"O that all my distresses and apprehensions
might prove but Christ's school
to make me fit for greater service
by teaching me the great lesson of humility"
- Valley of Vision, 'Need of Grace'
Showing posts with label Jesus. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jesus. Show all posts
Tuesday, 5 October 2010
Monday, 29 March 2010
Reason to rejoice with ALL your heart!
'Sing, O Daughter of Zion;
shout aloud, O Israel!
Be glad and rejoice with all your heart,
O Daughter of Jerusalem!
The LORD has taken away your punishment,
he has turned back your enemy.
The LORD, the King of Israel, is with you;
never again will you fear any harm.'
Zephaniah 3:14-15
I read Zephaniah recently and was just blown away by the grace and mercy that spill out of its pages. It is a story of Judah's rebellion and deserved judgment. Of Jerusalem's mess and corruption and God's just anger against them. And yet it doesn't end like that. Because much more importantly, it is about God. It is about a merciful God who does not treat us as our sins deserve. It is about a God who delights to save and who is mighty to save. And so even though things looked bleak for God's people at the beginning of Zephaniah, we see that God Himself provided the way for them to be saved: 'The Lord has taken away your punishment' (3:15)
The best thing about this book, is the way that it points forward to Jesus. In fact Jesus shines out of every chapter and floods the whole book with glorious hope and joy. There WILL be a day of judgment - and it is what we deserve, Zephaniah makes this plain, but on that day, if we are in Jesus, who is our righteousness,we will be sheltered from the LORD's just anger (2:3). Let us now make sure we are seeking Jesus and His righteousness, for this is all this is all that will matter on that day.
'The LORD has taken away your punishment' (3:15) - shadows that were received joyfully by God's people in the Old Testament give way to the reality as Jesus gloriously secured this for eternity. When Jesus took the judgment we deserve for our sin on Himself on the cross, sinless as He was, the LORD took away our punishment. If we trust in Jesus, if we are in Him, sheltering in Him, then our punishment has been taken away. And so the promise applies to us:
"The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing" (3:17)
And so, because we have such security in our forgiveness and acceptance from God, security that rests not on us or anything we have done or even how secure we feel, but in all that Jesus has done on our behalf - we have great reason to rejoice! And we can rejoice with ALL our heart (3:14) because our greatest problem is dealt with for all time, because this can never be taken away from us. Whatever else is happening in our lives, we can rejoice with ALL our hearts because our punishment has been taken away and God delights in us. And this is something that will never change.
' Be glad and rejoice with all your heart,
O Daughter of Jerusalem!
The LORD has taken away your punishment' (3:14-15)
"I have a shelter in the storm
When all my sins accuse me
Though justice charges me with guilt
Your grace will not refuse me
O Jesus, I will hide in You
Who bore my condemnation
I find my refuge in Your wounds
For there I find salvation"
('I Have a Shelter' - Sovereign Grace Music)
('I Have a Shelter' - Sovereign Grace Music)
“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”-
2 Corinthians 5:21
Saturday, 13 February 2010
The year of.....
So things have been a bit quiet from my end recently...but that doesn't mean my thoughts have been quiet! Just that somewhere between my mind and my fingertips those thoughts have got lost or muddled. I am starting this post not entirely sure what I will write. And as I am starting to write a whole load of things are coming to my mind, so this could be the opening of the blogging flood-gates - the start of a blogging frenzy?
But anyway, as tomorrow is the beginning of the Chinese new year, and i have some thoughts I have been meaning to post something since our new year, i thought this might be the most appropriate opportunity to write about 'year naming'. This is an idea that came from Ann Voskamp, who likes to name her year before it begins. To set the scene, here is part of a conversation I had on skype with my friend Sophie a while back:
[11/01/2010 19:10:08] Alison Young: so, you know Ann has made this her year of YES! Have you named your year?
[11/01/2010 19:10:55] Sophie: ironically no!
[11/01/2010 19:11:00] Sophie: I like the idea tho.
[11/01/2010 19:11:20] Alison Young: me too....but i sort of think its easier to name something after its happened..
[11/01/2010 19:11:44] Sophie: yes i know what you mean. i don't feel very prophetic!
[11/01/2010 19:12:34] Sophie: i suppose it's just the same idea as a resolution because it means you set out to have a certain approach to stuff and that's good - well, depending on the name!
[11/01/2010 19:13:06] Alison Young: yeah....you'd have to be more of a positive thinker than me i think.
[11/01/2010 19:12:52] Sophie: what would you name your last year?
So I decided that 2009 could be called the year of hope. There were lots of reasons for this, but top on the list was the fact that 2009 saw me becoming more and more convinced of the wonderful and certain hope of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Hope that has nothing to do with how I feel or how circumstances look. Hope that says that I am in Jesus Christ and brought into the glorious community of the Happy Trinity. Hope that tells me that all my righteousness and salvation is in Jesus, and so couldn't be more secure! 2009 - the Year of HOPE!
And that led me to thinking about this verse from Romans 12, verse 12:
So if 2009 was the year of hope, then 2010 can be the year of joy. Not because I 'have a feeling I will be in a good mood for 365 days', but because if I have hope then joy is possible in all circumstances. If I feel I have nothing else to be joyful in, I still have hope. And it is not a momentary hope, that changes with my feelings, but a sure and certain hope, that depends only on Jesus and not at all on me.
But anyway, as tomorrow is the beginning of the Chinese new year, and i have some thoughts I have been meaning to post something since our new year, i thought this might be the most appropriate opportunity to write about 'year naming'. This is an idea that came from Ann Voskamp, who likes to name her year before it begins. To set the scene, here is part of a conversation I had on skype with my friend Sophie a while back:
[11/01/2010 19:10:08] Alison Young: so, you know Ann has made this her year of YES! Have you named your year?
[11/01/2010 19:10:55] Sophie: ironically no!
[11/01/2010 19:11:00] Sophie: I like the idea tho.
[11/01/2010 19:11:20] Alison Young: me too....but i sort of think its easier to name something after its happened..
[11/01/2010 19:11:44] Sophie: yes i know what you mean. i don't feel very prophetic!
[11/01/2010 19:12:34] Sophie: i suppose it's just the same idea as a resolution because it means you set out to have a certain approach to stuff and that's good - well, depending on the name!
[11/01/2010 19:13:06] Alison Young: yeah....you'd have to be more of a positive thinker than me i think.
[11/01/2010 19:12:52] Sophie: what would you name your last year?
So I decided that 2009 could be called the year of hope. There were lots of reasons for this, but top on the list was the fact that 2009 saw me becoming more and more convinced of the wonderful and certain hope of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Hope that has nothing to do with how I feel or how circumstances look. Hope that says that I am in Jesus Christ and brought into the glorious community of the Happy Trinity. Hope that tells me that all my righteousness and salvation is in Jesus, and so couldn't be more secure! 2009 - the Year of HOPE!
And that led me to thinking about this verse from Romans 12, verse 12:
'Be joyful in hope...'
So if 2009 was the year of hope, then 2010 can be the year of joy. Not because I 'have a feeling I will be in a good mood for 365 days', but because if I have hope then joy is possible in all circumstances. If I feel I have nothing else to be joyful in, I still have hope. And it is not a momentary hope, that changes with my feelings, but a sure and certain hope, that depends only on Jesus and not at all on me.
2010 - the Year of JOY
"By faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope" Galatians 5:5
Tuesday, 10 November 2009
Life to a sound-track
Sometimes I live my life to a soundtrack. Perhaps just for a few brief moments or minutes, but it feels like longer. In those moments I see things through the lens of a camera, and yet they somehow seem more real, more alive than ever. Reel after reel of moving pictures. I get on the bus. I take a seat. I glance around. Take everything in. My eyes are camera lenses. My ears are headphones. Words and melodies filling my head so that I feel like everything is swimming in the music. And then I am part of the film reel, swept along in the meaning and mystery as it unravels to a soundtrack. The music drives the reel, spilling its rich, honest light over the scene, showing up every detail. It’s not true of course that everything has more meaning in those moments; it’s just that I feel it more keenly. I see things. I look for things, my eyes peeled for every flicker.
The way the evening light rests on a face opposite me, highlighting regrets and lost thoughts, a clenched jaw; the way the old man drops a handful of coins on the floor and stoops jerkily to pick them up, the flicker of gratitude in his eyes mixed with sadness as a small girl swoops to help him – sadness, perhaps, because his movements are slower than what they once were, a sadness that she, in her youth, doesn’t pick up on as they meet eyes; The way the young couple next to me seem to be putting on a new layer of chain-mail with each exchange, eyes glazed and steely towards one another, talking but not really talking; My hand, poised to pull the cord and sound the buzzer when the time is right, watching as the familiar scenery tumbles away behind us in a blur of faded colours and golden light; The way that my own body moves through the evening air as if through water as I step down from the bus, which is still coming to a stop, hand gripping the rails, but with the confidence of familiarity; The glint of sun on metal as money slides into the dark, calloused hand of the driver.
All these things, every little flicker of light, of expression, every breath, ache and movement, every detail comes alive, moving to the music in my ears. Pointing me to the bigger reality, the heartbeat of the details. The rhythm we are out of sync with so often. The need for Jesus in every detail. The Jesus through whom every detail was made. The Jesus through whom every detail finds its meaning.
The sharpness of the details in those moments cuts through the dull ache of the emptiness, the rejection of Him all around, and screams fuzzy memory into sharp focus; the Jesus we forget in the details.
The way the evening light rests on a face opposite me, highlighting regrets and lost thoughts, a clenched jaw; the way the old man drops a handful of coins on the floor and stoops jerkily to pick them up, the flicker of gratitude in his eyes mixed with sadness as a small girl swoops to help him – sadness, perhaps, because his movements are slower than what they once were, a sadness that she, in her youth, doesn’t pick up on as they meet eyes; The way the young couple next to me seem to be putting on a new layer of chain-mail with each exchange, eyes glazed and steely towards one another, talking but not really talking; My hand, poised to pull the cord and sound the buzzer when the time is right, watching as the familiar scenery tumbles away behind us in a blur of faded colours and golden light; The way that my own body moves through the evening air as if through water as I step down from the bus, which is still coming to a stop, hand gripping the rails, but with the confidence of familiarity; The glint of sun on metal as money slides into the dark, calloused hand of the driver.
All these things, every little flicker of light, of expression, every breath, ache and movement, every detail comes alive, moving to the music in my ears. Pointing me to the bigger reality, the heartbeat of the details. The rhythm we are out of sync with so often. The need for Jesus in every detail. The Jesus through whom every detail was made. The Jesus through whom every detail finds its meaning.
The sharpness of the details in those moments cuts through the dull ache of the emptiness, the rejection of Him all around, and screams fuzzy memory into sharp focus; the Jesus we forget in the details.
Saturday, 31 October 2009
Christ, Culture and Contentment
Nearly 6 months ago now I wrote a blog entry called Culture and Conviction. You can read it here. As my thoughts have developed slightly since that time I decided to write a culture and conviction part 2 entry, only with a different name. This is it. Actually, I haven’t learned anything new since then, only the same thing more profoundly.
The battle is hotter than ever. Perhaps you would expect me to say that an extra 6 months would have made things easier, perhaps I can speak a bit more Thai, communicate more easily and understand what’s going on around me a lot more. I actually think the opposite is true. The more I learn about this culture, the less I understand, the more uncomfortable I feel, and the more I want out. I am sure this is normal, it must get worse before it gets better, but I am convinced that the idea of ‘just be patient, it will pass’ is a cop out solution to this problem, as is the, ‘just learn to like Thai culture’ approach. So if I don’t fight these battles properly and honestly now, I will have exactly the same problems when I go back to the UK, and for the rest of my life. I must fight to value Christ more than culture. I must fight to be content in Him now, or I will never be content, in any culture.
I suppose if my theology was a bit different I could just say ‘clearly Thailand is not for me, I will go home now and do something that fits my personality more’. But it doesn’t work like that. I will go home eventually of course, and maybe I will end up doing something that fits with me better for a while, and maybe I will come back to Thailand one day, or maybe I won’t. I don’t know. All I know is that right now I am here, in Thailand. And so I am called to fight the battle to be content in Jesus in Thailand this day.
Since I wrote previously, some things have changed. I rarely miss cold weather and duvets for one thing, and the battle is less about wanting to go home. On a purely functional level I feel sufficiently enough like Thailand is home now that I am not missing things from the UK all that much. What I miss is relationships. Being able to talk to people. Being able to know how to move a conversation from the superficial to the deep. Being able to know how to read people and situations. Being able to say what I want to say and what I need to say in order to not seem disinterested, odd, impolite. Being able to make friends easily. Being able to study the Bible in depth with people. Being able… just being able. In a way it feels a bit like what it must feel to have a disability. I feel weak and lame, I feel blind and deaf and dumb. A verbal cripple. But there is great joy in that. I think of all those in the gospels who were outcasts in this way – they knew they needed one thing. Jesus. And they went to Him unashamed.
The other thing that has changed is that the stakes are higher. Much more is expected of me. Deeper levels of interaction with people and culture are required, and the deeper the interaction, the deeper the wounds I have received as parts of my sinful self have come up against certain parts of Thai culture. And as I’ve grappled with these things before God I have realised that bitterness in this is lethal. Bitterness, [also known as ‘I’ve-Had-a-Rough-Deal-and-Everything-That-Happens-To-Me-is-Rubbish-Syndrome’], must be killed or it will kill us. As I take these things to Jesus, I am finding that His comfort is more than sufficient to take away the sting of bitterness, while not necessarily removing the hurt.
And so I choose to be content in Christ, and I will not be disappointed. Content with His comfort. Content that He understands me. Content that my identity is in Him. Content that He uses even the painful things that happen so that I’m better off than if they had never happened (Romans 8:28 - “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose”).
Finally, be blessed by watching this interview with my newest friend, Philippa Wilson, who is a Brit working with students in France. Especially watch out for the words quoted under the video – almost exactly what I have also been thinking and learning recently, but put much better than I could express it!
The battle is hotter than ever. Perhaps you would expect me to say that an extra 6 months would have made things easier, perhaps I can speak a bit more Thai, communicate more easily and understand what’s going on around me a lot more. I actually think the opposite is true. The more I learn about this culture, the less I understand, the more uncomfortable I feel, and the more I want out. I am sure this is normal, it must get worse before it gets better, but I am convinced that the idea of ‘just be patient, it will pass’ is a cop out solution to this problem, as is the, ‘just learn to like Thai culture’ approach. So if I don’t fight these battles properly and honestly now, I will have exactly the same problems when I go back to the UK, and for the rest of my life. I must fight to value Christ more than culture. I must fight to be content in Him now, or I will never be content, in any culture.
I suppose if my theology was a bit different I could just say ‘clearly Thailand is not for me, I will go home now and do something that fits my personality more’. But it doesn’t work like that. I will go home eventually of course, and maybe I will end up doing something that fits with me better for a while, and maybe I will come back to Thailand one day, or maybe I won’t. I don’t know. All I know is that right now I am here, in Thailand. And so I am called to fight the battle to be content in Jesus in Thailand this day.
Since I wrote previously, some things have changed. I rarely miss cold weather and duvets for one thing, and the battle is less about wanting to go home. On a purely functional level I feel sufficiently enough like Thailand is home now that I am not missing things from the UK all that much. What I miss is relationships. Being able to talk to people. Being able to know how to move a conversation from the superficial to the deep. Being able to know how to read people and situations. Being able to say what I want to say and what I need to say in order to not seem disinterested, odd, impolite. Being able to make friends easily. Being able to study the Bible in depth with people. Being able… just being able. In a way it feels a bit like what it must feel to have a disability. I feel weak and lame, I feel blind and deaf and dumb. A verbal cripple. But there is great joy in that. I think of all those in the gospels who were outcasts in this way – they knew they needed one thing. Jesus. And they went to Him unashamed.
The other thing that has changed is that the stakes are higher. Much more is expected of me. Deeper levels of interaction with people and culture are required, and the deeper the interaction, the deeper the wounds I have received as parts of my sinful self have come up against certain parts of Thai culture. And as I’ve grappled with these things before God I have realised that bitterness in this is lethal. Bitterness, [also known as ‘I’ve-Had-a-Rough-Deal-and-Everything-That-Happens-To-Me-is-Rubbish-Syndrome’], must be killed or it will kill us. As I take these things to Jesus, I am finding that His comfort is more than sufficient to take away the sting of bitterness, while not necessarily removing the hurt.
And so I choose to be content in Christ, and I will not be disappointed. Content with His comfort. Content that He understands me. Content that my identity is in Him. Content that He uses even the painful things that happen so that I’m better off than if they had never happened (Romans 8:28 - “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose”).
Finally, be blessed by watching this interview with my newest friend, Philippa Wilson, who is a Brit working with students in France. Especially watch out for the words quoted under the video – almost exactly what I have also been thinking and learning recently, but put much better than I could express it!
Saturday, 29 August 2009
Weak and glad!!!!
"When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power."
1 Corinthians 2:1-5
Being bad at the language you have to use all the time has one advantage - it's not so easy to get proud! When I try to explain things clumsily in Thai, full of mistakes, full of fear and lacking any kind of eloquence it's like there is a big flashing sign on my head saying 'WEAK'.
This can be uncomfortable.
But, today it hit me - if I am weak there is much joy and freedom to be had!!
"To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong."
2 Corinthians 12:7-10
Wow!!! Do I delight in weakness? Only if I have the right perspective - that it is Jesus who is the focus, not me! If I really want people to see that it is God who has the power then I need to be willing to be weak, and not only willing, but JOYFUL, joyful that God will get the glory. So while I do hope that my Thai skills will improve and I will be able to explain things properly one day, I rejoice that my weakness in this area at the moment enables me to remember that it is Jesus who is strong, not me!
So I hope the big flashing sign on my head doesn't just say WEAK, but:
'WEAK AND GLAD'
May God be glorified in all my weakness.
1 Corinthians 2:1-5
Being bad at the language you have to use all the time has one advantage - it's not so easy to get proud! When I try to explain things clumsily in Thai, full of mistakes, full of fear and lacking any kind of eloquence it's like there is a big flashing sign on my head saying 'WEAK'.
This can be uncomfortable.
But, today it hit me - if I am weak there is much joy and freedom to be had!!
"To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong."
2 Corinthians 12:7-10
Wow!!! Do I delight in weakness? Only if I have the right perspective - that it is Jesus who is the focus, not me! If I really want people to see that it is God who has the power then I need to be willing to be weak, and not only willing, but JOYFUL, joyful that God will get the glory. So while I do hope that my Thai skills will improve and I will be able to explain things properly one day, I rejoice that my weakness in this area at the moment enables me to remember that it is Jesus who is strong, not me!
So I hope the big flashing sign on my head doesn't just say WEAK, but:
'WEAK AND GLAD'
May God be glorified in all my weakness.
Thursday, 16 July 2009
What am I beholding?
I was pleased to get this shot of young novice monks gazing out the window of the observatory tower, their eyes falling upon the local temple, in all its glittery array. I just wished I had my proper camera with me instead of just my phone, to get a better picture, I was only thinking about what would make a good photo...a snapshot of Thai life.
But looking at it again now it drives my thoughts deeper than artistic questions of lighting and composition. I am forced to challenge myself about what I am gazing on. This is something I seem to have to go back to over and over again.
When I start to gaze on the glittery man-made things in this life, or the black clouds that gather, or my fragile, broken self, instead of lifting my eyes up to the all glorious, majestic, wonderful, mighty God, I am no different to those novice-monks in the picture - looking to things that have no power to save. And I know when I have slipped into that pattern because the joy goes. I eat and am not satisfied, I drink and am still thirsty. I choose to drink from broken cisterns instead of the living water from God that wells up to eternal life. My eyes become glazed and I sit in darkness, drowsy and empty. I talk often about the battle to 'behold the light'. Jesus is THE Light. If I am not looking at Him where am I looking?
May I have ever increasing desire, discipline, conviction and capacity to behold the Almighty LORD of the heavens and the earth. Over all rulers and powers and authorities. May I keep doing so until that day when with the multitude, I will fall before His throne and cry:
"Amen! Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever. Amen!" - Revelation 7:12
Wednesday, 17 June 2009
Tell me a story...
Tomorrow I have a language check. This is a bit like a test, but less formal. They are just to check how well we have learned modules of language study. Tomorrow’s check is on stories about Jesus in simple Thai. I have enjoyed this module, partly because I got to practice my reading and writing, but mostly because I got to think about Jesus. I have to pick a few stories to tell in the check, out of the 29 that I have read. I have chosen 3, which I hope will be enough.
Here are the stories I have chosen to tell in Thai tomorrow and why:
Jesus Calms a Storm:
Then he got into the boat and his disciples followed him. Without warning, a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. The disciples went and woke him, saying, "Lord, save us! We're going to drown!" He replied, "You of little faith, why are you so afraid?" Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm. The men were amazed and asked, "What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!"
Matthew 8:23-27
This is my all time favourite account found in the gospels. It is such a powerful reminder of Jesus’ power over everything – even the wind and waves obey Him! Just now I was listening to a song on the new kids’ album (To be like Jesus) by Sovereign Grace Music called ‘Peace’. And these lines stood out:
“If you can calm the sea, then you can comfort me,
If winds obey your voice, why should I fear their noise?”
If God is in control over even the weather, how much more can I trust Him with my life?
Jesus Changes Water into Wine:
On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus' mother was there, and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine was gone, Jesus' mother said to him, "They have no more wine."
"Dear woman, why do you involve me?" Jesus replied, "My time has not yet come."
His mother said to the servants, "Do whatever he tells you."
Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.
Jesus said to the servants, "Fill the jars with water"; so they filled them to the brim.
Then he told them, "Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet."
They did so, and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside and said, "Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now."
This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed in Cana of Galilee. He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him.
John 2:1-11
I chose this one because the thing I had never seen in this story until recently. Courtesy of one of John Piper’s Taste and See articles that appeared in my inbox, this account of Jesus’ first miracle has changed in my mind from being a ‘bit odd’ to being ‘amazing’! (As always when I think something in the Bible is a ‘bit odd’, the fault lay with me and not the Bible!) My thoughts before went as follows: ‘I get that Jesus was showing His glory, but why wine? Why did he turn the water to wine!? What was the use?’
Verse 6 holds the clue: ‘Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.’
So imagine the scene. The big pots are full of the water that Jews use to get ‘ceremonially clean’, to be fit to worship, to be clean in God’s eyes. And what does Jesus do? He only goes and breaks all the rules and does something totally shocking…instead of using the water to ‘get clean’ he orders the servants to serve it up as a drink for the host of the wedding!! But then catch is this…even before the servants get their pitchers in the jars, Jesus has changed that water into wine. Wine…the stuff that He later uses as a symbol of His blood shed for us, ushering in the new covenant.
This ‘strange’ miracle is making an important point. There’s only one way to get clean…really clean…clean on the inside. There’s only one way to approach God with a clean and pure heart. The blood of Jesus. The provision of God. The miracle of all miracles. Blood that makes us white as snow.
‘What can wash away my sin?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
What can make me whole again,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.’
The other story I have chosen to tell is the Lost Sheep. But I have no profound thoughts to share...I chose it because it was short…!
Here are the stories I have chosen to tell in Thai tomorrow and why:
Jesus Calms a Storm:
Then he got into the boat and his disciples followed him. Without warning, a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. The disciples went and woke him, saying, "Lord, save us! We're going to drown!" He replied, "You of little faith, why are you so afraid?" Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm. The men were amazed and asked, "What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!"
Matthew 8:23-27
This is my all time favourite account found in the gospels. It is such a powerful reminder of Jesus’ power over everything – even the wind and waves obey Him! Just now I was listening to a song on the new kids’ album (To be like Jesus) by Sovereign Grace Music called ‘Peace’. And these lines stood out:
“If you can calm the sea, then you can comfort me,
If winds obey your voice, why should I fear their noise?”
If God is in control over even the weather, how much more can I trust Him with my life?
Jesus Changes Water into Wine:
On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus' mother was there, and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine was gone, Jesus' mother said to him, "They have no more wine."
"Dear woman, why do you involve me?" Jesus replied, "My time has not yet come."
His mother said to the servants, "Do whatever he tells you."
Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.
Jesus said to the servants, "Fill the jars with water"; so they filled them to the brim.
Then he told them, "Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet."
They did so, and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside and said, "Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now."
This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed in Cana of Galilee. He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him.
John 2:1-11
I chose this one because the thing I had never seen in this story until recently. Courtesy of one of John Piper’s Taste and See articles that appeared in my inbox, this account of Jesus’ first miracle has changed in my mind from being a ‘bit odd’ to being ‘amazing’! (As always when I think something in the Bible is a ‘bit odd’, the fault lay with me and not the Bible!) My thoughts before went as follows: ‘I get that Jesus was showing His glory, but why wine? Why did he turn the water to wine!? What was the use?’
Verse 6 holds the clue: ‘Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.’
So imagine the scene. The big pots are full of the water that Jews use to get ‘ceremonially clean’, to be fit to worship, to be clean in God’s eyes. And what does Jesus do? He only goes and breaks all the rules and does something totally shocking…instead of using the water to ‘get clean’ he orders the servants to serve it up as a drink for the host of the wedding!! But then catch is this…even before the servants get their pitchers in the jars, Jesus has changed that water into wine. Wine…the stuff that He later uses as a symbol of His blood shed for us, ushering in the new covenant.
This ‘strange’ miracle is making an important point. There’s only one way to get clean…really clean…clean on the inside. There’s only one way to approach God with a clean and pure heart. The blood of Jesus. The provision of God. The miracle of all miracles. Blood that makes us white as snow.
‘What can wash away my sin?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
What can make me whole again,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.’
The other story I have chosen to tell is the Lost Sheep. But I have no profound thoughts to share...I chose it because it was short…!
Monday, 11 May 2009
They've arrived!!!!!
The John's gospels in Thai and English for our FREE project here in Central Thailand have arrived!!!! So excited!
So you can get an idea, here's what they look like!!!
And here is an excerpt:
“และท่านทั้งหลายจะรู้จักความจริง และความจริงนั้นจะทำให้ท่านทั้งหลายเป็นไทย”
- ยอห์น 8:32
“Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free”
- John 8:32
For those of you who are the praying type – please pray that the 2000 copies of these FREE gospels currently sitting downstairs in the Youth House would not stay there! Pray that they would get into the hands of Thai students and that their Christian friends would be willing to sit down and read it with them and talk to them about the main guy – Jesus! Most of all pray that GOD would be at work in Thai people's lives showing them the TRUTH that will set them free.
So you can get an idea, here's what they look like!!!
And here is an excerpt:
“และท่านทั้งหลายจะรู้จักความจริง และความจริงนั้นจะทำให้ท่านทั้งหลายเป็นไทย”
- ยอห์น 8:32
“Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free”
- John 8:32
For those of you who are the praying type – please pray that the 2000 copies of these FREE gospels currently sitting downstairs in the Youth House would not stay there! Pray that they would get into the hands of Thai students and that their Christian friends would be willing to sit down and read it with them and talk to them about the main guy – Jesus! Most of all pray that GOD would be at work in Thai people's lives showing them the TRUTH that will set them free.
Wednesday, 6 May 2009
Culture and Conviction
'Culture disorientation' has caused me to ask some searching questions over the last few months. The struggle of living in a culture that is so different to what I'm used to, and at times longing for home. I have grappled with how to deal with these feelings. How should I feel? Why do I feel like I feel? Where should I send my thoughts when I am feeling like this?
It's been a much needed wake-up call because it has made me question some of the foundations my life is built on. When I long to be in the UK simply because it is easier to live in a culture I am familiar with, I know that I am starting to treasure comfort over Christ. This is the first warning sign.
And when I think about the future and ask myself - where would I like to live? What would I like to do? I betray the fact that I value culture over conviction.
What I mean by this is that I judge my contentment and my ability to work with certain people by how well I can understand their culture and feel at ease in it. If I don't feel at ease I see this as something that needs to be overcome. I feel that I need to in some way love the culture I am in, in order to minister to the people. Now of course seeing positives in any culture I find myself in is a good thing, and no doubt helpful!
But what I have been realising, as I've struggled with this culture and as my heart has been torn between wanting to be at home and knowing that if I was at home I would want to be here (!!!), is that I am not about culture. We are not called to love a culture, but to love God, to love the gospel, and to love people. I don't want any of my life choices to be built on vague ideas like 'i like those kinds of people...I'll work with them'; 'I like that place...I'll work there'; 'I fit in well in that culture...I'll go there'. I want my choices to stem from deep convictions about who God is, who we are in light of who God is, and the unchanging truths of the Bible, of the gospel of Jesus Christ. We may end up falling in love with the culture/country we work in along the way, but that is not to be what drives us.
When my eyes turn to earthly comforts, and I feel like I would be happier if only I was with people that understood me, or in a country where I could wear jumpers and coats and have a big thick duvet at night and have a hot bath, where I could understand what was going on in church and where I wouldn't offend people all the time accidentally on account of not knowing the cultural cues...
...that's when I know that my convictions are built on culture and comfort instead of on Christ.
So where should I send my thoughts when I am longing for home? Lingering on thoughts of earthly comforts certainly do not satisfy! Instead I should send my thoughts to God, the God of all comforts, to my Saviour, to the cross and resurrection of Jesus, where my eternal salvation was bought and secured. To my home in heaven which is where my only lasting possessions are, which anyway is my only REAL home.
My prayer is that God would use all these experiences to build deep conviction in me. Praise Him for already starting this process, I know He will finish it.
My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
But wholly lean on Jesus’ Name.
On Christ the solid Rock I stand,
All other ground is sinking sand;
All other ground is sinking sand.
- Edward Mote 1834
"For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Saviour from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body." - Philippians 3:18-21
It's been a much needed wake-up call because it has made me question some of the foundations my life is built on. When I long to be in the UK simply because it is easier to live in a culture I am familiar with, I know that I am starting to treasure comfort over Christ. This is the first warning sign.
And when I think about the future and ask myself - where would I like to live? What would I like to do? I betray the fact that I value culture over conviction.
What I mean by this is that I judge my contentment and my ability to work with certain people by how well I can understand their culture and feel at ease in it. If I don't feel at ease I see this as something that needs to be overcome. I feel that I need to in some way love the culture I am in, in order to minister to the people. Now of course seeing positives in any culture I find myself in is a good thing, and no doubt helpful!
But what I have been realising, as I've struggled with this culture and as my heart has been torn between wanting to be at home and knowing that if I was at home I would want to be here (!!!), is that I am not about culture. We are not called to love a culture, but to love God, to love the gospel, and to love people. I don't want any of my life choices to be built on vague ideas like 'i like those kinds of people...I'll work with them'; 'I like that place...I'll work there'; 'I fit in well in that culture...I'll go there'. I want my choices to stem from deep convictions about who God is, who we are in light of who God is, and the unchanging truths of the Bible, of the gospel of Jesus Christ. We may end up falling in love with the culture/country we work in along the way, but that is not to be what drives us.
When my eyes turn to earthly comforts, and I feel like I would be happier if only I was with people that understood me, or in a country where I could wear jumpers and coats and have a big thick duvet at night and have a hot bath, where I could understand what was going on in church and where I wouldn't offend people all the time accidentally on account of not knowing the cultural cues...
...that's when I know that my convictions are built on culture and comfort instead of on Christ.
So where should I send my thoughts when I am longing for home? Lingering on thoughts of earthly comforts certainly do not satisfy! Instead I should send my thoughts to God, the God of all comforts, to my Saviour, to the cross and resurrection of Jesus, where my eternal salvation was bought and secured. To my home in heaven which is where my only lasting possessions are, which anyway is my only REAL home.
My prayer is that God would use all these experiences to build deep conviction in me. Praise Him for already starting this process, I know He will finish it.
My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
But wholly lean on Jesus’ Name.
On Christ the solid Rock I stand,
All other ground is sinking sand;
All other ground is sinking sand.
- Edward Mote 1834
"For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Saviour from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body." - Philippians 3:18-21
Friday, 20 February 2009
Why assume...?
It's not often I have an opinion about something. I don't tend to feel strongly about things, that's just my personality. That's probably why I don't enjoy debates at all. It's also why I don't like to use this blog as a place to air my opinions...
That doesn't mean I don't think truth is important. On the contrary, I think truth should be defended and upheld at all costs and that's partly what this blog entry is about.
But I want this to be read bearing in mind that I am a sinner saved only by the precious grace of Jesus Christ, nothing more, nothing less. My words will always be mingled with mixed motives and intentions, informed by experiences unique to me, and tinted by my own personal slant on life. Maybe I have a chip on my shoulder about this, maybe I just feel strongly about it because it is true...I don't know. I just want to throw this thought out there and wanted to make that disclaimer before doing so.
There are many songs that I personally enjoy, that help me to sing praise to God when I am on my own, but that I would never choose to sing when in the context of a group or church...and in fact would even say that to do so would be very dangerous if they were all we sang.
Take for example, this song, The Stand:
I'll stand, with arms high and heart abandoned,
In awe of the One who gave it all,
I'll stand, my soul Lord to you surrendered,
All I am is yours.
Now I like this song. In fact I am listening to it right now! I like it musically, and I like the words too. Because I am certain that Jesus is who is meant by 'the One who gave it all' and that the giving of everything spoken of is referring to when Jesus died on the cross to take the penalty for sinners. There is nothing inherently wrong with this song! But the reason why I think it would be unwise to sing this song/or a song like this in a group context is this: I cannot assume that just because I am thinking about the gospel when I sing this song, that everyone else is too. In fact we could be singing about almost anything or anyone!
[I must be fair to the writers of this song, because the above lyrics are actually only the chorus, which comes after a couple of verses explaining why God is so praiseworthy, but almost no-one knows this because the verses are never sung!!! This chorus has been turned into a whole song of its own.]
The reason why this I think it is very dangerous to sing, in corporate worship, songs which are not explicit about the gospel as revealed in the Bible is because an 'assumed' gospel will soon become no gospel at all. If we in our groups do not sing about the specifics of the gospel as well as how we feel about it, then the newcomer to the group, or even the believer who hasn't had much opportunity to read the Bible in depth yet, will not know what they are singing about. If this generation assumes that everyone knows the gospel and so does not proclaim it to each other, then the next generation will not know the gospel at all!
Now I know there is more than one way to remind each other of the gospel, this task is not completely reliant on the songs that we sing, that's why I asked you to read this bearing in mind that I can never be totally agenda-free when I write. But our songs are surely a good place to start aren't they? They are also one of the best ways that we learn and remember information. And anyway, why would we want to sing about anything else?
If we are to take the command of Titus 3:8 seriously then I think that we need to think really carefully about the kind of songs we sing:
"3At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. 4But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, 5he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, 6whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. 8This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone." (Titus 3:3-8)
That doesn't mean I don't think truth is important. On the contrary, I think truth should be defended and upheld at all costs and that's partly what this blog entry is about.
But I want this to be read bearing in mind that I am a sinner saved only by the precious grace of Jesus Christ, nothing more, nothing less. My words will always be mingled with mixed motives and intentions, informed by experiences unique to me, and tinted by my own personal slant on life. Maybe I have a chip on my shoulder about this, maybe I just feel strongly about it because it is true...I don't know. I just want to throw this thought out there and wanted to make that disclaimer before doing so.
There are many songs that I personally enjoy, that help me to sing praise to God when I am on my own, but that I would never choose to sing when in the context of a group or church...and in fact would even say that to do so would be very dangerous if they were all we sang.
Take for example, this song, The Stand:
I'll stand, with arms high and heart abandoned,
In awe of the One who gave it all,
I'll stand, my soul Lord to you surrendered,
All I am is yours.
Now I like this song. In fact I am listening to it right now! I like it musically, and I like the words too. Because I am certain that Jesus is who is meant by 'the One who gave it all' and that the giving of everything spoken of is referring to when Jesus died on the cross to take the penalty for sinners. There is nothing inherently wrong with this song! But the reason why I think it would be unwise to sing this song/or a song like this in a group context is this: I cannot assume that just because I am thinking about the gospel when I sing this song, that everyone else is too. In fact we could be singing about almost anything or anyone!
[I must be fair to the writers of this song, because the above lyrics are actually only the chorus, which comes after a couple of verses explaining why God is so praiseworthy, but almost no-one knows this because the verses are never sung!!! This chorus has been turned into a whole song of its own.]
The reason why this I think it is very dangerous to sing, in corporate worship, songs which are not explicit about the gospel as revealed in the Bible is because an 'assumed' gospel will soon become no gospel at all. If we in our groups do not sing about the specifics of the gospel as well as how we feel about it, then the newcomer to the group, or even the believer who hasn't had much opportunity to read the Bible in depth yet, will not know what they are singing about. If this generation assumes that everyone knows the gospel and so does not proclaim it to each other, then the next generation will not know the gospel at all!
Now I know there is more than one way to remind each other of the gospel, this task is not completely reliant on the songs that we sing, that's why I asked you to read this bearing in mind that I can never be totally agenda-free when I write. But our songs are surely a good place to start aren't they? They are also one of the best ways that we learn and remember information. And anyway, why would we want to sing about anything else?
If we are to take the command of Titus 3:8 seriously then I think that we need to think really carefully about the kind of songs we sing:
"3At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. 4But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, 5he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, 6whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. 8This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone." (Titus 3:3-8)
Sunday, 1 February 2009
Alison's thought agenda...
I am having a 'not very Thai moment'.
Firstly, I have come out for lunch on my own - eating 'Khon Diaw' is not a very Thai thing. It's not really my choice either, but since I missed my lift to church (...and church always includes lunch) I thought I'd better go and find something to eat on my own.
Secondly, I am in an air-conditioned cafe, with comfy chairs, trendy lamps and even rugs. I brought my laptop because there is free wi-fi here. I am drinking 'English Breakfast' tea and waiting for my spaghetti to arrive.
Very un-Thai.
I am not having an 'I hate Thailand day' or anything...it's just convenient to get here and it's the kind of place where you can go on your own and not look like a weirdo, which is handy.
I thought this would be a good time to think about the things on my 'thought agenda'. My thought agenda is a mental list of things that I want to think about at some point. The idea is that I will do this by blogging about them.
The problem is that now I have a bit of time to think about them, do you think I can remember what any of the things on my thought-agenda are!!??
i.e. No.
My brain is too full of all the Thai characters I have been learning to read and write this week, and of thinking about all the things I need to try and fit into the next week. I feel like I haven't given this blog much attention recently, other than visually...perhaps this is linked to the fact that I haven't been thinking about much lately.
So I have just added this to my (currently empty) thought agenda:
'What things can I think about?'
As I logged that on the thought agenda I realised something. The Bible gives me an instant answer if I want something to think about. It is this:
"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things." Philippians 4:8.
If my brain is a bit blank and needing something to chew over, what better place to start?
What is true? - The Bible, everything that it says about God and the world and the way to be saved from our mess and know God. Nothing is more true. (Psalm 119:160)
What is noble? - Jesus' substitutionary death in the place of sinners (i.e. every single person who ever lived/lives/will live, including ME) who have offended God with our rejection of Him and determination to live life our own way more than we will ever fully grasp. This death of the righteous in place of the unrighteous is the most noble act that was ever done. And the fact that I can have a relationship with God as a result of it is completely undeserved. Nothing is more noble. (Titus 3:3-7)
What is right? - Everything that God does or thinks. All his ways are just and right. Nothing is more right (Hosea 14:9)
What is pure? - God and God only. He is the only standard for perfection. Nothing is more pure. (1 Sam 6:19-21)
What is lovely? - The perfect love of God through Jesus Christ. Being in His presence. Nothing is more lovely. (Psalm 84:1)
What is admirable? - Jesus Christ. His wisdom, His knowledge, His divinity, His grace, His sinlessness, all His deeds, supremely His willingness to sacrifice Himself for us. Nothing is more admirable. (Luke 5:26)
What is excellent? - all of God's ways, His character, His revelation. The glorious message of the cross of Christ - the only hope for messed up people like us. Nothing is more excellent. (Titus 3:8)
What is praiseworthy? - Jesus Christ is God. He came into our world to die in the place of all those who have rebelled against God (that is, everyone!), He lived a sinless life and then died on a cross taking on Himself the anger that God rightly has against our sin and rebellion. As a result salvation and eternal life are available to all who trust that Jesus has done this for them and turn from their life of rebellion to new life with God through Jesus. Nothing is more praiseworthy. (Isaiah 25:1)
So I will think over these things. And in prayerfully doing so, I am sure that life will seem more interesting again. I trust that my perspective will be straightened out as I see how everything fits into the framework that God has created for the universe. My spiritual eyes will be opened again to the glorious truths that have been revealed to us in the Bible and how these are all I need. My spiritual appetite will be revived. My longings and affections will start to be directed back towards the one who is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable and excellent.
Firstly, I have come out for lunch on my own - eating 'Khon Diaw' is not a very Thai thing. It's not really my choice either, but since I missed my lift to church (...and church always includes lunch) I thought I'd better go and find something to eat on my own.
Secondly, I am in an air-conditioned cafe, with comfy chairs, trendy lamps and even rugs. I brought my laptop because there is free wi-fi here. I am drinking 'English Breakfast' tea and waiting for my spaghetti to arrive.
Very un-Thai.
I am not having an 'I hate Thailand day' or anything...it's just convenient to get here and it's the kind of place where you can go on your own and not look like a weirdo, which is handy.
I thought this would be a good time to think about the things on my 'thought agenda'. My thought agenda is a mental list of things that I want to think about at some point. The idea is that I will do this by blogging about them.
The problem is that now I have a bit of time to think about them, do you think I can remember what any of the things on my thought-agenda are!!??
i.e. No.
My brain is too full of all the Thai characters I have been learning to read and write this week, and of thinking about all the things I need to try and fit into the next week. I feel like I haven't given this blog much attention recently, other than visually...perhaps this is linked to the fact that I haven't been thinking about much lately.
So I have just added this to my (currently empty) thought agenda:
'What things can I think about?'
As I logged that on the thought agenda I realised something. The Bible gives me an instant answer if I want something to think about. It is this:
"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things." Philippians 4:8.
If my brain is a bit blank and needing something to chew over, what better place to start?
What is true? - The Bible, everything that it says about God and the world and the way to be saved from our mess and know God. Nothing is more true. (Psalm 119:160)
What is noble? - Jesus' substitutionary death in the place of sinners (i.e. every single person who ever lived/lives/will live, including ME) who have offended God with our rejection of Him and determination to live life our own way more than we will ever fully grasp. This death of the righteous in place of the unrighteous is the most noble act that was ever done. And the fact that I can have a relationship with God as a result of it is completely undeserved. Nothing is more noble. (Titus 3:3-7)
What is right? - Everything that God does or thinks. All his ways are just and right. Nothing is more right (Hosea 14:9)
What is pure? - God and God only. He is the only standard for perfection. Nothing is more pure. (1 Sam 6:19-21)
What is lovely? - The perfect love of God through Jesus Christ. Being in His presence. Nothing is more lovely. (Psalm 84:1)
What is admirable? - Jesus Christ. His wisdom, His knowledge, His divinity, His grace, His sinlessness, all His deeds, supremely His willingness to sacrifice Himself for us. Nothing is more admirable. (Luke 5:26)
What is excellent? - all of God's ways, His character, His revelation. The glorious message of the cross of Christ - the only hope for messed up people like us. Nothing is more excellent. (Titus 3:8)
What is praiseworthy? - Jesus Christ is God. He came into our world to die in the place of all those who have rebelled against God (that is, everyone!), He lived a sinless life and then died on a cross taking on Himself the anger that God rightly has against our sin and rebellion. As a result salvation and eternal life are available to all who trust that Jesus has done this for them and turn from their life of rebellion to new life with God through Jesus. Nothing is more praiseworthy. (Isaiah 25:1)
So I will think over these things. And in prayerfully doing so, I am sure that life will seem more interesting again. I trust that my perspective will be straightened out as I see how everything fits into the framework that God has created for the universe. My spiritual eyes will be opened again to the glorious truths that have been revealed to us in the Bible and how these are all I need. My spiritual appetite will be revived. My longings and affections will start to be directed back towards the one who is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable and excellent.
Sunday, 4 January 2009
Question: Do I love Jesus Christ?
Answer: I do.
But it's a many layered answer. Because yes, basically I do. But in another sense I don't. At least not the way I should. So I need to stop and check myself regularly to think about how I am loving Him and what it even means to love Jesus in the first place.
Last week I was really challenged by this short summary by John Piper of what it really means to love Jesus (read the whole article here):
• I admire Jesus Christ more than any other human or angelic being.
• I enjoy his ways and his words more than I enjoy the ways and words of anyone else.
• I want his approval more than I want the approval of anyone else.
• I want to be with him more than I want to be with anyone else.
• I feel more grateful to him for what he has done for me than I do to anyone else.
• I trust his words more fully than I trust what anyone else says.
• I am more glad in his exaltation than in the exaltation of anyone else, including me.
When I think about my love for Jesus in each of these categories I realise that it falls short in so many ways. Day in day out other things and people win my affections over Jesus.
So yes, I do love Jesus. But it is the love of a sinner who is humbled to realise that even the ability to love Jesus well can only come from Jesus Himself...because left to my own sinful instincts I choose other things above Him every time.
Oh Lord, have mercy on this sinner.
But it's a many layered answer. Because yes, basically I do. But in another sense I don't. At least not the way I should. So I need to stop and check myself regularly to think about how I am loving Him and what it even means to love Jesus in the first place.
Last week I was really challenged by this short summary by John Piper of what it really means to love Jesus (read the whole article here):
• I admire Jesus Christ more than any other human or angelic being.
• I enjoy his ways and his words more than I enjoy the ways and words of anyone else.
• I want his approval more than I want the approval of anyone else.
• I want to be with him more than I want to be with anyone else.
• I feel more grateful to him for what he has done for me than I do to anyone else.
• I trust his words more fully than I trust what anyone else says.
• I am more glad in his exaltation than in the exaltation of anyone else, including me.
When I think about my love for Jesus in each of these categories I realise that it falls short in so many ways. Day in day out other things and people win my affections over Jesus.
So yes, I do love Jesus. But it is the love of a sinner who is humbled to realise that even the ability to love Jesus well can only come from Jesus Himself...because left to my own sinful instincts I choose other things above Him every time.
Oh Lord, have mercy on this sinner.
Sunday, 23 November 2008
So, House is my new favourite TV show.
For those unfamiliar with House, it is an American medical drama about a Dr (called House) who, through the means of controversial yet ingenious methods, complete with outrageous sarcasm and hilarious one-liners, figures out various mysterious illnesses that no-one else can work out. It has me laughing out loud frequently. But it also makes me think. House thinks differently to most people, and he’s not afraid to say things the way he sees them. Here is something that made me think:
Patient: I just wanna die with a little dignity
We can live with dignity, we can’t die with it.
I think House is spot on here.
Death is always ugly.
It shocks us and it horrifies us, because it is just that: ugly and horrible. And it wasn’t meant to be here, it’s a trespasser. It steals from us, it robs us, it takes EVERYTHING we have. And whether we’re expecting it or not, there is nothing we can do to stop it. We have no control over it.
We like to think we can ‘dignify’ it because that makes it easier to manage. It makes us feel like we have some control over it. But the reality is that it is our greatest enemy and whether we think about it or not, we are decaying. This life that we love, that we pour everything into, that we cling to, that we try and figure out as we go along, that we believe is all there is….is temporary.
It is our biggest enemy, but there is a bigger reality. There is more than this life. And even better than that, there is victory. Death has been crushed. It came into the world because we invited it in at the beginning; and we chose these small, frail, pitiful lives that revolve around ourselves and each other instead of our Maker, and in doing so we forfeited the pure, satisfying life that never ends.
But that’s not the end. We weren’t left to just get on with it and get over it; ‘you’ve made your bed, now lie in it’. No, we’ve been given a second chance. This is where House would probably disagree with me.
The One who made us, entered the mess, took the brokenness, the sin, the punishment we justly deserve for our rebellion, and the great enemy of death on himself and then, in victory turned death on its head as He was brought back to life.
“since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him. Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death.” – 1 Corinthians 15:21-26
So death is always ugly, House is right. I agree 100%. But there is more that needs to be said. Even in death there can be life, even after death we can be made alive. But only through one man: Jesus Christ. The defeater of the enemy.
Saturday, 1 November 2008
Still beholding...
Skype conversation just now:
[22:38:16] Alison says:
I wanted to write something meaningful on my blog today as its my Christian birthday....
...but i need to iron...
...and sleep
[22:38:28] Jill says:
You could write that
...that Jesus is and should be in all our everyday life
...even ironing!
[22:38:46] Alison says:
i could...and may well!
And so I am.
5 years ago today my life changed very drastically. Jesus stepped in. Not that He wasn't always there, knowing me and loving me, but on that day He burst into my life and enabled me to start seeing Him for who He really is.
I didn't deserve it...quite the opposite! I was determined to live only for myself, to accept no help from a Saviour, to go my own way. And so left to myself I would have wallowed in that horrible pit of lonely darkness forever. Literally forever. And I would have deserved it.
But He didn't leave me there.
And so this beclouded soul didn't stop being beclouded...but it did begin to behold the Light. It stopped seeing only itself, it stopped delighting in fading realities and started to see and love and delight in something that will never end. Something wonderful no-less. It couldn't do that on its own...believe me it tried...and failed miserably...again and again. Sight and life and hope and light could come to me only because Jesus was willing to take on my horrible, ugly, dark, messed-up-ness on Himself as He was crushed and pierced and stricken in my place. My soul was able to behold light out of its darkness only because He came in and opened my eyes.
And 5 years on, it is still beholding…beholding the same wonderful Light…
"When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." "John 8:12
But as my soul is thrilled with this truth it is not paralysed. I do not mean you to think that the last 5 years have been spent entirely in private contemplation, thought and prayer, meditating on some kind of abstract ‘light’ that makes me feel better about things. Life with Jesus isn't that inward.
Jesus is a part of all of life - not just in feelings, not just in thoughts, not just for that first day when He rescued me, not just for bad days when I feel like I'm back in that dark pit again....but He is part of my life every day when I eat, when I sleep, when I am happy, when I am sad, when I go to the post-office, when I chat to students, when I am on facebook, when I am listening to music, when I am cleaning my teeth, when I am shopping, when I’m playing badminton, when I am washing dishes, when I’m playing the guitar......and when I am doing ironing.
All these things were meaningless before – just a means to an end. But now they are bursting with purpose! Because all of life is from and for Jesus!
So to the ironing I go. As one who has been rescued by Jesus, and is alive because He gives me each breath that I take.
Thankful.
Friday, 2 May 2008
I have a shelter
I have a shelter in the storm
When troubles pour upon me
Though fears are rising like a flood
My soul can rest securely
O Jesus, I will hide in You
My place of peace and solace
No trial is deeper than Your love
That comforts all my sorrows
When troubles pour upon me
Though fears are rising like a flood
My soul can rest securely
O Jesus, I will hide in You
My place of peace and solace
No trial is deeper than Your love
That comforts all my sorrows
Saturday, 10 November 2007
'Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.' - Philippians 4:8
Here is something that fits all those categories:
'God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.' 2 Corinthians 5:21
I will think about this.
Here is something that fits all those categories:
'God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.' 2 Corinthians 5:21
I will think about this.
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