Life's Wider Picture

Wednesday, June 21, 2023

My child, listen to me and do as I say, and you will have a long, good life.  I will teach you wisdom’s ways and lead you in straight paths.  When you walk, you won’t be held back; when you run, you won’t stumble.  Take hold of my instructions; don’t let them go.  Guard them, for they are the key to life.  Don’t do as the wicked do, and don’t follow the path of evildoers.  Don’t even think about it; don’t go that way.  Turn away and keep moving.  For evil people can’t sleep until they’ve done their evil deed for the day.  They can’t rest until they’ve caused someone to stumble.  They eat the food of wickedness and drink the wine of violence!  The way of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, which shines ever brighter until the full light of day.  But the way of the wicked is like total darkness.  They have no idea what they are stumbling over.  My child, pay attention to what I say.  Listen carefully to my words.  Don’t lose sight of them.  Let them penetrate deep into your heart, for they bring life to those who find them, and healing to their whole body.  Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.  Avoid all perverse talk; stay away from corrupt speech.  Look straight ahead, and fix your eyes on what lies before you.  Mark out a straight path for your feet; stay on the safe path.  Don’t get sidetracked; keep your feet from following evil.  Proverbs 4:10-27

A question which I have always viewed with a little watchful skepticism is: 

Where do you see yourself in 5, 10, or 25 years?

Watchfulness over my answer is a matter of following the instruction my coach in high school gave me about hitting; he said:  keep your eye on the ball!  So my skeptical eye doesn’t have contempt for looking ahead to make plans, but rather objecting to such a short view.  As a life-navigator, I would rather see the end goal…it’s easier to chart a straight course that way.  And to do that for a life-plan you need to step back, get higher in the balcony, and see the bigger picture.

That snapshot of planning a life from the mere wisp of time we are granted on this planet, 50, 60, or 110 years, is way too short a focus.  Planning where and how you want your life to make an impact demands looking down the road for generations to come, even into eternity.  I’d rather start from the longest point from now, and work backwards to the present.

Now, many people would say:  That’s impossible; you don’t know the future.  And I would certainly have to agree that I don’t know the future, but I certainly can plan-for, and step-towards a goal I set for the future.

That is where Solomon’s wise advice comes in.  Wisdom for setting a life’s course begins with developing a worldview based on the light of truth, leaving evil and darkness in the dust behind you.  All else is meaningless (vanity if King James is a “must” for you). 

Only truth will guard your heart from sinking-into, and following evil.  When truth governs your heart, it will keep your mouth from perverse-speak; strength, healing and kindness will be your legacy, and it will last through eternity.

For You Today 

If you will let Solomon’s godly light of truth guard your heart today, and always, then 5, 20, or two-million years from now, your words and life’s impact on all who cross your path, will stand true, while evil is long forgotten. 

Prophet Isaiah has our last word today:

The grass withers and the flowers fade, but the word of our God stands forever.”  Isaiah 40:8

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

Go to VIDEO (read by author)

There are about 2,500 devotional posts and 400 sermons in the Rocky Road Devotions library.  To dig deeper explore some of these:   Ears Open - Heart Straight - Eyes on the Road - Sure Foot  and  Small Package - Big Message  and  When the Killing is Done                                        

 

Title Image:  via Pixabay.com   Images without citation are in public domain.

Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©   

The Body of Christ

Tuesday, March 7, 2023

You are reasonable people.  Decide for yourselves if what I am saying is true.  When we bless the cup at the Lord’s Table, aren’t we sharing in the blood of Christ?  And when we break the bread, aren’t we sharing in the body of Christ?  And though we are many, we all eat from one loaf of bread, showing that we are one body.  1 Corinthians 10:15-17

If you’ve ever said something you immediately regretted, even as the words rolled-out of your mouth, it proves you’re a member of the human race.  I had one of those moments this past Sunday.  It was during communion, celebrating the remembrance of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, so our sins could be forgiven.  It’s arguably one of the most sacred acts in worship, but also a source of deep,  viscerally-felt joy – a veritable fountain of eternal happiness to be part of the forgiven, the body of Christ, the church.  I often find myself during this holy mystery (as Charles Wesley put it in his hymn[1]) lost in wonder, love, and praise. 

I ask our communion stewards to always leave the loaf whole.  When serving this holy meal I prefer to break-off a piece for each person who comes, signifying what Paul wrote about one body.  In the church we are all a part of Christ’s body. 

This Sunday everything went smoothly…until it came to the bread.  The loaf was as fresh as ever, but the crust decided it wanted to stay intact.  As the line formed to participate, I stepped forward, loaf in hand, ready to break off a piece of the body (to serve a piece of the body).  I struggled for a moment, but the crust wouldn’t yield.  It took two more yanks on the loaf before it tore loose.  I now had two loaves, one in each hand.  Looking up at the congregant standing in front of me, with her hands palms-up, waiting, I stammered:  It seems this body of Christ doesn’t come apart easily.  She smiled; I almost laughed out loud! 

Solemn and sacred moments are a necessary part of engaging worship.  However, at times the lighter moments can point out some deep truths (albeit in a somewhat absurd and uncomfortable way).  I immediately regretted saying what I did, but nearly as quickly it hit me that was a deeper truth that had tumbled out of my lips…the body of Christ IS tough…Jesus said it would be strong enough with the power of the Holy Spirit to storm the gates of Hell[2].  That kind of body does not come apart easily.

After some further reflection Sunday afternoon and Monday morning, I concluded that God was speaking more to my heart in that humorous, uncomfortable moment, than I’d realized.  If you add up all the stories you’ve heard of churches being torn-apart by a fuss over trivialities like color of the roof or carpet, or what table the cakes should on at a fellowship meal,[3] those tales are only an ugly tip on Satan’s lips.  The church has withstood Nero’s persecution, the Dark Ages with false doctrine, the greed of false prophets on TV and radio, physical assaults like Covid and countless other viruses of human frailty. 

And the church, the body of Christ, still stands!  And will stand!

For You Today 

Yes, Jesus did say HIS church would storm the gates of Hell, and those gates wouldn’t be able to stand.  He also said HIS words would never pass away…ever![4]

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

Go to VIDEO (read by author)

There are about 2,500 devotional posts and 400 sermons in the Rocky Road Devotions library.  To dig deeper explore some of these:  Mem Tsade Hey  and  Bread in the Cup      

Title Image: via Pixabay.com    Images without citation are in public domain.

Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©  

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[1] Charles Wesley, Love Divine, All Loves Excelling, United Methodist Hymnal, p.384

[2] Matthew 16:18

[3] Irony definitely intended!

[4] Isaiah 40:8

When Mercy Outweighs Justice

 

Tuesday, May 26, 2020

Psalm 99:6-9

Moses and Aaron were among his priests; Samuel also called on his name.  They cried to the Lord for help, and he answered them.  He spoke to Israel from the pillar of cloud, and they followed the laws and decrees he gave them.  O Lord our God, you answered them.  You were a forgiving God to them, but you punished them when they went wrong.  Exalt the Lord our God, and worship at his holy mountain in Jerusalem, for the Lord our God is holy!

The seed of arrogance grows best in the darkness of unbelief.  When a person closes eyes to the truth of God’s sovereignty there springs a limitless list of possibilities to ignorance and chaos.  In short, there’s dumb; there’s also dumber.

In the 1994 movie Dumb and Dumber[1] Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels take the character of “dumb” to new levels.  One scene’s focus shows Carrey attempting to blot out whatever his dumb partner (played by Jeff Daniels) is saying.  He sticks his fingers in his ears and loudly debates, na, na, na, na, na, na, Naaaaah!  That he blots out what Daniels is saying is true, he can’t hear it; that he makes what is real unreal, is, contrarywise, only what a fool would believe.

It is that way with fools shaking a clenched fist at the sky to proclaim (as the mind of fools is want to believe) that no God has the right to meddle in human’s lives; it says so right in our 244 year old Declaration of Independence.  A rather older source (by a mere 4,000 years) refutes that thinking.

Only fools say in their hearts, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, and their actions are evil; not one of them does good!  Psalm 14:1[2]

There are so many moving parts to living as a human being.  Just breathing in and out, although we do it without thinking, would take a city of libraries to do even the slightest bit of justice to how magnificently the respiratory system conducts the orchestra of life’s miracle.  The fool somehow imagines he evolved into that because of some innate strength for which he or she alone can take credit.  Eyeroll intended!

If breathing is that incredible, yet everyone does it over 21,000 a day, what if we tried to fathom such things as reproduction, DNA, and human relationships?  Well, then you get really mind-boggled.

And, so, let me get to the point (before I don’t) – when life falls apart because of bad choices, like ingesting nicotine into really pink, healthy lungs, or eating yourself into a stupor, or imagining in any of 6 billion ways you can thumb your nose at how God designed life to be joyful, non-anxious, purposeful, and filled with joy, thinking you can do a better job…you’re sitting in the front seat of the pickup truck with Lloyd Christmas and Harry Dunne, sticking your fingers in your ear and blotting out truth.

The Good News is that, for anyone who will unstop their ears from hearing, repent of unbelief, and trust in God’s mercy – that mercy far outweighs the justice that can lead to a fool’s demise.

Let’s Pray

Father, forgive us each for taking our turns with blotting out the truth; your voice calls in soft whispers; help us to be still, open the ears of our hearts, and listen.

For You Today

It helps to remember that it IS possible to blot-out truth; that doesn’t mean you’ve won the debate; God’s truth is eternal and unbreakable[3].

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road today.  Have a blessed day!

Go to VIDEO

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

For another post on Psalm 99 see The Case for Worship

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[1] Reviewed on BasementRejects.com

[2] A search for the connection between fools and the human heart shows how strongly God feels about this

[3] See Isaiah 40:8

Finding Truth

[1]

Monday, September 9, 2019

I am writing these things to you now, even though I hope to be with you soon, so that if I am delayed, you will know how people must conduct themselves in the household of God.  This is the church of the living God, which is the pillar and foundation of the truth.  Without question, this is the great mystery of our faith:

Christ was revealed in a human body and vindicated by the Spirit.  He was seen by angels and announced to the nations.  He was believed in throughout the world and taken to heaven in glory.

Now the Holy Spirit tells us clearly that in the last times some will turn away from the true faith; they will follow deceptive spirits and teachings that come from demons.  These people are hypocrites and liars, and their consciences are dead.  They will say it is wrong to be married and wrong to eat certain foods.  But God created those foods to be eaten with thanks by faithful people who know the truth.  Since everything God created is good, we should not reject any of it but receive it with thanks.  For we know it is made acceptable by the word of God and prayer.        1 Timothy 3:14-16, 4:1-4

Booker T. Washington, American author, educator, and advisor to presidents in the late 19^th/early 20^th centuries once said:

“A lie doesn't become truth, wrong doesn't become right, and evil doesn't become good, just because it's accepted by a majority.”[2]

Washington was the major leader in his day of the African American struggle for civil rights.  However, his statement is timeless, much broader than ethnicity.  It is highly relevant in a day when truth has taken a beating in every area of life – politics, business, family, marriage, and even the church.  At times getting at the truth can be hunting for the proverbial needle in a haystack.

The apostle Paul dealt with enough of this problem to be our leader through the vast haystack of lies in contemporary culture.  Self-promoters on the religious front of his day had twisted enough of the gospel to make whatever praise for themselves served their selfish plans to become prominent and powerful.  Paul flatly stated that they had forsaken genuine truth in favor of following deceptive spirits, taught by demons, and had given their consciences over to the death of hypocrisy and lying. 

(Wow!  C’mon, Paul, shed that nice-nice talk; tell us what you really think!)

Truth is that which stands the test of time and Heaven.  Faddish movements come and go like Isaiah’s withering and fading flowers and grass; the truth of God’s Word will endure forever![3]  One of the reasons we are encouraged to search the Scripture is the sure guidance we will find towards truth. 

I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.  John 14:6

One day the religious leaders came to question Jesus, to trap him in a way that would discredit his message.  Jesus unloaded on them:

“You search the Scriptures because you think they give you eternal life.  But the Scriptures point to me!  Yet you refuse to come to me to receive this life.  “Your approval means nothing to me, because I know you don’t have God’s love within you.  For I have come to you in my Father’s name, and you have rejected me.  John 5:39-43

For You Today

Finding truth isn’t easy among all the false advertising, bluster of politicians, hyperbole of liars, and, not least of all, misleading from the pit of Hell.  But God’s people have the very source of truth at their disposal…prayer in the name of the One who IS truth!

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 of  Pixabay.com     Unless otherwise noted, Scripture used from The New Living Translation©

[2] Quote and Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

[3] Isaiah 40:8

Seeing and Following the Light - Part 2

[i]

Wednesday, February 8, 2017

Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.  Proverbs 29:18^(KJV)

So far we have seen that lack of vision (divine guidance) produces perishing (lacking direction or purpose).  Alice in Wonderland had no idea how to get out of the hole in which she’d fallen.  Considering she had no direction, Wonderland became Wander-land…an aimless moving from one fascination to the next. 

The Proverb writer was saying that’s not humanity’s goal, and in order to grow into what we were created for, there must be discipline.  And even if we don’t understand the why we must still comply, because God is sovereign and we are the creation of His hand. 

A second reality we bump into with this wonderful verse is:

SPIRITUAL FAMINE IS WORSE THAN PHYSICAL FAMINE

Chaos in the physical realm is bad; for instance not having any discipline in a diet to restrict food intake (in my case) will result in a porky preacher in the pulpit.  Chaos in the political realm is also bad; for instance not having a government to restrict criminals.  But chaos in the spiritual realm is the absolute worst! 

Why is it the worst?  Prove it, you say?  Glad to.... Just how long will your physical life last?  How about the politics here on earth?  How long will this old world be around?  Scripture says that the grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God shall stand forever.  ^{(Isa 40:8).}

I can say with conviction that spiritual famine is worse than physical neediness, for the simple fact that the life we live on earth is short, and eternity beyond this life is long.  Simple arithmetic at this point should tell us that you do better to invest for the long term, and not the short haul.

A four year-old child would tell you in a heartbeat that if there is ice cream to be had you shouldn't spend your money on okra!  But even if that child were educated on the relative down-side of ice cream, that it is filled with cholesterol, sugar and fats, as opposed to the health benefits of okra, which is filled with vitamins and non-fat iron, chances are a child will still, 99% of the time, choose a double scoop of chocolate fudge!  That's because a child is immature; he is a child big on natural desire and small on healthy discipline.  An adult, on the other hand, MAY choose more wisely!  Maybe!

See the same thing in the spiritual sense.  A spiritual infant starved of Bible Study and regular worship makes the same mistakes...only they are mistakes that affect his eternity! 

Here is an example (one among many) of spiritual immaturity in the Old Testament.  Led by Joshua, God's people were conquering the Promised Land.  There was a man among the soldiers named Achan.  God had told them that in their victory they were not to touch a single bit of the conquered enemy's possessions...it was all holy to the Lord.  This one man, Achan couldn't understand why God prohibited it, and disobeyed.  He had no strong faith, disciplined to believe that God knew what He was doing when He said not to take any of the spoils of the war.  Achan took some, hid it in his belongings, and God judged the whole nation for one man's sin.  Achan's spiritual famine cost thousands of lives, the defeat of Israel at the hand of a much inferior army, and eventually his own life. 

How many churches today have Achans stunting their growth?  Spiritual famine is far worse than missing a meal or two.

For You Today

At what point does your spiritual discipline break down?  And does it have the ability to affect others in your family, neighborhood, workplace, or church?

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

Go to VIDEO

NOTES

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[i]  Title image: By Anant Nath Sharma (www.thelensor.tumblr.com), via Wikimedia Commons