How I Met My Saviour

    According to John 6:44, God The Father was drawing me to Himself long before I ever sought Him. He did the saving work about 2000 years ago when Jesus died and rose to pay for all sins for all time. The Holy Spirit did His work in my life millennia after to convict me of sin and show me my need for a Saviour.
    So even as I relay my personal circumstances, it's important to remember that God alone does the saving work. I relay this first because it's part of my story.
    Growing up as both a MK and PK, I got to hear The Gospel constantly in family devotions, Sunday School and church. I got to see the Gospel lived out in my parents and siblings.
   And when I was about 5 or 7 or so, I made a decision to ask Jesus into my heart as Lord and Saviour. There were a few other factors God used. One was an alphabet book that had a Bible verse for every letter. The first one was Isaiah 53:6- "All we like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way, and The Lord has laid upon Him the iniquity of us all." Next to the verse was an illustration of a boy putting a heavy burden down off his back at the foot of the cross, much like Christian in "The Pilgrim's Progress" by John Bunyan. The text of "At the Cross" was also printed there- "At the cross, at the cross where I first saw The Light and the burden of my heart rolled away. It was there by faith I received my sight and now I am happy all the day."
    In a testament to the power of stories, the other factor that hit me was probably one of the goofiest stories ever written in a family Bible devotions book. (Which seems rather fitting for my generally goofy personality. :-)) It was a story about a man who loved his pet pig and apparently managed to take him on a cruise ship. The pig fell overboard and the man loved that pig so much that he risked his life by diving overboard to save him.
   Even in this simple form, it still got the heart of The Gospel across to me as a young kid. God went way overboard with us when He actually lowered Himself to become human, live among us and bear the same trials and struggles we bear for 33 years, knowing He could call legions of angels at His command and stop this whole shebang any time He wanted- but choosing to give up His superpowers (much like Superman did in "Superman II") just to be near us- and then to die for the sins of the world. That's crazy, dude! Especially growing up in a country surrounded by people with very different conceptions of God that said that man is supposed to work like crazy to appease an angry god and maybe if we're good enough we can hack it into Heaven. Nowhere in the script did it call for the Playwright to enter His own story and and save the whole universe by His own sacrifice! WOW!
    So I decided that night after hearing that story in family devotions to pray and receive Jesus so that He could save me from the Hell I deserve and instead take me to the Heaven I don't deserve.
   All that said, after about 3 decades out from that time, I have struggled a number of times throughout with worries and doubts about my salvation- about whether my pumpkin patch was as sincere as Linus' and if I did something wrong and so forth. As I've said before though, I've doubted myself more than I've ever doubted God. So yeah, there have been times of reaffirmation and renewing my vows and such. (As 2 Corinthians 13:5 says, such heart checks are good to do every so often.) I finally came to a place where I realized salvation is totally dependent upon God and not on me. I put faith in His saving work and just take Him at His Word.
   Though I am very thankful for the Christian family I have and being surrounded with The Gospel, I have also sometimes felt like it can be easy to fall into a cultural faith that becomes built on Pharisaical religiosity. I've felt like maybe at times I was hard-nosed on some things in Pharisee fashion, whether I meant to be or not. I found it extremely helpful reading theology books like C.S. Lewis ("Mere Christianity", "The Screwtape Letters" and "The Weight of Glory" are particular favourites) and Tim Keller ("The Prodigal God" particularly- a book that helped me learn to repent of any righteousness I thought I ever had on my own) and Philip Yancey ("What's So Amazing About Grace?" and "Disappointment with God" are both awesome!)- and definitely Brennan Manning's "The Ragamuffin Gospel". (A book I have read and reread and cried over many times! God loves us just as we are not as we should be- 'cause none of us are as we should be.)
I recognize that there is no good in me- Jesus is my only good.
    And that's where I am now. God is always faithful even when I'm not. When I fall back into sin, I go back to 1 John 1:9. He forgives and restores.
   I also believe, if people are honest, we've all struggled with doubts at some point. I think God uses them to help us have an even stronger faith in the end. 1 John 3 is an extremely helpful passage for that! Even when my heart condemns, God is greater than my heart and He knows everything. He tells me The Truth. He who The Son sets free is free indeed. And when we're adopted as sons and daughters of The King, we're His forever! (John 1:12 and Romans 8:12-17 and 11:29)
    I mentioned the power of stories earlier and I would definitely add reading "The Chronicles of Narnia" by C.S. Lewis as a kid was also influential. There is a great line in "The Silver Chair" where Puddleglum declares that He's going to live as a Narnian even if there isn't a Narnia! I felt much the same when it came to dealing with fickle, funny, Funky Winkerbean feelings- I'm going to live for Christ no matter what my feelings say at times. I know Whom I have believed in and He is Faithful and True. As Campus Crusade for Christ founder Bill Bright explained in the Four Spiritual Laws, the feelings are like the caboose on a train. The engine of faith drives it with or without the caboose. Thus, my faith rests in the facts of God's Word. My faith has found a resting place not in device or creed-I need no other argument or plea- it is enough that Jesus died and that He died for me.
    And Hallelujah- He rose and He lives and He's coming again! And because He lives, we can live also. :-)
   (Note: I know this may be somewhat long, but I thought someone else might appreciate hearing this, especially in regards to soteriology.) Jesus loves you! Don't ever forget that. God bless :-)

Trading Dreams

(Note: This blog entry is in response to the following article.
https://www.boundless.org/blog/giving-god-control-of-my-failure/?utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=Social&utm_campaign=bt_blog_Mar12&fbclid=IwAR1a0eDtNfntrA98dIilG1p8IwH57viGO5V3Qqyj406x20iuufnnUupUip8
I am largely talking about keeping Jesus our number one passion above all else here but it is particularly addressing disappointment some feel with unwanted singleness.)


   I read the article- good stuff overall. I particularly liked how he talked about giving all our timelines, plans, dreams and desires over to God.
    Proverbs 16:3 is a great promise from The Lord- but don't forget some other verses in the same chapter- 16:9 and 16:33. In the end, even when we throw the dice in the game of Life, God still determines where they land. (Read Romans 9 for an excellent expose on God's sovereignty.)
     I did note that the dude's now happily married and I'm glad for him and his wife. I will admit that I get what he's saying because I've had times when I get sick of congratulating people on their engagements and marriages and children, etc. And then I get sick of me getting sick of that! Why am I going to sit around and whine about what I don't have instead of being thankful for what I do have?
     Marriage is not the perfect life-fixer we've idolized it to be. I'm not saying it's a bad thing- a wife is a blessing from The Lord. But marriage often makes life much harder, not easier. I do think it's worth the hardships but the grass always looks greener on the other side. (As Erma Bombeck used to say, I do believe- if I got the quote right)- that's because it's growing over a septic tank.
    I think too many Americans have bought into the American dream and have hopes set on marriage, kids and successful job in a nice cozy house- none of which is necessarily bad but none of which is necessarily God's plan for our lives.
     As with anything, the question we need to keep in mind with marriage, is asking how best we can bring God glory. How would my marriage to this particular girl best glorify God? I think as a couple, I would need to make sure both she and I can see God's vision for us as a couple.
     And we also have to be ready to trust The Lord and lay down our Isaac on the altar if that's what He calls us to do.
   "Sometimes, to do what's right, we have to be steady and give up the things we want the most- even our dreams."- Aunt May in "Spider-Man 2"
     And even if we feel like we're doing just that, we can trust that God still has the best in mind for us and will provide for all our needs. (Philippians 4:19) And whether He grants what we might desire or not- whether He sends His sun or rain upon us (just as He does for all the righteous and the wicked alike)- He is still always good and has already given us infinitely more than we deserve in Christ!
     I want to want Christ and want nothing else. (Psalms 23:1) Not that I have obtained all this or am already perfect, but I press on toward the goal for the prize for which God has called me Heavenward in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:14)
   I praise God for all the gifts He has blessed me with because the fact that I'm even here on earth to complain about what I don't have in life right now is more than I deserve- 'cause what I deserve is Hell. Anything above burning in Hell is a privilege.
   I know everyone's at different places with all this and I'm just writing for me and where I stand on this. Yes, I'd like to get married if God brings the right woman to my life but it's okay if I don't. Either way, I seek to live for God's glory above all and His desires above mine. He must increase and I must decrease. (John 3:30)
"Whom have I in Heaven but You, Jesus? And what better could I hope to find down here on earth? I could search the most distant reaches of this world but I'd just be wasting my time- I'm certain already I'm sure I'd find- You're my one thing! And the pure in heart shall see God." ("My One Thing" by Rich Mullins- which he based on Psalms 73 and these awesome quotes- "Purity of heart is to will one thing."- Soren Kierkegaard
"Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God."- Jesus)
    Again- please don't hear me wrong. I'm not saying anyone desiring marriage and still feeling unfulfilled and wondering why God hasn't granted that yet is necessarily just wallowing in despair and self-pity and not making Jesus their highest joy (just like Psalms 137- may my tongue stick to my mouth like peanut butter if I don't make New Jerusalem and its Lord my highest joy).
I know that I'm not always desiring God like I should because none of us really do. But He keeps drawing us to Him more and more and I desire to be more and more like Him and desire Him all the more!
(Philippians 2:1-18, Romans 8)
   Of course, it's good to know that God loves us as we are and not as we should be- because none of us are as we should be. (Shout out to Brennn Manning for that.)
Walking with Jesus is not always the most comfortable for sure, but it's always the best and "I am beginning to think there are better things than being comfortable." (Diamond in "At the Back of the North Wind" by George MacDonald)

I'm reminded of Thomas Merton's prayer, which I think is a great one to consider in pondering God's will specifically in marriage but also in life in general. The most important thing is to seek Him above all. No one who has given up mother, father, brothers, sisters, husband or wife and children for His kingdom will lose their reward. (See Matthew 19:29 and Mark 10:29 and Luke 18:29)

Author: Thomas Merton
"My Lord God,
I have no idea where I am going.
I do not see the road ahead of me.
I cannot know for certain where it will end.
nor do I really know myself,
and the fact that I think I am following your will
does not mean that I am actually doing so.
But I believe that the desire to please you
does in fact please you.
And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing.
I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire.
And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road,
though I may know nothing about it.
Therefore will I trust you always though
I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death.
I will not fear, for you are ever with me,
and you will never leave me to face my perils alone. "

And for one more quote-
"Dreams come true can kill a man if never graced by sovereign hands."- "Monkey's Paw" by Smalltown Poets

I choose to leave it in God's hands.

RickRoll! :-) (AKA Asaph's Awakening)

Ever feel like Life has played a RickRoll on you? You thought something was going to be so cool and instead it turned out to be so lame and so not what you wanted. And then to add insult to injury, you start shopping around and comparing and suddenly realize- Hey! Why do the wicked people who don't even follow God seem to have it so good? It's then that we learn what Asaph learned in Psalms 73- their end is eternal destruction, but our end in Christ is eternal life. So, in our walk with Christ Jesus, remember 1 Corinthians 15:57-58 - we may walk a path filled with temporary pain, but it's never in vain- and there is joy in the journey (John 10:10) and eternal joy coming at the end. (Romans 8:18)
"Whom have I in Heaven but You? And there is nothing on earth I desire besides You. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever." (Psalms 73:25-26) It's so good to know The Lord is good and a refuge for us Who makes a complete end of His adversaries. (Nahum 1:7-8) And as we walk by faith, not sight (Habakkuk 2:4, 2 Corinthians 5:7), we know that the enemy can gloat now if he wants- but we know that when we fall, we rise again through God's help and when we sit in darkness, The Lord is our light. (Micah 7:7-8) We're betrothed unto Him forevermore (Hosea 2:19-20) Because of our faith in Jesus' death and Resurrection, we have a permanent place in God's house as sons and daughters (John 8:31-36, Hebrews 9:11-28) We have a reason to persevere and endure (Philippians 4:13) through it all. It's so good to know The One Who's never gonna give us up (Hosea 11:8-9, John 6:35-40), never gonna let us down (Romans 5:1-5, Psalms 136, 1 Corinthians 13:8, 1 John 4:8), never gonna run around and desert us (Jeremiah 31:3, Isaiah 54:1-8, Isaiah 62:12, Hebrews 13:5-6), never gonna make us cry (Exodus 22:23, Psalms 28:6, Psalms 34:17, Revelation 21:1-5), never gonna say, "Goodbye" (Psalms 136, Revelation 21:1-5, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, 2 Corinthians 5:8, Hebrews 13:5-6), never gonna tell a lie and hurt us. (1 Samuel 15:29, Titus 1:2, John 14:6, 1 John 2:21, Hebrews 6:18, John 17:17). God is forever faithful and we are forever loved- Amen.
           

And this post wouldn't be complete if I didn't actually post the song I mentioned here- the classic 1987 hit from Rick Astley- "Never Gonna Give You Up"- a love song that I really think reflects the heart of God in many ways. :-)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ