2 Peter 3

Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness...

These words follow the reminder that the world previously was deluged by water and perished.  In light of the recent earthquake in Japan and subsequent tsunami, I am struck by God's challenge and direction to me through Peter, that old fisherman.

How am I to live in a world where I did not perish in a flood or earthquake?  It could have been me.  Why wasn't it?  What is my response to a God who even the winds and the waves obey?

I understand the that the current events are an opportunity for repentance for me...how did He spare me and not others? Let me turn even more directly to godliness and holiness.  Let me set no unclean thing before my eyes or my mind's eye.  Let me encourage my sisters and brothers in the faith towards repentance as well.  

Everyday we live is one day closer to the end of either my life or this life.  Why don't I live in the urgency of the day?  As a pregnant momma begins her work of delivering her baby, she behaves in a way which is markedly different from other days.  The arrival of this day may surprise her; but she has known to anticipate this time for a while.  This momma knows to not pig-out as that may come back up.  She knows not to zip out of town or try to have a pedicure.  She maybe even dresses differently.  She orders her steps and makes careful arrangements; maybe even working from the plans for this day she made earlier.  As the pains increase in frequency and duration, her thoughts become increasingly focused on the task at hand...fewer things have her attention...more and more fades into the periphery.  That clarity of focus becomes brighter and more defined as the time draws nearer and nearer.  

Since I know on Whom and what I am supposed to be focused; WHY do I dawdle in the remaining time?  Why don't I make every effort to grow in the grace and knowledge of my Lord Jesus Christ and glorify Him with my life and passion?  Why is there a crowd allowed in the attention room of my heart?

Lord God,  Thank You for Your kindest mercy, Your unknowable Ways and Your incredible Majesty. Teach me repentance.  Help me turn from the passions of this temporal place to the glories of Your Name.  Keep me there.  I want my life to be holy and godly; but I fail.  You prevail.  Holy Spirit, prevail in me, through me.   I want to grow in the knowledge and grace of my Lord and Savior; cultivate me.  Be my Passion.  Be my Heart.  Be my All.  And use me to encourage and rally my brothers and sisters in the faith for this singular purpose.

"We just did not expect such a thing to happen. It's just overwhelming."  a quote from H. Sato of Japan.  What so hits me in this is the blending of mercy and judgment from my Perfect God.  There are those that hit death square on when this occurred.  Some were ready, some were not.  Some thought they were and were wrong.  God had determined before time that this was to be.  Those that are left have an opportunity to turn from their expectations to God.

 I feel a need to pray for those who have been left behind...that they not be overwhelmed by the events so much that they miss God.  And I cannot imagine what they are experiencing in the wake of such an event; but I know that God is there and still drawing as He wants none to perish.  And, as I think about those left behind, I realize that I am in those ranks.  You are, too.  We are those to whom mercy accorded us more time.  What will you do with it?  They did not expect such a thing to happen to them...where are we blinded by our expectations and beliefs about what can and cannot happen?  

Titus 2 God's Grace and Zombies

For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age,looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus,who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds. 

Zombieland is a movie where zombies, who are the majority of the population, are intent on devouring the remainder of the non-zombie population...creating more zombies.   A small group of people - non-zombies - attempt to live in the post-apocalyptic USA, a.k.a. Zombieland, without becoming zombies themselves.  As the story unfolds, the individual non-zombies come together and form an alliance. 

As I read the passage from Titus 2 this morning, I was reminded of the movie.  Kind of weird and fun, I know; but my God defines creative, (rule number 32: enjoy the little things).  

The picture the Lord drew for me was the world at large is the land of the zombies; most folks out there are the walking dead, seeking only to satisfy their own appetites as they go along, not considering the big picture of eternity...just the momentary need or pleasure.

In zombie-ology, redemption is not available for those gone dead; but God has brought salvation to all men.  The problem is not all have received the gracious gift.  Until a person receives that God-designed gift of salvation, he/she is like a zombie, an animated corpse who doesn't realize that real life is not what he/she is experiencing.  Christ's redemptive act purifies, sanctifies, heals the people for Himself bestowing life on the formerly dead.

To exacerbate the zombie-dilemma, the "living" must escape from the zombies for fear of being consumed by that culture.  In reality, believers often shun the spiritual zombies.  The living believers have no such concern of conversion; but they still seem to prefer their own groupings rather than embrace the spiritually dead.

For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people.  "What am I doing with it?" is the question that hits me. 

Father, what a tremendous visual parable for me of the world...of me a few years ago.  Help me not run from the individuals in this world and take Your grace with me.  God, I often do want to be quiet and blend in because I anticipate the reaction of those that don't have the spiritual view You have given me.  Help me to remember that one less zombie is one more Kingdom resident, one more servant for the Most High King...and that is my mission.  Help me to go, therefore, and reduce the zombie population by sharing the grace You have shared with me.  Find me useful in the recruitment of the walking dead and training of former zombies for the advancement of Your Kingdom.  To the praise of Your very great Name.

 

Philippians 1

...it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ...The reason I am imprisoned is Christ...not some bureaucratic blunder, some prejudiced jerk in office, a misunderstanding.  Because of Christ, I am in chains.  My prison record is part of His greater plan to make Himself famous and expand His Kingdom.

When God allows an unjust, uncomfortable or unbelievable situation to come my way, do I have enough confidence in my obedience to be able to vehemently claim, "Because of Christ ..."?  

Am I as pleased as Paul to experience situations which I would not have written into the script of my life...if I were asked?  

When I am bound in a situation, do I make sure that the whole of the palace guard and everyone else are clear that it's all for Christ?  

Do I take into account the local talent around me in my would-be distress or do I just look for what I deem is significant?

For Christ.  Let me live and breathe for Christ.  Let my story be told for Christ.  Let any participants, front row folks or casual observers know it is for Christ.  The proper and worthy response is conduct becoming a recipient of grace, the gift of the gospel - make it so, Lord, make it so.

1 Peter 4

...live for the will of God...live in the spirit according to the will of God...good stewards of the manifold grace of God....so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. 

God's will, God's grace, God's glory...

Am I living for God's will?  How much does my will compete with His?

How does my life reflect the multifarious grace of the Most High God?

How precisely does my life-story communicate His glory?

Even in suffering, for whose honor, distinction, magnificence and preeminence do I work?  

Whose name do I try to make good in hardship and trouble?

Lord, it is so straightforward.  That renewed life of the one who 

                     ~survives and succeeds in the Spirit

                     ~accepts and abides as a bearer of the Almighty Name

                     ~loves intensely and demonstratively

                     ~welcomes others courteously, graciously and spontaneously

                     ~intercedes with tenacity

                     ~decides and does with divine discernment

  it is all for You...of Your will, by Your grace and for Your glory...help me to keep it simple and focused on You, of You and for You.

Hebrews 5

For everyone who partakes only of milk is not accustomed to the word of righteousness, for he is an infant.

 But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil. 

Having come of age in the eighties, I saw quite a few things for which I had absolutely no reference point.  I had grown up in a Christian home and was also quite naive...parental influence and a natural tendency to succumb to death-by-embarrassment at any opportunity were major contributors to that quality.  As a result of the way God wired me and the fact that I had a good deal of church in my upbringing...we attended religiously...and quite a bit of Bible exposure, I clearly understood nice versus mean, kind versus unkind. Yet, I had a great deal of trouble recognizing or discerning between good and evil.  So much so, I didn't even know I did not know.  I had the word of righteousness; but I had not been trained in the righteousness.  I could win the Bible drills and Bible trivia games; but as for application, understanding what some of the words meant, how those admonitions applied to me and others, I had a disconnect.  Epic failure to apply content in current context.

So, when I was in college and friends and family began to go and do things which I hadn't not been specifically taught - I missed the sin in the lifestyles.  Some of the problem was I had not been taught how to think with the knowledge I had.  Some of the problem was I didn't understand how to look to God and His Word for His take on my life and the current events...or comprehend that I could and should do that.  The ol' "once saved, always saved, pray the little prayer, be good, be active in church" was the lifestyle I had practiced and almost perfected.  

I know that I, by my silence on certain subjects...therefore, my tacit acceptance...condoned activities of my companions that were sinful.  I wasn't silent because I didn't know what to say, I simply had no clue. NO CLUE.  Somehow, I never made the connection between the Word and the life...I never stopped to think.  It never occurred to me that what they did, liked doing and pursued like crazy was sin.    

That background has made it a bit of a chaotic dance in bringing up children (and I know I am no where near done with that gig); but on one hand, I try to keep them innocent and sheltered as I was.  On the other hand, the world invades and pops the bubbles I try to create for them...so I work to attempt to help them see what God says about the situation.  The predicament is that I may miss a scenario and the world may fill them in.  I cannot catch it all.  So, push to protect then strive to set it to God's Word...and the older they are, the more diverse and perverse are the opportunities that come our way.

Now, I had to tell you that to tell you this.  How the Lord spoke to me (and I am so grateful that He does involve Himself in my life and that I know to listen and look for Him...only His grace) from these two verses of Hebrews is that the need for milk is valid and nurturing.  One cannot grow without it.  But as one grows, the needs begin to change.  Growth is important; but maturity is the point of growth.  No one wants to be a 6 foot tall, bottle-coddling, thumb-sucking, diaper-clad baby.  

My children are growing and maturing.  Spiritually, they are growing as well.  The question is am I going to keep them in diapers by dropping them off at church and giving them praise-music pacifiers; or will I facilitate their maturing by the Word of righteousness so their senses can be trained to discern good from evil?  God must frame and filter our lives, else we are deceived and deceiving. 

The church activities and opportunities are super, supplemental scenarios; but it is my responsibility (by "my", I refer to the marital 2-are-1 "my" and of course, include their fabulous father) to live that omni-directional, pursuit of holiness out before them and to show them how to walk in the way-everlasting that when something wicked their way comes, they discern accurately and promptly. (Please know that that is only by God's grace in a Spirit-led life...not by my power, abilities or gumption and certainly despite my incredible capacity to screw up).  

Thank You Father for taking the pressure off of me to nail everything the world throws at the children.  I praise You for Your wisdom to prepare them for the evils of this world through Your Word of righteousness and by seasoning their senses through study and striving.  Equip me supernaturally to know which matters to address beforehand and which to leave to time. Please help me not limit Your gifts and wisdom to the biologically-related people only.  I adore You for You never gave up on me, either.  What a privilege to have become Your daughter, despite what I brought to the table.  Your are God, I am graced.

(a quick ps story:  We stopped to help a lady who had caused an accident last week.  During our time of assistance and support, she used really bad language (actually it was just one word, ranted REPEATEDLY).  I then dropped my children off for classes.  While they were in class, I wondered if the two who witnessed her vituperation would try out the new word that morning.  I prayed that they would not.  I reasoned the older had probably come across it and would know better; just because he is older, (please, please, dear God).  The younger who loves words almost as much as I do proved to be a much greater topic in my prayers.  "Please shut that young one's mouth, Lord.  Keep him from trying out a new word.  Please hold them still until I can have an audience with them and show them Your perspective on that matter.  God, let them cause no offense.  They don't know.  I never told them.  You know at our house, the s-word is stupid, h-word is hate, d-word is dumb...You know Father, they just don't know anymore.  Holy Spirit, rise up in them and let them keep their mouth quiet if they feel inclined to stretch their vocab skills today."

I was there early for pick-up...can you imagine that?!!  Urgently, we fled the building like we were thieves leaving a bank.  Without any pleasantries, I began, "You know that the young lady was very upset today and she used really bad language I wanted you to know that what she said is unacceptable  for the Lord tells us to not use coarse language but to edify one another and to think on lovely and excellent things...."  

Before I could continue, the younger child corrected me, "Mom, she didn't use bad language; she used one bad word, repetitively." 

"Yes, you're right,"  I concurred - breathing now, "but I know we have never discussed that and I thought maybe you had never heard that word.  I want you to be clear that it is 'NO' for us as Christ's siblings."

"I know that.  And, for your information, I have heard it before...at Youth Group."  

I am so breathlessly thankful that God is Sovereign and even though bad stuff and words happen...God is Lord over all. {major disclaimer:  I love our Youth Group and Pastor, I KNOW that bad language is not taught nor promoted there.  But just like in our Ladies Group, sinners come to church and sometimes, sinners speak from a sinful perspective...don't worry, they probably haven't had their "milk", yet.)

Hebrews 4

For the Word that God speaks is alive and full of power [making it active, operative, energizing, and effective]; it is sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating to the dividing line of the breath of life (soul) and [the immortal] spirit, and of joints and marrow [of the deepest parts of our nature], exposing and sifting and analyzing and judging the very thoughts and purposes of the heart. 
(I love the Amplified!)

Your's is a throne of grace

where mercy is embraced

and grace received

to meet my need

The Sinless One believed.

My Great High Priest and King~

Let me miss not receiving 

Love's  mercy from

Your strong, right arm, 

Please stay my unbelief.  

On that cursed tree

T'is where You died for me

You knew not sin

Without, within

Let me live in Your liberty. 

Acts 25

"For it seems absurd to me in sending a prisoner, not to indicate also the charges against him." 

To have a prisoner who has no charges which can be brought against him/her is a very difficult place to find oneself.  How can you keep a person in chains if there is no allegation against that one?

This comment from Festus made me think about what the enemy, the accuser of our souls does to us.  He charges us with all sorts of sins of activities and non-activities, thoughts and emotions, our past and future performance with the intent to condemn us to death.  The problem is the same as the one Festus faced, as believers we have Christ's righteousness.  Whatever the charges, they are not  valid against us.  Praise God and His amazingly loving plan!

Despite the freedom provided me, the charges are sometimes accepted by me as prosecutable.  The Just Judge, our Advocate and even the accuser know the charges are not right; but I can find for the plaintiff and bear the indictment.  I can hear the accusation, repeat the accusation and pretty soon, I am imprisoned by the accusation.  I must be careful what I say to myself, what I repeat, what I think on...lest I take on the accusation which has no hold on me.   When I hear that "you don't matter" or "you are invisible" or "you ____"; I must remind myself that he has no permission to speak to me - if I choose to entertain his comments, it is at my own risk that I do so.  My significance, authority and accountability  come from the One who made and saved me.

Glorious One, Lover of my Soul, please let me live and revel in the liberty You have provided.  Let me receive and believe only what You say to me - give me that keen insight to immediately distinguish Your voice from any other and to live with all I have based on Your words.  I praise you that I, too, am one who has charges that cannot result in death... allegations which have previously been accounted for.  I praise You for Your utter "previousness" in dealing with me.  What incomprehensible grace that You would take Your enemy and make her a daughter.  Help me to always maintain the conduct becoming Your child - in all the roles You have created me for, to the praise of Your very great and just Name.

Acts 24

In view of the hope Paul had in God and the resurrection, he did his "best to maintain always a blameless conscience both before God and before men."  


I also have that hope.  What challenged me is sometimes, I have a hard time maintaining the blameless conscience before both God and people.  I know when I operate in the Spirit I am okay with having a blameless conscience.  But sometimes, when I am suddenly in a situation where I don't know just what to say or do,  I am afraid my conscience is "blamefull" before one or both.  

An example comes to mind:  A friend began a theological conversation with me the other day.  After quite a long conversation, I began to share the Gospel with him, the law in particular.  The trouble arose when I wasn't sure where to go with it based on his response to a couple of questions.  I understand God is sovereign...I am so grateful for that...but I wonder how I was supposed to proceed.  My heart was very full to make sure that his hope was valid and not misplaced; but I got stuck.  

You see, another mutual friend had struck up a theological conversation with me some years ago.  That conversation was quite pleasant and at one point, we actually followed the script of a well-known evangelism program (I was a student of that program, at the time).  It was a very natural conversation and in the end, she declined the offer to receive God's gift of salvation.  I thanked her for her honesty and said if she wanted to talk about that again, I would be happy to do so with her.  We ended up spending more time discussing a variety of topics.  When we parted, it seemed quite normal and cordial.   However, I didn't talk to her for about a year after that...given the circumstances and our proximity, I believe it was avoidance and not schedules that kept her from further conversation.  God is sovereign and all-powerful, He allowed some circumstances to bring us together and we've been speaking ever since...just that one year gap.


Okay, so fast forward to present day and where I am stuck.  In regard to these and probably every other Gospel interaction, I struggle with desiring to share unto salvation or at least plant/water someone else's planting and not wanting to go too far so they uproot any seed that may have been deposited.  I want to have a  blameless conscience before God and people in having shared the Gospel; but I don't want to  roto-till a potential harvest. 

I am reminded that God does work all things for good to those who love Him and are called by Him.  But I have a responsibility in this, too.  I want my life to demonstrate holy intentions and truth spoken carefully wrapped in His perfect love so that I might be blameless in thought and deed before God and man.  God is the Knower and Discerner of thoughts and motives; He knows.  Man may or not figure it out; but man will live in response to me.  I am not sure I can maintain a blameless conscience before  him/her if I fail to adequately impart the grace of the Gospel.  


God, I don't even know if this makes sense to anyone but me; but I want that blamelessness of conscience.  Help me to rely increasingly on You and Your leading, be bold in the opportunity You present, and to share how and what You have given me to share.  I understand that this does not mean I will get along with all people and that I will never be voted most popular; but I do crave the peace that accompanies the blameless conscience.  Thank You for making this possible and for teaching me Your ways.  ♥