Confidence on an Uncertain Road

            After a terrific two days at the ABCOM Annual Meeting in Houlton last week, Joanne and I returned home on Saturday. We had seen many old friends (like Steve and Sandi Straubel) and enjoyed some excellent messages. The presentation by Bill and Ann Clemmer was extremely moving. Anyway, we had eaten lunch after it was all over with Joanne’s brother and sister-in-law at a country restaurant called Grammy’s in a very small town outside of Houlton called Linneus. From there I had made plans for a more direct route west on a road called the South Oakfield Road. Most of the main roads on the map looked like you had to drive back through Houlton to get onto 95 South. I didn’t feel like doing that. It seemed too far out of the way. Yes, I did have to zoom in quite a bit on my Google Maps App to see the South Oakfield Road. But it was there. John told me they would follow us, so I turned on my GPS and headed out on my “direct” route toward Island Falls, where I anticipated picking up 95.

            It was going very well… for a little while. The road was small, but it was paved. And then it wasn’t. It became a dirt road. I thought… “Should I keep going or not?” It was a “good” dirt road, though, so I decided to keep going. Then there was a sign that indicated some construction over the next 6.5 miles. Still the dirt road was good, so I decided to keep going. Then I hit the first soft patch. It had rained for several days last week and there were a few places with soft, wet dirt and some pretty deep ruts. “I can make it,” I told myself. “Just speed up a little bit.” We did make it, but I began to worry about things getting worse and the possibility of having to turn around. I didn’t want to do that, though. We had come down a couple of hills that I didn’t relish the thought of going back up. The further we went, the more I knew I didn’t want to turn around. But there were some “hairy” spots still to get through. At one point I stopped, got out of the car, and went back to ask John if he still wanted to follow me. I was feeling dumber and dumber, and more and more anxious about my decision to go that way. But the road was still navigable, so onward we pressed. Joanne asked at one point, “I hope I don’t have to get out and push us.” I said, “I am the one who would end up pushing.”

            After a while the dirt road got smaller, narrower, and a little rougher. I wondered if AAA could get to me if I needed them. I was still on course, but beginning to doubt it would come out to where I thought it would. According to my GPS I was right where I should be. I spent a good deal of time questioning my decision (to take that route), and no small amount of praying. Finally, much to my great relief, the road became paved again. Bumpy… but paved. Narrow… but paved. And then it became wider… and smoother. We drove past a lake with camps and homes on it and eventually connected with State Route 2, a major older road between Houlton and Bangor. From there it was on to Island Falls, Interstate 95, and home. The “adventure” was over and I hadn’t gotten lost, stuck, or in the doghouse with my in-laws, though I am quite certain my brother-in-law may not let me forget this little wilderness journey.

            Do you ever feel like the road the Lord has you on is maybe not the right road? It’s not smooth. It’s not easy. There is some doubt along the way… and some fear. You question if you should have taken another road. But His guide – His Word – has reminded you it is where He wants you to be. There are dangers of getting bogged down and getting knocked around by the bumps. You may feel alone, isolated, and far away from help should something go wrong. But your mind is set on His destination for you. You are trusting Him to get you there, so you just keep going. You trust that He will not fail you. God does take us on roads like that. And if we stay focused on His Word, we can be confident that He will take us through to whatever destination He has for us. In the middle of uncertainty we will pray, and we will rest in Him. And we will not fear.

Psalm 25:4-10 (NIV) ⁴  Show me your ways, O LORD, teach me your paths; ⁵  guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long. ⁶  Remember, O LORD, your great mercy and love, for they are from of old. ⁷  Remember not the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways; according to your love remember me, for you are good, O LORD. ⁸  Good and upright is the LORD; therefore he instructs sinners in his ways. ⁹  He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way. ¹⁰  All the ways of the LORD are loving and faithful for those who keep the demands of his covenant.

Hebrews 13:5-6 (NIV) ⁵  Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." ⁶  So we say with confidence, "The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?"

Jeremiah 29:11-13 (NIV) ¹¹  For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. ¹²  Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. ¹³  You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

PRAYER:  Father, thank you for the path of your will for my life. Thank you for seeing me through those ways filled with questions and uncertainty. Thank you for never leaving me or forsaking me. Keep me in your Word, that I may know your way and walk in it. In Jesus’ name, AMEN.”

Jesus Christ is Lord!  

Scott

Minimizing What Is Deadly

            The news about the Ebola outbreak in the countries of West Africa has certainly been sobering. Its deadly impact was played out before us as we watched, read, and listened to news coverage every day. As long as the issue was an African issue many Americans did not think of it all that much. Yes, it was sad… and dangerous sounding. But our political leaders and medical experts assured Americans that it could never be a serious issue in our country. In my own estimation there has been a degree of hubris exhibited by those in these leadership roles. Hospital caregivers and transportation providers have been careless. Exposed people have either unknowingly or carelessly exposed other people. Proper procedures have been ignored. It is as if in our sophistication, technology, and expertise we think we are free of any concern or danger.

            Recent events have proved otherwise. The bubble of our invulnerability has been burst. The potency and movement of this virus has turned out to be not quite so “easy” to contain or manage. Mistakes have been made. Apologies have had to be given. Carelessness and actions without thought opened the door for exposure and transmission of the virus. It became something like a giant game of “Whack-a-Mole”, with authorities dealing with one situation only to find more and more people in need of watching, quarantining, or treating.

            My purpose in this devotional is not to point fingers and lay blame, or to suggest that I have a full understanding of all these events. I share these impressions more to make a spiritual point: the situation echoes the way that people often address the deadly issue of sin in the world and in their lives. In our arrogance we minimize our sin. We do not consider it to be all that serious – it’s just not that big of a deal to us. But the Bible says that sin is the sting of death (1 Corinthians 15). Human beings believe their sophistication, knowledge, technology, scientific accomplishment, etc., will deliver them into a better world and solve all or most problems. Sin is considered a trivial matter… nothing to worry about. Yet the Bible suggests it is our greatest enemy and the cause of death that separates us from God forever if it is not addressed. Our pride leads us to believe that we can manage our sin. We think we can contain its impact. "Our sin won’t be as bad as ___." (the spiritual equivalent of Africa). We think it is worse here in this person, or over there in that person. We believe… “I’m not as bad as ‘they’ are. Sure I have some. I’m not perfect. But it’s not all that bad. God will understand.” We minimize sin and we think we can manage sin to our great peril.

            God does not minimize sin. He knows its destructive power and pervasiveness in the lives of those He created and loves. He knows that it permeates every dimension of our lives and we have not been able to “control” it. It has taken us deeper and further into ourselves and away from Him than we care to admit. It has stained everything we are and everything we do. All of life in our world feels its impact. And the cure - the solution for it - must surely be greater than anything we are capable of. We know God does not minimize sin because of the steps He took to deal with it. The seriousness of sin is indicated by the step of love taken by God to send His only Son into the world to take that sin upon Himself. The atoning work of Christ on the cross is just so incredibly “big” as the means God resorted to in order to cleanse us, heal us, and free us from the inevitable death sin brings. The greatness of this work of love cannot be overstated.

            It is not healthy or wise for us to diminish or shrink the seriousness of sin. And it is just as unhealthy or unwise to believe ourselves capable of fixing it or eradicating it. How foolish we are. How proud we can be. The truth about sin is an opportunity to grow in our appreciation of and total dependence upon the cross of Jesus Christ. The good news is that as deep as our need is… the grace of God is deeper still. The blood of Christ has real power for our need… for cleansing… for even knowing God… for receiving and responding to grace in faith… for walking (living) a grace-made life in relationship with our Father each day as sons and daughters in His kingdom. Yes, we take sin seriously. But we take God’s grace more seriously (and joyfully) still.

Romans 3:21-24 (NIV) ²¹  But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. ²²  This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, ²³  for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, ²⁴  and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

Romans 5:6-9 (NIV) ⁶  You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. ⁷  Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. ⁸  But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. ⁹  Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him!

Romans 6:23 (NIV)  For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

2 Corinthians 9:14-15 (NIV) ¹⁴  And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you. ¹⁵  Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!

PRAYER:  Father, I take sin seriously. It is deadly. But the cross of Jesus Your son has delivered me. As I think about this and live in the new life you have given me, every day I appreciate and value the cross more and more. Though my sin is great, Christ is greater. What an amazing and wonderful thing it is to be your child through such grace. Every day, in all my ways, may I continually experience the riches of your grace and the joy of being your son.  In Jesus’ name, AMEN.”

Jesus Christ is Lord!  

Scott

"Well, No One Told Me"

            Joanne and I went to an event at the Collins Center at UMO Tuesday night on her birthday. We showed up at 6:15 p.m. for a 7:00 p.m. start time. At least that’s what it said on our tickets. We got inside and they were not opening the auditorium doors. Quarter of… ten of… five of seven, and still nothing. I couldn’t figure out what was happening, so I went to the ticket information booth to find out. Turns out that the event had been changed to 8:00 p.m.. The first thing I thought was, “Well, no one told me.” In fact, I was a little miffed. I don’t really like to have my time wasted, and it seemed to me that someone could have emailed me (having purchased the tickets online) to let me know of the change. What we had was a failure to communicate.

            The Collins Center website had been communicating it for quite a while. Since I have no regular reason to go to their website, I missed the change announcements and proceeded on outdated information. While the annoyed part of me felt like finding fault in the situation, another part of me understood that the information was there - and effort was made to let people know – it just did not reach me. So I had to put up with a little inconvenience. But I was with my favorite person and she ended up having time to finish the book we’re inviting church members to read (I Am a Church Member).

            Two spiritual connections to this situation come to my mind. One is how thankful I am that everything God communicates through His Word is 100% reliable, unchanging, and useful for my life every day. It never misses the mark or needs updating or changing. I don’t ever have to worry that what God has said in the past will undergo modification so as to catch me off guard. It is as true today as the day it was written. It is also as relevant. And God has no need of changing it, or changing His plans. He is right on schedule in all His ways, and He always will be.

            The second connection is the need for good, direct communication of spiritual things. Joe Bayly’s wonderful little story called The Gospel Blimp depicts a small group of Christians – surrounded by neighbors who don’t know the Lord, but might be interested – latching on to all kinds of spectacular ways of communicating the Gospel… except making friends and sharing at a personal level. The culmination of their efforts is hiring a blimp from which they drop thousands of tracts upon unsuspecting people hoping some will be converted. The point of the story is that nothing compares to a personal, caring, direct sharing of Christ’s love with others. All the communication techniques, technologies, newspaper ads, posters, banners, and strategies of many kinds are pretty much useless (though I will not limit what the Holy Spirit may use) compared to what comes directly from our hearts as we engage people. If Christ is there, I have something to share. People may never see a presentation of the Gospel on TV, the radio… or they may never read the Bible or a book in which the Gospel is communicated… or they may never go to a Christian website that presents Christ… etc.. But they will see you and me. They will hear you and me. Christ in us (Savior, Lord, Friend)… cannot be missed by the people in our lives every day. I do well to remember that I am God’s primary communication resource in the world today.

Isaiah 55:10-11 (NIV) ¹⁰  As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, ¹¹  so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

Hebrews 4:12 (NIV)  For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NIV) ¹⁶  All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, ¹⁷  so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Matthew 24:35 (NIV)  Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

2 Timothy 2:2 (NIV)  And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.

PRAYER:  Father, may I be a vessel for the Gospel, poured out by you into the lives of others. May the Spirit so fill me with the life of Christ that your grace will flow through me to others as it is given to me in such overwhelming abundance.  In Jesus’ name, AMEN.”

Jesus Christ is Lord!  

Scott

Avocado People

            As often as possible Joanne and I like to get out to walk together. These are great opportunities to catch up with each other and to solve all the problems of the world. Some of our conversations are about deeper things, while others deal with the ordinary and mundane. It’s the being together that really matters. One of the mundane things Joanne mentioned on a walk last week related to an avocado. She had taken one to work to eat at lunchtime. But when she cut into it, she found many dark spots that weren’t very appetizing. When she told me about it, I said, “That’s the thing about avocados… when you buy them you have no idea what they are like on the inside.” To me they all look the same from the outside. Perhaps there are experts who can see more than I can, but every time I pick one out I’m just taking my chances.

            I thought about what I had said, and soon began to consider how we as people are often like an avocado. We may look pretty good from the outside, but we so often keep to ourselves what is going on inside. Our bruises are not always the obvious type. So people frequently cannot tell from external appearances what’s really there.

            A couple of Sundays ago I preached from Matthew 5:27-30 on the topic of lust. (to listen go to http://fbcbarharbor.com/media.php)  This is a perfect example – especially of men – of a topic that displays our “avocado-ness”. At the end of the sermon I invited men to take a response envelope home with them and consider trusting me enough to share where they were at with regard to issue. My hopes were high, but my expectations a little more realistic. I wasn’t sure if anyone would be willing to be vulnerable enough to respond.

            Why is it that we close up so much when our sins, habits, and undesirable qualities are having an impact on our lives? Some reasons I can think of include embarrassment, shame, guilt, and fear. We have a great amount of fear about our foibles.  We don’t want someone to think less of us or to judge us or even turn away (reject) us. So we present something different to others. We are more concerned about… “What do you think of me?” than we are about “This is what I really am.”

            I have always wondered what it would be like to be in a James 5:16 church, where people freely confessed their sins and shortcomings to one another. I think it might be a little more like Alcoholics Anonymous, where people describe the depths of their weaknesses and failures and receive a round of applause when they finish. Is the applause for what they’ve done? No. It’s for the step they have taken to be real and “come clean”, if you will. There is great power in doing this in our lives.

            In church life I find that men tend to be less inclined than women to let others see what’s inside. Intimacy is a scary thing. The popular definition (“into-me-see”) gets at what the challenge is. Yet for any of us – male or female – who allow others to “slice into us” and see the inside, the rewards and blessings are great. Above all, we have freedom to see ourselves as Christ has made us and God sees us.

            One of the real problems of holding back and covering up because of shame, guilt, or fear, is that these things reveal what our hearts believe God thinks about us. We believe God is ashamed of us, disappointed in us, or that He is always ready and on the verge of condemning us. We may also feel that He will leave us if He looks too closely at what’s really inside us, or may be really angry at us. When Adam and Eve sinned, what is the first thing they did? They covered up. But the second Adam – Jesus Christ – has come. Through the cross and by His grace God the Father sees us as perfect and righteous children. He rejoices over us and delights in us. This is why we delight in Christ and the Gospel. In Christ there is no hiding. All the stuff inside that I typically try to hide is the very stuff that the cross has dealt with. So, to be in Jesus means to be free from guilt, shame, fear, and condemnation. And it is also why I can be real with my brothers and sisters in Christ: because it is all under the cross. Glory to God! May the Lord peel back our coverings and open our hearts to one another, so that our joy in Christ may grow and His glory might shine all the more. AMEN!

James 5:16 (NIV)  Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.

Romans 8:1 (NIV)  Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,

Romans 8:15 (NIV)  For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, "Abba, Father."

Romans 8:38-39 (NIV) ³⁸  For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, ³⁹  neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

PRAYER:  Father, lead your children to be real with each other. Nothing is hidden from you. When people open up to me, take away any inclination in me to be critical or to judge. Instead may I remind them of the Gospel of grace – in Christ and through the cross we are forgiven and made whole. May you be glorified as I live by the Gospel instead of trusting in works. Jesus is my righteousness, and I glory in Him, in you, My Father, and in all you have done for me.  In Jesus’ name, AMEN.”

Jesus Christ is Lord!  

Scott