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A Rainbow

I was driving home from taking my oldest daughter to work. It had been a dreary rainy day the previous day and at that hour there were still some sprinkles. After leaving her at work I made my way home. The sun was starting to peak over the horizon. Before me, in the middle of the gray clouds was a faint, but large rainbow.

I began musing about the promise God made to Noah and how we still see evidence of this today. It struck me as odd that God did this. He could have sent an angel or some other method to share this promise with Noah. But he didn’t. He made it permanent a part of our natural world. And yet a rainbow while being real in a scientific sense is also extremely ephemeral and mysterious. If you try to track the rainbow you will never catch it. It disappears before your eyes.

The rainbow comes on the heels of the a storm. Without the storm there is no rainbow. He doesn’t promise us there will be smooth sailing. He never said a trouble free life is a sign of his hand in our lives. No. He promises us hope in the storm. He reminds us of his presence and greatness even while the rain falls.

He gives us hope to face what we need to face. His rainbow is a reminder of him and his great love for man.

Hebrews 11:1 – Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.

Explaining my thoughts

I had a discussion with a friend about the works vs faith debate. How do we settle the differences in opinions that seem apparent between James and Paul. There are people, far smarter than me that can be called on to give the fine debate points. It can be a complicated argument. Bogged down by historical doctrines and even personal opinions about which is more important. Works based religions are very attractive, as we can see by the abundance of them.

My issue with this has always been that if we focus on works alone we are making it about us, not Jesus. This is not what James was suggesting, and it is what Paul is speaking about directly in his letter to the Ephesians.

I was thinking how can I represent this visually. So I tried laying it out in a diagram. I came up with this.

I wanted to make sure Jesus was at the centre. But then I realized this actually shows my problem with the basic debate. Whether we gain our salvation by works or faith is not the point. Both are products of our own efforts. They are both about us.

It needs to be about Jesus and His gift of grace. Without Jesus we have no redemption of sin. Without Jesus we have no salvation. So the diagram should look like this.

Paul says it best and it seems quite simple to me. Faith is what we bring to the party, along with our efforts and works to show the love of God to the worlds. But EVERYTHING else God and Jesus provided.

Ephesians 2: 8-9 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.

The parable of the talents

I was thinking of the idea of how glorious it will be to meet Jesus and have him say, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” I couldn’t remember where this came from in the scriptures. I thought it was from a parable, but I couldn’t remember which one. I looked it up and lo and behold it was from one of the hardest to understand parables.

The parable of the talents, as it’s known, is a tough bit of scripture. We like to focus on God’s grace and his forgiveness and yet here the master is shown as unmerciful and punitive in his dealing with his servant. It always seemed to me to be a threat; do well with what God gives you or else. I believed it was the results of the servant’s actions that cause the master’s ire. I focused solely on the fairness of the actions and thoughts of the master

But this time when I read it there was something new (to me). Perhaps it was more in the servants behaviour. Not only did the servant do nothing with the money, but rather his reasoning was also very telling. The bad servant focused on the master’s negative qualities (of which we are not told the validity), he insisted that his actions were caused by fear and distrust. He took an opportunity, one that other servants used to great advantage, and treated it as a curse. He decided his safest bet, to avoid angering what he saw as a ‘hard man’ was to do nothing.

This is what our world does with God. His morality and goodness is judged and found wanting. People refuse to worship a mean and judgmental God who is harsh and vindictive. And yet the god they persist that they can’t believe in, is nothing like the God I serve. They have built their own version of God’s character and then decide he is not worthy of respect. It would be better to get to know God before assessing his nature.

But there is a reminder in this parable for Christians too. Am I living a life afraid of punishment? Am I living freely in the grace of God? Or am I attributing the negative in my life to ‘correction’ or persecution? God does correct us. But he is also the author of all the good in the world. We mustn’t live our lives afraid to fail. It wasn’t failure that ailed this servant, it was fear of trying.

This is probably not new to you. But I was taken aback by this new insight. May God bless you as you go forward and give you the bravery you need to trust in His care and love.

Matthew 24: 14 – 30 “Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his wealth to them. To one he gave five bags of gold, to another two bags, and to another one bag, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. The man who had received five bags of gold went at once and put his money to work and gained five bags more. So also, the one with two bags of gold gained two more. But the man who had received one bag went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.

“After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. The man who had received five bags of gold brought the other five. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with five bags of gold. See, I have gained five more.’ “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’

“The man with two bags of gold also came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with two bags of gold; see, I have gained two more.’ “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’

“Then the man who had received one bag of gold came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. So I was afraid and went out and hid your gold in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.’ “His master replied, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest.

“‘So take the bag of gold from him and give it to the one who has ten bags. For whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

Surprises

I was planning to get into my garden and weed and maybe even plant some carrots this week. I didn’t have time last week. But mother nature had other plans. Late snow for Calgary.

Life is like this. We plan, things change, we adjust and we move forward. If you sit down and contemplate how little control we actually have over what happens, it can be overwhelming and a bit frightening.

That is how believing there is a God behind it all offers us hope. Not a vengeful, wrathful God, but a loving God. For me personally the idea that some good can come out of terrible experiences, or even some order can emerge from the chaos, is a hopeful thought.

The garden will come, whether I weed on schedule or not. I’m just enjoying the time to sit back and reflect and wonder at the blessings God has gifted me.

Romans 8: 26-27 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.

Word made flesh

There is a great debate of ideas right now; happening online and in the ether. There is a collision of world views. I was watching a podcast I like, goes by the name of Ideas that Matter or something like that and I was struck by an idea. Not mine, but striking none the less.

We seem to believe that ideas change minds. That ideas are the catalyst for great societal shifts. This isn’t precisely true. Yes the ideas matter, but the belief in these ideas is more important. The holder of this belief shows through their actions how they see the world. It is the believer, living out their ideas, that changes the world.

Jesus was the epitome of this idea. He came to earth so we could see God. The idea of God took form. The word was made flesh. We as his followers need to do our best to know him and act like him. Our ideas need to be visible in our actions.

Believers change the world.

Matthew 7: 15 – 20 “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing,
but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 
Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 
Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.

Who are we?

My daughter is graduating this spring. We were discussing how she feels about this change. There is so much uncertainty at this point of her life. Not only are young adults deciding what they want to do, but more importantly who they want to be.

As she decides who she wants to be and what she wants to do, I asked her to remember who created her. After all, the most important thing is not how we feel about ourselves, but who God says we are. He says we are His children. What my daughter does for a living and how much she makes doesn’t matter in his eyes. He cares that we recognize him as our father and that we assume the dignity and responsibilities that go along with this.

As swiftly as the years pass I am confident my beautiful girl will face the world shoulders back and head up. Always remembering that she is a child of God.

John 14: 1-4 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.”

A snowball fight broke out

I just took my dog for a walk through the late April snow. It is sticky and heavy snow. Not the normal snow for our climate. But pretty typical of a very early or late snow, when the temperatures are higher.

Willis was toddling along through the snow, stopping to smell and explore as he wished. His tail upright and a swing in his hips. He exuded happiness. As we walked I watched a young man clearing the heavy snow with a shovel from his driveway. I had just done my walk before heading out with Willis, so I felt a kinship with this young stranger.

Suddenly he stopped and I heard a light thud. I followed his glance and saw another man crouched down behind a car closer to the house. Immediately this young man dropped his shovel and bent over. He crouched down and smoothly shaped a ball with the snow. He waited until the other man peeped over the car and then he threw it with careful aim. Soon there was a volley of snow balls and laughter.

This brought me so much joy. There is something universally fun about a snow ball fight. It brings out the child in us, even if we are just an observer.

We forget to play. In the seriousness and darkness and struggle in life we forget to play. I have been very guilty of this. I allowed the struggles of life to choke out the joy. But the joy is there, we just have to watch for it and be willing to participate. Whether in watching a spontaneous snowball fight or walking with my ridiculous little dog, God is in the details. Joy can be found in the moment.

Philippians 4:4  Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Secrets of renewal

When we are rebuilding ourselves and renewing our spirit there is no guidebook. There is no step by step or self help book that outlines a clear path. But there are a couple of secrets that will assist in our renewal efforts.

The first secret is having a target. When someone goes bowling they can’t hit consecutive strikes if they are wearing a blindfold. We need something to aim at. For healthy renewal we need to find a worthy target. In my opinion there is no better vision to keep in our sights than that of Jesus. This involves learning about him from God’s word. As you move forward keep your eyes on Jesus.

The other secret is that the key to good mental health and wellness is found outside of our own heads. If you are feeling down or depressed go do something for someone else. When we focus on the needs of others we leave God the space to work on building us up. It is actually a bit of a miracle. The less we think about our own problems (which is hard – I know this personally) the more we are capable of handling.

Now I understand there are times when this is very hard, but as you find yourself moving through the darkness and towards the light, start to look outward. Look to Jesus and look for places to do the work he puts before you.

Ephesians 2: 8 -10 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Renewal is hard

I am sitting here listening to an instrumental version of the beautiful song “Breath of Heaven.” It is lovely to hear but it got thinking… this is sometimes how I see renewal. I ask God to renew my spirit and I sit and wait for the Holy spirit to pour over me and renew me. Maybe this happens to some people. Not me.

As anyone who has lived through a renovation can tell you it is a messy business. Everything is dusty, ripped apart and nothing works. On top of that the rebuild can seem to be endless. When you are living without a sink the wait for cabinets, carpenters, counters, plumbers, tile setters etc., can seem endless. And the outcome only seems to be increased visits to the chiropractor, to deal with the strain caused by doing dishes in the bathtub.

It is hard. Waiting and wading through mess. This is what renewal is like. The hard work of dealing with our old toxic habits or beliefs while allowing God to slowly rebuild our inner framework.

Maybe the breath of God blew over you and in a moment you gave your life to him, but you still have a lot of work to do, albeit now with the help of God.

If we ask God to renew us we need to be prepared for some difficulties. But it is worth it. Any suffering, hardship, rethinking or change of life if worth it if it brings us closer to God.

James 4: 7 – 10 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 
Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.

Before renewal

Before we can undergo a renewal, a few things have to happen. If you want to improve an old home you can add new flooring and give it a fresh coat of paint. But have you actually improved the building or have you just “put lipstick on a pig,” as the saying goes.

If you want to improve an old house you have to inspect it and find the flaws. Maybe there is a lack of insulation (our old home would have been warmer through this cold snap if we had better insulation. Maybe it’s a crack in the foundation. The builder must inspect and find the defects. These problems should be fixed. Then, when the new paint goes on it represents the improved state of the home.

In the Old Testament, Malachi refers to the ‘refiner’s fire’ in this way; “He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver.” (Malachi 3:3) The idea of burning off the impurities and extracting the best parts of the metal.

Hard times suck. Plain and simple. But we need to have difficulties and trials, we need to have our sins and defects burned off and allow the glory of Jesus to emerge. It’s like the old hymn that starts, “All of self and none of thee.” And through the verses it progresses to the final verse saying, “None of self and all of thee.”

The aim of renewal isn’t to emerge from the ashes as a better and stronger version of ourselves. But rather to emerge from our struggles and trials as a stronger reflection of Jesus. His glory is the aim not our own. The old saying “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger,” should actually be “What doesn’t kill you makes Jesus more visible in your life.” It is not as catchy for sure, but to me that is the ideal.

I do fall short! I know. But this is the aim.

Ephesians 4: 22 – 24 You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds;
and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.