mindset

November Musings – Reflections on Hebrews

bible, Christian lifestyle, spiritual formation

“These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised, since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.” – Hebrews 11:39-40

In a world that demands immediate satisfaction, it can be difficult to be on the working end. Surely there are things we request from God, yet understand are shots in the dark, never promised to us in scripture but not irrational to desire. But then there is a kind of waiting to witness the fruit of your long-term tilling and watering after seeing a promise given. That my friend, requires a different kind of patience. One that isn’t based on results, rather, endured through by faith.

The people of the old testament show us the real beauty of faith. As I was reading Hebrews 11, I could not help but be overwhelmed with awe as I read how our God worked through person after person to show His goodness and the value of this thing we call “faith”.

Starting with Abel and moving all the way to the prophets, we see Paul describe the way these believers did more than just good motions. We see their heart for God and hope for His promise drive their every move. This faith gave them a perspective unlike any other group of people on earth. It was more than just wishful thinking. It was the “confidence in what [they] hoped for and assurance about what [they did] not see.” (Hebrews 11:1).

Many of these great followers of God were given promises they altered their whole lives around. Abraham, for example, left the land he knew for one he did not all because of a promise spoken over him. Noah, looked like a fool for a while and dedicated so much time and effort to build an ark all because of a promise he received. And Moses went to the highest in command in Egypt and persistently demanded freedom for his people all because of a promise God gave him.

God promised these broken people incredible things. Not because they themselves were great, but because they were willing. They had open hearts and availability for whatever direction God sought to turn them in.

Not by power, reputation, or perfection did these people follow God. No, strictly, by faith.

Faith that He who had made the promise was more than capable and willing to keep it. (Heb. 11:11).

Now let’s be honest. A part of me looks at that scripture and wants to argue their faith was easier to obtain because they lived in a time where God audibly spoke to people. But then, as I recall the cross, I realize the gift we have now. We have the fruit of a promise they could only hope of their entire lives.

I suppose we each have our own benefits in time. Nonetheless, the significance and meaning of faith does not decrease in either era.

Just past a week, I arrived home from Germany after spending nine or so days witnessing God do incredible things. In and through people, I saw hearts move in ways they didn’t know they could. I saw hope grow. I saw joy and desire for God increase. And in myself, I saw awe overwhelm me in deeper ways than ever as I thought of God and who He is.

I often struggle on trips focused around strictly sharing the Gospel. Not because I fear it, or don’t want to. But because I do not understand what progress or success looks like. And without a goal, the feeling of incompetence and inadequacy creeps its way into my mind rather quickly. Yet, on this last trip, I left with one expectation: to expect the unexpected.

This was a statement I heard long ago and it has eased my anxious thoughts previously, so I had hoped it would do the same on this trip. Surprisingly though, the worst of my days was near the beginning. Normally my battery was not that short, but it did not seem to be getting any better as the days went on.

A part of me was disappointed in myself as I thought of all the opportunities to share God’s love and how they would be stolen by my anxious thoughts…then I stumbled across Hebrews 11.

I encourage you to read the whole chapter, as the “by faith..” statements stir up an awe of God like no other, but for time sake, I wish to highlight the last portion.

Verses 39-40 state, “These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what they had been promised., since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.”

Track with me for just a moment.

Each and every one of those old testament saints were spoken a promise to. And yet they, like us, only got to get a glimpse.

It is considered the reality of the “now, and not yet”.

In this broken world, we will see God’s glory, but only a portion. The fullness of who He is will only be revealed to us, and His redemption for us will only be made perfect (meaning complete; whole) over us, when we are finally home – in the presence of our God.

Hope is not out of reach though. This “now” just looks different for us than it did for the Hebrews. All the promises they were given were leading up to Jesus. When He came, He brought a new covenant. One that did not rely on rituals or animal sacrifices, but on faith that Jesus was indeed the Christ and all sufficient for us.

The “now” we live in is that which gives us the opportunity to have a personal relationship with the Lord and the “not yet” our hearts so desperately seek is the perfect eternity that will come on God’s timing.

This sounds easy to accept when you think about yourself. But when we look to the task of testifying to others but rejection or dismissal is the only result, our hearts can get understandably heavy.

When you have a cure for something others are dying from, any human with a heart would long to share it. But the burden of the “now” is that we still live in a broken world. We still live with people who are blinded to God’s goodness because of their pain, pride, or passions. We still live in a world where sometimes, we will only get the opportunity to move rocks for someone else to eventually plant a seed in the soil beneath.

But…the beauty of the “now” is that we still live in a world where God is being accepted into hearts daily. In a world where the Holy spirit is active. In a world where spiritual chains are capable of being broken. And my dear friend, in a world where promises are on their way towards fulfillment.

I want you to reflect on the last part of verse 40. It says, “so that only together with us would they be made perfect.”

“Only together”.

Only with the “pioneer and perfecter of faith” (Hebrews 12:2) and as one body (Big C Church), can our work reveal the glory of who God is and show the value of our faith.

For hope has come. It is attainable. And by the grace of God, we can see many of His promises fulfilled with our every breath.

Once just a word (Messiah) promised to broken people, is now known as Jesus our savior. How true then is the promise that Savior spoke to us going to bring redemption, completion, and fullness to all of humanity when we reach eternity?

My dear friend, when I look at this world, my heart feels a lot. It feels burdened but also hopeful. And the nature we have that seeks immediate satisfaction does not help us grow a patience towards the timing of God. We often want good results and we often want them now. But who are we to demand fruit from seeds just barely sown? And who are we to expect results of a salvation we did not make happen? It is hard to accept, for what we want is a good desire. But may we never get confused about who does the saving in our hearts and our role as one body, who is made complete, only together.

We cannot do it all. And we cannot let our hope be found in that, for we were made to please God. To have faith in who He is and the plan He is unfolding. To hold a confidence in that hope and an assurance of what we cannot see. May we not grow weary in our pursuit of Jesus. Of holding onto a hope that has come and is coming again in the “not yet”. May we learn to let our hearts focus daily on the tasks God has set before us (Acts 20:24) and guard it from the hunger for our own idea of “good” results.

His timing is perfect. His plan is good. He is sufficient for you. And He has you in the place you are in now that you may continue living out the promise of redemption He gave so many generations ago.

You are the fruit of seeds your ancestors planted. You are a result of the family Abraham was promised. And you are the worker, together with every other believer, that is called to continue sowing…whether or not your human eyes will ever see the spring season.

Thoughts to Consider:

How are you involving yourself in “the body” (the church)?

Are you willing and available? What are some strongholds you have?

What is your mindset when sharing the Gospel? Do you struggle with a desire for a certain result?

Consider the way you respond to this broken world and the people living in it and imagine the difference the daily act of living out faith could change how you react.

“These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised, since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.” – Hebrews 11:39-40

October Musings: The Quiet Selfless Life

bible, Christian lifestyle, spiritual formation

“and to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life: You should mind your own business and work with your hands, just as we told you…” – 1 Thessalonians 4:11

No one has to twist my arm for me to spend time by myself. For some reason, I find some of the most fun times are when I am alone. This is not to degrade the times that I am with others – I love those moments too, but being alone is not just a liking of mine, it is often what I find myself longing for, and desperately needing after a given number of hours in the day.

A couple years ago, I learned about solitude. The kind that you dedicate to God. This honestly blew my mind because I used to feel as though there was something wrong with me for desiring alone time as much as I did. Learning about this helped me understand that there was nothing wrong with liking that time, but there was a way to glorify God during it…and a way to not. And unfortunately, I recognized how often I had spent doing the latter.

Over time, I discipline myself to being intentional about solitude with God, but it has been hard. Considering what I want to do for a living, (being a faith-based author) I struggle a lot because I prefer to stay hidden while people read my heart’s expressions through words in black and white. However, in this day and age, I am forced to utilize things like social media for the sake of actually having my thoughts cross paths with the rest of the world. As much as I have tried to balance the means to my goals and still glorify God in my quiet time, I find myself more so spending the minutes or hours decompressing alone with my mind focused on how I will recharge myself.

The thought of God and fades as my capacity reaches its maximum and that hope of any “God time” turns into “me time”. I have grown a selfish perspective of something God designed for good.

I spend hours searching for ways to become what I feel called to be, yet barely addressing the One who called me. More time alone was what I thought I needed, but I couldn’t have been more wrong.

The quiet life is not about being alone. It is not about doing all you do in silence. Nor is it truly about you at all…

Looking at 1 Thessalonians 4, we find our purpose. “…we instructed you how to live in order to please God…Now we ask you and urge you in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more.” (portions of verse 1).

This verse is incredible because it reveals the absence of limits on our growth. You can read the Bible 15 times over, pray every day, and serve weekly, but there will always be more ways to please God. Now let me be clear, this pursuit is not to result in salvation, but to be a result of it. Looking at verse 3, we find out what this process is called; “sanctification”.

In layman’s terms, this means to become more like God. It is the journey all begin once they have committed to a life of dying to themselves and living for Jesus.

This is the general word people use in reference to the overall transformation of their lives for Christ, but I want to focus in on how we ought to pursue a quiet life through this process.

You may be extremely outgoing and thinking this word isn’t for you too but your personality does not change the fact that we ALL are called to live in a way that pleases the Lord, and one thing that Jesus showed us by example throughout the Gospels was that solitude matters and plays a role in shaping the rest of your life.

So, how then does one live a quiet life – without either being selfish and turning it all into “me time” or giving up their extroverted ways?

Simply put, by remembering the purpose. Your purpose.

I’ll say it again, the quiet life is not exactly about spending a certain number of hours alone. It is about what verse 11 highlights; “You should mind your own business and work with your hands…”

Living honest, honorable, and Christ-centered lives each and every day.

Maybe for the extrovert, this looks like spending time in prayer and meditation before you leave your home to protect your heart from the desire of attention or hope in finding value through others. And perhaps for the introvert, this looks like asking God to protect your heart from the selfish desires of comfort over sharing His love with others or from an egocentric way of determining what is worth your time away from home.

I say those from experience in feelings, not from criticism.

Ultimately, the quiet life is more about pursuing God in humility. It is not about volume, as God uniquely and purposely made us all different. Rather, it is to live your days proclaiming one name and loving those whom He saw worth dying for, “that none may perish.” (John 3:16)

My dear friend. I am a lover of quiet, but my flesh turns it into something that glorifies myself. I pray you recognize the value of your hidden place and time with God. For until you do, your heart will always seek to benefit itself first and foremost.

We live for the pleasure of God, not ourselves. That is what quiet looks like.

And we choose to love and stretch ourselves for the sake of those around us, not for an ego boost, more social media likes, or because it’s comfortable, but that they might see Him in us.

Thoughts to Consider:

Do you find yourself using your “God time” for your own boost in pride or most of your alone time for your fleshly indulgences?

Where can you schedule extra time out of your day to focus on your purpose and why God has placed you in the current position you are in?

What distractions or habits do you need to address in order to stay consistent in your quiet time?

Consider how much these intentional moments alone with God could reset not just your approach to your day, but to your whole life as well.

“and to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life: You should mind your own business and work with your hands, just as we told you…” – 1 Thessalonians 4:11

March Musings: On The Inconvenience of Believing

Christian lifestyle

“For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.” – Luke 6:45

Paul Tripp once stated, “I am a man in moment by moment need of the rescuing grace of my Redeemer.”

Such a short statement, captivated me by it’s depth.

The other day, I was sitting and thinking of how to grow engagement in my church when I realized the majority of the complaints I read online from others about various churches were based on things not being convenient enough.

In my research, I read parents complaining about driving their kids to youth after work. I read elders saying the messages weren’t a deep enough exegesis of scripture on Sunday mornings. I read comments about coffee’s not tasting good enough from people who never volunteered a day in their life.

Needless to say, I read a lot of complaints about the church not being convenient enough to satisfy everyone’s needs within the hour and a half service on Sunday morning.

However, I too am guilty of this, as I recall every remark I have made about service being far too early in the morning for me to ever be on time.

If you have not recognized it yet, we as humans tend to blame outside factors for our inconvenienced heart.

But my dear friend, as gently as I can say this…it’s not the church, the traffic, the bad coffee, nor the hassle of attending a small group mid-week that is at fault for your frustrated heart…it’s yourself.

Scripture tells us countless times that to follow Christ, we must deny ourself. That does not just mean holding in our anger at someone who cut us off on the way to work. No, rather, it means going against every desire for self-glorification and immediate satisfaction that our hearts hunger so deeply for.

Paul Tripp, on the topic of communication from the heart, stated that humans have organic consistency. As an apple tree is an apple tree from its roots to its fruit, what we speak is not sometimes “what we did not mean”, rather, it is what our hearts truly felt, but our mouths did not filter.

In Luke 6, we see Jesus compare the way one speaks from the heart to a tree that produces the fruit of it’s nature. Neither man nor tree can produce what is not truly at their core.

Then it hit me. Christianity is not hard because people may mock us.
I have been a Christian for nearly 10 years and can still count on one hand the number of bullies I had that were strictly because of my faith. Nor is Christianity hard because the church makes us join groups or serve in order to grow. Anything you want to do requires a sacrifice of time, so the question for the one who blames the church is this; is your faith not worth the sacrifice?

Those things may be factors that play into the struggle of being a Christian, but the true reason Christianity is so hard, so inconvenient, is because believing requires us to deny the desires that run through our bones and the hunger for immediate gratification and getting what we want, how we want it, when we want it.

The inconvenience of believing is because we are fighting ourselves, trying to convince ourselves of a hope we cannot see.

But the beauty of the Gospel is that we are not alone in this fight. The victory was already claimed by the resurrection of Christ.

The road to Him is narrow, inconvenient, and tight. It will pressure us, it will challenge us, but also discipline us to remain in pursuit of the only path to true life.

I love Luke 24:5, as the angel says to the women who went back to the tomb on Easter, “Why do you look for the living among the dead?”

Why, my dear friend, do you believe any growth, or new life, will stem from a perspective that the journey with Christ will be convenient in the slightest?

It is not hard because the church requires too much of us, or people think we are silly. It is hard because you made the decision to step out of a lifestyle of death and into one of everlasting life, while still living in a world that has been dead at it’s core since the fall of man.

So as you rationalize a life in pursuit of Jesus, do not seek convenience, seek the only source that can fully satisfy your heart…the only path to life we have. Perhaps the greatest prayer we so often forget to mention is the transforming of our heart, the shifting of our perspective, and the desire to love others more than ourselves.

On the Significance of God’s Righteousness

bible, Christian lifestyle

“God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭3‬:‭25‬-‭26‬ ‭

Shame has been on my mind lately. It is an quite an interesting concept when broken down.

Though our bodies have a survival instinct, when shame is present, it is as if we give that up. Rather than fighting for life, we give into fighting ourselves into this belief that we are not worthy of good, and sometimes, not even worthy of life itself.

Shame holds the power to turn a soul against itself.

Now we have heard the value of God’s love preached a million times over. His love is what drove Him to fight for us even when we rejected Him. But what I recently came across was the significance of His righteousness. His justice. The characteristic that demands the virtuous thing. The just thing.

When I read this verse above, it was not just the cost of my sin that seemed to be forgiven, but also the effects of my sin that were overcome.

Yes, God loves us, and we can rest in that truth. But God also demonstrated His justice on the cross and through the empty tomb.

The cross paid the debt. The cost of our wrongdoings. The punishment we were responsible for.

And the empty tomb revealed that death, and it’s grip on our lives, has no power over those redeemed by Christ.

My dear friend, shame speaks death that has already been defeated. It is rooted in a punishment that has already been paid. And it bounds us in chains that are already broken.

The sacrifice and resurrection was not just the perfect display of love, but the perfect act of righteousness for the sake of making freedom available to those who did not deserve it.

Shame will come often. And as our hearts tends to forget the significance of God’s righteousness, shame tends to distract us from the reality we now live in; the reality of redemption and grace.

This is not that we may walk in our own pride, as Paul says in verse 27, “Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded.”

No, rather, we walk in confidence of the perfect atonement for our sins – being just that…perfect. Forgiveness for our straying, and freedom for our bounded souls.

Lay It All Down…Again (Pt. 2)

bible, christian, lifestyle

A year and a half ago, I wrote a blog about the need for giving up control. In other words, surrendering it all to God. And strange enough, God brought that topic back into my memory, though this time, from a new perspective.

Our ruthless grip on control can often stem from anxiety in others potentially failing us or a major pride issue. As someone who struggled with both of those problems, after a year of following the strategies I wrote about previously, I find myself at yet another road block. The wretched feeling of just wanting to give up.

I was reading other blogs about this topic recently and I have come to find that this view of making surrendering and “throwing in the towel” interchangeable is actually not that uncommon. Though, that does not make it right.

I get it. You prayed. You read the Bible. You joined the groups. And you tried your best to replace the voice of your anxious heart with the truth of the Spirit. But none of it has led to the weight being lifted or any vision/hope of a purpose-filled future.

But let me tell you a story.

There was a woman who had quite a past. Even the leaders of the synagogue knew of her sinful ways. Yet she heard that Jesus was passing nearby, so she did what she could to get to him. Having no gold or riches to offer, she brings her most expensive alabaster jar of perfume. With the eyes of the high leaders looking down on her, she lays at the feet of Jesus. In material sacrifice, she pours out her perfume on His feet. And in physical sacrifice, she uses her tears and hair to cleanse and dry them.

We are not told of the sins this woman has committed. Nor are we told about the future she lived. But by three simple phrases, Jesus sends her back into the same situation she came from.

“Your sins are forgiven.”…”Your faith has saved you.”…”Go in peace.”

We live in a world that claims we ought to live this life to the fullest because happiness is our main priority. But when did God ever say that? Let me save you from skimming through 66 books looking for it…He never said our purpose was to be happy. He said we were designed for His glory. To worship Him. To be an expression of His love.

Happiness is a fleeting feeling that society connects all too closely and all to often with success. But friends, that way of thinking will only lead to a life of disappointment.

Earlier, I listed a few “disciplines” or faith-based “practices” that the church typically encourages us to follow. These actions are intended to help us grow closer to God, direct us towards worship, and put us on a path that makes us available for sanctification (transforming to reflect Christ more). But again, what happens when it just leads to being drained, wanting to give up?

“Giving up control to God” can raise our hopes to expect something great to happen immediately after. It is a big sacrifice to lay down what we value so much; all our life. And when nothing changes, even after you have given so much, it is understandable to feel discouraged. Though the dangerous thing about feeling this way is that we can get so overwhelmed by the discouragement that our hope fades and our feelings resort to numbing.

In battles of the past, and in many movies, we see a white flag symbolize the act of surrendering. The moment the flag is waved, victory is claimed over one party and the ways of the winner are typically in forced over the opponent.

The losing team is left hopeless, and without any voice.

If I am being honest, when I began the steps people claim help us surrender to God, after a while, I felt the same way. Hopeless.

I did all the “right” things and yet I found myself seeing little to no change in anything. In fact, it felt like my circumstances got worse. There were so many days that I didn’t understand the point of reading the scripture I did, task after task piled up which would lead to me missing days with God and feeling like a failure, and I seemed to lose the enjoyment I had in being involved in the things I was a part of.

So I waved the white flag.

For a moment, I let go of the striving and settled with the fact that I was bound to the infertile soil I seemed to be rooted in. I didn’t pray. I stopped reading scripture with the expectation of receiving anything. And I fell deeper and deeper into the pit of despair I spent so long trying to get out of.

I “surrendered”. Threw in the towel. Raised the flag with the last bit of strength I could bare to give.

What used to be shouts in desperation for God at night turned into silent staring at the ceiling, wishing I could just muster out one tear to know I did not lose my capability of feeling when I lost my hope.

Then I started to hear it.

Through frustrated conversations, honesty in other believers’ blogs, and the small sections of Luke I have been forcing myself to still read for the sake of finally finishing a Gospel…I heard it.

Rather, I saw it.

Through His word in Luke chapter 7 and the words of His children in life-giving conversations, God revealed the critical steps I had missed in the blog about surrender from nearly 2 years ago.

Looking at this passage we see a few important aspects about the woman.

Though she was living in shame from others, she was alert. She was persistent in her desire to encounter Christ, and when He finally came to her town, she went. Because she was faithful in the seemingly fruitless season, she was prepared to move when the opportunity to meet Jesus came up.

My dear friend, it is frustrating to not know God’s timing, but the discipline does not go wasted. The last thing we want is to not notice the hand God is extending towards us because we never spent time getting to know what that would look like, or never built a faith to know it could go beyond than our natural perspective.

When the woman came to see Jesus, she actually came to give before receiving. Presenting no direct plead, she kneels at his feet and pours out her cherished possessions. She came to the alter bringing glory to God. The very thing we were designed to do.

We have no idea the situation this woman endures at home. But we do know that whatever it looked like, had no relevance when it came to what she knew she was to do before God. Whether you are in a great place or the worst in your life, part of truly surrendering our whole being is to offer all we have before God, whatever that may look like. Not because the amount we have represents His level of goodness, but because He is still worthy despite it all. Abundant or barren, we must recognize that praising God is our purpose more than focusing on any other thing in our life.

Sometimes, falling on our knees in tears may be the only offering we can give. And praise Jesus that is enough.

Judging from the pharisees disgust with her, we can assume she was no perfectionist of religious traditions. But, she knew what was more valuable than any of the others who were giving her a dirty look from their high horse.

Not just because she knew what to bring to God, but because she knew the worth behind what she received from Him.

In verses 48-50, we see those beautiful 3 phrases:

“Your sins are forgiven”…“Your faith has saved you.”…“Go in peace.”

Did she expect to receive anything from Jesus? Who knows. But regardless, she got a response. And the sweet thing about these phrases is that we too have been told these when we accepted Christ. Not because of what we have done. Not because we deserved it. But because He loves us so dearly that He chose to make Himself available through our simple surrender.

Yep. I said it. Simple surrender.

Surrender is not burning yourself out until you are forced to wave the white flag. Nor is it hopelessly going through the motions just because people say you should.

Surrender is made simple, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t sacrificial. As we read in this passage, it requires all we are and results in a non-tangible gift.

Jesus just wants you to come. To return back to the calling and purpose you were given as you were so intricately woven in your mothers womb. And what He wants to give you may not look like a new circumstance, but it is a new perspective. A new shot at life that is forgiven, protected, and fully covered in eternal grace. And that, my dear friend, is worth more than all the success and happiness in the world.

For it is a life we cannot fail in and do not have to carry on our own. Praise God and to Him be the glory as we lay it all down…again…and again…and again as each new day arises and He reveals His love more clearly to us.