Tag: Peace

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Performance-Based Faith

I have just returned from a trip to Honduras, where we were vetting a potential future project to help locals create micro-businesses.  These trips present a cadre of potential conflicts.  First, we have the friction created by my obedience to God’s call.  It conflicts because I am responding to what I believe to be God’s vision for my life, but I am also judging my effectiveness; how much good am I doing.  The second has to do with what we are teaching.  We are teaching people to use Godly principles to create for-profit businesses.  Most of us see the potential conflict in that.  We must balance living in a performance-based world with grace-based salvation.  It is tough to keep the two separate.

Genesis 2:15, “The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.”

Christ modeled our relationships here on earth after our relationship with Himself.  He wants us to learn from Him and grow closer to Him through involvement with Him. But, we are to honor the originator of all things in the process.

Ephesians 2:19, “Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household.  “

TRANSACTIONAL FAITH

In a performance-based world, we become obsessed with goal orientation.  We, through constant reinforcement, fixate on achievement.  Our parents remind us that results do matter.  So when we take on a task, we want to know why.  Is it the best use of our time?  Is it within our calling, aptitude, and gifts?  We somehow can’t take our hands off the wheel; if we can’t drive, we want to navigate; even when we don’t know the destination.   

Colossians 3: 23-24, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward.  It is the Lord Christ you are serving.”

The key to this statement is “as working for the Lord.” God was very clear from the beginning that we needed to be active while living the life He has created for us.  That activity must have a purpose, and with it comes achievement.  Our part is to be obedient in doing the task before us, not the outcome.  The outcome is the exclusive domain of God, not us.  Whatever God puts before us is part of His plan for our lives.  We must do it with peace and joy.  God does not get His highest pleasure from our achievements; He gets it from our obedience.

Ephesians 3: 12-13, “I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live.  That each of them may eat and drink and find satisfaction in all their toil—this is the gift of God.”

In The Purpose Driven Life, Rick Warren writes, “Work becomes worship when you dedicate it to God and perform it with an awareness of his presence.”

The implication here is not that we get satisfaction from what we accumulate or accomplish but from the tasks that God puts before us because it is a gift from God.  Being the person God has made you be isn’t about creating something; it is about discovering something.  The pursuit is progressed not by the honors that we accumulate but by our obedience to God’s plan for us.

BUT PERFORMANCE COUNTS

Work is one of the ways we demonstrate God to non-believers.  But, if non-believers cannot trust us with the worldly endeavors one can see, how can we be trusted with spiritual works that require faith?

1 Peter 2:12, “Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.”

So, we endeavor to meet a high level of performance not to please God but to glorify God to non-believers.  We are held responsible for our results; we need to take that seriously.  God created us to work; setting and meeting goals is part of the responsibility.  From a worldly perspective, this responsibility produces the most anxiety in our lives.  It not only affects the way we perceive the nature of our work, but it also affects other aspects of our worldly existence.  It affects our self-perception and self-image and our drive to have better material goods and living standards.  One of our obligations as Christians is to be a good team member, employer, parent, child, and spouse.

2 Thessalonians 3:12 “such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the bread they eat.”

BUT NOT TO GOD

Ephesians 2: 8-9, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.”

For most of us, it is hard to turn that switch off.  Somehow, we still try to do good works as if they are the keys to salvation; they aren’t.  That is not to say that we should not strive to do good works; it is just that those good works will not get us to heaven.

Matthew 7:16-20, ” By their fruit, you will recognize them.  Do people pick grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles?  Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.  A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit.  Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.  Thus, by their fruit, you will recognize them.”

It is when we start to believe we can be good enough, fruitful enough, holy enough that we lose sight of the beautiful gift of God; eternal life with Him in heaven through grace.  The balance we need to strike is to understand that while the world requires performance as a means of measuring worth, God does not.  Spiritual performance is a by-product of grace, not a goal.

Philippians 4:19, “And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”

We need to get back to helping our Father with His business.  We are to be obedient to His will.  We cannot control the outcome or the timing; we can only enjoy working in His presence.

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What Is Godly Purpose?

Most Christians want to serve Christ. Once we admit that to ourselves, we immediately say, but. We want to help in our way, to the people we choose, using our disposable resources within our timetable. We do not wish to serve ungrateful people in a faraway land, using up our hard-earned vacation time. Thinking this is not the same as saying it, so we’re good. Right?

How often do we fit the Gospel into our situation; rather than fit our circumstances into the Gospel?

PURPOSE

Mother Teresa, in her book, The Joy in Loving: A Guide to Daily Living, wrote, “I am a little pencil in God’s hands. He does the thinking. He does the writing. He does everything, and sometimes it is really hard because it is a broken pencil, and He has to sharpen it a little more.”

Paul reminds us that if we genuinely pursue the will of God, no matter the outcome, we can count on it serving God’s purpose. It is not for us to determine the time or method God will choose to use us for His Kingdom.

Romans 8:28 “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

God created us to do good works predestine for us to accomplish. Preparation does not mean just our time and money but also our gifts, passions, education, experiences, and even where we are. God will sometimes send you; mostly, He will use you exactly where you are.

Ephesians 1:11 “In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will.”

I have a purpose. I was created as a unique creature with specific skills and afforded specific resources to accomplish an individual task. But I have free will in choosing both if and how I will respond. So I can accept that I have this unique purpose without actually working to advance it.

Tom Shuler wrote an excellent book entitled “Metaporphyx.” He tries to clarify the process of both understanding and fulfilling God’s purpose in our lives. It looks at this purpose as not a thing or a single event but a continuous process that repeats itself, each cycle building on the last. A pivot point punctuates each cycle or season. A pivot point is a critical event that causes us to both reassess and redefine our direction. However, the redefinition of our direction does not alter our purpose. The purpose remains the same, but the direction constantly changes based on the seasons of our lives.

 So again, what is our purpose?

HINT

John 15:1-27,“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. “

Our purpose has to do with bearing fruit. So, what does the Bible say about fruit?

James 2:14-26, “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also, faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. …”

First of all, the fruit we are looking for comes from the Spirit. Not every good work qualifies, just those that are created out of an abiding love and obedience to the Spirit. Second, it is active and not passive. We must do something. We can not just say, “God loves you, go in peace.” We must minister to their actual needs. “So also, faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” Dead, as in entirely worthless.

To summarize up to this point, I have a unique and specific purpose for which I was created, and that purpose requires that I do something material. We also know.

Philippians 1:6 “And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”

I end this thought knowing that whatever my purpose, I will be successful if I abide in Christ and diligently search. As I’m still working on the whole purpose, God has assured me that I will eventually succeed.

Psalm 67, “May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face shine on us— so that your ways may be known on earth, your salvation among all nations. May the peoples praise you, God; may all the peoples praise you. May the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you rule the peoples with equity and guide the nations of the earth. May the peoples praise you, God; may all the peoples praise you. The land yields its harvest; God, our God, blesses us. May God bless us still so that all the ends of the earth will fear him.”

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There is no Neutral

Jeremiah 9:23, “This is what the Lord says: “Let not the wise boast of their wisdom or the strong boast of their strength or the rich boast of their riches.”

Pride

Pride is a high or inordinate opinion of one’s dignity, importance, merit, or superiority; Pride is the root of most sin. Pride is the catalyst that starts the reaction. Pride is the insidious emotion that lurks behind most arguments and hurt feelings. Pride deprives us of knowledge, wisdom, friendship, and self-respect.

Proverbs 13:10, “Where there is strife, there is pride, but wisdom is found in those who take advice.”

In his book, Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis said: “According to Christian teachers, the essential vice, the utmost evil, is Pride. Unchastity, anger, greed, drunkenness, and all that, are mere fleabites in comparison: it was through Pride that the devil became the devil: Pride leads to every other vice: it is the complete anti-God state of mind… it is Pride which has been the chief cause of misery in every nation and every family since the world began.”

James 1:14–15, “Each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin, when it is fully grown, brings forth death.”

All of us have heard Proverbs 16:18, “Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.” When we unleash our inner desires unchecked, we know that bad things happen. We say things and do things that we regret even when we are right. We look back and feel a sense of humiliation at our actions. We know we could have handled it better. We know we lost some of the positive impacts of our defense because of our presentation. Yet, we’re considered arrogant and overbearing instead of being thought of as right.

We live in a competitive world where our image is important. “Perception is reality” is almost the tagline of most lives. The idea of faking it until you make it is supposed to motivate us to stretch our abilities. We are constantly marketing ourselves to others around us.

We want to walk the fine line between seeing ourselves as made in the image of God, yet a descendant of the Garden of Eden. We do not wish to diminish who God created, but we understand we are flawed. So we oscillate between Pride in who God made us be and humility in who we are. And then there is everyone else; who are they compared to me?

Humility

The Christian attribute that counters pride is humility. Humility is not weakness. Humility does hot require us to acquis our position or take a subordinate role. Humility does not allow for hypocrisy. It is not about right and wrong; it is about presentation. The message is the message; it is how you present the message that is important.

Psalm 10:4, “In his pride, the wicked man does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God.”

Humility is about bringing God back into the conversation. Our foundation is still the scriptures, and our objective is still to attract people to Christ. Worldly issues will come and go; God’s continence will always prevail.

Jeremiah 50:31, “Behold, I am against you, O arrogant one,” declares the Lord God of hosts, “For your day has come, the time when I will punish you.”

When we engage Christ in our conversations, we become empowered by His compassion and grace. As a result, we will be held in esteem by the creator of the universe.

James 4:10, “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.”

Empowerment

How do we empower ourselves through humility? First, we need to have confidence that Christ will not allow us to suffer needlessly. There has to be an inner strength to present ourselves in a Godly way, and God will honor that behavior. Do not let your Pride control your reaction. Look up and not out when engaging in conversation, especially when passion is involved.

Proverbs 27:2, “Let someone else praise you, and not your own mouth; an outsider, and not your own lips.”

Christ should direct all of your conversations. The Gospel is the foundation of all truth. Any time your actions deviate from Gospel teaching, you have shut God out. The way to overcome Pride is to bring Christ back into your conversations.

Jeremiah 9:24, “But those who wish to boast should boast in this alone: that they truly know me and understand that I am the Lord who demonstrates unfailing love and who brings justice and righteousness to the earth, and that I delight in these things. I, the Lord, have spoken!.”

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Why Spend Time with God?

There are three powerful reasons to create an intimate relationship with Christ. By intimate, I mean a daily personal ongoing dialog.

a. Relationships take time to build.

b. Strong relationships can be counted on during a crisis.

c. We were created to love and be loved.

Build a Relationship

All relationships take time. A relationship with God is unlike other relationships in many ways but still follows the rules of other relationships. We are important to God; He wants a strong relationship with us. But a relationship is a two-way street. He can not have a strong relationship with us if we do not encourage the same relationship with Him.

Luke 12:7, “Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Therefore don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.”

How often do you talk to your best friend? How important is it to you to know what they are doing? How strongly do you want to be involved in what they are doing? To whom do you share good news and bad news? Is that relationship any different from your relationship with God?

Matthew 5:6, “God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they will be satisfied.”

What would your friends feel like if you only spoke to them when you needed them to do something for you? How would you feel if someone treated you this way? Relationships are about understanding each other’s deepest desires of the heart. Relationships are about sharing the daily joys and triumphs of your life, along with the challenges. Take time to thank God for every moment of joy that happens in your life, as it happens. Acknowledge the challenges and ask for guidance.

Jesus made time to get away from His earthly calling to speak with His Father; He understood the need to keep the relationship centered on His life and constantly renewed.

Mark 1:35, “And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.”

Daily intimacy with God is vital in creating a lasting relationship that will weather any storm. The strength and depth of your relationship with Him is a barometer of your trust in Him.

Draw Strength to Fight the Daily Battles

It is essential to spend time alone with God because God is the source of our strength, and we need His strength to fight the spiritual battles of our lives.

John 15:4. “Remain in Me, and I will remain in you. Just as no branch can bear fruit by itself unless it remains in the vine, neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me.”

He goes on to say;

John 15:7-8, “If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. By this, my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.”

We live in a broken world. That has almost become a cliché. We all know this, but we somehow still believe we can navigate the turbulent waters of daily life without help. Somehow we come to think that we only need the sustenance of the vine for the more significant problems of our lives, not the daily grind.

In many cases, it is the daily grind that introduces problems because of the lack of fruit in our daily walk. Having a continuous intimate relationship with Christ will smooth out some of these challenges. His presence in our daily walk will remind us of how we should live. The constant dialog will nudge us back on track when we stray.

It will also give you the confidence to know that Christ is there in the tough times. These are when the pain is so great we forget to ask for help. Our mind is so occupied with the circumstance that we fail to look up. Sometimes, we even feel God has stepped away, and we are on our own.

Strong and solid relationships do not abandon each other in time of need; they bond closer together. So don’t wait until you need a friend to create a friend.

To Love and Be Loved

1 Corinthians 13:13, “And now these three remain faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love.”

We also spend time alone with God out of love. It is central to our nature to love and desire to be loved. We don’t all experience this similarly, but we all need love.

Ephesians 3:17-19, “so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.”

Worldly love is challenging. People are not capable of unconditional love. As hard as we try, we fall short. God’s love is perfect. God’s love for us is unchanging. God’s love for us is steadfast.

Most of all, God loved us to the point that he sent His son to die for us that we may have eternal life.

John 15:13, “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

TO DO’s

Spend some quality time with Christ every day and throughout the day

Matthew 4:4, “Jesus answered, ‘It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'”

Let those truths permeate your mind and think about them throughout the day

Psalm 1:2, “But whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither— whatever they do prospers.”

Put away, or quit, things that aren’t pleasing to the Lord. Instead, let the Holy Spirit search your life and point out the things that God wants you to face and overcome.

 Colossians 3:8-9, “But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other since you have taken off your old self with its practices.”

“Spending time with God through prayer and His Word is a prerequisite for having a great life and fulfilling your purpose.” — Joyce Meyer

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Where Does Christmas Find You?

Ephesians 2:7, “Now God has us where he wants us, with all the time in this world and the next to shower grace and kindness upon us in Christ Jesus.”

The place you are right now, God circled on the map for you. – Hafiz (Persian Poet)

Where does Christmas find you? Are you with family and friends or stuck on the road somewhere? Is the day going as planned, full of joy, love and hope, or has it gone off track, frustrating and chaotic? Where will you be next week, next month, or next year? Are you where you planned to be, or has life taken a detour?

Ephesians 1:3-10, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.”

There is no perfect job, perfect relationship, or perfect life; there are only perfect moments. So don’t get lost looking for what will never be and miss what is.

Paul found himself marooned on Malta, Ester woke up serving a pagan King, Jonah was cast overboard in the middle of a storm, and Joseph was abandoned by his siblings. The shepherds found themselves kneeling in a stable at the foot of the Son of God. We all have a destiny that is not our own. It is a path set before us by the Lord of Lords, King of Kings. There will be days of clarity and joy; and there will be days of darkness and confusion. They are all written in the Book of Life by our creator; we only get to write the subplots.

Romans 8:29, “For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.”

God created us for the sole purpose of worshiping Himself. Therefore, everything we do is a form of worship. Every action is praise, rejection, or indifference, but worship all the same. We either acknowledge God’s presence in our daily walk, intentionally rebel against His authority, or treat Him with complete indifference.

1 Corinthians 3:16, “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?”

Let me tell you about a man who failed, but still, his story lives on. Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a pastor, theologian, and founding member of the Confessing Church. For those that do not know, the Confessing Church was an anti-fascist organization that opposed Hitler’s treatment of the Jews. It was said of him after his return from studying in America to Germany; “At this time he seems to have undergone something of a personal conversion from being a theologian primarily attracted to the intellectual side of Christianity to being a dedicated man of faith, resolved to carry out the teaching of Christ as he found it revealed in the Gospels.”

Dietrich was eventually hung for his involvement in the failed plot to assassinate Hitler on July 20, 1944. His life was much like many people’s lives with side trips and rabbit trails. But, in the end, his failure lived on as a testimony of Christian dedication against a cause that was so egregious it now lives in infamy. He was where God had circled on the map for him to be, what some might see as failure God glorifies.

Jonah’s voyage in the belly of a whale, Joseph’s sale into slavery, Ester’s banishment to Babylonia, Moses’ fall from Royalty to estranged Shepard are examples of God’s people being exactly where He wanted them when He wanted them to be there.

Matthew 12:30, “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.”

Will you use this moment to praise and worship the God of your creation, or will this moment pass unnoticed? Despite where you find yourselves will you acknowledge that it is through God’s providence that you exist at all. Will your act of worship be seen as praise by those around you, or will you be silent?

Christmas Day we celebrate an event that changed the history of man. No other event in the history of the planet earth has had the impact equal to the birth of Christ. This day celebrates a pivotal moment for humanity. The way all people, believers and non-believers, view morality and ethics was forever changed. That single event demonstrated that God did love all of us to the extent that He would bring His son to earth for the sole purpose of sacrificing Him for our sins. That alone should give you reason to pause.

Every day is Christmas. Every day is a celebration of the birth of Christ. Every day brings new opportunities to demonstrate the goodness of Christ regardless of our circumstances. Do we seize the day; do we seize the moment?

1 Peter 3:15, “But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect.”

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Waiting on Christmas

Psalm 145:5-7, “I will meditate on the glorious splendor of Your majesty, and on Your wondrous works. Men shall speak of the might of Your awesome acts, and I will declare Your greatness. They shall utter the memory of Your great goodness, and shall sing of Your righteousness.”

When we were children, it never seemed like Christmas would ever come. I remember trying to sleep the night before, then running into my parent’s room at the crack of dawn to wake them so that we could all go downstairs to see what Santa had brought. Christmas was a magical time when dreams came true. There was an expectation in the air that come Christmas day; I would experience great joy, not just for the gifts, but the general way everyone treated each other; Christmas Day transformed life.

Can you imagine what the Israelites of Isiah’s time must have felt? Isiah, in chapter 11, portrays the most encouraging image of the character of Christ. It gives this pastoral view of worldly peace and tranquility. It talks of a savior that will rule with justice for the poor. It describes enemies living in peace. This gift that God had planned for humanity was not just a Chatty Cathy or GI Joe; it was a living testimony of God’s love and kindness toward a people that had turned their backs on Him. It was a savior that would save the world from itself.

James 1:17, “Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.”

Christmas Eve was going to be over 730 years away. Seven hundred and thirty years of struggles and lost dreams. Seven hundred and thirty years of wondering if the prophet Isiah spoke the truth. Did Isiah have the ear of God; was there a savior, and would this cup ever be taken from us? What the Israelites looked for was far more than a simple gift, a bobble, or a trinket; it was life itself. It was confirmation that they were God’s children.

Galatians 4:4, “But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law.”

When Christ did come, it wasn’t presents under the tree at sunrise. There was no Christmas Day parade. It was not celebrated. The Israelites waited for so long; many forgot what they were waiting for. Even after Jesus started His ministry, many denied His deity, miracles, and message. 

1 Peter 5:6, “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time.”

The simple message I have going into Christmas is this; Wait on Christ. Christ will do all that He says He will do. He will answer every prayer. The Israelites waited over seven hundred years for their savior, and most of them missed it when He showed up. Don’t get so entrenched in your thinking that you miss what God is doing every day in your life. What He has in store for you is beyond your ability to describe. His love for you, and therefore His blessing for you, are immeasurable. Whatever you want is nothing more than window dressing to the life He has planned for you.

2 Peter 3:8, “But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day.”

This Christmas, remember all that God has done in your life as a witness to what He will do. We may not get what we want when we want it, but that is to His glory that He may be known to you. Therefore, we should wait joyfully, knowing that His timing is always perfect.

Numbers 23:19, “God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent; Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?

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Agur the Brute

Proverbs 30:7-9, “Two things I ask of you, Lord; do not refuse me before I die: Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’ Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God.”

This scripture is one of my favorite prayers in the Bible. For me, it summarizes both my weaknesses and my desire to rise above them. It emphasizes my internal drive for self-importance, the desire within myself to have meaning, and it cautions me about the lure of materialism, holding God’s gifts in an open hand.

WHO IS AGUR?

Agur is the son of Jakeh, a friend to Ithiel and Ucal. The name Agur comes from a Hebrew word meaning “collector.” Neither he nor Jakeh is mentioned anywhere else in the Bible. Some think it might be a pseudonym for Solomon, but the writing style does not match.  What we do know is that he is righteous enough that God thought we needed to hear what he had to say.

I love how he identifies himself:

Proverbs 30:2-3, “Surely. I am only a brute, not a man; I do not have human understanding. I have not learned wisdom, nor have I attained to the knowledge of the Holy One.”

When I read this, I fell in love with the character of the man. I long to be that kind of person who humbly acknowledges who he is and what he needs to rise above himself. He also dares to implore God, “do not refuse me before I die.”. He sees himself on a journey and prays earnestly to arrive at its destination.

FALSEHOODS AND LIES

I don’t know about you, but I sometimes think my weaknesses are burned into my genetic code in a way that cannot be modified. The desires of my heart are so strong that they rule my head. It doesn’t matter how much head knowledge I have; my heart wants to control. So I deceive myself into believing that what I want is what is real.

In my life, the prayer of Agur is not just about being truthful to those around me but being honest with myself. Agur acknowledges that he is only a brute, not a man. In this statement, Agur deceives himself. No brute could conjure up such a great prayer to God. No brute could step outside himself and ask for help. Agur may have brutish ways, but he is not a brute.

We all have attributes that we dislike. We all feel insecure in some aspect of our lives. Many of us don’t like that to be common knowledge, so we fudge a little; we embellish, we protect ourselves. Most of these issues are so minor that others, especially our friends, don’t see them. But we live with them day in and day out. We feel a need to defend who and what we are. Not in a big way, an outright lie, but small little falsehoods that misdirect and deceive. In time we stop deceiving others and start deceiving ourselves.

Agur not only wants to stop lying, but he also wants to stop deceiving. My heart wants to be that strong; it wants to be that confident in who God made me. But as Agur points out, we are on a journey, and that is our desired destination.

Lord, do not refuse me before I die.

WEALTH AND POVERTY

This part of Agur’s prayer is significant in my life. I cannot go into the details of the story because it involves others, but at one point, I was wealthy, by most standards, and overnight I became destitute.  Destitute in that I was over $100K in debt with no cash, no income, and no assets. This condition was brought about by a decision I willingly made; no one forced it on me. But, there comes the point in life when you have to decide what is important. That point in life was thrust upon me, and I decided. It was the most insane leap of faith I have ever made, one in which I still feel at peace.

“Give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread.” I have lived by that for over a decade. Every time I want more or feel materially insecure, I think of Agur. I think how incredible it is that God had his words inscribed for all men to read. I hold everything God gives me with an open hand. I want for nothing. I volunteer my time and my money to travel the world in the act of worship. I don’t ask for support because God has already given it to me. As a result, I am secure spiritually, emotionally, and materially.

Agur knew the secret of a whole and fruitful life. He says, “I do not have human understanding. I have not learned wisdom, nor have I attained to the knowledge of the Holy One.” Folks, life is a journey, not always a pleasant one. Sometimes admitting we don’t have the answer is the answer.

John 14:27, “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”

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The Way of Love

1 John 4:8, “Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.”

SCOUNDREL

I’m a scoundrel, a dirty rotten scoundrel. I came to Christianity later in life; I lived a bohemian lifestyle. I was a Hedonist, not that I thought I was at the time. I was just a guy trying to make a living and enjoying the fruits of my labor. The problem was, despite my success, I didn’t feel successful. To achieve worldly success, I had to endure conflict, not raging open battle with those around me, but the subtle nuances of worry, anxiety, and competition.

Isaiah 32:7, “And a scoundrel, his weapons are evil; he plans evil devices to ruin the poor with words of deception even when the speech of the needy is right.”

I stretched the truth; I molded the facts; I used it to my advantage. I didn’t break the law; I used it. I did what I had a right to do, not what was right. I prospered in a competitive world; I was a winner. I was a scoundrel of the first order.

This lifestyle is the conundrum I face. I know who I was, and I know who I am, and yet God loves me so much He sent His Son to save me. He did not choose me because of some sterling attribute that He admired in me. God did not save me because I was special or different. He certainly didn’t save me because He needed me. He saved me despite who I was.

Ephesians 2:8-9, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast”

NEW PERSON

2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”

I read this and know that it is true. I know that through the scripture, I have awakened to how my life should play out. God washed my sins away, and I have a second chance. God, through His grace, has reached down into the mire of my life and pulled me up.  Why would He do that?

Colossians 3:10, “and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him.”

God is love. His love is perfected in us; his very nature would not allow for us to remain as we were. So, God hit the reset button; He renewed us. He gave us an out, a way to become more like Him. But it was a choice, not a command.

1 John 4:7-12, “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.”

Making the correct choice does not guarantee success or fulfillment. We do not have the material within ourselves to survive. We are not strong enough, smart enough, gifted enough to withstand the onslaught of life. But we have been made in the image of God; just as He is love, so are we.

YET STILL A SCOUNDREL

Romans 7:15-20, “I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it?”

No man had more passion for Christ; no man was willing to endure as much for Christ as Paul. Paul was a true Christian warrior ready to die for his King. And yet, he, too, fought the scoundrel in himself. I find this passage amazing. I think of Paul when I get down on myself, which is easier than I would like to admit. We are all scoundrels who have been saved by love.

In a performance-based world, it is hard to reconcile my performance against God’s reward. It seems out of balance. I constantly believe I am not worthy because I have not performed according to His standard. To think that I am not worthy is to diminish the person God made me. I am not defined by worldly standards but by the One who loves me unconditionally.

THE WAY OF LOVE

Tattoo this on your heart. Make it the most precious words you will ever hear or utter to another. Understand the true power of love to overcome all things, even the scoundrel in all of us.

1 Corinthians 13:1-10, “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.  And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.

Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away.”

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Malta

Where is your Malta? Odd question, it arises from one of the great stories from Paul’s life. You might recall that God told Paul he would testify in Rome. We all want that level of clarity in our lives. We want God to speak directly to us in words that would be hard to misinterpret. I don’t know about you, but that very seldom happens in my life.

Acts 23:11, “The following night the Lord stood near Paul and said, ‘Take courage! As you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome.”‘

God didn’t tell Paul to take route 6 to the intersection of Route 9, turn left, and there you are. Paul’s destination was clear, but the journey was not. Paul may or may not have known what he would do in Rome, but he knew with certainty that he would get there. Can we say that about our destination?

“There will be no peace in any soul until it is willing to obey the voice of God.” – D.L. Moody

The why of Paul’s journey was obedience. The what, when, and how we’re not as clear. Paul’s journey to Rome mirrors our journey in life. It all starts with why. Rome was the epicenter of all knowledge and culture. It was the place that new ideas went viral. It was where God’s story would get legs. God’s story would travel to all the distant parts of the Roman Empire. The why was to testify to the greatness of God.

Paul took a circuital route to get to Rome. But eventually, they put him on a ship headed that way. It was not a journey to proclaim the Gospel; it was a journey to stand trial, but the why was still the why.

Isaiah 1:19, “If you consent and obey, you will eat the best of the land”

MALTA

Here is where Malta comes into play. A great storm arises, putting Paul’s ship in pearl. Paul’s confidence in God assures him that he will not perish but will somehow survive to continue to Rome. But, unfortunately, the ship runs aground on the small island of Malta. Now at this point, Paul could consider this a time out. He could have guessed that evil had set up a roadblock, and God would have to clear it. He could have chilled out until the journey continued; his destination was Rome, not Malta.

Are you in Malta? Have your plans been waylaid? Do you feel you have a greater destiny but are sitting on the beach waiting for the next boat going your way? When we look around to see what lessons are to be learned during this sabbatical, do we see nothing? The wind has stopped, and the sail is slack; nothing to do but wait for the next breeze.

Publius, the chief official of Malta, had a father sick from fever and dysentery. Paul went to see him, prayed for him, put hands on him, and healed him. Many came to believe because of this. Paul knew that God did not waste time. Paul knew that his mission field was where he woke up that morning. There were great things in store for him in Rome, but he wasn’t in Rome; he was where God wanted him that day.

1 Peter 3:15, “but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence.”

From there, Paul spent time in Syracuse, Rhegium, and Puteoli before reaching Rome. At each of these ports, he had to stay several days as the ship unloaded and loaded cargo. Acts tell us that at each port, Paul preached the Gospel.

THE SHORTEST PATH BETWEEN TWO POINTS IS A STRAIGHT LINE

If you are studying geometry, that is true; if you are studying the Gospel, it is not. We all have to spend time in Malta. We all have to take a deep breath, look around and see what God has for us to do where we are. If we get too fixated on the destination that we lose the journey, we have lost a valuable piece of God’s story for our lives. If we spend too much time trying to understand what God ultimately wants us to be, we lose the joy and passion of the journey God has us on.

The Atlanta Braves just won the World Series; one of the feel-good stories concerned Freddie Freeman. Freddie has been a long-time Braves player. He hit a home run in the final innings of the clinching game. As Freddie rounded third, heading to home plate, he looked at his wife and son in the audience and broke out into a wide grin. When asked about this, he said (paraphrase) I saw my son and remember when I was his age, lying awake at night dreaming of hitting a home run and winning the World Series. Finally, my son got to see his dad do that.

1 John 4:18, “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.”

Folks, as God rounds third, He sees us and grins. He knows we lay awake at night with visions of greatness. He sees our future with great pride and love. So do not miss the journey thinking about the destination. Instead, live the moments that God gives you as worship to Him. Remember that God hits the home runs, and we get to cheer with pride and say, “That’s my dad.”

Ephesians 3:18-19, “And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep His love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. “

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Wait

Mark 16: 17-18, “And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.”

Does our expectations put a fence around answered prayer?

PRAYER

Let me start with a short story on the power of answered prayer. On the very first visit to a prison, God helped me better understand answered prayer. I went with Champions for Life, and I was in Broad River Correctional, Columbia, SC. I was standing next to the rail overlooking the cellblock below me. I was in this particular location to avoid speaking to the inmates. I was uncomfortable because it was my first visit, and I didn’t feel I had anything to share. So, I was hiding in plain sight. I was there without really being there.

My thoughts were on a hundred things without landing on anything, fleeting moments of clarity that dissipated like the fog in the morning sun. I know they were there, without knowing what they were. Then I heard, “I have been praying for weeks that my lawyer would find a way to get me out of here.” This inmate had settled next to me, without making eye contact with me, and started talking to me. You see, he wasn’t a Christian, but he thought he would try out prayer. He didn’t expect anything, but he had hope. I was a Christian; maybe I knew the answer.

Jeremiah 29:12, “Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.”

The good news was that this was a conversation that didn’t require scripture memorization. This inmate didn’t know scripture. He had no preconceived theology. He didn’t even know if he had the right to expect a result. He just made a statement. New evidence came to light that proved his innocence. But getting released was a process, not an event. A lawyer had taken his case and was working on his release. For two months, the inmate hadn’t heard a thing. That had to be incredibly depressing; to know you are innocent and shouldn’t be in prison, the release would come from outside the walls, and you were stuck inside.

I can’t remember the exact conversation as none of the words were mine. It went something like this; there was evidence to be reviewed, docket to be cleared, maybe hearts to be softened, liability to be assessed; God’s time is not our time. I remember his response; “Thank you, I prayed for encouragement, and He sent it through you.” That floored me. I couldn’t remember what I said; how could it have been encouraging.

1 John 5:15, “And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.”

What I took away from that weekend was to wait upon the Lord. I’m impatient, get it done, execution is everything type of guy. Ideas are a dime-a-dozen; success comes from following through. With my first visit to a prison, my challenge was that I wanted to be a great success the first time out. I wanted God to provide me with immediate fulfillment. I didn’t see this first visit as a step toward a new destination; it was the new destination. I fall into this trap all the time. I’m impatient about God’s plan for my life. Everything is significant, and I want to know why. I want instant feedback to confirm I am on the right path.

How do these seemingly false starts keep me on the right path? Why hasn’t this person or that person responded the way I thought they should? Why has nothing happened when I have worked so hard? I am waiting on the evidence that God is with me.

Mark 11:24, “Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.”

FIG TREE

The second I ask, God answers. When Jesus saw the fig tree without fruit, he cursed it. But it did not die right away.

Mark 11:12-14, “The next day as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry. Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to find out if it had any fruit. When he reached it, he found nothing but leaves, because it was not the season for figs. Then he said to the tree, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard him say it.”

Mark 11:20, “In the morning, as they went along, they saw the fig tree withered from the roots.”

The fig tree died from the root. It started dying the second it was cursed, but the evidence wasn’t clear until the following day. God answers prayer the second we ask, but it may be some time before we see the fruit of that blessing. My impatience saps the joy out of that blessing. Sometimes when I don’t get what I want, when I want it, I stop looking and miss the gift altogether.

All of us have had situations that we have prayed about for years. We may not have prayed for a specific resolution, just that one happens. We want God’s will to be done. It ebbs and flows like the tide crashing over the shore; good days followed by bad days followed by good days—every fiber of our being screams out to give up. Finally, we’re tired of it all. But a small, meek voice always cautions us to be patient; one day, God will reveal His plan. One day.

God may send someone to encourage you, He may not, but the blessing is already happening. Know that it is happening and know that God is faithful in all things.

Romans 12:12, “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.”

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