School Shootings and the Heart of the Problem

I am in my living room contemplating the school shooting which just happened yesterday in Nashville Tennessee. It was carried out by a woman who had previously attended the small Christian school. She was apparently a 28 year old who was under some sort of care and was expressing herself as a man in social media posts. There will be many who will jump on the transgender issue here. That is simply an aspect of the bigger problem. Our society is pushing for people to be free to express themselves however they want. It is not surprising how in doing this people run into others who do not necessarily accept their position or agree with it. I have positions I hold that are not excepted by everyone. I am a Christian and I believe in and seek to follow moral values which God has laid down in the Bible. Those who don't agree with me don't threaten my beliefs. I am secure in my beliefs and where I stand. This is where the real issue arises. People who have bought the idea that there is no restriction on how they can express themselves, may or may not be ok with people not agreeing with them. This kind of thought and mentality can be found in conservative, and liberal circles as well as Christian and non-Christian. If they are ok with people not agreeing with them they simply walk away. If they are not ok with the lack of acceptance then the freedom to express themselves in whatever way they want can lead to any number of harsh and radically destructive decisions. It can result in a lawsuit against those who don't agree. It can lead them to choose suicide. It can cause them to seek escape in drugs and alcohol. And it can lead them to decide to eliminate the people which they percieve as not accepting them or to do damage to the place or group they percieve as opposing their position. Sometimes it is simply a lashing out at people in general because they feel generally rejected. This is the result of a people abandoning a moral foundation rooted in the morals established by God. This abandonment happens in every area of society, from Christian and conservative to liberal and socialistic. When we as a society embrace an ideal of freedom to express ourselves however we want, even if it is immoral and against nature we find ourselves not experiencing the precieved happiness associated with total freedom. What the shootings, suicides and overdoses show us is we experience an emptiness and destructive hatred. The true answer for this is to turn to the God of the Bible repent of our sins and accept Jesus as Lord of our lives. In Jesus there is purpose, true freedom, and happiness found in the boundaries of God's moral law. I hope readers of this who are not Christians will seek to know what it is embrace a God focused life through faith in Jesus.

Why followers of God know peace

In Philippians 4:11-13 Paul bears witness to the fact that God has given him the grace to be content in any situation. What is the key to that contentment? A clear focus and dependence upon God. Paul faced times of plenty and abundance and realized that they were a gift to him from God. Paul faced hunger and need and realized that these too were a gift from God. How can hunger and need be a gift from God? Hunger and need are a gift to the believer who like Paul has a clear focus and dependence on God. Hunger and need are blessed reminders of how much we truly need God to sustain us. By thrusting us into the barren desert of need God helps us to let go of our dependence on things of this earth. We are put in a place where we truly must depend on God. When Paul says, "that he can do all things through Christ who strengthens him" he is talking about being able to walk through adversity as well as plenty.

Paul's admonition earlier in the same chapter rings with greater force when we understand his personal heartbeat that follows it (Philippians 4:4-7). Paul started that earlier section with a call to rejoice in the Lord always. The only way you can rejoice ALWAYS is if you see everything that is coming to you as a gift. These are all gifts given to us by God for our own benefit. Paul continues with a call to be gentle with everyone. Even those who are not good to us? In a word yes! Why? Because the Lord is at hand.

He tells us not to worry. What should we do with the things that come our way? We communicate everything to God by prayer and supplication with one unusual thing thrown in - Thanksgiving. Paul wants us to make our request but in the midst of making them to be thankful for these same things because they are truly a gift from God. When your heart is tuned to being thankful and rejoicing in all the things that come our way we will gain something that is astounding. Peace! Not just any peace but the peace of God that surpasses all understanding.

1. Rejoice always - because you see everything coming to you as a gift
2. Be gentle with everyone - because the Lord is at hand and He will make things right
3. Don't worry - take everything to God by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving

Do these things and rivet your eyes on the Lord Jesus and an amazing peace from God that passes understanding will fill our hearts. Not only that but He will guard our hearts and our minds in Christ Jesus. As we rejoice in Him He will secure our hearts so that they can continue to rejoice in Him. This is why the true followers of Jesus in the midst of persecution and a life devoid of external peace will exhibit a heart filled with supernatural peace that cannot be taken away. Join me as I try to follow Paul's plan for living a life completely focused on God.

Inception: a reflection of longing for more

I saw the movie "Inception" a few weeks ago. The movie is a reflection of our post modern sensibility. Essentially we like to believe that reality is what we make it out to be. Inception turns that inside out and asks us if reality is really all its cracked up to be. Perhaps the reality in our minds is a better place to be.

What really struck me though was how the dream state in the movie was the thing that people longed for. There is a point where we see people lying in beds hooked up to drugs that allow them to dream. We are told that they have gotten to the point where they can no longer dream without the drugs. Supposedly this heightened dream reality is so great that it is worth giving up more and more of real life to live in the dream world. One of the students that is introduced to this world says that they are going to quit because of some things that were going on. Decaprio's character says with confidence that she will be back basically because the experience is too compelling. Sure enough she comes back.

Each person is enamored with what can be in the dream world. The characters reflect a dissatisfaction with how things are in reality. This is a true reflection of the heart of man. We all know that something is missing (Romans 8:19). We all feel the pain that tells us to long for something more something better. The problem for the unsaved man is that his longing looks like this:

I want something to satisfy. I will embrace anything that promises satisfaction with the hope that it will somehow make me fulfilled. I will accept anything that is except the all Sovereign God of the Bible that demands my soul, my life, my all. I will maintain my autonomy thank you (or at least what I believe is my own semblance of that autonomy). Romans 1:20, 24-25

 The true follower of Jesus has discovered that the longings they had prior to meeting Christ have been fulfilled. The true follower has been made whole and can testify to the satisfaction that is theirs in God. We were made for Him and our hearts are truly in a state of longing until they are satisfied in Him. If you believe you have committed your life to Jesus and yet you still feel the emptiness and longing that you always did then perhaps your pursuit of God has been corrupted by our culture. To really grapple with this I would point you toward my book, "The God Focused Life". There is a lot of help here for pointing you toward the God who will truly satisfy your soul. So if you have not yet done so, join me on the journey to live a God focused life.

Emotional reminders of our insufficiency

Today was an admittedly challenging day. I looked at our bank account. (When your unemployed this can be a discouraging thing to do.) While I know that it is God that supplies our needs sometimes I get hit with a tsunami of emotion when I contemplate the gravity of it all. After applying for what seems like hundreds of jobs one begins to feel a bit rejected. My pride quickly kicks in and begins to feel injured. Thoughts like "No one wants me", "I'm just not good enough" and "Perhaps if I had just contacted this person or that one". All of this is really an emotional roller coaster that takes off from the platform of self, climbs the mountain of pride and quickly plunges into the maddening spiral of self in the pit of pity. Thank God for His grace, and the examples that we have in His precious word. Paul talked about being buffeted by a messenger of Satan. He requested that it be taken away. God's responded that His grace was sufficient (2 Corinthians 12:9). God's grace is just as sufficient today. These times of my failing are valuable reminders of my insufficiency. They cause me to depend even more on Jesus. Without Him this time of challenge would be truly overwhelming. Because He has so graciously granted me a heart that desires to focus on Him, He saves me from myself. The Holy Spirit draws my eyes to my magnificent God and plants my feet on the solid rock of Jesus. If you find the trials overwhelming turn to our Lord and use our insufficiency to embrace the sufficiency that can only be found in Him.

How fears point us to God

CNN has an article on their site called, "Who's afraid of snakes, spiders, vomit?" While the article deals with phobias it brings up a good point for Christians to consider. The very first time that we see fear mentioned in the Bible is when Adam tells the God that he heard Him and was afraid and hid himself (Genesis 3:10). Fear is a result of the fall and I think that in all of eternity this will be borne out. 2 Timothy 1:7 tells us that God has not given us a spirit of fear but God gave us a spirit of power, love and self-control. The main thing here is that power, love and self-control are all things that put fear to death. It is even this idea of self-control that counselors use to treat phobias. What should our goal be as Christian living a God focused life? To be so consumed with a desire for God and His kingdom that the things of this earth that produce fear in us are minimized. To put it another way we can say that we do not fear man or beast because God has ordained the day of our death (Hebrews 9:27). Men may try to intimidate us but we do not fear them because the power of God is greater than that of any man. Ultimately the thing that will fill our heart with the confidence we need to face and overcome fears of all kinds is the love of God filling and permeating our hearts. 1 John 4:18 says “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.” The love of God experienced in the context of a relationship with Him will fortify our hearts against fear.

Economic desperation...

How can a Christian respond to the economic desperation that plagues so many of us? (I speak from the position of a laid off person who is looking for work.) I use the term can respond rather than how we should respond intentionally. We all at a base level have heard how we should respond but that does not seem to always help when rubber of real life meets the road of no job. I could quote verses like Philippians 4:19 “And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” or Jesus words in  Matthew 6:31-32 “Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.” Anyone who has been a Christian for any amount of time is aware of these passages. While they provide comfort the bigger issue that we often face at times of economic turmoil is an issue that is deeper in our hearts. The core of the problem lies in where we are looking for our security. Are the securities of this world drawing my attention away from my God? Am I stressed by the things that promise to supply my needs but are temporal? God has made the world, the universe and everything in it. He knows my going out and my coming in (Psalm 121:8). If we really are His children and we live in that reality then we should depend on Him like a child does its father. The earlier verses become a potent and powerful comfort in the context of realizing that the battle of desperation is only won in the context of finding our security in God. A God focused life will seek Jesus in the middle of the desperation calling on Him to help us to find our security in Him. It is really an all out desperate grab for the hem of His garment. We need Him to be not just the end of our faith but truly the author of our faith as well. Ask Him to grant you a desire for security in Him that will eclipse the desire for the securities that this world offers. Continue to pursue the opportunities and jobs that God places before you but at the end of the day rest in Him knowing that all the outcomes are in His hands. For further reading on this topic get the free download or buy John Piper's A Hunger for God. It is an excellent resource in any situation that assaults our dependence on God.