Where God Dwells

Before Christ came, God's presence filled the temple in a special way - it was a set apart place in which His glory dwelt. I know that Christ is the fulfillment of everything the tabernacle represented, that the curtain separating man from the Holy of Holies was torn in two at His death. I know that now God dwells fully within the believer, that we, as Christians, are His dwelling place.

But still...I think there is something special about a place set apart for the proclamation of the Word, for worship and fellowship. I took this picture in a chapel one afternoon - just sitting, praying, being near my Heavenly Father.

pre-dawn peace

Last night, before going to sleep, I did a radical thing. I set my alarm clock for five-thirty. I debated back and forth for a few minutes - lack of sleep, see the sunrise versus being rested and missing it.

The sunrise won.

Surprisingly, I didn't even need the alarm this morning. At twenty after five I woke up and was ready to begin a new day. (Did you wake me, Lord? Perhaps You've desired that extra time with me as I have with You?)

I pulled on my runners and slipped outside to find the world a different place than the hot, bustling mornings I've experienced recently on my way out the door to work. Moist, cool air, the shadowed neighborhood in perfect silence save the triumphant chorus coming from the patch of woods to the side of our yard - birds, no doubt put in service by their Creator to usher in the dawn.

Somewhere between the half hour journey from the front step and back again, from shadows to the glowing colors of dawn, my heart was stilled. There is something essential about breaking out of the ordinary, stepping outside the busyness of life to gain fresh perspective.

Depending on our season of life and opportunity, these break-away times may look different.

For me, this morning, it was waking up early to breathe in the beauty of my Father's world. To enjoy His voice in the silence, speaking through the wonder of creation, speaking forth His lovingkindness in giving yet another day.

Turns out, that was more restful than an extra hour of sleep.

right motives

Thinking about the disciplines of Bible study and meditation and memorization...of reading good Christian books and working through doctrine and theology...

May I never do these things for the wrong reasons, Father...to be seen as a knowledgable, spiritual person...to gain approval or praise for myself...to win debates, to feed my own pride or selfish ambition...God forbid.

Rather, may my heart's desire be to glorify You - to know and love You more, to become more like You, to point others to You to do the same.

Covered

The second I open my eyes, I know I'll get up, resisting the pull to stay nestled in my warm bed. The first day of a new year always fills me with anticipation, like waking up on Christmas morning as a child.

A new year. In my mind, I am standing on the brink of a new adventure, about to forge forward into the unknown. Anything could await. Trees wind over the trail, blocking my view from what lies ahead. But this morning I begin the walk.

I am still groggy from a late night and not nearly enough sleep, but for now, some moments of stillness are needed more than a good cup of coffee. I cross the hall to my little brothers' empty room (they're downstairs?) and steal a spot on the end of a bed where I can see right out the window into a snow-globe world.

Snow falls heavy and wet from a softly lit sky, almost in slow-motion. Trees are covered, slim branches leaning from the weight of it. So peaceful. I think about this past year, and pray.

"Father, I want to be so much more for you..."

My heart shrinks back and I feel the weight of all that I am not, all the ways I constantly fail. Fail to do what He has called me to do, to see with the right perspective, to live with purpose and discipline and love. To be faithful. Discouragement begins to settle over me.

I open my eyes and look at the sky. Snow falling, covering the world below. A nudge in my spirit halts the discouraging thoughts streaming through my mind. The snow reminds me of the covering I have in Christ. I linger in this old truth made new again and slowly, joy sweeps in.

Thank you Lord.

I confess my sin, but then I look away from it. No more guilt. I stand before God, because of grace, clothed in the perfect righteousness of Christ. He knows my failures, but He doesn't hold them against me. I am perfectly loved, and He is perfectly willing to help me stand and move forward. I am in His grip.

No better way than that to start a new year.

Pastor Envy

I'm so grateful for the wealth of free sermons and conference messages available online these days. On a good week, my MP3 player holds hours of these to be listened to while I'm at work or driving. I've grown familiar with the teaching style and voices of certain pastors - MacArthur, Piper, Mahaney, Harris, to name a few. I am always challenged to understand more about God, to live a more faithful Christian life when I hear these men proclaiming the Word.

That's a good thing. But.

Over the past while, I've recognized a growing discontent when I'm sitting in church Sunday morning, listening to my own pastor. He is faithful to God's Word, he preaches the truth with love and concern. But, I sometimes think - I wish he preached with John Piper's passion. He doesn't go as deep into Scripture as John MacArthur. If only...

I've sensed that my Sunday-morning thoughts and attitudes were not right in some sense, and when I came across a post on Tim Challies blog that confronted this very issue, I was convicted. Challies notes,

Christians today have access (via the Internet, of course) to vast libraries of the best sermons by the best preachers... They are men who are extraordinarily gifted by God and who have been faithful to use their gifts for his glory...

The fact is, God has put us in churches with less-than-perfect and often less-than-brilliant pastors. The fact that there are extraordinary preachers tells us that there must be vast numbers of perfectly ordinary pastors. This means that most of us have been blessed by God with a very ordinary kind of pastor...

These men, these ordinary pastors, are the ones to whom we owe our loyalty. They are the ones to whom Paul refers when he tells the church at Thessalonica “to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work.” These are the men God has given to serve you and to labor as pastors before you. It is through these men that God means to specially bless you in that unique body called the local church...

(Read Challies entire post here)

Like Challies, I agree that having access to great teaching online is a good thing. I'll continue to download and listen and benefit from the ministry of "extraordinary pastors". But at the same time, I want to be especially grateful for the unique pastor that God has placed in the church I attend.

From His Hands

The words came to my mind as I was putting badminton rackets away in the shed behind our house this evening. The smell of hay and old wood and tools, and the wind brushing my face as I turned and stepped outside again, long shadows from the setting sun sweeping over the lawn -

In everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

It was a like a whisper in my spirit; I had to stop and stand in the damp grass and look up at the sky.

In everything give thanks. In everything give thanks.

Suddenly all the little things from this evening seemed especially from the hands of my caring heavenly Father.

- Barbecued hamburgers and potato salad for supper.

- A June evening beautiful beyond description.

- Working in the yard with my mom and sister; deep purple irises stretching their heads to heaven, dripping with water from my tin watering can.

- Being chased by a little brother and sprayed with water.

- Throwing Frisbees.

- Playing badminton with brothers until my muscles burn - running across a shady lawn and laughing at their stunts.

- Taking a long walk towards the setting sun with my MP3 player and this music...

Ordinary, simple things, but I'm seeing tonight that they are really good gifts, given by the Lord. All undeserved. So often, I take little things for granted. I don't stop and offer thanks for them as I should. Instead, I focus on the things I want changed - problems or pain in my life and in the lives of those I love....but you know what? I saw my Lord's gracious care for me in little things tonight, and I know He is faithful in the big things also. He's the God who acts in behalf of the one who waits for Him, and while we wait, we can enjoy His goodness.

His nearness my good.

The hush of evening settles around my quiet room, and I find myself doing nothing but sitting, arms clasped around my knees, watching the gentle flicker of candlelight across the walls. Simplicity. The coolness of the starry night breezes softly through my opened window. It is so peaceful that my thoughts seem to echo aloud in the silence. I think of the Lord, of who He is. What He is teaching me, what I'm learning, what I'm so slow and ignorant to learn. I feel His presence, the unmistakable fullness that calms and strengthens and looks straight into my soul. Nothing is hidden from Him. The all-wise, all-caring God.
His nearness is my good.

I took a walk tonight into the cool spring dusk - down along fields and farmland, watching the sun set in a deep pink and orange sky. There's a beautiful grave yard not far from my house; I love to go there and think. (It's not morbid, I promise!) It always amazes me how grateful and renewed I feel after a while spent wandering along the pathways and reading the inscriptions on the headstones. Grateful for life. Renewed in perspective.

I wondered how many believers were buried beneath the ground I walked on. I wondered what advice for living they might offer me if they could look down from heaven and see me pause, face turned towards the emerging stars.

God is so good to love us, to give us a place in this whole history of humanity. Time is so precious.

How will we spend it?

Thoughts on Rain

The rain falls in torrents outside my window this morning, and the sun is barely visible behind the deep grey of the sky. I have always loved the rain, though. To me, it's melodic and calming and peaceful, all at once.
Yes, the sky is dark, but there's the promise of a gleaming, rain washed world when the last drops fall and the sun comes out again.
Pausing to look out the window, I was reminded of a favorite verse found in Hosea 6:3...

"So let us know, let us press on to know the Lord.
His going forth is as certain as the dawn;
And He will come to us like the rain,
Like the spring rain watering the earth."

What a picture of refreshment. Refreshment that can only be found in the Lord.
In a world that promises everything but only leaves us dry and longing for more, I'm so thankful for the One who told us, "he who believes in Me will never thirst."