Running After Papa – Page 17 – Discipline. Faith. Obedience. Endurance.

The 12 Days of Christmas Carol (w/ Bonus)

I found this on another blogsite searching for something else, but I thought it was cool.

It appears that from the mid 1500s through 1829, Roman Catholics in England were not permitted to practice their faith openly. So, in the same vein as “Ring around the Rosie” came to us depicting the Great Plague of London in the 1600s, someone penned a catechism of sorts for young Catholics to aide in remembering 12 tenets of the faith. Each “day” of the carol has a hidden meaning to the faith, making it something they could remember.

Here’s what I found

The Partridge in a Pear Tree was Jesus Christ.
The Two Turtle Doves were the Old and New Testaments.
The Three French Hens stood for faith, hope and love.
The Four Calling Birds were the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke & John.
The Five Golden Rings recalled the Torah or Law, the first five books of the Old Testament.
The Six Geese a-Laying stood for the six days of creation.
The Seven Swans a-Swimming represented the sevenfold gifts of the Holy Spirit–Prophesy, Serving, Teaching, Exhortation, Contribution, Leadership, and Mercy.
The Eight Maids a-Milking were the eight beatitudes.
The Nine Ladies Dancing were the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit–Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self Control.
The Ten Lords a-Leaping were the ten commandments.
The Eleven Pipers Piping stood for the eleven faithful disciples.
The Twelve Drummers Drumming symbolized the twelve points of belief in the Apostles’ Creed.

Bonus: The Apostles Creed – I thought I’d include the Apostles Creed (slightly modified from the Catholic catechism to reflect the Big-C Church, and not just the Roman Catholic church.

The late great Rich Mullins has a great song called Creed – click to hear it for free –(you may have to be on my blogsite (http://runningafterpapa.blogspot.com) to hear this… the link may not come through for all you who subscribe by email)

I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended into hell. On the third day he rose again.
He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
[One] holy Church, the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.

Merry CHRISTmas to you all.

Running After Papa…

Love… forever

Romans 8:38-39 (NLT) 38 And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angles nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow – not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. 39 No power in the sky above or in the earth below – indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Oh how many times I’ve listened to this verse in various translations over the years. I bet I’ve heard or read it a hundred times… But, for some reason, today I really heard this verse with new ears. I began to read it really slow and let each phrase sink in.

“…nothing can ever separate us from God’s love.” Nothing? What about my own sinful pride? What about my deceitful and desperately sick heart (Jer 17:9)? Nothing? Thank you Lord that you have more grace and mercy in your heart than I have sin in my nature. Thank you Lord.

“Neither death nor life…” I am forever tied to His heart. Whatever happens to my physical body, to my flesh-suit is irrelevant to the eternal security of my spirit. Thank you Lord.

“…neither angels nor demons…” Even the spiritual beings have no bearing on how may Daddy loves me. Thank you Lord.

“… neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow…” Even my mind has no effect on God’s love for me. As I’ve studied over the past week, my mind can affect my ability to relate to Him, but it doesn’t keep me from God’s love for me. Thank you Lord.

“… not even the powers of hell can separate us [me] from God’s love…” That is powerful. Just because I am under attack and even when its sifted through Father’s hands, His love for me is still the same. I just have to endure and rest in knowing that He still loves me the same. Thank you Lord.

“No power in the sky above or the earth below – indeed nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us [me] from the love of God…” Nothing! Not even my own self – because I am part of “all creation” – can separate me from God’s love. Thank you Lord.

“... that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.” That is the key. Jesus Christ HAS to be Lord. He has to have COMPLETE control. I have to be in TOTAL SURRENDER to Him in order to have the confidence and peace of NEVER being out of God’s love. Thank you Lord.

Thank you God for your love… a love that isn’t affected or controlled by me; a perfect love that is inpenetrable to the effects of my sin; a love that never ends; a love that never changes. Teach me to love you the same way… with your heart and not my own.

My Environment…

Romans 8:5-8 (ESV) 5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. 6 For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. 7 For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. 8 Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

OK. To continue my last post, Paul continues to stress the importance of the mind in the battle of the soul. It seems a bit to me like the age old question: “What came first the chicken or the egg?” in trying to understand how the mind and the flesh interact. Does the flesh direct the mind or does the mind direct the flesh?

Verse 5 is fairly specific. As we live, so we set our mind. It’s either on carnal things or Spiritual things, and ultimately death or life. It sounds like what I put myself around, I will eventually set my mind to. Perhaps therein lies the battle plan of the enemy. No one can argue that our culture and – worse yet – our children, are bombarded with TONS more images, words, implications, blood, death, hate, (fill in the blank) that we were. We are constantly stimulated with sights, sounds, images, smells, whatever, in a very media-rich environment.

Have you ever noticed how hard it is to just be still and quiet? “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalms 46:10). This is why its SO important for community, for fellowship, for “iron sharpening” – as we’re doing here.

Paul lays it all out there. “Death” or “Life and peace.” While it seems like a no brainer, the question becomes what am I surrounding myself with physically? On what am I setting my mind?

I choose life. I choose peace. I choose righteousness.

It’s time to evaluate my environment. It’s time to get still. (Tried to embed Reuben Morgan’s “Still”)

Still – Reuben Morgan

The Command Center

Continuing the the thought of the last post is where Paul picks up in Romans 8.

Remember, I posed the question of why Jesus added the “mind” to the greatest commandment (Mark 12:30), when God himself gave the command (Deut 6:5) without the identification of the “mind”. Read what Paul has to say about it…

Romans 8:5-6 (NLT) “5 Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. 6 So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace.”

No wonder Jesus thought it was important. The mind is the command center of the spiritual battlefront between our spirit (controlled by the Holy Spirit) and our flesh (controlled by the enemy). Wikipedia defines the command center as:

A command center is a central place for carrying out orders and for supervising tasks, also known as a headquarters, or HQ.

Whoever controls the mind, controls the battle. Note: We can lose a battle, but we’ve already won the war. (Thank you God!) No wonder Paul writes a few chapters later in Romans: “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” (Romans 12:2 NIV).

So the question becomes, if the mind is the command center and the key to victory, how do I send in reinforcements (to continue the war metaphor)? Verse 6 says by “… letting the Spirit control our mind…,” but what does that look like?

How does one renew the mind? Is it back to what God’s been saying to me over the last several, seemingly unrelated, journal entries? Thus the beauty of journaling… to be able to go back and see how God is speaking in themes… then BAM! He ties it all together. Cool. Very cool.

Is it back to the spiritual disciplines? Are Romans 12:2 and 1 Cor 9:24-47 related in this way?

Running After Papa…

Battleground of the soul

I have known for some time that we are made up of three “parts”: the spirit, the soul, and the flesh. Additionally, the soul appears to be further divided into three parts: the mind, the will, and the emotions.

The spirit-man is what gets saved when we surrender our will to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. The spirit IS saved. The soul IS BEING saved and the flesh is NOT being saved. The Word tells us we will get new bodies (Rom 8:23, 2 Cor :1-5) It’s like the good guys vs. the bad guys (spiritually) all the time in our lives. Jesus has our spirit, the devil has our flesh and they are battling for the soul – the mind, the will, the emotions.

Romans 7 makes it very clear that the remnant of sin from our sin nature is very alive an well in our flesh (Romans 7:18).

Romans 7:22-25 (ESV) 22 For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, 23 but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. 24 Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.

It’s like the soul is Hell’s Gate (Lord of the Rings reference). The spirit man is Gandalf, Aragorn and the Fellowship, while the flesh is Sauron and his army of Orc’s. The assault is non-stop. The attack is relentless. Legions and legions of orcs and darkness continually bombard the soul. The mind wants to do one thing, but the flesh wants to do another. (Romans 7:14-20)

I find it interesting that Paul says, “… I myself serve the law of God with my mind…” How does one do that? It the mind – that part of the soul – more closely aligned with the spirit?

The Greek word used for mind, nous, in this passage means “1b reason in the narrower sense, as the capacity for spiritual truth, the higher powers of the soul, the faculty of perceiving divine things, of recognizing goodness and of hating evil.“

Jesus said (Mark 12:30) “30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.” It’s interesting that Jesus inserted the word “mind.” The original version (Deut 6:5) only has “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.“

Why does Jesus add “mind” to the list? I think it’s important. I think it goes back to spiritual discipline. Practicing and exercising those spiritual disciplines to have my spirit (and my mind?) stronger than my flesh (and my emotions?). All the spiritual disciplines involve the mind and exercise the will. Pretty soon, I’ll have my flesh outnumbered!

Running After Papa…

The Command Center

Continuing the the thought of the last post is where Paul picks up in Romans 8.

Romans 8:5-6 (NLT) “5 Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. 6 So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace.“

A command center is a central place for carrying out orders and for supervising tasks, also known as a headquarters, or HQ.

Whoever controls the mind, controls the battle. Note: We can lose a battle, but we’ve already won the war. (Thank you God!) No wonder Paul writes a few chapters later in Romans: “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” (Romans 12:2 NIV).

So the question becomes, if the mind is the command center and the key to victory, how do I send in reinforcements (to continue the war metaphor)? Verse 6 says by “… letting the Spirit control our mind…,” but what does that look like?

How does one renew the mind? Is it back to what God’s been saying to me over the last several, seemingly unrelated, journal entries? Thus the beauty of journaling… to be able to go back and see how God is speaking in themes… then BAM! He ties it all together. Cool. Very cool.

Is it back to the spiritual disciplines? Are Romans 12:2 and 1 Cor 9:24-47 related in this way?

Battleground of the soul

The spirit-man is what gets saved when we surrender our will to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. The spirit IS saved. The soul IS BEING saved and the flesh is the enemies. It’s like the good guys vs. the bad guys (spiritually) all the time in our lives. Jesus has our spirits, the devil has our flesh and they are battling for the soul – the mind, the will, the emotions.

Romans 7 makes it very clear that the remnant of sin from our sin nature is very alive an well in our flesh (Romans 7:18).

Romans 7:22-25 (ESV) 22 For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, 23 but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. 24 Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.

It’s like the soul is Hell’s Gate (Lord of the Rings reference). The spirit man is Gandalf, Aragorn and the Fellowship, while the flesh is Sauron’s army of Orc’s. The assault is non-stop. The attack is relentless. Legions and legions of orcs and darkness continually bombard the soul. The mind wants to do one thing, but the flesh wants to do another. (Romans 7:14-20)

I find it interesting that Paul says, “… I myself serve the law of God with my mind…” How does one do that? It the mind – that part of the soul – more closely aligned with the spirit?

What choose you?

Romans 6:15-19 (NLT) 16 Don’t you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living. 17 Thank God! Once you were slaves of sin, but now you wholeheartedly obey this teaching we have given you. 18 Now you are free from your slavery to sin, and you have become slaves to righteous living. 19 Because of the weakness of your human nature, I am using the illustration of slavery to help you understand all this. Previously, you let yourselves be slaves to impurity and lawlessness, which led ever deeper into sin. Now you must give yourselves to be slaves to righteous living so that you will become holy.

The predominant word that stands out to me in this passage is the word “slave.” So often that word has such a negative connotation in our Western – particularly U.S. – culture. I’m not sure I fully grasp the cultural significance of the word slave used in the times and culture of Christ.

Regardless, I looked up the word in its Greek origin. The word is doulon means this: 1) a slave, bondman, man of servile condition. 1a) a slave. 1b) metaph., one who gives himself up to another’s will those whose service is used by Christ in extending and advancing His cause among men. 1c) devoted to another to the disregard of one’s own interests.

What is particularly interesting is the root of this word. The word originates from the word deo which means to “bind” as in: 1) to bind tie, fasten. 1a) to bind, fasten with chains, to throw into chains. … 1b2) to bind, put under obligation, of the law, duty etc. 1b2a) to be bound to one, a wife, a husband.

So, choosing to participate in sin is choosing to become bound to sin, like a husband and wife are bound to each other.

That’s why there is no grey area of sin with God. It is either sin or it is not, because I am either bound to sin (which verse 19 says leads to deeper and deeper sin – deeper and deeper bondage) or I am bound to righteous living by (verse 17) “… wholeheartedly obey[ing] this teaching we have given you…” and (verse 19) “… you must give yourselves to be slaves of righteous living…“.

Our culture is saturated in moral relativism… “if it feels good, do it”… “I’m not bothering anyone else”… yada, yada, yada (to quote the great Jerry Seinfeld). Our society is so jacked up because of it, that we – as a nation – pass laws limiting the rights of the many in order to “protect” the few from being offended or isolated. Our courts let the wrong go free and legislate from the bench because their own moral compass doesn’t jive with the moral compass of those who passed whatever law is on the books.

How did I get down this train of thought? I don’t know. The question becomes then, how do I give myself to be a slave of righteous living? It’s fairly easy sitting here in the midst of the Bible Belt in the land of Freedom (although our freedoms are diminishing with every year). What does it look like when the Christian becomes the target? What was it like when the Roman’s were feeding Christians to the lions?

If this is the easiest place in the world at the easiest time to be a radical Christian, why are there really so few? That’s a convicting question. What aren’t I more radical than I am?

I had a girlfriend in college that called me a “Bible thumper” when we broke up. In response to that, a friend told me, “Hey, we all thump something.” He was right. So is God. According to this passage, we are all slaves of something. It’s our choice. It’s my choice. Sin or Righteousness.

I choose righeousness.

Faith like a child

Romans 4: 18-22 (NLT) 18 Even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept hoping—believing that he would become the father of many nations. For God had said to him, “That’s how many descendants you will have!” 19 And Abraham’s faith did not weaken, even though, at about 100 years of age, he figured his body was as good as dead—and so was Sarah’s womb. 20 Abraham never wavered in believing God’s promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God. 21 He was fully convinced that God is able to do whatever he promises. 22 And because of Abraham’s faith, God counted him as righteous.

I don’t think I really, really understand faith. I am convinced that “faith like a child” that Jesus spoke of is much simpler than I make it out to be, in all my maturity and wisdom. (sarcasm implied)

My son Jake understands faith. I think he has faith like Abraham. If God said it, that’s enough for him. There are no questions and no doubts. Just faith. By the way, he’s 10 years old.

No, I think I’ve spent my whole life trying to squelch exactly what God puts in us as children. I so wanted to be “grown up” and a “big boy” that, somehow, I’ve let my faith be tempered by reason, understanding, and feasibility. OK… I just scared myself writing that down. Check out what Jesus said on this very topic.

Matt 19:14 ESV 14 but Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.”

Luke 10:21 NLT 21 At that same time Jesus was filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit, and he said, “O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever, and for revealing them to the childlike. Yes, Father, it pleased you to do it this way.”

How foolish of me to think this way. How prideful of me to think this way. Do I really think God only works and can work in the confines of what I understand? Do I really want a God that is limited by my own imagination? Not me. Sometimes, I think Papa just sits up on his throne and says about me “Bless his cotton-pickin’ heart. He has NO IDEA what I am capable of.”

Lord, I repent of my sin… my idiotic pride that has led me down a limiting and narrow view of You. I pray for faith. Help me exercise my faith this week Lord. I cast off all the preconceived ideas and pre-built boxes I’ve put you in being “religious” and “pious.” Forgive me. Fill me anew with your Holy Spirit and renew a right spirit within me. Reignite the faith of a child within me. Thank you for examples of faith such as Abraham. Help me be fully convinced as he was. Thank you for a living example of faith in my son. Help me be more like him. If You said it… that’s enough. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.

Running After Papa…

Faith like a child

Romans 4: 18-22 (NLT) 18 Even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept hoping—believing that he would become the father of many nations. For God had said to him, “That’s how many descendants you will have!” 19 And Abraham’s faith did not weaken, even though, at about 100 years of age, he figured his body was as good as dead—and so was Sarah’s womb. 20 Abraham never wavered in believing God’s promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God. 21 He was fully convinced that God is able to do whatever he promises. 22 And because of Abraham’s faith, God counted him as righteous.

My son Jake understands faith. I think he has faith like Abraham. If God said it, that’s enough for him. There are no questions and no doubts. Just faith. By the way, he’s 10 years old.

Matt 19:14 ESV 14 but Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.”