Don’t Let the Sky Bonk You On the Head

Posted on by
Reply

Most of us know the story about the nervous little chicken that feared the sky was falling because one day while he was walking in the forest, an acorn bonked him on the head.

He convinced some bird friends it was true, and they set off to tell their king that the sky was collapsing. It didn’t end well as a fox ate them all. So much for happy endings, huh?

Americans call the unfortunate chick Chicken Little,” or Chicken Licken. Those who speak English with King Charles’ accent call him Henny Penny. Nearly 200 years ago, a Danish version of the story called him Kylling Kluk.

Yelling “The Sky Is Falling”

I’ve been bonked on the head by a lot of things, but I don’t think an acorn was one of them. A couple of things hit me hard enough that I felt the sky was falling in my life, though.

I see many people scurrying around today, yelling that the sky is falling. Every time our side loses an election, it’s the end of life as we know it. Several years ago, I asked a wise friend his opinion about the results of a recent election. “I don’t think it’s terminal,” he said.

And so far, he’s been right.

Conspiracy theories gallop wildly through cyberspace, warning of sinister deep web plots to destroy the world and set up Bill Gates as king or some such. Who knows? They may be right.

And even if the sky isn’t falling, it might. There are some pretty nasty characters in charge of nuclear weapons in the world. Idiots careening down Bourbon street kill innocents. Plagues and dark diseases threaten us.

Christian Attitudes

Christians see the world and realize that a large percentage of its people couldn’t care less about God, or at least He’s an afterthought to what they deem the important things in their life.

That’s never a good sign. Life only works correctly if God is our center.

If we’re not careful, our attitude is to duck our head and pray for the Lord to come quickly. (I want the Lord to come quickly, but not simply to save us from problems. I want to be with Him eternally. I want the last act to finish and eternity with the Lord to begin).

And it’s not only some Christians who fear the sky is falling. I heard someone recently say that he felt like we’ve entered a new era, something has changed and not for the good.

Tough Times and Smiley Faces

Yes, life is tough and yes, the Bible says that perilous times will come in the last days.

But, it also says that Jesus sustains all things by His powerful word. (Hebrews 1:3). The Lord said He came to open the door to an abundant life for those who trust Him. He promised to meet all the needs of those who love Him by His riches in glory. He promised to forgive our sins. We are more than conquerors through Him.

Don’t Give Way To the Lemon-face Syndrome

So, while you’re sitting in your easy chair watching your favorite newscaster scream that the sky is falling, why not stop and look up? The Lord said He would never leave us or forsake us. In the midst of a dark world, God is moving in the earth.

We’re praying for revival? One of my French friends told me of a new openness among young people in France since COVID. Recently, revival broke out in a prayer time at Asbury Seminary and people streamed from all directions to be a part of it. Even the Washington Post reported on it.

Keep your eyes on what God is doing. Talk about that. Tune your ears to His promises and repeat them.

Or you can choose to be like Winnie the Pooh’s lemon-faced friend, Eeyore the Donkey.

He said, at various times: “I was so upset, I forgot to be happy… Could be worse. Not sure how, but it could be… Wish I could say yes, but I can’t… I never get my hopes up, so I never get let down.

“Don’t worry about me. Go and enjoy yourself. I’ll stay here and be miserable.”*

We Determine What We Focus On

Yes, we’re living in difficult times, but God helps us, strengthens us. Looking for the good and not the bad is a decision. You’ve got to work at it because it doesn’t come naturally.

But it sure changes your life.

We’re praying for a lot of things and we’ll be praying when the Lord comes, but don’t forget that God is already at work today … powerfully.

Let’s choose to tilt our heads upwards with our mouth full of praise and joy. As the song says, “Turn your eyes on Jesus, look full in His wonderful face. And the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of his glory and grace.”**

If you do that, the “sky” will fall on you. Heaven comes down and glory fills your soul.

“When I said, ‘My foot is slipping,’ your unfailing love, Lord, supported me. When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭94‬: ‭18‬-‭19‬ ‭NIV‬‬ ‬‬‬‬‬‬

Images: Bing AI

*https://parade.com/1277210/kaigreen/eeyore-quotes/ ** Helen H. Lemmel,

The Giant That Nearly Killed David

Posted on by
Reply

It didn’t look good for King David. A gigantic man had cornered him and was moving in for the kill, and old David didn’t have any juice left. A few years ago, he could have taken his attacker, but now it looked like “game over,” when suddenly David’s cousin Abishai charged in and killed the giant, Ishbibenob.

You think I’m making this up? After all, David became famous for killing the giant, Goliath, when he was only a boy (1 Sam. 17:33). But, if you want to fact check me, look at 2 Samuel 21:15-17.

Why couldn’t “too old” David kill a giant like “too young” David had? God hadn’t changed.

Success At Each Stage of Life

We pass through different stages of our lives—culture defines some of these stages (childhood, young adult/marriage, children, middle age, seniors, etc.). And some of our giants disguise themselves as circumstances (trials, victories, everyday life).

The temptation is to rest on our laurels. Sometimes we have faith for the challenges of one life stage or trial, but never buckle down to confront the giants we meet in the next life battle.
Each stage of life and each circumstance trot out new challenges. All too often we win in one stage and fail in the next. But, just as the seasons in nature are necessary to life, so are these stages in our life. We may not like winter or the heat of summer, but there is a reason for them.

A New Stage

I’m dealing with the early stage of retirement.
I look in the mirror and see my father or my grandfather. “What are you doing there?” I’m tempted to say. “You’re supposed to be dead.” I see pictures of my family when the kids were all home and think, “That’s what I’m supposed to look like.”

I realize that I’m living in an incredibly important time of life. The temptation is to let my inward fire burn lower and lower until it’s extinguished in death. But, I would rather flame up in a forest fire in spiritual realms and make a difference by prayer, mentoring, and taking the opportunities before me. (And continuing to visit with you through Coffee Stains.)

The Bible is full of men and women that people expected to ride quietly into the sunset, but they continued to fulfill the reason God put them on the earth. Who would have seen an opportunity to evict an entrenched enemy in a lofty place, but young Jonathan and his armor bearer sparked a brilliant victory because they dared to walk in faith? God doesn’t need 30-year-old hands or good looks. He needs people like Jonathan who will seize the opportunity at whatever stage of life they appear.

Response to the Challenge

How do you respond to the challenge before you? Are you changing baby diapers or changing your own? Are you trying to understand a strange boss or struggling to comprehend and work with people 25 years younger than you are? Maybe you’re exulting in victory or aching through cancer treatment? Stages of life and trials … we’ve got to navigate these passages successfully.

The answer isn’t to mourn what’s lost and wail about the present. It’s not crying that others are the problem. It’s not laziness either, though you might find that you need more physical rest if you are ageing. (NAPS! Yes.)

Keep doing the things that helped you in other life stages or trials: prayer, God’s Word, fellowship with others who challenge you to grow, service. TRUST! The foundation has to be strong.

Walk Through Open Doors

I was playing dominos with an African American friend. When it was his turn to play, this army veteran stared at his dominos for a long time, searching for a solution for a poor hand. “C’mon.” I urged. “What are you going to do?”

“I’m going to do what ‘do’ lets me do,” he said. The voice of experience.

The door we hoped would open doesn’t always open. They don’t ask you to do much anymore. Quit moping and “do what ‘do’ lets your do.” Go through the door that opens, even if it’s not the most glorious. David didn’t go out to battle anymore. That part of his life ended. But he had a more important role. He was “the lamp of Israel.”

When mamaw Deloney, Mrs. McDaniel my mother-in-law, and Daddy passed, they all left a hole in my life. They were important. When Daddy died, I felt like someone had jerked out a pillar from my life. Now, in a sense, I have to be to my family and friends what all these were to me.

Never lose that warrior spirit of faith, that spirit that will go after giants. Caleb was ready to battle those big guys at Hebron when he was 40. Forty-five years later, he looked up at that same fortified city and determined it was still his.

We preachers picture old Caleb, long white beard flowing in the wind, running up the hill, brandishing his sword and felling giants in the city. Forty-five-year-old Caleb might have done that, but it seems as if 85-year-old Caleb acted as a general, directing and inspiring his troops.

I suspect old Caleb had more wisdom than young Caleb, but both knew that the battle belonged to the Lord. The city fell before the old warrior and his men. God hadn’t changed in the 45 years between the time Moses gave the city to Caleb and the time the old fellow finally stormed into his inheritance.

Where are you in life now? What stage? In trials or blessings? God’s promise still rings true. His faithfulness stands rock solid. The Lord Jesus still plans to bless you. Look to Him and go forward.

“I Did It My Way”

Posted on by
Reply

There’s a beautiful ballad that irritates me: “My Way.”

Whether it’s Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley or Willie Nelson singing, it seems arrogant, like someone standing before the judge proclaiming his wonderfulness.

“And now the end is near, so I face the final curtain. My friend, I’ll say it clear, I’ll state my case of which I’m certain. I’ve lived a life that’s full. I’ve traveled each and every highway. And more, much more than this, I did it my way.”

Paul Anka wrote the English words for Frank Sinatra, who sang the song in 1969. It’s set to the music of the French song “Comme d’habitude” first performed in 1967 by Claude François. Seems like every crooner in the world has recorded it since.

We like to think “our way,” is pretty good, but would it shock you if I said that we’re not on earth to do it “our way?” I know we’re constantly hearing about “my dreams, my destiny, my vision, etc.” And that’s good with one qualifier:

Is your dream, the destiny you are pursuing, God’s plan for your life, or is it your desire for self-fulfillment? Are you carrying out the Master’s orders or are you polishing your own reputation, filling your own pockets and padding your own happiness?

You’re No Accident

You see, you aren’t an accident? Did God say, “Whoops! Dropped that one into life by accident,” when you were conceived? Did your mother slap her forehead when the test came back positive and say, “Oh, no! Not another one!” Did your father go into shock and mumble, “My wife’s too old to send her back to her mom and dad,”?

I can’t speak for your parents, but I’m certain that God didn’t goof up when He made you. He put you on earth for a reason. Yes, you.

God has a mission for your life? Yes, from your first wail in the delivery room ‘til your last breath. He entrusted you with a job to accomplish during your life.

So here’s the $24,000 question, “Are you carrying out the mission He created you for or are you simply doing life ‘your way?’”

What Is Wrong With this Picture

I’ve enjoyed playing with Microsoft’s image generator. It can screw up your directions, though. I asked it for an image of Jesus washing a young man’s feet and it spit out the one above. I was a bit put off, but then I realized the machine had accidentally gotten it right.

Our mission is to serve the Lord Jesus. He said that when we ministered to the least of his brothers—the poor, the hungry, the prisoners–we did it to Him. We can wash the Lord’s feet, serve Him, by serving each other!

His Way! The Lord has a “way” for your life. We should make a song of Jeremiah’s lyrics:

“La parole de l’Éternel me fut adressée, en ces mots:

5 Avant que je t’eusse formé dans le ventre de ta mère, je te connaissais, et avant que tu fusses sorti de son sein, je t’avais consacré, je t’avais établi prophète des nations.

” (Jer. 1: 4, 5)

Now, most of us aren’t called to be a prophet to the nations or a pastor or a missionary.

What is our mission? Jesus came to seek and to save the lost. A disciple should be like his Master. Am I sharing the Good News of Jesus with others? Eternal life is at stake for each person.

The first commandment is to love God with everything you are, and the second is to love your neighbor as yourself. What am I doing to worship God? What am I doing to serve others?

If we love the Lord with all our hearts, there’s a good chance that our dreams will be synonymous with His mission for our life. He told us that if we delighted ourselves in Him, He would give us the desires of our heart.

Here are some things you can consider when thinking about God’s mission for your life and His specific direction for you.

“Tes oreilles entendront derrière toi la voix qui dira: Voici le chemin, marchez-y! Car vous iriez à droite, ou vous iriez à gauche.” (Isa. 30:21, NLT)

“8 Que toute la terre craigne l’Éternel! Que tous les habitants du monde tremblent devant lui!

9 Car il dit, et la chose arrive; Il ordonne, et elle existe.” (Psalm 33:8, 9, )

“3 Recommande à l’Éternel tes oeuvres, Et tes projets réussiront.” (Proverbs 16:4, )

My way? According to Helen Brown, writing in the Financial Times, “As it became his signature song Sinatra grew to loathe it, forced to stand before his adoring audience and expose the ugly truth about his aggressive disregard for the thoughts and feelings of other people. ‘He was,’ says his daughter Tina, ‘a man who all his life looked outside for what was missing inside.’” (Financial Times online, Feb. 20, 2017)

My way? I prefer Matt Redman’s words:

“King of endless worth, no one could express how much You deserve. Though I’m weak and poor, all I have is Yours, every single breath. I’ll bring You more than a song, for a song in itself is not what You have required. You search much deeper within, through the way things appear. You’re looking into my heart, yeah, I’m comin’ back to the heart of worship, and it’s all about You It’s all about You, Jesus.” (Song: The Heart of Worship by Matt Redman)

Raising Heaven

Posted on by
Reply

Until I was about 12, my parents didn’t go to church. On Sunday mornings, my mom’s mom, Mamaw Deloney, insisted that they bring me, my sister, and my brother to her house, which was six miles away. She and Granddad took us to services.

Mama and daddy would come to pick us up and eat lunch. Often I stayed over and went to church with my grandparents on Sunday evening. That led to a memory that branded my childhood.

Granddad would often go outside to stretch his legs after the Sunday afternoon football game on television (one game for the whole day!) Mamaw took advantage of the quiet to slip away to her fortress of solitude, her bedroom. There she prayed and prepared her heart for the Sunday evening service.

Often I would still be in the living room as I heard Mamaw “raising heaven” in the back bedroom. If I get still, I can still feel the power and urgency of those prayers as my grandmother spoke with the One she loved so fervently. Her prayers not only touched heaven, they also touched and changed me.

I have hundreds of memories of this remarkable little country lady—apple pie, fried chicken, stories, hugs, etc—but those prayers hover near the top of the list.

I wonder what my grandchildren will remember about me.

Heaven-raising Prayers

Mamaw’s prayers were fervent, not just loud. I’ve heard people thunder prayers that shook the dust out of the rafters, but I’m not sure heaven listened. Samuel’s mother prayed and only her lips moved (1 Samuel 1:13). Still, a remarkable son resulted from her praying. Loud or quiet, the prayer that moves heaven is full of heart, heat, and faith.

“The earnest (heartfelt, continued) prayer of a righteous man makes tremendous power available [dynamic in its working].” (James 5:16 AMPC)

Prayers that raise heaven ache for what they ask for. If you’ve got an answer figured out or you don’t really care if God answers your prayer or not, why should He care? This poses a problem because we’re asked to pray for a ton of people and situations and many of them we don’t know. How can you feel your prayers in that case?

Sometimes I try to put myself in the person’s place asking prayer. What if that was my son or daughter? What if I faced death?

The other secret weapon that God gives to help us care is the Holy Spirit. “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.” (Rom. 8:26-28, ESV)

A third principle of prayer that succeeds is an “I’m-going-to-have-this-or-else” attitude. I love Jesus’ story of the little lady dealing with the crooked judge. She had faith that this scoundrel was going to help her or he would wish he had. And he did.

Now, God wants to answer your prayer, but he also wants to develop an attitude of faith and persistence in you. That attitude will serve you as well as an answered prayer, because you learn not to quit. Here’s how faith prays:

“Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.” (‭‭Matthew‬ ‭7‬:‭7, 8‬ ‭NLT)

Do Your Prayers Raise Heaven?

When your kids and grandkids think back on you, what will they remember? Will they remember you raising heaven or raising something else?

Get busy making memories for the generations who follow you. And get some prayer results yourself while you are at it.

Image: Bing AI

Does God Want To Heal … Or Just Reign?

Posted on by
Reply

Does God Want to Heal … Or Just Reign?

We need powerful truth coupled with counsel for practical living to live victoriously.

“Ladies and gentlemen, in this corner, weighing 450-pounds, you have Deeeeeep Theology!” the announcer booms while a huge boxer stomps to the middle of the ring bathed in the wild cheers of the crowd. Half of the crowd, anyway.

The other half saves their roar until the announcement of his opponent, “Practical Living and Miracles,” who skips out and bounces around a few times, arms raised as if he’s already victorious.

Let the match begin.

Which One Is Right?

There is a conflict between those who think pastors should teach deep spiritual truth almost exclusively, and those who bear down on a practical approach to God to get your daily needs met.

And both of them land some good punches. Those who prefer deep theology rightly note that some reduce God to a Coke machine—put in your dollar of prayer, push the button and voila!, all your needs are met. And woe to God when He doesn’t do what you want Him to.

According to them, the “shallow, practical bunch” couldn’t find John 3:16 if you spotted them the page number. I’m reading an excellent book by pastor J. D. Greer. “We want a God who will restore us to peaceful equilibrium, take away our stress, and promise us a blissful afterlife. Most Christians haven’t rejected God; they have just reduced him.”

He continues, “I am, in part, the product of a Christian culture that has fostered and promoted a small, domesticated view of God. The Western Christianity in which I have been immersed focuses on the practicality of faith. We present God as the best way to a happy and prosperous life. We show how God is the best explanation for unanswered questions and the best means to the life we desire. Our worship services seem more like pep rallies accompanied by practical tips for living than encounters with the living God who stands beyond time and whose presence is indescribably glorious. These shallow glimpses of God are fine as long as our faith remains untested, but they are utterly insufficient in the midst of serious questioning or intense suffering.” (Not God Enough: Why Your Small God Leads to Big Problems by J.D. Greear and David Jeremiah)

Our friend, “Practical Living and Miracles,” is unfazed. He bobs and weaves and lands his blows. “Those folks hide away in ivory towers and put the Gospel so high that no one can reach it,” he says. “They spend their time in their office reading dusty theology books while right outside the door people are hurting, confused, and need help from a personal God who still intervenes for those who trust Him. If you’re having problems sleeping, just listen to one of these doctors of theology speak. They will cure you instantly.”

You know who is right? Both of them. Who is wrong? Both of them.

God’s Word shows clearly that the Lord is for the whole man.

A Body, Soul, and Spirit God

Think about the Lord’s prayer: Jesus starts with the spiritual—worship and surrender; then He continues with requests for practical needs—daily bread, help to forgive, battles against temptation and trials. Then worship again.

Both the Old Testament and the New Testament emphasize God’s concern for the whole man.

OLD: Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me. He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases. He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies.

(Psalm 103:2-4, NLT)

NEW: Beloved, I pray that in every way you may prosper and enjoy good health, as your soul also prospers. (3 John 1:2, BSB)

We are body, soul, and spirit. We’re not disembodied spirits floating around without physical needs. I think sometimes those who advocate for the “spiritual,” all the while insisting that God no longer does miracles, are afraid of seeing God meet natural needs. Why? Because they really don’t want Him to challenge them to see how great He is. A today-present God is rather scary.

Or they are afraid He won’t answer as they want and that will injure their faith. But, the fear of asking betrays a lack of trust.

But the “practical” adherents sometimes want to eat the miraculous fish and bread, then go about their life, leaving Jesus out. At times, their lives strongly resemble that of those who’ve never heard of the Lord. There is no witness to the power of God because their life is no different from everyone else’s.

No! The danger here is to be so excited about God’s provision that we’re not hungry for God himself. The God of truth is incredibly great, holy, and powerful.

Sometimes they are like someone who marries for money. They love the benefits and put up with the one who provides those benefits. No!

Pleasing God

The ones who please God come for the Word AND to have their needs met. We are body, soul, and spirit, and God wants to work in every aspect of our life.

Balanced teaching and faith in life emphasize both. These two truths aren’t opponents. They walk in lockstep to help us know and love the God who loves us.

“Yet the news about him spread all the more, so that crowds of people came to hear him and to be healed of their sicknesses.” Luke 5:15 NIV.

__________________________________________________