On the Way to Church....

"The next day the crowd that had stayed on the far shore saw that the disciples had taken the only boat, and they realized Jesus had not gone with them. Several boats from Tiberias landed near the place where the Lord had blessed the bread and the people had eaten. So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into the boats and went across to Capernaum to look for him. They found him on the other side of the lake and asked, “Rabbi, when did you get here?”—John 6:22-25, New Living

Knowing God’s will for a particular situation can sometimes be as clear as mud.

But it is good to know that on this day, this morning, it is as clear as day.

Even if it is cloudy:

“Set aside some time from your nutty schedule and meet with Me.”

On some days, it is good to cruise down the highway with the tunes blasting.

On this day, in the early morning when all of creation is still yawning awake, it is good to ride in silence,

To be grateful that this is where God has planted you, to look around, and take it all in.

Some days, when it is your turn to lead others in worship, which is more like opening windows to heaven so that those who gather can peer out and up and see His goodness once more,

The church is even more still than the silence of the highway panorama.

And yet, there is an unmistakable sense, and not in a scary way:

Someone is already here!

And a reminder:

It is good to know that the pressure is off to make something happen. 

No matter the prevalent church-speak about God’s presence,

You don’t have to worry about ushering in the presence of God, or whether God “showed up” or not because the songs were just right

Or if the excitement level was through the roof or not

Someone is already here!…

“Set aside some time from your nutty schedule and meet with Me.”

It is good indeed when the songs, and sermon, and prayers and everything else feel “just right”

Better still when they all help stir awareness, re-awakening our sleepy, cares-of-life-soaked, cobweb-covered hearts and minds that the ever-present God of creation and salvation and abundant life is…

Already in the room!

“Better is one day in Your courts than a thousand elsewhere!” declares the psalmist.

And on this day, it is good to remember that is really true,

Not because anything was “just right” or caused spiritual goosebumps

But because, as the same psalmist says, He is Lord Almighty.

Period.

One with absolute and unlimited power…over anything, and everyone, and everything.

Even _______.

“Set aside some time from your nutty schedule and meet with Me.”

It is here where true refreshing, and refueling, and rest are found.

And who knows? Perhaps even more than that…

“A miracle can happen now

For the spirit of the Lord is here

The evidence is all around

For the spirit of the Lord is here.”

Ride Like the Wind

“The wind blows all around us as if it has a will of its own; we feel and hear it, but we do not understanding where it has come from or where it will end up. Life in the Spirit is as if it were the wind of God.”—John 3:8, Voice

This week has not been the weather for it, but on the other hand, what has been happening outdoors has triggered faith in “the assurance of things hoped for”: visions of t-shirts, shorts, sunglasses, and iced coffee. It seems we are born with a craving for the open road, driving into the warm sun, all windows rolled down, the aroma of freshly-cut grass, when life feels grand and right, and all accompanied by some toe-tapping traveling music. Why is that?

For my generation, one song in particular comes to mind: “Ride Like the Wind” (Christopher Cross), which never mind the paradox of the lyrics behind it is made to be cranked up on balmy, smile-inducing sunny days on the interstate. Mullets optional.

But such an empty anthem whose rhythm nevertheless gets your heart pumping, and then listening to days on end of early January’s intent on doing its own version of “ride like the wind,” stirred a question this week as only God within you can do:

When you want your life to be more than a slogan or a Facebook status, what do you do with something like “But I say, walk habitually in the Holy Spirit—seek Him and be responsive to His guidance…” (Galatians 5:16, Amplified)?

As with a lot of mysteries of life, God didn’t reply with a black and white answer when I asked what it’s like to “ride like the wind.” But I did hear Him say, in so many words...

“Just look, and listen. What do you see?”

...And as I looked out the window this week, and felt the house shudder with wave after wave of gusts, I sensed this:

Living in the Spirit, who already lives in every Christ-one, often looks like the pines swaying in my backyard—a wild, roaring ride that’s not in a straight direction. It feels scary at times, and yet it is entirely safe when you choose to trust and don’t try to fight it. It’s realizing the joy that God is in you and He is calling the shots, and when your heart is seeking His in return (imperfect as that can be), it can feel as exhilarating as a Christopher Cross summer groove. The seemingly wild ride even has its own proverb: It is always better to run with the Wind at your back than to try walking against it with your own stubborn desires.

Sometimes, too rarely, riding like the Wind can seem gentle and easy, with little swaying. These are seasons of grace when God seems to let you grab a much-needed physical and spiritual breath in the midst of endless distractions and demands. Trust and obey is still the fuel, but the ride is blissfully quiet and restful, for a few miles anyway.

Mostly though, this fantastic ride-like-the-wind walk in the Spirit is some of both. And at times, though it can seem like we are like some leaf caught in an updraft, swirling out of control in the same place over and over again, or falling backward and making no progress at all, God’s got us in His grip all the time. And so despite what it seems like, the ride of the Spirit for the trusting Christ-one is always propelling us gloriously forward, forward, forward—often in directions and courses we’d never choose (or, frankly, kick against) on our own. And what is really amazing is that because of Love, the destinations and purposes somehow, wonderfully, sometimes jaw-droppingly, end up in the land of Heaven-sent goodness.

Destinations and purposes meant not just for us, but for His glory to be revealed through how He made each one of us, permeating into the people and circumstances of our lives. Why we are here on planet Earth—so help us, God, to buckle up, breathe deep, go, and ride like the Wind:

“But the love of God will be perfected within the one who obeys God’s Word. We can be sure that we've truly come to live in intimacy with God, not just by saying ‘I am intimate with God,’ but by walking in the footsteps of Jesus.” (1 John 2:3-6, Passion translation)

"So let us cultivate simplicity; let us want fewer things; let us walk in the Spirit; let us fill our minds with the Word of God and our hearts with praise. In that way we can live in peace even in such a distraught world as this. — A.W. Tozer