He Freed Me From All My Fears

I was reading Psalm 34 today and something struck me. David wrote this Psalm during the time that he pretended to be crazy so that Abimelech would consider him harmless and send him away. David, the anointed King of the Most High God, was very much alone. He probably felt overwhelming loneliness, abandonment, isolation, betrayal, and now his reputation and pride were seriously in question. As he reflected on this time of great uncertainty, he wrote these words:

"I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul makes its boast in the Lord; let the humble hear and be glad. Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together."

You could paraphrase David as saying: "People think I'm crazy. Many of my own people have turned their backs on me. I'm in a strange land among my enemies. Everything I know that is comfortable and familiar are a distant memory. But you know what? God is good! He is always good! And nothing will stop me from proclaiming his goodness. He has rescued me once again."

How seldom do I have that kind of perspective?

While these first 3 verses spoke loudly to me today, it was the next verse - verse 4 - that spoke deeply.

David now says:

"I sought the Lord, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears."

From all my fears! All of them.

FEAR. What is it?

A feeling of dread?

A deceiving emotion?

The realization that what I've been worshiping (other than God) has finally failed me?

Yes. All of the above. 

That's one kind of fear. That's the fear that the Lord delivered David from.

You know how he delivered him from that fear? With another kind of fear.

Back to Psalm 34. Look at verses 7-10:

"The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them. Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him! Oh, fear the Lord, you his saints, for those who fear him have no lack! The young lions suffer want and hunger; but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing."

David feared. Feared for his life. Feared for his reputation. Feared the disapproval of man.

David was freed from that fear when he remembered:

"The Lord is good. The Lord delivers. The Lord redeems. The Lord provides."

"The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous. The Lord is near the brokenhearted."

David's son, Solomon, would go on to say: "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." He was right. 

And the fear of the Lord defeats the fear of man.

The fear of the Lord finds joy and hope, even while the emotion of fear is raging.

Reverence for the Lord crushes fear.

Perfect love drives out all fear.

Whatever you’re facing, know that “the angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him. And he delivers them!”

If you want to taste and see the goodness of God…take refuge in him. Seek him. Those who seek him lack no good thing.

Because he is good! He is always good! 

The Pronouns of Depravity

Enoch Burke, a teacher at Wilson's Hospital School (part of the Church of Ireland's private school system) has been arrested. Burke was told by the principal that he should no longer refer to one of his students with masculine pronouns, but with feminine ones. He refused. Because of his refusal, an Irish court banned him from the premises of the school. When he showed up the next day to teach his class, he was arrested. He is now in jail - and will remain there over Christmas - unless he chooses to recant.

Allow me to state this in plain English: A teacher is in jail because he refused to call a boy by a girls pronoun. He refused to call a he, "she".

I know we shouldn't be surprised. We were warned it was coming. But I guess much like the Messiah was foretold - when Christ finally came many did not realize that he was the one prophesied - we read the warning but didn't realize the depth or the magnitude of what it would look like. Who could have or would have dreamed up or imagined this level of shear lunacy?

Let's remember the warning Paul gave us in Romans 1:18-27. Please take a moment to read his words:

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.

Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.

For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.

There are not many things God has made more obvious in all of Creation than his intent and design between man and woman. The anatomy, physiology, biology, and even chemistry fit together like a 2-piece puzzle for a toddler to put together. "God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them." (Genesis 1:27) This is the debate we've been having for the last several decades, permeating the culture and attempting to invade the church. Is homosexuality a sin? But over the last decade, that question, controversy, and debate almost seem like child's play. We've now entered an era of children - not adults, but children - making the decision to change their sex. To be clear, Paul told us that many would "by their unrighteousness suppress the truth." He said they would "exchange the truth for a lie." I guess I naively thought it would be over deceptive, unclear things. I assumed this water would be really muddy, not crystal clear. 

I was wrong.

Many believe this issue begins with our feelings. There are boys who feel like girls and girls who feel like boys. Nevermind that many of them feel this way because their progressive parents have supplanted the idea in their head, or worse yet, literally dressed them up as the opposite sex. Children who are not old enough to drive, vote, drink alcohol, pick up their own prescription, or even hit puberty are now being given the right - many times forced into the decision - to change their sex. Kids are allowed to determine what and how a teacher can refer to them. Yes, this is complete lunacy. It would be outright laughable if it wasn't so completely detestable. And yet, here we are. Right where Paul said we would be. 

Please consider this: The issue does not begin with your feelings. It begins with whether or not you believe God's Word to be the TRUTH. 

We're not talking about complex issues of eschatology or the hypostatic union of Christ or the Trinity. We're talking about believing that the Creator of all things knew what he was doing when he made a male a male and a female a female. He did that. His choice. His design. "...male and female he created them." We don't get to VETO the design of the one, true, magnificent Creator. We're not given the option to circumvent our Maker; only submit and surrender.

To repeat myself: The issue does not begin with our feelings.

There are days where and when a woman doesn't feel loved by her husband. She finds herself fighting off feeling like finding someone else to make her feel special. She may even be tempted to cheat - to commit adultery. Does this make her an adulterer? Should she listen to her feelings? 

Someone, somewhere out there today, is going to get angry. Really angry! And he's going to be so angry that he even has a thought of doing something to harm the person who made him angry. He feels like making someone pay for what they've said and done. For a split second...he thinks about murder. Does this make him a murderer? Should he listen to his feelings?

A teacher in Ireland will very likely be sitting in jail this Christmas, away from his family, not because he stole something or wounded someone or committed a crime. No. He's in jail because a boy feels like a girl. And the adults in his life don't love him and/or fear the Creator enough to tell him the truth. Enoch Burke is in jail because he fears and reveres the Creator more than his creation. He's in jail because he said what we all know to be true: a boy is a boy. He is a HE. 

"...male and female he (God) created them."

I pray that you refuse to exchange the truth for a lie. It's only in the TRUTH that we we will actually find the freedom we're so desperately searching for. 

Roe v. Wade: How Should We Respond?

As I'm sure you're aware, last week the Supreme Court of the United States of America overturned Roe v. Wade. In a majority vote, SCOTUS ruled that it is not a constitutional right for a woman to have an abortion. It is now left up to each State to determine and enforce their own abortion laws. This was an incredibly momentous victory on behalf of protecting the unborn and advocating for life. While this ruling is unquestionably something to celebrate, I believe it should lead us - the Church - to prayerfully consider how we are to respond in this moment. 

To put it to a question: What should we do as a result of the overturning of Roe v. Wade?

First off, this is a pivotal moment for the people of God to become the greatest advocates and strongest participants in the foster system. No one should be more present and active in adopting and fostering children than the Church. While we are not all capable or able to adopt or foster a child, we have a wealth of resources and opportunities to come alongside those who can and do. There are countless ways we can support those who are opening up their homes and lives for the sake of the orphan. If we want more and more women to eliminate abortion from the list of options, there has to be a rising tide - maybe a flood is a better description - of Jesus followers who are ready, willing, and able to adopt.

 

Let me say it this way: If you are anti-abortion, then you are pro-adoption.

 

As of 2017 statistics, over 92.33% of the women who had an abortion listed "No reason (elective)" as the determining factor in aborting their baby. In other words, very often it is simply an inconvenience. [Further statistics show that .065% of abortions are from the woman's life being in danger, .288% are because of the woman's physical health being threatened, .666% were from a fetal abnormality, and 6.268% were due to social or economic reasons.] I share this with you for 2 reasons. The first is to expose that over 92% of the time, abortion is a decision of convenience. Or inconvenience, whichever way you choose to look at it. The second reason I share this with you is to assure you that standing in the gap - caring for the orphan - is an inconvenience.

 

This summer we will be affirming 3 new deacons at The Brook. One of those deacons will be Sara Couch, whose husband Matt is already one of our current deacons. Matt and Sara are a vital part of our worship team, and host/lead one of our Missional Communities. As experienced foster parents themselves over the last several years, we have asked Matt and Sara to lead our efforts to effectively serve all of our foster and adoptive families and to help us cultivate new ways of serving the foster and adoptive community in our city. I do not believe these things are all happening simultaneously by accident or coincidence. This is clearly the Lord's timing.

 

As I've touched on what we can and should be doing as the Body of Christ, allow me to close by addressing how we should be responding to this watershed moment in our culture. To put it simply, as Jesus has called us to be salt and light to the world around us, the only way to accomplish this is through understanding our own brokenness and seeing the lost world around us through the loving eyes of the Father. While social media or TV will show you the extremes (there are most certainly people out there who are completely driven by evil and darkness), most women who ever contemplate the horror of abortion are consumed by shame, guilt, embarrassment, loneliness, and fear. Hate and anger will not drive them to the Lord. Only the love of God manifested in and through the people of God will overcome darkness. So, these are not days to boast or gloat, but to walk in humility and grace. May we walk and live as Jesus did.

 

Jesus did not condemn the woman caught in adultery. But he also did not overlook her sin. He told her, "Go and sin no more."

 

Jesus did not condemn the Samaritan woman at the well. But he also did not pretend that her empty pursuit for hope and peace would eventually pay off. He showed her and told her where to find living water!

 

Friends, it's time our PRO-LIFE stance become way bigger and bolder than simply being ANTI-ABORTION. If we are going to be truly pro-life, then our own lives will be interruptible. We will most certainly be "inconvenienced." But this is the worship our Lord is looking for.

 

In describing true fasting and worship, God said, "Is it not to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own family? Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up speedily; your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; you shall cry, and he will say, 'Here I am.' If you take away the yoke from your midst, the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness, if you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise from the darkness..." (Isaiah 58:6-10) [italics mine]

 

Join me in crying out to our Heavenly Father:

Lord, please open our eyes and break our hearts, that we might be willing to be poured out for those who need you. Make our lives interruptible; living sacrifices for the sake of the gospel. Your Kingdom come; your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.

 

I'm grateful for you and I'm praying for you today. May the Lord transform the world around us as we live intentionally to bring His Kingdom everywhere we go!

Hurt By the Church

Over the years I’ve had numerous conversations with people who said these words: I’ve been hurt by the church. 

While some folks made this statement in a counseling session where deep wounds and hurts were possibly being shared, others have actually been very casual, in a conversation at the gym or even simply in passing. When someone made this comment to me most recently (just a few weeks ago) for some reason it was like someone shoved a stick in the spokes of my bike. It stopped me dead in my tracks. Some very clear thoughts flooded my mind and I felt I needed to share them.

The first thing that needs to be communicated is that I fully and firmly believe there are individuals, couples, and even families who have been wounded by people, pastors, groups, and decisions made within the church. Groups have been so exclusive that new families could never find their way in. Pastors have misused their authority and acted more like King Herod than King Jesus. Theological differences have been expressed as dogma and isolated people to the point that they felt pushed out. I could go on and on, but the fact remains: people have been hurt in the church.

It's imperative that we key in on that last statement.

SIDENOTE: I get really hung up on words. So much so, many close to me might even say I obsess over them. Words can be like a scalpel or a bulldozer; two very different tools for very different uses and purposes. You better choose the right one. Back to the point.

Every single time I have had this feeling or experience shared with me, it has been expressed with the words: I've been hurt by the church. Here's why this statement and idea can be so detrimental and destructive, both to the churches being referenced and the individuals who feel they've been wounded: the Church didn't hurt you.

The Church is the Body of Christ.

Granted, the Church (and the local churches through which it is expressed) is made up of people. Fallible, sinful people. Those people often make mistakes, make self-centered decisions, and put themselves first. People hurt people. Even in the church. Pastors and priests have abused church members. Congregations have split over utterly minuscule disagreements, leaving many members in shock and confusion. The list of circumstances is much longer than any of us would like to admit. People are hurt in the church all the time. And maybe you're one of those people. If so, I hope to encourage you with some thoughts.

People are hurt in dating relationships all the time as well. A boyfriend doesn't listen to the word, "No." A girlfriend convinces herself it's OK to cheat. Someone goes to dinner expecting a possible greater commitment, only to be told, "This isn't working out. It's not you; it's me."

OUCH! You can almost feel the dagger going through your heart.

In this instance, dating didn't hurt you; your boyfriend did. The "institution" of dating didn't break its commitment; your girlfriend did. And while it may take weeks or months - possibly even years - to come to the point that you feel like you can open yourself back up, become vulnerable, and begin dating again, you eventually tell yourself to get back on the horse, get back in the game, stick your neck and your heart out there and date again. It's what you do. You're a little fearful. You wonder how it's going to go. But you know it's worth it. And eventually, you date again.

The Church is not your boyfriend. The Church is the Body of Christ.

Someone or something in your church may have hurt you in the past. Many have been there. When I was still fairly young in ministry, I dropped the ball with a few things I'd been asked to do. The way those "over me" handled the situation left me hurt, embarrassed, and even bitter for quite some time. A year later it took a shouting match on the side of the road between me and the Lord for me to leave those wounds at the Cross and turn them over to Him. But I knew from the outset, the Church didn't hurt me; those individuals did. I didn't leave or divorce the local church. That was never an option. Through the mercy and grace of God - through the power of the gospel - the Lord healed those wounds. And He's used them in my own heart and life to pay close attention to how I disciple, lead, affirm, and even rebuke those that the Lord has called me to shepherd.

I am part of the Body of Christ. And if you are a follower of Christ, so are you. Divorce is not an option.

I don't know how long the wound has festered or the hurt has been hardening in your heart, but I exhort and admonish you today: come back! 

If you forsake the bride, you are rejecting the bridegroom. 

Jesus says, "The Spirit and the Bride say, 'Come.' And let the one who hears say, 'Come.' And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price." Right now, the Bride of Christ is crying out to the Lord, "Come, Lord Jesus!" It's a corporate groaning and longing for all things to be made new. I encourage you today: Come. Come and find your place in the Body of Christ and join the cry that is going to ring through eternity: "Come, Lord Jesus!"

Christ loves the Church. He gave His life for her.

We are the Body of Christ. We are the Church.

May our love for one another show a lost world the love of the Savior!

"Come, Lord Jesus!"

The Fruit of Forgiveness

Jesus said, “I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire. So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.”

Later on he also gave this instruction: “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.” Matthew‬ ‭5:22-24, 18:15-17‬

As the body of Christ it appears that we suck at following these instructions.

We take our grievances to everyone except the one who has wounded or offended us. We gossip and slander. We fail to give the benefit of the doubt. We most certainly don’t give the offender the opportunity to defend himself or make things right. And we now seem to be offended and wounded by just about anything and everything. This is not the way of Christ.

Jesus told the disciples, “The world will know you are my disciples by your love for one another.”

Peter said, “Love covers over a multitude of sins.”

John put it very simply: "We love because he first loved us."

Paul told the Corinthians that “love is not easily offended or provoked… Love keeps no record of wrongs.”

Love is not easily offended. But we are.

Love keeps no record of wrong. But we do.

Following Christ is often manifested in the things you no longer choose to partake in: sexual immorality, drunkenness, idolatry. Those are the "no-brainers." But it’s also about no longer partaking in slander, gossip, bitterness, resentment, and unforgiveness. Those are the hard ones! But that’s what the love of God demands.

Love has hard conversations.

Love realizes that pride is the enemy.

The invitation from Jesus is not, "Believe in me," but, "Come, follow me."

Some believe but don't follow. No one follows without believing.

Jesus said, "Go and make things right. Go and seek reconciliation. Go and extend the grace and mercy that you yourself have been extended." Leave your gift at the altar - save your songs for later - and go be reconciled to your brother. This is worship in the sight of the Lord.

The hard way is to "Go." The easy way is to leave.

Pride says, "I've been hurt and wounded and wronged. I'm out. I'm gone."

Humility says, "I will walk across fire to see the Lord restore me to my brother or sister."

Paul said, "Love does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth." If we make assumptions and don't seek to know the truth, we are essentially rejoicing in wrongdoing. To use a better translation: We are delighting in evil. Ouch.

We must cast off and repent of our desire to curl up with our bitterness. It's not a warm blanket; it's an evil enticement. And it will eat us from the inside out and tear down the Body of Christ. To be clear: Unforgiveness is tearing down the Body of Christ!

We must do the hard work of going to our brother or sister, bearing our soul and confessing our wounds, and seeking reconciliation, restoration, and forgiveness.

We must cease just believing and actually start following the one who "bore our shame in his body on the tree." He doesn't demand we come. He invites us to follow. He's clear that the road is hard and narrow and runs completely counter to the instincts of our flesh. The road actually leads to death. Our death. Death that leads to new life. New life that bears the beautiful fruit of forgiveness.

I pray that you and I can taste that fruit today.

The Benefit of the Doubt

 I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt.

Have you thought about what this means anytime lately?

Have you exercised this judgment recently?

Have you considered this concept at all?

I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume you have.

Let's talk about the meaning of this idiom.

benefit of the doubt : the state of accepting something/someone as honest or deserving of trust even though there are reasons for doubt.

To decide that you will believe someone, even though you are not sure that what the person is saying is true.

I’m pretty sure most of us understand the definition and meaning of this phrase. The greater issue today is that fewer people seem to be practicing it. If we hear that someone has said something we disagree with, we don’t go to the person; we simply pass judgment. If a decision is made that we disagree with, rather than seeking to understand why, we rush to condemn.

The well of our grace seems to have run dry.

If you’re a Christ-follower, there’s an enormous conflict with this. The one we claim to follow is full of never-ending grace toward us. His mercies are new every morning.  His well of grace never runs dry. In fact, it's overflowing.

In a previous post I wrote 9 years ago I pointed this out:

In Proverbs 18:17, Solomon writes, "Any story sounds true until someone sets the record straight." Hearing this wisdom, isn't it good practice - biblical practice and principle - to "set the record straight", get the facts, go straight to the source before we believe anything? Isn't this a courtesy that we want others to extend to us? Of course it is. We WANT the benefit of the doubt! But for some reason, we often seem to be a whole lot slower to extend it to everyone else.

In Acts 6, Luke writes: "Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution of food." People were getting saved. And because the early church in Jerusalem was not only rapidly growing, but also multicultural and multilingual, the conditions were ripe for someone to get overlooked. And someone did. The Hellenist widows. And so "...a complaint arose." We quickly discern this word "complaint" to be negative. Mainly because none of us like receiving complaints. But sometimes a complaint - someone pointing out where something isn't right - is necessary. This is one of those cases. But rather than badmouth the Apostles behind their back or gossip about the travesty of someone playing favorites, the Hellenists came straight to the Apostles.

You know what they did? They gave the benefit of the doubt.

They chose to believe something good about someone, rather than something bad, when they had the option of doing either. They chose to believe that the Apostles might not be aware of this oversight. They decided to look for a solution rather than just point out a problem. And if you go on reading (Acts 6:1-7) you find that the result of this instance of the benefit of the doubt resulted in the first deacons being affirmed in the church.

Let's ask the Lord to fill us today with as much grace as we've received.

Let's ask Him to grow those fruits of the Spirit in us like patience and kindness and gentleness.

Let's give others the benefit of the doubt. Lord knows, it's most certainly been extended to us.

We Have No Other King

I’m lying in bed, unable to sleep, praying for my country. What hits me hard is the realization that I am actually engaging in spiritual battle; engrossed in a war that has ultimately already been won, but is still being fought. It’s a war of kingdoms. Actually, a kingdom and an empire.

While I know I’m a Gentile, I’m quite certain that I very often live like an Israelite. I know this because in spite of the fact that I am a citizen of heaven, a follower of King Jesus, I’m still in the crowd demanding a king be anointed, crowned, empowered and enthroned. I have a heavenly Father...but my flesh wants a king.

This world is not my home. This kingdom is not where my first allegiance lies. So, as I lay here this morning in the silence I wonder how many others are asking themselves the same question: Which king am I going to serve? Which battle am I going to fight?

The battle I'm fighting is the evidence of which king I'm living for.

I think I often forget that this great country we live in is really still a pretty fresh experiment. That said, I believe it’s one of the greatest civil experiments in history. And yes, millions have fought and bled and died to keep this idea going. But it’s really not about a place. It’s about a principle: freedom. The experiment started because men and women refused to bow any longer to an earthly king. They sold all they had, left all they knew, and bravely broke those chains of bondage. Understanding this, it comes as an even greater shock that many of us have now unknowingly chained ourselves back to the earthly throne that ruled over us not so long ago. We have a heavenly Father, but our flesh still wants a king.

This is nothing new.

"But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.” And Samuel prayed to the Lord. And the Lord said to Samuel, “Obey the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them.... And "the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel. And they said, “No! But there shall be a king over us, that we also may be like all the nations, and that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles.” And when Samuel had heard all the words of the people, he repeated them in the ears of the Lord. And the Lord said to Samuel, “Obey their voice and make them a king.” (1 Samuel 8:6-7, 19-22)

We fled a country with a king. Now...we seem to just call it by another name.

No matter what side of the fence or the aisle you sit or stand on, if your President is your king, then he is King Saul. It's not about who got your vote; it's about who or what gives you hope. If your hope in this world is in the democratic republic of the United States of America, then make no mistake: Saul is your king.

Yes, we have a duty, responsibility and privilege to vote, to participate, to listen, and to engage. That's what people fought and died for. That's the principle - not the place - that makes America what it is.

But we also have a calling and command to first seek the Kingdom of God - to first love our brothers and sisters as Christ loved us - to be ministers of reconciliation, not division and condemnation. That's what King Jesus lived, died, and resurrected for.

If you don't think there's a tension in the life of a Christ-follower in America, you need to think again. For instance...

As an American, someone fought and died for your right to protest.

As a Christian, our Savior says, "If you want to follow me, you must lay down your rights." Jesus lived and died that you might no longer be a slave to your "rights".

That sounds like tension. That sounds like there's a decision to be made.

Paul told the Ephesians: "We do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places." This is the truth of who the people of God should be and what it is we should be doing. But we must understand: When we get consumed with the lusts and loves of this world and we begin to think our hope lies in King Saul, we ultimately wind up wrestling against flesh and blood. We wind up tearing each other down. When we wrestle against flesh and blood, the spiritual forces of evil have distracted us from realizing that the true enemy over this present darkness is getting just what he wants. He wants us to want King Saul. 

As Christ-followers, I exhort you that we should listen to Peter's letter to the persecuted and scattered believers as if he was writing directly to us: "Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation." (1 Peter 2:11-12)

This world is not our home. We have a Heavenly Father and a King Eternal. We fix our eyes not on what is temporary, but on those things that will not pass away. We are ministers of reconciliation. Jesus said, “The world will know that you are my disciples by your love for one another.”

Friends, the last year has been filled with one season of trial after another. We are all weary. May we all cry out to our King to give us strength, humility, and courage. May we bear one another’s burdens and carry one another during the weariness. 

May we always remember that our only hope is in our crucified and risen Savior.

And may the anthem ring through our hearts and from our lives: “Glory, glory, we have no other King but Jesus, Lord of all!”