Cooperating with a smile

Cooperating with a smile
by Jon Walker

“Your attitude should be the same that Christ Jesus had – though he was God, he did not demand and cling to his rights as God. He made himself nothing; he took the humble position of a slave ….” (Philippians 2:5-7 NLT)

Discipleship — Cooperation is doing with a smile what you have to do anyway. You’ll never find that sentence in the Bible, but I think its spirit is implied throughout God's Word. We are called to be obedient to God's commands, and part of that obedience is having a sensitive servant’s attitude.

I learned this lesson years ago when I was working for someone, who at the time, I didn’t respect. I would do whatever he asked me to do – eventually – but I tended to drag my feet, complain, or point out how wrong he was.

But God used that relationship to teach me godly obedience. Through his Word, God taught me to obey my earthly authorities. He showed me that Christ-like character required me to work with the same servant’s attitude regardless of how I felt about my work environment or my employer.

God not only changed my attitude, he led me to seek forgiveness from my boss for my disrespectful attitude. It was a major turning point in my life, as I came to understand what it meant to be a man under authority, regardless of who was in authority at the time. God could work through a boss who was a believer, and he could work through a boss who was a tyrant – because he is God and in all situations I ultimately should be responding to his authority.

Eventually, I developed considerable respect for my boss, and he became one of my greatest mentors and supporters. Though not a believer, he taught me, “Cooperation is doing with a smile what you have to do anyway.”

So what?

· Live the Gospel – How you conduct yourself at work is part of your Christian witness. Today, go beyond the minimum requirements and see how those around you respond. To quote Francis of Assisi: “Share the gospel; if necessary, use words.”

· Change your attitude – Be respectful, helpful, and gracious to those in authority over you – no matter how difficult it may be.

· Go the extra mile with a smile – Christ said, “If someone compels you to carry his pack one mile, carry it two.” People are more likely to listen to what you say when your actions show respect and concern for them, when you do more than the minimum required.

· Hey God, a little help! – Ask God to turn those tough situations at work into opportunities to share the Gospel, but check your own attitude first.

A Hopeful Future

A Hopeful Future
by Jon Walker

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you … thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.” (Jeremiah 29:11 KJV)

Discipleship — When you hear about the sickening shootings at Virginia Tech, it’s only human to wonder if God is fully engaged in the events of this world.

Why, God, do you allow these things to happen?

Over the years, as I’ve shouted this question to God, grappling to understand the explosion of evil into the lives of good people, I’ve encountered what seemed to be an unsettling silence from God.

I know that his Word tells us evil exists in this world because of sin, and that the fists of the Evil One are indiscriminate, hammering on the innocent along with the guilty. God’s Word also teaches that the Evil One will take direct aim at us as we walk more closely with God.

But, still, why, God, do you allow these things to happen?

I say it seemed like unsettling silence from God until one day, in the Divine’s still, small voice, I sensed God asking me a question in return – you know, the way Jesus often said to the Pharisees, “I’ll answer your question after you answer mine.”

God’s question: “Jon, do you serve the One True God (Deut. 6:4), or do you serve the ‘god of understanding it all.’”

More questions followed: “Are you trying to be the god of understanding, believing that if you can just understand what is going on, then – and only then – you’ll be able to accept it, live with it, or live through it? Is your faith in me based on what you understand, or is it based on your faith in my hand?”

When we’re facing trouble, we often quote Jeremiah 29:11 (KJV): “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you … thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.”

Listen carefully: God is telling us that we may misunderstand his plans for us, that we may wrongly perceive his plans as evil, but those plans are the very thing — the only thing — that will give us, literally, “a hopeful future.”

To echo Eugene Peterson, in the midst of our distress, we think that we’re being pushed to the very edge of our existence; but once there, we realize we’ve been pressed into the very center of God. The peace that God speaks of in Jeremiah is not an absence of conflict; it’s about wholeness (shalom). It’s about becoming a people who are whole again because we are face to face with God, learning to think, not like mere men, but like God.

So what?

· Nasty now and now – The things we truly believe emerge in what Peter Lord calls the “nasty now and now.” Your faith is hammered out in the everyday, mundane experiences of your life, and when you face the fists of the Evil One. Faith is not resolved in heady discussions about the nature of evil.

· God is at work – Like a dormant tree in winter that appears to be dead until the buds of spring, God is always at work in our lives and throughout the world – even today on the campus of Virginia Tech. Don’t assume the tree is dead in winter; look expectantly toward the buds of spring.

· Seek God’s face – Seek God’s face, instead of seeking to understand. Trust that God will give you insight and understanding when the time is right. Until then, he’s developing your faith in him.

Opening up to others

Opening up to others
by Jon Walker

“Now that I've put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand – shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you'll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16 MSG)

Fellowship — Giggling as he played on the floor with his Aunt Merilee, my young son’s eyes danced with pleasure. Christopher’s laughter was so captivating that Merilee leaned into his face and said with a grin, “I’m going to steal your giggles!”

Without warning, Christopher grabbed Merilee in a baby bear hug and planted a playful kiss on her cheek. Merilee fell back and – guess what – she giggled.

And then she giggled some more.

Finally she said, “Oh, Christopher! I was going to steal your giggles, and you gave them to me instead.”

A lesson in life from a 2-year-old! So often we walk through life thinking we have to steal or earn or grab or protect the objects of the joyful life we see in others.

We listen to worldly voices that urge, “Go for the gusto. You only live once. Grab what you can get.”

Yet from a simple child we can learn that true joy is not taken. It’s given.

Today, instead of stealing giggles, give them away and see how many more come back to you.

So what?

· You bring pleasure – You were made to be a source of pleasure and joy – to God and to others.

· Become a joy dispenser – Laugh loudly and as often as you can. Smile at a stranger. Bless people with your joy. If you don’t have joy, then ask God to guide your heart toward the joy found in Christ.

· Thank God that he is a Father who delights in our enjoyment and loves our laughter. Ask him to increase your joy that you may share it will others.

· “… Be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you'll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16 MSG)

Teaching by living

Teaching by living
by Jon Walker

“Let the words of Christ, in all their richness, live in your hearts and make you wise. Use his words to teach and counsel each other.” (Colossians 3:16a NLT)

Mission — Every day you teach people about God. You may teach Truth or you may teach mythology; either way you teach. You teach others that God is faithful or that he can’t be trusted, and you do that by reflecting faith in God, or by behaving as if he can’t be trusted.

As if.

Some of us carry a myth in our minds that the only people who can teach are the gifted or the professional, yet the Apostle Paul says, “I know that you have all the knowledge you need and that you are able to teach each other.” (Romans 15:14b NCV)

Certainly teaching includes unpacking Bible stories and giving theological insight, but we also teach as we model biblical behavior when it comes to the stuff of life, such as how to love/respect your spouse, how to make godly decisions, how to keep our thought-life pure, or how to get out of debt.

That means we become teachers when we tell, show, reflect how God is working in our lives, and we become teachers when we respond, act, walk as if Jesus himself were living through us (and he is – Romans 8:9-11). By watching you, others will see what “Christ in you” looks like in another human being. (Colossians 1:27 NIV)

So what?

· Being a living teacher makes you wise – Paul says, “Let the words of Christ live in your heart.” You need to know God’s Word before you can teach it through study or by living it. By hearing, reading, studying, memorizing, and meditating on the words of Christ, they’ll take root in your heart, and this will make you wise. (Romans 15:14b NCV)

· God’s wisdom over conventional wisdom – Too often we look to the world’s conventional wisdom when we’re seeking answers, yet the Truth is found only in God’s wisdom.

Being honest with each other

Being honest with each other
by Jon Walker

“No more lies, no more pretense. Tell your brother the truth. In Christ’s body we’re all connected to each other. When you lie to others, you end up lying to yourself.” (Ephesians 4:25 MSG)

Discipleship — Honesty deepens our relationships, allowing us to be transparent with one another. (Proverbs 24:26) It keeps our fellowship open and authentic, freeing us to speak the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15) as we practice remarkable integrity. (Titus 2:7) It keeps us sensitive to the Holy Spirit’s guidance (John 16:13) and helps us battle deceptions that corrupt our lives in Christ. (2 Corinthians 10:5)

Being honest with each other requires us to say what we mean and mean what we say. (Matthew 5:37) It means we show the same honesty in public as we do in private. (Acts 20:20) It calls us to remain committed to the One Truth – God’s truth. (John14:6)

As new creations in Christ, we’ve taken off our old selves, and accordingly we should no longer lie to each other. (Colossians 3:9) In fact, the father of lies is the evil one: “There is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar ....” (John 8:44 NIV; italics added)

Being honest in Christian community means we no longer use pretense to keep others from seeing who we really are – “We refuse to wear masks and play games. We don’t maneuver and manipulate behind the scenes. And we don’t twist God’s Word to suit ourselves. Rather, we keep everything we do and say out in the open, the whole truth on display, so that those who want to can see and judge for themselves in the presence of God.” (2 Corinthians 4:2 MSG)

There should be no need to “read between the lines or look for hidden meanings” because we speak a “plain, unembellished truth.” (2 Corinthians 1:13 MSG)

In fact, we’re to “use our powerful God-tools for smashing warped philosophies, tearing down barriers erected against the truth of God, fitting every loose thought and emotion and impulse into the structure of life shaped by Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:5 MSG)

So what?

· Dishonesty pollutes – When dishonesty pollutes our lives together, it becomes difficult to develop a deeper trust for one another. (Luke 16:10 NLT)

· There are two kinds of lies:

Lies of commission – These are lies where we specifically make false statements.

Lies of omission – These are lies where we fail to tell the whole truth, or we wink at the deceptions of others.

Do you struggle with either of these? Both?

· Practice telling the honest truth – God says that one day “every tongue will tell the honest truth that I and only I am God.” (Romans14:11b MSG)

Hopelessly in love

Hopelessly in love
by Jon Walker

Jesus replied: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” (Matthew 22:37 NIV)

Worship — We were singing praise choruses during a worship service when I noticed the typo. The lyrics for the song were supposed to be, “I'm hopelessly in love with you.”

But someone had accidentally typed: “I'm hopefully in love with you.” It was just a one-word typo, but it carried a message equal in power to a sermon containing thousands of words.

Think about it: What’s the difference between being hopefully in love with God as opposed to being hopelessly in love with him?

‘Hopefully’ suggests tentativeness: “Gee, I hope I can love you, God.”

On the other hand, ‘hopelessly’ suggests total abandonment, an ice-tea plunge into the pool: “God, I'm in this relationship from the top of my head to the tips of my toes. No matter where it leads. No matter what it means.”

We express a desire to deepen our relationship with God – and all the while he’s already in the deep end, urging us to jump in and join him?

And there we stand, testing the Living Water with our toes, hesitant to take the flying leap into the deep that would fully immerse us into the life of Christ because it would require us to drown out so many pesky, little things that we think – that we imagine – give us life, when our real life is in Christ (Colossians 3:3). Our true life comes through the grace of God and our holy Spirit-connection with Jesus.

I know why I pause by the edge of the pool: It means I’ll have to put away childish things (1 Corinthians 13:11) and toddler-like attitudes (1 Corinthians 3:2). It means maturing when it’s easier to stay immature.

The thing is – and this is what deflates all my excuses and rationalizations – abandoning myself to God is a choice. The only thing hindering me from a deep, deep abiding relationship with God is – me. It is my unwillingness to give up those things that distract me from God and my stubborn refusal to make time with God a priority in my life are also choices I choose.

And, my friend, the only thing hindering you from a deep, deep, abiding relationship with God is – you.

In that sense, you choose to become hopelessly in love with God. It doesn’t take a saint or a special kind of person; it comes down to the simple, yet incredibly difficult choice to love God with “… all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.”

You don’t fall into that kind of love; you purposely immerse yourself in it. God is in the deep end, calling out: “Come on in; the Living Water refreshes!”

So what?

· Your choice – The only thing hindering you from a deep relationship with God is – you.

· What hinders? – Ask God to reveal anything that is hindering you from developing a deeper relationship with him. As he reveals the hindrances, face them honestly and talk to God about where to go from here.

· God guides the heart – Ask God to guide you deeper, bringing you to a place where you are hopelessly in love with him.

· How do you adjust? – What would it look like if you loved God “with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind?” (Matthew 22:37 NIV) How would you adjust your behavior and your thoughts?

Jesus stopped

Jesus stopped
by Jon Walker

“Dear children, let us stop just saying we love each other; let us really show it by our actions.” (1 John 3:18 NLT)

Ministry/Service — Jesus stopped. He stopped when people needed his help; when they needed his comfort; when they needed his protection; when they needed an answer to a perplexing problem.

Jesus saw the interruptions in his life as divine opportunities to show God’s love to people in desperate need.

Jesus approached love from a show first, then tell perspective.

He defined love as meeting needs, and when he touched people, they realized “… they were in a place of holy mystery, that God was at work among them. They were quietly worshipful – and then noisily grateful, calling out among themselves, ‘God is back, looking to the needs of his people!’” (Luke 7:16 MSG)

Jesus expressed his love through action. He calls us to be action figures, but he never wants us so busy saving the world that we ignore the interruptions of those in need.

Like the Good Samaritan, Jesus wants us ever ready to help someone in need (Luke 10). The Bible says, “If you see some brother or sister in need and have the means to do something about it but turn a cold shoulder and do nothing, what happens to God's love? It disappears. And you made it disappear.” (1 John 3:17 MSG, italics added)

Jesus showed that faith and service go hand-in-hand. When the woman of poor reputation anointed Jesus’ feet with expensive oil and tearfully washed them with her hair, Jesus said to her, “Your faith has saved you. Go in peace.” Her act of service was a reflection of her faith in God.

When the disciples of John the Baptist asked Jesus to verify he was the Christ, his response was to point to his service. He said, “Go back and report to John what you have seen and heard: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.” (Luke 7:22 NIV)

And the Jesus-follower James stressed that we are to be doers of the word, not just hearers: “Does merely talking about faith indicate that a person really has it? For instance, you come upon an old friend dressed in rags and half-starved and say, "Good morning, friend! Be clothed in Christ! Be filled with the Holy Spirit!" and walk off without providing so much as a coat or a cup of soup – where does that get you? Isn't it obvious that God-talk without God-acts is outrageous nonsense?” (James 2:14a-17 MSG)

Francis of Assisi once wrote, “Preach the gospel; if necessary, use words.” In showing our love, no task should be too menial. Jesus specialized in acts of service most people usually try to avoid: washing feet, helping children, fixing breakfast, and serving lepers. Nothing was beneath him, because his service flowed from his love.

So what?

· Practical love – Jesus indicated our acts of love should be very practical; even giving a cup of cold water in his name is an act of love (Matt. 10:42).

· Serve today – Ask, ‘How can I serve you today?’ Look around and address what you see: Help mow the lawn, watch a neighbor’s child, bring food to a shut-in, visit a sick friend.

· We serve God by serving others, and we can serve even better when we serve with other believers (Ecclesiastes 4:9). Think about a ministry that you can share with a small group of friends.

The anchor of our hope

The anchor of our hope
by Jon Walker

“Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” (James 1:2-4 NIV)

Discipleship — God tells us in the Book of James that we can count it all joy when we go through trials and tribulations.

He isn’t saying we have to be happy when we suffer a loss. Rather, we can be confident that a just and loving and merciful Father is working everything out for the good of his perfect will (Romans 8:28) – and we can rejoice because God uses moments of crisis to reveal where we have anchored our hope.

Have you anchored your hope in your circumstances? Or have you anchored your hope “on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness”?

Several years ago my daughter, Kathryn, died. And, to be perfectly honest, my wife and I became angry with God. We’d asked him to save Kathryn, and he didn’t answer our prayer.

But slowly we began listening to God, and gently … very gently … he taught us that our perspective was extraordinarily narrow. We’d placed our hope in our answer to prayer, insisting we knew best what should happen. We did not trust that God knew what he was doing, that with his Father’s heart he had figured it all out, making plans to take care of us and Kathryn, plans to give us the future we actually hoped for in the depths of our hearts. (Jeremiah 29:11 MSG)

We’d hung our hopes on the wrong hook, forgetting our Creator is a God of hope, and that his hope will not disappoint. (Romans 5:1-5)

This is the Truth we can cling to no matter what our circumstances. We can trust in God’s character, even when we can’t see his hand at work. We can trust in God’s plans for us, knowing that he goes before and comes behind. We can trust that God is always in control and that he is bigger than our circumstances.

If our God is not God in times of trouble, then he isn’t God at all.

The Apostle Paul told us that, because we have this tremendous hope inside, we need not grieve our losses like those who have no hope. He’s not saying we can’t or shouldn’t grieve at all; rather, he’s saying that death or any other loss is not the end of the story because we serve the God of Glory.

We believe Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe God will resurrect those in Christ who’ve been taken from us. And we can encourage one another with these words of hope. (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 NIV)

So what?

· Let God be God – God is working out the details of your life. Even the darkness is light to him, and he can take even bad situations and redeem them for his holy purposes.

· His hands hold your future – Where have you hung your hope? Is it in a job, a relationship, a dream home, a wishful chance to make a better choice in the past? Tell God you’re giving your circumstances and regrets to him, that you’re placing all your hope in his hands.

· Look above – “Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.” (Colossians 3:2 NIV) Look to God and not at your circumstances.

· Change what you do – How would you handle a situation differently if you were 100% sure that God was working the details out, according to his eternal plan and based on his love for you? “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see ….” (Hebrews 11:1 NIV)

Somewhere else

Somewhere else
by Jon Walker

“For I have learned to be content, whatever the circumstances.” (Philippians 4:11 NIV)

Community — Have you ever been somewhere you didn’t want to be? Maybe it was a job, a town, or a marriage. Maybe it was a stage in life, like singlehood, or a state in life, like a disability. It’s very possible that as you read this, you’re wishing you were somewhere else – anywhere else – living a different life, but you know it’s not likely that anything is going to change any time soon.

God has a word for you. It’s the same word he gave a group of people when they were stuck in another country, exiled from their homeland. They’d folded their arms and said, “We’re going to wait this thing out, and when we get home, we’ll start living our lives.”

Through the prophet Jeremiah, God told them, “You’re not going home any time soon, so start making your lives here. Plant gardens, buy homes, let your children get married, and pray for the peace and prosperity of the place where you’re currently living because, by doing that, you too will be blessed with peace and prosperity.”

To use a modern cliché, God was saying, “Bloom where you’re planted.”

Don’t invest your energy in hopes of leaving; instead invest your energy in the people around you. The Christian martyr Jim Eliot expressed it this way: “Wherever you are, be all there.” Don’t be physically present but mentally somewhere else, thinking of the future or the past, thinking of someplace else. Our journey with Christ requires that we be fully present in the present.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer called it “this worldliness,” and said, “It is only by living completely in this world that one learns to live by faith.” This focus allows you to see that your life is centered in God and not the place you live or work, not the person you’re married to – or not married to – not how you feel or how you look.

Investing in the people around you is exactly how you find life. Jeremiah even told the exiles that God had arranged for them to be in exile. So it was God’s plan all along to push them to the edge of their existence, so they would end up centered solely on God.

You may feel like you’re in exile too, but God is still working in your life; and his message to you is: Dig in and fully embrace the life around you.

So What?

· Center your life in God, not in your circumstances. God is constant; your circumstances are temporary. Ask God, “What do you want me to learn or to do in these present circumstances.”

· Change me, God – Instead of asking God to change your circumstances, ask him to change you in the circumstances.

· Practice being in the present – Today, whenever you find your mind drifting to another place, bring it back to the present, and ask God to help you stay in the present.

· Determine to be a good steward of what you have, instead of focusing on what you don’t have. Make the most of what God has given you.

The Holy One of Blessing

The Holy One of Blessing
by Jon Walker

“For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.” (Romans 11:36 NIV)

Worship — Last night I read the book, “Night,” by Elie Wiesel. The narrative was so compelling that I could not put it down. Wiesel described the unholy madness he faced during World War II as a prisoner in the German killing-camp Auschwitz and then as one of the few survivors of a death march to the concentration camp at Buchenwald .

Wiesel, an orthodox Jew, lost his faith in God and in humanity as, day by day, he fought to survive in a catastrophic pit of hell where, as one prisoner told him, “… There are no fathers, no brothers, no friends. Everyone lives and dies for himself alone.”

When he was finally liberated by Allied Forces in 1945, Wiesel was just 16. He’d witnessed the slow death of his father; his mother and sister were presumably dead; and he felt as if everything had come to an end: “… Man, history, literature, religion, God. There was nothing left. And yet we begin again with night” (a reference to the Jewish tradition that a new day starts as night falls).

Throughout the narrative, Wiesel records bits and pieces of traditional Jewish prayers as they’re recited by himself and other prisoners, and he honestly records his anger at God for appearing to ignore those who cried out for the Almighty’s protection.

In my life, I’ve never faced the kind of earthly hell Wiesel faced, yet I’ve found myself angry at God for appearing to ignore my cries for help. I’ve abandoned my faith for much lesser things.

I cannot say how strong my faith would be if I was faced with an evil so mind-wrenching. Just trying to write this devotional, I could not find adjectives strong enough to convey the horror at Auschwitz and Buchenwald , and yet, in my life, I struggle to maintain my faith when I simply don’t get my way.

But then, it’s not about me, and it’s not about you. We serve a God of Blessings, even though we may not see the blessings in our hand. We may not even see the blessings in God’s hand, but as my sweet Southern aunt always says, “When you can’t see God’s hand, trust in his character.”

It would seem the stuff of faith is facing the fire, and like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, we say, “If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” (Daniel 3:17-18 NIV)

In other words, we may not be rescued by God, but we will continue to worship him, and, just to be clear, no matter what happens, we will not worship your gods. We will not worship inferior gods made from gold, stone, and wood. We will not worship inferior gods made from the brick and mortar of self-centeredness, from self-will, from our demands for an easy, understandable life and an easy, “only if I can see it” faith. (Hebrews 11:1)

We worship God when we leave it up to him to interpret our circumstances. We worship God when we take the facts that we can see and offer them to the God-who-sees-all. We worship God when we allow him to define our lives and our purpose.

We worship God when we allow our heartache and our horrible circumstances to crowd us closer to the One who grieves with us because he loves us more than any other.

So what?

· Give your circumstances to God – God sees the big picture, so he is the best one to interpret your circumstances. He is in control of all things, even when it may not appear that way.

· Look for the blessing – When faced with heartache, ask God to show you the blessing, the dark treasures, hidden within. (Isaiah 45:3)

· Instead of asking, ‘Why is this happening to me?’ ask God, “What do you want me to do in this situation?”

· Pray: “Oh Holy One of Blessing, Your presence fills creation. Thank you for this day and for the simple blessings I so often overlook. You go before and behind, and I trust you to turn these circumstances into something that brings glory to you.”

The ministry of acceptance

The ministry of acceptance
by Jon Walker

“So accept each other just as Christ has accepted you; then God will be glorified. (Romans 15:7 NLT)

Ministry/Mission — When I was growing up, I considered my older brother the embodiment of cool. Cole was funny, handsome, athletic, and popular. He married the homecoming queen and then became an Air Force pilot, where he exhibited courage and grace at war in Vietnam .

He’d quite literally been all around the world, and he always returned with fascinating stories about the places he’d been and the people he’d met.

Because I grew up feeling like an outsider, I often wished I could be like my brother, who seemed accepted and liked by just about everyone. One summer, while I was in college, I stayed a few weeks with my brother, and while we were at a restaurant with his many pilot friends and their wives, Cole said, “I think Jon would fit in well with our group.”

Those words count among the most meaningful every said to me. My cool brother was telling me I was accepted, and his cool friends agreed with him.

The need for acceptance is universal; all of us have felt the sting of rejection. Perhaps you were the last one picked on the ball field, or maybe one of your parents let you know you’d never “measure up.” And the problem isn’t limited to adolescence. Perhaps you struggled through an unrequited love, or maybe the company you’ve poured your life into for the last 17 years let you go with all the flourish and finesse of a guillotine.

The Good News is, Jesus accepts “rejects.” We can see throughout the dispatches of the New Testament that Jesus didn’t care who you were or where you’d been. He accepted thieves, prostitutes, sleazy bill collectors, lepers, and the poor.

And, yes, my dear brothers and sisters, even now he accepts nerds, geeks, and freaks, people with zits, split ends, flat chests, or beer bellies. He accepts people who don’t have any friends, and he accepts those who have an abundance of friends. He accepts people who’ve made mistakes and those who will never admit they make mistakes. He accepts you, knowing you will make more mistakes.

Our lesson from Jesus is that he saw every person as an individual – valuable, important, a being created by God. Jesus looks past the surface, deep into our very souls, and yet he still loves us and accepts us.

Once, when Jesus was eating with a bunch of “rejects,” the teachers of religious law asked his disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with such scum?” Jesus responded: “Healthy people don't need a doctor – sick people do. I have come to call sinners to turn from their sins, not to spend my time with those who think they are already good enough.” (Luke 5:30-32 NLT paraphrased)

Inherent in Jesus’ approach is his core belief that each individual is a unique creation of God. Your bad behavior is temporary, and through the transforming power of the Holy Spirit, it will quickly change to good.

That means Jesus accepts you and loves you, even while you’re still stuck in your sin: “But God proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us!” (Romans 5:8 HCSB)

What does this have to do with missions? When you learn to accept the love of Jesus, you’ll be able to accept those who need Jesus. But before you rush into the remotest regions of the globe to share this ministry of acceptance, would you do me a favor and look across the dinner table and accept the ones you see there?

So what?

· Do what Jesus did – “So reach out and welcome one another to God's glory. Jesus did it; now you do it!” (Romans 15:7 MSG)

· See people as God’s creation – “So we have stopped evaluating others by what the world thinks about them. Once I mistakenly thought of Christ that way, as though he were merely a human being. How differently I think about him now!” (2 Corinthians 5:16 NLT)

· Practice non-judgmental listening – Listening is a powerful way to show acceptance. Ask God to help you hear the other person. Ask him to give you such grace that you won’t rush to judgment or push to immediately “fix” the other person.

The armor of God

The armor of God
by Jon Walker

“Stand your ground, putting on the sturdy 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 every battle you will need faith as your shield to stop the fiery arrows aimed at you by Satan. Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” (Ephesians 6:14-17 NLT)

Ministry/Service — As you engage in ministry for God, you will be attacked by God’s enemy, Satan. God knows this, and so he has provided you with the tools you need to stand your ground in ministry.

Father, today, in Jesus’ name, I put on the girdle of truth. I thank you, for I know who I am and that I have the power of the Holy Spirit within me. God is in control of my life.

Thank you that I can put on the breastplate of righteousness. In all situations, help me to respond from the truth and not from my emotions. I can refuse to receive lies from the enemy.

Today I strap on the sandals of the gospel of peace. Wherever I go, I can be a peacemaker, helping others make peace with you. Help me to remember that there’s a difference between a peacekeeper and a peacemaker – and that mercy triumphs over judgment.

You, my shield of faith, are sufficient to protect me from any arrows and slings the enemy throws my way, and I recognize that my faith comes by hearing the Word of God.

Thank you that you are giving me the mind of Christ. Because I wear the helmet of salvation, I can receive the truth, and I don’t have to think in old, fleshly patterns. My mind is being renewed by the power of God. I can take thoughts captive for Christ.

The sword of the Spirit is your Word, the Bible. With guidance from the Holy Spirit, I can use your Word to deflect any slings and arrows from the enemy, knowing I do not battle flesh and blood but that the fight is against the father of all lies. Help me also use your Word to spread your Gospel across the world.

Lord, I set my mind and heart on you today. I dedicate this whole day to you. I only want your will for my life. Through the name and blood of Jesus, I ask you to bind the enemy in my home, at my children’s school, and at my job.

So what?

· God already has provided all the armor you need to face today’s battles.

· When you feel a battle brewing, whether it be a temptation or a conflict, remind yourself again of the armor God has given you.

· When you sense conflict, discouragement, or anxiety this week, thank God that he is your shield and deliverer.

© 2007 Jon Walker. All rights reserved.

Radiant Certainty

Radiant Certainty
by Jon Walker

“I tell you the truth, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy. A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world. So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy.” (John 16:20-22 NIV)

Worship/Fellowship — There are some days when, frankly, I don’t feel much like worshiping God. There are probably more days like that than I’d care to admit.

But usually those are days are when I’m staring at my circumstances and making faithless judgments about what I see around me. And I struggle with the God-truth that he is in the circumstances that surround my life – all the circumstances.

Have you ever considered that heartbreak is part of God’s plans for you, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future”? (Jeremiah 29:11 NIV) We put so much energy into avoiding the hurt when God would have us embrace it. He wants us to know that he can heal our hurts, even use our hurts for his benefit, and for us to faithfully believe that sometimes the circumstances we think are harming us are actually positive situations God is engineering.

God, who is omnipotent, sees the breadth and depth of our circumstances, and he knows his plans for our lives. Thinking, then, like Christ, we can slowly, ever so slowly, begin to understand that avoiding the pain in our lives is actually an act of faithlessness. God calls us to faith in him during difficult circumstances; we’d rather place our faith in avoiding the circumstances.

As always, Jesus shows us the way – because he is the Way. Jesus embraced the pain of God’s plan for his life, and he did it with full faith that God was still working the plan to bring a “hope and a future” to your life and mine. (Jeremiah 29:11 NIV) Christ was so sure that his grief would turn to joy that he showed a radiant certainty in God’s faithfulness (“Radiant certainty” is a phrase William Barclay uses to describe the attitude of Jesus at the Last Supper).

Our Brother Jesus, who is also our King, was heading into a crisis that would cost him His life, yet He was so certain – radiantly certain – of God’s faithfulness that not one of his disciples even discerned the gravity of the crisis! Jesus was so certain of God’s faithfulness that it radiates throughout his whole being.

And we, too, can have this radiant certainty about God’s hand in our lives. We can say, when it comes to God’s faithfulness, “I know because I know that I know.” That’s radiant certainty! The Cross was Christ’s glory, not His penalty – and the same is true of difficult circumstances in our lives.

So what?

· God’s faithful character - You will develop this radiant certainty in God when you learn to trust in his faithful character. Your daily worship of God is irrevocably tied to your faith in God.

· Praise God anyhow - You must choose to praise and worship God every day, no matter what the circumstances of your life. Developing a radiant certainty in God begins with simple steps of faith and obedience.

· Respond to God, not your circumstances - When faced with a painful or difficult circumstance, ask God, “How do you want me to respond to this?” Keep your eyes wise for the ‘Why me?’ traps that lay about your circumstances.

You can be radiantly certain of this: Difficult circumstances are opportunities for you to intentionally focus your faith in God and to see what he will do to give you hope and healing.

It's not the How; it's the Wow!

March 23, 2007

It's not the How; it's the Wow!
by Jon Walker

"Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age." (Matthew 28:20 NLT)

Mission — Long ago and far away, there was a teacher who worked painstakingly to teach me how to play the guitar. Every week, we'd climb up and down musical stairs crafted from the pentatonic, hexatonic, heptatonic, and octatonic scales. This emphasis upon technique frustrated me, and I grew to hate it so much that I abandoned the guitar – until playing it became a positive part of my mid-life crisis.

OK, OK ... Yes, I would have been better guitar player today if I'd practiced what my teacher told me (and, kids, eat your spinach too). But somehow I became so buried in the technique of making music that I lost the exhilarating pleasure of the music – with its power to make my heart soar toward the grace-filled face of God.

You might say the How of guitar-ianity muted the Wow of the music.

And in our well-intentioned focus on the How of missions and evangelism, I sometimes wonder if we lose sight of the Wow – that God's Holy Spirit lives within us, and that he is with us always, day after day after day, until the very end of time.

Wow!

Can I get an “Amen?” Say this with me, brothers and sisters:

Wow! The God of the universe is present by his Spirit within me!

Wow! The God who spoke the world into existence lives within me!

Wow! The same God who placed the moon and the stars and the sun into the sky also placed his Spirit within me!

Wow! The God who owns the cattle on 10,000 hills considers me one of his heirs and is pleased to give me a share in his kingdom!

Wow! The God of Creation spoke me into my mother's womb, SHAPEd me as a masterpiece crafted for the mission of proclaiming his Wow throughout the world! (Jeremiah 1:5)

It's not the How; it’s the Wow!

Good God Almighty, he lives, he lives, Christ Jesus lives in me today! (Galatians 2:20) The Wow is with me always and forever, yesterday today and tomorrow, forever and again, amen.

The Good News we proclaim without shame is that the Wow is in our hearts, and the Wow will come into any heart that confesses Jesus Christ as Lord.

So what?

· Relationship over results – God is more interested in you than he is in your methods. Wow! And the Good News we carry is that God is truly interested in the life of each person he placed on the planet. Are there some relationships where you emphasize the How over the Wow?

· Set your heart on the Wow – You must be deliberate in staying focused on the Wow. "… Set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things." (Colossians 3:1b-2 NIV)

· No commandment harmed – No commandment was harmed in the making of this devotional. Ha! Staying intimately focused on the Wow does not suggest the How is unimportant or that the How can compromise biblical truth or downgrade "the way, the truth, and the life." (John 14:6 HCSB) But the greatest How is “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind." The second is "Love your neighbor as yourself." (Matthew 22:37-40 HCSB) The Wow guides the How.

May the WOW guide you, my friend.

© 2007 Jon Walker . All rights reserved.

Doing what God is thinking

March 15, 2007

Doing what God is thinking
by Jon Walker

"… For, "Who can know what the Lord is thinking? Who can give him counsel?" But we can understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ." (1 Corinthians 2:16 NLT)

Ministry/Service – In a land not so far away and a time not too distant, lived a mighty, yet gentle Master of the Manor. There was a servant who worked for the Master, and this servant was a man of excellent efficiency, incorruptible integrity, and joyful heart.

The Master was pleased with his servant, but he also noticed the servant would do things that were well-intentioned, yet not in line with the Master's wishes.

One day the Master was in his library, and he couldn't find one of his favorite books. Looking closely, the Master realized that his entire library had been re-arranged.

"Good servant," called the Master. "Why have you re-arranged the library?"

"Master," the servant replied, "I wanted to provide you with the most efficient catalog system available."

"But I did not ask you to re-arrange the library," the Master lovingly said. "However, I did ask you to prepare the banquet hall for the guests we will receive tonight, and I see that hasn't been done."

"Yes, Master," said the servant. "But I don't see anyone coming up the road, so I assumed the guest weren't actually coming tonight. And you're library is now cross-referenced and categorized according to Humboldt's hierarchy of human thought."

"So I must think like a human in order to find my books?" said the Master.

"Well, yes," said the servant.

"But what if I want you to do things according to my thoughts?" said the Master, a tone of command coming into his voice. "And what if I want you to begin to think like me, instead of the other way around?

Just then, the doorbell rang. The guests had arrived.

—

You were created to serve God, and one way to serve God is by serving others, offering ministry to others. But it's important that you serve God according to his thoughts and his plans, not your own independent thoughts and plans.

Don't misunderstand: This does not suggest permission to be passive in your service to God. Instead, it's a call to intentionally seek the will of God in our service to him. Rather than making assumptions about where to serve God, you can constantly and consistently talk to him about where he wants you to serve. And in this way, you will develop a mind like Christ's.

We serve at the will of God and not on our fantasies about what Christian service looks like. The service required of me may look very different from the service required of you, because God has shaped us each uniquely and with our own unique purpose in mind. God speaks to you through your shape, your circumstances, your experiences, your friends, and your family.

And he speaks through the Holy Spirit, telling you to prepare for the guests you cannot yet see, instead of rearranging the library that is already organized according to God's design.

So what does this mean to me? If God is in constant conversation with you, are you carefully listening?

· Ask God to help you hear his voice and to tell you how he wants you to serve.

· Ask God to give you discernment so your service always lines up with your will, and not your own human agenda or someone else’s agenda.

· Ask God to fully develop the mind of Christ in you.

© 2007 Jon Walker . All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: Over the past three years, John Fischer has written these devotionals with insight and clarity, both as a ministry to you and as an act of worship to God. His ability to communicate biblical truths in a fresh, unique way has reflected his love for God and his obedience to Christ's commands. We will be forever grateful for the eternal investment John made through these devotionals. You can keep up with his activities at http://www.fischtank.com.

We are teachers of the faith

March 14, 2007

We are teachers of the faith
by Jon Walker

“Let the words of Christ, in all their richness, live in your hearts and make you wise. Use his words to teach and counsel each other.” (Colossians 3:16a NLT)

Discipleship – We are all teachers of the faith.

We may be good teachers or we may be bad teachers, but we all are teachers. Everyday, hopefully, we model biblical behaviors and respond with Christ-like attitudes.

Teaching involves more than unpacking Bible stories or giving theological insight; we teach when we help one another know how to love a spouse, make wise decisions, keep our thought-life pure, or get out of debt.

The Apostle Paul says we’re to “counsel each other.” That means we should be learners also – listening to other believers as they tell us about God’s work in their lives, and watching one another to see what “Christ in you” looks like in another human being. (Colossians 1:27 NIV)

He says the power of collective spiritual growth occurs when we:

· Let the words of Christ live in our hearts. We must know God’s Word before we can teach it. As we hear, read, study, memorize, and meditate on the words of Christ, we take them into our hearts. This gives us the wisdom we need to help one another grow in godly character. (Romans 15:14b, NCV)

· Use God’s words to teach and counsel each other. The Bible reflects the mind and will of the Father. When you’re carefully stepping along a slippery slope, would you rather consult the wisdom of God, or the wisdom of man?

It’s not enough to merely learn the Word; we must allow it to take root in our hearts so we then can apply it in our lives, holding tight, not relaxing our grip: “Guard it well – your life is at stake!” (Proverbs 4:13, MSG)

So what does this mean to me? Your friends and relations are not an accidental part of your life. (Remember that during the next family reunion!) They are gifts from God. They are the very people God designed to help you grow in Christ-like character. Even if they are not Christians, God can still use them to create Christ-like character in you.

If your life is a lesson to others, what are you teaching them about faith in God?

© 2007 Jon Walker . All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: Over the past three years, John Fischer has written these devotionals with insight and clarity, both as a ministry to you and as an act of worship to God. His ability to communicate biblical truths in a fresh, unique way has reflected his love for God and his obedience to Christ's commands. We will be forever grateful for the eternal investment John made through these devotionals. You can keep up with his activities at http://www.fischtank.com.

'I can't; God can'

March 13, 2007

'I can't; God can'
by Jon Walker

“I can do nothing on My own …" John 5:30 (HCSB)

Fellowship--A common misconception of Christian fellowship is that it simply means spending time with fellow believers: coffee and donuts, a pot-luck supper, a day at the lake. This form of fellowship is a significant part of Christ-like fellowship because God shaped us to need one another.

But the heart and core of Christ-like fellowship starts with the Father. We are to abandon ourselves to his purposes, and declare ourselves totally dependent upon him. Without him, we can do nothing; why, if we believe what we say we believe, would we want to do anything without him?

This intimate fellowship, abandonment, dependence, means we can call upon the Father when we are in distress or when we are tempted, and he will provide more than just a celestial shoulder to cry on.

Now understand this significant sequence: You must confess 'I can't' before you can agree 'God can.' The danger is: If we rush past 'I can't,' we'll never fully embrace the truth that our rescue can only come from God.

Instead we'll continue to think there is still some way we can rescue ourselves. We'll still, wrongly, believe we can do some things -- anything -- apart from God. We'll start to believe that, if we keep all the rules (which is impossible) -- or even some of the rules -- then we've somehow made ourselves into good little Christians.

The irony is that this 'I can' living looks real good. The apostle Paul even says there's a certain glory to it because it's reflective of God's Spirit (2 Corinthians 3).

But these rules we keep are merely a ministry of condemnation (2 Cor. 3:9) designed to get us to finally admit 'I can't' and only 'God can.' They're a school of Christ meant to show us that we're not as strong as we pretend to be, that there is a limit to how well we can carry out the rules apart from God.

Being Spirit-led (abandoned to God) means you recognize that the rules written on stone are outside us and, therefore, inferior to God's full plan -- which is to write the new rules on our hearts with his very own hand. He's placed his Spirit inside us in order to change us from the inside out.

My prayer is that you and I will no longer slow the progress of God's hand-written note upon our hearts because we're so busy keeping rules that were meant to bring us into fellowship with God. In other words, we're so busy pursuing rules that we stop pursuing God.

So what does this mean to me? If there is an area of your life where you still think 'I can,' then it means you are also saying, 'God can't.' This is not a statement of condemnation; rather it is a message of relief. You don't have to do it on your own; your fellowship with God will provide the grace and strength you need for anything. God wants a deep, intimate fellowship with you. In what ways does your independence keep that from happening? Isn't it time to get out of God's way and let him transform your heart?

© 2007 Jon Walker . All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: Over the past three years, John Fischer has written these devotionals with insight and clarity, both as a ministry to you and as an act of worship to God. His ability to communicate biblical truths in a fresh, unique way has reflected his love for God and his obedience to Christ's commands. We will be forever grateful for the eternal investment John made through these devotionals. You can keep up with his activities at http://www.fischtank.com.

Better than who?

March 9, 2007

Better than who?
by John Fischer

One of the more damaging fallacies Christians can fall into is the thought that because they are a Christian, they are better than most people out there who are not. For example, they are a better mom, a better husband, a better child, a better teacher, a better coach, or they have a better marriage, a better family, etc. Though it may appear prideful or self-righteous, that may not necessarily be the case. This kind of thinking can spring from a genuine, though incorrect, assumption that Christianity, in order to be true, must produce better all-around people. In other words, we take on the responsibility to defend the truth through the “better” lives we display.

Now granted, we are all growing in Christ with the ultimate goal of becoming like him, but that doesn’t necessarily mean we are “better” than other people. It means we are in the process of becoming more loving, more truthful, more peaceful, more patient, and more kind. “Better” is often defined in terms that have little to do with becoming like Christ. The religious leaders of his day would never have described Jesus as being better than anybody. In fact, they thought Jesus was a scoundrel – they called him a drunkard and a glutton (Matthew 11:18,19). So “better” is a relative term.

What’s true is that we should be getting better, but “better” compared to what? Compared to ourselves – what we used to be – which may still be a long way from someone else out there who is perhaps a more healthy person overall. Bottom line: It’s not good to compare yourself with others, whether they are Christians or not. “Better” means better than I was yesterday, not better than you.

Admitting that an atheist has a better marriage, a Mormon has better kids, a Muslim family is more loving, or a Buddhist is healthier need not be a threat to one’s Christianity. The point is, as Christians, we are saved and that’s the most important thing. We are all sinners saved by grace, and rather than making ourselves out to be different from everybody else, we should be focusing more on our similarities. If we need Jesus, so does everybody else, which makes us basically the same as the rest of humanity.

I might think of myself as a good father but you know there are lots of good fathers out there, and when it comes to fathering, I have much to learn. So someone might teach me about fathering, and I might, in turn, be able to share Christ with that person because he may be experiencing a lot of guilt inside, or he may be carrying around a sense of failure, or he may feel alone and distant from God and wondering what his life is all about.

So you see, being a Christian has nothing to do with being better than anybody; it has everything to do with getting better, which is something we could all stand.

Thinking something different

March 8, 2007

Thinking something different
by John Fischer

“Discovery consists of looking at the same thing as everyone else and thinking something different.” — Roger von Oech

I love this quote. I found it in the sign-off of an e-mail from a friend and it has provided a good deal of reflection, some of which I offer to you today.

First is the use of the word “discovery.” You could replace that word with “worship” and the quote would still work. “Worship consists of looking at the same thing as everyone else and thinking something different.” I have found a good deal of worship is discovery. As we find out more about who we are and why we are here, we discover that God is more involved than we thought. When you find out the truth about God, it's like discovering what was always there; we just missed it somehow.

C.S. Lewis coined the phrase “of course” to describe the discovery of God's presence in the world and in our lives. Worship is the uncovering of God at work in the world. It's all about discovery. For instance, when you find out you were made for God, it's not like some radical thought that never crossed your mind. It's almost as if you knew it, but you forgot. The phrase “of course” seems to capture this discovery aspect perfectly. A purpose driven life rings true because it confirms something we all knew deep inside; it's just that no one put words to it for our generation until now.

Secondly, I like thinking something different. A follower of Christ looks at things differently. Learning to “see” is a lot of what it means to be a Christian. Christ gives us new eyes, and nothing looks the same to us anymore.

A follower of Christ looks at:
death and thinks life,
losing and thinks winning,
tragedy and thinks opportunity,
brokenness and thinks humility,
accidents and thinks purpose,
coincidence and thinks destiny,
despair and thinks hope,
poverty and thinks wealth,
wealth and thinks poverty,
failure and thinks success,
the seen and thinks about the unseen,
history and thinks God's story,
science and thinks God's laws,
psychology and thinks Christ's wisdom,
anthropology and thinks God's image,
astronomy and thinks God's heavens,
the human body and thinks God's dwelling place,
war and thinks man's rebellion,
the cross and thinks everything made new,
truth and thinks Jesus.

The list is certainly not exhaustive. You can add to it I'm sure. In fact, that would be a good idea – to add to this list your own observations. You might surprise yourself at what you come up with. A lot of what we know, we don't know until we think about it. You might just discover you think something different!

The mission is you

March 7, 2007

The mission is you
by John Fischer

“Christ in you, the hope of glory.” (Colossians 1:27)

You have a mission in life and this is it: you. Your mission is not only your story, though that is part of it, it is you, because Christ is in you. You were made to be a vessel to carry him and reflect him through your personality as he lives his life through yours. You are the temple, the dwelling place of the most high. You are a carrier of Christ; he lives again in you. Jesus died, rose again, and went to heaven in his new body, but he lives on through his Spirit in us. You could say he never really left; he just took up residence in us.

The Bible calls you lots of things, but they all underline this point. You are a fragrance of Christ wherever you go (2 Corinthians 2:17). You are a letter known and read by everyone (2 Corinthians 3:1-2). You are a vessel carrying around a treasure – “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.” (2 Corinthians 4:6-7) And all of us together form the Body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12). All this to say that you and I are God's greatest statement. It's why he made us.

Wait a minute. “Doesn't that put a lot of pressure on me?” you ask. “How can I possibly be the equivalent of Christ walking around on earth? How can I do justice to this task?” Here's the deal. You aren't Christ all by yourself. We together form the Body of Christ. All of us. Each one with a gift; each one needing the others to show the full character of Jesus.

And we aren't perfect, either; we are in process. And this is OK. Your slip-ups and failures and sins don't negate the presence of Christ in your life. They show why you have him – why you need him. He is still perfectly capable of being all these things in us, in spite of us.

The process, in fact, is the story we tell. Your life makes up the pages on which the story of Christ's redemption of you is told. It's a story in process. If we were complete and perfect, we wouldn't have much to tell and no one could relate to us. As it is, we can tell new parts of the story every day as those around us witness the story unfolding.

All of this means that you are the evidence of the reality of Christ to the world, because God has a mission, and the mission is you.

No shortage of sinners

March 6, 2007

No shortage of sinners
by John Fischer

Eugene Debs, who ran for president of the United States as a third party candidate in 1912, had this to say while campaigning:

“As long as there is a lower class, I am in it.

As long as there is a criminal element, I'm of it.

As long as there is a soul in prison, I am not free.”

Obviously he didn’t get elected since none of us has ever heard of him, but I believe there is a lot of truth in thinking this way about our place in the world.

The Apostle Paul had something very similar to say in a letter to a new church:

“When I am with the Jews, I become one of them so that I can bring them to Christ … When I am with the Gentiles who do not have the Jewish law, I fit in with them as much as I can ... When I am with those who are oppressed, I share their oppression so that I might bring them to Christ. Yes, I try to find common ground with everyone ...” (1 Corinthians 9:20-22 NLT)

Both these men are talking about relating to people by identifying with them through finding something shared in common.

Christians have traditionally been really good at not thinking this way, and in fact, creating and maintaining quite the opposite – a distance from those around us who aren't Christians. When it comes to dealing with “common sinners” we have a tendency to be more like the Pharisees than like Jesus. A Pharisee once judged Jesus for allowing a woman of the streets to bathe his feet in perfume mixed with the tears of her sorrowful life. The Pharisee had already distanced himself from the woman because of her sin and was shocked that Jesus, as a teacher, did not do the same. He even thought to himself that Jesus wouldn't let her touch him if he knew what kind of woman she was. Jesus, in the meantime, was busy understanding her, including her sins, which were no problem for him since he was to take them to the cross for her, and in doing so, forgive her. (Luke 7:36-50)

Why is it so hard for us to identify with sinners and so easy to judge them when we, too, are guilty? We must stop this distancing of ourselves from sinners and start looking for common ground like Paul and, yes, even like Mr. Debs.

I really do like his campaign slogan. We would all be more compassionate and more merciful if we would take it on.

“As long as there is a lower class, I am in it.

As long as there is a criminal element, I'm of it.

As long as there is a soul in prison, I am not free.”

And I'm adding one more thing:

And as long as there is a sinner, I am one too, bringing good news of Christ’s forgiveness to others like me who need it.

Because of you

March 5, 2007

Because of you
by John Fischer

Your mission is to live your life.

In 1 Corinthians 7, the Apostle Paul addresses believers who are married to unbelievers, and outlines a general rule that if the unbelieving spouse chooses to stay in the marriage, it would be good for the believer to stay, too. He gives two reasons for this: First, the children will have a godly influence through the believing parent, and second, the unbeliever may be converted “because of you.” (1 Corinthians 7:16) (Exceptions to this rule would of course be situations of abuse and endangerment of a spouse or child.)

Just what does he mean by “because of you,” I wonder? Does it mean you are on a personal crusade to save your spouse? Does it mean that you will preach the Gospel to your spouse at every possible opportunity? Does it mean you will turn your house into a religious institution that coerces your spouse to either put up with Christianity or leave? No, it doesn’t mean any of these things.

It means simply what it says: “… because of you” – because of who you are, because of how you live, because of the way your faith affects everything you do, because of the way you carry on your life, because of the reality of Christ in your life. That’s it. No more; but certainly, no less. Paul is suggesting that living your life with a sense of purpose that comes from your faith in God is enough to convert someone.

It occurs to me that this could be applied to all believers in relation to life in the world among people with whom we work and associate who are not believers. General rule: Don’t leave the world. (Where would you go anyway?) Stay in the world – in relationships with unbelievers – for the chance that someone may be converted “because of you.”

We are not on a crusade; we are on a mission to live our lives according to God’s purposes. When we do that, we make possible an environment of change where a person who does not have a meaningful relationship with God might become curious about someone who does. “Because of you” is a statement of subtle influence, not coercion, and in the context of Paul’s advice in 1 Corinthians 7, it is a steady influence over time, as would be implied by a marriage. There’s nothing complex or even premeditated about a “because of you” influence. This is a believer going about the process of believing; and this is an unbeliever going over their life with a microscope, observing the good, the bad, and the ugly. Does not matter if God is there.

Thought for the day: Don’t ever sell short what God can do “because of you.”

The power of a changed life

March 2, 2007

The power of a changed life
by John Fischer

“I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.” (John 4:35 NIV)

It would appear that Christ’s first convert, other than the disciples he called, was the Samaritan woman he met at the well of Jacob. Up until this time, Jesus had performed some miracles and healed a few people, but this is the story of a woman who was not sick or demon-possessed; she was just an ordinary sinner like any one of us. This is our story as much as it is anyone’s.

The essence of this encounter is that Jesus knows everything about this woman’s past – her five husbands and current illicit relationship – and is offering her the living water of a new life. It’s a wonder that he was talking with her at all, with three strikes against her – a woman, a Samaritan, and a sinner. But Jesus not only talked to her, he gave her life significance. He noticed her, knew who she was, and knew what she needed.

She was so taken by this encounter that she left her water jar – the reason she came to the well in the first place – and ran back to town to tell everyone about this incredible man she just met. But what is equally remarkable was that Jesus appeared to be taken by this encounter as well, for when the disciples returned from the town bringing him food, he responded that he has food to eat that they don’t know anything about (John 4:32). Could it be that Jesus was suddenly overwhelmed over what his love could do for a desperate human being – how it could lift a huge burden of sin and set someone free. It’s one thing to heal a body; it’s another thing to heal a soul.

I think Jesus was overcome with joy and a passion for others who were lost – indeed, for the whole town. That’s why he responded to his disciples’ offer of food with: “My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work. Do you think the work of harvesting will not begin until the summer ends four months from now? Look around you! Vast fields are ripening all around us and are ready now for the harvest. … What joy awaits both the planter and the harvester alike!” (John 4:34-36 NLT)

Jesus was a man on a mission, and I believe he got introduced to the power his message would have on people that day. There’s nothing to equal the power of a changed life, and there’s nothing that will change a life like God’s forgiving love. Once this has happened to you, you can’t sit still. You have to run and get all your friends. And once you experience what it can do for someone else, you’ll be beside yourself, too, just like Jesus.

Lord, open our eyes to those who are ripe for your message today.

Friend or vacuum salesman?

February 28, 2007

Friend or vacuum salesman?
by John Fischer

We’ve all heard the story before, or perhaps it even happened to you.

You receive a visit from a friend you haven’t seen in a long time. You are overjoyed at the reunion and honored that your friend would see the relationship worth cultivating and would actually seek you out. Or it might be a person you are just starting to get to know, and there are encouraging signs of a potential friendship.

In the course of a pleasant conversation, with the talk shifting randomly from one subject to another, you suddenly find you are discussing the virtues of various vacuum cleaners. You friend brightens at the topic because he’s recently had some great results with an amazing new machine that he extols with great pleasure. You are so taken by his excitement that you find yourself wanting to know where you might find one of these amazing vacuum cleaners since your old model has paled in comparison to his vivid description, and you’ve been thinking about looking into a new one anyway. It’s then that your new friend offers to solve all your problems by selling you one on the spot at a “one-time only, low, low price of $69.95.”

Suddenly, you feel an awful knot in the pit of your stomach. It’s not unlike the feeling you had when you came home one day to find your house had been burglarized. You feel violated, used. And you feel stupid for trusting this person and making yourself vulnerable to his schemes. He’s not after a friendship; he’s after a sale.

A believer’s mission to share Christ with people is one of the five great purposes for which we exist. But without the other four to balance it, we can end up peddling Christ with similar results. Even laying hold of a conversation with the intent of steering it in a particular direction can feel manipulative to a person.

If I listen to the other purposes in this light, I remember that God is in control of everyone’s own road to discovery. I don’t make anyone see the truth, I am only witness to what I have seen and heard. My relationship with people is an end in itself, regardless of whether or not they are Christian or Muslim or Jewish or atheists. My purpose is to serve people, not sell them something. And maturity tells me that the Holy Spirit is my guide as to what to say and when, so as to not even worry about this or be overly conscious of my role in someone’s life as providing anything other than love and support.

“We don’t take God’s Word, water it down, and then take it to the streets to sell it cheap. We stand in Christ’s presence when we speak; God looks us in the face. We get what we say straight from God and say it as honestly as we can.” (2 Corinthians 2:17 MSG)

Someone else’s problems

February 27, 2007

Someone else’s problems
by John Fischer

Evangelicals often put being saved and going to heaven in the same sentence, as if heaven were the only goal of our salvation. But the truth is, we are saved to serve. Heaven is important, but heaven can wait. God saves us because he has a job for us to do in his Kingdom here on earth. If heaven is the whole point of our salvation, then what do we do while we wait? Change the channel on our Christian entertainment?

It’s amazing how many of our own problems dissipate when we begin caring about other people’s problems instead of focusing on our own. We’ve picked up some very bad habits from our culture. We have a tendency to be preoccupied with our own needs and constantly trying to fulfill them. Advertising plays into this self-indulgence, promising that one more product will be the thing that will finally satisfy us. The truth of the matter is: Getting will never come close to the satisfaction that giving affords.

Think of someone you know who is truly happy and I venture to guess you will find that someone busy serving others. If, in fact, our troubles will never go away (and I don’t believe they ever will in this life), then to focus on them and try to solve them is going to be nothing but a broken record. Make one problem go away, and watch another one crop up immediately. To give ourselves to the task of attending to the problems of those around us may not make our own problems go away, but it will make them less of a drag. Focusing on our own problems can lead to anxiety, frustration, and even depression. Focusing on other people’s problems leads to usefulness and a greater sense of health.

So today, when we are tempted to look in, to our own needs, let’s look out, instead, to the needs of those around us and see if our own needs diminish by comparison. Who knows, we may even forget about ourselves in the process.

Jesus hung on a cross and thought of those who were putting him there, and even pleaded their case before his Father, because he knew they didn’t realize the full impact of what they were doing. Can you imagine having even a fleeting thought about someone else if you were in that much pain yourself? But that’s just the thing about Jesus: He was always thinking of someone else.

Under new ownership

February 26, 2007

Under new ownership
by John Fischer

“You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price.” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)

What does it mean to not belong to myself? I can think of a few things.

It means that I should probably do a lot of consulting with my new owner. There is more to consider than just me and what I want to do; there is God and what he wants me to do.

If you’re anything like me, this makes sense until you begin to wonder over what he wants you to do in certain circumstances. It isn’t always clear.

For this we have Scripture and gifted members of the fellowship to consult, but in all instances it is the attitude of the heart that is most important. It is a submissive attitude toward God that he is looking for – what the Old Testament calls a broken and contrite heart. It’s being always open and teachable because I realize my new owner has a different way of looking at things than what comes natural for me. In fact, over time I begin to realize what comes natural for me is often my biggest problem.

Instead of “how much can I get away with here,” God is looking for an attitude that says, “Even if I’m not sure, what do I think God would want me to do here.” God is not going to lead astray a humble person who is seeking to do his will.

Our new ownership also means there will be inner conflict. It used to be just me. Now I have me and the Spirit and we may not always be in sync.

In Roman 7, Paul concludes that an inner battle over right and wrong is a good thing because it proves at least that something good is going on. “But if I know that what I am doing is wrong, this shows that I agree that the law is good.” (Romans 7:16) Or in other words, he may have done the wrong thing, but at least he knew it was wrong.

Consider even the Son of God whose joy was always to do the will of his Father in heaven, who in the garden of Gethsemane cried out after sweating blood over it, “Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.” (Luke 22:42)

It used to be easier. It used to be just me left to the whim of my desires. But all that has changed. I am not my own anymore; I have been bought by God at a high price – the blood of Jesus – and he has a plan and a purpose for me as my new owner.

The fine print

2/22/2007

The fine print
by John Fischer

“We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed. Through suffering, our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies.” (2 Corinthians 4:8-10 NLT)

These verses are what I call the fine print of the Christian life. When you sign up, you sign up for this, but unfortunately, not too many people read that far into the contract, and not enough leaders point it out. So when bad things start happening to us, we think something went wrong with our faith. Not necessarily. In fact, it’s an honor to think that your faith is worthy of being tested.

It’s a reverse spiritual principle that nonetheless is true: We get beaten down so that Christ might rise in us. It’s the whole idea God has of avoiding confusion. See, he doesn’t want people confusing human power and achievement with his power and what he is achieving in and through our lives. If all Christians were super-Christians, people would be impressed with them. As it is, God wants people to be surprised at us, not so much impressed – surprised that we can keep on believing, given what has happened to us. Surprised at us – impressed with God. That’s the way it should go.

It’s important to know this so that the things that happen don’t throw us into a tailspin. Paul wrote in the passage above that troubles, confusions, knock-downs, and drag-outs are all to be expected in a life of faith, and they are not just something to suck it up and endure, they are what will actually release the power of God in our lives. We encounter death-like experiences so that Christ’s life-like nature may clearly be seen in us, despite what is happening.

Let me try and say this again. This is not just endurance training through tough times. This is God’s strategy for ministry through us. There is no other way for it to be done. His strategy is his power and strength through our weakness – his life through our death. This doesn’t just happen to some Christians; it happens to us all if we desire to be effective in our faith.

So don’t forget the fine print today, and allow the troubles you face to springboard you into finding God’s purposes even in this. He had this planned all along. It’s even in the contract!

Communication breakdown

Februaury 21, 2007

Communication breakdown
by John Fischer

Lord Jesus, are we talking?

It seems like it’s been a while. My voice to you feels weak. There’s no doubt about my belief, but I guess believing doesn’t count as communication. (I think I’ve assumed that it does without really thinking about it.) I can believe in my wife and not talk to her for a week. How long has it been since you heard from me – really heard from me? If I have to ask that question, it must have been a while. Somehow I’ve got you doing nothing but waiting around to hear from me while I go about my business oblivious to our lack of communication. Like I’ve got more important things to do than you do. Ouch! That sounds pretty close to blasphemy, making me wonder how often I blaspheme you with my ignorant assumptions.

Is our relationship more important to you than it is to me? If it is, I am grossly overestimating my own importance. The issue is not whether you are on my side; the question is: Am I on yours? And only I can answer that. Am I centering my life on you? The fact that the lines of communication seem rusty right now indicates there is a lot of inequity here.

What do I need to do to get back in touch? What’s that? I’m doing it right now? You just want my attention and you’ll take it any way it comes – through joy, sorrow, confession, pain, or the reestablishment of communication? That seems almost too easy. What’s that you’re saying? “Walk with me and work with me – watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly." (Matthew 11:29-30 MSG)

I think I’m getting it now. No matter how far I may have strayed away, it’s always a short trip back. The breakdown in communication was only on my part, never yours. I don’t have to retrace my steps back to the last place I got off before I can hear you again, because you’ve been dogging me the whole way. As soon as I turn my heart and attention toward you, you are there to meet me because you never left.

It seems almost too good to be true. Where did I get the idea it’s supposed to be so hard?