More on Solomon - Leadership Guru - Proverbs 1:1 Part 2

In Proverbs 1:1, the greatest collection of practical wisdom the world has ever seen is attributed to a man who never advertised, promoted himself, or had a fee schedule. Yet, recognized leaders sought out his counsel, traveled long distances to meet him, and payed him handsomely for his advice.

To what might Solomon attribute the attraction?

First, one cannot discount natural gifts. God had gifted him early in life with leadership abilities. He had a natural affinity for wisdom that deepened his desire to grow in this area of his life and request a wise heart as his first and primary gift from God. He played to his strengths, but his strengths were in place from the beginning.

None of us can change our basic aptitudes, but we develop them with differing levels of commitment and skill.

Solomon was committed to developing his abilities and he started the process by asking God to give him a discerning heart.

The he put feet on his prayers and began to collect all the positive truth, sayings, and life lessons he could. He collected them and practiced them.  The Bible does not say that Solomon wrote all the Proverbs, just that they were his. There were his in that he wrote some, collected many, applied all, and thought deeply about them, memorizing and teaching them to others.

We are all given a certain capacity for wisdom and leadership. How we develop that capacity has a lot to do with seeking it as Solomon exemplified in his prayer request, collecting it by reading and listening, and applying it in our every day lives.

As used in Proverbs, wisdom is defined as practical choices that are moral, pragmatic., and centered in lasting values.

If you want to get paid for what you know, learn some lessons from Solomon.

The Grand Courtship

(Jeremiah 31:3 KJV) The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.

Everlasting love. It is as much of a quality as it is an expression of duration. In fact, what makes God’s love endure is that it is durable, patient, passionate, and aggressive. That is the character of His love. God actively pursues the object of His love in the way described by Francis Thompson in his immortal poem, “The Hound of Heaven.”

God appears to us of old with this romantic word of wooing, He has been loving us all along. It is new only by its freshness. “Yes, I have loved you …” He affirms with conviction and passion, “and my love never ends.”

Not only does He love us, but He courts us. With loving kindness He reaches out to us and draws us to Himself. Loving kindness is an inadequate English translation of a Hebrew word, which is best translated, “covenant love.” It means that God’s own character, word, and integrity are at stake and that He loves us simply because He has chosen and committed to do so. He will not back down. He is relentless in loving us. It is about who He is that He loves so deeply.

God is a jealous lover—not in the immature sense of one who is insecure, but with the confidence of one who knows that He is the only one for us and that all other suitors are bent on our destruction. The jealousy of God is selfless and generous. He will settle for no less than the best for us.

 

Could we with ink the ocean fill

And were the skies of parchment made,

Were every stalk on earth a quill,

And every man a scribe by trade,

To write the love of God so fair

Would drain the ocean dry,

Nor could the part contain the whole

Though stretched from sky to sky.

- F.H. Lehman

© 1917, 1945, Nazarene Publishing House

Feeding and Starving

Feed your dreams; starve your fears.
Whichever one you feed will grow.

Fears will grow to control you and clip your wings.

Dreams will consume you and cause you to soar.

It is your choice.

You will feed that to which you give the most attention and credit.

If you live by fear, you will live a crippled and limited life. Your best work, your highest aspirations, and your most enchanting creations will go to the grave with you.

If you live as a person of vision, you may not attain all of your goals, but you will attain many and they will live on after you are gone. They will inspire others to dream and create. You will create a ripple that will grow into a mighty tidal wave of dreams and accomplishments.

Feed your dreams and starve your fears. That is my recommendation and below are some ideas for how to feed dreams and starve fears.

FEED Your Dreams

F = Face them. I mean, put a face on them. Find something that represents them that you can gaze upon and be reminded of them.

E = Enliven them. Create activities that remind you of your dreams, move you closer toward them, and let you experience "foretastes" of what it will be like when they come true.

E - Elicit support. Ask people who are positive dreamers to be part of your dream building community. Build them up even as they build you up. Get folks on your team. Someone said that if you ever see a turtle at the top of a telephone pole and he tells you he got there by himself he is either lying or he doesn't understand the nature of things.

D - Determine to pursue them, work for them, and never let them go. Determination will take you from today until tomorrow. It is essential.

STARVE Your Fears

S = Saturate yourself with positive words, thoughts, and deeds. Give negativity no quarter. Make no room for it. Your prior decision to go for the dream has shut out all possibility of fear finding a resting place in your life. You are just too occupied with where you are going.

T - Time them. Go ahead and nod at your fears. Stare them down. Look at them for 30 seconds, a minute, whatever it takes to understand them. When the time is up, say,  "Time's up. That's all I can give you." Then walk away. If there was something valid about the fear, you took time to see it and make provisions. The rest is fruitless.

A - Attack your challenges as one who has the upper hand. Be the aggressor with your fears. Be proactive. Get fear on the run by taking charge of the situations that feed it.

R - Rest in God's promises. He has not given us the spirit of fear. He alone is worthy of our reverence and fear (awe). Reverence Him and let Him take care of all the other fears.

V - Value what is valuable. Your dreams are built upon principles you value. Your fears are largely irrational and based upon a concern that you will be severed from something temporal and fleeting. Focus on what endures and has infinite value. It will starve fear because it will take away all of its "junk food" nourishment.

E = Eliminate that which makes you fearful. I don't know what it is in your life, but there is something that feeds your fears. Identify it and eliminate it.

 

That is your assignment today!

Living for Others

Proverbs 4:2 - I give you sound learning,
       so do not forsake my teaching.

Consider what is not written here. The book of Proverbs is full of helpful instructions on living a successful life, but someone took the time to write these wise sayings as a father to the son. In giving sound teaching, that person, Solomon, along with others, was giving his life, his wisdom, and his time away to impart the gifts of significance and success to another.

In  so doing, we have, at our disposal and within reach, a storehouse of wisdom that we can never exhaust.

It is the unwritten principle of Proverbs, that as we live for God, we also live for others. The best gift we can give ourselves is to give ourselves away.

Giving Yourself Away

Thanks for being a friend and for building people.

What we invest in the lives of others returns to us in abundance.

We make daily choices to give of ourselves in ways that are uniquely our own or to squander our influence on selfish and fruitless pursuits.

We when give, we receive. It is an divine and eternal principle.

You have chosen to reach out to others and in doing so, you will be blessed.

I am cheering for your success. Let me know if I can help in any way that in uniquely mine to give. I offer coaching, inspiration, business opportunities suited to your own uniqueness, and a listening ear. The ear part is complimentary and the businesses are a partnership.

Whatever you do, it is an honor to network with you. Keep up the good work and visit my blog when you can.

Make a Living or Make a Difference

We choose how we will spend our time. It is a commodity that is not renewable, but with proper stewardship, it can be maximized.

It is ironic, but true, that our decisions about expenditures of time will determine the quality of that time and the effectiveness of our lives. We can give our time in service and reap rich rewards. We can hoard our time and lose it forever.

We can live every moment or bide the hours and days until some moment of good fortune. We can embrace our daily work with joy and a desire to be productive or we can put in our time and just make a living.

We can choose to make a living or make a difference.

When we choose to make a difference, we tiptoe in expectancy, skip with anticipation, and dance with joy through every moment of our days, knowing that we have once chance to pass through that moment and leave the world positively different because of our presence.

If you are "trapped" in a job, liberate yourself by making it your mission of the moment and your launch pad to greater things. Use your time before and after work to create options, but your time at work to bloom where you are planted and make a difference in the world.

You are unique and wonderful. There is only one like you. Only you can accomplish what you have been placed here to do. only you can be what you are called to be.

I am cheering for you. How can I help?

"Who Can I Lift Today?"  - A prayer by Tom Sims
 
Who can I lift today
From dregs or rags or rubble?
"Who will lift me?" replies the bit of me within me
Whose focus, inverted and cross eyed causes me to
Stumble over unexpected opportunities.
"Refocus!" Shouts the me within me that can see,
Refocus and move forward and ask again the first question.
Who can I lift today and in the lifting, lift myself.
Who can I encourage?
Who can I bless?
Who can I walk alongside and with that one,
Share a burden?
Who can I love?
To whom can I give myself?
Who will be my brother or sister,
Or lifelong friend,
Whom I have never met?
Who will you bring along my path today, Oh Lord,
By divine appointment to change my life
As I give give myself away?
 
I stand before you on tiptoe, Oh Lord,
With childlike anticipation and wonder,
Waiting for the moment and the person
That you will bring along my way
To lift today. - Tom Sims

The FLOW of Grace

It has been suggested that when storms come into our lives, that we "go withthe flow." I would like to suggest that we embrace grace as a flow of God's mercy and attention in our lives.

Psalm 11:1 - "In the Lord I take refuge.  How then can you say to me: “Flee like a bird to your mountain.""

The impulse to flee is one of two that we face in any crisis situation. Fight and flight are the two extremes that confront humans. But there is a third option that occupies the seat of grace – it is to flow and to let God’s grace flow through you as you flow with the circumstances of life. Flowing does not require denial of danger. It acknowledges the truth of the situation, but embraces a greater truth in the mix of reality. It is the truth of God’s presence, His power, and His love. It is the truth that in Him we have a sturdy and steady refuge from danger. In God’s mercy, we neither run to the mountains to avoid potential pain nor stand to fight our battles ourselves alone. The life of faith is a journey of trust and balance. Find your refuge in God today.

F = Face the Challenge

Psalm 11:2  - "For look, the wicked bend their bows; they set their arrows against the strings to shoot from the shadows at the upright in heart."

Wickedness lives in the midst of dark shadows. It attacks without warning and without rules of engagement. The snipers of sin and temptation align with the forces of discouragement, bitterness, despondency, and cynicism to derail our growth in grace and righteousness. Satan would have us flee to the hills and abandon our God-given assignments. Or he would be equally pleased if we would take the battle in our own strength and suffer defeat at his hand. God calls us to take refuge in Him. His is the battle; He is our protector, defender, and friend. Do not be discouraged, dismayed, or shocked by the sinister conniving of evil. Satan is an accuser and liar and hides in darkness. Bring every thought, motive, and deed to the light. Allow every memory that pains the heart to come into the brilliance of God’s grace. Then we can speak as forthrightly and with the same matter-of-factness as the psalmist. Then we can bring these matters that once caused us to tremble before a God who already knows and cares. We can take refuge in Him, but first, we must face  and expose the challenge and name it for what it is.

L = Lament.  Lean into the circumstance and lift up the frustration to God.

Psalm 11:3 - When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do?”

Who has not expressed such a lament in the recesses of a discouraged heart?  If indeed, the foundations are destroyed, there is not much the righteous can do. The righteous person depends upon foundations to stand under the weight of external conflict and internal stress. There are values and beliefs in which we invest ourselves. We call them ultimate and we hang our lives upon them. There are irreducible standards that we set for our families, our communities, and ourselves. When these are threatened, we are flung into chaos and spasmodic reaction. We cry out to God in utter desperation and confusion. “God,” we cry, “ is there nothing that is sacred, nothing that is permanent, nothing that cannot be destroyed by the forces that afflict with without and within?” And God answers us that what we thought were the foundations were only part of the extended structure of our lives, that He is our true foundation and He will never be shaken. Paul concluded that no other foundation can be laid than that which is laid: Jesus Christ (I Cor. 3:11). Anything else can be destroyed, but the believer whose life is planted in Jesus Christ cannot be toppled. Trust Him in the midst of the quaking of the earth and the battering of the storm.

O = Observe the presence, power, and stability of God

Psalm 11:4a - "The Lord is in his holy temple; the Lord is on his heavenly throne."

When the foundations are seemingly being destroyed, God remains securely seated in His holy temple and rules from His throne. There is no interruption in His reign, no pause in His oversight, and no cause for concern by His subjects. He is the true foundation that cannot be shaken. He is our refuge. He is our sure protection in times of trouble. Nothing escapes His constant attention. When, in the bleakest moments, all that is right appears vanquished, He speaks and the frayed strands of time and space come into their proper order. We are not a patient people. We are easily stirred from our strident faith. We become disturbed by the news, by prognosticating commentaries on our times, and by our own emotions. We gaze into our problems with such intensity that we, for a moment, lose sight of God on His throne. But He is there. He has not moved. He will not be displaced, replaced, or ultimately ignored. The greatest relevance in the universe is that God is active and alive in His Holy temple supervising and involved in the affairs of men and women. Tune your hearts to that reality today and live in joyful confidence in God.

W = Wait on God with faith that He sees, knows, and is acting. It is not passive waiting, but active trusting with awareness of His attention.

Psalm 11:4b - "He observes the sons of men; his eyes examine them."

God is watching. There is a popular song that announces that truth but distorts it with the words, “from a distance.” That is only half-true. There will always be a distance between God and man because He is God and we are men – but that is a distance of essential nature that Jesus bridged and brought us into intimate fellowship with the Father. Even those who do not know Him are known by Him for He is as imminent as He is transcendent.  Some envision a God so far away that He requires a telescope to observe us, but it is with His eye that He watches and nothing escapes His notice. He examines us with such divine scrutiny that all is known, even that which our hearts cannot acknowledge in awareness. Knowing that God knows frees us in prayer to be absolutely honest. It liberates us from the limitations of language to open ourselves to Him. He knows every circumstance and every deed done in darkness or in light. He has all the information and, in His wisdom, is the only true and reliable interpreter of history and current events. It would behoove us to withhold judgment until He speaks in a matter for we see only within a thin spectrum of all that is. He sees all. Understand that as you meet Him in prayer today.

Go with God's flow today.

 

When The Day Is Done

Vintage Peter, Paul, and Mary - "When the Day Is Done."

PP&M get the audience involved as they bring down the house with their classic anthem. With The Smothers Brothers, Donovan, and Jennifer Warnes

I love these guys and this is the best of what the sixties were supposed to be.

Dynamic Prayers

“God, grant me the serenity to
accept the things I cannot change,
the courage to change the things I can,
and the wisdom to know the difference.
Living One Day At A Time,
enjoying one moment at a time,
accepting hardships as a pathway to peace;
taking as Jesus did this sinful world as it is and not as I would have it,
trusting that You will make all things right if I surrender to Your will;
so that I may be reasonably happy in this life
and Supremely happy forever with You in the next.”
(Reinhold Neibhur)

“Lord, Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”
(The Jesus Prayer)

“Lord, Jesus Christ, Son of God, all things in heaven and on earth are Yours. I
desire to offer myself to You willingly and freely to be Yours forever…in the
simplicity of my heart I offer myself to You for this day.”
(Thomas a Kempis)

Help!!!!
(Tom)

Solutions - Day 10 - Necessary

From all the readings today (See  Solutions for readings), I am confronted with the conclusion  that all valid premises lead to necessities. We MUST respond to a presentation of truth either to refute it, comply with it, or ignore it. From Moses' sermon in Deuteronomy, the necessity is to be faithful to the covenant and show great care in the area of obedience to God. In Philippians, Paul tells his friends that the must go on living for their benefit and for God's purposes even though he would welcome a fast track to heaven. In II Corinthians 9:5 Paul sensed to do what was necessary to enable the Corinthians o give generously. In Acts 1:21 it was necessary to appoint new leadership in the church.

Some things we do because we want to; some things because it is convenient; others because they are imperative. What I MUST do today is disc over what I MUST do ... and then, do it.

Solutions - Day 9 - Obligate and More

My reflections today on Deuteronomy 28 pointed me to the reality of my obligation under covenant with God to be holy, called by His Name, and in leadership for His sake.

With great blessing always comes great responsibility and obligation. The Kennedys and the Rockefellers drilled this into the consciousness of their children and grandchildren. It became a family culture from which few departed. It ought to be a part of the culture of God's people as well.

I identify with Paul in Romans 1:14-16 that I am a debtor of good news. Frank Pollard once said, "Because I know it, I owe it." That means that I am obligated to find a way to share good news so that it really does come out as good news and not condemnation and it is receivable. I cannot determine that it will be received, but I can present it in such a way as not to alienate the hearer for the wrong reasons - namely that I was obnoxious, pushy, or evasive.

Romans 8:12-13 reminds me that I have an obligation to mortify the flesh with its deeds and motive and live by the Spirit with my spirit.
__________________________________________________________________________

Other Stuff ...

What I saw on Letterman last night was a glimpse of how church ought to work and it was totally from outside the church.

We had seen a comic make an absolute idiot of himself by ranting racial slurs and yelling at the audience. Spouting profanities seems to be tantamount to punctuation marks in the comedy community as evidenced through "Comic Relief" the other night. But this went way over the edge and revealed something deep and troubling about Michael Richards that I am not sure even he understands.

Then we saw the condemnations. They were justified and real. What normally happens is that friends go into hiding or denounce the person. This happens in church as we shoot our wounded soldiers. It happens in government. It is true of both public and private life.

What happened next was uncharacteristic of public discourse. Jerry Seinfeld reached out to his friend without condoning the behavior. In fact, he privately and publicly deplored the behavior. He apparently offered wise counsel throughout the day and urged Michael to openly and publically repent of his words and offer apologies.

Finally, Jerry offered a spot on his own time on Letterman for Michael to do so and even gently rebuked the audience for laughing. He told Letterman that "this is a person I love," and stood by him. Michael's apology was one of the most brutally honest, no-excuses, heartfelt apologies I have ever heard.

The words he used on stage make my skin crawl, but I believed Micahel Richards' apology. More so, I applaud Jerry Seinfeld for being a friend and an example of what Christians ought to be and David Letterman for making the forum available.

We learn from unlikely sources and this was one.

Concerning Comic Relief, I am a bit sad. What a line-up! For one thing, the three hosts are some of the most tallented, good-hearted, responsible, funny individuals in show business. What a tragedy that they and nearly every other entertainer on the show had to be b leeped repeatedly for profanity. I was flipping channels and hoping against hope I could find something funny that wasn't bleeped out - because I love the work these guys do in mainstream media. Beyond that, I loved what they were trying to accomplish that night.

The question is why must they resort to this lowest common denominator of profanity? Is it supposedly more real? I don't know, but it is not the reality I choose.

I won't give up on these guys, but I am disappointed and hope someone will lead the way to a return to clean humor. In the meantime, I'll be praying for Michael Richards as he does what he described as "personal work."

SOLUTIONS - Days 6-8 - Innovation and Intercession

Days 6-7 – Reflecting on the journey so far leads me to believe that God has directed my heart toward these specific scriptures with purpose and precision. I did not plan down time from what I intended for my down time, but it has proven productive. Jell-O has to jell, pudding has to “pud,” and stew tastes better in the morning. There have been some surprises in this time of retreat, but I doubt anyone would be surprised by them but me.

Day 8

Deuteronomy 28 Reflections - From verse 1, I had to stop with the words, “carefully follow,” and wonder how much care and attention to detail is required of me. How much have I neglected? How much glossing over have I done in attempt to “get on with it?”

After all, a C-flat is not a C. 439 vibrations do not make a perfect A 440. If I am off an inch, I am off a mile except that the correction for the fine tuning may be a bit more excruciating. Excellence is always achieved in the fine tuning.

That goes to the issues of INNOVATION and INTERCESSION. Joel 2:28 associates the work of the Spirit with dreaming dreams and seeing visions. Daniel (9:17-23) was a dreamer and an intercessor. His vision for the future was rooted in God’s past favors to Israel, but also in a reality that none around him could see. As he prayed, Gabriel the angel came to give him understanding. Gabriel told him that as soon as he began to pray, the answer was given.

Note that the answer was given even before Daniel knew it.

This is the fine tuning we/I need in this journey. To intercede with innovation in mind is the key. It not innovation that I invent for the sake of novelty, but God’s ideas coming to us in prayer that are solutions we have not previously imagined. They may not be new from an eternal perspective, but they are profoundly new in terms of what we have been willing to believe God for so far.

Deuteronomy 28:3 says we will be blessed in the country and blessed in the city. I have been blessed in the country for the last week. It is now almost time to return home and be blessed in the city.

 

Solutions Journal - Days 3 and 4

Day 3 – Learn, Lean, Love

From Deuteronomy 28 – The blessing of God, through obedience can be upon everything I put my hand to. This presupposes that I am putting my hand to those things that are in accordance with God’s purposes since I am obeying Him. It is the same principle at work as in Psalm 37:4. If I delight myself in the Lord, the Lord can trust me enough to give me the desires of my heart because He is shaping those desires.

Lord, shape my desires as I learn, from You, to lean upon You and to love You.

As You shape my desires, may I become productive for Your purposes.

Learn- Matthew 28:29-30 outlines the process of learning. First, we must come and it is a rag-tag group He calls to do so, worn out and beaten down by life, old dogs who have given up learning new tricks. We are promised fulfillment (rest). The second step in the process is to submit to a yoke which binds us to Him and to our yoke-fellows. Then we begin to learn, but our learning is from Jesus. What we learn is that He is no stern schoolmaster, but one who is gentle, humble, and generous in giving rest.

 

Lean – Proverbs 3:5-6 teaches me/us to lean by instructing us what not to lean upon, namely, our own understanding. It is not that understanding is frowned upon; it is that our human understanding is so limited as to exclude vast storehouses of information and interpretation. Yet, it is so compelling and simplistic that we are eager to settle for it only to discover later that the missing piece was the puzzle component that brought the whole picture into cohesion and that it was in His hand.

 

Love – They asked Jesus in Matthew 22:34-40 what was most important in the law and He answered from two Old Testament scriptures. The first was a specific answer to their specific question: Love God. Then He went further to illustrate the importance of loving other people. Finally, He reduced the rationale for all law and instruction to these two: Love God and others and you will keep all the rest of the laws.

As I seek God’s will in my life and ministry and in the life of the church I lead, I come to understand that decisions must be based upon what God Himself teaches, my faith in the reliability of His Word and applications that are filtered through the law of love.

Day 4 - Understand

Deuteronomy 28 reminds me that to walk in God’s ways and to carefully follow those ways, even given the lessons of yesterday, presume understanding that may often be beyond me. I need to understand some things that I do not yet understand.

Therefore, the prayer of David in Psalm 119:25 is one which I can apply. I need discernment and the request for discernment is legitimized in the scriptures.

God, teach me and open my eyes to be like those wise men who were called upon by the king because of their ability to understand the times and know what needed to be done.

The Process

I am secluded in the hills. For that reason, I do not have a prayer partner for the SOLUTIONS process through which I am leading my church. Therefore, I will make all of you my prayer partners and record my journal here.

I share them because some of the concepts with which I grapple can be transferred and contextualized to your own life.

Yesterday was a traveling day and I did not get to post. So, we'll have two entries today.

Day 1 - Seek

My reflections on Deuteronomy - What struck me were these words:

"The LORD will grant you abundant prosperity—in the fruit of your womb,"

I am taking them a bit out of context here, but they spoke to me in the midst of real concern for my kids and grandchildren. I seem to focus on many tasks at once - and sometimes do, but when there are problems with my children and worries about their futures, I sometimes become very single minded. I have spent a great many hours in prayer for them. At the same time, I need to focus on the tasks that have brought me to the mountains.

Full integration  of life and faith is a spiritual exercise of trust in God. I trust God that He will provide for our church, our church families, and me and my family. Increase is His mode of operation.

From Matthew 7 - Seeking is not divorced from asking and knocking. How many knocks does it take to get someone to come to the door? God is no fickle and is not playing games with us, but He does want us to persist in prayer. He wants our participation. Likewise, He wants to tell us what He is doing in a way that we can understand His larger purposes and to the extent that we are ready and able to receive them.

When do I stop seeking? When do I stop knocking or asking?

At least not until I have an answer that leads me to stop. I believe that God knows things that i don't know and that none of us know. Some of those things are the answer to whatever challenges we face as individuals, as a community, and as a church. Some of that He wishes to share with us so that we can join Him in His work.

If I do not seek, I will not find.

Day 2 - Obey

From Deuteronomy - I am to fully obey and carefully follow. I know I am often lax and casual about holy things. This cannot be if I am to enter into the promises of God fully and completely. I do not see a call to prudish "sourpussism" here, but to joyful embrace of the ways of God. Obedience is a thing of great joy!

Samuel told Saul that it is better than sacrifice in I Samuel 15:22.

God isn't as much interested in how miserable I make myself in the course of following Him as He is in my willingness to follow and in my follow-through on that commitment. I can offer everything I have, but it does not matter if I do not offer who I am.

Jesus said that this yoke is easy and this burden light. It doesn't always seem that way, but it seems less that way when I am waging war with god over His simple instructions.

God is not interested in controversy over this business of obedience. He just wants me to do it.

It may mean doing just what i am doing now - sitting in a cabin alone in the mountains seeking Him, writing/finishing a book I have been putting off for years, letting Him take care of the problems at home, and learning to trust Him - which is the first and greatest act of obedience.

This Is It

I was browsing through some old pictures and was reminded that this is the second summer I have not made it to Mexico for our annual home-building trek with Amor Ministries. I sure hope to get back next year. It is the best back-breaking, agony I ever enjoy.

Every year I've been down there has reminded me that I am blessed. Every time I have ever turned over the house keys to a family who has never had a need or capacity to lock their door, I am reminded of how little effort it takes to bless others - and how I never get caught up, because the blessings keep coming.

I just wanted to share a memory with this picture. What a team!!!

Thoughts from Psalm 11

Absolute Trust

“In the LORD put I my trust: how say ye to my soul, Flee as a bird to your mountain? “ – Psalm 11:1

The impulse to flee is one of two that we face in any crisis situation. Fight and flight are the two extremes that confront humans. But there is a third option that occupies the seat of grace – it is to flow and to let God’s grace flow through you as you flow with the circumstances of life. Flowing does not require denial of danger. It acknowledges the truth of the situation, but embraces a greater truth in the mix of reality. It is the truth of God’s presence, His power, and His love. It is the truth that in Him we have a sturdy and steady refuge from danger. In God’s mercy, we neither run to the mountains to avoid potential pain nor stand to fight our battles ourselves alone. The life of faith is a journey of trust and balance. Find your refuge in God today.

“For, lo, the wicked bend their bow, they make ready their arrow upon the string, that they may privily shoot at the upright in heart. “ - Psalm 11:2

Wickedness lives in the midst of dark shadows. It attacks without warning and without rules of engagement. The snipers of sin and temptation align with the forces of discouragement, bitterness, despondency, and cynicism to derail our growth in grace and righteousness. Satan would have us flee to the hills and abandon our God-given assignments. Or he would be equally pleased if we would take the battle in our own strength and suffer defeat at his hand. God calls us to take refuge in Him. His is the battle; He is our protector, defender, and friend. Do not be discouraged, dismayed, or shocked by the sinister conniving of evil. Satan is an accuser and liar and hides in darkness. Bring every thought, motive, and deed to the light. Allow every memory that pains the heart to come into the brilliance of God’s grace. Then we can speak as forthrightly and with the same matter-of-factness as the psalmist. Then we can bring these matters that once caused us to tremble before a God who already knows and cares. Then we can take refuge in Him.

Foundations: Faulty and Sure

“If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do? “ – Psalm 11:3

Who has not expressed such a lament in the recesses of a discouraged heart?  If indeed, the foundations are destroyed, there is not much the righteous can do. The righteous person depends upon foundations to stand under the weight of external conflict and internal stress. There are values and beliefs in which we invest ourselves. We call them ultimate and we hang our lives upon them. There are irreducible standards that we set for our families, our communities, and ourselves. When these are threatened, we are flung into chaos and spasmodic reaction. We cry out to God in utter desperation and confusion. “God,” we cry, “ is there nothing that is sacred, nothing that is permanent, nothing that cannot be destroyed by the forces that afflict with without and within?” And God answers us that what we thought were the foundations were only part of the extended structure of our lives, that He is our true foundation and He will never be shaken. Paul concluded that no other foundation can be laid than that which is laid: Jesus Christ (I Cor. 3:” – Psalm 11). Anything else can be destroyed, but the believer whose life is planted in Jesus Christ cannot be toppled. Trust Him in the midst of the quaking of the earth and the battering of the storm.

“The LORD is in his holy temple, the LORD’s throne is in heaven: his eyes behold, his eyelids try, the children of men. “ – Psalm 11:4

When the foundations are seemingly being destroyed, God remains securely seated in His holy temple and rules from His throne. There is no interruption in His reign, no pause in His oversight, and no cause for concern by His subjects. He is the true foundation that cannot be shaken. He is our refuge. He is our sure protection in times of trouble. Nothing escapes His constant attention. When, in the bleakest moments, all that is right appears vanquished, He speaks and the frayed strands of time and space come into their proper order. We are not a patient people. We are easily stirred from our strident faith. We become disturbed by the news, by prognosticating commentaries on our times, and by our own emotions. We gaze into our problems with such intensity that we, for a moment, lose sight of God on His throne. But He is there. He has not moved. He will not be displaced, replaced, or ultimately ignored. The greatest relevance in the universe is that God is active and alive in His Holy temple supervising and involved in the affairs of men and women. Tune your hearts to that reality today and live in joyful confidence in God.

God is watching. There is a popular song that announces that truth but distorts it with the words, “from a distance.” That is only half-true. There will always be a distance between God and man because He is God and we are men – but that is a distance of essential nature that Jesus bridged and brought us into intimate fellowship with the Father. Even those who do not know Him are known by Him for He is as imminent as He is transcendent.  Some envision a God so far away that He requires a telescope to observe us, but it is with His eye that He watches and nothing escapes His notice. He examines us with such divine scrutiny that all is known, even that which our hearts cannot acknowledge in awareness. Knowing that God knows frees us in prayer to be absolutely honest. It liberates us from the limitations of language to open ourselves to Him. He knows every circumstance and every deed done in darkness or in light. He has all the information and, in His wisdom, is the only true and reliable interpreter of history and current events. It would behoove us to withhold judgment until He speaks in a matter for we see only within a thin spectrum of all that is. He sees all. Understand that as you meet Him in prayer today.

The God Who Sees

“The LORD trieth the righteous: but the wicked and him that loveth violence his soul hateth. “ – Psalm 11:5

Does this bother you? Are you disturbed by the psalmist’s assertion that there are people who God’s soul hates? Let me ask you this: at your best, how do you feel about that part of you that loves wickedness and violence? Do you not repudiate that false self within you in order to embrace the Christ-life which is the truth about who you are and who God made you to be? Doesn’t God know that the false self within you wars against the true you that He loves passionately and sacrificially? We must embrace this paradox in our understanding of God if we are to fully appreciate His love. It is love that produces this level of hate because it is wickedness and violence that destroy those made in the Father’s image. He despises that which destroys what He loves. Ask Him for a special grace today to hate within you that which destroys you and your relationship with Him and know that His love for you is so deep and strong that He will fight for you against all wickedness and violence.

“Upon the wicked he shall rain snares, fire and brimstone, and an horrible tempest: this shall be the portion of their cup. “ – Psalm 11:6

There is another dimension of this hate that God has for the wickedly violent: judgment. When we try to assign human emotion to God it is called “anthropomorphism.” That is a complicated word that means any attempt to understand something other than a human being by human standards. God’s hate is not man’s hate. Man expresses arbitrary hatred based upon emotional considerations (or lack thereof). God’s anger is against anything that goes against Him and it is expressed in wrath and judgment. Even that is paradoxical for He is, at the same time, actively and lovingly reaching out to the individual who is embroiled in sin and rebellion. He judges the sin and the sinner while sending His Son to take the penalty upon Himself and pleading for all to come to repentance. When we would understand the horror of the wrath of God, physical descriptions are required to impress upon us how awful it is to come under His judgment. The reality is more horrible. To go against God is to place ourselves in the concentrated path of all the evil He is flushing out of a sinful world to fashion His Kingdom. Take this truth and embrace it. In Christ, you are not under judgment. Cheer for the triumph of God’s will and invite all that will hear to come into His merciful grace. Pray for the victory of truth, righteousness, and holiness in your own life and in the life of your community.

The God Who Loves Righteousness

“For the righteous LORD loveth righteousness; his countenance doth behold the upright. “ – Psalm 11:7

God is righteous. That means that everything about Him is fully integrated into His holy character – He is 100% pure truth, love, goodness, and holiness. There are no contradictions in God – except those that we contrive in our own misunderstanding of Him. He loves justice. His heart delights in seeing things set aright. He loves consistency in our lives. He takes joy when His truth is integrated into the loose dimensions of our lives and we come into right relationship with Him. There is a promise in this verse, that the upright will see His face. What a glorious affirmation! The more we seek Him, the more our hearts are changed by His power within us and the clearer our vision of Who He is becomes. We can see God. His grace in Jesus Christ removes the scales from our eyes so that we may have a glimpse in this life and the hope of full disclosure in the life to come. Let that truth sink into the pores of your being today and celebrate it as you walk through the maze of confusing messages and distorted truth. You can see God.

A Flair for the Dramatic

A Flair for the Dramatic

 

Our God has more than just a flair for the dramatic. He uses drama at every turn to communicate the mysteries of His truth. Two great dramas are interwoven into the history of Christianity and give us insight into God’s ways with humankind: baptism and Lord’s supper. Both of these present the story of redemption with such vivid poignancy that men and women through history have been drawn to their compelling message But that is not the whole of it. Everything God does evokes worship. 

 

A Flair for the Dramatic

God stepped out on stage

And every member

of the orchestra

knew it was He.

He took the baton in hand

And breathed forth

UPBEAT.

Down came the baton

DOWNBEAT.

And the pattern was given

With every eye upon Him.

The strings

The horns

The percussionists

The LIGHTS

Yes, the lights!

The dancers,

The actors,

The Children,

The artists !

Suddenly, the stage was filled

With performers.

And He conducted them.

And every art

And every part

Conformed to the rhythm of His Baton.

And someone in the audience remarked,

“He certainly has a flair for the dramatic.”

And all creation applauded.

 

 

Critical and Strategic Thinking

I am developing a workshop on critical and strategic thinking. I would value dialogue on this subject and am posting this framework as a launch pad.

 

How to Think Critically and Strategically

 

T

 Topic – We must have something to think about.

 Technique – We must cultivate processing skills.

 Timeliness – We must think in the context of our times.

 

H

 Hours – It takes time to think strategically.

 Honesty - With truth as the object, brutal honesty is required.

 Holistic – Our thinking must embrace multiple concerns.

 

 

I

 Intellect – Thinking always engages the mind. Mental capacity must be nurtured.

 Integration – Ideas, convictions, and paradoxes must be incorporated in the stew.

 Inspiration – The spiritual dimension is necessary. The Holy Spirit illumines our thinking.

 

 

N

 Negation Mechanism – We need to weed out irrelevancies.

 Need-Based – We are thinking to solve a problem.

 Next – Strategic thinking taes us to the next level.

 

 

K

 Knowledge – It is a primarily a tool more than an outcome.

 Koinonia - Fellowship is seen in collaborative thinking.

 Kerygma – It must come under the authority of ultimate truth.

 

© 2006, Thomas B. Sims

Devotionals for March 13

Luke 3:5-14 is the text and context for these devotional thoughts on the possibility of life-change as reflected in the preaching ministry of John the Baptist. Life change is a hopeful message since so many of us feel that we are stuck in our ruts.

Here is a sample. You can download the rest

Download devotionals_313192006.doc

Removing Impediments

Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low; and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways shall be made smooth;  And all flesh shall see the salvation of God. – Luke 3:5-6

 
God called John to be a smoother and a “straightener”. In many ways, John’s role was nothing more than to clear away the obstacles that might impede the message of the one who would come after him.

He was a voice.

He was a voice in the wilderness.

And he cried out with passion and conviction removing excuses and uncovering facades.

He was the one to come before Jesus who could really move some mountains and clear some paths. John was a co laborer with God as we are called to be and His mission was simple:

To be an agent through whom all flesh might see the salvation of God.

God has no desire to hide His salvation. He wants all to see it. He wants all to receive it.

We have the task of removing the impediments.

What kind of impediments are there? Sometimes mountains are too high, valleys are too low, and roads are too crooked and rough. We can cooperate with God to change that.

One impediment to people seeing God’s salvation is our tendency to speak religious jargon that no one understands. We mask the grace of God in a jungle of theological language and church talk.

Another is our insistence on traditions that have lost their meaning. Or it may be our own negativity or the contradictions of our lives – the dichotomy between what we profess and what we practice.

We have to remove the obstacles that keep people from coming to Christ or even hearing the Word of God. The problem is not so much that people don’t want to hear as much as they sometimes cannot hear over the irrelevant chatter. Remove the impediments and let everyone see the salvation of God.

Devotions from Luke for February 26 and On

Here is an offering for this week.

I am posting Monday's and you can download the rest:

Monday – World Context

Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judaea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of Ituraea and of the region of Trachonitis, and Lysanias the tetrarch of Abilene,  - Luke 3:1

In the arena of God’s activity, there are always multiple events transpiring at the same time. Everything happens in context.

Christian awareness has a true north focus on the activity of God in the world, but it cannot ignore the world around it. To do so would be to deny that God uses world events to establish a context for His message.

God is aware of our world. He knows its culture, politics and trends. When His Word comes to us, it is in context. The Christian who shuts his or her eyes to the world is going to miss part of what God is addressing in time and space. Not to acknowledge context is to make God’s Word simply an esoteric nicety with no punch.

Download devotionals_feb_26_march_5_short.doc

Devotions 2/12-2/19

Here is an offering for the week - or any week.

May God bless you on your journey.

Download devotionals_212192006.doc

Devotions for Monday - Sunday

The journey of Jesus' early years continues and overlaps our own journey. Download and read.

Download monday_friday.doc

Honey

Eat honey, my son, for it is good; honey from the comb is sweet to your taste.

Know also that wisdom is sweet to your soul; if you find it, there is a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off.  – Proverbs 24:13-14, NIV, © 1973, 1975, 1978, International Bible Society

Maybe the problem with some folks who think they are very wise is that they don't eat enough sweets.

I understand the rather obvious problem with that statement, but I wonder if I also might be on to something. Some folks seem to do more snarling than smiling when they encounter great ideas. The lights go on in their minds and out in their countenance. All of the energy that comes from insight is used up in perpetuating their misery.

Sour puss thinking, teaching, and living misses the whole point of wisdom.

Wisdom is sweet. After a long wrestling match with truth - which ought to be as playful as it is dead serious, we emerge with something wonderful, an idea. It rings true with the scriptures and true with the soul and it gathers around it a galaxy of other loose ended ideas which suddenly find an orbit that was there all along, but unnoticed.

Eureka! Serendipity! Spread the honey! How sweet it is!

Do you ever chuckle when you read the bible? If not, I dare say you are missing something.

There you are, pouring over the word of God, brain strain focus is fixed on the meaning of the passage and you turn the page. There in living color is an illustration that rings true. You encounter a mirror of your own emotions, a replay of your own experience, an answer that has eluded you and you get all giggly.

You just got the point. How sweet it is!

The gospel is the wisdom of God and it is good news. There is some bad news mixed in, but only to lead us to the good. Carrots are sweet and corn is really sweet, but a little honey brightens the disposition so much.

No one wants or needs a steady diet of nothing but sugar coating, but blandness is not a characteristic of radical Christianity. I want to be where there is love and life and laughter. That's my honey tree. That is wisdom. That is my faith.

Devotional Thoughts for January 23-29

Something to Think About

Today I am launching a new venture on my blog. As I write devotionals for my own and my churches consumption, I will be posting them here. If they are an encouragement to any of you, I will be grateful and blessed.

The S Factor

And, behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel : and the Holy Ghost was upon him. – Luke 2:25 

Simeon was in the right place, in the right frame of mind, living a righteous life, and doing so in right relationship with God.

He was a ready receptacle for God into which God could deposit a gift. He was also ready to be used to make a great declaration to the world.

The Holy Ghost was upon Him – what a magnificent state in which to be! 

To be in Jerusalem, the city of God was the first of his blessings. That meant that he lived within eyesight of the temple and could go there regularly to worship, pray, and hear the Torah. Proximity to God and His people opens us to blessings beyond our imagination. Stay close.

He was just. When given a choice between doing the right thing and the wrong thing, he chose the right thing. He did not ask, “Which is easier or has a better payoff?” He asked, “What is right?” 

He was devout. His heart was turned in the direction of God and He was an earnest God-seeker. Such a man or woman is ready for God to move. 

He was waiting for the consolation of Israel. He was not a grumbler about the times, but he knew that something better was coming. He lived in anticipation, waiting for a great movement and intervention of God in history. So may we.

The Holy Ghost was upon him. Whatever else might be said of him, there was this invisible, unexplainable, beyond-the-ordinary dimension to his life that nothing could account for but the Holy Spirit. It was the S Factor – S for Spirit. 

The Christian life is a spiritual life. It is to be lived spiritually in the power of the Holy Spirit and under His constant influence. When that is the case, whatever else might be said of us will not be enough to explain the extraordinary hope, confidence, insight, and authority of our lives. 

The S Factor is available to each of us. Are we available to Him?

 When God Whispers in Our Ears

And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord's Christ.– Luke 2:28 

What has the Holy Spirit shown you? 

Is it audacious to make claims of divine revelation? Is it theologically correct to do so? Might it not be considered presumptuous? 

In the first place, this was not general revelation for all people. It was personal disclosure for Simeon’s personal consumption and encouragement. The Holy Spirit had assured him of the promise and he had embraced it. 

There is no indication that Simeon had gone about bragging on his “special revelation.” He had not used it to elevate his status or to appear hyper spiritual. 

He had not developed and marketed a seminar entitled, “How I Received a Revelation from the Holy Ghost and How You Can Too.” 

He simply received a promise through the still, small voice of God and he clung to it with all his might. He did so in complete trust and confidence that God would bring it to pass. 

Perhaps you believe that the Holy Spirit has shown you something about your future. It is OK to entertain the thought. None of us is a perfect receptacle for words from God, but He does still whisper promises in our ears in the form of assurance, calling, and encouragement. Do not be afraid to receive these words. 

Could you be wrong? You might, but if you are, God will clarify that for you and show you something better in due time. 

You will most likely discover that God was indeed speaking to you, but that you did not fully understand what He was trying to say. It stretched you and challenged you and through the experience, you grew. 

If the Holy Spirit is speaking to you, it is most likely about you. It was about Simeon that he would live to see the Lord’s Christ and it was about Christ Himself. There were many ways God could have chosen to fulfill those words, but the way He did turned into a blessing for all who believe. What is He whispering in your ear?

 Hanging On

Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: For mine eyes have seen thy salvation ... – Luke   2:29-30

Sometimes it seems that we are just hanging on, waiting for something big to happen. 

We hang on to money because we know that either a great opportunity or a rainy day is on the way. 

We hang on to an idea because we know that someday, it will be useful. Some day, other people will buy into it and come alongside of us. 

We hang on to life because we know that God is not done with us and that all He has promised has not yet come to pass. We hang on because He is hanging on to us and because to shortcut the process would be to cheat Him and to cheat ourselves. 

We hang on to hope because we believe that God is the God of hope and that everything He promises will come to pass. We know deeply that He is not forgetful, nor is He remiss. He will fulfill His Word. 

Therefore we live on tiptoe. While resting in His promises, we do not entirely relax. We stay alert. We watch. We pray. We actively seek any sign of His coming, any indication of His acting out of His purposes in our time. 

We may not know what our roles may be, but we stand at the ready to play them. If it is only to witness His power and trustworthiness, we will do so with joy and gratitude. 

Simeon could not depart in peace until the moment came and when the moment came, he knew it. 

“Any time now, Lord.  I have seen what you told me I’d see before I died. I’m ready now.” 

There were no regrets in Simeon’s life, no unfinished business, no unfulfilled plans, no lost dreams. God had done the great thing for which he had been “hanging on.” 

Maybe he lived many more years; maybe he died the next day; we don’t know. What we do know is that when the time came for him to make the final departure, he was ready. He was ready from that moment on.

 Marveling

And Joseph and his mother marvelled at those things which were spoken of him. – Luke 2:33

God isn’t calling know-it-alls to play a significant role in His program. 

He is not looking for those whose motto is, “Been there, done that, got the t-shirt.” 

God is calling men and women who are capable of marveling over that which is marvelous. 

“Business and usual” is not in His order of the day. He is full of surprises. The mundane is not His domain; He shakes things up. 

When God speaks directly through His prophets to us, His Word goes straight to the heart with recognizable veracity and piercing honesty. We are amazed. 

Joseph was a man capable of relishing the marvels of God. He was not jaded by boredom or dulled by cynicism. Joseph was caught completely off guard by the wonder of God’s power and He basked in it. 

To marvel at the spoken word means that we have truly received it – deeply and with a willingness to let it shape us. We have rejected the superficial responses that tend to dismiss the unusual as a something merely strange and we have chosen to let God speak. 

It is no small thing to receive such a word. 

It is no small thing what God wants to do in us, through us, and within proximity of our lives. 

When God sends a Simeon or an Anna into our lives, He has a reason. While no human being is capable of a consistently infallible representation of divine will, God is able to speak through the frailest, most errant person to say what we need to hear. 

And while we are not witnessing the creation of new scriptures in our time, the Lord is still taking His scriptures and placing them on the lips of men and women He chooses to apply them to our lives in ways that cause us to marvel. 

Don’t stop marveling; we serve a marvelous God.

 A Strange Blessing

And Simeon blessed them, and said unto Mary his mother, Behold, this child is set for the fall and rising again of many in Israel; and for a sign which shall be spoken against; (Yea, a sword shall pierce through thy own soul also,) that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed. Luke 2:34-35

It must have seemed like a strange sort of blessing to Mary and Joseph. Many would rise. Many would fall. As a sign, the babe would be spoken against. He would bring out the best and worst in people as their very heart thoughts and motives were revealed. As parents, they would have their hearts pierced. 

It was a strange blessing indeed. 

When Jesus comes, sweet and unassuming, precious, cute, and giggly as a little baby, it is hard to imagine that the planet has just been invaded by a force to contend with. 

He does not tread lightly. There will be no lasting indifference in His regard. He will not be non-controversial. He defines controversy. He confronts us, shattering our prejudices, exposing our biases, showing us what our religious hypocrisies really look like in the light of His truth. 

And so He comes to you and to me, dear friend, amid the noise of confusion and the beating waves of doubt an anxiety. His words speak truth and courage to our hearts, but it is His touch that is life giving and life affirming, Fear not! 

He threatens our stasis. He shatters our well-formed opinions no matter how many proof-texts we have arranged to support them. He is Lord of all and every notion is subject to His interpretation. 

We are not guaranteed safe passage through the sorting out process. We may well be sifted. Nor are those close to him guaranteed that we will not be broken on the wheel of pain and discomfort. 

And yet, He is blessed and we will be blessed through Him. By being in His circle of relationships, the siftings will be blessings and the piercings blessings too. We need His awful mercy and His harsh healing to be made whole. Strange as the blessing may be, a blessing it is.

S

peaking to the Right People

And she coming in that instant gave thanks likewise unto the Lord, and spake of him to all them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem – Luke 2:38

Anna showed up at just the right moment. 

It was not all that surprising, because she had devoted the years of her widowhood to prayer and worship. She was in the temple so much, that she might have seemed like an anachronism to some and an annoyance to others. 

She was just “always there.” 

Yet, she could have missed the moment if not for one thing. God wanted her there and arranged for her to be there to see the Baby King. 

She hoped for the redemption of Israel and, once she had seen Him, she told people who were like minded. 

There is always an audience for the message that God entrusts to us. There are always those who share our longing, hope, and dissatisfaction with the status quo. 

God prepared Anna and He prepared her audience. 

Have you been so infused and enthused with redemptive hope that you know you have to share it? He has prepared some people who are ready, willing, and anxious to hear your testimony. 

Do not grow discouraged thinking no one is interested. You just haven’t found them yet. 

Do not expect everyone to be responsive. Some folks have grown cold and indifferent. Others have never thought beyond the present time with all of its thrills and carnal gratifications. They are living for now and are satisfied with their listless lives. 

That very well may change for them, but for the moment, they are at different stages of listening and longing. 

You are looking out for those who are thirsty. Keep your good news handy, because when you are willing to share, they will start appearing.

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