Dying a Death that Kills

A man makes his plans but God directs his steps.

Solomon tells us that even our jobs are vanity. The conclusion of the matter is unless we fear God and serve him first, then our work will be vain, and ultimately all of life.

Holding on for life is a great thing to do on a roller coaster. But holding onto my dreams for life may just kill me. Why? Because I can only move in a direction but God informs the end game.

I do believe that God gives us the desires in our hearts. Not that he grants them as a genie would but that he has placed within us passions, skills, and interests that are good for us to pursue. Hopefully we discover these before we head off to college and train ourselves in our respective fields. God leads and calls and directs. This is a good thing.

But as a famous theologian once said we are idol factories. If my dreams become the source of my joy. If my dreams become the focus of my thinking. If my desires become the source of my happiness. If my goals become my obsession, then I am in danger of making a God given desire into an idol. This can happen in the day to day tasks as well as the big dreams and goals that we all have.

God wants us to pursue our dreams, but not in a way that if delay in fulfillment should happen, it causes us to lose our contentment. It causes us to lose sleep, it causes to beg in prayer, it causes our view of God to alter. It becomes an idol I worship instead of God.

I have learned how easy it is to let my desires fall into a fire and simply come out as a golden calf. I didn't mean for it to happen, as Aaron told Moses, but the pressure of the crowd and the emotion of the moment, well, here is your god.

God is the only one who I am to worship. This is easy to do if we think of worship in terms of only bowing down, but what consumes our minds, our thoughts, and even our prayers? Does it grant joy in my salvation or does it steal it? God wants us to pursue our dreams but they are supposed to bring us closer to him. If the promise land becomes our end, well God is more than happy to put a desert in our way.

If we think God must perform a certain way for us to be happy, If we believe God must come through in a specific way for us to have stabilization then he will probably simply destabilize us so that we fall into the everlasting arms. This may seem like a hard truth but only if we view our definition of the solution as best, when God wants our very lives, he wants to know us. God wants us to find him.

I can only ever go in a direction. I cannot define the destination, I mustn't. The destination must be God himself. It is like following a light at the end of a dark cavern. The path I walk to get there is my own based on where I am but the destination must be the light, it must be him. I spoke a little bit about this path before about courage. Walking, truly walking with Christ is an invitation to death. He asks us to take up our cross in order to follow him.

Might it be because the only way to know truly him is to understand his sacrifice? To understand his sacrifice we have to understand the chasm that stood between us, the chasm he crossed to get to us. Suffering is a picture of God's gift to us. We tend to think only in terms of our sins that distanced us, which is true but the suffering he endured to bring us near gives us insight into our distance thus into his character and heart for us.

As much I hate to admit it, suffering teaches us.

As I carry my cross I grow to know him more and in turn to love him. I do not rejoice in suffering, I endure it for the sake of the relationship. If God went through so much suffering to get to us, will he really just leave us hanging? Will he really just abandon us on the way to the destination?

So with a new year upon us I have to ask myself how will I proceed? We are moving to Tucson, I am to take on a pastorate position. I walked ups and downs rounds and bouts and even though I see a bright future I need him more than ever. With a job on the horizon and a bit of the metaphorical forest starting to clear I now see a valley of jagged rocks with pointy bits waiting for my exposed ankles to pass by. I cannot let up now for now the real challenge begins.

I knew that when the job came a new enemy would veer its ugly head. My own confidence it seems is the next punching bag. I am still learning to fight. As I look at the new stretch of path laid out before me my mind is filled with my inadequacies and shortcomings. I recognize this for the attack that it is but I knew it was coming. I don't know if my foresight is comforting or worrying.

I know God is inviting me forward and know beyond a shadow of a doubt that he is with me. Is my new found instability the reality of my life or am I just now noticing how exposed I am apart from God? I will not move out from here if you are not with me. I know that much and my time in the desert has reinforced this. As much as Romans has helped me build a foundation of truth that is without compare, I find solace in the book of Psalms of late. The people cry to God but they always come back to praise. As praise is now a major function of my duties, I welcome the part. I know the road less traveled isn't easy but I know all the more where my compass points.

To battle my new adversary I feel God calling me to two things. My identity which is framed by his identity and returning once again to worship. Worship positions my identity rightly before his which is rightly primary over mine. As I sit in his truth and bestow on him praise I can rest that my identity is fastened to him. I am only because he is, or rather because of the great I Am, I can be also. My identity takes focus as I remove it from myself. He calls me to come and die so that I can truly live. 

So I return to the Lord who is my rock. I worship before the Lord of hosts and King of Kings knowing that I am apart of the household of God. Even though ease may not be my calling I want to run again, and keep running till I see his face. God, here is my life, here are my dreams, here is all I have. Take what you want even if it kills and causes a death that I didn't want to happen because you are the bringing of new life. 

Thanks

I Hold the Light

This will be a short one because it is Christmas, so go have Christmas! 

The Light has come into the world. The Light came to us in the form of a baby. He grew to be a man so that he could reach out to his creation. He humbled himself to become like his creatures though he himself is God. This is the miracle of Christmas. Now he has returned to the Father but he left us behind to shine in his place. Do you hold his light?

Similar to a lightsaber we can wield it or not. We can use it or not. We can hide it or not. The new Starwars was so good I had to have another entry mention it. 

We shine but does it illumine? They want to call our light darkness. We live in an age that calls darkness light. The Light came into the darkness and the darkness did not comprehend it. The darkness does not overcome it. So the darkness tries to redefine it.

John 3:19-21
And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.

Jesus says he is the light that shines in the darkness he shines and those who follow will not walk in darkness. 

The darkness is not however overwhelming. 

As Jesus commands in Mathew Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. He tells us that we are a city on  hill that guides the people home. 
 
Psalm 18:28 
For it is you who light my lamp; the Lord my God lightens my darkness.

Jesus teaches that he is the light of the world and that the world is consumed in darkness. But he has passed the baton to us. We hold the light. We shine. What a huge privilege and responsibility. We reflect his radiance, at least we are supposed to. There is another option. We can hide it under a basket. Or perhaps we can attempt to let the light shine but while is it turned to dim. 

I want to shine. I want to shine as light is meant to, with abandon. This is light unfiltered, unobstructed, unrestricted, uncovered. 

Light extinguishes darkness. Darkness does not stand in the light. The light is not the issue, but the bearer is. The challenge of being a light beaer is that our world wants to call the darkness light. They want to call our light as the darkness. But that is easy to counter because light will always extinguish darkness. Truth will always win out, even while the shadow grows. But as we move forward sometime we are tempted to reconsider our light. Maybe we have been told that our light is not loving or not helpful. This is why we return to the source of the light so that he can recharge and inform us. Jesus says in John 8:12 That those that follow him will not walk in darkness. He can give testimony that what he says is true. Man's faithlessness does not cause him to be unfaithful. As Paul writes "Let God be true and every man a liar." Our failure to be light and the world's failure to recognize the light does not in any way undermine the light. 

As Jesus taught our good deeds put to shame the foolishness of men. The truest way for good deeds to be shone is in doing it for our brother or neighbor. The good Samaritan's good deeds could not be denied by the haters. His conduct pointed to a more excellent way, his light shined and the darkness could not stand before it. In first John we are reminded that if we walk in the light as he is in the light we have fellowship with one another and his love cleanses us from out sins. 

My good deeds in isolation do not speak much. It is as they find testimony in others. Others can look on and say that God is good. This is why the New Testament tells us to love and serve and do good deeds especially to the brotherhood. To the fellow believers. They can testify to the goodness of God where as someone else can write it off as charity. This doesn't ignore others absolutely not, but the light shines, and we overcome by our testimony. This is why Peter tells us we are a royal priesthood, a holy nation so we will display praises to God who has called us out of darkness into his marvelous light. 

The time of Christmas is reflective of this truth. God led the wise men by the light of a star to find the true king. We see that God in his mercy has reached out to us as well. He provides grace, he gave of himself for the purpose of others. This is why we at Christmas time do so as well. We give because we were given to. We love because he first loved us and gave himself as a ransom for many. As Luke writes in Acts 13:47 it is true for us well. "I have placed you as light for the gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth."

So your lightsaber, is it out?

We give gifts after our Father in heaven so go and do likewise. Arise shine for the light has come and the glory of the Lord will rise upon you. Merry Christmas.

thanks

to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me. - See more at: http://bible.knowing-jesus.com/topics/From-Darkness-To-Light#sthash.3XTUhLiF.dpuf

for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light - See more at: http://bible.knowing-jesus.com/topics/From-Darkness-To-Light#sthash.3XTUhLiF.dpuf

for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light - See more at: http://bible.knowing-jesus.com/topics/From-Darkness-To-Light#sthash.3XTUhLiF.dpuf

for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light - See more at: http://bible.knowing-jesus.com/topics/From-Darkness-To-Light#sthash.3XTUhLiF.dpuf

Do not harden your hearts as in the Rebellion

With Christmas almost here and the big movie Star Wars coming out on Friday I thought I would role out this gem. As in Star Wars, the Rebel Alliance fights against the Empire and their rule over the Galaxy. They raise up X-wings Y-wings to battle the Tie fighters. War is at hand. Jedi are needed. But what's everybody so upset about?

15 As it is said,

“Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”

I have always pictured Darth Vader saying this line to the rebel alliance, calling them to return to the Galactic Empire, but alas it was not so. The author of Hebrews is of course talking about the Israelites who grumbled and complained about life on the road. But God was saying you don't have to live like a refugee.

The Israeli rebellion was all about losing their way. It was about looking at the accommodations on the journey and musing if it was better in first class. The rebellion was about people grumbling. Isn't that where it always starts, with discontentment?

I have had to start asking myself this question. What causes you to complain? What causes you to complain to God? Does being a Christian mean that our lives should reflect the American dream? What comforts are essential to you and yours?

How does God fit into the picture? When I spoke in Tucson at my vetting I was discussing this very issue. I realized that even though I escaped the name it and claim it theology of my youth I still had expectations of God that put stress on our relationship. I expected him to fulfill certain needs, wants, and desires in my life. I expected his grace to look a certain way. When after long enough, it didn't, or they went unmet, I started to to wonder at some other promises from God. It started to affect my relationship with God. 

You know like a relationship with a friend or family member who you feel cheated you or let you down and it still affects the way you think about them. In person you are cordial enough but you always come back to the wrong or the disappointment. In the end the relationship becomes of toleration, or perhaps you depart it.

I realized I expected certain comforts especially since I was pursuing ministry. Since I was pursuing God. A certain amount of wealth, health, protection and provision? What expectations of God do you have? 

As I have gone on in my Christian I keep coming back to the Exodus story and the wilderness journey. The longer I live my life I have become convinced that the Torah is a picture of our lives. The first five books of the Bible I believe represent our faith walk. Just like in the Exodus, for us Jesus raises himself up and delivers us from the bondage of sin. He does miraculous works and so why wouldn't we follow him? But as we travel together and we start to learn some of his truth and his ways we can get a little overwhelmed. We continue to walk and we start to realize that this journey is actually hard. We walk and start to think that life perhaps was a bit easier when I wan't out in this wilderness but safe back in the city as they did. 

We are warned in scripture that those who desire to live a righteous life will suffer persecution. We are reminded that we will have trouble in this world. Jesus warns that we will hated as he was. This doesn't mean all is bad of course but it does mean the accommodations may not always make us feel like we are in that 5 star place of rest. Perhaps sometimes we get to stay in the stable. There will be times of challenge but what do we do? Do we grumble at the pillar of fire or drag our feet at the leading cloud?

I think the Exodus is a picture our lives with God. God wants us to continue on to the promised land, but some fall in the desert or give up, or harden their hearts and rebel, as this verse was referring to. Some raise up for themselves new leaders who will tell them what they want to hear. They look for leaders who will lead them how they want to be led, and feed them how they want to be fed. So does Jesus like Darth Vader find your lack of faith disturbing? Are we grumblers or are we committed to the walk, the journey, to the destination? That classic question are you a Caleb or a "nay-sayer"?

This is what happened with Korah's rebellion as well. They were tired of Moses' lead, one that dragged on through the desert. They grew tired of him saying that he spoke for God and brought to them the words of God. The grew tired of the mana. They wanted their own leaders who would be nicer to them. They wanted their own representative, their own relationship with God. Their own meals. But God was Kingdom building and was not interested in an insurrection.

I feel the pull of not only a society that wants a specific kind of freedom but a growing sect of churches who want a certain kind of savior. A kind of savior that only possess one attribute. Unadulterated acceptance. We can continue to say the words of God after him. Or we can grumble depart and raise up teachers who teach a form of religion that pays service to God and Jesus but denies his harder side. His side that cares about conduct. His side that calls to repentance. His side that says if you desire to live a righteous life you will be persecuted. His side that says you will hated as I was hated because I call people's deeds evil. His side that makes whips. I don't say this because I prefer Jesus when we said those harsher things and not when he communicated grace, but to honestly follow him I have to come to terms with everything he taught. He is interested in my obedience as well as my love. Jesus is more complex than he simply loved people and accepted them. His message also said go and sin no more. His love looked like sacrifice because our lives of sin are repulsive. His love looks like taking sin very seriously. He taught his disciples this as well and they continued to write about it the rest of the New Testament . 

Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall.

Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. 

Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test! 

God is concerned about his Kingdom not yours and what you want to bring into it. 

So do we grumble and attempt to follow new leaders back to Egypt? Back where we were still on good terms with the Egyptians? We wouldn't want to upset  anybody. We wouldn't want to make the Egyptians feel bad about worshiping false gods. We wouldn't want the Egyptians to feel bad about their sin so perhaps we should go back and join them? This is that wide road that many go, the highway to hell that doesn't upset the status quo. That road that is paved with smiling leaders that say "peace, peace" when there is no peace, only capitulation. As the writer of Hebrews again reminds.

Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God.

We have walked through history and we are starting to feel the squeeze of what persecution feels like, of what being uncomfortable for our beliefs is.

This is my squeeze because I know as Jesus said that holding to his truth would not make friends. Jesus even says woe to you when people speak good of you. Our message is so upsetting that Jesus encourages us to check our walks when   people are liking the things we have to say.  Because the kinds of things we are supposed to say sound like death, death to ourselves, death to our vices, death to our idols and life to the King.

I am not tempted to grumble against God so much. But I see my temptation of one feeling sad that the Gospel is no longer good news to our culture. I feel the squeeze of trying to say God's words after him while others are raising up new gospels that itch ears. People raise up rebellions and we who want to be disciples of Jesus are made to look like bigots and fundys and the worse charge yet? Unloving. Well all I can say is I love God and I love his people and so we continue through the wilderness at his leading. Some may grumble and some may rebel but we must continue onto the promise land. So please rebels but down your pitchforks and blaster rifles, soften your hearts and come back to mountain of God.

thanks

Come Let Us Return Unto The Lord

New York Daily News' provocative article about God failing to address our nation's violence. "God isn't fixing this". We hide behind useless platitudes. We call on God and he does nothing. I don't remember them printing their prayers for help, you know, in big bold print so God is sure to read it from the sky. When were they asking for his help? If anything I recall us as a nation telling God he was not needed or welcome anymore. So what do we have? People firing guns in the streets and in schools. People acting like there are no moral standards or higher power to be accountable too, hmm... Now sadly this wasn't lamenting God's absence, because that would be something. No this is a smokescreen, an obvious cover of the bigger agenda of gun control. Now control should be discussed, but not here. That should happen in times of peace when our heads are on straight not in the wake of mass human loss. This isn't a political blog, but they brought him up, so let's talk about God's part in this.

What they are doing here is a provocation for us to move on something that will have actual impact, you know, because God doesn't? Because everyone knows God doesn't exist and we are silly for praying to him, right? How empathetic we are to those in mourning.

I guess calling on God for help is so 2001. Even before 9/11 I remember 1999 with Columbine and the prayers that went out. But since then apparently science has solved us of our God problem and politics have delivered us from evil, or have they not yet? But it is a good question even though it wasn't a question of a truly agnostic heart. Why isn't God helping us?

So another tragedy has taken place on American soil and rather than call out to God for help, we use him to push an agenda. They mock those who call on the name of the Lord. They even took the time to highlight all the silly people who do call for prayer. This reminds me of 2 Peter 3:4-9.

knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. 4They will say, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.” 5For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God, 6and that by means of these the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished.7But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.

They mock and point out that God has not arrived yet. Where is God? Where is your deliverer? Where are your answered prayers? They say this and all the while they forget that God is delaying judgment so that more might repent. They fail to realize that while they mock they are being added to the very judgment, the very justice, they mock for not coming. 

Could part of the problem be we are more interested in politicizing this tragedy than calling for repentance? But Gabe isn't writing a blog about this doing just that? Well, no because I am offering real help to the real problem. We have lawless people running around in what is becoming an increasingly morally bankrupt America. We need a moral solution, one that is bed-rocked in something greater than ourselves. God. If we actually wanted God to fix this problem the place where we should start is on our knees. The direction of our culture however has not been one of seeking God's help. If we want God's help then why is our country going out of its way to remove him from public and personal life? Ah so he is probably not fixing this because we want no part with him. I am then reminded of Psalm 2

1Why do the nations rage and the people plot in vain 2 The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD and against his Anointed, saying,3“Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us.”4 He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision.5 Then he will speak to them in his wrath,and terrify them in his fury, saying,6“As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill.”7 I will tell of the decree:The LORD said to me, “You are my Son; today I have begotten you.8 Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession.9 You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.”10 Now therefore, O kings, be wise; be warned, O rulers of the earth.11 Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him. 

Now before we misunderstand, God does not sit and laugh at our tragedy he laughs at our plans to usurp him. He weeps at our tragedy, he beckons us to return and be made hold. He desires us to repent and be saved. He says I have set up my King in Zion, Jesus, go to him! He calls us to take refuge in him, but we have no interest in his blessing, we are busy with our prodigal living and show no sign of turning back to the ranch. This is on us, and maybe this is what the Dahli lama was trying to get at a few weeks ago, but we do need the welcoming arms of God to do it. We have run off, and we need to come back.

God has already said my help is available but we would have none of it! Verse 3 is telling of us when we as a people have said to God "let us break our bonds and cast the cords away from us."  How? Well we have made him unwelcome in our government, in our schools, he has become unwelcome at work, and we work to remove him from the streets. He is unwelcome in our morals, in our laws, in our speech. What's next, soon our homes maybe?  We are even taking steps to keep him away while making way for our false gods to take up residence. Our kings and rulers have said We will not have you rule over us! We have spit in the face of God but now we want to invoke him to make an impassioned plea and provoke a response from his people to make a political point for our system. We mock God but God is not moved by our ridicule or our arrogance, he laughs! But he is moved by humility.  If we will humble ourselves and return to the Lord and call on the name of Jesus that we have cast away, then and only then, will he rise from his position and perhaps help us.

But not while he while we continue pointing our finger in his face. We have thrown off the bonds of God and have the gall to wonder why a godless nation produces men and women who want nothing to do but steal, kill, and destroy. But rather than ask those questions about how we got here, why we are here? We focus on the symptoms. We make it about the particular instrument used in the incident. We pretend that the particular weapon is the problem rather than the people who do these things. Why don't we ask those deeper questions instead? What is wrong with our people, our souls? May it is because those questions will reveal a condition of the human heart that we all posses? Maybe a heart that we have fostered and coddled and paraded as virtuous. Oh I think we know and we don't want that curtain pulled back.

Well we pushed and wanted a godless nation and we got it. So much so that we will only bring God up to drag his character through the mud just to continue building our own kingdom of refuse. We have so little regard for God that we will jump on the first occasion to both undermine him, his followers and continue our world without him. Even while our nation crumbles. And we wonder why we are here? We dishonestly comment on his failure to help.

I don't say this gleefully, but...

Congratulations America, you are getting the utopia you purchased with your own sins.

But not all is lost! So do we pray? Yes we pray! We pray even when we are ridiculed for it. We pray in our times of want and in our times of plenty. We pray because we have a God who acts! We ask because we have a God who forgives, and not just that he does but he wants to! A God who will even forgive our mocking of him. Let us take him up on his offer. Seek refuge in the Lord!

It is not too late to return to the Lord, today is the day of salvation. Be warned O' Kings of the Earth. Kiss Son lest he be angry and you perish in the way. There is a warning and a call. He is calling to us. C.S. Lewis says that God is shouting to us in pain. He is saying Return and be saved! But to do this, well, that would require looking in the mirror once and awhile and bending our stiff necks.

thanks

Stuck in a Delay

I Recently I flew to my hometown Tucson and wouldn't you know it? I finally had that terrible airport experience that you often hear about.

First my plane was delayed a bit, no problem, only a half hour, happens all the time. We were supposed to leave st 7:25 so I sent needed text of my new arrival time. A lady came and tagged my bag and then walked away, my small bag would now have to be checked, OK. Then after we boarded and sat for five minutes we were told to deplane because of maintenance issues. I was told I couldn't have my bag back that they just took, I doubted it was even under the plane yet. We were then directed to another airplane many gates away that we for some silly reason thought we had to rush too, I was hungry. I sent the respective text again so they wouldn't arrive too early and have to wait. I grabbed a small snack.

We sat and sat and then at 9 they told us we were waiting for a crew. At 10 they told us we were still waiting for one. At 11:30 they told us plane was cancelled. At midnight they told us to get out of line and go to hotels and call to reschedule. At one I finally got through the line and rescheduled my flight for 7 the next morning.

I then had the decision to stay in the airport without my checked bag or go retrieve it and stay in the hotel I received a voucher for.  I decided a change, a phone charge, and a hotel was better. When I reached the bag check they told me it was closed and I could come back at 5 to get my bag. So deflated I went to find the free shuttle to my hotel, but that also had stopped running. So I split a taxi with the other unfortunate souls in my position and took a two hour nap at the hotel. I came back at 5 to get my bag as I had been informed that my bag would still travel to Tucson even though my new flight was for Phoenix. The bag lady told me I could not get it until 6 but by then I needed to be at the other end of the airport to check in, this was at O'hare in Chicago.

I decided to reroute my bag to phoenix and then walk all the way back across the terminals to my new airline with no bag and still no food. Time was so tight that I couldn't use the vouchers for free food which I discovered I had left back i  the hotel. When I finally did board at 7:45am the flight was a no food flight and I was tired. My new connection flight in Houston left me no time to eat either, I literally had to run to the already boarded plane. The best part about all of that was that I was flying to an interview and they were picking me up, un-showered, un-eaten and un-rested and unchanged. Awesome.

They asked me later if I would blog about it and I said I would. This isn't a complaint to the airline as many people said I should make but it did get me thinking.

Psalm 37:23 and 24 says

The steps of a man are established by the Lord; when he delights in his way, though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong, for the Lord upholds his hand.

This crooked path reminded me of my life. When I make plans my projected path is much straighter than this was. My foreseeable hiccups accounted for and strictly avoided. There is nothing like a plan coming together but that path rarely happens when walking with God. God seems to have another plan in mind.

He seems to be more interested in the shortest path to him not the shortest path to my objective. The quickest way to him sometimes seems to be through trial. When I need help I turn to him. It causes me to grow.

When Kimberly and I were first married we decided to honeymoon in Florida so of course we decided to go Disney world. While we were visiting I wanted to visit Typhoon Lagoon, Disney's water park.  I remember when I was little all the advertising for it on the Disney channel. I remember watching all the drawings become actual construction. I remember all the planning and advertising and announcements for the project coming to fruition. Now I never dreamed of actually getting to go, but once we were heading that direction I knew we would have to make a visit. 

On the day of we had prepared ourselves for a day in the Florida sun experiencing the huge wave pool and sweet water slides. I was genuinely excited. Kimberly and I walked through the ticket gates and noticed how dark the skies were. We passed through the concessions and I think I heard a low rumble in the skies, but we headed for the water. I remember just seeing the iconic beached fishing boat when alarms started going off. We were told to exit the park. Hurricane warnings. I made the joke that park was already hit and prepared for a Typhoon but it didn't matter. We would not be  experiencing Typhoon Lagoon. I was a bit sad, I had wanted to see it my whole childhood and now it would not be.

My plans do not always work out. 

I remember being disappointed but I decided to not let that ruin our honeymoon. Being with Kimberly was more important and really the point. We went to see Legally Blonde 2 instead, not really a great place holder but I was with Kimberly so it was fine. We both agreed it wasn't that great a film. But man I must have been in love because really that movie is terrible. 

When we focus so much on the destination we lose sight of the sunsets during the journey. Worse yet we lose sight of our travelling companion on the journey. I have often done this with God. 

God himself is always going to be the destination but part of reaching him is realizing he is also our travel companion that goes the distance with us. When we ignore our travel companion, the journey may just stretch out to be a bit longer than planned, but remember the destination is sure and the company is good.

Think of that footprints in the sand poem.

Sometimes our eyes can get so focused on where we plant our next step in the sand that we forget where it was we were going. We forget that our hand is firmly held. There is one other thing though. When we step back and realize that God is with us we are able to enjoy the journey in a whole new way. We are able to view the journey in a whole new way. The journey doesn't have to be a dread, it doesn't have to be a delay, it can simply be what is next. So next time your destination seems far off, and the road blocks continual, remember who is with you and where you are actually heading. 

When we finally do arrive, we realize we are better for having come the way we have. This is something I had to learn along the way. 

thanks

My Dahli Lament

War, war never changes. To quote a modern proverb. With the recent attacks on Paris the world once again is reminded we have an enemy that will not relent, will not stop until we all convert or are killed. Shame on us for forgetting. These wolves will not go away.

The Dahli Lama is a great man who has suffered more than the most of us, but I will critique his theology on prayer. He spoke about the recent tragedies with terrorism. He challenged more people to love and spread the love, and quite frankly it is not a bad message. However in this instance thinking that more love will do anything in the face of this enemy is utterly misinformed. He continues on about the need for love and said that if we emphasize harmony and non-violence then we usher in a new era. Now I appreciate the sentiment but it really doesn't solve much in this instance. Failing to understand that we are dealing with demonically fueled hate from a false god will never help the situation. It would have been similar to John Connor trying to convince the Terminator not to murder him. Kyle Reece explained to Sara Connor what the Terminators do.

Listen, and understand! That Terminator is out there! It can't be bargained with. It can't be reasoned with It doesn't feel pity, or remorse, or fear. And it absolutely will not stop, ever, until you are dead. Terminator (1984).

This is not something we can win out with love and good intentions. This is not the case of religious differences but the kingdom of man wrestling with the kingdom of darkness. Powers, Principalities, Rulers, Authorities have raised themselves an army of darkness and now march on the earth to wipe out mankind. This is literally what Paul was warning about with the armor of God in Ephesians 6. But these demons do have foot soldiers. If we don't understand the enemy or their mission then any attempts at solutions will only fail or worse yet enable the spiral to continue, insert American foreign policy. Trying to reason against a growing army with an evil conviction committed to death and destruction is a failure to respond.

But this is not a political blog, the bigger issue I had with his statement apart from a misunderstanding of extreme Islam, was the obvious one that the media have latched onto, him urging the people to stop praying for Paris. Part of his thought was fine because I think that he was trying to say that more than simply prayers were needed. Now this is true, our governments should step up. But his other reasoning was that God's answer would be "No, solve the problem yourself, because you caused it." Well perhaps Buddha may respond saying something like that because he is quite incapable of doing anything, but God is.

The problem with this is that this is not God's nature. He is loving and compassionate. He encourages us to humble ourselves and pray and to repent. God encourages interaction with himself. If God cannot and will not help then get a new god. This is why Paul speaks about the armor of God. This absolutely has a spiritual element to it and we need God's help.

2 Chronicles 4:14 teaches this principle.
14if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

I think the problem is we have gone on long enough without the help of God. 

The other issue is God is not a pacifist. He raises up kingdoms and brings others to the ground. God gives the power of the sword to the governments for the very purpose of curbing evil. The governments of the world are supposed to rise up and topple this evil, that is their very purpose. They in a sense hold the peace until true justice returns. 

"But Gabe, Jesus was a pacifist!" You are right, he was for his purpose in his first coming and he requires it of his followers as well. That is why he has governments in place to handle the wet work. They are not expected to handle this task with protest and peace vigils. God raises up governments and kings for this purpose. They maintain order and they and bring the sword when it is necessary. As Ecclesiastes teaches there is a time for hate and a time for war, also read Revelation.

When these neo Nephilim reek havoc on the world then God's avengers must stand up. I already wrote about God's avengers though. If God expects his avengers to do something then do we expect him to turn a deaf ear at our prayers? In fact sending in governments from around the world to combat this evil may very well be one of his ways of intervening and answering prayer. God raised up armies to do that very thing in the Bible all the time. God judged his own people with Assyria and Babylon. God used his own people to judge the Philistines, Canaanites, the Ammorites etc.  

So go read a Psalm about calling on God to intervene on the world stage. He does it all the time.

Psalm 94 is a psalm calling on God to act on the enemies.
Psalm 10 is calling God stop the wicked.
and this from Psalm 58   

O God, break the teeth in their mouths;
    tear out the fangs of the young lions, O Lord!
7 Let them vanish like water that runs away;
    when he aims his arrows, let them be blunted.
8 Let them be like the snail that dissolves into slime,
    like the stillborn child who never sees the sun.
9 Sooner than your pots can feel the heat of thorns,
    whether green or ablaze, may he sweep them away!

10The righteous will rejoice when he sees the vengeance;
    he will bathe his feet in the blood of the wicked.
11 Mankind will say, “Surely there is a reward for the righteous;
    surely there is a God who judges on earth.”

God cares about justice. This is not to say do not pray for your enemies though. Jesus does tell us to do this. So while I pray for them to turn from their wicked ways and come to the Lord I hope in the meantime their violence will be stopped whether by a solider doing his job or a missionary doing his. 

So while he meant well, the Dahli Lama only caused me to lament at having missed this one. So I want to end by offering a prayer. Thank you God for being a God who hears, a God who acts, and a God who cares. We have indeed made a mess here of your beautiful creation. We are in need of help from the enemy of creation. Delivery us oh God from evil and if this be a judgement, keep us oh Lord during it and let all people return to you. God help us, oh Lord and continue to bestow your grace on France and anyone else suffering at the hands of this regime of evil.

thanks

Temptation to Ashes (brothers part 2)

 I read the story of another "christian" that turned away to atheism. It makes me sad. It should make us all sad. Why? Because this whole believers versus non-believers thing is not a popularity contest.  It is not even an "us" versus them, it is an "us", every single last one of us, versus eternity. It is about the very destination of our souls.  It is about whether or not they make it into God's presence in an active relationship or a passive one.  Rest assured they will meet God. I know the non-christian especially the atheist wants to parade these individuals as brave for leaving the oppressive system of religion. 

I have read the wiki guide for how to lead a Christian away from God. The steps are so simple! I have also read Richard Dawkins's God Delusion and Christopher Hitchens's God is not great.  These people so want to convince others that God is not there. They have so much animosity towards him and religion, why? I think Paul answers that question in Ephesians 6.

¹⁰ Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. ¹¹ Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. ¹² For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

There is a battle going on. There is war going on. Just because we may stop paying attention does not mean that the assault stops. This is similar to the wars across the world that we do not know about; unless it is fresh on the news we may be tempted to think it was resolved or no longer happening.  C.S.Lewis reminds us about this idea in the Screwtape Letters. The experienced demon Srewtape informs Wormwood just let them think that we aren't there. I am not sure if Sun Tzu used this war tactic but it does seem easiest to fight a war if one side is completely unaware. I believe that this is our temptation, to simply just muse and wander why some people, certain people are so evil? Why do they want to destroy God and tear down people?  

We have probably all heard the cry in frustration "I hate people!" If we as Christians are not careful we can fall into this trap of thinking that people are the real problem when they are in fact the mission.  Paul points out that the people are not the problem but the demons. Why do they do this? All we can do is speculate ultimately, but perhaps since they have lost, the only thing they can do is take as many people down with them. The whole not going down without a fight thing, is not so virtuous after-all.

If we forget we are in a war then the call to be strong in the Lord loses urgency. If the call to be strong loses urgency then our shield of faith gets lowered.  As this passage continues on to mention. When the shield of faith is lowered we begin to rely on our own strategies or more realistically not make any. But this is guaranteed to make us fall as the passage mentions; we get hit from the arrows of the enemy.  This is what happens if we do not realize we are in a war. We start to think that perhaps their is no fight, perhaps no faith, and perhaps no God, and perhaps nothing to hold on to. And perhaps we should just walk away, and thus another article is written about a brave soul leaving religion.

When we make this mistake for whatever reason we become a casualty of the fight that we weren't paying attention to.  Sadly a common reasons tend to be "I wanted to stop fighting temptation"  This however has made the battle about something that Christ has already won.  Temptation is very real but we misunderstand when we seem to think that since Christ died for our sins, that holiness means we now have to strive to be perfect. Temptation will always be there, our goal is not to achieve a sinless life, that is part of the blessed hope. Our conduct is important because we are in love with Christ and we want to be like him but we have a different nature and a different advocate now.  The difference is now the Spirit aids us and Christ welcomes us when we fail. If we are doing it for any other reason than we are holding our sword backwards and swinging with the blunt end.

I really think the problem is as Christians we fail to understand balance. This passage is a good example.  It tells us that people are not the enemy but that spirits are, yet we are still to dress in the armor of God. Doesn't the battle belong to the Lord?  Isn't the outcome settled?  Yes and Yes, then why do I need to care about the battle?  Because the Lord calls us to join him in his kingdom. Being in God's kingdom means being a participant.  Yes God died for our sins and we are forgiven and we need to pay attention to our conduct. But if we let one overtake the other we get in trouble. If we only focus on the grace we can slide into license, but equally if we only focus on sin management then we become discouraged and wonder what the point is.  If we can't understand biblical theology in balance then we will always be at odds with some other passage. 

This has sadly left some in a place where they walk away from the faith.  They say I was tired of being somebody I wasn't. It's as if Christianity is about being perfect and they were tired of being a hypocrite. They are half right.  They are hypocrites if they think they should be perfect, because they will never attain it, but the answer is to fall into Christ's loving arms once again after we fail.  Not to walk away. They really just reveal that they did not understand the Gospel.   

But...

Because if we forget who the actual enemy is, we can tend to let the story end here and it is our temptation to quote only verse 10 from Proverbs 24 when this happens.

¹⁰ If you faint in the day of adversity,
    your strength is small.

But let's not forget the counter that God gives in verse 11.
 
¹¹ Rescue those who are being taken away to death;
    hold back those who are stumbling to the slaughter.

We are at war and so are the soldiers next to you, watch their backs. Are we going to leave our soldiers to burn or we will realize we are in a battle and Christians don't leave men behind.

When we hear stories like this we shouldn't shake our heads in judgement but we should return to our knees and fight the fight where the battle is.  Remember Paul's encouragement to the Galatians.

6:1Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. 2Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. 3For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself. 4But let each one test his own work, and then his reason to boast will be in himself alone and not in his neighbor. 5For each will have to bear his own load.
6Let the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches. 7Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. 8For 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. 9And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. 10So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.

This is a big part of that laying down your life for a friend thing that thing that Jesus says there is no greater love than. If this doesn't make sense to you go and watch Saving Private Ryan. Let's not leave our brothers to ashes. 

Band of Brothers is also very good. 

thanks