This posting is from my social media page however, the three posts all came within a single 9 hours period, so I thought I would share on here as well.
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"I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you" ~ Matthew 5:44 (NKJV)
Now then, take a cue from the book of James here and do not merely read that and then just forget about it (James 1:23-24). The Word of God is meant to change you - the way you think, respond and act - it is not meant to be merely glanced at, acknowledged with a head nod and a "yep" and then forgotten about five seconds later.
I do not know what they did to you. I do not know what they have said about or to you, the slanders against you, the way they betrayed you and your trust or anything else, any more than you know mine. I do know that when the early Church practiced doing this, they were being hunted and killed like animals (and sometimes by animals). So am thinking, if they could pray for those people then, maybe we can for the ones who have hurt, used and betrayed us as well.
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Now here is an interesting exercise/undertaking to try.
Take a look at the people currently - or previously - in your life. Not the obvious good influence people though (like that teacher who encouraged you or whatever). No, look at the ones who have hurt you, betrayed you, lied to and about you, used you and so. Now take a look and see what you got from them. See what it is that God showed you about yourself, others or Himself through your less than wonderful experiences with them. If you are a believer, then there most likely is something good in there - although you may have to be intentional to see or find it (If you are not a believer, try it anyway - may find a surprise or two hidden beneath the pain).
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So with the previous status in mind, I would like to write a little thank you note (no names obviously) to those who - with God's help - helped make me whom I am today.
A thank you, to the one who pretended to be a friend to my face but was anything but when apart from me. By the grace of God, I was still a friend to you so I have learned that I can offer help, friendship and trust to those whom have not earned it and that I am capable of overlooking minor offenses.
A thank you to the one who betrayed my confidence and my trust. By the grace of God, I did not return the favor and respond in kind. So I have learned that I can keep another in confidence, even when it would serve my wounded feelings to not do so.
A thank you to the one I loved who merely used and abused me because you could so. By the grace of God, I loved you in spite of it all. I learned I can actually truly love another human being without them having to earn it somehow.
A thank you to the one who took advantage of my heart, passion and compassion. By the grace of God, I did not withhold anything from you, even though I knew what you were doing. I learned that I would rather have my heart on my sleeve and risk the pain, than to wall it in and feel nothing.
For each of these, I say "by the grace of God" for it is Him I credit with good coming out of things and events which most certainly were not. I say thank you to the "one" but there has surely been more than one. Oh, one more thing I have learned: that my God will never, ever leave me.
PS: No, I do not want to have any more of any ill thing or event in my life, if that is all the same to you - just worth the mentioning.
It is almost a shame that our faith grows and our character is forged faster and greater when we go through the storm than when we are laying comfortably on the beach. Still, not about to go chasing storms.
One final note: I do not say or offer any of those "thank yous" in a hateful, "holier than thou" or smug manner - each is sincere. For if they did not provide the storm, I never would have seen the rainbow.
Wednesday, July 30, 2014
Tuesday, July 22, 2014
Hey, Buddy!
Now while no few of us know that our faith is relational, I ponder if perhaps some of us may have that relationship a bit skewed. For instance, while God does call us friend that does not make us equals. It is not the same as you accepting your friend and them accepting you, each as you are and then just carrying on with life from there. We may be accepted as we are but God is far from content with the idea of us staying the way we are nor is He going to meet us in the middle as far as character goes. He is not about to say "well you gave it a shot and missed so just carry on with life and I will lower my standards for you". God does not change after all, but He does expect us too.
Biblically speaking, the most common relational term for God is Father and I believe it is safe to say He chose that term for a reason. While not all of us (any of us?) have had perfect parental relationships, I think we likely have an idea of what the ideal looks like even if not from our own experience. With the parent being yes, a friend in many ways, but also protector and provider as well as being the one who attempts to shape our characters as we grow as opposed to just letting us "run wild". In this, we see the relationship between us and God all the clearer. We may often want Him to just "be our buddy" but He is Father first and foremost in the relationship between us. Unfortunately, far too often, we do just look at Him as aquaintance or buddy most of the time and only look for Father when we want something or we have gotten ourselves into a mess (again).
Consider Tom and Bill, life long friends, even though Tom is a bit older than Bill. Now then, Tom is an officer in the military - a colonel to be precise. Bill, after he graduates from high school, decides to enlist in the army himself and, as luck would have it, Bill and Tom find themselves assigned to the same base. Now Tom is an "officer's officer" - all business and thorough as they come when it really matters. Bill on the other hand, well, let's just say his work ethic leaves something to be desired by times. So needless to say, military life is a bit of a shocker to Bill. But hey, his best buddy ever Tom is here and he has some real pull so he can get him out of all kinds of things - at least that is what Bill is thinking. The reality though is that Tom seems to be a bit harder on Bill than anyone else on the base is, which causes some internal confusion for poor Bill - enough so that he goes to Tom's office and asks for permission to speak freely...and gets it.
Bill puts it all out there. He and Tom have been friends forever and Tom knows what Bill is like. He also knows how hard a lot of the stuff he has to do really is so why, why is Tom not bailing him out of it. For that matter, why does it apprear that Tom is actually being harder on Bill than on anyone else.
Tom explains that he is indeed Bill's friend and that they are likely each other's best friends ever. On the base however, Tom is first and foremost an officer. He holds the life of all those beneath him in his hands. If he fails at his role, then people may die. And if he allows Bill to take an easier road than the others, or if he allows Bill to just coast through, then his best friend in the entire world may wind up dead - and it would be his fault because he choose to be his buddy instead of being his commanding officer.
Let's be honest here, most of our lives on this world we are Bill. We want the easy way out and really do not want to have to change anything about ourselves. Sometimes we may find ourselves in a "Tom position" but mostly we are just Bill and with God, we are always just Bill. We just want Him to be our buddy and not our Commanding Officer. But that is not the reality of things. He is indeed our friend but the Lord of Heaven's armies (Jer. 44:25) is, first and foremost, our CO. He knows what is on the line far better than we do. He knows what horror will face us should He allow us to just coast along unchanged. He knows when trouble and battles (life, temptations, habits, etc) come our way, we will be quickly over run so He knows we must be changed in order to stand any of it at all. But He does not throw us out of an airplane onto the battlefield the day we enlist either - He knows we are slow to learn, slow to change - stubborn as the day is long, in a lot ways. Is okay, there is no greater nor more patient Teacher than He but do not expect Him to stop teaching or to suddenly become content with you being where you are - if He did that, He would not be much of a teacher (or friend) at all.
So please, do not make the mistake of thinking that because you were intially accepted where you were that God wants or is willing to have you stay there. We are all being formed into the likeness of Christ remember (2 Cor. 3:18) and, until we get there (none of us on this planet have by the way), we cannot think or believe (with any accuracy that is) that God is content with where we are. Jesus is the standard by which we are compared, no one else and that is Jesus as He is, not how we want Him to be.
That said, is there something that Dad has been trying to change in you or get you to either do or stop doing that you have been ignoring Him on, hoping that He is going to forget or not ground you for the weekend or put you on KP duty about - you know, because He is "your buddy".
Biblically speaking, the most common relational term for God is Father and I believe it is safe to say He chose that term for a reason. While not all of us (any of us?) have had perfect parental relationships, I think we likely have an idea of what the ideal looks like even if not from our own experience. With the parent being yes, a friend in many ways, but also protector and provider as well as being the one who attempts to shape our characters as we grow as opposed to just letting us "run wild". In this, we see the relationship between us and God all the clearer. We may often want Him to just "be our buddy" but He is Father first and foremost in the relationship between us. Unfortunately, far too often, we do just look at Him as aquaintance or buddy most of the time and only look for Father when we want something or we have gotten ourselves into a mess (again).
Consider Tom and Bill, life long friends, even though Tom is a bit older than Bill. Now then, Tom is an officer in the military - a colonel to be precise. Bill, after he graduates from high school, decides to enlist in the army himself and, as luck would have it, Bill and Tom find themselves assigned to the same base. Now Tom is an "officer's officer" - all business and thorough as they come when it really matters. Bill on the other hand, well, let's just say his work ethic leaves something to be desired by times. So needless to say, military life is a bit of a shocker to Bill. But hey, his best buddy ever Tom is here and he has some real pull so he can get him out of all kinds of things - at least that is what Bill is thinking. The reality though is that Tom seems to be a bit harder on Bill than anyone else on the base is, which causes some internal confusion for poor Bill - enough so that he goes to Tom's office and asks for permission to speak freely...and gets it.
Bill puts it all out there. He and Tom have been friends forever and Tom knows what Bill is like. He also knows how hard a lot of the stuff he has to do really is so why, why is Tom not bailing him out of it. For that matter, why does it apprear that Tom is actually being harder on Bill than on anyone else.
Tom explains that he is indeed Bill's friend and that they are likely each other's best friends ever. On the base however, Tom is first and foremost an officer. He holds the life of all those beneath him in his hands. If he fails at his role, then people may die. And if he allows Bill to take an easier road than the others, or if he allows Bill to just coast through, then his best friend in the entire world may wind up dead - and it would be his fault because he choose to be his buddy instead of being his commanding officer.
Let's be honest here, most of our lives on this world we are Bill. We want the easy way out and really do not want to have to change anything about ourselves. Sometimes we may find ourselves in a "Tom position" but mostly we are just Bill and with God, we are always just Bill. We just want Him to be our buddy and not our Commanding Officer. But that is not the reality of things. He is indeed our friend but the Lord of Heaven's armies (Jer. 44:25) is, first and foremost, our CO. He knows what is on the line far better than we do. He knows what horror will face us should He allow us to just coast along unchanged. He knows when trouble and battles (life, temptations, habits, etc) come our way, we will be quickly over run so He knows we must be changed in order to stand any of it at all. But He does not throw us out of an airplane onto the battlefield the day we enlist either - He knows we are slow to learn, slow to change - stubborn as the day is long, in a lot ways. Is okay, there is no greater nor more patient Teacher than He but do not expect Him to stop teaching or to suddenly become content with you being where you are - if He did that, He would not be much of a teacher (or friend) at all.
So please, do not make the mistake of thinking that because you were intially accepted where you were that God wants or is willing to have you stay there. We are all being formed into the likeness of Christ remember (2 Cor. 3:18) and, until we get there (none of us on this planet have by the way), we cannot think or believe (with any accuracy that is) that God is content with where we are. Jesus is the standard by which we are compared, no one else and that is Jesus as He is, not how we want Him to be.
That said, is there something that Dad has been trying to change in you or get you to either do or stop doing that you have been ignoring Him on, hoping that He is going to forget or not ground you for the weekend or put you on KP duty about - you know, because He is "your buddy".
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