A 'House of Peace'

 “If God will be with me and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat and clothing to wear, so that I come again to my father's house in peace, then the Lord shall be my God…”  Gen 28:20

Jacob’s prayer and hope for peace within the family was well founded. The family dynamic he was running from would match any modern day fiasco we could read about today. A house divided, mother against father, brother against brother, inheritance disputes, manipulation, deception, lack of communication, hatred, and murderous threats all rolled in one chapter (Genesis 27).  The emotional turmoil of intimate relationships shattered and a heart hungry for peace is reflected in Jacob’s oath, “If God will be with me …so that I come again to my father’s house in peace…” And herein is his hope. On the run, Jacob met God in his dream and he made a commitment to follow God. He named the place of his meeting, Bethel – ‘House of God’. Perhaps a reflection of his desire for peace and an understanding that only in God’s house, under His authority and submission to Him, would he find a peaceful house –a home.

I have never known anything but a peaceful, loving family environment. The words ‘shut-up’ were never allowed to be used in our family. We had daily meals together. We had a daily time of prayer so routine that even our dog, Ginger, participated in the closing Lord’s prayer. The only thing I remember ‘catching’ my father at, was being on his knees in prayer at 5AM every morning.  But this great blessing has not isolated me from the fact that many others live in situations more like Jacob’s than my experience.  And so, while I may not be able to ‘emphasize’ with the ravenous hunger for ‘peace’ in life’s most intimate relationships, I can’t but help to hold up the hope expressed by Jacob for the peace that comes from being a part of God’s loving household.  A cry for  'peace' that vibrates throughout all of scripture and is finally and complete answered in Jesus:

But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. (Ephesians 2:13-21 [ESV])

Lord, thank you for the perfect peace you bring to my life. May I walk in your peace today. May others know your peace...because we are all in need of it....AMEN.

JESUS I COME...

Out of my bondage, sorrow, and night,

Jesus, I come, Jesus, I come;

Into Thy freedom, gladness, and light,

Jesus, I come to Thee;

Out of my sickness, into Thy health,

Out of my want and into Thy wealth,

Out of my sin and into Thyself,

Jesus, I come to Thee.

Out of my shameful failure and loss,

Jesus, I come, Jesus, I come;

Into the glorious gain of Thy cross,

Jesus, I come to Thee.

Out of earth’s sorrows into Thy balm,

Out of life’s storms and into Thy calm,

Out of distress to jubilant psalm,

Jesus, I come to Thee.

Out of unrest and arrogant pride,

Jesus, I come, Jesus, I come;

Into Thy blessèd will to abide,

Jesus, I come to Thee.

Out of myself to dwell in Thy love,

Out of despair into raptures above,

Upward for aye on wings like a dove,

Jesus, I come to Thee.

Out of the fear and dread of the tomb,

Jesus, I come, Jesus, I come;

Into the joy and light of Thy throne,

Jesus, I come to Thee.

Out of the depths of ruin untold,

Into the peace of Thy sheltering fold,

Ever Thy glorious face to behold,

Jesus, I come to Thee.

Note: No one can find peace with family and others without first finding peace with God. You might have peaceful moments, but that's just a 'cease fire'.

How not to make a 'foal' of yourself.

(Jesus)...said to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately as you enter it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it. If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord has need of it and will send it back here immediately.’” 

Who were the owners of the donkey on which Jesus rode into Jerusalem? In times past when I read this passage, I entertained the idea that the disciples were opportunists. Having been commanded to go and find  an unridden donkey, they went searching in the city.  Perhaps making a few false attempts with owners who  were not so inclined to 'lend' their foal, but finally finding one whose owner was either not very attentive or whose keepers were confused about the intent or the identity of the disciples. But that concept does not line up with the character of Jesus. He would not misrepresent His intent or take advantage of an individual, nor allow His disciples to do so either. No...the ass was prepped and ready for this specific event, a divinely appointed interaction with the Son of God. 

So who were the owners and and how did they come to be a part of this event? Some thoughts: 

•  The owners were obedient to the prompting of the Holy Spirit. In some way they understood that it was important to take a specific ass ('...a young donkey tied, on which no one has sat...'), during a specific time period (perhaps  over several days), in a specific place ('...immediately as you enter into it...'),  and respond to any inquiries ('...the Lord needs it...'). 
• By patient anticipation, they were called to fulfill their part of the plan in giving permission to the disciples to take the donkey ("And they told them what Jesus had said, and they let them go.")
• The owners did not know the full plan of God, just the part to which  they were called to be obedient.
• God allowed them to 'join' Him as participants and see His will/plan unfold. 
• I believe the owners were active participants in the worship of Jesus as He entered the city. Hosanna! And maybe even telling their friends 'See that donkey...its ours! God told us to have it ready! Jesus is riding our donkey and it isn't even broken in yet!"

Lord, grant me a peaceful soul to hear you speak in the confused, noisy world...

Lord give me wisdom to discern your instruction...

and Lord, give me the strength and willingness to obey.

May I patiently watch in great anticipation of what you will do with my obedience...

and Lord, when you wow me with your plan, may I  dance in the streets in open worship of YOU!

Holy Check List

We live and die by ‘check off’ lists:

ü  Graduate from High School

ü  Graduate from College

ü  Find spouse

ü  Find job

ü  Find house

ü  vacation

ü  Go to church

ü  Pay bills

ü  Have kids

ü  Pay more bills

ü  Save for retirement

Each check off item has a more detailed check list that gets us to that goal. So it is an easy transition to view ‘lists’ in scripture as tasks to be completed in order to be holy.

ü  We must not indulge in sexual immorality as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in a single day.

ü  We must not put Christ to the test, as some of them did and were destroyed by serpents,

ü  nor grumble, as some of them did and were destroyed by the Destroyer.

ü  Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come. (I Cor 10:8-11)

Having completed our holy list, we look with admiration that we have arrived.

Job complete.  

But when we do not quite get our list completed, we have the sense of failure…a determination to do better the next day… an urgency to become what we know we should be.

However, ‘lists’ in scripture are not tasks to be completed but mile-markers and sign posts on this holiness road that lets us know we are on the right bus. We made the decision to entrust our life in the driver’s hands, HE is in control and we are riding along, actively embracing the journey.

For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. Whoever thus serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men. So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding. (Romans 14:17-19)

So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God,  for whoever has entered God's rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. (Hebrews 4:9-10)

Lord, help me to rest and trust You on this journey. Free me from the tyranny of task driven check lists and help me embrace Your Spirit’s direction and control in my life. 

Lord. He Stinks

John 11:38-42

Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, “Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days.” Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me.”  When he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” The man who had died came out, his hands and feet bound with linen strips, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”

Lord… He stinks!

Hindered in grave clothes and head wraps, Lazarus walked out of his casket and into a new life. Permanently dead and rotting away, Jesus simply called him to life. I wonder…did the smell of death still linger on him and his clothes? Did the regeneration of his body immediately eliminate the stench of a four-day-dead body? Did it take a while for the air to clear in and around the Spirit-breathed form of the man called Lazarus?

How about me? Does this regenerated man still waft an odor of death? Do the old ways still linger and stink. Probably. But I can’t deny that this once dead man has been resuscitated by God and called to new life.