Ctrl+Z: Whatever happened, happened

*image courtesy of thesaint at stock.xchng

I was thinking today about mistakes.  I hate mistakes, especially the ones you just can’t fix.  For example, I was in downtown Richmond this afternoon and unwittingly parked illegally.  It was a “No Parking Zone,” but only from 4-6pm.  I saw the sign, thought I was out of the tow zone, and even backed up one parking meter to get further away from that scowling white sign with its slashy circle of scorn.  Alas, I was apparently in the tow zone, and it was 4:15.

Of course.

Now, there’s no going back.  I have no defense.  There’s no wiggle room, there’s no making up for it, there’s no making it all go away.  Instead, sixty of my hard-earned dollars will be painting a bench somewhere downtown or helping to pay some civil servants salary, probably the one who wrote my ticket.

Thankfully, we have the universal reset button: Ctrl+Z.

Yes, the “undo” feature started as a handy ability on word processing that has now spread to nearly every program I encounter.  Accidentally delete a paragraph?  Undo!  Accidentally delete the pictures of your kid’s first birthday?  Ctrl+Z!  It’s truly an amazing function, and has become so ubiquitous that sometimes it’s hard to remember that it only works on computers.

I’ve often wished that life had an undo function.  I’ve wished that I could simply stroke a few keys and find myself five minutes in the past, or maybe a whole day, with the chance to do it all over again.  Like Bill Murray in Groundhog Day, I’d know how I failed the try before, and could do it again and again until I got things juuust right.

Until Google/Apple/Facebook/Skynet/Big Brother finds a way to implement an actual undo button for life, or we all find ourselves sucked into/uploaded into the cloud, we have to live with our analog mistakes.  Now, this is a biblical blog (biblog? no, sorry, that’s dumb), so you might think this is where I pull out the Jesus card like this…

Jesus is the Eternal Undo Button!

But, you’d be wrong.  And that’s ok, because you’re good enough, you’re smart enough, and darn it people like you.

No, that’s not the point I’m going to make.  Ok, that’s half true.  Jesus does take away your guilty standing as a rebel against the King of the Universe, don’t get me wrong.  But that doesn’t necessarily mean a cosmic “undo” for all those who believe.  Sometimes, there are long-lasting effects of sin in your life that simply won’t go away.  (Note I used “won’t” not “can’t.”)

It goes like this…

When you put your faith and trust in Jesus, a few things could happen: God could remove all traces of a particular sin in your life, including guilty standing, temptation to repeat, and negative consequences. Or, God could remove the guilt of your sin but not the consequences of your sin.  You see, the guilt part is integral to salvation.  In fact, it’s what you’re believing when you put your trust in Jesus: that He can and will forgive you of your sins and restore your right standing before God if you will believe.

The other stuff, is not as sure.  I’m sure you know or have heard of someone who came to Jesus and immediately put down their drugs, promiscuity, Disney movies, and all other forms of evil in their lives without ever looking back.  They experienced no withdraw symptoms, never had a second thought, and could march right back into the bar/strip club/theme park without fear of relapse.  Praise God, He is still at work and does mighty things for the glory of His Name!

However, sometimes God chooses, for reasons we don’t know, to not deliver someone as radically and instantaneously.  I would argue that this is the norm.  God gives us the words of Paul to put off the old self and put on the new (Ephesians 4:22-23).  Therefore, we are urged to work together with God through the power of the Holy Spirit to strive towards obedience in this particular area.

Also, sometimes the consequences of our sin will not be removed.  God has built into the fabric of the universe a cause and effect system that goes beyond physics.  What we plant is what we will harvest (Galatians 6:7-9).  This is the biblical counter to “what goes around comes around” or karma.  The difference is that God can override this, and it doesn’t apply to our eternal state if we are in Christ.  What it does apply to is our life in the here and now.

Lead a promiscuous life and you might end up with a disease.  God can heal you of that, but it’s neither a guarantee nor the norm.  God may bless you with a wonderful marriage down the road with a pure and holy sex life, but you may not ever get certain images out of your head.  Murder someone, and God can and will forgive you for your sin.  That doesn’t necessarily mean you won’t go to jail.  Lie through all your B.C. years, and people might have a hard time believing you when get all truthful on them.

Just because we’re Christians doesn’t mean that we’re somehow exempt from the real world.  There are still consequences to our actions.  God may choose to supernaturally override the norm, but don’t count on it in every case.  We don’t have an “undo” button for life, and this is the only shot we get on this earth.  We will be judged for what we do here, and there will be no going back.

Whatever happened, happened.

Bible in 90, Day 02: Power and Promises

Genesis 17-28

*image courtesy of mfb1982 at stock.xchng

So, we read a great passage today (aren’t they all great?!) about Abraham and Sarah.  But just like last time I took the Bible in 90 Challenge, I noticed something today I’ve never seen before in chapter 18.  Now, I’ve always known that Sarah was past childbearing years (she was 90 after all! [17:17]). When I looked it up, I realized that this is exactly how the NIV phrases it.  But this time through, I’m reading the ESV and it is a more literal translation.  The ESV translates the phrase this way, “The way of women had ceased to be with Sarah.”

Now, the NIV gets the point across, but the ESV is more technical and this phrasing made me realize something: Sarah had gone through menopause.  It wasn’t just that she was very old to be thinking about kids.  More than that, the way of women had ceased to be with her.

I may have just been dense before, but this seems bigger to me!

Her time was over!  She was not having any kids!  And yet, God promises she will be holding a child a year from the time of this passage.  Understandably, she laughs.  She tries to hide it, but God calls her on it.  He reassures Abraham and Sarah that nothing is too hard for Him (18:13).

Flip over a couple of pages to 20:17-21:7, and you’ll see that indeed nothing is too hard for our God.  In this passage, which is actually the end of one passage and the beginning of another, we see God re-opening the wombs of the women in Abimelech’s household, and then opening the womb of Sarah as promised.  Now, Isaac’s name (which means “laughter” or “he laughs”) took on all new meaning.  Originally, Sarah laughed at the thought of giving birth to a child, and now she exclaims that she is laughing with joy, and that others will laugh at her experience!  From this passage we can gather two very important and inseparable truths:

Our God keeps His promises.

Nothing is too hard for our God.

Without the second of these truths, the first doesn’t carry as much weight, does it?  But together, we have powerful truth about a loving God.

Let’s remember these important truths about God’s power and promises.  Let’s rest confidently in God’s promises on our lives: to never leave us nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:5), to provide for us so that we may bless others (2 Corinthians 9:6-15), to forgive our sins (1 John 1:9), and many more.  Let’s live our lives like we believe these promises, not doubting the great power of our God to fulfill His promises.

Originally at Words of Reason

Bible in 90, Day 63: Lions and Fires and Prayers, oh my!

Daniel 1-8

image courtesy of memoossa at stock.xchng

So today we covered about a month’s worth of Sunday school lessons.  We read about Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refusing the king’s choice food so as not to defile themselves.  We saw Daniel interpreting dreams for Nebuchadnezzar.  We held our breath as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were throw into the fiery furnace.  Daniel had a sleep-over with some lions because he had prayed to God even though it was against the law.  We scratched our heads as the hand appeared and wrote on the wall.

What did that look like anyway?

What’s interesting to see is the confidence and boldness in these four Hebrew men throughout these various ordeals.  To refuse the king’s food was to take a serious risk of seeming defiant.  I’m sure that disobedient refugees were not treated well by the royal court.  Daniel made a bold claim that he could interpret Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, and had he not made good on his claim we know he would have died for it.  The penalty for Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego’s allegiance to the Lord and refusal to bow before the image Nebuchadnezzar had made was brutal, yet they survived.

Perhaps my favorite moment of brash on the part of Daniel is in chapter 5 when he responds to Belshazzar’s questions about his reputation and ability to interpret the handwriting on the wall.  Belshazzar promises Daniel a robe, a gold chain, and a position of high political power in the land if he can interpret the writing.  Daniel’s response is quite forthcoming: You can keep your stuff!  But I will tell you the meaning of the words.

Um… Daniel… that’s the king

This was not the first king Daniel had ever tangled with.  He’d had dealings with Nebuchadnezzar, as we read earlier, and possibly two other kings whose reigns were fairly short.  Belshazzar was also not the last king he would deal with on not-so-friendly terms.  However, Daniel knew that his true King was more powerful than any earthly king.  In truth, the Lord was the source of the authority and power these kings had attained.

We don’t have to fear people either.  If we are in Christ, then we are children of the King of the universe.  No earthly power holds any real sway over us.  What’s the worst they can do to us?  Kill us?  That didn’t seem to bother Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. They figured that God could save them from the flames of the furnace, but even if He didn’t, they wanted Nebuchadnezzar to know that they would not worship anything or anyone but God, even if it meant death.  We should serve Christ regardless of the consequences, knowing that either God will save us from the consequences, or that the consequences are not enough to keep us from being faithful to our King.

Let’s remember the example of these Hebrew men who were surrounded by a pagan culture.  Let’s not fear man, but rather, let’s fear God.  For man can only kill the body, but God can kill both the body and the soul (Matthew 10:28).  Let’s honor God, trusting Him to either deliver us from the fire, or to deliver us through the fire into His presence.

originally at Words of Reason

Bible in 90, Day 62: Dem Bones Dem Bones

Ezekiel 36-48

image courtesy of bjearwicke at stock.xchng

Nothing is impossible with God.  ~Luke 1:37

Ezekiel was a prophet who used a lot of imagery.  God had him lie on his side for over a year, walk around naked for a while, even the death of his wife served as a vivid illustration of one of God’s messages.  Today’s object lesson puts all the others to shame, however.

I always try to imagine myself in the position of the people I’m reading about.  So, imagine you’re Ezekiel and God has just told you to tell a bunch of bones to get up (Ezekiel 37).  Actually, before that God gives him a pop quiz.  “Can these bones live?”  I love Ezekiel’s response, “Only You know!”

Was that a cop-out?

So, Ezekiel obeys, as usual, and prophecies to the bones strewn about him.  Then, it really gets weird.  There’s a rattling sound, and the bones start coming together, getting ligaments, flesh, skin, and eventually they stand up, alive!  God says that the bones represent Israel.  This last section of Ezekiel’s book is about giving hope to the remnant of Israel.  They were losing hope, thinking there was nothing for them in the future.

God uses this picture of the dry bones coming to life to remind the people that nothing is too difficult for God (Jeremiah 32:17, 27).  If God could raise literal dead men back up onto their feet, he could certainly raise up a dead nation.

The same is true of us today.  If God could raise up dry bones, and if Jesus could raise up Lazarus (John 11:1-43), He can certainly give new life to our dead souls (Ephesians 2:1-10).  With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible (Matthew 19:26).  There is no sin so great that God cannot forgive.  There is no one so wicked that Jesus cannot save.  Anyone who comes to Him in faith and repentance will find mercy, forgiveness, and a new life.

Let’s remember that nothing is too difficult for God.  No matter the sin in our lives, our God and Savior is greater.  No matter the obstacle in our path, our God is able to lead us over, around, or through it.  Let’s put our trust in God in every situation, knowing that if He can reform old dry bones into vital people again, He can handle whatever we face!

originally at Words of Reason

Bible in 90, Day 27: The God who cares about tools

2 Kings 4-15

*image courtesy of asheley at www.sxc.hu

“What do you want to pray about tonight?” I asked my 2½ year-old son.

“Umm… snacks!”

“You want to pray for snacks?”

“Uh huh, that God will give us snacks.”

“Ok, go ahead.”

“God, please give us some snacks tomorrow, amen.”

Elisha’s request of Elijah was that he would receive a double portion of the spirit that resided on his master, Elijah.  Second Kings goes on to relate the fulfillment of this promise by recording twice the number of miracles in Elisha’s ministry as in Elijah’s ministry.  Second Kings 4-6 shows us several, rapid-fire miracles.  A common theme throughout these miracle stories is that each one met a need.  These weren’t just flashy shows of the power of God in Elisha’s life, they met various needs in various ways.  Some were weightier than others:  we see a widow being saved from poverty, a son given, then restored to life, and a commander being healed of leprosy.  These were all dire situations into which God intervened.

However, several were needs that we might consider mundane: fixing a pot of stew that otherwise would have been thrown out, feeding a hundred men with a small amount of food, and getting a lost ax head back for a prophet who had borrowed it.  These might seem trivial, especially the last one.  We might even think them beneath God’s concern, and certainly His miraculous intervention.

God loves His children.  What is important to us (assuming godly standards of course) is important to Him.  This man lost a valuable piece of equipment, and worse, it was borrowed!  There was no running to Lowe’s to get a new one.  The man was concerned about his reputation and relationship with his friend.  Now, did he expect God to move heaven and earth, to temporarily suspend the laws of physics to bring it back?  Probably not.  Nonetheless, God cared, and met the man’s need.

We serve the God who even cares about our tools!

When he first said he wanted to pray for snacks, I thought it was silly.  But then I realized that my son had better theology than I did.  I had taught him that every good gift comes from the Father above (James 1:7).  He accepted my words as the words of God, as they were in this case(1 Thessalonians 2:13)!  So, snacks are good, God gives all good things, God gives snacks!  God please give us snacks tomorrow.  And God heard it.

And I’m sure He smiled.

God is our Father, and He is a good Father who meets our needs and wants us to come to Him with them (Matthew 6:9-11, 7:7-11; James 4:1-3).  He knows the little details of our lives, right down to the hairs on our head and he cares for us more than anything else in creation (Matthew 10:29-31).

Let’s never think that our need is beneath God’s concern.  If we are asking not out of selfishness, but in child-like faith, and according to God’s will, God will hear us and answer us (James 5:15; 1 John 5:14; Matthew 18:3).  Let us approach God with the simple faith of a child, humbly asking Him to supply our needs.

He will hear, and He will smile.

Bible in 90, Day 11: Poor Moses!

Numbers 8-21

*image courtesy of Rene at www.sxc.hu

There are several recurring themes in today’s reading – complaining, God being furious, leadership challenges, and Moses & Aaron on their faces. And Moses really takes a lot in this passage!  Every time you turn around, someone is asking why Moses and/or God brought them out to the wilderness to die, or trying to usurp authority from Moses, Aaron, or even God!

The people complain that they are sick of manna.  They actually wish for the “good ol’ days” back when they were slaves in Egypt!  In one of my favorite lines in the Old Testament, God declares that they will have so much meat it will come out of their nostrils and they will loathe it!

Tee hee! God humor!

Bible in 90, Day 5: … and other towns in Rhode Island

Exodus 1-15

*image courtesy of Czarest at www.sxc.hu

Did anybody else notice the change in pace today?  In four days we covered several hundred years of storyline, but today when we read 15 chapters we only covered about 40 years, and most of it took place over a few weeks!  And now we’re beginning to deal with the nation of Israel.  We also saw two big themes in our passage today.

Miracles, and providence.

Providence is God’s normal working in the universe, but particularly is used to describe those peculiar instances in life.  Some call it coincidence or fate.  The Bible calls it the hand of God.  Moses’ very existence is an example of providence.
By all accounts, Moses should have never lived past his toddler stage.  Pharaoh commanded the Hebrew midwives to kill any boys they helped a Hebrew woman deliver.  Puah and Shiphrah (which will coincidentally be the names of any daughters I ever have!) feared God over Pharaoh and did not kill the boys.  God providentially saved Moses’ life through the bravery of these two women.

Following this failed attempt to limit the Hebrew population, Pharaoh next ordered that all Hebrew boys that are born be thrown into the Nile River.  Moses mother hid him in a basket in the amongst the reeds.  Eventually, Moses is found by Pharaoh’s daughter.  The Hebrew boy who should have been thrown into the Nile to die by Pharaoh’s order was now fished out of the Nile to be rescued by Pharaoh’s daughter.  Not only was he saved, but Moses’ mother ends up nursing him and getting paid for it by Pharoah’s daughter!  This man should have never seen his first birthday, and instead, he lives to be 120 years old and one of the greatest prophets ever to live.

Providence!