Lessons in Leadership from the Life of Noah

I am a big fan of the stories found in Genesis 1-11. This area of the Bible is known to be perhaps a little metaphorical, not particularly literal. However that doesn’t mean that it’s for some reason not as God-inspired as the rest of the book! There is so much we can learn from these chapters. The great thing is that the stories found here, like Eden, Babel and Noah are generally quite well known, so it is a joy to discover new things about old tales.

We find the saga surrounding Noah in Genesis 6-9. If you haven’t read it, or want to refresh your memory, you can read by clicking here (New Living Translation; link opens in a new window or tab).

Noah, the Bible tells us, was, “the only blameless person” on earth (Genesis 6:9). In Genesis 6:5, we find out that everything that mankind thought or even imagined was evil. What a dreadful state they had got themselves into. Oh, how great the grip of the evil one.

Yet the story of Noah is a beautiful picture of God’s Salvation Plan. For when we are told that Noah was the only righteous man, that means that he alone was righteous. None of his sons were, nor his wife, nor his son’s wives. The story of Noah shows that those who were in his family, or had married into it, were saved because of him. In the same way, because we are adopted into the family of Jesus, we are saved because of what He did on the cross. (In fact, this picture is seen in many places throughout the Old Testament.)

I would like to suggest that there are three key lessons in leadership that we can learn from Noah’s life.

Difference

As the people of God, we are called to a life of difference. Living differently is what sets us apart from the world and sets us apart for God.

We serve a God who is different. Often we call Him ‘Holy’ – which means ‘set apart’. Sometimes we can misunderstand the idea that we are created in His image and think of Him as a person who’s just a little bit bigger and more powerful than we are. But His holiness makes Him much more than that.

Isaiah 55:8-9 tells us:

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, 
   neither are your ways my ways,” 
            declares the LORD. 
“As the heavens are higher than the earth, 
   so are my ways higher than your ways 
   and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (NIV).

I once heard this idea of holiness explained by talking about different types of brush. You may well have many different brushes – some for sweeping up leaves and other things outdoors; maybe a brush to sweep floors indoors; you might have a washing-up brush which is used to clean all kinds of different things. Each of these brushes are used for more than one job. But you may also have a toothbrush. A toothbrush is a special kind of brush, because it is ‘set apart’ for one purpose – to clean your own teeth. It is because God is set apart that He is different to us.

Serving a God who is different requires us to live differently. As followers of Christ, we must seek to be toothbrushes! Set apart for one purpose – to follow Him. This is the power of the cross – it made us holy and perfect and allowed us into the presence of God. This is seen in the symbolism of the tearing of the temple curtain at Jesus’ death – the barrier (sin) which was between God and man was destroyed. Through the death of Jesus, we are sanctified (another word for holy) and made right with God.

Paul tells us:

‘Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person…’ - Romans 12:2, NLT.

The same verse in the New International Version of the Bible uses the words ‘conform’ and ‘transform’. Notice here that people can only conform to the world – the world is what defines them. Sadly, we see this all too often in our culture today – commercial pressures tell us to follow fashions or to acquire the latest technology. However the power of God is to transform - we are changed by His power from the inside out. Transformation makes things new. Conformity makes things boring.

Not surprisingly, these ideas are already written down somewhere else – the Bible. Romans 11:33-12:2 reads:

Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God!
How unsearchable his judgments,
and his paths beyond tracing out!
“Who has known the mind of the Lord?
Or who has been his counselor?”
“Who has ever given to God,
that God should repay them?”
For from him and through him and for him are all things.
To him be the glory forever! Amen.

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. (NIV).

We can see three sections to Paul’s writing – firstly, he explains how God is different – he talks about ‘unsearchable’ judgements and ‘paths beyond tracing out’. Then, in one of my favourite verses from the Bible, Paul explains how we should respond – by offering all we have back to God. And finally, he instructs us to live life differently.

Do you know how great God’s mercy is? He is the God who has the power to move mountains (Matthew 17:20), to breathe stars into existence (Psalm 33:6), and to form each of us before we are born (Psalm 139:13-16). A God who has that much power doesn’t need us. But His love and mercy for us is so great that He chooses to use us, through our fears and failures, to bring His perfect Kingdom on earth. The Church is God’s action plan for the world, and He doesn’t have a ‘Plan B’.

In view of this great mercy, the least we can give is all we have. Matt Redman puts it, in his song Befriended: ”My greatest gift would be the least You’re due.”

When we begin to comprehend the greatness of the mercy of God, and begin to allow His power to transform us – by living differently for a God who is different – we can make a difference in the world. Today. 

God and Religion

Religion makes God sick. Jesus had a lot to say about the religious people of His day – the Pharisees – and much of what He said showed their religiousness as ungodly and pointless. Being religious is living a life where, through doing stuff, people attempt to be with God. It’s this mindset: “If I do enough good deeds/works today, I’ll be good enough for God and I’ll ‘get in’ to heaven.”

Christianity turns that mindset upside down. A Christian acknowledges that we can never be ‘good enough’ for God. He is perfect and we aren’t. But through His great mercy and grace, God humbled Himself and came among us so that we could be with Him. So instead of our actions leading to God, God came to us first. For a Christian, this relationship with God produces a life of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Religion sees our efforts lead to God. Relationship sees God coming to us – then our efforts follow afterwards. So many people get this kind of thing confused. Often Christianity is wrongly labelled as a religion. Becoming a Christian isn’t coming to a religion, it’s coming to a relationship with a living, loving God.

We were made for a relationship with Him. And any relationship is founded on love. But love is only love when it is chosen. People love each other because they choose to – sometimes they may be compelled but there is always a choice involved. This is what makes love so unique. Had God made us to automatically follow His way, we would never be able to love Him. Above all, that is what He wants for us.

Paul often talks about our natural inclination to be selfish (or sinful nature).

“Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace. For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God’s laws, and it never will. That’s why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God.” – Romans 8:5-8, NLT.

Christians understand that the root cause of this sinful nature lies with the story of Adam & Eve in the garden of Eden, who chose to disobey God and go against what He wanted for their lives. They chose to live their own way. However you interpret the story is up to you, whether you take it literally or not. But the heart of it is that as people we will always feel a natural inclination to make decisions which benefit us rather than others. Naturally, we are selfish.

When Paul talks about the Holy Spirit, he is describing the only alternative we have to our own nature. If we give our lives to Jesus and seek to follow Him, we are inviting His Spirit to live within us and empower us to live according to God’s will rather than ours. God says:

“Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. Your filth will be washed away, and you will no longer worship idols. And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart. And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations.” - Ezekiel 36:25-27, NLT.

Notice in this beautiful promise (written between 500 and 600 years before the birth of Jesus) that God is the one who does all the ‘work’. He says, “I will sprinkle clean water on you,” “I will give you a new heart,” and “I will put my Spirit in you.” It is He, not us, who does these things. It is because the Spirit of God lives in us that we have the power and ability to live His way.

This has turned out rather more confusing than I would have hoped but it is on my heart and I wanted to share it.

I think what I’m really getting at is to try and show God’s great love for us all. He knows that we can’t do it. He is longing for us to respond to His love and love Him in return, like parents would with their children. He is never expecting us to try and make ourselves good enough for Him. He is expecting us to acknowledge that we can’t make it by ourselves, and that we need Him in our lives.

This is grace. Undeserved love, showered over us. It’s not because of who we are and it’s nothing to do with what we have or haven’t done. It’s because of who God is and it’s because of what He’s done. It’s not about us, it’s all about Him.

Love

1 Corinthians 13 (NIV)

If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

Where can we find truth?

I watched Glee tonight.

I was persuaded to start watching the show last year after being initially critical of it… I’m glad I do, because it’s a great show. It doesn’t feature the best plots, or depth of character, but there’s something about it that makes it a good watch. I think, for the most part it’s the music that’s just too perfect, the characters that are just too fake… It’s all a total load of rubbish…but such fun.

Well tonight’s episode, entitled ‘Grilled Cheesus’ is probably my least favourite episode so far. Aside from the music being a little below it’s usual standard, the story and content left me quite irritated. The episode had a ‘spiritual’ theme, but the massive range of ideas about God, faith and religion was genuinely overwhelming. It was impossible to really know what to think… Such important issues should never be dealt with in such a shallow way, in my opinion.

It got me thinking… In a world where there are so many different things that people believe about God, about life – its purpose and direction – and death – what happens next – how can we tell what is the truth? My view is just as valid as the next person’s…so what right do I have to claim that what I believe is the truth? I don’t.

The thing with truth is that it isn’t dependent upon what people believe. If something is true, it makes no difference what people believe about it. It remains true whatever. If God is real, that isn’t because someone on earth believes in Him. If no-one on earth believed that God was real, He still would be…

So we have established that everyone has different views. And we have established that whatever these views are, the truth will remain true. This applies to everything – for example people have different views on whether the earth is spherical or flat, (I know this sounds ridiculous, but try arguing with a flat-earther…it’s harder than you might think!) but whatever the earth truly is, it will remain, regardless of what people think about it.

If we gently bring this back to God…people often have different views about Him, but they don’t make a difference to His existence. The big difference between the shape of the earth and the existence of God is the small matter of proof…although I would argue that the evidence for God is quite compelling. But I won’t get into it. Back to truth…

The Christian faith has something rather special by way of truth – it’s called the Bible. I won’t be patronising by explaining what it is… What many people don’t understand about the Bible is that it is relevant to us today, not just its writers from 2000 years (or longer) ago. Often it can be pretty hard to understand, but there are so many resources available to us to help with that. (One thing I highly recommend is Soul Survivor’s ‘Bible-in-one-year’ scheme, check the Links page).

It is so important for Christians to constantly read the Bible and see what God says. You might have noticed from other posts on this blog that they often contain a few Bible references – it’s so full of wisdom. More importantly, it’s full of truth. It’s a strange book in a sense – like no other book I’ve ever read. It has the unique ability of quite literally being alive. It is often described as the living word of God. God often speaks to us through the words in the Bible – and the more we read it, the more meaning we can unpack from it, even passages we’ve read over and over in the past. It’s amazing.

Here’s what the Bible has to say about itself:

All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work. – 2 Timothy 3:16-17, NLT.

You might be thinking…that’s rich!! How arrogant for the writer of 2 Timothy (Paul) to say that about the book that he’s contributed so much to! I’d completely understand – that’s the sort of thing I was thinking when I first read that bit.

What I will leave you with is this: there is not a single document throughout the whole of history that is more reliable than the Bible. It stands up to every single conceivable test for such thing, and fits perfectly with archaeological evidence, other writings from its time, known human history…

It remains a perfect history, geography and life book. And this makes sense…it’s God’s book. He doesn’t settle for anything less that perfect.

I was going to leave this post there. But I’ve just realised I’ve left out the most important thing – Jesus Christ. Jesus had a lot to say about truth. I’m not sure how many times He used the phrase, ‘I tell you the truth:’ because He said that quite a lot. But Jesus also went one step further… In one of His most famous statements:

“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” - John 14:6, NIV.

Jesus said that He was the truth. Again, that’s a pretty massive claim, and if He was the only one to say it, it’s pretty difficult for many people to distinguish it from hot-headedness.

If I may, I want to look at something that C.S. Lewis came up with. It’s often referred to as Bad, Mad or God, or maybe Liar, Lunatic or Lord. It refers to the three possible explanations for Jesus and His life – there can be no other explanation for Him having said the things He did. Either He was a ‘bad’ man, a ‘liar’, who had no good purpose on earth and sought to spread seeds of deceit amongst the people of the time. Everything He did was for His own personal gain, and He lied about who He said He was – the Son of God. Or, He was mad, a complete lunatic. He didn’t even know what He was saying. Or, He was (and is) truly the Son of God, as He said He is.

I find it hard to believe that Jesus was bad – even by reading a tiny part of the accounts of His life it is impossible to reach this conclusion. He healed people, raised them to life… He called for justice and mercy for the poor. He loved children and welcomed them openly. A bad man would never do any of these things if He was only out for himself. Jesus can’t have been bad – it doesn’t add up.

I also find it pretty hard to believe that Jesus was mad – we read of many accounts of men who are ‘wild’ or ‘possessed’ – the people of the time were pretty good at recognising when someone was a lunatic, and Jesus wouldn’t have been any different. He can’t have been mad. Why would they have believed Him?

All this leaves is that Jesus must have been the Son of God. Even that short logical analysis helps us to understand that that is the only possibility. It may be helpful to look at how long Christianity has existed and been believed, against huge opposition. It went against the entire Roman Empire and won. Something about Christianity must be true… Or how about we consider the resurrection of Christ? The Chief Jewish Priests and the Roman Governor all wanted to see Jesus dead, and remain that way for a very long time. Yet they could find no way of disputing His disciples’ claims that He was alive again. If they’d wanted to disprove the resurrection, they could have quite easily produced the body, and Christianity would never have existed. Jesus would have been forgotten.

It is impossible to ignore Jesus Christ – He is indisputably the most important and significant character throughout the whole of history. What He said must be true.

Of course, that might all be wrong. And if Christianity is all wrong, then Jesus is of no importance to anyone.

As C.S. Lewis also famously said:

“Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important.”

We cannot rationally ignore Christianity when we search for the truth. Everyone on the earth has this responsibility to choose for themselves what they should believe, and anyone who does not look at Christianity and ask what it’s really all about is shirking that responsibility.

Jesus said, “…the truth will set you free.” - John 8:31-32, NIV.

How He Loves

How He Loves is a song written by American artist John Mark McMillan. I really want to share this song and what its words are about – it has such an important message that we all need to take hold of and never let go. Click here to watch ‘The Story Behind How He Loves’.

The chorus of the song made an appearance at Soul Survivor in 2009 and featured on the 2009 live album, Not Ashamed. That year, the song was an anthem. When the song in its entirety was played and sung in 2010, it became an epic. Listen to the David Crowder*Band version of the song here on YouTube. JesusCulture, Soul Survivor, Spring Harvest and Passion also all feature the song on various albums.

Here are the lyrics:

He is jealous for me
Loves like a hurricane, I am a tree
Bending beneath the weight of His wind and mercy
When all of a sudden, I am unaware
Of these afflictions eclipsed by glory
And I realise just how beautiful You are and how great Your affections are for me

And oh, how He loves us so
Oh how He loves us
How He loves us so

We are His portion and He is our prize
Drawn to redemption by the grace in His eyes
If grace is an ocean, we’re all sinking
So Heaven meets earth like an unforseen kiss
And my heart turns violently inside of my chest
I don’t have time to maintain these regrets
When I think about, the way…

He loves us
Oh how He loves us
Oh how He loves us
Oh how He loves

I once described this song as being much too full of metaphors. Now, I honestly wish there were even more. I agree that this song, especially the verses, do take some getting used to. But once the unconventional words and phrases are out of the way and understood, packaged within this song is the most important thing that anyone can hear and come to understand, ever.

The chorus holds the key to unlocking the song. It is clearly about God’s love… McMillan says in ‘The Story Behind How He Loves’ that ‘love’ has become such a ‘non-word’, it is used in a throwaway fashion for things like, “I’d love a hamburger,” or, “I love sunny weather.”  The love talked about in this song is so much more than that. Often, Christians are taught about the four Ancient Greek words, agápe, éros, philía, and storgē. These have different meanings, or senses in which they are used; we are limited in English to having one word which covers a number of things. Often too, Christians are taught that God loves us in the agápe sense, unconditionally. There is nothing wrong with this, but I believe that God’s love is more than just that. God loves us with all the love that there possibly could be, agápe, éros, philía, and storgē. When I have heard in the past that, ‘whatever we do, God won’t love us any less, and He won’t love us any more,’ I always felt a bit put down that God wouldn’t love us any more. But when we understand that God’s love is every type of love there possibly is, it makes so much more sense. There is no way that God could love us any more because He already loves us the maximum possible amount. That’s something that we need to sing about! The chorus of this song is so simple but I wonder how many people really believe what they are singing and hearing. God loves us. It takes a while to get that worked out, but when it is, there is nothing else that is more amazing.

Part of that sounds a bit odd. The word éros refers to a sexual, passionate kind of love. This is what we expect from husbands and wives… It’s an odd thought to think that God loves us in that way. But He does. By turning back to the song, there are a few things which refer to this. In the second verse, the unforseen kiss was originally a sloppy wet kiss (David Crowder changed the word so it was more congregational). This speaks of the passion that God has for us. For me, unforseen takes away some of that feeling – an unforseen kiss is romantic and lovely, but a sloppy wet kiss is passionate and loving and intimate. God loves us intimately, passionately and in every way it is possible to love someone, including éros love. (If you’re not quite sure about this, see if you can get hold of How Great Is Our God, by Louie Giglio, it is an amazing DVD and talks about this a bit more. You can watch it in parts here on YouTube.) This idea also helps to understand the final line of the first verse, which talks about God’s affections for us. He is so affectionate for us, His love is like nothing we have ever encountered before. That’s why we sing about how beautiful He is – when you really think about it seems a bit odd but it’s so right – God is beautiful, and He loves us affectionately, passionately, intimately. God is our lover.

The first line of the second verse talks about we being His portion. Again, this is something about the song which almost doesn’t fit. Since when were we anything to God? Surely He doesn’t need or want us as a portion? But oh yes we do – we are worth everything to God. His love for us is so strong that we are worth Jesus. Where the song talks about God’s portion, it is all linked to this theme of love – often the Bible is seen as a love letter from God to His people, and God’s people, the church, are called the ‘Bride of Christ’. The relationship is modelled as a marriage because that is what it is like! Reading Song of Songs takes on a whole new meaning if the man and woman are seen as Jesus and His church.

All this talk about love…is there anything else that this song holds? For me, there is another major theme running through it. Grace.

I was told when I was younger to think of grace as God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense. This sums it up nicely – we are freely given God’s riches because of the death of Jesus. That is amazing. Grace is what sets the Christian faith apart from other beliefs, religions and faiths – other religions are all too often based upon ‘what can we do?’ in order to gain reward. Christianity doesn’t work like that! A Christian acknowledges that there is absolutely nothing that we could do to make ourselves good enough for God. There is no way that what we do on this earth will increase or decrease our chances of going to heaven – eternal life is a free gift. This is such a beautiful truth. God’s love was so strong that He did everything He could to save us. And He did it! The wonderful metaphor of the ocean of grace used in this song is powerful and true – we are quite literally sinking in an ocean of grace.

One day, when Christ returns in power and authority, we will be unaware of our afflictions. They will be so eclipsed by His glory that we won’t even remember what and who we are… We will see Him as He is – the Son of God, Prince of Peace, the Lord Almighty.

The one thing missing from this song is a response. There’s no point in God loving us if we don’t do anything about it. He won’t stop loving us if we stay silent, but we’d be fools to waste such an amazing opportunity. Soul Survivor added the following adaptation to the chorus:

We love You
Oh how we love You
Oh how we love You
Oh how we love

Oh how true that is.

There is no one less deserving of God’s love than us, and there is no one more deserving of our love than Him.

This is a beautiful song; a beautiful poem. I’m certainly going to be listening to it and singing it for a great number of years to come.

When we think about God’s love, how does it make us feel? Often we are caught up in our world, worrying about all of our problems and issues, but God’s love is an all-consuming force. We don’t have the time to maintain the regrets we have when we think about the way that God loves us.

Rest in His love.

Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” - Matthew 11:28-30, NLT.

He loves us.

Come Away

I think it’s time for an album review…

Come Away is the latest live recording from Jesus Culture, the youth movement based in Redding, California. Chris Quilala and Kim Walker-Smith are back with a bunch of pretty cool songs – all in all it’s a great listen. I haven’t got round to watching the DVD yet but I can imagine that it’s up to their usual high standard.

There are some outstanding tracks on this album. Track 3, You Are My Passion was released as part of the My Passion EP a few months ago. It is an amazing song. It was one of the four or five that they did when I saw them in Leicester in September 2010 and it works brilliantly live. The words are simple and easy to pick up, yet they carry so much meaning. Unlike a lot of the more recent Hillsong stuff it stays focused on one theme – a sign that a song will stick for years to come. Musically it’s brilliant – this is probably my favourite song from the album.

I don’t think there is really a track that lets it down – from start to finish it provides a worshipful, professional and Spirit-fuelled sound, drenched in truth-filled words and beautiful melody.

Jesus Culture are an interesting bunch. They have a unique style of making songs last for about 10-15 minutes – it’s really quite amazing when it’s live! I do wonder whether that should stay in the live environment and the albums should be more snappy, but it all comes down to the purpose behind the album. For example, Soul Survivor choose to keep the songs on the albums short and sweet, while at the festivals they do often keep songs going for a little while longer. The Soul Survivor Live albums are still worshipful, but they are closer to studio albums in that respect. For Jesus Culture, it is recorded exactly as it was on the night, including both times of silence and spontaneous vocals, and countless repeats of chorus after chorus. Perhaps this leads to the songs becoming a bit boring to listen to, and watching them on DVD might be more appropriate, but I really like it. It is their style, and it works. I have the album playing as I write this and I’m quite struggling not to concentrate on it. It’s captivating.

I suppose, as it’s now 2011, I should make some link to the New Year. I’m not a massive fan of placing lots of emphasis on the 31st December/1st January – it all seems a little trivial to me. Yet it does give us time to look back at the year gone and to look forward to what the next one might have in store.

People are often nervous or scared about the future. Looking forward can be very daunting – I am leaving school this year and in some ways that is a worrying thing. I’ve been quite happy for the last 14 years or so! Fortunately though, since the summer of 2010, the future doesn’t scare me. It excites me.

It’s so simple – God has a plan. He has got it all under control. While other people were perhaps struggling to decide which universities to apply to, and which course to do, I had the pleasure of being able to say, ‘God will be able to use me whatever I do, as long as I’m doing it for Him.’ It’s so liberating to be able to think like that! So whatever I end up doing this year, if God’s involved then there’s nothing to be worried about or scared about. Another favourite Bible verse springs to mind:

“…For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” - Jeremiah 29:11, NIV.

The title track of Come Away is a beautiful declaration of this truth. Here are the lyrics:

Come away with me, come away with me
It’s never too late, it’s not too late
It’s not too late for you

I have a plan for you
I have a plan for you
It’s gonna be wild
It’s gonna be great
It’s gonna be full of me

Open up your heart and let me in

That is what I’m expecting of 2011. It’s gonna be wild, it’s gonna be great, and it’s gonna be full of Jesus Christ! I want Him to take me where He wants me and to do with me what He wants. The only reason I’m still standing (well, sitting) is because God has another victory He wants to win through me.

For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. – Ephesians 2:11, NLT.

Have a great year.

–> You Are My Passion on YouTube.

All Glory

Earlier on this year, Nikki Fletcher from WorshipCentral released the single All Glory. If you want to have a listen, there is an acoustic demo available here, on WorshipCentral, along with a chordsheet. You can also download the song from iTunes – in my opinion it is very much worth the 79p I paid for it.

Feel free to decide for yourself what you think of the song. I love it – Tim Hughes did it at Momentum in the summer of 2010 and it was so powerful. Nikki Fletcher also has a wonderful voice!

I thought I’d take a few moments to look at the scripture it is based on. Jude 1:24-25 says:

Now all glory to God, who is able to keep you from falling away and will bring you with great joy into his glorious presence without a single fault. All glory to him who alone is God, our Saviour through Jesus Christ our Lord. All glory, majesty, power, and authority are his before all time, and in the present, and beyond all time! Amen. (NLT).

Like 1 Corinthians 13, this passage is one of my favourites. Jude is a very short book and is often overlooked and forgotten, but it is full of wisdom and truth.

I am in the process of reading the book Soul Survivor by Philip Yancey – it is a fantastic read where Yancey writes about 12 people who have helped to make him who he is. Practically every theological and religious topic is covered in one way or another, and it is a brilliant opportunity to explore the writings and lives of many influential people. Martin Luther King Jr, G.K. Chesterton, Leo Tolstoy and Feodor Dostoevsky are among those who feature. It is a compelling read and I highly recommend it – buy it from Amazon.

In Soul Survivor, I came across the most moving reference to this passage from Jude that I have ever seen. It is part of the chapter on Dr. C. Everett Koop, the Surgeon General of the USA from 1982 to 1989. He was a pioneer in the field of premature birth – saving hundreds of babies other medical professionals would consider a lost cause. During his time as the Surgeon General, he worked in the battle against AIDS, starting his 1986 report on the subject with the following:

‘At the beginning of the AIDS epidemic many Americans had little sympathy for people with AIDS. The feeling was that somehow people from certain groups “deserved” their illness. Let us put those feelings behind us. We are fighting a disease, not people.’ - cited in Soul Survivor, p. 183.

Unfortunately, Dr. Koop is not well remembered. His report on the effects of abortion on women in January of 1989 concluded that, ‘…the scientific studies do not provide conclusive data about the health effects of abortion on women.’ This became twisted by many ‘pro-choice’ groups, who proclaimed that, ‘Koop says abortion does not harm women.’ Dr. Koop, personally, was fiercely opposed to abortion. He had seen so many premature births grow to become healthy human beings, and it was a tragedy for him when he thought of the number of potential lives wasted. As his report on abortion seemed to contradict his own values, he soon lost credibility and he quietly resigned.

Back to Jude…here is the passage that broke my heart:

[Dr Koop's] serene faith was tested in 1968 when [he] suffered the most painful tragedy of his life, an event that profoundly changed his emotional make-up. Before then, Koop thought it a sign of weakness for a doctor to cry with grieving parents; afterwards, he found it hard not to. His son David, a twenty-year-old student, fell to his death in a mountain-climbing accident. David’s body lay on the rocks for fifty-two hours before rescuers could reach it, an excruciating ordeal for the Koop family. Yet Koop’s personal journal of the time, published as the book Sometimes Mountains Move, contains no hint of any wrestling with God. It ends with a quotation from the New Testament book of Jude, ‘And now unto him who is able to keep you from falling…’ followed by Koop’s own declaration of faith: ‘God was able, but in His sovereignty He chose not to.’ – Soul Survivor, p. 174.

What strength.

We can all learn from that passage. It helps us to remember that God is all powerful and God is able, and He is also wise and just. We need to trust that ‘in His sovereignty,’ He holds the world in balance. When circumstances hit us, they are not always from God. Yet God has the power and the authority to work for our good through all things.

And we know that in all things, God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose. - Romans 8:28, NIV.

God is working to His purpose in all things. All we need to do is love Him.

All glory to God who is able.

Restless

In the past 18 hours or so I’ve been getting a bit wound up. I hate that feeling – the reason for it is irrelevant – because it’s so hard to break free. It’s like a downward spiral, gripping you tightly and not getting go.

Sometimes, I need something to help me cool off a bit. Often this takes the form of time. Often, however, there is need for something more. Prayer is a wonderful way of finding release – we are privileged to be able to offload to an all-knowing God, who overflows with His love for us. Psalm 139 says:

You have searched me, LORD,
and you know me.
You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.
You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.
Before a word is on my tongue
you, LORD, know it completely. - Psalm 139:1-4, NIV.

God already know exactly what we’re going through. One of the greatest things about prayer for me is that God already knows what we’re going to say before we say it; He just loves it when we talk to Him and spend time with Him.

There is also another benefit to talking about things you’re going through – I’m sure psychologists would agree that talking to someone about problems and issues can be very beneficial. It’s important not to see God in this way – prayer is not some form of divine slot machine, useful for what we need, when we need it. Often, prayer involves a renewal of mind and a brokenness of spirit, as we make ourselves vulnerable in the presence of our God. Fortunately for us, He has amazing arms, which lift us up in embrace, holding us safe and true. This reminds me of the beautiful songs Safe and In My Love by Phil Wickham – I won’t talk about them here because they deserve an entirely separate post of their own at some point in the future.

Back to the title of the post. As I said, I’d been quite worked up about something, and sitting alone wasting time mindlessly with QI and Need for Speed: Carbon wasn’t helping. I then came across this wonderful song; it’s called Restless, and it’s by an American Christian artist called Audrey Assan. She has a really beautiful voice. Here are the lyrics:

You dwell in the songs that we are singing
Rising to the heavens
Rising to Your heart, Your heart
Our praises filling up the spaces
In between our frailty
And everything You are, You are

The keeper of my heart

And I’m restless, I’m restless
till I rest in You, till I rest in You
I am restless, I’m restless
till I rest in You, till I rest in You, oh God.

Speak now, for my soul is listening
Say that You have saved me
Whisper in the dark, the dark
I know You’re more than my salvation
Without You I am hopeless
Tell me who You are, You are

Still my heart, hold me close
Let me hear a still small voice
Let it grow, let it rise
into a shout, into a cry

It has a fantastic melody and its tempo is steady and considered; it was just perfect for me to break free of the negative feelings that were binding me. As for the lyrics…breathtaking.

Click here to listen to the song on Worship Together.

God is amazing. He holds my life in His hands, and this was one of those moments where I felt Him draw close and offer words of wisdom, through this song. This was a beautiful reminder of His care for me – how He is working for good in everything I do.

Scripturally, Restless is based loosely upon 1 Corinthians 13:12. If I had to choose a favourite Bible passage, 1 Corinthians 13 would probably be in the top three. If there’s one part of the Bible you should try reading, try this. It’s amazing.

If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing. If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it; but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing.

Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.

Prophecy and speaking in unknown languages and special knowledge will become useless. But love will last forever! Now our knowledge is partial and incomplete, and even the gift of prophecy reveals only part of the whole picture! But when full understanding comes, these partial things will become useless.

When I was a child, I spoke and thought and reasoned as a child. But when I grew up, I put away childish things. Now we see things imperfectly as in a cloudy mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely.

Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love. – 1 Corinthians 13:1-13, NLT.

What a morning of renewal and peace. God is gracious, loving and full of mercy.

Audrey Assad’s album The House You’re Building is available on iTunes.

Do you have anything that helps you to rest and find peace? Feel free to leave a comment…