Do you remember 'WHY' you are doing this?

As we move into the 3rd week of Lent, it is important for us to keep asking ourselves: "Why am I observing this season of prayer and fasting?" In order to try and give us some deeper insight, I am including a few quotes to remind us of the 'why.'

• “During Lent, we are called to embrace the struggles that make us stronger.” — Jonathan Edwards 
• “Lent is a time for discipline, for confession, for honesty, not because God is mean or fault-finding or finger pointing but because he wants us to know the joy of being cleaned out, ready for all the good things he now has in store.” — N.T. Wright
• “Lent affords us the opportunity to search the depths of our sin and experience the heights of God’s love.” — Chuck Colson

Thought: Do you still have your 'why' for this Lenten season?

Daniel 9:3 - So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting...

Living in Grace

D3LM3

You are not welcome

Water is a precious commodity in any desert. If you have water, you have life and, in some ways, you have power. You can leverage the water to your advantage. 

And so, in a similar way, you can also use the access to water as a power tool. You can invite people to share the water, or you can deny them the opportunity to drink from the Well. Take a read of this story of Isaac and see how he encountered this situation.

Genesis 26:14-22 - "He had so many flocks and herds and servants that the Philistines envied him. 15 So all the wells that his father’s servants had dug in the time of his father Abraham, the Philistines stopped up, filling them with earth.

16 Then Abimelek said to Isaac, “Move away from us; you have become too powerful for us.”

17 So Isaac moved away from there and encamped in the Valley of Gerar, where he settled. 18 Isaac reopened the wells that had been dug in the time of his father Abraham, which the Philistines had stopped up after Abraham died, and he gave them the same names his father had given them.

19 Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and discovered a well of fresh water there. 20 But the herders of Gerar quarreled with those of Isaac and said, “The water is ours!” So he named the well Esek,  because they disputed with him. 21 Then they dug another well, but they quarreled over that one also; so he named it Sitnah. 22 He moved on from there and dug another well, and no one quarreled over it. He named it Rehoboth, saying, “Now the Lord has given us room and we will flourish in the land.”

Thought: If we picture the Church as a "well" of sorts, (offering the life-giving water of Jesus), is our message to people: 'you are not welcome at our well?' OR are we willing to share the Gift that God has given to us?

Living in Grace

D3LM3 

A parched soul

When the Samaritan woman came to draw water at Jacob's Well (John 4) she brought all of her emotional and spiritual baggage along with her. Although she may not have been able to describe it in an elegant manner, she was a parched soul, looking for hope, love and an authentic faith. 

And the miracle of this encounter was that Jesus was already waiting for her. He had the best seat in the house, and he used this encounter to compassionately offer her 'living water.' He could have focused on her sin and continued to heap shame on her, but he chose to give her freedom. 

Dan Clendenin - His simple request for a drink of water provoked a dialogue with a marginalized woman that teaches us that God does not desire any human being to shrivel and die from a broken body or a parched soul. Rather, he longs to quench our deepest needs and desires with the "living water" of his Spirit.

Psalm 107:35 - He turned the desert into pools of water and the parched ground into flowing springs.

Living in Grace

D3LM3

Where are your wounds?

Alan Paton wrote many remarkable works, including 'Ah, But Your Land Is Beautiful.' In his own words he imagines what it would be like to meet God face-to-face and what the conversation would focus on. He writes:

"When I go up there, which is my intention, the Big Judge will say to me,
Where are your wounds?
and if I say I haven’t any, he will say, "Was there nothing to fight for?"
I couldn’t face that question."

Wow, these words really struck a nerve. Where are your wounds?

How often do I refrain from some Godly action, because I am afraid of the wounds I may incur? When we look around us there are plenty of things to fight for, but perhaps we need to overcome our fears first. 

Thought: Jesus was willing to show Thomas his wounds, and it was this encounter that changed Thomas' life.

1 Peter 2:24 - He himself bore our sins in his body on the stake, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness — by his wounds you were healed.

Living in Grace

D3LM3

If you were to be tested

Reflecting back on Jesus' testing in the wilderness (Matthew 4), which of the 3 temptations thrown at Jesus, would be your biggest stumbling block?

1. The temptation to use your power for your own benefit? (Turning stones to bread)

2. To seek fame and honour, by seeking to be spectacular? (Throwing yourself from the Temple)

3. To compromise who you worship, in order to gain the whole world? (Bowing down to the devil)

I realise it is a tough question to answer but chew on it for a while. 

Perhaps another way to reflect on the passage, is to ask: "What is my greatest weakness at the moment, and would the adversary use that to try and get me to turn away from Jesus?"

Proverbs 27:21 - Fire tests the purity of silver and gold, but a person is tested by being praised.

Living in Grace

D3LM3

Rugged Pilgrimage of Discipleship

There are some folks who seem to find their faith-journey to be relatively easy-going. In some ways, I am a little envious of them, because mine doesn't always seem to be that smooth. Of course, there are days of wonder and deep connection with the Father, but there are other days, where discipleship seems to be a grind. I am not sure if you can relate to this at all, but I pray that some of you can.

It is for this reason, that I exclaimed a loud 'Yes', when I read these words in a devotion the other day.

"Pain penetrates through despair and stimulates a new beginning - a journey to God - the transition from a dreamy nostalgia for a better life to a rugged pilgrimage of discipleship...we are invited to find our way by continually listening to the voice of the Holy Spirit. Jesus promised that his Spirit will lead us to truth." - Eugene Peterson

"When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth." - John 16:13

Thought: Let us continue on the pilgrimage of rugged discipleship, because the views from the top of the mountain are extraordinary. 

Living in Grace

D3LM3

It is well

We sang this song in one of our worship services yesterday. It is such a testimony to the power of hope and trust that God will get us through the most difficult of circumstances. May these words offer you hope and peace this week. 

"When peace like a river
Attendeth my way
When sorrows like sea billows roll
Whatever my lot
Thou hast taught me to say
It is well, It is well with my soul.

It is well with my soul

It is well

It is well with my soul."

The chorus is not a recognition of present circumstances, but rather a deep belief that 'no matter what', God is still with us. Our souls are secure in his hands.

Psalm 25:5 - Lead me; teach me; for you are the God who gives me salvation. I have no hope except in you.

Living in Grace

D3LM3