In Dry Places

Miles of beach with no ocean, mountains with no trees.  Sounds like the worst of both worlds.  I mean, I love the mountains and living in the Colorado Rockies I regularly spend time hiking and/or driving admiring the beauty of the mountainous terrain, trees and wildlife.  And at least once or twice a year I run away from home to get an “ocean fix” somewhere to listen to crashing waves, gather sea shells and wade into the coolness of the sea.  So it was strange to find myself in the Great Sand Dunes Wilderness with nothing but mountains of sand. No waves, no water, not even a single sea shell.  No trees, no wildlife, no vegetation.  Just sand. 

 

From the parking lot, the dunes don’t appear that challenging.  But within the first several steps of walking into deep shifting sand I was struck with the thought that this is not going to be an ordinary hill climb.  It was a bit like Michael Jackson’s moonwalk…I knew my feet were moving but they didn’t seem to be taking me forward.  I pressed on looking up to the top and calculating that I should reach it within half an hour.  That was my first mistake…miscalculating the “cost” of the experience.

 

Jesus said, “Who among you that does not bear his cross and come after me cannot be my disciple; for which of you intending to build…doesn’t sit down first and count the cost to determine if he has sufficient to finish?”  Luke 14:27-28

 

It didn’t take long to determine that this hike in & out of dunes would be much more strenuous than I originally expected.  Shoes full of sand & feeling as if I was navigating with cinder blocks on my feet, there were times when I congratulated myself for going 30 steps without stopping to catch my breath.  It didn’t help that I was there at the hottest part of the day.  I’ll have to ration my water supply or I’m going to run out, I told myself.  Not being able to drink in as much as I wanted was miserable.

 

I am nothing if not determined and so I continued for a solid hour to what I perceived was the peak.  Every so often I would turn to look down the mountain of sand at the poor souls just starting out, appearing the size of gnats, and because I could see how far I’d come already I was encouraged to keep going higher to the finish.  I was within a few feet of it when I was hit with the reality of a false pinnacle.  The climb had been so steep to this point that the view beyond was obstructed.  Only when I reached the “top” did I see that I had gone barely half way through this journey…there was at least another mile ahead of me that I had not expected.  My spirit sank and then it rebelled…that’s it.  I’m done.  No more.  I sat down with my half empty bottle of water and a piddly little snack bar that wouldn’t even begin to sooth my hunger pains…I wasn’t planning on being up there through lunch so I failed to bring enough to nourish my body.  I told myself the view from here is good enough.  I’ve got nothing to prove.   I’m not going on any further.  I sat down in the hot sand & complained by text message to a friend…

 

Ever found yourself there?  Sitting down in the middle of a half-finished journey, complaining that it’s just too hard to go on?  Possessing a sense of smugness as you compare yourself to others not as far along the climb?  Experiencing the sensation of going nowhere while the sands of life’s daily challenges keep shifting?  Heat pounding you as you struggle to climb out of a pit?  Feeling beat up by false peaks of life, where every time you think you’ve conquered some mountain in your path you find a bigger one up ahead?  So overwhelmed you’re able to move only short distances at a time before you feel the wind knocked out of you again?  Hungering with only a small snack in your spiritual belly because you failed to plan for the long haul? Parched & thirsting without living water to sustain you? 

 

It’s in times of walking through the barren dry places that God speaks…

 

I give Living Water  John 4:10, 14

I am the Bread of Life.  John 6: 35, 48

They shall not hunger or thirst neither shall the heat nor sun smite them.  For he that has mercy on them shall lead them, even by springs of water shall he guide them.   Isaiah 49:10

 

The refreshment of the Holy Spirit never leaves us.  Our place is to hunger & thirst after Christ, to come to the fountain and be filled, to never stop hungering & thirsting after the righteousness of God as we trudge in & out of the valleys & peaks of this thing called life.  We can give up when faced with ominous mountains in our path, telling ourselves that this view of God is “good enough”.  But what if we miss heaven, the angels, the Hallelujah Chorus?  What if we miss Christ altogether?  Let me encourage you to read Matthew 25:1-13 and diligently study the parable of the foolish virgins & the wise virgins.  Discover for yourself what it means to have a heart of good intentions but still not be prepared for the final part of your journey.

 

Exhausted, discouraged, hungry & frustrated I wanted the hike to end.  I justified why I didn’t need to go on any further.  But the words of a friend urged me in reply to my earlier whiney text message…“Quit texting and CLIMB! You can do it, Di !”  You can do it!  Someone believed in me at my lowest point and that was enough to keep me moving.  Three more ridges of false peaks and 95 minutes later I found myself at the pinnacle flat on my back making sand angels and singing the Hallelujah Chorus.     I was having a moment.  I had finally arrived.  A short while later came a second text from my friend… “look behind you at one set of footprints…”  The symbolism of Christ carrying me brought me to tears.

 

It has taken a couple of days to get the sand out of my car and my clothes and my ears!  But the exhilaration of reaching the top remains fresh in my spirit.  And the message of hope that inspired me is not forgotten. 

 

When you find yourself in the dry desolate places, listen to the voice of hope from your truest Friend, the One who tells you that you do not have to go it alone.  He loves you so much that He cannot get you out of His thoughts! 

 

“How precious are your thoughts toward me, oh God.  How great is the sum of them!  If I should count them, they are more in number than the grains of sand…”  Psalm 139: 17-18

 

In dry places, know that it is He who carries you through the desolation and He who will deliver you from it. 

 

“I am He…I will carry you; I have made you & I will bear the burden.  I will carry you and bring you to deliverance.”  Isaiah 46: 4

Michael Guglielmucci’s Healer

I wept openly when I read the e-mail statement issued by the pastor of the Australian mega-church Planetshakers regarding one of their own, singer/songwriter Michael Guglielmucci :

“Michael Guglielmucci has informed us that he does not suffer from cancer, was never diagnosed with cancer, and has never suffered from the disease. This admission has come as a great shock to everyone including his wife and family who had no knowledge of the matter. We know this will shock and hurt many of you and we offer you our support and prayers… We are all saddened by this revelation and our prayers are with the Guglielmucci family.”

I wept for the family and friends of Michael Guglielmucci who have been subjected to the lie that their loved one was fighting for his life after having been diagnosed with a rare form of blood cancer.  They stood beside him, agonizing & pouring out their hearts in prayer for healing even as he crafted the now famous Hillsong melody Healer that is identified with this fabricated illness.

 

I wept for all those who have suffered and died with cancer as well as for those who are currently battling this insidious disease. The image of a man of God proclaiming in song…while wearing oxygen and dependent upon a cane to walk…that God is his healer mocks those who genuinely suffer.

 

I wept for the church of Jesus Christ that will most certainly face increased persecution and cynicism at the revelation that another “church giant” has fallen.  The world laughs and scorns each time the Body of Christ receives a black eye.  They’ll no doubt use this reprehensible incident to point to the fraud that so often plagues “Christianity”.  And they will be justified.

 

I weep for the lost who stand in desperate need of the HEALER while questioning the veracity of the One who truly Heals.  This world is sick and its inhabitants stand on the threshold of eternal death.  God tells us that He is Jehovah Rapha, the God who heals.  It is only by His grace through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ that we will ever be whole though certainly not in this fallen world, not in a life lived in this flesh. But to those who repent, there is hope and true healing.

 

Finally I weep for the “believers” who have born witness to the saving power of Jesus Christ but who lead lives of apathy, believing their own lies that it’s acceptable to be lukewarm in the faith.  As hurtful as Michael’s behavior was and is, he is no different than any other believer who hears the Truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and marginalizes it.  We will all be judged for the sins committed in our bodies and everything that is hidden will be revealed.  A just God will deal harshly with ALL who lead others astray. 

 

The good news is that God’s message is not altered by those entangled in deception…and that is ALL of us.  Hypocrisy is nothing new.  There have been false leaders before, there will be again.  But the Gospel of Jesus Christ is unshakable and unstoppable.  The moral infirmity of the writer of Healer does not diminish the power of the lyrics.  Our Healer still walks with us through fire and heals our disease.  He continues to calm the raging storms of our lives.  He holds our world in His hands.  He remains our portion. And He is more than enough for a sick and dying world.  God IS the Healer.  He IS ALL.

 

You can view the song HEALER performed live at http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=JLbjqcG4OT4

 

Look upon the faces of the worshipers as they proclaim the truth in one chorus “Nothing is impossible for You” and believe that God is still the Healer of the sickness of sin in all mankind.  

Standing at the Tomb: A Lesson in Grieving & Joy

I’ve spent the past several days camped out with Jesus and Lazarus, Martha and Mary…{John 11: 1-44}

 

Much as Mary & Martha were, I am grieving a loss.  Mine is not a death of a physical person but process of dying to self and the burial of my idols.   I know Jesus is here with me in the grieving process just as He was with them.  One of the decisions I’m having to make is will I grieve as Martha did or will I choose to be more like Mary?

 

Jesus loved Lazarus deeply, yet when He received the news of his friend’s death He waited rather than go to the grave promptly.  It is a mystery to anyone who seeks immediate comfort in times of trouble.  How could Jesus not care enough to drop everything and go?  If we take a closer look we see that it was because of His abiding love, not in spite of it, that Jesus tarried.  His love beckons us to embrace the losses in our lives…whatever they may be…and to fully engage in the grieving process, a process of cleansing that brings freedom.  “He that soweth in tears shall reap in joy” {Psm 126:5} To try to escape the tears is to miss the joy.   “In His favor is Life: weeping may endure for a night but joy comes in the morning”.  {Psm 30:5}

 

As if viewing a video in my mind, I watched Jesus approach the town of Bethany where the scene takes place.  Martha hears that He is near and she goes running out to meet Him.  And the first thing she does is get in His face…”Where were you, Jesus?”  I can almost hear the anger in her demanding tone… “If you had been here he wouldn’t have died and now it’s been 4 days! Don’t you care?”  Even so, Jesus didn’t return her anger.  Instead He spoke words of authority… “I am the Resurrection and the Life…he who believes though he dies, yet shall he live.” and then he asked her a question, “Do you believe?”  Martha says she believes and yet later in the story at the tomb when Jesus instructs that the stone be moved, we witness Martha’s doubting again. Um Lord, it’s been 4 days, the stench is going to be horrific…is this really a good idea? Again Jesus meets her questioning with authority & repeats himself… “Do you remember what I said about having faith…?”  The implication for Martha…and you & I…is do you believe or don’t you? 

 

Now rewind the film to the place where Mary approaches Jesus and you’ll get a totally different picture.  Mary didn’t even go to Jesus until her sister told her “he’s asking for you.”  She waited in the house in silence until she was called.  As soon as she caught sight of Jesus she fell at his feet.  And though she asked the identical question, hers was a broken whisper… “Where were you?”  Can you envision Christ reaching down to Mary, lifting her up, wiping her tears?  He doesn’t question Mary’s faith.  He doesn’t need to remind Mary of who He is…she knows already.  Quietly He enters into her pain.  “Where is Lazarus?” he asks, and as they walk along the way He holds her up.  They approach the tomb and Jesus begins to cry with Mary.  There is a deep spiritual intimacy between Jesus and Mary.  She trusts Him even in her pain and He deals gently with her.  Rather than re-teach the lessons from the past, He simply and quietly weeps with her, sharing her grief, engaging the sorrow.  He knew that a resurrection was about to happen yet still he paused to meet the need of the moment.  Rather than rush Mary’s grief, He embraced it with her.  Jesus afforded a time to be quiet and mourn. Then he got LOUD and deliberate as He denounced the enemy—Death.  He commanded the dead to come forth and a resurrection took place.

 

In my own story there is a resurrection to come.  Jesus says so & I believe it. It’s been written into my script long before I existed.  But for now I am standing in front of the tomb.  It is a place of grieving and letting go.  There are things I buried at the back of the tomb that stink and it will not be pleasant to roll back the stone exposing the corpse of desires, thoughts & behaviors.  But Christ assures me that those things are not my life…HE IS MY LIFE.  I no longer need the burial clothes.  What’s fascinating to me is that Jesus doesn’t go to Lazarus and begin to pull away the burial clothes.  Instead He commands the sisters to help Lazarus remove them.  Jesus was there to bring LIFE but it was up to Lazarus to relinquish the clothing of death.  Even so, Christ did not expect him to do it on his own.  Jesus instructed the family to come to the aid of Lazarus.  They supported him in the cleansing process.  They helped him as he shed the smelly garments.  And they ultimately rejoiced with him that he was more alive than he had ever been.

 

Jesus wants no less for me.  He has come to give me Life.  He stands with me at the tomb of my idols…those things I once looked to for security, pleasure, life.  He is willing to bear the stench with me in order to clean out those things once & for all.  And he gives me the family of faith to support me in the journey away from the grave and toward Life.

 

 

Jesus said “ I am the resurrection and the Life; he that believeth in me though he were dead, yet shall he live.  And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die.  Do You Believe?” John 11:25-26