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Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity,
Ephesians 5:15-16a

It is so tempting to live carefree! Sometimes I just plain get tired. And the older I get, the more tired I get. But God’s Word applies to us whether we are 2, 22 or 102 years old. Now granted, a two year old doesn’t understand very much about living wisely. But it is certainly an age at which they can begin to learn. And the life of a 102 year old isn’t quite the same as the life of a 22 year old. And those of us that are somewhere in between – well, I’ve learned that each decade brings its own challenges to living carefully. In each age, there is a temptation to live carefree, the definition of carefree just changes a bit! At 2 it means don’t bite your sister! At 22 it means watch your entertainment! At 52 it means don’t grow weary in well-doing. At 102 it means watch your thoughts and attitudes. Or something like that. (Details may vary based on personal temptations.)

God’s Word, however, tells us to live “carefully”, not “carefree.” We are enjoined to “Make the most of every opportunity.” I need this encouragement, this urging on to greater things.

A television show I used to like (a couple of decades ago) was Hill Street Blues. It was a cop show that always began with the morning briefing. At the end of the briefing, the Sergeant always said, “And Hey! Let’s be very careful out there!” That’s what God is saying to us. The policemen and women were being charged to be careful because each day they faced danger. The same is true for us – each day we face temptation from the enemy who is trying to trip us up and cause us to fall into sin. Let’s not kid ourselves – yes, it is a fall into sin, but it is always a conscious choice to fall. The enemy can catch us by surprise if we’re not living carefully (and sometimes even when we are), but there is always a point at which we decide to no longer be careful and “allow” ourselves to fall.

Living carefully doesn’t mean not experiencing the freedom that living in Christ makes available. Living in Christ’s freedom is freedom from condemnation and guilt. It is freedom from religion. It is freedom from bondage to sin. And such living brings a lightness in one’s spirit that makes one feel carefree. That’s wonderful. I hope that we can all grasp that. The kind of carefree we ought to avoid is the kind that causes us not to care about how we are living.

Living carefully does not mean living in bondage. I’m not talking about a set of rules that we need to keep – being very careful not to break any of them. I’m talking about how we live so that we please God and allow Him to shine through us.

Living carefully does not mean being a workaholic – even if it’s being a workaholic for the Lord! God’s example to us and best plan for us is to work, then rest. His Word speaks strongly about honoring the Sabbath (as in considering it important enough to include in the Ten Commandments!). Science teaches us that resting allows our bodies to refresh and heal themselves regularly. Business studies show that creativity is greatly enhanced by regular times of rest. We will have more energy to live carefully if we rest regularly.

I want to represent Christ well in the world in which I live. That means I must be very careful in how I live.

Lord, help me because sometimes I just want to stop being vigilant. Help me to make the most of every opportunity and rest in between the opportunities, trusting you to handle them while I sleep.

As I am reading through Ephesians two phrases seem to jump out at me because of their repetition: “In Him” and “In love.” I’m sure they are themes that will be a part of our Bible study. If you’d like to participate in our online, interactive Bible study of the book of Ephesians, e-mail me at Sandy@ApprehendingGrace.com, or leave a comment to this blog. I can’t wait. I am trying to read through the entire book before I go back and study individual words, verses and paragraphs, but it’s so hard because I am arrested by the theme in each paragraph it seems. I’m confident God has wonderful things in store for us!

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Ephesians 1:2 (NIV)

I love the way Paul starts his letters. Most of my letters (e-mails, really, since I haven’t written a real letter in many years) start with “How are you?” I think I’m being friendly – asking about them before I launch into my own news is the polite thing to do.

Besides, how weird would people think I am if I started my letters “Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ”?

I’ve been wracking my brain for a similar phrase that might be appropriate today. I haven’t found one. I checked other translations. NLT and The Message are the most likely candidates, but they didn’t do it for me either:

May grace and peace be yours, sent to you from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord.
Ephesians 1:2, New Living Translation

I greet you with the grace and peace poured into our lives by God our Father and our Master, Jesus Christ.
Ephesians 1:2, The Message

The problem is that all the translations properly translate the greeting, offering grace and peace to the reader from “God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord.” We live in a world in which it is no longer fashionable, or even acceptable in many venues, to offer such a greeting. We’ve become so much a part of that world that we no longer offer greetings that bless the hearer or reader with two of the greatest blessings God can give, outside of salvation: grace and peace. (See my blog “Grace, The Double-Powered Prayer; Peace, Restored to Oneness” for more on these words of blessing by Paul.)

There’s a fine line between acting in such a way that the world doesn’t dismiss us as a fool and living a life that blesses others and makes them thirsty for the One who makes you different. Well, maybe it’s not such a fine line. Maybe I’ve just convinced myself it is so that I don’t have to be so different in society.

I don’t know. I usually try to end blogs by embracing an action based on the content of the blog. But I don’t know what that action is in this case – because I haven’t figured it out yet. I do know, though, that I miss many, many, many opportunities to bless others and to praise God because my language reflects the culture of the world more than the culture of faith. I want to be willing to be different if that’s the right answer. I don’t want to be dismissed, for the sake of the Gospel, if there is an updated approach that carries the same message. I’m old school enough to believe the message must be carried in words, not just actions. Actions are greatly important because the words are meaningless without them; but words have power and I’m looking for a way to include the verbal blessing without losing my audience.

On the other hand, maybe I need to not be concerned about God’s reputation (and my own) and just make the blessing a natural part of my routine.

So this blog has gone around the block a few times, but here’s the deal:

Our challenge: To offer God’s blessings of grace and peace as we go through our daily lives.

The problem: Doing so in such a way that the message doesn’t alienate the hearer.

If you have any ideas, let me know. I welcome your input as I wrestle with this issue.

In the meantime…

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ.

I’m considering beginning an online verse-by-verse Bible study of Ephesians that will begin next week. If you would like to participate, please e-mail me at Sandy@ApprehendingGrace.com or by leaving a comment to this blog.

Resting at the River’s Edge in August — Some Reading for a Hot Summer Day

³Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. ⁴For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.
Ephesians 1:3-4

Ephesians is one of the great books we’ll read in August. It’s truly one of my favorites. I quoted the above two verses, but trust me, I had to restrain myself from quoting the whole first chapter.

We’ll read another book that is many people’s favorites: James. It’s a book chock full of practical advice and favorite verses…or at least verses you know well. How about these?

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds,… (1:2)

God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. (4:6b)

Come near to God and he will come near to you. (4:8)

The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. (5:16b)

We’ll also continue reading in the Old Testament, finishing the last two chapters in 1 Chronicles and then moving on to 2 Chronicles. Ezra and Nehemiah are next — you’ll read not only about the re-building of the Temple, but also about how the hearts of the Israelites were turned again toward God.

Throw about twenty Psalms into the mix and one minor prophet (Obadiah) and that’s our August reading.

Some of you may find yourself beginning to fall behind. Let me encourage you to continue reading. It’s OK to be behind. Maybe you’ll finish reading through the entire Bible in fifteen months instead of twelve — and won’t it have been wonderful to have accomplished such a thing?

Or who knows — perhaps God will provide you with a window of time in September or October or November and you’ll find yourself catching up just in time to read the Christmas story in December!

Take a summer break and read some Scripture! The beach would be a nice location! Enjoy!

To download a PDF of August’s reading schedule, click here.

Note: There are many references to Scripture in this blog. All are to the New International Version (NIV) of the Bible unless otherwise noted.

Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,
1 Corinthians 1:1

Yesterday’s blog about Paul’s calling (and my calling and your calling) encouraged me to dig a little deeper. Simply by looking up the other usages of the word that is translated “called” The word is only used eleven times, and in all cases it is used one of two ways: (2) by Paul referring to his calling as an apostle and (2) by various authors to refer to those who are children of God. Yesterday we looked at Paul usage of the term. Today, let’s look at how it is used in relation to others who trust Jesus:

• In writing to the believers in Rome, Paul says we are called “to belong to Jesus Christ.” (Romans 1:6)
• Paul addresses his letter to the Roman believers as those who are “called to be saints.” (Romans 1:7)
• In 1 Corinthians, Paul describes us as being “called to be holy.” (1 Corinthians 1:2)
• Later in that chapter, Paul writes that for those who are called by God, Christ is the power and wisdom of God. (1 Corinthians 1:23-24)
• In the book of Jude, those who have been called, are described as those “who are loved by God the Father and kept by Jesus Christ” (Jude 1:1)

In each of these cases, the word translated “called” means “ongoing (or continuing) choice.” It is the derivative of a word that is also translated “called” but refers to the single act that is done or has been done. Looking at this word gives us more insight into our calling. Read over this list slowly to understand who you are in Christ and what you are called to do or be.

• We are called into fellowship with God’s Son Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 1:9)
• We are called to live in peace. (1 Corinthians 7:15c, Colossians 3:15)
• We are called “by the grace of Christ” (Galatians 1:6)
• We are called to “freedom” (Galatians 5:13, NRSV)
• We are called to live a life “worthy” of the calling we have received (Ephesians 4:1)
• We are called to “one hope” (Ephesians 4:4)
• We are called “into His kingdom glory” (1 Thessalonians 2:12)
• We are called to “live a holy life” (1 Thessalonians 4:7, 2 Timothy 1:9)
• We are called to “share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Thessalonians 2:14)
• We are called to received the “promised eternal inheritance” (Hebrews 9:15)
• We are called “out of darkness into His wonderful light.” (1 Peter 2:9)
• We are called to suffer unjustly (1 Peter 2:19-21)
• We are called to return evil or insults with a blessing (1 Peter 3:9)
• We are called to God’s “eternal glory in Christ” (1 Peter 5:10)
• We are called to “the wedding supper of the Lamb” (Revelation 19:9)

That’s quite a list! As I created the list there were several items that caught my attention. Rather than talk about them, let me give you an example and a challenge, then offer an encouragement and a prayer.

The example: As I typed “to live in peace,” the questions came into my mind “Am I living in peace? Am I appropriating God’s peace?”

The challenge: Read over the list prayerfully. Which of the things you are called to would God like you to experience more fully? Make it a part of your daily prayers for the next two weeks.

The encouragement: God doesn’t call us to anything He cannot give us or enable us to experience. If He has highlighted one of these “callings,” it is His desire to help you attain it.

The prayer: I pray that this week you will apprehend the grace that God has for you. And I bless you with a supernatural ability to see God working in your life as you pray to bring about His calling this week.

As I read through the book of Matthew, particularly chapters 5 through 9, I am struck by how easy it is to fall into establishing expectations about God and about how others should act if they know God. The Pharisees get a bad rap among Christians, and perhaps rightly so…somewhat. You see, if I were there, when Jesus was here on earth, I’m not altogether sure that I wouldn’t have sided with the Pharisees a fair amount of the time!

Jesus was doing and saying things that were totally blowing their minds. Yes, they had it all wrong in many ways but their wrongness came out of a desire to be obedient to scripture as they understood it (and had been taught it). To avoid sin, they had developed a very involved set of rules. Their desire was to not offend God. That’s a good desire. Yet they became slaves to their rules and lost the wonder of relationship with God.

It’s pretty easy for me to be like that. I am a much more disciplined person when I establish “rules” for myself. Having established those rules, sometimes I’m not able to live by them – I fall short of even my own rules. If I am not actively pursuing God in the midst of it all, I can fall into condemnation of myself. The enemy loves that. The point is, it’s not about living by the rules, it’s about pursuing a relationship with God. Sure, it’s OK to set up rules if they help you live the life God wants you to live, but don’t be a slave to the rules and don’t forget God’s grace.

God is all about grace. I ought to be all about grace. He is also exceedingly patient. I ought to be exceedingly patient. But it is so easy to fall into the trap of the Pharisees and establish a rigid set of rules that I believe I “ought” to live by. Sets of rules make it easy to know when I’ve done well and when I’ve failed. But sets of rules also lead to legalism and ultimately make me very much like the Pharisees.

Stage two of this process is when I extend the rules that I’ve established for myself to others. Oops! I’m become more pharisaical by the minute!

A few months ago, a friend and I were talking about changes that occur in the life of a believer and being careful not to place expectations on new believers, but rather extending grace to them as they learn to walk with Christ – allowing the Holy Spirit to do the convicting and changing instead of acting as if our nagging will help the situation. After a few minutes of talking, she said “but we do expect them to change, don’t we? And shouldn’t we?” I didn’t know how to answer her. Because yes, we do expect them to change, to become more like Christ as they grow in relationship with Him, and we should expect it because we know our God is wonderfully able to change even the most hardened person who chooses to follow Him. Yet, her tone and words conveyed a condemnation for those who didn’t change quickly enough to meet her expectations. And I found myself silenced because I know that deep within me, there is a tendency to establish expectations and then be disappointed when those expectations are not met. That’s a polite way of saying deep within me there is a tendency to judge others against my standards. Ouch! It sounded so much better the polite way.

Let me repeat myself: God is all about grace. I ought to be all about grace. He is also exceedingly patient. I ought to be exceedingly patient.

The Ten Commandments not withstanding, God is not about sets of rules. He is about relationship. And relationships develop at different speeds and in different ways. I must be careful to let God lead in each relationship He has, and not try to do the job of the Holy Spirit.

So let me encourage you in two ways: If establishing rules helps you live a godly life, establish rules. Then be willing to sacrifice those rules daily as you continue in relationship with God, because the relationship is always more important than the rules.

God’s love for you lives outside your rules – in other words, when you don’t live by your rules, God isn’t looking down at you and shaking His head wondering if you’ll ever get it right. Don’t let a slip keep you from pursuing God Himself. His love for you is deep and wide and long and high (Eph 3:18), and He has MORE grace to give to you every hour of every day. So you can keep up with those rules you’ve set!

Until three years ago, I was a life-long suburbanite and I loved it. Then I discovered small town living! My town is so small (how small is it?) that my husband and I got our picture in the paper last week (page one of Section B)…because we had our more-or-less annual “Hovatter Hot Dog Day.” Which being interpreted means we had about 40 friends over for a backyard weenie roast. And it made the local paper!

It took quite a bit of getting used to, this small town living, but it’s been a delight to us all along the way. We are “townies,” but within 5 minutes of getting in the car I can be driving through corn fields or past my favorite sheep or cows. Within about fifteen minutes, I can be deep into corn field driving. And every Thursday morning I spend a good half hour driving through corn, soybean and wheat fields on my way to a weekly business meeting.

Which brings me to the subject of this blog. DeKalb corn (that’s the brand whose logo is a flying ear of corn) has a slogan on all their signs that gets me thinking most Thursday mornings.

DeKalb Corn
Strong Roots
Strong Yields

I’ve been praying that my life would become like DeKalb corn! Apparently (and actually I know almost nothing about corn), DeKalb propagates their corn to develop especially strong roots. The results of being “well rooted” is, in their words, “strong yields.” In other words, having strong roots means that the plants will produce lots of corn.

Scripture has something to say about strong roots. The most commonly quoted passage is in Jeremiah:17:7-8:

“But blessed are those who trust in the LORD and have made the LORD their hope and confidence. They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green, and they go right on producing delicious fruit.” (NLT)

Trusting in the Lord grows strong roots within us – roots that nourish us in times of heat and drought and enable us to prosper, continuing to produce delicious fruit. And producing delicious fruit is what Jesus said we were “appointed” to do (John 15:11). Colossians 2:6-7a reiterates the message: “As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, just as you were taught…” (NRSV).

          Lord, I want to have strong yields.

As I continued to think about the phrase “strong yields,” it occurred to me that there is an additional meaning to the word yield. It can mean “to bring forth” as described above. It can also mean “to surrender or relinquish to the physical control of another : hand over possession of” (Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary). And I couldn’t help but think how appropriate the slogan was when that meaning was considered. When my roots are strong, when I have been “built up in Him and established in the faith,” my ability to yield control of my life to Him becomes much “stronger.” It happens more quickly and in more difficult situations.

          Lord, I want to yield strongly.

Well, all of this eventually drove me to DeKalb’s website to read about their strong rooted, strong yielding corn. (Yes, I guess I am a bit nerdy.) Slogans being what they are, I only learned about the strong roots and yields from their flying corncob road signs. From their website I learned that there is a third distinction: strong stalks. What good are strong stalks? Well, apparently, strong stalks improves “standability.”

“Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand”  (Ephesians 6:13, NIV). Sounds like another way of impressing upon us that we are to “live [our] lives in Him.”

          Lord, I want to still be standing after the battles you send my way.

At the risk of belaboring the point too much, the DeKalb website throws in an extra advantage: “better drydown.” In short, the corn is drier at harvest time, requiring less effort (and therefore expense) on the part of the farmer to get the corn ready for market. In other words, DeKalb corn requires less “babying.” Strong roots really do have benefits! 

“We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people’s trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming. But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ.” Ephesians 4:14-15

          Lord, help me to grow strong roots.

Over the past ten years I’ve learned more from my Mom than over the previous two decades! Who’da thunk it? You see, Mom had a stroke in May 1998. She has been severely handicapped since then. Yet she continues to enjoy life and be a blessing to those around her. (Read Saturday’s blog, “The ‘Good Humor’ Lady.”)

Admittedly, there have been times over the past decade when darkness has overwhelmed her and she’s asked me why God allowed this to happen and why God doesn’t just let her die. At first I had only vague, theoretical answers. Now I can point to real, verifiable answers.

The theoretical is not to be scoffed at. Good doctrine is important and should provide the brick and mortar structure that experience decorates. But like the saying goes, a person with a theoretical argument (even a good “theological” one) doesn’t stand a chance against a person with a real personal experience.

My doctrine teaches me that until God takes us home, He has a purpose for our lives. We haven’t accomplished all the good things He has prepared in advance for us to do (Ephesians 2:10). Some might look at my Mom – unable to get herself out of bed, requiring total care, even unable to feed herself- and wonder what purpose can God possibly have for her now? What can she possible accomplish? What value can she have in our world today? My doctrine also teaches me that God promises to use all things for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28), and that He chooses (yes, consciously, intentionally chooses!) the weak things to confound the strong (1 Corinthians 1:27-31).

My experience validates that God has used and is using Mom’s horrible situation to touch many around her and to teach me much about life. As a tribute to both my God and my Mom, let me share with you some of what I’m learning.

I’m learning to bless (and honor) my mom. Mom calls me on the phone, sometimes several times a day, usually with nothing but “foolishness” to talk about. She’ll often share the “joke of the day” with me – but she almost always messes up the punchline. I usually don’t even get the joke (or see any humor in it if I do get it), but she laughs and laughs because she knows the joke and probably doesn’t realize that she left a few words out of the punchline. So I bless her by laughing with her, because to explain a joke is to lose its effectiveness but to laugh together is a good thing. That I don’t understand her sense of humor is pretty irrelevant. We’re having fun together – she by laughing at the joke, me by enjoying my mom’s craziness. Sometimes my husband Phil will tell her he doesn’t get the joke. She’ll pause for a second and then say she doesn’t get it either and they both laugh! (I feel compelled to point out here that Mom’s stroke did not affect her mental capacities. She’s just having fun with life, whether she gets the joke or not.)

I’m learning patience. When she calls me on the phone for the nth-time-today to talk about nothing but “foolishness,” I’ve learned to turn away from my work, shout into the phone so she can hear me and relax while she tells me of her latest activity at the nursing home. Sometimes I feel myself get anxious because it’s the middle of the workday and I have deadlines to meet. Yet I am learning to turn away from that anxiety and toward someone I love to hear about things that matter to her.

I’m learning compassion. It’s either that or turn my heart off as I visit the nursing home each week. Visiting the nursing home costs me much emotionally, but at every visit I am impressed by the significant need for the simple gift of holding a hand, praying with someone or just sitting and talking for five minutes. It’s what I call “cup of water” obedience. I don’t have to do BIG things for God (like be a missionary to Zimbabwe – I call that “King Kong” obedience). I only have to give a cold cup of water to someone who is thirsty.

I’m learning sacrifice. I’m doing things with and for Mom that I would never have imagined. Mom always loved crafts. I don’t. But in order to share things with her when the possibilities in her world are so limited, I purchase crafts and we work on them together. I’m doing all the work, of course, but Mom sits next to me and knows instinctively how to do them and instructs me accordingly. I’d much prefer to read and follow the directions. But I humble myself and “OK, Mom, what should I do next?” (I’ve drawn a line at using a glue gun.)

I’m learning that sacrifice is the currency of heaven and the language of love…but I digress…that’s another blog-to-come.

I’m learning the importance of enjoying life…even when it’s not very enjoyable. I’m not very good at that. Mom is very good at that. She turns every event into a party. I used to think this was part of Mom’s “foolishness.” I’ve learned that it is part of her strength.

I’m learning to be friendlier than I really am and nicer to others than I really am. Everyone matters to Mom. In many ways she reflects the love of Christ much better than I do. She is a person who truly sees the best in everyone and treats them accordingly.

I’m learning that having a deep trust in God doesn’t always look the way I expect it to look. Mom has a simple, usually unspoken, unpretentious faith. When she arrives in heaven, I imagine Jesus planning a clown parade in her honor and everyone will be wearing funny hats and will have their own noise-maker. This would not be heaven to me, but it surely will be for Mom.

I’m learning to honor people for serving in professions that I cannot fathom serving in.

I’m learning to love better.

All this from a teacher who can no longer feed or dress herself. Wow! I love you, Mom!

I have also been studying Ephesians 2:1-9. I was dead in my sins, but God (BUT GOD!), who is rich in mercy and because of His great love for me, has raised me up with Jesus and seated me with Him in heavenly places! Wow! That’s what a Father can do! That’s what a Savior can do!

Praise God for His immeasurable riches of grace. What a match for His immeasurable power.