Another time

I'm feeling somewhat melancholy right now. Another of my classmates died the other day. And, if you say, at your age not a big surprise. And yet...

We were babies in the WWII vintage. This was an entirely different time and yes, that can be said of each generation, but it was really true for us. Our fathers went off to war and missed some of our 'growing up'. Mothers had to do more than take care of the family, they became co-breadwinners. Then, families looked out for all the children not just their own. And yet, it was a wonderful time to grow up because we got to be kids. Children today don't have that luxury. 

I came from a small midwestern town where everybody knew everything about everyone. We started our school day saying the Pledge of Allegiance and Prayer. No child was forced to say a prayer... but all did because God was still allowed in education. School class sizes were small because there still were one room school houses for the farmer's children (until junior high - same as today's middle school). With a smaller class size everyone was part of the 'group' - no one was excluded. Oh yes, by high school there were sub mini groups but still we all saw ourselves as one group. This got translated into everyone participated in everything - plays, sports, band, etc. 

Nope, no TV until high school (no access, we were in a valley) so I grew up on books. We did stay outside playing till dark but never one minute more. If we got in trouble at school... we got in trouble at home. There never were any school events on Wednesday night because that was church night even if your church didn't have a Wednesday night service. Monday nights were reserved for church youth groups. School events were on Tuesday, Thursday, Friday - never on a weekend (except for Graduation).

A simpler time? Of course. Bring it back? No way to, besides I'd miss my techie toys. But the attitudes, actions - yes. 

All that got me to thinking about how we remember. Are you an all things or only good things or only bad things remember-er? It does say a great deal about the kind of person you are. No value judgments. A hint though... good remembering is a warm fuzzy. Bad remembering is cold. All remembering is more rounded. But those memories, those times helped form who you are today. 

Celebrate you... even if you are the only one who hears the music and dances.

Devotional

I may have taken a right when I should have continued straight ahead, but I got intrigued with the word - devotional. Do we really know what it means? Do we know how to ‘do’ it? So I did a bit of a deep dive. Most of the scriptural references on this word are found in the Old Testament… not so much the New - which surprised me. Then I looked at the secular definition and this is what i found:

   “Definitions of devotion https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/devotion

       noun: commitment to some purpose; feelings of ardent love; religious zeal;
                the willingness to serve God; religious observance or prayers (usually
                spoken silently)

Help you any? If you said 'not really' - me too. When I looked at scriptural definitions, they were primarily examples from the Old Testament. While kinda helpful, not so much. This led me to the thought that maybe a 'devotional' is so individually defined and practiced that there is no commonality. The point is that we have devotional times.

I would like to share a devotional that I presented recently... this gives you an example of what a devotional is in my world - a teaching, a pondering, ...

***

Let me ask you a question… when you turn to the Lord, is it only in crisis situations? Or maybe when “all else fails”? What kind of a relationship is this? 

Now visualized yourself sitting in your favorite chair and the Lord sitting across from you and you two were just chatting? You weren't praising, or worshiping, or seeking an answer to anything specific ... just talking. Maybe He was teaching or showing you something. Maybe you were acknowledging something you were contemplating and needed His assistance. Maybe it was reflecting on the previous day. Or maybe it was looking at your 'to do' list and wondering. 

First of all, is it even possible you can get your head around the possibility of such a personal relationship? How does that visualization make you feel? Are you uncomfortable with such an informal, personal approach?  Do you feel guilty about even having such a thought? You shouldn’t. Remember Jesus calling His disciples - friends? (John 15). But when He called them friends…isn’t that extended to us as well? Read the chapter because it is also addressed to us. The End Game in all this is our perception on the word ‘relationship’ and how 

this applies to the Triune God. 

What IS your relationship? Would you like to have this type of personal relationship with the Lord or is it being too irreverent? Soooo what kind of relationship are you building? Do you come to the Lord only in crisis situations? Do you know Him apart from His acts? Do you know Him from His Word? 

Many questions but the bottom line is that we can co-build our relationship. Remember that righteousness (who we are made according to 2 Corinthians 5:21) is the foundation to relationship. Another point to consider is that it is YOUR relationship that determines everything you believe and think about in terms of spiritual matters. 

So, I’ll leave you to ponder. If it’s fellowship you desire - you can have as deep a relationship as you are willing to develop. And remember, no relationship should ever be in cement. It will always grow… if this is what you want. The danger to not growing is atrophy. 

***

If having just read this - how does this grow your devotional time? Do you begin to understand how important it is to take the time and become you - the you the Lord has always seen. Devotion underscores a devotional time. It's yours to create but never let it become routine. Let it always ... breathe.

I sometimes wobble

In my own defense… I think we all do. What is a ‘wobble’? Typically unintentional as well as unthinking - it’s when we think, speak, or act without considering what we may be implying to the recipient (including ourselves) nor the consequences from those words or actions. Really, this is 'no little thing' - and wobbling is not really a good thing. I suspect the point is that when we catch ourselves wobbling, that we should stop and change what we're doing or thinking but only after we've taken stock of the potential 'whys' we may be wobbling. 

When wobbling, it's important to remember that intentional and intense are Not related. Intentional is being aware and intense is an expression - typically passionate. Ask yourself... why am I experiencing this? What have I done or not done that seems to lead me this way? Then ask yourself... how do I change where I am to where I should or need to be? I've discovered that sometimes when I'm wobbling, it's an excuse or an escape from what's going on. You?

My wobblings and yours may not be for the same reasons, but we need to know our reasons. But even more important... we need to know not just how to cope with these times, but to control them. I discovered this on Google:

   "The spirit of confusion is a weapon of the enemy. He unleashes demonic activity through mental, emotional or physical confusion in order to manipulate and assault our minds. Confusion, from its Latin root means “to pour together." This sense of being “poured together” is leaving many of us feeling overwhelmed."

That's a good description of 'wobble'! Confusion is what we're experiencing, at least in part. I decided that I would look to scripture for my answer(s). Are you experiencing confusion... do you know what to do? Consider 2 Corinthians:

   "We are pressured in every way [hedged in], but not crushed; perplexed [unsure of finding a way out], but not driven to despair; hunted down and persecuted, but not deserted [to stand alone]; struck down, but never destroyed; always carrying around in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the [resurrection] life of Jesus also may be shown in our body." (v. 8-10)

This is a description of wobble and an answer. Looking at other verses that discuss this 'condition', one confirmation is 2 Timothy 1:7

   "For God did not give us a spirit of timidity or cowardice or fear, but [He has given us a spirit] of power and of love and of sound judgment and personal discipline [abilities that result in a calm, well-balanced mind and self-control]."

Sometimes a wobble occurs when we forget who we are and whose we are. We forget what's been done for us, what's available for us. When we do 'come to ourselves'... we can see who's behind our wobble and dispense with him. The 'sound mind' part of 2 Timothy should be preeminent. 

                               Wobbles: 0, Who I'm becoming: 1.

Every day is a blank sheet

 Today now is. The mistakes, sins, boo boos of yesterday are over. Absolutely! Learn from them but also learn from the positives as well - and accentuate those.

The not so positives and sins - run to Jesus and even if you’ve committed them before - remember 1 John 1:9 which gives a way to reestablish relationship. Let these be a check, reminder of what happened but never let it define you because that is the foundation of how you share you.

  Yesterday is a lesson not an identity. But that is your choice. I see very little value in hitting yourself over and over - learn, apply your understanding but stop there. Remember that when you seek forgiveness from Him then that sin no longer exists, it’s been removed as far as the east is from the west [Psalms 103:12].

  Just as an aside... why not build on the positive successes in the day as well? Or does that sound like bragging and bragging is always a no-no? Part of the problem when we only use our failures, our sins as our 'teachers' we have only part of the picture. There are very few that are all bad and evil (though some do exist) and neither are we. How WE see ourselves is critical to how we build a relationship with the Triune God. No matter how He sees us, ultimately we determine so much of the developing relationship because of our definition of our identity. of who we are.

  Even better is the realization that much of the 'blank sheet' is based in being forgiven and accepting this. (Do remember that you have to have forgiven others who may have - deliberate or unintentional - hurt us: Matthew 6:14-15.) I know that we may have difficulty accepting our forgiveness. 

  Part of difficulty may be based in the disappointment we have in ourselves. We had a test that we failed... so we're going to have to face it again. Or maybe it was a missed opportunity to encourage someone. There can be multiple reasons that we hang on to those pre today disappointments and they can discourage... but they never should be an excuse. 

  The point of forgiveness is the ability to grow from our mistakes and sins, to resolve to improve (though we may be in that class of needing to be forgiven 70 times 7). While there is little excuse for deliberate sins, mistakes we can even be forgiven from them - 1 John 1:9. I believe that if your mindset is to be pleasing to the Lord that He will honor this by helping us to become the person He's always seen. 

  In so many ways, not just forgiveness but the acceptance of forgiveness is the platform, resulting in that 'the every day is a blank sheet' is our opportunity. We can act on this ... or not.

A Done Deal!

If He said it …. do you believe it? Scripture says:

   “All Scripture is God-breathed [given by divine inspiration] and is profitable for instruction, for conviction [of sin], for correction [of error and restoration to obedience], for training in righteousness [learning to live in conformity to God’s will, both publicly and privately—behaving honorably with personal integrity and moral courage]; so that the man of God may be complete and proficient, outfitted and thoroughly equipped for every good work." [2 Timothy 3:16-17]

  "Every part of Scripture is God-breathed and useful one way or another—showing us truth, exposing our rebellion, correcting our mistakes, training us to live God’s way. Through the Word we are put together and shaped up for the tasks God has for us." [The Message Bible]

Do you believe it? If you don't reeeaaallly believe, will you act? Bottom line and 'proof': do you ACT on it? Is scripture your foundation, your guide?

   "This is the [remarkable degree of] confidence which we [as believers are entitled to] have before Him: that if we ask anything according to His will, [that is, consistent with His plan and purpose] He hears us. And if we know [for a fact, as indeed we do] that He hears and listens to us in whatever we ask, we [also] know [with settled and absolute knowledge] that we have [granted to us] the requests which we have asked from Him." [1 John 5: 14-15]

I remember when I was a young, beginning Christian... there was sooo much to learn, to know, to remember. I began, not so much a journal as a Reminder Book, which were the basics, groundings from which I could build - a process. Well... at least for awhile I had the journal. The point being the 'praying the scriptures' approach to praying. Do you do this? If not - why?

Praying the scriptures is also an excellent method to hiding the Word in our heart. Referring to our armor... what's the sword? The Word of God. And should this offensive weapon simply be 'holstered'? Aren't we suppose to wield it? But the best (my opinion) way of securing the Word in our hearts is by praying the scriptures. You can't use what's not there.

Look again at 1 John 5. "...  And if we know [for a fact, as indeed we do] that He hears and listens to us in whatever we ask, we [also] know [with settled and absolute knowledge] that we have [granted to us] the requests which we have asked from Him." And this is based in requesting according to His will. Confidence goes a long way toward helping us to this mindset. And I believe confidence is best displayed when we ACT on His Word.

This is the point - asking according to His will, He hears us! And those verses say it all. It IS a done deal!

Works don't come first...

but they DO come. They are an expression of our faith. Faith comes first because without it the works have no foundation. James 2:17-20

   " So too, faith, if it does not have works [to back it up], is by itself dead [inoperative and ineffective]." (v. 17)

Had you ever thought and applied this to yourself? If you aren't engaged in the Father's business... what, exactly, are you doing? Just sitting there? Waiting for a flash from Heaven to tell you? Before you get any angrier at me... I'm not pointing fingers! I'm also not telling you what it is you should do. Bottom line is that you are NOT my servant... but you are the Lord's. Do you honestly believe that the gift that's been placed in you is inconsequential?

   "But someone may say, “You [claim to] have faith and I have [good] works; show me your [alleged] faith without the works [if you can], and I will show you my faith by my works [that is, by what I do].” You believe that God is one; you do well [to believe that]. The demons also believe [that], and shudder and bristle [in awe-filled terror—they have seen His wrath]! But are you willing to recognize, you foolish [spiritually shallow] person, that faith without [good] works is useless?" (v. 18-20}

Faith without [good] works is useless... now that's strong. James was, in my opinion, trying to get our attention and point us in the right direction. He's not condemning, he's redirecting. Now read the entire scripture from the Message beginning with verse 14:

   "Dear friends, do you think you’ll get anywhere in this if you learn all the right words but never do anything? Does merely talking about faith indicate that a person really has it? For instance, you come upon an old friend dressed in rags and half-starved and say, “Good morning, friend! Be clothed in Christ! Be filled with the Holy Spirit!” and walk off without providing so much as a coat or a cup of soup—where does that get you? Isn’t it obvious that God-talk without God-acts is outrageous nonsense?

I can already hear one of you agreeing by saying, “Sounds good. You take care of the faith department, I’ll handle the works department.” Not so fast. You can no more show me your works apart from your faith than I can show you my faith apart from my works. Faith and works, works and faith, fit together hand in glove.

Do I hear you professing to believe in the one and only God, but then observe you complacently sitting back as if you had done something wonderful? That’s just great. Demons do that, but what good does it do them? Use your heads! Do you suppose for a minute that you can cut faith and works in two and not end up with a corpse on your hands?"

Now those are strong words based on an alive and active faith. Don't read any of this as condemnation... whenever did that prove to be an effective motivator? Exactly! Truly... this is an encouragement. The Lord has told us He has put a gift in us so that we can be part of building the body [Ephesians 4:12. 1 Corinthians 12]. He chose to do this. He wants us to grow into the people we can be. He has invited us (Great Commission) into this fantastic journey of bringing people into the family and helping them to get grounded and become effective.

The marvelous aspect is that it really is never too late to realize and act on that though works don't come first... they do come. Works express our faith and there is no little act. But you are needed. We can ask. The Lord can direct. BUT, it's always, always, always your decision. 

Come grab my hand and let us go forth into doing the Father's business.

Yesterday, Today, and Forever

   "For Jesus doesn’t change — yesterday, today, tomorrow, He’s always totally

    himself." [Hebrews13:8. MSG]

I believe most of us are familiar with that verse. It gives us comfort to know that the Lord is not a man that He should lie (Numbers 23:19). We can count on the indisputable fact that He will complete what He said. The question is - do we adopt the same foundation. Can we be relied on? Will we do what we have committed to? Is our character, our behavior follow the principle of being the same? And that doesn't mean not growing - it's the essential, the important areas of our lives - our foundation that is unchangeable.

Another component is in terms of being forgiven. Once we realize we have sinned, come to the Lord and confessed, repented, and received cleansing and restoration (1 John 1:9) do we drop the specifics of the sin but learn from our sin? Or.... do we continually bring the same subject up over and over and over? And if it is the latter we do - why? Don't we trust the Lord when He said He would remove our sin from us as far as the east is from the west (Psalms 103:1)? What stops us from accepting our forgiveness? Does this mean that we don't accept another person's apology when we have been hurt, lied to, etc. by them? Equally important is when we ask for forgiveness... is this not from our heart?

Can we be relied to be and do what we say? Or is our behavior one that tends to follow the last person we spoke with? Do we constantly change our minds? Which indicates building on shifty sands - actually this is called 'wishy washy'. Would you rely on such a person to have your back? If your history thus your character is characterized by consistency, then others (and ourselves) can rely on, believe who we are and what we say. Do remember though whether you are giving assurances or one receiving them - that life is defined as changes. The issue is when it affects what we've said (our word) then is our action one of letting the person know that there is a change? If so, then our reputation isn't damaged. If not........

   " For I am the Lord, I do not change [but remain faithful to My covenant with you]" (Malachi 3:6a) 

The Yesterday, Today, and Forever phrase is prefaced with the statement that the Lord is the SAME, that He does not change. But never forget the context: "... but remain faithful to My covenant with you..." This is more than a promise... more than an example... more than only applicable to Jesus. It is applicable concerning our foundation. It is a standard. 

And it is a solid foundation and standard we can stand on, adopt into our frame of reference (and action). Remember though that the "Same" does not mean a lack of change. Again... life is defined in change. But it is how we adopt and adapt the change into our standard. It is how we demonstrate the change within the standard. It is how we explain our why.