DAY 263

TURN—TURN—TURN

Ecclesiastes 1, 2 & 3 and 2 Corinthians 11:16-33

Here is the general process I use for typing my blog. I read the readings in the morning. I tend to let them percolate during the day, and if I have time or a question I dig into a commentary. I then try to write my blog the evening before it is due to post.

So I just sat down to type my blog. My day today was about a 14-15 hour day. I have had a lot of these in a row. The Cathedral has a staffing shortage and someone is out ill which just magnifies the situation. My day ended with a funeral. It was a difficult one, and in general it went well.

What am I thinking about all this work? Is it all vanity? That is what the Scripture seems to say tonight. “The Preacher” as he is called, seems to say we spend our life running on a treadmill; we get nowhere. Now, is he saying we don’t achieve anything, or that all we achieve does not ultimately satisfy? He seems to say “that which you chase, that which you desire…all of it will disappoint…well almost all of it.”

Wisdom, if you think gaining it will bring great satisfaction and peace…it won’t. He says the same about self-indulgence and toil.

We then get to that well known part of Ecclesiastes that Peter Seeger wrote as a song in the 1950’s and the musical group “The Byrds” made into a song in 1962. Here is a link to a video on it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4ga_M5Zdn4

The song is inviting us to “turn” to a new season, a season of peace. The Scriptures are saying that there are seasons. I am not sure you and I can “turn the season.” Maybe we can turn our attitude, maybe with God’s Holy Spirit we can “turn back” to God. And maybe, just maybe, the point of the Book of Ecclesiastes is that turning and focusing on God is the only thing that gives lasting peace and satisfaction. (We haven’t read the entire book yet, but we should expect it to be consistent with the rest of the Bible).

Today is one of those days when if we were to run off in a direction based only on what we read today, we might quit our jobs, we might sleep really late in the morning…or more. But wait…we need to keep reading…don’t quit you day-job yet.

DAY 262

ONE SIDE OF THE STORY

Proverbs 30 & 31 and 2 Corinthians 11:1-15

Today it seems as if we are in a part of this letter to the Corinthians where we can only “hear” one-side of the conversation. Have you ever had that experience, listening to someone on the phone, even thinking you understand, but later realizing you did not have the full picture? I feel like that today. Certainly Paul and his teaching are being challenged. Paul appeals, but we do not have the full picture. For now we see Paul appealing that they hold onto the true gospel.

There are any number of places and any number of ways to “get off track” reading the Bible; to see/hear only a side of the lesson. One of the proverbs we are reading today, chapter 31, is one which has gotten people off track. It is a proverb that praises a woman for her wisdom and behavior…the problem has been it has been universally applied to all woman…as if they should somehow be “cookie-cutter” companions. Just go to Amazon or other books sellers and type in “proverbs 31 woman” and see how many books you get..I got over 3,000.

It is not that the woman described in the Bible is bad, quite the opposite. It is rather the indiscriminate application of the verses to all women. We should not do that with the Bible. We need to remember its big picture story and its big picture purpose. Its purpose is to reveal God to us…its story is a story of God’s love for us. Yes there are many places with great advice and even direction on how to live, but we must always be thinking and seeking God’s will in it all.

DAY 261

WHO ME? I’M HUMBLE, LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT IT

Proverbs 27, 28 & 29 and 2 Corinthians 10

A man’s pride will bring him low, But a humble spirit will obtain honor—29:23

What does pride look like to you? What do think you look like when you are being prideful? What situations lead to you being prideful? I could go on with the questions.

The New Testament lesson seems as if Paul is being prideful; he writes phrases such as, “For the weapons of our warfare…have divine power” and “We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion…” and “take every thought captive to the mind of Christ,” yet Paul writes, “I who am humble…”

Whenever I claim humility I realize I just lost it. I often think I can cross over from confidence to pride fairly easily…and yet false humility is no humility either. What is the “trick” as it were? Well it really is not a “trick.” The way through to humility runs straight through the Cross. Not an abstract understanding of the Cross, but a deep personal appropriation of the Cross. Let me be direct…finding the path between pride and false humility, to true humility…runs straight through knowing in our hearts that we are God’s, that anything we have is from God, and…that we need the Cross…that we know in our hearts that we fall short…so short that Jesus went to the Cross for us.

That knowledge should not depress us; rather it should keep us grounded; not getting too full of ourselves. It should also keep us upbeat because it means God loves us…a lot. So if we want to boast, we might boast that God loves us, or we might boast that Jesus died for us, or we might boast…well you get the idea. That is where Paul is coming from. He knows how he needs God, and by God’s grace he has God—or rather God has him. God has him and God has you. Stay with God; let you mind and heart and body be guided and governed by God. Live with God and the Cross deeply planted, and then you will know from which anything you accomplishes flows.

DAY 260

BROKEN DOWN WALLS

Proverbs 25 & 26 and 2 Corinthians 9

A man without self-discipline is like a city broken into and left without walls.” 25:28

You probably do not need another blog about money. The New Testament reading for today deals with giving and being cheerful about it, and some folks think the church talks too much about money. Maybe, but if that is the case, so then did Jesus, yet what caught my attention today was the proverb.

Self-discipline: if we do not speak of money we probably talk even less about self-discipline. Today we talk about how we are feeling, how we are being treated, what is fair and what is not, if we are reaching our dreams, etc. Don’t get me wrong a lot of these topics and areas are important in their own right, but so are some of the harder things in life…such as self-discipline.

We need it for all sorts of things, and quite frankly God’s Holy Spirit living inside us is the real hope to have ability to discipline ourselves – for we can do nothing apart from God.

What are the areas you need better self-discipline in? I have them, I know what they are, and yet I need to encourage myself more to work on them. I too often marginally get by, without really mastering them. The Bible today says to not master them is, in the end, to leave ourselves completely defenseless…a city without a wall was an invitation to continuous invasion from all sorts of enemies, and its future was certainly ultimate ruin.

Notice how the proverb says it happens: no self-discipline leads to being broken into to, and that in turn causes the walls to come down. It is as if lacking self-discipline in one area allows an enemy to get into your life, and then this enemy is positioned to destroy everything. What awaits those of us who lack self-discipline…ultimate ruin.

We have examples where one area destroys an entire life. Consider people who have no self-discipline with money and become so over extended they lose their homes, and more. We know of people who get caught in the cycle of alcoholic and drug addiction…it started with a lack of self-discipline. We are seeing it more and more with men and internet pornography…it is rampant and it is destroying families. No doubt you could add to this list.

That proverb today provides a very strong admonition. May God give us the grace to heed Him.

DAY 259

DO NOT WEAR YOURSELF OUT…OVER MONEY

Proverbs 22, 23 & 24 and 2 Corinthians 8

The Proverbs talk a lot about not getting caught up with wicked people and wicked things. It lists them. It tells us about adultery, and paying too much attention to food. It reminds us that being lazy is not good. It exhorts us to be honest, to not steal. And it talks a lot about money: not desiring it, not pursuing it, and not getting it in illegal ways.

Do not wear yourself out to get rich, be wise enough to desist

Money: we need it and the church needs it. Paul is bringing a monetary gift to the believers, the church, in Jerusalem. He knows however that the “kiss of death” for an evangelist is to be viewed as “doing it for money.” How many televangelists have you heard about who have fallen hard over money. But it is even more important than Paul, or anyone else’s reputation – it is about the Gospel. The Gospel is about self-giving, it is not to be self-serving.

For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.

Now you might be thinking that Paul is trying to “guilt them into giving” but I do not think that. Yes he has told them about the other church in Macedonia, and yes he has pointed out what Jesus has done for us. But let me tell you most people do not like asking for money, yet we know from experience and from the proverbs, that it can have a powerful hold on us. It takes practice to learn how to give away more than you think you should. John Wesley wrote the last “part” of a person to be converted to Jesus Christ was their wallet. It is hard and it is difficult for the church, for Paul, to ask, because he is walking that razor line of looking like he is going to benefit…he is not, just look at his life.

So today, think about where you stand with money. How generous are you? What emotions do you have when the preacher asks you to give? The reality is that does not need your money…the reality is you need to not let it have a grip on you, for if you do it will wear you out.

DAY 258

THE CRAZIER IT GETS…THE MORE THE NEED TO SLOW DOWN

Proverbs 19, 20 & 21 and 2 Corinthians 7

Desire without knowledge is not good, and whoever makes haste with his feet misses his way

Sometimes you can only focus on one verse. That is kind of where I am today. I tried writing the blog last night to have it up early as has become the norm, but it has just been a crazy week.

I read all the readings, read a commentary about the New Testament, and tried to type. I started the whole process later than normal. I even took my computer to bed thinking I could write something, anything, just to get it posted. Then I realized that was stupid. I have been rushing around all week, trying to “do it all.” During the night I vaguely remembered there was a verse about “hurrying,” but could not remember much about it…and that was the point…”whoever makes haste with his feet misses his way.”

I was missing the way. I was so busy that I had reduced my Bible reading into “checking the box,” checking it off the list, and so I had read it but barely remembered anything of it. Sometimes it is not about reading and meditating on four chapters of the Bible, sometimes it is about reading and letting God’s Holy Spirit bring you one verse to meditate on and receive…today is a one verse day for me…if you are rushing around, so down, so you do not miss your way.

DAY 257

LOSERS FOR THE GOSPEL

Proverbs 15, 16 & 17 and 2 Corinthians 6

“Better is a little with righteousness than a large income with injustice.”

“Better is a dry morsel with quiet than a house full of feasting with strife.”

Many terrific proverbs today, the two I have highlighted are rather counter-cultural; our world would view these people as losers.

As we turn into the 6^th chapter of 2^nd Corinthians three things get my attention.

First, don’t let the grace you have received be in vain. Paul is not challenging whether these folks have received the Gospel; he is challenging if they are living it! It seems to me that many of us have accepted Jesus’ love, His grace. The challenge remains to live into it…and that is not always easy.

Second, is the plea to “open wide your hearts also.” Paul has been transparent, sharing much. In Paul’s day, his admission in a letter of being beaten, etc. would not win him friends…people wanted winners not losers. Paul proclaims in many ways he has been a “loser for the Gospel!”

The third point requires a look back to the Old Testament. Paul quotes 2^nd Samuel chapter 7 which refers to the Messiah, but he makes a few changes. In the 14^th verse of 2^nd Samuel we read: “I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son.” In the 2^nd Corinthians passage we read: “I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me.” Paul is not just being inclusive…he is being intentional. First, in the Old Testament we read a very singular proclamation between God and his Son. In the New Testament we read a very plural one…God will be father to all who believe and all with be his sons and daughters. The intimacy of this is further emphasized by the Temple language. The Temple is where God dwells…and now we are God’s Temple!

Being a “loser” today is not a very popular idea; even some Christians preach that we are “winners.” We need to be careful, the culture of winning is seductive. Did the world view Jesus as a winner? “Losers for the Gospel” are people who let down their defenses which mean running the risk of getting laughed at. With our defenses down the love of God can flow in. Being “Losers for the Gospel” means letting everyone know how God has worked through your failures. Being “Losers for the Gospel” is what allows your heart to be contrite and humble…and therefore a suitable dwelling place for God.