Why Do You Seek The Lord?

There is another point from chapter thirteen in Jan Johnson's book Enjoying the Presence of God I really need to address. Have you ever caught yourself praying to God hoping for a spiritual encounter, or because you wanted God to give you this gigantic Aha! moment? I have. It was after I had returned from the Walk to Emmaus retreat. The Walk to Emmaus is an awesome retreat, and if your church offers it, or is connected to an Emmaus Community it would definitely be worth your time to go. The Walk to Emmaus was a tremendous spiritual high. I felt so close to God over the weekend I just did not want the wonderful feeling of encountering God to end. In my prayer time I would try very hard to remember how I felt on the walk, and to open myself up inside to feel that presence of God again. However, gradually, the feeling lessened and lessened. Jan Johnson explains the point of constant prayer is to, "[b]e faithful in pouring yourself before God because God is the one you Love, not because you want stirring insights" (95). The Walk to Emmaus was a mountain top experience. However, we were not meant to live on top of the mountain. The trick is to remember who we experienced while we were there, and to rely on that remembrance of strength and energy while we walk through life's valleys.

Do you hear what I hear?

Probably not. Do you hear what I sometimes do not? I hope so. Jan Johnson's book Enjoying the Presence of God discusses hearing God in chapter 13. As a Christian living in a highly literate society it's easy to think if people would just read the Bible more the world would be a better place. However, I have discovered just because people can read does not mean they do it often, or enjoy reading. If that is the case it can be hard to hear God in Scripture. There are other reasons why people do not hear God in Scripture. Johnson's take on it really resonates with my situation.

"[S]ome find that God does not speak to them even in Bible reading. Perhaps that's because they read the Bible to meet an obligation, study for a class, or prove and opinion, but not to meet with God and hear Him speak. A. W. Tozer advised, '[The Bible] is not only a book which was once spoken, but a book which is now speaking... If you would follow on to know the Lord, come at once to the open Bible expecting it to speak to you. Do not come with the notion that it is a ting which you can push around at your convenience.' Instead of coming to the Bible searching for what we already understand or agree with, it's wise to approach it with the question, What do I need to know (88)?"

I do not always hear God clearly. As a seminary student you may think I should, but I don't. I too often get caught up in I have to read Luke for this class or I need to do a word study on the word melek for another class. What I am trying to unlearn from classes is the importance of spending daily time with the Word and with God so that I might be fed, instead of constantly looking to Scripture for something to deliver to a teacher, for a bible study and now for sermons. The Bible does not open itself up on demand. To really understand what God is saying is like trying to really understand what a girl friend, wife or significant other is saying. It takes time, and it means being in relationship.

Proud Papa

Okay. So I'm one proud papa. The top left picture is Evan a day before he is four weeks old. The two on the right are pretty self explanatory Halloween pictures. The picture in the bottom left is my son's first bath where he is displaying early signs of being able to disappear. I'm sure he'll use that to his advantage later when he's trying to hide from Mommy and Daddy. I love being a Dad.

Following God's Direction

Have you ever heard this song by The Clash? Chapter 12 of Jan Johnson's book Enjoying the Presence of God touches on this very point. There are some people who think of prayer as if it were something out of "I Dream of Genie." Simply ask God for whatever you'd like in prayer, and God will magically provide. Still others want to use God like a traffic light, "Should I take this job? Should I buy this shirt or this car? Should I stay or should I go?" God is not a genie who will fulfill our inner most desires. A burning bush, and a pillar of fire/ploom of smoke are very rare forms of Godly direction. God is not a traffic light for direction in our lives. God has His own plan for salvation, and we need to dream dreams set in God's will for us. To do this means praying some pretty scary prayers. God, please show me the paths You would have me to walk, and I will do my best to walk those paths. Please God, show me your passion for my life that I might be filled with it also. These kinds of prayers are aimed at putting ourselves in the right point of view to hear God's call on our lives, but they require courage. Once these prayers are prayed faithfully, and our hearts become more focused on God's dreams there is no telling where God may lead you.

The Process

Life has been very busy lately so I thought I'd share a little of what's been happening. One of the classes I'm taking this semester is Mentored Ministry. It's one of those where I'm supposed to be working in a church (inside the box) eight hours a week. However, I've been behind on hours so I'm doing some freelance graphic design work for the Children's Ministry to make up the difference. Since I haven't posted anything detailing the process I use I figured this would be a good time to share the way I work.

First I sit down with the people in charge and try to get a good idea of what they're looking for in a logo. Then I do a bunch of sketches of different ideas. That's when we meet again, and they tell me what works and what definitely does not work.

Then I do some more sketches and we talk again. It can be tedious. I usually do not offer more than two passes on a project, but since this for church I'm offering more. These were the second batch of sketches.

And these are the first run through the computer. I know it looks like a lot, but it fully invests the client in the project, and insures they get the logo they want. As much as I like getting paid to do stuff (I'm not getting paid for this one) it is really important to honor the God given vision for their ministry, so it is worth the extra effort.

Enjoying God in the Valley

Chapter ten of Jan Johnson's book Enjoying the Presence of God is titled Enjoying God Between the Moments. I like the analogy of mountain tops and valleys better. Here's why. Have you ever seen the black and white movie Sergeant York? In the movie Alvin York is an east Tennessee boy, living up in the mountains, and trying to scratch out a living as a farmer. It's tough to be a farmer in the mountains. There are rocks and boulders everywhere, and they all have to be dug up to have enough dirt to plant crops. Bottom land is down in the valley. The land there has fewer boulders and is rich and fertile. I like this example because it reminds me of Jesus's journey up on a mountain side with Peter, James and John. There they saw Jesus' appearance was transfigured. Peter, James and John like a lot of Christians wanted to set up tents on the mountain side and stay there in that heavenly presence. However, life doesn't work that way. We are not called to live on mountain tops of spiritual euphoria. Through these close interactions with the Spirit we can be moved to do all kinds of things for the kingdom. However, there is not enough to support us up on the mountain top. When we travel back down into the valley it is harder to remember the mountain top experiences. Jan Johnson encourages us to establish a routine of prayer throughout the day to help us stay the course when we feel spiritually dry. That is important because like the disciples were called to live lives of service down in the valley with the mountain top experience in their hearts. Our goal is to live in as close a relationship to the Father, through Jesus Christ the Son, by the power of the Holy Spirit as we can. The Spirit is a wild duck, and may call us up the mountain, or down to the river; it may seem very far from us, but it is never really very far away.  When we enter those places of spiritual thirst it is important to cling to our spiritual routines and to remember the mountain top experience in our hearts.

Loving God When I'm Not On Top

Several years ago I was discharged from a position. I was young, and had made some very bone headed mistakes, and my employer exercised their right to let me go. To make things more difficult I was living in a city some 400 miles from my family. I needed help in the worst way. I felt rejected and tossed aside. God was trying to get my attention and working to get through all of the busyness in my life to drive home a message. I can rely on God even when I am not on top. This is the point of the 9th chapter of Jan Johnson's book Enjoying the Presence of God. So often Christians feel as though we have to present this image of Christ in our lives that never worries, never gets scared, and is never weak and on our knees. I don't think the world expects that of us, and I wonder if we do the world a disservice by hiding our fears. Paul explains God's grace and power is made perfect in our weakness. I think it is okay to be knocked down by the world so long as we decide not to wallow in self pity, and instead turn to God for strength. Is that easier said than done? Sometimes. But if we do not step out into the waters of faith a little we will never know just how deep God's love for us really is.