Insane

In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life. I Timothy 6:19

We're on the verge of another new year. The question for each of us is, will this year take us deeper into Him, or further away? I think that for the next few writings, I'll try to address this.

In my prayer journal, in reference to I Timothy 6:19, I've written, "May I (we) take hold of the life that is truly life." That is my prayer for me, and it's my prayer for you. Jesus Christ offers us life. His life. Abundant life. Full life. It's up to us as to whether we receive and walk in it or not.

I heard Francis Chan speaking on the Scripture picture of Jesus standing and knocking at the door of our heart, seeking entry. He said that it would be the mark of insanity if he were to turn Him away. It would, but huge numbers of people do just that. Every day. Every. Day. Jesus Christ offers life. Eternal life. Life that begins the moment we receive it. Many receive Him as Savior, but they never receive Him in the fullness of His life. They never allow themselves to be swallowed up by His life. They keep trying to manage life in their own strength. All the riches that are found in Him are offered to them, but they refuse. It's "insane" that anyone would do so, but they do. Do you?

Paul exhorts us this Scripture to "take hold" of this life. It requires an action on our part to do this. We must reach out to lay hold of it. Why don't we? We don't because to take hold of His life we have to let go of ours. This requires equal parts of surrender, trust, and obedience. We surrender our confidence in ourselves, trust in His leadership and ways, and obey His directions as He leads us. And He always leads us more deeply into His abundant life. As Chan said, it's insane that we should refuse Him...but we do. Maybe this past year, in some ways, maybe all ways, you've refused Him. He's still standing there....knocking, offering His life on this day, in this new year. Will you draw near to Him, or further away?

It will continue to be my prayer for you, me, all of us, that we will not miss Him in any part of this new year. That we will hear His knocking, open our heart doors to all that He is and offers, and take hold of the life that is truly life. Will we run to that life....or will we run further away from it? Can you hear Him knocking?

Blessings,
Pastor O

 

And Forever

 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.  Hebrews 13:8

I believe I've written before of my first Christmas Eve while I attended Bible College in Colorado. My roommates had both left to be with family or friends. All of mine were too far away to get to, so I was alone in our apartment. Yet I wasn't. We'd gotten a small tree and I'd bought some ornaments and lights to go on it. I attended a Christmas Eve service at our church, and then went home to that apartment, that decorated tree,     and to Him.

I'll never forget that night. I experienced Him in a way I never had before in my short time walking with Him. I played some albums from Jesus Music people like the 2nd Chapter of Acts and Keith Green. As I listened to the lyrics, so filled with His presence, and gazed upon that tree and its sparkling lights, I experienced Him in a way I still can't really describe. It's among my most cherished memories. Last night, Christmas Eve, it was 45 years to the day since it happened. 

I had received a gracious and warm invitation for Christmas Eve this year, and I intended to take part. As the time came to leave, I just had a sense that I needed to remain in my home....with Him. To have fellowship with Him just as I had 45 years ago. I yielded to that. In my tree lit room, I played music from the very same albums from that night all those years ago. I once again listened to those powerful lyrics. I gazed upon those lights, and once again, I had a deep, rich fellowship with Him. He ministered to me. Like, yet unlike how He had that night in Colorado. He was the same, yet He was somehow different. I experienced Him far more deeply. You see, He is unchanging, yet if we will really walk with Him, He will take us to depths in Himself that we never knew were there. He is unchanging, but I was not the same man I was in Colorado. He is unchanging, but He is forever changing us. As He does, we discover riches in Him we never knew were there. This Christmas Eve was not the same as that one more than 4 1/2 decades ago, but He was still beautiful, still mighty and majestic, and still more real than anything else in this world. I was 30 years old that first Eve. Now I'm 75. His mercies continue to be "new every morning," and every moment of every day as well. 

I'm sure I missed some great fellowship at that gathering, but I don't regret it because I didn't miss Him. He revealed to me once more, new wonders of Himself. And I learned once more that He will do this with me, with us who believe.....forever.

Blessings,
Pastor O

Let's Go

 When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”  Luke 2:15

It's Christmas Eve, and I don't have anything earth-shaking to write today, but I do have a few things on my heart. I'll try to put what it is into words.

I've always loved the role of the shepherds in the Christmas story. Shepherds were outcasts in Jewish culture, yet it was to them that God chose to reveal the birth of His Son. They, simple, likely rough men, were the first to hear the angelic proclamation.

I can only imagine what the experience must have been like. A heavenly host proclaiming in what had to be the most beautiful singing and praising they, or anyone would ever heart. They had to have been both awestruck and dumbstruck. Then, the message delivered, the angelic host disappeared.

The shepherds didn't spend time discussing what had happened. They said as one, "Let's go and see this great thing that we have been told about." And so they did. They were not going to miss the wondrous event. An event a fallen world was groaning to see come about. Nothing would stop them. They would see this child that God had told them about.

The shepherds had likely been very involved in the business of keeping their sheep. Watching over sheep is not an easy job. Who could blame them if they were distracted, weary, emotionally on edge. Yet none of that mattered. They had to see the promised Messiah. They wouldn't be kept from Him.

Bring all that to our lives on this day. Christmas can be a very distracting, wearying, emotionally draining time. We can see everything and yet see nothing. We can see all the trappings, but we don't see Him. The glitter, the tinsel, the gifts, the families, the food. All of it can overwhelm, and all of it, no matter how good, can keep us from Him. How might it be keeping you, and me, from Him?

I close by saying, may it be that in the midst of this season, we don't lose sight of Him. May it be that in each of us will be a driving determination to "see" Him, to worship Him. To just dwell in His presence. Fathers and husbands, mothers and wives, heads of families and heads of ministries, may our heart cry be like that of the shepherds. "Let us go to see this Savior, this Jesus. May nothing keep us from Him. May He not be lost amidst the glittering tinsel. May we come before Him, kneel before Him, and worship Him. Let's go. Let us not delay.

Blessings,
Pastor O

True Worship

 I've a question for you and for me as well; When was the last time you truly worshiped the Lord? Many of us would point to the last time we attended a church service. For many believers, that may not amount to more than once or twice a month. Others will say that they see worship as a lifestyle, that they worship Him in their thoughts, words, and actions each day. That's a correct assessment, but then we're led to another, deeper question; What is it that constitutes true worship? Is it being moved by music, an anointed message? Is it being impacted by what we've seen, heard, or read? All of these can be a part of true worship, but all of them can be present, and yet we may not have truly worshiped Him.

In my prayer journal, I have written down what Henry Blackaby says are the elements of true worship. He says that true worship results in repentance, obedient submission, and a desire for holiness. We can experience all of what I outlined above and yet not really have worshiped Him at all. We can be impacted emotionally and mentally by all of it, yet we are not changed or transformed by any of it. To truly encounter Him, to truly worship Him will bring about inner change and transformation. The degree may differ in our encounters, but the constant is that we will not emerge from any time with Him as the same person we were before we came into His presence.

If we just look at what we call corporate worship, the gathering together of believers for the purported purpose of meeting Him in worship, how much of Blackaby's elements of worship are taking place? Repentance, submission, and holiness are not words frequently used in a lot of churches. We put a great deal of emphasis on the presentation, lighting, sound, visuals, and atmosphere. These are not wrong in themselves, but these alone will not confront a person in the depths of their need. Only a hunger for the Living God, as He is, not as we would wish Him to be, will effect the transformation that He seeks to bring in each and all of us. He is an Almighty and holy God. We're not going to encounter Him through props.

These are just some thoughts and questions that I have today, even more for myself than for you. I think we would do well to contemplate them. May we take these questions, and the elements of worship listed by Blackaby before Him, and ask Him if what we have been offering Him is really worship. Worship that is centered upon Him, not upon us.

Blessings,
Pastor O

Realistic

 Christmas can be a magical time for children. It certainly was for me. I recently wrote of the time my grandmother put me to bed on Christmas Eve, telling me to listen for the sound of Santa's sleigh bells on the roof of our house. I drifted off to sleep, sure that he would come, sure that the sleigh would land above my head. I was a true believer.

Now, from the perspective of my "wise" adulthood, I can see all the ways that such a happening could never take place. Why would Santa land on a roof that had no chimney? How would he get down from a roof that even my father didn't care to walk on? How could a sleigh and eight reindeer fit on the roof of our modest little home anyway? Then there was the question of how one man could cover the entire earth, knowing the location of every child, and all in one night? It was impossible, yet, none of this interfered with my childlike faith. I simply believed.

I once listened to a woman who ministers mainly in Africa, in what are commonly called "third world countries." Here she had seen countless numbers of miraculous healings and countless more lives being transformed by the saving grace of Christ. The people she ministered to simply believed that the Lord and Savior she told them about could do all that He said He could. She said, "All children believe God can do miracles, until some adult tells them He can't" Has this happened in your life. We all come to the knowledge that Santa isn't real, but have we also come to the place where we no longer really believe in the wonders and miracles of God? We may know He once did, but do we believe He still can and will? Have we become too sophisticated, too secularized to believe that He can still make the blind to see, the lame to walk, and the dead to rise? Not just figuratively, but literally?

His Word says, "I am the God who heals you," but in sickness, who is it we first turn to, the Doctor, or Him?

In His Word we read how Jesus fed 5000 with just a few loaves and fishes, but how much sleep have we lost, how much anxiety have we gone through, wondering how we'll get through the month? Some of us, maybe all of us, once believed He'd do such miracles for us, but "other voices" began to whisper into our spirit. They told us we needed to be more "realistic." Yes, God can move in miraculous ways in the Bible, but that was then, this is now. Now He's chosen a more reserved role in this world. We may not actually say this, but it's the way too many of us live and believe. 

Do you still have the faith of a child? If not, where has it gone? Why has it gone? Who was it that first told you such things weren't really possible? Are you ready to once more have the heart and faith of a child? A heart that believes what it's told by a Father whose love for that child knows no limits. Are you ready for Him to show up in your life, moving in the miraculous? Are you ready to once more be a child, His child? All things really are possible.....for the one who believes.

Blessings,
Pastor O

Desperate

 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled.  Matthew 5:6.....

...Would we simply like to experience Him, or are we desperate for Him? Chris Tiegreen....The tragedy is that the situation is desperate but the church is not.  Vance Havner

Have you ever read the accounts of those who sought the Lord in desperation? We see this in the lives of many of our Bible heroes, but it seems easy for us to casually dismiss them because we can be so familiar with them, but how about those brothers and sisters down through history? John Wesley, Hudson Taylor, Charles Spurgeon, A.W. Tozer, and Francis Chan, to name just a few. Many of them would write that their desire for Him was so intense that they felt they would die if they did not receive Him in all of His fullness. Have we ever hungered for Him in such a way, or have we just told ourselves such men and women were a special class. We shouldn't expect or think God expects us to be like them. What if we were to discover that He does indeed expect it? What do we do with that?

Thinking of Tiegreen's quote; when we enter into any encounter with Him, be it in our prayer, our reading of Scripture, in anything that we think of as "worship," do we just hope to experience Him, or do we seek Him in desperation? In any of the ways we may seek Him, do we seek Him with a passion that will not be denied, or do our attentions wander after a few "fervent" minutes? 

Think now on Havner's statement. The world situation has always been desperate, from the fall of humankind on through the resurrection of Christ. At various times the church, and we are the church, has been desperate to see Christ enter fully into that need. The church prayed and sought for Him to do so. It interceded with a passion that would not be denied. The church sought for a move of His Holy Spirit upon a world lost in sin and darkness, and would not leave off until He answered with His awesome power and presence. Contrast that with today. Many churches are praying for revival. How desperate are our prayers, how desperate is our intercession. How deeply do we feel the need that He Himself feels more deeply than we ever could? The need is desperate. Are we, His church?

This writing is addressed to myself as much as anyone. How desperate am I to see all the darkness and need moved upon by the power of His risen life? How easily am I put off in my seeking? The situation of our world and nation will only become more desperate. How desperate will our prayers and actions be in response to that? 

I once saw a painting of a large crowd of people on a platform, eating, drinking, conversing, enjoying life and enjoying each other. All around the platform were swirling waters filled with drowning people, but the ones on the platform didn't see or care for them. The artist meant for those on the platform to represent the church, and those drowning in the waters to be the world that was without Christ. When it comes down to the very base of it all, how closely does your church, my church, His church, look just like those on the platform?

Blessings,
Pastor O

Maranatha

 While we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.” – Titus 2:13

One of my earlies Christmas memories is when my grandmother put me into my bed on Christmas Eve. I was so filled with excitement and expectation. I loved everything about Christmas, especially Santa Claus. My mother always said that when it came to Christmas, I was a "true believer." That night, as my grandmother pulled the covers over me, she told me to listen for his sleigh bells on the roof. The roof was right over my bed, so I figured I had a great chance to hear them. I was determined that I would. I listened and "watched" for them as intently as I could....until I fell asleep.

That contrasts with the Scripture from Titus. The early church was gripped with a longing for the return of Jesus Christ. They constantly prayed for and lived in expectation of His return. Their prayers almost always included the word "Maranatha," which means "Lord, come!" or "The Lord is coming!" They were fervent in their desire and they lived with the eyes and ears of their heart tuned to His return. They were always seeking it, looking for it, fully expecting that it would be. Then....over time.....the church fell asleep. I don't believe that we have as yet fully awakened...but there are signs that we're beginning to.

We look for so many things in this life, but sadly most of them have to do with our own selfish desires. We want that which will add on to and improve our life. Our eyes are upon what is near in the physical and material realm. We have drifted far from the place of intently scanning the spiritual horizon for the return of the King. Talk may be increasing about His return, but I believe it has more to do with His return changing the conditions of a world situation we don't like. It's about His making things better for us. It's not about simply longing for and wanting Him.

I think most of us can remember our longings concerning Christmas, birthdays, or other special times in our lives, especially as children. What are our memories concerning our longings for Him? Not just for His physical coming in His return, but for His spiritual appearing that is available to us every moment of our lives? Is Maranatha the cry of our hearts? Lord, come! Every day, in every way, come! Has that fervent desire gone to sleep in you, in me? May He awaken in us once more that deep longing that can only be satisfied by His fullness. May our prayer be, Lord Jesus, come! Come now! And may we eagerly look for Him to appear to us in every and any way He desires each day. Maranatha! Come Lord Jesus!

Blessings,
Pastor O

Known

 Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you.  Jeremiah 1:5

Jeremiah 1:5 is such a beautiful verse. So beautiful that I can't even begin to unwrap all that is found in this short exclamation from God. There is a deep security, love, and safety to be found there. There is a sense of personal worth. There is the sense, the reality of being created, formed, by a loving, almighty God. Created with a purpose in mind. A purpose He will fully bring to pass....if we but do but three things: Believe, Trust, and Obey.

We humans find it easy to reject what we can't explain. I don't pretend to be able to fully explain or understand an infinite God with my finite mind. But I can believe what He says. What He says about Himself and what He says about me. I also have the testimony that I have found Him to be true to all that He has promised in His Word. Not once has He failed me. I have entrusted myself to Him, and as the old hymn goes, through many dangers, toils, and snares, I have already come, but in all of them, He has brought me through stronger and more whole than before I entered into them.

The apostle Paul wrote of discovering not only truth about His God, but intimate knowledge of Him as well. It moved him to say that such knowledge was to wonderful for him to even put into words. How is God, who has formed billions upon billions of lives since the dawn of creation, able to focus on me, and all that comes into being me, while also doing the same with every other life He has created? I don't know how, but I know that He does.

I have written in my prayer journal, "He doesn't simply meet us at our place of need, He lives there." I don't remember if that came from my own thoughts or anothers, but I know it is so. I know that wherever and whatever I am moving towards, He is already there. I know that I can be taken unawares, but that He never can be. I know that chaos can surround my life, but that He is the Lord over all chaos. I know that no matter how unsure I may be of myself, He is sure. He knows me, far better, deeper, and wider than I will ever know myself. I know that He formed me and knew me even before He formed me. He knows the way I take, He is the Way I take. As I said, I can't explain it all, but I will go on believing, trusting, and obeying the One who knows me. The One who has always known me. The same is true for you. Will you believe, trust, and obey Him too?

Blessings,
Pastor O

Little Jesus

 When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?”  John 21:15

I came across a short FB video by a fellow named Granger Smith. He told of a recent experience where a friendly man came up to him and shook his hand. As the man did so, he felt something small and plastic that the gentleman had put in his hand as they shook. He looked to see what it was, and it was a tiny figurine of Jesus. The man smiled at him and said, "Everybody needs a little Jesus."

Our first reaction to this is we likely think this was a good thing, and to a degree it is, but Smith made a telling and often widely overlooked point. It is not a little bit of Jesus that we need. We need all of Him. All of who He is, and all that He has spoken. And He demands all of us. Not a little of us, but all.

Think and dwell on this. How true is it that in so many parts of our lives, we only desire a "little" of Him. A little of His Lordship. A little of His will. A little of His presence. A little of His cross, or no cross at all. He offers us none of these options. He calls us to take Him as He and all that He is. No boundaries upon Him and no limitations. Every part of ourselves is open to Him....as He is, not as we wish Him to be. Not only the Gentle Shepherd, but also as the Conquering King. Not only as Suffering Servant, but as all consuming Lord and Master. Everybody does not need a little Jesus. They need all of who He is, what He commands, and where He leads.....as well as the cross He calls us to carry.

I think our first response to Jesus' question to Peter in John 21:15 when He asks him if he loves Him "more than these," is to think He's asking if Peter loves Him more than the other disciples do and more than he loves them. He is asking him that, but I see "these" as encompassing far more than that. I believe "these" includes everything that stands in competition against Christ in Peter's life. People, goods, status, family, ministry. He asks the same of us. There is no "little Jesus" option. So, how do we answer Him?

Blessings,
Pastor O

The Taker

 “He said to her, ‘Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.’” – Mark 5:34

I heard speaker and author Ann Voskamp say, The greatest gift Jesus gives you is all that He comes to take away...The weight of what He takes away.

We love Jesus the Giver. We don't want to hear about Jesus the Taker, yet He is a Taker, and praise His name that He is. Especially if we will dwell on all that He has taken from our lives that has been a great weight for us to bear. That which caused us great pain and suffering.

The Scripture from Mark has to do with the woman who had a constant menstrual bleeding which rendered her unclean under Jewish law. She had suffered the affliction for 12 years. Jesus took that away. Scripture is filled with so many things that Jesus "took" from people; blindness, lameness, leprosy, even demonic possession. For those who have truly believed upon Him, He took the weight and burden of our sin upon Himself and removed it from us. He took our guilt and pronounced us forgiven. He has taken the sentence of death from us and given us His gift of Life. Yes, His greatest gift to us is in that which He takes away.

Still, as true as this is, there are multitudes who may have believed upon Him for salvation, but have never allowed Him to take away the shame, the condemnation, the fear, and so many other afflictions that the devil is overjoyed to lay upon us. Maybe you are part of that multitude today. Maybe you are living in the place of despair, hopelessness, sorrow, and depression. Perhaps you're enslaved by attitudes of unforgiveness, bitterness, or the effects of abuse and neglect.You may be healthy in body, but sick and lame in your spirit. He came to take such things away, to relieve us of the weight of all of it, but He will not take it by force. We have to give it to Him. We have to release it from our hands, our grip, into His hands. Can you do so? I know it's so hard. You've held onto it for so long. Release it, Surrender it. Let go of the burden of the weight. Be free. Let Jesus the Giver also be the Taker. He will only take that which is killing us by inches, and He'll replace it with life. His Life. Full, free, abundant life.

Blessings,
Pastor O

Wonderful

 Wonderful grace of Jesus

Reaching to all the lost
By it I have been pardoned
Saved to the uttermost
Chains have been torn asunder, giving me liberty
For the wonderful grace of Jesus reaches me.   From the Hymn, Wonderful Grace Of Jesus....."We can't underestimate sin or overestimate grace." Paul Tripp

I recently heard of a person who'd just completed a rehab program for cocaine addiction. They were almost the same age as myself. As I contemplated that, I was overwhelmed by the wonderful grace of Jesus.  You see, I could have been that person. I was that person. What delivered me from that same fate was the grace and mercy of God. Along with that realization came this; I would not have reached the age of that one because I know, beyond any doubt, I would have died long before. My lifestyle would have led me ever deeper into the captivity it held me in. I'm convinced I would never have reached the age of 40. Oh the kindness, the mercy, the seeking grace and love of God that pursued me until it finally laid hold of me. I can never repay the debt of love I owe, and I am so thankful that He doesn't require that I should.

Knowing this, I believe it deeply important to address Tripp's quote about underestimating sin and overestimating grace. Being addicted to a life of getting high, pursuing pleasure, seeking my own good and caring little or nothing for others did not make me more in need of Christ than someone who did none of those but still walked through life apart from Him. We are all born into the vast lostness of our sin. None of us can deliver ourselves from that state. This was why Christ was given to us by the Father. It's why He came; to take the penalty for our sin upon Himself, and offer, through faith and trust in Him, His saving grace. We cannot ever overestimate the wonder and power of His grace.

I believe His grace was always pursuing me, even from childhood, but my first consciousness of it came in my college years when I encountered a young, one time "hippie chick" whose life had been transformed by her faith in Jesus. I could not deny the transformation, and I was impacted by the light I saw in her eyes. His grace continued to pursue me a year or so later when I was walking past the small building where all the "Jesus Freaks" met. I stopped on the sidewalk to gaze at the open door. A young, long haired guy with a joyful smile invited me to join them....but I declined, continued on my way....but His grace pursued me.

Over the next five years, as my life got ever darker, His pursuing grace got ever stronger. Finally, when I had nowhere else to hide, He laid hold of me in the dining room of the home I grew up in. He had me through His grace and He has kept me through His grace. The wonderful grace of Jesus, greater than all my sin.

Do you know His grace? I don't believe you really can until you know your sin. You may not be a drunk in an alley, or an addict on the street, but if you don't know Him, then you are no better off than they are. If you don't know Him, or His grace, my prayer for you is that you would, that you will. May His grace open your eyes to your need, and to Him. Know that His wonderful grace reaches me, and you, and saves to the uttermost.

Blessings,
Pastor O