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Posts Tagged ‘Paul’

Road to Hope

Posted in Christmas Through Epiphany, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on February 4, 2010| 2 Comments »

I actually selected this verse on suffering and hope yesterday but couldn’t bring myself to write about it. I don’t go easily into the realm of suffering and pain.

Romans 5:3b-4
. . . we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.

I suppose I’m doing better. For years, my mantra was “avoid pain at all cost!” And as a result, I would run away from challenges and opportunities. I was afraid. Primarily, it was emotional pain that kept kept nipping at my trail, trauma from my past. I suspected, if I acknowledged the pain in any way, I would be overwhelmed. At one point, I though my body would explode. I had pushed down so much sorrow, disappointment, resentment, and fear, that the pressure on my soul was severe; it was like a geyser preparing to erupt. That’s chaos. It is not the road to hope.

What is suffering then? We recognize it most easily by example. Surely, the people of Haiti are suffering after the great earthquake. So many have lost everything including loved ones. They are sick, malnourished, exposed to the elements, and grieving all at the same time. And yet, we also know, that recovery from such a horrendous ordeal, can only be done through perseverance and hope.

Perseverance is the human piece of the equation. To get to hope, we must choose to press on. As soon as we decide that we will not give up, then hope can find purchase in the soul.

This is the story of Haiti as well. How else could a young woman survive beneath the rubble for 15 days and come out alive.

Hope, by its very nature, is hope in God to intervene. Since hope is about the unseen, the future, the unknown, only God operates freely there.

Why does God allow so much suffering? I don’t know. It’s a mystery. But God has provided a way out of suffering, step by step. Every time a person can make a choice toward healing, perseverance grows in strength. And as perseverance grows, that person’s character is formed and built on the backbone of faith.

In the past two years, two of my colleagues from work have died of colon cancer. Both walked the journey of suffering and although they died, their struggle was a testimony to the survivors who saw perseverance and character and hope never falter. They are the heroes. They are my teachers.

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Peace with God

Posted in Christmas Through Epiphany, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on February 2, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Why is peace so elusive? Positionally, I should be good. And I certainly have faith in God. But peace of heart and mind eludes me more often than not.

Romans 5:1
Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ . . .

What challenges my peace? I think it’s my over committed mind. I fill my days with so much activity, how can I expect to experience peace with God? I’m so good at “doing” while I’m terrible at “not doing.” I mean purposefully choosing to be quiet, to be still, to commune with the Holy Spirit.

I used to go away for a long weekend to All Saints Convent, just to be still. But I confess, the first day, I usually slept most of the time. My mind tends to be like a light switch: on or off. And when it’s off, I crash.

Oh I know that “peace with God” is not just being still. It has to do with relationship. That I am not in an adversarial relationship with God because of my faith in Jesus who opened the door to the inner sanctuary. But, all the same, how often do I really walk deeply into that sanctuary?

Having access to a place is one thing but actually using the ticket to go in is another.

It’s like going to the health club … or rather, not going. I paid the money up front and I was given cart blanche to use the facilities anytime. And I started out great but eventually, I lost my momentum. Other new activities take away my time. And soon, I’ve disconnected from both the routine and the desire to go.

Theoretical “peace with God” is useless. It’s experiential “peace with God” that can enhance my daily life. Oh heart, seek peace and dwell there.

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God Calls What is Not . . . into Being

Posted in Christmas Through Epiphany, tagged , , , , , , , , , on February 1, 2010| 2 Comments »

This kind of faith could turn the world upside down: to truly hear and believe God’s promises. To believe that God, the creator, can speak and the impossible be made possible.

Romans 4:17b
He [Abraham] is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed—the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were.

There are hints and glimpses throughout the New Testament that we, as human offspring to such a God, could do the same. Jesus references moving mountains through faith [Matthew 17:20] and receiving anything we ask for in faith [Matthew 21:22]. Plus, the disciples, themselves, brokered healings and miracles both while Jesus was still with them and after he resurrected. But, as time went on, the miracles became fewer and fewer.

By the time we get to our own century, there are a few people who have appeared to operate in this miraculous realm: Kathryn Kuhlman, Aimee Semple McPherson, John Wimber, John Osteen, Oral Roberts, Kenneth Hagin, and Smith Wiggles Worth to name a few. But most of these people either died in disgrace or were exposed as charlatans. This certainly doesn’t encourage me to ask for “miracle-working” faith.

There are more meaningful (and fantastic) stories from the mission fields where no one becomes famous or well known, where no one is interviewed or tested for authenticity. And yet, the stories continue of blind people receiving sight, limbs growing where there were none, the dead coming alive, tumors disappearing, and so forth. But even here, in these mission fields, we don’t hear of mountains moving, fresh water gushing from a rock, or food growing in the desert sands.

What is lacking? Somehow, we have failed to identify and respect the source of all that power. As soon as power manifests, we humans appear to be changed by it.

One of my favorite (non-Christian) films about miracles is Resurrection with Ellen Burstyn (1980). The main character, Edna, becomes a healer inexplicably, but soon, she is feared, manipulated, tested, and shot. She survives, but chooses the life of a recluse instead of broadcasting her “talents.” There, in the desert, she continues to heal, but secretly.

We live in an age where miracles are suspect, at the least, and generally, considered impossible. Magic is only a trick. Healings are anomalies.

All believers are children of Abraham, the one who believed that his 100 year old body and is 98-year old wife would be come the “father of nations.” He had nothing but the Word of God to believe. There was nothing in his world to make him think it was possible. Was it the simplicity of their lives that gave them the ability to believe God in the face of overwhelming circumstances?

I don’t know the answer. But I do know, we’re missing out. Surely, if every believer had but a mere fraction of Abraham’s faith in God to change the world, we would see the healing of the earth. Unfortunately, we wouldn’t be able to agree on what the healed earth should look like.

Healing miracles require unity of spirit. Instead, we’re like kids at a football game, with both sides praying for a win.

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Inheritance by Grace

Posted in Christmas Through Epiphany, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on January 31, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Am I finally getting it? Every promise of God is possible because of grace. If my inheritance depended on my ability to obey the law, all would be lost. There is no sinless life and I am no different.

Romans 4:16a
Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham’s offspring . . .

Why does it all feel so difficult then? Why can’t I enjoy the full freedom that grace affords? Certainly I’m doing better in this aspect, but I still battle with the traditional culture of “shoulds” and “should haves” and “shouldn’t haves.” You know, you “shouldn’t” read that kind of book, you “should have” gone to church today, you “shouldn’t have” wine with dinner. But the court room cannot be in my own head or my perceptions of what “others” think. There is only one Judge that matters.

My historic difficulties have been wrapped around trying too hard: trying to be a “concept” Christian. I have tried to live the “idea” of being a Christian by doing “this” but not “that,” by embracing the unspoken rules of Christian behavior, by wearing a “believer’s” mask.

My focus this year must be on confession. Freedom and grace come through acts of confession. Authenticity of the heart begins with a transparent relationship with God. I long for true fellowship with other people of faith (koinonia), but I cannot expect to achieve this if I shutter myself from God, much less my family, friends, acquaintances, and fellow believers.

True obedience to the “law” comes from the heart and the heart is only prepared to obey when it is clear and whole. This holiness (wholeness) comes forth through the gate of confession.

Can I extend my understanding of grace to other people? Can I shed my tendency to judge others by pouring out the same oil of grace upon them that God is pouring out on me? Do I have the courage to invite them to remove their masks with the promise that I will not turn away? And what about the people who have grown tired of wearing a mask, who no longer have the energy to put one on anymore, who appear to be content in their darkness, can I be the light of grace for them?

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Abraham’s Legacy

Posted in Christmas Through Epiphany, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on January 30, 2010| Leave a Comment »

What do I want to consider about Abraham today? Faith in the face of overwhelming challenges. Faith in the face of boredom and the mundane. Faith in the face of sin and stupidity.

Romans 4:11a
And he [Abraham] received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. So then, he is the father of all who believe . . .

Abraham gives me courage to have faith outside the box. I can be wrong. I can go astray. I can lose it. But also, I can count on God because, above all else, I do have faith.

I can be fallible. That doesn’t sound like much except that I constantly struggle with my perfectionism. God is gentler with me than I am with myself.

Abraham screwed up big time . . . with Sara, with with Hagar, with Lot, with Isaac. He did damage. And yet, he was covered. He confessed. He talked to God. And God responded with promise.

That’s all, just hope in face of my mistakes, especially with family. I know I have discouraged when I could have encouraged. I have disappointed when I could have applauded. I have talked when I should have listened.

Still I hope that love will grow stronger than fear, mercy will trump judging, and faith will wipe out doubt. that’s the legacy I believe Abraham is giving me.

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Presenting Justice

Posted in Christmas Through Epiphany, tagged , , , , , , , , , on January 28, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Justice has gotten pretty fuzzy in our current culture. How often do the guilty go free if they simply have a good lawyer? How can we expect a modern world to connect to the concept of God’s justice and actually appreciate true mercy and atonement?

Romans 3:25
God presented him [Jesus] as a sacrifice of atonement, . . . to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished . . .

Even in Bible times, the Apostle Paul spent a lot of his time convincing people that the long-awaited Messiah had arrived in Jesus of Nazareth. But the Jews had built an entire culture and way of life around the observance of “law” and a complex set of requirements to exact justice with various acts and sacrifices. Did they really believe the Messiah would come or had they put the idea so far into the future that such a reality was unimaginable?

In essence, no matter when the Messiah would appear, the prophecies promised that his arrival would wipe out the old ideology and replace every sacrifice, every payment, and every atoning act, with his own blood. It would change everything. Justice would have new meaning.

If they had accepted the “fact” of a Messiah then, their entire temple system would have been obliterated in a single day. Is there any wonder the priests and accompanying temple staff were resistant? Their livelihood, their routines, and all of their traditions were in danger of collapse if they accepted this man Jesus as the Messiah.

To accept the atoning act of the Messiah is to have faith in a new execution of justice. To appropriate the ultimate sacrifice/justice of the Messiah requires a person’s confession of sin and lawbreaking.

Unlike a court of law where the defendant is trying to convince everyone that he/she didn’t really “do it,” this court is strictly for those willing to say, “guilty as charged.” And through that personal confession of guilt, suddenly, there is mercy and grace in a way that is beyond our understanding.

This is justice without fear. This is justice married to mercy. This is justice covered by love. Thanks be to God for the Anointed One whose sacrifice made it possible for me to live under a banner of justification.

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Lawbreaker

Posted in Christmas Through Epiphany, tagged , , , , , , , on January 26, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Pretty simple stuff: you can’t know you’re breaking the law if you don’t know the law. Ha! Who are we kidding? We know most of the laws … even when they’re not posted or written down.

Romans 3:20
Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin.

So many times, we think we can avoid “punishment” by saying, “we didn’t know.” But this is a flimsy excuse and doesn’t hold water even in traffic court. If you drive a car, you’re supposed to know or find out about the law… like the speed limit or right of way etc. It’s no different for a believer.

A believer either knows in her heart what is “right” or if she is unsure, she’d better get out there (or in there, i.e. the Word) and find out.

I work in a library and I think it’s pretty sad that we had to actually post a little sign next to each work station that says, “Please be considerate of others. Loud talking, rowdiness, and inappropriate language disrupts those around you.” Well, duh! And the reason we had to post it? So that we could point to the sign and say, “See! It’s library law that you must be considerate. And if you break that law, we can ask you to leave.”

But isn’t this is really a sham? Everyone knows that inappropriate behavior is unacceptable in public. But people simply choose to break this law because … well, why do people break the law?

You know: we break the law because we want to.

I break the law because I want to do what I want to do. I want to drive faster than the speed limit. I want to turn left or right, no matter what the sign says. I want to tweak the truth on taxes, etc.

And in the end, I’m a spiritual lawbreaker as well. I confess each day. I must.

In the Book of Common Prayer, the Litany of Penitence is read on Ash Wednesday. But truly, I need it every day. Without confession, I would be lost.

“Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”

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