Beautiful Things Out of The Dust

Tag Archive - grace

Beautiful Things Out of The Dust

March 14, 2011 in News, Prayer with 2 Comments

Over the past 4 days, the world has watched in shock as Japan has experienced the worst natural disaster and subsequent devastation in it’s history. The images and video are surreal, often looking more like the work of Hollywood special effects wizards than real life. But it is no movie. It is very real, and as painful and heart-breaking as it is to watch, I can’t even begin to imagine how the Japanese people are handling this destruction and complete life upheaval.

I just saw news announced that a 4-month old baby girl was found in the rubble, safe, unharmed and alive. I have no idea how it happened, but it’s hard to look at that picture and not get emotional.

Less than 5 months ago, the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association held a 3-day festival in Japan, bringing the Gospel to over 50,000 Japanese people, resulting in thousands of salvations and tens of thousands more hearing the Gospel for the first time.

As I try to absorb and comprehend the constant stream of pain and loss happening on the other side of the world, Gungor’s song “Beautiful Things” came to my mind, and I couldn’t help but think how fitting those lyrics are to all that has happened and continues to unfold in Japan.

All this earth
Could all that is lost ever be found?
Could a garden come up from this ground at all?

All around
Hope is springing up from this old ground
Out of chaos life is being found in You

You make beautiful things
You make beautiful things out of the dust

As I write this post, there continue to be many thousands of people still missing, aftershocks numbering in the hundreds, new tsunami warnings and now the threat of nuclear meltdown. I don’t know why it all happened nor do I know what is going to happen next. But looking at this picture I am reminded that God does bring beautiful things out of the dust and make beautiful things out of us.

Hope, though it is dim, remains hope.

Pray for the people of Japan.

Discomfort, Tears, Anger & Foolishness

March 9, 2011 in Faith, Prayer with 3 Comments

This is a Franciscan blessing I came across quite awhile back that has always stuck with me. I was reflecting on it the other day, thinking about the upcoming season of lent, which begins today. Then I saw my friend Nicole post it, along with this video, and I knew I wanted to share it here, too.

May God bless you with discomfort. Discomfort at easy answers, half truths, and superficial relationships, so that you may live deep within your heart. Amen
May God bless you with anger. Anger at injustice, oppression and exploitation of people, so that you may work for justice, freedom and peace. Amen
May God bless you with tears. Tears to shed for those who suffer from pain, rejection, starvation and war, so that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and turn their pain into joy. Amen
May God bless you with foolishness. Enough foolishness to believe that you can make a difference in this world, so that you can do what others claim cannot be done. Amen
And the blessing of God, who creates, redeems and sanctifies, be upon you and all you love and pray for this day, and forever more. Amen

It’s not a popular prayer, but one that I believe echoes the heart of God in a way that seems to be disturbingly and increasingly absent in today’s Christian culture.

I pray that God would interrupt our stream of prayers asking for things and invade them with the sufficiency of grace.

I pray that God would bless me today and every day with just enough discomfort, tears, anger and foolishness to keep my heart tuned to His, and to inspire those around me to pursue the same.

What is your prayer today?

God’s Playbook

April 2, 2010 in Faith with 11 Comments

He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces, he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted.

But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. (Isaiah 53:3-5)

It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour, for the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he had said this, he breathed his last. (Luke 23:44-46)

Lately I’ve had this thought about the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. I’m not sure it’s necessarily earth shattering, but its something I’ve been thinking about.

When the disciples witnessed Jesus being crucified, they didn’t know it was “Good Friday.” They didn’t watch the nails being driven into Jesus’ hands, thinking “Sunday’s on the way!” They didn’t go into that day with the knowledge and expectation that they’d all be skipping around singing, “Hallelujah, Jesus is alive! Death has lost it’s victory and the grave has been denied” just 3 days later. When they felt the earth tremble as Jesus took his last breath, I don’t believe they were saying to themselves, “awwww yeah! The devil’s getting a black eye!” No.

This was arguably and literally the darkest day in history; a day when even the sun refused to shine. Their master, their teacher, their Lord… their friend… had just been brutally assassinated before their eyes. They felt defeated. They were confused. They were shaken.

Sure, they heard Jesus talk about being “the resurrection and the life”. They heard him dare the pharisees to “destroy this temple” and promise to raise it up 3 days later. They heard him tell them the time had come for him to be “offered up.” They heard all that. But still… they didn’t have any context for what they were now seeing. None of THAT really prepared them for THIS.

Yet, I have to wonder what kind of hope they had in their heart. I have to wonder if they thought, between tears and grief-stricken embraces, that this was not the end. It may have been a contradiction to everything they were seeing with their eyes and feeling, but I have to wonder what they still believed.

And what about the day in between? What about “Saturday”? What about the day they just sat. And waited. And wondered. And tried to breathe. And… waited.

What about… “the middle”?

It’s just a thought.

To understand the purpose of the cross you have to be able to see it as well as see past it. It reminds me that there is always more than what I am seeing. It reminds me to hope, in spite of what I see. It reminds me to remember and respect the cross, but not to stop there. It reminds me to breathe in life, embrace the moment and wait. It reminds me that the cross is not the end.

In God’s playbook, sometimes winning looks like losing…

Too Easily Pleased

March 31, 2010 in Faith with 12 Comments

I love this C. S. Lewis quote:

“If we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires, not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.” – C. S. Lewis (from The Weight Of Glory)

Are you far too easily pleased? Do you find your heart settling for mud pies when the bounty of the Father is available to you?

The Mark Of Grace

March 29, 2010 in Faith, grace, Leadership with 10 Comments

This morning I came across this blog speaking of John Piper’s announcement that he is taking an 8-month leave of absence from ministry, which he announced this weekend at his home church, Bethlehem Baptist Church. As I watched the video of his announcement, I was stunned. Not shocked, but stunned by the grace with which Piper is walking out the call on his life, all the while consistently communicating the Gospel. It should not be a surprise, but Piper’s candor and transparency is such an exception to what we tend to see in this age of the personality-centric church culture.

“As I have stood back in recent months and looked at my own soul—my own sanctification, my own measures self-denial or self-serving—and my marriage and family and ministry patterns, I have felt an increasing need for a serious assessment—a kind of reality check in the light of God’s word. Am I living in the mindset and the pattern of life that Jesus calls for here in Mark 8:31-38, especially in relation to those I love most?

On the one hand, I love my Lord, my wife, my five children and their families first and foremost; and I love my work of preaching and writing and leading Bethlehem. I hope the Lord gives me at least five more years as the pastor for preaching and vision at Bethlehem.

But on the other hand, I see several species of pride in my soul that, while they may not rise to the level of disqualifying me for ministry, grieve me, and have taken a toll on my relationship with Noël and others who are dear to me. How do I apologize to you, not for a specific deed, but for ongoing character flaws, and their effects on everybody? I’ll say it now, and no doubt will say it again, I’m sorry. Since I don’t have just one deed to point to, I simply ask for a spirit of forgiveness; and I give you as much assurance as I can that I am not making peace, but war, with my own sins.” – John Piper

That, ladies and gentlemen, is the mark of grace on one’s life.

It is all relative, and I would not even begin to compare my story to John Piper’s, but I can certainly relate to the need to lay things down and walk away from something to reassess your heart, spirit and become more in tune with the things your heart is prone to. I am in the middle of that very thing right now and Piper’s leave of absence and the grace with which he communicates it have rocked my heart all over again today.

Here is Piper’s blog post about the leave of absence. You can read a transcript of his entire sermon, “The Son of man Must Suffer Many Things” here, or watch the entire sermon here.

I have seen and heard many “leaders” who would do well to take notes from Piper’s announcement and the posture of humility with which he approaches this particular season of his life. There are many much less-influential “leaders” looking out for their image, their reputation and their “brand”… but who is stepping back to look at their own soul and how that impacts and affects everything else? You don’t hear much about that these days.

This is powerful and I am praying for John Piper, his family, his church and all those who will now have an opportunity to see what it looks like to be a disciple of Christ through his obedience and sensitivity to God’s leading in his life.

God, give us the grace the hear You over all the noise, the wisdom to know when it is time to step away and the courage to trust You and actually do it.

Does any of this strike a chord with you?

Page 1 of 212 »