Monthly Archives: March 2017

Peace of Repentance

Posted on March 29, 2017 | Leave a comment

John 16:31 “Do you now believe?” Jesus replied. 32 “A time is coming and in fact has come when you will be scattered, each to your own home. You will leave me all alone. Yet I am not alone, for my Father is with me. 33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

Quote from My Utmost For His Highest by Oswald Chambers
“Jesus was not rebuking the disciples in this passage. Their faith was real, but it was disordered and unfocused, and was not at work in the important realities of life.”

The idea of real faith being slightly unfocused isn’t really a surprise but Chambers comment made me look at the words of this Scripture more carefully. I can put myself there with those disciple’s hearing Jesus, the one I’ve pledged to faithfully follow, speaking these words to me; ‘You will leave me all alone.” Ever done that?

Of course you have! It hurts to remember failing him doesn’t it?
Remembering that reality is one way Jesus leads you to confession and repentance. Jesus knows…”In this world you will have trouble.” Jesus says remember and repent… “But take heart! I have overcome the world.” “I have told you these things, so that…IN ME…you may have peace.” That’s faith that works in the important realities of life. That’s the secret of the peace of repentance.

Repent: view or think of (an action or omission) with deep regret or remorse.

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Posted in John, Lent, Wednesday

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Expanded Thinking

Posted on March 26, 2017 | Leave a comment

Mark 9:7 Then a cloud appeared and covered them, and a voice came from the cloud: “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!”
8 Suddenly, when they looked around, they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus. As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus gave them orders not to tell anyone what they had seen until the Son of Man had risen from the dead. 10 They kept the matter to themselves, discussing what “rising from the dead” meant.

Peter, James and John were confused. They’d just seen the inexplicably mysterious power of the unseen God. They also knew firsthand Jesus had the power to heal and to restore life where there was none but a dead man can’t bring himself back to life, can he? So what could “rising from the dead” mean?

The unseen, all powerful, all knowing, ever present God had inserted himself into their thinking when he spoke “from the cloud.” Jesus had changed their daily lives and now he’s given them “orders” to wait before they tell anyone what they’ve seen…the caution to wait…because there’s more to come.

It seems like their thinking process is being expanded to include the mystery of the unseen Father, the reality of Jesus who’s the bedrock of that faith and the promise that comes after “the Son of Man [has] risen from the dead;” the Holy Spirit.  Maybe that’s exactly what our focus of Lent is to be; to expand our thinking and help us acknowledge the fullness of God even when life is mysterious and confusing.

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Posted in Lent, Mark, Sunday

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Focus

Posted on March 22, 2017 | Leave a comment

Mark 9:4 And there appeared before them Elijah and Moses, who were talking with Jesus. 5 Peter said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” 6 (He did not know what to say, they were so frightened.). 7 Then a cloud appeared and covered them, and a voice came from the cloud: “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!” 8 Suddenly, when they looked around, they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus.

Peter, my dear friend,
I understand exactly why you wanted to build shelters for Elijah and Moses. It was certainly for commemoration AND it was a very human response to deal with the fear and stress of something so beyond your control…the need to do something!!! It reminds me of how alike we are.

I know “doing” IS a good stress reliever and it certainly is a way to feel some sense of control. My friend, I’m writing to thank you for sharing the words you heard first-hand: “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!” That’s what I need to focus on, not “doing” or control. Looking forward to meeting again soon.

Love, Shirle

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Posted in Lent, Mark, Wednesday

Handmade Gift

Posted on March 19, 2017 | Leave a comment

Sequel: John 17:9 I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours. 10 All I have is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them. 11 I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one.

I wrote about John 17:9 on July 27, 2015. “We can appreciate all the things our heart leads us to do for Christ but this is the most important thing we’ll ever have to offer back to him…to simply Be The Gift!” The fact that we are a gift God has given to Jesus is especially important to remember when your heart has recognized the need for the protection of repentance.

Have you ever received a handmade gift from a child? They’re not usually made with the highest quality materials and the craftsmanship is pretty simple. Those little pieces of torn paper, glue and maybe a smudged handprint with their name written on it get preserved and cherished because they’re the gift of themselves from that moment in time. I suspect that’s how God sees our repentance too.

Repentance is often a reflection of our own childishness; a little less than perfect but it’s all we have to give right then. It probably looks just like what it is, the amateurish efforts of a child still growing and learning. If you want to give the Father who has raised you something special during this Lenten season…give him a handmade gift from your own repentant heart. It will be protected and cherished for all time…and you’ll grow a little bit too.

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Posted in John, Lent, Sunday

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Choice

Posted on March 15, 2017 | Leave a comment

Psalms 91:2 I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” 3 Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. 4 He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.

I chose the theme of repentance as my focus for Lent. It’s a good topic, right? What I didn’t comprehend was just how serious God was about “his” choice to make “my” choice very personal this year. I could rightly describe some of my many years as a believer as “forgettably faithful” but not this one.

It’s so much easier to talk about repentance than to be confronted with the need for it. It’s exhausting and frankly painful.  The “fowler’s snare” is the choice to accept this lie…’You blew it. You had the chance to get it right and you failed yourself and the Lord.’  That’s guilt…and that’s not how God chooses to change us.

OR…you can make this different choice; to be thankful that though your faith has taken a big blow in the light of reality, God has loved you enough to remind you of your need for him.  “He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; [HIS] faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.”  That’s where repentance happens.

 

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Weigh-In

Posted on March 12, 2017 | Leave a comment

Matt 3:8 Produce fruit in keeping with repentance.

If you’ve had any experience with dieting you actually understand the challenges, and the need, for repentance better than most. Faith is like a diet; it requires consistent and persistent stepping on the scale and weighing in.

Repentance without Jesus may be possible, but like most diets it’s often only a temporary change that hopes for a permanent effect. The challenging part of any diet, even a diet of faith, is there are times we need to tweak our behavior. It’s an ongoing kind of repentance.

It’s very likely you’ve experienced the reality of repentance that’s permanent…your salvation.  Jesus, in his grace, dealt with what we could clearly see had to go in that repentance but even then he knew there were things we kept hidden from ourselves that must be fixed.

These days leading up to Easter are not some “churchy” ritual to observe; they’re meant to be very personal. This is the time to weigh in. As hard as it is, we’ve got to step on the scale God has provided through his Spirit, examine our present reality, accept what is revealed…and…respond. That’s how we “produce fruit in keeping with repentance.”

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Posted in Lent, Matthew, Repentance, Sunday

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Heart-Change

Posted on March 8, 2017 | Leave a comment

Luke 17:3 So watch yourselves. “If your brother or sister sins against you, rebuke them; and if they repent, forgive them. 4 Even if they sin against you seven times in a day and seven times come back to you saying ‘I repent,’ you must forgive them.”

I thought I clearly understood the relationship between repentance and forgiveness. I repented, God forgave. That’s the model to follow, right? “They” repent, “I” forgive. Hmmm…I’m having to think a little deeper about that because seven times in a day seems like too much to ask.

Could it be that there’s critical heart-change element tied to forgiveness just as there is for repentance? If my words speak forgiveness while my heart does not, isn’t that just a “prettified” form of judgment? In that case, who is more in need of forgiveness…them or me? Does that mean the reality of forgiveness is yet another part of my own repentance?

Why did that verse have to begin with “So watch yourselves?” I’m sorry Lord, that I even have to ask these questions. I thought I understood. Forgive me.

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Posted in Lent, Luke, Wednesday

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Where There’s Smoke…

Posted on March 5, 2017 | Leave a comment

Romans 2:4 Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?

It seems harder to deal with repenting after you’ve walked with Jesus for a while. The “big” stuff was so obvious there was no hesitation about what needed to go. That was good, but this is the season to take another look. There’s a hidden closet where the evil one has stashed some of my less obvious sins. That makes them really easy to forget about. They’re smoldering, fiery darts that will be used as weapons of contempt for God’s “kindness, forbearance and patience” and to discredit the reality of his work in me.  I caught a whiff of smoke and realized where there’s smoke…there’s fire.  it’s time to put out these fires.

• The well-meaning prayer request with “too many details” about someone else’s crisis can become a weapon that impacts other people’s response to them.  I need to remember God already knows every detail!

• The wrong tone of voice, even when used with “just the right” words, is a devilish eraser capable of wiping out the validity of God’s work in my life to the ears that hear them.

• Using the Word of God as a weapon to verbally discipline someone or manipulate their behavior is a serious violation of my trust in God’s sovereignty, and it’s unkind.   The power of the Word lies  in “realizing that God’s kindness is [what’s] intended to lead you [both] to repentance.”

The closet has been aired out.  I’m waiting for the smoke to clear. Amen [So be it!]

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Posted in Luke, Romans, Sunday

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Choose to Repent

Posted on March 1, 2017 | Leave a comment

Luke 5:31 Jesus answered them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 32 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”

Today is Ash Wednesday; the beginning of the observance many of the faithful call Lent. This is the period leading up to Easter and the resurrection of Jesus. Your church may not “officially” observe Lent but why not think of it as your own forty-days visit with Jesus in whom you have placed your life and your eternity?

We can make these days a personal, purposeful opportunity to examine our own spiritual health. That’s how we honor the Savior’s sacrifice. We can choose to repent of believing we are “good enough” because of the work he has already done in us AND we can choose to celebrate we are still under the “doctor’s” care  with the promise of complete healing.

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Posted in Lent, Luke, Wednesday

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