blessed is he who is not offended with me

I was listening to this song on the way to work this morning and reflecting on my thoughts about it over the past year or so. You can't go more than a few days at the Ranch without hearing it, so I've heard and sung these words so many times I could sing them backwards in my sleep, but these words never get old. Every time I sing this song though, I feel a little conflicted when I get to "You're never gonna let me down." On days like today when two hurricanes have recently ravaged the coasts of our country and we remember a terrorist attack on our soil, it surely seems like we've been let down. If we are always trying to use our circumstances as a measure of the goodness of God, we will not believe these words when we sing them, or we will sing a false gospel of a god who acts according to our wishes. However, these words sung with right intentions are POWERFUL. I don't sing that God will never let me down because I believe my life will go exactly as I have imagined or hoped it will go or it will be easy and happy all the time. A predictable happy life is not the surrendered life the Bible presents as the life of a disciple. As disciples of Jesus, we will likely be disappointed because God did not meet our expectations in certain circumstances. One of my favorite presentations of this scenario is in Gene Edwards' book The Prisoner in the Third Cell. Edwards paints a creative picture of John the Baptist in prison leading up to his death. John sends word to Jesus asking if he is the Messiah or if he should look for someone else. Jesus sends word back to John, "The blind see, the lame walk, and the deaf hear. The gospel is proclaimed and received with gladness. And blessed is he who is not offended with me." Maybe John is hoping Jesus will save him from his current circumstance and doubting Jesus' identity as Messiah because of his imprisonment. Maybe John expects his cousin for whom he had faithfully prepared the way to free him. And blessed is he who is not offended with me. John remains in prison and doesn't see Jesus in person again before he is beheaded at the command of the king. Jesus' answer to John is one for all of us when our current circumstances and even future outlook do not seem to be evidence of a good God who never lets us down. The blind see, the lame walk, and the deaf hear. The gospel is proclaimed and received with gladness. But what happens when we are hearing good news secondhand like John the Baptist? I think the last phrase is key. And blessed is he who is not offended with me. When life makes sense and all is well, it's not a stretch to trust a good God. The days on days in prison with no promise from Jesus for release challenge trust in a good God. So what does it mean to not be offended with Jesus? It means believing and trusting so firmly in a good God that through life's little disappointments and even dashed expectations or unimaginable circumstances, our belief and trust remain. We will not always feel he has never let us down, but we can believe he will never let us down. This is the tension in which we live. We do not always understand, but we trust--a rare act in our age. But he says we are blessed when we are not offended with him. He is working all things together for the good of those who love him and are called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28). Does that always look like our original plans or our comfort zones? Absolutely not. Back up in Romans a little bit (8:18), and we see Paul say our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. Fast forward to the end of chapter 8, and we see that absolutely nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. All we need for abundant life is in Him. He himself is good. So this morning when I was listening to the words of this song yet again, I heard them as a battle cry full of deep trust and joy and confidence. I imagine each line is a punch in the gut to the enemy. We declare and sing to our souls he is good and will never let us down in times of great joy and sorrow, because it is true even in the seasons when we can't see it so clearly.

delight

I sat down tonight to write with one word in mind. Sometimes the Lord brings a verse to my attention, sometimes an idea, sometimes a certain concept, sometimes just a word.

I was driving back to Jackson from out of town recently and was listening to music when I noticed the word "delight" in the song I was singing along to. I remember exactly where I was because the moment was unexpectedly profound. I was singing pretty casually, not really even paying that much attention to the words, but that word struck me. I knew it was my word for this season. As the dust settles from the newness of my job and the busyness of working and studying, it is easy for the day-to-day happenings of life to become seemingly mundane. However, in that moment in my beloved Honda Accord, which is very possibly the place where the Lord has spoken to me the most, he reminded me to lift my eyes. If you ever played basketball and you're anything like me, you know how hard it is to take your eyes off the ball you're dribbling to look for your open teammates. In the same way, it's not easy for me to lift my eyes from the day-to-day tasks I'm dribbling. But just like good point guards must look down the court and keep dribbling, we must look up and around from our tasks at hand so that we do not miss the opportunity to delight in the gifts the Lord has given. Life with the Lord is far from mundane.

When I noticed that word, I also thought about a couple of verses. There's one in Psalms that says to delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. I believe that to delight in the Lord is to find an opportunity for thankfulness in every situation, to live with a sense of wonder and awe because the God of the universe loves us and knows us, and we can know him. There's another verse in Zephaniah that says the Lord will take great delight in you. So not only does the Lord want us to delight in him, he actually delights in us, his children. Have you ever had a friend who you knew you really enjoyed being around, but you weren't sure if they felt the same way about you? If you and that friend ever talked about how much you both enjoyed being friends, didn't it just make your heart happy to know that your friend felt the same way you felt? This is the joy of delighting in the Lord. He knows us and loves us and actually enjoys doing life with us. And what joy he experiences when his children love him back!

This moment in the car with the Lord was, in a way, a challenge to keep my head up and my eyes open, to take delight in even the seemingly insignificant. It was also a sweet reminder that I serve a God who knows me, loves me, and delights in me. So, my word of the [day, week, month, year, however-long-the-Lord-decides] is delight. Is anyone with me? Let's live in wonder and thankfulness, with our eyes always lifted.

deserving nothing, worth everything

I found myself thinking this week about the distinction between what we deserve and what God says we're worth. When I see bad things happening to good people or good things happening to bad people, my gut says, "They don't deserve that!" But really, we don't deserve anything more or less than death. God owes us nothing. Our natural rebellion against him warrants death, and anything better is more than we deserve.

However, although we deserve nothing, God proclaimed through the cross that we are worth everything. This is the beauty of the grace of God; our sin warrants death, but his death gives us life! So although we don't deserve his love, God says we are worth loving.

I associate deserving with entitlement and worth with security. When we think we do or don't deserve our circumstances, we're looking at our lives through a lens of entitlement. Sometimes we may feel like God owes us something, but truly, we owe him more than we could ever repay. On the other hand, when we understand that God's display of love in sacrificing his son ultimately defines our worth, we can be secure in our identity as children of God. We live freely and gratefully because we know that God's gift of himself to us is greater than anything we could ever earn or deserve. We know that in all circumstances, God is good. On our good days and bad days, he loves us. He considers us worthy of his perfect and never-failing love.

Therefore, although you deserve nothing more than death, God considers you worth loving, worth dying for. If that doesn't make you want to stand up a little taller, I don't know what will. Child of God, your creator gave his son to die for you so that you could live forever with him. He says you're worthy of love, and he invites you to live daily in his perfect love.

So whatever your external circumstances, whether you feel you deserve whatever you're facing, remember that you are worthy of love. The God who made everything made you and values you. He owes you nothing but gave you everything.

He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

Psalm 103:10-12

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions--it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 2:1-7

lessons in new seasons

This past summer at JH Ranch, my prayer and desire was that I wouldn't miss anything the Lord had for me--that I would be so aware of all of the opportunities in front of me and would take advantage of them. Going into this fourth summer on staff knowing it would be my last brought about a new sense of urgency and gratefulness in me. Every day, I was so grateful to be at the Ranch again, and with that, I wanted to take full advantage of my time there. Now that I am working (if you didn't know, I'm working in the financial institutions assurance group at an accounting firm) and settled into the routine of normal life, as I think back on the summer, I realize that this seize-the-day mindset has carried over into my life today.  

Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.  1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.  Colossians 2:6-7 

I'm learning to live so aware of every good gift, big and small, the Lord has given me. I'm learning that living thankfully produces joy, even in the mundane, and keeps me aware of the Lord's presence, even in busy times. God started developing a thought in me over the summer, and Sunday he reminded me of it. My constant prayer for the summer was, "I don't want to waste a moment." I prayed this prayer often, thinking that I needed to be on my toes to catch every opportunity, but the Lord began to teach me that including him in every moment makes no moment wasted. So now, as I work, I'm learning not to separate the spreadsheets and emails and financial statements from my life with God, because he is here with me whether I'm composing an email or teaching Sunday School, and I want to do everything I do with him and unto him. He's too good to disclude from any part of my life. If I'm not welcoming him into every part of my life, I'm settling for less than what he has for me. This Christian life is about relationship with God. As we live with him, he lives through us. Every moment I waste without him is a moment I could've come to know him more, a moment he could've made me more like him. Now, when I say moments without him are wasted, I mean it, but let's not confine moments with God to quiet times and worship services. Life with God is just that, life with God. There's no avoiding working and paying bills and doing dishes, but these things can be done with him. It's as simple as inviting him into the day, asking him to lead you, talking to him about your worries and hopes. As you commune with him, he teaches you, loves you, guides you. Out of the overflowing joy that comes from knowing him, you bless people, not because you needed to check a box for a good deed for the day, but because you were with God. Sidenote: don't think I'm perfect at this. I'm writing this to myself, too, as I learn what it is to live and work with God in the adult world. 

Sunday morning in church, we sang the All Sons and Daughters song, "Great Are You Lord." I love these lyrics: "It's your breath in our lungs, so we pour out our praise to you only." As I heard those words, I thought about how I can offer everything I am and everything I do back to the Lord in worship because it's his breath in my lungs, his intelligence (a little bit of it!) in my brain, his creativity in my thinking, his peace in my heart. My day-to-day life, what seems trivial, what seems important, can all be a worship offering. This desire and ability to offer all of me in worship comes out of the place I was talking about above, constant communion with him. Any other motivation will eventually lead to burnout.

And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.  Colossians 3:17

Lastly, as I begin this new season of life, the Lord reminds me often that my identity is secure. It's so easy for me to start letting accomplishments and skills and knowledge define me. And, on the flipside, when I let my identity depend on my performance, mistakes and failures jeopardize who I am. However, knowing my status a child of God frees me from the fear of failure. Whether I'm having a good day or a bad day, I am still loved, and I am still his. On the days when I feel like I can't get anything right, I'm learning to say no to the thoughts that make me question my identity, because I'm learning to believe that my identity is not contingent upon my performance. This secure identity makes success a platform for praise rather than pride and failure a gateway into growth rather than guilt.

For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.  Romans 8:14-17

Blessings to you! Rest in the peace of God. You cannot be shaken.

I keep my eyes always on the Lord.

With him at my right hand,

I will not be shaken.

Psalm 16:8

Surely you have granted him unending blessings

and made him glad with the joy of your presence.

For the king trusts in the Lord;

through the unfailing love of the Most High

he will not be shaken.

Psalm 21:6-7

Yes, my soul, find rest in God;

my hope comes from him.

Truly he is my rock and my salvation;

he is my fortress,

I will not be shaken.

Psalm 62:5-6

what's next

I sat down tonight with my iPad and opened the notes app, hoping to map out some specific goals and plans for myself as I graduate and move on to whatever's next. I decided to start out really general, with almost a mission statement--something that would guide my life no matter where I am or what I'm doing. This is what I came up with:

[See people who don't know Jesus come to know and follow him.]

Simple, right? This statement applies to my life always. And then I thought I'd narrow it down from there. I asked myself, "Ok, how will I accomplish that?" As I thought about that question, I realized it would get harder and harder to drill down to specific answers because who knows where I'll be a few years down the road? I can write down ideas of where I'll be and what I'll do, and believe me, I've done that. But really, I'm not near where I thought I would be just three years ago. In fact, I've probably been through hundreds of possible life scenarios in my head, and I'm only living one, which I probably hadn't even thought of beforehand. I'm not saying goals and dreams are bad. Direction and hope in life are good things. However, we see what's right in front of us. God sees it all. So I plan and hope and dream with that in mind. I don't want to miss Jesus because I'm too caught up in what I had planned for my life. I'm convinced that whatever he wants to do in me and through me is better than I could type in a goals outline on an iPad.

So tonight, my attempted life plan outline became an honest prayer as I realized what I already knew to be true. If I know him more and love him more every day, I'm not missing anything. However, If I miss him, I miss everything. So I don't live in fear of the many impending unknowns or of missing out on my life purpose, because if I'm with Jesus, I lack nothing. If I fear anything, it's chasing good things but missing Jesus. So it's easy and hard at the same time. So simple, yet difficult. Hard because my days are governed by plans and checklists, but my future is wide open. Easy because I trust Jesus with my wide open future. Difficult because seeking Jesus first in a world that likes him sometimes as a side dish is different and often misunderstood. Simple because seeking Jesus first brings everything else into its proper place. If I have him, I have everything. If I have everything else but miss him, I've missed everything.

So this is my plea to those in similar shoes, soon-to-be college graduates: don't miss Jesus. Chase all of those great things that come with becoming an adult, but chase them with him. If he's not leading you, don't go. He is just too good. Going anywhere without him is just not worth it.


As we build our lives, let's build his kingdom.

"Now this is what the Lord Almighty says: 'Give careful thought to your ways. You have planted much, but harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it.' This is what the Lord Almighty says: 'Give careful thought to your ways. Go up into the mountains and bring down timber and build my house, so that I may take pleasure in it and be honored,' says the Lord. 'You expected much, but see, it turned out to be little. What you brought home, I blew away. Why?' declares the Lord Almighty. 'Because of my house, which remains a ruin, while each of you is busy with your own house.'" Haggai 1:5-9

"Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain." Psalm 127:1