Have you ever stopped to think how lucrative the exercise equipment business is? Buff guys on television "paid programming" make the latest, greatest, "get rock hard abs like mine" machine look so effortless. It's easy to morph into a fit body with sculpted muscles in just a few minutes a day - more like a quick look at the machine - if we can believe the advertising pitch! And it's crazy how many people do believe! We hope that if we have that miracle-working piece of equipment, we will somehow develop the self-discipline it will take to actually use it consistently so that we become fit, like the guy in the ad, without breaking a sweat, and in just a few short sessions.
So we fork over 4 easy payments of $99.99 plus shipping and handling. When it arrives, we unpack the box with determination, place the "thing" in front of the television, put on our newly purchased work-out gear (it is, after all, all about the look), and begin to exercise, only to discover that the guy on the ad lied. The machine is NOT easy and the effort required to make it work is HUGE! It doesn't take long for our resolve to dissolve and for the equipment to end up in the storage room along with all the other exercise stuff we've accumulated and rejected.
I wonder if we sometimes assume that becoming a mature Christian is supposed to come without extreme effort, personal sacrifice, and self-discipline. Once we accept Christ as our Savior, the training begins, and it doesn't end until we stand before the Lord, face to face. What is absolutely encouraging is that we have all we need (Phil. 4:19) to develop into "buff Christians." God has given us faith, and he's promised to provide the strength we need to grow in him and to become who he created us to be (Phil. 4:13). He's given us a complete training manual, the Bible, an example to follow, Jesus, and a personal trainer, the Holy Spirit.
Romans 5:1-5 is an interesting explanation of the kind of "circuit training" we can expect once we sign on for God's "Devoted Follower's Boot Camp." We discover that first we have entered into relationship with him through faith (Romans 5:1-2). It's this faith that allows us to believe and receive the grace of God and the gift of salvation. It's small faith (maybe the size of a mustard seed - Matthew 17:20), but like muscle and cardio-vascular capacity, it has growth potential!
Along with this faith, we have hope that, as a result of our salvation, we will know God's glory. Hope goes hand-in-hand with faith (Hebrews 11:1); therefore, hope has room to grow too. But just as muscles and lung capacity don't increase and strengthen by just wishing it so, faith and hope have to be pushed, stretched, and exercised to build endurance.
God's "training routine" requires that we know "tribulation" (Romans 5:3). But, it's the tribulation that develops patience in us. If we exercise our faith and hope during the tough times, if we stay focused and committed and draw our strength to endure from God, we come out stronger. That strength translates into a "chiseled, Christlike physique," which produces in us the will to keep on following after Christ, doing whatever it takes to become like him.
The "circuit training" God designs for us follows this pattern - faith to accept salvation, hope for a glorious future with him, tribulation to develop patience, patience to produce experience, and experience that results in more hope (Romans 5:3-5)!
Romans 8:25 says, "But if we hope for that which we see not, then do we with patience wait for it." We don't begin our training looking like the physically fit pitch-men in the advertisements, but we do hope that if we are patient (and patience doesn't always mean inactivity) and keep our eyes on the goal, we can develop the fitness God desires for us.
As we gain endurance, we have the experience to encourage us on to the next level. God wants us to graduate from his "boot camp" fully developed so that on the day that we stand before him, he can say, "Well done! You've run a good race" (I Corinthians 9:24; Hebrews 12:1)!
Lord, you know that we need to be pushed to develop into who you intend for us to be. You start our "training" gently, but you know for us to run the race to the finish, we will need more rigor! Thank you for providing all we need to be successful as we mature in our walk with you.
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Sunday, May 16, 2010
Waiting for Walls to Fall: An Exercise of Patience
Exercising patience means waiting. Generally, we have two ways in which we can wait - with fear and anxiety or with great anticipation and excitement. The condition in which we wait often coincides directly with the way in which we are related to God. If we are out of sync, we are going to be truly worried about the outcome and will attempt to take matters into our own hands. Conversely, if we are "right with God," we can wait and watch for how he is going to work in the situations we face. We can anticipate his plan with the same difficult-to-contain excitement of a child awaiting Christmas morning, or we can agonize with the "wait 'til your father gets home" fear and dread!
God commanded Joshua and the children of Israel to prepare to take Jericho. This involved becoming "purified" before God, honoring and revering his presence among them, and following some rather unconventional tactics of warfare. A key to learning to wait with patient anticipation to "...see the salvation of the Lord..." (Exodus 14:13; II Chronicles 20:17) is to sanctify or purify ourselves (to have a right heart) before him. Joshua told the children of Israel, "Sanctify yourselves; for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you" (Joshua 3:5). God does great and wondrous things in our lives when we are obedient to him; when we aren't, we prevent him from blessing our lives (see Joshua 7).
With God present among the Israelites, they were ready to pass into the Land of Canaan that he had promised them. He commanded Joshua to have the Levite priests carry the Ark of the Covenant, God's symbol of his holy presence, into the Jordan River. As long as the priests stood in the Jordan with the Ark, the people were able to cross on dry land (Joshua 3:11-17). When the people prepared to take Jericho, God was there, as the priests led the procession around the walls of the city (Joshua 6:11). God, present in any situation of our lives, leading the charge, results in victory. In the words of David, "For by You I can run against a troop; by my God I can leap over a wall" (II Samuel 22:30, Psalm 18:29). Nothing is too great for God; we just have to let him lead!
Marching around the walls of Jericho once a day for six days, with trumpets blowing, and then repeating the same pattern on the seventh day for seven circuits with a shout added the last time around doesn't seem like a plan for successfully taking the city and routing the people (Joshua 6:1-21). But, it was God's plan, and Joshua insisted that the people follow it as ordered. Sure enough, on the seventh time around when the trumpets sounded, the children of Israel gave up a shout of victory, and the walls of Jericho fell. The people were victorious because they did as God commanded.
God doesn't always act in ways that make sense to us. In Isaiah 55:8, God says, "I don't think the way you think. The way you work isn't the way I work." Sometimes he wants us to do things that run counter to what we believe is a rational course of action. It's in these times that our patience is truly tested. We can become anxious and step out in our own wisdom trying to fix the situation, or we can wait excitedly, anticipating what God will do. Walls fall when we wait on God!
Lord, I don't like waiting! But, thank you for giving me plenty of "opportunities" to develop patience and a desire to wait for your leading and to follow it. You have a plan, it's perfect, and I want to be in obedience to you. Thank you for your patience with me. Thank you for making right the messes I've made by rushing ahead of you. Thank you, Lord, because in all things you are amazing!
God commanded Joshua and the children of Israel to prepare to take Jericho. This involved becoming "purified" before God, honoring and revering his presence among them, and following some rather unconventional tactics of warfare. A key to learning to wait with patient anticipation to "...see the salvation of the Lord..." (Exodus 14:13; II Chronicles 20:17) is to sanctify or purify ourselves (to have a right heart) before him. Joshua told the children of Israel, "Sanctify yourselves; for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you" (Joshua 3:5). God does great and wondrous things in our lives when we are obedient to him; when we aren't, we prevent him from blessing our lives (see Joshua 7).
With God present among the Israelites, they were ready to pass into the Land of Canaan that he had promised them. He commanded Joshua to have the Levite priests carry the Ark of the Covenant, God's symbol of his holy presence, into the Jordan River. As long as the priests stood in the Jordan with the Ark, the people were able to cross on dry land (Joshua 3:11-17). When the people prepared to take Jericho, God was there, as the priests led the procession around the walls of the city (Joshua 6:11). God, present in any situation of our lives, leading the charge, results in victory. In the words of David, "For by You I can run against a troop; by my God I can leap over a wall" (II Samuel 22:30, Psalm 18:29). Nothing is too great for God; we just have to let him lead!
Marching around the walls of Jericho once a day for six days, with trumpets blowing, and then repeating the same pattern on the seventh day for seven circuits with a shout added the last time around doesn't seem like a plan for successfully taking the city and routing the people (Joshua 6:1-21). But, it was God's plan, and Joshua insisted that the people follow it as ordered. Sure enough, on the seventh time around when the trumpets sounded, the children of Israel gave up a shout of victory, and the walls of Jericho fell. The people were victorious because they did as God commanded.
God doesn't always act in ways that make sense to us. In Isaiah 55:8, God says, "I don't think the way you think. The way you work isn't the way I work." Sometimes he wants us to do things that run counter to what we believe is a rational course of action. It's in these times that our patience is truly tested. We can become anxious and step out in our own wisdom trying to fix the situation, or we can wait excitedly, anticipating what God will do. Walls fall when we wait on God!
Lord, I don't like waiting! But, thank you for giving me plenty of "opportunities" to develop patience and a desire to wait for your leading and to follow it. You have a plan, it's perfect, and I want to be in obedience to you. Thank you for your patience with me. Thank you for making right the messes I've made by rushing ahead of you. Thank you, Lord, because in all things you are amazing!
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Parenting - Golden Calves and Other Objects of Our Affection
This week my attention was drawn to the account in Exodus 32 of the children of Israel growing impatient with the absence of their leader Moses. He had gone to Mount Sinai to hear from God and was taking way too long, as far as the people were concerned. They gave up waiting on, "That Moses, the man who got us out of Egypt..." (Exodus 32:1, The Message). In reality, they gave up waiting on God - the same God they had sworn to obey (Exodus 19:2-8). Instead of drawing from their most recent memory of God's delivering them miraculously from Egyptian bondage, they grew impatient and demanded that Aaron, the God-ordained priest, make them "...gods who will lead us" (Exodus 32:1, The Message). Aaron gave into their demands and crafted a golden calf from their gold earrings and built an altar before it. He led the people in sacrificing offerings on that altar, and then they began to party! The party didn't last long; God was not amused! He commanded Moses to get down the mountain and back to the people. Moses had to intercede for them because God threatened to incinerate them! Moses destroyed the golden calf and carried out punishment on the people leading the revelry, and God sent a plague on all of them!
Far too often we too grow impatient, waiting for God to send an answer or give us what we believe we need. We want the "gods we can see" to lead us. The "god" may be the job we believe will bring us fulfillment or recognition. We may want so badly to be married that we settle for someone we know isn't Mr. or Ms. Right. Other times, we just put pencil to paper and figure out a way to have what we want - a car, a house, a vacation - even though something is tugging at us, telling us the timing isn't right. Whatever it is, we forget the God who has promised to be our provider and supply all our need according to his riches (Philippians 4:19). We get ahead of his plan and purposes for our lives and become his "helper." Usually, we "help" ourselves right into a big mess. We offer our worship to and place our faith in what we can see and manufacture.
God knows this about us. He knows we are prone to "playing god" and rushing headlong into trouble. He knows that sometimes getting what we want when we want it isn't in our best interest. Yet, God allows us to take matters into our own hands when we persist. I believe he knows that we eventually will learn that waiting on him to lead us and to provide for us is the wisest course of action! I believe he knows that the "plagues" that generally follow our own "golden calf" experiences end up being pretty good lessons for us.
Learning to be patient doesn't mean we sit around doing nothing. Waiting on God requires action (I Timothy 6:11). While we wait, we pray for God's strength to wait patiently. We read his word for guidance and are actively obedient to his word. We seek his direction. We listen for his voice. We worship him and believe that he is working all things for our good (Hebrews 13:20-21).
Like the children of Israel and Aaron, we can grow tired of waiting on God to lead us and rely on golden calves of our own making. We can worship at their altars, and we can be disappointed. Or, we can believe in what we cannot see and stand firm in God's promises and experience the rewards of our faithfulness (Hebrews 11:6).
Lord, thank you for your faithfulness and your patience with us. Teach us to hear your voice as you lead us. Give us the desire to wait on you with courage! In your name we ask. Amen!
Far too often we too grow impatient, waiting for God to send an answer or give us what we believe we need. We want the "gods we can see" to lead us. The "god" may be the job we believe will bring us fulfillment or recognition. We may want so badly to be married that we settle for someone we know isn't Mr. or Ms. Right. Other times, we just put pencil to paper and figure out a way to have what we want - a car, a house, a vacation - even though something is tugging at us, telling us the timing isn't right. Whatever it is, we forget the God who has promised to be our provider and supply all our need according to his riches (Philippians 4:19). We get ahead of his plan and purposes for our lives and become his "helper." Usually, we "help" ourselves right into a big mess. We offer our worship to and place our faith in what we can see and manufacture.
God knows this about us. He knows we are prone to "playing god" and rushing headlong into trouble. He knows that sometimes getting what we want when we want it isn't in our best interest. Yet, God allows us to take matters into our own hands when we persist. I believe he knows that we eventually will learn that waiting on him to lead us and to provide for us is the wisest course of action! I believe he knows that the "plagues" that generally follow our own "golden calf" experiences end up being pretty good lessons for us.
Learning to be patient doesn't mean we sit around doing nothing. Waiting on God requires action (I Timothy 6:11). While we wait, we pray for God's strength to wait patiently. We read his word for guidance and are actively obedient to his word. We seek his direction. We listen for his voice. We worship him and believe that he is working all things for our good (Hebrews 13:20-21).
Like the children of Israel and Aaron, we can grow tired of waiting on God to lead us and rely on golden calves of our own making. We can worship at their altars, and we can be disappointed. Or, we can believe in what we cannot see and stand firm in God's promises and experience the rewards of our faithfulness (Hebrews 11:6).
Lord, thank you for your faithfulness and your patience with us. Teach us to hear your voice as you lead us. Give us the desire to wait on you with courage! In your name we ask. Amen!
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Parenting - Patience: The Waiting Game!
I occasionally suffer with bouts of impatience! Of late, I've had several such occasions. As luck (this has to be a "God thing") would have it, our children at church are learning this month about the importance of the virtue PATIENCE! God does have a sense of humor, in case you wondered.
Truthfully, I have learned to be patient about a lot of things and with lots of people. I can wait for Christmas and have no problem waiting patiently for my birthday to arrive. I can put off purchasing items I can't afford until I can afford them or the desire to have them passes. I have incredible patience with my precious 2-year old granddaughter. In fact, my daughters probably wonder who this woman is! I'm sure they don't recall the same calm "indulgence" as they were growing up. My patience with other people's teenagers is truly a thing of wonder! But, I have great difficulty standing in line at Wal-mart waiting for the cashier to figure out whether she's charging for parsley or cilantro. Sitting in traffic is far from my favorite way to spend time, and waiting in the doctor's office, when I've taken out time from my busy day and arrived as scheduled months ahead, puts me around the bend.
Patience just isn't something that comes naturally to any of us, but if we are going to grow in our relationship with the Lord and be obedient to Him (Galatians 5:22-23), it's sure something we need! I was curious about how many times we are told in the Bible to "wait on the Lord" or to have patience. Being impatient, I decided rather than try to count them all from my Bible concordance, I'd do what any 21st century learner does, I'd Google it. That only furthered my impatience. The number of random hits was in the millions - really! So, scanning my concordance once again, I confirmed that there are lots of places where we are told to "wait" or to be patient!
Certainly we have plenty of Biblical examples of individuals who chose not to wait. Esau, twin brother to Jacob, is a great one. Esau, the eldest twin and a hunter, gave up his birthright for a bowl of lentil soup prepared by his younger twin, Jacob (Genesis 25:24-34). You'd think being a hunter that Esau would have patience, but apparently, like many of us, he had patience for some things but not all. He gave away something of great value in a moment of weakness; he was in a hurry to fill his belly and didn't stop to think of the lasting and monumental consequences of his impatience.
I have to stop myself when I begin to get all self-righteous about Esau being so dumb! I have been Esau. There have been times in my life when I was in a hurry to have what I thought I wanted. Every time that I failed to seek God's plan or rushed ahead and gave him assistance, I messed up and paid a high price. Thankfully, after far too many experiences like this, I am beginning to learn the importance of waiting on the Lord's time and plan (James 1:4).
As adults who have the responsibility for teaching children and young people the value of patience, we really do need to allow God to develop it in us (I Timothy 6:11). It's an ongoing process. If we are to have credibility when we tell our children to wait or be patient, they need to see us exercise patience (Psalm 37:7; Psalm 52:9; Lamentations 3:26).
Waiting isn't easy. We live in a "hurry up" culture with a "got to have it now" way of thinking. We aren't encouraged to be still and know God (Psalm 46:10) , to meditate on his word (Joshua 1:8) and seek his purposes. But if we want to avoid making the kinds of mistakes that we may regret, we must seek to learn patience - and God is a "learn by doing" kind of teacher. He will put us right in the middle of a situation where we have to choose to rely on him and be patient or rely on our own wisdom and rush ahead of him (Romans 5:3).
So, as I deal with my case of impatience, I am learning to wait, wait, and wait some more. The experience has been hard but not impossible, and I do think I'm gaining strength to be patient. As my mom pointed out, God planned an 11-day trip for the Israelites out of Egypt and into the Promised Land. Because of their impatience, the trip took 40 years! I am learning to wait so the trip is a short one!
Truthfully, I have learned to be patient about a lot of things and with lots of people. I can wait for Christmas and have no problem waiting patiently for my birthday to arrive. I can put off purchasing items I can't afford until I can afford them or the desire to have them passes. I have incredible patience with my precious 2-year old granddaughter. In fact, my daughters probably wonder who this woman is! I'm sure they don't recall the same calm "indulgence" as they were growing up. My patience with other people's teenagers is truly a thing of wonder! But, I have great difficulty standing in line at Wal-mart waiting for the cashier to figure out whether she's charging for parsley or cilantro. Sitting in traffic is far from my favorite way to spend time, and waiting in the doctor's office, when I've taken out time from my busy day and arrived as scheduled months ahead, puts me around the bend.
Patience just isn't something that comes naturally to any of us, but if we are going to grow in our relationship with the Lord and be obedient to Him (Galatians 5:22-23), it's sure something we need! I was curious about how many times we are told in the Bible to "wait on the Lord" or to have patience. Being impatient, I decided rather than try to count them all from my Bible concordance, I'd do what any 21st century learner does, I'd Google it. That only furthered my impatience. The number of random hits was in the millions - really! So, scanning my concordance once again, I confirmed that there are lots of places where we are told to "wait" or to be patient!
Certainly we have plenty of Biblical examples of individuals who chose not to wait. Esau, twin brother to Jacob, is a great one. Esau, the eldest twin and a hunter, gave up his birthright for a bowl of lentil soup prepared by his younger twin, Jacob (Genesis 25:24-34). You'd think being a hunter that Esau would have patience, but apparently, like many of us, he had patience for some things but not all. He gave away something of great value in a moment of weakness; he was in a hurry to fill his belly and didn't stop to think of the lasting and monumental consequences of his impatience.
I have to stop myself when I begin to get all self-righteous about Esau being so dumb! I have been Esau. There have been times in my life when I was in a hurry to have what I thought I wanted. Every time that I failed to seek God's plan or rushed ahead and gave him assistance, I messed up and paid a high price. Thankfully, after far too many experiences like this, I am beginning to learn the importance of waiting on the Lord's time and plan (James 1:4).
As adults who have the responsibility for teaching children and young people the value of patience, we really do need to allow God to develop it in us (I Timothy 6:11). It's an ongoing process. If we are to have credibility when we tell our children to wait or be patient, they need to see us exercise patience (Psalm 37:7; Psalm 52:9; Lamentations 3:26).
Waiting isn't easy. We live in a "hurry up" culture with a "got to have it now" way of thinking. We aren't encouraged to be still and know God (Psalm 46:10) , to meditate on his word (Joshua 1:8) and seek his purposes. But if we want to avoid making the kinds of mistakes that we may regret, we must seek to learn patience - and God is a "learn by doing" kind of teacher. He will put us right in the middle of a situation where we have to choose to rely on him and be patient or rely on our own wisdom and rush ahead of him (Romans 5:3).
So, as I deal with my case of impatience, I am learning to wait, wait, and wait some more. The experience has been hard but not impossible, and I do think I'm gaining strength to be patient. As my mom pointed out, God planned an 11-day trip for the Israelites out of Egypt and into the Promised Land. Because of their impatience, the trip took 40 years! I am learning to wait so the trip is a short one!
Heavenly Father, thank you for your patience with me. I'm so glad you don't throw in the towel and give up on me when I'm so slow to learn or when I am willful and disobedient. You have given all of us the ability to be patient, and you know it's in our best interest that we learn to wait on you. Please help us to rely on your Holy Spirit and your strength to develop patience to wait for your perfect will and timing in our lives. Give us the wisdom to teach our children to wait on you and follow as you lead them. Thank you for being such a loving and patient teacher. Amen.
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