Before heading off into your weekend, here are three things that I’ve read and been thinking about this week. Hope they are as helpful and challenging to you as they have been for me. Have a great weekend!
Pie in the face at VBS…
another thing not mentioned in seminary!
#1
The gift of repentance allows us to seek new solutions for the way we can reconceive of and restructure our life in God and in accordance with his eternal purposes in the gospel. This is sheer grace, and we should embrace it wholeheartedly in our common life as much as in our personal one. And it should certainly be a living aspect of what it means to be a believing church full of faith.
The Permanent Revolution by Alan Hirsch
Regular repentance is a gift of grace Hirsch says. Do we really believe that? Isn’t repentance that thing we do when we feel guilty and want get back in God’s good graces? What if we begin to see repentance like the course correction of our GPS gives us when we’ve taken a wrong turn? It is incredibly helpful to not only know we are going in the wrong direction but also make the course correction to move in a new direction. Nothing worse than spending a lot of time and effort going somewhere only to find out it is the wrong place. Repentance, God’s gift for course correcting, can save us from regret and a whole lot of wasted time and effort. Psalm 139:23-24 is my go-to prayer of examination that has been helpful in my personal practice of repentance. In fact, verse 24 ends in asking God go direct our course along his path! In my mind, spending a few minutes each day assessing the direction of my actions, words, and motives is a better alternative than getting far down the road only to find out that it’s the wrong one.
Search me and know my heart. Test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you; and lead me along the path of everlasting life.
Psalm 139:23-24
#2
Christianity is a matter of perception, not proof.
Peter Marshall
The remarkable Presbyterian minister and chaplain of the US Senate, Peter Marshall, was fond of saying the above. I believe what he means is that Christianity is a faith-based endeavor. If you are looking for complete proof before you follow Jesus, you will be looking for your lifetime. However, proof is in the eyes of the beholder similar to beauty. One person looks at a sunrise and says, “Wow, look at what God did!” While another person may be just as awestruck by the sunrise but attributes it not to God but nature. How do we then help people’s perception change? First of all, let’s slow our roll for only God can change perceptions. But secondly, we do have a part to play. Our God-given mandate is to live in such a way that brings awareness of an alternative perception. Sometimes it is our action. Often it is our words of gratitude and humility which shines the brightest light.
#3
Teach me your way, O Lord, that I may walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart to revere your name.
Psalm 86:11 NRSV
This week’s lectionary psalm is 86. In it the verse above captured my attention because it described my desire. I want to walk in truth. I want to revere God’s name. To do that I must be taught…which means humility is needed to be teachable. Am I content to be a beginner all of my life? And I need to focus…not be distracted by the many good things (not to mention the bad things) but focus on the one best thing. Are there good things getting in the way of my relationship with God? Am I willing to acknowledge and re-shape my life in a way that places God in the center of my attention?
todd nelson 