Light and Truth

"Send forth Your Light and Your Truth, let them guide me; let them bring me to Your holy mountain, to the place where You dwell. Then I will go to the altar of God, to God, my joy and my delight." Psalm 43:3-4a

How is your soul?

Where do you meet with the Lord?

Has He become your joy and delight?

"Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God. Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, men will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else." -2 Corinthians 9:10-12

You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all of your heart. For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power! Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxieties on Him because He cares for you. Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Prepare your minds for action; be self controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy." For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Jeremiah 29:13; 1 Corinthians 4:20; 1 Peter 5:6-7; James 4:7; Romans 12:2a, 13:14, 12:12; 1 Peter 1:13-16; John 3:16;

The New Jerusalem - God's Covenant Blessing

What do you think the significance is of Heaven being referred to as the New Jerusalem? I have not studied about Heaven. I am not talking about the essence of Heaven, I am talking about God's act of giving Heaven to us. Here are my thoughts around this question. If you think I've overlooked something or missed an idea or a thought, comment and add it right in! I'm just writing what I think.

The OLD Jerusalem, the promised land, was a land 'flowing with milk and honey.' A very blessed land that will be the epitome of 'good land.' This promised land was near water, it was flourishing with crops and plants and animals. The Israelite's troubles were taken care of in that land!

I want to suggest that Jesus was, perhaps, a second form of 'promised land' given to mankind. As Jerusalem was a physical gift that met their physical need, So is Christ an eternal gift to meet our eternal need! It was in Christ that God overcame sin. God met with His people on a level they could not have foreseen! His provision of forgiveness in Christ was far beyond what their imagination would consider. The Israelites had the mentality that the Christ would come much like Moses and Abraham did. They actually thought that the Christ would be a human prophet and/or king figure who would overrule the Romans - setting the Israelites free from oppression. If only they had known God better than they knew His statutes; they would not have missed the Christ.

Heaven will be the NEW Jerusalem! A third promise! Jerusalem was a physical blessing, Jesus is the eternal blessing, and Heaven...I will call the beautiful blessing (In this case, the word beautiful can describe no other thought, feeling or thing! There is not a word appropriate for titling Heaven!). Jerusalem brought tangible provision, Jesus brought Spiritual provision, and Heaven will bring us into the Glory of God. The religious leaders were oblivious to Jesus' teachings. Jesus did not match up to their tradition, so they ruled Him out before seeing Him in light of Scripture "In light of Scripture" is not an easy term. They would have had to read into many of the prophet's writings in a way that hadn't been done before. We're talking about a reformation, here! Rewriting theological structure that the leading religious people held - about everything: especially about Christ, but in turn, they would have to revise their thinking to conform to Jesus. Understanding the culture in context really helps us to see why the pharisees and teachers of the law never believed Jesus. To accept Jesus was to deny the legacy of their ancestry, as it had become a vile institution of false worship and teaching.

We are the ones looking for the New Jerusalem! The third promise! In a sense, we are the 'Israelites' and the 'religious leaders.' Just as He did for the Israelites and for the teachers of the law, God is bringing about us a wonderful promise that we cannot imagine (not even if we were told! Habakkuk 1:5). The reality is, our response is within the same principles as the Israelites and the teachers of the law as well - meaning that our receiving the promised blessing hinges on the condition that we are obedient and faithful to God first. So our inability to imagine the promise is bittersweet. The Israelites knew what their promise looked like - a land flowing with milk and honey was very difficult to oversee. The teachers of the law knew every thing there was to know about the Christ who was to come, yet they did not walk in obedient faith with God, and so their knowledge was irrelevant. This leads me to wonder - what marvelous things God can do! What marvelous things He WILL do. How dreadful it is to have missed the Christ. I will not be among those who will miss His glory.

Take Heart. Strength Will Rise. Believe!

I wrote this literally talking to myself. Every 'you' is meant for me. I post it in hope that some others can relate.

What is your hearts desire? Is it worth your attention and effort? Is it something you must strive for, or something you merely insist on waiting around for?

Do you have you a desire that runs exclusively deep in your mind, even in your heart, whether it is that you are praying for your child to know Christ, for a personal preference, for your friend to be healed, or for your congregation to grow? I believe in you. The Lord believes in you. I believe that if, by prayer, you do still find that one thing to be deserving of your time and effort, of God's time and effort, and if you believe that God has in mind to bless you and/or others in that way, you must keep on believing.

Believing in God's promises is a sacrifice that this world renders foolish. Many of my friends have rendered me foolish in my dealings. When I am influenced in their words, however, I slip up and am reminded that I can trust the voice of God even when it is the only voice of it's kind. I know these truths all the more: Jesus is my hope. I must choose to hope for nothing else. He will keep His promises. I will be blessed and protected and will be being satisfied when I dwell in the shelter of His presence.

Be encouraged in this: In the deepest realm of my being (whether it's my mind or my heart or my actions or presuppositions, who knows), many things are at war with God for my time, but at least one thing is even at war with God for the actual throne of utmost worth. I would never consciously (as it seems to me) give up God's place of worth to any other thing. I know that God is most worthy, but sometimes, perhaps I know it less.

So your prayer must be absorbed into every inch of what God made humans to consist of, because of faith in Jesus. God must have all you are; yet, nobody has adequate understanding of humanity to know what 'all' may entail. God must be all you want; still, the blows of the enemy discourage and tear you down, even now. It seems you can barely coherently think even sufficiently to survive! And too, the pressure of being continually aware of where you place value is wearisome, not a natural practice in your society!

Do not fear. Do not be discouraged.
Be courageous. Dwell in God's encouragement.
BE STRONG in the Lord. He is Mighty to Save.
Dwell in Him, and He will be the Rock upon which You will stand firm.

What Does Not Meet the Eye

Random thought: I am one to read into things. Not so much paranoia or overthinking, but I really like to look closer and to realize what does not meet the eye. I remember a sermon Ravi Zacharias once gave about 'wonder' or 'awe' or 'amazement' at the Lord and the fulfillment of His promises. You see, children are so easily amused and amazed. As people grow old, things become less exciting. Ravi's point was that the longer we live in relationship with God the more often we tend to sell Him short. At first, when someone first comes to believe, that person is encouraged and motivated be every little thing! Even in something like finding a parking space near the entrance of a store! There is an aspect of wonder in the new believer's mind which makes the person so expectant of God's devotion and His blessings. That awareness easily fades as the years, even as the days go by. Referred to as faith in the Bible, this awareness of the ability and active love of God in our lives is so important. When we take Him at His Word, He accepts us as we are.

Read into things. Train yourself to think.‎1 Peter 5:6-7 talks about God's ultimate capability over ours, and His infinite love and care for us! We can cast all anxieties on Him, but this won't ever do any good for anyone until we realize and proclaim and actively believe that God is God, and is Almighty and All-Powerful. If you don't believe that, and realize the practical truth in it, then it's like you're trying to trust some deaf and dumb object. God is not deaf or dumb. He knows your heart, and is ready to prove to you His unaltering love for you! Just take Him at His Word. Recognize how, great or small, every good thing is from above. Acknowledge (Psalm 91) BOLDLY and WITH FAITH, BELIEVINGLY, that He who is most powerful is the source of your life, and the source of even the small things that make your day brighter.

Anything Worth Saying?

I found out today that it is my turn to preach the sermon on Sunday morning. I’m so excited! There have been multiple Scripture passages standing out in my mind the past few days. What a wonderful opportunity I have to share, or pour out, all that God is filling me with.

There is so much going on in me that I cannot easily discern what it is I ought to speak about. This is good! I believe prayer should be the first step. I think I will focus on Colossians 1:17 and maybe touch on a few side-scriptures here and there that were on my mind (1 Peter 5:6-7, Isaiah 61). As I go to seek the Lord’s heart, I think a good question to ask is (in context of who I am, where I am, who I am talking to) “what is essential to say?” I think of particular words taken from Aaron Shust’s song ‘Give me Words’ that say “Give me words to speak, don’t let my spirit sleep, because I can’t think of anything worth saying.” The difference is that he writes about being speechless when conversing with the Lord, I am about to speak with people and I am everything but speechless. The difficulty is that I cannot ‘preach on every topic.’ So my prayer is that He would provide me with the words to speak(although God has already provided me with many many words, I feel as if I have nothing to say).

I will write more later. Peace!

Come Se Dicce…

What a day! There continues to be difficulty communicating with people here in Italy, but today I actually experienced blessings because of the language barrier. Realize, please, how it does take some effort in order to communicate words and meanings between languages. Tonight we had an outdoor church service – we sang songs, did a sketch (house built on sand, house built on rock), Steph gave her testimony, and Emma preached. Following the service, we went to a barbeque at one of the family’s home from the corps. It was the best time I have had in Italy yet, possibly. Without exaggerating, I can honestly say that I have never eaten so much in my life. On my second helping of salad, one man exclaimed, “Americani no eat much food, but you (to Josh, Emmanuel and I) eat much food!” This was when I decided I wasn’t going to stop. For me at the barbeque tonight, it sometimes seemed like we really weren’t going to stop eating. It was wonderful!

Earlier today, we had a little bit of down time – I had the chance to look up some Scripture and reflect on it. The first was 1 Peter 5:6-7. I noticed an interesting connection between these verses that is hidden. You see, verse 6 advises us to ‘humble’ ourselves under the strength of the LORD, I believe it says. See that you understand – it is us doing the ‘humbling’ and it specifically says ‘under God,’ it does not mean humility in everyday life with family and friends. He is saying, essentially, “Dude, realize how small you are in comparison to God. No, but for real, you need to imagine all that you are capable of; also, think of all that God is capable of. Know and see His ultimate power next to your tininess.”

Now check out verse 7, “Cast your anxieties on Him, for He cares for you!” Of course, the author just emphasized the infinite power and ability of God to work. He just pumped us up about the infinite power of God! This is the left hook – this all powerful God cares so much for us, and we can cast our worries and such on Him. Know the reality of these verses. Find the heart in the verse.

Shalom for now!

Full Surrender to an Unseen Cause

“It is not the quality of the instrument you place in the hands of God that determines its usefulness, it is the full surrender you make of it. It is not the quality of the agent, it is God’s having the full disposal and undisputed sway in using him.”
-Catherine Booth

“It is not our duty to bring every individual to Christ, but it is our business to see that Christ is brought to every individual.”
-William Evans

Everyday, I am realizing more how the effectiveness we have for furthering the Kingdom of God is not determined by the completion of the tasks we have been given so much as it is the spirit in which we accomplish those tasks.

“Christ be with us, Christ within us,
Christ behind us, Christ before us,
Christ beside us, Christ to win us,
Christ to comfort and restore us.
Christ beneath us, Christ above us,
Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,
Christ in hearts of all that love us,
Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.”
-From St. Patrick’s ‘Breastplate Prayer’

Shalom! :)