"To Him be glory forever": God's call

Showing posts with label God's call. Show all posts

Sunday, June 15, 2014

Punctuated Equilibrium

"Now the Lord said to Abram, "Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you.""

Those are the words of the first verse of Genesis 12, and they mark the beginning of a tremendous adventure. Abram is in his own country, with his father and extended family, and God calls him and tells him to "go."

I understand that equilibrium is a state of relative balance. Things are holding together in a stable manner. A force may be acting on something but the thing itself doesn't really change as a result. There is a theory in natural history called 'punctuated equilibrium.' It was developed by Stephen Jay Gould and Niles Eldredge and widely disseminated through the essays Gould wrote for Natural History for many years. Applied to evolution, punctuated equilibrium means that changes to a given species did not happen incrementally over a great many years, but in short bursts of activity interspersed with long periods of evolutionary quiet.

A brief aside: Gould was an unabashed and ardent Darwinist, with no toleration for anything but a scientifically orthodox view of creation. I read several of his collected essays when I was not a Christian and found them engaging. I recently read one of his books and was startled by his persistent disregard for any consideration of a divine hand in creation.

Enough of the introduction….now to return to the topic at hand.

Abram lived in a state of equilibrium. He was with his family, his flocks, doing his own thing. And then God spoke into his life, saying, "Go." God's call punctuated the equilibrium of Abram's life. As a result of God's speaking, nothing in Abram's life was the ever same. And the path that God set Abram on led to the most glorious of destinations.

Ripples of Abram's movement in following God's call are still felt today, and it was the privilege of myself, my family, and the congregation I serve as pastor to feel them this week.

Our congregation was host to a group of 31 people who had come to Dulce from Denver, spending the week here as a part of their own response to God's call in their lives.

When God calls, people of faith follow. Sometimes the call can be very dramatic, as with Abram, and other times it may be less so, such as the call to leave home for a time and serve God in another location.

Last week was a very full one for me, occasionally bordering on chaotic. The mission group punctuated the equilibrium of ministry in Dulce, with a powerful presence of God working through their hands and hearts.

Now, in the quiet following the past week's activity and this morning's worship, I feel a sense of equilibrium returning. And as I rest and reflect, I do so knowing that God will again speak, to me, to those who were here last week, and to all who follow Him in faith.

And when I hear Him say, "Go" may I do as Abram did, trusting that He will always lead me to places that are better than any that I would have settled for, places that serve His purposes, to His glory.

Monday, February 11, 2013

Treasure in Heaven

“In the end it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years.”

I have seen that quote several times recently. It has a nice, feel good sound to it. The person speaking seems to want us to understand that at the end of our life what we have done with the time available is of much more importance than the number of years we lived. That sounds well and good.

The quote has been attributed to Abraham Lincoln, someone with a well-deserved reputation for careful, deliberate thinking and who used his intellect and understanding of human nature to lead our country through its most troubled time. Lincoln should be a trustworthy source of wisdom. A quick check online, here, shows that Lincoln is not the likely source. But even removing Lincoln as the source doesn’t really lessen the meaning we might take from the message.

But, I wonder, is it true? Is the ‘life’ that we put in our years what is of real importance when life reaches its end? Or does such an idea point to us to an even greater truth?

Recently I read Think, by John Piper. My review is here. Piper’s proposes that for the Christian, critical thinking is essential to loving God. He reminds us that we are called to love God with all of our minds, as well as our hearts and souls. This is sound biblical teaching, from Matthew 22:37. Piper wants us to encourage us use our intellect actively as we grow in faith.

With that thought my question becomes something more like this: How can I use my mind and add ‘life to my years’ in a way that gives glory and honor to God?

Or maybe this: How can I add ‘life to my years’ in a way that points beyond me and both to others and to God?

The key, I believe, also lies in Matthew’s Gospel. Matthew 6:19-21 says:

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Jesus is teaching that when I invest my time in things of eternal significance I do more than merely ‘add life to my years.’ Much more. And when I look around God has placed all kinds of opportunities around me.

One opportunity involves my youngest daughter. I want to do my part to help her grow up. To teach her how to do all kinds of things, like learning to ride a bike and learning to read. I also want to help her learn confidence and build character. I want to help her learn how to pick good friends and nurture relationships over a lifetime.

And all of these are good things, the things that add ‘life to my years,’ but at the end of the day, or of my life, they are meaningless unless I have made my greatest priority the nurturing within her of a vibrant and deep-seated love of God, God as made known in Jesus Christ. Above anything else my calling as a parent includes teaching my daughter what it means to love God with all of her heart, and her mind and her soul.

My treasure is in heaven, in the person of Jesus Christ. And one of the longings of my heart is for my daughter’s treasure to be there too.

Tuesday, January 1, 2013

Coming Home: Going Home, part 7

It has been nearly three weeks since I wrote the previous installment of this series of posts concerning my mom, her children, and our journey in hospice care. When we started on this journey six weeks ago our mom was very ill and we, my siblings and I, were committed to doing what we could to keep her in her home, expecting that the time we would do so wouldn’t be more than a few weeks. While our mom has improved physically she continues to need care and what has worked for six weeks is reaching an end. Anticipating the possibility that a change would be needed I asked the question, “Now what?” in my last post.

Today the answer to that question is that she is “Coming home.” Not “home” in the eternal sense that this series title, “Going Home,” points to, but the home where my wife, our daughter and I live. At the end of this week we will be bringing my mom home to live with us.

I could list a bunch of reasons why we are doing this. Reasons that make us out to be great and wonderful people. But those would really just be false reasons; illusions that make us appear to be people that we are not. The real reason we are bringing my mom into our home is not that we are great and wonderful, but because God is great and wonderful. He has created the circumstances that make this option of care possible and He has opened our eyes and hearts to serving Him in this way.

Two pieces of scripture come to mind as I think about this, Psalm 139:16 and Ephesians 2:10. The psalmist writes,

“Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.”

And Paul writes,

“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”

Usually when I think of this verse from Psalm 139 it is in terms of life’s great struggles or its great joys. I marvel to think that all of the moments of every life are held in God’s knowledge before they happen. That their very happening, and the results yet to come from them, have been known by God eternally. But God’s eternal knowledge also applies to the things I consider to be quite ordinary. Such as being able to provide a safe and caring place for my mom within our home.

And Paul reminds us that the things we find before us to do are things that have been prepared for us by God. As we live with faith in Christ we are to look and listen for the places and purposes that God is calling us to.

A number of years ago a friend gave me a short list of questions to think about when you are trying to understand if God is calling you to a task. They are:

Is it something that God wants done?
Does it match and challenge your particular gifts?
Is it work that you find internally meaningful?
Do others affirm you in doing this?

As far as bringing my mom into our home to live with our family each of these questions has “Yes!” as an answer. We are particularly thankful for the encouragement, the support, and especially the prayers of our family and friends for this part of the journey. We can’t do this on our own, nor would we want to.

To my friend’s original list I would add one more question; “Is God glorified in the task?”

As I noted earlier we are bringing my mom into our home because God is great and because God is wonderful. We want to care for my mom in a way that points people to God, a way that points people toward His mercy and His grace. We want to care for her in a way that opens hearts to God’s unfailing love. And most of all, we want God to be glorified in each and every thing that we do, for my mom, and in every part of our lives.

Friday, November 2, 2012

"But..."

This morning my Bible reading was the Old Testament prophet Nahum. This is not a book of the Bible that I have read often, nor one that I could have told someone what the gist of the book was about without first reading some explanatory notes.

As I read I tried to pay particular attention for anything that really “jumped out” at me. A word, phrase or verse that clearly spoke with a richer, deeper meaning. And as I read I found such a verse, 1:7, which says:

“The LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; he knows those who take refuge in him.”

That verse leapt out at me with a word of comfort, comfort from God about God’s enduring, everlasting goodness. It reminded me of the refuge that He always offers in our trials, and lastly that He knows, that God knows deeply, those who seek their refuge in him.

Good stuff. Really good stuff. So I posted the verse to Facebook, using my phone, which only allows the posting of a single verse at a time. And that is where the tile of this post, “But…” comes in.

Nahum 1:7 is a wonderful verse and a whole sermon could be preached from it, except that it doesn’t stand completely by itself. There are biblical words that follow that go hand-in hand with this verse. Nahum 1:8 reads:

“But with an overflowing flood he will make a complete end of the adversaries, and will pursue his enemies into darkness.”

God not only has full knowledge of those who take refuge in Him, He also has full knowledge of those who don’t, and these people are being characterized by Nahum as God’s adversaries.

An adversary is an opponent. It is someone, or a group, that opposes and attacks someone else. The dictionary source I checked even had an entry for “The Adversary,” i.e. Satan.

Now the dictionary is not the Bible and is not inspired by the Holy Spirit by any means. However in this case it does speak with the truth when it helps us understand that God’s adversaries are directly linked to God’s greatest adversary, his most visible opponent since his entry into the biblical story in Genesis 3.

So evangelical and Reformed Christian that I am, what am I to make of these two joined verses from an Old Testament prophet? Do they still speak today? I believe that they do. They speak with vibrancy and power.

Verse 7 will continue to provide me with great comfort in God’s control and protection in all circumstances, no matter how difficult they may appear. And verse 8 is, for me, a reminder to do what I can, in the places where God has placed me, to bring this word of comfort to those who are otherwise God’s adversaries.

In this life I often have no real idea who God is reaching out to include within His promise of redemption, nor do I know the means in which He will touch people. So I think that best choice may be to touch people in His name and let Him use that touch as He sees fit.

BONUS FEATURE

Here is a link to a video of a song, Whom Shall I Fear [God of the Angel Armies], from Chris Tomlin’s upcoming album.

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Let's go!

Earlier this evening we returned from another trip to Milwaukee. Depending on who’s traveling/driving and the number of stops it is a 4-5 hour trip. Between Robin and I we have spent 10 days there in the last 3 weeks, with Robin and Kat planning to go back again the day after tomorrow, for about 4 days. The reason for all of this travel and time away from home is that there has been an acute need for us, and my siblings, to help out our mom.

We are thankful for all the people who have supported our family and prayed over this situation. I am very thankful for the help that my brothers, sister, and their families have provided to our mom and to my family during this time. Robin and I are glad that God has restored my mom’s health to the point where she will be returning to live at home.

Tonight, at Kat’s bedtime, we sat with her and read from the Jesus Storybook Bible. (on Facebook here.) The story we read tonight was titled “Let’s Go!” and is drawn from Matthew 4, Mark 1 and Luke 4-6. In short it occurs right after Jesus is baptized. He goes into the desert, fasts and prays in preparation for his ministry, is tempted by Satan, and then gathers his disciples.

In Mark 1:17-18 it says,

“Jesus said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” And immediately they left their nets and followed him.”

Jesus calls his disciples and says “Let’s go!” and they follow Him, beginning an adventure that is beyond their ability to even imagine, an adventure that we know will reach its fulfillment in the visions of unending praise in Revelation 7 and redeemed creation in Revelation 21.

Robin, Kat and I have been able to help my mom over the past few weeks because at some time in the past Jesus said to each us, “Let’s go!” and off we went. If this current crisis had happened at a point in my life before I had faith I know I would have done my part, but it would have been for a different, and infinitely lesser, purpose. It would have been because I had a particular sense of duty, or an ability or responsibility. And looking back I can see an event in my life where that is exactly how I responded.

But this is different, not because I am any more skillful or responsible, but because I am the Lord’s, and no matter what the outcome may have been in the situation with my mom I see God’s hand all over it, and many ways for the faith in my head and heart to be lived among my family, to God’s everlasting glory.

How is God reaching and calling you? Where is He leading your life with His call of “Let’s go?”

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Waiting on God

Last December I started on a schedule that was designed to have me read through the entire Bible in one year. If you look online you can find a number of different ways to do this. The one that I am using divides the Bible into seven sections, roughly according to major type of writing within each book. On Mondays I read from the Law (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy), Tuesdays is History, Wednesday is Psalms, Thursday is Poetry, Friday is Prophecy, Saturday is Gospels and Acts, and Sunday is Epistles.

As I am reading through the Bible some things I read are very familiar, while others are not. Like most Christians, I presume, I am much more fond of and familiar with the writing of the New Testament than the Old. And while there are many parts of the Old Testament that are familiar, such as most of Genesis and many Psalms, there are other parts of it that I have likely read, at most, only once or twice before, such as Numbers and 1 and 2 Chronicles.

One of the strengths of a one-year reading plan is that I become better acquainted with the entire Bible, rather than just reading the parts I enjoy the most. Some of this is challenging, because when I read it I have little understanding of the context a specific part arose from and what God’s intent was in both the initial writing and preserving it for us today. I have had those challenging moments repeatedly in some portions of the Old Testament, particularly lately, as I have read Leviticus and started Numbers.

Yesterday I read Numbers 9, 10, 11 and 12. It had a mixture of things that seemed clear and others that would need closer study and prayer for me to understand more fully. And I was pleasantly surprised to read something that spoke directly to the circumstances of me and my family at this time and place in our life. That was Numbers 9:15-23.

The setting is relatively early in the Exodus. The Hebrew people have left Egypt and Moses is leading them through the desert. According to the instructions given in Leviticus they have constructed the Tabernacle, which is to be their place of worship as they journey, the place where God has told them he will be present among them.

Since the first moment when they have fled from Egypt, after the Passover, God has physically shown his presence among the Hebrews through a cloud during the day and a pillar of fire at night. Day or night, the Hebrews can look to the sky and see the symbol of God’s presence with them.

The passage from Numbers 9:15-23 tells how the Hebrews are to know when to break their camp and where they are to go next. If God’s cloud is over the Tabernacle they are to stay put, and if the cloud lifts and moves they are to pack up and follow it. Verse 21 notes that a stay could be for as brief a time as one night and verse 22 notes they could be in camp for a month or longer. Verse 23 sums up their following of God’s cloud like this:

“At the command of the Lord they camped and at the command of the Lord they set out. They kept the charge of the Lord, at the command of the Lord by Moses.”

This passage speaks to me because our family feels as if we are under the cloud of the Lord, watching and waiting to see when it lifts and where it will lead us.

Looking back over the past few years we can see that God has been at work preparing and leading us by steps. We have made some choices in the belief that God is leading us to a place which at present is known only to Him.

At times we get a bit antsy and wish that God used clearer signals with us, perhaps like the cloud leading the Hebrews through the desert. But that doesn’t seem to be the case. We have to remind ourselves that, to paraphrase Isaiah, “God’s ways are not our ways.” And that is a very good thing.

And we know that waiting for God to move the cloud isn’t a passive activity. We aren’t sitting like bumps on a log. We continue to do all of the things as people and a family that we did before we embarked on this part of our journey through life with God. But we do so with our eyes open, scanning the horizon to see if the cloud is moving and where we may be headed to next.

How does God show his presence in your life, and where is He leading you to?

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Listening for God

How do we know when God is talking to us? It’s not as clear today as it was for Moses, who first heard from God through a burning bush and them met with God repeatedly during the Exodus.

There are many other places throughout the Old Testament where God is reported as speaking with people, particularly his prophets. The New Testament also has some accounts of God appearing and giving direction to his people. The story of Saul on the Damascus Road being a prime example.

I believe that God still speaks to us today, but I sometimes find myself struggling to hear his voice and to discern the nature of his message. And in that vein I share a few means of helping to listen to the voice of God today. He may whisper. He may yell. But however he speaks and whatever he says, you can count on it being important to him, even if it doesn’t seem important to you.

I was discussing this topic with a friend/mentor several years ago and this was the guidance he gave me when you are trying to understand if God is calling you to something:

It is something God wants done.
It matches and challenges your particular gifts.
It is work that you find internally meaningful.
Others affirm you in doing this.

My deciding to write this blog is one example of these four points in action.

How do we know what God wants done? One of the best ways is that the things we are thinking of doing are consistent with what is taught in the Bible. I am virtually certain that nowhere in the Bible does God give instructions to “write a blog!” But God does want people to think about and understand his teaching and then communicate that to other people, which is the heart of what I try to do each time I sit to write here.

Over the past ten or so years I have acquired the ability to think and write theologically, hopefully coherently, if not always clearly. Thinking and writing also stretch me, to think and write more. And they connect with and develop other skills, such as developing my prayer life and my preaching.

And as I follow God’s lead here I do find it to be meaningful work. I have no idea how many people read my blog. But living in a world that is often resistant to God I find meaning in speaking what I believe to be truth as he nurtures it within me.

And lastly, I do occasionally hear from others that something I wrote had meaning for them, which meets the guideline for some external affirmation, not that what I write is good on its own merits, but, I believe, that through my writing God is offering something of himself to them.

Other people have written more articulately on the topic of discerning God’s voice than I have. One is Kevin DeYoung, in his book Just Do Something. One of the topics he addresses is a paralysis that can come over us as we seek do know and do God’s will, so that we end up letting good and Godly opportunities pass by rather than doing what God may be laying before our very eyes.

Another example is here, where Roger Barrier gives an overview of the topic, one that is biblically-grounded, as any attempt to discern God’s voice must be, and also addresses the subtle ways in which Satan can distort our hearing and lead us astray.

One way, of several, that God has spoken to me today has been in this brief bit of writing, which I hope has been pleasing to him and helpful to you.

How is he speaking to you?

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Chosen

Last week I was on a short trip to Holland, Michigan, where last year I graduated from seminary. I was at a program for people who have graduated within the past five years, as they make the transition from seminary and into…well there has been a great variety of vocational destinations among the graduates who came back. Many would have been expected but there were a few surprises.

One of the talks I was privileged to hear was titled “The Biblical Vision of Leading the Church.” As part of his talk, Kyle Small introduced us to what was for me a new way to read, and more importantly, to listen, to Scripture. I’m not going to describe the method, at least not here right now. I haven’t taken the opportunity to go back and review my notes or the information we were provided with. What I do want to discuss is what I heard in particular at that time, as the text spoke to me. Or perhaps more accurately, as God spoke to me through the text

As a group we heard and read John 15:1-17. This was, for me, familiar territory. We recently explored it at my Bible study and it contains many phrases and thoughts that I believe are fairly widely known among Christians. Themes of “abiding,” “bearing fruit” and “laying down one’s life” are just several of the treasures of this passage.

As I read and pondered this section of Scripture, my eyes, and my heart, lingered on the first half of verse 16, where Jesus says,

“You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide,…”

I suppose that the first part, where Jesus says, “You did not choose me but I chose you” could be held up as a proof-text for the Biblical foundation of the doctrine of election. It could be used to “prove” that God is in the business of choosing those who follow him, perhaps even against their will. And maybe sometimes it has been heard and used that way, but it wasn’t to me that morning.

I heard something much more personal. I heard that I, Brad, did not choose God, but that God chose me. Personally.

The God of all time and space, the God who transcends all time and space, the God who spoke creation into existence, the God who gave his own Son for my sin, chose me.

He didn’t have to choose me, because he’s God and can do whatever he wants to. He didn’t have to choose me so he must have wanted to choose me. But for what purpose?

The easy answer, the one that is almost a reflex, is described in John 3:16,

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

So maybe God chose me so that I could hang out in heaven with God, eternally. And I believe that the easy answer is certainly true, but John 15:16 points to something richer. I have not just been chosen by God for salvation to eternal life, but as a result of his choosing I am also “appointed” for the task of “bearing fruit.”

Now this is starting to sound to me a bit like it may be John’s version of the Great Commission of Matthew 28:19-20. And while I know those verses from Matthew well, the way that John has described the task of sharing the Good News feels a bit richer as I contemplate the phrase “that your fruit should abide.”

God has chosen me, and given me, the task of “bearing fruit,” fruit that will “abide” in him. He doesn’t tell me who and he doesn’t tell me how. He appears to leave those details up to me.

And maybe that is why lately, over the past two weeks or so, I have found myself thinking more about some particular people that I know and what the eternal state of their souls may be. I have never heard them say what they think or believe about Jesus and God’s Good News, but the evidence of their lives that I do know of suggests that knowing and loving God are not things they value highly.

So maybe one of the things that God has chosen and appointed me to do is to pray for these people and to prepare for a moment when I may share in some way with them what I believe about Jesus, so that they, like I, may abide in him, now and forever.

These are some of my thoughts on how “being chosen” looks at this time in my life. To what task has God chosen and appointed you for?