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Wisdom: The Foundation of Virtue by Kim Reisman

Scripture Focus:

Does not wisdom call, and does not understanding raise her voice? On the heights, beside the way, at the crossroads she takes her stand; beside the gates in front of the town, at the entrance of the portals she cries out: “To you, O people, I call, and my cry is to all that live. O simple ones, learn prudence; acquire intelligence, you who lack it. Hear, for I will speak noble things, and from my lips will come what is right; for my mouth will utter truth… I, wisdom, live with prudence, and I attain knowledge and discretion… I have good advice and sound wisdom; I have insight, I have strength… The Lord created me at the beginning of his work, the first of his acts long ago.”

Proverbs 8:1-7, 12, 14, 22 (NRSV)

 

 

Wisdom has always been the first of the virtues. It holds this distinctive position in part because it grounds all the other virtues. As we’ll see as we move through the year, the virtues are interconnected, each adding and enhancing the value of the others; each needing the others to make it what it is. Yet, while the rest of the virtues work together to deepen the individual meaning of each, wisdom appears to provide a foundation for all of them. Wisdom is the stage upon which the roles of the other virtues are played out. Justice is crucial, but we’re lost as to how to achieve it without wisdom to guide us when interests compete. Courage is laudable, but it’s mere rashness without wisdom to steer it toward a moral cause. Patience is important, but it becomes sabotage without wisdom to help us discern when the time for response is upon us. Love is the more excellent way, but it becomes simple sentiment without wisdom to shepherd us as we seek to put it into action.

When we speak of the virtues, we are speaking of the mystery of goodness. There is much we’ll never be able to comprehend or achieve. Wisdom, however, is the search for the truth in the midst of that mystery. For the Greek philosophers, wisdom was the intellectual virtue of knowing the truth. There are two stumbling blocks to truth: ignorance and ideology. Ignorance is simply not knowing; it’s not having wisdom because we don’t know the truth. In contrast, ideology is the twisting of the truth for the purpose of power; we don’t have wisdom because we’ve altered the truth for our own purposes.

In the biblical sense, there is more to wisdom than simply having knowledge. Thus, while ignorance was a great enemy in Greek philosophy, from the biblical perspective, ideology is the far greater evil. In the Christian sense, you can be wise without a great deal of knowledge; but you will never have wisdom if you seek to twist the truth. Rather than being an intellectual virtue, biblical wisdom contains a distinctly moral component. That component is prudence. We can have intellectual virtue but without the moral component of prudence we will not have wisdom.

Wisdom as prudence is a form of practical and moral reasoning. It’s the art of taking the time necessary to think things through and anticipate what might happen. It’s the common sense virtue of discerning what is true, what is right, and how to live. As we explore the virtues, we’ll discover how badly we need, as individuals and in our various societies, to awaken the virtues. As we seek to awaken them, we must first begin with wisdom. We no longer live in a world where order prevails, where there is one prevailing way and one prevailing truth. We live in a world of chaos, of diversity and competing truths. It’s in this world that we must rediscover wisdom and in so doing approach the mystery of goodness and draw closer to God.

As you pray and fast this month, bring your community to mind. What sort of conflicts exist – warring forces, each claiming to have the truth? Begin making a list of some of them. How might these forces be twisting the truth for the purpose of power? Within your Christian community – local and national – do you see signs of “competing truth” which threaten the unity of the Body of Christ? List those as well.

During the coming weeks, I pray you will become more aware of situations where ignorance and ideology are blocking truth and wisdom, and that you would press on toward a rediscovery of wisdom which moves you closer to the good, whole self God intended you to be.

Virtues Are Habits by Kim Reisman

Scripture Focus:

[God] will judge everyone according to what they have done. He will give eternal life to those who keep on doing good, seeking after the glory and honor and immortality that God offers. But he will pour out his anger and wrath on those who live for themselves, who refuse to obey the truth and instead live lives of wickedness.

Romans 2:6-8

 

Thomas Aquinas was one of the great champions of developing the virtues in our moral life. He described the two sides of virtue: power and habit. We’ve discussed power, now we turn to the idea of habit.

A habit is the fruit of repetition. The more we repeat a certain act, the more it becomes ingrained in us to do it; so that eventually we do it without even thinking about it. Human beings are creatures of habit. If you don’t believe this, take note of your morning and nighttime preparations. Do you do the same things or is each time different? How do you put your clothes on each morning? Do you put the same leg into your pants first every time?

My husband and son are wonderful case studies of habits. Before my husband, John, retired, he had an apple and a cup of coffee each morning before work, rain or shine. During the week, unless there was something special going on, he ate a turkey sandwich for lunch. He’s done these things for as long as I can remember. Not surprisingly, my son takes after his father. When he was young, it was crucial that Nathan wake up at 7:00am each school day. He didn’t need to leave for school until 8:00am and it only took him about 15 minutes to eat and get dressed, but if he overslept, it was not a good thing. I remember one day when he needed help with a knotted soccer cleat, and when John began to help him get it on, he said, “I don’t like putting this shoe on first. Do the other one first.”

Predictability, routine. We may chuckle at our idiosyncrasies, but our habits can provide us with a sense of security and stability. When they’re healthy and not compulsive, our habits can help to bring order and efficiency to our lives. Like all habits, good and bad, virtues develop through repetition and exercise. While God’s power in the virtues is essential, it won’t be effective in our lives unless we’re able to channel that power through disciplined practice. Moral development is much like a runner in training. God may have blessed the runner with the talent and power to run, but he or she won’t be able to compete successfully without hours of dedicated and rigorous practice.

Our use of the virtues is the same. We have the power from God but we won’t be successful unless we devote ourselves to diligent rehearsal. Developing our moral selves, then, is a day-by-day, step-by-step process of determination. It often involves making hard choices and following “the road less traveled.” In order to strengthen our characters, and move toward the good selves God created us to be, we need both the power of God’s grace in the virtues, and our own disciplined exercise of them. When we experience this combination, we encounter the possibility of the habits of virtue becoming second nature, moving us every closer to our created nature.

Virtues Are Gifts Offered to All People by Kim Reisman

Scripture Focus:

For merely listening to the law doesn’t make us right with God. It is obeying the law that makes us right in his sight. Even Gentiles, who do not have God’s written law, show that they know his law when they instinctively obey it, even without having heard it. They demonstrate that God’s law is written in their hearts, for their own conscience and thoughts either accuse them or tell them they are doing right. And this is the message I proclaim—that the day is coming when God, through Christ Jesus, will judge everyone’s secret life.

Romans 2:13-16 (NLT)

 

In our last discussion, I emphasized that virtues are a source of power for us, not simply a set of moral skills to be developed. Their power lies in the fact that they’re God-given, rather than humanly achieved. This can be a great source of confidence for us. We’re not alone in our quest to be the good selves God created us to be! God desires for us to be whole and is available always to provide us with the power to become complete and full human beings.

Because the virtues are gracious gifts of God that show the power of God’s goodness and love, they’re offered to all people. Each of us, regardless of our background, has access to the power of these virtues. They’re natural graces that are available to us simply because we’re human. They’re available to us because God desires all human beings to be whole and is dedicated to empowering them to be so. This is what Paul was referring to in our Scripture focus – Romans 2:13-16.

From the Christian perspective, the Gentiles are the world. This is a significant point for us. One of the unfortunate side effects of sin is that is causes us to delude ourselves into thinking that we, and we alone, are standing on the moral high ground. Certainly there are times when we’re blessed with insight and are indeed able to stand confidently on that hallowed hill. However, more times than not we’re mistaken; and our mistake is all the more grievous because we believe that we and/or our group is alone in rightfully claiming the moral high ground.

This is being played out vividly in the polarizations that mark so many cultures of our world, and Christians – of all political persuasions – are not immune. Our sin makes us unwilling to entertain the possibility that there might be a basis of legitimate, morally worthy opposition to ourselves. We can’t bring ourselves to admit that the people who disagree with us may have come to their conclusions through deliberate, thoughtful, maybe even prayerful consideration. This is hard for us to do because it makes us aware of the possibility we might be wrong and need to change our minds. It’s much easier and more comfortable to believe the other person is either crazy or stupid, or just not thinking straight. It makes us feel better about ourselves and our opinions, when we convince ourselves that if people just listened to us and tried to understand our point of view, they would change their minds and agree with us.

Paul’s assertion makes it clear that true moral character is not a matter of simply belonging to a particular group or holding a particular viewpoint. God provides all people, Christians and others, with the gracious power of the virtues. God offers them to everyone as a means of moving toward the good selves God created us to be. This means that if we are to take the virtues seriously in our own lives, we must also take them seriously in the lives of others. We must recognize that there may be others who disagree with us or who appear different from us, but who are also seeking to be morally serious in their lives. At the very least, this kind of recognition can open us to the opportunity for dialogue and productivity rather than accusation and acrimony. At its best, it can open us to the possibility of widening the commitment to the moral life that so many our societies so badly need.

The challenging implication is God provides all people, at least potentially, with the gracious power of the virtues. When we encounter others who think differently than we do, our wish should not be that they think like we do, but that they think like God does. That should be our prayer for ourselves, as well – to think like God.

Virtues as Gifts of Power by Kim Reisman

Scripture Focus:

And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. As it is written: “They have freely scattered their gifts to the poor; their righteousness endures forever.” Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness.

 

Justification and sanctification are two major aspects of God’s grace; however, they’re not the only manifestations of God’s love for us. There is a sense in which the seven cardinal virtues – wisdom, courage, justice, temperance, faith, hope, and love – are expressions of sanctification, God’s gifts of grace to us. As gifts of grace, they are indications of God’s goodness in our lives. Because they’re gifts of grace, they’re also gifts of power. The English word virtue comes from the Greek word arete. Arete literally means power. Therefore, the virtues are evidence of God’s power of goodness at work within us.

By providing us with these gifts of power, God has given us a means to address the conflict we find ourselves in daily. As we explore these virtues over the course of this year, we need to keep the idea of power firmly in our minds. The virtues are not simply moral skills that we attempt to master, they’re a source of power in developing our character because they’re God’s gifts of grace to us. Therefore, as we seek to be the good selves God created us to be, we don’t have to – in fact we can’t – depend on our own resources. Rather, we have the power of God’s grace to create, guide, and strengthen us.

Years ago, Steven Spielberg won an Academy Award for his powerful movie, Schindler’s List, which was based on the story of Oskar Schindler. Schindler was a German businessman during World War II and as you watch you realize that Schindler is anything but a virtuous person. He was married but kept a German mistress while at the same time having an affair with his Polish secretary. He was a drinker. He initially profited from the German war effort and served as a prison camp director. Despite all that, however, his story is remarkable. Using his position as a German industrialist, and later as the overseer of a prison camp, he was able through shrewd and often underhanded means to save more Jews during any other single person during the war. His story is moving and powerful; yet much of its power comes from the fact that Oskar Schindler was such an ordinary human being. He rose from obscurity before the war and returned to obscurity afterwards. His overall life was not one marked by virtue; yet for a few crucial years, he rose to the challenge before him, acting with courage and wisdom, working for justice, and motivated by love.

The virtue Oskar Schindler exhibited during those difficult years is evidence of the power of God’s grace to act in our lives. Left to our own devices, we continue along a mediocre path. Attuned to the power of God’s grace in our lives, on the other hand, we are provided the means to do great things.

Predicament and Promise by Kim Reisman

Scripture Focus:

When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation. For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son.

Romans 5:6-10

 

From the dawn of time, we humans have been both attracted to and repelled by the idea of goodness. We lift people up as heroes and saviors; yet relish the moment when they’re exposed as having feet of clay. We spend countless dollars on books, videos, programs, and workshops hoping that they will help us “be all that we can be.” Yet we deliberately sabotage those very efforts with bad habits that have infiltrated our daily living. We want to be good, but we aren’t always able. We don’t completely like being bad, but we sometimes don’t mind it. As Paul expressed, there seems to be a battle going on within us between the desire to follow the good and the allure of the evil that surrounds us.

This is the predicament of humankind. We’re all torn between the good and the evil. Recognizing this isn’t a call to wallow in guilt and shame or to throw up our hands in resignation. It’s simply recognizing an objective fact. But it’s an important first step in resolving the conflict.

A second step is to remember that as human beings, we all belong to a God who created each of us as one good, whole self. Our wholeness became marred by fragmentation and estrangement; and our goodness became supremely vulnerable and responsive to the presence of evil. And yet, our freedom to choose has never disappeared. We weren’t created to be puppets or robots. God wants each of us to recognize that we belong to God. God desires us to freely choose relationship, just as God freely chose to create us in the first place. Because of this freedom, we don’t have to give in to our inner responsiveness to evil. We can remember that “God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good.” (Genesis 1:31). We are always free to choose to be the good self God created us to be, or to become captivated by the evil that is all around us.

The next step on our journey is to realize that we don’t have to fight this battle alone. God offers hope for us as we seek to find a resolution to our struggle. The foundation of that hope is Jesus Christ, who through his death and resurrection has conquered the power of evil in the world. The witness of Scripture is clear: evil is a conquered foe. Our hope isn’t just in hearing that message, but in actually experiencing that victory in our lives. In any given situation, God’s grace is more powerful than the lure of temptation. As we seek to resolve the struggle within us, that’s where we must begin – with God’s grace.

God’s grace comes in many ways. Two of these are at the heart of Christian faith and experience: justification and sanctification. In our Wesleyan tradition, we use these words to talk about two basic experiences in our lives. Justification is the experience of becoming right with God. Justifying grace is the redemptive, healing recreating love of God that comes to us as a gift. When we recognize our sinfulness, earnestly repent, and accept the pardon that God offers us through Jesus Christ, justifying grace works in our lives to heal our relationship with God. We are reconciled and brought back into relationship with God.

Where justification is something God does for us, sanctification is something God does in us. Sanctifying grace is the grace that remains with us and empowers us as we move through our lives. With each experience we encounter, God’s grace is with us to strengthen us and give us the power to face whatever challenges we may encounter as well as to shape us after the likeness of Christ. It is a process, a life-long experience of spiritual growth empowered by God’s grace.

God has promised us grace and it comes in two specific ways – as the undeserved favor of God for our justification, and as the power of the Holy Spirit, enabling us to live in the ways of God. As we enter the contest between good and evil, we’re armed with the promise and power of God’s grace. It’s a power that has already won the victory. It remains only for us to claim that victory in the everyday living of our lives.

Bearing Fruit by Kim Reisman

Scripture focus:

Oh the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with scoffers. But they delight in doing everything the Lord wants, day and night they think about his law. They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season without fail. Their leaves never wither, and in all they do, they prosper. (Psalm 1:1-3, NLT)

 

I believe that as Christians we can do things that indicate to the world that God is at the center of our lives and that we take the witness of Scripture seriously in the choices that we make and the commitments we undertake. These actions make up our moral life. For Christians, there should be little, if any, difference between our “moral”life and our everyday life. The moral values that ground the Christian faith should permeate every aspect of our lives. The Psalms liken this kind of life to trees planted along a riverbank, bearing fruit year after year. That’s a wonderful metaphor for what our lives look like when God is at the center.

I love to garden. I enjoy flowerbeds and containers filled with blooms. Unfortunately, my prowess with indoor plants lags greatly behind my outdoor capabilities. Thankfully I’ve improved substantially and can now actually keep a plant alive within my home.

I have a friend, Phyllis, who, unlike me, has a wonderful green thumb, particularly when it comes to house plants. At any given time you can enter her home and there will be violets, cactus, and other plants, beautifully healthy, many with scads of blossoms. I recall seeing a lovely Christmas cactus in full bloom in her living room. I was amazed because I had a cactus just like it, but without the blooms. I didn’t even realize it could bloom, because mine had never had a single blossom.

Ever since seeing the beauty of Phyllis’s cactus, I have been disappointed in my own. It’s not that my cactus is unattractive. It’s actually quite pretty – a lovely deep green and very healthy. But it has never truly achieved its purpose – it has never bloomed. And thus, every time I look at it, I feel a sense of disappointment.

We were meant to bear fruit in our spiritual lives – not just interior fruit as our faith deepens, but external fruit, fruit that shows itself in the way that we live. If we develop our faith in such away that we are healthy and our spiritual lives are like my cactus, “not unattractive” but have never born fruit or blossoms, there will always be an underlying sense of disappointment. We will not have achieved our entire purpose. James was pointing us toward this truth when he asked, “Dear brothers and sisters, what’s the use of saying you have faith if you don’t prove it by your actions?” (James 1:14, NLT)

We are at our best when we have God’s Word ever before us and live in ways that reflect that. When we “delight in doing everything the Lord wants,” we too become “like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season without fail.”

As you pray and fast this month, reflect on the fruit you are bearing as you journey in faith. What actions make your faith visible to others? How might your faith life bear more fruit? What would you have to change to become more fruitful in your spiritual life? I pray that as you reflect, you will discover more and more ways to put your faith into action.

Praying From The Heart by Kim Reisman

Scripture focus:

And so they reached Jericho. Later, as Jesus and his disciples left town, a great crowd was following. A blind beggar named Bartimaeus (son of Timaeus) was sitting beside the road as Jesus was going by. When Bartimaeus heard that Jesus from Nazareth was nearby, he began to shout out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” “Be quiet!” some of the people yelled at him. But he only shouted louder, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” When Jesus heard him, he stopped and said, “Tell him to come here.” So they called the blind man. “Cheer up,” they said, “Come on, he’s calling you!” Bartimaeus threw aside his coat, jumped up, and came to Jesus. “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked. “Teacher,” the blind man said, “I want to see!” And Jesus said to him, “Go your way. Your faith has healed you.” And instantly the blind man could see! Then he followed Jesus down the road. (Mark 10:46-52, NLT)

 

Prayer is a powerful and productive force in our lives. It allows us to join with God in working not only in our own lives but also in the lives of others. The reverse is true as well. Prayer invites God to join with us in the unfolding of our lives and the lives of those around us. Unfortunately, we often overlook prayer as a connection to God and a source of direction and strength. Instead, we operate as though we were on our own.

It’s certainly true that God isn’t some cosmic waiter standing ready to jump at our beck and call. Our relationship with God is not one where we stand with power and look either across or down at God, making demands at every turn of our whim or fancy. Yet, as we appropriately lift our eyes to God, we will find God waiting with loving anticipation for us to pour out our deepest desires and dreams to him. Even more, we will discover that God longs to respond to those desires and dreams as well.

In The Life of Christian Devotion, William Law wrote,

 

All outward power that we exercise in the things about us is but as a shadow in comparison of that inward power that resides in our will, imagination, and desires… Our desire is not only thus powerful and productive of real effects, but it is always alive, always working and creating in us… And here lies the ground of the great efficacy of prayer, which when it is the prayer of the heart, the prayer of faith, has a kindling and creating power, and forms and transforms the soul into every thing that its desires reach after… It opens, extends, and moves that in us which has its being and motion in and with the divine nature, and so brings us into real union and communion with God.*

 

Law’s language can be difficult, but his message is simple. When we are connected to God through prayer, our wills, our imaginations, our desires can have powerful results. Prayer is a creating power that, when in communion with God, forms and transform us. God desires to answer the prayers of our hearts.

The world would have us believe that we are left to our own devices, with little power beyond ourselves. Society encourages us to look within ourselves. The message is that there is no truth outside our own personal experience or opinion and that should be enough to guide us. Social media encourages us to look to popular culture, to influencers and celebrities for answers to life’s difficult questions. They are the ones who can tell us how to manage the competing demands and commitments of daily life or guide us in determining how our faith fits the larger picture of our lives. The reality, however, is that the ultimate power to face all those issues is right before us, quietly waiting to be invited into the discussion.

When Jesus encountered people in his ministry, frequently he ask them, “What do you want?” Only when they responded with the prayer of their heart – “Teacher, I want to see!” – did he act on their desire. Jesus assured us that God knows our needs before we even ask; and yet, that knowledge never preempts the asking process. If we long to know God, we must be willing to tell God exactly that – I want to know you. Only then we will encounter the kindling and creating power of prayer that will not only draw us into communion with God but will also open us to God’s transforming energy in our lives.

As you pray and fast this month, I encourage you to reflect on the prayers of your heart. I pray that you will make those prayers known to God remembering that when we are connected to God through prayer, our wills, our imaginations, and our desires can have powerful results. Channel that power in the coming days.

 

 

 

*William Law, The Life of Christian Devotion, Abingdon; pp 85-86

Creating The Yet To Be by Kim Reisman

Scripture focus:

You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, because the work of the Son brings glory to the Father. Yes, ask anything in my name, and I will do it! (John 14:13-14, NLT)

 

Very soon we will be celebrating the resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth, by God through the power of the Holy Spirit. This transformative, mind-boggling, life-altering event points us to the future that God has planned for us and reminds us that we follow a God who brings dead things back to life and makes all things new.

This is tremendous news on its own, but there’s more! Through prayer, each of us is given the opportunity to participate in this productive, creative work of God. Prayer is the “shaping power of the future” [1] – the force God places at our disposal so that we might join God in creating what is yet to be.

Science has always fascinated me. I don’t always understand, but I’m always in awe of the many mysteries of the universe. One area that I find intriguing is quantum mechanics, the study of subatomic interactions. Researchers in this field theorize and offer evidence that the world does not come into being until a mind interacts with it. They have conducted experiments in which measuring the spin of one subatomic particle has, oddly enough, caused a twin particle miles away to have the opposite spin! It’s as though the observer is creating reality.

An equally mind-blowing finding comes from research in quantum physics where particles have been discovered that take on properties in direct proportion to the expectations of the people watching them. Though I can’t comprehend the full meaning of that discovery, it brings to my mind the image of millions of creative particles floating in our universe, each awaiting our direct instruction.

Years ago, Oscar Osorio was a drug-addicted, violent criminal in Villa Hermosa, Colombia. Oscar had grown up poor, resorting to stealing when he was still a young boy. He graduated to drug dealing, armed robbery, and violence. By the time he was in his late twenties, he had been in and out of jail numerous times, including Bellavista National Jail, which was one of the most dangerous prisons in the world at that time. One day, as he was sleeping off a drug binge that had left him lying on a sheet of cardboard for three days in a semiconscious stupor, he encountered pastor Jairo Chalarca. As Pastor Jairo passed Oscar, he said, “Jesus loves you and he wants to change your life.” Somehow those words penetrated Oscar’s drug-clouded head and he looked up. Chalarca began talking with him about the plans God had for him, plans far greater than sleeping on cardboard on the street, plans that had yet to be. He invited Oscar to church. Surprisingly, Oscar got up and followed him and as he listened to Pastor Jairo preach that day, Oscar wept for the first time in years. He felt himself begin to change. He heard Chalarca say, “Jesus Christ knows you. He knows exactly what condition you are in. If you come to know Christ, he will raise you up. He will change your life. If you want to meet Christ today, come forward and we will pray with you.

Oscar went to the front of the church and told Pastor Jairo he wanted the life he was speaking of, he wanted to know Jesus. Pastor Jairo put his hands on Oscar’s shoulders and began to pray. Afterwards, Oscar had difficulty putting into words what happened to him during that prayer; but he said it was something like feeling that a ton of weight was bearing down on him and he could not get out from under it. The weight was crushing him, suffocating him; but suddenly it was lifted, and he felt buoyant, strong, and free. The freedom he gained from that prayer affected his entire life. He stopped doing drugs. He left his life of crime and violence behind. The plans that had yet to be began to take shape. He got a job, became active in his church, and ultimately began fulltime ministry, preaching the gospel in Bellavista, the jail that had once housed him as an inmate.

Not all of us have stories as dramatic as Oscar Osorio. Yet, though his experience of Jesus Christ made manifest through prayer, he was able to see his future, not as a weight crushing down on him, but as a blank canvas upon which he and God could write.

We are granted the opportunity to experience that as well. Our lives may be complicated and busy. There may be elements that hem us in, weigh us down, and stress us out. But regardless of how difficult our present may be, our future is a blank canvas placed before us. Through prayer we are given the opportunity to participate in the works of God in the world – to join with God in creating what is yet to be – to write with God upon the canvas of our lives. Like the particles hovering in our universe waiting to comply with our expectations, we join with God in creating what is yet to be through the creative power of prayer.

As you fast and pray in this resurrection season, remember that we follow a God who brings dead things back to life and makes all things new. Remember that through your praying, you can tap into that shaping power of the future and join with God in creating what is yet to be.

 

 

[1] Laurie Beth Jones, Jesus in Blue Jeans, p122

Trusting Our Instincts by Kim Reisman

Scripture focus:

When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” “Well,” they replied, “some say John the Baptist, some say Elijah, and others say Jeremiah or one of the other prophets. ”Then he asked them, “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the Living God.” Jesus replied, “You are blessed, Simon son of John, because my Father in heaven has revealed this to you. You did not learn this from any human being. Now I say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and all the powers of hell with not conquer it. (Matthew 16:13-18, NLT)

 

Ever since he was a little boy, my nephew, Jacob, has been very in tune with his instincts. Frequently when playing with his friends, if things started to get out of hand in some way or move in a risky direction, you could hear him say cautiously, “I don’t know… I’ve got a bad feeling about this…” Throughout Scripture we see stories of persons who were able to trust their instincts as they followed God. They were aware of the ways and dangers of the world; and as they lived out their faith, they trusted their instincts not only as a source of protection but as a signal of how to follow God.

Much to the displeasure of his opponents, Nehemiah dedicated himself to rebuilding the wall. His enemies, Sanballat and Tobiah, made several attempts to get him to stop; but at each turn Nehemiah recognized that “they were just trying to intimidate us, imagining that they could break our resolved and stop the work. So I prayed for strength to continue the work.” (Nehemiah 6:9, NLT) Finally, under the guise of trying to keep Nehemiah safe, a friend urged him to stop working and go to the safety of the Temple; but Nehemiah’s instinct told him “that God had not spoken to him but that he had uttered this prophecy against me because Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him.” (Nehemiah 6:12, NLT)

Jesus had an innate sense of who was trustworthy and who was not. When the Pharisees were questioning in their hearts Jesus’ pronouncements of forgiveness, believing them to be blasphemous, Jesus “perceived in his spirit” their thoughts and confronted them (Mark 2:8, NRSV). When Peter declared him to be the Messiah, Jesus pronounced him the rock on which he would build the church, a profound sign of his trust that Peter would come through for him in the end.

Our inner instincts are a significant source of guidance as our lives unfold. While there remains much to learn about how instinct operates, I believe it is the prompting of God’s Holy Spirit within us. William Law was an 18th-century English clergyman whose writings have been very influential. He described this prompting well when he wrote:

The book of all books is in your own heart, in which are written and engraven the deepest lessons of divine instruction; learn therefore to be deeply attentive to the presence of God in your hearts, who is always speaking, always instructing, always illuminating that heart that is attentive to him.*

Our instincts are the natural means in which God communicates with us about truths we have no other way of comprehending. Learning to trust those instincts, being deeply attentive to the presence of God in our hearts, enables us to make strong connections between our faith and our daily lives. It is a way we become more in tune with our instincts, more attentive to the inner voice of God communicating with us. Prayer, along with other spiritual disciplines is the way we learn to trust the inner promptings we receive as we negotiate the challenges of life.

I find it interesting that our intestines are lined with the same type of tissue that surrounds our brains. In a strange way for me that similarity seems to account for the way our “gut” communicates with us. We must be open to that communication. We must be attentive so that we can hear God speaking to us, instructing us, and illuminating us as we make the connections between our faith and the activity of our lives. In this way we will better hear when God guides us saying, “This is the way, walk in it.” (Isaiah 30:21, NRSV)

As you pray and fast this month, reflect on the ways you have trusted your instincts. Recall situations in which trusting your instincts led you in the right direction. As you do this, I pray you will deepen your awareness of what your instincts are telling you and that you will remember that God communicates with us through our “gut,” revealing truths we have no other way of knowing.

 

 

*Joy of the Saints, Templegate, 1988, p90.

The Answering Place by Kim Reisman

Scripture focus:

The Lord is righteous in everything he does; he is filled with kindness. The Lord is close to all who call on him sincerely. He fulfills the desires of those wo fear him; he hears their cries for help and rescues them. The Lord protects all those who love him, but he destroys the wicked. (Psalm 145:17-20, NLT)

 

In Jesus in Blue Jeans: A Practical Guide to Everyday Spirituality, Laurie Beth Jones tells of serving as the executive director of a YWCA Girl’s camp. There was a girl, Carol, at the camp who had been a tremendous challenge to her. One day Carol invited Laurie Beth to walk with her up the mountain. About two-thirds of the way up, Carol stepped off the trail and asked Laurie Beth to look down. When she did, she saw a small area a few yards off the path, which had been cleared of all the weeds and brush and was surrounded by a carefully constructed circle of rocks. “I cleared away everything but the wildflowers,” Carol said self-consciously as Laurie Beth looked around. “From here you can see all of us down below,” she said as she pointed out the recreation field and each of the cabins. “That is why I picked this spot.” Carol continued tentatively, “I know I’ve been a lot of trouble for you…and I thought this might be a good place for you to come and get some answers.” Laurie Beth responded, “That is beautiful, Carol, I will call this ‘The Answering Place.’” (Laurie Beth Jones, Jesus in Blue Jeans: A Practical Guide to Everyday Spirituality, Hyperion, 1997, p 151-152)

As we move through our lives, it seems at every turn we’re confronted by questions. Questions about how we should behave, what we should believe, questions about our commitments, our priorities, our decision-making. Yet many of us forget that there is a place where we can go for answers. We lose sight of the fact that God is close by and available, ready to meet us wherever we are in order to hear us and respond. It is easy to become distracted and even overwhelmed by the demands of our lives so that the sense of God’s closeness begins to fade.

Moses often went up the mountain to the place where he would meet God and receive direction. When Elijah was fleeing from Jezebel’s soldiers, he went into the wilderness, encountered God in a still small voice, and discovered what he was to do next. As the time for Jesus’ crucifixion drew near, he went to the Mount of Olives to pray. It was his “answering place.” He knew God would be there to meet him, to listen, to answer all the questions he may have had and to guide him into his future.

In all the times of our lives, but especially as we approach the season of Lent, we need to be deliberate about creating answering places where we can meet God. Too often we act in haste, obtaining information but never taking enough time to carefully contemplate what we’ve learned. We’re faced with decisions and challenges but work to address them without tapping any of our faith resources. We need to step away, find a place and time where we can meet God, open ourselves to God’s movement within us, and seek God’s guidance and creative power in our lives. Laurie Beth Jones writes, “I need a viewpoint that allows me to look down on the everyday happenings of my life and see them as God sees them, placed in their proper perspective.” (p152) That is a viewpoint we all need; that is a viewpoint that strengthens the connection between faith and daily life. But we will be unable to gain such a viewpoint without deliberately seeking answering places, places where we can go to meet God, to come to know God better, and to allow God to inhabit the center of our lives.

Do you have an answering place? I hope so, and I pray that you are deliberate about going there. If not, I pray that you might find an answering place. A place where you can meet God and reconnect to the power God offers to direct and sustain you. And I pray that you would gain a God’s-eye view of the everyday happenings of your life so that you might receive answers to your questions and be guided into your future.