Called

Paul, called by the will of God to be an apostle...
-- 1 Corinthians 1:1

Paul was called by God to do what he did, to be who he was. He was knocked off the back of a donkey, faced a blinding light and heard a mysterious voice from the sky. His calling was literal. And it was dramatic to say the least.

From its inception, Paul's calling defined his life. His calling empowered and emboldened him. Paul's life was anything but easy, and it was his calling that kept him on track, that pushed him onward, that helped him to endure.

It's Saturday morning and I'm headed to the gym, so I'll get to the point:

 You and I are no less called. 

It may not be to preach to philosophers on a Grecian hill, or to write chapters of the Bible. But we are called. 

God has uniquely gifted each one of us for his specific purposes and plan. We are called. Often we are the last to see it. It may be that those around you are impacted by your graciousness or giving; maybe it is your kind acts of service or the way you apply truth in difficult situations (for example). You may be changing lives without even knowing it.

That is the nature of living out a calling. It is a part of who we are. It is the way God has wired us and empowered us in redemption. Our calling flows when we trust and rely on God.

I have overused this quote, but it rings true:

You are who you are because of the Master Artist 

who put you together. -- Malcom Smith

Toward the end of his life Paul wrote to his friend:

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, 

I have kept the faith. -- 2 Timothy 4:7

That is calling. That is living life on purpose (and with purpose). And that is my desire. 

God, you have called me and as Isaiah responded so do I... "Here I am, send me."

For now...

D

HE STILL MOVES STONES!

"Who will roll away the stone for us?"
-- Mark 16:3

Three women walk to a grave. In it lay one they loved. More than that, in that tomb had been laid to rest their expectations, their hopes, their faith, their lives.

"Who will roll away the stone for us?" they ask. "How will we get inside to mourn our loss; to grieve. How will we properly say goodbye to every dream we had for the future?" They were prepared to anoint the dead. They were not prepared for...

They hated that stone. It stood in the way. It signified finality. It stood for death. It was a symbol of separation. But in just a few moments it would signify something completely different.

You know the story. The stone had been rolled away. In the original language the emphasis is the stone had been ingloriously tossed aside. Our immediate reaction might be, good, at least we can get inside to mourn our loss; to reminisce what could have been. 

But when stones are tossed aside, things change... radically. Instead of a dead Messiah - an empty slab. Oh, except for an angel hanging out.

(My version of the conversation)
Angel: "Why are you looking for Life in dead places?"
Women: "..." (speechless)
Angel: "He is not here, he is risen!"
Women: "..." (still nothing - would you?)
Angel: "I tossed the stone so you could see... Life wins, death lost.
Women: "uh..."
Angel: "Ok now - go tell..."

The stone was moved - not for Jesus - but for the women; not so Jesus could come out, but so the women could see in!
-- Max Lucado, He Still Moves Stones

As Lucado says, the stone wasn't rolled away to allow Christ to exit the tomb. The stone was tossed for our benefit.

Stones are nothing to a living God. 

And stones - no matter what form or size - 

still have no power to separate. 

The God who spoke through limbs on fire, who parted seas and stopped rivers, who walked on waves and calmed the storms... HE STILL MOVES STONES!


God, no stone of my making or another is big enough to stand in the way of your life in me...

For now...
D

TORN CURTAIN...

And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.
-- Mark 15:38

Mark's depiction of the crucifixion of Christ has an almost newspaper reporter feel. It is quick and straight forward. And one of the matter-of-fact details he mentions is this: at the moment Jesus gave up his life, the curtain of the temple was torn in two.

Removed by more than 2,000 years and cultural context, this detail can pass us by as strange or insignificant. It is however, a powerful picture.

The temple curtain separated what was known as the Holy of Holies from the rest of the Temple. No one was allowed to enter the Holy of Holies, except for the High Priest who entered once a year to offer atonement for the sins of the people.

So here is the picture: God lives in there... and we live out here. We are separated (by this thick woven curtain). And we cannot really have relationship with him. We are outsiders, because of our sin. He is perfect. We are:

Separated.

Hopeless.

But the curtain came down. More than that, it was completely torn in half - from top to bottom. Again a picture: God did what we could not.

That is the message of grace. It is the heart of the gospel. God did what we couldn't. Through Christ's sacrifice, he made a way of redemption and relationship.

The writer of Hebrews put it this way:Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh... let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith...(Hebrews 10:19-22).

Note: The curtain was not torn from bottom to top. We must stop trying. We can never do enough, be enough, believe enough, pray enough - fill in the blank - to prove ourselves worthy to God. Christ took care of that on the cross. The curtain exists no more. 

And only curtains of our own making can "hide" us from the presence of God.


God, thank you for torn curtains...

For now...
D

Weak...

Jesus said, "Truly... one of you will betray me..." They began to be sorrowful and to say to him one after another, "Is it I?" Peter said to him, "Even though they all fall away, I will not. If I must die with you, I will not deny you." And they all said the same. 
And he (Jesus) he said to Peter, "The spirit indeed is willing but the flesh is weak." 
-- Mark 14, selected verses

This morning I feel weak in both body and spirit. Maybe at times you do too.

Peter boasted about his strength. He made promises he wouldn't keep. His spirit was willing, but his flesh was weak.

We can relate.

It is encouraging to remember however, that it was Peter who, after a fish breakfast on the shore with the risen Jesus, became the pillar of strength to the others. It was Peter who preached the first "Christ is Risen" message (to a large crowd - technically an angel and Mary Magdalene were first with the news). It was Peter who became one of the two foundations of the early church.

Peter failed again and again - willing spirit, weak flesh. But Peter also walked on water (I haven't). Peter preached at Pentecost. Peter reached and influenced thousands, actually multiple millions.

This was the guy who couldn't stay awake in a garden to support Jesus. This was the denier.

His spirit was willing, but his flesh was weak.

Jesus can work with a willing spirit.


God, give me a willing spirit. I'll let you deal with my weaknesses...

For now...
D

A VOICE THAT DOES NOT FADE...

"Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will words will not pass away."
-- Mark 13:31

To what voices do we listen? By what words will we live?

As example, this morning I ran across a TV program that a year ago was stirring fierce debate. Its subject and subject matter were inescapable - being the focus of news reports, magazine covers, etc. Opinions varied. Voices spoke. The volume raised. And now - near silence.

The point is some voices fade and many words lose power. They meld into the cacophonous symphony of white noise that plays around us all the time. Some of these shouting voices raise the volume, demanding to be heard. But ultimately, it is not volume that creates words that last, it is the truth therein.

The Apostle Paul, in speaking to his protege Timothy wrote: "The Scripture is God-breathed and powerfully applicable for living;" (My translation of 2 Timothy 3:16). Jesus put it this way: "Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God;" (Matthew 4:4).

The point is, there is one voice to which we must listen. Its message is truth. Its content powerful. Its words, life. Peter said to Jesus when those around were abandoning the call: "... to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life;" (John 6:68).

God's voice is often a whisper - barely heard. And it is less perceptible with ears than with an open and a willing heart. He speaks through his word. He speaks through his children. Through his church. Through his creation. He is speaking. The question is: will we listen?

An Old Testament story tells of a prophet looking for God. As he stood in a cleft of the mountain, a mighty wind ripped through, but God was not in the wind. Then came an earthquake, but God was not in the earthquake. Then a roaring fire blazed, but God was not in the fire. Finally, there came "a still small voice" - the voice of God's presence.

Words of truth are easily drowned out by the chaotic noise of life. We must learn to hear. We must seek to listen.

Ultimately, other voices will fade; their messages exposed. But the words of God are life.


God, open my ears, that I might hear...


For now...
D

Warrior...

MOTIVATION... 

It's an overused word and an undervalued commodity. I woke up this morning with the typical creaks, aches and pops of a guy my age. Second cup of coffee and gearing up for the gym. It's leg day... I gotta get psyched!

First, some reading and a little quiet time. Then I remembered something I DVR'd... WARRIOR...

One is motivated by painful regret, the other by love for his family.
A powerful story of motivation and overcoming.
Warrior - It's in my all-time top five. 

I flip WARRIOR on the TV...

The coffee cup is now empty, but my tank is full. Ready to hit it. (I realize this post has a high cheese factor... but you do what you gotta do!)

Ultimately, MOTIVATION must come from within! 

But we all can use some help in getting the inner WARRIOR out!

For now...

D

right BE-ing...

"Is this not the reason you are wrong, because you know neither the scriptures, nor the power of God?"     -- Mark 12:24

It is one thing to be wrong about something. It is quite another thing to BE wrong. (Period.)

Wrong opinions and perspectives can be changed given the right information. Hundreds of millions of dollars are spent during Super Bowls and election seasons to change our minds; to help us make the "right" decisions.

But being wrong - on the inside - wrong of heart and mind, wrong of soul, is a far worse condition.

A group of religious "experts" came to Jesus in an attempt to trick him, to expose him. Their question was silly on the surface - seven brothers dying one after another, having customarily married the same woman... who will be her husband in heaven? However, their own question revealed the motive. It exposed their hearts. These men were from a group called the Sadducees. One of the hallmarks of their sect was that they believed and taught that this life was it. No heaven, no hell, no resurrection. Nothing.

It was not however, their opinions that condemned them. It was the condition of their BE-ing.

The term Ontology was often used both while I was in seminary as well as in undergrad secular philosophy classes. Ontology is defined as the nature of being. It is the who we are - truly, deeply; underneath external appearance, opinion, etc. It is our BE-ing.

Paul warns his protege Timothy about wrong BE-ing:

For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient 

to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, 

brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure 

rather than lovers of God, having an appearance of godliness, but denying its power.  

-- 2 Timothy 3:2-5

Jesus once said that it is not what goes into a person that condemns - i.e. what we eat or drink. (And it is sad that religion focuses so heavily on such things.) It is instead what comes out the defiles. Out of our mouths (and in our actions and attitudes) flows our heart's condition. And by our words, attitudes and actions our hearts are revealed and exposed - for better or worse. 

Our BE-ing is revealed. 

The good news? Grace trumps wrong BE-ing! Grace is always the more powerful. As Jesus told the uptight, religious, treacherous Sadducees, the scriptures reveal the powerful grace of a God who can (and desires to) change our BE-ing. 

Christ accepted people where they were. He still does. But he never allowed them to comfortably remain where they were. He still doesn't. His desire is to transform our BE-ing. 

God, help me to BE...

For now...

D