Trust The Science?

Science is by its nature exploratory, always refining, always discovering, always evolving. It is never settled.  So when you are asked to "trust the science", you are really being asked to "trust the (current state of) science", which is partial at best, and often fallible.  You can't reliably trust science any more than you can reliably trust data, since the data can be partial, incomplete, corrupt, with any analysis flowing from it to be equally as flawed.  Trust should be reserved for that which is complete, reliable, unchanging and morally sound, not for something amoral, speculative and still in development. 

Opposition

If you are going to face opposition and persecution, be sure that it's because you are walking with Jesus, not because you're just an idiot.

Gratitude Sustains Optimism

"Gratitude makes optimism sustainable.

"And if you don't think you have anything to be grateful for, keep looking. Because you don't just receive optimism.  You can't wait for things to be great and then be grateful for that.  You've got to behave in a way that promotes that."

----- Michael J. Fox

Spiritual Communication

Human beings are equipped with the ability to know and understand God (Jer. 9:24) and communicate with Him.  But just as language takes children years of effort to learn in order to communicate well with other human beings, so does spiritual communication take time and effort to learn to communicate well with God.  

In many ways, God is already speaking to us  - we simply need to work at understanding what He is saying and then respond to God in kind. See the example of both John the Baptist and Jesus (Luke 1:80, 2:40).

SHAPE

S - Spiritual Gifting

H - Heart Attitude

A - Abilities

P - Personality

E - Experiences

I am... She is...

I am introverted, she is extraverted.

I am things, she is people.

I am intuitive, she is data-driven.

I am big picture, she is detail.

I am spending, she is saving.

I am concept, she is process.

I am approximate, she is precise.

I am why, she is what.

I am ideas, she is execution.

I am theology, she is praxis.

That's a pretty good pairing.  :)

 

Remember Who It's For

"The work of Jesus in you and for you and through you is for the sake of those around you. The Christian life is the outliving of a God who is indwelling, the living out of a God who is dwelling in."

Dave Clayton, Ethos Church, Nashville, podcast on Colossians 3, A New Community.

"The byproduct of devotional spirituality should always be an increased capacity to love and serve others." 

Kenneth Boa, "Sacred Readings: A Journal". 

Servants Are Always On Call

If I am a servant of the Most High God, He who never sleeps or slumbers, then there is no "off switch" for my service.  I never punch out for the day, I am always on call, always a servant of God, even when I'm asleep.

Daily I should "appear before God" and ask Him to command me, waiting upon His direction. Waiting on Him, waiting for Him, is also essential service to Him.  I know my regular duties, but He may adjust them for today's demands.  Present yourself, and wait patiently, knowing that this, too, is service to the Master.

They also serve who only stand and wait. ----- John Milton

The Living God

If God is indeed living and active, then my relationship with Him must necessarily be dynamic, not static.  If God is static, like a set of rules, principles or ideas, then I manage our relationship and determine where it goes and how deep, like reading the works of Aristotle or Lewis.  But if He is the Living God, then He manages our relationship and takes the initiative in it.  I simply follow His lead and respond to Him. 

Psalm 123:2 

Morning Prayer

As I rise to meet this day

I pray that You will guide my way

Illuminate my every step

And walk with me to be my Help

Blessed are You, O Lord my God, King of the universe, who has created all things visible and invisible, the world and everything in it.  You have filled all creation with life, and have given another day of life to me.  Help me to live it in such a way that pleases You, that I may represent You well to the world around me.  Amen.

Retirement Limerick

 From the invitation to our retirement party, Labor Day 2021:

Look! Our stars have moved into alignment

And we marvel at where all the time went

So come loved ones and neighbors,

Help us rest from our labors,

And ease into that thing called retirement!

Prolepsis

This is a fancy term used mostly in theological circles which denotes a present experience of a future reality.  Examples can be when Jesus was transfigured on the mount in front of Peter, James and John.  The disciples were experiencing a prolepsis.  We also can have a prolepsis of heaven when we are lifted up in the Spirit and filled with the unfiltered joy that our relationship with Jesus can bring - a taste of heaven in the here and now!

Thriving in Crazy Times

Notes from a sermon in April 2021 (mid-pandemic):

Thriving in crazy times requires a Resilient Faith. 

How to do that?

>  Grow stronger in the Word (hear, read, study, memorize, meditate)
>  Gain confidence in God's Providence (His governance of the world)
>  Find encouragement in the hard times (through encouraging people)
>  Develop wisdom in community (listen to those believers who care for you)
>  Experience renewal through God's church (participate in the communal life of faith)

Q. Is there any aspect of your life where you have grown, even thrived, during this pandemic?  Share examples.

A. Deeper in prayer; improved devotional life; experiencing God's protection by memorizing and praying Psalm 91; togetherness in marriage; financial readiness for retirement.

Circumstances

...may turn out differently from what I planned, may be something other than what I prepared for. If God filters my circumstances and directs my steps, then He is never surprised by where I find myself. He is fully prepared for what I am facing, even if I am not. Trust in His preparedness and not in my own.

What is it that you want?

I want to be holy as You are Holy.  

I want to talk with You as a man talks with his friend.  

I want to come to You full of trust as a child comes to his Father, as a boy seeks out his elder Brother. 

I want to see You as You are, in all Your splendor, beauty and power.  

I want to know fully Your character, to be able to grasp the vastness of Your resources on my behalf and experience Your endless faithful love for me.  

I want my relationship with You to be robust and deep and active and strong and intimate.  

I want You above all else, Lord.

Who's Driving?

Like a 3-year-old sitting in Daddy's lap with my little hands on the steering wheel, it may seem to me like I'm driving the tractor, but God has His great big hands firmly on the wheel as well. God may be letting me steer a little bit, but He is firmly determining exactly where we are going.

Retirement Principles

• Daily practicing a God-led life
• You no longer have an earthly master to serve, but you do have a Heavenly one
• Time you used to spend on a paycheck is now available to help others
• Jesus' work in you is for the benefit of those around you
• Get and stay healthy
• Share what you've learned

A Haiku on Autonomy

 Autonomy is

An illusion of power.

I serve The Most High.

Worship - It's For US!

God does not need our worship.  He desires it, however, because it's a vehicle through which He can bless us.  When we come to Him with grateful praise He lifts our hearts to Himself, and warms us with His lovingkindness. We come away refreshed and secure in His love, like a child who has been hugged and held on Mama's lap.  Worship of God benefits us more than it does Him.  

"A grateful heart doeth good, like a medicine." Prov. 17:22

Washing

Not everything gets washed clean in water:

• Dirty paintbrushes get clean with turpentine
• Oily tools get clean when soaked in kerosene
• Greasy pans get clean when soaked in Dawn
• Sinful hearts get clean in the blood of the Lamb of God