Tag: Lent 2018

Lent 2018 | Day #21: Timing

Whenever I get out of sync with God everything is going to feel off. We are going to be disconcerted by that lack of connection with God’s rhythm.

I have been playing guitar for about 10 years. I started as a necessity, but over the years I have grown to love playing. I have also learned some music theory along the way. One of the tips that I have come across over the years has been to practice with a metronome. If you don’t know what that is, it’s a device or app that keeps time. You tell it how fast you want it to go, usually to make the tempo of a song, and then you play along with it. The idea is that as you play with a metronome your sense of timing improves. And more specifically, it evens out.

During our worship team practices, we have started incorporating a metronome. The challenge is staying in step with it. We were having difficulty with a song and I told our team, “The metronome has no feelings. It just keeps right on ticking.” It is our job to get on the beat with this relentless pulse.

What I found surprising with my own description is that our faith is like that. God is the steady, consistent beat of the universe. He does not change and everything takes its cue from Him. Whether we understand it or not.

So often we ask God about his timing. Why was he late or early? Why didn’t he show up when we needed him to? What I am starting to realize is that it’s not God’s timing that is off, it’s mine.

Whenever I get out of sync with God everything is going to feel off. We are going to be disconcerted by that lack of connection with God’s rhythm. I am still thinking through how do we practice staying in step with God. I don’t have anything “new” to offer. However, I get the feeling that one good place to start is by doing a better job of practicing some of the time-tested spiritual disciplines handed down through the centuries. Disciplines like prayer, scripture reading, contemplation. There are many others, these are the ones that I know I need to constantly be working on to feel like I’m locked into God’s spiritual metronome for my life.

This is one of the primary reasons I have grown to love the Liturgical calendar, even though I don’t belong to a liturgical church. There is something precious about making the passage of the years to a steady, repeating rhythm. We are in the season of Lent. It will pass and a new one will come. But, I also know that Lent will come again. And I will be able to go through this process of reflection again next year. Embrace the rhythm and work to get back on track when you fall behind or get ahead of what God is doing.

Lent 2018 | Day #19: Discipleship

As I have been discipled and have done discipleship I have realized that what makes discipleship work is the friendship that is created in the process.

For the last several years the idea and practice of discipleship have become a life-changing passion. I have thought about it, written about it, and become more intentional about practicing it. The remarkable effect of becoming focused on any subject, you quickly learn how little you know about what you are studying. That was the case for me. Even with all I have learned, I know that I can refine my application of all that insight.

Today I would like to share what I believe is the most important lesson I have learned in my investigation of discipleship. As I have been discipled and have done discipleship I have realized that what makes discipleship work is the friendship that is created in the process. This is exactly what Jesus tells us at the end of his ministry on earth.

15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. (John 15:15)

There are two points to focus on. The first is that Jesus intentionally identifies the disciples as friends. After three years of travel and ministry, Jesus did not see them as servants. They had become friends. The shared experiences of life had forged a bond among them all. We do not know all of the details because the Bible does not tell us, but we do know how Jesus felt about the relationship.

The second point of focus is that Jesus shared everything God had sent him to share with them. This means that sharing is an important aspect of discipleship. But the purpose of sharing is not merely to inform, it is to help that person be transformed. If all you do in a discipleship relationship is get more information, be careful that transformation is sacrificed in the process. Information is a poor substitute for a transformed life. And too often we accept it when we should be looking for a lasting change. But, we all know how difficult changing is!

As we move closer and closer to Lent I would ask you to consider your own discipleship. Are you being discipled in a way that leads to transformation? Or are you getting fat on new information? Chose the kind of discipleship that does the first! You will never regret it and you will never be able to deny it.

Lent 2018 | Day #18: Patience

I have stopped asking God for patience. I don’t do it anymore. And the reason I don’t do it is that I know that the second I ask God to increase my patience, something is going to happen to test it!

I have stopped asking God for patience. I don’t do it anymore. And the reason I don’t do it is that I know that the second I ask God to increase my patience, something is going to happen to test it! I have decided that I would rather ask God for wisdom. There are several benefits to this approach. The first is that God promises to give me wisdom if I ask for it. I would rather have the wisdom to deal with the events of life than patience. I want to be patient. Please don’t misunderstand. I really do. However, I also don’t want to be constantly putting out fires in my life.

The second benefit I want to point out is this, when I ask for wisdom I am asking God to change my perspective. I cannot look at my situation in the same light if how I see it changes. And wisdom will change the way I see things. That is why it is called wisdom. I would say that almost all of the wise people I know have an uncanny ability to see things before they happen. Not that they have some special revelation from God, but that they can think through situations and important decisions so effectively that it’s almost as if God had told them what was coming. One of the bonuses of growing in wisdom is that if God does share something, we will be able to manage that information in a far better way.

Patience is a virtue, but wisdom is a gift. It comes from experience and from reflection. I hope that as I get older I will grow wiser and by extension more patient. I find that Lent is a great opportunity for both to happen. Don’t waste the opportunity to ask God for wisdom and thereby learn how to be patient.

Lent 2018 | Day #17: Sacrifice

What did God value in humanity to set into motion the sacrifice of Jesus upon the cross?

You never know what you are willing to give until you are faced with having to make the decision. Our willingness to sacrifice cannot be understood in a vacuum. We are willing to sacrifice when the reason for doing it is tied to something we value more than what we are being asked to give.

When we bring this reality to our conversations about the Gospel we are confronted with some interesting questions. The most obvious of which is this: What did God value in humanity to set into motion the sacrifice of Jesus upon the cross? I know there are some who would balk at this question. I will admit that it makes me uncomfortable as well. But, we have to wrestle with the implications of the fact that Jesus died for the redemption of a fallen humanity. He made this choice willingly. He was not forced to die. He chose to allow sinners to crucify him on the cross.

As Christians, our lives are to be patterned, as best as we can, to the example of Jesus. We have so much left to learn about what it means to sacrifice like Jesus. But, we have to see his sacrifice and we have to do our best to understand it if we are ever going to embody it in our own lives.

Jesus sacrificed his very life for us. He died so that we might have life, and that more abundantly. And the reason he did it was not just so he could be called a savior, or for God to simply avoid the accusation of being unjust. The sacrifice of Jesus on the cross was also an expression of what he valued in us, the image bearers of God. As tarnished by sin as we were, there was still a vestige of that perfect image resident within us. There was still something of value in us. But this value was borrowed from God, it was not inherent in us.

The season of Lent should cause us to reflect on the nature of God’s love toward us. His love infuses us with value. Sin has robbed us of any value we had before the fall. But God, who is rich in mercy has restored that value by covering us with the righteousness of Christ. This is a wondrous thing. We should not take it for granted.

Lent 2018 | Day #16: Passion

We are not (or at least should not be) dispassionate observers of the cross.

When you think about Jesus and what he accomplished on the cross, what does that do to your heart? How does that affect your thoughts?

What emotions do you feel about your sin? God’s grace? Jesus’ love for you?

I don’t mean to imply that we all should feel the same things or think the same thoughts. I am just saying that we should feel something and think some thoughts in relation to Jesus. There is no category for a Christian like “professional distance.” We are not (or at least should not be) dispassionate observers of the cross. This great victory that Jesus has won should cause joy to rise up within us.

When we look at Jesus we should feel something that reminds us of what it cost God to break the bondage of sin in our lives. We should find ourselves wondering and pondering what a glorious event the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus is. Because in Jesus we have life eternal. In Jesus, we have been brought near to God. In Jesus, we have access to the throne room of God. This is no mere trifle.

I know that for some it is difficult to engage their emotions when discussing religious subjects. But that may be a huge part of the problem. We are not merely talking about a religious point of view when we talk about Jesus. We are talking about our King. We are talking about our most cherished treasure. We are talking about the one who transcended time and space and entered into the disaster we call the human race. This Jesus walked among broken people, and he too became broken so that we would become whole.

During Lent, we should work to stoke into flame our passion for God, for Jesus. We should not be idle in this pursuit. We should strive to make sense of what all of this means for each of us. It’s not that we are going to understand how it works. I don’t need to understand the mechanics and physics of the engine in my truck to know that when I turn the key it will start. The hard work has been done. I just need to press the gas.

Take a few moments and ask yourself this question. Do I love Jesus more today than I did yesterday? If yes, why? If no, why not?

Until we become comfortable with answering the question and making the needed adjustments, we will flounder on this journey of faith.

I pray that we would make the psalmists passionate declaration a reality in our own lives.

As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. (Psalm 41:1)

Lent 2018 | Day #15: Study

I’ve found that one big obstacle to studying is that it conjures up the images of trying to understand some subject we hated in school.

One of the primary definitions of the word “disciple” is that of a student. A disciple finds a teacher and learns everything they can from them. If we are disciples and we are not intentional in studying we are neglecting an important part of our new life in Jesus.

I’ve found that one big obstacle to studying is that it conjures up the images of trying to understand some subject we hated in school. The problem with this way of looking at studying is that we will end up never really do it! But if we think of studying as spending more time with something we already have some understanding of, we will find our time to be more fruitful.

There are so many concepts, ideas, and promises in the Bible. If we would spend more time with one of them, trying to see it from as many angles as possible, we will be studying more effectively. Studying God’s word, and thinking deeply about the truths God has revealed requires extended times of reflection. The longer we consider something we increase our ability to see something we have never seen before.

When I try and explain this idea to people, I ask them if they have ever done a “Where’s Waldo Puzzle?” It is the kind of game that requires looking very closely at the image and paying attention to details. What makes the puzzle more difficult is that answer is right in front of you, but you have to pay attention to details. This is essentially the attitude we should adopt when reading and studying the Scriptures.

There are aspects of the scriptures that are “obvious” than others. But we should not move on so quickly. We should seek mastery not merely consuming large amounts of information. Having more information is not the goal. Making sure that we understand what we know is a far more invaluable way of engaging with God’s word.

This is one of the aspects of Lent we don’t always take advantage of. During Lent, we are called to contemplate more intently the wonderful Gospel news. Don’t miss out on this opportunity.

Lent 2018 | Day #14: Theology

Whether you know it or not you are a theologian. Every person on the planet has opinions about the divine.

Whether you know it or not you are a theologian. Every person on the planet has opinions about the divine. Whether they define the concepts in the same way or not, thoughts and ideas and concerns about God fall under the great umbrella of theology. And everyone has them, whether we admit it publically or not.

There is something we all must decide. It has to do with what kind of theologians are we going to be. Are we going to be good theologians or are we going to arrogant theologians? I think that most people don’t realize that this is the spectrum.

An arrogant theologian is someone who has arrived at the conclusion that they have all the information necessary about how the world works, how it started, how it is sustained, and what we are supposed to do in it. And, since they have “all” the information they can decide for themselves what to do with their lives. The principal problem for anyone to thinks they have all the information is that they really don’t. Every single second new information is being discovered about any subject you would like to pick. Every. Single. Second.

And what makes this entire situation even more problematic is that as technology advances the amount of knowledge available for consumption increases as well. So, if we consider that 100 years ago, 1000 years, and even 2000, years ago one could technically say that had learned all there was to know on any given subject. We know today that that was simply not true. There simply was no way for those living in ages past of knowing what they did not know.

Why is all this important? It is important because being a good theologian begins by accepting the basic premise that we don’t know everything. And, by extension, we can’t know everything there is to know about God. Even with all of the advances in technology, the physical sciences, the biological sciences, and the study of the cosmos we have the same problem that every inquirer of great questions has had in every period of human existence—we were not there when it all started. We can speculate and theorize, but in the end, we are left with theology (or for those in a non-religious context, philosophy). We are left with trying to understand the information before us and drawing a conclusion, hoping we are right, or just close. And that conclusion will always be based on limited information.

You may be wondering what any of this has to do with Lent. Let me close the circle this way. The season of Lent calls us to draw our attention to the sacrifice of Christ by asking us to sacrifice something ourselves. But to what end? For the purpose of reminding us that there are realities that are greater than the physical entanglements of this world. And it is these realities, these spiritual realities, from which we draw our strength. As followers of Jesus, we must draw our strength from God. Not from the offerings of the world. We must rely on God to sustain us. Not on the supplements that the world peddles.

So, if we are not improving our “theologian” chops we are shortchanging ourselves of learning more about and growing closer to God. Lent affords us an intentional opportunity to think intentionally about God. Who he is and who he wants us to be. This information has been given in God’s word and it can be known today by all who will seek him.

Lent 2018 | Day #13: Incarnation

I don’t remember what day it was or what I was doing, but I know that when I finally understood the implications of Jesus’s coming to earth, I was changed.

I don’t remember what day it was or what I was doing, but I know that when I finally understood the implications of Jesus’s coming to earth, I was changed. In the world of theological discourse, this idea is called the Doctrine of the Incarnation. It such a beautiful doctrine I will, from time to time, bring it up randomly in conversation with other believers.

Jesus’s entrance into the world is one of the pillars of the Christian faith. It is so important that the apostle John said that if it is rejected, then Jesus himself is rejected (1 John 4:2; 2 John 7). Go read those passage for yourself! They are startling.

The incarnation is remarkable because only God would devise such a plan. Only God would choose to leave heaven and enter the ravaged reality of Earth. Only God could leave the perfection and purity of the highest heaven and descend into the mire of sin-filled humanity. This is the great mystery of Bible-based religion. Not that man was able to find his way into the presence of God, but that God has entered into the plight of a broken world.

I love this doctrine. It is beautiful in the way that it displays the love of God and the miracle of salvation. Easter is the greatest day on the Christian calendar. It is the day that Jesus rises from the darkness of the tomb. But, without Advent, without Christmas, without a baby, born in a manger, Easter Sunday would be a fairytale. It would be impossible, it would never have happened. The link between these two events is necessary for the whole picture to be accurate.

So, as we approach Easter, as we look forward with anticipation to the promise that Resurrection Sunday brings, I like to look back and see what arrived on Christmas Day. In this season of Lent, we can take time and reflect on both what happened and what is to come. In fact, it is important that we do so.

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