Stupid sins and grimy messes

There’s more: God’s Word warns us of danger and directs us to hidden treasure. Otherwise how will we find our way? Or know when we play the fool? Clean the slate, God, so we can start the day fresh! Keep me from stupid sins, from thinking I can take over your work; Then I can start this day sun-washed, scrubbed clean of the grime of sin. These are the words in my mouth; these are what I chew on and pray. Accept them when I place them on the morning altar, O God, my Altar-Rock, God, Priest-of-My-Altar. (Psalm 19:11-14)

If you have ever found hidden treasure, you know exactly how it feels! Why? What was once hidden was no longer - that which is exposed becomes a thing of interest to more than just you! I wonder how many times God cleverly places something of great worth just beneath the surface in our lives, begging for exposure and promising great delight when it is finally out in the open? Maybe more than we think! Exposure brings into view what once was hidden. Anything which remains in hiding is something which will not be affected by the advances of love. For love to affect us, there is much which must come out of hiding in our lives - so we can experience his tender touch and his healing embrace. A surgeon carefully dissects "surface" tissue, not because he wants to cause pain, but because what is exposed in the process is finally at the disposal of his healing touch. The same is true with Christ - he never asks for anything hidden to come to the surface if he doesn't also stand ready to take what is exposed and touch it in his healing love.

When we uncover who we really are under the surface, there may be some "rough" areas which will require the skilled hand of a craftsman to smooth out. As I have said on many occasions - our part is to be who we are "in reality" - God's part is to do the work of smoothing out those rough areas. God died for the "real us", not the made up or cleverly masked us. He died for us as we really are - so we could become what he really is! In warfare, a soldier digs in, wears camouflage, and erects "blinds" to hide within so the enemy will not be able to see his location. In abandoning this "cover", he is really putting everything on the line. God never asks for us to put something on the line unless what he has planned for us is much greater than what we could ever experience without that abandoning of our place of safety. When we abandon a place of safety, it opens us to his inspection. This may be the most uncomfortable part of the whole abandonment process. Nothing makes us feel more vulnerable than being seen as we really are. To be seen in this manner is to be "under scrutiny" by some - but when the exposure is to his grace-filled eyes, there is no "scrutiny", only grace.

It opens us to his acceptance. Not acceptance of what is on the surface, but acceptance of what needs his divine touch on the inside. Like the skilled hand of the surgeon, he is thrilled to not only help us identify what needs his touch, but to put to use his skill to transform that area. He accepted us just as we are, but he also promises us so much more than we ever could be alone. It is a double blessing indeed. Abandonment opens us to his touch. No touch is so gentle, and also so thorough. We need to get the idea of what it is like to be touched by Jesus - gentle, yet thorough; skilled, yet care-filled; cutting, yet totally healing. As we are touched, we begin to be open to his voice. If you have ever not been paying close attention to someone else around you, you know the power of a gentle nudge to get your attention once again. That little nudge refocuses you, but guess what it speaks to the one who had to nudge you? You weren't listening! When we are open to his nudges - we get to a place where we listen to what we need to hear the most.

Be open to his revelation. Part of hearing his voice is heeding its direction. Abandoning our position of self-made security often brings us into a greater place of seeing our enemy for what he really is - it exposes the truth about what has been hidden. Maybe this seems a little frightening to some, but when we can truthfully see what we are dealing with, that is half the battle! God teaches us to be open, to be passionate, and to be available to him. To be desirous of the intimacy of his presence and the liberty of his touch is the starting point for freedom in our lives. Bring the stupid sins and grimy messes to him - they aren't beyond his grace. Then just begin to abandon yourself in his presence. His grace will meet you there.  Just sayin!

Abandonment Issues

Simply put, if you’re not willing to take what is dearest to you, whether plans or people, and kiss it good-bye, you can’t be my disciple. (Luke 14:33)

A disciple is a fancy term for a pupil - one who is in a place of learning. We can all admit we are disciples - in some place of learning as we go through this life. Jesus' main purpose was to help the disciples to learn what it meant to have the Kingdom of God in their midst - the presence of God dwelling among them. Isn't this the purpose of all our tests and trials - to get us to the place we understand we have the presence of God within us at all times? A disciple doesn't concern themselves with the "what can I do" mentality in life. Instead, they make the shift from the "what can I do" to the "what will Jesus do in and through me" if I yield to him right now. 

What a disciple does well is to bring God into the picture. The disciples who traveled with Christ day after day had a purpose - they went ahead to get a place ready, to find the meals, and to prepare a meeting spot. They were preparing the way for God to be "brought into the picture" for those out ahead of them. Maybe we have a real fear of the adventure. All of life is an adventure, but not all in life are adventurers! Adventurers are willing to get out of their comfort zone and enter a new realm. An adventurer is always looking for the possibilities. They don't limit themselves by the impossible but are always looking for a way around, through, or over the impossible. I think God honors that kind of heart in each of his disciples - willing to move beyond the impossible into the realm of possibility.

Disciples don't always have an explanation for what it is they learn at the feet of the Teacher. There are some things of God's grace, wisdom, and majesty we can reflect, but will never fully understand. Sometimes this is all God asks of his disciples - the willingness to reflect him, even when we don't understand all we are reflecting. It is the things we sometimes don't understand which have the greatest impact in the lives of those touched by them. God is busy behind the scenes creating things greater than we will ever be able to take credit for - simply because he is using us to bring him into the picture of those within our circle.

A disciple allows a shift of priorities to occur so what once consumed so much focus begins to be abandoned - laid aside - for the magnificence of what Christ does when he is brought into our present. Abandonment is kind of a scary concept. It means the leaving of something we often consider to be quite secure and comfortable in order to embrace something with seemingly less comfort, and therefore, the perception of it also being less secure. All the Teacher asks of the disciple is to be willing to abandon themselves - knowing the control is best left in his hands. Sure, the disciple is asked to participate in the revelation of the Teacher. We do this best when we reflect his actions - things like grace, purpose, and love. What we have the power of bringing into the midst of any situation is the connection of the pupil with the Teacher - to open the way for God to come on the scene. Maybe if we'd abandon ourselves to this purpose today, we'd see what God will reveal when we do! Just sayin!