Virtually everyone who has walked planet earth, male or female, young or old, rich or poor, has come to a wall in their individual life.
A "wall" is that seemingly impenetrable barrier that prevents us from moving forward with our lives. The wall can be financial or relational or physical (think of your health) or professional. For some it may even be spiritual.
The wall is not easily overcome. It is too wide or big to go around; too tall to go over; too foundational to go under. You could retreat from the wall, but it's not going away. You do have to face it and come right up to it because frankly, you don't have a choice. We discussed walls last time.
We all come to a wall. Even Jesus Christ, co-Creator of the Universe, Lord of all, came to a Wall.
The most profound questions of life are often posed in the most simple of terms, using very few words.
Think about it; the questions are very deep, yet simple and direct: Who am I? How did I get to this point in life? Why do I do what I do? What am I or what am I doing here?
Each and every one of us asks these questions...often. Perhaps not all of the time, but all too often (especially when the times may be confusing or difficult), we stand in front of the bathroom mirror and ask these exact questions. The problem that we then face is (are) that they are incredibly profound and sometimes exhaustingly difficult to answer. In fact, the answers are almost impossible to answer simply, directly or sometimes even objectively. And yet, these are questions that we yearn to answer or have answered for us.
So where should we start? Which question should we seek to answer first?
Before we get to the question, let's first understand this transcendent truth: to everything under the sun, there is a season. The wisest man whoever walk the earth (aside from Jesus Christ), King Solomon, came to understand this truth and then wrote these words that have been handed down to all of us over the past 3,000 years:
"For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:
2 a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; 3 a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; 4 a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; 5 a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; 6 a time to seek, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; 7 a time to tear, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; 8 a time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace." Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
Virtually everything that we live and participate in operates in a season or cycle.
The Seasons of Life
Our respective births and young lives are often looked at as the "springtime" of our lives. Spring evokes ideas of new beginnings, freshness or fresh starts, new growth. As we come to our prime in life, it's the lushness of summer; there's a certain maturity of growing shrubs, flowers and even fruits and vegetables. Summer, although it is lush, may bring about times of the harshness of heat that can scorch the ground or fruit. Have you been in a time that can be considered the "heat of the moment"? Of course you have.... have you been scorched? Possibly... but usually we recover.
As seasons follow seasons, after the lushness of summer comes a time of harvest (autumn or fall). What has been sown, is ready to be reaped or harvested and brought into the storehouses. The harvest will be - can be - bountiful with much fruit or reward or there can the harvest of negative consequences; a bitter harvest of broken relationships or financial loss or maybe even death itself.
Autumn lingers and gradually becomes winter. Short days. relative or actual cold. Winter often brings a season of rain or significantly heavier precipitation, it can be dreary and bleak. In your garden, seasonal flowers (annuals) die; permanently. Other flowers (perennials) seed or shrink back to their respective bulbs or tubes or roots and enjoy a time of rest or sleep before being awakened to a new season of spring.
And the cycle begins anew. A fresh start. This is life. This is how God designed His universe and our lives.
We remember that there are seasons within seasons especially when we apply this thinking to our lives. A baby is born (spring) and grows and matures to a child in school (summer). The summer of the teenage years and all of its growth (and even some scorching heat), graduates from high school into higher learning or technical education (fall). Final graduation into the workplace and the realization of adulthood and its responsibilities bring about the winter of childhood. Unfortunately, sometimes the death of childhood reaps cynicism or unfulfilled expectations. Here's something else to remember: the beautiful snow cover of winter often hides or at least covers over that which must be cleaned out such as dead leaves that were never raked and cleaned up or when it comes to our lives, the aftermath or debris of the preceding seasons; some of it normal, but other aspects that are perhaps poisonous to the upcoming seasons (i.e. troubled relationships - both personal and professional, past habits that could rear their ugliness again, etc - think of substance abuse or promiscuity). For these reasons, a "spring cleaning" (across all dimensions of our lives, physical as well as mental and spiritual) is necessary, and as I’ve discovered, cathartic. Cleaning out what is dead or dying gives space to what is new or that needs to sprout, grow, blossom and then be harvested and brought into our storehouses.
The cycle or season of adulthood now begins. There is a spring, summer, fall and winter to our young adult lives as we live, marry, have children, then send those children off into the world and we settle into "grand-parenthood". The sub-chapters of career or profession (the spring of a new job, that job's summer - promotion, fall - the maturity of the business or career and finally retirement or job loss or disruption - winter) and marriage (courtship - spring, marriage the early years - summer, letting go or sending off of children and the empty nest - fall, middle or older age, possible debilitation of one or both marriage partners, possible divorce and finally the eventuality of death - winter) also trek through their respective seasons.
Obviously, these seasons of life are longer than the seasons of a normal year. Our seasons of life may and often do last for years.
Does this make sense? Where are you in any of the seasons within season? WHERE is the first question we ask as we wonder WHO we are. And there's more that makes up or contributes to this "where am I?" question. Take a moment to reflect and even write down those points of reference.
I know this may sound a bit harsh or troubling, but keep in mind that even during the harshness and dead of winter, there is the beauty and quiet of the fallen snow that lovingly and beautifully covers over the dread of this season. Dead and cold gray and brown are covered over in the brilliance of snowy, winter white brought forth by a stunning crystal clear blue sky. Death, cold and harshness of season is put into perspective when we see this dazzling beauty because we also know that spring is soon to come.
Living in the northern US state of Connecticut all of my life, I have come to like and even look forward to the change of the seasons. The wonder and beauty of each season is thrilling, although sometimes daunting and sometimes unpleasant. Let's face it, the older I get, the less I look forward to winter!
But what else contributes to the changes and progressions of our personal seasons of life?
Without going into my entire backstory (you can read all about it in many of my past posts), I've been dwelling at what could be looked at as a LONG winter... For a good chunk of my adult life, I've dealt with "seasonal depression". Seasonal depression can be described as a time of melancholy (sometimes worse) as the amount of sunlight diminishes into and out of the winter months. There's more darkness to the day. It's cold and even at times, foreboding. As other situations have contributed to this winter season, a good and caring friend directed me back to a book that I had read several years ago but honestly didn't take to heart. In re-reading it, the pages and exercises have begun to properly redirect my thinking towards "spring" and the coming rebirth. The book is titled "Emotionally Healthy Spirituality", written by Pastor Peter Scazzero. As we move forward, let's look at some of the facts and even techniques that contribute to our "WHERE".
The Wall
Trials are one thing, and each of us faces trials almost every day in our lives. Sometimes the trials are just an annoying nuisance (think of running out of toilet paper or realizing that you should have filled up your gas tank before making this trip and you're "suddenly" out of gas), other times they can be pretty big (a skiing accident resulting in a broken leg or a tree crashing into your home because of a storm). Trials test us and spur us (hopefully on to persevere). God calls us to do just that when the apostle James wrote:
"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
These are the times when we say or think, "you've got to be kidding!?"
That's all well and good, but what happens when that trial is a TRIAL? This "trial" is life-changing and most likely is going to linger for quite a while, possibly months, and perhaps for some of us, years. Scazzero refers to these times as a "wall". A wall is exactly that; a circumstance or situation that arises and literally stops you from proceeding. These "walls" within our seasons are essentially impassable; we can't go around them from either side, tunneling under only puts us into a worse situation (you've heard of "digging a deeper hole for yourself") and trying to go over the top is just plain foolish. At times we may even retreat from the wall with the idea that when we return, it may no longer be there.
Who has hit a wall in the Bible? Think of Abraham when God told him he would be the father of nations. Abraham couldn't go around that one, going underneath with Hagar, Sarah's maid made things worse, and then he and Sarah were both aged. Then there was Job who lost absolutely everything (except his life and his wife), including his health in a very brief span of time. Consider David who was on the run from King Saul for 13 years. Then there is Jacob that God renamed Israel who ran from his home and family, staying away for 20 years. Even Jesus came to a wall and that's a completely separate discussion.
Keep in mind that families and or people groups can come to a wall as well. The children of Israel, God's chosen people are a great example. After God moved Jacob and all of his family (70 people) to Egypt, they grew and prospered over the next 400 years, probably to as many as two and half million people; quite incredible. And then they came to the wall. The Egyptians were actually afraid of the Israelites and proceeded to enslave them. The Egyptians were taskmasters and came down heavy and hard on all of the people; so hard in fact that Pharaoh moved to have the baby boys killed at birth. The people cried out and God heard their cry, bringing Moses to the scene, but it would be another 80 long years (40 years of Moses' time of personal exile plus another 40 years of desert wandering) of enslavement and suffering before God brought them through their wall. And only God could do it!
Exodus chapter six says this: "But the Lord said to Moses, “Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh; for with a strong hand he will send them out, and with a strong hand he will drive them out of his land.”
God spoke to Moses and said to him, “I am the Lord.I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty,... Moreover, I have heard the groaning of the people of Israel whom the Egyptians hold as slaves, and I have remembered my covenant.Say therefore to the people of Israel, ‘I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment.I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the Lord your God, who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. I will give it to you for a possession. I am the Lord.’” Exodus 6:1-8
Even after God brought them through the Wall of getting them out of the Land of Egypt, other walls (more like imposing fences) came up: the Red Sea, the blasphemy of the Golden Calf, the choice of not following the advice of Joshua and Caleb that they could conquer the land that God was going to give them. In each of these instances, not only did the people not want to go through the Wall, they actually desired in their hearts and minds to return to Egypt and slavery! That's crazy! Living in the Freedom that God provides by getting us through the Wall (whatever it may be in our lives) is so far and above superior than the slavery of returning back to our individual "Egypts".
In sin and misery, the Israelites sat at their Wall for another 40 years. In his book, "The Comeback", Louis Giglio makes the following observations about the Hebrews "wandering" in the wilderness that is completely applicable to our study: "He didn't lead them the shortest route; He led them straight into the desert. Sound familiar? We see a dilemma in our lives, quickly assess the situation, come up with a solution, and then inform God and wait for His intervention. But then God not only does not do what we suggest, He does the opposite.
"But when He does this, God is still good and glorious. God knew the shortcut would be laden with challenges the Israelites were not yet ready to face, so another plan was set in motion. When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.”So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea.' Exodus 13:17-18 ESV. For their best, God led His own into the wilderness. Wow.
"God is far more interested in developing [a] relationship with you than He is in giving you a concrete, detailed blueprint for your life. That's precisely why God isn't in the habit of giving blueprints. It's because God want us to constantly lean into a relationship with Him...No, God is less interested in handing us long-range, detailed plans and more interested in cultivating a personal, day-to-day relationship with us... In the unpredictable places in life [the Wall], we learn that the one thing we can predict is that God will come through. And when our comeback arrives, it will almost always look different from what we first imagined."
Facts about the Wall
You only get through the wall when God finally allows it! Only God can bring us through the fire and heat of the crucible or the icy cold of personal family strife. We may persevere as James tells us to, but in the end it is only our Heavenly Father Himself who, as we trust Him and put our faith into what He is doing in and through our lives, when He is ready to breach that wall and carry us through. While we may have been trying to breach that wall in our strength, we sometimes suffer more and end up with a greater sense of anger or bitterness, all the while blaming God for the wall and its trials.
And yet, God has brought us to this wall because it is a wall of transformation; a transformation only He can accomplish through slow, and deep processes that we may not understand until we get to the other side.
In my own life, I've been at a wall for several years and frankly I don't like it; not one bit. I don't think it's fair to me, but I'm not the one in control (well, yes I want to be which is the entire problem). When I finally allow the Lord to do His work, it's awesome, but why do I continue to wrestle with Him, especially knowing that He only has my good in mind for me (remember that His glory will come first before my comfort). Scazzero points out that as God takes us through our respective walls, at least 4 dynamics will come into play:
I will experience a greater sense of "brokenness". Believe it or not, it's good to be broken. When I'm broken to the point of shattered, God can restore me. If I'm partially broken, in my humanness, I will attempt to fix myself. That hasn't worked well. Instead of being "fixed", I become even more broken (going under the wall) or worse; I may even become hardhearted. When I'm at the wall, I tend to be very judgmental or critical of myself and others. I become defensive as others offend me (even when done in love or care). When I realize my shatteredness, I become secure knowing that God truly loves me for me, not because of who I believe I am or my so-called position in the church or the community or family. Scazzero quotes St. Francis of Assisi who wrote: "blessed is he who expects nothing, for he shall enjoy everything."
One of my best friends recently put it this way as he counseled me: "Ron, do you WONDER in God? Are you looking for God's wow?" In brokenness, I will once again be able to experience His wow, which plays into the next dynamic...
I will appreciate the Mystery of God and His workings. The saying goes like this: God works in mysterious ways. Yes, He does... and too often, I'm spending too much time on figuring Him out. And you are too!
Recently, our Saturday morning men's small group was engaged in a very esoteric discussion on the "butterfly effect" - you know, how one seemingly small incident can force a greater happening further down the line, but when we understand and take to heart God's admonition: "For my thoughts are not your thoughts,neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." Isaiah 55:8-9, we come to realize that because God operates outside of our time and space, there is nothing that is "coincidental" to Him.
Since God is outside of time, He KNOWS the beginning from the end and everything in between. What we may contribute to "accident" or "coincidence" is not accidental or coincidental to God at all! God will never have any reason to say, "holy cow, I didn't see that one coming!" Because my God is infinite and unfathomable, He still wants me to get to know Him in a personal way and the only way that I can do that is when I take the time to wonder in Him, to marvel at and in His works... to grasp, even if for a fleeting moment, the WOW of the supernatural that is God Himself!
How do we wonder at God? When was the last time you experienced a sunrise or sunset? How about driving into the country away from the glare of city lights and look up at the stars? To this day, viewing Orion and his belt in the winter sky is done in awe. When was the last time you looked and examined a leaf or a flower as a puppy or a baby does? These innocents look at life through the lenses of wonder and wow. How about the beauty of a sleeping newborn baby who lies in the absolute and complete reliance of his or her mom or dad? Do I get "lost" in God from time to time? It's good to get lost, but it's also important to come back into the life He has called us to.
God has called me to know Him as best as I humanly can. I come to know Him through the universe around me but also through His Word and especially through the life of Jesus. Sometimes the more I learn about God, the more lost (because I'm overwhelmed) I get, and that's okay... I'll know Him a bit more every day. As I can “handle” more of Him, God will “expose” more of His glory and majesty to my life.
As I look for His mysteries, I gain a deeper ability to wait for God. I don't know about you but I sometimes say, "I don't want to be dragged by God to do something, but I also don't want to be running so far ahead that I'm being choked by my divine tether." Waiting on God is frustrating at times... very, very frustrating... but as I'm sitting here waiting at the wall, I gradually come to understand that what He has in store for me in His timing is so much better than what I could possibly do or manipulate. God is molding and shaping me into the image of Jesus at the wall. He cares more for my character than my comfort.
Through my various trials and prior walls, I've learned that God's timing is absolutely the best. As God is and has been patient with me, I need to be patient with Him.
Living in the freedom of "detachment". The only thing God wants us to be attached to is Him. That's it! The stuff of this life is sometimes a means to an end, but not always. As Solomon put it, these things are "meaningless," and Solomon ought to have known. As one of the richest man who ever lived, he literally had it all. Luxury beyond measure; knowledge beyond imagination; the ultimate pleasures of life. And yet Solomon found life "wanting" and "meaningless".
How often are we so tightly grasping onto to something that is completely broken or foul, desiring that it come back to life? That business opportunity that drains you of finances and even your soul. That personal relationship that is so toxic, yet we want it to "work". In order to gain more, we have to open our hands and let go! When our hands are empty, we can then grab onto bigger and better things; things that God Himself is holding out for us to grasp.
But it's more than just the tangible stuff of life, it's also the intangible: who we think we are or who we believe we ought to be. Scazzero puts it this way: "The Wall, more than anything else, cuts off our attachments to who we think we ought to be, or who we falsely think we are. Layers of our counterfeit self are shed. Something truer, that is Christ in and through us, slowly emerges. Richard Rohr has written ... about the five essential truths to which men must awaken if they are to grow up into their God-given masculinity and spirituality:
1. Life is hard. 2. You are not that important. 3. Your life is not about you. 4. You are not in control. 5. You are going to die."
I don't know about you but those are harsh and sobering realities. This is not self deprecation, it is reality. We cannot live in a fantasy. We must learn to live in the reality that God has lovingly placed us in.
We men could call the Wall our "mid life crisis". Is it really a crisis or are we making excuses for the situation that we find ourselves in?
Three more things about the Wall... One: you can't avoid it! As we talked about earlier, you can't go around it, or over it or under it. You can back away from it and try to ignore it or avoid it. Trust me, that's foolish. I know, because I've tried doing it. You go back to a supposed place of comfort or familiarity and for a while, it feels good and even right. Maybe it's an old lifestyle or habit. Maybe it's an old relationship that you attempt to rekindle. Going back may "work" temporarily, but soon after you realize that the past is lacking and wanting. You don't have a choice but to go back to the wall and confess your lack of faith that God wants this wall and He wants to bring you through it...on His terms for the dual purposes of bringing glory to Himself and molding you (me) into the image of Christ.
Two: when we run away from the wall it is typically out of fear. Those of us who will do almost anything to avoid confrontation, avoid it because of fear. Jacob is a great example. Jacob swindled his twin brother Esau out of his inheritance not once, but twice; first he stole his birthright then Jacob stole his blessing as the first-born (a truly awesome thing in those times). Jacob ran, and ran far; he didn't want to deal with his family (deceived his father and brother) and the consequences. Fear is an awesome emotion that causes us to do some crazy things, usually without thinking, laying aside the consequences.
This leads us to the third fact about the turning away from the wall: God still uses this time to work great miracles in our lives! To Abraham and Sarah, He brought a child in their very old age. To Job, God revealed Himself in a majestic way then blessed his life more abundantly than before. To David, He blessed him with a dynasty and like Job, blessed him with knowledge of the Almighty that is only bestowed on those whose heart is pure. To Jacob, God blessed him with the love of his life (Rachel), another wife, 2 concubines, and 13 children whose lineage would shape the history of the world going forward and also, and probably more importantly for us to understand, God blessed Jacob with forgiveness for and to his brother.
Our time at the wall is never wasted in God's economy. He has each of us - at our appointed time or times - at the wall for a purpose only He knows and understands. It is up to us to be still and patient and know God.
Wall or Fence?
Let's clear up some potential confusion. A wall is not a fence. Walls tend to be more long-lasting or "permanent" in their design or nature (hopefully, our wall is not permanent!), whereas a fence is or tends to be temporary; a wall has construction details to it but a fence can be more readily moved or removed.
Both barriers can keep things in or out of them depending on your perspective. Both can also protect what is within the structure. A significant difference between the two, aside from their construction and durability, is the fact that you can more easily get around or over or under or even through a fence if you choose. Even a barbed wire fence can be defeated with a proper pair of wire or bolt cutters and heavy gloves. Not quite as simple with a 15 ft tall concrete wall topped with broken glass or worse.
We know what a wall looks like as we've discussed them above, but what about a fence? One example might be a really bad cold. You've been slaving away at your job, your family hasn't seen you in weeks due to all of the overtime, you're physically and mentally exhausted and you haven't been keeping a good diet. God says that we need to rest, and so, he's provided us with the sabbath. If we don't rest, we will need to stop and a temporary illness may just be what God uses to temporarily take us down.
Here's another one: problems with finances that seem to be never ending. Your church giving is lousy or non-existent, you're buying more "nice to haves" rather than the necessary "gotta haves". God may arrange or rearrange your life and job and pay in such a way that financially, things will be tough or tight until you realize that you've got to bring order to your financial life by paying bills on time and being a good witness for His provision.
Struggling with addictions such as alcohol, food or even pornography? Have you sought out help? If not, God may leave those fences there until you face up to them and finally deal with the root issues that have caused you to seek "stuff" rather than the Creator of Universe who deeply cares for you, your life and the lives that you touch.
In each of these examples, we can see that once we choose to deal with the issue or issues at hand that have created strife (that "fenced in feeling"), God and you will begin dismantling those fences, but remember that even though it may be down, God could leave it handy in case He needs to set it up again.
In life, God uses both fences and walls in our lives to accomplish His purposes.
This is WHERE we are, the wall, but how may we have gotten here? Let's continue.
More than the sum of our parts.
Or, looking back so that we can move forward.
The question of "Who am I?" is perhaps better answered or explained by figuring out where we've been. And where we've been has so much to do with who we are and even what we will become.
My name is Ron (in Mexico it is "ronparrs"). I live in Shelton, Connecticut, USA. My mother is Wanda and my father was Chris. My brother is Ken. I am of Greek and Polish decent. Without getting too far into my ancestry, my mother was the first of two children of Polish immigrants. My dad was the third child of eight children of Greek (his dad) and Polish (his mom) immigrants. My grandparents came to the United States in the early 20th century seeking a new life. Trust me, there's more backstory, but this is sufficient. Their respective histories and life stories are an integral part of who I am.
Where I came from can make a profound difference of where and who I am. My life (all of our lives) is a series of steps along a path that God has ordained for us from the foundation of the world. The incidents and accidents that have occurred in my life and just as importantly in the lives of our parents and their parents and so on and so on, contribute to where and who I am.
I am a product of both Nature and Nurture. My core being is set by God. How I am nurtured through family, environment, education, friends, etc. all contribute to who I am today. However, and more importantly this background does NOT necessarily determine who I will be tomorrow.
Take for example all of my children. I have 3 fantastic children who are growing into great adults, but even though they are my children, they aren't my children. Let me explain. My children are adopted; we chose them. My wife and I adopted our daughter when she was only 4 months old. Her birth mom was a teenager in crisis. For 14 years, she was an only child. My 2 sons were adopted from west central Russian Siberia. They were born into 2 separate families with their own respective issues that caused them to become orphans as children. We adopted them as older boys 2 years apart from each other following God's leading. My sons' past history has had more of an affect on their lives than that of my daughter. I'll leave those facts there. It is their business. The most important thing for each of them is that I am their father and I love them regardless of their pasts. As God see us as new and now heirs because of Jesus, I look upon each of them as new; in the scheme of our family and more importantly in our individual relationships, their past makes no difference to me. I love them. Each of them is a special gift from God. God allowed them to be grafted into my family tree for His purposes and glory and I have greedily and gladly welcomed them to my side.
Our past histories do indeed have an effect on where we are NOW, but don't necessarily have to have an effect on where we will ultimately be. We often do things or say things or think things that our parents or grandparents did. Our past is an integral part of our behavioral DNA, but it doesn't have to be a permanent part. We may have to surgically remove certain past family "sins" that dog us generation in and generation out. Those sins are not who we are. Yes, they have had an effect, but that should be temporary unless we choose otherwise.
A great exercise that everyone should do is to get quiet and take up a pad of paper and pencil (you may need to erase...) and draw out your family genealogy. Where you and your family has been is an indicator of where (and why) you are where you are. As you build your family tree, be sure to note every detail possible: the good, the bad and the ugly. Note where God supernaturally intervened. Note the grafting in of new family through marriage or adoption. Note the alcoholism or the abuse. Note the divorce. Note the toll of cancer. Note the sorrow and the joy. When you're finished, in prayer and thanksgiving, reflect back on all that God has allowed into your life. Is there joy when you look at this family picture? Fantastic! Is there shame or regret? That’s okay; own it and even though you don’t want to, accept it – you don’t have a choice anyway. All of these facts and points of history make up who we are and what we are.
Not to get dramatic, but when we look at some of these traumatic times or events in our lives or in the lives of our ancestors, we sometimes refer to them as “demons”. Can a demon control or affect the life of a believer? Yes, but only if the believer allows that to happen. The resurrection of Jesus guarantees the power He has bestowed on us through the Holy Spirit over this realm. We don’t have to live in that state of sin. We’ll take a closer look at this reality and the truth of who we are in our next session.
Here are a couple of practical examples of the past affecting our now: we are expected to follow in the family business or we are to marry a particular person from a particular ethnic group or we are to follow in a particular profession. Are you working at a job that you may be perfectly proficient at but you hate? Are you in a relationship because you were set up and you don't want to disappoint the party that set you up? The reality may be that those may be the desires of the "past", but are you truly equipped to participate in those paths? What are YOUR particular strengths and weaknesses, never mind desires, hopes or dreams? Have you checked in with God and truly asked Him where HE wants you to be?
Each of these points and facts are critical in understanding how we've gotten to where we are. These points also have worked to partially shape who we are today, but remember that there is still a story left to write and to tell. What will be written and told? I don't know, but to a great degree, God has placed that pen in my own hand... Well, that's a scary thought! But it's true.
In the mid 20th century, the work of 2 psychologists was put together to craft a survey to help us better understand who we are in our core being. Carl Jung’s work of “dichotomies” (introvert vs extrovert, sensing vs intuition, thinking vs feeling) was further expanded upon by Isabel Briggs Myers, a practitioner of Jung, adding the judging vs perceiving relationship as a fourth dichotomy. This survey provides a snap shot of “who” we potentially are and helps us to at least visualize our strengths and weaknesses. These form the 16 personality types of “where” we fit into. If you’ve ever felt like you were a square peg being shoved into a round hole, this survey may help you understand why you are what you are and do what you do. The results help to answer the question of “why do I do what I do?” The results are neither good nor bad, the results are merely a helpful picture of your core being.
The news (however you want to accept it) as we close is that although that genealogy tree may be less than flattering and the results of the personality survey, help to provide us with a visual snapshot of who we are. The good news though is that it is not Whose we are.
Let's sum this section of our time with these thoughts and words from a more contemporary and very "successful" man who would agree with King Solomon's words:
"I have come to the pinnacle of success in business. In the eyes of others, my life has been the symbol of success. However, apart from work, I have little joy. Finally, my wealth is simply a fact to which I am accustomed.
"At this time, lying on the hospital bed and remembering all my life, I realize that all the accolades and riches of which I was once so proud, have become insignificant with my imminent death. In the dark, when I look at green lights, of the equipment for artificial respiration and feel the buzz of their mechanical sounds, I can feel the breath of my approaching death looming over me. Only now do I understand that once you accumulate enough money for the rest of your life, you have to pursue objectives that are not related to wealth.
"It should be something more important: For example, stories of love, art, dreams of my childhood. No, stop pursuing wealth, it can only make a person into a twisted being, just like me. God has made us one way, we can feel the love in the heart of each of us, and not illusions built by fame or money, like I made in my life, I cannot take them with me. I can only take with me the memories that were strengthened by love.
"This is the true wealth that will follow you; will accompany you, he will give strength and light to go ahead. Love can travel thousands of miles and so life has no limits. Move to where you want to go. Strive to reach the goals you want to achieve. Everything is in your heart and in your hands. What is the world's most expensive bed? The hospital bed.
"You, if you have money, you can hire someone to drive your car, but you cannot hire someone to take your illness that is killing you. Material things lost can be found. But one thing you can never find when you lose: life. Whatever stage of life where we are right now, at the end we will have to face the day when the curtain falls. Please treasure your family love, love for your spouse, love for your friends... Treat everyone well and stay friendly with your neighbors." I'll let you know who penned those words in our next session.
All of us are on a journey through life and each journey is different.
Although different, our journeys may seem similar as we travel along. It's as if we're walking paths that can see each other and at times these paths parallel or intersect each other.
Keep in mind that no two people traverse the exact same course.
For the past five or six years I've been on a journey that I honestly have not liked. At all. Nor would I have dreamt it; but God had a much different plan.
It has been hard and at more times than I want to admit, even heart-breaking. Thankfully, I belong to small group of men that come together every Saturday morning at 7 o'clock to study the Bible, pray and share in each others lives.
I thank God for these men because when the going got really tough and all kinds of stuff was hitting the fan from the middle of 2014 through almost all of 2015, these men - these Christian brothers - were there for me.
In the words of the Apostle Paul to his son in the faith Timothy, my brothers "[Did] not rebuke an older man but encourage him (me) as you would a father, younger men as brothers, in all purity." 1 Timothy 5:1-2. These men came along side me and loved me for who I am; for the man traveling this particular road in life.
God has the power to resurrect anyone and anything. In the final judgement, God will indeed resurrect everyone who has ever walked the earth. Some will pass into eternal glory and everlasting life while sadly, many others will be condemned to eternal punishment and separation from their Creator - whether they believe in Him or not.
But I'm getting way ahead of myself.
The Easter season is my favorite. Easter doesn't have the hoopla of Christmas, and I guess that's one of the reasons why I like it so much. There's less busyness; less preparation. As I think and write about the Easter season in general and Resurrection Sunday in particular, my mind is always drawn to the fact that it is not just a single day holiday. It's a holiday celebrated over a long weekend: Good Friday to Easter Sunday. Three days of remembrance; the solemnity of Good Friday, the Saturday of anticipation and the joy of Sunday.
We are to be God's Image bearers. How are we measuring up?
That's what you call a loaded question. Really loaded.
Although mankind (both men and women) are created in God's Image by His own hand, we men (sorry ladies, but God created us first then saw that we would need a little help...) are called to a higher standard. Frankly that's a standard that we have been neglecting almost from the beginning.
God called us to be His direct representative, His viceroy if you will, on planet earth. He called and created us to make the earth and everything in it and on it subject to man for the purpose of bringing glory to God, the Creator of all things.
But soon enough, Adam abdicated his responsibilities, missed the mark and fell. And we've been struggling to get back up ever since.
Life can be tough enough without someone inside of your own head continually dissing you!
Every single one of us, young or old, male or female, is saddled with a continuous, never ending conversation going on in our minds. A lot of it is fairly benign. Some of it can be fun. But other parts of this conversation (maybe call it a monologue) can be harmful or even destructive. This monologue, this self-conversation is the "Chatterbox".
As we get started, we need a couple of definitions. First, what is the "chatterbox"? Pastor Steven Furtick, author of "Crash the Chatterbox" and Lead Pastor of Elevation Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, describes the chatterbox as that constant and almost incessant, nearly audible voice in our heads that is talking, talking, talking.
If I hear the phrase "we're taking it to the next level!" one more time at a business conference, I think I'll scream.
Dark Night of the Soul by Silence in the Wings
"Taking it to the next level" has been a buzz phrase has been around for about 10 years. The problem that I find with the phrase is that there is never any clear definition of what the "next level" is or supposed to be. The meaning has been rendered often times nebulous.
I understand what the speakers or marketing directors are trying to say, but I think something's getting lost in all of the superlatives.
In fact, I would dare to say that superlatives are almost becoming meaningless. Awesome is rarely awesome, let alone fantastic or great. Regardless of the purposed meaning, these phrases and their ideas can become a part of the Chatterbox.
Let's face it, almost all of us are climbing. We're trying to move upward and onward in our private lives or careers. We're reaching for that "next level". Even in ministry, we strive to be "better" or "more victorious" in our service to God and man.
If you're like me, there are a whole bunch of voices talking in your head and sometimes they're even screaming for your attention!
Recently a friend of mine recommended that I read the book "Crash the Chatterbox" by Steven Furtick. His recommendation came at a perfect time in my life. I'll go into some the details in the following pages, but suffice to say, I found this tome so compelling, that I brought it to the attention of our men's Saturday morning small group.
Rather than continue on to our next extended study through God's Word, I thought this book would be a good follow up to the study we had just finished lead by another one of our members. We went through a discussion of LCEs or Life Changing Events. As a group of men in our 40s and 50s, we've all dealt with some to one degree or another. Understanding our position in Christ, helps get us through these LCEs because they don't just affect us personally, they affect those most near and dear as well.
Anyway, Steven Furtick's book "Crash the Chatterbox" is a good follow up in personal study. So many of us struggle with self-esteem issues or possibly even mild depression. We unfortunately listen to the "voices in our heads" (the normal kind!), rather than to the truth. It's not that those voices may be true, but so often those voices are nothing but "chatter"; the worse than white-noise kind of chatter. The subtitle "hearing God's voice above all others" is spot on.
Paul's Epistle to the Galatian church is hard hitting!
I'll just let you be teased with that comment now and you'll see why I say that in quick time.
Over the years, this book has become one of my favorites. In my opinion, Galatians comes only second to Romans when laying out a solid foundation for our Faith in Christ and for Christianity itself.
You'll hear it said that Christianity is not about a religion, but it is about a relationship.
This is going to be an interesting study... Going through the book of Galatians is not a simple verse by verse study. As you read it through, you'll find that Paul goes back and forth and criss-crosses many tenets of the Faith as he speaks to the Galatian churches of the first century.
I'm going to leave my remarks there and encourage you to get into the study.
Please read this epistle all the way through. It shouldn't take much more than about 30 minutes total. Just read it - don't think about it. Don't "study" it. Just read it through - a couple of times. A few things will become very plain. You'll see...
Week 1 - Introduction. The who, what, when, why, where of the study. Background and cultural context is necessary in understanding and then applying any book of the Bible, but may be more so with Galatians - at least in the New Testament books. Discussion notes.
Week 2 - One Gospel. There is only ONE Gospel. That's it. This is the key to unlocking not only the Book of Galatians, but also understanding the bedrock of Christianity.
A couple of things are still bothering me and I feel the need to try and wrap them up with this whole love discussion.
And so we have some unfinished business to attend to.
To say that love is "complicated" is an understatement whether in God's terms and economy or according to ours. Love may be "a many splendid thing" but as we have already talked about in the preceeding parts, love is composed of many parts or attributes or facets. Love is made up of ideas and emotions and perhaps most importantly, actions. Love just doesn't sit out there waiting for something to happen, it is a verb; love is active.
If you want to describe love, the best analogy I can think of is the wind. You can't see the wind itself, but you can feel it (whether it is warm or cold), it touches you. The wind also causes other things like leaves or sail boats to move. In other words, you can see and feel the effects of the wind. Love is similar in that you can't directly see it, but you can experience its effects on yourself and other people.
