A little bridge building is required

You are right and you do right, God; your decisions are right on target. You rightly instruct us in how to live ever faithful to you. My rivals nearly did me in, they persistently ignored your commandments. Your promise has been tested through and through, and I, your servant, love it dearly. I’m too young to be important, but I don’t forget what you tell me. Your righteousness is eternally right, your revelation is the only truth. Even though troubles came down on me hard, your commands always gave me delight. The way you tell me to live is always right; help me understand it so I can live to the fullest. (Psalm 119:140-144)

I don't imagine it is many of us who can say we are true to our word - for we all struggle with this at times - no matter how much we live in a manner where we strive to consistently follow through on what we say we will do. We struggle with the "promises" we make God more than we do the ones we make to our fellow man. Scripture outlines two inter-related character traits: Faithfulness and Fullness. It is in learning to be faithful where we are led into quite a full life! I think we follow through on what is important to us. If we hear our doctor tell us we will be dead in a year unless we make some dramatic changes in the way we eat and exercise, I daresay most of us would be on Weight Watchers, Keto, or the treadmill by the end of the day! We "value" our time on this earth, so we will make the necessary adjustments to our way of living because we want more than a year! If the "thing" motivates us enough, we take whatever steps are required in order to realize the goal, don't we? This is exactly where the "rub" comes at times in our lives. We find certain "value" in some things because they have an immediate evidence of "return" - such as when we get our haircut in order to deal with our "dowdiness". The haircut lifts our spirits and makes us feel better about our appearance. When the "value" of something isn't immediate, we sometimes wane in our commitment to it because we don't see the "return" for quite some time.

Faithfulness is something God honors - scripture reminds us God is right and always does right - his decisions for our lives are right on target. Why do we struggle with his decisions so often? I think it may be the "immediacy" of the "return" we are struggling with more than the decision! Faithfulness is based on a certain steadiness of allegiance - commitment to a purpose, the ability to remain even when the going gets tough (or the results just don't seem to surface immediately). Faithfulness begins in the action of listening. What we are "willing" to hear often makes the determination of heart much easier. When we "hear" the doctor with both our mind and heart, we are moved to action. If we just hear it as a "suggestion" of change, we might just linger in our unhealthy lifestyle a little longer. God rightly instructs us on HOW to live faithful lives. Any good teacher will confirm that a student only learns when he takes what he hears and puts it into action. This is the "bridge" between knowledge and learning. We can possess knowledge but be devoid of real learning. God's desire is for the "bridge" to be made between knowledge and learning.

Why is it we can stand on God's promises? Isn't it because they have been tested and they stand true? Then why do we struggle with them so much? For example, Matthew 6:33 tells us one of God's promises is to be anxious for nothing - to seek first his purposes - and then we will have all our needs met (maybe not all our "wants", but definitely all our "needs"). How many times do we worry over where we will find the money to pay the next bill, what we will do when we lose our jobs, or when we will see an end to a certain uncomfortable circumstance? There are even "smaller" worries we take into our lives each and every day - not because we don't have the resources to see them met, but because we aren't making this "knowledge - learning" bridge. We have the knowledge of the promise - we just don't have the "connecting" bridge which makes it a fact in our hearts! Faithfulness is directly linked to fullness. When we have this "connection" between "hearing" and "doing", there is a certain "fullness" which is created in the deep places of our lives. Fullness is defined as containing all that can be held. The amazing thing about God is his ability to expand our capacity! When we think we have come to the place of holding all which can be held, he gives us more capacity! Not capacity for "stuff", but capacity for him! 

Maybe this is where we find our struggle with faithfulness - in seeking "stuff" instead of him. We "want", but our "want" is sometimes for stuff that actually limits our capacity for being filled! I think it can be said - capacity is directly linked to our willingness to be emptied. "The way you tell me to live is always right." Look at what comes next: "Help me understand it..." There is nothing God loves more than to hear us ask for his help with understanding his ways in our lives. I don't think he ever leaves us hanging when we do. In fact, he often begins to "piece together" the knowledge we possess until they are "learned". He is "piecing together" the very bridge which will become our lifeline in times of need. The "piecing together" process may seem a little tedious at times in our lives - seeming to not show immediate evidence of the "bridge" but be assured of this - no bridge is built without a good master plan. Every piece fits perfectly because there is a plan for it. We want a bridge - no matter how well constructed. God wants it to endure! In order to endure, sometimes there is a "clearing process" in order to lay the foundations of endurance. Empty vessels are God's choicest vessels, for it is the empty ones he can fill! Just sayin!

god of little or GOD OF MUCH

Elisha said, “I wonder how I can be of help. Tell me, what do you have in your house?” “Nothing,” she said. “Well, I do have a little oil.” (2 Kings 4:2)

A widow woman facing a debt she cannot repay. She is worried that she will lose her two sons - simply because they would become the "means" of repaying her debt as they would be forced to become the slaves to the debtor if she could not repay the debt. Her husband has been a prophet - a godly man. I imagine she wonders why this catastrophe is upon her since she likely has lived a "set apart" lifestyle for a good many years. She comes to Elisha - one of the major prophets of the Old Testament - seeking his help. She implores him to consider her plight. In response, he begins to wonder what he might be able to do to assist. In those days, prophets were rarely wealthy men or women - they lived by the standards of the day, occupying their time with the normal pursuits of the day such as farming, tending the animals, working with clay or wood. I think Elisha may have seen the situation as an opportunity - while the woman was seeing it as an impossibility. He asks what she has - she declares what she doesn't have! Isn't that just like us? We are so quick to discount what we possess because we see it as insignificant in comparison to the "demands" being made. Why do we gravitate to the "little" instead of seeing the "much" in our circumstances, talents, or abilities? I think there is something we might all need a little reminding about - we serve the God of "MUCH" not the god of "little".

The woman was instructed to collect every available bottle, jar and pot from the town. She goes about collecting these, stacking them up in her home, until every last "empty" one is in her possession. Now, this may not seem like much at first, but do you see something occurring in this activity on her part? She is not sure "what" will happen, she just knows if she brings everything which has been declared "empty" into the presence of God, the "empties" are right where they need to be! We often don't bring our "empties" to God's presence - because we see them as "empty" - something which contains nothing of importance. Let's realize without an "empty", God has nothing to "fill"! So, the next time you tell yourself you are just an "empty" in some regard, you are really saying to God, "I have a little space you can fill up!" In bringing these empty jars to Elisha, the little she had was becoming so much more than she needed to satisfy the debt owed by her husband. In fact, she was able to live on what's left over. God not only filled the "empties" with enough to provide for today's need, he filled enough "empties" to provide for the future needs, as well. The thing is, when we are willing to give our "little" into his care, taking steps to bring what has been emptied out into his presence, we find he fills beyond our capacity to contain!

I often hear people saying stuff like "Oh, I never could do that" or "I just don't have what it takes". The truth be told, neither did the ones God consistently called and used for his purposes throughout all of time. The thing each 'used' vessel has in common is more than the emptiness that needs to be filled - they also brought the "little" they had into the presence of God and in turn, he filled to overflowing. The empty parts of each of us are exactly what God needs. It is in the emptying we become ready to be filled. My hope for you today - you will stop telling yourself the "little" you have is not enough in God's hands. For it is in the bringing of the "little" into his presence where we see the impossibilities become possibilities. Just sayin!

Fill your tank first

Don’t get off track, either left or right, so as to make sure you get to where you’re going. And don’t for a minute let this Book of The Revelation be out of mind. Ponder and meditate on it day and night, making sure you practice everything written in it. Then you’ll get where you’re going; then you’ll succeed. Haven’t I commanded you? Strength! Courage! Don’t be timid; don’t get discouraged. God, your God, is with you every step you take. (Joshua 1:9)

Have you had those moments of what I'd like to call "blankness" - those moments when you are going from one room to another, obviously for some reason, but when you get into the next room, you come up 'blank' trying to remember the reason for the journey? I have them more than I probably should admit! Most of the time it is because I 'get off track' - distracted by something else I hear, see, or even smell along the way. There are leaves crunched into the tile at the entryway of the house, so I go get the little broom and dustpan to take care of that problem....now, why was I going to the den when I noticed the leaves? The dryer sends off the friendly tune signaling the clothes are ready to be hung and folded, so I stop to do that....now, why was I headed to the garage before I stopped to fold those clothes? We all could cop to the plea of "blankness" from time to time - I know I am not alone! To 'get off track' is easy at times - to retain focus is far easier than trying to regain it!

I guess this is why God so frequently reminds us about 'staying the course' - not getting off track. He knows our intentions are good, but our heart and mind get bogged down with the crazy stuff of this world that shouldn't have distracted us, but indeed it did. Moses has died, Joshua is being commissioned to take the people of Israel into their promised land, and we find God giving this tender reminder to 'not get off track'. You see, Israel has been wandering around the same territory of ground for about forty years! That is quite some distraction! God tells Joshua to avoid the distractions because they will keep him from realizing the goal. How does he avoid the distractions? He ponders and meditates upon the Word of God - what was referred to in this passage as the Book of the Revelation - the message given to Moses which comprises the first five books of our Bibles. Don't let that escape you - spend time in the Word, let the Word get inside your heart and mind, and you will be 'armed' with the very thing that helps you to avoid the distractions that aim to pull you off course.

The more we realize there is to be intention behind our actions, the more we realize we might just face obstacles to those intended actions. It is inevitable that the obstacles will come - leaves will track in, laundry will need to be folded, but we don't have to abandon the purposeful movement toward another action to embrace the one that seems to be staring us in the face at the moment. I think that is how we get off course so easily - we figure the most 'evident' thing in front of us must be the thing we attend to at that moment. If truth be told, we might just find the thing we purposed to do when faced with the distraction serves a greater purpose than the distracted actions ever do. My dryer will keep circulating those clothes beyond the initial chimes of being done - so no worries there. My feet will likely track in a few more leaves after my walk today, so no worries there, either. Our time in the Word can be stolen away from us by distractions of this sort, but nothing will prepare us more for the day ahead than some purposeful time filling our tanks to the full with his Word, his presence, and his peace. Just sayin!

You are so full of it

Joy is prayer; joy is strength: joy is love; joy is a net of love by which you can catch souls. 

(Mother Teresa)

If you have ever been told that you are 'full of it', I doubt anyone meant it as a compliment! In fact, it was probably meant to be a means of point out some ridiculous idea you had, or that you are just full of yourself over some matter. It was said as a 'slam' on your character or behavior, not a compliment. When God looks at us and sees us as full of his joy, his words of encouragement are just that - encouragement to fill us up just a little more with the 'good stuff' he has prepared for our lives. What God desires most for us is that we be 'full' - not with ourselves - but with him. In turn, the joy of the Lord begins to overflow from our lives, touching the lives of others, so that what we are 'full of' becomes a means of blessing.

Be full of joy always because you belong to the Lord. Again I say, be full of joy! (Philippians 4:4)

How is it we can be 'full of joy'? It comes in remembering whose we are - who we belong to. If you belong to Jesus, you are full of his grace. You are overflowing with his peace. Your life is filled to the brim with his love. Maybe those things aren't what some would call 'joy', but if you begin to combine the ingredients of his love, grace, and peace, your heart gets pretty doggone joy-full! When we 'belong', that which we 'belong to' begins to permeate every part of our being. When I first went into the military at the age of 18, I actually lived and breathed being a part of our country's defenses. It permeated my whole being so that I even stood taller, somehow making me walk a little more determined with each step I took. It is possible to be 'filled' because we allow something to so 'permeate' our being that it becomes the very thing we live and breathe.

When that object of 'infilling' is Christ himself, we are certain to have the very 'ingredients' that lead to us being 'filled with joy'. Did you realize joy stems from having placed a great value on what becomes the source of your delight? The 'value' you place in whatever that source of your delight is determines the amount of joy your heart and mind is filled with! If you value your money, your source of delight is something that will fritter away over time, especially if you put it in something as volatile as the stock market. If you value a vehicle that is your 'dream car', you might find great delight in it while it is running well, but when it begins to suffer from the inevitable breakdown of parts, where will your joy be then? Joy is found in more than the 'object' - it is found in the delight we place in that object.

When the object of our delight is Christ, we are placing our delight in something that is unchangeable. His love and grace don't change - our appreciation of them might over time, but his love and grace remain consistent for all time. His peace is as reliable today as it was yesterday, yet we may not appreciate the fullness of that peace equally at all times. It isn't that what 'makes us full' has changed, it is that we find our need for these things vacillates over time. We might need a little more of the sense of his love right now because we are feeling kind of down on ourselves, or that we are not as 'lovable' as we should be right now. We could need to have a huge infilling of his grace because we have been trekking down paths that have led us to places of compromise in our lives. Regardless of the need, the filling comes from exactly the same source!

Be full of joy - not of yourself, or the circumstances, or the momentary and fleeting privilege we enjoy. Be full of that which never changes, is always consistent, and is ever there in our lives. Be full of Christ and in so choosing to be 'filled' you will find peace unimaginable, love deeper than you've experienced before, and grace beyond your wildest dreams. Joy comes not in the 'thing' we have, but in the 'one' who fills us with all these things. Just sayin!

So...what fulfills you?

If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world. (C.S. Lewis)

Did you ever stop to consider where you find your greatest discontent may also reveal to you where it is you will find your greatest contentment? If we are so disillusioned with our present world, I wonder if it is because we are desiring another world more? Is that a bad thing? Only if that 'other world' is one that leads us down a pathway away from God! If it is a pathway that draws us nearer to him, then it is not a bad thing at all! In fact, God's hope is that we will keep our attention clearly fixed on the hope of a future with him, while living effectively in this world by living in the present with him at the helm of our lives.

Belief begins in the heart and leads to a life that’s right with God; confession departs from our lips and brings eternal salvation. Because what Isaiah said was true: “The one who trusts in Him will not be disgraced.” Remember that the Lord draws no distinction between Jew and non-Jew—He is Lord over all things, and He pours out His treasures on all who invoke His name because as Scripture says, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” (Romans 10:10-13)

As we go through life, we experiment with all kinds of things and ventures - trying to fill some void in ourselves. Whether it be a void we think will be filled when someone loves us enough, or we will have no void left when we reach a certain amount built up in our savings accounts, the void will always demand to be filled. Learning which void demands to be filled with anything other than what God designs to fill that void is the only way to ensure we are not being 'filled' with things that will only yield further 'emptiness' in our lives.

As I was carrying my children in the womb, the doctor's always asked me to abide by a healthy diet - one that was free of 'empty calories'. Why? Those chips may have tasted good at the moment, but did very little to aid in the growth and development of the life within. We sometimes try to satisfy an urge or need with 'empty calories' in a spiritual sense, too. We think we can get fulfillment apart from how God tells us he brings fulfillment, all the while oblivious to how 'empty' our pursuit will leave us feeling in the end. 

Fullness isn't found in the here and now. To be truly fulfilled, we need to be keeping our eyes on eternity. Eternity holds the only true fulfillment. We can be satisfied to some extent here on this earth, simply because we live here and now with Christ at the center of all we do. We can be fully satisfied by remembering we are called to fulfill a greater purpose than what we realize on this earth! Just sayin!

Greeted by Grace

God's amazing grace and his robust peace go hand-in-hand. The peace of God is really not totally understood, or experienced, until one has an encounter with the amazing grace of God. Grace is like a pathway to peace - know grace and you will know peace. Don't ever think peace means the absence of anything disturbing, though. We will still find many a 'disturbance' in our lifetime, but we don't have to face those disturbances without absolute and lasting peace. We will 'rest' even though the demands are great. We will 'abide' even when the pressures try to move us out of that zone of peace. Peace isn't a place, or even an 'achieved ascendance' - it is a person - Christ. Know Christ, live in him and walk close to him, and you will know peace.

I, Paul, together here with Silas and Timothy, send greetings to the church at Thessalonica, Christians assembled by God the Father and by the Master, Jesus Christ. God's amazing grace be with you! God's robust peace! (I Thessalonians 1:1)

Paul opens this letter with these two awesome reminders - God's amazing grace WITH us and his robust peace IN us. We cannot grow in grace until grace begins to live inside us. We cannot experience peace in any circumstance until we are walking hand-in-hand with the one who navigates through those circumstances with all authority and power. The make-up of many of our everyday associations today is what scripture would have referred to as Gentiles - those who are worshiping other gods - not yet realizing their true need for the one true God. God's hope for all of us is that we will live pure lives. Think about it for a moment and you will likely agree - where there is impurity, grace and peace are oftentimes not all that frequently observed. In fact, impurity is the very reason we need grace! Where grace has been introduced, impurity begins to be displaced. These two things are interrelated, but are not co-inhabitants!

God's amazing grace be with you! The important thing for us to see here is that salvation begins with grace - it is our starting point! God's amazing grace - it is capable of doing within man what nothing else can do - setting straight what sin corrupts. For this reason, it "amazes" those who receive it - inspiring awe, surprising us with the thoroughness of its touch, and overwhelming us with its drawing power. Herein we find an assurance given to us of something we can count on - God's robust peace in us! As I have already indicated, peace is an outcome of grace. Try to experience peace when you stand in need of grace and you will find it impossible to truly know peace. Sin sets us at odds with a holy God - grace brings us close to him again. Sin produces chaos - grace restores peace. Peace is the outcome of being free - grace gives us our freedom and helps us to understand peace where chaos once existed.

Sometimes we try to get peace in a circumstance. Peace is something which comes "IN" us as a result of what has been done FOR us in the work of grace. We'd do much better asking for grace - being set free from the binding effects of the circumstance. When we ask for grace first, we are asking God's guidance to see the circumstance for exactly what it is. He will either help us walk through it with peace which passes all understanding, or he will deliver us totally from it! Either way, we have peace because of his grace! We often skip the opening words of a letter such as this, thinking they really don't say much. If we ponder each of Paul's greetings to the various churches he writes to on his missionary journeys, we find some interesting things:

- To the Corinthians he writes: I send this letter to you in God's church at Corinth, believers cleaned up by Jesus and set apart for a God-filled life. I include in my greeting all who call out to Jesus, wherever they live. He's their Master as well as ours! He celebrates their salvation (being cleaned up by Jesus) and reminds them of their calling (set apart to live a God-filled life). He points them toward living full lives - absent of the vacancy sin produces. Celebration is a result of understanding - understanding is a result of grace.

- To the Galatians he writes: So I greet you with the great words, grace and peace! We know the meaning of those words because Jesus Christ rescued us from this evil world we're in by offering himself as a sacrifice for our sins. God's plan is that we all experience that rescue. A reminder of grace and peace again - but also the emphasis being on the tremendous "rescuing" power of grace and the invitation of grace being experienced by all. An invitation must be accepted, though. If we attempt to find grace by any other means than to accept the invitation to receive it, we will be sorely disappointed with the outcome.

- To the Ephesians he writes: I greet you with the grace and peace poured into our lives by God our Father and our Master, Jesus Christ. His purpose is to remind them of the bountifulness of God's grace - it is poured into our lives. Grace is not something we experience in dribbles - it is a gushing, overflowing infilling, given from a generous heart of a merciful and compassionate God!

The openings are similar, yet they each have a different revelation of God's grace and peace. We'd do well to never discount these words - they are seed thoughts which contain great hope! Great peace isn't known without being embraced by greater grace! Just sayin!

Man, I am on empty!

Have you ever blurted out to someone that you were 'starving' - perhaps having been delayed in having your lunch, or not being able to grab breakfast before your day took a huge swing into overdrive? When was the last time you said this about your soul - admitting to God that you have waited too long to take nourishment from his Word, or have been waiting for what you think is too long to receive some desired answer from him related to something that has wearied your soul? The moment we recognize our desire is the moment we look for it to be satisfied, isn't it? When it comes to our God's care and love, we don't have to starve, but we do have to have an appetite!

God won't starve an honest soul, but he frustrates the appetites of the wicked. (Proverbs 10:3)

God won't starve an honest soul - the thought provokes us to consider what it is to "starve". What is it that Solomon could have been referring to when he spoke of the "starvation" of a soul? First, let me say that starvation is more than the effects of a lack of food in the natural sense. There are many forms of starvation - emotional, spiritual, intellectual, and the kind that depletes the body of oxygen or energy, to name but a few. I think we'd do well to consider the idea of starvation in light of the spiritual sense. God does not let his kids suffer from spiritual poverty or need. He delights in meeting the needs of our hungry souls and the desires of our seeking hearts. God does not delight in seeing us crave more of him and then sit back while we "suffer" through that craving. In fact, it is that craving that he rewards - he immediately moves to see that craving fulfilled. The fulfillment of the craving for more of God's love, his grace, or his character created within us moves his heart into action.

God won't starve an honest soul - the thought of an "honest soul" gives us some indication that there may be times when we "play games" with God about the desires of our soul. I know this to be true in my life, so I am pretty well convinced that others play these "games" spiritually, as well. Let me just say that we often "say" we want more of God in our lives - but the intention of seeing that fulfilled is really not there. We half-way commit, by our own will-power, hoping to make some change in our lives that we see as making it possible for us to realize more of God's grace in our lives. The fact is that we cannot do anything to "make God" move in our lives. What God responds to is the honesty of our need. He responds to sincerity - not manipulative attempts to get him to do anything. Sometimes we think we can manipulate God to do what it is that we desire. Let me assure you that God is not moved by our manipulation - he is only moved by our honest estimation of our need and our sincere cries for more of him.

He frustrates the appetites of the wicked - we often wonder why we experience frustrations in our spiritual life. We might do well to examine our motives in approaching God with what we present as our "needs". He might be waiting until we are truly honest with him - in the meantime, we experience the frustration of waiting for his answer that seems to be delayed in coming our way. I am not saying we are "WICKED" in our approach to God, but we are not being honest about the intentions of our heart, mind, will, and emotions. We have things we are trying not to deal with - things God has clearly said we do need to deal with and we just haven't been obedient to his requests. God's delays create much frustration for us. Sometimes his delays are because of our own doing. He is waiting for us to come to a place of total honesty with him. At other times, he knows that the answer needs to be delayed simply because our heart, mind, will, and emotions are not prepared to receive what he has for us. Regardless of the delay, we experience frustration. That is a response to us perceiving that God is delaying something that we think we need, or that he is simply not listening - and we are 'starving'. The fact is....he always hears! He may delay simply because we need the time for that hunger to fully take hold!

So, let's learn to be honest with God in our needs. Come straight out and let him know where we are sensing our need right now. He will clarify if that need has a deeper source - if there is a hunger that goes much deeper than we are realizing. We need to trust him to respond to our honesty. I know we may find that foreign in our relationships - but with him, it is a prerequisite to having our needs met! The first step is recognizing our hunger, while the next steps may just be making ourselves available to receive what we need to fulfill that hunger! Just sayin!

A few gaps?

Mind in gear? What does that mean to you? When I consider a 'mind in gear', I think of the one who is deep in thought, creating, coming up with plans and ideas, or working to put those ideas into application. I think of the carver who looks at a plain piece of log and begins to fashion what he sees in his mind. I also think of the one who might calculate the risks and benefits of a particular set of actions and then formulate a plan they will act upon - such as a surgeon considering the best course to take with a patient to optimize their health. Having one's mind in gear is really a sign of being engaged in the process - you are more than a casual observer. God isn't after those who have all the answers as much as those who will engage with him and be more than casual observers in his kingdom.

So roll up your sleeves, put your mind in gear, be totally ready to receive the gift that’s coming when Jesus arrives. Don’t lazily slip back into those old grooves of evil, doing just what you feel like doing. You didn’t know any better then; you do now. As obedient children, let yourselves be pulled into a way of life shaped by God’s life, a life energetic and blazing with holiness. God said, “I am holy; you be holy.” (1 Peter 1:13 MSG)

As long as we are doing nothing more than 'casually observing' the promises and commands of God, we are never going to really grow into our full potential in Christ. We each have been given so much potential - but how we engage in the use of that potential determines if we will reach the fullest extent of it! God doesn't just ask us to follow him, all getting in a line and following after him like a game of "Simon says". He is looking for those who will learn of him, engaging in the things that exemplify his love and grace in our everyday lives. It doesn't take a 'message from on high' to take some actions - they are common sense! They are in alignment with his will because they exemplify his love and grace, so act upon them. 

We are shaped by God - that 'shape' takes form with each step which reveals our total engagement with the things he is teaching and doing in our lives. He looks for a mind in gear, a heart in total dedication, and a body willing to be used in the labor he sees fit for us to engage in. This is how he operates - ready hearts receive, open minds understand, and eager hands are set into service. It is easy to see that God is pleased when a life is willing to be pulled into a way of life shaped by his hands, energized by his Spirit, and filled by his grace!

Lest you or I think it is impossible to be holy (right, true, and honest), think again. God's existence in our lives actually fills us to overflowing with this 'rightness'. We are free to move about, not as 'unclean' and 'unholy', but as examples of his holiness. As such, we are also examples of his 'wholeness' - for where his presence dwells you will always find his grace filling every gap in a man's character that has been left by sin's outcome. If you feel a little 'drafty' today because of all of the 'gaps' in your character, take heart....those gaps are filled, sealing out all manner of unholiness because Christ isn't going to leave us deficient in any manner. Just sayin!

One is more than one

There is something that happens when God's people gather together. By the very experience of being together in one accord - no emphasis on differences, no focus on the inadequacies of each other, but simply being content to gather in his name, united in their worship - there is a door opened to heaven unlike any other time. We have lost the 'art' of being 'one' - it has become so easy to be divided, or critical of others that we just don't realize the power we are losing out on by not being 'one'.

When the Feast of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Without warning there was a sound like a strong wind, gale force—no one could tell where it came from. It filled the whole building. Then, like a wildfire, the Holy Spirit spread through their ranks, and they started speaking in a number of different languages as the Spirit prompted them. (Acts 2:1-4)

Without warning, an event began to transpire that would result in the transformation of the disciples like no other - the infilling of the Holy Spirit. The Old Testament is full of descriptions of times when the Holy Spirit "came upon" an individual and they were able to prophesy of the future events in the lives of God's people or do something out of the ordinary for the time. Here we see the transition of the Holy Spirit simply "coming upon" a few to the fulfillment of Jesus' promise that he would send another to "indwell" them - to be their guide, comforter, and teacher.

There were three manifestations that day - a sound, a sight, and a speaking - all served to not only get the attention of the disciples gathered, but also the onlookers as far away as those in the streets! The mighty wind, the cloven tongues of fire, and the various filling of the disciples with the ability to speak forth in what we hear referred to as "differing tongues" was reaching beyond the walls of their little upper room. If we recall the words of Christ just before he ascended to heaven, he had asked these disciples to remain in Jerusalem - because he was sending something (really someone) that would help them in their calling to be disciples to the nations. That someone was the Holy Spirit.

Wind and fire in the Old Testament are symbols commonly used to describe the Holy Spirit. Wind also was symbolic of the breath of God. Fire often referred to that which produced God's holiness by "burning up the chaff - in other words, it had a purifying effect. The Bible is rich in symbolism - God "tying" a symbol to a certain action or characteristic of his character. He does this because he knows we could never fully comprehend his holiness without some connection to the things we can see, feel, and can generally interpret with our senses. The Holy Spirit spread through their ranks - like a wildfire. This is an example of symbolism - as one was touched, others began to be touched - just like a small fire begins to spread out as it reaches new "kindling". These were readied hearts - they were just waiting for the spark to ignite the fire! 

 God has wonderful things in store for those who are first of all obedient - these disciples were waiting as they were told. He opens countless blessings to those who are yielded - their hearts were in one accord. His touch in the lives of his disciples has a multiplying effect - those near and those at a distance were impacted by this infilling experience. We are given the Holy Spirit to indwell us - be there every day of our lives as our comforter, guide, teacher - at the point of our welcoming Christ into our lives as Lord and Savior. There is a separate experience when we yield to the Lord, fully surrendering, bringing our hearts into one accord with his, and asking for the infilling of the Holy Spirit. The Baptism of the Holy Spirit - not of water, but of enduing power. This experience transforms like none other. It is an empowering, "cementing" experience that places us on a journey with Christ that is powerful and purposeful. If you have not experienced this in your own walk with Christ - perhaps today is the day. God is waiting - are you ready? Just askin!

Let's avoid this catastrophe

We find reminders within scripture of the promise that those whom God calls, he also equips or enables to do the work they are called to do. One of the various ways we are "equipped" is with the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives. The Spirit of Truth in our lives is resident within us as a result of our inviting Christ into our lives as our Savior - saying "yes" to Jesus. It isn't a complicated invitation - but sometimes we make the acceptance of that invitation way more complicated than it needs to really be!

If you love me, show it by doing what I've told you. I will talk to the Father, and he'll provide you another Friend so that you will always have someone with you. This Friend is the Spirit of Truth. The godless world can't take him in because it doesn't have eyes to see him, doesn't know what to look for. But you know him already because he has been staying with you, and will even be in you! (John 14:15-17)

What does it mean to have the Spirit of God resident within us? How does this equip us for the calling on our lives? We never walk alone - we always have someone with us. The Spirit of Truth walks where we walk, there with us each step of the way. No path we take is without his careful attention. We are enabled to love God - where the Spirit of God dwells, there is a love for the Father that is deeply rooted in heartfelt service to him. We have his presence with us enabling us to keep his commandments - no steps of obedience are harder than those attempted without his guidance and care.

The Holy Spirit resident within us also produces the evidence of a life change. We hear this referred to as the "fruit of the Spirit". Galatians 5:22-23 tell us, "But what happens when we live God's way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard—things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely." Break that down and you will see there is much 'fruit' that is just not for us to enjoy, but for us to fill the lives of others us with as we share bits and pieces of it each day.

Affection for others - the ability to look outside of ourselves and see the needs of those around us.
Exuberance about life - eagerness to live, no hesitation in our walk, freedom to embrace life.
Serenity - the ability to keep our cool, peacefulness, composure even in dark or intimidating circumstances. A willingness to stick with things - we call this commitment - the attitude and drive to complete what we begin, regardless of the cost. A sense of compassion in the heart - moved by the needs of those around us to the point that there is action behind the recognition of that need. A conviction that a basic holiness permeates things/people.

Loyal commitments - this work of the Holy Spirit in our lives gives us focus, keeping us on track with Christ, and centers our every movement on him. Not needing to force our way in life - where the Spirit of God is, there is a freedom to enter, the very words to speak when we are asked to give an accounting, and an open door. Sufficient energies for life's challenges - no excuses for us - the energies we need for the journey ahead have already been provided. Wise use of our energies - along with the energies for the task at hand comes the ability to choose wisely how to devote our time, talent and energies.

As you can see, the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives is indeed an enabling presence. Those called are enabled - not halfway, but entirely. There is sufficiency in all God does, all he provides, and all he prepares us for. The next time you want to talk God out of "calling" you, you might want to consider just how much he does to provide all you will need for that calling. The cost of rejecting his calling would definitely be catastrophic! Just sayin!