Marching Orders

 

Marching orders

 

          On Saturday I was watching this cartoon called Young Justice on the DC Comics streaming network and on this one episode Miss, Martian, Robin the Boy Wonder, Kid Flash, Superboy, Aqualad and Artemis all wake up in different places and have no memory of the mission.  As Christians we’re on a mission ourselves and sometimes we lose sight of it.  We need a reminder.  God has called us to reach the lost who don’t follow God.  Our mission parameters also hold us responsible. 

Proverbs 24:11-12

          “Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward slaughter.  If you say, ‘But we knew nothing about this.’  Does not he who weighs the heart perceive it?  Does not he who guards your life know it?  Will he not repay each person according to what he has done?” 

          Churches are supposed to be on a rescue mission we’re like John Rambo trying to rescue the POW’s in First Blood part 2.  Some of you have bought into the thought that we’re expendable when a lost and dying world need us more than ever!  The band Petra compared the Christian church to a sleeping Giant and they were right it needs a wakeup call.  Are we pointing others to God or are we just playing church?  Get back in the rescue mission!  Our mission orders though we may have forgotten them remain the same. 

2 Peter 3:8-9

          “But do not forget this one thing dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years and a thousand years are like a day.  The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise as some understand slowness.  He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”

1 Corinthians 1:18-25

          “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing but to us who are being saved it is the power of God For it is written ‘I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.’ Where is the wise man?  Where is the scholar?  Where is the philosopher of this age?  Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?  For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know Him.  God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.  Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has called both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.  For the foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom and the weakness of God is stronger than man’s strength.”

Romans 1:16

          “I am not ashamed of the gospel because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.”

 

          I want to conclude with this from a song called Face the Nation by 4 Him

          “We tell the Lord we'll go
Where He would have us serve
But sometimes honest vows
Become just token words
Never fulfilling the call
That's been given
When just outside our door
There waits a world in need
So many breaking hearts
That only He can see
We have the power that's found
In His Word
But we have to reach out
If we're gonna be heard

And Jesus said to them, "Go, therefore
And make disciples of all nations.
Baptizing them in the name of the Father
And the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching
Them to observe all that I commanded
You. And lo, I am with you always, even
To the end of the age." (Matt. 28: 19-20)”

 

 

 

 

Sleeping Giant by Petra

 

Face the Nation by 4Him

 

Until the Whole World hears by Casting Crowns

 

Independence Day by Whiteheart

 

You can see the World by Whiteheart

 

 

 

Gracious

 

Gracious

 

          It’s an often used word.  We use it as an exclamation when saying “Goodness gracious.”  We call people a gracious host or hostess.  Recently I finished reading through Psalms and I saw it a few times.  A few nights ago I read the word again. And it got me thinking so I had to use the google monster to get a better understanding of the word gracious.  Gracious: behaving in a polite, kind and generous way, especially to people of a lower rank.  A gracious act by or gift from God is kind and forgiving.  Also it means being kind, thoughtful and aware of others. 

          There’s a specific passage I thought of when I considered the word gracious.  But first a history lesson.  Numbers 6:24-26 is a High Priestly blessing given by God to Moses to give to the High Priest Aaron to speak over the people of Israel.  Being a preacher’s kid, I have heard my dad speak this over the church congregation.  I have heard other preachers use it too.  It has been turned into a song by Misty Edwards called “Light of Your Face” and that song has one of the coolest guitar riffs you’ll ever hear.  Michael W. Smith quotes it at the end of his cover of the Rich Mullins song “I See You” on his cd Worship Again.  He also used it in the Bible reading plan Still day 3 on the Youversion app.

Numbers 6:24-26

 

          “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you.  The Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.”

          One of the definitions mentioned being kind towards a person of lower rank.  We as humans are created just a little lower than the angels as mentioned in Hebrews 2:6-8  This next verse I’m going to share should be our prayer because we need God to deal kindly with us.  This was the verse that started this whole blog you’re participating in.  It got me thinking about the word Gracious. 

Isaiah 33:2

 

          “O Lord, be gracious to us; we long for you.  Be our strength every morning, our salvation in time of distress.” 

 

          I mentioned before that the verses in Numbers were a song and I want to end with that. 

 

O Lord, bless me
And keep me
Cause Your face
To shine on me
Lord, be gracious
Let the light of Your countenance
Give me peace

[Chorus]
For I live only
To see Your face, so shine on me
For I live only
To see Your face, so shine on me

[Verse]
O Lord, bless me
And keep me
Cause Your face
To shine on me
Lord, be gracious
Let the light of Your countenance
Give me peace

[Chorus]
For I live only
To see Your face, so shine on me
For I live only
To see Your face, so shine on me

 

 

 

Light of your face by MistyEdwards

I see you by Michael W.Smith

My Soul songs for you byMisty Edwards

Like Innocence/ Sometimes byStep by Hillsong

Ever Be by Bethel Music

Repurpose and Refocus

 

Repurpose and Refocus

 

          We live in a very chaotic time.  Life in America is crazy right now.  Things at my job and maybe yours have been probably crazy too.  I’ve felt a bit like I’ve had a loss of focus and purpose for a few days.  If you’re not a writer, it may be hard to grasp.  Let me try to explain.  If you follow the Marvel Avengers movies there’s a scene where Tony Stark uses this round object to prop up a machine to work on his Iron Man armor.  A few movies later the same object gets repainted and becomes the shield of Captain America.  Sometimes we like that shield let our focus and attention in life get on things when we need to get our focus and purposes of our life back on God.  Real life example.  I have to work on benefits for my insurance.  You can ask my wife Marion I very much became upset and angry with the design of the website and the people not answering the phone.  My attention and focus much like that shield must be repurposed. 

          We need a fortress, a refuge, and a fountain.  For those of you paying attention that just gave me the Scooby-Doo confused look just wait it will make more sense momentarily. 

Proverbs 14:26-27

          “Whoever fears the Lord has a secure fortress, and for their children it will be a refuge.  The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life turning a person from the snares of death.” 

          We first need a healthy respect for God and we need to seek him and get our eyes off ourselves.   

Colossians 3:1-4

          “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.  Set your mind on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.  When Christ, who is your life appears, then you will also appear with Him in Glory.” 

          It’s a battle for our attention that we are fighting.

1 Peter 5:6-9

          “Humble yourselves, therefore under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.  Cast all your anxiety on Him because he cares for you.  Be alert and of sober mind.  Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.  Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.” 

          This is part of a song by Kim Hill and it’s so deep we need to remember where our attention and focus should be. 

          “Holy, You are still holy

          Even when the darkness surrounds my life

          Sovereign, you are still sovereign

          Even when confusion has blinded my eyes

          Lord, I don’t deserve your kind affection

          When my unbelief has kept me from your touch

          I want my life to be a pure reflection

Of your love”

 

I want to conclude with two more things from Audio Adrenaline and Degarmo and Key.  This is another reason I always mention there are links to the music in the written portion of the blog because I do quote the songs and give you a chance to listen to them.  It’s like getting a mini church service in a blog because you are also given a chance to praise God.

“I’m a season past springtime

And my life has gone bloom

Keep my eyes on the father

Everything is in bloom.”

 

“I can feel it tuggin'
This world, it tries to slow me down
I won't give up one inch of ground
Headed for the future
I leave behind the past
Walking with my Savior
I know, I know, I know I'm free at last
Right on track
Pressing forward, won't look back
Right on track
With my eyes on Jesus
I'm right on track”

 

 

 

 

You are still holy by Kim Hill

Weak Days by Steven Curtis Chapman

O, Praise the name by Hillsong

Right on Track by Degarmo and Key

Just be Held by Casting Crowns

Memoir by Audio Adrenaline

 O the Blood by Selah

Nothing but the blood by Kelly Park

Observations

 

Observations

 

          So I’m going to take a different direction this week as far as the blog goes.  There’s no guide to tell you how to do a Bible study blog so I do change things from time to time.  As some of you know my dad is a pastor of a church and we talk at times about Biblical things.  As Father and son, we have a good relationship. So about a week and a half ago I sent him an email.  I wanted to first share that with you. 

          “Dad I didn’t know how to work this into a blog but I started reading through Proverbs lately and in chapter 6:16-19 it lists 6 things the Lord hates and it’s easy to read something quickly but I noticed something in those verses.  Everything it lists that the Lord hates Jesus was subjected to at his trials and death.  Before when I’ve read that I never mentally connected those things.  Also last Sunday Pastor Micah was talking about when the Roman soldiers were beating Jesus it mentions that a regiment was called for the task.  He said a regiment was about 500 soldiers and they beat him and mocked him till they got tired.  I just never thought there were that many people involved.  It’s just mentally hard to grasp that when you’re reading to get the sheer magnitude of it all.  You see movies or read books about his death but it doesn’t always seem to do justice to how many people bore witness to this one event and still didn’t grasp what God was doing even with earthquakes, sky darkening and the temple veil being split.  Sometimes we humans are so blind and stupid to what God is doing.”  For those that might be wondering about his response he said, “Good Observation.”   For the person who may be asking how does this email apply to my life.  God subjected his own son to the very things he hates because he loved us so much He made a way to cleanse us from our sins by innocent blood being shed on the cross. 

 

          The next thing I want to share is this.  I’ve been working through this Youversion reading plan called Still and it took some manipulating of technology to do this but I saved one of the days in the plan to share with all of you.  See Still is a plan by Christian musician Michael W. Smith and he reads scripture while instrumental music is playing and then you have a devotional.   I wanted to share that devotional.  This is called Hope and that has always been what the Batcave Blog has been about.  I teased yesterday on Facebook that we would have a different speaker of sorts and I would be doing something different.

Hope

“For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.“ - Jeremiah 29:11

I love the mountains. They are both beautiful and majestic. A taste of heaven and a glimpse of God. 

Recently when I went to the mountains, they were hidden by a thick layer of smoke from wildfires. Their beauty was concealed. I was so disappointed that I couldn’t see them! Then the next day it began to rain. The temperature suddenly dropped and the rain turned to snow. The strong winds blew the snowflakes around in heavy swirls. It looked like a blizzard in September! When the storm cleared away, the mountains were revealed in striking beauty. The smoke was gone. The trees and mountaintops were blanketed in white. 

The following day, the snow melted and the green appeared. The birds sang, the creek flowed, and the sun warmed us. As the land appeared to wake from death to life, God spoke to me and awakened my heart. 

The enemy is constantly lying to us, trying to convince us there is no hope. He says that life is too hard, that God isn’t good, and He’s holding out on us.

We give into fear as the smoke surrounds us. It clouds our vision, hiding the beauty of God (and our beauty in Him). But the truth is, there is hope. 

God Himself is our hope! When we turn to Him and trust that He has good plans for us (“plans to give us a hope and a future”), His healing rain clears away the smoke. We remember that the blood of Jesus has washed us “white as snow.” 

Our enemy wants to keep us confused and hidden. He wants us to doubt God and doubt ourselves. Why? Because he is afraid of us. He’s afraid of who we really are in Jesus and the plans God has for us. He wants to stunt our growth and stop us from being all we were made to be. God wants to reveal our true beauty as we change the world for His kingdom.

Maybe you’re lost in the smoke right now. Maybe things have happened in your life that don’t make sense. Things that aren’t fair. Maybe your heart has been broken. Run to the heart healer, the truth teller, the grace giver. Allow him to open your eyes, clear away the haze, and heal your heart. Run to Jesus, behold his beauty, and receive his love. He has never left you. There is hope in Him!