The crooked places shall be made straight And the rough places smooth; The glory of the LORD shall be revealed, And all flesh shall see it together... - Isa 40:4-5
I read the verse above and it became part of what God, my Father, has been working to get into me. Somehow things that seem incongruent are really more linear than I would have previously thought.
Any statement that starts out by saying, "The crooked place shall be made straight..." in my way of thinking, should be followed by a step-by-step instruction of just how either God will do it or how God expects me to straighten (and smooth) my journey through life. But that is not at all the progression of the thought here in Isaiah.
First off, unless we are 4-wheeling or bushwhacking, we all dislike bumpy roads. They are annoying. They are troublesome. They can cause damage. They rattle us. However, when I think about it I have to personally admit to you that, though I know they are the solution, I dislike even more road closures, detours...road work in general. Until the housing and real estate debacle I would tell you that I lived in a growing city and it seems like there has been ongoing road construction forever! One portion of the Phoenix metro or another is a mess, you need up-to-the-minute GPS to plan your trips because of delays, and sometimes you get caught off guard when traffic signs are placed in unusual places and the natural flow of traffic takes you off the main road onto rough and tumble surfaces.
Recently, a friend told me in their town where one of our main local roads was hit with a sink hole in the middle of the road. The road was closed for more than a year. They of course then had to take alternative routes that, I am sure, were inconvenient and annoying.
Sometimes God takes us through our own life re-construction project. Our lives get disrupted, we can no longer depend on the things we did before, and we don't have control over our circumstances or timetable. God is doing major construction. Our response to this often is to try and make personal adjustments. Some of those take the form of internal attempts to make conscious emotional adjustments. Often through what I call "hunkering down," we try and internally conjure up a new attitude about the trouble we've encountered because of what God is in fact doing or allowing into our life.
But, in the midst of the re-construction this verse does not tell you and I to go through an internal assessment. We are not given some 5 step process to change our attitude. I'm sorry Zig (Ziglar) but this is not to get an "attitude of gratitude" in the midst of the detours and struggles of the rough patches of our life.
No.
The glory of the Lord is revealed in that place. In the midst of this, God's glory is found. The only thing we should be doing is expecting to find it. Perhaps further, to search for it and expect it so shine forth either within us or in the midst of the problem. I get a sense that for many it is the first time they've ever seen the hand of the Lord in their life; His power, and presence...His GLORY! The solution in this incongruent little passage in and amongst all the other verses of the Bible is this, "You have a rough row to hoe? Look for God's glory in the midst of it!" I get a sense that when one of God's elect see it, it then become like a lightning rod; others begin to see it too. And to the degree that this process allows them to experience Him, it becomes a place in time and space for His love, mercy, light, wisdom and personal goodness to them to shine through!
The troubled patch, the rough spot is a process they would never choose to go through voluntarily, but it is an experience they value for the rest of their lives because the glory of the Lord was revealed in the process. God showed up. I suspect He is there before we know it. His job is to be there. Ours is to look for Him, expect Him.
Once we see His glory things begin to flow better. Just as the new roads allow you to drive on a smooth, more spacious area, so too God paves a way for you to move into an expanded place with Him.
Isaiah tells us: He will also send you rain for the seed you sow in the ground, and the food that comes from the land will be rich and plentiful. In that day your cattle will graze in broad meadows - Isa 30:23-24.
Be patient with God's re-construction project. You will like the finished project. You will really like you after it's all said and done.
I remain...
InHISgrip,
~J~
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Well...er...The Reason You See Is....
Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching. - Hebrews 10:23-25
Everyone I know realizes I am a major baseball fan. This is my season! I had two "stupid human tricks" as a child growing up. First, I could never ever make, model and year of every car from 1947 (I was born in 1952) until 1976 on the road. The other was I could remember the most minute details about ballplayers and the game itself. I loved it! I didn't see it as trivia because I loved it so much. To me it was cool and fun and I suppose it was also important. How good was I? Even my friends, who had teams that they loved more than I did and had heroes that were not my heroes knew less about their favorite players and teams than I did. I hated the Yankees but my Yankee loving fiends marveled that I knew more about Mantle, Maris, Ford, Berra, Richardson, Kubek and all the lesser known Yankees than they knew. You may be that kind of person or have friends and family like that. Well, I still am a bonifide member of this group of trivia containers.
Fans have other traits as well don't they? They have an indomitable sense of commitment, loyalty or determination - okay, okay, maybe "addiction" is a better word! Against incredible odds, sound logic, and even medical advice, sports fans will persevere to the dying end! Difficulties are viewed as a challenge ... never an excuse to stay away or miss a chance to support our teams!
I've often wondered what would happen if people were as intense and committed and determined about their love of Christ Jesus and the Body He died for as they are about sports or any other hobby. This topic was covered some years back in a Moody Monthly piece that illustrated twelve excuses a fella might use for "quitting sports." The analogy isn't hard to figure out.
1. Every time I went, they asked me for money.
2. The people with whom I had to sit didn't seem very friendly.
3. The seats were too hard and not comfortable.
4. The coach never came to call on me.
5. The referee made a decision with which I could not agree.
6. I was sitting with some hypocrites---they came only to see what others were wearing.
7. Some games went into overtime, and I was late getting home.
8. The organist played music that I had never heard before.
9. The games are scheduled when I want to do other things.
10. My parents took me to too many games when I was growing up. (Hmm...I'll have to ask my boys)
11. Since I read a book on sports, I feel that I know more than the coaches anyhow.
12. I don't want to take my kids, because I want them to choose for themselves what sport they like best.
I've come up with a few more:
13. The parking lot (steps, walkways, etc.) was awful . . . I had to walk 300 yards to the stadium entrance.
14. Nobody came up and introduced themselves to me; it was so impersonal!
15. The public address and lighting systems don't suit me.
16. It's always too hot (or cold) in the stadium.
17. It's so loud there!
Enough said. Think it over.
What would happen if we approached our responsibilities to the Body of Christ with the same enthusiasm we give to our hobbies, sports, and other extracurricular activities?
Everyone I know realizes I am a major baseball fan. This is my season! I had two "stupid human tricks" as a child growing up. First, I could never ever make, model and year of every car from 1947 (I was born in 1952) until 1976 on the road. The other was I could remember the most minute details about ballplayers and the game itself. I loved it! I didn't see it as trivia because I loved it so much. To me it was cool and fun and I suppose it was also important. How good was I? Even my friends, who had teams that they loved more than I did and had heroes that were not my heroes knew less about their favorite players and teams than I did. I hated the Yankees but my Yankee loving fiends marveled that I knew more about Mantle, Maris, Ford, Berra, Richardson, Kubek and all the lesser known Yankees than they knew. You may be that kind of person or have friends and family like that. Well, I still am a bonifide member of this group of trivia containers.
Fans have other traits as well don't they? They have an indomitable sense of commitment, loyalty or determination - okay, okay, maybe "addiction" is a better word! Against incredible odds, sound logic, and even medical advice, sports fans will persevere to the dying end! Difficulties are viewed as a challenge ... never an excuse to stay away or miss a chance to support our teams!
I've often wondered what would happen if people were as intense and committed and determined about their love of Christ Jesus and the Body He died for as they are about sports or any other hobby. This topic was covered some years back in a Moody Monthly piece that illustrated twelve excuses a fella might use for "quitting sports." The analogy isn't hard to figure out.
1. Every time I went, they asked me for money.
2. The people with whom I had to sit didn't seem very friendly.
3. The seats were too hard and not comfortable.
4. The coach never came to call on me.
5. The referee made a decision with which I could not agree.
6. I was sitting with some hypocrites---they came only to see what others were wearing.
7. Some games went into overtime, and I was late getting home.
8. The organist played music that I had never heard before.
9. The games are scheduled when I want to do other things.
10. My parents took me to too many games when I was growing up. (Hmm...I'll have to ask my boys)
11. Since I read a book on sports, I feel that I know more than the coaches anyhow.
12. I don't want to take my kids, because I want them to choose for themselves what sport they like best.
I've come up with a few more:
13. The parking lot (steps, walkways, etc.) was awful . . . I had to walk 300 yards to the stadium entrance.
14. Nobody came up and introduced themselves to me; it was so impersonal!
15. The public address and lighting systems don't suit me.
16. It's always too hot (or cold) in the stadium.
17. It's so loud there!
Enough said. Think it over.
What would happen if we approached our responsibilities to the Body of Christ with the same enthusiasm we give to our hobbies, sports, and other extracurricular activities?
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