Love That Sweats - Jon Walker

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Love That Sweats
by Jon Walker

 

We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith,

your labor prompted by love,

and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Thessalonians 1:3

 

 

When Jesus loves, he works up a sweat;

he rolls up his sleeves, gets on his knees, and washes our feet with his blood, sweat, and tears.

 

He labors at love, though his love is never like labor.

He’s a giver, not a taker, loving us into being with a gifted carpenter’s hands.

And he’s no slacker, loving us until we can take no more;

no more because we’re filled to overflowing,

his love spilling and splashing through our pores into the cores of those we love with his love,

a love’s labor not lost on a world that needs to be found.

 

He wrestles our fears and wrangles our doubts and labors at love until he’s exhausted,

lying prone in a garden,

drinking from God’s cup the nourishment necessary for one last heroic sweaty, bloody,

tearful lift of the Father’s infinite love; ready to die for God’s undying love.

 

A Jesus-love sticks to it,

even when the it seems like an unstickable fury that’s no longer fun or convenient or even something you want to do.

Jesus keeps on laboring in you and through you,

finishing what he started, loving until the last with a love that lasts forever.

John 13:1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Centurion Humility
by Jon Walker

 

For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one,

“Go,” and he goes; and that one, “Come,” and he comes.

I say to my servant, “Do this,” and he does it.

Matthew 8:9

 

 

Jesus noted the centurion in the Gospels was a man of extraordinary faith.

The Roman officer’s servant was sick, and with Jesus on the way to his home,

the centurion sent a message telling him there was no need to come.

 

He said, in essence, “I know all you have to do is give the word, and my servant will be healed.”

His faith didn’t require the physical presence of Jesus, not to mention the bells and whistles of signs and wonders.

But the centurion’s faith also reveals the foundation of biblical humility.

Instead of emphasizing his high rank, the solider first established his position under authority.

And that’s really all humility is: recognizing, confessing, and acting according to your position under authority.

 

Because he was a man under authority, faithful to execute the order of those in authority over him,

the centurion had an expectation that those under his authority would do the same.

And so he believed, in faith forged through experience, that Jesus was a man under the authority of God,

and, therefore, when Jesus gave a command, it would be carried out.

 

The centurion’s authority came because he was under authority

and that is the very thing that gave him the authority to issue orders.

Humility simply means we hold an accurate and unbiased assessment of our strengths and weaknesses.

We understand our shape and our gifts, and we’re aware of, but not fretting over, our limitations.

We see everything we have as a gift from God, and we know that without him we have nothing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Witchcraft of Rebellion
by Jon Walker

 

For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry.

Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He also has rejected you from being king.

1 Samuel 15:23

 

 

Most of us would be shocked and angered

if we found out a believer in our congregation was actively using a form of witchcraft to control people, places, things, and circumstances.

 

In spite of our fear, we’d fight back once we learned that the witchcraft was so powerful

it had entrapped whole families and small groups of people within the church.

In truth, such a form of witchcraft is present among many believers; it’s the incantation of rebellion.

Why does the prophet Samuel say rebellion is like the sin of witchcraft?

 

It seems to me the similarity between the two is an attempt to control your circumstances independent of God.

Witchcraft casts spells and summons spirits to alter the natural, and therefore, it assumes a role for which it has no authority. Rebellion uses disobedience, disharmony, and disunity to gain or maintain control of the situation.

 

Either way, you’re trying to rule from “I can,” rejecting any notion of “God can.”

And when you do that, you’re becoming one with the enemy, aligned with the very things that are in armed rebellion against God.

These things oppose God’s order of things and his work in your life.

“Not doing what God tells you is far worse than fooling around in the occult,” says the prophet Samuel (1 Samuel 15:23).

In that light and truth, will you let God rule, or will you rebel so you can rule yourself?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jesus and the Brooklyn Dodgers
by Jon Walker

 

Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink,

or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day.

Colossians 2:16

 

During World War II, a common practice among U.S. guards was to ask questions that, presumably,

only someone from the U.S. would know (in the days before the Internet and worldwide television).

 

They’d ask a question like, “What league does the Chicago Cubs play in?”

One legitimate U.S. general was held for several hours by security officers

because he put the Cubbies in the American League instead of the National.

 

Comedian John Belushi, in the early days of Saturday Night Live,

spoofed this kind of question in a skit where he was leading an American combat patrol

and they came upon a man who was clearly German.

Yet, Belushi asked him something like, “Who plays shortstop for the Brooklyn Dodgers?”

 

The German couldn’t answer, so Belushi put him at gunpoint. And the skit continued something like this:

One of the soldiers in Belushi’s squad asked, “Hey, Sarge, who does play shortstop for the Dodgers?”

 

Belushi jumps, saying, “Walters, if you don’t know the answer to that, you must be a German spy, too.”

And he orders Walters to stand with the German prisoner.

“Jordan, tell them who plays shortstop for the Dodgers,” Belushi says.

“Gee, Sarge, I don’t know who plays shortstop for the Dodgers.”

And so it goes until the only one left on the trigger side of the rifle is Belushi.

 

Then, one of the soldiers says, “Hey Sarge, at least tell us, who does play shortstop for the Dodgers?”

Belushi thinks for a moment and then gets a panicked look on his face.

He says, “Oh man, I don’t know. I must be a German spy, too!” And he joins the others.

 

The apostle Paul says this is the problem with the law:

We keep excluding people based on jot-and-tittle questions, such as what they eat or drink,

how they celebrate a holiday, or if they wear a tie on Sunday (Colossians 2:16).

 

God comes in grace, saying,

“The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love” (Galatians 5:6).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nurturing a Quiet Soul
by Jon Walker

 

But I have stilled and quieted my soul; like a weaned child with its mother,

like a weaned child is my soul within me.

Psalm 131:2

 

 

My older sister, Lori Hensley, a very serious prayer warrior,

once taught me to meditate on Psalm 131 to help me move toward God’s peace that passes all understanding:

 

We keep our hearts humble.

This doesn’t mean we have a low opinion of ourselves.

A humble heart means we know our position in Christ,

and so we stop being responsible for the things of which we were never responsible.

This frees us to live like God intended and allows us to make uncluttered choices that will move us closer to God.

 

We show the maturity of a weaned child.

The nursing child demands attention now, but the weaned child trusts and is content to wait.

We quietly center ourselves on God, peacefully, without agitation and anxiety, and trust God is actively supporting us.

 

We hope in the Lord with confident expectation.

Truth says God will answer our prayers; he will respond to our needs;

he will pave the path before us now and forever.

Psalm 18:36

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Who’s Advising You?
by Rick Warren

 

Counsel in the heart of man is like water in a deep well,

but a man of understanding draws it out.

Proverbs 20:5

 

 

We all need mentors – people who personally coach us in our walk with God.

 

When I am with a mentor, I ask questions. Asking questions adds to the quality of your life:

“Counsel in the heart of man is like water in a deep well, but a man of understanding draws it out.”

Proverbs 20:5

 

Every person has a reservoir of knowledge, skills, and experience to share and you’re wise if you learn to draw them out.

In fact, you don’t have to limit asking questions to just a single mentor who you meet with on a regular basis.

You can meet a “mentor” anywhere.

 

My suggestions is to keep a 3x5 card with you that has a list of standard questions you can ask

whenever you meet someone you can learn from; you then pull out your card and ask questions like:

 

· How do you handle stress?

· What have been the greatest successes in your life?

· What do you think contributed to that success?

· What did you learn from the greatest failure of your life?

· What would you do differently if you could start over?

· What kind of books do you read?

· How do you manage your time?

· How do you manage your money?

· What have been the greatest lessons you’ve learned?

· What have been the greatest surprises in your life?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Choices Control Your Calendar
by Rick Warren

 

We are each responsible for our own conduct.

Galatians 6:5

 

 

Your choices control your calendar and, as a result, your lifestyle.

Your choices are far more powerful than your circumstances.

You may not like how complicated your life has become yet, with very few exceptions,

no one is forcing you to keep your life complicated.

 

You have the power to simplify your life.

 

The Bible teaches,

“We are each responsible for our own conduct” (Galatians 6:5 NLT).

 

To me, that means God expects us to assume responsibility for our lives and to carefully choose how we spend our time.

That’s why I’ve spent years teaching people to discover why God placed them on this planet:

What is your purpose for being here?

 

Ultimately, it will be the donation of your life that will count far more than the duration.

In other words, it’s not how long you live – or even how much you cram into how long you live – it’s really about how you live.

Here are three essential steps to simplify your life:

 

· First, figure out your purpose, and then let your purpose guide the goals of your life.

· Second, organize your activities based upon your purpose.

· Finally, harmonize your schedule with your purpose; that is, bring your activities into agreement with your goals.

 

You have just enough time to do God's will while you’re here on earth.

You’ve been given just enough time to fulfill your purpose.

When you try to do more than God planned for you,

it’s only natural that you’ll find yourself constantly out of time or stressed over your schedule.

 

If it doesn’t fit the purpose of your life,

God doesn’t want you doing it. In fact, he may be overjoyed that you finally got the message and stopped doing meaningless activities.

 

He may even want you to add “rest” or “have fun” to your to-do list.

My prayer for you is that you will find relief from stress and a new sense of satisfaction

as you do only the things God created you to do.

 

 

 

 

 

Fall At Butchart Gardens, Victoria, B.C., Canada‏

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

from Marilyn van Oppen