Sometimes the storms in my life may make it difficult to see the Glory of God reflected on my face, but He is still there, still at work, and when the storm calms, his glory will be all the more evident because of it.
Exodus 34:29-35
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Thursday, July 8, 2010
My hope = God's glory
So in the previous 4 posts I’ve established that (according to one source) there are 5 primary ways we reflect God’s glory.
1. In our worship
2. As we are transformed
3. As we love others
4. As we serve others
5. As we testify to others
I’ve also established that I am hopelessly incapable of effectively carrying these things out in my life on a regular basis or in a meaningful way. However, I claim that although I cannot do these things, I still have hope. Where does that hope lie? It lies in my relationship with Jesus Christ.
The simple fact is that apart from Christ none of us can please God. The Bible says that “without faith it is impossible to please God” (Hebrews 11:6). It also says that in God’s sight “our righteous acts are like filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6). God knows that on our own, we are hopelessly bankrupt and incapable of righteous acts, and thus incapable of bringing him glory, for it is through our good deeds (specifically the 5 types of deeds listed above) that we direct people to God (see Matthew 5:16).
But if we are in relationship with Christ, then we have the secret weapon! What is the secret you ask, well the Bible says that “this is the secret: Christ lives in you. This gives you assurance of sharing in his glory” (Colossians 1:27, emphasis added). You see we can share in God’s glory, reflecting it to those around us because “God is with us” (Matthew 1:23).
Paul put it this way, “…I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God…” (Galatians 2:20).
I have come to believe… No, I have come to base all my beliefs on the idea that Christ lives in me, and that by his indwelling Spirit, I can be transformed (Romans 12:2). If you truly knew me now, and truly knew me before I met Christ, this transformation alone would be enough for you to see the glory of God. But since you aren’t privileged to have that point of view, I am trusting that in the transformation process you will be able to see me worship, testify, serve, and even love others as the Spirit so enables.
“But eagerly desire the greater [spiritual] gifts” (1 Corinthians 12:31).
1. In our worship
2. As we are transformed
3. As we love others
4. As we serve others
5. As we testify to others
I’ve also established that I am hopelessly incapable of effectively carrying these things out in my life on a regular basis or in a meaningful way. However, I claim that although I cannot do these things, I still have hope. Where does that hope lie? It lies in my relationship with Jesus Christ.
The simple fact is that apart from Christ none of us can please God. The Bible says that “without faith it is impossible to please God” (Hebrews 11:6). It also says that in God’s sight “our righteous acts are like filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6). God knows that on our own, we are hopelessly bankrupt and incapable of righteous acts, and thus incapable of bringing him glory, for it is through our good deeds (specifically the 5 types of deeds listed above) that we direct people to God (see Matthew 5:16).
But if we are in relationship with Christ, then we have the secret weapon! What is the secret you ask, well the Bible says that “this is the secret: Christ lives in you. This gives you assurance of sharing in his glory” (Colossians 1:27, emphasis added). You see we can share in God’s glory, reflecting it to those around us because “God is with us” (Matthew 1:23).
Paul put it this way, “…I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God…” (Galatians 2:20).
I have come to believe… No, I have come to base all my beliefs on the idea that Christ lives in me, and that by his indwelling Spirit, I can be transformed (Romans 12:2). If you truly knew me now, and truly knew me before I met Christ, this transformation alone would be enough for you to see the glory of God. But since you aren’t privileged to have that point of view, I am trusting that in the transformation process you will be able to see me worship, testify, serve, and even love others as the Spirit so enables.
“But eagerly desire the greater [spiritual] gifts” (1 Corinthians 12:31).
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
We glorify God by testifying to others
Testify – To bear witness, or more simply, to share our experiences. If a door is open, I am ok with testifying. The problem I have is that I do not want to offend the person to which I am speaking for fear of turning them off to my testimony. Because of this fear, I don’t like to testify if the “door” is only half open. I’m more likely to testify if the person opens the door all the way and then stands back with a wide grin saying, “Come on in!” Of course, how often does that happen? Even if I am talking with another Christian, one with whom I should feel safe, I don’t like to get to close to sensitive subjects: homosexuality, creation, husband/wife roles in marriage, etc. I just don’t like to offend. In short, I can testify, but I generally fail to do so because I am afraid.
I have another problem with testifying to others. I have come to the realization that testimonies are generally better received when the person you are sharing with is someone who knows you. Relationships usually need to come first. Then a little tact to get things going. Then the testimony. This need to build a relationship brings us back to the requirement to love, which we’ve established I don’t know how to do.
So, in summary of the last 3 days, our glorifying God is built into our relationships with others. We glorify him by loving others (which I don’t know how to), by serving others (which I can’t do), and by testifying to others (which I am afraid to do). Where does this leave me – miserable and wretched! But there is a solution, I do have hope, and that I will discuss next time.
I have another problem with testifying to others. I have come to the realization that testimonies are generally better received when the person you are sharing with is someone who knows you. Relationships usually need to come first. Then a little tact to get things going. Then the testimony. This need to build a relationship brings us back to the requirement to love, which we’ve established I don’t know how to do.
So, in summary of the last 3 days, our glorifying God is built into our relationships with others. We glorify him by loving others (which I don’t know how to), by serving others (which I can’t do), and by testifying to others (which I am afraid to do). Where does this leave me – miserable and wretched! But there is a solution, I do have hope, and that I will discuss next time.
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
We glorify God by serving others
Serving in and of itself is easy. I do this daily at work. You just get in there and do what needs to be done.
Oh...
“What needs to be done.”
How is that defined?
Well, there are the surface issues, which are easy to identify, and that’s a good place to start. I can handle that. But then there are the real needs. The things that are below the surface. The things that are causing the pain, the failure, the suffering. How do you find these things? In reality, you’re not providing any service of value unless you address the real issues. As my Sunday School teacher in Washington used to say, “Anything else is using an aspirin to treat a brain tumor.” (To which I would always think, “It might take care of the headache, but you’re still going to die!”)
So how do we get past the surface to the real issues?
We need to love. We need to take the time to get to know the person. We need to build a relationship where the issues can be brought to the surface and dealt with. In short, we need to do the very thing that I can not do.
Oh...
“What needs to be done.”
How is that defined?
Well, there are the surface issues, which are easy to identify, and that’s a good place to start. I can handle that. But then there are the real needs. The things that are below the surface. The things that are causing the pain, the failure, the suffering. How do you find these things? In reality, you’re not providing any service of value unless you address the real issues. As my Sunday School teacher in Washington used to say, “Anything else is using an aspirin to treat a brain tumor.” (To which I would always think, “It might take care of the headache, but you’re still going to die!”)
So how do we get past the surface to the real issues?
We need to love. We need to take the time to get to know the person. We need to build a relationship where the issues can be brought to the surface and dealt with. In short, we need to do the very thing that I can not do.
Monday, July 5, 2010
We glorify God by loving others
Love
This is as loaded a word as there is. To truly love means to completely care for someone. Notice that nowhere does it say who the someone is; it just says “others”. Makes me want to standup and shout, “Who are the others that we need to love?” I guess someone already asked that question.
Before I go any further understand that I do recognize the worth of individuals. I am not an overly bigoted or predigest person (though all of us prejudge on occasion – I just am usually willing to give the benefit of the doubt and try to get beyond my predigests). The issue I have is with caring. As harsh as this sounds, it is hard for me to truly care for another person. I guess I think that there is so much in this world that is substandard, painful, and just plain wrong, that if I really cared for each person I met, I would literally break.
How do you live this out?
How did Jesus live this out?
This is as loaded a word as there is. To truly love means to completely care for someone. Notice that nowhere does it say who the someone is; it just says “others”. Makes me want to standup and shout, “Who are the others that we need to love?” I guess someone already asked that question.
Before I go any further understand that I do recognize the worth of individuals. I am not an overly bigoted or predigest person (though all of us prejudge on occasion – I just am usually willing to give the benefit of the doubt and try to get beyond my predigests). The issue I have is with caring. As harsh as this sounds, it is hard for me to truly care for another person. I guess I think that there is so much in this world that is substandard, painful, and just plain wrong, that if I really cared for each person I met, I would literally break.
How do you live this out?
How did Jesus live this out?
Sunday, July 4, 2010
How do we glorify God?
Rick Warren says in The Purpose Driven Life that there are 5 ways that we reflect the glory of God:
While I am by no means perfect, and I fall short on a more than daily basis, I have no problems with these first two things.
That brings us to one word: OTHERS. Here is where I have trouble. I am such an introvert (not shy, just not tuned in to other people) that to truly love, serve, and testify to others is not only hard for me, it is almost impossible. Over the next few days, I would like to take these one at a time.
- In our worship of God
- As we allow the spirit to transform us into someone who is like Christ
- As we love others
- As we serve others
- As we testify to others
First, he expects us to acknowledge him and understand how we relate to him (i.e. realize and act in the knowledge of the fact that he is God, and we are not). That’s worship.
Second, we need to recognize that we currently are in a fallen state, and we have room to improve. As such, we must have a standard to measure our progress: Jesus Christ.
While I am by no means perfect, and I fall short on a more than daily basis, I have no problems with these first two things.
That brings us to one word: OTHERS. Here is where I have trouble. I am such an introvert (not shy, just not tuned in to other people) that to truly love, serve, and testify to others is not only hard for me, it is almost impossible. Over the next few days, I would like to take these one at a time.
Friday, July 2, 2010
Gatekeeper
"‘I ask you to take care of my house… You pledge to keep it in great shape… [W]hen I return, [it is] in shambles… Your explanation is not impressive: [bikers, rugby players and frat parties.]
‘This is not your house! You don’t have the right to let [everyone in]!’
Ever think God wants to say the same to us?" (Max Lucado, Just Like Jesus) (see Matt 24:45-51)
“[T]ake captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:5b)
Lord,
Help me to tend the garden of my heart. Give me wisdom and power to submit to your authority over my thoughts.
‘This is not your house! You don’t have the right to let [everyone in]!’
Ever think God wants to say the same to us?" (Max Lucado, Just Like Jesus) (see Matt 24:45-51)
“[T]ake captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:5b)
Lord,
Help me to tend the garden of my heart. Give me wisdom and power to submit to your authority over my thoughts.
What I can do today
Lately I have really been struggling with what God’s plan is for my life. I think this primarily comes from dissatisfaction in my job, coupled with a high time commitment at work that prevents me from becoming more involved in activities outside of work (i.e. I’m burned out). I have given a lot of thought to cutting back at work, and have contemplated everything from a minor job change (same job, just different collateral responsibilities) to going back to school and completely changing fields.
I have spent a lot of time in prayer about this, and have looked in the scriptures and other Christian books quite a bit, but haven’t really found a solid leading about where I should go. However, today it struck me that I am slowing piecing the puzzle together:
1) I think I’ve been too focused on the long term. I have been worrying about what I should do with the rest of my life, and not focusing on things I can do right now. If I work for God today, staying in his will for my life today, and do that every day… Well, my life will work itself out, won’t it?
2) Awhile back I thought I would gain good insights about God’s plan for my life by taking a Spiritual Gifts survey. When I finished it, I ended up with my three highest scored (by far) gifts being: giving, faith, and wisdom (in that order). This frustrated me even more than before I took the survey. I felt that God was telling me to just sit back and give my money away while trusting that he’ll take care of the rest; not exactly what I was looking for with regard to my life plan!
So today, while I was staining our deck, I finally stopped sulking about my apparent lack of gifts just long enough for God to start working on me. I found myself (quite by accident) honestly considering what someone with the gift of faith can do. I started thinking about monks. Now, I think my wife and kids might have a problem with me quitting my job and moving to a monastery so that’s obviously out. So then I started thinking about what monks did (and perhaps still do???) They read, meditated on their readings, prayed and wrote about what God had reviled to them.
I still don’t know what God has planned for me in the long term, but the things that monks did, these are things that I can do, right now. Meditation comes naturally to me (part of my gift of wisdom I guess), and reading and praying is something that I try to discipline myself to do often. This blog gives me an outlet where I can write. I don’t know if anyone will read it, let alone benefit from what I write, but for now, I can do this, and trust God to lead me forward from here.
“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.” (Matthew 6:34)
“’For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.’” (Jeremiah 29:11)
I have spent a lot of time in prayer about this, and have looked in the scriptures and other Christian books quite a bit, but haven’t really found a solid leading about where I should go. However, today it struck me that I am slowing piecing the puzzle together:
1) I think I’ve been too focused on the long term. I have been worrying about what I should do with the rest of my life, and not focusing on things I can do right now. If I work for God today, staying in his will for my life today, and do that every day… Well, my life will work itself out, won’t it?
2) Awhile back I thought I would gain good insights about God’s plan for my life by taking a Spiritual Gifts survey. When I finished it, I ended up with my three highest scored (by far) gifts being: giving, faith, and wisdom (in that order). This frustrated me even more than before I took the survey. I felt that God was telling me to just sit back and give my money away while trusting that he’ll take care of the rest; not exactly what I was looking for with regard to my life plan!
So today, while I was staining our deck, I finally stopped sulking about my apparent lack of gifts just long enough for God to start working on me. I found myself (quite by accident) honestly considering what someone with the gift of faith can do. I started thinking about monks. Now, I think my wife and kids might have a problem with me quitting my job and moving to a monastery so that’s obviously out. So then I started thinking about what monks did (and perhaps still do???) They read, meditated on their readings, prayed and wrote about what God had reviled to them.
I still don’t know what God has planned for me in the long term, but the things that monks did, these are things that I can do, right now. Meditation comes naturally to me (part of my gift of wisdom I guess), and reading and praying is something that I try to discipline myself to do often. This blog gives me an outlet where I can write. I don’t know if anyone will read it, let alone benefit from what I write, but for now, I can do this, and trust God to lead me forward from here.
“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.” (Matthew 6:34)
“’For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.’” (Jeremiah 29:11)
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