tidbits.of.eternity

Imperfection

kedoran — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 17:21:00 -0400

Do you ever have those times in life where you realize the depths of your sin?

I try to be perfect. To my core, I make excuses and hope that people understand “where I’m coming from,” so that they know that whatever I said or did wasn’t a mistake. I was well intentioned. Good intentions, however, are irrelevant when it comes to blatant disobedience.

I am not perfect. In trying to be, I’m missing out on seeing God’s grace and the purpose of Jesus’ resurrection.

Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me,“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. (2 Corinthians 12:8-9)

How sweet the sound that saves

kedoran — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 16:14:00 -0400

Grace: The exercise of love, kindness, mercy, favor; a state of acceptance with God.

I can discipline myself to get into the Word. That doesn’t mean God will speak to me. I could tear apart a verse or a passage and walk away with knowledge, or I could go three weeks without a purposed quiet time and still be surprised when God shows up.

I thought, “God, I’ll just do quiet time before my exam tonight.”

Then he said, “You can’t earn me.”

Wow. That’s powerful. So… you don’t want me to spend time with you?

That wasn’t it, either.

The point is that I can’t earn God’s love. God works, speaks, uses and loves me no matter my “input.”

Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (Hebrews 4:16)

The gospel of Jonah

kedoran — Fri, 16 Nov 2012 16:27:00 -0500

Jonah is not typically a book to which pastors jump when mulling over “The Good News.” I think I’ve read it over & over, and I’ve missed the point every time.

If anything mirrors the gospel in the Old Testament, it’s Jonah.

PART I

Chapter 1: God calls Jonah to prophesy over Ninevah. He runs— no, sails— in the other direction, to Tarshish (v. 1-3, ESV).

This is what we call straight-up disobedience. And this is where God’s freakin’ cool.

He sends a storm. The men on board Jonah’s ship scramble to control the boat amidst this “tempest,” each crying out to his god and each failing (v. 4, 5). The captain gets the sleeping (cough, lazy) Jonah from beneath the deck, & after casting lots, the men realize that he’s the reason for the storm (v. 6-9). These were good men, because even after Jonah instructs them to throw him overboard, they still try to row back to shore without giving him up to the waters (v. 12,13).

They finally relent and toss Jonah overboard, but not without a disclaimer:

“O Lord, let us not perish for this man’s life, and lay not on us innocent blood, for you, O Lord, have done as it pleased you.” (v. 14)

The cool part: After reluctantly tossing Jonah, the sailors “were awestruck by the Lord’s great power, and they offered him a sacrifice and vowed to serve him.” (v. 16, NLT)

The Lord took Jonah’s blatant act of disobedience, fleeing from the very God he served, and used it to show his power to lost sailors, men who served gods that couldn’t answer their prayers. They not only were amazed by the Lord, but they committed their lives to him.

PART II

Jonah didn’t die, by the way. The Lord appointed a fish to swallow him for a few days. Let’s just say he had a change of heart (v. 17; Chapter 2).

Chapter 3: Jonah finally goes to Ninevah, calling out the exact word the Lord gave him. The people of the city repent (v. 3-10). He has a pity party: a people doing perverse things changed their ways, but Jonah’s own hadn’t listened to him.

Chapter 4: While Jonah’s reaction (insert sigh here) is for his countrymen, he misses the point: God’s grace at that moment was for a people that hadn’t deserved it (v. 1-11). His own people hadn’t listened, perhaps in pride (the reason’s not given in this book), but the people of Ninevah heard and repented. They not only came to the Lord, they turned their gaze from their “evil” ways & toward the Lord (v. 8).

The big picture

God’s the same in Jonah as he is in Matthew, Mark, Luke & John. He saves people. This is the story of Christ. It doesn’t matter where you come from, whether you’re the humble sailor who’s hesitant to do anything that could harm another, or someone who has done or thought things that are against people & (worse) against the Lord.

God’s grace is for all, & he’ll fight for you. Jesus went to the cross as a man without sin, a man in direct connection with the Lord. For the first time, that connection was lost when he took our sins. The triune God literally disconnected from Himself for a moment. How painful must that have been?

The Lord is in your life. You were made for a special purpose, and he wants to bless you. Have you seen Him?

Redemptive dating

kedoran — Fri, 21 Sep 2012 00:33:00 -0400

It’s amazing to me how God often speaks to us through emotions.

He makes it known that something is right where it should be or that the situation feels just off. He gives us signs, such as total peace to enter a relationship and total unrest to leave it behind. We can’t explain it, but we hear our ‘gut.’

It’s the living God inside.

Obedience isn’t one-sided. When we listen and act, God uses the situation to redeem both parties. His blessings reveal lies, redeem mistakes, heal old wounds and foster new beginnings, even in romantic relationships.

I’ve recently learned this and realized something: dating isn’t always for the purpose of marriage (like I previously thought). Romantic, family and friend relationships are often in His plan of healing, edifying or uplifting the Church. While we may make rules about dating, God doesn’t stick to our plan, and whether we know the reason for such relationships doesn’t matter. What’s more important is that we pay attention, whether it’s in a relationship, at work, at the food store, on the plane.

Are you listening? But even so, are you obeying?

A Selfish God

kedoran — Wed, 30 May 2012 10:26:00 -0400

God created us in his image, which is why we desire to bring all things to ourselves. But here is the key difference:

When God is selfish, it’s for the good of all and the blessing of the individual. But when we are “selfish,” there becomes chaos, a lack of peace, childish and immature want, pain.

That is the result of a perfect image perverted.

“Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will exalt you.” (James 4:10)