Want to do Good

"So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me."  

Romans 7:21

Do I REALLY want to do good?  Yes!  And... no.  Paul dialogues the inner struggle so well!  Like him, my heart is corrupt.  And down deep, I think we'd all rather be God than be good.  That's sort of the Garden of Eden dilemma, isn't it?


Thanks be to You, God, that you rescue me in this continual struggle.  Give me the power to both want and do your will moment by moment!

Teach New Disciples

"Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given to you."

Matthew 28:20

That seems easy.  If I just tell young believers the principles in Your Word , they'll do it, right?  Not so much...  Teaching and telling are not synonyms.  And simple commands often contain hidden levels of complexity.


"Put on your shoes!"  Lord - it's something I tell my kids every day.  You'd think it was a no-brainer command.  However, that is not the case.   What's involved?  First, the kid has to FIND the shoes.  No, no - first, the kid has to be WILLING to find the shoes now instead of continuing in his present course.  So, when the child hears a command like that from me, in his heart he has to say something like, "OK, because Mom told me  and I love her, I'll be glad to do it.  I'll  make her agenda my priority now." 


First he has to be willing.  Second, he must recognize the unspoken subcommand - he has to find the shoes.  Compliance comes more easily when he has established routines.  My kid has to have the  habit of putting his shoes away in a certain spot if he wants to be ready obey the command that he knows will come at some point in the day.  


Lastly, the kid's got to follow through; actually get the shoes on his feet.  He can't be distracted by the marbles on his closet floor, or by the telephone ringing.  He has to be on it!


People need practice at obeying even simple commands.  Telling isn't enough; teaching involves one person giving practice and patiently correcting problems, and the other person offering a willing heart and immediate action.   Teaching involves time.  Teaching a new disciple is an investment.   Lord, I  am willing.  Show me new routines to establish in my daily life that will put me in a position to obey at the drop of a hat. Help me to follow through, because your commands are my priority.   Lord, renew my dedication to teaching the younger disciples in my life.  

Do As Jesus Did

"For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did."

John 13:15

Lord Jesus, You spoke these words to your disciples right after you washed their feet.  You came to serve;  You came to love your own to the fullest extent.  And You called them (and by extension, me) to do as You did.  Washing feet is humble work, especially for a teacher who washes the feet of his rather dense students.  Yet in this case, astoundingly, You also washed the feet of one student whom You knew to be plotting your demise AND one student whom You knew would deny You.  


The love you call your disciples to imitate is not always  warm & fuzzy love.  It's self-sacrificial and demanding. In this humble service, you loved your disciples in a peculiar and particular way that provoked consternation, questions, and thought.    You even asked them, "Do you know what I have done to you?"  In other words, 'Why do you think the Son of God would perform this lowly task?'   Maybe your act seemed reckless or foolish... prodigal even...  Certainly it was baffling, and the disciples gave no answer at the time. 


I think I know what you did to them.  You gave an example of loving and serving with grace and without pride.  The disciples didn't deserve your service.  You loved them despite their lowly position, despite their impending betrayals and denials.  You loved them fully, no holding back.  You love me fully, no reservations; not because I deserve it, but because of your astonishing grace.


Lord Jesus, empower me to love and serve others profoundly, not looking to reward those who deserve it; but rather seeking to imitate and be a conduit of your love and grace so that others would know You.

Have No Other Gods

“ You shall have no other gods before Me."

Exodus 20:3

Lord, You're not some cosmic kill-joy.  No.  When you issue commands you've got good in mind, not drudgery.  Actually, you've got BEST in mind.  Some of the things that get between me & You are good: family, exercise, cooking, work, reading, music, etc.  But they're really not even close to best.  You are best.    "Sin is not just the doing of bad things, but the making of good things into ultimate things."*

I confess that I make good things into the ultimate thing. Often my appetite for Your good gifts overshadows my love for You, the Giver.  But I was made to love You and build my whole life on You - not on work, education, talents,  kids, home, hobbies, vacations, or friends.  You.  Peerless.  You.

Forgive me and please continue to reveal Yourself to me.  Show me how to live this command day by day.

* Timothy Keller p.168 Reason for God

Ask in Prayer

'All the things you ask in prayer, believing,  you will receive.'

Matt 21:22

It's not fashionable to ask for things, even in prayer, Lord.  I was taught several formulas for prayer (like ACTS: Acclamation, Thanksgiving, Confession, Supplication) that stress praise & minimize requests.    These formulas are valid - I see them modeled in the Psalms and in the Lord's Prayer. 


But, here's the thing - You teach me to ask, and even to be persistent as I pray. I sometimes resist, in my foolish pride, because I hate to acknowledge my need. I want to take care of the 'little things' on my own without 'bothering' You. Yet James tells me that 'you do not have because you do not ask'.  Paul says to make requests with thanksgiving when I'm anxious.  And Jesus, in the book of Matthew, You promise that 'all things you ask in prayer, believing,  you will receive.'  


So... why don't I ask more?  Asking implies change.  Asking takes focus. Asking takes time.  Asking takes humility.    Asking takes believing.  Ahh.  There's some inertia to be overcome.  I resist change; even good change!


Lord Jesus, thankfully, you provide the faith to believe. (Ephesians 2:8,9)  That's the hinge on which this whole prayer-thing turns.  For my part, I must take the time to focus AND yield to my humble position as a petitioner approaching Your throne of grace.  Lord in Your mercy, hear my prayer.

Don't Lose Heart

"We do not lose heart.  Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day."

2 Cor 4:16

Why do we not lose heart, Lord?  Why should I continue to hope in the face of pressing,  perplexing need and sadness?   What keeps the Apostle Paul from despair when he's persecuted and struck down?  Why should I keep believing I can succeed? 


I guess the answer's in the verse: 'inwardly we are being renewed day by day.' It's true. Because the verb is passive - 'are being renewed' -  the grammar begs the question: who is doing the renewing?  You, of course, Lord God, are the active one here.  You are the Renewer. Despair has no claim on a believer's heart.  You equip me with your spiritual armor so that my mind and heart ever cling to the hope that is in You. 'We do not lose heart' because You are acting in our lives day by day.  

Be Faithful with Money

"He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much...if you haven't been faithful in the use of unrighteous mammon*, who will entrust the true riches to you? 

Luke 16:10,11

So here's the thing... In this chapter, Jesus tells the story of the dishonest manager and the 'very little thing' Jesus refers to is MONEY. 

This is revolutionary!  Already, Lord,  I suspect that my priorities are not your priorities, because to me money is not a 'very little thing'.  "Well, alright," You might be saying to Yourself,  "Since Jane views money as a big deal thing, she's surely faithful in it.  Right?"  Uh oh, again. 

There's a constant struggle going on in me about money.  I'm not a total slacker  in the financial stewardship realm, and I am faithful in a general sort of way:  tithing, giving, spending carefully, no debt, etc.   Yet, though I'm often openhanded, I'd often rather be tightfisted.  I get nervous - will there be enough?  I go back and forth between freedom and fear. Generosity and greed. Yet  this whole discussion misses the point.  Everything I have is your property  anyway, Heavenly Father, to be used as You direct.

 Holy Spirit fill me so full of confidence in Your provision that I recognize that money truly is 'a very little thing' which can't be compared to 'true riches'. Then I'll be released from the grip of fear and lean toward obedience remembering that  You entrust us with things expecting us  to serve you with them.   

Your real point here seems to be that stewarding money isn't the end-goal. It's a baby step along the way toward becoming a steward of your grace.  So the question I ask is the same as that of the manager, "What shall I do?"  Your answer is, "Better late than never!"  

OK, Lord.  The time to make good use of my material possessions and money in this world is now. And my ambition is that the investment I make now in this physical world for your kingdom will provide me a grand welcome in the heavenly world in the future. Is this line of thought theologically sound, Lord? It almost feels greedy to hope for reward, yet You seem to commend this way of thinking... Hmm.

*mammon = money and material possessions