Don't Faint, Pray!

Hey Folks,

I thought it would be appropriate after the last two "downer" posts to kind of give you "the rest of the story". It was, in fact the day that I linked the article below on Sen. Obama's (Dem., IL) positions on abortion, that I was immediately reminded of the prayer of Nehemiah. I have prayed it several time since, and quote it below for your encouragement.

And they said to me, “The remnant there in the province who had survived the exile is in great trouble and shame. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates are destroyed by fire.” As soon as I heard these words I sat down and wept and mourned for days, and I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven. And I said, “O Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, let your ear be attentive and your eyes open, to hear the prayer of your servant that I now pray before you day and night for the people of Israel your servants, confessing the sins of the people of Israel, which we have sinned against you. Even I and my father's house have sinned. We have acted very corruptly against you and have not kept the commandments, the statutes, and the rules that you commanded your servant Moses. Remember the word that you commanded your servant Moses, saying, ‘If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the peoples, but if you return to me and keep my commandments and do them, though your outcasts are in the uttermost parts of heaven, from there I will gather them and bring them to the place that I have chosen, to make my name dwell there.’ They are your servants and your people, whom you have redeemed by your great power and by your strong hand. O Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of your servant, and to the prayer of your servants who delight to fear your name, and give success to your servant today, and grant him mercy in the sight of [the king].”

Nehemiah 1:3-11a (ESV)

Biblical Poetry: Entry 1

For a few weeks now, I have been carrying the American Life In Poetry column, courtesy of the Library of Congress and the Poetry Foundation. In addition to this feature, I would also like to occassionally bring you snippets of poetry from the most important book in my life, The Bible.

At the outset, I would like to say a couple of things, the most important being that this is more than just poetry, it is the Word of God. Yes, please enjoy the writing, but also, listen to what He is saying. Secondly, this will not be a regular feature; rather I will bring these to you as I come across them in my own reading, or, as is the case with this entry, as a result of our pastor bringing a passage to my attention.

This first entry is very timely. During the Christmas season, we often criticize the crass commercialism that seems to run rampant around this and other holidays. But Haggai, the Old Testament prophet, points out that very often, love of material things is part of who we are, sometimes one of our deepest desires. He uses simple contrasting couplets to highlight the futility of this mentality.


Consider Your Ways

You have sown much,
and bring in little;

You eat,
but do not have enough;

You drink,
but you are not filled with drink;

You clothe yourselves,
but no one is warm;

And he who earns wages,
Earns wages to put into a bag with holes.

Consider your ways.


~from Haggai 1:5-7 (NKJV)

Therefore Let This Death Not Be In Vain

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Anti-Terror Measures

For many years (at least the last five) there have been several potentially terror inspiring items at the forefront of our nation's-- and really, our world's-- collective consciousnesses. Threats or instances of terrorist attacks, dispersal of biological agents, sectarian violence, looming pandemics, and school shootings, to name just a few, have been the source of persistent unrest in the hearts of many, including, occassionally, myself.

We hope that our government prepares itself and protects us. We hope that doctors find cures for the potential plagues that await opportunity for outbreak. We hope that our children will come home safely from school every day.

We hope.

But each of us knows there is no way for us to be completely shielded from the possibility of any one of these tragedies touching either our own lives or the lives of those we love.

In light of this reality, it is comforting to know that we can turn to One who, while He may not keep us from every bad circumstance, can and will keep us through every tragedy that we may face, if we trust in Him.

Psalm 91

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust."
Surely He will save you from the fowler's snare
and from the deadly pestilence.
He will cover you with His feathers,
and under His wings you will find refuge;
His faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
You will not fear the terror of night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,
nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
nor the plague that destroys at midday.
A thousand may fall at your side,
ten thousand at your right hand,
but it will not come near you.
You will only observe with your eyes
and see the punishment of the wicked.
If you make the Most High your dwelling—
even the LORD, who is my refuge-
then no harm will befall you,
no disaster will come near your tent.
For He will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways;
they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.
You will tread upon the lion and the cobra;
you will trample the great lion and the serpent.
"Because he loves me," says the LORD, "I will rescue him;
I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
He will call upon me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble,
I will deliver him and honor him.
With long life will I satisfy him
and show him my salvation."

Dear reader, may you find peace.

Definitives

I frequently find myself in conversations about God with friends, relatives, and co-workers. Who is God? What is He like? What does He expect of us? One of the most fascinating things about these conversations is what other people use as a basis for their beliefs about God. Many times what people have been told about God since they were young is what people accept as fact. This is fine as long as what they are told is accurate. And how do we know if it is accurate or not? Other folks cast God according to the dictates of what they think or feel He must be like. I must admit there are times that I have done this myself. But what if God is not as I imagine Him to be? How is it possible to know?

I would submit to you that if we are to have any knowledge of God at all, it will be because he reveals Himself to us. Quite frankly, I don't know any other way we can know for a certainty the first thing about an invisible, spirit-being. With so many differing human opinions about who He is and what He is like, it is obvious that we cant figure it out by ourselves. He must enlighten us, and has-- through creation and His Word.

Given the above, it would seem to follow that we cannot define His characteristics apart from listening to what He Himself says about them, and identifying the ways in which He has demonstrated them. Again, both are found in His Word.

So what?

Take the word "love"; it's everywhere today. . We fall in and out of love with that person. We love our job. We love the town where we live. We love this song or that TV show. Everybody "loves". Or do they?

We feel affection, attraction, desire, passion, etc. Is this love as God defines it? If not, then we do not love. And everything short of love is just a bunch of noise.

So how do we know what love is? Here, from God's own written revelation, is a definition.

Love is patient,
Love is kind and
Is not jealous;
Love does not brag and
Is not arrogant,
Does not act unbecomingly;
It does not seek its own,
Is not provoked,
Does not take into account a wrong suffered,
Does not rejoice in unrighteousness,
But rejoices with the truth;
Bears all things,
Believes all things,
Hopes all things,
Endures all things.
Love never fails.

May the people that we love have a better understanding of what love means because they see God's love overflowing from our lives into theirs.