Life2gether

March Madness is madness indeed! But it reveals some things about us as human beings:

1. We are made for something big

Paul Tripp once said, “There is woven inside each of us a desire for something more–a craving to be part of something bigger, greater, and more profound than our relatively meaningless day-by-day existence.”  It’s true. We love the feeling of transcendence, and March Madness gives us a glimpse of the glory we were made for.

2. We love rooting for the underdog

Why do we love the underdog? I think it’s because we see ourselves in the story of these cinderella teams. We identify with the “Davids” because we are weak in and of ourselves. Not many of us are naturally gifted to do great things. But all of us want to be a part of doing something great. Ironically, this is God’s pattern for showing His greatness(1 Cor. 1:26-28). His glory is seen most powerfully in humility–that’s why Jesus is so glorious, He’s the ultimate underdog.

3. We want to win and be on the winning team

There’s a longing in all of us to win. As the old Wide World of Sports intro used to say, “It’s the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat!” As followers of Christ we are on the winning team. Though we have failed, our humble champion has won. He reigns! And we will one day reign with him in everlasting glory as we celebrate his victory over sin, death and the devil.

This morning I stopped and meditated on Hebrews 5:2, which speaks of the role of the high priest and ultimately Christ himself:

“He (the high priest) can deal gently with the ignorant and wayward, since he himself is beset with weakness.”

I was struck with the reality that I am called to be a priest to my children. I am called to pray and intercede for them. And I am called to deal gently with them, even though they may be ignorant and wayward. Why? Because I know that I myself am weak just like them.

When I get frustrated with my kids and their lack of maturity, I should remind myself that I am weak and immature too. When I can’t seem to understand why they are so self-centered, I should remind myself of how often I focus on myself too. And when they purposefully rebel against me and my authority, I should remind myself that I have played the fool so many times and rebelled against my Father too.

The many sins and weaknesses I see in my kids should only serve to be a pointer to my own. And when I’m brought low to humbly admit that, I can run to Jesus who had no weaknesses and yet continues to sympathize with me in my own. What an amazing high priest we have who deals gently with us – even in our ignorance and waywardness! May we follow his example in our parenting.

God gave us our imagination. I think he wants us to use it more in our fight against sin. Here’s what I mean:

Today I pictured my heart like a battlefield. I imagined myself sitting on a white horse with Jesus as my Warrior King going before me in battle. As the enemies of my flesh crowded all around me, Jesus charged ahead and fended off each one with his mighty sword. I thought of Revelation 19:11-16 and reminded myself that Jesus is a strong Savior who has rescued me from the power of sin and one day will rescue me fully from the presence of sin. Thanks be to God!

God gave us our imagination. When appropriate, I encourage you to slow down, picture the truth of Scripture in your mind and fight against sin.

My guess is that many of you have already seen a plethora of Bible reading plans posted on various blogs, most of them encouraging you to get through the Bible in a year.  Though I certainly commend this practice (I’ve done it myself), I’ve often wondered if we should approach the Bible differently.  Instead of reading quickly through many verses at a time, maybe we should meditate on a few verses more deeply each day.  If you’re like me, you rarely take time to just slow down your mind and soak in the truths of God’s Word in such a way that it goes down deeper into your heart. That’s why I was excited to get a copy of this Daily Bible Meditation Guide written by my good friend, Dr. Eric Johnson.  Here’s a blurb from the introduction:

Down through the ages, Christians have taught that we need to drink deeply from the fountain of God’s word and we need to savor its truths if they are to satisfy our deepest longings for greater intimacy with God and if we are to experience a greater healing of our souls from his hand. The purpose of this Bible reading schedule (shortened considerably from schedules that get through the Bible in one year) is actually to limit the amount of Bible we read daily. Reading quickly through many verses may not be as profitable as savoring deeply a few verses. So the aim of this schedule is not to read less, but to meditate more.

I encourage you to download this Daily Bible Meditation Guide .  You will also benefit from Dr. Johnson’s thoughts on the “what” and “how-to’s” of meditation.

On the cusp of a new year I’m asking God for two things – for me to slow down and move with the Holy Spirit and be intentional in a few small things.  Let me explain.

1. Slow Down and Move with the Holy Spirit

For too long I’ve been running this race in my own strength and I wonder why I can get so tired.  I’ve learned that this life is as Eugene Peterson says, “a long obedience in the same direction.”   With that in mind, I want to slow down so I can fill up.  I want to listen to God and reflect more on His Word.  I don’t want to try to minister to others out of a dry and empty cup, but one that is filled up and flowing out.  I want to live a life of dependence on the Holy Spirit — to press into him and his leading as a little child depends on his daddy for everything.  I want to live with Spirit-empowered faith!  Even Jesus himself depended on the Holy Spirit for direction – I want to follow his example.

2. Be Intentional in a Few Small Things

I’m learning that I can’t do everything, but I can do a few things (by the grace of God) each day to grow as a husband, father, pastor and follower of Christ.  If you’re like me, you’re a starter and you have big dreams of all the things you want to accomplish in the new year.  But in 2011, I want to become more of a finisher — to form habits to grow in Christ-like character.  For example …

As a Husband – I want to continue to pray for and with my wife each night and read and reflect together on Spurgeon’s Morning and Evening Devotions.  I also want to take the lead in organizing more consistent date-nights.

As a Father – I want to continue to do nightly, family devotions (going through Long Story Short this year).  In addition, I want to meet with each of my children on his or her appointed day of the week to stay up 30 minutes later than their siblings to talk with them and read to them from a Christ-centered, age-appropriate, character-forming book.

What are you asking God to do in your life in 2011?

My friend, Scott Holman, gives a good warning for us to not overshadow and marginalize the incarnation by running too quickly to the Cross:

My gut tells me that some would rather pass over the baby at Bethlehem for the glories of the cross. It’s easier to preach and easier to explain through propositional arguments. Generally, one would rather stand meditating on the sight of the cross than meditating on God as a baby in a feed trough.

But there is something about God coming to us as a vulnerable, needy baby that reformed people especially need to think on. The God of glory needs us to change his diapers. He is as inviting and approachable as any baby we encounter. What do we do with that?

I’ve been thinking about how the incarnation means nothing without the crucifixion.  In fact the reason why God came down is so that he would be lifted up on a tree at Calvary.  And if we only tell the beginning of the story we have no story at all — at least no gospel story.

C.J. Mahaney puts it this way:

The purpose of the manger was realized in the horrors of the cross. The purpose of his birth was his death. Or to put it more personally: Christmas is necessary because I am a sinner.

And so, in order for us to see Christmas for what Christmas really is, we must first see how disturbing the Christmas message really is.

Mahaney tells of an article written some years ago in WORLD Magazine by William H. Smith with the title, “Christmas is disturbing: Any real understanding of the Christmas messages will disturb anyone” (Dec. 26, 1992).

Smith ends his column with these words which I invite you to ponder:

Only those who have been profoundly disturbed to the point of deep repentance are able to receive the tidings of comfort, peace, and joy that Christmas proclaims.

And so my prayer for you and me is that we would be filled with peace and joy this Christmas–because we have been disturbed by the God who was born in a manger so he could die on a cross for our sins.

I’m a lot like Zechariah.  You remember the story in Luke 1.  An angel of the Lord appeared to him and told him that his wife would bear him a son named John. Though this was a messenger from God, Zechariah was not convinced.  He said to the angel, “How shall I know this?  For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years” (Luke 1:18). In other words, “I don’t believe you.  All I see is that my wife and I are too old to have a baby.”  With that, the angel, Gabriel, shut Zechariah’s mouth and made him silent because he “did not believe [God's] words, which will be fulfilled in their time” (Luke 1:20b).

In Luke 1:6, we see that Zechariah was a righteous man who walked blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord.  But he didn’t always walk by faith.  Here we see that his eyes were so fixed on his immediate circumstances–his age and the barrenness of his wife–that he couldn’t see the unseen promises of God.  It’s ironic that God had to shut his mouth so he could see more clearly to walk by faith.

I’m a lot like Zechariah.  I don’t always walk by faith.  I like to know what’s ahead.  I like it when God gives me clarity and shows me the way.  I’d rather not take steps of faith and trust him and his word.  I’d like to see it first.  I don’t like to be led by something I can’t see.  But I suppose that’s how God grows us.  In the beginning of our Christian journey he gives us a pillar of fire to guide us through the wilderness of life.  As we take steps on the journey he slowly takes away the pillar of fire that we can see so we would rely on the pillar of his promises that we can’t see.  But just like Zechariah (and the Israelites before him), God has given us his word and his promises to guide us.  These unseen truths are the very things we must look to and cling to when we feel like God is not there.  Because he is there and his word stands forever.  Every promise is “yes” and “Amen” in Christ.

So Lord, help me to lift my eyes away from myself to the unseen promises of your Word.  Shut my mouth if you must so that I may learn to walk by faith even when I can’t see what’s ahead.

I consider myself to be a rather reflective person.  Sadly, all too often my reflecting is not done in a spirit of thanksgiving.  So, with the Thanksgiving holiday approaching, I had an idea … and I commend it to you.

First, read Psalm 9:1 which says, “I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart; I will recount all your wonderful deeds.”  Take that in.  Meditate on that verse.

Next, go all the way back to the beginning of your life and recount all the wonderful things God has done for you.  You may need to carve out some time for this.  But go ahead … take a long walk (might be a good thing before the big turkey dinner!) and just let the many memories of life pass before you.  Think about each memory as an opportunity to thank God.

Next, as you recount the many ways that God has showered his mercy on your life, think about how one experience or one person triggered another experience and another person that God has sovereignly brought into your life for His glory and your good.  Let your mind become like a big mural of his grace to stand back and look at.

Finally, meditate on the reality that you’ve only scratched the surface of the many mercies God has given you.  It will take all of eternity to count the number of blessings in your life!  For now, end in prayer and then go and share a word of thanks to someone whom God used to bless and impact your life.

If you’re like me, you started your parenting journey wanting to do everything right.  You felt the pressure to effectively raise your kids and you looked around to see how you were doing compared to others.  You wanted to make sure your kids were obeying you right away, all the way, with a happy heart (that was the phrase we used!).  Consequently, you became a controlling parent who stressed over every little thing.  With more kids came more stress–but thankfully more grace to understand that you’re not in control.

I’m a father of three and it’s funny how much my parenting has changed from kid #1 to kid #3.  Can you relate?  I’m learning to let go and not obsess over the things that don’t really matter.  I’m learning to not care about what others think.  I’m learning to not fear that I will fail as a parent.  I’m learning to let go of the reins and lighten up!  But it’s not just time and experience that has taught me things, more importantly, it’s understanding the gospel at a deeper level.  I believe parenting is one of the biggest training grounds (along with marriage) for teaching us the grace of God in the gospel.  Where else are my fears and failures exposed?  Where else do I encounter my desire to be king, in control of my world?  And where else do I feel God’s love and mercy so deep?  And where else do I experience his good and secure rule over my own heart?  What a journey … what a Savior.

• Read a similar post I wrote called, “The Case Against Over-Parenting”
• Read the book, “Grace-Based Parenting” by Tim Kimmel