Off to Vacation

Just a quick note to say I will not post this week as I will be vacationing with my family at the beach!  Look out Outer Banks – here we come!  It is our favorite place to vacation.

What is your favorite place to vacation?

Why or What?

Let me share this little thought that has been running through my mind for a few weeks now…..

When I was a teen growing up the Pastor of the church I grew up in  would say “Ask What and not Why” when it came to life and the things going on or not going on in it.  It has been something that I have tried to practice in life and I find a good amount of wisdom in it.

Here are some thoughts on what I like about this:

Why is a question that many times will leave you wanting – there might not be a satisfactory answer as to why something did or  did not happen.  Why is many times question that is self pity focused.  Why does not move you forward but keeps you stuck.

What on the other hand will bring you answers to questions asked.  What is an outward focused question that moves you forward.

Let me give an example how I think changing why’s to what can make a difference.

Why is this happening to me – notice the focus is on self.  What can I  learn from this – it about self yes but also about information that can be passed on and the answer will move you forward.  When you ask what – God has the opportunity to teach you and show things.  It opens up the process and I see asking Why in life  will many times close things down.

One last thing – I am all for Why’s of curiosity but when it comes to the why’s that come from a poor me – I think that is the time to jump to the what question.  I am not saying it is never right to ask why but I think when it comes to life events that happen to us – what is always a much better question.

Those are my two cents – what say you?  What are your thoughts on why verse what?

Legacy?

I want you to think about the legacy you are building in life.  This past week I spoke on 2nd Samuel 21 and God really struck me when I got to the last 7 verses of the chapter.  When I read them I began thinking that a legacy was not something that I was to build when I got older but something that I need to be working on now.  Let us look at these verses:  15 Now when the Philistines were at war again with Israel, David went down and his servants with him; and as they fought against the Philistines, David became weary. ¹⁶ Then Ishbi-benob, who was among the descendants of the giant, the weight of whose spear was three hundred shekels of bronze in weight, was girded with a new sword, and he intended to kill David. ¹⁷ But Abishai the son of Zeruiah helped him, and struck the Philistine and killed him. Then the men of David swore to him, saying, “You shall not go out again with us to battle, so that you do not extinguish the lamp of Israel.”

David is getting older now, but it seems that he wants to fight.  He got into trouble with Bathsheba when he didn’t go to war and so this time he goes out to the battle.  What we see though is that in the battle he starts to get tired. What we need to understand is that even a great man of God grows old and will begin to fade physically but that does not mean they have to spiritually. As you get older – you should be growing spiritually even though your physical body is fading! As the years went on, as they do with all of us, David became unable to physically fight as he once did but spiritually he could be strong! Let us not fade spiritually but let us be soaring spiritually the older we get!

What we see here is that in this battle against the Philistines, David’s life was endangered when he tired in battle against a descendant of Goliath. When David’s strength failed him, God protected him through the strength of others. God will allow us to be in places where we need the strength of others and where we need His strength. Do you allow others to help?  Do you allow God to help you?

David then heard words he probably did not want to hear in his advanced age which was it was time for David to retire from the field of battle. His season as a warrior had passed. To everything there is a season and his season has passed. This is true in life – everything is season and changes except for the message of gospel. Methods to share the gospel change and should change to reach new people but the Message of the Gospel always remains true and the same because it is unchangeable. Let us be using every method we can to get the true message of the gospel out!

Then we really hit the legacy verses: ¹⁸ Now it came about after this that there was war again with the Philistines at Gob; then Sibbecai the Hushathite struck down Saph, who was among the descendants of the giant. ¹⁹ There was war with the Philistines again at Gob, and Elhanan the son of Jaare-oregim the Bethlehemite killed Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam. ²⁰ There was war at Gath again, where there was a man of great stature who had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in number; and he also had been born to the giant. ²¹ When he defied Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimei, David’s brother, struck him down. ²² These four were born to the giant in Gath, and they fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants.

This description of victory over the Philistine giants shows that Israel could slay giants without David. What we see is David has modeled for a generation and now that generation has stepped up and become a generation of giant killers. There was a time in Israel’s history when a giant made the entire army tremble in their boots.  Until a young man stepped up and took the challenge. Now that young man has set the example for others and instead of one giant-killer in David, you have a whole host of them. In these men we see that they accomplished heroic deeds and when David was finished fighting giants, they stepped in and began fighting giants. God will continue to rise up leaders when the leaders of the previous generation pass from the scene. When we are faithful to God and to His Word – He will raise up leaders! If we are not faithful to God and his Word – we will see leadership fade away and people not want to step up and the church itself will begin to fade away. We need to be faithful to God and his Word so that we show others how to lead with integrity and faith in God. David lead by example and he got others involved – that is what we are called to do – model for others and then help them see that they can do it too. We are called to step up to the leadership tasks – God is calling you to step up, to model, to invite others to join you and then to move on to a new task when those behind you begin to show leadership.

Understand that David’s legacy lay not only in what he accomplished, but in what he left behind – a people prepared for victory. David’s triumphs were meaningful not only for himself but for others who learned victory through his teaching and example. What is the legacy that you are leaving behind? Are you leaving a legacy of destruction? Are you leaving a legacy of faith? Are you leaving a legacy of hurt feelings or a legacy of encouragement? David left a legacy of people who could take over and fight giants – how about you – what is your legacy? I want to leave a legacy behind of people who fight giants for God!

How would you describe the legacy you want to leave?

Stop and Consider

Last week while on vacation I read a book that really has me thinking and looking to the stars and sky.  I read a book by Matt Redman and Louie Giglio called Indescribable:  The Glory of God in the Beauty of the Universe.  In the book they have breath taking pictures from space but more than that they make great connections between the universe, astronomy, and God.  If you have opportunity it is a really good read. 

I wanted to share a quote from the book that has been rattling around my mind now for several days.  In Chapter 5 Matt Redman writes:

Here we stand in an age that is thirsting for wonder.  In our information-overloaded society, there seems to be no room left for mystery and fascination.  Yet just when were tempted to shrink God down to size – or kick Him out of the the equation all together – there in front of our eyes stands the wonder of His universe.  A great big, awe-inspiring reminder of just who we are dealing with.

Worship has no room for “know-it-alls.”  The soul who lives in the ordinary and mundane will rarely aspire to climb higher in praise.  And reverence for God will never flow freely from a heart that shrinks Him down to earthly proportions. God makes worshippers out of wonderers. – location 589 Kindle Fire.

I read that and then had to reread it.  I am guilty of shrinking God down to earthly proportions.  I have times when I see situations bigger than God who made this giant universe.  I have times when I live in the ordinary and I am satisfied with my level of praise of God when it falls far short of what it needs to be.  Then I also have times when I am reminded of how big and awe-inspiring the universe really is and I wonder at it and I worship the creator of it.

Alert Einstein said, “He …. who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is a good as dead”.    Job 37:14 says, “Stop and consider God’s wonder’s”.  Let us not be dead but let us stand in wonder and in awe at the Creator and all He has made and let us worship that creator – Jesus Christ.

Any thoughts on the quote?  Do you stop and wonder at what God has made?

Question on the Spirit

It has been a few weeks since I have posted – thanks to those who asked about the absence.  The absence was a result of a perfect storm of life events, church events, and a vacation.  I will be on vacation again in a couple of weeks so there will be one more bare spot this summer in the posting and to go with that, being summer, it does not make posting as often as I would like possible but I will do my best to get a few up in the next couple of weeks. They might be some short thoughts and questions about life and faith. 

Now that being said let me share something I read last night and get your two cents on it…

“The church of the Lord Jesus Christ is larger and richer than it has ever been before.  Yet we are falling further and further behind in our calling to fulfill the Great Commission.  Why?  Because somewhere along the way we lost our dependence on the Holy Spirit, and we have tried to win the world through clever mottos, persuasive speeches, manipulated emotions, and useless gimmicks.  But it isn’t working.”  – Charles Stanley in Handle with Prayer (location 658 on the Kindle)

When I read this it really struck me – not about other people or even about the church but about me.  I began to wonder in myself -  is this me?  Have I gotten away from dependence on the Spirit and into dependence on me?

When I questioned myself on this and answered honestly – I would have to say yes I have. 

Let me ask you – what are your thoughts on the quote?  What about thoughts on you and your dependence or lack thereof on the Spirit of God?

Forgive, Forget, and Free

Let us pick up in 2nd Samuel chapter 19 verse 19 which is where we left off in the last post as we are talking about forgivingness.  This guy Shimei who has done some pretty bad things to David in the past has come to him and is seeking forgiveness.

Let us look on to verse 19: 19 So he said to the king, “Let not my lord consider me guilty, nor remember what your servant did wrong on the day when my lord the king came out from Jerusalem, so that the king would take it to heart. 20 For your servant knows that I have sinned; therefore behold, I have come today, the first of all the house of Joseph to go down to meet my lord the king.”

What we see here is that Shimei has a three-fold plea to present to the king: do not hold me guilty, do not remember and as a matter of fact, put it completely out of your mind. Think about it, those are exactly the same three things we want from the Lord when we come to Him with our sin. We say, Lord, do not hold me guilty, or in other words, forgive me for what I have done. We say Lord, do not remember it or please forget what I have done. And we say Lord; put it out of Your mind, so I can be free me for the future to live differently. When you really think about it, these are exactly the things we get from the Lord. God forgives so we can push forward and make a difference in life for Him! Let us forgive freely!

Here is what we do though: we allow the evil one to bring the garbage back in our lives and render us ineffective. When the past, quarrels with the present, there is no future – you are stuck. Forget the past failures so that you can have a future! Paul tells us in Philippians to forget the things in the past! You have been freed so get on with the rest of your life, and realize that God in His marvelous grace is has forgiven you! So experience the forgiveness that is there. We need to be like Shimei saying, “Please forgive, forget, and free me for the future.” God will do it – if you ask with a repentant heart – He will free you!

We see here that Shimei does acknowledge his sin. Part of being forgiven is the acknowledgment of our sin. If you are too prideful to acknowledge your sin then you will be too prideful to gain the forgiveness you desperately seek and the peace that comes with it.

Why does he say the “house of Joseph”? Joseph was a great forgiver, because remember that his brothers sold him into Egypt as a slave. They thought they were going to really get it from Joseph when years later they realized that he was alive had the power to save their lives. What did Joseph say when he was asked about what happened at all those years earlier? “You thought up evil against me, God meant it for good to bring about the saving of many people today.” He is using Joseph to plead for forgiveness. Shimei desires forgiveness for what he has done.

Some people have a better capacity to forgive than others – how is yours?  What are some things that keep you from forgiving others?

Full Forgiveness?

In some of the previous posts we were looking at 2nd Samuel 19 and due to a busy schedule and some other life events I was unable to get back to it for a few weeks but now let us check out where we left off.  Please look with me at 2^nd Samuel 19, starting in verse 16 we will discover how David is going to deal with some people from his past that show up: ¹⁶ Then Shimei the son of Gera, the Benjamite who was from Bahurim, hurried and came down with the men of Judah to meet King David.

I do not know if anyone remembers or knows who  this guy Shimei is but he is the guy back in 2nd Samuel chapter 16 that came out and was throwing rocks, cursing, and kicking dirt at David when David was on the run for his life. He is the guy who claimed that David was a worthless man and a man of bloodshed. Shimei could easily had lost his life that day because David’s man Abishai wanted to kill him but David let him live. Even after that Shimei followed him for quite a ways throwing rocks, throwing insults, and kicking dirt on David and his men. He is quite the character and he is back to see David.

Let us look on: ¹⁷ There were a thousand men of Benjamin with him, with Ziba the servant of the house of Saul, and his fifteen sons and his twenty servants with him; and they rushed to the Jordan before the king.

What we see is that Shimei is not alone when he comes and when he comes he is rushing to see the king because he needs to make things right. He does not come alone because he is probably afraid of what will happen when he sees the king. So who does he bring along? Ziba who is another character from David’s past. Ziba is Saul’s servant that was responsible to Mephibosheth, the handicapped son of Jonathan, who was eating at the king David’s table. This guy Ziba was also responsible to farm all of Saul’s land for Mephibosheth. When we last saw Ziba, he had come with a great gift for David when he was on the run for his life. As a result of this gift, David gives all the land to Ziba that he was farming for Mephibosheth because Ziba lied about Mephibosheth by saying that “He is staying back in Jerusalem hoping to get to become king.” So you have Shimei and Ziba showing up to see the king but it is really Shimei who really needs to see the king because of what has happened in the past.

So what do we see that happens: ¹⁸ Then they kept crossing the ford to bring over the king’s household, and to do what was good in his sight. And Shimei the son of Gera fell down before the king as he was about to cross the Jordan.

What we see that happens here is that Shimei gets over on the east bank of the river and he fell prostrate before the king. He is preparing himself to cry out for mercy, grace, and forgiveness because of his past interaction with David.

Here is a key point that I want you to see and that is  the power of forgiveness and the ability to forgive – although not perfectly as I will talk about in a  later post – but what you will see is forgiveness – an example for all of us. You see the Bible is a whole book on forgiveness. We are called in the pages of the Bible again and again to forgive because we have been forgiven. So today is a challenge to all to forgive others. What we need to see and realize is the freedom that comes to us when we forgive others.

What happens to a person when they do not forgive? As I see it, it creates a spiral downward in their life. This spiral works for not forgiving others or self. First there is the offense. If it is not forgiven, then resentment builds up. This will then festers until you get hatred and that will quickly develop into a grudge. This will then finally lead you to be eaten up with the thoughts of revenge which will make you a miserable person on the inside and on the outside. Failure to forgive others and yourself creates a cancer that will eat away at your soul and will change you into a bitter, mean, and hateful person that people will not want to be around. When you live this way, you always play into the hand of the devil, anytime that you delay forgiveness and forgiving someone, including self, you play into the hand of the devil. Is this the way you wish to live – a bitter, mean, or angry person that no one really wants to be around? If not then you need to start forgiving freely!

Now there are three types of forgiveness that all fall short of the forgiveness that is described in the Bible. First of all, there is conditional forgiveness – I’ll forgive you but don’t you dare ever do it again or I will take my forgiveness away. Then there is partial forgiveness – I forgive you but don’t think I’ll ever forget it. Then the third one is delayed forgiveness – I will forgive you someday but it hurts too much to do it now but I will forgive you someday.  Here is the thing; all of these types fall short of the forgiveness that the Bible teaches. God expects of us that we forgive, we forget, and we free the offender.

Here is the truth with that and that is we almost always fall short of biblical forgiveness but that should never keep it from being the goal we go hard after. We need to be seeking to forgive and forgive fully and completely.

Any thoughts on forgiveness today?  Any thoughts on what I have posted?