Doing Your Best

My son recently swam at a big meet. He did well, but not as well as we were hoping.

As a parent I think I get more nervous than he does.

What is it that drives us on to spend so much time, money and effort trying to reach high levels of achievement?

Maybe it's glory and notoriety.

Do we see ourselves as possible icons or idols, sporting or otherwise.

Are some people simply chosen for "greatness"?

It applies to many areas of life, academic, sporting, glamour, entertainment, etc. 

There is at least one connection to the limelight, amongst all these various categories. Publicity, and more specifically, media.

The media is the medium by which we all learn the names of our sporting heroes.

It is also one of the rewards for high achievers.

One comment my son made was; at least he made it on TV.

Yes it is one of the rewards for high achievement.

And as a song writer I dream of one day hearing one of my songs on the radio or TV.

What if there were no media?

How would that change our desire and effort?

What if we did things simply for the sake of doing them and had no underlying desire for glory?

Or better still, what if our efforts were to glorify someone else, specifically, God?

That is something worth considering.

And what does it actually mean to glorify God?

As a first thought, I wonder if when a creature displays the beauty/functionality that is designed by its creator, it both satisfies and points to the creator.

When I hear a fantastic song, I am often interested in who wrote it. When I hear a great bit of guitar playing, I am not just interested in the musician, I also want to know the make of the guitar.

It is not by chance that instrument makers often have their trademark clearly marked in places that can be easily found and often stand out in a photo or film.

We often look for the place of manufacture of goods we purchase, putting some value in the place of manufacture, eg "made in Germany".

God has placed his mark on us, more so "in" us. His Holy Spirit.

God the Holy Spirit is not an external mark that can be found in appearances.

He is seen more in a person's character and behaviour.

The fruit of the Spirit are not always obvious to us when we look at ourselves, but God can make them obvious at the right time.

I am suggesting that we bring glory to God not necessarily through high achievement, but more so through right behaviour. Honesty, integrity, kindness, humility, faithfulness etc.

Please look up the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians and 2 Peter and lots of other places. They are wonderful gifts from God to us that point back to him and to his wonderful character.

Failing to be the best at something may well bring more glory to God than being the best.

Being the best at something tends to bring glory to lots of other things, like various brands of companies involved in sponsorship, as well as to the individual themselves.

Don't get me wrong, I certainly wish my son had won his events.  And I certainly suffer a bit of disappointment when I think of the  "could have beens" .

But it is good to remember that God has a purpose for every experience of our lives and that he can and does bring blessing in and through them.

And we can trust that, at the right time, he will use us to bring him glory which he actually shares with us.

Our own glorification is a future promise. 

Praise him.

"Hangers On"

In Australia, when a guest arrives with others, maybe a friend or two who were not invited, but came as a suggestion of the guest, we call them “Hangers on”.

Usual etiquette by the host of a barbecue or get together is to welcome all, including the “hangers on”.

But when you are one of the “hangers on”, you may not feel entitled to partake of all that is offered, in particular, food and drink. There may well be a sense of not really belonging, and other guests may avoid direct contact, we call that “snubbing”.

So what about Jesus, and us, and heaven, and especially judgement day???

Will we be hangers on to Jesus? Or to others that are better known by Jesus? Will we still partake of all that is offered? Will we get through the judgement?

Wouldn’t it be awkward to be in heaven, but to have to stick to the back-rows, in case God notices that we are there, and decides that hangers on are not welcome?

The woman who touched Jesus robe was a hanger-on. She just wanted to touch his robe, but didn’t necessarily want to speak with him.

(Un)fortunately Jesus realized someone had touched his robe, and wouldn’t let that pass.

With authority he enquired who the offender was.

Trembling the woman confessed her action, and the effect of her being healed.

But rather than chastise, Jesus blessed her, commending her faith.

Though she didn’t realize it, her faith made her belong. She wasn’t just a hanger on.

So it is with us, I trust. We who have faith, though weak, though insecure, though undeserving, though we feel like hangers on, we are adopted by God, cleansed by Jesus blood, indwelt by the Holy Spirit, and are full members of his family. What grace, what love, what sacrifice!

Going through the motions

This is an interesting topic I think.

There are many things we do in life that are ritualized. I am a doctor, and I can tell you that every procedure has a ritual preparation, especially in the operating theatre. Sometimes we do these things because it is enforced standard procedure, ( eg routine patient name checking when the patient is well known to all involved) other times we know the importance of every step we take, eg sterile washing and gowning before surgery.
 As Christians, of all genres, we have our various routines/rituals, eg thanksgiving prayer before meals, prayer before service, prayer before everything really. Sometimes the family has to temporarily interrupt an argument to hold hands and pray. Then the argument restarts. Is this ritual valid in that circumstance?
What of our many other rituals such as communion (which every denomination does differently) passing of the peace, etc etc. if we are not in the right emotional or intellectual head space are these rituals still worthwhile? Does God still hear us?
Lets briefly look at the alternative.
We gather for prayer before a meal, but Johnny is angry at dad for some reason so he opts out of the prayer time on this occasion, the assumption being that the prayer is invalidated by the anger.
Is this OK?
Not if I'm the dad.
I would prefer we still hold hands and pray together even if Johnny remains deeply angry. The best scenario is to reconcile before the prayer and shared meal, but even if the reconciliation is delayed, I would prefer we still shared the prayer of thanksgiving. I believe there are times and places where we put our differences aside, and get on with the task at hand. As a father I expect all at our table to participate in the prayer. Ideally reconcilliation happens as part of the coming together.
The scriptures actually tell us to reconcile before presenting our gifts at the altar, and to wait for each other and be equitable at the communion table. (Matt 5:24, 1Cor 11:29)
In the particular case of communion, there is a strong warning from Paul, that we should do so carefully, recognizing the body of the Lord. In fact a flippant attitude towards communion brings on Gods judgement.

Still, going back to the original issue, going through the motions in-spite of spiritual/emotional harmony is still worthwhile, in my opinion, but I believe it is important that there be faith in the motions.
What I mean by this, is that, at some point, we have examined, and have decided there is value in the set of Christian rituals we partake of. Finding that they are a meaningful expression of faith which may help us refocus on our Saviour, maybe in-spite of current "out of sync" state of mind.

Anything we do outside of faith is sin.  But going through the motions is actually an act of faith.
Simeon was going through the motions when the angel appeared to him to announce the gift of a son to be called John.
The people in the synagogue were going through the motions when they listened to Jesus read the famous passage from Isaiah. The high priest was going through the motions when he prophesied that it is better for one man to die for the nation.
It is important to reflect on our routines and rituals. Are they Godly?, Are they a reflection of the faith handed down to us by the Apostles? When we read the scriptures, are we fulfilling the strong instructions given there?
Are we going beyond the teaching of scripture?
Are we putting more faith in the ritual, than in God?

Sometimes simply going to church is a ritual, people do it for years. Maybe we feel it gives us a higher moral standing in society, maybe we are in the habit but not in the Spirit. Satan goes to church, I'm certain of it. He certainly knew where the highest point on the Jewish temple was.

But the reason we go to church is because of Jesus. The church is the gathered children of God. He wants us to meet together and celebrate and witness to the great gift of his Son, Jesus. 

The motions themselves do not have power. They are not a ceremony, that, when performed just right, invoke God's power. God is not like a complicated and touchy computer that needs just the right programme/software version to make it work. God is the Mighty One, The Creator, His actions are determined truly by his own character, and none other. 

But he graciously calls us to fellowship with himself and each other and has given us wise and lasting teachings to guide the way we relate.

If our mindset is not right, sometimes it is good to opt out of things, but it is better to take a little time, pray for guidance, be reminded of the tsunami of grace that was generated by the death and resurrection of the Holy One, and allow the Spirit to realign our mindset back to reality, the reality being that God is truly good, our sins are truly forgiven, and we are free to serve, and free to resist and turn away from sin, over and over and over again. And yes, do reconcile with your brother, or sister.

Sense of incompleteness

None of us are complete.
We have not yet reached our goal or ended our mission.
Some of us have more pressing needs; money, food, shelter, health, relief from suffering, relief from loneliness.
Others have desires;
success, riches, a partner, fame, children.
Sometimes we do feel complete, as though nothing could be improved, for example, a beautiful evening watching a sunset over a beach with loved ones. But this situation is temporary.
What is our response to incompleteness?
As followers of Jesus Christ, we look to him for comfort, peace and patience, pouring out our hearts, confessing our needs and desires, and receiving from him.
Trusting that he hears us and cares for us gives us security.
Sometimes we look for short cuts or cheap replacements.
Not only do we look for these, but they also look for us.
Not just the well known stuff like drugs, alcohol, sex and gambling, but hobbies, interests and other crazes can become idols that seem to complete us for a time, giving us new goals and a sense of achievement.
But in reality they suck the life out of us, affecting all of our relationships. with loved ones and with God, and instead of filling us they make us hungry for more, and draw from us adoration and worship, which belongs only to God.
They do not promote Godliness, rather the opposite.
These are the idols which are always inhabited by the hosts of satan, ie demons.
There is no real cure for this. If we are captivated by an idol, it will keep us unless someone stronger can defeat it and release us.
The Holy Spirit is stronger.
It is He who opens our eyes to reality.
He can so flood us as to make us see these precious objects of our love for what they really are; ugly distractions sent to stifle our lives in Christ.
The Holy Spirit can and does redirect our devotion. He opens our eyes to the beauty and wonder of our Heavenly Father.
But not without applying the cleansing of the conscience, otherwise our devotion would be more of an attempt at self redemption.
Yes we have been forgiven and yes we need to continue experiencing the reality of that forgiveness because we are weak and we are continually called by these enemies to find completion in anything but the Day of The Lord.

Voting with our Feet

 “Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another--and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” (Hebrews 10:25)

So much could be said about this topic.

Why are we, even some of the most mature Christian people, sometimes tempted to walk away from church/ fellowship?

Well the simple answer I suppose is that we are hurt. Hurt by others in our Church, and especially by those in leadership. Having not thought about this for very long, I am quickly concluding that no matter what the issue is, we are hurt more by those in authority, and often by their inaction.

Before I say too much more, I’d better clarify that I am speaking from the point of view of one in authority, being an elder in our church, and may I also add that it is painful when I notice that people aren’t coming any more. It does hurt, and it feels personal. No matter what the issue is, it feels like I have personally failed the absent person, and maybe I have.

So one point I do wish to make is that when we do stop going to our fellowship meetings, we do hurt those in authority.

Of course I don’t mean those times when we can’t make it for other reasons, I mean those times when we deliberately have decided to divorce ourselves from the meetings.

Yes, there are many serious events that would lead us to a need to separate from a fellowship. Fortunately, or unfortunately, these days there is usually somewhere else to attend, so that we are still able to worship God with others.

Or we may end our church attendance all together at one of these points, feeling that it is God, ultimately, who has let us down.

In a big church, it might be easier to slip in and out of attendance, seemingly without much effect, but in a small church, our absence can be painfully obvious.

But even as an elder in our church, sometimes the thought goes through my head, why don’t I just leave. It seems so much easier sometimes, than trying to please people, trying not to hurt people, trying to listen to people, trying to love people.

It is so clear to me that I just can’t do it. Only God can.

Of course, Satan has something to do with this. He loves to cause disharmony, pain, and fracturing of fellowship. Especially in God’s household.

The cure of course is forgiveness.

We need forgiveness, and we need to forgive.

We are best able to live in forgiveness when we live in forgiveness.

I know that sounds stupid. But basically, when we most doubt our own forgiveness, is when we are most insecure, sensitive, and less willing to overlook our neighbours faults.

We try and try and try to do things right, so that we don’t need forgiveness. But really, in this striving, we are denying our need for the full atonement of the precious blood, of the Holy Son of the living God.

God has done everything (not holding back at all) to deal with every last bit of evil that flows through our mortal beings, and this is all a wonderful and priceless gift that we treasure. We need it every day, every moment, in every relationship. We live in the forgiveness of the cross, we share the forgiveness of the cross, and we practice the ministry of reconciliation, which God has entrusted to us.

Sometimes reconciliation means acknowledging our failures, talking out our hurts, apologizing, even when we haven't deliberately meant to hurt. Telling someone they have upset you can be hard. But telling someone else can be undermining. Not saying anything and leaving hurt is hardest.

We are God's children. We can eat humble pie. It hurts but it's a "good hurt".

So lets forgive, and not leave our churches.

Should I break your heart?

2 Kings 1:16-17 (NIV)

Because you have done this, you will never leave the bed you are lying on. You will certainly die!” [17] So he died, according to the word of the Lord that Elijah had spoken.

I'm in the privileged position of having to prognose (medical for "prophesy") regarding the future health or otherwise of some of those I care for. It is a privilege and a solemn responsibility, not unlike a prophet of God. 

I am sometimes at a bedside with results and observations in my hands, consulting a hopeful but anxious patient. Often they have had  a sleepness night (or longer) anxiously waiting for my visit with news of results and expected outcomes.

My opinion is valued and powerful. Honesty, faithfulness over many years, love and the hand of God have made my opinion well respected in my current circumstances.

I know that hope can be enlivened or destroyed by my words. Or so it seems. So I am careful and measured in what I say, and I need all of the Spirit of God to aid me in these times. 

Of course I can be wrong in my opinion, but this is not the point of my little discussion.

The question I pose is not necessarily a simple one.

If in my hands is a serious result that suggests there is no hope of recovery, and before me is an individual with every desire to continue living, and eyes full of hope and expectation that what I bring is good news, do I break the persons heart with the truth, taking away their last glimmer of hope and thereby paving the way to an accelerated death, (It is my strong opinion that people die quicker once they give up), or do I play down the implications, giving false hope and possibly delay death for some time, as well as saving myself the trouble of comforting someone in distress and grief, after all, there are always small chances that people will beat the odds. (By the way, doctors are not supposed  to give people firm time predictions in their prognosis)

Of course my answer is to tell the truth, with all it's implications, not holding back. It is best to do this out of love for the person receiving the news and to continue caring for the individual in their remaining illness, with all of my abilities. 

Yes, this will break the heart. 

Or will it?

At the start of my discussion I quoted an example of death pronounced and fulfilled. But this is not always the case, even in 1 Kings.

1 Kings 21:27 (NIV)

[27] When Ahab heard these words, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and fasted. He lay in sackcloth and went around meekly.

The words were Elijah's pronouncement of death upon Ahab from God as a result of the deliberate murder of an innocent person out of greed. The judgement was deserved.

But the result was repentance and, against expectations, God relented in his punishment.

By the way, God knows the difference between repentance and "pretendance". 

When we speak the truth in love, we do not cancel the power of God, the Holy Spirit, able to do immeasurably

more than we can hope for or imagine. In fact sometimes honest bad news closes up a person to all avenues bar God, and sometimes in that situation faith comes alive in the form of deep felt prayer or repentance, and the power of God brings about amazing outcomes. Sometimes miracles, sometimes reconciliation, sometimes assurance of forgiven sin and hope in Christ for heaven.

Our responsibility is to speak the truth in love, trusting our wonderful God with the outcomes in people's precious lives. Also trusting in the inner strength that is undoubtedly present in those we care for, and probably in all humans, as we are God's image.

Breaking bad news is hard. Holding back is harder.

I am weak but He is strong.

"Pray as though everything depended on God. Work as though everything depended on you."

This apparently is a quote of St Augustine.

I am aware of the important place this man holds in Church history. I honor his influence and teaching.

I think I can see the point and angle from which he gives this advice.

I strongly disagree with it.

I would rather advise: pray and work knowing that everything depends on God, a God who is just and merciful, a God who loves his enemies, which included us, a God who loves us so much, that he didn’t hold back from giving up his own precious and dearly loved Son, for our sakes, and therefore has no reason to hold back any other good thing from us. A God who is truly unbiased, able to consider every individual in the course of events and history, in order to justly and mercifully bring about his purpose, which is to bring everything under the authority of his Son, Jesus. A God who is never far away from any one of us.

I think we can do a lot of damage when we act as though everything depends on us. Not only do we make bad decisions, unnecessarily offending/hurting people we don’t love, but also we burn out, realising the unending list of painful chores that we are faced with, having to fix the unfixable problems that inevitably raise their heads, every day, not to mention the mess we make through our own self importance.

And unfortunately, we do pray as though everything depended on God. We don’t really believe it, but we pray nicely, as if we did.

It is much better to pray badly, from a true need, knowing we are truly weak, unable to cope with the simplest issues in our own strength, and having exhausted all other resources. God is always present. He is always blessing and providing, though we often attribute our successes to our own strengths/abilities.

It is much better to believe that God can fix things, (which he does, in his way, in his time, in his love and mercy) and work at the tasks we are responsible for (our God-given responsibility), knowing that God gives us all the strength we need, in spite of Satan’s many devices, which God allows him to throw in our direction. And God promises never to push us beyond what we can stand, and always to have a way through our difficulties which he provides), even though this may mean walking through the valley of death (with and in his presence).

I am weak, but you are strong. I can do everything that you ask of me, because you are with me.