He rested?

By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done. Genesis 2:2-3

I do not know why God rested on the 7th day. Maybe because he got all his creation work done in six days and just didn't know what to do on the 7th day, so he rested. I know our bodies need rest to function. I like the fact that there are weekends to "rest" from our weekly vocations. Going without rest can make some people really cranky...I won't mention any names. Jesus even needed a rest from the people that were crowding in upon him. When you make homemade rolls, you have to let the dough rest....so that it can do its thing and rise. I'm told that a baseball pitcher has to rest his arm for three days if he throws 85 pitches in a game. Our young ones can't go a whole day without taking a rest, a.k.a. a nap. Okay, enough of the random thoughts. If "rest" is something that God would like us to experience, I think I need to find out more about it. I hope that you'll join me the remainder of this week as I try to find out more about this whole notion of rest.

Show mommy how fast you can run.....

The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still. Exodus 14:14

We do "testimony time" in our church....Since Sunday was Mother's Day, we were encouraged to share a heartwarming story about our moms. Well, one man stood up....a man probably in his early 60's.....and he recalled a story from his childhood. One day he was outside sitting in the yard playing when his mother came out the back door. (Realize that he already set up this story by telling us that his mother liked to shoot guns.) Anyhow, as his mother came out the back door he noticed that she had a .22 caliber pistol in her hand, down by her side. He told us that she calmly looked him in the face and told him, "Now, show mommy how fast you can run." He relayed that at that very moment he remembered thinking to himself that he knew his mother loved him, but was wondering what he could have possibly done for his mother to shoot him. In any case, he said that he got up, and since he lived in the era of Gene Autry and Roy Rogers, he knew that he would have a better chance at staying alive if he ran in a zig-zag pattern. And so, he took off....zig-zagging back and forth. Then, he heard a shot.....stopped briefly to wonder if he had been shot.....luckily, she apparently missed.....so he kept on running. I'll skip to the end of the story....actually his mom had spotted a snake that had crawled ever so silently up behind him where he was sitting in the grass. So, his mom did what any wonderful gun-toting mom would do- she told her son to run and then proceeded to shoot the snake. Now that is a great story! Unlike the verse above, sometimes you do need to run. Remember that today, God is your protector, obey Him, even when you may not fully understand his commands!

Like little children.....

He called a little child and had him stand among them. And he said: "I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." Matthew 18:2-3

That's pretty clear. There is something that is so endearing about the faith of a child. I am blessed to be in a place where I can walk down the hall and see this very thing in action. It is priceless. The press and onslaught of the world has not taken its grip yet. Of course all I have to do is walk down another hall, and the toll of the world is pressing in, seeking to devour the childlike faith. In a PreK through 12th grade school setting we see the full range. In any case, at the very beginning of this week I sought to focus our attention on what God really desires of us. Hopefully, you have travelled the short journey with me through this week and have been reminded that Christianity is not a list of regulations, rather it's all about a relationship..... getting into God's presence..... resting in his everlasting arms.....and now through the passage above, realizing that God desires a childlike faith. This is different than childishness or an immature faith. Rather, this is all about undeniable humility before our creator. The context of this passage is a group of disciples asking a ridiculous question about who would be the greatest in the kingdom. Can't you just see Jesus in the midst of this argument calling a little child into their midst? Ha, you want to hear who the greatest is? Take a close look at this child..... you gotta change and become just like this child..... you have to humble yourself.... What an amazingly pointed teacher! Well, don't miss it. Does our faith stack up to this test? Simple childlike faith?

Daddy's Arms.....

The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms. He will drive out your enemy before you, saying, "Destroy him!" Deuteronomy 33:27

Parenting is not for the faint-hearted. I'll be the first to say that it is a very humbling task frought with easily made mistakes. However, on the other hand, every once in a blue moon, there are things that we do as a parent where we know we have nailed it. I mean, we absolutely got it right. Here's an example....I have been telling all three of my children from their infancy that the safest place in the world is in their daddy's arms. Even now, I'll catch myself asking them, "Where's the safest place in the world?"....and without them batting an eye, they will say, "In my daddy's arms." I love this. I got this one right! Of course, I have always wanted them to know that I will be their protector, but that's not the point. This is a spiritual reality that I have been speaking into their lives for many years. When my physical arms become weak and feeble, they will still know whose arms they can turn to for protection and security. Just like the verse above declares, the eternal God is our refuge! Now, remember the context (read back a few posts....)- What does God really desire of me? --to place myself under his everlasting arms. It really is the safest place you will ever be.

Daddy......

For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, "Abba, Father." Romans 8:15

"Daddy"......I love when this word is used in just a certain way. Sometimes I hear it when my children have serious questions that need a greater wisdom than their experience affords. Other times, I hear it when something has frightened them and they are moving toward me. But my favorite is when I hear it just before the words, "I love you." When life gets hurried, it doesn't come out as often. Or, if they think that I have wronged them..... sometimes I'll get a "Dad!"....but it definitely is not the same. But one thing is for sure, I never hear it when my children are out of my presence. While I strongly desire for my children to grow and mature and become independent, I want them to always know that they are loved with an everlasting love. Period.....End of story.....No strings attached. Do you think, maybe, just maybe, that's what my heavenly father desires of me, his son?

What's the point?

But now, this is what the LORD says- he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are mine.... Isaiah 43:1

Let's play a quick game? Answer the following with the first thing that comes to mind....do some free association. However, I want you to think, "big picture." Here we go..... What's the point of a car? What's the point of a house? What's the point of food? If you played the game like you should have, you would have thought the following: Car? -for transportation, House? -for shelter, Food? -to nourish the body. That was simple. Round two....let's play again- What's the point of Christianity? Bottom-line....boil it down....what's the point? Take a figurative five steps back away from Christianity and what do you see as its purpose. Hopefully you don't see laws, commands, rituals, or traditions. If you are back far enough away, you should see "relationship." So, here's the big picture- God created, man sinned, and the Savior redeems. Said more simply- God desires to be in relationship with his creation....and God has even provided a way for fallen man to be in relationship with Holy God. His name is Jesus. Read the verse above one more time- we are created, we are redeemed, God has called us by name and we are His! That's the whole point. Why do you think we make it so complicated?

The list....

Well, the weekend is officially over... The "going-into-the-weekend" list of to-do's was fairly hefty with nine substantial items. How'd I do? I accomplished three, made some progress on three, and came nowhere close on the final three tasks. Depending on the "proverbial" half glass full / half glass empty idea, my weekend task glass was 50% at best. This got me to thinking... If I had to create a to-do list for my spiritual life, what would God desire of me? Would it be to try harder to be nice to people? To lift up my hands in Church when I sing? To give more money to ministries? To feel more guilt and shame over my sin? To witness to strangers? To smile more and look happy no matter the circumstance? To practice speaking in tongues in the mirror? To commit to act more like a Christian? To pray five times a day? To fast at least one day a week? etc. etc. etc. I mean, what does God really desire of me? Is it to do more things so that I look more and more like a Christian? Is that what Christianity is all about? If so, I give up. I'll never make it. My Christian "to-do" list will probably be about as good as my "weekend to-do list accomplishment"....50% at best. However, I think there might be another way. I am going to search through the scriptures over the next few days to see what I find....what does God really desire of me? Anybody want to join me? If so, crack open your Bible also....we'll compare notes.