This chapter is LOADED with amazing stuff!  Here are some raw, quick hit thoughts for today:

1.   Everyone bashes favoritism.  But it is incredibly subtle.  It also feels good when we’re on the receiving end.  AND, it’s the way the world works.  Never seen a “seats for the rich, floor for the poor” sign in any church. However, in our humanity we’re all partial to people like us.  Btw – what are the implications when we apply this principle to the “spiritually rich” and “spiritually poor”?

2.  God has chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world.  Being born an American is a blessing.  But, could it also be a curse?

3.  Live like someone who will be judged by the Law?  Still chewing on this one…but I’m glad I’m going to be judged by my position in Christ!

4.  Mercy wins out!! That’s why I love PEOPLE OF THE SECOND CHANCE – www.potsc.com

5.  Love the whole section on faith and deeds.  What we do is evidence of who we are.

6.  So cool to be known as “God’s friend”.  Jesus was known as a friend of tax collectors (those who betrayed and exploited their own people just to make a buck-basically the scumbags) and sinners.  Christianity is lived in the tension of being both.   I need to do a better job befriending “scumbags” and “sinners”.

7.  Vs. 19.  Everyone has beliefs.  Demons believe in God.  Beliefs don’t amount to much. I mistakenly think if I just “believe” the right things I’m ok.  Not according to James.

8.  I wonder how many people live with dead faith and don’t know it.

9.  Everyone always wants to pit FAITH vs. DEEDS.  James seems just to be re-stating what his brother (Jesus) said in John 15:1-8.

10.   We always want to control the work of God in people’s lives.  Rahab was a hooker who trusted in God through faith and then did God’s work by hiding some spies.  Had that been today, she would’ve needed to clean up her life and image first. Then she would’ve been finger printed and background checked.  She certainly would not have been allowed a ministry of housing young men who were under duress.  None of those things are bad and there’s wisdom there in many of them.  I just wonder sometimes if we do the things we do because the work of God in people’s lives is messy and makes us uncomfortable.

That’s all I got…have an amazing day!  Dream and pursue God-sized dreams today…

“The brother in humble circumstances ought to take pride in his high position.  But the one who is rich should take pride in his low position, because he will pass away like a wild flower.” – James 1:9-10

It seems like humanity is doomed to an existence of dissatisfaction.  No matter what our situation, most of us are out to improve it.  The best of us hope to improve the world a little along the way.  Contentment can be difficult to come by.  Then you read the Scriptures and statements like the one that James makes above.  When I read it, it stopped me cold.  I stopped reading.  I read verses 9 & 10 again.

Don’t miss the revolutionary nature of James’ statements!!  Maybe contentment is so elusive because I fail to embrace the more significant realities of life.  If you’re doing with out, take pride.  If you’ve got no financial worries, embrace humility.

Part of the reason this is so difficult for me is the issue of fairness.  If things aren’t great, it’s easy to believe that I deserve better.  If they are, it’s even easier to believe it’s what I deserve.

I don’t know about you, but it’s NOT just that I want a better life.  I want to feel better about myself.  The broken humanity in me is always looking to stuff/status for my identity.  What is it about me that thinks that nicer clothes, cars, houses, or a bigger number in the checkbook ledger actually add to my human worth?  James seems to have figured this out and maybe that’s why he could write verses 9-10 with credibility.

Look at verse 1.  James simply identifies himself as a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.  James was more though.  He was the half brother of Jesus.  This would’ve been a great time to flash his credentials…to name drop…to look important.  This was the perfect, “do you know who I am?” scenario.  But he doesn’t do any of that.

He finds his identity in being a servant.

He’s content because he’s confident in his identity in Christ.  What would happen if we intentionally laid down our credentials, our rights, our street cred, and purposed to only be known as HIS servants?  I think we would discover freedom like we’ve never experienced before.  Freedom to be ourselves.  Freedom from the pull of our stuff.  Freedom from empty pursuits.

I pray that for you and me today….

When I read through the Scriptures, I try to train myself to zero in on the specific descriptions of God.  Verses 7, 9, & 16 of Psalm 9 are great examples. Then I settled in on verse 10.

Names can communicate a lot.  Today, we mostly choose names on how we feel about the name itself rather than on the meaning of the name.  But, in the Scriptures, especially in ancient Jewish culture, names were loaded with meaning.  Names were a window into the life and character of the person.  Jacob, meaning “deceiver”, was given that name deliberately.  The Bible tells us that he came out of the womb literally grasping on to the heel and tripping up his twin, Esau.  He stayed true to his name.

I couldn’t help but think of this truth in today’s reading.  Those who know His name trust Him.  Those who have ever experienced God…trust Him.  The Beginning, The End, Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, My Provider, Prince of Peace, King of Glory, Truth, Life, Lord, Advocate, Light, Refuge, Bread, Water, and Hope…all of these are just a few of the names given to Jesus in the Bible.  If you’re worried, stressed, thirsty, weak, broke, confused, lost, hurried, harried, hungry, outnumbered, discouraged, fearful, drifting, or feeling just plain abandoned – you can trust Him.  He has NEVER forsaken those who seek him.

Jeremiah 29:11 gets quoted a lot, and it’s a great verse.  But, I love verses 12 & 13.  Go check them out.  He’s waiting for you!

We’d all like to think that we’re our own person.  That we only do the things we do because WE want to do them.  However, a simple look through our closets, garages, and neighborhoods tells us otherwise.  Unfortunately, unlike in these simple, seemingly harmless examples, there are more malignant ways that satisfying the crowd effects me.

It’s easier to remain silent than speak out.  It’s easier to watch than to act.  It’s easier to mourn injustice than do something about it.  It’s easier to settle for the status quo than pursue a God-sized dream.  It’s easy to go along than make waves.  It’s easier to sell out than stick it out. At least we think it is.

I don’t want to be that person.  I want to dream bigger, live in freedom, and pursue what is good and right with abandon.  I want to live my life for an audience of 1.

The Bible tells us that in the moment that Jesus died – the curtain in the temple was ripped in two, from top to bottom.  Don’t miss the symbolism there.  Behind the curtain was a place only certain priests could go.  Behind the curtain was understood to be the physical place where God lived and dwelt.  Ordinary people were not permitted, they didn’t have access. There was no audience of 1.

The ripping of the curtain was God sending a message to all of humanity that what Jesus had just done changed the game. Maybe there’s a direct connection in our lives between these two thoughts.   Often, satisfying the crowd serves as the most significant curtain between me and the Lover of my soul.  Thank you Jesus for tearing it down and allowing me the freedom to live in you!

What a great chapter!  The Passion of Jesus is beginning to unfold.  There’s betrayal, swords, clubs, denials, and a naked guy – among other things.  But the thing that struck me was the story of the lady with the alabaster box.  The story takes place at Simon the Leper’s house.  Apparently, this guy had some sort of skin condition (leprosy is often used in Scripture generically to describe all kinds of skin conditions).  Humans, we love our labels don’t we?

But the nameless lady enters the picture and commits an act of worship that is so extravagant that it draws the ire of many who are present.  But we know her story.  And, according to Jesus, we know it precisely because of her extraordinary act.  I wonder how often I offer to God things that cost me nothing.  More than I care to admit….I hold back.  I play it safe.  I worship…to a point.  Then the “let’s not get to carried away” voice kicks in.

CeCe Winans recorded a powerful song about this that I love!  Every time I hear it, it messes me up.  Take a moment, go listen to it here:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uq8VP9osGrg

Find an alabaster box in your life and do something extravagant today.

This whole chapter reminded me just how temporary all the “permanent” things about life are.  The buildings, Wall Street, our neighborhoods and homes…all of life as we experience it day by day is completely….well, temporary.

There are lots of people who are a whole lot smarter than me who like to discuss and argue over time tables and when things will happen or wont happen.  But, to me, the truth I need to embrace today is that the spiritual realities of God’s kingdom are far more important and make up the truly permanent part of my life.

The challenge is that we need to look beyond the structures of our culture and society that are so massive and so impressive and see the invisible Kingdom of God that is all around us.  How can we participate in that Kingdom today?

There are over 50 times in the books of the New Testament referred to as “The Gospels” – Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John – where Jesus has a conversation or interaction with someone and those who witness the event are described as being amazed or astonished.

Many of you may know Troy.  He is on our ministry staff, he and his wife, Ashley, lead our children’s ministry, and he is a close friend of mine.  Troy has a problem though.  He overuses certain words.  When I say that he overuses certain words, I mean that he WAY OVERUSES those words.  It’s actually one of the things that people who know him love about him.  One of his favorites is the word “ridiculous” (you should ask him to spell it sometime).

One of  the other word he uses way too much is “amazing”.  He slaps it on pretty much everything he likes.  The TV show LOST…amazing.  Homemade nachos…amazing.  Wired Magazine…amazing.  Revolutionary Road (easily the worst movie I’ve had the misfortune of seeing in quite some time)…you guessed it….amazing.

I don’t think Troy is alone in this though.  The bar for what we are willing to describe as amazing, doesn’t seem to be set very high.  Yet, sometimes our faith can become routine and feel like anything BUT amazing.  When’s the last time you were amazed at God? At his love?  At his wisdom and insight for your life?  At his goodness toward you?

What a great opportunity we have today – reflect on Jesus – on his love and compassion.  Take the time today to be…amazed.

Check out this video – it’s amazing!

http://www.ignitermedia.com/products/iv/singles/2/Are-You-Amazed

Psalms 6 & 7

As you may know, the Psalms were written as songs.  King David wrote a lot of them and he could play a mean harp.  I love that when David was in trouble, he wrote songs.  Sometimes they were terribly over the top, but they were always the raw and authentic emotion of what he was going through.   Just a few thoughts on David’s song entitled (conveniently enough) Psalm 7:

David asks God to rise up in anger….really?  Anger?!?!  Isn’t it funny how we only want God to be angry at someone else? David even says “my enemies”.  Not “God’s enemies” or “the enemies of what’s right”.  Kind of a far cry from Jesus’ instructions to love and pray for our enemies. And this is the guy that the Bible calls “a man after God’s own heart.”  Maybe it was that David felt comfortable enough with God not to fake it.

The other thing that David says that I find pretty whacky, is that he asks God to judge him according his own righteousness and integrity.  Ummmm…no thanks.  I want God to judge me based on the righteousness and integrity of His son and what he has done. Still, what a challenging thought to live a life worthy of making that request.

After reading these songs, what is evident to me is that our experiences don’t differ that much from anyone else’s. We all experience moments of anger and lack mercy while at the same time asking for it.  We all believe that while we may not be perfect, we’re not nearly as bad as the next guy.  We all fear.  We’re all insecure.  We’re all looking for a safe place.  We all presume things upon God.  Honestly, in reading Psalms I hope you will find what I have.  That the names and faces have been changed to protect the innocent.  But, in the end, he’s singing my song.

Be authentic in your conversation with God today.  He knows any way….

One thing that hit me as I read today was that God’s Kingdom is nothing like humanity’s, and even when we understand that, it’s easy to still screw it up.  Jesus makes 2 interesting and profound statements in this chapter about God and his Kingdom.  Speaking of little kids he says, “for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.“  A few minutes later, after a conversation with a rich dude about heaven, Jesus declares, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!”

The crazy part is that, even the very poorest among us are the wealthiest and most privileged people in the world, not only today, but in the course of human history.  To say nothing of those of us who haven’t really worried about a meal in a while, if ever.  Tragically, I think we hear what Jesus is saying, but I don’t think we really believe him.  We don’t say it out loud, but I think there’s a part of us that says, “There goes Jesus giving one of his crazy comparisons again!”  Almost like we’re listening to the advice of someone like Dr. Phil.

I think it’s easy to read statements like the second one and assume that Jesus is telling us something about God.  But, I think he’s telling us something about ourselves: about how easily money becomes our god.  How we trust in it and put our faith in it, rather than Him.  Thankfully, Jesus reminds of the love, compassion, and grace of God by reminding us that what is impossible with man, is possible for God.

With these 2 descriptions in mind, reflect on the nature of God’s Kingdom today and the implications for your life and how you live.  What are you thinking and feeling?

One of the most significant parts of this story is that it emphasizes the preeminence of Jesus.  The Law of God (represented by Moses) and the Prophets (represented by Elijah) taken together were understood to be the whole of God’s communication with and instructions to humanity.  This was/is a very powerful understanding in the Jewish faith and explains why Peter said what he said.

But, after that the cloud speaks to them, the Scriptures tell us that they look up and don’t see anything or anyone else except Jesus.    No more Moses.  No more Elijah.  No more Law.  No more Prophets.   It wasn’t that they were being done away with.  It was that they had their culmination and fulfillment in Jesus.  Powerful!  Even his closest followers hadn’t grasped who Jesus was.   They knew he was important.  They even considered him to be Messiah.  But even at that, many had placed him right alongside Moses and Elijah.  On that mountain though, God was demonstrating that it was ALL about Jesus.

I think there’s a powerful message in this story for us.  Had this played out today, Peter would’ve suggested that we build 3 temples as well.  But they would’ve been for Jesus, the Bible, and the Church. The Scriptures and the Church are important and sacred.  However, much like the Law and Prophets, they are there to point us and connect us to Jesus.

My prayer for you is that when you crack open the Scriptures or leave from our Sunday celebrations, that you would look up and not see anything except Jesus.  Today, may everything else get stripped away from your vision.  And, may the love and presence of the Savior surround you.