I Am Your Servant...

Hey, Y'all,

Been a funny few weeks--I keep running across events and quotes and thoughts related to this topic. Unfortunately, they're numerous and often anonymous or unattributed so there's no easy way to cite them all; this RST is an amalgam of all of that--and in fact since I had an interesting experience recently along these lines myself, we'll start this posting with that story.

Someone did something that imposed on me. You know what I mean, nothing major, but something that knocks you out of that nice comfy groove of your life and that is somewhat irritating and and inconvenient, and makes you think to yourself, "You know, I really shouldn't have to deal with this; it's annoying."

So I was maybe a little grumpy about it (yeah, I know, y'all are doubtless shocked beyond words at that :-) and I even mentioned it to God--"What's the deal, Man? Why do I have to deal with this? Shouldn't I just be able to say 'Begone!' and let them figure it out and deal with it themselves?" So OK, maybe not the most eloquent prayer ever, but I do get points for honesty (and for checking in with The One who I can be certain understands the big picture better than I do). So that was my bedtime prayer that night -- nice, huh? :-) -- followed by a deep breath and the thought, "Alright, whatever, I'm going to try to leave this with You 'cause it's annoying the heck out of me and there is nothing I can do about it right at this moment anyway." So I fell asleep.

Next thing I know I'm waking up--always a joy I might add since I get up at "0-dark-thirty" every day, but the funny thing is that literally the very first coherent thought I had was, "I am your servant." Man! Clear as a bell, "I am your servant. How can I serve you?" As I struggled toward, you know, actual consciousness, slowly reconnecting fuzzy synapses and trying to de-addle my brain, the thought struck me: "I think I just heard from God!" (holy crap!)(woops, I think) (indeed, another stellar eloquent prayer moment for me :-) -- "I think He just answered my prayer"--which I hadn't really articulated but which sounded something like, "What am I supposed to do with this?"

So there it was, again, clear as a bell, "I am your servant. How can I be of use you?" And it occurred to me that that should be my attitude toward this person who imposed on me, who, when all was said and done, fundamentally, was simply asking for my help with something. Something annoying, I'll remind you, kind reader, something that I should've been well within my rights to blow off or get irritated at. 'Course, the very next thought I had was that that should also be my attitude toward God, especially since, oh yeah, I'd almost forgotten, I say that I'm a CHRISTian, a follower of, a disciple of, a student of, an emulator of God as manifested in Christ.

In Philippians 2:3-11 we are told that Jesus, even though He was God, took the form of a servant. It's always interesting (and not infrequently a little sobering) to see His selflessness in comparison to the Devil who aspired to be served and positioned even above God (Isaiah14:12-14). We 'become closer to God'--both in 'proximity' and 'appearance'--by serving others; we demonstrate what God is like by serving others.

Perhaps this is what is meant when we read that the peace- and joy-filled 'Kingdom of God' is entirely different from the tyrannical and upside-down 'Kingdom of Man' which we currently inhabit, and that Jesus really was talking sense when He said that we indeed have it up-side-down: "He who would be first must be the servant of all," a concept which He then proceeded to put teeth on by getting down on his hands and knees in front of His disciples (including the one that He knew was literally in the middle of the very act of betraying Him) and washing their dirty feet before The Last Supper. Now THAT's powerful! It's just not a power that we readily recognize, appreciate, or are entirely comfortable with--especially when you consider (lest we get too smug) that that story is about you and me.

There's a quote that has always struck me (though I can't remember where I read it first):

"Christianity has not been tried and found wanting.
It has been found difficult and not tried."

What would your world look like if you treated your fellow human beings the way that Jesus treated his disciples? Imagine all the petty fights and hurt feelings, all of the actual suffering that would be relieved, if we truly lived up to our name: Christian.

You've been prayed for today...

What You're For Or What You're Against?

Hey, Y'all,

This was supposed to go out last night but I guess there was some sort of network hiccup 'cause here it still is--odd. :-) Anyway, hope you had a relaxing weekend and have gotten started on another great week--even if a few of us are a little under the weather. I don't know where today's thought originated, but it did strike me enough to get it down on paper and think about it a bit...

Do you find it alarming, then, to think that Christians are often known for what we are against, rather than what we're for? What we are for, or rather what we ought to be for, is for the Good News of a love so "wide and long and high and deep" that it encompasses more than any of us could ever imagine (Check out Ephesians 3:16-21 for more on that concept).

Hmmm...so if you think about it, what we ought to be for, what we were in fact made for, is for love, and joy, and peace, and kindness, and... (check out Galatians 5:22-23).

So what are you for?

You've been prayed for today...

My Daily Bread, The Very Air I Breathe

Hey, Y'all,

Literally just rolled into town from San Luis Obispo (yes, Art, as advertised: it's indeed a little slice o' heaven; thanks for a great weekend, mi he'mano, I had a blast--and thanks of course Laaana and Stella-bella and LeLe, and Cushita and Alahn and Not-So-Little-Anymore-Olivia--it was great seeing you guys as well)(and hopefully I'll catch you next time, John and Jerin). BTW, crazy scenic train ride--easily 3/4 of it is coastline and vineyards/agriculture--so yeah, how great was my day (and my weekend? :-)

So among other things I was listening to on the way back--it was after all an 8-hour train ride (BTW, what exactly did we do before iPods?!? I must be getting old 'cause I distinctly remember taking cassettes on long trips)(yes, kids, there was something before that now-obsolete technology--CDs)(don't even get me started on 8-tracks and records :-)

ANYWAY, among other things, I heard this song, and the lyrics--which I've always appreciated--really struck me this time, so I listened to it again, carefully, and again, and yet again...must've been the air in SLO as well as the good company and good conversations (as well as the good stuff I'm reading on prayer--books by Yancey and Cymbala--RSTs will follow of course :-)

So for some reason it really struck me that prayer, this mystical, inexplicable thing I attempt with varying degrees of success, this odd communion--actual communication?--with the incomprehensibly-more-than-me God, is not only possible, but it is somehow critical to my growth as a person and as a man who is striving to live a better life. The words go something like this...

This is the air I breathe--
Your holy presence living in me

This is my daily bread--
Your very word, spoken to me

And I...I'm desperate for you
and I'm lost without you

This is the air I breathe
This is my daily bread

I'm desperate for you
I'm lost without you

You are my daily bread
You are the air I breathe...

My daily bread, the very air I breathe...would that it were actually so, Lord.

You've been prayed for today...

Love Is, Am I? (Follow-Up to 'Right Or Relevant')

Hey, Y'all,

Today's RST comes to us from my friend Corissa (thanks, Ninja!) and is a follow-up to the last one [emphases mine].

During the Labour Day weekend I was participating in a 50th annual event where thousands upon thousands of people walked the 5 mile expanse of bridge between upper and lower Michigan. After finishing the bridge walk, I was idling in a crowded car park along the main streets of a boutique town near the bridge and saw a huge banner across the trunk of a parked Camry that read, "ALL SINNERS WILL BE PUNISHED," and in tiny micro print: Psalms something.

See, now, that made me want to scream out, "Satan LOVES 'Christians' like you!!!"

And honestly, I think it's true. I don't think these people really understand the calling of the Great Commission. Being called to be servants of God is a calling with a pre-requisite of humility, piousness, pitifulness (in the fact that we are groveling sub-level in comparison to the glory of God), and love. Because God calls us to be servants to do His good work, and not "ambassadors" [in the hoity-toity sense] or "administrators," people need to realise that when we are doing [His] work, we have to approach others from a lower-than-they attitude, which means we do not point fingers or pre-judge, [but we do] acknowledge our own piteous nature, which, without God could not be purged and purified.

I don't think these people really understood that their message was neither right in the eyes of God, nor relevant in the way that it needs to be so that it truly reaches people instead of disgusting them...

Thanks, C--love your emphasis on humility and servanthood, a lower-than-you posture (as contrasted with self-satisfied pride, fingerpointing, and a holier-than-thou attitude). The former was after all Christ's lifelong object lesson--modeled perhaps most literally in the upper room--was it not? We allege that we are followers of God, even take His name (clearly in vain at times), but how well do we actually follow Him when we consider that God is Love, and Love is patient, and kind, and not proud nor rude nor self-seeking (check out 1 Corinthians 13 to get a feel for the actual measuring stick).

How much better of a testimony could we give, how much more likely would people be to listen to what God has done for us (which BTW is fundamentally the only Gospel we can talk about with any authority), if that was our posture?

You've been prayed for today...

Right Or Relevant?

Hey, Y'all,

Ran across this thought from MaxLucado.com which reminded me of something we talked about in church last week--that we ought not lord our fortunate position over people, that we are not called to be dogmatic rulers and judgmental fingerwaggers. We are chosen to be servants; we are saved for service.

"You are a chosen people. You are a kingdom of priests, God's holy nation, His very own possession. This is so you can show others the goodness of God." 1 Pet. 2:9 NLT [in the NIV it's: "You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light."] A priest represents God, and you, my friend, represent God. So "let every detail in your lives—words, actions, whatever—be done in the name of the Master, Jesus." Colossians 3:17 The Message [and in the NIV: "Whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father."]

Something to think about, huh? Is your religion about being right, or is it about being relevant?

You've been prayed for today...

Faith Is...

Hey, Y'all,

We were discussing this verse the other day (Hebrews 11:1) and it struck me again how rich even the "yeah, yeah, I've heard it a million times" texts are when you read them in several different versions.

In the NLT it goes like this:
"Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see."

You might recognize the NIV more readily:
"Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see."

But THIS is the one I remember from when I was a kid--still sounds good and still rings true:
"Faith is the substance of things hoped for,
the evidence of things not seen."

Now listen, I'm by no means advocating a wholesale return to the KJV, but there are certain passages that are just...elegant. "The substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." Yeah--faith is that.

You've been prayed for today...

Joyful, Patient, Faithful

Hey, Y'all,

Hope your Labor Day Weekend is enjoyable and relaxing. That last RST reminded me of a supporting quote from Max Lucado's book "God Came Near" (p.67):

"Faithful servants have a way of knowing answered prayer when they see it, and a way of not despairing when they don't."

Hmmm...Do I always get it? Nope. Do I always do this? Nope. But am I working on it? Yep. How 'bout you? Oh, and here's one last related thought, this one from Romans 12:12--

"Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer."
Words to live by, huh?

You've been prayed for today...