Rehab Russell

 

Wednesday, December 22, 2021

Work hard so you can present yourself to God and receive his approval.  Be a good worker, one who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly explains the word of truth.  2 Timothy 2:15

This verse is my life’s verse.  It chose me, I didn’t choose it.  It was first given to me by my Mom and Dad, written by my mother’s hand as an inscription on the flyleaf of my first Bible.  Later (and continually) that verse showed up in ways too numerous to recount in a short devotional.  Those ways were ambushes to my lazy streak, and gifts of encouragement to my “timid Timothy” ways.  That verse is not my “slogan” – it is my life-saving guide and reminder of the trust Jesus has in me, and that which I must forge on the inside of my character.

We will post more about that next week…which leads me to what’s been going on the past three months, and what’s ahead this week for Rehab Russell…and (perhaps) an encouragement for you.

I’m getting set to receive a Cardioverter-Defibrillator implant tomorrow.  This little gem is a combination of pacemaker (which is supposed to whip my under-performing heart pump into compliance), and a defibrillator (think hospital Emergency Room; think Surgery table with half-a-dozen professionals in scrubs.  One of the docs is holding paddles attached to a charger.  In my musing the paddles are poised over Russell’s chest getting ready to wake-up my ticker and tell him it’s not cool, this decision to call it a day).  The device they’re going to implant in my chest will be a personal hospital ER team and electric chair, all contained in a 6-ounce plastic computer/mini-reactor with twelve sensor leads surrounding my heart muscle which started beating about three-quarters of a century ago.  I keep musing on how loud the little voice will sound coming from within my chest cavity...CLEAR!  And…how, pray tell, did they fit the little doctor man inside that device?  I want to know!  Interesting ride through this life, ain’t it?

For the past few months that ride has been a stationary recumbent bicycle in the rehab unit 40-minutes at a time.  Don’t let the name fool you, “recumbent” doesn’t mean lay-back-nappy-time; it’s more wear-your-bones-to-the-nub-pedaling-for-your-life time.  I’ve logged a couple hundred miles on that thing and never left the hospital’s rehab unit.  One comes to think of it as the HAMSTER OLYMPICS…pedal like a fool…don’t move an inch.

And isn’t it the interesting/challenging times in life that cause you to think a little more deeply about this life?  I know it has been that way with me for the past several months since the doctor told me my heart pumps only 20% of the blood it ought to be pumping.  The deeper thinking you do with such information tells me there isn’t much that stands between me and hearing “CLEAR”!

For You Today

So…if the message isn’t as CLEAR as it could be today, let me CLEAR the debris out and speak CLEARLY.  It shouldn’t take the threat of a room full of medical first-responders to get you connected to God.  That’s something we are all hard-wired to work-on every day, to talk about with Him every waking hour, and keep the hub of your spiritual life from collecting cobwebs.  After all, as Peter the Apostle put it, bring your cares to Him…because He cares for YOU![1]  There is no more important or CLEAR call on your life every day.  Is there?

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!  

[1] Title and Other Images:  Russell Brownworth (own work)   Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©   

For other posts on this text see The Making of a Good Servant and Recycled Sermons

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[1] Loose “Brownworth” translation of 1 Peter 5:7

Forfeiting an Inheritance

 

Monday, May 3, 2021

When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these.  Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.  But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives:  love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.  There is no law against these things!  Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there.  Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives.  Let us not become conceited, or provoke one another, or be jealous of one another.       
Galatians 5:19-26

There is an extreme contrast between the kind of life lived which justifies or disqualifies one from an inheritance.  Extenuating circumstances aside, the choice to whom the estate will pass lies with the wishes of the one making a will.  Without a will, the heirs enter a contest to divide the proceeds. 

In the case of a kingdom an heir is validated by blood.  In the case of God’s Kingdom inheritance, the will was put in place at Calvary 2,000 years ago, but it was in the heart of Father God even before creation.  So, concerning the Kingdom of God, the cross was the seal of promise affixed to the will of God, laying down the terms of inheritance for the children of God.

In writing to explain (or remind) the believers in Galatia, Paul has two shopping lists.  The first is living life as a hedonist, simply doing what you want without honoring God.  The second list is what God will produce in your life when you commit that life to His will, an honorable DNA of character and goodness.

The dividing line between the two choices for living is the qualification point (or disqualification), as an heir, rightfully participating in God’s blessing.

The analogy of earthly and heavenly kingdoms breaks-down (as do all analogies) when held too literally.  There are marked differences between God’s Kingdom and, say, the British Empire’s monarchy.  A similarity for inheriting in either depends on blood, and being born.  For the Royals of the House of Windsor, you’re in (or out) only so far as your ancestral blood line.  That is dependent solely on the random passing along of DNA.  For the inheritors of God’s Kingdom, it is also dependent on blood, that blood which pooled at the foot of a cross on a hill in Jerusalem’s garbage dump, with the execution of the Son of God.  This blood is not passed along genetically through a placenta, it is a choice to receive by applying to the King in a prayer of surrender.  That prayer is a surrender to the will of God, which ratifies the forgiveness of God, making that one who prays a child of God, and therefore, an inheritor of the Kingdom of God.

A common misconception at this point is that you live a good life, like Paul’s second list (love, joy, peace, gentleness, kindness, etc…), in order to become eligible for inheritance status.  But that’s false thinking, because that is earning the status.  If that were the case we would have to completely ignore the concept of grace…which would invalidate the cross.  Grace is never earned.  Even the definition of grace dismisses that thinking, as grace is unmerited favor from God’s hand, while earning is merited due, a salary for your work. 

The order is out of order there…rather, we repent of our part in the first list (immorality, sexual sins, jealousy, selfishness, etc…), and receive a grace-filled pardon…then the life of the second list begins to take hold in our choices.  God gives this also as grace, a gift to overcome life on the sinful first-list level. 

We do not live a good life to escape the bad; we nail the bad life to the cross, and God gives us a grace-filled life to add to the goodness of His Kingdom.  We participate not only by inheriting the Kingdom, but building it as well[1].

For You Today

It’s easy to forfeit an inheritance in God’s Kingdom, just do what you feel like doing, and forget about God.  You’ll get there in a heartbeat.  It’s even easier to receive the inheritance – surrender to God’s love; He will build your life on His grace and goodness, and make you fit for the Kingdom’s crown!

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!  

[1] Title Image: Pixabay.com   Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©

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[1] 2 Peter 1:4

Ready

Friday, April 24, 2020

So prepare your minds for action and exercise self-control.  Put all your hope in the gracious salvation that will come to you when Jesus Christ is revealed to the world.  So you must live as God’s obedient children.  Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires.  You didn’t know any better then.  But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy.  For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.”  1 Peter 1:13-16

It wasn’t long ago that I heard news of the passing of my 9^th grade English teacher, Joe Gulizio.  His students referred to him as Jumping Joe, because when it came time for the annual faculty vs. student basketball game, for a 5’9” guy, he could mix it up with the biggest and best of them.  He also had an amazingly accurate two-handed “set-shot”.   

For an English nerd he was quite the athlete.  Given my love of any sport where you could catch, kick, throw, hit, or bounce a ball, I admired Mr. Gulizio.  I also kind of feared being around him.  He made me do things like stand in front of the class to give a book report.  I once pretended to be sick for a whole week because I knew my turn was coming up.  In my weakened condition on the first day back, there was little mercy from behind the teacher’s throne; Mr. Brownworth, welcome back…you can now give your report.  It probably would’ve hurt less if it wasn’t for that smile silently bellowing, I’ve been in touch with your parents, you slacker…get up here and squirm.  I didn’t hate the book; actually, I loved it.  I just hated standing in front of people who were expecting me to talk.  My way of avoiding my distaste for doing that was to avoid preparing for it, hoping the day wouldn’t arrive.  I think Jumping Joe knew that…what a sadist!

Sixty years is a long time to arrive at the understanding that Mr. Gulizio was teaching much more than English literature in 1961; he was bent on forming strong character.  Jumping Joe was teaching me to be ready.  He wanted my head to be in the game, prepared and focused on thinking, learning, speaking up, and remembering that life isn’t just a ball game (which isn’t a bad background for a future preacher). 

So, there is a definite parallel between 9^th Grade English Lit and life as a believer.  Peter’s admonition to the church was to be ready, prepared for the spiritual battle of your lives!  And, to do that, it was, as Peter’s friend and co-laborer, Paul wrote, necessary to put on the armor of a Christ-warrior:

Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.  Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil.  For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.  Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil.  Then after the battle you will still be standing firm.  Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness.  For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared.  In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil.  Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.  Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion.  Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.   Ephesians 6:10-18

For You Today

Our spiritual battles are no different than Peter’s or Paul’s.  Every day we are faced with an enemy that would rob us of our joy, our witness, and our faith.  The choices for life as a disciple of Jesus Christ are only two – faithful or not faithful. 

Jumping Joe Gulizio would say, it’s your turn; he must have been quoting Jesus.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!

Go to VIDEO 

Title Image:  Pixabay.com      Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation©

For other posts on 1 Peter see Standing in the Sweet Spot and The Sacrifice of Self-Control

I AM; You ARE

[1] 

Wednesday, January 15, 2020

“I, yes I, am the one who comforts you.  So why are you afraid of mere humans, who wither like the grass and disappear?  Yet you have forgotten the Lord, your Creator, the one who stretched out the sky like a canopy and laid the foundations of the earth.  Will you remain in constant dread of human oppressors?  Will you continue to fear the anger of your enemies?  Where is their fury and anger now?  It is gone!  Soon all you captives will be released!  Imprisonment, starvation, and death will not be your fate!  For I am the Lord your God, who stirs up the sea, causing its waves to roar.  My name is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.  And I have put my words in your mouth and hidden you safely in my hand.  I stretched out the sky like a canopy and laid the foundations of the earth.  I am the one who says to Israel, ‘You are my people!’”  Isaiah 51:12-16

When God spoke to Moses out of the burning bush[2] it was in answer to Moses’ question as to the Lord’s name; God answered, I AM.  A name presupposes and proclaims existential character.  If I say I am carpenter, you already know I build things, and probably have leathery hands from doing battle with wood.  You know my eye will run to the plumb and level of things and I’ll take the time to measure twice and cut once.  In the same way, when you hear I AM, the existential nature of God revealing God sets up a battle of faith.  God’s name declares eternality.  He was before anything (in any sense of linear thought).  He is above all in any sense of moral or ethical consideration.  His sovereignty over the universe and all it holds is not bought, grabbed, or coronated by grant or permission; He simply IS!  And with that simple declaration, the struggle for faith is on; you either believe…or you don’t!

Enter Isaiah, a prophet to a disobedient Jewish nation.  They were a people who declared faith in that I AM God as their God, yet, they kept wandering away from Jehovah.  Their faith was (as Vance Havner used to say) fickle at first and fizzling at the finish.

And yet, God wasn’t done with them.  As the nation languished in the shame and pain of a national thrashing at the hands of enemies who would brutally massacre many thousands and enslave the rest in cruel bondage, God speaks through the prophet words of comfort; The I AM says to them, You ARE.  To a disobedient, sinful people God speaks existential reality of unbroken relationship.  They may have been facing an extinction event politically, but their God would hold true to His promises, that they would never be exterminated; punished, yes…but always held fast in the grip of I AM’s love.

For You Today

Sometimes you might feel like Israel, abandoned to the predators of life.  And, truth be told, you sometimes might BE Israel, having had a crisis of faith, punctuated by wandering in the far country.  But you always ARE; you are His creation and the object of His unfailing love.  The I AM says so!

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!

Go to VIDEO

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[1] Title Image:  Pixabay.com   Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation©

[2] Exodus 3

Measuring Strength

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Monday, September 24, 2018

Just as Death and Destruction are never satisfied, so human desire is never satisfied.  Fire tests the purity of silver and gold, but a person is tested by being praised.  You cannot separate fools from their foolishness, even though you grind them like grain with mortar and pestle.  Proverbs 27:20-22(NLT)

When it comes to what humans want, nothing is ever enough!  If a child has a handful of M&M’s they want a truckload.  If they had access to a truckload, they’d wonder how they could get their hands on a fleet of trucks.  And so, it goes…

As adults the equation doesn’t change.  What does change is the size, complexity, and cost of the M&M pile.  It’s like the old rhyme:  There is no difference between men and boys…only in the size and cost of their toys.

Our proverb writer takes a step farther into this deep truth – a fool will remain a fool.  The question becomes:  How can you measure foolishness?  One test for measuring the strength of human integrity (which is the opposite of foolishness) is praise from other humans.  The proverb master suggests that if you want to know if you’re dealing with a fool, praise him.  A fool will respond to any kind of praise and crave more; those with integrity of character may accept a compliment, but it will not change them. 

And a measure of strong character is always why we do what we do.  I am a preacher, called into the ministry of proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  It is not MY ministry, it is a gift with which Christ has blessed my life.  The call compels me to use my time, spiritual gifts, and whatever strength I have, to bring praise to the name of Jesus.  If I am to carry-out this calling with integrity it will NOT be by fishing for compliments on how well I do it; that’s not fulfilling my call – it is pandering my call to satisfy my foolish pride.

That sometimes gets dicey.  In social situations we remember mother’s advice to keep quiet if we don’t have something nice to say.  But some of us, particularly people pleasers, go beyond silence and praise others just to pump them up.  It’s a nice lie.

But what does that say about our moral center?  Should we offer (untrue) praise, just because it makes fools happy?

Well, this whole discussion can lead to a downward corkscrew of what constitutes flattery, and what is appropriate praise.  And the whole thing becomes a semantic morass of acceptable vs. unacceptable words.

Rather, applying the principle that foolishness is empty, and integrity with humility is everything, we should aspire to put praise – words from another flawed human – in its’ proper place and appreciate the thought, but never place enough weight on praise to make it our end goal.  The real goal of a human life is to please God, and fools cannot do that. 

Fear of the Lord is the foundation of true knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.  Proverbs 1:7(NLT)

For You Today

To walk through this life as a wise person, and not a fool, is simply a matter of surrendering your life to pleasing God.  All else is foolishness, and it fails the test of measuring true strength!

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day.

Go to VIDEO

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[1] Title Image: Photo Courtesy of Pixabay.com

Running Skills - Dodge - Pursue

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Monday, May 7, 2018

But people who long to be rich fall into temptation and are trapped by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction.  For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.  And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.  But you, Timothy, are a man of God; so run from all these evil things.  Pursue righteousness and a godly life, along with faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness.  Fight the good fight for the true faith.  Hold tightly to the eternal life to which God has called you, which you have declared so well before many witnesses.   

1 Timothy 6:9-12^(NLT)

I’ve never particularly enjoyed running just for the sake of running.  I did run years ago as part of a weight-loss regimen, but that was torture!  On the other hand, if you put a ball in my hand to bounce while I’m running, jumping, and scoring….we call it basketball, and that’s fun!  Spiritual running can also be torturous, and immensely rewarding. 

Timothy was a young pastor, and his mentor, Paul, encouraged him in two directions; he was to dodge and pursue.  Of course the things the young man were to dodge are a shopping list of human cravings, the evil that leads to the moral failure so common to humankind.  And then, every time you’re running away from something, you’re also running towards something else.  Paul told Timothy he needed not just to run from evil, but to PURSUE righteousness…a godly life. 

Then the apostle got really specific:

Faith – Love – Perseverance - Gentleness

Each of these attributes (by Scriptural definition) touch another word:  character!

Faith places us in someone else’s hands; a Christian dedicates his life to God’s leading.

Love is allowing the character of God to seep into his own bone, marrow and flesh to live the life of God for the sake of others.

Perseverance is that “hang-in-there” quality that doesn’t give up on others.

Gentleness is tied to the patience we must have to encourage the weak or troubled spirit of another person.

This four-fold running plan, to lose the weight of evil and develop muscles of righteous living, requires attention to learning God’s ways, above all through the study of God’s Word and prayer.  One of the chiefest reasons I chose to begin writing these daily devotionals was to encourage just that – a daily embrace of truth for the nourishment of godliness in our lives. 

My bride developed a substantial pain in her foot.  When she couldn’t stand it any longer she went to the podiatrist, who told her she had a mechanics problem.  The way she walked was different than the way God created her to walk.  The answer was a mechanical treatment – better shoes to support walking correctly. 

Spiritually-speaking, if our mechanics is off in faith, love, perseverance or gentleness, we cannot walk the way God desires; we walk crooked…sinfully.  And, in those moments of discovery, it is time to turn around, straighten-out the path, and walk the way we’ve been called; it’s time to dodge and pursue!

For You Today

So…how’s your walk of faith?  Is it filled with His love?  Are you wavering or persevering?  Is there gentleness, or are the edges a little rough? 

Are you dodging and pursuing?

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day. 

Go to VIDEO

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[1] Title Image:  Courtesy Pixabay.com

Explaining the Good in the Bad News

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Thursday, February 8, 2018

Another rebel leader was Jeroboam son of Nebat, one of Solomon’s own officials.  He came from the town of Zeredah in Ephraim, and his mother was Zeruah, a widow.  This is the story behind his rebellion.  Solomon was rebuilding the supporting terraces and repairing the walls of the city of his father, David.  Jeroboam was a very capable young man, and when Solomon saw how industrious he was, he put him in charge of the labor force from the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh, the descendants of Joseph.  One day as Jeroboam was leaving Jerusalem, the prophet Ahijah from Shiloh met him along the way.  Ahijah was wearing a new cloak.  The two of them were alone in a field, and Ahijah took hold of the new cloak he was wearing and tore it into twelve pieces.  Then he said to Jeroboam, “Take ten of these pieces, for this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says:  ‘I am about to tear the kingdom from the hand of Solomon, and I will give ten of the tribes to you!  But I will leave him one tribe for the sake of my servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel.   For Solomon has abandoned me and worshiped Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Sidonians; Chemosh, the god of Moab; and Molech, the god of the Ammonites.  He has not followed my ways and done what is pleasing in my sight.  He has not obeyed my decrees and regulations as David his father did.  “‘But I will not take the entire kingdom from Solomon at this time.  For the sake of my servant David, the one whom I chose and who obeyed my commands and decrees, I will keep Solomon as leader for the rest of his life.  But I will take the kingdom away from his son and give ten of the tribes to you.  His son will have one tribe so that the descendants of David my servant will continue to reign, shining like a lamp in Jerusalem, the city I have chosen to be the place for my name.  And I will place you on the throne of Israel, and you will rule over all that your heart desires.  If you listen to what I tell you and follow my ways and do whatever I consider to be right, and if you obey my decrees and commands, as my servant David did, then I will always be with you.  I will establish an enduring dynasty for you as I did for David, and I will give Israel to you.  Because of Solomon’s sin I will punish the descendants of David—though not forever.’”  Solomon tried to kill Jeroboam, but he fled to King Shishak of Egypt and stayed there until Solomon died.  1 Kings 11:26-40^(NLT)

Solomon may have been the wisest man ever…but he managed (at times) to ignore his own smarts by ignoring Jehovah God and worshipping the gods and goddesses of the surrounding pagans.  These gods were particularly the kind of in-your-face gods for anyone claiming to be a child of the kingdom.  Ashtoreth was a fertility goddess, and worship included temple prostitution.  Chemosh was a god of war; for an Israelite to worship the god generally called upon to defeat Israel…well, what does that say about collusion with the enemy?  And Molech was a god that required child sacrifice.  Incidentally, a quick survey of 21^st century life in America shows these gods have made wide inroads into our Western culture. 

For Solomon’s infidelity to the God he had pledged to serve, his kingdom was torn from him, divided and weakened.  The point is well-taken:  worship is when you give your attention and allegiance to anything.  Solomon was worshipping other gods; the one true God will not tolerate that!

But…there is a bit of good news in the bad here.  Note that God left Solomon as a leader to a small portion of the nation.  This was due to God’s promise to David.  Like Solomon, David had strayed from his vows to God; unlike Solomon, David had repented and returned to the fold.  This “following after” and serving God restored God’s favor on David, and renewed God’s original covenant to bless David’s lineage…namely Solomon.

A note for our country today:  The good, Godly integrity of our founders and those who have carried the purposes of God on in our short history since 1776 has faded like a worn-out, over-washed set of jeans.  We no longer see fiercely-maintained moral conduct as even a desirable character trait.  Our nation is still strong militarily and economically, but the basis of all strength – the goodness that comes from faith in, and fidelity-towards God, is hardly flourishing.  We, like Solomon may be resting on former sacrifice and service.  The coming tearing-apart of the land we claim to love is on the horizon…and it hardly takes a prophet to speak the math of what’s coming.

Perhaps it is not too late to turn around…to repent…to give up our Ashtoreth, Chemosh, and Molech wanderings, and come home to our Father’s fold.

For You Today

What does it take to be wiser than a Solomon?  Serve God…not what everybody else is worshiping.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road today.

Watch the Devotion VIDEO

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[1] Title Image:  Courtesy of Pixabay.com