storms

Follow Where He Places Us

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“God engineers our circumstances as He did those of His Son; all we have to do is to follow where He places us. The majority of us are busy trying to place ourselves” (Oswald Chambers, The Love of God).

I love the scene in The Chosen Season 4 where Gaius is having a conversation with Matthew. In response to Gaius asking Matthew about all the different things he needs to be concerned about, Matthew basically says that he has only one thing to do today — follow Jesus. The rest will take care of itself.

That sounds a lot like Matthew 6:33. If we seek God’s Kingdom first, the rest will take care of itself. I think the western mind thinks of a Kingdom as a territory or a castle or something physical, but to the Jewish mind, they would see it not as a place but as the action of ruling. By God’s Kingdom, we are seeking the active reign of God in our lives and in the world around us.

In my own life, I sometimes try to place myself where I think it will do me the most good. God is saying to focus on seeking Him, and He will place me where He wants me to go. 10 times out of 10, that place is way better than the place I would have picked. Actually, make that 100 out of 100. You get the point. There is never a scenario where I choose better than God. None.

There’s a lot less stress in following Jesus rather than trying to figure it all out. Anxiety comes from trying to put out a million mental fires with everything going on in your life. You can run yourself ragged almost literally trying to work out every possible outcome to every situation you’re in. It’s exhausting.

But following God means resting in what God has promised to His people. Not resting as in taking a nap (and I do like me some naps), but rest as a sort of calm that know that even in the midst of the ranging storm we have a Lord who walks on water.

My goal today is to follow Jesus. Period. My goal is to seek first God’s Kingdom. Period. The rest will take care of itself. The end.

My Eye on the Goal

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I’m not saying that I have this all together, that I have it made. But I am well on my way, reaching out for Christ, who has so wondrously reached out for me. Friends, don’t get me wrong: By no means do I count myself an expert in all of this, but I’ve got my eye on the goal, where God is beckoning us onward—to Jesus. I’m off and running, and I’m not turning back” (Philippians 3:12-14, The Message).

That’s the key, isn’t it. Keeping my eye on the goal?

But what does that look like? Anymore, there’s no such thing as working 40 years for one company and retiring with a gold watch and a pension. The average person will work for several different places across many types of jobs over his or her lifetime.

But what is the goal then? If you read the Apostle Paul in other places, he talks about keeping our eyes on Christ. To keep your eyes on Christ is to keep your eyes on the goal, because Christ is the goal. Not retirement. Not comfortable living. Not a pension. Jesus is the goal.

Not only that but Christ is the means to that goal. Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount that the poor in spirit are blessed because the Kingdom of God is theirs. That means those of us who know we have nothing to offer God are blessed because we have nowhere to turn and nowhere to lean but on Jesus and the promises of God.

Still, it’s quite easy to get distracted by all the shiny baubles of the world. It’s easy in the midst of a storm to focus on the wind and the waves and take our eyes off of the Master of those winds and waves. We are so easily distracted and forgetful, which is why we need the constant reminder of keeping our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith.

How do we keep our eyes on Jesus? By preaching the gospel to ourselves at least once a day every day. We need to remember that we’re sinners in need of a Savior. We need to remember that salvation comes through faith by means of repentance and trust in the finished work of Jesus on the cross. We need to remember that we’re saved by faith alone, not by any works or good deeds of ours. We need to remember that Jesus promised that those who trust God with their lives would receive eternal abundant life not just in the hereafter but in the here and now.

May you and I never stop encouraging each other, especially in these last days, to keep our eyes on Jesus as the goal of everything we do and everything we are.

Trim the Sails and Trust the Savior

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“We talk about ‘circumstances over which we have no control.’ None of us have control over our circumstances, but we are responsible for the way we pilot ourselves in the midst of things as they are. Two boats can sail in opposite directions in the same wind, according to the skill of the pilot. The pilot who conducts his vessel on to the rocks says he could not help it, the wind was in that direction; the one who took his vessel into the harbour had the same wind, but he knew how to trim his sails so that the wind conducted him in the direction he wanted. The power of the peace of God will enable you to steer your course in the mix-up of ordinary life.

O Lord, unto You do I turn, unto You. I am but a homeless waif until You touch me with the security of Your peace, the sweet sense of Your love” (Oswald Chambers).

This reminds me of what Corrie ten Boom once said about riding on trains. She said when that train goes into a long dark tunnel, you don’t jump off the train. You stay on and trust the conductor. That’s how it is with life when the proverbial seas swell with storms. You stay on board and afloat and trust the Pilot.

I love the verse in Isaiah that speaks to those God will keep in perfect peace whose minds are stayed on Him. That’s not a haphazard kind of faith driven about by every wind of emotion and circumstance but a firm determination and a resolute mindset developed by years of discipline that remains unmoved by any amount of wind or wave.

That’s what it means to have God’s peace. It’s to have a calm assurance in the midst of unrest and turmoil that you are in good hands. In the best hands. In God’s hands.

Adding to, Not Taking Away

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I confess that I don’t really know too much about the singer Nightbirde, whose real name was Jane Kristen Marczewski. I know that she was a singer-songwriter. I also know that she was a contestant on America’s Got Talent. I remember she had been diagnosed with cancer and her husband left her right before she went on the show. I know how sad I was when I found out she had passed away.

But she left us with some beautiful music and some inspiring quotes that showed her resilient faith in God that not even cancer could kill. These following words were her testimony to the end:

“When it comes to pain, God isn’t often in the business of taking it away. Instead, he adds to it. He is more of a giver than a taker. He doesn’t take away my darkness, he adds light. He doesn’t spare me of thirst, he brings water. He doesn’t cure my loneliness, he comes near. So why do we believe that when we are in pain, it must mean God is far?” (Jane Kristen Marczewski aka Nightbirde).

I forget that. I think that God can only speak through blessing or that God is near only when the sun is shining. I forget that pain is often God’s way of getting my attention. I forget that you can’t wrestle with someone who’s far away, so those times must mean God is near (with much thanks to Jon Acuff for that one).

God is using what I would like to avoid to grow me up. Rather than taking me out of struggles and storms, God goes through them with me and I learn to trust God’s nearness even when I can’t feel it. I trust God’s hand even when I can’t see it. I trust God’s heart even when I don’t understand it.

Maturity

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I’m laying (or is it lying) in bed, typing this as I listen to the rain pounding on the window. There’s something comforting to me about storms when I am safe indoors and not out driving in one.

I’ve been thinking about something quite a bit lately. In theory, we’re the most tolerant society, yet in practice we are anything but. We talk a good game about how we tolerate anything and everything, yet wait until someone disagrees with us or spouts a political view that is opposite to what we hold dear and see just how tolerant (or intolerant) we really are.

It’s about maturity. How do you react when you speak your opinions and someone contradicts or criticizes you? How do you take criticism?

Once again, I do not mean that you meekly abide under verbal or physical abuse. I do not mean that you allow someone to berate or insult you and not defend yourself.

I do mean someone who disagrees with your beliefs or convictions. How tolerant are you then?

I confess I don’t like criticism. I may not always show it, but I tend to be defensive and angry when I get told I’m wrong. A lot of people are that way.

Maturity means you don’t always have to agree 100% with criticism, but you can always find some nugget of wisdom there. You can always use the negative comments to spur change for the better within yourself.

It’s one thing to be steady in your convictions, beliefs, and actions, but it’s quite another to live outside of any accountability in a place where no one can ever correct you for a perceived mistake or unwise choice. You need at least one person whom you give the permission to speak into your life, even if that means they can tell you the truth about when you’re out of line.

Maybe we can get to the place where we can actually have an open dialogue and listen to what those on the other side of the debate are actually saying instead of the all-too-common haranguing, name-calling, and demonizing that characterizes much of what goes on in politics and society.

Maybe we can get to the place where we welcome dissenting voices that will challenge us to examine our own beliefs and convict us to live in such a way that our actions match our words.

God help us all.

Held

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Tonight at Kairos, Mike Glenn spoke from John 10:10 about how while the thief came to steal and kill and destroy, Jesus came that we might have life to the fullest. It was another in a long line of great sermons from Uncle Mikey, but that’s not what I’m writing about.

My mind took a tangent during the sermon, as those with ADD can testify happens frequently, and here’s where my thoughts took me.

Sometimes, it’s all you can do to put one foot in front of the other. Even breathing in and out is a tremendous effort of the will. You feel like your life is about to completely fall apart at any minute and your kingdoms will come crashing down.

Know in those moments that it is Jesus holding you together and you are safe.

Sometimes, you feel great. It’s one of those days where the stars align and everything falls into place and all your traffic lights are green. You feel almost invincible, like anything and everything is possible.

Know that even then your world is secure only because it is still Jesus holding you and your world together.

The same Word that spoke the world into being holds it all together. The same Jesus that holds the world in place has your life in His hands. You’ve never been more safe than when it’s Him holding your universe in orbit, keeping you at every moment from spinning completely out of control.

For some of you, that’s a nice sentiment. For others, it may be a much-needed reminder in a stormy season of your life.

As for Mike’s sermon, the gist is that the world around you lies to you about who you are and what you need to be happy and have a good life. Jesus is the only one who delivers on His promise of the good life. What He offers is more than just a good life, but life abundant, where you live out of the overflow of love and mercy, where you are drowning in the love of God, where all that peace can’t help but flow out to those around you.

See? I paid attention. Mostly.

Small Potatoes

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Side note: I’m feeling very patriotic with this being my 1,776th blog post. I just thought I’d throw that in for free, as it has nothing to do with the rest of this post.

I heard this at my friend’s dad’s funeral and I thought I’d pass it along. I hope it encourages you in whatever hard times or difficulties you are facing. God’s love outlasts anything you will ever face.

“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).

 

May Day: Five Years Later

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“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they will not overflow you” (Isaiah 43″2a).

It happened five years ago. On that day, it started raining and didn’t let up for two whole days. And I don’t just mean a friendly little sprinkle. I mean a full-on deluge that resulted in some of the worst flooding that Nashville had ever seen.

They called it a 1,000 year flood. Perhaps, 1,000 years from now, people will still be talking about it. All I know is that I was there. I saw images of portable schoolrooms floating down the interstate. I saw pictures of downtown Nashville under water. I read about how the basement of the Ryman got flooded, along with Opryland Hotel, Opry Mills, and several other businesses and homes.

It’s still crazy to think about. So much changed because of those two days. So much was lost in terms of businesses and merchandise. But we survived. We’re still here.

Who knows what the next disaster will look like? Who knows what form it will take? A pastor I greatly admire once said that everybody is either in a storm, coming out of a storm, or going into a storm. Perhaps your next storm won’t be the kind with strong winds and heavy rains. But the same Jesus who bid the waves be still in the midst of the storm can calm your fears in the midst of your metaphorical storms as well.

I do remember how people got together to help those affected by the flooding. I was fortunate enough to be able to participate in some of the clean-up and witness firsthand what flood waters can do. I also witnessed firsthand what God can do through His people when they simply become available for God to use.

 

 

 

Psalm 57

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“God, be gracious to me; be gracious,
for I have made you my refuge.
I shall seek refuge in the shadow of
your wings
until the storms are past” (Psalm 57:1).

I chose to read through the Bible again in 2015, this time using the New English Bible translation. I’m currently in the middle of the Psalms and I ran across one that I had to re-read and then re-read again because it was perfectly timed for the weather we’ve been having.

To be fair, this part of the country has seen mostly rain and not much in the way of actual storms. But storms don’t always mean lots of rain, lightening, and hail. Sometimes storms come in the form of losing a job or losing a loved one. Sometimes storms are seasons of life that are difficult. Those storms don’t always come and go within 24 hours. Some can last for weeks and months and even years.

But the same Jesus that spoke peace to actual winds and waves so long ago is just as capable of speaking peace to your and my storms. Often I’ve noticed that He will allow the storm to rage, but He will calm the child within the storm (and I’m fairly certain that is not original with me).

For me, storms have been the place where I’ve found Jesus to be most faithful. Even when I can’t see the end of the storm clouds and wonder if the sun will ever shine again, I know even then that the promises of Jesus are just as true in the darkest storms as they are on the brightest days.

I’ve read through the Bible more than once and yes, I have read the last page. There are no storms or thunder or trials or pain or suffering there. Only victory. Only peace. Only the joy that comes in the morning after a night of weeping.

 

 

 

Awaiting the Storm

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According to the weather people, Nashville is due for a storm tonight. There’s a tornado watch in effect until 1 am. Apparently, the bad stuff isn’t supposed to hit until around 10 pm.

Actually, I don’t mind storms as long as I’m not out driving in one. As long as I’m indoors, I’m good. Away from all the crazy people who can’t drive in perfectly good weather, much less inclement weather.

I used to be afraid of thunder. Specifically, I was afraid of the loud noises of thunder. I guess all kids are afraid of things like that. I outgrew my fear, although I really can’t tell you when that was. I just know that thunder doesn’t bother me anymore.

Everybody goes through storms. Everybody has seasons in their lives that don’t make sense, where the goal is just to survive until the storm passes.

God is in the storm. He’s before and after the storm. His is the voice that bids the winds be still. His is the voice you can count on and cling to when your storm comes.

I still love the analogy of storms and the fear of God. John Piper described the fear of God as being in a storm safe from the dangers but witnessing the power and majesty of it.

The truth is that God can be scary. He is a just God who hates sin. He has every right to punish that sin. But seeing God through eyes of mercy, I see what fear of the Lord means.

He could have nuked me, but He chose to save me instead. He could have let me have every bit of what was coming to me. Instead, He let Jesus have it instead.

So storms aren’t so bad. When you’re saved from the very worst, anything else isn’t nearly as bad.