Tag: watchfulness

Distracted

Do you know what the “Killer P’s” are? Here’s a partial list: Power, position, possessions, prestige, playthings, and occasionally, people.

Why are they the “Killer P’s”? Because these are the things in life that can draw us slowly away from God. This doesn’t always happen. But it can.

They often begin as mere distractions. But these distractions eventually draw us in deeper and deeper. It may be a slow, gradual, almost unnoticeable process. Or they may pull us in dramatically and very, very quickly. But whichever way it goes, the distraction will keep demanding more of our attention, more of our energy, more of our time and more of our resources.

We love the both/and. And we often tell ourselves that accepting the things of this world can be had without sacrificing our relationship with Christ. So we attempt the fence-straddle.

But that distraction just keeps distracting us. It simply keeps drawing us closer and closer. It’s power appears irresistable. It’s force is inexorable.

One day we look back and it’s been a really long time since we last attended church, or participated in a growth group, or served on a ministry team. We can no longer recall when we last received the Lord’s Supper, or thought about our baptism, or read a little section of our Bible.

John could see this process at work in the people he was pastoring at the end of the first century. From a distance, he watched as his beloved brothers and sisters in Christ were being drawn away from their faith in Christ by the killer “P’s” — the killer distractions.

John’s response was to go straight for the heart. Be careful what you love, he told his people, almost as if he had the words of Solomon on his mind: “Guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it” (Proverbs 4:23, NIV). Be careful what you love, because what you love is what you will devote yourselves to.

If you love Jesus, you will “break-up” with the world. But if you love the world, you will at some point “break-up” with Jesus.

Keep in mind, John told his people, one of these objects of your love is only temporary. It’s going to pass away and it’s not going to come back — at least not in its present form.

The other is eternal. Divine. And will never let you down, or let you go.

“Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever” (1 John 2:15-17, NIV).

Lord, help me to guard my heart. There are many distractions that the world throws at me. Forgive me for the times I have allowed these distractions to draw me away from you. I want to stay focused on what’s truly important. And that is you, Jesus.

Our Bible reading for Tuesday, December 1, is Daniel 7:1 – 8:14, 1 John 2:12-27 and Psalm 136:13-26.

Header image based on "what you are worrying about right now..." by Torley, CC By 2.0

Transparent Waiting

Transparency of heart is when the thoughts and feelings of our heart are apparent to all who watch us in action. For the follower of Jesus Christ, one of the marks of a transparent heart is a deep desire to do the will of God — to live a holy and godly life. It is not self-centeredness, but “Christ-centeredness.”

In the apostle Peter’s day, those who wanted to live a self-centered life would scoff at the idea that we are waiting for Christ, our King, to return. They wanted to live their selfish lives as if there was no King, no Judge and no day of judgment.

Sadly, their selfish way of life was deceiving some of Peter’s listeners. So Peter is forced to reaffirm that Christ is not going to be a “no-show.” His return is timed perfectly to match God’s patience. And God is patient because he wants as many people as possible to repent and be saved.

We don’t know what that timing is. But come he will. Swiftly and unexpectedly. And on that day, everything around us will be destroyed. Our entire material world will be laid bare.

As we wait for our King’s return, we are to live as people who know that the King is alive. We know this because we daily witness the living King’s work in our own hearts. Being transparent people, our actions allow people to see through to our hearts. And to see Jesus living in our hearts.

Meanwhile, we look forward to the glorious return of our King. And we wait for it expectantly — we speed its coming, as Peter says — when we live holy and godly lives. Living with a transparent heart is, in other words, the very best preparation for the return of our King.

“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming” (2 Peter 3:9-12a, NIV).

Jesus, my King, as I wait for your return, help me to live transparently, with holiness and godliness. Forgive me for the times when my sinful heart takes over. Wash me clean again in your blood, shed on the cross for me. I want to give you glory every day as I anticipate your coming.

Our Bible reading for Sunday, November 29, is Daniel 4:19 – 5:16, 2 Peter 3:1-18 and Psalm 135:13-21.

Header image based on "Greta Oto (wings open)" by Alias 0591, CC By 2.0

Truth Will Rise

There’s an old African saying that goes, “The truth is like a reed. You can plunge it deep into the river, but it will always rise back to the surface.”

Paul says something similar to the young pastor Timothy when he writes to encourage him to watch his life closely. We may think we are doing a good job of hiding our sins, Paul cautions, but they probably aren’t nearly as hidden as we think they are. And even when they are concealed for the present, he warns, they will eventually be brought to light.

The good news is that this characteristic of the truth works two ways. The truth about our sins will be brought to light. But so will the truth about our good deeds.

Sometimes it’s easy to see a person’s good deeds. But at other times, they are not so readily evident. Paul assures Timothy that the faithful, good things he is doing to serve his people will eventually become apparent. Good deeds may be hidden for a while, he asserts, but they will not remain hidden forever.

There’s both a caution and a confidence-boost in these words.

The caution is for us when we think we can keep our secret sins hidden. This may lull us into thinking that we can keep on sinning without remorse and we don’t really need to repent and struggle to overcome our sins. Paul urges us to think ahead to that day when our secret sins are not so secret anymore.

On the other hand, there’s a confidence-boost for us, too. No one may seem to be noticing our sincere desire to do what is right, or seeing our gospel-motivated work for the glory of God.

We may not even want or need that recognition — after all, our goal as Christians is simply to thank our Savior for his grace and forgiveness. Nevertheless, Paul wants us to know that even when our good deeds are not immediately obvious, they will at some point be recognized.

Its just like the old African saying states: The truth will always rise.

So be cautious. And be confident.

“The sins of some are obvious, reaching the place of judgment ahead of them; the sins of others trail behind them. In the same way, good deeds are obvious, and even those that are not obvious cannot remain hidden forever” (1 Timothy 5:24-25, NIV).

Lord Jesus, I am a sinner. Forgive me for my many sins. I am also a believer who sincerely desires to do what is right in your sight. Grant me grace and power to align my life to your holy will. Help me to take both warning and comfort from knowing that the truth always rises to the surface. Assist me to guard my heart and watch my life closely.

Our Bible reading for Tuesday, October 20, is Jeremiah 43:1 – 45:5, 1 Timothy 5:1 – 6:2 and Psalm 119:65-72.

Header image based on "reeds" by Naomi, CC By 2.0

Righteous, Devout and Waiting

Simeon is described by three words: righteous, devout, and waiting. And then a very important phrase follows: “…and the Holy Spirit was on him.”

This is what the Holy Spirit does. He makes us righteous by faith. He turns our heart away from sin and makes us devoted to Jesus. He causes us to wait for the Lord in faith.

In Simeon’s case, the Holy Spirit did something a little extra. He also revealed to Simeon that he would not die before seeing the birth of the Messiah.

One day, he was moved by the Spirit to go to the temple in Jerusalem. When Mary and Joseph walked in with the baby Jesus, Simeon knew this was exactly why the Spirit had motivated him to go into God’s house:

“Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying: ‘Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you may now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all nations: a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel'” (Luke 2:28-32, NIV).

What was it that this righteous man had been waiting devotedly for? What was he hoping to see?

He was hoping to see Jesus, the one who would bring comfort and peace to God’s people. He was waiting for the one who would prepare salvation for all nations.

If Simeon, a mere man, could be waiting so devotedly and so expectantly, imagine how passionately a righteous and devoted Savior waited to arrive so he could begin to carry out the plan of salvation!

Consider how passionately a righteous and devoted Savior waits — even now — for you to listen to his Spirit’s call, the way Simeon did, and come into his house.

Our Bible reading for Wednesday, March 18, is Numbers 7:1-65, Luke 2:21-40 and Psalm 35:1-10.

Header image based on "Waiting for the Word" by Hacker, CC By 2.0

Wait.

David had learned the value of inaction.

Inaction?! I know. It sounds counter to everything we believe in, doesn’t it? Almost un-American.

But for David, it was creating space for God to work. And he knew that this is often the right thing to do.

Perhaps he had learned it as a young shepherd boy. Then again, he may have discovered this truth as a man pursued by the King of Israel, Saul. David had actually already been anointed as Israel’s next king. But the problem was that Saul hadn’t vacated the throne yet. He was still very much alive. And very much the king.

So David refused to try and usurp Saul’s throne. Instead, he waited. Even when it meant that Saul would try to hunt him down and put him to death, he waited for God to act. There were several occasions when David had the opportunity to kill Saul and rid himself of the threat to his own life.

But he didn’t take action on those clear opportunities. Instead, he patiently yielded to God, confident he would act in his own way and in his own time.

How difficult that can be! But David’s faith told him that God would show his goodness in due time.

And you? Or me? We can be confident of the same thing. God is good. All the time. And he loves to show his goodness.

So… wait for it. Wait for it.

“I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord” (Psalm 27:13-14, NIV).

Lord help me to be patient, and wait for you to act. You are a powerful and loving God. Sometimes I need to not act. I just need to pause and yield to you. I desire to be strong, take heart and just wait. Fill me with your Spirit so that I can know when to do nothing and simply see with the eyes of faith that your goodness is coming.

Our Bible reading for Saturday, February 28, is Leviticus 4:1 – 5:13, Mark 10:13-31 and Psalm 27:7-14.

Header image based on "stop sign" by Autrey, CC By 2.0

Faulty Assumptions

What we’ve experienced up until now leads us to develop certain expectations about the future. The problem with this is that we might just make faulty assumptions, if they’re based solely on what we’ve learned from our own limited experience.

Some of these faulty assumptions aren’t too damaging. Others are life-threatening. But making all our assumptions about the future on what we alone have experienced in the past is foolhardy at best.

Jesus, for instance, encourages us not to assume that life will always go on the way that it does for us today. He issues a reminder that when the people of Noah’s day made that assumption, they lost sight of God. And though God was extremely patient with them, hoping they would turn away from their sin and unbelief, their faulty assumption finally cost them their lives.

“But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man” (Matthew 24:36-39, NIV).

If we can get outside the limits of our own experience, we might just begin to understand that everything we see today will one day come to an end. Then we can be prepared for Jesus’ return. Watchfulness will be the end result of that understanding.

“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come” (Matthew 24:42, NIV).

There are many ways to be “watchful” for Jesus return. Here are five types of watchfulness for us to adopt as we wait:

  • The “watchfulness” of knowing that Jesus has put things in order for us through his death and resurrection
  • The “watchfulness” of Spirit-bred faith in our hearts
  • The “watchfulness” of repentance over our sins
  • The “watchfulness” of knowing the grace and forgiveness we’ve been given
  • The “watchfulness” of joyfully, expectantly waiting for the life to come in heaven–the life that far surpasses anything we’ve experienced up till now

So be careful with your assumptions. And stay watchful, my friends.

Lord, help me to not make faulty (even deadly) assumptions. I do not want to drift from you. Keep me watchful for your return every day, realizing that I do not know when you will come to take me to heaven.

Our Bible reading for Friday, February 6, is Job 38:1 – 40:2, Matthew 24:32 – 25:13 and Psalm 18:37-42.

Header image based on "Huguenin Vintage Watch" by Sie, CC by-SA 2.0

Pain. Then A Dream. And At Last, A Reunion.

Sin divides. The separation created by our sin was painful to God.

Extremely painful.

But God had a dream for us. His desire was to see all people reunited with him. And through hundreds and hundreds of years, God never gave up on his dream that he would reunite us.

So he pursued that dream. And he shared that dream. He wanted his people to dream with him, to know to keep watch for him, expect him, and be in wonder at his coming.

God dreamed, and then he promised. He will live among us. And we will become his people.

God wants you to share his dream–and his promise–of reunion too.

“‘Shout and be glad, Daughter Zion. For I am coming, and I will live among you,’ declares the Lord. ‘Many nations will be joined with the Lord in that day and will become my people. I will live among you and you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you'” (Zechariah 2:10-11, NIV).

Our Bible reading for Friday, December 26, is Zechariah 1:1 – 3:10, Psalm 147:12-20, Proverbs 30:21-23 and Revelation 16:1-21.