Archive for March, 2023
State Your Case
Do you ever feel like you have nothing for which to be thankful? Don’t dwell there. However, if you do, reflect on some previous times and ways God has blessed you. Most didn’t thank Him adequately the original time. Put modesty aside and admit He has blessed you. There is strength in a thankful heart.
If you have such feelings there is a possibility you also feel a need in your life. If so, use the antidote prescribed by Isaiah, “Produce your case, bring forth your strong reason….” (Isaiah 41: 21) Analytically, do it.
This is an appeal to use logic and reason. Clear your mind of fantasy. That is what Scripture means when it says, “…pulling down strongholds….” In a previous verse we are encouraged to “…cast down imaginations….” (II Corinthians 10: 4,5)
Don’t fantasize. The undisciplined mind can run away. “In nothing (be) terrified by our adversary.” (Philippians 1: 28) The word “terrified” translates the word used to describe a horse spooked in battle. That is a graphic description of what happens in one’s mind. Don’t panic and have your mind run away with fantasized thoughts.
To state your case means to face reality, good and bad, not just the bad. Your case can never be settled as long as you are playing mental games. Therefore, do all within your ability to line up reality and give it a thorough inspection. That is step one in recovery. Don’t be pretentious. Things might be very bad, but they are never as bad as you might imagine.
Old Testament character Joshua came to a time of need. The encouragement given him is appropriate for you: “Be strong and of good courage; be not afraid, neither be dismayed: for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1: 9) The theme emerges elsewhere “in the presence of the Lord there is strength.” He is with you. Acknowledge it and act accordingly.
As a deep sea diver is dependent on his diving gear, we are dependent on the Lord. As he must trust the gear so we must trust the Lord. Without it he is helpless in an alien environment. Without the Lord we are helpless. Don’t act like you don’t have Him, act because you do have Him.
A constantly sad saint is a sad sort of a saint. Be of good cheer. An awareness of the presence of the Lord with you gives you the capacity to say yes or no… and whoopee.
The acclaimed novelist Dostoveski noted, “The ant knows the formula for the anthill. The bee knows the formula for the beehive. They do not know the formula in a human way, but in their own way. Only man does not know the formula.”
Our formula is, “Be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.”
“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me…” (Psalm 23: 4)
The Race Is On
“Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12: 1, 2
This text is sometimes represented as there being a giant stadium filled with believers who have gone before us observing (witnesses of) us and cheering for us to be faithful. In reality it represents a stadium filled with believers testifying (witnesses) of the faithfulness of the Lord. With their testimony to encourage us, the metaphor of a race illustrates some important life principles, such as:
A fascinating statistics show that 100% of those who win a race… start it. To win, you have to begin. If you want to live a life that is pleasing to the Lord, you have to start. A resolute determination is the motivation needed. If not now, when?
One of the first experiences a runner has is a desire to quit. The first part is the hardest. Pushing through that zone is called getting a second wind.
The initial time in the start of your spiritual pilgrimage might well be the first part. Satan throws all he can against you. Expect it.
Qualities that are helpful in spiritual growth are identified in II Peter 1:5 – 9. “But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.” Note a key factor is “perseverance,” that is, in a non-word word stick-to-it-tiveness, or hang in there.
Life being more like a marathon than a sprint, it is necessary to have checkpoints by which to measure your pace.
In high school our 4-by-4 track team lost a member at the last minute due to an injury. Pete, who was a sprinter, was called on to fill in. Other members of the team gathered around Pete to give him a crash course in how to run the race cautioning him not to start off too fast, but to pace himself and reserve enough to finish strong. Instead Pete took off like the sprinter he was leaving everyone in his wake. Within about 100 yards to go Pete burned out and slowed to finish last.
Establish a challenging, but reasonable growth routine and maintain it.
“Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown. Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty.”
Courage Not Conformity
“Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart, All you who hope in the Lord.”
Psalm 31: 24.
That is a text worth bronzing and putting on one’s mantel. Take it to the bank, your mental bank, and deposit. It will pay dividends.
Courage is a Christian virtue. In fact, it is impossible to follow and please Christ without it. He has charged His followers, “Be of good courage…” Our English word “courage” comes from the Latin root “cor,” meaning the condition of the heart. King Richard I, by name Richard the Lionhearted, or in French Richard Coeur de Lion, meaning, the king with the heart of a lion.
In the text the Hebrew for courage “tharreo” literally means to be bold. Instead of yielding to impatience or despondency under our troubles, we should turn our thoughts to the goodness of the Lord towards those who fear and trust in Him. Thus, the Lord strengthens our heart enabling us to be of good cheer.
Hope ignites such courage. Our English word “hope” came into being by combining two old Anglo Saxon word meanings: desire plus expectation. If you desire for the Lord to strengthen your heart, and expect Him to do so, He will.
Hope in the Lord cheers, sustains, comforts; makes life happier. It even makes death more calm, serene, and triumphant.
“…the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him, On those who hope in His mercy.” (Psalm 33: 18)
Personal courage is enshrined as one of the seven core Army values in the modern U.S. Army. The Army defines it simply as “facing fear, danger or adversity (physical or moral).” Courage is no less a Christian virtue. In fact, it is impossible to follow and please Jesus without it.
Through the ages it has been the mantra of legions of our Lord’s loyalists.
One of the church’s first recorded martyrs was a frail slave girl named Blandina. Because she was not a Roman citizen, she was not allowed to be beheaded but was instead subject to torture if she did not renounce her faith in Jesus. The Roman soldiers exhausted themselves trying to get her to deny Jesus. She was made to watch the torture of her fellow Christians and ultimately put in a net and tossed around like a toy by an enraged bull before a cheering crowd. Yet, she did not deny her Lord.
Courage under such extreme circumstances won many gladiators to faith in Jesus. As new converts some of them later faced death in the arena.
Part of being strong and of good courage means trusting in the Lord as our true source of strength.
Believers in Jesus belong to a kingdom not of this world. Our King has not called us to conformity with the world, but to be conquerors of it.
Courage not conformity with the world is our charge in our daily lives.
Conformation vs Transformation
“Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its own mold, but let God re-mold your minds from within, so that you may prove in practice that the Plan of God for you is good, meets all His demands and moves towards the goal of true maturity.” Romans 12: 2 (J. B. Phillips Translation)
The world, society that is, seeks our conformation. The Spirit seeks our transformation. We choose which will prevail. The mind is the facility with which we make the decisions.
Conformation results from external influences. Transformation into Jesus’ likeness results from internal influences. Daily external influences bring pressure on us. Unless daily internal spiritual influences are engaged conformation prevails. Only by daily spiritual influences being engaged is transformation possible. That requires daily, not intermittently, Bible reading and prayer seasoned by regular public worship. Gradual practice results in more instinctive spiritual resources, but not ever completely. You have to grow to know God’s will.
This being such a touchy/feely society we tend to ask ourselves “How am I feeling,” and act accordingly. It is not that acting in accordance with our transformed self doesn’t make us feel good, it does, it is that our human instincts are demanding. They are the first responders to most situations.
Internal transformation results in external proof that God’s will is the best course of action and utterance. The good and acceptable and perfect will of God gives joy and spares regret.
The Holy Spirit is the super charger aiding our internal transformation. Rely on the empowering additive.
“Metamorphoo,” the Greek word describing a metamorphosis, is the word translated “transformation.” It is the process involving a grub coming out of a cocoon with a new nature, that of a butterfly. That happens to us initially in Salvation. A positive daily change of mind is a transformation of thought and behavior.
The word is employed only one other time in the Bible to describe the life of a believer.
“But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.” (II Corinthians 3:18)
Consciously employ your spiritual assets daily to avoid conformity and enjoy the victories resulting from transformed thoughts.
You can be assured the happiest days of your life will be when you have tried to do the will of God as far as you know it to be…”
Winnie the Pooh offers this word of caution, “We have met the enemy, and he is us.” We tend to be our own worst enemy, but we can be our own best friend by being transformed daily.
How to Improve Your Memory
May this never happen to you. One evening during a pleasant meal I looked at my wife and sincerely asked, “What are the names of our daughters?” I had no idea. Realizing the sincerity of my inquiry she remained calm and answered. An equally sincere question followed, “Are they married?” Subsequent puzzling questions followed. With equal aplomb, typical of her, she answered each question. Finally, pausing long enough to call one of our sons-in-law who is a doctor and explaining the situation he insisted she get me to the ER at once. She was told to keep asking me questions on the way to the ER. Remarkably my memory returned before we got to the hospital.
I had suffered Transient Global Amnesia (TGA). It is rare and is almost always a one time episode. For that I am thankful. There has been no negative reaction.
Many people seem to suffer from spiritual TGA. They forget their spiritual heritage and responsibility, even if only for a short time. However, time loss is a blessing forfeited.
Don’t be like the person who is a hearer, but not a doer. “For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was.” (James 1: 23, 24)
Rather be “… one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does.” (James 1: 25)
In order to prevent spiritual TGA program your mind with the word of God. Exercise your mind by memorizing passages of Scripture. The mind is like a muscle. It needs exercise. There is no better exercise than Scripture memorization. Then you are more able to say, “Your word I have hidden in my heart, That I might not sin against You.” (Psalm 119: 11)
“… for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.” (II Peter 1:5 – 9)
Following is a list of suggested passages for memorization. Don’t be intimidated by memorization, you will improve as you do it. Over the next few months patiently and persistently work on these passages. Take your time.
[Psalm 23, Psalm 119:11, Matthew 5:3-10, Philippians 2:5-8, Psalms 8:3-8, Ephesians 6:10-17, Psalm 8:3-6, II Peter 1:5-9]