On Display

As Jesus went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" "Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life." (Jn. 9:1-3)

I know several people who are fighting cancer. Two of our neighbors have lost a child in the past few years. When I think of reasons why there are so many tragedies, so many debilitating diseases, several things come to mind: the brokenness of a fallen creation, the self-inflicted pain, and that which we afflict on others. But here Jesus reminds me that God redeems our tragedies and diseases by giving them a higher purpose: to bring out the work of God in our lives.

I can live in hope and expectation that Jesus shows up in the middle of my pain. He may deliver me in this life for his glory so that I can be his witness, sharing with others what he has done for me. He may shape me through the heat of the furnace so that all is stripped away but him, and he glows brightly in me--his love, his hope, his peace.

Lord, I trust you to display your power through the painful experiences of my life. Amen.

Room Shortage

Jesus: "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples...and the truth will set you free. ...Yet...you have no room for my word... you are unable to hear what I say... The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God." (Jn. 8:31-32, 37, 43, 47)

I want to be free. Jesus called people to belief to free us from the guilt of sin, and to discipleship to free us from the power of sin. Knowing Jesus (the Truth) and living his Way is freedom! It is a life of breathing in wide-open spaces. It is being released to live at full capacity, to fly, to flourish in the life God really meant for me.

But there are enemies of freedom. And some of the worst may lie within my own heart. There may be no room for his word in my life. My inner space may be cluttered with any number of things: my own preconceptions that I am unwilling to rethink, my prideful grip on what I want (and think I need), my run-of-the-mill busyness that tunes him out. It could even be--as was the case in this text--that I may set myself in league with the evil one with a greedy, hateful or condescending attitude.
Conservative, law-keeping worshippers of God in league with the evil one? That's a little scary. And it wasn't because they honestly misunderstood some doctrine. It was because they were protecting their power and pride instead of humbly seeking to learn and be shaped by God for his own sovereign rule.

I will check and re-check my own heart and ask, "Do I have an open heart? Does the hard disk of my life have ample capacity for what Jesus wants to download?" It's the path to freedom! I want to breathe in wide open spaces, not stay locked in the musty closets that the world (or even the church) may try to shove me into.

Lord, speak. Your follower is listening.

Jump In

Jesus said, "If anyone chooses to do God's will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own." (Jn. 7:17)

Jesus appears to be saying that "the proof is in the pudding," when it comes to the Way of Christ. Unsure about God and his word? Try it. Jump in. Don't just stand and watch others. Try living as though God is real and his word is true for a period of time. The transformation it will bring will dispell all doubts. In other words, one very good and valid reason to choose Christianity is that it works. It is self-validating.

My life is so much fuller since I chose to jump fully into the deep end of the life of following Jesus. While I played around the edges and got only my feet wet, it never really connected with me. I still felt so empty. Since I've been drenched in Kingdom life, Jesus has proven himself to me over and over again.

Jesus, in obedience to you the truth is seen. I will encourage skeptics to try out your way all the way and see what they discover. Please reveal yourself again. Amen.

The Turning Away

"The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life. Yet there are some of you who do not believe." ...From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him. (Jn. 6:63-66)

I can feel Jesus' heart breaking here. He wants only to lead people into spirit life. He's taught and he's modeled it and he's brought healing, acceptance and love to a harsh, uncaring society. But many still don't get it. They don't want what he's offering. They're being handed the winning lottery ticket and they're turning up their noses. He watches them walk away in sad clusters.

Sometimes I can relate to what Jesus felt here. I just want to invite people out of their meaningless lives into the joy and power of God's reign, but they just don't see it. You would think I were offering them a life of digging ditches. They walk away. I feel at times like I failed, but even Jesus watched crowds leave. Perhaps the real failure is that of the human heart to crave the divine life.

Lord, make me a more usable messenger. And please open their eyes to what you are really offering. Amen.

A Little Goes a Long Way

...a great crowd...bread for these people to eat?...five small barley loaves and two small fish... Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed... When they had all had enough to eat...filled twelve baskets... (John 6:5-13)

Observations: Jesus wants to meet people's needs. What seems like little to offer, when given for Jesus' use, multiplies in its benefits. He is a God of plenty, not a God of want. And he provides generously for those who serve others alongside him (12 baskets for 12 apostles).

Application: I often feel like I'm trying to feed and meet the needs of large crowds with just a meager sack lunch. Bottom line, I'm inadequate. All my skills, all my training, all my experience, still inadequate. But I'd rather people be fed by Jesus than by me. He is the Life-giver, not me. Since I know that, I can bring my little to him and he will multiply its effects exponentially. I love that thought of exponential growth of my influence. And on top of that, I can count on him to fill a basketful for me.

Jesus, I'm willing to share what I've got to offer. I know it's not much, compared to the need, but take it and use it. I know you won't waste it. I won't doubt or deny what you can do through me and for me. Amen.

The Lamp

"John was a lamp that burned and gave light, and you chose for a time to enjoy his light." (John 5:35)

A lamp doesn't light itself. It flames up from another source. It doesn't exist for itself but for the good of othes. It doesn't point to itself but illuminates something (or someone) else that needs to be seen. When a lamp is turned off or burned out or removed, it is missed. People enjoy the light of a lamp.

That's what I am--a lamp. God has given me a limited number of years to burn for him, to enable others to see Jesus. I've got to stay plugged into him. I want my life to bring a warm glow to the world around me. I want to be missed when I'm gone.

Lord, light my life up in your Spirit's fire. May others see you because of me. Amen.

Two-Way Evangelism

When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, "Will you give me a drink?" (John 4:7)

Drinking after a stranger? The thought gives me the creeps. Jesus is on a mission to redeem this woman's life. He is already aware of her long string of failed marriages and her live-in boyfriend. Yet he approaches her with graciousness and tact. His being a Jewish rabbi would naturally make her feel inferior, so he asks her for a favor. (And I'm sure he was really thirsty!) He intentionally assigns her dignity by acknowledging that he needs her help, too, just a she needs his.

As I attempt to build relationships out of which to influence people, even very messy people, I will follow Jesus' example and show that I realize they have something to offer. I will seek to discover what that is, and in making them feel valuable, open a door to share what I have to offer.

Jesus, give me more of your magnetic touch with broken people. Help me to remember that I can gain something of value from everyone I meet. Amen.

Stranger in a Strange Land

[Jesus] left Judea and went back once more to Galilee. Now he had to go through Samaria. (John 4:3-4)

Is this a practical verse to journal on? You bet! While it's true that Samaria lay between Judea and Galilee, the typical travel route for Jews did not pass through Samaria. They took pains to go around. Jesus "had" to go there because God's mission compelled him. There were a bunch of people there that God wanted to be with him forever, beginning with a particular woman who was an outcast in her own town.

If I want to folow Jesus, I have to go where he goes. In recent years, I have discovered the fuller implications of what it means to be a Christ-follower. Jesus doesn't allow me to stay comfortably among people just like me. I have to venture in among people I wouldn't normally enjoy associating with. Truth is, doing this actually adds joy to my life. What I have found is that my capacity to love grows as I take these opportunities to cross social and spiritual boundary lines with Jesus. This whole idea of the cross crossing barriers between people--it really works!

Lord, it's uncomfortable for me to do this. Remind me of how uncomfortable you made yourself to know me, love me and save me. Teach me the joy that you knew while you loved and ministered among "different" and messy people. Amen.

Kingdom Growth

Some of John's disciples came to him and said, "Rabbi, that man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan...well, he is batpizing, and everyone is going to him." (John 3:26)

(Couldn't help but journal at least twice on John 3.) Jealousy. It infects even the purest hearts. Servants of God's Kingdom have such a hard time distinguishing it from their own. Churches get in a huff when another church in town is drawing more people than they are. What if our unspoken mantras were printed on our marquees? "We aren't growing, but we criticize churches that are." John showed that he was truly in this for Jesus and not for himself. Why can't we do the same?

In my ministry, I must decrease and Jesus must increase. The church(es) I plant will place a core value on Kingdom growth, wherever and with whomever it may happen. We will applaud the ministry successes of other churches.

God, guard my heart from jealousy. I renounce my claim that you use me more than others. Jesus, it's all about you. To you be all the glory. Amen.

Hoist the Sails

We were touched yesterday by all the outpouring of love from the church. All of you guys are special to us and will continue to be. The reception, the cards, the gifts, the spoken words of affirmation were all tremendous blessings to me and to Cathy.

These words of Jesus speak to me:
"The wind blows where it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyoneborn of the Spirit." (John 3:8)

The with-God life is unpredictable. We cannot journey with God and remain in control of our own agenda. Yet the life of faith is also amazingly freeing, for it is more like sailing than rowing. We hoist our sails and let them billow up with the wind of the Holy Spirit. He drives us along to where he wants to take us. The main responsibility that I have is to be sure to keep my sails hoisted.

When I'm feeling like it's all up to me, I will reclaim the life Jesus wants for me and surrender to the Spirit's will. I will continue to spend time in his word, in prayer, and in other spiritual disciplines, listening to his voice.

Holy Spirit, blow through my whole being and fill me with the breath of Heaven. You are in control. You steer. Move me today to be and to do exactly as you will. Amen.

Third Day

On the third day a wedding took place. . . . Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. . . .
Jesus answered them, "Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days." (John 2:1-2, 19)

In Scripture and in John, the third day is of major significance. In God's time table, a breakthrough of blessing is usually just around the corner. It is "the third day" when Jesus shows up at a wedding--only because he was invited--and restores joy and celebration to an anxious situation. On "the third day" he will rise again from the rubble of reckless human attempts to destroy the connecting point of God and man.

No matter how bleak my situation, I must trust and have great hope that a breakthrough of blessing is just days away.

Jesus, come into my situation and turn water into wine. Raise me up. Come quickly.

The Word in the World

In the beginning was the Word..., and the Word was God.... In him was life, and that life was the light of men.... There came a man who was sent from God.... He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. (John 1:1-7)

Scripture says that the world needs the Word--a life-giving Message. This Message was the source of the world's origin, and it is still its source of life and light. Without it, the world is dark and dead.

Jesus is that Message, and as he was sent into the world to reveal God, God continues to send men and women into the world to embody and proclaim the Message.

By God's grace, I am sent as a witness to the light, a carrier of the Message. The world needs the Word. God's plan is that through me people will hear and see and believe. What an honor! I feel unworthy and inadquate to that calling. The good news is that so has every other person that God has used. I have to always be asking, "Is Jesus being seen in me right now? If I began to share the Message with someone right here and right now, would they see him in me? Would they see evidence of the truth of my Message?" It's not enough to show Jesus sometimes. Unless I live that way all the time, the Message will be weak and uncompelling. It needs to bleed from my veins.

Lord, make me a faithful witness who does not withhold my testimony. Amen.

Moving into John

Fellow journalers, we're moving into the Gospel of John. Come along and let's see what we can find.

Finding Favor

Okay, I'm back. Sorry for the lag in the blog. I've been away and otherwise preoccupied.

"With what shall I come before the LORD
and bow down before the exalted God?..." Israel asks.

"He has showed you, O man, what is good," responds Micah.
"And what does the LORD require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God." (Micah 6:6, 8)

God's grace is amazing. But it is a covering for the sins and mistakes of those whose hearts are legitimately turned towards God. Worship offered appart from a lifestyle of integrity is insincere flattery. Pleas for forgiveness that come from an unmerciful heart are offered in vain. Prayers for blessing spoken without showing compassion for the sad plight of others aren't well received. God is after our hearts. And when he has our hearts, it gives us a posture of mercy, fairness and compassion towards others.

God, my heart is yours. Shape me to reflect your concern for justice, your love for mercy, and teach me to walk humbly with you. Amen.