Winds of Assurance

"I Am the LORD, I change not."--Malachi 3:6

Safe to say, just about everyone on planet Earth likes variety. No, we love variety. And so God made four seasons with more variety, and colors, and aromas than anyone could ever imagine. But He didn't stop there: He delighted in making much more than just one kind of bird, one kind of dog and cat, one kind and shape and personality of loved ones, friends, and strangers, or one kind of flower, sunrise or sunset. Or, even creative minds that come up with more flavors of ice cream than will fit on your average outdoor menu.

See, the children's prayer really is true: God is great, God is good. And God is most of all holy--entirely perfect and set apart from all others--but He is also, well, fun. Variety is for His pleasure and for us to enjoy while we are passing through. All of these, and so much more, not only bring enjoyment but inspire awe and wonder designed to lead to a "walk with Me" response to the ultimate rhetorical question of every tribe in every near and distant land:

"Who could have made such a thing?" 

But there is one place where we draw the line. We hate the variety of possibilities and the unsteady footing that come with uncertainty...when life is a mess, when our world is in turmoil, when what should be right side up is upside down, when people are thinking and acting without restraint. Some kinds of change and variety are good, but on the essentials of day to day life, we crave stability. 

How good it is, then, to remember that the same Creator of the ultimate in variety also calmed the wind and waves with three little words, called each star by name and not one is missing to this day, and declared to His very first believing followers that though the world seems upside down at times, He's got this. 

A windy morning, and a change of seasons, is awakening New England today. But it is joy unspeakable and a peace that passes every bit of our understanding to launch into this new day--with all of its various choices, challenges, and delights ahead--and be assured beyond a shadow of a doubt that when it comes to the truth of His promises and character, the phrase "change is inevitable, My friend" will never cross God's lips.

"Whatever Your attributes were of old, they are now--

Your power, Your wisdom,

Your justice, Your truth, are alike unchanged;

You have ever been the refuge of Your people in the day of trouble,

and You are our sure helper still.

You are unchanged in Your love and You have loved us with an everlasting love.

In fact, You love us now as much as You ever did,

and when all earthly things shall have melted in the last conflagration, 

Your love will wear the dew of its youth.

Precious is the assurance that You...change...not."

(adapted from C.H. Spurgeon)

Updated from 10-20-13

Anthem for Resurrection Day

“So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in Him, rooted and built up in Him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.”—Colossians 2:6-7

The sun comes up, it’s a new Day dawning!
And this is my prayer...

Let Him who is risen indeed arise afresh upon the throne of your heart
It always works better that way
Always
Let this happiest morning of all time remind you 
That your surest footing is always in Christ alone
All other ground is sinking sand
Let this new morning, the smell of the earth
Remind you to dig daily into the rich soil that is the Gospel 
Let your roots go down deep and feed on the nutrients
Of what Jesus said and did
And still says and does
Remember to fight against all voices that clamor for additives
To make it all more relevant 
Christ is enough
Period.
And as He lives, be alive in hope and joy
That, like this morning, 
This [insert list here] is not the end of the story
And as He overcame, be bold and strong
In overcoming temptations to retreat or go on cruise control
Not by your own cleverness
‘But by My Spirit, says the Lord’
Remember that your confidence is never in things 
Or rulers, or anything temporal
No matter what your TV says
Then shout for joy once more, and one more time still
That your confidence is in nothing more, nothing less
Than in who Jesus is
Alive! And living still through His promises
And in and through you
The same: yesterday, today and forever
The Resurrection and the Life
This abundant, sometimes crazy, but fully satisfying life
So awake, once more, your soul 
And sing with thanksgiving of Him who died for you
And join the throng in hailing Him once more as your matchless King
It’s Sunday!...But Monday’s coming
So remember not to leave your songs behind
Take them with you, eat them, and live them
Before, with, and holding up
Those who are in various forms of darkness...
“As the Father has sent Me, I am sending you.”

"Hope is what you get when you suddenly realize that a different worldview is possible, a worldview in which the rich, the powerful, and the unscrupulous do not after all have the last word. The same worldview shift that is demanded by the resurrection of Jesus is the shift that will enable us to transform the world."--N.T. Wright

[ORIGINALLY POSTED APRIL 2014]

When the Answer Comes...

"To you, LORD, I give my whole heart; a heart filled with praise for I am grateful. Before the gods, my heart sings praises to You and You alone."--Psalm 138:1, Voice

In some Bible translations, the headline over this psalm is "Praise for Answered Prayer." And then we move right along and keep reading. All the while, it shouts:

"Hey, wait a second...How often do you remember to do this? How often do you forget to give more than a mental nod of appreciation to God when He answers? You pray long and hard and don't give up, which is good, and when the answer finally comes, do you take it for granted? Do you, without even realizing it, chalk it up to circumstances of the day that just happened to turn out right, or worse, think it was something you finally figured out on your own?"

I'm about to say that I don't like this headline very much. But then it suddenly and graciously changes its tone:

"Do you remember what that radio host said the other day about what has changed the most since social media became all the rage? Right: People are noticeably angrier and more critical and unhinged. As if you hadn't noticed. Everyone has an opinion on everything and they just let it fly. Gratitude is hard to find. Definitely not what God had in mind for His creation."

"Maybe you can't change all of that, but it's pretty easy for you to change you--and if you and a bunch of others get on board with this more often, who knows what kind of counterculture goodness could begin to happen? Cultivating good fruit from a gratitude attitude begins with remembering to be genuinely thankful for the big stuff and the small stuff. When the answer comes, when God comes through even in an unexpected way, cultivating good fruit means going to Him and letting Him know with your own words--not out of some obligation but out of that gratitude-attitude relationship you are seeking to nurture. This is a huge deal. Remember what Jesus said in the encounter with the ten lepers..."

(Momentary detour to check out whether that's true... Headline nails it again.)

"...See, God loves to hear your voice. Yes, your voice. Whether you think you can't sing on any given day or if you tend to fumble over the words in your spontaneous prayer, it makes no difference to God. That's because if you believe and love His Son, then you are His kid. It's not what you do, it's who you are--family. Mind-blowing. So you see, 'Praise for Answered Prayer' isn't just a headline like you think it is, it's the only way to live the life that gives glory to your forever Father for all blessings, name them one-by-one, great and small. You know this, and you've done this in spurts before. But 'more' is better.

"Besides, look what happens to your insides, remember? You begin to feel refreshed, energized, and at rest. Furrowed brows and grumpiness and sighing lose their grip. You find fault in others and things much less often, and celebrate people for who they are in God's eyes much more often. Not always easy, and not all at it once, but it happens. Because that's Heaven's countercultural goodness at work in you."

"So, let these four little words serve as a repeated road marker along this fantastic Journey; a reminder that while God often will indeed work through circumstances or you and your great ideas to answer your prayers, it all originates from His good and wonderful hand. All of it. Always. Follow in the steps of the psalmist and don't hold back: 'my heart sings praises to You and You alone.'"

So be it, LORD, for all who come this way.

"Thou that hast given so much to me, give me one thing more: a grateful heart--not thankful when it pleaseth me, as if Thy blessings had spare days, but such a heart whose pulse may be Thy praise." (George Herbert)