Lord, teach me to groan...
Forgive my shallow groans and my half-heartedness
Forgive my groans at the loss of my misplaced joys
When I don't understand your Sovereign ways
and kick against the goad
Forgive my groan.
Let me groan for my sins and not comfort them
May I groan for obedience.
Lord, teach me to groan
for the widow and the orphan
for the dying and the sick
for the rebel and the fool
for injustice and oppression,
hatred and anger.
Let me groan for those I love whose bent is toward destruction
and have no appetite for grace.
Let me groan for worry and fear,
sickness and rebellion and hopelessness.
Lord, teach me to groan
Let me groan with longing for the day of rescue
for the day of reunion
for the removal of sin and pain and death
the old order of things.
Let me groan for tears finally wiped away
for the cure of pain
and the arrival of the life that is truly life-
the peace of Your Presence forever.
Lord, teach me to groan until the final day.
I will stop groaning when I see Your face.
Sunday, August 12, 2018
Groanings
"And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons." -Romans 8:23
This passage is a needed corrective to my ability to groan. I picture myself on my knees in prayer, wrestling with God, groaning alone. I hope that my groaning will be heard in heaven. I hope that it will result in answers to prayer that I or a loved one sorely need.
I am challenged to think differently now. As I kneel to pray, Another comes to kneel as well. I begin to pray and to groan. The One beside me begins to groan as well. Suddenly, I am taken aback by the deep intensity of His groans. My groans suddenly seem shallow and self-centered. My groans are half-hearted. There is an end to the strength of my groaning.
Paul says the groans of the Holy Spirit are too deep for words. His groanings are altogether holy. The Spirit clearly sees the distance between how things are and how things will be. He has the divine power to groan like Jesus at the tomb of Lazarus. He has all the power to groan for what will usher in healing and restoration.
Let me groan in step with the Spirit. It helps to know that when I hurt or someone I love hurts in a way I am helpless to meet, He groans as well. Let my groans match His as we pray for the things that matter. Holy Spirit:
1. Join me in my groaning so that I am not alone in it.
2. Still my groanings for lusts and passions and pleasures and material things that will not satisfy.
3. Purify my sight so that I might understand Your groaning and join you in it.
4. Give me strength to groan with increased intensity for the things which cause Your great heart to groan as well.
This passage is a needed corrective to my ability to groan. I picture myself on my knees in prayer, wrestling with God, groaning alone. I hope that my groaning will be heard in heaven. I hope that it will result in answers to prayer that I or a loved one sorely need.
I am challenged to think differently now. As I kneel to pray, Another comes to kneel as well. I begin to pray and to groan. The One beside me begins to groan as well. Suddenly, I am taken aback by the deep intensity of His groans. My groans suddenly seem shallow and self-centered. My groans are half-hearted. There is an end to the strength of my groaning.
Paul says the groans of the Holy Spirit are too deep for words. His groanings are altogether holy. The Spirit clearly sees the distance between how things are and how things will be. He has the divine power to groan like Jesus at the tomb of Lazarus. He has all the power to groan for what will usher in healing and restoration.
Let me groan in step with the Spirit. It helps to know that when I hurt or someone I love hurts in a way I am helpless to meet, He groans as well. Let my groans match His as we pray for the things that matter. Holy Spirit:
1. Join me in my groaning so that I am not alone in it.
2. Still my groanings for lusts and passions and pleasures and material things that will not satisfy.
3. Purify my sight so that I might understand Your groaning and join you in it.
4. Give me strength to groan with increased intensity for the things which cause Your great heart to groan as well.
Friday, October 13, 2017
Jesus Wept
There are two phrases in the story of the raising of Lazarus from the dead that stand out. Jesus tells an emotionally distraught Martha "I am the resurrection and the life." It was, to Martha, a way back to Jesus. He was the friend she knew as well as the God she loved. The words were about to be a triumphal cry to be followed by "Loose him and let him go." Paul would agree with our desire to know the power of God in our lives like that: "That I might know Him in the power of His resurrection..."
Paul's desire did not end there, though. I want to know Him, he said, in the power of His resurrection and in the fellowship of suffering. If we want to know Jesus better, we must see Him in both lights: The ultimately victorious Lord and Savior who delivers us from the fear of death and as the friend who weeps outside a tomb.
On one hand, Jesus is God of very God, whose victory is sure and whose deliverance is complete. On the other hand, Jesus is one who gives up His rights and privileges as God, to be wrapped in flesh, become obedient to the will of God, taking the role of a servant all the way to death on a cross.
The same incident in John 11 that tells us that Jesus is the resurrection and the life tells us that Jesus wept. Before he wipes away our tears, he sheds his own. He sits in the dust with us until he leads us in triumphal procession. The author of the Book of Hebrews tells us that "we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses."
I stood at mom's dying bedside as she begged, "Please son, let me go..." I have had friends die after long well-fought battles with cancer. I have stood at funerals where loved ones looked for some reason to hope for their unsaved sibling. I have wondered what God was doing. I have thought, "Surely, this is too much for me." Then, behind me, I heard my Savior plead, "Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from me." Whatever I have faced, or will face, is not worthy to be compared to what He faced. If my prayer is not answered, I rest in the knowledge that in Christ's unanswered prayer is all my hope and rescue.
The triumphal cry, "It is finished" will come soon for Him. It will come soon too, for us. So, I have found myself less and less seeking answers. Instead, I seek His presence. Even in the darkness of the valley of the shadow of death, The Shepherd is near.
Be near me, Lord Jesus,
I ask Thee to stay
Close by me forever and love me, I pray
Bless all the dear children in Thy tender care
And fit us for heaven to live with Thee there.
Paul's desire did not end there, though. I want to know Him, he said, in the power of His resurrection and in the fellowship of suffering. If we want to know Jesus better, we must see Him in both lights: The ultimately victorious Lord and Savior who delivers us from the fear of death and as the friend who weeps outside a tomb.
On one hand, Jesus is God of very God, whose victory is sure and whose deliverance is complete. On the other hand, Jesus is one who gives up His rights and privileges as God, to be wrapped in flesh, become obedient to the will of God, taking the role of a servant all the way to death on a cross.
The same incident in John 11 that tells us that Jesus is the resurrection and the life tells us that Jesus wept. Before he wipes away our tears, he sheds his own. He sits in the dust with us until he leads us in triumphal procession. The author of the Book of Hebrews tells us that "we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses."
I stood at mom's dying bedside as she begged, "Please son, let me go..." I have had friends die after long well-fought battles with cancer. I have stood at funerals where loved ones looked for some reason to hope for their unsaved sibling. I have wondered what God was doing. I have thought, "Surely, this is too much for me." Then, behind me, I heard my Savior plead, "Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from me." Whatever I have faced, or will face, is not worthy to be compared to what He faced. If my prayer is not answered, I rest in the knowledge that in Christ's unanswered prayer is all my hope and rescue.
The triumphal cry, "It is finished" will come soon for Him. It will come soon too, for us. So, I have found myself less and less seeking answers. Instead, I seek His presence. Even in the darkness of the valley of the shadow of death, The Shepherd is near.
Be near me, Lord Jesus,
I ask Thee to stay
Close by me forever and love me, I pray
Bless all the dear children in Thy tender care
And fit us for heaven to live with Thee there.
Friday, August 18, 2017
Meditation on the Lord's Prayer
Meditation on the
Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 5:9-13)
Our Father which art in heaven…
What is
the role of a Father? How would God be
the perfect example?
Explain
some ways your life could be different as you relied on your all-powerful,
all-compassionate Father.
Hallowed be Thy name…
In what
ways can people, by looking at you, see the holiness of God?
How can
you help others see the holiness of God?
Thy Kingdom come…
Imagine
what settledness earth will possess when the Prince of Peace is come.
What
peace can come to my mind and heart now as a subject of his kingdom?
Thy Will be done on earth as it is in heaven…
How is
God’s Will done in heaven? What is the
result?
How
would God’s will done on earth look different from today?
In what
ways is pursuing the will of God better than pursuing my own will?
How can
I cultivate a desire for God’s will?
Give us today our daily bread
How
would daily dependence on God be a better benefit to us than a lump sum
provision?
Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors
What does
this petition assume if we don’t forgive our debtors?
How
would a rich sense of forgiveness free us from our past?
Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil
How are
God’s guidance and his protection related?
What
kinds of temptations are you prone to?
What
are some of the sources of evil around us?
Thursday, July 13, 2017
D = S-M: How much suffering is too much?
If Frankl is right, that Despair equals Suffering minus Meaning, the culture has damaged the nature of man by removing "the image of God" from our definition. But we have caused further damage. We have raised our sense of expectation to the point of entitlement. Frankl discussed suffering in the context of World War II and its atrocities. Today, we have a lifestyle of plenty, but we still complain about our lot.
How do we view suffering? My dad had Retinitis Pigmentosa and a hearing loss. He worked two and three jobs when I was a kid, followed by job loss and disability. I remember the sound of his voice, then the silence in the house on the day the state took his driver's license. Bitterness did not mark his life, however. He did not spend his time lamenting his loss and its unfairness. We traveled, camped, maintained good friends, and went to church. He and my mom gave us a normal home.
So when Frankl refers to suffering, are we talking about real suffering or perception of suffering? In our entitlement culture, what if suffering is working forty hours a week? What if you don't have money for everything you want? What if your relationships are not where you want them to be? My car is a source of suffering. By telling our generation that we deserve all these things, have we increased their suffering when life comes up short?
How do we view suffering? My dad had Retinitis Pigmentosa and a hearing loss. He worked two and three jobs when I was a kid, followed by job loss and disability. I remember the sound of his voice, then the silence in the house on the day the state took his driver's license. Bitterness did not mark his life, however. He did not spend his time lamenting his loss and its unfairness. We traveled, camped, maintained good friends, and went to church. He and my mom gave us a normal home.
So when Frankl refers to suffering, are we talking about real suffering or perception of suffering? In our entitlement culture, what if suffering is working forty hours a week? What if you don't have money for everything you want? What if your relationships are not where you want them to be? My car is a source of suffering. By telling our generation that we deserve all these things, have we increased their suffering when life comes up short?
Wednesday, July 12, 2017
D = S-M: Why is our culture depressed?
Viktor Frankl gave us useful mathematics for understanding despair. In the midst of World War II, he noticed those who were able to persevere amid horrible suffering were those who could attach meaning to their lives and to their circumstances. Despair increases, he said, when meaning is removed from suffering.
Is it possible that our culture suffers from a loss of meaning? Secularism teaches us we are independent of meaning from God, we have to make our own. The problem is that man is not capable of sustaining meaning on his own. We are finite- whatever meaning we cast cannot last because we don't last. We are also derivative- meaning is not inherent in us. We are made in the image of God which means our meaning is attached to his. When we deny God exists, we deny ourselves meaning. Frankl saw that without a transcendent meaning, suffering becomes unbearable.
Is it possible that our culture suffers from a loss of meaning? Secularism teaches us we are independent of meaning from God, we have to make our own. The problem is that man is not capable of sustaining meaning on his own. We are finite- whatever meaning we cast cannot last because we don't last. We are also derivative- meaning is not inherent in us. We are made in the image of God which means our meaning is attached to his. When we deny God exists, we deny ourselves meaning. Frankl saw that without a transcendent meaning, suffering becomes unbearable.
Wednesday, November 9, 2016
Does Donald Trump Have a Mandate?
Donald Trump beat some incredible odds last night. He spent far less money on the campaign than his opponent. He had opponents in the Democrats, the media, the never-Trumpers, and the Republican establishment. He even shot himself in the foot numerous times, but in the end, he won. His campaign manager says he has a mandate. But what is the mandate for?
It is not for an unaccountable presidency. He was not elected to say whatever he wants or do whatever he pleases. He was not elected because he is abusive or racist or angry. If he assumes he may continue along that path with impunity, his success will be short-lived.
His election was the last gasp of constituents who were pro-life and pro-traditional marriage. They were desirous of smaller federal government and worried about the erosion of our human, not civil, rights. They wanted rule-of-law judges on the Supreme court. They wanted to free our economy from the malaise of regulation and wayward social experimentation.
It is not as if anyone believed he would do anything constructive in that direction. But, it was a surety that the policies of Hillary Clinton would be effective steps in the wrong direction. In this election, lip-service to those values was considered a higher good. Effective work in the wrong direction is a greater evil.
Donald Trump must be careful to discern the reasons for his election. It was not his character or his rhetoric. Continued divisiveness, anger, and abuse will cause great evil in the coming years. Donald Trump was elected to repair the ruin of a progressive predecessor. If he can do that, history may think better of him.
It is not for an unaccountable presidency. He was not elected to say whatever he wants or do whatever he pleases. He was not elected because he is abusive or racist or angry. If he assumes he may continue along that path with impunity, his success will be short-lived.
His election was the last gasp of constituents who were pro-life and pro-traditional marriage. They were desirous of smaller federal government and worried about the erosion of our human, not civil, rights. They wanted rule-of-law judges on the Supreme court. They wanted to free our economy from the malaise of regulation and wayward social experimentation.
It is not as if anyone believed he would do anything constructive in that direction. But, it was a surety that the policies of Hillary Clinton would be effective steps in the wrong direction. In this election, lip-service to those values was considered a higher good. Effective work in the wrong direction is a greater evil.
Donald Trump must be careful to discern the reasons for his election. It was not his character or his rhetoric. Continued divisiveness, anger, and abuse will cause great evil in the coming years. Donald Trump was elected to repair the ruin of a progressive predecessor. If he can do that, history may think better of him.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)