Pour myself out
A pail with no end
Keep giving more
Won't lose you my friend
Too much of nothing
Drowning the soul
Not just for me
But all whom I hold
A broken cup
Can only be filled
On calvary
Through the blood that He spilled
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Pity
I have a few friends that I tend to pity. Friends who, when mentioned, provoke responses of "I feel bad for them....", "Do they know that they..." or even, "We have to pray for so and so, because..." When I investigate my heart, I find that much of my pity is akin to the elder brother mentality in the parable of the prodigal son.
In my "pity", I compare myself with another and glory in the betterment of my standards applied to their lives. How do I know this true? There have been countless times where God has worked and changed the lives of people I once felt bad for. Instead of praising His mercy and grace, I find myself uncomfortable, angry and jealous. The basis of righteousness (i.e. the betterment of my standards) is threatened, and all my "work" seems pointless; God does not appear fair.
If we only knew the full extent of being "hidden in Christ." We enjoy delighting in the benefit of being God's children, but do we know that it also means we are no longer our own? We are not the god of our lives anymore, and all such "pity", "feel bad for" and jealous envy is nothing but foolishness. God's love is not mutually exclusive; He shows no favoritism.
In light of, or rather because of my foolishness, I am thankful to God that He gives more, more and more grace.
"Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found." Luke 15:31b-32
"What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask.
But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded." James 4: 1-2, 6-8
In my "pity", I compare myself with another and glory in the betterment of my standards applied to their lives. How do I know this true? There have been countless times where God has worked and changed the lives of people I once felt bad for. Instead of praising His mercy and grace, I find myself uncomfortable, angry and jealous. The basis of righteousness (i.e. the betterment of my standards) is threatened, and all my "work" seems pointless; God does not appear fair.
If we only knew the full extent of being "hidden in Christ." We enjoy delighting in the benefit of being God's children, but do we know that it also means we are no longer our own? We are not the god of our lives anymore, and all such "pity", "feel bad for" and jealous envy is nothing but foolishness. God's love is not mutually exclusive; He shows no favoritism.
In light of, or rather because of my foolishness, I am thankful to God that He gives more, more and more grace.
"Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found." Luke 15:31b-32
"What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask.
But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded." James 4: 1-2, 6-8
Monday, January 18, 2010
Choices
I give you so much weight
As if making you made me
I'll turn away from passive fate
For there's much that I can't see
I admit, you are a big deal
But not to define or secure
In you I find a proof of a seal
In God no less, no more
As if making you made me
I'll turn away from passive fate
For there's much that I can't see
I admit, you are a big deal
But not to define or secure
In you I find a proof of a seal
In God no less, no more
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Harsh
I see two dynamics with people who are unusually harsh on themselves:
1) Pride: They think they deserve better, or ought to have done better
2) Fear: Fearful that, were they not as hard on themselves, they would end up either lazy or judged
"If I am this harsh on myself, people cannot be any harsher on me. I am safe." Paradox is, the God who created you, knows you fully and loves you, is not that harsh on you. And in His providence, you are safe.
The solution is not to be nicer to yourself or to love yourself more... It is to understand that the God who knows you fully - better than you know yourself - has already accepted you in Christ. In spite of all the evidence contrary and all the reasons for Him to not love you, He loves you anyway. You are hidden in Him.
"For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known." 1 Corinthians 13:12
1) Pride: They think they deserve better, or ought to have done better
2) Fear: Fearful that, were they not as hard on themselves, they would end up either lazy or judged
"If I am this harsh on myself, people cannot be any harsher on me. I am safe." Paradox is, the God who created you, knows you fully and loves you, is not that harsh on you. And in His providence, you are safe.
The solution is not to be nicer to yourself or to love yourself more... It is to understand that the God who knows you fully - better than you know yourself - has already accepted you in Christ. In spite of all the evidence contrary and all the reasons for Him to not love you, He loves you anyway. You are hidden in Him.
"For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known." 1 Corinthians 13:12
He Will
Related to yesterday's post, this ruminated in my mind today... We often "give it all to God," and expect Him to respond in kind.
In times of anxiety, we "give it all to Him" and anticipate immediate peace. What happens when the feelings of peace avoid us? 1) We complain. 2) We stop trusting. Other times, we want something so badly that we "delight ourselves in the Lord" and wait for Him to give us the desire of our hearts.
Isn't there something wrong with that? How is God not relegated to an all-powerful vending machine? It is scary... rather, it is death to "give it all to God" and stop. No - "so that", "for He will surely", or "in order for Him to". I give it all to Him simply because I cannot.
I cannot stop complaining, I cannot stop envying, I cannot stop feeling angry, anxious or discontented. I don't "give it all to God" in order for Him to heal me. That is secondary. I give it to Him because I cannot. I give up predicting how He will sanctify me. I give up being my own Holy Spirit. I give up, give up, give up.
And yet, I know that He will. I do not know how, nor do I know when, but I know Him. It is this position of humility, which I believe opens the door for God to work as He wills; not as we envision, but beyond what we could ever imagine.
"...but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles." 1 Corinthians 1:23.
In times of anxiety, we "give it all to Him" and anticipate immediate peace. What happens when the feelings of peace avoid us? 1) We complain. 2) We stop trusting. Other times, we want something so badly that we "delight ourselves in the Lord" and wait for Him to give us the desire of our hearts.
Isn't there something wrong with that? How is God not relegated to an all-powerful vending machine? It is scary... rather, it is death to "give it all to God" and stop. No - "so that", "for He will surely", or "in order for Him to". I give it all to Him simply because I cannot.
I cannot stop complaining, I cannot stop envying, I cannot stop feeling angry, anxious or discontented. I don't "give it all to God" in order for Him to heal me. That is secondary. I give it to Him because I cannot. I give up predicting how He will sanctify me. I give up being my own Holy Spirit. I give up, give up, give up.
And yet, I know that He will. I do not know how, nor do I know when, but I know Him. It is this position of humility, which I believe opens the door for God to work as He wills; not as we envision, but beyond what we could ever imagine.
"...but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles." 1 Corinthians 1:23.
Monday, January 4, 2010
Insecure
I had to share these excerpts from Richard Lovelace (so, so true):
"Only a fraction of the present body of professing Christians are solidly appropriating the justifying work of Christ in their lives. Many have so light an apprehension of God’s holiness and of the extent and guilt of their sin that consciously they see little need for justification, although below the surface of their lives they are deeply guilt-ridden and insecure. Many others have a theoretical commitment to this doctrine, but in their day-to-day existence they rely on their sanctification for their justification… drawing their assurance of acceptance with God from their sincerity, their past experience of conversion, their recent religious performance or the relative infrequency of their conscious, willful disobedience. Few know enough to start each day with a thoroughgoing stand upon Luther’s platform: you are accepted, looking outward in faith and claiming the wholly alien righteousness of Christ as the only ground for acceptance, relaxing in that quality of trust which will produce increasing sanctification as faith is active in love and gratitude…
Christians who are no longer sure that God loves and accepts them in Jesus, apart from their present spiritual achievements, are subconsciously radically insecure persons — much less secure than non-Christians, because of the constant bulletins they receive from their Christian environment about the holiness of God and the righteousness they are supposed to have. Their insecurity shows itself in pride, a fierce, defensive assertion of their own righteousness and defensive criticism of others. They come naturally to hate other cultural styles and other races in order to bolster their own security and discharge their suppressed anger. They cling desperately to legal, pharisaical righteousness, but envy, jealousy and other branches on the tree of sin grow out of their fundamental insecurity…"
Richard Lovelace, The Dynamics of Spiritual Life ( Downers Grove, Ill.:IVP, 1979)
"Only a fraction of the present body of professing Christians are solidly appropriating the justifying work of Christ in their lives. Many have so light an apprehension of God’s holiness and of the extent and guilt of their sin that consciously they see little need for justification, although below the surface of their lives they are deeply guilt-ridden and insecure. Many others have a theoretical commitment to this doctrine, but in their day-to-day existence they rely on their sanctification for their justification… drawing their assurance of acceptance with God from their sincerity, their past experience of conversion, their recent religious performance or the relative infrequency of their conscious, willful disobedience. Few know enough to start each day with a thoroughgoing stand upon Luther’s platform: you are accepted, looking outward in faith and claiming the wholly alien righteousness of Christ as the only ground for acceptance, relaxing in that quality of trust which will produce increasing sanctification as faith is active in love and gratitude…
Christians who are no longer sure that God loves and accepts them in Jesus, apart from their present spiritual achievements, are subconsciously radically insecure persons — much less secure than non-Christians, because of the constant bulletins they receive from their Christian environment about the holiness of God and the righteousness they are supposed to have. Their insecurity shows itself in pride, a fierce, defensive assertion of their own righteousness and defensive criticism of others. They come naturally to hate other cultural styles and other races in order to bolster their own security and discharge their suppressed anger. They cling desperately to legal, pharisaical righteousness, but envy, jealousy and other branches on the tree of sin grow out of their fundamental insecurity…"
Richard Lovelace, The Dynamics of Spiritual Life ( Downers Grove, Ill.:IVP, 1979)
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