Class Action Prayer; August 18, 2019

Posted on August 22, 2019 by jgarrott

Psalm 70:4 But may all who seek you
rejoice and be glad in you;
may those who love your salvation always say,
“Let God be exalted!”

David was in another tough spot here, but he knew better than to make his petition totally self-centered. He asks God to meet his need so that all who seek Him may rejoice. You could call this something of a “class action prayer!” We too would do well to remember that what we ask of God never affects just us; other people are always involved. Our minds, our hearts, are simply not big enough to grasp all the implications of everything we ask of God, but He doesn’t miss anything. That’s why we indeed need to pray according to the guidelines Jesus gave us. We need to start with acknowledging who God is: the perfectly holy Creator who, in His incredible grace, has given us the privilege of praying to Him. Then we need to pray that His sovereignty, His rule, would extend over everything, accomplishing what He desires as perfectly on this earth as it does before His throne in heaven. Then we are free to pray that our needs be met, but we need to let Him show us the difference between our genuine needs and what our flesh might desire. We need to recognize our sinful imperfection, and as a consequence, forgive those who have sinned against us. That can be a big issue! God loves the other person as much as He loves us, so in recognizing His grace toward us, we need to extend it to others. And in asking for protection from evil, we again need to recognize that others need that protection as much as we do. Individual, personal prayer is a vital part of every area of our lives, but we must remember that we aren’t the only people God cares about.

I’m as prone to self-centered prayer as anyone, so I’m talking to myself. The more things pile up for me, the less I’m able to see and care about the issues others face. As I pray honestly about my own situation, I need to include others as well. I do pray the Lord’s Prayer fairly often, expanding it in various ways, but I’m not to think that corrects my self-centered tendencies completely. I teach others about intercession, praying for others, but I don’t do enough of it myself. I need to take a cue from David and include others every time I pray. My own father, in a letter he wrote to the family before the heart surgery from which he woke up in heaven, pointed out that God’s will for each of us fits in perfectly with His will for everyone else. I’ve got to be willing to be the cog that turns the gear in someone else’ life to bring them the blessing they need.

Father, thank You for this reminder. I’ve had a number of things pile up for me recently, but this morning You were reminding me that those around me have issues as well, and often more severe ones at that. I do ask Your grace for us all, that we may all give You the praise and obedience that You alone deserve, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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The Sacrifice of Praise; August 17, 2019

Posted on August 19, 2019 by jgarrott

Psalm 69:30-31 I will praise God’s name in song
and glorify him with thanksgiving.
This will please the Lord more than an ox,
more than a bull with its horns and hoofs.

This is a clear statement of what the writer of Hebrews calls “the sacrifice of praise.” (Hebrews 13:15) Music doesn’t have to be involved, but it frankly makes it much easier. We have no idea when God first gave the gift of music to mankind, because musical notation came along much later. There are actually many forms of musical notation that survive even today. They are certainly niche items at this point, such as the way music is written for the shakuhachi, the Japanese vertical flute, including indications not only for which note to play but also how to make the sound “wobble,” but they give us hints as to how music might have been written thousands of years ago. I would love to hear how David sang his Psalms, but I’ll have to wait for heaven for that! The important thing, which we do have through the lyrics that are left to us, is the focus on God. Sometimes that focus isn’t easy to achieve, and requires a very definite act of the will. In the verse ahead of this David says, “I am in pain and distress.” That’s why it’s a sacrifice of praise. When we’re feeling good and blessed, praise is no sacrifice at all! The sacrifice of praise is powerful indeed. Over 50 years ago I knew a man who was born and raised in Hiroshima. He was a young teenager in the closing days of WWII, and had been sent out of the city to do agricultural day work because food was in short supply, saving his life when the atomic bomb was dropped. He managed to walk back to the city after the bomb, and with difficulty located where his home had been, and he realized that none of his family could have survived. He wandered the city in a daze, thinking not about whether to commit suicide, but how to commit suicide, since he could see no hope whatsoever for himself. As he walked he heard singing, and in great amazement that anyone could sing in such devastation he found a damaged but still standing church, and people inside were holding a service. Long story short, they told him about the hope they had in Christ, and he too believed. At the point that I knew him, he was a deeply joyful, jovial even, administrator of a Christian school. He died of leukemia, almost certainly as a result of his radiation exposure, but there was a smile on his face even in the middle of his suffering. He had indeed learned the sacrifice of praise.

I have been blessed to know many of God’s saints, like the man I just mentioned. I could tell stories about them all day! I have learned, as they did, the incredible blessing of praising God. As I started my devotional time this morning my mind was greatly distracted, so I stopped everything and just sang to God. That did the trick! Right now there are many distractions because the spiritual warfare is pretty intense, but there are many blessings as well. Yesterday at the gallery show the Lord brought many people with whom we could share the love of God in various ways, and I have assurance that He will continue to do that through the remaining time. I am to choose to praise Him continually, in my heart even when not vocally, trusting that His plans are always for my blessing and His glory.

Father, thank You for this strong reminder. All sorts of things are pressing on us at this point. As I tell others all the time, help me keep my eyes on You rather than on the issues, and give You the sacrifice of praise regardless of what is going on in the natural, so that Your name may be acknowledged as holy and Your kingdom come as Your will is done, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Influence; August 16, 2019

Posted on August 18, 2019 by jgarrott

Psalm 69:6 May those who hope in you
not be disgraced because of me,
O Lord, the Lord Almighty;
may those who seek you
not be put to shame because of me,
O God of Israel.

This is a prayer that needs to be taught in every seminary in the world! Actually every believer, but especially every church leader, needs to have this attitude. The thing is, our attitudes and actions don’t affect just us. Every time a known Christian trips up, other Christians feel the pain in some way. That’s not to take too much responsibility on us; the Church has survived some pretty spectacular failures over the past 2000 years. However, every last one of us needs to be concerned as to how our lives are going to impact others. We don’t deal in abstract concepts very well, so just being good/faithful for the sake of being good doesn’t resonate too effectively. However, understanding that our actions influence others should motivate us. Sadly, we tend to be so self-centered that we don’t realize our impact, or if we realize it, we might not even care. That is downright tragic. We need to pray this prayer of David so that everyone will be blessed and God will be glorified.

This certainly applies to me! I’m about to hit 38 years of living in Omura. Many people know me, and many more know of me. My prayer is that what they know may draw them to repentance and faith, and not be an excuse for them to walk away. Cathy and I have hit our golden wedding anniversary, and I have assurance that seeing us has indeed given people hope for their own marriage, and caused some young people to desire to be married. Cathy’s many medical trials have been a powerful witness to many as they have seen how she has made it through them. Just yesterday someone told her, “My god doesn’t do stuff like that!” She is a testimony of God’s faithfulness. In this year’s photo show, that will end at 2 pm on the 19th, we have included small pictures of the two of us and our family over the past 50 years. Quite a few people have been more interested in those than in the large, “artwork” photographs that take up the majority of the wall space. I am beyond grateful that we don’t have shameful incidents to record in those pictures, but they all speak of God’s faithfulness.

Father, thank You indeed for Your faithfulness. I continue to pray along with David that my life would draw people to You and not drive them away, for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Witnessing; August 15, 2019

Posted on August 18, 2019 by jgarrott

Psalm 66:16 Come and listen, all you who fear God;
let me tell you what he has done for me.

In reading this Psalm just now it strikes me that the Psalmist isn’t just talking about good stuff God has done. From verse 10 he talks about how God has tested him, but verse 12 says, “We went through fire and water, but You brought us to a place of abundance.” In other words, he is praising God for the hard times as well as the good. That is real faith. Our testimony isn’t to be sugar coated, but rather honest, even to the point of being gritty. “It was rough, but I’m not the same person I was when I started, and God is good,” is a testimony more people need to hear! Too many people today have been raised to expect everything to be good all the time, and when life isn’t like that, they break down and have a fit. Raising children like that is, frankly, child abuse. I’ve heard some stories recently that tested my credulity, that any parent would be that misguided, but those stories are sadly true. Life isn’t like that, and our testimonies of God’s love and faithfulness need to be honest above all. After all, even Jesus told us clearly, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33) Testimonies that leave out the trouble are nothing more than fantasies.

I have had my troubles along the way, and I have them now, but the balance is overwhelmingly in favor of blessing. It’s easy to overlook the trouble when I am so aware of the blessing, but if I focus on the trouble, I forget the blessing! I am totally in agreement with Paul when he said, “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.” (2 Corinthians 4:17) This is a lesson I’ve had to learn over the years. I’m in the middle of a computer problem right now that would have been devastating a few years ago, but my feeling right now is that this too will pass, however much inconvenience is involved in the process. I can’t say I enjoy trouble – I’m no masochist – but I’ve learned to take heart like Jesus said, because in Him I am more than a conqueror. (Romans 8:37) When I share the Gospel with others I am not to hide anything, but focus on the love of God above all.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for the opportunities for witness You’re giving us in the photo show. I pray that many would be drawn to You through hearing of Your faithfulness to us over the past 50 years, for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Practical Faith; August 14, 2019

Posted on August 16, 2019 by jgarrott

Psalm 63:3-4 Because your love is better than life,
my lips will glorify you.
I will praise you as long as I live,
and in your name I will lift up my hands.

When we sing this verse we forget that when David wrote it he had multiple real threats on his life. In the first place, Saul and his army were actively out to kill David! In hiding from them, David was in a place where death from dehydration was a very real possibility, and possibly even death from hunger. And that doesn’t mention the snakes and other potentially deadly animals in the area. This Psalm wasn’t just pretty words when David composed it! We tend to romanticize the Bible when we read it, forgetting that it’s about real people facing real situations, and they couldn’t see the outcome of their situation the way we can, since we have the whole book. David’s faith was practical, grown in the struggles he had as a young shepherd boy battling wild animals to protect his sheep. That faith was being tested and grown in this period when he was being chased around by Saul. He didn’t know how long he would live, but he made the conscious choice to praise God for however long that was. We may not have as many active threats to our life as David did, but we can make the same choice he did, and we are much better off if we do.

I don’t have any active threats to my life that I’m aware of, but I’ve already lived almost seven years longer than my father did, and I have no guarantee of tomorrow. However, like my father, I have a guarantee of eternity! David’s understanding of life after death was sketchy at best, but I have the whole Bible in my heart and mind, not to mention the fact that my wife has been to heaven and come back to report on it! Like David, I have discovered the joy of praising my God, who is more than worthy of all praise and worship. I have learned that praising God is actually very effective spiritual warfare, because it acknowledges Him as the only one with ultimate power. When we praise God, we remind the devil that he is a defeated foe, and he hates that! It is precisely when my flesh feels least like praising God that I have the most need to do so. Asaph nailed it: “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion for ever.” (Psalm 73:26)

Father, thank You for this reminder. All sorts of things are going on around me, but none of them are of any importance compared to You. Help me remember that in practical terms, giving You the sacrifice of praise and obedience, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Rest; August 13, 2019

Posted on August 16, 2019 by jgarrott

Psalm 62:1 My soul finds rest in God alone;
my salvation comes from him.

This verse is echoed in verse five, just changing “hope” for “salvation.” However, the Japanese translation puts a very different slant on them both. It says, “My soul is quiet, just waiting expectantly for God.” That’s all the more striking to me because it was the word, rest, that drew my attention to this in the first place. Right now I feel like I could happily go back to bed for an hour or two! There is actually a deep truth in those seemingly conflicting translations. We won’t really rest until we shut up and let God be God. As the rest of the Psalm proclaims, David had learned from experience that God alone was dependable, and people in particular were unreliable and treacherous. That’s something we do well to remember! Every one of us has been disappointed by people, and we have disappointed others. We have all run into people who, like it says in verse four, bless with their mouths while cursing in their hearts, and we need to be on guard against doing such ourselves. God alone is totally honest, and He can’t deceive Himself. (There’s a philosophical question of whether there is anything an omnipotent God can’t do, but actually there are a handful, and self-deception is one of those.) We need to trust Him enough to shut up and wait for Him to speak and do what He alone knows is best. We have to come to terms with the reality that we simply don’t know, much less have the power to enforce, what is best. Only then can we have the rest our souls need and desire.

Every time this subject comes up I go back to what the Lord told me personally several years ago: rest, relax, rejoice. He has given me many lessons in that since then! I have a photo show starting today, running through the 19th. We set up yesterday, with some details left for this morning, and things went much more smoothly than they have some years. (This is an annual event.) All the same, I was exhausted by the time we got home, as well as dehydrated. Every day for the next week I will be constrained by the gallery schedule, being there to answer visitors’ questions, hopefully selling a few pictures, and most desirably, sharing Christ with those who seem open to such. Having to be there, and waiting through times when no one comes in, are emotionally tiring. I need to be waiting expectantly for whatever God has planned, trusting that He will use me to draw people to Himself in this week, for His glory.

Father, thank You for Your patience in teaching me that I can indeed do nothing apart from You. (John 15:5) Help me indeed rest, relax, and rejoice in You, today and throughout this week, looking forward with anticipation to whatever You have planned, for the sake of the Body of Christ and for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Language; August 12, 2019

Posted on August 15, 2019 by jgarrott

Psalm 61:4 I long to dwell in your tent for ever
and take refuge in the shelter of your wings.

I think every believer has moments when this is the primary cry of their heart. We get more than tired of “the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune” and just want to be comforted in God’s presence. It isn’t necessarily suicidal, but just being tired of putting up with all the junk. We don’t have any description of God that specifically involves wings, but four times in his Psalms David uses the expression, “the shadow of Your wings,” talking to God, and it has been a dearly loved poetic image ever since. Isaiah mentions an owl caring for its young in the shadow of its wings, (Isaiah 34:15) and Jesus very famously used the image as He wept over Jerusalem. (Luke 13:14) For anyone who’s been around birds very much, it’s a very natural and beautiful image. It’s not that David, or even Jesus, was saying that God has feathers! The Bible has many poetic images, and being too literal can get us confused. That’s why we need the Holy Spirit to show us what He meant when He had people write the words we read today. Who better to interpret a book than the Author?

Having written poetry since childhood, the poetic images in the Bible seem very natural to me. Actually, since I wrote my first poem after I had read through the Bible for the first time, the influence probably went the other direction! I have a deep love of language, and at the same time I am sharply aware of its limitations. I am grateful to be bilingual, because some things are easier to say in one language than another. However, I think poetry can sometimes transcend all of that. It takes a lot of words to explain “in the shadow of Your wings,” for example. I need to let the Holy Spirit use whatever words or images are necessary to get God’s truth through to me, and I in turn need to let Him guide me in what I use to express that truth to others. I love to play with words, and I think that’s fine. Sometimes that produces laughter and sometimes groans, but my highest goal with words should be opening people’s hearts to God’s love and truth, whatever shape that takes.

Father, thank You for language. Thank You for reminding me at that moment that You spoke the universe into existence. May I speak Your words so that they may have their full effect, (Isaiah 55:10-11) bringing people into Your light and life for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Advance Praise; August 11, 2019

Posted on August 15, 2019 by jgarrott

Psalm 59:16-17 But I will sing of your strength,
in the morning I will sing of your love;
for you are my fortress,
my refuge in times of trouble.
O my Strength, I sing praise to you;
you, O God, are my fortress, my loving God.

The first part of this Psalm reminds me of a novel I read about a mercenary assassin. David seemed to have several of them after him, and they weren’t just in it for the money. It’s interesting that from verse 11 he asks God not to kill them, but rather use them to teach others not to follow their example. In contrast to the fate he wishes on those who seek to kill him, David speaks here of the assurance he has because of his faith in God. There’s no question that he was a musician, singing praise to God. He not only looks forward to singing after God has rescued him, he sings in anticipation as well. I think just about everyone finds it easy to praise God once a crisis is over, but not so many praise Him in anticipation of what He is going to do. That’s where real faith comes in. I once read the testimony of someone who was smuggling Bibles into the Soviet Union. They entered a room at the border with a row of tables across the middle, with customs agents ready to inspect everyone’s bags. He was very nervous about what might happen to him because of his suitcase full of Bibles, but the customs agent opened the suitcase, acted like he didn’t even see the Bibles, closed it, and said the person was free to enter the country. Picking up his suitcase he was rejoicing, but then he heard the Lord say to him, “You are rejoicing on the wrong side of the table.” In other words, God wanted him to trust Him enough to rejoice before he saw what God was going to do. That’s what David is doing here, and we would do well to follow his example.

Well this certainly applies to me! I remember how struck I was when I read the testimony I just mentioned, and I have sought to be that way myself. I haven’t always succeeded! However, I have experienced God’s faithfulness and power so many times that it is definitely easier to praise Him in dark moments than it once was. I just read of an elderly couple in the US who died by murder-suicide because they didn’t have money for medical issues they both had. That’s not how I am to be! Frankly, my wife’s current medical issues are serious, and I’ve already outlived my father by almost seven years, but I know God’s plans for us are magnificent, whatever we go through on the way there. I am to rest, relax, and rejoice in Him, praising Him even when – and especially when – I don’t see His purpose in my immediate situation.

Father, thank You for Your overflowing grace toward me. Help me walk in full assurance of Your grace and love, leading others as well to lift their eyes off of themselves and their immediate circumstances and praise You in faith and trust, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Sin and Salvation; August 10, 2019

Posted on August 13, 2019 by jgarrott

Psalm 57:6 They spread a net for my feet—
I was bowed down in distress.
They dug a pit in my path—
but they have fallen into it themselves.

I can imagine David’s delight at being able to write this. There is something deeply satisfying about the tricks of evil people rebounding to their destruction. When that happens we like to pretend that “we knew it all along,” but David is honest enough to say that things really got to him before they turned around. We have a lot of trouble really trusting God when He says, “It is mine to avenge; I will repay. In due time their foot will slip; their day of disaster is near and their doom rushes upon them.” (Deuteronomy 32:35) Paul reminds us of this in Romans 12:19, but we tend to feel it’s up to us and get all hopeless, or else we try to take things into our own hands and really make a mess of it all. We need to get it through our heads and hearts that nobody gets away with anything, period. The scary thing is, that applies to us, too! That’s why the cross and resurrection of Christ are such incredibly good news. However, they don’t sound like such good news to someone who doesn’t acknowledge their own sins and realize that they have earned hell. That’s a major reason evangelism is so tough in Japan, because it’s a shame culture rather than a sin culture. Children are told, “Don’t do that because people will laugh at you,” rather than, “Don’t do that because it’s wrong.” The word that is used for “sin” is generally synonymous with “crime,” so the general population has great difficulty seeing themselves as sinners. We all like to justify ourselves and feel we are in the right about everything, but true salvation comes when we let go of that and cast ourselves on God’s grace and mercy, knowing that Jesus died for our sins specifically, and not just in some general way. That’s why the Bible talks so much about humility: it is pride that keeps us from confessing our sins to God and receiving His forgiveness.

My massive encounter with God was all about pride. I had blinded myself to my own sin, just like the Bible says: “For in his own eyes he flatters himself too much to detect or hate his sin.” (Psalm 36:2) God loved me enough to break through that pride, and I couldn’t be more grateful. However, He has given me the commission to communicate the Gospel to the Japanese, and as I said, they don’t have a clear grasp of what sin is all about. That’s why American evangelistic techniques simply don’t work. They can seem to be great at first, until you discover that people are agreeing with you simply to be agreeable, and not because of any fundamental change in their heart. I am not to give up, but rather keep speaking the truth in love, allowing the Holy Spirit to use me to lay the foundation for genuine repentance and salvation. I know I’m not up to the task, but the Holy Spirit is, and I am to rejoice in that.

Father, thank You for allowing me to be a disciple, and for the disciples You have raised up and are raising up through me. I pray that we would continue to grow as Your children, Your representatives, so that this nation may see You through us and repent and believe, for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Speaking Righteousness; August 9, 2019

Posted on August 13, 2019 by jgarrott

Psalm 52:3 You love evil rather than good,
falsehood rather than speaking the truth.

Here’s another verse I’m sure I’ve never written on before! We don’t really like reading the Bible’s descriptions of evil people, but they too can be very instructive. When we encounter people who fit those descriptions, we know to steer clear of them as much as possible. The preface to this Psalm indicates exactly who it is talking about. The details of that story are found in 1 Samuel 21 and 22, and it is a nasty story indeed. The thing is, we are marked by what we love, just as we will spend eternity with the one we serve. Hebrews 1:9 quotes Psalm 45:7 as referring to Jesus, saying, “You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions by anointing you with the oil of joy.” That’s the exact reverse of this description of Doeg the Edomite. I don’t think there’s any question which we should emulate! It’s interesting that the Japanese for this verse says, “speaking righteousness,” rather than “speaking the truth.” There is a difference between simply speaking fact and speaking righteousness. Righteousness admonishes and builds up, going beyond simply giving information. We have all encountered people who seemed to delight in cutting other people down with their words. That is not speaking righteousness, even if the words happen to be true! I think this is closely related to something Jesus said that concerns me personally: “But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.” (Matthew 12:36-37) Ouch! We need to examine our hearts and our words to see what we love, and if the Holy Spirit says so, repent.

I had no idea where this was going when I started writing, but now I know. I have always been a person of words, and I have used words as weapons more times than I could count. Sometimes my words have hurt people without my intending it, but sometimes it has been intentional. Often I speak more than necessary, delighting in the sound of my own voice. That too is not speaking righteousness. I need to be an instrument of blessing, using the tools God has given me to do His work and nothing less. It was recognized early on that I had a gift for words, but what I do with that gift is what matters. I will reflect what and whom I love, so my focus needs to be on loving Jesus more and more. His every word was righteousness, and that needs to be my goal as well.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for the day yesterday, and all You enabled us to do in it. Thank You for Your plans for today. I pray that I would recognize Your plans and follow them, not drawing back for any reason, so that Your will may be done on Your schedule for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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