Hearing God

Here's the link to the book Hearing God: Developing a Conversational Relationship With God by Dallas Willard mentioned in the comments to the 10/27 posting. (I haven't learned how to add links to Amazon to comments yet or whether such a thing is even possible.) This book is well worth reading.

How Long Is Your "To Do" List?

These wise words come from Elisabeth Elliot’s Keep a Quiet Heart:

When Satan came to tempt Jesus in the wilderness, his bait was intended to inspire the lust to do more than the Father meant for Him to do--to go farther, demonstrate more power, act more dramatically. So the enemy comes to us in these days of frantic doing. We are ceaselessly summoned to activities: social, political, educational, athletic, and--yes--spiritual. Our "self-image" (deplorable word!) is dependent not on the quiet and hidden "Do this for My sake," but on the list the world hands us of what is "important." It is a long list, and it is both foolish and impossible. If we fall for it, we neglect the short list.

Only a few things are really important, and for those we have the promise of divine help: sitting in silence with the Master in order to hear His word and obey it in the ordinary line of duty….

Maybe the key to getting God to the top of our “to do” lists is drastically chopping away at the other things already on them. Actually, Jesus told Martha only one thing was necessary.

"Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "You are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed." Luke 10:41-42

Investing Without Fear

Back to the story of the three servants and their investment strategies we were talking about on Friday. There's one part of the story where I really need to sit up and pay attention--the part where the lazy servant justifies his laziness.

When the master returned home from his trip and asked the servants for an accounting of the property for which they were responsible while he was gone, the first two servants reported that they had doubled the master's investment. The third servant came forward and showed the master his original coin, now dirty and old. He said he had buried the coin. But to make matters worse, he said he had buried it because he knew the master was a hard man, harvesting and gathering what he had not planted--in other words, taking other people's stuff. He said he was afraid so he just did nothing with the master's money.

Now, who knows whether the servant was telling the truth or not about the master. The point is, how often do we fail to make worship and work for God a high priority because we secretly think He is a hard God and likely to take things away from us? How often do we find ourselves thinking, "I can't give money to the poor. How will I pay for the kids' college?" "I can't volunteer my time. I'll lose my house if I don't work overtime." "If I give myself fully to God, He'll send me to Appalachia, or India or Africa or wherever it is that I least want to go. He'll take away my nice life, nice car and nice clothes." The truth is, we often fail to go "all in" for God because we are afraid of what we'll lose. We are afraid of what He will take.

When I recognize this attitude in myself I need to remember that I do not serve a God who takes. This is just a malicious lie. Maybe I made it up myself to justify my laziness or maybe I heard it from other people who were trying to justify their own failure to invest in the kingdom. Either way, it is a lie. I serve a God who gives and who, in fact, delights to give. I need not fear investing everything for Him.

"I tell you the truth," Jesus said to them, "no one who has left home or wife or brothers or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God will fail to receive many times as much in this age, and, in the age to come, eternal life." Luke 18:29-30.

Our Top Priority Investment

Here's a story Jesus told about two guys who put what the boss wanted them to do at the top of their "to do" list--and one who didn't.

A man who was going on a journey called together his three servants and entrusted his property to them while he was gone. He distributed the property according to their varying abilities, giving five coins to one, two coins to another and one coin to the third.

When the man returned from his journey he asked for an accounting. The first servant showed his master that by his efforts he had earned five coins with the five he was given. The second servant showed the master that he had also doubled the initial investment. The third servant simply handed the master back his original coin. He said he had done nothing with it except to bury it, perhaps for safekeeping. (You can read the story in Matthew 25:14-30 as well as a second similar story Jesus told in Luke 19:11-26.)

As you can well imagine, the man was delighted with the efforts of the first two servants and furious at the third. The first two servants had put their master's interests at the top of their "to do" list. In fact, Jesus said the first one went "at once" and put the master's money to work. You can see that they made investing for the master a high priority by the returns they earned. It is not easy to double an investment even if you have a long time to do it. It takes real effort: a creative plan, hard work and constant attendance to the goal.

The third servant was the exact opposite in terms of effort. All he did was take the time to bury the coin. Notice that when the master heard that the servant had kept his money buried he did not rebuke him for being too conservative with money or too afraid to take risks. He said he was lazy. The servant hadn't increased the master's property because he was too lazy and too careless of his master's property to make any effort.

You get the moral of the story Jesus was telling, right? We are the servants, left here with responsibility for His interests while He is gone. He has given us each some resources which we can invest in His kingdom, which we can squander for ourselves or which we can ignore. We can put investing His property for His good at the top of our "to do" list or we can bury it under the mound of other things we want to get done. It boils down to a matter of evaluating priorities and choosing to work hardest on the right ones.

Planning, Preparing and Prioritizing

I was thinking this morning about a great example of people who put God at the top of their "to do" list.

After the crucifixion, some women followed Joseph of Arimathea as he claimed Jesus' body and buried it. These women, in the midst of tragedy, made a plan. They marked where the tomb was and how Jesus' body was laid in it. They went home and prepared spices and perfumes which they planned to use to annoint the body. The next day they worshipped, observing the Sabbath exactly as God had commanded them to. Then, very early the next morning as soon as the Sabbath was over and it was light enough to travel, they lugged all their preparations to the tomb so they could show their love and respect for Jesus, even in His death.

This was no slap-dash, hey I'll pray today if I can find some time, kind of worship. These women didn't think, "Hmm, I think I'll take a run over to the tomb since I finished everything else I had to do today." This was planned out in advance. This was something they prepared for. This was something they did in addition to and as a priority over all the other things they had to do.

Think about it. The women had spent Friday standing at the cross. They were emotionally drained. Presumably, they were also behind on their normal duties since they had been with Jesus all day. On top of that, it was Preparation Day, the day before the Sabbath when a Jewish woman has to get a million things done around the house since she cannot work on the Sabbath. (Even today, Jewish women who carefully observe the Sabbath must do a lot to get the next day's meals ready and the house prepared before sundown. Can you imagine 2000 years ago without the luxury of crock pots and prepared foods?) Yet these women took the time to learn as much as they could about what was going on with Jesus' body. Then, planning ahead and recognizing that they could not make preparations on the Sabbath without disobeying God, they went home and on Friday they prepared all they would need for their visit to the tomb. They then took the time to obey what God had told them to do regarding the Sabbath, although things were decidedly not normal and they were facing grief and a crisis of faith. And finally, as soon as physically possible, they went back to the tomb to lavish their love on Jesus. They didn't wait until the after-Sabbath chores were done on Sunday. They didn't sleep in after an emotionally harrowing weekend.

The story, simple as it is, speaks volumes about planning, preparation, prioritization of Jesus over everything else. As a result of their efforts, these women had an inside track with God that morning. They were the first to hear the incredible news of Jesus' resurrection. They saw the faces of the angels and heard the news that their redemption was complete.

Sometimes I feel a little jealous of the privilege the women were granted that morning, but I recognize that it was they who put themselves in the position to be so blessed. They set their priorities and followed through on the details. That visit to the tomb was at the top of their "to do" list and at the forefront of their minds from the moment they saw Jesus die.

The women who had come with Jesus from Galilee followed Joseph and saw the tomb and how His body was laid in it. Then they went home and prepared spices and perfumes. But they rested on the Sabbath in obedience to the commandment. On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. Luke 23:55-24:1

The One Necessary Thing

Even if you found the movie City Slickers forgettable, there is one scene worth remembering: the scene in which the serene and wise cowboy played by Jack Palance asks the frantic, dissatisfied businessman played by Billy Crystal if he would like to know the secret of life. In a memorable moment, Palance holds up one finger and says, "The secret in life is pursuing one thing." Unfortunately, Palance doesn't tell Crystal what that one thing is.

As anomolous as it may seem, this scene can't help but remind me of the New Testament story of Mary and Martha. Martha is freaked out and frazzled trying her best to serve Jesus and maintain her household. In fact, she is so frustrated that she complains to Jesus that life is unfair and accuses Him of not caring. Jesus lovingly replies, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is necessary." Fortunately, Jesus, unlike Jack Palance, actually tells us what the one thing is. He points to Mary and says "Mary has chosen what is better." (Luke 10:41-42.) And what is it that Mary has chosen? She has chosen to simply sit at Jesus' feet and listen to what He says.

The secret to life is in one thing: sitting as close as possible to Jesus and listening to what He says. If you feel like you are running around frazzled--or you feel scattered, frustrated or directionless--think about pursuing the one necessary thing. Spend some time sitting with Jesus and listening. A practical way to do this might be to read the four gospels, a chapter or two a day, for the next two months.

God Reminders

Let me expand on this idea of spiritual multitasking or giving ourselves little "God reminders" all day long. These small hits--listening to a sermon on your commute or praise music while you cook dinner--are not intended as a substitute for a deeper, quieter time alone with God each day. They are supplements that continue to remind us all day long of our core priority. They are necessary because we as humans are so easily distracted from living our lives with God in mind. We may set out with good intentions to love Him with all our hearts, souls, strength and minds, but soon our hearts are longing for things we see in magazines, our strength is sapped by worrying our way through the day and our minds are crammed with things like bills to pay, what we must get through at work tomorrow and who won which football game this weekend. God reminders bring us back and help us remember what is truly important, why we are living and where we will find fulfillment and a deeper level of joy.

So, what God reminders will work for you? Post-it notes on your calendar or in your locker? Signing up for an email devotional or two? Listening to the Bible read aloud on your iPod while you work out? Grabbing a few minutes of peaceful prayer while you walk round the block each evening?

Build some of these into your day a few at a time over the next several weeks. Before you know it, you'll be praying more continually, feeling God's presence more closely, and observing that your mind is being renewed by His Word and His presence.

From the Parable of the Sower, Jesus commenting on life's distractions:
"The thorny ground represents those who hear and accept the message, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the cares and riches and pleasures of this life. And so they never grow into maturity." Luke 8:14

Spiritual Multitasking

GodiPod.com and the GodiPod blog are now live. (If you have no idea what I am talking about, check my post for Monday, October 3.)

Pastor Mark Batterson has some great thoughts on spiritual multitasking in the GodiPod blog. I won't try to summarize all he says because he says it much better than I can and you really should check out his article at http://www.godipod.com/2005/10/spiritual-multitasking-according-to.html

In case you don't have time to check the blog right now, here's a quick snippet:

"I've always thought that one key to spirituality over the long-haul is fitting God into the rhythm of our day. Maybe multitasking is the key.

Deuteronomy 6 is all about multitasking. It tells us how to impress the commandments on our children. It says, 'Talk about them when you sit at home and walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and your gates.'

In other words, surround yourself with God reminders."

Great idea. Whether it is with sermon podcasts, devotionals arriving via email, or--for those of us older and not so tech-savvy as Batterson--Post-It notes all over the dashboard and bathroom mirror, we need to remind ourselves of God and His Word all day. It may take some planning, but we need to constantly and consistently weave God into the rhythm of our day.

On Procrastination and Priorities

There's an oh-so-relevant-to-the-21st century story buried deep in the Old Testament: Haggai. You gotta read it. It's only two chapters long so it shouldn't take more than 5 minutes.

Basically the story goes like this. God's people returned to the Promised Land from captivity in Babylon with high hopes of a better life. They started to rebuild the temple but they got sidetracked and started focusing on their own homes. Fourteen years later--you guessed it--still no temple, although by this time they had outfitted their homes quite nicely.

Unfortunately, prioritizing their own homes over God's took a toll. We read that the people had planted much, but harvested little. They ate and drank, but never felt satisfied. They had clothes, but never felt warm. They earned money, only to put it in a purse with holes. (Yeah, Haggai 1:6 really says "a purse with holes." Have you ever heard a more perfect description of your wallet?) In other words, they were living empty, unfulfilling lives in their fancy houses. They were on a treadmill, part of a rat race, working hard so they could get up and work hard some more. And they were making no progress on a place in their lives to worship God.

Is all this sounding way too familiar? Let's do a priority check today. What are you working on? God's house or your own? What are the things that are causing you to say "Not yet" to worship? Can we move God up the "To Do" list today?

"You expected much, but see, it turned out to be little...because of My house, which remains a ruin, while each of you is busy with your own house." Haggai 1:9

Redeeming Time and Technology

Here's a great idea: iPods preloaded with great stuff to help you quickly and conveniently access personal discipleship tools all day long. http://blog.theaterchurch.com/2005/09/godipodcom.html

Pastor Mark Batterson says the idea is about redeeming technology to foster spiritual growth. I say it's also about redeeming time to fostor spiritual growth. In fact, Batterson says he got the idea when he started downloading messages and worship on his iPod to listen to as he worked out, rather than remaining captive to whatever radio station the gym had turned on. It was a form of spiritual multitasking.

Batterson's experiments in increasing time spent in the spiritual disciplines sound a lot like my own journey over the past 12 months. My question has been, "How do I turn this minute, every minute--or at least as many minutes as possible--into acts of worship?" Can I spend my commute time listening to solid teaching? Can I turn this hour spent mowing the lawn into an hour of prayer? Can I develop a habit of praying without ceasing, even while cleaning the kitchen? Can the hobby I love be of service to someone? How can I best redeem my time? I even made a resolution to borrow my kids' MP3 player and learn how to download sermons to listen to on the go. Looks like Batterson's going to make that even easier for me.

I'm looking forward to watching GodiPod.com go live later this week. Batterson, already an active blogger, also plans a GodiPod Blog which will help us discover new ways of practicing ancient spiritual disciplines through use of technology.

"So be careful how you live. Live as men who are wise and not foolish. Make the best use of your time. These are sinful days." Ephesians 5:15-16