pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

Tag Archives: relationship


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The Right Order

In this season it can be easy to get caught up in the volume of gifts or in spending a lot of time and energy trying to find just the right gift.  Yet for many the gift they most desire is one that is free and that is always available: time.

Our relationship with God can be similar.  We can get so busy doing things for God and we come to think that our works are what matter to God.  It’s easy to get caught up in what we do FOR God instead of focusing in on who we are TO God.  Maybe in Advent it is even easier to get caught up in this game because Christmas can be about giving.

Adding to the mix is the fact that when we do or accomplish things for God, it can make us feel important or special.  We must be careful here.  God cares about who we are much more than about what we do.  Our relationship to God is what matters most.  From this relationship, the ‘doing’ naturally flows.  When asked, Jesus listed loving God first.  He knew the right order.  If we first love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, then loving others naturally follows.

Scripture reference: 2 Samuel 7: 1-7


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There to be Found

At times we all enter into periods when it seems God is not around.  It can be for just a short time or it can be for a season.  About the time we start to question God’s whereabouts, we realize that it was us who was missing because God is always present.  Maybe it is our choices that have led us away.  Maybe it is because we have allowed ourselves to become too busy with life.

Sometimes it is a challenge to stay connected to God during a busy time like Advent.  Seems counterintuitive, but it happens.  A famous theologian once said, “Today looks like a very busy day.  I better pray for two hours instead of one.”  His attitude is so spot on.  Advent calls us into a deeper relationship and commitment despite the increased business of the season.

God desires to speak peace, comfort, love, and strength into our lives.  He desires a close daily relationship with us.  And what does it require of us?  Simply time, an ear turned toward heaven, and a faithful heart.  He is there to be found.  May we each connect with Him this Advent season!

Scripture reference: Isaiah 40: 1-5


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Make It Yours

Where are you God?!  That is the cry of Israel in Psalm 80.  Catastrophe has struck and, therefore, they question where God is.  Surely He is not present, or this would have never happened.  Been there before?

In the midst of tragedy the Israelites beg God to turn His face to them and to shine on them.  Once God looks on His people, He will see their hardship and He will restore them.  He will stop the suffering at the hands of their foe.  Ever sought this?

Verse 17 asks God to let His hand ‘rest upon the son of man’, the one He raised up.  If so, the promise is they will not turn away but will call on His name – after God revives them.  A familiar if-then bargain!  Sound familiar?

The relationship we are called to is 24-7-365.  It is the same in the good and in the bad and everything in between.  God is always present to us.  His love and mercy are always available.  Make it yours each day.

Scripture reference: Psalm 80: 1-7 and 17-19


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We Too Will Be Amazed

In the story of Israel crossing the Jordan, God only works when the priests come to rest in the middle of the raging river.  Once they stop in the middle of the rushing waters and trust in Him to act, then the Lord provides a safe way for the people to cross over to the other side.  Because they rested and trusted, God provided them a way that they could not provide for themselves.

Rest was an important part of Israel’s faith.  For the Hebrews, the Sabbath was strictly observed as a day of rest from work and as a day when they would worship God.  In this time of rest, God goes to work.  As they rest and seek God, He responds by coming to them, by being a presence in their lives.So it must have made sense to the priests to stop and rest in the middle of the river, to wait on God to work.

In our society today, rest seems almost a foreign concept.  We are so busy.  For many, rest is that time at the end of the day when they collapse into bed at the end of another busy day.  We even fill our weekends with all that we did not get done during our busy week.

God still calls for us to rest in Him.  He desires for a personal relationship above all else.  And that requires time.  To connect with God in an intimate way we must carve out time daily where it is just God and us.  We must allow Him time to work in our lives.  When we do these things, we too will be amazed by what God will do in our lives.

Scripture reference: Joshua 3: 7-17


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The Greatest Gift

Our faith often gets passed from generation to generation.  As parents raising children, we nurture and teach them how to be caring and responsible, and to make good decisions.  As Christians, we add to this list ‘faith’.  Our children best learn by observing and by participating.

Like anything else, faith must be taught.  This happens both in the home and at church.  As we talk about the messages and stories in the Bible with our children we are both preparing them to become a Christian themselves and also to be a teacher of faith some day.

And then there is the indirect teaching.  If our children see us joyously heading off to church or to meet with our small group, that outlook is instilled in them.  If they ride home from church with us or overhear us talking with our spouse about what we learned there, then they too want to become part of the conversation.  If they see us reading our Bible or praying at home, that habit gains a foothold in their lives as well.  If they see us treat the stranger and the outcast with love and mercy, then they come to treat others that way as well.  What do your children see when they observe you?

The greatest gift we can give the next generation is a relationship with and faith in Jesus Christ.  In all ways, may we model what it looks like lived out daily, in the flesh, in this world.  May we teach the children well.

Scripture reference: 1 Thessalonians 2: 1-8


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Following Paul’s Example

Paul sets a great example of how we are to evangelize or share the gospel.  He has been rejected and suffered once in Thessalonica yet he returns to this place again.  He enters filled with courage to do the work which God has called him to.  No fear rests in Paul because he knows God is in his corner.  How many times do we allow that first rejection to be our last attempt to share our faith with someone?

Paul comes with pure motives.  He is not seeking to make a name for himself or to become rich.  Paul is there to share the gospel and to bring glory to God alone.  His natural bent as an encourager and nurturer also draws him back.  So often Paul sought to help others along their journey of faith.  How many people do owe know who we could treat as Paul treats the Thessalonians?

Lastly, Paul comes to build relationships.  He seeks to build upon the relationship he established during his first visit.  As the Thessalonians are build up and strengthened by Paul’s time with them, so too is Paul built up and encouraged.  How many people do we have basic relationships with that could be brought to the next level as we share our faith story with them?

May we learn to follow Paul’s example of evangelism – courageously answering our call, responding only in ways that glorify God, and seeking to build lasting relationships that allows for both persons to grow.

Scripture reference: 1 Thessalonians 2: 1-8


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Conversing with God

In Exodus 33 Moses asks to see God.  His request seems almost foreign to me at first.  But as I thought about it, then it made a little more sense.

In many ways our relationship with God is very personal and private.  We have our times of study and devotions, our times of prayer.  In these moments we come to know God more and come to know Him more intimately.  We seek His guidance, direction, and will for our lives.  On some days, His presence is tangible to us – perhaps as we go intensely in prayer before Him.   Sometimes we may also experience His presence in a worship experience at church, but often that is private in a sense too.  At times we can even experience a type of interaction as the Holy Spirit nudges or prompts us.

Yet I have not felt like I actually need to see God – not just yet anyway!  But Moses wanted to see God.  Their relationship was different though.  Moses and God had actual conversations and even argued from time to time.  I think this type of relationship would be great – talking with God in a real sense.  Moving beyond praying to God to praying or talking with God would be amazing.  So in this Moses provides us a glimpse of a deeply intense relationship with God.  May all of our faiths grow to become worthy of an actual conversation with our creator.

Scripture reference: Exodus 33: 17-23


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Thankful for Each

In 1st Thessalonians, Paul begins the letter by thanking them for their faith and the community that exists between them.  For Paul it is all about the relationships – the ones between the people and God, the one between them and Paul himself, and the ones the people share with each other.  Paul is thankful for both the people and the many relationships that they have.

I too am thankful for the people of my church and the relationships that exist.  The relationships are what bind us together.  Through their willingness to be present and to offer what they can, we see the value of the community and the relationships that undergird it.  I can think of many specific people who offer themselves on Sundays – as singers, players, greeters, servers, reading, praying.  I can think of others who offer of themselves as teachers, shepherds, drivers, cleaners, leaders of areas of ministry.  I can think of many who volunteer at the day center for the homeless and needy – making a difference in people’s lives as they form relationships and offer what they can.

Each of these folks have a relationship with each other, with the body as a whole, and with God.  Every single one matters and all are essential.  Who in your community of faith are you thankful for?  What relationships do you value?

Prayers of blessing upon each one and upon their continuing, growing relationships with each other and with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  Prayers also that He remain the cornerstone and foundation today and forevermore!!

Scripture reference: 1 Thessalonians 1: 1-10


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The Relationship

In Exodus 33 God decides to take a little break from the Israelites.  He tells Moses that an angel will accompany them instead.  But Moses does not like the plan.  Its kinda like having Michael Jordan on your team and him telling you he’s sending his four-year-old niece instead next game.

For Moses, it is about that personal relationship he has with God and also about the corporate relationship the people have with God.  The relationship is with God, not an angel.  To Moses, no substitute will do.  An angel instead?  No thanks.

Put in the same situation, we should react the same way.  Today we view God as three ‘parts’ of one person – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  Our personal faith is tied to God.  This relationship is the one thing that determines how we live our life.  Jesus told us that the greatest commandment is to love the Lord with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength.  Our faith grows as our relationships with God deepens and we in turn become a greater part of the community as well.

As a community of faith, we are also bound up in this same relationship.  How we live as a community of faith is determined by our relationship with God as well.  And in the community of faith we find support, encouragements, correction, and learning.   We honor Jesus’ second command most often as a community – to love neighbor as self.  As a body of believers we are intertwined and interconnected not only with each other, but also with the greater world outside our church walls.

Scripture reference: Exodus 33: 12-23


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Invited and Chosen

In Matthew 22 the king has some difficulty gathering some guests for his son’s wedding banquet.  He finally gathers up some folks off the street to fill the hall,  But he finds one guest without wedding clothes.  In the culture of the time, by wearing a wedding robe you were agreeing to the responsibilities to uphold and care for the new couple.  So the guest that is saying ‘no’ is bound up and cast out into the darkness.

When we take on the mantle of ‘Christian’ we too are, in essence, agreeing to some things.  First, we are agreeing to uphold the teachings of Jesus.  The two primary ones are to love God with all of our heart, mind, soul, and strength and the second is to love neighbor as self.  On a personal level w are committing to a growing relationship with Christ.  We cultivate and grow our relationship with Jesus through prayer, study of His word, worship, and so on.

But, sadly, Jesus’ words at the end of the parable will apply to some sitting in the pews on Sunday – “For many are invited, but few are chosen”.  May we each live beyond ‘invited’.  May we live as the chosen.

Scripture reference: Matthew 22: 1-14