God's Way Works

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A Springboard for Your Spiritual Life

In the End, God Always Wins

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Well, once again, someone has allowed their fervor for copyright to overtake their desire for free advertising. The video I had posted here originally has been removed and is no longer allowed to be embedded. You can watch Il Divo sing Amazing Grace at the Roman Coliseum by clicking this link. Then come back and find out what I got out of it.

I have to admit the above video is extremely moving. However, that is not why I post it. Secondly, I must also admit I personally believe God has only authorized us under His new covenant to sing while worshipping Him and not to play orchestrations even though it is highly emotional for us.

With those caveats, let me explain why I post this video.

As you watch the video, notice the building in which this concert is held. It is the Roman Coliseum. 1900 years ago, Christians were killed in this theater for sport. Christians were mauled by lions, burned at the stake, drawn and quartered. The crowds laughed and jeered. The emperors took up the sword against the emperor of the universe, King Jesus, and they believed they were winning. The Christians themselves may have believed the Romans were winning. How many times did they wonder if God could win against such evil?

Nearly 2000 years later, however, 4 men stand on the grounds where the blood of our brothers and sisters was spilt. Do they listen to jeering crowds demand their death? Do they cower before ravenous lions and armored gladiators? No. They stand for all the world to see, singing an anthem of Christianity. The crowds look on and cheer their praises.

“Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost but now I’m found; was blind but now I see. Twas grace that taught my heart to fear and grace my fears relieved. How precious did that grace appear, the hour I first believed. When we’ve been there ten thousand years, bright shining as the sun, we’ve no less days to sing God’s praise than when we first begun.”

As I listen, I can almost hear the blood of my brothers and sisters crying out in praise of God’s mercy and grace along with the four men on stage. They have been on the other side for nearly 2000 years of our earth’s time, but they still have just as much time to sing God’s praise as when they first begun.

Many of you who follow my mutterings are Christians. Some of you are not. No matter on which side you fall, please see this for what it is. Rome turned all its power against Christ. The emperors are dead. Rome defeated. Christ lives on. Christ’s empire still stands. We as Christians can stand on the battlegrounds of the past and sing praises to our King and God.

“Through many dangers, toils, and fears, I have already come. Twas grace hath brought me safe thus far and grace will lead me home!”

Hallelujah! God always wins!

Thank God One Day at a Time

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I’m a little leery to share today’s springboard with you. To do so, I’ll be sharing some of my weaknesses and flaws. However, it is probably good to pass on that really I post these springboards for me; you just get to listen in for free. If you weren’t reading this, I would still post because I put these springboards out to remind me so I can overcome the weaknesses I’ve worked so hard to develop over the past 35 years.

In just the past two weeks, I’ve reached an understanding that has revolutionized my prayer life and deepened my relationship with God. 

The background is that for most of my life I’ve handled money abysmally. Even after learning better, old habits died hard. This has left me in the sad position that what others who have planned better might consider small emergencies are DEFCON level 5 crises for me. For instance, we recently had some work done on the Suburban and my friend who did the work basically said, “This might last two weeks, it might last two years, but its time to start looking for something new.” This poses a problem. We don’t have a car savings. Additionally, we are now working our way through the Dave Ramsey approach of getting out of debt. Therefore, we don’t want to borrow money to buy a vehicle. 

Add to that, my wife went to the dentist and we learned she has some work that is imminent and extremely costly. And I really do mean extremely. As long as a tooth doesn’t break, we can hold off. But once that happens, then it will be an emergency. Like the car, we don’t have a dental savings. We’re still doing that Dave Ramsey stuff, which means we don’t want to borrow money for this either.

Here’s a separate springboard for you…SAVE MONEY! As Dave Ramsey says, the rain is coming, you need a rainy day fund.

But back to my main thought. In my mind’s eye, because of my own financial folly, I have these two anvils hanging over my head held by fraying strings. At any moment, they’ll come crashing down. Every day, I beg God not to let it happen. However, I’ve been holding out on my thanksgiving. I’ve had the idea that when I have the money to get a new vehicle before the Suburban breaks down, then I’ll give thanks. Or when I have the money to pay for dental work before the emergency hits, then I’ll give thanks.

Here is the problem with that. Each day is spent in amazing fear that today might be the day. When that is my mindset, a wedge is being pushed between me and God. The relationship dwindles. However, just recently, I was thinking about living one day at a time as Matthew 6:34 teaches. It hit me. I haven’t been giving God His due thanksgiving.

Today, the Suburban is still running. Today, Marita’s teeth are still working. Who knows what might happen tomorrow, but today, God has delivered me from these crises. As Proverbs 3:5-6 says, I need to acknowledge Him. As I’ve learned to give God thanks for daily victories, I no longer see Him as the adversary. I realize He’s not obligated to stave off the crises coming because of my own folly. Yet, today, He has done so. Therefore, today, instead of being filled with fear about tomorrow, I’m filled with gratitude about today. 

The more I see God’s daily victories, the closer I draw to Him. As I offer this thanksgiving and think about the daily blessings God has given me, my faith in Him increases. Who knows, maybe tomorrow will be the day it all comes crashing down. However, I’m learning each day that God will see me through today. When that “today” gets here, He’ll see me through that day as well.

So, today I thank God. He is providing my victory today.

My Own Personal Dayenu

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Last week, I shared the Hebrew Dayenu prayer for the Passover with you. What a great prayer form it is. Each line intensifies the previous, demonstrating what an amazing God we serve who blesses us and blesses us again. In last week’s post, I promised I would post my own Dayenu this week. So here it is.

Keep in mind, this is my first attempt at anything like this. So be kind to me. It’s not going to win any poetic awards. I doubt it will go down in history as a famous prayer or ever be in anyone’s devotional prayer book. However, it was a great exercise for me. I encourage you to write your own Dayenu. It is a very practical way to count your blessings.

Unlike the Passover version I shared last week, I wrote mine speaking directly to God instead of about Him. Anyway, I hope this exercise will help me abound with thanksgiving (Colossians 2:7).

 

My Dayenu: A Prayer of Thanksgiving

If You had given me life and not created a world for me—Dayenu; it would have sufficed!

If You had created a world and not given me sustenance—Dayenu; it would have sufficed!

If you had sustained me and not given me clothing—Dayenu; it would have sufficed!

If you had given me clothing and not given me a home—Dayenu; it would have sufficed!

If you had given me a home and not given me parents—Dayenu; it would have sufficed!

 

If you had given me parents and not given me a wife—Dayenu; it would have sufficed!

If you had given me a wife and not given us children—Dayenu; it would have sufficed!

If you had given us children and not given us health—Dayenu; it would have sufficed!

If you had given us health and not given us wisdom—Dayenu; it would have sufficed!

If you had given us wisdom and not given us Your Son—Dayenu; it would have sufficed!

 

If you had given us Your Son and not given us forgiveness—Dayenu; it would have sufficed!

If you had given us forgiveness and not adopted us—Dayenu; it would have sufficed!

If you had adopted us and not given us Your Spirit—Dayenu; it would have sufficed!

If you had given us Your Spirit and not revealed Your Word through Him—Dayenu; it would have sufficed!

If you had given us Your Word and not given us time to grow in it—Dayenu; it would have sufficed!

The Dayenu: A Prayer of Thanksgiving

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Thanks to Lori in Pennsylvania for putting me on to this great prayer. According to Wikipedia, it is a prayer the Jews offer as part of their Passover celebration. It is called Dayenu which essentially means “it would have sufficed.” It contains a series of statements about God’s blessings claiming each blessing would have been enough if God had only given that blessing, but He didn’t only give that blessing; He gave more.

This week I’m going to share the prayer with you. My plan is to write my own for next week. Maybe you can write one as well and share it with us in our Springboard for Your Spiritual Life.

If He had brought us out of Egypt, and not carried out judgments against them–Dayenu, it would have sufficed!

If He had carried out judgments against them, and not against their idols–Dayenu, it would have sufficed!

If He had destroyed their idols, and had not smitten their first-born–Dayenu, it would have sufficed!

If He had smitten their firstborn ,and had not given us their wealth–Dayenu, it would have sufficed!

If He had given us their wealth, and had not split the sea for us–Dayenu, it would have sufficed!

If He had split the sea for us, and had not taken us through it on dry land–Dayenu, it would have sufficed!

If He had taken us through the sea on dry land, and had not drowned our oppressors in it–Dayenu, it would have sufficed!

If He had drown our oppressors in it, and had not supplied our needs in the desert for forty years–Dayenu, it would have sufficed!

If He had supplied our needs in the desert for forty years, and had not fed us the manna–Dayenu, it would have sufficed!

If He had fed us manna, and had not given us the Shabbat–Dayenu, it would have sufficed!

If He had given us the Shabbat, and had not brought us before Mount Sinai–Dayenu, it would have sufficed!

If He had brought us before Mount Sinai, and had not given us the Torah–Dayenu, it would have sufficed.

If He had given us the Torah, and had not brought us into the land of Israel–Dayenu, it would have sufficed!

If He had brought us into the land of Israel, and not built for us the Holy Temple–Dayenu, it would have sufficed!

What a great form and model of a thanksgiving prayer. I hope it motivates you as it does me.

Alcohol: The Gateway Sin

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Alright, alright, I don’t want to get into a huge debate about whether or not a single drink of alcohol is a sin. We can talk about that later. I’ve just talked to several people over the past few weeks who keep having trouble with various sins and it these stories keep starting with one problem–alcohol. So, I thought I’d share Ephesians 5:18 with you.

“And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit” (ESV).

The Greek Word for Drunk

I’m not a Greek scholar, but what I’ve read says the word translated “drunk” here is “methusko.” According to Vine’s, this is special form of the word “methuo” which means to be filled and in the context of intoxicating drink means to be drunk. The special form is called the inceptive form. Vine’s goes on to say that this special form marks the process of the verb. That is, it is not talking about the end result but the process. (Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, p 343.). Webster’s Dictionary defines “inceptive” as “expressing the beginning of the action indicated by the underlying verb, …” Abbot-Smith’s Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testamentclaims “methusko” is “causal of [methuo]” (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, Scotland. 1973, p 282.). Bullinger’s A Critical Lexicon and Concordance To the English and Greek New Testament says “methusko” means “to grow drunk (marking the beginning of No. 1 [methuo])” (Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids. 1978. P 238.).

I think this should give us a bit of a pause before we bottoms up. God addresses not just the end result, but the process from beginning to end.

 

Don’t Be Drunk, Be Filled with the Spirit

God didn’t just say don’t be drunk with wine. He offered an alternative. Instead, be filled with the Spirit. Sadly, many charismatic teachers have taken this all wrong and believed Paul was saying being in the Spirit meant you would act like you were drunk.

 

That totally misses the point. He says don’t be drunk with wine because there is debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit. Why? Because you’ll act completely differently when you are filled with the Spirit than if you are filled with wine. Being filled with the Spirit does not mean you will act like a drunken fool. Being filled with the Spirit means you will act with the wisdom of the Spirit (cf. Ephesians 5:15-17).

However, notice Paul’s point in context. Instead of starting the process of be filled with wine, Paul says we should be filled with the Spirit. The contrasting point is to the degree we pursue the process of being filled with wine, we will not be filled with the Spirit. This is important because the Scripture repeatedly points out we must be filled with, led by and follow the Spirit (e.g. Romans 8:5-9; Galatians 5:16-25). 

Scientifically, we know the very first things intoxicants attack are our judgment, willpower, discernment and inhibitions. Things we would never do under normal circumstances, we will do once alcohol gets into our system. Rage, fornication, theft, violence and so one easily follow once we start drinking the lubricant for sin.

This hearkens back to Proverbs 31:4-5, in which Lemuel’s mother told him not to drink lest he drink and forget the law. That is exactly what happens when we drink alcohol. 

 

Alcohol: The Gateway Sin

In reality, even if you want to say that a glass of wine over the holidays is okay, can you at least see what Paul explains here? Alcohol in any amount is dangerous. To the degree you let it into your system, you hinder the work of the Spirit to guide you to life. Sadly, I’ve seen way too many people fall prey to all kinds of sins because they started saying they could handle a bit of alcohol. 

I’m sure dozens of people can say, “I’ve had a drink and I haven’t done those things.” Fine. I can’t answer for everyone. My point is simply this, Paul says it is a gateway to abandoning the Spirit. If you want life through the Spirit, put the booze down. Don’t defend it. Don’t take it up. Set it down. Walk away. Fill yourself with the Spirit instead. That’s where life is.