M2MS

A dead thing can go with the stream, but only a living thing can go against it. (G. K. Chesterton)

Godliness in Prosperity

There is a saying I heard many years ago that wisely observes, for every ten people who can handle adversity there is only one who can handle prosperity. I believe this is the great challenge of the North American church today, and particularly, my own life. Recently, I've been blessed and convicted by the writings of George Swinnock (1627-1673). He said, "He who is ever trading and thriving in godliness, need not fear that he shall prove a bankrupt." (Christian Man's Calling, 1:25). I fear that in spite of all the wealth and blessings of my life, I still remain poor in godliness. Oh, that God would fill my heart with a holy passion for Christ and an inescapable desire to do His will!

Swinnock has some good counsel for thriving in godliness in the midst of prosperity. He defines prosperity as, "a condition which consists in the fruition of outward good things, as health, strength, friends, riches, honours, and the like." Then he insightfully observes: "They are in themselves mercies for which we may pray with humble submission, and for which we must praise God with holy affection; but through the corruption of our hearts, they often prove prejudicial to holiness. Those fires which were made to warm us, do often black and burn us." He offers six directives on how we may grow in godliness in a life of many comforts.

First, be especially watchful against those sins which a prosperous state is most liable to. In particular, take heed of pride, confidence in personal abilities and accomplishments, and insensitivity to other's sufferings.

Second, evaluate yourself, not by your possessions in this world, but by your inheritance in the other world. Rate yourself by your treasure in heaven, by the pardon of your sins, by your investment in Christ, by His unfailing riches and righteousness.

Third, let God alone have the glory of outward mercies; it is God's bounty that fills your barns and banks, and therefore His glory must fill your heart.

Fourth, love God even more for the mercies He has given to you. . . . as fire which has fuel enough to burn of itself, flames out the more by having oil poured upon it, so the mercies which flow from God must increase that fire of your love, which is founded in, and abundantly fed by, those blessings that are in God.

Fifth, do God the more abundant service. The more wages men give, the more work they expect. Those that are rich in goods and wealth, must be rich in good works (1 Timothy 6:17-18).

Sixth, in prosperity, prepare for adversity. Summer will not last all year, therefore men provide for winter. Now God gives you health and wealth and strength, do your best to use these blessings to build a good foundation against the time of need.

May my heart be so affected with His blessings that I may be more abundant in my duty. With great privilege comes great responsibility.

M2MS

To love involves great risk, but not to love is the greatest risk of all.

Building a Home in the Woods

This is what we have been busy working at on our time off at home. Thankful for all the friends and family who came to help raise our little "barn." You can view more photos on our Flickr Photostream. Free tours, by appointment only.

M2MS

One man gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty. A generous man will prosper; he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed. (Proverbs 11:24-25)

The Pursuit of Pleasure

In 2 Samuel 11, we find the story of David pursuing pleasure in an illicit relationship with Bethsheba. David sins and then commits further sin to cover his original sin. The chapter ends with this summary: "But the thing David had done displeased the LORD." (vs. 27). No matter how much pleasure I may receive from sin, it always displeases the LORD.

The ultimate question is, "Whose pleasure is more important, mine or God's?" Ironically, God desires my pleasure, and He offers it through an eternal relationship with Him through His Son Jesus Christ. His pleasure is that I might find my eternal pleasure in Him. And I can only find it in Him alone. David later wrote, "You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand." (Psalm 16:11).

M2MS

The habit of calm and serious thinking makes the real difference between one man and another.

M2MS

Gratitude is recognizing and affirming your dependence on God and others - an act of humility that battles pride in your possessions and performance. Practice regular thanksgiving! (Ephesians 5:4)

Day 7 Stranded in Madison, Wisconsin, but Trouble Soon Be Over

M2MS

What John says about Jack, tells me more about John than it does about Jack. (Proverbs 11:13; 16:28)

A Picture of the Faithfulness of God

A full rainbow in Whitecourt, Alberta.

"I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the everlasting covenant between me and the earth. . . . Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth." Genesis 9:13, 16.

M2MS

Every crisis in your life can make you stronger.

I believe this happens by increasing our capacity for trusting God. True strength must come from God. Recently we experienced a crisis in which we had very little control, but God was in total control of our lives! While driving south on Interstate 39 in Wisconson on Thursday, we encountered a terrible thunderstorm. Suddenly we were hit by lightning. We lost all power in the truck and Denise pulled safely to the shoulder. All the electrical was burned up except the emergency flashers! So we have been in Madison since waiting for repairs. The truck shop cannot check out our truck until Monday, so I guess we'll be here till at least Tuesday. God is in control!!! I don't understand his plan, but I do know that He is good and great, and so I trust Him do what is best for His glory in our lives. That's all that matters and that's where true lastly joy is. This morning I read in Romans 5:4, "And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God."

Gollumized or Eutacised?

Gollum was a Hobbit. But something happened to him. Hobbits are as a rule good-natured folk, hospitable and delighted in parties and in presents, which they gave away freely and eagerly accepted. They had red cheeks, bright eyes and thick curly brown hair on feet and head. When Bilbo met him he was anything but a Hobbit; rather a monster: thin, black-skinned, flatfooted, with sparse hair, long thin hands and bulging eyes. In Tolkien's words, "he was a loathsome little creature."

What happened to bring about such a dramatic transformation? He set his affection on the Ring. And the One Ring, the Great Ring, the Ruling Ring of power overtook him and disfigured him. He called it his "precious." He worshiped it and it eventually consumed him and ultimately destroyed him.

Gollum's debauched life is a vivid picture of what happens when I set my heart on anything in this world. His disordered love did him in. Because of his obsession with the ring, Gollum was no longer what he was supposed to be. The same distortion happens in my life every time I set my heart on the things of this life rather than Jesus Christ. Augustine said disordered love leads to a disordered life. I am in peril of becoming "gollumized" (David Naugle's word in Reordered love, Reordered Lives).

Eustace Clarence Scrubb was Edmund and Lucy's disagreeable nine-year-old cousin (in C. S. Lewis's Voyage of the Dawn Treader). Eustace was a disgruntled, self-centered little lad. The cousins found themselves transported to the land of Narnia as participants in a rescue mission aboard the ship, Dawn Treader. At one stop on an island, Eustace wanders off alone and stumbles into the lair of a fire-breathing dragon. To his delight the dragon was not only dead but had also left his entire fortune of gold and precious jewels to him. He drifts off to sleep but when he awakens he realizes that something shocking had occurred during his nap: his true inner state had manifested itself in his outward appearance. He had been transformed into an ugly, scaly monster.

Eustace was devastated. He wanted desperately to become "undragoned" and become human again. He pleaded for help but no one was able to help - until the great Lion appeared to him. Aslan led him to a mountain pool and told him to wash in it. But first he must remove his leathery skin for the waters to work their magic. Eustace tries but eventually Aslan has to tear his thick scales off with his sharp claws and this is excruciatingly painful. Then the Lion places Eustace in the pool, bathes him and clothes him in a new suit.

I am prone to chase after the stuff of this world, but by God's grace I have been "eustacised" (my word). My cure from the distortion of disordered loves begins when "God as the Great Physician applies the medicine of the cross to the disease of my sin and nurses me through the love of the Holy Spirit into good health according to the prescriptions of His word." (Naugle, 147). His love, through the cross of Christ, transforms my love and reorders my life. I become a worshiper rather than an idolater.

Ideas for this refection comes from my reading of David K. Naugle's Reordered Love, Reordered Lives: Learning the Deep Meaning of Happiness.

Eucatastrophe

I have experienced a "eucatastrophe." J. R. R. Tolkien coined this word in his essay, "On Fairy-Stories." He used the word to describe a "good catastrophe" of a "sudden and miraculous grace." For me the word describes a "blessed disaster." It is an event in my life that, though painful, is intended to bring about a glorious transformation.

Jonah experienced a eucatastrophe when he found himself on a ship in a violent storm, thrown overboard and swallowed by a great fish (Jonah 1). God sent a blessed disaster to expose the prophet's pride and prejudice.

In my case, three years ago God removed from me the thing in which I had placed all my worth and identity: Ministry. In the process of the violent storm God exposed the ugly sins of pride and selfishness, lust and covetousness in my heart. But for His "sudden and miraculous grace" I would have given up everything important in my life to hold onto my idol of ministry. In His mercy, God removed the blinders of pride from my heart and revealed that my identity was based on what I did rather than what he has done for me.

I haven't arrived yet. The journey of glorious change is not finished. And it won't be done until I have reached Home with my Saviour. I still have strongholds of pride and lust in my life. And God continues to bring eucatastrophes into my life. He will faithfully strip away every false value from my heart until I find His Son, Jesus Christ, to be my one and only true treasure. And so I thank God for the "blessed disasters" in my life.

M2MS

Give money and possessions away and you will remain master over them.

M2MS

The journey of faith is not about finding your freedom, rather it is about finding your true Master. (Matthew 16:24-26)

Hazards of the Journey of Faith

Our job requires that we are sometimes assigned freight that is considered 'hazmat' (hazardous materials). The law demands that we go through certain procedures to ensure that the freight is handled in the most secure way in order to protect the public and the environment. One requirement is 'placarding', or labeling the substance contained in our trailer.

I wish temptation came with such clear warnings about the potential dangers of pursuing its appeals. I was reading the story of Samson and Delilah (Judges 16) this morning and was reminded of the deceptive and relentless nature of temptation. The ultimate goal of Delilah's appeals was the destruction of her 'lover'. And she wrapped her invitations with 'love' (v.15) and persistence (v.16). All the while, Samson follows her blindly down a path to his own destruction. Such is the nature of all temptation: the world and the enemy of our souls wraps temptation in glittering tinsel that appeals to our basic desires for security and happiness. Then they constantly bombards us with their 'BS'! "And with such nagging they prod us day after day until we are tired to death" (my paraphrase of v. 16).

Two things are necessary if I am to overcome: constant vigilance and dependence. I must be on my guard against the lies of the enemy and I must depend upon Christ for strength (Ephesians 6:10-12). Only in relying on Christ as my Saviour can I find power to win the battle and only in pursuing Him as my Treasure can I see clearly the 'BS' of temptations.

Thank you Jesus for your salvation, truth, protection to overcome sin and your forgiveness when I yield to its lies and destruction.

M2MS

We are at war and the enemy is not like us - he's better! We need God's help. (Ephesians 6:10-12)

Misunderstanding

Recently we did a two week pilot program of driving team for a dedicated customer. We were shipping grocery and fresh produce from Ajax, ON to Montreal, QC. Navigating through the Montreal area is a challenge to say the least. I found myself constantly being critical of other's driving skills. How easy it is to find fault rather than show compassion.

Karl Menninger wrote with keen insight: "When a trout rising to a fly gets hooked on a line and finds himself unable to swim about freely, he begins with a fight which results in struggles and splashes and sometimes an escape. Often, of course, the situation is too tough for him. In the same way the human being struggles with his environment and with the hooks that catch him. Sometimes he masters his difficulties; sometimes they are too much for him. His struggles are all the world sees and it naturally misunderstands them. It is hard for a free fish to understand what is happening to a hooked one."

God, give me your eyes so that I might see people with your compassion and understanding; ready to respond with forgiveness and grace.

M2MS

The journey of faith is not about being a good leader, rather a faithful servant: someone who expends himself for the good of others (Mark 10:43-45).