Loving the Unlovable
Occasionally something I’m reading sends a message, or the Holy Spirit does, that is undeniable. I’m supposed to read it, ponder it, study it, meditate on it, start doing it, write about it, or something. It happened the other night. It was about loving others and allowing ourselves to be loved. I know what Carol and I have shared for more than 48 years now. I know how I feel about my daughters, sons in law, grandchildren and other family members. That is unmistakable. It is very much of a mystery, but it is common enough. This was somehow different.
Before I went to bed I was reading in my new book by Henri Nouwen, The Return of the Prodigal Son. He had seen a picture of that great Rembrandt painting by the same name and something about it hit home. There was God accepting and comforting broken humanity, with skeptics looking on. There is love, as good as it gets. The look on the father’s face is heart-wrenching; somber, a mixture of sorrow and joy, eyes closed. The wayward son is kneeling before him, his face buried in the father’s robes. The boy is filthy dirty, clothes in tatters, hair cut off, no beard, barefoot. We can only imagine other things that make him totally ‘unlovable’. Yet the father pulls the boy to himself and puts his hands on his shoulders pulling him close. Nouwen got the chance to see the original painting in the Hermitage Museum in Moscow. It apparently changed him forever.
Then I opened a page in Frederick Buechner’s book, A Room to Remember, where he speaks of love. A couple of pages I’ve dog-eared. In one place (page 45) he brings the command “You shall love the Lord your God…” into a totally different focus. He says that the final secret to this is that these words become less of a command and wind up being a promise; in other words, we will finally be able to love like we should. This seems to acknowledge the fact that we indeed cannot love God – or others as we should – without Christ’s love working in us, making it happen. We are too limited. Our righteousness is too unlovely; too dirty; too tattered; too barefoot; too incapable.
In another place (page 113) Buechner takes Christ’s words “Come to me…” and describes them as “fresh as air, clear as water, as unpoetic as bread. It is in ourselves that the poetry must happen if it is to happen at all.” This is the ultimate invitation to be loved.
After meditating on these two places and Nouwen’s experience, I began to wonder if I love God as much as I should or if I allow God to love me the way he wants. It seems that the only conclusion we can draw regarding love is that we indeed can’t experience love in either regard like we should – not on our own anyway. I look at the picture of the father accepting his wayward son and wonder, how is it possible to love like that? How do we love the unlovable? How do we love God like we should? How do we allow God to love us like that? How do we show love to cranky neighbors? We can’t, not without the love of God entering us first, transforming us, making us into his image. It’s his love that makes that possible. It has to start there. God does not have to work at loving us. It’s the way he is.
Less a command than a promise is how Buechner put it. I think I’m still waiting for that promise to come to fruition in my own life.
A Prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, no one ever loved like you. It is so profound that we can’t comprehend it. You took us into your arms when we were filthy, dirty, tattered, barefoot and totally ‘unlovable’. Fill us with that love that causes us first of all to love you without hesitation, and causes us to love others as we should. Amen.
Thanks be to God.
Tuesday, February 27, 2018
A Good God
A Good God
In the midst of Job’s catastrophes, he cried at one point, “The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” (Job 1:21, NRSV)
How is it possible for Job to say such a thing, especially after he lost everything, including all his children? Does God have the sovereign right to allow the death of a beloved one, or, to take them, as Job said? If we believe in His sovereignty then apparently he does. We are told that it is for a higher purpose, but that is also hard to grasp, especially since we live in the here and now, and cannot comprehend the long term effect of the tragic loss of a loved one; one who died in infancy; too young in life; suddenly and unexpectedly; or one who suffered a long time then died. How do we reconcile a “good God” with the reality of terrible losses?
We have heard of those who cannot come to grips with tragedy, and continue to look at God as a villain who did something terrible to them, or did not answer their prayers. God has become an enemy to them. There are also those who no longer believe God is involved in our lives at all.
Then there are those who remain faithful to God no matter what. My parents were like that. Before I was born, they went through the tragedy of losing two infant sons. Dad was laid off from his primary work for nearly two years. They still sent a daughter to college during that time. Other tragedies came, but their faith in the goodness of God was never in doubt.
Both of my parents died several years ago. They were ready, they were ill, and their passing seemed a blessing. Mom’s long physical suffering was over, and dad put away his aging body to take on a new one. Their faith in the goodness of God took them both home.
There is no way to adequately deal with that unanswerable question, “Why?” However, the Bible has a lot to say about God’s goodness. Here are a few passages from the NIV.
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” - Philippians 4:6
“For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving.” - 1 Timothy 4:4
“The Lord is good to all, and his mercy is over all that he has made.” - Psalm 145:9
“For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.” - Psalm 100:5
“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” - James 1:17
“So that we may boldly say, The Lord [is] my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.” - Hebrews 13:6
“Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.” - 1 Peter 5:7
“Be still and know that I am God” - Psalm 46:10
Perhaps the words Jesus uttered are the most powerful of all.
“Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone.” - Mark 10:18
This in no way covers all of the verses in the Bible on God’s goodness, but maybe they can “whet our appetite,” and encourage us to discover more.
In order to rest in God’s goodness and begin to realize that God is good, we need to be silent before Him; wait on Him. This will not be easy as we live in the here and now and cannot begin to see any long term benefits. In His time, however, we will see how good He is and will submit to His loving care. We will realize that He has been sustaining us all along. I hope these scriptures can give sustenance to all who are suffering.
God cares…He really does!
Thanks be to God.
In the midst of Job’s catastrophes, he cried at one point, “The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” (Job 1:21, NRSV)
How is it possible for Job to say such a thing, especially after he lost everything, including all his children? Does God have the sovereign right to allow the death of a beloved one, or, to take them, as Job said? If we believe in His sovereignty then apparently he does. We are told that it is for a higher purpose, but that is also hard to grasp, especially since we live in the here and now, and cannot comprehend the long term effect of the tragic loss of a loved one; one who died in infancy; too young in life; suddenly and unexpectedly; or one who suffered a long time then died. How do we reconcile a “good God” with the reality of terrible losses?
We have heard of those who cannot come to grips with tragedy, and continue to look at God as a villain who did something terrible to them, or did not answer their prayers. God has become an enemy to them. There are also those who no longer believe God is involved in our lives at all.
Then there are those who remain faithful to God no matter what. My parents were like that. Before I was born, they went through the tragedy of losing two infant sons. Dad was laid off from his primary work for nearly two years. They still sent a daughter to college during that time. Other tragedies came, but their faith in the goodness of God was never in doubt.
Both of my parents died several years ago. They were ready, they were ill, and their passing seemed a blessing. Mom’s long physical suffering was over, and dad put away his aging body to take on a new one. Their faith in the goodness of God took them both home.
There is no way to adequately deal with that unanswerable question, “Why?” However, the Bible has a lot to say about God’s goodness. Here are a few passages from the NIV.
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” - Philippians 4:6
“For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving.” - 1 Timothy 4:4
“The Lord is good to all, and his mercy is over all that he has made.” - Psalm 145:9
“For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.” - Psalm 100:5
“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” - James 1:17
“So that we may boldly say, The Lord [is] my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.” - Hebrews 13:6
“Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.” - 1 Peter 5:7
“Be still and know that I am God” - Psalm 46:10
Perhaps the words Jesus uttered are the most powerful of all.
“Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone.” - Mark 10:18
This in no way covers all of the verses in the Bible on God’s goodness, but maybe they can “whet our appetite,” and encourage us to discover more.
In order to rest in God’s goodness and begin to realize that God is good, we need to be silent before Him; wait on Him. This will not be easy as we live in the here and now and cannot begin to see any long term benefits. In His time, however, we will see how good He is and will submit to His loving care. We will realize that He has been sustaining us all along. I hope these scriptures can give sustenance to all who are suffering.
God cares…He really does!
Thanks be to God.
Tuesday, February 20, 2018
Calming Down
Something caught my attention today. I have been listening to a song on Youtube by the Rangers trio, one of my favorite groups back when I followed Southern Gospel music much more than I do now. The song was recorded in 1960, and is called Just to Live With My Faith In God. It speaks of a longing to have greater faith in our great God.
One line in particular struck me big time. The chorus starts, “He can move a mountain, he can calm the sea; He can walk the waters, he can save a wretch like me.”
By way of background, I got a new tv for Christmas in 2016 that we have really enjoyed. Carol got it and Mike and David set it up for me. Well, today, I noticed a red line on the right side of the screen, going from top to bottom. I contacted the manufacturer on the internet and was able to get into a chat with an agent who was qualified to help. I did that three times, and each time was told that I should go back to the website and make a service request and submit it. They said I should hear from them in a couple of days. I did this three times and finally found what I was looking for. In the meantime, I had to gather model numbers, serial numbers, software numbers and all kinds of stuff. The website was not very easy to navigate and my frustration was growing by the minute. Finally I decided to let it go and wait and see if they really will contact me.
Now, I have to admit, this is far from a serious life impacting issue, but it sure was frustrating. I still don’t know how this is going to be resolved.
Soon after that, I got to thinking how I was so upset with the tv and having to deal with the company, and how frustrating that was. I have a tendency to get impatient when ordinary things that should work right…don’t all of a sudden.
Then the thought ran through my mind from the line in the Rangers’ song, Christ can move mountains, he can calm seas, he can walk waters. Then a little more came to mind. He can touch blind eyes and make them see again. He can raise a child from the dead…and Lazarus. He can tell demons to go back to Hell where they belong…and they do. He can touch a leper and make him whole again. He can take a mere 5 loaves of bread and two fish and feed 5000 people. He can love Judas and the other disciples in a way that is beyond our understanding, even after they failed him. He can give his own life for us…and rise victoriously from the dead. Oh yeah, John even spoke of his role in creation. If he can do all of that…and stuff I can’t even think of, surely he can calm me down over a stupid tv. He did, by the way.
Paul said something in Ephesians 3:20-21 that is pertinent here.
“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.” (NIV)
Big stuff, little stuff (like tvs), it does not matter. He cares about us and is involved in our lives. Like Psalm 55:22 says, “Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.” (KJV)
No matter what that burden is, or frustration, or failure. Give it to him. Just be still and listen, and allow him to give his peace to you. Your issue may not be taken care of right away (my tv still has that red line on the screen), but he can reveal his presence as a reassurance that if we come to Him, he will give us the rest we are looking for.
Thanks be to God.
Something caught my attention today. I have been listening to a song on Youtube by the Rangers trio, one of my favorite groups back when I followed Southern Gospel music much more than I do now. The song was recorded in 1960, and is called Just to Live With My Faith In God. It speaks of a longing to have greater faith in our great God.
One line in particular struck me big time. The chorus starts, “He can move a mountain, he can calm the sea; He can walk the waters, he can save a wretch like me.”
By way of background, I got a new tv for Christmas in 2016 that we have really enjoyed. Carol got it and Mike and David set it up for me. Well, today, I noticed a red line on the right side of the screen, going from top to bottom. I contacted the manufacturer on the internet and was able to get into a chat with an agent who was qualified to help. I did that three times, and each time was told that I should go back to the website and make a service request and submit it. They said I should hear from them in a couple of days. I did this three times and finally found what I was looking for. In the meantime, I had to gather model numbers, serial numbers, software numbers and all kinds of stuff. The website was not very easy to navigate and my frustration was growing by the minute. Finally I decided to let it go and wait and see if they really will contact me.
Now, I have to admit, this is far from a serious life impacting issue, but it sure was frustrating. I still don’t know how this is going to be resolved.
Soon after that, I got to thinking how I was so upset with the tv and having to deal with the company, and how frustrating that was. I have a tendency to get impatient when ordinary things that should work right…don’t all of a sudden.
Then the thought ran through my mind from the line in the Rangers’ song, Christ can move mountains, he can calm seas, he can walk waters. Then a little more came to mind. He can touch blind eyes and make them see again. He can raise a child from the dead…and Lazarus. He can tell demons to go back to Hell where they belong…and they do. He can touch a leper and make him whole again. He can take a mere 5 loaves of bread and two fish and feed 5000 people. He can love Judas and the other disciples in a way that is beyond our understanding, even after they failed him. He can give his own life for us…and rise victoriously from the dead. Oh yeah, John even spoke of his role in creation. If he can do all of that…and stuff I can’t even think of, surely he can calm me down over a stupid tv. He did, by the way.
Paul said something in Ephesians 3:20-21 that is pertinent here.
“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.” (NIV)
Big stuff, little stuff (like tvs), it does not matter. He cares about us and is involved in our lives. Like Psalm 55:22 says, “Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.” (KJV)
No matter what that burden is, or frustration, or failure. Give it to him. Just be still and listen, and allow him to give his peace to you. Your issue may not be taken care of right away (my tv still has that red line on the screen), but he can reveal his presence as a reassurance that if we come to Him, he will give us the rest we are looking for.
Thanks be to God.
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