Lean On Me

I watched as two older women quietly strolled down the sidewalk together on this cool, crisp day. One woman held her head up, almost gazing at the sun with a bit of a smile on her face and holding on to the arm of her friend as they walked. Her friend however, kept her serious gaze focused downward, trying to dodge icy patches and the pits and pocks in the cement of the sidewalk. I thought it an unusual sight and wondered why the one woman with the sun splashed countenance seemed so happily carefree while her friend appeared more concerned with each step along their journey, seemingly ignoring the splendor of the day.

And then it struck me.

This carefree woman was actually blind and being led by her seeing friend. She was simply enjoying the warmth and breeze, trusting her walking partner to lead her on. Not only was the seeing friend trying to dodge icy patches and uneven pocks in the cement for her own safety, but more than that, she was carefully and protectively guiding her blind friend through any and all hazards along the way. She wasn’t ignoring the beauty of the day at all. Her pleasure came as she enabled her blind friend to fully enjoy the beauty of the day by providing confidence and safety as they walked along. I think that’s a really good friend.

We have a Friend like that.

In many ways, we are quite blind to the hazards of life and if we think too much about it - the frightening, out-of-control “what ifs” out there, we may decide it’s not worth the risk to really LIVE. Instead we choose the mediocre, shallow life that may, in fact, be safer, but certainly is not abundant with the joy of life and adventure.

Do you want to go for a walk into the unknown – unsure of the direction, but confident in the Director? Do you want to feel the warmth of the sun’s rays, the breeze of the cool air, rather than stay holed up in a dingy, old comfort zone? Take His arm. Lean on Him. Trust Him for what you can’t see. His desire is for you to have life and that you have it in abundance. He knows how to dodge the hazards so that you are free to enjoy the journey; hanging on to the arm of your Friend as you stroll along. His name is Jesus, and I think He wants to go for a walk. With you.

Plead Immunity

There has been a lot of sickness going around recently, causing many friends and family to crash on their couches with their box of tissues for days and days. I don’t know if it’s just one strain of flu or more than one, but either way, it has invaded and hit our community hard. Like an enemy force, these flu-bugs march into the homes of unsuspecting hosts, bringing with them, a relentless barrage of symptoms. It’s kind of amazing how something as tiny as bacteria or a virus can wreak such havoc in the body of a human being many millions of times larger than itself. On the other hand, I’m so much more amazed by the astounding response of the healthy human body to such an invasion.

I confess, I never enjoyed microbiology in college very much, but I am quite fascinated by the whole design of the human body and in particular, the way God created a system of profound protection. He made us more resilient than most of us ever realize. Think of it. There are a bazillion tiny, little, deadly warriors that attack our bodies every single moment of every single day, and yet for the most part, we enjoy decent health. When God clothed us in skin, He gave us a significant barrier of protection that almost completely defends our bodies daily. Beyond that, He created an amazing immune system in each one of us, which is always at the ready to go to battle at a moment’s notice. We have within us, several lines of defense, so that even if one barrier is penetrated, another effective back up plan is executed instantly. Flowing in our blood stream are diligent white cells called lymphocytes whose sole purpose is to patrol the circulatory system like law officers in search of invaders. Once a threat is identified, these cells immediately send out a 911 message to other white cells, “SWARM, SWARM! ATTACK & KILL!” The enemy force is quickly overcome by these common white cells. Cells called “phagocytes” surround the invading bacteria and literally begin releasing lethal poisons into the core of this enemy, destroying it from the inside out, stopping it dead in its tracks. God even went so far as to create “T” cells that detect when the battle is won, so that these defender cells settle down and our body stabilizes into what we call normal health. This is manifested when fevers come down, hunger surfaces and strength returns. Imagine it. We are typically oblivious to most of these intense battles that go on inside of our bodies, and yet we are victorious moment by moment, day by day, because God made it so.

There are times, of course, when an infection seems to get the upper hand, and we suffer with symptoms that make us feel awful. Our bodies are still working hard, but we may at times enlist the help of antibiotics to give us the edge we need to beat our foe. So long as we were relatively healthy prior to the infection, we WILL have the victory – yet again.

So now…the analogy. (You knew it was coming, and probably already got there.) God’s plan for you is victory, not defeat. The Lord is incredibly passionate about all aspects of your life and has, like a good Father, set up a plan of protective defense that for the most part, you may not even be aware of. He wants you to rest in the awareness of His love and care – and not worry about your next battle. I sometimes hear folks talk about their current battle with the devil as though they’re barely making it. I’m not dismissing the reality of trials and tribulations, I would just rather not magnify the enemy’s power in any one’s life. Plead immunity. We may see and experience very real battles in this life, but what we don’t see, is that God has gone before us, prepared a way of protection and defeat of our enemies. I believe He probably has divine white cells (called angels) battling for us day in and day out, and that even in the worst of battles, all it really takes is one breath from the Almighty, and our enemies are routed. I don't know the intricacies of the ways in which He has guarded and defended our lives so completely, but I do know that we can trust our Father. His plan for you, is absolute victory.

“Be strong and courageous, be not afraid nor dismayed for the king of Assyria, nor for all the multitude that is with him: for there be more with us, than with him.”

2 Chronicles 32:7

What if I believed in God?

According to a recent Gallup poll, 96% of Americans believe in the existence of God. 96%!

If I would have guessed how many Americans believe in the existence of God according to some survey, I suppose I would’ve guessed that it would be somewhere in the neighborhood of around 95%. In fact, I’m not sure I’ve ever met anyone who told me, straight up, that they didn’t believe in God.

On the other hand, what if that were really true? Just imagine it for a minute. What if 96% of Americans truly believed in the God of the Bible? Unfortunately, with all the horrors we hear about in our culture every day, it’s fairly obvious that we can’t possibly live in a country with such a high rate of God-believers.

And as I consider the outrageousness of that statistic, it all becomes very personal. It’s easy for me to look at others and judge that although they say they believe in God, their lives do not reflect that fact. But then I consider my own belief and I have to ask myself, does my life reflect my belief in the Living God?

This past Sunday, my pastor said that if our lives don’t match up to what we believe, then perhaps we don’t really believe it. That’s what got me thinking about my own belief in God. It’s easy for me to scoff at the 96% “believers”, but what about my life? There is no question that I believe in God. The question really is, how does that belief reflect in this life?

I believe God is Holy. Do I believe that when I’m choosing to murmur and complain?

I believe God is Omnipresent. Do I believe He’s right there with me when I indulge my flesh?

I believe God is Merciful. Do I believe that when I fail to be merciful to someone who has hurt me?

I believe God is Faithful. Do I believe that when I lay wide awake on my bed, worrying?

I believe God is All-Powerful. Do I believe that when I’m facing an impossible situation?

I believe God is Love. Do I believe that? Do I? Do I believe His love is greater than my worst sin? Do I believe His love is deeper than my greatest need? Do I believe His love will never ever fail?

And if I believe in this Amazing, Eternal, All-Loving, Holy God who sits enthroned in the heavens and yet knows every intimate detail of my life, extending mercy, counsel, power and blessing, then how might that effect my worship of Him? Will I soberly stand in my pew while being distracted by my Sunday lunch plans or will adoration and thanksgiving explode from my soul to the One who is worthy of everything I have to offer Him?

And if I do, if I REALLY believe all this - then am I sharing the reality of GOD and His irresistible love with others, as though their life depended on it? (Because it does!)

"They that know Thee not may call upon Thee as other than Thou art, and so worship not Thee but a creature of their own fancy; therefore enlighten our minds that we may know Thee as Thou art, so that we may perfectly love Thee and worthily praise Thee.

What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.” ~ Knowledge of the Holy by A.W. Tozer

Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief.