Child of God
August 11, 2020
“We are all God’s children.”
This is a phrase I’ve heard many times both in comments by those in my social circle and by those more famous than anyone I know (i.e., actors, politicians). Most recently, a cruise director said this as she talked about inclusivity and being “one big family.”
Yet, the phrase is simply not true. We are all loved by God (see John 3:16), but we are not all his children. How do we know this?
“All who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.” (Romans 8:14)
“But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” (John 1:12)
“For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.” (Galatians 3:26)
So, God loves everyone, but his children are only those who believe in Christ for salvation. While this is not a politically correct or even comfortable statement, it is the truth. And while not everyone is God’s child, everyone can be his child.
For additional study:
Wait & Follow
August 4, 2020
At mid-life, it’s sometimes hard for me to think about future plans and goals. I feel like I should be in the midst of realizing the plans and goals set in my youth, not creating new ones. Then I read again about Abraham who was not young when God set him on a new path that led into an unknown future (Genesis 12:1-4). The story of Abraham gives me a new perspective for reflecting on Scripture I’ve studied many times.
With this new perspective, I am again reminded of where to place my focus and how to let God direct my steps even as I plan my way (Proverbs 16:9). Here are just a few examples:
- Fear of and obedience to God leads to future prosperity. (Genesis 12:1-4)
- God will direct my future and plan my path. (Jeremiah 29:11)
- Restoration comes through God alone. (Jeremiah 31:17)
Further, I realize that waiting on God and living by His word is the only way to really solidify the direction of my life even as I live within its halfway point. I am forced to live what I’ve told others many times:
Never stop learning and growing and hoping and achieving.
God is good, and he still wants to do good in my life. And so, I wait for him and follow the path he sets for me.
“For since the world began, no ear has heard, and no eye has seen a God like you, who works for those who wait for him. You welcome those who cheerfully do good, who follow godly ways.” (Isaiah 64:4-5)
Horror Vacui
July 28, 2020
Nature Abhors a Vacuum
A Greek phrase for “fear of the empty,” horror vacui is found in every area of life and gets at the idea that an empty space does not remain so for long. Simply said, empty spaces get filled.
Let’s look at some examples to help better understand “horror vacui.”
- In Physics, Aristotle postulated that nature contains no vacuums because the denser surrounding material continuum would immediately fill the void.
- In visual art, “kenophobia” is the filling of the entire surface of a space or a piece of artwork with detail.
- In business, Parkinson’s Law says work expands to fill the time available for its completion. It also says data expands to fill the space available for storage.
The idea that emptiness does not remain so for long makes sense to most of us. We’ve probably all experienced it with a living space that seems to eventually be too full of stuff or even with our electronics that seem to always run out of storage space.
No matter how much something is cleaned, an empty space won’t remain unoccupied for long. Dust and dirt accumulate, data, information and other stuff accumulate until the space is no longer empty.
Out With Bad. In With Good.
The Bible gets at this concept in a few places. Two especially stand out for me. The first is in a parable that Jesus told.
Parable of the Empty House
“When an impure spirit comes out of a person, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, ‘I will return to the house I left.’ When it arrives, it finds the house unoccupied, swept clean and put in order. Then it goes and takes with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that person is worse than the first. That is how it will be with this wicked generation.” (Matthew 12:43-45)
Spiritually, this means we can get rid of bad things (in this case, an evil spirit) but it will eventually (usually very quickly) be replaced.
The second is found in instructions for Christian living given to us by Paul.
Off With the Old. On With the New.
Before continuing, please read Ephesians 4:17-32.
Paul tells us to “put off the old self” and “put on the new self.” To connect with the empty house analogy Jesus used, Paul is telling us clean out old habits and characteristics and to fill the empty self with Godly characteristics and activities.
These two portion of Scripture are telling us that simply avoiding evil and eliminating bad habits are not enough. They must be replaced with something else. If they aren’t, the empty vacuum will suck in a much worse situation.
Further Application
I realize that Jesus was talking about an impure spirit inhabiting someone, and Paul was talking about living by the Holy Spirit’s power versus not, but they essentially make the same point. They both give a spiritual application for concept of horror vacui. Sweeping out lives and minds clean of evil spirits or bad habits (i.e., “putting of the old self”) won’t do us good for long if we don’t “put on new” habits.
How do we do this?
- Get right with God. Confess sins and repent.
- Focus on Jesus. Focus determines reality.
- Pray often. Ask for the Holy Spirit’s help.
- Study Scripture daily. Learn about God and his standards.
- Memorize Scripture. Let the Living Word transform your mind.
We get rid of the bad and replace it with good by letting God work in us. As we do this, we are making the choice to not be like the evil world around us but to instead be transformed by the God within us.
“Do not conform to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is-his good, pleasing and perfect will.” (Romans 12:2)
Act Your Age
July 14, 2020
Reflecting on Aging
Age is just a number.
You’re only as old as you think.
We’ve all heard these or similar sayings. I think I get the sentiment they express – age shouldn’t hold you back from being, accomplishing, and doing. At the same time, midlife has begun to show me that age does impact all these areas.
It’s not that I can’t accomplish and be productive; it’s that my body and mind function differently than they used to. In other words, I don’t operate the same mentally or physically as I did in my 20s, 30s, or even just a decade ago. I shouldn’t, either. Not only that, but in many ways I don’t want to be the same as I was in my younger days. I don’t want to think and act the way I did when I was less mature.
Admittedly, I would like some physical reboots, but I wouldn’t trade what I am today in total for what I was at any point in my past. Though I might redo some aspects, I wouldn’t change most things. Even cherry picking from parts of me would be difficult because of the intertwining of all aspects of who I was with who I have become.
The Bible & Aging
Before just a couple of years ago, I honestly never paid attention to Bible verses about aging. Now, though, they are ministering to me in surprising ways. Here are some examples:
2 Corinthians 4:16 – While I’m physically wasting away, my inner self is renewed daily. In a sense, then, I’m not aging at all.
Proverbs 16:31 & Proverbs 20:29 – Splendor is found with gray hair. All that comes with aging produces something otherwise unobtainable.
Job 12:12 – Wisdom and understanding come with age. I didn’t know how much I didn’t have when I was younger.
Psalm 92:12-15 – The righteous bear fruit in old age. Rewards come from living for Jesus.
Titus 2:3 – Be appreciative and respectful and teach others. There’s still work to do.
Isaiah 46:4 – God sustains me all the days of my life. He’s never failed me and never will.
Though I’m not sure what “act your age” means right now, I am sure that God still has purpose for me. Rather than having my best years behind me, they are in many ways still ahead.
Perfect Peace
June 23, 2020
That’s it! That’s what I want. Perfect peace. Don’t you?
Our ideas of what perfect peace might look like probably differ. The way to obtain that peace, though, is the same for everyone.
“You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, whose thoughts are fixed on you.” (Isaiah 26:3)
When I read verses like this, I immediately start asking God, “How?” I want to know how to trust in him in a way where I “keep in perfect peace,” and I want to know how to keep my thoughts fixed on him.
How to Keep in Perfect Peace
Fortunately, God answers those questions elsewhere in the Bible. Here are just a few examples.
Keep short accounts.
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for the whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.” (Matthew 5:27-30)
This verse may at first seem out of place here but just hang in with me for a minute. It’s getting at the idea of keeping short accounts by stopping mental sins. In fact, it’s telling us to be brutal in doing so because if we can keep them from becoming actions, we’ll save ourselves and others a lot of pain.
In other words, keep short accounts with God. Admit and repent of any and all sin as quickly as possible. Doing so is necessary for perfect peace.
Be transformed.
“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.” (Romans 12:2)
Instead of conforming to the pattern of the world and living out what we conceive of in our thoughts, we are to be transformed. This happens as we let God’s Holy Spirit renew us from within by directing our attitudes and intentions toward God’s will.
When we are transformed by God, we find our places within his will. And within his will is where perfect peace is found and kept.
Get the mind of Christ.
“The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit. The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such person is not subject to merely human judgment, for ‘Who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?’ But we have the mind of Christ.” (1 Corinthians 2:14-16)
Through the Holy Spirit, we can see life from Christ’s point of view. We can operate based on his values and desires. This also means we can think God’s thoughts instead of thinking how the world thinks. The Holy Spirit leads us to humility, compassion and dependence on God, all of which Jesus lived out during his time here on earth.
Fix your thoughts.
“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things.” (Philippians 4:8)
Notice how all of this (meaning, this point as well as the other three) takes place within our minds. That in itself is significant since it tells us that so much of the battle and growth and struggle as well as victory we have as Christians takes place in unseen places.
Specifically to this point, though, comes the idea of how focus determines reality. Whatever we focus on will create the reality of our lives. Christ is all of these things, so focusing on him will direct our reality toward the perfect peace our heavenly Father offers.
Pursuing Christ
Only by daily dwelling in God’s word do we find the answers to our questions. In his word, he tells us how to “keep in perfect peace,” and he tells us how to fix our thoughts on him. Simply spending time with him leads us to the answers we need.
Keeping in perfect peace comes through pursuing Christ. It comes by letting our minds be saturated with all that he is and offers us through his Holy Spirit.
Whatever your vision of perfect peace looks like, I can promise you it can only happen through Christ.
Be Persistent
June 16, 2020
Every spring, birds try to build nests in the nooks and crannies of our log home. In particular, they like the front and back porches. We’d prefer they not built their nests there. Droppings and dive bombs and all that, not to mention the chirping once the eggs hatch.
And every spring, my husband persistently encourages the birds to move their nests. They start building, he relocates them. This back and forth continues until it’s time for the eggs to come, and the birds presumably find another location out of desperation.
The birds are persistent in building and rebuilding their nests. My husband is more persistent, though, in relocating them. He refuses to quit because he knows if he holds out just a little longer than the birds do, they won’t bother us for another year.
Don’t Give Up
This springtime battle between my husband and the birds reminds me of a biblical principle I need to stay mindful of year-round.
“So don’t get tired of doing what is good. Don’t get discouraged and give up, for we will reap a harvest of blessing at the appropriate time.” (Galatians 6:9)
Discouragement often leads me to want to give up, and sometimes I do. But when I see others being persistent even in small ways, I am reminded that blessing is coming when I don’t give up in my pursuit of God’s will.
“So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and steady, always enthusiastic about the Lord’s work, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless.” (1 Corinthians 15:58)
Not only must I not give up, I am to also to be:
- Strong and steady
- Enthusiastic
These are hard to maintain when discouragement hits. Yet, being in God’s will means that what I do has significance. It’s on that truth I need to focus, not on my mercurial feelings.
Find Joy
Mixed in with all this is the promise of personal satisfaction, not because I outdid anyone but because I pleased God. My joy comes when I know he is pleased.
“Be sure to do what you should, for then you will enjoy the personal satisfaction of having done your work well, and you won’t need to compare yourself to anyone else. For we are each responsible for our own conduct.” (Galatians 6:4-5)
Persistence. Strength. Steadiness. Enthusiasm. Joy.
Yes, birds building their nests remind me of what I am to pursue and be. They point me to the idea that persistence leads to blessing.
This all happens not because of me but because of the persistence of God in guiding me down the path of his will. He relocates me, if you will, from pursuit of my feelings to pursuit of him.
Challenge Your Faith
May 26, 2020
Recently, a question was posed to me that challenged my faith. Perhaps it will do the same for yours.
What would happen if you embraced the truth that God cannot tell a lie?
The Bible tells us that he cannot lie, after all.
“God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged.” (Hebrews 6:18)
So, what if you truly embraced the truth that ALL of God’s promises are true? What if you truly lived based on the knowledge that what his word says is active in your life?
Place your pondering of these questions within the specific truths of his word.
- If we search for God, we will find him. (Deuteronomy 4:7, 29)
- God helps those who seek him. (Psalm 121)
- God rewards simple faith. (Psalm 1:1-3)
- He works for our good. (Romans 8:28)
- There is new life in Christ. (2 Corinthians 5:17)
- God finishes what he starts. (Philippians 4:6-7)
- God supplies all our needs. (Matthew 6:33)
- He promises abundant life. (John 10:10)
- We are promised power from on high. (Acts 1:8)
In other words, what if in fully believing that God cannot lie, you embraced that he is available and that he protects and rewards you?
What if you lived truly believing that he is working for your good, that he offers you new life right now, and that he will finish the good work he started in your life?
How would your faith change if you fully embraced that he supplies all you need, promises abundance, and offers you his power?
All of these promises are true and available to those who believe God is who he says he is. And that’s only nine promises of so, so many.
So, let me ask you again.
What would happen if you embraced the truth that God cannot tell a lie?
Take this question into your daily studies of God’s word and let it challenge your faith. Let it expand your vision of God.
Surprised by Glory
February 25, 2020
While on vacation in Williamsburg, VA in December 2019, we went to Bush Gardens’ Christmas Towne. Rides. Food. Shows. Lights. And all at the “World’s Most Beautiful Theme Park.” (Look it up. They’ve gotten the award for 29 years in a row.) A fun, family event at a truly beautiful place.
The first show we saw was a 1940’s story with traditional Christmas carols. The second show was an abbreviated version of “A Christmas Carol,” one of my all-time favorite Christmas stories. Both of these were shows you’d expect to see at a very popular, very public venue.
The third show had great singing like the other two shows. It told a traditional Christmas story like the other two as well. Yet, it was a complete surprise. “Glory” told the Gospel message. It didn’t skirt around declaring Jesus as Savior in any way. The Gospel message was clear and obvious.
Oh, and there was also an atmosphere of praise absent in far too many churches. Afterwords, I felt inspired. I was inspired hearing the Gospel message in such a vibrant and unique way. I was doubly inspired because it was proclaimed in a very public, very popular venue.
I love unexpected surprises like this. Really, though, should I be at all surprised that God made this happen?
“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.” (Ephesians 3:20-21)
What should WE do?
September 24, 2019
Sometimes I read the Bible and struggle with knowing how to apply it to my life. That doesn’t happen with Luke 3:7-14.
John said to the crowds coming out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.”
“What should we do then?” the crowd asked.
John answered, “Anyone who has two shirts should share with the one who has none, and anyone who has food should do the same.”
Even tax collectors came to be baptized. “Teacher,” they asked, “what should we do?”
“Don’t collect any more than you are required to,” he told them.
Then some soldiers asked him, “And what should we do?”
He replied, “Don’t extort money and don’t accuse people falsely—be content with your pay.”
After John exhorts the people to basically live like they’ve been redeemed, the crowd wants to know what’s next. John then gives them very specific examples of how to produce the fruit of a repentant person, and he does so through three different groups of people.
- Be generous.
- Be honest
- Be content.
What’s especially interesting is that these three directives are the activity for us as Christians still today. In other words, any life dedicated to Christ will be on filled with generosity, honesty, and contentment.
Is yours?
Understanding God Through His Creation
July 23, 2019
“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.” (Ephesians 2:10)
God expresses himself through his handiwork, his creation. That includes both what we see in nature and ourselves as well. More personally, it means that everything you do and who you are potentially shows God’s handiwork and expresses what He is like to others.
“For since the creation of the world, God’s invisible qualities – his eternal power and divine nature – have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse. (Romans 1:20)
How does this change your view of yourself? Of what you do with your time?