Sufficient for me

There is a passage in the New Testament that is often the subject of much controversy. Never mind that it is in plain language. But the controversy usually comes from people trying to decide what it means, instead of just reading what it says and going with that. That’s so religious. But this passage has meant a lot to me in recent days.

The passage I speak of is II Corinthians 12:7-9

7 ‘And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.

8 ‘For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me.

9 ‘And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

This is an easy passage to understand. It means what it says. It says that a thorn in the flesh was given – a messenger of Satan – to keep him down so the revelations he had been getting wouldn’t lift him up above reach. The purpose of revelation from God is to do exactly that, lift us up above the curse, the devil, death, failure (see psalm 97:11, Deuteronomy 28:13). A messenger brings a message. The book of Acts chronicles the ministry of Paul, and all the opposition that came against him after he started bringing the news of Jesus Christ to people. The message is clear, ‘shut up Paul!’. Some of that opposition was pretty rough, and almost killed him a few times. He ended up in prison. He never shut up.

When he asked God to make it go away, God did not say no. But since persecution is not part of what we are delivered from, and the negative messages that come from people, and the doomsayers, and the naysayers, God gave him the answer to the problem. His grace. If you know what grace is, and why it’s sufficient, it’s really clear what a radically awesome answer that is.

Grace, in the original Greek word used, is charis, and it translates like this:

1) Grace – (from chairo (1) to rejoice, be glad (2) to rejoice exceedingly (3) to be well, thrive)

a) That which affords joy, pleasure, delight, sweetness, charm, loveliness: grace of speech

2) Good will, loving-kindness, favor

a) of the merciful kindness by which God, exerting his holy influence upon souls, turns them to Christ, keeps, strengthens, increases them in Christian faith, knowledge, affection, and kindles them to the exercise of the Christian virtues

3) What is due to grace

a) The spiritual condition of one governed by the power of divine grace

b) The token or proof of grace, benefit

1) Benefit, bounty

4) Thanks, (for benefits, services, favors), recompense, reward

Sufficient is arkeo, and means this:

1) To be possessed of unfailing strength

a) To be strong, to suffice, to be enough

1) To defend, ward off

b) To be satisfied, to be contented

Okay! Now that we looked up the words, and found the original definition of the words used, we have a really clear image of what Paul was asking God about, and what God said in return. Contrary to popular religious teaching on this passage, that insists that the thorn in Paul’s flesh was a physical ailment, and that God said no He wasn’t going to take it away but rather that He was going to help Paul endure it like a champion – it pretty much just the opposite. In the Old Testament, God referred to the nations that Israel was going to encounter in the Promised Land as thorns in their sides if they mingled with them and adopted their practices. They were not going to become physical ailments to the people of Israel. They were going to become problems. Why would a thorn in the flesh suddenly mean something different in the New Testament? That just isn’t how scripture flows, changing meanings and definitions from one place to the next. It is, however, how religious interpretation often is.

You can see I have a real issue with religion. I do, because it has a real tendency to mar the message of the Bible, and to put people in restrictive ceremonious rituals that are empty of life and power.

Well, as I said, this has become a real source of power for me. I have my own thorns to deal with. God isn’t just going to remove all the problem people in my life. I really don’t see that as being practical anyway. No, rather God is going to – has – given me this same grace, this charisma, this influence of Himself on and through me, to deal with thorns in my life. This grace is completely sufficient for me making me possessed of unfailing strength!

It’s not very religious, but it certainly gets results!

wait and see

‘you might have to wait for that’ … ‘you may not get every thing you want’ …

the other night I sat down to write out the things I had recently asked God for. things I have been standing on the Word waiting for, which seemed endlessly not to come. I had begun to ponder why things had been at such a long standstill, when I heard the Lord say ‘ye have not because ye ask not …’. It became suddenly clear to me that I had largely been assuming to receive things, like a badly needed job, when I had not actually asked for one. I don’t really know why it is. maybe it’s because one’s faith grows even more when one asks God for something, and when it comes it results in obvious glory to Him. maybe He just likes to be asked. either way, I asked. I asked for a job, with a certain schedule and pay, and I asked for a house with four bedrooms and two baths, on five acres, with a barn for the goats. then I sat down to write out my requests, more for my own benefit, so that I will remember what I asked for and when. immediately the thoughts ran through my mind that I may have to wait for a while for these, and that I may not get everything I want. they brought with them a feeling of impending disappointment and struggle.

I pondered these thoughts for a moment. they were very familiar. but I asked ‘why would I have to wait? why is it I might not get what I ask? where do these thoughts come from?’ again, it became suddenly clear to me.

over the last too many years I have heard these very statements come from well meaning Christians, who want to shield me from disappointment, and govern me away from asking for those things I desire lest I ask for selfish reasons. but even beyond that, most seem to view the requests in the light of what I am able to get with my own efforts and resources. while it’s quite true that I might have to wait to acquire the job I want or the house I want, and I might not be able to get them on my own, it stands that I am not on my own. nor am I setting out to get these things in God’s name. I have asked One who is able, and willing, to get these things for me, according to His own word.

so, I put these thought to rest. put them in the ground, really. chased them out like flies in my house. its not that I am unwilling to wait. I have been waiting for several months now for the job. and like Lazarus, whom Jesus waited four days, until past the time that the Jews believed the soul hung around before departing for good, and then called him out of the tomb, so shall I come up out of this tomb of need and debt. and it will be plainly clear that it was the Blessing of the Lord that did it. but I will not have to wait until some undetermined time that no one knows, and I will not be disappointed with something less than I have asked. my God is able to do far about all I can think or ask.

wait and see. He will do it!

google Tags: faith,God,the blessing of the Lord,blessing,the blessing of Abraham,Word of God

new beginnings

from http://1silvery.wordpress.com/ january 1, 2012

how can I describe what happened to me last night? it was like light bursting forth in my spirit. it was like ocean waves cresting over me. the love God has for me came over me in a way I haven’t experienced in a long time.

I once did a word search on joy in the bible. I found Zephaniah 3:17 in that search. it says God will joy over me with singing. the word ‘joy” used there is ‘giyl’, and it means to dance, to tremble, to leap for joy, to rejoice even to exultation. it dawned on me that God felt this way about me. no wonder I was overcome!

a couple of other verses came to mind, which I read, and saw what they were really saying.

Malachi 3:10 says bring all the tithes to the storehouse, and “’prove Me now herewith, if I will not open to you the windows of heaven …’ and I saw how eager God is to bless me.

Mark 11:22 Jesus said ‘have faith in God’. this one struck me because I saw that it wasn’t like you hear most people quote it. you hear the inflection on ‘God’, and the implication is to have faith. most people, christian or not, are glad to see that someone has faith to carry them through trials. but faith alone is not enough. if I have faith in something I can’t see, and I lean my weight on it, it doesn’t matter how much I believe in it, if it isn’t real it won’t support me. planes, for example, can fly because along with thrust they have real air to rest their weight on, to achieve lift. if the air wasn’t there, gravity would never let them get off the ground. but Jesus put the inflection on ‘faith’, implying that God can truly be counted on to be there and to perform His oath as promised. it’s like when you say ‘have faith in me’ to someone you want to encourage. you put the inflection on the word ‘faith’. or when you exclaim that you have no faith in a leader, you do the same. it expresses the faithfulness of the person in question. Jesus said ‘have faith in God. He loves you. He keeps His word’.

I went to bed laughing, and somewhat giddy, like the first time I ever thought I was in love. everything I am facing right now seems so ineffective. I woke up laughing.

I don’t have to try anymore. trust is no longer an effort.

I crossed over.

Technorati Tags: blood oath,blood covenant,abraham,blessing

long hard times

it started with my vacation. the first three days were fun. the weather was nice, there wasn’t anything to do really, except what we wanted to do. we went on several long drives, things were green, and calm, and pleasant.

the 18th of the month, wednesday, in the middle of my time off, was the second court date for the beau’s worker’s comp claim. once again, the attorney was unavailable, and there was a fill-in. she was less than stellar, to put it politely. she was more concerned with impressing the judge she thought we had drawn, who apparently was a stodgy old guy in his seventies with no experience as an attorney and was not too familiar with workers comp court. great. but it seems we actually had a better judge than that. still, our fill-in was put out with us both for being upset that it mattered more what kind of mood the judge was in than what she was going to present in his case. when we got into court, she made no abjections, asked minimal questions of the beau, and mostly sat there with a glassy eyed look. the opposing lawyer was more into it than she by far. we were before the judge because we could hardly believe the paltry offer on the table for a life altering injury. evidently our attorney had left out a major part of the claim, that being the subsequent injury to his elbow, that he continually told their office about and that the treating physician refused to address.

this case is not over, so I wont yet go into more details than that. there will be more to come. but we were much disheartened by the way this attorney handled – or rather didn’t handle – his injury. many times the beau tried to tell him that his elbow was a factor, but at the end all he would say was he knew nothing about it and didn’t see anything in any of the reports about it.

absolutely unacceptable.

we recovered some of our joy, and were determined to enjoy the rest of my time off.

God has been providing means for us, and we have managed to keep our utilities on, with only a couple of disruptions in service. since the beau hasn’t been able to get work, it has been a daily walk of faith, but God is always good for His word.

still, people are not. after having paid the ebay account because it had been suspended, the beau relisted everything. several auctions were near ending, and we had several bids. this is more income, so very important right now. right before they ended, ebay suspended the account again and ended all the auctions, preventing last minute bidders from bidding. their reason was that a payment had been returned the previous month. they had tried to get the payment that we had just made from my account, which by the way had posted, from an old account that had been closed three weeks ago. he called them to find out how they could do this, only to spend nearly 4 hours and several conversations with people in an eastern call center who speak terrible english and will not listen to the caller but insist on reading from their prompts. he was in a furious state of mind by the time I got off work. during this time the water had been shut off. we have good neighbors, so I got to shower for work, but still … and God provided, so we got the water back on the next day. but it was a very hard few days to endure. the beau was unable to sleep, and his hand and his arm have been in so much pain.

then our internet was turned off, even though again we had made the payment. the service had been disrupted, we paid and got it right back on, and two days later – during all this other mess – because those at AT&T did not rescind the shut off order once the payment was made like they are supposed to, our internet was gone. once more while I was at work, the beau spent more time than is right trying to get more middle eastern call center workers to turn our internet back on, only to be given the run around and hung up on repeatedly. you think im kidding? I tried too, when I got home, and got the same treatment.

the next day the beau tried again, and got an actual caring supervisor who first listened to what he had to say, and then acted on our – the customer – behalf. he had our internet back on in thirty minutes, and gave us a free month. and he said he was going to deal with the people we had spoken to previously, because all the calls were recorded.

see? there is a God. He has to deal with those kind of people too. most people don’t think about that.

so while it has been a truly taxing and trying last couple of weeks, I believe I see a light, and it isnt an oncoming train. it’s a crack in the roof of this dark tunnel we have been in for some time now. the Lord has made us some promises concerning getting out of oklahoma, and getting us past all this turbulence. He always makes good on those promises.

google Tags: God's promises,trials by fire

rain and renewal

friday was a holiday for me. I work for four catholic doctors, so we get good friday off. it was pretty windy during the day, and hot. we had some business in the utterly user unfriendly downtown tulsa, and probably could have used sails on our little versa and gone just as fast. faster. we stayed home most of the rest of the day. too windy to do anything.

later toward evening, just before sunset, I captured these shots of the brewing skies. it that time, it was just as still as space …

saturday was also rainy off and on. we had some silver coins we sold for a little extra cash – and got more than I thought we were going to get and they didn’t even buy all of them. the lady said a couple of them were worth more as coins than they were as silver, and we should sell them online. so off to get a few provisions, and home. this was an answer to prayer, as I had asked the Lord for some extra money for some things we needed. I am sure the beau did as well.

after dinner that night we had an engaging conversation about spiritual warfare, and who we are in Christ. one of my favorite passages is in james 1:23-24

²³For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:

²⁴For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.

and 2 corinthians 3:18

¹⁸But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

about the Word of God being like a mirror, one that reflects Jesus when we look into it.

I came away from that conversation different, changed. in the same way the rains lately have revived the green life from the earth, so the Word has revived my spirit and my heart, and that of my beau. again I am reminded of another place in scripture that I love – isaiah 55:10-11. the whole chapter is amazing.

¹⁰For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:

¹¹So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

so this easter is significant this year. things have changed. we have rounded a corner.

google Tags: easter,faith,Word of God,resurrection

warfare

what is spiritual warfare? that’s one of the first things the Lord taught me in my walk with Him. what it is, and how to do it. the lessons I learned then have held up every time, in the thirty years that have passed since.

first thing I learned was to put God’s Word first and last. the highest authority, and the final authority. that meant that no matter what my circumstances indicated, the Word of God overruled any conflicting conclusions.

this, then, is how the Word of God became the anchor for my soul. no matter what I see happening around me, or what is going on in my life, I can be stable and unmoved, like a little boat that’s anchored to a rock. God has made certain declarations about what He accomplished through Jesus’ death and resurrection, and promises about what He will do for those in covenant with Him which are guaranteed through that same death and resurrection. His Word never changes, so it is always certain, no matter how things may look. the only way to lose out on these promises is to give it away through unbelief.

so where is the warfare in that?

its in the pressures that assault the mind, and try to influence the emotions, to stir up fear and uncertainty that maybe this is too great, or maybe you did something to bring this on your own head, or maybe … and a whole bunch of religious conjecture. the pressure can be relentless. things will be said by others that will lead your attention to the circumstances, and will work toward discouraging you. things will seem to not happen to relieve the problems. you know how it can be.

the warfare, then, is to stand on the Word no matter what you see or hear to the contrary. you may have to speak the promises out loud to yourself over and over, if that’s what it takes to quiet your mind and turn it back to the Word that never changes. you may have to avoid discussing things with those with good intentions, but who want to explain why God is allowing you to go through this.

God doesn’t just step out of the way and let things happen. on the contrary, He has vanquished the enemy in three ways through the death and resurrection of Jesus. hebrews 3:14, 1 john 3:8, and colossians 2:15 is the proof. further more, He has put satan under our feet, giving us authority over him in Jesus’ name. He also gave us His own armor, His Word as a sword, and His faith as a shield. that doesn’t sound like someone who would then arbitrarily step aside and let us be attacked, or go though something. that sounds like Some One who armed us and equipped us to be able to overcome whatever gets thrown at us. that sounds like Some One who wants us to win.

so the deciding factor then is not God, but us.

Technorati Tags: warfare,spiritual warfare,standing on God's Word,overcoming

fishing for money

my coworker and I were talking about the lottery ticket yesterday. she had told her husband about it, and his response was one of surprise. I guess a lot of people have been taught that you don’t ask God for money. or if you do, there are only certain ways He’s going to answer you, and they wont be very satisfying answers.

not so. she reminded me of the time Jesus told peter to go to the sea, cast in a hook, and take up the first fish that comes up. He told him to open its mouth, and there he would find a coin worth enough to pay his taxes and Jesus’ taxes. (matthew 17:27)

sound crazy? is it any more crazy than being told to go buy a lottery ticket at night, from a certain convenience store, an hour before the drawing?

God isnt limited to religious belief. although, He is often limited by it. too many people base all their expectations on what they heard in sunday school, and never actually find out what God believes.

it grieves Him when we limit Him.

mark 11:22-24

²²And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God.

²³For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.

²⁴Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.

google Tags: Gods Word,promises,answered prayer