Heaven

Completely Other

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“‘I don’t think the way you think.
The way you work isn’t the way I work.’
God’s Decree.’For as the sky soars high above earth,
so the way I work surpasses the way you work,
and the way I think is beyond the way you think.
Just as rain and snow descend from the skies
and don’t go back until they’ve watered the earth,
Doing their work of making things grow and blossom,
producing seed for farmers and food for the hungry,
So will the words that come out of my mouth
not come back empty-handed.
They’ll do the work I sent them to do,
they’ll complete the assignment I gave them” (Isaiah 55:8-11, The Message).

I don’t know about you, but I’m thankful for a God I can’t figure out. I’m grateful that His ways are higher than mine, because anything I could completely comprehend wouldn’t be worth worshipping. As far as the heavens are above the earth, so much higher are God’s thoughts than mine.

I also think that a lot of deconstruction of faith happens when we judge God by our standards rather than the other way around. We make ourselves the standard by which God must abide. God would never [fill in the blank] because I would never [fill in the blank]. But that puts us above God and essentially makes us gods.

The older I get, the more I’m sure the less I know. I’m less inclined to think I have all the answers than I was when I was younger. I am also more aware of my deep need for a God who isn’t just Me 2.0, upgraded to be faster and stronger and smarter. I need someone who is completely other, someone who could condescend to my level and do for me what I could never do for myself. And that, my friends, is the gospel.

Thank You, God, that You are bigger than entire galaxies and universes, yet You are mindful of me. You who are beyond space and time became like me so that I could one day become like You. You entered into human history to redeem it and to redeem me and everybody else who calls on You in faith. Amen.

From Lonely Agonies to Everlasting Splendors

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“Does it not fill our hearts with a thrilling excitement to think that the costly disciplines and lonely agonies that make up our earthly discipleship may at any moment, and without any warning, be transformed into everlasting splendors the like of which we can scarcely conceive, let alone understand?” (James Phillip)

That’s my hope. One day, this will all make sense. One day, God will pull back the curtain and reveal the totality of a glorious tapestry that He’s been weaving in and through our lives. Currently, we only see the darker threads with occasional glimpses of gold and silver. We only see chaos and confusion.

But one day, we will see the big picture. One day, we will see all the colors woven together and see that every one of them points to the glorious splendor of Jesus our Brother, Friend, Redeemer, and Savior. And every bit of suffering that we have gone through or seen our loved ones go through will have been worth it for the joy of that moment when all of God’s creation is renewed and restored and all those who hope in Christ are forever made new and alive.

One day, all those worries and anxieties that constantly dog at our heels and never seem to let us rest won’t matter anymore. We’ll be too busy adoring and worshipping the Triune God to remember or care. The joy will be so much more glorious and overwhelming than any amount of pain or suffering we endured.

“So we’re not giving up. How could we! Even though on the outside it often looks like things are falling apart on us, on the inside, where God is making new life, not a day goes by without his unfolding grace. These hard times are small potatoes compared to the coming good times, the lavish celebration prepared for us. There’s far more here than meets the eye. The things we see now are here today, gone tomorrow. But the things we can’t see now will last forever” (2 Corinthians 4:16-18, The Message).

And the Angels Rejoice

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I used to get super excited when my sports teams won. Especially when they won the championship for their league. The only problem with that is that a couple of years later no one can remember who the champs were except for a very small number of people.

Sometimes, I find myself really looking forward to a new book, a new movie, a new album. But then I get it, play it once or twice, and the novelty is gone. It’s still a great book/movie/album, but I can never again match the thrill of hearing/seeing it for the first time.

These days, I get excited whenever I read about someone coming to faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. I love reading about how the person used to be a satanist or a porn star or a Muslim but now is a follower of Jesus. I should probably be more discerning because not everyone who says, “Lord, Lord” is really a true follower and disciple.

But I also remember that every time one single lost person is found and comes home, the angels rejoice. They throw the party to end all parties. It’s an epic celebration in heaven, and it’s all for one single solitary person.

I think about that prodigal son who came home to a party. He didn’t deserve it. He had done everything to disgrace the family name and dishonor his own father. He hadn’t shown a pattern of changed behavior to show that he wouldn’t run away again. But he came home.

Maybe that’s you. You need to stop making excuses and stop living a lie and come home. The Father is waiting. To come home means doing a 180 from going your own way and doing your own thing to going God’s way and doing things God’s way. It’s called repentance. You confess that your way doesn’t work and that you want God’s way.

Maybe in the grand scheme of things one changed life isn’t a big deal. Maybe one person who turns from sin and self to the Savior isn’t noteworthy or noticeable and will never gain any national headlines. But God knows. Heaven sees. And they throw the most epic celebration ever. Every. Single. Time.

Praying for My Pastor

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Just to clarify, I go to a multi-campus church and my campus pastor is Aaron Bryant. The senior pastor of the main campus, Brentwood Baptist Church, is Jay Strother. Recently, Jay announced to all the campuses that he has been diagnosed with an cancerous abdominal tumor.

I normally don’t post things like this, but I believe that this is a time when God’s people should rally to pray for one of their own. This is when we step up for a man of God who has faithfully served the Church for over 20 years.

I’m praying and believing in faith for complete healing. I believe that God can remove every trace of the tumor, either through the capable hands of physicians or through miraculous means.

I’m praying that this sickness won’t end in death but it will be a glorious opportunity for the gospel to go forth as people see God’s hand in this.

I’m praying that God will strengthen Jay and his family through this time of testing and that he will come out stronger on the other side.

I’m praying that there will be people in heaven, including doctors and nurses and many others, thanks to Jay’s testimony of how he will use this trial as a means of communicating the gospel of Christ through both words and actions. They will see a peace about him and want to know where that peace comes from and where to find it.

I believe God is able to to immeasurably more than we can ask or think. I believe that whatever the outcome the Kingdom of God will continue to increase in Middle Tennessee and throughout the world.

I ultimately believe that either way is a win-win because to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

Thank you, Jay, for your leadership and your pastor’s heart for your people. I and many others will be faithfully praying for you throughout this season and waiting to hear what amazing things God will do in and through you.

I Wish You Knew

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One of my favorite artists, Keith Green, has a song entitled “Song to My Parent (I Only Want to See You There),” and I think that expresses my sentiments over so many people I know. If there’s anything I’ve learned from 53 years of being alive and over 45 of those as a child of God, is that having Jesus is so much better than not having Him. My worst days with Jesus are better than my best days without Him.

It’s not about avoiding going to hell, although hell is real. After all, God won’t force anyone to be with Him and He will respect the choices that we have made, even if we choose to be separated from Him. The best part isn’t not being in hell but looking forward to an eternity in heaven with the abundance of joy in this life as well.

There are so many stories and testimonies of people who were hopelessly lost and hopelessly addicted, but Jesus found them and now they are brand new creations. They aren’t improved versions of their old selves. They are something completely new that only God could have dreamed of and made into reality.

It’s amazing when God opens your eyes and you really see everything for the first time. Everything makes more sense. Sure, suffering and pain still exist, but now they have meaning. We still lose people we love, but now we grieve as those who have hope. I’m finally starting to get what the Apostle Paul meant when he said, “Whether quickly or not, I pray to God that both you and everyone here in this audience might become the same as I am, except for these chains” (Acts 26:29, NLT).

I’m closing with the song Keith Green wrote for his parents with the hopes of seeing them in heaven one day. He may be gone, but his legacy of music and testimony lives on:

“I need to say these things ’cause I love you so
And I’m sorry you get angry when I say that you just don’t know
That there’s a heaven waiting for you and me
I know it seems every time we talk
I’m only trying to just make you see

But it’s only that I care
I really only want just to see you there

Please try and overlook my, my human side
I know I’m such a bad example, and you know I’m so full of pride
But Jesus isn’t like that, no, He’s perfect all the way
I guess that’s why we need Him
‘Cause by ourselves, there’s just no way

And it’s only that I care
I really, really only just want to see you there
To see you there

Close the doors
They’re just not coming
We sent the invitations out a long, long, long, long time ago
We’re still gonna have a wedding feast
Big enough to beat them all
The greatest people in the world just wouldn’t come
So now we’ll just have to invite the small

And it’s only that I care
I really, really only want just to see you there

Isn’t that Jesus?
Isn’t it Joseph and Mary’s Son?
Well, didn’t He grow up right here?
He played with our children
What? He must be kidding
Thinks He’s a prophet
Well, prophets don’t grow up from little boys
Do they?
From little boys
Do they?”

The Real Winners

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So I watched the Super Bowl (or at least most of it). I low key wanted Seattle to win, but I was not going to be a bit disappointed if New England won. Still, I made it into the 4th quarter when Seattle was up 19-0 and decided that it was basically over, so I went to old school Murder, She Wrote with Angela Lansbury.

Spoiler alert: Seattle won.

My favorite these days isn’t so much when my team wins, which is probably a good thing. My Tennessee Titans haven’t won very many games lately and watching them sometimes is about as fun as a root canal. Actually, the root canal may be more enjoyable.

But I love seeing where former and current players have given their lives to Jesus. I love how they can boast not in any individual statistics or games won or lost, but in the fact that they are known and loved by the God of the universe.

That’s the real victory. I know the cartoon is probably supposed to be mocking heaven, but I’d love to think that’s how I will enter heaven. It will be such a sweet relief and an overwhelming joy. I won’t be able to point to a single thing I’ve done for the reason that I got in, but I can say with the thief on the cross that the Man on the middle cross said I could come.

It’s only by the blood of the Lamb. Because Jesus died for me and took my place on that cross, I can live eternally. Because instead of my own sin I now possess the righteousness of the only One who ever lived a perfect and sinless life, I can come boldly to the throne of God. Because of Jesus, I will one day walk through those pearly gates confidently because my confidence is on the grace that saved me and sustains me.

I can’t imagine what it’s like to hoist that Lombardi trophy and be able to have bragging rights about being the best team in the world for at least the next year. I know that the percentage of people on Super Bowl winning teams has got to be minuscule compared to all those who have played football at any level and are watching from the comfort of their couches.

But I will know the joy of walking victoriously into heaven and that victory will last not just for the next year but all the way into eternity. And that offer goes to anyone who says yes to Jesus.

Rebuilding the House

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“Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on: you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently He starts knocking the house about in a way the hurts abominably and does not seem to make sense. What on earth is He up to? The explanation is that He is building quite a different house from the one you thought of – throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards. You thought you were going to be made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace. He intends to come and live in it Himself” (C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity).

That changes everything, doesn’t it? What if the painful and the hard stuff were really God rebuilding us into a dwelling place fit for a King? What if what seemed like chaos was actually a reconstruction of sorts — God reshaping our lives into ones that live for more than just a paycheck or a retirement but instead for eternity?

We want the family and the white picket fence. God has a plan for all the nations that they might know and praise His name. His plans are so much bigger and better than ours. And the best part is that we get to be a part of it. God is working His grand plan for the universe and for mankind through His own people — you and me.

Whatever the hurt, whatever the cost, once we see the end result, will have been worth it. That’s why we can praise God in advance for what He’s promised in the future. It’s as good as done right now.

Christmas Day

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Already, I feel a bit sad that as of 14 minutes ago, Christmas Day is over. I can freely admit that when I was younger, I couldn’t wait to get to Christmas Day, but once it got here and I got all my loot, my usual response that I never spoke out loud but thought in my head was “Ok, what next?” or “What else have you got for me?”

The novelty of new gifts never fails to wear off and the good nostalgic feeling of the holiday doesn’t ever last. I wish I could tell you honestly that I loved and cherished every single gift that I ever received until they all fell apart, but some I quickly tired of and moved on to wanting the next big gadget or game or whatever.

But today, Jesus is here. That’s not something that gets old. That will always be good news that never becomes old news. That’s the gift that I never grow tired of or grow out of. That’s the one gift that the longer I have it, the better and sweeter it grows and the more I come to understand and benefit from it.

Today we celebrate that Jesus came into the world to save sinners — including me. One of my favorite sayings is that Jesus didn’t come to make bad people good but to make dead people alive. And being alive with the hope of heaven and the presence of Jesus is the best gift ever.

I’m learning what it means to celebrate Christmas from the perspective of eternity. I want to be like the saints in the olden days who made Christmas into a feast that lasted for 12 days instead of 24 hours that we relegate it to. I want to be like that old Scrooge who learned how to keep Christmas well and live the lessons of the Spirits not just one day of the year but all 365. I don’t ever want to take grace for granted or forget what Jesus has done for me and is doing in me.

So to one and all, merry Christmas! And to echo the words of that Tiny Tim, “God bless us, everyone!”

If I Win the Lottery . . .

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If I win the lottery, I won’t go around posting it all over social media. But there would be signs. Just perhaps a modest little cabin in the woods, right?

Truthfully, I do fantasize about owning a home like this. Even though the chances of me living here are about the same as me winning the lottery (or me getting struck by lightning), it’s still fun to picture myself in my red plaid robe walking down those front steps (that are hopefully not iced over like in the picture).

But then I remember Jesus said that in His Father’s house are many rooms, although I prefer the old King Jimmy version that calls them mansions. Whatever I can conjure up in my mind as being over the top ornate and opulent, heaven will be better. It will be a thousand times more incredible than any episode of Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous with all its champagne wishes and caviar dreams.

But the best part of all won’t be the streets of gold or all the gates with precious stones. It will be seeing Jesus there. The joy of every longing heart will be made sight and the hope of the world will wipe away every tear from our eyes in a place where there is no more need for grieving.

That’s what I look forward to more than anything else. I long for no more bad news. I long for no more reports of murder and bloodshed and war and hatred and unrest. I long for when the lion can lie down with the lamb in peace and safety.

But if it’s God’s will for me to live in the cabin pictured above, I’d do my best to suffer through it for the Lord and put on my best face in the attempt. One can dream, can’t one?

A Beautiful Prayer by Gregory of Nyssa

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“You have released us, O Lord, from the fear of death. You have made the end of life here on earth a beginning of true life for us. You let our bodies rest in sleep in due season and you awaken them again at the sound of the last trumpet. You entrust to the earth our bodies of earth which you fashioned with your own hands and you restore again what you have given, transforming with incorruptibility and grace what is mortal and deformed in us. You redeemed us from the curse and from sin, having become both on our behalf. You have crushed the heads of the serpent who had seized man in his jaws because of the abyss of our disobedience. You have opened up for us a path to the resurrection, having broken down the gates of hell and reduced to impotence the one who had power over deaths. You have given to those who fear you a visible token, the sign of the holy cross, for the destruction of the Adversary and for the protection of our life.

God eternal, Upon whom I have cast myself from my mother’s womb, Whom my soul has loved with all its strength, To whom I have consecrated flesh and soul from my infancy up to this moment, Put down beside me a shining angel to lead me by the hand to the place of refreshment where is the water of repose near the lap of the holy fathers. You who have cut through the flame of the fiery sword and brought to paradise the man who was crucified with you, who entreated your pity, remember me also in your kingdom, for I too have been crucified with you, for I have nailed my flesh out of reverence for you and have feared your judgements. Let not eh dreadful abyss separate me from your chosen ones. Let not the Slanderer stand against me on my journey. Let no my sin be discovered before your eyes if I have been overcome in any way because of our nature’s weakness and have sinned in word or deed or thought. You who have on earth the power to forgive sins, forgive me, so that I may draw breath again and may be found before you in the stripping off of my body without strain or blemish in the beauty of my soul, but may my soul be received blameless and immaculate into your hands as an incense offering before your face.”