The Lord Upholds His Hand

It's sad, but my oldest daughter is a little unsure in her footing and has the scraped knees to prove it. Our youngest daughter is the little daredevil and is constantly falling down. Because I don't want them to be hurt, and, even less do I want to hear them cry, I hold their hands when we're walking over rough terrain. Flat paved or concrete roads are less likely to cause an unsure step, but a fall there would produce a more severe injury.

Not one of us fathers want to see our children hurt. There are lessons to be learned from a small, controlled situation resulting in injury that could produce caution in a different circumstance, but that isn't what we want for our children every day. I don't want them to fall and scuff their knees, so I make them hold my hands and I hold their hands tightly. Regardless of how strong my grip is, or how much I want them to not fall, inevitably, they will stumble. If I have a firm hold of their hand, I can quickly pull them back up so the scrape isn't as bad or doesn't happen at all. They experience the shock of falling, but can, hopefully, avoid the worst of the consequences as they return to their feet.

Just as we don't want our children to stumble and be hurt, God doesn't want for us to fall. David puts it in this way in Psalm 37:23-24

23 The steps of a man are established by the Lord,
      when He delights in his way;
24 though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong,
      for the Lord upholds his hand. (ESV)

As tightly as I hold the hands of my girls and as much as I don't want them to fall, God's feeling for me is even stronger.

Just as my daughters won't fall if they keep their eyes on where they're going, we won't fall spiritually as long as we keep our eyes on the road ahead and the goal that lay before us. We will allow ourselves to be distracted and, at times, stumble. As long as we continue to hold our Father's hand, He'll guide and protect us.

Let us all look to keep our feet firmly planted on the path established by the Lord. Then we can rest in the assurance that, though we may stumble, we won't fall on our faces because the Lord is upholding our hands.

An Acts 2 Message to an Acts 17 audience

The title is paraphrasing a thought by Ken Hamm as he addressed the audience at a local baptist college.

The basic idea is that in Acts 2, Peter preached to a bunch of Jews - people whom God had been preparing for this very day with his word delivered through many prophets. They needed very little description about God, His will, and His character. On the other hand, the crowd in Acts 17 was addressed for the very reason that they did not know YHWH - the Lord and Creator of all things. To reach that audience, a different approach had to be used.

Considering the state of our nation, this should be such a compelling thought. When one thinks about those we assemble with and the lack of understanding of God, it should be absolutely panic inducing.

So, do we have to change the message to make it fit the audience? Paul didn't seem to have an issue with that. He addressed those in Athens in Acts 17 much differently than he did the Jews he found meeting in synagogues.

Does that mean we leave things out to make it more "palatable"? It shouldn't, we just need to realize that the way we've "always done things" doesn't seem to be working. Sitting in the pews barely paying attention to sermons that are hardly worthy of such, sleeping or daydreaming through bible study, waiting for lost souls to come to our gospel meetings for some "revival" when most of the members don't even show up - these things don't seem to be working.

We need to consider our audience and present things in a way that is both clear and reasonable. Many of the tracts that might be sitting in your rack at the building are quite old and are almost certainly an Acts 2 message directed to the Acts 17 crowd.

To be effective, people need to be convicted of their sin and understand the penalty and the price that was paid so they might enjoy salvation. Exactly how to convey that message varies depending on where the listener comes from.

In years past, those who were considered to be part of the church of Christ were regarded as "walking bibles" (or so I've repeatedly heard). Today, one is hard pressed to find a reasonable response to a request for "where is that in the bible?" Biblical illiteracy is at epidemic proportions.

The only solution is to start at home. If we don't know God's word, how can we effectively share it with others? If we don't know God's word, why would we even care about sharing it with others?

Are you prepared to share the appropriate message with the audience God presents you with? If not, what are you going to do about it today?

How Sweet the Sound

Not long ago, I told Stacey that I didn't want to sing "Amazing Grace" anymore. I have tired of the typical singing of the song - a dirge-like pace with little conviction nor care for the thoughts expressed by the words. Whenever I heard that number called, I'd roll my eyes as we prepared to spend about 10 minutes singing a few dozen words.

The next time I lead singing, I'm going to lead just that song with much thought and a more appropriate pace. I'll probably preface it with a few words of reflection about why we're singing these particular words.

Why the change? I just saw the movie of the same name with my wonderful wife and it has given me a new appreciation for those words.

If you read no further, do this - find what theater it is playing at and go give them your money. We need to support Enjoyable movies with an appreciation of moral character that are both entertaining and clean. Movies like this are worthy of both our attention and a piece of our entertainment budgets.

I wish I had my voice recorder as there were so many wonderful lines that bear further rumination. There were quite a few funny lines - especially at Parliament. But there were many convicting lines that the viewer with an honest heart will feel the sting as their own life is laid bare before such thoughts.

Some of the best thoughts carried the idea that settling for a procedural victory (i.e. "baby steps") is no victory at all - we must strive for a total, immediate triumph. Far too often, I think we fool ourselves in the church into believing the "small victories" are what is important in the grander scheme of things rather than putting aside our comfort and striving to win as many souls as possible for God.

Also, the gentle encouragement of Barbara who helped her husband regain the conviction to continue his mission and her steadfastness throughout the process is a great example of a supportive wife.

Really, there is too much good to be said for my feeble memory to cope with, so you'll just have to go see it for yourself.

Do it, and you won't regret it

Resting in His Arms

Rosemary wasn't a happy camper last night. Usually, when she wakes after we put her to bed for the night, Stacey goes to help her back to sleep.

Rosemary didn't feel well at all, so Stacey stayed home from Bible study with her so I could teach my last class of the quarter. Willow and I came home and Stacey finally took her turn putting Willow to bed. Rosie woke up and I went to try and put her back to sleep.

Was I in for a struggle! We rocked in the dark and I sang the usual songs I do to calm her down – “Jesus, Let Us Come to Know You,” “Prince of Peace, Control My Will,” and “Be Still My Soul”. She would fall asleep, I'd try to return her to the bed and she'd wake up again.

After some time of struggling, singing, and slumber another song came to mind - “Safe in the Arms of Jesus.” As Rosemary lay sleeping in my arms, I was so thankful for that quiet time to just hold my beautiful daughter so that she could sleep in comfort.

When I thought of the fight she gave resisting sleep, I thought of the parallel in our spiritual lives. If we would just stop trying to come up with any excuse to not obey God's will and quietly submit to His service, the peace and rest we experience is inexplicable (Philippians 4:7).

Are you resting, safe, in the arms of Jesus, or do you still twist, squirm, and fight the loving embrace He offers shunning that perfect peace?

The words of Safe in the Arms of Jesus by Frances J. Crosby

Safe in the arms of Jesus,
Safe on His gentle breast;
There by His love o’ershaded,
Sweetly my soul shall rest.
Hark! ’tis the voice of angels
Borne in a song to me,
Over the fields of glory,
Over the jasper sea.

Refrain:
Safe in the arms of Jesus,
Safe on His gentle breast;
There by His love o’ershaded,
Sweetly my soul shall rest.

Safe in the arms of Jesus,
Safe from corroding care,
Safe from the world’s temptations;
Sin cannot harm me there.
Free from the blight of sorrow,
Free from my doubts and fears;
Only a few more trials,
Only a few more tears!

Jesus, my heart’s dear Refuge,
Jesus has died for me;
Firm on the Rock of Ages
Ever my trust shall be.
Here let me wait with patience,
Wait till the night is o’er;
Wait till I see the morning
Break on the golden shore.