January 6--Amazing!--Part II

Matthew 5 is completely unAmerican, isn't it. Our culture is constantly telling us to "Stand up for your rights!" In fact, growing up in San Diego we have a newscaster, Michael Turko, whose sole job is to help people who are having problems with businesses or agencies and his slogan which he literally screams at you is, "It ain't right!"

How completely different then is what Jesus tells us. This passage is definitely what's called "hard teaching".

• 5:22--If you call someone an idiot, you are in danger of being brought before the court. If you curse someone, you are in danger of the fires of hell.
• 5: 28--Anyone who even looks at a woman (or man if you in fact are a woman) with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
• 5:39--Do not resist an evil person! If someone slaps you on the right cheek, offer the other cheek also.
• 5:40--If you are sued in court and your shirt is taken from you, give your coat, too.
• 5:41--If a soldier demands that you carry his gear for a mile, carry it two miles.
• 5:44--Love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you!

A lot of times we tend to think, "Well, Jesus didn't really mean that. I mean, it's not right for someone to slap me!" Or in our culture of the quick comeback and witty insult, it seems almost natural to curse someone.

But that's the whole point isn't it. Jesus is asking us to stand out, to be light (5:14). In fact, he goes as far as to say "But you are to be perfect even as your Father in heaven is perfect." (5:48)

Today serving in the children's ministry I was once again reminded of James 1:22: But don't just listen to God's Word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. How long have we been fooling ourselves, thinking we're doing great while insulting coworkers, complaining about how our "rights" have been violated and so forth. We are called to do and as we are finding out from God's Word, doing is dramatically different than what we're used to.

January 6--Amazing!--Part I

During today's reading, several things struck me as amazing, things I had never really "seen" before.

• Genesis 14:19-20--Melchizedek's prayer makes it very clear that Abram's talent at leading his band of men had nothing to do with the outcome. Melchizedek prays, "And blessed be God Most High who has defeated your enemies for you." What a reminder that everything we "accomplish" is only through the grace of our God Most High.
• Genesis 15--Abram, soon to be Abraham, had a close relationship with God. He spoke completely honestly saying, "O Sovereign Lord, what good are all Your blessings when I don't even have a son?" O Sovereign Lord is Adonai Yahweh. Even in the midst of his questioning, Abram understands that God is in complete control of his future.
• Genesis 15 continued--Look at the intimate ways God speaks to Abram. He starts by showing him the stars at night as a picture of the descendents Abram will have. Then God reminds Abram what He's already done in his life. Lastly, we see God walking through the carcasses, sealing the covenant. For a reminder of how HUGE this was, listen to Pastor Greg's sermon on covenants here. It starts at about 35 minutes in.

Wake-Up Call

Ever get complacent? Thinking everything is just fine and great. That's how I felt this morning. Unfortunately, I got a very unexpected wake-up call.

While searching my favorite networking site, I got an invitation...to a memorial service.

Emily(far right) was one of my roommates my sophomore year. She was bright, funny and totally sold out to Christ. She left second semester to spend a semester in Guatemala and then spent the rest of college living in a special housing project downtown where she would mentor kids in the neighborhood and be a part of community service projects. She went on to become an ICU nurse and continued to serve God through various causes and trips. I just can't believe that she's gone. She had even left a cheeky note on the networking site about her upcoming surgery.

Now I'm sitting here looking through old pictures and thinking, "Why?" In my human mind, Emily still had stuff to do, lots of stuff to do. In my mind, she had not yet finished her purpose. But God wanted her home. So I sit and wait like David:

Psalm 5: 1-3

O LORD, hear me as I pray;

pay attention to my groaning.

Listen to my cry for help, my King and my God,

for I pray to no one but You.

Listen to my voice in the morning, LORD.

Each morning I bring my requests to You and wait expectantly.

Intimacy with God

Wow, was this a great day! Here's some stuff that stuck out to me:

• Genesis 5:22-24 Story of Enoch. My commentary says that only Noah and Enoch were said to have "close fellowship with God". In fact, Enoch was so in tune to what God was up to that he didn't die! God just said, "Hey, come on home!" How amazing to have that level of intimacy with your Maker.
• Psalm 3:3 "But you, O LORD, are a shield around me; You are my glory, the One who holds my head high."
• Matthew 4:4 Jesus quotes Scripture as a shield again Satan.
• Matthew 4:6 Satan is not stupid! He knows Scripture! Satan quotes Psalm 91 completely out of context. Psalm 91 is about God being a refuge for those who are fleeing evil (irony).
• Matthew 4:11 Psalm 91 does hold true! Jesus defeats Satan and look who comes to protect Him? Angels!!! Sweet.

Pet peeve: "Religious" teachers who have no intimacy with God. I was driving back from San Diego and scanning the radio and came upon a pastor who was teaching, rather screaming that God does not speak to people today other than what's in the Bible and "if you hear any different, it's a lie!"

My first thought was to get mad, really mad. How many people did this guy just shut out from blessing because of his false teaching. What about the Holy Spirit? You can't throw out one whole aspect of God!

But then I was saddened. How many people live day to day completely missing the intimacy of knowing God, really knowing Him and listening to His voice. Does God still speak to His people today? YES!!! Look at His track record: look at all the people in the Bible, like Enoch, who didn't have Scripture to read. They shared a deep, intimate fellowship with God. That could only happen if a real, living, powerful God spoke directly to them. Since when is there a limit to God's revelation to His people?

This is why I teach

Saw this sign at Starbucks and just about died. Enjoy what the US public school system produces. If you can't read the sign it says:

"Comming soon...sugar-free mocha"

Yes, comming. Ugh.

First day of reading with the plan

So, I learned really fast that I need to sloooow down. I had read through Genesis 7 before I actually realized I was only supposed to read through Genesis 2. Oops. Well, I'm forcing myself to really meditate on what I've read, even rereading (which I HATE, but have to learn to love). So here's some thoughts on today's reading:

• Psalm 1: "God's Word is so vital we must bathe our thoughts constantly in its principles."
• Matthew 1-2: Can you ever really get tired of the Christmas story?
• Proverbs 1:23 (I know I read ahead but I couldn't help it!): "Come and listen to my counsel. I'll share my heart with you and make you wise." SWEET!

Restart your fresh start

One of the cool things that comes with visiting the folks is getting to go to their church, Mission Valley Christian Fellowship. MVCF is very similar to Palm Valley in that it has a strong vision and no building. They set up every Sunday at a different hotel depending on availability. Pastor Leo is always fun to hear with his passion for God being visible at all times. However, Sunday he was sick and Pastor Rob, his son-in-law, preached in the morning. Youth pastor, Lyle, preached Sunday night.
Wow, what a blessing! Pastor Rob has this amazing ability to lead you into worship patterns. I don't know if that makes any sense, but you'll be tooling along listening passively and Zap! something will convict you and you'll find yourself meditating on it until the next Zap! Quite frankly, I only really hear 50% of his sermon, but the 50% that I hear really sticks. He spoke about the importance of reading the Bible, not in a "I know everything" tone, but in a "Gee, I really blew it this year" tone which was refreshing. He spoke about how God is gracious in that he gives fresh starts, not just on January 1st. Listen to the actual sermon here.
Pastor Lyle, who cracks me up, followed up on Sunday night talking about how God is gracious enough to help you "restart your fresh start". He talked about the importance of being in the Word (hmmm...a theme here) and how he feels that God used Pastor Leo's illness to really convict him of his need to be in the Word constantly. He used the example of Joash, a young man who was in the Word, fell out and then totally blew it. Click here to listen to the sermon.
So as I start this "Route 66" journey with Palm Valley it's encouraging to know that other leaders are following after God's heart by reading His Word and urging others to do the same.
No matter where you are this January 1st know that you can "restart your fresh start" and get in step with God by reading His personal revelation to you.