Category: Silent before God

Pursue truth

These are confusing times. Nothing seems right. Families are fractured. Information abounds and so does pure propaganda. As Churchill said, “In wartime, truth is so precious that she should always be attended by a bodyguard of lies.”

What we are dealing with is a war of worldview. Issues of a worldly nature have occupied the part of our thinking that was devoted, in the past, to religious thinking. Theology has been supplanted by politics, philosophy, environmental and health concerns. When this happens it doesn’t elevate these issues to the status of the spiritual part of our minds, but rather it removes our measuring stick. We no longer have a moral compass by which to judge all other issues of life.

I see two reactions to this right now; rabid support of the new progressive thinking or violent reaction against. One pushes harder and faster. The other is looking wildly for answers.

We need to be careful. We need to step back from both sides and reclaim our measuring stick. READ YOUR BIBLE. Focus on the bible. Don’t tell the bible what to say. Don’t come to the bible to prove your side or disprove your enemy. Be open. Be humble before God. Recognize that truth lives outside you, that it is owned entirely by God.

Jeremiah 23: 16 This is what the Lord Almighty says: “Do not listen to what the prophets are prophesying to you; they fill you with false hopes.
They speak visions from their own minds, not from the mouth of the Lord.
They keep saying to those who despise me, ‘The Lord says: You will have peace.’
And to all who follow the stubbornness of their hearts they say,
‘No harm will come to you.’
But which of them has stood in the council of the Lord to see or to hear his word? Who has listened and heard his word?
See, the storm of the Lord will burst out in wrath, a whirlwind swirling down on the heads of the wicked. The anger of the Lord will not turn back until he fully accomplishes the purposes of his heart.
In days to come you will understand it clearly.
I did not send these prophets, yet they have run with their message; I did not speak to them, yet they have prophesied.
But if they had stood in my council, they would have proclaimed my words to my people and would have turned them from their evil ways and from their evil deeds.
“Am I only a God nearby,” declares the Lord, “and not a God far away?
Who can hide in secret places so that I cannot see them?” declares the Lord.
“Do not I fill heaven and earth?” declares the Lord.

After the storm

Imagine we are on a voyage. We are sailing on the ocean. There is a great storm, and we are blown off course. When the rain and wind die down, and we stop trying to keep the ship from going down, we become aware that our tools have all been damaged. Our radio, computers and usual charting devices have been destroyed by the storm.

What should we do at this point? I’d be interested in hearing your thoughts – but here is what I think we should do.

We should find a safe harbour, never mind where it is or how familiar it is to us. Find a calm place to stop and drop anchor. Most important thing to have when sailing – an anchor. Find this anchor and use it now. Stop and pause, and let go of the fear from the night before. Let go of the anxiety of saving your life and those of your shipmates. You are here now – alive. Release the negative emotions and pause.

Get out the maps. Get out the compass and try to figure out where we are. This is the only way forward. We have to stop and take stock. We can’t start sailing without figuring out how far off course we now are. We have to establish where we are and how best to get to our destination.

God is the anchor. The Bible is the map. Our inner conscience is the compass. Pause and pull out what tools we have left.

Proverbs 3: 5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.

Lessons from life

I got a call last week from someone, I haven’t seen or talked to in years. She was ‘concerned’ about my political stance. Not sure how she knows what it is, as she never actually asked me about it. She just knew. The worst part was a subtle disapproval of me as a Christian. My politics are different, therefore I wasn’t understanding Jesus, and I am not really a Christian.

This was upsetting to say the least. I know many people with whom I have different politics, but I have never done anyone the disservice of presuming they are not a member of His kingdom.

Then I started to think of my Grandmother. She befriended the people no one else valued. She stayed connected to the woman whose extramarital affair broke up more than her own family. She stayed friends with the person who let alcohol drag her from the centre of polite society. She loved the unlovable. She may not have approved of their life choices, but she loved them anyhow.

Why? That wasn’t her job. Just as it isn’t my job to rank others on the ‘Christian’ scale. It is not my job to condemn others over disagreements in policy. Or to judge people who make different life choices.

Let us not let our fervor for God or what we think as the ‘right’ way tempt us. We have no right to assume the position of judge. When we do so, we are claiming the position of God – something that even Jesus was unwilling to do.

James 4: 12 There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you—who are you to judge your neighbor?

Self-doubt

Often when I think about the Bible I find people within it’s pages to whom I relate. I admire Esther’s courage and willingness to be used for the good of her people. I wish I were more like David, who confidently strode into battle with Goliath because of his confidence in God. I love Mary’s heart as she watches her Son become the Messiah.

Perhaps the story that hits closest to home is the story of Moses when he is called to go back to Egypt to save God’s people. Moses sees a bush burning, but it isn’t spreading or burning up. He thinks, “That’s strange” and investigates. Before he knows it he’s standing barefoot, covering his face, talking to the creator of the Universe.

God tells him he wants him to go back and rescue the Israelite people. Moses says, “What if…” God answers. Moses says, “What do I do when…” God answers. God shows him miracles he can preform. Even after all this Moses says, “I’m not a good speaker, you better send someone else.”

Moses is talking to God through a burning bush. God is showing him how to do miracles and when he says, “Go” Moses thinks, “Nah, you can find someone better.” Do you think it might enter Moses mind, that if God had a better choice he would know about it?

I am too often like Moses. My own self-doubt keeps me from feeling up to the task. I think of millions of reasons of why I am not worthy. But like Moses, this lack of confidence in oneself is actually lack of confidence in God’s ability. It was God who freed the Israelite people, it was by his power, Moses was just the vessel. I need to put my faith in the Great I Am and allow him to work in my life.

Exodus 4: 13-17 But Moses said, “Pardon your servant, Lord. Please send someone else.”
Then the Lord’s anger burned against Moses and he said, “What about your brother, Aaron the Levite? I know he can speak well. He is already on his way to meet you, and he will be glad to see you. You shall speak to him and put words in his mouth;
I will help both of you speak and will teach you what to do. He will speak to the people for you, and it will be as if he were your mouth and as if you were God to him. But take this staff in your hand so you can perform the signs with it.”

When will we understand?

Jesus was in a boat with his closest followers. He was talking with them, warning them to be wary of the “yeast of the Pharisees and that of Herod.”

I love this story. Jesus is taking a moment of calm to teach these men. He gives them a piece of advice which they don’t understand. In fact, they start mumbling to each other about what he could mean. They settle on the fact that he’s upset because they didn’t bring enough bread, focusing on his use of the word yeast.

Jesus response shows his disappointment, and he asks them how they could still be missing the point. In modern language his response would be, “Bread! You think I am worried about bread?” He reminds them he just made food materialize for thousands of people, not once but twice. Even after that, they think he’s concerned about the bread.

These men are not prepared for what is about to happen. They are limited in their understanding by what they have already experienced. Nothing that they will soon see can be predicted by the world as they understand it.

We also are trapped by our own view point, by our experiences. It can be hard to fathom what might happen next, or how the events that are ongoing could shape our understanding.

We are very much like these disciples. If Jesus came and spoke to me today I think his words would be the same. He’d likely point out all the miracles he has preformed in my life, that I accepted without question. He’d be disappointed in my lack of understanding also.

Mark 8: 21 He said to them, “Do you still not understand?”

In the garden

Gardening brings me closer to God. There are several reasons that I say this. First, it brings us in direct connection with God’s creation. Second it is contemplative. You have time to think and just rest your mind as you do mundane tasks like weeding. Third, Jesus often used farming and gardening analogies in his parables and teachings.

This is time of year that I find stressful as a gardener. The seeds are planted. I can water and wait. The seeds I planted eventually start to poke their heads above the surface. But in the time they took to do that the weeds have also returned. I watch helplessly as the weeds pop up. I can’t wade into the garden and pick the weeds as I might step on a bud about to pop just below the surface. Or I might root up a tender shoot as I pull out a weed.

This is a time for patience. It isn’t my job to weed right now. I must wait until the plants are more established and ready to harvest. Then I can weed again.

God can’t remove all the weeds from my life, I must live with them and persist in growing and bearing the fruit I was planted to create.

Matthew 13: 29 “‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds,
you may uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest.
At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles
to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’”

Turning over my anger

I saw a fellow today that has done work for Wes in the past. It has not been a good year for his business. He was smiling and happy to chat, but he was open about how difficult life has been. He said, “I’ve been through hard times before, but I can’t see us recovering from this one.”

My heart ached for him. I don’t think we’ve even scratched the surface of the economic hardship or the turmoil. For those of you who have been able to pivot and keep going, good for you. But many people haven’t been able to do that. This business of stop and go, stop and go economy has ruined them.

I feel helpless and angry.

But resentment doesn’t help. Anger doesn’t help. Anger and resentment only destroy. They don’t build. I don’t have within me the power to fix anything. I can’t make people see sense or heal the hurts of those around me.

But God can.

What I can do is give my anger to God. I can pray for this man and his family. I can pray for my neighbours. I can pray for my own hurts.

God is the answer.

Isaiah 35: 5 Then will the eyes of the blind be opened and the
ears of the deaf unstopped.

Fear of a bad outcome

My son had an issue in Junior High with another boy. He had known this boy since kindergarten, and they had been on again off again friends. The other boy left the school for a couple years and then came back. My son invited him into his friend group and before he knew what was happening this other boy was picking on him. Subtly, but acting in an aggressive and dismissive way.

Through school events and play dates etc., I knew this family, knew this boy’s parents. I didn’t see the situation as strange or mystifying. This young man was feeling awkward and desired the position of well-liked kid that my son occupied. It seemed to me that he was trying to replace my son by pushing him out.

I was walking to school with my son one morning, and he expressed his concern with the escalating bullying. I asked what he feared. He said being hit. I acknowledged this fear and then I explained what I saw as the psychology of the situation. I told him that I didn’t think this boy would hit him. He was acting out of jealousy and therefore needed to be subtle in his behaviour. If he hit my son all those other kids he wanted to be friends with would be angry with him, and he would suffer the social consequences of this act. I also then added, that he would only do it once, cause I know his parents and I’m not afraid of them (my inner mamma bear leaked out).

I suggested that he firmly tell him to back off.

Later he told me that he did what I suggested and that the other boy did indeed back off.

How much of what we do or, even more importantly, don’t do, is based on a feared outcome?

We fear one outcome while sometimes not even being aware of another far worse outcome. I wanted my son to understand that it would be worse for him to continue to be angry and upset at being bullied than it would being hit once. Of course, I wouldn’t have suggested this in another situation where it could have been dangerous. But I knew this family and I felt confident of being able to resolve a solution with the parents if need be.

This story came to my mind when I read this verse last week. We fear men and the powerful and what they can do to us. How often do we fear the creator?

Matthew 10: 28 “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.”

Who among us


My oldest daughter is reading a book about a World War II spy. So naturally this dominates her conversation. At supper last night she asked, “Which of us in our family would make the best spy?”

I suggested that Dad before his stroke would have made a good spy; quiet, reflective, incredibly observant, and strong. But I said, “But not since his stroke.” Wes stuck his tongue out at me. He does that now since his stroke. “Because of that,” I added.

“He’d tell someone now,” said my oldest. We all laughed, and Dad stuck his tongue out at the kids too.

There was much discussion among the kids. All their spy like qualities and their fatal flaws. Finally, they began to discuss what kind of a spy their Mother would be.

“Mom would make a terrible spy!” said my oldest. “They would send her somewhere and she would forget why she was there.” Yes, my boy. That would be the likely scenario. I had to agree.

It was great fun, and we all had a laugh at our own expense, mostly at Mom’s expense (which is fine with me). I later thought about that type of hypothetical question. The kind of child like comparison we make all the time. “Which among us is the best at this, or that?” Even Jesus had to deal with this kind of question from his disciples.

Mark 10: 35-37   Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to him.
“Teacher,” they said, “we want you to do for us whatever we ask.”
“What do you want me to do for you?” he asked.
They replied, “Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory.”

It always caused me to wonder why this was in the Bible text. It seems such a strange interlude. But really it is very human. We want to be important. We want to be good at something. We feel special if we are recognized. Like children we compare ourselves to others. We want to be set apart.

The reality is we are set apart. We are chosen. All we need to do is welcome His grace and we have a gift better than all the recognition, skill, and riches in the world.