Living the Good Life

Good.

Do you look around your life and feel like you’re in a “good place”?  How do you define good? 

On a human level, we define good as a time when everything is going well.  Problems are few.  Provision is plenty.  Things are going as they should.

But that is human wisdom.  It’s deciding the standard of how we think life should be and then judging our circumstances as good or bad according to that standard.

“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.”  Jeremiah 29:11

I remember reading this verse as a junior higher and thinking, “Wow, my life is set!  God is only going to bring me good things – He won’t let anything harm me!”

That human wisdom goes well until something does come along that harms you.  A natural disaster destroys your home.  A friend destroys your reputation.  A burglar comes robs you of your possessions and sense of safety.

When we come face to face with adversity, we often question something very important:  the goodness of God. 

“God, how could You let this happen?  Why didn’t You come through?  You have abandoned me!”

Do tragedies make verses like Jeremiah 29:11 untrue?  How do we understand what is happening in our lives when evil seems to prevail and good seems hard to find?

If we take a look in the Bible, we will see how God defined good.  And some of it may be surprising.

God took just 6 days to create our beautiful planet with its millions of people, plants and animals, a delicate and intricate ecosystem and with beauty that speaks of who He really.  At the end of each of the 6 days He took to create this world, the Bible says,

“And God saw that it was good.” (Genesis 1)

I think we would all agree – our world is good!  Amazing!  What an incredible, creative God we serve!

But there are other things that God defined as good that we may be slow to agree are actually good. 

Joseph, who is given a really good dream by God about his future, incurs the jealous wrath of his brothers and is sold into slavery.  For years, he is imprisoned, is wrongfully accused and he suffers.

Years later, when Joseph has been raised to power by Pharoah, Joseph’s brothers come to him desperate for food, as the land was in a severe famine.  The brothers don’t know they are standing before Joseph, but you’d better believe he knows who they are.

When Joseph finally reveals himself to his brothers, this is what he says,” But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.”  (Genesis 50:20)

God’s good plan was to save many people from the horrific famine in the land.  But

            But good came through slavery and false accusations. 

OK.  Let’s read some more.

Isaiah was a prophet to the nation of Israel, speaking to them the words of God.  In Isaiah 53, he was prophesying about the coming of the Messiah:

“But it was the Lord’s good plan to crush him and cause him grief.  Yet when his life is made an offering for sin, he will have many descendants.  He will enjoy a long life,and the Lord’s good plan will prosper in his hands. When he sees all that is accomplished by his anguish, he will be satisfied.  And because of his experience, my righteous servant will make it possible for many to be counted righteous, for he will bear all their sins.”  Isaiah 53:10-11

God’s ultimate good plan was the gift of salvation for all men through Jesus!  For our good. 
         But good came through the violence of the cross. 

Here’s one more.

“But God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in his holiness. No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.”  Heb 12:10-11

God’s good plan is to have us share in His holiness. 

        But good comes through painful discipline.

I fear we are days where human wisdom prevails, even in the Church.  We hear a lot about pursuing your dreams, God wants to prosper you, God wants to give you success!  He only wants good things for you!

That is true.  God does want good things for us.  But good as defined by who?  Because if we rely on defining our lives by what WE determine is good, we may very well miss the good that almighty God wants to work in and through us.

The good work in Joseph’s life, through the pain of injustice, was to save millions of lives, including the nation of Israel, God’s own people.

The good plan of salvation, that cost Jesus His very life, saves us from an eternity apart from God.

The good plan for us to life holy lives, brought through painful discipline, brings the peaceful harvest of right living.

God has good plans for us – and He is using whatever painful and difficult circumstances we are in to bring about those purposes.  We may be exactly where we do not want to be – but that does not mean that God is not at work in our lives. 

Maybe you are reading this and you are just done.  Done with the pain, the injustice, the hurt.  Please, don’t give up.  Don’t give in to fear.  Don’t walk away from where you are at.  God can use the very painful place that you are at to bring great good - hope and healing to you and to others! 

 “Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.”  (Philippians 1:6)

That, my friends, is living the good life.

The Story's Not Over Yet. . .

So I had a blog all prepared to share with you today, and the Holy Spirit stopped me – He has something else to say, and I believe this is a word for someone reading this.

I was reminded of the story of Lazarus in John 11.  Lazarus, a close friend to Jesus, had become very ill, close to death.  His sisters, Mary and Martha, sent a message to Jesus saying, “Lord, behold, he whom you love is sick” (John 11:3)

“Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.  So when He heard that he was sick, He stayed two more days in the place where He was” (John 11:5-6).

Um…that doesn’t’ really make sense, does it?  It’s clear that Jesus loved this family.  And so His prompt response to their request. . .is to wait another couple of days before He goes to their house.   That doesn’t sound like Jesus responding with care to someone He clearly loved dearly, does it?

When Jesus finally comes, Mary is at her brother’s tomb crying.  She is completely heartbroken.  Her first words to Him – and I can hear the emotion, even the accusing tone in her words, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died (v. 32).

Jesus could have come right away and saved Lazarus’ life.  He could have but spoken a word and Lazarus would’ve been healed.  Why did Jesus wait to go to this friend that he loved?

He waited for one reason – He was about to show the glory of God.  If you go back to verse 15, Jesus says, “And I am glad for your sakes that I was not here, that you may believe.”  Jesus knew He was going to show up on the scene and work a miracle – Lazarus would not be dead for long.  The glories of heaven were about to intersect the brokenness of earth!

But do you know what I find even more amazing than this miracle of raising a dead man to life?  The fact that Jesus, who had purposefully stayed away, who knew He was going to work a  miracle that would bring overwhelming joy to this family, cared for the hurt these sisters were experiencing in the meantime.  The shortest verse in the Bible is, in fact, the verse that cries the loudest with His love.  John 11:35 simply says, “Jesus wept.”  He saw Mary and Martha’s pain, the hurt of the friends and family who had gathered, and He cried with them.

Our God, who knows the beautiful purposes of resurrected life He is working in us, cares deeply about our hurt.  He cries when we cry, He hurts when we hurt, He cares when we don’t understand why He stays away, even when we’ve asked Him to come.

Friends, I know that there are those of you, like us, who are facing intense times of pain and loss.  The grieving is thick.  The answers are few.  We feel like Mary felt – if Jesus had just come earlier, things wouldn’t be as they are.  We wouldn’t be facing death in our relationships, finances, circumstances. 

We want to encourage you to “have it out” with God.  Say to Him the things you may have tried to hold in – the accusations you may feel, the hurt you may have toward Him for not coming sooner and intervening in your situation.  Jesus doesn’t rebuke Mary for her accusation.  He feels her hurt with her and weeps with these people who have lost a beloved brother and friend.

Let’s be honest – we have all tried to muster up faith and hope on our own.  It will last about as long as the rest of the day or until the next trial hits.  That’s not what God wants for us.

Instead, we must linger in the presence of Jesus.  He will bring comfort to us.  Isaiah 53 reminds us that Jesus was a “man of sorrows, acquainted with grief”.  He gets it and wants to speak to your heart.  He will give us faith and renewed hope that is born out of our time spent with Him, not something we conjure up in our own emotion.

And the promise that we must cling to is that Jesus comes to bring resurrected life to our dead places.  Just as He did for Lazarus, He will do for us today.  We cannot allow the circumstances that we see to have the final word.  Lazarus did die – that actually happened.  That was the reality of the story.  But it was not the end of the story.  And death and loss are not the end of our stories, either.  The story's not over yet. . .

Delayed Promises

Delayed Promises

I was 17 years old when I heard the call of God in a powerful way.  I knew that the Lord was asking me to commit my life to His service. Excitement gripped me. Passion filled my heart. My every decision was being measured by this new “call” to impact the world for Christ. My mind swirled with the endless possibilities of how this impact would be realized. Maybe as a writer or an author of a best-selling book. Possibly as a teacher or educator who dramatically shapes the next generation. Surely as a pastor of a large congregation that touches an entire community. What I did know, is that my dreams were large and this call was going to make a difference.  After all, I had been called by the Lord.

That was almost 20 years ago and things have not worked out like I thought or dreamed they would. In many ways I’m still waiting for the dream/promise to be fulfilled. Now questions fill my mind and doubt has entered into my heart. Did I hear the Lord correctly? Have I missed a key step along the path? Did I do something wrong? Has the Lord forgotten me?  Since the Lord is faithful and His words are never void this delay must clearly be a problem on my end, right?

I am sure that Abraham must have felt the same way. We are introduced to his story in Genesis 15 with the promise of a great reward and descendants as numerous as the stars. The problem?  Abraham is roughly 76 years old and has no son of his own.

Abraham hears this promise and is excited and instantly believes (Gen. 15:6). I am sure he runs home and tells his wife of this amazing conversation with God Himself. I am sure his heart is burning within him as he shares the news with his beloved that the thing they have been waiting for their entire life will soon come to fulfillment. Or will it?

Genesis 15 ends with Abraham having this amazing conversation with God.  But problems have already begun in the very next chapter. “Now Sarai, Abram’s wife had borne him no children.” (Gen. 16:1).

How can this be? Didn’t we just read about God solving the bareness problem by promising this couple a child? They had been living in the land of Canaan for 10 years, waiting for the promise to happen. They feel that they have waited long enough!  Their humanity intervenes and they develop a plan to “help” the Lord fulfill His promise. Sarah has Abraham conceive a son with her Egyptian maidservant, Hagar.   

Ever tried to “help God out”?  That never goes well.  We have a tendency to take what the Lord has spoken to us and choose to interpret when and how it will come into being. Sarah had decided that 10 years of waiting was long enough and she took matters into her own hands. I know that I have done the same thing in my own life. Looked long and hard at a situation and then attempted to manipulate it into a more favorable one through the help of my own intervention.

It would be another 14 years before Abraham and Sarah receive another word that they will have a son by the next year.  Abraham’s faith was wavering.  “Will a child be born to a man 100 years old? And will Sarah, who is 90 years old, bear a child.” (Gen. 17:17). But what amazes me is that despite the doubt that lingered in his heart, Abraham does not hesitate to obey when God then directs him to establish the covenant of circumcision. (Gen. 17:23).  Though he was weary from waiting and struggling with doubt, Abraham still chooses obedience to God.

Abraham was 76 years old when he God promised him a son. He was 86 years old when he and Sarah had decided to “help” God bring this birth about with Hagar. And he is 100 years old when the actual fulfillment of the promise occurs with the birth of Isaac! 24 years of waiting for the “call” to be fulfilled. 24 years of doubts and concerns as to whether they heard Him correctly. 24 years of expectations falling by the wayside.

What was so surprising to me about this story was the delay in God’s fulfillment of the promise. I don’t know about you, but I struggle with expectations that create a wonderful and convenient timetable for fulfilling God’s promises to us. However, God does not seem to be getting the memo.

As I re-read this story of Abraham and Sarah I found a tremendous amount of encouragement and peace. God’s “call” on their lives was true. His fulfillment did happen. And they did correctly hear what He had called them to all those years before. However, there was a timing issue that was absolutely critical to its fulfillment.  God is a God of the journey and not just the destination. Who Abraham and Sarah are at the birth of Isaac is not who they were 24 years earlier. They have been shaped by circumstances and situations that directly prepared them for this time and this place. They have faith and act on their obedience, even when they do not see the answers. 

I must trust and believe that God is doing the same thing in my life. Although there seems to be delay, I choose to see the shaping and molding that is making us ready for the day when the fulfillment will come to absolute fruition!  

"As for you, follow Me."

As our blog unfolds, we will share the specifics of the journey God has had us on, but we wanted to share a brief overview of what the past 17 years of marriage and life have looked like for us.

We were married at just 19 and 20 years old - ready to take on the world and fulfill the call God has on us for ministry.  We both graduated from Christian colleges with degrees in pastoral care and biblical studies.  We fully expected to launch into a life of full-time ministry, serving as pastors at a church.

Funny thing about expectations:  they rarely play out like you think they will.  

Our lives have looked nothing like we ever dreamed they would.  Though we have both been licensed pastors for many years, only Jen has been on staff at a church as a pastor.

We have had many highs in our journey together.  We are truly best friends and adore and love each other deeply.

We have two beautiful daughters, Meagan and Kelsey, who bring such joy to us.

We have deep and fulfilling relationships with both family and friends, that have helped sustain and guide us through our lives.

But we - like many of you - have also faced intense hardships. Our first pregnancy ended in a miscarriage.  Jen's mom passed away after a 2 year battle with cancer in 2003.  We have faced two bouts of unemployment, one for 6 months, one that we're still in.  We have experienced the loss of relationships.  We have struggled financially.  And we still have not seen fulfilled the promises that God has given us about the call to ministry that He has on our lives.

Sometimes we've looked around and wondered how we got here.  Our friends are living fulfilling lives.  Thriving in their callings and occupations.  Buying homes and enjoying all of their parents in their old age.  Purchasing new cars, trips and extras that are far outside our reach right now.

But there is a passage in John 21 that has defined our journey.  Jesus has appeared to the disciples again after His Resurrection.  He has this conversation with Peter:

“I tell you the truth, when you were young, you were able to do as you liked; you dressed yourself and went wherever you wanted to go. But when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and others will dress you and take you where you don’t want to go.” Jesus said this to let him know by what kind of death he would glorify God. Then Jesus told him,“Follow me.”

Peter turned around and saw behind them the disciple Jesus loved—the one who had leaned over to Jesus during supper and asked, “Lord, who will betray you?”  Peter asked Jesus, “What about him, Lord?”

 Jesus replied, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? As for you, follow me.” 

In the beginning of this passage, Peter is hearing some pretty heavy news from Jesus.  Jesus is telling Peter that he is going to die.

Let's stop right there for a second.  

Many of us would say that we're excited about God's plan for our lives.  But if Jesus looked you in the eye and told you that you were going to die. . .how would you feel?

We would probably do what Peter did.  He looked around and saw someone he KNEW Jesus cared about.  (After all, John was called the disciple Jesus loved - that's a pretty nice title).  "Alright Jesus, what about John?  If I have to die, doesn't he have to die, too?"

"[Jesus] only said, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?”"

Oh boy.  Peter, we so understand how you feel, man.

In our journey, there have been so many times that we have looked around at the death we have experienced.  The death of dreams, the death of loved ones, the death of relationships.  And then we look around at what God has given to others.  What He's allowed them to have, the success and favor they seem to walk in.  

We have questioned God.  We have cried out to God in faith for fulfillment. We have sought to walk in repentance for areas of sin.  And yet our season has looked very dark for a long time.

I just imagine Jesus looking at Peter.  Putting his first two fingers up to His eyes, then pointing at Peter's eyes.  "Hey, big guy, eyes up here.  What is that to you if John lives until I return?  You follow Me."

We have had that moment with Jesus.  Where He asked us to take our eyes off everyone and everything around us to look only at Him.  To follow where He is leading us.

If you go back to where Jesus was telling Peter he was going to die, it says, "Jesus said this to let him know by what kind of death he would glorify God."

Could it be that in the death of our own plans and dreams; the death to ourselves, the crucifying of our flesh. . .that Jesus has intended for us to bring glory - not to ourselves - but to God?  

It may seem easy to read this and say "Of course it's for our lives to bring glory to God!"  But when you're living the pain of death and loss every day, that answer seems harder to come by. . .