TGIF, Oct. 30, 2009

Keep falsehood and lies far from me;
give me neither poverty nor riches,
but give me only my daily bread.

Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you
and say, 'Who is the LORD ?'
Or I may become poor and steal,
and so dishonor the name of my God.

-- Proverbs 30:8-9

Being unemployed and trying to figure out what I want to do when I grow up, as I humorously put it, I've concluded I need to go to school and find a job to pay the bills while I do so. I want a job that fits within the parameters of the above verse. I don't want to live at the poverty level, but I don't need to make a million bucks either. We've prepared ourselves for this by downsizing and getting out of debt so our needs are fairly simple compared to most people. So here's my prayer request for my next job:

• It should pay me enough to cover our living expenses, plus 10% for giving, 10% for saving and 10% disposable income.
• It should allow me time to continue contributing in ministry.
• It should allow me time to go to school for the purpose of preparing me for further ministry.
• And, tangentially, I need help from the Lord in showing me how I can pay for school without going deeply in debt.

I have a job interview on Monday that may be the trick. Please pray that the Lord would make it clear whether it is right for me.

My wanderings around the Internet this past week turned up the following:

• "Churches connect with parishioners online" a Chicago Tribune story says. It's about a conference where it was discussed how churches can use Facebook, Twitter and other networking tools to grow their flocks. There's more HERE.
• Drew Goodmanson explains this strategy for churches and the Internet.
  
• Mark Driscoll explains, like only he can, why religion is bad and the Gospel is good, yet so many Christians have trouble telling the difference.
• Find your calling.
• If you write about the Gospel and can get published in secular media outlets, there's money in it for you.

Numbering My Days

"So teach us to number our days so that we may present to you a heart of wisdom." -- Psalm 90:12

It's interesting that this psalm was written by Moses, who wasn't called by God until he was 80 years old. The eternal significance of Moses' life picked up considerably, however, once God unexpectedly and spectacularly spoke to him from the burning bush. Moses's life was all but over (see Psalm 90:10) but God had plans for him bigger than any Moses had ever imagined or hoped.

It's generally accepted nowadays that life for those of us on the downward slope will have little more significance than babysitting the grandkids and traveling to Florida. But God has no retirement plan. See Caleb and Abraham, for instance, as well as Moses. In the same way, I don't think God's done with us once we've raised our kids.

That's why I'm reading "Half Time: Changing Your Game Plan from Success to Significance" by Bob Buford. It's for 40-somethings and older who've done what they've wanted in the material world and now are looking for something to count for eternity.

Here's some notes from what I've read so far:

• (Quoting George Bernard Shaw) "This is the true joy in life -- the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one, the being a force of nature instead of a feverish, selfish little clod of ailments and grievances, complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy. I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community and as long as I live, it is my privilege to do for it whatever I can. I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work the more I live. I rejoice in life for its own sake. life is no brief candle to me. It is a sort of splendid torch which I've got ahold of for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brighlty as possible before handing it on to future generations." (Page 52)
• If my life weere absolutely perfect, what would its elements be? (Page 42)
• Do you understand the difference between being called and being driven? (Page 47)
• What's in the box? (The "box" is one sentence that describes your purpose or goal in life. It's a phrase used by marketers and advertisers to come up with the one word or concept they want to communicate about their product. Such as "security," "tradition," "comfort." Once you choose, everything in your life is illuminated and guided by that one thing. For Buford, he was challenged by an atheist friend to choose between "success" or Jesus Christ.) (Page 50)
  
• To put Christ in the box is to break down the walls of the box and allow the power and grace of his life to invade every aspect of your own life. (Page 52)
• Many people avoid taking the risk for a better second half because they mistakenly think it necessitates a drastic change. ... I truly believe that God uses people in their areas of strengthand is unlikely to send us into areas in which we are likely to be amateurs and incompetents. (Page 52-53)
  

The God With No Name

"And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee; for thou, Lord, has not forsaken those that seek thee." -- Psalm 9:10

(This post stems from a recent small group discussion on a recent Sunday morning at church.)

Scripture records about 50 or so names for God, depending on who does the counting. I just really want to mention one point in the discussion of the names of God. Who gives God these names? In almost every case, these names are given to God by people. He rarely gives these names to himself. In fact, you could almost call him The God with No Name.

God names himself in just two instances, that I have found so far -- and I don't claim as of yet to have made a conclusive study of this. Most famously in Exodus 3, he identifies himself, speaking from the burning bush, as "I AM WHO I AM" to Moses. This is less a name, however, than a statement of fact. He is the self-existent One. Another place where he gives himself a name is in Genesis 17, he appears to Abram and identifies himself as "El-Shaddai," which means God Almighty or God All-Sufficient. This is the moment when God promises to Abram that he will be the father of many nations and makes his covenant with him. Instead of a name, this could be seen more as a declaration of one of his attributes, which Abram really needed to hear at this moment. It's no coincidence that this name is used in Job 30 times. It also is, I believe, Jacob's favorite name for God. In each of these cases, God is repeatedly reminding these men, or they remind him, that he will provide for them. That he will deliver as he promised.

Other than those two instances (and, again, I don't claim as yet to have made an exhaustive search), the names of God are assigned to him by people based on their experience of him. For instance:

• The God Who Sees, by Hagar. Genesis 16:13-14
  
• Lord of the Breakthrough, by David. 2 Samuel 5:20.
  
• Adonai, or Sovereign Lord. (Always plural, btw.) By Abraham. Genesis 15:2
• Jehovah-Jireh, the Lord Will Provide. By Abraham. Genesis 22:14
• Jehovah-Nissei, the Lord is My Banner. As in war. By Moses. Exodus 17:15

Not an exhaustive list but just a few mentions to get us thinking. The point is that God interacts with people and that they named him based on their encounters with him. And in each case the name reflects an attribute of his, not merely some cold ceremonial name. His names reveal his character -- protector, provider, listener, even our avenger as Jehovah Sabaoth, the Lord of Host, or Lord of the Angel Armies who will return to recompense every person according to his deeds, especially those deeds perpetrated against his children (Revelation 6:9-11). (This is a name God likes applying to himself, I think because his children are so important to him and which he uses to reassure us that justice will be done some day.)

Finally, Jesus reveals our ultimate relationship with God by calling him Father, more accurately rendered "Daddy" or "Pappa," he once again fulfills the Old Testament, because all those OT names reflect some aspect of his being a father.

The question this raises in my mind -- What name would I give to my heavenly Father based on my interactions with Him? I haven't fully figured that one out.

Days Aren't Long Enough

"What can I give back to God for all the blessings he has poured out onme?" -- Psalm 116

I'm going to try and focus on counting my blessings today. And if I do a good job of it, it will take me more hours than the day contains.

First, my wife. God says in Proverbs that he who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the Lord. (Prov. 18:22) My wife should have a sign on her forehead saying, "Love you, God."

Secondly, my children. Children are a reward from the Lord" (Psalm 127:3) and "Children are like arrows in the hand of a warrior. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them." (Ps. 127:4-5).

Finally, my grandchildren are a crown (Prov. 17:6).

God has been good to me. So what can I give back. The psalmist says to make a toast to God in the presence of the assembly. He also asks us to do one thing -- cast our burdens upon him (psalm 55:22). Peter says to do this "because he cares for you." (1 Peter 5:7). Isn't our God amazing? He tells us to make a trade -- he'll take our cares and give us his. And what are his cares? Us. He knows the hairs on our head, (Matthew 10:30) the tears that we shed. (Psalm 56:8) His thoughts about us our innumerable. (Psalm 139:17).

I'll cast off my threadbare cloak of anxiety and worry and let him wrap me in a warm comforting robe of his righteousness (Isaiah 61:10), which gives me because of the work of Christ on my behalf.