Perseverance Archives -

“Thankful for Naming Our Rainbows?”

Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. — 1 Thes. 5:18 (emphasis added, NIV84)

Always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. – Eph. 5:20 (emphasis added, NIV84)

Ah, yes, it is that time of year again to focus on being thankful. I am truly grateful for this time of year, as it calls us to reconsider and refocus on what we are truly grateful for. With thankfulness in mind, perhaps you have heard the above two verses, but never together? Perhaps you have heard it taught from 1 Thes. 5:18 that we are to be “thankful in all circumstances” but not for all circumstances. I heard it again about a year ago….

But if this is so, then how does Eph. 5:20 fit into the “thanksgiving” framework? As you can clearly see from the “emphasized” “for”, we are to be thankful for every “thing”, and this clearly is “everything”. We are to be thankful not just for our food, our clothes, and our families, etc., but we are to be thankful for our circumstances, too. “For” them….

Why do you suppose the Lord is teaching us this? Perhaps one suggestion is: “Since He is working all things out for the good, I can be thankful for this hard, unpleasant—and rather difficult—circumstance knowing that the Lord is working even this out for the Good”? What do you think? Is this a viable observation?

If so, then allow me to share a thought from Emily E. Ryan’s Devotion from September 3, 2023, in Mornings with Jesus. She writes this:

…I recently realized that I not only name my weather-related storms, but I also name the storms in my life. I’ve survived Hurricane Miscarriage, Tropical Storm Unemployment, and many others. But what if I stopped naming my storms and started naming my rainbows instead? The Bible Says that Jesus created the rainbow to be a reminder of His covenant with us. … Within that promise is also a reminder that the storms of life do not have the power to destroy us. They may cause damage but even in their destruction they leave room for Jesus to step in and provide, teach, comfort, or save. If I stay focused on Him, I will always find rainbows at the end of my storms.

Join me in naming our rainbows, even before the stormy circumstances are over, because I know I can always give “thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus.”

Join me in the Naming Process,

Pastor Mike

“BAU???”

Jesus replied, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.” — Luke 9:62 (NIV84)

In the last blog, I talked about the “still small voice,” compared to always expecting the big & dramatic, now I want to talk about not going back to the proverbial: BAU = “Business As Usually” mentality. Again, with the small vs. dramatic in mind….

I realize that the above verse is rather intense—a high bar set, for sure, but what I want to focus on is the “looks back” portion of this verse which culminates a dialogue our Lord Jesus is having with those wanting to follow Him but with contingencies…. And our Lord’s answer is basically: “Once you commit to Me, don’t look back at how ‘things’ “used to be,”—deeply desiring and yearning for them, but rather look ahead to the exciting ‘things’ I have planned for you.” Basically….

You remember when Lot’s wife looked back at the city, right (see Genesis 19:26)? You remember when Peter looked back at fishing, right (see John 21:3ff)? Both were looking back at the “good ol’ days” and didn’t remember the Scripture, “Do not say, ‘Why were the old days better than these?’ For it is not wise to ask such questions” (Ecclesiastes 7:10 NIV84).

Comfort? Security? Familiarity? Whatever they were feeling and/or thinking when looking back, walking by faith with the Lord Jesus into the “unknown” future leaves all these behind only to find them in the Lord Jesus Himself…. He is our Comfort. He is our Security! He is our Family….

So, after our month of praying and fasting, what has the Lord prompted us as a church to step out in faith and do? Be it small & quiet or big & dramatic, let us step out and step forward, securely putting our hand to the plow; let us not gaze back, but look unto Jesus and follow Him into the future, where life is not “BAU”; but “Behold, I am making all things new” (Revelation 21:5 NABU95).

Confident of His Moving,

Pastor Mike

“Careful of Expectations”

¹¹The LORD said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by.” Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. ¹²After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. ¹³When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.

— 1 Kings 19:11–13 (NIV84)

Reading this account of Elijah’s encounter with the Holy One, I am awestruck at what is happening. I dare not minimize the “destructive” power of the wind, the earthquake, and the fire. Was Elijah terrified as the Israelites were in days of old when the fire was on the mountain (cf. Ex. 20:18-21)? I would suppose so.

But let us not get lost in this. For the LORD was not in any of these as He was in days of yore. No…, and remember, Elijah had just participated in calling fire down from heaven, so perhaps his expectations were similar: The LORD is going to show up in some dramatic, awesome way….

But He didn’t; not once, not twice, but three times He didn’t show up. HIS point? I think one aspect He was trying to teach us is: “Don’t miss me by expecting how I AM going to show up.”

All this to say, as we enter this month of Prayer and Fasting with our goal to seek the LORD’s Face, let us not have set or fixed expectation as to how the Holy One is going to “show up”. Now if you do not need this reminder, the pretend you are reading a page out of my personal journal because I do. Nevertheless, I am praying that I am alert to the LORD’s presence whether it is through His Word, through His People, through His “gentle whisper,” that “still small voice.” Or even through others we may not even know. But if we are alert, we will sense His presence. And our response? Perhaps as Elijah did: We will humbly pull our cloaks over our faces and stand at attention, “Yes, LORD, ‘Speak, for Your servant is listening’” (1 Samuel 3:10 NIV84).

Hope in His Appearing,

Pastor Mike

“Which Came First?”

¹³And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the Lord—the Lord of all the earth—set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap.” … ¹⁵Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water’s edge, ¹⁶the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away, … So the people crossed over opposite Jericho. ¹⁷The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firm on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.

. — Joshua 3:13–17 (NIV84)

As we read this account of Israel’s history entering the promise land to attack Jericho, we see an intriguing miracle: The waters “parted” and “the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground” (v. 17). This is the LORD’s obvious “allusion” to the parting of the Red Sea, and He used it to remind both the Israelites and the residents of Jericho, that He still has the power! (cf. Joshua 2:10)

Some “silly” questions: Which came first (1) Did the waters part before the first priest dipped his foot into the river; (2) or did his foot get wet and then the river “heaped up”? I ask this because they later stood on dry ground—not moist, not damp, not mushy; but dry! Ground. If his foot was wet, well, could the ground be dry…?

Silly as these questions are, the point I’m making is this: We get so easily distracted with the minutia of some life episode or Scripture passage that we miss the main point. In this case, the first two priests had to go first, and by faith they lifted up their feet and stepped into the river. Remember, as the Colorado is now as I write this, the River Jordan was a flood stage (v. 15), flowing deep and rapid! No easy step of faith. But they took it!

So, I am asking you to join me in realizing that what came “first” was the priests’ faith to lift their feet and step; what happens after this is the LORD’s “business”. So let us also realize that as we prepare our hearts for the Month of July’s fasting, this is our “lifting our feet” to step into a flood stage river, and trust to see what the LORD will do next.

Hope in the Resurrection Power,

Pastor Mike

“Rise Above the Noise of Joy-Stealers”

^“So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy.” (John 16:22 NIV84)

Has the hurry, bustle and rush of this season risen to such a loud roar that it has squeezed the joy out of life?

Our Lord Jesus promised that when we see Him (again), “no one will take away [our] joy.” But it has been said, we can give it away. Or perhaps, let the world squeeze Joy out of us…. What do you think?

If Joy is a part and parcel to the Fruit of the Spirit (ranking second in order); and if “the Joy of the LORD is our strength” (Neh. 8:10); and if we are to “Consider it pure joy, my brothers & sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance” (James 1:2), it seems somehow we have a role to play in preparing our hearts for the fruit of Joy to be “born” in our lives; wouldn’t you agree?

So as the noise of the Joy-stealers rises to a “feeding frenzy” hoping to devour all remnant of Joy in our lives, let us quiet our souls, turning a deaf ear to the shouts and screams of worry, doubt, insult and harm, and let us confess that “the Joy of the LORD is our strength,” and firmly believe that no matter what we are going through right now, “God is Good all the time no matter what,” because I am considering “it pure joy” as I face all these noisy trials of various kinds. Will you join me in quieting our hearts, preparing the “soil” to bear forth much fruit—especially the Fruit of Joy?

Let the silence in our souls drowned out the noise of the Joy-Stealers.

Peace,

Pastor Mike

“Rise Above the Noise of the Naysayers”

While Jesus was still speaking, someone came from the house of Jairus, the synagogue ruler. “Your daughter is dead,” he said. “Don’t bother the teacher any more.” Hearing this, Jesus said to Jairus, “Don’t be afraid; just believe, and she will be healed.” When He arrived at the house of Jairus, He did not let anyone go in with Him except Peter, John and James, and the child’s father and mother. Meanwhile, all the people were wailing and mourning for her. “Stop wailing,” Jesus said. “She is not dead but asleep.” They laughed at Him, knowing that she was dead. But He took her by the hand and said, “My child, get up!” Her spirit returned, and at once she stood up. Then Jesus told them to give her something to eat. Her parents were astonished, but He ordered them not to tell anyone what had happened. (Luke 8:49–56 NIV84)

It seems like the noise around us is only getting louder. But one thing I have noticed: In order to rise above the noise of the naysayers, we need to keep our eyes firmly fixed on Jesus and following Him into the night.

Even when the crush of the crowd, the jarring jolt of reality, and the mocking laughter of the naysayers gets ever louder, we still follow Jesus deeper into the night. It is only when we fix our eyes on Him, His voice penetrates the night and rises above the noise: “Don’t be afraid; just believe…!” Do you hear His voice? Do His words of reassurance and affirmation comfort you? Still your heart and let His voice rise above the noise of the naysayers.

Peace,

Pastor Mike

“Pray without Seeing?”

Okay, so maybe I’m slurring a pun here, but let’s pause and think about it. How often is the exhortation from Paul in 1 Thessalonians 5:17, “pray without ceasing” (NKJV), glibly said? Oh, we may pray without ceasing, but alas, often it is more praying without seeing, isn’t it?

I’m reminded of Elijah, especially because we have been praying for rain now for some time. And as of this writing there has been no rain in the valley…yet. Elijah prayed without seeing, didn’t?

Let’s look again at 1 Kings 18:41-46. In this passage we are reminded that it had not rained for over 3 years and apparently the time for drought was ending. So, Elijah “bent down to the ground and put his face between his knees,” and prayed (1 Kings 18:42 NIV84). Then he told his servant, not once, not twice, but seven times to check for rain. Surely some time passed between each investigation, wouldn’t you agree? And all the while Elijah continued praying without seeing. (His face was against his knees, right?)

The obvious question arises concerning our praying for rain. In anticipation of the answer I put the gutters down, even washed my windows, but I haven’t washed my car yet. And still no rain. I have had to ask myself, “how’s my praying without seeing coming?” Have I grown weary in praying… and not just for rain? The inventory was telling ….

Would you join me in continuing to “pray without seeing”? Maybe we can be an encouragement to each other? Beginning Wednesday, September 16, I am starting a once a month prayer-walk. We will meet at the church and begin there in our praying without seeing. See you there 7:00 pm?

Peace,

Pastor Mike

“Pray without Seeing?”

Okay, so maybe I’m slurring a pun here, but let’s pause and think about it. How often is the exhortation from Paul in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 glibly said? Oh, we may pray without ceasing, but alas, often it is more praying without seeing, isn’t it?

Peace,

Pastor Mike

Do Not be Distracted

Another lesson that the Lord exposed to me on my sabbatical was: “Do not be distracted”. It was consolidated at a friend’s church as he was speaking from Nehemiah.

Sanballat and Geshem sent me this message: “Come, let us meet together in one of the villages on the plain of Ono.” But they were scheming to harm me; so I sent messengers to them with this reply: “I am carrying on a great project and cannot go down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and go down to you?” Four times they sent me the same message, and each time I gave them the same answer. (Nehemiah 6:2–4 NIV84)

Many people will distract us. Some will do this intentionally, but the majority will innocently “interrupt” us. But I have found the greater battle is internal. I get so distracted between a good “task,” “project, or “activity” and the best. I must pause and seek the Lord’s face prior to engaging in any activity. A simple, “Lord, what do You want me to do now?” prayer should be sufficient for most times, but the larger projects, do you think these would require a more deliberate special seeking of the Lord’s face?

Join me on this journey to stay focused and “not be distracted”?

“Prayer Warning”

“Prayer Warning. Prayer Needed. But not just any kind of prayer; Prayer filled with Thanksgiving and Hope is needed!”

Have you ever had this warning scrolling across the prayer screen of your life? I have. Yep, although I was diligently praying, my Whine-O-Meter was pegging the Red Zone! Then the above warning scrolled across my prayer screen. Ouch!

I stopped and discovered: “Thanklessness sours prayer!”

If I am not praying with thank-fullness, then my prayers are sour and probably stink a wee bit…. So the Lord, in His Mercy & Grace, redirected my attitude (after some confession) and thus redirected my prayers. Now they are filling with Hope as well as Thanksgiving.

Oh, I’m still waiting on some “urgent” answers, but at least the waiting room is far more peaceful and calm—and hopeful, too!

Main Text— Ephesians 1:15–16 (NIV84)— ¹⁵ For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, ¹⁶ I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers.

Additional Scriptures to Renew Your Thoughts

But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ ….—2 Corinthians 2:14–15a (NIV84)

May my prayer be set before You like incense; may the lifting up of my hands be like the evening sacrifice.—Psalm 141:2 (NIV84)

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.—Philippians 4:6–7 (NIV84)

Heavenly Father, forgive me for my anxious, whiny thoughts which sour my prayers. Fill me with the Holy Spirit of thankfulness and hope. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Pastor Mike