Deliver Us From Evil

                It’s week four in my blog and the title of our prayer session last night was “Deliver Us From Evil” and it is based on the story of church leaders who were put in jail for witnessing the gospel.  The story is told in Acts 4 where two of the disciples were put in jail temporarily for preaching the name of Jesus Christ.  When they were told they had to quit proclaiming God’s Word, their first course of action found in Acts 4:23 – 24 was to pray!  It should not surprise us that there will be opposition to any movement that can threaten to destabilize the norms and traditions of community life.  Most of the early opposition to the Christian witness came from within their own religious parties.  Remember, the first Christians were Jews and they did not see themselves as Christians, but as Jews who have been redeemed by Christ Jesus.  The fact that this faith did not mesh well with their established theologies found within their own chief priests reflects a reality that repeats in many different forms and thoughts. 

What’s important to understand is that it is OK for people to have different views and opinions, but to persecute someone because their views are different is when evil rears its ugly head.  In his book Dr. Teykl suggest that there are six areas where the spirit of evil thrives.  They include a spirit of religion that focuses more on  manmade doctrines and traditions than on seeking the face of God … a spirit of pride that stems from our feelings of independence and self-sufficiency … a spirit of accusation that dishonors leadership and blames them for everything we don’t like in our life and society … a spirit of prejudice built on attitudes of denominational superiority where one church thinks they are the only ones who do know the way to God … a spirit of judgment where self-righteousness focuses on works over grace, and a spirit of fear that arises out of the issue of control.

                What I find interesting about these spirits is how evil often arises when something good is distorted.  For example, there is nothing wrong with religion unless it becomes more about us than God.  In the Christian religion, we need to teach people the prayer of seeking God’s face, not ours for their help and salvation.  There is nothing wrong with pride if it is associated with a thankful heart that knows the truth about our own brokenness.  We need to learn the prayer of brokenness before God, always recognizing that we are nothing apart from God.  Accusation is not always bad.  Sometimes, when we make an accusation, we are revealing an injustice that needs to be revealed.  Accusation, like judgment, can be good things is the end goal is to protect and help people in love and compassion and grace.  We need to learn the prayers of honor for our leaders and compassion for those in need to be truly helpful.  Prejudice is never good, but it can arise from a healthy sense of self esteem, which is not bad in itself, but to keep one’s self esteem in check, we must learn the prayer of agreement, recognizing our need to work with others to get things done.  Finally, fear is a good thing if it is the fear of the Lord.  The problem with fear is that we often fear the consequences of displeasing others more than we fear displeasing the Lord.  We need to learn the prayer of faith that dispels ungodly fear, asking God to show us and move us toward the peace that can be found on the other side of a healthy fear of the Lord God the Almighty.

                This week, I am going to spend some time learning some new ways to pray that I explored last night in our study.  I hope you find your way to learn some good prayers to pray this week as well.

-          Dennis

Praying With Purpose

Yesterday in our Wednesday night group we studied the sermon given by Peter in Acts 2 and reflected on this text as a means of deeper exploration for prayer.  What stood out to me in this discussion was the importance of prayer as a means to experiencing the presence of God, and while Peter was preaching and not praying in Acts 2, he still gave us direction as to what to pray for when he told the people of Jerusalem to repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus for the forgiveness of their sins and the promise of the Holy Spirit.  While these early Christians never fooled themselves with false teaching that they could manipulate the Spirit's work by prayer, they did know the significance of praying with a purpose.  They prayed for people's souls - for repentance from sin - and for grace to receive God's forgiveness knowing that such forgiveness is an extension of the promise that comes with the Holy Spirit's presence.

So last night, during prayer time, our study guide asked us to reflect on our neighborhood and pray for specific schools and organizations within our neighborhood.  I prayed for Brained High School and the Brainerd Renewal project that is seeking to raise funds for the Bible in the Public Schools program that can bring a Bible teacher to Brainerd High.  I also prayed for Girls Inc. who has an after school program in our church 4 days a week plus all kinds of special camps helping to reach out to the young girls in the Brainerd area.  They are doing a fantastic job here in Brainerd.  When we got to the part where we were asked to pray for people's repentance and baptism, I prayed for the gangs of the Brainerd neighborhood.  While there are people far more qualified and educated than me who know how to address the problem of gangs, I can at least pray, and that is no small thing, if we take Acts of the Apostles seriously.  I understand the attraction of gangs for young people is the sense of belonging and sense of community it provides - what if those gangs were transformed into communities of faith and discipleship.  We can't make that happen, but God can make it happen. 

Oh, there will be some who think these are wasted prayers, but no prayer is wasted if it is prayed from a sincere heart and with purpose.  God hears our prayers.  All too often we pray for what we want God to do, and then we try to go and make it happen. What if we pray for what we cannot make happen, and wait to see what God will do with our prayers?

In the meantime, let me use this as a time for my own personal spiritual introspection as I pray for the transformation of others.  Is there anything I need to repent of in my life?  The promise of the Holy Spirit is real.  As Jesus said, the Spirit is like the wind where we cannot see Him or control Him, but He is real.  When you pray, think of sending your prayers up to God where they are taken away by the wind of His Spirit.  Where they go, we may never know, but if they are prayed from a sincere heart and with purpose, God will answer them - in God's own way - in God's own time - for God's own purposes!

Dennis

Acts 2 - Model for Discipleship

Okay, so I was on vacation last week and did not attend the Acts 29 Wednesday night study, and I was not around to comment on my blog the following Thursday, so I am playing catchup on Tuesday; but I had a great time away.  Summer is a great time for a vacation!

I find Dr. Terry Teykl's thoughts on Acts 2 both imaginative and provocative.  I would not make the point that religious homilies fail to budge people from their complacency, as he does in his booklet.  For me, worship is not about a homily or a sermon, but the whole worship experience and you cannot judge the value of worship and the impact it has on people by a 10 minute, 20 minute or 45 minute message.  We must also remember that the study on Romans which John Wesley attended on Aldersgate Street in London 1738 did not appear to impact Mr. Wesley until later, when after he left the study he writes that suddenly his heart was strangely warmed and then he knew that he was indeed loved and saved by God, even Mr. Wesley.

On the other hand, I really liked his comment that Acts 2:42 - 47 provides a model for discipleship and fellowship among believers.  Terry writes, "New converts did not just fill out decision cards - they devoted themselves to apostolic teaching, to fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to prayer."  As I pray today I'm letting my prayers be led by this text of scripture in Acts 2:42 - 47.  I pray that all our new members who have joined in the last couple of years are finding places where they can devote themselves to the teaching of the Word, fellowship, worship and prayer.  As I pray on these four facets of discipleship, I am reminded of how important both Sunday school (small groups) and Sunday worship is to believers in Christ.  

How about you?  Are you in a Sunday school class or small group of believers who know your name and pray for you and help you grow and learn the Word of God?  Are you faithful in a regular habit of worship each Sunday to help you give your thanks and praise to God?  They may seem like simple, mundane events some weeks, but when followed regularly, it makes a difference that can best be seen in hindsight.  My prayer is that God keep us faithful to the mundane, but significant disciplines of growing a faith in God.

See you again on Thursday!

Dennis  

Praying Acts

Last night I participated in a new summer experience we are hosting in our church.  We have a group of about 10 people committed to reading through the book by Dr. Terry Teykl called, Acts 29.  Of course, there are not 29 chapters in Acts.  The point is that we are living in the 29th chapter today as the Holy Spirit is continuing to do the work of evangelism in our world, reconciling all creation back to God.  This book is not new.  It was first published in 1993.  The purpose of this book is to be used as a manual, teaching us how to use Acts of the Apostles as prayer guides, praying the Scriptures.  I will blog each Thursday on what I experienced in the group each Wednesday and while I am excited, there is some hesitation on my part as well.  Often when the word, "Holy Spirit," gets used it tends to bring out of the woodwork every emotion based experiences that can lead to some rather odd ideas, but then again, as Flannery O'Conner once wrote, "You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you odd."  I suppose we all do have odd thoughts.

As I was praying through Acts 1:1 - 14, Dr. Teykl made a comment in his thoughts on Acts 1:1 - 14 saying, "Prayer always attracts the Holy Spirit."  This suggests to me that prayer is the prelude in mission and evangelism, not postlude.  Yet, we tend to make our plans on how we will serve God, and then ask God to bless our plans with the presence and power of the Holy Spirit.  The approach seems bent toward our initiative and desires, and if there is one thing we can learn about the Holy Spirit in reading Acts of the Apostles, the Holy Spirit is not manipulated by our prayers and our service, no matter how holy or righteous our behavior appears.  Perhaps the prayer that attracts the Holy Spirit is the prayer of humble and contrite hearts, like we read about being  prayed in the Acts of the Apostles where often the people who prayed had no idea what God would do, but they just knew that God would do - and that was enough.  So I began my prayer today with this prayer ... "Good morning, God - what are you up to today? How can I help?"  Now I wait!  I wonder what God will say?

Happy Prayers to You!

Dennis

Season of Lent

We often speak of the season of Lent as a time of repentance and spiritual preparation for the soul as we take the inward journey toward the cross and the celebration of Easter when Jesus rose from the dead.  It's common for our conversation around Lent to focus on what we are giving up for God.  As children we were told that giving up some of our pleasures in life, like not eating chocolate during Lent, makes Easter even more special when we go to church on Easter Sunday and have chocolate in Sunday school and at lunch.  We even had our Easter Egg hunts at home on Easter Sunday and yes, chocolate flowed in abundance with many a chocolate covered egg and Easter bunny.  Of course, the bunny had nothing to do with Jesus, but it was sure fun eating a chocolate covered bunny for lunch.

This season for Lent, why not try a different route.  Instead of giving something up, why not take something on?  In some ways, it is more sacrificial to take something on given how busy our lives are these days, but what about taking something on that glorifies God and makes a positive difference in the life of another?  It could be something like working an Emmaus Walk, volunteering at a community kitchen, helping a next door neighbor who needs assistance, or even making an extra financial commitment to an organization that is making a difference in the community.  Many are the ways we can help by taking on something good.  Hopefully, it can make Lent a fun as well as worthwhile season of giving.  After all, Jesus gave the ultimate gift, his own life as sacrifice for all.  

John Wesley once said, "Do all the good you can.  By all the means you can.  In all the ways you can.  In all the places you can.  At all the times you can.  To all the people you can.  As long as ever you can." 

Dennis

Change, the only Constant in Life

Jill and I had time between Christmas Day and New Year's Day to celebrate our 34th wedding anniversary in Lexington, Kentucky.  Why Lexington?  We lived there from 1981 - 84 while I attended seminary, graduating from Asbury in 84.  During our time away we stayed at Rosecrest Farms, just north of Lexington, outside of Paris, Kentucky, so now I can say that my wife and I had dinner in Paris.  (I always wanted to say that and now I can.)  Rosecrest Farms is just half a mile from Claiborne Farm, where the famous racehorse Secretariat is now resting in peace.  While staying at Rosecrest Farms, we had the chance to feed the horse that is the grandson of Secretariat, who is stabled at Rosecrest Farm.  It was a great place to stay on vacation.

While we were there, Jill and I visited the many places we knew when we lived in Lexington thirty years ago.  My how time changes things.  The little shoe store where I worked is now gone.  The Lexington Humane Society where Jill worked as the education director and was honored as a Kentucky Colonel for her work there, has undergone such renovation that it doesn't look like the same old place, which is a good thing.  The mall where I once worked at McAlpin's Store, before my adventure as a shoe salesman at Jeff's Stride Rite, is now closed and McAlpins Store is no more.  One downtown restaurant that we knew while we lived in Lexington closed its doors the weekend we were there, but another had taken its place, only half a block away.

It all goes to say that the only thing we know is constant, is change.  The real question is whether the change is for better or worse.  What is true of cities is also true of human lives.  Life is filled with change.  As we start a new year, how will change impact your life?  Will the change you experience be better, worse?  Many people try to navigate the change in their lives, making the change they want to see happen.  This can be done, but with minimum success.  The truth about change is that most change comes unexpectedly, but how we see change and the way we deal with change is what makes a change good or bad.  When Jesus was born, the wise men were jubilant, but Herod was threatened; and yet for many, the birth of Jesus came and went, without much fanfare.

As you start the New Year of 2014, how has Jesus been born in your heart?  Are you threatened by the change his presence could bring to your life, or are you willing to take the journey and follow his light to the places where he leads you, a place where his presence can transform your life, or will you live into this new year as if nothing has changed much since you celebrated the birth of a Savior?  How you answer that question will most likely determine how you meet change, for better or worse.

Dennis

God's Gift of Light

The Rev. Donna Schaper serves as senior minister at Judson Memorial Church in New York City.  Her most recent book, Advent 2013 God's Gift of Love, includes this statement on page 45 where she reflects on the meaning behind Isaiah 9:2 which says ..."The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness on them has light shined."  Schaper writes, "These words offered hope to the people of Judah during a time of great political turmoil and war.  How can we hear them?  We have lived in darkness by looking for love in all the wrong places - in our appearance, our success, our ability to give to others.  When we have stopped looking to receive love because of our accomplishments, we have turned toward the light.  When we see God's long promised light in the baby Jesus, we see that we are loved by God.  We begin to turn around, to change our ways.  We no longer stare at the darkness because we love the light."

Rev. Schaper has given us some significant words to meditate on, and I encourage you to ponder her statement and see what it means for you.  For me, Rev. Schaper reminds me of how often I try to create light in my own life and others by the things I do for God and others.  I allow myself to think that the lights of human appearance, human achievement and human generosity will create a warm glow that makes us all feel loved.  But all too often, these lights are artificial and easily broken.  Yes, even my human generosity can be an artificial light when my impulse is to give so I can feel good.  Artificial lights reflect only our human persona.  These kind of lights will fade away in the darkness.

But if we can stop looking to receive love because of our accomplishments, then these artificial lights will fade, and in the darkness we will be given eyes to see the light promised by God in Jesus Christ.  This is the light that tells us we are loved, not because of what we do, or don't do, but because we are, God's children, and in Christ, God's children being redeemed.  This Advent season take time away from all the artificial lights that shine in our world and find a sacred place where you can be warmed in the glow of God's eternal light in Jesus Christ.  This is why we journey in Advent.  This is why we celebrate Christmas.  This is why we look forward to his coming again.  It is in His light that we see that we are loved by God, and it is the warmth of His light that woos our heart to turn around, to live differently than we lived before.  It is His light that gives us the assurance and the power to live a life with God.  We no longer have to squint in the darkness to see artificial light.  We love God's light.

Blessed Advent to Everyone,

Dennis