He Comes to Me

The juxtaposition of my scripture reading this morning was amazing.  Mind blowing really. I was reading in Psalm 24 about the King of Glory, the LORD Almighty. The LORD Who is strong and mighty in battle. The One Who made and owns everything. I was meditating on the grander and majesty of God. His immenseness. Psalm 24 paints a picture of the LORD that is all powerful, magnificent, and exalted above all things.  That was my Psalm reading.

Then I turn to my gospel reading and I find myself in Matthew 21. Jesus is preparing to ride into Jerusalem where He knows the fate that awaits Him. Part of the reason why He was born. His death is eminent. A brutal death on a cross. Many Bibles call this passage the title The Triumphal Entry. It was kind of a bittersweet entry I would say.

And then it says, "See, your King comes to you…..gentle." I was stopped cold. He comes to me. This All Powerful God Almighty comes to me. I am being asked to "see." Do I see that God comes to me, ever so gently? He could have come soaring on the wings of the wind or He could have mounted a cherubim to come  (see Psalm 18:10). But no. He came humbly on the colt of a donkey. He came as one of us and made this grand entry that reflected His heart of humility.  It started with birth in a manger and continued throughout His life on earth. Humble. Lowly and meek. Our King. And He comes to us that way still.

All of it is so much to wrap my head around.  The utter humility of this God made man. The grace of His coming to us knowing we aren't wired to go to Him, with our pride , our fears, our self seeking ways.  He exhibited love every single day on earth as He interacted with every sort of person He crossed paths with. Not to mention the sacrifice He made for us on that cross.

And He crosses paths with us still. He comes to us, gently, humbly. Do I see? Do I notice Him in my life? Do I acknowledge His grace? Revel in His love? That is what I am being asked today. He wants me to see, to know, that He is with me.

My response? Utter gratitude. Awe. Thanksgiving.

Remembering

I woke up thankful this morning. Thankful because last night I went through some of my old journals and I found treasure there. I was reminded of the many things the Lord showed me in moments when I needed them. I have been dwelling in Psalm 145 recently.

The eyes of all look to you,

and you give them their food at the proper time.

You open Your hand and satisfy the desires 

of every living thing.

The Lord is righteous in all His ways

and loving toward all He has made.

Psalm 145:15-16

His grace towards me is involves timing. His timing. He knew how to encourage me back when I wrote in those journals. And He knew exactly when I would open those journal again to read. He knew I needed that exact encouragement again.  Right now. He knew I would look back and remember how He came alongside of me and walked me through all of the things that concerned me. He reminded me that His hand of love and guidance is  always with me. 

And so in remembering, I learn it deeper. What I learn from Him isn't measured in breadth. It is measured in depth. It just keeps going deeper and deeper into my soul. Slowly.....I learn to trust. To surrender. To rest.

There is a rhythm of His grace and faith in my life. I come to Him. He sends me out. I keep coming back because I don't have it down. I struggle and strain trying to get hold of the reality of Who He is in my life. The reality of His Presence which is always with me.

Thank You Lord for Your patience, Your grace and Your incredible words of encouragement. Thank you that You often remind Your people to remember. We are so quick to forget.  Thank You that you keep teaching us, undeterred by the wanderings of our restless souls. 

 Be strong and courageous! 

Do not be afraid or discouraged. 

For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.

Joshua 1:9b

Of Giving and Gifts

The Magi followed the star, found the Child, bowed down and worshipped. The Message, in Matt 2 says, "Overcome, they knelt down and worshipped Him."  Then they opened their treasure and presented the Child King with their gifts.

After their long journey in search of the newly born King, they worshipped. And they gave.  It was the overflow of their joy. Overcome, they gave their treasure away. 

We all have treasure. Everyone. It may be the kind we think of when we hear the word treasure, gold, precious stones, hard cash. But we have other gifts to give to our King. We have  talents, abilities and skills to great or lesser degrees. We have time and energy; we have our bodies, our hearts and our minds. What we have to offer is different for everyone. We are all uniquely and wonderfully made. (Psalm 139:14) 

So do we do we give out of duty? Or do we give because we are overcome with the joy of knowing Jesus. Does it overflow out of the delight of spending time with Him. Of being full to overflowing with the goodness of His Presence, His grace in our lives? God wants us to give, out of gratitude. 2 Corinthians 9:7 says God loves a cheerful giver,  not one who gives under compulsion.  We can't muster up cheerful giving apart from finding Him. This only leads to resentment. Only in finding our ever Present God, in knowing Him and His great love, can we give cheerfully to Him.

There are other issues, questions I need to ask myself.  Am I giving to Him or am I giving, trying to please others? Or am I holding back, keeping my treasure to myself? Or am I holding back thinking that what I have to offer isn't good enough? Do I compare myself to others?  Good hard questions.

I want to learn to give freely and not worry about if what I give is good enough. I want to  trust the outcome of my giving, like letting a bird go and watching it fly away, never knowing where it will land. I want to set it free for the joy of watching it fly. What I have is Yours Lord!

I do seek Your Presence, Lord. I want to be overcome with the joy of knowing You. I want to offer my treasure as overflow, given to You with unabashed love and joy. Thank you Lord, for being the King who Shepherds my soul. The One Who loves me, just as I am.

But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, 

are by no means the least among the rulers of Judah;

for out of you will come a Ruler 

who will be the Shepherd of my people Israel.

Matthew 2:6

Through Locked Doors

John 20:19. One of my favorite passages. He came to them. They were behind locked doors living in fear and anxiety. They were scared, confused.

Jesus came. 

He stood among them.

"Peace be with you!"

And then He showed them His wounds. It was Him! Joy!

It was all true. He had spoken to them in the upper room about this. He had promised. He reassured them that every thing would be alright.

John 14:18 "No. I will not abandon you as orphans; I will come to you."

John 14:28 "...I am going away and I am coming back to you."

John 16:16 "In a little while you will see Me no more, and then after a little while you will see Me."

John 16:20 "You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy."

John 16:33 "I have told you these things SO THAT in Me you may have peace."

Over and over again. He told them. He prepared them. To trust Him. To have peace. In Him. He knew they didn't understand. In John 16:16:18 the disciples said, "We don't get it." What an understatement. They kept asking all the wrong questions. Yet Jesus was so patient with them. He gave them explanations, promises, His words to remember. It would all become clear in time. They would remember what He said. And they would learn to trust. 

What was it that He promised? It was the promise of His Presence. To never to leave or abandon them. He came and stood among them.

They were still in the school of Christ. They had a steep learning curve. As I am. How much of what I learn from Him, I just don't get. How much more peace and joy would I live in if I just trust His words? All my questions are probably 99% the wrong questions. Thank you Lord for Your patience with me. Thank you that You come to me over and over again. Thank you that there are no doors that you won't penetrate in your pursuit of me. 

They were overjoyed when they saw it was Him. It was really Him. He had conquered death. The promise of joy was theirs.  Thank you Lord for your Presence. Help me to live in Your way. I thank you for your love and your grace. For joy. Unspeakable joy.

The Big Picture

 "If we let Him go on like this, everyone will believe in Him, 

and then the Romans will come and 

take away both our place and our nation."

 John 11:48

This was the religious folks talking here. The ones in charge of the things of God. They were so far off base they were plotting to kill the Son of God. I never could understand how they thought this would work as this was actually on the heals of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. It just shows how blinded we can become. It is the epitome of religion gone bad and the world reeks of it.

It is a reminder that I need to walk closely with the Lord, listen intently, and hold loosely to all things. It is all His. His place, His nation.  That is where they got it wrong. They thought it was theirs. They had themselves comfortably ensconced in their own little kingdoms. They worked hard to keep the status quo. All in the name of God. They lost sight of the big picture even when He was standing right in front of their eyes.

There is a big lesson here.  We need to remember Whose Kingdom we live in. Whose we are. That is actually, the wonderful part. As His, we can rest. There is no striving. We can trust we have a good Shepherd Who provides good pasture for us. He determines the pasture, and we certainly don't own it. We just know that the Shepherd has our best interest in mind. He is our provider. Always.

God help me to hold loosely. To be working and resting with You in all I do. With You and not for You. To know when to let go and when to hang on.  Give me wisdom Lord. Thank You for being my good Shepherd. Thank You for Your guidance, Your leading, Your great provision, and Your amazing love.

Searching for Jesus

John 6:22-24. A funny little passage of scripture this morning. A transition really.  Almost a throw away. Yet it spoke so much to me. Such is God's powerful Word. Not one word is without meaning and life. 

Jesus has gone off to be alone. The disciples are out in a boat. Those are the big stories, chocked full of miracles.  This is about the crowd that was left behind. And then they realized something.  That alone made me pause.  What do I need to realize? What are those seemingly insignificant moments I need to realize, to pay attention. Those moments filled with the Presence of God.  I am reminded of the quote by Elizabeth Barrett Browning:

Earth's crammed with heaven, 

And every common bush afire with God: 

But only he who sees takes off his shoes.

The earth indeed is crammed with heaven. That is why I am working on slowing down. To take notice. Take off my shoes and enjoy! To give thanks, as Jesus did when He was about to hand out the loaves to feed the 5,000 before they ate and were satisfied. 

I guess what struck me this morning is I need to realize what Jesus has done and what He is doing even right this second.  Am I present in the moment to see, to realize that He is at work, He is always at work, as He points out in John 5:7? Jesus said to them, "My Father is always at work to this very day, and I, too, am working." Our Lord, our Creator, the Lover of our soul in our midst, always at work. What an amazing reality! Do I realize it? Do I live like it? In the mundane moments? The stressful times? The times of questioning and of suffering? Do I look? Do I look hard enough? Do I slow down enough to see? Do I take time to give thanks?

The crowd went searching for Jesus. I look too.  I'm working on slowing down. Being present. Trying to be as helpful as He would have me be and not more. Obedient, living in His love. I fall short, struggle and strain. But Lord, You are so faithful, patient, forgiving and kind to me as I seek your Face.  

I praise you for Your loving-kindness. Demands clamor at me. Life is full of tricks and turns. Heartache. Distraction. Lord, You see. You see it all. You hear the cries of your people.

Have mercy Lord. Have mercy on us as we are lost without You. Thank you for hearing me. For being with me, always, to the end. Help me to remain in You, as You are never far from me.

He Is More Than Enough

"They were completely amazed for 

they had not understood about the loaves; 

their hearts were hardened."  

Mark 6:52 

That is the story of the loaves and the fishes. At least today it is, for me.  The story of my hard heart. Why do I forget about God's faithfulness? The ways He has rescued and redeemed my life? How He has answered prayer and spoken to my heart? How long until I trust the compassion, the provision, the personal direction He so graciously provides?  How long am I going to waste time and energy lingering in doubt, looking at problems and the things that lack (even within myself) instead of coming to Him and trusting that He has all things well in hand.  When I learn that, I will be walking in the joy and strength that resting in Him provides. The amazement will be about how it is all about Him and so not about me! With Him nothing is impossible. Jesus said this after He calmed the storm, after He fed the 5,000.  He is amazing.

When He fed the 5,000, He used His disciples. He walked them through the whole thing.  He had them asses what they had on hand and He asked them to bring the 5 loaves and 2 fish to Him.  After giving thanks, He gave them back and had them distribute it to the masses of people. It was a partnership, a work done together. It says that He directed them.  He wants to use us too. To direct us into the work He has in mind for us. The result? They all ate and were satisfied.  They didn't get just enough to curb their hunger until they got home, they were all satisfied.  Jesus doesn't do things half way does He?

So the lesson today (tho this passage has many) is I need to come to Him with what is going on. And let go of all of the issues that prevent me from moving forward, doubts, fears, insecurities, the things that distract, marginalize, even paralyze me. I can bring these things to Him, let them go. And then offer Him what I have and trust Him to use me in the ways that He sees fit. The key is coming to Him and allowing Him to direct me as best I can. I leave the outcomes, the results to Him.  Not easy but always good.

Lord, forgive me for dwelling in places of doubt, for not trusting you with my life, my time. Lead and guide me.  Use my life, messy as it seems.  Thank you for the joy and strength that comes from that.  Help me to walk the long obedience in the same direction, one step at a time.

Blessed are those whose strength is in You, 

who have set their hearts on pilgrimage.

They go from strength to strength, 

til each appears before God in Zion.

O, Lord Almighty,

blessed is the one who trusts in You.

Psalm 84:5, 7, 13

With Jesus

Mark 3:13 "Afterward Jesus went up on a mountain and called the ones He wanted to go with Him. And they came to Him. Then He selected twelve of them to be His regular companions, calling them apostles. He sent them out to preach, and He gave them authority to cast out demons." 

This is the way of Jesus. He calls us to be with Him, to be His regular companion. When we are with Him day in and day out we see how He does things, we see His heart toward us and toward others. This is the Way of discipleship. Being with Jesus. Everything else flows from there. 

He called a group of men. They formed community around Him. There was companionship, fellowship. They walked with Jesus together. They learned together. We see times of confusion, competition, all the human stuff. But Jesus used it all to teach them to live the way of faith, of love, of holiness. How to live His kingdom lifestyle. Community is important.

This is the practical way of Jesus. Ongoing and relational. Us with Him.  He calls us and we come to Him. Day by day. The invitation and the choice. The first disciples who got to live with Jesus in the flesh are gone now, but now He calls us. He calls me. Same call. "Come! Be with Me."

We so often get caught up in the project, the business and forget to spend that time with Him. We are so darn capable. But did we spend the time with Him? Are we joining Him in His work or are we just doing our thing? Did we just launch out on our own? We often get too busy to be with Jesus, not understanding the vital importance of being  Him with first. Its all His work. He lives outside of time and space. There is always enough time for Him, wherever we go. He wants us to come to Him. That is the first thing first. Everything else is secondary.

It is a beautiful plan, this plan of God's. His invitation stands. Lord, I pray I heed your call, and come....to You. First. Day by day. Minute by minute. Always.

The Dance

I get insecure.  Especially when I have to speak in groups.  And other times. Exodus 4:1. Moses. "What if they don't believe me or listen to me...."  God's answer? "What is that in your hand?"  That's it. That's all He asked. Moses was holding his staff so God told him,"throw it to the ground." That was Moses's part. That was all God asked of him.  Just take what he had in his hand and throw it down. God did the rest.  It is God who does the work, the exciting stuff, the live altering, the miraculous. We are merely asked to offer what we have and then trust Him to do the rest.  So simple. 

Okay, so what gets in the way? Me! I think I have to do it all. I think I need to have it all figured out. And really all I have to do is my little part, with what I have and what I know. Listen to Him and trust Him. He leads me and He will do what He wants, when He wants and how He wants. And He gets all the glory. I know when it isn't me, when I am following His lead! So I am learning. To do my part.

I am learning to dance. To dance with the Father. To let Him lead. To let go of the outcomes, let go of the struggle. To enjoy the steps, the music, the joy of being with Him. Held close. Is it easy? Not always. Sometimes the steps are complicated. But I am realizing that I just need to throw down what I have, as inadequate as it may seem, and He does the rest. I can trust Him to follow through in His way, in His timing. I lean into Him, keep my eyes on Him and He takes care of the rest. Learning the dance takes a lifetime. He is a patient teacher. The awesome thing? The dance is for eternity.

From this morning's reading, a beautiful tribute to our God Who hears and answers the cries of our hearts.

You answer us 

with awesome deeds of righteousness,

O God our Savior,

the hope

of all the ends of the earth

and of the farthest seas, 

who formed the mountains by your power,

having armed yourself with strength, 

who stilled the roaring of the seas,

the roaring of their waves, 

and the turmoil of the nations.

Those living far away fear your wonders;

where morning dawns and

evening fades

you call forth songs

of joy.

Psalm 65:5-8

His Love is a Fortress

Wow! I am so taken with Psalm 48 today. I think it has the secret of walking with God in it. The secret of the transformed life. 

Meditating on the love of God is the part I think is the key to everything. That is where our wholeness is to be found. Only in His love. When we soak in, dwell in, abide in, meditate on, revel in His Love, we gain a new perspective. We live from a different place. The Kingdom of God feels more and more like home and  the kingdom of self slithers away.  The kingdom of self is so small and so fraught with trouble, why do we ever think that our own way will get us anywhere good anyway? But that is a whole different subject. When He comes into our lives He gives us a change of address and a whole new identity.  

About this address, this psalm speaks of Zion, the City of God. The Bible is full of references to place, the City of God, Zion, the Kingdom of God. Jesus also spoke of abiding and dwelling in Him and when He left, told of going to prepare a place for us, in His Father's house.  Place is what we can relate to.  Place is where we do life. We are invited to this place of God's love and everything this magnificent love manifests. 

So this Zion (the city of God) in Psalm 48. We are told to walk about her, consider well her ramparts, view her citadels. We are to be there and inspect thoroughly everything about her. The nooks and crannies of discovery are endless!  God's Word continues forever in its revelation, its blessing. This is all a beautiful metaphor of what it is like to spend time in God's Word, and in prayer. This is how we learn from Him, how our lives are to be guided by His governance, His Kingdom rule, which is just and right.  This is a psalm of protection and safety. And all by the power of His love. 

This may seem esoteric but in the practical aspect of it, we are called to spend time with God. That is it.  He is with us always so it isn't that hard. With Him is where we discover the endless depths, heights, width and length of His love for us, which never fails.  Life can get really hard, but understanding this, changes everything.

                Psalm 48:9-14

Within your temple, O God,

    we meditate on your unfailing love.

 

Like your name, O God,

    your praise reaches to the ends of the earth;

    your right hand is filled with righteousness.

 

Mount Zion rejoices,

    the villages of Judah are glad

    because of your judgments.

Walk about Zion, go around her,

    count her towers,

 

consider well her ramparts,

    view her citadels,

that you may tell of them

    to the next generation.

For this God is our God for ever and ever;

    He will be our guide even to the end.

Because I live....

“I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. 

Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, 

but you will see Me. 

Because I live, 

you also will live."

John 14:18-19  

This passage of scripture is so incredibly rich.  I could write about many parts of it, for a long time! But for now, the part that really resonates with me is, "because I live..." I am so taken with all that can be added to that, all that is possible, all to be thankful for. I am in awe of, "because He lives."  Oh how we need Him, His Presence, His love, His guidance, His forgiveness, His mercy and grace, His peace (that passes all understanding), His provision, His Spirit. We need Him for every breath we take, every step we make. And the amazing news is He lives!  Our resurrected Savior, died, yet He lives!

And He comes to us. Left to ourselves, we don't have a hope. He had to be the One to initiate this divine relationship, this holy relationship of life and love. Our Creator, us the created. He is Master, King and Lord. We are His servants, followers and children. Yet He calls us friend. Because He lives...

We have hope, sure and secure, like an anchor, because He lives.  We are not alone, because He lives.  We have purpose because He lives. We are understood, can grow and mature, flourish even, because He lives. We are loved beyond what we can imagine, because He lives. Jesus is alive!

Every day, Lord help me to recognize the great and precious gift your eternal Life is to me.  Help me to also know that you laid down that life, for me, that I might live, with You, forever.  Help me learn to live like you did, with a heart for giving and serving and for dying to my own selfish ways.  I fall so short. Help me Lord.

And thank You Lord that you came, and you come, and you bid me to come....to You.  Your Presence, Your love is everything.

The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. 

My purpose is 

to give them a rich and satisfying life.

John 10:10

Amazing. Thankful.

Following the Light

When Jesus spoke again to the people, He said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."

John 8:12 

My problem is I think He is like a flashlight, pointing out there, showing me where to go.  But that isn't it. He is more like a candle, flickering in the darkness.  I need to just keep looking at Him, moving where He goes, keeping in step with Him.  That is following. Being as close to Him as I can.  The closer I am, the more light I am in. He will take me with Him, where and when. But also, sometimes, we stop and rest, wait, together.  My task is to follow Him, not launch out from where He is.  It is a sight distinction but one that makes all the difference in the world.

We so want to know what is out there, what we are to do.  We want to get out and fix things, solve problems.  We are do-ers. But the key is to trust Him. We need to be be-ers! All we need to worry about is following that light that lights up the darkness.  He is there, His light available to everyone.  This has to do with the moment. He is in every moment, Present. And He is enough.  He will worry about when, how and where.  I only need to concern myself with Who and my following of Him. Jesus Christ, the light of the world.  He said by following Him, we will never walk in darkness.  That is quite a promise. Why do I stray from the simplicity of this?

Oh Lord, help me to stay close and not wander away, for when I do the light dims.  I need your light. I need you.  I can be no help to anyone when I am shrouded in darkness. Thank you Lord, for being the light, for coming and bidding me to follow You! Thank you for lighting the way.  Thank you, that you are the Way!

My heart says of You,

"Seek His Face!"

Your Face, O Lord, I will seek.

Psalm 27:7

The Bread that Gives Life

John 6:26 Jesus answered, "Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill.  

The crowds were literally chasing Jesus all over the place, bringing their dire needs to Him.  As we do. They had seen the miraculous. Miracles are hard to dismiss. We need them so badly! This is a hard world. We hurt. We struggle. We strive and strain.  How can we not want someone to make it all go away?  Yet He chastises the disciples for missing it.  Even when they saw it up close, they missed it. Didn't they see that everyone, 5,000 on a hillside, had had their fill? Satisfied. What we really seek is not the miracles but the One who satisfies our  hungry, needy heart.  That is the message He revealed, and is revealing, to the world. Emmanuel. God with us. It is our heart hunger, our aloneness, that plagues us most.  The other things of this broken and beaten up world?  He will take care of that too, but in the meantime, He is with us. He breaths life into our weary souls.

Throughout the Bible, God declares His Presence as the answer to our problems. We just want more.  I think it is normal for us to want it all to go away, but how profound is it, really, when we realize that the God of the universe and beyond, is with us.  Personally.  Never to leave or forsake us.

Jesus continued to teach the disciples...you don't get it guys? It is Me Who satisfies. Seek Me.  They eventually got it and it made different people out of them. They surrendered their lives to Him and together with Him, they changed the world.

Sometimes I get it; He continues to be patient with me. He teaches me. Thank you Lord for Your patience and Your Presence. As I seek You, You make all the difference.

Yet He Still Calls Us

I was thinking of Jesus today, waking along the shore of the Sea of Galilee. I thought of the Author of Creation, feeling the sunshine on His shoulders, the Maker of heaven and earth, enjoying the beauty of a clear blue sky day and the sparkle of the sea. Strolling along He noticed four of His soon to be closest friends, His followers, His disciples.  Mark 1:16-20 says that He saw them tending their fishing nets and He called them to. He called to them and invited them to follow Him. And so they did.  Something deep within their hearts recognized the call of the Father. Their decision to follow Jesus was life changing. It was a learning process for them personally as He transformed them into amazing men of God. And as they were changed from fishermen to fishers of men, they helped change the world.

For some reason I thought of another time God walked about on the earth, in an exquisite garden in the cool of the day. It was in the beginning when there was just one man and one woman.  They lived in the beautiful garden that God, Himself, walked about in. One day God called to the man and the woman but the man and the woman were hiding, for they knew shame. But God called them still. He knew their condition. And as it was then it is now and He calls us yet. He sees us.  His nature is love and in that love He has a desire to be with us.  Our most primary desire is always for Him, to be with Him.

We know the story of the fall... but what I love is, here is Jesus, all this time later, and He is still calling to His people. His disciples then and to us now. God reaching out to us. Ever reaching out. He is still invested in His creation. He invested the life of His One and only Son. 

He saw these disciples and He sees me.  He calls me to be with Him.  God became a man and walked among us. Jesus on the shore enjoying the sunshine, the beauty of the sea and the people He came to save. There is still beauty all around. And His love beckons. Enjoy Him. Respond to Him. Follow Him.