GOD IS GOOD

 

Everyone…thanks for your kind comments…everything in the “situation” mentioned worked out very well, and God was more than faithful in His answers to prayer….as He always is.

Of course, the benefit is not only growth in closeness to Christ, and experience in learning to lean on and trust in Him ever more deeply, but also the direct benefit of His hand in protecting and guiding those involved, and the “witness” of His faithfulness.

Apologies for not giving the “good report” of what God is doing soooner, but am currently in a stretch of 18 to 20 hour days, and that isn’t leaving much of me for other than work, sustenance, and repose (albeit brief). 

With Job I heartily proclaim “…I will yet praise Him.” (more later)

Bless Him

Jim

The Out of Towners

 

“My dear, life rarely gives us what we want at the moment we consider appropriate. Adventures do occur, but not punctually.”

Mrs. Moore in

“A Passage to India“

So true, but the word “adventure” sometimes pales in comparison to the reality of the white-knuckled, hair-raising, handbar-gripping, stand up and scream turns and surprises this ride called “life” can sometimes give us. I fully believe that my life is in God’s hands, and that He allows nothing that won’t be able to contribute to my growth in Him. I’ve entrusted those I know and those I love to Him, and He’s always come through. Nonetheless, sometimes I am yet knocked off my feet when, in His timing, God sets out an unexpected “growth opportunity” for me.

 

      No details; it would obfuscate the point. Suffice it to say that someone(s) close to me got a sudden, unexpected, daunting challenge thrust on them (and by relational proximity, in part, on me) this past evening.

 

Dark Night of the Soul

 

I confess to being particularly susceptible to worry; especially about those for whom I care. I spent most of last night in prayer to God; for wisdom (for me and all parties concerned in the situation), safety, protection, in short, crying out to Him to take control. In reality I was seeking the comfort and presence of Jesus Himself. As I look back, I was wandering through the alleyways of the night much like the lover-seeker in the Song of Solomon, or the similar writings of St John of the Cross…what my heart of hearts had come to was the need for one thing: the comfort The Beloved alone can bring.

 

The Lesson

This, I believe, is what God is about in the training He brings. We need to come to the end of ourselves to come to the beginning of Him. The situation I confronted was one I couldn’t control. The decisions to be made were to be made by others. I hadn’t the financial means to help significantly. The constraints of my work are such that I have been put exactly in a position to be unavailable to help with hands, feet, or personal effort. God was left to me as my only refuge. The result of my “all-nighter” with God has been (at least) threefold:
         

 I have been propelled into a close, ongoing, tender DIalogue (ie, two-way) with Him,seeking His wisdom, but more importantly, seeking HIM.

         
I am  at a level of peace not native to me, trusting Him with all concerned.

.

          I am, as part of the dialogue, continuing to pray for those involved, with the knowledge that God ” works all things for (the) good to those who love Him..”

(and am encouraging those involved who will listen, to seek His guidance as well)

 

The Out of Towners

 

The reference is to a movie in which the principle characters go from calamity to calamity. Even after its resolution, the story trails off into the sunset as the beleaguered protagonists are being hijacked, and the key line of “Oh, my God” is heard. It certainly had no religious context in the movie, but …How Appropriate.

 

Final Movie Reference

 

I think the progression those who are following God go through in learning how to approach handling life’s unexpected adventures is something like that of Steve Martin’s character in the movie, “Parenthood“. He’s a loving, neurotic father who “knots up” badly at life’s imperfections, worried that he’ll fail his children, or that they’ll fail in life

He completely misses the point when “Grandma” says, metaphorically, that she isn’t one of the people who prefer a boring carousel, rather, she prefers the tilts and turns of (life’s) roller coaster. In a wonderfully directed scene, as his son is single-handedly destroying a school play, props, set , and all, you can hear the “click-click-click” of roller coaster cars climbing. He grips the back of the chair in front, his face tenses, and then, as the sound of kids squealing on a coaster plays in the background, and the camera tilts, HE LETS GO…and begins to laugh.

 

We can care, have concern, compassion and love for others and trust God steadfastly. When an adventure is afoot in this broken world, we can trust God, let go, and ensconced firmly in Him, courageously face the twists and turns in the journey. 

 

  Leaning on Him

 Jim 

                                                                                  When I behold October’s fire                              
Alit within the trees;
And stand; bathed by the golden breath
Of Indian Summer’s breeze.                                                                   

I think on Him Who lights the fires
Within the human heart;
Who ‘decks the world with tapestry 
Unmatched in all man’s art.

How frivolous; extravagant
For God to give such gold:
A testament through which His love
And glory may be told.

I thank you, Lord for autumn’s glow
For fire You give, so free
To light the way and warm the hearts
Of small ones such as me.
                                              copyright 10/2005 james a. smallish
                                  jim                                              

                                                                                        

 

 

                           

                                   
                                         

The Eyes of a Child

 

The important thing is not to stop questioning.

 

Curiosity has its own reason for existing.

 

One cannot help but be in awe when one contemplates the mysteries

 

of eternity,

 

of life,

 

of the marvelous structure of reality.

 

It is enough if one tries merely

to comprehend a little of this mystery everyday.

 

 Never lose a holy curiousity.

- Albert Einstein

 

 

 

 

SALT and LIGHT

 

 

   For the last 10 or 11 years, I’ve spent from a week to a couple months a year working in short-term missions. It’s been wonderful; I’ve made new friends, learned a new language, and been so internally affirmed about the value of what is done there, that I feel strongly compelled to continue.

 

I’ve helped to build  homes for people who had little or no ability to provide adequate shelter for themselves or their families. I’ve helped give medical care to men, women, and children who would not have received it otherwise. I’ve taught about God and Jesus to people who may or, in some cases, may not have had the opportunity to receive those truths.

 

All that notwithstanding, I’ve felt like I wanted to do more to be “salt and light” to the world 24/7/365, as it were. I, like many believers, haven’t always been sure exactly how to “go into all the world“, reaching all people(s). I’ve felt keenly the desire to let others learn about how good, how accessible He is, “ready to give good things to those who ask.”

I have needed to work a job to keep body and soul together , so time availability has seemed to be a limiting factor. I haven’t felt the boldness to be a Billy Graham, or a DL Moody, who was allegedly so compelled to approach people about Christ, as was his habit, that he is purported to have followed an 8 year-old girl he recognized on the street, into her home and talked to her about God, resulting in the conversion of her , her family and subsequent generations of descendants.

God has, however, equipped me with a deep care for others, and I have understood that the mission field is where I am. (Jesus said to the disciples “LOOK ABOUT YOU…the fields are fully ripe and ready for harvest“.)

 

I began to find ways to do small things in my daily life to stretch myself, and help others have a sense of God’s presence and to, again, “be salt and light.” What has been really gratifying to see is the incredible response of others to unexpected kindness. A smile begets a smile, people surprised by a “good morning” from a stranger, respond in kind. Some are wary…tempered, I’m sure, by the harsh realities of the world in which we live, but I have seen most almost visibly brighten with the tiniest hint of kindness and caring .

 

 

 In reaching out, it has helped me to be mindful of  Christ’s words,

“Whenever you did it to the least of these…, you did it to Me“

 

Try some of these as “envelope-stretchers” for ways to reach out people you encounter in daily life, and to be the “hands of Christ” to them. 

 

 

1. Smile at somebody (sincerely) as you see them walking toward you. (You don’t have to know them)

You can also say, ” Hi”, “good morning/day/evening”, and/or…

 

2. Ask that person how they’re doing. (And mean it…be ready to listen)

 

3. If you’re going for (coffee, water, fill in the blank) at work, or wherever, offer to get something for someone else…or, if you know them well enough..just bring it.

 

4. Offer something cold to drink to someone who could use it.( Mail carrier, trash pickup person, highway or construction worker…you find them)

 

5. Offer something hot to drink to someone……..(see#4)

 

6. Sincerely compliment someone around you..(this one’s easy; get in the habit of noticing small things about appearance, things unique that the “praise target” does)

 

7. Offer your place in line at the bank, store, etc., to someone who…seems to be in a rush, seems stressed, has a bigger burden, has “velcro kid syndrome”, or just “because”.

 

8. Pay the difference (if you can) when you notice someone coming up a little short in the checkout.

 

9. Pray for the person ahead of you in line who; is fumbling around for their payment, insists on groping for exact change, is holding up the line arguing about a price….etc.

 

10. Say “Hi” to the cashiers, tellers, busdrivers and others who serve you in their jobs; ask them how their day is going..be prepared to listen…thank them for what they do.

 

11. Put a reassuring hand on the shoulder (being sensitive to receptiveness, and “appropriate touch”  principles) of someone who needs it.

 

12. Give a card or note for a birthday, achievement, wedding, funeral…you can figure it out.

 

13. Any of the above can be applied, as appropriate, to family members.

 

Be open to verbally offering God’s blessings to (these) others, if and when appropriate, if, when, and in the manner with which you feel , comfortable.

 

Be ready for queries as to why you might do these things: 

  

“Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.”

(1 Peter 3:15b)

 

May our God and Lord bless you all as you bless others

Jim

 

 

 

 

 

Psalm 8 
(New International Version)

A psalm of David.

    ² From the lips of children and infants
       you have ordained praise 
       because of your enemies,
       to silence the foe and the avenger.

    ³ When I consider your heavens,
       the work of your fingers,
       the moon and the stars,
       which you have set in place,

    ⁴ what is man that you are mindful of him,
       the son of man that you care for him?

    ⁵ You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings   
       and crowned him with glory and honor.

    ⁶ You made him ruler over the works of your hands;
       you put everything under his feet:

    ⁷ all flocks and herds,
       and the beasts of the field,

    ⁸ the birds of the air,
       and the fish of the sea,
       all that swim the paths of the seas.

    ⁹ O LORD, our Lord,
       how majestic is your name in all the earth!

 

 

GRACE

Philip Yancey, the popular Christian author, included the following story, of which I was recently reminded while reading an online newsletter, in his book “What’s so Amazing About Grace?”

“During a British conference on comparative religions, experts from around the world were discussing whether any one belief was unique to the Christian faith. They began eliminating possibilities. Incarnation? Other religions had different versions of gods appearing in human form. Resurrection? Again, other religions had accounts of return from death. The debate went on for some time until C. S. Lewis wandered into the room. “What’s the rumpus about?” he asked, and heard in reply that his colleagues were discussing Christianity’s unique contribution among world religions. In his forthright manner Lewis responded, “Oh, that’s easy. It’s grace.”

After some discussion, the conferees had to agree. The notion of God’s love coming to us free of charge, no strings attached, seems to go against every instinct of humanity. The Buddhist eightfold path, the Hindu doctrine of karma, the Jewish covenant, and the Muslim code of law—each of these offers a way to earn approval. Only Christianity dares to make God’s love unconditional.

… By instinct I feel I must do something in order to be accepted. Grace sounds a startling note of contradiction, of liberation, and every day I must pray anew for the ability to hear its message.”

When I read Yancy’s statement it resonates deeply . The pervasiveness of peformance-based orientation in our relationship to God has always impressed me. When we come to Christ we hear that mankind is flawed, sinful, and inherently unable to meet God’s standard. God, in His mercy, provided a proxy; the perfect sacrificial Lamb Who willingly paid the awful price for man’s rebellion.  When one becomes a Christian, it’s based on acknowledgement of one’s utter inadequacy to meet God’s standard, and an acceptance of the FREE, UNEARNED,UNMERITED gift of God ( forgiveness, imputed righteousness, and life) through Christ. 

The next common step is insidious…the Christian soon begins to ( in gratitude, usually) want to do as much for God as they can…wonderful. What begins to creep in, though, is the feeling of performance pressure. “Am I doing as much as the next believer? Am I progressing in “ministry” enough? Am I progressing in faith fast enough?” Focus on self replaces focus on the Giver of the Gift….soon we are striving to perform adequately for the One we accepted by admitting our inadequacy.

Yancy is right. Nothing frees me so much to joyfully “perform”; that is, to function as I was designed, as the regular reminder that the God Who is love gives GRACE; UN merited favor, and that

“…the FREE GIFT of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ”
Rom 6:23b, NASB

Grace to you

Jim

Found this on my daughter’s xanga, and enjoyed it enough to want to share it:

 

My hands hold safely to my dreams
Clutching tightly, not one has fallen
So many years have shaped each one
Reflecting my heart
Showing who I am

 

Now you’re asking me to show
What I’m holding oh so tightly
Can’t open my hands, Can’t let go
Does it matter? Should I show You?
Can’t you let me go?

 

“Surrender, Surrender,” You whisper gently

You say I will be free, I know but can’t you see…

my dreams are me?  

      My dreams are me.

 

You say You have a plan for me
And that You want the best for my life
Told me the world had yet to see
what You could do with one that’s commited to Your calling

I know of course what I should do
That I can’t hold these dreams forever
But if I give them now to You
Will you take them away forever
Or can I dream again?

 

“Surrender, Surrender,” You whisper gently

You say I will be free, I know but can’t you see

my dreams are me?

       My dreams are me.

 

Surrender….

“God can do anything, you know–far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us.”
                                                   Ephesians 3:20 (The Message)
                                                  

…May God fulfill all your dreams…Jim

 

 

Hey, all! Just letting everyone know I’ve not fallen off the face of the earth! Life is REALLY full, right now, ‘though, and I’m blessed with plenty of “task-ey” things to fill my time. Just started a Bible survey course last week, and was asked this question:

“What comes to mind when you think of “The Law”, (in the biblical sense)?”

Now, many things came to mind, all at once, when I considered this question. I thought of large rooms of bearded Judaic scholars in robes, debating and discussing the huge body of work, built over centuries, known to us as the Talmud. I thought of the Ten Commandments [not "The Ten Commandments" ]. I thought of the seemingly endless list of purification rituals and laws in Leviticus. I remembered the principle that “For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all. “
(James 2:10)

However, one  reference came to mind far more boldly than all the others. It is from Jesus Himself, and in it he builds a response to a challenge first with a direct quotation from one of the “books of the law” :

He is asked,”Teacher, what is the greatest commandment?” He cites Deuteronomy 6:4+5: Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is one Lord.  And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. This segment of the Shema Yisrael was fully familiar to Jesus’ audience; however, Christ went a step further…He said,  The second is: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these.
(Mk12:29-31, Mt 22:37-39)

Now this may seem to be just a little bit of a stretch from the original question: “What comes to mind when you think of the Law?’ The reason this comes foremost to my mind is in Jesus’ concluding statement to the above. He concluded:

On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
(Mt 22:40)

Though I know I cannot fulfill the Law; Jesus alone does/did that, I have a goal on which my limited human mind and understanding can focus: love God and love those He created. Paul called this “a more excellent way” in 1 Cor 13, and devoted  much of rest of that chapter to how we should love…both vertically, toward God, and laterally, toward others.

It is also reassuring confirmation of the nature of God toward me…When we read in 1 John (multiple times) that “God is love”, and we recall the hundreds of years of forbearance God demonstrated toward Israel, calling them “back home” time and again after unfaithfulness, we begin to glimpse the constancy and faithfulness Paul had seen when he said in Romans 8,

“…I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers,  nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

So I think of “The Law”, and rather than feeling stifled or hopelessly inadequate, I am comforted that God’s purpose for me consists of, and is driven by, His unfailing love.

AWESOME!!

I’ve been taking some comfort lately from this verse, among others, and it occurred to me to post it; it will be well-familiar to you.

                      (for some apropos accompanying music, click on the first song in the jukebox”, and hit “play” )

Ecclesiastes 3

A Time for Everything

    ¹ There is a time for everything,
       and a season for every activity under heaven:

    ² a time to be born and a time to die,
       a time to plant and a time to uproot,

    ³ a time to kill and a time to heal,
       a time to tear down and a time to build,

    ⁴ a time to weep and a time to laugh,
       a time to mourn and a time to dance,

    ⁵ a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
       a time to embrace and a time to refrain,

    ⁶ a time to search and a time to give up,
       a time to keep and a time to throw away,

    ⁷ a time to tear and a time to mend,
       a time to be silent and a time to speak,

    ⁸ a time to love and a time to hate,
       a time for war and a time for peace.

    ⁹ What does the worker gain from his toil? ¹⁰ I have seen the burden God has laid on men. ¹¹ He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. ¹² I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live. ¹³ That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil—this is the gift of God. ¹⁴ I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that men will revere him.

Now it seems odd, in a way, that this gives comfort, but I am reassured that a loving God has a purpose in the “seasons” through which I and all of us pass:

    Romans 8

¹⁸I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. ……we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. …²⁸And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.     ³¹What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? ³²He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? ³³Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. ³⁴Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. ³⁵Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? ³⁶As it is written:
   ”For your sake we face death all day long;
      we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” ³⁷No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. ³⁸For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, ³⁹neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

So, as I experience sadness of various types, and long for the place and time that our “present sufferings” are in the past, I am reassured that the God who purchased me is “turning the seasons” of my life for His purpose and my growth into that to which He has called me….the fullness of becoming His child.