Not good enough?

There is not a hint of one person who was afraid to draw near
him [Jesus]. There were those who mocked him. There were those
who were envious of him. There were those who misunderstood him.
There were those who revered him. But there was not one person
who considered him too holy, too divine, or too celestial to
touch. There was not one person who was reluctant to approach
him for fear of being rejected.

-- Max Lucado

God is not disillusioned with us. He never had any illusions to
begin with.

-- Luis Palau

Psalm 139
For the director of music. Of David. A psalm.

1 O LORD, you have searched me
and you know me.
2 You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.

3 You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.

4 Before a word is on my tongue
you know it completely, O LORD.

5 You hem me in—behind and before;
you have laid your hand upon me.

6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.

7 Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?

8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, [a] you are there.

9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,

10 even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.

11 If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,"

12 even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.

13 For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.

14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.

15 My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,

16 your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me
were written in your book
before one of them came to be.

No worries

Remember: we can approach the future with confidence because we
know the end from the beginning -- the mustard seed wins the
day.

-- Tom Sine

Back to Acts

Acts 1:8
8But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.

In Sunday School this weekend, I realized I just needed to get this blog going again. We've started a study based on Acts, the book where the church is built and begins to spread. The church I'm attending is growing quickly but much of the time it's because of members of some other central AR church. We're not really growing the one church, just trading members. Acts is where the missionary, evangelical purpose of the church is outlined. This study began with each person making a list of 4 people that God has set up for influence. To me that's not a "Do you know you're going to heaven when you die?" at the gas station conversation. That's a friendship, a discussion, an example, a life...that's the kind of testimony I can give. So I made my list. I'm praying for those 4, and I work with 3 of them. That means I need to keep my head on straight at work. That could be a challenge.

Note to Self:
2 Timothy 1:7-10

7For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.
8So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord, or ashamed of me his prisoner. But join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God, 9who has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, 10but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.

Day 34-Those who have not seen

My Prayer: Psalm 96:10 (New International Version)
10 Say among the nations, "The LORD reigns."
The world is firmly established, it cannot be moved;
he will judge the peoples with equity.

The Reading: John 20-21
John 20:29 (New International Version)
29Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."

My Thoughts: How many times have I said that I wanted to see a sign, something like a burning bush to clearly point the way? The diciples were lucky. They got to see Jesus at work. They got to see miracles and hear first the parables Jesus used to talk. They had daily proof of Jesus as savior and they saw with their own eyes his resurrected body. And they missed it just about every time. Jesus had to explain himself over and over and re-introduce himself to the men who worked and traveled with him. It's good to know that I'm not alone. I probably would have missed what was right in front of my face, too. Of course, we're lucky because Jesus left the Holy Spirit for all of us. So today, we have the Holy Spirit. We're never alone. We don't get to see the miracles performed the way the disciples did but we still get to see God at work in this world through believers.

Day 33-Protection

My Prayer: Psalm 86:13 (New International Version)
13 For great is your love toward me;
you have delivered me from the depths of the grave

The Reading: John 17-19
John 17:15-16 (New International Version)
15My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. 16They are not of the world, even as I am not of it.

My Thoughts: This is a passage that I've never spent much time on, but Jesus is praying on behalf of his disciples and on behalf of everyone who would believe in his name. He wanted unity for his church. Boy, have we messed that up! It's really sad to think about what the world could be like with true unity instead of the division among Christians. That's how the world is supposed to find Jesus, through the witness of his people. Still, I'm not sure I've studied much on this prayer of protection...protection from the evil one. I am reminded again of how Jesus prays for us even when we don't know what to pray for.

Day 32-The Way

My Prayer: Psalm 147:5 (New International Version)
5 Great is our Lord and mighty in power;
his understanding has no limit.

The Reading: John 14-16
John 14:1-4 (New International Version)
Jesus Comforts His Disciples
1"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God[a]; trust also in me. 2In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4You know the way to the place where I am going."

My Thoughts: Jesus had just told the disciples about how he would be betrayed and they were upset. So Jesus comforted them. This is a crystal-clear picture of what made Jesus different. He loved them, even though he was going to have to die to save them. He wanted them to have hope in his return. He wanted to feel secure that they would be able to find him. Jesus said, "I am the way..." They knew Jesus, they knew how to find him again. I've read this passage at 2 funerals when my heart was completely and totally broken. But here is a reason for joy. I know the way home. They knew the way, too. The way to a permanent home.

Day 31-Glory

My Prayer: Psalm 85:7 (New International Version)
7 Show us your unfailing love, O LORD,
and grant us your salvation.


The Reading: John 12-13
John 12:27-28 (New International Version)
27"Now my heart is troubled, and what shall I say? 'Father, save me from this hour'? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. 28Father, glorify your name!"


My Thoughts: Maybe this is a clue to the answer about my questions about prayer. Jesus has told his believers to pray in his name and their prayers will be answered. So why aren't they answered? Why aren't my prayers answered? Jesus, instead of praying for safety or security or any of the escapes he could command, prayed only to glorify God's name. Bad things happen. Bad things happen to good people. It's true. It's not true that we were ever promised anything different. People don't get any good-er than Jesus who died like a criminal. But as one of those people who know Jesus, a good person can believe that when bad things happen, God's going to use them to change the world, to reach people, to save people. I'm pretty sure that's the mature view that I'm supposed to have. Maybe I'll get there someday.