More than just available

Who can see into a man’s heart and know his thoughts? Only the spirit that dwells within the man. In the same way, the thoughts of God are known only by His Spirit.  You must know that we have not received the spirit of this rebellious and broken world but the Spirit that comes from God, so that we may experience and comprehend the gifts that come from God.  We do not speak of these gifts of God in words shaped by human wisdom; we speak in words crafted by the Spirit because our collective judgment on spiritual matters is accessible to those who have the Spirit.  But a person who denies spiritual realities will not accept the things that come through the Spirit of God; they all sound like foolishness to him. He is incapable of grasping them because they are disseminated, discerned, and valued by the Spirit.  A person who walks by the Spirit examines everything, sizing it up and seeking out truth. But no one is able to examine or size up that kind of spiritual person,  for the Scripture asks, “Does anyone know the mind of the Lord well enough to become His advisor?” But we do possess the mind of the Anointed One.  (I Corinthians 2:11-16 VOICE)

I have spoken with individuals who are certain Satan can read their minds. The intent of a man's heart and what he has in his thoughts are known by two individuals - God and that man! Since we have God's Spirit indwelling us, we can know the thoughts of God - good news for those of us who have intentions and thoughts not perfectly aligned with the way we should be thinking and living. If it is possible for us to know the thoughts of God because the Spirit of God lives within us and reveals those to us, then it is possible for his thoughts to begin to "override" our own. Too many of us want to believe like the old comedian Flip Wilson that "the devil made me do it", when all the while it is likely the thoughts we acted upon were merely influenced by the spirit of the rebellious world all around us. We don't have to succumb to that influence, though, for the influence living right inside of us is greater than any external influence could ever be!

The truths of God are disseminated, discerned, and valued by each of us because of the Spirit of God which indwells us.  Disseminated means they are sent out in some reasonable order and with a specific purpose.  When we set the table at night for the evening meal, the things placed on the table are disseminated on the various place mats. We each get a fork, napkin, and plate. We each might get a knife if the meal requires us to cut up some food. We might even get a spoon if the meal will include some items which are not easily eaten with a fork. What is disseminated is meant to be used - it is important we receive it, put it to use, and let it bring nourishment into our lives. In a similar way, what comes from the mind of God is given to us in specific measure, for a designated purpose, and with the intent of bringing growth to our lives in infinite measure. The ability to discern is very much like the ability to discriminate one thing from the other. If we were to use the fork to try to eat our soup, we might miss out on a lot of the good part of the soup! We have been given the spoon because it is the right utensil by which we may ingest the soup. In the same way, God wants us to use the things he gives us - because they have a purpose and will be most useful when we discriminate (through his Spirit) the specific intent of those things.

We all go through life "sizing things up" - from the outfit that fits the bill for the weather expected and tasks we will perform today, to the best route we can take to reach our destination. We also size up other individuals - judging them in small ways by the things they reveal about themselves and even those things they don't reveal!  A word of caution here - God knows the heart of that man or woman we are judging by what we determine to be "revealed" or "concealed". He is able to show us the "real" individual, not just the things we can see with the naked eye. This is only one way God helps us - by seeing as he sees. When we allow the Spirit of God within us to show us what God sees in another individual, we begin to see God has placed a value upon that individual which may just be different than how we'd see them without God's help. This is one way God's thoughts begin to guide our own and allow us to become "discerning" in actions. 

While God makes himself available to us - readily accessible to us so that we can learn and grow as we are each designed to in his grace - he isn't going to do a little "mind control" over us like some magician on the stage. He gives us access to his mind because we need the wisdom which comes from above, not that which emanates from a rebellious and confused world. He gives us freedom to ask him for direction and course guidance because he knows how easily we can get ourselves all twisted up when we rely upon our own way of thinking and actions which come from those confused thought patterns. He helps us with the right tools because he knows we won't grow if we don't have access to them. As with the spoon and fork on the place mat at dinner tonight, we only benefit from what we put into use. Much is given to us, but not all of it is used. We might do well to ask God how to use what we are given, in the right way and for the specific purpose they are provided, in order to see the specific way he intends for those things to impact not only our lives, but the lives of those living around us in this terribly confused world.  Just sayin!

Who's playing you?

 ^8-9"Don't think you need a lot of extra equipment for this. You are the equipment...  ^12-13Then they were on the road. They preached with joyful urgency that life can be radically different; right and left they sent the demons packing; they brought wellness to the sick, anointing their bodies, healing their spirits.

(Mark 6:8-9; 12-13)

The disciples are being sent out in pairs to begin to reach out to those in need.  Their goal is to preach that the Kingdom of God is at hand and to heal the sick - setting the captive free.  Before they go, Jesus takes a moment to give them their "marching orders".  The first thing he focuses on is the human tendency to tell God we don't have what we need to accomplish what it is that he is asking us to do.  Jesus tells them not to be concerned about the "equipment" to perform the tasks ahead - letting them know in no uncertain terms that THEY are the equipment God needs and plans to use.

This is an important message for us to receive - WE are the equipment God intends to use.  It is not the fancy church buildings, the elaborately designed outreaches to the community, or the mega-bucks sound system.  It is HUMAN BEINGS that God uses as instruments to touch other HUMAN BEINGS.  God knows our tendency to make excuses for what we view as a "lack" of ability on our parts - citing reason after reason for us not being able to reach out with the message of hope to those in need.

God has no other plan.  We are his only plan.  If we don't step up to the plan, the message is not going out as he intended - each of us with our unique ability to touch our own unique peer group.  You know what it sound like when an orchestra of instruments like the oboe, violin, cymbals, french horns, flutes, etc., all play in unison.  It is a thing of beauty - the unity of sound (each unique in its own way) bring forth a beautiful result.  That is what God has in mind for us - each "playing his/her own part".

Look at their response to Jesus.  They went as he commanded.  No arguments.  They did what he commanded.  Amazingly, his Spirit was right there, backing up everything they were doing.  The simple fact of truth here is that we step out in obedience, God is right alongside to back up each one of us.  We never stand alone - never need to worry about the message we preach.  

Look at their attitude.  They preached with joyful urgency.  Why?  Simply because they knew they had a message of hope.  They had experienced first-hand that God's presence in their lives made life radically different.  That is what we have the ability to share - the radical life change of a life touched by the grace of God.  There ought to be an urgency burning within each of us to share what it is that God has done in us.  The grace of God is best embraced when its results can be demonstrated!

Look at the results of their obedience.  The Spirit of God intervened.  The communities they touched were changed for the glory of God.  Lives were impacted with the grace of God - healing and transforming lives.  There is always an impact when God's kids step out in obedience.  It is impossible for things to remain the same.  Lives will be changed.

YOU are his instrument.  There are a lot of saxophones in this world, but each of them sounds so much better when someone like Kenny G takes hold of it and begins to bring forth music from it!  Each of us begins to realize our true calling when we yield to the skilled direction of our Lord and Master.

The right tool produces the right cut

^1-3 "I am the Real Vine and my Father is the Farmer. He cuts off every branch of me that doesn't bear grapes. And every branch that is grape-bearing he prunes back so it will bear even more. You are already pruned back by the message I have spoken.

(John 15:1-3)

An age-old question:  Why does a tree or vine need to be pruned?  Doesn't it hurt it?  Won't it die if we do all that cutting?  I remember watching Dad take out the pruning sheers, oiling them a little, sharpening the blades, and then cutting the bushes, vines and trees until they barely resembled what they were.  In the end, they looked "naked" - cut back almost to the point of what I considered to be "death".

What I did not understand was that proper pruning produces even more growth and prolongs the life of the tree or bush.  In fact, Dad would point out that an un-pruned tree could actually be a hazard - branches breaking off in windstorms or causing damage to roofs and surrounding structures as they swayed in the wind.  In our yards, we want things that enhance the beauty of the yard, so the purpose of pruning is to keep things "in shape" so that they contribute enhancing effects to the landscape.  In the orchard, pruning has a significantly different purpose - it is designed to get more fruit, earlier fruit, and healthier fruit.

Pruning is usually done during the dormant season - when the tree or bush has less sap flowing, leaves are not consuming all the life-flow of that sap, and the health/lack of health of the branches becomes very evident.  The one thing I learned from Dad was that the right tool produces the right cut.  Use the wrong tool and you may splinter off the branch, leaving a ragged cut that was neither beautiful, nor conducive to further growth the next season.  In fact, "where" you cut the branch is just as important as the tool you use to do the cutting.

You always cut near the "collar" of the branch - where it joins in with the branch you want to have remain.  Why?  It produces a better cut that ends the life of that pruned branch and focuses the growth potential on the branch that remains.  You go to where a large branch "V" occurs and cut it off at the "V" - leaving no indication that the branch existed except for evidence of the "cut".  This forms the tree into the shape you desire.

Dad never "topped" trees - he always pruned them.  For those of you that don't know what it is to "top" a tree or bush, it is the arbitrary cutting to do nothing more than shape the tree/bush.  There is no care in where the cuts occur.  What ends up happening is that the tree or bush sends off many more shoots from that area, increasing the wildness of the growth instead of stopping growth in that area.

If you can draw a few lessons today from what Dad taught me, they would probably be this:

• God never prunes us for the sake of just "pruning" - he always has an intention in mind - healthy growth, staying some wayward growth in our lives, and/or the production of fruit.
• God uses the best technique for the "pruning" in order to accomplish the desired results - if it is to stop us in our tracks before we become too "wild" in our growth, then he even does that.
• God is concerned with the end result - not just with the appearance of health.  He wants to see solid growth, productive lives, and healthy relationships.  To that end, he prunes.
• God always uses the appropriate instrument to get the desired result of his pruning.  Sometimes it is a saw, producing a more noticeable "cut" in our lives - other times, it is the sheers, just barely cutting away a small sucker or a branch that is not looking as healthy.

We have a great "gardener" in Jesus.  We can trust him with his "pruning" techniques and the exact timing of his work.  He is skilled at what he does and he understands what each "pruning" will produce.  We can embrace the pruning if we trust the one doing the pruning!