Maybe not the lifestyle you planned

When I was a young adult, one of the shows gaining popularity was this show which featured lots and lots of well-to-do people and how they lived.  It was called "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous", featuring Robin Leach "showing off" the homes of those who enjoyed what some considered an "elite" lifestyle. Ball players from major leagues, actors and actresses, and a myriad of other rather insanely rich people had opulent homes and properties which made eyes pop and people dream about what it would be like to live with such luxury.  It must have hit the mark for many a TV viewer as the series ran for 11 years!  One home caught my attention more than any of the others.  It was the one Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz lived in located in Beverly Hills, California.  Why?  I think it was the simplicity of their lifestyle in a region where "magnitude", "frills", and "effect" were all the rage.  Their home looked like a "regular" home from the outside - just another home out of an era gone by.  Sure, they had a pool and a nice lounging area in the backyard, but the home looked "lived in" and kind of like what "regular" people would be able to inhabit.  All the other homes we saw were massive in comparison, with all kinds of "bells and whistles".  I think this is why this one stuck with me - complete with card table, clean kitchen and piano. Nothing screams for attention more than the "gaudiness" of trying to "put on the Ritz" like so many of those portrayed did in their homes.  Nothing shows the shallowness of life quite like the need to "show" what one has.  Lest anyone think I am equating Lucille Ball's lifestyle to the one we all need to adopt, I am merely comparing two obviously differing "philosophies" on how one will handle their wealth or good fortune in life.  What we have is one thing, who we are at the core of our being is quite another!  What we have may be on "display" in life for others to admire and drool over; what we display from the recesses of our heart is what really speaks the loudest though!

The lifestyle of good people is like sunlight at dawn that keeps getting brighter until broad daylight. The lifestyle of the wicked is like total darkness, and they will never know what makes them stumble. (Proverbs 4:18-19 CEV)

The closer we draw to Christ, the brighter our lifestyle becomes.  The evidence of his presence begins to "ooze" out of the recesses of our heart - we cannot contain what he creates within us - it is meant to be shared.  It may not be the same "opulence" displayed in those "Lifestyle" homes, but let me assure you, it rises above even the most elaborate and fancy of those!  Our lives are mirror images of what we spend time facing long enough.  For example, turn toward sports frequently enough as something which consumes your attention and you will find your home begins to reflect this "affection".  You will decorate in the team colors, display a few team memorabilia, and even begin to talk stats about team performance.  This is just part-and-parcel with being a "fan" or "devotee" to the sport!  Now, think about considering Christ in just the same manner. If we are dedicating just as much time to him, we might just see a little bit of him reflected back to us in all we say and do!

We sometimes think the more we focus on something the closer we will be to obtaining it in our own lives.  Yet, so much of what we spend time focusing on is just an elusive object, position, or scheme.  The truth of the matter is pretty plain - we focus on the wrong stuff and then wonder why we don't see more of Christ manifest in our lives.  Unless we spend time looking into the mirror of his face, we won't see what he sees!  Even when we spend just a little time with him each and everyday, we become more and more like him just because we begin to see reflected back some of his glory and "brightness" in our lives. It is impossible to behold the presence of God and not be affected by it!  In much the same way as "big dreamers" were affected by seeing the show I referenced above, we can be affected by time with Jesus.  Many think it has to be dedicated time on our knees, long hours in church, and the like.  I am here to challenge that a little bit today.

It isn't the "quantity" of time - it is the quality.  Do we spend enough time in the Word?  To answer that I would have to ask you if the Word is having an affect on you, regardless of whether you read a verse or two, or an entire chapter. The quantity isn't the issue - it is the quality.  Do we spend time in prayer in the "right" way?  I am not a "kneeler", so I pray on my feet, sitting in the car on the way to work, when someone comes into my office, and while just sitting reflecting on the beauty of the garden.  Prayer is just talking to God about the regular stuff of life.  It isn't always this structured, totally organized methodology.  I won't win any points on "organization" as it comes to my prayers.  I just let them flow and let God take care of putting "organization" to them.  Do we spend enough time with his people?  I guess this is up for interpretation for most.  I have been a three service a week church-goer, to a one service a week church-goer.  I have attended small groups and gone periods without one.  There is a balance which must be maintained between it all.  This is all I am saying.

The most telling part of walking with Jesus is the evidence of us having walked with him.  This is the focus of my life and the hope I have for each of you. When others look upon your "lifestyle", my prayer is that they don't see the "opulence" of the world, but that which comes from having beheld the face of Jesus!  Just sayin!

Lifestyles of the Righteous - Part II

 ^11-12 You know I've been aboveboard with you; now be aboveboard with me.
   I'm on the level with you, God; I bless you every chance I get.

(Psalm 26:11-12)

Yesterday we began to explore the lifestyle characteristics of a man or woman of God - one that has determined to take a stand for Jesus.  Today, we continue with those character traits picking up with the sixth verse of this Psalm in which David outlines the company he keeps - joining hands with others around the altar of God.  He spent some time in the previous verses outlining that he did not have the same type of relationship with those that were in a position of being enemies of God.  Instead, he makes his company with those who have a broken spirit, yearning for the fellowship with God that he has come to desire by separating himself unto service for the King of Kings.

It is interesting that he begins this passage with the idea of cleansing:

 ^6-7 I scrub my hands with purest soap, then join hands with the others in the great circle, dancing around your altar, God, singing God-songs at the top of my lungs, telling God-stories. 

David recognized that his ability to fellowship with God and with those God had provided in his life was conditioned on maintaining a clean heart.  Nothing drives a wedge between us and God faster than entertaining sin in our hearts.  Nothing destroys relationship with each other faster than having disloyalty in our hearts.  David is picturing a group of individuals that have loyal hearts - determined to live obediently.

David is picturing a life of separation in these passages - separation from the world's passions and pursuits, separation from sin, and separation distractions.  He pictures unity.  A life dedicated to Christ is earmarked by the desire and ability to bring unity within relationships.  Living a separate life does not mean that we are all "walled up" inside our little world, absent and insensitive to those around us.  In fact, it is quite the opposite - it is a life of sensitivity to the need for showing another what the grace of God looks like by living out that grace in our daily lives.

Another characteristic emphasized in this passage is that of worship - there is a desire to be with God's people, in God's presence - to share in worship of the King of Kings.  There is not so much a desire to "go to church" as there is a desire to "be God's church" - gathered together in unity, cleansed of sin, and partaking of the presence of God.  There is something about being "clean" that gives us a sense of the "sanctuary" of our salvation.  God's presence is a place of retreat (refreshing), shelter (restoration), and defense (protection).  

The last characteristic pictured by David is that of being full of praise for God.  We often link praise with blessing.  When we are blessed, we feel like praising the one who has blessed us.  When we don't sense any blessing in the circumstance, we often want to curse the circumstance and often the one who initiated it!  We rely too much on how we feel, rather than relying on who it is that is with us - both in the times of blessing and in the times of leanness.  David is our example here - he did more than ask God for blessings in his life.  He frequently is found taking time to consider God's greatness, his grace, his many interventions in David's life - in doing this, he was "blessing" God.

The Lifestyles of the Righteous - the beginning point is in "taking a stand" for God.  The end of that choice is that of a blessed and assured life.  

Lifestyles of the Righteous - Part I

 ¹² My feet stand on level ground;
   in the great congregation I will praise the LORD.

(Psalm 26:12)

In some translations, this passage begins with "I have taken a stand" - indicating that David has made a heart determination to be on the Lord's side.  There are certain lifestyle characteristics of one who has determined to stand with the Lord - unyielding in their commitment or allegiance.  It has been said that if we don't stand for something, we will stand for nothing - pointing us to the important fact that what we "stand for" both determines our course and leaves a legacy for those that follow.

The lifestyle characteristics are outlined in the other verses of this chapter.  Beginning with the first two verses, David's asking God to test him and try him - examining his heart and his mind. The desire to be tested by God is not something for the weak!  David is not looking for the judgment of men here - he is not seeing if he measures up to some standard arbitrarily declared to be the "standard" we are to follow.  He asks God to hold up HIS standard and then to make a comparison between his life and that holy standard.  When we have that mindset and heart determination, we live above the various judgments of men - let them think what they want, God's judgment is all that matters.  

As a matter of second request, David gives God permission to put him "on trial". This is used when someone is seeking to have a formal examination of a matter or someone.  It implies that there will be both a testing of the quality of the commitment, but also a determination of the value of the thing being examined.  The value is something that is assigned after the examination is complete - like when we assign a "value" to a piece of property after it has been appraised.  David is really asking God to affirm his usefulness in God's hands - that God has a specific place and use for him.

David has declared in the opening statements of this chapter that he has "trusted in the Lord without wavering".  He has the characteristic of being faithful.  His faithfulness is made easier because he has made God the center of his focus.  David is pointing us toward the necessity for having both a heart and a mind that is free of vacillation in it choice to serve God - no hesitation in commitment, no second-guessing the journey.

He goes on to show us the importance of living dependent on the Word of God.  It is more than a familiarity with the Word of God that he is declaring here - it is an awareness of the Word of God and an adherence to what it says.  When we have truth exposed, we have two choices - embrace it or reject it.  David says that a man or woman of God has made the choice to embrace it, no matter the cost.  When we are "adhering" to the Word, we are first remaining loyal to the study of the Word.  Then we are learning obedience to it - allowing it to be fused to our heart.

Tomorrow, we will look at the remaining lifestyle characteristics of a man or woman that has taken a stand that are outlined for us in this Psalm.   Our starting point is in making the commitment - that leads to the willingness to be put on trial (examined).  What gives us the ability to "pass the exam" is two-fold:  We have trusted God for our right-standing with him, and we have opened ourselves to the adherence to all he asks us to do.