Be One Big Happy Family

1 Peter 3:8-9 -   And now this word to all of you: You should be like one big happy family, full of sympathy toward each other, loving one another with tender hearts and humble minds.  Don’t repay evil for evil. Don’t snap back at those who say unkind things about you. Instead, pray for God’s help for them, for we are to be kind to others, and God will bless us for it.

Peter goes right to the heart of why peace is so hard to find in our world today.  He even gives us the answer to how to achieve it. Perhaps the problem understanding his clear advice lies more in our lack of experience with the phrases….happy family….full of sympathy….love one another….tender hearts……. and …..humble minds.

We lack experience because we haven’t followed the second part of his two piece advice here.  We let the anger … bitterness…. and selfishness that satan carefully sneaks into our hearts fester till it explodes in just exactly what Peter says not to do. I sure am guilty of realizing too late that I have let my humbleness and mercy escape me before I think to pray about a situation that felt unkind to me.

The happiest families I know work hard to stay joined in peace.  They think of each other before themselves.  The goal is to be a unified group…not 4-5 individuals that exist under one roof. They build a relationship with each other that closes the gap satan has to sneak and destroy the hard work they have done to shut the door on his weapons of destruction.

I know that Peter was talking ultimately about the church…I did not miss that. But how could our churches achieve unity when most families are falling apart in today’s world. We think it has become easier to divorce and start over with someone that fits our personality better than to try to follow Peter’s advice and fix what is wrong. 

It is no accident that Peter tells us that prayer is our answer. Prayer is the answer to every problem that exists. The sooner we hit our knees…the quicker we start to shed the pride and arrogance that made us think we had any piece of the answer without asking God first.

Father…thank you for the reminder that you have given us the answer to peace and unity in the world.  Forgive me for the times that I have prevented peace because of my arrogance and pride.  Help me to find every seed that satan has tried to plant in my heart that could grow into things that will prevent me from coming to you in prayer and asking for your will. Give me added strength and courage to turn the other cheek when I need too.  Amen.

Grow Up...Clean Out ALL The Skeletons

1 Peter 2:3-5 - Now that you realize how kind the Lord has been to you, put away all evil, deception, envy, and fraud. Long to grow up into the fullness of your salvation; cry for this as a baby cries for his milk.  Come to Christ, who is the living Foundation of Rock upon which God builds; though men have spurned him, he is very precious to God who has chosen him above all others. And now you have become living building-stones for God’s use in building his house. What’s more, you are his holy priests; so come to him—you who are acceptable to him because of Jesus Christ—and offer to God those things that please him.

Peter wastes no time telling us to grow up.  We have been taught…God gave us the Holy Spirit to tell us right from wrong….it is time to let go of everything that keeps us from understanding and experiencing God’s full salvation. He even tells us why…we are supposed to be his building stones…winning others to God…..not still in the nursery having others take care of us.

I have to admit that I am NOT grown up when I read this.  Sure ..I could justify some growth and use as a building stone by citing any number of ministries I am involved in….and the time I spend in study and prayer. BUT…here’s what God wanted me to realize when he let Peter write this powerful insight…I sure don’t long to grow up…I fight it all the way.  And I sure don’t cry for it like a baby cries for its milk. It does not consume me enough to stop justifying everything I still hold on too that keeps me a child in God’s eyes.

Verse 9-10 tell us how to start the process of growing up again if we have stalled for a while. It says…. “ But you are not like that, for you have been chosen by God himself—you are priests of the King, you are holy and pure, you are God’s very own—all this so that you may show to others how God called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.  Once you were less than nothing; now you are God’s own. Once you knew very little of God’s kindness; now your very lives have been changed by it.”

I need to commit to a little less justification…and do some spiritual cleaning. I need to let the transformations that God has made in my life power me to finish cleaning ALL the skeletons out of my closet that hold me back from that full experience of salvation Peter was experiencing…and wanted for all the believers he taught about Christ.

Father…thank you once again for waking me to a deeper knowledge of who you are and how you can transform my hearty and life to be your vessel. Forgive me for stalling in the process of cleaning out the rest of the things that hold me back from experiencing who you fully are. Teach me to be a solid building stone…that will help you build a church that can withstand the persecution and trials that are ahead. Amen.

Be Truly Glad For Tough Times

1 Peter 1:6-7 -   So be truly glad! There is wonderful joy ahead, even though the going is rough for a while down here.  These trials are only to test your faith, to see whether or not it is strong and pure. It is being tested as fire tests gold and purifies it—and your faith is far more precious to God than mere gold; so if your faith remains strong after being tried in the test tube of fiery trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day of his return.

Peter had the hard job of encouraging new Christians that were suffering true persecution from the government and those that did not believe in Christ. On top of the economic and personal struggles they were dealing with….those that chose to follow Christ added to their problems the real threat of persecution if their faith choice went against the government wishes.

Many countries have seen this for years. They must meet in secret…hide their Bibles…and find some way to keep God the master in their life…knowing that it may mean severe beatings…imprisonment…or even death. We have enjoyed religious freedom here in the US for centuries…but I feel lately that I am watching the core of that system being  worn down bit by bit to the world’s standards as well.

I admit too that it is hard to follow Peter’s directive here…to truly be glad that things are so bad…seems the opposite of what we should do. But think about Peter’s background here. Peter knew firsthand how tests of faith made you stronger. He failed once himself…and knew how the love of God through his son Jesus could restore and strengthen even the worst of slip ups in faith. The restoration process refined him into a much stronger Christian.  He knew how to use his weaknesses to God’s advantage. He knew he was striving for a goal that was not of this world.

Father…thank you for the reminder that you have promised joy unthinkable to those that follow you in true faith.  Forgive me for the times that I have let simple hardships…and pain in life tear away the faith that you have tried to build in me. Strengthen me for the real test that is coming God….and help me know how to stand strong for you no matter what.  Amen.

Prayer...Wonderfully Powerful

James 5:13-14 -   Is anyone among you suffering? He should keep on praying about it. And those who have reason to be thankful should continually be singing praises to the Lord.   Is anyone sick? He should call for the elders of the church and they should pray over him and pour a little oil upon him, calling on the Lord to heal him.

James ends his great letter with two important points.  After he reminds us of the dangers of letting material wealth control us…he spends some time restating to us the great power of prayer. Just as greed and success can tear us down…humility in prayer can open our spiritual awareness to the great power it offers to heal all aspects of our being. 

James reminds us that prayer should be a dominant part of our life. It should be our preventative measure…not just a resource for a last ditch effort.  It is the most powerful tool a Christian has in their armor to fight all kinds of issues that satan tries to use to lessen our faith. 

What is most important to remember about prayer is not what is said…but how it is said.  The simple …short sweet prayer of a toddler can be more effective than a prayer you labor over hours and word just right. God hears our heart…not our words.

I admit that some of my prayers are routine and feel stale and useless sometimes.  Other times tears flow and I can feel the spirit within me working as the words flow from my mouth. Oh that every time I lift my voice to God in prayer they would be filled with the humility of the great prophets like Elijah who controlled the rain. Or perhaps I could learn Moses’ way of prayer so I can change God’s mind with my heart.  Ultimately … complete humility learns to pray as Jesus did in the garden…knowing that God’s answer sometimes requires obedience and suffering to bring about the greater good.

Father...thank you for the reminder that prayer is my most important communication with you.  Forgive me for the times I did not spend in prayer…and let the world distract me from letting my heart speak with you continually.  Help me to keep working on the humility I need to understand and use prayer to its fullest.  Amen.

Want Versus Need...What Does God Want?

James 4:2-3 -   You want what you don’t have, so you kill to get it. You long for what others have, and can’t afford it, so you start a fight to take it away from them. And yet the reason you don’t have what you want is that you don’t ask God for it.  And even when you do ask you don’t get it because your whole aim is wrong—you want only what will give you pleasure.

James hits on one of the most destructive character traits known to the Christian heart in this passage.  The anger...bitterness and jealously it creates in the world destroys marriages….families…careers….and people.  Perhaps we have learned to be more civilized that to start a fight to take something away from someone…but we still long for material possessions and the comfort and status they add to our emotions.

James addresses the key things we need to think about when we …THINK…we want something.  Before we pray we need to analyze why we THINK we need what we want. His thoughts move us past the basic lessons we learned in economics class of want versus need. In essence…we can exist with food …water…shelter…and let’s add God to the mix for believers.  But we live in a world that says that we must also have transportation… a job… dress a certain way… nice houses… new clothes that are current fashion…and on and on it goes. The line of wants and needs has become very muddy indeed.

I have a current struggle I will share.  God granted me a wonderful home.  It had almost all the ‘wish list’ I gave my realtor. I would have loved to have a garage…a screened in deck and larger rooms….but I thankfully accepted the wonderful gift of what he gave me.  The fall leaves that are falling and staining my car make me really want that garage….or at least a covered carport that comes to one of my doors when the weather is bad. I even checked in to one…the structure was affordable…but the cost of permits and such drove the cost out of my budget. 

Perhaps I don’t really need it...and God knows the money I had set aside for that is going to be needed for something He wants.  His plans  will go beyond my vision of what I THINK I need in so many ways if I can wrap my head around the disappointment of the current reality….and accept the fact that scraping leaves and washing the acid off the car constantly  is at least easier than scraping snow. God will help me deal with the snow when it happens.

Father…thank you for the reminder that I need to always think carefully about the things in my life.  Forgive me for the times that let my wants get inflated and focused too much on what I THINK I need without consulting you.  Help me to always take time to pray for guidance and wisdom in all the things I pray for.  Amen. 

The Tongue....Small...Yet Very Powerful

James 3:2-5 - If anyone can control his tongue,  it proves that he has perfect control over himself in every other way.  We can make a large horse turn around and go wherever we want by means of a small bit in his mouth.  And a tiny rudder makes a huge ship turn wherever the pilot wants it to go, even though the winds are strong.  So also the tongue is a small thing, but what enormous damage it can do. A great forest can be set on fire by one tiny spark. 

James tackles some of the tougher aspects of Christian Character.  Our words are powerful tools that can be used for good…used to uplift and encourage. They can be used to tear down…damage or simply create an environment of blasphemes that surely make God bow His head in embarrassment if we have attached our life to His Holy name.

He uses the analogies …like the SMALL spark that starts a fire…. The SMALL bit that guides a horse…and the SMALL rudder that steers a ship to say that the size of this tool has nothing to do with the power it has over the heart.  One word can build up the lowest of self-esteem’s… tear down the highest of positive thinking….or tear down the character you have worked on for years with one unholy curse word. They stick to everyone’s soul in hearing distance….probably forever…never truly being erased after they are said.

My heaviest burden of guilt lies with the many uncontrolled words that were spoken during the last few years of my first marriage.  Words spoken in selfishness…self-righteousness…or simply hurt will be remembered for the rest of the lives they were spoken in front of.  I know that I am not the person that acted that way now…but only those that are able to see my daily walk are privy to the changes God is making in my use of the tongue.  I am so thankful for God’s forgiveness and know that one day he will even use my uncontrolled words to bring about good.

James says to concentrate on the positive… and wisdom will help us bridle this hard to tame beast.  Use pure thoughts…be gentle…and to work toward peace even when it means giving in your feelings.  He says to run from any discussion that includes gossip…bragging…exaggerating …complaining…put downs …and lying.  Take the time to think before you speak…Is it true???…Is it necessary???...Is it kind???

Father...thank you for the reminder to keep my powerful tongue in control and constantly working towards loving others.  Forgive me for the times that used my tongue to tear down…or blaspheme your holiness. Help me to be control so fully by your love that the positive way to use my tongue becomes all that I know how to do.  Amen.

Are You Guided By Wrong Motives?

James 2:2-4 -  If a man comes into your church dressed in expensive clothes and with valuable gold rings on his fingers, and at the same moment another man comes in who is poor and dressed in threadbare clothes,  and you make a lot of fuss over the rich man and give him the best seat in the house and say to the poor man, “You can stand over there if you like or else sit on the floor”—well,  judging a man by his wealth shows that you are guided by wrong motives.

The dangers of showing favoritism to anyone is a hard lesson to teach…but James nails it with honesty and directness. It is in fact one of the most dangerous sins we let ourselves justify.  It speaks to the motive of everything we do…it reveals to the world around us where our heart truly is.

I was immediately reminded of the story of the pastor who dressed like a homeless man the day he was scheduled to meet and preach for his new church for the first time.  He had one or two to speak him…but that was to suggest a seat in the back of the church. The majority of encounters were attempts to walk further away from him…or cover their mouths so he could not hear their conversations.  The lesson they learned that day was radical…for when they announced his name…and he walked down the aisle …took the podium…and started to uncover the mess he made of himself to make his point…they saw the purpose in this scripture first hand.

I am guilty…guilty …guilty…it is one of the things God has been dealing with me for a long time.  I am doing much better with letting go of materialism…but I still struggle with treating all people with the same love God treats me….no matter what.  My nose gets in the way…literally and figuratively.

I will testify that the one thing that has helped the most is to involve myself with all economic levels as many ways as I can.  God has allowed me to have some precious friends that have so much less than I do..(in the way of money and finances) dependence on God is all they have sometimes.  They are examples of how God can take a humble heart and teach it to fully rely on him for everything. They have been instrumental in teaching me how to judge a person by their heart….not the tattoos ….piercings …clothes they wear…or money they throw around in stores. 

Father…thank you for the reminder that I am nothing if my faith does not completely match my actions for everyone I meet.  Forgive me for the times that I have let success allow pride to lessen the way I treat others that seem different than me. Help me to be completely controlled by you…so that everyone I meet may see your great love through my life and actions.  Amen.