It's easy to give up when we ask for things that don't seem to be coming through. To ask and ask, only to be ignored or put off can be downright depressing. Especially if the thing we're asking for seems simple and straightforward, something easily given by the person we ask.
That must have been the temptation of the Canaanite woman (read Matthew 15:20-28) - She asked and asked for Jesus to heal her daughter. First she was ignored, then Jesus essentially told her to go away. She could have quit asking. She could have let herself slide into depression with the thought "this isn't meant to be - I give up."
Instead she keeps asking, and Jesus finally helps her daughter. We need to take a page from her book the next time unanswered prayers are trying to weigh us down. The Lord expects us to persevere in prayer!
Thoughts and observations about life in the kingdom of God. I hope to feed your hungry soul!
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Jesus Mean and Wild
Do you ever feel that God is out to get you? That if God loved you (or your loved one, or the community, or the world!), then bad things wouldn't happen to you? It's a tempting notion to embrace, one that gives us an excuse to not do things we know God expects us to do or try to do.
That idea is just plain wrong, and we can look at how God the Father treated his own beloved son Jesus for proof. I just started reading a book called "Jesus Mean and Wild, The Unexpected Love of an Untamable God " by Mark Galli. It's general premise is challenging the common "Jesus meek and mild" image. And the very first chapter (all I've read so far) looks at how God treats Jesus.
Read Mark 1:9-13, which is the story of Jesus' baptism and subsequent temptation in the wilderness. No sooner does God acknowledge Jesus as his beloved son, in whom he is well pleased, than he is sent out into the wilderness. Jesus spent 40 days alone, physically hungry and thirsty, away from God, with Satan's temptations as his only company. And this is the treatment of God's beloved son!
Who are we to think that we should be treated differently? As Christians, we have the same relationship standing with God as Jesus has, and we can boldly claim the position of beloved children. And so we shouldn't be surprised when, like Jesus, we find ourselves in times of suffering and trial. That's when we grow. That's how we are prepared for ministry. That's one of the many ways God's incredible love for us is expressed.
"God obviously doesn't care much about me in light of (insert bad circumstance here). He's letting down his end of the bargain to love and care for me. Therefore, I don't feel the need to (take your pick: love my neighbor, give generously, pray, worship, etc.) in return."
That idea is just plain wrong, and we can look at how God the Father treated his own beloved son Jesus for proof. I just started reading a book called "Jesus Mean and Wild, The Unexpected Love of an Untamable God " by Mark Galli. It's general premise is challenging the common "Jesus meek and mild" image. And the very first chapter (all I've read so far) looks at how God treats Jesus.
Read Mark 1:9-13, which is the story of Jesus' baptism and subsequent temptation in the wilderness. No sooner does God acknowledge Jesus as his beloved son, in whom he is well pleased, than he is sent out into the wilderness. Jesus spent 40 days alone, physically hungry and thirsty, away from God, with Satan's temptations as his only company. And this is the treatment of God's beloved son!
Who are we to think that we should be treated differently? As Christians, we have the same relationship standing with God as Jesus has, and we can boldly claim the position of beloved children. And so we shouldn't be surprised when, like Jesus, we find ourselves in times of suffering and trial. That's when we grow. That's how we are prepared for ministry. That's one of the many ways God's incredible love for us is expressed.
Saturday, August 2, 2008
What's the Buzz?
I started using Facebook last week. You know Facebook - the largest of many social networking sites you can use to keep up with your friends. I finally joined because I learned that one of my best friends was already there. So, I jumped on the bandwagon! I'm up to 15 firends now - more than I would have thought. It's pretty neat, and kinda fun.
But there's a hitch. Just like with email, there are many times that I go to check it out, and none of my friends has "done" anything. No status updates, no new pictures, no comments on the wall. And that's just dissappointing. But why? Because we are looking for relationship there, and relationship requires communication. You can post as much about yourself as you want, you can comment on your friends posts, but if no one responds, it means nothing. It's as if it never happened. And it's darn dissappointing.
That may be why so many people seem to be all about getting as many "friends" as possible. If you've got 300 Facebook friends, then surely when you look there to satisfy that (probably unrecognized) longing for relationship, at least one of them has said something to make you feel part of the group.
It feels like that with God sometimes, too. We take time to pray, read scripture, journal, and in essence, we're checking our God-mail, checking God's Facebook page, seeing if there has been any word, any response, any communication to let us know God's keeping up with us. Sometimes we do hear from God that way - sometimes in quite profound ways, sometimes quite frequently. But sometimes, it's the dissapponting feeling that nothing is new, no one has been on-line, we're alone on the web, God's not with us.
But that's never true. God is always with us. He always wants to be in relationship with us. He always wants to hear from us. But sometimes, I think he gets tired of the formal sort of relationship - the "I've got to stop what ever else I'm doing and sit in front of God" sort of relationship. He wants that, but He wants more, too.
He wants ALL of us. He wants us to turn our hearts to Him while we're cutting the grass or doing laundry or reading a novel or playing with the dog. He wants it all. And I think that sometimes, when we don't seem to be hearing from God through the formal channels, it's because He's showing Himself through the informal channels. We can't see Him because we're not looking and listening in the right place.
I sat in prayer with my Bible and journal, but I didn't hear from God there. Instead, I heard from him in the sweetness of a fresh juicy peach and an unexpected hug from my husband. How is God speaking to you today?
But there's a hitch. Just like with email, there are many times that I go to check it out, and none of my friends has "done" anything. No status updates, no new pictures, no comments on the wall. And that's just dissappointing. But why? Because we are looking for relationship there, and relationship requires communication. You can post as much about yourself as you want, you can comment on your friends posts, but if no one responds, it means nothing. It's as if it never happened. And it's darn dissappointing.
That may be why so many people seem to be all about getting as many "friends" as possible. If you've got 300 Facebook friends, then surely when you look there to satisfy that (probably unrecognized) longing for relationship, at least one of them has said something to make you feel part of the group.
It feels like that with God sometimes, too. We take time to pray, read scripture, journal, and in essence, we're checking our God-mail, checking God's Facebook page, seeing if there has been any word, any response, any communication to let us know God's keeping up with us. Sometimes we do hear from God that way - sometimes in quite profound ways, sometimes quite frequently. But sometimes, it's the dissapponting feeling that nothing is new, no one has been on-line, we're alone on the web, God's not with us.
But that's never true. God is always with us. He always wants to be in relationship with us. He always wants to hear from us. But sometimes, I think he gets tired of the formal sort of relationship - the "I've got to stop what ever else I'm doing and sit in front of God" sort of relationship. He wants that, but He wants more, too.
He wants ALL of us. He wants us to turn our hearts to Him while we're cutting the grass or doing laundry or reading a novel or playing with the dog. He wants it all. And I think that sometimes, when we don't seem to be hearing from God through the formal channels, it's because He's showing Himself through the informal channels. We can't see Him because we're not looking and listening in the right place.
I sat in prayer with my Bible and journal, but I didn't hear from God there. Instead, I heard from him in the sweetness of a fresh juicy peach and an unexpected hug from my husband. How is God speaking to you today?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)