A Psalm for Good Friday

Good Friday Photography by Thomas York

The Psalms

22

A Cry of Anguish and Song of Praise
To the chief Musician upon Ai'jeleth Shahar, A Psalm of David.
1	My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?          Why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring?
2	O my God, I cry in the daytime, but thou hearest not;          and in the night season, and am not silent.
3	But thou art holy,          O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel.
4	Our fathers trusted in thee:          they trusted, and thou didst deliver them.
5	They cried unto thee, and were delivered:          they trusted in thee, and were not confounded.
6	But I am a worm, and no man;          a reproach of men, and despised of the people.
7	All they that see me laugh me to scorn:          they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying,
8	He trusted on the LORD that he would deliver him:          let him deliver him, seeing he delighted in him.
9	But thou art he that took me out of the womb:          thou didst make me hope when I was upon my mother's breasts.
10	I was cast upon thee from the womb:          thou art my God from my mother's belly.
11	Be not far from me; for trouble is near;          for there is none to help.
12	Many bulls have compassed me:          strong bulls of Bashan have beset me round.
13	They gaped upon me with their mouths,          as a ravening and a roaring lion.
14	I am poured out like water,          and all my bones are out of joint: my heart is like wax; it is melted in the midst of my bowels.
15	My strength is dried up like a potsherd;          and my tongue cleaveth to my jaws; and thou hast brought me into the dust of death.
16	For dogs have compassed me:          the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet.
17	I may tell all my bones:          they look and stare upon me.
18	They part my garments among them,          and cast lots upon my vesture.
19	But be not thou far from me, O LORD:          O my strength, haste thee to help me.
20	Deliver my soul from the sword;          my darling from the power of the dog.
21	Save me from the lion's mouth:          for thou hast heard me from the horns of the unicorns.
22	I will declare thy name unto my brethren:          in the midst of the congregation will I praise thee.
23	Ye that fear the LORD, praise him;          all ye the seed of Jacob, glorify him; and fear him, all ye the seed of Israel.
24	For he hath not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted;          neither hath he hid his face from him; but when he cried unto him, he heard.
25	My praise shall be of thee in the great congregation:          I will pay my vows before them that fear him.
26	The meek shall eat and be satisfied:          they shall praise the LORD that seek him: your heart shall live for ever.
27	All the ends of the world shall remember and turn unto the LORD:          and all the kindreds of the nations shall worship before thee.
28	For the kingdom is the LORD's:          and he is the governor among the nations.
29	All they that be fat upon earth shall eat and worship:          all they that go down to the dust shall bow before him: and none can keep alive his own soul.
30	A seed shall serve him;          it shall be accounted to the Lord for a generation.
31	They shall come, and shall declare his righteousness          unto a people that shall be born, that he hath done this.

This is one amazing scripture! Written a thousand years before the crucifixion, it chronicles with amazing detail the suffering of the Messiah upon the cross. It is instructive to lay this Psalm alongside the actual historical record of the crucifixion, found in the gospels: Matthew 27, Mark 15, Luke 23, John 19. According to Pastor Chuck Smith, "If you take just the prophecies of this one psalm alone and work them out with the law of compound probabilities, the chances of one person fulfilling them all would be one to 1 in 10 to 17th power (100,000,000,000,000,000). Yet Jesus fulfilled each one of these, in addition to over 300 prophecies concerning Him."

 I'm thankful that God left a prophetic footprint, one that satisfies the mind as well as the soul. I'm thankful for the sure word of prophecy and for the accurate record that has been passed down to us. Most of all, I am thankful for Jesus and that He willingly gave Himself to be crucified, to be buried, and to rise again the third day.

A Study in Contrasts

The notorious Jonah provides an interesting contrast to the story of Jesus calming the angry sea (Mark 4 and Matthew 8).

• In both cases, God's will was very clear. To Jonah, God said, "Arise, go to Ninevah, that great city, and cry out against it. . ."
• And to the disciples Jesus said, "Let us cross over to the other side."  There could be no argument in either case, His will was presented in a straightforward manner.
• Jonah acted in direct disobedience to God's will and went down into a ship headed to Tarshish, away from the presence of the Lord. The disciples, however, followed Jesus into the boat (Mt 8:23).
• For Jonah, "The Lord sent out a great wind on the sea, and there was a mighty tempest. . ."  The disciples encountered the same circumstances.  "And suddenly a great tempest arose on the sea, so that the boat was covered with waves." 
• The mariners guiding Jonah's vessel were afraid; the disciples of Jesus experienced that very same fear. 
• In both cases, the sailors carried on board a sleeping passenger. Jonah was fast asleep in the lowest parts of the ship; Jesus slept on a pillow in the hinder part of the vessel. 
• Finally, the sailors experienced peaceful calm only after offering up desperate prayers. In the one case the sea quit raging after they heaved Jonah overboard, and in the other story the calm was achieved at the Word of the Master.

Are there useful nuggets of truth that I can glean from this study in contrasts?

God is master of every storm, and can use them to chasten disobedience OR to exercise the faith of His obedient disciples. It behooves me to evaluate when I find myself in a tempest. Is this storm sent to chasten my disobedience? If so, I can take courage in the fact that He preserved even the recalcitrant Jonah. " The Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son." Hebrews 12:6 His unchangeable character assures me that as He was merciful to Jonah, He will be merciful to me.

On the other hand, I may be walking in 100% obedience to His will and yet experience a tempest. Will I hold onto faith even when Jesus appears to be asleep, unresponsive to my dire need? Or will I capitulate to my fears and encounter the rebuke of Jesus, "How is it that you have no faith?" The very clear choice is fear or faith. They are mutually exclusive.

Jesus may seem slow in arising to the rescue, but better to wait for Him than to mimic Jonah, who was slow to repent. He waited until AFTER the great fish swallowed him before he began to pray. How much wiser to follow the example of the disciples, whose desperate, "Lord, we perish!" awakened the Master to action. 

My heart, let not the noise of the tempest drown out the voice of prayer. 

The Eleventh-Hour Savior Part II

"Away despair; my gracious Lord doth hear.
Though winds and waves assault my keel,
He doth preserve it: he doth steer,
Ev'n when the boat seems most to reel.
Storms are the triumph of his art:
Well may he close his eyes, but not his heart."
~George Herbert

Storms may be the "triumph of his [Jesus'] art" but they sure do wreak havoc on mere mortals. Even for the rugged adventurist, a storm is a challenge, forcing him to relinquish his grip on the controls. A storm, like the "great tempest" experienced by Christ's disciples (described in Matthew 8 and Mark 4), reduces even the seasoned and worldly-wise sailors to helplessness, causing them to cry out in desperation, "Lord, save us!" 

Mark's account adds a little reproach along with their plaintive plea for help: "Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?"

Why is Jesus so maddeningly slow to act? Why is it He waits until the eleventh-hour to arise to their aid?

This question is especially perplexing in light of the fact that the disciples found themselves in this extremity precisely BECAUSE they were following Jesus. In Matthew's account, Jesus had issued the challenge to "Follow me," and the disciples took up that challenge by doing just that: "Now when He got into a boat, His disciples followed Him." Surely their obedience should have merited a safe, smooth passage across the lake?

Instead, their obedience earned them a fight for their life. A great tempest arose and their vessel was swamped. They were sinking fast, while Jesus slept peacefully on a pillow in the hinder part of the ship, the picture of perfect tranquility and apparently oblivious to their epic struggle. 

I can picture the disciples straining at the oars, feverishly bailing the water out of their vessel. They didn't want to awaken Jesus and at first they *thought* they could handle it. They were experienced fishermen, after all! They would prove themselves worthy, prove themselves competent to shuttle Jesus to the other side. Perhaps there was a little pride involved, perhaps they thought, "We can handle this one ourselves, no need to wake the Master." 

At last, having spent every ounce of their strength and exhausting every inner resource, they knew they were licked. Time to admit defeat and awaken Jesus. How could he sleep through such turmoil??

"Lord, save us, we perish!" followed by, "Don't You care that we perish?"

One can feel the desperation in those words, along with a tinge of reproach.

Jesus immediately rises to the need, rebuking the wind and waves and achieving perfect calm at His Word. Then He turns to rebuke the disciples, not for waking Him, but for their fearfulness and lack of faith.

It is an impossibility for a soul to be full of fear and faith at the same time. When one enters, the other must leave. Jesus' rebuke revealed the expectation He held for His disciples: that they would keep hold of their faith even in a tempest. How was this possible for them? How is it possible for me, a disciple of another generation, to maintain faith in the midst of a tempest?

The fact that Jesus expects faith reveals that it MUST be possible to achieve. A careful look at the text gives some clues that help the seeker find the key to success. First, the command of Christ in Mark 5:35 was, "Let us pass over unto the other side." As already noted, the disciples followed that command in obedience. The fact that Jesus used the pronoun "us" indicates that it was clearly His will for the entire crew to pass to the other side. Can anything thwart His will? Can any storm prevent Him from His stated purpose? Of course not, but the disciples had apparently forgotten this Word in the noise of the storm. 

The storm not only caused them to forget His stated purpose, but it also revealed a bit of insecurity, a doubt within their hearts. Did Jesus really care about them? If so, why had He abandoned them to this squall? Their inability to believe that He truly cared for them was a greater breach of faith than their inability to believe He could calm the storm.

And so it is I find myself identifying with the weaknesses of the disciples. Often I have embarked upon a mission, fully knowing that it was a God-ordained assignment. Sure enough, I've encountered tempestuous circumstances in opposition to my work, causing me to focus on the storm and to momentarily forget that my work was commissioned by the Master. Emotions falter, negative thoughts flood into my soul as fast as the water was flooding the disciples' vessel. 

"Jesus, where are You? Why aren't You helping me? Have you left me alone to be destroyed by these adverse circumstances?"

It is said that even steel can withstand only so much pressure, and will break if tempered too long. Disciples are tempered by their experiences, and Jesus knows exactly when we've had enough, exactly how much pressure is too much to bear. At that moment, and not one moment too late, He steps in and calms the storm and stills the tumult. 

The disciples had the advantage of the bodily presence of Jesus, visible to their sight and providing a certain measure of security. I don't have that, but I have something even better. "It is to your advantage that I go away," Jesus tells His disciples, "for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you, but if I depart, I will send Him to you." John 16:7

In the midst of the storm, the Helper bears witness with my spirit that I belong to God (Romans 8:16). He calls to my remembrance examples from scripture, like the above story of the calming of the storm, to remind me of His character. By these enablings I can cast out fear--not only the fear of the storm, but the fear of abandonment, of feeling that I am unworthy of His intervention.

Disciples usually don't have any problem believing that God is BIG enough to calm storms, the difficulty lies in believing He wants to do this FOR ME. This is a blatant lack of faith and displays an under-confidence in His love, and it is the thing that warrants a rebuke from Jesus. May God help me to lay hold of this truth: that because I believe in Him I shall not perish in the storm, but He shall delight to rescue me because by His blood I am accepted in the Beloved. 

Rescued, loved, thriving ever after. . . I love happy endings, don't you?

The Mark of a Great Teacher

"I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now." ~Jesus in John 16:12

I tend to see life through the lens of teaching, because that is my gift and passion. As I study the life of Christ via the scriptures, it strikes me that here is THE most elegant model for teaching:

•  Dialogue in an informal setting
•  Answering questions with questions
•  Learning from nature
•  Parables
•  Investing in a small circle of disciples

John 16:12 adds another nugget of truth to that list: knowing exactly how much the student can take and not exceeding that limit.

How difficult it is for me to place a limit on myself! I want to pour into my students' heads all the treasure that I've managed to store in my small cache of wisdom.. How prideful that is--they cannot bear it now. But the Spirit of truth will take any seed of wisdom that I sow in the fertile hearts of my students and He will continue to lead them into all truth. It's a promise: "When He, the spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all the truth..." John 16:13

This is so freeing for any teacher. When the student can bear no more, STOP! The Holy Spirit is able to finish the teaching session at a future time and place. He even has the capacity to create a hunger for learning and when that happens the student will leave no stone unturned until he has satisfied the need to know.

An old proverb sums this idea up pretty accurately: strike while the iron is hot.
Conversely, if you don't strike oil, stop boring!

Filled with the Fragrance

"Mary then took a pound of very costly perfume of pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped His feet with her hair; and the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume." John 12:3

Perhaps Mary, after witnessing the miraculous resurrection of her brother Lazarus, now felt the spikenard non-essential. Death no longer held power over her. The sweet fragrance, originally intended for the anointing of the dead, was now being enjoyed by the living. Mary lavished the spikenard upon Jesus, the author and the sweetness of life.

Celebrate life! Celebrate Jesus' presence at the table! Let the whole house be permeated with the oil of gladness!

"Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place. For we are to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing. To the one we are the aroma of death leading to death, and to the other the aroma of life leading to life." 2 Corinthians 2:14-16

A Marathon, Not a Sprint

"And we desire that each one of you
show the same diligence--->
to the full assurance of hope-->
until the end." Hebrews 6:11

Some twenty years ago, I was studying about the resurrection from the classic passage in I Corinthians 15. Although the doctrine of the resurrection had been deeply ingrained in my theology since childhood, it suddenly--whoosh!!--became a hope so sure, so solid that I was literally engulfed in the sweetness of it. The ancient fear of death vacated my heart and the full assurance of hope took up residency in its stead.

What if I had not exerted the effort to study that passage of scripture? The diligence of study was an invitation for the Holy Spirit to breath life into the truth, transferring it out of the mind's data bank and into the treasure vault of my heart.

Full assurance isn't obtained by minimal exposure to truth, but by diving into the depths. There is a labor involved in mining, a diligence required of the "workman who needs not to be ashamed, handling accurately the Word of truth." That diligence must extend PAST the assurance of hope. Once that assurance has been obtained, the directive in Hebrews 6:12 further warns us:

"do not become sluggish"

Human nature pulls me back, tempts me to be sluggish. The Apostle Paul is an example here: at the latter end of his years he continued in fruitful service even when confined to a Roman prison. He said, "I press on..."

"imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises." Hebrews 6:12b

That is why I like to read biographies. They are the ongoing chapters of the book of the Acts of the Apostles, the flesh and blood examples of saints who have inherited the promises via their persevering faith.

Some scriptural promises are not realized at all apart from persevering faith. My own perseverance is stimulated by the examples of those who have walked the road ahead of me. I take courage from their possession of the goods.

Christianity is a marathon, not a sprint.

My Candle Burns at Both Ends

My candle burns at both ends;
It will not last the night;
But, ah, my foes, and oh, my friends--
It gives a lovely light.

--Edna St. Vincent Millay

"My duty is never measured by what I feel is within my power to do,
but by what God's grace enables me to do."

--Andrew Murray

"A Christian poet of a bygone generation wrote a rather long hymn around a single idea: You can, by three little words, turn every common act of your life into an offering acceptable to God. The words are 'For Thy sake'....."

--A.W. Tozer

"For whosoever will save his life shall lose it, but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.

--Luke 9:24

I am a slow-paced person and my desire for a meditative life has been strong enough to enable me say "no" to many extraneous activities. I stepped out of my career when I was in my late 20's and ordered my life in such a way as to keep afternoons free for Bible reading, writing, and prayer. My candle burned steady & slow.

My 4th decade found me with 4 children under the age of 6. The quiet, meditative life was a thing of the past but the habits of that life lingered. I dropped nearly all outside ministries and commitments and allowed my little light to burn at home. Period.

Now in my 50's, I am acutely aware that my candle is no longer a tall taper. I could spare the wax so as to make the flame last a little longer, but for the first time in my life I feel the strong urgency to do just the opposite: to burn the candle at both ends.

In my roles as wife, mother, teacher, and friend my energies are constantly being poured out. Once, I would have resented the lavishness of the expenditure. Now I see that the unreserved burning creates the vacuum into which God may whoosh! send the fresh oxygen of His Holy Spirit to renew the brightness of the burning.

Sunday is often the day that happens for me. I'm truly learning what it means to rest spiritually on that day.

Lord, keep me burning till the break of day.

Tilted

This tree picture prompts the memory of a lovely thing, something enjoyed just last month. I had my morning devotions two days in a row beside this strange tree. As I read the words of Psalm 1, words which describe a tree planted by streams of water, I could see the living embodiment of the poetry right before my eyes.

Usually, I think of a lovely tree as being straight & symmetrical. This one does not conform to the standard definition of beauty. It is unbalanced, leaning heavily in the direction of the water. The branches that extend over the shore are short, while the branches that extend over the water are longer, appearing like fingers straining to reach into the cool flow.

I guess my life is a lot like that tree. I've tilted myself heavily in the direction of the eternal flow, actively seeking the Living Waters. That choice has forever ruined me in the world's eyes: I bend away from its attachments and appear rather lopsided as a result.

I am comforted by this scene because this tree is a thing of beauty in spite of its asymmetry.
With arms reaching toward the eternal, the less I want to extend myself to the world and the less I care about conforming to its standards.

Lord, make my life such a thing of beauty.

Mathematical Probability and Messiah

Yesterday, in my teen Sunday School class, we discussed eight of the Old Testament prophecies concerning the coming of the Messiah. There are actually over 300 predictions, but we scaled our study down to just eight. Some of the predictions included the place of His birth (Bethlehem), the piercing of His hands and feet (Psalm 22), the appearance of a forerunner, his burial among the rich, etc.

Then we discussed mathematical probability. What are the chances that ONE MAN could fulfill even eight out of the hundreds of predictions?

With a little help from Peter Stoner, who devotes a great deal of time to this issue in his book Science Speaks, we discovered that the probability was:

1 chance out of 100,000,000,000,000,000 !!!

I think I would have enjoyed math more as a teen if I could have seen these kinds of connections. My hope for my students is that they will see that God has provided for us abundant evidence so that any thinking person may have complete confidence in His Word and His Son, Jesus.

Even Peter, who walked with, listened to, and touched the Messiah gave credence to the more sure word of prophecy:

"And so we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts."
~ 2 Peter 1:19

That is my prayer: that those teens in my class will pay attention to the prophetic word and that understanding would light their lives. So let it be done, Lord.

Enter into the Joy!

"....they shall rejoice in their portion.....everlasting joy shall be theirs." Isaiah 61:7

As one who has been reading the scripture daily for over 30 years, I know that my receptivity is not static. There are days I delight in the words and consciously revisit them throughout the day. And there are days~~yes, and sometimes seasons, of dryness. Like last Tuesday's dinner, the spiritual meal seemed nondescript and it didn't take long for it to evaporate from my memory bank. But even a nondescript meal serves its purpose: it nourishes me.

It has been a long time since I have wept over the Word of God. But this morning I had the time to deliberate over the book of Isaiah. I read the last half of the book at one sitting, and the words were so startlingly beautiful that it brought tears. The description of the new heaven and earth in chapter 65 and vicinity awakened an aching longing for a home that I have not yet glimpsed.

What struck me particularly this morning was the fact that joy is a very real part of the reward that God has in store for the righteous. We usually think of rewards in terms of crowns and inheritance~~ and this is certainly valid by scriptural standards.

But equally valid is the intangible reward of JOY! In the parable of the talents (Matthew 26), the Master rewards the faithful slave by inviting him to "enter into the JOY of your master." (emphasis added). How wonderful it is to have a Master who joys over us with singing, and who allows us on occasion to experience just a wee foretaste of the joy that will be such an integral part of our future reward.

"Go eat of the fat, drink of the sweet, and send portions to him who has nothing prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength." Nehemiah 8:10

What Question Would You Ask a Creation Scientist?

"For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse..... " Romans 1:20

Creation science is a subject of great interest to me, and from time to time I like to read a book on the subject to keep myself current. This week, I have the added privilege of hearing a creation scientist, Dr. Mace Baker, give special presentations on the subject at our church.

We heard last evening about the fossil record and how it argues against uniformitarianism and for the catastrophic world flood detailed in the biblical account of Genesis. Dr. Baker had the knack for making the information understandable--something I surely appreciated, not only for my own sake but for the sake of the many children who were listening. He had the rapt attention of the children; it seems they have an innate interest for this subject.

Happily, our family had the delight of inviting Dr. Baker to put his feet under our table, and to enjoy a more informal exchange. We peppered him with so many questions, he finally had to beg off so that he could save his voice for the evening lecture!

One of my questions was, "What advice to you have for homeschooling parents who seek to provide their children with a sound science education, but at the same time desire to preserve unwavering faith in the biblical record?"

His answer surprised me a little. He suggested I obtain a public high school biology text rather than to use one from a Christian publisher. As the students work their way through the text, all FACTS are to be highlighted in blue, and the ASSUMPTIONS in yellow. Keep track of these on a separate sheet of paper, the facts in one column and the assumptions in the other. Then discuss~~do any of the blue highlighted facts absolutely preclude creation? Do they speak for evolution? What do the yellow highlighted items assume?

Dr. Baker's assertion is that the facts will speak clearly and that reason will demand that evolution be placed in the category of "assumption".

He told us about a friend of his, a professor who used this method of teaching with his college level biology students. Because it was a secular college, the professor was not allowed to overtly share his Biblical belief in creation. But NONE of his students left the class believing in evolution, no elegant sermons required. Facts speak; truth appeals to reason (Acts 26:25).

What question would you ask a creation scientist?

The Threefold Strand

www.art.com

I love the Greek word for "ministry" found in the New Testament. It is diakonia~~dia=through and konia= dust. True ministry entails going "through the dust" with another person. I like to picture Jesus and the disciples walking the dusty roads together as they engaged in itinerant ministry in Palestine. "Then He (Jesus) appointed twelve, that they might be with Him..." Mark 3:14-15 (emphasis added) Wouldn't it be wonderful to walk those miles with Jesus? I picture a more leisurely pace than we have today; time to engage in unhurried conversation. Much true discipleship takes place in these informal moments of interaction.

But what does it mean to go through the dust in our own culture?

It means adding strands to the cords of love that bind us together. When we rub shoulders with another person in one context only, such as at a church service, we have a simplex relationship~~a single strand. But each time we eat together, go fishing, share holidays, combine campsites, help each other move furniture, clean ovens together, or dip our paintbrushes in the same bucket we are adding extra strands to the cords of community that knit us together.

I've been blessed these past couple of weeks in many of the ways mentioned above. I like to think I've been walking the dusty roads, but it is hard to tell if I've been on the receiving or the giving end of the deal. I do know that Jesus has been our unseen walking partner. And as we have journeyed together, simplex relationships are developing into multiplex relationships. And a threefold cord is not quickly broken.

Modeling Grace

"Then He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach, and to have power to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons:" Mark 3:14-15 (emphasis added)

I usually think of the twelve apostles in terms of their calling to preach, heal, and cast out demons. But their first calling, before all of that activity, was to simply be with Jesus.

When a disciple spends a great deal of time with his or her teacher, some of the learning is "caught" rather than "taught." The teacher imparts intangibles by modeling truth in everyday living. The disciples were with Jesus as He walked, ate meals, handled large crowds, confronted opponents, and blessed children. They never had formal training in crowd control or conducting children's ministry; they simply watched Jesus.

When I think of discipling others, I think first of my own children. Though I consciously and carefully prepare lessons for them in our homeschool and in our devotional time, much of what they learn from me is "caught".

They catch my attitude when they watch me engaging in crowd control (hordes of neighbor kids in our pool), as they see me offering hospitality, or simply mopping the floor.

As they are with me, I wish my disciples were immune to "catching" my sin. My little students no doubt learn new ways to sin from me, because, unlike the Master Teacher who was spotless and blameless, I am a fallen creature.

Ah, but there is grace that is greater than all my sin. And after these entrusted to me have been discipled, have been with me as the twelve were with Jesus~~ then there will come a time when they will be sent out. This is parenting by faith; expecting His grace have the upper hand.

"And with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all." Acts 4:33

LORD, I have need of your great grace. May that grace be upon us all this day. Amen

You Must Be Born Again

My Beloved is both my spouse and my Pastor. Last night my soul was fed bountifully by a sermon that he prepared as the kick-off message for a conference at our "daughter" church. It was from John 3:3, entitled "You Must Be Born Again." My initial impression, after hearing the title was a rather bored, "Oh, one of those basic-for-beginners messages." But I was wrong. As the apostle Peter stated, it is good to be stirred up, to be constantly sharpened as to the basic tenets of our faith by way of reminder.

John 3 tells of the nocturnal visit that Nicodemus paid to Jesus, and of the famous imperative that Jesus spoke to him: "You must be born again." Apart from being born again, Jesus said,

*He cannot see the kingdom of heaven
*He cannot enter the kingdom of heaven


Nicodemus had credentials, status, and power. He was a ruler of the Jews, a Pharisee. Perhaps he was sent to Jesus as a spokesman for others, for he approaches Jesus with the words, "WE know you that You are a teacher come from God...."

Externally, Nicodemus appeared to be righteous and religious. But there was something missing internally. Jesus put his finger on this lack when He said, "Are you the teacher of Israel, and do not know these things?"

Nicodemus had neither seen nor entered the kingdom of heaven. He saw the kingdom only from an earthly perspective; he needed to be born again before he could glimpse heavenly realities.

Birth is man's entryway into the natural world. Spiritual birth is the entryway into the kingdom of heaven. Before that birth takes place, our eyes are blinded to the heavenly kingdom and we cannot see it.

"....whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them." 2 Corinthians 4:3-4

In the Corinthians passage, the blindness is to be" wrapped with smoke" or to be surrounded by a smoke screen. It is impossible to see or enter the kingdom of heaven until that smoke screen is blown away by the wind of God's spirit. Then, our spiritual eyes can glimpse the things of another realm.

"The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit." John 3:8

"Eye has not seen, nor ear heard,
Nor have entered into the heart of man
The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.
But God has revealed them to us through His spirit."
I Corinthians 2:9-10a

It is fascinating to study the wind, the breath of the Spirit. God breathed on Adam (Genesis 2:7) and he became a living being. But sin has caused man to literally "lose his breath." To be born again means that we have recovery of breath, or revival.

There is a beautiful passage in Acts that says "Refreshing times come from the presence of the Lord"~~~meaning that we have recovery of breath when we are refreshed by the Spirit. Conferences and retreats often provide for me that much needed season of refreshing and recovery. I get out of breath as I am busy about this life. Gratefully, I acknowledge my Lord's kind provision in giving me refreshing times, recovery of breath.

Life in the Language

"And half of their children spoke the language of Ashdod, and could not speak the language of Judah, but spoke according to the language of one of the other people. So I contended with them....."
Nehemiah 13:24-25a

Ben-Yehuda had a dream. Like Nehemiah before him, he felt consternation over the fact that the Hebrew language was not the spoken tongue of his people, the Jews. In the late 1800's Hebrew was the language of the Torah and the language of the prayer books, but otherwise it remained a virtually unspoken tongue. Ben-Yehuda's dream was to revive the language.

Like all good leaders, he began the work by setting an example. Arriving in Palestine in 1881, he required his own family to converse in Hebrew at home. He encountered obvious challenges; what is the Hebrew word for bicycle? Ice cream? Omelet? New words had to be created to accommodate modern life. Ben-Yehuda kept lists of the new words he created and published them in the newspaper.

As an example, the word "menorah" came from the ancient Hebrew word "candelabra" with the modern word for "light bulb" (norah) added on.

It seems that God smiled on Ben-Yehuda's dream. Shira Schwartz, a resident of Samaria, tells what it is like in Israel today:

"Hebrew is read here; Hebrew is spoken here; Hebrew is the language of jump rope songs....and jokes children tell...."

She goes on to speak of Hebrew newspapers, John Grisham novels translated into Hebrew, children text messaging friends on the cell phone in Hebrew.

I wish I could share the entire article Shira has written on the subject; I found it riveting. The article is contained in a newsletter available by subscription through Christian Friends of Israeli Communities.

My mind goes back 30+ years, when I was a student in Bible College. 1974 was a groundbreaking year in that the first woman in the history of the college enrolled in a Hebrew language class. Prior to that, the class had been taken solely by male pastoral students.

How much has changed in 30 years! Now there is a plethora of Hebrew language resources available to children, students, homeschoolers, or anyone who has the interest. I am tempted to incorporate it into our homeschool, but at the moment Latin is all I can handle.

This morning I took the time to re-read Ezekiel's vision of the valley of dry bones. I have reprinted it here. Isn't it a fitting picture of the revival of the Hebrew language?

The Dry Bones Live

The hand of the LORD came upon me and brought me out in the Spirit of the LORD, and set me down in the midst of the valley; and it was full of bones. Then He caused me to pass by them all around, and behold, there were very many in the open valley; and indeed they were very dry. And He said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?”

So I answered, “O Lord GOD, You know.”

Again He said to me, “Prophesy to these bones, and say to them, ‘O dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! Thus says the Lord GOD to these bones: “Surely I will cause breath to enter into you, and you shall live. I will put sinews on you and bring flesh upon you, cover you with skin and put breath in you; and you shall live. Then you shall know that I am the LORD.”’”

So I prophesied as I was commanded; and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and suddenly a rattling; and the bones came together, bone to bone. Indeed, as I looked, the sinews and the flesh came upon them, and the skin covered them over; but there was no breath in them.

Also He said to me, “Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they may live.”’”

So I prophesied as He commanded me, and breath came into them, and they lived, and stood upon their feet, an exceedingly great army.

Then He said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They indeed say, ‘Our bones are dry, our hope is lost, and we ourselves are cut off!’ Therefore prophesy and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD:
“Behold, O My people, I will open your graves and cause you to come up from your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel. Then you shall know that I am the LORD, when I have opened your graves, O My people, and brought you up from your graves. I will put My Spirit in you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land. Then you shall know that I, the LORD, have spoken it and performed it,” says the LORD.’”

Ezekiel 37:1-14

Inductive Bible Study

inductive |inˈdəktiv| adjective-Reasoning in which general principles are derived from particular facts or instances; a means of studying Scripture which proceeds from the observation of numerous, separate and individual facts rather than beginning with general principles or propositions.


I was first introduced to inductive Bible study as a student in Bible college, in a "Methods of Bible Study" class. At that time I was just learning the disciplines of study and so I never really mastered the inductive method. I just dabbled at it.

Fast forward a dozen years. I was reintroduced to the inductive method of Bible study when I attended a week-long workshop with my husband. The hours of daily, hands on practice enabled me to develop confidence, and mining the scriptures inductively became a passion and a joy.

The wonderful thing about IBS is that it only requires a good translation of the Bible, a pencil, and paper. It is simple to learn and implement, but very effective in bringing out the gems of truth in the Word of God. Junior High and High School students are well able to learn and benefit from this method, making it ideal for homeschool.

In a nutshell this is is what you learn in a workshop:

• How to break down difficult passages of scripture into "bite size" pieces.
• How accurate observation of a text clarifies Scriptures and makes the Word come alive!
• How to develop study tools for effective interpretation and application.
• How to make simple outlines of entire books of the Bible for easier learning and teaching.
• How to chart a text once it is outlined to further break text apart and see it's depth.
• How to teach the Bible in a way that others can follow.

From time to time, we offer an Inductive Bible Workshop at our church for the benefit of of congregation. The materials we like best to use were developed by Intensive Care Ministries, a missions organization that has served to train thousands of pastors and leaders in third world countries. Imagine what this tool means to a man of God who has no access to the commentaries and study materials so readily available to us in the U.S. It means that pastor or leader will have an inexhaustible supply of healthy food for the "sheep", the people of God.

Check out the inexpensive resources~ they would be great to use in a homeschool, learning co-op, or small group study. The program can be ordered on DVD or done as a correspondence course.

As I looked around the room during our workshop last week-end, I saw 50 people of all ages thoroughly engaged and focused on learning. I wondered within myself, "How will this one investment of time change their way of thinking? What changes will be brought to their lives and their homes as a result of actively pursuing the truth contained in scripture?"

I can say "AMEN" to the words of John the Apostle:
"I have no greater joy than this, to hear of my children walking in the truth." III John 4

In Retrospect: The Best of 2006~~ The Saint John's Bible/ The Sistine Chapel of Calligraphy

"Thus speaks the LORD Good of Israel, saying: 'Write in a book for yourself all the words that I have spoken to you.'" Jeremiah 30:2

A four million dollar Bible?

Yes, and worth every penny.

The yet unfinished Saint John's Bible is a masterpiece in process. Written by hand in flowing calligraphy, the work has been entrusted to Senior Scribe to Her Majesty the Queen, Donald Jackson of Wales. In his own words, "The Bible is the calligraphic artist's supreme challenge (our Sistine Chapel), a daunting task." This project exhibits book art at its best.

Commissioned by the Benedictine monks of Saint John's Abbey (Collegeville, Minnesota), the St. John's Bible is being fashioned in the same slow, meticulous way it would have been done in the era before the printing press. The scribe's instrument is a goose quill; hand-mixed ink is laid on smooth vellum. The Bible measures 2 feet by 3 feet and will contain a thousand pages when finished.

The art work is thought provoking; the illuminations are gorgeous with plenty of color and gold-leaf. Yet those features serve only as seasoning. The words of the sacred text remain front and center, the main focal point.

I had opportunity to view this Bible on a high-traffic day at our community's art museum. But in spite of the crowd, people were not hurrying. There was an almost reverential hush as people responded to the invitation of the words to stop, to linger, and to read.

I count myself richer for having had an opportunity to view the Saint John's Bible. Not rich enough, however to purchase a reproduction with a price tag of $115,000!! I do hope, however, that many museums will do so and bring the beauty of this lovingly worked project to greater public attention. It is wonderful to see scripture honored for what it is: the Living Word of God.

Read more about the Saint John's Bible and view pictures here.
More about Donald Jackson at this site.

"Happy is he who has the God of Jacob for his help....
Who keeps truth forever." Psalm 146:5-6

The Servant King

In the state of half-consciousness that comes between sleep and wakefulness, I was aware of the fact that my back was exposed. On it were welts and stripes forming a network of crisscrosses. Along each stripe were tiny words, cruel words; the very words that have haunted me for the past year.

But then I became aware of His radiant presence. He was standing beside me, holding a bowl of clear, cool water and holding a towel.

"I have come to wash your wounds," He said.

"Lord," I answered, "Not just my back, but all of me!"

"You are already clean because of the Word I have spoken. It is enough that I wash your stripes."

And then I awakened (?), or came to full wakefulness. A hymn of praise was running through my mind, praise to the Savior who girds Himself with a towel and serves the one whose wounds are so insignificant compared to His own.

Book Review: How to Master the English Bible by James M. Gray

Semicolon referred to an article in her blog which really captured my interest. Entitled "How to Change Your Mind", the article outlines an approach to Bible study known as the synthetic method. The inverse of studying verse-by-verse, the synthetic method calls for reading a book of the Bible in its entirety at one sitting. Over the course of a month, this is repeated at least twenty times. The goal is to master the content; to understand the big picture, purpose and theme of a particular book.

One of the reasons I was so interested was because this was the method of scriptural study advocated by the most godly woman I ever knew. An elderly woman, Mrs. Hannah mentored my husband and me when we were but newlyweds in our mid 20's. She positively radiated love and was a vibrant, intelligent conversationalist. Often, she encouraged us to choose a book of the Bible and to read it over and over again until it became a permanent possession of the heart. The pages of her own Bible were tear-stained; the proof of the suffering she had endured as a young woman when it had been her lot to become a bride, a mother, and a widow all within the space of one short year.

I have used Mrs. Hannah's secret of Bible study on occasion; especially when preparing a series of lessons for speaking. I have found it to be fruitful and fulfilling. So why haven't I made it my long term goal to study each and every book of the Bible in this way? I am ashamed that I have held this simple secret so long and done so little with it.

The women's Bible study that I lead will be using the synthetic approach this year instead of studying verse-by-verse, as has been our practice. I think both methods have merit; but it seems for me the time has come to complement the one with the other. Short books of the Bible are the obvious choice for beginning. We have completed the book of Ephesians this month and will go on to study Colossians next time.

My Bible study journey has led me to a resource which nicely describes the blessings, benefits, and means of studying synthetically. Entitled How to Master the English Bible by James M. Gray, it is a quick read (69 pages). Written in 1904, used copies are easy to find. A new paperback edition is also available from Amazon.

James M. Gray, the author of How to Master the English Bible, was a contemporary of D.L. Moody and was invited by Moody to teach this method of Bible study to his congregation. Classes became so popular that they engaged up to 4,000 participants. Apparently, there was much fruit in those days. I long to see that kind of hunger for God's Word in our times, don't you?

Lord, make me hungrier still for Your Living Word.

Another excellent review of the book may be found here.

Weaving, the Art of Queens

In his book, _Sesame and Lilies_, John Ruskin speaks of weaving as the "art of queens." Addressing well-to-do art lovers, he speaks scathing words because they have not used this skill to adequately clothe the poor.

A quote from the book:
"Six thousand years of weaving, and have we learned to weave? Might not every naked wall have been purple with tapestry, and every feeble breast fenced with sweet colors from the cold?"

He then uses the words of Christ as a reproach:
"I was naked, and ye clothed me not."

All of these lofty ideas were running through my mind as my seven year old daughter, Artiste, tackled her first weaving project this week. All of my girls have been introduced to weaving by making a simple potholder. It is a satisfying project for a young girl, because it can be finished in an hour or two and produces something both lovely and useful. My older girls quickly graduated to using a larger loom and making more substantial items.

Creative pursuits train little hands to be skillful and little eyes to notice details. But there is much more than skill and self satisfaction involved. Domestic arts provide young ladies with a tool by which they may contribute to the welfare of others.

It may seem that giving the gift of a simple potholder would not benefit another person a great deal. But consider the following incident.

A few years ago, a good friend of mine lost her mother. We all grieved for her loss.
This happened at about the same time my oldest daughter, Melody, had been honing her weaving skills. Melody had such compassion for my friend, and immediately asked, "Mom, could I make her some potholders?"

Now most people give flowers as a gift of condolence. But my friend got potholders.
They were woven with love and sympathy, tangible evidence that my daughter cared.

That incident is one that I have treasured in my heart. And I think it epitomizes John Ruskin's ideals. Sometimes we feel so small and insignificant in the midst of worldly sorrow and brokenness. I cannot feed or clothe the multitudes en masse, but I can touch the soul of others, one potholder at a time.


"She layeth her hands to the spindle, and her hands hold the distaff; she stretcheth out her hand to the poor. She is not afraid of the snow for her household, for all her household are clothed with scarlet." Proverbs 31:19-20

Domestic arts are not frivolous. They serve a meaningful purpose in life and provide the means by which we might serve our fellow man.