On television when a police officer wants to interrogate a suspect the suspect is shut in a tiny, cold room and a bright light is shining in his/her face. Do you know where the police picked up this technique? The dentist office. Or maybe it was the other way around.
Yesterday, I went to the dentist for a cleaning. I was quickly escorted into a cold, blue room about the size of my walk-in closet. The hygienist reclines my chair, shines a bright light in my face, and with a sharp, metal instrument poised near my eye she begins her work. Unsettled by the scraping sounds I wait for the interrogation to begin - "So . . . do you floss?"
Why is this question so unnerving? What do we think is going to happen if we say "No"? Dentist jail? Floss flogging? I have never had a cavity nor have I ever not received high marks at the dentist, but still I get nervous. I think the reason is because no matter the answer we give, the proof is in our mouth - and we know it.
Similarly, regardless of the show we put on for others or even ourselves, the Holy Spirit examines our heart and knows fully the corruption and ungodliness that prevents our obedience to God. We know what we should do and simply do not. The Bible has a great deal of mysterious and difficult to understand teachings, but not as much as we would like to pretend. The Lord has given us wisdom and knowledge for holiness and righteous living. The excuses we make only last until "we open our mouth and remove all doubt." What a generous God we serve who satisfied His own justice in Christ Jesus so that even as He searches and knows us, He loves and has forgiven us. What a God we serve!
So, just for fun, let's do a survey (see poll to the right). Do you floss on a regular basis? Truth: cathartic and contagious.
Friday, August 19, 2011
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
A Roaring Lion
Recently, there has been a post going around among my Facebook friends; check it out: Can anyone tell me why it is so hard to pray, but easy to swear? Why clubs are growing and churches are shrinking? Why it is so hard to re-post a Christian status, but easy to post gossip? Why we can worship a celebrity, but not Jesus?
I would like to answer. . .we have an enemy. I have to admit it bothers me when pastors/teachers shoot guilt aimed questions like "why is it that you can sit through a four hour football game, but not through a one hour worship service?" into the congregation. There is a part of me that always wants to answer back, "let me bring hot dogs and funnel cakes and yell every now and then and I'll happily stay four hours." Obviously the two scenarios cannot be compared, but the larger truth is, we have an enemy. Not a mystical, fantasy enemy an actual, biblical one. The devil does not care if we read every volume of the encyclopedia or stay on Facebook twelve hours a day, but try reading God's Word and suddenly we have the attention span of a three year old. The devil knows in whom our success rests and he will do anything to keep us from Him.
We are not accustomed (I hope) to factoring enemies into our day. The closest thing I can think of is that years ago I had a coworker who worked as hard at sabotaging my job as she did at accomplishing her own, maybe more. She was delighted to see me fail, but she did not want to kill me. We have an enemy who certainly delights to see us stumble but is dedicated to "steal, kill, and destroy". We tend to regard the devil like an older brother who stands in a dark hallway to jump out and startle us. However, he is not interested in merely startling us for a laugh, but in destroying our very lives. He is evil and loathesome. He hates our God and us by extension.
We need to remember this truth, keep it on our minds, and teach it to our children. Why? First of all, because the reality of Satan is part of our biblical theology. Second, because only in awareness can we respond accordingly. "Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour" (I Peter 5:8). As believers in Jesus Christ we do not have to fear this enemy, but we should be reminded that even though the victory is secure the battlefield is a dangerous place to live.
"Know in all these things we are more than conquerers through Him who loved us" (Romans 8:37).
I would like to answer. . .we have an enemy. I have to admit it bothers me when pastors/teachers shoot guilt aimed questions like "why is it that you can sit through a four hour football game, but not through a one hour worship service?" into the congregation. There is a part of me that always wants to answer back, "let me bring hot dogs and funnel cakes and yell every now and then and I'll happily stay four hours." Obviously the two scenarios cannot be compared, but the larger truth is, we have an enemy. Not a mystical, fantasy enemy an actual, biblical one. The devil does not care if we read every volume of the encyclopedia or stay on Facebook twelve hours a day, but try reading God's Word and suddenly we have the attention span of a three year old. The devil knows in whom our success rests and he will do anything to keep us from Him.
We are not accustomed (I hope) to factoring enemies into our day. The closest thing I can think of is that years ago I had a coworker who worked as hard at sabotaging my job as she did at accomplishing her own, maybe more. She was delighted to see me fail, but she did not want to kill me. We have an enemy who certainly delights to see us stumble but is dedicated to "steal, kill, and destroy". We tend to regard the devil like an older brother who stands in a dark hallway to jump out and startle us. However, he is not interested in merely startling us for a laugh, but in destroying our very lives. He is evil and loathesome. He hates our God and us by extension.
We need to remember this truth, keep it on our minds, and teach it to our children. Why? First of all, because the reality of Satan is part of our biblical theology. Second, because only in awareness can we respond accordingly. "Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour" (I Peter 5:8). As believers in Jesus Christ we do not have to fear this enemy, but we should be reminded that even though the victory is secure the battlefield is a dangerous place to live.
"Know in all these things we are more than conquerers through Him who loved us" (Romans 8:37).
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
An Ox in the Barn
Proverbs 14:4, "Where no oxen are, the manger is clean, but much revenue comes by the strength of the ox."
Feel free to laugh when I tell you that this verse of Scripture jumped off the page at me during a few days of marathon "aunting". I got to have my 2 year old niece all to myself for about a week and I loved every second of it. I like a good mess when it comes to play time. She and I would wreck the place with toys, puzzles, and snacks; I would clean up while she napped and then again at bedtime. We stayed busy. Amazingly enough her tiny little clothes somehow amounted to five times the amount of the laundry I normally do, and we burned through more dishes than a high school cafeteria. But I am not complaining. As a matter of fact, I am pretty sure there were cartoon birds and Disney music playing every time I rinsed a soapy dish. Why? Because there was an ox in the barn.
A clean barn is an empty barn, but a farmer needs animals to succeed and build revenue. A farmer complains less often about the mess his ox makes when his thoughts are bent toward the blessing that the ox brings. Our homes can look like museums if we empty them of the messy lives that make them wonderful. Or we can fill them with family, guests, and noise and delight in the joy of the mess. I tease my best friend and her husband that they are physically incapable of putting empty cans in the trash or dirty cups in the kitchen. I have my suspicions that they are superheros in disguise and empty aluminum cans are their kryptonite. Do not tell them I said this, but I will let you in on a secret - it makes me smile when I clean it up. It makes me happy. I love being the host. I like the mess. They are part of a wonderful cast of characters that make life life.
I am so grateful for the barn full of people in my life. What a wonderful revenue of laughter, joy, and fun.
Feel free to laugh when I tell you that this verse of Scripture jumped off the page at me during a few days of marathon "aunting". I got to have my 2 year old niece all to myself for about a week and I loved every second of it. I like a good mess when it comes to play time. She and I would wreck the place with toys, puzzles, and snacks; I would clean up while she napped and then again at bedtime. We stayed busy. Amazingly enough her tiny little clothes somehow amounted to five times the amount of the laundry I normally do, and we burned through more dishes than a high school cafeteria. But I am not complaining. As a matter of fact, I am pretty sure there were cartoon birds and Disney music playing every time I rinsed a soapy dish. Why? Because there was an ox in the barn.
A clean barn is an empty barn, but a farmer needs animals to succeed and build revenue. A farmer complains less often about the mess his ox makes when his thoughts are bent toward the blessing that the ox brings. Our homes can look like museums if we empty them of the messy lives that make them wonderful. Or we can fill them with family, guests, and noise and delight in the joy of the mess. I tease my best friend and her husband that they are physically incapable of putting empty cans in the trash or dirty cups in the kitchen. I have my suspicions that they are superheros in disguise and empty aluminum cans are their kryptonite. Do not tell them I said this, but I will let you in on a secret - it makes me smile when I clean it up. It makes me happy. I love being the host. I like the mess. They are part of a wonderful cast of characters that make life life.
I am so grateful for the barn full of people in my life. What a wonderful revenue of laughter, joy, and fun.
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