I Asked The Lord...

This hymn by John Newton exemplifies how we can pray in complaint to the Lord, and His wonderful answer.

I asked the Lord that I might grow
In faith, and love, and every grace;
Might more of His salvation know,
And seek, more earnestly, His face.

’Twas He who taught me thus to pray,
And He, I trust, has answered prayer!
But it has been in such a way,
As almost drove me to despair.

I hoped that in some favored hour,
At once He’d answer my request;
And by His love’s constraining pow’r,
Subdue my sins, and give me rest.

Instead of this, He made me feel
The hidden evils of my heart;
And let the angry pow’rs of hell
Assault my soul in every part.

Yea more, with His own hand He seemed
Intent to aggravate my woe;
Crossed all the fair designs I schemed,
Blasted my gourds, and laid me low.

Lord, why is this, I trembling cried,
Wilt thou pursue thy worm to death?
“’Tis in this way, the Lord replied,
I answer prayer for grace and faith.

These inward trials I employ,
From self, and pride, to set thee free;
And break thy schemes of earthly joy,
That thou may’st find thy all in Me.”

John Newton, 1725-1807

Morning Needs

O God, the author of all good,
I come to Thee for the grace another day will require
                        for its duties and events.
                I step out into a wicked world,
                I carry about with me an evil heart,
                I know that without thee I can do nothing,
                            that everything with which I shall be concerned,
                                                   however harmless in itself,
                                  may prove an occasion of sin or folly,
                                  unless I am kept by thy power.
Hold Thou me up and I shall be safe.
Preserve my understanding from subtilty of error,
                my affections from love of idols,
                my character from stain of vice,
                my profession from every form of evil.
May I engage in nothing in which I cannot implore Thy blessing,
          and in which I cannot invite Thy inspection.
Prosper me in all lawful undertakings,
           or prepare me for disappointments;
Give me neither poverty nor riches;
Feed me with food convenient for me,
           lest I be full and deny Thee
           and say, Who is the Lord?
           or be poor, and steal, and take Thy name in vain.
May every creature be made good to me by prayer and Thy will;
Teach me how to use the world, and not abuse it,
                       to improve my talents,
                       to redeem my time,
                       to walk in wisdom toward those without,
                           and in kindness to those within,
                       to do good to all men,
                       and especially to my fellow Christians.
And to Thee be the glory.

"Morning Needs" from  The Valley of Vision (A collection of Puritan Prayers and Devotions) by Arthur Bennett

God in the disappointments

Sometimes life is disappointing. The world seems to be against you. Sometimes you pray for something everyday, with the best motive in the world, with a view to honour God and to serve others, and yet it doesn't happen. It seems like God is just not there.

It doesn't happen, not because God doesn't love you, nor because He doesn't care, nor because He isn't able to make it happen. It doesn't happen because He does love you, because He does care, because He is able to make something better happen.

That's not to say the disappointment is any less disappointing, but it does provide a new perspective on them. To know that God cares so much for you, that He's willing to say "no".

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. And those whom He predestined He also called, and those whom He called He also justified, and those whom He justified He also glorified. (Romans 8 v 28-30)

I prayed for a job to stay in the city, so that I could continue to serve at my church, I could continue to be part of my small group, I could continue to share fellowship amongst friends and I could share God's Good News with those I have relationships with in the area. I wanted to serve Him, to stay with the people He so graciously gave me six and a half years ago. I pleaded, because I wanted to serve the people who kept me Christian during some really rocky times. He said "no". He is moving me to a different town. And He is at work, even in the most bitter of disappointments, to bring about something so much more exciting. Something that I don't know about, something I can't imagine, but something that will conform me to the image of His Son, so that I may be one of many brothers. And that's where God is in the disappointments.

Reflecting On God's Sovereignty

A recent church weekend away was on the sovereignty of God. I was asked to write a short reflection on the weekend. This is what I wrote:

If you've been a Christian for any length of time, you'll be used to "debates" about God's sovereignty, and issues of free will, evil and fatalism will be batted back and forth like tennis balls. Sadly in all this, I can very easily lose sight of God. On the weekend away, it was, therefore, the reminders that God is King (sovereign) in His world that struck me most. He alone is the Creator, all else is created and, therefore, under His rule. The reaches of His rule are all-encompassing, from my breakfast cereal to the rain that sends me scurrying back in for an umbrella, from the moment of inspiration when reading my Bible, to exactly which bus I get or miss.

God made each oat sheaf grow, each leaf was formed, and each grain harvested and squashed into my porridge oats, with Him knowing exactly which oats I was going to eat, and which would be eaten by my flatmate, before I even decided which porridge to buy! And every "natural" event, every flurry of snow, ray of sunshine, or sharp north-westerly breeze is sent out from God's hand. Every day is filled with His glorious providence, even when I don't want to acknowledge it, even when I am a "practical Deist" - i.e. when I ignore God's constant rule of the world, and imagine that I'm in charge , and that God just occasionally "intervenes".

This session was a rebuke for the days when I grumble whilst getting the umbrella, reminding me that it's not just that it happened to rain, but that God deliberately sent the rain. It is a wonderful truth to be reminded of. How can I be so ungrateful to the LORD who made me and provides all my needs? How can I consign Him to just "helping out" when I want something? I must rejoice in all His goodness, in His awesome sovereignty. I must be grateful for all the wonderful things that fill my day, and see His perfect hand in all things.

This post was originally posted here.

I recommend...

The Valley of Vision by Arthur Bennett. A collection of Puritan Prayers. The Puritans were great thinkers and had their theology nailed. I've quoted from this book before, and I can't recommend it highly enough. Prayers for when you don't know what to pray, when you are praying in a great Christian truth, prayers to read and ponder. Excellent for when your heart is so overwhelmed (either in joy or in sorrow) that words don't come easily. Also useful for getting into the habit of praying well structured prayers of clarity. As the blurb says, "This book has been prepared not to 'supply' prayers but to prompt and encourage the Christian as he treads the path on which others have gone before."

Three Quid's Worth of Gospel

"I would like to buy about three quid's worth of gospel, please. Not too much - just enough to make me happy, but not so much that I get addicted. I don't want so much gospel that I learn to really hate covetousness and lust; I certainly don't want so much that I start to love my enemies, cherish self-denial, and contemplate missionary service in some alien culture. I want ecstasy, not repentance; I want transcendence, not transformation. I would like to be cherished by some nice, forgiving, broad-minded people, but I myself don't want to love those from different races - especially if they smell. I would like enough gospel to make my family secure and my children well behaved, but not so much that I find my ambitions redirected, or my giving too greatly enlarged.

I would like about three quid's worth of gospel please.

Of course, none of us is so crass as to put it that way. But most of us have felt the temptation to opt for a domesticated version of the gospel."

D.A. Carson - Basics for Believers

What *really* matters

Today we were given a pitch by a company who deal in financial products for doctors and dentists. They were advocating a product that aims to insure the salaries and earnings of doctors and dentists, in case they suffer injury or illness that means they cannot work.

I am not agains insurance as a principle (at the moment) and do hold insurance for most of my belongings, however I do draw the line at insuring something I do not even have yet. More than that, this insurance was sold like this:

"Your most valued asset is not your car, nor your home..."

(At this point, I have to admit, I muttered, in a way that was less under my breath than I was expecting, "nor your career")

"... but your ability to earn money..."

This was followed by:

"If you had a machine that could churn out £30,00 a year wouldn't you insure that machine?"

There are a number of deeply flawed arguments here! Your most valued asset is your ability to earn money?! I assume there are people out there, maybe even reading this blog, who believe this, for why else could the lady selling the product use that line? I would encourage you take a deep look at yourself, and at the financial world around you. Look at how fickle money is - how quickly things can change (the current 'credit crunch' for example), how unreliable it is, how it can easily take over your life - becoming the thing you long for, the thing that provides your security, having a little means you want more, and you can never have quite enough. Not only that, but take a good look at yourself. Are you really only someone who is most valuable for the money they can make? I would beg to differ, and more importantly so would God, your Creator.

Listen to what God says in His Word, the Bible, about people;
"So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them." (Genesis 1v27)
""Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed; for in the image of God has God made man." (Genesis 9v6) -
God values the people He makes - as can be seen in the second quote, where He shows that man should not shed the blood of man, since man (here used to represent both male and female) is in God's image - man is precious to God, yet not because man can earn money, but because man is created in God's image.

God knows and created each of us, in another book of the Bible, the author says this, " I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be." (Psalm 139 v14-16)

Surely a creature so "fearfully and wonderfully made" by Someone Whose "works are wonderful" is worth so much more than their ability to make money?

The next flaw is the attitude to money - listen to Jesus speaking about our anxieties, and worries. "And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." (The Gospel of Matthew 6 v28-33)

God knows all our needs, but tells us there is something much more important than what we eat, drink or wear - it is more important to look to God, to seek His kingdom - that is His Name being honoured on Earth, doing His will and living in joyful obedience to Him.

All in all, many reasons that we do not need to insure our careers - we are people far more valuable than our careers, far more than the money we earn, and we have so many more important things to do than to worry about what will happen if we get ill and cannot earn. God cares for His children, and whilst He makes no guarantees that we will not suffer illness or injury or lose our jobs, He does promise to look after us, and shows how He looks after birds and flowers, which are so much less precious than we are! So, don't trust in an insurance company, trust in God, who can provide, whatever happens to us, and remember that you are *more* than your ability to earn money!

A few imperfect and incomplete thoughts on the matter, do comment further!

Does Jesus have to be in every talk?

Ok I'm out for advice... Two different viewpoints - one says,
"The Old Testament is meaningless without Christ, so every talk, even those from Old Testament narratives have to contain Jesus"
OR
(as with Dale Ralph Davies) "The whole Old Testament bears witness to Christ; and, the Old Testament does not bear witness only to Christ."

Recently in the Sunday School I help lead we've been doing something known as "the ABC's of God" where we each week learn about different characteristics of God, for example, a "mini-series" - of God is the Creator, so has the right to do what He wants with His creation, God is Wise, so has the wisdom to do this, God does all things for His glory, culminated in God is Sovereign... But (shock horror to some) we didn't use Jesus to explain that God is the Creator... and we used the true story of Joseph to explain Wise... and the culmination of the three in Sovereign was again without mention of Jesus...

have we got it all wrong? Should we have put Jesus into every single lesson or should we stick as we are, explaining what we can learn about God from the Old Testament? Would we lose the richness and the beauty that God inspired the authors to put into the text if we forced it into a formulation that necessarily put Jesus into our talk?

I'd love your comments (any!)...