Faith, Not Fear

I grew up on southern gospel music, in the day when a song about Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego proclaimed in lively tones, “They wouldn’t bend, they wouldn’t bow, they wouldn’t burn!”

As Pastor Mark pointed out, though, the outcome could have been different. They entered the fire with no “fire insurance” to guarantee their protection. They had God, who guarantees His Presence and His sufficiency, who promises to bring good out of everything… but doesn’t promise to conform to our idea of deliverance. That’s why 18 theology (Dan. 3:18) requires faith, and stretches even that! It says “But if not… I still will not bow.”

Think about bowing. When you bow, your head is lowered. Your shoulders droop. Your spine bends. Your eyes drop to the ground. You are waving the white flag before something or someone looming above you, holding power over you.

Nebuchadnezzar is long gone. But maybe your Nebuchadnezzar is another person - or a chaotic situation, an ongoing struggle, a memory, an illness, a failure or sin, a fear… If you identify such a tyrant in your life today, look at the position of your heart. Are you standing or bowing before it? Intimidated or unmoved? Has your gaze dropped from the heavens to the ground in front of you? Has the strength gone out of your spine?

18 theology says God is the only One deserving of the bent knee. The only One worthy of our surrender and worship. God’s Word urges us:

“Do not fear what [the people] fear, and do not dread it. The Lord Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy, he is the one you are to fear, he is the one you are to dread, and he will be a sanctuary” (Is. 8:12-14 NIV),

“Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then…” (Eph. 6:13-14 NIV). With a stiff backbone. With a clear and steady gaze. With an unbent knee and unbowed heart.

Worshipping God alone.

The Message of the Mirror

Christian wipes the fog from the bathroom mirror and peers anxiously at the face before him. It’s scowling. He hates to see that. Why can’t people around him be more positive? Inspecting further, he notes with alarm that an enormous zit of pride has swelled up from his heart – definitely needs attention. And those hurt feelings nearby can’t be ignored much longer- already they’re cracked and bleeding.

Definitely a work in progress, he concludes, turning away from the mirror. Must deal with it all somehow, sometime. The unappealing image fades quicker than the condensation on the mirror as Christian grabs his car keys and heads into the day. He’s already oblivious to the image of Christ he’s presenting. He’s procrastinating – again – the life improvements that need to be made, and hurting himself and the Kingdom and His Lord.

His brother Believer wipes the fog from his bathroom mirror and peers anxiously at the face before him. It’s hard to believe, but if what the Word told him is true, he’s looking at the image of God. Not perfect, mind you, but forgiven of sin and continually being remade in Christ’s likeness, going from strength to strength, and glory to glory (Ps. 84:7, 2 Cor. 3:18). He’s looking at one of the King’s own children. An heir to all that is Christ’s. Eternally saved, incredibly rich, awesomely privileged!

Wow, I need a pinch to convince myself it’s real, he thinks as he turns away from the mirror. Must spend some time trying to take that all in. But the appealing image fades faster than the condensation on the mirror as Believer grabs his car keys and heads into the day. He goes away forgetting. And so he has no defense against the Accuser who belittles him and the doubts that haunt him and the flaws and failures that keep cropping up. As the day wears on, he feels increasingly defeated and alone. And no one around him glimpses the loving, life-transforming God in whose image Believer is made.

Two men; two mirrors. Both forgot what they saw there, forgot the flaws that needed tended and the glorious reality of His image. And so both missed personal blessing, opportunity to please the Father, and effective Kingdom service.

Are we who we say we are? Spending time with Christ and His word offers us an honest, Spirit-guided look at ourselves. We see flaws that are humbling; we also see Christ’s transforming love. Things that need addressed and things that need celebrated. But we’ve got to act on what we see. What do we do with what He shows us? Do we live in His image 24/7, remembering who and Whose we are? Do we let Him deal with the flaws and continually remake us into His likeness?

“If you keep looking steadily into God’s perfect law – the law that sets you free – and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it” (James 1:25 NLT).

The Hershey Prayer

Christmas candies, heaped high in an elegant bowl under crackling cellophane, gleamed in their silver and copper wrappers. This gift from our friends looked rich… in every way.

The taste-testing began. Dark chocolate, milk chocolate, butternut… but what were those two-toned delicacies? Dave took a bite.

“Peanut butter and chocolate,” he reported. “Like a Reece Cup.”

Reece Cup! Nature’s most nearly perfect food! Epicurean bliss in a brown and orange wrapper! The wedding of two flavors that were always meant to be together!

But not to be duplicated, my own taste-testing verified. Our Christmas candies were fancy-schmancy, but there was no imitating the real thing.

The first two sermons we’ve heard this New Year, taken together, also offer a winning combination. An unbeatable, inimitable marriage of ingredients and flavors: prayer and revolution.

But step aside, Hershey. This specialty can only be manufactured by God – and us. That’s the only combination that can turn out this treat. Prayer is the chocolaty exterior; hidden within are the changes we want to see happen, the flavor we crave in our lives, the internal revolution only God can concoct.

So I challenge you, at the top of the year, to combine the two flavors in a tangible way. Write a prayer to be prayed daily in 2011.

First, sit down with the Lord and talk together about His desires, your desires, His heart, your fears, etc. Then write a prayer – not too long – that expresses the gratitude you often unthinkingly withhold and the praise you forget to express. And deep within the heart of that prayer, ask for help in your areas of weakness, guidance in your lifestyle and decisions… and the specific change God wants to bring about in your mind and heart.

Pray that prayer every day.

I did this at the beginning of 2010, and I’m still not ready to lay that prayer aside. Maybe I’ll just update it. For it’s a good feeling to pray for the things God wants. It’s invigorating to pray for life-change, and to continually re-affirm our cooperation with the Revolutionary who can bring that about. It’s powerful spiritual exercise to pray persistently in the same direction for a whole year. And it’s faith-building to see change happen from the inside out.

Prayer and revolution. A winning combination, a marriage made in heaven, a spiritual delight. Enjoy… all year long!

Best Job in the World

To the astonishment of many of us, there are people in this world who do not want to retire. Ever.

Some have tried it and soon scurried back to their former place of employment, begging to be reinstated. Others have received the golden handshake, enjoyed a few weeks in the sun, then turned to part-time employment. Why in the world, we scratch our heads, would someone work when they can play? Our industrious friends' answers include:

I have a passion for what I'm doing.
I crave the interaction with people.
I have the greatest co-workers - couldn't find a better bunch anywhere.
I love doing something that makes a difference.
I have a reason to get up in the morning.
I have the best job in the world...what ever possessed me to leave it anyway?

Of course, these people are in the minority. But they prove that "work" can be positive, invigorating, compelling - when it gets results, when there is great reward for the labor invested, when we love the working conditions and companions.

By Webster's definition, "work" involves physical or mental effort, purposeful activity, doing/moving/making something. So prayer is work, yes. And like every job, it has its tedious moments, its discouraging seasons. So would we want to retire from it? Live the rest of our lives released from the discipline of prayer? Many of us would secretly say "Yes," perhaps because we've never felt that close to our co-workers, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, anyway. We've never felt we had much influence with the Father, or that He loves to talk with us. We haven't understood the importance of what we do, haven't realized our potential to make a difference through prayer. So there's been no passion for the job, no expectation that makes us want to get out of bed in the morning and hurry to our place of prayer.

But think about it... At what other job does the Employer always give us His full attention? Does the Management Team always join in our petitions, even perfecting their presentation? Where else can we submit a "work order" in PA and get instant results in Russia or Poland or Uruguay or the DR? Where else do we operate without a budget because we have unlimited resources to draw from? At what other job can we share an assignment ("Please pray for my child") with fellow pray-ers, and know they will eagerly jump in to help bear the load?

So thanks, Pastor Dave, for reminding us that prayer is a great work, that persistence pays all out of proportion to our efforts. That the more we understand our Employer and our benefits and the potential of the work, the more determined we will be: We don't want to exercise the retirement option; we don't even want to take a vacation. We'll keep praying as long as we have breath.

It's the best job in the world.

The Spirit of Things Yet to Come

I would like to get hold of that Ghost of Christmas Past.

Take me back there, I would implore, when the bell tolls one. For that hour, let me be a child again. Let me burst into the house, throw down my schoolbooks, and begin Christmas vacation with a fistful of those cookies I didn’t have to bake. Let the decorations magically appear, as it seems they did then; let the present pile up under the tree at an exhilarating rate without any shopping required on my part. Let me once again sit shivering in the car with my sisters, watching the letters of the store sign flash on and off, Z-A-Y-R-E (were we shivering because it was cold, or because our parents were inside doing some serious purchasing ?). All expectancy and little effort, that was Christmas Past. It’s certainly not Christmas Present!

In fact, expectancy of any kind seems to be under attack. Our material possessions fail (note the string of lights that went dark on that pre-lit tree). Our bodies wear out (note the shortness of breath as you dragged home the perfect Fraser Fir to replace it). Our hearts grow weary (so you collapsed in a nearby chair and dreamed of that glowing and carefree Christmas Past).

Spiritually, too, we can lose our awe of God and passionate devotion to Him. As Gordon Jensen expressed in his song, “Bring Back the New Again,” we plead to be restored to our former “best” condition:

How did I miss the goal?
When did I lose the glow?
And where did the wonder go?
Bring back the new again.

But I heard the choir Sunday, and I sang with them that powerful song, “Jesus Saves”:

Freedom's calling, chains are falling,
Hope is dawning bright and true;
Day is breaking, night is quaking,
God is making all things new…

The apostle John confirmed this: “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away… I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God… He who was seated on the throne said, ‘I am making everything new!” (Rev. 21:1-5 NIV).

In the midst of all the deterioration and decay around us, God is making all things new. Everything we give Him, He’s transforming, whether old, broken-down dreams or jaded hearts or worn-out bodies. No temporary fix, not even a restoration job. New. A new body. A new reality. A new life. That’s what lies ahead for you and me.

In the light of that truth, forget the Ghost of Christmas Past. I want to kneel instead before the Lord of Christmas Future. To open my heart – with expectancy - to the Spirit of Things Yet to Come. To worship the God Who is making all things new.

Fire in the Inn!

If only the Christmas innkeeper could have heard Sunday’s sermon. But he hadn’t, and Mary and Joseph came too late. The rocks had already been placed in the jar, the sand sifted in around them, the water poured into the air pockets. One by one, he had dropped his guests into empty beds, stuffed his food and bedding into and around them, then poured his effort and energy into the remaining space.

The innkeeper’s jar was full. There was no room in the inn. Not for even one more rock. Not for even the Rock.

But what could he have done, after all? Even if he had known who Jesus was, the innkeeper had a predicament. Was he expected to kick someone out of their promised room? Give up his own bed?

Maybe… a fire drill? What if he had run into the inn and shouted, “Quick, everybody out! Move it, move it! Out! Out!” Then, with flustered guests still muttering and making for the door, he could have ushered Mary and Joseph in first, made sure his own family had lodging, and afterward fitted the remaining guests in - or as many as possible. He might have been the cause of some head-shaking and grumbling, or, worse, the target of well-aimed punch or a vengeful lawsuit… but what price can you put on hospitality to the Messiah?

But of course the innkeeper didn’t do that. In his defense, he had never heard the Christmas story. He could hardly know he was refusing the Messiah. But what about us? We’ve heard the story, and we heard Sunday’s sermon. We understand that Jesus is the Rock which must go into the Christmas season first, and everything else must be filled in around Him.

But we have a predicament. We’ve already packed the season with family, traditions, obligations, expectations, shopping, partying, traveling… We’re locked into our pattern of celebration, and it seems impossible to add much of anything – even Jesus - without causing an overflow of protest, a spill of resentment.

But what if we just “emptied the inn” this week? What if we dumped our to-do lists and family traditions and gift-buying expectations and all the contents of the Christmas jar out on the table, and started over? What if we then picked up the Rock upon which our salvation is built, and placed Him in first? Then we could replace the rest of the contents, prayerfully fitting them around our welcome to Jesus, as the Holy Spirit directs us.

It might be surprising how much would still go into the jar… but surely everything won’t fit. And won’t even seem to belong in there any more.

Maybe some things can’t be changed this year; it may be too late for that. But next September, when the world of commerce is starting to make little noises about Christmas, we could pull our jar off the shelf. We could empty its contents and reach for the Rock. We could start the new season a new way.

Others might have a little trouble understanding the change in our celebration of Christmas. But what price can you put on hospitality to the Messiah?

Sing Christmas!

Joseph reaches down for the strap of a heavy shoulder-bag. Hoisting it over his shoulder, he bends again and pulls up a second bag. He slings that one atop the first, and bends yet again. The third bag slaps heavily against the others as he turns to Mary and takes her arm.

Around him swirls music about a Singer and sweet harmony and the Song of the Redeemed, and a choir sings “Let there be Light”… but he just feels like a man stepping out on a long journey under a heavy responsibility: Mary, with Child. Immanuel.

To watchers of FAC’s Christmas musical, this 21st century Mary and Joseph are setting out for Bethlehem. The eyes of the congregation are fastened upon them, choral well-wishers sing them on their way - but we all know that in the end, there is no one to accompany them. It is their journey.

It’s Joseph’s journey, and the weight of responsibility in those bags is even heavier than he yet knows. For it will be up to him to move the Christmas story from Point A (Nazareth) to Point B (Bethlehem ) and, although he doesn’t yet know it, on to C (Egypt) and back to A (Nazareth). He’s got to see them through this journey, oversee a divine birth, meet Kings and shepherds, protect an infant Savior from a murderous monarch, obey angelic orders and divine dreams…

No wonder those bags feel so heavy, Joseph.

But he carries his responsibility anyway (and we should be glad). It’s his glorious burden, his privilege, his song, as the angel says. No one else can sing it for him. He alone can do what God has given him to do, play his part in bringing Light to a shadowed world, sing in sweet harmony of peace on earth, good will to men.

We cannot see what is in the bags of responsibility that lay at our feet today. But we can be sure that no one else is supposed to pick them up for us – they’re ours. We might shrink back, protesting that they’re too heavy, there are too many, someone else is better built to bear them. But they’re our bags, and God is asking us to carry them.

We might be more willing to bear our burdens if we remember two things:

1. Our burdens come with a song. When we stoop to pick them up, that melody will arise behind and around and within us… if we will take the time to listen. It’s the Song of the Redeemed and it arises in sweet harmony with the Redeemer, swells with the power of the Holy Spirit, and swirls with the promise of eternal peace.

2. Our songs matter. Each are meant to move some part of the Redemption Story from Point A to Point B. From darkness to light. From fear to peace.

Sing, then. Sing your song, the song no one else can imitate. Don’t let it fade to a faint hum; belt it out! For it’s a song holy angels cannot sing. A song that brings glory to the Son of the Singer. A song that will reverberate through all eternity.

Sing!