Category: Stories of the Desert

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Family Resemblance

 23 “May the God who gives peace make you holy in every way.

May He keep your whole being—spirit, soul, and body—

blameless when our Lord Jesus Christ comes.

24 The One who calls you is faithful, and He will do this.”

Paul is talking to us through a prayer over us.  In a nutshell, he is asking God to make us “holy.”   On this earth, we live far from “holy.”   We don’t even have a human model to show us what that would look like!   It’s not something we can do out of our own heads.  Only God can do that.  To become holy would mean that we would look like Jesus, our only example throughout all of the ages of what a holy human would look like…act like…

Be like.  We would change in ways that would make us look more like Jesus…a family resemblance to Him.

Do we look like Jesus?  Is the family resemblance clear enough to be noticable to the people we’re with?  When we are in a gathering of people who have come into God’s Family, it’s not so obvious.  Most have similar characteristics.  But when we are in a situation where non-believers are the vast majority, does your Family Resemblance show, or do you just blend into the crowd?

You can’t create your own “family resemblance”….it’s just there.  So, when you’re simply hanging out in your daily world, do other people see anything that resembles the characteristics of Jesus?  A “family resemblance” is a natural part of being in your family.  It’s not something you can create.

The first time I visited the desert, I was truly afraid of being identified as a “Christian.”  It was a very unwelcome identity in that part of the world.  So on practical levels, I seriously tried to blend into their world.

The first day, I met a beautiful young woman who spoke English.  As we were becoming acquainted, she unexpectedly leaned in, and asked in a hushed voice, “Are you Christian?”   I hesitantly nodded.   She whispered, “Tell me!”

I had been careful to give no outward evidence of my faith.  No cards, tags, symbols, etc.  But the family resemblance had been noted…by someone who had never even been exposed to my Family.   It was nothing visible nor verbally identifiable.  It was simply part of my Family identityof the Spirit inside.  No person can make that happen.  We can try to make it apparent on the outside, but that will soon fail.  When Christ comes into our lives, the Family Resemblance becomes part of who we are, as a result of Whose we are.

The Spirit within us …the Holy Spirit…has one key evident Characteristic that shows up for others to identify:   A strong family likeness to Jesus Christ. 

 

 

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Where’s MY  tent?

“He moved on to the hills east of Bethel,

and he put up his tent

—with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east.

He also built an altar to the Lord there and worshiped the Lord.”     

Genesis 12:8

 Abraham was on the move.  That’s just part of living in a tent!  There’s a whole culture tied to tent-living:  Moving often, a sense of “temporary” to life, a sense of vulnerability to elements of nature as well as to the people who may cross your path.  It’s the typical housing of shepherds, herdsmen, and people who enjoy “camping” in the heart of nature.

But as Abraham journeyed into the new world of following God, he had to continually make adjustments….he was perpetually in a learning mode.

This time, he was settling into a region where he’d not been before,  among a people and culture that was not his own.

The details of places named in Bible stories are significant, though we in 2020 rarely catch the significance of those details.  Yet the details are there for a reason:

Bethel:  One side of where Abraham set up his tent-home.  Bet= house  El= of God

Ai:    On the other side of him, representing things of the world, but apart from God

Abraham set up his tent between the two places.  Then he built an altar, where he would worship the One God he followed.  He would make sacrifices on that altar as a regular act of worship.

Isn’t it similar to the place in this world where we live?   We live out our ‘tent’ lives between the God Who has come to us and drawn us to Himself, but always in sight of this earthly world which demands that our attention be drawn away from God.  Both are in our sights, and we daily have to determine which we will be drawn to….belong to.  Our ‘tent’ is to be held loosely…tents are not permanent.

Altars are built of rocks.  They are meant to last.  They’re not disposable nor dispensable.  Altars stand as reminders of Who we worship…Whose we are.  And long after we’re gone, the altar of our worship stands, a testament of the One Who called us and made us His Own in this world.

So….. where is your tent?

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The Battle Continues

Part 2 

“For this reason, take up all the armor that God supplies.

 Then you will be able to take a stand during these evil days.

 Once you have overcome all obstacles, you will be able to stand your ground.”

Epheasians 6:13-17

Note of Warning:   The following is from a deeply female, mom perspective.   But I’ve peeked through my fingers at many movie battle scenes with knights, etc.   It is also acknowledging that half of the battle is in our own heads….

The Battle in this passage has moved from a 1-on-1 of “wrestling” to a full out armed battle.

Our Hope…our Light in the midst of the darkness, is God Himself, and all that He has  provided.  He wants us to be safe….to feel safe!   He has even provided armor to protect us and help us feel secure enough to fight.  He wants us to win….not to be victims to the dangers,  the evil of this world.   His Armor is offered.  Our part is to take it…and to put it on.  With His Armor,  we will be able to stand strong, without fear of what is happpening around us or what is to come.  He doesn’t throw us out on the battlefield of this life with a “Good luck.”

The opponents listed are daunting:

  • rulers, authorities and powers of darkness, and
  • spiritual forces that control evil in the heavenly world.

The armor that God supplies for us to take and use includes:

The Sword of the Spirit :    God’s Word, which cuts and separates Truth  from lies                                                The Breastplate of Righteousness:   Protection for our hearts by all that is Right by God’s Design

The Belt of Truth:  Belts go around waists….pretty vulnerable part of our bodies.  Ever have a bad feeling in the pit of your stomach just thinking about something?   God offers to wrap His Truth around that queasy, emotionally affected part of us.  His Truth can protect our vulnerable worries and upsets that make us feel “sick” inside.

Shoes of the Gospel of Peace:  His Good News has been handed to us to carry it to others.  He’s given us Shoes that are meant to “go”….not sit under the bed.  We have Good News…the BEST News…to bring to a hopeless world.  Peace.  Peace of heart….peace of spirit….peace of mind….peace with others.   Where can you find that in this world?

Shield of Faith:   Faith is not physically visible.  But it is as real as anything tangible.  It is a force that can be present in the scariest of circumstances.  It is stronger than anything tangible.  Faith resides within us….takes the brunt of the blows of this world….regardless of what appears to be real.  It is an invisible, solid-as-iron link between me and Him that protects my heart and soul from all the Enemy throws at me;

Helmet of Salvation:  My brain….my “Thinker”….the core of WHO I AM….God puts His Helmet over that part of me, to protect my thoughts, my understanding, my beliefs.  It saves me from

Who I am if not for His intervention in my life.  That Helmet protects me from the troubled thoughts and wrong beliefs that would wreak havoc with me if not for His Truth penetrating that old Thinker.

Sword of the Spirit:   God’s Word, which He has given to us….we are privileged to hold it in our hands, read it with our eyes, put it into our minds, and allow it to sink into our deepest parts.  A SWORD is no small object.  It’s nothing to play with.   A sword is heavy. . .its weight has to be used with a strength that has built up. It’s as much a weapon of defense as it is offense.  A sword extends far beyond a hand’s reach.  It’s meant to cut….cut through all the lies and harm that comes at us  pointed at our minds, hearts, and body. Its use has to be up close to the Enemy…eye to eye…not at a distance. God’s Sword can cut through it all.  It is Truth.  But unless we hold it tightly in our hands and have learned how to use it, it is of no help to us.  God’s SWORD is not meant to simply be on display in a glass case or on a wall.

I had a friend who, in her own frustration with the life struggles that seemed to always be at her door said to me, “I see everyone else putting on all their pieces of God’s Armor, but I’m still struggling in my closet to even open the box!”

It’s worth the struggle!   No armor is “easy” to put on.  No armor feels good…it might hurt…it  may inhibit our sense of “freedom” to move.   Putting on armor takes time.  It takes time and practice to learn how to move about with it on….how to effectively…wisely… use it.

But when the battle comes, you will be deeply grateful you had it on.  It will save your life.

And we KNOW…. HIS SIDE WINS!

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Wrestling?  ME?

Part 1

“This is not a wrestling match against a human opponent.

We are wrestling with rulers, authorities, the powers who govern this world of darkness,

and spiritual forces that control evil in the heavenly world.

Ephesians 6:12

For me, anything to do with “wrestling” is about appealing  as cleaning a fish.   When my eldest son took up the sport in high school, I spent most of the time covering my face and looking in the opposite direction, praying that he wouldn’t die.  It looked like one body with 4 arms, 4 legs, and 2 heads, one being my son’s.  And his head should not have been in the place  nor position it was poking out of. UGH!!

However, I have since come to appreciate the raw, human struggle that wrestling embodies.  My desert nation has the sport of wrestling in their ancient history, and I have come to understand the human struggle it demonstrates.   There is no distance  between the two wrestlers.   It is one of the most ancient and raw human means of physically struggling with another person.  Face to face, hand to hand, skin to skin.  Wrestlers do not have heavy armor for their matches.  They wear very little, actually.  Their defense and offense is purely physical.

In this passage, wrestling is used to exemplify the very real human struggle in which we are engaged during our time on earth.  It is not as tangible as a wrestling match with a human enemy.  Our opponent is not a physical, visible being.  It is much more sinister and evil.   But it is as real as anything physical…and always takes place in our own minds.  Our Wrestling match is against the Enemy of our Souls….the dark, deadly Ruler of this earthly world.

In the sport of Wrestling, there is no armor nor weapon.  It is hand to hand, face to face, and skin to skin combat.  Wrestling is one of the most ancient sports of combat that exists.  God describes our time on this earth as being a wrestling match between us as humans, and the spiritual powers of evil that cover our world.

In our “wrestling match” on earth, we are in a battle against the Evil One who dominates this planet.  God knows that we are not strong nor powerful enough to battle the evil forces on earth.

Evil has covered the earth, and had its way for far too long.  God is drawing us into this Battle, but not as a wrestler who has no weapons.  This Wrestling Match is not one of human to human.  This one is against evil itself.

Our Hope….our Light in the midst of the Darkness is God Himself, and all that He has provided.

….To be continued….

 

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SIMPLE

“Arise and eat.”

1 Kings 19:5

Elijah was a drama magnet.  He never seemed to have just a “normal” day like the rest of the people around him.  Just in the chapter before this simple verse, he lived through dramatic extremes that no other man had experienced.  It was part of being “chosen” by God.

I have a dear friend born in the land of Israel in the year it became a nation (1948), who recounts the history of the Jewish people (God’s “Chosen People”) as well as their current history.  As a result, he often says, “God!  Can You please choose somebody else for a while!”

I think that Elijah may have had similar thoughts.  He was at the end of his rope.  He had nothing more to give….in fact he had sunk into a sense of hopelessness that made him want to die.  He had isolated himself.  He did not want to go on.  With the dramatic backdrop of the miracles God had used Elijah to carry out, a death threat from a woman hit him so hard that he literally wanted to die.

But God had been with him.  He was still with him.  God’s heart toward His dear servant remained as patient and faithful as always, even though Elijah was not feeling it.  In His great Compassion, God sent His angel to be with Elijah.  No judgement.  No quoting Torah verses.  No condemnation regarding the hopeless condition of His dear Servant Elijah.  Not even reminders of Elijah’s recent “mountain-top experience” with God.

“Get up and eat.”  God’s Presence was there.  Simply.  Practically.  Kindly.  No shaming or blaming to His dear servant.  No lecture.  God simply laid out fresh, warm bread and water, right where he was.

May we think of God’s Kindness toward His servant Elijah when we have become so depleted that we have nothing else to give.  May we see His Provision in those hopeless moments . . . the simple things of life . . . the bare necessities that He sets before us without fanfare nor shame.  And may we receive from Him those simple, everyday provisions that He offers us, trusting that He knows what is ahead and today’s provision…from His Hand….will be all we will need to step into tomorrow.

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Things That Tick God Off

[The Lord Invites Israel to Turn Away from Sin ]

 “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.”  

Is 1:16-17

Wow!!  Although the note before these verses calls this an invitation, I read it as a strong challenge!  I think the Writer…the Lord (via Isaiah)…sounds pretty ticked!   There is strong emotion in his words.

He begins with the challenging list that speaks to the reader’s own personal condition…sin!  It’s a short list of heart issues…attitudes….things hidden in our own hearts, but blatently clear to God.  He hates sin.  It ruins us, ruins our relationship with Him, and wreaks havoc on the  people in our lives.

It’s as if God is taking our faces in His Hands….”Look at Me!  Listen!!”  These commands have to do with our own choices. . . things we need to do ourselves.  I hear passion and emotion in His heart towards this pointed list.

Then, there comes a short list of behaviors that should be outcomes of the work we need to do in our own hearts and attitudes.  They have been placed in a catagory that focuses on “others.”

Seek Justice:

  • Arrest oppressors
  • Defend Orphans
  • Plead the case of widows

Justice involves setting the “wrong”….right.   The three examples listed are such a common part of life in our world.  These are not descriptions of people in a certain part of a city, or some other country……they’re often right in our own neighborhoods and circles of relationship.

Arrest oppressors:   Oppression involves using power to push others down.  Vulernable people are easy to see.  And it’s a fair assumption that those in a position of greater strength or power in the life of “the weaker” have used that strength or power to push someone else down….or out.  Whether it’s a matter of oppressing someone’s  life circumstances, or their emotional vulnerability,  their financial poverty, physical or mental limitations, or tough circumstances of life that have put them in a place of weakness, the people who take advantage of that become “oppressors.”  The implication in this verse is that there may have even been illegal actions that have pushed those who are already “down” even further down.  Arresting means putting a stop to what is going on….perhaps even legally.   God’s heart is always soft towards those in vulnerable, weakened, broken conditions.  His Heart is for the humble….humbled.  Shouldn’t ours be as well?

 Defend orphans:  We do not have “orphanages” in our American world, but we still have orphans.  Broken families are everywhere.  Children abandoned by a parent, or parents, are often put into a legal system that allows for moving children from home to home.  Millions of children have lived with no sense of stability, safety, emotional attachment or commitment from either their birth parents nor the temporary care of others who may or may not have a love or commitment to the child in their care.   God’s Word often specifies His Heart for orphans….He

cares for them.  He sees them, and looks to us to get involved in such a way that we add to their sense of being safein this dangerous world.  The Bible often refers to God as “FATHER”

because we ALL need a father.

Plead the case of widows:   Widows in ancient times stood a good chance of losing everything if their husband died.  They became terribly vulnerable.  Having lost a husband, they also lost their sense of safety…protection…having that husband who had stood between them and the things of this world that would hurt them.  They had no voice.  They were “easy targets” for those who would use them for their own benefit.  Without the one who had been their protector, the widow now takes the brunt of what this world throws at women who have lost so much, on so many levels.  No matter how strong the widow, when the “two” becomes “one”, life is forever changed.  It is often still true today.  A wife who loses her husband experiences repercussions that continue for the rest of her life.

For God to name these two specific catagories of human reality through Isaiah, matters.  His Words are strong.  This isn’t a suggestion.  His challenge began with heart issues, but ended with practical action.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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CHILDLIKE

“Ask and you will receive.

Search and you will find.

Knock, and the door will be opened for you.

Everyone who asks will receive.

The one who searches will find,

And for the one who knocks, the door will be opened.”

Mtt.7:7-8

It helped me to rearrange the order of these six lines a little, connecting the lines that applied to each other….

“Ask and you will receive.

(Everyone who asks will receive.)

Search, and you will find.

(The one who searches will find,)

Knock, and the door will be opened for you.

(and for the one who knocks, the door will be opened.)”

Mtt.7:7-8

I love the way that each instruction that Jesus gave to us (bold lines above), was followed with the assurance of what God’s response would be.  The statement following each instruction puts more strength behind the words, and more clarity of what God will do in response to our ask…..our search….our knock.

What if I don’t ask?    What if I don’t search?   What if I never knock on that door?   God’s clear responses listed here are firm statements.  There is such reassurance concerning His reaction to our various human movements toward Him.  It’s childlike….simple….human….everyday kind of engagement with God.

I remember when I was about 3 years old, my mom was lying on the couch holding her hand over her ear.  She was in a lot of pain, and I had not seen her like that before.  I went close to her and asked why she was crying.  She said, “Oh!  Mommy’s ear hurts so much! . . . Would you pray for it?”    Without hesitation, I put my little hand on her ear and said, “Jesus, please make Mama’s ear stop hurting.”   I don’t think I even said, “Amen.”   Within a minute, my mom said, with dismay, “Honey!!  The pain is all gone!   It’s gone!”

I think we make our interactions with God far more complicated than necessary.  The Bible talks about childlike faith.  Children interact with Him with such simplicity….a purity of belief.  They have not yet learned to view life with mistrust.

May we learn from them…and give the children in our lives no reason to learn to distrust……

 

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Learning to Initiate

“Ask, and you will receive.

Search, and you will find.

Knock, and the door will be opened for you.

 Everyone who asks will receive.

The one who searches will find,

and for the one who knocks, the door will be opened.”    

Matt. 7:7-8

I am not an initiator.  Unfortunately, I have lived my life with an underlying sense of not wanting to “be a bother.”   I know I have missed out on a lot of life because of that underlying belief.

But this verse is one that gives me courage.  It challenges any thoughts of “being a bother” to God.  He challenges me….us…..to interact with Him with determination….by choice….by His Invitation.   I hear that Invitation in these Words.  ASK.  SEARCH.  KNOCK.   There’s no shadow of asking us to step into the background from Him.  No sense that He sees us as “a bother.”

I remember as a little girl, seeing things I would have liked, but my own insecurities held me back from asking and receiving.  I missed out on a lot because of that underlying fear of “bothering” anybody.

In the desert (my second family), it is not culturally common for people to “ask”….even tho’ as refugees, they have great needs.  It’s almost like a guessing game to catch the very tiny hints of the needs they keep hidden from guests and friends.  Yet, I think that most friends and guests would be very happy to be asked to step into their need.  So often those needs are hidden, and the opportunity to help is lost.

In this passage, God (Who knows EVERYTHING already) still encourages us to ASK….SEARCH…..KNOCK.  There’s something in our own hearts that causes us to hold back in our approach to the God Who created and loves us.  HE knows exactly what “that” is, and wants us to get past it.  Some wrong perception or belief about God Himself makes us hesitate or refuse to directly approach and interact with Him in honesty and confidence in His Love for us.

What is “that thing” in your heart?

God invites you to step past it, come to Him,

and ask, . . . search . . . and knock.    

He is patiently waiting.

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Watching the Hand

“Behold,

As the eyes of servants look unto

The hand of their masters,

So our eyes wait upon

The Lord our God.”

Ps .123:2

Have you ever been in a room with Royalty?   Or a high-level leader?  A respected person with power?   Familiar imagery  is that of the “Leader” or “Master” surrounded by other people who are there just to provide whatever may be requested by the most important one in the room.

I had never caught this detail before:  “…eyes…look to the hand of their master.”  It may be a slight movement that activates the response of the watching servant.  If the servant is not paying attention to his master’s hand, he loses trust of his master.  He/she is more preoccupied with other things going on in the room, or in his own mind.  The initial message is non-verbal…just a move of the hand.  It is wordless communication which has been learned through experience.

I imagine it requires great focus for a servant to keep his eyes on the hand of his Master.  He needs to be in the room.  He/she needs to block out all the distractions going on around him/her, though significant they may be.  When the hand moves, the response must come.  Focus on that hand could affect trust, necessary actions, relationship and confidence.    It means that everything else going on in the room becomes secondary.  Everything else in the life of that servant takes a step back from the priority of watching that hand and responding appropriately.

Whoever we are, if we have become servants to our Master, “the Lord our God”, we need to follow this example in the Psalms.    Am I available?  Am I paying attention?   Am I willing to respond?  What are my distractions?  What has my higher focus?  Are my eyes on Him to the point that I would even notice that His Hand has moved… signaling something to me without words?

His Hand carries deep scars.   For me.  For you.  Out of Love that is far beyond human capacity. If I focus on His Hand, whatever He does with it, it embodies the Greatest Love, and Highest Calling.

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Life Numbers

“Teach us

to number each of our days

so that we may grow in wisdom.”  

Psalm 90:12

Lists have become very important to me.  I forget things!   Rather than considering it part of aging, I prefer to think of it as my brain moving closer to its saturation point.  There’s just too much up there!!

So, lists have become a daily activity.  And I try to prioritize my lists. . . most important and time-sensitive are nearest the top.  Top priority is #1. Anything without a number just naturally slides down the list…to the side…perhaps is completely lost in the shuffle.  But I also tend to prioritize according to my own preferences, comfort level, and capabilities.

In this Psalm, we read this request for God’s help in prioritizing our time on this earth.  Prioritizing our days on this planet.  Each day matters to Him.  He said that He had numbered our days.  But in this verse, the writer asks for His help in learning how to number our own days.  Numbering forces us to consider one thing at a time.  We have to see each day as one, rather than a vague blur of days sliding into each other.

What priorities has God set for our days, and to what do we need to give our best energies?  His Perspective is all-knowing. . . beginning to end.  We only see “now”  and “past,” with only limited understanding of those days.

But God knows exactly how many days we have, and how He has woven our lives…our days…into His Plan.  His priorities for our time on this earth are most likely quite different from our perspective on our priorities.

To learn from Him what He prioritizes for how we live out our days will always be best.  Wisest.  Most useful to furthering His Purposes on this planet.  Each day at a time.  Rather than thinking of our lives in terms of life seasons, or years, or as one long blur of time, let’s think of LIFE as one day at a time, knowing that God not only gives us each day, but He has a Plan that includes us, each day at a time.  He has numbered our days.  May we look to Him for how to use each one.