Are You a Misfit Reindeer?

Spring has come to New York. The forsythia are in bloom and I began the season of lawn mowing just a few nights ago. With all the blossoms, bursting greenery and tree pollen My thoughts turned to ......... Rudolf. You remember, that Red Nosed Reindeer from a few months ago. In my years of interaction with people, especially evangelical believers, I have found that a great many feel like Rudolf. This little song tied to the Santa tradition is an awful song. The TV animation only serves to amplify how bad the message of the song really is. What we learn is that those who are different, outside the accepted norm, are unacceptable. Be they reindeer, dentist elves or misfit toys, if you do not fit in with what society demands you are not welcome. You cannot be a part of the games, you are fair game to be insulted, bullied and ostracized. Your only hope to be accepted is to prove you have worth. You must demonstrate the  you can perform in some way to be seen as having value. If you do not you do not belong, you will never be accepted, loved, or valued. It is a devastatingly lonely place to be.

What is true of reindeer, dentist elves, and misfit toys is true for the rest of us as well.We who hold that the Scriptures are the revealed truth and will of God often have some of the greatest issues of acceptance. We hold a remarkable ability to compartmentalize truth, thus putting God's Word out of balance. When I was a new believer I took a few evangelism classes. We learned to let people know that, "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). And that, “There is none righteous, no, not one" (Romans 3:10). Isaiah says, "But we are all like an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags" ( Isaiah 64:6). And, "The wages of sin is death" (Romans 6:23). We are helpless, hopeless, depraved, and incapable of doing anything positive or good. That, of course, changes when we receive Christ. Though, even then, we are often reminded of how unworthy we really are.  Even the hymn Amazing Grace reminds us that we are just unacceptable worms. Many believers still see themselves as misfit reindeer longing for acceptance.

In our effort to challenge one another to live holy lives that are pleasing to God, we may leave things out of balance. Confronted regularly by our own failures we may find ourselves feeling like we are still on the outside. We are still those marked more by failure rather than one of the beloved of God. We are acutely aware that we still "fall short" and that our tainted righteousness still harbors the stench of those "filthy rags" . No one needs to remind us of our unworthiness, it haunts us with every sin that so easily besets us. We long for just twenty-four hours of purity in thought, rescued from irritation or anger. It would be such a joy to get through one day and not be reminded of how incredibly frail and fallen we are. "Victory in Jesus" is a nice hymn title but it is far from the reality we crave as we stumble along in the mire of our own creation.

In the midst of this, sometimes painful, journey, we need to be reminded of who else we are. David understood the depths of sin and the conviction that Yahweh can bring upon His wandering children, He also understood the amazing truth of who we are as those created by God. Psalm 139:14, "I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well." The Hebrew word, יָרֵא yare',translated "fearfully", carries the idea of being in awe. We have reverential fear for Yahweh, meaning we are in awe of His presence and person. David relates that the creative activity of God in forming a child in the womb is an awesome thing. Being knit together as a divine act from conception is amazing. Beyond that David also says we are "wonderfully" made. The Hebrew word here is, פָּלָה palah. It means to be to be distinct, be separated, be distinguished, to be unique. There has never been and never will be another you. From your fingerprints to your DNA you are a hand crafted creation of God. Even identical twins, who share the same DNA, have different fingerprints. In addition to our physical characteristics we have psychological, emotional, and mental uniqueness. And do not forget your personality, natural abilities, and gifts. Then, when receiving Christ as Lord and Savior, you are supernaturally empowered with a gift from the Holy Spirit. You are an essential part of the Body of Christ designed to do something in a way no one else can accomplish. You are an amazing creation of God Almighty. How marvelous is His work in you!

I do not mean to belittle sin or the ongoing struggle to be more like our Savior, however, you are amazing. It is the enemy of our soul who diminishes the awesome work of God in creating you in the womb. It is Satan who promotes the lie of "fetal tissue" that can be removed and discarded. You are not some happenstance mistake that evolved from some protein ooze over millions of years. NO! You were awesomely hand crafted as a unique and essential creation of God. So follow David's lead and rejoice, give God praise. Sit quietly in the loving arms of your heavenly Abba, Father and find rest and value for your soul. I am the father of five. I love my children dearly. They are not perfect and they occasionally fail. But, I have never stopped loving, never stopped forgiving, never ceased to be amazed at the wonder of who they are and who they are becoming. How could my Heavenly Father ever treat me with any less gentleness, acceptance, and yes, even look on me with a little wonder at what He has created?

You are fearfully, awesomely, wonderfully, uniquely, hand crafted by the God and Creator of the universe. Don't let anyone tell you differently. Not even yourself.     

The Voice in the Darkness

As I go about my day it seems there are times when I catch the sound of a voice not quite discernible. It is not always there, however, it comes to me often enough that it can be a distraction. It is not out in the open, not where I can easily see, but it is there none the less. It is, sort of, a voice in the darkness. It has a tinge of loneliness, maybe a little regret. It is a voice that whispers there is a need that is not being met. The haunting feeling is that it is a need I am meant to satisfy. But one I, all too often, find ways to ignore. The remarkable thing is, that it is still and quiet but I hear it above the noise of the traffic, the clamor of the mall, and the blare of the radio. The voice in the darkness finds its way to me in the brilliance of sunlight and the stillness of midnight.

I sometimes wonder if it is that "still small voice" Elijah heard in 1 Kings 19:12. But no, this voice lacks encouragement, at times it almost sounds desperate and wounded. In truth, I live in a world filled with wounded voices in the dark. The wounded soul who checks out my groceries, the man with the sign, asking for change, the child on the street corner wearing a coat five sizes too large. There is no shortage of desperate voices. Even within the doors of God's assemblies where believers gather to worship and praise there are the broken families and grieving widows. There are those who join us and wear their best face yet are haunted by addictions and wounds that never seem to heal. There are times, even for believers, when we understand how Israel felt. When it feels like God has led us into the wilderness only to abandon us.

In those quiet, and not so quiet moments, when that quiet voice comes to me, I try to imagine that the voice is meant for someone else. However, I know that is not so. At times, when I allow myself to be most candid, I know the voice is mine. After all these years the enemy of my soul still speaks through my own shortcomings, my own feelings of failure. My own memories of missed opportunities and words that I can never take back. The voice in the dark reminds me of  words my mind will never let go of. Words that are like festering wounds that were spoken decades ago. I would like to deny that the voice in the dark exists. I would like to say that I am beyond that. I would like to say that my spiritual growth after all these years has silenced the voice and my attention is solely on the needs of others. But that would just give the voice another thing to whisper in the dark.

The voice reminds me of the magnitude of the resurrection of my Lord and Messiah. I have life, for He has conquered death. The fear of a dark eternity is washed away in the light of His glory. He is risen and the voice in the dark is really a shadow with no teeth. However, it is still there. There are times it tries to be more vocal, more distracting, more condemning. Those times when the lie of the wilderness seems almost inviting. When one can rest in hopelessness and feel no responsibility for life. They are short lived. The Spirit simply reminds me that 1st John 4:4 applies. I am His child and greater is He who is in me than the disturbing voice in the dark. Even when that voice is my own.

We are reminded daily of a world that is lost and decaying. We may well be reminded daily of our weaknesses and failures. We will do well to remember Romans 5:8, "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." We do not have to fix ourselves to be loved by Him. We do not need to defeat the voice in the darkness for our Savior has already brought us to the light. I believe the voice will always be there. However, I also believe I do not have to listen to the voice who condemns me. For I am in Christ Jesus, and there is no condemnation where I now reside.

I wonder if you hear a voice that whispers in the darkness. One that tries to discourage and condemn. I have little doubt that the voice in the darkness will call on all of us, from time to time. But the power of the resurrected Lord assures me of life. I no longer have to live in the darkness. When I rest in that truth, the voice in the darkness is robbed of his power. And I am free.  And so are you.

    

The Outside of the Cup

 Have you ever noticed that as followers of Christ we seem to struggle to keep things in balance? It seems we are running after one thing or another at the expense of other areas of life. We know we need to be involved in ministry so we commit to various projects until our families are neglected. Then we turn our attention to our loved ones and find we have missed every other worship service. We get engrossed in some theological study and have no time for prayer. We concentrate on inner purity but leave out external actions. To be honest, we are also remarkably adept at excusing the excesses and extremes with common sayings that have little or no Biblical reality. One common excuse is that "God knows my heart". This is another way of saying, "good intentions are all that matters." "God knows my heart" just sounds a lot better, even a bit spiritual. And who can argue with that? It is a convenient way to excuse the imbalance and even sin in our lives.

The heart attitude is certainly important. Jesus, tells us, "But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man" (Matthew 15:18). And the Lord warned Israel, "These people draw near to Me with their mouth,and honor Me with their lips,but their heart is far from Me" (Matthew 15:8). In our Lord's discussion with some of the Pharisees He rebukes them saying, "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence" (Matthew 23:25). By these verses we know that the Lord God is deeply concerned with our heart attitudes. Just going through the motions is never enough or fully acceptable to the Lord.

That being said, a cup that proclaims to be spotless on the inside yet has an external appearance of impurity and filth is not acceptable either. The person who is in violation of God's Word or whose behavior is damaging to those around them cannot take a pass with the phrase, "But, God knows my heart." Maybe so, but people know your actions. Faith is demonstrated by what we do. A heartfelt "Be warmed and be filled" would never cut it with James. Neither would telling someone, "But, you know I love you" when the actions of love found in 1 Corinthians 13 are null and void. The outside of our cups are just as important as the inside of the cup. Paul encourages us when writing to Timothy, "Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter [inequity], he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work" (2 Timothy 2:21). Vessels of honor are clean on the inside and the outside. God's desire is that our lives be integrated into His. If we are to be like our Messiah we need to represent Him in how we act and with the attitudes that we hold in our hearts. Misconduct and an attitude that does not reflect our Lord is simply not acceptable, no matter what our heart tells us. Jesus displayed a humble and compassionate heart, grounded in uncompromising truth. His call on our lives is to reflect the same. Remember Jeremiah's warning, “The heart is deceitful above all, and desperately wicked; who can know it" (Jeremiah 17:9)? Our tendency is to find ways to excuse how we behave. The outside of the cup should reflect the inside. If Christ has cleansed our hearts our lives should reflect that cleansing.  God, indeed knows our hearts. The question we face is, do we?