Month: July 2014

Renewed

It seems like all week long that I have been receiving notification via social media that another one of our former classmates has become a grandparent. This news, along with the announcement that our eldest son and his wife are expecting their second child, (YES!) has caused my mind to contemplate both the new and the old. So many beautifully brand-new little faces, happy young parents, and beaming grandparents; new life is an overwhelming time of wonder and joy. However, the fact that these same GRANDPARENTS, my friends and former classmates, are the ones struggling with what affectionately appropriate name should they be called now that they have a grandchild, can be somewhat alarming. We don’t want to be old; we don’t feel old, but we have to face that fact; we are definitely not “new”!

Thinking along this line brought to mind the words of Paul in 2 Corinthians 4:16, “16 So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day.”

Well, maybe we are not to the point where we are ready to admit to “wasting away”, but I really like the idea that whatever happens on the outside, inwardly we can be RE-newed every day.

I can have a brand new me inside day by day. Paul was not referring to the new-birth or salvation experience in that scripture. He was speaking to believers and even to those who were struggling with persecution and trouble all around them. So, in spite of whatever was happening outside they could be new within their own souls. But how? 

Two other scriptures give us more specific insight into this process of renewal.

Ephesians 4:22-24 describes it almost as if describing getting dressed.

“22 to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, 23 and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, 24 and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.”

Obviously there is some spiritual cognitive therapy happening because the renewal comes in the “spirit of your minds.”

How? Colossians 3:1-17 is one of the most detailed descriptions of our part in this renewal.

 Seek the things that are above by setting your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. Then just in case that is too theoretical, he brings it down to VERY practical, on the concrete, daily living.

“5 Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.”

“now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth.” “9 Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices”

Those are some strong phrases, but it is not all negative.  Change is difficult if behaviors and thinking patterns are just removed. Something will need to take the place of the negative and Paul has the answer again.

“12 Put on then …compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience,

13 bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.

14 And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.

15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.

16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.

 17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”

Out with the old- in with the new! This is not about a “works” based religion. Remember in both of the passages Paul is speaking to followers of Christ. Colossians 3:7 says, “7 In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. 8 But now you must put them all away”

One of the best statements I have heard all year is “Grace is not opposed to effort, but to earning.” Our salvation is the free gift of God, but if we want to be renewed every day then, we need to get busy and quit waiting for God to smite us with Christlikeness!

Put to death! Put away! Then…

Put on, bearing with, forgiving, love, be thankful!

Verse 16 is the pivotal point- stay in the WORD, surround yourself with good God music (apparently even Paul made allowance for differing music tastes, you got your psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs), and keep an attitude of gratitude.   

Finally do everything is Jesus name. In other words, if you cannot do whatever you are about to do, in a way that honors the name of Jesus, do not do it!

I want to be re-newed today, tomorrow, the next day. You will never know it to look on the outside of all of us grandmothers and grandfathers, but inside some of us will be getting “newer” every day!

I don’t need to worry about…

If there is an organization for chronic worriers, I probably need to be a card-carrying if not a founding member. Worriers anonymous …Hello, my name is Esther, and I worry about everything…all the time. Thankfully, the good God, who never gives up on me, loves me enough to keep working on me.

I recognize that my obsession with worry is a symptom of my lack of trust in God. If I really felt like He was big enough to handle my problems, and if I genuinely trusted Him with them, then I would not feel obligated to expend vast amounts of emotional energy in trying to figure things out myself. How futile and draining, my frantic attempts to come up with solutions and plans B’s truly are; compared to the peace that comes on those rare moments when I actually do completely, hands-off, trust God.

So scripturally speaking, below is a list of the things I do not need to be worried about…

My height, not a “big” one for me, but how long I will live is a bit more of a concern these days.

Matthew 6:27, “And who of you by worrying and being anxious can add one unit of measure to his stature or to the span of his life?”

Food, drink, clothing, so all the basic necessities of life…

Matthew 6:31 “Therefore do not worry and be anxious, saying, What are we going to have to eat? or, What are we going to have to drink? or, What are we going to have to wear?”

Uncertainties regarding the future

Matthew 6:34 “So do not worry or be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will have worries and anxieties of its own. Sufficient for each day is its own trouble.”

(When I get to tomorrow if I feel the need to worry, Jesus promises that there will be plenty to keep me occupied then as well. Oh great…)

Wicked, evil people, my own fear of slipping, 

Psalm 94

16 Who rises up for me against the wicked?
    Who stands up for me against evildoers?
17 If the Lord had not been my help,
    my soul would soon have lived in the land of silence.
18 When I thought, “My foot slips,”
    your steadfast love, O Lord, held me up.
19 When the cares of my heart are many,
    your consolations cheer my soul.

Worry and anxiety are indeed the cares of the heart, and they can weigh one down with a spirit of heaviness.

Proverbs 12:25 (ESV) “ Anxiety in a man’s heart weighs him down, but a good word makes him glad.”

So let me pass along some “good word” for my fellow members of Worriers Anonymous!

Philippians 4:4-7 – God’s steps to recovery for this condition.

“4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

  1. Rejoice in the Lord, not sometimes, always! Hey, if we are still breathing, we can rejoice, if only for that.
  2. Be reasonable! Certain more pessimistic personalities tend to see eminent disaster in nearly any difficult situation. Ok, so I do have to tell myself regularly that it is probably not the end of the world.
  3. Remember the Lord is at hand! He has not abandoned my pathetic little ship. In fact, He may be so confident that everything is under control, that He is resting; maybe even napping in the middle of my apparent catastrophe! Matthew 8:24-26
  4. Do not be anxious about anything! No small print, nothing held back, no special cases or pet concerns that I refuse to bring to God because I do not want to bother Him.
  5. In everything! Nothing is too small or insignificant, or too large and overwhelming.
  6. By prayer and supplication! Sometimes we pray, and sometimes we need supplication (noun-the action of asking or begging for something earnestly or humbly), be persistent, keep on asking, keep on seeking, keep on asking. Work those faith muscles!
  7. With thanksgiving, keep a thankful heart! A spirit of gratitude is the opposite of a spirit of entitlement.
  8. Let your requests be made known to God! We need to bear one another’s burdens, but too often, we talk to everyone else about our concerns, except God! He does not mind. He tells us to talk to Him about it, even to make requests! 

I am trying consciously to ask myself when I realize I have slipped into worry mode, “Have I given this request to God?” If I have prayed about it, then I must say to myself, “Then I do not need to be worried about this!” Unclench my fists, unlock my gritted teeth, relax, breathe, and trust that the ALMIGHTY GOD of the UNIVERSE can handle whatever it is.

  • Let the peace of God guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Giving oneself permission to relax into the peace of God, may not be a problem for most people. However, for the chronic worry types, if we are not worrying, then we feel we are not doing our part, no matter how futile and pathetic it may be. As if, we cannot actively show that we love someone unless we worry over them. When in fact, the most loving thing we could do is bring their situation to God and trust Him so completely to care for them that we no longer have to fret. God’s peace is the only thing powerful enough to calm my heart and mind and to deliver me from worry and anxiety. 

I have …uh…many…years of bad habits to break in this regard, but I hope you will join me on the journey of actually practicing Philippians 4:4-7. Are you afraid that you cannot do this? Don’t worry about it- see #1 and continue… 

Help from Above

One of the most uplifting scriptures in the entire Bible is Psalm 121.
Psalm 121 (ESV)
121 I lift up my eyes to the hills.
From where does my help come?
2 My help comes from the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.
The writer is not actually looking for help to come from the hills. After all, what can rocks, minerals, and a few scrubby trees, do for us in our hour of need? He was saying that the very act of lifting his eyes to the majesty of a mountain range caused him to remember his help comes from the Creator of the jagged peaks. It caused him to look above and beyond the heights!
Colossians 3:1-2 says, “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.”
Now and then, we need consciously to grab ourselves by the chin and tilt our heads to the sky and LOOK UP! Higher than our current chaos, our overwhelming trial, our deepest need, or even our sometimes-trivial existence, there are things that are above, namely Christ seated at the right hand of God.
Hebrews chapter four describes the wonder of that. “14 Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”
Christ gives us access to the throne room of God where we can come to receive grace, mercy, yes please and lots of it, but also wisdom because eventually we will have to go out and deal with our situation.
James 1:5 is so encouraging, “5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.” This is not just any ordinary wisdom.
James 3:17-18 “But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. 18 And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.”
That harvest of righteousness seems to be uniquely something from above as Isaiah points out in this beautifully poetic verse.
Isaiah 45:8 “Shower, O heavens, from above, and let the clouds rain down righteousness; let the earth open, that salvation and righteousness may bear fruit; let the earth cause them both to sprout; I the Lord have created it.”
LOOK UP! God has not only sent righteousness and salvation, but also so much more!
James 1:17 “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.”
The truly good and perfect gifts do not come with price tags and cannot be bought in stores
The privilege He gives us to participate in creation through giving life to our children.
Even those rare, through a glass darkly, glimpses He gives us of true love.
When we feel overwhelmed by flashes of joy, beauty, and wonder that inspire us to keep going, and to keep believing.
The greatest of all gifts He sent was the closer-than- a- brother, forever Friend who more than anything today would like you to look up to Him, and talk to Him. About…whatever…He understands you.