From Thanksgiving to Thanksliving

As we enter into time of year when the calender reminds us to give thanks, I am especially mindful of the many blessings in my life. It is often quite easy to get caught up in the mentality of scarcity and neglect to recognize just how truly blessed we are.

God has abundantly blessed us with all the we have, and I have much to be thankful for: my health, my family, a job, a home, food, clothes, a car, friends, free time, a computer, and so much more. In these uncertain economic times, we are faced with real choices. For some the choice can be as simple as not dining out or what stores we shop at, for others it can mean which bills get paid and which don't, for others it can mean feeding our children or filling our car with gas. The times we are living in can cause us to focus on all the things we don't have and miss all that we are blessed with; this too is a choice.

In the midst of difficult times we are also faced with a critical spiritual choice: will we be filled with fear or faith? Will we allow our lives to be consumed with fears about our future, doubts about whether we will ever recover, and anxiety about what lies ahead? Or will we move forward confidently knowing that God has brought us all that we have and will continue to provide for us. To live in fear is to live as though it all depends on you. To live in faith acknowledges that God is in control. What will we choose? Who do we believe is in charge?

A true key to living a life of faith is understanding thanksgiving. To be thankful means we acknowledge the gifts we have been given, we acknowledge that we are not the source of all things, we acknowledge the Lord has been good to us. If we want to move from fear to faith then Thanksgiving has to go from being a day to a way. We must move toward living a life of thanksliving. When we no longer feel the burden of meeting all of our needs, when we acknowledge God as the source, when we remember how faithfully God has provided for us throughout our lives, we are on the way to thanksliving. We are moving from fear to faith.

The apostle Paul understood the power of thanksliving, he understood what it meant to live a life of faith. As he doggedly shared the gospel with all he met, he endured great pain and suffering. Paul was ridiculed, shamed, arrested, beaten, imprisoned, and ultimately killed for sharing his faith. Throughout all of his trials and tribulations Paul continually modeled faithful living, he showed us thanksliving. At the end of his life, while in prison, Paul wrote to one the churches he helped establish in Philippi. He wrote to them a letter of encouragement and thanks. He wrote in the midst of great personal suffering and with the knowledge that he would soon be executed.

I rejoice in the Lord greatly that now at last you have revived your concern for me; indeed, you were concerned for me, but had no opportunity to show it. Not that I am referring to being in need; for I have learned to be content with whatever I have. I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry, of having plenty and of being in need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Philippians 4:10-13

Paul learned the secret of thanksliving: to be content with whatever he had. Paul understood in a profound and real way that no matter what his circumstances, God was with him and providing for his every need. As we enter into the time of Thanksgiving, may we all be blessed to know contentment in the Lord and to live a life of thanksliving.

Authority Issues

OK, I admit it. I have problems being told what to do. When I was a child and my parents or teachers or whoever said "because I said so" I knew they said that only because they couldn't think of any other reason for me to obey. Plain and simple, I have always viewed rules as optional. If rules don't make sense to me, more than likely, I don't follow them, no matter who told me.

This kind of obstinance is nothing unique, and despite my occasional hubris, nothing admirable. Stubbornly insisting that you know better, and refusing to acknowledge authority is not simply rude and inconsiderate, it is a relationship killer. Refusing to play along, follow rules, respect authority, listen to others, acknowledge my limitations and being self-righteous have hampered my relationships with others. I always thought I was being strong by resisting authority, but I was really keeping myself from fully engaging in relationships. Submitting to authority and becoming obedient requires humility and is a sign of strength not weakness. To have a relationship with God, means we must submit ourselves to God's will, we must acknowledge that we are not God and not in charge. To be faithful to God, we must become obedient and allow God to work in us, or we will simply be following our own desires.

God's word is filled with instruction and guidance to God's people. We are called to be obedient to God not because God wants or needs to be in control, but because God's word offers us a way to stay in right relationship with God. The word of God tells us who God is, what God has done, and who are in relationship to God. As we study and learn the word, we become more and more in tune and connected to God, and our relationship becomes stronger. When we go our own way, when we refuse to listen or submit, we can get ourselves in big trouble. Scripture not only captures God's words of guidance and instruction, but cautionary tales of the mess we can get into when we go our own way. The story of the golden calf illustrates this perfectly.

When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered around Aaron, and said to him, “Come, make gods for us, who shall go before us; as for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.” Aaron said to them, “Take off the gold rings that are on the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.” So all the people took off the gold rings from their ears, and brought them to Aaron. He took the gold from them, formed it in a mold, and cast an image of a calf; and they said, “These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!” Exodus 32:1-4

As Moses was on the mountaintop receiving God's word, Aaron and the Israelites were reveling in their idolatry. Without God's word of instruction and guidance the people forgot who God was, what God had done for them, and followed their own sinful and self-gratifying desires. Without God, the people were lost whether they knew it or not. Similarly, when we refuse to listen to God's word, when we refuse to submit to God in our life we are in danger of forgetting who God is, who we are, and constructing gods based on our sinful desires, our lives get torn apart and disintegrate.

When we learn to listen to what God is saying and follow where the Spirit leads, we move away from ourselves and toward God. When we submit ourselves to God's will and become obedient, we align ourselves with God's vision for our lives. As we study the word, learn to listen, and faithfully respond God can and will do miraculous work in and through us. So if you are like me and have authority issues, listen up: the Word is speaking.

The Cost of Discipleship

"I'll give you all I got to give if you say you love me too I may not have a lot to give but what I got I'll give to you I don't care too much for money, money can't buy me love "

-Can't Buy Me Love, The Beatles

I have that it is increasing true in life that the best things, the things that matter the most are both free and priceless (Sam Cooke sings about this). We can have all the money, material possessions, and all that goes with it and have a life that is empty and devoid of meaning. Love, happiness, beauty, faith, hope, and joy are the things that matter in life and they cannot be bought, sold, or reproduced.

As a person of faith I believe that not only are the best things in life free, they are gifts from God. It is only through God's amazing love and grace that we can experience the best of life. It is only through God that our life has meaning and purpose. It is only through God that we have the ultimate gift: the gift of salvation. Eternal life and the promise of heaven is a free gift of God's grace given through Jesus Christ. The love of God is free and unconditional and it makes all the difference.

We have been given the gift of life and the promise of eternal life freely from God. But if we want to live life as God intends for us, we must become transformed and live life for God. Discipleship is the human response to God's love and grace. To be a disciple means being in an active relationship with God; it means putting God first by following Jesus Christ. If salvation is a free gift of grace, then discipleship is a labor of love which requires work and effort. Like any relationship, our relationship with God requires time, effort, and energy and comes with a cost.

"Then Jesus told his disciples, ‘If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it." Matthew 16:24-25

As Jesus prepared his disciples to be his followers and eventually become leaders, he wanted to clearly articulate the difficult and sacrificial life following God entails. Jesus tells them and us, that the life of faith is not easy and calls us to deny ourselves in serving the Lord. Self-denial means we no longer put ourselves first, but put God's mission first. In extreme cases throughout history this verse has become literally true as Christians gave their life for their faith. While not many of us we called to be martyrs, we are all called to a life of discipleship.

So what are willing to sacrifice for God? What does self-denial look like in your life? Do you sacrifice time to serve the Lord? Do you sacrifice treasure for God's mission? Are you giving your life to the Lord or are you keeping it for yourself?

These are deep, powerful questions which call us to examine our life, our choices, and our values. Being a faithful follower of Jesus is not easy. Living a life of self-denial is both difficult and counter-cultural; people may not understand, you may lose friends. Becoming a disciple means becoming more and more like Jesus, who gave his whole self for the world. We all have a long way to go, we all have room to grow.

The good news is that our relationship with God is secure through Jesus Christ. We have the free gift of God's grace which makes all the difference. We have a choice how to respond to the gift and while a life of discipleship requires sacrifice and self-denial, it comes with the fruits of the spirit and the presence of God.

As a disciple of Jesus who is on the way and learning more and more what it means to sacrifice for God, I can testify that the more I give to God the blessed I become. As my faith grows and my relationship with the Lord deepens, I have more peace, joy, patience, hope and love. I am a better person and have a growing sense of purpose as I serve the Lord and God's people. I pray the Lord continues to be presence in your life and you find encouragement to grow your faith in a life of discipleship.

Outpouring of the Spirit

In times like these it is easy to become overwhelmed with anxiety and worry. We can get caught up in the day-to-day stresses of life and the uncertain economy that we forget althogether God's abundant blessings and presence in our lives. Perhaps like me, you have also noticed a pattern in life as well. In my experience, there are times when everything seems to fall apart, while other times everything seems to come together positively. The old cliche "when it rains it pours" comes to mind, and can be taken either positively or negatively.

In studying the book of Acts in recent days, I have seen this pattern scripturally. Very often, when there is an outpouring of the Holy Spirit (positive) it is soon followed by an attack from Satan(negative). This is a pattern found in Acts and elsewhere in scripture, but my lived experience in faith also fits this pattern. Times of blessing and deep connection to God are followed by times of internal and external attacks which threaten our faith and work for Christ.

As the Christian church began through the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost, the apostles shared with all who were gathered the Good News of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection. When Peter proclaimed the gospel that day, through the power of the Holy Spirit, over 3,000 people were baptized and came to faith. This new community of believers gathered together and "devoted themselves to the apostles; teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers." (Acts 2:42) On two occassions (2:44, 4:32) the community was said to have had all things in common and were of "one heart and soul." This is a tremendous example of Christian unity and community made possible through the outpouring of the spirit.

It doesn't take long however for Satan to attack the nascent Christian movement. Soon after the community began sharing all things together and forsakening private land ownership, two of the members go their own way, succumbing to the temptation of greed.

But a man named Ananias, with the consent of his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property; with his wife’s knowledge, he kept back some of the proceeds, and brought only a part and laid it at the apostles' feet. "Ananias," Peter asked, "why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back part of the proceeds of the land? While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, were not the proceeds at your disposal? How is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You did not lie to us but to God!" Acts 5:1-4

Ananias and Sapphira were not required to sell the property and share it with the community, so it isn't that they owned property that was the issue. The issue was their deception. They purported themselves to be examples of generosity for the community when in reality, they only wanted to be seen as generous by others. Peter asks Ananias why Satan has filled his heart, how has he allowed himself to be so easily tempted away from God. The attack of Satan comes soon after a moment of great unity and genuine genorsity within the community of faith.

This is an ongoing pattern in Acts and is one I have seen in my ministry as well. Satan does not want the church to be succesful, Satan does not want individuals to have a strong faith or serve Christ faithfully. Satan will use whatever trick possible to lure and tempt us away from our true purpose and identity. The greatest threats we face will be after we have been most faithful. Put another way, we will be most strongly attacked when we are most faithful to Christ.

The question then shifts to how can we protect or prepare ourselves for such attacks? For me, the knowledge that these attacks are constant and present, that these attacks come both from within and outside the faith community, gives great power. Peter is aware of and on the look-out for Satan. When he sees Satan at work in Ananias he names it and challenges it. We too must keep our eyes and ears opens for the attacks we will face. If we are faithful to God, it is not a matter of if we will be attacked, but when. I pray when the attacks come your way, you will rely upon the power and presence of the crucified and risen Christ.