Dallas Willard in Hearing God

Threats cannot be entertained.
Threats cannot be listened to
Threats must be removed
By fear
By intimidation
By death

Jesus was a threat but never threatened
He didn’t become defensive
He listened
and corrected
and spoke with truth and compassion
He didn’t retaliate
He forgave
and served
and saved
He didn’t threaten
He opened his arms wide on the cross
demonstrating his love
modeling a life of service
saying I forgive you
come unto me

Jesus is a threat
to our pride
to our desires for power and control
to our self-centered way of life
Jesus is a threat
but our blindness
deafness
stubbornness
is the greater threat
to knowing the way
to peace
to hope
to love
to life

(A reflection after reading Acts 7)

Fill me, Lord
As you did on Pentecost
Let me see you move
Rest your presence on me

Fill me, Lord
As you did on Pentecost
Let me speak as you direct
Fill my lips with the words of life

Fill me, Lord
As you did on Pentecost
Enable and empower me

“Ewww. This is so gross! Here, try it!” Have you ever been in this situation? With a friend? A spouse? My immediate response is, “Absolutely not!” (Hopefully, you’ve never been the one to do this to someone!)

Jesus uses a repulsive metaphor to describe life in him. Why would he do this? This certainly isn’t the way to gain more followers or increase his influence. Why describe following him in such an offensive way?

Thinking through this, is it any less repulsive to be asked to limit ourselves for our faith, for the weaker brother or sister, for life in Christ than it is to be asked to eat flesh and drink blood? Not to our American sensibilities. In fact, we would probably come nearer to cannibalism than to the possibility of diminishing ourselves for someone else.

The way of Jesus can be repulsive to us because of what it asks of us. This isn’t a call to a picnic at the beach or tiptoeing through the tulips. It’s a complete surrender to King Jesus, a picking up of our cross daily, laying down of my rights, my way, my life, my everything.

I recoil at the thought of eating Jesus’s flesh and drinking his blood. I recoil no less at the thought of giving up my life in total surrender to him.

A little less television
A little less time on that app
A few more minutes in prayer
An extra moment with a friend

It’s not always the big things
but it’s the small steps that lead
to the big life change

Less time on the app
becomes deleting the app altogether
Less time on the streaming services
becomes never turning them on
or canceling them altogether
Less time alone and focused only on myself
becomes more community
and encouragement in following Jesus

It’s not always the big things
but wow the difference the small steps can make

You knew it wouldn’t be easy
to step out of the rush and into the stillness
to quiet the voices and noise all around?
to push against the current that is swiftly moving in another direction

What if is wasn’t meant to be easy?
the gate is small
the road is narrow
only a few find it

But when they find it
rest
peace
in the presence of our Creator
our Savior

There we find easy
the yoke of Jesus
There we find rest
for our weary souls

“LOOK THIS WAY!”
“YOU NEED THIS!”
“WANT THIS!”
“FEEL THIS!”
“THIS IS AMAZING!”
“THEY ARE TERRIBLE!”

All desiring to fill my head
to lead my thoughts
to whatever they are selling
promoting
their position

ENOUGH!
QUIET!
What am I thinking about?

What is right?
(no my side is right)
What is true?
(They deserve insults and to be put down)
What is deserving of respect?
(The ends justify the means and the person we think will get us there)
What is pure?
(Yelling, screaming, demeaning)
What is lovely and admirable?
(Hate them, whoever them is, see the bad, it’s all gone to hell)

What consumes my thoughts more?
Why is it consuming my thoughts?
Could it be what I am feeding my thoughts?

Whatever is true, deserving of respect, pure, lovely, admirable, if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think about such things.

a reflection on Philippians 4:4-9

That’s just who I am
implies “so I can do or say whatever I wish”
implies “I’m not responsible for the outcome or result”
implies “so just deal with it”
implies “I cannot or will not change”

That’s just who I am
a justifying statement
a limiting statement
a statement of no faith

What if…
It’s not just who I am
but it’s the result of pain I’ve endured
or experienced that I am trying to avoid
It’s not just who I am
but it’s the walls I’ve erected
to do everything I can to protect myself
from future pain
It’s not just who I am
but it’s the pattern I’ve developed
the voices I listen to
the easier way than trying to change

Who am I?
Better yet, who can I be in Christ?

A reflection after reading Romans 12:9-21

We avoid suffering, or at least try to, as much as possible. We run to and cling to comfort. And much of our comfort is found in our stuff. Closets, garages, and basements bursting at the seams with all the stuff we’ve accumulated. Never enough. Always more.

What if the opposite of suffering isn’t comfort but glory? Specifically, sharing in the glory of Christ. Are we missing sharing in his glory because we are so comfortable? Are we suffering BECAUSE of our comfort (and all the stuff of our comfort), but we don’t even know what we are missing? Do we fail to see, know and share in his glory now because we are so satisfied in our comfort that we don’t even realize what we are missing?

Is the stuff part of the suffering?

Without warning
– a king is arrested
– tried
– convicted
– killed

Without warning
– the king is alive
– teaching
– restoring
– loving

Without warning
– a helper comes
– to empower
– to indwell
– to testify

Without warning
– the world is changed
– mercy is offered
– grace received
– life eternal

Without warning
– A king will return
– to remove sin
– and hardship
– and pain
– to make all things new
– to reign forever
– with those who call him King

A response to Acts 2:1-4 from The Message –

When the Feast of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Without warning there was a sound like a strong wind, gale force—no one could tell where it came from. It filled the whole building. Then, like a wildfire, the Holy Spirit spread through their ranks, and they started speaking in a number of different languages as the Spirit prompted them.

Eugene H. Peterson, The Message: The Bible in Contemporary Language (Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress, 2005), Ac 2:1–4.