by Elizabeth | Aug 3, 2010 | Learning Story
I’ve been rereading Restoring Broken Things, one of the most helpful books I’ve found to describe the paradox of the gospel narrative. In the first chapter, Scotty Smith is describing a week of intensive marriage work he and Darlene did years ago in Arizona.
Every time I see a picture of the Grand Canyon now, or even hear it named, my knees get a little weak. I’ll always remember how God used the “brokenness” of that enormous chasm to help me connect with my own brokenness. And that’s exactly what that gigantic hole in the ground is—a broken portion of God’s magnificent creation… precious terra firma ravaged by years of erosion, sandblasting windstorms, and the ruthless power of the desert sun.
Every place and every thing Jesus created is broken. Nothing is today as it was meant to be in the beginning. The beauty of the Grand Canyon today is just an echo of the greater beauty the same piece of real estate manifest before sin and death entered Creation. Likewise, the holes in my heart and the multiple layers of decaying sediment in my marriage bore testimony to the ravaging effects of sin, death and life in a fallen world.
I was able to mask and micro-manage my brokenness for a long time… but ignored wounds, mismanaged emotions, idols of the heart, and squandered grace inevitably caught up with me. Marriage has more power than any other human relationship to reveal both our dignity and depravity… our beauty and our brokenness. There simply aren’t very many places to hide, at least for very long.
But Jesus doesn’t draw attention to the broken places in our lives to humiliate us, but rather to humble us and to heal us. He gives grace to the humble, not grades. As Darlene and I watched the sun transfigure layers of decaying sediment into kaleidoscopic beauty, I got a tiny glimpse of the beauty of brokenness—a glimpse that grew to a gaze the next week. Jesus shines the light of the gospel on us both to expose our brokenness (revealing the broken places in our lives) and to bring us to brokenness, (to honesty, humility and repentance).
I call this gospel brokenness, because only the gospel of God’s grace can enable us to be completely honest about our stuff without falling into toxic shame or self-contempt. And only the gospel can humble us, gentle us and give us the power to repent… and not run away or rant. When followers of Jesus walk openly in this kind of brokenness, gospel brokenness, angels in heaven rejoice… and people without faith, or those with much cynicism about Christians, are likely to reconsider the person and work of Jesus.
by Elizabeth | Aug 2, 2010 | Learning Story
“We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.” 2 Corinthians 5:20
I’m reading Paul David Tripp’s book Instruments in the Redeemer’s Hands…He has such encouraging words to us as those God uses to bring his story of glory to the world. About being Christ’s ambassadors, he says,
“The primary issue is, ‘How can I best represent the King in this place, with this particular person?’ This is not a part-time calling; it is a lifestyle. When an ambassador assumes his responsibilities, his life ceases to be is own. Everything he says or does has import because of the king he represents. Anything less is an affront to the king and a denial of the ambassadorial calling.
“What is God calling you to in marriage? To be an ambassador. What is God calling you to as a parent? To be an ambassador. What is God calling you to regarding friends and neighbors? To be an ambassador. What is God calling you to in work and leisure? To be an ambassador. We represent God’s purposes to the people he places in our lives. This is much broader than a commitment to formal ministry occupying a portion of our schedule. It acknowledges that our lives belong to the King.”
For Reflection:
Consider the day ahead of you. To which people will you represent God’s purposes? What will be the best way to do that?
by Elizabeth | Jul 31, 2010 | Learning Story
It’s time to get this Saturday started with some celebration of the Son of Righteousness…listen to this by Welcome Wagon and read the lyrics below.
But for you who fear my name,
the sun of righteousness will rise
with healing in his wings.
And you shall go forth again,
skip about like calves
coming from their stalls at last.
You shall be my very own
on the day that I
cause you to be my special home.
I shall spare you as a man,
as compassion on his son
who does the best he can.
But for you who fear my name,
the sun of righteousness will rise
with healing in his wings.
And you shall go forth again,
skip about like calves
coming from their stalls at last.
You shall be my very own
on the day that I
cause you to be my special home.
I shall spare you as a man,
as compassion on his son
who does the best he can.
(instrumental)
But for you who fear my name,
the sun of righteousness will rise
with healing in his wings.
And you shall go forth again,
skip about like calves
coming from their stalls at last.
[ But For You Who Fear My Name Lyrics on http://www.lyricsmania.com/ ]
by Elizabeth | Jul 30, 2010 | Learning Story
As promised, today, more of Psalm 145. The same challenge — to read it aloud, pray it to God. You might find that some of what the Psalmist prays doesn’t seem true of your life today. I encourage you to ask your honest questions of God about what He is up to in this world. As Eugene Peterson might put it, “Be real with God because He has been real with you.”
13 Your kingdom is a kingdom eternal;
you never get voted out of office.
God always does what he says,
and is gracious in everything he does.
14 God gives a hand to those down on their luck,
gives a fresh start to those ready to quit.
15 All eyes are on you, expectant;
you give them their meals on time.
16 Generous to a fault,
you lavish your favor on all creatures.
17 Everything God does is right—
the trademark on all his works is love.
18 God’s there, listening for all who pray,
for all who pray and mean it.
19 He does what’s best for those who fear him—
hears them call out, and saves them.
20 God sticks by all who love him,
but it’s all over for those who don’t.
21 My mouth is filled with God’s praise.
Let everything living bless him,
bless his holy name from now to eternity!
Psalm 145, The Message
by Elizabeth | Jul 29, 2010 | Learning Story
I love Psalm 145 and I landed here this morning. Two strong suggestions to try at least twice today:
1. Read the Psalm aloud. (I only included the first half. The second half comes tomorrow, so if you are down and out and not feeling the reasons for praise, hang in there…
2. Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you some of God’s marvelous doings in your life or the life of the cosmos that are “headline news.”
145 I lift you high in praise, my God, O my King!
and I’ll bless your name into eternity.
2 I’ll bless you every day,
and keep it up from now to eternity.
3 God is magnificent; he can never be praised enough.
There are no boundaries to his greatness.
4 Generation after generation stands in awe of your work;
each one tells stories of your mighty acts.
5 Your beauty and splendor have everyone talking;
I compose songs on your wonders.
6 Your marvelous doings are headline news;
I could write a book full of the details of your greatness.
7 The fame of your goodness spreads across the country;
your righteousness is on everyone’s lips.
8 God is all mercy and grace—
not quick to anger, is rich in love.
9 God is good to one and all;
everything he does is suffused with grace.
10–11 Creation and creatures applaud you, God;
your holy people bless you.
They talk about the glories of your rule,
they exclaim over your splendor,
12 Letting the world know of your power for good,
the lavish splendor of your kingdom.
by Elizabeth | Jul 28, 2010 | Learning Story
Okay, at least one more day this week, maybe more, as I’m really enjoying Kevin DeYoung’s commentary on it:
2. Q: “What must you know to live and die in the joy of this comfort?”
A: Three things: first, how great my sin and misery are; second, how I am set free from all my sins and misery; third, how I am to thank God for such deliverance.
DeYoung points out that some have criticized the Heidelberg catechism because it begins with man’s “comfort,” in contrast to the Westminster Catechism, which begins with the glory of God: “What is the chief end of man? To glorify God and enjoy him forever.” He comments, “…if we want to be picky, Westminster can be criticized for starting with what Christ has done for us, like the Heidelberg.” And then he goes on to say they BOTH begin in the right place, Heidelberg with grace and Westminster with glory.
Question 2 deals with how we receive comfort from knowing that we belong to Christ. Knowing that Christ has fully paid for all our debts and freed us from the tyranny of the devil is meaningless if we don’t know we need to be freed. DeYoung remarks that the rest of the Catechism follows a three-fold outline: sin, salvation, sanctification to serve:
“All three things are necessary. If we don’t know about our sin — which brings a true sense of guilt — we will be too confident in our abilities to do right and make the world a better place. We will ignore our most fundamental problem, which is not lack of education, or lack of opportunity, or lack of resources but sin and its attendant misery. But if we don’t know how we are set free from this sin and misery — which comes through God’s grace — we will try to fix ourselves in futility or give up altogether in despair. And if we don’t know how to thank God, showing gratitude for such deliverance, we will live in a self-centered, self-referential bubble, which is not why God saved us from our sin and misery in the first place. “
What do you think? Is it necessary, as DeYoung says, to know about our sin in order to receive comfort and joy in belonging to Christ?
How do you see guilt, grace, and gratitude played out in your life?
