Isaiah 43:1-3, 14-21
But now, this is what the LORD says—he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel:
"Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers,
they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire,
you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.
For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead.
This is what the LORD says—your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:
"For your sake I will send to Babylon and bring down as fugitives all the Babylonians, in the ships in which they took pride. I am the LORD, your Holy One, Israel’s Creator, your King."
This is what the LORD says—he who made a way through the sea,
a path through the mighty waters, who drew out the chariots and horses, the army and reinforcements together, and they lay there, never to rise again, extinguished, snuffed out like a wick:
"Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland. The wild animals honor me, the jackals and the owls, because I provide water in the desert and streams in the wasteland, to give drink to my people, my chosen, the people I formed for myself that they may proclaim my praise."
Isaiah 43 speaks of a time in the future when God’s people will return from Babylonian Captivity. Notice how the future is linked with the past, specifically God’s actions in the Exodus and crossing the Jordan.
Why should the people not fear?
What from the past are we to remember?
What from the past should we forget?
What does God want from his people?
What is the "new thing" that God wants to do in your life?
Sunday, February 15, 2009
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How are you?
Most Peggy Noonan article are worth reading, but This One in particular is good. She articulates something that I feel but had no words for. It's the kind of thing that I've been playing with with my half-jokes about the softness of our times that leads to school closings at the slightest hint of possible danger. At least I think that's what I'm talking about.
So I guess you should not build the affectiveness/effectiveness of your entire sermon on a song that might not play???
Oh well...
These things happen.
We had a great trip to Nashville. We left about midday Friday. Ben went with us and didn't mind missing a class or two. He is doing well in the classes that he skipped or we would not have taken him.
We met Luke in a garage just off campus. The engineering students are making "from scratch" a Baja car that will compete with schools from all over the Southeast. The competition is at Auburn in April.
Luke is in charge of the front suspension and steering. He inherited his mechanical and engineering prowess from his grandfathers evidently. I could not do what he is doing.
We left the garage and went to Earl Lavenders to eat and spend the night. As usual everything was so enjoyable.
Saturday Earl and I went out to the Cedars of Lebanon state park and ran a half marathon (13.1 miles). We picked up Earl's son and daughter-in-law and another friend on the way. We had a nice time.
I did better in the run than I wanted to really. I was trying to treat it as a long training run and do it in about 2 hours, but I ended up doing in about 1:54:30. I am little sore today but I feel good about it all.
I have a 10K coming up in 2 weeks, and if I can run it fast enough I can qualify for one of the top 3 starting pens at the Mini in Indy. This would be good, because it allows you start in front of most of the 35,000 people who will run it.
We got home last night about 10 p.m. It was a good trip. It was so nice seeing Luke for a little while. Kedra spent most of yesterday with him.
One thing that happened yesterday afternoon was of interest to some in our party.
Once we got back from the run and cleaned up, we met Luke, his (apparent) girl friend, and Nikki A. from Mitchell (who attends Lipscomb) at Cracker Barrel. The two girls started whispering with excitement.
"What? What?"
"We think the girl just across the way is the winner of America's next top model (or whatever it is called)!" "She's from Tennessee and it looks just like her!"
They giggled and giggled, fretted and sweated about whether to ask her. Finally Kedra said, "I'll ask her," so when we left Kedra went over and ask if she was (whatever her name is). Sure enough! It was her.
Nikki and Caroline were thrilled and just kinda waved; half thrilled and half embarrassed. Once outside they both called or texted their mothers.
Oh well.
Later Kedra told me that this girl was a "plus size" model, so I said, "You mean she's fat?" Evidently that's not what that means. I guess it just means that she is not bean-pole skinny like "real" models.
Oh well.
Can you tell I don't really care about this?
But it is my service to you who might.
What a guy I am.
Yesterday I went to see Ernestine in a nursing facility; had a nice visit. While I was there she told me that someone I knew was across the hall. More about that in a sec.
After Ernestine I had planned to go see Duane's dad. He's in the same place, just a few doors down. When I got there Duane was there also, so we had a nice visit.
In the bed next to D's dad was a man that I've known most of my life. He goes (went) to a church in Bedford. I had a very nice visit with him. His name is Bill.
Then I went to see the lady across the hall from Ernestine. Her name is Betty, and she used to go to church with us. I had not really talked to her in more than 10 years. We had a nice little visit.
I must say this is the most "bang" I have ever had from a visiting "buck." Forget the 2 birds. I saw 4 good people with one visit, and if you know me, then you know I love such efficiency. ha ha. Seriously, it was really nice to see all these people. It brought to mind all kinds of thoughts and feelings.
Our men's Bible study went really well again last night. We keyed off James 4:14.
Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.
We had a few guys in the room who have faced death in a very real but different ways, including severe health problems, the loss of close loved ones, and crashes.
It was a very interesting and powerful evening. The common thread through all the stories was a faith and reliance on God, either during or after or both. Facing death, realizing our own mortality, is extremely important for good living.
You are not ready to live until you are ready to die.
It is a healthy exercise to imagine your own death. What would happen if you were to die, let's say, a week from now?
Who would you talk to, and what would you say?
Any relationships gone wrong that need action on your part?
What would you express to your loved ones?
Are there any changes you would make in your relationship with God?
You know where I'm going. We should live each day as if it were our last. Right?
One guy last night said he was not bothered by death, and I believe him because I have seen how he acts around it. He said, "Death has no grip over me." He's coming from John 11, and he's right.
A year ago today.
Fun with Earl
It's a little photo album I created from last weekend's trip. The dogs are Earl's (black one) and their daughter's. They were fun to watch.
The people, in addition to Earl, are his son, daughter-in-law, and their friend.
Not a bad prayer:
Lord help me to feel comfortable with you so I can be comfortable with me.
Like anyone taken from their "home" or a comfortable setting, the Hebrews feared the unknown future seemingly out of their control. God is reminding them that he is in control now as he was in the past. All things are done for a reason, and this exile was a punishment but also a way of wiping the slate clean for the Israelites. This is a good lesson for me when I feel like something bad is happening in my life. They walked through the fire unburned; I sometimes need to feel the fire and be scarred in order to be changed for God's glory. Change hurts, uncertainty scares, but in God neither hurt nor fear reigns over us permanently.
Remembering and forgetting is so often done in the opposite way it should be in my opinion. We tend to remember the times we were cheated or lied to, dwelling on things that cause us to hate. We tend to forget the good times, or at least we don't reflect on them as much as we should. I am trying more to remember the good and bad times in my past and reflect on them equally to see where God has brought me, up from the lows and down from my prideful highs. But in all things we should forget things that cause us bitterness or to live a life of regret. Remember the past (good and bad), but don't live in it.
We had a very good day on Sunday. My cousin Gayle's children came for lunch along with Brent & Tracy and the kids and two of my sisters. We had a house brimming with laughter and conversations reflecting on those who have gone before, including Gayle last fall. There had been very little contact with Gayle or her children for many years as each of us were raising families and after a family reunion that my Mother arranged a year or so before her death we all came back together and have remained friends since. As you know we lost Gayle last fall to cancer. I am amazed at how much we were alike even though apart all those years. Our interests are the same and some illness is duplicated in her family that is in ours. They all remind me so much of her but we all had so much in common. They want to camp at Spring Mill since this is a mid-point for them between Evansville and Plainfield where they live. This is a wonderful opportunity to bring them with us to church this summer and maintain the family bonds we share. It is good to share the past and remember how we got to the point we are in our faith and our pitfalls and stumbles we had getting to today. We cannot dwell on the negatives because they brought us to the positives of today. When I look back on my immaturity in Christ over the years and still do, it could bog me down and cause me to give up if I let it but God didn't put me where I have been to leave me there. He has more in mind for my life and with joy I can greet each new day of promise until I meet Him face to face in the new Promise awaiting. Sorry to be so long-winded. Just has been a very touching week for me. Love you all, Sherron
Thanks for those good comments!
Satan seems to always to reverse the good that God intends, thus it makes sense, when we allow Satan to have his way, that we remember the bad things we have done. Satan wants us to remember those things so we will question our future ability to serve the Lord.
I hope to have more to say about our text later, but for now I will say this. I think the Israelites who are in Babylonian Captivity are having a hard time believing that God loves them. This is why chapter 40 of Isaiah starts out the way it does. "Comfort!"
Isaiah 40-55 is often called Second Isaiah and is often questioned as a part of the first of the book. I think separation is unnecessary. It seems to me that Isaiah is peering into the future and seeing what it's going to be like for the people in captivity.
Even before they are carried off, God is already acting redemptively, explaining that there is a future after the punishment.
Hope all that makes sense.
I have a lot of things going on right now. More than I need probably but it seems to be in my nature to do more than less. Not sure that is always good. Oh well.
One thing that has me a little busy is thinking about speaking at a conference in Atlanta. I was surprised by the invitation and am somewhat nervous about it. It's a conference put on by Abilene Christian University and Lipcomb called ElderLink. It's for elders and other church leaders. I've been asked to bring some of our elders as well.
I’ll tell you more about it later, but I will speak on congregational spiritual formation.
Looks we might get another snow. It could be a decent one; coming Friday night.
Friday night snow is not too exciting to me. Wonder why that is?
Just for the record:
I am not related to Roland Burris, the apparently corrupt recently appointed SINator from IlliNOISE.
Our passage this week has this line in it:
Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing!
Interesting.
Also somewhat interesting is this article:
Study takes step toward erasing bad memories
It talks about a pill that can cause people to forget bad or fearful experiences. I'm not sure that's a good thing.
But what about our passage?
I think God is wanting his people to forget in the sense of dwelling on negative things to the point they can see nothing new. They are depressed, stuck in a rut, and don't believe anything can change. Sound familiar? God says, "I can do a new thing! Believe!"
I love this. There seems to be a lack of understanding with this concept in the world and too often in the church. We use the past to help us know where not to go or where to focus our energy, but if we keep looking back in regret or in nostalgia, we'll stumble as we step forward. Try running or even walking in a straight line with your head and eyes turned as far behind you as you can. You won't make it far!
How do we let it go? An empty house will be filld with something, and we must be prepared to fill it with God's word and blessings.
A pill to block bad or fearful experiences? This is silly except in the most extreme circumstances (severe abuse, rape, etc). Our brain would naturally recalibrate the remaining experiences and suddenly the great ones are only good, and the mundance are now bad. I see a downward spiral; where does it end?
Here is a post from about a year ago. It is one of my most memorable experiences. Ever. I describe going from Athens were a once-in-100-year blizzard had hit over to Istanbul.
I arrived in Istanbul late last (Monday) night.
It was not easy getting here. It should have been easy, but the unusual weather played a key role. You know I love snow, but yesterday I didn’t enjoy it as much as usual. It was beautiful. I guess there was close to a foot of snow in some parts of Athens.
I left my hotel in Athens at 8 a.m. Monday. There were several inches of snow on the ground, and there was hardly any traffic. My taxi driver had chains on his tires, so he slowly and surely got us to the airport. I was supposed to fly out at around 11 a.m. I didn’t. I finally flew out about 9 p.m. I guess if you have to spend 12 hours in an airport, then Athens is not a bad choice. I was glad to leave however.
Turkish Airlines, like everyone else, had cancelled flights and was doing the best it could. The flight I finally got on had 3 flights worth of people on it. It was packed. There were people carrying chickens, goats and human kids, etc. JUST KIDDING. It was packed though, and the turquoise and brown interior of the jet reminded me that I was about to enter a different culture.
The plane landed safely. I cleared passport control, got my bag, and cleared customs without incident. Someone from a transfer company was supposed to meet me at the airport. Due to all the confusion of cancelled flights it didn’t happen, so I went to the taxi stand and got the next one in line. It was a spiritual experience - my prayer life has not been so intense and focused in a long time.
My driver was a young guy; friendly, confident. I got in the back seat and started to put my seat belt on. He waved me off with a smile, suggesting, “You don’t need that.” Wanting to be culturally compliant, I laughed and put the belt down. “This is probably a really bad choice,” I thought. He turned up the radio, blasting some kind of soulful Turkish soft rock.
I believe the car was a Honda. Whatever it was it had a lot of “get up and go,” and my driver knew how to get every ounce of speed out of it. Wow! He passed other cars, even taxis, like they were standing still. He was going 110+ in 30 and 50 speed zones (kilometers per hour), all this while leaning back with one arm stretched across the passenger seat, nodding with the beat of the music.
At one point he got out a cigarette and offered me one. I took it. Just kidding. If it had been whiskey I might have taken him up. Just kidding again. He teased me for not smoking, and I encouraged him to light up, thinking it will help his driving.
As we got close to my hotel he pointed proudly suggesting that I should be impressed that he found it so quickly. I was impressed, not that we found it but, that we were alive! I told him, using my best cross-cultural language skills, “You race-driver!” He laughed and nodded very proudly.
Good illustration, Jason!
Philippians 3:12-15
Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. All of us who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you.
I am watching beautiful snow fall/fly and thinking that running is not going to be as pleasant today.
From Walter Bruggemann:
“Jesus’ concern was, finally, for the joy of the kingdom. That is what he promised, and to that he invited people. But he was clear that rejoicing in that future required a grieving process about the present order.”
The people sitting in Babylon are suffering from a lack of confidence. I am guessing they feel like "Losers." God tells them that through/in their suffering he will do a "new thing." He will deliever them (yet again).
God deliverance comes through (and requires??) suffering it seems.
There are a lot of people suffering right now - too tied to an economic system that is uncertain. Maybe this is a wonderful opportunity for God to do a "new thing" in their lives, as they learn to trust him.
What do you think?
Here's something you may not know. I have a Facebook account. I have one to keep up (spy on) my kids and to get a general feel for what's going on in the culture today.
I find Facebook disturbing; maybe someday I'll tell you why. I am a pretty passive Facebooker. I don't invite anyone to be my "friend," and I only accept "friendship" with people I know. I am toying with leaving the community altogether. I know they would be shocked and would mourn the loss.
ANYWAY, one of my "friends" from Lipscomb days lives in Missouri (or should I say misery?). She just got her power on yesterday. It had been off 23 days, due to the ice storm.
Wow!
Went to see the Winterfest people off this morning. Part of the draw was biscuits and gravy. Yum.
I am alone this weekend. Kedra, Rebecca and Ben left this morning for Winterfest. I have plenty to do, plenty to catch up on. I hope to make the most of the opportunity.
More good stuff from Peggy Noonan.
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