I have periodic nightmares of various kinds. They can involve pirates and adventures gone awry at sea or losing a member of my family. I am not sure what causes them. My television viewing is largely restricted to sports, news, cooking shows, cartoons (for the kids, of course), or shows with talking animals (I’m a sucker for Narnia and Aflac commercials).
Recently I had one where I was being chased by a serial killer. It was eerily like the stupid movies I’ve seen commercials for. I was running and running through this old house to get away. After much effort (my wife says I didn’t wake her up), I was out of the house. Then I went back in the house to use the restroom.
The real me was screaming at the dream me, “Don’t be stupid!” But dream me didn’t listen. As I walk through the house (no longer running or fearful) looking for the restroom, from out of nowhere a butcher knife takes a hack at me. I spent the rest of the dream keeping the blade away from my neck.
When I woke up strangling my pillow, my heart was racing and I had time to think. I don’t have the spiritual gift of dream interpretation, but as I thought of how foolish it was to walk back into the house, I had a thought – that is how foolish it is for me to sin in private.
Any time we sin and fail to confess to those that God would use to point us back in the right direction (Heb 3:12-13), we are like dream me walking back into the house with the mass murderer (1 Pet. 5:8). It was a picture that resonated with me. Rarely had I viewed sin in that fashion.
If I were advising dream me, I would have said, “Run like the dickens (in my dreams the main character usually has a strong country accent) to the first phone that you can find with the line not cut and call 9-1-1.” Why would I treat sin any differently?
Is it macho pride because I want to show that I can handle it?
Is it twisted insecurity that values my reputation more than my life?
Is it immaturity that believes sin is “no big deal”?
Is it brute pleasure that enjoys the thrill?
What reason would I have accepted from dream me? Answer: none. There would be no reason that would justify wandering through a house with a mass murderer lurking to look for a rest room.
The next time that you struggle with sin and are hesitant to reach out to a Christian friend for accountability and encouragement, remember this post and don’t become “my dream come true.”
Posted 1 month, 1 week ago at 1:52 pm. Add a comment
A Counselor Reflects on Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
“It is simply no good trying to keep any thrill. Let the thrill go – let it die away – go on through that period of death into the quieter interest and happiness that follow – and you will find you are living in a world of new thrills all the time. But if you decide to make thrills your regular diet and try to prolong them artificially, they will all get weaker and weaker, and fewer and fewer, and you will be a bored, disillusioned old man for the rest of your life. It is because so few people understand this that you find many middle-aged men and women maundering about their lost youth, at the very age when new horizons ought to be appearing and new doors opening all around them (p.111).” Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
I am not yet old enough to battle a mid-life crisis, but I can certainly see the traces of it in myself already. I have a strong tendency to want to hold on tightly to pleasures and good seasons of life. Even as I try to dream God-sized dreams, I savor the process and get nostalgic as each stage passes. It would very easy for that to develop into a “glory days” mindset that made me feel desperate for what was.
This seems to be another scenario where our greatest temptations often stem from clinging too tightly to God’s sweetest blessings. Children or an invigorating career are things we thank God for profusely (or at least we should). But as our children mature and marry or our career peeks and we look to pass the baton, is this not the raw material of a mid-life crisis?
Even as I write this reflection and look back at Lewis’ words, I am questioning whether I currently have the strength of faith or rest in God to avoid a mid-life crisis. Currently, I can rest in the fact that I do not, because that morning is not here so God has not issued those mercies yet (Lament 3:23). But I fear that it is clever Christian rhetoric on my part to cover the way I cling to my present blessings suspicious of whether future blessings will be “as good.”
But I can see the folly in my fears. If I don’t let me children mature, grow independent, and pursue the lives God created them for, they would become a burden and seeing their misfortune would bring great pain. If I allow ministry to become “mine,” then it would shift from advancing God’s kingdom to advancing my own. Soon it would be mired in fluctuations between pride and fear.
Lewis is right, when I fail to “let the trill go… they will all get weaker and weaker” as least as pleasure; as masters they will get stronger and stronger. As best I can tell, the solution is to live fully in each moment without living for the moment.
This requires me to truly believe that God is truly the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8) even as sweat seasons of life fade and I deteriorate. What is changing is my capacity, not His goodness. But even this misses the point. I am not fading into oblivion. When I fail to let the thrill go, I am living as if this life is all there is.
Mid-life, by definition, believes I am on the second half of my life. But this is not the kind of creature we are. This is like a fetus having a mid-term crisis at 4.5 months. The event that is looming to change his/her existence is not a tragedy, but a delivery, but not a delivery to be rushed, because God has important plans for the second half.
I pray now for the awareness and willingness to live fully in every moment God gives me without continuing to live for that moment when the next one comes.
Posted 3 months, 2 weeks ago at 11:32 am. Add a comment
This post is meant to offer guidance to common “what now” questions that could emerge from pastor J.D.’s sermon “The Inauguration: Luke 3-4,” preached at The Summit Church Saturday/Sunday March 12-13, 2011.
Was there something about Jesus’ baptism in Luke 3 that helped him resist the temptation He faced in Luke 4? I believe the answer is yes. But I do not believe the answer is found in the ceremony or experience. Rather, I think it was the expression of the Father, “You are my beloved Son, with You I am well pleased (3:22).”
Hold onto that thought and go with me to Narnia for a moment. In The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe Edmund wrestles with a large amount of insecurity – due to his parents being in harm’s way because of war, being displaced from his home, and rivalry with his stronger, older brother Peter. From the moment he steps foot on Narnian soil, he is a king. But he doesn’t know it.
When he meets the White Witch, she offers to make him a prince if he will do her bidding. As an insecure boy far from home, that sounded like a great offer. As one of the four ancient kings prophesied and appointed by Aslan, that should have sounded like a really lousy offer. But Edmund did not know who he was, so he took it.
Most temptation boils down to Satan offering us what we already have in Christ. Satan is always willing to sell us what we already possess at a “steal of price.” If we do not know who we really are, we’ll take the deal.
Return to the temptation account of Luke 4 now. Notice that Jesus does not doubt who He is and, therefore, does not accept the short cuts (which are actually radical redefinitions) to attain what is already His.
As you seek to allow your identity as a child of God (Eph. 5:1) to serve as a protection in temptation, use these four questions to guide you.
Question #1: How do you define who you are? Do you define yourself by a certain relationship, ability, failure, event, dream, or occupation?
Question #2: How does your relationship with God, as His adopted and loved child, change your sense of identity? Did you view your baptism as a watershed moment in your life that forever changed who you are?
Question #3: What insecurities or areas of pride does Satan use to tempt you or create a context of temptation for you?
Question #4: In those times of temptation, how is Satan offering you something you already have in Christ?
Allow these questions to enable you to approach moments of temptation with greater confidence; not in yourself but in the superior provision of God for anything you will face. When faced with these questions, temptation leads us to worship rather than sin.
When we see this, the fear/shame that we often feel at the moment of temptation (which is not sin) dissipates, because we now have a map to move from failure to worship. As we compare the best of what Satan has to offer with who we already are and what we already have in Christ, the response should be laughter. In which case, Satan is the one who slinks away in shame and embarrassment, not the child of God.
Posted 11 months ago at 1:23 pm. 1 comment
When I was reading through the Christmas narrative again I was struck by the phrase, “And her husband Joseph, being a just man (Matt. 1:19a, ESV emphasis added).” The wording sounded so strange to my ear, and not because I am used to hearing women bash their husbands. It sounded odd in a masculine voice.
When I hear men use those last three words they rearrange the order. Usually they are describing a situation where “the right thing” was obvious, but they didn’t do it and the refrain is, “Well, I’m just a man.” The implication is that there are certain sins for which being male is understandable (i.e., lust, pride, harshness, insensivity, etc…). Somehow maleness has been defined more by those sins than just about anything else. We’re supposed to bark as some kind of pledge of allegiance when those sins are referenced in conversation.
I believe this is more than a clever play on words. If Joseph were “just a man,” Mary would have been a single mom raising the Son of God. All of the temptations of maleness were in Joseph as he resisted them to evidence that he was “a just man.” He would have to live the rest of his life with questions like:
- Did Mary know another man sexually?
- Am I a fool for believing that I should call this kid “Immanuel”?
- What are other people saying when I’m not around because I know what’s getting back to me (Mark 6:1-6)?
- Does Jesus look like any of the other men I’ve saw Mary talk to?
- Am I really going to rearrange my whole life and flee to Egypt for this story?
Yeah, Joseph had a dream with an angel talking to him, but how many spiritual highs have you had and how long did they last when doubts crept back in. Most of the days with Jesus growing up (after the wise men and shepherds) had to be pretty ordinary (nothing was recorded until Jesus got lost in the temple). When things get “normal” is when faith gets hard.
Mary knew she hadn’t been with another man. The miracle was undeniable in her mind without the need for “faith” in a virgin birth. But I cannot imagine it was so for Joseph. This is where the danger of the “just a man” phrase comes in. If Joseph listened to most men (even Christian men) talk about how to deal with temptations that infringe upon their masculinity, I fear we would have a radically different Christmas narrative.
This is not to imply that men should do with Joseph what Catholics do with Mary. That would only negate the point being made here. The point is that Joseph was a man (masculine without any of the benefits of deity like his Son) who valued being just more than being macho or respected.
While I know that it is chronologically and theologically incorrect, it is worth pondering whether Jesus was emulating Joseph when He made the decisions described in Philippians 2:5-11. Joseph was a humble man who took the form of a servant, setting aside his reputation. As we study the Christmas narrative it might be appropriate to allow God to exalt Joseph (like those biblical examples in Hebrews 11) in our eyes as an example of the kind of faith we should display.
Praise God that Joseph was willing to be “a just man” instead of “just a man”!
Posted 1 year, 1 month ago at 1:04 pm. Add a comment
Dead, Following, Alive, Walking (2:1-10)
This passage is surreal. Dead people are following things – the course of this world, the prince of the power of the air, and the passions of their flesh. We begin to see that death is a way of life more than an ultimate end. Those who are caught in a life-dominating sin will quickly attest to the fact that death can be an experience with a heart that beats and breath in your lungs. The fact that both Heaven and Hell are eternal means that death is not “the finale” we think it is. Death is merely a way of life made permanent.
The contrast to dead people following things is enlivened people walking. Following is a mindless act; the smallest children play Follow-the-Leader. In this contrast, walking implies engagement and voluntary commitment. Contrary to the perspective of those “dead in their trespasses and sins” the greater freedom is experienced by those who have had God invade their living death.
Reflection: After conversion there is a temptation to believe that the “good life” is the life of sin, without God’s restrictions. We reveal this tendency when we longingly ask “How far is too far?” regarding our particular sin of choice. In what areas of life are you tempted to view death as life and life as death?
By Grace (2:5, 
It is so hard to wrap my mind around what it means for grace to be the “method” of salvation. This is particularly true when, as a counselor, people come to me for “practical” (meaning “how to”) answers. To do/get something by grace is the epitome of an oxy-moron for the practical minded. It is so simple it’s profound.
Yet this does become practical (irony intended). We are called to forgive as we have been forgiven (Eph 4:32). Those who offend us can do as little to “earn” our forgiveness as we did to earn God’s. Forgiveness is always of grace and it is always a choice of the offended party. As we follow the development of Ephesians, we see that we can only obey 4:32 when we accurately see ourselves in light of 2:1-10.
Application: What is the significance that a discussion of salvation is immediately followed by a discussion of good works for our discussion of interpersonal forgiveness? Two principles emerge. First, true repentance always results in corresponding fruits of tangible change. But this fruit does not grow pre-forgiveness. Second, forgiveness (salvation) is only the start of the process of restoration (sanctification). Too often we treat forgiveness (the release of bitterness) as a synonym for restoration (relationships restored to their original condition). This leads to many hurts, poor choices, and other problems.
Created for “Good” Works
(BCH_Eph2A_handout for Printable PDF Handout)
Have you ever noticed how content the Bible is with the word “good”? Genesis 1 is filled with “good.” God does not seem to be competing with anyone, so words like better and best are unnecessary. In Ephesians 2:9-10 Paul uses the contented word “good” to describe our calling and links it with our other call not to boast.
That should be liberating. Often we get distracted by a fear of failure because wrapped up in the comparative language of being “great.” That is the kind of language that led the disciples to start bickering (Luke 22:24). It is the language of fear and division. It is the language that believes God loves for us to grow as our performance improves.
Use the following questions to help you assess whether you are fulfilling your calling with grace-based contentment or performance-based works righteousness.
- Am I intimidated by or jealous of the gifts and abilities of other Christians?
- Do I evaluate my work by comparing it with other’s work?
- Do I avoid doing or saying things in front of others?
- Do I get embarrassed when people comment on my work?
- Do I apologize for mistakes that are not moral wrongs?
- Do I think I am a good Christian because I have impressive gifts?
- Do I assume Christians “on stage” have it all together?
- Do I do extra good works to avoid feeling guilty?
Allow these questions to push you towards contentment in God’s grace and motivate you to fulfill God’s calling with joy rather than fear.
Introduction to the “Living Our Faith” series.
TOOL: “Using Prayer Time to Cultivate Ministry”
BLOG POST: “Teachers Equipping Ministers Through Prayer Time“
Posted 1 year, 5 months ago at 12:26 pm. Add a comment
A Counselor Reflects on Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
“The most dangerous thing you can do is to take any one impulse of your own nature and set it up as the thing you ought to follow at all costs. There is not one of them which will not make us into devils if we set it up as an absolute guide (p.11).” Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
I cannot say that I have ever thought about becoming a devil, even for a Halloween costume, but as I read this quote from C.S. Lewis it was not the way I thought (if I did think about it) of becoming one.
My instincts said, “I would have to intentionally engage in sinister activities for prolonged periods of time with malice-aforethought in order to become a devil.” As I think about it, though, that is exactly what C.S. Lewis was saying; only the sinister activities are wearing the “costumes” of innocent desires (i.e., impulses).
Impulses such as golf, Facebook Farmville (now I’m stepping on toes), reading, parenting, working, eating, a special diet, theology, loving, being loved, education, and any other pleasure are forms of worship. When we do these things we are delighting in them and declaring them worthy of our full, concentrated attention (intentionality from my thought in paragraph 2).
When we “set it up as the thing you ought to follow at all costs” we are declaring it our god. This impulse begins to play all the roles that the true God ought to play – determining right/wrong, good/bad, worth my time, friend/enemy, degree of value, etc… Those who agree and cooperate with my impulse are “righteous” and those who do not are deserving of wrath.
Because I believe I am right (and everyone should agree with me) I follow my impulse for a prolonged period of time. I even begin to read my Bible through the lens of my impulse and God’s Word is muzzled because I read it to say (affirm) only what I am already living for.
Because I have declared my impulse good (and it probably is except for what I am doing with it), I begin to plan my life around the pursuit of this impulse (malice-aforethought in paragraph 2). My schedule and daydreaming become substantially shaped by my impulse.
The end result is that I have a god who is not God and I am verbally and nonverbally declaring its glory to the world around me. All the time the sinister-ness of what I am doing masquerades in the costume of an innocent desire and I do not realize that I have become more devil-ish than God-like.
So the caution is that (1) we should never let what we do for God become our god and (2) we should never mistake the blessings of God as our god. Both are such tempting (but deep) pitfalls.
In light of this consider the story of the Rich Young Ruler (Matthew 19:16-30). RYR viewed his material possessions as his “stamp of approval” from God in typical Jewish (and often modern Christian) fashion. When Jesus asked RYR to trade God’s blessings for eternity with God, RYR could not let go of God’s blessings to take hold of God’s person.
His “impulse” was to follow God’s rules to secure God’s blessings. It was the absolute rule of his life that he followed at all cost. He came to Jesus asking for more rules to follow for another blessing. He went away sad (to the place of weeping and gnashing of teeth) because his good impulse (being good for God’s rewards) had “made a devil” of him.
Posted 1 year, 5 months ago at 1:10 pm. Add a comment
A Counselor Reflects on Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
“No man, I suppose, is tempted to every sin. It so happens that the impulse which makes men gamble has been left out of my make-up; and, no doubt, I pay for this by the lacking of some good impulse of which it is the excess or perversion (p. xii).” Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
There is an old adage that says, “Most weaknesses are exaggerated strengths.” I think that is very similar to what C.S. Lewis is saying here. If we do not understand the principle being explained here, then our battle with sin will result in excessive discouragement and self-abasement.
Let’s start with a few illustrations of this principle.
Sin: Harsh Anger
Good Impulse: Willingness to confidently and clearly stand for “truth” or what is “right”
Result of Absence: Being unduly influenced by popular opinion
Sin: People-pleasing
Good Impulse: High levels of compassion, loyalty, and the ability to empathize with other’s suffering
Result of Absence: Self-centeredness with the inability to see things from others’ perspective
These are only two possible examples. Each could have other possible good impulses at their root and other possible results of their absence. But, hopefully, you can begin to see the point that C.S. Lewis was illustrating.
I would like to draw two points of application. The first applies to our personal battle with sin and the resulting discouragement. The second applies to our expression of leadership, particularly instructing during discipline, as parents.
First, after we sin we should not only look for our “temptation triggers” but also the strengths or even spiritual gifts that were distorted as we sinned. What aspect of my person, that God intended for good, did Satan use to blind me to the sin I was committing. For example, what parent has not been blinded by their love and dreams for their child (good gift from God) and from that was excessive in their words during discipline (harsh, guilt trip, slippery slope arguments, personalizing, martyr speech, too long – all sinful). When we see this, our battle with sin becomes an effort to purify the good desire or ability that God has given us; rather than a self-abasing effort to eliminate something that winds up discouraging our efforts to keep trying.
Second, we should have this same mindset when we instruct our children during discipline (this assumes that we are pairing instruction with each occurrence of discipline – hint, hint). During discipline we should regularly emphasize the strength (personality, character, ability) that was revealed, but distorted in the child’s disobedience. Are they a leader, strong-willed, creative, loyal, socially adept, a good delegater, or expressive? In the course of discipline our message is not simply, “What you did was bad and you should never do that again,” but also, “I saw something good God put in you during that disobedience and I am disciplining you to help you use that good thing as God intended.” We might even pray for our children after discipline – not just that they would be obedient in the future, but that God would bless the gifts and abilities He has given our children and use them to do great things.
Posted 1 year, 6 months ago at 12:40 pm. Add a comment
I Would Remind You of the Gospel
(BCH_1Cor_15_handout for Printable PDF Handout)
Paul begins I Corinthians 15 reminding the believers of the Gospel. It has been said, “The entire Christian life is understanding and applying what happened at your conversion.” It is essential for every Christian to remember the Gospel everyday. Our tendency can often be to view the Gospel as “beginner’s Christianity.” I encourage you to reflect on these basic truths of the Gospel in some form each day.
God Cares: At any point when you wonder if life has meaning, God’s love answers, “Yes!” Do you use every good gift in your day as a reminder of God’s involvement and concern? Do you look at people as objects of God’s design and affection? Are your acts of love primarily an attempt to pursue personal happiness or a passionate imitation of God’s character?
We Sinned: Does the Gospel give you the humble courage to acknowledge your sin without defensiveness, shame, or blame-shifting? Do you start each day expecting your biggest challenge will come from within? Do you hate sin or believe it is somehow cute, entertaining, or the “unfortunately off-limits good life”?
Christ Came: Do you think of the incarnation, life, death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ as you face a given struggle? Do you believe absolutely every thing Christ did was absolutely necessary for you to have victory over any temptation you face? Do you believe Jesus’ life represents what it means to be “truly human” or do you think “I’m just a man”?
Faith is Required: Do you only obey God when you think the results will likely be what you want? Do you dream dreams (about God’s kingdom) that are bigger than your potential? Do you believe that coming to the end of yourself (recognizing your full, constant need for God) is the best thing that can happen every day?
Use these questions as a starting point to introduce the Gospel into the way that you think about daily living and see “your normal” transformed by God’s Gospel.
If Christ Has Not Been Raised (15:17)
How often do you battle a particular sin without ever thinking of the resurrection? I’ll admit it, most of the time. Yet Paul says, “And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.” I’ve also tried to change a light fixture without thinking about the breaker box. That did not work out so well either.
Our only hope against the power of sin in our lives is the resurrection of Christ. We get so caught up in learning “practical steps” that we forget that it was Calvary that gave our dead legs the power to take any steps (practical or not). When we forget this we battle sin as if we must conquer (in our strength) an already defeated enemy. We forget the only admonitions we have against sin and Satan are “Stand firm (Eph 6:13)” and “Flee (II Tim 2:22).”
Application: Memorize I Corinthians 15:17 and repeat it during your moments of temptation. Let the verse remind you of the nature of the moment’s struggle. Christ is raised! Your faith is not futile! You are not still in your sin! Temptation is not a time to “prove” or “earn” something; it is a time to “reveal” and “display” the effectiveness of what Christ has done. Temptation gains its effectiveness by making the moment about you (your desires or your weaknesses). When you make the moment about Christ (standing firm in His truth or fleeing to His presence) temptation is transformed into a moment of worship – you have declared Christ as worth more than anything Satan could offer (pleasure or protection) in that moment.
Victory! (15:57)
How often do you remember that the victory has been won? That is easy to forget in the midst of life’s struggles. Life and history are a battle between two kingdoms: light and darkness, truth and folly, holiness and sin. While it is sometimes hard to see, God has won! It is not merely that God is winning or God will win, but God has won!
Proclaiming the Gospel is simply asking people to admit defeat and join the winning team. Unfortunately, I think we often fail to appreciate the victory, because even as Christians, we are hesitant to admit defeat. The words of Jesus in Luke 9:23-24 still seem a bit extreme to us, “And he said to all, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.’”
Reflection: Do you fail to remember and celebrate the victory of Jesus over sin and death because you have not completely admitted defeat (full reliance upon Jesus) and are still trying to show what you can do? Do you stay in the presence of temptation too long thinking “I can handle it” instead of fleeing? Do you conjure your own “rules” for behavior rather than standing firm in God’s truth? If so, acknowledge defeat in order to embrace Christ’s victory.
Introduction to the “Living Our Faith” series.
TOOL: “Using Prayer Time to Cultivate Ministry”
BLOG POST: “Teachers Equipping Ministers Through Prayer Time“
Posted 1 year, 6 months ago at 12:46 pm. Add a comment
Such a Short Time (15:22; 16:1)
You pull out of the drive way on a family vacation and the kids ask, “Are we there yet? How much longer? I’d rather play with the neighbor. I forgot my favorite hat (crying).” That is a small taste of what Moses experienced. Three days into their journey of freedom and Israel was grumbling. 45 days into the journey and they were saying they’d have rather died in Egypt.
It is not just gravity that makes it a short trip from mountain top to valley. Depravity and frail humanity also contribute. After Israel’s first grumbling, God revealed himself as “the Lord, your healer (Exodus 15:26).” Yet hunger shriveled their trust almost as quickly as thirst (not that I am writing with “stone-casting” tone).
Reflection: It is passages like these that make I Corinthians 10:12 come to light (“Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall.”) and approach I Corinthians 10:13 with humility (“No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.”). Knowing our nature (sinful flesh and frail, finite humanity) let us give thanks for the God who patiently walked with Israel after the Exodus.
That I May Test Them (16:4)
[Side Note: Is it a sign of the times that I initially typed, “That I may text them”?]
This phrase of God testing Israel shows up several times in the book of Exodus (15:25; 16:4; 20:20). We know that God does not tempt (James 1:13). So what are we to make of this and how/when might God relate to us in a similar way?
It is worth noting that each of these “testings” has to do with the expression of faith not the committing of sin (i.e., would they only gather a days portion of manna vs. would they steal food from their neighbor). God was putting Israel in a position to reveal their level of trust and commitment to the Lord. We must take omitted righteousness and missed opportunities to share/express faith as seriously as we do moral violations.
Reflection: Another question is, “Who was the test for? Who needed to see the results?” With a bit of reflection we can easily see it was not the omniscient God who needed to see the results. It was Israel. After each deliverance they surely thought, “We won’t doubt God again.” As you begin to take opportunities for faith as seriously as sin, do not regard them as a pass fail test, but as a thermometer to gain an accurate self-assessment of your current temperature with God.
The Manna Lesson
(BCH_Exodus_16_handout for Printable PDF Handout)
What was the most challenging part of gathering manna? It wasn’t rare like truffles; it didn’t have briars like blackberries; it wasn’t heavy like a watermelon, it wasn’t fragile like a tomato, and there were look-alike poisonous varieties like mushrooms. Gathering manna was hard because it required daily faith in God’s provision.
God provided manna not merely to address hunger, but also grumbling that emerged from a lack of trust in God to provide. Manna not only fed Israel physically, it was intended to grow them spiritually. The spiritual growth was not an effect of being heaven’s bread, but because it required daily dependence without an alternative.
We still live by manna today – God’s daily provision. We just don’t see it as clearly. As you read the manna narrative, consider your greatest fear or insecurity. Is it a matter of survival or fulfillment? If it is only a matter of fulfillment, give thanks… but also learn to apply the manna lesson.
- How has God worked to supply this need or alleviate this fear?
- How do you try to brace against “God not coming through next time”?
- What “gathering manna” responsibilities do you have with this issue?
- Who are you surrounded by with similar needs (Israel was a community)?
- Do your conversations encourage faith or feed doubt and pessimism?
- When are you tempted to complain about God’s method of providing?
- What tangible reminders of God’s faithfulness can you keep before you (Exodus 16:31-34)?
Faith is scary because it is by definition out of our control. As you reflect on the lesson God was teaching Israel with manna in light of your own situation, rest in the fact that “out of your control” is not the same thing as “out of control.”
Posted 1 year, 10 months ago at 6:30 pm. Add a comment
