THE DOOR WAS OPEN BUT YOU DIDN’T RESPOND!!!

Last Saturday was one of those rare Michigan November days. The temperature hit the mid-sixties, t-shirts were the clothing of choice and although screens have been traded for glass, I just had to leave the door wide open to enjoy the sun. A friend dropped by and we were sitting in the kitchen catching up on all the exciting news of both families. It had the makings of a great day! Directly across the street, however, the picture book day had turned into a nightmare.

Anna (name changed) had gotten out of bed, lingered over a cup of coffee and then stepped in the shower later than usual. Her husband who has been on oxygen for the past several years was in the other bathroom. When Anna finally finished getting dressed, she noticed that her husband still had not come out of the bathroom. She knocked and asked, “Are you ok in there?” When there was no answer, she opened the door and realized she needed help. She called 911 and ran out to the driveway, screaming, “Help, please somebody, Help!” No one heard, no one responded, no one came!

Steve and his friend came back after moving a refrigerator and mentioned that there was an ambulance and 2 police cars across the street. Feeling I would be in the way by going over, I watched from a window as the ambulance left; empty. Eventually a black Cadillac backed up to the garage. Soon the driveway was full of cars and I felt uncomfortable intruding. On Sunday, I had my two grandsons all day and I was too busy to see if I could be of assistance. Finally on Monday, I felt a real urging from the Holy Ghost to at least go over and offer my condolences. At noon, I left Steve with the two babies and walked the few steps across the street to knock on the door. I held Anna as she broke down and sobbed. Her words smote my heart, “I screamed for help and nobody came; I screamed for help and your door was open but you didn’t respond!” I explained that I was in the back, that I was so sorry and wish I had heard, but the fact is my door was open and I didn’t respond. This week, I have tried to be there for Anna and her family. I cooked dinner for them on Tuesday and spent the day Wednesday at her home setting up all the food for the funeral, keeping things replenished and cleaning up after. They have been very grateful but the fact remains, I was so preoccupied that although my door was open, I didn’t hear her cry for help.

Several years ago, we moved into a house by a railroad track. For the first few nights it was very difficult to sleep. I heard the whistle of the train at 11:00 p.m., 2:00 a.m. and again at 6:00 a.m. After about a week, the whistle didn’t even register and I was able to sleep straight through the night without being disturbed. How many times have I been so caught up with the “important” things in my life that, like the familiar whistle of the train, my mind fails to register a plea for help? I pray to be more “Spiritually Sensitive,” yet I fear that I have become so desensitized to the cries of hurting people that the sounds just become part of the background noise of life. The doorway of truth is wide open, yet I am so distracted that the desperate cries of my friends and neighbors stumbling in darkness never reach my ears. Dear God, give me a greater awareness and sensitivity to the distress signals of the hurting souls in my world. I never again want to hear the words, “I screamed for help, your door was open, but you didn’t respond.”

THAT'S NOT THE GOD I WANTED!!!

In the midst of his sermon, last Sunday, the preacher made the statement, “They hate us because they hate God!” As I pondered that statement, I realized that people don’t really hate God, they hate the holiness of God that reveals sin, they hate their responsibility to God, they hate the absoluteness of the truth of God, but they love the idea of God. We love the idea that there is someone out there more powerful than we are, someone we can call on when times are tough, and someone to blame when things don’t go our way, but to many God must also be someone that can be controlled with their hand holding the remote.

Throughout history mankind has resisted accepting a God that is so far beyond what we can imagine and requires absolute faithfulness and obedience from His followers. Thomas Jefferson believed in the ethical teachings of Jesus but he did not believe in miracles or the deity of Jesus, so he created the Jeffersonian Bible. Jefferson cut the passages he liked out of the Bible and pasted them into a book which included the early years and ministry, teachings and parables, the betrayal, crucifixion, death and burial. There is no mention of course of a virgin birth or the resurrection since they fall into the miracle category and give Jesus God-status. This is the sad ending to Jefferson’s Bible; “There laid they Jesus, and rolled a great stone to the door of the sepulchre, and departed." Thomas Jefferson missed the entire message of the Bible. A message about fallen man with no power to redeem himself from the clutches of sin and a holy, righteous and just God who so loved the world that He would robe himself in flesh and die that fallen man could be saved. It is a message about a God who has promised to prepare a place for those who will accept Him as their God, where they can live for eternity with Him. It is a message about the Resurrected Christ who reigns supreme in the lives of those who trust in Him.

Lord of the Rings’ star, Ian McKellen, admits to tearing out the page containing Leviticus 18:22 from every hotel bible he finds. You see, Leviticus 18:22 does not fit with his chosen lifestyle. In an interview he states, “I'm not proudly defacing the book but it's a choice between removing that page and throwing away the whole Bible." Mr. McKellen and Thomas Jefferson are not so very different than most of us who through disobedience tear or cut the parts out that we don’t like. Our lives proclaim, I want a God who is just a prayer away, but only when I need Him. “Don’t call me, God, I’ll call you.” I want a God who would give His all and die for me, but don’t ask me to sacrifice a few hours every week to go to His house and visit. I want a God that owns the “cattle on a thousand hills” and can supply my every need, but I think 10 percent is a little much to ask me to give from my paycheck. I want a God that will heal my body and that of my loved ones but I also want a God to be angry with when it doesn’t happen the way I had it planned. I want a God who can redeem me and save me from sin but I want to be the one who determines the definition of sin and which ones I want to be saved from. I want to make God into the image of my choosing, however, THE GOD I CREATE CAN BE NO GREATER THAN ME!!!

Genesis 1:26 describes the beginning of mankind, “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” No matter what position you ascend to in life, how much money you may accumulate, how many educational degrees you may earn, you cannot make God into your image. We can, as the Apostle Paul stated, “become vain in our imaginations and change the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, birds, four footed beasts or other creeping things”, but it will not change who God is. The bible tells us in Hebrews 6:13 that “When God made a promise to Abraham, because He could swear by no greater, He swore by himself.” There is none greater than God and He will always be God no matter what we do or think. The god that you create will be no greater than you but the God that created me is all powerful. He can supply my every need, heal every disease and sickness, comfort every sorrow and save me from every sin. Jesus Christ is my God and beside Him there is no other.

WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME?

What do you want from me? This questioned has been asked by every frustrated husband, wife, child, parent, employee and employer. It usually comes at a time when you feel every effort has been expended to please another person, yet your performance still doesn’t measure up to the receiver’s expectations. It can create a sense of hopelessness in the performer that if not dealt with properly, will result in the person simply giving up or trying to prove themselves in adverse, destructive behaviors.

The source of most of the frustrations of life is the lack of clear communication. No matter how hard you try, you will live in perpetual frustration if you have no idea what is expected by your spouse, parent, employer or God. Have you ever felt that God has set the “bar” way too high and that you will never measure up to His standard? Go to any Christian church in America this Sunday and if you listen closely, a song, testimony, sermon or prayer request will make a statement of God’s “requirements.” The statements will be as diverse as the Tenants of Faith espoused by the denomination of the church you are attending. You may leave as frustrated and as unsure of the answer as when you drove into the parking lot.

What does God require of me? Some people climb into their “box” of religion. They feel as long as they remain surrounded by the 4 sides of a particular “box,” they are pleasing God. Many cover themselves with a “security blanket” of church rituals. As long as the rituals are performed properly and at regular intervals, God will find them acceptable. Others find reassurance in following a set list of rules. They believe as long as every rule is followed, all the t’s are crossed and the i’s dotted, they have measured up to God’s standard. Perhaps the reason all of our efforts leave us frustrated is because we forgot to ask God for his list of requirements. Living a life pleasing to God is really not complicated. Does God have a list of rules to live by? YES!!! They are very clearly stated in His Word and they may surprise you.

Israel, God’s chosen people, were no different from the New Testament Church, they wanted to please God but their efforts always fell short of God’s Law. Deuteronomy 10:12 gives us a list of God’s requirements;

“And now, Israel, what doth the Lord thy God require of thee, but to fear the Lord thy God, to walk in all His ways, and to love him and to serve the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul.“

God used Solomon to confirm our duty to God in Ecclesiastes 12:13;

“Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.”
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In Micah 6:8 we find a couple additional requirements to add to our “list;” “

He hath showed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?”

The Pharisees were constantly trying to explain the law and make sure everyone was following according to their interpretation. Jesus was asked by the Pharisees, what was the greatest commandment on the list. I’m sure they were shocked to hear Jesus say simply in Matthew 22:37-40,

“Thou shall love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shall love thy neighbor as thyself. 40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”

Not only did they have to accept that their interpretations were incorrect but if this philosophy became widely accepted they would lose their control over the people. Paul addressed the “list” with the Holy Ghost filled church of Galatia. They were arguing over what they could and could not ‘get by with.” Paul settled the discussion by stating in Galatians 5:16,

“This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.”

For those who are not willing to get out of your “box” of religion, you will keep searching, trying to please God through your own efforts and continue to live a life of frustration. If you feel safe clutching your security blanket of ritual and tradition, the blanket will become threadbare and full of holes and you will still fall short of God’s standard. Now to all of us who need a list, make sure your list is God’s list. God’s list is simply:

1. Fear the Lord thy God.
2. Keep His commandments.
3. Do justly.
4. Love mercy.
4. Walk Humbly.
5. Love the Lord with all thy heart, soul and mind.
6. Love thy neighbor as thyself.
7. Walk in the Spirit

BUT GOD, IT HURTS!!!

Children learn at a very young age that touching something hot is not pleasant and they quickly withdraw their hands. The words hurt and ouch are soon added to their vocabulary. As we mature, experience teaches us to avoid those activities most likely to cause pain. There is a segment of people with severe mental disorders, who find pleasure in experiencing pain, but the rest of us go to great lengths to avoid even the possibility. An individual with a chronic pain condition will try any substance or method to relieve the constant assault of pain on his or her body. But could pain be a positive experience? We read in the Bible about a condition called Leprosy. Leprosy damages the nervous system and destroys the body’s ability to feel pain. Can you imagine touching a hot stove and not noticing until you smell burning flesh or grabbing a sharp knife and letting go only because you have fainted from the loss of blood. Pain serves as a warning, signaling that something is wrong.

As a child, my mother had this great red medicine for cuts and scrapes called “methiolade.” I don’t even know if it is still in existence but she would paint our wounds liberally with this antibacterial liquid as we screamed loudly. Physicians have to cut flesh to remove or repair faulty internal organs. They may have to break a bone to set it properly or stick a needle in an arm to vaccinate against a dreaded disease. Although these may cause further pain, it is necessary to prevent a future, more severe condition.

God did not create pain but he created us with an intricate nervous system to feel pain. God allows us to feel both physical and emotional pain in our life so that we become aware of a problem. Many times instead of treating the problem, we mask it with other emotions. When Steve and I were young we experienced a great hurt in our lives. The hurt came through people we trusted and admired. We needed care and guidance instead we were cast off and ignored. The experience was so painful that for years the only way I could deal with it was through anger. I felt that anger gave me the control to manage the pain. The anger became so intense that it consumed my thoughts and “soothed” my raw feelings. The day came when God finally pulled the scab off and I had to choose a life of anger or allow God to start the healing process. I chose God and only then did I realize the lost years and damage caused by anger.

There had been many times God had tried to reset the “broken bones” or apply the “salve” of His love to my situation, but anger seemed less painful. Several times, I wept bitterly before God only to close the door of my heart when He would try to help me face the situation. I would pray until I came to that particular roadblock and say, “Not now God, it hurts too much,” as I clung to my security blanket of anger. Whatever hurts you have experienced in life, God has the necessary therapy to not just relieve but remove the pain. You may be left with a few scars or a slight limp but it is amazing how glorious it feels to be free of the pain.