste!—yet so difficult for me to live out.
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Counting the Cost
Anyone who considers following the Lord Jesus must first face one difficult thing: our universe is currently embroiled in an invisible but deadly battle, in which Jesus is centre. Following after him will eventually lead you and me directly into the fray. Though we cannot affect the outcome of the fight - it was decided on the cross - it can affect us. We cannot follow one who laid down his life and expect to keep our own.
This is a fact that became all too real for 23 South Korean missionaries in Afghanistan this week. They were members of a medical missions team whose bus was stopped and taken hostage by the Taliban. One of them, a pastor, was shot in the head. How many of that team sat down and calculated how much they'd be willing to risk? When it comes to that, how many of us has spent time considering how much is too much? When the enemy comes to us, and demands our life and the things we love in exchange for the glory we seek to offer our God, will we be willing to pay the price? How far will we go to avoid such an expense?
The Korean captives are going to take a lot of flak if they do make it home. Their situation has created a huge backlash against the Christian community in their home country. The world is tired of having to babysit those who play at "trusting God" but go crying to governments and political groups when things turn sour. I have no right to say that they haven't counted the cost - but have I counted it?
When I am struck a blow from the enemy, will I come running home in tears? Oh, to so discipline myself that when my life hangs on the line, I will be able to stay the urge to seek rescue from political forces and human constructs! Oh, to have so exercised my spirit that I will be empowered to quietly gather up the trappings of my life, along with national rights and privileges, to lay upon the altar of Love! God grant that I may turn my back on all that is mine; that I may remain unmoved by the shrieks and groans of squirming self when the sword is held to my throat; that, in the face of the Enemy of souls, there may for me be no resorting to any lesser refuge than the Everlasting Arms.
Great crowds were following him. He turned around and addressed them as follows:
'Anyone who wants to be my follower must love me far more than he does his own father, mother, wife, children, brothers, or sisters - yes, more than his own life - otherwise he cannot be my disciple. And no one can be my disciple who does not carry his own cross and follow me.
But don't begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first getting estimates and then checking to see if he has enough money to pay the bills? Otherwise he might complete only the foundation before running out of funds. And then how everyone would laugh!
'See that fellow there?' they would mock. 'He started that building and then ran out of money before it was finished!'
Or what king would ever dream of going to war without first sitting down with his counsellors and discussing whether his army of 10,000 is strong enough to defeat the 20,000 men who are marching against him?
If the decision is negative, then while the enemy troops are still far away, he will send a truce team to discuss terms of peace. So no one can become my disciple unless he first sits down and counts his blessings - and then renounces them all for me.
What good is salt that has lost its saltiness? Flavorless salt is good for nothing - not even for fertilizer. It is worthless and must be thrown out. Listen well, if you would understand my meaning.
- Luke 14:25-34 (The Living Bible)
Great crowds were following Jesus. They went where he went; were awed by his miracles; admired his wisdom; hung on to his every word.
He is just as popular today. But what of it? The great mega-churches, the Christian magazines and concerts and faith-based governmental initiatives - what are they to him?
He knows that disciples are not simply those who follow - rather, they are people who have thought, considered, looked hard at life, and made a conscious decision.
Jesus never says, "Come with me, it's gonna be great. We'll have lots of fellowship, and we can sing great worship songs together as we go..."
Instead, he says, "You wanna follow me? Here's what it's going to cost: everything."
We have made Christianity another lifestyle choice; a political party. We've dumbed-down God's requirements to suit personalities and political leanings. The ten commandments and the tithe have become our "company policy". Jesus goes WAY beyond that. You think it's enough for him that you go to church, you're straight, and you don't get smashed on the weekends? Ha. Jesus says, "Pick up your cross or go home."
Christianity is not the social club we've presented it as. Even if you never leave the comfort of your own country, it's a high stakes game - far too dangerous for those who want a cause to espouse, a sympathetic community to participate in, a spiritual insurance program. You can get hurt if you go wandering about a battlefield. Will you give the world a reason to mock God? Will I?
As Jim Elliot says, we have "bargained for a cross". We ought to think it through.
This is a fact that became all too real for 23 South Korean missionaries in Afghanistan this week. They were members of a medical missions team whose bus was stopped and taken hostage by the Taliban. One of them, a pastor, was shot in the head. How many of that team sat down and calculated how much they'd be willing to risk? When it comes to that, how many of us has spent time considering how much is too much? When the enemy comes to us, and demands our life and the things we love in exchange for the glory we seek to offer our God, will we be willing to pay the price? How far will we go to avoid such an expense?
The Korean captives are going to take a lot of flak if they do make it home. Their situation has created a huge backlash against the Christian community in their home country. The world is tired of having to babysit those who play at "trusting God" but go crying to governments and political groups when things turn sour. I have no right to say that they haven't counted the cost - but have I counted it?
When I am struck a blow from the enemy, will I come running home in tears? Oh, to so discipline myself that when my life hangs on the line, I will be able to stay the urge to seek rescue from political forces and human constructs! Oh, to have so exercised my spirit that I will be empowered to quietly gather up the trappings of my life, along with national rights and privileges, to lay upon the altar of Love! God grant that I may turn my back on all that is mine; that I may remain unmoved by the shrieks and groans of squirming self when the sword is held to my throat; that, in the face of the Enemy of souls, there may for me be no resorting to any lesser refuge than the Everlasting Arms.
Great crowds were following him. He turned around and addressed them as follows:
'Anyone who wants to be my follower must love me far more than he does his own father, mother, wife, children, brothers, or sisters - yes, more than his own life - otherwise he cannot be my disciple. And no one can be my disciple who does not carry his own cross and follow me.
But don't begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first getting estimates and then checking to see if he has enough money to pay the bills? Otherwise he might complete only the foundation before running out of funds. And then how everyone would laugh!
'See that fellow there?' they would mock. 'He started that building and then ran out of money before it was finished!'
Or what king would ever dream of going to war without first sitting down with his counsellors and discussing whether his army of 10,000 is strong enough to defeat the 20,000 men who are marching against him?
If the decision is negative, then while the enemy troops are still far away, he will send a truce team to discuss terms of peace. So no one can become my disciple unless he first sits down and counts his blessings - and then renounces them all for me.
What good is salt that has lost its saltiness? Flavorless salt is good for nothing - not even for fertilizer. It is worthless and must be thrown out. Listen well, if you would understand my meaning.
- Luke 14:25-34 (The Living Bible)
Great crowds were following Jesus. They went where he went; were awed by his miracles; admired his wisdom; hung on to his every word.
He is just as popular today. But what of it? The great mega-churches, the Christian magazines and concerts and faith-based governmental initiatives - what are they to him?
He knows that disciples are not simply those who follow - rather, they are people who have thought, considered, looked hard at life, and made a conscious decision.
Jesus never says, "Come with me, it's gonna be great. We'll have lots of fellowship, and we can sing great worship songs together as we go..."
Instead, he says, "You wanna follow me? Here's what it's going to cost: everything."
We have made Christianity another lifestyle choice; a political party. We've dumbed-down God's requirements to suit personalities and political leanings. The ten commandments and the tithe have become our "company policy". Jesus goes WAY beyond that. You think it's enough for him that you go to church, you're straight, and you don't get smashed on the weekends? Ha. Jesus says, "Pick up your cross or go home."
Christianity is not the social club we've presented it as. Even if you never leave the comfort of your own country, it's a high stakes game - far too dangerous for those who want a cause to espouse, a sympathetic community to participate in, a spiritual insurance program. You can get hurt if you go wandering about a battlefield. Will you give the world a reason to mock God? Will I?
As Jim Elliot says, we have "bargained for a cross". We ought to think it through.
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Prayer: poem and a pondering...
I prayed for strength, and then I lost awhile
All sense of nearness, human and divine;
The love I leaned on failed and pierced my heart,
The hands I clung to loosed themselves from mine;
But while I swayed, weak, trembling, and alone,
The Everlasting Arms upheld my own.
I prayed for light; the sun went down in clouds,
The moon was darkened by a misty doubt,
The stars of heaven were dimmed by earthly fears,
And all my little candle flames burned out;
But while I sat in shadow, wrapped in night,
The face of Christ made all the darkness bright.
I prayed for peace, and dreamed of restful ease,
A slumber free from pain, a hushed repose;
Above my head the skies were black with storm,
And fiercer grew the onslaught of my foes;
But while the battle raged, and wild winds blew,
I heard His voice and perfect peace I knew.
I thank you, Lord, you were too wise to heed
My feeble prayers, and answer as I sought,
Since these rich gifts your bounty has bestowed
Have brought me more than all I asked or thought;
Giver of Good, so answer each request
With your own giving, better than my best.
- Annie Johnson Flint
When the Lord Jesus prayed in HIS agony, alone in that dark garden, he voiced the longing of his heart - "if there be any other way...". But he didn't leave it there. He bowed himself to the God of all, saying, "Nevertheless, not my will but yours".
Oh, the release in being able to do more than simply wish and hope - the rising freedom in being able to say, "Even so, father, for so it seemed good in your sight."
I, too, have tasted bitter and sweet from the hand of Yahweh. Let all who hear me know that end of the bitter is a lasting sweet. I will thank him for my bitterness! He is altogether lovely.
O Lord my God, I called to you for help and you healed me.
You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing to you and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give you thanks forever.
(Psalm 30:2,11)
All sense of nearness, human and divine;
The love I leaned on failed and pierced my heart,
The hands I clung to loosed themselves from mine;
But while I swayed, weak, trembling, and alone,
The Everlasting Arms upheld my own.
I prayed for light; the sun went down in clouds,
The moon was darkened by a misty doubt,
The stars of heaven were dimmed by earthly fears,
And all my little candle flames burned out;
But while I sat in shadow, wrapped in night,
The face of Christ made all the darkness bright.
I prayed for peace, and dreamed of restful ease,
A slumber free from pain, a hushed repose;
Above my head the skies were black with storm,
And fiercer grew the onslaught of my foes;
But while the battle raged, and wild winds blew,
I heard His voice and perfect peace I knew.
I thank you, Lord, you were too wise to heed
My feeble prayers, and answer as I sought,
Since these rich gifts your bounty has bestowed
Have brought me more than all I asked or thought;
Giver of Good, so answer each request
With your own giving, better than my best.
- Annie Johnson Flint
When the Lord Jesus prayed in HIS agony, alone in that dark garden, he voiced the longing of his heart - "if there be any other way...". But he didn't leave it there. He bowed himself to the God of all, saying, "Nevertheless, not my will but yours".
Oh, the release in being able to do more than simply wish and hope - the rising freedom in being able to say, "Even so, father, for so it seemed good in your sight."
I, too, have tasted bitter and sweet from the hand of Yahweh. Let all who hear me know that end of the bitter is a lasting sweet. I will thank him for my bitterness! He is altogether lovely.
O Lord my God, I called to you for help and you healed me.
You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing to you and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give you thanks forever.
(Psalm 30:2,11)
Sunday, June 10, 2007
The View
I'm weary. From where I sit, all the good that I can see is obscured by mud and mess and piled up garbage. Nope, it's not my house that's a wreck - it's me. Ever had a good, hard look at yourself without the screen you like to hold over your failures, without the explanations you like to make for your messiness? Ugh. What a view!
It's times like this that fill me with gratitude for the Lord Jesus. There is no darkness, no mess, nothing ugly or rotten or selfish in him! He is lovely all the way through. He is pure and deep and dear. When I am tired of looking at my lazy, messy self, then God says to me in my heart of hearts, "Rest your eyes. Look at my Son. I can't see your failure from heaven - Jesus is all the scenery here." And I can breathe again.
Oh, how thankful I am for him! He will never let me down the way I let myself down. There are no lists of things undone, no memories of foolish things said, no small-minded worries, in him.
I'm tired of the view inside. I need a look at Calvary's man.
It's times like this that fill me with gratitude for the Lord Jesus. There is no darkness, no mess, nothing ugly or rotten or selfish in him! He is lovely all the way through. He is pure and deep and dear. When I am tired of looking at my lazy, messy self, then God says to me in my heart of hearts, "Rest your eyes. Look at my Son. I can't see your failure from heaven - Jesus is all the scenery here." And I can breathe again.
Oh, how thankful I am for him! He will never let me down the way I let myself down. There are no lists of things undone, no memories of foolish things said, no small-minded worries, in him.
I'm tired of the view inside. I need a look at Calvary's man.
Sunday, May 27, 2007
Dispensationalism and Its Relevance: A New and Living Way
I've been picking up the mail for Mom and Dad since they've been in Nova Scotia, so one thing I've been inheriting is Dad's copy of "Israel My Glory", a publication of Friends
of Israel.
Wow. This magazine has impressed me so much. I like to read, a lot, but seldom have I read modern writing like this. One thing that postmodernism has done to our society's writings is to splinter thought. That is, topics are almost always divided into micro-topics; interest groups are divided even further. Another thing modernism did, and postmodernism has flown with, is make humanity the centre of everything. It hardly ever occurs to us anymore to consider anything except in the way that it concerns us. Rarely do we even contemplate that anything in our world, even our imagination, might have a focus that is other than US! Hence, "Christian" writings comprise a "Christian" viewpoint on, for instance, politics; family; personal interests; career. We tend to read the Bible as a "history of me", and an explanation of "God's dealings with me". The fact that God cares for me has become THE grand idea of our Book of books. Because of our ego-centric focus on God's usefulness for humanity rather than God's character and ultimate purpose in creation, our generation is serious when they ask questions about the Bible's failure to deal with humanitarian issues like slavery. It has led to the idea, now so widespread in the Christian community, that the entire universe was created 6000 years ago, with us as the centre and the purpose. We as Christians end up mixing Old and New Testament approaches in our theology, and too often this results in the goal of our lives being righteousness alone.
"Israel My Glory" makes an excellent argument for a whole new view of God.
It clearly and concisely outlines the idea behind dispensationalism, which is really just a way of looking at the history of God's dealings with humankind as a series of themes - an object lesson, if you will, for heavenly beings. Dispensationalism is not a new idea, but an old one, and one that is supported both by the text and the context of the Bible, but the view that it gives of God has generally been lost in the shuffle betwixt and between doctrinal arguments for pre-millenial and post-millenial raptures. I believe, gentlemen, that we have thoroughly missed the point.
Dispensational Timetable (a quick run-down):
Innocence
From the restored earth (Genesis 1:28)...
To the fall of Adam (Genesis 3:6).
Goal of humans as stewards of the earth:
-to glorify God by governing the earth in worshipful submission to and fellowship with God
Conscience
From the fall (Genesis 3:7)...
To the flood (Genesis 8:14).
Goal of humans as stewards of the earth:
-to glorify God by walking before God with a clear conscience
Human Government
From the Flood (Genesis 8:15)...
To the call of Abraham (Genesis 11:32).
Goal of humans as stewards of the earth:
-to glorify God by governing one another with a view to promoting God's righteousness
Promise
From the call of Abraham (Genesis 12:1)...
To the giving of the Law (Exodus 18:27).
Goal of humans as stewards of the earth:
-to glorify God by living by faith in God's promises to the Patriarchs
The Law
From the giving of the Law (Exodus 19:4-24)...
To the Cross (John 19:30).
Goal of humans as stewards of the earth:
-to glorify God by living in conformity to the Law
Grace or Church
From the Cross (Acts 2:1; Ephesians 3:2-7)...
To the return of Christ for His Church (1 Thess. 4:17)
Goal of humans as stewards of the earth:
-to glorify God by walking under the control of the Holy Spirit
The Kingdom
From the return of Christ for His Church (Rev. 19:11-20:4)...
To the new heaven and earth (Rev. 21 & 22)
Goal of humans as stewards of the earth:
-to glorify God by living in New Testament harmony with the risen, glorified King
Dispensationalism answers this question: Righteousness was good enough for Abraham - why not for us?
My friends, Abraham had no Christ. He had no in-dwelling Holy Spirit. Far, far more is required from us, because we have been given so much more. God doesn't ask us to be righteous only. He asks us to be led daily by his Spirit. This requires thought as well as obedience. We are not asked to live by the law - but by love. Think that's easier? Try it sometime! It is only possible through the Spirit! We are not asked merely to abstain from satisfying the flesh - rather, we are to fill ourselves with Christ, to drink from him deeply and be filled, so that the cries of the flesh do not move us. The will-power given by their faith was enough for the patriarchs - it will never be enough for us. We must be daily led and fed by the indwelling Spirit of God, or we fail in our particular mission on this earth.
Even the world is sick of our paltry attempts at "righteousness". How are we to teach angels, if we cannot even demonstrate to our peers who the Christ of God is that has lifted us out of sin and given us heavenly standing?
Keeping ourselves from drunken parties is a poor goal for one for whom Christ died. We were meant for so much more. We are offered so much more. Let us lift our sights and drink deeply from the unique blessings that God has given our generation. Let us show who God is in a world hungry for mercy and love mingled with truth. These couldn't be in under the old covenant. They exist ONLY in Jesus Christ.
Let us remember again who God is, and who we are to show him to be in THIS generation.
of Israel.
Wow. This magazine has impressed me so much. I like to read, a lot, but seldom have I read modern writing like this. One thing that postmodernism has done to our society's writings is to splinter thought. That is, topics are almost always divided into micro-topics; interest groups are divided even further. Another thing modernism did, and postmodernism has flown with, is make humanity the centre of everything. It hardly ever occurs to us anymore to consider anything except in the way that it concerns us. Rarely do we even contemplate that anything in our world, even our imagination, might have a focus that is other than US! Hence, "Christian" writings comprise a "Christian" viewpoint on, for instance, politics; family; personal interests; career. We tend to read the Bible as a "history of me", and an explanation of "God's dealings with me". The fact that God cares for me has become THE grand idea of our Book of books. Because of our ego-centric focus on God's usefulness for humanity rather than God's character and ultimate purpose in creation, our generation is serious when they ask questions about the Bible's failure to deal with humanitarian issues like slavery. It has led to the idea, now so widespread in the Christian community, that the entire universe was created 6000 years ago, with us as the centre and the purpose. We as Christians end up mixing Old and New Testament approaches in our theology, and too often this results in the goal of our lives being righteousness alone.
"Israel My Glory" makes an excellent argument for a whole new view of God.
It clearly and concisely outlines the idea behind dispensationalism, which is really just a way of looking at the history of God's dealings with humankind as a series of themes - an object lesson, if you will, for heavenly beings. Dispensationalism is not a new idea, but an old one, and one that is supported both by the text and the context of the Bible, but the view that it gives of God has generally been lost in the shuffle betwixt and between doctrinal arguments for pre-millenial and post-millenial raptures. I believe, gentlemen, that we have thoroughly missed the point.
Dispensational Timetable (a quick run-down):
Innocence
From the restored earth (Genesis 1:28)...
To the fall of Adam (Genesis 3:6).
Goal of humans as stewards of the earth:
-to glorify God by governing the earth in worshipful submission to and fellowship with God
Conscience
From the fall (Genesis 3:7)...
To the flood (Genesis 8:14).
Goal of humans as stewards of the earth:
-to glorify God by walking before God with a clear conscience
Human Government
From the Flood (Genesis 8:15)...
To the call of Abraham (Genesis 11:32).
Goal of humans as stewards of the earth:
-to glorify God by governing one another with a view to promoting God's righteousness
Promise
From the call of Abraham (Genesis 12:1)...
To the giving of the Law (Exodus 18:27).
Goal of humans as stewards of the earth:
-to glorify God by living by faith in God's promises to the Patriarchs
The Law
From the giving of the Law (Exodus 19:4-24)...
To the Cross (John 19:30).
Goal of humans as stewards of the earth:
-to glorify God by living in conformity to the Law
Grace or Church
From the Cross (Acts 2:1; Ephesians 3:2-7)...
To the return of Christ for His Church (1 Thess. 4:17)
Goal of humans as stewards of the earth:
-to glorify God by walking under the control of the Holy Spirit
The Kingdom
From the return of Christ for His Church (Rev. 19:11-20:4)...
To the new heaven and earth (Rev. 21 & 22)
Goal of humans as stewards of the earth:
-to glorify God by living in New Testament harmony with the risen, glorified King
Dispensationalism answers this question: Righteousness was good enough for Abraham - why not for us?
My friends, Abraham had no Christ. He had no in-dwelling Holy Spirit. Far, far more is required from us, because we have been given so much more. God doesn't ask us to be righteous only. He asks us to be led daily by his Spirit. This requires thought as well as obedience. We are not asked to live by the law - but by love. Think that's easier? Try it sometime! It is only possible through the Spirit! We are not asked merely to abstain from satisfying the flesh - rather, we are to fill ourselves with Christ, to drink from him deeply and be filled, so that the cries of the flesh do not move us. The will-power given by their faith was enough for the patriarchs - it will never be enough for us. We must be daily led and fed by the indwelling Spirit of God, or we fail in our particular mission on this earth.
Even the world is sick of our paltry attempts at "righteousness". How are we to teach angels, if we cannot even demonstrate to our peers who the Christ of God is that has lifted us out of sin and given us heavenly standing?
Keeping ourselves from drunken parties is a poor goal for one for whom Christ died. We were meant for so much more. We are offered so much more. Let us lift our sights and drink deeply from the unique blessings that God has given our generation. Let us show who God is in a world hungry for mercy and love mingled with truth. These couldn't be in under the old covenant. They exist ONLY in Jesus Christ.
Let us remember again who God is, and who we are to show him to be in THIS generation.
Jenny's gift, and my "pleasant stones"
O, thou afflicted, tossed with tempest, and not comforted, Behold, I will lay thy stones with fair colours, and lay thy foundations with sapphires, and I will make thy windows of agates, and thy gates of carbuncles, and all thy borders of pleasant stones. Isaiah 54:11-12
Last week as I was frantically setting up chairs for the Korean/English kids club I coach(?) teach(?), (frantically because I was in the middle of telling a story, but one little girl saw a spider on the floor and started off a squealing chain of excited little arachnophobes, forcing me to get them off the floor before finishing the story…) a little girl named Jenny brought me a little blue box with a bow - the kind you get when you buy jewellery from a schnazz store. She stood tippy-toe and whispered, “for you, teacher.”
Lucky for me, it is impolite in Korean culture to open a gift immediately. I put it in my bag and focused on getting the kids into chairs.
After the class, I opened the box. Inside, on a puff of cotton, was a horse-head bracelet charm; an orange bead; and two round cardboard circles with cartoons and Korean writing on them - I assume they were the equivalent of what we called “pogs” in the late ’80s.
Most Koreans delight in giving gifts, but there are unspoken guidelines for what the gifts should be. Many times my students’ parents have given me food, perfume, soap, even money. This gift was different. Jenny hadn’t asked her mom to buy me some glittery piece of jewellery. She had given me her own store of little treasures, collected one by one and saved in the beautiful little blue box.
This blog is meant to be my own little blue box. Here I will store some of my thoughts and experiences from God, collected one by one. Sometimes, like Jenny’s "pogs", no one but I will know why they are valuable. These are the "pleasant stones" that form the borders of my life - laid there by a God who wants me to remember that the very stones I have stumbled over are the ones that will protect me and make my life beautiful.
I welcome your comments and ideas, but this is not where I want to be discussing the basics (ie. Is the Bible true? Does God exist?). Such questions are valid and important, but I have looked at them long and hard and I am satisfied with the answers that I have. I hope that all of you have examined such questions under the harsh light of reason and mature thinking and tested your answers. If you don’t yet have answers, I hope you will be committed enough to search for the kinds of answers that will satisfy you. If God is there, then the answers are, too.
Last week as I was frantically setting up chairs for the Korean/English kids club I coach(?) teach(?), (frantically because I was in the middle of telling a story, but one little girl saw a spider on the floor and started off a squealing chain of excited little arachnophobes, forcing me to get them off the floor before finishing the story…) a little girl named Jenny brought me a little blue box with a bow - the kind you get when you buy jewellery from a schnazz store. She stood tippy-toe and whispered, “for you, teacher.”
Lucky for me, it is impolite in Korean culture to open a gift immediately. I put it in my bag and focused on getting the kids into chairs.
After the class, I opened the box. Inside, on a puff of cotton, was a horse-head bracelet charm; an orange bead; and two round cardboard circles with cartoons and Korean writing on them - I assume they were the equivalent of what we called “pogs” in the late ’80s.
Most Koreans delight in giving gifts, but there are unspoken guidelines for what the gifts should be. Many times my students’ parents have given me food, perfume, soap, even money. This gift was different. Jenny hadn’t asked her mom to buy me some glittery piece of jewellery. She had given me her own store of little treasures, collected one by one and saved in the beautiful little blue box.
This blog is meant to be my own little blue box. Here I will store some of my thoughts and experiences from God, collected one by one. Sometimes, like Jenny’s "pogs", no one but I will know why they are valuable. These are the "pleasant stones" that form the borders of my life - laid there by a God who wants me to remember that the very stones I have stumbled over are the ones that will protect me and make my life beautiful.
I welcome your comments and ideas, but this is not where I want to be discussing the basics (ie. Is the Bible true? Does God exist?). Such questions are valid and important, but I have looked at them long and hard and I am satisfied with the answers that I have. I hope that all of you have examined such questions under the harsh light of reason and mature thinking and tested your answers. If you don’t yet have answers, I hope you will be committed enough to search for the kinds of answers that will satisfy you. If God is there, then the answers are, too.
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