I was reading something by A. W. Tozer today that reminded me about magnifying the Lord in our lives as Christians. The call to magnify the Lord was a common one in the Old Testament. You can find one example of it in Psalm 34:3:
O magnify the LORD with me,
And let us exalt His name together.
What exactly does it mean to magnify the Lord? There are two common instruments scientists use to magnify objects. The first is a microscope. That is used to enlarge very small things so they can be seen. Some people think that we Christians make way too much about God or Jesus. They think we blow things up way bigger than they ought to be. They would accuse us of using a microscope to enlarge the very small and insignificant god they think exists. That is not what the Bible means when it calls on us to magnify the Lord. We aren't to blow God up bigger than he really is.
The second instrument scientists use to magnify objects is a telescope. Its function is very different from a microscope. A telescope takes very large objects which seem small and fuzzy because of their distance and it brings them closer enabling us to see how grand and magnificent they actually are.
This is what it means to magnify the Lord. Magnifying the Lord is not making something small and insignificant seem bigger than it is, but it is making what may appear small and fuzzy because of its distance to be seen for all its true greatness and grandeur. By magnifying the Lord in this way we make clear and close the God who seems unclear, unfocused, and distant to many people. By letting God's love, peace, grace, patience, and other traits become evident in our lives, and by letting him mold and transform us in ways others can see, we actually bring him nearer to those around us. We magnify him, and others can begin to see him for who he really is. What a privilege! It is also an awesome responsibility.
The call to magnify the Lord is a call to help make who he is clear and plain to those around us. It is a call to be 'telescopes' for God. As others look into our lives, we should want them to better see God for the great and awesome being he is.
Let's magnify the Lord; let's become telescopes pointed toward God for others.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Thursday, February 17, 2011
The 'Moe's' of Christian Nutrition
I just received another email promotion from Moe's Southwest Grill. I first became acquainted with Moe's through our son in Atlanta who took us there for lunch one day. Now I like Tex-Mex, so it was a good place to take me. Recently Moe's opened a restaurant in the town next door to us, so I thought I'd enjoy eating there on occasion. Until I checked the nutritional information on their web site. Now I'm not slamming Moe's here, but they got scratched off the places I will dine out at that moment.
There was a time when I never knew anything about nutrition or nutritional information. Eventually that caught up with me. Maybe you can relate. I've learned that checking nutritional values is part of smart dining out. Yes, it is surprising on occasion.
Sometimes Christians suffer from very poor nutritional choices.
Of course there are those who are undernourished. A meal a month seems to be all they feel they need. Yes, that will catch up with them sometime.
But there are more Christians who seek spiritual nourishment but aren't careful about what they are consuming. They'll read just about anything, listen to all sorts of radio programs, watch Christian TV, and search the Internet for spiritual food, all with the naive view that it should all be healthy and nourishing because it's labeled Christian.
I have to tell you, there are some Moe's out there. There are some so-called Christian nourishment vendors who will do you short and long-term harm. Their food isn't healthy for you and you ought to avoid it. How can you find out? Ask your pastor. Talk to a number of different mature believers at church. Do a little checking around. Study your Bible so you become aware when someone is misusing it. Just because a person is on TV or the radio, or has written twenty books doesn't mean what he or she says is good for your spiritual health. Moe's has lots of locations, too, but that alone doesn't mean their food is good for you. You have to check.
We all need good physical nutrition. Let's be as cautious about our spiritual nutrition as we know we should be about our physical nutrition. Don't dine out at the 'Moe's' of Christian nutrition.
There was a time when I never knew anything about nutrition or nutritional information. Eventually that caught up with me. Maybe you can relate. I've learned that checking nutritional values is part of smart dining out. Yes, it is surprising on occasion.
Sometimes Christians suffer from very poor nutritional choices.
Of course there are those who are undernourished. A meal a month seems to be all they feel they need. Yes, that will catch up with them sometime.
But there are more Christians who seek spiritual nourishment but aren't careful about what they are consuming. They'll read just about anything, listen to all sorts of radio programs, watch Christian TV, and search the Internet for spiritual food, all with the naive view that it should all be healthy and nourishing because it's labeled Christian.
I have to tell you, there are some Moe's out there. There are some so-called Christian nourishment vendors who will do you short and long-term harm. Their food isn't healthy for you and you ought to avoid it. How can you find out? Ask your pastor. Talk to a number of different mature believers at church. Do a little checking around. Study your Bible so you become aware when someone is misusing it. Just because a person is on TV or the radio, or has written twenty books doesn't mean what he or she says is good for your spiritual health. Moe's has lots of locations, too, but that alone doesn't mean their food is good for you. You have to check.
We all need good physical nutrition. Let's be as cautious about our spiritual nutrition as we know we should be about our physical nutrition. Don't dine out at the 'Moe's' of Christian nutrition.
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
'Insane' Christians
No this isn't about the tragedy of mental disease, nor of the way the world sometimes views committed believers. It's about how Christians sometimes behave in ways that are simply crazy, that are spiritually insane. Let me explain.
I've been reading through Jeremiah and it is amazing to me how often Jeremiah had to repeat the same message. He did it over a period of years to various kings and to the leaders and the people, but they ignored him. Finally, as he had predicted, the armies of Babylon surrounded Jerusalem. Suddenly King Zedekiah sought Jeremiah out in private. Jeremiah gave him the same message he'd given before: surrender and your life and the city will be spared. Zedekiah hesitated. Jeremiah reminded him that what he had predicted for years, contrary to what all the popular prophets had been declaring, had come true. Jerusalem was under siege. Did the king think the rest of what he predicted would somehow not come to pass? The king departed and we later learn he refused to surrender, Jerusalem was conquered and destroyed, his family was killed, and Zedekiah was taken off into exile. Just as predicted.
Zedekiah must have thought that there were odds on whether God would keep his word, and thought he'd settle for the odds. Frankly that's insanity. It's crazy. What God promises, he will do. What he says will come to pass.
OK, what about us? Don't we as Christians sometimes do the same thing? Don't we sometimes think that doing what God says is optional, or that we'll 'beat the odds' and get away with what God has warned us not to do?
Let's get personal. Can you think of a time when God set out a clear boundary to you but you felt you could somehow get away with ignoring it? Or can you recall a time God pointed out a specific responsibility to you but you treated it as optional? Have you ever become aware of something God demands of you and then decided to take your chances that God would forget what he required?
That's crazy. It's insane. What God promises he will do. What he says will come to pass.
Jesus said,
It isn't only wise to do what God says. It is crazy not to. Let's never let ourselves be fooled and end up acting insane. Let King Zedekiah be a lesson to us.
I've been reading through Jeremiah and it is amazing to me how often Jeremiah had to repeat the same message. He did it over a period of years to various kings and to the leaders and the people, but they ignored him. Finally, as he had predicted, the armies of Babylon surrounded Jerusalem. Suddenly King Zedekiah sought Jeremiah out in private. Jeremiah gave him the same message he'd given before: surrender and your life and the city will be spared. Zedekiah hesitated. Jeremiah reminded him that what he had predicted for years, contrary to what all the popular prophets had been declaring, had come true. Jerusalem was under siege. Did the king think the rest of what he predicted would somehow not come to pass? The king departed and we later learn he refused to surrender, Jerusalem was conquered and destroyed, his family was killed, and Zedekiah was taken off into exile. Just as predicted.
Zedekiah must have thought that there were odds on whether God would keep his word, and thought he'd settle for the odds. Frankly that's insanity. It's crazy. What God promises, he will do. What he says will come to pass.
OK, what about us? Don't we as Christians sometimes do the same thing? Don't we sometimes think that doing what God says is optional, or that we'll 'beat the odds' and get away with what God has warned us not to do?
Let's get personal. Can you think of a time when God set out a clear boundary to you but you felt you could somehow get away with ignoring it? Or can you recall a time God pointed out a specific responsibility to you but you treated it as optional? Have you ever become aware of something God demands of you and then decided to take your chances that God would forget what he required?
That's crazy. It's insane. What God promises he will do. What he says will come to pass.
Jesus said,
“Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock.
“Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great was its fall.” (Matthew 7:24-27, NAS)
“Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great was its fall.” (Matthew 7:24-27, NAS)
It isn't only wise to do what God says. It is crazy not to. Let's never let ourselves be fooled and end up acting insane. Let King Zedekiah be a lesson to us.
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Giving Others Power Over Us
Maybe you've done it. Certainly you've seen it happen to others. I go somewhere or am with someone and become someone different under the influence of the situation or people I am with. Instead of being 'me' I become someone else, someone not true to who I really am and want to be.
Sometimes when others treat us wrong or hurt us, we do the same thing. We change how we act toward them based not on a rational decision, but on our emotions and feelings. In a real sense we let those who've bothered us have power over us and change who we are. We probably can justify our behavior and feelings but we've still surrendered ourselves to someone else's emotional and behavioral control.
Jesus came to free us from all forms of bondage so we could be the people God wants us to be. If we aren't careful we can surrender the freedom Jesus came to give us and voluntarily put ourselves under the power of others. We have the choice. We can let others change who we are or we can be free and be who we know God wants us to be.
Sometimes when others treat us wrong or hurt us, we do the same thing. We change how we act toward them based not on a rational decision, but on our emotions and feelings. In a real sense we let those who've bothered us have power over us and change who we are. We probably can justify our behavior and feelings but we've still surrendered ourselves to someone else's emotional and behavioral control.
Jesus came to free us from all forms of bondage so we could be the people God wants us to be. If we aren't careful we can surrender the freedom Jesus came to give us and voluntarily put ourselves under the power of others. We have the choice. We can let others change who we are or we can be free and be who we know God wants us to be.
"It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery." Galatians 5:1 (NAS)
Monday, February 14, 2011
A Friend's Honest Confession
I had a conversation with a good friend today in which he honestly confessed to having been convicted of being self-centered. My friend is not a new Christian and has been a blessing to many people, but God had pointed out to him how 'entitled' he felt at times. He admitted that when those feelings of entitlement came up they sometimes led him to feel real anger and get self-righteous toward others. It made him sick to realize that this had been part of his Christian life for so long and had been unrecognized. I salute him for his candor and his desire to turn a corner in his walk with the Lord.
I learned the hard way about feeling entitled, too. God had to confront me after a period of significant struggle and show me that the real problem was not how others were or were not treating me, but my self-centered attitude that made me feel entitled to certain treatment. How sad. And how good God was to show me my fault.
The writer of Hebrews said,
“MY SON, DO NOT REGARD LIGHTLY THE DISCIPLINE OF THE LORD,
NOR FAINT WHEN YOU ARE REPROVED BY HIM;
FOR THOSE WHOM THE LORD LOVES HE DISCIPLINES,
AND HE SCOURGES EVERY SON WHOM HE RECEIVES.” (Hebrews 12:5-6, NAS)
He goes on to observe,
All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it,
afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness. (Hebrews 12:11, NAS)
The painful corrections of life come from the hand of a loving Father whose goal is to make us better people and more like his Son, Christ.
If you've had some hard lessons dealt out to you recently, thank God that he loves you and in his grace is trying to correct you. If you aren't thankful for it now, you will be some day.
I learned the hard way about feeling entitled, too. God had to confront me after a period of significant struggle and show me that the real problem was not how others were or were not treating me, but my self-centered attitude that made me feel entitled to certain treatment. How sad. And how good God was to show me my fault.
The writer of Hebrews said,
“MY SON, DO NOT REGARD LIGHTLY THE DISCIPLINE OF THE LORD,
NOR FAINT WHEN YOU ARE REPROVED BY HIM;
FOR THOSE WHOM THE LORD LOVES HE DISCIPLINES,
AND HE SCOURGES EVERY SON WHOM HE RECEIVES.” (Hebrews 12:5-6, NAS)
He goes on to observe,
All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it,
afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness. (Hebrews 12:11, NAS)
The painful corrections of life come from the hand of a loving Father whose goal is to make us better people and more like his Son, Christ.
If you've had some hard lessons dealt out to you recently, thank God that he loves you and in his grace is trying to correct you. If you aren't thankful for it now, you will be some day.
Welcome!
This blog will be rather random musings about all things Christian. The title, LifePoints, shows the aim of these postings, which is to help each of us live life fully and successfully. The primary source of perfect guidance for life is found in God's Word, the Bible, thus the second part of the title. I think there will be plenty of references to this source in these postings as time goes on.
There are plenty of people blogging about religion, faith, and the Christian life, so what have I to contribute to all of this? I hope it is clarity, practicality, and and a bit of humor. And I hope it reflects the truth of God's Word and God himself in a way that builds readers up in the Lord.
Following Jesus is a life-long commitment (at least from the time you agree to start). There are no short-cuts to becoming the people God wants us to be. Having traveling companions can make the journey easier, more fun, and is especially helpful when we run into the tough spots. I hope this blog can become one of your traveling companions as we each walk with the Lord.
There are plenty of people blogging about religion, faith, and the Christian life, so what have I to contribute to all of this? I hope it is clarity, practicality, and and a bit of humor. And I hope it reflects the truth of God's Word and God himself in a way that builds readers up in the Lord.
Following Jesus is a life-long commitment (at least from the time you agree to start). There are no short-cuts to becoming the people God wants us to be. Having traveling companions can make the journey easier, more fun, and is especially helpful when we run into the tough spots. I hope this blog can become one of your traveling companions as we each walk with the Lord.
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