Month: February 2010 (Page 2 of 3)

Devotions from Haase’s book, Living the Lord’s Prayer

Another characteristic of keepers of His kingdom is their peace and joy.  They are unflappable! In the midst of outward storms they have an inner peace and calm. Even if the battle rages around them, even if people speak ill of them, even if they suffer pain and disappointment, His grace is with them. He is still at the helm of their boat!

Charles de Foucauld, wrote this prayer:
“Father, I abandon myself into your hands;

do with me what you will.

Whatever you may do, I thank you:

I am ready for all, I accept all.
Let only your will be done in me,

and in all Your creatures-

I wish no more than this, O lord,

Into your hands I commend my soul;
I offer it to you with all the love of my heart,

for I love you, Lord,

and so need to give myself,

to surrender myself into your hands,

without reserve,

and with boundless confidence,

for you are my Father.”

Let us be aware today of our Father’s sacrificial love for us that surrounds us like the air we breathe. May that love flow out to others in our lives,  and may we surrender to the present moment while we joyfully abandon ourselves to Him.

We are leaving for Kansas at 3 am tomorrow so am writing this today.

2-17 Devotions from James Smith’s book, The Good and Beautiful Life

Today’s devotion is on keeping the Sabbath as an exercise to help us deal better with our anger.  At first I wondered what the connection is between the two but since anger is about unmet expectations and fear, Sabbath is a call to trust.
To enjoy a Sabbath day we must give up our desire for total control and allow God to take care of us as we relax and enjoy life. Even sleep is an act of trust and letting go. Rest, trust, and surrendering control are important elements of keeping the Sabbath. But it’s not just about refraining from activity but about joy and delight. The Sabbath is a gift not a set of laws.

Some suggestions he uses for Sabbath rest is going to church together if you choose Sunday as the day of rest.

Set aside time for private prayer

Read a good devotional book or write in a journal

Practice hospitality and invite friends to eat with you.

Play games

Spend time reading your Bible- don’t make it a heavy study.

You can take any day that works for you for there is no certain day that is the right day. Most pastors would not take Sunday as this day for it is there busiest day of the week!

2-16 Devotions from James Smith’s book, The Good and Beautiful Life.

Today’s devotion is on anger and Jesus concern is for the heart of the issues, not just the outward action. We can be doing the right thing but have a heart full of anger. Anger itself is not wrong. In fact, righteous anger is good and is the correct response to injustice. It consists in getting angry at the things that anger God.  Most of our anger is not righteous anger though.

The author mentions two other kinds of anger. 1. Visceral anger  that happens fast and our bodies react quickly. 2.  Meditative anger that is the kind that grows over a long period of time. The more we stew on it, the worse it becomes.

Visceral and meditative anger are fueled by two ingredients: unmet expectations and fear. When they unite they ignite into a strong emotion.  Each day we encounter many unmet expectations that we cannot control.

 But we can manage our fears by examining our narratives that lead to anger and replace them with the narratives of Jesus. For example our false narrative would say that we must be in control all of the time. God’s narrative says He is in control. The false one would say we are alone, but His narrative says He is always with us etc.   We think that control is the answer but that only leads us to turn to our own resources, which is the neglect of God and his resources. Outside of the kingdom of God we are on our own.  We must protect ourselves, fight for our rights and punish those who offend us. But inside God’s kingdom it is God who is with us, protecting us and fighting for our well-being. Knowing this, much of our anger will diminish.  How do we move from fear to trust?  We must remember that He never leaves us and never loses sight of us. God gives us space to experiment, grow and mature but doesn’t intrude.  He is still watching us and familiar with all that we do. He permits nothing that happens to us that He cannot redeem and use for good. Another way for moving into trust is to change our narrative and develop new images to replace those that make us vulnerable to anger. We don’t want to give the enemy a foothold by our unexpressed and unresolved anger for it can turn into resentment and sin. But if we work on changing our narratives and give ourselves grace, we can change!

Devotions from James Smith’s book, The Good and the Beautiful Life

Living in the kingdom of God involves loving others, because He is a God of love. Living in God’s kingdom involves forgiveness because he is a God of forgiveness. Living in God’s kingdom involves hospitality – inviting and including others – because He is a God of Hospitality. God cares about people who are left out and His kingdom is inclusive, not like the world that is exclusive.   The Beatitudes show how Jesus invited marginalized people into the kingdom and hospitality can help us practice this aspect of his kingdom.  Sometimes it makes us a bit uncomfortable and we feel vulnerable but we all need to reach out of our comfort zone and intentionally connect with someone who is “different” in our eyes.  We need to be aware of the people around us and practice really listening to them. We can do a small act of preparation that shows people we care too… like setting a lovely table with candle light or preparing to receive others by shoveling a walk.  It is important to make room for others….for example even simple things like putting down a book to listen to one who is speaking to us.  The Lord can help us become better at welcoming others into our group of friends.  Some may really want to spend time with us, but feel uninvited.  God’s kingdom is so big and so diverse and let us not be exclusive.  I know it has meant a lot to Al and me that we have been so warmly received at our new church.

2-13 Devotions from James Smith’s book, The Good and the Beautiful Life

In the Beatitudes Jesus invites the down and out to live in fellowship with Him. This is not just concept but He invites us into a vibrant, interactive relationship with Himself.

“He is the kingdom of God. HE is a living, breathing, tangible, touchable, real-life expression and embodiment of the kingdom.”

When He says Blessed are the Poor in Spirit it is like He is saying, “ Blessed are you who are feeling marginalized from God, who have nothing going for you spiritually-for you too are invited to the kingdom.”

He says blessed are those who have gone through loss and overwhelming grief, God will comfort you and you will one day see your loved one again and there will be no  more tears.

Blessed are the meek and those who cannot retaliate when harmed, for God’s kingdom will enfold them and the whole earth is theirs as they need it.

Blessed are the merciful, who give until it hurts, for God will show them mercy and their kindness does not go unnoticed by Him.

Blessed are those who yearn to be pure in heart for they will see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers who are willing to suffer and even die for the cause of peace for they will be called sons of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted for His sake, who don’t judge others, who fight for peace, for they will see God.

Do we know how poor we are or do we feel so rich and satisfied that we have no need for God?  Wealth, power, and possessions can numb us to our need for Him and make us overlook the needs of others.

These values that Jesus spoke of are so different  from the world but let us claim them as ours. 

Devotions from James Smith book, The Good and Beautiful Life

 I love James section on PLAY and know I must do more of it and realize it is a spiritual exercise that can teach me about living in the Kingdom of God.  Some people think play is silly but God wants us to be full of joy, and play is a way to experience the goodness of God and the richness of life.  Play cannot be controlled and spontaneity is one of the spiritual benefits of play. We learn to let go and we learn to relax and be open to whatever happens.

Many adults have lost the ability to play.  Thirty pastors were asked what they do in terms of recreation and play and none had anything to write down. If we have children and grandchildren we can do what they do and play. If we once played tennis, racquetball etc get out the equipment and play again. IF we have a favorite hobby like painting, pottery etc do it with a sense of play. Or  we can read a book about something we do not know much about. Sign up for a dance class! Rent a funny movie and laugh until our sides hurt etc. You get the picture.  Play is an act of self-abandonment.   The kingdom of God is like  a playground that is safe and our heavenly father watches over us as we are free to let go and play. At the same time we are training our bodies and souls to live with genuine excitement.   That is what the kingdom of God is all about.

Devotions from James Smith book, The Good and Beautiful Life. 

When we think of the Good News of the kingdom, we may think of it summarized in a single sentence, “Repent for the kingdom of heaven has come near”. But the kingdom of God is more. It is an interactive life with God. It is like Jesus saying to us, “Change the way you have been thinking- a life of intimacy and interaction with God is now in your midst.” The Bible is full of passages about the kingdom of God and Jesus spoke about it over 100 times in the gospels. He said we must enter it  through humility, trust and a willingness to begin working on aspects of our soul – like integrity, gentleness, respect, mercy etc. ( Matt. 5:20 says our righteousness must exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees who did everything for show!)   We also need to become like a child in dependence, trust, innocence,  etc. ( Mark 10:15 says to receive the kingdom as a child)   We must also be born of water and the Spirit and surrender our lives to the leading of the Spirit.  ( John 3:5) Isn’t it wonderful that we are invited into His kingdom of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. ( Romans 14:17).  Wow!  Let us not think this is all in the future but begins now. 

We made it here safely to San Antonio with good roads and weather. Thank you fo prayers.

Devotions from James Smith book, The Good and Beautiful Life

Each day we make decisions that move us closer to a life of virtue or vice.  If we choose to take Jesus words to heart and arrange our lives around them it leads to the good life and a life that withstands the storms we all face.

We can’t find joy apart from a life of obedience to the teachings of Jesus.   C.S. Lewis wrote, “God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing. “ God is not being stingy and withholding joy apart from Him; there simply is no joy apart from a life with and for God. The enemy tries to rob us of our joy and  tells us life will be boring if we follow the Lord. But when we do follow the Lord, we experience the highest form of pleasure, laugh with the depth of joy, and enjoy His goodness.  The question is not, What will I have to give up to follow Jesus? But rather, What will I never get to experience if I choose not to follow Jesus? 

Every day we must begin anew. Though the past is written in stone and cannot be changed, the future is like wet cement, pliable, smooth, and ready to be affected by what we do. No one is past redemption. All of us have the chance to change our minds, hearts, and behavior, and to follow Him. When we say yes to Him, we can be sure that a good and beautiful day awaits us.

Devotions from James Smith book, The Good and Beautiful Life

“The meaning of earthly existence lies not, as we have grown use to thinking, in prospering….but in the development of the soul.” Solzhenistsyn

We all want to be happy but happiness is based on external circumstances. Joy, on the other hand, is an inner disposition not based on external circumstances.

The world gives us a false meaning and wants us to adopt the narrative that happiness comes from sex, money and power.

Our author gives 6 ways to ruin your life without even trying. Based on Romans 1:18-32

1, The turn away: I want to be God.. This is when we refuse to let God be God and do not honor Him

2. The mind darkens. It becomes dim as it rejects the truth and reality that God gives.

3. Idolatry: We must have a god and it can be anything we invest our lives in, in order to gain pleasure, happiness and a false senses of purpose. The idol serves us by giving us our desire, and we serve it by sacrificing our life energy to it.

4. God leaves us alone: Unless we turn back to God we push forward in our idolatry and God gives us up to the lusts of our hearts.

5. Pleasure is pursued at all costs. Disconnected from reality and on our own, we find the way to fulfillment through temporary things like sex, pornography, food, drugs etc. Each time we engage in these activities, the pleasure decreases and then it requires greater frequency.

6.  Sin reigns. Sin and wickedness become the normative behavior.  When we reject God we try to replace Him with things that cannot satisfy like what is found in Rom. 1:28-31

“Sin is ugly; genuine virtue is always beautiful.”  A virtuous person is a light to everyone around them. Virtue leads to life and greater strength.