The New Free Thinkers

I should know how to pack by now. Every time I need to take a trip, especially when traveling by plane, I try to pack more efficiently. I try to follow some simple guidelines. For instance, I don’t need to take every outfit I might want to wear. And if I don’t use it at home, I won’t use it on vacation! But my packing seems to be getting worse. On a recent trip, my suitcase was returned to me with a brightly colored sticker: HEAVY, get help to lift. I lugged it off the carousel and hauled it towards the exit, wishing I hadn’t brought those extra “essentials”. Did they really have to put such a bright sticker on, letting the rest of my fellow travelers know how heavy my baggage really was?

Wouldn’t it be nice if hurting people were so easy to spot? They know their burdens are heavy, but do others know they are carrying heavy baggage? Maybe we should begin to wear brightly colored stickers on difficult days: HEAVY BURDENS, get help to lift! We are commanded to help each other in this way Galatians 6:2, “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” How do we obey this without bright tags to identify those who need help with their burdens?

Ask God to help you have a Christ-like attitude as described in Philippians 2, looking out for others. Take advantage of an opportunity to do something good for someone else, as we are instructed in Galatians 6:10. Bright tags would make it easier to spot hurting people around you, but God has provided a better option. Obey God’s commands for burden lifting, follow His example, and let Him lead you as you help others lift their heavy burdens!

As I walked into my room I saw my closet. Knowing I needed something from it, I opened the door fully, expecting to find what I needed. But instead of finding what I needed, I found a mound of trash that came pouring out on top of me. Maybe I really do need to clean out my closet from time to time.

Just like my physical closet needed a drastic change or cleaning, my spiritual closet also needs cleaning. You can call anything your closet. Your mind, heart, spirit, you name it. We can’t just clean out these closets yearly or monthly. This cleaning needs to be done daily! We can’t let the trash in our lives build up until it’s bursting out over everyone and everything. We need to go through daily and clean out every nook and cranny. If we are letting everything pile up then we have no room for Jesus to fill with His amazing love and mercy. This is why daily prayer is so important. We go to Him daily and let Him clean out our closet so we can be ready for all the great things he wants to do in and through us.

John 15:3 says “Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you”. When we let Jesus speak into our lives (or closets) we are instantly clean. But we must allow him to do this first. We can’t sit back and watch as he tries to pry that door open. We must let him in. we must allow him to lighten our load and to set us free from the clutter and mess. So many times I have let mental or emotional trash build up until there was no room for anything else. It was overflowing. Yet God in His great mercy came along again and cleaned out my “closet”. He didn’t pry or push; I had to willingly allow him access. What a difference it makes when things are clean!

Stop letting life put trash in your closet. Let God sweep through daily and clean you out! He loves all His little children. Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. Keep it tidy . . . keep it clean!

Jacob was “a plain man” (Genesis 26:27) and his brother Esau was a cunning hunter. His name meant “deceiver,” and it didn’t take him long to live up to it. First he tricked his brother into giving up his rights as eldest son, and then their mother Rebekah helped Jacob to fool his father so he could receive a blessing that didn’t rightfully belong to him. As a result, Jacob fled home to escape his brother’s fury.

During Jacob’s flight he stopped to camp overnight, and while he slept God blessed him with a dream, showing him the multitude of blessings He was willing to give. On waking Jacob built an altar and made a vow: “If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, so that I come again to my father’s house in peace, then shall the Lord be my God.”

Arriving at the house of Laban, a relative of his mother’s, Jacob fell in love with Rachel, one of Laban’s daughters. He was willing to work however long he must to marry her. But now Jacob was the one being deceived, as Laban tricked him into marrying his other daughter, Leah, after having worked seven years for Rachel. Yet his love was so great he agreed to work yet another seven years so he could marry the woman his heart was with. After Rachel and Jacob were married, God relentlessly protected and blessed Jacob with a multitude of gifts, including twelve sons.

After staying in Laban’s house for twenty years with Leah and Rachel, Jacob was ready to return home and reunite with his brother. Laban begged him to stay, for his land and cattle had proliferated while Jacob had taken care of them. God had been blessing Laban for the sake of protecting Jacob the whole time!

Jacob feared that Esau still had anger lingering in his heart, especially when his servant reported that Esau was coming to see him along with four hundred men. Though God promised to deliver him from his brother’s ferocity, Jacob divided his family into groups so they wouldn’t all be killed. He needn’t have done so: “Esau ran to meet him and embraced him, and fell on his neck and kissed him; and they wept” (Genesis 33:3)

As I read this story again, I was confused about why God wanted Jacob as a servant. Why would He want a lying, cheating man to serve and represent His holiness? Then I realized that Jacob listened and did everything that God asked him. It doesn’t matter who you are; what that matters is whether you’re willing to listen and then act. Many of us are like the beginning Jacob, only focusing on our own needs. Remember that he begins to hear God’s voice as the story continues, and by following His guidance Jacob’s life is filled with joy.

And just like Jacob, many times we don’t think we deserve the blessings that God gives. He wants to develop us just like he developed Jacob. God turned him from selfishness to servanthood. He wants to help, love, and comfort you. He’s ready and waiting to jump into your life! It starts with your next choice and whether or not you’re going to acknowledge the Almighty in your decision, no matter how small. Don’t settle for the life of a deceiver — let God change you into an Israel.

Aaron sighed loudly as he looked up the mountainside to see the same rocks and scattered foliage as the day before. No sign of Moses. Not for weeks. He could hear the more vocal dissenters approaching, but he didn’t turn around. They wanted the same thing as yesterday: a new symbol, a new direction. And with Moses gone, maybe they had a point…

The story of Exodus 32 is familiar and sad. God’s chosen people decided to abandon Him even as He was giving Moses plans for the tabernacle to hold His glory. But there is a very curious detail of this story that’s worth mentioning: let’s examine the excuses that are used. The people caused Aaron to make the golden calf, saying “as for this Moses, the man that brought us out of Egypt, we wot not [Ed: know not] what is become of him.”

Wait a minute. The man that brought us out of Egypt? Go back to chapter 20, verse 2: “I am the Lord thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt…” Had they already forgotten after only forty days? God made it very clear that He expected them to recognize that He was responsible for their deliverance. But it’s easier to ignore a man than to ignore God, so we humans tend to “decide” that it wasn’t God. It was convenient to believe that Moses was the one they followed because, hey, Moses wasn’t there anymore.

What about Aaron? Surely he knew, right? Surely he was faithful, or at least he owned up to what he’d done? Well, no. “And I said unto them, Whosoever hath any gold, let them break it off. So they gave it me: then I cast it into the fire, and there came out this calf.” As far as excuses go, “the fire made me do it” is right up there with “the dog ate my homework” on the lameness scale. Less subtle, but just as useless as the peoples’ argument that Moses had gone missing again.

God judged the congregation of Israel that night: many lost their lives for the sake of a god they had invented for themselves. The calf could not save them or provide for them. It had no bearing on current events except in what they ascribed to it — and they even attributed their miraculous deliverance from Egypt to the calf Aaron had just made. It didn’t have to make sense; it just had to be comfortably docile so the people could enjoy themselves.

God was not mocked. He didn’t buy their excuses, and He didn’t play their little game. If not for Moses’ intercession, the entire nation of Israel would have been destroyed. God did not (does not!) tolerate idolatry. You can’t mask that with stupidity, either.

We would do well to remember that while people like pastors, group leaders, and mentors are humans that can be fooled or ignored, the God who placed them in our lives cannot be fooled. He didn’t buy excuses at Sinai, and the odds haven’t improved since then. (Excuses are cheap anyway; supply exceeds demand.) The Living God does not make excuses for Himself, doesn’t need to, and He won’t accept them from you and me. It’s not always easy to do, but I want to look past the things that trip me up and see His glory. I want to live for the God of no excuses — with no excuses.

“Hear ye, Hear ye!” The words of the king’s decree filled Mordecai’s ears. The king’s servants were looking for suitable young young women to go into the king’s house. Instantly he thought of the fair cousin he had taken in as a daughter. Something was driving him to take a leap and offer her to the king. Granted, they were there in captivity, but something urged him to step forward.

“You want me to do . . . what?” I can imagine that reaction flowing out of young Esther’s mouth when her older cousin told her what he wanted her to do. I can imagine her face, maybe mixed with a little horror as her cousin explained to her not to make known her kindred, and maybe mixed with a little fear as she realized the giant leap she was about to take. However, she respected Mordecai. He was her elder; he brought her up when her parents died; he had never failed her . . . so she leaped without complaint. She did not yet know how respecting that elder put into action a plan that God was ordaining already. Something as simple and ordinary as obedience made a change in this world. God had her save her people. All she did was take a leap of faith that day and she changed history.

When I look at the story of Esther, I can’t help but notice her character, the way she reacts to situations, and most importantly, how evidently God was orchestrating her life. One statement that sticks out to me most prominently in this book is “Who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” It is evident through her life that it was true! I can’t tell of how many times that thought has come back to me as I trudge through the day: who knows whether that day I was called to be something, to put into action a plan that God has already set in my life? That day was probably the same old, same old for Esther. All she did was go through another day, doing everything exactly the way she would have normally. Except, maybe instead of Mordecai asking her to go get a pitcher of water, he asked her to go to the king. They both took a leap of faith that day, but because of their faith and her obedience, it turned into something greater.

The people of God should have that same faith, and take the leaps that God might show them to take. We have to have that same kind of trust that Esther had in Mordecai, in God. Every day is preparing us for something much greater than we can even grasp. Maybe you are going through school, you have to teach another Sunday school lesson, or maybe you are going into work feeling as if you’re not accomplishing anything. It may feel like nothing is changing. You are just doing the “same old, same old” day to day. But by doing our routine, by grasping the simple character builders God is placing in our lives, will lead to that one day when it may seem “normal”, but in fact, it will be a foundation in our life to take that leap. Who knows whether that day we are called into the kingdom for such a time as this. Keep doing what you are doing, obeying God, the little things, and God will be able accomplish His plan in your life because you obeyed Him.

“Arise, anoint him, for this is he.”  These are the words, spoken by God to Samuel, that singled out David for Kingship.  An anointing, a calling, a ministry: often I have thought of these as a place where one arrives sometime in the future.  To a certain extent, this is true.  However, I believe there is another, more immediate calling.  I like to call it “The Right Now Calling.”

When I look at David’s story, I see a life full of ups and downs.  A giant slayer turns into a javelin dodger.  A killer of 200 Philistines turns to a groveling mad man.  Yet through the ups and downs there is an interesting pattern in David’s early life.  David was summoned from herding sheep by Samuel to be anointed future king.  Apparently David goes back to shepherding after that. The next time we hear about him, he is again “with the sheep.” This time he is called to soothe Saul’s spirit through his music.  Despite these two incredible experiences, David kept on shepherding his life away.  Then for the third time the Bible says he “left the sheep.” This time he is off to bring parched corn and other goodies to his brothers.  The man has the anointing of a king and is still herding sheep.  David was fulfilling his Right Now Calling.

Multiple times throughout my childhood people prophesied that God would use me at a “young and tender age.”  I do believe that, in some ways, these have been fulfilled.    But over the years I have had many wrong concepts about how, when, and why. Today I have fewer answers than ever.  But this excites me, because I am no longer limiting God to my finite plans.  As I continued to grow physically and spiritually, I wondered why it seemed that God wasn’t doing anything special with my life.  Doubts and fears raged like a western wildfire.  I now realize that God was maturing me spiritually; He was teaching and strengthening me in ways vital to my existence.  God is teaching me to chase lions so that one day I will laugh at giants.  It was, and still is, a process.  But not everything is merely preparation for a future event.  I have a Right Now Calling.

My Right Now Calling is simply this: To seek His face.  It is a slight, yet radical attitude change.  God has confirmed this to me over and over again.  No matter what happens I know who I am and what I am supposed to be doing: seeking His face.  It’s a Right Now Calling.  David said, “This is the generation of them that seek him, that seek thy face” (Ps 24:6).  Late one Saturday night, lying in my bed, God used that scripture to reconfirm my Right Now Calling:  To be the generation that seeks Him.  Not “please let us be that generation” or “maybe some day we will rise to that status.”  Rather, “This is.”  It’s a radical change of attitude.  Interestingly, the next morning, the scripture reader read that Psalm.

I believe that you, too, have a Right Now Calling.  It may be a universal calling, like praying or witnessing.  But this is the bottom line:  it’s not something you will do tomorrow, but something you can do before you go to sleep tonight.  I believe everyone has a calling to fulfill today.  It’s your Right Now Calling.

It’s Monday morning. The alarm goes off, and you groan in disgust. You wonder why Mondays are always the hardest. After pushing the snooze button twelve times you throw yourself out of bed, already expecting the day to be slow and agonizing.

Sound familiar? What would happen if Monday mornings weren’t like that? What if we treated every morning as what it is: a gift from God? What do you expect every day when you get up, when you go to work or school, and when you interact with those around you? Do you expect great things, or do you expect the ordinary and mediocre? Do you have faith that even if the day is horrible, God is still good and in control?

The story of Ruth is too often overlooked as carnal or unimportant. But if we take a closer look at Ruth’s life, we see that Ruth was not an average woman. Her mother-in-law, Naomi, was an Israelite widow. Her sons had taken Moabite wives, Orpah and Ruth, but ten years later these women were widowed as well. Naomi began the journey to her home country with Orpah and Ruth, but she reasoned with her daughters-in-law to return to the houses of their mothers and find husbands again. Orpah was convinced to return home, but the Bible says Ruth “clave unto [Naomi].”

“And she said, Behold, they sister in law is gone back unto her people, and unto her gods: return thou after thy sister in law. And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God:”  – Ruth 1:15-16

The remaining chapters of Ruth show that she was obedient to all of Naomi’s instructions. She went out and worked to provide for Naomi and herself. It would have been easy for Ruth just to go home to her house where she would have been treated well, but she stayed with Naomi. Even in the midst of adversity, Ruth expected great things of the Lord. She had no reason to stay with Naomi after the death of her husband. She had no reason to go to a new land where she would not be honored as a foreigner. Ruth didn’t have much; she could have whined and complained about the responsibility. But she expected great things of God. She continued to press through, to work diligently, and to remain obedient and respectful to Naomi. Webster’s dictionary defines expectant as: “being marked with expectation.” All who saw her knew that she was a “virtuous woman.” Ruth did more than just act the part. She was identified as a virtuous woman.

“And we know that all things work together for the good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose,”  – Romans 8:28

Sometimes it is hard to remain optimistic in hard times, or to stand up for yourself when people question your faith. But if you pray for faith, God will not only give you faith, but also the opportunity to exercise it. One way to do that is to expect great things of God. That doesn’t mean that everything will happen the way we think it should; Ruth must have been devastated when she lost her husband, but God had a greater plan. Later in the book, she marries a man named Boaz, a kinsman of Naomi’s family, and eventually carries the line of David and Jesus. If she hadn’t trusted in God, she wouldn’t have married Boaz or been the great-grandmother of King David. If you think about your life, do you waste your energy worrying about things you can’t control, or do you use that effort believing that God can pull through?

God is ready to do great things in all of our lives. Do you believe and expect that He will?

Unity is something we hear about quite frequently, and not just in church. This concept of unity has lent its name to organizations of all sizes, including microelectronics companies, colleges, and health insurance providers. We have already discussed the critical importance of unity with God, with each other, and the effects it can have on our lives. So, how can we take this information from our heads to our hearts, making a positive change in our lives?

Have you ever seen an orchestra perform? As many as one hundred of the highest caliber of musicians are there, tuning their instruments. Standing in front of these experts is one man. Armed with the same sheet music as every other performer, he taps his baton on the music stand and all the seasoned professionals wait. Why? Every one of the musicians is more than capable of playing as a solo artist. Everyone in the orchestra can read their own sheet music, thank you very much. How dare that one man with a stick try to tell them how to interpret it! Yet all their eyes are on him, and when the baton is lowered they all play together as one. Together they achieve something they could never reach on their own. The fusion of all their efforts can only truly be experienced when you are there, in unity with the orchestra.

This unity, this state of being one, is not an easy thing to achieve. Like a master musician, we never outgrow the need for it and we never cease to reap its benefits. Without it we have division, which cannot coexist with harmony. Paul even instructs us to avoid those who cause divisions (Romans 16:17). In order to grow, we must learn to live in unity. With unity, we can accomplish more with synergy than we could individually. Unity is imperative.

“Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!”  – Psalm 133:1

People around the world find it within themselves to unite with each other and accomplish things that would be impossible for just one. Feats of precision and skill are carried out faithfully because of their devotion to craft, culture, or community. We should certainly recognize these accomplishments, but they should also cause us to examine ourselves. If others can live in unity for the sake of perishable human creations, how much more should we be willing to work for unity as the servants of God?

What is unity?  Have you ever wondered that?  In this article I would like to share my experiences and understanding of “unity” with you.  According to Princeton University’s online lexicon, unity is “the quality of being united into one”.

I cannot think of many ways to explain it unity better than through the experiences I have had. A few times in particular stick out. I can remember being in prayer meetings when the power of God was so present that it brought our young group of believers into a place that surpassed every ethnic, economic, social, and gender barrier.  We were able to enter into a place where it did not matter what the person next to you was doing. This move of the Spirit brought us into one mind and one accord. The power was amplified many times over as the spirit directed us to intercede, to worship, to enter into warfare, or to just be in awe.

When this happens, the Spirit guides each of us to surrender individually, and bond corporately. The rest is inevitable; as we draw closer to His will, we will all work together towards the same goal. It is an act that overcomes every obstacle and lets us be a part of something much bigger.

One instance in the Bible stands out as an instance of a time when great things happened because everyone was in unity. The book of Acts recounts when the Holy Spirit was poured out in the upper room. “And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.  And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.  And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.” (Acts 2:1-4)

That is an example from the Bible of what happened when the believers were unified. I believe that there are going to be great things that occur as we are unified under Jesus in this coming year!

Have you ever been in the army or another armed force? Then you have learned something about unity. All armies work together to defeat an opponent. Human armies, unlike God’s army, rely on physical weapons like guns and bombs. For comparison, God could destroy us with a word — though He won’t, because He loves us so much. God said that He loved the world so much He gave His only son to die for us. I don’t think there is any greater expression of devotion and love than that. If it were not for His love, none of us would be here to see a speck of dust [or to scoff at Him, or to pretend we know more than He does.  -Ed.]. So God’s army is clearly more powerful than a human army. But what of unity?

Well, an army is a complicated system. Every officer must answer to another, higher-ranking officer. Battles are confusing and a disjointed. Many men end up killing their own comrades without even realizing it. Some battles become outright massacres if the officers do not coordinate properly. Spiritually, if we do not keep our lives straight we will be in danger of a massacre: total destruction at the hands of our enemies. God has a place for us in His army to destroy those enemies instead, and guide us through our problems. He wants us to join with Him in the fight against our foes.

If we will only put our trust in God, He will guide us through the battle. When we cooperate with Him like a soldier cooperates with their superiors, we are in the undefeatable fortress of God. [Clearly this requires, well, cooperation.  -Ed.] I need to be aware of my mental, emotional, or even physical enemies so He can direct me. If I don’t follow directions, my day is not going to be easy. That’s not to say that following directions is always easy — it’s difficult for many people — but He’s still our superior. And maybe we’ll mess up from time to time because we’re not perfect, but that’s why we have a God to catch us if we fall. Psalms 119:105 says that God’s word is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. This means that God will direct us where we need to go: all we need to do is follow.

A faithful soldier who communicates with his superiors is far preferable in the eyes of a general to a “lone wolf”, whose unguided attacks may hinder his own comrades. Likewise, if we are spiritually active but not in agreement with God, we may do more harm than good. Victory over our personal enemies — whatever they may be — is dependent on our unity with God.