Follow Me

This past weekend I was meeting up with a brother for a ride and some ice cream.

As we ate, the sky kept darkening, you could almost feel the rain coming.  Then, sure enough, it started to sprinkle some as we both headed home in opposite directions.

The slight rain felt good, it was a hot day.  It looked like I was going to avoid the worst of it.  But then, right as I was stopped at the last traffic light between me and home, the sky opened up and I got soaked.

A text later from my riding partner said it started pouring at his house too.

Ten minutes after he got home.

So, I got soaked, and he stayed dry. 

Why is that?  Why did the same God that seemed to hold off the rain for him, not do the same for me?

Reading the end of the Gospel of John where Peter is told he will die for the Lord.

Jesus said, "Feed my sheep.  Very truly I tell you, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go."  Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, "Follow me!"

Peter turned and saw that the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them. (This was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper and had said, "Lord, who is going to betray you?")  When Peter saw him, he asked, "Lord, what about him?"

Jesus answered, "If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me."  John 21:18-22 (NIV)

Not everyone's life is the same.  The lesson here is (as preacher Mike would say) simple  but hard.  We don't always get to understand why God will intercede on behalf of one and not the other.  And often this is harder than simply getting rained on. 

But, the words of Jesus ring as true to us today as they did to Peter.  To live a life for Christ is to live with some questions unanswered.

"You must follow me" - Jesus

Do we have to have all the answers before we'll follow?

Knowing People

One evening I purchased a viking ship model.  I thought it would be fun to assemble it and paint it.  Seemed like a relaxing hobby to check out.

So I bought the paints, the ship and even some little vikings.  I started the project, but it sat, very much unfinished. 

Then recently I heard that a co-worker was into painting miniature models.  I decided to give him the paints and brushes I had purchased that were sitting unused in the closet.  He was pretty happy with the unexpected gift and showed me some photos of some of his work. 

I was amazed at the level of skill he had that coule produce this kind of small, detailed work.  Simply knowing him from work, I would have never suspected he possessed that kind of  talent.

But we do that don't we?  We quickly place people into boxes and categories without taking the time to get to know them, to see beyond what is obvious.

In 1 Samuel 17:7 (NIV) we read, "...The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart."

May we seek to see those around us as God does!

Hunger

Are we willing to wait in the hunger?

Sometimes our souls feel a hunger deep inside, and often we attempt to fill this hunger with whatever is quick and easy to find. 

Perhaps we fill it with food, or a movie, or we head onto the internet.  Some of the things we fill this hunger with are harmful to us and to those we love.

The hunger is not wrong, it is a God-shaped hunger that only he can fill. 

King David recognized this longing, and he knew what he truly craved.

Reading Psalm 63 (NIV)

Psalm 63

A psalm of David. When he was in the Desert of Judah.

You, God, are my God,

    earnestly I seek you;

I thirst for you,

    my whole being longs for you,

in a dry and parched land

    where there is no water.

David recognized his soul's longing was for God and that nothing else would quench that thirst. 

In fact, he goes on to say that even a great meal wouldn't meet that need.

I have seen you in the sanctuary

    and beheld your power and your glory.

Because your love is better than life,

    my lips will glorify you.

I will praise you as long as I live,

    and in your name I will lift up my hands.

I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods;

    with singing lips my mouth will praise you.

When the hunger comes, I wonder, what would happen if we refuse temporary satisfaction and wait, actively praising God?

Waiting on the Lord

Jesus Culture has a song called, "My soul longs for you" with very simple lyrics.

My soul longs for you

My soul longs for you

Nothing else will do

Nothing else will do

I believe you will come like the rain

You'll come like the rain

So let it rain

Let it rain

Here is the video if you want to listen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GgNw2neYrU

In those times, when we find ourselves longing, painfully aware of our emptiness, do we wait for the Lord to satisfy or do we give in too quickly to something like food or entertainment?

Reading Psalm 63 today,

Psalm 63

A psalm of David. When he was in the Desert of Judah.

You, God, are my God,

    earnestly I seek you;

I thirst for you,

    my whole being longs for you,

in a dry and parched land

    where there is no water.

 I have seen you in the sanctuary

    and beheld your power and your glory.

Because your love is better than life,

    my lips will glorify you.

I will praise you as long as I live,

    and in your name I will lift up my hands.

I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods;

    with singing lips my mouth will praise you.

Can we join David and wait on the Lord, who alone satisfies?

Asking or Demanding?

Reading Mark today, chapter six.

Mark 6:1-6 (NIV) "Jesus left there and went to his hometown, accompanied by his disciples.  When the Sabbath came, he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were amazed.

"Where did this man get these things?" they asked. "What's this wisdom that has been given him? What are these remarkable miracles he is performing?  Isn't this the carpenter? Isn't this Mary's son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren't his sisters here with us?" And they took offense at him.

Some of these questions are great questions, you would think that Jesus would be more than happy to answer them.  After all they seem to want to know more about him, don't they?

But it's not in the questions they ask, but in the heart they ask them from.  There is a difference between wanting to know an answer and demanding an account.  Here we find people who were not trying to understand Jesus, but rather took offense at him.  In fact the amplified bible tells us, 

"And they were [deeply] offended by Him [and their disapproval blinded them to the fact that He was anointed by God as the Messiah]." Mark 6:3 AMP

Sadly, this type of posture prevented Jesus from working in their lives.  Continuing with verse 4,

Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his own town, among his relatives and in his own home."  He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them.  He was amazed at their lack of faith.  (vv 4-6)

We don't always understand what God is doing in our lives, but when we ask, are we seeking to understand, or demanding he give us an account?

Measuring

Each morning I change the paper that line our bird cages.  I pull out the drawer underneath, throw away the old paper, and then replace it with a new sheet.

We have a big roll of paper, and the drawer is exactly 18 X 18 inches.  I have a measure tape I use to get the length just right.  I measure, then I cut.

Most days it works.

Sometimes I cut it too long, sometimes too short.  I can tell when I go to put it into place.  I have to fold it, or just deal with it not covering the whole drawer.

Now how silly would it be if I blamed the tape measure for the wrong size?  If something is off, it certainly cannot be that.  18 inches on that tape is the same every day, that measurement never changes.  If the paper is the wrong size, it's because I cut it off the mark.

The same can be said for the word of God.  It never changes and it measures our life true.  If we find that something is off, we need only go back to the word and measure again.

"God is not human, that he should lie,

    not a human being, that he should change his mind.

Does he speak and then not act?

    Does he promise and not fulfill?" Numbers 23:19 (NIV)

"Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." James 1:17 (NIV)

It's that simple.

"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever."Hebrews 13:8 (NIV)

David

Who You Are

When you look in the mirror, what do you see?  Are you even able to look at your own reflection?

The older we get, the more we tally up the things that we have said or done that we would rather have forgotten.  Just like when we look in the mirror, we  have a natural tendency to look at what is wrong with our physical appearance,  when we take an honest look at ourselves, we don't always like what we see.

Yet when God looks at us, he doesn't see any of that.  Those of us who have accepted the free gift his of his son, Jesus Christ, are no longer seen as we deserve.

We are seen as we wish we could be.  We are holy and blameless in God's sight, as a result of what Jesus did for us.

Take a moment to truly grasp that.  All our our deeds are not only forgiven, but forgotten.  As Paul tells us, 

"Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body. As a result, he has brought you into his own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault." Col 1:22 (NLT)

How can we not be grateful?  How can we not thank him in praise for such a gift?

For when we stand before God, in Christ we are seen for who we always dreamt we could be.