Confucius say...

But the wisdom that comes from God is like this: First, it is pure. It is also peaceful, gentle, and easy to please. This wisdom is always ready to help people who have trouble and to do good for others. This wisdom is always fair and honest. People who work for peace in a peaceful way get the blessings that come from right living. (James 3:17-18)

Right living is not always what we see modeled around us, is it? At times, we observe others and know their actions are going to create havoc. There are even times we can feel ourselves 'winding up' and know very well that the outcome of that 'wind up' will not fare well for us! Confucius once said, "By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest." We often revert to imitation because it is the easiest, but I also know from my own personal growth, experience has played a big part in how I view and react to life around me. Wouldn't it be wonderful if we always leaned toward reflection upon God's Word to give us wisdom for all of our actions?

God's wisdom comes in ways we may not even perceive until we come through on the other side of an encounter and realize we didn't respond as we might have expected. We 'handled' the situation with grace, dignity, and even a bit more gentleness than others may have thought it deserved. How did that happen? We allowed God's wisdom to lead us through, but only because we were prepared in advance to both hear and respond to that wisdom. Peaceful living isn't the result of just being passively launch out into our day. It is the result of taking time with Jesus, allowing him to take time with us, and then leaning into what he has shown us in those times of 'reflection' with him.

As Confucius said, reflection is the 'noblest', but we might just find it the hardest, too. Reflection requires us prioritizing the time we give toward discovering the truths God has for us. It requires the right frame of mind to lean in with the attitude of heart that is open to learning. I have read many a passage with the wrong frame of mind and left without even realizing what God was trying to teach me. Wisdom isn't 'accidental' - it is intentional. There is a purpose in coming to Jesus with our problems or worries, isn't there? There is a purpose in our coming to him to just learn a little more about how his grace works, how grace responds, or how grace moves beyond what one is experiencing into the place of seeing what God wants us to see in that moment. Just sayin!

Spent as he sees fit

Do what is good and run from evil so that you may live! Then the Lord God of Heaven’s Armies will be your helper, just as you have claimed. Hate evil and love what is good; turn your courts into true halls of justice. Perhaps even yet the Lord God of Heaven’s Armies will have mercy on the remnant of his people. (Amos 5:14-15)

We all face the enemy, but he doesn't always use the same attack for each of us. His attacks are all aimed at the same thing - getting us to turn our backs on righteousness. James 4:7 reminds us to "...humble ourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from us." Amos tells us to actually run from evil - either way, we are supposed to put some distance between us and our enemy! It is this 'distance' that can give us the time to regain right perspective in the midst of the battle. Without the 'distance', we could be overcome by the chaos of the attack!

How do we 'create distance' in our lives? If we are always living so close to the edge of making the right choices God desires of us and choosing to go our own way, we haven't created enough 'distance'. We need 'room' to think what our actions should be, but thinking through actions isn't going to work well if we do all our thinking 'in the moment'. This is why it is good to have time apart with Jesus each day. To give him our best and first. Then when we need time to 'think through' some decision to pursue one course over another, we have already had some groundwork prepared for that 'battle decision'. 

Hate evil and love what is good. The only way to develop the proper perspective about what is 'evil' and what is 'good' is to ask Jesus for that clarity - not just in the moment of temptation, but in those quiet times we set aside to learn from him. Does Jesus get your attention more than just during church service? If we aren't getting into the Word daily, we won't have the ammunition to fight the battle at hand during the week. Satan doesn't just attack on Sundays - he is right there with all of his 'evil intent' every day! We need to prepare for battle on a daily basis.

When I first tried to spend time each day with Jesus, there were lots of distractions that stole my attentiveness. I found myself giving into those distractions too often - the phone, the TV, the computer, the reminders on my calendar. I found that those distractions had to be 'managed' if I was to actually take even five minutes with him. My time with Jesus started as just that - five minutes in the morning. For those of you getting all 'judgy' on that one, don't! Five soon led to seven, and seven to fifteen. Now I don't even watch the clock. God manages my time - I just spend it as he sees fit. How about you? Just askin!

Read me, I'm reading you

Dwight L. Moody reminds us, "Where one man reads the Bible, a hundred read you and me." Truth be told, our actions are being 'read' each and every day by more people than we may realize. Jesus was talking with his disciples one day and reminded them, "When you pray, don't be like those show-offs who love to stand up and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners. They do this just to look good. I can assure you that they already have their reward. When you pray, go into a room alone and close the door. Pray to your Father in private. He knows what is done in private and will reward you." (Matthew 6:4-6) What reward will we have if all we do is 'show-off' for others, but neglect the importance of our relationship with Jesus?

Moody also told us to 'take care of our character' as it affects how others will perceive us. We may not realize this, but how others perceive us may not be the way we see ourselves! We need God's perspective in order to get a 'true picture' of our character. When we allow him to expose areas of weakness within our character, focusing on where and what he needs to change within us, we are more likely to reflect back actions that will point others to him. Yes, read your Bible. Yes, spend time in prayer. But...don't neglect taking time to just sit and listen to his still small voice. Our character is often refined more in those moments of obedient silence than they are in hours of 'church service' or 'showy Christian activities'. 

I have heard it said that character is really revealed in private. What we do in our private time, how we act when we are alone, this may be the greatest revelation of our 'inner man' than anything else. When I was a little kid, I would sneak away to eat that candy that I wasn't supposed to be eating. Why didn't I do it out in the open where others could see me? I wasn't supposed to be eating it! I chose to do 'in secret' what I was too afraid to do 'out in the open'. What we do in secret is more telling about our inner character than what we do out in public. Yet, what we do in secret is the basis for all we do in public. It lays a foundation for what others will 'read' in you and me. 

Maybe we need to consider Jesus' words carefully today. Do we do what we do 'in public' out of a genuine heart that has been transformed by Jesus in the quiet places we have shared together? Or our actions merely a 'cover-up' for not having spent time alone with him? Just askin!

Unshakable Lives

I’ve told you all this so that trusting me, you will be unshakable and assured, deeply at peace. In this godless world you will continue to experience difficulties. But take heart! I’ve conquered the world. (John 16:33)

Anyone live in a world that seems to shake all around them? Things are looking up one day - making it easy for you to let down your guard, but then down the next, making 'holding on to God's promises' more difficult on those down days. Trusting God when things are shaking all around you is kind of hard - we don't always feel 'assured', much less 'deeply at peace' with all the garbage going on around us. Our peace isn't in any 'thing' - it is in a person: Christ Jesus. Our assurance isn't based on what man knows, but rather on what God knows. There will always be times when we need to remind our hearts (and minds) to 'take heart' - because as long as we on this earth, we will be 'riding' those 'shaking waves'.

Unshakable doesn't mean we won't 'sense' the difficulties all around us - it means we won't be blown away by them. It is the result of 'abiding' in Christ. Abiding means there is a sense of 'permanence' in where we are planted. It is in 'continuing' in Christ that we develop steadfastness when all else around us seems to be crumbling away. How does one 'continue' in Christ? I think it is a little bit of a conscious effort coupled with a whole lot of trust in God to help us with the unconscious effort it will also require. We make a decision to spend time with Jesus (the conscious effort), then we trust him to bring us wave upon wave of peace when the toughness of the day closes in upon us (the unconscious effort). 

Deep and lasting (enduring, consistent, unshakable) peace isn't possible outside of an active and ongoing relationship with him. Too many times we trust that the little dribbles and drabs of time we spend with Jesus will make us strong. It may take more than three minutes a morning! Try keeping your house clean with only three minutes a morning invested in dusting, vacuuming, cleaning the toilets, washing the dishes, mopping the floors, and taking out the trash! It might be possible, but the 'deep-cleaning' isn't getting done, is it? The house is 'neat' and 'clean' appearing, but is it truly 'clean'? How do we expect to get the 'deeper cleaning' we need spiritually if we skimp on our time with Jesus each day? Unshakable lives aren't just going to happen 'by chance' - they are purposefully orchestrated. Just sayin!