For THINE is the kingdom

You who love the Lord, hate evil! He protects the lives of his godly people and rescues them from the power of the wicked. (Psalm 97:10)

With so many changes coming at rapid-fire succession around the world, we might want to crawl in a hole and just hide out until the dust settles, but that isn't God's plan. His plan is to protect the lives of his godly people - allowing them to be at peace in unsettling times. We may not realize just how much God wants his people to be 'at peace'. It begins with being at peace with him, one another, then the issues we face as humans on this earth. When that peace gets disturbed, we begin to allow all manner of doubts, untruth, and troubling thoughts to consume our minds, influence our emotions, and bring illness into our lives. Rather than fearing evil, we must learn to hate it without embracing its influence!

The power of the wicked is limited. We all need to hear that one and remember it whenever we are inundated on every side by the influences of evil around us. We cannot allow evil an inroad into our minds, for once we do that, we are certain to ride the emotional rollercoaster evil has prepared for us! While evil may seem to abound, God's goodness and protection is mightier than any influence of that evil. He protects us FROM evil. Remember the Lord's Prayer: Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom and the power, and the glory, forever and ever.

When we pray this prayer, we are asking God to put a hedge of protection around our lives, a foundation of protection under our feet, and a covering of protection over our heads. We are trusting HIM to deliver us from all manner of evil. Why? For HIS is the kingdom and the power, and the glory! Nothing on this earth can overtake us when we seek God's best for our lives above all else. Make him truthfully the first, the last, and the only in your life and evil has no way into your life! Just sayin!

HIS peace stands guard

Don’t worry about anything, but pray and ask God for everything you need, always giving thanks for what you have. And because you belong to Christ Jesus, God’s peace will stand guard over all your thoughts and feelings. His peace can do this far better than our human minds. (Philippians 4:6-7)

If you struggle with what to say when you stop long enough to talk with God about things you are experiencing anxiety about, you are probably among a huge group of others who experience similar anxious thoughts. Anxiety has become one of the biggest issues today simply because of all the uncertainty in the world around us. Supply chain issues, rising interest rates, difficulty finding jobs that pay enough to make ends meet, unrest over one's beliefs, and the list goes on. For some, these things can become overwhelmingly difficult to deal with. The desire is to have God take it all away, but the reality is that God primarily helps us walk through those difficulties rather than removing them completely.

The most important part of this passage is something we all need to hear: "HIS peace can..." It stands guard over our thoughts. It keeps our emotions in check. In other words, HIS peace brings the checks and balances into our lives that keep us on an even keel. God's peace can do this BETTER than anything our human minds can accomplish with all that worrying and fretting. Some of us are habitual worriers - we aren't even sure what causes all the worrying, or that we are even engaging in worry, but those anxious thoughts just creep to the surface so easily. When there is so much worry, there is little room for peace. That's why God tells us to cast those cares upon him. Bring them to the surface, being direct in admitting they are there, even when we don't actually know the cause of those worries. Then he does the rest!

The thing we might miss in this passage - it is HIS peace that stands guard over our minds and our hearts. Both are affected so deeply by anxiety. Emotions ride high one day, low the next, all jumbled up at times that we cannot even explain what we are feeling or where those thoughts are coming from. Our minds ruminate on things that we should never have entertained in the first place. At other times, there is genuine concern for a situation, but we don't bring it to God, choosing to just rehearse it over and over again in our minds until our emotions are in a jumbled mess. The thing we need to ask God is to place a guard over our hearts and minds. When we are tempted to 'own the worry', we need to stop, remind ourselves that God has placed that guard there because he can bring peace far better than any human reasoning can ever provide. Just sayin!

Has God gone silent?

My God, my God, why have you abandoned me? Why are you so far away when I groan for help? Every day I call to you, my God, but you do not answer. Every night I lift my voice, but I find no relief. (Psalm 22:1-2)

I think we have all been in that place at one time or another where we find ourselves actually thinking God has somehow abandoned us. The circumstances suggest the worst is about to happen, we begin to whirl out of control emotionally, our thoughts are running rampant from one perception to the next, and we somehow feel like we are in it all alone. When we don't IMMEDIATELY see the answer to the circumstances, we might just begin to doubt God will lend any help, all our calls for help seemingly falling on deaf ears. Are we wrong to express our doubts or 'struggle of faith' in those moments? Absolutely not! God doesn't 'ding us' for our moments of doubt - he uses them to strengthen or deepen our faith.

It is never wrong to seek to understand why such difficulties have emerged and why God seems to be allowing us to experience such trying stuff. We don't know the purpose for the troubling times, but we can stand assured that God is not far from us as we navigate through them. He is right there - we just don't appreciate him in the midst of the chaos yet. Times are confusing and we want to express our doubts, but should we? Yes, it is never wrong to express our concerns and bring our doubts to God. He doesn't give us demerits for doubts - he is at work revealing how 'unfounded' those doubts are compared to the greatness of his power and grace in our lives.

We might think we have to understand everything to get through everything, but the opposite can be quite true. We might not understand much, but with God, we navigate quite well through unknown territory. One thing I have realized is that I don't have to 'fake' my faith. If I have doubts and worries, I need to express them. My heart is not hidden from God, so my thoughts don't need to be, either. God is not put off by our expressions of fear, doubt, or lack of understanding. He is encouraged by our honesty and the freedom we feel to express them to him. 

The way we seek to understand is important. We can ask for clarity out of doubt, but God asks us to trust even when the circumstances seem harder than we can handle. Trust him to bring the clarity - to remove the niggling fear and doubt. He will do much more than we imagine, but we need to be honest with him when we are struggling with fear and doubt. He doesn't want us to be overwhelmed - he wants us to be aware, alert, and open to his movement within those hard times. He hasn't abandoned us - he has just 'gone silent' long enough for us to express our need. Just sayin!

A Thomas Moment

“You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who believe without seeing me.” (John 20:29) You believe - not because you were compelled to believe - but because you hungered enough to know the truth and be set free by it. Do we believe because we see, or is it because we have heard? Are we the type of people who demand a sign and then another just to confirm what we have heard is true? It never ceases to amaze me that God knows the weakness of our spirit and the questioning of our mind. Here is the most amazing truth - he meets us right where we are. 

Thomas happened to be absent the night Jesus appeared to the disciples following the resurrection. When we was told about his appearance, he had a hard time accepting their 'testimony' of what they saw. In fact, he told them he needed the ultimate proof - being able to touch his pierced hands and side. Eight days later, gathered together in a locked room, Jesus gives him the opportunity. In those eight days, I wonder what Thomas was thinking about. Could it have been that he was pondering all the miracles he had seen while Jesus was present with them? Could he have been going over how each 'sign' prophesied had been somehow fulfilled? We don't know what was going through his mind, but we are given a glimps into what was transpiring in his heart.

Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and look at my hands. Put your hand into the wound in my side. Don’t be faithless any longer. Believe!” “My Lord and my God!” Thomas exclaimed. (vs. 27-28) Don't be faithless any longer - believe. We are given a little insight into the heart of Thomas - he wasn't fully a believer, in spite of having seen and heard first-hand. No wonder Jesus told him those who believe without the advantage of having seen the miracles, signs and wonders are truly a blessed bunch of people! Peter denied him three times before his crucifixion - yet Jesus knew his heart and restored him to right relationship. Thomas didn't really 'get it' - yet Jesus specifically made a way for him to come to assured faith.

We may think there is no hope for some who have heard time and time again or seen the many astounding things God has done around them and even in their own lives, and still don't come to faith in Jesus. Nothing could be further from the truth - for where God reveals himself there is always the potential of grace doing its work. Let God be on display for those who will see. Let his Word be on your lips for those who will hear. If they don't believe because they see or hear the first time, keep on. You never know when their 'Thomas moment' may come! Just sayin!

Too comfortable?

Many of the people who were with Mary believed in Jesus when they saw this happen. But some went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. Then the leading priests and Pharisees called the high council together. “What are we going to do?” they asked each other. “This man certainly performs many miraculous signs. If we allow him to go on like this, soon everyone will believe in him. Then the Roman army will come and destroy both our Temple and our nation.” Caiaphas, who was high priest at that time, said, “You don’t know what you’re talking about! You don’t realize that it’s better for you that one man should die for the people than for the whole nation to be destroyed.” (John 11:45-50)

A couple of things really stood out to me after reading the account of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. Lazarus came out of the grave, after being dead a good couple of days, wrapped completely in grave clothes (hands and feet bound, face wrapped in a headcloth). There before the crowds stood a 'dead man' alive again, needing their assistance to be free of the shrouds of death that encompassed his body. Even with such a magnificent display of the power and grace of God, only some of the people believed in Jesus. Others were nothing more than worrisome tattletales. How many 'good things' need to happen right in front of us in order for us to believe? How many times are we so caught up in the worries of the day that we don't realize the presence of grace when it is right there in our midst?

As the story moves on, we see a group hurrying to the high council of the church. They were intent on 'telling on Jesus', not so much to convince the elders to take a positive stance toward Jesus, but to shut down his teaching and actions as a 'threat' to their way of life. They were more worried that the Roman government would catch wind of the great miracles, Jesus claiming to be the Son of God, and that the Romans would come into their towns with destructive force in order to 'shut down' Jesus. There is no 'shutting down' Jesus - but they don't know that! They just worry about their own circumstances - how their lives might be disrupted or made a little 'harder' in light of all the good stuff Jesus was doing amongst them. What a silly lot they were - seeing only their own comfort and missing that Jesus wasn't there to overthrow the Roman government, but to be a light and a way back to their Heavenly Father.

What makes the difference in us seeing and believing versus us seeing and being threatened? I might propose that when our 'comfort' becomes a little 'threatened' by any movement of God toward us, we have become way to comfortable with this world! We might not realize just how 'comfortable' we have become with the things this world offers us until we are faced with the amazing power of God. When his power is displayed, we can run to the world or press in closer to him. The graveclothes had to be removed in order for Lazarus to be free. Will we be the kind who stands and watches, or will we be the ones to unbind them? If we are comfortable with the world, we likely will be repelled by the 'stench' of death, choosing to allow others to do that 'dirty work'. 

Many believed - not all. Some still could not see their way past their 'concerns' and 'dreaded consequences' to embrace him. Let us not be the ones who find ourselves so caught up in our 'concerns' that we miss the opportunity to engage with grace. Just sayin!

I dunno...

Worry weighs a person down; an encouraging word cheers a person up. (Proverbs 12:25)

How are encouraging words best used? In what circumstances do they matter the most? Who is best to bring those encouraging words into our lives? Is it possible the words of encouragement you are hearing are not always genuine? If you are worrying about those words, you are likely weighed down, feeling like you don't 'deserve' those words. Words of encouragement aren't to be given out so freely that someone doesn't think them genuine, but when they are needed most, they should be spoken the loudest!

Encouragement might be to receive a boost that actually brings us back to life a bit, being bolstered by the words we hear, or to be spurred on in a certain direction. Regardless of the circumstances, there are times when we just need a bit of encouragement - either to continue on the course we are on, or to keep doing what we have been doing because it is 'working' to accomplish something we desire. Encouraging words can also help us get a little clarity in a matter - such as when someone brings words of encouragement that we are on the right track, or our way of thinking something through is spot-on.

If worry weighs us down, what does encouragement do? It removes the weight of doubt, fear, or insecurity. Doubt can stifle us, making us feel 'stuck' in the place we are - either in our thinking, or in our actions. Whenever we hear encouraging words, we are either 'unstuck' or we realize we are stuck because we are some place we shouldn't be right now. We all need to listen to God's voice - being the very best at bringing words of encouragement into our lives - but he also uses others to be his voice. If we doubt or feel insecure over certain steps we are taking, it might not be bad to consult a trusted friend. It is quite possible they will help us get a little 'unstuck' by the clarity we receive in their words.

It isn't as though they know better than us - it is that they can see things 'outside' of the muddle we are experiencing at the moment. That differing perspective can be instrumental in helping us see clearly what had been masked by all the doubt, fear, or insecurity we felt while 'going through' the circumstances at hand. God isn't going to leave us 'unsettled' and 'burdened' for long. He will send the right words of encouragement we need to hear - through is Word and by the confirmation of others he uses to speak into our lives. Just sayin!

Opposites attract

Your life is a journey you must travel with a deep consciousness of God. It cost God plenty to get you out of that dead-end, empty-headed life you grew up in. He paid with Christ’s sacred blood, you know. He died like an unblemished, sacrificial lamb. And this was no afterthought. Even though it has only lately—at the end of the ages—become public knowledge, God always knew he was going to do this for you. It’s because of this sacrificed Messiah, whom God then raised from the dead and glorified, that you trust God, that you know you have a future in God. (I Peter 1:18-19)

I listened as my pastor shared the moments in his life where he had struggles with doubts - something we don't expect a pastor to share with his congregants. I understood what state of mind he could have been in when he was experiencing these doubts. I was fully aware of my own doubts along the way - times when I wondered if God 'really said' or 'really meant'. It is never wrong to have doubts - it is always wrong to not bring those doubts to God. He wants to sort them out for us - not because we need a good trip to the woodshed to deal with them, but because as we sit in the confines of his presence and just let them out, he meets with us and settles them for us. Indeed, we need to have a deep consciousness of God - to understand where our doubt and fear collide with faith and hope.

Faith and hope both grow in the presence of their opposing forces - not in the absence of them. Would we ever feel the intense desire and passionate pursuit created if we never knew the absence of hope? At the end of the rope, we consider life just a bit differently, don't we? We see things from a different perspective. When all seems to be collapsing around us, we reach conclusions about what it is we have put our trust in, don't we? We begin to feel the push and pull of faith, working feverishly against the push and pull of our doubts. The opposing forces are at work in our lives, not to take us away from God, but to move us closer into intimate relationship with him - settling once and for all whatever needs to be settled within us.

It is because of Christ's sacrifice - on our behalf even before we knew we'd need that tremendous gift - that we now stand assured that we have a future in God's presence. Why do we doubt this at times? If we are honest, it isn't that we doubt our future with him as much as we doubt our 'worthiness' to be in his presence for all of eternity. We have 'done' things, 'thought' things, 'said things', and they make us feel as though we don't 'deserve' his presence. Truth be told, we don't! Thank goodness our present and future ability to stand in his presence unashamed and whole isn't based on what we do, think, or say, but on what he has done, thought, and said on our behalf. The doubts may not diminish immediately, but given space in the presence of God, they will soon be replaced with an ever-increasing faith. Don't resist the opposing forces, but allow them to drive you closer into what God has prepared for your life. Just sayin!

Doubts and Defense Stand No Chance

 God means what he says. What he says goes. His powerful Word is sharp as a surgeon’s scalpel, cutting through everything, whether doubt or defense, laying us open to listen and obey. Nothing and no one can resist God’s Word. We can’t get away from it—no matter what. (Hebrews 4:12)

Doubt or defense - God's Word cuts through it like a hot knife on cool butter! Think about doubt for a moment - it 'creeps in', doesn't it? Doubt may be instantaneous, but the really nagging and crippling kind of doubt may be the kind that 'creeps in', unnoticed at first, but settling into our minds and hearts like a wicked virus. We don't usually wake up one day and determine to doubt everything we are thinking - doubt comes bit by bit, failure by failure, mistake by mistake. I remember trying to learn to make cookies like my mom made. I would put in all the ingredients, but they didn't turn out quite the same. My impatience, lack of desire to spend hour upon hour in the kitchen, and desire to eat rather than create those cookies made it all the harder! Did my doubt come all at once? No, as one cookie disaster resulted in another, I began to doubt my ability to be a good cookie maker! In time, I began to doubt I could ever 're-create' her luscious baking. We sometimes allow doubt to keep us from trusting we will ever accomplish what we know we are called to accomplish.

Little things creep in to cause us to doubt, yet these 'little things' all add up. The 'addition factor' actually is what God's Word is excellent at REDUCING and ELIMINATING. Our doubts 'add up' - one upon another - until they are gigantic. God's Word comes into our lives and in rather short order, those words begin to tackle the biggest piles of doubt, reducing them to rubble that can finally be discarded. How? The Word of God actually has this way of helping us to listen and then to obey. We begin to listen to reason rather than chance. We begin to obey the 'directions' laid out and begin to see change. When I finally buckled down and followed the directions mom had taken such pain-staking time to write out on those recipe cards, those cookies began to turn out a little better each time! God's Word REDUCES doubt into bite-sized pieces - the size we can begin to challenge and overcome. His Word ELIMINATES what remains once we begin to obey what he tells us to do.

His Word is also useful for cutting through our huge defenses. Don't have any of those, you say? Let me assure you - we ALL have some 'defenses' we mount to ward off some form of 'invasion' we don't want to face. It might be our tendency to avoid certain topics in discussion, or our reluctance to address a problem because we see it as too far out of our league. Defenses go up to keep us from 'getting too close', or getting roped into involvement. God's Word cuts through those defenses - even the ones we don't know exist right now. If you have no real knowledge of the defenses you mount from time to time, ask him to show you where they exist. When he does, don't deny they exist - embrace his willingness to expose them so he can finally reduce them so we can begin to no longer hide behind them. God isn't afraid to cut open those walls so we can finally see the light they kept us from seeing all along. In fact, he relishes bringing light where dimness or darkness once existed. Just sayin!

Doubt isn't a bad thing

I would like for you to consider for a moment what this journalist was attempting to share in his words: "Who never doubted, never half believed. Where doubt is, there truth is - it is her shadow." (Ambrose Bierce) Have you ever doubted? Then it is suggested you were at least at the place of some form of belief. Have you ever considered what your doubt was attempting to reveal to you? Perhaps doubt is not a bad thing because it points us to consider the truth of a matter. Where doubt is - - - there truth is. It may be in the shadows, but it is there! We need only look a little closer and we will find truth has never been far from us. 

The revelation of God is whole and pulls our lives together. The signposts of God are clear and point out the right road. The life-maps of God are right, showing the way to joy. The directions of God are plain
and easy on the eyes. God’s reputation is twenty-four-carat gold, with a lifetime guarantee. The decisions of God are accurate down to the nth degree. (Psalm 19:7-9)

Truth - that which conforms to fact or reality. That is a pretty basic definition of truth, but if we elaborate a bit, we might realize truth is really that which is authentic, legitimate, and certain. Can you think of any better way to describe God's presence in your life? He is indeed authentic - he is real, able to be experienced in the most profound ways. He is legitimate - the absolute authority above all other authority. He actions in our lives are certain - sure and firmly founded actions on our behalf. God isn't discontent when we only 'half-believe' because he knows we are on the path to coming to 'full-belief', my friends!

There are times we might think our doubt is a bad thing - because God tells us we should not doubt. I honestly believe our doubt brings us into a 'search' of sorts. We seek truth in the midst of our doubt - what could be wrong with that? Some might assume doubt exists because one is questioning God's authority, but I suggest doubt may exist because one is coming to terms with his absolute and undeniable authority. The moment our doubt is recognized is the moment we can begin to explore the evidence of truth that exists in the revelation of God - his Word. 

The Word of God actually begins to dispel doubt - bringing to light any untruth that exists in our 'half-belief' and illuminating further the truth that has remained in the 'shadows' within our life until that moment of revelation. What God's truth does within us is 'pull our lives together'. Where doubt exists is an opportunity for God show clear signposts that point us down the right path. Rather than get down on yourself because you are searching for answers, continue the search. God knows you are searching to discover and he is pleased to allow that discovery. Embrace your doubt and begin to talk about it with God - he is ready and waiting to reveal truth in all its fullness to your today. Just sayin!

Furnishing your heart

It was Dwight D. Eisenhower who reminded us, "We are going to have peace even if we have to fight for it." Peace is sometimes found as the result of the fight, not just in the absence of it. We might just find ourselves in the fight of our lives, but see no way out. In just the right time, and in just the right way, peace comes. How is that? The fight is still going on around us, but in the midst of it all, there comes a peace that is quite unexpected. It is a "God thing" - something we don't have to understand to appreciate!

Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life. (Philippians 4:7 MSG)

Worry is the natural emotion when the battle rages and the fight gets harder and harder. We find ourselves fretting over the smallest of things. Why? Worry occupies the space of created by doubt in our lives. Anytime doubt is allowed any space, it always clears the way for worry to be made right at home. It is like there is a double-whammy with doubt and worry - one never being far from the other. Both emotions can be a little daunting, especially in the midst of the fight before us, but both can be undone quite easily - in the blink of an eye.

How? We allow our prayers to fly. What happens when we do? Those worries begin to be shaped into praises and those doubts begin to take backseat to God's peace. The worries will have there way until we begin to escalate them into words to God. As soon as we do so, there is a turning of those worries into words of praise, and in rather short order we find there is an overwhelming sense that God is in control. That is the basis of doubt, you know - that we believe God isn't in control. So, does it surprise us that the presence of peace begins to be apparent when we realize he is?

A sense of God's wholeness comes, settling us down. Did you ever stop to consider how much our wholeness is directly related to how much doubt and worry we allow to occupy the space of our lives? It is true - there is a direct correlation between the space we give to our worries and the peace of God. The moment we evict doubt is the moment peace is allowed to move in! God's peace 'fits the space' created by our worries when we have allowed those worries to become praises lifted to him. The presence of God is like no other. Wherever peace is needed the most is the place he will battle hard in order to overthrow all that disturbs or keeps that peace away. Just sayin!

The heart of the healer and the mercy of a Savior

Ever hear that saying, "This may be your BIG chance", then thought, "Yeah, maybe this will be THE time"? THE time, THE chance, THE anything is kind of hard to predict - we are really saying it has all been up to chance and it continues to be right up into the present. Our BIGGEST opportunity comes not in the 'chances' we encounter, but in who it is we trust. We can trust the circumstances to bring our reward - like throwing the dice or spinning the wheel on the slots. We can trust in some 'lucky' thing to bring us the reward we hope to receive. Luck is really a two-sided coin - look it up! It refers to the 'force' that either operate 'for' you or 'against' you! I'd much rather be trusting in one that is continually 'for' me!

He asked the boy's father, "How long has this been going on?" "Ever since he was a little boy. Many times it pitches him into fire or the river to do away with him. If you can do anything, do it. Have a heart and help us!" Jesus said, "If? There are no 'ifs' among believers. Anything can happen." No sooner were the words out of his mouth than the father cried, "Then I believe. Help me with my doubts!" (Mark 9:21-24)

Jesus has come into a crowd of people, some onlookers, others simply waiting for their "big chance" to see the Miracle-Worker himself - like lining up to see some famous person.  Some of the disciples had been "working" in the crowd healing the sick, delivering the bound from their imprisonment of mental anguish - but within the crowd there is a certain boy with a diagnosis so debilitating that it has plagued him since he was very young. The disciples just don't "seem to be able to heal" this boy's afflictions.  The crowd is huge - and it is filled with "religious scholars" (likely the Pharisees) who are there simply to "cross-examine" each of those who "get their miracle" - putting them 'on trial' to attempt to disprove what has been done at the hand of the 'great healer'.

Jesus was literally "flocked" by hundreds of onlookers almost everywhere he went.  It was as though he had "groupies" who appeared in whatever region he was traveling.  Many were genuinely hopeful for some type of "touch" from the Miracle-Worker they had heard about and witnessed themselves. They were probably there, not so much because they recognized the one before them as the Messiah, but because he was touching lives and those lives were never the same again - they wanted their 'touch', too.  I have a "label" for people like that - lookee-loos - they are there for the "spectacular" not necessarily for the true heart worship. The father of this boy in the crowd is most desperate to get his boy some attention - his boy had a significant need that moved this father into significant action.  We are not sure from what is recorded if the father actually believed in Jesus' authority as the Messiah, or if he had just joined the crowds in hopeful anticipation that there might be a miracle for his son.  What we do know is that we see Jesus in conversation with the father about the disease and horrifying debility of his son.  Look at the desperate plea of this father: "If you can do anything for us....DO IT!"  

His pleas do not fall on deaf ears or an unmoved heart - Jesus turns to the father with the heart of the healer and the mercy of the Savior.  In what appears to almost be a small "chastisement" of the father's desperate plea, we see Jesus saying: "IF....what do you mean IF?"  Jesus is about to reveal to this man, and the crowd, that God desires, even yearns, to hear the desperation of our heart.  There is something "connective" about sharing at that level of honesty - it is likely what got this father and son noticed by Jesus that day.  Jesus wanted to clarify this father's faith - that is the purpose of his specific words directed at this father. When Jesus confronts our doubts, fears, or frustrations head on, his words build our faith.  Look at the change of faith that comes as Jesus confronts the father:  "Help me with my doubts!"  There is nothing more powerful in the hands of Jesus than being honest about our doubts.  His desire is to move us into fullness of faith, not keep us in the depression of doubts.  Just as certainly as Jesus changed the father's perspective on his son's situation, Jesus can change the perspective we have about ours.  It is done in that one moment of the truthful sharing of our desperation.

The words of Jesus are powerful - ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN!  In the hands of Jesus, all things are possible.  What we see as the most impossible challenges are nothing more than a speck of sand on the seashore of impossibilities Jesus is more than powerful to overcome.  We need only be in the right place - in the presence of Jesus.  We need only be in the right frame of mind and heart - desperate to have our faith grow and willing to be honest about our desperation.  Then....ANYTHING can happen. What we see as impossible takes on a different perspective when Jesus helps us deal with our "IFs". The world has no solutions for our "IFs" - only Jesus does! Just sayin!

Good dog or ferocious dog?

Someone once said "faith" has a twin - "doubt". Is it possible that maybe "faith" has a triplet brother - "fear"? Doubt and fear reside alongside each other so much of the time. We may not want to admit it, but when we are doubtful, we have an element of fear that begins to creep into our thoughts and affect our emotions. Doubt leads us to take certain actions or respond in a specific manner. Fear is part of that reaction to doubt. If a large, ferocious looking dog approached me at a dead run, I probably don't have any need to have a sign over the dog's head that tells me I am about to get mauled! Some things we just 'fear' because we have absolutely no doubt about their intent! At other times, doubt just barely creeps in like the tiny chihuahua pattering our way who looks harmless, but when close enough, those teeth can nip at our heels - maybe not with as much power as the huge over-powering dog, but they can still do damage. If both dogs bear their teeth whenever I am around them, I will not trust either one! If the next time I see them they are both wagging their tails and happy to see me, I will likely be a little doubtful they won't 'turn' on me. Past experiences play into doubt, as well as the unknown of what we have never experienced before. Fear has a foundation in both - the outcomes of past experiences often overshadowing what we believe will be the case each time we approach anything even remotely similar in life.

Teach a wise man, and he will be the wiser; teach a good man, and he will learn more.  For the reverence and fear of God are basic to all wisdom. Knowing God results in every other kind of understanding.  “I, Wisdom, will make the hours of your day more profitable and the years of your life more fruitful.”  Wisdom is its own reward, and if you scorn her, you hurt only yourself. (Proverbs 9:9-12 TLB)

A lot of our doubt and fear is based in not knowing what it is we are trusting in at that moment. If we are trusting in the past outcomes as the basis of how we approach things in this lifetime, we will never step out into anything new. If we are always doubtful anything good will come of any new venture, we hold ourselves back from ever taking the first step. There is no change the occurs without the first step - there is no fear overcome without first exposing what we fear to truth. In the case of those two dogs - not all dogs growl, bear their teeth and take joy in noshing on your flesh! To judge all dogs as 'man-eating ferocious creatures' is to exclude a whole lot of really friendly and loving dogs from ever getting near enough to us to change our impression of dogs! All things we fear or doubt must be held up to truth - for truth exposes the reality behind the impression fear or doubt is making upon all the rest of our emotions at that very moment. The good news is that we are never bound by our fears or doubts - we CAN move out from under their control. They aren't our permanent!

Change, or seeing things from a totally new perspective, can oftentimes be the result of having refused to believe what our past experiences have dictated as things we should fear or doubt. It is true we should be concerned that a car coming at us while we are trying to cross the street at the crosswalk brings a mounting fear within. Should that keep us from attempting to ever cross the street? Cars have the capability of striking us down, even doing harm to us. Not every driver behind the wheel will be distracted and not see us, though. Almost every time the drivers of those cars note someone is in the crosswalk, slow down, and stop so as to allow the walker safe passage. The walker must trust in the things put there for their safety - the crosswalk lines, signal that alerts to the safe time to walk across, and the visibility created by us crossing at those designated locations. We have much more to fear when we are attempting to 'cross outside those lines' in life. These are the times when doubt and fear might just niggle us into reconsidering where it is we are heading - this is when doubt and fear are 'good companions'. You see....fear and doubt can be either a 'good dog' or a 'ferocious dog' in our path. We cannot just take them on face-value. We must test them against faith - faith being rooted and grounded in truth. Just sayin!

No room for if

We have probably heard the saying, "No ifs, ands, or doubts..."  In most cases, it means we need to finish a task and make absolutely no excuses for not having it done when the time comes for it to be complete.  Our teachers in school set deadlines for reports which were due - meet it or the report would be reduced a full letter grade for each day it was late!  Our parents left us with lists of chores, expecting full-well each one to be marked off as complete before we ever turned on the TV.  Even our employers give us tasks and expect them to be complete - tying each completed item to the potential to remain gainfully employed!  It is not uncommon for us to be expected to start and see something through to completion.  Yet, there is one "thing" we might just struggle with getting to the place of completion alone - our faith!  Martin Luther King once said, "Faith is taking the first step when you don't see the whole staircase."

He asked the boy’s father, “How long has this been going on?”  “Ever since he was a little boy. Many times it pitches him into fire or the river to do away with him. If you can do anything, do it. Have a heart and help us!”  Jesus said, “If? There are no ‘ifs’ among believers. Anything can happen.”  No sooner were the words out of his mouth than the father cried, “Then I believe. Help me with my doubts!”  (Mark 9:21-24 MSG)

Blaise Pascal was a mathematician and a Christian theologian.  These two just don't seem to go together, do they?  One "solves" the equation himself - the other waits on a "higher power" to solve the equation!  Yet, he wrote some pretty amazing stuff!  One of the quotes I most like which he penned back in the 1600's is:  "Belief is a wise wager.  Granted that faith cannot be proved, what harm will come to you if you gamble on its truth and it proves false?  If you gain, you gain all; if you lose, you lose nothing.  Wager, then, without hesitation, that He exists."  Now, at first this might seem a little bit like he is saying nothing ventured, nothing gained.  He is also saying if nothing ventured, you cannot know if the venture will prove / disprove your beliefs.  I think this father might just have been in one of those situations where he did not really know if going to Jesus would help his son, but if he didn't take the step, he'd never know if the impossible was actually possible in God's hands.

The son had suffered for years - obviously tearing this father's heart to pieces each time he saw him seized by his disease.  His last hope may very well have been the "rabbi" (great teacher) passing through town that day.  His "knowledge" of his son's disease is great - his faith in the ability of the healer is not so great!  In fact, he almost puts himself out there with the statement, "IF you CAN do anything, do it."  Two words which really don't suggest much confidence, but which have a little seed of hope - the beginning of all steps of faith.  As King said, it is the first step which gets us on the staircase - you don't know the full extent of the climb until you actually reach the top!  

"IF" is almost like saying, "I am bringing my son to you today, just in case there might be a possibility somewhere in you to heal my son."  He is not saying he is there with all confidence his son will be made well - he is actually admitting he doesn't know for sure, but he is willing to take the chance - to have wagered Jesus would have "something" to help his son.  Now, this may not seem like much to you, but don't miss the truth being taught - even the tiniest step TOWARD faith is all Jesus needs to begin the biggest climb of your life!

"CAN" is really asking if Jesus has the ability or power to heal his son - then he appeals to Christ's heart with the words, "Have a heart and help us!"  Sometimes the best place we can be is the one which expresses the honesty of a heart not fully certain, but willing to be shown.  God doesn't need our "fully developed faith" in order to bring about his purposes in our lives - he just needs our willingness to take the first step toward his "CAN" (his ability, his power, his means).  

We almost might be tempted to think Jesus was chastising the father for not having "full faith" as he brings his son to him.  Read it again.  Jesus actually turns the man's statement around and makes it clear to him - this dad's "first step" made all the difference for this boy!  Jesus turns and speaks clearly to the man's heart - connecting what the dad knew with what he felt.  This is the mind - heart connection.  It is one thing to know something - another to actually walk it.  Jesus' words were really saying to the father, "There are no ifs, ands, or doubts about it - ANYTHING and EVERYTHING CAN happen now that you are here with me."  It was the father's willingness to bring even his "ifs" to Jesus and admit he might just not be making a full connection between what he knows ABOUT Jesus and what he believes is possible IN Jesus which moved the heart of Jesus to build this man's faith.  The seed was there - there was some element of hope - he was willing to wager it all.  The rest was up to Jesus.

This is the way of faith - we have but a small seed hope - Jesus encounters the seed of hope with the magnitude of his power.  The first step doesn't reveal the entire climb, but each step brings us nearer the top.  There are no greater words which move the heart of God than the words of this father, "Then help me with me with my doubts."  We often don't want to admit our doubts to Jesus - sometimes even avoiding him all together in areas where we just haven't made the connection between what we "know" ABOUT him and what IS possible IN him.  Yet, it is the willingness to admit we need help with our doubts which opens the door for Jesus to take us higher in our climb than we ever imagined possible.  Doubts can either keep us at the bottom of the staircase, only imagining what might be at the top, or they can bring us into his presence in humility and openness to the possibilities we might find there.

I don't know what doubts you struggle with today, but I do know when you admit them to Jesus, he is able to turn our "ifs" into "cans".  Just sayin!

What do you mean IF?

^21-22He asked the boy's father, "How long has this been going on?"
   "Ever since he was a little boy. Many times it pitches him into fire or the river to do away with him. If you can do anything, do it. Have a heart and help us!"   ²³Jesus said, "If? There are no 'ifs' among believers. Anything can happen."   ²⁴No sooner were the words out of his mouth than the father cried, "Then I believe. Help me with my doubts!"
(Mark 9:21-24)

To begin with a little background on our passage today, Jesus has come into a crowd of people, some onlookers, others simply waiting "for their big chance" to see the Miracle-Worker himself.  Some of the disciples had been "working" in the crowd healing the sick, delivering the bound - but there is a certain boy with a diagnosis so debilitating that has plagued him since he was very young that the disciples just don't "seem to be able to heal".  The crowd is huge - and it is filled with "religious scholars" (likely the Pharisees) who are there simply to "cross-examine" each of those who "get their miracle".

Jesus was literally "flocked" by hundreds of onlookers almost everywhere he went.  It was as though he had "groupies" who appeared in whatever region he was traveling.  Many were genuinely hopeful for some type of "touch" from the Miracle-Worker they had heard about and witnessed themselves. They were probably there, not so much because they recognized the one before them as the Messiah, but because he was touching lives and those lives were never the same again.  I have a "label" for people like that - lookie-loos - they are there for the "spectacular" not necessarily for the true heart worship.

The father of this boy is desperate to get his boy some attention - his boy had a significant need that moved this father.  We are not sure from what is recorded if the father actually believed in Jesus' authority as the Messiah, or if he had just joined the crowds in hopeful anticipation that there might be a miracle for his son.  What we do know is that we see Jesus in conversation with the father about the disease and debility of his son.  Look at the desperate plea of this father:  "If you can do anything for us....DO IT!"  

His pleas do not fall on deaf ears or an unmoved heart - Jesus turns to the father with the heart of the healer and the mercy of the Savior.  What appears to almost be a small "chastisement" of the father's desperate plea, we see Jesus saying:  "IF....what do you mean IF?"  Yesterday, I shared that God desires, even yearns, to hear the desperations of our heart.  There is something "connective" about sharing at that level of honesty - it is likely what got this father and son noticed by Jesus that day.  Jesus wanted to clarify this father's faith - that is the purpose of his words directed at this father.

When Jesus confronts our doubts, fears, or frustrations head on, his words build our faith.  Look at the change of faith that comes as Jesus confronts the father:  "Help me with my doubts!"  There is nothing more powerful in the hands of Jesus than the honesty about our doubts.  His desire is to move us into fullness of faith, not keep us in the depression of doubts.  Just as certainly as Jesus changed the father's perspective on his son's situation, Jesus can change the perspective on ours.  It is done in the moment of true sharing of our desperation.

The words of Jesus are powerful - ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN!  In the hands of Jesus, all things are possible.  What we see as the most impossible challenges are nothing more than a speck of sand on the seashore of impossibilities Jesus has already shown himself powerful with.  We need only be in the right place - in the presence of Jesus.  We need only be in the right frame of mind and heart - desperate to have our faith grow.  Then....ANYTHING can happen.  What we see as impossible takes on a different perspective when Jesus helps us deal with our "IFs".  The world has no solutions for our "IFs" - but Jesus does!