Clarity Coming Down
but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; ~Isaiah 40:31
I don’t fly very often but when I do I generally fly at night. The atmosphere seems quieter and I usually nod off until we land. On the rare occasion that it is day time, I’ve had the unfortunate circumstance of bad weather and cloudy skies. All this translates in to me not being able to see outside the window and enjoy the view.
Friday as I took an early morning flight to Denver the skies were clear across the country and the weather was beautiful. As I settled down in my aisle seat I realized no one was sitting in my row. I slid over to the window as we prepared for takeoff and watched through the small opening. Ascending through the sky I watched the boats in the harbor get smaller and smaller until they appeared as small specks on the horizon.
Throughout the flight I occasionally peered out the window at the landscape below. Everything was fuzzy. I could see shades of green and tans, and lines which seemed to be roads cutting through the country but clarity wasn’t there. I couldn’t make out the details and intricacies of trees, cars, buildings, or people.
I nodded off for several hours until the pilot came over the speaker to tell us we were about to make our descent. Again, sliding over to the window, I spent the remaining time staring out that little window watching the landscape change. Lower and lower, my eyes became clearer to the world below. I was able to see things for what they were, no longer blurred by distance.
When we put our hope in Jesus and Him alone He takes us to new heights. Here we experience peace about the troubles we are facing. The hectic and often frustrating world seems so far away as we bask in the glory of the Lord. We are soaring on wings like eagles, as Isaiah said. My problems don’t seem so big anymore, but appear like tiny specks on the horizon, fuzzy and hard to make out.
In Matthew 17 Jesus takes Peter, John, and James up the mountain where He is transfigured. Basking in the glory of God Peter blurts out “it is good for us to be here, let us build shelters”. But those shelters don’t get built. While it certainly is good to be in the presence of God like that we are called to be in lights in the world(Matthew 5:14) and so we must come down.
As the landscape was getting clearer staring out that window it hit me that coming down from that high with Jesus gives me clarity in my problems. Sure they are the same size, but I was flying so high He showed me how big they were to Him, which isn’t very big at all. And as I came in for a landing it was smooth and I was safe, just like He promised.
Let the horse do the work
“I want you to take your hands off the reigns and trot over the bars without holding on.” The instructor said.
“You want me to do what?” I looked down at her perplexed from atop a beautiful, large horse. I hadn’t ridden on a horse in over 20 years and I had only been on this one for about 15 minutes.
“You’re leaning forward with your shoulders, using your own power to keep you up.” She replied. “You need to sit back more and allow the horse to do the work.”
I’m a sports guy, I’ve played them my entire life. The instructor went on to explain that in sports you are trained to lead with your shoulder and in horseback riding it’s the complete opposite. There’s this large, powerful horse underneath you, and if you try to hard to control him you never end up going the right way.
Reluctantly I let go, and went trotting over the bars laid out on the ground. My arms stretched out wide, I felt so unstable and was terrified I was going to go flying off.
“Go again.” She said.
Sometimes we feel like we are so wrapped up in sin that there is no way out. I’m in to deep we say. And we start pulling on the reigns in panic. We pull and we tug, and we twist, and when we look up we realize we aren’t where we wanted to be.
In John 8 the Pharisees bring a women caught in the act of adultery and throw her at Jesus feet. We all know the story, Jesus stoops down and writes in the sand and says “if any of you are without sin, cast the first stone”.
There’s a disappointing point in this story: “At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time”. Who knows what Jesus wrote in the sand, maybe He was pointing out their sins. But don’t you wish that verse said “At this, they were grieved, and repented and they wept with Jesus”?
We are so conditioned to not want to hear the truth and we fight it when we are (Galatians 4:16). We argue, “I can do what I want, God forgives all sins.” While that is true, God’s grace is not permission to live like the world. If we continue to keep pulling the reigns we’re not going to head down the path the Lord has for us.
Just like my instructor, Jesus didn’t say hey go work on that, fix your life, come back and then we can talk. No! He talked to her right then and there, broken and naked, full of sin. My instructor didn’t condemn me but correct me and guide me. In the same way, Jesus did not come to condemn, but convict(John 3). Satan is the one in your ear condemning you, mocking you, and making you feel like you can’t get out.
As the Pharisees all walked away they left her in the best place she could be: alone with Jesus. And at that moment, alone with the Lord, is where He gives us direction. “Go and sin no more” He said.
I was left alone with my instructor. I could have chosen to keep my hands on the reigns and try to ride it out but she was only trying to allow me to grow and learn. And as I let go and allowed that strong horse to carry me I was a little terrified but when it was over I was proud of my accomplishment and stronger than before.
1 Peter 5:10 says “But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you”. You may be going through a trial right now. Maybe you are terrified to let go. But know that as Peter says, after you suffer the Lord will perfect you, establish you, strengthen you, and settle you.
Rely on the grace of the Lord. It’s not because we deserve it, it’s because He loves us and wants to give it to us. His grace is sufficient because His power is made perfect in our weakness. When we learn to let go and expose our weakness the Lord shows us His power to get us through what we thought was impossible.
As I rounded the circle and trotted back towards the bars for the second time, I spread my arms outstretched and let go. My mind raced with fear of falling but I pressed on, trusting the horse to do what he does time and time again, and when it was over I was strengthened.
As Christians we sit on the back of Jesus, the most powerful place we could be, but we don’t trust Him when we get in difficult situations. We pull and tug and try to use our own power but it just sends us in circles. When we finally let go and let Him lead us He delivers us from our trials and takes us to greener pastures(Psalm 23).
Defiant
“Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion” – 1 Peter 5:8
Have you ever heard the saying “everything comes in 3’s.”? It’s a common theme, you get a new car cheap, and find a $5 bill on the floor of the local stop and shop and one of your friends mentions “hey what’s next? Good things come in 3’s.”, and vice versa for bad things.
Let me walk you through the last month of my life: I got severally sick for 2 weeks(bed ridden for days at a time), my heat broke, I ran out of heating oil, I hurt my back to where I thought I had just had back surgery again, I was down to my last dollar, a girl at work is trying to make my job hard and for some reason doesn’t like me, and as soon as I fixed my heat, it broke again, only this time I need an entire new heating system!
You know what my plans were in that month? I started a Bible study and I taught awana(kids church). I can say with certainty that had I not done those two things my problems would have went away. My heat probably wouldn’t have broken, the girl at work would probably be cordial, and my back would feel great.
Satan knows the power of the word(1 Thessalonians 1:5) because he knows the Bible inside and out.(Matt 4:6). If you begin taking on the tasks God has given you, if you decide to change and live for Christ you are going to feel it. It will not be easy. He is not going to come at you and prick your finger with a pin. He will come at you like a roaring lion looking to devour you.
Several years ago I gave up. Any little bump in the road caused me to stumble. It didn’t even need to be my bump! “Oh they disrespected my dad? Well, I’m not going to that church then!” I’m 26yrs old and I’ve been through some crazy trials in my short years. And up until recently each one had the desired affect that satan was looking for.
Then something happened. I chose not to live for this earth. I still struggle, sure, but my focus is elsewhere. I started my Bible study, I taught those little kids, and the trials got worse. Some how I need to come up with $4,000 for a heating system.
When it first happened over the weekend I got a little down. How am I gonna do this? Then I got defiant. I got mad. But not at God. I became defiant to the devil’s tricks and lies. To his manipulation of my situation. I prayed. I prayed while I drove, I prayed while I ate, I prayed while I slept.
You do not control my situation. I will submit to my God’s will and will remain in the places He has me. Jesus, help me in my time of trouble. You are in control and because of this I know I will not freeze to death, I know I will not go hungry. I know my pain is temporary.
I know I am in God’s will because I’m being hammered from every direction. I’m making a difference, some way, some how, for God’s kingdom. Satan knows it and he’s trying to break me down. I don’t see the difference I’m making and maybe I never will but I know it’s happening.
BRING IT ON.
I am defiant and I’m angry. Take anything you want from me satan because I’ve already won. My soul has been won. I have been bought with a price and I will let everyone know you are a liar and the blood that covers me covers them as well. I have fallen on a stone not cut with hands(Daniel 2:34) and have been broken(Matthew 21:44) for the glory of my Lord and Savior. These cheap tricks will not work on me any longer. This world, this house, these clothes, mean nothing. Take it. I’m out to save lives.
Don’t play house
Therefore what God has joined together, let man not seperate. – Matthew 19:6
I feel I must get on my soap box after having a conversation a couple of days ago with several non-believers. Two are around my age, one around my dad’s age. It troubled me to the point I needed a few days to grapple with what it really means.
Recalling how the conversation actually started is difficult, and probably irrelevant, but we all somehow managed to get on the conversation of marriage. One spoke up and said he and his wife moved in together and then got married so marriage wasn’t a “big decision” for them. Another chimed in and confirmed, saying her and her husband even bought a house together before getting married. The older of the 3, in partial disbelief, said “what is the world coming to?”. And proclaimed that it was much different in his time. You would think that was enough for me to chew on but it gets better.
In the world we live in none of this was really a shock to me. It’s a part of every day life now, a passing thought in the minds of all. Then came this revelation: “Oh it’s the way to go. I’m going to tell my kids to do it.” Hold on, WHAT?! The logic itself was flawed. When pried for an answer as to why the response was “with the divorce rate so high why would you not want to test it out first? It only makes sense.”
Even a non-believer was questioning this. And it made me think how much easier it must have been 30yrs ago to live a more stringent Christian life. How disgusting is this world than even just 30yrs ago? It’s so hard to stay on course when all around you are things to tickle your senses.
Then it hit me. The world doesn’t have a moral and spiritual compass to guide them. They step out in to the woods unprepared and are confused when they get lost. Don’t believe me? Try convincing a non-believer that the big bang is impossible. Yes, logically it makes no sense but they don’t have any other answer for how we got here so it must be right. 2 Peter 3:3 says in the last days scoffers will come following their own evil desires. It’s so easy for them to scoff at logic in the face of doing what they want. Following logic would mean changing and why change when things are “ok” as they are?
You don’t need to read far in to the Bible to see the answer. Genesis 2:24: For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh. See, you want the divorce rate to go down? Don’t mess around before getting married. Sex is more than a feeling. It’s a union of two spirits, it’s something humans can not understand. Only God understands the complex union of two into one.
So you say, I’ve already had sex am I doomed? No, because the blood of Christ cleanses us of all sin.(Hebrews 9:14) When you except Christ in your life God only sees a blameless lamb, it’s the beauty of grace! In following a Christian life, divorce becomes a mute point. Through the power and glory of God He makes all things whole.
The divorce rate is so high because without a compass there is no guide to say “no that’s the wrong direction”. Unbelievers simply see it as a decision. black and white. Oh it’s sad, but you can find someone else. Not true. We should not break what God has joined together.(Matthew 19:6) It’s not just a decision. It’s a breaking of a union of two souls. Ever heard the saying “He took a piece of me with him.”? In a sense, this is true. If you give over to sex you have joined together as one and breaking that leaves a lasting impression.
I felt broken inside hearing that these children are going to be given no compass and be given misguided information on how to live their lives. I felt powerless, hopeless for them. I wish you could just shake someone into believing sometimes.
Remember, nothing is hopeless with God. He has a plan for each and every one of us. If you’ve stumbled, if your marriage seems irrepairable, if you’re a non-believer, don’t lose hope! Pour out your heart to God. He will hear you, he will pour out His blessings on you, even though we don’t deserve them. With God all things are possible(Matthew 19:26)!!
