No, really

And remember, no one who wants to do wrong should ever say, "God is tempting me." God is never tempted to do wrong, and he never tempts anyone else either.

...Temptation comes from the lure of our own evil desires.

James 1:13-14(NLT)

Evil? Really?

That's such a harsh word, isn't it? People like me who like to choose words carefully would have probably cringed, had we been the writer God told to use this word. Surely we don't all have evil desires. Surely those are just for "lost" people or "backslidden people" or the guy named in that very scandalous "prayer request" passed onto us. Do you have evil desires? Do I?

And the extremely harsh answer to those question is, yes.

Yes, you do. Yes, I do. In fact, if we are completely honest with ourselves, we could search our hearts and list them right there on the page. They are real and they are nameable. Oh, right. Sometimes they change. Sometimes they slither through a chameleon chain of disguises, shedding one skin for another, but nevertheless they are always present. Even in the grocery store. Even on the bus. On the elevator, in line, as we surf the web...while we drink our coffee. While we sit in church. And in the moment we think they don't affect us they are there, crouching on our doorstep. Threatening our worship. Limiting our freedom. The minute we turn a blind eye, they will bleed through into our purest intentions, muting the beauty, painting it all black. And only a blind eye doesn't see that progression into darkness.

God set us free from many things and I think there's a reason Jesus Christ healed so many physically blind people as He walked this earth -- it painted a very real picture for us. We are blind to our nature before we meet Him, aren't we? We live in a world of black so that nothing really makes an impression on us. But as we take His hand and step into the light, He touches our spiritual eyes and gives us what our human nature could never: sight. The truth sets us free and for the first time we see the world, vibrant, living, breathing....fallen. Good and evil juxtapose across the landscape of humanity and our heart is wakened with a yearning for that truth. For deeper vision. For broader light. And everything is just peachy until we walk a mile in these old moccasins of flesh and realize they're not slipping off anytime soon. For then comes the halting truth: My hand still reaches for death if I still allow it.

The apple didn't fall far from the tree and it still looks good to me. The excitement of sin still quickens my blood. A secret still tastes sweet in the moment it is born. I have not evolved into the picture of sainthood nor gained a doe-eyed innocence. I am forgiven -- but I am still breathing! Yes, God has a plan for me, but sin crouches at my door every day, desiring to steal it away...and the truth is -- gasp! -- part of me still wants to give it. But you know what? Jesus Christ is also there in that moment -- thanks be to God! -- with a reminder of the truth of my salvation:

He gives us more and more strength to stand against such evil desires. As the Scriptures say, "God sets himself against the proud, but he shows favor to the humble."

So humble yourselves before God. Resist the Devil, and he will flee from you.

Draw close to God, and God will draw close to you."

--James 4:6-8

Yep, we're in the same club, my friend. We could call it the Evil Desires Support Group or we can just call it By Grace We Have Been Saved -- So sing it with me, and pray it with all your heart:

Draw me nearer, nearer, nearer blessed Lord
To the cross where Thou has died;
Draw me nearer, nearer, nearer blessed Lord
To Thy precious, bleeding side.

Abiding

So....

I've just started a study of the book of James with a group of women in Anderson, and I have got to tell you, it's blowing me away. God's Word blows my mind with the sheer TRUTH it communicates to dim-wits like me. I come away from some of these discussions feeling like I am about to explode from grasping the hem of KNOWING Him. Through His Word He reveals Himself to humanity, wrapped in flesh as we are...He draws us deeper into the glory of relationship with Him...marvelous, marvelous wonder of grace...

We opened up our time today with a beautiful song, *written in 2002*, and as I listened to the words of it, I was reminded today of how faith can speak into the generations that follow through verses like this -- words of life and peace and encouragement. It ministered to me in a way that was truly profound:

In Christ alone my hope is found,
He is my light, my strength, my song.
This cornerstone, this solid ground,
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm.
What heights of love, what depths of peace,
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease;
My comforter, my all-in-all,
Here in the love of Christ I stand.

In Christ alone, who took on flesh --
Fullness of God in helpless babe.
This gift of love and righteousness,
Scorned by the ones He came to save.
'Til on that Cross, as Jesus died
The wrath of God was satisfied;
For every sin on Him was laid --
Here in the death of Christ I live.

There in the ground His body lay,
Light of the world by darkness slain;
Then bursting forth in glorious day,
Up from the grave He rose again!
And as He stands in victory,
Sin's curse has lost its grip on me!
For I am His and He is mine,
Bought with the precious blood of Christ.

No guilt in life, no fear in death --
This is the power of Christ in me.
From life's first cry to final breath
Jesus commands my destiny.
No power of hell, no scheme of man
Can ever pluck me from His hand;
'Til He returns or calls me home,
Here in the power of Christ I'll stand.
'Til He returns or calls me home,
Here in the power of Christ I stand --
Here in the power of Christ alone.

-- Stuart Townend

We talked a lot today about how trials work in our life, sent by the hand of the Father to perfect our faith, to mature our walk. We talked about the sheer humility of Christ, lowering Himself to become a man, to walk in our shoes for 30 years. What did it feel like to the God of the universe to submit to hands of flesh? To cry out for a diaper change? To feel the pang of rejection in adolescence? Did I assume that He never knew the frustration of learning? That the first letters presented to Him strung effortlessly from His mouth? That He knew the square root of pi and the Pythagorean theorem the moment he drew His first breath? No, He submitted to the will of the Father and limited Himself so that He could KNOW us. So that He could experience humanity.

So that He could be my substitute.

When Christ was tempted in the desert, that wasn't some watered-down pseudo-experience so that we could have a neat Bible story. He didn't stand smugly, immune to hunger or longing or weakness, listening to the devil prattle on about something-or-other. He was hungry. He knew want. He felt the feelings of it all. No, He never sinned, never gave into the flesh that pained Him, but the trappings that warred against Him as they war against me were not diminished by His divinity. He understands what it takes to say no to the enemy's "best offer." He had to understand it to truly take my place in the matter.

If we abide in Him, friends, we have all that we need to face the battle and win. He doesn't expect us to have the strength on our own. "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." We are weak. We are human, we are flesh....only His Spirit within us is capable of withstanding our self-destruct tendency. From that first bite of the apple, we are hell-bent. Our minds, our bodies are unable to reach for anything but what is harmful until we finally bottom out. But if we will just surrender this old body to Christ -- mind, will, and emotions -- and rely on Him to give us the steps to take, we can face the temptations that lay coiled along our path and move safely past them. He faced every battle for us already. He went through it all in our stead so that in His holiness we could seek refuge. He went through it all so that every trial could be used for glorious benefit on our behalf.

What heights of love! What depths of peace!
Here, friend. Here in the death of Christ we will live today. Here, in His love, HIS power, we will stand. Here strivings cease...Here we find rest.

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
-- Psalm 91:1

Precious, precious Savior of my soul, of my heart, of my life.
My precious Jesus.

Just Words

We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to keep his whole body in check.

James 3:2

I don't get around to watching awards shows that often. With 4 kids to keep my evening "dance" card pretty full, it's usually a challenge to make a date with the old TV. But last night I did catch part of Vanity Fair -- er, I mean, the Golden Globes ;) And although I enjoy seeing the fashion sense (or lack of it) parade across that stage as much as the next person, my favorite part is hearing the acceptance speeches.

I'm sick, I know, but I like to listen and guess whether or not the award winner truly "never expected to win this" or instead stayed up all night trying to memorize a few suitable paragraphs to the little people who made it all possible. I had a good time doing this last night, and I have to admit, there were a few who had me stumped. But I think, overall, it is usually obvious as to how much thought a person has given to their words. And in my experience, it is much better to ponder them beforehand than afterward :\

James had a lot to say about the untamed tongue. I think that if he lived in our day, he would shake his head at the trouble we take with grand speeches, toasts and other public formalities that are forgotten in a day. How much do those few, incidental words mean when stacked against our everyday speech to each other? I could have come up with the most romantic sonnet of a wedding vow, but if I spew trash to my mate for the rest of my life, what difference does that make? Like alcohol to a open sore, a few sanitized words can cause the wounds I have inflicted on another to sting and smart, making them wonder at my duplicity. It is so important to be consistent, isn't it? In my words to another is the key to the life or death of that relationship.

James lays it out squarely: my words are either sowing life and peace or death and destruction. There is no middle ground. And though God only knows (and truly DOES know) the attitude of my heart as I communicate with another of His precious children, the fate of the world between us lies in my hands. Like a ship's rudder, it will drive the course of my life, leaving others in my wake or else bringing them on board. But in the miry depths of communication, how can I be sure that I am on a safe path? When honesty can be brutal and lies can seduce, how can I keep it all in balance?

If I submit my tongue to the Lord, I can know He will bridle it and use it to bring life to those around me. But if I let it go untamed and unchecked, it will stir up such a hell around me that all those in close vicinity will be scorched by its flame. No matter what I think I should say, no matter what I come up with in my all-nighter speech-writing session, I must bring it all to His feet and ask for that wisdom from above. And He will give me what is peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere...a river of fresh, healing waters that flow from the wellspring of His love.