Encouragers

I hope that everyone has at least a few people in their lives that encourage them. For me, most of those folks are at my church. One was particularly helpful tonight and it got me thinking about some of the encouragers from my past:

My Geometry teacher, for showing me that God is orderly and beautifully complex and that understanding His creation can help in understanding Him
My freshman speech teacher, for handing me a fully graded speech immediately after finishing (it was an A) and telling me that I could do it
My first pastor, for teaching me both what God can and cannot do
My wife, for knowing that the ministry of presence is often far more encouraging than words could ever be

I hope you've got some encouragers. And if you do, let them know you noticed.

Grace and peace,

Jim

Then the disciples took him . . .

by night and let him down through the wall in a large basket. (Acts 9:25)

Bible characters made some strange exits, didn't they? The two Jericho spies, David, and Saul all made great escapes by being lowered down walls. Makes for great storytelling, doesn't it? Those must have been heart-pounding escapes involving hurried prayers, quick thinking, and steady hands. Steady hands? Yes, steady hands. Sometimes--by focusing only on the person being lowered--we forget that there were faithful hands holding the ropes. Faithful hands that loved those on the other end. Faithful hands that were at risk of being caught themselves. Faithful hands that often go unnamed. Faithful hands that the spies, David, and Saul depended on. Faithful hands that stayed true to the task at hand until the job was done.

I love faithful hands. Faithful hands that prepare for those that come. Faithful hands that serve those that arrive. Faithful hands that clean up when all are gone. Faithful hands that hold the ropes so the spies, the Davids, and the Sauls can serve God in the roles to which they have been called. You've probably heard that behind every good man is a good woman. There are also people that are faithful at holding ropes. Faithful at holding the rope of daily prayer. Faithful at holding the rope of having a regular time with God. Faithful at holding the rope of regular giving. Faithful at holding the rope of Christian community. Faithful at holding the rope of love to a lost and dying world.

But rope-holding is not without pain. Rope-holding causes blisters. Rope-holding causes cramped hands. Rope-holding rarely gets noticed. Rope-holding isn't glamorous or the quick way to the top. But rope-holding is critical to accomplishing God's will in the world.

I cannot get these questions out of my head: Am I holding the rope as I should? Am I holding the wrong rope? Am I only holding the rope when it is convenient? Am I weary in well-doing?

Jesus Himself holds the rope for us and He is Faithful. May we be faithful at holding the ropes that we have been called to hold.

Return, return, O Shulamite;

Return, return, that we may look upon you! (Song of Solomon 6:12-13)

I put this blog aside for over a year because I was doing too much. Between family, work, church, and tutoring, I was running ragged and earlier this year I came down with mono. I'm just now getting better and I learned a few things about life and about myself in the process:

1. God has given me just enough time to do the things I am supposed to do.
2. God has not given me enough time to do the things I am not supposed to do.
3. I have a passion for certain things and I will do them no matter how I feel.
4. I have almost no passion for many things that I was doing but did them anyway because I felt they needed to be done.
5. I speak too quickly and the answer is generally, "Yes," when I should instead think more and answer, "No."
6. My wife was already aware of all of these.

Now that I am better, I will be posting occasionally about the things that I am passionate about. Right now, that includes my Sunday school class. I love that group and am amazed at their generosity, their love, and their willingness to do the work of the Lord.

De colores!

And my tongue shall speak . . .

of Your righteousness
And of Your praise all the day long. (Psalm 35:28)

In our current Sunday school series, More Than a Creed, we finished up looking at the historical creeds last week with the Apostles' Creed. Tomorrow begins a deep dive into The Baptist Faith and Message (2000). As such, I've been doing a great deal of reading for research and preparation. One book that's been of tremendous benefit so far is The Baptist Faith & Message, by Kelley, Land, and Mohler.

My desire to mention that book prompted a bigger thought, and that's, "What books should all Christians consider reading?" I think the list is rather short (only one on the list is a 'must read'--the Scriptures themselves), but I'd like to propose that all Christians should consider reading the following books:
1. The Bible (obviously the first on any list and one that should be read regularly and with extreme humilty)
2. Bible Study Methods, by Rick Warren (in my opinion, it's better than The Purpose Driven Life or The Purpose Driven Church)
3.The Screwtape Letters, by C. S. Lewis (a beautiful illustration of devilish correspondence and the associated need for focus while living the Christian life)
4. Living by the Book, by Hendricks and Hendricks (classic work on how to study the Bible)
5. The Baptist Faith & Message, by Kelley, Land, and Mohler (a clear, concise, and coherent view of the broader themes found in the Bible)
6. The Purpose Driven Life, by Rick Warren (good summary of why we're here)

That's enough for now, but I needed to write that down while it was on my mind--who knows, maybe I'll even use this blog as a reference for what I believe (credulus).

Grace and peace!

My brethren, let not many of you become teachers . . .

knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment. (James 3:1)

Today is my thirty-third birthday. A curious realization that I am now the same age as Jesus was when He was wrapping up His ministry. It is hard to imagine my life ending later this year and God being done with me on Earth. It seems like there's so much more to do.

When I woke up this morning, I was thinking about my life and how long I have spent doing various things. I've been a Christian for almost 25 years (almost 3/4 of my life) and a teacher of the Bible for 17 years (more than half of my life). That's the thought that got me this morning—I've taught the Bible for more than half of my life—both sobering and humbling.

Now, my wife knows that I fall in love easily. I'll have a 'favorite' dish for a month and then the next month it will be intolerable (and she's a saint for putting up with me). I've fallen in love with food, with books, with musicians, with authors, with artists, with gadgetry, with my children, and even with animals (long ago). But none of those compare with my love affair with the Scriptures. This particular love has morphed into many things over the past 17 years—excitement, fascination, conviction, anger, hurt, disbelief, belief, and lately a sense of awe at God's big, beautiful, arc of redemption that is woven throughout time.

I obviously don't know how long I'll live, or how long I'll be able to teach, but I hope that over the next 17 years, Lord willing, my love affair with the Scriptures continues to grow so that I become more like its Author each day.

So he was there with the LORD forty days and forty nights . . .

he neither ate bread nor drank water. And He wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant, the Ten Commandments. (Exodus 34:28)

Forty days with no break or water. Sometimes the seemingly 'smaller' miracles of God go unnoticed in the shadow of the larger events of the Bible (i.e., the giving of the Ten Commandments—even my capitalization of the Ten Commandments and not the Forty Days with No Food or Water speaks weightily).

Today is the start of our 40 Days of Purpose small group. It will mark the fifth time that I have gone through Rick Warren's book, The Purpose Driven Life. It is not a perfect book, but it does summarize and organize many of the central themes of the Christian life in succinct form. I have never been through the book with a small group of six—but that is the size of our current group.

I pray we (our small group) are able to put aside many of the distractions of life (the bread and water) and spend a refreshing and renewing period with the Lord.

I also plan on teaching a Purpose Driven Marriage series in Sunday school during this same period and will, as usual, post the results here once complete. Here’s to a great 40 days!

I have called by name . . .

Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah: And I have filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship, To devise cunning works, to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, And in cutting of stones, to set them, and in carving of timber, to work in all manner of workmanship. (Exodus 31:2-5)

A deacon in our church recently delivered a message about this passage of Scripture. He talked about how God is a personal god and how He fills us with His Spirit. Us—the ‘normal’ people of God. We can get fooled into thinking that the Spirit only fills those ‘in the ministry’—but God's Spirit filled Bezaleel—a craftsman. A craftsman, not a preacher. A craftsman, not an evangelist. A craftsman, not a prophet. A craftsman, not a priest. A craftsman, not a spiritual superhero.

Bezaleel planned, designed, cut, set, and carved. I view him as an Old Testament version of Norm Abram. He did it all and it was because God's Spirit filled Bezaleel to do His job. Bezaleel's name means, 'in the shadow/protection of God.' Bezaleel didn't want the limelight—he was content to be in the shadow of God's glory. Bezaleel was second because God was first.

What’s even more interesting is the fact that this is the first filling of the Spirit to occur in the Bible. God first fills the ‘average Joe/Bezaleel’ with His Spirit before He ever fills a preacher, evangelist, prophet or priest. The world is made up of Bezaleels—and I’m glad God’s Spirit still fills them.

Grace and peace to you.