June 1 - Not rules, principles, guidelines, or good intentions

Scripture focus: The serpent was clever, more clever than any wild animal God had made. He spoke to the Woman: "Do I understand that God told you not to eat from any tree in the garden?" Genesis 3:1 (The Message)

Most people have heard the sordid tale of Adam and Eve, particularly in reference to their nasty fruit tasting incident. Who could have predicted that fruit could be so bad for us?

Actually, I don't think fruit is the problem.

This month, we're going to think about the root of the problem. We're going to study the first incident that I personally think gives each of us a clue about our own "sin problems" – i.e., our inability to stop bad behaving, even when we sincerely have good intentions.

For today, think and ponder and pray for insight about the serpent's question. What's he implying? What did Eve hear – both spoken and unspoken – that ultimately triggered an event so cataclysmic that she got Adam and herself booted from the Garden of Eden?

If fruit tasting wasn't the root of the problem, what was?

Recommended reading: Acts 14-16

Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 31 - Groan and grow

Scripture focus: The Holy Spirit and our spirit together bear witness that we are children of God. And if we are children we are heirs as well: heirs of God and coheirs with Christ, sharing his sufferings so as to share his glory. What we experience in this life can never be compared to the unrevealed splendor that is waiting for us. The whole creation, which was made unfulfilled by God, is waiting with eager longing, hoping to be freed. From the beginning till now all creation has been groaning in one great act of giving birth; and we too, who possess the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait to be set free. Romans 8:16-22

I don't know all the ins and outs of how to acquire a transformed life.

But God does.

For this day, I am choosing to let that be enough information to order my day around.

Recommended reading: Acts 11 - 13

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 30 - More on loving longing

Scripture focus: My heart is breaking with the longing that it has for Your ordinances and judgments at all times. Psalm 119:20 (Amplified Bible)

"To claim our rightful place in destiny, we must not only accept and claim the sweetly painful incompleteness within ourselves, but also affirm it with all our hearts. Somehow we must come to fall in love with it." Addiction and Grace, p. 180.

Two thoughts:

1. If we can accept yearning and longing as a state of being that is neither pathological, abnormal or fatal then we can stop wasting time trying to make pain relief our highest value.
   
   
2. If we can accept yearning and longing as a state of being in not only ourselves but others, we can free ourselves from codependency. We can accept the truth that we can never take care of all that another lacks.

Once we accept longing as a way of life, we can free ourselves to pursue loftier life goals than simply feeling good.

Recommended reading: Acts 8 - 10

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 29 - Starved and hungry, ravenous but not anorexic

Scripture focus: My soul is starved and hungry, ravenous!— insatiable for your nourishing commands. Psalm 119:20 (The Message)

If you've ever had an eating disorder or known someone who has suffered with anorexia, you may have heard about the spiritual euphoria that accompanies prolonged seasons of fasting. It's true – there comes a point when the hunger disappears and is replaced with a profound sense of well-being, even arrogance. It's an awareness, albeit a foolish insane one, that you can rise above the petty desires that ensnare mere mortals – the need for nourishment. It sounds crazy and it is crazy, but there you have it – a strong neurological motivator for self-starving.

It seems that we are created for a state of deprivation, hunger, thirsting and restlessness. Saint Augustine believed that our hearts will never fully rest, in fact were not created to experience complete and utter rest, until they rest in God.

Reasonable people know that it is neither healthy nor wise to starve. In a way, coming to a place where one can believe that they are past hunger and no longer need to feed the belly is a form of not only insanity but idolatry.

"Our fundamental dis-ease, then, is at once a precise neurological phenomenon and a most precious gift from God. It is not a sign of something wrong, but of something more profoundly right than we could ever dream of. It is no problem to be solved, no pathology to be treated, no disease to be cured. It is our true treasure, the most precious thing we have. It is God's song of love in our soul. Moreover, it is not simply a song sung to us from a faraway God in heaven; it is simultaneously the expression of Christ-with-and-Spirit-in us, sharing our suffering and restlessness, creating and empowering and living in and through the very cells that make us up, preserving our freedom with endless intimate love in everything we do and are. And, always, leaving us unsatisfied, calling." Addiction and Grace, p. 180.

Whew! That's a lot to think about.

To be continued…

Recommended reading: Acts 4 - 7

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 28 - Love our longing, II

Scripture focus: Lord, my longings are sitting in plain sight, my groans an old story to you. Psalm 38:9 (The Message)

I love to learn. This year I set out to learn how to improve my health by making one small change per month for an entire year. When I gave up artificial sweeteners I thought I was going to need a trip to detox. The research is mixed, but there are enough warning signs about mass consumption of these products that I decided to give them up. I'm telling you, my withdrawal reminded me of what my friends said it was like when they gave up crack. Of course, I am exaggerating to make a point. But suffice it to say it was hard to deprive myself of the pink, blue and even yellow packets that promise loads of sweetness without any consequences to the waistline.

Dr. May says that learning how to accept deprivation as a natural, normal condition of life is important not only for the addicted, but for our society. He says we've been sold a bill of goods – by both direct and implied teachings - we've been taught to avoid discomfort. We're conditioned to believe that pain, yearning, and longing mean something is wrong.

Comfort is right; discomfort is wrong.

He claims that this kind of thinking is stifling the human spirit. He asks us to consider recovering the truth that we were never meant to be completely satisfied. "To live as a child of God is to live with love and hope and growth, but it is also to live with longing, with aching for a fullness of love that is never quite within our grasp. As attachments lighten and idols fall, we will enjoy increasing freedom. But at the same time our hearts will feel an even greater, purer, deeper ache. Authentic spiritual wholeness, by its very nature, is open-ended. It is always in the process of becoming, always incomplete. Thus we ourselves must also be always incomplete." Addiction and Grace, pp. 179-180.

Here's what I'm learning about deprivation. It's very hard to give up "that thing" when I'm craving it. When I give into the urge, I am momentarily satisfied. But in some ways I also feel diminished. As I ride the wave of discomfort and emerge out the other side (usually no longer than twenty minutes of longing), I am left with a more lasting, lingering sense of satisfaction.

I don't think making a lifestyle centered around deprivation is a good idea. That takes us down the pathway of anorexia. But Dr. May has a point. There is value in learning how to accept and expect deprivation. May we learn to love our longings.

Recommended reading: Acts 1 - 3

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 27 - Love our longing

Scripture focus: You, Lord, know every one of my deepest desires, and my noisy groans are no secret to you. Psalm 38:9 (Contemporary English Translation)

Once upon a time I dreamed of a grown up life. I pictured it filled with contentment – no more needs, wants, longings and desires. As an adult, I'd be the captain of my own ship sailing competently toward my destiny.

Then I grew up.

As I've grown, I've come to accept the fact that discomfort and feelings of distress, pain, deprivation, yearning and even longing are not necessarily "bad" or "wrong."

I still toy with the idea of a comfortable life. It sounds like a neat way to live.

According to Gerald May, a comfortable lifestyle may prove spiritually stifling. This challenges my preconceived (and childish) notion that the good life is a painless one.

More on Dr. May's perspective in tomorrow's devotional.

For today, spend some time thinking about learning how to love your longing.

Recommended reading: Psalm 47-50

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 26 - Help our friends tell us the truth

Scripture focus: Some friends don't help, but a true friend is closer than your own family. Proverbs 18:24 (Contemporary English Version)

Friendship is a wondrous privilege and responsibility. Lots of books have been written about how to be a good friend. I myself used to quote the famous proverb, "A man who has friends must himself be friendly" to my children all the time. Acquiring social graces and eliminating annoying habits that drive people away in droves encourages friendship. But deep, abiding connectedness happens when we become the kind of people who live in a way that our stories reflect the truth about our growing capacity to experience the love and grace of God.

Joining each other in shared suffering is one way to be a friend. Learning how to spur each other on as we grow into our true, God-created identity is precious. It will help our relationships develop and encourage our friends to courageously tell us the hard truths that we may need to hear if we show them that their efforts are not wasted.

Can we learn how to embrace teachable moments?

Are we willing to change our ways?

Will we inspire others to not only share in our suffering but join us in seeking a transformed life?

If you're feeling disconnected from others, you might want to observe how you handle constructive feedback. It's a bad day when people stop offering us feedback because they've concluded it's a waste of their time.

Recommended reading: Psalm 44-46

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 25 - Authentic community

Scripture focus: The wounds from a lover are worth it; kisses from an enemy do you in. Proverbs 27:6 (The Message)

I prefer my friends friendly.

I love words of affirmation, compliments and cards reminding me that someone thinks I'm worth the price of postage.

But what I love and what I truly need are sometimes two different things.

Last Friday night, Pete and I went out for a date night. We went to a nice restaurant, downright fancy by our standards (meaning it didn't have a drive through window and the servers weren't wearing uniforms).

While we nibbled our way through luscious appetizers, the couple next to us prepared for departure. When the woman stood, it was apparent that she had a wardrobe malfunction. I saw the gentleman glance down, appearing to notice the same issue that I had seen as she rose from her seat. Not one word was exchanged between them. I know this because I was watching carefully, and she didn't immediately rush to fix her very embarrassing gap in coverage.

This is a total guess, but I don't think this man was her husband or her lover. He certainly wasn't her friend. As she left the restaurant, her unplanned exposure was noticed by others. A group of very young adults snickered as she departed. I would have snatched them bald-headed if Pete hadn't interfered.

Authentic community provides the environment where true friends tell each other the truth, not just the good stuff. This pinpoint prick of pain in the moment of truth telling actually protects the individuals and the community from abuse and embarrassment. How much better for that lady if the gentleman has gently leaned over and whispered in her ear, "My dear, the hanging gardens are exposed." Instead, he allowed her to be shamed in front of strangers rather than suffer the discomfort of exchanging a needed word of correction among friends.

Strangers can't offer up these kinds of quiet words of correction. Only true friends can be friendly and tell the truth.

Be one of those kinds of friends.

Recommended reading: Psalm 44-46

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 24 - Avoiding romancing the concept of community

Scripture focus: Someone might be able to beat up one of you, but not both of you. As the saying goes, "A rope made from three strands of cord is hard to break." Ecclesiastes 4:12 (Contemporary English Version)

I have this lifelong friend who loves to go to church and come out feeling beat up. He says it spurs him to action. He's of the opinion that most preachers today have lost their way, gotten soft on sin and refuse to preach God's word.

My friend is pretty good at taking a beating. He's very competent. When stirred to action with a message calling for more suffering, sacrifice and surrender, he has the strength and stamina to follow through. This obedience brings him pleasure. Recently his pastor challenged him to ask twenty people if they knew Christ in one day, and my friend doubled the bet and asked forty. This church is growing by leaps and bounds and the congregants are delighted and feel God's pleasure as they grow.

But here's the thing that bothers me. My friend, who is very good at accepting challenges to perform, eats more than he should and exercises less than is safe. He's beyond chubby. His doctor says he's going to die soon if he doesn't start taking better care of himself. And this is kind of hush-hush, but his wife thinks he has anger management issues. But hear me on this – he is a performance machine, and he doesn't mind me saying so!

He's willing for me to share our decades-long story of messy community as an illustration of how the two of us disagree about the melody and meaning of life. I think he's singing just a touch off key; he thinks that as long as he's accomplishing great things I should stop with the confused looks when he recounts his faithfulness while belittling his wife in front of me. I don't know. Maybe I'm confused. But here's what I keep saying to him: what does it matter that you ask forty or four hundred people if they know the living Lord, if your wife cowers when you berate her in public (or private)?

Here's the point: living in community is a very crazy experience. In community we wrestle with how to maintain friendships without compromising our core values. This isn't easy. My friend and I live in imperfect and messy community. We disagree on issues that I believe are really serious. I probably am not mature enough to go to his church and he probably thinks mine is soft on sin. But we have maintained an uneasy friendship in spite of our fundamental disagreements. I am no longer able to eat out with him and his wife, because watching the way he treats her makes my heart sick. He refrains from reminding me that he believes that I'm in big trouble for being a woman who speaks in church. He and I agree on one thing – we're trying to figure out how to support each other even when we don't always like what the other person says or does. And it's hard. And we get it wrong a lot. But I don't happen to think getting it right is the point – loving others is more important in the kingdom of God than being right. (Which is why I think he should cherish his wife more and correct her less.)

Skill set #16: Learn how to disagree without disrespecting or demanding uniformity of thought.

Recommended reading: Psalm 41-43

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 23 - Spiritual partnerships

Scripture focus: By yourself you're unprotected. With a friend you can face the worst. Can you round up a third? A three-stranded rope isn't easily snapped. Ecclesiastes 4:12 (The Message)

I'm amazed at the difference a few friends can make during a tough time. Recently there was an earthquake in Italy. One lady was buried for days. She survived and was pulled from the wreckage in what most would call a miraculous rescue. While she waited, she knit. Yes, it's true. Although pinned in the rubble her hands were free, and she waited patiently for her rescuers.

I will probably never know more of her story than this snippet of information provided by the Associated Press in a lengthy article that primarily focused on the devastation this particular disaster has wrought. But I love the story.

If I may speculate, I can only assume that a woman trapped in rubble who has the presence of mind to occupy herself with knitting during her time of need is a woman who believes that someone is coming to find her.

Alone we are unprotected.

With friends we can face the worst.

Notice the question embedded in today's scripture focus – can you round up a third?

We have a responsibility to create the kind of community that relentlessly pursues any member who gets stuck in the rubble of a messy life.

We better get busy!

Recommended reading: Psalm 38-40

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 22 - Power in numbers

Scripture focus: Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken. Ecclesiastes 4:12 (NIV)

"You know what I need," he stated firmly and waited my reply.
"I don't have a clue, enlighten me," I respond.
"I need community." He says it fiercely. He dares me to disagree. But as I stare intently into his angry face, I am struck with an incongruous thought. He is telling me one thing but looks like he means something else. Why do I get the feeling that he'd rather make others responsible for what he needs than take responsibility for helping create?

Identifying our need for community isn't rocket science. Most people know that living in community is vital to wellness. If not, why would agoraphobics try to leave their self-imposed prisons? In an age where we can order on-line, talk on cell phones, get on conference calls and even set up video cameras in our home – who needs to leave home and venture out into the chaotic world of community?

But here's the thing – if we're going to build community, we've got to be willing to get our hands dirty. If we want a community that is there for us in our time of need, we've got to be willing to commit to that same community and be fully present for others in their time of need too.

A cord of three strands is not quickly broken. But first you have to gather the three. Communities don't just spring up like dandelions and wild onions. Authentic communities are more like daffodils, hyacinths, orchids and roses – they must be planted, nurtured, fertilized and pruned.

I don't know where you are in the process of building and sustaining a sense of community, but I pray you are stepping up to the plate and becoming the solution you so desperately seek.

Recommended reading: Psalm 35-37

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 21 - Safe places

Scripture focus: Jesus said, "Where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them." Matthew 18:20 (NRSV)

Our believing is conditioned at its source by our belonging.

Michael Polanyi

Experts who study these things tell us that bonding – forming early attachments - is crucial for healthy and happy personal relationships throughout life. Community is a place where we can learn what it means to belong. It's obvious in the world we live in that many of us have attachment issues. People who we should have been able to trust have behaved in an untrustworthy manner. Does this doom us to a life of unhealthy and unhappy personal relationships? Maybe. If we fail to unlearn and relearn how to work and play well with others, we may indeed experience a lifetime of relationship disappointments. But there's another way. We can find safe places and learn how to live in a healthily attached manner. Healthy, safe communities have some common strengths:

• Confidentiality –- in healthy communities, people learn how to keep a confidence (unless to do so puts others in harm's way). People don't gossip. People tell their own stories, not the stories of others.
• Identification, not advice-giving -– in healthy communities, people share their stories without feeling the need to instruct and advise. They unite as they identify with each other's struggles without feeling the compulsion to fix everyone else's pain.
• Responsibility valued, not blaming -– in healthy communities, people don't gather in little groups and ban together in bashing fests. They don't blame their hardships on Wall Street or Main Street. They don't waste time figuring out the problems of the world, instead, they keep it simple and support each other as each man and woman learns how to carry his and her own load.
• Grace, not judgment -– in healthy communities, messiness is expected. It is not denied, concealed or ignored. But most important and key to the whole process – neither is it judged. People in healthy communities are more concerned with learning how to make healthy judgments than judging others.
• A commitment to contribute and give back -– in healthy communities, there are no "identified patients." Perhaps Joe sponsors Jim through the road to recovery from addiction. Then in a few years, Jim may sponsor Joe along the road to financial recovery. In healthy communities, whether helper or helpee – it's all good. May we each do our part to build this kind of community!

Recommended reading: Psalm 32-34

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 20 - Community benefits

Scripture focus: Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed. Proverbs 15:22 (NIV)

It's not unusual for someone to come up to me after a celebration service and ask who squealed. I once had a television viewer call and complain that I told her story on the air – I have no clue who this woman is, what her story is, or even why she thought the story was hers. In truth, the story was mine. It was a very personal example but she heard it as her very personal example.

This kind of over-identification is not unusual. It stems from the misperception our stories are unique, and that we ourselves are terminally unique (and alone in our suffering). The writer of Ecclesiastes says it best: there's nothing new under the sun.

That's why living in community helps. We discover our not-aloneness.

After the sting and loss of our individuality in the arena of suffering dissipates, we can discover some healing properties of community and collective story sharing.

My personal favorite is the blessing of learning.

If we're not unique, and our problems are more universal than we realized, then perhaps others have found solutions that we haven't acquired. This is great news.

Another big benefit is the blessing of specialness. No longer is our identity limited to our unique brand of suffering. We don't have to gain an identity from our pain. Instead, we can discover what makes us truly special – our God-created identity.

That's huge.

I realize that some of us have gotten used to our identity as terminally flawed and wounded – but there's more to us than our "less than" ways. May you find your way back to God and your true identity!

Recommended reading: Psalm 32-34

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 19 - Find a buddy, II

Scripture focus: Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 (NIV)

We tell ourselves stories in order to live.

Joan Didion

The transformation process is a lot like taking an extended field trip into a foreign land – it's best to go with people who can at least speak the language. It helps to recruit some independent and unbiased buddies who will help us navigate the currents of change.

One of the elements that keep us stuck is secrecy. Our inner dialogue, hidden from view and not open to the scrutiny of a more objective listener, leads to our undoing. And when our dialogue is amiss, our daily lives will be a mess.

Community can kill the secret. It decreases our ability to keep fooling ourselves.

Our passage from death and dying to life and abundant living cannot be a private thing. I know people like to tell me that if they have God, God is all they need. But I believe that God's word reveals that part of "having God" means that we create and live within the context of a community of grace.

It's within these consecrated communities that we both tell and listen to stories. These communities unite in commitment to their desire for God. They admit the temptation and gravitational pull to fill the spaces in the heart reserved for God with other attachments.

This doesn't automatically make the community perfect. But it does allow for the community to collectively desire transformation. So on days when my lips can't manage to utter a prayer, someone else is praying on my behalf. When I am in conflict, someone else is at peace. When I can't love, someone else can and does. I'm not saying this is easy. But I am asking us to consider that it is probably easier than trying to live in isolation.

Recommended reading: Psalm 29-31

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 18 - Find a buddy

Scripture focus: Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 (NIV)

Ultimately, we don't heal, transform, or create ourselves. We posture ourselves in ways that allow God to heal, transform, and create us.

Sue Monk Kidd

Our youngest child is a high school senior, and I'm coming to grips with the reality that this is a year of "lasts" for me. I have chaperoned my last field trip. I have attended my last choral competition. I have cheered at my last lacrosse game. I will soon pack the last school lunch. I know, it's sad.

Whether school or church sponsored, field trips always remind me of Ecclesiastes 4. Inevitably, the kids are told to find a buddy and stick with them. This seems to be an age-old tradition of field trips. I assume it's as old as the bible. The assumption is that two are better than one, and if one falls down, his friend can help him up. Obviously the writer of Ecclesiastes did not hang out with the same crowd I do. My experience has been that some buddies get together, push each other down, and then pile on for a wild ride. I've learned the hard way that who we buddy with is crucial. Some buddies help keep us safe, others embrace and encourage walks on the wild side. Perhaps that's why (in the spirit of honest confession) I must admit that I am not sad about the end of my chaperoning career. What a nightmare! I once lost a kid in a museum in D.C. during a school trip. I have been the responsible adult on trips where our charges behaved very irresponsibly – despite my best efforts.

I chaperoned a ski trip where some of the girls let a fawn into their hotel room!

Trust me, I am willing to hang up my chaperoning cleats.

In spite of my experience with bad buddies, I still believe in the concept of the buddy system. More on why I believe that posturing ourselves in ways that allow God to heal, transform and create involves picking a buddy in tomorrow's devotional.

Recommended reading: Deuteronomy 33-35

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 17 - Keep it simple, II

Scripture focus: The LORD protects the simplehearted; when I was in great need, he saved me. Psalm 116:6 (NIV)

Discovery consists of seeing what everybody has seen and thinking what nobody has thought.

Albert Szent-Gyorgyi Nagyrapolt

When it comes to understanding the nature of self-destructive behaviors and unrecovered living, the insanity of our choices demands a complex answer. Who would disappear for three days and leave a baby unattended? Who would go hang out at a bar while three small children sat out in a car in the parking lot on a cold winter's night? What person in their right mind would steal from an employer to feed a habit – especially when the boss was a relative? Why would anyone choose to lose their "real" life because they won't leave their "fake" internet obsessions alone?

Anyone who has managed to untangle themselves from addictive behaviors and other repetitive bad choices knows this one simple truth – it all comes down to quitting, not engaging in the behavior, refusing to indulge the next temptation – one temptation at a time. No matter how alluring the quest to answer the "whys" of repetitive, loveless, cheap choices that kill, steal and destroy our lives, anyone who quits, one day quits.

"In addiction, as in all of life, we overcomplicate things in order to avoid facing their truth. The systems of our brains are intelligent, and they love to go crazy with their intellectual abilities. We can use our time thinking about the intricacies of our addictions instead of quitting them. We can fill all the potential spaces God gives us with thoughts. We can think about praying instead of praying. This does not mean we should stifle our intellects, but when we find our minds trying to pick their way through Gordian knots of thought, it would be wise to take a breath and see if we might just be avoiding some simple truth – the simple next thing we need to do, or the next temptation we should simply avoid. Ideally, the quality of simplicity will undergird and flow through all that we do. The simplicity of addiction is not to do the next addictive behavior. The simplicity of the spiritual life is living with love." Addiction and Grace by Gerald G. May, M.D., p. 178.

Keep it simple.

Do the next right thing.

Recommended reading: Deuteronomy 30-32

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 16 - Keep it simple

Scripture focus: The LORD protects the simplehearted; when I was in great need, he saved me. Psalm 116:6 (NIV)

The simplest explanation is always the most likely.

Agatha Christie

I love to hear people's stories. I particularly enjoy the storytelling as it unfolds in community. So it was with great delight that I found myself sitting around a large table with good friends sharing a fine meal and a good story.

The storyteller was weaving a tale of messy living. She was hypothesizing and theorizing about how her life choices had a certain pattern of dysfunction that she found painful. She wondered aloud with a tinge of envy how others managed to find their way to freedom, and she could not seem to get on that same path.

Finally, she turned to the guy sitting next to her and said, "How did you do it?"

Listen to the reply. "One day I stopped."

Now, this answer only works at this particular table because we are close friends. Everyone knows the twists and turns that this decision has taken over the years. The road has been long and bumpy. But the simple truth is this: one day, this person decided to get off the hamster wheel of his cyclical suffering and never return to it. The application of the decision gets more complicated. But the moment of clarity that led to a moment of decision that caused a cascading effect of making changes (both large and small) that transformed a life is simple in a paradoxical sort of way.

Skill set #15: Keep it simple.

Recommended reading: Deuteronomy 26-29

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 15 - Dignity and Desire

Scripture focus: Not one of these people, even though their lives of faith were exemplary, got their hands on what was promised. God had a better plan for us: that their faith and our faith would come together to make one completed whole, their lives of faith not complete apart from ours. Hebrews 11:39-40 (The Message)

[If] there were none who were discontented with what they have, the world would never reach for anything better.

Florence Nightingale

Who arrives? Seriously, who makes it to their idealized God-created self on planet earth and sustains the ideal? We have moments, right? I have had moments, supernatural and mysterious, beautiful and blessed, when in that golden moment, I knew that I was living in the present – fully the woman God created. And then it passes. Bummer!

Currently I'm reading a book called StrengthsFinders 2.0 – and it's marvelous. One of the strengths that some people possess is "achievement." These folks are never content. They're always striving for the next big win. They don't glory in the praise and satisfaction of achievement, they get their kicks from the battle to achieve. Contentment for these people is fleeting. Those blessed with this strength report that it is a double-edged sword; sometimes they wish they could relax. But most say that they'd rather achieve than be free from the passion that drives them.

As I read this description, I thought about all those who believe in God. It occurred to me that we all in some form or another are gifted with the need to achieve once we make a decision to trust God. As we grow up in our salvation, and hear about our promise and potential, believers not only enter into God's rest, they also commit to his purposes.

So we who believe struggle with a divine call – resting as we surrender to God and filled with a desire to walk with God. As we walk, we pursue his purposes. This desire has a necessary element of frustration. Our lives are no longer our own. We are bound to a community of believers, all joined in fulfilling God's better plan. No longer is our journey a solo flight – we are woven inextricably into the tapestry of all God's people, each solitary thread one of many, destined to one day reveal the glory of the Lord.

It will be essential to develop skill set #13 in order to embrace the ride.

Skill set #13: Develop a commitment to dignity (not pride). This requires taking a risk that we are loving and created in the image of God – no matter what happens that indicates otherwise. It is an open-ended allowance for the mystery of being made in the image of God, trusting God to bring that dream to fruition and commitment to cooperating with the process.

Recommended reading: Deuteronomy 23-25

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 14 - Brutal Honesty

Scripture focus: I could go on and on, but I've run out of time. There are so many more— Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, the prophets....Through acts of faith, they toppled kingdoms, made justice work, took the promises for themselves. They were protected from lions, fires, and sword thrusts, turned disadvantage to advantage, won battles, routed alien armies. Women received their loved ones back from the dead. There were those who, under torture, refused to give in and go free, preferring something better: resurrection. Others braved abuse and whips, and, yes, chains and dungeons. We have stories of those who were stoned, sawed in two, murdered in cold blood; stories of vagrants wandering the earth in animal skins, homeless, friendless, powerless—the world didn't deserve them!—making their way as best they could on the cruel edges of the world. Hebrews 11:32-38 (The Message)

You don't get to choose how you're going to die. Or when.
You can only decide how you're going to live. Now.

Joan Baez

When I was a child, we didn't go to church often. I loved summers at my grandparents' home, where I'd get to go to Sunday School, drink white grape juice and munch on stale saltine crackers, get my cheeks pinched by little ladies who wore big hats and white gloves, and best of all – listen to the bible stories. It came as quite a shock to find out that David, the slayer of Goliath, a man after God's own heart, and a great king, was also a murderer and adulterer. They didn't teach me this in my classes. The argument could be made that I missed the lesson where they talked about David's limitations. But I suspect that's not the case. It's been my experience that believers struggle with brutal honesty when it comes to the ways of God. We like all our stories to have happy endings as a way of confirming the rightness of our decision to trust in God. You know how it goes – I was lost, then found, now life is fine.

But how does that kind of storytelling benefit the believer whose story sounds more like a Rocky Horror movie? What about the faithful, who remain faithful AND experience abuse and whips and chains and dungeons? I know it is confusing! But part of growing up in our salvation involves learning how to accept the limitations of the human capacity to understand the ways of the Lord. It requires us to abandon the notion that we must rewrite God's history in order to make coming to believe a more attractive and palatable experience.

Skill set #12: Develop the ability to be brutally honest with ourselves, and gently truthful with others. This requires taking a risk. We make the decision to trust that God is good and loves unconditionally, even if there are people who are suffering. It's confusing, but denial isn't an option.

Recommended reading: Deuteronomy 20-22

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 13 - Unlikely heroism

Scripture focus: By an act of faith, Rahab, the Jericho harlot, welcomed the spies and escaped the destruction that came on those who refused to trust God. Hebrews 11:31 (The Message)

The past is not only that which happened but also that which could have happened but did not.

Tess Gallagher

Rahab is an unlikely heroine. She worked in the oldest profession but certainly not one that any mother would dream for her daughter.

Once we make a decision to believe God, we begin to grapple with what it means to trust him. We hear about who God is, what he cares about, and how he works. As we get to know him, we discover things that inspire confession. As we hear about God's character, and learn that we are to be imitators of him, we can say, "If God is...then I...." We wrestle with all the inconsistencies, lapses and just plain old wrongdoings that we find in ourselves that cause us to question our commitment to faith. This is the birthing process of discernment – living life prayerfully – bringing oneself to God as honestly and completely as possible, seeking God's guidance as openly as possible, and then, in faith, responding as fully as possible. A life lived this way, trying to bring all one's faculties into harmony with God's transforming grace, is consecration in practice. (p.163, Addiction and Grace by Gerald G. May, M.D.)
Surely you desire truth in the inner parts; you teach me wisdom in the inmost place. Psalm 51:6 (NIV)

Skill set #11: Learn how to discern.

Recommended reading: Deuteronomy 17-19

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 12 - Surrender or else

Scripture focus: By faith, the Israelites marched around the walls of Jericho for seven days, and the walls fell flat. Hebrews 11:30 (The Message)

Everyone who knows me understands that I have a fetish for school supplies. I like to buy them and use them. I love to organize notebooks and cover books with fancy wrappings to protect them. I'd consider going back to school solely for the school supplies. I have found some degree of satisfaction in buying and organizing my children's school supplies too.

Inevitably, a day arrived when each of my children said, "Mom, I can do it myself." This was not a happy day for me, but a necessary one for them. One of the skill sets we all must develop is the ability to take responsibility for our own lives.

However, there is one exception.

There are some things that only God can do. When the Israelites marched around the walls of Jericho for seven days, those walls didn't fall flat because of their excellent walking. Those walls came tumbling down because the tumbling of the walls was within the prevailing purposes of God, and God is in the business of doing things we can't even imagine in our wildest dreams.

Between us and our transformed life are a lot of barriers. Some we erected on our own by living independently of God. Others piled on some bricks to the wall when they did anything that hindered our ability to know God and love his people. Some walls are part of the enemy's desire to kill, steal and destroy us. And according to Randy Pausch (for more on the life and times of Randy Pausch go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Randy_Pausch), some walls are there to help us know how much we want to achieve our goals. I guess there are lots of reasons for the barricades that hold us back.

As we grow, we'll learn how to scale many of these walls. Our lessons will come to us in a variety of ways. I suppose that there are even walls that we can learn how to evade without anyone's help. Our gifts and talents, determination and resources will be enough to conquer some challenges without obvious divine intervention (although the argument could readily be made that it is God himself who provides the gifts, talents, determination, resources, etc.). Some walls, however, will only come falling down as we cooperate with God. These are the ones that leave us breathless and powerless and wreak havoc in our lives. They're the ones that create unmanageability, and are stubbornly resistant to our best efforts at renovation. In these instances, the next skill set will be essential.

Skill set #10: We must learn how to let go and let God. Surrendering to God, we choose to cooperate with him rather than demand the right to say, "I can do it myself." One of the things that we are responsible for is learning how to live a life surrendered to our heavenly Father.

Recommended reading: Deuteronomy 14-16

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 11 - Faith walk

Scripture focus: By an act of faith, Israel walked through the Red Sea on dry ground. The Egyptians tried it and drowned. Hebrews 11:29 (The Message)

Early in my own journey, I had no idea how to draw near to God, so I cheated. I studied how other people drew near and copied them. I realized after an extended period of imitation that the same things that made for a good friendship with a person pretty much applied to an intimate relationship with God. Honestly, if I hadn't been such a big cheater I don't think I would have ever gotten this point on my own. There is absolutely no replacement for simply doing it – walk with God. I love to read books about God – but that doesn't ensure that I have drawn near to him. I go to church every Sunday – there's no place I'd rather be – but going to church and walking with God are two different activities. It was in the course of walking with God that I became convinced that it was imperative that I show up for church every Sunday. As I walked with God my hunger to know about God grew and my commitment to study him increased. But there is absolutely no shortcut for walking with God. No one else can do it for me. Here's my theory. As usual, we humans often get stuff backwards. We confuse the by-product (worship, reading God's word, etc.) with the source of strength and inspiration (walking with God). As I've cheated my way into this walking with God stuff, I've acquired a few skill sets. I feel embarrassed mentioning them, lest you hear me saying I've got this spiritual journeying stuff nailed down. I don't. But I have learned some things along the way because someone once helped me find my way. I offer these suggestions with the same spirit that they were once given to me.

Skill set #6: Start out honest and stay there. God can handle our authenticity. Talk to God.

Skill set #7: Don't forget to listen. Honest sharing is good, but if all we ever do is share our "stuff," that's a monologue and will not win friends. Every good friendship is built on taking turns.

Skill set #8: Eat the book. Listen to scripture. My mentor once told me that the only handles God had to grab hold of in my heart were the words of scripture that were planted there. I am such a nitwit, so prone to denial, faulty thinking, deception and confusion, that I hunger and thirst for the checks and balances that come as I regularly partake of the book.

Skill set #9: I don't know how the journey will go for you, but for me, I have learned that drawing near to God requires that I let go of my own pre-conceived notions and expectations about what the abundant life entails.

May your walk be sweet.

We must be willing to get rid of the life we've planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us.

Joseph Campbell

Recommended reading: Deuteronomy 11-13

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 10 - The road less traveled

Scripture focus: By faith, Moses, when grown, refused the privileges of the Egyptian royal house. He chose a hard life with God's people rather than an opportunistic soft life of sin with the oppressors. He valued suffering in the Messiah's camp far greater than Egyptian wealth because he was looking ahead, anticipating the payoff. By an act of faith, he turned his heel on Egypt, indifferent to the king's blind rage. He had his eye on the One no eye can see, and kept right on going. By an act of faith, he kept the Passover Feast and sprinkled Passover blood on each house so that the destroyer of the firstborn wouldn't touch them. Hebrews 11:24-28 (The Message)

An adventure is a transgression you don't regret.

Kate Wheeler

I refuse to live in a state of recession or depression. I was promised the abundant life by the ultimate keeper of promises, and I fully expect to live one. In an age of economic downturn and bad news blaring across all forms of communication, this commitment to the abundant life is sometimes made through clenched teeth. It's an adventure.

When Moses chose a hard life with God's people rather than an opportunistic soft life of sin with the oppressors, I doubt that he expected things to go well. And he was right. It's exciting to read about the plagues and how the oppressed Hebrews were set free. But keep reading. It wasn't long before they were murmuring and complaining, wishing for the devil that they knew rather than the dread of the unknown.

Moses' own commitment to the adventure wavered on more than one occasion, just as mine falters as I seek the abundant life in a world that is determined to remind me of all that I allegedly lack.

The only way I know to remain hopeful is to keep my eye on the One no eye can see. I no longer listen to the radio, television, and news reports obsessively. I still listen. But I limit my exposure. I don't want to creep into the land of denial accidently, but honestly, how many times do we need to be told that it's the end world as we know?

As my eye maintains a steady gaze on the throne of grace, I discover lots and lots of opportunities to accept responsibility for my life without blaming others. I need to practice sound financial principles – spend less than I make, practice the fine art of contented living, learn to not place my hope in the material world, focus on helping someone less fortunate than myself, give back, offer a hand up, be kind, stay the course, do my part to create a community worth suffering for, and on and on and on. As I live an instructed life, it's very hard to find the time to embrace self-pity as a lifestyle.

Skill set #5: Stay committed to the possibility of hope, even when tempted to fall into despair. Refuse to do that which comes natural – isolation. Instead, seek community support. This community includes God and others.

Recommended reading: Deuteronomy 8-10

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 9 - Risky Responsibility, II

Scripture focus: Live creatively, friends. If someone falls into sin, forgivingly restore him, saving your critical comments for yourself. You might be needing forgiveness before the day's out. Stoop down and reach out to those who are oppressed. Share their burdens, and so complete Christ's law. If you think you are too good for that, you are badly deceived. Make a careful exploration of who you are and the work you have been given, and then sink yourself into that. Don't be impressed with yourself. Don't compare yourself with others. Each of you must take responsibility for doing the creative best you can with your own life. Be very sure now, you who have been trained to a self-sufficient maturity, that you enter into a generous common life with those who have trained you, sharing all the good things that you have and experience. Galatians 6:1-6 (The Message)

Blaming others is as natural as falling off a log. Anyone can find a reason to avoid personal responsibility – many times the reason is compelling. Once established, the habit of looking outside ourselves to discover the reason for our dis-ease, discomfort, and disappointment is automatic though dangerous. In an effort to avoid taking personal responsibility for a problem, we unwittingly remove ourselves from the opportunity to become part of the solution to whatever problem plagues us. After all, if it is someone else's fault, how in the world can we assist in creating change? Expecting others to take the fall means that we are giving up our right to get a vote in finding a solution. I think this is too high a price to pay for a few minutes of false comfort and finger pointing. Recovering our life will require us to learn the challenging but freeing skill set of accepting personal responsibility.

Skill set #4 amplified: Learn how to take personal responsibility in all areas of our life. We are responsible for what we do, how we feel, what we think, where we go, how we love, what we dream, when we repent, how we work, how we play...every single dimension of life.

When we choose to accept our part in the grand epic adventure of life, we are in essence accepting the risk of living in community. If our problems are always someone else's fault, or burden, we isolate. But if we man up and say, "this is my burden," we're entering into community with others. Only a person who believes in the possibility of a loving community will make this decision.

I can almost hear the reader sucking wind. Loving community? Well, if you only knew...we mutter to ourselves. I know there are plenty of reasons to doubt in the goodness of our fellow man. But skill set four is asking that you set the whining aside, and pick up your cross and follow Jesus. You make the decision to become a loving member of community and leave the rest to God. People who contribute to their community: respect self and others, identify and restrain from hurtful behaviors, listen to what others say, notice the effects of our behavior on them and are willing to try to change, take action, live out the core values of honesty and dignity, are willing to love and be loved, and rigorously apply the insights gained in the transformation journey.

Recommended reading: Deuteronomy 4 - 6

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 8 - How did they do it?

Scripture focus: By an act of faith, Moses' parents hid him away for three months after his birth. They saw the child's beauty, and they braved the king's decree. Hebrews 11:23 (The Message)

The prayer of the heart challenges us to hide absolutely nothing from God and to surrender ourselves unconditionally to his mercy. Thus the prayer of the heart is the prayer of truth.

Henri Nouwen

Once Joseph was but a distant memory in the mind of the new king of Egypt, the trouble started for the Israelites. After several failed attempts to oppress the Israelites, Pharaoh gives the order to throw every Hebrew boy into the Nile. One mother couldn't bear to throw away her boy and made the decision to defy the king's decree. Placing him in a waterproof basket, she lowers the child among the reeds along the river's bank. Moses' parents provide us with some helpful clues to sustain us during times of oppression.

1. They accepted the current situation with hope. They knew the king's decree, but refused to bow to the seeming inevitability of the circumstances.
2. They trusted God to deliver and planned accordingly.
3. They assumed responsibility for their part and trusted God with the outcome.
   

I love this story. It illustrates the delicate balance of trusting God and taking responsibility for our part. These parents obviously are relying on the grace of God, but it not a presumptuous grace. Instead, they accept responsibility for their own life and refuse to waste time playing the blame game. I'm sure many Hebrew families sat helplessly by as their sons were tossed into the Nile. Perhaps they assumed they were powerless victims under the dominion of a ruthless king. And they were right! In many ways they were powerless. But on the day that Moses was born, his family decided to acknowledge their powerlessness without accepting defeat. They took responsibility for their situation and as a result, many were ultimately saved.

Grace is the spoonful of sugar that makes the hard truths bearable. Grace allows for the fact that a bad situation might get worse, but God is with us and he is mighty to save. How that saving looks may not always turn out the way we wish. But regardless of the outcome, we must take responsibility for our part.

Skill set #4: Take responsibility for our own life and refuse to blame others.

Recommended reading: Deuteronomy 1 - 3

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 7 - Disturbing news

Scripture focus: By an act of faith, Joseph, while dying, prophesied the exodus of Israel, and made arrangements for his own burial. Hebrews 11:22 (The Message)

The past is never where you think you left it.

Katherine Anne Porter

It seems our ability to think creatively and assimilate information rapidly peaks at age twenty-seven. Evidently, according to the news, it's all downhill from the age of twenty-seven on. I guess that's why I was so startled to hear the actual researcher who conducted the study say that the news media had it all wrong. True enough, some functions of the human brain do appear to peak at twenty-seven. But there are a host of other functions that continue to grow and build upon themselves as we age.

One of the things that can't be rushed is the acquisition of wisdom and discernment. Joseph, while dying, may have acquired more insight about the past than he ever had when he was living it. This knowledge enabled him to see the future more clearly too.

As mysterious as this seems, I have come to believe that how we view our past may shape our future in ways we cannot fully grasp. That's why I find myself, way past my peak performance in some areas, only beginning to hit my stride in other very crucial areas of life. It's only as I look at my past through the eyes of faith that I begin to see how swiftly the future approaches. Small annoyances pale as I grow more experienced in looking at life through the lenses of God-vision goggles.

Life will bring many regrets and losses; but it also brings surprising gifts of joy with them. As we learn how to take out the garbage of our lives, may we hold tight to the gifts. Life is short. Figure out how to embrace it.

For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. Psalm 139:13-16 (NIV)

Skill set #3: Acquiring wisdom and discernment takes time and a willingness to look for the treasures where others see only trash.

Recommended reading: John 19-21

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 6 - Man on the run finds his bliss

Scripture focus: By an act of faith, Jacob on his deathbed blessed each of Joseph's sons in turn, blessing them with God's blessing, not his own—as he bowed worshipfully upon his staff. Hebrews 11:21 (The Message)

If ever there was a guy who learned his lessons the hard way, it was Jacob. As I read about his life, sometimes I cheer when it seems to me that crafty Jacob gets what he deserves. The master of tricky trickstering gets tricked by his own kids. The ravages of favoritism passed through the generations as Jacob favors Joseph.

Justice seems to be prevailing, until we get to the book of Hebrews.

It's here where we read that by an act of faith, Jacob was able to bless each of Joseph's sons, and in so doing, was himself blessed. This wasn't just any blessing, it was God's blessing. God gave Jacob the gift of blessing to pass on.

It took time for Jacob to find his bliss. Why would we think that it would be any different for us? In a world that's used to microwaves and fast food, God interrupts our rushing around and offers us the opportunity to drink from springs of living waters and eat food that truly satisfies.

But in order to experience this finding our way back to God life – we will have to slow down. We will have to deny ourselves access to drive-thru windows and instant messaging.

The abundant life takes time to cultivate.

May you allow yourself the gift of time, and may God provide the patience we need to do so.

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven…Ecclesiastes 3:1 (NIV)

Skill set #2: Slow down so that you don't miss the really important, often seemingly small stuff.

Recommended reading: John 16 - 18 click to read the Scripture

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 5 - Stretch and Reach

Scripture focus: By an act of faith, Isaac reached into the future as he blessed Jacob and Esau. Hebrews 11:20 (The Message)

If the only account we had of the blessing of Jacob and Esau is this testimony, we might not realize that the story was more of a soap opera than an awards show. Isaac, aware that his life was at an end, knew the time had come to pass on the blessing. As the oldest, Esau should have received the blessing. As Jacob's favorite child (a deplorable thing, playing favorites, but there it is – authentic, messy living right in the middle of an act of faith), Esau's blessing should have been a joyful moment for father and son. Instead, tricky Jacob disguises himself and fools his father. He steals Esau's blessing.

Shouldn't this be a story written about in People Magazine or US Weekly rather than told in the eleventh chapter of Hebrews – a virtual who's who of the heroes of the faith?

Discouragement, denial, doubt and darkness dog this family as they come to grips with this betrayal and the complicity of Isaac's wife (she too suffered from the sin of favoritism) in this nasty family story. "Time heals all wounds" is a pithy phrase, but for this family to heal, everyone had to leave the land of denial.

Part of learning how to live a transformed life will require us to stretch and reach beyond our human potential. We will have to grapple with messy stories without the panacea of platitudes. We'll have to learn to tell ourselves the truth about human limitations without allowing it to taint our perception of a living and very loving God.

Having faced the truth of our situation, we can learn how to start over, survive, stumble and search – all by an act of faith, not a herculean effort of self-will.

May you stretch and reach in ways that increase your joy.

Skill set #1: Stretch and reach to tell the truth in both small and large things.

Recommended reading: John 13 - 15

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 4 - Only God

Scripture focus: By faith, Abraham, at the time of testing, offered Isaac back to God. Acting in faith, he was as ready to return the promised son, his only son, as he had been to receive him—and this after he had already been told, "Your descendants shall come from Isaac." Abraham figured that if God wanted to, he could raise the dead. In a sense, that's what happened when he received Isaac back, alive from off the altar. Hebrews 11:17-19 (The Message)

"There are people who try to raise their souls like a man continually taking standing jumps in the hopes that, if he jumps higher every day, a time may come when he will no longer fall back but will go right up to the sky. Thus occupied he cannot look at the sky. We cannot take a single step toward heaven. It is not in our power to travel in a vertical direction. If however we look heavenward for a long time, God comes and takes us up. God raises us easily."

Simone Weil (excerpted from Soul Cravings, p. 125)

Abraham and Sarah each had to learn how to trust God. This is a far different thing that believing that we should trust him. One way we practice the spiritual discipline of trusting God is to remind our body (the part of us that craves, longs, needs) and our soul (the home of our emotions and personality) that God delights in us even when we feel anxious and afraid. God is still mighty to save even when we are feeling freaked out, insecure, neurotic and emotional. The state of our body and soul does not cause God's heart to get into a flutter. He is God. He can raise the dead. He breathes new life into dry, dead bones. When we know this and act on it – refusing to allow our body and soul to dictate to the Spirit that resides within us – God quiets our anxious hearts. (See Zephaniah 3:17)

Only God can raise us up. Our efforts are pitiful and ineffective compared to the ease with which he lifts us into his arms. Led by the Spirit, choosing to believe that God can do what he wants, and confident that he delights in us, we too can have a transformed life.

If you can learn from hard knocks, you can also learn from soft touches.

Carolyn Kenmore

Father, in our testing, may each of us feel your soft touch.

Recommended reading: John 10 - 12

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 3 - Joy delayed but not denied

Scripture focus: Each one of these people of faith died not yet having in hand what was promised, but still believing. How did they do it? They saw it way off in the distance, waved their greeting, and accepted the fact that they were transients in this world. People who live this way make it plain that they are looking for their true home. If they were homesick for the old country, they could have gone back any time they wanted. But they were after a far better country than that—heaven country. You can see why God is so proud of them, and has a City waiting for them. Hebrews 11:13-16 (The Message)

I was listening to Michael J. Fox give an interview about optimism. He said, "I find that happiness increases in direct proportion to our level of acceptance, and decreases proportionally as our level of expectation rises." He's earned the right to talk about optimism. Parkinson's disease is marching through Fox's brain but his body, soul and spirit have learned how to live the abundant life – not in spite of the disease, but because of it. Fox has had to grapple with the frailties of the human condition and has somehow risen to a level of life satisfaction that most of us only dream about. His life is a beautiful example of Sleigh's approach to fear – find the gifts that come hidden within times of hardship and suffering.

In the next couple of weeks, we're going to explore some skill sets that each of us needs to acquire and use on a daily basis if we're going to find our bliss in the transformed life.

The soul is here for its own joy.

rumi

Recommended reading: John 7 - 9

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community

May 2 - Joy

Scripture focus: By faith, barren Sarah was able to become pregnant, old woman as she was at the time, because she believed the One who made a promise would do what he said. That's how it happened that from one man's dead and shriveled loins there are now people numbering into the millions. Hebrews 11:11-12 (The Message)

Do you remember the story in the Old Testament when Sarah laughed at God? God's representative came to remind Abraham and Sarah that a child would be born to them in their old age. Sarah had some doubts. She giggled. The angel said, "Hey, why do you laugh?" She said, "I didn't." He said, "Did too!"

Eventually, Sarah was surprised by joy – the joy of an unexpected and improbable pregnancy. Imagine her delight as she realized that God keeps his promises – even to little old ladies.

After the joy settled in, do you suppose Sarah then received a visit from fear? It couldn't have been easy enduring the physical stress of pregnancy late in life. I can't even guess at how those around her responded to her bulging belly. When my girlfriends and I get together, we talk about hot flashes and arthritis. Baby beds, bottles and breastfeeding are only mentioned in the context of grandchildren. Who was able to truly walk with Sarah through this birthing adventure?

I hope that Sarah was able to hold onto her joy during this miraculous experience, but it wouldn't be a stretch to presume that fear dogged her steps. Julian Sleigh talks about fear in his book Crisis Points: Working Through Personal Problems. He suggests that things that make "us shrink in fear and revulsion" might best be greeted as bearers of gifts hidden under their wings. "If we challenge them and make them yield up their gifts," he says, "they will be satisfied and will fly away, leaving us to benefit from what they brought."

According to Sleigh, it is not only possible, but highly recommended that we look for the gift within our fear and benefit from it. Afterwards, we'll be surprised by the joy that emerges from this fearful expectation of trusting in a God who keeps his promises.

Be joyful because it is humanly possible.

Wendell Berry

Recommended reading: John 4- 6

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Copyright 2009 NorthStar Community