EVERYTHING

His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness...

-- 2 Peter 1:3

We have everything we need.

That is a simple statement, but a hard truth to comprehend.

As I write, I am sitting on the couch in my air-conditioned house, drinking coffee. I am about to head to an air-conditioned church and sit in a padded chair - and drink more coffee. Most who read this will be in similar comfort. 

My point: I've never known extreme poverty or the desperation of searching for a meal. I can only imagine how foreign the statement, we have everything we need, might sound to a family who is being evicted, or to one having just buried a child, or to a mother combing scraps in the Matamoros Mexico dump to feed to her toddler (which I've seen).

Trite answers don't work. And American Christianity seems to often boil down to triteness and self-focus. I'll take it a step further (since it's my blog), trite and self-serving Christianity is not Christianity. And in my Christian journey, I am often guilty of "unchristianess." (Again, my blog, I can invent words.)

When we read Peter's words above, we often miss some important depth.

His divine power - Whose power? God's. (As in, "God's, period!" Not yours, not mine.)

...has granted - past tense, with continuing and ongoing results. (It's a Greek grammatical tense thing.)

...to us - This promise is given to the community of faith. And though it has individual impact, it is us, not me. (More on this in a moment.)

...all things - we have everything we need (keep reading).

...life and godliness - to live as God intends for us, (for our calling and purpose.)

This statement may sound trite, but it is true: We have everything we need in Christ. 

I have often heard it said that God will never allow me to face more than I can bear. I struggle with the statement, though the fact that I am alive and well (and writing), sings the melody of its truth. That stated, I'd like to amend the platitude: God will never allow us to face more than we can bear... together and through his strength and presence.

The Christian life is a life lived in community with others from whom and with whom we share strengths, weaknesses, joys and pain. And it is a body (Paul's analogy) that is completely interconnected drawing its strength and power from Christ.

So, with all these concepts in mind I can confidently state: We have everything we need.

I, for one, tend to want more... to look for more. A blog post I wrote in davidmstanleykineticlife.blogspot.com quotes Bono from U2, whose lyric cries, But I still haven't found what I'm looking for. 

But here is a truth I've learned and am learning: The real and worthy search in this life is not about looking for more. The worthwhile search is not the constant desire for something else, something other. The better journey is one that leads us to deeper understanding of WHO IS this one who provides, and who he has made us to be for ourselves and others.

That for which you search is not out there somewhere. It is instead found in a God who is a whisper away.

Keep searching... deeper.

God, I have everything I need... in you.

For now...

D

THE FURNACE

Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. 

- 1 Peter 4:12 

TV preachers who talk of happiness and material abundance as the true results of faith, tell only part of the story. We cannot appreciate abundance without knowing lack. We cannot be happy unless we've known joy in the midst of pain.

Through $30,000 smiles and caked makeup, they tell a half-true story. But where there is half-truth, there is falsehood.

I've always wondered how their message would sit with the Apostle Paul. "Paul," they might say, "if you truly had faith, you would be on a yacht and not in a dungeon. God wants you to be healthy, happy and rich." 

Paul might smile to himself - or cry - and continue writing the words:

I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. 

I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound.

In any and every circumstance, I learned the secret 

of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. 

I CAN DO ALL THINGS THROUGH HIM WHO STRENGTHENS ME. 

-- Philippians 4:11-13 

Yes, God does want us to know joy. Jesus is the embodiment of joy. His presence is the fullness of joy. As one (non-makeuped) preacher put it... KNOW JESUS, KNOW JOY. NO JESUS. NO JOY.

Yes, God does want us to experience abundance. And sometimes with that abundance comes wealth. But wealth measured in only stuff and money is not true wealth.

When we buy what the half-truth-tellers sell, we pay the consequences. We are surprised by trial. Worse, we feel deceived or defeated by trial's mere presence.

If you will allow an old preacher to preach for a moment (through morning-coffee teeth and with a new blemish on my cheek (who gets those at my age anyway?) - in other words, no $30K smile or makeup)... 

...The fire of trial will not defeat you. 

...It may burn away some things that, though painful, ultimately hold you back. 

...It will not consume you. 

...The fire of trial will REFINE you. It will FORGE your character. It will make you who can be. 

...And in the midst of the heat, you will find the presence of JOY.

I can't say that I have learned to look forward to trials. I don't necessarily embrace them (before or during). But I am better for the pain. And I bear the scars with an odd joy (and almost pride). I don't look forward to my next fiery trial. But I fear it less. Because within every furnace I've walked, there has been one who walks with me.



God, you have always been with me through the fire of trial. Refine me. Forge me.

For now...
D

Past / PASSED

Not that anyone in my little new FB circle needs wisdom from me - my wisdom pool runs pretty shallow anyway. But on the off chance it's encouraging in any way, this is what I'm thinking through today. (Partially plagiarized, partially original - kind of like the hundreds of sermons I preached over the years).

I Am Not Defined By My Past.

Today I am thankful that my past does not define me.

I am more than the culmination of my decisions and circumstances.

My past is just that... past; and it does not dictate my present or my future.

I am not defined by my past: I learn from it... I grow because of it... I find in it both joy and pain.

But I am more than my past. I am present... and I have a future.

Don't believe me... then take it up with the Creator!

Jesus: I have come that you may have life, and have it to the fullest.

Father: “I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.”

Paul: Forgetting and forgiving the past, I look forward to what lies ahead...

Father, thank you that my Past has PASSED.

For now...

D

HIDING PLACES (a stumbler's walk post)

There is no fear in love, 

but perfect love casts out fear.

--1 John 4:18

Fear cannot reside where love is. In the same way that light, by its very presence, drives away darkness, true love chases away fear. 

As children, we played Hide-and-Seek. I remember feeling a strange dread while hiding in corners of dark closets. I could hear the IT coming close and I would try not to breathe. Fear of being exposed was a little too gripping for a simple child's game. If the IT might just pass me by, just this once, I'd bolt from my hiding spot in hopes of reaching Home Base. There at Home Base I could stand and face the IT with no fear - no fear of exposure, no fear of being caught, no fear whatsoever. 

As adults we play Hide-and-Seek. The game is more covert. It is mostly internal. And it is not much of a game. We hide in closet corners of our own construction. And in the darkness, we fear being exposed. 

Ironically, in this version, there is no IT. Maybe better - the hiding itself is the IT. Lastly, lest I stretch the analogy too far, Home Base is not a static destination. Instead, our Home Base is a person. He is a person both to whom we run for refuge, and who seeks us out, even when we hide in shadows. 

His light exposes us. But just as darkness races away when light invades, fear fails when love enters the scene. Fear becomes memory, and at Home Base we find freedom. 

Jesus said, "I came to seek and save that which was lost," (Luke 19:10). That includes us, hiding in the shadows of our closet corners. He seeks us out and he shines darkness-defeating light into our lives. 

Where light is, darkness cannot be.

Where love is, fear cannot be.

Where Jesus is there is light and love. 

God, forgive me of my closet corners. Be my Home Base.

For now...

D

SUFFICIENT GRACE

My grace is sufficient for you...

--2 Corinthians 12:9

Do you need grace today? I'll ask another way: Do you need power? 

We tend to think of grace in terms of covering our inadequacies, a balm applied to our failures. These are true, but grace is and does much more.

It is by grace that we are not given what we deserve. It is by grace that we are given what we do not deserve.

As James puts it:

Every good and perfect gift comes from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.  

--James 1:17

Q: How powerful is grace?
A: It is sufficient.

Wait, shouldn't this covering and empowering grace be overwhelmingly abundant? Shouldn't God cover a "3" on the need-grace scale with a "10" measure of grace? Shouldn't there be puddles of grace everywhere around after the grace shower rains down; so we can scoop a little extra up and store it away for use later?

Grace doesn't work like that. (Think manna from heaven; Exodus 16 - it's worth a read). New grace is given each day; actually moment by moment. Leftover grace, if there were such a thing, would spoil. And future grace, though promised, cannot be utilized. Today's grace... this moment's grace is sufficient for you. It is sufficient to completely cover, completely forgive, completely empower.

And how strong must we be? Well, our part is to rely on God's grace. To lean on and into his power. Our job is to embrace weakness and trust his strength. God says:

...my power is made perfect in weakness. 

--2 Corinthians 12:9

It would be easy to write of God's sufficient grace at certain times. This is not one of those times. It is a time when the preacher (or blogger, as the case may be) must hear and apply what he is writing. (Actually, every time is that time.)

God, I am weak, but you are strong. I need your sufficient grace.

For now...
D

GIVE YOURSELF

For God loves a cheerful giver.

-- 2 Corinthians 9:7

We all know someone with a particularly unique quality. They give. And for the rest of this post, let's not think money. Let's not think stuff. Because after all, more importantly than giving our stuff, is the sacrificial attitude and act of giving ourselves.

We all know someone like that. They give... themselves. They usually do it with a smile. Sometimes with a hug. Often anonymously. Always seeking no credit. Stuff, we can give while seeking notoriety. Ourselves, we cannot.

Love gives...

God loved... 

God gave. 

And we are most like Christ when we love, and give.

Paul was an incredible example of giving of one's self. He wrote: I am poured out like a drink offering... (From Philippians 2:17 and 2 Timothy 4:6).

There is a unique joy in giving. Through the act of giving we prove that nothing holds power over us. And the truest expression of Christian freedom is found in the giving of ourselves. This freedom, this joy is addictive. And God loves it. 

I think God smiles on the person who gives himself/herself away with a giggle.

God, help me to be a sacrifice. Help me to give. I will give myself.

For now...

D

GRACE & PEACE

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

- Philippians 1:2

We live in an instant messaging world. Many communications begin with "Hey..." or "What's up?" And that, if time is even afforded to spell words out rather than offering up obscure abbreviations. (This post's first sentence should have read: ... na IM world.) 

You and I receive emails and texts that seemingly begin halfway through a thought. And like you, I have learned to skim and pick and choose what catches my eye or stands out as important in what I read. 

It is easy to blow through sections of scripture in the same way. When we take time to read, we often jump to something previously highlighted or underlined in our old Bible. 

In my last post (non-recycled, which was far too long ago) I focused on two words: Servants and Saints. I want to do the same here. Paul opens up his letter to the Philippian believers by wishing them - though wishing is a word too weak -

Grace & Peace

It is a common greeting for Paul. But let's not allow familiarity to erase simple beauty; powerful beauty. Grace and Peace.

Grace and Peace share common heritage. Paul states this heritage explicitly: "...from God..." Grace and Peace ultimately find their source in Christ. The two are deeply related in effect and power. But Grace and Peace are not the same. Going back to Sunday School 101, we probably think of Grace and Mercy as being more closely related; kind of two sides of the same coin. (Willpower is keeping me on point and away the tangents calling out right now.)

I'll cut to the chase; and to the inkling of an idea that came to me when I read Paul's greeting. Both Grace and Peace find their origin in God. One - Grace - is a fact, a universal truth (given God is the universal creator). Grace is God's free gift of undeserved love and favor. It is fundamental, universal and pervasive. Grace is God's heart extended to us. Whether received or not, Grace is extended. And Grace governs vast areas of our lives and world that go unnoticed and unseen.

The other - Peace - comes as result of realizing Grace. Peace, also ultimately coming from God, is a state of being. Peace is the reality of experiencing Grace. Peace is the result of personal Grace.

Sometimes we experience Peace by accident. Grace kind of oozes into cracks and corners in our lives unaware, and ...a peaceful easy feeling results. (And it won't let you down...). But often Peace goes unexperienced; because although Grace rules, it is unrealized. Grace goes unrecognized. And therefore, Peace doesn't pervade.

Back to the post I recycled a couple days ago: Grace is good for today. Yesterday's Grace was for yesterday. And tomorrow's?... well, you're ahead of me. Though remembering past Grace can provide some Peace, we must draw on the Grace Christ offers today to fully experience Peace today. To stick with preacher alliteration:

Peace Prevails where Present Grace Permeates. (Dizzy yet?) 

God, because of your grace, I have peace. Increase my peace, as I more deeply experience your grace. 

For now...
D