The Paradox of Humility

From an early age, we do a pretty good job advocating for our own interests. We hone our skills, using all available resources, to fulfill our desires. We are continually striving to achieve our selfish goals. We like being first… first to be selected for a team… first in our class… first to the finish line. The world’s standards reinforce these selfish instincts. In fact, our culture (e.g., the economy, advertising, etc.) expects us to behave this way. God turns this self-focus upside down. A child of God, according to Paul, has an obligation to quit living according the world’s rules and follow the leading of God’s Spirit (Romans 8:12-17). Sometimes, even well-meaning, religious people misunderstand this lesson.

To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable: “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men – robbers, evildoers, adulterers – or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’

“But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’

“I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” Luke 18:9-14

There is a stark contrast between the person living according to a worldly perspective and a person living according to the Spirit’s leading. These are mutually exclusive or contradictory points of view. The worldly man looks out for his own interests, while the humble man desires to fulfill the interests of Jesus Christ (Paul refers to Timothy in this way, Philippians 2:21). The self-focused man is interested in comfort, convenience, and prestige. The humble man finds happiness, contentment, and peace in serving according to the Lord’s will and looking out for the interests of others (Philippians 2:4).

Transitioning our thinking from the earthly mind to the spiritual mind is a difficult task. Living in humility requires us to acknowledge and appreciate the great mercy God is showering upon us. May the Lord bless us to live humbly and gently, worthy of His calling (Ephesians 4:1-2).

Our Father in heaven,

You are the true living God. You, dear Lord, are worthy of respect, praise and honor. You are the One offering forgiveness and hope. Because of your great mercy, in humility, we choose to live according to your Spirit. Help us replace our earthly, prideful thinking with your spiritual, heavenly leading. By faith we believe your Word to be true. Give us strength to overcome Satan’s temptation. We choose to humble ourselves and trust in Your exalting power. In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Carl Smith
Stephenville

Living Like I Worship in the Catacombs

When I’ve died and breathed my last

and you search for my memory,

the essence of me--

bones or no bones--

will be found in labyrinthine passageways,

frequenting twists and turns in silence.

The catacombs.

I will sing so loud, but so soft,

joining the oppressed and the true.

And my essence will be tinged

with guilt, for though my passion rings true

and my desires align with theirs,

my body remains unscathed,

my heart unscarred,

and my mind was never destroyed

by those who fear what we are.

Perhaps I lacked in courage.

I should have been more bold.

And my insides quake at the thought

of roaming through Rome,

risking a body broken.

But a broken body

and willing heart

warrant clean, white robes,

tiny rock in hand,

a feast of surreal abundance,

more than conquering in the end.

Search for me in the catacombs.

I want to know what it is like

to risk all for the kingdom.

I think about this so often. There are days when my confidence fails. I feel completely discouraged. I think about the culture in which we live--the ways that it shapes children, the ways that it provides stumbling blocks for men, the ways that it plants seeds of inadequacy in the minds of women. I wonder, how can we stand against such a mighty beast? One that scorns that which we claim and spits at our feet when we declare that there is Truth. And that Truth is real. My mind travels to dark places and chooses to dwell there, hampering my ability to emit a sweet fragrance in the midst of those (those who are the culture) who need to smell something that is sweet.

At the end of days like these, when I pull out my journal and Bible and prepare to fully enter the presence of the Lord, I feel ashamed. I’ve never lost my father to the arena. I’ve never had to travel to secret places to worship in hushed tones. I do not walk the streets and see my brothers and sisters hanging from crosses because of what they claim to believe. And my spirit is so weak that when I listen to five minutes of the six o’clock news I am ready to wave my white flag...?

No. I close my eyes and think of Ephesus. I think of Smyrna. I think of Pergamum, and Thyatira, and Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea:

“I will give the victor the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.”

“I will give the victor some of the hidden manna. I will also give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name is inscribed that no one knows except the one who receives it.”

“The victor and the one who keeps My works to the end: I will give him authority over the nations....I will also give him the morning star.”

“In the same way, the victor will be dressed in white clothes, and I will never erase his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before My Father and before His angels.”

“The victor: I will make him a pillar in the sanctuary of My God, and he will never go out again. I will write on him the name of My God, and the name of the city of My God--the new Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God--and My new name.”

“The victor: I will give him the right to sit with Me on My throne, just as I also won the victory and sat down with My Father on His throne.” (Revelation 2:7, 11, 17, 26-29; 3:5, 12, 21 NIV).

I read these and I am reminded that I can engage this culture. I can be in it, but be not of it. Not only that--we are called to be in it, but not of it. We can be bold and courageous. We should take some risks. We can handle some hard knocks . . . Ephesus, Laodicea, Pergamum . . .

There is no defeat of those who have already conquered.

Our God of mercy:
Remind us daily that the victory is ours. Compel our spirits to boldness. Give us confidence, because we know that you have given us a new name. We desire to live in the newness of that name everyday, according to Your purpose. Jesus, we love you. We thank you for being the victor and sharing your victory with us. Holy Spirit, fill us up and guide us as we strive to be light in the midst of a culture of darkness. May our essence be that of humility. And through Christ alone we say,
Amen.

Erin Daugherty

Stephenville, TX

Sunday Morning: What's the Hype?

The worship of God comes in response of liberation for those oppressed and seeking freedom under Yahweh’s covenant. Israel within immediate exodus sings of God’s wonderful deeds through praise and poetry (Exod 15). Altars are to be built in the name of Yahweh identifying faithfulness, atonement, and awesome power (Gen 8:20, Gen 12:8, Gen 22:9, Gen 35:1; 1 Kings 18:30-40). All aspects of worship whether at the altar, in the temple, or in procession, praise God the creator, maker and rescuer, recognizing the triumph of Jesus the Lamb. This is the type of worship that is going on in heaven and earth, all the time. As the gospel of John in Chapter 4 indicates, worship is not focused upon place but rather the person in “Spirit and in Truth.” Worship becomes about the community living transformed lives and proclaiming through various acts of liturgy, songs, sanctification, and sacraments, as Christians are a redeemed people, no longer conformed to the world (Romans 12:1-3).

The community shares in the communion of the Triune God, freely acknowledging the name (Hebrews 13:15). There are many ways that Sunday morning can be renovating. Baptism and other sacraments speak of the old death but presently living newly resurrected identities. The Lord’s Supper speaks of God through Christ where we encounter intimacy and renewal. As Robert Webber mentions, the assembled people are the primary symbols of God’s presence. “We sing, we pray, we give tithes and offerings, we confess our sins, we affirm our faith in creeds, and we offer testimony to God’s grace in our lives” (Webber, 2010, 89). Christians worship to know how to celebrate the gospel in such a way as to show its attraction. Worship is a great moment within modern context to center upon unselfishness and sacrifice because much of American ideology focuses upon self-centeredness and self-worth. Liturgy should be carefully planned, empowered by scripture, aesthetically and creatively driven, confessional, testimonial, and sacred. And as the Psalmist suggests wonderfully, the liturgical gathering shall praise God’s awesome creation, his grace to all nations, justice for all, and the covenantal expectation believers are to live by (Ps. 103-105).

Prayer:

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen

-St. Francis of Assisi

Mic Biesboer
Stephenville, Texas

Living the Gospel

I’m curious. How would you react to this statement: “We have to be honest with ourselves and realize that if the message isn’t attractive and the people of God aren’t attractive, then we must not be telling the story right or we aren’t living the story correctly.”

I don’t know about you, but that hits me where it hurts. My first thought was, “Where have I failed—as a Christian and as a minister? What did I miss? Where’s the disconnect? But then I realized it’s not just “me,” it’s “us!”

The quote is from Hugh Halter and Matt Smay’s book, The Tangible Kingdom. And I should probably tell you it’s not a book about church-bashing nor is it “Ten Easy Steps to Righting All Wrongs.” Rather, it’s an honest attempt at encouraging church folks to be “kingdom people,” to use Dr. Ken Jones’ terminology. It’s about living out the kingdom of God on a daily basis where we live, work, play and worship. Sound familiar? The book is a compilation of the authors’ experiment of moving out of theory and into actuality as they share their struggles and successes. No more “this is what it should look like,” or “can we go to a seminar?” They did it. And are doing it!

Whereas we’ve considered ourselves fairly good at “telling the story” or what we like to call “preaching the gospel,” they (the authors) propose that we become better at “living the story.” Our dilemma is this: we have focused on leading people to a better understanding as we emphasized biblical authority, the inspiration of Scripture and the “how to” stories of conversion, but we have been weak at leading them to a better way of living. That’s why all the pollsters tell us there is virtually no difference between the churched and the unchurched regarding moral values. Hence, those on the “outside” don’t see anything to be gained by being on the “inside.” As the writers put it, “If our gospel is what people think it is, it’s no wonder that it’s not worth adding church to a busy recreational weekend.” If it hasn’t changed us, how will it change them?

The real lesson to be learned from Jesus’ encounter with the rich ruler (Luke 18) is not “money is bad.” The real lesson is “anything that gets in the way of kingdom living is bad.” Perhaps we should all take an inward look. What do people without Jesus see in us that makes them want what we’ve got? It’s my responsibility to take care of me. What a difference it would make if each of us took seriously the challenge to live the gospel.

Gracious Father you have described us as salt, leaven and light. So move in our hearts that we can “become” the gospel on a daily basis – not just know it. Impress on us the power of the gospel as a “lived message”. As the body of Christ instill in us a zeal for your purposes and an ear that hears your calling of us in moments that need your redeeming presence. O God thank you for Jesus who came to “show us the Father”. May we be imitators of Jesus everyday. Amen.

Bob Crass
Amarillo, Texas

More Than Meets The Eye

It was a tranquil early morning of -17°F with nothing but the stars over head as my wife and I drove down a lonely mountain highway in the Gunnison National Forrest one New Years Eve. It was going to be a long drive back to Texas, but we had started out early, before sunrise, in hopes of missing the drunk drivers that would be out that evening. I remember thinking about how pleasant and peaceful that morning was. I was with the love of my life traveling home from a wonderful ski trip in a four wheel drive Toyota Tacoma that I saved for and was completely paid for in full. Everything seemed all together and perfect as our eyes were focused on the road and our ears to the book on tape that was playing.

I still remember the part of the book we were on when my wife interrupted saying, “No, No, No, No...,” as my truck slid on black ice entering a curve with no traction. As we crossed over into the lane of oncoming traffic I began to realize that there was nothing I could do but wait to regain control of the vehicle again. I could hardly believe what was happening while at times we were airborne down a 30 foot drop off to the valley floor. Finally, the truck smashed into a large rail-road-tie that was in place because of so many that had met our fate. The rail road tie missed the cab of the vehicle by inches and we were left with nothing but the sound of the back tires spinning and slapping the bed of the pickup.

With no cell phone reception I was forced to walk back towards Gunnison in the dark bone chilling cold. I walked down lonely Colorado 114 and I thought about how different my day was turning out to be! What were we going to do? How long would it take for someone to drive along this stretch of highway. I began to plead with God for help in desperation that morning. I even began a light jog as I noticed a variety of all kinds of animal prints in the snow on the side of the road. Just about the time I was starting to get really worried I saw two headlights heading my way off in the distance. I signaled for the driver to stop, and with hesitancy the driver came to a stop and cracked her window. I explained to her that we had gotten into an accident and that my wife was alone inside the vehicle waiting for me to get help. The woman graciously welcomed me out of the cold into her vehicle and informed me that she would get me back to my wife and call for help. Charlotte was from Granbury, Texas, where I taught high school and offered us a ride home all the way back to Stephenville, Texas. I gladly accepted an thought how wonderful God truly is. He sent help to me that morning in the form of an amazingly kind woman.

Totalled! The representative from the insurance informed me that my truck was totaled. In insurance speak that meant my truck was worth more dead than alive! It was easier and more cost effective to give me a check for a new truck than it was to fix the one I had. My truck was only useful as scrap.

How often does society treat people that have crashed and gone off the cliff of life as totaled? How often do we do that as Christians! My favorite truck was just an object of steel, plastic, glass, and rubber, but a human is created in the image of God. (Gen. 1:27)

“16 So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! 18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20 We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. 21 God made him who had no sin to be sin[b] for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2nd Corinthians 5:16-21)

Even the worst of humanity is redeemable. God sent His Son to fix a relationship with humanity that no human could repair. The price was high, but without the blood of Christ we would all be totaled. However, the calling of His creation is that we see no man as totaled beyond repair, but rather redeemable through the saving blood of Christ. Just like Charlotte lived out her calling in helping two total strangers one early New Years Eve we too can be Christ’s Ambassadors in a dark and cold world!

Prayer

Lord, you hold the universe in your hand, and it is hard to believe that you would call me to be Your ambassador. Help me to see my neighbor through Your eyes with compassion and grace. Give me the wisdom and grace to restore those so desperate for your love and grace back to the comfort of your embrace. In all the words that come out my mouth season them with grace and mercy towards a broken world. Even as I find myself in a broken state please help me to realize that you will never give up on me and that I can be made whole once again. Father, thank You for Your amazing love that You have shown through Your Son, and it is in His name that I pray, amen.

Tanner Fain
Stephenville, Texas

Subject Line: FW

The other day I received an email from a friend from church. It was one of those that the subject line included “FW”. Everyone knows that means it’s something they received they liked and forwarded on to someone else. On an average day I probably get ten to twenty emails that include “FW”. They are usually videos about cute puppies sleeping on their backs barking like they are chasing some cat or something similar. Many are cute but most are worthless. Typically I just hit the delete key. For some reason this time I clicked on the link and watched a “youtube” video that started with an elderly gentleman listening to the news on his car radio. The announcer told of someone who was arrested for desecrating a WWII memorial. About that time his young grandsons got into the car and one asked, “Grandpa is something wrong?” He replied “some people have short memories and those who are too young to know need to be taught.” The grandsons look at each other perplexed as they drove off. The next scene is the grandfather and his two grandsons entering a movie theatre where they are playing black and white WWII reels and Ronald Regan narrating in the background. Interestingly, there were several other grandfathers in the audience with their grandchildren as well. Each of the grandparents, one after the other, looked at their grandchild and said, “I fought for you.” The short video ends with these words, “all gave some, some gave all.” After I dried the tears from my eyes I remembered something Jesus said, John 15:13 (ESV) “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” The grandfather was right, I have a short memory. Last Thursday was Veteran’s Day in America. We owe much to those who have sacrificed for our country. All gave some and some gave all. Thank you to those who serve.

Father, be with those who are out there protecting our country. Keep them safe and protect the families of those who have been left behind.

Doug Svien
Stephenville, Texas