Made Beautiful

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good,
for those who are called according to his purpose. 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. - Romans 8:28-29

I have had a handful of creative pursuits in my life. Some I have only scratched the surface with, like playing bass guitar, and others I have gone deeper with, like drawing, digital art, and pen and ink artwork. But no matter what the creative pursuit is or the level I try to reach with it, one thing is consistent in them all: I want to do it for God’s glory.

That is the overarching goal I always want governing the motives behind everything I do. This desire for God’s glory is no different with my newest creative pursuit of woodworking.

Working with wood has been something I have dabbled in for several years now, and while I’ve never had all the tools or resources to seriously pursue any fine woodworking, I still love playing around with this natural material. I keep returning to it in awe of all the rich wonder and beauty God hides away within the trunks of his creation. So in an attempt to satisfy my desire to create with wood, I started trying to find something small that I could make, and also enjoy the process of making, with limited resources. For some time I couldn’t nail anything down that I truly enjoyed, until an idea came from a very unlikely place.

It was in September of 2014 that my wife and I’s marriage suffered great pain and brokenness. Life is messy, and ours was no exception. We didn’t know what was going to happen, we didn’t know if this shattered state of our lives could ever be put back together again. We didn’t have the strength to make it, but thankfully that is when Christ showed up, and was more than strong enough for us.

When God stepped in with a miraculous touch of grace, he began taking what was broken and started putting it back together again.

God opened our eyes to the truth that nothing in this world will ever satisfy us or make us whole. Only he can do that. He brought us to a point of seeing just how dead in our sin we were, and that we had no other hope but to grab hold of him, as if he was all we had. And that is what we did. We gave him everything. Ourselves, each other, and our marriage.

It was there, in that moment of feeling like you are sinking into the black depths of the ocean, that God reached down and pulled us up. We ran to him, leaving everything we had behind and finally found the freedom he offers. We found what true life really is and that it is only found in him.

It was in the months after our healing began and after my wife mentioned wanting a new wedding ring, that the question emerged. Could I make her a ring out of wood? With little to no research, I went out into the shop and found a dirty scrap piece of hardwood to try it on. I drilled a hole in it, and started cutting and sanding, and sanding, and sanding, and sanding, and sanding, until I had shaped it into my first wooden ring. As I worked on it for many nights, the process of cutting, sanding, and shaping this old piece of wood began to take on new meaning to me. Here I was taking a scrap meant for the burn pile and making it something purposeful. Something beautiful. It was there in that process that I started to see the same process God was working in my life, in my wife’s life, and our life together.

The first ring that started it all.

That original ring making process was not easy and it certainly was not quick. It was difficult and trying, but it was not meaningless. The same could be said for the pain and healing in our marriage. With care and purpose, just like a craftsman, God was working to make something beautiful, he was working to make us more like him.

After that first ring, and all that it embodied for my wife and I, I felt I had found something I could make, enjoy, and would have purpose behind it. So I started researching wooden rings and refined my process into what it is now, making bentwood rings.

Each ring is a joy to make. I love what they mean to me, and I love what they can mean to others. The ones I make for my wife and I tell our story, and I hope the ones I make for others will tell theirs. It is my genuine hope that anyone who wears a ring I’ve made will be reminded that they were created to be something more than they could ever make themselves.

As we fully surrender to God, he can and will make us what we were meant to be. He can take what is heading for the fire, and make into a treasured reflection of himself. The process will be hard, maybe difficult to understand, and even painful at times, but making something that is beautiful is never a simple and easy process. However it is one that is worth everything.

Thanks for stopping by! If you are interested in having one of these rings for yourself or giving one as a gift, you can check out my Woodworking page. It will have all the information you need and links to my store on Etsy.

Worship - Loving What Satisfies

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart

and with all your soul and with all your might. – Deuteronomy 6:5

This last weekend, Easter Sunday, many entered through the doors of a church building. They smiled, shook a hand, apologized for stepping in front of someone already sitting in a pew, and found themselves in attendance at an event called a worship service. However, there were some this past Sunday, and actually every Sunday, that entered a church and experienced nothing of worship. After the service, they tucked a bulletin in their pocket or purse, and left more concerned with a rumbling stomach than the famished state of their heart. Why do I think this? Why do I say some attended a worship service, yet never worship? Well, perhaps we will find an answer if we take a look at what worship is. Worship is a matter of the heart. Let’s start with asking a question, what does the word worship mean? The term actually comes from an old English word weorthscipe, which means the act of ascribing worth to something. This is really interesting to me. Worship of something is a declaration of something’s worth to you. What is interesting about this is that it takes the experience of worship out of a ceremonial ritual that happens in a specific place, and makes it personal. When you see worship as an act of you declaring what is of value to you, you find that it is happening all the time and everywhere you go. Think about these illustrations. If someone offered you a quartz stone, and another offered you a flawless diamond. Which would you choose? Of course you would choose the diamond, because it is rare, beautiful, and valuable. If you were in the desert and in desperate need of water and you found two canteens: one was broken and empty, and the other one was full of water. Which would have more worth to you? Obviously it is the one that could keep you alive. If you were hungry, and someone offered you a single cracker, but then someone offered you a three-course meal, you would choose the meal because it is more satisfying. While these examples are physical things, they show us we make choices that reject one thing and accept another based on a greater value or a stronger desire. This is the essence of worship, choosing one thing over another because it has more value to you. One meets your needs more than another. That is why for the Christian, worship of God is not just a weekly event, but takes place in our hearts every time we choose God over anything. It is when our life is guided by a true belief that God is more valuable, sustaining, and satisfying, that we are engaging in worship of him. We worship through sacrifice. The fact that we worship what satisfies us is most vividly shown through the idea of sacrifice. We give up, lay down, avoid, put away and forsake, things that are of lesser value to us so that we may take up, pursue, embrace, love, and enjoy things that do satisfy us. As believers, we sacrifice the things that are lesser, for the One who is greater. We see this picture dramatically displayed in the Old Testament, where the first time the word worship is used in the Bible, in Genesis 22.

Then Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey; I and the boy will go over there and worship and come again to you.” And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son. And he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So they went both of them together. And Isaac said to his father Abraham, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” He said, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” Abraham said, “God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.” So they went both of them together. 

When they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham built the altar there and laid the wood in order and bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to slaughter his son. But the angel of the LORD called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” He said, “Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.” And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him was a ram, caught in a thicket by his horns. And Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son. So Abraham called the name of that place, “The LORD will provide”; as it is said to this day, “On the mount of the LORD it shall be provided.” – Genesis 22:5-15

This is so hard for us to understand. Abraham was taking his son, the very son God had promised to him, and would lay him on an altar to sacrifice. And this act is called worship. Isaac was no doubt precious to his father, but don’t miss this, it was not that Abraham had little value of Isaac, but that he had greater value of God! To look into the face of your child, and say in the depth of your heart that God is more valuable and precious to me than them, is not an easy thing. Our culture does not teach that, but Jesus did. In fact, he said that if that is not in your heart, then you do not belong to him.

Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. – Matt 10:37

Let us be clear here. This is not a call to child abandonment; instead this is a call to a God-glorifying surrender of all your affections to Christ. Sadly, when we read the story of Abraham from Genesis 22, or Matthew 10:37, our first reaction is shock of the seemingly diminished value of a child or family member. However, that is NOT what is on display here. Instead, it is a display that while those people are precious to you, (and they should be) God is still more valuable and satisfying. We can sacrifice anything, because we have everything. So how do we worship like this? How do we lay everything on the altar, including ourselves, (Matthew 16:24-25) that we might express the all-satisfying worth of God? We do it by seeing that we can give up anything, because God is everything we need, and he has given us himself. When we read the story of Abraham in Gen 22, we see God stopping Abraham from killing his son. However, years later, God’s own son would travel up a hill, trusting his Father, carrying wood on his back. But this time, the knife would not be stopped. The death we deserved and earned because of our sin, our sin of loving something more than God, was endured and suffered by Christ. He died in our place.

In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. – 1 John 4:10

Jesus, like the ram caught in the thorns, took our place in death that we might be reunited with the Father, just as Isaac was reunited with Abraham. Therefore we can say with the Psalmist:

Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. – Psalm 73:25-26

And we can answer Paul’s charge in Romans:

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. – Romans 12:1

You were not created to be satisfied by anything in this world, instead you were made to be satisfied by the Maker of this world, and it is Christ who died to reconcile you to him. It is because God did not withhold the knife from his Son, that we are able to not withhold it from anything that would take God’s place in our lives. The reason you can give up everything in worship to him is because he has given you everything you need. He has given himself. So surrender to him, and find a life full of joy in declaring the value of God in worship.

It Is Well

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? ... No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. – Romans 8:35,37

It happens. Pain. Hardship. Crisis. Unknowns. They strike at us and threaten to sink our souls. They roar and crash over us like the waves of a tempest to break loose our joy and send it to a watery grave.

Sadly, if your life is built on something as shakable as yourself or the things of this world, their efforts will succeed. You will find yourself joyless and gasping for air, sinking in the waves as you are pummeled by the sea of despair.

But Christian, Child of God, your joy is not founded on your strength or the trappings of this world. It is founded on something unshakable, that no maelstrom that would rage against you can overtake!

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, 

“For your sake we are being killed all the day long;
  we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” 

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. – Romans 8:35-39

You are made more than a conqueror! Through Christ, not only will you prevail against the storm, but God will direct the violent gale to serve you. You can trust as Christ unflinchingly holds the helm and navigates your journey across stormy seas to get you to sweeter shores. He will see you to where you belong, in closer and sweeter fellowship with Christ and greater conformity to his glorious image.

So stand in awe of the captain of your ship, and declare his praise! Though even through tears, you can proclaim, "It is well with my soul."

If you find yourself in a difficult storm, below is a handful of scriptures to offer encouragement.

Psalm 36:7

How precious is your steadfast love, O God!
    The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings.

Isaiah 41:9-10

You are my servant,
    I have chosen you and not cast you off”;
fear not, for I am with you;
    be not dismayed, for I am your God;
I will strengthen you, I will help you,
    I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Hebrews 6:19

This hope [in the work of Christ] we have as an anchor of the soul...

Matthew 8:24-27

Behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep. And they went and woke him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing.” And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?” Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. And the men marveled, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey him?”

Romans 8:28

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

Hebrews 4:16

 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. 

Psalm 34:18

The Lord is near to the brokenhearted
    and saves the crushed in spirit. 

Picking Stickers – Longing for a world void of sin.

He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away. – Revelation 21:4

I’m not a big fan of cold weather. I’d much rather be outside working and sweating, than have freezing hands while scraping ice off a car in the morning.

Yet, as winter is here, there is one thing I’m thankful for; not having to cut grass. Then with that, not having to deal with sand burrs.

I truly hate these painfully prickly plants with righteous furry! So much so, that every time I plan to cut grass I walk the yard and pick as many plants as I can find. Some days I have spent several hours, getting 6-8 five-gallon buckets worth out of the yard.

During the summer, when I spend my Saturday mornings doing this, I tend to think on several things. One set of thoughts that continually emerges in these times is contemplating the struggle and fight against sin.

Having to deal with these foot assassins is a part of living in a world that is under the curse of sin (Genesis 3:18), and honestly I have hoped several times that Adam at least had to step on one of them. Yet, no matter if he did or didn’t, I think there is a bigger picture we can see in picking stickers. Something to see in spending hours knelt on the ground pulling plant, after plant, after plant. It is a thought that stems from the question, “Why am I even doing this?"

The reason why, is because I hate the pain the stickers bring, and I love my kids. I want my kids to be free to run in their yard without fear, but they cannot. I tell them often to avoid the areas where they are the thickest, and to always keep their shoes on in the yard.

I still vividly remember one day where my son did not heed the warning and ran with just flip flops into a large batch of them. He screamed that scream all parents know. The scream that is not whiny, not annoyed, not upset, but pain. Real pain. He had several deep in his feet that had to be pulled out, and if you have ever experienced that, it is not fun. It broke my heart having to watch him suffer that pain, and it broke it in two ways.

First, that he didn’t heed my warning. He was running and I knew where he was heading, so I cried out, “STOP!!” but he kept going. He not only failed to follow the warning that day in the moment, but also the many warnings before, pointing them out and telling him to be watchful for them. But that day he wasn’t, and there were consequences that broke my heart for him to endure.

Second, is that he even has to deal with stickers in his life. I hate that they even exist, that their presence threatens him when he runs through the yard. It breaks my heart that he cannot go outside barefoot and just run through the grass without worry. There is always a threat, always at least one lying in wait to cause him pain.

As I was thinking on that, the picture became clearer and clearer. God has always been so gracious to warn us of sin and the pain it brings. His words are not hazy on the subject. His warning is clear and so often, even if just a still small voice, we can hear the shout, “STOP!!” in our heart. And so many times when we do not listen, we tend to think God stands over his children to condemn them. Yet just as a father, I believe his heart breaks over the pain our sinful choices inflict upon ourselves and others. He kneels with us, and pulls the stickers from our feet with care. It hurts taking these things out, but it’s gracious love that does it.

Not only that, but God hates that we even have to deal with sin. Not only does his heart break when we do not follow him, which brings pain and suffering, but he wants to remove the threat completely. And for his children, one day, even the threat of sin will be no more.

My brother, after his first experience seeing these plants, told me I need to set the yard on fire, burn it all down, and bring in new fresh sod. I don’t think I’ll trying that anytime soon, however with God and this world, that's going to happen one day. This world full of sin, this place overrun by sin, will be set ablaze by a holy and just God, removing every remnant of it forever. Then for his children, he will create a new heaven and new earth where we can run barefoot with him with no fear! A place void of sin, void of the struggle, void of the fight. I long deeply for that day!

Another thought that came to my mind was a plea for myself and other dads. A plea to God to help me see my kids in that same way. That when they sin, are defiant, covet, and every other act of disobedience they can conjure up, that I would not just see a child rebelling against me, but against God, and that it would break my heart. That I would not discipline out of anger or frustration, or react with zero patience, but that I would see it the same way as the day my son ran through a sticker patch. That it would break my heart, and that my discipline would be from a desire to lovingly remove the stickers from his feet, and to point him always to the one that can remove them from his heart forever.

Batteries Not Included

And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. – Luke 2:10

Have you ever watched a child open a Christmas present that they were anticipating and full of excitement over? One that promised them endless possibilities for enjoyment? However, upon opening it, they discover that it requires something more. Batteries, and none are to be found. Quickly, expressions of joy fade into frustration, sadness, and all around depression.

It is a sad reality when what promised to bring joy, is now found powerless to do so.

In all honesty, this has become my view concerning the celebration of Christmas. I use that term celebration intentionally. I love what Christmas is, I have just become withdrawn in my heart from how it is celebrated. Here is the celebration that is supposed to be wrapped up in joy, even great joy to the whole earth, (Luke 2:10) yet it feels like it is celebrated so often with things that are joyless. It got me thinking this year on this question. Without Christ, where do people find joy to sing about or pursue at Christmas?

A few that I could think of are beautiful decorations, amazing light displays, presents to give and receive, celebrations and parties, time with family and friends, and charity. Sure, each of these things can put a smile on your face and a smile on another's, and they should make us smile. However, you can have these things without Christmas. I also believe deep down inside we know these are not the source of great and all-satisfying joy in our lives.

Beautiful decor can make a room fun to be in, but time will coat it with dust and next year’s trends will make it look outdated. Christmas lights are always a pleasure to see, but they burn out and also create massive tangled messes to deal with. Presents rust, break, and fade from interest within minutes. Parties end, and for some with great regrets. When it comes to family and friends, we should enjoy them, but what of those who celebrate alone, remember lost loved ones, or wrestle with great discord in their family? Giving to the poor does great good for the giver and the receiver. Yet what of the other seasons of the year? Is this brotherly love the spirit of Christmas? Does it just come near winter, then our minds jettison the idea until we see snow again? Do the poor have to wait until then to have our concern and compassion?

Don’t get me wrong, all these celebrations can be wonderful and are good things to do, yet are they the source of joy? Great joy? For all the earth?

Every celebration in Christmas, though it may be fun and warm your heart, is like a toy labeled, “Batteries Not Included.” They promise fulfillment, yet are powerless to fill you with lasting joy. After Christmas, and many other holidays, people wrestle with post holiday depression. You now have debt and buyers regret to deal with, you’ve gained weight, the house is empty and silent again, and you have frustration that you didn’t get what you wanted, or you feel guilt that you didn’t give enough. The list can go on and on.

Christmas does not meet our heart’s need for decor, gifts, family time, or brotherly love and charity, because those things are not what our hearts need. However, the joy of Christmas is that God came down from heaven to meet our heart’s deepest need. A savior from our sin who can reunite us with God (1 Peter 3:18), and it is there my friend, that unending joy is found! (Psalm 16:11). Then it is out of that joy that we celebrate.

Christ is the joy of Christmas! Every celebration of Christmas is joyless if it is not flowing from and pointing you to the source of true joy. However, when you root every celebration and act in Christ, you will find it can overflow with great joy. Let your gift giving, parties, decorations, charity, proclaim one resounding anthem. Christ has come to bring us life!

So this Christmas, I plead with you to look at God and his holiness, then look at yourself and see your sin. Look at the manger and see his gift. Look at the cross and see his sacrifice. Look at the empty tomb and see his victory, and then find great joy in calling him Lord!

A Question Worth Asking

And Joshua went to him and said to him, “Are you for us, or for our adversaries?” – Joshua 5:13

One of the most intriguing scriptures in the Bible to me is found in the old testament. It is found as the children of Israel are preparing to go into the promised land and they encounter the city of Jericho. Before attacking the city, Joshua has a very strange encounter.

When Joshua was by Jericho, he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, a man was standing before him with his drawn sword in his hand. And Joshua went to him and said to him, “Are you for us, or for our adversaries?” And he said, “No; but I am the commander of the army of the Lord. Now I have come.” And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped and said to him, “What does my lord say to his servant?” And the commander of the Lord's army said to Joshua, “Take off your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so. – Joshua 5:13-15

Here we have Joshua encountering a strange figure who is prepared to fight with his sword drawn in his hand. He asks the man who he is for, for him or his enemies, and the figure replies, “No.”

No I am not for you, no I am not for your enemies. I am for the Lord.

What a statement! Here is the commander of the Lord’s army, the preincarnate Christ, appearing to Joshua and saying that he is neither for him or his adversaries, but for the will and glory of God.

That can be a very difficult pill to swallow. What do you mean God, that you are not for me? Don’t you love me?

These can be tough questions and thoughts. But I want to take some time to dwell on them and try to think them through. You may ask why, because there are going to be times when we are feeling pressed in on every side, times when we look on the horizon and see your own personal Jericho standing before us, and we will go to God and say, “Hey! Are you for me or my enemies?” There will be times when we feel like the disciples on the stormy sea, and run to Christ in our trials and hardships and say, “Do you not care that we are perishing?” (Mark 4:35-41)

These are very difficult topics. So, in looking at them I want to show two things. One is to show that from scripture, God is undivided in his passion for his own glory. Then secondly, to show that his passion for his own glory is the most loving thing he can do for us.

God Works For His Glory

I have here a few scriptures for us to consider on this thought. However, if you want to see a more complete list of scriptures about God being God centered, you can find a good collection here: God’s Zeal For His Own Glory.

As you read these, I pray you see in them just how much God works for his name, and for his glory.

“For my name's sake I defer my anger;
    for the sake of my praise I restrain it for you,
    that I may not cut you off.
Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver;
    I have tried you in the furnace of affliction.
For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it,
    for how should my name be profaned?
    My glory I will not give to another.” – Isaiah 48:9-11

For you who believe and trust in Christ, why does he defer his anger? Why does he restrain it? For his name. Why does he refine you, and try you through afflictions? For his name. He will refine you so that his name is not profaned, and he will do the refining so that he is praised for it, rather than your strength being praised for refining yourself.

…even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. – Ephesians 1:4-6

Why has he adopted you? Why has he chosen to pour his love on you? What was the purpose of his will in doing these things? The praise of his glorious grace. He will receive every ounce of glory for your salvation.

I, I am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins. – Isaiah 43:25

Why does God forgive sin in those who trust and follow him? For his name’s sake.

In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. – Matthew 5:16; also see 1 Peter 2:12

Who receives glory for your good works? Is it you? Is it your commitment? Is it your strength, wit, creativity, wisdom, effort? No. God receives glory. Why? Because he, not you, created you to do them. You are his workmanship. (Ephesians 2:10)

All this talk of God centering on his own glory, brings up a valid question. Doesn’t he love me? The answer, he absolutely does! In fact, his dedication to his own glory is the most loving thing he can do for you.

God’s Love For His Name & His Glory, Is His Love For You.

I hope to do this truth justice as it can be a difficult one to articulate. But I want to start with an illustration. Let’s say you have two bowls before you. One is a bowl of your favorite ice cream and in another bowl are big fat juicy grub worms.

The bowl of ice cream calls out to you, “Hey! I’m delicious, and will taste great! In fact, I’m amazing! I promise, you want to eat me! I mean, I’m the most amazing tasting thing you will ever experience!”

But you say, “You’re so full of yourself, you cannot be interested in me.”

The worms say, “You’re so amazing, you’re so smart and awesome! You know the right choice here. I’ll make all your dreams come true. By the way, did I tell you that your looking great today!”

“Wow, these worms really love me! I’m going to choose them,” and then moments later you're puking your guts out.

Was the ice cream totally committed to its own glory? Yep. Was its declarations of its glory to you a loving thing to do? Absolutely!

The truth is, we will never be satisfied by anything this world offers us, because we were designed to be satisfied by God. By his glory. So when he stands up and cries out, “Look at me, see how beautiful I am, see how glorious I am, see how majestic I am. Know me, cherish me, love me, worship me,” he is in fact doing the most loving thing he can do for you. Because he calls out in love that he is the one who will make your heart overflow with joy!

If you are a believer in Christ, when you die and stand before God in all his glory and splendor, would you like to block all that beauty out with a mirror? Would you rather spend all eternity staring at yourself, or basking in the awesome majesty of God? Would you like to look at the one who breathed out stars and all creation, or look at yourself; the one who was made from dirt?

If the joy of heaven in your heart is centered around you, I would say there is a good chance you will not be there. There will be much to rejoice about in heaven. No sin, no pain, no death, reunion with loved ones, but if in your heart those are not seen as manifestations of God’s glory, it will be a worship of you, and not him.

I take my kids through this little Q & A regularly.

“Who made you?”

“God.”
“Why did he make you?”
“For his glory.”
“Why else did he make you?”

“To enjoy his glory forever.”

You were made to enjoy him forever! To enjoy his glory! And for his name’s sake, he will do everything needed to get you there. He will pull down the walls of cities, he will calm raging seas, and if necessary he will allow you to be grieved in the heat of the furnace.

In [your salvation] you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.– 1 Peter 1:6-9

He will receive glory, as you are fully satisfied in him as you find joy in his presence. Both now in this life, and in the life to come. And he will do everything to make sure that happens, even if it means having some years of struggle and pain in this life. We don’t like that idea, but in reality, it is the most loving thing he can do for us.

In the end, the question you must wrestle with is not if he is here for you or for your enemies, because he will always be for himself. Rather the question is are you for him, or are you his enemy? Matthew 12:30 says that if we are not for him, for his glory, for his name, then we are against him.

But the good news, is that while we were his enemies, he came to us.

For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. – Romans 5:10

You see, God being centered on his own glory, yet also full of love for sinners, made it impossible to simply overlook our sin. So to keep his glory, he showed the greatest love for us, in that while were were sinners, Christ died for us.

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. – Romans 5:8

I hope you know that love he has for you, and I hope that you love his glory more than anything.

The Healer's Touch Part 5: The Cure

"...your faith has made you well; go in peace.” – Luke 8:48

This will be the final post in this series, The Healer's Touch. If you haven't read the whole series, I really encourage you to do so!

Part 1: The Crowd
Part 2: The Women

Part 3: The Healing
Part 4: The Question

As we get things started in Part 5, I want to remind us that as we look at this story in Luke 8:40-48 of Christ healing the bleeding woman in the crowd, that we are looking beyond the miraculous physical healing that takes place, and seeing how it paints the picture of the miraculous healing Christ can give to our hearts. How he can save us from the penalty of our sin (Romans 6:23).

So with that, lets get started. 

The Cure (Saved by faith) 

He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace.” – Luke 8:48

What healed this woman? Was it her journey through the crowd? Was it the touching of his robe? Was it something she did? No. It was the power of Jesus that went out and healed her. We see that in Luke 8:44-46. But in 8:48, we see Christ says, "Your faith has made you well." So what healed her? Was it her faith or Jesus? I think the answer to this is not a simple one, and I do not claim to fully understand it. However, as I have been thinking on it, I want to share a connection that I see forming between these two.

Her faith did make her well, as the scripture says, but why? I believe the reason Christ says that her faith has made her well, is because he was the object of her faith. The fact that Christ was the object of her faith, caused her to journey though the crowd and reach for his robe. This woman had tried having faith in herself and others for twelve years. She had faith in physicians, possibly home remedies, maybe even just trusting that if she ignores it, it may go away. However it didn't. It got worse and her situation grew more critical, and that is when her faith changed from herself and others, and turned to God.

Many deal with their sin in the same way. Some ignore it or deny it, having faith that God doesn't exist. Some fight with all their strength to do enough good to counter it, having faith in their good works. Some have faith in someone who can bless them and pronounce them forgiven. These all have one thing in common, the object of their faith is powerless to forgive sin, and powerless to heal their heart.

This woman's faith however, was placed upon the one person that could meet her need. It was placed on Christ. This is saving faith, that by grace is given to us.

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. – Ephesians 2:8-10

And what is the result of such a faith, and of such a healing? The God given freedom to go in peace! If you have read Part 2 in this series, taking a look at the woman's condition, you know she was in no way at peace. She was reminded every day that she was unclean and that she could do nothing to stop it. This is the same spiritual state of every person before God saves them. Have you ever felt that in your life? Waking up every day with guilt from the day before, feeling the weight of your sin bearing down on you? Exhausting yourself with your own efforts to find peace and satisfaction, yet nothing gives it?

Then, in that state, the work of God takes place on your life, and you see him for the first time, and the holy glory of God overwhelms you! You see him as the most desirable thing in the world, yet at the same time, the most unobtainable thing in the world because of your sin. Then you look at the cross of Jesus and see within his wounds just how deep God's wrath against your sin is, and at the same time how deep his love toward you is. God came in flesh, lived the sinless life you could not live, died the death you owe, and then overcame the grave to give you the life you do not deserve. That is the beautiful glory of God!

We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. – Romans 6:4

That is the love of God, to heal you on the deepest level of your heart, and give you a life both now in this life, and forever in the life to come! Jesus did not come to help you be more moral, or to let you get away with whatever you want, he came to take what was dead and make it alive! He came to give those that will follow him life! So come to him in faith, repent from all that you have tried to satisfy yourself with, realize he is more desirable than anything in this world, then reach out for him and find the healing you have always needed, and then go in peace knowing you have been made new.

It is as if you look up from the broken glass of water that has always left you thirsting for more, to see a never ending waterfall that will quench your every need now and forever. John 4:1-42