A Day in the Life

Day 214: Matthew 8

I'm amazed at what a day in the life of Jesus entails. He heals people. He asks people to follow him and give up their homes and possessions. He rebukes a storm and it stops. He talks about how there is a cost to following him. And this is only one chapter's worth of anecdotes! Jesus is busy. But he's not busy with the typical things that I busy myself with--work, household chores, family time, watching TV, playing on the computer, reading, exercising, and on and on. His day isn't full of time to himself or "me time" (although he does rest and pray on occasion, but even that, one could argue, is still focusing on others). He doesn't do selfish things during his day or spend time worrying and fretting, wondering how he can get it all done (like I do). No, he busies himself with people. He reaches out to people. He meets them where they're out. He shows compassion. He touches lives. He impacts people. He's out of his house--walking around town meeting people and doing things for them. Instead of staying away or spending time with his family, he's healing the sick and loving the sinners. Jesus spends his time on things that matter. His day is so much different than mine, but his example shows me what is truly important. So many of our concerns are really things that this world tells us is important--money, TV, working hard, success, education, etc. I'm not saying that it doesn't matter or that it's good to be ignorant, but I am saying that we should spend our time thinking and pondering how Jesus spent his day so that we can reflect more on how we are spending ours.

May you have some days in your life similar to the ones Jesus had in his.

Planning Our Own Course

Day 165: Jeremiah 10-16

Jeremiah 10:23-25. Hear the words of Jeremiah, the prophet:

"I know, Lord, that our lives are not our own. We are not able to plan our own course. So correct me, Lord, but please be gentle. Do not correct me in anger, for I would die."

This passage is interesting to me for a variety of reasons. The first sentence ("I know, Lord, that our lives are not our own.") speaks true to me. This life I have is a gift; the lives we all have are gifts--gifts from the Lord. He decides when we live and when we die, and he is in control, literally, of our lives.

The second sentence, however, doesn't ring quite so true to me. We are able to plan our own course. We decide where we live, what we do with our lives, how we raise our children. We decide whether we go to church and, if so, where we go. We decide how we treat people, what sins we commit, and how we love. We are in control of many aspects of our lives.

So, what else might Jeremiah be saying in this sentence? He could be talking about predestination. Many church faiths believe that God has called people--a select few--before the creation of the world, and that those few are already predestined to follow God. My religious faith does not believe this principle. We believe that anybody can become a child of God. Perhaps God already knows who will make the decision to follow Him, but he allows us to make this choice rather than pre-selecting it for us. I tend to agree with my church heritage because I believe in free will.

So what else could he be saying? If you look at it within the context of Israel--the people who was selected by God to be his people--then it seems that we could also read this passage from that of a people who are already committed to the Lord. For these people--people who want to live a life committed to the Lord--then many of the decisions are determined by God's words to us, his instructions on how we should live, how we should treat people, and how we can become more like Christ in our daily lives. When we look at that sentence through this lens, then we can read it differently. Our decision to become a Christian and our decision to commit to God should, theoretically, lead us to give our lives away. Less of self and more of thee. We no longer make our own decisions; instead, the decisions we make are shaped and formed by our decision to live a life for the Lord. Wow. How amazing is that!

And the last part, verse 24, is so human. Jeremiah says, "So correct me, Lord, but please be gentle. Do not correct me in anger, for I would die." Have you ever prayed a prayer like that? For God to be gentle and kind, rather than harsh and angry? Have you prayed for God to "correct you"? Perhaps we can see more about how kingdom life by reading these words. More about humanity. More about our Lord. More about ourselves and the plans we have for our lives.

Restoration and Renewal

Day 160: Isaiah 56-61

God is at a distance from the Israelites because of their behavior and disobedience to Him, but God also promises them that they will be redeemed. When Jesus comes, they will be restored. The Israelites will be close to him again because of God's great love.

This past month has been crazy. My children have been dealing with broken arms and allergic reactions. Parenting has been challenging for various reasons. My job has been extremely stressful. We have friends suffering with major illness. Yet, through all this craziness of life, God is there. He is our strength and deliverer. He is our protector. And in the end, he will win. He will restore us, and we will all be made whole.

Come, Lord Jesus. Come.

Restore our souls.

Renew our spirits.

Make us whole again.

Making Resolutions

Day 124: Psalm 101-104

Psalm 101 resonates with me because it is filled with promises that the writer makes to the Lord. Promises that he makes to himself. Resolutions, so to speak. The speaker tells the Lord (these are excerpts):

I will sing of your love and justice, Lord.
I will praise you with songs.
I will lead a life of integrity in my own home.
I will refuse to look at anything vile and vulgar.
I will reject perverse ideas and stay away from every evil.
I will not tolerate people who slander their neighbors.
I will not endure conceit and pride.
I will search for faithful people to be my companions.

And in Psalm 103:
With my whole heart, I will praise his holy name.
 Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me.

These psalmist writers make promises--commitments--to the Lord and to themselves. They promise the Lord how they will behave, how they will live, and what specificially they will do to live a life in accordance with God's will and His laws. They make written vows to themselves and to God. I think it's important for us, as Christians, to commit to live a life in accordance with God's will, too. Speaking these things--or writing them down--can help us remember how we are called to live. Right now we are in the season of New Year's Resolutions, and while I don't typically make them (they're too hard to maintain for long), I do think it's important to write down goals and guidelines for how we want to live our life. When we do, we are essentially making a vow to ourselves and to God. They can kind of function as a "rule of life" on our behavior, attitudes, and mindset. We even know when we break them because we know what they are. I encourage you to set some goals for yourself on how you want to live your life. I know that I'm going to do so.

Choices

Day 39: Deuteronomy 26 to 30

"See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. For I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in obedience to him, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the LORD your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess....This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the LORD your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the LORD is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob."
Deuteronomy 30:15-20

God gives us free will. He has shown us what the path he wants us to walk looks like and how we can walk that path in obedience to him, yet he allows us to choose whether or not we will take that path. And then he also outlines the results of our choices--blessings or cursings.

I like the part where Moses says, "Now choose life."

Choose life.

Choose life.