Interruptions

Looking back over the past year, many things happened that were unexpected.  In fact, overall, I probably didn’t accomplish nearly as much as I wanted, not for lack of discipline, but so many interruptions occurred which stopped me in my tracks.  If we really think about it, life is constantly interrupted.  We may plan many things, but something will always come up unexpectedly and sometimes we have to change our plans.  Interruptions can create a great deal of stress and we feel ill equipped to deal with it.  This year I was interrupted by two accidents that completely shocked me and took me a long time to recover from. I was also shocked by world events and the Japan tsunami disaster.  After this and noting the depressed economic condition of the US and also European countries, I started to wonder if these are indeed the last days.  It felt like a year marked with noticeable change. 

But I was also surprised by some really positive interruptions in my life.  We enjoyed a long and beautiful hot summer, and a gorgeous fall right up until late November.  Now we are enjoying a mild December.  In the summer I was pleased that everything came together and we were able to go camping again.  I was also able to complete a couple of books.  I never thought I’d be writing three blogs, and I was pleased to finally get my passport, so now I can leave the country!  I made new friends and was able to visit with old friends over the holidays.    

We may think that many interruptions in our life are a result of coincidence or even good or bad luck!  But I believe that many of life's interruptions are divine -- God is trying to get our attention.  For example, if we think about Christmas, the birth of Jesus interrupted the little village of Bethlehem and created quite a stir.  His birth got the attention of both kings and noblemen.  Throughout His earthly ministry, He interrupted men's lives constantly.  People couldn’t figure out what made Him so different, and they couldn’t understand how He could perform so many miracles.  When He called the disciples to follow Him, their lives were turned around and they were never the same again.  This is how He affects people, even today!  His interruptions are life-changing and world-changing when we follow Him and obey Him!!  

This brings me to the New Year coming up.  Are we making plans for 2012?  We won’t even talk about the world ending, not yet anyway.  What about making plans?  If we are rigid and unbending, then we will be disappointed and frustrated each time our plans are interrupted.  We will not live a happy life until we learn to roll with the changes, and become easily adaptable to change.  How do we do this?  First of all, we need to face the fact that life will always throw us surprises -- do not plan for a life without leaving room for many adjustments along the way! Hold fast to Jesus and His unchanging Word.  Recognize that many miraculous things happen in the supernatural -- tap into this amazing other reality through prayer and reading God's Word.  The purifying and healing power of God's Word and His enduring presence to all who believe will change us and sustain us throughout all the shifting circumstances of life.  

This Christmas week, I have been enjoying the quiet peacefulness of life in the country.  Nevertheless I struggled with breaking a tradition of watching spectacular fireworks in the city center to celebrate the New Year.  I had thought of even taking a trip into the city just to see them.  But as I was sitting here writing this, I heard the familiar “pop” “pop” sound outside, ran and got my jacket, raced down the back lane, and watched a wonderful display that some neighbours had provided!  Isn’t God good?  I think He just wanted to remind me that He never forgets about us.  We can rest assured as we enter a new year that He will continue to be faithful to us and we never have to be afraid of interruptions, especially the ones He initiates.

Focus on Christmas

If there would be one word to describe Christmas, it would be “giving.”  We think of giving gifts, but we also think of giving our time and a little more of ourselves to those around us.  But for many people, Christmas represents loss.  This makes it a difficult time of year and emotionally draining.  For adults, there is the loss of childhood and the joy and excitement we felt about Christmas then.  For many others, they grieve the loss of a loved one or loved ones.  Many people feel a loss in their pocket books and they wonder how they’re going to be able to pay for a nice Christmas.  And still others are single and alone, feeling lonely, and they wonder how they’ll make it through the holidays alone.  In fact, no other time of year emphasises love and family more than at Christmas.  You see it in all the ads, the Christmas movies, and even flyers that come to the door, urging us to buy for that “special person.”  So if we are alone or have just lost someone dear to us, the pain intensifies.   

And yet, sometimes it is only through loss we discover a much deeper meaning to Christmas than just parties and gifts.  It is through personal loss that we find true meaning in life, and through loss we gain what we could never have otherwise obtained.  Giving gifts is one small example of loss, but the gain is the great joy in giving.  And Christmas itself represents the great gain to the world of the promised Messiah and Savior, Jesus Christ.  But the real emphasis is on the loss of His life for our sake, the reason He came to earth in the first place.  In order to find Him and the incredible life He offers, we must also lose our life as we know it.  To find out more, please click here.    

Rather than focus on our loss, in order to find true joy, we must also focus on our gains.  We need to look at all the beauty in life now, the gift of family, friends, the joy of children and grand-children.  There’s a healing that takes place when we truly appreciate life and most of all, the greatest gift of Jesus and the new life and eternal life He freely gives.  I have a wall art saying posted on my kitchen wall just above my calendar that says, “Count Your Blessings.”  As I rush around my day, I sometimes glance at this saying, and if I am feeling down, I immediately start to think of all the things I have to be thankful for.  Christmas is one of those times that God’s blessings seem to magnify.  And the great hope we all have is that because of Jesus’ birth, He is the true light that dispels the darkness in our world, and fills our cup with joy all through the year. 

Joh 1:1  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

Joh 1:2  He was with God in the beginning.

Joh 1:3  Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.

Joh 1:4  In him was life, and that life was the light of men.

Joh 1:5  The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.

Joh 1:14  The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. NIV 

This is our great hope of Christmas, and when we focus on Jesus, our gain is so much greater than all of our losses, if we but put our trust in Him.

Battle of the Mind

This week has been a particularly challenging one for me.  It’s nothing really visible or tangible that’s happened, but I’ve been in a different kind of battle – the battle of the mind.  What do I mean by this?  It seems that every time I determine to really get involved in working in and for the Kingdom of God, I am under severe attack from the enemy.  According to the Bible, every Christian is in a battle, and especially if we are working in some capacity to bring the Good News of the Gospel to those that are lost (this can be done in many ways and in many stages, however God leads us).  So today I’d like to talk about this battle. 

The first thing we need to do is to recognize the fact that we are under attack.  What are the sure signs?  Thoughts that are directed against another person or God – these are subtle, but very destructive!  Thoughts that berate someone else or even ourselves (we think too lowly of others or self), and these thoughts seem to be justified by past words or deeds.  Thoughts may be prideful (I’m too good or better than someone else).  We may be plotting revenge in some way against someone who has hurt us.  Our thoughts may have something to do with being afraid of something or someone (usually irrational and not based on the truth of God’s Word).  Our thoughts might be completely self-centered and vain (we selfishly want something for ourselves without thought of others or how we could benefit someone else).  Our thoughts might be manipulative – how to get someone else to do something for us to make our life easier, even though the tasks or projects we are working on were either never endorsed by God in the first place, or we are depending on people more than on God to help us to see it to completion.   

Thoughts gestate in darkness and isolation; they go around and around in our head until we start to believe they are true and based on truth.  So we need to bring them to the Cross and let Jesus shed light and truth on those thoughts.   

2Co 10:3  For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh:

2Co 10:4  (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)

2Co 10:5  Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; 

If we take a closer look at verse 5, we have insight into the kind of thoughts that are used in an attack to bring us down – anything that is in opposition to the Word of God.  Some scholars believe that this passage of Scripture applies mainly to those who are unsaved (Satan has already blinded their eyes to the truth of the Gospel [see 2 Cor. 4:4]).  But the unsaved are not the threat to him that Christians are.  Christians carry with them the Holy Spirit and therefore, great power, the power of God which is unleashed through submission, obedience, the Word (stating it and believing it), and especially through prayer.  When the Word of God and prayer are released through faith, miracles happen.  Walls crumble and mighty things happen according to God’s will.  This is our greatest defense against the attacks of the enemy – God’s Word and prayer.  Look at what it says about the Word of God:

Heb 4:12  For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.  

The Word of God is the only ACCURATE measure of a person’s heart when it comes to a person’s intentions.  That is why the thoughts we have that are directed against God or another person is never completely accurate unless it can be seen through the looking glass of the Word of God.  We can never judge a person who has hurt us with accuracy, because we do not know another person’s heart unless God reveals it through His Spirit and His Word.  Sometimes we base all of our judgements against a person based on what they did, didn’t do, or said and how it affected our emotions.  Everything (every thought and intention of our heart) must be submitted to God.  Until it is submitted it will have power over us and Satan will have free reign in that area. This will most often mean forgiving the people who have hurt us, in order to be free of Satan’s grip. 

The thief comes to steal, kill and destroy (see John 10:10).  When do thieves strike?  They strike when people are at their most vulnerable (early hours in the morning when people are asleep in their beds).  We are an easy target for Satan when we are tired, stressed or under pressure.  We have fewer resources to deal with (time, patience, strength, etc.).  So this is when we need to shave back our schedules and spend more time in reading the Bible, praying and building ourselves up through prayer and meaningful fellowship.  We need to go to bed earlier, take short breaks and go for a walk – get away from our schedule if at all possible even for a brief time.  And we need to turn to the Captain of the Army – Jesus Christ.  He has already won the war against Satan, sin, and even death.  But the battles we will experience through life are varied and many.  Jesus has equipped us with everything we need to win these battles, but without Him, we can’t hope to win!   

John 15:5  I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. 

Do you find yourself in a battle today?  If so, remember you are not alone, and you do not have to fight it alone.  Jesus is with you and He will take the lead if you are willing to follow. 

A Deeper Faith

The following notes are taken from a journal I wrote one summer while on a camping trip in Northern Ontario. 

Faith is something concrete, not abstract.  If it is only an idea then it has no power to direct our lives. We are saved by faith -- Abraham was granted righteousness or was put in a right standing with God because he obeyed by faith without understanding in the natural why he was called to do what God had asked.  This was before Christ's death on the cross.  This brings to mind by revelation the very first act of sin, or that first turning away from faith to human understanding -- Eve was tempted with the lust for knowledge. It was at this point that faith was abandoned and the mind became the new god.

Humanism is the glorification of man --faith is the glorification of God. Humanism shuts out God completely and makes of itself its own god.  Whatever you put your faith in, that thing is what will get all the attention and not God. It also gets the glory. So if you put your trust in money, money will be the thing that gets your attention. Your focus will be on a "thing" rather than on a Person.  I think the importance of faith is about glorifying God more than anything else.  God gets glory when we put our trust in Him.  

There is a connection to idolatry, as in Romans 1:21-25 NIV: 

Rom 1:21  For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.

Rom 1:22  Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools

Rom 1:23  and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.

Rom 1:24  Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another.

Rom 1:25  They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.

     Also, knowledge represents power.  It is a powerful temptation we face every day.  Yet only God has power.  He gives us limited power for the purpose of accomplishing His will.  When we are faithful He unleashes to us more power.  The trouble with the world's philosophy is that people really believe that knowledge is power, but that is only an illusion.  The truth is, knowledge for a Christian is a stumbling block because it tempts us to control our world and often others around us -- hence "power trips." Today I was troubled about many things -- what should I do, where should I work, what will happen on our vacation, where will we go? The Lord showed me that the reason I was so agitated and troubled about wanting to know so many things is because I am lusting for knowledge because knowledge is power.  It gives me a sense of power and security, but this is not a walk of faith -- it is a walk of fear.  I want to live by faith, not fear. I don't want to be in control, but as long as I am asking so many questions (probably a hindrance to my faith), I will not be free to walk in faith. 

Right now I am making and selling postcards to make some extra money.  I have a sense of empowerment over my life because I can count on making some money which I will save and I'll be able to plan for things -- like our holiday. Yet when I picked up the mail I found tickets to a Christian concert in the mail -- it's in Minnesota.  We had planned to go to Michigan and still might, but this is where we wanted to go in the first place but felt we couldn't afford it. The Lord provided us with the tickets to go.  It says in the Bible that man has many plans, but his goings are of the Lord -- the Lord knows our deepest heart's desires and He will lead us and direct us perfectly -- all I had to do was leave it completely in His hands. 

Note:  Even though we didn’t go to the concert in Minnesota, the lesson I learned was just as important.  The Lord knows our heart’s desires and He will fulfill them when we put our life in His hands. 

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN I READ THE BIBLE? 

I Cor. 2:6-14 NIV 

1Co 2:6  We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing.

1Co 2:7  No, we speak of God's secret wisdom, a wisdom that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began.

1Co 2:8  None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

1Co 2:9  However, as it is written: "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him"—

1Co 2:10  but God has revealed it to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.

1Co 2:11  For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man's spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.

1Co 2:12  We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us.

1Co 2:13  This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words.

1Co 2:14  The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.

1Co 2:15  The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man's judgment:  

When I read the Bible my mind starts to line up and agree with the things of God. If I seek answers in the natural, my mind (flesh) will look for answers having to do with the flesh, and will oppose the things and thoughts of God (see Romans 8).  That is why when I read the Bible I am engaging my spirit to receive the things of God.  In verse 10 it says that He reveals things by the "Spirit" and not the flesh.  And in verse 11, the only way we can know the things of God is through the Spirit.  Verses 6 & 7 tells me that God's wisdom doesn’t come cheap. It is only revealed to the few who really love Him.   His wisdom is really a rare and precious thing -- incomprehensible to us and I think He wants to build a trust relationship with us before He will reveal the really deep things.  Also I think the more we build on His Word the more prepared we are to receive the deep things of God.   

What are the deep things of God?  These are the things that we can never understand with our natural mind -- for example His love for us and the fact that He accepts us unconditionally as we are in spite of our sinful nature.

 

Hardened Hearts Part 2

This is a continuation of the previous blog, “Hardened Hearts.” 

Many people say James is a practical book, and in verse 21 he gives us really practical advice.  I turned to a commentary by Barclay, who offers four points of practical advice.  You might want to write them down to remember them.   

Jam 1:21  Therefore, rid yourselves of everything impure and every expression of wickedness, and with a gentle spirit welcome the word planted in you that can save your souls. 

He explains the first part of the verse:  Therefore, rid yourselves of everything impure and every expression of wickedness, 

1.  Get rid of all that soils the spirit.  In other words, get rid of sin.  Sin will make us deaf to truth, to hear from God.  Again, the importance of listening --  This is a key point.  When we harbor sin (we may not even be aware of it), we can listen to sermon after sermon in church, the radio or even watch it on TV, but somehow the message isn’t getting through to us at all.  Yet, if we aren’t listening, there can be grave consequences to our sin.  A good Biblical example where this happened is King David.  He committed adultery, had the husband of Bathsheba, Uriah, killed on the front lines, had a child by her and proceeded to live his life, seemingly oblivious to the sins he had committed.  Was God not talking to Him?  Had God not even said David was His friend?  What happened that David continued in his life of sin?  Was he not talking or listening to God?  Earlier in James 1 it says: 

Jam 1:14-15  But every man [or person] is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.  

Verse 14, it says that every man is tempted when he is drawn away of HIS OWN LUST.  So David was drawn away. He lusted after Bathsheba & they conceived a son out of this adulterous (sinful) act.  Read this in 2 Samuel 11 & 12. David was not convicted of his sin until much later when Nathan came and told him what he had done through a story.  As a consequence of his sin, David’s son died and the sword never departed from his house. But in spite of David’s sorrow, he never justified himself & hardened his heart against God – rather, one of the most beautiful prayers of repentance found in the Bible is David’s response to the Lord in Psalm 51.  A couple of important points about David’s repentance was that he was truly sorry for what he had done – he repented from the deepest part of his soul – he wanted his heart changed  (read Psalm 51).  He didn’t just mouth the words, and then continue in sin.  We need to follow David’s example. 

 Psa 51:6  Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom. [Sometimes God reveals things that are deeply hidden to us.]  Psa 51:7  Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Psa 51:16  For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering. [These are often works of the flesh we give to God to try to appease Him.]  Psa 51:17  The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.   

David’s repentance was true – Repentance means sorrow from sin and then turning away from it.  A hardened heart is broken along with repentance from sin.  But if we truly haven’t repented, then no change will be evident and likely our hearts haven’t changed at all. So the first thing we do is get rid of all known sin and ask the Lord to reveal the sins that are hidden. 

2.     Secondly, in order to avoid sin in the first place, we need to remember to never ignore the prompting of the Holy Spirit.  His promptings will protect us from what is evil and potentially harmful to us.  For example, I have ignored promptings when it comes to business dealings and have regretted it each time, losing money and just having a bad business experience, which caused me great stress and duress.  Basically I set up my own personal trial because I ignored the warning from the Holy Spirit.  Sometimes promptings will also be nudges for us to do something wonderful for others, or simply to do what needs to get done.  Depending on what the Lord asks you to do, this can be a very scary thing or it can be an exciting thing. [Like preaching this sermon for example – both scary & exciting.]  Other times I’ve been prompted to give away Bibles in public restaurants to complete strangers. I’ve been prompted to write articles and books that others have told me have helped them. But we must be very careful not to confuse the Lord’s prompting with Satan’s.  He is subtle & whispers little white lies mixed with the truth, and he makes us think that those thoughts are our own and that sin is ok.  His promptings are always mixed with reason and a little bit of truth.  But the prompting of the Holy Spirit always leads us away from ourselves and anything that even remotely leads us to sin.  The Lord would have us listen and obey Him wherever we are and in all situations – and many times we will be in a place with no access to even a Bible, so listening to His promptings are extremely important and can save us from a lot of grief later on.  

The second part of the verse:  and with a gentle spirit welcome the word planted in you that can save your souls. 

3. Gentleness means feelings and emotions are under perfect control.  This, of course, is only possible when we give them over to the Lord.  And the real problem is -- we want control instead of letting the Lord have His way.  We can decide to let our emotions rule or our flesh rule, or we can ask God – Are these emotions in line with your Word?  Are these thoughts from you Lord?  Then pray that He’ll remove every thought & emotion that is not from Him.  I like the verse: 

2 Cor. 10:5  Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

    

The next part of the verse -- The ingrafted Word is the Lord Himself living within us.  He changes us and sets us apart from the world.  When we read His Word, it cleanses us and gives us life.  This is what saves our souls from all the death and destruction of our fleshly nature, the world and all that is not of God.  The “ingrafted word” can sometimes hurt – in fact it is a two-edged sword.  

Heb. 4:12  For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

There is a poster I once had with this verse and sword and shield – what a powerful image of victory – we are victorious in God’s army with His sword & shield as our weapons. 

4. This next one is extremely important – it is the whole key to prevent a HARDENED HEART FROM HAPPENING IN THE FIRST PLACE -- be docile and open to receive instruction.  This means to have a teachable spirit. 

As a student, I have learned that there is a discipline to learning.  That’s how I obtained two bachelor degrees.  It wasn’t easy.  It took many hours of hard work and research.  I gave up weekends, five summers, trips to the beach, movies, weekends away, lunch with friends and so on.   I had to put aside my own ideas and listen to new ones.  I was stretched tremendously as a thinker and as a person.  I had to fight the temptation to be seduced by laziness.  But I have to ask myself, do I put this much effort into my personal study of the Word and this much time into my personal devotions?  And how much more important is this time in God’s Word?  For I am promised a complete transformation of my life will take place.  This is found in Romans 12:2: 

 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. 

These are the four points.  But I’d like to summarize and reiterate them:  First, we get rid of sin, then we never ignore the prompting of the Holy Spirit so that we can avoid the path of sin, then we put all our thoughts and emotions under the control of the Holy Spirit.  Finally, we receive His Word that is able to change and transform us.  We do these things on an on going basis, so that we can avoid the pitfalls of trials, which if not handled properly, lead to hardened hearts.  Most importantly, whether we go through trials or reach the mountain tops, we seek to completely yield ourselves to God in every area of our life, so that our hearts will always be open to Him.  So starting today we need to examine our own hearts – Where are we at?  Are our hearts pliable? Are we open to hear from God? I challenge us today to open our hearts and our ears to the Lord of Glory.  He has wonderful and good things to say to us and show us, like He does to all of His children when they finally stop running and come to Him with all their heavy burdens and lay them down at His feet.   

For example, Job, at the end of his trial, has an amazing spiritual experience.  This is what he concludes: 

Job 42:1  Then Job answered the LORD, and said,

Job 42:2  I know that thou canst do every thing, and that no thought can be withholden from thee.

Job 42:3  Who is he that hideth counsel without knowledge? therefore have I uttered that I understood not; things too wonderful for me, which I knew not.

Job 42:4  Hear, I beseech thee, and I will speak: I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me.

Job 42:5  I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee.

Job 42:6  Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.  

Note that Job did NOT HARDEN HIS HEART in the face of his trials.  In fact, he drew even closer to the Lord – In seeing the Lord, He saw himself more clearly and repented in dust and ashes.  And what he has only previously heard about the Lord, he now sees and understands.  He understands how phenomenal the Lord is.  He’s in awe at the majesty, love and grace of the Lord.  Was his trial worth it?  I believe that Job would say that, yes, it was.  For now he sees and understands the Lord – a priceless treasure he never would have experienced otherwise. 

But if we have hardened our hearts and turned away from the Lord because of trials, then our road ahead will be much longer and harder.  If we don’t have a hardened heart, then we will have a heart that the Lord can work with – one that’s loving, pliable and gentle; one that draws a hurting world to Him so that they can know Him as we do.  There are many rewards to a softened heart. We will experience a tremendous growth in our walk with the Lord – we will discover a new level of intimacy with God.  As our heart softens, paradoxically, we will be much stronger.  And the more we learn to handle trials (count it all joy) and turn to the Lord, the less frightening future trials will seem to us.  We may even learn to appreciate them, knowing that the Lord will more than see us through. 

Hardened Hearts

Several years ago I preached a sermon in our local church on the topic of “hardened hearts.”  At the time, I felt it was a really important topic, and today, feel that it is more important than ever.  So please join me in the next couple of blogs to examine this crucial topic.

In my research for a book I’ve been writing on Backsliding (since published called Victory Over Backsliding), it occurred to me that I knew very little about the development of a hardened heart, even though I have struggled with this throughout my life.  How does it happen exactly?  So I asked the Lord what it means.  “What is a hardened heart?”  Before sharing His insights to me, I’d like to offer the dictionary definition of hard hearted -- without pity, cruel, unfeeling (Gage Canadian, 2000, pg 699)

When someone is hard hearted, it is generally apparent that they can no longer be reached with the Gospel or receive spiritual things of God because they will no longer listen.  They do not want instruction; therefore they will not allow the Lord to change them.  The Lord gave me an immediate Biblical reference – James 1:21.  I read it with great interest since I would never have connected hardened hearts to this verse.  

Jam 1:21  Therefore, rid yourselves of everything impure and every expression of wickedness, and with a gentle spirit welcome the word planted in you that can save your souls. (ISV) 

(King James Version) -- Jam 1:21 Therefore putting aside all filthiness and overflowing of evil, receive in meekness the implanted Word, which is able to save your souls. 

I also read the rest of James 1 leading up to that verse so that I could understand the context in which James was speaking.  The beginning of James talks about trials – the first thing he says is: 

Jam 1:2  Consider it pure joy, my brothers, when you are involved in various trials,  

A NOTE ABOUT TRIALS:  “Consider it pure joy …”  Yet, how many of us do just that?  We tend to be creatures of comfort – we like routine and we like to know what’s up ahead, yet this is not the walk of faith we are called to.  I like what Frank Clark says, “If you find a path with no obstacles, it probably doesn’t lead anywhere.” A walk of faith, rather than frightening, is really the most exciting life there is, because the Lord walks with us. Yet, it is often at the point of trials that we can begin to harden our heart, and not even really be aware that this is what we’re doing.   

In James 1 there is a progression to hardening our hearts that begins from verse 2 and continues to verse 21.  So we begin with trials and how we are to respond.  Then James seems to make a complete switch in thinking in verse 5 – He talks about wisdom – when we are hit hard with a trial, we need to immediately go to the throne of grace and ask God – What do I do in this situation? In Proverbs 1:7 it says,  

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge:  

 And again verse 5 -- A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels:  

What happens when we fail to ask the Lord about a trial or situation that greatly concerns us?  I think we all experience stress – this makes us tired and anxious.  We might make some really bad decisions – we might end a job or a relationship prematurely.  We might move away when the Lord has called us to stay where we are.  And especially, if we haven’t been walking with the Lord as we should be, trials can hit us hard.  Even for strong Christians, trials are often hard to understand.  Yet, we should expect them because the Lord said that we would have them.  Some people swear and curse God when they lose a loved one or a much needed job.  They think, “How could God be a God of love to have allowed such a thing to happen to me?”  With anger comes resentment, even bitterness – the unfruitful seeds that harden a heart and prevent any growth from happening.  So we need to think back to a time in our lives that maybe we didn’t handle a severe trial very well.  How did we react?  Was it with anger?  Or did we trust?  For most of us, it’s difficult to pray when our world seems to be falling apart, yet it is at this important time that we really need to pray and listen to what the Lord has to say to us, and trust Him more than ever to see us through.  We need to do this before we allow our hearts to harden from the wrong kind of reaction like anger, fear and distrust.  

Further in James, verse 19, an important connection is made to hardened hearts that leads up to verse 21.  It says: 

let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:  

Swift to hear – did I listen to God at the beginning of my trial?  Or did I react in anger and shoot off at the mouth cursing myself and others? 

Was I slow to speak?  Is my opinion more important than God’s opinion?  If I prayed, did I do all the talking, or did I allow the Lord to speak into my life?  Was I slow to anger?  Or did I immediately react adversely and blame God or others?  But, if I listened to God in the first place, then my heart was already humbled to receive His instruction.  So by the time I get to verse 21, my instruction is now to humble myself & receive HIS INSTRUCTION – this is the engrafted WORD that will save me from all that is potentially evil & destructive to my life.  

Job was a man who suffered many trials.  Recently I was reading Job 36:15– (KJV: “He delivereth the poor in his affliction, and openeth their ears in oppression.”   

(GNB) Job 36:15  But God teaches people through suffering and uses distress to open their eyes. 

This is significant because it puts great meaning to the trials we have in our lives.  Rather than useless and bothersome, they are the doorway to learning and changing – they are the very stuff of which makes us stronger Christians and more pliable to be changed into the likeness of the Lord.  But learning is only possible when we are open to listen and hear from the Lord.  I believe that oftentimes we are brought to a place where we are ready to listen.  And, like Job, sometimes our suffering seems to go on and on.  But if we trust and wait on the Lord, when we come near to the end of a trial we then have a tremendous spiritual experience, and not usually before.  We can say, like Job, who had lost his family, his livelihood and all that he had enjoyed,  

Job 23:10  But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.   

So from this study, I discovered a connection between a willingness to listen and obey the Word of God (often and especially in times of trial) and that the almost certainty that if we don’t, our hearts will harden because we have chosen to disregard what God wants to teach us.

The second part of this sermon will be included in the next blog.

No Other Gospel

Gal 1:6 I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Gal 1:7 Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. Gal 1:8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. Gal 1:9 As we said before, so say I now again, if any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed. KJV


For a long time, many years, I’ve prayed about what I should be doing each day, and for the most part, believe that I hear from God, and then I attempt to do what He’s asked. Many days, I’ve worked so hard I haven’t even stopped to take a break. A few years ago, I started to feel the full effects of burn-out, thinking that I felt this way since I no longer live at the Beach, a quiet and beautiful place. I associated a “place” with the peace I should have had. But this is a lesson I learned many years ago, that a place cannot ever give you peace. I thought this when I hitch-hiked across Canada, that if I just get to the ocean, I will have the peace I so badly needed. But the peace never came for me until that fall when Jesus came into my life and spoke truth into my life.


People say that Jesus gives a peace that can never come from anything but Himself, including a place, another person, or even from within. There is no stress-relief CDs, no aromatherapy candles, or oceans, or resorts that can give you the peace that Jesus gives. He simply wipes away what causes us torment and floods us with an unearthly and calming peace. I had been writing books, making scrapbooking cards, jewelry and a host of other things and found I was no longer enjoying any of it. I woke up tired and went to bed tired. I dragged myself through each day, dog tired and forced myself to complete the tasks I thought God had given me (doing each task without any joy at all). I had no energy and didn’t even enjoy a walk in the fresh mild winter air. Going out or going for coffee wasn’t enjoyable because I felt I had too much work to do, and it would only postpone the weight of the work load until I got home again. Each day started out bleak and I stopped dreaming and believing. For a writer and an artist, this is disastrous. For a Christian, this is poisonous and ultimately destructive, a shipwreck of faith. Not even once did I suspect that this was all a clever and insidious work of the devil himself. Not once did I suspect that it was anything more than God’s will and me the willing, but bogged-down servant, living one joyless day after another.


But one morning when I woke up, something was different. I had prayed the night before and gave my all over to the Lord, in a sort of “oh well, if I lose it all, I lose it all… I’m heading that way anyway.” I handed Him my burdens, not for a moment thinking He had actually taken them. One of those burdens was financial, since my husband had been working only half-time and had no sick time due to his company putting way too many demands on him and burning him out. I wasn’t able to get a job, no matter how hard I tried. So I had to hand it over to the Lord not knowing what else to do. I also handed my calling and career aspirations over to Him. So when I woke up I read the above verses in Galatians, and it struck me right away that I had been believing in “another gospel” and it wasn’t the original gospel that had saved my life and set me free so many years earlier. It was “another gospel,” cleverly imitated to make me think it was from God. What was that “other gospel?” For me it was the voice I heard every day that told me what I should do and to “finish it” no matter what the cost. It was the demanding voice that caused me to feel depressed and trapped and that I didn’t have a right to peace or enjoyment of ANYTHING in my life. It was the same voice convincing me that my works are God’s works, when clearly they were not, even though God used me to write the books and whatever else I did even under the strain and burden and pressure of this “other” voice. This voice, by the way, imitates God as closely as it can, so I thought it was God. In fact, this voice sometimes uses people when they’re angry with us and they start to try to manipulate us through guilt and fear.
 

But that morning after I read these verses, I realized that the Gospel had set me free, but this “other gospel” had me in a prison. Then I realized I had been under a spell. I couldn’t even read or understand God’s Word any more because it didn’t seem relevant to me or wasn’t written for me. I believed that GOD IS AGAINST ME because of all the suffering I had done. But now I started to see many other verses above the deceptive screen that had been placed before me. Jesus said His burden is light. This is the burden I receive, and no other. He said I would have peace and joy and love. This is what I feel and ACCEPT today. He said I had a future to look forward to, and not to an “expected end.” He said He is for me and not against me. He calls me His beloved and His friend, and not an enemy. A true friend doesn’t pile you with burdens; only an enemy would do that. Today I am filled with peace. I know that what I do or don’t do in terms of a strict schedule are no longer important. God is in control and not this sweet evil voice from the pit, Satan himself. God is in control and I can be still and know that He is God. I can be still and I know that it’s okay. Yesterday, I read Matthew 16:25 about losing your life to find it. I also read about waiting on God; not to rush ahead and try to make things happen on my own. God will provide ALL MY NEEDS.  


Why did I ever listen to this voice and be caught so unaware? Rather than focusing my thoughts on Jesus and the most important tasks placed before me (all having to do with Him), I went off on a tangent, getting lost in the confusion of detail (too many things to do) and missed out completely on the main joy of life – fellowship with the Lord, loved ones and fellow believers! So remember, when you start to feel bogged down by life, that the source is never God, but the evil messenger of “another gospel” trying to trick you, steal your joy and your peace, and bring you down.