Monday, September 29, 2008
Harvest
"For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith." - Galatians 6:9-10
"Sit down and let me tell you a story…" my Mom and Grandma were eager to share memories; memories sometimes difficult for me to envision, since I never lived them. They feature a spunky schoolmarm (my grandma) and a little girl (my mom) as main characters in a world of outdoor movie theaters, flare-leg men's pants, and an America I hardly recognize.
It was appropriate that they pulled me into their conversation at that moment, just as I had wandered away from my computer screen. You wonder why I bring up my computer? Well, the screen held a certain news article.
The headline will probably be the subject of local conversation for some time to come. In my one-stoplight town, the one thing that travels fast is news of a scandal; and there's nothing more mortifying than seeing a former pastor's name printed on the front page alongside the word 'Pornography.' Although I don't attend his church, I'd met him a few times myself.
It was in the middle of this disturbing revelation that my grandma sat me down to share a story. She spoke of a family she had known years before, who had perviously owned the second biggest ranch in Texas. The kids—a couple of boys—were educated by a private tutor and drove the nicest cars available in the 1920's. At least until '29, when they lost it all in the Greatly Depressing section of American History.
What are two ex-millionaire brothers to do when all their cash goes down the tubes? Start afresh, clinging to what was for sure. They knew Christ and a little about cars. Hence, the birth of a filling station, where every customer was not only given excellent service but the Gospel to boot.
Time passed and each son found a wife. Before long, there were nearly a dozen children and hungry stomachs to fill. But the Gospel always came first. Thriving on little, the family became prominent in their small West Texas town--not for having money, but for the contagiousness of their love.
Time passed and each son found a wife. Before long, there were nearly a dozen children and hungry stomachs to fill. But the Gospel always came first. Thriving on little, the family became prominent in their small West Texas town--not for having money, but for the contagiousness of their love.
Somewhere in this equation entered my grandparents. They had slowly become sick of the Biblelessness of their old denomination, but were afraid of worshiping elsewhere. At that time, they somehow bumped into the family who ran the local filling station. The family’s vibrant, Gospel-with-abandon approach deeply impacted my grandparents. For the first time, my grandparents saw Christians living with the Bible at the center of their existence.
My grandma then paused her story. She tipped her head back on the couch, as if trying to find sufficient words. "They really changed our lives."
And I suppose they changed mine, too. If I ever met a member of that family who changed my grandparents' lives it was before I was old enough to remember them; but my grandmother is now a Lover of God, and my mom takes after her. Their legacy will never stop influencing me.
I left the conversation with much to think about. There are Christians and Christian wannabes whose names get pasted on newspaper headlines for doing despicable things. Take, for instance, that article on my computer screen. But it isn’t just pastors who leave legacies. It isn’t just the horrible actions that leave fingerprints on the world (though they might be the only ones to make the paper). Three generations were changed because of one family’s faithfulness.
In Galatians it says "...And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith." I can't wait to tell that family about their harvest.
Labels: devotion
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Just A Little Reminder...
Deadline to enter the drawing for Francis Chan's book, Crazy Love is October 1st. Don't miss out!
Monday, September 22, 2008
The "Worst-Sinner" Syndrome
If someone asked you the name of the worst sinner you personally knew, what would you say?I've always thought that the apostle Paul had a shocking, intriguing answer: the apostle Paul. "It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance," he said, "that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners,"-- so far, so good-- "among whom I am foremost of all." I immediately think: come again? The author of thirteen epistles of the New Testament was the worst sinner he knew? Did he get out much, or what?
These days, we would probably reason that Paul had self-image problems, and assume that he must have struggled to forgive himself for his past; after all, he did persecute Christians before God brought him to repentance. So, there's that option: he was too hard on himself. If not, Paul must have been using sarcasm or hyperbole.
But what if Paul's perception of himself was accurate? If someone asked you the name of the worst sinner you personally knew, what should you say? What should I say?
I've been told, by Christians and non-Christians alike, that it's unhealthy to think about your sin much. If you meditate on your sin, the reasoning goes, you'll be clogged down with guilt in short time. Just think about God's love and His acceptance of you.
And yet, I've found exactly the opposite true in my own life.
When I do not think regularly and deeply of the daily insurrections of my heart, I experience and and understand little of the love of God. I slog through life without passion, without joy, without compassion, and with more than a little self-righteousness.
On the other hand, whenever I have encountered anyone enraptured by the love of Christ, brimming with joy and infused with holy zeal-- I have encountered, in that same person, someone who dwells on his sin with deep sorrow far more often than the average person.
Might there be a certain order to things which cannot be circumvented?
John Piper challenges, "One of the reasons that many Christians seem to have no thrill at being forgiven through the gospel is that they have not been brokenhearted over their sin. They have not despaired. They have not wrestled with warranted self-loathing. They have not grieved over their sin because of its moral repugnance, but have grieved only because of guilt feelings and threats of hell. "
But searching out the extent of my sin is an excruciating process, and I shy away from pain. Looking hard at my soul is a gruesome business. Is it worth the trouble?
I think Jonathan Edwards expressed the answer wonderfully: "Repentance of sin is a sorrow arising from the sight of God's excellency and mercy, but the apprehension of excellency or mercy must necessarily and unavoidably beget pleasure in the mind of the beholder... How much soever of a paradox it may seem, it is true that repentance is a sweet sorrow, so that the more of this sorrow, the more pleasure."
Paul knew the "sweet sorrow" that Edwards wrote of. And since we each know more of our own hearts than we know of anyone else's, shouldn't we each endeavor to reach the place where we can sincerely claim the same "worst-sinner" title?
But if the reward for such sorrow is to behold the excellence, mercy, grace, and love of God-- to be thrilled anew with the hope of the gospel-- to arouse our affections for our Savior from apathy, and know all-consuming delight in Him at last-- then the pain sounds worthwhile, doesn't it?
Friday, September 19, 2008
Free Book
Crazy Love is one of the most challenging/convicting books I've ever read. Francis Chan's message doesn't mince words: you're here on earth to glorify God by loving Him with abandon; and that love is an unconventional, radical, self-sacrificing servanthood that is literally crazy.In fact, the only thing crazier than the devotion expected from us is the love God lavishes on undeserving sinners like you and me.
We're giving away this book free to the winner of our drawing (October 1st.) Just email us your name to be entered. Our address is contact.bfth [at] gmail.com.
Win or not, we hope you'll check into Crazy Love. Here's Pastor Chan's introduction to his book, courtesy of the ever-benevolent youtube.
As well as another video...
Note: Contest only open to U.S. residents. Contestants are welcome to enter once per day. The contest winner will be requested via email to send us their shipping address. If contest winner does not comply, contest winner does not receive foresaid prize. 'Tis the nature of the postal system.
Have you recently read any books that have impacted your view of God or the Christian life? We're always eager to hear about good books. Feel free to drop us a comment with your thoughts.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
When the World Falls
Hey ya'll! Hope you're having a lovely week. (Thanks for the birthday wishes!)For the record, we're in the middle of transitioning to another blog provider (among other things), so weirdness may occur on the RSS feed. Please bear with us!
On top of reading some great thoughts from Elisabeth Elliot, I found a quote from C.S. Lewis' essay "Living in the Atomic Age." This excerpt made me wonder if the principle behind his essay might be applied to other, more modern fears...
"If we are going to be destroyed by an atomic bomb, let that bomb when it comes find us doing sensible and human things -- praying, working, teaching, reading, listening to music, bathing the children, playing tennis, chatting to our friends...not huddled together like frightened sheep and thinking about bombs. They might break our bodies (a microbe can do that) but they need not dominate our minds."
How does that fit in with the presidential election...
Global warming...
War with Iran...
Or any plethora of fears that might steal our joy if we let them?
Hmm...
Labels: musings
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Eighteen years ago...
Hannah is eighteen years old today! Her ardent desire for God Himself has been an incalculable blessing to me over the years, and I am so grateful for her friendship. Happy birthday, Hannah!
Thursday, September 11, 2008
“It Was God Who Made Us Different”
“…and He did it on purpose.” –Elisabeth Elliot on femininity
Today, I picked up once more my copy of Let Me Be a Woman, by the ever-excellent Elisabeth Elliot. Wow. That woman had words! Here are some gems that are just as pertinent today as when they were written:
“We are called to be women. The fact that I am a woman does not make me a different kind of Christian, but the fact that I am a Christian does make me a different kind of woman. For I have accepted God’s idea of me, and my whole life is an offering back to Him of all that I am and all that He wants me to be.” – page 52“God has set no traps for us. Quite the contrary. He has summoned us to the only true and full freedom. The woman who defines her liberation as doing what she wants…is, in the first place, evading responsibility. Evasion of responsibility is the mark of immaturity. The Women’s Liberation Movement is characterized, it appears, by this very immaturity. While telling themselves that they’ve come a long way, that they are actually coming of age, they have retreated to a partial humanity, one which refused to acknowledge the vast significance of the sexual differentiation. (I do not say that they always ignore sexual differentiation itself, but that they significance of it escapes them entirely.) And….by refusing to fulfill the whole vocation of womanhood she settles for a caricature, a pseudo-personhood.”–page 54
“But we do not choose gifts, remember? We are given them by a divine Giver who knows the end from the beginning, and wants above all else to give us the gift of Himself.”-page 34
"Womanhood is a call...The strength to answer this call is given us as we look up toward the Love that created us, remembering that it was that Love that first…made us at the very beginning real men and real women. As we conform to that Love’s demands we shall become more humble, more dependent—on Him and on one another—and even (dare I say it?) more splendid."-page 62
Labels: femininity, feminism
Monday, September 08, 2008
Gloriously Frail
Watching the Olympics always makes me feel a little bit like a wimp. (My family confirms that this feeling is valid.) During the games, Mom piped up, "Hey... why don't they have an Olympics for normal people, too?""What do you mean, 'normal people'? You mean... weak people? Like us?"
It took us a moment or two after recovering from laughter, but we understood what she meant: The Olympians are extraordinarily strong.
Personally, I like it. Who can swim the slowest freestyle? I could enter the "Slowest Mile" category. My little sister says I might have a chance at the gold.
Weakness isn't usually celebrated, though. Truth be told, I tend to hate it. Whenever I take a long, hard look at what I have to offer God, I feel like sitting down for a good cry. I don't possess the intellectual gifts and natural talents that so many other people do. I feel useless and insignificant-- empty of anything to offer other people, let alone service to God. How foolish for me to think of impacting the world for Christ, when there are countless other, qualified men and women walking around!
(Just grab a scone, pass the butter, and feel free to join my pity-party.) I can go on and on like this in my mind for hours. It's really quite depressing. Yes, I hate my weakness. Funny thing is-- God intends it to rank among my greatest, deepest joys.
A Pathetic Bunch of Weaklings
A cowardly, rash Hebrew, whose knees shook at the thought of talking to crowds, and whose leadership skills fell notably short of the spectacular. A diminutive, inexperienced, absurdly confident shepherd/harpist boy. A timid, skeptical young man from an unimportant family. Throw in a handful of liars, an immoral woman, and welcome to Hebrew's hall of fame. What a sorry bunch, those men and women that God used.
We're familiar their names, now: Moses, David, Gideon, Rahab, Abraham and Jacob. But you've got to admit that their resumes wouldn't have exactly made them the most likely candidates to be listed as "heroes of the faith." And don't forget the group of poor nobody's--including fishermen and a tax collector--who spent their free time talking smack about who was the greatest.
When I look throughout the Old and New Testaments, I notice a shocking commonality among the people that God called. They're so very relatable; so very human. So very, very weak.
Moses grappled with serious doubts about his own adequacy for the task God appointed him to. When God commanded him to deliver the Israelites, it doesn't sound like Moses was straining at the bit. No, he had an objection: "I have never been eloquent... I am slow of speech and tongue." And yet, slow tongue and all, God took the quaking Moses and displayed His power mightily through him.
Then there was Gideon. I love his story--the sheer, marvelous unexpectedness of it all compels me to worship. (It may be familiar, but consider reading the whole story again. Take it in as if for the first time, and you'll find yourself in awe of God at the end.)
Gideon himself confessed to being "the least in his family." His clan was the least powerful and influential in Manasseh-- and he was, quite plainly, sick-to-his-stomach terrified of God using him.
Still, God chose little Gideon to deliver the nation of Israel from Midian. No small task, considering that Midian's army was so numerous that "it was impossible to count the men and their camels". Oh, yes, and Gideon had thirty-two thousand men. Against the Midianites, the Amalekites, and all the other eastern tribes. Talk about an unfair disadvantage.
But, apparently, God didn't think that the odds were stacked high enough against them. So He decided to pare Gideon's army down a bit. He told Gideon, "You have too many men for me to deliver Midian into your hands. In order that Israel may not boast against me that her own strength has saved her..." And poof, twenty-two thousand warriors were dismissed, just like that.
So, ten thousand men were left against all the armies of the enemies-- an undoubtedly impossible feat. You have to wonder what Gideon was thinking as he watched God deplete his pitiful army even further, and saw the last man disappear in the distance.
But the Lord said to Gideon, "There are still too many men. With three hundred men... I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands. Let all the other men go, each to his own place."But they won. That's a miracle. One thing is certain: it was very, very clear that day Who delivered Israel. And it sure wasn't Gideon with his measly three hundred soldiers.
Loving Weakness (for the Glory of God)
When you read Paul's letters, it's abundantly evident that he was enraptured with God's glory. Everything he writes tends back to that one, over-riding theme. However, there's something else that we might overlook: the connection with Paul's lack of strength.
Now, when we envision the apostle Paul, we usually tend to think of a dynamic, magnetic personality. Not quite-- in 1 Corinthians 2:3-5, Paul explains how God desired to use his weakness to reach the men and women in Corinth. He writes,
"I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power."If Paul had gained a throng of new Christian converts with his charisma and entertaining sermons, people could have easily credited the mass success to his skill. As it was, the glory of God was on full display, because the result could only have been caused by Him. Paul may have planted the seed, but the seed-planter doesn't get (and shouldn't get) recognition for the budding of a plant. God is the one who caused the growth.
Backing up a chapter, in 1 Corinthians 1:26-31, Paul opens his letter by addressing the believers in Corinth rather bluntly:
"Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things... so that no one may boast before Him. Therefore, as it is written: "Let him who boasts boast in the Lord."If you're lacking strength, Paul has great news: God delights to use the weak. In fact, that's the only sort of person that He ever does use. Where else is His magnificent power manifest, except in those who must rely fully on Him?
There's a flip-side to this, too. Whenever I start to launch off into another hour-long mental recitation of my failures, inadequacies, and weaknesses, and whenever I start to ask, "How can God use me? Why should He? I'm such a mess..." I'm invariably wading three feet deep in pride.
First off: Whose glory am I honestly concerned with? Christ's, or mine? If it's really Christ's, then why should I care if people don't find me amazing? Why should it matter to me if my name is forgotten?
There are only two options for my motivations in my service to God. Either I desire attention to be directed toward myself and my own capabilities, or I desire God to be magnified, worshipped, revered, and adored. The two goals cannot co-exist; it is impossible for me to be proudly preoccupied with how others perceive me while claiming a desire for God's glorification.
Secondly: Who am I to limit the power of God, in my arrogance? By specifying the kind of person that I think He should use, and the kind of person that should be most effective for Him, I'm doubting His capability to use anything and anyone for His name's sake.
You cannot be too weak, or too small, for God to use you; that isn't what we need to fear. You can, however, become too self-reliant in your strength, and too great (or too small) in your own eyes, for God to have any use for you. We need to fear self-reliance and self-importance, not weakness. Weakness is God's precious gift.
"But He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong." 2 Corinthians 12:9-10
Oswald Chambers said something very profound: "If Jesus ever gave us a command He could not enable us to fulfill, He would be a liar; and if we make our inability a barrier to obedience, it means we are telling God there is something He has not taken into account. Every element of self-reliance must be slain by the power of God. Complete weakness and dependence will always be the occasion for the Spirit of God to manifest His power." Always.
Enabled by His grace, let's delight in our utter weakness-- and His utter strength.
Friday, September 05, 2008
Mrs. Vice President?
The VP nomination of Gov. Sarah Palin has stirred more than a little blog controversy. Some have been asking whether it is right for a woman to be in such a high position of authority. In case you've asked this question, too, I recommend checking out this perspective, from the Council for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood.
Thursday, September 04, 2008
5 Reasons for Modesty (Part Four)
Remember the Cross.
There is no better source of motivation to be faithful than the Cross of Christ. While on the Cross, Christ demonstrated the ultimate self-sacrificial love. He dragged Himself bleeding, bruised, with skin slashed open in dozens of places by the crack of a whip onto a hill--to be executed. Out of love. 1 Peter 2:21 says "For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you might follow in His steps."
Now consider—immodesty may feel benign to you, but it tempts your brothers in Christ to lust. This lust sticks in their mind, soiling their thought life and providing a literal physical, mental and spiritual struggle to gain control. These lustful thoughts distract and handicap their walk with the Lord.
As someone who is called to follow Christ self-sacrificially, following in His footsteps, what do you think the lovingest plan of action would be toward your brother? Toeing the line of decency? Waving temptation in front of his eyes? Or would it be placing his interests first, at regardless the toll it may take on personal vanity?
I know it's easy to forget. We've all made mistakes in the past in this area. But by God's grace, keeping our eyes on the Cross, we'll find the motivation to conquer our self interest and look out for the other guy. With this grace in mind, too, the battle of the will becomes only a toy-soldier skirmish.
Labels: modesty
Monday, September 01, 2008
5 Reasons For Modesty (Part Three)
Grab Your Stethoscope.If choosing the modest outfit was a really, really, really tough decision, you may want to stop. And think. Grab your stethoscope and conduct a heart-check. What made doing the right thing so difficult? Perhaps it was hard because it was yet another battle with the flesh. Or, could it have been because you’ve been harboring in your heart a need to be noticed?
Consider, have you been reminded recently of God’s love for you as shown in the Gospel, and meditated on that love? Or have your thoughts been occupied with other inferior loves? Have you reminded yourself that the reason you’re even alive is to glorify your Maker, and nothing (including clothes) should stand in the way of His being glorified?
Please don’t take this as pointing fingers. I’m not trying to diagnose the heart problems of others. I’m only speaking of what I’ve learned from my own; and any moment when the flesh raises its ugly head is a prime occasion for some heart searching.
Is There More To You Than Meets the Eye?
Modesty says “yes.” It shows that there’s a deeper fiber in the girl than a yearning for attention, and more individuality than a need to accept each and every trend that bares itself on the runway. Modesty reflects that there are higher things than vanity on the priority list of the wearer.
And a lack of modesty reveals, well, more than just skin. It’s indicative of the heart. That is not to say that some girls are not naïve and need to learn about modesty, or simply need to remain vigilant in their clothing choices; but to those who know what is right and do otherwise-- that’s sin (according to James 4:17). And sin doesn’t start suddenly. It grows as an outshoot of our choices and thought-life. This begs the question, is that really what I want to communicated to others by what I'm wearing? And what about God?
Miss part 1 or 2?
Labels: modesty
