Day 10,  Less Living With Lies and More Truth 

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life and have it to the full.”

Do you believe that God can and wants to use you? Do you believe that you are qualified and able to be involved in ministry with Jesus? Do you truly believe that God has completely and totally forgiven you of your sin and made you clean and worthy in His sight? Do you believe that God wants the very, very best for you and wants to give it to you?

If you are like many, the answer deep in your soul is “no!” I am not good enough; I have too much stuff in my past for God to bless me. I don’t have the training to be involved in ministry; God could never use me in any significant way, I have too many issues and sin to be used by Him. And so we sit in the shadows, sure that God could not use us and bless us and give to us the life we know He promises. 

John 10:10 is one of the most significant statements in Scripture about who Jesus is and who Satan is. Satan is called the thief whose only mission is to steal, kill and destroy people like you and me. Why is this the mission of Satan? The answer is simple. Satan hates God with an undying hatred. But, he cannot hurt God, so he targets those who are made in God’s image - you and me. In hurting us, his real intention is to hurt God. To keep us from God, hurt our relationship with God, and prevent us from experiencing all that God designed us for. He wants to rob us of the joy Jesus promises and, if he can, cause us to end up in the ditch of life, hurt, ineffective, bitter, and missing out on God’s blessings. He wants to destroy us. 

Satan is the life-taker! Jesus is the life-giver. Jesus says, “I have come that you may have life, and have it to the full.” 

I have come to give you the life you have never experienced, 

a joy that you have never known, 

a relationship with me you could never dream of, 

a life mission you could never have believed, 

and an eternal destiny that is your true home. 

Hear what Jesus is saying. Satan is the life taker, but I am the ultimate life-giver.

So how does the Evil One steal, kill and destroy? He tells us lies. Listen to what Jesus said about him in John 8:44, speaking to those who opposed him... “You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”

Satan tells us lies that rob us of the life Jesus designed us for if we believe them. Here are some examples.

• With what you have done, God could never forgive you!

What is the common theme of these lies? They are designed to convince you that you are not good enough for God, cannot know the true life He offers, and they are designed to keep you discouraged, joyless, and ineffective. But, and hear this: They are lies. Lies!

Here is the truth:

• Jesus forgives us fully and completely, and when He looks at us, He sees a clean and redeemed son or daughter of His.

Satan knows that if he can convince us to believe his lies that he can hurt us in many ways. So Jesus says, resist the lies of the thief and believe the truth of your Savior. Take some time today to reflect on the lies you have bought into that are from the thief and not from the Savior. And then, banish those lies to the ash heap and embrace the truths of the Savior. It will change the direction of your life in every way.

Father: I admit that I often believe the lies of the thief instead of the truths of the Savior. Help me recognize those lies and embrace your promise to give me life and, more than that, the fullness of life or life abundant. Help me live in the abundance of the life you came to give. Amen.

The question for today: What lies have I believed that I need to abandon for the truth of the Savior?

Less Comparison and More Thankfulness

“Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.” 1 Corinthians 12:27

Comparing ourselves to others is a deadly trap. It robs us of joy, makes us feel inferior, and not enough; it creates envy for those who are more beautiful, more successful, more gifted, more wealthy, have more toys. And all kinds of other mores. When we compare, we lessen our worth and live with disappointment, envy, sometimes anger, and usually discontent. 

Here is the irony of comparison. First, even those you compare yourself to often compare themselves to someone else. In other words, while you think that your life would be so much better if you were like them, they feel their lives would be so much better if they were like someone else. The goalposts of life change because there is always someone else to compare ourselves with and, in the process, create discontent and disappointment with our own lives.

Why should we compare ourselves less? Reason one is that God has uniquely created you just as He wanted to for a purpose that only you can fulfill. Paul writes in Ephesians 2:8-10: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

When Paul writes that you are God’s handiwork, he uses a word that means a unique, one-of-a-kind work of art. There is no one like you and never will be. You were crafted and created uniquely by God for good works. And get this: He prepared those good works for us to do in advance of our even being here. God has a purpose and plan for your life that no one else can fulfill the way you can. 

That is why we ought to have less comparison and more thanksgiving. God created and crafted you to join Him in His work in this world. Those you compare yourself to cannot do what God made you for. Nor can you do what they were created for. We are all one-of-a-kind creations that are unique and special and called. 

Paul gives us a second reason not to compare ourselves in 1 Corinthians 12, where he writes about spiritual gifts.

There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone, it is the same God at work.

“Now to each one, the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines.”

So Paul is repeating this truth from Ephesians, but then he goes to the question of “who is more important in all this?” Because the truth is that when we compare, we are wishing we were more important, and those we compare ourselves to are perceived to be more important. 

Using the analogy of the human body, he says this: Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But in fact, God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body.

The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor….Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.

None of us is more important than the other in God’s kingdom. We are one body, and the same Spirit distributed all our gifts. Therefore we need to repent of comparing ourselves to others and live in thanksgiving for who God made us and the ministry He has called us to. If we were to rid ourselves of the trap of comparison, we would live far healthier, joyful, and satisfying lives - just as we were created for.

The belief that we would be happier if we were more like others is a lie of the Devil, who wants to poison our joy and make us feel less than who God created us to be. So don’t fall for it. Instead, live in thanksgiving for the unique you God created and the unique way you can contribute to His kingdom. 

Father: Thank you today for how you made me and gifted me. Help me never compare myself to others but to live in thanksgiving for the unique me you created and help me join you in your work with the gifts you have given. Amen.

The question for today: Who do I need to stop comparing myself to, and how do I live in daily thanksgiving for who God made me?

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7

Anxiety and worry are a part of the human condition. It is easy for someone to say, you shouldn’t worry, but I don’t know anyone who can go through the situations of life without anxiety and worry. We are finite human beings, and the fact that we cannot know the end from the beginning makes worry a part of life.

That being said, moving from worry to faith, from anxiety to dependence on God, is one of the journeys that Jesus invites us on. He does not want us to live with worry and anxiety but to live with faith and trust and allow our concerns to be carried by Him and not by us. 

I find it interesting that the words “do not be afraid” are repeated 365 times in the Bible, once for every day of the year. We need to hear these words every day because we need them daily. Scripture reminds us not to worry about having enough money for tomorrow because God looks after His own. We are told not to worry about the future because each day has enough worries of its own, and He carries them for us. We are told not to be anxious but to give our cares to Him.

There is an antidote for worry, and that is prayer. As Paul says in Philippians 4:6-7, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” 

We are invited in all situations, in all circumstances to bring our anxieties to Jesus in prayer and petition, and present our requests to God. Interestingly, Paul says that we should do this with thanksgiving. Why Thanksgiving? Because He is capable and able to intercede in our situation and carry our worries for us. And the exchange is this: We give him our anxieties, and he gives to us the peace of God which transcends all understanding. And that peace will guard our hearts and our minds - where anxiety and worries live - in Christ Jesus. I’ll take that exchange any day.

Some years ago, I was on a flight from Bangkok to the United States, and just as the plane was ready to take off at the end of the runway, the flight attendant saw that I was sick and had lapsed into unconsciousness. I woke up with my 20-year-old son kneeling beside me, and I heard the pilot announce that we were returning to the gate for a medical emergency. I asked my son if that was me, and he said, “yes, dad.” A few minutes later, we arrived at an unknown hospital to figure out what was wrong. 

They thought I had suffered a seizure, but there was no evidence of this with a brain scan. But over the course of the day, I went from sick to very sick to needing to be intubated in the ICU. A year earlier, I was intubated for a month in a coma in the United States for multiple organ failure and MRSA pneumonia and never should have survived. It was a 45-day hospital stay that took me years to recover from. Now a year later, still in recovery, I found myself in the same situation in a foreign country: organs shutting down, massive pneumonia, and knowing that my odds were not good.

I asked the doctor if they were going to put me into a coma like the year before, and he said no. “We will put you under to intubate you, and then you will be awake.” So, an hour later, I found myself awake, with a garden hose contraption down my throat, hooked up to some 15 pumps of various kinds and a breathing machine, and massive, unbelievable pain.

That first night I contemplated my odds. They were not good. I asked God to remove my pain, but that didn’t work. And then, as I reflected, my mind kept going back to a message I had preached about Peter getting out of the boat and walking toward Jesus and Jesus saying to him. Do not be afraid. And I asked God to take away my fear of death and the fear of the unknown. It was a gigantic struggle that first night, and it was repeated again and again as it would be 14 days before I was off the ventilator. But amazingly, God did exactly what He promised, and I traded my fear and anxiety for a supernatural peace that only God can give. 

The pain did not lessen. In Thailand, they didn’t provide pain medication, and with massive pneumonia, you feel like you are breathing through mud. Every hour they would disconnect the breathing machine, bag me to breathe, and vacuum out my lungs so that I could breathe again freely. That experience was like having a heart attack, and every hour felt like twenty-four hours of terrible pain for fourteen days. But, I traded fear for peace because of God’s promise. I realized that the greatest gift is when we come to the end of all of our resources, and all we have left is Him. Then we realize that He is all that we need.

Jesus is inviting you today to trade your worries and anxieties for His peace. That takes place as we bring our concerns to him daily in prayer and petition - with thanksgiving. And He can take those anxieties on Himself and leave us with supernatural peace. So whatever your anxieties are today, He invites you to give them to Him.

Father, I freely admit that I need more of your peace and less of my worry and anxiety. I give you my deepest fears and anxieties today and ask that you fill me with your peace that passes all understanding. Thank you for your goodness to me and your desire to carry my burdens yourself. Amen.

The question for today: What worries and anxieties do I need to give to Jesus in exchange for His supernatural peace.

Day 7 - Less Busyness and Obligation and More Space for a Relationship With Jesus

“Be still and know that I am God.”

When you are used up and tired out, frazzled and discouraged, where do you wish you could go? For me, it is a stream in Montana where I am fly fishing in pristine water, the mountains in the background, and the big sky that gives Montana its name, Big Sky Country. For me, it is a place of peace, restoration, and refreshment. It is where I can step out of the rush of life and experience quietness and rest for my body and soul.

I am sure you have a place like that, as well. It is where we wish we were when we wake up in the middle of the night with anxiety on our minds. Our lives are so very full, so packed with people and activities, so filled with obligations that we often lose our joy, our purpose, and our connection with God. The more we wish we could go to our place of peace, the more we probably need to live with less noise, busyness, and obligation. 

Why is this so important? Scripture says in several places and in several different ways to “Be still and know that I am God.” How hard it is to just be still. Being still is turning off all the external stimuli that bombards us constantly. It is finding time to be alone with God because there is a connection between stillness and experiencing the presence of God. 

Think of this as space. You have a limited amount of space in your life. That space is filled with all the things that make up our lives. Family, relationships, kids, ministry, work, recreation, television - whatever it is that fills your space. However, the question is this: How much space is left for God in your day or week? Each of us has the same amount of space in a 24 hour day. But is there space left over for God? Or is He crowded out? 

One of the things that stands out with Jesus is that he routinely went away alone, up the mountain to quiet and secret places, where He could be with His Father. So here is the God of the universe making Space for His Father because He needed it just like we do. So again, the question. How much space do you make in your life for God, or is He crowded out?

Here is the interesting thing. It takes some space to recognize and live in the presence of God. “Be still and know that I am God.” It is stillness in making space for God that we best recognize His presence and feel that presence. The reason is simple. Like in any relationship, where there is no quality time, the relationship suffers. That is why we spend quality time with our spouse or close friends. It is in quality time together that we know and appreciate one another. 

I wonder how often we miss out on God’s personal touch on our lives because we are too busy to let Him in. When we fill our lives with wall-to-wall activities, we start to live out of obligation instead of in the grace and peace of Jesus. Our lives become activity and obligation without rest and the grace, peace, and presence of God. That is a common tradeoff in a world with too little space for God. 

Lent is a time to be still and know that He is God. To be still and silent enough to experience His loving presence and allow Him to restore your peace. Instead of activity and obligation, it is a time to carve out space for Him to occupy. 

One of the significant figures in the Old Testament was a prophet by the name of Elijah. In 1 Kings, we find him running for his life from an evil king. He is tired, worn out, discouraged, hungry, and used up. It was one of those kinds of seasons of life. Finally, after traveling forty days and nights, he reached a place called Horeb, the mountain of God, and he went into a cave to spend the night.

Let’s pick up the story from 1 Kings 19:9. “And the word of the Lord came to him: “What are you doing here, Elijah?” He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.” So the Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.”

Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind, there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. A fire came after the earthquake, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

Did you catch that? The Lord was not in the wind. He was not in the earthquake. He was not in the fire, but he came with a gentle whisper. It is often how God talks to us. But unless we make space for Him and find times when we can be in His presence without distractions, we don’t experience His peace or hear His whisper. That whisper and that presence are exactly what we need on a regular basis.

God designed us for Himself. So when we are overcommitted and tired for long periods, the chances are that we are doing things He never asked us to do and living out of obligation rather than in fellowship with Him. 

Father, teach me to make plenty of space for you in my life. Teach me to turn off the noise and distractions and obligations that keep me from your presence and from hearing your voice. Remind me often that space for you is the most crucial space in my life. Teach me to be still and know that you are God. Amen.

The question for today: What can I do to live a less distracted life and make more space for Jesus in my day? 

Day 6: Less of me and more of the Spirit in my relationships

Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit (Galatians 5:25)

It is easy to be good and pleasant to those we like. But, it is a lot harder to do the same with those who irritate or, worse, anger us. Or, people we frankly just don't like very well. People we disagree with. People we find offensive or situations where our emotions get the best of us. It is easy for our emotions to hijack our "goodness" in all those cases.

We say words that reflect our emotions, which can be harsh and unkind. Think of emails you have written that you wish you could take back. Or words you spoke to a family member or friend that you wish you had never uttered. Angry, unkind or negative words that hurt someone. It may have made us feel good at the moment, but we know they were not words that pleased God.

We can say the same for how we treat people. We can give them the cold shoulder, ignore them or mistreat them. The ultimate way to hurt them is to gossip about them, share negative information or drop subtle hints that it would be good to pray for them because….and we piously suggest what they need prayer for. It is simply another way of sharing negative information and leaving a poor impression.

OK, OK, you say. "I get the picture." Have you ever wondered why we do these things, and every one of us has been guilty? Maybe even in the past day or week. The answer is simple. They are called "acts of the flesh" in the New Testament relating to our natural human nature. It is who we are, having been born into a sinful world with a sinful nature. 

Here is how Paul puts it in Galatians 5:19-21. "The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God." 

It's not a list that we are proud of, but every individual since the sin of Adam and Eve in the garden struggles with the flesh or the lower, unredeemed nature. It is why Jesus came to die for us to pay the price of our sinfulness. He came to redeem us from the need to live by the flesh and give us the freedom to live by the Spirit of God. 

Again, Paul in Galatians 5: "You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: "Love your neighbor as yourself." If you bite and devour each other, watch out, or you will be destroyed by each other."

Did you catch how God wants us to treat one another? He wants us to serve one another in love. As people who God has redeemed, we can resist our lower nature, which is at war with our new spiritual nature. "For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'" 

So what does it look like to love your neighbor as yourself or to serve one another in love? Do you remember the description of our lower nature? There is also a description of our spiritual nature which is the result of God's Holy Spirit who lives in our hearts. He takes up residence in us when we give our lives to Jesus. These are called the Fruit of the Holy Spirit because they reflect the character of God. And since we have God resident in our lives, we have access to God's character. 

Here is what God's character looks like, according to Galatians 5:22-26. "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things, there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking, and envying each other."

Wow: Think of what relationships would look like if, instead of the way of our flesh, we specialized in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. It is the way of the Spirit. Paul says that the other way, the fleshly way, the lower nature way, was crucified or put to death with its passions and desires when we came to Jesus. He nailed that junk to the cross when He died for us. All so we could live by the Spirit and treat others how God treats us.

This is the way of love and the way of God. This is the life we have been called to. As Paul says, "since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit." Or, to put it another way, let's live and act and speak like the Spirit who lives in our hearts. 

Think of the people in your life who are the most difficult to love and be kind to. And then ask the question: What would my attitudes, words, and behaviors look like toward them if I lived out the Fruit of the Holy Spirit? If I specialized in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control? And then Paul says, "Just do it." You have the ability through the Holy Spirit to live that way. Just do it.

The Christian life is about less of our old sinful nature and more of the Fruit of the Spirit who lives in us. It is less of me and more of Christ. So today, ask God to help you live with less of you and more of Him.

Father, would you help me to be conscious at all times of how I can live with less of my old unredeemed self and far more of you. Please help me reflect your Spirit in my words, attitudes, and how I treat others. Especially those who are hard for me to love. Amen.

The question for today: In what relationships do I need to have less of me and more of the Holy Spirit?

Day 5: Lessening our Pride and Choosing to Forgive

“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving  each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Ephesians 4:32

Few things are more like Jesus than a willingness to forgive those who have wronged us. We don’t forgive because we don’t believe they deserve it and often that is right. We don’t forgive because we are bitter at some offense and don’t want to give up our right to that bitterness. We don’t forgive because it is, frankly, unnatural to us to do so. Why would I forgive someone who has hurt and harmed me? Or someone close to me?

And so we often allow offenses to fester for years, sometimes decades. In some cases the one who hurt us has gone to the grave and we still carry that offense and still deal with anger and bitterness. The dilemma we have with the act of forgiveness is that we often don’t want to do it but we know God commands us to do it. It can be one of the hardest acts of obedience that we ever have to take depending on the offense.  

There are some myths that surround the issue of forgiveness which also get in our way. The first myth is that someone must ask for forgiveness before we grant it. If only life was that simple. One of the most difficult things about forgiveness is that those who have hurt us rarely apologize to us, ask forgiveness or acknowledge the depth of their hurt to our hearts, souls or bodies. In fact, we don’t forgive primarily for the individual who wronged us but for our own sake. When we refuse to forgive, we allow ourselves to be incarcerated in a cell of bitterness even while we have the key to unlock the cell door - forgiveness - but we choose our dingy cell to the joy of sunlight, freedom, and peace. The one who wounded you may well not deserve your forgiveness, but you deserve to forgive them so that you don’t live life in the prison of bitterness.

Myth two: Forgiving means forgetting. Our memories don’t work that way. We don’t forget moments or periods of intense pain. They are indelibly locked in our brain. The pain we feel when we remember those events may start to fade with time, and the Holy Spirit’s work in our lives. but we will not forget. The goal of forgiveness is not to forget. Rather, it is to be free of the bitterness and hate that we feel for those who wronged us. The more freedom we experience, the more healing we can experience. As we heal the memories don’t go away but the pain associated with them starts to recede. 

Myth three: Forgiveness relieves us of the pain of the wounds inflicted on us. Not so. The pain only recedes with the passage of time and the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. As we heal, the pain may become less painful and there may come a day when there is no pain left. But that only happens when we choose to forgive and give up our bitterness.

Myth four: It is easy for a Christian to forgive. Not so. Forgiving others is one of the most difficult things we will ever do, and the greater the wound the harder it is to forgive. This was the topic of one of Jesus’s parables: The Parable of the Unmerciful Servant. As Jesus was dialoguing about this parable, He had this conversation with Peter: “Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, ‘Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?’ Jesus answered, ‘I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.’” - Matthew 18:21-23

Why would Jesus say this? He said it because of how hard it is to forgive. In many instances, forgiveness is a process of forgiving, and forgiving, and forgiving until finally we don’t need to forgive any longer. It is a hard discipline that must be exercised time and again until the pain has receded and the bitterness is gone. It may be the hardest thing you will ever do. The command to forgive is one of the hard sayings of Jesus because it goes against everything inside us.

Is this not why holocaust survivor Corrie Ten Boom forgave those who committed the most heinous crimes against her? Her father and her sister Betsie died at the hands of the Nazi's and she endured the infamous Ravensbruck prison camp. Years later she recounts the day she forgave her SS guard.

“It was at a church service in Munich that I saw him, the former SS man who had stood guard at the shower room door in the processing center at Ravensbruck. He was the first of our actual jailers that I had seen since that time. And suddenly it was all there – the roomful of mocking men, the heaps of clothing, Betsie’s pained, blanched face.

He came up to me as the church was emptying, beaming and bowing. “How grateful I am for your message Fräulein”, he said “To think that, as you say, He has washed my sins away!” His hand was thrust out to shake mine. And I, who had preached so often to the people in Bloemendaal the need to forgive, kept my hand at my side. Even as the angry, vengeful thoughts boiled through me, I saw the sin of them. Jesus Christ had died for this man; was I going to ask for more? Lord Jesus, I prayed, forgive me and help me to forgive him.

I tried to smile, I struggled to raise my hand. I could not. I felt nothing, not the slightest spark of warmth or charity. And so again I breathed a silent prayer. Jesus, I cannot forgive him. Give me Your Forgiveness. As I took his hand the most incredible thing happened. From my shoulder along my arm and through my hand a current seemed to pass from me to him, while into my heart sprang a love for this stranger that almost overwhelmed me.

And so I discovered that it is not on our forgiveness any more than on our goodness that the world’s healing hinges, but on His. When He tells us to love our enemies, He gives, along with the command, the love itself.”

Ultimately we forgive because He commands it and Paul reminds us to forgive as God in Christ forgave us. And it is in that hard act of obedience and a lessening of our pride and will that we start to find obedience, healing, and in many cases, relational healing as well. Is there someone that you need to forgive today and will you do that in this lenten journey?

Father, help me though your Spirit take the step of forgiveness that I need to take and in so doing lesson my bitterness and allow me to start healing. This is a hard step but one that you command me to take. So I will do it. Amen.

The question for today: Is there someone that I need to forgive?

Day 4: More Peace, Less Conflict

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” (Matthew 5:9)

We live in an increasingly fractured world: Divided by politics, race, international conflicts, and personal slights and offenses that become the grounds for division. The sad thing is not that such fracturing is commonplace but that it has become commonplace among God’s people and in our families and congregations. We divide over theological and personal differences; over politics; over offenses that we experience and won’t give up. We are a divided people and relational conflict is commonplace.

And we have our principles, convictions and beliefs and these often cause us to double down, refuse to forgive or to look for ways of relational peace rather than division. Our world has always been divided. But: into that divided world came a Savior whose purpose was to bridge the gap between God and ourselves and between us and those around us.

To be like Jesus is to be a peacemaker. Jesus Himself said, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” To follow God is to join Him in bringing peace to our fractured world.

The world of Jesus’ day was a world of conflict and division as well. Jews and Gentiles didn’t get along. Slaves and free did not relate. Men and women were divided by how one treated the other. The differing ethnic groups that made up those ancient cities gave all kinds of reasons to live with division. And finally, the socio economic differences between rich and poor, entitled and those without power all contributed to a world of division and conflict. And into that brew comes Jesus, the One who consistently subverts the status quo and says to them all “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” 

I am sure that many who heard that statement were shocked because they had their convictions and their principles and they were sure they were right and therefore had no obligation to work toward relational peace. Yet, Jesus said, to be like God you must be a peacemaker. That is who He is. 

Jesus was called the Prince of peace. Paul writes this about His death on the cross. “For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility. He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access to the Father by one spirit.”  Ephesians 2:14-18

The common word in these verses is “peace.” Peace with God and peace with one another based on Christ’s work on the cross. At the cross, says Paul, Jesus destroyed the hostility between us and God and the hostility between us and our neighbor. Jesus came to bring peace and calls us to join Him in seeking peace wherever possible. 

How do we do that in a world that is so divided? Here are some of the principles Paul gives us.

• Be devoted to one another in love.

All of these instructions are found in Romans 12 and Paul sums it all up when he says, “If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.”

Jesus is calling us to a life of less conflict and more peace. To avoid division wherever possible and to contribute to peaceful relationships, especially among members of God’s family but also beyond.

As we let go of our egos and as we elevate Christ rather than ourselves, we are called here to do all we can to live in harmony, peace, and love with one another. So our question today is twofold: First, who am I divided from or have conflict with? Second, what can I do to seek to bridge that gap, just as Jesus gave His life to bridge the gap between God and us and between us together?

Peacemaking is not an easy task. It may mean that I have to forgive. It may mean that I have to humble myself to have a conversation I don’t really want to have. It may mean that I need to lay aside my pride and find ways to bless others who irritate us or who have offended us. It may mean that I need to be more tolerant of others' political choices and bless them in spite of those differences. It might mean that God is calling me to bury the hatchet of conflict and division and embrace others as Christ went to the cross to embrace me. 

As we follow in the footsteps of Jesus on His way to the cross, let's also follow in His footsteps in making peace where we currently experience conflict. “Blessed are the peacemakers for they will be called children of God.”

Father, help me to become a person who loves peace and who is committed to making peace where there is division. In the words of the prayer of St. Francis of Assisi:

“Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love; Where there is injury, pardon; Where there is doubt, faith; Where there is despair, hope; Where there is darkness, light; Where there is sadness, joy. O Divine Master, Grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; To be understood, as to understand; To be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive. It is in pardoning that we are pardoned. And it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.” Amen.

The question to consider today: Is there a relationship or situation where I can contribute to peace?

Day 3: Less Ego and More Humility

“Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.” James 4:10

Ego is truly an enemy in our lives. Ego seeks to elevate us above others. Ego convinces us that we need to be right and get our way. Ego keeps us from asking for forgiveness when we have wronged others. Ego keeps us from forgiving those who have hurt us. Ego causes us to compete with those we ought to be cooperating with. Ego drives our need to put others down so that we can be elevated. Ego causes us to project an image to the public that is not the real us. We want to look better than we are so we hide our weaknesses and fears, pretend we are better than we are and present a false self rather than our real self.

We are learning in this series that less can be more. This is very true when it comes to our egos. In fact, a life anchored in Jesus has nothing to prove, nothing to lose and nothing to hide. If I have something to prove I am playing to my ego. If I have something to lose, it is my pride. If I have something to hide it is my desire to look better than I am. In Jesus we don’t have to hide or pretend or compete. We can just be ourselves and live in humility knowing that we are complete and accepted by Him. 

Humility is understanding who we are, our strengths and our weaknesses and not needing to make ourselves look better or hide the real us. In Romans 12:3, Paul writes this: “For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you.”  

Here is why humility ought to be central in our lives. Our strengths and gifts were given to us by God. We are simply stewards of what He has given. Remember, life is not about us but about Him and the strengths He has given to each of us are designed to be used for His purposes, not to make us look good. Here is the irony of ego in God’s kingdom. Humility is a sign of strength while ego is actually a sign of weakness.  

But there is more. Ego is all about drawing attention to ourselves while humility is about caring about others and their needs. The more pride I live with, the more I will neglect both God and others. After all, ego is all about me. Not Jesus, not others, but me. Humility allows us to place our dependence on Him and serve others because we see them as women and men and children made in God’s image. Seen in this light, ego is the enemy of a life anchored in Jesus which is about Him and others rather than a life that revolves around me.

Solomon spoke to the issue of pride and humility in Proverbs 3:5-8. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your path straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil. This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.” 

Can you remember a time when you were wise in your own eyes and rather than trusting God, you did your own thing and ended up in the ditch? It can happen in our finances, our marriages, our relationships and in any arena of life. We often spend a great deal of our lives trying to fix what we got wrong because we trusted in our wisdom rather than in God’s. Less ego and more humility, faith, and dependence is a sign of a disciple of Jesus. 

Think about the benefits of humility:

• With humility I can forgive others because I don’t need to hold an offense

You can see how ego and pride are intertwined with our lives, words, motives and decisions. Jesus asks us to lay it all down and to choose a life of humility. As James says, as we humble ourselves before the Lord, He lifts us up. Subversively, the way up is actually the way down. 

Humility is one of the beautiful descriptors of Jesus. In Matthew 11:28-30, Jesus says this: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Did you catch what He said? “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart.” Jesus was a subversive force and calls us to the same. One would think that pride, ego and power are the way to significance but Jesus, turning conventional wisdom on its head says no: humility is. Less of us and more of Him leads to less ego and more humility. Again, less is more. A life anchored in Jesus has nothing to prove, nothing to lose and nothing to hide. It is a life of humble dependence on the father with a concern for those around us. That is the way to significance in the Kingdom. That is freedom.

Father, I invite your Holy Spirit to convict me where my ego gets in the way of my followership. Remind me when I choose my way over your way or live with something to prove, something to lose and something to hide. Amen.

The question to consider today: Are there areas where I need to lay down my ego and choose humility and dependence?

Day 2: The Intentional Act of Lessening

He must become greater; I must become less. John 3:30

Who does your world revolve around? For most, the world revolves around me. Life is about us. We count the responses we get on Facebook, love to be recognized and want to be somebody. Often we are unconsciously in competition for position, maybe power, affirmation from others, and often recognition. When we don’t get our way we can feel robbed and diminished. 

This is not a new issue. In fact, there was a brief overlap in the ministries of John the Baptist and Jesus. Both were calling people to repentance and baptizing those who answered the call. After Jesus was baptized, many people gravitated away from John and toward Jesus and this became a source of consternation for John’s disciples who thought that John was not getting the recognition he deserved. They brought their concerns to John but his answer surprised them.

John replied, “A person can receive only what is given them from heaven. You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Messiah but am sent ahead of him.’ The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete. He must become greater; I must become less.”

John perfectly captures the relationship between us and God when He said “He must become greater; I must become less.” Not only that, but John says this brings him joy. In that one sentence, John captures the essence of the Christian life. Life is not about us but about Him. That is a radical statement in a world that seeks to focus all of life around us as the center of the universe. In a world where nearly everyone believes that life revolves around them, John says, Jesus must become greater and I must become less.

John is saying that his job is not to lift himself up but to lift up the name and reputation of Jesus. Life is not about me but about Him. He is God. He is my creator. He is the one who redeemed me. He died to bring me into His eternal family. He holds my life in His hand. 

Here is one of the ironies of life. When we try to make life about us we diminish God and our lives become poorer and less fulfilling. But when we choose to make God the center of our lives, we experience life as we have never known it. Life centered on us is a diminished life but life centered on God is fullness of life.

There is a reason for this. When God created mankind he made him for fellowship with Him. But when Adam and Eve sinned, there was something great that was lost. This is why their sin is called “the fall.” We all suffer from that fall. Mankind fell out of relationship with God and lost the most meaningful part of life. 

Solomon spoke of this in Ecclesiastes 3:9-11. “What do workers gain from their toil? I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race. He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.”

Here is our dilemma. There is a hole in our hearts because we were made for God. He planted the seed of eternity in our heart and until we fill that place with Him, we live a diminished life. The more of Him we put into our lives and hearts, the more contentment and happiness we experience. Because life is really about Him and not us. In lessening our need to be at the center and placing Him at the center of our lives we experience true life. 

Here is how the Apostle Paul talks about the blessings we have in Christ. As you listen to this, think of the amazing gifts we have in Christ. “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.” (Ephesians 1:3-10).

These are just a few of the amazing gifts we have as children of God. As we make life about Him we experience a whole new life and find the satisfaction and meaning we desire in the deepest places of our heart.

How do we become less so that He can become greater in our lives? It is a matter of focus and intention. Do we give Him time in our day so that we find ways to connect with Him? Do we conform our lives to His teachings so that we are following Him rather than ourselves? For many of us, the problem is that we are too busy to connect with Him. Personal busyness is a symptom that life revolves around us. Carving out quality time with Him is a sign that we want our lives to revolve around Him.

As you walk through the 40 days of Lent, consider finding some extra time each day to spend with God.  Maybe reading a few verses each day and then applying them to your life. Extra time to spend in prayer with Him. The more we focus on Him rather than on ourselves, the more we experience true life. 

Father, I pray with John today that my life would become less so that you become greater. And in that counterintuitive equation I thank you that you will bring me the most satisfying life I could ever have. Amen.

The question to consider today: How can I make more room for Jesus in my day?

The Lent Series

Day 1: Less can equal more

“Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 2:5

Lent is a powerful time in the church calendar that can deeply impact our walk with God. For  many years of church history, believers have used the forty days of Lent from Ash Wednesday to the Death and Resurrection of Christ to go deeper with God and contemplate what it meant for Jesus to redeem His people. 

It is normal for individuals to choose to give something up in their lives during Lent. This is not to earn favor from God but to focus our minds on what is most important. It follows in the footsteps of Jesus who gave up His very life on a Roman cross. The creator became one of the created in the incarnation in order to reconcile the created with the creator at the cross. 

Think of what Jesus gave up in order to give us life. He emptied Himself so that we could be filled. He died so that we could live. He left heaven for squalid Bethlehem so that we could be redeemed from our sinful and broken places and experience healing, wholeness, and life. He was crucified so that we could be justified. He gave His life at Golgotha so we could receive life for eternity.

Paul describes this act of Christ as a great lessening. “In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who being in the very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death - even death on a cross!”

In a radical act of lessening, Jesus subverted the status quo in our world, just as He does in our lives if we know Him personally. In emptying Himself he made it possible for us to be filled.

As we walk through the forty days of Lent we want to explore the possibility that less can be more. We believe that there is a principle of lessening in how we live that can revolutionize our lives and the lives of those around us. In a world that is always about more there is something deeply subversive about less.

Can we live a life of subtraction in order to live a life of abundance? Can we empty our lives of our busyness and activity and find ourselves more fulfilled and satisfied? Can we do less and accomplish more for God’s Kingdom? Can we let go of those things that we medicate with and find ourselves more alive than before? 

Our world thinks in terms of addition. The more we add to our lives, to our possessions, to our calendar and to our sense of self-importance, the happier we will be. Is it possible that the world's definition of satisfaction by addition is upside down and that real satisfaction comes from subtraction rather than addition? It is in including the right things in our lives rather than the multiplicity of things that makes life meaningful. Central to this is making Jesus and His values the core of our lives at all times. Life is not about us. It is about Him and us living in Him.

This is a subversive idea. Wikipedia says that “Subversion refers to a process by which the values and principles of a system in place are contradicted or reversed in an attempt to transform the established social order and its structures of power, authority, hierarchy, and social norms.”

Isn't that exactly what Jesus did in the incarnation? The author of creation and the king of the universe came to earth as one of the created. A baby instead of a king. Into poverty instead of grandeur. A carpenter instead of a VIP. An itinerant rather than a settler. And then, a crucifixion rather than a coronation. He became disgraced so we could experience amazing grace. At every turn: how He lived; what He taught; His dependence on the Father, the death He died, He was subverting the status quo and the religious practices of the day.

Think of His upside down teaching

• To live you have to die

And the largest subversive act in history was a dead Christ raised to life after three days, defeating the power of death and sin. Jesus was the most subversive force the world has ever encountered and the most subversive relationship we will ever encounter. He changed and changes everything. But, just as He chose to give up His prerogatives for us, there are things we are called to give up to join Him in His subversive work in this world. He is turning the world on its head and He invites us to join Him in that work.

Over the next forty days we will consider how we can experience the less is more life. It is often in the subtraction that we experience more. 

Our choosing to give up something for Lent can lay the foundation for us to better experience the spiritual realities we will be studying. Less can be more in almost all of life. In fact, our journey will be about less of us and more of Christ. And that is the most important equation. The more of Jesus in our lives, and the less of us, the more subversive we become. 

Would you join us on this journey? We invite you to start by considering what it is that you are going to give up for Lent. That small decision can be a reminder throughout the next 40 days that less can be more. What we give up in our physical world can remind us of what God desires to do in our spiritual lives. 

Father. I want to join you in your subversive work in this world. Give me some ideas of those things I can give up in the next forty days of Lent. Help this be a reminder that less can be more and that subversive subtraction can empower me as I join you in your work.

The question to consider today: Should I give something up for Lent to remind me that He is the center of my life and my greatest focus?