Coming to grips with the love of God when we know that we don't deserve it - Jeremiah 31:3 with a story of a medieval monk and his sermon on "The Love of God."

SCRIPTURE: Jeremiah 31:3 (NIV)

The Lord appeared to us in the past, saying: “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving kindness.”

STORY:

A certain medieval monk announced he would be preaching next Sunday evening on "The Love of God." As the shadows fell and the light ceased to come in through the cathedral windows, the congregation gathered. In the darkness of the altar, the monk lighted a candle and carried it to the crucifix. First of all, he illumined the crown of thorns, next, the two wounded hands, then the marks of the spear wound. In the hush that fell, he blew out the candle and left the chancel. There was nothing else to say.

OBSERVATION:

Measure love is a real challenge … and the only really parallel that we have available to us is ourselves. How do we love? How much do we extend love? How often do we love? And so those kind of statements go.

In short we measure the love of God by our own capacity to love … or even worse, by the degree that we have been loved. We have no criteria to comprehend the love of God. There is nothing in our life that help us understand it let alone accept it.

And yet, the love of God for the likes of you and me is that standard of the gospel. Therefore, we sit and take a look … a long lingering look at the cross and wonder … could it be … is it possible … even in our wildest imagination … for even God to love us that deeply, that profoundly, that drastically … even when we have been so wicked, hostile, cruel, mean spirit? Could it be?

And then faith steps in and says, Yes. Yes, in the face of our continuous stream of nos. Yes, in the light of the reality of our lives and misdeeds. Yes, within the midst of all the garbage that accumulates and buries us. Yes! Maybe that is why they call it Divine.

PRAYER:

Thank you for loving the likes of us when we know at the deepest level that we really shouldn’t be receiving that kind of love. God, we are so glad that we are not dependent on the love of human beings to make it in this world. Thank you for loving us!

Repairing the irreparable ... Reflections on forgiveness God's toward us and ourselves toward ourselves with a story from the live of Robert Bruce of Scotland.

SCRIPTURE: Luke 23:34 (NIV)

Father forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.

STORY:

In the 14th century, Robert Bruce of Scotland was leading his men in a battle to gain independence from England. Near the end of the conflict, the English wanted to capture Bruce to keep him from the Scottish crown. So they put his own bloodhounds on his trail. When the bloodhounds got close, Bruce could hear their baying. His attendant said, "We are done for. They are on your trail, and they will reveal your hiding place." Bruce replied, "It's all right." Then he headed for a stream that flowed through the forest. He plunged in and waded upstream a short distance. When he came out on the other bank, he was in the depths of the forest. Within minutes, the hounds, tracing their master's steps, came to the bank. They went no farther. The English soldiers urged them on, but the trail was broken. The stream had carried the scent away. A short time later, the crown of Scotland rested on the head of Robert Bruce. The memory of our sins, prodded on by Satan, can be like those baying dogs--but a stream flows, red with the blood of God's own Son. By grace through faith we are safe. No sin-hound can touch us. The trail is broken by the precious blood of Christ. "The purpose of the cross," someone observed, "is to repair the irreparable."

OBSERVATION:

“To repair the irreparable” … what a marvelous way to look at the purpose of the cross. Forgiveness in the midst of our own ignorance. Divine Love extended when it isn’t deserved.

Too many of us live a life of regret and get bogged down with our past. The reality of it all is not the forgiveness of God, but our own act of not forgiving ourselves. As the old saying goes, “We are our own worst enemy.” Each of us are aware of God’s forgiveness. We accept it with joy and celebration. But it is the incredible ability that we have to continue to carry the burden of the past around with us long after God has forgiven us for the silliness of human folly. God’s grace is sufficient … living into that is an act of faith.

PRAYER:

Thank you, God, for forgiving us. Help us to extend that forgiveness to ourselves. 

What does it mean in Psalm 51:10 - create in me a new or pure heart? A reflection on this verse with a story about a warehouse in London for sale.

SCRIPTURE: Psalm 51:10, 12 (TM)

God, make a fresh start in me, shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life… Bring me back from gray exile, put a fresh wind in my sails!

STORY as told by Ian L. Wilson:

London businessman Lindsay Clegg told the story of a warehouse property he was selling. The building had been empty for months and needed repairs. Vandals had damaged the doors, smashed the windows, and strewn trash around the interior.

As he showed a prospective buyer the property, Clegg took pains to say that he would replace the broken windows, bring in a crew to correct any structural damage, and clean out the garbage.

"Forget about the repairs," the buyer said. "When I buy this place, I'm going to build something completely different. I don't want the building; I want the site."

Compared with the renovation God has in mind, our efforts to improve our own lives are as trivial as sweeping a warehouse slated for the wrecking ball. When we become God's, the old life is over (2 Cor. 5:17). He makes all things new. All he wants is the site and the permission to build.

OBSERVATION:

I particularly like how Eugene Peterson in The Message renders Psalm 51:10 – “fresh start” … “a Genesis week” and then when it is coupled with the tagline in Ian Wilson’s telling of the warehouse property story to his London story we have the power of all scripture.

God doesn’t want just to dust off our life. God doesn’t want to just rearrange the furniture of our soul. God doesn’t want to just clean the dirt from the windows or vacuum the floor or change out a spiritual appliance here or there … God wants to take a wrecking ball to the whole structure and build something totally new of our life. God just needs permission to build.

Therein lies the crux of the matter – the permission to build. We operate under the false assumption that somehow we do the building in that God supplies the materials, but we do they labor. WRONG! God brings the supplies … God designs the structure … God lays out the plans … God builds … all we do is make ourselves available, we provide the site.

As the song goes, “All to Jesus I surrender, all to Him I freely give; I will ever love and trust Him, In His presence daily live” so shall our lives … if we but surrender … that’s the tough stuff … giving up control. Much like the cars that will parallel park themselves the scary part is taking ones hands off the steering wheel and simply allow the car to do its thing. We are called to take our hands off of our lives and allow to God to take control … total … complete … absolute control.

It is not about understanding it. It is not about making sense out of it. It is not about knowledge or comprehension. It is about God building something totally new in our life!

PRAYER:

From the foundation up, build something totally new in us. Gracious God, surprise us with something beyond our imagination. 

Having faith to believe the unbelievable - Genesis 17:17 with a story about a son and his father.

SCRIPTURE: Genesis 17:17 (TM)

Abraham fell flat on his face. And then he laughed, thinking, "Can a hundred-year-old man father a son? And can Sarah, at ninety years, have a baby?"

STORY:

One night a house caught fire and a young boy was forced to flee to the roof. The father stood on the ground below with outstretched arms, calling to his son, "Jump! I'll catch you." He knew the boy had to jump to save his life. All the boy could see, however, was flame, smoke, and blackness. As can be imagined, he was afraid to leave the roof. His father kept yelling: "Jump! I will catch you." But the boy protested, "Daddy, I can't see you." The father replied, "But I can see you and that's all that matters."

OBSERVATION:

Simply put, faith is believing in the one who can see us. It is not a matter of what we can understand, what we can see, what we can grasp … it is not about us. Faith is a gift … like the father standing on the ground ready to catch his son.

In the midst of life’s turmoil it is comforting to know that God is always present. And, while, those troubling times won’t necessary be eliminating at least we know of the one who stands with us in the middle of it all.

Remember the story of Jesus out in the boat with his disciples when a horrible storm came upon them. The disciples were all afraid, but Jesus slept. Don’t we each desire a Savior who can sleep in the midst of a storm?

With Abraham and Sarah the odds were stacked against them and yet he had the audacity to believe. Okay, he believed only after he nearly knocked himself out laughing at an unbelievable promise. A son in his old age? But all that really mattered was the God believed it. God had faith that it would happen. And if God can believe it, why not Abraham? Why not us? That is what faith is all about!

PRAYER:

Dear Lord, we believe, but help us in our unbelief. Help us to know the reality of faith even when it seems so impossible. 

The devoted life - reflections on 1 Timothy 6:6 with a story from a Haitian pastor about just one little nail.

SCRIPTURE: 1 Timothy 6:6 (TM)

A devout life does bring wealth, but it's the rich simplicity of being yourself before God.

STORY shared by Dale A. Hays:

On a recent trip to Haiti, I heard a Haitian pastor illustrate to his congregation the need for total commitment to Christ. His parable: A certain man wanted to sell his house for $2,000. Another man wanted very badly to buy it, but because he was poor, he couldn't afford the full price. After much bargaining, the owner agreed to sell the house for half the original price with just one stipulation: He would retain ownership of one small nail protruding from just over the door.

After several years, the original owner wanted the house back, but the new owner was unwilling to sell. So the first owner went out, found the carcass of a dead dog, and hung it from the single nail he still owned. Soon the house became unlivable, and the family was forced to sell the house to the owner of the nail.

The Haitian pastor's conclusion: "If we leave the Devil with even one small peg in our life, he will return to hang his rotting garbage

OBSERVATION:

Not now. Not yet. These are some of the saddest words that could be heard in the English language. “I’ll commit my life to Christ, but not now … not yet.” We want to keep all of our options open.

Commitment is difficult. Taking a stand is hard. The challenges are many, but, oh, the benefits of a committed life. Peace of God’s presence and the assurance of eternity. The freedom to be who God has created us to be. The freedom to realize our full spiritual potential. Shedding the pretense of playing charades. Taking off the mask of falsehood. Releasing our true nature. Not driven by the desires of the flesh nor the fickleness of other people’s opinions. This is the wealth of a devout life.

Even the smallest part of our self if left exposed to the temptations of the flesh, i.e. the Devil, we can find ourselves fighting a battle of the garbage of life. We will smell the rotting garbage and wonder where it came from thinking that we have been living a devoted life, but that one “nail” left in the hands of Satan is all he needs. He will wait until we are the most vulnerable, at our weakest, tired in the spirit … and then spring into action.

The cross of Christ gives us a new day, a clean conscience, a new start, a usable future, a life of possibilities … and the removal of all the exposed “nails”.

PRAYER:

We are yours, O Lord. Take all of us. Take everything. Leave nothing … and then we will have everything.

QUOTE by Adoniram Judson:

The motto of every missionary, whether preacher, printer, or schoolmaster, ought to be "Devoted for life." 

On being a servant to one master - Hebrews 11:32, 38 with a story from John Kenneth Galbraith autobiography about his family's housekeeper.

SCRIPTURE: Hebrews 11:32, 38 (KJV)

And what more shall I say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gideon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephtha…of whom the world was not worthy.

STORY:

John Kenneth Galbraith, in his autobiography, A Life in Our Times, illustrates the devotion of Emily Gloria Wilson, his family's housekeeper: It had been a wearying day, and I asked Emily to hold all telephone calls while I had a nap. Shortly thereafter the phone rang. Lyndon Johnson was calling from the White House. "Get me Ken Galbraith. This is Lyndon Johnson." "He is sleeping, Mr. President. He said not to disturb him." "Well, wake him up. I want to talk to him." "No, Mr. President. I work for him, not you.” When I called the President back, he could scarcely control his pleasure. "Tell that woman I want her here in the White House."

OBSERVATION:

When the speaker was asked, “Who is the greatest living preacher?” the questioner was expecting a response along the lines of a Graham, a Schuller, or at least something along those lines. We were all surprised when the speaker responded, “We probably don’t know his or her name. It is probably an under-educated man or woman serving a small-membership church in the hills of Kentucky. Being famous doesn’t make one a great preacher … being a faithful servant does.”

Much like Emily Gloria Wilson our role as a Christian is simply the role of a servant … nothing more … nothing less. It is not the recognition, the fame, the accolades, the honors, the “name-in-the-paper,” the “getting-published” syndrome, becoming a District Superintendent, getting elected to episcopacy, being invited to preach at various churches … but it is simply going about the task that God has placed in our hands.

The servants of God are the glue that holds together the earthly Kingdom of God. It is those men and women – the young and old – who just go about the task at hand because it needs to be done. They are the people who see something that should happen… that needs to happen… that ought to happen … and they just do it … unnoticed … unheralded … no praise … no thank you needed … no name in the bulletin … no mention from the pulpit.

They are the “Emily Gloria Wilson’s” of the world. Their loyalty is unwavering. Their commitment is outstanding. They listen to only one master. They know whom they work for. And may it be said of us that we were faithful servants of the most high God moving the Kingdom ever onward one act at a time.

PRAYER:

We desire to be your servant, Lord, yours and yours alone. Not the churches, not the denominations, not our career, not our country, not even our family … but your servant and in becoming your servant and your servant along, we become the servant of all and to all. 

QUOTE from Max Lucado, God Came Near, page 66:

Reliable Servants. They’re the binding of the Bible. Their acts are rarely recited and their names are seldom mentioned. Yet were it not for their loyal devotion to God, many great events never would have occurred.