STRONGER - PART 2 | THE SOURCE OF THE BATTLE

STRONGER | THE SOURCE OF THE STRUGGLE. PART2. For Part1please click here.

I came across a book early this year by Havilah Cunnington titled “Stronger than the Struggle”. I strongly recommend you read it. Much of what I am blogging here is from that book. The blogs in this series are reflections and a summary of what I got from this fantastic book that I recommend you to buy.

In the last Blog, we reflected upon the fact that everyone goes through struggles and that does not disqualify you from being used powerfully by God. He will use the very thing that has tried trip you up to be a trophy of His enduring Grace in your life. We fight from a place of victory because of the finished work of the Cross.

In our struggle, we need to be utterly convinced that God is for us, and His intentions toward us are always good. We need to surrender and yield to His sovereign will, timing and ways.

We also need to remind ourselves at the end of the day our struggle is not against flesh and blood (though satan uses flesh and blood) living people to cause strife. Our fight is against spiritual forces at work. Once we recognize this we will learn to engage the right enemy and not our spouse, child, friend, mother in law, work colleague etc.

 SO WHERE DOES THE ATTACK COME FROM?

I think the battle largely starts in the mind, our will, and our emotions i.e thoughts, decisions, feelings.

 1        I INTERNAL

THOUGHTS

Our battles can come from inside our own minds. We belong to Christ once we accept Him. However, our minds need renewing. We do not fight our old self or the flesh because that already died with Christ on the Cross. We are told that the old has gone (2 Cor 5:17) and the new has come. So don’t waste time beating up a corpse!

So where is the battle? Satan will take truth and make us question it and doubt it. Did God really say? Let’s look at Gen 3:1-3 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”

² The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, ³ but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’”

Point out the two untruths in these verses. God did not say “any” tree but only one tree.

Then Eve adds her own spice “you must not touch it” did God say that?

Did the devil forget what God said? Was he really asking Eve for clarity? NO!! He was engaging her mind. Have you heard this saying, “Curiosity killed the cat!” Curiosity, in this case, created confusion that indeed led to death. The devil will do everything you make you distrust God.

So it is important for you to know the Word of God and apply it appropriately.

Trust believes God’s intentions towards us are good. You need to partner with the truth and not the lies the enemy is feeding you.  What you partner with you empower. Partner with truth and empower the truth. Partner with a lie and you give it a place of influence in your life. Therefore, he will try to destabilize your mind – fill it with doubt and unbelief.

Remember God wanted to live and have close commune with his creation forever. Sin marred that plan. Sin and God could not co-exist. Good and evil could not be in heaven. Therefore, God’s salvation plan comes into play and he sends Jesus to redeem us.

We are now his children because of accepting this gift of salvation. I am a child of God.

However, the battle still rages. The war over Satan has been won. But he is like a chained dog still thrashing about harming whatever is within his reach.

We can have thought patterns that are sinful and do not reflect the heart of God. We need to retrain these our minds. The Bible calls it the renewing or transforming our minds. When we do this we will be able to discern God's will for our lives. Rom 12:1-2. We have been used to thinking and reacting in certain ways viz. getting angry, being impatient, rude, taking offence, being selfish etc. Now we have to replace those reflexes with new ones. When we do this, our behaviour will change. 

 THE WILL

When the resolve in our mind weakens, it affects the choices we make. We act on what our minds meditate upon. Therefore, it is very important what we think.

EMOTIONS

What we think about affects how we feel. When you indulge in negative thoughts, you feel down, and it shows in your actions, tone, face.

When you are praising God, having a thankful heart it changes your mood and how you feel.

As Christians, we have a new identity in Christ. We are children of God loved completely and have the same access to all God's goodness.

However, sometimes it feels like others get more than we do. Doesn’t it? That they are more favoured by God and we are left out. That is a lie. God has more than enough for all of us. You will not go without. This comes from a poverty mindset that thinks God is holding out on us and does not want to give us the best in our lives.

This is when we need to renew our minds and remind ourselves of God’s good intentions toward us. What we are thinking will change our behaviour and our feelings.

 

II EXTERNAL

Sometimes our battles are simply because we live in a fallen world. The Bible reminds us that it rains on the righteous and unrighteous. There is sickness, sin, sorrow, wickedness all because sin entered the world. Sometimes we are victims of other people’s poor choices. These have a domino effect on our lives. E.g.) A person driving a car breaks the signal and injures someone crossing the road. The choice to break the law on the part of the driver had a ripple effect on an innocent pedestrian.

God has given everyone a free will. True love requires that we have a choice. Eve made a bad choice, a selfish choice. She fed her curiosity and desire. The result has had a ripple effect on history. This continues for those who have not put their faith in Jesus. For those who have, Jesus death arrested that curse and cancelled it.

 III BELIEF SYSTEM

We can face the battle, the struggle if we have the right core values and belief system.

How we make choices and take decisions affects things and people around us. What do we think about God, ourselves, our life, people? All this affects the way we behave. What is shaping your core values? A lot of the times this needs to be recalibrated. The standard against which this is done is the eternal, unchanging truth that we find in the Bible. We need to realign our thinking to that standard or plumbline.

OUR RESPONSES

We all have defence mechanisms. These are knee-jerk ways in which we react to negative situations. They are Freeze, Flight or Fight

FREEZE – Here you feel powerless. This can happen because we feel overwhelmed, anxious, fearful, incompetent or confused. We can be like that deer with headlights in the face and just freeze rather than respond. We could even play dead like the possum and hope for the conflict or battle to blow over.

FLIGHT –  Like a rabbit, we can run away from what is uncomfortable or things that we do not understand. Some Christians are like this when dealing with spiritual warfare or any kind of unpleasantness. They do not know what to do with it and ignore it or we leave it to a few "experts". We need to remind ourselves that greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world. I John 4:4

FIGHT

Here we take on everything as a challenge. Like a lion, we will roar and fight back and not back down. In the spiritual realm, we can see demons everywhere, in everything and on everyone. We can overreact.

We can respond in fear and get defensive about everything or we can stay open-minded and learn what the situation has to offer. 

When we are defensive, we get into tunnel vision. We are unable to think clearly or see things from just one angle.  Our prejudices about that situation or a person colour everything we see and experience with that person which only further builds up the animosity or the distance. When we are like this our mind shuts out all other options and ways of thinking or approaching a problem. We need to ask the Holy Spirit to give us discernment to understand the nature of the problem and its source.

We need to stand in the authority that God gives us. Jesus promised that we will never be alone. He has given us Himself and the Holy Spirit. We do not fight on our own. Also, remember Jesus is ever interceding for us before the Father Heb 4:15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin.

 Do not over-analyze things. Just remind yourself that that power that raised Jesus from the dead is alive and at work in you. You are powerful.

In Eph 5 God has given us a whole battle suit. There is a lot there for our protection. We have one piece of weaponry that is for the offence. Everything else in the armour is for our defence save one i.e the Sword of the Spirit which the Word of God. We need to know how to use it in order to fight well.

Don’t give in to fear. Fight. As Kris Vallotton says “Fear is faith in the wrong kingdom”.

In the next blog, we will reflect on why is the battle important and how to know your enemy

Reflect upon which one of these three is your response? 

Once you recognize it you will be able to respond in a way that helps you face and fight the enemy and see victory.

 Understand where the battle is coming from - is it internal - Do our thought patterns need adjusting? Are our emotions a runaway train? 

Is the source of our battle external? Pray into that situation and remember your battle is not against flesh and blood even though it might look like it.

(To be Continued. PART 3)

Can't Do Without You | Reflections on John 15 | Part 2

This is the concluding part of the 2part Blog Post. For PART 1 please click here

PART 2

Verse 12-13  ¹² My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.¹³ Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 

Why is there this switch as it were, a shift in focus from our relationship with Jesus to our relationship with one another? He knew if He asked us to just love Him that would be easy. He asked us to love each other! He knew that was another story!!  The test of our love for Him is in our obedience to this command; to love each other.

Remember this is a few hours before his arrest. He knew what was ahead and that they were going to need each other in the new chapter in their faith. They could not be in competition with each other nor in constant comparison.

 He wanted them to know the importance of being connected to Him first. It is from that prime connection that they get their identity and not from each other or in relation to each other. Nor do they get it from what they do or don’t do.

 You can almost sense the urgency in Jesus’ voice as HE is trying to get this truth across to a very distracted lot of disciples.

Jesus knew that this would not produce the fruit He was looking for in their lives. 

Also I looked at the other Gospels. Here is what I found in Luke 22: 24-27

²⁴ A dispute also arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest. ²⁵ Jesus said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves Benefactors. ²⁶ But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves. ²⁷ For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves.”

Did this prompt the Master to wash the feet of His disciples as an object lesson so that they would never forget? He could see what had the potential to destroy the early church – pushing for power, position, and prominence. He had to get them to understand that that would get them nowhere. It would not produce the fruit He was looking for. 

To paraphrase chapters 13 to 16. “ Hey, guys stop all this fighting amongst your selves. Stop secretly thinking about how you can get forward and leave the others behind. It does not work that way. Jealousy and competition and grabbing won’t get you anywhere. You need it each other.

Trust me, it is going to get crazier than you think. The politicians and religious rules are going to come after you. Some of you will pay with your life. You need to watch each other’s backs. You will not be able to do the stuff I want you to do if you do not stay close to each other and me. It’s just like the grapevine and the branches. They are connected. If it is not, it will die and not bear any fruit.

I want you guys to succeed. I am giving you the Holy Spirit for that reason. I will be praying for you. Your unity is so important. More than you can ever imagine. Trust me, this will only work if you get it together.

 I love you deeply. Just like my dad loves me. I love each of you. See I do not treat you like servants. We are friends. All of us.Together. Do you get it? Together! Its not going to work any other way.  Not one of you is more important than the other. Get rid of that thinking. It will destroy you. When you do this, people will realize that you have been with me and this is something powerful.

So stop fighting like kids about who I love more or who will get the most important jobs todo. It just does not work like that. Get rid of that Roman thought. Think like me. I didn’t have any issues washing your feet because I am secure in who I am and my dad’s love for me. I know who I am. I do not get my identity from the stuff I do. Neither do you. Do you know who you are? You are my friends. You don’t  need to prove anything. Therefore, get rid of those hang-ups. You have a  whole world to tell all that I have taught you. In addition, none of you can do it on your own. So can you cut all this out and learn to work together? You have to learn to really love each other”

~ Jesus.

Intrinsically linked to our fruitfulness is our loving one another. Jesus deliberately intertwines the vine and branches. He knows of our tendencies towards self-glory and independence that He worked it in a way where we can’t do without each other.

Verse15 -17  ^“ I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.”

Jesus is dealing with Core issues here. He knows that we cannot do the above until we have understood this vital truth. That is, who we are – branches connected to the vine. We are to be ones connected to Jesus Himself, getting our identity from Him not in a slavish way. He calls us friends. He establishes my worth. But as if this is not enough. He establishes WHOSE we are. 

 He establishes my belonging and my connection. When this is settled, we are able to love one another to the point of death, to the point to preferring others, thinking of them more highly than ourselves, to the point where it does not matter who gets the credit or the attention. ( Phil 2:2-4).

For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. ⁴ For as in one body we have many members,^[e] and the members do not all have the same function, ⁵ so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Romans 12:3-5.

You see this as a recurring them even through the epistles. Paul is constantly asking the believers to live in love and unity.

When this happens, we will bear lasting fruit (verse16). We can have many kinds of fruit in our lives. Jesus is looking for one particular kind – the lasting kind.

I realize that nothing about the kingdom is temporary. Everything has a bearing in eternity; whether it is being a mum, wife, businessperson, employee, etc. etc. If I am a kingdom person, then everything I do is in the kingdom. It is all from my place of being in the vine, in Jesus. I do not straddle two disconnected worlds. My life in its entirety is in Jesus. It is in “For in him we live and move and have our being.” Acts 17:28

 What I get from this passage is that it all about my relationship with Jesus and the other branches – my fellow Christ followers. It’s not about keeping a set of rules and regulations. 

As I said earlier the Pharisees were very good at it. It was cold and calculated to the last dill and cumin.  Love was something they did not understand. They understood religious rituals and not a relationship, which was always in the heart of God; that we would desire Him deeply.  Hence, they misunderstood Jesus. They never understood his compassion that caused him to smash Sabbath rules to heal the cripple.

Religion can snuff out and replace relationship so subtly that we can fail to recognize this shift in our hearts. We need the Holy Spirit, to help keep us in check, and connected.

As I crossed the 50 mark, I have become more and more aware that I want the second half of my life to count even more. I want to make an impact, leave a legacy, and change the culture around me to reflect more of more of His Kingdom here on earth as it is in heaven.

All this is possible with lasting effect when I function from a place of knowing Jesus intimately and as in verse17 Jesus once again emphasizes “love each other”.

As I end my reflections I am more convinced than ever that being connected to the vine is not about “spiritual disciplines” ( and there is a place for that) but rather my relationship with Jesus and each other.

As Paul eloquently puts it If I have not love, I am nothing!!! (1Cor 13:2).  I do not want to be just hot air and a lot of noise with no substance. I want to love and serve and have fruit that will last.

The Offense of taking Offense

Walking on eggshells, tip toeing around someone, wearing kid gloves and scared to say something that can be misunderstood, measuring each word before you speak and each action before you do. How many of us have been in such situations with different people?  

How many of us have been this person? I was recently reminded of this and then someone spoke about the very same thing. It’s the offence of taking offence. I don’t know about you, but I have been on both sides of the fence.

I have been reflecting this in my own life and my life experiences. Here are some thoughts and observations.

What is it that causes us to take offence? What should I do when offense is given? Why do I take offense?

At the risk of sounding over simplistic I’m going to say it – PRIDE

The bible reminds me often, not to think too highly of myself. ( Romans 12:3) I ought to on the contrary  have a sober judgment or assessment of who I am and what kind of person I am in relation with others. I need to be humble and not expect everyone to treat me like the “Queen of Sheeba”.

What should my view of other be? Well the Bible tells me in no uncertain terms to “think of others better than yourself” ( Phil2:3) I should give others the benefit of the doubt rather than jumping to conclusions about their motives , thoughts and behavior. Love always hopes, always protects, and always trusts. ( 1Cor 13:7) This ought to be my posture with everyone.

One might argue that this could lead to false modesty. I don’t think the Bible is suggesting that in any way. I could be a better tennis player than my friend; however she could be good at something else so I can appreciate that in her.

What about this offense thing? It’s basically putting a very high standard and having a high expectation from everyone else’s behavior, speech. It’s expecting others to be perfect while letting yourself off the hook on the same issues.

The Bible talks about picking dust from one’s brother’s eye while we have a huge tree bark jutting out of our own. Another word for this is hypocrisy or a pharisaical spirit. When we behave like this we expect everyone to treat us with kid gloves.

What is the result of such behavior? Here are some of my observations :

• ·       Often these people are blind to their own faults while expecting everyone else to toe their line.
• ·       They are slow to forgive and harbor unforgiveness for a long time. They like licking wounds, imagined or real
• ·       They are not open to any feedback themselves , so when it  given offence is immediately taken at how one spoke, when one spoke, what tone of voice etc., etc. rather than the issue at hand.
• ·       They are fault finders with everyone.
• ·       When they take offence they often retreat or go cold on the friendship and are not interested in dialogue or reconciliation.
• ·       The end result is because of this negative behavior pattern, people begin to avoid them and they feel rejected
• ·       They are unable to discern who are their true friends, hence never form deep relationships because whenever there are true friendships there will be honest open talk which they cannot face.
• ·       They can be controlling people because they want things to always go their way and have everyone toe their line
• ·       Any criticism is taken as being against them personally and seeing as rejecting them personally
• ·       Often time expectations are not voiced but they expect you to know and read their minds and when you don’t, offence is taken.
• ·       In a church setting which is so much a part of my life I have seen this behavior pattern as very dangerous and detrimental to the unity and harmony in the church family. More so our prime enemy has a field day sowing thoughts of discord in our minds and before we know it we’ve got an issue with almost everyone or a lot of people and the poor souls are blissfully unaware of the offence they are supposed to have caused!! How silly is that?

What is the remedy?

• It is simple but not simplicistic. 
• It takes a battle of the mind not to fall into that terrible trap. 
• It takes courage to speak up and clear doubts. 
• It takes humility to hear what the other person has to say and receive it well. 
• It takes strength of character to have a sober judgment of oneself.
• It takes much grace and oodles of love and self sacrifice to appreciate others, to give them the benefit of the doubt, to let go petty issues. 
• It takes fortitude to forgive even when one has been offended.
•  It takes determination not to take offence even when it is given. WOW!!! How do I know this? Been there, done that.

But this looks like a list for a super heroes or something. Yes if tried in one’s own strength.

Thank God I don’t have to! The Bible tells me that Jesus was tempted in every way thereof is able to sympathize with my weakness.( Heb 4:5) When I am tempted to sin He does provide me with a way out- an escape route and will not allow me to be tempted more than I can handle.(1Cor 10:13)

I need to remind myself that I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength and that when I am feeling weak, His power is perfected in me and then I am strengthened.

I can win and lick this problem. I have a choice – to be offended or not. I also have a responsibility not to cause offense – that my speech is gentle and seasoned with salt, my behavior is loving and kind at all times and I will be quick to forgive and not harbor ill in my heart. My prayer is that I would be a channel of peace.

 Confession: I at times have not reacted in the best way when offended and have taken offense when there has been no need to. I too am learning not to react but initiate reconciliation and restoration and give the other party the benefit of the doubt. It’s not easy but when it’s done, it’s greatly rewarding. You win a friend back that you could have perhaps lost forever. Life is short. Let’s keep short accounts and be on the offensive about this offensive habit of taking offense!

Here is an old hymn I end my reflection with

Make me a channel of your peace.

Where there is hatred let me bring your love.

Where there is injury, your pardon, Lord

And where there's doubt, true faith in you.

Chorus:

Oh, Master grant that I may never seek

So much to be consoled as to console

To be understood as to understand

To be loved as to love with all my soul.

Make me a channel of your peace

Where there's despair in life, let me bring hope

Where there is darkness, only light

And where there's sadness, ever joy.

Make me a channel of your peace

It is in pardoning that we are pardoned

In giving to all men that we receive

And in dying that we're born to eternal life.

( Author: St Francis)

Navaz D Cruz

Sept 2013

Heretic or Hero Part 2

Part 2

Every era throws new light, new revelations, new inventions and discoveries. Some of them are so radical that they challenge the very paradigm upon which the previous era rested its ethos, philosophy and world view. For instance Galileo discovered that the world was not flat but indeed round. He stirred up a might commotion in the world of science. The Industrial revolution was path breaking from the Guild System and the Master Craftsman of the day. The pioneers of that time had to endure much hardship and ridicule. Some of them even had their lives threatened and some even died being denounced as tools of Satan or heretics.
The is the concluding part of this 2 part blog. In order to read part one please click here

All this brings me to the points I was pondering upon. It’s not different today. This generation is throwing up challenges that are pushing and provoking our cognitive boundaries on some basic issues. There are many crying “foul” and that this is modern day heresy and  different preachers are being denounced for what they supposedly preach.  I am learning one thing in life i.e do not be too quick to pass judgment or start throwing stones.

Before you  throw me to the stakes as well, let me say while every generation and era has pushed the boundaries, there has always been the danger of false doctrine infiltrating the church and we need to be ever watchful and safeguard the sanctity of scripture which is infallible and eternal. We need to be careful that when we look at doctrine we view it and understand it in the context of the whole canon of scripture and not in isolation. No doctrine can be based on one isolated verse. So I am not talking about false teachings which challenge the deity of Christ, the trinity, the finished work of the Cross etc. I am referring to our understanding of things like Grace, faith, miracles, the finished work of the cross etc.

I spent time reading and listening to the preaching of some well known modern day preachers. Up to this point I only had second hand information, and reviews on the web to go by. But I felt prompted to reach and study for myself before I decided if this guy is a heretic or hero of the faith. I was stunned!  I thought I knew everything about Grace having being in Newfrontiers for 40 years ( i.e even  before it came to be known as New frontiers) and whose father is Terry Virgo the great Apostle of Grace. No disrespect here, we owe a deep debt of gratitude for Terry's faithful  teaching on Grace,  but I was beginning to realize that what one generation receives the next on build upon and takes it further. And that is how it should be and always has been. 

This man Joseph Prince blows grace wide open: it’s refreshing, liberating and an empowering message. Nowhere does he advocate that grace is  a license to sin or even therefore treat the local church casually. There is so much that he is saying that could well be out of the leaves of Terry Virgo’s book “God’s Lavish Grace”.

Prince is not against working hard nor is he advocating a Christianity apart from the local church. Let me share a quote from his book “Destined to Reign” “All I have shared works most powerfully and effectively within the environment of the local church. These truths are for the greater good of the body of Christ and should never result in you becoming a law unto yourself. Beloved, I want to see you enjoying the safety of the covering of a local church where there is accountability and submission. This is where our blessings are tremendously multiplied” ( Destined to Reign- Joseph Prince, pg 306). Who can argue with this?

 You may say, but what about this and that. Does Prince have all revelation? Or for that matter do you or I? I think Prince is building on what the last generation began to open up and he has taken it further. His book is not supposed to be another manual of does and don'ts for every area of life. Our legalistic bent of of mind likes every "i" dotted and every "t" crossed.  "The law makes one self conscious. Its always asking 'what must I do? . But grace makes one Christ - conscious. It is always asking , "what has Jesus done?" (Destined to Reign- Joseph Prince, pg 33)

 Now there are always those who only hear what they want to and cherry pick in their practice and we look at them and question “is this what Joseph Prince is teaching?” .  I have been guilty of this. All I can say is those people have got the wrong end of the stick and are using the liberating doctrine of grace ( which has happened even with Terry Virgo's preaching) to rationalize their sin.There are some that accuse Prince of having a liberal view to sin.

 Allow me to quote "Licence to Sin?.. Let me begin by asking this: Have you noticed that people are already sinning without a 'license'? Allow me to make this explicitly clear in black and white so that there is not doubt I, Joseph Prince am vehemently , completely  aggressively and irrevocably AGAINST SIN!. Sin is evil. I do not condone sin. A life style of sin leads only to defeat and destruction.. Some think that it is by preaching more law. I am convicted that is is by preaching the grace of God."  (Destined to Reign- Joseph Prince, pg 30)

So who knows what the next 20 years will throw up? Unraveling the mysteries of an infinite God is never ending and God is restoring truths that got lost in the cobwebs of trying to live the Christian life by a ton of rules. We will never completely comprehend everything. No one individual has all revelation or knowledge. Even what we know is not perfect. While we have the privilege of attaining some revelation in one area of the Christian faith, we could be flawed in another. Therefore we need to walk humbly before God. 

So how do I respond?

Life is never black or white. Which of us is perfect in all things? I am learning more and more that one must not throw the baby and the bath water out. If we do this we will become very narrow and bigoted, lacking in charity, fragmented and very alone.

Augustine of Hippo said “In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity.” The great St. Paul put it so eloquently and showed us the most excellent way in  1 Cor 13 – the way of love. We can keep splitting hairs on doctrine and its application and like the Pharisees we will strain the gnat and choke on the camel! 

So these are some of the things I have been pondering upon. I am glad I read and am re reading "Destined to Reign". I could not fault what was written.It lifted my spirit, made me worship Jesus and want to know Him more. It has given me a fresh boost to know that I can live this Christian life with all its struggles , victoriously. I recommend you read it for yourself .

 I end my reflections here with these thoughts :This I know God is for me, He died for me, my debt is paid in full. I have a destiny in Him which involves the ends of the earth.  I want to love and serve him all the days of my life until my last breath. And by His extravagant grace I will do mighty exploits for Him and one day Grace will lead me home.

Now these 3 things remain – faith, hope and love, but the greatest of these is LOVE.

So while I aim to have a right understanding  of scripture and live according to it let us go our ways to love and serve the Lord – the author and perfecter of our faith to whom be praise forever and ever ! Amen.

Navaz D Cruz

July 2013

Looks can be....

Over the past few weeks I have found myself mulling over the lives of two people .There have also been several things that keep drawing my attention back to the lessons I have picked out from my reflections on these two lives. Both were famous in their own right, both were leaders and anointed by God. But one made it till the end and the other did not. Both had the same heritage of being part of a great nation; not just any nation, but the best, the chosen one, the beloved of God! Both had the same mighty man of God anoint them and be around if they needed him. What then set them both apart?

The other day, my son posted a picture that he liked, on my Facebook wall; knowing it’s the kind of stuff his mum would appreciate. That is the picture you see. Things like this convinced me through the week that these private reflections need to be penned.

 My daily Bible readings have been in the books of Samuel and Kings. You may have guessed by now that I am talking about King Saul and King David.

I felt the Lord draw my attention to their lives and nudge me in my spirit saying, “ I want a generation of people who will be like David, who was a man after my own heart. David longed and hungered for the presence of God. He said that the presence of God was better than any love, better than the choicest of wine. He yearned and fainted for the presence of God as a parched deer pants for water.”

Where did he develop this desire, where did he learn this? He came from an ordinary family, whose livelihood was probably rearing sheep. I think this is where he learned this. He learned this while he was tending the sheep where he was all alone, where no one was watching, where no one could come to his rescue when the wild animals came. It is here he developed a quite walk with God. He cultivated a trust and a relationship with God. He realized that in the day of trouble, God alone is his refuge and ever present help. He learned to inquire of the Lord and seek His face. Tending sheep must have been pretty boring and lonely business. But it’s here that he got to know the heart and character of God. It was in the “dailyness” of life, in the mundane and not in some fancy school for the Prophets, or in some dramatic public ministry. He did not just know about God but he got to KNOW God. This comes through so strongly in the Psalms.

This set him apart from his predecessor. Nowhere does scripture record that Saul had a private deep devotion to God. David even as a fugitive, while running away from an insecure leader that was baying for his life, realized that only God could save him. He inquired after God and was dependent on the counsel and strength that God gave him.

When he became King, he did the same. He always inquired after God’s heart. He did respect and seek the counsel of the prophets but he had his own walk with God as well.

When I look at Saul what strikes me, is that he did not know God. He knew about the God of Israel but he had no personal relationship with him. He had the heritage of being an Israelite, he had the anointing, he had the counsel of Samuel when he wanted it, and he had the Law of Moses to guide him. Yet, he did not know what pleased God and what did not. He was casual about his dealings with God. He used God as a lucky charm. He wanted God for blessings and success. And when he did not get it, he abandoned God rather than come to him in deep repentance which in contrast is exactly what David did when he sinned against God.

Not only did Saul abandon his faith in God, but he began to consult with witches and mediums. The result we all know is that his reign was cut short and he lived a tormented soul.

There is so much to learn here. These are my reflections:

There is no substitute for a deep walk with God- deep roots, deep foundations built on obedience to the Word of God over a sustained long period of time, especially when no one is watching.  I need to ensure this in my life at all times. Then as leaders we are to ensure the same in our people: make every effort to help them put their roots deep down- character takes time to build and there are no short cuts. Beware the ones that seem to be growing very fast – got a lot of flare, lots to show. The test is when the storms come; will they stand or be uprooted in a jiffy?

People tend to judge by outward appearances and scorn the little leaves that they see above the soil while praising the “little carrot with big bushy green leaves”. Don’t get flustered. Remember God looks at the heart while man looks on the outside. Our 18 years in Christian ministry has taught us this over and over again.

Beware So(a)ulish advice – When David had to face Goliath, Saul was totally flustered as to how this young boy would tackle a giant. The kind of faith and confidence that David displayed in God was totally foreign to Saul. He just could not figure it out. So in his feeble attempts to advice David he tried to dress him in his armor. This was foreign to David! He knew what God had taught him in the secret place where he fought the lion and the bear. He knew that at the end of the day it was God who would give him victory – not his slingshot, not his sword.

What have I learned from this? – many well meaning people will give you all sorts or counsel and advice. At the end of the day, if you have a walk with God and have learned to trust His still small voice, do not abandon that for anything. Even men of God will come and say things to you with all good intent but they could be wrong. ( Read 1Kings 13:1-26).  Am I against the counsel of godly men? Far be it that I should go down that path! Over the years we have received some of the most invaluable advice from our mentors and other mighty men and women of God. Many big and small decisions in our lives have been guided by prophetic words we have received. So I am all for good counsel and prophecy.

However there is no substitute for knowing God, knowing His Word and hearing his voice for yourself and have a peace in your heart and spirit that you have obeyed him. And I know time does tell in the end. There have been times we were given well meaning advice that did not bear witness with our spirits nor were they in line with the prophetic words over our lives and we have had to stand in our convictions and gently but firmly resist. If we had followed through with that counsel our lives would have possibly have been rocked beyond imagination. This makes me shudder and bow down before a holy awesome God- the God of Israel who neither slumbers nor sleeps, who has and will continue to watch over our lives.

I would be wise to be a door keep in the house of my God for the rest of my days than anywhere else – no matter how attractive it may seem.

If you have been drawn into this reflection with me then let us encourage ourselves that Jesus has not left us alone. He has given us the comforter, the Holy Spirit who will guide us into all truth. He dwells inside us and guides us in the path of righteousness for His name sake. Lets us be ones who KNOW our God and like His sheep we recognize HIS voice over all the noisy banter we may hear even on the Christian sound waves. Let us resolve to dig deep into His word, dig our roots deeper still and when needed seek out Godly counsel from safe, tried and tested men of God. At the end of the day – we stand alone before God to give an account of what we have done and not done. There will be no finger pointing, blame shifting on that day. I want to be able to say, I heard your voice and obeyed it Lord. And I want to hear Him say “Well done, good and faithful servant!” Lets get to KNOW HIM better.

One Christ the solid Rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand!

Navaz D Cruz