I asked for, and received, a “Fitbit” for Christmas. I wanted it primarily for tracking my daily steps. I know there are apps on the phone that will do it, but I don’t always have my phone on me, so I thought this would be a more practical way of tracking. What has amazed me is how many steps I take even before I walk out the door to begin visits for the day. Does anyone else experience this?
Tracking steps made me think back to times I had a twisted ankle or was recovering from something and had to limit my steps. You realize how much walking is involved in almost every aspect of life. You have to be strategic about your steps when you have some sort of limitation. Walking is so ordinary, yet so vital to our functioning.
I also began to think about how many Scriptures talk about walking:
“Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:15).
“…walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him; bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God (Colossians 1:10).
“…we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God, just as you are doing, that you do so more and more” (1 Thess. 4:1).
“But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7).
“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10).
“Therefore as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.
In the ordinariness of every day, as we go, as we work, as we walk, may we be in step and walk with Him.
“But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14-15).
As believers in Christ, we are each called to fulfill our purposes on the earth, but many times we become “weary in well doing.” The familiar can become mundane, and “burnout” can happen to even the most committed people in any given field or situation. But it’s often in these ordinary situations that we find we are called to something more. I’m reminded of times in Scripture when those called out for a great purpose were going about their lives, doing the work they’d been assigned.
David, for instance, was a shepherd tending his sheep, and was just a teenager, when Samuel anointed him king of Israel. He was the least likely to be chosen from among his older brothers.
Elisha, when anointed a prophet by Elijah, was in the fields plowing with his oxen (1 Kings 18). He then burned the plow and the oxen before joining Elijah – a sacrifice, and a sign that he was embarking on something new, leaving the old behind.
In both these cases, the men were faithfully carrying out their tasks, serving their families and focusing on knowing God and his will for their lives, when the greater assignment came. They did not look back.
Perhaps you are familiar with the well-known story of Cortez, the Spanish conquistador who landed on the shores of Mexico with many ships full of disgruntled and complaining crews who longed to return to their homeland. Cortez, wanting to plant his stake in the ground, and make known his commitment to stay and settle in the new land, gave the now famous command, “Burn the ships!” He wanted to leave no doubt and no other option but to stay, to move forward, and to succeed in the new endeavor.
Burn the ships – we are not going back. This is the same kind of devotion Jesus wants from us. When he calls us to follow, he will countenance no excuses. In Luke 9, when those who wanted to follow him asked to take care of practical matters at home first, Jesus said, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God” (v.62). When he calls, our response should be immediate obedience.
What might he be calling you to do? Listen for his voice, and be ready to follow.
“I have called you by name, you are mine” (Isaiah 43:1).
One of the desires of the human heart is to be known. More specifically, to be known, appreciated for who we are, and loved. When someone uses your name, it makes things personal. If someone knows your name, and uses it when addressing you, it creates an intimacy that would not be there had they not called you by name.
Have you ever had the experience of someone calling your name when you did not think they knew you? This happened to me once as a young teenager, just beginning high school. We had a “singing” principal who would occasionally sing going up and down the hallways. He would call out to students by name at times and encourage them as they made their way down the hallways. One day, he called out to me! I didn’t even know he knew me.
Imagine if someone of prominence knew your name, like the Governor, or President. How special would that be to get a phone call or a shout out where they called you by name? Friends, I want to say to you, we have something much greater by far than any of those experiences. Our Creator, Love Himself, knows our names. We have a God who is intimately acquainted with us, who knows our lying down and our rising up, who has the very hairs of our head all numbered, as well as our days.
Before we were formed in the womb, he knew us. The one who brings us from dust, who speaks, and things come into being, knows our frames, and has fashioned our hearts. The one who clothes the flowers of the field in splendor, and takes notice of every little bird that falls, is calling out to each of us by name.
“I will walk with integrity of heart within my house; I will not set before my eyes anything that is worthless” (Psalm 101:2-3).
Patterns are a part of life. Symmetry, in nature and art, is part of what gives a thing beauty. I remember the symmetry in my grandmother’s quilts as she stitched a hodgepodge of material, which, because of the pattern she used, created a beautiful menagerie of color. Our own lives, too, follow some predictable patterns. The dependability of night and day, and other aspects of daily life, can be relied on in their regularity, bringing a sense of stability to us.
In 2nd Timothy, the Apostle Paul talks about following a particular pattern – a pattern of faith, of “sound words” that Timothy has heard from Paul. He reminds Timothy of the faith which was first in Timothy’s grandmother Lois, and then in his mother, Eunice. There had been a pattern of faith and faithfulness in the household which had now been passed to Timothy. He urges Timothy to “fan into flame” the gift that is in him, and also to “guard the good deposit entrusted to him.”
In other words, follow the pattern of faith and practice given to you by those who have gone before. There are precepts- patterns- we can follow which will lead to our flourishing. There are biblical principles that always lead to peace and joy (Romans 15:13).
When I think about my grandmother, I think about the patterns of life and faith she passed down. The practice of being able to be relied on and putting the needs of her family above herself. She was steadfast, dependable, and not fearful in the face of challenges. “…for God gave us not a spirit of fear but of power and love and self-control” (2 Tim. 1:7). I often observed her reading the well-worn pages of her Bible, its truths no doubt reading her as she read them, leading her well, so she could in turn guide her family in “the way,” the pattern, which her own mother and father had shown her.
As I stitch and sew the patterns of my own life, I am reminded of the faith which dwelt in her, in my own mother, and the lives of many other family members, and I am thankful.
If you have been entrusted with a similar “good deposit” in your life, follow the pattern well.
I’ve been pondering lately how people can hear the same information, or the same piece of music, for instance, and get totally different things from it. We comprehend concepts, works of art, or literature, on different levels, perhaps due to our background, education, or life experiences. For example, I think back to my introduction to the recording studio and the process involved in making a track come together. After I had heard how instruments and voices are added, layer upon layer, I began to listen to music differently, hearing each instrument more distinctly and thinking about how it was mixed into the whole.
People go to church and absorb the same message, the same music, and some are moved, while others remain stone cold, indifferent. We can’t underestimate the Holy Spirit’s role in revealing truth to us and drawing us to God, but our own free will and engagement of the heart and mind certainly plays a role in how we connect to worship experiences.
In Mark 4, Jesus tells the parable of the Sower and seed falling on different types of ground. In his story, a Sower went out to sow. The first seed fell on the path, and the birds come and devoured it. Other seed fell on rocky ground where there was not much soil, and it immediately sprang up but was scorched by the heat, since it had no root and it withered away. Other seed fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no grain. Finally some of the seeds fell into good soil, and produced grain, yielding thirty, sixty, or a hundredfold.
He then had to explain the parable to the disciples, who were sometimes slow to understand. He told them (paraphrasing), the Sower sows the Word. For the ones on the path, Satan comes and immediately takes away the word. The ones on rocky ground receive the Word with joy when they first hear it, but they have no root. They endure for a little while but when challenges come, they immediately fall away. The ones among the thorns hear the word, but the cares of the world – their desires for riches and other things- choke the word, and it is not fruitful. But those that were sown on the good soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirty fold, sixtyfold, and a hundredfold.
Where the seed falls would appear to be, in the main, a metaphor for the heart of an individual. Do we come to worship and approach Bible study with an open heart, and an attitude of humility? Is your heart and mine a place where the Word can flourish and grow in a medium of love, kindness, and grace, or are our hearts closed up to new life, perhaps because of bitterness or pride?
The condition of the heart must be right to receive the Word, but the environment, which includes people and places, also plays a role. Are we around people who help us cultivate “good soil?” Are the places we go and the activities we involve ourselves in, helping us to grow? We must be careful about who and what we let into our inner circle, and whether or not they help us to grow in the Word, and live out the things we learn, so we can produce the fruit that is pleasing to the Lord.
Receiving the Word is not just for our own sakes, or our own personal fulfillment, but just like the seed in the parable, it’s meant to produce results in us. Ultimately if it bears no fruit, it is a wasted seed.
Hebrews 4:12 says, “…the Word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword.” It does its work in and through us.
Maybe for some reading this, you don’t even have “the seed” yet – you are not in a place where you seek to receive the Word. Or maybe you see yourself in one of the scenarios above, where the trials or pleasures of the world distract and prevent you from focusing on the more important thing.
Sometimes we need to take stock and evaluate our lives and make changes if necessary. We can be intentional about creating an environment where the Word can be sown and cultivated, so we can be fruitful people, fully alive and growing in Him.
“The glory of God is man fully alive.” St Irenaeus “Gloria enim Dei vivens homo, vita autem hominis visio Dei”
I have a good friend who I normally decorate a table with for special occasions at church – Valentine’s banquets, Ladies’ Christmas Gatherings, etc. We each bring things we have at home and try to create something beautiful! Sometimes when we are trying to determine what will go on the table, one of us will say, “Is it too much?” And the other normally returns, “More is more.”
The old phrase, “less is more” is meant to convey that sometimes less is more elegant, more appropriate, more pleasing to the eye. But in the case of these banquets, going “over the top” can be a good thing.
“More is more” can be true in other areas of our lives as well. In our spiritual disciplines- prayer, meditation, and spending time with God’s word, which philosophy do we employ? “Less is more,” or “more is more?”
Do we take a minimalist attitude- a barely scraping by attitude – or do we saturate ourselves with His word in various ways throughout day? Do we worry and fret, or breathe prayers of thanksgiving and praise? Do we participate in few things that feed our spirits, or do we involve ourselves in acts of service, of study, and of worship?
“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you”
(1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).
Notice the words “always,” “without ceasing,” and “all,” in those verses.
I think the apostle Paul was telling us, “More is more.”
This time of year our hearts are turning toward Christmas, and the story we know so well. There is a lot of detail in Luke 1 and 2, beginning with the origin story of John the Baptist.
Have you ever wondered why Zechariah was struck dumb for questioning the angel who gave him good news, and Mary was not? As one commentator said, we only get part of the story when the words are flat on a page. Perhaps there was a tone of unbelief or even scoffing in Zechariah’s question -“How shall I know this?” Maybe Mary’s question was an honest one- “How will this be?”
It seems Mary was immediately ready to submit herself to the will of God – “Let it be to me according to your word,” she said back to the Angel.
Luke says both were afraid when Gabriel appeared to them, and both were told not to be. Perhaps Zechariah even continued in fear after he heard the word of the Lord. Was there a difference in the willingness of each to submit to God’s plan? Some of these things we are not told explicitly in Scripture, so we can only speculate.
Mark and I were listening to the news in early November and there was talk of snow in Colorado. Many years ago, we came close to moving our family to Colorado to serve a church there. Mark said, “Just think, if we had moved to Colorado, we’d be seeing snow right now.” We sat in silence for a moment and I said, “I’m so glad we didn’t do that – but we were willing, and maybe that was the point.”
I thought about that later – that God wants our willingness. He wants a fully surrendered life. He wants obedience, rather than sacrifice. He wants us to take up our cross and follow him. He wants our hearts.
What can he do with a fully surrendered heart, mind, and life? Whatever He wills, and that, it would seem, is the point.
I’ve always loved the line, “The happiest days are when babies are born,” from Gone With the Wind – Ms. Mellie. I do believe it is true. The birth of a baby and the arrival of new life, is undoubtedly the most impactful and profound experience a person can have. Even though the parents are the ones most deeply affected by the birth of a child, others are there there to share in the joy, the hope, and the promise of the future for that little one.
It’s interesting that Jesus used this metaphor to teach us about eternal life, and what it’s like to have our eyes opened to the reality of the Kingdom of God. In a conversation with a curious Pharisee, Nicodemus, Jesus said, “Do not marvel that you must be born again.” Nicodemus was confused, thinking about physical birth. Jesus informs him that he Is talking about things of the Spirit, about the spirit of a person being regenerated.
When Jesus says we must be born again, he wants to start a new process within us – a new way of thinking and being, through the power of the Holy Spirit. “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17).
From this same conversation comes perhaps the most well known passage of Scripture, where Jesus says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). This new birth leads to eternal life. A new heart, a new spirit, a new life moving toward his purposes and plan for you.
What are you wearing? I wonder how many times in our lives we have each said that phrase . Particularly women, want to know that they will not be overdressed or underdressed to the situation. This has most likely happened to all of us – we’ve shown up somewhere too “fancy” or too casual, which can leave us feeling out of place and uncomfortable.
Something similar happened in a parable Jesus told, written of in Matthew 22. In the story Jesus tells, a King invited guests to a wedding feast for his son, but they would not come. So the King sent his servants to call them, but the guests did not listen, and in fact even killed some of the servants who came to compel them to come to the feast. The King was angry and said those invited were not worthy. He then said, “Go therefore to the main roads and invite to the wedding feast as many as you find.” So the servants went out and gathered as many as they could, and they all came to the feast.
But when the King came to look at the guests, he saw a man who had no wedding garment, and he said, “Friend how did you get in here without a wedding garment?” The man was then cast out because he was not wearing the proper attire. Wedding guests were often given garments to wear in those days, but in this story, perhaps it was offered to the man and he refused, and in so doing dishonored his host.
In the parable, God is the King, and Jesus is the son. The servants represent the prophets who came to compel the people to turn from sin and return to God. The man who did not have the proper attire and was cast out, represents those who reject Christ’s message of repentance and offer of salvation.
The point is that the only proper clothing for us is his garment of righteousness. This garment, Revelation 7:14 tells us, is soaked in the blood of the Lamb but somehow made white as snow.
When we stand before God, this will be the clothing that we need. For those who have accepted his gift, we won’t stand before him clothed in our own works and good deeds, or our own merit, but donned in his royal robes of righteousness.
“For our sake he made him be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21).
He is offering royal robes. So I’ll ask it again- what are you wearing?
Words. Twenty-six letters in our alphabet. They can be arranged to create a nursery rhyme or great works like Shakespeare produced. Letters can be put together in such a way as to inspire, or to criticize, to convey truth, or to spread falsehood.
In the very beginning, the world came into existence with words, God’s words. The nothingness became the beauty and complexity we see all around us, at the sound of His voice.
As His image-bearers we sing and say words back to him to worship and honor him. In fact, Scripture says we are saved through a confession of our mouths – speaking the words that we have believed in our hearts, the words being the outward expression of inward faith.
“…if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9).
We can also use our words to ask Him for the desires of our hearts. “Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart” (Psalm 37:4).
Jesus often asked people what they wanted him to do when he was about to heal them. It was as if he wanted them to open their mouths and participate in the miracle. When Jesus encountered two blind men on the road going out from Jericho, he asked, “What do you want me to do for you?”
They voiced their need, which was surely the most desperate desire of their hearts, “Lord let our eyes be opened.” Jesus touched their eyes and “immediately they recovered their sight and followed him” (Matthew 20:33-34).
I am not talking about the new age practice and false teaching of “manifesting” something into existence, but about the godly practice of speaking the truth, of prayerfully bringing our requests to God, and trusting him with the outcome.
We can also use the words of our mouths to battle the Enemy of our souls. I heard a wise pastor once say, “When you read the Bible, read it out loud – Satan cannot read your mind but he can hear your voice.” There is power in speaking Jesus’s name. Our declarations have power, our words have power.
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7).
Life By The Way 