July 1, 2010 Don't Listen To the Trash Talk

I don't know about you, but I've heard the same type of trash talk in my head that Sennacherib was laying on Hezekiah.  Whatever voice it is, any words that lie about God are trash.  You don't have to believe them, or even listen to them.  God will put down the enemy that exalts itself above the knowledge of God, or He will give us the strength to do so.  Remember David and Goliath?  Same situation.

Todays readings all seemed to be about words!  Words are powerful.  Gossip's got hidden poison in it, as we saw in the Proverbs.  Praise and the declaration of God's word are weapons that can take out Satanic control of nations, as we read in Psalms.  We saw what the Assyrian king got for his efforts to defame God (crazy that he would go back after the decimation of his army and worship his loser god, isn't it?).  We saw how the prophetic word annulled the evil pronouncement against God's people.  We read about how people can truly see future events and declare them to you, but you have to hear God about your response to it, as did Paul about what would happen to him in Jerusalem (all prophesy needs to be interpreted and applied properly, which takes seeking God).

Knowing God's word and learning to know His voice, in whatever form it comes, are two of the greatest pursuits in life, and I am dedicated to them.  I am grateful to every teacher, pastor and prophetic communicator that has ever helped me to recognize God's word, who has given me tools to help me walk in obedience to God and to overcome the devil's trash talk. 

God's word is your defense.  When you stand in the truth of Christ, nothing can ever defeat you. 

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 21, 2010 Extravagant Love

I'm always so moved by the story of Mary's anointing of Jesus' feet.  It was intuitive, it was humble, it was costly, it was intimate, it was symbolic, it was prophetic.  It was an extravagant outpouring of love and gratitude, with no thought of herself.  It could not be missed.

The fragrance permeated the house.  It must have lingered for days!    Not a soul there could have been unaware of it.  Mary's action would have caused a reaction in everyone: some would have been touched, others angry.  Jesus was so moved that He made sure that act of love was memorialized for all time.  I would love to touch His heart that much-- wouldn't you?

When we live our life in loving surrender and worship of our Lord Jesus, holding nothing back, we give a gift more precious than a life savings.  Each person has a different offering, but when given freely from the heart, it is precious to Him.  To give oneself in extravagant worship is to touch the Lord's heart.  It creates a mutual experience that lingers.  The by-product is that the atmosphere of our life is a compelling fragrance that others, depending on their heart condition, are either drawn to or repelled by.  One thing is certain.  Jesus loves it!

Jesus loves us extravagantly, doesn't He?  Let's return His love.

April 2, 2010

“If a man has committed a sin deserving of death, and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree, his body shall not remain overnight on the tree, but you shall surely bury him that day, so that you do not defile the land which the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance; for he who is hanged is accursed of God. Deuteronomy 22:22-23

Meditation on Good Friday

They nailed you and hung you,
Son of God, on a tree,
Cursed you,
Spat on you, reviled you,
Though you'd never sinned.
It should have been me

Hanging there for all my sins,
Rebellion, infirmities,
defects. Mine,
Not yours.  You were cursed
For me, in my place, 
So I could shine
With your forgiveness
And mighty grace.

by Karen Gladys Henry

I am so thankful to the Lord Jesus for all He endured for me, so that I could be saved.  Aren't you?  He did it all for you too.  He said, "It is finished."  On the other side of the cross is freedom!  Freedom from all that pertains to the fall of mankind.  Jesus endured it all, then left it all in the grave.  I am still struggling to comprehend what it means to pick up my cross and follow Him.  To follow Him into freedom.

January 30, 2010

I am so very, very grateful for the sacrifice that Jesus made for me, for us-- His blood covers us and protects us from the destroyer.