Do You Mind?

 I didn’t do it, but I’m not sure what it was I didn’t do. I woke up this morning in that hazy twilight zone of having deep thoughts and wonderment.  When I was fully awake, I realized I couldn’t remember what I had thought and the implications of them. But here’s a bit of what did go racing through my mind that I recall, which in the opinion of my wife is kind of strange, but she loves me.

We humans are strange in how we arrive at conclusions. For example, our water is polluted and getting more polluted all the time, though we seem to be trying to clean it up. Our air, too, is quite bad. I will never forget the first time I flew into Los Angeles, coming down from way up in the crystal blue sky to a brownish orange sludge that was called “air.” It has gotten better but still we are making a mess of the air. Then we decide we need more concrete so we clear the forests and put in high rises that cast shadows on the bare ground and obstruct our view of the mountains and oceans.

We drink the water and get sick. We breathe the air and get sick. We clear the forests and there’s ugly all around us from their death. Then some genius accuses God for all this happening and wants to know what He’s going to do about it. Fortunately for us, God is very patient and very kind and simply points at the Cross where His son bled and died for OUR sin and asks, “What more do you want from me?” And of course we pull out our list and say, “I just want… .” And there’s your answer why the world is in the mess it’s in. As long as we "just want" our agenda to be done, things will just continue to grow worse.

Psalm 27:4  says this...

 

One thing I have asked from the Lord, that I shall seek:

That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life,

To behold the beauty of the Lord and to meditate in His temple.

That’s one thing to put on my “just want” list. When our “just want” list compliments the purpose of God, good things happen. What kind of things? How about peace?  Wouldn’t you like to have more of that? Then there’s also the joy of knowing that what I’m doing pleases God since He is the one who inspired king David to write down what he learned (often the hard way).  

When you meditate on the words of the Bible and allow them to run through your mind you will find that you become more mindful of the Lord’s presence, that God is with you. It is He who puts the Holy Spirit in us so that we can be led on paths of righteousness so that we can walk with the knowledge that God is with us. We will live our lives better because who wants to hurt the God who loves us so deeply and perfectly? Being “mindful” is something our most ancient Christian brothers and sisters pursued and something that should be on your to-do list today.

How about this for an example of having God with you. I volunteer for the Billy Graham Organization and I answer email questions. One told me, “I am having trouble with lust and I look at a little porn.” I told him that the porn was food for his lust and to try this: Next time you sit down to watch porn, ask Jesus to look at the pictures with you and ask Him how He likes them. Can you imagine? 

So why do we want to meditate on God? Why do we want to see His beauty? Why do we want to know He is always with us and loves us. Here’s some reasons from Isaiah 33 and an especially wonderful promise:

15  The one who lives righteously

and speaks rightly,

who refuses gain from extortion,

whose hand never takes a bribe,

who stops his ears from listening to murderous plots

and shuts his eyes to avoid endorsing evil

16  will dwell on the heights;

his refuge will be the rocky fortresses,

his food provided, his water assured.

17  Your eyes will see the King in His beauty;

you will see a vast land.

Do you see what I see in those verses? Do you love the promise in vs 17? Do you see that the “just want” list is far inferior than simply wanting God? Our Lord Jesus is seated in heaven on a heavenly throne that defies my ability to comprehend its beauty from my earthly perspective. But one day I will be in that “vast land” where the beauty of the Lord is the standard to which everything is created and exists, and in that beauty I will see with my own eyes the God who loves me right now and awaits my arrival and walks with me every step I take on the way home. I don’t want to spoil that by “just want” nonsense.

I can’t remember the other “deep” thoughts, but evidently they weren’t that important anyway. 

Vote for Who?

Sometimes I feel like the little worm. I 
wanna curl up and hide.

 When Jesus ascended into heaven He left with an agenda to return one day. The things that will take place so that we know when He is coming is way past my understanding so that’s not what I want to talk about. 

I want to talk about God's agenda in light of the election that will soon take place from what Daniel told King Nebuchadnezzar. It’s Daniel 2:20 – 22…

20 “May God’s name be blessed from now on and forever, for wisdom and understanding belong to Him. 

21  He changes times and seasons; He appoints kings and removes them; He gives wisdom to the wise and insight to those who have skill.

22 He reveals deep and hidden things, and He knows what is in the darkness and the light is with Him. 

That sets up for us Daniel’s interpretation of some upcoming events that will lead to Jesus’ birth. King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream and he was perplexed as to its meaning. Daniel came in and told him exactly what it meant and it would happen over the next 600 years or so. Here’s how it goes:

• Nebuchadnezzar was the head of gold, the head of a great empire
• After him an inferior king arose and ruled, probably the Persian Empire
• Then another king arose and ruled, probably Alexander the Great
• Then a 4th kingdom as strong as iron rules and that was the Roman Empire
• Then a stone strikes the feet of the Roman empire and it is taken down to the ground and blows away like the dust
• The stone became a great mountain and filled the whole earth, which is the Kingdom of God, the Church.

That took about 600 years to happen, but everything that happened went according to God’s plan. There were no setbacks, no hiccups, no timing errors and no surprises–it came off perfectly. Jesus was born according to God’s plan through the “Yes” Mary said to the angel when she was asked to give birth to Jesus. He grew in stature and wisdom and was introduced to the world at His Baptism by John when the Dove landed on Jesus and a voice from heaven announced, “This is my son.”  He lived a sinless life, submitted to crucifixion so we could be forgiven and saved, died, was buried but on the third day rose again. He spent some time with His disciples and gave them instructions and then He ascended into heaven saying He would be back. 

Each succeeding kingdom in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream forwarded God’s plan of salvation for mankind. Today, God’s planned return is also going forward and there will be no surprises with that either. Each world leader rules his/her nation. Some do it well and others not so well. Some people thrive and others don’t. There are billions of pieces in the puzzle and God knows where each one goes and how it will bring about that “His Kingdom comes and His will is done on earth as it is in heaven.”

When you read the Old Testament something very redundant happens with Israel’s kings. After Solomon, Israel split with the 10 tribes in the north getting mostly bad kings and becoming idol worshippers. In the south, they had a mix of idol worshippers and good kings. When there was a good king in power, the people were happy. When they returned to idol worship, the people became sad and eventually both the north and south went into captivity. In spite of the kings, God kept His plan going forward, so it seems to me we would be far better off with a good king going forward than with a bad king going forward.

Next month we go to the polls and we cast our vote for the man we think would make the best President of the U.S. We should be in prayer about that vote because the next President will rule this nation and I believe he will either bring God’s blessing or God’s judgement. Timothy 2:1-2 says this: “…pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them. Pray this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity.Since the Bible tells us God “appoints kings and removes them,“ then the next President will be put into power to further God’s plan for the 2nd coming of Jesus. It’s best you are praying and in tune with God’s agenda and we get a president that makes the nation happy instead of sad.

Who should you vote for? Vote for Jesus. You can look at Jesus’ life in the Bible and easily realize what He would be in favor of. When you read the Bible, it’s also quite clear about what exalts a nation and what tears it down. Sadly for us, Jesus isn’t running for President, but you do have the Bible so I encourage you to pray and then in light of what it teaches, figure out which man promotes what the Bible teaches more than the other and vote for him. Regardless of who wins, God's agenda will go forward. We get to decide if we will have blessings or judgement.