Nurture Faith with Dr. Doug Hood

Acts 12:16 (Common English Bible)

            Here is a story for everyone; a story of someone who tried and failed, but refused to give up. Peter was one of Jesus’ disciples. At a critical hour, he failed Jesus by denying him three times. But Jesus never failed Peter. Following Jesus’ resurrection, his continued embrace and love for Peter launched Peter into a preaching ministry of considerable zeal and devotion. Up and down the countryside, Peter gave witness to the power of the risen Christ to change lives. Peter’s primary exhibit for his testimony was his own life. Soon he found himself enmeshed by hostile forces and, finally, preached himself into prison.

            Prayers were made for Peter by the Christian communities that he started and were now growing, as a result of his preaching. One night an angel came to Peter, placed the prison guard into a deep sleep, released the chains from Peter’s hands, and opened the prison doors. An important detail of this miracle story is that the angel instructed Peter to place on his sandals. The angel was able to place the guard into a slumber, release Peter’s hands from the chains that held him, and open the prison doors. Yet, the angel holds Peter responsible for placing on his own shoes. Apparent in this small detail is that God will always do what we cannot do, but God will not do for us what we can do. Peter was capable of placing upon his feet his shoes.

            Peter, now freed from prison, goes out into the dark, hiding in the thickness of the night from Roman solders, and makes his way to a home where he hoped to be received and cared for. When Peter knocked at the outer gate, a female servant went to answer. Recognizing Peter, and overcome with surprise and joy, the servant runs back into the house with the grand announcement of Peter’s release. Yet, in her amazement and delight, she forgets to open the gate and let Peter into the residence. “Meanwhile, Peter remained outside, knocking at the gate.”  

            Peter does not shrug his shoulders and walk back into the night, commenting, “It’s no use.” Peter continues to knock. Peter is resilient. He will not give in or give up. By his persistence, Peter reveals the grandeur of his trust in God’s continuing presence and care. Many of us will stand – at some moment of our life – before a closed door. The closed door may be a job opportunity that never materializes, a romantic relationship that is never found, or an illness that lingers – health seemly more and more elusive. Before that closed door, life asks, “Will you continue to trust God in the face of bitterness and disappointment?” Peter stands before a closed door unafraid, determined to see it through. His strength is located in God’s fidelity, demonstrated in his past. That same strength is available to us when we stand before a door that is closed.

Joy,

Hebrews 4:16 (Common English Bible)

            This is truly one of the great passages of the New Testament. In these few words we are reminded that Jesus is a source of tremendous power, the place we turn to when we need help. Jesus is not someone who is incapable of understanding and sympathizing with our struggles. Jesus struggled as we struggle, was tempted as we are tempted, and endured disappointment as we endure disappointment, without ever committing any sin. Jesus is full of sympathy for us because he fought, as we fight, on the battlefields of human life. There is remarkable authenticity in the sympathy Jesus has for us because he tasted the same bitterness of conflict and hateful evil forces that seek our defeat. Yet, unfailingly, Jesus emerged a victor. His strength is now our strength.

            It must not be forgotten that Jesus won battle after battle by using the same spiritual resource that is open to us – the spiritual power that comes from God in regular prayer. Jesus engaged no unnatural means to gain victory that is denied to us, no private miracle reserved only for God’s Son. He fought as we fight, standing where we stand, with the same resource that is placed in our hands – regular communion with God through prayer. Victory by any other means would have been of little value for ordinary people like us. The guidance Jesus offers us, and the encouragement we receive, is from someone who battled with no more than what is available to us.

            It is well to remember that temptation is not sin. Jesus was tempted – perhaps the best known moment is when he is on a mountain, with God, for forty days following his baptism. But Jesus did not sin. It is not sin to discover that in some unguarded moment an unkind word for another may come into our mind or an impulse wells-up inside us that isn’t our best self. A downward pull to our lower nature is not sin. It is sin to yield, when a loose rein is given to evil desires. And while we learn from Jesus’ example that temptation is not sin, we also learn from Jesus that temptation must drive us to our knees in prayer. Human strength and resolve to avoid sin is simply insufficient.

            The Gospels speaks often of the deep sympathy of Jesus. Whenever he was in the presence of human suffering or those who had been marginalized by others, the compassion of Jesus was powerfully exhibited. His sympathy stretched out and welcomed Zacchaeus, a dishonest tax collector, a woman caught in adultery, and numerous people afflicted with mental, emotional and physical disabilities. People were lifted and redeemed by his love and friendship. Jesus’ resurrection is a bold declaration that that same Jesus is present with us today, his sympathy continuing to stretch toward every one of us when we need help. And these few words from Hebrews remind us that Jesus sympathy – and strength – is sufficient.

Joy,

The following is from guest writer, Louis Sutton.

Bechir’s wrinkled dark skin and white hair were the only features that betrayed the fact that he was one of the oldest men in the Chadian town of Adre.  Otherwise his energy, his delight in life, his satisfaction and continual hard work surpassed even men half his age.  Bechir and I became good friends through my frequent visits to the local area governor’s house where Bechir would greet me at the door, offer me some water and a seat, then scurry off to notify the governor of my arrival.  Bechir was a servant in the governor’s house, a position he had held for perhaps 50 years.  He had served the French colonial governors who brought their fine china and wine to this end of the Sahara desert and he served the Chadian officials in the now old and run-down mansion.  He had served the good and the corrupt.  The dramas he had seen and the stories he told were amazing.  But was most amazing was his delight in what he did.  He loved serving.  He loved being a part of the bigger picture.  He counted it a privilege to do even the lowest of tasks.  The joy radiated from his face.

That same joy in service radiates from the words of the psalmist in Psalm 84 who called it privilege to take even the lowest of positions in the activities of the faithful.  The psalm was written by one speaking from experience.  It is attributed to the “sons of Korah” who were a portion of the Levitical tribes called upon for various services in the temple.  But perhaps the lowliest and most “mundane” of those roles was that of “doorkeeper”.  In this verse the psalmist’s point was that privilege and delight are found in even the lowliest of roles served for the greatest of causes.  For him service was not duty, not sacrifice, nor obligation, but a privilege.

So too our own service in the church, no matter what the role, is best understood not as duty but privilege.  It is a privilege to be a part of something bigger than ourselves, to serve something, and someone eternal and truly significant.  It is a privilege to make a difference, no matter how humble the task.  It is a privilege to serve in the company of others committed to the same truths and vision.  True, our service is crucial and needed.  The church couldn’t exist without our participation in its ministry.  But ultimately it is a privilege.  One to be embraced, entered into, and enjoyed.

Psalm 62:2 (Common English Bible)

            Captured in these few words is a powerful witness to abundant progress in our spiritual life: “Only God is my rock and salvation – my stronghold! – I won’t be shaken anymore.” The author of these words is contemplating difficult circumstances on the horizon. A storm is building in his personal life and a whirlwind is gathering strength and raging. Shortly, the author will be caught in the blast – in the very center of violence that is determined to destroy him. Yet, what is heard in these words is a faith that has moved from painful wobbling in a time of trouble to an experience of being unshakable; of standing strong in the work of the Lord: “I won’t be shaken anymore.”

            A mood of fear and uncertainty is transformed. Present now is a voice of a more vital trust, and the suggestion of spiritual maturity. Where once he would have been shaken by the assault that was drawing near, he is now not overwhelmed. An unshaken confidence of a matured faith now occupies his heart and soul. What changed? He provides the answer – he has found a sturdy footing in the promises of God, “my stronghold.” A trembling spirit that is placed into regular communion with God is settled; the timid fluttering of a heart is quieted. This is the calmness which comes from sharing in the strength of God; a strength that derives from intentional attention to relationship building with God.

            When we nurture our own faith by attention to God’s word and regular prayer, our relationship to God is deepened. In direct proportion to that deepening relationship we discover that fears are scattered and worries, once prolific, are diminished. Lives are no longer lived in small and frightened circles where the soul grows faint and timid. Attention to God, even in the ordinary moments of life, expands the chambers of our souls and our breath becomes deeper. Uncertainties of life become increasingly rare and our slipping feet are steadied upon a certain and firm foundation – “only God is my rock.”

            Here is the great secret of progress in our spiritual life – attentive and regular communion with God. Our own strength for meeting the trying and challenging circumstances of life is insufficient. Alone we will always be defeated. But we are not alone. These words from the Psalms are an invitation to put on the same strength and confidence of a life that cleaves to God. By God’s strengthening fellowship we will face all the hostile forces of this world with ordered lives – lives which demonstrate to others the beauty of God’s peace.

Joy,

1 Thessalonians 5:21 (Common English Bible)

            Attempts to define “what is good” are often found to be inadequate. Goodness is difficult to describe but it is wonderfully easy to recognize. We know goodness when we see it and it is a thrilling experience. There is an attractiveness about it that captures both the mind and the heart and goodness proves to be a powerful quality in shaping the disposition of those who observe it. Goodness is a mighty impulse whose radiance gives beauty to the soul.

            Perhaps more difficult than defining goodness is articulating how goodness is achieved or produced. Some have argued that goodness is born and that effort to generate goodness is therefore futile, but is an observable fact that character can be changed. In view of the fact that goodness has the capacity to positively impact the environment of all human interaction some attempt, however feeble, is called for. Though there is no perfect formula that produces completely the results we desire, scripture does provide help.

            The apostle Paul writes in Philippians 3:17 that we are to become imitators of Paul and to watch those who live as he does – to use those with good and godly behavior as models. Here, Paul suggests that a prime condition for generating goodness is simple observation that instructs and infects the heart toward participation in its beauty. David Downie says as much in his book, Paris, Paris: Journey Into The City of Light: “A day spent loitering here teaches you more about Paris and its inhabitants than many a scholarly tome.”[i]This is well demonstrated in the experience of the apostles. In spite of conspicuous limitations and weaknesses, each became good men chiefly as a result of their acquaintance with Christ – their decision to simply spend time with Jesus and learning through observation.

            Goodness is also produced by the disciplined application of those principals taught by Jesus for a holy life. Regular prayer, reading and application of God’s Word to one’s life, and participation in God’s work in the world produce productive soil for the work of the Holy Spirit. Paul writes in his first letter to Timothy, “Train yourself for a holy life!” (1 Timothy 4:7b). The regular discipline of “training” for the holy life breaks down the barriers which hinder the organic development of goodness. Behind anything that is really well done is a long period of self-discipline and mastery, which shape and define the character or skill that is desired. Goodness can be produced in any life. What is required is that we place ourselves in regular contact with those who model goodness and then discipline our spirits that we profit by the experience.

Joy,        

Acts 1:8 (Common English Bible)

     When the king in Alice in Wonderland was asked where to begin, he said gravely, “Begin at the beginning… and go on till you come to the end: then stop.” Begin at the beginning. Naturally, that guidance seems reasonable. That is, until you have to actually open your mouth, and speak. With thoughts racing from one place to another, it quickly becomes apparent that there are many fine places to begin. Jesus tells his disciples, here in Acts, “you will be my witnesses.” Where do the disciples begin? Where are we to begin? Sharing our faith in Jesus seems reasonable until we actually confront that moment – that moment when we are asked, “Who is Jesus?”

     That moment came to me one Easter morning. I was enjoying breakfast in a Doylestown, PA diner, looking over the message I would preach in just a few hours. Mary, the waitress assigned to the table where I was seated, approached with coffee and said, “I guess this is your big day, pastor!” “I guess so,” I remarked. Then Mary asked, “What is Easter all about anyway?” Initially, I dismissed her question, not thinking she was serious. But I was mistaken; Mary was very serious. It was then I took the time to really notice her, to look into her eyes and really see her. I will not forget those eyes – eyes that betrayed her silence; silence of considerable pain. “Where do I begin?” I thought. I began with her pain. “Easter means that you can stop beating yourself up. Whatever guilt you may have now, whatever mistakes you have made in life, Easter means that you are to stop immediately from beating yourself up. God has removed it all.”

     “But there is more,” I said to Mary. “Easter is an invitation to pay attention to Jesus.” I shared with Mary that as she paid attention to Jesus, by reading of him in the Bible, she will discover that she will want to be more than she is now. “Pay attention long enough to Jesus and you will experience a compulsion to be something more; you will begin to live differently.”  Mary needed to hear that Jesus doesn’t leave a life unchanged. Any significant time spent with Jesus always results in a desire to be made new. “Your whole world will appear different. You will want to be different.”

      “Finally, Mary, begin to follow Jesus as you learn about him.” I shared with her that what that means is to “do what he asks in his teaching.” Imagine Jesus as a mentor in life and do everything that is asked of you. Something inexplicable happens when someone commits to doing all that Jesus’ asks: they receive an uncommon power to do so. People who obey all that they understand of Jesus’ teachings receive a power from outside of themselves; a power that actually makes them something so much more than what they were. Mary began to cry and asked how to begin. That is when I knew I had come to the end. And there, in a diner in Doylestown, PA, Mary gave her life to Jesus.

Joy,

2 Corinthians 11:25 (Common English Bible)

            Trent Harmon shared recently that his country single, There’s A Girl, was inspired not by one girl, but by several romances that Harmon has experienced. With an upbeat and happy tempo, the song is about how guys are driven by girls and how they drive guys to do things they normally wouldn’t do. “Why would we drive six hundred miles one way? Blow through cash that we ain’t made. Get tattoos, wash our trucks, push and press our luck.” The storytelling is crisp and true, a light-hearted look at the old, well-worn phrase, “love makes you do crazy things.” The song is deeply heartfelt and romantic while also poking fun at himself for all the stupid things he does when a girl consumes his attention.

            In his letter to the Corinthian Church, the apostle Paul is singing a similar song, “I was beaten with rods three times. I was stoned once. I was shipwrecked three times. I spent a day and a night on the open sea.” Why would any rational person subject themselves to these things? They wouldn’t. And that is precisely Paul’s point. Trent Harmon does stupid things because, “There’s A Girl,” and Paul opens himself to such mistreatment and danger because, “There is a man named Jesus” who has overtaken any rational thought. Harmon has been taken captive by his love for a girl; Paul has been taken captive by Jesus’ love for Paul. A lyric in Harmon’s song is, “Why does any man do anything in the whole damn world?” The apostle Paul has an answer. It is love.

            Paul acknowledges in his letter to the Corinthian Church that he is bragging when he shares all he has suffered. But Paul is equally clear that this bragging is not for self-aggrandizement. What Paul urgently wants the reader to hear is that there is a man, a man named Jesus, and that if you pay attention to that man, his love for you will get to you; his love for you will result in you doing stupid and irrational things. The love of Jesus Christ is so pervasive that neither beatings, or stoning, or being shipwrecked can drive that love out of you.

            Naturally, what Paul desires by his “bragging” is that we would become curious about this kind of love. Trent Harmon sings, “Why would we ask when we know we can’t dance? Show our hands and change our plans. Lose our minds, break our hearts and learn to play guitar. Why does any man do anything in the whole damn world? ‘Cause there’s a girl. ‘Cause there’s a girl.” Why would Paul place himself in harm’s way, suffer beatings and endure stoning and spend a night and day on an open sea when that is so dangerous? Because there’s a man who has gotten to him. And Paul wants you to know him also.

Joy,

Romans 12:2 (Common English Bible)

          We are all too some extent suggestible. Stand still on the sidewalk and look up with enthralled interest and a crowd will quickly gather around staring upwards. The instinct to go along and do as others do is a powerful force. We are like clay, easily shaped and molded by our environment. It is a fact that those in the advertising industry count on. A product or service is presented as something that will enhance life, others testify to the veracity of the promises made and in some measure we are separated from our dollars – convinced of the value to purchase as others have. Every day the wind of conformity blows across our consciousness, urging us to go along, be like everyone else, purchase like everyone else and not stand out.

            But “standing out” is precisely what Paul wants for us! Patterning our behavior after the behavior of others and conforming to the world deeply troubles the apostle Paul. Here, in his letter to the Christian Church in Rome, Paul makes an appeal that we not surrender to the world and what the world values. Naturally, there is safety and comfort in going along, submitting to the shaping influence of the culture. But what is safe and comfortable also hampers growth in Christ just as the lack of exercise hampers the development of strong bodies. A strong and mature faith is the goal of those who follow Jesus. This kind of faith – a faith that is good and pleasing to God – is produced from eyes that are fixed upon Christ.

            Directing our gaze upon Jesus, and away from the world, is how we begin to organize our life around him. Rather than stand in the place of everyone else, Paul asks that we listen for the movement of the Holy Spirit, stand in its path and permit it to sweep over us in its onward rush. William Barclay offers a fresh hearing of Paul’s words: “And do not shape your lives to meet the fleeting fashions of this world; but be transformed from it, by the renewal of your mind, until the very essence of your being is altered.” Paul would have liked that translation: “the very essence of your being is altered!”

            Far too many in the church today fail to have robust convictions. When persons in leadership speak and behave in a manner that is contrary to God, they either fail to recognize it or they are fearful of holding their leaders accountable. This is the result of an anemic faith. Going along and getting along is preferable to the cross of fidelity to Christ. Paul desires followers of Jesus Christ that have developed such strength of maturity that they step into the world, recognize disobedience to God and accept the challenge of the storm that will blow across their lives when they call those leaders back to God purposes. And when the gusty winds blow and the storm grows fierce, the mature in faith will not be shaken. Strengthening them will be the very power of the risen Christ.

Joy,

Romans 8:18 (Common English Bible)

            In his country track, Letter to Me, Brad Paisley imagines writing a letter to his 17-year-old self. Here he reflects on the people and moments that have formed and shaped him to be the man he has now become. More importantly, Paisley shares with his teenage self what he has learned over the years and that the present pain of a broken romance is nothing compared to what will be revealed to him in the future: “You got so much ahead. You’ll make new friends. You should see your kids and wife. And I’d end by saying have no fear. These are nowhere near the best years of your life.” No one who listens carefully to these lyrics will challenge that they resonate deeply with all who have wrestled with failed relationships during the teenage and young adult years, “But I know at seventeen, it’s hard to see past Friday night.” Yet, Paisley concludes his letter with the encouragement, “I wish you wouldn’t worry, let it be. I’d say, have a little faith and you’ll see.”

            The Christian believers in Rome are feeling like a 17-year-old boy and the apostle Paul has written a letter – a letter urging them that they have a little faith. As is true for many believers, those Christians in Rome have mistakenly shared in the assumption that they should be free from pain and should be guaranteed pleasantness. But this is not their experience. Neither does scripture ever make the promise that belief results in a flight from reality. The reality of this broken world is that we will experience broken relationships, disappointment and pain. Those are the moments when, “It’s hard to see past Friday night.” Paul asks that they – and we – take a longer view. Though, in the present moment, we may groan together, Paul urges that we also anticipate together; anticipate that God isn’t finished with this world or with us. There is a “coming glory that is going to be revealed to us.”

            This word from Paul reverses our faith expectations and directs a new path for our walk with Jesus Christ. The Christian now has the opportunity to view suffering not as a “misfortune that has selected us” or as a punishment for some personal failing. All of creation suffers from brokenness and the believer in Jesus is invited to live in the very midst of that brokenness in the confident assurance that God still shows-up for work each day and continues the work of restoration and wholeness. The completion of that restoration lies in the future and the resurrection of Jesus from the dead is but a glimpse of God’s capacity to complete that work. With Paul’s characteristic proclivity for understatement, he tells us that our present suffering pales in comparison to what God has for us in the future.

            When we are around the age of 17, heartbreak seems like the end of the world. We simply can’t think past that week. The present moment is the most important moment of our life. When we get a bit older we realize how ridiculous we were to feel that way, particularly at such a young age. We grasp reality a little better and discover that we did, in fact, survive that difficult age. And we will survive the next heartbreak as well because we know that better things also come our way. The apostle Paul has written a letter. He wants us to know, as Brad Paisley sings, “And oh, you got so much going for you, going right.” What we have going for us; what we have going right is God. Our lives and future are held securely in God’s grasp.

Joy,

Romans 5:8 (Common English Bible)

            In his heartfelt country ballad, If I Told You, Darius Rucker asks someone to love him in spite of his faults and shortcomings. Written by Ross Copperman, Jon Nite and Shane McAnally, the song’s lyrics are a plea for acceptance, for understanding, and for love, though he recognizes that it is not deserved. “What if I told you sometimes I lose my faith? I wonder why someone like you would even talk to me.” Brokenness runs deep in the words as the song fleshes out a brief narrative of a life that is lived without a father. The visual that is sketched for the listener is quite vivid and one that many people will relate to. Every life is a mixture of brokenness and wholeness, regrets and fulfillments – each with varying degrees of one and the other. Yet, in the middle of it all is the desire of every person to be loved.

            Perhaps no fear grips a life quite like the fear that one is unworthy of love. The apostle Paul knows this fear in his own life. Yet, because of Jesus Christ, Paul has richly discovered a love that puzzles, even defies comprehension: “But God shows his love for us, because while we were sinners Christ died for us.” Love and acceptance is not negotiated. Love is not withheld until we clean-up the mess of our lives. God’s love is freely given to each of us in the very midst of the wreckage of our lives. And it is there that we desire it the most, as Darius Rucker sings, “If I told you the mess that I can be. When there’s no one there to see. Would you look the other way, cause you love me anyway?” The plea is urgent – in this song and in the depths of our own hearts.

            A life not well lived, a life soiled by regrettable decisions and stupid things has an enormous weight that bears down upon our chest and denies life-giving breath into our lungs. Such a life, lived day by day, becomes increasingly sorrowful. Questions of self-worth well-up in the heart multiplying the pain of an already broken life. The plea of the song becomes our own, “If I told you all the stupid things I’ve done. I’d blamed on being young. But I was old enough to know, I know. If I told you the mess that I can be, when there’s no one there to see. Could you look the other way cause you love me anyway? Cause you love me anyway.” The song then ends with the plea becoming more poignant, “Could you love me anyway, please?”

            Paul wants us to know that God loves us anyway: “while we were sinners Christ died for us.” This makes all the difference in our lives. Sorrow and brokenness is replaced with joy and gratitude. A relationship with God – once broken by our poorly lived lives – is restored. The enormous weight that pressed against us is removed by an unseen hand and we draw rapidly a fresh breath into our lungs; a breath of hope for a new beginning. That is what God does for us. God nails our old, regrettable past upon the cross and gives us a fresh start. But now we begin with new knowledge – God’s power and love abides with us, and will continue to do so even when we stumble again. That is because God loves us anyway.