Mission Faithwalk

                 You became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you welcomed the message in the midst of severe suffering with the joy given by the Holy Spirit. (I Thessalonians 1:6)                  I’m reading The Call by Os Guinness, and something he wrote connected with something Dallas Willard wrote. The idea was that we are supposed to imitate Christ. The problem is that I’m not a carpenter. I don’t live in ancient Judea. I can’t make atonement for the sins of the world. You get the picture. I can’t imitate Christ in the ways that might seem obvious. But what Dallas Willard suggested is that we’re not supposed to dress in robes, work as a carpenter (unless that’s our thing) and speak in parable or work miracles. We’re supposed to act the way Jesus would act if He were a cashier at a garden center, a gardener, a homeowner, a neighbor, a citizen… or whatever it is you are. It goes back to the fad of decades ago, and the question, “What would Jesus Do?”                My t

                 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. (II Peter 3:9)                  Let’s begin by noting that while God doesn’t want anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance, coming to repentance isn’t the end. He has further plans for those who come to repentance. It is reasonable to assume that if he is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowlness, but is patient as he continues past repentance toward sanctification and conformity to the image of Christ. In fact, “coming to repentance” isn’t even a one-time-thing. Equally, “perishing” may not always refer to eternal death, or death. As we’ve considered recently, perishing may involve the process of losing out on life or losing our soul even if we’ve gained the whole world.                With that established, let’s get cooking. 4 c dandelion flowers (green part

                 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. (Matthew 16:25)                  Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. (John 17:3)                  Work hard for forty years, then you can retire and enjoy life. Except now it’s fifty years. And the life most of us can afford after all that hard work isn’t a long vacation or even a series of annual vacations. It might involve finding a job. And, of course, there are always people who have found some quicker method, often only to be disillusioned when it doesn’t work. But as we put off “life” in hopes of someday being able to enjoy it, we often end up missing it. This was an example I had, and which I was determined to avoid.                Some folks are so caught up in living “life” that they waste their money, their time, and their lives. They become addicted to something that they equate with

               Do not hate a fellow Israelite in your heart. Rebuke your neighbor frankly so you will not share in their guilt. Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord . (Leviticus 19:17-18)                  “Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the people of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me.    When I say to a wicked person, ‘You will surely die,’ and you do not warn them or speak out to dissuade them from their evil ways in order to save their life, that wicked person will die for their sin, and I will hold you accountable for their blood. But if you do warn the wicked person and they do not turn from their wickedness or from their evil ways, they will die for their sin; but you will have saved yourself. (Ezekiel 3:17-19)                    One of the problems with dividing a text into lines or verses is that we tend to read them as separate thoughts, not tied

                 The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’” (Genesis 3:2-3)                  “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder,  and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.” (Matthew 5:21-22)                  Sometimes people criticize Eve for adding to what God said. God never said they weren’t to touch the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, just that they weren’t to eat of it. And they’re right. It’s dangerous to add your own ideas to Scripture, but she had this going for her – if she did

                 And pray that we may be delivered from wicked and evil people, for not everyone has faith. But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one. Thessalonians 3:2-3)                  These verses seem to me to be a little out of kilter. Paul asks for prayer that he will be delivered from wicked and evil people then assures the Thessalonians that God will strengthen and protect them from the evil one. Two points should be made about this. First, in the first verse, Paul wrote about being protected from evil people . In the second, he wrote about being protected from the evil one. Those aren’t the same things. The other point is that Paul had been warned about what he would suffer. His request for prayer was a response to what he was facing and knew he would face, not to something that might happen.                One of the ideas that comes to mind is that the evil one is less of a threat than the wicked and evil people. I’m not s

                 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up . (Galatians 6:9)                  Weary: feeling or showing tiredness, especially as a result of excessive exertion or lack of sleep.                  “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again but expecting different results.” This quote has been attributed to Albert Einstein, but according to the research I’ve done, it was actually penned by Rita Mae Brown for a book published in 1983 called Sudden Death . The problem is, it’s not true. At least, it’s true a lot fewer times than it’s false. If it were insane to do things repeatedly and expect different results, we’d never learn to walk, or talk, or do most of the things we do.  The whole point of practicing anything is that by practicing, we eventually get different results. At the same time, it can certainly feel as if we’re going crazy when we keep doing the same thing, and the results don’t c

    The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.  (Genesis 2:15)   This morning after walking the dog, I spent some time harvesting borage, serviceberries, oregano, and a small variety of other flowers. It was as I was plucking serviceberries (Juneberries, Saskatoons, Shadberries) that I thought that this must be about as close to Eden as I can get. It wasn’t that I was so euphoric about picking berries, but for that time, I was working the land and taking care of it. The work involved wasn’t exhausting or burdensome. I was just puttering along, doing my thing and not stressing about life. Sadly, I quickly lost that feeling as I got involved in subsequent activities. I’m not a Luddite. I don’t want to get rid of technology. I’m open to the possibility that I might actually like my smartphone – eventually. My father repaired mainframe computers, and I grew up watching Star Trek. I was surfing the web before it was called the Internet.

                 Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. (Psalm 91:1)                  When this psalm was written, there were walled cities, often built where they were comparatively defensible. Those who lived in the shadow of those walls could run into the city of they were attacked. Another consequence is that you tended to have to agree to live according to the rules of those in charge of the city. This just makes sense. History marched on, and technology changed. We no longer tend to have walled cities, though we do have gated communities. Who is or should be in charge of a specific area is often a matter of heated debate, but there is still some measure of rulership involved. We expect our community to protect us from anything we think threatens us.                Years ago, I read a study that spoke to this. Children attending a school near a highway didn’t play during recess. They stuck close to the building for fear of th

                 What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?   (Mark 8:36 NIV)                  And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. (Genesis 2:7 KJV)                  Soul: … that dimension of the person that interrelates all the other dimensions so they form one life. [1]                  Sometimes when we talk about souls, we think about what might be considered a ghost. It’s a supernatural, spiritual something within us that leaves our body when we die. We read the verse in Mark as if it is saying that we can gain the whole world but end up in hell. This concern is a valid one, but I don’t think it’s the only understanding, or even the best understanding.                In the second passage above, when God breathed into Adam’s nostrils the breath of life, Adam became a living soul. The New American Standard and New International version

                   Anyone who loves their brother and sister lives in the light, and there is nothing in them to make them stumble.  (I John 2:10)                Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. (Romans 13:10)                  Love is love.                  The last of the quotes above is popular today. The idea seems to be that if you love someone, it doesn’t matter who you love; it’s still love. The problem with this is that the definition of “love” is assumed. In one sense, one doesn’t love pizza, kittens, certain songs, one’s children, one’s job, one’s neighbor, and one’s spouse, all in the exact same way.                In Os Guinness’s The Call , he discusses “two contrasting views of love that have shaped Western searching for the past three thousand years.” [1] The first is eros. This is the love that seeks to be made happy through the possession of a loved object. This is the love of the person who says, “I love ______

                 For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. (I Corinthians 13:12)                  Have you ever read Frankenstein? Have you seen any of the movies? If I were to ask you about the story, I’ll bet you could tell me at least a little about it, even if you’ve never read, seen, or heard it. I thought I’d read it at some point, but over the past 18 days, I read it for what must be the first time.                Others have suggested that God and Christianity are a lot that way. Everyone thinks they know “the story.” They know all about God or all about Christianity. Some inform us that they would never worship a God who ______, or that the God they worship would never _______. It’s not that they are necessarily wrong about God being unwilling to do something, but I have to wonder where they got the idea. Others say they want nothing to do with Christianity or Ch

                                                              May God be gracious to us and bless us     and make his face shine on us— so that your ways may be known on earth,     your salvation among all nations.   May the peoples praise you, God;     may all the peoples praise you. May the nations be glad and sing for joy,     for you rule the peoples with equity     and guide the nations of the earth.   May the peoples praise you, God;     may all the peoples praise you.   The land yields its harvest;     God, our God, blesses us.   May God bless us still,     so that all the ends of the earth will fear him.                                                                    (Psalm 67)                          The first verse is used as a benediction at Christian gatherings. (By the way, do you know that benediction and eulogy mean the same thing – saying something good to or about…) We all feel warm and fuzzy. The person is asking for us to be blessed.

  The angel of the Lord came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, where his son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress to keep it from the Midianites. When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.”   “Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our ancestors told us about when they said, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian.”                The Lord turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?”             “Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.”                  The Lord answered, “I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites, leaving none alive.”

               When you sit to dine with a ruler, note well what is before you, and put a knife to your throat if you are given to gluttony. Do not crave his delicacies, for that food is deceptive… Do not eat the food of a begrudging host, do not crave his delicacies; for he is the kind of person who is always thinking about the cost. “Eat and drink,” he says to you, but his heart is not with you. You will vomit up the little you have eaten and will have wasted your compliments. (Proverbs 23:1-3 & 6-8)                 Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, (Psalm 1:1)             These verses are so similar. The verse from Psalm 1 (I’m told) shows a progression of comfort. We are advised not to grow in our comfort with the wicked, the sinful, or the mocking. In Proverbs 23, we’re warned about the people we associate with. In that culture and time, eating with someone generally e

                 But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, (Philippians 3:20)                  Yesterday was Flag Day. I bought a little flag to display but couldn’t figure out a way to display it except for my own enjoyment. I’ve been known to stand and put my hand over my heart when I hear the Star-Spangled Banner in the privacy of my own home with no one else present. I would describe myself as patriotic.                At the same time, I struggle with the idea of patriotism in connection with a mere country. I struggle with the extent to which I should be happy or proud to declare myself “an American,” especially compared to my claims to be happy or proud to declare myself “a Christian.” Some people try to claim that the two should be the same thing and in a sense, they are right. There are people to claim that if we don’t act quickly and decisively, Christianity will disappear in America. Scripturally, God always mai

                 If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (Luke 11:13)                  At some point, I decided that a gift wasn’t a gift if it was something you needed, because if you needed it, you would get it or it would be given to  you aside from the occasion on which you were “owed” a gift. Giving someone a new vacuum or underwear just wasn’t giving a gift. I’ve realized that my thinking on the subject isn’t entirely accurate or good. It’s born of a level of prosperity that I imagined we had when I was growing up. Now, I might be quite happy to receive a vacuum cleaner, if it fit into my lifestyle – meaning I want something easy to store, but that will allow me to use it while standing. I suspect I’m not the only “spoiled” kid who has ideas about what is or isn’t a gift.                One of my ancestors put it in his will that his children could o

                  then I shall give you rains in their season, so that the land will yield its produce and the trees of the field will bear their fruit. (Leviticus 26:4)                And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:19)                  It rained Sunday night into Monday morning. We got 8/10,” and I’m praising God. Of course, I know we should praise Him for the sun, warmth, coldness, snow, dry weather, etc., but the last time it rained enough for my rain gage to show any accumulation was May 20. So, I’m looking at God’s promise to the Jews to cause it to rain in its season.                The first noticeable thing is that God doesn’t promise rain when we want it. He promised rain when He designed it to rain. It rains in the season of rain . This promise was made to the Jews, but it was generally contingent on their obeying God. Does it apply to us, too? Paul says that God will meet our needs according to

            He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” (Psalm 46:10 NIV)        C ease striving and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” (Psalm 46:10 NASB 1995)             The NASB 1995 translation includes a footnote on “Cease” of “Relax, let go.” What comes to mind is the animal rescue video I watched last night. In general, the reaction of animals to being rescued is either fight/flight or surrender. The juvenile monkey struggled and screamed, and there were times when the rescuers had to stop freeing it and restrain it so they could continue to free it. Life is so much easier for a rescuer if the victim relaxes and lets the rescuer do his thing. I’ve heard that those trying to rescue drowning victims have to basically let the person pass out to avoid being drowned by the victim. The command to “Be still” or “Cease striving” then, isn’t arrogance on Go