The Nature of Satan

Yesterday I wrote about worry.

Last night and today I have been besieged by things I could worry about.

It seems to me, that it is the nature of evil to overwhelm you with the very thing you've just been so excited about learning. For me, the worries are not even anything major. I have a chapel to present, too many papers left to grade, Spiritual Life Week to plan, and lessons to prepare for Pastor's Day (which is today).

I pray today Lord, that Your presence will be real to me throughout these things. More than success in every area, I want You to know that it is You I value. I value our relationship. I will continue to think about it.

So instead of succumbing to the temptation to worry, I want to proclaim all glory and honor and attention to You.

This is Where It Gets Big

Okay, enough philosophizing Lord. I love it, but now I'm starting to see the point. I don't want to keep living in "starting to see the point," or "beginning to see how it all plays out." I want to be in on the action, the bringing of the point to others, the preparing the way with hands in the dirt, feet in the soil. Because I believe that's where You've called us all to be.

But it always brings me back to the same point. If preparing the way beginnings (and it must) with deliverance, then who needs delivered? And from what? Do I wait or do I go? Will You bring the opportunities right into my path or must I walk out to where I think the opportunities might be?

So this is where it gets big, and where it gets difficult. My forty this time is to focus on Your will. My prayer then is that You bring into my life soon someone or some situation that I can be a part of bringing deliverance and community to. And by saying that I can be a part, I'd love to have whatever this opportunity is with the support of the Exodus Community.

I trust that You will show us how and where to live Your way. I trust that when we do You will bring salvation. And I must say, I can't wait for that.

Living Truth

Texts:
- Psalms 129-132
- Luke 11
- Matthew 12:22-50

"I AM the way, THE TRUTH, and the life."

"But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken."

First of all Lord, whoa! It's more than scary that I'm going to have to explain myself for all the simply careless things that I've said, let alone the purposely hurtful and the bitingly sarcastic speech that was blatantly sinful. I think again that this shows us how much You care about the details of life, the way we live life, as much as the whole. It's another paradox, one of the many that keep shoveling the mystery of You into my daily life, that You care about details but and the same time are as deeply concerned about the big picture.

I mean, we see this all over the Old Testament (meticulous rules and regulations for sacrifice and approaching God, then at the same time having the prophets say that You desire mercy, not sacrifice.) It's just interesting to see the same type of thought translated to the New Testament (that the two commandments to live are to love God and love others, but at the same time You are concerned with every word that leaves our lips, or fingertips.)

That's amazing in itself, but that's not the whole of what jumped out to me. A couple days ago I wrote about the way that we live. Part of the way that we live is the way that we speak, and how our life matches up with that speech. Well, I'm not always the best at this, but I'd say that Jesus recommends the way we speak and live is in truth.

There's not any shock in this Lord, the shock sets in when I realize how much I don't speak and live in the truth. I often speak and live in the half-truth. The statements that will affect other people the way I want them to be instead of the entire truth. For example, I had an interview today with a college professor for entrance into his college's Masters of Theological Studies program. He was very excited today about a class he'll be teaching next year, to all the non-biblical studies majors. He kept on talking about it as an evangelism opportunity.

I thought he was crazy. He's on an evangelical campus. 75% of the students are evangelical, and I'd guess darn near 98.6% have heard about You. But when he asked me if that was exciting, I said, "Yea, that sounds really great." Of course I didn't think that, but I said that because I wanted him to like me. Not a sin in and of itself. But, the real reason why I wanted him to like me was so he'd stamp approved on my application.

This is such a small example, it almost seems stupid. But as I sit back and think about not really feeling bad about it, well, that's scary. We've gotten to a point in society where slight untruth doesn't make us uncomfortable. Where slight lies are acceptable! Especially when we know that no one will be hurt and no one will even find out. It disgusts me to look over my life and see how often my words are dishonest. Or to put it in Your words, much of my speak is simply careless.

I guess part of finding my way is to start probing the edges of what You mean by truth. And what will it mean to live in truth? And what do You mean when You say You are the truth? That Your way is the truth which leads to the life? More than that...less? Remove untruth from my willful mind, empty my way of lies, and replace it with life.