A Perspective on Personal Growth

 "If it doesn't challenge you, it doesn't change you."

                                                         Fred DeVito

A Thought For 2022

 "Success is sometimes the outcome of a whole string of failures."

                                                                       Vincent van Gogh

Here Comes the...Bridegroom!

 Christmas is coming!  ‘Tis the season for us to ponder with wonder the coming of Christ as God Incarnate in history and to consider with hope the promise of Christ’s return.  I would like to suggest that taking a bit of time to consider the return of Christ will enable us to make our celebration of the Incarnation more powerful and more deeply joyful.

 

The church is sometimes described as the bride of Christ (Revelation 19:7), and believers are now waiting for the Bridegroom.  This metaphor is worth careful consideration.  In today’s world, weddings are a big deal, requiring months if not years of preparation and care.  But that was similarly true in Bible times and in the centuries in between.  The truth is that marriage is a big deal.  God’s intent for marriage is lifetime intimacy that mirrors the unity and intimacy enjoyed within the Trinity.  And while our elaborate preparations reflect that, it is important to remember that it is the marriage relationship—not the ceremony—that is of ultimate importance.  In the counseling field, it is regularly bemoaned that young couples spend much more time preparing for their wedding than they do preparing for a lifetime of living together.

 

 

Then the kingdom of heaven will be comparable to ten virgins, who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.  ²“Five of them were foolish, and five were prudent.  ³“For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, ⁴but the prudent took oil in flasks along with their lamps.  ⁵“Now while the bridegroom was delaying, they all got drowsy and began to sleep. ⁶“But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’  ⁷“Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps.  ⁸“The foolish said to the prudent, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’  ⁹“But the prudent answered, ‘No, there will not be enough for us and you too; go instead to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.’  ¹⁰“And while they were going away to make the purchase, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding feast; and the door was shut.  ¹¹“Later the other virgins also came, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open up for us.’  ¹²“But he answered, ‘Truly I say to you, I do not know you.’  ¹³“Be on the alert then, for you do not know the day nor the hour.

 

 

This parable of Jesus, recorded in Matthew 25, reminds us that waiting for the bridegroom requires an active and engaged waiting.  And in the end, it is about a genuine relationship with Christ, one characterized by our knowing Him and His knowing us.  I would suggest that keeping our lamps lit is a metaphor for a continued pursuit of Christ, fueled by a desire to build that relationship.  Preparing for Christ is far more than looking good.  It is far more about building and deepening our relationship with Christ.  And while developing that relationship is serious business and more challenging than “dressing up” in Christian trappings, it also means that the messiness of our lives of faith is not the measure of who we are in Christ and need not distract us from pursuing Him.  

 

The celebration of Christmas is marked by special events, special decorations, gifts.  These symbols are reminders of deeper truths.  As we plan our events, dig out our decorations, and purchase our gifts, may we do so with our eyes, ears, and hearts fixed on our Lord so that this holiday may enable and empower us to keep our lamps lit.

 

The Exercise of Faith

 "Faith is not a leap into the dark, but into the light."

                                                    John Polkinghorne

The Sacrifice of Praise

 Thanksgiving.  Giving thanks.  So much has been preached, written, and taught about the importance of giving thanks and why embracing the Thanksgiving holiday is so good for us.  Offering praise and thanks to the Lord reinforces to us that God is God and we are not.  Research shows that cultivating a grateful heart is an important component in our experience of happiness. And when we express our thanks, we become an encouragement to others.  Giving thanks changes us, making us more fit for heaven.

 

But herein lies the catch.  Giving thanks can be difficult.  Really difficult.  A few weeks ago, our pastor at Windsor Chapel, preaching from I Thessalonians, commented that waiting on the Lord, waiting for Him to answer our prayers, is often challenging and frustrating.  We see in this epistle an ongoing tension: Paul longingly prays for the opportunity to return to Thessalonica, to be reassured and encouraged by their faith and fellowship while at the same time offering deep heartfelt praise and thanksgiving and exhorting the Thessalonians to do the same even as both sides wait to be reunited.

 

Paul makes note of struggle and suffering in his letter to the Thessalonians, both on his part and theirs.  These are hard times for these young believers living in a very secular world hostile to their faith.  And yet, giving thanks and praise is an unmistakable thread that runs through Paul’s heart and spirit, and his words.

 

We are often told to count our blessings.  While this can be good advice, it can also minimize the challenges of genuine thanksgiving and cultivating a heart of gratitude.  And, the exhortation to count our blessings can mislead us into thinking that the giving of thanks requires us to pretend that times aren’t tough when they are.  Rather, the giving of thanks requires us to think beyond our tough times and beyond ourselves and to refocus on our good God.  The determination to present a grateful heart before the Lord means that we claim by faith that the Lord will work good out of each and every one of our circumstances, to cling to the Truth that we are not yet able to see.

 

“And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”  Romans 5:3-5

 

 

Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name.

 

 

 

A Thought For Halloween

 "There's a day that's drawing near when this darkness breaks to light

And the shadows disappear and my faith shall be my eyes

Jesus has overcome and the grave is over-whelmed

The victory is won; He is risen from the dead

And I will rise when He calls my name; no more sorrow no more pain

I will rise on eagle's wings before my God, fall on my knees...."

                        Chris Tomlin, Jesse Reeves, Louie Giglio, Matt Maher

                                                     

Thought For The Day

 “Being honest may not get you a lot of friends, but it’ll always get you the right ones.”

 

                                                                                                            John Lennon