October 30, 2010 Effective Grieving

The book of Lamentations makes a lot more sense when you read it right after Jeremiah.  Considering what had happened to Jerusalem, the siege and the exile to Babylon, it makes total sense to grieve.  Most of us are familiar with the "stages of grief" from psychology.  Instead of referring to that right now, I am looking solely at what I learned about grieving from what we've read so far in Lamentations.  Then we can evaluate the observations as we read the rest of the book and review what we've already read.

There are different points of view expressed in this long poem of grief.  It's not so confusing when you read it this way.  However, strong feelings of confusion are natural when experiencing grief, especially something so deeply affecting as what Jeremiah is writing about.  As we see Jerusalem personified as a grieving widow, and then enter in to her experience and the expression of her grief, we can learn a lot. 

There's Jeremiah's personal grief expressed here, too;  and sometimes it even seems that God is expressing His own grief through Jeremiah.  I came to the conclusion that God grieved as much as anyone for having to put His people through the stuff.  If you're a parent, you most likely know how painful it is for parents to do the needed discipline at times.  It is obvious that God did not enjoy the destruction and the resulting grief of His people.  He's a compassionate God.

So, my first conclusion is this:  if you've suffered loss, no matter what type, tell the story and express the grief as thoroughly and honestly as you can (and a creative medium such as journaling or poetry can help you do this).  At first, you don't have to think through the feelings, make sense of them, dissect them or judge them (they may seem irrational to you or others).  Just get them out in reviewable form.

If we are around someone who is grieving, being able to hear/see, etc. the feelings helps us share the grief with them-- helps us understand.  Reading this book, along with some of the Psalms and other people's expressions, can help us understand someone in extreme grief even if we haven't been there ourselves.  Being open to sharing our grief expressions with intimate others can open us up to sharing our grief with God, and to experiencing His comfort as well.  We understand from Lamentations that God does not hold Himself aloof from our grief, even if we have brought a loss onto ourselves (yes, I have been there). 

IMPORTANT: I want to note that we must not apply the discipline reason for loss to someone (even to ourselves, as in the throes of grief, we may become self-condemning) unless it is our own child we ourselves are disciplining.  It is up to the Holy Spirit to reveal the "whys" for things happening to people, and He may not always do so. It can be so terribly wounding to people for us to try to interpret their losses for them, even if we are correct-- and we most likely are not.  Please refrain from doing so (unless you're the prophet Jeremiah--and remember, he warned them in advance by God's orders).

Second, in the midst of the grieving process, it is paramount to remember what we know about God, review things He's done for us, and praise Him for His goodness and steadfast love.  Making ourselves read or listen to the Word is essential in this process.  If we have journaled about His work in our lives, this is a good time to go back to it and read it again.    We may be feeling really angry at God, and maybe we're blaming Him for stuff.  He can handle it, and He is OK with us expressing these thoughts and feelings.  But He also wants us to draw away from the feelings and the grief sometimes, and just meditate on Him.  Sometimes others can remind us of His love and goodness, and His good plans for us-- this must be done gently and with love.  Look how Jeremiah did this so tenderly in the middle of Lamentations.  Such a good example!

The third part is a melding process of the first two.  The Holy Spirit begins to work in us to compare and contrast our experience and feelings of grief with the realities of God.  The more we are able to immerse ourselves in Him and His Word, including fellowship with wise and loving believers, the quicker we are able to integrate what we've experienced and feel with our knowledge of Him and the truth He reveals to us.  Slowly, (and it's different for everyone in timing and the way the process looks), things start to clear up.  We see where we need to repent, and we are able to do so.  We see what God is doing in our life, and we are able to hear and accept His promises for the future.   He imparts His peace to us as we hold on in faith to what we believe about Him. 

The more solidly we are rooted into the Rock that is God, and the more thoroughly we have allowed His Word to change our thinking, the more equipped we will be to endure hardship, loss, and even disaster, and the more effectively we will be able to work through our grief and help others to do so as well.  Even if we find ourselves being disciplined for something, we will be secure in the love and goodness of our Father.  Perhaps we will even avoid said discipline by having experienced vicariously the loss and grief, repentance and restoration of another.  I believe this is God's hope for us all.  

August 4, 2010 As Long As She Lay Desolate

Sometimes I forget to do the most obvious thing: look into the Word and see what God is revealing about Himself.  Isn't that what it's all about?  There are a few things I noticed about Him in the Chronicles passage today.  1) He's compassionate, 2) He keeps His Word, and 3) He's in control.  I don't really need to go into all that, as these things are shown clearly in what we read.  We know these are supposed to be traits of God, but do we recognize them for what they are when He's revealing Himself to us in our daily life?

Usually, it's in hind sight that I can recognize that God's hand was clearly visible in all that was going on in my life.  Whenever I've been in a tough place that seems dark and threatening, it's not always been obvious that God was with me.  But He always has been.  It's good to remember hard times in which have we gained understanding about His ways, and how He used all things for our good.  If we can't remember anything helpful in our own life, it's wise to talk to someone who can, and who can help us see.  Reading the Word can also illuminate what the Lord is doing with us in the midst of darkness and distress.

One verse stood out to me and ministered to me strongly about my own life: "As long as she lay desolate she kept Sabbath, to fulfill seventy years."  I know this is speaking of the land of Israel, but I take it to heart, as my body and my life are my own land.  It reminded me of what the Lord had said to me a little while ago, that I was in a "fallow year" (this had to do with writing music in particular).  If you'll remember, the tilled land was to lay unused for a season every seventh year, to give it and the laborers a rest.  (Exodus 23: 10-12).  The people were also to keep the Sabbath day of rest every week.  These are principles that go beyond Old Testament law.  If we don't rest and keep our focus on the Lord, bad things happen.  On the other hand, there are many other Scriptures that exhort us to stop vacationing and "break up your fallow ground." 

The Lord knows us and what we need, and if we follow the leading of the Spirit, we'll stay in step with Him and keep the Sabbaths we might need to take (some might think of them as fasts). If we don't, it seems that God has a way of intervening and making sure that we get the needed rest.  Sometimes it's our bodies that intervene, by simply breaking down because of the stress we've put them under.  I suppose when this happens it's because we weren't listening.  In the down times, we can feel that everything that meant something to us is stripped away.  While we are desolate though, we often seek the Lord as we should have been seeking Him all along-- with more depth and passion.

I'm always inspired by the Psalms, especially David's, as his response to difficulty was always to seek the Lord.  His greatest desire was always to be close to the Lord, but I think it was in the times of dire distress that his focus was clarified:
     
"One thing I have desired of the LORD,
That will I seek:
That I may dwell in the house of the LORD
All the days of my life,
To behold the beauty of the LORD,
And to inquire in His temple.
For in the time of trouble
He shall hide me in His pavilion;
In the secret place of His tabernacle
He shall hide me;
He shall set me high upon a rock."
Psalm 27:4-5 NKJV
 
Maybe our weekly Sabbath rest, our break from our workaday life when we put our focus on the Lord, is our practice run.  It's when we have to face a layoff, an illness, a death in the family or other major loss, or a period of fierce opposition that we really put into practice what we have learned: that God is our refuge-- that He's compassionate, that He always keeps His word, and that although He did not cause our catastrophe, He's still and will always be, in control.
 
To study on your own:
What other traits of God did you see in the OT passages? 
What did Corinthians reading reveal to you about God? 
Can you think of examples of how He's revealed these characteristics to you in your own life? 
What is He doing with you right now?

July 2, 2010 Life in the Strong Tower

Did you feel the refreshment in the Psalm today?  After such dark histories of human failings and selfishness, idol worship, the shedding of innocent blood, the uproar of a sea of humanity fighting against God-- we're thrilled by the pure, brilliant excellence of a simple call to praise God instead of rail against Him!  This is the atmosphere of heaven, which we can bring to earth through our faith: by words, songs, actions, attitudes.  Light and life overcome darkness and death.  They are in God.

"The name of the LORD is a strong tower; The righteous run to it and are safe." Proverbs 18:10  I've always loved this verse, and I like how it dovetails with the meaning of the Psalm.  Since the name stands for His character, nature and authority, a great way to "run into" the name of God is to meditate on His goodness and His mighty acts, and to speak, sing or shout them out in praise and thanksgiving.  This praise brings us into a strong tower of His presence--an awareness of who He is and that He is there all around us.  It brings us into the place of remembering to love and trust Him, and in this place of remembrance, we enter into a deep place of worship.  It is here we know that there is no place like God.  Here we are safe.  What evil could ever harm us in heaven?

Once we discover that we may live in this tower always-- we never have to leave it, that it goes with us everywhere when we are in communion with God-- we gain the courage to live a meaningful and selfless life. 

June 10, 2010 Why Does Beauty Exist?

Stephen's mention of Solomon's temple in his sermon (we're still in that!), and his quote from Isaiah, are nicely juxtaposed in our One Year Bible reading today.  "But Solomon built Him a house. However, the Most High does not dwell in temples made with hands, as the prophet says: ‘ Heaven is My throne, And earth is My footstool. What house will you build for Me? says the LORD, Or what is the place of My rest? Has My hand not made all these things?' " Acts 7:47-50 NKJV (Isaiah 66:1,2).  

As I contemplate the beauty of the temple and furnishings that Solomon designed, I am quite certain that he created them as an act of worship.  I remembered that Solomon himself mentioned that God doesn't live in a physical building, so I decided to look it up (we're coming up to it in just a few days):  "But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain You. How much less this temple which I have built!" I Kings 8:27  There is so much more to be said about the dwelling-place of God, and I'm sure that topic will unfold as we continue reading throughout the year.

We read in previous chapters that Solomon was quite a naturalist (botanist/biologist).  He appreciated how God expressed Himself through the intricacies of nature, and responded to that by echoing the beauty and excellence in his own creations.  He wanted the temple surroundings to remind people that God was the creator of the world, and that He should be called upon and worshipped.  Solomon knew the language of beauty.

 As Stephen also pointed out, the creation itself is not to be worshipped--  when the people made idols and worshipped them, the end result was captivity.  There is an obvious difference in decorating things beautifully with images from nature and making a golden calf and worshipping it.  It's what's behind the image-making-- the purpose and spirit of it-- that makes artistic expression what it is.  I may be stepping into a spiritual hornet's nest here, but the Muslim aesthetic is all about trying to avoid such idolatry (geometric adornment only; hide women's faces and bodies), but it does nothing to change the idolatrous heart of humankind.  On the opposite end of the spectrum is the Western culture of idolizing beauty in general, and beautiful people particularly.  This is where all of our hearts go when we are not letting the Spirit of Truth give our sinful hearts an overhaul.

God is beautiful, but beauty is not god!  Beauty is an intrinsic quality of God-- you can't have God without getting extravagant beauty in the bargain!  It springs forth from Him.  Just look around!  And God created human beings with an appreciation of, and an ability to create, astounding beauty.  I am very thankful for that!  I am a great fan of God's beauty, His artistic ability, and His awe-inspiring creations.

I believe that beauty on this earth exists to testify of God's Beauty, of Him.  Getting religious about our attitudes about beauty just doesn't help anything-- it only spoils what God has given.  But if we can see beauty as a interface of communion-- back and forth, giving and receiving-- we will enter into a greater realm of Heavenly worship and glory than we have ever been in before.   

May 28, 2010 The Perfect Prayer

I feel so enveloped in love whenever I read John 17 -- it is one of my very favorite Scriptures!  This is a prayer that is being, and will be, completely fulfilled.  You can't go wrong agreeing with this prayer, as the Father's absolute "YES" comes with it.  One of the greatest things on God's heart is His people living in Oneness with Himself and each other.  This is a miracle beyond our earthly comprehension, but an absolute promise.  No human effort could ever achieve this, what Jesus called glory. The only way to accomplish this is for each believer to be fully filled with Him and to be fully "in Him."  The Holy Spirit is powerfully working in and around each one of us, to reveal the glory of the eternal Word, Jesus.  Our job is to believe.

"Forever, O LORD,
Your word is settled in heaven."
Psalm 119:89

May 24, 2010 "The Right To Remain Silent"

Do you ever feel a weight of glory in the Scriptures?  Today I did.  Just one little part of what Jesus said has so much glory in it that it is really overwhelming if you contemplate it.  For instance, "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it." John 14:12-14

I find that my response to this kind of revelation varies depending on where I'm at in my life.  At this moment, I'm feeling like worshipping Him because I just came in from praising Him on the keyboard, and His presence is here.  It's hard to think of anything else except Him when He's around!  What He wants right now is for me (and you) to get what He's saying here.  He wants to do His works through us!  How awesome is that???

When I'm hearing Him say, "whatever you ask in My name, I will do, so that the Father is glorified," I'm going to listen extra closely to see what is in the Father's heart.  How does He want to glorify Himself in the Son today?  Jesus is authorizing me to pray.  I'm going to get my prayer answered, guaranteed.  I'm going to wait and hear and pray. 

I think we all feel like David did when we have a great victory, have our prayers answered, and experience the favor of God.  Why not follow David's example in praise, no regard for our dignified appearance or what others are thinking?  If we take Jesus at His word, we are going to have some great victories, do some awesome exploits, and be accompanied by the glory of God wherever we go.  Jesus' motivation was to glorify the Father, and so should ours be.  I do not want to deny Him before men by being afraid to praise and glorify Him freely in their presence.  I feel this opportunity will come up more and more often.  I relinguish my "right to remain silent."  Praise the Lord! 

May 20, 2010 Death Is Defeated

When I don't post in the middle of the week, it's usually because I got in too deep.  Yesterday, the 20th, after about three hours of writing, I still hadn't brought it to a satisfactory conclusion.  So I guess this topic will have to be a book.  I'll let you know when it's done.

I'm going to give you a clue in this day's OYB reading, so that you can go back and see what the Lord says to you about the battle between life and death.  There is just too much foundation to be laid for me to go into it here.

Start with Jesus' statement:  “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?” John 11: 25-26

This is the key to a new mindset about life and death.  The Old Testament passages and the rest of the verses in John all have revelation in them about this topic.  I would love to hear what the Lord shows you about it.  In the mean time, I'll be jotting down what I get, and in the Lord's timing, I'll put it out there for you.  Shalom!

February 16, 2010

 Sometimes I just have to be quiet and comtemplate the awesomeness of the Lord. How the glory of God filled the tabernacle when they were obedient, how Jesus healed the multitudes and still took time to be alone with the Father. How He defends us and encourages us when we're weak. Isn't our God great?! "Great is the Lord who delights in the welfare of His servant." Ps 35:27