A Christmas Meditation--An Excerpt from In the Shelter of the Most High

Week Seven— Giving up on Unanswered Prayers

Luke 1

In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah. And he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord. But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years. Now while he was he was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty, according to the custom of the priesthood, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense. And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the alter of incense.

And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him. But the angel said unto him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink strong wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord, a people prepared.

And Zechariah said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.” And the angel answered him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.”

And the people were waiting for Zechariah, and they were wondering at his delay in the temple. And when he came out, he was unable to speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple. And he kept making signs to them and remained mute. And when his time of service was ended, he went to his home. After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she kept herself hidden, saying, “Thus the Lord has done for me in the days when he looked on me, to take away my reproach among people….”

Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. And her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her. And on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child. And they would have called him Zechariah after his father, but his mother answered, “No; he shall be called John.” And they said to her, “None of your relatives is called by this name.” And they made signs to his father, inquiring what he wanted him to be called. And he asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” And they all wondered. And immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, blessing God. And fear came on all their neighbors. And all these things were talked about through all the hill country of Judea, and all who heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, “What then will this child be?” For the hand of the Lord was with him. (ESV).

This is a story of lost hope. These two godly people had waited on God and prayed for years for a child. At some point, they lost hope. It was too late. The window on having babies closed and they silently held their quiet sadness like the baby they never had. The comfort between them was shared grief and a common faith in a God that they knew had been faithful to His people. Doing his daily duties gave Zechariah a kind of ritual comfort that even if he hadn’t been heard in his personal prayers, God would hear his prayers for his people.  It was a particular honor to be chosen that day to go into the holy of holies. If he was honest with himself, he didn’t really feel like going. He didn’t feel pious or worthy of that task today. But yet he had been chosen, and what an honor it was. And so with dignified solemnity he entered the holy of holies to present his sacrifice to God. 

It never entered his mind that this would be the day God would show up; The day that God would break into the narrative of his life with news that would change his world and Israel’s future at the same time. Zechariah never imagined that God’s delay was His great provision. He would never have dared to hope that the child he so longed for would be the child who would prepare the hearts of God’s people for the Messiah. He could never have guessed that the years of silence would break into an angelic announcement of a child consecrated to God from the womb.

It never occurred to Zechariah when he went to give the yearly sacrifice that God had delayed his answer to him until that moment because it was a message for all of Israel. Did he realize in the months of silent waiting, after the angel’s visitation, that maybe, just maybe, God showed up then because He was answering in a way that worked out the prayers for the one as provision for the many? Did it occur to him during his hours of mute silence that maybe the years of silence were not God’s neglect of his prayers? They were but a dramatic pause in the symphony of His grace.

And so he did what most of us would do in that situation. He doubted. Even in the presence of an angel, he doubted. The years of crying out with only a silent reply and with no reward for faithful living had hardened his heart just a little. At some point he had resigned himself to serving God, even if he had to close his heart to Him just a little to do it; even if He was a God wouldn’t condescend into his personal pain and longing. And so when the glorious news arrived, it was a little too grand, a bit too glorious, and far too hopeful to embrace with all his hope.

So God in His ironic sense of humor gave him as his confirmation--- as the sign he asked for-- the very thing that had broken his hope: silence. But this time, he knew God had spoken. And this time as he waited, slowly because of the silence, he began to hope again.

If for no other reason, this story needs to be told and retold because it reminds us of one enduring truth we must never forget: God alone is the supreme author. He answers the deepest heart of our surface prayers. He calls forth the brightest hope from the deepest darkness of our longings. The problem is, we give up on Him long before He has finished His work in us. We write Him off long before He has written our ending. He is far more patient in crafting the beauty of our lives than we are in imagining it.

We read the Scriptures simply for this: we must see more clearly this God that we serve in all His compassionate beauty. We must be reminded in the midst of our story that God shows up sometimes long after our hopes have grown cold. And He gets to. I am not the director of His movie, and I forget that, when I use my prayers to give Him His cue to enter stage left. 

Oh to let the beauty of Scripture sink in so that when I enter into prayer again, I enter with quiet surrendered hope. Not hope because I know when He will enter, or how He will enter; But with deep conviction that He will. And when He does, the gloriousness of His appearing will leave me speechless just like Zechariah.

Oh Father, may we surrender with deep assurance our deepest desires to you,, knowing that your mercy reaches to the skies. May we learn to trust when the silence falls for way too long, that it is ever only a pause in your attentive answer to us.  May we fall with frail hope upon the grace that you pour out upon us daily. Grace that gives us wings to soar when we are weary even of our hopes. Let us like Zechariah finally offer our faith onto the altar of patient waiting that we might see once again, Oh the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and unfathomable His ways! I surrender all to your far better, far more glorious plan, this day, O Christ. For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever. Amen.  (Romans 11: 33-36) (ESV).

What to Pray For

I know at various points of my life I have struggled with how to pray. I've decided there is one prayer that needs to permeate my spiritual life: unity. In my marriage God is most glorified not by how Mike and I resolve conflict, or stay committed, or act in love, but by our being one flesh. Its counter-intuitive and contradictory to all that we know. To what society and even our own sense of self tells us. But it is being a part of something bigger than ourselves, that ultimately brings God the glory. If in fact that is my goal--something to consider. It is our one-fleshness, our unity which gives a picture of how God loves His church. This is the goal of my marriage; not happiness, not personal fulfillment. Being a tangible picture of God's intangible qualities. In doing that I join the rest of nature in singing a song of His praise, a song without words. 

And this prayer isn't just for the stage of marriage. Paul says that we make his joy complete by being of the same mind, having the same purpose--united in spirit, serving the Lord. What would the church look like if we all showed up and served with one main goal: unity in love. I honestly can't imagine how transforming it would be. That would be a place everyone would belong. God is not most glorified when I am doing some awesomeness in my spiritual gift, but when my spiritual gift is building up and into the body of Christ. You know in the world's view it is the individualist, the icons who stand apart that make the greatest impact. But that isn't God's model. The icons, the stand-alone's don't point to something beyond themselves. They make themselves the icons. But that isn't our purpose is it? We aren't called to be icons, or superheros. We are called to be a part of something else. When I am functioning in my part as a body, the body works. It is a working unified body that is a mystery, a silent sermon without words that echoes into the world--a glorious mystery that testifies to someone who holds it together--that points to this truth: There is a head to the body: Christ, and it is "In HIM all things hold together" (Colossians  1). In this model He is the superhero. He is the one who makes the impact. And that's the actual truth of all things. So maybe I should walk in that more. Think on that more. So...I'm putting unity at the top of my prayer list. Its a prayer that ungirds all the work I am called to do. 

Things aren't always what they seem

So I had a fresh (no pun intended) lesson on this truth yesterday from my son. I was sitting on the couch and he was playing with his room. From the other room he calls out to me "Mommy, there's a bug in my room!" To which I reply, "Well then squish it. Get something and smash it on the ground!" So my son comes in the living room and dutifully smashed the "Caterpillar" on the floor. [I though the bug he was referring to was a roach]. Then he comes over to me and as he's placing something into my hand says, "Mommy, here's a caterpillar." I look down and I'm holding a piece of poop. Cat poop to be specific. As I'm dry heaving my way to the bathroom, I pass a pile of smashed poop on the ground as well. (Those were my specific instructions to my son to smash the bug). I went from being so pleased with myself for teaching my son to face his fears, to being completely horrified at my lack of investigation before I gave advice. Presumption can be a very dangerous thing. (And sometimes creates quite a mess too.)

Graphic Novels--Good or Bad?

Well the research says....they are good!! Don't feel bad about letting your reluctant leader load up on these. Of course its not your goal for them to only ever read graphic novels, but it can keep kids (typically teenaged boys) engaged in reading when they otherwise would not. One author I read said that when he was still a struggling reader who hated reading, the thing that actually got him back on the road to becoming a reader was graphic novels. Why aren't they bad..Here are my reasons:

• All beginner readers start with picture books (think about baby and toddler books)--so if you child is struggling its ok to have pictures that provide a lot of visual support
• For kids struggling with background knowledge (not knowing much about the subject) having pictures for every scene gives them context and visual clues to decipher vocabulary or even subject matter
• It connects reading to visualizing--a very critical skill in reading (granted it does the visualizing for them), but it also teaches kids to think "make the movie in my head"
• Research shows that boys typically lose interest in reading from a period of age 10-15 so getting to read anything, keeps their foot in the door as a reader. It keeps the habit of reading part of their routine--sooooo important in the long haul. Habit is 9/10th's of the life-long reader success.
• You can find graphic novel series that are actually retellings of classics such as Sherlock Holmes, Shakespeare or Edgar Allen Poe so it gives them an easier version while acquainting them with the subject matter
• Graphic novels that depict historical time frames really give kids a sense from the pictures of life then, as well as build their background knowledge
• It can peak their interest in a subject that will make them seek out real books on the topic: the Civil War, the Middle Ages, etc....
• I have personally observed watching reluctant readers in my classroom reengage reading when I give them graphic novels. They don't feel like they are reading, it feels easier, but it gets them from not reading, to reading. 
• Its still better for them cognitively than TV or video games--SAY YES!!

So I hope this helps you feel better about graphic novels. Happy Reading!

Getting Your Kids Hooked on a Book--tricks of the trade

Getting Your Kids Hooked on a Book--

or should I say Getting the hooks of a book into your kids

Let me tell you a little story about an important lesson I learned my first year as a reading teacher. I had decided to read The Diary of Anne Frank with my eighth graders. I was excited. I loved that book when I read it in middle school. So I handed it out to my class, did a short introduction and gave them their first reading assignment. After a few days, they came back complaining they were bored. They hated the book. I had a terrible time getting them to read it. They didn't want to take it home. I didn't know my students well enough to get that they didn't know anything about the Nazis. Most of my kids had never heard of concentration camps or WWII.  Therefore the story seemed "boring" and irrelevant to them. Teacher failure big time. 

Then I started my graduate work in Reading and some BIG light bulbs went on. The book I was reading was talking about how the brain learns by attaching new information to prior learning (things we already know). If the brain isn't familiar with the information it doesn't know where/how to store it, and will dump it from working memory as fast as you read it. Don't you remember reading text books in college with lots of detailed information about a subject you weren't familiar with and you couldn't remember at all what you read? That's why.

The following year I decided to apply what I had learned and do an experiment with my kids. I decided to read Anne Frank again with my eighth graders but this time, I took some time introducing it. I found a documentary that interviewed survivors who knew Anne Frank, showed video footage of the concentration camps and who talked about the Nazis. It showed pictures of her with her family and read clips from her diary.  I showed them some video clips of Hitler and the concentration camps. I also tried to help them connect with Anne by introducing themes from the book about teenage identity struggle. I read the first few chapters aloud and stopped to discuss it. I provided a vocabulary list so that unfamiliar words were right there for them as they read. By day three of showing the video and reading with them, my kids were begging to take the book home. Every single one of my kids finished the book that year. At home. Night and Day difference. 

 Its so easy as a teacher or a parent when we hear our kids say a book is boring to tell them just to try harder and concentrate. But we're not thinking about learning then. The brain needs relevance and context to attach information to stored/prior learning. So when our kids say something is boring--we need to translate that. What they are saying is "Why are we reading this?" "What does this mean?" or "I don't understand this. This makes no sense to me." Those are statements we can really do something with. That is our opportunity to dig into the book a little and find out what the context is. Did it take place in the civil war? Maybe you need to watch some PBS with them, or find some video clips online. Is it a story from the deep south? You might need to explain about racism. Find out what the topic is and if the  book really needs some explanation of the setting or background information to understand what's taking place in the book. 

I have found that I can hook kids on almost any book if I give them the relevance and the context of the book, and read the first few chapters aloud, so they can get into the world of the book in their minds. Once they can picture the world of the novel, it's like a good movie--they want to see the ending.

Many times the books kids bring home from school for summer reading need a little "front loading."  They need a little information, explanation and context for the kids to understand what they are reading. If the school doesn't provide that, go ahead and do the ten minutes of work to help you child get the information they need to understand the book. Try to find a point of interest with the book that they can connect with. If you do, you will get them hooked on the book. It's so worth the time and effort on your part. And the time you spent helping them understand what they are reading will pay off when you don't have to fight them to finish it! 

Happy Reading!

Tommy Nelson: Great wisdom on decision-making and God's will

Decision Making and The Will of God

"How do you know the will of God?"  At every Campus Crusade Christmas Conference that was the title of the workshop that always drew standing room numbers.  Because every Christian has wondered in the midst of crucial decisions if they were deciding in keeping with God's will. So how do you know the will of God?  Before we answer the question we must discuss the question of the will of God.  There are three distinctives to the will of God. There is God's decretive will:  It is also called the moral will of God.  It is the Bible. Those things that God expressly forbids or allows.  There is no decision on these things.  One merely reads and obeys. Then there is the providential will of God.  These are those things that God has allowed or caused to happen.  We don't make decisions on these things either.  We only decide how we will respond to what has taken place.  We trust then do what we can.  And then there is what we shall call the non-moral will of God, or perhaps the right or left will of God as opposed to the right or wrong will.  Some have called it the neutral will of God. This is the decision that we fret over.  It's not moral.  It's not biblical.  It's a personal decision. There is no ordained sense of guidance.  Can I be wrong?  Culpable? Should I take the job offer?  Marry that Christian man or woman whom I truly love?  Homeschool or private?  Private or public?  Buy this house?  Have this surgery? If there is revelatory guidance, how do I know it? Am I responsible to find it?  Are feelings my guide? At what point am I free to make my "own" decisions?  The restaurant I choose?  My car? Does God allow choices?  Free ones?  Does He still guide me in my direction? So how do you make a right and left decision? Don't worry about finding "the dot."  I'll use the word "dot" as meaning "the specific revealed will of God."  God doesn't ask us to find it and besides - how would you find it?  Would you hear a voice or receive a sign or an angel appear or a dream?  Or (and be honest - we've all done this),  you would read your Bible and interpret whatever you read as leading you one way or the other.  How about opening the Bible and sticking your finger down at random?  Your Bible now becomes your tea leaves or runic stones or crystal ball.  Your means of divination.  Perhaps the biggest problem with trying to find "the dot" is that you'll find it!  You will interpretsomething as the will of God and that can be dangerous.  All kinds of ignorance has been laundered this way. God certainly can speak audibly but that is what He can freely do, not what we are commanded to hear.  Know that it's ok to choose.  Part of being Adam was that he acted freely as God gave him the freedom.  Whatever he named the animal that it was.  He was to subdue, cultivate, and rule as he saw fit.  God gave him direction and boundaries but within them Adam was free.  It's ok.  You're not proud in choosing or disobedient or self-willed.  You are a redeemed human, a mature son or daughter of God.  You've had your Bar-Mitzvah through Christ.  You can choose.  Robots do not glorify God, sons do.  NO one in scripture is ever punished for making a neutral or non-moral decision.  Halted or redirected maybe, but never judged.  Check your motive:  "All a man's ways are right in his sight but God weighs to motives." (Proverbs).  Why do you want what you want?   Check your heart:  The burden of the heart is a very real and good thing.  The Book of Nehemiah says that Nehemiah told no one what "God had laid upon my heart."  Paul spoke of his longing to come to Rome and his desire to go to Spain.  God gives us "the desires of our hearts" as we trust Him.  He "wills and works" in us for His good pleasure.  He can produce a longing. A point needs to be clarified here.Paul said, "All those led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God." (Romans 8:14)  But the leading of God's Spirit is toward morality and conduct not in an extra-biblical knowledge.  People often misapply this verse to support God's special knowledge through the Spirit instead of His guiding in conduct. Ask around:  "Where there is an abundance of counselors there is victory. (Proverbs)  Others who have walked the paths of life have made many of the same decisions.  You may find your decision is a lot more black and white than you thought.  Pray for the providence of God:  Though God lets us choose still He guides us.  We are given the privilege to choose but we are not at the mercy of our choices.  Paul longed to go to Rome but God prevented him because He had more immediate purposes. (Romans 15:20-22).  We perceive in the scripture God's purposes and pleasure then we plan, long, act and choose as we prayerfully trust His headship.  He can say "yes, no or later."  Make certain you are obeying God in the things He has revealed so you can be guided in what He has not: "Being in the way the Lord led me." (Psalms) "Walk before Me and I will establish My covenant with you." (Genesis 17) Are you in church, walking in purity, honoring God financially, in subjection in the areas God calls you to submission?  God doesn't steer parked cars.  Faithful folks will always be led. The girl I dated for four years was a sweet girl but I had developed a new direction in the things of the Great Commission.  I felt, reasoned, and surmised from what I read and from the counsel of three older men that she was the right girl, but for another man.  I heard no voice from heaven but made a choice.  I met Teresa and made another decision.  (The fact that her father owned his own oil company meant nothing.)  I chose as wisely as I could and God directed me.   I chose to do evangelism living hand to mouth for one year.  God blessed the choice.  I chose to be a college director at a Methodist church.  God blessed the choice. I felt the need for deeper knowledge so I chose to go to Dallas Theological Seminary.  They said no to the degree program I chose but I had reasons for doing the two year rather than the four.  I continued to press - they said yes.  God has blessed it.  No voices, just guidance. The Methodist job shut down and I had three choices.  Methodist, Baptist or a young Bible Church meeting in the Optimist Gym.  I felt and surmised from my doctrinal position and the counsel of good men to go with Denton Bible.  I did.  God blessed it. My wife and I have made decisions on birth control, home schooling, home buying, our son's college direction, our son's military desires, caring for parents and on and on.  I have never heard the voice of God nor have I sought for it.  God did not call me to be mystic or robotic but to be wise, well read, prayerful - and a man - assertive, of sanctified willfulness, initiating - and trusting His guidance without hesitation or apology.                                                                         So . . . relax.                                                             Do right, be free, be strong, be wise . . . then trust. Tommy  Copyright 2013 Tommy Nelson

Tommy Nelson: Reminiscent of Frances Schaeffer

Engine Light The 60's. You either lived them or heard about them. A whole culture grew up amidst them. But our country has never philosophically or morally recovered. There are however some significant lessons that fifty years of hindsight can teach us. If you wrote a book on the 60's you could call it, "The Little Engine That Thought It Could But Didn't." The 60's were the wrong answers to the right questions, wrong solutions to right longings. It's good to learn its frustrations and longings as they were valid and still are today. It's good also to learn why it failed. It wasn't for a lack of confidence, optimism, or sincerity. It was from a lack of truth. The 60's were a cry for change and that wasn't bad. Twenty years had passed from WWI until WWII. Twenty more years then passed and by the 60's nuclear holocaust loomed between the U.S. and Russia. Democracy vs. Communism. Time had not brought peace. Time had only escalated man's ability to destroy. Our much hallowed "science" was only making us more skilled in death. Western thought was consistently arranging rational ideologies at gunpoint. Allegedly Christian nations - Germany, England, France, the U.S., and the formerly Russian Orthodox (until 1917) Russia - had done nothing for centuries but kill each other. The recent Cuban Missile Crisis had sent us all scurrying to build fallout shelters and to practice in grade school our Duck and Cover drills. (Does anyone else remember those? I do.) But the thought began to grow - "Something isn't working!" Fundamental change was needed. There was also the tension that other great issues were not being addressed: race, equality for women employees, the superficial nature of capitalism, i.e. the American dream of personal peace and affluence, questions on sexuality that were previously verboten to speak about, the superficiality of the church that was much affected by liberalism, struggles with adolescents ("delinquents"), the gathering dysfunction of the home, and most of all, the "generation gap."  Meaning, the post WWII generation, the "Boomers" growing up with an opposite world view from their parents. Not the classical Christian worldview that had prevailed but the post-modern worldview wrought by Darwin, existentialism, and theological liberalism which all said, "There is no God, no final truth." The assumptions of the parents concerning man's origins, meaning, and morality were not the assumptions that had been systematically drilled into their children through science, education, and especially the arts. There was also the frustration that there was a sense of censorship and silence by society. What was presented was the world as we'd like it to be rather than the world that was really there. "Father Knows Best" and "Leave it to Beaver" somehow did not quite deal with the issues. But failure, silence, and cover-up did not satisfy the coming generation. The stakes were too high. And something is to be said for this. Something about the little engine that couldn't and didn't.  The little engine who said, "I think I can" and failed. The 60's did well to say, "Hey, stop children, what's that sound? Everybody look what's goin' down." What should have happened was what happened in the period before the Reformation. The Middle Ages had collapsed into its own corruption. The response was the Renaissance. The Renaissance was a protest against the errors, abuses, and shallow solutions of the Middle Ages. It was a breaking free of Medieval stagnation into the more "human friendly," "this life is more than just a preparation for death." The difference however is what followed. The revolt of the Renaissance was followed by the Protestant Reformation, while the dissatisfaction of the 60's brought on the Beatniks, then drugs, the sexual revolution and the abandonment of marriage. The dissatisfaction of the Renaissance brought a "Protest" and thus a "Re-forming."  The Reformation went back to the Bible, uncorrupted by philosophy, human reason, and dead tradition. The 60's however did not go back - it went on into uncharted, untried territory contrary to the Western Christian tradition. Imagine two men traveling who have wandered from their previous path and arrived at the edge of a cliff. One says he's going back to where he departed from the path. He reforms. The other says, "No. The path led us to the brink of this cliff." Instead of going back he goes on. He decides that his problem is being confined to "rules" of direction. Instead of going back he decides to leap off the cliff and fly. He will experience a brave new world. He will experience a novel change of rules and "freedom," no longer bound by his past. One returns. One leaps into the abyss. "I think I can, I think I can, I think I can...." This was the Reformation versus the 60's. One went back to the tried and tested. One went on to what had never worked. One said, "We were wrong." Another said, "They were wrong." The Reformation looked to the past. The 60's looked to the future. One produced the foundation to the greatest culture of all time. The other began a movement of a rootless, humanistic culture that fizzled. The Reformation felt its foundation of the Bible was true. The problem was that the culture had departed. The 60's felt that the foundation itself was flawed. Imagine standing on a precipice and believing that somehow you are Peter Pan and all the rules of nature are suspended - you can fly! You leap out in complete confidence and for just an instant there is a brief euphoric moment of weightlessness. All rules you thought were absolute are just myth and you now experience a reality you only dreamed of. You are supreme. You are God. And then the dream dissipates as reality kicks into its brutal gear. You descend. And you die. You are a man. The 60's depicted this scenario exactly. Instead of as in the 16th century where there was a "Re-forming" to the forsaken truth, the 60's perched upon the ledge and leaped into an untested abyss - that of post-modernism. Where man does not seek the truth but creates it. For just a moment there was the elation of the backbeat, the tie-dyed, the frenzied dancing, the hallucinogens creating a new reality, the mind expansion, free sex, the unburdening from possessions, the attempt of peace with no absolutes, and the embracing of Eastern religion and thought. But then the reality of life as God ordained caught up to the decade and the ugly reality of its façade and emptiness was unveiled. The 60's were a Christian heresy just as much as Communism - meaning that both movements longed for moral change without God. It can't be done. Had they just gone back! But the Reformation was led by Christians; the 60's by artists and philosophers. One went back. One went on. Is there something to be learned? Certainly. You can't fool Mother Nature nor can you fool Father Time. Both operate by divine law. History will chasten its rebels. Always. Two glaring maxims arise:   It's good for a generation to sense the need for change; to better the status quo, to repent of its parents' shortcomings.   But the solution is to return to the revealed body of truth given by God. Not by embracing the imaginations of men.  We never learned though. We gave up on the 60's (except for various enclaves in the woods in Oregon) and slipped into the 70's and 80's. The 70's saw the split off from society of fundamentalism and the rise of the Moral Majority. It saw a momentary reaction back to morality. The Brady Bunch, Cosby, The Carpenters, Disco (it had order), Bee Gees, etc.....But there was no recognition among the Movers and Shakers clientele that humanism itself was a dead end. We simply lapsed into the individualism and personal peace and affluence of the Reagan years. As in the book of Judges, I pray a new generation of the young arises after viewing the failure of the West's humanism. And, as in Judges, the new generation will turnback to the God of the Lord Jesus Christ. "Repent that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord...." (Acts 3:19) There must be the most fundamental change that can ever be imagined.  One that is even more fundamental than the Reformation.  The Reformation assumed the Bible was true.  The tension was exactly what did it preach? Protestant or Catholic ideas.  But to have Reformation in our day would be over the issue as to whether there IS truth at all, as well as, the God who gave it. There would have to be an enlightened view of history - that the problems of modern man began with the corruption of the Bible from Descartes on (the beginning of rationalism and modern philosophy).  That rend in the philosophic garment grew more and more pronounced and bizarre until it consumed us.  That Nature by itself with no governing by God will slowly but inevitably consume everything "good" and then ultimately consume man himself.  A generation must see that the beginning of the authority of human reason over revealed truth will ultimately lead to the Holocaust.  Thus the modernism beginning from the late 1500's ran its course to the dead end of the 60's. Leaping to non-reason, to existentialism, Eastern thought, drugs and mind expansion offered no hope. The only novel path left to us now is Socialism (which still requires absolute morality) and then upon its ashes a more autocratic government. Or a return.                                                 O arise young scholars! Tommy  Copyright 2013 Tommy Nelson

Tommy Nelson Senior Pastor ---------------- Denton Bible Church 2300 E. University Dr. Denton, TX 76209

A Little Too Tidy For Reality

1 Samuel 30 New International Version David Destroys the Amalekites 1David and his men reached Ziklag on the third day. Now the Amalekites had raided the Negev and Ziklag. They had attacked Ziklag and burned it, 2and had taken captive the women and everyone else in it, both young and old. They killed none of them, but carried them off as they went on their way. 3When David and his men reached Ziklag, they found it destroyed by fire and their wives and sons and daughters taken captive.4So David and his men wept aloud until they had no strength left to weep. 5David’s two wives had been captured—Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail, the widow of Nabal of Carmel. 6David was greatly distressed because the men were talking of stoning him; each one was bitter in spirit because of his sons and daughters. But David found strength in the Lord his God.

There are few stories that resonate with me like this one in 1 Samuel 30. David's life is literally invaded by the enemy. His wives and children are taken. His town is destroyed. David is living his life and doing what God has called him to do finishing the work that Joshua started, and then boom--his worst fear happens. His town is invaded and burned and his family is taken. I know without a doubt that is my worst fear. But then the Scripture uses a phrase that makes David a man after God's own heart. It says that David strengthened himself in the Lord His God. He didn't panic, he didn't scheme, he just got into the presence of the Lord and let the Lord encourage his heart.

How does that happen? What does that look like when our worst fears are realized and we find ourselves right smack dab in the middle of our worst nightmare. What does faith look like then? I think it looks like the picture David gives us here. Our overcoming begins on our knees, in the presence of God before the throne of grace. It means that we don't trust people or circumstances to give us hope and help. We turn to and trust with all our heart the only one who is worthy of our trust: the God of Jacob. Psalm 146 says:

Do not trust in princes,
  In mortal man, in whom there is no salvation.
4His spirit departs, he returns to the earth;

  In that very day his thoughts perish.
5How blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,
  

Whose hope is in the LORD his God,
6Who made heaven and earth

God means to victory is always an outworking of an inner reality. He doesn't first give David victory, He didn't give back his family to him right away. He didn't keep him from that trauma. He took him through it.  When Jesus takes us into the valley of the shadow of death, He does it for one reason. He is teaching us not to be afraid. He is always in the process of showing us that we overcome, we walk through the valley of the shadow of death unafraid because He is with us. He wants to work into a knowledge into the inner most being of our beliefs this one truth: He is with us. And God with us means He will work it on our behalf to bring about good. He is working to show us the power of His might.

The outcome of this story is pretty awesome:

7Then David said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelek, “Bring me the ephod.” Abiathar brought it to him, 8and David inquired of the Lord, “Shall I pursue this raiding party? Will I overtake them?”

“Pursue them,” he answered. “You will certainly overtake them and succeed in the rescue.”

9David and the six hundred men with him came to the Besor Valley, where some stayed behind. 10Two hundred of them were too exhausted to cross the valley, but David and the other four hundred continued the pursuit.

11They found an Egyptian in a field and brought him to David. They gave him water to drink and food to eat— 12part of a cake of pressed figs and two cakes of raisins. He ate and was revived, for he had not eaten any food or drunk any water for three days and three nights.

13David asked him, “Who do you belong to? Where do you come from?”

He said, “I am an Egyptian, the slave of an Amalekite. My master abandoned me when I became ill three days ago. 14We raided the Negev of the Kerethites, some territory belonging to Judah and the Negev of Caleb. And we burned Ziklag.”

15David asked him, “Can you lead me down to this raiding party?”

He answered, “Swear to me before God that you will not kill me or hand me over to my master, and I will take you down to them.”

16He led David down, and there they were, scattered over the countryside, eating, drinking and reveling because of the great amount of plunder they had taken from the land of the Philistines and from Judah. 17David fought them from dusk until the evening of the next day, and none of them got away, except four hundred young men who rode off on camels and fled. 18David recovered everything the Amalekites had taken, including his two wives. 19Nothing was missing: young or old, boy or girl, plunder or anything else they had taken. David brought everything back.

This story ends in victory for David. God allows him to take back everything the enemy had taken from him. So why did God put him through that? I think for the same reason He allows the enemy to invade our lives at times too. To convince us that no circumstances are ever too dire for His strength. He wants the roots of our confidence in Him to grow so deep that even if our worst fears are realized, we can strengthen ourselves in Him. And lest you find yourself discouraged by the fact that everything worked out so nicely for David when your story still seems a bit messy, remember one thing: His story has been written. It's played out. Ours hasn't yet; sometimes when Bible stories feel a bit too tidy in their resolution, like this one-- remember that we are getting to read his trial-- beginning, middle and end. Our feels messy and unfinished because it is. It's a story still being written. David strengthened Himself in the Lord His God because he reminded himself in the middle of his mess of God's faithfulness to His people in the past. We have to do the same thing when it looks like the enemy is winning and there is no hope. But God gives us this amazing book of finished stories so we can remind ourselves of what David did as he lived out his own trial: God is the Alpha and the Omega. As THE beginning and THE END, He is the end of all of our stories. And in Him all of our messiness becomes ordered.  The thing is, do you find that the cynic in you goes" "Yeah right, I'm sure that happens all the time. God gives us back everything He took away. That's a little too tidy for reality." Well friend, He does. Sometimes it takes awhile, and in some cases, it takes eternity, but He does. So when you aren't sure if there is any hope for your story and all the enemy has taken, flip to the end of your story. Its in Revelation 21. You might not know the middle of it, but you do know how it ends. God will wipe away every tear. Take heart today like David did. If God is for us who can be against us? N.O. O.N.E. End of story.

Tommy Nelson's Post on Legalism: The fungus among us

Legalism: The Fungus Among Us "Legalism."  The term has all sorts of connotations and arouses all sorts of adverse emotions but actually "legality" is a wonderful idea.  It means that there is a standard and just recompense to worthy actions.  Civilization is built upon it.  Even our salvation is graciously given because it was legally purchased and thus justly offered through the death of Jesus.  Hell will be a legal and just recognition.  The Bema or Judgment Seat of Christ is a recompense or reward of "deeds done in the body."  Simple legalism is divine. But when does it become errant?  Church history has been one of errant views of recompense.  When this error is present it yields black mold that poisons all within. First, there is what we would call "Hard Shell" legalism.  It is classic errant legalism - salvation by works.  It is that which the gospel confronts.  That which grace dispels.  It is the idea expressed whenever one is asked how he knows he will go to heaven.  The answer of "I have done my best - loved my family - never killed anyone."  This is hard shell legalism.  This person demands heaven as the legal just recompense of an obedient life.  It is against this self-righteous idea that the book of Romans organizes its assault.  Remember that Exodus is followed by Leviticus; law is followed by grace and sacrifice.  God never even hints that heaven can be earned.  Hard Shell legalism fosters a low view of God and a false view of me. The next we would call "Hard Hearted" legalism.  This type feels that God loves them based upon their obedience.  When walking correctly I am loved but when in sin I am not, which in the final evaluation means that I am not truly loved because a love that comes and goes is not truly love by any standard.  The biggest problem with this attitude is not that I am always now struggling to be loved, but rather that I will feel accepted when obedient.  And thus I will inevitably begin to "superficialize" biblical obedience into that which is attainable.  I will become a Pharisee by explaining away the spiritual heart of obedience.  "Hard Hearted" legalism will not just be neurotic ("He loves me, He loves me not") but it will make one grotesquely self-righteous.  Not that I am never able to feel accepted but that I think that I am because of what I myself have judged as acceptable.  Hard hearted indeed.  God's image will be changed into this person's likeness. And then we have "Hard Headed" legalism.  This is one who feels he is holier-than-thou because he has canonized a personal, non-biblical area.  What should be just personal conviction he makes a Biblical maxim.  He has become his own Sinai and created an area that he conveniently happens to obey. He places himself above others because he is a tea-totaler, attends a Wednesday night service or because she does not wear make-up.  This type of legalism at times can be seen in those who confuse the Old and New Testaments; those who confuse the church with Israel and fail to distinguish moral law with ceremonial and hygienic law.  They feel more acceptable because of Saturday worship, a Levitical diet code (no pork, no catfish), or total cessation of Sunday activities.  These folks are a little more exotic than the previous legalists.  They are those to whom Galatians was written. There is another form of legalism that is a little more insidious.  It is called "Hard and Fast" legalism.  This person's life is not so much the love of God and love of others but just a "hard and fast" code of rules.  They attend church, read a certain amount daily, pray at meals, tithe a tenth, and go to revival.  Their God is a list.  They feel self-satisfied and complacent because they have measured to the lowest expectation and no more.  Often their prayer is, "I thank Thee, O God, that I am not like other men."  How much better to say, "forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on..." How much deeper joy shall we have who understand God's grace.  Not "Hard Shell" but those who trust fully upon God's grace, who put no confidence in the flesh and glory in none but Jesus!  Not "Hard Hearted" but who know that all our acceptance is through the work of Christ.  Who know that we are loved always by God.  Maybe we are not always pleasing to God but we are always loved.  Our usefulness may increase but our position in Christ stays constant and secure: loved no more when good, no less when bad.  Chastened maybe, loved forever.  Just like our own children.  And we are not "Hard Headed."  Our personal non-biblical convictions may differ because of a great number of reasons but we know that is just what they are - personal convictions.  In no way do they elevate us above those who hold differently.  We are not better because we follow rules, and thus we are not "Hard and Fast."  In short, a person of grace has no struggles with legalism because grace by definition runs contrary to legality or earning what you have.  We rest in our acceptance before God through nothing else but Jesus.  Thus grace makes for some very kind and humble and congenial folks. Where grace is not present, however, its vacuum will be filled by a growing noxious fungus of legalism.  Check the hymnal and see that there are no songs of us - only of Jesus. Sola Gloria Deo, Tommy

Tommy Nelson Senior Pastor ---------------- Denton Bible Church 2300 E. University Dr. Denton, TX 76209