Give It Away

A couple things have occurred today that have gotten me thinking about stewardship. I’m reading Ken Shigamatsu’s book God in My Everything, and he has a good chapter on finances. He talks about “proportionate giving,” meaning “we first determine the amount we need (adjusted regularly for inflation) and choose to live on that alone. We then commit to giving the rest away.”

While I haven’t gone that far, I have made an effort to increase my giving each year, even when I don’t receive any increase in salary. I will say up front that money does not hold a great attraction for me, and being single allows me the freedom to live as simply as I choose. It is nice to see my bank and pension balances increasing, but I don’t spend a lot of time obsessing about it. Since I have to spend most of my work hours looking at finances, by the time I get home I don’t want to be bothered with balancing my checkbook or paying bills. (I just entered about 8 months of receipts into the computer, and I wouldn’t do it at all if I didn’t have to file taxes at year end.)

Over the past several years I’ve noticed certain trends in my decisions about charitable giving, and my choices are probably not unique.

• I give to fewer organizations than I used to. I’m giving more of my funds to those that impact me directly and eliminating others that I’ve had only distant ties to. Although I appreciate the work of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, it isn’t that important to me.
• I have also moved toward organizations that are overtly Christian. Anybody can support humanitarian organizations, but only Christians are likely to support churches and Christian non-profit agencies.
• I give more to organizations that have fewer donors. My alma maters are great, but they have a pool of thousands of donors. My church only has about a hundred, so comparatively its need is greater.
• I direct more funds toward organizations with a proven track record of good stewardship of their own resources, including their finances, properties, and personnel. Financial management is great, but if that comes at the expense of deteriorating buildings or staff that is either overworked or underworked, they may need to adjust their priorities.

It’s kind of surprising to me as I think about this to realize that many of these choices were made subconsciously. I never sat down and wrote out a budget of who deserved what amount from me. I will say that it helps to have an unlisted phone number and caller ID, so I never have to listen to those passionate calls to make an immediate contribution that I would never otherwise make. I rarely give to any special appeals outside of my church.

Financial stewardship is something we should all give more thought to, with at least a periodic review of where our money is going and how that reflects our priorities and our faith. I made the decision some time back that cable TV was not worth the investment of my money and time, so I downgraded to just the broadcast channels. (Ironically, the cable company has never removed the extra channels, so I’ve had several months of free cable.) I’ve also cut out some other conveniences and unnecessary clutter. It’s getting to be fun asking, “What else can I get rid of or give away that I don’t need?” Since “God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Corinthians 9:7) I might as well enjoy it!

I don’t look at giving as depriving myself of something good, but as making room in my heart for something better—building my own relationship with God and helping others to do the same.

Keep On Keeping On

I've been trying for a couple days to write this post following the apparent suicide of Robin Williams. I've been hesitant to try to say what others can say, and many others have already made their contributions. 

What I do know is that there will be a rash of suicides as some people will think, "If he can't hang on, why should I?" Robin Williams appeared to have the skills to deflect any situation with humor, but he hid behind a facade, as do many of us. I think of him in roles such as Patch Adams and Good Will Hunting, where the characters dealt with psychiatric illness through building relationships, and I wonder whether he took those lessons to heart? He seemed to have the resources to get whatever help he needed, but he chose not to do so. 

Shame can be a factor that prevents people from getting help. Mental illness continues to carry a stigma despite the efforts of many to change that. And shame is just the flip side of pride. We don't want to be looked down upon, but we also don't want your sympathy. Someone has said that the worst thing about having cancer is that every conversation revolves around that. Just as the cancer patient doesn't want that to become his identity, the person with mental illness doesn't want to be treated as a victim either. 

What we do want is your continuing love and support. You don't have to have all the answers. Just be understanding when we don't feel up to being social, or we can't stop crying for no reason. Don't promise us false hope, but remind us of God's promises to be with us in all things. 

One blog I read advised people not to use trite expressions like "If you're considering suicide please talk to a friend." The author's reasoning was that: 1) talking is the last thing you feel like doing, and 2) most of our friends are unequipped to deal with a real crisis. While there is some truth to that, I think that true friendships are perhaps the first line of defense for the person struggling with depression. Friends remind us that we are loved, that we matter to someone, and that there is life outside the counselor's office or the darkened living room. Friends can be a connection to the "real" world that we might otherwise lose if we are prone to isolation. 

There are a lot of lies that can creep into our thinking if we're not careful: I should be able to deal with this on my own; I can't talk about this because everybody thinks I'm fine, or else they've heard it all before; I'm never going to feel any better so I might as well stop trying; no one will care if I'm gone, or conversely, it would serve them right to lose me; and many other variations. 

I take courage from stories of people like Pastor John Newton, who stuck by his friend and fellow hymn writer William Cowper through ongoing depression and multiple suicide attempts, and others like Charles Spurgeon, who continued preaching and writing despite serious depression and physical ailments. (See John Piper's short book When the Darkness Will Not Lift for these stories and other resources- http://www.desiringgod.org/books/when-the-darkness-will-not-lift.)

I would offer just a few pieces of advice. First for those who have friends battling depression:

1) Don't judge what you don't understand. Learn more, ask questions, and don't jump to conclusions. 

2) Love your friends well, in word and in deed. It's easy to assume that people know how you feel and therefore neglect to tell them. 

3) Pray for your friends and with your friends, and stick close to the Word of God for truth, hope, and joy. 

And for those in the midst of depression:

1) Read and pray the Psalms. God put them in the Bible for a reason, and He's not offended by our raw emotions or even accusations. He knows what we feel better than we do. 

2) Try to avoid the tendency for complete isolation. Even if it is just short outings once or twice a week, we need that connection with other people. 

3) Seek help before it's too late, from doctors, pastors, counselors, and anyone who can point you in the right direction. 

There's so much more that could be said, and so many good resources out there. I'll leave the last word to King David:

Psalm 34:18- "The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit."

Already But Not Yet

In a recent sermon on Hebrews 7, it was pointed out that we often go through life with a vague sense of guilt. This can be true even of those who are confident of their salvation. There have been times when I’ve found myself praying “Lord, forgive me,” but then realize that I am not aware of any sin for which I need forgiveness. I could interpret that one of two ways. Either the Holy Spirit is prompting me to search myself for some hidden sin (and I’m sure I’d find something eventually), or the enemy is prodding me with guilt and shame in order to keep me from being effective for the kingdom. Most of the time it’s the latter, and it clearly takes discernment to distinguish which it is (Hebrews 5:14).

A verse came to mind recently when the enemy was attempting to sidetrack me with old sin: “And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God” (1 Corinthians 6:11 ESV). Paul makes it plain (using the aorist indicative) that these things have been accomplished and are not something awaiting future fulfillment. The author of Hebrews makes a similar statement, but puts it in the tense of a completed action with continuing effects (perfect middle participle): “And by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all… For by a single offering He has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified” (Hebrews 10:10, 14).

Such statements are hard to wrap our brains around when we’re aware of our own sinfulness. How can something be categorically true and yet false in our daily experience? I don’t pretend to have all the answers, but I believe it hinges upon the fact that God is outside of time (though proponents of “openness theology” would disagree). He can look at the entirety of human history as we might look at a printed timeline. In His view, Jesus’ death on the cross was sufficient to cover all our sins past and present, so our sanctification has been purchased once and for all. But we can’t see the end from the beginning. What we see is the daily struggle to resist temptation and to glorify God.

John Piper says of Hebrews 10:14, “This verse means that you can stand perfected and completed in the eyes of your heavenly Father not because you are perfect now but… that, by faith in God’s promises, you are moving away from your lingering imperfection toward more and more holiness” (http://www.desiringgod.org/sermons/perfected-for-all-time-by-a-single-offering).

On one hand, it can be discouraging to know that we’ve not yet arrived and the struggles persist. But on the other hand, we should find great encouragement in knowing that God sees us as we will be for eternity—perfected in Christ Jesus. He doesn’t get tired of our frequent falls and pleas for grace. I imagine it’s a bit like a parent who says, “I can put up with the terrible twos (or teens) because I know that it won’t last, and something better is coming.” But it’s even better than that because God has perfect knowledge of what is coming, and one day there will be no more disappointment for any of His children.

In the meantime, we can keep on pressing on, claiming the forgiveness that is ours in Christ. And when the enemy tries to trip us up and drag us down into despair, we can ignore him because we know the truth and the truth has set us free.

“Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me His own” (Philippians 3:11).

Getting Through

The following is drawn from the Family Camp studies on the life of Joseph based on Max Lucado’s book You’ll Get Through This. Max says:

You’ll get through this. It won’t be painless. It won’t be quick. But God will use this mess for good. In the meantime, don’t be foolish or naïve. But don’t despair either. With God’s help, you will get through this.”

The difficulty is that we don’t know how long “through” is going to last—days, months, years, or a lifetime. It is that uncertainty that is the hardest to bear. As someone said, if I know this will be over next month, then I know I can endure it. If I don’t know when (or if) this will end, I imagine the worst and feel unable to keep pressing on.

In the life of Joseph, he had no idea how long he would spend in the pit, in Potiphar’s house, in prison, or in the palace. The pit didn’t last long, but being sold into slavery was a different kind of pit. And prison could have been a much shorter stay if Potiphar had gotten the truth out of his wife, or if the cupbearer had remembered his promise. But through it all, Joseph remained faithful to God.

We don’t know if Joseph had access to any kind of Scripture, and his family wouldn’t be praying for him if they thought he was dead. So most of his life it seems he was alone with his memories of the stories his father had likely told him about Noah, Abraham, and others, and he had his own prayers and the dreams God had given him. So he endured by faith until God brought him through the other side.

Unlike Joseph, we do have a couple avenues to find strength to endure and to trust in God: Scripture and community. We have to decide to believe that the promises of the Word are true, even if they don’t seem true at this moment: God is in control; God is good; God is working all things for my good and His glory; God knows and understands exactly how we feel. By faith we take Him at His word and cling to what we know. And in order to do that, we need the loving support and the graceful reminders provided by the Body of Christ. We need to be reminded of the truth in preaching and teaching. We need the encouragement and love of true fellowship. We need to know that others have been through the same difficulties and have survived with their faith intact. Community can provide more specifically in the forms of prayer, comfort, and material needs as well.

I don’t know that I would have the endurance of Joseph. Thankfully I haven’t had the same kinds of trials, though that doesn’t really matter. God has His own way of turning evil into good for His own purposes. And He’s given us His Word and His people to carry us through.

“Therefore since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us” (Hebrews 12:1).

When I Fall

Desiring God recently shared a good word on their blog. Author Paul Maxwell writes:

“The next time you’re tempted to say ‘I hate myself’ because of the lingering sin in your life, take a deep breath, regroup, read Psalm 139, and get back in the game. ‘The righteous falls seven times and rises again, but the wicked stumble in times of calamity’ (Proverbs 24:16). The righteous fall. Falling is not the defining issue. The wicked listen to the accuser (Revelation 12:10) and don’t get back up. The righteous get back up.” (See http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/autocorrect-and-indwelling-sin for the full article.)

That reminded me of some other Scriptures such as Luke 22:31-32: “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers” (ESV). Jesus didn’t pray that Simon Peter would not betray Him, but only that his faith would not fail. Assuming that Jesus’ prayers are always answered, it’s interesting that faith doesn’t keep Peter from falling, but it does keep him from being permanently lost to the enemy. And Jesus is praying the same thing for each of us: “He is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them” (Hebrews 7:25, see also Romans 8:34).

Another encouraging Scripture comes from Micah 7:8: “Rejoice not over me, O my enemy; when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me.” It’s not “if I fall,” but “when I fall.” There’s little doubt that I will fall again, and again, and again… But by faith I will get back up and keep moving forward.

One of my favorite Scriptures is Psalm 37:23-24: “The steps of a man are established by the Lord, when He delights in his way; though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong, for the Lord upholds his hand.” I can just see the Father holding tightly to the toddler’s hand as she stumbles along the way.

Our enemy would have us believe that every fall is terminal and we are unredeemable. The discouragement and doubt that set in only trip us up even more. We need frequent reminders that God’s love is stronger than any sin, and He has made provision for every one of our failures through Jesus’ death on the cross. We also need to remember that although perfection is a worthy goal, only Jesus attained that goal while on earth. No matter how far we progress in this life, we’ll still be far from perfect.

I keep going back to a statement made by Brennan Manning on multiple occasions, “God expects more failure of me than I expect of myself.” We seem to think that one day soon we’ll get it all together and won’t succumb to temptation anymore. But God, in His infinite knowledge, already knows how weak we are and how many times we’ll fail to obey. The Apostle John sent out this reminder: “I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven for His name’s sake” (1 John 2:12). Other translations say “your sins have been forgiven.” The act of forgiveness has been completed, nothing more is required. Therefore we are free to get back up and try again.

With all that in mind, here’s my loose paraphrase of Micah 7:8:

“When I fall, I will get back up. I won’t believe the enemy’s lies that I am hopeless and helpless. I will accept God’s forgiveness and by faith I will get up and move on.”

Image © Dawn Rutan. All rights reserved.

Imago Dei

The image of God. It’s a phrase we may hear quite often in the church, but I’m not sure how well we understand it. There are a few Scriptures that can help.

Genesis 1:26-27 (ESV)- “Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.’ So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.”

The image of God is therefore not gender specific—both men and women are made in His image. And the primary role of all mankind is to have dominion over creation, just as God exercised dominion in creating the world. The image of God is also not isolated or singular. God Himself is in community, and He created us for community. “It is not good for man to be alone.”

Colossians 1:15- “[Jesus] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.”

Hebrews 1:3- “[Jesus] is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of His nature, and He upholds the universe by the word of His power...”

In Jesus Christ we see the most perfect example of God’s image. While the image of God may be obscured to varying degrees in mankind, Jesus reflects the Father perfectly. I would contend that Jesus was therefore more fully human than any of us.

Romans 8:29-30- “For those whom He foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, in order that He might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom He predestined He also called, and those whom He called He also justified, and those whom He justified He also glorified.”

Being conformed to the image of Jesus is a process of recovering the full image of God.

2 Corinthians 3:18- “And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.”

The image of God is one of glory, but that glory is not always evident in mankind. Only those who are chosen by God for redemption will eventually experience that full glory.

I’ve wrestled with these concepts for a few reasons. While it is clear that all mankind is made in the image of God, and therefore all people have inherent value, it is also clear that we live in a fallen world. So how do we reconcile these truths? Everything from genes to the environment has somehow been affected by sin and corruption. Paul says that the whole creation awaits freedom from corruption and futility (Romans 8). Every person is guilty of sin and struggles with various types of temptations. Our sin nature is obviously not part of the image of God. At the same time, the vast majority of people are unhappy with their physical bodies in some way, so we have the rise of diets, exercise, medications, and surgery to fix whatever is wrong (both real and imagined defects). So the homo sapiens body can’t be the sole indicator of the image of God, although the fact that Jesus came as a man suggests that that is part of the image. Even mental capacity can’t be a conclusive sign if we agree that every person is made in God’s image. (The Nazis certainly tried to put limits on who qualified to be called human.) And although mankind was made for community, relationships are often difficult, and some people are more successful at living in community than others. Sin has impacted our ability to relate to one another as we should.

The conclusion I come to is that even though we were all made in God’s image, that image will not be fully revealed until the end of time. As we grow in our relationship with Christ, becoming more Christlike, we are also growing in the image of God. As we are conformed to His image, we begin to develop more of the Fruit of the Spirit, which are characteristic of the image of God. “For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known” (1 Corinthians 13:12). Right now we are poor mirrors for reflecting God’s image—only Jesus was a perfect reflection. But one day our transformation will be complete and we will see God and see ourselves as God already sees us.

I see the implications for today as threefold: 1) We should learn to be more content with who we are right now—physically, mentally, emotionally, etc. We are all in process and we need to give ourselves a little grace. 2) We should pursue our relationship with God, learning more about who He is and who He has called us to be. He is the One who can transform us and conform us to the image of Jesus Christ. 3) We should look forward with hopeful anticipation of the Day of the Lord, when all will be made right and we will see everything as it is meant to be.

“Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming day of God... But according to His promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells” (2 Peter 3:11-13).

Open Hands

C.S. Lewis writes about his wife: “Joy tells me that once, years ago, she was haunted one morning by a feeling that God wanted something of her, a persistent pressure like the nag of a neglected duty. And till mid-morning she kept on wondering what it was. But the moment she stopped worrying, the answer came through as plain as a spoken voice. It was ‘I don’t want you to do anything. I want to give you something’: and immediately her heart was full of peace and delight. St. Augustine says ‘God gives where He finds empty hands.’” (Yours, Jack, p. 309).

I remember being told a long time ago that we need to approach God with open hands—open to let go of whatever we may be grasping, and open to receive whatever God may want to give. I can think of many times when I’ve come before God with my hands clenched. Sometimes I’ve wanted Him to fix a particular problem, so I come like a child who won’t uncover his wound for fear that the treatment will be painful. Sometimes I’ve come with clenched fists to argue my case for why I am right and He is wrong. Sometimes I have breezed through, wanting Him to bless the plans that I have made, but not waiting to see whether He might have other plans.

It’s a bit dangerous and it takes faith to come with open hands when you don’t know exactly what God may want to give to you or take from you. Often our refusal to open our hands is an indicator that we don’t trust God, and we don’t believe in His goodness, grace, and mercy. If His character is like that of an angry father or a merciless judge, we have no reason to make ourselves vulnerable before Him or to let go of whatever we think we own. But if He is a loving Father who gives good gifts to His children, we are free to release what we have in expectation of something better (Matthew 7:11).

John 15:2 says “Every branch in me that does not bear fruit He takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit He prunes” (ESV). Even though we may be bearing fruit, God may remove something good in order for us to bear better fruit and more fruit. I don’t think anyone particularly enjoys the experience of being pruned, but hopefully when we look back we can see that it was for our benefit and God’s glory. Even Jesus had to remove His physical presence from the disciples so that they could then receive the Holy Spirit (John 16:7). I’m sure they couldn’t imagine how losing that relationship would result in something better.

Hebrews 4:9-10 tells us “So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from His.” More than once recently God has reminded me, “Just rest, I’ve got this. Relax.” Our busyness and concerns are probably the hardest things to relinquish to God’s control. What if it doesn’t get done? What if I don’t have the answer? What if I look bad? What if...? But God says rest. Can I trust Him to provide for this need and to give me the answers? Can I be assured that He will find a way to glorify Himself in my weakness? Can I really relax and let Him take charge?

Scripture is full of reminders about God’s faithfulness, care, provision, protection, and power. The real question is whether I believe that it’s true at the core of my being. And if it is, that belief needs to inform my choices and actions every day, not just when I find I’m at the end of my rope.

“Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom” (Luke 12:32).