Point to the Hero

Only fifty years ago, the heroes of every young boy were astronauts and policemen. Every little girl wanted to be a mother or a nurse. How things have changed! The aspirations of our youth have gone from serving others to trampling others in the pursuit of self-service. And I know I'm probably sounding like and old-head --I'm sure those a generation or so ahead of me were saying the same types of things about us as we were coming up --but gone are the days when heroes were the norm. Gone are the days when a fireman descended from a tree, kitty cradled tenderly in his arms, and declared, "Just doing my job, Ma'am." Gone are the days when women lifted one another up, sat down in one another's kitchen for coffee, and took some sort of joy in their husband's comfort. Today, folks refuse responsibility for themselves; it's no wonder they refuse to take responsibility for others. Remove those things, those individuals who make life inconvenient for you. It's really very simple. But Scripture says otherwise. And, though it is difficult to traverse this little snippet of eternity --even more so when we're tasked with being kind to others and bearing our brother's burdens --it is not impossible. 

But there is a God in heaven... ~ Daniel 2:28 

In the historical record of Daniel of Judah, he has been carried off to Babylon --not his home in any sense of the word. The king of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar, has selected the best and brightest of his captives to be trained in the ways of his country for his service. He's also grown, it seems, a bit disillusioned with some of the nationals he's had in his employment, and he's had a troubling dream. Tell me my dream and its interpretation! Now, the king wasn't looking to have his memory jogged; he was testing his spiritual advisors. If they could tell him the facts of his dream --something no one is able to do --surely, they could be trusted with an interpretation. Short version: Daniel hears of the order, and, after he and his friends pray, receives from God the details of the dream and what it means. Here's where I'd like to direct your focus, Daniel's response to the king when he appears before him (v. 27, 28): 

The secret which the king has demanded, the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, and the soothsayers cannot declare to the king. But there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets, and He has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will be in the latter days.

Daniel confirms the argument of the other sages: no one can tell you the thoughts of your subconscious mind --not even I. He knows God has given him the information the king seeks. He's got it! But he is clear in shifting any attention from himself. He makes himself no better than any of the other spiritualists (with whom the king was thoroughly irritated). 

Secondly, Daniel plainly, incontrovertibly points to God. Daniel uses a two-step process in dealing with this pagan king. First, he deflects from himself and any good within himself (humility), and second, he points unequivocally to God (glory). Daniel did not waffle on the true Hero of this occasion, and he wasn't content with anyone else waffling either.

This is the point at which I begin to think about all of those times we are given the opportunity to be someone's flesh-and-blood "hero." Do we make it clear to them that in us lies no good thing, that apart from Christ we can do nothing? Are we adamant that the Source of our talents, our material resources, our desire to love and to help is Christ Jesus and Christ Jesus alone? Or do we preach Jesus but feel the need to draw the attention of others to our good deeds or our aptitudes? Do we blush and say, Just doing my job, Ma'am -- humble, perhaps, but failing to point to the true Miracle Worker? God was using a pagan king, revealing to him the future for ages! Did you catch that? If Daniel had made it all about himself, his abilities, wouldn't that have been the lead of this story? Daniel of Israel, seer of all seers! Not, Nebuchadnezzar, God wants your worship, too. Or, if Daniel had not pointed to the God who sought to reveal to the king of a heathen nation the promise of a heavenly kingdom, would the focus have moved past its historical value? 

John 3:27 assures us, A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven. Not the gifts we share or the gifts we receive. All of it transpires under the authority of the Almighty so that none of us can take credit for what we possess or imagine we are entitled in any way. So that in all things, He will increase and we will decrease (John 3:30), and our God will always be the Hero others aspire to know.      

Midweek: Pure, Authentic, Uncompromising

I have a confession: Halloween was my favorite holiday; and if I'm being fully transparent, it probably still is. The difference is, I don't celebrate it anymore. The difference is, I view it with extreme caution, eyes wide open, knowing what it is and knowing I cannot go back no matter how much I am tempted. Attached to Halloween are over forty years of fond memories, and the perfect chill that comes over our part of the country, the heralding of the holiday season, the colors... For me, it is the perfect storm. A storm in which I can become lost at sea if I compromise my principles to enter it.

This is not a rant about the evils of a pagan holiday or the "innocent" way in which portals to the demonic are opened right within our homes, however true those things may be. What I am personally apt to do is blur the lines. Or maybe I speak of human nature in general. Listen to the words of God through the prophet Jeremiah:

And the Chaldeans who fight against this city shall come and set fire to this city and burn it, with the houses on whose roofs they have offered incense to Baal and poured out drink offerings to other gods, to provoke Me to anger; ~ Jeremiah 32:29 

He's talking about Jerusalem here; the people of Judah, God's people, who offered incense (worship) to pagan gods on the roofs of their homes! How? How did God's chosen people go that far astray? Well, lest we think ourselves so far above all this... Halloween. Again, I'm not looking to hate on Halloweeners or to be legalistic about all of this, but am I personally okay with carving a pumpkin or two, entering our son in the Halloween parade, hanging some bats in the tree out front? A "Christian" Halloween event with which I used to be associated had costume guidelines: No witches, no demons, no dead. It was simply a dress-up day. So why on the 31st of October? We often justify our "alternatives" with the argument that it is so difficult for our children to be excluded from the "fun" of Halloween or the "fun" of believing in Santa Claus. Why is "fun" or being perceived as "normal" by the world so important to us?

When the children of the world are having a "good time" getting pregnant at age twelve or boosting cars at thirteen, when the seven-year-old next door is playing Call of Duty for six hours on a Sunday morning, are we finding similar-yet-just-different-enough options so they don't feel ostracized? I hope we are telling them Absolutely not; this is dangerous, this is unhealthy, this is not what God intended for you. And what about us, Moms? Do our yoga pants have Namaste printed down the leg? Does our popcorn have a Buddha on the bag? What about you, Dads? Do you have a few beers or swear just a bit --you know, the "milder" ones --when you're watching the game with the guys on Sunday? What about our playlists? What sort of music are we allowing into our homes and our hearts? Only the "cleaned up" versions? Don't kid yourselves. 

I'm guilty. I have found all sorts of ways to compromise, to fit in culturally though I am called to stand out. It's not so difficult for me to understand how the people hand-picked by God could have strayed to the point of worshipping pagan gods on their rooftops. What if it had all begun with trying to appear relevant? with wanting to be "normal"? finding a similar-yet-just-different-enough alternative so they weren't so excluded? Or maybe it wasn't a conscious decision at all, and that could be the problem. Maybe it was a complacency toward all the little ways the world's ways creep into our ways and we accept it as "just the way things are."

Our Lord and Savior died and rose again, releasing us from the bondage of this world, to walk in newness of life. It is our uniqueness of devotion, of purpose, of love for one another, of lifestyle that points others to the One who procured these things for us. It is God's intent that we do not (or should not) look like the world: that is the hook, so to speak. The world can find its own reflection everywhere it turns. Does it find the pure, authentic reflection of Christ alone in you?        

An Untrustworthy Source. A Trustworthy God.

Oh, how the mighty have fallen!

Okay, maybe not the mighty, but another icon of celeb spirituality has revealed himself to be a grifter, a sycophant playing to the masses, a flash-in-the-pan Christian. And, once again, Christians have taken to social media to warn us all, this is the time to be vigilant; to be discerning. Well, yes; but isn't the time to be discerning before we endorse every personality who claims to have had a "real encounter with Jesus"? Nevertheless, discernment helps us spot the fakes, right? Did you know it helps us know truth, also?  

In 2 Chronicles 35 Josiah, king of Judah, had led God's people into a time of repentance and revival in Jerusalem. The Passover that was celebrated was unlike any other for hundreds of years prior. The temple had been cleaned and prepared, brought into the fullness of its function once again. And the king of Egypt was using Judah as his thoroughfare. Huh?

Yep, we have this account of a glorious return to serving the Lord, celebrating His deliverance, and then this seemingly odd non sequitur. But this is God's book, so, of course, there's a point. 

King Josiah and Judah were riding a wave. Life was good. God was foremost. But then, the presence of evil (or perceived evil) in the form of a king --a king, specifically, of a nation from which the people had been delivered. Remember the Passover celebration? Upon hearing of the king's presence, Josiah prepared to go to battle; but Egypt's king had messengers on the way. 

What have I to do with you, king of Judah? I have not come against you this day, but against the house with which I have war; (v.21) 

But it didn't stop there, because there was more to the king's message:

...for God commanded me to make haste. Refrain from meddling with God, who is with me, lest He destroy you.

Was Egypt a God-fearing nation? Certainly not. Did Josiah have a right to be suspicious? Sure! But the problem was, he failed to filter the king of Egypt's message through the lens of God's sovereignty. We don't read that Josiah prayed. We don't read that Josiah asked the leaders in the temple to seek God's direction. Instead, what we do read is the confirmation:

Nevertheless, Josiah would not turn his face from him, but disguised himself so that he might fight with him, and did not heed the words of Necho from the mouth of God.

from the mouth of God. God had indeed spoken to Necho. Josiah, however, ignored the word because he did not value the source. And, in the natural, with good reason. The source was the king of a pagan land. The source was the king of a people allied with some of the strongest military factions of the day. But just as God accomplished His will by working in the heart of another king of Egypt (Exodus 5-13), God was well able to speak to this king. All Josiah had to do was ask God for confirmation. All he had to do was humbly seek Truth. Instead, his mind was made up: he trusted his own thoughts, waged war against Necho, increased the strength of Babylon (who would later overtake Judah), and was killed in the process. 

So, the question: How does one get discernment? And the quick answer --I've held your attention long enough --through prayer, study of the Scripture, and application. Discernment is wisdom, knowledge applied. So, in order to increase it --like any muscle or skill --we have to exercise it: we've got to go through some drama if we want to learn how to apply what we know. That drama is not only the field on which we practice, but it usually keeps us in a place of humility, a place where we realize we don't know it all and must trust the One who does. The more we read about God's character, and the more we learn of His benevolence to His people, the more our knowledge is increased; we then take what we have learned and apply it. God is faithful. God is true. God is just. I can trust Him. Likewise, we pray with those things in mind, praying His will is accomplished, and asking Him for wisdom as we navigate life. We take our eyes off of the specifics of our circumstances --the source, the "odds", the lack of time, the diagnosis --and we place our thoughts directly on the One who can do exceedingly abundantly above all we can ask or imagine, the One who is faithful and true, the One who knows the end from the beginning, the One who cares for His people and will never leave us.