How would you get your attention if you were going astray?
You
know yourself very well, literally better than anyone else in the world! Would
it take more Grace? If so, how much more, in what form, and for how long? Or
would it take some punitive form, and if so, what kind and to what extent?
As
parents, one of our most difficult challenges is parenting children through the
typically rebellious teen years. This requires knowing your child very well,
rather than always trying to apply some generically prescribed approaches. How
will/how did you ‘reach them’ to the degree that positive change was affected?
When your initial disciplinary efforts failed, did you immediately turn up the
heat, perhaps in anger; or back away, reflect, pray and re-strategize? For that
really hardheaded teen, how many iterations of this cycle did you go through
until the issue was either resolved or…..you
just caved in?
Now
look at you from God’s perspective! Where in this cycle are you, and
what may be His next steps to capture your attention? Consider these
phrases, now heard all too often across our world:
‘Never saw this _____ before!’
‘Have never experienced anything
like this _____ in my career!’
‘This is the first time in maybe a
hundred/a thousand years since _____ happened!’
You
will easily fill in the blanks, as reporters, scientists, public officials and
private companies struggle to explain increasing unbelievable events that are occurring
around the world! It all reminds me of a related question God posed long ago,
through the prophet, Joel:
Hear
this, you elders, and give ear, all you inhabitants of the land! Has
anything like this happened in your days, or even in the days of your
fathers? Tell your children about it; let your children tell their
children, and their children another generation. (Joel 1:2-3)
In
the successive verses, God attempts to get His wayward people to connect the
dots between their evil ways and what they were experiencing, and would soon
experience (Babylonian invasion, capture and slavery). This question echoes to
us today from across the granite mountain peaks of our historical stubbornness.
Along with it, we hear echoes the words of King Solomon, ‘There is nothing new under the sun’.
Nearly
all of the books of The Bible’s Old Testament iterate God’s attempts to get the
attention of His chosen people, Israel. We see His efforts were mostly
unsuccessful, that is until Israel/Judah exhausted all His Grace options,
and He could only respond by allowing cataclysmic destructions. Just like
us today, they simply refused to listen, to hear,
to ‘get it!’, and to change their
evil ways. Why? In their day, they had false prophets who attempted to explain away the inexplicable political,
agricultural, climatic, social and cultural craziness that was coming upon them.
They strategically exempted/excluded God from their explanations, and thus were
able to pacify gullible people.
Today,
we, too, have the equivalent of false prophets. You hear and read about them in
news reports covering our current spate of disasters (financial, social,
cultural, economic, racial, medical, familial, political, security-related,
oceanic, climatic, atmospheric, transportation-related, natural, unnatural, etc.)
They refer to disasters by such terms as deepening recession, growing racism, multi-year
droughts, hundred year floods, radical terrorism, freak accidents and crashes, global
warming, tender box conditions, beaching (of large fish), widening fault lines,
military coup d’état, deadly pandemics, state-sponsored genocide, etc.
Yep!
We have heard it all, and none of this is deniable! But here’s the relevant
question: Did/do the explanations proffered quickly allow you to breathe more
easily and let your shoulders relax so you could move on with your life, just
as ancient Israel and Judah did… gullibly
pacified. Or did these explanations bring you to a long pause where you reflected,
remembered
and responded
to God’s call for you personally repent of your own evil ways (sin), the
seeds of potential disasters in your life? Our problem is seeing and explaining away the ‘disaster fruits’ of
our day, and even acknowledging their physical roots, yet refusing to perceive
and understand, from God’s perspective, their
seeds, which He says are spiritual, not physical.
Friends,
Romans, countrymen, lend me your hearts’ ears!
Until and unless we make this connection, we should brace ourselves
for the Father of all spirits, God Himself, to turn up the heat on us all
across this planet, just as you, a faithful and tough loving parent would do
with your hardheaded, hardhearted teenager who is seriously going astray. What can you do?
Just
like it only takes one word, act or shot fired to start a war, one
atom split to start an atomic explosion, one apple seed to start an
orchard, it only takes one person, one seed, to start a cultural revolution of goodness and
righteousness (doing what is right in God’s sight). Earnestly study God’s Word,
The Bible, to learn to perceive how seeds planted in our 'spiritual gardens',
which each of us has (our heart or spirit), produce fruit of various kind (good
or bad) in our physical lives. After all, is there any difference between this
kind of cultivation, and teaching a wayward teen to obey you so he/she one day will be able to obey a boss or sergeant? As you do this, God will graciously open
pivotal doors for you to share, not only what you are learning, but also for
you to demonstrate righteousness and
good deeds before others.
Perhaps you have read or heard of recent scientific reports that reveal
hearing about and witnessing goodness/righteousness in others, triggers an
empathetic response in our own brains. Well this works in both directions.
Imagine the kinds of mental and spiritual responses being triggered in us,
unknowingly, as we daily fill our eyes, ears, minds and hearts with unrighteousness
(bad, unlawful, sinful and down right evil) stuff/junk food from just about
every angle, interaction and device conceivable! Then, in shock, we marvel at
the explosion of lawlessness across the world… as we fail to connect the dots.
Friend,
please find time; make time to reflect on and ponder these things. As you read
or listen to reports of developments across our world, endeavor to perceive,
and then ask yourself,
‘Ummm, what are
the possible spiritual roots of this?!’
If you do this with a heart that is
truly open to God, He will gradually turn up the Light so you can see/perceive
the answers. Then be aware of opportunities for that insight (i.e., Light within your sight) to be
tried and tested to see whether you really ‘get
it!’ or not. If you fail the tests, don’t give up, but keep at it. Study
more; ponder deeper. Your tests may initially be a private matter, allowing
room for spiritual growth, but as you grow, they will certainly take on a
public persona. This, my Friend, will be where your real opportunities lie to
sow seeds that will spark your own….
Cultural
Revolution or Right-ness
Here’s a sobering
thought: The song, America, The Beautiful, affirms ‘America! America! God shed His Grace on
thee…’ God has undeniably blessed our nation, and many others as well. While
we cannot know exactly where we and other nations are on His ‘Grace>>><<<Judgment’
scale, before things worsen across our planet, we should intensify our prayers
to…
‘Oh God, please do whatever
it takes
to bring us and others to personal,
even national
repentance!’
Are you willing to pray this? If not, please consider the
options…
