Will the Real Jesus Please Stand Up?

This past week I did something scary. I mean, right up there with jump off a high tower scary: I spoke to a room full of elementary school students at Trinity Academy. Now public speaking isn't really scary to me. It's the giving a 15 minute talk to wiggly, distracted, silly, tiny-attention-span, playful, not-sure-if-they-can-understand-anything-you're-saying children thing. I mean, give me a room full of disinterested, talkative, looking-at-their phones teenagers, and I'll happily accept the challenge. 

I did have the privilege of speaking to both the lower school and upper school, and I think starting off by telling them how I've met Beyonce gave me a good 5 extra minutes of their attention. (Yes, I really have met her & yes, she really is that cool). 

The scripture I used was John 12:1-8 (when Jesus goes to Bethany and spends time with his friends Mary, Martha & Lazarus before the Passover, weeks before his crucifixion.) At first glance, I thought the passage's lesson was in the timing and extravagant love of Mary wiping Jesus' feet with the expensive perfume. Although that is exactly the devotion we should all strive for, the lesson that jumped out to me was that Jesus came back to his friends (because He is relational) and that they honored Him (because He had done something worth honoring in their lives).

 

In Young Life we love telling teenagers that you can have a relationship with Jesus, that His death made that possible. He had 12 best friends. He related to strangers one-on-one. He was constantly with people, not from the comfort of a throne room or even by appointment- but simply out and about where people worked and talked and played and shopped, in their homes and by their bedsides, near the church and near the roadside, where the poor and sick convalesced and where the rich congregated. Jesus was there. 

In John 12 we see Jesus being deeply relational- coming back to visit his friends, to enjoy a dinner with them, in His honor. We know that Jesus has been with them before and impacted Mary, Martha and Lazarus like no one else ever could- Jesus brought Lazarus back from the dead! And because of this impact, this remarkable encounter, because of this relationship, they wanted to honor Him. 

I wonder- if you don't know this Jesus, perhaps you are only looking for him on Sunday morning or when you are in need or maybe on religious holidays or to bless your meal. If a relational Jesus seems far from your idea of the real Jesus, perhaps it's because of simply that- there's no two-sided relationship. James 4:8 says, "Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you." That is a promise. Everyday, draw near to Him. Dive into His Word. Ask Him to guide you. Trust the Holy Spirit. Turn off the distractions that keep you from Him. Like every relationship, it takes an effort. But unlike any other relationship, this one is with our Creator, the Lover of our souls, the Author of life and the King of all kings.

And lastly, look at Lazarus, look at him sitting by Jesus, listening to Him, dining with Him, honoring Him. Why does He do this? Because Jesus saved him and brought Him back to life. Lazarus honored Jesus because he recognized what Jesus did in his life. 

As we recognize that Jesus saved us by taking our place on the cross and dying for us, we too will honor Him. As we remember the gift of His resurrection, we will long to thank Jesus with our time, our lives, our hearts... we will serve Him like Martha, listen to Him like Lazarus and worship Him like Mary. 

I pray that as we all recognize what Jesus has done for us, we will honor Him and grow in our relationships with Him. He does not wait to meet us at church or visit us on Easter. He's in every quiet moment and in every doubt so we can look to Him for knowledge and wisdom. He covers every sin and every ounce of hate so we can be reconciled to Him when we feel distant from God. He's at work and at home and at parties and at the store so that He can guide our decisions toward abundant life. This Jesus is the real Jesus- real to us in every step and near to us in every moment. Let's honor Him together everyday.

 

Lessons from Prepositions

Last week I went to Nicaragua with some of our college students to work with Vida Joven (Young Life) and to get to know some kindred friends and fellow Young Life leaders in Esteli as well as help them with a construction project they have in the works. And I learned a little something. You could say the old adage is true... I was in the right place at the right time.

You see I learned some things and grew in some ways while I was in Nicaragua that I just couldn't have if I had spent the week at home, in my comfort zone, in my ergonomic life that fits into my daily plan. It all seems to fit nicely- meals, job, car, home, friends, family, paycheck, Target. They are all right where I need them. I use them to meet "my needs" and sometimes I ask God what He thinks. I'm pretty comfortable right here.

But you know, that's the problem- Comfort. You realize that when you lie on something for too long, you get bed sores, and then something has to change.

While down in Nic, I had the time to get up early every day and spend time in the Word. I had the gift of my phone not having service and not having Wifi everywhere I went while the inconvenience of not knowing the language meant that I talked less and therefore listened more.

And I read a Psalm everyday. Psalm 63 was on Tuesday.

I've read Psalm 63 countless times. It's one of my comforting go-to's.

You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you;
I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you,
in a dry and parched land where there is no water.

I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory.  

Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. 

I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands.

I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise you.

On my bed I remember you; I think of you through the watches of the night.

Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings. 

I cling to you; your right hand upholds me.

This time, however, the phrase "in the sanctuary" jumped out of the page to me like never before. It stuck out, and I read it again... looking for a clue. Why did this jump out? Then I read some more and the phrases "on my bed" and "in the shadow of your wings" jumped out too.

Ok, give me a clue here Lord... hmmm I see prepositions. I know, things you can do to a cloud?

No, but close! The phrases indicate being in a place. So I looked back. What happened in these places?
     *God was seen
     *God was remembered
     *God was praised

And then an "aha" moment. I realized WHERE I am matters in terms of how I know God. Don't get me wrong. I'm not limiting God. I'm just paying attention to what scripture says.

If I want to see God, go to the "sanctuary"... the place of quiet, where there are no distractions, the place of holiness, stillness, calm, peace, respect, rest, retreat... where I can stand in awe of my Creator, because the storm of my life has cleared. When I see Him, I am humbled.

If I want to remember God, go to the place where I rest... stop working, controlling, manipulating, battling, fixing, trying, pushing, talking and simply remember that He is the One who holds all things together. He is the One who is the author, the potter, the master, and I am simply the letter, the clay, the instrument, the vessel. When I remember Him, I am set right.

If I want to praise God, go near to Him and ask for help... go to his Word, his attributes, his gifts, his path and no one else's. When I recognize that no one else will fix me or save me or fill me, that He is the One, I find myself "helped" and resting in the shadow of His wings. Clinging to Him. Soaring with Him, letting everyone know- He is my rescuer. He did it. Everyone can see. I'm not the wing or the bones or the muscles. I'm the passenger along for the ride. When I praise Him, I am set free.

My mom used to always say,  "nothing good happens after midnight" and she never wanted me to be anywhere else but safely home at that hour. (The older I get of course I realize she was right). But I think the bigger point she was making was- where you are matters and whom you're with matters.

Do we take the time to go to these places of sanctuary & rest, places where we can see that only God can help, places where we're reminded that the Good Shepherd protects us from the one who longs to steal, kill and destroy? Do we come near to Him and see Him fulfill the promise in James 4:8, "draw near to God and He will draw near to you."

In Nicaragua, I had that opportunity. I had that chance to see God. I went to the sanctuary. I asked God for help. I stopped the busyness of my life,  and I remembered God. I clung to Him, and I praised Him.

Most of us can't go to Nicaragua or Africa or even an actual sanctuary every day to "get away." So we must find those places where we can turn off the world, turn away from self and seek God in order to see Him. I fear if I don't, if you don't, our spiritual bed sores will keep us shifting in our own selfishness, distracted by pain and poison, busily patching them up with good deeds and good television shows.

So go...move, leave, change, seek... Learn from the prepositions in Psalm 63. Get out of the stale comfort of your life and go where you can see God, remember Him and praise Him. I can promise you, no matter where you are now, it's a better view from the shadow of His wings.