Mercy, Me?

“When he heard that Jesus from Nazareth [was passing by], he began to shout, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!’ The people told him to be quiet. But he shouted even louder… Jesus stopped and said, ‘Call him!’ They called the blind man and told him, ‘Cheer up! Get up! He's calling you.’ The blind man threw off his coat, jumped up, and went to Jesus.” Mark 10:47-50 (GWT)

Mercy, in the above passage, comes from a Greek word that means “kindness or good will towards the miserable and the afflicted, joined with a desire to help them.” Another definition referred to helping the wretched.

In our feel good about yourself culture, it seems we’ve lost the reality of our need for mercy. I hear a lot more about God’s grace than I do about his mercy. Oh, mercy is thrown in there but his grace is much more palatable.

Grace refers to that which gives pleasure. Mercy indicates our state of being.

We pat ourselves on the back for offering aid to those we see as miserable and afflicted. We want to offer them a more pleasurable existence. We live in a country of peace and can’t understand those who stir up war.

The truth is that we are as wretched as those who kill for political power or personal vengeance.

Maybe if we realized our position before God, we too would cry out “have mercy on me!” Then when he calls, we would throw off everything that slows us down, jump up and go to Jesus.

I want to have that much gratefulness for God’s mercy. Do you?

Life from a Tree

I’ve had a few great responses from my last blog. So I thought I’d add a few more thoughts.

John 10:10 tells us that Jesus came to give us Life. Was this the same “Life” available from the Tree of Life in the Garden? If not, how was it different?

In John 14:6, Jesus says he is “the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through me.” I have always assumed that meant no one could ever come to the Father (past, present or future) except through Christ. Perhaps many religions have a problem with this for a good reason. Maybe there was (past tense) a different way but now Jesus is the way.

We constantly preach that Christianity is about relationship not legalistic acts of religion. Yet, we teach that sin originated with an act of disobedience.

Jesus points out to the Pharisees that God desires mercy not sacrifice when they are questioning his relationship with "sinners." Jesus quotes from Hosea 6 where the "mercy not sacrifice" statement compares Judah's unfaithfulness to Adam's sin. Unfaithfulness is an act of the heart not of the flesh - Jesus points that out as he talks about adultery in Matthew 5.

One thing that has puzzled me is why did God put the Tree of Knowledge in the Garden if he didn’t want Adam and Eve to eat from it?

Imagine this: Ok, Son, let’s create people. I’m going to test them right from the beginning. And because I know everything, I know they are going to mess up. But that’s ok. I’m going to send you to suffer a gruesome death to give them Life.

Does that match God’s character? But isn’t that what we teach?

Now imagine this description from God the Father to his Son:

Son, let’s create people. I want to make them very much like us but obviously they won’t be timeless like us because we are creating them. I want to give them the opportunity to live forever with us in a perfect world. A perfect world requires perfect unity. To have that unity we must offer them our spirit.

I love all the creatures we have brought to life but we have given them instincts for survival. I want mankind to have more than instincts. I want to give people the ability to reason with us.

Therefore, they must have a choice in the matter. I want them to be able to ask me questions and learn. I want to dialogue with them just like I do with you.

If they choose to become one with us, they will see everything from our perspective. A perspective of love. Their hearts will be filled with joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. They will have everything we have because they will become one with us.

If they attempt to understand things without us, it will be very difficult for them. This saddens me to think about. I want them to know everything we know but they must first understand the significance of Life.

Without Love, their perspective of knowledge will cause them to hunger for control. Knowledge without love will block their ability to see life beyond their physical existence. They will become the center of their own world.

It breaks my heart to know that some of them will want to live independent of my love for them. Many of them, though, will realize that independence is unfulfilling.

When they are ready, I will send you to them, son. You will walk among them. You will live just as they live. You will experience the life of freewill. You will have the fullness of my Spirit in you while you are in this human form. You will show them how to live by my Spirit.

Many will accept your words and desire to live in the Spirit. They will see you empty yourself of the physical life. Your blood – the source of physical life - will be poured out. Those who truly desire to be one with you will have great sorrow in this because they will recognize that they have valued knowledge more than Life with me.

The source of true Life is my Spirit. You will also give up my Spirit so that they will worship me, not just their knowledge of me. I will give you all my glory and you will surrender it all so that they can experience my glory in them. You are the Prince of Peace.

When you return from death, they will recognize that Life is much greater than knowledge. Then they will be open to receiving true Life. When you return to me in heaven, we will send my Spirit to live in those who have surrendered their physical life because of the life you surrendered for them.

Because of your sacrifice, Son, I will again offer mankind Life through my Spirit and Knowledge through my Word. Once again, they must take of the Life first. For my Words bring only war and death without my Spirit.

It is my desire that all mankind will choose Life. But we have created them so much like us they will be easily deceived into thinking they are equal to us. They will assume their perspective is our perspective. But our ways are much higher than theirs. We’ll show them this through parenting. They will be mothers and fathers of precious children.

I’m having fun with this. I could keep going but I’m way past my intended word count for this blog. So you finish these thoughts yourself.

We haven't changed much since Adam and Eve. We still have a choice: Knowledge or Life. Which one is your priority?

Some Bizarre Thoughts on Trees

It’s been a while since I blogged. I’m working on my first paid assignment and the deadline is tomorrow so I won’t take the time to explore these thoughts too deeply. Just wanted to share with you where my mind is today.

What was Adam and Eve’s sin? What has been God’s plan from the beginning? What if Adam and Eve had not eaten from the tree of knowledge of good and evil?

Today, because of Christ, we are able to be one with God through his Life (the Holy Spirit) dwelling in us.

Adam and Eve walked with God but God was not in them. Was God’s plan from the beginning to have a relationship with mankind like he had with Adam and Eve or did he intend for the relationship to be even more meaningful from the beginning?

Was the crucifixion of Jesus his plan from the beginning or was pouring his Spirit into man his plan?

What if Adam and Eve had eaten from the Tree of Life instead of the Tree of Knowledge? Would they have received the Spirit and oneness with God as God desired? Would the Word have been eaten in the form of fruit from a tree rather than death of a man on a cross?

John 6:54 says “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life.” In John 14:6 Jesus says “I am the way and the truth and the life.”

Jesus is the vine, we are the branches (John 15). We are one with God through the vine.

Mark 8:35 (NLT) “If you try to keep your life for yourself, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake and for the sake of the Good News, you will find true life.”

Did Adam and Eve try to keep their life for themselves by eating from the tree of knowledge? Is that still our biggest struggle? Do we want to figure out life through knowledge we gain through our own efforts?

I know that was my struggle 17 years ago. How about you? Are you eating from the tree of knowledge or the tree of life?

A Useful Life

In preparing to go through a Life Plan Facilitation with Kelly Thorne of Blooming Ministries I’ve discovered something. I’m lazy.

God has given me circumstances and people to confirm his useful plan for my life. Yet I keep coming back to “Why would God want me to do that? Maybe I should just enjoy life as it is.”

Two weeks ago at a writers conference, Jim Watkins said “If I'm going to be a faithful Christian, I must write.” It was one of those times when I felt like there was a megaphone aimed right at me.

Yesterday Greg McNichols at Newstart Community Church made this comment: “If you are not doing what you are created to do, then you are useless.” Greg was speaking on Matthew 5:13-16.

Let me tell you why you are here. You're here to be salt-seasoning that brings out the God-flavors of this earth. If you lose your saltiness, how will people taste godliness? You've lost your usefulness and will end up in the garbage.

Here's another way to put it: You're here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We're going public with this, as public as a city on a hill.

If I make you light-bearers, you don't think I'm going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I'm putting you on a light stand.

Now that I've put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand - shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you'll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.

Matthew 5:13-16 (The Message)

Greg pointed out the Greek for “shine” in verse 17 indicates active participation. We are not a shiny piece of silver for God to display. One of my favorite verses, 2 Peter 1:3-4, also reminds us that we are given everything we need to participate in God’s divine nature. This is not about staying busy. It’s about doing what we are created to do.

A hidden light is of no use at all. Salt that is contaminated is thrown out as useless.

I can sit back and blend in, or share my thoughts in circles that create more havoc than peace. Or, I can do what God created me to do and be useful in this world. I don’t want people to look at me as a wall flower. I want to be useful in making others thirsty for truth and light the path to Christ. That requires active participation with God.

How about you? Are you allowing the “just enjoy life” culture to render your life useless. Being busy isn’t always useful and being useful is not generally the easiest path.

Here’s the choice as I see it. Do you want to just exist (busy or not) until you die? Or do you want to experience life as it is intended to be?

I’m choosing Life.

Quit Striving

Are you frustrated with life? Maybe you are frustrated with your boss or a family member? Have you thought about the real reasons for your frustration?

I’m not a full blown Type A. But I used to get frustrated when I wasn’t getting things done on my to-do list. Or when others wouldn’t do what they needed to do so that I could accomplish my goals. Another major frustration was being interrupted. Children are very good at interrupting life in small and big ways.

Rick Warren’s Purpose Driven Life begins with a powerful phrase. The first sentence in chapter one reads “It’s not about me.”

All Christ followers know that, right? Our frustration is because we want the best for others or the best for God’s kingdom, isn’t it? I’ve learned when I’m frustrated, I’m not trusting God.

Luke 1 tells about the angel’s news of John the Baptist and Jesus. John’s father and Jesus’ mother had very different reactions.

The Greek words for “how” in Zachariah’s and Mary’s questions are not the same. (search Luke 1 using the NAV with Strong’s Numbers at http://www.crosswalk.com/ for more on the Greek)

Zach wanted to know the full game plan and proof that it was going to work before he believed. Mary was in awe and recognized that it couldn’t be in her power.

Zach is like many of us. We want to get the details from God so we will know what we are supposed to do. After all, God has gifted us to do things. Surely he will give us the game plan so that we can get started and get the task accomplished.

Can you imagine Zach at home after that? Headache? You can’t have a headache tonight. He can’t talk but he is doing everything he can to make this happen. He’s striving.

Mary left town immediately. She wasn’t thinking about her part in accomplishing this goal. She was anxious to get to someone who would understand God’s way of controlling the situation. She was living, not striving.

Our Type A personalities drive us to think life is about accomplishing tasks. Our only goal is to love God and love others. God gives us gifts to do that successfully. Most of the time, the circumstance is insignificant. The key is to remember that accomplishing God’s will for your life is not about you.

In John 14:6 “Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’”

Quit striving. Be excited about what God has revealed to you. Don’t try to take control of his goals. You can’t change people. You are not the way to God. You may know truth but you are not the truth. Enjoy the life of letting Jesus manifest all the truth he wants in exactly the way he desires. Our giftedness, personality, circumstances are God’s tools, not ours.

Who Moved?

Have you ever felt distanced from God only to hear someone say “well, if you don’t feel close to God like you once did, he’s not the one who moved.”

Hmmm, I’m pretty sure I’ve said that to others but I’m not so sure it’s true. Numbers 9:15-23 talks about the visible presence of God in the cloud by day and fire at night. This is how God guided the Israelites in their travels. Verse 22 says “Whether the cloud stayed above the Tabernacle for two days, a month, or a year, the people of Israel stayed in camp and did not move on. But as soon as it lifted, they broke camp and moved on.”

My first thought after reading this section of scripture was wouldn’t it be nice to have the visible presence of God like that now? I was quickly reminded that we have even better than that. We don’t have to open our eyes to see God; we have his presence inside us. We are the Tabernacle.

The Israelites moved as one body. God’s presence is now spread all over the world but he still leads one body for one purpose.

God’s purpose is not about finding a place for us to be physically comfortable and stay put forever. His presence is in our lives so that we may carry on the work of Christ.

In Luke 4 we find the people amazed with Jesus’ teaching and healing. They don’t want him to leave their town. But Jesus says “I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent.”

Numbers 9:21 says “Sometimes the cloud stayed only from evening till morning, and when it lifted in the morning they set out.” A generation of Israelites wandered through the wilderness being taught by God how to live in peace. The next generation entered the Promised Land after being raised to move from place to place as God leads even if it isn’t where you really want to be.

Has God’s peace lifted from you? Maybe he is the one who moved.

Put on your shoes so that you are ready to spread the Good News that gives peace.

Ephesians 6:15 (GWT)

Personal note:

I told someone recently that God would show them the right decision. The nonverbal response said that’s easy for you to say. I laughed thinking of the times I was in her shoes. But the truth is, I’m learning this day by day right now. I have discovered that every day can be peaceful if I simply stay focused on God for directions. I used to have a schedule for everything. Now… my house is a mess and I’m not up-to-date on bookkeeping which caused some finance charges on credit cards. Those things would once upon a time have sent me into hysterics. But last night I had so much fun passing Frisbee with my kids and earlier this week we hit golf balls. I spent all of Wednesday at my son’s Pioneer Day and he even allowed me to be his square dance partner. My daughter and I have gone for walks without me ending up irritated at her (that happens when I have other things on my schedule that I want to get to) and I’ve even let the kids stay up a little later. Life is so much easier when I remember that I really don’t have as much control over tomorrow as I think I do. I’ve come to love Proverbs 16:9 “We can make our plans, but the LORD determines our steps.” If I try to step according to my plans, there will be an awkward struggle. I’m becoming much more graceful (pun intended) in my walk with God. And it makes life so beautiful.

Distractions

A few weeks ago during a Kairos team formation meeting, we built a rock altar. As we entered the prayer room, we each picked up a rock. These weren’t pretty rocks. They were various shapes and sizes, lots of rough edges.

Through the meditation time we were instructed to symbolically place on that rock anything in our lives that may be a distraction to doing God’s will throughout this Kairos experience.

Many of the team members had family issues and illness that could have easily given them reason to quit the team. I didn’t feel I had anything major going on in my life distracting me from God’s purpose for me on this Kairos team.

Then I heard that whisper. You know the one when God quietly gets our attention and then lays out something huge.

Only this didn’t sound huge. He simply said, “Quit trying to figure out why you are here.”

Ok, I can handle that. I was enjoying the team formation and looking forward to every aspect of the experience. So, I agreed. Yes, you can laugh. You know you do it too. God gives you instruction and you act as though you have the power and wisdom to veto his plan.

I took my rock up and placed it on the altar with everyone else’s rocks. Some had chosen very large rocks. They knew they had big stuff distracting them. Then I realized… “God, you didn’t just mean for this Kairos stuff, did you?”

Many of you know that I have a dream to write and speak. I also believe that every event in our lives makes an impact on our future. That belief leads me to spend a lot of time trying to see what God is up to in some of the most unusual situations.

Since the rock altar experience, I have been enjoying one day at a time. I know God has a plan for my life but there is not one bit of analyzing that can make that plan happen any smoother or faster. That doesn’t mean that I don’t dream and make some practical plans. It simply means I surrender the dream completely to God. It was his dream to begin with. The gift was that he revealed a glimpse of it to me.

I could spend a lot of time and money trying to develop this dream the way I think God intends for it to happen. I’m sure I would learn some valuable lessons along the way. But I’m choosing to take on the motto my husband came up with from his Walk to Emmaus, “Listen to the Spirit and do what he says.”

We really aren’t promised a tomorrow. Total surrender to the Holy Spirit is the most peaceful and enjoyable life imaginable.

What’s distracting you from the life God has for you today? Place it on a rock and carry that rough edged chunk of creation to a place of surrender and worship. Enjoy the peace of realizing you are not in control.

"What I'm trying to do here is get you to relax, not be so preoccupied with getting so you can respond to God's giving. People who don't know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep yourself in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. You'll find all your everyday human concerns will be met. Don't be afraid of missing out. You're my dearest friends! The Father wants to give you the very kingdom itself. Luke 12:29-32 (The Message)

As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, "Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!" "Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her." Luke 10:38-42(NIV)