LIVING IN THE SHADOWS

                If I am honest with myself, I spend too much time living in the shadows. One of the greatest fears that many of us have is being exposed. There are parts of our lives that we do not want to be made public for any reason. We do not like to feel vulnerable. For all of the talk today of living a transparent life, few of us actually do. There is a part of our lives that we intentionally leave in the shadows. John Eldridge has said that there is a question that plagues every man. “Am I good enough?” “Do I measure up?” Many of us spend our lives trying to prove ourselves, which usually means we hide our faults and our vulnerabilities.

                One of the most well-known chapters in the Bible is John 3. We are quick to embrace verses 16-17. "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”  We are not so quick to move on to verses 19-21. “This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God." If we do venture into these verses, we usually use them as a spotlight on those people out there, and not as a mirror into our own hearts.

                Because we are in the process of being sanctified, our lives are a mix of what is good and what is evil. Our desire is to emulate the good, but we are afraid of exposing that which is not so good. I know from personal experience that it is a frightening and humbling experience to be exposed. We are in a constant battle between the light and the darkness. Therefore, we find ourselves, at times, living in the shadows.

                Paul talks openly about this struggle in Romans 7.

                We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do--this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.

                So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God's law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? (Romans 7:14-24)

                There are many scholars (who are much more qualified than me) who explain this passage as Paul’s pre-conversion experience.  I believe that this was Paul’s constant struggle throughout his life. I know that it has been mine. The more that I grow in my faith, the more aware I am of all of the ways I fall short. I am keenly aware that I have vulnerabilities. I periodically stumble and fall, then I beat myself up for not measuring up. Praise God that the balance of my life has fallen on the side of the light, but I cannot deny that there are still parts of my life in the shadows.

                Paul answers the question he posed with a resounding expression of praise. Thanks be to God--through Jesus Christ our Lord! (Romans 7:25a) Later on in Romans, Paul makes one of the most amazing and encouraging statements for all who struggle. Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. (Romans 8:1-2) It is not that the struggle has gone away; it still remains. But in our struggle, we know that we have the ultimate victory in Christ Jesus. Paul’s words give me hope in the midst of my struggles. Instead of giving up the fight, I fight harder to move out of the shadows and into the light.

                I have been rereading Larry Osborne’s book “Accidental Pharisees”. Today I was reminded of how we can create a spiritual façade to hide behind. Like the bully who beats up on others because he is insecure, so we can project a kind of spirituality that hides our insecurity and vulnerability. Coming into the light does not mean being perfect, it means being genuine. It means being honest with our struggles and dealing with them instead of trying to hide them.

   

   

TIME TO GIVE THANKS

              In many ways, Thanksgiving is the forgotten holiday. Many people rush past Thanksgiving in their headlong plunge into the Christmas shopping frenzy. For many people, Thanksgiving is just a day to overeat and watch football. When you leave God out of the Thanksgiving picture, it does seem to be rather hollow. Because there is confusion about the true meaning of Thanksgiving, some people have substituted a new tradition called Friendsgiving; a time to celebrate your friends.

                Being thankful is one of the things that the Bible repeatedly challenges us to do. In the Psalms alone, we are challenged to give thanks 20 times. In Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonians, he tells us that thankfulness is at the heart of God’s will. Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

   

                As I have been reflecting on Thanksgiving, I have been aware of so many things for which I am thankful to God. Let me share with you a short list of things I want to give thanks to God for.

                Having been prompted recently to think about my experiences in Ukraine, I am reminded of things I take for granted every day. I am thankful for central heating, paved roads, indoor plumbing, and fully stocked grocery stores.

                This year, Suanne and I will be traveling to Michigan to spend Thanksgiving with our family. I am thankful for a reliable car that will transport us from the frozen tundra of North Dakota to the less frozen sands of Western Michigan. I am thankful for the opportunity to spend time with our two grandsons. I am thankful that our entire family will be together.

                I am thankful for 31 years of ministry at Bethel Baptist Church in Mankato, MN. I am thankful for the lessons that God has taught me along the way about what it means to be a pastor. I am thankful that God has been patient with me as I have grown in my faith and in my skill as a pastor. I am thankful for all of the people I have been able to invest in spiritually and all of the people who have invested in me. I am thankful that God allowed me to invest the vast majority of my ministry in one place.

                I am thankful for the opportunity to continue doing ministry in Cavalier, ND. I am thankful for a church that desires to grow in their faith and in their influence in the community. I am thankful for people who have embraced us and made us feel at home in a new environment.

                I am thankful that I have free access to the Bible. I am thankful that the Bible is God’s living word, which speaks into my life. I am thankful that the Bible is relevant in every culture and to every generation.

                I am thankful for my wife, Suanne, who has been my partner in life and in ministry. She has made me a better person and a better pastor.

                Above all, I am thankful that I am a child of God, through my faith in Jesus Christ and what He has done for me on the cross of Calvary.

Hebrews 12:28

Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe,

KEEPING OUR FEET ON THE GROUND

                I have been attending a weekly men’s Bible study. We have been studying the book of Hebrews. Sometimes our discussions get pretty deep. This morning was one of those times. Our group is made up of men with a variety of backgrounds and a wide range of theological understanding. At times our discussion elevates to the rarified air of profound and often confusing theology. When this happens, I will often try to bring us back down to ground level. This morning, after the Bible study was over, one of the men stopped by my office and thanked me for putting things in simpler terms.

                When Jesus was teaching the crowds profound truths about the Kingdom of God, He used stories that they could all identify with. He took common situations and common objects and used them to illustrate deep theological truth. I am sure that the Pharisees, who loved arguing the subtler points of the Law, thought that Jesus was simplistic, but He was able to communicate on a level that common people would understand.

                I am a reader, and so I have read many books on theology and our faith.  Some of those books have left me cold. All that the author has to say is true, but he communicates it in a way that makes it confusing. It is as if we have something profound to say, we need to say it in the most complicated way possible. The books that I resonate with the most are those where the author relates theology to real life situations. In order for me to grasp abstract concepts, I need to see them in concrete terms.

                Years ago, in order to sharpen my skills as a communicator, I enrolled in a course on writing children’s books. One of the first lessons that I learned from that course was in my writing to show rather than tell. I can state a fact; the black cat entered the room. Or I can show my audience a black cat; the cat curled itself around the corner of the doorway and sauntered into the room. The sun played off of the sheen of its black coat as she padded her way toward her favorite chair.

                Just like in writing children’s stories, we need to learn to show people theological truth rather than just state the facts. One of the gifts that God has given to me is the ability to see theological truth in common things. When I preach, I am always looking for some way to connect the people to the truth in terms that they will comprehend. My role is not to impress people with the depth of my knowledge, but to instruct people in the truth of the Gospel. The less complicated I can make that the better.

                I just finished rereading a book by Larry Osborne titled “Spirituality for the Rest of Us.” In that book, he makes the case that we have made following Jesus more complicated than we need to. In our attempts at being spiritual, we have made discipleship more complex and confusing than it needs to be. We have raised the bar so high that few people will ever attain it. To paraphrase what Osborne is trying to tell us, we need to get our heads out of the clouds and keep our feet on the ground.

                I have run across a poem several times in my reading that has often challenged me. The essence of the poem is that we have a choice of how we will live out our faith. The author uses a door into a garden to illustrate his point. He speaks of those who, having walked through the door, venture as far into the garden as they can and as far from the door as they can. But he states that he prefers to stay by the door, to help others find their way into the garden.

                There is a place for deep theological study. There is value in venturing into that rarefied air. There is also the need for us to keep our feet on the ground, so that we can help others find their way.

1 Corinthians 2:1-5

    When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power.

   

HOW DO YOU MEASURE SUCCESS?

                As I write this, the Cleveland Browns football team has won 2 games, lost 6 games, and tied 1 game. In comparison to their performance over the past two years, this is success. Compared to the rest of the NFL, this is failure. Success is a very relative concept. It all depends upon what standard is used to measure it.

                I often vacillate between seeing myself as successful and as unsuccessful. To be honest, most of the time I lean toward the unsuccessful side of the equation. It is a personality fault of mine. I tend to be far harder on myself than others are. But just to put things into context, for the past 31 years I served as the Senior Pastor of Bethel Baptist Church in Mankato, MN. When I began, we were a congregation of about 75 people. When I left, our average Sunday worship attendance was 240. That looks like success. But if you look closer, you will see that there was a time when we were averaging about 400 in worship. We failed to break through the 400 barrier and fell back to 240. That looks like something less than success.

                I have been rereading Larry Osborne’s book “Spirituality for the Rest of Us.” In that book he reminds us that God’s measure of success and our measure of success are radically different. God weights success more heavily on the side of faithful service, rather than on tangible results. It is not that results are not important, but they are not the final word about success. Many who have had amazing tangible results have proved, in the end, to be failures in God’s sight.

                In my devotions today, I read the parable of the ten minas, as recorded in Luke 19:11-27. In this parable, the master gave ten servants each on mina. One mina was an amount of money roughly equivalent to three months wages. The master charged his servants with putting his money to work for his benefit. After a while, the master returned to settle accounts with his servants. The parable records the results from only three of the servants. The first servant returned the original mina plus ten more. The second servant returned the original mina plus 5 more. The third servant returned the original mina. The master was pleased with the first two servants. They were both commended for their faithful service. The master was not happy with the third servant. He was deemed unfaithful and cast out. The master measured the success of his servants by their faithfulness to the task, not their results.

                I have struggled with the idea that God measures success by faithfulness. Too often I have heard Christians excuse the lack of results by claiming that they have been faithful. I believe that true faithfulness will bring results. The results may not be dramatic, but they will be there. You can make the case that in the parable, the third servant was faithful in guarding his master’s money, but he was negligent in not accomplishing anything with it. We cannot use faithfulness as an excuse for not trying.

                In the end, God is going to judge our performance on what we have done with what He has given to us. He is not going to judge us against what others have done with what they have been given. God expects a return on His investment, but the real return He is seeking is faithful service for Him.

                Here is the really good news. If we faithfully stay connected to Jesus, the results will come, and God will be pleased with us. "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5) If we are faithful in our service for Christ, we can leave the results in God’s hands.

                True success is far more profound and meaningful than numbers of people attending a worship service or the number of dollars placed in a savings account. True success is measured by how faithfully we accomplish the task that God has given each one of us to do. God has entrusted us with time, energy, and material resources. How we use these for His glory will be the measure of our success in life. Our success may come in the form of raising our family well, or being the best employee we can be. It could mean leading a small group Bible study, or leading an entire congregation. It could mean being a good neighbor to the people who live around you. One day God will settle accounts with us, and He will measure our success by how faithful we have been at living our life for His glory.   

1 Corinthians 4:2

    Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful.

Luke 12:42-44

    The Lord answered, "Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns. I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.

   

SPIRITUAL GROWTH & LOSING WEIGHT

                 It has been a time of major transition in my life. Back in July, I retired from my church in Mankato, MN after 31 years of ministry. It was the right thing to do, but it disrupted my life in many ways. The biggest thing that my retirement did was it shattered my routine.

                The entire month of August was a time of change and transition. The normal routine that I had enjoyed for so many years had disappeared. Then, at the beginning of September, we transitioned into a new ministry in North Dakota. As the interim pastor of the church, my role is different than it had been in Mankato. There is less definition and structure than I was used to having. I have struggled to discover a new routine that fits the expectations and responsibilities of my new role.

                During this time of transition one of the things that has suffered is my weight. For a variety of reasons, my weight, which had been stable for many years, has climbed and I don’t like it. The lack of a stable routine has been a contributing factor, but not the only factor in play. One of the things that was sacrificed during this time of transition was my exercise routine. Although I tried to maintain some form of regular, physical activity, it is obvious that I have fallen behind. Couple this with too many late-night snacks and you can get the picture.

                During my devotions, the thought came to me that losing weight and spiritual growth have some profound similarities. Both take discipline and routine. There are at least three connecting points between losing weight and spiritual growth.

                In order to lose weight, a person must watch what they eat. I love to eat. It is one of my favorite things to do. I enjoy going out to a restaurant for dinner. I enjoy meeting a friend for coffee. I delight in munching on snacks while I watch a football game. All of these things work against my goal to lose weight. If I am going to be successful, I must discipline my eating. I need to be sure that I am eating the right foods. I need to monitor how much food I eat and when. And I have to learn to say no at times.

                Our spiritual growth is contingent upon what we consume. Just as there is physical junk food, so there is spiritual junk food as well. Spiritual junk food satisfies an immediate desire but actually makes us spiritually lethargic. If we are going to grow spiritually we need to be careful about what we take into our minds and hearts. We need to feed regularly on God’s word. If we are not spending time regularly in the Bible, we will soon become spiritually malnourished. We can supplement our intake from the Bible with uplifting materials in the form of books, movies, music, podcasts, sermons, and the like. The more that we consume the right kinds of spiritual food the stronger we will become.

                In order to lose weight, a person needs regular exercise. Managing our diet is not enough to shed those unwanted pounds. We need to burn them away with physical exercise. For me, this comes in the form of running, but there are many ways that a person can exercise. For exercise to be effective it needs to push us. We can fool ourselves by engaging in forms of exercise that really don’t accomplish much. Walking to the end of the block and back twice a week might allow you to check the exercise box on your to-do list, but it won’t help you lose weight. We have to be ready to push our bodies to the level where our bodies are forced to use up some of the energy we have stored in the form of fat.

                In a similar way, if we want to grow spiritually, we need to engage in some genuine spiritual exercise. This entails taking what we have been learning from the Bible and putting it into action.  If the totality of our spiritual exercise is showing up for an hour worship service on Sunday morning, we will not make much progress. There are many ways we can exercise our spiritual muscles every day. It begins with the way that we treat those people around us. The more that we demonstrate a Christ-like character in our everyday world, the more we will grow. Beyond this we can exercise our spiritual muscles through serving others. Start a small group Bible study. Adopt an elderly person in your neighborhood. Mentor a child. Go on a mission trip. Teach a Sunday School class. Volunteer at the food shelf. Get off the spiritual couch and get involved.

                Above all, in order for a person to lose weight, they need to be consistent. The reason why most diets fail is because people fail to be consistent. As I have learned firsthand, when a person is inconsistent with their eating and exercise habits, they begin to lose the battle with their weight. A person may be able to coast for a short time, but sooner or later their lack of consistency will catch up with them.

                Consistency is one of the keys to spiritual growth. There really is never a time when we can just coast spiritually. We are either moving forward or slipping back. Establishing a healthy spiritual routine and sticking with it is essential to our spiritual growth. Just as we need regular food and exercise to remain physically healthy, so we need regular spiritual food and exercise to remain spiritually healthy. At first, establishing a healthy routine seems daunting, but once you settle into a spiritual rhythm it becomes much easier.

Philippians 2:12-13

Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed--not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence--continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.

   

SMALL BUT NOT INSIGNIFICANT

Matthew 13:31-32

He told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches."

                Have you ever considered the amazing power encapsulated in a seed? A single seed contains everything that is necessary to grow an entire plant. Stalk, leaves, flowers, and fruit are all enclosed within a tiny seed. The potential in every seed is far greater than the size of the seed.

                We used to have Morning Glories in our garden. They produce an abundance of small seeds. Every year they would reseed themselves in the garden. They were so prolific that we had a hard time keeping them in check. Their seeds were small, but never insignificant.

                Too often we view ourselves as small seeds with little potential. We compare ourselves against the abilities and achievements of others and conclude that we are insignificant. We put limitations upon what we can accomplish based on our perception of ourselves. But God sees us differently. He sees the great potential, which He has placed within each one of us.

                I have been called to serve a small church, in a small town, in northern North Dakota. Because of this assignment, I have been doing some reading about doing ministry in a small, rural community. It is a new experience for me. One of the things I have learned is that it is easy for a small church to begin to believe that they are insignificant and cannot accomplish much for the Kingdom of God. They compare themselves to large urban ministries and get discouraged. But in God’s eyes, no church is insignificant, no matter how small.

                The spread of the Gospel in our world is like the spread of the Morning Glories in our garden. It is a matter of many small seeds being planted, which produces amazing results. The church I am serving began with 13 charter members, yet today there are over 100 people who worship together in this congregation. Those seeds that were planted 125 years ago are still producing results today.

                Jesus’ disciples struggled with a sense of insignificance. They were not the cream of the crop. They were common, ordinary men who responded to Jesus’ call to come and follow Him. They made many mistakes along the way. At times they became very discouraged. Yet God used those common, ordinary men to turn they world upside down. Jesus planted the seeds of faith in their lives, which blossomed into a Gospel movement that spread throughout the known world.

                There are many things happening today that cause us to be discouraged. We feel small and insignificant in the face of social pressures that are leading many away from God. What can we do that will make any difference at all? When we feel small and insignificant, we need to take our eyes off of the world and get them back on God. With God all things are possible, no matter the size of our seed.

                Wherever we are in the world, what ever circumstances we are in, God wants us to plant our small seed of faith right there. As we trust God to use us, He will produce through us a harvest far greater than we can imagine.

Galatians 6:9-10

Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

TURNING THE LIGHTS ON

John 8:12

When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."

                I had been meeting with Jim for several weeks, explaining to him what it means to become a follower of Jesus. Then the day came when Jim was ready and he prayed to receive Jesus as his Lord and Savior. We met at our regular time the following week. The first thing that Jim said to me was, Pastor Dave I am mad at you. Why, I asked, what did I do? He said, after I prayed last week, I can’t listen to the radio any more. Have you listening to what they are saying in those songs? It is so wrong! The light had just gone on for Jim.

                People who do not know Jesus are living in a darkness of which they are totally unaware. Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 4:4, The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. People do not see the world as it really is. Instead, they are blind to sin and its realities. For them, it is just the way life is. When a person comes to personal faith in Jesus Christ, the lights get turned on.

                Sometimes, when we don’t understand something, we will say that we are in the dark. When we begin to comprehend something, we say the light went on. It is not by accident that the cartoon image of someone gaining understanding is a lightbulb above their head. When comprehension comes, the light goes on. Just as physical light reveals things as they are, spiritual light helps us see the reality of the world around us.

                Jesus said that He is the light of the world. Jesus was not talking about physical light, but spiritual light. The people of Jesus’ day were in the dark about what it really means to have a relationship with God. They were caught in a religious system that had obscured the reality of who God is and how we are to relate to Him. Jesus came to turn the lights on. He began to reveal the truth about God’s nature, His character, and His compassion. Where the religious system offered guilt, Jesus offered grace. Where the religious system demanded works, Jesus called for faith. Where the religious system put their focus on outward appearances, Jesus put His focus on the condition of people’s hearts.

                Back in 1988, I took a mission trip to the Philippines. I was assigned to work with a young Filipino pastor in a small village. I was given a room in a small apartment with two young, single men. My first day in the village I encountered some of the largest cockroaches I have ever seen in my life. Cockroaches come out in the dark, so every time I turned on the light in my room, there was a mad scramble of cockroaches escaping the light. In an attempt to limit my contact with these creepy crawlers, I slept with my light on.

                As Jesus began to turn the lights on, many people began to run for cover. They were trying to hide from the truth that was exposed by the light of Christ. Jesus revealed the affect of His light in John 3:19-21. This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God."

                The light of Christ still causes some people to run for cover. They do everything in their power to extinguish the light, or at least to dim the light. The light of Christ is just too threatening to those who are living in darkness. At the same time, there are many who are drawn to the light of Christ.

                We have been given the responsibility of reflecting the light of Christ back into our world. Once we have stepped out of the darkness and have embraced the truth, we then need to shine Jesus’ light to those around us. As Jesus said in Matthew 5:14-16, "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”

                We have the opportunity to turn the lights on for those around us. Not everyone will respond in a positive way but, if we are consistent, we can encourage others to step out of the darkness and into the light of Christ.