How I Pray for My Family - Part 1

Part 1 of a Series

Part 2    Part 3

First of all, let me say that the finest book I have ever read on prayer is this one, "Praying Backwards" by Brian Chapell.  (That link goes to the Kindle version on Amazon.  The book is also available in traditional formats.)  Get it.  Read it.  Re-read it.  Often.

Chapell's book, along with Paul Miller's excellent book "A Praying Life," have forever changed the way I pray for myself, my family, my neighborhood, my church, my country, my world.

How?  Did they offer better formulas, better acrostics to help me remember what to say next?  Did they tell me how to gain more power, how to use positive thinking, affirmations, The Secret?  How to better manipulate God, how to make sure my will gets done?

God forbid.

To seek to ensure that "MY will be done" is to seek power over God.  My will, not His.  Such power seeking can often be recognized by its use of earthly currencies, whether money, ungodly influence, dishonesty, etc.  Most clearly, though, it can be recognized by the object of its faith, because in "My will" prayers:

• I have faith in ME to know what's best, and 
• I have faith in the thing that I want, believing that it can BE what's best.
• God is just a tool for my use to get myself the things I want MORE than I want Him.

To seek power over God is to seek to usurp His throne, even if we're convinced that we would use that power for good.  It is the way of the occult, not the way of any true Christian, as Simon the Sorcerer learned in Acts 8:9-24.

The only power we may legitimately seek is power from Him, to do His will, in His way, in His time.

Chapell and Miller taught me how to seek God through prayer, how to submit to His priorities, how to be shaped by Him as I bring my cares to Him.  They (especially Chapell) taught me what it really means to pray in Jesus' name.

In response, I've found myself increasingly gravitating to the Lord's Model Prayer and to the Beatitudes...not as a formula to slavishly follow, nor as vain repetition to earn brownie points with God, but as the best possible expressions of agreement with what God desires to accomplish in and through me and my loved ones, within the circumstances that He's given us.

Who'd have thought it?  Jesus actually was onto something.

So here, in case it's helpful to someone else, is an example of how I pray for myself and my family using the Lord's Prayer.  (And also, how I pray for my church, my neighborhood, my country, my world, and anything else there might be.)

Oh, and one more thing.  I often make reference to "Thinking individually of each member of the family" when I pray certain things.  Why is this?

It is NOT a magical sort of way to daub the spiritual equivalent of fairy dust or holy water on each one.  I do not "turn the powers of my mind" to each one in order to bestow something on them.

We must guard so carefully against occultic thinking in our prayers!

I am careful to think individually of each one because it changes and informs the way I think of each person during prayer and afterwards.  It guides the way that I pray for our individual concerns.  It reminds me of what God is up to, so I can see His hand at work later.  It increases my love for the God who loves each family member, and it increases my love for each family member that God loves.  It gives me the inestimable privilege of being an instrument of good in their lives, if and when God sees fit to use me in that way (it's up to Him, not me or the power of my prayers).

Our Father.  Thinking individually of each member of the family, I ask God that those who are not saved would come to know Him as Father, and that those who are saved would grow in their childlike relationship with Him.  (I don't have to really know for sure who is already saved, and who is not yet.  God knows.)  As I think of each person (including myself), I am reminded to think of them as children of my Heavenly Father, or as those that I hope will soon be adopted into His family, and it reminds me to honor and love them accordingly.  And when I think (for example) of a fearful child, instead of merely praying that they'd "toughen up" or "get brave," I pray that they would rest in the Father's care.  It's a different prayer, isn't it?  And praying it makes me look at my children differently.  Treat them differently.  Speak to them differently.  When I remember.

Who art in Heaven.  When I remember where God is enthroned, I am reminded of His sovereign power.  There is no point in praying to anyone else, or trusting in anyone else.  And there is no point in worrying over anything that I have left in His sovereign care.

Hallowed be Thy name:  Oh, what a beautiful thing to pray for each family member as I think of them!  "Lord, hallow your name in and through my husband, and myself, and this child, and this child, and this child. May we each hold you in proper awe and reverence.  May we bring only honor to You in our thoughts, words, and deeds."

Thy Kingdom come.  What is a kingdom but a place where a king reigns?  I pray for each family member, including myself, that Christ's reign would be strengthened in each life.  I think of the sin patterns, false beliefs, and stubborn self-determination that currently affect one or more of us, and pray that each would increasingly yield to the King.  This prayer is also a reminder to me whose kingdom I need to be seeking.  (Hint:  It's not mine.)

Now, this can be confusing.  Some people wonder why we ought to pray, if God is totally in charge anyway.  Isn't God always controlling things?  And if He is, why would we pray for Him to control?  That's where the next part of the prayer makes everything clear.

Thy will be done on Earth, as it is in Heaven.  Of course God's will is ultimately going to be done on earth.  He will crush His enemies under His (and our) feet when He returns.  Until then, He does often rule over enemies by bringing them down in one way or another, or (more happily) by winning them over to Himself.  And He rules over His people by lovingly winning their increasing allegiance.  Jesus did God's will in one way, by gracious, loving submission and obedience.  Judas did it in another, because God overruled his evil intentions and used his sin to perfectly fulfill prophecy and bring about the greatest good that ever happened.

Which way do we want Him to rule over us and over our families?

Ah, the vital role a single phrase can play!  On Earth, as it is in Heaven.  As it's done.  The same way it's done.

How is God's will done in Heaven?

• Joyfully
• Willingly
• Trustingly
• Obediently
• Immediately
• Triumphantly

So, when I think of each family member's current dilemmas, tough decisions, trials, temptations, triumphs, tragedies, options, whatevers, I pray that God's will would be done in, by, and through that family member in the same way that it's done in Heaven:  Joyfully, willingly, trustingly, obediently, immediately, triumphantly.

Notice that I don't have to understand God's specific will for that family member's circumstances (though of course I know His general will, which is revealed in Scripture for the conduct of all His people).  I am not to use prayer to impose my will.  I am to yield, I am to entrust.

What freedom this offers!  And what joy, when the answer comes in some form I never could have anticipated!  If I stubbornly hold out for my will, I might not even recognize His will when it is done, and I might frown in the face of Providence.  God forbid.  God forbid.

I'm going to stop here for today, so this entry won't get too long.  Please click here for part 2!

If You're Only Going to Sing One Note, Make it the Right One!

It's not about "gay rights."

It's not about abortion.

It's not about religious liberty.

It's not about the Constitution.

Don't get me wrong.  All of those issues are very important, even extremely important.  But if we make them the focus, then we can lose the war even while winning battles.

So what is it about?

Thy Kingdom come,

Thy will be done,

on earth as it is in Heaven.

Luke 6:10

He is patient with you,
not wanting anyone to perish,
but everyone to come to repentance.
2 Peter 3:9

That at the name of Jesus

every knee should bow,

in heaven and on earth

and under the earth,

and every tongue confess 

that Jesus Christ is Lord

to the glory of God the father.

Php 2:10-11

Make no mistake about it, no matter how many arguments you can win, or how many people you can convince regarding hot-button topics, you will not lead a soul to Christ unless you take him or her to the heart of the matter.

And the heart of the matter is simply this:

Jesus Christ is Lord, and I am not. 

My sin separated me from God,

but Jesus died to save me from my sin,

bring me back to God,

and begin the lifelong process

of changing me into

the image of Christ,

and bringing me into

glad submission

to His will for my life.

All of humanity 

has the same problem

of alienation.

And all of humanity

is offered salvation

only through 

repentance and faith

in Christ.

If we seek to change people's minds about issues, and not change their mind about Christ, then we are not going to win any wars for the Kingdom.  Don't get me wrong...we may accomplish wonderful things that may matter for eternity.  Seeds may be planted that will bring someone to Christ later.  An unborn child may be saved and allowed to survive to birth, and may later find new birth.

I don't want to discourage anyone from pursuing Kingdom-related purposes regarding major issues, just because they're not able to witness to everyone they encounter.  But I do beg of you to remember what the biggest issue really is, and to prayerfully seek opportunities to reach people for Christ with the spoken Gospel wherever possible.

If people repent, confess Jesus Christ as Lord, and begin by His indwelling Spirit to bring all of their lives into glad submission to Him, the controversial issues will necessarily begin to look different to them.  When they see Him as Lord over everything...

• Their sexuality (how it was created, how it may be expressed)
• Their reproductive abilities
• Their obligations to their Creator
• Their obligations to their fellow man
• Their eating
• Their drinking
• Their playing
• Their working
• Everything else

...how could their lives not be changed?

Look at that list above.  Are you starting to squirm?  Am I stepping on toes?  I hope so, because mine are a bit sore.

If Christ's Lordship over ALL of life is really the issue, then we've got a lot more repenting and submitting to do, don't we?  We can't approach our neighbor with a haughty spirit when we look at that list.

And you can be sure, Jesus Christ does intend for His Lordship to extend over all of these intimate details of life, and more (1 Co 10:31, Col 3:17).

In my last entry, I pointed out that we often misinterpret what we see as "losing," even when it's not.  But is it possible that we've also misinterpreted "winning?"

Did we think we were winning when sexual perversion, pornography, etc were in the closet and we could ignore them?  Jesus didn't.  He looked at us ignoring our lost neighbors, and He grieved angrily over the fact that we were content to see neighbors go to hell as long as they kept their lifestyle out of our faces.  Maybe one reason He has allowed the homosexual agenda to gain such power, and to be so "in our face," is because we've been such losers.  We've failed to genuinely love.  

God forgive us!  Now we can see our neighbors more clearly. 

Help us to love them to You.

What about our lost "straight" neighbors?  Are we content with their lostness because their particular brand of sinfulness doesn't offend us as much?  Do we care for our neighbors with eternity always in view?  Do we see their sin as no better or worse than our own?

Will we consider the abortion battle "won" if we get Roe v Wade repealed?  It won't be won that way.  Even if we get the law changed, the battle is still lost in every heart that insists on abusing God's good gift of procreation.  It will also be lost as long as we love "winning the war" more than we love those who oppose us in it.

Will we kid ourselves that the battles are won "out there" if they haven't been won in our hearts?  What if the morality battles, the abortion battles, and the Constitutional battles INCLUDE the battle to love our enemies in the face of these issues?  

What do we expect to hear when we stand before the One who died for sinners?  "Congratulations, you hated all the right people?"  I think not.

You shall love your neighbor as yourself.  

If Christ is your greatest good, then Christ is your neighbors' greatest good, too.  Love Him, and love them.  Serve Him, and serve them.  Speak the truth about Him to them.  

Let me sing my one note again.  DON'T MAJOR on the other issues, because you will never save a soul by changing a behavior.  Lead people to Christ, and the behaviors will take care of themselves.

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Photo by Kristina R

On Fear, Anger, and Loving our Neighbor

http://www.sxc.hu/photo/872737

Fear is infuriating.  I hate it.

Nothing makes me angrier.

I don't want to live with you if I'm afraid of you.  I don't want to live in your neighborhood, or in your country.

I cannot love you if I fear you.  To the extent that I fear you, I can only hate you.  Any love I may be able to muster will stop at the boundary of fear and go no further.

Jesus has commanded me to love my neighbor, even if he's my enemy.  If I cannot love what I fear, then I have to work on my fear, don't I?

Jesus, in fact, commanded me to do just that.

“I tell you, my friends, 

do not fear those who kill the body,

and after that have nothing more that they can do.  

Luke 12:4 (ESV)

"Do not fear."  It is the most frequently written command in all of Scripture.  

And yet, at the same time, those same Scriptures never whitewash the horrific effects of sin and the damage it can do.  At no time does He say, "Do not fear, because they're really not so bad."  Look again at how He defines those whom we are not to fear in the verse above.

"Those who kill the body."  

He doesn't say, "Don't worry, they won't really kill you."  They will.  At least in some situations, they will.  So why and how are we not to fear them?

The first and most obvious answer to "Why" is, of course, the reason found in the end of the verse above.  "...and after that have nothing more that they can do."  They can only touch our bodies, not our souls.  But that's not our focus here.

The first and most obvious answer to "How" is also not the one I'm going to focus on, though I will tell you that it's based on the verse that follows the one above.

But I will warn you whom to fear:

fear him who, after he has killed,

has authority to cast into hell.

Yes, I tell you, fear him!

Luke 12:5 (ESV)

As I said, I'm not going to focus on that reason.  But suffice it to say, a proper fear of God can help deliver us from the fear of lesser things.

My goal here is also not to focus on deliverance from fear as an end in itself.  We all want to be free from fear, and there's nothing particularly praiseworthy about that fact. We've all seen fearless jerks who don't mind standing bravely and screaming their hatred with an attitude of, "I ain't afraid of you, cause you're gonna burn in hell, you scum!"  I trust that that's not who you want to be.

What I want is to be delivered from fear, to love.  And the verse that pushed this whole train of thought out of the depot this morning was this one:

For what shall it profit a man,

if he shall gain the whole world,

and lose his own soul?  

Luke 9:25

Few things scare me more than the sight of an "enemy victory."  I suspect that most Christians are the same way, because I see that fear propelling a lot of words and actions right now.  "They" look poised to win, and frankly, any honest assessment of the times can see that "they" will.  They will get what they want, and we will lose something precious, and things will never be the same.

And not only are we not to fear, but we are to love.  

If we say we believe in Jesus, then we'd better be straight on this.  No arguments.  Yes, hate the sin.  Yes, acknowledge all of the verses that speak of God's holy hatred, and those that speak of a believer's natural hatred.  But don't let any of those confuse you with regard to what Christ has clearly commanded you to do.

But I say to you,

Love your enemies

and pray for those who persecute you

Matthew 5:44 (ESV)

Even when they're "winning."  

In fact, if we're tempted to hate "them" more when they're winning, then we've proven that we don't even know what victory is.

Why?  Because there is no real victory outside of the Gospel of Christ.  It is through His death, burial, and resurrection on our behalf that we have our only victory over sin and death.  And those are the only victories that ultimately matter.

For what shall it profit a man,

if he shall gain the whole world,

and lose his own soul?  

Luke 9:25

We fear our enemies' temporary victories because we fear suffering, we fear having to live with the evil that we loathe, and we fear how a culture that worships evil will drag many souls to ultimate doom.  All perfectly understandable fears.

But darkness has never been able to extinguish light.  In fact, a tiny candle that will be unnoticeable in a bright room will look like a veritable star in a dark one.  If God has seen fit to withdraw His hand a bit and allow sin to flourish, it is so that sin may reveal its true ugliness, and so that His people may shine more brightly.  He's not losing here, folks.  Not at all.  Even if "they win."

If we are with Him, we cannot lose.  We know that, but what do we do with it?  Do we hold up a big "L" with our fingers over our foreheads and cop an attitude toward "Them," gloating that they're losers?  If so, we're losers too, because we've walked away from the Savior who loves His enemies and died to save them.

Who died to save us.  When we were his enemies.

Our enemies are losing.  Losing terribly.  Not just in spite of their victories, but because of them.  They are gaining the world at the cost of their souls. 

So we must not hate or fear them because of their "victories."  We must love them as Christ did...with a willingness to suffer as we love them, serve them, and speak the Gospel to them so that they might be saved.

NOT so that they might go back in the closet.  NOT so that they might agree with us on the definition of marriage, or on our right to Free Speech and Freedom of Religion.  So that they might be saved!

No one ever got saved by being a heterosexual.  No one ever got saved by being an anything except a repentant, blood-bought believer in Jesus Christ.  

No one will ever become a repentant believer in Jesus Christ unless the church shows the saving love of Christ to them.  

And no one will believe in His saving love if they see His people's neighboring hate.

As one who knows the victory of His love, you are commanded to share it with your enemies.  And as one who is guaranteed to win no matter what happens to you, you are free to share it without fear.

Triumphing Over Evil

Yesterday's blog ended on the following note:

"To triumph over evil is NOT to whitewash it, whether in our own hearts or in society.  Triumph is NOT a victory of mere legislation, or social pressure, or convincing rhetoric.  Triumph is NOT "winning God's wars for Him" by using the weapons of evil.  Triumph is NOT stockpiling enough to hunker down while the world goes to Hell around us.  Triumphing is NOT out-snarling the snarlers, out-shouting the shouters, out-hating the haters.
How does the Church triumph over evil?"

What follows is my best answer to that question.

Mark this well...there is no corporate triumph of the Church without individual triumph of its members.  And there is no triumph over sin outside the church without triumph over sin within it.  And I don't mean a pseudo-triumphant, whitewashed, Pharisaical, siege-minded, self-righteous church.  May God forgive us for pursuing such ends.

I also don't define triumph as "getting those people to treat us right."  Nowhere in Scripture do the ancient martyrs receive censure for failing to change Nero's mind, or for failing to overthrow his government, or for failing to force society to its knees, or failing to stand up for their "Christian rights".  How did they triumph, and for what were they commended by God?

They overcame him

by the blood of the Lamb

and by the word of their testimony;

they did not love their lives so much

as to shrink from death.

(Rev 12:11)  

Some were tortured, refusing to accept release,

so that they might rise again to a better life.

Others suffered mocking and flogging,

and even chains and imprisonment.

They were stoned, they were sawn in two,

they were killed with the sword.

They went about in skins of sheep and goats,

destitute, afflicted, mistreated— 

of whom the world was not worthy— 

wandering about in deserts and mountains,

and in dens and caves of the earth.

And all these, though commended through their faith,

did not receive what was promised...

Heb 11:35b-39

By every worldly measure, these people were abject failures.  And some "Prosperity Preachers" might even think of them as failures because they did not see all of God's promises fulfilled in their lifetimes, despite having given Him their all.

If you and I could see those martyrs now, oh the glory we would see in them...the reflected glory of The Crucified One whom they followed to the end!  The promises are theirs, most assuredly, for death was not even close to being the end for them.

Now, please don't take me for a melodramaticist.  I'm not saying that we'll be thrown to the lions any time soon...though anything is possible.  But that's not the point, is it?  The point is NOT what they do or don't do to us.  The point is, will we remain true to Christ, individually and corporately, whether we manage to see our culture redeemed in our lifetimes or not?

How do we know if we will or not?  How do we know if we have the strength to follow in the footsteps of those He commended in Scripture?

We can know by the orientation of our hearts, our loves, our commitments.  Love is the strongest driving force we have, is it not?  No matter what, we will live for what we love most.  And for whom does God bend all things so that they "work together for good"?  For those who love God and are called according to His purpose (Rom 8:28).

How can we know if we love God enough?

 For this is the love of God,

that we keep his commandments.

And his commandments are not burdensome.

1 John 5:3

If we hate God's commandments, and chafe under them, and keep them only to the extent that we believe we must in order to "get by," and consider them a burden, then we do not love God, because those commandments that we hate are the revelation of His character.

If we love God's commandments, and try to keep them (albeit managing only imperfectly and inconsistently), then we love Him, because the commandments that we love are perfectly consistent with His character.

And these things are true in times of ease as well as in the hard times.  Indeed, if we don't seek to submit to Christ now, when it's still relatively easy, then we have no assurance that we'll do so when things get worse.

And what are these commandments that we are to love and strive to keep under the New Covenant He established with His blood?

 A lawyer, asked him a question to test him.

“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?”

And he said to him,

“You shall love the Lord your God

with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.

This is the great and first commandment.

And a second is like it: 

You shall love your neighbor as yourself.

On these two commandments

depend all the Law and the Prophets.” 

Matt 22:35-40 

If we love the Lord, and love our neighbors, and love our enemies, and are committed to growing in this love, then God's presence will be there for us to sustain us through whatever comes.  No good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly (Ps. 84:11).

But if ugly situations drive us to hate our neighbors, to spurn Christ's command to love them, to mar His reflection with our snarling visages, to adopt an arrogant or cowardly "look out for Number One" mentality, then even if we die as martyrs, we gain nothing (1 Cor 13:3).

Also, if ugly situations can cause us to abandon the Truth and accept the lie in order to avoid conflict, then we are failing to love God, who is Truth.  And we are failing to love our neighbor, who needs to hear the Truth spoken in love (Eph 4:15), whether he wants to hear it or not!

How are you responding, right now, today, to the hatred and evil around you?  That will depend entirely on how you are responding to the hatred and evil within you.  And the same goes for me, both now and in the future.

If we are truly Christians, then we are banking everything on Christ's mercy and grace in shedding His own blood for us in the mightiest act of love and forgiveness ever conceived.  We are depending on His righteousness credited to our accounts through no merit of our own, and we are enormously grateful that He has placed His Spirit within us to open our sin-blinded eyes and lead us in paths of righteousness for His name's sake (Ps 23:3).  We are humbled that He would stoop to mold us into what He wants us to be.  We depend on Him to keep us, day-by-day, on the right path, because we know that we would stray if left to ourselves.

If we are counting on these things for our own sins, why would we dream of offering our neighbor anything less for his sins?  If we believe that our neighbor needs Christ, why would we be willing to act like the Devil toward him?

Since so many who hate us believe that they themselves occupy the moral high ground, why would we choose to confirm that belief by using their own sinful tactics against them?

I am quite certain that my words will not change the world.  They will not stem the tide of evil.  The time for rhetoric seems to be past.  Evil is on a rampage, not just in terms of any one side issue (such as "homosexual rights"), but in terms of THE issue (rebellion against God and rejection of Him as Lord).

By and large, the only way I expect to defeat evil is to be constantly repenting of it in my own life, and to be seeking to grow more in love toward God and my neighbor, speaking the truth in love so that his eyes might be opened towards Christ, and his heart might be changed.  And if, by God's grace, I do manage to grow in this way, I will count it as victory.  And if (Please, God!) the whole church grows in this way, I will rejoice with all my heart!

Nothing less will please the Lord.  And nothing less will offer any hope for my neighbor, my enemy, whom I am called to love.

Hating my enemy is a failure that will drag all of my other "successes" down with it.

Discovering New Enemies Lately?

I live in what is, for the most part, a very civilized country.  And I am blessed to live in a beautiful city, one that consistently hits the top of the "Best of the US" lists.  I admit that I'm spoiled.

But as someone once stated, "civilization" is a thin veneer, and under the right pressures, it can disappear instantly.  I'm not talking about the occasional madman, like the one who massacred moviegoers last week just an hour south of here.  I'm talking about "normal" people, and what they...what WE can become at a moment's notice.  And it's sobering.  Humbling.  Alarming.

We see it when people are trampled to death in a stampede to get the newest toy for the kids for Christmas.

We see it it in popular movements where tens of thousands gather to protest injustices (real or perceived) in self-righteous indignation, while treating their fellow man with utter contempt in the process.

We see it in dusty black-and-white photos in our history books, when ordinary people...former friends, neighbors, and co-workers of the dead... avert their eyes from the endless piles of corpses in the concentration camps and wonder, "How did I let this happen in my back yard?"

How indeed?

Until recently, this was an academic subject for me...but not any more.  I'm willing to bet that many Christians are feeling it hitting closer to home lately.  We see friends, neighbors, co-workers, even family members snarling, snapping, insulting, hating us for simply loving the purity and beauty of God and His ways (in this case, God's design for marriage).  We are called all manner of awful things, and are left standing in bewilderment as we wipe the flecks of froth off our faces from their spitting rage.  We see our reason and gentleness twisted by their hatred and thrown back in our faces as they curse and scream at us that we are the "haters."  We see them applauding as government leaders threaten to strip away the very pillars of our Constitution in order to unleash their hatred on us for our beliefs.

We feel shell-shocked, confused, betrayed.

Now, I know full well that there are plenty who claim to support God's pure and beautiful ways, but who fight for it with attitudes and actions so ugly that they reveal themselves to be wolves in sheep's clothing.  People who love to hate their neighbor.  I'm not speaking of them.

I'm speaking of ordinary Christians of good will having venomous hostility poured out on us, not for our real faults (of which we have many), but purely because of our belief in what God has defined as Right and Wrong.

In short, though we don't desire enemies, we're finding that we have more and more of them.

What is happening?

For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. 

Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way.

(2 Thess 2:7)

"He who restrains lawlessness..." who is that?

I believe it is the Holy Spirit.  He holds evil back, only allowing it to express itself in the ways that conform to His ultimate plan for our good and God's glory.  God is not the author of evil, ever.  But He can, does, and MUST shape, restrain, and control our evil to make sure that it all "works together for good to those who love God," and to make sure it fulfills prophecy.  Look how He shaped and controlled the evil of Judas to bring about the greatest good that ever happened, exactly when and how the prophets said it would happen.

And I believe that there are times when He steps back a bit.  No, He won't be "out of the way" completely until the very end of the age, for He never leaves His people.  So as long as His people are here, He will be here.

And no, He never loses control.  He is God, always and ever.

But there are times when He gives evil a looser grip, just to let it show itself for what it really is.  You see, evil under a civilized veneer can fool a lot of people.  But when the veneer is stripped away, and evil gets freer rein, people may begin to recognize and loathe it more easily (though even that takes a miraculous work of the Spirit).  And those who are committed to evil are left without even the lie of "civilization" as an excuse.

So now, in this moment of American history, evil snarls in my complacent face much more than it used to.  Yours too, I'll bet.

And, in response, evil snarls in our hearts much more than it used to.  We are not purely innocent in these matters, are we?  If we think we are, we're fooling ourselves.

If you're like me, you want to triumph over evil in these days.  But I have to tell you, I don't define "triumph" the same way that I used to.

To triumph over evil is NOT to whitewash it, whether in our own hearts or in society.  Triumph is NOT a victory of mere legislation, or social pressure, or convincing rhetoric.  Triumph is NOT "winning God's wars for Him" by using the weapons of evil.  Triumph is NOT stockpiling enough to hunker down while the world goes to Hell around us.  Triumphing is NOT out-snarling the snarlers, out-shouting the shouters, out-hating the haters.

How can the Church triumph over evil in our day?

I'll post my thoughts on that question in the next entry.  But in the meantime, I'll be happy to post any comments which seek to answer that question, as long as they fall within certain guidelines.

• I will not post hateful comments
• I will not debate whether or not Scripture clearly calls homosexual activity "sin."  It does.  It also calls a lot of other things "sin."  We need to agree with God on ALL of it.
• I will not post comments which attempt to encourage worldly responses to sin.

Within the above guidelines, I look forward to hearing your thoughts!

Are You Preparing for Terrorism?

Photo credit: 

Public Domain - Wikipedia 

The headline greeted me over breakfast this morning.

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Al-Qaeda Calls for PA*-Style Arson in America

Al-Qaeda’s Inspire magazine calls on readers to “unleash hell”

with arson attacks similar to decades of attacks targeting Israel.
(*PA = "Palestinian Authority")

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Am I ready?  Are you?  Just how does one prepare for an enemy like militant Islam?

The Web is full of advice of all sorts.

There are those who will tell you to stockpile food and weapons.

There are those who will tell you to move to a remote location to protect your family and your worldly wealth.

There are those who will tell you that you should refuse to believe anything negative about the "Religion of Peace," because it's all a bunch of propaganda.  They say you should love your neighbor by refusing to believe even their stated plans to annihilate you.

Paranoia versus rose-colored delusion.

"Hate your neighbor" versus "Ignore your real neighbor and love the imaginary neighbor you'd prefer to believe you have."

Are those the only two choices?

Are you preparing for terrorism?

You'd better be.  But how?

How did Jesus prepare for the onslaught He knew was coming?

We can ask ourselves, “Does this attitude, this approach, this action look like Jesus on the cross?” If our attitude, approach, and action cannot be reasonably compared to the image of the cruciform, we need to abandon it. Caesar may adopt it, it may be practical, it may even be “successful,” but if it’s not Christlike, then it’s not our pattern. Without a radical commitment to the shape of the cruciform, the process of deformation will continue year after year, and our beauty will be lost.

Zahnd, Brian (2012-01-03). Beauty Will Save the World: Rediscovering the allure and mystery of Christianity (pp. 18-19). Strang Communications. Kindle Edition.

What did Jesus do when He knew His own personal "terrorist" enemies would soon kill Him?

He refused to confuse His kingdom with worldly kingdoms, and therefore he rejected worldly tactics, priorities, and goals.

So Pilate entered his headquarters again and called Jesus and said to him, “Are you the King of the Jews?”

Jesus answered,  “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.”

Then Pilate said to him, “So you are a king?”

Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world— to bear witness to the truth." (Excerpted from John 18:33-37)

Jesus knew who He was, He knew His purpose, He knew how to achieve it.  And He submitted to His Father all the way to death, "even death on a cross" (Php 2:8).

How many revolutionaries from Jesus' era can you name?  How many who took up arms still have kingdoms?  Which arms changed the world most...arms of warfare, or arms outstretched to receive the nails? Which arms do you believe in? Which arms saved you (if indeed you are saved)? Which can save your neighbor?

Who reigns?  More specifically, who reigns over YOU?  In which kingdom do you live...the kingdom of Satan or the kingdom of God?

Be careful how you answer, because your choice of kingdom and King will determine what goals and priorities you pursue, and what tactics you will use to achieve them.

How did Jesus prepare?

He stayed firmly in the Kingdom of God, in total submission to His Father, in humility, in death to all that the world offers, in love for His friends, and in love for His enemies.  He prayed in agony for deliverance, but chose the Father's will over His own.

He went about doing good to all (Acts 10:38), even though He knew many would turn away from Him (John 6:66).

He washed the feet of Judas (John 13:1-19).

He healed a man in the mob who arrested Him, while rebuking the disciple who attacked the man (John 18:10-11)

He prayed for those who persecuted Him, just as He commanded us to do.

There they crucified him, and the criminals, one on his right and one on his left. And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”  (Luke 23:34)

But His preparation didn't begin on those last agonizing days.  He'd been preparing all along. Washing Judas' feet was not a one-time, token act done for illustrative purposes.  He loved His enemies all along (though sometimes with a tough love that they probably didn't perceive as such). He lived in humble submission to His Father since before Day One.  He renounced the kingdoms of this world in a dramatic fashion when Satan offered them to Him (Luke 4:5-8), but also in an everyday fashion when He refused a life of ease and comfort (Matt 8:20).

How do we prepare for persecution?

We prepare the same way Jesus did...by trusting, obedient faith.

We love the Father with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength.  If we don't do it now, we won't do it when persecution comes.

We love our neighbor as ourselves (Matt 22:36-39), even if they're our enemies (Matt 5:44-48).  We love them in whatever small ways are available to us now, so that we'll be ready when the "big ways" are required of us.  If we don't do it now, we won't do it when persecution comes.  (If you don't believe that, ask yourself this question:  "What keeps me aloof from the people I see in Muslim garb?"  The answer that probably comes immediately to your mind is, "I don't have any way of knowing if they're the peaceful kind or the militant kind."  Well, what if they are the militant kind?  What if they are?  If you're not committed to obeying Christ in loving your enemy, then you won't be able to love the stranger who "just might be" your enemy.)

We humbly serve (Luke 10:33-37).  If we don't do it now, we won't do it when persecution comes.

We reject all tactics, priorities, and goals that belong in Satan's kingdom, and pursue "righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit" (Romans 14:17).  If we don't do it now, we won't do it when persecution comes.

We seek FIRST the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and leave the care of our earthly lives to Him (Matt 6:33).  If we don't do it now, we won't do it when persecution comes.

We take up our cross daily and follow Him (Luke 9:23).  If we don't do it now, we won't do it when persecution comes.

"Following Jesus means preparing to die—daily. Every day we must deny ourselves the expectation of comfort and safety, and we must courageously face whatever persecution our allegiance to Jesus stirs up, even to the point of death." Sidders, Greg (2011-04-01). The Invitation (p. 57). Baker Book Group. Kindle Edition. 

I'm going to prepare for persecution today.  How?  By settling the question of kingdom allegiance in my mind, so that I can say along with Paul, "It is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death.  For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain (Php 1:20-21).

And then, with the kingdom of Christ as my priority, I will leave the question of persecution behind.  Forget about it.  Because either way, whether that Muslim at Sam's Club is peaceful or not, I'm determined that Christ will be honored in my body. To really live for Christ is all about humbly loving, serving, and submitting to Him.

And dying for Him is all about exactly the same thing.

So I'll prepare for persecution (without even thinking about persecution) by loving and serving in whatever ways He calls me to.  

I'll prepare for it (without even thinking about it) by loving my angry teen (and repenting when I fail to love him).  

I'll prepare for it (without even thinking about it) by repenting of my anger toward the driver who cuts me off, and choosing to pray for him instead.  

I'll prepare for it (without even thinking about it) by treasuring Christ above all.  I'll do it all very imperfectly, but even that will turn to His glory as He forgives and restores me.  And a thousand daily acts of loving obedience and service will change who I am.  (And Heaven knows, “who I am” needs a lot of changing!)

I'm eager to get to know a whole multitude of Christians who are learning to love, to smile, to be fearlessly humble, to serve, to fall but repent with joyful gratitude and seek the kingdom first again.

I want to live among the people who are growing to understand what Elisabeth Elliot (widow of martyr Jim Elliot) meant when she said,

"Is the distinction between living for Christ

and dying for Him, after all, so great?"

Are you with me?

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Please note:  I am not advocating a position of complete pacifism.  I do believe that there can be such a thing as a "just war."  I will not publish any comments which seek to create a debate over the concept of "just war."  This post is about how individuals in our day-to-day civilian lives are to live in The Kingdom.  Any dissenting views MUST be civil, and MUST be based on the common ground of submission to Christ.

The Perfect "Living Sacrifice"

We know that Jesus came to die for us.  That's what makes His birth so worth celebrating.

But have we forgotten that He also came to live for us, that even now He "always lives to make intercession for us" (Heb 7:25)?

Many a husband boasts that he would die for his wife, but would not dream of putting her before himself in day-to-day life, of living sacrificially for her.

Jesus is not that kind of husband.  And His church is the most blessed bride imaginable.

You know that righteousness which He imputes to us (i.e. credits to our account)?  It's not just the righteousness that He had from eternity past.  It's the righteousness He lived out for us as the God-Man, representing us, as one of us, so that He in His righteousness could stand in our place before the throne of God.

The perfect man.  Living perfectly when it hurt, simply because it pleased the Father He loved, and because He wanted to qualify us to enjoy the Father, too.  He could have continued living flawlessly in Heaven, you know.  But He chose to do it here, in human flesh...day after difficult day; in poverty, in disgrace under a cloud of presumed illegitimacy, in ordinary obscurity, by the sweat of his brow, for the sake of people who appreciated none of it.  At least, not nearly as much as they should have, if at all.

He lived perfectly, not just in the big dramatic moments that we read about in Scripture, but in the countless inconsequential moments that never made it on record.  Thirty-some years of ordinary experiences...and not one moment lived selfishly.  He received every second from His Father's hand, and deliberately laid each one on the altar of His Father's will (John 8:28) for our sake (John 17:19).

Before He was our dying sacrifice, He was our living sacrifice.  Truly, what He asks of us (Rom 12:1-2) is nothing that He hasn't done for us first.

When God commanded sacrifices, He never asked anybody what they thought they should give.  He laid all His requirements out in excruciating detail. And once a sacrifice was given, it was completely out of the giver's hands.  It belonged to God, and God decided what to do with it.

He accepted some and rejected others (Gen 4:5, Prov 15:8, Hos 8:13, Heb 11:4).  Some He commanded to be used to feed the priests and their families.  Some He commanded would supply food for a joyous celebration for the sacrifice-bringer and his loved ones.

Some He commanded would be burned to ashes, leaving nothing at all for the bringer to enjoy.

Most sacrifices passed without any visible indication of God's involvement in the process.  But some rocked the giver's world with supernatural approval or wrath (1 Kings 18: 37-39, Lev 10:1-2).

And so it is with living sacrifices...with moments given into His hands.  We have no say in what is done with them once given.  Some moments will serve to feed others.  Some will supply celebrations for us to enjoy.

Others will seem to leave nothing but ashes.

Few will rock our world with signs of supernatural response.

Jesus knew all those kinds of sacrifices.  Moments, received with thanks and offered back, which fed thousands on hillsides.  Moments that supplied wine for wedding feasts. 

Moments, or rather hours, of agony ending in the dust of death. 

And in the moment of His sacrificial death, He made no demands, but put it all in the Father's hands to do with as He pleased (Luke 23:46).

But no, His sacrifices did not end there.  His righteousness accomplished all that He came to do, so that His perfect life and perfect death could both be imputed to us (Isa 61:10, 2 Co 5:21).  And God rocked our world with His supernatural seal of approval.  We call it the resurrection, and in it we who believe are also raised to new life (Rom 6:4).

On this day when we celebrate His birth, may we remember to celebrate His life as well.  If we are His, then His life flows in our veins.  He is our life.


Blessed be His name!

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Photo by clshearin 

Praying for "...But Not..."

It's been a long time since I've posted anything.  But it certainly hasn't been for lack of "interesting" events in my life!  In the past couple of months I've spent a great deal of time on bedrest, relying on the incredible generosity of my church and help from my family.  I've undergone tons of medical tests, taken lots of medications, received several new diagnoses, struggled with hopes delayed, engaged in wrestlings with God, and seen answers to prayers that I had never even been wise enough to pray.  (Must have been other believers and Jesus who made those requests on my behalf, I'm sure.)

Finally, just over a week ago (on Nov 29, 2011), I had the major surgery I needed.  Thanks be to God, I am already feeling better than I have felt for months, and am on the road to what will probably be better overall health than I've had in more than a decade!  I'm still relying on the generosity of others for help, but I'm now cleared to lift up to 8-10 lbs, so I can do many more things.

In some ways it's been tough, but I wouldn't trade this time for anything.  God has been SO present, and SO sweet!  I have learned so much about rest, about trust, about submission, about gratitude...but mostly about the precious sovereign love of God for me in Christ.  Thank Him along with me, will you?

 A little while ago I read "A Praying Life" by Paul Miller, and it changed the way I pray for myself, my family, my neighborhood, my church, missionaries, and the world.  The book helped me see how to get to the root and pray about the heart of the issues in my life and sphere.  And boy, do I always need to deal with heart issues!

You see, I've always had a powerful avoidance ethic.  "If you can't control it, avoid it" was my unspoken motto for life, unseen and unquestioned as it guided me into disaster after disaster.  My prayer life largely focused on the desire to see pain relieved or prevented, even as I busily pursued the kind of selfishness that ate me up and made me useless.

But several months ago, when I was making up my new prayer card for myself, the Spirit brought one of my Scripture memory passages to mind.  (That's a powerful argument for memorizing Scripture!)  I made that passage part of my daily prayer for myself, and because it aligns with God's wise will, He is honoring it.

May I invite you along as I pray this passage?

"Lord, please free me from the urge to try to control everything, the belief that the avoidance of pain is the greatest good.  At the heart of them, my prayers used to always be, 'Don't let me be afflicted.  Don't let me be perplexed.  Don't let me be persecuted.  Don't let me be struck down.'  But that's not my prayer any more.  Now I ask that You would free me to be what Paul described: 'afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed.' 

I say, 'Free me' to be these things, because that would be truly liberating.  I have been a slave to fear, held captive by avoidance, paralyzed by risk.  Please free me to love others in the way that You do...a way which is only possible if I'm willing to be hurt.  I can't triumph on my own, but through You I am 'more than a conqueror' (Rom. 8:37).  And what would this victory look like?  It would look like loving the Lord my God with all my heart and soul and mind and strength, and loving my neighbor as myself.  It would look like the end of self-centered self-protection, and the beginning of sacrificial love.  It would look like the end of regret over opportunities lost, and the birth of praise and joy over circumstances submitted to Your glory and the good of those I touch.

And then, Oh Lord, I pray that you would help me to understand, by experience, what Paul said next. Teach me what it means to be 'always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.'  How can it be that this, 'carrying of Jesus' death,' and this, 'manifesting of His life' is something that 'we who live' are 'always doing?'  I don't know, but I pray that you would make it true in my life so that I would be able to glorify You and serve my neighbor in that way."

I felt an immense burden lifted off of me the first time I prayed that, and since then the Lord has been faithfully helping me to pry my hands off the controls, to trust Him, to risk loving and being hurt.  I've got a long way to go, of course, but I love the path I'm on now!

How would your prayer life...your whole life...be changed if you regularly prayed for the "...but not..." of 2 Cor. 4:8-11?

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Photo by abcdz2000 from Stock Xchng

Why Should I Pray For You?

I recently became involved in a conversation that troubled me deeply.  A fellow believer was attempting to talk people out of ever offering "unspoken" prayer requests.  (For those who may not know, an "unspoken" request is a request in which a person, for whatever reason, chooses not to reveal any details.  They simply say, "I have an unspoken request," and they ask others to pray for them.)

His arguments, as I understand them, went like this:

• You have to give me at least some bare specifics, or I won't know what to pray about.  I will not pray for your unspoken requests, because they might be sinful.  (But don't give me too much information...I do NOT want to hear it!)
• There must be something wrong with either your ability to form healthy relationships, or something wrong with your church's ability to provide such relationships, if you do not have someone you can trust with the details.  You need to work out those problems with yourself or your church, instead of bringing your unspoken requests to us.
• If you're in a tragic situation where you don't have anyone that you can trust with the specifics, then why bother bringing your unspoken request to us?  You obviously don't trust us, or you'd tell us more (but remember, not TOO much.  We really don't want to hear it).
• You lack faith if you believe that your own prayers for yourself are inadequate.  Trust God to listen to you as you pray for yourself.  You don't need our prayers.
• I suspect that your request has something to do with your sinfulness, and your unwillingness to talk about it comes from your prideful unwillingness to confess your sin.

Someone else agreed with him, and complained about people going on and on with their requests and boring him with the details.  He actually described it as "torturous."  And then he complained about the fact that people who pray for the detailed requests will actually mention the details in their prayers, "as if God hadn't heard them the first time."

I was left stunned.  If the people who brought these arguments and complaints are representative of many believers (and I pray they are NOT), then the church has a lot of repenting to do when it comes to the subject of intercession...regardless of the amount of detail given or withheld in our requests!

Are we really going to pridefully critique one another's prayer requests and refuse to pray for those that we consider imperfect?  Where is our love?  Where is our humility?  

"Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness.

For we do not know what to pray for as we ought,

but the Spirit himself intercedes for us

with groanings too deep for words."

(Rom. 8:26)

That was the Apostle Paul, including himself when he said "WE do not know what to pray for as we ought."  Do we dare believe that we do better?  

God forgive us our arrogance!  Where would we be if Your Holy Spirit would only intercede for us when our prayers were perfect?  Where would we BE?

If we feel ourselves qualified to sit back and judge the prayer requests we hear, and spurn those who "do not know how to pray as they ought," we place ourselves above the Spirit.  He may condescend to intercede for us when we pray imperfectly, but we have higher standards than He does, evidently.  "Don't bother me with the details, and don't bother me without the details.  Tailor your requests to suit me, or you can forget my prayers."

Oh, how I thank God that He never spurns my imperfect prayer requests, because those are the only kind I've ever made!  And not only does He not reject our requests, but He actually goes a step farther and polishes them up for us, making them like sweet incense as He brings them before the Father.

Are we above interceding...above taking an imperfect request and agreeing with it by offering an imperfect prayer of our own?  Do we not realize that the Holy Spirit will have to clean up our intercessory prayers, just as He has to clean up the prayers of the person we're interceding for?  

Do we not realize it is a privilege to be allowed to pray for others, to be allowed the opportunity to be used by God in someone else's life, when we are so imperfect ourselves?

What is the purpose of asking for prayer?  Is it, as my acquaintance suggested, because we lack faith to believe that God hears us if we pray alone?  Is it so that people can judge our requests and determine if we deserve their intercession?  Why didn't God just tell us to keep our requests to ourselves, and why did He tell us to pray for one another?

Could it be that, wonder of wonders, God wants us to learn to love one another, humbly and non-judgmentally?  And could it be that love is actually more than enjoyment of others, but extends into bearing with them, and bearing their burdens?

What would these acquaintances of mine do, I wonder, if someone they deeply loved offered a "sub-par" request, with either too much or too little detail?  Would they roll their eyes and say, "Forget it, I'm not praying for you?"  I think not...and the reason would be simple.  They love that person.  So when they roll their eyes and refuse to pray for someone else with a "sub-par" request, with too much or too little detail, the reason is equally simple.  They do not love that person.

Jesus said that "Love your neighbor" is the second-greatest commandment.

So what do we do with unspoken requests...or any kind of prayer request?  It would seem to me that humble love for our neighbor could not be satisfied with less than this:

"Lord, my brother/sister has a need. I don't know what it is, but You do. Help me to love my brother/sister as I lift them before you now. Please work in their situation for Your glory, and may your Glory in their situation ultimately bring them joy in You.  If there is anything I can do to lighten their load, please help me to do so.  And please bring their name to my mind frequently so that I can continue to hold them up before the Throne of Grace.  Thank You for giving me the privilege of praying for someone who trusted me enough to ask."

Let me say it again...it is a privilege to be allowed to pray for someone in this way!  

Oh Lord, forgive me for the times when pride has sullied my prayer life, as I'm sure it often has.  Please humble me so that I can pray for others as I should.  And please raise up a whole army of prayer warriors who love deeply and humbly, so that no one need fear to bring their requests, however worded, before Your people.  In Jesus Name, and through His Spirit who intercedes for me, Amen!