Temptation

“It is when we notice the dirt that God is most present to us; it is the very sign of His presence.” – C.S. Lewis

I continue to be astounded at the ways that God chooses to reveal Himself, even from a quote taken from a letter written in 1942 by an atheist-turned-Christian-apologist and novelist. This quote from C.S. Lewis has been a favorite of mine in recent weeks for many reasons. As I am continually aware of my sinful, wicked, broken self in my desires to follow Christ with all that I am, I am even more aware of God’s presence. When my sin is overpowering me and my heart is heavy, it is then that God shows up and His presence is more evident than ever before. At times I feel I experience more growth from my recognition and confession of my own sin than from hours of Bible study, meditation, and sermons.

Timing

“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.” – Ecclesiastes 3:1

This verse opens the passage in Ecclesiastes some know as the ‘time for everything’ passage; an extensive list of back-and-forth examples of seemingly opposite events to illustrate that seasons and times come and go. I’m not going to detail them all here, though I encourage you to read them with careful thought in Ecclesiastes 3:2-8. It is a powerful passage that can provide much comfort, hope, and peace in the midst of affliction or suffering. It illustrates that through all things, God is in control as He orchestrates the seasons. The passage I do want to highlight and dig into a bit more from Ecclesiastes 3 concerns how God’s timing relates to our lives in a personal, individual way.

Worship

"God created us for this: to live our lives in a way that makes Him look more like the greatness and the beauty and the infinite worth that He really is. This is what it means to be created in the image of God." – John Piper

After working with kids for any amount of time, one quickly comes to the conclusion that children are curious creatures. This is easily evidenced by the fact that they ask questions. A lot of questions. Especially with younger children, the most questions asked are often “why” questions. Why does this happen? Why doesn’t that happen? Why do I have to eat my vegetables? Why is the sky blue? Why do I have to be nice? Why do I have to go to bed?

There is a common assumption that as children grow, they will ask fewer questions as their knowledge grows. But does their curiosity leave them? Think of it this way – you were once a curious child, and while you may no longer vocalize your questions, are you no longer curious? I think there is an illusion that with age and wisdom we loose our curiosity. Or perhaps somewhere along the way we start accepting things for the way they are for that reason alone and sadly stop seeking answers. However, it is healthy to continue to ask questions and challenge ourselves to find answers throughout our lives. Now of course we stop asking why we need to eat our vegetables (unless you really don’t understand that they add to a healthy diet and provide many important nutrients), but the answers to some questions are still mysteries to us. We are still just as curious as we were as children, just about different questions.

Baptism

At almost every Sunday morning church service I have been to recently, including this past Sunday when I was back at my home church, there has been a baptism during the service. At first I thought nothing of it, but around the fifth baptism I was able to witness, I realized God might be trying to say something (funny how obviously God has to show up before we get a clue sometimes, huh?). I realized that I needed to be reminded of the importance of baptism – both the significance of baptism in Christianity and in my own personal life.
Now I know there are books upon books by theologians and scholars with more Biblical knowledge than I will ever hope to gain who debate the arguments surrounding baptism – infant baptism, believer baptism, where they align and disagree. I don’t want to delve into the theology and specific doctrines followed by different church denominations surrounding baptism, but rather what the Bible, the ultimate authority over all, has to say on the issue.

Prayer

“Prayer does not equip us for greater work; prayer is the greater work.” – Oswald Chambers

During a recent Sunday night collegelife at North Park, we spent an extended amount of time in prayer. God yet again brought me to a place that has not always been comfortable for me or that came easily to me. Of all the spiritual disciplines, prayer is something that I have wrestled with more than any other in my Christian walk. As a child, I can remember knowing that praying was ‘talking to God’  - it meant being quiet, closing your eyes, folding your hands, bowing your head, and listening intently to the Pastor or whoever else was praying aloud. I understood on an elementary level what prayer was, but it was not real to me. My thoughts would wander, I would feel like I needed to have words but end up with none, and it seemed unreal and a bit bizarre to be talking to someone that I could not see or hear respond to me like another person. Even years later I remember having doubts that the God of the universe would really hear what I would have to say, or that what I had to say would make any difference.

Obedience

“Immediately they left their nets and followed Him.”   

 - Matthew 4:20

Sometimes I wonder at how closely I obey God’s call on my life. I know there have been times when God has clearly placed a calling on my heart that I obediently responded to, and from that amazing things were accomplished. But I know that for every time I did obey, there are millions of other times when that obedience did not happen. When I did not respond to God’s call, for this reason or that excuse. When I didn’t obey because I was not open to hearing that call in the first place. When I waited or delayed my response and did not obey immediately because of fears or doubts.

Ekklesia

Recently, I've had some interesting experiences revolving around the state of the church and it's role in today's society. A lot of this stuff is not new, and it's been running through my head for a while, but I feel like I need to share this because it has shown up so much in the last few days.

The very word "church" comes from the Greek word "ekklesia" which means "a called-out assembly." We are called out of our broken, sinful, wicked nature to be followers of Christ, and to become an assembly together in this world of sin and darkness. The church is comprised of those who are called by God to be His own holy people, those who belong to Him and are dedicated to Him, and whom God has set apart for Himself through the saving work of His Son and their faith relationship to Him - “To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours.” –1 Corinthians 1:2. Right away it is clear God is desiring us, the church, to be different than this sinful world, to choose to follow His will, to listen and respond to His call. As called-out followers of Christ, we are commissioned to first and foremost make disciples - "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age." -Matthew 28:19-20. Scripture refers to the church as the body of Christ - "For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body - Jews or Greeks, slaves or free - and all were made to drink of one Spirit." -1 Corinthians 12:12-13. As a part of the larger church, we are all uniquely called to our own roles - "Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues." -1 Corinthians 12:27-28.  While the church is something I am more than familiar with (I grew up in the church, and have never been without it as a part of my life), actually analyzing and trying to grasp the concept of the church as it was intended is so amazing. That God created us to be relational beings, and provided an environment for those who follow Him to have those relationships, to challenge one another to dig deeper into relationship with Him, each with our own place and purpose in the body, all with the calling of sharing His love and making disciples of those who do not yet know His love. Praise God for the church!