Is it tangible or intangible?

Even strong young lions sometimes go hungry, but those who trust in the Lord will lack no good thing. (Psalm 34:10) 

David said, "“You are my Master! Every good thing I have comes from you.” (Psalm 16:2) Every good thing comes from you - I don't have anything of 'goodness' or 'value' apart from you, God. Because of his relationship with God, he lacks (has no need that is unmet) nothing. Whatever is good or 'beneficial' for us, God provides. Nowhere in scripture does it say all our 'wants' will be met, but we will never lack what God has determined to be of 'value' or 'benefit' for our lives. 

Sometimes we complain because we see something as 'beneficial' for us, but then we don't ever come to realize it in our lives. We forget that God might see it differently! He might actually be withholding that thing from our lives because it is far from 'beneficial' or 'good'! Now I have gone to meddling, haven't I? It is always good to remember God cares way more about our character and our relationship with him that produces that character than he does all our 'wants' that we think we 'need' in order to be happy in this lifetime. 

God gives us both the tangible and intangible. We need a new vehicle because ours has seen its best days and has resulted in mounting repair costs that far outweigh its value - God will give us a means to obtain a new vehicle. Will it be brand-spanking new? Not always - but it will be of a greater value than the one we have been sinking good money after bad into with all those repairs. We need to let go of bitterness or regret over missing out on some opportunities, so God helps us see the 'value' in letting go and in allowing him to bring about the good he desires in our lives. Tangible automobile, intangible healing of our wounded mind and emotions. 

The thing I think God wants us to see today is that it is not 'wrong' to want something, but not every 'want' is good for us. Sometimes we have to let God show us when those things we 'want' are not what he desires for us and then let them go so he can give us what we need. The thing that meets our need will be the very thing that brings about his character development within us. The intangible may be our need today - seek it wholeheartedly. The tangible may be our need - ask for that need to be met as God sees fit. Then trust him to meet both of those needs because he withholds no good thing from those he loves. Just sayin!

Want meets need

You have succeeded in life when all you really want is only what you really need. 

(Vernon Howard)

When all you really want is only what you really need - ponder that one for just a moment because I think we oftentimes aren't really content with what we need - we want more. In fact, society actually encourages us to live way beyond our needs - fulfilling those far out wants we may have. When our needs and wants grow closer and closer together, we may just be at the place of having drawn so near to God's heart that all those 'far out wants' aren't all that important anymore.

No doubt about it! God is good— good to good people, good to the good-hearted. But I nearly missed it, missed seeing his goodness. I was looking the other way, looking up to the people At the top, envying the wicked who have it made, Who have nothing to worry about, not a care in the whole wide world. (Psalm 73:1-5)

We can totally miss the goodness God provides within our lives when all we are pursuing is the long list of wants we can conjure up in our minds and hearts. There are times when I need to rein in my list of wants, but find it hard to do because my mind and heart are all mixed up in their pursuit. That is when I have to go to God and ask him to change my focus - because I have grown too intent on looking up to the wrong things and people in life. We can all find ourselves there at times, but God's greatest glory is revealed when we allow the change in who we 'put at the top' of our focus.

Whoever is intent on pursuing 'things at the top' as the world would desire will find they are very displeased with the outcome of such pursuits - they don't last and leave us wanting even more. If you have ever tried to eat just one potato chip, you know it is nearly impossible - one creates the taste for another. The same is true when we focus on 'things at the top' as the world portrays them - things they declare we cannot live without. We 'taste' a bit of what is offered and then we want even more. 

When wants match needs it isn't by accident - it is because we have allowed our thoughts to be filtered by the Word of God and the Holy Spirit within. Filtered to the point we don't 'crave' what isn't going to fulfill us. Filtered so that all we want becomes more of God's grace, love, and presence. I daresay we all have experienced that place a bit from time to time, but how awesome would it be to actually live there all the time? Just askin!

More, More, More - a close second to Me, Me, Me

It is that time of year when kids everywhere begin to write out their wish lists for Christmas. At first, the new bike or gaming system is all they want, then the list begins to grow and grow and grow. We actually encourage our kids to 'complete' this wish list task by writing a letter to Santa. As the list grows, so does the discontent - the more we want the more discontent we become with what we have. Discontent can produce positive outcomes in life - such as when we are no longer content just barely being able to button our jeans and we begin a concerted effort to avoid the cookies and put in a little more exercise everyday. Discontent can also have a very negative outcome when it drives us to compare what we have with what another has, then begin to complain about what we don't have in this life. What makes the difference between the positive and negative outcome with discontentment? I believe it is where we turn with our discontent - turn in the right direction toward God and his graces in our lives and the outcome will be much more positive than if we turn inward and just focus on our wants.

Don’t love the world’s ways. Don’t love the world’s goods. Love of the world squeezes out love for the Father. Practically everything that goes on in the world—wanting your own way, wanting everything for yourself, wanting to appear important—has nothing to do with the Father. It just isolates you from him. The world and all its wanting, wanting, wanting is on the way out—but whoever does what God wants is set for eternity. (I John 2:15-16)

Wanting your own way - does that sound familiar to anyone? As itty-bitty kids we begin to form this discontent with not getting our own way. We want to be held, so we cry until someone picks us up. We want to be fed, so we whine and whimper until someone breaks out the biscuits. We want dry bottoms, so we cry out as though our lungs were about to explode until someone replaces the wet diaper with a dry one, applying some soothing ointment to boot. As we get older, we still want our own way - it is just that we have gotten a little more 'discreet' in how we maneuver our wants into the conversation or the moment. When God asks us to do something that we don't want to do, how do we react to his request? Sometimes we ignore it, hoping he will forget he asked. At others, we outright refuse, putting us on some pretty shaky ground because of our rebellion. Either way, wanting our own way will not serve us well.

Wanting everything for ourselves - that began in the crib and oftentimes it continued into our adulthood. No one took our toys - no one interrupted what we wanted to have in our possession. From our toys to our time - it is ours and no one will take it away from us. Have you ever stopped at the end of a day and looked back at how much you thought you'd do and just what you actually got done? Someone interrupted your day and you didn't use that time the way you wanted it to be used. They made a drain on your day. We cannot control time any better than we can control the weather. We want it all for ourselves, but God specifically puts others in our path because he wants us to give of what is ours so the lives of those others will be made better in the process. We cannot always have everything - including time - for ourselves any more than we can have our own way.

Wanting to appear important - notice it says 'appear' important because importance is an illusion. It is evasive. It changes from day to day. What was important today will not be as important tomorrow. In the end, wanting to appear important is just a pathetic way of admitting we find our self-worth or 'value' in how others see us - the impression they have of us. If we focus less on wanting our own way, as well as wanting everything for ourselves, the 'value' others will see in us will be far greater anyway. Maybe this is why God puts those two first in this passage - because if we deal with those correctly, then we won't be as concerned with this one. We will be positive examples of his love and grace - the things that give us the 'reality' of being 'valued' individuals in this world. 

Wanting, wanting, wanting - it isolates us from God. It sends us on a trajectory that will eventually have us spinning out of control in this world. If we desire to do what God wants and asks us to do, we will find a deeper satisfaction in life. We will live fuller lives and be less concerned with how we 'appear' and more concerned with how much others see of Christ in us. Just sayin!

What are you doing with those needs?

For a great many of us, prayer is a kind of "hey, God, it is me again" approach. We find ourselves going to him repeatedly for much the same thing, maybe laying it all out again in just a slightly different manner, but doing so because we just "need" something that only he can provide. There are also times when we simply pussy-foot around the whole matter that is niggling at our brains and pulling at our heartstrings because we aren't entirely comfortable talking to him about it. Regardless of our reluctance to actually lay those things out before him openly and honestly, he knows what they are, so all our pussy-footing around isn't really helping the matter. There is just something that comes when we are open, direct, and totally honest with ourselves and him in prayer - it is often referred to as "he answers"!

Jesus came down the mountain with the cheers of the crowd still ringing in his ears. Then a leper appeared and went to his knees before Jesus, praying, "Master, if you want to, you can heal my body." (Matthew 8:1-2)

Somehow, we have learned that we cannot be forthright with God about our needs, fears, hopes, etc. We have developed a skill of "sugar-coating" them, or not even presenting them to him at all. Either way, we are denying God exactly what he wants to do! God is delighted to take care of us - not just in meeting every one of our "wants" we might lay out before him without issue, but also in meeting those "needs" we may not be quite comfortable discussing with him at first. Jesus' immediate response back to the leper was a hearty, "You betcha, I wanna!" The man was made whole again - no sign of his leprosy! I wonder just how much time we allow to go by with unmet spiritual, emotional, and physical needs simply because we don't lay it out there before God. When we are honest with God, he has a chance to be involved in our lives as he desires to be.

Let me just say that we may have a difficult time at first trying to decipher between our "wants" and our "needs" as we approach God in prayer. Yet, if we are forthright about both in our times with God, he will sort them out! The leper had been living with a disease that separated him from his family, friends, and his worship. His healing was more than physical - it restored him in so many ways. Jesus did not look at this fellow and say, "Now, Mr. Leper Man, is this really a need?" Nope, he saw the man's faith and he responded with a resounding, "I wanna do that for you!" - and he healed him.  Here's the thing - if you "wanna" grow in your relationship with God, then he wants to help you grow. If we "wanna" be free of our fears, then he wants to help us develop the faith to trust him with what it is we are fearful of in our lives. If we "wanna" let go of ill feelings toward another, then he wants to help us get out from under the burden of carrying all that baggage. If we "wanna" new SUV when the old one is still in awesome condition, God may not see that as a need at the moment - we already have something that is blessing us with faithful transportation right now - so the answer may be that we need to wait.

Isn't it time that we start laying it all out before God, allowing him to sort through the needs and the wants in our lives. The desire of God's heart is that we come to him with the faith to give him what it is that is on (and in) our heart - those things that burden us, keep us bound, and chew up so much of our attention trying to "fix" or "live with" them. He wants to meet our needs - we just have to "wanna" give them to him! Just sayin!

But I want this....

I know Louis L'Amour was not really trying to wax philosophical when he said a good beginning make a good end, but he hit the nail on the head! The roughest beginnings can make for a very bumpy ride alone the way. The easiest beginnings can help us to get along the trail a little quicker, but the trail always has its own twists and turns, making the journey sometimes a little tougher than we first suspected it would be!

God’s way is perfect. The Lord’s promise always proves to be true. He protects those who trust in him. There is no God except the Lord. There is no Rock except our God. God is the one who gives me strength. He clears the path I need to take. He makes my feet as steady as those of a deer. Even on steep mountains he keeps me from falling. (Psalm 18:30-33 TLB)

Despite the beginnings, God's presence can make the journey bearable until it ends! There is no greater beginning than to begin with God - even if the start is a little rough around the edges. Most of us just need to get to the place we actually "start" - we just talk about beginnings and don't ever step up to the gate! Here's something I learned a long, long time ago - we get nowhere if we don't take the first step! We can spend a lot of time "admiring", "imagining", or "dreaming" of what we want to do, but until we actually step out to do it, we are just daydreaming!

God's ways are perfect - even when ours are a little messed up around the edges. His promises will prove true - even when the journey makes it a little unlikely that we will get out 'unchanged' or 'unscathed'. The moment we move from imagining the end and begin to take the steps to trust in what we come to call the beginning, the more we learn how very faithful God is when we place our trust in him.

I don't want you to miss one very important part of our passage today - "He clears the path I need to take." It isn't always the path I want to take. It isn't always the path you want me to take. It is the path which NEEDS to be taken. God knows what we NEED just as much as he knows what we WANT. Those two aren't always the same, are they? I want to be fishing. I need to be at work. I want to eat chocolate. I need to eat an apple. I want to be independently wealthy. I need to work for a living. Yup, those two aren't always the same!

Trust is the basis for any "good beginning" - making the "ending" more likely to be "spot on" for what we need in our life. What or who we trust in is one of the most important things we can establish prior to stepping out. We begin well when we have our trust rightly placed - even though we may not know the ending. We place our trust in a whole lot of dreams and fail to recognize those dreams aren't actually going to keep us for the "long haul" of the journey. The path we need to take may actually be contrary to our dreams - learning to trust God to refine the dreams so the dream matches the need is key to taking the "right" first steps! Just sayin!