Author: desertspringblog

“Jesus said, ‘So I tell you to stop worrying about what you will eat, drink, or wear. Isn’t
life more than food and the body more than clothes?
LOOK at the birds…”
Matthew 6:25-26

Jesus was out in the countryside on a high grassy hillside with a great view of the Sea of
Galilee. This had not been a publicized event, with spotlights, cameras, or even chairs. He just seemed to enjoy getting out of town and taking a breather from the crowds. He clearly found Nature to be His favorite setting to connect with His Father. . . alone.

Of course, somebody told somebody that He was there, and soon a huge crowd of people
headed to see Him. As word began to travel of this “Jesus-Sighting,” they came from
everywhere. From His high place beside the sea, according to experts on sound, the acoustics would have been amazing.

God’s people had a rough life under the brutal rule of Roman occupation. Nobody was “safe.”

That kind of life changes you. You never know when you’re being watched, or being reported to the authorities. The dangers were part of everyday life, and you never knew when or what might happen at any moment. “Normal” was danger and fear. “Worry” was like breathing.

Whatever brief reprieve Jesus probably needed was not going to happen. Not on this day. And He used the situation to speak into the lives of the people sitting on that mountainside
overlooking the Sea. It was a huge crowd. And it would be quite certain that their “Occupiers”were becoming aware.

Jesus’ words were not only good, but needed. “Stop worrying” is not easy for people living in a constant situation of danger. It affects everything in your life. There is no “safe place.” There is no certainty of what danger may come to you or your family. How do you even sleep at night?

In that setting, Jesus used common things of everyday life to remind these traumatized people that their God was Present. He was with them. He is involved in even the most “insignificant” details of their lives. Everybody could see a bird everyday, anywhere, whether a Roman soldier was standing there or not. God uses small things in our lives to remind us of His Presence, His care, His knowledge of what was and what is and what is to come.
If His Eye is on the needs of a sparrow. . . He’s absolutely got His Eye on you.

“You, O Lord, are good and forgiving,
Full of Mercy
Toward everyone who calls out to You.”
Psalm 86:5

David was clearly going through a rough time. I can picture him with his head in his hands,
downcast in his heart. alone, and very sad. We don’t know what was going on in his life, but he was doing what he often did . . . going to God and pouring out his heart. He was feeling
oppressed and needy. He was also aware that he could not fix the situation that was weighing on him so heavily. He was reminding himself of the truths of God’s character that he had learned from his own experiences with Him, since he was a little boy.

We all have those rough times in our lives, and we handle them in our own ways. I tend to pull away from people, primarily because I don’t want to make somebody else feel pressured to help me. I usually turned inward and tried to work through my problem alone.

Maybe David did
something like that, too. We don’t know. But this glimpse into his heart gives us a hint of where he turned with his times of sadness. He turns to God.

David specifically mentions that God is good. Is that what you believe? It sets the stage for
David’s foundational mode of viewing God and how He relates to us.
● God is good. . . just as a father or mother wants only good things to come to their
child…shielding them from the bad. A good father protects, provides, has good plans for
his children, and is always watching out for their good.
● God is forgiving. Children are always in a learning mode. They want to try things, do
things they see others doing, and chase after what they want, good or bad. Children try
a lot of things . . . some good, some bad. Those early years of exploration of their world
come with a lot of mistakes…messes….disasters…and ‘ow-ee’s. There are lots of
sheepish “I’m sorry’s” in the mix. In God, there is always forgiveness for failures.
● God is full of Mercy….for everyone who asks. He knows our human weakness. We
can look into our own hearts to consider what He is like….and how He has treated you
personally, and all of humanity. We humans don’t always show mercy to those who
have hurt us. But God does. David’s simple, short list exposes how he sees God’s
heart and His response to our failures.

May we continue to grow in these beautiful qualities that God models for us, His children.

“Wash yourselves! Become clean!
Get your evil deeds out of my sight.
Stop doing evil.
Learn to do good.
Seek justice.
Arrest oppressors.
Defend orphans.
Plead the case of widows.”
Isaiah 1:16-17

It’s not unusual for Believers to genuinely desire to do things that will please God and help to build His Kingdom during our time on earth. Everywhere we look (if we’re really looking) there are opportunities to get involved in “ministry.” God-followers usually sincerely desire to know what they can “do” as they walk through life in relationship with Him.

Long, long ago, God spoke these words to His prophet Isaiah. The people who had come to
faith through Isaiah’s messages needed some guidance of the practical applications of their faith. Isaiah was the key “voice” for that.

Partnering with God begins with focus and work on their own lives . . . our hearts and actions. God gave these words to Isaiah to pass along to the people who were choosing to follow God. The message applies to all people who have chosen to follow God throughout the ages. Including, you and me.

● First, there’s a mess to clean up in our own lives. “Wash yourselves” is very practical.
There are obvious things we each can identify that we know we can clean up by our own
choices. If we keep going to the mud puddle and splashing in it, we’re going to keep
getting muddy! “Step away from the mud puddle.”
● Once you’ve left the Puddle, and had your bath, you probably need to clean up your
room. The traces of the dirt you’ve dragged into your room will need to be cleaned up as
well, so that it will be most useable for its true purpose.
● Then God lays out some practical priorities from His own heart . . . tasks and service that
He entrusts us to do:
●Seek justice. Actively identify injustice, and step into the wrongs with actions
that help to stop or weaken its effects on people’s lives.
●Arrest oppressors. Don’t look the other way. Look for ways that you can stop or
at least slow down or disrupt the actions that are hurting other people.
●Defend orphans. Our cities are filled with children and youth who do not have
adults in their lives who are watching out for them . . . protecting them . . .
involved and investing in their lives. They are in the schools, in government
services, in care facilities . . . Their birth parents may still be living, but the children are largely “on their own.” Maybe it’s a neighborhood child who would
love to have a safe place to go after school for a little while until their parent gets
home from work. Maybe it’s through foster care. Maybe it’s simply giving a
single parent some “pause” in their 24-hour, 7 days a week parenting role alone
in their home.
●Plead the case of widows. Widows, by their very “title” , had a husband who had
married and cared for her needs. And then he died. There are new
vulnerabilities, complications, and needs which had previously been handled by
her husband. Those needs continue. His death has created an entirely new
reality for the widow….new realities which her loved one had always handled.

Thousands of years ago, God brought these priorities to the attention and responsibility of God’s people through his prophet Isaiah… from His own Heart. He saw these earthly “special vulnerabilities” of life, and used His Prophet Isaiah to bring them to the attention and active involvement of His people. God did not give a layout of a “program” to handle these realities…He brought it to the attention of His Own people. There are the practical details of the needs of the people that He Sees….He Cares about, and He cares.

But God chose to use His people . . . His followers….to be involved as His Hands, His Heart,
and His Feet to care for the priorities of His most vulnerable created ones.

“Learn to do good” becomes a reality. Begin with the specific examples He gave.

“How beautiful on the mountain
are the feet of the messenger who announces,
‘All is well.
. . .God rules as King.’ ”
Isaiah 52:7

A “new year” . . . a new chapter in our lives . . . and we don’t know what has been written for us . We may have already written some events in our new calendars . . . events that are always marked on the same date, no matter the year. But, typically there are more blank dates, and we do not yet know what is to come.

God’s people were awaiting news of the battle in which dearly loved family members were
fighting. There were no electronics for communications of how the battle was going. All that they could do was wait, pray, and watch for the runner who would appear on the crest of the mountainous barrier beyond which their loved ones were fighting for them.

That’s a very tough situation, a reality we all face in life. Situations beyond our control come, we long to intervene and “fix” the problem. But usually, it’s not truly in our own hands.
We just have to wait in our own silence for those things we carry in our hearts and minds to
change. . . for better or worse.

Isaiah knew what that was like. His people knew that experience well. The only news they had was the appointed runner who had to experience personally the battle, gather the information, and then carry the news back to his people. Climbing up the mountainous ridge would not have been easy, but essential. He knew that his people were waiting . . . watching for him. And everybody would drop everything they were doing when he reached the top and came into view.

All eyes…all ears would be attuned to what he would say. His words would be echoed by the
voices of those who were posted at a nearer distance to him when he appeared atop the ridge.

Everything would stop, as God’s people turned their full attention to hear the Message. In
silence, they gave their full attention to hear the words. . . words of life? Or words of death?

The Runner waited for the silence, knowing that the news he would announce could spell life or death in the lives of his people. This would not be easy. . . physically, psychologically, and emotionally. . . whatever he was about to report. It is a heavy, serious matter to speak words that may be of death or life for those listening.

Isaiah’s message this time to his beloved, suffering people of God, was Good News. He was
announcing the coming of the One Who would appear . . . would lead them . . . would be with
them and protect them. His message echoes through the ages . . . even “to us.”

May our lives, and our words . . . echo to the waiting world the Message we have heard.
“All is well. God rules as King.”

John 14:9

They had been with Him for three years. Sitting at the table together, having eaten what,
unbeknownst to the 12 chosen followers, was to become their last meal with Jesus. They were listening to Words Jesus had never spoken before. . . at least not in this way. . . to the small group of men who had been with Him for the past 3 years. So much time spent around the table together in so many places as they had followed Jesus throughout their tiny country of Israel. They were back in Jerusalem now. Home. Three years of following Him, “schlepping” all over that Land. They were not the same men He had told to “Follow Me.” And they had.

But it had changed their lives and their hearts.

So, when Jesus, after the meal, looked around the table and told them that, soon, He would be “going” and that they were not coming with Him, at least not yet,. . . it grabbed their full attention.

“What? Where? Why?” This was something different. He was saying things about leaving. . .
going to His Father . . . and they would not be going with Him. He was talking about their new Assignment, but without Him physically with them. They would be staying, but He was “going.”

I am reminded of a familiar scene that plays out in every family. . . Mom or Dad start putting on their coats because they are going somewhere. They assure the children that it’s for a little while, but they’ll be back. It’s such a familiar scene for each child, yet their thoughts go into a brief panic-mode….Where are you going? Can I come with you? I don’t want to stay home!

Why? When? How long? But . . . but . . . but . . . “ The anxiety is real in the hearts of the
“little’s” staying behind. Tears . . . clinging. . . following to the door. . .Jesus’ circle of men were familiar with Jesus’ periodic short absences. But He always came back. And although they could never have imagined what was coming in just a few hours . . where He was about to go, and what He was about to go through, Jesus made it clear that this Journey He would have to make alone.

“Don’t you know Me yet?” In the Journey each of us is making as we follow Him, the Path and Steps we must take are often not easy . . . not of our own plans nor desires. . . at times
dangerous, heartbreaking, and unimagined.

But in the midst of walking…stumbling…limping…running along that Path, with our fears,
insecurities, heart-aches and joys, He leans over and says, “Don’t you know Me yet?” That’s
the “bottom line” issue as we follow Him. As He asks us to do things…go places…step into
rough waters…face unspeakable fears and sorrows along our Journey, His Voice echoes in our Hearts. . . “Don’t you know Me yet?” That is the bottom line question . . . and Answer.

“The Word became human and lived among us.
We saw his glory.
It was the glory that the Father shares with his only Son,
a glory full of kindness [a] and truth.”
John 1:1-2,14

“Being human” is the most common reality shared by every person, everyday,
everywhere in the world, throughout all of Time. From your first breath until your last,
you are a human being. You are “being human” without any script, or instruction
manual, or on/off button. It is our primary basic reality.

As I hold my newest little grandchild, look into her little dark eyes, see her facial
expressions, the movements of her tiny body, and the incredibly powerful little voice that
comes out of that tiny Being, I have no explanation nor operating manual other than to
begin discovering this little Creation who has entered our family.

Although I can hold her in my arms, I have no real control of her life. All that I can do is
to love her, try to meet her needs, and be present in her life.

In this season of focus on the Birth of Jesus into human life, our newest baby can give
me the most realistic picture of what His Coming physically entailed. Complete
vulnerability, with no possibility of controlling how He was treated, cared for, held, or
taught. From His birth, his survival was at great risk due to circumstances far beyond
his nor his earthly parents control. They could model qualities like kindness and truth,
but they could never be the source of those qualities. Living out those qualities would
have to be His choice.

How do you teach a child “glory”? We cannot, as human parents. That comes only from
God Himself. What we can do is live lives that are full of kindness and truth. It involves
our words and our actions. Jesus’ life on earth was marked by those practical qualities.
. . qualities that can be seen, felt, and experienced by the people around us.

The identification marker for the “Glory” of God Himself in the Life of Jesus throughout
His time on earth was in the tangible form of kindness and truth. And that is something
that God longs to weave into our lives here. . . so do-able that even our children can
bring it to this world as they learn from our examples.