Encountering God

Thursday 12/17/2015 6:51 AM

Sometimes I am envious of Bible characters like Moses, Jacob, and others, who had personal, physical encounters with God. Moses had the burning bush and Mount Sinai and Jacob wrestled with God at the Jabbok river. Somehow I feel as if they had an unfair advantage in their walk with God because of their encounters. I have sensed God’s presence in my life on various occasions but when explaining it to others I never state outright, “I saw God today.” I use other phrases like, “I sensed God’s presence today,” so people do not think I’m entirely crazy. I also wonder if my experiences are real or if I am conjuring up things that are not real because of my emotional state at the time.

John Mogabgab writes about Jacob’s encounter with God at the Jabbok river. He writes, “…before he met God, Jacob sent his wives and servants and all his possessions to the other side of the river Jabbok. Jacob cleared an arena in which God would meet him ‘face-to-face,’ a place apart from the supportive relationships and material resources that sometimes mask our true self. Spiritual disciplines are like ground-clearing exercises aimed at providing room for God to confront us unmasked. The initiative for such a meeting always rests with God. Yet like Jacob, we can set aside our usual commitments and relationships for the sake of transforming encounters with God. The practice of such spiritual discipline truly prepares a way for the Lord.”

As I thought about that this morning I came to realize that my regular time of devotions each morning is my way of preparing a way for the Lord to meet with me. Over the years I have sensed his presence with me in the morning and he has provided direction and encouragement through my Bible reading, meditation, prayer, and meeting with my small group. I should not pooh-pooh those encounters, rather, I should acknowledge them for what they are, God’s personal meeting with me. I pray that I will continue to take time to make myself available to him.

A Blooming Crocus

Sunday 12/13/2015 5:15 AM

I saw another meteor as I ran early this morning. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised since tonight is supposed to be the peak of the Geminid meteor shower, the biggest meteor shower of the year. It reminds me of the meteors I saw a few weeks ago right before Thanksgiving, which sparked a thought in me about the brevity of life.

I sat down for my devotions and closed my eyes to relax and to pray for God to reveal himself during my time of meditation. I fell asleep in my chair and dreamed about a field of flowers in a desert. The flowers grew quickly and began to bloom. Then the blooms turned into a flame of fire that burned for a short time before exploding, spreading sparks, which were seeds of new plants that repeated the process. I slept for only a minute or two but the flower cycle in my dream repeated itself three times.

I woke and wondered what the dream meant. I thought about the brevity of life, inspired by the meteor I saw on my run. I also thought about how the Spirit of God manifested itself as a flame of fire resting upon the heads of the disciples of Jesus. I opened my devotional book and noted the theme for the new week; prepare the way of the Lord.

I began by reading Psalm 96:1-3, “Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth. Sing to the Lord, praise his name; proclaim his salvation day after day. Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous deeds among all peoples.” I am clearly called to sing the praise of God, to proclaim his salvation and glory, and to tell about his deeds to all people. My next assigned reading was Isaiah 35, which begins with these words, “The desert and parched land will be glad; the wilderness will rejoice and blossom. Like the crocus, it will burst into bloom; it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon; they will see the glory of the Lord, the splendor of our God.” If I sing the praise of God and declare his glory and his deeds among the nations then my life will be like a crocus bursting into bloom in the desert for all to see, just like in my dream.

Isaiah 35 doesn’t end with the blooming crocus. It goes on to describe the result of God’s coming into the lives of his people. The eyes of the blind are opened, the deaf will hear, the lame will leap like a deer and the mute will shout for joy. Water will gush in the desert and sand will become pools and springs that bring life. When the fire of the Spirit of God invades my life everything is changed, the world reversed. God works through his people to bring hope and restoration to a world that is dry and barren.

Rueben Job writes about this promise of God. “God’s promise seems no less preposterous today. Turn the values of this world upside down? Rich become weak; poor become strong? Each of us chosen to be God’s special witness to God’s promise of love and justice? It does seem like a preposterous promise, until we listen carefully to the Advent story, observe the life of Jesus, and listen to the Spirit’s voice today. But then we see that the promise is for us. The responsibility to tell the story is ours.” I want to be such a person; a crocus bursting into bloom in the desert so all will see the glory of God and will experience his transforming power.

Security in Chaos

Sunday 12/6/2015 7:17 AM

Earlier this week there was a terrorist attack in San Bernardino. A man and his wife dropped their six-month-old baby off at his parents’ house; proceeded to go to a holiday party, and killed fourteen of his coworkers, while injuring many more. Since this followed the shootings in Paris just a few short weeks ago there is renewed talk of security and gun control. At school we are reminded of our “active shooter” protocols, as if that will solve the problem and give us hope.

Ultimately all of the security measures we institute as a society, the gun control laws we enact, the safety protocols we adopt, the building codes we modify, and any other attempts we have will not provide the hope we have for security and peace in a world filled with sinful people and natural disasters. The only hope we have is addressed by the psalmist in Psalm 33:20-22, “We wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield. In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name. May your unfailing love be with us, Lord, even as we put our hope in you.”

My world may be running amok but God’s love is unfailing. God is with me in the middle of the chaos of my life, including that which is brought on by natural disasters, that which is perpetrated upon me by others, and that which I create myself. I pray that I can put my hope in God with the same confidence as that of the psalmist.

Pursued

Thursday 12/3/2015 3:58 AM

Today is the thirty-ninth anniversary of my first date with Jaci. Little did I know at that time the richness, fullness, and love that would result from that first evening together. The step we chose to take that first night has affected our lives in ways we never imagined and, looking back, I see the magnitude of the consequences of our decision to pursue that relationship. It makes me wonder what small decisions made today will have great consequence for the future. If I dwell on that thought too long it can paralyze me. It makes me afraid to do anything for fear of making a wrong decision with the accompanying negative consequences, which could last a lifetime.

My reading today included Jeremiah’s words in Lamentations 3:19-23, “I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall. I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me. Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” When I read those verses I realize that, although my choices do have consequences, God’s faithfulness and love are not compromised because of them. Even when I make choices that jeopardize my relationship with him, God pursues me in love to restore the relationship.

I can go through times of wandering away from God and wondering about the wisdom of the decisions that I make. The good news is that God doesn’t wander or wonder. He pursues me with an unquenchable love that never fails, regardless.