The Joy of the Lord is Our Strength (includes retreat download)

Joy 3-Hour Retreat download here.

Then [Nehemiah] said to them, “Go and eat what is rich, drink what is sweet, and send portions to those who have nothing prepared, since today is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, because the joy of the Lord is your strength.” (Nehemiah 8:10)

I have been told that the joy of the Lord is my strength since I was a small boy. I wanted to be a strong and faithful person then…and I still do. One problem—no one ever explained what joy was and how one received it! I might even have it and not know it! Joy is a Christian term we toss around a lot but rarely gets clearly defined.

The joy that that Israelites experienced in Nehemiah’s day was based on getting reacquainted with God’s law. The people of Israel had been in exile for decades and God’s Law had been lost. They returned from exile to Jerusalem, a ruined city. During reconstruction, the scrolls of the Law were found. A large gathering was arranged for the Law to be read to the people again. Priests were secured who would help the people understand what they heard. The result was a collective repentance and grieving that they had strayed so far from God’s law. Nehemiah, Ezra, and other leaders encouraged the people to celebrate rather than grieve. They were taking big steps to live rightly in their relationship with God. As they rejoiced in the rebuilding of Jerusalem, they could also rejoice in the rebuilding of their relationship with God. The peace, stability and comfort that came from living rightly with God is the essence of the joy that would strengthen them.

The joy of the Israelites is just one facet of biblical joy. There is joy that comes with experiencing God’s salvation (Acts 16:16-40; Psalm 51:10-12). Joy springs from the help and mercy we receive from God (Psalm 28:6-7). Jesus taught and guided his disciples so they might experience complete joy (John 15:16; John 17:13). Joy is even possible when God corrects us (Job 5:17)! Ultimately, biblical joy is not an emotion but a state of being.

Joy is a fruit of the Holy Spirit’s presence and power in our lives. Joy is also a product of our willingness to live in sync with Jesus’ commandments. May our joy increase as we strengthen our faith in worship and reflection this month!

Joy 3-Hour Retreat download here.

Steep your life in God

"If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don't you think he'll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I'm trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God's giving. People who don't know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don't worry about missing out. You'll find all your everyday human concerns will be met.

"Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don't get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.” (Matthew 6:30-34, The Message)

That word “steep” immediately conjures up, in my mind, making a cup of tea. To make a proper cup of tea, you pour the hot water over the leaves or the tea bag. And then you let the hot water do its work. The heat and the currents and eddies that are created by the slight variations in the temperature of the water serve to bring out the very best flavor the tea has to offer. After about five minutes of steeping the tea and the water have achieved a lovely balance of flavor and warmth. The dry tea, by itself, isn't much. But when surrounded and infused by the hot water, it becomes quite extraordinary.

So it is with our lives. When we give God our entire attention, when we turn over the security and cares and worry of our lives over to God, surround ourselves with God, if you will, then we'll find that our needs are met and our concerns are addressed. When we let God's presence surround us and permeate our lives, God draws out of the very best...our lives achieve a beautiful balance.

How do we steep our lives in God? I think it looks a little different for each person. Worship allows us to express our love for God and hear the Good News of our Savior Jesus Christ. Worship is also the place where we are reminded of the ways God has been taking care of us…we are reminded of God's faithfulness to us. Reading the Bible and regular times of prayer can help God's presence infuse our lives with hope and confidence. Fellowship and serving together make God's presence known in our lives and in the lives of others. One other powerful “steeping” practice is simply paying attention to how God has provided for you in the past. Keep track of God's gracious giving and respond with thanksgiving.

Jesus is offering us a choice…not a hard one to make...but a hard one to live out. Will we live our lives enveloped by worry or let our lives be surrounded and steeped in God? God created us...God loves us...God knows what you and I need. May you and I live conscious of God's gracious giving and steep our lives in God's presence!

Heart Fitness

“Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.”
--Psalm 139:23-24

The late great coach of the Dallas Cowboys, Tom Landry, once described the kind of character he was looking for in team members:

“Give me a choice between an outstanding athlete with poor character and a lesser athlete of good character, and I’ll choose the latter every time. The athlete with good character will often perform to his fullest potential and be a successful football player; while the outstanding athlete with poor character will usually fail to play up to his potential and often won’t even achieve average performance.”

Landry was always on the lookout for athletes who would perform up to their potential. He was looking for players who were fit in their hearts. Players fit in their hearts would realize their potential on the field. They would pursue Super Bowls with dogged tenacity.

I believe if I were to take a poll of Lockhart Christians, I would find that we have a decent understanding of God’s plan to keep us spiritually fit—undoubtedly you would mention practices like studying the Bible, regular time set aside for prayer, attending worship, and experiencing the support and fellowship of other Christians. But, like most things in life, knowing and doing are two different things. Many modern Christians struggle with having the heart for these practices that develop a richer, fuller spiritual life. This weakness in our Christian character is keeping many followers of Jesus from realizing their fullest potential to be used by God and from experiencing the fullest joy from their relationship with Christ.

The psalmist was asking for a fit heart. He wanted insight into his own life so that he might live in a way that pleased God. A God-pleasing life, he knew, leads to a “way everlasting”—a joyful, significant, blessed life. To that end, he asks God to purge every thought, attitude, belief or behavior that offended God’s sensibilities. He is asking God to help him live to his fullest potential.

The psalmist provides an excellent example for life on the “way everlasting.” We can’t reach our fullest potential along the Way without God’s help. The psalmist knew that our heart fitness improves with prayer…Prayer that asks God for insight into our lives…Prayer that welcomes God’s testing and accountability…Prayer the makes us open to God’s tough, but merciful, soul-cleansing.

Heart fitness helps us reach our fullest potential as followers of Christ. We are able to love more fully. We are able to worship more fully. We feel more fully connected to and grounded in God. This is the good life…this is the “way everlasting.” It’s ours for the asking!

Book Review: Step-By-Step along the path to spiritual maturity

Since humankind has sought connection with God we have looked for ways to describe the process of spiritual maturity. The Old Testament used wandering in the wilderness. Jesus talked about taking up one's cross. The apostle Paul often used the metaphor of athletes training for a race. In The Walk, former NFL running back Shaun Alexander (with help from Joe Hilley)uses the metaphor of walking with God as a framework for describing the process of spiritual growth.

Shaun Alexander - The Walk from waterbrook multnomah on Vimeo.

Alexander's book is definitely a pleasant read. As you might expect, he tells many stories from his life in football. They are well told, and always helpfully illustrate his points. Alexander also has a knack for defining theological terms in clear, simple language. I found him to display good insight into the human condition.

If there is a drawback to this book it is that Alexander seeks to make one's walk with God a simple and clear process. He describes a five stage process to the spiritual walk. He suggests that each stage must be experienced in order. According to Alexander, Christians further along in the walk are best suited to mentor those who are two stages behind them. Although there is much helpful insight given for each stage of the walk, the progress to spiritual maturity is rarely this linear. The stages themselves seem forced to me and I found it difficult to get past that as the book progressed.

The Walk by Shaun Alexander (Chapter 1)

I recommend The Walk with reservations. I think it could be a helpful group study book for a men's ministry and a good gift book for a Christian sports fan.

NOTE: I received a copy of the book free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review through their Blogging for Books program.