Faith

What is faith? Have you ever really thought about that question? I’ll ask it again; what is faith? It’s a very simple question, but one that has confounded people, both scholar and layman alike. Sure, we could go to a dictionary and look it up; the Oxford dictionary defines faith as a “complete trust or confidence”, or “firm belief, esp. without logical proof”, or “spiritual apprehension of divine truth apart from proof”, but these definitions are nothing but empty phrases. Sure, all of these definitions seem to fit the context of what we think faith to be, but they are still so lacking. All three definitions of faith seem to be rather lifeless. Throughout the entire Bible, God places an immense importance on “faith”. Why would God put such an emphasis on something that is so passive, unless faith, the kind of faith that God talks about, isn’t passive at all.

Of all the stories in the Gospel about Jesus and faith, the one that has most recently jumped out at me is the story of the woman that had bled for 12 years who touched Jesus’ robe and was healed. Let’s take a look at that passage. It starts in Mark, chapter 5, verse 24 and goes to verse 34.

And a great crowd followed him and thronged about him. And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years, and who had suffered much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was no better but rather grew worse. She had heard the reports about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his garment. For she said, "If I touch even his garments, I will be made well." And immediately the flow of blood dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. And Jesus, perceiving in himself that power had gone out from him, immediately turned about in the crowd and said, "Who touched my garments?" And his disciples said to him, "You see the crowd pressing around you, and yet you say, 'Who touched me?'" And he looked around to see who had done it. But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling and fell down before him and told him the whole truth. And he said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.” -ESV

In all the recorded accounts of Jesus healing people, this is the only one in which someone was healed by Jesus without Jesus knowledge until after the fact. What makes this woman so special? Does the secret lie in who she is, or is it something she does? Let’s take a closer look at the story. In the story she touches Jesus robe and is made well, so it must have been because she touched Jesus. But wait a minute, at the beginning it says that a great crowd “thronged about him,” and later the disciples were puzzled by his question of “who touched me” because the entire crowd was pressing against Him. So it couldn’t have been just the fact that she touched him, because there were many people touching him. So if it’s not that she touched Him, could it be because of who she was? The story never does give a description of the woman other than she is afflicted with a seemingly chronic illness, so it’s probably not because of who she is that she was healed. If it’s not because she touched him, and it’s not because of who she was, than what makes this woman so special? Let’s go back into the story. At the end of the story, Jesus says, “your faith has made you well”. So here is where the faith of the woman comes in. Could it have been because of her faith that she was healed? I think that it would be very foolish to assume that she was the only one there among all the people gathered around Jesus who had faith, otherwise they wouldn’t have come from their villages to see Him. I’m sure some just came to see the famous man of Jesus, but I’ll bet a majority of the people in the crowd were there because they thought (they had faith) that he could help them in some capacity or another. So the woman is not alone in having faith in Jesus. So what could it be? Let’s imagine for a moment that everyone around Jesus had faith that he could heal them, but they thought they first needed to gain his attention so he could do something to them, or simply tell them they were healed. After all, that’s how he does it in almost every other situation. In fact, this story happens right in the middle of Jesus going to heal a sick little girl in that manner. That’s a good reason for people to be gathering in a throng around Jesus, wouldn’t you say? So everyone around Jesus is competing for Jesus’ attention, except this woman. This woman believed in her heart, she had faith, that if she even touched the garments of Jesus, she would be healed. So at risk of angering the crowd by coming in among them (women with this condition were considered to be unclean), she timidly approached Jesus, from behind, and touched his robe. It’s nothing theatric, nothing amazing or astounding, she just touched his robe, and immediately she was healed. This all happened before Jesus know what was going on. He turned around to see who it was that had tapped into his healing power without his knowledge. And he said to the woman, after she told Him what had happened, “your faith has healed you.”

So we see from this that faith is much more than what the dictionary defines it as. Faith is a belief, coupled with an action. Look back in the Bible to any place where God asks his people to be faithful, or full of faith; he asks them to believe and obey. For more on this, let’s take a jog over to the book of James. In James chapter 2 verses 14-17, James says:

What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. –ESV

James says here that faith, the kind of faith the Oxford dictionary defines, is not the fullness of faith that we need, it’s only part. For faith to have life in it, it needs to be active. As James states, to believe something and not act on it is almost like not believing. The faith that God talks about and wants from us, the kind of faith that the woman in the story had, is a faith from which works, or action, come naturally out of. That’s what made the woman in the story so special; she had faith, real faith. She believed in something so much that for her, to do what she did and for what happened to happen just came naturally. An example of this in daily life would be something like this: Say you are thirsty. You have faith that if you drink some water, you will no longer be thirsty. Do you hesitate or remain content with just that belief? No, you act on it. You drink some water, and sure enough, having drank the water, you are no longer thirsty. This is what real faith is like. Just the belief that the water would satisfy your thirst is nothing, I could believe with all my heart and strength that the water would quench me, but unless I act on it, that belief is completely useless. In the words of James, “faith without works is dead,” or faith without works is not real faith.

I now take this discovery that we’ve made, and I turn it back at myself, and I hope that you can turn it back at yourself as well. Do I have real faith, or do I have dictionary faith? Does what I believe show up in my life, or is what I believe only that, what I believe and nothing more. I urge you to think about that. I’ll leave you with this question, if what you believe doesn’t change how you live, is that really what you believe?

The Parable of the Sower

Matthew 13:1-9

July 1, 2006

That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. Then he told them many things in parables, saying: "A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. He who has ears, let him hear."

Reading over this parable, and thinking about what it means, I’ve come up with some thoughts that I’d like to share. The first thing that needs to be understood is the interpretation of the parable. The second thing is some application of the interpretation. I will attempt to walk you through each of these as we go along through the parable.

In the story Jesus likens us to farmers scattering seed on his land. He explains that some of the seed falls on various types of bad soil, and some falls on good soil. The first point I’d like to make here is that the farmer in this story doesn’t seek out just the good soil; he scatters seed on ALL of the soil. It seems that sometimes Christians that are trying to spread the good news, seek out those people or those groups that they think would be most receptive to the Gospel, when in fact in spreading the word, we need to spread it everywhere we are, not just when and where think it will be well met. The simple fact is that however good we think we are at judging character, we can never know if someone is ready to receive the word or not, our job is just to put it out there. As Pastor Bob Flak of Grace Baptist Church in Manhattan, Kansas put it, we are called to be scatterers of seed, not judgers of soil.

Jesus goes on to say that some of the seed falls on the path where the birds immediately come and snatch it up. He later likens this to when the word falls upon someone, and Satan right away snatches it up from them, not letting it sit for a moment. Those of us who have been made new in Christ and are possibly established Christians can sit atop our pedestal and look at this part of the parable and say, “that doesn’t apply to me, I’ve accepted the word into my heart already.” While that might be true, not everything that God tells us is met with acceptance, or even understanding. As long as we remain in this fallen world, even an established and mature Christian will have patches of path where it is easy for Satan to snatch the word out from our hearts.

Jesus continues by saying that some of the seed falls on rocky ground, where the seed can sprout and grow up very fast, but once the sun comes out and gives its mid-day heat, the plant of the seed is scorched and withers away under the strain. He compares this to a person who is eager and very willing to accept the word and grows as much and as fast as he can, but doesn’t have the proper foundation so that when persecutions come, he is quick to give in and fall away. While an established and mature Christian will likely be fairly resistant to such a folly, we do need to be careful that we don’t let certain areas of our growth be on rocky ground, but cultivate every piece of ground with which we accept the word. We also need to be caution not to inspire or encourage such reckless and shortsighted growth in other, newer Christians who would be more susceptible to such an episode.

He continues the parable by talking about the seed that sprouts among thorns and grows, but is choked out and rendered useless by the surrounding foliage. He says that this is like the one who hears the word, but because of his environment or some other variable in his life, the word is not allowed to bear fruit because there is something hindering it or stealing what it needs to grow strong. Now while most Christians that take their call seriously will be careful to stay away from situations that obviously will hinder their growth in the word, there are some things that are not so obvious that can produce thorns in our life in small patches. I will be the first to admit that I most definitely have some thorns in my life that are restricting me from being what I am capable of being in Christ Jesus. I’m trying to rid myself of these thorns, but underneath each patch of thorns, is a finer, more deeply imbedded patch of thorn laying in wait. The simple fact is that as fallen creatures, the deeper we dig inside ourselves, the more thorns we will find. It doesn’t get better until we are made anew with Christ in our glorified bodies. My point throughout these three types of bad soil has been that no matter how “good” of a Christian you are or you think you are, each one of us has a little of this bad soil still left in us. Part of the Christian walk is the lifelong struggle against these soils, and only through the power and grace of Christ can we overcome in the end.

Lastly, Jesus talks about the forth type of soil, soil that is deep and rich, and accepts the seed and allows it to grow tall, put down deep roots, and produce lots of fruit. This soil is the soil that the word found in you if you are now fallowing Christ with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. But even though this soil is good, and the seed can take root and sprout and grow strong and healthy, there are several things that can hinder the growth of the word even when it finds good soil.

The Japanese art of bonsai is the art of training a tree to become a miniature of its full size relatives. To train a tree to grow normally but significantly smaller in size, one has to restrict its growth and prune it in the proper place at the proper time, it’s very tedious. This same thing can happen to the word. If Satan can get into your life and restrict the growth of the word inside you, he will take full advantage. Through things such as anxiety, fear, or failure, the enemy can cut off our branches that we try to put out. If we allow Satan to enter our lives and control us through these things, he will tediously prune us and train us to be only a fraction of the Christian that we are capable of being. Another thing that is needed for the making of a bonsai tree is a small pot in which to grow the tree. If the tree had a great deal of soil to spread its roots down into, it naturally grows big. But if the tree has a very limited amount of soil to sink its roots into, it will grow only as far as its root system will let it. If we are put into a situation in which we are given the freedom to grow however much and as big as we want, we will grow, and we will get stronger. But if we are put into a situation in which our resources for growth, or the space in which we are able to grow in is limited, than we will only grow as far as our pot will let us. This could be the case in a situation where the word finds good soil in a person, but that good soil is in the middle of rocky crags. The word will grow and sink it’s roots down into the good soil, but the rocky ground around it will prevent the word from spreading further into the person‘s life. The person needs to cultivate that rocky ground, and make it more accommodating to the word so that the word can take hold in that part of the person’s life. This process goes on in everyone that receives the word, and if it doesn’t, growth does not happen and the result is a bonsai Christian.

The Call of the Wild
Written by Robert Service

Have you gazed on naked grandeur
where there’s nothing else to gaze on,
Set pieces and drop curtain scenes galore,
Big mountains heaved to heaven, which the blinding sunsets blazon,
Black canyons where the rapids rip and roar?
Have you swept the visioned valley
with the green stream streaking thought it,
Searched the vastness for a something you have lost?
Have you strung your soul to silence?
Then for God’s sake go and do it;
Hear the challenge, learn the lesson, pay the cost.

Have you wandered in the wilderness, the sagebrush desolation,
The bunch-grass levels where the cattle graze?
Have you whistled bits of rag-time at the end of all creation,
And learned to know that deserts little ways?
Have you camped upon the foothills,
have you galloped o’er the ranges,
Have you roamed the arid sun-lands through and through?
Have you chummed up with the mesa?
Do you know its moods and changes?
Then listen to the Wild – it’s calling you.

Have you known the Great White Silence,
not a snow-gemmed twig aquiver?
(Eternal truths that shame our soothing lies)
Have you broken trail on snowshoes? Mushed your huskies up the river,
Dared the unknown, led the way, and clutched the prize?
Have you marked the map’s void spaces, mingled with the mongrel races,
Felt the savage strength of brute in every thew?
And though grim as hell the worst is,
can you round it off with curses?
Then hearken to the Wild – its wanting you.

Have you suffered, starved and triumphed,
groveled down, yet grasped at glory,
Grown bigger in the bigness of the whole?
“Done things” just for the doing, letting babblers tell the story,
Seeing through the nice veneer the naked soul?
Have you seen God in His splendors,
heard the text that nature renders?
(You’ll never hear it in the family pew).
The simple things, the true things, the silent men who do things –
Then listen to the Wild – its calling you.

They have cradled you in custom,
they have primed you with their teaching,
They have soaked you in convention through and through;
They have put you in a showcase; you’re a credit to their teaching –
But can’t you hear the Wild? – it’s calling you.
Let us probe the silent places, let us seek what luck betide us;
Let us journey to a lonely land I know.
There’s a whisper on the night-wind,
there’s a star agleam to guide us,
And the Wild is calling, calling… let us go.

Take the Gift

I heard an interesting, and oddly humorous story the other day. My cousin and his wife have a little girl, maybe 3 or 4 years old, somewhere around there, and she has taken a liking to toy wooden trains. My cousin and his wife took their little daughter to the store because they wanted to buy her a toy train that she could take home and play with when ever she wanted to. They wanted to give her this gift, so they went to the store so she could pick one out for them to buy for her. Like any good toy store, there was one of these wooden toy train sets set up in the middle of the store for the children to play with. Well, as a child naturally does, when she saw the train set all set up and ready to play with, she immediately went over to it and began playing with the train. This is a child being a child, naturally, but the story continues. The reason, of course, that they were at the store was so that she could pick out a train set for her parents to buy so that she could have a train set of her own that she could play with at home. Her parents told her that she needed to pick out the train set that she wanted. She continued to play with the train set that was in the store. They told her once again, “darling, come and pick out a toy train set so that we can go back home.” She continued to play with the set in the store. They told her several more times. They even told her that they were only going to stay for 5 more minutes and then they were going to leave. She continued to play in the middle of the store. When the time came for them to leave, they took her by the hand and said to her, we are going home now. And as expected, she answered with the complaint, “but I haven’t picked out a train yet!” They explained to her that she had ample time to pick out a train set, but she didn’t do so even after repeated instruction.

This story is a true story, it really did happen. This story is also a true story in the sense that it is happening to people all around me, and even inside me everyday. In this story can be found a chilling parallel to what we as children of God are doing with our lives that God has given us. We can draw a parallel between the toy train store and this life that we live. We can draw a parallel between the parents of the little girl and our real Father, God that is, the creator of the universe and everything in it. We can draw a parallel between the toy train in the store and the pleasures of this world and the toy train that the little girl was given a chance to pick out and the joy of knowing and following Jesus Christ. We can draw a parallel between the point at which the parents told the little girl it was time to go and the point at which our Father will tell us that our time in this world, in this life is up.

Let’s start with the parallel of the toy store and this life that you and I are living right now as well as the parallel of the parents of the little girl and God. The little girl was given a specific amount of time to choose one thing that would make her happy after her time at the store. Her parents graciously gave her an opportunity to possess something great (at least in her point of view). In a similar fashion, God, our Father, our real parent, has given us a finite amount of time to choose to possess something that will make us infinitely happy after our time here is over. He graciously (I say graciously because we are very undeserving of this gift) gave us an opportunity to choose Jesus Christ as our Lord, as our savior, and choose to follow Him.

Now, let’s take a closer look at the parallel between the toy train and Jesus Christ. First of all, let’s look at what the little girl did. Instead of picking out what her parents wanted to give her, she sat in the middle of the store and played with the train set that was already set up in the store, neglecting to pick one out to take with her. So, as we look at this as it relates to our situation, we so often concentrate on the pleasures of this world, food, entertainment, money (that’s a big one), sex, even religion, and we forget the gift that has been laid before us. We get so wrapped up in the enjoyment of the here and now that we loose perspective on what is to come. We focus on what can make us happy right now and we loose sight of the state that we will be in when our time is up. We sit and play in the middle of the store, when the perfect train set is all around us on the shelf, waiting for us to pick it up and make it our own. We live in what is set directly before us and ignore what is promised us. I have to say here, that I am guilty of this. I so often get wrapped up in the here and now that I sometimes loose sight of what I’m doing here. It’s very easy to do.

Let’s take a look now at the parallel of the point at which the little girl’s parents tell her it’s time to go and the point at which God tells us that it’s time to go. When the little girl learns that she now must leave without having picked out a toy train of her own, she protests, saying, “But you promised me a train!” The parents respond to this objection with the reply, “We gave you time, instruction, multiple warnings that we were going to leave, and even let you play with the store’s train for a while, but you didn’t pick out yours. You don’t have one now, not because we didn’t give it to you, but because you didn’t take it.” In much the same way, many, many people come to the end of their lives on earth and say, “But you promised me Jesus!” And God, Jesus, will reply with, “I gave you plenty of time, I told you where to find me, I told you that your time was limited, I put signs all around you and told you that you would have to leave this world soon, and I even let you enjoy the things of this world for a while. You now don’t have me, not because I have denied you of me, but because you did not take me. I presented myself to you, and you simply weren’t interested.” We protest, but when the end comes, when our time has run out, it is too late to go back and choose to accept and follow Christ. When our time has run out, we see how our choices during our time in this store we call life have effected our time away from the store. If we have chosen to accept the gift that we have been presented with, we will enjoy the fullness of that gift for eternity, but if we don’t take that gift, we will not only be without that gift for eternity, but what pleasures we did have when we were in this life, we will be without as well (Matthew 25:29, Luke 19:26).

So here is what we are left with: We are presented with a gift, a beautiful and gracious gift; we can either choose to ignore that gift and play with the things that are immediately before us, or we can deny ourselves some of the momentary pleasures that the store, our life in this world, has to offer in order to choose to possess this gift, which is God himself. God is offering us a relationship with himself. All we have to do is take it, to leave our short-sighted pleasure seeking and take the time to make this gift our own to enjoy forevermore. I ask you, I implore you, I beg you, take the gift. Take what has been promised you. Stop playing with the stuff in the store and let your Father give you something that will last beyond the store. Let God give you himself, the only thing that you can take with you when you leave.

Easter

A Letter

Walking around campus this Thursday, the Thursday before Good Friday, I am noticing signs and reminders everywhere that Easter is coming. After a days worth of looking at all these signs and listening to what the radio people have to say, I notice something that I find dispiriting. In all the recognition and anticipation of Easter weekend, there is no mention of its religious significance or of any religious connection at all, other than the various complaints that the Easter church services start too early. “It’s Sunday for Christ’s sake” I even heard someone say (this was said as a curse, not a dedication). The significance and the true meaning of Easter, it seems, has been misplaced among society in general. Now I’m not saying that nobody knows what it’s about, I’m not saying that you don’t know what it’s about, I’m just reacting to the erroneous identity that Easter seems to have taken on. It’s almost as if society (not individuals) has forgotten what Easter even is. For example, at the dining center at KSU, they would not allow a Christmas tree because of its religious significance, but an Easter tree is permissible. That implies that Easter has no religious significance, which is about as far from the truth as one can get.

Friends, Easter is not a time for relaxing, or gathering with family, or seeing old friends, looking for colored eggs (I have no idea where that one came from), or a reason why you have to wake up on Sunday morning to go to church, or eat candy, or spoil grandchildren, or have barbeques. Easter is a time to think about what Jesus Christ, the Lord and savior to all, the son of God, did for us. It is a time to ponder the sacrifice that he made on our behalf. Yes, in doing this, you might gather together with family, you might see old friends, you might have a barbeque, but all these things, every one of them, should have one unifying focus behind them. All these things should be done in honor and in remembrance of the unimaginable sacrifice of Jesus. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, chose to die on a cross so that you and I could experience what it means to know the Almighty Creator of everything, the one true God as He did; as Father. Jesus submitted himself to beatings, severe beatings. His appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any man and his form marred beyond human likeness (Isaiah 52:14). He wore a crown of thorns on his head, he was nailed, nailed to a cross and left to die for the guilt that he did not earn, but that we did. He suffered and died to free us from the condemnation that we heap upon ourselves, so that we could be made pure through Him. And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross (Colossians 2:13-14). This is what Easter is: Christ’s death and resurrection. There is no other meaning of the holiday. Take this, think about it as you move through the festivities of the weekend. Think about why you are doing what you are doing. Think about Jesus and what He’s done. I wish you all the very best this Easter. May God bless you and all your loved ones.

In Christ I stand,

Henry

The Ultimate Sacrifice

A Journal Entry April 12, 2006

Sitting in Radina’s coffee house, I’m listening to David Crowder’s Illuminate album while looking through the gospels. I’m trying to find the part where Mary, the sister of Martha, wipes Jesus’ feet with her hair. The song “Only You” starts to play and I start to think about Jesus as a person and what he has done for me. Jesus was a man, a real living man. He built relationships, He offended people, He loved people, He was loved by many people. He slept, He ate, He drank, He laughed, He cried; He was a real man. He felt pain, He felt Happiness, joy, grief, sorrow, anger. This man that was born was a mother’s son, a father’s joy, and a brother to his siblings. He had a family that grew up with him. He had very, very deep ties with numerous people on earth. He drew people in to himself and they loved him like you or I love a close friend. All this, the joy that comes with all that I’ve described, he gave up so that I could come into the presence of God. He gave up his life, not only the biological functions of his body, but the social ties, the relationships that you and I would define our lives by, His LIFE. He gave up his LIFE for me; for you. He left all of it behind so that you and I could know what he knew: God as father. How do we honor such a sacrifice? Some of us go to church every Sunday. Some of us give a portion of our money to the work of God. Some of us even study the Bible. But I ask you, are all those things worthy of such a great sacrifice. Is Jesus’ sacrifice reflected in how we respond to it? I would argue no, it doesn’t. But in all fairness, His sacrifice is so great, so immeasurable that no one can reflect what it means properly. But that doesn’t mean we can’t try. He gave up His life for us, and what he asked in return is that we follow him and do the same. To honor the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, we need to pick up our own cross and give our lives to God so that others might know the joy that we possess: God as father. Jesus gave his life, everything that he was so that we could know his joy. What will we do with it? Will we sit contently and inactive, or will we pass it on?

Prayer

Coming up in a few days, I will have the opportunity to take the rains of the Bible study that I am a part of and teach about prayer. I’ve spent some time looking and digging in the Word of God for some material that I can draw from, and have asked God for wisdom. After a time of doing this, the following is what I am left with: Prayer is a vital part of a Christian’s life, or rather, a vital part of a Christian. It is our soul means by which we communicate with God, our life line in this fallen world we live in. Without prayer, we have no interaction with God, and with no interaction with God, we are left with only the power of our own body and our own will to accomplish that which we are called to: glorifying God. Simple Christian theology says that we (humans, mortals, fallen man) can do nothing apart from God, which includes glorifying Him. So, from that we can conclude that we need to pray, it is the soul means by which we will be able to fulfill the purpose which we were created for. Prayer; we need it, but what is it and how and when do we do it, that’s the question.

First of all, let’s establish what prayer is. The Oxford Dictionary defines prayer as “A solemn request or thanksgiving to God or an object of worship” or “An entreaty to a person.” Some other words for prayer are intercession, petition, supplication, request, plea, and appeal. This definition pretty accurately describes what prayer is. Prayer is a means by which we can ask God for what we need, thank God for what we’ve been given, or intercede with God on another’s behalf. Furthermore, prayer is a very powerful tool that God has given us. James states this in James 5:16, therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. In Mark chapter 9 verses 14-29, Mark describes an incident of demon possession in which the disciples cannot drive out the demon, and Jesus comes and drive away the evil spirit and says in verse 29 And he said to them, "This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer,” so we see here that prayer is sometimes the only thing we can do. Prayer is our line of communication with God, and more than that, it is a very powerful tool that God has given us to battle the forces of evil that are set against us. We know that we need prayer, we know what prayer is, but how do we go about praying?

To answer this question, we need to turn to one of God’s lines of communication with us, His Word. The Bible has a few things to say about how to pray. 1 Timothy Chapter 2:1 says First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings, (all different kinds of prayer) be made for all people. From this we know that we should be praying for not just a select few people, or our favorite people, but all people. In Philippians 4:6 it says do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. From these verses we can extrapolate who we should pray for (ourselves and others), but we are still left with the question of how to pray. In Luke 11:2-4, Jesus tells his disciples how to pray: And he said to them, "When you pray, say: "Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread, and forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation. This is expanded upon in Matthew 6:7-13, where He says, and when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. Pray then like this: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Here, we see clearly that Jesus gave us a cut and dry form for praying. He even says in Mark When you pray, say…. So we now know how to pray. Now to add something on here that I think needs to be said; this form is just that a form. It is good recited by itself, but it can also be a template for more specific prayers. In using this form as a template, follow the form with your prayer about whatever it is that you are praying about. For example, if you have a relative that is sick and needs your prayers, using the form of the Lord’s Prayer, you might pray:

“Heavenly father, in all this may your name be exalted above all and your glory be shown through this trial. Accomplish your will in this situation and give so-and-so wisdom to discern your will in all of this. Please provide or continue to provide for so-and-so what he/she needs. Forgive so-and-so, for we all are sinners and give so-and-so the grace to forgive those that he/she may have grievances with. Keep so-and-so’s heart focused on you and give him/her reprieve from the evil that surrounds him/her. In all this may your name be made known.”

The above prayer uses the Lord’s Prayer for a guide. Using the Lord’s Prayer as a matrix to lay your own prayer into gives a template to form an effective prayer for any situation, even the ones in which we don’t know how to pray, or what to pray for. A prayer, as was mentioned earlier, can also be a plea or a cry, meaning that the form of the Lord’s Prayer is not requisite of a prayer. In Matthew 26, we see Jesus in Gethsemane praying to God: Matthew 26:39 and going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” This prayer does not follow the form of the Lord’s Prayer, but rather is a cry or a plea straight from the heart of Jesus. We can cry out from our heart, make a plea to God from the depths of our being and it too can be an effective prayer. But in all this, we also have a warning concerning prayer. Matthew 6:5-6 and when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. Do not, this passage says, pray in order to display your righteousness, but rather when you pray, make your prayers between you and God alone. When you stop to think about it, when you pray in order to display your righteousness you are not really asking for what you are praying about, you are asking for others to be impressed by your righteousness. But when you pray just between you and God, there can be only one thing your asking, and that is what you are praying for. Can you pray to God outside of solitude and really mean it? It’s possible, but if you are alone, it’s hard to question a pure motive. Jesus also tells us that to pray in pretence, or to pray in order that you yourself might be glorified by others, will heap upon yourself condemnation (Mark 12:38-40). With all of this, we’ve answer the question of how to pray, how NOT to pray, and even where to pray, but the question of when to pray is still left unanswered.

This question is a very simple question because it has a very simple answer. Let’s start by looking at the apostle Paul. In Paul’s second letter to Timothy, he begins with a reflection of how he himself prays when he says I thank God whom I serve, as did my ancestors, with a clear conscience, as I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day in 2 Timothy 1:3. When does Paul pray? Both day and night. In Paul’s magnum-opus of theological revelation, his letter to the Romans, he talks about in chapter 12 verses 9-13, the marks of a true Christian. In verse 12 he lists Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. From this verse, we can conclude that a Christian is to pray when: Constantly. Paul brings this up in other letters as well. Ephesians 6:18: praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints. Colossians 4:2: Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. So, the answer to the question of when do we pray is constantly, continuously, without ceasing.

Prayer is the very life-force that should drive a Christian; therefore naturally, a Christian should have an insatiable hunger for prayer. Prayer should be to a Christian what water is to a fish. Prayer is very important, and if you find yourself at a point in which you do not desire prayer, I would urge you to step back and examine what you are trying to draw your life-force from if not from prayer. Prayer is what drives us, it’s what sustains us. It is prayer that lets us do Gods work, and it is prayer, that if left undone, will prevent us from living the life we were created to live.

The Whole Armor of God

Ephesians 6:10-18 – The Whole Armor of God

¹⁰Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. ¹¹Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. ¹²For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. ¹³Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. ¹⁴Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, ¹⁵and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. ¹⁶In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; ¹⁷and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, ¹⁸praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints,

Let’s take a look at the whole armor of God, piece by piece, shall we. First of the pieces mentioned is the belt of truth. The belt of truth, I believe, refers to the truth that is God and Jesus Christ, apart from whom there is no truth. This might also be said as the belt of the knowledge of truth. It is this truth that gives birth to all the rest of the pieces, therefore is central to the whole armor of God. Next is the breast plate of righteousness. In a suit of armor, the breast plate is a large piece of metal or some other hard material that protects the torso, where most of the body’s vital organs are held. Just as a physical breastplate would protect the vitals of a person’s physique, a breastplate of righteousness protects one’s spirit from harm. For example, a physical breastplate would prevent such injuries as a sword penetrating a lung, because the sword wouldn’t be able even to penetrate the skin, much less get to the lung; similarly, a breastplate of righteousness will protect from such spiritual injuries as falling into a life of sin, for in a state of righteousness, sin is not only undesirable, but for the righteous, by definition, it is impossible. I would now like to note that up until now, all the armor has been passive armor, meaning that in order for it to do its job, one need only to wear it. The rest of the armor, with one exception, is active armor, meaning that simply wearing will do you almost no good. For active armor to work, one must use it. That being said, the next piece of armor is the shoes of readiness, or the “readiness given by the gospel of peace.” They, like any other shoe, will do nothing if by themselves. The person wearing them must put forth effort in order for them to do what they were designed to do. Like physical shoes were meant to protect and aid in propulsion (walking, running, jumping, etc.), the shoes of readiness, or the gospel, will aid in one’s spiritual movement. While we are moving spiritually this way or that, there will be some stumbling blocks in the way put there by the enemy, and in those situations, the gospel, the shoes of readiness, provide protection so that our spirit is not damaged and allows us to traverse over such obstacles. As was previously stated, the shoes of readiness are of no use unless use is made of them. Next in the list of armor is a vital piece of the suit, the shield of faith. The shield of faith is a very powerful piece of armor, for it is able to “extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one”. If you’ve ever seen a shield that goes with a suit of armor, they’re usually not big enough to protect the whole person at once. There is a good reason for this. If the shield were big enough to protect the entire body at all times, one, it would eliminate the need for the suit of armor, but more importantly two, it would not be easily toted; the user would be relatively immobile, that’s a bad thing for a soldier. Because it is, relative to the user, small in size, it must be correctly used to be effective. For a physical shield to be effectively used, one must put it between themselves and the incoming threat. Similarly, for the shield of faith to be used effectively, one must focus their faith toward incoming threats, or flaming darts, so that in faith, one will be able to stand against whatever opposition he is facing. Like the shoes, for the shield to be effective, it must be used. The next element of the whole armor of God is the helmet of salvation. I mentioned an exception early to the last pieces being active armor, this is it. Like a physical helmet, one need only to sport it to be protected by it. The helmet of salvation protects that which matters most, the soul. A physical helmet protects the head, in which the brain, which controls everything that the body does, resides, likewise, the helmet of salvation protects the soul, which ultimately dictates what the spirit does, or at least is the essence of the spirit. This piece of armor is very important. The next and final piece is the only offensive piece of the entire suit: “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” To take a closer look at this piece, we must go to a different passage. In Hebrews 4:12, the author states “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” So from this we can conclude that the sword of the spirit, or the word of God is a very powerful piece of the armor, and in fact, a weapon, but like the shoes and the shield, for any sword to be effective, it must be wielded, and wielded correctly. As a side note, I feel I need to mention that just like a physical sword, the sword of the spirit can be incorrectly wielded, at which point it has the potential to become very dangerous.

We have now detailed the whole armor of God, what do we do with it now? We can put in on, and we can even know how to use it, but, like a physical suit of armor, there is no need for it if one is not engaged in battle. Therefore, Paul goes on to say, “praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints.” This denotes that to pray is to engage in battle, which in turn gives way to the term ‘prayer warrior’. To be a prayer warrior is to pray constantly, or close to it. To pray is the way in which we engage the enemy, we petition God to act. In the face engagement, the enemy responds in kind, fighting back, hence the need for spiritual armor. Are you a warrior for God; are you part of God’s army?

Take a look for a moment the life of Christ Jesus. It is recorded that he prayed more than he did anything else, possibly even sleep. Jesus was most definitely a spiritual warrior. That being said, do you follow Christ? Do you follow the teachings and life of the one and only spiritual Rambo? Isn’t that what a Christian is, a follower of Christ and his teachings? Are you a Christian? Really think about that question. Are you trying to emulate the character that Jesus had? Are you trying to grow closer to God though the disciplines and avenues that Christ presented? Do you have aspirations to be a prayer warrior? When it comes down to it, you are either trying to follow Christ, or you are not, there is not middle ground. I’ll ask the question again: Are you a Christian?

John 6:35-40

A Journal Entry 3/13/06

³⁵Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty. ³⁶But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe. ³⁷All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. ³⁸For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. ³⁹And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all that he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. ⁴⁰For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day."

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Before this passage, Jesus is telling the people that are following Him that they need to seek bread that lasts for eternal life, not bread that spoils (this is after he has fed the 5,000). He takes them (through what He says to them) to a point of wanting, or feeling a need for this bread of eternal satisfaction, and then starts with John 6:35-40. Here He says He is this bread He speaks of (35), but they can’t have it because they have not believed in Him, even though he’s been there in front of them (36). He goes on to say that all that the Father gives to Him will come to Him (37), meaning He will not go and get people to follow him, but as the term follow implies, all who follow Him will do so on their own, having been called, or nudged by God (the Father). He goes further to say that He has not come to do His will but the Father’s will and the Father’s will is to “lose none of all the Father has given Him, but raise them up at the last day” and they shall have eternal life (38-40).

So, in short, Jesus tells the people they need this bread, which is Him, but they can’t have it, because they do not believe, and the only way they can believe is by the power of God’s calling. But to those who do believe, Jesus will receive them and will never let them go or turn them away, and even more than that, they will have eternal life!

On A Leash

A Journal Entry – March 8, 2006

The other day I was sitting outside Willard Hall, taking a break from some homework, and there was, in the quad sitting by a tree, a young man, a student I’m assuming, with his little floppy-eared dog. It looked like a beagle. This little dog was walking and sniffing around and occasionally scampering about. He was on a leash, so he could only go so far before he was hindered, restricted, or otherwise prevented from going further. The other end of this leash was held by the young man. The dog looked like he wanted to play, but the young man was just sitting there, not interested in playing with his dog. Pretty soon, a family came by, a mother, a father, a small boy about 10 or 11, and a little girl maybe 4 or 5. The dog saw and heard them as they came by. They didn’t stop to pet the dog, or even pay attention to it really, but I could tell the dog was very happy to see little children. It ran toward them like it wanted to play with them, but before it could reach them, the leash ran out of slack, and the dog was prevented from going any further. After the children were out of sight, the little floppy-eared dog ran toward the young man he was attached to and tried to get him to play but to no avail. He settled down and went back to walking and sniffing around, and then some skater guys came by on roller skates and skateboards. They stopped and petted the little dog and gave him some of the attention that he was yearning for. But they were only there for less than a minute and then they went on their way. The little dog ran after them as if he wanted to go with them, but his leash once again thwarted his efforts. After he settled down again, he just sat there in the grass, near the end of his leash but no longer straining against it, seemingly content in where he was and what he was doing.

If we compare ourselves to the floppy-eared dog, the world to the young man the dog was attached to, and the passers by to God, or Jesus, we can draw some similarities to our lives. We are now in the world. We are born attached firmly to the world, it’s what we know, it’s what we see, it’s all we’ve experienced. As we get older, we see things from outside of the world pass by, specifically God. As we see, we yearn to be with Him and to know more about him, and we chase after Him, but inevitably our connection to the world prevents us from truly following Him. He might stop for a time and entertain our desires for a little while, but when He leaves, we again attempt to follow, but our tether to the world keeps us from Him. So we sit where we are with the knowledge that there are better things out there than what we have, pretending to be content. We desire God, but we don’t have a way to free ourselves from the world. Jesus provides a way to cut that leash and free us to pursue God fully and to enjoy the freedom of being un-tethered by the World. Do you have a leash? Jesus can set you free.

Fellow men of Christ

A journal entry by Henry Bartel

09/17/2005

After getting back from Burly Man and watching the movie “Gladiator”, I am convinced that God has bigger plans for us than what we are currently engaged in. We as men have so much potential to do great things, to overcome truly awesome obstacles, and most men of the world, let alone of the Christian faith, waste that potential sitting in an office, or pursuing after money or women or any number of other frivolous passions. A man has a much greater capacity for endurance, for pain, for commitment, for loyalty, for LIFE, than I think most of us, including me, realize. At Burly Man, we had two guys break their noses, and several other injuries, but none of which, by any means, incapacitated them. In the movie Gladiator, Maximus had such a drive for justice that he overcame injuries much worse than a broken nose. If we as men turn to God for our strength, for our drive, than we can overcome anything. We are throwing our potential to the wind, achieving much less than we are capable, and I think it stems not from a lack of ability, but from a lack of courage. And that lack of courage I believe comes from a lack of passion. Football players, wrestlers, soldiers, warriors, gladiators all have something in common; they reach their goals with passion. They are able to face up and conquer against ANY odds because they have a passion to achieve. If we as Christian men capture the passion that comes from knowing who we live for, how much we can achieve with Him at our side, and how great the loss if we fall to defeat, we will be an undeniable force, such that the world has never seen. David and his army in the Old Testament were a group by this description. Joshua and the Israelites were a group by this description. They conquered the world with a sword in their hand and the one true God at their side. As an army of Christians we can conquer the world with an open hand and the love and power of Christ in our hearts. In the same way David and Joshua captured their world by the power of the Almighty God, we can subdue ours with the sacrificial love of Christ. What David showed through Goliath and Christ showed at Calvary, we can show by picking up our cross and sacrificing all for the Spreading of God’s kingdom. Make no mistake, to take up your cross is not to endure the daily duties of Christian life with a smile and a glad heart. No, to take up the cross is to sacrifice everything, to put others before yourself, to literally consider yourself and your concerns second to the salvation of others. If you think you are following Christ, and you can’t put your finger on the way in which you sacrifice all, you give up everything, you put others before your own comfort and wellbeing, I would suggest you take another look at who it is you’re really living for. Fellow men of Christ, to be Christian, to live for the glory of God is not glorious or spectacular. To live for the glory of God, for Christ, is to be humble; it’s dirty, it’s painful, it’s HARD! If your Christian walk is easy, stop and take a look at the life of Christ and try again.

Glorious Reflectors

Journal Entry

Between Jacksonville and Chicago

June 16^th (STP/flight home)

As I am thousands of feet in the air, I am looking out my tiny window toward the ground at all of God’s creation below me. It’s about 6:20 in the evening and the sun is very bright. As I look down, I can see a hint of movement which is cars on the highway below me. I keep watching them as they move like tiny ants on the ground, and when the sun hits them just right it reflects back up to me in the plain and that tiny, almost unperceivable car becomes a point of light resembling a star in the sky. I see this and the theme verse from STP comes to mind (2 Chronicles 16:9a) which says “For the eyes of the Lord range [search] throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.” There are billions of little tiny ants (people) moving around in His great creation, tiny ants that are almost unperceivable. That’s what God is moving his eyes over looking to and fro for someone to strengthen. BILLIONS! I’m not saying that’s too big for God; I’m just saying it sounds like a daunting task. So, if you were looking at billions of… anything, trying to find a few that you would like to help or do something with, you wouldn’t just pick at random would you? No, you would watch for something to catch your eye. If we get in God’s light and position our hearts to align with His, than we will reflect His glory right back to Him, catching his ever watchful eye. We will become a light in darkness like a star in the night sky. We will reflect God’s light back to God, showing Him that we are able to reflect His glory. So seeking to strengthen us, he gives us more facets with which to reflect His glory not only back to him but to the world around us as well. The more brightly we shine (reflect) the greater capacity God will give us to shine. But it all starts with a simple reflection, or recognition of God’s glory and grace, that’s it. It all starts with a simple glimmer in God’s eye. Where is your mirror pointed; will God find you?

SHORT CHANGED

When I help a passer by

Through lending them a hand,

They go on, not looking back,

Leaving me to stand.

When I give to those in need

To ease their worldly plight,

They take my gift with no reply

As if it was their right.

When I do the Christian thing

And turn the other cheek,

My aggressors take it on

Themselves to make me weep.

When I try to follow Christ

By never telling lies,

The world decides to hit me hard

Right between the eyes.

Because these deeds I do for good

Result in dismal pains,

I should look at life and feel

As though I’ve been short changed.

Then I think of Christ my Lord

And look back on His life;

Because of all He suffered through

I cannot speak of strife.

He did just this much for me;

This much and so much more.

He cried for me, He died for me,

He wore my crown of thorns.

He bore my yoke to Calvary

Upon His fragile frame.

Then He hung upon my cross

Where He then took my blame.

Now I’m here in front of Him

Down upon my knees,

Saying, “Jesus, Lord, here I am,

Do with me what you please.”

Jesus and the Passover Lamb

Journal Entry

June 5^th, 2005 – Sunday

Jacksonville, FL (STP)

Scripture references:

Luke 24: 13-35

Exodus 12:1-6

Exodus 12:1-6

The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, "This month shall be for you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year for you. Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month every man shall take a lamb according to their fathers' houses, a lamb for a household. And if the household is too small for a lamb, then he and his nearest neighbor shall take according to the number of persons; according to what each can eat you shall make your count for the lamb. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats, and you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month, when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs at twilight.

Luke 24:13-35

That very day two of them were going to a village named Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, and they were talking with each other about all these things that had happened. While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. But their eyes were kept from recognizing him. And he said to them, "What is this conversation that you are holding with each other as you walk?" And they stood still, looking sad. Then one of them, named Cleopas, answered him, "Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?" And he said to them, "What things?" And they said to him, "Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, a man who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death, and crucified him. But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things happened. Moreover, some women of our company amazed us. They were at the tomb early in the morning, and when they did not find his body, they came back saying that they had even seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see." And he said to them, "O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?" And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.

So they drew near to the village to which they were going. He acted as if he were going farther, but they urged him strongly, saying, "Stay with us, for it is toward evening and the day is now far spent." So he went in to stay with them. When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them. And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And he vanished from their sight. They said to each other, "Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures?" And they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem. And they found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, saying, "The Lord has risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!" Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he was known to them in the breaking of the bread.

Church this morning was a good experience I think. We (our team) are at Grace Community Church here in town. The pastor spoke today about the role of the lamb in the Bible (New Testament and Old Testament). The Passover lamb was to be kept in the house for 4 days before they slaughtered it so that it would become loved like a pet or a part of the family. This really struck me as I was meditating over this during communion. The disciples all lived and hung around with Jesus for 3 years. That’s enough time to feel like a very close family. He made some very cool promises and gave them all lots of assuring words. He told them that together with him they would inherit the kingdom of heaven and have eternal life. He told them all this, and then he died on the cross. The disciples had to have been destroyed by that. Here He had made all these promises and he had died, leaving them hanging with only some seemingly vague instructions. The disciples were bummed and surely felt an enormous amount of grief, hopelessness, and fear. But then, on the road to Emmaus when Jesus walked with them while they didn’t recognize him and had dinner with them, when they recognized who they were eating with, the joy and excitement and sheer exhilaration that they must have experienced! After that huge let down in there life, the hope had been restored in a brighter and clearer light than before, and they knew without a doubt that everything Jesus had said to them was absolutely true. What a glorious joy it is to know that He is risen, and risen for us, for you and me. All of our sin has been wiped away; we are squeaky clan, like just stepping out of the shower. All we have to do to walk with Jesus and all the other saints in heaven is simply accept this gift that has been given us! It’s as simple as that. Just accept the salvation and offer your life to him with joy in return. It’s GLORIOUS!

The Simple Things

There are some things in this life that no one really pays much attention to, but nonetheless make life what we know it to be. Take, for instance, air (I know it’s an absurd example, but true even so). No one really pays much attention to air. The mixture of oxygen, nitrogen, and about… a lot of other gases that surrounds us every minute of every day, no one really gives a second thought to, but without it, life would definitely not be what it is today. There are many things like this in the world; I’ll bet if you think for even one minute, you could come up with a few yourself. My point in all this is that to truly take in all that life has to offer, one needs to sometimes sit back and look at what makes life life; think about the things that we encounter everyday that, without these things, life would change completely. One thing that I can think of right now is my physical ability. I can walk and talk. That is something that I totally take for granted on a very regular basis, but there are people who have gone through or are going through life without one or both of those abilities. To really sit down and think about how fortunate I am to be able to walk and talk lends a new perspective on the humdrum of everyday life. Instead of having a sour attitude because the elevator in your apartment building might be broken, rejoice that you can still get out because you are able to use the stairs. Instead of cursing your neighbor because the misunderstanding of a comment, take joy in the fact that you can communicate with your neighbor at all. It’s small things like this that I’m talking about.

There is one thing that I think everyone takes for granted on an almost constant basis that only a precious few people think about on any regular basis. The ‘thing’ that I’m referring to is God. God shows up in everything we do. He created us, He created the environment that we live in, and he created the people we interact with. He controls the winds and the rains and He dictates the actions of the birds of the air and the beasts of the ground. Without God, this life would most certainly be much, much, different. With out God even the most mundane actions would be impossible. Without God, there would be no you and there would be no me. So I encourage you, next time that you walk outside into a beautiful spring day and take a deep breath of fresh air or see a meadow in the middle of December covered in a pure white blanket of untouched snow, think about the things that make it possible for you to have that experience. Think about who is responsible for the beauty that you see. The next time you’re having a bad day, think about the simple often overlooked things. Think about what made your day ‘bad’ and give thanks to God that you’re even able to experience whatever that is. Phillipians 4:6-7 says Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God, and the peace of God, which surpassas all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Faith Without Works…

Journal Entry

August 9, 2005

Henry Bartel

Scripture references:

James 2:14-26

Matthew 8:5-13

Matthew 15:21-28

These passages all deal with faith, redeeming faith. James 2:14-26 says faith without works is dead. I’ve always taken this to mean that salvation was based on more than just faith, but I was wrong in that interpretation. Reading Matthew 8:5-13 and 15:21-28, I see Jesus help people because of the faith they have. This faith is good enough He says, but this faith is also acted upon when presented to Jesus. The centurion in chapter 8 of Matthew has faith that Jesus can heal his child, but that faith alone doesn’t save his child’s life. No, he asks, even begs Jesus to heal his child out of faith that he can do it. And in chapter 15 of Matthew, the Canaanite woman has faith that Jesus can heal her child but again that faith alone didn’t do it. She asked Jesus to heal her child out of faith and then it happened. Faith by itself is nothing if we don’t act on it. I can have all the faith in the world that I will win if I buy a lottery ticket, but if I never buy the lottery ticket, that faith is useless. So when James says faith without works is dead, he’s not talking about works of salvation, he’s talking merely about works by faith and from faith; the fruition of faith.