In Hannah Hurnard’s wonderful allegory, Hinds Feet on High Places, at one point as the main character Much Afraid travels through the desert, she comes upon a flower growing and blooming in the crack of a rock. Through no fault of it’s own, the seed was abandoned to that dry, lonely place to bloom alone. When she asks the flower’s name, it replies, “My name is Bearing the Cost, but some call me Forgiveness.”
Hannah Hurnard offers some real wisdom here. To forgive means we intentionally choose to bear within our lives the consequences of the actions of those who have harmed us. We often resist this inevitable result because, like much of life in a fallen world, it seems so unfair. What we often don't realize is that, because we cannot change the past, we inevitably bear these consequences whether we choose to forgive or not.
The problem is, when unforgiveness is given residence in the human heart, it does not remain static. It functions much like a computer virus operating behind the scenes. We may be unaware of its destructive forces, but it is far from harmless. It has gone underground where it evolves, infects and hardens our heart. Occasionally we become aware of its presence as when, in unsuspecting moments, we find ourselves thinking, dwelling on and rehearsing the wrongs we have experienced.
To forgive or not decides the question of whether bearing these consequences will poison our personalities, or build our character. Unforgiveness confers upon these experiences the power to destroy. Forgiveness on the other hand opens the way for these very circumstances to become for us a source of strength and healing.
When we walk in unforgiveness, we nurture the desire that the offender be punished. Walking in unforgiveness ultimately transforms us into one who, on some level, has made the punishment of another human being a priority. Our added powerlessness to achieve our own personal version of justice only intensifies this burden. The human personality was not created to bear this weight without experiencing serious internal damage.
As Jesus has reminded us, unforgiveness and hypocrisy are inseparably connected. The unjust steward of the Gospel of Matthew chapter 18 demonstrates the irony of our being forgiven a huge debt, only to demand justice over what is ultimately a small matter. It is impossible to condemn another without also condemning ourselves. We can’t demand “justice” for our “enemy,” while at the same time personally asking for mercy.
On the positive side, by choosing to forgive we release a series of blessings...
Forgiveness says…I choose to bear the injustice of another, walking in the path of Jesus who took upon Himself injustice, bearing the effects of the sins of the whole world.
Forgiveness says… I choose to humble myself. I choose to give up my “rights.” I choose to walk in sacrificial obedience to God’s Word.
Forgiveness says…I am placing myself squarely in God’s hands knowing that forgiveness is an act of faith in the God who works all things together for good.
Forgiveness says…“I identify with sinful humanity. I know that as surely as I have to bear the effects of the sins of others, others also have also had to bear the effects of my sins.
Forgiveness says…As I myself have been offered mercy, I too choose to offer mercy instead of wrath, knowing that God Himself is the only righteous judge.
In the book of Genesis Joseph was able to declare to his brothers, “What you meant for evil, God meant for good.” In this statement Joseph revealed his conviction that God could be trusted to accomplish His purpose through the good and through the bad. If Joseph had held on to unforgiveness, he likely would have become so bitter and vengeful he would have been unfit to rule in Egypt.
Monday, February 23, 2009
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Coaching for Character
When I was 11 years old our family moved from San Diego to Sacramento. Ronald Reagan had just been elected Governor of California and my dad, who was his campaign manager, had accepted a position in the Reagan administration. Of course, for me moving meant adjusting to a new school, making new friends etc. It was at this time in my life that God did an amazing thing. He dropped me in the middle of the run-of-the-mill, 800 student, John Barrett Junior High School. What I didn’t know was that at this average public school was a Christian music teacher named Alfred Kenney.
Mr. Kenney was a graduate of the Westminster Choir College in Princeton, New Jersey. However, he had been in a car accident in his twenties and, because his left hand had been badly crushed, he retained only three fingers. Yet somehow, this amazing man was able, with only his right hand, and without a rehearsal accompanist, to conduct, rehearse and otherwise enable junior highers to sing 4 to 8 part music in German, French, Latin, Italian and English. We also recorded an album every year and went on tour.
But beyond these experiences, Mr. Kenney took a personal interest in his students. Like most junior highers, I was a lump of impressionable clay ready for molding. He had us memorize important historical quotes on character, awarding plaques for various levels of achievement; major, colonel etc. I also took voice lessons from him not only in junior high, but through my high school years as well. Under his mentoring I went on to win superior ratings, competing in festivals on the State College level. The fact is, the reason I ultimately pursued music ministry is due in large part to the musical and spiritual influence of Mr. Kenney.
After I graduated from high school, some years passed and Mr. Kenney and I lost track of each other. Then, just after I received my Bachelor of Music Education degree, I decided to return to Sacramento to visit friends. While there I looked up Mr. Kenney and called to see if we might spend some time together. About three hours later I arrived at his house. Mr. Kenney was a tall man, but when he answered the door, I was surprised at how thin he was. We talked for an hour or so and caught up on what had been going on in my life. I sang a song for him that we had worked on many years before, and then left.
Another five years passed before I was in Sacramento again. I was ashamed I had not kept in touch, but my Continental Singers tour was passing through, and I knew it was important that I call. I had a strange feeling of anticipation as the phone rang. His wife Frieda answered, so I simply said, “Tell me about Mr. Kenney.” As it turned out, Mr. Kenney had had cancer when we had visited five years earlier. The day I called he had been in bed for the previous three weeks. She shared with me that it had taken him three hours just to get up and get ready for my visit. But he had insisted on seeing me. After I left he went back to bed and passed away two weeks later.
God has a way of orchestrating divine appointments. It was an honor to know I was the last of his students to see him before he passed away. What he couldn’t possibly know is the extent to which he influenced me and changed the course of my life. We often never know the full impact we have on others. I know God's special plan is for older generations to reach out to mentor and nurture younger ones. I’m eternally grateful that God’s plan for me included bringing Mr. Kenney into my life.
Mr. Kenney was a graduate of the Westminster Choir College in Princeton, New Jersey. However, he had been in a car accident in his twenties and, because his left hand had been badly crushed, he retained only three fingers. Yet somehow, this amazing man was able, with only his right hand, and without a rehearsal accompanist, to conduct, rehearse and otherwise enable junior highers to sing 4 to 8 part music in German, French, Latin, Italian and English. We also recorded an album every year and went on tour.
But beyond these experiences, Mr. Kenney took a personal interest in his students. Like most junior highers, I was a lump of impressionable clay ready for molding. He had us memorize important historical quotes on character, awarding plaques for various levels of achievement; major, colonel etc. I also took voice lessons from him not only in junior high, but through my high school years as well. Under his mentoring I went on to win superior ratings, competing in festivals on the State College level. The fact is, the reason I ultimately pursued music ministry is due in large part to the musical and spiritual influence of Mr. Kenney.
After I graduated from high school, some years passed and Mr. Kenney and I lost track of each other. Then, just after I received my Bachelor of Music Education degree, I decided to return to Sacramento to visit friends. While there I looked up Mr. Kenney and called to see if we might spend some time together. About three hours later I arrived at his house. Mr. Kenney was a tall man, but when he answered the door, I was surprised at how thin he was. We talked for an hour or so and caught up on what had been going on in my life. I sang a song for him that we had worked on many years before, and then left.
Another five years passed before I was in Sacramento again. I was ashamed I had not kept in touch, but my Continental Singers tour was passing through, and I knew it was important that I call. I had a strange feeling of anticipation as the phone rang. His wife Frieda answered, so I simply said, “Tell me about Mr. Kenney.” As it turned out, Mr. Kenney had had cancer when we had visited five years earlier. The day I called he had been in bed for the previous three weeks. She shared with me that it had taken him three hours just to get up and get ready for my visit. But he had insisted on seeing me. After I left he went back to bed and passed away two weeks later.
God has a way of orchestrating divine appointments. It was an honor to know I was the last of his students to see him before he passed away. What he couldn’t possibly know is the extent to which he influenced me and changed the course of my life. We often never know the full impact we have on others. I know God's special plan is for older generations to reach out to mentor and nurture younger ones. I’m eternally grateful that God’s plan for me included bringing Mr. Kenney into my life.
Monday, February 9, 2009
The Real Enemy
I have discovered that, when it comes right down to it, there are really only two kinds of people in the world; those who love Star Trek and those who despise it. (If you’re in the latter group you can stop reading now.)
When I was in Junior High Star Trek re-runs were on every day at 4:00. Five days a week I would get home just in time for my mega-dose of sci-fi adventure. I remember an episode where the Klingons and the crew of the Enterprise couldn’t stop fighting. No matter what they tried, they would just get more irrational and more angry. And if someone would die or get hurt, they would be miraculously restored to health, only to start fighting again. Come to find out, there was this alien creature (no surprise there) who had come aboard the ship and was living off their negative emotions, manipulating all of this from behind the scenes.
Ah, the morality of Star Trek…Isn’t that the way we often are as Believers? The last thing Satan wants is for God’s people to walk together in love and unity. So here Satan is pulling strings behind the scenes, hitting our hot buttons. And the sad part is we fall for it. We walk in ignorance of his schemes and think and act as if the enemy is one another! Paul says, “For our struggle is NOT against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Eph. 10:12)
Then again, some of us are surprised that we are in a battle at all. Most Christians can get totally energized about building God’s Kingdom; about doing mighty things for God. But then when things start to go wrong; when the criticism comes and the trials increase and the battle gets heated and the going gets tough, they say, “Hey, wait a minute! It’s not supposed to be like this!”
Oh REALLY…read your New Testament! Read your Old Testament, for that matter. We are in a battle. This is war! Think about it. That’s why we’re given ARMOUR and WEAPONS. That’s why Jesus said, “Blessed are you when me revile you and persecute you and say all manner of evil against you falsely, on account of Me.” That why Paul had his hands full with beatings and stonings, not to mention all the struggles and troubles of the churches. The important question is "who is the enemy?"
Real New Testament Christianity (if it’s done right) is messy stuff. But if we get one thing right, it has to be this; we must know who the real enemy is. I wonder if that’s not why Jesus tells us to love our enemies. Because if we love our enemies, we may just discover that they’re not the real enemy after all. And they may discover the same about us. Satan is the one who comes to steal, kill and destroy.
By the way, now that I’ve officially inducted myself into the nerd hall of fame, I will throw caution to the wind and tell you. Captain Kirk eventually figured out what was really going on. (I kept trying to tell him during most of the program) And once they made peace with the Klingons, the alien creature had nothing left to feed on, and had to go. James put it a slightly different way. He said, “Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” (Jas. 4:7)
When I was in Junior High Star Trek re-runs were on every day at 4:00. Five days a week I would get home just in time for my mega-dose of sci-fi adventure. I remember an episode where the Klingons and the crew of the Enterprise couldn’t stop fighting. No matter what they tried, they would just get more irrational and more angry. And if someone would die or get hurt, they would be miraculously restored to health, only to start fighting again. Come to find out, there was this alien creature (no surprise there) who had come aboard the ship and was living off their negative emotions, manipulating all of this from behind the scenes.
Ah, the morality of Star Trek…Isn’t that the way we often are as Believers? The last thing Satan wants is for God’s people to walk together in love and unity. So here Satan is pulling strings behind the scenes, hitting our hot buttons. And the sad part is we fall for it. We walk in ignorance of his schemes and think and act as if the enemy is one another! Paul says, “For our struggle is NOT against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Eph. 10:12)
Then again, some of us are surprised that we are in a battle at all. Most Christians can get totally energized about building God’s Kingdom; about doing mighty things for God. But then when things start to go wrong; when the criticism comes and the trials increase and the battle gets heated and the going gets tough, they say, “Hey, wait a minute! It’s not supposed to be like this!”
Oh REALLY…read your New Testament! Read your Old Testament, for that matter. We are in a battle. This is war! Think about it. That’s why we’re given ARMOUR and WEAPONS. That’s why Jesus said, “Blessed are you when me revile you and persecute you and say all manner of evil against you falsely, on account of Me.” That why Paul had his hands full with beatings and stonings, not to mention all the struggles and troubles of the churches. The important question is "who is the enemy?"
Real New Testament Christianity (if it’s done right) is messy stuff. But if we get one thing right, it has to be this; we must know who the real enemy is. I wonder if that’s not why Jesus tells us to love our enemies. Because if we love our enemies, we may just discover that they’re not the real enemy after all. And they may discover the same about us. Satan is the one who comes to steal, kill and destroy.
By the way, now that I’ve officially inducted myself into the nerd hall of fame, I will throw caution to the wind and tell you. Captain Kirk eventually figured out what was really going on. (I kept trying to tell him during most of the program) And once they made peace with the Klingons, the alien creature had nothing left to feed on, and had to go. James put it a slightly different way. He said, “Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” (Jas. 4:7)
Monday, February 2, 2009
The Dangerous Prayer (featured article on ministryLive.org)
“Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that confess his name.” Hebrews 13:15
“I haven’t been able to worship for a year and a half.” A gentleman at my church had pulled me aside to express his displeasure at the music style in our services. My astonishment at his confession was hard to conceal. Without meaning to, my brother had revealed more about himself and his understanding of worship than he had intended.
This gentleman shared a perspective held by many in the church today. “If the song is right, and the key is right, and the volume is right, and the instrumentation is right, and the right person is leading… Then I’ll worship.” For those with an “I’ll worship if…” or “I’ll worship then…” attitude, the decision to worship is based on specific criteria. This worship is conditional.
Contrast this with the Psalmist. “I will bless the Lord at ALL times. His praise shall continually be in my mouth.” (Ps. 34:1) No ideal circumstances or preconditions here. Instead it appears that the psalmist’s worship is less about his own comfort and more about God’s greatness. It extends far beyond an event on Sunday morning. For the Psalmist, worship is a lifestyle. It’s volitional, sacrificial, costly…and precious in the Lord’s sight.
I learned years ago that praying some prayers is a dangerous undertaking. For instance, “Not my will but Thine be done.”(Lk. 22:42) A dangerous prayer? You bet. And “That I might know You in the power of Your resurrection and in the fellowship of Your suffering.” (Ph. 3:10) Another dangerous prayer. But in my experience one of the most dangerous prayers to pray is, “Lord, make me the worshiper you created me to be.”
Make me a worshiper? What’s so dangerous about that? Let me ask you a question. If you were to search God’s Word to locate the greatest, most passionate worshipers, where would you find them? That’s right. In the dungeon…in the wilderness…in prison…in the desert. And their circumstances aren’t much better; forsaken…destitute…bound… persecuted…sick. You even know their names; Joseph, Paul, Job, David, Jeremiah, Elijah, Jesus…
So why do we so often find God’s great heroes of worship in such dire circumstances? Because, like most aspects of spiritual growth, worship muscle is not developed on the mountain top, when things are comfortable and life is easy. Rather, mature Biblical worship has definite “in spite of” and “even though” elements to it.
So if we pray, “Lord make me the worshiper You’ve created me to be,” chances are we’ve got quite an adventure ahead. Attending God’s
In his book The Screwtape Letters, author C.S. Lewis weaves a tale of two demons. Screwtape, the senior demon is counseling Wormwood, his apprentice in training, as he attempts to cause a Christian to stumble.
“Do not be deceived, Wormwood. Our cause is never more in danger than when a human, no longer desiring, but still intending to do our Enemy’s will, looks around upon a universe from which every trace of Him seems to have vanished, and asks why he’s been forsaken, and still obeys.”
When it comes to praying this dangerous prayer, I have learned that…
When I’m alone in my prayer closet, and life has beaten me down, and there’s no music, and friends have abandoned me, and cares and trials are pressing in, and I’m fighting discouragement, and it feels like even God has forsaken me, but I choose in that moment to worship anyway, that’s when I grow as a worshiper.
Habakkuk put it this way…
Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior.
Habakkuk 3:17-18
In closing, I’m reminded of my brother’s comment, and I have to say this (and I’m speaking to myself here as well). If we as Christians are so spiritually flabby or self-indulgent that we can’t worship, or worse refuse to worship unless the song is right, and the key is right, and the volume is right, and the instrumentation is right, and the right person is singing it….Well, is that even true worship?
“Lord, make me the worshiper You’ve created me to be.” It’s a dangerous prayer. But it’s one we should pray. And it’s a prayer He will answer.
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