More Than Bread

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Artistic people fascinate me.  When I look at a blank canvas, all I see is a blank canvas; when a painter looks at a blank canvas she sees a picture waiting to be born.  How does a sculptor look at a piece of marble and see a statue?  How does an architect look at an empty space and see a building?  Do you realize that Creator God is an artist? And His favorite medium is you? Some people look at canvas and they see a picture.  Some look at granite and see what's captured inside, God looks at your heart and he sees the  reflected image of Jesus.  Psalm 139 is a deeply personal Psalm about the relationship of the artist God and you.

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Psalm 100 says that we enter his gates with thanksgiving...what if that's the only way we enter his gates? What if gratitude is the non-option knock on the door, key to the gates of his presence. Gratitude works because it brings us into the presence of the one who gives us more than our works deserve. And as we come into his presence we learn to become more aware of his presence. In the years to come I believe that the great divide of thriving will not be between liberals and conservatives, or evangelicals and progressives. It will be between those who are aware and those who are not aware....of the goodness of God, the works of God, the love of God that is never failing…

 Few things will make you more aware of his presence than giving thanks in his presence! Psalm 138 is a challenge to be a person of gratitude!

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Last year, the surgeon general of the United States said that the greatest epidemic we are facing right now is an epidemic of loneliness. John Cacioppo, director for Social Neuroscience at the University of Chicago, is the world's leading expert on loneliness. In his landmark book, on loneliness, he describes how profoundly the epidemic of loneliness is affecting the basic functions of human physiology. He writes: "When we drew blood from our older adults  and analyzed their white cells, we found that loneliness somehow penetrated the deep recesses of the cell to alter the way genes were being expressed." In other words, when you are lonely, your whole body is lonely. Psalm 133 is a reminder of God's treasuring of community. We are created with a connection requirement!

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One more bonus Psalm, there was just something about this short Psalm that caught my heart. Maybe it's just for me, but I believe it's probably for most of you as well. Because we live in a distracted, anxious world that desperately needs to slow down, take a deep breath and just be with God in the now-moment. Psalm 131 is as short as Psalm 119 is long, but it's three verses lead me into a moment of rest with God. Hope it brings you there too!

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Psalm 130 is a bonus Psalm; not one of my initial top 40, but having spent the summer in the Psalms, I realized that the themes and the travailing prayer are right where God has my heart. So here you go. Psalm 130 is a Psalm of travailing prayer; a prayer that will not give God rest until He comes. It's a great prayer to pray for a revival, personal or corporate. "Our souls cry out to you God from the depths of our soul, we cry out!"

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This one is for the kids, for the next generation. Psalm 127 connects the blessings of God that come in the major arenas of life, work, family and our home. It’s a reminder that from the view of heaven, our efforts no matter how full of heart and skill and hard work, our efforts are worth-less than they could be, would be if God was involved. But it's not an either/or, it's a both/and. It's not either we work or God works, it's "run to the battle and the Lord will fight for you." It's praying, "Lord do it again," while at the same time going all-in for what He is doing. This episode will lead you into a prayer for revival, that the next generation might live in the land of God's-move!

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Lewis Smedes writes: “To miss out on joy is to miss out on the reason for your existence.” C.S. Lewis said, “Joy is the serious business of heaven.” Paul wrote, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice.” That’s a command. In other words, the Bible puts joy in the non-optional category. Which means that joylessness is sin, one that  I think, some of us religious people are particularly prone to indulge in.  I'm not saying we don't go through tough times...we live in a fallen world. But if I believe that Jesus is full of joy, then perhaps a personal relationship with a good, joyful Jesus should rub off?

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Psalm 122 carries a powerful message that has been resonating with my heart and saturating my soul during this time in the psalms…it’s the invitation to enter into God’s presence. There’s this deep sense of longing for a sacred space where we can encounter God himself, our Creator, our Savior, our Father.  I rejoiced when they invited me, “Let’s go to the house of the Lord." What is the house of the Lord? What do you think of when you hear that phrase, "The House of the Lord?" 

Let me simply say this, when it comes to the house of the Lord, there is more here than you can see with your eyes or hear with your ears. The house of the Lord where we find the presence of God is far more expansive and diverse, far more everything that you can even imagine.

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Psalm 121 is one of the first of a small group (14) of psalms called the "Psalms of Ascent." They were songs for pilgrims on a journey to the holy place, the presence of God. Psalm 121 beings with a question and an answer that should direct and motivate the steps of our journey. 

The question is "Where does my help come from?" And the answer is, "My help comes from the Lord." Who can I trust for help? My help comes from the Lord. Where do I go when I need help? My help comes from the Lord. In this episode we will hang out for a bit with this question and answer.  Where does my help come from? The Lord. My help comes from the Lord!

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Psalm 119 is a love-song to God's Word. If you walk away from this episode with anything, don’t miss the deep, deep love, reverence and devotion the psalmist has for the word of God and the ways of God. Rather than looking for loopholes to escape them, he is looking for ways to dive deep into their embrace. The word, guides, instructs and revives our souls. It’s a lamp and a light, of greater value than much gold. So we should immerse ourselves in scripture. Meditate and memorize. Learn from and lean on. Revere, respect and be devoted to it.

But, it will not compete with the hustle, noise and distractions. If you ignore it often, you will soon easily forget it. And clutter, anxiety, foolishness and the relentless demands of the world will soon fill you and shape you. So again similar to the last episode, my question is not so much are you in the Word as it is, is the Word in you. Is it in you often enough and deep enough that the Spirit of God can breath life into your soul through the word of God? How much time do you give the word? Could you be accused of being in love with it?