What do you do when you are in a squeeze?
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Take one part of your life today, and think for a moment, what might you do to put a smile on God’s face?
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As I reflect on Daniel, and his prayer life, I am convicted that I am making God too small.
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If we view prayer as something we do so we are more effective, then we miss the point. Prayer keeps us connected to Jesus and therefore to the Father.
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It’s Christmas Eve, and for many little ones, the waiting is almost over. When I was growing up, Christmas Eve was when we put up the tree and more. Our tradition was born, in part, from celebrating Advent, that season of preparation, that season of waiting. Our tradition also helped to keep my parents sane. There were four of us, and our excitement about Christmas grew exponentially as December 25th approached. Filling Christmas Eve with a mountain of things to do kept us fully occupied until we rushed to church at Midnight. It was a good plan. Yet the waiting…oh, the waiting to get to Christmas was torture!
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In Part One I joked about that Christmas classic, “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer.” All kidding aside, as we seek to reach our loved ones for Jesus, we do not want them thinking, I got run over by a Christian! I doubt people truly seeking Jesus ever felt run over by him. Yes, the religious of his day—ever challenging him—got clobbered, but they were not truly seeking him. For those who seek him, his presence is grace-filled. Yet many may not be seeking him, and we want to invite them to meet Jesus. If your heart aches for those you love to meet Jesus, what can you do?
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Christmas: it comes with gifts of all shapes and sizes and prices. It has its own genre of music, which somehow includes “Silent Night” and “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer.” As followers of Jesus, we sometimes lament how Christmas has morphed into any number of ideas, all of which seem to leave Jesus out. Phrases like “Keep Christ is Christmas” and “Jesus is the Reason for the Season” hit a sweet spot in our psyche. Beyond the slogans, there is a deep ache in our hearts; it is an ache for our family and loved ones who do not yet accept this child in the manger as Lord. That ache is magnified during the Christmas season. What do we do?
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“David, what do you say?” I would answer, “please” followed quickly by “thank you.” I was taught to be polite. How about you? Better yet, how do you do when someone tells you to adopt a certain attitude? By now, you probably know that I don’t do well when I’m told what to do. When someone tells us what our attitudes are to be like, our first reaction is normally resistance. However, that is exactly what God’s Word instructs us in Colossians 4:2. “Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.” So, what is up with this situation?
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We live in a sex-crazed world. We have traded intimacy for something much shallower. Please don’t misunderstand, God created sex. It is good when enjoyed within God’s design. It has a very special and unique place in the world. It just isn’t the whole of intimacy.
Intimacy is very special, very rare. We knit our hearts, our beings, to few people. It has to be that way. In fact, God has designed specific biblical relationships to house intimacy.
However, to stay with the text we are reading, let me ask a question: for those people with whom you are intimate, what is the most intimate thing you do together?
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When you go away and pray, it can get personal. But in December, I said I'd do that, and then come back in the New Year and share what's on my heart. In short, 3 things: God’s jealousy for me, the weight of leadership, and my need to value my wife more. (It's getting real!)
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You and I will no doubt be inundated with Year-in-Review articles and “Top Tens” of 2017. Best albums, books, movies and more. As I reflect on 2017 at The Pocket Testament League, my list is a little different. There were so many opportunities to invite people to meet Jesus...
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