After I finished my last blog I was looking forward to just reposting my next blog, but God had other plans. One of my fellow writers from the Christian Writer's Guild commented on my last blog and she got me thinking. Her comment was that I was allowing God to "refine me." That's when it hit me, what if God allows His children to go through spiritual warfare because in His infinite wisdom He knows that it will bring out the best in us and help us to REFOCUS on Him. After all the apostle Paul encourages us in his letter to the church in Rome (Rom. 8:28.) Which got me to thinking about all the stories that I've heard from actors, musicians and writers about how their success didn't just happen overnight, but took years and sometimes decades before they became a superstar. To all of my writer friends on here, this should encourage us all. Julie, you are"paying your dues "through your Surrendered Scribe blog. Alisa, likewise with your Faith Imagined blog. You see gang, by God allowing us to struggle and then succeed. God brings glory to Himself , as we LIFT HIM HIGH in our Thanksgiving and praise. As the apostle Paul wrote in his letter to the church in Ephesus,(Eph. 4:31-5:12.) Do you understand God cannot and will not bless sinful actions?
While doing research for my first book I learned something that amazed me. In Matthew's letter to the church. He explains(Matthew 25:31-32.) Now let me explain why this is important. It is interesting to note that in Hebrew, the language in which much of the Bible was originally written, there is a word that refers to sheep and/or goats. This word is used in Genesis to describe the animals that Abel raised and used as a sacrifice to God (Genesis 4:2, 4.) The Bible commonly refers to sheep and goats collectively. The frequent use of a single word to refer to sheep and goats strongly suggests that these animals belong to the same created kind. However, there are also words that specifically refer to sheep and others that specifically refer to goats. Although the two are similar in appearance. Sheep and goats have two types of hair; an outer, usually more obvious, layer of guard hairs and an underfur, which is called wool in these animals.
The dividing factor is found in their behavior, sheep tend to follow; goats go their own way and are disobedient to the Shepard. Do you see why it was important for Jewish culture to separate the sheep from the goats? Here is the tricky part, non-shepherds find it difficult to distinguish between sheep and goats, but the shepherd knows the difference and easily separates them. Sheep trust the shepherd so much that they will follow him right up to a slaughtering slab and watch him as he cuts their throat. Jesus was called the lamb of God for a reason, He trusted God all the way to the cross where He was sacrificed to purify humanity. It is interesting to note that throughout history of God's people, He has told them not to marry or be united with unbelievers. In this remixed and reposted version of this blog, I will be discussing how and why God requires your best. To be honest, it has been hard for me to accept.
REPOST: BEST?
In my last blog I began a discussion about trust, now it is time to CHECK IN for the rest of the story. If you remember, at the end of my last blog I talked about the cave. While you're in the cave, God has a unique way of showing you who you are and what's inside of you. Let me go ahead and tell you now, I am no longer in the cave. Yet, still I WILL REST IN YOU, in MY DWELLING PLACE. Instead I find myself in a place similar to David, it is a place that is not of rest. Yet still trusting God. It is a place somewhere between the lines. Two days after I posted my last blog I had the opportunity to go to Celebrate Freedom in Atlanta for Labor Day weekend. And it was like God had heard my prayer and said, "I hear you." It was one of those moments that you want to just fall to your knees and worship God. Not because of all the awesome Christian bands there or because I got hear author and CEO of Focus on the Family Jim Daly speak, nor because of all the great food. It was because of Christian artist JOHNNY DIAZ explaining the story behind his song WAITING ROOM.
Diaz said,"there are times allows when God answers our prayers with a 'yes' and those times are awesome. But there are times when God answers, 'no.' And those times are tough, because that's when you really gotta start trusting. But the toughest for me and for you it might be the same is when He says, 'wait, wait on me.' And so many times I think I know what would be best, I think I know what the answer is. And yet for whatever reason, God in His infinite wisdom decides to make me wait. As much as I like Garth Brooks, I think he got it wrong with his song 'Unanswered Prayers." God doesn't ignore His children, He just answers them how He wants to and in His PERFECT TIME, because He knows best!
If you read my last blog you know how much I hate to wait. The prophet Samuel tells us in this first letter, "David left the cave and went to Mizpah in Moab and said to the king of Moab, 'would you let my father and mother come and stay with you until I learn what God will do for me?" Now this is David, whom the Bible calls, "a man after God's own heart." David had just spent some time in the cave growing CLOSER to God and he knew that he was both anointed by God and chosen to be the next king. Yet he still did not know what God was doing, he just knew it was up to God. David knew that God knew best and God knew what He was doing. Which is what this blog is going to be about; what is best, God's best, the difference between the two, and how God works. Again this will be another personal blog.
BEST?
If you know me, you know that I really like heights, which is why enjoy the mountains. Every since I first went to North Georgia while I was in college, I was perfectly content with settling down in North Georgia. It wasn't until last year(2009) when God took me back to Colorado, that I remembered what real mountains were like, sorry Paul. The highest point in Georgia is a town called Brasstown Bald, it sits at about 4,784 feet above sea level with some pretty nice views. But last year I stood on top of Pikes Peak Colorado which tops out at 14,110 above sea level. Now that is pretty HIGH. When I stood in the spot that inspired the song "America the beautiful" and looked out at the views of four different states my first thought was, "this is the best." Mama Vic, you and Spencer were there. Then I learned what real mountain biking was like. All this time I thought I knew what was best for me by going to North Georgia and biking. Most of my biking friends want me to get another road bike because road bikes are supposed to be the best. Maybe for them. But I learned years ago when I used to have a road bike that I didn't get as good a workout with a road bike. And because I like having the freedom to ride year-round regardless of road conditions or to just bike anywhere I wanted, road bikes weren't the best for me.
Webster's dictionary defines best as 1) excelling all others. 2) most productive of good : offering or producing the greatest advantage, utility, or satisfaction. I did an online search for best and received 1,170,000,000 search hits. Then I went back and performed an online search for God's best which yielded 3,730,000,000 search hits, with most dealing with the subject of relationships(how ironic, you'll see why later.) As I explained in my last blog, because of our finite minds and sinful nature we are limited. While God has infinite wisdom, power and no sinful nature. Thus, He has no LIMITATIONS and He can be trusted. But we don't live our lives like that do we? More often than not like Johnny Diaz we think we know what is best for us.
I'm sure that any authors or preachers reading this, like me have started off on either a project or sermon that you thought was what God wanted. To only have some DIVINE INTERVENTION( i.e. writer's block or an unexpected emergency) occur that distracts us for a moment or an extended period of time, AS WE WAIT we are led in a completely different direction and in the end you have something so much better than you had planned and probably completely different. Yet, if not for the interruption(I hate writer's block) your best would have been so much less than what God had in mind from the beginning and we have to admit, Lord YOU KNOW BETTER THAN I. None of us wants to be a LOSER or to failure(we'll talk more about failure later.)
As Jerry Bridges says in his book Trusting God(even when it hurts), "we are to accept the adversities but not anxieties of life. Our tendency is just opposite. We seek to escape from or resist the adversities, but all the while clinging to the anxieties that they produce. The way to cast our desire on the Lord is to humble ourselves under His sovereignty and then trusting Him in His wisdom and love. Humility should be both a response to adversity and a fruit of it. The apostle Paul was very clear that the primary purpose of his thorn in the flesh was to curb any tendency of his pride in him." I have already explained in a previous blog how God uses PAIN and trials as a breeding ground to accomplish His will. Fourteen years ago when I first felt God calling me out of the darkness I was living in, I didn't pray, "God take 30% of my brain away, take my ability to play guitar away, take my ability to dance away." No, I just prayed for God's best.
I didn't know how much work it would take for God to get me there. Sanjay, Nipun you guys were there with the rest of the I.F.F. crew and you know how humbling it was for me to be twenty-two years old and need an elderly nurse to help me to the bathroom, only to fall off the toilet. No one wishes to have to go through all that and then spend the rest of their life being high risk for strokes and seizures. Seven years later I lost both of my parents to cancer and I thought, "here I go all OVER AGAIN." But I knew in my heart that God is God in every season. While in Colorado in 2009 I met Diane Dike who writes in her book God Made Only One of Me, "throughout this journey, good and bad things will happen in my life. When bad things happen to good people, life doesn't make sense. However God promises that 'EVERYTHING WORKS TOGETHER for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purposes.' How can we find any good in the suffering, the financial expense, and stress of devastating news or illness? The only way is by trusting Him."
Jerry Bridges continues in his book Trusting God(even one life hurts), "illness and physical affliction are another area in which we struggle to trust God. Babies are born with major birth defects. Cancer strikes people who have apparently done everything possible to guard against it. Is God sovereign over this aspect of nature, is He in control of the diseases and physical infirmities that affect us? When God called Moses to lead the Israelites out of Egypt, Moses protested in his inadequacy, including the fact that he was slow of speech. God's reply to Moses is very instructive to us in this area of physical affliction. For Moses tells us in the book of Exodus that God said, 'who gave man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or mute? Who gives him sight or makes him blind? Is it not I, the Lord?' Here God specifically ascribes His own work to the physical afflictions of deafness, muteness, and blindness. These physical afflictions are not merely the products of defective genes or birth accidents. Those things may indeed be the immediate cause but behind them is the sovereign purpose of God. Dr. Donald Grey Barnhouse, one of the great Bible teachers of the mid-20th century once said, 'no person in this world was ever blind that God had not planned for him to be blind; no person was ever deaf in this world that God had not planned for that person to be deaf.... if you do not believe that, you have a strange God who has a universe which is gone out of gear and He cannot control it.' When Jesus encountered a man blind from birth, His disciples asked Him, 'Rabbi who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?' John tells us in his letter to the church that Jesus replied, 'neither this man or his parents sinned, but so that the work of God might be displayed in his life." Jesus didn't respond that it was merely a birth defect that caused the man's blindness. Rather, it happened in the plan of God so that God might be glorified. God was in control of that man's blindness. This God Who is the God of deafness, muteness and blindness is also the God of cancer, arthritis, Down syndrome, and all other afflictions that come to us or our loved ones. None of these afflictions 'just happen.' They are all within the sovereign will of God. Such a statement immediately brings us into the problem of pain and suffering. Why does the sovereign God who loves us allow such pain and heartache? The answer to that question is beyond the scope of this book. Briefly, we know that all creation has been subjected to frustration because of sin of Adam. The apostle Paul tells us in his letter to the church in Rome, 'for all creation was subjected to frustration, not by it's own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the CHILDREN OF THE LIGHT."
Bridges continues," so we can say that the ultimate cause of all pain and suffering must be traced back to the Fall. God's weal and woe are not arbitrary or capricious, but His determined response to man's sin. The sovereign God who subjected creation to frustration still rules over it, pain and all. The laws of genetics and disease are as much under His control as the laws of meteorology. My purpose is not to deal with the problem of pain theologically but to help us deal with it on the level of faith, of trust in God. The first thing we have to do in order to trust God is determine if God is in control, if He is sovereign over the physical areas of our lives. If He is not-- illness and afflictions 'just happen'-- then, of course, there is no basis for trust in God. But if God is sovereign in this area, then we can trust Him without understanding all the theological issues involved in the problem of pain. Trusting God in the midst of our pains and heartache means that we accept it from Him. An attitude of acceptance says that we trust God, that He loves us, and He knows what is best for us."
Recently I had another one of those nights that I could not sleep, I kept thinking about my friend I hurt. In my frustration I told God, "she's not even what I really want and she's not the best for me!" And then I heard Him WHISPER MY NAME and say, "remember the last time you knew who was best for you and how wrong you were?" I remembered my high school sweetheart who I thought was the best for me and I wanted to marry, it was what we both wanted. Never in a million years did we think her family would come between us. It was the first time I learned about LETTING GO of someone I cared about.
Alexander Graham Bell once said, "When one door closes another door opens; but we so often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door, that we do not see the ones which open for us." At the time I thought she was the best and I knew best. Almost sixteen years later, I learned that she is not exactly the nicest person and has had her own struggles with health problems. I can't imagine how difficult life would be for us if we had our way. God knew the big picture and the future, He knew best and with this NEW REALITY I have peace(I'll talk more about peace later.) We've all bought into the lie that if we get saved our lives would be easier and we would never have to suffer. But do you remember the story about three boys who rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar in (Daniel 3:16-29.) I'll talk more about the furnace in a bit, for now I want to continue discussing what's best. Accepting Jesus doesn't mean we won't suffer, just that we will be HELD when we do face trials and I can know He loves me.
Maybe like me, you've had a discussion with God trying to convince Him what is best for you at some point in life. And maybe like me, you've tried to manipulate things and people to get what you want. It's funny how we and others think the God who created the universe needs our help doing His will. Let me make this clear, MANIPULATION is just another way for man to be in CONTROL and not let God be God. Manipulation is not of God and it does not bring glory to Him, nor is it truly best. Maybe that's why William Paul Young wrote in his bestseller The Shack, "Relationships are never about power, and one way to avoid the will to power is to choose to limit oneself to serve."
There is an interesting story of manipulation found in the prophet Samuel's first letter to the people of Israel. You see Jesse was like any father with sons, he wanted the best for them, especially for his oldest sons and Jesse thought that he could manipulate things and trick the prophet sent by God into anointing one of his older sons as king, so he left his youngest and scrawniest son David out in the fields to tend sheep during the anointing ceremony. But true to form God knew best. Listen to His reply to the prophet Samuel. In (1 Samuel 16:7.) Just like we don't know what's best, we can't trick God to get what we want. Listen to King David himself( Psalm 103:11-12) or the prophet Isaiah(Isiah. 55:9.) We'll talk more about HEAVEN & EARTH later. So far I have talked about wanting God's best for my life. But I find myself wondering if God isn't saying, "ARE YOU REAL, I want your best." Listen to the apostle Paul says in his letter to the church in Rome(Rom. 12:3-8.) However God has gifted you, God expects your best. In order for God to get our best we have to go through a process. There are many names and analogies for this process but they all have the same purpose and that is our best.
In his book Dug Down Deep, Joshua Harris explains, "we each have parts of our lives where obeying God seems really difficult. Have you ever wondered why you still want to sin? Or maybe you've started to think that the Bible's whole promise of change is exaggerated. Is it a bunch of hype? Does God really change people? Maybe you haven't noticed how God has changed you, because you're preoccupied with your weakness and areas of failure. Don't overlook what God has done in you. He wants to increase your faith as you see His work in you. The process of becoming more like Jesus isn't a 'one and done' deal.' It is progressive. And it involves our effort. God doesn't leave us alone in this work; He empowers us and enables us by His Spirit. But it's still work. Salvation is instant, but understanding sanctification is important because of its daily relevance. But it's also important because if we get this wrong, we can end up sidetracked by multiple problems-- from laziness and APATHY to self-sufficiency and legalism. And if our expectations are not informed by Scripture we can end up unnecessarily discouraged, even tempted to give up on our faith altogether. Every genuine Christian is being sanctified, the process might be slow or it might move ahead in fits and starts, but if we've been JUSTIFIED, we will also begin to be sanctified. The question a lot of us have is why is this process of changing so stinking hard? Why is it so painful? Why do Christians still struggle with sin? You became Christian and are reveling in the fact that you've been REBORN, TRANSFORMED, FORGIVEN and filled with God's Spirit. But then one day you wake up and realize you're still tempted to____(fill in the blank) get angry. Get drunk. Look at pictures of naked people. Lie. Gossip. Sleep with your boyfriend. Swear like a sailor. Or maybe you seem morally upright on the outside but inside you know you lack any real passion for prayer or God's word. How could you still want any of that. You turned your back on the old you, in fact you hate the old you and your empty former way of life. So why are you still enticed by what you left behind ? The Bible teaches and our experience confirms, that while Jesus' death freed us from the reign and absolute rule in our lives, we haven't yet been completely freed from the presence and influence of sin. We shouldn't be surprised that even though we've been changed, we still have to struggle with weakness and imperfections. We still have to deal with the ugliness of life in a fallen world where people let us down and disappoint us and where sickness and death break our hearts." Lindsey, Cheri, Ms. Linda listen close to the next few paragraphs.
REFINED?
There is an analogy used by the prophets in the Old Testament that describes this process of change, most of us have heard of the refiner's fire. In the dictionary refine is defined as 1. To reduce to a pure state, as is sugar, metal, or oil. 2. to free from moral imperfection 3. To improve by pruning or polishing 4. To free from what is coarse, vulgar, or uncouth, as with a refined person. Listen to what Solomon tells us in the book of Proverbs about refining(Proverbs 17:3.) Have you ever wondered if God answered Solomon's request for wisdom was answered by God just putting it there or whether God allowed Solomon to be SHAKEN by a few trials to get this wisdom, just wondering?
After my last blog I received a message from a brother in ministry which said, "you can't have a message without a MESS and you can't have a testimony without first having a test." Instead of praying for God to save me from the fire, instead like Shadrach Meshack and Abendigo we can see that God is in the fire with us. But if you are like me, YOU GOTTA KNOW. While the prophet Malachi reminds us(Malachi 3:3.) Don't forget the prophet Jeremiah's declaration( Jeremiah 9:7.) Just for this blog I did an Internet search for the gold refining process. I learned something INCREDIBLE that should give us HOPE TO CARRY ON, the purest gold always falls to the bottom of the melting crucible, while the impurities rise to the top. So despite how we feel and what the world tells us, we are not pure until we hit ROCK BOTTOM and start singing the blues.
Or as the apostle Paul wrote in his first letter to the church in Corinth, "we are fools for Christ, but you are so wise in Christ! We are weak, but we are strong!" If that is where you're at, DON'T WORRY, DON'T GIVE UP and don't feel LONELY! God is only trying to make you STRONGER, the tension is good and God is FAITHFUL! If you've hit the bottom, keep looking up. That heartache, job loss or illness may be the catalyst God uses to make you pure. God has a way of bringing beauty from pain. you have to let Him do what only He can do to get rid of the "OLD ME" until ONLY LOVE REMAINS. And when He is done you will be a more beautiful you. We all have our own stories about how God has done the impossible at some point in our lives. Since my last blog, I have had more friends to disappoint me more than once, some blatantly lieing to my face, others behind my back.
I understand what the prophet Jeremiah meant by, "among my people are the wicked who lie in wait like those who snare birds and like those who set traps to catch people. Like cages full of birds, their houses are full of deceit; they have become rich and powerful and have grown fat and sleek. Their evil deeds have no limit." Each time I ask God, "how many times do I have to forgive them, a man can only take so much?" Then I hear Jesus' response to Peter in the book of Matthew, "7X70." This is an OCEAN OF MERCY and because I know in my heart I have made the same mistake more than once, myself. I know I USED TO DO IT TOO and I've learned to LET THAT THANG GO! Someone once said, "Flops are part of life’s menu. Everyone makes mistakes. High achievers learn by their mistakes. By doing that, an error becomes the raw material out of which future successes are forged. Failure is not a crime. Failure to learn from failure is." Let's just hope that I can learn from my mistakes. Maybe you are like me and you have made many mistakes in your life. Welcome to being HUMAN, right Jerry? Popular author and speaker John Maxwell once said, "If you aren’t making any mistakes, it’s a sure sign you are playing it too safe." And God has a special process just for people like that, it's called "pruning."
PRUNING?
Let's look at God's servant JOB, In God's words Job was, "blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil." Even Satan knew how righteous Job was and he pleaded with God to let him test Job. This was SPIRITUAL WARFARE(I will discuss is in detail in another blog.) Job lost everything he had, have you ever wondered why? Scripture is clear that Job never cursed God, not even when his friends and wife urged him to. Instead Job turned to God and after series of questioning God. God's reply takes the cake, God replied, "who is this that obscures my plans with words without knowledge? Prepare to defend yourself; I will question you, and you shall answer me. WERE YU THERE when I laid the earth's foundation? Tell me, if you understand. Who marked off it's dimensions? Surely you know! In the end God restored all of Job's wealth and more. But Job's trust in God even when he lost his family glorified God. Or maybe for all of you New Testament junkies, we should look at Paul. Paul was a Pharisee and thought he had all the answers, he was so sure that he actually persecuted Christians and killed them. Until his encounter with Jesus left him temporarily blind. After that he was never the same again was he? I mentioned earlier in this blog that because of my disability I can no longer play the guitar or do a lot of things I used to do. But what I have gained is so much better. However, listen to the apostle Paul in his second letter to the church in Corinth(2 Corinthians 11:20-22.)
In his book Trusting God(even when it hurts)Jerry Bridges says, God uses adversity to loosen our grip on the things that are not true fruit. A severe illness or the death of someone dear to us, or a turning aside of a friend or the dashing of our cherished dreams on the rocks of failure, cause us to think about what is really important in life. Position or possessions or even reputation no longer seem important. We begin to languish our desires and expectations-- even good ones-- to the sovereign will of God. We become more and more to depend on God and to desire only that which will count for eternity. God is pruning us so that we will be more fruitful." Which reminds me of the story of the prodigal son. To most it is a story of forgiveness, but I also see it as a story of God's sovereignty. Listen to what the father's reply to the oldest son, Luke tells us He said, "my son, you are always with me and everything I have is yours." The father knew that his younger son would return and let him learn THE HARD WAY. The father's reply shows He is in control and can do what He wants! That reminds me of something my father would tell me when I was a little boy, this is my house and I don't have to explain myself to you. Bridges explains it this way, "usually when we are being trained by someone in a skill, such as in athletics or music, our teacher or coach will explain to us the purpose of the particular drills he is putting us through. Though these drills may at times be tedious and even painful, we can endure them because we know their purpose and the intended end result. But God never explains to us what He is doing, or why. Sometimes afterward we can see some of the beneficial results of adversity in our lives, but we seldom can see it during the time of the adversity. But whether we see beneficial results in this life are not, we are still called upon to trust God that in His love He wills what is best for us and in His wisdom He knows how to bring it about." I recently listened to other addicts at a local recovery meeting talk about how they experienced withdrawal symptoms and DTs once they came off of alcohol or drugs. Because of my accident and hospitalization I never went through those emotions or feelings, God's way to clean me up was the best way for Martin.
As always father knows best. Earlier in his blog, I mentioned that I had let go of my high school sweetheart, I can't help but wonder, who wasn't the best for who? Which in HINDSIGHT she had blue eyes, so maybe a brown-eyed girl isn't what's best for me, even if they do leave me awe-struck and don't think I don't think about it! Someone else once said, "Anyone can catch your eye, but it takes someone special to catch your heart." No wonder William Shakespeare once said, "The course of true love never did run smooth." And Henri De Montherlant said, "We like someone because. We love someone although." Helen Keller once said, "The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart." I know I can trust God for His best. In an earlier blog I shared how I watched my father waste away from cancer and how some of the last words I heard him say before he died were, "I'm tired of fighting." God didn't heal my father or mother like He did me. Instead He healed them the best way for them. Eternally. No sometimes God doesn't answer our prayers the way we want Him to. But, it is always the best way. And that gives me PEACE. And ultimately it is all FOR THE GLORY OF YOUR NAME, God! Ms Linda, I know you and Cheri know this, Joe is in the best place he can be, I saw the peace in your eyes at his celebration of life.
HEAVEN 2.0?
The Hebrew word shalom is understood around the world to mean peace. Wishing someone “shalom” carries many meanings. Just walk down a street in Israel and the word is sure to be heard from the lips of merchants, children, and next-door neighbors. It has been said that, “Greeting a righteous person with Shalom! is like greeting the Holy One Himself, who in His own person represents the harmony between the above and the below.” Isn't it amazing that in Israel, a country plagued by terrorists, the term most-often used is Shalom? Regardless of settlement pullouts and suicide bombers the desire and aspiration of every Israelite is peace. Experiencing such peace in the Middle East is a promise that is repeated over and over again throughout the scriptures. To Israel God promised through the prophet Jeremiah(Jeremiah 33:6-9.) Yes, the hope of all mankind is to live in peace and safety. In their quest for peace, soldiers have died and kings have conquered. Yet true shalom is greater than just the absence of war and it is more than a friendly greeting. It is better than a fleeting feeling of happiness. Shalom is the central message of the Bible, the reason the Messiah came, and the answer to the all of the problems in our universe. And boy, do we have problems.
Shalom is the central message of the Bible, the reason the Messiah came, and the answer to the all of the problems in our universe. Let’s face it. We hurt. Our souls ache. We might act like we have it all together, but deep down inside we hide so much pain. Bills mount up, kids drive us crazy, and the pressures of life take their toll on our hearts. We are so sick and tired, that we’re sick and tired of being sick and tired. We strive to be moral and we try to obey the commandments. But, it feels like something is not right. Like a huge jigsaw puzzle that is missing a few key pieces, our life seems to be missing something vitally important. Yet, what could it be? Our soul’s desire is to experience “wholeness.” We long for meaning and purpose. This craving can only be fulfilled through the Creator’s peace found in the person of Jesus. This peace is not the "peaceful easy feeling" the songwriters promise. So, WHERE DO YOU GO? Rather it is something greater; it is something bigger; and something much more powerful. By using the word "peace" so loosely in our modern world, we have departed from a true Biblical understanding of the word. The English word "peace" doesn't adequately describe the Hebrew term shalom. Genuine Shalom is the presence of the Holy One. This Shalom is literally His "wholeness" manifest.
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance defines "shalom" as, "to be well, happy, complete, in good health, prosperous, to be whole, and holy.” Luke tells us in his letter to the church, “But as Jesus went the people thronged Him. And a woman having an issue of blood twelve years, which had spent all her living upon physicians, neither could be healed of any, came behind Him and touched the border of His garment; and immediately her issue of blood stopped. And Jesus said, 'Who touched Me?' When all denied, Peter and those with Him said, 'Master, the multitude throng you and press you, and you ask, 'who touched Me?' And Jesus said, 'Somebody has touched me; for I perceive that power has gone out of me.' And when the woman saw that she was not hid, she came trembling and falling down before Him, she declared unto Him before all the people for why she had touched Him, and how she was healed immediately. And He said unto her, 'Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace." In this story, the woman with the issue of blood received her healing as she touched the tzittzit (fringes) upon the garment of the Messiah. Her faith led her to reach out for the Savior, and the end result was her healing. Not only did the flow of blood stop; she was also completely made whole. Don’t miss this. She was healed and made whole. She had found the Messiah. The void in her soul was now overflowing with shalom. Her life was now filled with Him. The woman had come face to face with the Prince of Peace, Yahshua Sar Shalom, and she would never be the same. By the power of Shalom we can walk in faith amidst the troubles of life. Through His Shalom we can make it though a bad day or a string of terrible events. The apostle Paul tells us in his letter to the church in Ephesus how this is possible. "He is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of partition between us."
Our peace is the presence of the Master, it is Him. Nothing more and nothing less. He is our peace. The Prince of Peace is our wholeness. He is the one that completes us. To illustrate this, a Jew who accepts Jesus as Messiah is often called “completed Jew.” The apostle Paul wrote in his letter to the church in colossae, “For God was pleased to have all the fullness dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace though His blood, shed on the cross.” The Modern Hebrew phrase for "How are you?" is "Mah shomcha." Mah shomcha is literally translated "What is your wholeness?" To this question a believer should respond "Yahshua sar Shalom," which is "Jesus the Prince of Peace." By the power of Shalom we can walk in faith amidst the troubles of life. What am I about to say will probably make a lot of you mad. But I'm used to being a rebel. A few years back there is a popular Christian song called "I can only imagine" which topped both the secular and Christian music charts, which I find ironic because it is one of the most un-Biblical songs I've ever heard. Scripture is clear especially in the apostle John's final revelation that no one can fathom what Heaven will be like. Even if you were to go outside and like Job look up into the starry night sky, you wouldn't understand. Not even the angels in Heaven now know what it will be like. Because John tells us that God will make a glorious new heaven and earth, there will be a NEW SHALOM.
Scripture also tells us that WHEN I DIE I won't be worried about anyone or anything other than spending eternity worshiping KING JESUS and He will be THE ONLY THING I NEED. I don't know about you, but I'm not the king of anything and I don't see anyone WALKING ON WATER! In closing I want to share a story I came across while I was doing some research for this blog. "There was a man who was very rich, and knew he was dying. When he was on his deathbed, he was given one wish, which he took, stating, "I wish to take all my riches to Heaven with me." Upon his arrival, several of the angels met him, and inquired into the contents of the bags. This gentleman explained and they laughed hysterically. Puzzled at their laughter, the man asked with much concern the hilarity of his burden. One of the angels responded, "Why did you bring pavement for the roads?" On one hand the story illustrates how our finite minds cannot comprehend what heaven will be like. THE TRUTH is GOD IS ENOUGH, we will be with the angels and immortal! Brother Allen you might say it will be, "the bestest best." But in reality it will be SIMPLY THE BEST!
LESSONS?
Since I reposted my last blog many of you have been wondering where have you been. To be honest, I felt led to go back in to the cave and listen to God. HELLO, I'M I'm back and I have learned a lot this time around. I'm sure many of you may be thinking the same thing that I am, "Martin, you are just going in CIRCLES!" At least I realize why now. Remember, in the refining process the refiner keeps turning up the heat and refining the gold until all of the impurities are gone.
As long as I keep holding on to the unforgiveness, hurt, anger and pain from what has happened to me over the last year the refining process will keep starting again! We know, the Redeemer is the refiner. Everyone knows that the quickest way from point A to point B is a straight line. The Israelites should have made it to the Promise land in a matter of weeks. However, because of their disobedience God allowed them to wander and go in circles for four decades. Remember those goats I mentioned earlier? There is a fine line between wisdom and knowledge, it is called application. This was the apostle Paul's final exhortation in his letter to the church in Phillipi(Phil. 4:6-9.) Knowledge is an idea learned from another's perspective. Wisdom is a direct result of experience of an individual. Although there may be a fine line between intelligence and wisdom...there is a significant difference. If we apply what we learn in our lives, that is wisdom. If we don't that is foolishness.
Brother Randy, it's like you told me years ago, "love means being vulnerable, take a chance." It's time to take a chance. I can't put on my POKERFACE, I can't hide behind the mask any longer, because MAYBE I'M AFRAID. Paul you are right, people can change. If God changes them. Even if He doesn't, I have learned accepting the things I hate in someone is the first step in learning to really loving them. I am a firm believer that if a man has to tell a woman that he loves her, something is wrong. She should know by how he acts and treats her, ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS. Guys the women in our lives have to know we aren't going anywhere.
This leads me to the next thing I learned while I was in the cave. Who really are my friends, who really cares about me. There were a handful of friends that actually checked on me and asked how his doing. While others may have not betrayed me blatantly, they showed their disloyalty by their lack of concern. At this point, let me point out that Judas wasn't only disciple who betrayed Jesus. While Jesus hung on the cross, only one disciple( the disciple Jesus loved) stood by Mary(John 19: 25 - 27,) The others had deserted Him. Yet after the resurrection they were all there except for Judas, who didn't trust God and took matters into his own hands. This is where our lives tend to mirror that of the early disciples. The moment we back down or don't stand for Christian values we are abandoning Jesus on the cross. The first time we do not "do to the least of these(Matthew 25:31-40,)" we do not do for Jesus.
We deny Jesus daily by our lifestyles more than we deny ourselves. To those of you guys who stood by me or talked with me, I appreciate all of the advice, kind words and encouragement. Paul, true to form you were there to guide and help me. Michael, David, big David and Aaron, I love you guys. I pray that you guys understand that I have to follow what God is teaching me. After all, it's like you told me years ago Lonnie, "obedience is the sincerest form of worship."This is my decision to make. Just like Peter and John's( Acts 4:19,) my MIND'S MADE UP! I'm strong enough, I will survive. Although, I want to WALK WAY, I can't. Paul you are right, real men never give up. As the apostle Paul urged the church of Corinth in his first letter(1 Cor.11:1.) Even though I'm scared to death, I know I can trust God. To my sweet sweet friend...you know who you are. Your life rests in the hands of an amazing God. You can trust Him!!! He loves you...deeply...and so do I!!! I'm praying that you will experience the comfort and peace that only He can give! HE WILL NEVER LET YOU GO. I LOVE YOU, always!
Which reminds me of one of my all time favorite passages in the Bible. It's one of many verses that we Christians use to explain why the men are the spiritual head of the family. Listen to the apostle Paul in his letter to the church of Ephesus(Eph. 5:25-27.) Sweetie, I will never forget looking into your beautiful big brown eyes a year ago after you turned to Matthew and read Jesus' reply about divorce(Matthew 19:8,) then turned to me and said, "I'M SORRY, you are right." Remember, "you never leave your partner behind." Now this next lesson is the bomb that finished me.
Paul we sort of talked about this. I used to believe the thought that, "it is better to be alone and miserable than be with someone and miserable." But, after our talk Paul, I realized I was wrong. The prophet Moses is clear(Gen. 2:18-22,) it is not good for man to be alone. Even though God already knew the trouble and pain Eve would cause Adam, He still gave her to him and called her a suitable(perfect) helpmate for him. Moses goes on to describe how the marriage process works(Genesis 2:24-25) but that is another blog altogether. Sweetie, this can only be between you and me and no one else. Let me go ahead and say right now, if you are a man and you cannot get into the Bible and study everyday, you have no right to be the spiritual leader. I thank God for the godly women that He has put in the church. This is why we have so many wives crying out for husbands to "lead me." Come on guys grow some balls and man up, put down the remotes and lead your wives to church.
In his recent series called Lovesick, James Merritt explained, "notice how Eve wasn't laying beside Adam when he woke up. No, God brought her to him. This is where we get the tradition of the father giving the bride away. Guys stop looking for somebody to love, let God bring your wife to you that's been God's plan from the beginning." Sweetie, it's like I told you almost six years ago when we first met, "God didn't give you and I a second chance at this Christian life just so we could meet our respective Mr. or Mrs. Right and settle down, it's not about our HAPPINESS. It's ALL ABOUT GOD, I think you get it now.
This brings me to the final lesson I learned in the cave and why this is an Independence Day blog. If I can't learn to forgive and let go when I'm hurt, now. How much harder will it be if God brings us together? Remember, you don't wait until you get into the battle to put on your riot gear, NOW'S THE TIME to be learning these lessons. James Merritt, continued in his message on love, "the Bible is clear God brings brings together permanently. It's man who tries to separate things(a.k.a. divorce, separations.) Only God has the power and right to separate anything. And He usually does it through death." God always brings one of each sex together with one of the opposite sex, get over it. That's why I Believe marriage is a "Blessed Union of Souls." Again the world tries to tell us we can have our cake and eat it too. It doesn't work. I'm sure many of you have picked the parts of my blogs you like and agree with, but disregard what you don't or can't agree with. This is why we can't pick and choose the parts of the Christian life we want to have, we cannot separate any aspect of our lives from our calling to be priests(1 Peter 2:9,Exodus 19:5, Deuteronomy 4:20.) Maybe this is why we are called to die to ourselves daily. This principle applies in our relationships, especially marriage. It was my father who modeled this kind of love to my mother as he forgive her up to his death, even though it meant he may be miserable in the end, he still loved her more than himself. The hardest part of sacrificial giving is the suffering. Listen to the Prophet Jeremiah's declaration(Lamentations 3:22-23.) If God shows mercy every day, how much more should we? This is true UNCONDITIONAL LOVE.
FORGIVENESS 2.0?
In spiritual matters, separation is always represented by death. That is why we say, "sin is separation from God which leads to death." That separation was atoned for by the sacrifice Jesus made AT THE CROSS. On the basis of that sacrifice He can offer us forgiveness and reconciliation. It is a gift and can only be accepted - never earned. We owe to God a debt we could not pay ourselves. God invented forgiveness in order to keep alive His romance with fallen humanity, but at infinite cost. This is the kindness of God, HE DIED FOR ME and you. Aaron, you are right, "God's forgiveness is overwhelmingly greater than our greatest stupidity." I used too think If you can't be with me when I'm down, then I don't need you when I'm on top of the world. However, that is not how Jesus acted, was it? Jesus told the women to go and tell others who deserted Him the good news(Matthew 28:1-10.) Can you hear Him saying, "follow me?" I want to LOVE LIKE THIS and that is why I am letting go of the unforgiveness in my heart, I SURRENDER. For all those who hurt me, I am praying, " FORGIVE THEM, FATHER."
Like you said brother Keith, "true FORGIVENESS has no strings attached." Years ago, I heard a sermon about how it is hard to get through life carrying SUITCASES full of unforgiveness, anger and jealousy, they each affect our SELF-ESTEEM. If we let go we are "free indeed(John 8:36.)" King Solomon says that following and holding onto things is meaningless(Ecclesiastes. 1:1-11!) Look closely at the Bible's "love" chapter(1 Cor. 13:4-5,) the apostle Paul tells us love isn't selfish, and it doesn't remember mistakes. What word is in the middle of forgiveness? Give! Dr. Merritt stated in his series that "the top three reasons for divorce are; money, family/friends and sex. However, they all have the same cause, selfishness." Selfish people really do deserve what they want, themselves. Sweetie, ONE DAY I pray you can forgive me. While I'm waiting, I choose to give grace. Brother Steve, you and I have already talked about how receiving grace is good. But on this side of heaven, giving grace is best.
