Daily Butter 9/22: You Know Better.

My little addition to Our Daily Bread (9/22/11):

 

You pore over the Scriptures because you think you have eternal life in them, yet they testify about Me. (John 5:39 HCSB)

 

This past Sunday I thankfully got the opportunity to make it to church (which my work schedule make difficult at times). Our pastor surprised us and joined our class and while we had some neat discussions in the class, a discussion he, the teacher and I had after class stuck out to me. It got mentioned that The Apostle Paul and Jesus Christ were not afraid to “get in a man’s face” at times but it was selective. The Jewish Spiritual/Cultural leaders challenged Christ and He did not back down. Paul confronted Peter (Gal. 2:11-14). Every time it was just as Christ said here: people who knew enough to know better. I should also live up to what I have learned and that can be a tall order.

- Andy Jentes

I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God's heavenly call in Christ Jesus. Therefore, all who are mature should think this way. And if you think differently about anything, God will reveal this to you also. In any case, we should live up to whatever [truth] we have attained. (Phillipians 3:14-16 HCSB)

 

“It ain't those parts of the Bible that I can't understand that bother me, it is the parts that I do understand.” – Mark Twain

 

 

Daily Butter 9/21: Upside down

My little addition to Our Daily Bread (9/21/11):

 

    Then I heard a loud voice from the throne:

    Look! God's dwelling is with men,

    and He will live with them.

    They will be His people,

    and God Himself will be with them and be their God.

 

There are so many numerous religions in this world. Nearly all (at least the major ones that I can think of) are trying to figure out how to live up to heaven or at least follow a path to ascend to a higher state. What sets followers of Christ apart is this: He turned that all upside down. Philippians 2 tells us about He set aside being God to become one of us to make a path to Salvation and even then, as we see here in the peek God gave John into the end of history (or His-story), He’s coming back to set up His kingdom here with us. It’s not about striving to get to Heaven. Yes, one of the perks for those of us who finish our chapters before the end is Heaven, but that’s not the end of His-story. But if I’m reading this right, He’s longing to reach all men so He can get here with us. I don’t know how far that end point is, but I sure want to be part of the faithful doing my part to make it happen.

 

- Andy Jentes

Daily Butter 9/18: Lay It Down

My little addition to Our Daily Bread (9/18/11):

Hezekiah took the letter from the hand of the messengers, read it, then went up to the LORD's temple, and spread it out before the LORD. (2 Kings 19:14 HCSB)

While I love the imagery Anne Cetas captured in today’s ODB of the little boy reaching out for his daddy, there is a different image I see in this passage. While I can’t be absolutely certain since we don’t have video surveillance from the temple at this incident, I whole-heartedly believe that for Hezekiah to have spread this letter out before the LORD, he had to remove his hands from it. My problem often is that, though I lift my needs to the Lord, I often forget to let go. Many times the solution requires me to pick it back up and take personal responsibility in the situation (e.g., relationships, family concerns, personal finances, etc.), but I cannot hold clinched fist to my concerns and expect the Lord to move freely in the situation.

Lord,

    Please give me the wisdom to lay my worries before You,

    The patience to listen for Your solution to the situations,

    And the strength to do my part in that solution.

- Andy Jentes

Daily Butter 9/17: How can I?

My little addition to Our Daily Bread (9/17/11):

So Moses and Aaron said to all the Israelites: "This evening you will know that it was the LORD who brought you out of the land of Egypt;” (Exodus 16:6 HCSB)

This verse stuck out to me in conjunction with a quote from Max Lucado that the local Christian music station has been playing from an interview with him earlier this month. While I may not get it totally correct, he was seeking to encourage parents by telling us that we are probably doing better than they think they are. This encouragement is based on the same truth the above verse points out:  whenever God calls His people to some task (whether passing through the wilderness to a promised land or training a child into man or woman of godly character) He provides what is needed to make it happen. This has been a promise to hold to as I am taking on the new role of “homeowner” and wondering if I’m up to the challenge. But I fully believe this new home is a gift from God for me and my family, and I remember this quote from Henry Ford that I posted August 25:

I believe God is managing affairs and that He doesn't need any advice from me. With God in charge, I believe everything will work out for the best in the end. So what is there to worry about?

- Andy Jentes

Daily Butter 9/15: Knowing

My little addition to Our Daily Bread (9/15/11):

At that time Jesus said, "I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because You have hidden these things from the wise and learned and revealed them to infants. Yes, Father, because this was Your good pleasure. (Matthew 11:25-26 HCSB)

I am so thankful for the reminder that Jennifer Benson Schuldt wrote in today’s ODB as my weariness is building and I need that reminder that He offers rest. The verses above along with a song (below) that’s been playing on the radio have been part of that relief. As much as I want to study and grow in my knowledge of Him, God doesn’t call us to understand Him, but to know Him. It’s not the fervent seeking of scholars that God wants but rather His children crawling up on His lap just to spend time with Him. I want to know and love my God with that child-like faith.

I remember when I completed my “Psychology of Women” class, I was happy to have survived the hit to my GPA and told others I was just praying for one woman that I could spend the rest of my life trying to understand. I’ve since given up – the Lord has blessed me with a wonderful wife, Sharon, and though I will continue to love her, respect her, cherish her and hold her, I’ve given over to acceptance over understanding. God’s wisdom in giving us the marriage relationships as a picture of His relationship to His church has been a great help to me. I certainly will never fully understand either God or my wife, but I will love them with everything I have.

- Andy

Give me rules - I will break them

Give me lines - I will cross them

I need more than a truth to believe

I need a truth that lives, moves, and breathes

To sweep me off my feet

It ought to be

More like falling in love
Than something to believe in
More like losing my heart
Than giving my allegiance
Caught up, called out
Come take a look at me now
It's like I'm falling, oh
It's like I'm falling in love

 - “More Like Falling in Love”  by Jason Gray and Jason Ingram

Daily Butter 9/13: Good Grief!

My little addition to Our Daily Bread (9/13/11):

 

Then Job stood up, tore his robe and shaved his head. He fell to the ground and worshiped,

(Job 1:20 HCSB)

 

We are emotional beings and with the example of Job we can conclude that these emotions can be expressed without sin. I’m no Hebrew scholar, it seems this verse encompasses more than five minutes of action. (I know of no way with modern technology let alone what Job had available to shave ones head in less than ten minutes without severe blood loss.) The tearing of the robe and shaving of the head is throughout Scripture as an expression of grief. Job had his life utterly turned upside-down and emptied in a matter of moments. Obviously a great man of character that throughout this “Job did not sin or blame God for anything” (v22), but unlike the rapid-fire entry of the messengers (vv14-18) there is some time between the lines as there is a process of grief behind this verse between the renting of his robe and the worship. It is not wrong to go through this process. It’s not wrong to shout or scream or weep or (as the rest of Job shows) to throw up your hands and wonder why. I pray that I can come to the same conclusion of worship.

 

- Andy

 

Daily Butter 9/11: Powerless

My little addition to Our Daily Bread (9/11/11):

But I trust in You, LORD;

    I say, "You are my God."

    The course of my life is in Your power;

(Psalm 31:14-15a HCSB)
 

On this tenth anniversary of that day that changed America forever, I spent some time looking back over some of the images and listened to interviews of some who were in New York that fateful day. Powerlessness is probably the best summery I have of the thoughts and emotions that came to my remembrance. Whether it was images of the smoking towers in NYC, news reports about plane crashes at the Pentagon and in PA, or the expressions of numbness on the face of everyone I met also trying to just go through their day ten years ago, it was as though we were all deflated with no power to move or change the course of events.

David captured the truth in verse 15, our lives are in His power. The truth is the truth whether you believe it or not, and as much as we desire to control our own destiny there remains so much in our lives over which we are powerless. But since I know my God and His love for me, I can share in David’s expression of faith in verse 14. What can be a foreboding place of powerlessness becomes full of hope in His powerful presence.

- Andy

Daily Butter 9/10: Remember

My little addition to Our Daily Bread (9/10/11):

Remember the prisoners, as though you were in prison with them, and the mistreated, as though you yourselves were suffering bodily. (Hebrews 13:3 HCSB)

“But by the grace of God, there go I.” I’ve heard that quoted so many times by brothers and sisters in faith that I have no idea where it originated, but I can tell you it has endured for the simple reason that it is a valuable reminder of the truth from this scripture. Compassion is feeling on behalf of another, so this reminder to try shifting our perspective to what theirs might be.

As we approach tomorrow’s “National Day of Service & Remembrance” that commemorates that life-changing day a decade ago, remember those who gave, served, suffered and those who continue to give, serve and suffer.

Andy Jentes

Daily Butter 9/9: The little things

My little addition to Our Daily Bread (9/9/11):

 

It's like a mustard seed that, when sown in the soil, is smaller than all the seeds on the ground. (Mark 4:31 HCSB)

 

I loved David Roper’s tale from today’s Our Daily Bread. If you haven’t read that this question might seem very bizarre, but how important has that moose tale been to him over the past three or four decades? A little tidbit of a routine from back in his schooling (when the C in the YMCA was still as recognized as the Y) was likely a distant memory for David, but it grew in the heart of Henry into something life-transforming. What a wonderful glimpse that letter of reminder gave David of the fruitfulness of his seed from decades earlier. We don’t all get this glimpse, but we all leave small seeds – good or bad behind us that sprout and grow. We are still human and weeds are inevitable, so while I’m not trying to be legalistic, I know I need to be more intentional about opportunities I might have for leaving good little seeds.

 

- Andy Jentes

Daily Butter 9/6: Do your part

My little addition to Our Daily Bread (9/6/11):

 

But speaking the truth in love, let us grow in every way into Him who is the head — Christ. From Him the whole body, fitted and knit together by every supporting ligament, promotes the growth of the body for building up itself in love by the proper working of each individual part.

(Ephesians 4:15-16 HCSB)

 

God is the one who designed the body. As part of the body of Christ, He placed me where I am to use the gifts and abilities He bestowed to grow and strengthen the body. I have a colleague who regularly uses the reminder “everything is as it should be” to find some calm and refocus. I’ve found myself adopting this at stressful times as a reminder that whether I know it, see it, or understand it, He knows where I am and why I am here. Having been placed by His hand, it is my part to “walk worthy of the calling” (v1), to let my light shine, and do my part keeping the Body of Christ functioning and growing. I may not see the benefit that my faithfulness has, but He holds the measuring stick.

 

But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not look at his appearance or his stature, because I have rejected him. Man does not see what the LORD sees, for man sees what is visible, but the LORD sees the heart." (1 Samuel 16:7 HCSB)

- Andy Jentes

 

Daily Butter 9/5: Incomplete Picture

My little addition to Our Daily Bread (9/5):

 

    So God created man in His own image;

    He created him in the image of God;

    He created them male and female.

    (Genesis 1:27 HCSB)

 

Randy Kilgore pointed out in today’s ODB that many often miss the true picture of creation that includes work in the garden not just after the fall. I think we sometimes miss the true picture of this verse also. Mankind was created in the image of God. While Scripture refers to God using masculine terms, no one gender could contain the image of God and both genders contain facets of His image. Even then, it is impossible to have a “complete” picture of an infinite God in any number of finite beings. Just as a painter could paint multiple self-portraits each depicting different traits s/he has, God has left us pictures of who He is. A study of all the works may help one know many things about the artist, but God wants us to know Him. It takes more than an intellectual exercise; it takes repeated personal effort of making oneself vulnerable and truly communicating with the God of the Universe. That is exactly what He wants.

Who am I that You are mindful of me?

That You hear me when I call

Is it true that You are thinking of me?

How you love me - it’s amazing

(Israel Houghton “I Am a Friend of God”)

- Andy

Daily Butter 9/4: Together (again)

My little addition to Our Daily Bread (9/4/11):

Only Luke is with me. Bring Mark with you, for he is useful to me in the ministry. …

At my first defense, no one came to my assistance, but everyone deserted me. May it not be counted against them.

(2 Timothy 4:11, 16 HCSB)

The lesson for my adult Bible Study class this morning is about the importance of the community of believers and it starts with this great quote: “Your faith is personal. It was never meant to be private.” In lessons last month, we remembered how John (aka Mark) choosing not to continue with Paul and Barnabas on their journey (Acts 13:13) caused a division in the mission team when Paul thought he should not be invited on a later journey (Acts15:37-40). Now nearing the end of his days and feeling “deserted” again, Paul asks Timothy to hurry and to be sure to bring Mark. In light of Joe Stowell’s comments in today’s ODB, it is amazing how for even the “great men of faith,” some of the things that we thought monumentally important that caused rifts in our relationships in the past look like anthills in hindsight. Oh for the wisdom to see more of the sand piles for what they are from the beginning.

- Andy

Daily Butter 9/3: Roller Coaster Life

My little addition to Our Daily Bread (9/3/11):

He answered, "I tell you, if they were to keep silent, the stones would cry out!"
As He approached and saw the city, He wept over it,

(Luke 9:40-41 HCSB)

From the heights of a praising crowd to the gut-wrenching realization that the entire city just won’t see.  Jesus understands that sometimes the let downs are at rock bottom immediately after the heights.

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tested in every way as we are, yet without sin. (Hebrews 4:15 HCSB)

- Andy

Daily Butter 9/2: The I

 My little addition to Our Daily Bread (9/2/11):

    even there Your hand will lead me;
    Your right hand will hold on to me.

    (Psalm 139:10 HCSB)

This passage always reminds me of the “I” of the “TULIP” acronym for the five points of Calvinism I learned in church history in college. For true adherents, it stands for “irresistible grace,” but since I don’t completely hold that perspective, I prefer to think of it as “inescapable grace.” I look back on my spiritual journey and, while there were times that I stubbornly chose my own path, I can still see His hand through it all. Though not always noticeable at the time, the 20/20 view of hindsight reveals that He was there all along; sometimes answering my parents’ prayers by protecting me in spite of my poor choices and other times answering my prayers by directing me into correct choices. I have no doubt that He has brought me to the place I am supposed and the lessons from all the past adventures have shaped me into the man I need to be for the adventures that lie ahead.

I am who I am because He is who He is. He remains the indestructible, indescribable, inexhaustible I AM; so there is very little me in the “I.”

- Andy