Naked?

It was a plaintiff wail that could be heard throughout the department store dressing room; “I’m naaaaaked! Ayyyyyyyyyyyyyy! Over and over a little toddler shouted these two words at the top of her lungs. She wouldn’t stop saying it, even though her mom certainly tried to get her to. lol

And I began thinking about the fact that even at a very young age humans feel that there are things that should remain covered or hidden. It also reminded me of bathing suit season! Now if you know me you are probably aware that I LOVE to shop! It doesn’t matter what I’m shopping for…it could be groceries, car parts, clothes or a special gift for a treasured friend. BUT the ONE and only thing I don’t like shopping for is bathing suits! I mean think about it; you spend nine months out of the year dressing to hide your figure flaws, so why in the world would I want to call attention to them now? Yes, in my opinion some things should remain under cover and apparently I’m not alone in this. lol

And if we were being honest, most of us would have to admit that there are important ways we all try to hide who we are-from God and from each other. God made each of us incredibly unique. In all the world, throughout marked time there has never been anyone who has the exactly the same gifts, talents and life experiences as you! Truly, there is no one like you and that is by God’s design. But if He lovingly, purposefully, uniquely created the many facets of who you are…then why are we forever hiding our real self? As I always told my sweet daughters growing up; “You make a poor imitation of anyone else.” The world has never seen anyone quite like you…so be brave and remove a few of the masks that are hiding who He created you to be!

Will everyone love and accept you? No, maybe not…but that is ok. Being honest though, I haven’t always felt that way. In fact, it amazes me to think that until I was in my late 20’s I actually believed that if I was nice enough, kind enough and friendly enough that everyone would like me. But there will always be those who will not choose or love you…but dare to be uncovered and let that change the world around you! The person He crafted on the inside was expressly created to showcase a unique facet of God’s character…so take the risk and let it shine!  When you feel afraid and want to remain “safe” behind the veil of concealment, just remember that one person’s freedom can spark a hope of freedom for countless others…be that one!

After a while I could hear this exasperated mom telling her daughter “No, you are NOT naked…I am.” and I began to think about the fact that sometimes it is not only our own nakedness that we are uncomfortable with. Sometimes just the thought of others “disrobing” a part of who they are can leave us feeling apprehensive…perhaps because then we may feel like we need to “follow suit”. lol We can take the attitude; “If you stay covered then I can too.” But God is calling us into transparent relationships with trusted others. Now I am not advocating that we share every facet of our lives with everyone we meet…but DO find some trusted others that you can be real with.

And what about God? Are we living transparent before Him or are we like Adam who tried to fashion his own covering for what he perceived were the unlovely parts of who he was and what he’d done? But there came a time when the fig leaves had to come off, so that he and Eve could be clothed with God’s provision-because man’s efforts can never begin to cover or cleanse our shame…only a living intimate relationship with our Creator can do that. And besides He already knows everything about you and me!

Don’t believe me? Hebrews 4:13 shares; “And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do. And Proverbs 5:21 states; “For your ways are in full view of the LORD, and He examines all your paths.” And God Himself is described in Genesis 16:14 as EL ROI; the God who sees. Yes, He sees us with a perfect precision…He knows everything about you and me and still He pursues us! He is well acquainted with our many flaws and weaknesses, as well as our strengths and talents…there is nothing hidden from Him. Yet we present ourselves before Him clothed in our own fig leaves of human efforts, as we desperately try to cover up the unlovely places of our lives and thereby miss the joys of His acceptance and unconditional love.

Oh that we would see that there is a unique freedom in being transparent with the Lover of our soul! And we can only connect with Him to the degree that we are willing to be naked before Him. Of course that takes trust that we will not be rejected when we uncover the most private parts of who we are. But He can grow that trust in us…if we’ll let Him. Just ask…pour out your heart before Him…don’t hold anything back. He knows it all anyway. And praise God that He who knows us best, still loves us most!!!

This day may you come to know His great and affirming love as you willingly uncover the secret places that you had forever purposed to remain hidden.  And as you do…may you experience the glorious freedom that only His righteous covering can provide. May you bask in the everlasting, unconditional love that longs to embrace you with great delight! May you walk in His divine freedom knowing that He is actively fashioning the unlovely places in you to bring Him the most honor and glory!

Transforming Grace

Once a month I write a devotional for my church and I often share its non-abbreviated version with the rest of my blog readers who are not a part of my local church family. Two of my pastors each shared different perspectives from Acts 9 about the Holy Spirit’s role as God’s expression of grace to us and that’s what inspired me to write this devotional.

Grace. It is a seemingly endless cycle; where at one point we need to be its grateful recipient and in other moments we are called to be an extension of it to others and these two states switch back and forth…and each scenario is orchestrated by God’s Spirit. But as the wisest man who ever lived said in Ecclesiastes 1:9 “What has been will be again; there is nothing new under the sun”; for this is a story that has replayed itself for centuries before our birth.

But before we delve further down this well-trodden path, you may well ask; “Does one life really matter all that much?” My heart declares an emphatic yes! As we will soon discover; the influence of a single life holds the power to alter the face of its entire generation…and sometimes of those generations who will come behind it as well.

For proof I offer the well-educated Saul, who had every advantage of influence, education and at least sufficient wealth. Surely, his was a life that was destined to change history. And then there was Ananias; we know nothing of his upbringing, education or social status. He seems a likely candidate for a life of obscurity. But these two lives (as is always the case) are not quite what they seem at first glance.

Grab a cup of coffee and together we’ll look a little deeper at the lives of these two individuals and of the grace they shared that was to transform history.

Although Saul had every advantage, he ended up using his sphere of influence as a tool of destruction. And as we read the story of Saul’s conversion in Acts chapter 9, he seems about as unlikely of a candidate for grace that our minds can conceive. We learn in Acts 8:1that he had not only been in complete agreement with Stephen’s stoning; he also launched a quest to eradicate every Christian from the face of the earth. The blood of the earliest of saints was clearly on his hands. He wasn’t even content to destroy the believers in Jerusalem; he’d procured papers to require the Damascus synagogues to participate in the persecution as well. But just as we might likely pronounce Saul as an unworthy recipient of grace…in steps the hero of his story; Jesus. As my one of my pastors shared; “just when Saul thought he was out chasing some important religious mission, the Holy Spirit was in reality chasing him!”

And thankfully that divine chase thing extends to us as well! When we are at our very worst, when we are the most unworthy, when we have laid waste to the prior extensions and expressions of God’s grace…in steps the hero of our story; Jesus! Yes, thankfully, we can never walk beyond the reach of God’s grace through the gift of His Holy Spirit who is always working to reveal Jesus to us. Because when it comes to God’s unmerited favor, none of us could ever “touch bottom” in His endless sea of grace. And just when we are most undeserving of grace, God may enter into our situation and change everything Himself…or He might just send an Ananias our way!

But before He sends Ananias to Saul, he is left for three days in the darkness-three long days of soul searching…or in this instance “Saul-searching”.  He was left to contemplate where he had been, what he had done and what lay ahead for his future. He must have been confused and frightened. We know from the Scriptures that he didn’t eat or drink anything for three days, so he was pretty shook up. Ever have any of those dark days in your life? Well the good news is that the Lord never wastes any of our difficult moments. Just like in the life of Saul; God will come to our aid, because He has the power and the heart to redeem our painful places.

Now sometimes rather than being a recipient of God’s grace, we are asked to be a vessel of it to someone else and when that happens, occasionally we hesitate. I think Ananias could relate…

God had graced him with a vision! This is pretty cool until you consider that his vision was all about someone else’s blessing. Now I’m guessing that Ananias would’ve normally been fine with that. I mean he was no doubt a godly man who was quick to extend grace to others, which may have been part of the reason he was selected in the first place. In fact, God was so confident of his obedience that He had ALREADY given Saul the vision of Ananias coming! It’s pretty hard to say no to that.

But when Jesus tells him to go, Ananias wavers for a moment. He begins to “inform” Jesus of all that Saul had done (just in case He’d missed it). He had to choose to be obedient despite any fears of repercussions or misgivings about Saul’s worthiness of God’s unmerited favor. Who knows, perhaps he also had to set aside any desire for personal justice over Saul’s heinous acts against his church family.

But in the end, he said YES! This is the Scripture’s only account of Ananias, but from his single act of courageous obedience he altered the world. The pouring out of grace to one undeserving individual served to change the entire world and some 2000 years later we are not only still talking about it, we are also still reaping the benefits of it!

So why did the Holy Spirit send Ananias? I mean He could’ve healed Saul without him, without anyone…but He didn’t. I believe that part of the reason was to get Saul connected to the body of believers that would quickly become his lifeblood. Saul; soon to be Paul, although he was God’s chosen vessel to his generation could not, would not be who he was called to be on his own and neither can we.

Yes, these two lives were irrevocably entwined; one without the other would’ve not only have relegated them to less than God’s best…the entire world would have experienced the loss that their shared grace has brought to us. Truly grace had the power to transform and it is a continually effective power that the Holy Spirit still desires to pour to and through us yet today!

In closing, I hope the question that has been at the very cusp of my heart all day, has found its way into yours as well. And that is; “Who is the “undeserving” person in my life that God is calling me to be a vessel of grace to?” Are there any undeserving candidates in your life? Probably. But today may we each set aside our fears, our past hurts and our sense of fairness and choose to be an extension of God’s grace to those who just like us are undeserving and yet desperately needy and then let’s trust and watch as God just might use that very grace to change the world!

Note: A sermon by two of my pastors; Shawn Franco and Travis Jones of Cornerstone Assembly of God were the original cause of this devotional. I encourage you to listen to their messages which offer different thoughts and perspectives about the gift of grace through the role of the Holy Spirit. They can be found at http://www.cornerstone.ag/ 
You will see the Media link near the top right of the site, click there, then on Listen To Sermons, then select the October 13th sermons.

HUNGRY

I had seen her there before…in fact we had shared a number of lunches together, but today my heart broke for this little striped tiger cat. She seems to live close to one of the pavilions in a nearby park where I often come for my quiet time. I had seen her wait many times until after a group of picnickers had vacated before she’d quietly peruse the area; checking the tables and trash cans for something palatable.  

But today was different…I watched as she peered from a wooded area to the side of the pavilion. She was at full alert; her ears were perked and her tail stood at attention…waiting for a sign of welcome. It was obvious that she was scared…but she was also hungry for food and human companionship. It was as though every part of her furry little body longed to go the people to receive something good…but her fear (or perhaps her good sense, depending on the particular group picnicking there) held her back. Eventually she turned around and went back into the bush from where she came.

And I was quickly reminded of how different kinds of hunger can make all of God’s creatures do desperate things and those types of decisions rarely turn out well. I have experienced that kind of hunger in my lifetime-have you? I think most of us have longed for something from the depths of our being…but were left unsatisfied with an aching desire that never seems to be filled. And when the quenching of that hunger seems long in coming, we sometimes devise ways to “help” God; normally with lackluster results at best. I thought about my own life and I wondered about mistakes where I had allowed strong desires to get me into places far from God’s appointed paths. What about you?

I think most of us are vulnerable to at least some degree to hunger, although it has different faces.

For some, the hunger is for a special someone to come into their life and the intense craving for that relationship can color every choice, every conversation and when not satisfied, it can lead to a feeling of confusion or discouragement.

Some pine for the fulfillment of a long held dream, while others hunger for God’s release or blessing. We may cry out asking the Lord to intervene and when He doesn’t act on our time table we may begin to take matters into our own hands. These choices usually bring little or no positive results, but we are blinded by our “hunger pains” so we keep trying to “assist” God.

For still others the hunger may stem from a longing for financial prosperity or a craving for success in our careers. But whatever the form, it nearly always has the power to get our eyes off of God and onto the object of our desire.

Well sadly, we are not alone; the Bible is full of individuals who also struggled with hunger issues.

Saul allowed his hunger for God’s favor to morph into a lust to destroy the one he felt was responsible for his own fall from grace; David. He spent years of his life making terrible choices that eventually brought his ruin. Yes, hunger can drive us to desperate choices that in turn can lead to destruction.

Cain hungered for God’s acceptance and eventually that gave place to a raging jealousy against his brother Abel. So the first human blood was shed and the latest statistic I could find was that a life is now taken worldwide every sixty seconds.

Sarah hungered for God’s fulfillment of His promise and when it didn’t come “on time” she came up with plan “B”, creating an entire people group who still long to destroy God’s chosen people.

Yes, hunger can mar our good judgment. When we want something so bad we tend to whittle our focus down to that one single area of concern. Instead of a balanced view, the object of our craving becomes paramount. Our thoughts, our actions and our hearts come together creating the perfect storm that creates a sort of tunnel vision so that all we can see is the object of our desire.

Look again, it wasn’t the individual’s hunger itself that was destructive; it was that they allowed it to become the focus of their life. Look at what they were hungering for: the Lord’s favor, a desire for God’s acceptance and a fulfillment of a divine promise. There is nothing wrong with any of these when they are gone about in God’s way-BUT whenever a longed for blessing becomes of greater importance than the One who holds it; an idol is born.

Now God’s initial plan for hunger was to ensure that essential needs were met. He also gifted us with a deep and pervasive hunger that can only be satisfied in relationship with Him. Similarly, I believe God plants the seeds of hunger within us to help birth passion and to fuel the dreams and plans that He created us for in the first place. Hunger was meant to signal a need and then to subsequently push us to find a way to meet that need.  So God can and will use every type of hunger to encourage us to come closer to Himself and to His perfect plan. An example of this is found in Luke 15:16 where the prodigal son’s hunger eventually turns his heart back to his loving father.  And sometimes when we get hungry enough, we’ll turn to the satisfaction that only God can bring.

In fact, Jesus pronounced blessedness to all who hunger for the right things. Matthew 5:6 “Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness” and He also promised that in hungering for God’s path that our earthly needs would also be met. Matthew 6:33 and Luke 12:31 “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you.”

But what about those hunger pains that seem to hold on? What are we to do with the ever-present, inescapable longings?  Simply said; we bring them to God…again. He never tires of us presenting a genuine need and our hunger issues never take God by surprise; in fact Jesus Himself said that the Father knows our every need before we ever ask Him to meet it. (Matthew 6:8) Take comfort that God is still actively loving us in the midst of our hunger and He has a plan to fully satisfy every longing that rages within us…but it will be in His timing and in His way.

His answer is simple…but it is rarely easy and the choice rests on us alone; today we must choose to draw close to God and then trust and wait, allowing the unimaginable love of Christ to penetrate our deepest longings. (Ephesians 3:17-20) For on a future day every yearning in our life will be fully satisfied. In fact, in Revelation 7:16 His Word promises that on the last day every ache of emptiness will give way to an eternal fullness and we will never again know the pain of hunger. But for now, may we find the fulfillment that He alone offers and may our hearts cry; “Surely Father, You do all things well and we willingly trust you with the deepest longings we carry!”

 

NOTE: I am not able to take in this little cat and all the shelters are full. If anyone is interested in giving her the loving home she deserves please message me and we can go to the park together and get her-or at least try.