OFF LINE


The Lord has favored me with two more ministry trips to Africa this year --- one in August and another in September. I'm also heading into the editing stage for a manuscript I've been working on focused on "Worship Warfare". When I factor in some vacation time over the summer with family and friends it seems to be appropriate to pause for a while in matters related to this site.

As time and unction allow I hope to return with my ponderings.

PONDERINGS ON PRAYER


Last month I had a kingdom encounter of sorts…..

I was attending a gathering of some 350-400 folks who are active in ministry. During one of the sessions we were given several questions to respond to. There was a monitoring system in place whereby our responses could be recorded the moment we gave them. Then (in real time) they could be tallied on computer by percentage and posted up on screens in order for everyone to know how the group had answered. One of the questions caught my attention on a base level in my spirit. It had to do with what order of priority we gave to three specific things. They were:

Prayer
Reading God’s Word
Preparation for Public Ministry (study & research)

The response(s) in a room filled with pastoral and staff leadership was profound. As a group prayer was positioned first on our collective list by almost 70%.

I have to be transparent here with what I’m going to say next. What came up inside me was this question: If prayer is really that important to us, then I wonder how much time during the day we each spend devoted to it? I may be way off base here, but, I think that if we were each approached to give our personal answer to that question most of us would admit we spend far less time in intercession and active listening to the voice of the Holy Ghost than we’d really care to acknowledge.

Following just a few days after that “encounter”, I read the following comments in a book by Richard Foster entitled “Life With God”: Reading the Bible for Spiritual Transformation”:

“The church in the West is like roses that have been cut from their bush -- they still have some blossom showing but they are wilting because they have been severed from their roots.” Foster went on to say, “for restoration (rebirth) to take place the root system would first need to be reestablished. Prayer is the root system. And it is a life of prayer that needs to be reestablished in our lives. What is so needed today is not individualized prayer experiences that we can turn on or off at will like a faucet, but prayer as a constantly flowing life.”

He continued by sharing about how such insights were linked to experiences that he’d had while visiting with Christians in Korea. There were several components of their prayer life that he mentioned in specific. They were:

Intensity / Determined Persistence / Instant Power Engagement / Longing Love / Heartfelt Sorrow / Pain & Agony

He commented that such components as those “can only be received humbly through lived experience“.

I wonder what events will have to take place in our busy, distracted and temporal lives in order for such attributes to become the building blocks which form the prayers we offer on behalf of humanity and this spiritually deprived/depraved world we’re living in?

Selah…pause & consider

WHY WORSHIP

Some 15+ years ago I came across a wonderful song written by Lynn DeShazo entitle “Be Magnified”. The opening line drove me to my knees.

“I have made You to small in my eyes, oh Lord, forgive me”

That phrase linked up in my memory with a book I’d read several years prior to hearing Lynn’s song. It was titled “Your God Is Too Small” written by J. B. Phillips. Such a concept is humbling to consider.

The idea of viewing God from a narrowed, and shallow perspective can create a seemingly insurmountable problem for saints both individually as well as corporately. Such a limited vista of God and His kingdom has stifled believers and derailed numbers of fellowships over the years.

There are several things that can cause one's perspective to turn inwardly myopic. Addressing them would take far more time and consideration than is appropriate in a format such as this one. So, for now, I’ll only comment on one in particular which tends to try and squeeze God into our little boxes of belief. In specific I'm addressing our worship theology or lack thereof --- the study of why we believe as we do about matters related to the Father, Son and Holy Ghost. The stuff of God's kingdom. Know what I mean?

“Without a solid foundational theology, worship becomes an exercise in self-expression”(Enthroned On Our Praise / T. Pierce).

Here’s what I see taking place within our churches in the U.S. and throughout the nations-at-large. In the process of going contemporary we’ve learned the how and what of worship well, but we’ve discarded much of the why. In other words, we’ve figured out how worship should manifest in our congregations and we know what to do to make that happen. But, we no longer give much thought to why we worship.

In essence we’ve allowed our “too small” view of God to restrict our ability to reach out beyond ourselves and our limited and temporal understanding of Him. In doing so, we are (in a sense) restraining the Lord’s ability to increase within us.

The end result of such a process is that much of the mystery of the kingdom and the world of wonder(s) that life in the Spirit affords us has been diminished.

We need a bigger God than the one we currently worship. So, for the sake of enlargement consider the following passages from Scripture:

“He spreads the skies over unformed space,
hangs the earth out in empty space.
He pours water into cumulus cloud-bags
and the bags don't burst.
He makes the moon wax and wane,
putting it through its phases.
He draws the horizon out over the ocean,
sets a boundary between light and darkness.
The thunder crashes and rumbles in the skies.
Listen! It's God raising his voice!
By his power he stills sea storms,
by his wisdom he tames sea monsters.
With one breath he clears the sky,
with one finger he crushes the sea serpent.
And this is only the beginning, a mere whisper of his rule.”
(Job 26:5-14 / The Message Bible)

Selah…

PONDERING OBSCURITY

“Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn't think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human, he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process. He didn't claim special privileges. Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death—and the worst kind of death at that—a crucifixion.” (Phil.2:5-8 / The Message Bible)

The KJV says that Jesus “made himself of no reputation”.

Scripture instructs us to follow the example of Christ in this matter of drawing attention to ourselves, our rights, privileges, self-serving goals and personal aspirations. So, how come we don’t do that? Seems to me that’s a fair question to pose considering how totally different most of us approach our lives.

The call that our culture and the world system in general places before us is to climb the ladder of success all the way to the top if we can. We’re taught that by our well-meaning parents for the most part. That gets reinforced by our educational system, the social sciences, the entertainment business, and our media-driven culture. In fact, most every aspect of our inter-personal relationships seem to work more to our liking when we are the ones being pleased by how others treat us. I wonder what’s become of the “golden rule”? (see Luke 6:31).

I’ve been trying to come to terms with a passage from Scripture for the last couple of years. It continues to be a real struggle for me to reconcile my lifestyle to what it says. Ponder this: When we read Hebrews 11 we find a long list of saints who are presented to us as role models for their actions of extreme faith. However, toward the end of the chapter included in that listing there is a nameless grouping. As unidentified to us as they are, the writer of Hebrews goes so far as to elevate their status to a high and exalted level when he states in verse 38 that “the world was not worthy” of such people. Then he goes on to say that they all died “having not received the promise” of what they were living for.

Many today would say that these "faith heros" were failures due to not getting what they were after while they were alive here on earth. It would appear that they missed their entitlement(s). However, that’s not what the Bible says. That’s not what I would say either.

And you – what would you say?

SALVATION & SANCTIFICATION


“Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling” (Phil.2:12)


God gives us our salvation in and through Christ Jesus, our Lord, and Savior. Once we’ve received it, our responsibility is to develop it to maturity through yielded and obedient submission to the Holy Ghost.


Salvation is simple
Sanctification isn’t

Salvation takes a moment
Sanctification takes a lifetime

Salvation requires yielding to the Holy Ghost once
Sanctification requires yielding again, and again, and again…

Salvation is a giving up of our lives
Sanctification is a giving up of our rights

Salvation cost us nothing (Christ Jesus paid for it with His life)
Sanctification cost us a great deal (we pay for it with our life)

Salvation saves individuals
Sanctification purifies & perfects those who have been redeemed

Salvation unlocks the doorway into God’s kingdom
Sanctification carries us further (and deeper) into God’s kingdom


"To go through the door is not necessarily to live in the house."
(From: Knowing Christ Today / By: Dallas Willard)

GENERATIONAL NETWORKING

At 63 I'm considered an "old guy" in some circles. Especially in this country where I'm standing at the front of the "boomer" line. However, in other nations, and at other times in our cultural de-evolution I'd be considered (and revered) as an elder worthy of respect and honor simply because I had earned those perks through the process of aging. Seeing things from my perspective as an "aged one" I am concerned and saddened by what's being lost to the generations coming along behind me. We are (all) suffering from the disconnections which are taking place between the young and old(er) in matters related to living on this planet. I recently read a comment somewhere on line that said we were becoming a nation of hermits slouched over our computer screens with our "blackberrys" in hand. That's certainly not the way our Creator intends for us to live our lives.

Scripture gives us a very clear picture of how we are to be joined together:

"And even when I am old and gray, O God, do not forsake me, until I declare Your strength to this generation, Your power to all who are to come." (Ps.71:18/NASB)

"For He established a testimony in Jacob and appointed a law in Israel, which He commanded our fathers that they should teach them to their children, that the generation to come might know, even the children yet to be born, that they may arise and tell them to their children, that they should put their confidence in God and not forget the works of God, but keep His commandments..." (Ps.78:5-7 /NASB)

"You were all called to travel on the same road and in the same direction, so stay together, both outwardly and inwardly. You have one Master, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who rules over all, works through all, and is present in all. Everything you are and think and do is permeated with Oneness." (Eph.4:4-6/MSG)

The Biblical directive those verses call us to as believers is certainly not how we're functioning currently. Maybe something(s) will occur in the future that will begin to re-establish the pattern that God's Word gives us for helping one another to grow and mature. I hope, and pray that will be the case. To that end, perhaps the following observations may help to move things in that direction.

In the October edition of AARP magazine (yes, really), there was an article in the Life Lessons section entitled "The Pressure To Be Wise". It referenced a video series called "Wisdom Keepers". In it there are a number of short interviews with older people of accomplishment, from dancers to environmentalists to writers intended "as a motivational tool for an audience of teenagers (now know as "young adults")." There were a couple of phrases that prompted me to post this blog up:

At 20 you know everything; at 70 you're not so sure
One of the reasons to keep wisdom, it seems, is so you can pass it on

There was one section in particular that addressed this topic in a very concise fashion. Margaret Atwood (a Canadian author and poet) drew on an example from the Inuit tribe from Arctic. Regarding the process of joining the generations among the Inuits tribe, she made the follows observations:

"You can't become an Elder just by getting old; it's a title bestowed by others. You never push your advice, but you offer it if asked. You can tell who the Elders are just by watching a group. They are the ones to whom the others are always bringing cups of tea. When an Elder speaks, people listen. But, they don't speak often.

An Elder knows what to do in times of difficulty. They acquired that knowledge by having endured hard times before. As one of their old sayings puts it, 'Good judgment comes from experience; experience comes from bad judgment'."

She goes on to make these comments based on her cultural studies from history:

"In earlier societies, especially those living in harsh environments, at a time when the life expectancy was 35 or so, the rare individual living to 60 would have seen many more times of crisis than the younger people. He or she would have had a better idea of how to face those dangers. In traditional Japan it was the custom to tear down and rebuild wooden temples at set intervals, so that the rebuilt temple would exactly resemble its predecessor. Three generations of master craftsmen were always employed: the apprentices, who were learning; the master craftsmen of middle years, who had already lived through one temple rebuilding; and the oldest generation, who'd been through the process twice before and could coach the other two."

So, here's something for all of you apprentices and middle year folks to consider -- from one of your elders. Instead of setting all us "Baby Boomers" adrift in tinny little boats with limited rations when we reach our sixty-fifth birthday, perhaps you could consider making space in your hearts for the principles of Scripture I mentioned above to work some kingdom renewal among us.

I'm just thinking out loud. At least I think I am. Its pasted my bedtime isn't it?

THE ULTIMATE WORSHIP WARRIOR:

Scripture reveals to us that Jesus is the “author and finisher” of our faith (Heb.12:2). I take that to mean that the embodiment of a life of faithful service to God is exemplified through Christ’s obedience to His Fathers Sovereign will. Quite literally, our Lord modeled what it means to be a “living sacrifice” by going to the Cross as the act of redemption for all of humankind. Having had the power (and the right) to call down all the forces of heaven on His behalf (Matt.26:53) in order to side-step Golgotha, He instead chose to yield Himself up in submission to the orders He’d received from headquarters.

His yielding (Phil.2:7&8) came at the zenith of the most terrifying moment of the most horrific battle that’s ever taken place on earth. The warfare that raged there on “skull hill” that dark day was like no other confrontation that had ever taken place.

All the vile forces of hell where directly arrayed against the very throne of God in heaven. But at that juncture when divine force, supernatural power, Sovereign authority, and Holy-self-determination would have seemed the only fitting way to engage in battle an entirely unexpected strategy was implement. Rather than confront the enemy with a display of Divinity, Jesus humbled Himself on the cross (Heb.2:9&10, 14) and gave Himself as an act of worship. His body raised up bruised, beaten and bloody became the glorious standard lifted up to draw all men to Him (Jn.12:32). No weapon was used, except His own body. No fisted hand was raised in anger. Instead, His empty and opened hands were extended in complete *consecration and nailed to a cross beam. From that position He could render no blows against His adversary. The only wounds inflicted that day were the ones He took upon Himself (Isa.53:5). The resistance toward satan that the Lord showed us was manifested through His act of surrender to the Father. In the middle of the warfare, worship alone became Christs weapon of choice. Jesus trusted that His Commander-In-Chief would provide both vindication and victory as He saw fit. The resurrection accomplished both.

*CONSECRATION is the setting aside of any person, place, or thing for acts of holy service. It also can mean to come with an open hand (as opposed to a closed or fisted one).

In those despairingly desperate moments on Calvary our Savior showed each of us how the life of a warrior and a worshiper could be linked together in a way most profound. There is no better way of explaining that every act of worship is an act of war than to let Scripture speak for itself:


“He stripped all the spiritual tyrants in the universe
of their sham authority at the Cross and marched
them naked through the streets.”
(Col.2:15 / MSG)