Pride & Surrender

Psalm 70

¹ Hasten, O God, to save me;
    come quickly, Lord, to help me.

² May those who want to take my life
    be put to shame and confusion;
may all who desire my ruin
    be turned back in disgrace.
³ May those who say to me, “Aha! Aha!”
    turn back because of their shame.
⁴ But may all who seek you
    rejoice and be glad in you;
may those who long for your saving help always say,
    “The Lord is great!”

⁵ But as for me, I am poor and needy;
    come quickly to me, O God.
You are my help and my deliverer;
    Lord, do not delay. 

I must admit that, like most people I know, I feel more comfortable relying on myself than I do on anyone else. 

Maybe it has to do with the cultural idea of what a man is, maybe it's pride... odds are it's a mix of the two. It's not fun for me to rely on other people; I feel weak and needy. 

A few months ago, I was getting gas in Tustin when a man came up to me and asked for some money. He claimed it was for bus fare. I gave him a few bucks and then offered to take him inside and get him some food. He gratefully accepted, and I went in to get some food for him; when I came back outside, he had tears in his eyes. 

"I'm sorry man, I can't lie to a man of God." (I had told him I was in youth ministry.)

"What do you mean?"

He proceeded to tell me that he really needed the money to get to his wife and kids. They had been living in a hotel room, all five of them, and his wife had decided to take the three kids and stay with her mother. He had gotten prideful and spent every single cent he had to stay in that hotel room out of spite; now he had nowhere to live and was trying to get in contact with his family. He was clearly hurting internally. 

What had landed him in this situation? Pride.

David, ever the example of both massive mistakes and ultimate humility, shows us how relying on God is not a sign of weakness, but one of joyful surrender. Recognizing our own limitations is necessary for a healthy walk with God. 

When we surrender ourselves to God and fall at his feet by asking for his help, he is glorified. 

So the next time you feel like you can't ask for help, stop and ask yourself: "Why?" If the answer is pride, then put it to death and go before God and ask.

Hope in the Midst of Destruction and Persecution

Mark 13:1-13

13 As Jesus was leaving the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher! What massive stones! What magnificent buildings!”

² “Do you see all these great buildings?” replied Jesus. “Not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”

³ As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John and Andrew asked him privately, ⁴ “Tell us, when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are all about to be fulfilled?”

⁵ Jesus said to them: “Watch out that no one deceives you. ⁶ Many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and will deceive many. ⁷ When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. ⁸ Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places, and famines. These are the beginning of birth pains.

⁹ “You must be on your guard. You will be handed over to the local councils and flogged in the synagogues. On account of me you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them. ¹⁰ And the gospel must first be preached to all nations. ¹¹ Whenever you are arrested and brought to trial, do not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit.

¹² “Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child. Children will rebel against their parents and have them put to death. ¹³ Everyone will hate you because of me, but those who stand firm to the end will be saved. 

Reflection

Between my Junior and Senior year of High School, I went on a mission trip to Utah to talk to Latter Day Saints (L.D.S.), or Mormons, about their faith. As a part of the trip, I worked with a missionary group who was working at a large L.D.S. production/play that happened to be in front of a temple in Manti, Utah every summer.

As I started talking to one person during the performance, I mentioned that I was not a member of the L.D.S. Church. The person I was talking to told me I should talk to his two sons who had just returned from their “missions.” I said, “okay.”

As I began to talk to this man’s two sons, it quickly became clear that they were not looking to be friendly. Soon after we started talking, they were in my face about not being a member of the L.D.S. Church and putting down my faith. During this encounter, I remember feeling overwhelmed and unprepared for what I had just experienced. I was so overwhelmed that I soon dismissed myself from the conversation and I walked over to a local park and sat and cried by myself for a little while.

In the United States we rarely feel like I did. We have religious freedoms that a lot of other Christians who live in other places in the world do not.

During and after the time of Jesus, his followers had no religious freedom to worship God. They were publically mocked and even killed for professing to be a follower of Jesus.

In today’s passage, Jesus uses a conversation that starts with a random comment as a teaching moment. Jesus tells his followers that the Jerusalem Temple will one day be destroyed, that many large natural disasters will occur, and that Jesus’s followers will be brought in front of rulers and kings and killed for their faith.

In the midst of what had to be fear, Jesus offers both truth and hope.

The truth that Jesus tells is twofold. First, there will be pain, destruction, and hurt in the world. Secondly, if you follow Jesus, you run the risk of being made fun of, persecuted, and/or killed for your faith.

The hope that Jesus offers his followers is that during these times of destruction, hurt persecution, or death, God will be with them through the power of the Holy Spirit. When Jesus’s followers do not have words, he will give them words to say. Then, at the end of the passage, Jesus reminds his followers of the ultimate hope: heaven.

As followers of Jesus we will go through hard times, we will see destruction, we might even be persecuted or killed for our faith, yet we have hope. We have hope that God has overcome evil and death. That one-day, we will be with God for all eternity. There is nothing that could happen to us on earth that can take away that promise of God.

Questions.

1.     Have you ever been made fun of, judged, or persecuted for your faith? How did that make you feel?

2.     When you have felt this way, did you feel like God was there helping you through that situation?

3.     What types destruction or evil have you seen in the world?

4.     Where have you seen hope and Jesus in this world?

5.     What ultimate hope does Jesus give his followers?

6.     Why do you think Jesus made sure to remind his followers of this hope?

7.     How do you need hope right now?

8.     How can your family help support you as you seek hope?

9.     Pray for each other.

Cutting The Legs Off Your Piano

Psalm 66

For the director of music. A song. A psalm.

¹ Shout for joy to God, all the earth!
²     Sing the glory of his name;
    make his praise glorious.
³ Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds!
    So great is your power
    that your enemies cringe before you.
⁴ All the earth bows down to you;
    they sing praise to you,
    they sing the praises of your name.”

⁵ Come and see what God has done,
    his awesome deeds for mankind!
⁶ He turned the sea into dry land,
    they passed through the waters on foot—
    come, let us rejoice in him.
⁷ He rules forever by his power,
    his eyes watch the nations—
    let not the rebellious rise up against him.

Musical worship is, without a doubt, one of the biggest ways God speaks to me. There's not much I do without music, either on in the background or overtly the focus of my attention, like a concert. There's something about music that just speaks to a human soul. It's a rhythm, a beat, a flow of sounds that work congruently and can stir emotions easier than almost any other medium. Ludwig van Beethoven loved music so much that, after he lost his hearing, he cut the legs off his piano and set it flat on the ground so he could feel the vibrations through the floor as he played. Music is one of God's greatest gifts; an artistic parallel to the rhythm of life.

Music as worship is, I believe, why God created music to begin with. It's an avenue for us to receive from God and respond back to Him. But that's the key; in this passage, as well as the majority of Scriptures involving worship or praising God, the music is a response. People did not come into the Tabernacle or the Temple, sing for a while, then hear the prophet's word for them. No no, they communed with God and then they responded musically. 

This was not forced. This wasn't even scheduled. It was a natural outpouring of how the people felt about God. They heard the word of God were overcome by the need to respond to Him. This response could be one of joy, one of sorrow, one of yearning, one of expectancy, etc. The truth is that they were actively involved with God to the point where their lives and God were intertwined.

Sometimes I wonder if we keep God on a little shelf in our lives. God's great, He's wonderful, He did stuff for us, blah blah blah. But I'll take Him out when I need Him. I've read the Bible before, and it really hits a point of diminishing return after a while. Our walk with God can be calloused over, tough, impermeable. With His people in Scripture, their relationship was raw. They actively and desperately relied on Him for all things; a word from Him was like air in their lungs. The responded; not because someone told them to, but because they loved Him. They were tied to Him, and joyfully so.

Here, David tells us that what God has done, not even what he's currently doing, is cause for musical response. God is seen as a mighty hurricane force through history, changing everything and everyone in His path. As Christians, we believe we are not only in the path of God but moving in the same direction. 

Let your worship ring out to Him today. Maybe get alone in a car, in your room, wherever you can so you won't be distracted and just spend time marveling at the incredible things God has done for you. Where would you be right now if it wasn't for Him? Let's take the advice of King David, the man after God's own heart, and worship God in praise today.

Jesus Comes to Jerusalem as King.

Mark 11:1-11

11 As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples, ² saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and just as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. ³ If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord needs it and will send it back here shortly.’”

⁴ They went and found a colt outside in the street, tied at a doorway. As they untied it, ⁵ some people standing there asked, “What are you doing, untying that colt?” ⁶ They answered as Jesus had told them to, and the people let them go. ⁷ When they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks over it, he sat on it. ⁸ Many people spread their cloaks on the road, while others spread branches they had cut in the fields. ⁹ Those who went ahead and those who followed shouted,

“Hosanna!”

“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”

¹⁰ “Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!”

“Hosanna in the highest heaven!”

¹¹ Jesus entered Jerusalem and went into the temple courts. He looked around at everything, but since it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the Twelve. 

Reflection

When I was in High School, I was dating a girl for around a year; I then became a Christian. To say our relationship was not “Christ-focused” would be an understatement. Our relationship was completely about us, and nothing else.

A few months after I became a Christian, my girlfriend started to notice a change in the way I was acting. I started going to church more, reading the Bible, and praying. I even told her I did not want to do many of things we had be doing physically. She did not really like that I was changing. In fact, it caused a lot of conflict in my life.

I have always found it a little silly that in churches we always make this day fun, when this text is full of so much conflict. Jesus enters into the city of Jerusalem; he knows what his fate will be in a short week from this point. The religious leaders of the day watch him angrily as he rides a colt into the city. The people who are rejoicing and praising him singing, “Hosanna” will soon be cursing Jesus and calling for his death.

To be honest, I think there is a big part of us that wants to picture Jesus as this happy and peaceful guy that smiled and waved as he entered into the city of Jerusalem on that day. At least there are times when I know that I like to picture Jesus that way; like Jesus is my buddy who is always happy and giving me two thumbs up saying, “love you man.”

Now, do not get me wrong, Jesus loves you and us very much, more than we could ever know. However, Jesus does not just want to be our friend. He wants to be our LORD.

This is a lesson God taught me early in my faith journey. A few short months after I had become a Christian, I sat in a room with my best friend Matt and my youth pastor talking about my relationship with my girlfriend. I remember a majority of the conversation, but one part of the conversation still sticks out in my memory. At one point of the conversation, my youth pastor looked at me and asked me if I was giving God all of myself. If I was allowing God be my LORD.

At that point I envisioned my heart. I pictured a path leading up to my heart with doors opened. In the center of my heart there was a throne. On the throne there sat my girlfriend, with Jesus standing right inside the gate of my heart.

The reason that Jesus entered the city of Jerusalem the way he did was to show that he is the King and Messiah. By entering into Jerusalem in this way, Jesus is telling everyone that he is the savior, the LORD, who the people of God have been waiting for.

One of my wife’s favorite writers tells this story about when she became a Christian. In the story she imagines her life like a house. She says that when she became a Christian, she expected God to come into her life and move a lamp from here to there, or a couch from this side of the room to other. What she did not expect was that two months after God came and lived in her house that one day he would show up outside with a demolition crew to tear up her house and start rebuilding it.

Jesus wants to be our LORD. He wants to be our King. He wants to enter into our lives and tear some stuff up, move some stuff around, and start rebuilding.

After the conversation with my youth pastor and best friend, I knew what I had to do. I had to break up with my girlfriend of a year and four months. She had become an idol in my life. She did not like or respect that I was a Christian. She was trying to get me to live contrary to how God had called me to live.

At the time, breaking up with a person I really cared about was really hard, but it was worth it.

I am not going to lie; when you allow God to start rebuilding your life sometimes it will painful. Other times, it will be amazing. The one thing I can promise is that you were created to serve God and have him be the LORD of your life. When you allow God to be LORD, you will finally live as you were created to.

Questions

1.     Why did Jesus enter the city of Jerusalem the way he did? What was he trying to tell the people of Jerusalem?

2.     Do you relate to the story about Steven’s girlfriend?

3.     Why do you think Jesus wants to be viewed as a King?

4.     What does it mean to make Jesus the King of your life?

5.     Is there any aspect of your life that you are not letting Jesus rule over?

6.     As a family, how can we make sure to keep Jesus the LORD of our lives?

7.     Pray for each other, and for God to help you make him LORD of your lives.

Where David Ran

Psalm 61

 

61 Hear my cry, O God,
     listen to my prayer;
² from the end of the earth I call to you
    when my heart is faint.
Lead me to the rock
    that is higher than I,
³ for you have been my refuge,
    a strong tower against the enemy.

⁴ Let me dwell in your tent forever!
    Let me take refuge under the shelter of your wings!  

Selah
⁵ For you, O God, have heard my vows;
    you have given me the heritage of those who fear your name.

⁶  Prolong the life of the king;
    may his years endure to all generations!
⁷ May he be enthroned forever before God;
    appoint steadfast love and faithfulness to watch over him!

⁸ So will I ever sing praises to your name,
    as I perform my vows day after day.

During my college years, I got burned out. I was tired of schoolwork, tired of ministry, tired of the "Biola Bubble." I needed to get away; I wanted to radically reconnect with God. So one day, I packed a case of water, a portable hammock, my guitar and a Bible and drove up to Joshua Tree for a weekend of camping. No food, no one else around me, nothing to distract me from God. 

When I made it up there, one of the things I noticed about the park was that, in the middle of this desolate flat land, there were huge (at least 6 stories high, many higher than that) sandstone rock formations in clusters around the landscape. All the roads passed by these rocks and every major man-made structure had the rock's shadows cast over them. These places were natural safety. People naturally congregated around them. 

I made my way to one cluster of rocks (mine was one of small ones, about six stories high), and set up camp. It was quite hot throughout the day and incredibly cold at night, but in the different extremes, everyone eventually migrated back to the rocks. 

I truly believe God has set these instinctual tendencies within us as parallels between our physical life and spiritual reality. Just as people gravitate toward tall or massive structures, we also gravitate toward anything stronger or more resilient than ourselves for protection. 

"Hear my cry, O God, listen to my prayer; from the end of the earth I call to you when my heart is faint. Lead me to the rock that is higher than I, for you have been my refuge, a strong tower against the enemy."

David yearns for this safety in God, both in his current need and his acknowledgement of past protection. 

When you need protection or safety, where do you go? Maybe it's an ATM. Maybe it's Facebook. Maybe it's a friend, a parent, a sibling, a coworker, a pastor. Maybe it's God Himself, or maybe it's the furthest place from God you can think of. Where we go for protection says a lot about what we think we need protection, doesn't it?

David ran to God for protection. If you're not going to God for protection, maybe it's time to ask yourself whether or not you trust Him with your life.

In conclusion, let me offer a prayer of surrender for you to use in your walk with God:

Heavenly Father, I want to thank you for your patience and love toward me. I'm scared of a lot of things, and some of them I don't want to bring before you for various reasons. However, I ask you to make my life your own. I want to trust you more. I want your Spirit to guide me. I don't want to be afraid of a relationship with you. I want to walk in your light, day to day, week to week, moment to moment; not to gain any particular thing, but to glorify you. Help me seek you for help, for safety, and for protection.

The Greatest in the Kingdom of God

Jesus Predicts His Death a Second Tim (Mark 9:30-37)

³⁰ They left that place and passed through Galilee. Jesus did not want anyone to know where they were, ³¹ because he was teaching his disciples. He said to them, “The Son of Man is going to be delivered over to human hands. He will be killed, and after three days he will rise.” ³² But they did not understand what he meant and were afraid to ask him about it.

³³ They came to Capernaum. When he was in the house, he asked them, “What were you arguing about on the road?” ³⁴ But they kept quiet because on the way they had argued about who was the greatest.

³⁵ Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, “Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all.”

³⁶ He took a little child whom he placed among them. Taking the child in his arms, he said to them, ³⁷ “Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me.”

Reflection

When I was a little kid, I remember fighting with my sister about the stupidest things, especially when we were a little irritated with each other. One of the most ridiculous fights we had was about whether our mom and dad loved one of us more than the other.

Thinking back on those little arguments now, I feel a little ridiculous about the fact that we would argue about something so silly.

In the passage today, Jesus and his disciples are travelling down a road toward Capernaum At this point in their time together, Jesus had been with his disciples for quite awhile. Jesus had told them multiple times that he had to die on the cross and that he would rise three days later, yet they still did not get it.

As Jesus and the disciples walk, Jesus overhears his disciples arguing with each other, just like any good family does from time to time. It turns out that this was not the first time that Jesus had overheard his disciples arguing, and once again they were debating about who was the greatest.

After arriving at Capernaum, Jesus sits down the disciples like a parent sits down with their kids and says in a way only Jesus can, “Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all.”

Jesus then picks up a child who was in the crowd with them and places the child in his arms and says to them, “Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me.”

Now, this might catch us off guard. One might think to themselves, “I love little kids! They are so cute!” But trust me when I say that this thought did not even begin to cross the minds of Jesus’s disciples.

In today’s world, kids are glorified. Everyone thinks kids are cute. Everyone loves kids. This was not the reality in Jesus’s world.

During the time of Jesus, kids were viewed as stupid and annoying. In fact, their status was just above street beggars. Therefore, when Jesus takes a child and sets her in front of the disciples he is telling his disciples and us that the “greatest” is not the one who performs the best, knows more, or can memorize more facts. Instead, the “greatest” is the one who welcomes those who society looks down on. Jesus is telling his disciples that the “greatest” is the one who serves others.

What Jesus’s disciples do not realize at this point of their journey together is that Jesus will ultimately demonstrate what it means to be a servant by serving all of humanity by dying on a cross. As Paul points out, “Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a human being, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death — even death on a cross!” (Phil. 2:5-8)

Questions

1.     What were Jesus’s disciples arguing about?

2.     Who did Jesus say the greatest would be?

3.     How were children in Jesus’s day different from children in today’s world?

4.     What is Jesus saying by bringing a child in front of his disciples?

5.     As disciples of Jesus whom are we called to serve?

6.     Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of God?

7.     Who is God calling you to welcome into your life to serve?

8.     How will you serve them?

9.     What does it look like for your family to serve God together?

10. What are some practical things you can do as a family to serve?

Journaling in a Cave

Psalm 57

English Standard Version (ESV)

57 Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me,
    for in you my soul takes refuge;
in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge,
    till the storms of destruction pass by.
² I cry out to God Most High,
    to God who fulfills his purpose for me.
³ He will send from heaven and save me;
    he will put to shame him who tramples on me.  

Selah
 

God will send out his steadfast love and his faithfulness!

⁴ My soul is in the midst of lions;
    I lie down amid fiery beasts—
the children of man, whose teeth are spears and arrows,
    whose tongues are sharp swords.

⁵ Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!
    Let your glory be over all the earth!

⁶ They set a net for my steps;
    my soul was bowed down.
They dug a pit in my way,
    but they have fallen into it themselves. 

Selah

***

 David is running from Saul in this passage. Saul considers David a threat to his throne. Saul's son Jonathan, whom is very close with David, helped him escape from the reaches of Saul's army. David is in a cave right now. 

Think of the last cave you were in. I mean a literal cave. If you weren't there alone, imagine you were. How lonely would that place feel? I haven't been in many caves in my lifetime, but the one's I've been in have felt... oppressive. Like I was in a cramped room that was impenetrable. 

More than likely, a cave was David's only means of shelter. Often, when we feel oppressed or under pressure, we seek any means of relief or shelter, even if it's not the smartest choice. 

We can learn a few valuable things from David here:

1. The man was not afraid to leave a dangerous situation. So often, we feel like we are failing if we extricate ourselves from a place, a relationship, a friendship that's unhealthy; good people stick it out, right? There comes a point when letting go is the wise thing to do, though it may not be the easy thing. David fled his homeland because he did not want to be killed. Good thing too, because God had big plans for him that involved him not dying.
2. He asks God for things. I often feel like I'm bothering God if I get specific with requests to Him beyond "God, do your will in (situation) and help (person) in their (situation)." David boldly claims what he knows God will do for him in his situation. He takes the promise of God he knows to be true, and prays through it by journaling (We call this journal entry "Psalm 57.")
3. David sleeps peacefully in the midst of incredible danger. How does he do this? He trusts God. Look at that last passage! "They dug a pit in my way, but they have fallen into it themselves." David clearly believes that these people will trip themselves up and never make to him in time to hurt him. Do we trust God in this way?

If you find yourself in a cave in your life today, spend some time in trusting prayer to God. Maybe it's at the dinner table, maybe it's at your desk, maybe it's in the car on the way home. Be honest with God. Tell Him why it's hard to trust Him. Ask Him to help you in the midst of difficulty, and ask Him to remind you why you call Him Lord. 

 

May the Father bless your weekend; may it be full of grace, boldness, joy and wonder at the beauty of our Lord.