As far as the east is from the west

 

"As far as the east is from the west, so far does He remove our transgressions from us." Ps.103:12

"He will again have compassion on us; He will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea." Micah 7:19

As I sit here on the deck of our rented house, I gaze over the vastness of an ocean that stretches off into the horizon, far beyond not only my vision, but my imagination. I've always been a mountain girl, but goodness gracious, what a glorious gift the Lord has also given us in the beach and sea. What an extravagant, gift-giving Father we have. Thank You, Lord. 

But my thankfulness for the beauty of His creation pales today as I consider the boundless depths of His salvation. And sitting here on this deck, gazing at the pounding waves and reading a wonderful book by Levi Lusko (The Last Supper on the Moon), I am staggered to silent and tearful awe at the stunning gift Jesus' forgiveness on the cross. 

The first of Jesus' seven last statements on the cross was "Father, forgive them for they do not know what they do." (Luke 22:34) As Levi points out, "The first time He spoke, it was to pray." In fact, three of His seven last statements were all prayer...meaning nearly half of His words at the very end of His life were praying to His Father. Is that how we begin our days? On the most horrific day in the history of mankind with the most momentous work ever to be accomplished riding on His bloody, beaten shoulders, Jesus prayed..and prayed.  Oh Father, help us to pray. Teach us to pray. Thank You for the gift of prayer.

But here's the thing--He didn't pray for Himself. I certainly would have. No, He prayed for those who had betrayed Him, beaten Him, tried Him, stripped Him,  shouted insults at Him, rejected Him, mocked Him. No, not just the soldiers...or Pilate...or Herod...or the screaming crowd. He prayed that God would forgive you, forgive me, as well. Forgive us of the monstrous, seemingly infinite load of sin and selfishness and pride and envy and ingratitude and gossip that we bear, but He took. Oftentimes we fail to see it. We paint our sins with muted colors of gray and sepia--all our excuses our rebranding (e.g. not gossip but giving helpful information, not selfishness but being my authentic self and on and on) our minimizing. 

But our sin really is that bad, that hideous. If you doubt that, look at the price that was paid for your forgiveness. Revisit the cross in all its horror, cruelty, injustice. And remember that on those crossbeams, we crucified Perfection Himself...perfect love, grace, joy, hope, forgiveness, justice. 

And remember, as Lusko points out--"At the cross, He was actually paying for what He was praying for."The only One who could truly pay for our forgiveness, also prayed for our forgiveness. In full. "It is finished."

"As far as the east is from the west. "

"Cast into the depths of the sea." 

So here's my question: if we have been forgiven of such an infinite, unfathomable amount, how on earth can we not forgive the relatively infinitesimal amount of sin against us?  I say this to my shame, because put me right up there with the best when it comes to holding onto unforgiveness when a person has hurt someone I love. Yeah sure, you can hurt me, but heaven help you if you hurt one of my loved ones! I can greedily clutch my forgiveness tighter to my heart than Scrooge with his beloved money (before his redemption!). "Nope, you devastated my child...my sister...my best friend. No forgiveness for you ever! As in NEVER!" 

News flash--wrong answer! 

Because here's the truth: as Jesus shared with Peter, we are to forgive, not seven times, but seventy times seven! In other words, never ever, ever will you get to the end of the amount of times you are to forgive, because your Savior has forgiven you "as far as the east is from the west"--i.e. endless!  We are to forgive...and forgive...and forgive...again...and again...and again. Because that's what Jesus did for you, for me...literally to infinity and beyond.

So today, will you pause to truly consider the riches of the love of God that would go to such depths and heights to purchase your forgiveness. He offers you the treasure of infinite forgiveness and glorious grace. If you've never accepted this gift of all gifts, please do it today. Today is the day of salvations, and oh my what a wondrous day it will be!

And for all who are reading this, please take time right now to ponder anew the wonder, the stunning extent of Christ's forgiveness. The oceans depths cannot even begin to contain the breadth of His forgiveness. 

Thank You, thank You, thank You Lord Jesus. You are worthy of all praise and glory and honor. Please show each of us today where the infection of unforgiveness hides in the recesses of our heart. Help us to focus on Your cross, to fix our eyes on You so that as we remember all You have done for us, we will be enabled to forgive the relatively minuscule amount of offense against us. How dare we who have been forgiven so, so much, be unwilling to forgive so, so little. 

To God be the glory.

A new season...a new start...a reminder of old Truth!

 Happy summer!  Oh my, how I love the warmth, the pace, the beauty of summer.  Thank You Lord!  And with this new season, I'm also incredibly grateful for fresh starts--including getting back to this blog. Your mercies are new every morning, Father; great is Your faithfulness. (Lam.3:21-24--one of my very favorite passages).  Aren't you thankful we serve a God of second and third and fourth and on and on chances? 

In light of that, here is one of my very favorite quotes from Paul David Tripp. I love it, because I need this reminder every single day. I truly am a spiritual amnesiac. I know the Truth...but I forget...again and again.  And remembering--and remembering the Truth, not the lies the world or our own flesh feed us--is absolutely critical.  So here it is--

"We just never stop talking to ourselves. We never stop preaching some kind of gospel to ourselves. It's a gospel of aloneness, partiality, poverty, inability--of functional hopelessness--or it's the true gospel of Jesus Christ, the gospel of hope, mercy, forgiveness, rescue, love, transformation; of never being alone, of never being without help; of One who is near, of One who cares; of a beautiful forever awash in victory. We're always listening to what we're preaching. 

Today, what kind of gospel will you preach to you, and what effect will it have on how you live?"

Yes, we are all always talking and preaching to ourselves. James reminds us that there is great power in the tongue--our tongues can be used for great good or terrible evil. And this applies just as much to the way we speak to ourselves, our inner monologues, as it does to the way we speak to and about other people. 

Today, will you ask yourself: what kinds of words am I speaking to myself? What kind of gospel am I preaching?  Am I repeating the world's gospel of lies--the gospel of inadequacy and aloneness and hopelessness and fear?  Or am I rehearsing the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ--the gospel of redemption and steadfast love and grace and mercy and hope. His mercies are new every morning, noon, and evening. He is forever faithful and His steadfast love never, ever ceases or even diminishes. It's a new season and time for a new reminder to do what we know, but tend to forget.  So today, right now, let's be sure we're preaching the Truth to ourselves. His gospel is glorious, and it is gloriously good news for our hearts and our lives--let's preach it! 

To God be the glory. 

Maundy Thursday thoughts

"And He came the third time and said to them, 'Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? It is enough; the hour has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners."

Maundy Thursday. It is Thursday of Holy Week, and finally, the hour has come. As David Mathis writes in his magnificent book, Rich Wounds, "All history hinges on this hour...His dying began long before this hour, but now in Gethsemane, He must face the death to self that comes before the death at Calvary. Never has a soul been in such anguish. Never has a human been so undeserving of death. Never has anyone else faced such horror: to be made sin on behalf of others--to put Himself forward in our place." 

Think of all the times Jesus has said, "My hour has not yet come"--because He awaited God's appointed time and plan for our salvation. A plan that would demand not just painful betrayal and abandonment, horrific suffering and death, but surely infinitely worse--that He, the perfect, sinless Lord would bear all sin, for all mankind, for all time. And He would, for the first time ever in uncreated time and history, be separated from perfect, loving, glorious fellowship with His Father. Instead, Jesus would bear God's full righteous wrath against all sin, all evil. Jesus bore that unbearable punishment for you, for me...for His hour had come. 

The hour of His ultimate suffering. Our hour of utterly undeserved salvation. Thank You, Jesus. Thank You for choosing to bear the unbearable in order to give us the unimaginably glorious gift of redemption and eternal life. 

There is so much to see on this day, this Maundy Thursday, that should make us fall to our knees and worship in stunned adoration. Might we all spend time today pondering all that happened on this day and then immediately lift it up to God in praise and worship. But as a tiny place to begin, here are just two--

First, one of the most stunning statements to me in Scripture occurs on the evening of this very day. We're told that after Jesus has revealed that one of his disciples will betray Him, after washing His disciples dirty feet, after sharing the last supper with them and giving them the bread and wine that symbolized His body and blood which He would shed for them (and us), we're told in Mark 14:26, "And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives." 

Oh please don't miss this--in the midst of facing imminent horror and suffering beyond anything any of us ever have or ever will be able to imagine, Jesus joined His disciples in singing a hymn. How could He sing?  

Such defiant joy. Such trust in His Heavenly Father and His Father's plan. Such beauty in the midst of overwhelming ugliness. Singing because He saw the joy set before Him--completing His work of our redemption and bringing us to glory. He sang, because He loved us so much that He rejoiced in what His suffering, death and resurrection would accomplish--our presence with Him forever and ever. 

It's possible Jesus and the disciples were singing Psalm 118 as it is part of the Hallel (Pslams 113 through 118 which are sung or recited on every Jewish holy day). And just as a reminder, here are a few of the verses they may have been singing from that climatic psalm in the Hallel: "The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This is the Lord's doing; it is marvelous in our eyes. This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice, and be glad in it." (118:22-24)

Jesus is the Stone rejected by the builders. Jesus is the capstone of creation and salvation. And what Jesus has done for us is indeed, marvelous, glorious, wondrous beyond all imagining in our eyes!  Praise You, Lord Jesus! 

But consider that "this is the day the Lord has made" refers to that very day, that very hour when Jesus would suffer and die for our sins to bring His beloved children to glory. Jesus was singing and rejoicing over that day--that horrific, terrible day that He was facing. Again, He was singing for our salvation. How can we not sing? No matter what suffering we might be enduring right now, how can we not sing?  

Yes, Lord, no matter what, we praise You and thank You for this day we are living right now. This day today, with all its challenges and victories, sorrows and joys, disappointments and blessings. But we also rejoice and praise You for that day over two thousand years ago on Calvary. Thank You is woefully inadequate, but praise You, praise You, praise You. 

And secondly, a brief thought about the meaning of the word Maundy. It's Latin for "command." Specifically this relates to Jesus' command to His disciples to love one another. "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that You are my disciples, if you have love for one another." (John 13:34-35) 

I've always thought of this solely in terms of our love--how we're commanded to love one another. And, of course, that is absolutely true. But at a deeper level, notice Whose love this is all based upon--"just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another." This is about the stunning, infinite, beautiful love of Jesus. What can possibly compare to His love?  He would love to the uttermost by bearing our sins, by dying for us on the cross, and by being raised to new life so that we could enjoy abundant eternal life. We're commanded to love, but it's all, all, all about Jesus' love.

Again, David Mathis' words, "Having been loved like this, how can we not love one another? How can we not, as the beneficiaries of Christ's irreplaceable sacrifice, ache to empty our own selves for another's good? Having tasted such fullness from Him, how can we not gladly pour ourselves our to meet the needs of others? 

Yes, we will love as He commanded. But Maundy Thursday does not turn on our love. This is a night to marvel at what Jesus embraced for us. To be astounded at the uniqueness of His sacrificial love. To wonder that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Rom.5:8)."

Please don't let this day pass without worshiping the wonderful Lamb of God who took away the sins of the world. Praise Him for His infinite love and His terrible, beautiful sacrifice. Praise Him for providing The Way for our salvation but also the way for us to love others--not in our own paltry, puny strength, but in His. We can love others only because He--the Lamb of God and the Lion of Judah--first loved us. And for such love, we simply fall to our knees and worship. 

To Jesus--the Lion and the Lamb--be all the glory.

Who are you listening to in this New Year?

A simple question to ask yourself for the New Year: what voices are you listening to on a consistent basis? 

In our Bible study, we've been examining the book of Joshua (which I highly recommend!), and last week we saw the Israelites being deceived by the Gibeonites. I won't go into the details here (it's in Joshua ch.9), but suffice it to say, I was challenged by the way the Israelites listened to the Gibeonites tall tale, asked them questions, listened to their answers, and even examined some of the physical evidence the Gibeonites produced to bolster their fib. 

But here's what the Israelites categorically failed to do--they never took it to their Heavenly Father in prayer. Joshua 9:14 starkly declares, they "did not ask counsel of the Lord." Hmm. Think about it. The Israelites entered into conversation with the Gibeonites, asking questions and listening to explanations. Yet they never paused to go to the ONLY One who knew everything, who fully understood the truth, who already had a track record of giving His people perfect plans for conquering the first two cities in the promised land, who loved them and who always provided for them. They listened to all those Gibeonite voices but never sought to listen to the voice of God, the voice of truth. Houston, we have a problem. 

But what does God’s Word say?  “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.” Prov.3:5-6  When we need His wisdom—which, of course, each of us does every day of our lives!—He promises to give it to us.  For instance, we’re promised in James 1:5, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.”  Or as Mt.7:7 puts it: “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you.” When we’re burdened and discouraged, He tells us to “COME TO ME, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Mt.11:28-29  

When the way ahead seems incredibly dark and confusing, Jesus promises us that “I AM THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD. Anyone who follows Me will never walk in the darkness but will have the Light of Life.” (John8:12)  When we feel weak and unable, the psalmist tells us to “Cast your burden on the LORD, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved.” (Ps.55:22) When we’re overcome with fear and anxiety, He assures us in His Word, “Fear not, for I AM with you; be not dismayed, for I AM your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.” (Isa.41:10). We all suffer from spiritual amnesia, so we need to go to His Word to listen to HIS voice and be reminded once again of who He is and all He can do.

Sadly, that’s not what the Israelites did. They evaluated the Gibeonites’ claims based not upon the perfect all-seeing wisdom of God but based upon the very limited amount their eyes could see and their common sense could supply. That’s called walking by sight.  When we start walking by sight rather than by faith, we will inevitably stumble and fall.

So what's the antidote for deception and listening to the wrong voices?  Well, duh--listen to THE voice: the voice of truth!  Listen to God's voice. And how do we do that? By abiding in His Word. That means we read it, study it, ponder it, maybe pause for little moments during our day to read a verse or two from it. 

Let me ask you: how often do you check your phone during the day?  hmm. When you’re waiting in line at the grocery store, for instance, do you tend to pull out your phone and start perusing instagram or Facebook or whatever social media's latest fad might be?  You do know, right, that the geniuses in Silicon Valley spend gobs of money and effort to make sure their stuff is addictive in order to keep us on it as much as possible. Don’t let all their voices drown out the voice of truth!  

Here’s an idea: let’s replace some of that scrolling with scripture!  Get a Scripture app on your phone and the next time you’re standing in line, read some Scripture instead! 

Be deliberate and discerning about what voices you allow into your ears and heart on a daily basis. As we’ve seen, the Israelites listened to the voices of the Gibeonites but failed to listen to the voice of God. Make sure, no matter what, that God’s voice in God’s Word is the voice you listen to every day. Even if it’s only a couple of minutes—God’s Word is supernatural, and He can do amazing things even with a few moments. 

Ask yourself if there are some voices you’ve been listening to that are not reflective of beauty, goodness, and truth?  For example, are you listening to certain podcasts or watching certain programs that you know are untruthful, unwise, God-rejecting or that are somehow discouraging you? We need to be discerning about what voices we allow to fill our ears and minds on a regular basis. 

And I've shared this before, but that’s because I believe it can be so life-changing! So here it is again!: Try to make God’s voice the first thing you listen to in the morning. Don’t open your phone or computer or pick up anything else to read until after you’ve spent time a few minutes reading and listening to God’s voice in His Word. 

So a simple but profoundly important encouragement for this New Year--be discerning regarding the voices you are listening to on a consistent basis and be deliberate in daily listening to and heeding the life-giving, truth-telling, destiny-altering, hope-restoring, peace-instilling voice of Almighty God. 

Thank You, Father, for choosing to reveal Yourself to us in Your written Word. Thank You for the power of Your Word to change hearts and lives. And thank You for the gift of all gifts: Jesus, the Living Word How thankful we are for Your written and Your Living Word!

To God be the glory.

Beauty from brokenness

"Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing." James 1:2-4

It's been a minute, hasn't it?  Here I am, several months since my last blog, and the reason is simple: I just didn't feel like writing. Hmm. If I only did things I feel like, I would've eaten Hayes Barton Cafe peanut butter pie (or any form of Hayes Barton Cafe cake, for that matter) for breakfast...and lunch...and, of course, dinner, because, well, duh, it's Hayes Barton cake!  But since I need to choose to do what I know to be right (and beneficial), I'll save the cake for dessert after dinner, and instead get busy doing what God's called me to do right now. Faith over feelings. 

It''s been a challenging few months. Normally, fall is my favorite time of the year, but this year has had more than its share of losses and sorrows. Dear friends losing a beloved child. Others losing a precious parent. Painful losses in our family that have cut deep and hard. Constant reminders these past months that we live on a broken planet, and we will all suffer from that brokenness, loneliness, sadness. 

But God. 

"As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.” Gen.50:20. "My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my potion forever." Ps.73:26 "But God raised him from the dead..." Acts 13:30 "...but God shows his love for us in that while we were sinners, Christ died for us." Rom 5:8 "But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved” Eph.2:4-5

But God takes our brokenness and turns it into beauty. As I read recently in a blog, "In His timing, He will take all our grief, failures, and fears and paint them into something wildly beautiful. He's in the business of it. Beauty alone is worthy to behold, but beauty from brokenness is far more compelling." Oh my, isn't that the truth?  It's suffering that ultimately produces the beauty of depth of character, strength, sweet empathy, kind compassion, deep gratitude. 

None of us would ever choose to suffer, would we? But oh my, how God uses it in our lives. I'm already seeing some of that beautiful fruit of brokenness. It's hard-won growth to be sure, but I trust and know that  our Heavenly Father loves us beyond all imagining, and all His ways and plans are for our ultimate good and His glory. So we can trust and rest in Him. 

In fact, fall, itself, depicts this truth. Look around at the astounding colors of the leaves--startling crimson, brilliant orange, sunny yellow. Seriously. Pause and notice the trees for they won't be with us much longer. Soon those branches will be bare and brown. But for now, wow, stunning!  And don't forget to take a moment and give God thanks for creating such beauty. 

But those lovely colors come from the death of the leaves. As those leaves prepare to die and fall to the ground, they allow the beautiful colors to shine through. 

From brokenness comes beauty. 

From sorrow comes steadfastness.

From a cross comes a crown. 

That's what God does and who He is. He makes all things, all things new. And He is even now, making all things beautiful in His time...even that hardest, most perplexing, most challenging difficulty in your life. Trust Him with your brokenness and know that His finished masterpiece will be beautiful beyond all imagining. 

Thank You, Father. To You be all the glory.

"Rejoice, though you have considered all the facts"

"Rejoice, though you have considered all the facts" (from a poem by Wendell Barry)

Did you know that the root of the word "joy" actually means "rejoice."  And rejoice is a verb. Thus our joy derives not so much from a certain emotion or feeling but from an action. From our settled attitude and commitment to rejoice--to look for reasons for gratitude, thankfulness and rejoicing. And then to do it--that is, to not only open our eyes and hearts to see and notice the reasons for joy in our lives but then to express it in some way...write it, sing it, dance it, share it, pray it.   

Moreover--and I love this!--Barry's phrase indicates that our rejoicing does not exclude or ignore the facts, even the hardest, darkest facts in our lives. No, to the contrary, our rejoicing sees and acknowledges life's sorrows and challenges...yet even in the face of that reality, we choose to rejoice. 

For believers, no matter what we might be enduring or facing, there are always, always, always infinite grounds for rejoicing. Why? Because our God is with us. Our God is for us. Our God loves us so much that He came to earth to live the life we could never live, to die the death that we deserved, and to rise again to new resurrection life so that we might live forever with Him in glory. And we can, and must rejoice, because our God is awesome, holy, beautiful, compassionate, loving, forgiving, powerful, joyful, just, merciful and on and on....beyond all imagining. 

That is our God and there is none other. How on earth can we not rejoice?

The psalmist puts it this way in Psalms 42 and 43: "Why, my soul, are you so dejected? Why are you in such turmoil? Put your hope in God, for I will still praise Him, my Savior and my God." (Ps.42:5,11 and Ps.43:5) 

Today, every day, we have the choice whether we will live in dejection, turmoil and despair or whether we will live in hope and rejoicing in our Savior and our God. As my daughter often reminds (and scolds me whenever I'm living in discouragement and defeat in a fruitless effort to prepare for some mythic worst possible outcome!) "Mom, choose to walk in hope!" 

Yes, let's join the psalmist and counsel our hearts. It's time to do some preaching to ourselves rather than listening to our selves. Heart, why are you so dejected? Look up!  Look at who your God is and all He has done. Put your hope in Him. He will never leave you, never forsake you, never fail you. So hope in God and rejoice in your Savior...starting today, right now!  

To God be the glory. 

A few of God's gifts today...

    Well, it's been quite a while since I've written--in fact, over four months--so clearly not exactly killing it on the consistency quotient. But I'm going with the wisdom of the great Ralph Waldo Emerson who once wrote that "A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds..." 

    In all seriousness, this has been a clear example of how challenging it can be to start back doing something you should and want to be doing...but inertia takes over. And before you know it, that important priority gets buried by countless seemingly urgent priorities. But important things are rarely deemed urgent while urgent things are typically not important, at least in the long run. So here's the bottom line: since I can't come up with even one decent excuse for my laziness and inconsistency, how about we thank the Lord that His mercies are new every morning...afternoon..evening...week...month...year. And let's begin again.

    Thank you Lord for Your grace. 

    And for fresh starts. 

    And for being our good, good Father.  

    And for Jesus. Paul put it perfectly in 2 Cor.9:15, "Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!" What a treasure we have in our Savior and Redeemer!  

    And on this day, Father, thank You for Your innumerable gifts in our lives. Thank You especially for the life of JoAnna McMillan who went home to be with You on this day several years ago. I think of her and miss her every single day. But what a treasure and gift she was and is to all of us. The very best of mothers, daughters, wives, sisters, friends. Her infectious joy, her indomitable love, her hilarious sense of humor, her abounding concern and compassion for others. her never-failing wisdom and common sense, her living-life-to-the-full attitude...I could go on and on. But the point is--in JoAnna, God gave us an enormous gift. And boy, did He do a good job in making her!  I'm so thankful she was and is my friend and that I will one day get to see her again. 

    Thank You Lord for friends and family on earth and in heaven above. They are truly some of Your choicest gifts to us. 

    Today, a couple more simple things to thank God for--a hot shower after a chilly, windy, soaking wet day of watching our son and his team play golf. Hot water: have you thought about it recently?  You can turn on a faucet and steaming hot water comes pouring out. How many places in our world lack water, this most basic and important of needs. Yet we have an abundance of it. And we even have hot water. What an extravagant gift that we can enjoy on a daily basis. Let's don't let the seeming ordinariness of the gift blind us to how truly extraordinary it is.  

    Thank You also, Father, for the fellow believers You put on our paths to encourage us along the way. We are not alone. We are not running this race of faith alone. God has His people everywhere!  Don't forget that. When was the last time you thanked God for the gift of running into a brother or sister in Christ when you were feeling down or worried? I think those kinds of encounters almost fall into the category of "angels unawares." Oh my, how thankful I am for such friends and for all the ways and times God brings us together. Thank You, Father for the gift of Your people wherever they may be. Might we, too, be Your agents of encouragement to those You put in our paths today. 

    Just a few of the gifts I'm specifically thanking the Lord for today. How about you? Might we open our eyes to His unending goodness and grace in our lives and take the time to thank Him and give Him glory.

    To God be the glory.